"...your boyfriend's house."

"She went to Max's place?" Lucy said, more to herself than Emily. She guessed that Kim was going to try and figure out where Max got the collar, or maybe he found the key and like a true friend she was going to pick it up for her so Lucy could stay at the dorm. But then why didn't she tell Lucy she was leaving first? The very least she could have done was leave the door unlocked, but she didn't even do that. Lucy told herself that it was just **** of habit on her roommate's part, but a small nagging voice in the back of her head wouldn't stop insisting something was wrong about all of this...

"Yeah," Emily answered, "Are you okay? You're looking a bit pale."

"I-I'm fine," Lucy lied, doing her best to focus on the immediate problem for now, "Do you have any idea when she'll be back?"

"She didn't say," Emily replied with a frown, "She just told me to let you know if you asked once you got out. That was about forty-five or so minutes ago."

Forty-five minutes?!? Lucy had wasted almost an hour on her shower! Or more importantly, drying off from it. Now reminded of her current predicament, she tugged on the hem of her still damp sweater, hoping that Emily didn't notice that it was the only article of clothing she had on. Well, other than...

"Hey, are you wearing a collar underneath your sweater?" Emily asked in an excited whisper. Crap, she just had to notice.

Lucy blushed and put a hand up to her neck self-consciously, feeling the bulky choker weighing heavily on her neck, "Yeah, it's... Max got it for me, but it's locked on and I don't have the key. That's probably why Kim went to find him. Please don't tell anyone, I'm embarrassed enough about it already."

"Don't worry, your secret's safe with me," Emily said with a smile, "But for the record, I think that you look really cute in it. You should really consider keeping it on."

"Um, th-thanks, but it's not really my thing," Lucy stammered, her face growing even hotter than it was already, "Hey, can I hang out in your room? Just until Kim gets back..."

"Sorry sweetie," the girl replied, in a tone Lucy found to be both apologetic and slightly condescending, "I'm getting ready to head out, and I don't really feel comfortable leaving you alone in my room."

"I won't touch anything, I promise!" Lucy pleaded, desperation creeping into her voice, "Please, I can't just stay in the hall all night!"

"No," Emily scolded, shocking Lucy with her momentary sternness, "It sucks Kim left you outside, but I'm not leaving you in there unsupervised. I'm sorry."

Lucy let out a pitiful whine of frustration, which caught Emily's attention. Her face went back to being sympathetic as she said, "Look, if you want in your room so badly, why don't you go find her? Your boyfriend's place isn't too far away, is it?"

"N-Not by bus," Lucy responded, "But I don't have my wallet on me, and-"

"You have your legs though, right?" Emily interrupted, causing Lucy to nod, "Well then get going, girl! A walk will do you some good, and the fresh air will help you dry off quicker. You might even bump into her on the way back!"

"But..." Lucy started, about to argue that her state of undress might cause an issue, but before she can get out another word Emily had shut the door in her face.

Lucy sighed. As unhelpful as Emily was, she had a point. Without her phone, she had no way to contact Kim other than hunting her down in person, and she didn't want to be stuck in the hall or bathroom all night where even more of her classmates and friends would see her. At least if she were on the move, she could do her best to avoid people she knew. Plus, as long as she avoided the main roads where the evening rush hour traffic was, she might be able to sneak her way to Max's place without too many people seeing her. Worst case scenario, she'd end up staying at Max's place for the night. It wouldn't be the first time, and as angry as she was at him, right now she'd still feel better at his place than anywhere else... other than her own room, of course.

Lucy knew it wasn't a great plan. Hell, it was hard to even argue it was a good plan. But with how little control she had in her life today, doing something felt better than sitting around doing nothing for even longer than she already had. So she took a deep breath in an attempt to steel her nerves, then made her way down the hall to the stairs.

What Lucy didn't know was that Emily was watching the brunette girl leave through the peephole of her door, a giddy grin plastered on her face.

"Yes! I knew a bit of tough love would do the trick!" the girl whispered to herself. Proud of her accomplishment, she took out her phone and excitedly started texting Kim.

Emily: Just finished talking with Lucy. Sent her on a wild goose chase to her boyfriend's place.

Kim: OMG that's genius! Max's house is halfway across town. It'll take her ages to get there and back on foot, especially in her current state. Good job, Em!

Emily: Thanks! :D I just hope she doesn't catch cold. She's still kind of damp.

Kim: Don't worry, she'll be fine. Besides, it'll be good for her to get used to being in less than comfortable conditions outdoors. It's not getting any warmer, and soon she won't even be wearing a sweater, damp or otherwise.

Emily: Good point, though that sweater's not hiding much in it's current state. I could see her collar and nips through it the whole time.

Kim: Awww, poor thing! XD

Emily: IKR? Tried to make her feel good about the first one, but she went SUPER red the second I mentioned it.

Kim: lol Don't worry, she's still pretty shy about people seeing her naked. We're working on that though, so it shouldn't be long before you see her as she should be.

Emily: Can't wait! Good luck on your end!

Kim: Thanks! If Lucy takes as long as I think she will to make her way to Max's I should be back before her, but let me know if she ends up beating me to the dorm.

Emily: Will do! :)