Zinnia

I stood behind the counter of Brookside Club, bored out of my mind. I watched men in three dollars tailored suits and women in one-dollar cougar-styled dressing walk up to the bar, ordering whiskey on the rocks in an attempt to fit into a lifestyle that isn't meant for them. But this is Brookside, a shitty club on Sunday Avenue.

I returned every smile that was shot my way, even though I was ready to call it a day and return to my one-bedroom apartment and lay my broken bones on my tattered four-poster bed.

"Hey Zinnia, table five wants a double shot of cider" Alex, my co-worker and the closest thing I have to a friend, leaned on the counter as she spoke. I nodded and quickly got the order started. Soon enough, I was walking to table five.

"A double shot of cider for two gentle men." I forced a smile on my face as I placed the drinks on the table. They were far from being gentlemen. Not to be stereotypical, but the overgrown beards on their chin and the look in their eyes came off as perverted to me. And that was confirmed when one of them grabbed my arm when I tried to walk away and pulled me back, ending me on his lap.

"Why are you in a haste, sweetheart? Stay with us for a while and I'll tip large." The man whose lap I sat on, caressed my cheek as he spoke. They burst out in laughter, probably at the lame sexual joke he'd just made. cringe in disgust, bile building in my throat and threatening to spill out.

His hand made contact with my bare thigh and he squeezed hard. Tears welled up my eyes but I blinked them away. They might be perverted, but they tipped well, and God knows how much I needed that tip. Zero pun intended.

His hand moved higher and higher, aiming for the zipper of my denim shorts. I grabbed his hand to stop him, but his free hand yanked my hair backwards, stopping me. I looked around, sending pleading eyes to anyone who could help, but it never came. Brookside was, after all, a club that harbours night workers.

"She's clearly not interested, why don't you let her be and deal with someone interested" I heard Alex's angry voice. I quickly got up from his lap and shot Alex a thankful stare.

"And who might that be?" the man whose lap I sat on a few seconds ago questioned.

"Me, of course.” She flashed him a forced smile, then turned to me. "The man at the corner of the room asked for a bottle of Gin, be a darling and tend to him, yeah?"

I gave Alex a questioning stare, asking if she was sure and she replied with an assuring smile. I took off for the bar to get a bottle of Gin before heading to the table to deliver.

A man sat in the corner of the room, his head facing downwards. As I approached, I realised he was dressed in all black. I placed the bottle of Gin on the table with a glass, still, he never looked up, and it didn't help that he wore a face cap. It was impossible to take in his features, and why I cared so much about it was beyond my comprehension.

When I realised he wasn't going to acknowledge me, I decided to leave.

"Why do you let them treat you like that?" his voice stopped me in my tracks. I turned on my feet and gasp when I came face to face with a cold and empty violet stare. His face was expressionless.

"What?" I thought I'd heard him wrong. I rested my weight on one foot and folded my arms, waiting on him to elaborate.

"Why do you let them treat you like that?" he spoke again, this time, opening the bottle of Gin and filling his glass.

I scoffed. "And why do you care?"

"Because." He muttered coldly, bringing the glass to his lips. "I suppose I should treat you like that too, if you want a tip?" He added.

I rolled my eyes at his statement. Clearly, he was just trying to get under my skin, and I refused to fall ever so foolishly into it. I turned, ready to leave when he spoke again.

"Money"...

With a frown on my face, I let out an exasperated sigh and turned, ready to speak when he slid a card towards me.

"For the Gin" he added, poured another glass. "And your tip of course"

"What?"

"That's your tip. Deduct the cost of the Gin and you can use the card to your heart's satisfaction" he murmured blankly.

I chuckled and shook my head in disbelief. This has got to be a sick joke of some kind.

"Cash only" I replied, sliding back the card to him.

"For what? The Gin or the Tip" he replies sinisterly, a smirk creeping up his plump lips.

My mouth shot open. "You-"...

He cut me off as he emptied his glass and rose to his feet, grabbed his jacket and was ready to leave.

"Hey, you have to pay for this"...

He ignored me as he rapidly put on his jacket, fished through his wallet and threw a bill of fifty next to the card and walked past me.

"In case you need to hail a cab to spend your tip" he finalised and walked out on me, leaving me perplexed as I tried to make sense of what just happened.

My eyes did a quick swipe of the room before grabbing the card and the bill of fifty and walking to the counter. I swiped the card through the POS machine and first paid for the Gin.

"Would you look at that, it's loaded" I murmured and stuffed the card in my bag.

Alex walked up to me with a frown on her face and grumbling.

"Fucking assholes. All that touching just to tip five dollars" she slammed the tray on the counter. I pouted, feeling pity for her.

An idea popped up in my mind. "Are you free tomorrow? Let's go shopping"

She rolled her eyes. "Why? You won the jackpot?"

I smiled. "More like, I got a massive tip" I replied, and we both burst into a fit of laughter.

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