Lydia felt a sudden wave of nausea and lightheadedness. She braced herself with one hand on the brick wall, the other balled in a fist holding her five keys against her bare stomach. Feeling a surge of anguish and disbelief work its way up to her throat, she wondered if she might really get sick right then then and there. Bending down to check everywhere a second time, Lydia again found nothing.
My backpack, my clothes. My phone! It's all gone! Even my shoes and my hat. Where did they go?!
Scenarios began flooding into her mind about her things being stolen. Could someone have followed her there? Or maybe someone just randomly stumbled upon it? She might eventually be able to find the whoever picked up her backpack if she used her phone locator app at home, but then she would have to explain to someone eventually why the phone was in a backpack in an alley miles away from her house in the middle of the night. She could say that she lost it at the gym, but would Jen back her story up?
Then Lydia noticed something about the dumpster that was different. It was empty! She bit her lip in contemplation of that fact and it occurred to her what must have happened.
That garbage truck that passed the street on my way into the gym... Could it have picked up the trash at this dumpster and taken everything next to it with it?
The thought of it was almost more than Lydia could bear and she looked back down the alley to the street biting her lip with an expression of concern and indecision on her face. She did not even know where the local garbage trucks took the garbage that they collected. Her backpack could be anywhere right now. There was just one thing left to do. She was naked, holding five keys, in the middle of town and the only hope of escaping her predicament was to run back to the park, get her house key, and take the trail back home.
She looked up and down the dark alley, glancing one more time around her bare feet for any sign that she had overlooked her shoes at least. No such luck. It was just her in the alley and literally nothing else. With much reluctance and no small measure of fear, she took her first steps away from the dumpster and down the alley. No amount of wishing for clothes would make any appear and the more she stood around waiting for it to happen the more likely it was that she would be seen.
The stars were barely visible from the light pollution of the town, so Lydia was not sure if it was getting brighter yet or if it was just her imagination. Sticking to back alleys, she took the longer way around the town square to bypass it completely. Without the failsafe dress that had been in her backpack, she found herself suddenly less willing to take risks. She knew that she would not be able to take the long way every time though. She had to get home sooner rather than later at this hour.
Lydia alternated between jogging down dark back alleys and sprinting across streets. This became surprisingly routine to Lydia as she made her way toward the library. Although there were no close encounters, she had spotted at least three cars sharing the road much farther down from her. She tried not to think about it too much but each one highlighted the fact that more and more people would be waking up soon. Lydia could not afford to waste any time if she wanted to remain unseen.
The library came into view which presented a challenge that had not seemed so terrible the first time she was here. She would need to cover about two hundred feet between crossing the road, the green, and a small section of the parking lot before she could get to the side of the library and pass behind it. Checking every direction first, she used her grip on the building's corner to launch herself forward. Nothing was coming yet, and she intended to keep it that way.
Lydia had to stumble and walk awkwardly across the green due to stepping on acorns hidden amongst the grass. She stopped once after a particularly sharp one but kept going since her feet did not seem to be injured significantly. Stepping off the curb that separated the green from the parking lot, she trotted the rest of the way to the library's wall and huddled behind it. First, she checked to make sure that no one had seen her or was following her. Then, she double checked more carefully that her foot was okay from its mishap.
I really need to watch my step, no matter how dark it is. Just one wrong move and I'm limping home, and at that pace there's no way I will make it in time to avoid getting seen.
She was sure that this would not be the last time that she wished she could have at least kept her shoes. Her feet were already starting to hurt from the constant pounding against concrete and asphalt. Glass, thorns, or any other such hazard would ruin any chance of remaining hidden while she was naked in the middle of town. Lydia imagined needing to limp into a store naked for help or resorting to hitchhiking to the hospital which would leave only one hand for cover. The thought of getting discovered that way was even more unbearable now than when she had left her house earlier that morning. Perhaps because, now, it was a legitimate possibility.
Lydia stepped lightly along the narrow strip of grass that separated the library from the dense growth of bushes and trees. The branches reached outward as if longing to trespass every corner of her helplessly exposed body while she passed by. The prospect of a million spindly fingers caressing her most intimate parts with no way to stop it made her hate the trees even more, especially because, despite herself, the idea still excited her a little. Nevertheless, at this point she was tired and just wanted to be home. The refreshed feeling from taking her shower at the gym was fading quickly.
The ladder that she used to enter the library earlier was still where she had left it. By then, the timer had expired and the library lights were turned off. It was dark behind the library which was preferable to Lydia. She figured that she could have saved a minute or two by simply running in front of the library, but the risk of darting naked in front of such a public building had not felt worth it. Lydia reached the opposite end of the library anyway with just a few minor scratches for her trouble.
Just two more blocks and she would be out of the center of town. From behind a bush, she hesitated to cross the street toward the next alley. Her doubts were vindicated as a car turned a corner two blocks down and started toward Lydia's position. She waited, hoping that the bush would cover her sufficiently. As the car approached, the headlights cast an illumination over everything in the street before it. The light even pieced the veil of the foliage and Lydia could see her body as clear as she would in the daytime.
Could he see me behind this bush???
