What I've Done

My house is always Baby Daddy Central on Monday. It's the one night I'm not working, and the dad's are always there.
As is tradition, they come in the morning and we all spend the day together. That's the first and Last Monday of every month.
The 2nd Monday of every month is all about Brian and Isley. We spend time together and bond. I think it's really good for Is.
The 3rd Monday of every month is dedicated to Matt and Max. Since Max is a newborn, we've been getting ready to make this tradition by meeting the 3rd Monday of every month just for us. Now that Max is here, we'll be getting our own little family alone time.
Today it is the 1st Monday of the month, and since it's only 6AM I have about 4 hours to ready my home for the troops.

As luck would have it, my baby daddies are best friends. THAT was an awkward conversation if there ever was one. Isley's father, Brian, came to me one night after a particularly nasty fight with his wife, that would soon lead to divorce.

I know what you must be thinking.
Aria! You slept with a married man?!
And the answer to that is: Yes.
In fact, almost every single night I sleep with someone in a relationship.

I don't care what y'all think.
My name is Aria McClendon, and yes, I'm a prostitute.
They call me Sugar.
I came into this business when I was 17. I needed the money to get away from my horrible and dysfunctional family. They had a favorite child, and it wasn't me. They made it clear.
I met Stan one day when I'd had enough from my parents. Giving me ultimatums was killing my self esteem. I remember I was crying on a bench on the side of the road when he drove up.

"Hey there little lady!" The man parked his car on the side of the road and got out. I flinched a little, squirming. "Is everything alright?" He came closer, sitting next to me on the bench. I scooted away by a small fraction.
"I'm fine." I sniffled, wiping my eyes free of tears.
"No, I don't believe that." He murmured. He reached his hand up to wipe a tear off my cheek. As soon as his hand made contact with my skin I slapped it away. I was shaking with fear. What if this man was a rapist?
At this point, I wanted to die. I had nothing to look forward to. But god would truly be horrible if he let me be raped first, right?
"Leave me alone." I said, though my tone held no strength. I sounded defeated, and by the way his eyes glinted, I could tell he knew that. He got off the bench and knelt down in front of me, between my knees. Looking up at my tear stained face, he gave me a smile.
"Hey now, I'm not here to hurt you." He promised. "Why would a pretty girl like you be crying, though?" His hands found my face, and he cupped it. "Won't you let me in, sweetheart? Won't you let me help you?" I bit my lip before letting a few more tears fall. Before long I was all out bawling. And the man, unlike any boy I'd ever met, held me and soothed me until I was done.

Naturally, when I finished I was exhausted. The man offered me a place to stay until I was feeling better, and since I was feeling unwanted and unwelcome at home, I quickly agreed.
On the car ride there I found his name was Stan. You don't need to know all the logistics. Only that I soon figured out what his deal was. After I found out how much money they could make, and Stan showed me a few things, I decided that I would do it. Become what he wanted me to be.
Of course, it would only be until I had enough money to move out, or that's what I told myself at least. When I got enough to move away and into a new apartment, I needed somehow to pay for the apartment. I was going to quit, but no one was hiring. Besides, Stan would never have allowed it. He told me I was his best girl. It was why I got all the best things.
I kept in the game. It was right before I met Brian that I had decided that maybe, I should end it. I could start over. Make a new life for myself. The thought of it sounded pretty good to me.
Then Brian found me, shivering on the street corner. He picked me up, got us a motel, and my fate was sealed. I became pregnant, and I knew I couldn't quit.
Stan said men liked sleeping with pregnant women. He was right. They paid double, triple. I felt awful about sleeping with people while pregnant, but Stan was adamant about it. When I was 5 months pregnant, I told Brian. He picked me up every night, we did the deed, and he paid me money to bring back to Stan. With Brian, I knew our baby would be safe from any STDs that other men may carry.

When Isley was born, he wanted me out of the life style. Said he'd pay for everything, but I wouldn't have that. I wanted to be self sufficient.

When I met Max's father, Matt, things weren't so different. The only thing was, he wasn't planning on getting a divorce. He just needed someone who would listen, be his friend, do things for him. Even if it was just for the night. Much like with Brian, when Matt found out I was pregnant, he paid for me every night.
Also like Brian, he wanted me to get out, but I couldn't. Stan wouldn't let me, and quite honestly, I wanted to make my own money. Doing this gave me the ability to give my kids anything they could ever need or want.

As I sat by, waiting for both men to show, I thought about how all this happened. I remembered back to my first job, and even before then. Back to when Stan was "training" me. I remembered the day I had Isley, and the day I had Max. I remembered everything that had happened over the last few years.

And I told myself not to regret it.