After a while, the three women finally stood up to leave.
One of them smiled at me. "Good job on your first night, Noah."
"Yeah," another said. "You're fun to talk to."
"Don't forget us when you become popular," the third one added.
"I don't think that's happening anytime soon," I said.
They laughed, waved, and walked toward the exit.
As soon as they were gone, I leaned back in the booth and let out a long breath.
"…I feel like I just finished an exam."
Dylan laughed and sat down across from me.
"So," he said, reaching over and messing up my hair, "how were your first customers?"
"Stressful," I said. "I thought I was going to say something stupid every five seconds."
"That never goes away," he said. "You just get better at hiding it."
He leaned back and looked at me with a smirk.
"But seriously," he said, pointing at me, "don't steal my customers."
"I wasn't trying to steal your customers," I said.
"Good," he said. "Because I like money."
I rolled my eyes.
Then suddenly, I noticed something.
A woman in a bright red dress had just entered the club. She didn't walk like the other customers. She walked slowly, confidently, like she knew everyone was looking at her.
Long dark hair. Red lipstick. High heels. The kind of person who stood out immediately in a crowded room.
She stopped a few steps away from our table and sniffed the air slightly.
Then she tilted her head.
"I can smell something sweet," she said slowly.
Before I could even react, she walked up to me and gently touched my cheek with her fingers.
Her hand was cold.
Very cold.
"Well well," she said softly. "Who is this new one?"
I froze.
Then suddenly, another hand grabbed her wrist and pulled it away from my face.
"Don't touch employees without permission," Lena said coldly. "You goddamn mosquito."
Lena had appeared out of nowhere.
I didn't even see her coming.
The woman in the red dress smiled slowly and pulled her hand back.
"My, my," she said. "Still as scary as ever, Lena."
Then she looked past Lena and pointed at Dylan.
"Hey, mutt," she said, licking her lips slightly. "How's that scar on your back?"
Dylan's expression changed immediately. The relaxed, joking expression disappeared. His eyes became sharp, and he slowly stood up.
The atmosphere around the table suddenly felt very heavy.
I didn't understand what was happening, but I could feel the tension immediately.
It felt like a fight was about to start.
The woman in red smiled wider, like she was enjoying this.
Just as Dylan took a step forward, Lena spoke again.
"Watch your mouth," she said coldly. "Unless you want Madam to rip your tongue out."
The moment Lena said Madam, the woman in the red dress froze.
Her smile disappeared immediately.
For the first time since she walked over, she looked… nervous.
Not scared exactly.
But cautious.
She clicked her tongue and stepped back slightly.
"Always hiding behind Madam," she said. "You're no fun."
But she didn't step forward again.
She looked at me one more time, her eyes slowly moving from my face down to the ring on my finger, then back to my eyes.
Her lips curled into a small smile.
"I'll see you again," she said quietly.
Then she turned around and walked away into the crowd.
The moment she was gone, the tension around the table disappeared.
I looked at Dylan. "What the hell was that?"
Dylan exhaled slowly and sat back down.
"Welcome to Eclipse," he said.
I looked at Lena. "Who was that?"
Lena crossed her arms and looked toward the crowd where the woman had disappeared.
"Trouble," she said. "The kind of trouble you stay away from."
I looked back at the dance floor, trying to find the woman in the red dress again, but she was already gone.
I had a feeling this place had a lot more going on than just drinks, music, and customers.
And somehow, I had just gotten the attention of someone I probably should have avoided.
I was still looking at the crowd when Lena spoke again.
"You're done for tonight," she said to me. "Go to the staff room."
"Done?" I asked. "Already?"
"It's your first day," she said. "You don't throw a new guy into deep water on the first night."
That was actually reasonable.
Then she added, "You can sleep in the staff room tonight."
I blinked. "Sleep in the staff room?"
"Yes," she said. "We'll find a room for you soon."
I frowned. "It's fine. I can just go back to my apartment."
Lena slowly turned her head and looked at me.
She didn't say anything.
She just looked at me.
But the way she looked at me made it feel like she could set me on fire just by staring.
"…Okay," I said. "The staff room sounds good."
She nodded once.
"Go eat something first," she said. "There's food in the fridge."
I nodded and started walking toward the hallway, then stopped and turned back.
"Hey," I said, holding up the cigarette between my fingers, the expensive one Madam had given me earlier. "Can I smoke in the staff room?"
Lena looked at the cigarette, then at me.
"Yeah," she said. "Just don't burn the place down."
"Deal."
I walked down the hallway toward the staff room, the music getting quieter the further I went.
When I entered the staff room, a few people were still there. Someone was eating instant noodles, someone was lying on the couch looking at their phone, and someone was counting tips at the table.
I sat down, took out the expensive cigarette, and looked at it for a moment before lighting it.
The smoke tasted different from the cheap ones I usually bought. Smoother. Less harsh.
I leaned back in the chair and stared at the ceiling.
Just a day ago, I was unemployed and broke.
Now I was working at a nightclub, had a system in my head, weird coworkers, and apparently I was sleeping at work now.
My life had become very strange very fast.
Meanwhile, outside in the hallway, Lena stood with her arms crossed and looked around at the remaining staff.
Ryan came from behind the bar, wiping his hands on a towel.
Marco walked over from the entrance hallway.
Emily came from the dance floor area.
Dylan was leaning against the wall nearby.
"Alright," Lena said. "Listen up."
Everyone gathered around.
Dylan looked at her. "What's up?"
Lena looked at all of them and said,
"Madam wants a quick meeting. Now."
Everyone's expressions changed slightly.
Dylan stopped smiling.
Marco crossed his arms.
Ryan stopped wiping the glass in his hand.
Emily straightened her posture.
Nobody complained.
Nobody asked why.
Lena then looked at Dylan.
"Go to the staff room," she said. "Fetch the others."
Dylan nodded.
"And Dylan," she added, "don't say anything to Noah. If he asks, just say something and bring everyone."
Dylan smirked slightly. "Got it."
He turned and started walking toward the staff room.
Meanwhile, Lena turned toward the office hallway.
"Move," she said.
And the rest of the staff followed her toward Madam's office.