"Your clothes."

I sigh, quietly, and I take off every fabric that I wear to get completely naked and leave my clothes on the sofa so that he can check them entirely. Once I do not have a single piece of clothing on me, I hold my hands in the front of my body, and I stare down at the ground, never feeling comfortable in this situation that happens every night.

The silence remaining in the room, I do not panic while he is checking the clothes and their pockets like I did the first time it happened, and that I knew I was hiding the tip a client left me.

"Your shoes," he tells me, dropping what he made sure to be empty. With a lot of struggle and pain, I take my high heels off and reveal my feet covered in injuries and blood that never stops oozing from the wounds. I put them down, but when my feet get into contact with the floor, I clench my hands into fists to not let a hint of suffering appear.

He grabs them and nearly scans every corner, making sure I have not learned to find a good way to hide cash. I take a peek at him, wondering what he is thinking about, but he looks down at my feet.

He does not say anything about how pitiful they look but puts my high heels down. "Put your clothes back on and go get changed, I'll wait for you in the car," he walks around his desk and takes hold of his jacket, so I put everything back on to not have to be naked anymore, and I get out of the room without the shoes on, meaning I have to walk on my tiptoes through the whole nightclub to get to the changing room.

In a short minute, I get there, so I open the door without saying a word, the other girls chatting with each other. I do not pay attention to them the same way they do it to me, and I move towards the closet to take my clothes and wear those that are way more comfortable.

I do not take my makeup off here but only put a pair of socks on, my Nikes on, and I get hold of my bag to go out. While heading out, I look for a hair tie, and I tie my hair up into a bun, feeling worn out. I look for Sookyung, my boyfriend's car, and I join him inside.

He does not say anything but listens to the radio, so I buckle my seatbelt on, and he starts the car to leave and drive towards his house.

20 minutes later...

The front door of the house now opened, he goes in, so I follow him and close the door. I take my jacket and shoes off, and he drops his keys on the dining table on the right, talking to the babysitter who is about to leave now that we are here. The night only starting for me, I do not look for anything to eat but move towards my three, soon four years old baby boy.

I thank the babysitter for taking care of him, and she bows to me, before heading to the door, so I squat down to the level of Jun, and he jumps onto me. "Mommy," his small voice melts my heart, erasing all the worries and problems I had to deal with today. I smile and squeeze him in an embrace. "My baby, mommy missed you so much," I press a kiss on his chubby cheek and rub his back to give him all the attention and love he deserves.

"Why isn't he in bed already?" Sookyung complains as soon as the babysitter has left, but I ignore him. I pick Jun up in my arms. "I wanted to see mommy..." he replies to him in one of the most heartbreaking manners, not knowing what his own father thinks of him.

"But she was working, you can't—"

"Stop, please," I beg him to put an end to it, gazing at him and praying for him to not continue. I wish he would love him like a father has to, but he does not even care about him at all. He never did. He only cares about himself and his satisfaction. He does not even ask me how I am feeling anymore. He noticed how badly injured my feet are, but he did not even show any care. Probably because he knows this is caused by him since he is the one forcing me to wear those high heels every day and not wear band-aids or anything that he calls 'inelegant'.

Understanding that he will not do anything other than sleep and take his anger out on our child, I enter Jun's bedroom and close the door behind us. I kiss the tip of his nose and hug him for a few more seconds.

He is the only human who makes me feel loved. The only one who shows me that living is still worth it.

"Is daddy angry?" he asks in a whisper, probably scared that he could be heard by him, which as his mother, is horrible to stand. "He's not, my baby, he is just tired. Don't worry about anything," I brush my thumb over his cheek, and he raises his head to look at me. He gazes into my eyes with his big ones full of innocence, and he smiles at me. "I love you, mommy."

"I love you too. I love you more than anything," my lips curve up, and I hold him tight against me, feeling relaxed and full of delight. Once he leaves a kiss on my cheek, I smile and comb his hair back, and I lean over his crib to put him in it. "You're going to sleep a lot and rest for tomorrow, hm?"

He nods to me, grabbing his teddy bear to hug it. I skim his cheek with the back of my hand, his angelic face softening me. "Have a goodnight, baby. Mommy will be here to hug you in the morning," I promise him, and he expresses his joy. "Goodnight, mommy."

Now that this is done, I give him one last smile and leave the room. I head towards the bedroom that I share with Sookyung, my legs almost feeling numb. I need to take my makeup off, take a shower, apply some healing cream on my wounds and bandage my feet, then only after all that, I can sleep.

— Next day —

Sunday, July 18th, 2021.

4 pm.

"Sookyung," I knock on the door of his office after placing the ordered food on the table. "Dinner's here," I warn him but do not enter the room, I walk back to the table with Jun and sit down.

I grab the small bowl filled with the food I cooked for him, and I stir into it first. "Are you hungry, baby?" I speak in a low voice to him, hoping for him to love this meal. "Yes," he affirms, eager to be fed. I put some of the mashed food in the spoon, and I bring it to his mouth to give him what he has been waiting for.

For the first time in a while, Sookyung leaves his work in only a few seconds and comes to eat with us. He closes the door and peeks down at the meal, and he sits in front of me.

He grabs his chopsticks and goes for the tteokbokki first. "Have you slept well?" he asks me, knowing I woke up only a few minutes ago from a nap. "Yes, and you?" I nod. "Same. Just woke up early and couldn't go back to sleep afterwards, so I've been working since then."

"What time was it?" I look at him, wondering when it was since I did not even hear him leave the bed. "Around six, but I'll probably take a nap before going to work tonight."

"Hm, it's better," I do not make the conversation very exciting, but he sets his eyes on me as I gave another spoon to my baby. "Jungkook's gonna be there a bit later tonight, so make sure to focus on him as always."

"I know," I bite into a piece of pizza, but he does not take his eyes off of me. "What happened last night? You stayed in his room for some time, what were you doing?"

"We were talking, and I brought something for him to eat," I tell him the truth. "What were you talking about?"

"Nothing much, he asked me some questions about friends, I can't really recall, to be honest," I lie this time, not wanting to talk about the conversation I had with Mister Jeon. There is no need for him to know.

"Oh, you haven't done anything more with him, did you?" he suspects something, acting like this is not what he wants me to do to all the V.I.Ps so that he can earn more money. "What do you mean?"

"You know that the VIPs or clients have the right to ask for sexual services, right?" he points out as if I had forgotten that, and I nod. "Well, has he asked for one last night? I noticed that he was a bit tipsy when he left, didn't he ask for a lap dance or blow job?"

I shake my head, wondering why it matters so much to him but hating to hear him say those words in front of our child. "Is it a bad thing that he doesn't ask for any of that?"

"No, but it's pretty odd. Most men who come to our nightclub do not do it just to drink, they come for the girls, and since you're the one who takes care of the VIPs the most, you're in first line, which means you're the first one they see and desire," he explains, giving details I did not ask for. "Well, I like it more when they are like Mister Jeon...I feel more comfortable."

"But you work in a nightclub, did you expect to be there to serve only?" he does not take my emotions and feelings into consideration, only caring about his money now that he got what he wanted from me. "You never talked about being this type of worker when you talked about this job. You asked me if I wanted to help you and serve clients, nothing else."

"I thought you knew. You cannot expect to be a simple worker—"

"But I was your girlfriend, I thought you wouldn't let me do such a job," I speak what I hoped for him to think back then, but something about my sentence seems to tick him off. "What is that 'was'?" he misunderstands my words. "Aren't you my girlfriend anymore?"

I regret the way I framed my sentence, not knowing how to react after this mistake that was not really one. I drop my eyes to the table and shrug. "I am, it just feels like you don't care sometimes."

He does not reply right away, making me fear the consequences. I do not even dare to raise my chin or eat something.

"Are you serious, y/n?" the tone of his voice changes, and I keep my eyes low. "After all the things I've done and that I'm still doing for you both, you tell me that I don't care about you? What do you want me to do more? Stay by your side twenty-four hours a day and not focus on my work? Is that it?"

I shake my head, hating myself for voicing out my worries. "Then what more do you want me to do? Uh?"

"Nothing, I'm just tired lately and don't know what I'm saying. I'm sorry," I apologize to him. "I have work to do outside of the nightclub. I can't spoil you like I used to do in the past."

"I understand," I do not argue anymore. A heavy exhalation escapes him, and he puts his chopsticks down on the table. I upset him again, I should not have spoken. Each time I open my mouth, that is how it ends.

"We'll take a break and go on vacation soon, alright?" he takes a sip of his drink, and I look up at him with surprise, getting him to notice it in my eyes. "I've been a bit too busy with work, we need a break together."

"You don't have to take us with you if—"

"I'm not going on vacation without you," he asserts, but the only thing I can think of is how much time I will be away from Mister Jeon. I do not want us to be apart for too long.

I do not comment but feel some relief, nonetheless. I am stressed out every day since I work at this place, I want to ask him if I can stop and find another job, but at the same time, if I do this, I will probably never see Mister Jeon anymore, and I do not want to have to deal with this. He makes my days way better.

"I love you, you know it. I'm sorry if I'm not there for you enough lately," his behavior shows empathy, so I fake a smile. "I love you too. No need to apologize."

•••

00:30 am.

< Jungkook's coming. Be there to greet him, baby ]

I read his text that sounds softer than the ones he sent me these previous days, but I stick to the simple 'Ok' since this kindness only appears when he gets some sexual satisfaction. I leave the client that I served a few seconds ago and make my way to the doors, but before I could even stand there, they already open, and Mister Jeon comes in.

His hair is not blond anymore, it is black, matching with his black shirt and trousers. Every color truly looks so amazing on him. His gorgeous and unique eyes first notice me, and he smiles nearly instantly. "Hey," he speaks in a way clearer and steadier way than last night after taking a few shots, and he takes me in a hug that I missed getting from him for a whole day. "Hey, are you going to your room right away?"

"No, I'm going to stay here for a bit," he pulls away but gazes at my features as if something was wrong. "Did you sleep a lot last night?" he leans in to make sure I hear him, and I nod. "I did, what about you?"

"I did too," he confirms what I was hoping to hear, and a smile curves my lips up. "Great, I'm happy you did. Your hair looks so pretty," I compliment him about this new look, and a grin grows on his face. "Thank you, I'm glad you love it."

"I do," I shyly glance away but remember to do my job. "Tell me once you want to be in your room, okay?"

"Yeah, I'll ask for you. Don't worry," he strokes my forearm and walks away, not staying near me when I wanted him to. I do not hold him back but take a look around me to see if a client needs help or a service.

My body shivers with fright at the feeling of a hand groping me from behind, making me whirl around and fall upon someone I was not supposed to see tonight. "Hey, Babygirl," Kangdae slides his hand up my side, reeking of alcohol after only a few steps in here. "I wanna go to my room, bring me there, would you?"

Not having a choice but to listen, I lead him to his room.

'JUNGKOOK'S P.O.V'

"Hey, Mister Jeon!" one of the girls, who are always here to greet me, wraps her arms around my waist, but another one joins in and hugs me as well, making me take both of them in an embrace. "Hey, girls. How are you doing?" I return it but not for too long, willing to walk up to the bar and get a drink.

They both answer with a 'good' and ask me the same question, not pulling away from me as usual. "Good too," I run my fingers through one of the girls' hair and step back to kindly make them understand I want to be free, and they let go of me. "Do you want me to serve you something?"

"No need to. I'm going to take a look at the drinks. Enjoy your time a little," I pat the back of the one on my left and move forth to step towards the bar. I lay my eyes on Jae and lean over the bar to grasp his attention.

"Hey, Mister Jeon. What would you like tonight?" he notices me right away and focuses on me, so I raise my voice to be heard and pick my favorite drink. "A glass of Dom Perignon, please."

"I'm coming back with that," he takes it and goes back to the bottles, so I get my phone out of my pocket and read the text that the man, who I despise, sent me.

< Don't forget to warn y/n if you want to get in your room because she's with another VIP now ]

[ who is it? >

I fear Sookyung's answer, hoping for it to not say Kangdae.

< Kangdae ]

My jaw clenches as soon as I see this name written on my screen. This could not have been worse.

[ Tell her I wanna get in my room in a few minutes, so I want it to be ready >

< Sure, she'll be here to bring you to it ]

I sigh and drop my phone down, hating to have to do this when he should be the one taking care of her and preventing so many perverts from approaching her.

Knowing that she must be upstairs, I turn around and look for her. My eyes not falling upon what I want to see, I impatiently straighten my back and put my phone where it was a few seconds earlier, but Jae comes back. "Here you are, Mister Jeon," he places the glass before me, so I thank him and grab it, step away, and move towards a high table that is near the stairs.

The blinding blue and red lights never fading away, the loud music never losing volume and intensity, I look in the pockets of my suit jacket to find my cigarettes, and get one out of the packet, with my lighter, and I light the tip of one up to smoke.

Someone already interrupts this moment by asking for my attention.

"Mister Jeon!" a blond girl, who I believe to be called Lily, snakes her arms around me. "I missed you a lot," she softly makes her clasp more snug, so I take my cigarette away from my lips and heave one arm up to put it around her neck. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"Good now that you're here," she smiles, broadly, always making every single thing revolve around me as if nothing else but me mattered to her. "And you?"

"Good too," I hold my cigarette in my other hand to be able to take a drag of it, but without ever taking her shiny eyes off of me, she forces her body between mine and the table to face me. "Why do I barely see you these days? Are you busy?"

I shake my head, "I just stay in my room," no lies leave my mouth, but she responds to me in an audible voice. "Hm?" I lean forth to bring my ear closer to her face, and she repeats her sentence. "Which girl takes care of you?"

"Y/n," I say it in her ear, calling her by her name since she knows it. "Oh," she does not express any positive emotion about it, behaving the same way every girl here does it once they understand I only ask for y/n. "I'd love to spend more time with you...There are many things I want to talk about..." she begs me, so I exhale the smoke there is in my mouth and run my fingers through her blond hair to pull them back. "I'll give you some time tonight if you want, alright?"

She nods, her red lips curve up into a smile full of delight, and she snuggles up against me to hide her face in the crook of my neck.

All the girls here always seem to crave my attention, physical or not, they always cling onto me more than the other men. It is pretty pleasing and gratifying to me because this means they feel comfortable with me, they love having me by their side.

"Mister Jeon..." the familiar voice I never get enough of drags my eyes away from the girl I was holding. "Your room is ready," she uneasily tells me, gazing down at the ground. I let go of Lily to let her know I need to go, and I stroke her arm. "Come to my room if you want," I grab my glass to move away from her, and she shows that she heard my words, so I reach out for an ashtray and stub my cigarette out to be able to follow y/n, who does not seem to be fine.

I do not say anything about it while heading up to my room, and I wait for us to be inside to speak out.