StarEyes

A country girl comes to New York with Stars in her Eyes, but quickly finds that dreams don't always come true

The man sat outside in his car, parked illegally, as if a cop would be around this seedy part of town. Why they put bus stations in the s****y part of towns made him think for a second, but he could really give a damn. It was 6:10 p.m. and the bus coming in from Chicago was late. It was no big deal, after all, it wasn't like he had a job, a respectable one anyway. Although he did have a job he was very good at. He looked up as the bus came rolling in, late, but not as late as usual. He couldn't see through the darkened windows, but he had a birds-eye view of the door. When it opened he knew he had what he came for.

She had been riding the bus, this one and three more just like it for three days. Coming out of Missoula, Kansas, there was no non-stop buses to New York. She was tired, almost broke and didn't have any idea where she was, where she would sleep or even it she would sleep, but she was here. The place she had dreamed of all her life. The Big Apple. New York, New York, the place so nice, they named it twice. She was an actress. Maybe not famous yet, but look out New York, the Ms. Missoula Watermelon Queen was in town. Walking through the bus station she thought about how she was going to take this town by storm. If she would have been a little more vigilant, she would had noticed someone with thoughts a lot more sinister than her own.

His name was Luis Lopez, but was known as Mattie, a name he picked out when he ran away from home and his a*****e of a father. On his own since the age of twelve, he knew nothing but the streets. While he could read and write at a six grade level, when it came to money and figures, he had a masters from Harvard. Numbers, especially numbers attached with $ signs, came easily to him. At twelve, when he first hit the streets, alone, broke and with nowhere to sleep, he had been used and abused. He could still remember the first time he was raped. After that, he wised up and sold himself. If you're going to get something crammed up your a*s, you might as well get paid for it. Yeah, Mattie, now 28, knew the streets as well as anyone and in his business, which was now pimping, he had very few peers.

She wandered around the station asking questions, but most people just walked on by. How rude she thought. Why at home you would never "not" help a stranger. Imagine someone not even taking the time to stop and give someone directions. Well, she would figure it out. Just like she figured out how to get here. She had saved her baby-sitting money for months. She had a plan, she was no dummy. While she may have looked like a country bumpkin, she was smart enough to survive anywhere. She was about to ask someone at the ticket desk where a cheap motel might be when a nice young man, a Mexican by looking at him, offered to help her out. She knew there were nice people here, sometimes you just had to trust in your instincts..

"My, My, what have we here. Excuse me, I couldn't help but notice you look kind of lost. Is there anything I could help you with"? How many times had he used this same opening line?  Mattie didn't have a trace of an accent. He had worked on his vocabulary for years. He hated Mexicans, the language and anything that reminded him of his ragtag family of immigrants. "Yes, I've just came in from Kansas and I need some directions to a motel with moderate rates. I would just take a cab, but I was warned they would drive you around in circles to get a bigger fare. Would you know of a place"? "You bet I do, as a matter of fact, I was waiting on my brother who was supposed to be on your bus. I guess he missed it and is going to take another. Let me call him to make sure he's OK and I will personally show you a great place with rates right up your alley. My name's Mattie, welcome to the Big Apple"?

Riding in a strangers car made the girl nervous, but he didn't look like he could hurt a flea. Besides, once he shows me the motel, I'll never see him again, she thought. He was kind of cute, but she didn't come to Broadway and New York to have a boyfriend. The exact opposite. She promised herself she wouldn't even date until she had her fist acting gig. Gig, she loved that word. "An acting Gig". The words melted off her tongue. She was getting up early the next day, finding some kids like her, new to New York and acting. She might even be able to find somewhere to live. Maybe split the rent. She had it all planned out, had dreamed of this all her life, why shouldn't she have mapped out every step? She was here. She would be a STAR! 

Mattie also had everything mapped out, although he had done this many times. He had yet to lose one and he wouldn't lose this one.They came here in droves, thinking they could be the next Meryl Streep. Even after all these years of hustling and pimping, he had yet to see one make it. He had yet to see one who could resist him and his rap. It was time to start reeling her in. "So, what's your name? Wait, don't tell me, let me guess. StarEyes, right"? As the girl smiled and started to tell him her real name he stopped her. "No please, you'll always be StarEyes to me. Give me that anyway". She smiled and blushed. What a great guy. Her luck so far had been everything she thought it would be. 

The phone call to his brother had really been a phone call to his main girl, LadyLove. Yes, this was his first and he had pinned that name on her the same way he had pinned StarEyes on this girl. He could give a good s**t what their real names were. He still didn't know Loves name and she had been his first, over five years ago. She knew what to do. Dress casual and be friendly. Offer to split a room with the girl. Make her welcome. Give her the New York welcoming that New Yorkers were known for. Ha! Bullshit. New Yorkers wouldn't give you the time of day, but Love was going to be one friendly b***h. She had helped turn his little harem into six A-1 w****s and seven was his lucky number. Welcome StarEyes to your new home. It's the only thing you'll see besides the streets and the ceilings in the backseats of cars until I'm through with your a*s. 

Turning into a rundown motel, the girl was surprised. Surely she could afford a night or two at something a little nicer than this. "Is this the motel" she asked. Mattie knew the deal and had an answer all ready. "Yeah, this place looks like s**t, but the rooms are clean, the people are friendly and I even know some other girls who want to be actresses that have a room here". Oh well, the girl thought, when in Rome! As Mattie parked and they opened the doors, a small beautiful Black girl came running over. She kissed Mattie on the cheek and Mattie said "StarEyes, I want to introduce you to a friend of mine. This is LadyLove. She wants to be an actress too. You two have a lot in common". With that, Love ran over and hugged the girl now known as StarEyes.The hook was set, the fish was caught, and the kicker was, no one even knew her name!

Reviews

[Lizy Coale]

(: this is good! i like it. the beginning has some fragments in it that you might want to deal with, but other than that i really enjoy your writing voice. i also liked how you split the third-person between what both were thinking and kept them parallel but differing in nature. i wished there had been more conflict or suspense, although perhaps the point was for there not to be, for this girl to just be a really naive, easy catch. the no one even knew her name part was pretty awesome, also. it's a good short story (:

[Kenneth Sibbett]

Thank you for the comments. I like how this place operates. Everyone, at sometime or another, needs constructive criticism. I enjoy the give and take here and hope to meet some great people, like you!

[Samuel Dickens]

In reality, this tale probably plays out often, I imagine. A very good piece of writing.

[Alysa Salzberg]

You had some great lines here, like "It's the only thing you'll see besides the streets and the ceilings in the backseats of cars until I'm through with your a*s." It seems like the beginning of something bigger - do you have plans to expand on it? I kind of wanted to see StarEyes either prove Mattie wrong and live up to the name he gave her, or else somehow turn the tables on him. Whatever the case, I like that you're not afraid to get gritty, for example addressing Mattie's rape and subsequent life. A promising read!

[quinfinn]

a very compelling and grittily realistic commentary on the skin game in the big apple. this is well written, albeit graphic and doesn't softsoap the reader with niceties . i am vaguely reminded of the old kurt vonnegut and mickey spillane stories. but there is a uniqueness here which is refreshing and earthy. all in all
a very good write.