"An ass. You are an ass. We don't serve your kind here," I said with a straight back, but my heart was beating like crazy, fearing the large man hovering over me.
"You are nothing but a little bitch who spread her legs for money. Do you thin-"
Suddenly, he covers his crotch and kneels on the floor, letting out a loud groan, tears forming in his eyes. I looked up and saw Sandra, "Don't you call her a bitch! You douche!"
A smile crossed both our faces as we gave each other high fives. Instantly, one of the troublesome men started yelling and punched one of the typical clients to defend one of the girls. A fight started breaking out even the guards couldn't stop.
My heart started racing as I heard vulgar words and saw items being thrown around the room. Turning around, two strange men were forcing themselves on Sandra. Looking at the girl next to me, we gave each other a nod and hit their head with chairs. The girls group and defend one another as the fights continue. Blood was splattered everywhere, and everything was smashed into pieces.
After what seemed to be forever, I heard police sirens, and a bunch of officers burst in.
Instantly, all the girls group. What are they all doing here? We didn't do anything illegal. None of the girls here prostitute themselves as far as we know. Mr. Polwer frowns against his girls for doing such a thing; he says if we urgently need money, we come to him.
One of the officers came up to us, "Please, can you all come with us."
"Did we do something wrong?" Sandra asks.
Mr.Polwer ran up to us, "We run a clean business here. None of my girls done anything wrong."
"Oh no, none of you had done anything wrong as far as I know. Those groups of guys over there." He pointed at the crowd that was creating trouble earlier. "They were selling illegal drugs," he finished.
"B-B-But, why do you want us?" I asked.
"First, we need your statement, and second, you are all bleeding. We need to take you to the hospital."
Looking down, most of the girls, including me, were bleeding or injured from the fight earlier. One by one, we headed inside the police officers' cars as they gave us blankets to cover our bodies.
"Girls, you all aren't in trouble. Don't worry," a female police officer reassured, but I couldn't stop the beating inside my chest.
I never disliked the hospital. Being in a hospital, any hospital always brings back those torturous memories. How all my loved ones were lying on that bed, lifeless.
No matter how much I screamed or cried, they refused to stand up. My brothers didn't know what was happening, but they sob along with me. Ann stood there, dead, unable to fathom the situation. She didn't cry with everyone else, nor was she seeking comfort. She stood there like a broken shell, her face void of any emotions as they covered the faces of our parents.
When the two-door slide opened, my scraped feet stepped inside, it was different from that day. My eyes analyzed every corner of the room, from the plastic chair to the tiny black pen. I pull my eyes from the highly polished linoleum floor to see the long, empty hallway. Blood wasn't splattered everywhere, nor did I hear sorrowful screams of lost loved ones. It was quiet to the point that the silence was agonizingly torturous.
They placed us in different rooms, gave us hospital gowns, and treated our injuries as they took our statement with whatever happened earlier.
Finally, changing into the gowns, I took a seat on the uncomfortable rough bed. Looking around my room, it was painted light brown and dull, similar to every other place. A familiar-looking nurse heads inside and grants me a smile, treating my wounds.
"Rough night, I heard." She attempts to make conversation.
"Quite not what I expected," I replied as she hooked the IV into me.
My eyes went from her to the old TV set hanging from the ceiling. The window giving me a view of the parking lot was right across from it. In the corner are two chairs, worn and torn, needing to be replaced. It was a typical hospital room, nothing special, sparse, and functional.
"I never expected to see you back here," the nurse whispered and gave me a sad smile.
Finally, looking into her eyes, I realized why she looked familiar. She was the nurse who hugged me the whole night when my parents passed. Even when she was supposed to go home because her hours were up, she stayed with me and kept an eye on Angelica just in case she did anything. She even helped us by calling around to see if anyone could watch the boys while Ann and I mourned. When she couldn't find anyone, she voluntarily took a few days off and helped us manage the boys.
"Thank you for everything you have done for us," I said.
She settles down beside me, "I'm sorry I can't do any more for you and your sister."
Tears were dripping down my eyes as I shook my head. "No, you've done more than enough for all of us, and we are entirely grateful."
She wiped the tear from her cheek and gave me a hug, "Please, be strong, sweetie."
I gave her a grateful smile and lay on the lumpy bed, staring at the blue and white tile ceiling as I inhaled the undertone of bleach lingering in the air.
"Come in," I replied.
Two police officers came in and gave me a small smile. "You are good to go, miss, but we need one more thing."
"What is it?" I replied, eager to leave this place as soon as possible.
"Name, please," he asked.
"W-W-Why do you need my n-name? I already gave my statement," I said, my heart suddenly beating again but at a rapid pace.
He glanced at his partner and then back at me. "We need to contact a family member of yours to pick you up since it's clear that you drank. Similar to everyone here," he calmly stated.
Of course, I took a sip here and there when customers offered me a drink. It's part of my job to keep them happy. I'm not stupid. I only accept drinks from trustworthy regular customers.
"N-No. I c-can't do that p-please just let me go. I'll walk home or take a taxi," I pleaded with him desperately. Ann cannot know that I lied about my job.
"Trust me when I say we want to do that, but we want to ensure everyone gets home safely. Similar to everyone else here, I'm pretty sure you left your wallet back in the building when we rushed everyone out. The building is temporarily closed, surrounded by the media, and you don't want to go back there. We don't want you to walk home this late at night, quite unsafe. Name, please," he asked once again.
"C-Can't you guys take me home?" I beg them.
"We want to, but too many girls are requesting that. We said no to one already, so we have to say no to the rest," he said. Looking into his eyes, I knew he had the same conversation several times tonight already.
The other guy scratched the nape of his neck, quite uncomfortable with the situation. They probably know why I don't want to tell them my name and why I don't want them to contact my family members.
Tears flow down my pale cheeks, hitting my trembling hands. With a shaky chest, I inhale a deep breath as I repeatedly swallow the nonexistent saliva in my dry throat. My eyes were fixed on the bright polished tile floor.
"Lily Minnie."
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