WSC, 2021: The Mall Elf, Conclusion*

[*Lady Lucia*]

PART SEVEN

To the boys’ credit, they didn’t try to pull a fast one on her.

Alexandra was super nervous as she unlocked the bathroom door. Her knuckles were practically white as her hand kept a death grip on the metal handle, and she had braced herself to yank the door closed the moment she felt any kind of pull coming from the other side. However, all that was waiting for her Alexandra was what she had countered with in the embarrassing negotiations with Sam: two phones, sitting on the floor mere inches from the tile under her bare feet. Since she was bottomless, Alexandra had insisted that she wanted to grab the phones like this; if one of the boys handed them to her, there was a good chance she could be seen through the crack.

Not willing to release her grip on the door, the small, bottomless blonde stuck her foot out and kicked one phone after the other into the bathroom behind her. Blushing at the male whispers, no doubt brought on by the sight of her partially bare leg, Alexandra quickly closed and locked the door without a word.

“So what pose did you choose, Alex?” Sam asked through the door.

Alexandra was about to snap back with how only friends and family called her that, and how she preferred ‘Alexandra,’ but stopped herself when she remembered that ‘Alex’ was the name she had given him. An attempt at anonymity to go with the lie that she was from out of state.

“It’s a surprise, babe,” Alexandra said. She cringed at the impulsive and awkward attempt at flirting. It really was getting to that point where she’d do anything to get out of this humiliating ordeal, “Be patient, okay?”

“You have three minutes, or we flag down a mall cop.”

Alexandra couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or not, but his words had the desired effect. Instead of stalling and perhaps backing out of the deal and trying to use two of their phones as leverage, Alexandra found herself hastily stripping off her bra and cardigan. She had already made her choice. A fully naked picture of herself may be robbing her of her dignity and a bit of innocence to boot, but it also protected her. Even if Sam decided to post it, God forbid, it would just be one nude of millions online. No one would know it was her. A selfie, however, would be a lot more damning.

The logic of her choice didn’t mean the task was easy.

Setting down her clothes and the second phone on the sink, Alexandra flicked up on the dark blue phone’s home screen to access the camera. Flipping it to selfie mode, she positioned the lens until she could see her whole body on the screen. Small breasts, perky from her nudity and the cool bathroom air. And then, below her waist . . .

Alexandra didn’t have much hair down there, and she was also a natural blonde. The few wisps she had might as well be invisible, as they did nothing to protect her modesty from the camera. Could she cross her legs, or throw a hand down there for a teasing pose that just so happened to also preserve at least a shred of dignity? Or would Sam just insist on another try, and end up with two nudes instead of one? Probably the latter.

There was another problem. Alexandra really only had one shot at this. Since she didn’t have Sam’s password, she couldn’t go into the phone and delete a bad attempt. Letting out a heavy sigh, blush darkening as she saw her bare chest rise and fall on the screen, Alexandra didn’t waste another second. Before she could talk herself out of it, she dropped her other arm and captured the first full nude picture she had ever taken of herself. The overhead bathroom light wasn’t exactly forgiving on her bare skin, but it didn’t matter. This was for a pervy boy, not someone she actually wanted to impress.

Though she’d have a few seconds to examine the photo before it disappeared behind the locked screen, Alexandra decided she didn’t want to know. The fewer details about this she remembered, the easier it would be to get over it. So, resisting the urge to chuck Sam’s phone in the toilet and destroy the picture of herself that would forever be in the boy’s possession, she cracked the door again and slid the phone back out.

Alexandra winced in shame and embarrassment the moment the door was latched and locked behind her. She really just did that. Her whole body was bared and immortalized to a boy she didn’t even know. Was it too late to call through the door and take everything back?!

“Sam!” she exclaimed.

“Be patient, babe,” he said, “I’ll give you the password. I just have to zoom in first; riiiight here . . .”

Alexandra tensed up at his words. He was already checking out the photo. Zooming in on what?? Her bare chest, or her crotch? Either way, Sam was the first boy to ever see her fully naked, albeit on a screen. Not only that, but he was teasing her with her own words on top of that. “Sam, please delete it!” she begged. It was HER body. The ‘willing’ picture made so much sense amidst her desperation, until she actually started thinking about the freshman out there walking around with that picture in his phone day in and day out. It was so wrong, and so inappropriate. He was a total stranger, and younger than her too!

He just laughed. “A deal’s a deal, Alex. The password is 1487.”

“I don’t want the password. I want you to delete that picture!”

“You have three minutes with Noah’s phone. Then we flag down a mall cop.”

Alexandra’s jaw dropped a little bit, mostly from opening her mouth and not finding any words. Sam, refusing to give up the naked picture of her. The same time limit, but for something that was way more complicated than her previous task. It wasn’t fair. This whole day wasn’t fair! “Sam-”

“Two minutes, 55 seconds.”

“Okay, okay! I get it.” Alexandra groaned. He was going to keep the picture, and that was that.

She fumbled with the second phone, opting to stay naked for now. The totally bare blonde only had so much time with the phone, versus the unlimited time she had with the two pieces of clothing neatly folded on the sink. Priorities. Alexandra messed up the password the first time around, cursing under her breath. Thankfully, the second attempt gave her access, and Sam hadn’t been lying. A deal’s a deal.

Losing her dignity and modesty for three minutes of cell phone use.

Putting in her best friend’s number, the only ten digits she had memorized aside from her parents’ numbers, Alexandra made the call. One ring. Two. “Come on, Nat,” she muttered. Impatiently tapping her bare thigh as the phone rang, Alexandra realized there was a good chance Natalie would ignore the call simply because it was an unknown number. “Pick up, pick up, pick up.”

The phone kept ringing. Alexandra counted each one, despairing a lot more around ring number five. Surprise, surprise, she ended up going to voicemail. Either Natalie was busy herself during the holiday season, or just wasn’t in the mood to pick up a number not in her contacts. Groaning in frustration, Alexandra hung up. There’s no way she could leave a voicemail that would succinctly describe all this, plus Natalie would be calling Noah if she ended up calling back.

“Two minutes, Alex!” Sam oh so helpfully informed her.

If she ended up taking a nude without it actually getting her anything helpful in return, Alexandra was going to scream. She needed to figure something out, NOW, and the amused boy on the other side of the door wasn’t helping anything.

What to do?

Alexandra had no idea.

[*Lady Lucia*]

PART EIGHT

Naked.

Alexandra was fully naked in the private bathroom. The few articles of clothing she had left to her name still took a backseat to everything else. Elf cardigan and personal bra were still neatly folded on the edge of the sink, and the increasingly desperate blonde girl once again flushed when she caught her reflection in the mirror from glancing towards her clothes. Bare everything; smooth curves that were also currently sitting on Sam’s phone. And, while hastily putting her bra back on to cover her small mounds and hard pink nipples and maybe provide her a little warmth to boot, every second counted at the moment.

She called again. Spam numbers rarely called back to back, so maybe Natalie would pick up the second time around. Alexandra refused to call her parents. She’d rather run home naked than explain this to them, and it was starting to look like that very well might happen.

No answer from Natalie.

Grimacing in frustration, Alexandra let out a heavy sigh. What else could she do?? Even if she had her wallet, which she didn’t, it’s not like she could walk bottomless into any of the nearby stores. Her phone and street clothes were back in her locker, and Amy’s lock was still keeping her out. Plus that would involve crossing half the mall and then waiting in the locker room for her awful classmate to finish her shift. Or borrow something from one of the other elf girls, potentially, but there was still the matter of the crazy busy mall.

As much as she hated to admit it, these boys were her best chance.

Alexandra’s eyes suddenly lit up. UBER. She had a phone! It would be Noah’s money, but whatever. She literally gave the first nude of her life to his pushy friend. Taking $20 or so in return was perfectly fair. Heck, she could get his Venmo handle and pay him back.

Not thinking twice about it, the naked blonde quickly found her way to the app and punched in her information with the limited time she had left. Mind nervously racing, she began thinking about all the minor issues that came with using someone else’s phone for this. ‘For a friend. Blonde girl named Alex.’ Alexandra closed her eyes and tried to visualize the mall. She and Amy were just at Starbucks, then partially walked back towards Santa’s Workshop. After Amy so brashly yanked the elf dress down, Alexandra ran. At the time, it was all a mortified blur. But there were only so many restrooms in the mall, so this would be next to . . .

The closest exit was through Nordstrom! The other nearby stores didn’t have outside access. ‘Meet her by the Nordstrom entrance.’ Alexandra added the last special instruction, then ordered the ride for herself. Now, should she tell Sam or Noah what she did, or just close the app and hope that they wouldn’t notice? Then there was the matter of getting through the department store while half naked. And sitting in the Uber with her bare ass on the seat. Would she be allowed in the car?

“30 seconds!” Sam said, “Almost done?”

“I’m done,” Alexandra said. She closed out of the app and locked the phone, placed it on the floor, and opened the door just enough to kick it through the crack. Vaguely remembering a small duffel bag from when she first ran past the boys, or maybe it was a backpack, she figured it was at least worth a try. “Do any of you have spare clothes?” she asked, once the door was once again closed and locked. “I can pay you back.”

A brief silence followed her question, followed by another round of whispers. As expected, it was Sam who spoke up. “We have a towel,” he said. It actually wasn’t the worst ‘fix.’ While not a long term solution, a towel would be more than enough to cover her bottom half for a quick walk through the mall, and the Uber driver would let her into the car without any awkwardness. Well, still some awkwardness.

“That works!” Alexandra said. It was better than nothing.

“I’ll trade you for your bra.”

This time, the silence was on her end. Was he for real right now?! Throwing caution to the wind, Alexandra blurted out, “Deal!” Now that there was an Uber on the way, the clock was ticking. Not even waiting for Sam to be annoying about it, she just grabbed her bra from the edge of the sink and unceremoniously tossed it out to them. “Now the towel,” she said. Once again, she had only cracked the door for a moment before closing it immediately again, just in case.

“Not the most exciting bra, Alex.”

“TOWEL.”

Yeah, it was a plain, nude bra. But so what?? She was working today. There was no reason to put on anything fancy when all she needed was the usual support that a bra offered. Believe it or not, boys, girls don’t always wear the sexy lace found in your fantasies.

Sam may be a pervert, but at least he was a boy of his word. After some shuffling that Alexandra could hear through the door, he gave a playful knock. “Here you go, babe.”

Alexandra cracked the door and let out a small sigh of relief when the towel was actually there. Snatching it up, she didn’t even close the door this time around. Hastily wrapping the towel around herself, she inwardly swore at how small it was. Yeah, it covered her whole torso, but she’d have to hold it tightly to keep it that way. Thanks a lot, Sam. She left the objectifying cardigan behind. It would be stupid to wear it under a towel anyway, and it’s not like she planned on returning to work for Claire or Santa’s Workshop ever again.

Not wanting to be late for her ride, to avoid a notification being sent to Noah, Alexandra stepped out of the bathroom right away. All three freshman boys were standing nearby, and she assumed the one holding her bra was Sam. “Please delete that picture, Sam.” She clutched the towel to her body, lightly flushing at how all three of them looked awed at the visual and the form of a toweled girl who was very clearly naked underneath. Speaking of fantasies.

After imploring their ringleader to do the right thing, she hurried off back towards the mall. They didn’t pursue her, nor try to yank the towel off, thank goodness. Apparently a full nude pic and a recently worn bra were enough prizes for a pervy fifteen year old boy. Based on how her day was going, Alexandra half expected Amy to be waiting around the corner to complete the job. Her original tormentor was not there, in fact, though the light of the mall was a lot more bright than the hallway. Add the holiday crowd, and Alexandra was keenly aware of how exposed she still was. Naked and toweled at the mall. It was beyond mortifying. Plus anyone could notice her situation and decide a game of Tug-of-War with a towel would be fun.

Not wanting to be late for her ride, nor interested in standing around in the state she was in, Alexandra made a beeline for the department store.

[*Lady Lucia*]

CONCLUSION

Luckily for Alexandra, the universe wasn’t totally against her.

While she definitely got a few strange looks, and some interested ones as well from a handful of boys who weren’t too shy about their appreciation towards her lack of clothes, nothing actually stopped her from hurriedly walking as quickly through the mall as she was able while still firmly holding the towel in place. No employee or mall cop slowed her down, and no pervy guy or mean girl made an attempt to grab her only source of modesty. Granted, Alexandra was going out of her way to not get too close to anyone in general as she strode to and through Nordstrom, but it still felt lucky. So far, nothing had exactly gone her way today, so she was anxious the entire time.

The sedan described on the app was already waiting outside when she made it to department store’s outside doors, and she quickened her pace at the thought of Noah cancelling the ride any second if her lateness caused the driver to impatiently reach out.

Alexandra gasped as she stepped outside. It was COLD, and the gust of wind from opening the door threatened to blow her towel away for a second. Giving a nervous wave to the driver while simultaneously holding the towel with a death grip, she stepped farther outside and sharply inhaled at the biting cold that stabbed at her bare feet as she stepped through the slush on the sidewalk. Oh, God. Both her feet began stinging immediately, and she raced over to the warmth and safety of the car waiting for her.

“Hey!” she nervously exclaimed. Alexandra slowed down just enough to make sure she didn’t flash the driver while climbing into the car. She already knew it was a guy, because the app told her so, but she still wasn’t totally prepared for it. He was kind of attractive, but too old for her. College, maybe. “Sorry, it’s a long story. I’m Alex.”

“I’ve seen worse,” he shrugged.

She couldn’t tell if he was lying or not.

The Uber driver was at least professional enough to not say anything else as they started driving, but Alexandra could tell that he was curious and maybe a little bit interested. She caught his eyes once or twice in the rearview mirror, but the college boy would just casually look ahead again, not seeming particularly embarrassed that she noticed him checking her out more than once. It’s not like she could blame him. The semi-sexualized elf outfits were one thing, but she was literally a girl in a towel and he was a boy. Alexandra tried to feel flattered that a college guy might see her that way, despite the age gap, but the desire to be clothed and in the safety of her own home overshadowed any thoughts of idly flirting like she might have attempted if her circumstances were different.

The sight of her house brought a wave of relief when it finally came into view, and she barely remembered to blurt out a quick ‘thank you’ to the driver before jumping out of the car the moment it came to a stop.

Thank God. No car in the driveway.

Alexandra’s feet stung again as she walked over the thin layer of snow and slush that the plows and shovels couldn’t completely clear from the street or her driveway. She clutched the towel to her body in case any more sudden winter gusts aimed to make her day even worse, though she barely felt the cold of the outdoor air amidst her tunnel vision to get inside. At the moment, it was more about being safe from people’s eyes than being safe from the below freezing temperature.

It was only when she reached the front door that Alexandra realized something. While an empty house was ideal, in theory, she didn’t have her keys! “Please . . .” she muttered, twisting the handle and pushing. Nothing. The door barely budged.

“SHIT.”

Alexandra loudly swore to herself, groaning as she gave another few hard twists on the handle and pushes on the door. Desperate, wishful thinking. Her parents rarely left the house unlocked, and that went doubly for the holiday season. Too many potential thieves out there. With a frustrated punch on the door, no different than when she was locked out of her own locker earlier, Alexandra stepped back and weighed her options, the crisp winter air hitting her a lot harder now that she no longer had that tunnel vision in regards to getting inside. In her desperation, the toweled blonde could only think of three decent options:

--Sit around and wait for her parents to come home, freezing her ass off and then attempting to tell the story while trying to appear blameless. She WAS blameless, but being outside while practically naked would bias them against her.

--Knock on a neighbor’s door. It would mean warmth and clothes, but she didn’t think that begging one of her parents’ friends to stay quiet would prevent them from passing the story along anyway.

--She could attempt to find an unlocked window or door, at the risk of being a lot more noticeable by anyone who happened to walk by or look out a window while she was circling the house and trying every possible entrance.

None of them were ideal, but Alexandra had to choose . . .

Until then, she would be naked save for a towel, stuck in the freezing winter air.

Her impossibly long and impossibly mortifying day wasn’t over yet.

END OF ARC ONE

Coming next winter: "The Toweled Girl."

*******************************************************************************************************

I promise I won't make a habit of multi-arc stories like I've stumbled into doing lately! I wanted to wrap this one up before spring officially hit, but Alexandra's toweled adventure sounds a lot more fun than just letting her get home safe and sound. But we'll all have to wait a little while to see what happens next!

Much love,
Lady Lucia