A Hollywood Darling

“Birdie, up the stairs with ya, darlin’,” Almost trending on the backs of my brand new Mary-Janes, Barney and I made our way into the furthest room, down the upstairs hall. In a wet, hot mess, the drunken man slammed the door shut and almost smashed his glass on the bedside table. As he collapsed on the edge of my bed, Barney held his arms out. “Come ‘ere, darlin’,” he said. From the corner, I hesitantly approached him. Blushingly, I nodded and Barney held me on his knee. “Now, Birdie, I hope my gift got to you, safe?” he spitted his words at me. “Those flowers were from you? Oh, they’re lovely. Thank you, Mr. Wilburforce,” As I smiled, he caressed my kneecap. With his repulsive stare, this excessive touching seemed to pleasure him, in a way. “You mentioned, in your note, that there was a second-half to the gift. Was this wonderful party, the second half?” His sickly brown eyes swirled in his skull as he tried to make eye contact. With a strong yet slow grip, Barney turned me towards the closed door. “Don’t worry, Birdie. You’ll enjoy it the second gift, I promise,” With the cool air rushing up my legs, my undergarments dropped to my ankles and from behind me, I heard the sharp sound of Barney’s trouser zipper. The experience was inexplicable; my small hands were held down on the rough bedspread as Barney’s haunting voice, echoed his own words. “It’s okay. This is alright, Birdie. You are so lucky to have this opportunity,” In that moment, I believed that my agent cared about me. In order to get bigger roles, this, according to Barney, was what was done. Being a twenty-year career man, I couldn’t question Barney’s knowledge of the industry. As a stranger to the chaotic life of a Hollywood actress, it was comforting to know that someone had my best interests at heart. In the midst of the black encounter, Barney began to push harder and my weak body began to ache, with a thrusting pain. In the darkness of the room and the silence of my muffled cries, there was a chance to run; a moment to escape. Ripping at the bedspread, Barney wrapped his arm around my waist and softly, hushed in my ear. “It’s alright, Birdie, it’s alright. Ssh, it’s alright,” As my fragile body was ripped from Barney’s, he pulled up my underwear and straightened my dress. As he held me on his thigh, he spoke again. “Now, Birdie, listen to me, very carefully. Ya mustn’t tell nobody about this. Nobody must know, as it is our little secret.” As my mouth curved into a meek smile, my agent went on, “You’re gonna have to get used to this, Birdie. This wasn’t just a one-off thing. In order for you to success in Hollywood, this is what you have to do,” I agreed to every word. I wasn’t going to question his logic. I mean, he must have gone through the same thing, when he first started. As he straightened his tie, I slid off his knee and the door was opened. Before returning to the shindig downstairs, Barney turned his head. “Ya sure did good, kid,”