HER REAL IDENTITY

Ejay, with his long legs, managed to catch up with me before I could even get inside the entertainment room. I wish he didn't, though, because we wouldn't be walking hand in hand with my hand tucked in his arm right now. The only good thing about this suffocating act is that none of these hungry dogs will get near me. So, in a way, I am glad, but I dare not show it.

We get to the entrance, and his so-called bodyguards open the door for us, like they usually do, after greeting their boss. The music is playing, and the room is filled to capacity as usual, with men sipping their drinks and disgustingly running their filthy hands on the girls on their laps. I hate this sight, but more, I hate the part where they walk up to the rooms upstairs to do only God knows what to these helplessly innocent girls. Some of them have accepted their fate and willingly follow the rules without being pushed around, but the majority are yet to come to terms with this life.

If only I could help them! But I have no way.

The wall clock reads twenty minutes past six, meaning it's just chilling time with cool music before the main entertainment starts at quarter to seven. That's the part where girls twerk their naked asses on stage, with these brainless men cheering them up. Some men even have the audacity to go touch them inappropriately on stage as they move their bodies, laughing like crazy maniacs.

As we walk to the table that's always reserved for Ejay and me, I can feel men's eyes on me, but I don't mind them.

"I am waiting for the day she will be on the bid list." One man says:

"Can you imagine her twerking? Damn! It will be hotter than ever that day." Another one adds

"I am saving a special bid for her. It will be a goal to have her first." Another one is chips.

Hearing them talk like that about me or any girl here makes me want to scream at the top of my voice for God to get me out of here, but I can't do that. I want to cry, but the only people who will sympathize with me are helpless girls like me. All I am left to do is hope that that day never comes. I sit after Ejay pulls a chair for me, and at the same time, another song that caught my attention begins playing.

If there has been one thing that has been of any good to me since I came here, it's music. I can't really explain what music does to me, but I can say for sure that it gives me a lot of refreshments. It makes me feel some kind of connection with it, like I have a bond with it. I have enjoyed most of the songs I have heard here, but the one that is currently playing has a special spark. I get lost in it. I even close my eyes so that I can listen to how soothing it feels. How real it feels. How familiar it sounds. It's weird because I have not heard it before. But it feels too familiar.

'I love you with all my heart. My heart belongs to you. There is no one but you in my world. So don't ever leave me, baby, because I need you always.' The lyrics feel like they are stuck somewhere in my head. After it ends, another one starts to play, but it does not feel like the previous one. I just don't quite bond well with this one. That special song made me forget where I was. I deeply sigh, trying to put my mind together, but that song is still playing in my head. I close my eyes and shake my head to shake the song away, but it stubbornly continues to play. I must be looking too bothered, because I feel Ejay's thumb caressing my belly where his hand around my waist rests. I didn't realize he was doing that all this time. Shame on him!

"Are you okay?" He asks, seeming concerned or worried. Or maybe I misinterpreted his reaction. He does not have a heart after all.

"That song," I say, not looking at him at all.

"What about it?" He asks questions, and I can feel his intense gaze on me.

"Can you play it again?" I ask, this time turning to look at him, not even afraid of his scary eyes.

But who am I kidding? If the girls who are useful to him don't make requests, who am I? I mentally curse myself for being such a fool to make a request, because I know he is mentally laughing at my stupid self too.

He lets go of his glass of beer, takes hold of my hand, and starts to annoyingly caress the back of it with his thumb, but he stops immediately. I throw him a deadly glare. I will kill him one day with my looks, though. "Why? Did it remind you of something?" He queries.

Huh?

I wish it did. But what exactly could it trigger in me? He must be mocking me.

"No, it just feels special. It's confusing. I can't explain the feeling." I say, and look away.

"Okay. I'll ask the DJ to replay."

Whoa! Did he just agree to my request? Wow! Should I thank him?

He calls one of the goons and whispers something in his ear, and I see the guy walk to the music control room behind the stage.

"Thank you." I say this to him without showing much appreciation. He gulps down the remaining beer in his glass and pours another one.

I decide to leave him deal with his beer and scan this evil club, but before my eyes can wander even a meter away, I get distracted by his right hand dropping to my left thigh. How annoying can he get? I tried to grab his hand, but he beat me to it, grabbing mine with his left hand. I try with my other hand, but it's bad! He grabs it too, and now he has my two hands in his one hand, pressed under the table. Every attempt to free myself from his strong arms doesn't bear any fruit; instead, I am hurting myself more until I decide to quit trying. "You are hurting me, Ejay!" I say between gritted teeth, closing my eyes, as my wrists begin to burn with pain.

"And you are causing a commotion." He softly but deeply grumbles, and I peel my eyes to see people confusedly looking at us.

Aarrgh! How embarrassing! I look down immediately to avoid the uncountable eyes looking at us. He starts to slowly release my hands. "I need you to remain calm, okay?" I nod my head, and he frees my hands. He then plants a very unwanted kiss on my left cheek, probably to assure people that we are not fighting, as his left hand moves around my back, crisscrossing with his right. I am now circled in his arms, and the situation stirs a very suffocating feeling in me. "I do this to protect you from these hungry sex animals. If I show any sign of disinterest in you even for a single second, you will be crying in one of those rooms upstairs being forced to moan some jerk's name, and trust me, you won't like it one bit. So, obey me, little dove." He whispers in my ear and tightens his grip on me while his chin rests on my shoulder.

"What do you care? You will eventually feed me to them anyway." I retorted at him.

"I just care, Gia. I do care. If I didn't care, I would have thrown you there a long time ago. Why is it so difficult for you to not see all my efforts to protect you, huh? Ah, I forgot. You hate me!" Before he can rant any further, my song—I mean, that special song—starts playing again, and I abandon the drunken Ejay to concentrate on my song. He most likely does not know what he is saying. The alcohol in him is the one doing the talking.

The song brought back the same feelings and familiarity. I surprisingly sang the whole song word-for-word. I feel like it is not only in my mind but in my heart too. I have heard lots of songs in the past two weeks, but this one hits me differently. I am hearing it for the first time, and I am so sure. But why does it feel like I have some connection with it? I try to think where I heard it as it comes to an end, but I can't remember, and my head is starting to throb. I might need my painkillers.

I closed my eyes, and Ejay sensed my distress. He tilts my head toward him and cups my face. "Hey, relax! We will talk about this later."

"What?" I question. What do we have to talk about? "Is there any connection between me and music, or with that particular song?" I ask because this all feels so strange. I mean, why that particular song? And why does he seem like he can understand what is bringing about my distress?

"Are you sure you can handle the truth?" He asks.

"Just tell me whatever it is, Ejay! You'll spare me the confusion, at least." I say.

Ahem! Ahem!

"That's a song by one Gia Wilsons. " Confusion! "It's one of your songs." More confusion! "You had just launched your first album when you suffered that accident." Total confusion! "You are a musician, Gia Wilsons!" I would like to ask more questions, but I suddenly lost my voice, and the throbbing of my head is almost impairing my vision.

I am a what?