Ways of Life

Wrote this for a contest, so yeah. I figured it might be worth submitting. Enjoy!

She felt the cold air brush against her skin, leaving goosebumps behind. She pulled out a cigarette and pressed it to her lips. She exhaled the smoke and pulled it away, leaving a bright red lipstick stain against the pale white paper.

 

She had been standing in the empty parking lot for hours, waiting for some type of action to happen. She tried not to admit to herself that she came to this end of town purposely, so she could have some type of break for the night.

 

She looked up at the dark star-less night sky and threw the cigarette butt to the ground and stomped it with her high-heels. It was late winter, and not the kind of environment to be wearing the clothes that she was wearing. If I had the money, she thought. I could go back to goddam Miami where he is.

 

The sudden thought sent electrical vibrations through her body, motivating her to move. She walked her way down a street, the only light coming from the flickering, warm glow of the street lights. She tucked her hair behind her ears, and pulled a red lipstick tube from her Coach bag. She recently bought it with last month's earnings. Those bags were not cheap and she knew it too. She knew she should have saved it for Miami, but it seemed pointless at the time. It always does, she thought grimly to herself. She applied the lipstick thoroughly to her lips, and placed it back into the bag. She stopped at an intersection when she saw the blinding headlights of a car. She leaned up against a telephone pole, eyeing the car deviously, trying her best to look interested in doing something tonight.

 

To her luck, the car stopped abruptly in front of her, and she saw the passenger roll down the window.

 

"Hey babe, how much you take?" the man asked.

 

The man looked a bit aged, but not too bad. He was probably married, but she was used to that. She had done this sort of thing so many times the guilt of seducing a married man was invisible.

 

She smirked her best fake smile, because for the first time in months she didn't want to do this. She hated it, in fact. She just wanted to be with him again, back in Miami. But it suddenly came on her. She was cheating on him. They had only met once, for one night in bed, but he was the only man she ever really remembered sleeping with. They talked for hours afterwards, and she promised she'd come back to him in Miami. It had been a year. But she wasn't cheating. This was her job. This was a way of life. And there was no other way.

 

"I'll do it for free, if you'd like," she replied. And with that, she climbed into the car, without feeling guilty or coming closer to getting to Miami.

Reviews

[Clarisse Nanoit]

I loved this. I think for readers who don't immediately know it's about a prostitute, it might be even more enjoyable. I knew, because I am the moderator of the contest you submitted this to. =P I think you could do a little more character development--maybe she gets the nagging feeling something isn't right, that he's chesting BEFORE the car pulls up. Give her time to really consider it and get angry, ya know? She's obviously very good at denial; she's lying to herself throughout this story, and she wouldn't want to believe he was cheating, so she will need time to convince herself, you see? I really really loved this, though. You made her seem like a real person, not just a stereotypical prostitute. She has feelings, a lover, and a desire not to be doing this. I think, also, that it might be a nice twist if the person who pulled up was really hot... lol. Just because it would add something unexpected and not as cliche. But I'm not trying to rewrite your story. haha. Thanks for entering this into the HOOKERS! contest and good luck!
KH

[Clarisse Nanoit]

cheating*

[Kayla Etreni]

i love this. you deserve to WIN that contestt!

[GLORIA]

That was good she has a talent with her stories