Fuck I haven't written chapters this fast since Plaid Skirts and Handcuffs

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I cried quietly, bouncing Lily. It was almost two in the morning and I didn't know what to do. She was sick, I'm pretty sure. She kept coughing and her nose was all stuffy, and because it was stuffy she couldn't eat because she couldn't breathe through her nose.

"Mom, I don't know what to do," I cried over the phone.

"Just go into the bathroom and turned the shower on as hot as you can," she said. "Try feeding her in there, the steam will help to clear her up."

I thanked her before hanging up, doing as she told me. I sat in the foggy bathroom, holding Lily in my arms as I tried to feed her. She cried, trying to push the bottle away.

"Baby, you have to eat," I begged.

I held her for a little while, rocking her slowly as I sang. She finally managed to calm down a little bit. She sneezed and I sighed, grabbing a tissue to wipe her nose. The humidity caused my damp hair to stick to my face.

"Can you please eat now, sweetheart?" I asked.

Thankfully she took her bottle this time. When she was finished, i held her until she finally fell asleep. I shut off the shower and set her down into her crib.

But I was too scared to go to sleep. What if she can't breathe and I won't even know while I'm sleeping.?

Instead, I grabbed a blanket and my laptop. I sat in the rocking chair in her room as I watched Netflix. I glanced over at Lily every now and then to make sure she was sleeping peacefully.

It felt like only minutes later when the door opened and Lindsey sighed. I noticed the light streaming in as I rubbed my eyes.

"Gerard, did you stay up all night?" She asked.

"Lily's sick," I said. "What if she couldn't breathe?"

"Go to bed," she stated. "I'll take care of her."

I got up, stumbling off to my bedroom as I collapsed onto my bed, falling asleep instantly.

It wasn't until a few hours later that I woke back up. I yawned and saw it was two in the afternoon. I went out and yawned, finding some mac n' cheese on the stove for me.

"Hey, I'm gonna run out to the store and grab some more diapers," Lindsey said.

I nodded, sitting on the couch as Lily laid in her little bouncer seat, sleeping peacefully. About twenty minutes later the doorbell rang, waking Lily up as she cried. She still sounded congested but not as bad as yesterday. I picked her up and answered the door.

There was a man in a suit and I felt my heart stop. Lily was still crying and he handed me a paper. I repositioned my daughter so I could read it over quickly. The gist of it said that I was being evicted and I had to be out by the end of the week.

"No, please!" I cried as he started to walk away. "I have a job now and some money, I can start paying money back."

The man turned back, a small smirk on his face. Thankfully Lily has calmed down now.

"Well, i'm sure I can make an exception," he said.

He reached around me to grab my ass and I gulped.

"Wh-what do you want?" I asked.

"Well, a blowjob would be nice if you want an extra week," he said. "Although, let me fuck that pretty ass of yours for another month."

I bit my lip and nodded slowly. I went inside as he followed and I set Lily in her crib, playing Leathermouth for her. My eyes watered as I kissed her forehead. I held his hand and lead the man into my room and shut the door. He kissed my neck softly and I whimpered, closing my eyes as I tried to forget everything.

I could hear the music playing through the baby monitor as he pulled off my dress and panties and pushed me back down onto the mattress.

I listened to Frank's voice, trying to ignore the man as he did what he wanted. He pushed me over onto my stomach and I whimpered as he pushed in slowly. Thankfully he had already stretched me though.

I just closed my eyes and cried silently, trying to focus on Frank's music. My body rocked softly as he thrust into me and I thought I actually might throw up. How could I do this? I might as well just start sleeping with people for money at this point.

It felt like hours before I felt him finish in the condom. He pulled out and tossed the rubber into the trash and I could hear him getting ready behind me.

"You have another month on your mortgage and if you don't pay it then you'll be living on the streets," he stated and I nodded, sitting up.

He gave me a harsh slap across the face and I winced.

"What do you say, bitch?" He asked.

"Th-thank you," I sobbed.

He walked out and I heard him slam the front door shut, which made Lily start crying. I got up slowly and got dressed, walking into the nursery. I picked her up and sat down in the rocking chair.

"It's okay, Lily," I whispered. "We aren't getting kicked out just yet, this is still our home. I love you so much."

I cried as I rocked slowly, which helped to calm her down.

"I'll do anything to keep you safe," I promised. "I'll sleep with anyone and kill anyone just so that you stay safe. We aren't gonna be homeless, we will keep this house and the bank will take it over my dead body."

Lily coughed and I frowned. I brought her into the bathroom and turned the shower up again. I really need to remind myself to buy a humidifier for her. She had a little cold and there wasn't any medicine or anything for her to take and she didn't need to go to the doctor's, we just had to wait it out a little while.

"I'm back!" Lindsey called as the front door opened.

She opened the bathroom door and walked in.

"I got some more diapers," she said. "Whoa, wait, what happened?"

She touched my cheek and I winced.

"You know how clumsy I am," I said with a small, forced smile. "I bent down to pick up one of Lily's toys and I ended up falling over and hitting my face on the doorknob."

Lindsey smiled and took Lily from my arms.

"You did that same thing twice before," she said. "Once in third grade and another time in high school."

Of course, those two other times I actually did fall over and hit my face. This time was a lie.

"Are you sure you're gonna be okay?" I asked. "You've never been home alone all night with the baby."

"We'll be fine," Lindsey reassured me. "You've got a new job now, you're a bartender and that's pretty cool."

I nodded, even though that was a complete lie. I was a stripper now but I would never tell them that. Then they'd make me quit and start supporting me again and I didn't want that. And money from Frank is growing even thinner since he hasn't been active in a year so everyone's losing interest in his band and they aren't buying his songs or his merch anymore.

"Maybe one day I can come by while you're on your shift," she suggested.

"But you need to watch Lily," I said.

"Mikey can do that," Lindsey said.

I snorted quietly, shaking his head. "Just so he can sneak off to make out with Pete?"

I sighed, kissing Lily's forehead.

"She isn't as sick as before but she's still a little bit congested," I said. "If she isn't eating then it's because she can't breathe so just bring her in here, the steam helps her feel better. Just feed her in here."

She nodded and I got up, grabbing my stuff as she walked me to the front door.

"Bye, princess, I'll be back soon, I love you," i said.

I gave Lily a kiss and she smiled. I turned around to walk out the door and I heard Lily start crying as she watched me walk down the driveway. I got into the car, her arms reached towards me. Lindsey held her hand and made her wave bye as I drove away.

It was about half an hour before my shift started when I got there. I went inside to the back room where I saw Patrick putting his makeup on.

"What happened?" He asked.

I sat in the seat beside him in front of the mirror, looking at the forming bruise on my cheek. I shook my head and grabbed my makeup bag, trying to cover up the mark.

"How's everything going?" He asked. "How's Lily?"

"She's sick right now," I said. "So I've been trying to take care of her but she's just miserable. She won't eat but thankfully she isn't throwing up."

"She's young, she'll bounce back before you know it," he said.

"Do you have kids?" I asked, applying heavy smoky eyeshadow.

"No, but maybe one day I will," he said. "My boyfriend is still on the fence about having children. I really wanna adopt from, like, a place of poverty, you know? Give more to the kids who never really had anything."

"That's sweet," I said. "I was thinking about adopting a kid from Italy, just so that way Lily can have a sibling."

"Where'd you adopt Lily from?" He asked.

I froze for a second. "Oh, just from an orphanage about two cities from where I live."

"Going local is nice too," he said. "Was it opened or closed?"

"Closed," I stated. "She was accident."

He nodded, running his hand through his hair to try and get it perfect. We got dressed and I put on a similar not much different than Patrick's from the first day I met him, only this one had a black corset to match.

"Ready?" He asked and I nodded.

It was my first actual day here but Patrick had taught me some moves and stuff before hand. I wasn't doing one of the shows, I wasn't trained enough for that. I was just working the floor for now.

"He's been checking you out," Patrick whispered as I walked up to him. "Go on, good luck."

I whimpered nervously as I walked up to the man. He looked dirty and greasy and there were food stains on his shirt. But either way, I rested my hand on his knee and leaned down to his ear.

"What can I do for you?" I whispered.

"Will you give me a fucking lap dance?" He asked and I nodded.

I tried my best to ignore everything as I danced for him, grinding back against the bulge on his pants. I tried to ignore all the nasty things he said and the awful names he called me. I just tried to think of Lily and how I was doing this all for her.