Las Vegas Weekly

October 2, 2009 · 1:13 PM

The clubs can turn dark in more ways than one

By Justice

Topless and mid-lap dance, the lights shut off when the power went out at work. The music stopped. My heart stopped, too, like it had also been running on electricity. I am so scared of the dark. With out missing a beat, a full club began to cheer and clap. I protectively put my arm over my chest and sat on a very drunk patron’s lap, not really being able to see anything or do much else. On the far side of the club, a few emergency lights came on. In the dimness, everyone got very still. At least I think they did. My memory is probably faulty because I was in such a panic.

I’ve been scared of the dark since I was a child. You are so truly vulnerable in the dark. I am most vulnerable to a wild imagination. Against a completely pitch-black scenery, like a blank piece of paper, it’s a landslide of horrific thoughts with nothing to suggest peace or safety. Naked in the dark in a room full of strangers? This scenario is like falling right into a nightmare. And they’re not just any strangers. They’ve been teased and stroked all night and then, in the anonymity of darkness, they could do anything. A horny mob of drunkards, ready to assault the crap out of you.

Seconds after the power went out, it came back. I don’t suppose an entire minute had passed. The same song picked up where it left off. It felt like I took the first breath I had taken since the room had gone black. I finished my dance, like I hadn’t been accosted by darkness.

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