Want to Star in a Porno?

Poppy paced the living room of their apartment, trying to work out how to approach the subject without sounding completely unhinged. XxxPro Adult Talent Agency, a company she’d worked with in the past as a photographer, had seen your photo on her Instagram.

It had been an innocent enough picture, just you sitting in the garden on a deckchair. But clearly, they’d seen something in you they thought they could use. They’d emailed her, asking if she thought you might be interested in appearing in one of their porn shoots.

It was a strange and unexpected request. But you were both struggling financially at the moment, and the money wasn’t terrible, somewhere between £200 and £300 for the shoot. Still, there was the problem of you.

She’d promised herself she’d ask you properly, sit down and talk it through.

If she was being honest, she wasn’t even sure how she felt about it herself. And she had no idea how you’d react. You were in an open relationship, but how open, exactly? Your relationship was built around sharing a lover, not going solo, and this wasn’t a situation that had ever really come up.

It would be a professional job, with a paid actor.

But it was still sex. Hardcore sex. With nowhere to hide. And sex that god only knew how many people would watch.

The sound of the key in the apartment door snapped her out of her thoughts.

You were home, another twelve hour shift for minimum wage at the warehouse. She went into the kitchen, took a beer from the fridge, poured it into a glass, and walked back into the lounge, watching as you shrugged off your coat and kicked off your shoes.

She moved towards you, kissed your cheek, and handed you the beer. It had become a small ritual between the two of you, one she knew you appreciated.

“Busy day?” she asked, already knowing the answer. It was the run-up to Christmas; you’d told her a few days ago how chaotic it had been.

She watched as you sat down on the couch, then sat beside you, gently lacing her fingers through yours and giving you a few quiet minutes to relax. The exhaustion was clear in your eyes, and she wondered if this was really the right time to bring up the email. It hardly seemed fair to drag you into a heavy conversation when you probably just wanted to zone out in front of the TV and unwind before bed.

But she didn’t know whether XxxPro’s offer was time-sensitive.

She waited until you’d finished your beer, then took a slow, steady breath.

“So… I got a weird email today. About you.”

She paused, searching for the least awful way to say the next part.

“XxxPro — the adult movie agency. They saw your photo on my Insta. They wanted to know if you’d be interested in being in one of their customers movies. You know… a porno.”

She grabbed her laptop from the coffee table and turned it towards you, showing you the email. As you read it, she added quietly,

“I’ve got no idea what kind of thing it’d actually be… but they say it’s behind a paywall.” She hesitated. “Honestly, I don’t know how I feel about it. And I’ve got no idea what you think.”

She swallowed, fingers tightening slightly around yours.

“It’s not massive money, porn doesn’t really pay these days, but it’s between £200 and £300. Which… would help, especially with Christmas coming up.” she let out a small small, nervous breath. “But it’s still porn.”

She looked down for a second, then back up at you.

“I just think we need to talk about it, at least. Just so we know we’re on the same page.”

Her voice came out quieter at the end.

“Do you agree?”