The path to the neighborhood where Lydia's friend lived was not marked by any trail, not even an unofficial one. Instead, Lydia had to step carefully among small, waist-high foliage with twiggy branches that scratched lightly against her skin. It was not enough to leave any marks but enough to warrant a slower passage through the trees. At one point she felt something crawl over her hair unexpectedly which caused her to squeal in alarm. She covered her mouth with both hands once she realized what she had done.
Looking up she discovered that the unknown presence that whisked over the top of her head was nothing more than a low-hanging branch flush with leaves. Wide-eyed, she looked toward the neighborhood which was well in view now. What Lydia anticipated, she did not know. Perhaps she expected all the houses to suddenly light up and people come pouring out to see her standing in the tree line naked in all her glory?
Come on, Lydia. Get a grip.
Despite her rationalization that everyone should be asleep at this late hour and, even if someone was awake, they would likely not have heard her from so far away, she still maintained her position for a few more moments just to be sure. She could not, must not, get caught. On the other hand, she could not stay there either, so she finally stepped onto the grass of the stranger's lawn, crossing the boundary between the forest and the neighborhood.
She could smell the dew on the grass and saw that the humidity in the air had formed a filmy shroud of mist that hovered just over the glowing luminescence of the streetlamps. These streetlamps were brighter than the ones in her own neighborhood, which Lydia felt would make this more exciting but also riskier. She continued through the gap between two houses, passing by windows through which Lydia could feel probing eyes gazing upon her increasingly luminated body. She knew it was just her mind playing tricks on her, but she still shivered at the thought of it.
Lydia skirted the house on her left and paused before daring to step beyond the shadows. She quietly pressed herself against the outer wall of the house to see what she could. Peering around the corner and down the street to her left, all was still and quiet. Fortunately, she did not need to go that way to get to Kerri's house. It would have made for a long and scary walk.
To the right, she saw what she expected. Across the street and one house over, the street curved to its left and out of sight. She knew that one street over and five doors down was Kerri's house. That was where she needed to get. Taking a deep breath, Lydia confidently strode out of the shadows, across the front lawn, and onto the sidewalk. Under the streetlamps, it felt like entering a spotlight where everyone in the neighborhood could see her plainly. She sighed, expelling a cloud of breath from her mouth into the humid air.
I keep finding new ways to make myself feel more and more naked.
Not wanting to linger too long under the streetlamps, she quickened her pace across the street and noted the roughness of the asphalt against the pads of her feet. Lydia knew from experience that running barefoot upon her heels was not only loud, causing a thud with every stride, but painful as well. By now, her heart was pounding inside her chest. The people might be inside their houses and sound asleep, but all Lydia could think of was that she was naked out in the open surrounded by strangers she did not know. She squatted nervously behind a car which was parked on the opposite side of the street from the tree line.
Okay, just round the corner, two lefts, and five doors down. That's all I need to do.
She got up again and whisked her way down the sidewalk in front of the house on the corner and veered left toward the street where Kerri lived. There were only three houses to pass on this stretch. Again, all was quiet and still, albeit brighter than she had expected it would be. In the distance, Lydia heard a truck passing the neighborhood on the main road several streets in front of her. It was way too far away to be worried about, but it made her uneasy to think that there were people still on the road so late at night.
Lydia passed the third house and stood at another crosswalk. She decided to tap the stop sign on the corner for good luck. She had to do a bit of a leap to reach it, but she managed. It amused her to think of how crazy this scene would undoubtedly look to an outsider. A naked girl jumping to touch a street sign in the middle of a neighborhood. In her fantasy only, she almost wanted it to happen. Almost.
She turned down the street which led to her destination. Lydia decided to stay on the sidewalk for this part. Afterall, there was not much alternative. She could either be naked in the street, naked on the sidewalk, or naked on peoples' lawns. Either way, there was not much cover except the occasional waste bin or car parked in the driveway. Besides, nothing had happened so far, and the neighborhood seemed to be completely asleep.
Suddenly, Lydia was blinded by a radiant flash of light coming from her left. Lydia stumbled in surprise and fell on the grass which lay between the sidewalk and the gutter. With no time to scream or even gasp, she scrambled once more to her feet and darted to the next yard behind the first thing that she could reach. Squatting and leaning with her back against a truck, she bent down further to glimpse at who had just caught her.
God, I hope they didn't see me!
From beneath the truck she could see the neighboring front lawn lit up completely from the garage all the way to the sidewalk. She listened and watched for sounds of anyone approaching, but none came. Regaining her courage, she lifted herself from the ground and looked over the bed of the truck to see that no one was in the lawn, at the door, or in the window. Rather, the sudden light that had startled her was a motion-sensor floodlight.
Lydia was equal parts relieved and frightened. She forced herself to chuckle softly at the ordeal and turned around to face Kerri's house which was now in perfect view. Lydia was halfway down the street from the corner now. She realized that despite having done a few very light naked adventures in the past few weeks, she had never been so far from her clothes before. The idea carried mixed emotions, but she decided not to dwell on it. There would be lot of barriers broken this evening if all went well.
The final steps toward Kerri's house were uneventful. Despite being quite visible to herself in the lamplight, Lydia wondered if anyone would actually be able to see her from a house window if they were not looking closely. Definitely not, if they were not looking at all, which Lydia reasoned was most likely at this hour. Nevertheless, she would remain careful. She was not out of the woods, or rather back in the woods, just yet.
