fantasy
Mary
14
The living room lights were dimmed to a moody amber, and the bass from the portable speaker was vibrating right through the floorboards. Tonight was supposed to be a quiet girls' night in, or at least that was the story Mary had stuck to so I wouldn't stress over her bachelorette party. Instead, I had a gig booked here under a stage name, sliding into the living room in full costume to deliver a surprise private performance for a bride-to-be who thought her fiancé was safely out of town. I stepped forward with my signature smirk, ready to work the room, until my eyes locked directly onto the woman sitting front and center on the couch.
It was Mary. Her mouth dropped open, the bachelorette sash sliding right off her shoulder as she stared up at me in absolute, paralyzed disbelief. For three long seconds, the music felt deafening, and neither of us could breathe. The glitter on my chest suddenly felt terribly heavy, and the sheer betrayal of her sneaking a dancer in clashed hilariously with the fact that I was the dancer she had inadvertently hired. Her friends immediately erupted into breathless giggles and gasps, realizing the massive cosmic joke playing out right in front of them. Mary slowly stood up, her cheeks burning bright crimson as her initial shock melted into a dangerous, fiery glint in her eyes. It hit me right then: the private lap dance was completely off the table, and the ride home tonight was going to require an exceptionally long, deeply fascinating explanation.
bachelorette
