Go look at apartments

Saturday arrives sooner than you expect, and shortly after you finish breakfast Mandy gets a text from Trish letting her know she’s waiting downstairs with her brother-in-law. The drive over is mostly filled with small talk between Trish and her brother-in-law, who goes by the nickname “Chip”.

The first apartment he shows you is okay, but it’s located on the third floor of an old building and has one tiny bedroom that’s more of a closet than anything else. The next one is slightly better, with two decent sized bedrooms and a small balcony overlooking a quiet alleyway. Unfortunately, the rent is out of your price range by almost double.

After touring through several more disappointments, you’re starting to lose hope that you’ll find anything within your budget that’s even remotely decent. Then, Chip pulls up outside a sleek, modern looking building with a large sign advertising “LUXURY APARTMENTS”. You exchange doubtful looks with Mandy before stepping out of the car and following them inside.

You follow Trish and Chip, up to the 12th floor in a shiny elevator that smells faintly of expensive cologne. When the doors dings open, you’re greeted by a stunning wide open apartment with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the city skyline.

“Here we are,” Chip says proudly, walking into the apartment directly from the elevator. “This particular unit just opened up, so I was able to get you guys a look at it before anyone else.”

You step inside and your jaw drops involuntarily. The living room is bigger than your entire childhood home, with floor-to-ceiling windows that let in an endless flood of natural light. There’s a massive flat screen TV mounted on the wall and a huge sleek modern sofa arrangement facing it.

“This... this is insane,” you manage to **** out, still struggling to process everything you’re seeing. Trish whispers something into Mandy’s ear, her eyes wide with wonder and disbelief.

Chip catches your amazement and gives a smug little chuckle. “I told you I could find something special for you,” he says, winking at Mandy and Trish.

“What’s the catch,” you ask Chip.

“You’re smarter than you look,” Chip jokes with you like an older brother. “The catch is those cameras.” He says while pointing at the corners of the living room.

Your eyes widen as you look at the cameras pointing at the couches.

“They stream live to people who pay a pretty penny to watch them.” Chip tells you. “They are only in the living room. The bathrooms and bedrooms are camera free.”

You look over at Mandy whose pale skin has turned bright red.

Chip continues, “Rent is $5,000 each. But the more people you get watching, the cheaper it will be. And people watching can tip if they like what they see. The last couple ended up making an extra two to three grand a month, just by putting on a little show every now and then. Some couples in the building bring in 10 plus a month.”

Your mind reels at the implications of Chip’s words. You knew it would be hard to find an apartment on your budget, but this was... well, it was something else entirely.

You glance over at Mandy, expecting her to be horrified by the idea of being watched like that. Instead, she’s staring at you with wide eyes, blushing even brighter than before. Her breathing is slightly faster than normal, and you can see a thin sheen of sweat forming on her forehead despite the chilled air conditioning keeping the room at a perfect temperature.

“Uh... well,” you stammer out awkwardly, clearing your throat roughly. “I mean, uh, we’ll think about it.” You try to play cool and casual, even though your heart is hammering in your chest cavity violently.

Chip grins, “You’ll have to decide quickly, some buildings have a waiting list a mile long, but I’m friends with the manager here,” he says, giving you and Mandy a knowing wink before he and Trish go into one of the bedrooms, leaving you two alone together.

The moment the door closes behind them, you rush over to Mandy, wrapping your arms around her waist and pulling her against you. Her small moan fills your ears as their bodies press up against each other. Her chest is pressed tightly against yours, and you can feel her nipples poking through the thin fabric of her shirt, brushing teasingly against your sternum.