Desire's Flame

Chapter One

"Ivy, I've held off the payment for as long as I can. I can't hold it off anymore. If you don't get it to me by tomorrow, I'll have no choice but to evict you."

"So sorry, Mr. Barkley. I'll get it to you, tomorrow." Where I'd get $175 by said day, I didn't know. Could I tell Mr. Barkley that? Absolutely not. I was at my wit's end there. Speaking of Mr. Barkley, he shook his head as he walked away muttering something about kids of nowadays. He should know something about the kids of nowadays. He was married to a literal 19 year old at his ripe old age of 79. Could I say that to him? Absolutely not except I felt an overwhelming urge to be homeless which I did not.

I was studying to be a pharmacist in school. When people heard about the fancy degree, they automatically thought I had a lot of money and could pay for the expenses that came with it. They couldn't have been more wrong if they tried because I couldn't (shocker). The closest I had come to being financially stable was balancing a dollar off a knife edge.

Also, you might be wondering why I was behind on my rent, unemployed and moping about my financial status. I had been working in a little cafe for two years. All of a sudden, the owner, Floyd decided that my services were no longer needed because my appearance was not attracting customers but instead showing them what'd happen if they ever stray from the gym and indulge in too much of his snacks. I'm a little thicker than most people. I'm midsize and I sometimes feel like I don't belong anywhere. Too small to be completely plus size and way too thick to be skinny. I had beautiful t**s and a nice ass. That meant I also have a belly and a chubby face that is apparently not good for business.

I walked into my room and looked around, wondering how the hell I'd get $175 before the next day. I picked up my phone and started scrolling on t****k. My Friday was practically ruined and I had nothing to do during the weekend except my paper which was due Monday. f**k my life. I saw one of my favorite creator's video and it's a GRWM midnight ballerina video. I literally felt a lightbulb going on in my head.

I got up and start dressing and putting on make-up. I had just made a decision: I was going to be a midnight ballerina.

.............................................

I knew it wasn't the wisest decision of my life to get up and decide to start dancing at a club seeing as my pole dancing skills were theoretical and I had good and bad body days but I was at my wits end and I was also frustrated. I reserved the right to call Floyd a d**k for doing this to me and I used that right quite liberally because he was being a d**k for taking my source of income.

I walked into a random club I had seen on the street with a full blown smile on my face. My confidence fell flat when I saw a literal beauty behind the bar. I wasn't kidding. I opened my mouth to say the first thing that popped into my mind and paused.

I decided to be more strategic with what I say to her so I wasn't thrown out on my ass. "Um...... Hi. I was wondering if there's an opening for a dancer here." She paused what she was doing and laughed in my face. Ha f*****g ha. The awe I felt when I looked at her faded and I gave her devil horns in my head. I looked at her with an unamused expression and the look of amusement on her face faded slowly as if she had just noticed I was not laughing with her. Finally, she said, "You're not joking." I nodded firmly. She looked speechless and gagged. "You don't fit into the aesthetic of the place. You couldn't possibly think you'll dance here, could you?"

I open my mouth then close it and open it again only to close it. What the hell? My dignity, pride and confidence had just been trampled on. I nodded my thanks to her and turned around. I walked out of the club thinking the world was my oyster and that I'd find a club to dance in no time.

Fifteen rejections and a solid "You're just too f*****g fat" later, I could assure you that the world was definitely not my f*****g oyster and was 100% a deathtrap. I was outside the last club I tried applying in. I felt a little down and was about to start googling homeless shelters when I looked to my right and saw a classy little flyer:

Help needed: Thick dancers only.

I had never seen a flyer look this classy in all my years of existence. The name of the club was mysterious too: Hazy Shadows. I was pretty sure my mouth was hanging wide open. I look at the address and it's just down the corner from where I'm standing. I turned and started walking to said club, crossing my fingers and beaming with my most optimistic smile. The first thing I noticed as I walked towards it was that it looked quite different from the other places I'd been to during my "job" hunting that day. I walked in and let out an audible gasp: The club looked like a place straight out of my novels. A beautiful chandelier and overhead lights gave a soft glow that made it look like everywhere was glowing. Another shocker was that I saw a gloriously plump queen walk out of the inner part of the club. I had never been in the face of such a beauty before. I wasn't even exaggerating. She literally had the body that men used to go to war for before they started looking for waiters that bring s**t to the table. She looked at the flyer in my hand and beamed at me. "I suppose you're here for the vacancy, right?" I nodded, not quite gaining back the function of my tongue. She turned to walk away and beckoned me to follow her. I did exactly that, watching her ass sway because how could I not. I'm just a girl and she looked like the stuff fantasies were made of.

She started talking, "The owner of the club is Madam Volkov. She was once like you, searching for a place to dance. She had just freshly arrived from Russia and was looking for a source of income. She just wanted to dance to provide for her children. She received so many refusals that she decided that whenever she had enough money, she'd open a gentleman club specifically for us thick women. She had her challenges though and she'd like to extend this privilege to anyone who'd like to dance." I didn't open my mouth throughout the time she was speaking, not because I wasn't listening. It's because I didn't trust myself not to get cancelled if I opened my mouth. I knew I'd have said some dumb s**t like "You're beautiful " or gush over her body which might not be appreciated.

She opened the door to a room and turned on the lights. "Dance," she said, playing some music. I immediately tuned in the me that danced in my bedroom alone by 3 am, the me that learnt all the dance tutorials and skills there was. I was suddenly thankful for all those tutorials I'd watched on how to dance. All the time spent in the gym during leg day to when I hold a weighted squat for over ten minutes. I put all that into work. I imagined that I was dancing for one of my book boyfriends with the smoldering eyes and hot body. I let myself go and started moving, using my hands to emphasize my movement. After about three minutes, the song lulled to an end and it ended with me in a squatting position with my arms on my waist and back arched so my ass was out. I turned to Ms. Goddess as I was calling her in my head now. She gave me a small smile. "That was......" she trailed off, fanning her face with her hand. "What were you thinking about while dancing?" I couldn't have told her that I was dreaming about my book boyfriend watching me with "smoldering eyes and the promise of a good lay" while I danced. I smiled and said, "Just fantasizing, goddess." She looked at me with a smile that made me realize I had said the goddess part aloud. I felt the blood rush to my cheeks.

"Whatever you were imagining, you need to keep imagining it when you're dancing tonight. The customers will love you." "What will I wear to dance?" I turned around, confused and a little excited to play dress-up. "Oh, you'll see," she said, turning and walking away.