Wait for them to leave

Not knowing the woman’s exact position gave Jen pause. If she tried to shove the door and the woman was near the end of it, she might just push her sideways into the hallway. If Jen successfully pushed her into the store, the lady’s reflexes might be quick and she’d be back out the door before Jen was out of sight. In either of those scenarios there was no way Jen would avoid being seen. Then mall security or the police would be involved and that couldn’t end well. In the end she simply held perfectly still, hands covering her nudity as best they could, and hoped for the best.

“Okay, as long as you’re sure,” Jen heard the lady say, “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

The door began to swing closed and Jen held her breath. Footsteps reached her ears, moving away. Her hands trembling in fear, she watched the door slowly close, finally revealing the woman as she steadily walked, her back turned to Jen.

Jen let herself quietly breathe, a slight essence of relief setting in. She wasn’t safe yet. The woman quickly glancing over her shoulder would be all it took to ruin this stroke of luck.

Once the woman had moved a several yards away Jen stepped away from the wall and slowly began walking behind her. A burning need to get out of here and get to her clothes prevented her from just waiting until the lady left the building. For all Jen knew, someone could be walking towards her from the other end of the hallway right now. If that were the case, waiting could be just as bad as taking this risk.

Setting her feet down carefully, Jen walked slowly behind the departing woman. She moved at a pace that allowed the lady to keep gaining distance from her, but fast enough that Jen could at least feel she was making progress towards the end of this humiliating night.

The exit was in full view and the woman walked directly towards it. Jen had been hopeful she wouldn’t be going down the hallway Jen had expected to take and she felt her nerves relax very slightly.

The last few yards passed and the woman walked directly past the branching corridor. As she approached the door Jen slowed to a stop. Even if she hadn’t make a sound, Jen felt that the lady might instinctively glance over her shoulder as she opened the door. Jen knew that she did this, uncertain where the habit had come from but felt it came from wanting to hold the door for anyone approaching out of politeness. Realizing the predicament she might be in, Jen stood frozen, her arms covering her nude body.

The lady reached the door and pressed the crash bar without stopping. She didn’t look over her shoulder, didn’t glance backwards, her focus strictly set ahead of her as she stepped out into the night. Before the door was closed, Jen was moving again.

Some of the tension in Jen’s neck and shoulders immediately released as the door before her closed. She realized that she’d been breathing shallowly ever since she’d started following the woman and took a few fast, gulping breaths. Quickly scurrying ahead, Jen reached the edge of the diverging hallway and paused, taking a quick peek to make sure there was no one visible. The hall was empty, and Jen heard nothing but silence.

She rounded the corner and set into a half-jog. She still covered her breasts and vagina with her hands, in the event someone stepped into view unexpectedly, but she moved quickly and allowed herself to make a little more noise than she had previously.

The corridor came to an end, and Jen paused once more, looking into the hallway. Like the one she’d just come from, this one was empty as well. No trash bags or boxes. Most importantly, no people.

She walked up to the exit and slowly pushed in the crash bar. The departing woman was probably a good distance away now but Jen didn’t want to do anything that might draw her attention if she was close by.

Easing the door open, Jen heard a vehicle’s motor. She paused, trying to determine if it was getting closer or further away. Eventually she determined the sound was receding. She opened the door further and stuck her head out. To her right an SUV was driving towards the mall’s exit. There were no other cars in sight, no one walking around.

She waiting until the SUV had exited the mall and turned onto the city’s streets. Then she stepped outside and immediately hurried to the bushes beside the exit.

Before she had ducked out of sight she heard another engine starting. The noise came from straight ahead of her. Jen watched as a car’s headlights turned on and it pulled out of its parking spot, turning towards the mall.

Nervous that someone had been sitting in a car and saw Jen step out, she was fearful that someone was about to come by and say something. She braced herself to sprint away, but as the car got closer she realized it was Eve.

The car turned and settled next to the curb. Jen got to her feet and dipped around the bushes, running to the car. Yanking the door open, she flopped into the passenger seat and closed herself into the car. Eve began giggling as Jen quickly reached into the back seat to gather her clothes.

“You’re really dusty, what happened?” Eve asked.

Realizing that dust and dirt had clung to her after moving around in the ceiling, Jen only said “Dirty hiding spot. Can we get out of here please?”

Jen located her bra and started pulling it on as Eve stepped on the gas and started pulling away from the mall.

“Well are you going to tell me about it?” Eve said, “I’m really curious!”

“Just get me home, okay?”

Eve sighed but let the conversation drop. Spinning the steering wheel, she angled the car towards the mall’s exit.