The line connects: Gabi, a man and a feather.

Her feet are bare and she can barely contain herself as she giggles and squirms as the bottom of her feet are continuously tormented. The feather – an object of such delicacy, which floats and falls with ease – is merciless on Gabi’s soles. She begs him to stop through the laughter, in a way that sounds entirely real. 

“I really had to pretend that he was doing that to me, I had to make it convincing,” Gabi never felt the feather on the bottom of her feet. She never even saw the man who held it. “He’s been a regular caller for years.”

Today, call girls might sound like a 90s trend from the past, but for some, telephone fantasies remain a kink to this day.

Even Gabi,  a 33-year-old woman from America, who has now built her life around this work, held this misconception when a friend first recommended she try Niteflirt. 

Niteflirt is a platform which allows users to connect with independent creators for phone sex, live chats and cam sessions. The service allows sex workers to schedule private telephone sessions with clients and work independently from home.

“I didn’t even know that was a thing anymore… I thought it was archaic.” 

Gabi has worked as a call girl for six years – her journey beginning during Covid, when she was laid off from her job working in a contact centre. Struggling financially, her friend’s suggestion was a lifeline: $3.99 a minute, on her own terms, from her own home. 

“I signed up and it became my sole source of income for many years.” 

At first, she was nervous and self-conscious: the way most of us feel on the first day of a new job. Except, this one required considerably more imagination. Her mind spiralled, with visions of the worst possible outcome. 

“I thought… I’m not going to be able to think of something on the spot, there’s going to be awkward pauses and he’s going to hang up.” 

Thirty minutes later, Gabi had finished her first call: “I remember it being role play and it being really easy.” 

Curious after her first call, she turned to YouTube to study the art of phone sex. Learning pacing and asking open ended questions were key players in keeping a caller on the line. 

Gabi never looked back.  

“I now have a nice lifestyle, living in a luxury high rise that I wouldn’t have afforded working that lower wage nine-to-five job.” 

Gabi was also able to go back to college because of her phone sex work. 

“With the flexibility and amount of money that I make every month, I was able to be stress-free when I went to college again.”

The financial benefits were obvious, but Gabi never imagined the emotional changes call work would spark in her life. Before she was a call girl, Gabi would freeze when talking to strangers, thoughts clogging her mind. Not anymore. 

“I feel smooth, confident talking to people, making friends, just going out by myself.

“I’m less shy. I used to not really make eye contact with people I didn’t know. I’m not like that anymore.” 

While Gabi’s clients each have their own motivations, sex psychologist Sarah Keller says there are several common reasons why people might develop a kink for call girl fantasies. “In a world obsessed with the visual, phone sex can act as a liberating escape. 

“The voice is an often forgotten sense in sex and for some people, can be just as important as physical touch. It can carry emotion in a way that can feel deeply regulating for people.

“It’s also a great container to help people really explore themselves without risking judgement.”