Rose's plan backfires

(Originally by Apollo)

...that stupid bag wouldn't stay put. Every time Rose went to close the locker, it just had to pop out like a salesman refusing to hear "No." If not for the strap sliding out of the crack of the locker, it wouldn't be a problem; the locker door would fix the bag on its own. However, that strap just had to get in the way of the latch and prevent the locker from locking. Had it not been using this method on Kate's locker at school, Rose probably wouldn't have noticed. And if not for the fact that she saw knew some of the girls at this gym had sticky fingers and harbored a grudge against Rose and her antics, she probably wouldn't have cared. Due to the slipping towel around her body and her own inhibitions, it was a good five minutes before Rose could finally make her way to the showers.

Once she found Lilly - an easy task when there's only one shower in use - Rose whipped off her towel and draped it over the hook between the occupied cubical and the one she selected. For the sake of the plan, it seemed the best course of action was to stay close to Lilly and ensure she could keep the redhead's thoughts where Rose wanted them. All that was left was to make sure she kept a close vigil on Lilly. As such, closing the curtain caused all distractions were to be quickly blocked out of her mind, and Rose's hands were set to autopilot her through this shower.

Unfortunately, Rose's plan had one major hitch in it: her own imagination. The jets of warm water not only relaxed her muscles but also her mind. In fairness, her mind wasn't totally focused from the beginning. Once she was wrapped up in making Lilly saturated in sweat, Rose only paid passing glances to her once-vacant surroundings to prepare the machines; allowing Alex and Claire to get away with hiding right in front of the duo. The workout caused Lilly's clothes to cling tightly to the curves of her body, and the sight caused the world to quickly vanish from Rose's sight. And in the shower, her mind quickly wandered onto the events set to transpire: the looks Lilly would get from the passers-by; the ways she could drag out the incident; and the look on Lilly's face when she realized her predicament. A moment into her shower, and Rose had forgotten her own plan.

Likewise, Lilly had forgotten she came to the gym with a friend. It didn't help that Rose was delayed in getting to the showers, but it had more to do with Lilly's own poor memory. In fact, had it not been for the drop that rolled over her eyelashes, the redhead's firm body may have been happily showcased to the world. Thanks to that drop, Lilly reached out of her stall and grabbed the towel she found adorning the metal hook, and began to dry herself, completely oblivious to the sound of running water to her left.

While the two girls were busy in the shower, the two thieving exhibitionists were quietly cursing their luck.

Alex asked in a hushed whisper, "Where'd they get these lockers? Fort Knox?"

"Someplace we haven't been, obviously," Claire added. "What are we gonna do?"

"I'll figure something... hide!"

The distinctive sound of bare feet smacking the tiled floor made announced Lilly's return to the locker area, all her best bits hidden beneath Rose's fluffy towel. Despite forgetting about Rose, Lilly remembered Rose's memory trick for the combination: June's birth month, Mimi's birthday, and Rose's birth year; it was the three she didn't have as next-door neighbors, listed alphabetically and middle-endian style (month/day/year). Of everything in the world she's forgotten, the one thing Lilly never forgot was birthdays. The trick was a blessing for her, and it was no doubt what allowed Lilly to remember the trick and get at the duffel bag sitting inside.

"So much for that thought," Claire whispered.

It wasn't much of a hiding place, but the other row was a vast improvement over sitting out in the open. Regardless, it left her and Alex exposed should Lilly turn her head, but also allowed them to easily observe Lilly as she was redressing.

Alex sighed, "At least we got a look, even if it was from the side."

"Too bad we couldn't draw this out."

The duo sharply inhaled as their faces lit up brighter than a supernova. Once she'd redressed, Lilly slammed the locker shut, threw the duffel over her shoulder, and made for the exit. Even though the trick was Rose's invention and she even saw two extra sets of clothes, Lilly couldn't quite trigger that memory of Rose's invitation and still believed she came to the gym alone. With nothing on her mind except unwinding in front of the television, Lilly didn't stop for a single moment as she began her journey home in safety.

"If not for that being Lilly, I'd swear that was deliberate."

"You're not alone there, Claire. But you know what this means?"

"We follow Lilly home and try to strip her on the way!"

Alex and Claire emptied their own lockers and were quickly on their way, trying to think of ways to extricate Lilly from both the clothes on her back and the bag of laundry. The locker room didn't go silent until a few minutes after their departure when Rose ended her shower.