Hey Big Spender! (Cynthia)

[Shiloh Brooks]

Shiloh walked into The House, once again wearing her trench coat, around 4pm that afternoon. She had spoken with Cynthia, the owner, and was here for her audition.

Looking around Shiloh realized she had walked in during the middle of another girl's audition so she went and sat quietly not to distract the girl on the stage. Watching the girl now, Shiloh had noticed that even though the girl was a decent dancer, she couldn't sing very well. 'Maybe this girl can be my backup dancer' Shiloh thought and chuckled softly to herself. She was cocky. She knew and felt like she had this audition in the bag.

After the other girl was done, Shiloh made her way over to the obvious madame of the house. "Hello, I'm Shiloh," She said flashing the madame a smile, "You must be Ms.DeMato, I'm here for my audition," She said holding out her hand to shake.

After the introduction, Shiloh walked over to the band and whispered into the guitarists ear before making her way to the centre of the stage.

Shiloh turned her back to the madame, and turned her head towards the band, with a smile and a nod, the music began, "You know how to do it boys, let's have some fun." She giggled as the music grew.

After a few beats and dancing with her back to the madame, Shiloh turned around and allowed her trench coat to slide off her shoulders. Right on cue, she started singing.

"The minute you walked in the joint,
I could see you were a man of distinction,
A real big spender,
Good looking, so refined.
Say, wouldn't you like to know
What's going on in my mind?
So, let me get right to the point,
I don't pop my cork for every guy I see"

Shiloh laughed and smiled as she sang and danced around the stage, grabbing a feathered boa and adding it along to her routine. Sitting on the edge of the stage, Shiloh smiled as her voice softened and she sang directly to the madame.

"Do ya wanna have fun?
How's about a few laughs?
I can show you a good time."

She blew a kiss to the madame before standing back up, and continued her routine.

"Hey big spender,
Hey big spender!
Hey big spender!
Speeeenddd a little time with me.
How's about it palsy?"

And with that Shiloh turned on her heel, and ended the song with a pose. When the music stop, she turned her attention back to the madame with a large smile on her face, and glowing with pride, when she asked, "How was that?"

[Cynthia DeMato]

"Okay, well... that was very good. Thank you." Cynthia DeMato knew how to lie; after all, she didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings, especially if she had no intention of hiring them. Why not leave them with a positive impression? A little white lie never hurt anybody, right? "We'll be in touch," she added as she watched the girl leave the stage, giving the two men who sat beside her in the front row a knowing look: somebody was going to have to call her the following week to let her know they weren't taking her. It was really a shame, too: she was a good dancer, but her voice was just weak, and she didn't have that star quality that Cynthia was determined to find among the auditions. Surely someone who come along who could own this stage and leave them wanting more. That was, after all, what her performers had to do every night. The Mistress of the House had high standards, and was not settling for anything less than what her House deserved.

As soon as the girl had exited the room, the middle-aged brunette rose from her chair. "I'm about ready to call it quits, boys," she sang, stretching her arms high over her head. "We've done just about a dozen of these auditions and nobody's stood out. My kingdom for a star!"

It was then that her attention was captured by a young woman's voice. "Please, call me Madame," she said in a faux-French accent. Shaking hands wasn't her normal style, but again, she had no desire to break these lovely ladies, and so she took the younger woman's hand gently. "Now, show me what you got, darling," she added as she retook her seat.

The woman wasn't expecting much - Shiloh was clearly pretty, but could she sing? Could she dance? Could she wow her? - but from the first note, she was enraptured. Her jaw practically dropped to the floor as Shiloh addressed the band like they were old friends, and the band followed right along. Now this was a girl who could work a crowd. From there, everything was simply perfect: she had a strong, velvety voice, could dance with the best of them, and worked that feather boa like a pro. Cynthia didn't say this often, but she was impressed. Real impressed.

So much so, in fact, that when she struck her final pose, the woman couldn't help but applaud, leading the two men by her side - her stagehands who were helping her make decisions - to do the same. "Brava, Brava!" She sang, "Good show! Get down here, girl," she said as she took her seat once more. She wanted to ask a few questions of this girl: she clearly aced the audition, but there were some other things she wanted to know, as well. "Have you been doing this for long?" She asked to start, as she gestured for Shiloh to join her in one of the chairs.

[Shiloh Brooks]

Shiloh threw her head back and laughed when the madame and the stagehands started applauding her. Shiloh fed off the applause, she loved it. She knew she wouldn't mind living off the applause, it was such a beautiful sound to her, and she knew that it was all for her. Shiloh smiled, picked up her trench coat, and made her way over to the madame as she was told to do.

Slipping the trench coat back on, Shiloh went and sat by the Madame. When the madame asked if Shiloh had been doing this for a long time, Shiloh giggled and shook her head. "I haven't been doing this that long," she said with a smile, "Either than in my room I don't really dance around in public too often."

It was true, Shiloh was busy with school and life, but since Matt left her life, she had some more free time on her hands now. And she figured with enough practice and hard work, she could find a fun and exciting job that could keep her interest. And The House seemed perfect.

"I've always loved to dance and sing though, so I thought working here would be perfect for me," She said crossing her legs. "I am glad that you enjoyed the show though," Shiloh said with a giggle. She then turned her attention over to the madame's stagehands, "Did you enjoy my little performance boys?" She asked with a wink and a smirk.