Caught Up

Lauren saunters out of the arcade and promises to tell Taylor and Ryan everything at home. Back at the apartment, the three roommates discuss what happened, and Taylor and Ryan marvel at Junior’s willingness to pay $7,000 to perform oral sex on Lauren. Lauren intends to let matters develop with Junior in order to make up for lost time. She now suspects that Junior believed he was helping her when he abandoned her in high school. She explains that the mafia was an integral part of her childhood community, adding that Junior never wanted to be in the mafia. Instead, he dreaded graduation because he knew that he would have to start working for his father; in their high school days, Lauren always struggled to make him smile or laugh because he was burdened by this knowledge.

Now, hearing Lauren’s explanation, Ryan and Taylor accept her reasoning. Taylor confesses that she has not posted on Me4U in a few days because of the cannibal fetishist; she has also noticed an increase in the frequency of sexist or distasteful comments. Lauren has experienced similar bouts of dread in the past and sympathizes with Taylor. The women convince Ryan to reach out to a man named Ben, who also edits videos for sex workers, and Ben agrees to work for Ryan.

On Friday night, Lauren waits for Junior in the bondage room at Velvet as the show is about to start. She feels her phone vibrate and reaches into her purse, finding a small token that she does not recognize. She drops the token and grabs her phone to check her notifications. Junior has texted to say that he will be late, and Lauren thinks that he will miss their meeting altogether. Disappointed, she reminds herself that she usually follows strict rules, such as blocking subscribers who cross the line, cutting off contact with questionable men, and never giving second chances. When the show starts, Sylvia, one of the Velvet co-owners, leads a woman named Moriah onto the stage, pulling her with a rope.

Junior is annoyed that his father’s family dinner is interfering with the planned meeting with Lauren. Junior’s family usually has dinner once a month with Junior’s cousin, Aly, and her boyfriend, Josh. Junior and Josh have become friends over the last six months. Now, Aly and Josh pull into the driveway behind Junior, and Aly exits the car, holding her hand in the air to show off her engagement ring. Moira comes outside, sees the ring, and shrieks, prompting Junior’s father and brothers to run outside with guns drawn. Moira tells Junior’s father the news, and he reluctantly offers champagne.

At dinner, Junior’s father suggests that Aly and Josh get married in June, so the garden at the Trocci house will be in bloom. He then implies that Aly might change her mind. Upset, Aly denies this and says that they are not planning the wedding yet. Junior’s father implies that Aly has put on weight and may be pregnant, then threatens to reveal the truth about Josh’s father’s past actions. Junior remembers Aly saying that she would never speak to Junior’s father again if he mentioned Josh’s father.

True to form, Aly announces that she and Josh are leaving, then apologizes to Moira, who excuses herself from the table. Junior’s father asks why Junior is on his phone. Junior explains that he is waiting for Vinny to update him on the issue of increasing the rates they charge for importing olive oil. (In reality, he is watching the time and texting Lauren.) The brothers debate the logistics of importing olive oil, and Junior’s father says he and Lorenzo want Junior to take over the expansion of the family’s importation business. Junior knows that his father is only trying to tie him closer to the family, but he does not have a good reason to refuse the promotion.

Junior races to Velvet, furious at his father’s interference. He finds Lauren at the main bar, talking with a woman and the same academic man that were present during Junior’s last visit. Junior stomps over to Lauren and presses her into a kiss, telling the man to go away. Lauren grabs Junior, who picks her up. She directs him into another space that Junior realizes is a performance room. There is a crowd, and Ryan and Taylor introduce themselves to Junior, who apologizes for their previous encounter. Lauren leads Junior to some seats in the back of the room. He apologizes for being late and explains the circumstances. Lauren understands, though she did temporarily suspect that Junior was abandoning her again. Junior acknowledges that his job makes it challenging to keep plans, but he offers to do anything to make amends.

The show begins with two performers, Ray and Ella. As the performers disrobe, Junior is shocked to see that Ray has piercings along his penis. As Ella performs oral sex on Ray, other couples in the crowd start touching each other and moaning. Junior notices that Lauren is watching two women kiss. As a third performer, Bri, joins Ray and Ella, Lauren grows excited and reminds Junior of his promise to do anything. Junior is worried about the people watching them, but he lets Lauren unzip his pants.

Although Lauren is frustrated by her feelings for Junior, she is overwhelmed with desire. She caresses Junior and reflects on how important kink play is to her. She does not want to rush Junior into her world, so she asks if she can perform oral sex on him. Junior considers it for a moment before consenting. Lauren remembers having sex with Junior in high school and imagines how it would be different now. She tries to time the pace of the oral sex to the performance on stage, listening for cues from the audience and watching the couples around them. Junior relaxes into the sex act, and Lauren acknowledges to herself that she wants to see more of the untamed Junior, which he hides behind a disinterested façade. After Junior climaxes, he pulls Lauren onto his lap and kisses her chest. Lauren feels the room disappearing around her, and she recalls that some performances turn into orgies.

After the performance, Junior and Lauren go to the bar, and he admits that he had fun. Taylor tells Lauren to meet with Sylvia, and when Lauren tells Junior about Velvet’s rent issue, Junior promises to investigate McKinney. Junior’s father calls and orders him to come to the house, but Junior decides to stand up to his father, so he claims to be busy and tells Nico Sr. to call Alec instead. After the call ends, Lauren asks about Junior’s work, and he explains that his father wants him to expand their illegal importation of fake olive oil, which is a billion-dollar industry in Italy. The position would mean more responsibility, but it would also require Junior to take the blame if the endeavor fails. When Lauren sympathizes, Junior remembers that she always tried to take care of him without learning the details of the mafia’s business. Now, he confesses that he has been trying to find a way to leave the mafia for years, and he expresses interest in starting a real business. Lauren says she is proud of him.

Making a tactical error, Junior then asks Lauren what she wants to do after camwork. Offended by the implication that her career is unworthy of her, Lauren says she intends to continue doing camwork indefinitely. She notes that she has earned a degree in psychology and values the community that she has built, which she does not see as an impediment to having a family. Junior tries to backpedal, saying that he is not communicating clearly, but Lauren tells him to leave.

Suddenly, a scuffle breaks out by the door as three men try to barge into the club. One man pushes past the bouncers and demands a woman, but Junior deftly dislocates the man’s shoulder and breaks his nose, shocking Lauren, Taylor, and Ryan. Lauren tells Junior that his violence breaks the house rules, but he insists that he was trying to stop the man from hurting anyone. The crowd agrees, but Lauren orders him to leave. Frustrated, Junior declares that he has been protecting Lauren for 10 years but refuses to elaborate. He angrily grabs his phone and leaves.

As Lauren watches Junior put on his helmet and leave on his motorcycle, she realizes that he is the man she sometimes sees outside her home. She wonders about his cryptic parting shot and worriedly speculates that he may have engineered the slashed tires at church or Councilwoman Blackwell’s sudden willingness to talk to her. When Ryan and Taylor approach, she shows them the token that she found in her purse. Ryan identifies it as a tracking device, and they realize that Junior planted it. Lauren goes to grab her phone but finds Junior’s phone in its place and wonders if he took her phone on purpose. She uses Ryan’s phone to call her own, and Junior picks up while driving. He cannot return the phone tonight but promises to exchange phones with her at church in the morning.

The next morning, Lauren feels conflicted; she is unsure if the real Junior is oppressive and violent or honest and open. As a child, she saw how Tommy forced her mother to quit her job. After Lauren’s mother left the relationship, Tommy left Lauren and Kristen to be raised by Nonna Bianchi. Now, Lauren’s greatest fear is to let a man control her as Tommy once controlled her mother. She is also confused by the fact that Junior’s violence arouses her.

Using Ryan’s phone, Lauren arranges to go to Mass with Nonna Bianchi. When the two meet, Nonna Bianchi tells Lauren that Tommy is missing and adds that he has not used his credit cards or his phone in weeks. Kristen was already aware of Tommy’s disappearance, and Lauren resents her sister’s failure to tell her the full story. At church, Lauren confirms that the cars with slashed tires belonged to the women who were gossiping about Lauren; she now suspects that Junior is the culprit. When Nonna Bianchi asks about Lauren’s sex life, Lauren refuses to discuss it. Nonna Bianchi urges her to have as much sex as possible, saying that her only regret is not having been more promiscuous before getting married.

After Mass, Junior is still absent, so Lauren sips coffee with Nonna Bianchi and several other women. When Junior’s phone rings, Lauren recognizes her own number and answers. Junior tells her to find him, then hangs up. Lauren wanders the church and ends up back in the nave, where Junior pulls her into the confessional, covering her mouth with one hand and holding her waist with the other. He apologizes, assuring Lauren that he supports her sex work and would never try to trap her. He releases her mouth, and she apologizes for losing her temper. They agree that Junior’s made the right decision when he stopped the man from invading Velvet. 

Lauren tells him that she found the tracking device and demands to know what he has been doing to protect her for 10 years. He promises to tell her but is interrupted by the voices of several men entering the nave. Junior covers Lauren’s mouth again, but his hand wanders to her throat. They both grow aroused and quietly slip off some clothing, after which Junior partially penetrates Lauren. After they both climax, they stop when they recognize the voices of Junior’s parents, asking the priest if he has seen Junior. Junior kisses Lauren and leaves the confessional, telling his parents that he was taking a nap. He leads them away, and when Lauren is alone, she sneaks out of the nave and rejoins Nonna Bianchi outside. Nonna Bianchi immediately notices the handprint on Lauren’s neck.