Misreckon

Chapter 4 - Warnings

Wednesday had arrived. Cora rushed from school and hopped out of the shower almost as soon as she went into it, aiming to give herself enough time to catch the bus into the city. 

Her hair had remained dry and straight beneath her shower cap and so she hoisted it up into a slick back ponytail, she shared her mothers hatred for the tickling feeling of hair on her face. Beauty was from the within yet of course, Cora intended to present herself well on the outside also: today she wore a knee length, long sleeved black dress with her classy black flats. Tilting to her head slightly, Cora's reflection pained her: her face appeared sickly and her eye bags were dark and deep. Because of this, she rummaged through her makeup bag and applied some onto her already existing makeup - brightening concealer as well as a bold red lip to which she found rather flattering on her rounded lips.

"Have you been drinking b****y Mary's?" Richard asked, causing me to becomes baffled by his question.

I grabbed the tray of drinks from his hand and still wore my dumbfounded expression. 

"It's a joke Cora, you have red lipstick on -" Within an instant, I felt embarrassed for not picking up on it sooner. 

"Ohhh! Sorry Richard, I seem to have left my brain at school." I joked, turning out of the bar and towards the tables. 

Swerving past certain tables, the ones mainly with cigar fumes circling them, Cora was met by eyes of plenty. Though, these looks were more of hunger than of admiration. Luckily, she was oblivious and kept gracefully hopping from table to table, booth to booth, delivering the drinks and snacks. 

"Thank you sweetheart." An ancient man wearing a modern suit thanked me as I passed him his rum. 

"You're more than welcome." I replied cheerily. 

But before I could turn away, his cold grasp met my arm to which I spun around. 

"Say, are there any nice hotels nearby." He questioned me. 

"Yes actually, theres this beautiful hotel called The Grove just minutes to the left from here." I explained enthusiastically, recalling driving past and witnessing the grand lobby as someone opened the door. 

"Perfect dear, I shall see you there ?" He asked, with an innocent smile. I turned to see the rest of his table, all who seemed to be equally as old men paying all there attention onto the poker cards in-front of them. 

"Um, sorry but I'm working late and I really should get home since I have school tomorrow and my parents will be missing me." I explained, placing emphasis on the fact that I was a student and too young. His complimentary statement did the opposite of flattery but instead, I stood their disgusted. 

Widening, his blue eyes examined me, causing me to feel as though I was nothing but a lifeless mannequin. 

"Thank you though. It's a very nice offer, have a good night." I wished him farewell with kindness so I could flee the scene. 

My heart was beating rapidly and a frown grew on my face regarding the absolute strangeness of his request, and put soo casually too. 

As I placed the tray onto the counter and began making more drinks, I heard two familiar voices chattering. 

"Cora dear, where may I find Richard ?" I looked up to see Vincent, I recalled my mothers words of warning. Beside him, Dean stood. His casual dress shirt and jeans differed drastically from his school attire as well as the way he presented himself , which was quite the opposite. Radiating authority and mystique, he stood beside his father with a plain expression. 

As though he had been slashed, I noticed a scar decorated under his eyes. It appeared fresh, not very recent but no longer than a couple days. 

"Hi Vincent, Wednesday is stock day so he's currently out. He'll be back in about half an hour I think so you can wait here if you'd like." I smiled. Regardless of what I heard my mother say, I had to remain friendly, and if he was to be as dangerous as she made out to be then I certainly didn't want to make an enemy out of him. 

Widened, Dean's eyes darted into mine momentarily. Whether I was dizzy from my previous running around serving people, I could have sworn that I saw Dean shake his head lightly but to what, I did not know. 

"I'd like a corner booth." Vincent announced with a tone of force.

"We keep a VIP in the left corner, it's quite large but you're welcome to use it." I explained, gesturing to the left side of the bustling bar. 

"I'll join you in a minute Dad, Im going to the restroom." Dean stated dryly to Vincent who was adjusting his maroon blazer, he nodded at his son and began walking away. 

Dean appeared glued to the ground. 

"The toilets are just through that hall." I offered then returned to my duties which consisted of the sea of glass cups sprawled across the surface. 

"Im surprised you haven't quit. Surely you're not enjoying being harassed by old men are you?" Dean splurted. His words took me by surprise, how would we have known about my previous encounter with the older fellow?

"That man you were talking to is a groomer. Just keep your distance will you? And if older men are what tickles your fancy then just aim to hunt elsewhere." He suggested, causing me to wrap my hands around myself in shame. 

"For one, I was not flirting and secondly, even if I was, it would be none of your business." I huffed, causing him to roll his eyes. 

"Fine. Keep it in mind that it will happen again. And again. The other men won't be as nice as he was Cora, they'll be forceful and persistent." He concluded, turning towards the toilet. 

Before fully leaving, he turned to face me again. 

"If you knew what was going through their minds you wouldn't work here. No money is worth this." He raised his hands referring to the bar, and left to the toilet. 

I stood there, his words engraved into my brain momentarily. Each of our encounters had resulted in him expressing his anger onto me, maybe there was truth to his words, but his execution was enough to mask his helpfulness. 

As Cora continued her shift, she focused more on the looks she would get when passing by certain customers. By doing so, she felt uncomfortable and so she returned to her oblivious state of comfort. It was both a blessing and a curse that she would see the best in people.