Into the Office

Nicola kept her eyes shut tightly as she tried to forget the situation she was in, concentrating instead on mentally preparing answers for interview questions she might be asked later on. That wasn't an easy task with the heavy, sweaty bodies of strangers pressing hard against her exposed skin. She wasn't sure how long she had been held in place like this now. Seconds were feeling like minutes, so time had lost most of its' meaning to her. She felt like, with nothing to shield her from them, the sweaty and unpleasant smelling odours coming from either side of her would by now be seeping into her own body. She was grateful there was a shower at her office gym, though that knowledge wasn't much help to her right now.

Eventually the engine started making spluttering sounds and showing some signs of life again, much to Nicola's relief. However, that positive feeling was short lived as the train suddenly lurched forward, taking everyone by surprise. Nicola felt an unintentional shove from behind her that sent her flying into the arms of another passenger, who instinctively wrapped his arms tightly around her body and pulled her into him to stop her tumbling to the ground. If he weren't wearing trousers, Nicola was pretty sure the erection that had been pressed against her body for some time now would finally have entered it.

"Um, thanks" she blushed awkwardly "I'm okay, you can let go of me now"

The man, also looking embarrassed by the exchange, nodded briefly, then resumed staring straight ahead and avoiding eye contact.

Thankfully the rest of the journey was as uneventful as a naked ride on a rush hour tube train could realistically be. Nicola took a literal and deliberate sigh of relief as she left the station at her stop and emerged up the stairs and into daylight.

It was about a ten minute walk to her office, and Nicola was surprised at how normal this was starting to feel - almost pleasant, after what she had experienced in the underground. The weather was sunny (for now at least), her feet were slowly but surely acclimatising to the harshness of the pavement, and people in the city were too busy rushing from one meeting to another to stop and perv at her. She could even, for a short while, feel a strange sense of liberation in this new way of life. She passed a phone shop that was proudly displaying the new iPhone 17 Pro Max in its' window. She had really wanted one of those, but the contract she would have had to sign was extortionate. She decided to take a short detour and stepped inside the shop.

"I'm just stealing this" Nicola informed the young woman behind the counter as she took a boxed iPhone from the shelf "Oh, and a case for it too"

"Thanks for letting me know" the assistant smiled appreciatively.

Back outside, Nicola happily zipped her new phone into her bag and continued on her way. She was feeling quite content in that moment. It was like the rules of society didn't apply to her anymore, which was all kinds of fun.

"Hey, you look like a total dickhead in that beret!" she informed a pretentious looking passer by.

"Thank you for your honestly" he told her as he took it off.

Nicola laughed out loud to herself. She could actually get used to this. Being naked in public wasn't even that bad, now that she had pushed past the initial shock to the system.

However, as her office building loomed into view, she started to feel anxious again. Being exposed briefly to random strangers she would probably never see again was one thing, but eight hours stuck like this, in a confined space with dozens of colleagues, would have been a daunting enough prospect even if she weren't being interviewed that afternoon.

Nicola walked towards the revolving doors that served as the entrance to her workplace, smiling at the security guard outside and flashing him her pass before going through them. This crazy experience was about to get even more real for her.