"Aiden" approached me to complete a filming job with an impressive film company. We got the contract but needed to complete a film shoot for them first, which was at our own expense.
We invested our own money into this first film shoot. I know well enough not to lend somebody money unless you are fine with not getting it back. However, this situation took me by surprise. My half of the investment was $10,000, which was everything I had. My co-worker was to put in $10,000 (also).
On the day of the shoot, everything went well. At the end of the day, my business partner Aiden said he had left his checkbook at home. He sent everybody who had been working the whole day to come to me to be paid. I was surrounded by people expecting to be paid, and because my name was on the job, I didn't want to be associated with a whole lot of unpaid people. I managed to pay their bills on a credit card. My co-worker said he would pay me back Monday. Every week, he would say "I will pay you back next week." He never had any intention to pay me back. A year later, he was still saying the same thing.
-- Anita S.