Influencer tried coaxing his girlfriend to work for free but she handed him an invoice instead

A woman (u/sugarcoffeebee), 26, began helping her boyfriend shoot for a fitness page. At first, she said it was cute; she would hold the camera and her boyfriend would pose, but it quickly went out of control when he started using her as "free labor." She shared the story on Reddit on November 4, 2025.

The girlfriend said she started dating her boyfriend when he was getting into fitness content creation. So, initially, she loved helping him shoot; they laughed together, and it felt like a team. Soon, it turned into a full-on project, and he wanted his girlfriend to manage his shooting schedule. "He texts at 6:50 am 'golden hour' and expects me outside with a tripod, two shirts, his shaker, and a towel. Saturdays, I’m at the park squatting in weird angles so his jawline looks 'sharp,' and Sundays I’m in our hallway editing on CapCut while he plays ranked," she said. The woman said she didn't even like being on camera but was often called "camera girl," in the comments, which she obviously hated. She also recalled how she had once missed her brunch because her boyfriend insisted on a second take in the stairwell. "I tried to set limits. I said one session a week, he heard daily. I asked him to learn the basics so he could run it solo, he said my hands are steadier and my eyes are better," the woman said.

Once the boyfriend had booked a brand shoot and promised to deliver 15 reels and 40 photos, the supplement shop gave him six tubs of caffeine pre-workout as payment, and the woman who was allergic to caffeine ended up helping him for free. "That night, he casually asked if I could stay up to color grade, 'it’s just sliders, babe.' I snapped. I told him I’m done being free labor, that I’m happy to help sometimes like a normal partner, but not manage your content calendar," she recalled. The woman created a rate sheet and asked her boyfriend to pay $35 per hour for filming, $20 per hour for editing, plus a cap of 4 hours a week. The boyfriend got angry and accused her of sabotaging his dreams and making their relationship "transactional." He even compared the free labor to helping a partner study, and the girlfriend explained how helping someone study is a small favor, and it's not the same as doing another job for free every week. "Now he's giving me short replies and filming with a friend who dm’d me, 'Dang, you went corporate.' Did I overreact by putting a price and boundaries on something that started as a favor?" the girlfriend asked.

More often than not, friends and family think it's right to ask someone they're closely associated with for a favor in something they are good at. And mostly they expect they do it for free. When ResumeLab surveyed 800 Americans, they found the majority (more than 93%) of respondents had worked without pay for family or friends. However, just like the girlfriend in the story, 71% people try to draw a clear line between private and professional lives, but often find themselves standing at the crossroads. The survey also found that 53% of people providing free service to friends and family think they should be paid.

Meanwhile, reacting to the post, u/happysummerbreeze said, "You didn’t overreact. But you are seeing a side of him you haven't seen before. Most people don’t react well to being told NO, but his reaction seems particularly bad. If you hold your integrity, it will be interesting to see how long he remains petulant. I recommend you watch it carefully."

u/dokcrimson commented, "NOR. It’s no longer a partnership, it’s become a business and as such, you need to be compensated for your time or he needs to keep your involvement to the minimum; He can’t have it both ways."

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