beta
The couple was really cute and I really like this author's works, but this trope is one that I always find super depressing . . .
Idek why, but the indebted idiot being coerced into sex work is an idea that just makes my heart sink and really taps into my empathy for some reason and genuinely makes me think about how in that situation I'd rather just throw myself off a bridge.
I think I'm just really afraid of debt.
I already feel powerless enough in my life just trying to get by as a slave to capitalism, the idea of just accidentally occuring a large amount of debt of no real fault of your own is terrifying, even in fiction. You'd lose what little power you had over your life and have to work ten times as hard forever not just to get by, but to pay off this debt. Plus, it'd be a thousand times worse if your debtor dictates the kind of work you do to pay it off (especially if it's something as vulnerable and potentially traumatizing as forced sex work)
The thought of how hopeless that situation feels and how powless I'd be makes me sick to my stomach and I'm already too mentally unstable to bother trying to endure that kind of shit. I would 100% off myself.