Out of their Element

[Olo]

@littlest-lily If I am ever asked to describe the attraction of being a microphile, I’d put “receiving a tiny lover’s trust” right at the top.

[nephilim]

@littlest-lily I poke in now and again and read this. It’s so adorable. It’s a nice palate cleanser from all the horror I write lmao

[nephilim]

@Olo Mads is huspred

[littlest-lily]

@Olo Ahhhh, I love that. I have a similar feeling but from the other side - putting all of my trust into someone

[littlest-lily]

@nephilim Aw I really really appreciate that!!

[littlest-lily]

Chapter 64
Aiden

“Evie?”

I abruptly sit up straight as my eyes search the ground and my head whips from side to side. There are a whole lot of plants obstructing my view and my anxiety flares. I hold my phone up to my ear as my subconscious remembers that other people aren’t too far away.

“Hello?” I insist furtively.

“Here!”

I sigh with relief as I finally make out her voice, and then a familiar figure pops her head out from under a leaf. Evie looks out of breath as she waves up at me. “Sorry, I guess you couldn’t hear me. Didn’t mean to disappear!”

“All good. You covered a lot of ground, I put you down way over there."

“It’s a whole other world under here!" She pushes the leaf up above her head now, gesturing with her chin as if inviting me inside. “Come see what I found. Can you push this up?”

I glance back towards the other groups of people who have also decided to go strawberry picking on this late summer day. As usual, no one seems to care about what I’m doing, and the one family who was close by is heading further out now. Eh, what’s a little dirt on my shirt. I get all the way down to the ground, tilting my head to the side and slipping my hand under the canopy of leaves. We’re on the very edge of the field near a grove of trees, so there’s actually a variety of plants here, and I’m feeling quite curious as I peer underneath the foliage and lift it up.

My girlfriend’s right there waiting for me. She gives me a playful peck on the forehead before turning and weaving her way through the sapling-like stems of the strawberry plants. Argh, how is she so goshdarn cute? This is a new dress that she’s wearing, and between her improved sewing skills and having picked out better materials over time, the garment almost looks like just a normal dress that was shrunken down to fit her. The greens and earthy browns of the fabric help her camouflage and look like a little forest fairy.

“See?” she chirps, hoisting something up from the ground. “They’re my size!”

Even though we’re visiting a farm that just has regular strawberries, she’s managed to discover some unexpected wild strawberries that are much smaller. The pale red fruit must be less than half an inch in length.

“Almost your size,” I chuckle at the fact that the tiny berry still looks as big as a football in her hands.

Evie rolls her eyes and with a grin she takes a big bite out of her prize. She then proceeds to do a comedic spit take, hacking it back up in disgust.

“Aggghhh that is so sour,” she groans. She tosses the fruit down and wipes the back of her hand on her mouth.

I try very hard to wince sympathetically instead of laugh. Laying the side of my head flat on the earth, I reach my arm a little deeper into the foliage and say, “There are some more over here, I’m sure we’ll find a tastier one for ya.”

I pluck up a few extra berries and Evie adds a couple of her own to the pile in my palm before she climbs aboard herself. I close my fingers around the lot and drag my hand out of the brush as I sit upright in the grass. Now’s as good a time as any to pause for a snack, so we settle in. I lean against a nearby tree, tug our much bigger basket of regular strawberries towards us, and gently set my little partner on my knee as I sit cross legged.

“Try this one,” I say, rolling a ruby red berry to the edge of my palm so that Evie can reach it. “It looks more ripe.”

Her nibble is tentative this time, but her smile quickly returns. “Oh wow! They’re not as juicy as the farm kind, but I think I actually like these better. Here, you have some too.”

She gives my hand an encouraging push, and I go ahead and pop a couple of the wild berries in my mouth. They’ve got some nice floral notes that feel incredibly nostalgic to me.

“What’s good about these is that they’re so easy to identify,” I tell her, “They’re a nice little snack if you come across them while camping.”

“Oooo, do you know how to forage for food in the woods?”

“I’m no expert, but I’ve picked up a couple of things. They actually have a class about wild mushrooms the weekend we’re going to the cabin, I kinda want to check it out.”

“Cool! Can I join you? I could hide in your hat. That way you can bend over without worrying about me falling out of your pocket.”

“Yeah, totally! Squeeze it into the itinerary.”

Evie laughs self-consciously, knowing that she’s been a little extra with the amount of time she’s already spent planning for this camping trip. “I’m excited,” she says defensively.

“I’m just teasing you. I’m really excited too. It’s something to look forward to at least.”

I don’t do a good job of hiding how forlorn I feel as I say that last bit. Today is rather bittersweet in that it’s the last day of summer vacation. My classes start tomorrow, and I’m really not looking forward to it.

Evie’s expression softens and she scoots towards my hand to take my thumb, leaning her cheek against the tip of it sympathetically. She’s been having to deal with me being a little grumpy about this for days, but it hasn’t affected how supportive she’s been. I silently show appreciation by smiling and very gently rubbing the side of her face.

She pauses and then suggests, “Would it help to make some more fall plans? Things like visiting a pumpkin patch? Or maybe we could do apple picking next time? Although, uh… it’ll be harder for me to help you with apples.”

“Heh. Yeah, all of that sounds fun. But it’s alright - I’m sure I’ll feel better once I just rip the bandaid off and get in the swing of things with school.”

“You’ve got this, babe." She gives me a squeeze and then lets go of my thumb. She looks upwards, squinting and shielding her face. "Hey, the sun’s really beating down… Do you think we could go lie down in the shade there?”

Evie’s pointing a little bit deeper into the grove, at a patch of shade just a couple of feet to the side of where we are. She already starts walking the length of my leg, towards my hip, and even though I’m careful as I scoot back, I still knock her down to her knees. I chuckle out an apology and then recline backwards, laying onto the ground with a sigh.

My little partner continues her journey up my body, making my breath grow a bit more shallow as she reaches the top of my leg. The way she circumvents the awkward space near my crotch is an unintentional tease that I sheepishly enjoy, but soon enough she’s made it to my shirt. I close my eyes as I focus on her tiny feet traversing my abdomen. I get so much comfort out of her warm little weight.

“Do we know who’s taking the loft bed?” Evie asks, casually circling the conversation back to the camping trip.

“Moira was insisting that she’ll take it,” I mumble, so relaxed that I’m having trouble moving my lips. “I think you and I are getting that side room downstairs. Let’s just let Camila have the bigger room.”

“Yeah, I’m fine with that. We’ll be nice and cozy.”

I feel her lay down on my chest and my fingers easily find her without me needing to look. I stroke her back and quietly ask, “Speaking of Camila… How did that hangout go with her at the Ignacios’ place?”

For a split second I think I feel her tense up, but she regains her composure so quickly that I’m not even sure. “It was fine. We’re still not best buds or anything, but she was nice enough, and Moira and Star handle her well.”

I open my eyes to glance down at her curled up form on my chest. She’s restlessly drawing small circles on my shirt even though her eyes look contentedly shut. I exhale slowly as I lay my head back again and frown up at the canopy of branches. I think about when we properly introduced Camila and Evie several weeks ago, back at the beer garden. I’ve come around somewhat since then, but I was honestly still annoyed at how rude I thought Camila was being at the time. I’ve let Evie do her thing, but I wasn’t exactly comfortable with her spending time on her own with all of the girls.

“I don’t love not being there when she’s around…” I admit.

“Why?” Evie shifts as she lifts her head up. Ack, I’m realizing I sounded a bit ominous. I should watch what I say, I don’t mean to scare her.

“I trust that you’re safe, but… I don’t know, this is just the protective side of me that wants to stand up for you if someone’s not being the nicest.”

“Oh. Don’t worry too much. The others are good at making me feel included. Thanks, though.” Out of the corner of my eye I catch a flash of her teeth in a grin. She starts emphatically rubbing my chest as she croons, “Aww, does my big, stwong man want to be a big, stwong pwotector?”

“Shut up, you,” I chuckle, squeezing my fingers around her a little tighter as she wriggles and giggles.

We don’t get much more strawberry picking done after that. Which is fine - our basket has more than enough fruit already, and the point of this outing was just to spend some quality time together anyway. We hang out in the grove until I notice the sun is starting to set. Eventually I remark that we should probably go pay for what we’ve picked before the farm closes, and all too soon Evie’s in my pocket as I trudge back to the car.

What a fantastic summer it’s been overall. I got a girlfriend out of it, for one. And we’ve shared so many wonderful memories. It’s not like the start of the school semester is going to drastically alter all that much about our lives, but I’m still so bummed out about it feeling like this current chapter is coming to a close.

“Wait!” Evie pipes up suddenly. I’ve just opened the car door and freeze mid-crouch to look down at her. She’s hooked her arms over the lip of the pocket and has one hand pointing to something in the distance. “Did you see that?”

“Hmm?” I ask, glancing up in the direction she’s pointing. It’s another little patch of trees at the end of the parking lot, but I don’t see anything remarkable.

“There!” she yelps again excitedly.

I saw it this time. In the dimming dusk was a brief pinprick of light passing by a bush, followed by a second one a couple of yards away.

“Fireflies,” I say, looking back down at her with a growing smile. “Have you never seen any before?”

“No, never in person. Can we go check it out? Oh, there’s another one! Please, please, I want to see!”

“Okay, okay,” I laugh, shutting the car door and redirecting towards the little lights.

Soon enough we’re surrounded by them, flickering amongst the trees in the growing evening darkness. Evie perks up adorably every time she spots one, her head whipping around, until I suggest we have her sit on my shoulder instead of my pocket so that she has a better 360-degree view. I actually feel like I’ve entered her world for once, as if we’ve stumbled into a magical fairy circle.

“They’re so cool! Ever caught one in a jar?” she asks me from her perch by my neck.

“Yup. On many a family camping trip we’d make temporary lanterns with these little guys.”

“Aren’t they hard to catch?”

“Nah, they don’t tend to be that evasive actually. The trick is to pick one and follow it…”

I stay particularly mindful of my tiny passenger as I set my sights on a passing light. Its bioluminescence fades, but I don’t get distracted by the other glowing insects and continue focusing on the same buzzing target as it meanders over the top of a bush. I take slow, careful steps towards it, reach my arm out, and manage to palm the little bug on my first try. It lands on me as soon as my skin makes contact, and I gently cup both hands around it.

“Like that! They’re pretty chill,” I say with a glance down at Evie, who’s now clinging tightly to my shirt as she leans forward with interest. I bring my hands up closer to where she’s sitting, so that she can see the light pouring out from the gap between my fingers when the firefly starts to glow again.

“I’m impressed!” she giggles. “Careful though, don’t squish him.”

To reassure her I open my hands to let the lightning bug go on its way, but I remark, “Don’t worry… I have plenty of practice snatching up little critters.”

She sighs dramatically in response as she knows exactly where I’m going with this - I scoop her right off my shoulder so that I can softly clap my hands around her instead. She scrambles around against my palm, and I beam with joy as I hear her laughter. I bring her right up to my eye and lift my thumb slightly so that I can peer through the gap. I can just make out her tiny form in the dark hand cave that I’ve trapped her in.

“Hmmm, what a weird little bug,” I comment loftily.

“You are asking for an eye poke, mister,” she playfully growls back.

I’m the one laughing now as I open my hands and avidly give her body a big smooch, reveling in her squeals of delight. She grabs at my nose to try and pull me in closer and cuddle up against me, and I let her jerk me around without resisting in the slightest.

This small detour before heading back home has done wonders for my mood. Just when I thought that the fun was all over, my best friend was there to help me realize that there’s still plenty of fun to still be had. I’m finding it that much easier to look forward to the next chapter.

[Olo]

@littlest-lily Aiden and Evie have been in a good place for a while now, but nonetheless I’m fortified by his confidence in his ability to read her mood and calibrate the precise degree of teasing she can tolerate.

[littlest-lily]

@Olo Yeah he was definitely mindful about the teasing and wouldn’t do it unless he was sure he was okay with it. (Unlike a certain other male giant in this story lolol)

[littlest-lily]

Chapter 65
Evie

“Happy birthday, Evie!”

I jump at the sound of Diego’s voice as he sails into the room with gusto. Thankfully I’ve gotten used to his sudden booms of activity and recover quickly. I realize he’s holding a platter with a gazebo-sized chocolate cake balanced on top.

I wasn’t expecting this. Star and Moira and I have been at the Ignacios’ dining table for the past couple of hours, deeply engrossed in some room escape board games, which I’m sure is going to become my newest obsession at this point. I didn’t want to do anything particularly special for my birthday - my partner and I have romantic dinner plans later, and I was content to just enjoy a bit of girl time otherwise. I didn’t even realize Diego had come back into the house, he and Aiden had been off somewhere.

Speak of the devil. Right as Diego strolls in from the kitchen, I realize my boyfriend is just behind him.

“Thank you!” I call up to them, feeling embarrassed by the attention but very touched all the same. Then I completely cover my face as a barely-subdued cacophony of a happy birthday song fills the air, with everyone quickly joining in. As self-conscious as I feel, I take a moment of gratitude in the darkness behind my fingers. I’m so thankful for my oversized friends.

I look up again as the four of them finish their singing, and I realize Aiden has crouched in front of the table to set something just ahead of me. It’s a miniature version of the chocolate cake with a tiny dollop of frosting on top - it’s still almost as big as I am, but far more suited to my size. Stuck into the center of the cupcake is a tiny candle. Actually, I think it’s a toothpick, but it’s been painted with festive stripes, and at the very top is a tiny bit of yellow cotton fluff. Even the smallest birthday candle would produce too much fire to be safe for me… but this setup lets me pretend.

And I step forward to do just that. The small chunk of cotton is light enough for me to blow it away, and as I meet Aiden’s eyes I can feel tears welling up in mine from how thoughtful the gesture is. He beams back at me, and as the others start gathering around to partake in the normal-sized version of the cake, he and I share a brief kiss right there on the table.

“I know what I’m going to spend all of my earnings on,” I tell him a short while later, pointing at the room escape game that’s still sprawled out.

“Evie’s really good at puzzles, apparently,” Star chimes in as she clears off the table to make room for plates.

“So are you!” I respond avidly, “We never would have figured out the spaceship layout without you.”

“Eh, I guess I’m better at seeing the bigger picture. You’re better at catching all the little details.”

“Spaceship layout?” Aiden asks with a raised eyebrow. “Okay, I’m interested.” His hands are busy as he helps me with my own plate. The mini cupcake is so big that it could keep me fed for a month, so even I need a smaller slice cut out.

I reach out with a thankful smile for my tiny portion as I say, “Good, because there’s a whole series of these games and I need to play all of them.”

We dig into the sweet treat and spend the next hour hanging out all together. The gathering is loud, it’s lively, it’s a little overwhelming at times. But it’s so much fun. We talk about a new show we’ve all started watching, and we make plans for the camping trip coming up in a few weeks. I compliment Diego on the kickass cake - I think cherry and chocolate might have just become my new favorite combo. I’ve had a little bit to drink and end up wandering around the table to make sure everyone gets a finger hug and is told how much I appreciate them. It’s edging into late afternoon once Aiden and I finally call it and decide to head for home.

I’m practically bouncing off the walls of the shirt pocket during the drive. “Thank you so much for that surprise!” I gush, "I’m still buzzing with energy.”

Aiden chuckles and tenderly says, “Pace yourself, babe. Don’t forget, we also have dinner tonight. I actually just got the text confirming our table at that Greek place. They still haven’t treated me weird about reserving a private room for one.”

“I can’t wait.” I throw myself against his chest, craning my neck back to look up at the side of his head. “Can we just cuddle in bed until then?”

“I’d like nothing more!"

He sounds a little more tired than I do, but his heart rate is still kinda high. I think he enjoyed the excitement too, and I feel warm with affection as I nuzzle into him and collapse into a seat.

“What were you and Diego up to?” I call up.

“We were back at the apartment, just getting some stuff ready.”

“Oh is that where he baked the cake?”

“No, he baked that last night.”

I frown and glance upward. “Then what…?”

“Patience, my love, patience.” He runs a finger against the outside of his pocket, as if to rub my back, but due to the plastic barrier it just creates soothing shifting sounds instead. I notice he’s barely suppressing a grin. I feel insanely curious about him being so cryptic. I had insisted on no expensive birthday gifts, but did he get me something anyway? For his sake, I decide not to pester him and let this play out.

By the time we get back to the apartment, though, I can’t take it anymore. I steal a glance over the edge of the pocket as the giant steps inside, my eyes aimed right for the kitchen counter to see if there might be some kind of new object wrapped in colorful paper. But even though the counter is empty, it only takes me another two seconds to realize what’s different.

I grow very still, my eyes widening in shock. “Oh my god. Aiden, what…” and I can’t get any more words out.

Tunnels. Along the walls, across the shelves, both nearby and in the distance, is a long series of clear plastic tunnels. My gaze traces their path, all around the room, and I notice some furniture has been rearranged, I think there’s a new shelf or two. I hardly have time to take a decent look before I’m distracted by massive fingers reaching for me. I’m still very preoccupied with the apartment as Aiden lifts me up and kisses me on the neck and cheek.

“You’re not getting out of cuddling in bed with me,” he murmurs, and then I descend again, elevatoring all the way down to the nearby counter, until the hand I’m in rests on its surface to gently slide me off. With a sly smile he adds, “I’ll meet you there.”

And I watch as he walks away from me. The vibrations of his footsteps grow fainter as he steps through the living room and his figure disappears into his bedroom.

The context of him leaving me alone like this is disorienting. I take a quick glance around my immediate vicinity, getting a lay of the land with fresh eyes. I’m on the kitchen counter right next to the front door, since upon entering the apartment the open kitchen area is to the immediate right. There’s a plastic tunnel opening nearby, and it’s taller than I am, more than enough clearance for me to walk through. I notice it’s going across the door as it lines the wall, staying up at counter height, and then continues deeper into the living room. I’m actually not sure how he opened the door to get into the apartment just now without crashing into this thing, but I’m diverted from that thought by a paper note that’s resting by the tunnel entrance. I hurry over to it to see familiar handwriting.

I’ve said it before, but it’s about time you had better access to your own home. Don’t worry, these weren’t expensive and they weren’t that hard to put up. Plus they’re super sturdy and safe - they can hold up to thirty pounds and you weigh a wee bit less than that.

Happy birthday, Evie. I love you so much. Now don’t keep me waiting!

This is when the tears start.

Fighting the building emotion in my chest, I turn now to the entrance of the tunnel. Despite trusting what the note said about these being secure, I’m still a little hesitant when I first step inside. Thankfully Aiden has lined the bottom with some black fabric so that I don’t see straight down to the floor, but I still get a clear view of my surroundings through the rest of the clear plastic. As I venture further inside and feel how rock solid this pathway is, my steps become more confident. I pass over a couple of seams in the plastic that I suppose must allow for the tunnel to come apart as the door opens, and I quickly make it to the corner of the wall. The tunnel bends to line the room, like a hiking path carved into a canyon.

I gaze out at the rest of the living room. I can’t believe I’m able to make my way across it on my own. Even now that I have access to the floor by the desk, I don’t usually venture out anywhere else in the apartment. I always rely on Aiden carrying me to other areas since everything’s so high up. But now I don’t have to. I think about some of the food staples that he keeps out on the kitchen counter. He refills my own supply of food and water all the time, but he doesn’t have to do that either, I can do it myself!

I quickly come across something else that’s new: a small floating shelf with what resembles a miniature picket fence lining the edge of it. The tunnel cuts off at the shelf and then continues again just past it, like an open balcony. I’m right below the hook where Aiden hangs his keys, and he’s put his wallet up on this shelf, leaning against the wall. I also notice a couple of me-sized things too - a dollhouse chair, the jacket I recently made for the fall, one of my two pairs of shoes. This is the perfect little getting-ready-to-go-out station. I can already imagine myself scurrying over here to get prepped while my boyfriend finishes something in the kitchen, or to greet him when he comes home from work.

After exploring this area, I head back into the tunnel to continue my way along the leftmost wall of the apartment. The desk where I live is at the far end of the living room, next to the window, but it looks like I have one more stop before I reach it.

I pass over the familiar squat bookshelf that has always been against this wall, where Aiden keeps his books and rock collection. But now there’s a new piece of furniture - a taller, narrower bookshelf that intersects my path. There’s a hole cut out in the side of it that lines up perfectly with the tunnel I’m in. I curiously pass through it and step out of the doorway, and I have to suppress a gasp as I look out at the miniature room.

This entire shelf is a new lounge space for me. There’s the couch-beanbag thing I’d made for myself, a table and chair, a lamp that I think was originally a little night light for children. There’s a phone I’ve never seen before - an older model by the looks of it, so thankfully he didn’t buy a brand new phone - sitting against the wall like a wide screen TV. There’s a bundle of trimmed pine needles in a little plastic container like a potted plant, giving off a subtle but refreshing scent. There are even some snacks wrapped in small scraps of foil to help keep them fresh - a single chocolate chip in one, a sliver of rice cake in another, a drop of peanut butter in a third.

There’s also what I quickly realize is a curtain that’s installed into the open side of the shelf. I experiment with this, dragging the curtain fully closed and turning on the night light. It’s so cozy in here now, and surprisingly quiet. I’ve gotten pretty used to wide open spaces at this point, but it still feels so good to not have to be surrounded by so much empty air.

In one corner of the shelf-room there’s a hole in the floor. I peer down into it and there’s a ladder leading down to the next shelf. From up here I can see another hole past that and another ladder, and so on. It looks like I have access to this entire bookcase. I glimpse the edges of my paints on one shelf, my packing supplies further down, and then it all clicks in my mind. This is my new office building.

“Oh wow, Aiden…” I whisper, fighting again the urge to break down into tears again, though they well up anyway and I have to wipe one stray drop off my face.

I’m itching to explore the whole bookshelf and figure out what should go where, but I know that should be for another day. I soon rip myself away and head back into the tunnel that continues its way around the apartment. It’s a short trip along the next corner, and soon I’m stepping out onto my familiar living space on top of the desk. But there are a few clear changes now.

My toilet closet, clothing shelves, mini fridge, phone and random bits of entertainment are all just as I’d left them. But there’s a new couch now, the base clearly bought from a toy store but the cushions lovingly hand sewn by my boyfriend. My treasured purple geode is still there in the background, the usual basil plant is recently pruned, my stuffed toy lion has been dusted and cleaned. I don’t even notice that my bed’s missing, I’m so inspired by the fresh feel of my space. Now that all of my business stuff has been moved, I can separate my work and my leisure time and just relax here on the desk. But that’s not even the best part.

“No no no no no,” I breathe through choked sobs as I walk over to the plastic box that contains my bathtub. It’s always just been a plain white box, but there’s something new on its outer wall that now lines the space of my new living quarters.

I immediately recognize Moira’s art style. Tiny tableaus of beautiful fantasy landscapes are artfully arranged on the wall. No wonder she’s been talking a lot about home decor recently and asking for my opinion, this is the perfect whimsical aesthetic I’ve been pining after. A couple of the paintings I know are from Star, since we had that one artsy hangout and I know how obsessed she is with doodling flowers. The goofy mushrooms in all sorts of bright colors are surely from Diego’s hand. I even think one of these might be Camila’s watercoloring. And I’ve played enough pictionary with Aiden to recognize those acorns with smiley faces.

This is what breaks me, and the crying starts in earnest. It must have been so difficult for my friends to make art on such tiny pieces of paper, most of them smaller than postage stamps. Not to mention the simple fact that they all came together for me like this… And I now have a beautiful mural to look at every day to remind me of the people I care about. I don’t deserve them. My body’s racked with sobs as I focus on each individual art piece in turn, and I’m thankful that Aiden’s left me on my own to savor this without an audience. My emotions are probably heightened by the alcohol I had earlier, but the love I have for these people is so genuine all the same.

It takes me a little while to pull myself together again and traverse to the other side of the desk, where I see another plastic tunnel entrance. This one lines the opposite back corner of the living room and then passes right over the top of the couch. In fact, there’s a hole in the plastic here, an open door that gives me access to the couch backing and tops of the cushions. There’s a rope ladder draped over the edge of the fabric cliff that would allow me to get to the armrest, to the seat, and even to the floor. I now imagine Aiden sitting here, working on his laptop, and I can sneak right up to kiss his neck.

The tunnel continues, along and past the couch. I know that on the other side of the wall I’m lining is the bedroom. I still haven’t fully stopped crying, and I quicken my pace in anticipation. The tunnel makes a U-turn once it reaches the edge of the wall, going straight through the open doorway of my boyfriend’s room. And there he is, the first thing that I notice, sprawled out on his bed as he casually reads a book. But then immediately after I realize that the entire room has been rearranged. His bed is now on the other side, up against the wall that the living room shares. The tunnel I’m in slopes downward, and it’s leading to its final destination: Aiden’s nightstand. Where he’s already set up my own bed.

I’m several steps closer when my movements catch his attention. Our view of each other is slightly warped by the transparent plastic that I’m encased in, but we’re still able to smile at each other. He turns in my direction as I move towards him, and I’m thankful for the fabric floor that keeps me from slipping and sliding down the tunnel. We’re able to make better eye contact once I’m closer, and he lifts his head off his pillow, frowning with concern as he sees how red my eyes are.

“You okay?” he asks quietly.

Words aren’t an option right now, so I just silently and fervently nod, hurrying towards him and motioning for him to put his head back down. I think he can tell that I’m the good kind of emotional right now since he does indeed lay his head back on the pillow, but he continues to fret as I run out onto the nightstand.

“We can rearrange stuff however you like, I want you to get a say in how it’s all set up–”

I leap onto his pillow and practically crash into his face in a hug. “I love it,” I sob, shoulders shaking as the tears just won’t stop. I press my forehead against the space between his eyes, struggling to breathe as I cry. “Aiden, I l-love you, s-so much…”

His hand reaches my back to gently cover my frame and hug me against him. I revel in how close his voice is as he softly says, “I’m glad you like it. I’ve been kinda nervous about it for weeks, but I was excited with how it came together today.”

“I t-totally didn’t s-see it coming…” I whimper, sniffling. “Good job.”

Before we get into a serious snuggle session on the bed, he gives me a slightly tighter squeeze and whispers, “Welcome home, honey."

[Olo]

@littlest-lily An EvieTrail! I wish she could carry a video camera with her as she walks through it so Aiden and the others could see what it looks like

[littlest-lily]

@Olo Ehehehehe I love that! Evie cam~

[littlest-lily]

Chapter 66
Aiden

I manage to wake up silently today. As soon as my eyes blink open to the morning sunlight bathing the nearby wall, I’m ultra aware of what’s sitting very close to the back of my head. The simple knowledge of it makes me smile, and I decide on a little mission. As stealthily as I can, I slowly flip over, doing my very best not to make a sound against the bedsheets and pillow. And although it takes me a solid minute to simply rotate, I have a nice little reward waiting for me at the end. There she is on the nightstand, quietly snoozing away.

Still moving ever so carefully, I lift my head so that I can prop it up with my hand and smile down at my tiny girlfriend by my side. I got used to glancing at my mini crane origami every morning - which is still there - but this is admittedly way better. And it’s so rare that I’m the one who wakes up first. Evie keeps assuring me that I’m not a loud sleeper, and thank goodness for that, since there’s no way I’d subject her to spending the night in here if I snored or thrashed around. Still, I know that just shifting my head to the side is probably enough noise to rouse her come morning, because even if she’s still in bed when I wake up, her eyes are almost always open.

It’s such a treat now to see her looking so peaceful. Aww, apparently she smiles in her sleep. And she’s also apparently more active than I am - her blanket has been half shoved off her body and she’s got an arm flung off to one side while her hair’s fanned out to the other. I lean in a little bit to make out how her miniscule fingers occasionally twitch. So tiny. So cute. I feel a powerful desire to hold her close. But that would defeat the purpose of trying not to wake her up.

Alright, stop being a creep, I finally tell myself.

I’ve still got well over an hour before I need to get ready for class, so I can just chill in bed for a while. I carefully retrieve my phone that’s in an open space in my nightstand, just under Evie’s bed. I reflexively grab a breath mint that’s there too - I’ve become a little obsessed over the past half a year in making sure I’m clean at all times. I know I can already be overwhelming enough to be around without also making her deal with morning breath.

A few minutes later, I hear the slightest sound, a tiny inhalation, and I glance up from my phone to watch my partner stir. She stretches her arms past her head and her eyes blink open before she turns her face my way and smiles.

“Good morning,” she says, her voice tight from her stretching.

“Morning,” I respond. I set my phone down and add, “Sleep okay?”

“Uh huh… Better than usual, I think. You didn’t wake me up at all.”

I chuckle, “Good! I’ve been feeling kinda proud of myself, for once I’m up first.”

Evie sits up in her bed to do a deeper stretch into a forward fold, and then she pushes the rest of her blanket away. She slides off her mattress to quickly make her way to mine, and I lay my head back down so that we can share a kiss. She lingers, sleepily leaning her cheek against my upper lip as she yawns.

“I’ll go get breakfast started,” she says.

Her position slumped over my mouth makes it harder for me to talk, but I manage to quietly murmur, “Noooo, not yet.”

I set up the tunnels and ladders in the apartment about two weeks ago now, but Evie’s still very excited about her newfound independence. She’s been getting into the habit of heading to the kitchen on her own first thing in the mornings and doing as much meal prep as she’s able. Yesterday she used a small plastic knife to make the beginnings of a peanut butter and banana sandwich. She’d managed to gather the bread and peel, cut and arrange the banana all on her own. She did end up needing me to open the jar of peanut butter, but I’ve been impressed with her resourcefulness all the same.

This morning I’m feeling particularly clingy, though. I don’t want her to go.

“You don’t have to get up,” she tells me, completely missing the point. “Take your time, I’ll at least go put bread in the toaster today.”

She gets back to her feet and starts walking away, but she doesn’t even reach the end of my mattress before I gently grab her leg. “Nope,” I say as she yelps and loses her balance. I start dragging her back towards me with a grin. “You’re not going anywhere.”

She giggles and manages to writhe out of my grip before sliding right underneath my pillow to hide. I push myself up, laughing as I uncover her again and whine, “Let me love you!”

Playful shenanigans aside, Evie is ultimately completely amenable to spending a little longer in bed. After dealing with some more overenthusiastic kissing from me, she makes her way to the collar of my shirt and tucks herself inside with her head sticking out. I hold her against my chest as we relax and she tells me about the dream she was having. The warmth of her body against mine is so comforting. Ugh, do I really have to go to class?

“Two more weeks,” I murmur after a lull in the conversation, and I smile as I feel her reaction under my fingers. She always perks up enthusiastically whenever I refer to our upcoming cabin trip.

“Less than that!” she chirps. “Closer to a week and a half. And there’s supposed to be a cold front hitting that area so it’ll be nice fall weather too!”

“Yeah, it’ll be perfect for campfires that way. How have the cold weather clothes been coming along?”

“I finished crocheting two scarves, and I’ve got a bunch of socks now. I’m almost done with the warmer pants too. I’ve been procrastinating on the coat, though… I really need to get it done.”

“Anything I can help with?”

“Umm, I’ve been meaning to add a hood to it so… I might have some stuff for you to cut out when you get home?”

“Mmkay. No problem.”

“Hey babe?”

“Hmm?”

“I really am starting to get hungry.”

With an amused exhale I finally relent and release her from my loose grip. “Okay, fiiiine…”

Evie wriggles out of my shirt and turns back to look at me when she reaches the night stand. “Seriously, take your time!” she says, putting a hand out to encourage me to stay prone.

“Yeah, I might be lazy and stay here while I answer some emails,” I mutter, reaching for my phone again.

“Leave it to me! I can just bring your breakfast to bed.”

I laugh and joke along, “In that case, I’ll have eggs benedict. Make sure they’re poached just right.”

“Right away, sir.” I beam at the glint in those beautiful brown doe eyes of hers and then watch her turn and scurry away down the tunnel. Off she goes.

I procrastinate on my phone for a while before going through a few of the emails like I’d planned. Subconsciously I’m keeping an ear out for any worrisome sounds coming from the kitchen, but for the most part I’m able to trust that Evie’s doing just fine over there. Eventually I notice that a good half hour has passed, and I decide I should finally roll out of bed and make sure she was able to find something to eat.

As I sit up, my eyes fall onto the plastic tunnel on the wall, originally meant for ferrets but perfect for shrunken women too. I’m pretty proud of the setup. I’ve always felt content with carrying my girl to wherever she needs to go, but I’ve been surprised by just how much of a joy it’s been to have her come to me sometimes. We’ve haven’t had this new setup for all that long yet, but it’s already done wonders for her confidence and overall mood.

There are still a few kinks to figure out, though. Lately Evie’s been lamenting the fact that she only has one toilet, which she wanted to keep in the more central location on the desk. It’s a bit of a hike for her to get there from the kitchen or from my room, so her current plan is to have makeshift chamber pots around for emergencies, but her engineering brain has already started trying to figure out the mechanisms of the metal contraption that was in Dr. Little’s old briefcase. Maybe we’ll be able to replicate it at some point. She’d also like to replace the ladders leading to the floor - particularly the ones in the kitchen and at her work shelf. She’s convinced that she can come up with a pulley system to create miniature elevators, and I totally believe she could do it.

I’m smiling as I get up to leave my bedroom, daydreaming about the future. Having a tiny roommate with tiny furnishings is fun. I feel like I could live like this forever. How cool would it be, assuming I’m graduated and have a stable job, for us to buy a house, maybe even build it custom, with Evie’s situation in mind. If we owned the place we could actually do things like cut holes in the walls for her tunnels to pass through, or alter the electronics and water lines for her to be able to use them as well. We could build a sheltered little outdoor area, almost like an aviary, so that she could safely enjoy some fresh air whenever she wanted. Maybe we could even get her some kind of vehicle to get around faster–

A tiny voice suddenly reaches my ears in a shrill scream, “Aiden, AIDEN!”

I was in the middle of walking out into the living room, but as soon as I realize the direction the voice is coming from, I snap to my senses. I almost fall over as I jerk backwards and lift one leg up high. I have to reach a hand out to the nearby wall to steady myself, heart racing as I look down. Evie’s on the floor. Oh my god. I hadn’t noticed since I was passing through a doorway. I nearly just stepped on her. Holy fuck.

She was in the middle of launching herself backwards and away from my incoming foot, so she’s fallen over, eyes wide with panic. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen her look at me in terror like this. For a second I’m completely frozen in place, horrified, caught between the desires to either get her off the ground or drop down to her level. But seeing how scared she looks right now, my better judgment tells me that the last thing she needs is me hurtling towards her in any capacity. I take a couple of shaky steps backwards, giving her some space, before kneeling down on the floor.

“You’re okay,” I whisper in an attempt to reassure her, “Everything’s fine… Fuck. I’m sorry."

I watch Evie trying to get a hold of herself, and she manages to take a couple of deep breaths as she sits up straighter. “N-no, I’m s-sorry… I shouldn’t have come down h-here without w-warning you, that was stupid…”

Now that I’m able to evaluate the situation a bit more clearly, I’m thinking things through in the back of my mind. From my trajectory, I don’t think I was actually going to land on her, maybe just kick her aside at worst. Plus, if I’d felt the slightest thing against my skin I’m sure I would have been able to stop myself before putting my weight down. I desperately want to believe that I didn’t just almost kill my girlfriend by accident.

I’m trying to meet her gaze as I barely manage to keep my anxiety in check. God, I hate how freaked out she looks in my regard. She keeps dropping her head for a second, as if wanting to put her face in her hands while she struggles to catch her breath, but then quickly looks back towards me, clearly afraid to take her eyes away. I hate that, I hate feeling like this menacing monster. But I don’t blame her for being on high alert right now. It’s hard to imagine what she just went through…

I need to focus. Does she need more space or less space right now?

Before I can ask the question out loud, Evie answers me. I’m far enough away that this is hard to make out, but I think she’s got tears welling up in her eyes, and her bottom lip is quivering. She reaches her arms out to me, and I immediately lower onto my elbows and then lay down beside her. We silently embrace, her slender body fitting in the space where my nose meets my cheek. She’s still a bit shaky but she’s fully leaning into me, and we breathe out in tandem. I’m relieved to feel her muscles begin to unclench now that we’ve made contact. I’m glad I can still bring her comfort despite what just happened.

After a solid minute of us calming back down in silence, she lets out a tremulous breath. “I think you would have missed,” she says with forced confidence, echoing my own sentiments from earlier.

“I think so too,” I agree. “Still… that was scary.”

“I don’t have to come down here anymore. I just spilled some oats on the floor, so I wanted to go down and gather them up… and then I thought it’d be easier to go straight to your room to come see you, but… but I can stay up on the counters from now on.”

I wage a battle within myself. My paranoia around her wellbeing is agreeing wholeheartedly to never risk anything like this again. But at the same time, I don’t want to see that confidence of hers slip away as she loses bits of her independence once more. Her safety is absolutely crucial, but her freedom is important too. Maybe there’s another way.

“I mean, I’ll leave that up to you,” I say evenly, “but… um… If you were to go down then, yeah, a warning would be good? Just so I can be extra vigilant. And maybe try to stick close to the walls? But I feel like I’d normally notice you easily, it’s just because I was turning a corner… I think this was really bad luck.”

“Yeah… Yeah, okay.” Evie buries her face into my cheek, sighing audibly. “We’ll figure it out. We always do.”

It’s hard to feel completely reassured right now, the aftermath is too raw. She’s right, I’m sure we’ll be fine, but… this was quite the sobering reminder that we do indeed have a couple more things to still figure out.

[Olo]

@littlest-lily I guess it’ll be a while before Evie can convince Aiden to indulge her in some “unaware” roleplay.

[littlest-lily]

@Olo Yeeeah, that kind of playfulness is probably not going to happen in their near future

[littlest-lily]

Chapter 67
Evie

Finally, finally, finally! I may have been overhyping this cabin trip a wee bit at this point, but… it’s finally here!

I thought I was going to lose my mind during the over-three-hour-long drive it took to get here - there’s only so much entertainment that Aiden and Moira can offer me when I’m trapped in a pocket for that long. But then we exit the car and I pop my head outside. I take in the expansive oranges and browns of the trees, the sound of squirrels chattering, the smell of wet leaves, the refreshing crisp fall air in my lungs… Yup. This is exactly what I was looking forward to.

The cabin itself looks positively picturesque. It’s two stories tall with red cedar walls and a deep green roof. It’s well surrounded by trees and is even bigger than I imagined from the photos I’ve seen, and yet it still looks so quaint and cozy. As much as I hated having to move all the time in my adult life, I’ve spent so much time in one spot since I’ve been shrunk, and the change of scenery is so appreciated.

The three of us have gotten here slightly before the Ignacios, so we’re able to settle in for a little bit, taking a brief tour of the bottom floor together. The living room is cavernous, even to my giant friends I’m sure, taking up the entire two stories and sporting massive windows. In comparison the kitchen and bedrooms feel almost cramped, but of course that’s speaking relatively since to me everything’s still very vast. Once we’ve taken a look at all the rooms, Moira brings me with her so that we can check out the upstairs while Aiden unloads luggage from the car. Up here there’s an open loft area that contains a bed and looks out over the living room, along with one more side bedroom and bathroom.

Moira sets me down on the bed so that we can chat while she starts unpacking her backpack. I’m doing a whole lot of staring at my surroundings, my head twisting this way and that to take in the rest of the loft. There are a couple of couches up against the window and opposite banister, a pool table, a mini fridge. This palace of a cabin is a lot to take in.

“Sooo. What do you want to do first?” Moira asks me, looking entertained by all of my wide-eyed wonder.

“I don’t know!” I say, a little breathless. “Umm, since it’s too windy for a campfire, maybe we chill inside and play Magic tonight?”

“Hell yeah. Oh, and I brought some spa stuff! I’ve got face masks, a body scrub, nail polish…” She’s pulling the items out as she lists them, separating them into a smaller bag for later.

“Sounds great.” I grin and let myself collapse back onto the covers so that I can stretch my limbs. “I don’t know why the car ride felt that exhausting, my legs are all sore. I’d love to have some spa time soon.”

“Especially with the hiking we’ll be doing tomorrow,” Moira points out, “We’ll be nice and primed.”

I laugh. “You mean the hiking you’ll be doing. I get to hitch a ride.”

She pauses in her unpacking to join me, resting her arms nearby on the bed as she smiles my way. “Hey, you have to go on long hikes on the daily. You probably deserve to relax more than any of us.”

“Says the workaholic,” I scoff, sitting up so that I can scoot closer and touch her forearm. “I’m glad you’re finally getting a vacation, Mo.”

“Me too… I mean, I do need to get a little bit of work done… I’ve been slacking on making social posts lately…”

“Moiraaaa,” I sigh.

“Well, this sure feels cozy!”

We’re interrupted before I can further scold my friend for bringing her work to the woods. I thought I’d heard creaking come from the stairs and sure enough - Aiden’s made his way up to the loft as well, taking his first look around at the furnishings.

Moira flinches, not having noticed what I’m sure were much more subtle sounds to her. She pulls away from me to turn towards him, sitting back on her heels as she quickly recovers and says, “Isn’t it? This’ll be the perfect spot for me.”

Aiden takes another minute or so to poke around at the nearby rooms while Moira and I wrap up our conversation. Then he comes back to where we are and offers his hand to me, laying it onto the bed cover.

“You want to come set up your space, Eve? The others should be here soon.”

“Sure!” I get to my feet and hop aboard. It actually feels particularly nice in the warmth of his palm right now. I can sense the fact that we’ve traveled further north, the air is chillier here. I’ll need to unpack my jackets and socks first and foremost.

We knew that we picked the smallest of the bedrooms, and it’s even more cramped than we had anticipated. I’m fine of course, but my poor boyfriend has trouble maneuvering around the bed. He focuses on taking everything out of my bag first - we’ve brought my bed, toilet, phone, one of the shelves to store clothing, and a ladder in case I need to reach the ground. I unpack my garments onto the shelf, and then raise an eyebrow at Aiden when I notice he’s not unpacking much of his stuff at all.

“Can’t find a spot to put your clothes?” I ask.

“Eh, it’s only three nights. I’ll live out of the suitcase.”

“Fair enough. I guess when you’re camping in a tent you probably have even less space.”

“Mm-hmm. I don’t mind this at all.” He plops down onto the bed and smirks as he brings his face closer to the nightstand. “And I especially don’t mind being in a tight space if I’m crammed into it with you…”

We’ve barely had time to start making out before we’re interrupted by a car door slam outside letting us know that the second half of our group has arrived. I catch a glimpse through the nearby window at the Ignacios exiting the car. Star is looking cute in her cable knit sweater, Diego seems comfortable in shorts and a T-shirt despite the chill… and there’s Camila, looking like a movie star as usual. Her perfect waves are pulled back into a ponytail, she’s wearing a fashionable skort and crop-top, wedged knee-high boots with a fur lining, and designer sunglasses perched on top of her head.

I find myself rolling my eyes at how out of place she looks, and then I berate myself. Be nice, I think. I’ll be seeing her from today - Thursday - until Sunday morning. Plenty of time to, um… bond. Maybe this weekend we’ll finally hit it off.

The six of us gather at the entrance and I’m able to greet the others from my partner’s shoulder - even Camila shoots me a smile, which I gratefully return. Everyone trickles in their luggage bit by bit as they find their home bases for the weekend. Diego and Star will be sharing the main bedroom downstairs, just next door to Aiden and me, and Camila will be staying in the side bedroom upstairs by the loft.

I hang out with Moira in the living room as my boyfriend gets roped into helping Camila get her three suitcases up the stairs. I try not to think about how the two of them are alone upstairs as I make plans with Moira to join her in her yoga practice tomorrow morning. Eventually we’re all gathered again in the living room, and I’m reassured when Aiden gently yoinks me from behind so that I can sit with him on one of the couches.

“So!” Star exclaims once we’ve all caught up on how our drives went and have shared in our excitement for the weekend. “Since it’s so windy tonight, I’m guessing that’s not great for the campfire?”

“Probably not,” Aiden says apologetically, “I can try to make it work, but it’s probably not the safest. Forecast is showing that tomorrow night should be way calmer, mind if we switch my dinner plans with yours?”

“That’s fine! We’ll go start working on the stew then, yeah? So that we don’t eat too late.” Star turns to her husband for confirmation.

“Aye aye, cap’n!” Diego says as he stands.

I wave as the couple leaves for the kitchen, and I find myself sighing as I drop my arm again. I’m actually starting to feel a bit overstimulated at this point, if I’m being honest… I’ve gotten more used to hanging out with multiple giants at once, but rarely are we all in the same room at the same time, especially in such a new and exciting environment. It’s going to be a long night of festivities, so I eventually decide that I might need a little break before the food’s ready.

“Can you set me down?” I call up to Aiden from my spot at the crook of his elbow. “I just want to grab something in our room real quick.”

“I can go get it for you,” he says, brow furrowing as he looks down at me.

“Nah, I’ve been doing a lot of sitting today, I should stretch my legs. I’ll be right back.”

He hesitates for a beat longer. It hasn’t been that long since our close call back at the apartment. We’ve gotten into better habits since then - I’m much more careful about lining the walls now if I’m ever on the ground, and we’ve had zero issues since. Everyone else here has been briefed about how to watch out for me too. But still, I’m sure that moment where he thought he had almost stepped on his girlfriend still has him rattled.

“Alright, yell if you need anything,” he says, scooping me off his arm and extending his hand to the floor. I’m sure I don’t need to point out that as soon as I’m no longer in the living room he probably wouldn’t be able to hear me. It’s the thought that counts, I guess.

Camila, who has been discussing one of her classes with Moira, trails off as she notices what’s going on opposite to her. I step onto the ground, grateful for my heavier duty socks as I can feel a layer of cold radiating from the hardwood floor. She locks eyes onto me and raises one eyebrow.

“Aren’t you worried about running into a spider or something?” she asks with a small smile on her face.

I glance up at her and feel a little dizzy. Even at home, looking up at Aiden from down at his feet, as if he truly was a skyscraper, is enough to make my insides squirm. And now the unfamiliar hulking furniture, the towering group of titans, particularly the dark-eyed beauty who already makes me feel rather uncomfortable… Yeah, I’m starting to rethink this plan. Oh well. I can push through.

“I’ll be fine,” I say, feigning confidence best I can.

“There shouldn’t be as many bugs around this time of year anyway, not in this area,” Aiden adds reassuringly.

Not wanting to extend this exchange, I quickly make my way towards the nearest wall as they resume their conversation. It takes me almost ten minutes to get to our room and climb up the ladder to my little camp on the nightstand. I change into a slightly warmer jacket to justify why I came here, and then I take a few minutes in the quiet to steady myself. I knew that a lot about this trip was going to be a bit intense. But I’ve got this. I’m going to have a fun evening and a fun weekend. I’ve been looking forward to this trip so much, and I know it’s going to be worth it.

I slip back out into the hallway when I start feeling mild tremors that are growing in strength. And then I notice a shadow up ahead before seeing a colossal figure turn the corner. Oh jeez, it’s Diego. He must be taking a break from cooking to go grab something from his room. Just a 150 foot giant heading towards me, no big deal…

He quickly notices me walking alongside the wall, his smile growing in acknowledgement. He slows down as he gets closer and asks me, “Need a boost? Or you’re good?”

He’s honestly so tall that I’m not sure he’ll be able to hear me very well from the floor, so I just flash him a double thumbs-up and he seems to get it. He keeps moving, and so do I. That’s pretty cool, this ability to coexist so seamlessly. I don’t plan to wander around on my own all that often - hell, in a place like this, I’m sure bugs really are more of a concern than they are back at the apartment. But it’s nice to know that I have the option of keeping some independence if I need to grab a snack or something.

By the time I get back to the living room, I can tell Aiden’s been casting frequent glances towards the hallway. He notices my movements and straightens up with a smile, and I wave before hurrying to him. He plucks me back off the floor, and once he’s set me onto his knee, I sit with a tall back full of pride. I know my little trip was so minor, but I kinda feel badass from it.

Things really pick up soon after that, and we end up having a blast this first night. We gather around the dining room table for the hearty stew that the Ignacios made in the cabin’s cast iron Dutch oven. We discuss the hiking trails that we plan on checking out tomorrow. We play a lighthearted party game all together, and then we eventually meander to the living room. Aiden gets a fire going in the hearth while Moira fetches apple cider for everyone, and soon we’re sprawled around in a circle, half of us on chairs and the other half on the floor as we chat.

I do bristle a little as Camila sits on the ground particularly close to Aiden and I, leaning against the couch right next to his legs. I think I saw a couple of subtle frowns from the rest of the group in her direction, but everyone regains their composure so fast that I question whether it even happened. I get over it very quickly.

“So does anyone have Halloween plans?” Diego suddenly asks.

“No” is the general consensus, and Star immediately follows that up with, “We should dress up and go somewhere! Like, as a group. It’d be fun.”

“Hmm… What should we dress up as?” Moira wonders.

Diego points his finger in my direction. “Well, what should Evie be? Let’s start there.”

I startle, pulling my legs into my chest self consciously as I shift back on the couch armrest. “Oh, I don’t have to be part of this,” I say, feeling embarrassed.

Star leans forward as she urges, “No, you have to be! Think about it. Halloween might be the only time of year you can be out in public and people won’t question it.”

This thought makes me pause. I’ve gotten so accustomed to hiding. The thought of being out in the open in any capacity, pretending to be a toy as part of someone else’s costume, is a little scary at first. But the more I consider it, the more I think it might be freeing too. Finally I relent, “I guess that’s true… Uhhh… Maybe I could be a fairy or something?”

“You could be Tinkerbell?” Aiden suggests with a smile. I’ve been gradually having him watch all of my favorite childhood movies since he missed out on a lot of the classics as a kid. Due to his particular interests, he was quite familiar with Peter Pan, but recently we decided to watch it anyway.

Moira seems excited by the idea. “Oooo, yeah, we could be a Peter Pan group! That’d be so cute.” She nods in our direction. “Aiden, I guess that makes you Peter?”

“Hmm…” he muses, and I shiver with pleasure as he runs a finger along my back while he thinks. A playful smirk lights up his features. “I kinda want to be Hook, actually. Then I could pretend I’ve captured you in a lantern… you know, if you ever need a break from any crowds.”

I laugh. “Uh huh, pretend, sure. I just won’t read too deep into the fact that you want to be the villain.”

The others chuckle, but meanwhile I’m already daydreaming about this potential opportunity for my boyfriend to dress up as a sexy pirate. Camila jumps in with uncharacteristic eagerness as she beams over towards her cousin. “I think Diego should be Pan. Green tights and everything.”

We all laugh even more at this casting choice. But Diego’s completely unphased and agrees heartily, “I have noooo problems being the main character!” He swoops his arm around his wife to pull her in closer. “I guess that makes you my Wendy, darling.”

Moira turns to Camila with a giggle. “You want to be a lost boy with me?”

Everyone seems eager enough that this plan might actually happen, and I start feeling more and more excited about the prospects. We end up discussing a group trip to Disney World too while we’re on the subject, which would be so expensive and logistically complicated that it probably won’t happen, but it’s fun to dream. It’s so nice that everyone’s in this good of a mood, and the number of times that I get interrupted due to simply not being heard is at an all-time low. We don’t stay up very late since we’re all tired from the drive, but man what a wonderful first evening this was.