gone. - DISCONTINUED.

{5}

When the night was finally over and we earned all of our money's worth, we came home and I immediately took a shower. I had blood all over me, dried and fresh, and it was all in my clothes and in my hair. I scrubbed and scrubbed, getting out once I felt clean. I dried off, staring into the mirror and grabbing wipes, taking all the make up off of my face. I hated having to do this job. I frowned, gripping the edge of the sink and running a hand through my wet curls, deciding to let them air dry. A knock came on the door and I jumped, quickly putting on clothes before cracking open the door, peeking my head out. It was Laylani, and I sighed, opening the door wider and hanging up the towel. "I tried saving all the money that didn't have blood stained on it in my room, and one of the girls made food." She frowned and I nodded, stepping out of the bathroom carefully and cutting off the light.

"Are you hungry at all?" She asked, walking in front of me. I crossed my arms, following her and shaking my head. "I've seen enough guts and bloody brains for one night, I'd rather just stay inside and relax." I shrugged and she nodded. "First night shake ups, always a classic." She went inside her room, that she shared with one other girl. She had long, platinum blonde hair, dimple piercings, and her butt was so huge it looked unreal. Her hair was in a bun, and she was flipping through a magazine. "This is Cheyenne. Cheyenne, Hazel." She motioned towards me, and Cheyenne looked up and smiled. "She's cute. Where'd he find her at?" She pointed at me as Laylani threw a pillow down on the floor and plopped on her bed, patting towards the floor. "Found her wandering lost on the streets." I sat in front of Lay with my legs crossed, counting the money that she put aside for me. "Six thousand?" I said out loud, and Cheyenne laughed. "Yeah, she's a real cute amateur. Can't wait, she'll probably end up being Twelvy's comfort girl or something." She said, sitting up in the bed. I raised a brow, confused. "What's a comfort girl?" I asked as Laylani tied a band around her money, messing with my hair.

"Comfort girls are like...girlfriends, almost." She said, running her fingers through. "They get treated nicely, paid, stuff like that." She explained. "And they get to fuck." Cheyenne said simply and Lay flashed a glare. "Keep it PG, poor girl's only 17." She said and Chey looked surprised. "17, huh? Bitch is a runner already?" She asked, and I played with my hands awkwardly. "Who's Twelvy again?" I asked. "Skinny looking dope boy, you'll know him once you'll see him. He's the youngest out of every nigga in the mob." "And the only one without a pretty little comfort girl." Cheyenne teased and Laylani chuckled. "True. I'm Ferg's you could say, and Cheyenne over there is high and mighty as Rah Rah's comfort girl." Lay pointed, tying my hair in a large, tight bun and Cheyenne smirked. "Well damn, air all my shit out like that." She laughed, shaking her head. "You're a first time runner, huh?" She asked and I nodded, taking it in. "Well, word of advice. Show as much as possible and talk as much slick shit imaginable and it'll make the job a lot easier." She pointed out. "Hazel did pretty okay for her first night, under 20 minutes." Laylani grinned and Cheyenne looked surprised. "Wow, personal best for new runners. And trust me, there's not a whole lot of us." Cheyenne laid back down on her side, closing her magazine. "How long have you been here?" I asked, remembering Laylani was a runner and a comfort girl since she was 16. "Only a year. I don't do a whole lot of jobs cause I'm already booked down at KD's." I looked confused again. "The strip club? On Uptown?" She dumbed it down and I nodded, as if I understood.

"He allows you to do that?" I asked and she made a face. "The nigga met me there. Besides, I'm sure he ain't give a fuck if I still did it anyways. Ain't paying my bills, just giving me that nice dick." She shrugged and I laughed a little. "Don't listen to her." Laylani rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "She can be a bit crazy." "What? That nigga gives me shoes and clothes, okay, but who payin' for my housing? Right, me." She wiggled her dimple as Lay finished my hair. "Riiight, of course." She laid back, and I scooted off of the pillow. Cheyenne then took a good look at me, squinting some. "Damn. With eyes and a face like yours, you'll be comforting all the niggas in no time." She smiled and I smiled back awkwardly, laughing softly. "Well, I gotta get the baby one back to her room before he catches a case." Laylani stood up, rolling her eyes. "Work tomorrow, for some of us." She sneered as Cheyenne blew a kiss. "Bye baby girl. See you later, Haze." She said as Laylani and I left the room, heading down the hall to my room. "LAY!" I heard a shout as we passed the main room, and she groaned. "Yes?" She called out, stepping into the room. I caught a look at Ferg as he tilted his head up to look at her, holding out his empty glass. She sighed, taking it as she filled it up again with a combination of different drinks, swirling it around in the glass before handing it back to him, leaning down and pecking his lips softly. "Thank you. Get your ass out here, you got work to do." He slapped her butt as she walked out the room and she made a face, leading me back to my room. "And there was your first lesson as a comfort girl. Never forget it." She said dully as she opened my door, leaving it open for me to walk through. "Night Haze." She smiled and I waved. "Night."

I stayed up for a while after that, sitting up in bed and fiddling with my necklace, thinking over Cheyenne and Laylani's practices on being a 'comfort girl'. All of them were older than me, and I really didn't plan on fetching their drinks, rolling their weed, or worse, sleeping with them. But counting the six grand, I remember why I needed to in the first place.