MAYBE NOT YOU

DISOBEDIENCE

“What happened, Stephanie?” he inquired while walking towards me.

“How did you get here so fast?” I inquired.

“I’ve been calling you all night”. Mariah told me what happened. I don’t care who he is, Stephanie. He’s not taking you away from me. Let’s get engaged, get married, make babies. Anything to get him off our backs. We could travel far…

”Relax Michael, I’m not leaving your side”. Don’t you trust me? I am ready to fight this. No matter what it costs me in the end. I’m really famished. Let’s grab lunch. I nudged him and dragged him along.

********

After lunch, I went outside, making sure I had no company, discarding Mariah and Michael. I was preparing to go to work. It was a Friday evening and, of course, I would be at the club. A car honked beside me.

Shit! Was he really waiting for me ? What kind of jobless person waits around for me? I walked over to him.

“I won’t be coming with you”. I think it’s best for you to head home.

“ I can’t leave without you ma’am ”

“Hey, I’m not a child”. Even my parents know not to control me. Tell your boss I will be back home tomorrow. I have plans tonight with my friends, so if you don’t mind… I paused.

“I’m sorry ma’am, but”….

“Didn’t you hear me?” You’re supposed to do as I say, aren’t you? He nodded in approval.

“Good, now go home!”. I’m not running anyway, he would find me, so what’s the point? Get off my back! Stop bothering me”

I strolled passed him, flagged down a taxi the moment I exited the school premises.

It was just past 5p.m.

I still had a bit of time to settle in before nightfall.

Upon arriving at the BUSTLE club, I slipped in through the back entrance, commonly used by the staff who preferred to remain anonymous. Everyone entering was provided with a mask at the door. This measure is aimed to safeguard the identities of the influential men who frequented the club for enjoyment and mischief.

“Hello, good evening”, Mr. Josh”. I greeted him as he walked by.

Oh, hey, Stephanie baby, how have you been? Missed you on Wednesday, he remarked.

"Sorry, Josh, had a lot of schoolwork and birthday prep to handle."

Oh, right, your birthday! You know how packed this place gets on Wednesdays and Fridays when you’re around. It felt like I stole the show from the show. He chuckled. "Let's plan something for your birthday, just us in-house folks."

"Aww, that'd be lovely," I beamed, placing my hand over my heart to express gratitude.

He chuckled and encouraged me to get moving.

Mr Josh was the owner of the bustle club, which was literally one of the biggest and busiest clubs in the city. A lot of things went down here. I’ve been working with him for over seven months now, and he’s hands down the coolest boss ever. He’s extremely jovial and kind and, of course, lets me keep my tips. I get a lot of tips while dancing on poles.

I might have only worked for seven months but Mr Josh and I have had one of the best employer and employee relationships.

One time I got off the dance floor. I had this prominent man ask Mr Josh about me. He was one of our biggest clients at the time. But I turned him down, indicating I wasn’t interested. He tried getting my attention with a huge sum of money, but I stayed true to myself that day.

I thought I’d be out on my feet that day, but Mr. Josh surprised me by having my back, letting me know how he’s all about respect, doing things right and never going to force me to do things that I disapprove of. It was so cute and thoughtful. From that day I learned to respect this man who wasn’t fully impressed by money.

“Hey Kate!”

“Hey Stephanie, just getting here?” she asked.

“Nah, been here for over forty minutes”, and she smiled, calling me the popular nickname she gave to me “star girl”, and went to the next room.

Kate and I weren’t entirely the best of friends, but we had a solid game chat ongoing. She was the only one I maintained a good talking relationship with. The other girls? They gave off some seriously strange vibes, so I kept my distance for safety’s sake.

My phone kept ringing in my bag, I grabbed it to see an unknown number calling. Curious,

I stayed quiet to hear the voice on the other end.

“Stephanie, where are you?”

I recognized the voice instantly. How did he even get my number?

“I told your driver I wasn’t coming home”. Didn’t he deliver my message?

“Stephanie. Get here. I don’t want to be mad, he demanded.

“Well then. Get mad. What next? Please let me be, I never said I wasn’t returning.

With that, I ended the call. Who does he think he is to talk to me in such an authoritative manner? This is why I need to get enough money to pay him back whatever my parents owe him. I’ve been using my tips and salary to basically take care of myself at school and most times I replace stuff at home for my parents. I need more than enough right now. I can’t have him talk to me however he pleases. He might be older than my father, but I do not care!

CHIEF’S POV

I walked in after a long day at work and saw the driver standing there, hands tied behind his back, head down. What's going on here?

"Good evening, sir."

"Good evening," I replied.

He stood silent, head still down. Seriously?

"Where's Stephanie?" I asked.

"She refused to come back with me, sir."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"I'm sorry, sir. It was an order, and I had to follow it.

"Nonsense! I gave you an order too, didn't I? Take her to school, wait, and take her back. How hard is that?

”My apologies, sir. I did my best.

”Your best isn't good enough, and you'll be punished for that. Leave my sight. With that, I headed inside, trying to settle in, but I just couldn't shake off the frustration.

I was getting all worked up for nothing, pacing around the house. I grabbed my phone to call her parents. Mr. and Mrs. Madison picked up the first ring.

"Is anything wrong with my daughter, chief?" her mom asked.

"She's fine. I just need her phone number. She's not home.

“Oh my God! I hope she hasn't vanished into thin air? My child. She's my only child! She started wailing.

"Could you please pull yourself together and send the number across?" I requested before ending the call.

As soon as the number came in, I tried reaching her, but she wasn't picking up. Finally, she answered, and I was furious.

"Stephanie, where are you?" I asked, but she stood silent at the other end.

"I told your driver I wasn't coming home. Didn't he deliver my message? She questioned.

"Stephanie. Get here. I don't want to be mad. I responded firmly.

“Well then. Get mad. What next? Please let me be, I never said I wasn’t returning. And with that she hanged up on me.

Did she seriously pull that off? Talk about complete disrespect. Nobody disrespects me, not even my wives. Am I going overboard with this, being too harsh and insecure already? What if she's at her so-called boyfriend's place? Right under my nose? That's something I can't and won't stand for.