A Private Dance (Sunset)

 

What you're really here for is a promise from a friend. 'The hottest girl you've ever seen, man' must've been his words, then something like 'as beautiful as the sun' followed by almost ten minutes of gushing. You've never seen him go on about a girl for that long and especially not some stripper at your preferred club, even if it was one of the nicer ones in town. With as much as he hyped her up you couldn't just pass up the opportunity, or to see how bad his beer goggles messed him up that night, at the very least.

 

You pull out your phone and check the time. She was supposed to come on in a couple of minutes. Some girl going by She-Demon. Odd name for a stripper. Those two words together bring back some vague memories you're already losing as you take a few drinks off of your beer. Another couple minutes pass as you tapped your fingers on the stage impatiently. After the description you got of her, you almost can't wait.

 

Finally, the music changes and the usual blue and purple lights go dark. The sound of distorted guitar fills the club, a stark contrast from the usual music they play. The lights flash on in a bright red and yellow revealing the girl on the stage.

 

A big smile crosses your face once you first see her. You start from the black heels wrapping around her ankles and work your way up. The red strings tied around her body could barely pass for clothing and besides the fishnet gloves and pantyhose, barely anything got in the way of that beautiful, flowing skin. The way she sways her hips as she walks towards the pole already has you entranced as you trace your eyes up to see that long red and yellow hair whip around her as she moves her body to the music.

 

You look up to see that face that your friend told you so much about only to have your heart skip a beat. This isn't just any stripper. You couldn't mistake those sharp, teal eyes anywhere. The girl wrapping herself around the pole in front of you is none other than Sunset Shimmer. Suddenly She-Demon seems a lot more appropriate.

 

You stand there, almost frozen as you watch her. You could see her muscles tense under her skin as she works herself around the pole, spinning around to give you a full view of every little detail of her body. Sunset's figure is tight and athletic; you could tell she's put a lot of work into her body since high school. You struggle to snap your focus away from her as she moves. You thought she was hot back when you knew her but now... now she's making you feel a little hot just looking at her. You have to blink a few times to make sure you're not stuck in one of your old teenage fantasies. It really is her up on that stage.

 

She pulls the string on the tiny piece of fabric holding up her breasts and throws it to the ground, exposing you to a view that your teenage self would kill for. As you watch her slowly make her way around the stage, giving each guy a little attention and a chance to slip some money into the holes of her fishnet, an odd feeling grows in the pit of your stomach that you can't really explain. You've never actually known any of the girls before. Especially not one that always talked about being something great after college, being an astrophysicist or something. You don't quite remember since you hardly ever talked to her.

 

The bright lights shine off of her smooth skin as she runs her hands up and down herself. Your breath catches in your throat as you follow her hands down her body. They slow down over the parts of herself she really wants you to see: the curves of her ass, between her legs, over her bare breasts, and through her long hair, flipping it over her shoulders to rain back down over herself. She slowly wraps her fingers around the pole when she's done with her body to spin around a few times and give you some new angles to adore her at. She bends her body in a dozen different ways to give you a good view of her tight stomach or the way her legs look when she's bending over. She licks her lips as her eyes pass over the audience, trying to give everyone a sensual gaze as she touches herself.

 

After plenty of teasing, Sunset slips her little red panties off too and goes back to the pole, showing you every part of her you never could in high school. She slips her hand between her legs and crawls along the floor, arching her back to look as sensual as possible. The only thing clinging to her body now was the fishnet and her heels... and her own hands every time they left the pole. Even though your eyes are transfixed on her body, some part of you is keeping you from enjoying it. Might be the beer. This place was never very reliable for that.

 

The show goes on and Sunset gets closer to you until it's finally your turn to slip something for her. Her beautiful teal eyes center on yours and that sensual smile of hers instantly snaps to surprise. She falters in her routine for a moment once she recognizes you and she loses the beat of the song, but after she stares at you for a few awkward seconds, she goes right back to her dance, giving a much more personal dance like she did for the other guys near the stage, but without the lustful gaze she had before. She looks a lot more uneasy now, but you slip a couple of bucks into the fishnet anyway. Your breath catches in your throat as you feel the softness of her skin and look into her eyes. You wanted to see that sweet smile she used to give you alongside that cheerful greeting, but something told you that was never going to happen again.

 

She moves away from you and shifts her focus onto someone else. You really aren't feeling into it anymore anyway. You slip off to the bar as Sunset's last song ends, catching eyes with her one last time before she moves off the stage.

 

After a couple of much harder drinks over the course of a couple of hours, you decide to call it a night while you can still drive. You watch a couple of the other girls do their routines, but something just felt off and you couldn't bring yourself to really enjoy the night or bother paying for a private dance. You saw Sunset walking around the club too, almost to the point of being hounded by guys that wanted her all to themselves. You slip out of the club as the action dies down for the night, not really being able to stomach anymore. You walk into the cold night air and lean up against the wall in the parking lot, lighting up a cigarette to try and relax away all those odd feelings building up inside you.

 

You hear a familiar voice call your name through a moderately slurred tone. A quick glance over and you find Sunset Shimmer leaning up against the wall next to you, a gentle smile on her face. Her stance is uneasy in those high heels.

 

"Look who remembers my name," you say.

 

"I'm pretty good with names. You remember mine?" she says with a little slur.

 

"How could I forget the girl who turned into a demon and destroyed half the school," you say in a lighthearted tone.

 

"I'm really not ever gonna live that down, huh?" Sunset leans her head back against the brick, her eyes still watching you.

 

"Kinda hard to forget getting turned into a mindless zombie."

 

Sunset gives you a little chuckle and rolls her eyes. "I think I apologized enough for that one. Did you like the show?"

 

"Heh. Definitely. That was like seventeen-year-old me's wet dream."

 

Sunset's smile faded for a moment and she looked away from you. "Thanks..."

 

She takes a deep breath and inches a little closer to you. "So, you going to try and save me? Carry me off into the sunset and away from my bad decisions?"

 

You raise an eyebrow at her. "Why would I do that?"

 

"You looked at me like a disappointed dad when I came around to you. You only slipped me like five bucks too."

 

"I guess I wasn't really expecting to see you. Not every day you find one of the popular girls from high school wrapped around the pole."

 

"You say that like it's a bad thing," she says with a teasing smile.

 

"It's your life. None of my business."

 

"What a gentlemen," Sunset sways back and forth, scooting a little closer to you every time. "Don't you think an old friend deserves a little more than a five? Part of me thinks you didn't like the dance," she says, putting on a sultry smile as her hand creeps onto your shoulder. You clear your throat as you feel your face heat up. Something about her made you feel like an awkward teenager again.

 

"Give me a couple days so I can sell my car for you," you say, trying your hardest not to sound awkward. Sunset's drunk enough that it didn't throw her off at least.

 

She gives you a little drunken giggle. "You trying to buy my hand in marriage?"

 

"No," you say flatly. You flick your cigarette away, that feeling creeping up on you again as Sunset leans on you. She looks a little shocked at your momentary rejection, but puts on her sultry grin again pretty quickly.

 

"How about a private dance, then?"

 

You let out a sigh. You really don't want to go back into the club. As beautiful as Sunset is, the thought of watching her dance again made you feel... uneasy.

 

Sunset looks a little dejected at first, but then tries to shift her weight in her heels and ends up falling forward in front of you. You instinctively wrap an arm around her before she hits the ground. If you didn't know any better you'd think she did that on purpose. She wraps her arms around your shoulders as her smile widens. "I guess the no touching rule doesn't apply outside the club."

 

"I guess not," you say, not really caring to flirt anymore.

 

Sunset picks up on it and looks into your eyes and tries to get a read on you. "Well, I took a cab here, so the least you could do is take me home, don't you think?"

 

You raise your eyebrow and give her a sly grin. "You really think getting into a car with some random dude while you're drunk is the best idea?"

 

She slips out of your hands and takes a few steps into the parking lot, trying to sway her hips but still looking pretty uneasy in those heels. "Hey, I know you. Would you rather me get in a car with someone else?"

 

"I guess not."

 

"And I'm not drunk..." she says. She isn't completely slurring her words yet, but you doubt she's sober enough to make intelligent decisions.

 

You lead her to your car, having to hold her up for the long trek to the other side of the parking lot. Once you get in and get going, Sunset starts looking over you with her usual sultry gaze, giving you that playful smile.

 

"You gonna give me an address?" you ask her.

 

Sunset giggles at you. "What, you aren't going to try to get me back to your place? A vulnerable, drunk girl in your passenger seat and you're really still going to be a gentleman?"

 

You can tell by her tone what she wants. That sinking feeling returns at the thought of bringing her back to your place and fucking her like some cheap prostitute, but the alcohol in your system fought off that feeling for long enough to make the decision for you. "If that's where you want to go."

 

"I did promise you a private dance, didn't I? I might even give you a discount," she says as she fidgets around in the seat until she's facing you.

 

"How sweet of you."

 

You stop at a red light and Sunset leans over to you, so close you can smell the vodka on her breath. "You know... I don't know if I can wait until we get there," she says, her hand tracing up your chest until it gets to your cheek. She turns your head towards her and kisses you, not bothering with sweet, sensual pecks and moving straight to putting her tongue in your mouth and inviting yours to play with her. Her hand moves down from your cheek and traces down your chest again until it reaches the top of your pants.

 

With one hand she flips your belt open and unbuttons your pants, slipping her hand right under your waistband and wrapping it around your length. You gasp as you feel her soft hand around you. This is playing out just like all your old teenage fantasies, the only other thing you need is Rarity on the other side.

 

She gives you a few strokes as your tongues dance around in each other's mouths. Your hands drop away from the wheel and drift towards her. Just as your hand traces down the bare skin of her navel and before you can return the favor, she pulls away from you with a coy smile.

 

"Green light," she says, pulling her hand out of your pants and sitting back down in your seat.

 

You shake your head at her with your member ready to go inside your pants. "Really?"

 

She giggles at your frustration as you drive away. "Part of my job [i]is[/i] to be a tease, you know."

 

For the next few minutes she isn't much better: drunkenly teasing you every chance she got, whispering sweet promises in your ear about what you might get to do to her when you get there. She even starts slipping her clothes along her body to reveal more of herself in a faux complaint about how hot it was.

 

You respond in kind to her advances, trying not to show how that strange feeling in your gut is affecting you. This was everything you've always wanted with one of the hottest girls at your old high school, but something was wrong: this isn't Sunset. She had the same face and same voice, but this wasn't the dorky, sweet, repentant, former bully you got to know in those last couple years.

 

You push that feeling down as you stop at your house. You and Sunset don't waste any time getting started as you unlock the door. She latches onto you as soon as you step into your house, pushing her tongue into your mouth yet again as you guide her back to your bedroom. Like a trained expert she takes your shirt off while slipping out of the fishnet adorning her body. Once the two of you hit the bed she spins you around and whips the coat off of herself and pulls off her tiny bra for you, giving you a little taste of what you saw back on stage as she moves down your body and pulls your pants down.

 

She wraps her lips around your cock and her head flows down almost to the base. Sunset brings both of her hands up to you, wrapping one around the base and the other to caress your balls. You let your head fall back at the feeling. You've never had someone who was this good. Her skill told you that you were far from the first she's done this for. That thought put a wrench in the gear of your arousal for a moment, but Sunset is quick to drown out your thoughts in a constant stream of pleasure.

 

You run your fingers through her soft hair as her warm, wet mouth glides across your entire length with ease. She makes a few gagging noises at first, but soon enough she easily fits everything down her throat, making you groan at the feeling. You've never been with someone who was this good and Sunset is determined to show you a good time. Every stroke of her head makes your legs twitch as she pulls you closer to orgasm. Somehow she can feel when you're almost at your limit. She lets you slide out of her mouth and gives you a tiny peck on your now-soaked head with an accompanying wink. She takes in a deep breath since she just deprived herself for a couple of minutes, her mascara running a little bit too for abusing her throat.

 

"How was that?" she whispers in a sultry tone.

 

You let out a long sigh as your member aches for more attention. "Amazing..."

 

"So how about that private dance?" Sunset crawls up your body, biting her lip as she goes. Her lips come inches away from yours, just enough to smell that alcohol again and expect a kiss. Instead, she sits up straight, the head of your cock rubbing against her wet folds. Sunset lets her hips rock back and forth, teasing you at her entrance until she finally lines you up. She only lets the head slip in as she lets out a long, satisfied moan. Her hands trace down her completely exposed body as she enjoys herself in front of you, making your eyes follow down every inch of her delicate skin. You move your hands up to her hips and draw them across her sides, just wanting to feel her under your touch. She lets out a soft sigh at the attention and looks down at you, her beautiful, half-lidded, teal eyes filled with lust.

 

Finally she lets herself fall down onto your cock, her inviting pussy enveloping it completely. You let out a moan of your own at the feeling of her inner walls caressing your shaft and her wetness covering you in a soft warmth. Your hands snake their way up to her breasts and you knead into them. Sunset's flesh is warm to the touch and feels heavenly between your fingers. She bites her lip and grabs your wrists lovingly, pulling your hands into her and begging for more. Her hips move against yours as her body pulls as much pleasure as it can get from your cock. The first coos escape her lips and she lets her head fall back and her long, luxurious hair pour back over her shoulders. Your cock twitches inside of her, reveling in the feeling of being gripped by Sunset's wet folds.

 

Your hips lightly push up into her to try and get the most out of the position. Sunset falls forward into your hands as you do, her eyes closing as her lips part to let out a little whimper with the pleasure multiplying for her. Her hips are still swaying back and forth as you push into her. Your cock can feel every the entirety of her inner walls as you drive into her and she swirls you around inside her. You take a moment to just let your eyes trace up and down her beautiful body. Her skin is tight and soft, with just enough to make her still look feminine, but not too much that any one of her curves are any less than perfect. You run your hands back down her sides and down her thighs, just taking in all the little tenses and twitches her body makes as she shivers with pleasure.

 

Sunset leans down and lets her body rest against yours, her face inches away from you. You lean forward and take a kiss from her, the soft hair settling against you driving you wild and making you want even more. You grab her by her hips and thrust even harder, making the first few pumps resonate with wet slaps as you fuck her. She moans into your mouth as your tongues roll over each other in a drunk stupor. You can taste the cheap, fruity alcohol in her mouth, making that unsettling feeling in the pit of your stomach resurface for a moment. With each wet smack of your cock into her, the feeling melts away.

 

Sunset's body shudders as you drive into her, every thrust causing her body to arch and rub against yours. Feeling the entirety of her soft flesh against you only pushes you harder as you wrap your arms around her waist and keep her close. You can feel her heart pounding in her chest and the moans resonating in her body before they reach your lips. You run your hands over her back, making her shiver at your touch. You slide your fingers through her wonderfully soft hair and let the red and gold locks fall over her back and your face and tickle both of you.

 

Sunset pulls away from your grasp, leaving a little string of saliva between your lips. She wipes her mouth with a smile as she settles back upright on your cock. You yearned for that touch again, with your bodies so close and in such a loving embrace. It almost made forget you were fucking a stripper without a condom, and actually making love to her like every other guy wanted to back in high school.

 

She slides forward and makes you slip out of her with a quiet, wet plop onto your body. Sunset grabs you by the hand and urges you to sit up as she lifts her leg over your body and positions herself beside you. As you reposition yourself, she leans forward with that same lustful gaze and whispers into your ear.

 

"How about you fuck me from behind?" she says with a playful tone and a lustful smile.

 

You happily oblige her and pull her over to you. You place a hand on Sunset's back, pushing her down into the sheets. She stretches out for you and arches her back, giving you a full view of her wet folds that were already red and swollen from the attention. She crosses her feet under you and looks over her shoulder with her face in the sheets. Her eyes beg you for a little attention, so you grab her by the hips and line yourself up. You easily slip back inside of her. She lets out a moan as you push yourself all the way inside of her. You pause for a moment once you feel yourself as deep inside of her as you can possibly get. Through her mess of hair you can see her looking back at you in anticipation. You pull back and start thrusting into her, making her grab at your sheets and fidget with every thrust. Your hands grip on her hips so hard you can see the red outline of your hand every time you adjust them.

 

"Harder," Sunset pleads with a shaky voice.

 

You pull her into your thrusts even harder, making those wet smacks echo throughout your room. Her muffled moans resonate through the sheets as you force her down further into the mattress. You see one of Sunset's hands disappear underneath her and eventually snake its way between her legs. Sunset's fingers dance across her clit as you pound her, making her yell with delight each time your cock fills her.

 

"Don't stop!" she yells at you.

 

You don't plan on it. You pound into her with animalistic desire, each thrust harder than the last. You can see Sunset's other hand gripping the sheets hard and her hair is a ragged mess that's completely covering her face now. Her body tenses and her inner walls grip you even harder, making you feel that familiar pressure building up inside of you. Before you can get any closer through, Sunset's back arches and she pulls away from you for a moment. You can see her pussy pulse with the familiar sight of an orgasm. She falls forward into your bed, her hand still working away at her clit to make sure her orgasm lasts as long as possible. Her legs twitch under you as her body gives way to the waves of pleasure. You decide you want a little more of that action too, so you lean down over her and slide yourself back in just in time to feel her folds clench around you for the last few gushes of her orgasm.

 

Sunset pants and lets out a few low whimpers as you fuck her again, this time a little gentler as her orgasm subsides. She twists around and urges you further down for another kiss. Her tongue slides into your mouth again, lethargically playing with yours as a thank you for making her cum. As you slowly fuck her again, your own body yearns for that same release. After a few more minutes of gentle thusting, Sunset motions for you to get off of her.

 

You reluctantly agree and let your cock slip out of her. The cold air instantly makes you wish to be back inside of her, but she pushes you back into the bed, eager to give back. Sunset settles between your legs and positions herself over your dick. Her long hair falls over her shoulders as she looks down with that same sultry expression at you. Each soft lock passing over your skin makes your member twitch with anticipation. Sunset finally leans down and plants a few loving kisses across your length, every now and again adding a long lick, not caring that she was tasting her own arousal on you.

 

She let you back into her mouth, her lips slowly making their way down your length. You instantly let out a groan at the feeling of the warm embrace of the inside of her body again. Sunset went right back to work on building up that pressure inside of you. Her tongue traces its way across your member as her head bobs up and down on it. The feeling of her soft hair draping across your skin and her mouth enveloping you easily makes your legs twitch with the overwhelming sensations of pleasure. She looks up to you with those sultry teal eyes as she goes, each motion downwards bringing her closer to the base and you further down her throat. She lets out a few gags at first, but eventually her lips easily press against the base of your cock every time again. She stops occasionally at the bottom, letting her throat contract and squeeze your member as her eyes turn back up to you.

 

You place your hands on her head yet again to make sure she won't end up teasing you. You could feel yourself nearing the edge with every passing second. Finally, you can't hold yourself back any longer.

 

"Sunset..." you whisper down to her, trying to warn her.

 

She lets her lips slide all the way down to the base again and looks up at you with those lustful, beautiful eyes, little tears already staining her face with mascara as she pushes her throat to the limit. You feel the first tense of your cock inside of her and let the first few spurts down her throat. She immediately starts swallowing your cum, the little motions of her throat making your orgasm even more intense. Your hands grip her hair instinctively, making sure she wouldn't pull away and end this amazing feeling too soon. Sunset waits patiently for the last spurt of cum to glide down her throat and for your hands to relax against her head before she pulls back up and takes in a deep breath.

 

Sunset wipes her eyes and mouth with her hand then gives you a satisfied smile. You lay limp into your bed, that orgasm completely draining you. You haven't had something that good in years, or maybe ever, really. Sunset crawls up beside you, resting her head against your shoulder and her hand tracing circles in your chest.

 

You look down at her as she goes over your body then looks back up to you. There it is again: that feeling building up inside of you. You can't tell if it's pity, or sorrow, or just bad beer, but you can't shake it for some reason. When you look into Sunset's deep, teal eyes, it only gets worse. You hardly recognize her anymore. This isn't that girl that used to give you all those bright, joyful hellos back in high school or the girl that made sure everyone had a friend in her after the Fall Formal. She'd changed so much. That sweet, cheerful demeanor is dead inside of her, and it makes you oddly sick as you pour over a few fond memories.

 

"You enjoy your private dance?" she asks with a sultry whisper. She lifts one of her legs on top of you, letting you feel her soft skin on yours yet again.

 

You let out a sigh. You don't want to ruin the mood, but you can't bring yourself to flirt with her anymore. You put a hand on her cheek and look into her eyes.

 

"So, how abou--" she starts.

 

You lean down and plant a kiss on her lips. Not one of those sloppy, tongue-first kisses you've been trading with her all night, but a genuine, gentle, loving kiss. Sunset tenses in your grasp for a moment as your lips catch her off-guard. You let the moment linger for a while, just enjoying her warmth, ignoring the taste of fruity alcohol, and remembering the sweet, caring girl that you used to know. After a few seconds, you pull away from her and lay back down.

 

Sunset blinks at you a few times, the kiss evaporating her lust-filled demeanor. She just stares at you with confusion encroaching on her face. She doesn't say anything at first, eventually settling back down onto your chest. You figure this is probably the end of it. She'll leave tomorrow morning and you'll go back to your life, maybe seeing her at the club again and getting an awkward word in or two, maybe catch her after a few drinks and be the one she goes home with instead of some other stranger. The thought leaves you feeling cold, despite Sunset being curled up against you.

 

"You know... this is the point where I'd ask you if you wanted another round, maybe get a little money out of you," Sunset says, her sultry tone gone completely, "or maybe I'd wait until morning and ask then. Depends on how drunk you were..."

 

You run your fingers through her hair. Her voice is shaky and timid all of the sudden. "Sunset... what happened?"

 

She stays silent for a moment, turning her head up towards you to give you a bittersweet smile before looking away. "You know, I had a crush on you in high school for a little while." You don't say anything. "This isn't really what I wanted, but I guess it doesn't matter now." She pauses for a moment, some unknown thought overtaking her. "You were one of the first ones to forgive me after the Fall Formal, and you never seemed to really care about what I used to be..."

 

Sunset takes a deep breath. "I always wanted to get to know you, but we never really had too many chances. My friends would pull me off, or you'd have to go somewhere else. I always think of what might have happened if maybe you liked me back, or if I had a little more initiative...

 

"Maybe I'd have started a family, had a couple of kids. Had a normal life... maybe not with you, but with someone..."

 

"What's wrong with this one?" you ask her.

 

Sunset closes her eyes and clenches her fist. She just sits there next to you for a moment silently before you hear that first sniff come out of her.

 

"You alright?" you ask her.

 

"No..." she whispers. "I..."

 

You sit up and bring Sunset up with you. You put a hand on her cheek and make her look up at you. You can already see her eyes watering. "Sunset, what happened?" you ask her again, looking her in the eye this time.

 

She pulls away from your hand and looks away, closing her eyes tightly. "I... I don't know. I don't know how this happened. I needed money, so I took a job, and I... I loved it. All those eyes on me, all that attention and adoration. But now..." she says, her voice trembling.

 

You look down at her as the first drunken sob escapes her. You pull her close to you, feeling her tears drip down your chest already. "I'm so tired of it. So tired of fucking strangers just to feel again, so tired of drinking to stop caring, so tired of not being in control anymore...

 

"I... I just want to fall in love with someone... be happy... not have to..." she says between sobs. She presses her face deeper into your chest, so you rub your hands along her back to try and comfort her.

 

You don't know what to say. She brings her hands and knees in close as her mascara starts running down her cheeks for an entirely different reason. You wrap your arms tightly around her and just let her drunkenly cry into you. You lay back with her and wrap the blankets around both of you, just waiting and listening as her cries slowly got quieter over time. Eventually, she goes quiet and lays limp against your chest and in your arms, her harsh sobs giving way to the soft breathing of her drunken sleep.

 

You let out another sigh as you look down at her. She doesn't seem that drunk, but she could wake up and not even remember any of this. The thought of the sweet, caring girl she used to be hurting somewhere deep down in there tore you apart, but what could you really do for her? You run your fingers gently through her hair, pretending that just for a second you didn't just fuck a whore without a condom, but instead you had sex with Sunset, the most supportive and determined girl you'd ever met, a girl that anyone would be lucky to have, a girl you never truly got to know, and that could've been so much more than a slut fucking strangers for a little cash and some validation.

 

You finally just decide to let all those thoughts go and go to sleep, your arm still wrapped around her.

 

[hr]

 

The harsh light of the sun pouring through your window hits your eyes and makes you stir out of your slumber. You roll over in bed, not caring enough to face the world right now. You hear clothing rustling somewhere in your room, but don't think too much of it at first. Once the memories of last night come flooding back to you, you pat around your bed only to find it empty. You open your eyes and set up in bed and see Sunset sitting on the other end, slipping on one of her heels.

 

She turns around almost startled to see you. The two of you make eye contact for a few seconds before she turns away with a disappointed sigh. "I was kind of hoping you'd stay asleep," she says solemnly.

 

"Why? Thought you said now was the time to get some money out of me," you say. As soon as it leaves your mouth you regret saying it. After last night Sunset doesn't need jokes. She needs a friend.

 

Sunset looks down to the floor and pulls her jacket up over her shoulders. "I think I ruined the mood." She stands up and takes a few steps towards the door. "I'll just call a cab or something," she says quietly, not able to look at you.

 

Before she can put a hand on the doorknob, you roll out of bed. "Wait a sec," you say. You quickly pull on a pair of pants and walk over to her before she can leave. "Do you... want to grab some breakfast or something?" you ask her, trying to put on your most genuine smile for her.

 

She chuckles at you, not that sultry giggle she gave you last night, but an empty, soulless chuckle accompanied by shaking her head. "Seriously? You're trying to take the stripper that you fucked last night out for a date?"

 

"What... what do you remember about last night?"

 

Sunset takes a deep breath and looks towards the ground. "Too much. Drunk enough to make an embarrassment out of myself, but not drunk enough to forget," she says, her voice dropping to almost a whisper. "Maybe it was just because I used to know you. Just forget about it," she says, turning back towards the door.

 

You put your hand on the knob to keep her from leaving. "I'm not forgetting about it, Sunset. You said you wanted a chance to be happy. Here it is."

 

"I said a lot of things," she says, looking down at your hand on the doorknob. "Are you really going to keep me in here? I thought you said it was my life to live."

 

"That was before last night. Look me in the eye and tell me you want to keep living like this, that you want to keep going home with any stranger that looks like he might pay you."

 

Sunset looks away from you and twists her hands over one another nervously. "You can stop, Sunset. Just let me take you out for breakfast or something. Do you really have anything else to do this morning?"

 

"No... I guess not."

 

"Then let me get dressed and we'll leave."

 

You grab some shirt off the floor and slip on a pair of shoes quickly, careful not to give Sunset a chance to think too hard on it. Once you walk back over to her, she's staring at the door again and fidgeting in place.

 

"Are you ready?" you ask her.

 

"This is a bad idea."

 

"Sunset..."

 

She sighs and looks towards the ground. "I'm just not sure about this, or anything..."

 

You lift her chin up to look at you and give her a heartfelt smile. "Hey, I just asked a stripper out on a date. I'm not exactly sure about it either."

 

She lets a sad smile cross her lips as she looks you in the eye. You grab her by the hand and open up the door for her. She snaps her focus down on her hand, your fingers interlocked with hers like a couple might do. She blinks a few times at the gesture, then looks back up to you.

 

Something changed in her eyes right then. That bittersweet gaze of a time long-dead gives way to a hopeful glance at you that reminded you of the girl she used to be. The girl that might still be in there somewhere.

 

You give her one last smile and head out the door with her. A second chance over coffee didn't sound so bad.