I have no idea what I'm doing, but I'm doing it really well.

“I generally say it’s an edited version because whenever I get deep into telling others where I come from and the circumstances of my life people generally look at me full of pity and it’s something I tend to prefer to avoid, you know?” he said with a shrug. “So, mainly, the version in which I leave those tear jerking moments aside, I end up just telling others that back while I was growing up in Jersey I ended up hanging with the wrong crew a lot.” Jerry began explaining. “We were often getting into trouble - a fight here, a misdemeanor there - and, I must say that there were times in which we narrowly escaped.” The man told her nonchalantly. It wasn’t like he was proud of those years, but they were a part of who he was after all, and it wasn’t like he could erase them. Arching an eyebrow, he met her other statement with a small smile curving his lips. “A brothel, you say?” he half asked.

“There are quite a few things I end up practicing and I still don’t believe I’ve gotten any good at. Like golf, for example. I’m still pretty sure I’m awful at it, but, it certainly doesn’t keep me from going to the field and trying to hit the ball. And, if you want to take in my drunken experiences as well, there’s karaoke, but it’s probably best if we keep that between us,” he hushed that last part as if it happened to be a secret. “Much as it might be something I enjoy, the, you know, cuddling, if it’s too hot, it’s harder to do. Sure, you can make sure the two of you are naked, and yet it just ends up in a sweaty mess up until one of you gives up on the endeavor. “I understand what you’re saying there, it’s just something that makes me feel uncomfortable… So, if you could just make an effort to call me Jerry or Jeremy or even Jay, I would appreciate it. If there’s anything you’d prefer to be called, you can let me know too and I’ll be glad to call you that,” Jerry tried to negotiate the title. After hearing all that she had to say, Jerry scratched the back of his head. “I’m under the impression that when I came here thinking this was a museum of some sort I was ridiculously misguided, was I not?” he wondered out loud.

“I know that feeling very well. Honestly I’ve learned not to look at people that way. I hate when people give me that look so why would I give it to someone else?” Every time she mentioned her past she received looks of pity. It was something she hated in life. “Well it seems like you’ve moved on from your past and just as long as you didn’t end up in prison I guess your life has turned out quite well. So you’re from Jersey? Where’s that at?” Now if he had done time in prison that would be a whole different story, and something very hard to move past. Marian had no idea where Jersey was but it sounded foreign to her. She nodded at his question. “Yeah. A brothel. I started working here when I ran out of money and had nowhere else to go. The former madam took me in and when she retired I bought the brothel from her and took over. I’ve been running it a few years now,” She explained.

“I think golf is one of those rare things that only a few people are good at. Like the only people who are good at it are out there five to seven times a week playing it. Everyone else just plays for fun or when they’re trying to make a business deal. As for karaoke? No one is good at that. People may thing they are but that’s only because they’re too drunk to know they’re not,” Marian laughed. “Well that’s why you shouldn’t cuddle when it’s hot. If it’s hot out you just get all sweaty and it’s nasty. If it’s a cool night though cuddling is perfect. There’s no sweat and you can just lay under a blanket to keep warm,” She pointed out. Guys coming in just wanting to cuddle was actually something that occurred a lot at the brothel. “I’ll try my best to call you Jerry but I can’t promise you anything. It’s hard to break a habit after all. Just call me Marian.” Really she didn’t see what the big deal was with her calling him sir. She would try to call him Jerry but it wasn’t her fault if she did slip up. Some habits were nearly impossible to break. “This is a museum. Well sort of. During the day it’s a museum and at night it’s a brothel. There’s so many original features in this place and it’s so old I thought I’d open it up to tours. It’s a good way to make money for charities and people seem to be curious about brothels,” She explained.

“Took me months just to be able to hit the ball with the club…” He pointed out. “A real prodigy!” Jerry let out a laugh. “The worst thing about karaoke is the fact that as alcohol goes in, performances tend to get heartfelt, which might end up in tears… You know, just to make the whole thing more embarrassing…” A slight chuckle escaped his lips as she talked about what should be done when it was hot. “Or a nice shower together. Some good old skinny dipping if you get the chance.” Jerry smiled at the mention. “Okay, that’s going to be good enough for the time being, and I’ll make sure to remind you of it every now and then. Believe me, I know what that is like, and sometimes you need to be content just to try breaking a certain habit.” He said with a shrug of his shoulders. The habit he was trying to break away from was his overprotectiveness over the women in his life. It hadn’t proved to be an easy task. “I think that was a wise idea. I believe there are many people who would like to see what a brothel is like, but wouldn’t dare to come in the evening. I must say I had never been to one. Strip clubs, yeah, though not a brothel. I suppose you could say I was expecting something more… Burlesque.” Jerry admitted. “And, well, now my mind is thinking about torrid affairs and scandals that might have taken place around here… I bet there are many stories within these walls, right?”

“An edited version? Was your life really that wild back then?” What in the world could he be doing that would make her feel uncomfortable? Sex and drinking was one thing. That was just something that men and women did. Those topics wouldn’t make her uncomfortable. She ran a brothel after all. She had had sex for money. Sex wasn’t a topic that would make her uncomfortable. Neither would drinking. The brothel had a bar. She had seen many men that got a bit too drunk. “I run a brothel. Whatever you say I can assure you that I’ve probably seen someone do it or heard a similar story,” She pointed out with a laugh. “Your sisters? Well that’s very kind of you.” But it really just made her wonder if he didn’t see his sisters anymore. She wasn’t about to ask though. That was rude.

“I wasn’t going to ask if you were good at those activities or not. I’ve noticed that most people aren’t if they only do them on occasion. It’s hard to become good at something if you don’t do them that often. I just find it crazy that you don’t mind the snow that much,” Marian joked. “True but I also think any weather is perfect for staying inside to cuddle. Cuddling is one of the best things in the world after all.” That was actually a popular activity at her business. It was unbelievable the number of men that just wanted to cuddle. “I call every male sir. It’s just a way to show politeness. Nothing more than that.” The nuns had raised her to be as polite as possible no matter who she was speaking to. “A swear jar? Of course I wasn’t being serious about that. Also if you’re into drinking and prostitution then you’re more than welcome to come back here at night,” She shrugged. If he was really into that stuff then she wasn’t about to stop him. “From what the records show this building itself has been around for about five hundred years or so but there may have been an early building on the site.”

“I generally say it’s an edited version because whenever I get deep into telling others where I come from and the circumstances of my life people generally look at me full of pity and it’s something I tend to prefer to avoid, you know?” he said with a shrug. “So, mainly, the version in which I leave those tear jerking moments aside, I end up just telling others that back while I was growing up in Jersey I ended up hanging with the wrong crew a lot.” Jerry began explaining. “We were often getting into trouble - a fight here, a misdemeanor there - and, I must say that there were times in which we narrowly escaped.” The man told her nonchalantly. It wasn’t like he was proud of those years, but they were a part of who he was after all, and it wasn’t like he could erase them. Arching an eyebrow, he met her other statement with a small smile curving his lips. “A brothel, you say?” he half asked.

“There are quite a few things I end up practicing and I still don’t believe I’ve gotten any good at. Like golf, for example. I’m still pretty sure I’m awful at it, but, it certainly doesn’t keep me from going to the field and trying to hit the ball. And, if you want to take in my drunken experiences as well, there’s karaoke, but it’s probably best if we keep that between us,” he hushed that last part as if it happened to be a secret. “Much as it might be something I enjoy, the, you know, cuddling, if it’s too hot, it’s harder to do. Sure, you can make sure the two of you are naked, and yet it just ends up in a sweaty mess up until one of you gives up on the endeavor. “I understand what you’re saying there, it’s just something that makes me feel uncomfortable... So, if you could just make an effort to call me Jerry or Jeremy or even Jay, I would appreciate it. If there’s anything you’d prefer to be called, you can let me know too and I’ll be glad to call you that,” Jerry tried to negotiate the title. After hearing all that she had to say, Jerry scratched the back of his head. “I’m under the impression that when I came here thinking this was a museum of some sort I was ridiculously misguided, was I not?” he wondered out loud.

“Honestly, I don’t mind it that much. When I was younger I used to be out and about a lot,” he mentioned, remembering some of the recklessness of his youth. Perhaps that was the reason why he felt like having a life that went on a slower pace at that moment was something good. “And I suppose those weren’t the smartest days of my life,” Jerry added to the thought. “So, I guess you can say that at least for the time being, I’m enjoying a more laid back sort of living. It’s different than what I was used to, and there are things I miss at times, but, it’s not all bad,” he said with a shake of his head. When he said that there were things that he missed about it, he was mostly talking about the company of his sisters, but, oh well, he did what he could with the cards he’d been given.

“I don’t know to what extent that is something that bothers me,” he stated, talking about the weather. “I mean, sure, I don’t want to freeze my balls off all the time, though if I feel like doing something, the weather isn’t what’s going to stop me. Unless I get snowed in. You know, those moments when you open your door and there’s like… Three feet of snow? That really discourages me,” he mentioned, retrieving a bill from his wallet and placing it in the jar. “I feel like I’ve just sworn and was told to put money in a jar,” the man expressed his amusement with a light chuckle. “Oh,” he said with a couple of nods. He wondered what could be the appeal of a museum at night, and part of him wanted to ask about it, though he thought it could sound rude of him, so, he held his tongue. “Alright, so, where do we start?” he questioned.

“Aww… So the reason you like to stay at home all the time is because of your wild youth then? Well that makes sense and is just a bit sad. Or it could be sad based on what exactly you mean by ‘out and about’. Were you partying or what were you doing those days?” Marian asked. There was nothing wrong with living a laid back life. Her childhood has basically been nothing but laid back. It wasn’t until she left the convent that she started to be wild. Traveling Europe. Doing whatever she could for money. There was nothing laid back about that time of her life. Sometimes she missed it but this life was nice too. At least she actually had a career and wasn’t doing odd things for money. “So what do you miss about that old life of yours?” She asked.

“You’re braver than me. I hate the cold and I hate the snow. I know it shouldn’t stop me from going outside and just living my life but I just can’t handle it sometimes. Especially when there’s that three feet of snow thing like you mentioned. I’m glad to hear that I’m not the only person that’s discouraged when that happens.” She set the jar down after he put the money in it. “Thank you for your donation sir. The swearing jar is behind the bar so if you do swear you can put a Euro in there,” She teased. “I would say you should come back at night one day but you don’t seem like the type of person that would be interested in that type of entertainment,” She commented. “We can start right here if you’d like. So this place was built by a duke for his mistress…” She started to explain the history.

“I don’t mind the snow all that much. And, I happen to enjoy – on occasion – doing things like skiing or ice skating,” the man shrugged. “And before you might consider asking…No, I’m not really good at any of them.” He said with a few shakes of his head. “I really think there are others out there who feel the same way about it.” Jerry reasoned. “But I think we might both agree on the fact that that sort of weather is perfect to stay in and cuddle.” He found himself saying. “And, please, don’t call me sir,” he requested. “Makes me feel all weird and formal. Just call me Jerry and we’ll be fine.” He told her with a smile. He had never been particularly fond of the titles, and was always a lot more comfortable when people didn’t try to refer to him using them. Even in his workplace. Jerry looked at her with a quizzical expression on his face when she said she had a swear jar. “Is that serious?” part of him still couldn’t quite believe it. “You never know,” he countered regarding him not liking the night activities. Perhaps he wasn’t she sharpest tool in the shed, still, he wondered what kind of activities there could be at a museum at night. Or maybe his mind just wandered off to that movie in which everything in a museum came alive at night. “Alright, good,” he nodded, listening to what she had to say. “Oh, wow,” he uttered. “It dates back to when?” he inquired.

“Oh, trust me, I do things that aren’t related to work,” he affirmed, nodding a few times. “They just don’t happen to be activities that require me to leave the house. Or, require me to leave a house,” Jerry thought it would be better phrased that way. His hobbies were mainly things that made sure that he didn’t have to leave the house much – or, at times, at all. He enjoyed playing video games, and, although the co-op games would sometimes take him out of his place, it generally meant he ended up at someone else’s. That shouldn’t really qualify as leaving the house, would it? Then there was cooking, which was something he enjoyed on occasion. So, no leaving the house necessary and he could have the groceries delivered to his place.

The man nodded upon hearing her words. “I know what you’re saying. People don’t really leave their places much around this time of the year,” he stated. “Unfortunately, I can’t say that I’ve been having easy days, so, it’s the exact reason why I needed to go on and do something different today.” Jerry explained. “Dully noted,” he pointed out, retrieving his wallet and looked at her. “Should I hand it over to you directly or is there somewhere I should deposit?” he questioned, opening the leathery thing and going over to the money part of it, just waiting for her response to actually go ahead and grab what he deemed to be a decent amount. “I think it’s nice that you’ve chosen to help an institution… Most places just use the money for maintenance and whatnot…”

“So you don’t leave the house that often? That’s sort of sad. Everyone should leave their house once in a while to do something that’s not work related.” But who was she really to tell someone they should leave the house when she only left once in a while. Her hobbies didn’t require her to leave the house for days. All you needed to go shopping now a days was a computer and to bake a person just needed a kitchen. Since groceries could be delivered there wasn’t a reason to really leave the house. Plus it helped that her apartment was the top floor of the brothel. She never had to leave this building then.

“Well who really wants to go outside when the weather is so horrible out? I’m starting to understand why animals hibernate during the winter. Then again I understand needing a change once in a while too and trying new things.” That was the only reason that she had gone to the gym the first time. She needed a change and that was the only thing that seemed half way interesting. “We have a jar for donations.” Leading him in, she picked up a jar and held it out to him. “Just donate whatever you want.” A jar wasn’t the best system for donations but it worked. “Well these tours are just something we do in the daytime. It’s definitely not our main source of income. Our main source of income happens at night when our clients come in,” She explained.

“I don’t know to what extent that is something that bothers me,” he stated, talking about the weather. “I mean, sure, I don’t want to freeze my balls off all the time, though if I feel like doing something, the weather isn’t what’s going to stop me. Unless I get snowed in. You know, those moments when you open your door and there’s like… Three feet of snow? That really discourages me,” he mentioned, retrieving a bill from his wallet and placing it in the jar. “I feel like I’ve just sworn and was told to put money in a jar,” the man expressed his amusement with a light chuckle. “Oh,” he said with a couple of nods. He wondered what could be the appeal of a museum at night, and part of him wanted to ask about it, though he thought it could sound rude of him, so, he held his tongue. “Alright, so, where do we start?” he questioned.