25 Sex Workers Share Times They Had A Surprise Run-In With Someone They Actually Knew

There are many benefits to sex work, especially now that it has been (at least somewhat) destigmatized. The pay is usually good, and the sex workers themselves often enjoy their work. But it is still a dangerous job, and not just because it puts people in direct contact with strangers. It is dangerous because there is the risk of running into someone you know, making things super awkward for everybody involved. 

Reddit user u/raxe_dragon asked recently, “Sex workers of Reddit, have any of you ever have a close friend or anyone you normally interact with daily be a surprise customer?” and followed it up with a second question: “What was the experience like, and how did it affect your interactions with them?”

And while a few folks say it was business as usual and no big deal when they saw an old high school buddy walk into the strip club or whatever, many more had incredibly awkward run-ins. And troublingly, a lot of them were with cousins.

1.

I was in the process of booking with a sex worker and she sent me a few face pics that she didnt post in her ad. Thats when I realized she was actually my cousin. I politely told her that I couldnt meet and never said anything to anyone, including her—u/psalyer

2.

Other way around. When I turned 22 or 23 for my birthday we went out drinking and ended up at a strip club. Stripper was making her rounds on stage to everyone sitting at the pit.

She jumped on me and says my name excitedly. Only then I realized it was an employee of mine.

Made sense why she couldn’t work nights.

Edit: I was a manager at a restaurant and had like 15 employees at the time. Was not a big time businessman at 22—u/chopedsuey

3.

I was a stripper back in the day. Halfway through a stage show realised that my flatmates brother and his friends were there. That’s how i was outed, lol. Nothing much changed.—u/S0lid-g0ld

4.

Somewhat related, me and buddy (Tom) go to this sleezy strip club in different part of town. As soon as we walk in he sees bartender he went to high school with who say “Tom you PERV! What are you doing here?”—u/cheapmanbcf

5.

I’m a stripper. My friends dad came in. I hadn’t seen him or my friend since high school. I accidentally asked him for a lap dance before I could tell who it was. He said no and I realized who it was as I walked away. He came in a few more times and avoided eye contact with me. When I was on stage he would look away.

Another story: my first day as a stripper I saw two guys from my high school. We chatted, then they both paid for lap dances.—u/hopesickgirl

6.

Cousin 1 (f) is a stripper, cousin 2 (m) lives in another state and hasn’t seen myself or cousin 1 since we were kids.

Cousin 2 comes to visit. Cousin 1 invites cousin 2 to her place of work one night. He knows it’s a strip club, but expects cousin 1 to just be bartending or waitressing or something.

Anyway, cousin 2 rocks up to the club and cousin 1 has her tits out. Cousin 2 said he turned around and walked right out of there.

Wtf cousin 1… why?—u/YngveAdve

7.

When I was a cam girl I would have many guys message me saying they were my cousin or something, they were not, just trying to play out a fetish and I wasn’t into it. So then one day a guy, in the main chat, said that he knew me and his name was AJ (fake name). I was like, yeah right, “I’ve only ever known one AJ, if it’s true what’s my name?” And sure enough he put my real first name right there in the chat.

We were in youth group in church together almost a decade before that. He became a regular.—u/SmellsLikeDuck

8.

I had a classmate who was a stripper and she was very open about loving it when people she knew came to see her at work and let her dance for them. She thought it was intimate in a fun, friendly way.—u/rosegardenway

9.

A guy that works with my mom found out I sold nudes and not only did he buy some he also send me 50$ every month to “treat myself”—u/purrbby

10.

Not a sex worker, but delivered a pizza to a known sex worker and at the same moment I was about to knock on the door, a relative opens the door and watches me holding the pizza up to him.

I couldn’t do anything but laugh, he laughed too (maybe out of embarrassment) and as soon as the sex worker understood what was going on she also started laughing.

Never mentioned this moment to anyone who knows my relative. And he is grateful for that to this day.—u/daz0n