Ginger King

One

Juliet's POV

   The year is 1946 and America has won the war.

   "Juliet come on!" Jane yelled for her best friend of ten years. 'I"m coming!" Jane is taking me to some underground secret place tonight. My dress is yellow while my heels are black. "Jane, do you have lipstick?" I yelled. She responded saying yes. I put on my lipstick and looked in the mirror. "You look lovely, now let's go Mahogany". 

 The night was bright by the lights in the city as it always is. "So, tell me about this cryptic joint," I begged Jane to spill the beans. She smiled and went on saying "it's fabulous. The air is full of adrenaline, smoke, and you can hear the heartbeats around you. The girls swing higher while the men fall harder." Her words were slow and captivating. New York was always filled with excitement and tonight is no exception.

 The car came to a stop at a book store. Jane smirked at me then got out of the car. The area was dark and silent. I paid the driver but felt hesitant getting out of the car. "Juliet, come on." I realized I wasn't paying attention and saw Jane looking impatient. I hurried along to her. I grabbed Jane's hand in hope of some security. Inside was an elderly lady at the desk in the store. I heard some mumbling from behind one of the shelves and saw two tall tan men talking. They both looked at me for a moment. I looked back at them and was wondering if they were speaking about me. I turned my head around to see Jane still speaking to the elderly lady. Jane has always been good at talking to people. She turned to me and did her famous devilish smirk. 

 "Ready fr a real show?" She asked me. I felt a sudden wave of confidence in my curiosity. The closer we got to the door in the back of the room the more the floors vibrated. My nerves were compacted with excitement and thrill. The wooden door opened to a dark hallway. The air vibrated of music. The floor shook from the feet on the other side. The only light you could see was at the end where a blood-red velvet curtain hung. The curtain was heavy and rich to the touch. My walk was slow and debating if I should leave or stay. Jane tightened her grip on my hand. I knew she had a glimpse of what I was thinking. A large man opened the curtains. He tipped his head towards us. "Ms. Jane". He mocked her smile and was off. She blushed and winked "Mr. Oscar" and in that moment I knew, this is strictly forbidden territory. 

 I don't know if my face was showing horror or shock. It was bold. All around me is bold. The room is in a circle. Below me is a pit of people dancing. I am above on a steel catwalk watching them beneath me. "It was built in the '20s," Jane said as she interrupted my string of thought. Her point definitely explained the layout. There was a bar with a golden wall in the pit. Girls were dancing and the men were tripping. They were either tripping from their bubble water or from the ladies around them. Every wink caused a spiled drink. I walked down the stair and noticed something odd. Everyone had normal hair. Let me rephrase that everyone was blonde or brunette, except for one. There was one firey redhead ginger. His skin was pale as snow. He stood with confidence, respect, and elegance. If I had to guess Ii would personally add arrogance.  "Who is that," I asked Jane nudging my head towards the life of the party.

  She looked towards the ginger. "That my friend is the infamous Ginger King." She said while pointing at him. The moment she said did, it was as if an alarm was set off. He quickly looked our way. He raised a glass and tilted his head towards Jane and me. He leaned towards his friend and then his friend looked my way. He was the man I saw upstairs.  I wanted to laugh but his gaze felt too intense to laugh.  "Seriously, Ginger King? What kind of ridiculous name is that?" I asked Jane as she laughed at my statement. "He is British and incredibly rich. Every girl in this room wants him and every man secretly hates him or is in love with him." She looked at me for a second. "That's completely obscured." I  was snickering at this point. Just then the glass is sat in front of me. The bartender saw my confused eyes. "From the king to you as a welcome." The man was very serious. I smiled and said, "well tell your King that this is a democracy and not a monarchy." The bartender smiled and was pleased with my statement.

 Jane squeezed my arm. "Juliet!" she squealed. "What?" I asked innocently. "This is all a joke clearly. I feel bad for him in a way. It must be hard to be the king of a club and not a country." I smirked evilly. She grabbed her drink and we toasted. I turned and met the eyes of the alleged king and toasted him as well. He was calm but, his cheeks were the same shade as his hair now. Turning back to Jane, she said: "what has come over you?" She was in pure confusion. least I'm not the confused one now. "Well f he can be a King then I can be a queen." I couldn't believe the words I was saying. We roared in laughter and went to the dance floor. "Oh Juliet, give the fella a break and go talk to him" Jane just wanted to see a show. "See I would but, I'd much rather not give him the satisfaction his pride desires." I shrugged at my comment. I took her other hand and we danced to every trumpet the room had to offer. It was fast and smooth. I want to know who this King is but, if I think of him then I will be focused on something that isn't important. As Jane swung me I went back and bumped into someone. I gasped "I'm sorry". I apologized.  quickly then I realized. Of course, it's him. 

 "No, that' alright Darlin' I should have watched where I was walking". He was polite. I'll give him that much.  He stuck out his hand. "I'm James" He smirked. What is with everyone smirking? It is creepy and random. He wore his pride on his sleeve. "Well your highness, I'm Juliet." I threw back a smirk but mostly to mock him. "Oh, and thanks for the drink" I added. I turned away and went back to Jane. As I laid eyes on her I saw she already found a new dance partner. He was all over her. I stood watching them when I realized James hadn't left yet. I felt his presence still there. "Are you going to just stand there?" I asked him and he knew it was directed towards him.  "No, I think I am going to dance." He was cool about it. "Alright, have fun." I heard him chuckle. "With you." It was direct and not a question. He set his find on the assumed fact that I was about to dance with him. I turned around and looked at him. "If I agree will you go back to your little group of boys?" He held his hand over his heard as if he was hurt. "Why, yes".

 Rolling my eye I accepted his open hand and we were off. He reminded me of  Jay Gatsby. The band leader looked at James and James nodded indicating that the song was to be changed. I wasn't sure what he had planned and I didn't know if I was ready for whatever he had in store. It seemed like everyone was under his command and maybe they were. Maybe he is a magician or magical creature. Then again, any man with money is a magical creature to the normal eye.

The music sped up and we danced to the pace of it. He was good at dancing but I won't tell him that. He smirked when I looked him in the eyes. Maybe he knows what I'm thinking. He spun me around then grabbed my waist and I yelped out of surprise. "Enjoying yourself?" He asked me. "Yes, yes I am." I smiled and I was being honest with him. I was enjoying myself. He isn't awful but he is still not my person to dance with.

 He continued to try and impress me as the night went on. I'm impressed by the determination he has for me.  Yes, he is physically agreeable but, that is all. I also only just met him.  "Penny for your thoughts," He asked me. "Oh, my thoughts are worth more than a penny Mr. James.". My words made the king smirk. His accent was intriguing. "Tell me about yourself?" I asked him. He looked away then looked back at me.

 "You know curiosity killed the cat." He tried to seem smart. "Yes, but satisfaction brought him back to life." I have said that many times. I may be curious but curious people are always the interesting ones.  I finished my statement and left the dance floor. He didn't follow and I'm eternally grateful. I stormed to find Jane. She was in a booth with a guy. I would say gentleman but, he is far from that title. She saw me coming and started trying to push the half balding guy away. "Come on, let's go," I said to her. "What happened? Did that Brit hurt you?" She asked and was ready to fight. "Nah, I just don't like him". She rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse. "Alright square, let's get going/" She now seemed bored.

 "He thinks he is so great." I knew Jane wasn't listening so I faked an accent and said "Oh, I'm the King. I own this place and have you if I wanted," I took a breath. I decided to shut up. It wasn't worth making a fuss over someone I'll never see again. "Did he even say that Juliet?" Jane asked me rolling her eyes. "No, but he was thinking it," I said trying to seem reasonable. "Maybe he was just trying to be a good host." He stated as a matter of fact. "Whatever." Is all I could say because she was right and I felt defeated.