The Smithton Tapes Pt. 01

Brian Price glanced over his head as the seat belt sign flashed on; the flight from Los Angeles to Boston had begun its final descent. Brian took a quick look through his email, scanning the profiles of the young women he was traveling to New England to meet. With a little smile, he snapped his laptop closed and stowed it under his seat. Leaning back in his chair and gazing out the window, Brian watched the blooming forests of Massachusetts roll beneath him. This trip would be his third visit to Smithton College and he still couldn't believe his great fortune in being the producer and occasional co-star of the Smithton Tapes.

Brian had worked in the pornography industry for nearly a decade, and he had always heard the rumors about the Tapes. A fair number of prominent industry insiders dismissed them as a hoax, or possibly something that had happened once and was never repeated. Brian himself didn't believe any such things existed; he had seen almost every pornographic film in existence and had never seen a Smithton Tape. That was until one day, when the President of the porn production company he worked for, Star Productions, called Brian into his office. And in that meeting, the President revealed that yes, the Smithton Tapes were real, and that he was putting Brian in charge of their production. His mouth agape, Brian couldn't believe what he heard. That meeting was three years ago. Since then, Brian knew that every spring meant a trip to Massachusetts to the quaint campus of Smithton College.

**

A gentle spring breeze drifted through the window of Christina Barnhardt's dorm room, just parting the curtains. The air was still a bit cool, and it caused goosebumps to break out over Christina's bare chest. Christina smiled as she listened to birds chirping while she fastened her bra. As she buttoned her blouse, she glanced at the photo of her family sitting atop her desk. She smiled; the semester was almost over and she would soon return home for the summer. Her junior year at Smithton was winding down and only a few finals stood between her and home.

Christina gathered her things before her last day of classes before the beginning of finals. This morning she began with perhaps the most interesting class she'd ever taken: History, Theory, and Practice of Pornography. The class was offered every spring semester and generated a fair bit of controversy on campus every time spring semester rolled around. Every year, there was a group adamantly opposed to it and another group just as fiercely supportive. The controversy, however, never attracted much attention off campus, so Smithton never faced serious pressure to stop offering the course. One might think that mostly men signed up for the course but, in reality, the students were mostly women. The majority female enrollment always surprised the women who showed up on the first day of classes, as they expected to enter a room full of horny men. But the mostly women class resulted in thoughtful discussion. Beginning with the crudest cave paintings and continuing through the sleekly edited porn of today, the class studied porn from every possible angle.

The morning sun broke through the many trees on campus as Christina walked to class. Tucked under her arm were her class materials for the Pornography class. She was a stand-out student and had thrown herself into the class with unexpected enthusiasm. Christina was a shy girl, not overly sexual or sexually experienced. She had a nerdy girl next door look to her; wavy medium blond hair, a slim physique with well-shaped but smallish breasts. Add to it her modest dress and tortoiseshell glasses, and no one would suspect that she was a top student in a class on pornography. But despite her appearances, she had distinguished herself among a class of the brightest ladies at Smithton. The class though, had changed her. Exposed to sexual acts and fetishes she had never even dreamed of before, she had spent many a night poring through porn sites on her laptop, fascinated by what she found. Anal, interracial, deepthroat, gangbangs, double penetration, she had never seen such things before. They seemed to be common and expected among the performers and the consumers, but it was a new world for her. And she had this feeling, deep down, that it was exciting to watch. What would it feel like, being the woman in the video? A receptacle for lust and erotic passion?

Snippets from the DP scene she had watched last night flashed through her mind as she entered the classroom for the last Pornography class of the semester. The professor, Dr. Jones, quieted the class with an announcement:

"Alright, everyone, listen. It's going to be a short class today. Really all I have is to return your term papers. And remember, the study session is on Thursday at 7 in this classroom".

Dr. Jones then wandered the rows of desks, handing back the student's papers. He smirked a little when he handed Christina her paper. She eagerly looked for the grade, as it was one of her favorite papers she had written in college. "Deepthroat and Internet Pornography: Satisfying a More Sophisticated Audience". But the grade was not on the cover page. Christina flipped through its pages until she came to the end, where she found "98" written in large red letters. Smiling to herself, she read further below, where she found a note from Dr. Jones: "Please see me in my office after class".

Christina's brow furrowed; what could be wrong? She glanced around the room to see three other girls staring at their essays as the remainder of the class exited the room. Sitting in silence, the four girls contemplated each other quietly for a moment until Erin, a tall and leggy brunette, spoke up:

"Did Dr. Jones ask you to see him in his office?

The other girls murmured in the affirmative.

Another moment of silence passed until Nicole, one of the most insightful members of the class, stood up from her desk, declaring: "Well, I guess we should all go together".

Grabbing their backpacks and collecting their books, the four girls quietly departed the classroom and proceeded down the long hallway to Dr. Jones' office. Upon arriving, the found a man sitting in Dr. Jones' office chatting amicably with him, as though they were friends who hadn't seen each other in some time.

**

Brian piloted his rental car through the tree-lined roads of rural Massachusetts. The red eye flight from Los Angeles hadn't done as much damage as he had anticipated; he felt alert and awake. And without a sip of coffee. With what was on his agenda today, it was easy to feel energized. Only working on the Smithton Tapes gave him this jolt.

Arriving at the Smithton campus, still rising from its slumber and getting ready for the day, Brian parked his car in the faculty lot beside the Humanities Building. His took out his cell phone and scrolled through his contact until he found "Eric Jones". Pressing on the call button, he listened to the phone ring a few times before hearing:

"Brian! Are you here?"

"I'm in the faculty lot. Are you coming down?"

"Yes, any second!"

After only a brief delay, Dr. Eric Jones came striding up to the car. The two men shook hands before pulling into a brief hug.

"The good Dr. Jones, how are my man?" Brian asked, a smile spreading across his face.

"Excellent, excellent. Especially today" Eric replied, breaking into a mischievous smile of his own.

"I hope you've got something good for me."

"Oh, as if that was in question."

Brian and Eric entered the Humanities Building, swiftly ascending the stairs to Eric's office. The office was cluttered with books and papers piled in every conceivable cranny. Clearing off two of the chairs, Eric motioned for Brian to sit. Eric searched through his desk, finally producing a file folder with four smaller folders inside. Handing the folder to Brian, Eric said:

"Here's the targets for this year. As always, I think you'll find them more than satisfactory. Remarkable students, all of them. Enthusiastic too."

Brian flipped through the files labeled; Barnhardt, Christina; Byrd, Nicole; Ricci, Emily; Widener, Erin. Opening the "Barnhardt, Christina" file, Brian was immediately struck. The soulful eyes, the beautiful hair, the innocent look. He skimmed through the profile, seeing the information from her student profile and a few pictures pulled from social media. He grew more fascinated before forcing himself to look over the other profiles. The other girls were pretty, certainly, but Christina still held that charm.

"All right, you can still look over those. But I've got to go hand back their essays. And deliver the news" Eric declared before exiting his office, one eyebrow raised in a look of knowing.

Brian took closer looks at all of the girls. One senior, two juniors and a sophomore. One of them, the senior, with a known boyfriend. All of them so temptingly nubile, so pure and sexy. Brian smiled to himself: Man, did he ever love his job.

He wasn't alone for long, as Eric returned quickly.

"And now, we wait" Eric said, placing his hands atop his head.

Brian glanced up from the profiles, absentmindedly adding: "Do you ever worry they won't do it?"

Eric scoffed: "Why? They never have. Not for as long as this thing has been going. Why? Are you?"

Brian smiled, sinking into his chair: "Of course not. Though that one girl last year, the red head, did make me nervous for a while."

"Ah, yes", Eric remembered, "Jennifer. Nice gal. Graduating in week or so."

"Really?" Brian replied in genuine interest.

Just then, they heard a knock on the door and saw a small group of girls nervously peer into the office.

**

The two men looked up, smiling, happy to see the girls.

Dr. Jones rose from his desk and came to greet them at the door.

"Ladies, I'm happy to see all of you. Inside here is my friend Brian Price." The man waved to them. "The two of us would like to speak with each one of you individually. And, please, don't worry yourselves! There is nothing amiss!"

The girls glanced at each other, unsure.

"Well, let's start from the top. Miss Barnhardt, if you would please?"

Christina took a few nervous steps forward into the office and Dr. Jones shut the door behind her. Dr. Jones gestured for her to have a seat in the empty chair next to the man, Brian. She slowly sunk into the chair.

"Christina", Dr. Jones began, "you have really applied yourself this semester. And stood out. Your paper on deepthroat was superb, really. I noticed your interests in discussion and in papers didn't show any hesitation with the subjects whatsoever."

The man seated next to her didn't say anything, but closely observed her.

Dr. Jones rapped his fingers on his desk, looking like he was about to burst under the weight of a great secret.

"Every year, at the end of this course, we always speak to the top students in the class. Clearly, they are enthralled with what we studied. And all of them have wanted to continue their studies. And so, every year, we offer them the chance to make their own pornographic film."

Christina's mouth dropped open and her face scrunched, not believing what she just heard.

"I know it's a bit of a shock to hear, it is for all the girls", Dr. Jones continued. "And Brian is here to explain more."

Brian cleared his throat: "And here's where I come in. My name is Brian Price and I'm a producer for Star Productions, a porn studio in Los Angeles. I produce what are called the Smithton Tapes. Every year, the top students in the Pornography class here at Smithton make their own porn films. This tradition began over 30 years ago and is still going strong."

The dumbfounded look on Christina's face hadn't changed.

Brian continued: "The films are completely up to the girls. They can do whatever they wish. It's a chance for you to live out a sexual fantasy, any one you want. We'll make it happen. A casting scene; an emotional, vanilla scene; a gangbang, anything at all. Do you know who Margaret Samuelson is?"

Christina nodded slowly. Yes, the Senator.

"Well", Brian smiled, "she did a double penetration scene in 1990. Oh, and if you're worried about word getting out, don't worry. Access to the Smithton Tapes is tightly controlled. Only a handful of people in the world know what they are, let alone can access them. Never in the history of the Smithton Tapes has any tape leaked or any personal information leaked. We offer complete discretion."

Christina's eyes were fixed on the floor, but burning with thought.

"And in exchange for doing a Smithton Tape, we offer generous compensation. We will pay the entire cost for your undergraduate degree. Any student loans, we'll pay them. Anything you've paid already, we'll compensate you. Any future expenses, don't worry about them."

Brian paused, allowing the information to sink in. After a moment's silence, Dr. Jones added: "Brian is leaving for L.A. on Thursday. If you want to do this, meet us in the Arts Building on Wednesday at 3 PM. Dance studio 7. Understand?"

After a further silence, Christina simply nodded her head and mumbled:

"Yeah."

"Okay", Dr. Jones declared, clapping his hands together, "could you please send in Miss Byrd?"

Almost in a catatonic state, Christina rose from the chair and excited the office. The other girls immediately surrounded her, asking her what to expect. Christina could only shake her head and reply: "I guess you'll find out" before wandering down the hall.

She walked to her dorm room, flopping on the bed as soon as she arrived. Staring at the ceiling, she thought that meeting couldn't have possibly really happened. Her professor and some...some porn guy didn't just ask her to do a porno?

Christina laid on her bed for what felt like only a few moments. But when he finally sat up, she could see the low sun of afternoon through her window. She went down to dinner, hoping to take the meeting off her mind. But she could only pick at her food. Heading back to her room, she began thinking anew.

"There's no way this can be real" Christina thought to herself, opening her laptop. Quickly searching "Smithton Tapes", she found no immediate results. After several more minutes of searching, she found herself in the bowels of an obscure online porn forum. She read posts from several users discussing the rumor of the Smithton Tapes. But never did she find any actual videos or pictures or names of girls anywhere. She slumped back on her bed, sighing deeply. If it's totally secret, and no debt at all...and how many nights did she spend secretly wanting to be the women in those films?

Christina tossed her laptop aside, pulling the covers over her. No reason to make a decision now, just sleep on it.

The next day went by in a flash. It was as if the outside world didn't exist, but some distant thought of the offer hung over her all day. She couldn't concentrate while she was studying, she couldn't pay attention in class. Her essay drafts were rife with errors.

She found herself sitting in her room on Wednesday morning, her decision still unmade. Her chin resting on her knees, Christina thought to herself: "No one will know...they'll be completely professional...it's what you want!...you'll get what you've fantasized about with no downsides. Why are you hung up about this?"

And suddenly, a feeling of unexpected relief washed over her; she would do it. Yes, she would do it. There was still a little voice in her head that warned her no to, but she would do it. She leaned back until she was lying down, her head on her pillow. A smile spread across her face...yes, she would do it!

She now only had a few hours to kill until 3. Not knowing what would happen in this meeting, she leaped off the bed and into action. She threw off her clothes and bolted for the shower, trying to get as clean and neat as possible. Her razor flashed over her legs and underarms. Her hair wrapped in a towel, she headed back to her room, laying out something to wear. She had mostly plain underwear, but she picked out her frilliest and prettiest to wear. With it, a shapely pair of pants and a lightly peach colored blouse. A necklace of fake pearls and small stud earrings completed the outfit; pretty, but not slutty.

Her watched showed 2:30. Running her hands over her stomach, she took one last moment to calm herself before exiting her room and heading for the Arts Building.

**

Brian and Eric flipped through a few papers while waiting for the clock to strike three o'clock. They had just finished speaking with Nicole and were now waiting for Christina.

The clock above the door flipped to three and a few moments after, there was knock at the door. Brian smiled; there was only one person it could be.

Eric went to open the door and there was Christina, peering inside. Eric beckoned her inside and shut the door behind her. Brian burst into a wide smile, extending his arms in welcome: "Christina, so happy to see you! Please, come in!"

Christina looked quite nice, much more dressed up than she was a few days ago after class. And with more makeup. And she had done her hair. She was in.

"The reason we asked you here", Brian began, "was to see if you're ready to commit to making a Smithton Tape. Are you?"

Christina nodded, blushing a little behind her bashful smile.

"Excellent!" Brian said with a mixture of relief and happiness, "you've just made one of the best decisions of your life. Now, there are a few things we need from you today..."

Brian unfolded a piece of paper in front of him: "These are just a few questions. Simple. Easy. Just a bit of information about you. So, first, how tall are you?"

"Five feet, four inches" Christina replied.

"And how much do you weigh?"

"Uh"115 pounds."

"And do you know your bust-hips-waist measurements?"

"Oh wow...uh...I think it's 32-24-34"

"And your cup size?"

"B."

"And your breasts are natural?"

"Yes" Christina replied, growing a little more sheepish.

"Do you have any piercings or tattoos?"

"No. Uh, well, just my ears."

"What do you do with your pubic hair?"

"I...uh...I trim it to the bikini line."

"And", Brian asked with a little smile, "do the curtains match the drapes?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, excellent! That's all I need right now. We'll be in touch in a week or two with more information, like flights and accommodations. And we'll go over some other logistics before the shoot. Oh, and the money. We'll get you hooked up with one of the financial people to go over the total compensation. But that will probably be when you're in LA. But before you come to California, we'll need some nude photographs and for you to do an STD test, but we can handle that in a little bit, okay?"

Christina nodded, obviously a little overwhelmed by all the information and the questions she had just answered.

Brian pulled out another piece of paper and said: "There is one more thing we need from you to get the whole process in motion: your signature. This is the contract that states you are going to shoot with us."

Brian slide the paper across a desk at the front of the room and extended a pen. Christina took it and placed her signature at the bottom of the page.

Breaking into another big smile, Brian shook her hand, looked her in the eyes and told her: "Welcome to the Smithton Girls. We are so excited to work with you."

**

Finals week passed in a flash. Christina's actual exams went fine; she was a bright girl. But what would come after the finals were over and she was back home for the summer never left her mind. She felt little pangs of embarrassment when her father came to help her move her things out of the dorm. Of course, he had no idea what she was planning. And he never would. But Christina still felt guilty for harboring her secret. If her dad knew what would soon happen, it would break his heart.