I spent the night in that filthy bathroom, propped up on the sink, so my feet wouldn’t be submerged in the dirty water.
The windows were locked, so I had to inhale the smell all night. I kept checking my phone, but the signal never returned.
At 9am the next morning, the door finally opened, and the janitor from the previous night stared at me open-mouthed.
I was weak and almost passed out from the smell.
“Goodness, ma’am, were you in here all night?”
I nodded weakly.
He helped me out of the bathroom and I had never been more grateful for clean fresh air. I started coughing violently, and it felt like I would throw up at any second.
He helped me over to a chair and made me sit down. “Take a seat, I’ll call an ambulance.”
“No!” I stopped him. “I’m fine. Thank you. I just need to get home.”
“Are you sure? You need to get checked.”
“I’m okay, thank you.”
I didn’t wait for him to argue further. I headed straight for the door. People closed their noses and shook their heads as I passed them, but I couldn’t even be bothered. I had to get home.
When I finally got home, it didn’t even look like anybody had noticed I didn’t come back last night.