Chapter one

Rosa heaved a sigh of relief as the groaning man rolled off her body. His sweat dropped directly into her eyes as he struggled off her, making her squint enough to see a quirky perverted but satisfied smile plastered on his lips.

She watched him wink at her, clicking his tongue as he adjusted his draws which he had pulled just below his knee, throwing his trousers on, and he was gone before she could say jack.

She did not even know his name, he was yet again one of her many nightly picks, safe to say he was one of the worsts she had picked yet.

Reaching for her pack of cigarettes beside the pillow, Rosa tossed a stick in between her lips, holding the duvet close to her chest to shield her naked body as she searched for her lighter on the nightstand.

A satisfied sigh left her lips this time as she drew in the smoke and puffed, lulling her head back to rest on the headboard.

When would it end, was all she could think about, how would she stop, why was it always the same thing, why was she still searching? What exactly was she even searching for?

Her life had been nothing but a joke, a complicated game in the hands of her creator like she liked to describe it, with her more than likely on the losing end.

It had been the same shit for most of her life, endlessly searching, every day as much as she could, for a missing piece of her. Something to fill the immense void in her heart, something to make her feel anything apart from pain.

But every time it proved futile and had gotten even harder when she realized that she had no idea what part of her, what piece was missing to even know how to go about finding it.

Yeah, it just about was like searching for a black goat at night, in the heart of New York.

Almost every day since her 19th birthday, it had been one guy or the other, in the quest to fulfill whatever it was in her that felt empty and void.

And each time she had been woefully disappointed. Maybe because each one seemed promising, or perhaps she had just been too expectant of them, they came with the hope of better, like she was just a few minutes of sex away from finding what she was in quest for, but one too many times, each man almost as bad as the last.

Staring at the ceiling, Rosa took a drag of her cigar chastising herself to forget about her issues and focus on…well, there wasn't much to focus on anyway, except that brown spot on her ceiling that looked like leak stains.

She should call her plumber she thought just as her phone went off. Groaning at the annoying sound, Rosa reached for it, a small smile painted her face when she saw the little storm emoji on the caller ID.

Storm was and is her all-time best friend, the one person who had managed to keep her grounded and on her toes as much as possible.

They had met in high school and had stuck to each other ever since, going almost everywhere together like Mac and cheese. Storm was the mature, calculated, and ambitious one, who had her life before her.

Rosa was the splitting opposite of that, immature, reckless, and certainly not ambitious.

Hitting the green button on the screen of her phone, Rosa placed the phone to her ears and said a small hello.

“Hello honey bunny” Rosa needed no soothsayer to tell her that her friend was in the mood for some partying.

The sound of her voice and the little squeal at the end did all the talking. Storm also doubled as an avid party girl, often leaving Rosa wondering how she managed to keep up with being both this ravenous party girl who could drink everyone under the table and still be good at being the humble, meek, responsible woman.

“What is it Storm ?” Rosa asked a tired drawl in her voice.

“Why do you sound like that? Are you sleeping already?” Storm asked, and Rosa could imagine her taking her phone off her ears to glance at the time.

It was barely a few minutes past 10 pm and while she had started her evening off, Rosa figured she might get some good out of the remaining few hours.

“Where are we going this time?” She asked, already making her way out of the bed and towards the bathroom.

“Some exclusive club I got invited to, they didn't say if I should bring a friend, but I would be damned to go anywhere like this without you, sugar,” Storm said, eliciting a smile from Rosa.

“Okay, I'll be ready, I'm twenty,” Rosa said simply as she made mental notes of what she would wear.

“Oh and Rosa?” Storm called from the other end.

“Yeah?”

“Wear something classy, it's not the regular club. I'll be waiting downstairs,” she said with a seriousness that made Rosa know she meant business.

Rosa rummaged through her closet, half-ass, wondering what exactly Storm meant by 'dress classy' hadn't she always been classy?

A few minutes later her eyes fell on a red silk dress, it wasn't her favorite outfit but as she slipped it on, her hands brushing over the smooth fabric, Rosa found herself loving it.

It was far from her usual, not too figure hugging but enough to show her subtle curves and the beautiful arch of her cleavage, with a high slit that showcased her long legs which were smooth thankfully, she had shaved them just the day before.

Her phone rang again just as she donned some lipstick and blush, just about enough makeup to get her through the night.

Slipping her feet into black stilettos, and grabbing her black couch purse which had barely anything in it, Rosa walked out of the house and downstairs to where she knew Storm was waiting.

The click of her heels gave her a thrill and flipping her long silky black mane behind her shoulders, Rosa was ready to take the plunge, perhaps a little good might come out of it.