Meltdown

At the last minute before heading out of her apartment, Kate remembered that it was Friday. Or more specifically, Casual Friday. Not wanting to stick out in her smart Monday to Thursday attire, she rushed back to her closet and frantically looked for something else she could wear.

There was no time to plan a whole new outfit, and, being in a new job, Kate wasn't quite sure how casual was too casual. A pair of black jeans caught her eye, and she grabbed them from the hanger and quickly pulled off her skirt and stockings.

The jeans were a little tight. Perhaps they'd shrunk in the wash. Still, with a bit of effort, Kate managed to pull them up her legs and fasten the top button. She slid her bare feet back into her smart heels and looked at her outfit in the mirror.

The jeans went nicely with her dark blazer, which she had on over a silky deep maroon button-up blouse. This was a solid smart-casual outfit. Her red hair fell neat about her shoulders, and her makeup brought out the blue of her eyes. The maroon blouse hugged her waist and breasts, showing just the slightest hint of cleavage, and the jeans and heels sculpted her legs pleasingly. Nodding at her reflection, she grabbed her purse and headed back out the door.

Unfortunately, Kate had spent just enough time squeezing into her jeans to miss the subway train she needed to take to the office, and had to wait ten minutes for the next one.

At two minutes past nine, a slightly frazzled Kate burst into the lobby of her office building, greeted the ladies at the reception desk, and hurried to the elevator, heels clacking. It was a hot day in early summer, and the speed-walk from the station had made her regret wearing black jeans. The office air conditioning was a welcome relief from the heat.

Kate pressed the button for the basement. At this job, she was starting from the bottom.

Once the elevator arrived at her floor, she walked briskly down the dingy, windowless hallway towards her work area. Strange noises emanated from the open-plan office, swishes, grunts, and fast moving footsteps. What in the hell was Steve up to today, she wondered.

On paper, Kate managed the organization's technical support department. She was twenty-six and already in management. In practice, her job was to babysit Steve Bunten, a man-child who was as unpleasant as he was indispensable. She was twenty-six and still a babysitter.

Steve's personal charm was zero, his grooming skills nonexistent, and he would spend much of the workday engaged in strange hobbies. But he knew the organization's systems better than anyone, and had single-handedly rescued them from total meltdown more times than anyone could count, so there was no choice but to keep him on the payroll.

As Kate entered the open-plan desk area from the hallway, the source of the strange noises became clear. Steve's latest hobby, it appeared, was darting around the office, dramatically wielding a mall ninja sword, doing all sorts of spins and stabs at the air. For an extremely sedentary overweight man, he moved with surprising grace, but it was clear from the redness of his face that all this swordplay was really taking it out of him.

"Hah! Haa-yah!" Steve cried, swinging his sword in the air. "Oh! Kate! Yah!"

Kate's eyes went wide as the sword descended right in front of her eyes. With no time to so much as step back, her eyes widened in terror. There was a strong tug against her back as the tip of the sword made contact with the top of her blouse, which jerked her forward.

SCHWING! PING! PING! PING! Steve's sword went all the way down and planted itself in the carpet. Steve grimaced as he pulled the sword free, stumbling back a few steps once it came out of the ground. "Sorry!" he said, a worried and apologetic look on his face. "I didn't mean to... whoa..." Steve's eyes widened as they fixed on Kate.

Kate felt the cool wind from the air conditioner in some unexpected places. Her heart sank as she looked down to survey the damage.

Steve's mall ninja sword had cleanly sliced off every button on Kate's blouse! It now hung, loosely parted, exposing the pearl-white skin of her torso, as well as a hint of cream bra. "EEEP!" Blushing, Kate pulled the sides of her ruined top closed. "Steven!"

"I'm sorry, Kate, I didn't see you," Steve mumbled, looking down at his feet. "It was an accident."

"Why were you swinging that thing around in the office in the first place?!"

"Well, you said I should get more exercise..."

"Not at the office!"

Steve mumbled something unintelligible and slunk off to his desk, sword trailing on the ground.

"You could have hurt me with that thing!" Kate yelled after him, after she'd surreptitiously checked herself for any cuts. "I really liked this top, you know!"

Her admonishments were met with more unintelligible mumbling, Steve's usual response when he did something wrong. He plopped down on his chair and put on his large noise-canceling headphones. Kate knew that if she tried to talk to him now, he'd just ignore her, or worse, tell her she was interrupting critical infrastructure maintenance. With a weary sigh, she walked to her own desk in the corner of the room, hands firmly holding her top in place.

Steve was the only other person who regularly worked in that part of the building. The rest of the tech support staff was only to happy to be permanently on-call, or worked remotely, probably to get away from situations like this one. Kate, being a manager, had to be here, with the only one of her team members who really required managing.

She angled her swivel chair to face the corner and sank into it, releasing her grip on the sides of her top so that she could properly survey the damage. As the top fell open, the breath caught in her throat. Her bra was gone!

Kate clutched the top closed again, not willing to flash even the corner of the wall. How had this happened? It must have been cut by Steve's sword, and fallen off while she was walking. This day just kept getting worse, and it had barely gotten started.

Luckily, Kate had her blazer for some cover. She did up its two buttons, hiding her stomach. But unless she held her blouse closed, she would be showing most of her chest. What a nightmare! She would have to get a new top as soon as possible, but how?

For the moment, Kate had an idea. Keeping her chair angled to the corner, she undid her blazer buttons again. Then she took the corners of either side of her top, brought them together and tied them in a knot, which came to rest against her sternum. This new arrangement of her top was not at all appropriate for work, exposing her midriff and considerable cleavage, but it covered the essentials. With her blazer buttoned up, she was basically decent.

Clothes somewhat in order, Kate swivelled her chair around and got to her feet to look for her missing bra. She retraced her steps, scanning the office floor, but could find no trace of it. One possibility came to mind. Steve.

She glanced at the large unkempt man, who was fully absorbed by his screen. Had he moved since she'd last looked? Yes, he was seated slightly differently. There was no doubt in her mind that he'd seen her bra fall off and taken it. For what purpose, she shuddered to think.

Kate's first impulse was to walk over there, wrench his headphones off, and demand that he return her undergarment. But as she played the situation out in her mind, it seemed like less and less of a good idea. First off, she'd have to get up in his face, and in her current state of dress, that would mean just about letting him put his nose down her cleavage. Second off, he'd just deny it. At the very least, there would be an extended argument before he'd maybe admit it. And finally, even if he did return it, what good would a sliced up bra do her at this point?

She definitely did not want Steve to keep her bra, but she needed a change of clothes before it would be practical to confront him about it. Maybe she could sneak home during her lunch break...

Just then, Kate's ass buzzed. She pulled the phone from the back pocket of her jeans and looked at who was calling. It was Ron Booker, her boss. She answered immediately.

"Hi Ron, how are you today?"

"Just fine, thanks Kate. Listen, are you busy?"

She was, but had learned quickly that when Ron Booker calls, one has to be available. "Not too busy, what do you need?"

"There's some files I urgently need for a meeting this afternoon. Server logs or some such. I don't really know the details, but it's for my boss's boss, so it's extremely important. Issue is, the server's air-gapped, so the files can't be sent over the network," Ron said.

Kate made a vague, affirmative mouth sound.

"Anyway, I spoke to Steve already," Ron continued, "but he's got a lot on his plate, and you know I like to keep him behind that desk. He says he put all the files on a flash drive that's still plugged into the server. You're right by the server room, so I was hoping you could fetch it and bring it to me, soon as you can. I need it by twelve. Ask Steve for help if you need it."

"Got it, sir," said Kate. "I'll have that drive to you ASAP."

"Great stuff, Kate. You're punctual, I like that," Ron said. "The last few people who had your job, they weren't so punctual. But you're different. I know I can count on you." The line went dead.

Reading between the lines, Kate understood that getting this flash drive to Ron before twelve was essential to her continued employment. That made her a little nervous, but how hard could it be? It was a few minutes past nine now, and all she had to do was get something from the server room and take it up to Ron's office on the tenth floor. She wouldn't need the whole morning for that!

The worst part was that it would require her to have a chat with Steve after all. Kate walked over to his desk and lightly tapped him in the shoulder. She had to tap a few more times before he grunted and removed his headphones.

"What is it?" Steve asked, swivelling his chair around. If he harbored any residual guilt for destroying Kate's top, not to mention stealing her bra, it didn't show on his face.

Kate took a moment to compose herself before replying. "Ron just called. He says there's a flash drive in the server room that he needs me to bring him."

"Yeah I know the one," Steve said to Kate's chest. "Gonna be difficult though, door's jammed."

"What?" Kate asked. "Seriously?"

"Come see." Steve lifted his considerable bulk from the office chair and led Kate to the server room entrance on the other side of the room. He grabbed the handle and tugged at it ineffectually. "Got stuck after I shut it last night."

"Let me try," Kate said. Steve stepped aside, and she grabbed the handle with both hands and pulled. The door didn't budge, so she pulled harder, placing one heeled foot against the adjacent wall for leverage. Kate grunted and groaned with effort, but still the door didn't come loose. It was well and truly stuck.

Steve stood watching Kate's efforts. Without a bra to support them, her breasts bounced pleasingly with each successive tug.

"Okay, it's really stuck," Kate said at last, wiping the sweat off her brow. "Have you asked maintenance to come fix this?"

"They're sending someone this afternoon."

"That's too late! Ron needs the flash drive by twelve!"

Steve shrugged. "Earliest they could manage. Lots to do today."

Kate dialled maintenance and quickly confirmed Steve's story. Despite her pleading, the lady on the other end of the phone insisted that they couldn't send someone any earlier.

Shoulders slumping, Kate put her phone back in her jeans pocket. She gave Steve a defeated look, silently begging for a moment of human empathy from him. "Ron's really counting on me for this."

Steve put a hand to his chin. "You know, there is another way to get into the server room..."

Kate's face lit up instantly. "Really? How?"

Steve pointed at a small grate on the wall, near the floor. "The ventilation shafts go all over the building, and I know for a fact that the grate on the one in the server room is missing. Maintenance is going to put a new one in when they fix the door."

Kate looked down at the vent. "You're joking."

"Well, I'm definitely not going to fit," replied Steve, patting his large belly. "But you might."

"Not through the gaps in that grate."

Steve produced a small screwdriver from his shirt pocket and spun it around in his fingers, waggling his eyebrows.

Kate looked at the grate again. She hated to admit it, but Steve was right. It was definitely big enough for her to crawl through. It might be a bit uncomfortable, but she wouldn't have to be in it for long. Just go in, grab the flash drive and get out again. Then she could take it up to Ron with hours to spare. It would certainly be a point in her favor come promotion time. Hell, it might be her ticket out of this basement!

"Fine," said Kate. "Please open the grate for me, Steve."

Steve grinned and crouched down, setting to work at once. Four loosened screws later, the grate came away from the wall and Kate found herself staring into a long, dark tunnel, just big enough for her to crawl through on her elbows and knees.

Her blazer was very stiff about the shoulders, and crawling through the shaft with it would only make it dirty. She'd also have to lose her high heels.

Steve stood to one side, watching her expectantly.

"Turn around, please," Kate said, slowly undoing the top button of her blazer.

With a sigh of disappointment, Steve turned around. Kate also turned her back to him. That way, if he peeked over his shoulder, he'd only see some of the skin of her lower back.

Kate undid the buttons on her blazer and pulled it off, laying it carefully down on the carpet just next to the open entrance of the vent--she needed to be able to put it back on as soon as she returned. Then she stepped out of her shoes and bent down to peer into the tunnel.

"Here goes nothing," she said, clambering into the vent on her elbows and knees, which clanged against the metal surface.

"Good luck!" shouted Steve, who was definitely standing right behind her, intently watching her ass. Just then, Kate was extremely grateful that she'd swapped her skirt for this pair of jeans, tight as they were.

"It's just a left, right and another left!" Steve continued.

"Thanks," said Kate. "How do you even know that?"

"I know all things, Miss Kate," Steve chuckled.

Kate rolled her eyes and shuffled forward, feeling her way through the dark ventilation shaft. She'd never been claustrophobic, or afraid of the dark, but that didn't make it a pleasant experience. Feeling her way according to Steve's directions, she focused on the mission, and on how pleased Ron would be to get his flash drive.

The grate in the server room was indeed missing, as Kate confirmed by the sudden appearance of light around the final left turn. Quickening her pace, she clambered towards the light and poked her head into the server room.

Rows upon rows of tall server racks filled the room, and the air was full of the sound of whirring fans. The air felt cold against Kate's midriff as she climbed out of the vent and pulled herself up to a standing position. This room was kept at a much lower temperature than the rest of the office, which was already a bit nippy for someone not formally dressed.

Kate's nipples poked through the fabric of her blouse. Luckily, the server room had no windows for Steve to look through.

The flash drive was stuck in the USB port of a server in a central rack. Kate reached to pull it out, but stopped herself. The contents of this drive were very important to Ron, so it was probably worth making sure she wouldn't corrupt them by yanking it out.

Taking out her phone, Kate dialled Steve. "I've found the flash drive, is it safe to remove?"

Steve ummed and ahhed for a moment. "Probably best to safely remove. There's a screen and keyboard in the corner, I left them connected to that server."

Kate walked over to the screen and keyboard, shook the mouse to life, and safely removed the flash drive. Back at the server, she pulled it out slipped it down the front of her blouse.

As she was walking back to the grate, there was a barely audible click, and the air changed. A constant low hum that Kate had tuned out now became conspicuous by its sudden absence. All the fans in the room roared into overdrive.

Kate's ass was vibrating again. She pulled out her phone and saw it was from Steve. "Hello?"

"The aircon just shut off," said Steve. "Is it running in the server room?" There was an edge of panic in his voice.

"Uh... no..." Kate replied, shouting over the din of the fans.

Steve cursed. "They told me it was a separate system! Damn contractors."

"I've got the flash drive and I'm coming back now," said Kate.

"No!" Steve shouted aggressively.

Kate was speechless. Her mind raced, jumping at once to all the worst conclusions. Sweat was beginning to form on her forehead.

"Uh, sorry, didn't mean to yell at you, but this is an emergency. The fans on those servers are not enough to keep them cool, not with the kinds of loads we're running. I'm already getting serious lag on my remote sessions. We need to shut everything down ASAP."

Despite the many loud, whirring fans, the room was definitely heating up. The plastic cover of Kate's phone was already slick with sweat. "Can't you do that?" she asked Steve.

"Not with this lag. And not for the air-gapped machines. Listen, I need you to go back to the workstation and help me shut these servers down. I've sent an urgent message to maintenance, but they might not get here in time. There's going to be a lot of very expensive damage if we don't work quickly."

Kate sprinted back to the workstation and set her phone down next to the keyboard, switching it to speaker. "Okay, I'm there," she shouted over the roar of the fans. "Tell me what to do next!"

Over the next five minutes, Steve walked Kate through the process of safely stopping and shutting down all the most critical servers. There was a lot of back and forth shouting as Steve told Kate what to click and what to type, and she shouted back descriptions of the screen. As they shut down each server, the fan sound grew quieter. But this only made the room hotter.

Kate's whole body was coated in sweat. She took her hand from the mouse to wipe the moisture from her face when the screen became blurry. In the intense heat, she was grateful for her exposed midriff and bare feet.

But her legs were burning up in her too-tight black jeans. She tried to ignore it and focus on the job, but by the tenth server, she was panting with fatigue. Fanning herself with her hands was ineffectual, she had to do something more to cool down.

"Hold on a second," she said to Steve, finally making up her mind. Taking her hands from the keyboard, she brought them to her waist.

After a bit of trying, the top button of her jeans popped open. Down went the zip of her fly. Already the relief was palpable. But here she was, taking off her pants in the office server room. Kate bit her lip as she gripped the sides of her waistband and forcefully yanked the tight denim down her thighs. She sighed at the feeling of hot air against her bare skin.

Kate peeled her jeans all the way off and kicked them into a corner. "Okay, let's continue," she said to her phone, leaning over the workstation again. It was still unbearably hot, but she could think again. And one of the thoughts that came to mind was how inappropriate it was to be at work wearing only a tied up shirt and a pair of cream cotton panties.

It must have been a funny sight, she thought, this crazy woman, dressed for the beach, red-faced and dripping with sweat, standing hunched over a computer and madly typing commands to shut down servers.