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[smear of blonde in the night, she sprawls out under the mass of stars that wink puckishly earthward, viridescent blades pricking at exposed skin in moot protest. gigi saltzman comes in the image of a dollar store angel: adorned in white camisole with peach fuzz bending moonlight reflection into particles of suburban phenomena. cerulean has seldom hardened, especially holding sight of kelsey.]       it’s gonna sound stupid,     [in juvenile manner to console, she’ll lean in with feigned secrecy. her smile’s curve upward, in sentimental predisposition.]       i didn’t even know. i just hoped you were still around.      —it must’ve been lonely.       [teddy wasn’t home,]        wanna come in?

@cultofsaltz            surprise.    [    a weak smile,    her bun messy, barely intact as she brushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear.     averting her gaze,     she could barely look gigi in the eyes. embarrassed.    rumors spread fast.       she could already tell.    disappearing without, saying a goodbye.   it was bitter to see a familiar face again.     ]       it would be easier if i was.         then trouble would at least stop following me.    

—i didn’t buy it. 

that’s so annoying.     [ she comments,  popping off the cap of the lip balm before applying it to her lips.  unfortunately for her,  it was a situation she was familiar with.  once she is finished with her chapstick,  she gives the other her full attention. ]     boyfriend?  or j̲u͟s͟t͟ a boy?  

@atelophobias        [    setting her phone down,  she looked up at the other.    returning a polite smile.     she sighed.   ]       no,    they didn’t.     but it’s whatever,    i wouldn’t expect anything less from such an ass.        

thanks.    [ with a small polite smile,  the blonde pulls out the seat and places her bag atop of the table in front of her.  just as she sits down,  she hesitates before speaking up again,  rummaging through her bag for her chapstick. ]    did they at least tell you they weren’t going to show?  

[he didn’t interrupt her,    didn’t try to soften it.  he just stood there,   broad shoulders squared, alley light humming above them,  the pink glow washing over the black fabric of his mask. when she finished,   when the words stopped shaking in the air between them,   he spoke.]    you think i don’t know what it means?        or what they do to people who get in their way?      [eyes locked onto hers,    he exhales.]      i grew up around guys like that.    ive seen what they leave behind.   this.  [gesturing around them,    the crime scene he’d left behind.]     is already past the point of normal that ship sailed the night they put your father in the ground.        you didn’t sign up for my world.  you’re right.      but they dragged you into it,   since they decided your dad was worth more dead than alive.     [a pause,    clenched jaw underneath the black fabric.]      i’m not telling you to pretend this is fine.   i’m telling you to keep it together long enough to survive it.    

@cashhunt       calm?        how can i be calm.    [   hands clenching by her sides,     fingertips white,   as they curled up into fists.     she couldn’t stay calm any longer,      she felt furious.     ]       you just put down a body back here.     do you even realize..    what this means?      [    a halt,      she shook her head.. almost in disbelief.    ]       now we’re in it.      we’re definitely screwed.    up to our necks.     and,      you expect me to just brush it off?       [    she ran a hand through her disheveled hair,     biting her lower lip.    ]      those people my dad was mixed up with..  they aren’t just names on a list.     they’re killers.      and we just made it probably worse.         [     she tried to corral the storm inside of her,    the frustration and angst building up.      ]      i didn’t sign up for this.       blood-   and guns.    [   a pause of hesitation,    her chest felt heavy as brown eyes locked onto his.    shaped brows knitted slightly.     ]            to be part of your world.   and yet,      i have no choice.   if you think I’m just going to do what you say and pretend it’s normal—you’re wrong.  

[cash eyes moved over her,   once.  quick and assessing then back to her face.   the black balaclava covering most of his face.  there seemed no panic.    just calculation on his features.    a drawn out pause,   he couldn’t drag her with him.]     okay,    listen to me.   [voice low but firm,  he looked at her.  serious.]        you walk back inside.   slow,    not rushed.      head down like you’re annoyed about a bad tip or something.      you’ve done that walk before.     [greenish hues,   briefly flicked past her shoulder toward the alley entrance.  a deep breath.]     go straight to the dressing room.  don’t talk to anyone.     if someone stops you,   keep walking.     [he sighed,    moving closer that his presence felt solid,   grounded. the faint scent of gunpowder and cold night air clinging to him. ]    don’t look back over here.     [his jaw tightened slightly, eyes hard in a way that meant he was already ten steps ahead, already carrying the weight of what came next alone.]     i’ll handle this.     you just get clean,   keep your routine.   same smile.    [a beat passed, he looked away.]    you being calm,  keeps this from getting worse.  

          .

the girl who once had it all,    is now a stranger in her own town.   carrying the weight of loss and guilt.   but she was back with a reason,  the truth about her father gnaws at her.   she needed to know what had happened.   tangled in the web of the world her father left behind, a web of power and greed.   
            
            her old friend, maddy had reached out to her, hearing about the difficulties and she offers her a lifeline,  an invitation to work under her protection.    owning a business, kelsey never imagined to return to.   the club was a place of refuge,   though she agreed.   dance,  was a passion after all.    it’s the only way to protect herself from the storm that’s still hunting her.    
            
            as a show girl becomes both a prison and a platform.    working there,  she earns her freedom, but she also sees the cost of that freedom.   the people who are after her family are still searching for her,  and every step she takes in this dangerous world is a step closer to the truth.  

season two:   though things seem to take a twist, as she overhears an argument between her parents.    the one that shatters,   the perfect image of her life.       her father,    the mayor has been living a lie.    his empire built on years of manipulation,    is crumbling beneath the weight of those choices.    the mayor who had been untouchable,    was in debt owed to a gang that seemed to control everything.      after hearing this,     her world tilts,   after hearing this secret.  a shift occurs within her.      her family’s reputation was on the line,     she felt herself getting powerless.     she’s terrified of the future,     of what happens when glitter fades and everything her father had build.  
            
            taking matters into own hands,   she seeks a way to make money,    as a woman on the edge of desperation.       what starts, as a calculated move,    quick spiraled into something darker. she finds herself in the underworld of a club,  a strip club.     she starts working as a waitress,    distant and aloof.    the money,    feels  from controlling her own destiny slowly drawn her in.    
            
            season three:    coming soon.      five years pass, her glamour life is over.   her fathers death,  brutal.  as he was murdered.     left a void where once was power.     consequence of his dealings, and with his death, the empire crumbles.  kelsey and her mother flee town, their lives shattered in the aftermath.     the wealth, the power, the safety—all gone.     
            
            at their new place.  her mother, unable to cope with the loss of her husband and the life they once knew, falls into the depths of alcoholism. kelss, forever the protector, feels an overwhelming sense of responsibility for her downward spiral.     with nothing left to tie her to the past,   without a word to her on returns to the town she once left behind.  

looks like you do,   though.    [he retorted, a stern tone.   yet,    teasing.    as he found it clearly amusing.]        let me show you then.    [without a warning,     he took the weapon from her hands. a satisfied smile.    he reloaded the gun,  effortlessly.]       your stance is wrong.    you’re only going to hurt yourself.       just,    watch.  

@cashhunt       [      taking a step back,    she slightly glared at him.     ]      really.    i don’t need your help.   

you’re holding it wrong.    [an amused chuckle as he let her take the gun,   he took a step forward. standing behind her to get her in the right position of the shooting range.]     here, let me help.    

[she’s a small flare, bundled into little more than hand—me—down top of millie’s parceled directly from bar-hopping college town and miss sixty denim skirt she’d saved up all of the summer’s allowances to breathe second life into.]       god, i mean, how do they find the time?   doesn’t your dad have, like, a town to run?       [the bathroom’s glaring blue tint sticks to bare skin like candy stain, washing out georgina. muting the girls’ silhouettes’ hues, their discordant constitutions.]       feels like you’re under a microscope.. like a pretty bug everyone likes to look at but no one wants to touch.        [the botticelli countenance of gigi saltzman softens, peaking through the mirror whilst running through the motions of feminine routine. discarded gloss, lips bitten into to flesh out make-believe sensuality.]       thanks. i swear, i changed the skirt like, thrice this morning.      (…)      i’m pretty sure the bus driver started pulling up to my place fifteen minutes late because he just knows, y’know?

@cultofsaltz      [     she tilts her head, lips twitching into a small smirk at her  jab about switching parents.  ]       your mom sounds intense. [ a disbelief chuckle left glossed lips,   she leaned against the sink.     ]     i mean… i think dad’s got me beat in the “constantly watching over me” department.     but hey—     swap for a day?      maybe we’d both need therapy after.
            [ at that thought,    she shook her head lightly.   fixing her hair into the mirror,   as she watched her reflection.      ]      i saw everyone else getting wild,      sounds like i missed that..  well, a good start of the year.       [a beat,    she looked over at her.]      love your outfit,    it’s very bold.     

gigi.      [the space of the bathroom is cluttered, a myriad of feminine gadgets and interests left where they last held flighty attentions. the calamity of solitary confinement feels less burdensome with kelsey’s presence.]       i can imagine..   i think. it’s my mom who’s totally crazy.   maybe we could switch them for the day once, see who has it worse.      [she’s kittenish, shipped to fit to the space reserved between rows of sinks with the pink of her legs peering through from childish hymnic rhythm.]        i mean, it totally was—   i saw you leave like that with all those other people..   you missed out big time. 

@cashhunt        [      she didn’t look away this time.   if anything,  she straightened,  her shoulders rolling back as if she’d already decided she wasn’t going to shrink in this moment.    there was no sadness in her expression, no tears threatening to spill.   just a calm,   steady resolve that felt almost unexpected.     ]     i figured you knew.    [    she said lightly,   not defensive,  not ashamed.    her voice was quiet but sure.   ]     or,   at least suspected.  why?    [     she echoed, tilting her head slightly as she thought.     ]       it pays.   because it’s fast money.     and,    because i’m good at it.   [      brown eyes flicked back to his, unwavering.    ]    i grew up being told who I was supposed to be.    [     she shrugged, casual, like she’d already made peace with it.     ]      and..  if you think i’m desperate.  i’m not.       [     she held his gaze, steady and unflinching.     remembering,    the times back in school,     how much things have changed for the both.    she didn’t feel like the same person back then.  an innocent crush, hallway stares.   he definitely wasn’t the same person now.            she knew that too.     ]    no backing out,   that goes both ways.    

promise.     i’ll keep my word.       just,    no backing out.     [ then,   carefully almost cautiously, he added. ]     kels,    can i ask you something though.     [a silent encouragement before he continued,  choosing the right words.]        about you.   i know you’re working at that club.       i only want to understand why,     and i’m not judging.   i just… if we’re going down this road together,    i need to know the pieces of the life you’re living.    the things you’re doing,    the risks you’re taking.    

@cashhunt        [     she seemed surprised,    this was a life or death situation and he still wanted to help.      ]       you sure?          just promise me,   you’ll be honest with me.    no lies,    if we’re going to do this..   whatever plan you have in your sick mind.          i do trust you,    now.