In New York City, even when you’re alone, you’re never far from another set of eyes. That’s one of the reasons many of us feel comfortable here; walking home late at night, there’s always some stoned couple on a midnight munchies run for bodega sandwiches and a pint of Van Leeuwen's, or a new dad running out to the 24-hour Duane Reade for diapers and his Ambien prescription. A solo walk home from the train feels safe because, for the most part, we are in a city of complicit chaperones.
The flip side of this means that, when the spirit of the night (or the day) overcomes you and you find yourself getting it on outside the privacy of home or hotel room, someone is bound to see it happen. Especially during the stickiness of summer, when we’re all on a double dare to make our evenings feel like the last night of summer camp — mosquito bites and warm wine have that emotionally transportive effect, after all.
With just a couple weeks left to revel in the Great American Kick-Back that is New York City in the summer, we’ve rounded up inspirational stories of public sexcapades from seven of the city’s boldest, bravest women. May they serve as inspiration for your own out-of-bounds adventures before the imminent cold weather gets you down.
"As an NYU student, I spent a lot of time at our library. I was constantly there doing work, chatting with friends online, or just socializing — it really did tend to be more social than it should have been. One night, I was there very late with my boyfriend. Students had been trickling out at that hour — it must've been 11 p.m. or so — and soon we were alone on the fourth floor. I'm not sure whose idea it was, but a few minutes later, we were hurrying into the ladies' bathroom, hand in hand. We went into one of the stalls and closed the door, for privacy I guess. There was maybe one kiss in the whole thing — just pants down and bent over, my hands on the cold, gray stall doors. Then, it was over, and we went back to studying. I'd like to think that I aced the exam, but I don't remember."
— Rose Karmel, 25
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"I fell in love with pictures of a friend-of-a-friend on the internet. After months of flirting, he took a 13-hour bus ride to visit me in New York, just after I found an apartment in Bed-Stuy and moved into the kind of living situation where the old neighbors complain if you walk on certain parts of the rooftop. The weekend was magical: kissing on every floor of a museum, slamming sloppy bodega sandwiches galore, sneaking beers to his then-underage ass during a metal show. The absolute height of his visit happened on the morning he was to leave and head back to Appalachia, when a rooftop-breakfast-turned-make-out ended in some of the hottest sex ever — luckily, just above my apartment, so as not to disturb the neighbors."
— Alli Maloney, 25
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"My college boyfriend was one of those born-and-raised NYC kids, and I was introduced to (a lot of drugs and) the city through him during my senior year... I was 20 when he fed me my first quaalude. A few boozy hours later, I went down on him spontaneously in the backseat of a taxi, without making any effort to conceal what was happening. There was a lot of honking from passing cars."
— Sylvie Quinn, 34
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"I definitely tried and failed to have sex in the bathroom at The Beatrice Inn, back when it was the only respectable place to be seen past 12 a.m. and Angelo ruled the door. The failure was due to my then-quasi-boyfriend's inability to maintain an erection, obviously."
— Ashley Arthur, 29
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"I once had a hookup behind a Williamsburg dumpster at like 4 a.m., wasted. I guess we thought the dumpster was somewhat obscuring us. I had just gotten a slice of pizza and had yet to eat it, and the guy I was with just pressed me to a wall and started to go down on me. It felt nice, but I was holding the pizza like... I want to eat this. So, of course, I did. I just stood there behind the dumpster, eating the pizza, while this dude was eating me, pleased to be feeling like the filthy queen I am. Afterward, we were just sort of sitting on the sidewalk, hanging out (at the time, I was married, and we couldn't go back to my place, and I'm sure this dude had a ton of Bed-Stuy roommates or whatever), and a couple of rats tumbled by, chasing each other in some weird rat sex game. I remember thinking, Yeah, that feels right."
— Rachel Rabbit White, 29
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"I mean…pick a neighborhood."
— Cat Marnell, 32
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.
"My then-boyfriend and I were having sex in my bedroom, okay? But here’s the thing: My window faced out into the courtyard of my building and was fully visible from the roof as well. Anything I did in there with the windows up was a guaranteed public performance. In that moment, we just didn’t care. Or maybe we forgot, and got caught up in the moment. Anyway, he was fucking me from behind, and it was really hot, intense, all-consuming sex. I open my eyes for a moment and look out the window to see a whole crowd gathered on the roof, watching us go at it like we were the premiere of some highly anticipated new HBO show. (Hi, HBO! I’m available!) When we were done, we put on robes and went up to the roof for a cigarette…and to meet our audience. Everyone cheered when we got up there. One guy even said it was better than porn."
— Caroline McLean, 22
Illustrated by Anna Sudit.Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here?
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