[This is pretty long, but you can skip some of the background info by just going below the break]
So this happened a couple of years back, when I was dating my then-boyfriend. We were both going to college in the same city, and every day on my way to class I passed by the same dingy porno theater. I was shocked it was still around; after all, why would anyone pay to watch porn these days? The owners seemed to agree with me on some level, seeing as it looked like they had spent the last twenty years putting off renovations in anticipation of the theater’s insolvency. The sign out front was half worn away with the weather, and for months one of the glass doors was sporting a sprawling spiderweb crack. My stomach always had a lurch of curiosity when I walked by the building. I found myself slowing down to try and examine their hideous promotional posters or catch a glimpse inside the red carpeted entryway. However, I never really stopped, especially not after a guy smoking a cigarette outside invited me in, saying he’d pay my cover, when I was on my way to a 11 am class.