-"Jenny, we have a very special guest joining us for dinner. I want you to dust the living room, clean the windows, and shine the flooring. You don't have to cook dinner, as I am bringing take out." Myrna quickly instructed as she gathered her purse and prepared to go shopping.
-"Oh, by the way Jenny. I need you to be fresh and presentable tonight. After you are done with the cleaning, then shower. I am going to bring you a new dress to wear for this special occasion." Myrna said with a big smile.
This was very unusual behavior from Myrna. Not the cleaning part for Saturdays' Jenny seemed to work twice as hard than if she were working packaging at the factory. But her offer of a new dress was truly out of the ordinary Jenny mused.
Tackling her chores with renewed vigor, the hours seemed to evaporate like steaming water. Exiting the bathroom post her shower, she was intercepted by Myrna holding a large plastic bag.
-"Here Jenny, this is for you. I also bought you new shoes to go with those since you can't wear your sneakers with a new dress." Looking intently into Jenny's face flushed with content, Myrna grabbed her hand and led her to the living room chair.
-"Jenny, you know that I care for you very much, and I always look out for you.
I think it's time that you start to think what you would like to do with your life. Like you saw the other day at the mall, there are beautiful places to go see, and beautiful things to buy.
You are a very pretty girl, and if you are smart, you can get ahead in life with your looks and guile. If you use men, and if you're sweet to them, or make them think that they are in the right, and that he is number one - you can get a lot out of him if you feed his ego.
I know that you saw something the other night, and perhaps you found it disturbing, but know that it's a very natural thing to do between men and women. And a man can do the same for you too, and it is not bad or shameful at all.
It will give you power when you exert your sexuality.
With it, you can control men, and get things your way or perhaps even be compensated. You don't want to work packaging boxes all your life, no?" Myrna slyly inquired as she took hold of Jenny's roughened hands.
-"No Myrna, I do not want to work packaging boxes all my life. I've told you before that I want to go back to school. That is what I want." Jenny said bracing herself for Myrna's fury.
Visibly controlling her anger, Myrna spoke when subdued. -"Jenny, I've told you that illegal as you are in this country, you can't attend school. And listen to me stupid girl; you've got the looks but not the brains. What you need to do is to listen to me and use your body for profit; otherwise you can stay here and take care of me until my dying day!" Myrna said thoroughly disgusted as she stood to walk away.
Feeling disturbed by Myrna's words that evening, Jenny felt as if a dark cloud was enveloping her. Jenny intuited that something was amiss, as Myrna's behavior was way out of the ordinary.
Shaking her head she went to her room to get dressed and find out the contents of this mystery bag. When Jenny opened the bag containing the stuff Myrna had bought, she gasped.
Inside she found the prettiest dress in the color of flamingos. This set off her caramel skin tone when she embraced it in front of the mirror. Then she found high-heeled sandals in silver tone. They shined like pliable silver against the light. In another bag, inside of the larger bag, Jenny found a pink lipstick and silver ear hoops. They looked silver, but upon touching them, Jenny found them to be construed out of plastic.
Putting her worries aside, Jenny poured the pink dress over her head, and accommodated it into place. Next she slipped her feet into the beautiful strapped sandals. She loved how the silver contrasted with her smooth skin.
Putting on the lipstick, she stood back to look at the image reflected on the mirror. She felt beautiful, and glamorous. The height of the heels elongated her legs, and the lipstick made her appear older and sophisticated.
Reaching for the faux silver hoops, she was disillusioned to find that she could not put those on. She did not have pierced ears, nor had she ever owned a pair of earrings before.
-Jenny! Are you ready? Why are you taking so long?" Myrna yelled from above.
-"I'm ready; it's just that I can't wear these earrings Myrna, my ears are not pierced."
-"Come into the kitchen with me." Myrna heated a needle over the fire, and draped a towel over Jenny's shoulders.
-"Okay, this is going to pinch a little bit just hold still." Myrna said as she inserted the needle clean-through with unrelenting pressure.
-"Stop that. Now, I am going to do the same to the other ear." Myrna said sternly as Jenny winced in pain.
After finishing perforating both earlobes, Myrna then inserted the fake silver earrings.
-"Jenny, you can't be a baby about certain things. You see how the discomfort only lasted a few seconds while it went in? I want you to know that it's similar when you go to bed with a man for the first time. The pain will only last a few seconds, and then you will forget all about it almost immediately." Myrna said matter of fact.
The horrified look plastered on Jenny’s face was sufficient response that she did not intend to find out about that too soon.
The feast was delicious, yet Jenny could not enjoy it. She had been asked to join them at the table, and Myrna had even helped to serve and set it up. Her earlobes were itchy and tender, as the weight of the plastic fake-silver hoops abraised the tender, perforated skin.
Besides her itchy earlobes, she was uncomfortable with the looks that old man seating across the table gave her. It was as if she was the main course of the meal and he had abstained from eating for several days.
-“I have to get my teeth out. These are brand new, and last time I ate with those, there was food stuck inside.” Peter said matter of fact, as he excavated into his mouth and inserted his partial denture into his breast pocket.
-“Oh, don’t worry about it Peter. Tell me, isn’t Jenny as pretty as I told you that she is?” Myrna said with exaggerated sweetness. –“Perhaps you will invite her to go out with you and show her around town. Jenny loves the mall and fancy perfumes.”
-“She sure is pretty. What do you say honey? Do you want to go out this evening for a drive, and to do some shopping for you?” Peter asked with a partially vacant mouth.
Suddenly Jenny’s appetite was gone.
To be continued…
