“I just need some more time,” said Kirsten.
“I’ve given you enough time,” said Mr. Nelson, Kirsten’s landlord. He walked out of her apartment. “You have a week to pay your rent or you’re out of here.” Then he was gone.
Kirsten had been living in her apartment for three years. She had been laid off from her job a few months earlier and hadn’t been able to find a new job since. Now she was in danger of being evicted. Her friends and family were unaware of her problems. She didn’t want them to know and she didn’t want to have to ask any of them for help. She had been auctioning off some of her clothes and jewelry on eBay, which she used to help pay the rent for the other months, along with her bills, but it wasn’t enough anymore. She didn’t know what else to do.
Then she heard a knock on the door. It was her next door neighbor Susan. “Hi, Susan,” said Kirsten.
Susan and Kirsten weren’t really friends. Most of the time they’d interact was when they saw each other in the hallway. “Hi. I overheard you and Mr. Nelson. I’m sorry,” said Susan.
“Thanks.”
“Maybe I can help you.”
“How?”
“Can I come in?”
“Sure.” Kirsten let her in and they sat down on her couch.
“I want you to be on a website I’m setting up. You’d be paid for it.”
“This isn’t porn, is it?”
“No. It’ll be a website where I dare, or challenge. Whichever word you prefer. I haven’t even come up with a name for the site yet. I get people to do embarrassing things in public while I film them. It could be something small, like having you kiss some random stranger, or something big, like streaking.”
“Streaking?!” Kirsten was scared at the thought of doing something like that.
“Yes. They do something and then I pay them for it. Then I give them more to do, if they want to continue. This can go on for a day or longer. How much they get paid depends on them. The bigger the dare, or challenge, the bigger the reward. Anything involving nudity will get you a lot more money. I’ll also have bonuses. If someone is already doing a dare or challenge and are close to completing it, I’ll give them an additional task that would be an extension of it for more money. If they don’t do it, they’ll still get the money they would have gotten before. I post the videos on the site and people will pay to see them.”
“I don’t know about this.”
“That makes you perfect for this site. I don’t want people who would easily do anything I told them to do. I want people who are going to be very uncomfortable, embarrassed, but ultimately, they’ll still do it anyway. I think it’s more fun to see people like that. I’ve gotten five people so far. One of them streaked through a park, one went skinny-dipping, and another went jogging down her block wearing just bodypaint.”
“So I could be doing things that could get me arrested?”
“Not if you’re careful. Also, if you want, I’d have your face blurred in the videos.”
That was a relief to Kirsten. She didn’t want to imagine what would happen if anyone she knew found out about the site and saw her doing whatever. Even without them, she’d still have to think about all the strangers that might see her. As tempting as it was, she didn’t think she could do it, no matter how much money she’d make. She was no prude, but she had her limits. “Thanks for the offer, but I’ll just have to think of another way to pay my rent.”
“What about your family or friends?”
“This is my problem, not theirs.”
“Okay, but doing this would not only pay this month’s rent, it could cover the rest of the year. You’d be making your own money instead of going to others for it. But I understand you not wanting to do this, especially with all the possible nudity. If you change your mind, you know where I live.”
Susan started to leave. Kirsten thought about it, and the thought of ending up homeless in a few days was a bigger priority. Unless she were to win the lottery, she didn’t have any other option.
“Wait. How much nudity are we talking about?”
“Like I said, it depends on you. I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do. You can walk away anytime you want.”
Kirsten’s fear of losing her apartment outweighed her fear of being naked in public. “I’ll do it.”
“Are you sure? Because the way you reacted when I mentioned streaking…”
“I know. ”
“Then let’s begin.”
Kirsten was about to find out what her limits were.
What does Susan have Kirsten do first?