Free The Look of Love by David George Richards

mean it. Get lost,
Scott.”
    Chrissy turned
and walked away again, and this time Scott didn’t follow her. He
just stood in the middle of King Street watching her walk away.
     
     

Chapter
Ten
In
Distress
     
    42nd Street was
a club like any other in Manchester. It was just off Deansgate, and
the entrance led down into the club which was in the basement of an
old textile warehouse. Most of the old warehouses in Manchester had
long been converted into offices, and those that hadn’t were now
being converted into hotels or apartment blocks.
    It cost a
fortune to get in, and Louise had to pay for Victoria. Inside, the
place was packed and the music was very loud. As soon as they were
in, Jo headed for the bar while Victoria headed for the dance
floor. At first, Louise went with her, but as soon as she saw
Victoria dance; she quickly retreated to join Jo at the bar.
    Louise quickly
realised what Angela had meant about Victoria ‘strutting her stuff’
on the dance floor. When judges talked about dressing and behaving
provocatively, they were talking about Victoria. There was no
denying that Victoria did what she did on purpose. She would
deliberately pick out groups of boys and dance among them. She
would dance very suggestively, moving from one boy to the other,
letting them dance close to her. The boys would cheer her every
move, whistling in appreciation. Every so often she would move
against one of them and let him touch and even grope her. Then she
would get a few drinks out of him, and just when he thought he was
in, she would move back to one of the other boys, or even head for
another group entirely.
    Jo handed
Louise a drink. Louise took a gulp of it without looking as she
stared at Victoria in fascination. It was vodka and orange, and it
made her gasp.
    “I thought I
said orange juice,” she said hoarsely to Jo.
    “It is orange
juice!”
    “But there’s
something in it!”
    “So? Live a
little!” Jo indicated Victoria. “She’s a one, isn’t she?”
    “She’s going to
get into trouble.”
    “That’s half
the fun! Come on!”
    Jo dragged
Louise onto the dance floor. Jo was a good dancer, and Louise
prided herself in the fact that she was good too, but in comparison
to Victoria, they were both amateurs.
    It wasn’t long
before they caught the attention of some boys on the dance floor.
Jo responded, smiling and laughing, but Louise retreated back to
the bar. She could have had a good time, if it wasn’t for two
things: She wasn’t interested in the boys who approached her, and
the fact that she was always keeping one eye on Victoria. Louise
hadn’t thought it possible, but her behaviour was getting
worse.
    Victoria wasn’t
just picking on groups of boys on their own any more. Now she was
deliberately dancing near a girl with her boyfriend, distracting
him until the girl would get angry and the arguments would start.
Victoria would then move quickly away, leaving a trail of angry
girls and ex-boyfriends with slapped faces behind her.
    Louise got more
and more worried as the shouts and arguments started on the dance
floor. But Victoria didn’t seem to care. Finally, Louise could
stand it no longer and she went to Victoria and grabbed her arm,
pulling her towards the bar.
    Victoria was
having none of it. She resisted, and a tug-of-war with her arm
developed.
    “What are you
doing? Leave me alone!” She spoke with a slur, she was hot and
sweaty, and her breath stank of alcohol.
    “You’ve had too
much to drink! You have to stop this!” Louise insisted, pulling
harder. “Come back to the bar with me!”
    “No! I wanna
dance!” she hissed back through clenched teeth. “I want the boys to
see what they can’t have! Get off me!” She broke free and went back
to the dance floor.
    “But what
you’re doing is dangerous!” Louise called after her. It was no use.
Victoria was already dancing close to another girl and her
boyfriend.
    Louise went to
find Jo. But Jo was in the arms of another boy,