Burning on the Edge

There were many things Charlie Holland had to consider when she took a job at the sex shop, Frisky Business.

First, she was faced with pictures of boobs all day. One of their more popular sections was magazines and books and all the products had a lovely woman’s perky breasts front and center on the cover. Second, she had to help people figure out the right sex toy for themselves or them and their partner(s). Through the process, she learned a thing or two about texture, depth, and functionality of dildos and such. Third, she’d become almost immune to any sort of reaction when coming across anything sexual. Aggressive, rough porn playing on the flat screen TV by the videos section? Not a big deal. Being surrounded by moaning sounds all day? Cool.

But she wasn’t complaining. A job was a job, and stacking erotic magazines on shelves wasn’t the worst thing she could be doing for $12.00 an hour. The only con was that sometimes the customers could get weird. Such as the guy standing a few feet away from her, deep in thought, as he contemplated whether or not to get Asian Babes or Barely Legal.

Charlie deeply sympathized. The choice must not be easy.

Once she put away all the Celebrity Skin issues on the top shelf, she dragged the empty box back out to the front where she found a boy standing by the counter, looking rather confused. “Can I help you?” she asked, walking around the counter and straightening out the receipts and forms that came with the magazines.

The boy faced the counter and Charlie’s eyes widened slightly. It wasn’t always that good looking boys walked in here, but even when they did, they weren’t always this cute. He was slightly short, which didn’t mean much because almost every boy was shorter than Charlie. She was 5’10” and had embraced her long limbs after hating it for most of her life. Kisses were awkward because it tended to bruise the guy’s ego if he wasn’t towering over the girl, but to each their own, she supposed. This guy seemed to match her almost head on save for an inch or two. He had short, brunette hair and his blue eyes seemed to glitter behind his black frames.

“Uh, yes,” he responded, moving closer to the counter, his eyes giving Charlie a once-over. She tried to hide her smile, covering her mouth with the back of her hand and pretending to cough. The air felt a bit tense and she could still bloody see that guy standing by the magazine racks. At this rate, he would probably be sleeping there tonight. “I’m looking for Bug?”

Charlie’s eyebrows rose. Bug rarely left his office to come out here on the floor. He usually left it up to Charlie, or the other guy, Quentin, that worked here, but Charlie never met Quentin because they had different work days.

This guy seemed to doubt himself then. “I mean -- at least I think that’s his name? It’s what I heard when I was on the phone with him. I spoke to the, um, the owner?”

She finally let a laugh slip past her lips. “You’re fine. His name is Bug.”

“Oh, thank God. The entire walk over, I kept thinking I misheard or something,” he chuckled, scratching the back of his neck.

“It’s a weird name, mate. I don’t blame you,” Charlie responded. She kicked the empty box under the counter and placed the receipts and forms in a folder in the back drawer. When she’d first started, the place was pretty disorganized, and so on slow days, she slowly made her way around and reorganized everything. Bug praised her through the moon for it.

“Um, so is he around?”

“Yeah,” Charlie nodded. “But I’m afraid you’ll have to wait. He’s on the phone at the moment, but should be out soon.”

“Cool,” he said, leaning against the counter and getting comfortable. “I’m Niall, by the way.”

Charlie looked up again, offering him a smile. “Charlotte,” she said. “But you can call me Charlie.”

“Nice to meet you, Charlie. Do you work here?”

She nodded. “I do, yeah. Have been for the past, like, year or so.”

“Wow,” he responded. “I’m here for a job interview, actually.”

Now that Charlie thought about it, Bug had mentioned a couple of weeks ago how he’d been thinking of expanding his shop a bit. He only had two employees, and he found that with the slow, yet steady rate at which his shop ran, they were able to handle it, which was true at first. However, he wasn’t always available to help out when either Charlie or Quentin worked. And now that people frequented Frisky Business regularly, it was hard to man the register, help customers, and take stock at the same time.  

“Sick,” Charlie grinned. “You’ll like it. It’s a fun place to work in.”

“Fun?”

Charlie cocked her head to the side. “You sound doubtful. Do you not find sex shops fun?”

Niall seemed at a loss for words. “It’s -- it’s not the most conventional place to work in.”

“Exactly!” Charlie exclaimed. “And that’s the fun part about it. Honestly, when I first walked into this store, I was thinking -- wow, what a joke. It’ll be a laugh and I can just walk out and have a fun story to tell my friends. But after checking it out and feeling the vibe Bug has set, I’ve never looked back.”

“Really?” NIall’s eyes were wide, like he was genuinely surprised.

She nodded. “I saw a help wanted sign out in the front when I was leaving and just walked right back in. Bug interviewed me on the spot and the rest was history.”

“So I’m assuming he’s not that much of hard ass?”

“Bug? Oh my God, no. He’s sweet. You’ll like him. This interview is probably just for formality and to check you’re not some raging lunatic, or something. You know?”

Niall nodded slowly, his eyes still wide. “I’m not,” he felt the need to clarify.

Charlie snickered. “Good to know. I mean -- I wouldn’t want to work with some perv. So I’m happy he’s meeting all the applicants because I want the right people to work here. Frisky Business is Bug’s hopes, dreams, and aspirations. Well, aside from Sidney, his girlfriend, but after her it’s probably this shop. And he went through a lot to not make it like your usual sex shop. We don’t have, like, private shows and nude girls downstairs. It’s just authentic, old school sex shit. We get magazines, sex toys, and videos, but they’re not stuff you find on Porn Hub, or something generic like that.”

He watched Charlie carefully, like he was trying really hard to understand her and everything she was rambling on about. Charlie tended to do that, especially when she was speaking about something she was passionate about. But it wasn’t like Niall was doing much to fill in the silence. He was so quiet and nervous and it was making her feel uncomfortable, so she was doing her best to keep the conversation flowing.

“You seem to feel quite passionate about this shop,” he said at last, a short laugh escaping his lips.

“I love it,” Charlie admitted. “And I feel like not many people get to say that -- I love my job. I mean, it’s not my lifetime career goal, or whatever, but it’s something for now.”

“I get it,” he nodded. “A job’s a job at the end of the day. As long as you’re getting some of that green.”

“Is that why you’re here?” Charlie asked. “You need money?”

Niall nodded. “My best friend and I went on this trip to LA for winter break because we wanted to get away from the cold, and well, it took a lot out of my bank.”

She chuckled. “That’s what happens when you’re having fun.”

“I know,” Niall shook his head with a defeated sigh. “At first I thought I had a good idea of how much I was spending, but by the end of the trip, I was running dangerously low. It was either pay rent or have food on the table.”

“Yikes.”

“Yikes is right. Luckily, Zayn loaned me some to tide me over.”

“Zayn?”

“My best friend. He’s also my roommate. I love him.”

“He gave you money, so I get that.”

“No, like, I really love him.”

“Oh...okay.”

“Yeah, so I didn’t really want to ask my parents,” Niall continued. “They’re not worse off, but they’re doing their best, and sending me to university was enough, you know? And I need to pay Zayn back somehow as well, along with pay my rent and eat. Decided a job would have to do for the semester.”

“You’ve got yourself in a financial pickle. Welcome to adulthood, Niall,” Charlie enthused with her arms stretched out. “It’s shit.”

Niall laughed, and every time he did, it seemed more and more genuine, like he was loosening up. “Tell me about it. It’s going to be even worse after this semester because I’ll have graduated with a pre-med degree and then have to worry about med school.”

“Ah sick! Are you a senior?” she asked him.

“Mhmm,” Niall nodded. “Graduating from University of Manchester.”

“Get out!” Charlie cried. “That’s where I go. I’m still in my third year, though.”

“Are you really?” Niall grinned. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you.”

“Same. But it’s such a big school. The faces all seem to blur after a while.”

“That’s true.”

“So how’d you find out about this job then?” Charlie asked. “I’m not sure how Bug was planning to hire.”

“Word of mouth,” Niall explained. “Someone -- well, a friend, I suppose --”

“You suppose?” Charlie snickered.

Niall shrugged. “We used to hook up. But we’re friendly, I guess. She told me. She heard it from someone in her A Capella Group.”

“You dated someone in the A Capella Group?”

“I didn’t date her. We hooked up, like, once or twice. And now we occasionally talk.”

“Right,” Charlie trailed off, narrowing her eyes in on Niall suspiciously. Niall rolled his eyes at her, causing her to burst into laughter. She really hoped Bug ended up hiring him because Niall seemed cool. A sex shop might not be a place he’d have normally turned to, but money can make you desperate, which Niall said he was. Besides, Charlie hadn’t seen anyone else walking through the door for an interview, so chances were there weren’t many applicants.

As though he heard her thinking about him, Bug finally walked out of his back office and out into the main shop. He was donning his usual khaki slacks and sweater (today’s was a nice maroon color), and his square-framed glasses were askew. “I fucking hate talking to the magazine publishers in Japan,” he announced upon his arrival. “Their tone is just so mean, I feel like they’re yelling at me. I’m way too white and sensitive for it.”

“Was it that same guy you made me talk to?” Charlie asked him. “Katsu, was it?”

“No,” Bug shook his head. “Katsu wasn’t there today. It was someone named Yoshi, and everything I was saying must’ve pissed him off because homeboy was yelling at me.”

“You’ll be alright, Bugsy. For now, you’ve got a potential employee waiting to meet you.” Charlie gestured towards Niall with her head and saw that he had been watching the exchange quietly. He was back to being nervous then.

“Oh,” Bug exclaimed, walking toward them. “Are you Niall? The one I spoke to on the phone?”

Niall nodded, extending his hand for a handshake. “Yeah, it’s, uh, it’s nice to meet you.”

“You, too, buddy! You wanna head on back to my office and chat?”

Niall nodded and quickly followed Bug to his office. Charlie watched their retreating forms for a moment before turning back to manning the shop. She had work to do, such as organizing the handcuffs because the customers always messed those up, and switching up Bug’s sex playlist so that the same one wasn’t playing on a loop all day. They were mostly ‘80s songs, but Charlie made him add a few from this generation so that they could have variety.

Despite being the goofy, fun loving guy he was, Bug took his shop seriously. He invested almost everything he had into it when he moved out to Manchester from Chicago since his girlfriend, Sidney, was from here. They’d met when she’d gone there for vacation, and Bug always described their few weeks together as a whirlwind of wonderful and passionate romance. He couldn’t stop thinking about her after she left and took the leap to move across the ocean after a year of long distance relationship. Upon seeing them together, Charlie understood why they took such a big chance on each other. They were meant to be, as cheesy as that was. No one worked off of each other as well as they did. Forget knowing each other like the back of their hands, but they were so supportive of one another, too.

Sidney was a secondary school teacher with a job locked down not too far from her place. Meanwhile, Bug didn’t have much of a plan for what he could do. One day, he noticed that there weren’t any sex shops around and he remembered the one him and his friends used to go to when they were barely legal. He aimed to model Frisky Business after that, and Sidney was there with him every step of the way. It gave Charlie hope that she’d also find someone who would drop everything they valued most important if it meant they could have her. But for now, she was stuck with university boys who drank too much cheap beer and acted like knobs. In due time.

Busying herself once more, Charlie continued to organize the shop and the new stock they’d received earlier that day. It was mostly magazines and a brand of dildos that seemed to fly off the shelves after this celebrity talked about them in one of her interviews. While organizing, a few customers had come in, mostly browsing and occasionally asking Charlie about technical things regarding some of the products. She didn’t personally use any of it, but she did own a vibrator and knew most of their stock pretty well. It also helped that she wasn’t shy about sex. If she was, then this job would’ve been a bust.

An hour later, Niall finally emerged from Bug’s office looking quite happy. Charlie glanced over at him, eyebrows raised in question as Niall stood in front of her over the counter.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he grinned.

Not surprised at all, Charlie still smiled back, extending her hand over to shake his. “Congrats, bud. Happy to have you on the team.”

“Thank you,” Niall replied, flushed as he shook her hand. “I’ve got to get going. Have to sort out some things -- paperwork and what not. Also have to call Zayn.”

“Oh, yes,” Charlie remembered. “Must call Zayn since you love him and all.”

“I do,” Niall responded with a serious tone.

“I know that now.”

“Alright, then. Charlie, it was lovely to meet you.”

“You, too!”

As Niall walked out of the shop, Charlie saw Bug had walked out of his office as well. “He’s great,” he smiled.

“Seems to be,” Charlie nodded, looking back outside to see Niall crossing the street with his phone to his ear. He was talking animatedly, hands in the air as he most likely shared his good news with his friend. “But let’s see how long he lasts.”



Fetty Wap was filtering through Charlie’s front door as she unlocked it and walked inside. She spotted Liam and Louis’ dirty Nikes haphazardly strewn across the floor and knew it had to be them. Gwen, her roommate, didn’t listen to Fetty Wap on account of how his voice annoyed the shits out of her. However, her boyfriend, Liam, loved him (go figure). Despite that, they were still happily together for the better part of two years, and Gwen was somehow able to look over Liam’s penchant for hip hop.

Walking into the living room, she found the two boys sans Gwen in their usual spots on their brown, leather couch. They had their backs resting against the cute black and white throw pillows the girls found at a thrift shop once, and had their legs thrown across their brown, chocolate colored coffee table. Both of their eyes were glued on the telly screen, focused on their game of Call of Duty, until Charlie placed her keys on the console table.

“Charlie!” Louis exclaimed upon seeing her. “You’re home.”

“Yes, Louis. I’m home, but you’re not.”

“You know this is like my second home, babe. Don’t hate,” Louis admonished. He wasn’t wrong. Given as how he was Liam’s best mate, Louis kept showing up with him over the years and became close to the girls as well. So much so that both he and Liam had their own spare key after requesting it, and let themselves in whenever they pleased. It was hard to adjust to initially because most of Gwen and Charlie’s food disappeared and the bathroom was always a mess, but they loved the boys regardless.

Liam paused their game and turned to Charlie, reaching his arms out to give her a hug over the back of the couch. Charlie moved into it, while asking, “Where’s Gwen?”

“She’s making dinner. Garlic noodles tonight,” Liam replied. “Did you have a good day at work?”

“The usual,” Charlie responded, walking across the living room and toward her bedroom. She passed by the small Christmas tree they’d gotten for the holidays and noticed the lights flickering a bit. The holiday season was long gone - it was February - but the tree still remained..

Her room was lit up by a single, white diptyque candle, a lovely jasmine aroma drifting through the room while the windows were shut tight to not let any cold air in. Winter was nearing the end, but it was still chilly and Charlie was soaking up whatever warmth she could get. Turning her light on, she placed her bag on the floor beside her door and hung up her long, black coat on the hook behind her closet door. She had some readings to finish up as well as an assignment due in a day or two, but she didn't want Gwen to prepare dinner all by herself, so Charlie grabbed a hair band and tied her hair up in a ponytail before joining the other girl.

“Oh, hey,” Gwen greeted, smiling as Charlie walked into their kitchen. It was small, but within it’s own quarters beside the living and dining room. Gwen had noodles boiling over the hob and the sauce she prepared on the large, wooden counter across from the sink and fridge. She was the cook of their group, having picked up a ton of recipes from her mum while growing up and blessing them all with actual meals rather than Ramen and coffee like all university students had to resort to.

“Hey. Need any help?” Charlie asked her.

“Not really,” Gwen shrugged. “You could help set the table with the boys, though.”

“Will do,” she replied, grabbing four plates before taking another. “I think I’ll invite Harry over. He’s probably finishing up with his group assignment.”

“Yeah, call him over,” Gwen nodded. There really wasn’t a limit on guests at this point. “The more the merrier.”

Taking another plate out, Charlie walked to the dining room and placed all five plates on the table. As she passed by the boys and walked to her room to retrieve her phone, she called out, “Get the table set up if you want food.” They grumbled a bit, pressing pause on their game once again, but got to work. Boys did anything you asked of them if you offered food.

Getting her phone out of her bag, Charlie noticed that Harry had already texted her three times.

Ugh! Fuck this group assignment. I hate everyone in this group.

They don’t even know what they’re doing. I’m going to fail because of them.

And they’re all dressed like fucking bums. Can someone tell this guy that he can’t pair a polo with a cardigan and DAD JEANS?

Charlie laughed, biting her lip as she typed out a response, telling Harry to get his own bum over here. They’d met their first year during a required English course. The two of them were sat in the last bench in the back and it was really their sense of similar styles that brought them together. Charlie loved dressing up, pairing vintage items together and making it look chic, and Harry was a fashion snob, always showing up to class in YSL and fucking Burberry, like he wasn’t a starving uni student. It helped that their personalities were also alike -- loud and outgoing. He was her best friend. The Zayn to Charlie’s Niall.

Speaking of Niall, she had to ask her friends if they heard of him or Zayn. Surely one of them would know the two boys. She walked back out to the dining room to find Liam and Louis already sitting at the table and conversing.

“Why’ve we got five settings here?” Louis asked when Charlie walked over to them.

“Just invited Harry to join,” she told him.

Louis raised his eyebrows in surprise, but there was a smirk on his lips, which was never good. Louis and Harry had an interesting relationship -- in other words, they hated each other, but tolerated one another because their friend group was unfortunately merged into one. They were simply polar opposites. Charlie wasn’t quite sure who hated who more -- Louis because he couldn’t stand Harry and his posh ways, or Harry, who gagged every time Louis wore the same joggers three days in a row, but just with a different colored t-shirt.

“Be nice to him,” Charlie warned Louis, giving him a sharp glare. “He’s having to deal with imbeciles right now.”

Liam laughed. “What do you mean?”

“He’s doing a group assignment and told me his group mates suck and can’t dress.”

“That is exactly why I can’t be nice to him,” Louis pointed out. “He’s a fashion snob.”

“Well, that’s who he is, Lou,” Charlie defended. “You can’t change the man.”

“No, but I can annoy him,” Louis gleamed.

Charlie rolled her eyes, whacking Louis on the shoulder with her hand, and the two laughed as they play fought all the way into the kitchen where Gwen was trying to serve the food. Liam came in to referee and sent Charlie and Louis out into the living room so they weren’t getting in Gwen and his precious dinner’s way. Fifteen minutes later, Harry showed up, knocking on the door. Charlie bounced over and opened it for him, wrapping him in a hug and shivering from the cold he’d brought in.

“My balls are frozen,” Harry informed them, his teeth chattering as he took off his Chelsea boots.

“What? Your Yves Saint Laurent coat didn’t keep you warm enough?” Louis taunted from his spot on the couch, except he said it like ‘why-ves saint lau-rent.’

Harry’s eyes darted over to him, filling with disgust as he took in Louis in all his dirty, white socks and grey joggers and Adidas sweatshirt. “First of all, I walked from across campus and it’s raining. Second of all, that’s not how you pronounce it. It’s eve san lau-ron, you uncultured swine.”

“Whatever,” Louis rolled his eyes, already amused and laughing.

Harry scoffed. “Wouldn’t expect you to know shite about fashion, anyway, considering you probably got your clothes from Tesco for free in the lost and found bin.”

“Do you want my foot up your arse?”

“Do you want my fist down your throat?”

“Can we please just have dinner?” Liam cried out, throwing his hands up in exasperation. “My girlfriend made food and I’m going to have to ask everyone to settle down and respect the effort she put in.”

Louis and Harry both looked over at Liam, who was already sitting in his spot at the table. He even had a napkin tucked under his chin to avoid spills because he always managed to get stains on his clothes. “Fine,” Louis replied, walking over to sit as well. “But you don’t have to kiss Gwen’s arse, Li. She already likes you.”

“I’m not kissing arse. I’m hungry,” he said, scooping noodles onto his plate.

Charlie was, too. Her stomach grumbled at the sight of the salad and buttered bread that Gwen placed on the table and quickly took a seat beside Harry. After everyone piled their plates with food and started eating, the customary complaining about coursework began. Liam and Gwen were both business majors, having met their first year and hitting it off right away. Louis was an English major, Harry was sociology, and Charlie herself studied communications. It was then that Charlie remembered Niall once again.

“We’re getting a new guy at work,” she told them. “His name’s Niall.”

“Name sounds oddly familiar,” Louis said thoughtfully.

“He goes to our uni. Pre-med major.”

Louis continued to ponder through another bite of noodles, but shrugged in the end. “I need a face to the name. Can’t remember off-hand.”

“It’s a surprise you’re passing your classes with that kind of memory,” Harry chuckled.

Louis glared at him, flicking a piece of lettuce in Harry’s direction. Harry glared back before stabbing the lettuce and dumping it back onto Louis’ plate. Charlie looked away from the two and back to Liam and Gwen. “He seems really cool,” she told them. “I like him.”

“Like like him?” Liam asked with a smirk. “Is he dreamy? Has he got our little Charlotte all swept up off her feet.”

Charlie groaned. “Relax, Li. I only talked to the guy for, like, ten minutes. But from what we spoke, he seemed cool.”

“That’s great,” Gwen said. “I’m glad Bug hired someone else to help you out in that shop. You’re always alone and I worry some perv will walk in and try something with you.”

Charlie waved her fork in a dismissive manner. “Bug’s got the whole place under surveillance and I have a taser and rape whistle in my pocket at all times.”

“That’s my girl,” Harry beamed.

“You should bring Niall around if you get to know him better,” Louis said. “The familiarity of the name is bugging me and I need to remember otherwise it’ll drive me mad.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Charlie smiled, wondering how tomorrow would go considering it would be Niall’s first day.



The only noises that could be heard within the sex shop was “I’ll Make Love To You” by Boyz II Men from Bug’s sex playlist of the day and the flip of Niall’s textbook pages. Charlie was surprised when he showed up that day with his backpack in tow. She’d shown him around, told him the basics of getting started, and offered to guide him when customers showed up. But it was a slow day and he’d taken to settling himself behind the counter and opening up his books for revision.

It was a bit of a let down. Charlie had thought they’d get to know each other and talk because it could get a bit lonely working in the shop alone. Niall seemed like an interesting distraction that would keep her smiling throughout her shift, but they’d barely spoken in the last hour. He only got up once when a customer walked in, helping the man pick a gift for him and his wife since it was their wedding anniversary and he wanted to shake up their sex life a little. Niall was plenty helpful, only blushing a little bit while he and Charlie showed the customer some of their sex toys.

After ringing up a pair of handcuffs and a whip, Niall went back to his books, leaving Charlie all alone, staring out the window wistfully. Bug wasn’t in today (he was scheduled for a few appointments with potential suppliers), so she couldn’t go over to bother him, either. Just as she was contemplating taking her phone out and ringing up Harry, the door to the shop opened, and one of the prettiest boys Charlie had ever seen walked through.

It was almost painful looking at him, wondering how much time God had spent really crafting this work of art because it had to have taken a long time to get it this near perfect. His expression was broody, lips in what seemed like an ever present pout, as he looked around the shop, eyes meeting Charlie’s before gliding over to Niall. McDreamy’s face split into a grin and he stepped forward.

“Ni,” he greeted, stopping at the other end of the counter.

Niall looked up, so absorbed in his reading that he didn’t notice someone had walked in, and he let out a surprised laugh. “What the fuck?” he replied, walking around the counter to give McDreamy a hug. “What are you doing here?”

“I was walking by,” McDreamy responded. “Decided to pop in and see this place.”

“Glad you’re here,” Niall said. He looked to Charlie. “This is my coworker, Charlie, I was telling you about. Charlie, this is my Zayn.”

Beautiful name for a beautiful man, Charlie thought, smiling sweetly. “Nice to meet you! I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Niall never shuts up about me,” Zayn smiled bashfully. “Sorry about that.”

“No worries,” Charlie responded. It made sense why Niall was so in love with this Zayn. Charlie would be, too.

“Charlie goes to MU as well,” Niall told Zayn.

“Sick,” Zayn smiled. “What are you studying?”

“Communications,” Charlie responded.

“Me, too!”

“Are you joking? Then why haven’t I ever seen you around?”

“Zayn barely shows up to class,” Niall informed her. “It’s not a surprise no one knows him.”

“That’s not true,” Zayn insisted. “I literally went to class this morning with you. Besides, MU is so big. It’s not that surprising.”

“Excuses, excuses,” Niall tutted.

Zayn laughed goodnaturedly. “Enough, you twat. I’ll leave you to it and see you at home.”

“Alright,” Niall waved. “Love you.”

Once Zayn was gone, Niall returned to his previous post. “Zayn seemed nice,” Charlie said.

“He’s the best,” Niall agreed. With that, he opened his book once more, and continued to read.