Other Fan Fiction ❯ Chosen ❯ Chapter One: Interview ( Chapter 1 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Josephine knew that she would never be anything more than a regular employee at The Gateway. She spent her shifts at the bar, cleaning tables, and refilling drinks while her coworkers mingled with the customers and brought home tips that were sometimes more than twice their pay for the night. She went to work at five in the evening and left at three in the morning, yet she was still struggling to pay for her small apartment.

She found that she could tolerate the long hours, the snide comments from her fellow employees and rude remarks from customers. She could handle drunken men and their roaming hands, tipsy employees who knocked into her and spilt her drinks, and even the late night shows that made the already unruly drunkards even more boisterous. She had even gotten used to the short and revealing uniform that only seemed to encourage the customer’s wandering hands.

The only problem that she had was with the manager, Vincent. He was a tall, slim built man with black hair and sharp green eyes. He always was dressed in black pants and shoes with a solid colored shirt and black tie. Though he always wore long sleeved button up shirts his sleeves were normally rolled up to the elbow and his tie was loosened so his shirt could be unbuttoned at the neck. On the days that he actually showed up he never seemed to do any work; instead he would hit on the waitresses and rile the customers until a brawl would start.

The man was quite possibly the most arrogant, crude person that Josephine had ever met. She hated him, and he knew it. Which was why he never left her alone. She came to work praying that he wouldn’t show, knowing that when he did he would hound her the entire night. This night was no different.

Josephine had just finished taking a tray full of drinks over to a large table of men who had already had enough to drink and was making her way back through the crowd when she felt a hand slap her backside. She tensed and turned around, prepared to smile and remind the customer that such things were not allowed in The Gateway. When she found herself faced with the manager her smile lifted and she glared daggers at him, waiting to see if looks could really kill.

The two of them stood facing one another as a pair of fighters before the bell. Josephine narrowed her sky blue eyes, looking him over as though she were deciding the best place to punch him. It had been a long night already, the locks of her curly red hair had came loose from her bun and her bangs were hanging down on either side of her face even though she had pinned them back earlier that night. Her face was red with embarrassment and anger, and she clutched her tray until her knuckles turned white.

He grinned at her and whistled over at another waitress. The woman came running up, grinning like mad and winking at a few customers she passed by. Josephine felt her heart sink as the woman came towards them. Not that there was anything wrong with her, the woman was sweet, good natured and seemed to be incredibly lucky when it came to good tippers; but, she was also a bit of a loose cannon when she had a few too many drinks.

“Take over Josephine’s tables,” he said. The woman nodded and bowed slightly, giving both Josephine and Vincent a clear view down her shirt. Josephine blushed and averted her eyes while Vincent stared down the woman’s top until she straightened up and then eyed her until she disappeared into the crowd of customers. Josephine turned and started to walk away, heading for the exit. “Hey Get back here I’m not sending you home ”

“Why did you just give her all of my tables then?” Josephine asked, hissing at him between her teeth as she turned back to him. Vincent pointed to the metal spiral stair that led from the floor up to the manager’s office.

“I need to talk to you in my office,” Vincent said. Josephine tried to wait until he had turned his back on her before she let a disgusted look cross her face. She dragged her feet a little as she followed him to the office, begrudgingly thinking of someone else getting all of the tips she had worked so hard for that night.

She sighed as she thought about it and hoped that she might make up for it during her next shift. Vincent led her up the spiral stair case, stopping once to motion for the DJ to turn up the music a little. Josephine winced as the music blasted through the bar and the customers began to cheer as the lights dimmed and a spot light hit the stage at the back of the bar where a pair of girls came out to perform. She stepped through the doorway just as one girl began to help strip the other.

“Did someone complain?” she asked, barely giving Vincent enough time to shut the door. He cracked a smile, looking at her from the corner of his eye. The music was barely audible in the office and she wondered if the room was noise proof.

“You should sit down.” He motioned towards one of the two chairs sitting in front of a large metal desk. “Someone wants to met you, and it might take him a while to get here.”

She walked over to the two chairs, taking time to admire the large office. There was a wall length one-way window so Vincent could watch over the customers and employees, dark red carpeting, a high ceiling with handing lights, a large stereo system and collection of CDs, the metal desk with three matching chairs, and a long black leather sofa.

“Who is it?” she asked as she sat down in one of the two chairs. Vincent sat down in the chair next to her’s.

“My brother. First, I need to know about you. You live alone right? No family or friends except for the other waitresses?” He leaned back in the chair, his eyes following the curves of her body.

Josephine felt a chill, it was a little strange for him to ask her something like that. More than a little even. But he was right, she had no one. She nodded, nervously crossing her ankles and placing her hands on her lap. Vincent chuckled softly, his eyes rising to her face to watch her blush.

“My parents died when I was a kid, and with the hours I work I have to sleep most of the day. And I wouldn’t call the other waitresses my friends.” She shifted slightly in her seat and wished that he wouldn’t stare at her, and that her uniform covered more skin. She vainly tugged at the hem of her skirt and tried not to blush.

“That’s right, I forgot about your parents. Could you tell me how they died?” Vincent leaned his head to one side, looking at her curiously. She hesitated but decided that it would be harmless to tell him about it.

“They were killed when our house caught fire. But my foster parents never gave me any details.”

“What were your foster parents like? Did you have a good childhood?” he asked, staring at her intently. Josephine clenched her hands into fists on her lap as she thought about her foster parents.

“What does that have to do with anything? And why does your younger brother want to meet me?”

“He’ll be offering you a job, it will pay better, and you won’t have to worry about those drunks grabbing at you every night. I’ve been listening to the other girls talk, they don’t think you’ll last much longer out on the floor, and I know you can’t stand the shows-“

“I can handle myself with those drunks, and I don’t care what the other girls say.” it was true that she was starting to loose her patience with the customers, and she hated the strip teases every night. However, her pride was hurt; and she wasn’t the sort of girl to just give up and quit.
“I wouldn’t have gotten involved but when my brother saw you working he said that you didn’t belong out there. I’ve been watching you close this week and I’ve got to say that I agree with him. You barely get any tips, customers who are seated in your section often ask for other waitresses-“
“So you’re firing me? What do I have to do? Get on stage and shake my ass for those drunks? Would you prefer I wore a thong and an even shorter skirt? Maybe I should work upstairs with the sluts a few nights a week. Would your brother think I was better suited then?”

“You’ll have to audition for me if your going to go on stage. Why don’t you try stripping first?”

Josephine almost got out of her chair and slapped him across the face. She almost picked up the laptop on his desk and swung it at his head. But she didn’t. Instead she heard a light, hesitant knocking on the door. Vincent sighed and pushed himself up and out of his chair and walked over to the door. Josephine was still quietly fuming when the door opened and a small, scared, little boy stepped inside.

A few questions ran through her confused mind. Who was the boy? Why was he out so late? But what she really wanted to know was why he was in The Gateway while a strip tease was going on.

“Josephine, this is my little brother, Viktor.” Vincent gave the small boy a gentle push towards her before closing the door. The little boy had large violet-blue eyes and short, well kept blonde hair. She guessed his age around three or four, and the way he clutched the dark green stuffed dragon she thought he must be scared out of his mind.

“How could you let a little boy in here at this time of night?” she asked, standing at once and going towards the young boy. She was a little surprised when the boy reached his arms out for her but once she had picked him up it felt almost natural to her. She kept one arm under him, so he could sit comfortably and rubbed his back with her free hand while the boy tried to hide his face in the crook of her neck.

She glared at Vincent, hating him more than she usually did. But the normally distanced calm in his eyes was gone. Vincent looked utterly horrified and that scared her.

“Josephine, put him down. Viktor, you release her this instant ” Vincent started to move forwards and Josephine held the boy tight, reacting without really thinking about it. Vincent reached out, intending to pull the boy from her arms.

She tried to take a step back but felt her body freeze as she felt the boy bite into her. It felt like fire spreading from where his teeth dug into her flesh, blazing and unforgiving as it ravaged her from within. Her vision of Vincent went white with the searing pain and she felt her legs give out under her.
“Now you belong to me,” said a sweet voice by her ear. She whimpered in response before the pain overwhelmed her and she lost consciousness.