Lots of 'help' settling in

"Of course!" Steph said brightly, "We're roomies, right? You can count on me."

Emily started to relax. Still, it was with a certain wariness that she stood up; looking Steph's chosen outfit over didn't exactly make her comfortable with the fashion choices she expected to see. Then again, surely they couldn't all be that bad?

She followed Steph to the open wardrobe, and froze as soon as she had a good view of the inside. It was worse than she'd imagined.

"Pick your faves!" Steph said, "I'll just unpack the rest."

Emily opened her mouth silently, only barely noticing Steph opening her next case and sorting through it. She was too busy desperately scanning Steph's wardrobe for anything that even slightly approached her normal style. There were tight outfits, yes, those were the kind of thing she normally looked good in, but ankle-length jeans and turtlenecks like she had on were totally non-existent.

There was a spiked bra that clearly wasn't meant to be worn under anything, there were more crop tops like the one Steph had on, there was a halter that Emily was 90% sure would just get her arrested with how deep the neckline was, and then there were the pants. More hot pants, short skirts that either stopped shockingly soon, or flared up even on the hangar...

Nervously, Emily looked down at what she already had on. The contrast couldn't have been any clearer.

"See anything you like?" Steph asked, coming up behind her.

Emily struggled to find a diplomatic response. She turned around to see Steph holding a couple more items, none any better than what was already in the wardrobe. One was a mesh top that Emily could've sworn was just see-through.

"Um..." Emily said. She looked back.

Well it was just for one day, she supposed. Or maybe she could see how her clothes were tomorrow. So long as they didn't get too bad she could probably get away with a second wear, just to find the shops. Failing that though, it was probably better to get first dibs on which of Steph's outfits she wanted, since she wouldn't want Steph limiting her options any more.

Before she could talk herself out of it, Emily reached for the two best choices that she could see. There was a dark green corset top, that left her shoulders bare but hopefully, if squeezed tightly enough, would stay up and keep her breasts covered. Unfortunately she suspected a strip of her stomach would poke out from beneath it, given her other garment also lacked much; it was the longest skirt in there, but even it wasn't quite knee-length, and ruffled enough that it seemed to spend more time going horizontally than down. It was a pale blue, clashing with the top but still her best choice.

"These, I, er, guess," Emily said. She hesitated. "I don't know if it's too personal, but can I borrow some underwear to go with it?"

Maybe she could at least get a decent pair of boyshorts to complement the skirt, or a bulkier-

Steph gave a peal of laughter, and Emily suddenly felt even less confident.

"Oh, I don't bother with that," Steph said. She dropped her voice. "If you ask me, it's a scam."

"You... don't bother... with..." Emily said.

"Think about it, what's it actually used for?" Steph said, "It's clothes you hide, like, what's the point? Soooo last century. Not like you can imagine early humans on the plains getting their furs, and then stitching a pair of panties to go with them, huh? It's all marketing, clothing companies that want to sell more; don't give them the satisfaction."

Steph gave her a conspiratorial wink. Emily looked down at the skirt in her hands with considerably more trepidation. That was it, she was wearing her own clothes tomorrow, no matter what. Her own underwear wasn't as decent as it could be, but it would do, especially alongside her current outerwear.

Before Emily could react, there was a knock at the door. Steph skipped over, Emily quickly discarding the borrowed clothes by throwing them to the foot of her bed, not thinking about it.

Steph opened the door cheerily. A man stood in the doorway, another student, looking between them.

"Hey," he said, "Name's Leo. Few of us are out in the kitchen, just saying hi. Someone brought drinks if you want to come."

"Sounds perf!" Steph said. "I'm Steph, this is Emily," she looked back. "Sounds fun huh?"

Emily took a deep breath. She'd promised herself that she wasn't going to let the suitcase mishap ruin her time at university. She was dressed now, and she'd get a change of clothes tomorrow, she just had to focus on that.

"Sure!" Emily said. "Not like I have anything to unpack here."

"Oh! It's the funniest story," Steph said. "Leo, right? You should hear, there was some mix-up when she was flown in, she hasn't got her luggage with her, all her clothes have gone totally missing! Funny, huh?"

"That is... crazy," Leo said. He looked back, "Any word on what happened?"

"Nothing," Emily said. She bit her lip. Funny was not the word she'd use. "Meant to be a week until they'll let me know, so heading out tomorrow."

"I let her borrow some of my clothes," Steph said chirpily. "Hey! We should go together, I know all the best places."

"I don't want to get in the way," Emily said quickly. She wasn't sure Steph's idea of clothing stores matched hers.

"Nonsense! I've been meaning to get some shopping done," Steph said, "Souvenirs, things to send back home, all that."

"Well, I suppose... I wouldn't mind learning the way into town," Emily said.

"It's a date!" Steph said, "Looking forward to it."

They finally made it through the long, long corridor and up a staircase to the wide open shared kitchen area. A dozen or so people were standing around the table, a couple of bottles of beer open, all chilling. Emily quickly went inside. She really wouldn't mind some alcohol to steady her nerves.

While she went in, Leo and Steph stopped just outside, Leo grabbing the redhead's arm.

"You offered her your clothes?" he whispered, "That's the opposite of what we're meant to be doing!"

"Hey, chill," Steph said, her valley girl accent fading for a moment. "We want her outside when she's naked, right? It's easier to have her outside dressed and then get her naked, than it is to have her naked indoors and somehow force her out. I'd rather not just set the fire alarm every day. What's the point of this if we don't make people see?"

"Ah," Leo said after a second, "Okay. That's fair. Kelly's fire alarm plan sounded like we'd never get any sleep. Tampering with her clothes tonight?"

"Naturally," Steph said, "I'll give you a full update tomorrow morning, you can pass it on."

Leo nodded. Then, their manner and expressions becoming more natural, they walked into the kitchen where Emily had already downed her first cup. Another man, dark skinned, brushed past Steph on his way out.

"She'll be out like a light tonight, after what I put in that cup," he said quietly as he passed her, "Don't worry about her waking up and finding anything out."

"Thanks," Steph said.

"Can't believe you got to room with her," he muttered, slightly jealous.

She poked her tongue out as he left.

Between the clothes she was willing to wear to limit Emily's options, her skill with needlework and sabotage, and hopefully being able to put Emily at ease, they'd all agreed she was the best choice. That didn't mean a couple of people weren't jealous she got to room with the soon-to-be naked beauty.

Things began in earnest tomorrow. Until then, Steph happily took an offered cup of beer, content to celebrate.

Emily was slightly bleary after an hour or so, as she made it back to her room. Night was already falling, and the cocktail slipped into her beer slowly started to kick in. She was still alert, still aware, but filled with a need to just collapse.

"Listen, I think I'm just going to pass out," Emily said.

"Lightweight," Steph teased.

"No, it's just been a hell of a day," Emily said.

Steph chuckled. Emily stumbled over to her bed. She kicked her shoes off, then began to lay down before she became conscious of Steph looking at her strangely.

"What?" Emily said, "Oh god, did they stick something on me, or..."

"No, not that," Steph said, "You're sleeping in that?"

"Huh?" Emily said. She looked down. "My pajamas were in my luggage. I don't have much choice."

"Sure you do," Steph said. She wrinkled her nose. "You really want to sleep in your only clothes? They're gonna end up pretty gross."

"I didn't want to impose," Emily said. She hesitated, "Do you have any PJs I can borrow?"

"What?" Steph said, shocked. "No, of course not! It's-"

"A scam," Emily said in unison with her, tiredly.

Why wasn't she surprised? Emily closed her eyes wearily, then opened her eyes to the sound of rustling and Steph pulling her top off. It didn't exactly look like any of Steph's other clothes were exactly comfortable enough to sleep in.

Why couldn't she have been roomed with literally anyone else? It wasn't that she disliked Steph, Emily was doing her utmost to not let her bitterness at this whole situation taint her opinion of the people or place, but she'd much rather have a roommate who wore decent clothes, and who actually wore pajamas.

"Saves on washing," Steph said. "You should think about it. Better than getting that outfit all funky."

Steph slipped under her duvet after slipping off her shorts, leaving Emily sitting atop her own bed, conflicted. She wasn't the kind of person that slept nude! Especially not with someone else in the room.

Then again, Steph had a point. She wanted to still wear this tomorrow, which would be easier if it hadn't been slept and sweated in all night. There was an advantage, there was just a distinct, embarrassing downside too.