Meltdown

"That was the last one," said Steve, after another ten minutes of frantic clicking and typing. "Good job, Kate." His voice sounded just as worn out as Kate felt.

"Thank you," Kate replied, dropping down into a sprawl on the carpet.

A moment of tired but triumphant silence elapsed before Steve's voice came through the phone speaker again. "Good news. I just saw a couple guys from maintenance come in, they're going to get that door fixed."

Right as Steve spoke, there was a loud THUD from the other side of the server room. Kate looked to see the stuck door shake on its hinges.

Without any of the servers running, the room was a little cooler, and Kate's head cleared enough to allow her to take stock of the situation. Here she was, scantily clad and dripping with sweat. Her blouse and panties stuck to her skin, leaving little to the imagination. And a couple of guys from maintenance were about to bust open the door and see it all, probably with Steve close behind.

The door shook again, and Kate was certain she heard something crack. She glanced at the sweat-soaked denim heap that was her jeans, and remembered how long it had taken to get them on in the morning. There definitely wouldn't be time for that. If she tried to get them on now, that would just mean wiggling her panty-clad ass for Steve and the maintenance workers. The thought was mortifying.

But wait! There was still the way she came in! She could, at the very least, hide in the vents until the workmen left. Then she would be able to safely retrieve her jeans and ultimately return to her blazer and shoes in the main office.

Within seconds, Kate was clambering back through the vents. Just hiding near the entrance to the server room wasn't enough, as anyone who looked through the vent would get an eyeful of her panties, so she clambered some distance, putting couple of corners between herself and the server room.

There was another faint click in the distance, followed by a sudden rush of cold air. Kate let out an involuntary sigh of pleasure as the air made contact with her sweaty limbs. The aircon had returned. She basked in it and let her body slump down.

Some time later, Kate opened her eyes. She was lying on her stomach in an enclosed space, and her arms and legs felt stiff. Cool air blew all around her mostly naked body. For a moment, she panicked, and then she remembered where she was and what had happened.

She must have fallen asleep in the vent, worn out by the heat and the stress of getting the whole server room shut down safely. How long had she been out? There was no way to tell, as she didn't wear a watch and had left her phone next to the workstation keyboard in the server room.

It couldn't have been too long, she reasoned. There was no way she'd be able to sleep for very long in such a cold and uncomfortable place.

There was no space to turn around in the vent, and no light to see. To get back to the server room, Kate would have to crawl backwards and retrace her steps. What turns had she taken? She couldn't remember.

It suddenly dawned on her that crawling back into the vents had been a pretty bad idea. Kate found herself wishing she'd let the maintenance men walk in on her in the server room. It would have been embarrassing, but not horribly so. She was dressed for the beach, not the office, but she was still dressed. And with the heat in the server room, it was only natural. Why did she have to be so shy about people seeing her panties?

But there was no sense in dwelling on her mistakes now, or in panicking. Kate needed to keep calm and find her way back to the office. Crawling forward would be a lot easier than crawling backward, and she would be able to put her blazer on once she got there. Steve could fetch her jeans for her, while she hid her lower body in the vent. Yes, that would work.

With a firm plan in her head, Kate clambered forward. She took a right turn, and then a left, and then another right. In a few places, she had to move up and down, which she didn't remember needing to do before. She must have taken a wrong turn at some point, but all she could do now was press forward. Hopes of seeing her blazer became slimmer, and now she hoped merely for a light.

Finally, after a left turn, she saw light up ahead. Her eyes took some time to adjust after being in the dark for so long, but she couldn't see much, apart from the white paint on the opposite wall of whatever room she had come to. Overjoyed to finally be escaping from the vent, she hurried forward, motoring on her elbows and knees.

The vent creaked behind her, and she noticed a difference in the sensations below her. There seemed to be a lack of support from below.

Before Kate could react, the vent creaked again, loudly, and the world around her began to bend. The floor was turning into a slide, sloping toward the light. Kate's eyes widened as gravity took hold of her, sliding her down the bending ventilation shaft.

As she tumbled out of the mouth of the shaft, she saw a mountain of discarded office junk below her. This exit was near the ceiling rather than the floor of a room, and that room was piled high with broken office chairs, old printers, cracked water coolers and ancient CRT screens, all closely packed together. She slipped from the shaft and dove into the pile of junk like it was a swimming pool.

Kate fought her way through the heaps of endless garbage, pushing against jutting plastic chair backs and broken wooden desk legs. There was a closed door some way ahead, and it became the only thing she cared about as she shoved and contorted her way through all the junk.

At last, Kate's hand closed around the door handle, and she twisted and pushed it open. Some of the junk followed as she staggered forward out of the room.

She found herself in another part of the basement, a hallway she recognized. There was a break room slightly ahead, and a clock on the wall. It was eleven o'clock in the morning.

Looking at the clock, Kate became conscious of the flash drive that pressed against her right breast. She still had to get it to Ron, and she had an hour to do so. That would give her plenty of time to get back to her office and find some clothes before delivering it. She would just have to walk quickly and hope no one got a good look at her in her beach outfit.

But something felt different. There was a breeze where there hadn't been one before. Oh no. No. It couldn't be! Kate bit her lip and forced her eyes down.

It was. At some point in her scramble through the junk room, Kate's panties must have gotten caught on something and come completely off, without her noticing. She glanced desperately back through the door, but could see no trace of them among all the broken furniture. Finding a scrap of cotton among that mess would be impossible.

Kate was now standing in the middle of an office hallway wearing only a tied up shirt, naked from the sternum down, and with serious cleavage to boot. Her round butt and cute tuft of ginger pubic hair were on full display.

To make matters worse, she could hear footsteps approaching. One of her colleagues was moments away from getting visual confirmation that the carpet did in fact match the drapes.

Could she go back into the junk room? No, there was no way she was going to squeeze back into that hellhole again! What if it claimed her top as well?

The hallway ended at a blank wall not far up ahead, and the only other place she could go without walking towards the oncoming footsteps was the break room. Kate darted inside, hoping there would be somewhere to hide, though she was doubtful.

The break room was home to exactly zero full-length cabinets, opaque privacy closets, or broom closets. There were a few tables and plastic chairs, a water cooler, a couple of booths against the far wall, and a kitchen island with a coffee machine on top.

Kate darted behind the kitchen island. Before she had time to duck out of sight, she heard a familiar voice.

"Hey Kate, happy Friday!"

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gus, a man she knew from the only other department that worked in the basement--customer support. He was wearing a black t-shirt with the name of a metal band on it over plain blue jeans and sneakers.

"Hi Gus," Kate replied, not knowing what else to do. She tried to keep her voice as normal as possible, but the greeting came out a little squeaky.

For his part, Gus appeared to not notice, or at least not want to say, anything about Kate's outfit. As she turned to face him, she caught his eyes looking at her cleavage for all of a split second before they refocused on her face. The island stood between them, so he couldn't see her lower body. Realizing this, Kate stepped as far forward as she could go, feeling the edge of the island press into the skin of her stomach.

"Hot day today, eh?" said Gus, making an exaggerated fanning movement with his hand. "Especially with this aircon going on and off."

"Y--yeah, very hot," Kate replied, fully conscious that she in the office, having a casual conversation about the weather with a colleague, while not wearing pants or panties. If Gus just walked to the other side of the island, he'd get an idea of just how hot things really were.

"It's supposed to be Casual Friday, but they won't let us wear shorts," Gus continued. "Not very casual if you ask me. You're looking good by the way. Want some coffee?" Gus took a dangerous step to the right.

"I--it's okay, I'll make it," Kate said quickly, catching his gaze with hers and attempting to subtly lead him back to the center of the island. "You just stay right there."

"Thanks Kate," said Gus, retracting his foot.

"How do you like it?" Kate asked.

"White and sweet," Gus replied, the vaguest hint of a wink about his eyes.

Kate pressed the appropriate buttons on the coffee machine, but Gus stopped her before she could press Start. She looked at him quizzically.

"Sorry Kate, it's just a little thing... I like to use my own mug, the blue one with the black stripes. It's just over there, on the shelf behind you."

Kate glanced behind her, and then followed the direction of Gus's finger, which was pointing up to the top wall shelf. A blue mug with black stripes sat alone, far above the shelves with the standard white mugs. Kate's heart skipped a beat.

"It's a little high, sorry, I'll come around and grab it for you."

Kate put a frantic hand on Gus's forearm to stop him. "Don't worry, I'll get it!"

"Are you sure you can reach? It might be a bit of a stretch."

It would be a bit of a stretch, Kate knew. She'd have to walk back from the island, turn around, and get up on the tips of her toes to grab the mug. Gus would see her rump for sure! He'd been nice and polite about her work-inappropriate top, and had probably genuinely thought it was just down to the weather, but there was no way he'd shrug off her bare ass! He would think she was some kind of pervert.

Kate's mind raced. She couldn't hesitate too long, or he'd come around and get his mug himself, and that would be even worse. She also couldn't refuse to use his mug, because that would be weird and hostile. What she needed was a distraction. Some way to get Gus to look away while she fetched his mug. But what? She didn't have much to work with--all she had was the shirt on her back.

A horrible plan formed in Kate's mind. It was risky and potentially embarrassing, but there was no other option. "I'll grab the mug for you now, Gus," she said, holding firm eye contact with him. "It's a nice mug, where did you get it?"

As Gus told the story of his office mug, Kate did her best to look interested and nod appropriately. All the while, her hands were at work, slowly, subtly placing the loose end of the knot that held her top together over a piece of decorative metal filigree on one side of the coffee machine, until it was thoroughly caught. Then she loosened the knot.

Luckily for Kate, Gus was resolutely focused on looking her in the eyes and couldn't see what her hands were doing. At an appropriate point in the story, Kate let out an enthusiastic laugh and pulled to the side. The knot instantly came undone.

"That's so-- aaah!" Kate screamed, pretending to only notice now, as her top unravelled. "Gus! Don't look!"

Gus's eyes went wide as the knot fell apart and the sides of Kate's top dropped down, but dutifully slapped his hand in front of his eyes. "Sorry!" he cried.

Kate spun around, her open blouse billowing around her, boobs bouncing freely, and reached up to grab the mug from the top shelf, also taking a white mug for herself. Even with her shirt untied, her ass was fully on display as she reached up her hand. With only an open shirt on her back, she was basically naked in the office break room.

Kate put both mugs down on the counter, then firmly retied her shirt. "You can look now," Kate said to Gus, as she positioned his mug under the coffee machine's spigot.

Gus took his hand away from his eyes and opened them, chuckling nervously. He seemed more determined than ever to maintain eye contact with Kate and quickly changed the subject to work matters while his coffee brewed.

"Here you go," Kate said as she handed over the blue mug, before preparing her own coffee.

They spoke for a few more minutes as Kate's coffee brewed, about work, their colleagues and their weekend plans. The whole time, Kate acted as normal as she could, keeping her body pressed against the side of the island, hoping with all her might that Gus would stay on his side. Finally, Kate's coffee was ready, and she took the white mug in a shaking hand.

After she'd taken a couple of sips, Gus said it was time for him to get back to work. At last! Kate smiled and waved as he took his mug and started back towards the hallway.

Then he stopped. "Oh! I almost forgot my lunch!"

The fridge was behind Kate. "I--I'll get it for you!" she yelped.

"Nah, don't worry," said Gus, swiftly advancing to her side of the island.

Panicking, Kate sidled to the edge of the island and around the corner just in time. Now her whole body was visible in profile from the doorway, but the counter-top still hid her from Gus. She smiled at him and took a sip of her coffee.

The fridge was right near the edge of the island, so there was still a chance she'd be seen where she was standing. As Gus walked towards it, Kate continued to sidle, until she had rounded another corner. Now she was on what had been Gus's side of the island, her bare butt framed by the break room's open doorway.

Gus knelt down to open the fridge and rummaged inside for a few seconds. Kate could feel her heart beat faster and faster. She tried her best to remain calm, even though anyone coming into the break room right now would immediately see she wasn't wearing pants, and then the jig would be up.

"Ah! Found it!" Gus said at last, pulling a bag from the fridge. He stood up, coffee in one hand, lunch in the other, and turned to Kate. There was a puzzled look on his face. "Did you... never mind. Have a good day, Kate!"

"You too, Gus!"

Gus turned and walked back around the island, allowing Kate to sidle back to safety. He looked back once and she was standing in the same spot she'd been when he'd come in, sipping her coffee. Kate waved to him, and he disappeared around the corner.

As soon as Gus's footsteps faded, Kate poured the rest of her coffee in the sink and collapsed into a fetal position on the floor, the tiles cold against her backside. That was way too close! She could still feel the adrenaline in her veins and her heart almost breaking through her ribcage. A few deep breaths calmed her down slightly.

Gus had come within inches of seeing her naked pussy! And he'd probably seen a nipple when her shirt opened. There was something kind of exciting about that, amidst the mortifying embarrassment. He wasn't a bad looking guy, though a little on the short side.

The break room was not safe. Anyone could come in at any time, and sooner or later, someone would notice what Kate wasn't wearing. She needed to get out of here and find some pants.

And then there was the matter of Ron's flash drive. Kate glanced at the clock on the microwave. It was eleven-thirty. She had half an hour to get some proper clothes on and deliver the flash drive.

Kate untied the knot in her blouse and let it fall to her sides. If she held it closed with both hands, it would cover her torso, but it wasn't long enough to reach more than partway down her butt. If anyone saw her for more than briefest instant, they'd know she wasn't wearing any panties.

The flash drive had fallen on the ground when Kate opened her blouse, so she bent down to pick it up. Her blouse didn't have any pockets, so she would have to hold onto it until she got some better clothes.

An idea came to her. The first time she'd visited Ron's office, on her first day on the job, she'd accidentally walked into the room opposite, which was some kind of supply closet. She'd been very confused at the absence of Ron and the presence of many rows of blue workmen's overalls, but had soon figured out her mistake and found the right place. She also remembered Ron saying that his floor was very quiet, as most of the people there were still working remotely.

As Kate saw it, she had two options. The first was to sneak back to her own office, probably bump into Steve, retrieve her sweat-sodden jeans from the server room, and then still be missing a functional top and not have time to deliver Ron's flash drive. The second was to ride the elevator up to Ron's floor, sneak through the empty halls to the supply closet, grab some big, bulky overalls, and then deliver the flash drive right on time.

The choice was obvious. Kate headed for the nearest elevator.

The halls were thankfully mostly empty. A few times, Kate heard voices, or saw people walking in adjacent halls, but she was quick and quiet enough not to attract their attention. When the elevator came in sight, she saw that it was waiting for her, open and empty. But the door had started closing.

She had to take this one. If she hesitated on an empty elevator, she would have to stand around in the lobby until it came back, and it might not be empty the next time.

After quickly ensuring no-one was standing around in the elevator lobby, Kate released her hold on the front of her blouse and sprinted for the closing door, arms pumping. Her blouse billowed behind her like a cape, and she felt the wind whip across the front of her naked body. She got there just in time, squeezed through the elevator door just before it closed, and punched in the number of Ron's floor.

Kate put her arm against the wall and looked down at the floor, panting. She'd done it. The flash drive was still tightly grasped in her right hand.

A few seconds later, the elevator began its ascent. Kate felt a pull at her back, and slammed into the doors, landing on her butt. There was a grinding sound, and Kate's arms were forced back as the ascent of the elevator tore off her blouse. It had been caught between the doors. She turned and watched helplessly as the last of the maroon fabric disappeared beneath the floor.

Kate was in shock. She scooted into the back corner of the elevator and pulled her knees up to her chin. The smooth metal wall of the elevator cab was cold against her back. She was now completely naked, in an elevator at the office, headed for the tenth floor. What if someone else got in? If only she'd taken the stairs!

The floor indicator had reached 3. Ever so slowly, it ticked to 4, and then 5. Kate pressed her back into the smooth steel wall of the elevator cab, willing it to swallow her up. 6... 7...

The elevator paused for a moment on 8. Kate waited in terror for the doors to open.

Nothing happened. The elevator continued its ascent. 9...