Her store hadn't been doing well. Big box stores had been forcing little places like hers to close down due to lack of customers, and she only had a couple of months left before she'd be forced to close too. She'd already had to let all of her employees go, so the restricted hours weren't helping anything.<br /><br />Then a lifeline appeared: the owner of the clothing store next door came by. She'd always gotten on well with him, and they always flirted a bit when they talked, though with both of them dedicated to their work, nothing ever came of it.<br /><br />This time he was all business, he had an idea to help his store and hers. He laid it out, and she listened carefully. He had come across a one-time-use mannequin maker stand, and he wanted her to be the mannequin. He'd set it so she could be a free mannequin, but she'd still need to be on it eight hours a day to recharge. She'd be able to run her shop, and the enhancements from the stand would make her a draw. And when she wasn't working, she'd grace his shop as a display, pulling people in on his end too.<br /><br />She agreed to the plan after weighing all of her options. But she wanted one small change: he would be her owner. She loved working in the shop, but running it was too much. Let her be another piece of inventory, working front end in both stores while he took the back. And if he wanted to have some fun with his new toy, well, she couldn't and wouldn't say no.<br /><br />Half a year later and both shops are booming. The owner added a couple more mannequin employees, allowing his original one more time on display, or by his side.<br /><br /><br />Image made with WombotAI