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| Vanessa is giving Juan Paulo a lot to think about... |
As La Scala closed down for the night, the crowd filed out in search of other venues of entertainment. After the band packed everything up and started getting ready to leave themselves, Vanessa turned to her right to find that Talia had gone.
“She’d just gone to the ladies’ room,” Scarlet explained. “They were all amazing, weren’t they?”
“Yeah, I can see why you spend so much time here. But I’m sure that’s not the only reason.” She joked with a quick wink. Juan Paulo and Javier emerged from backstage, their jackets draped over their shoulders. “How’s your voice, JP?”
He gave a quick cough before rasping, “Maybe it’s best if you do most of the talking tonight.”
Scarlet took a step forward, clenching her fist to her chest. “In case your throat is still sore by tomorrow, some hot tea with honey will do the trick.”
Opening his mouth to respond, he quickly changed his mind and just nodded with an appreciative groan. He reached his arm forward for Vanessa to take when she noticed Talia re-enter the room. “How’d you like the show, Talia?”
She was staring at her feet until Vanessa’s voice brought her back to the present. Looking to each person individually for a few seconds each, a generous smile streaked across her face. “You should be very proud of yourself, Juan Paulo. I can see you worked very hard to make this show a special one.” Then a moment later, it was back to business. She pointed her index finger at him. “Don’t be out too late. We have rehearsal tomorrow at 7 sharp.”
Putting his hand over his chest in a gesture of solidarity, he inclined his head forward. His attention returned to Vanessa as he slipped his jacket over her bare shoulders and rested his arm across them to walk her outside.
Scarlet asked Talia once they left, “Do you want me to walk back with you?” She was staring out the door in somewhat of a daze, which she quickly shook herself out of.
“I can get back on my own but thank you.” She shifted her gaze back to Javier. “The same goes for you too. Not too late.”
“You have my word.” He nodded. Betraying no feeling at all, she returned his nod and took her leave. Facing Scarlet, he shrugged, “So, do you want to go back to my place?”
“Actually,” she twisted her fingers around his and offered a playful smirk, “could you get your guitar? I want to try out some moves. And just for the record, those slinky steps are part of Rumba: a very slow and seductive dance.”
As Vanessa and Juan Paulo made their way through the city, they saw a lot of familiar faces from the show in various locations. In some cases, the recognition went both ways and the patrons offered their congratulations on a great performance.
Several of the cafes were busy with the evening crowds, who were enjoying everything from kebobs to sandwiches and meals shared by full tables.
“We have the best of nearly every world here. Chances are, if you are in the mood for anything, there’s somewhere around here that will have it. We get tourists from all over, so it helps to have a variety on hand.” Juan Paulo nodded, occasionally taking a moment to inhale the cornucopia of smells in the air.
Buskers played for tips on nearly every corner; both of them took turns throwing change into their tins. Some were even lucky enough to have an audience dancing to their tune in good rhythm. “Some of these girls have auditioned for us over the years,” Vanessa mentioned, “there’s a lot of a talent, but it takes a certain level of commitment to join our ranks.”
Coincidentally, that leg of their journey took them to the center of town. Calypso was pulsing with activity both inside and outside. “Judging from the crowd noise and the energy of the music, Ruby and Amber are doing a fantastic job.” She wore a proud smile for them. But as she turned to Juan Paulo, she couldn’t help but notice the distance in his eyes as he studied the flashing marquee on the roof. This put a damper on her heightened spirits, but she chose not to let it detract from the evening. “Come on, we’d recently had a number of food trucks open and I’d been meaning to try one.”
They eventually settled on a truck that offered Cuban cuisine and managed to find a recently vacated table nearby. Vanessa had an empanada and Juan Paulo ordered a Cuban sandwich with extra cheese. A couple of bites and swallows later, he said, “I’m having a really good time, Vanessa.” His voice was still rough but allowing Vanessa to play tour guide proved to be a huge asset in its recovery.
“Thank you,” she blushed, “but I know you’d rather be here with Talia.”
“Yeah,” he leaned forward, his elbows crossed over the table, “I wish there was a way to get to know her, but she refuses to let me in.”
Vanessa sighed, looking down. “Don’t take it too personally. She’s like that with all guys. Has been since she started dancing.”
”What happened?” Sensing her hesitation as she chewed her lip, he quickly added, “I’m sorry. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I know she has her secrets and I should respect that.”
“That’s admirable of you, JP. But I have to be honest. Talia hasn’t been in the best way this summer. Several nights, she’s cried herself to sleep and the next day, she’ll act like nothing’s wrong. Although she won’t admit it, the few times I’d seen her light up is when you’re around during a performance. So I think you should know the truth.” Vanessa took a healthy sip from her glass, emptying it, and pushed it away.
“This is about more than an ex-boyfriend, isn’t it?”
“I wish it was as easy as blaming Alejandro, which Talia is never shy about doing, but it’s a lot more complicated. Whatever damage was done that made her so distrustful of the opposite sex, it was before she created the sirens.”
Juan Paulo gulped. “I hate to assume the worst, but hearing some of the stories from Scarlet about what she and her sister went through… is there something like that in Talia’s past as well?”
“Sadly, there is truth to that assumption. Many of us have ghosts in our pasts, some worse than others. But for Talia, things were very different. She was happy in her rather unique situation with her stepfather.”
“Unique as in how?” His smile shrunk even further than it had before the turn in conversation began.
“Talia’s mom remarried—I don’t know what happened to her real father—because she had financial difficulty even while working two jobs. But she worked such long hours, he and Talia had a lot of time together.” Upon raising an eyebrow, Juan Paulo’s jaw slowly dropped. “It all started after a boyfriend cheated on her. He comforted her and convinced her that no one deserved her if they treated her that way. Talia’s mom leaving when she found out about them only made them grow closer.”
“When you say she was happy in the situation, I can only assume that something changed that made it less… agreeable?”
Vanessa solemnly nodded. “Talia’s stepfather worked for the brothers. He’d been stealing from their business, so they went to his place to confront him. By the time they got there, he had just died of an overdose and Talia was crouched over his body. They told her what he did and she found that he’d also stolen money her mother set aside for her before she left.”
“Oh wow.” Juan Paulo’s voice dropped, stunned. “That’s like the ultimate betrayal. So Talia thought…”
“Exactly. He only used her to steal money and took advantage of her.”
Elbows on the table, Juan Paulo spoke with more urgency, “So you’re telling me all this because you think I could help her in some way?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but deep down, I truly believe that. Why else would she fight me so hard about giving you a chance? She likes you, but she’s afraid to have her heart broken. I know what that’s like. I was scared to start dating again after one abusive relationship. Even if it doesn’t work out, I can be satisfied with the fact I tried.” Vanessa then leaned back and colored her tone more serious. “I still feel that I owe Talia for getting me away from Richie. What greater gift is there than wishing happiness for someone else?”
“Yeah. But what else can I do that I haven’t already tried?”
“It may sound counterproductive, but maybe you should back off a little. Come see us before our next show. Tell Talia that you’ve decided to give her some space, but you will wait however long it takes for her to change her mind. More than anything, Talia likes to be in control of every situation and leaving her with that choice gives her the power.”
“And if that works…?”
“When Talia is ready to trust someone, she will extend an invitation***.” She held her palms out in front of her. “Bear in mind that she rarely does this. But trust me, you will know immediately when she’s interested.”
“Well,” he shrugged, “anything’s worth a shot at this point. Thanks for the tip. I’ll do my best to not let it go to waste.”
As Talia waited up for Vanessa in their common room, her mind was so abuzz with activity, she couldn’t sleep even if she wanted to. She was always nervous when Vanessa went out with a man. It had taken her a long time to get to this point and the last thing she needed was to get hurt again. At the same time, she couldn’t help but contemplate what the result would be. Would it be worse if Vanessa approved or disapproved of Juan Paulo? As much as she hated the attention he gave her, a sense of dread lingered that he would turn out just like every other man she knew: a dishonest fake.
When sleep eventually did find her, she found herself transported back to the greatest moment of weakness she’d ever experienced.
Talia woke up one morning and found her stepfather dead of an overdose. The brothers busted down the door of their apartment and found her still trying to shake him awake. As they sat her down to reveal the truth about their former employee, the buzzing in her ears grew so loud that she collapsed from the stress.
The next time she opened her eyes, she was in an unfamiliar bed in a room as sterile as a hospital ward. Her head throbbed and her heart raced. Before she could ask herself why, the truth smacked her so hard that she snapped. The brothers rushed inside to calm her down, but she would have none of it. She spewed insults, complaining about how her stepfather toyed with her emotions and had her believing he was better than he was.
Within the dream, a montage of tirades followed. They blended together and were as inseparable as they were back then. She still couldn’t recall if she was in that state for a week or two or even months. Her only source of comfort: the brothers lent her their ears but didn’t dispense with any useless advice. While she didn’t want their sympathy, she appreciated their silence.
Talia stumbled out of her room and into an intense conversation the brothers were having at their kitchen table. Whatever they were discussing, they were very concerned. Her name didn’t come up once, but she wondered if her stepfather was somehow involved. That his dishonesty affected more than her family.
Suddenly, they noticed she was there and rose to their feet. “Natalia,” The younger of two cautiously approached her, “you should still be in bed. You’ve been through a lot.” His hand was extended, ready to catch her if she were to fall to her knees again.
“I am aware of what I am going through. Does this have anything to do with my stepfather?”
The eldest remained stoic. “Unfortunately, it has everything to do with him.”
“How can I help?” She slammed her hands on the table where they sat. “You are in this mess because I didn’t see him for what he was. And I do not wish to remain in your debt. Or anyone’s for that matter.”
The brothers looked at each other. The eldest shrugged, giving his younger sibling the go-ahead. “Because of Adrian’s actions, our reputation has been tarnished among our customers. They’re threatening to go to our competitors. If that happens, our business will cease to exist. We need to regain their trust the next time they see us for negotiating contracts. Which will be very soon and if we lose the restaurant, we won’t have a proper meeting place.”
The elder brother added, “Not to mention for our nephew, Alejandro, this place is his inheritance. If our business goes under, he won’t have the means to start his life anew elsewhere. With the American economy as it is, even if he could make the journey, there are no guarantees.”
As hard as she tried to resist doing so, Talia rolled her eyes. “Is he so incapable of looking out for himself?”
“It was our sister’s dying wish that we watch over him for her. Nothing is more important to us than family.”
“Forgive me, but I haven’t the best experiences with that. But my despicable stepfather did teach me one thing that could be useful.” She held out her hand. “Who wants to join me as I demonstrate?
The younger glanced at his older brother, who gave him a solemn nod. So he took Talia’s hand and she led him to her designated living quarters. She positioned him at the foot of the bed and pushed. After a gasp escaped his lips, he put down his hands to catch himself on the mattress.
“Lie down,” she commanded as she moved him toward the headboard. She pulled her hair back absentmindedly, only to let go. “The thing my stepfather taught me—sex can be an incredible feeling, but it also makes people helpless. It catches them off guard.” Her expert hands undid his belt and slowly slipped it out of its loops, dropping it on the floor. Taken aback, he could only watch and wait for what Talia planned to do.
She undid his shirt, one button at a time and drew it open. Gently, she stoked the middle of his chest where most of the hair gathered. *** “You can say whether or not I am capable of this after I’m done, but my plan is to seduce your colleagues. If I do my job, they will do whatever you ask.” She*** straddl[ed] her hips over his. “He taught me everything about sex and when I was on top, he exploded with ecstasy so much he couldn’t move.” She *** add[ed] as an afterthought to herself, “Unless he was faking it just to get me off. I will never tolerate any fakers again.” She reached for the headboard to improve her position *** so she could savor[ed] every second.
*** But as she progressed, even while she smiled, tears of regret and loss poured down her cheeks. They tickled but didn’t distracted her for a second.
A creak woke Talia with a start. Still in a daze from the vivid images, she only saw Vanessa and Juan Paulo exchanging pleasantries. None of their words reached her. Before leaving, he gave her a peck on the cheek. Instinctively, Talia reached her own and found moisture. Whether it was a souvenir from the dream or occurred just now, she couldn’t be sure. She just knew she had to remove the evidence quickly before Vanessa saw.
Vanessa started across the room but halted when she saw Talia on the sofa. “I should have known you were waiting up for me.”
She stood nice and straight. “How was everything?”
“Great. We had a really good time. I mean, he’d rather be out there with you, but we made the best of it. He really is a nice guy. Nothing terribly exciting happened. After a little sight-seeing, we tried one of the food trucks and just talked all night.”
“I’m glad. Thank you for doing this for me.” She came over to give her a nice warm hug. “You’re an amazing friend.”
After letting go, Vanessa saw a change in Talia’s demeanor that she couldn’t put her finger on. “Are you feeling okay?”
She nodded, but when she spoke, her voice sounded worn down. “Yes, I am fine. I just woke up from a bad dream, that’s all.”
***
No musical performances in this chapter but the title is from "Paper Gangsta" by Lady Gaga.
Anyone who knows me knows I'm not a fan of hip-hop. But since the first time I heard it on her debut album, it was one of my favorites. There was a gritty honesty about it I really liked. The story behind it relates back to when her first label, DefJam Records, dropped her before she had that breakthrough moment. Making this song a bit of a revenge anthem.
In the context of my story, this is one of those rare cases where I later attached a song to a scene, opposed to the song inspiring the events that unfold.
Going back to imagining all of this playing out like a movie, the song would play as Vanessa tells JP about Talia's complicated history and the scene dissolves into the flashback from Talia's dream. There's an instrumental break that lasts for maybe 30 seconds with the backing vocalist just moaning in the background- that would be the sex scene in the flashback.
Again, I had all of this in my head before giving this chapter a title.
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