It was a Thursday night they were do to go back on the road on Saturday. They talked him into hanging with just them, The guys. "Since when are strip joints popular among you guys" Howie asked kind of curious about what was going on all of a sudden.
"It's not it's all AJ idea" Kevin chined in while fixing his collar in the mirror and so was AJ when he said "Come on it's not that bad, we won't even be there long."
And Howie brother said "You got that right."
Howie wondered where that had just came from but brushed it off as sarcasm.
They arrived they had to all show I.D they went inside and sat none of them felt to confortable about how they were going about telling him but they had to some kind of way and they truly felt it was the best way. Three girls were introduced before they heard of the familiar one 4th one. He called her by her stage name Diamond and at that time Howie had his back turned ordering a drink, she didn't see him as she went on with her regular routine. She was dressed in very high heels and a short pink dress with very thin straps and when Howie turned back around and looked on the stage and saw her all hell broke loose first he thought he was mistaking her for someone else.
"That can't be her" he said with his jaw still on the floor in shock.
AJ shallowed hard before he spoke he said "It is. We knew no other way she wouldn't tell you so we decided too."
He didn't even hear him as his anger boiled over. He had never been so mad in his life as he jumped up tossing the small table and everything stoped when she saw him it felt like this was a bad nightmare and she was waiting to wake but when he started yelling at her and trying to come on stage all she could do was run off stage and go to her locker get her things and leave.
******
She stood in her living room pacing very nervous and scared cause she knew he was on his way over to her place as soon as the door swung open she raced up to him and very nervously said "I can explain this."
"No you can't, you are a stripper, you didn't tell me."
"I was going to tell you, I swear." she said holing back tears.
He yelled "When? When I found out on T.V or on the radio or something."
"No.....I wanted to tell you but I knew you wouldn't understand, I knew you would-"
"Break up with you, Is that it? Like now."
She quickly jumpped in to defend herself scared that the worst was about to happen "Just because I'm a stripper, that doesn't make me a different person I'm the same girl you were falling in love with."
He was quiet a long while as he turned to her "No...No Debra I was falling in love with a classy mother of a sweet, beautiful, innocent little girl. How can you do this to her?"
"She knows and understand what I do and why I do it, I have too."
"It's so many other jobs out there."
"Not one's that pay over $500 bucks in one night."
"You like what you do? How do you think that makes me feels? Every guy in town has seen my girlfriend naked."
"I don't like what I do but I am not ashamed of it cause I have a daughter to support and I have to feed her and buy clothes for her and keep a roof over her head and on all that I have to pay for college."
"You make over $500 bucks in one night just dancing you expect me to believe that Debra I know what strippers do."
She was so shocked he had said that her reflexes slapped him as hard as she could and she said in shaky voice "I am not a whore, I never have been and I never will."
He stood there a a while before saying " I cared about you no.. I care about you a lot, with all my heart and you tell me you are a stripper. You lied to me all this time I feel I don't even know you."
"You do know me, the person you met before you found out I was you ...What I do."
"I am sorry I can't be with you anymore Debra."
She was not only hurt she was angry and her voice showed it "I thought you were different, but I guess I was wrong."
"I guess you were too."
He dropped the keys on the table and walked out the door and she flopped on the couch and she tried to hold back the tears but she couldn't't and when they started they seemed to not stop.
*****
He thought about her the next day during their rehearsals a lot more than he wanted too. During his lunch break he sat on the outside steps alone a bottled water in his hand staring at the ground. When he looked up he saw AJ but stared back at the ground and AJ sat beside him.
"Are you okay?" He nodded 'no' still looking at the ground. "You were suppose to lie and say 'yeah' Howie couldn't help but laugh a tab "Well you laughed a little thats a good sign."
"She looked so beautiful up there but why did she have to be doing that. Why didn't she ask me for help?"
"She wanted to do it on her own, you told me about the way her father use to do her, she had to prove to him she could do it on her own and besides if she'd asked you for help you know you would have thought that's all she was after."
He knew he was right as he released a huge sigh "Now I am worried about her."
"I don't see why you even broke up with her anyway. That's one of the most beautiful girls I ever seen, If I start dating her you won't get mad right."
Howie couldn't help but laugh as he got up and went back in and AJ followed him asking him over and over again.
*****
Debra really wasn't having such a great day so far. She had woke up late and then after rushing out she left her money for her cap and gown at home and had to go all the way back and get it . She was dressed in a button down white shirt and some old jeans since she had forgot to wash. Her hair was all over the place as she dug threw her bag for something when a guy walked up to her and she looked up at him and he smiled devilishly "Hi"
"Hey"
"You're that girl aren't you. That stripper chick." She was so surprised she didn't even say anything she just closed her bag looking at him "Yeah that's you Diamond right. Well I am Dan, um how much for a good lap dance right here."
She looked around as everyone stared and laughed "Get a life"
He pulled money out his pocket and started tossing money at her a dollar at a time circling around her "I have cash"
She was about to walk off when some other guy came over and pushed him a girl who had came with him grabbed her arm to signal her to stay.
"Leave her alone okay." the guy said staning directly in the guy face.
"Who are you her pimp or something?" the other guy stand stepping back a little.
The guy who had came over pushed him very forcefully "Get out of here."
The guy started picking up his money and as he walked by Debra he said "Call me if you change you mind Diamond.
Then the guy turned to her "You okay."
"Yeah thanks, I am gonna go. Thank You."
She turned and walked off and the girl raced over to her she stood in her way to block her path and the girl could see she was crying a little and she said "Don't leave okay you were paying for your cap and gown right."
"Yeah I will get it later."
"Look my name is Cheri but my friends call me Cher and that guy was my boyfriend I know exactly how you feel cause I dance also to pay for college. Look Dan was a jerk and I can't say that he has been to me because I have Jeff that's his name but you can't let him make you feel bad okay."
"I just had a really rough night, I didn't need that today." she said pulling her hair from her face.
"Just come on."
They girl place her arm around her shoulder and walked her back up to the line where they had been at first and Cheri introduced her to her boyfriend.