Flying home for winter break.

Candace stepped back into her shoes, then glanced up at the clock. 7:32, twenty minutes before her boarding time. She grimaced. Candace was no stranger to flying, since her Boston-based college was a five hour flight from her parents' house in Iowa. She had several airport routines, one of which was arriving extremely early. Unfortunately, this time, the flight itself was so early it gave her little wiggle room. It had been the last flight to Iowa available when she had made the booking, so it was imperative that she make it. Not to mention she was in an earlier boarding group than usual. No room for error.

She'd dressed comfortably - t-shirt, jeans, slip on sneakers. All she had was a small backpack with a few time-passing items, having checked her luggage with all her essentials. In her hands, she held her long winter coat. It was essential in the New England winter, but now in the climate-controlled airport, it was superfluous, and she planned on shoving it under the seat in front of her.

Candace started walking toward her gate, then realized she had to use the bathroom. She looked at the clock again. 7:35. Her gate was within sight. She thought of tiny, uncomfortable airplane bathrooms. Yeah, she decided, I've got time. Candace ducked into the nearby womens' room.

The room wasn't as crowded as she may have expected, but there were still several women in the room. Candace picked a middle stall and ducked inside. The door clicked shut behind her.

She hung her coat on the door's hook, then put her backpack between her feet. Candace did her business. She sighed, stretched. She had been on the fence about the jeans, knowing she was going to be tired after waking up so early, and now she was certain they had been the wrong choice. That's when she remembered - she'd packed sweatpants in her backpack!

She had a cursory glace at her cellphone's clock. 7:42. No time to waste. Candace pulled her boyshort underwear back up her legs, then kicked off her shoes. She took off her jeans, then remembered that the coat hook was occupied. She hung the pants over the door.

She unzipped her backpack. Inside were a couple books, her sketch pad, and her good headphones. She paused. Rummaging around in the backpack, her fear was confirmed - no sweatpants. Son of a bitch. Oh well.

She zipped the backpack back up, grabbing for her jeans. Then, her heart skipped a beat. Candace looked up.

Her pants were gone.

"What...?" Her mouth was open in horror. Where the fuck were her jeans?! She looked all over the tiny stall, crouched down and looked just outside it - hell, she lifted and shut the toilet seat. No pants to be found.

"What the fuck?" she said softly. Panic began to rise in her chest, and she looked at the clock again. 7:48. Her flight boarded in five minutes!

She pulled her hair, weighing her options. Her underwear, though it was extremely short and giving her an obscene cameltoe, could maybe be mistaken for shorts. Also, her coat was definitely long enough to cover her lower body. 7:50. Three minutes. Could she bring herself to ask for help?