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@SmolChlo So true It’s the one kind of overstimulation I crave…

Part 2: Down to Earth

Chapter 19
Aiden

It’s an absolutely gorgeous day out today. The sun is just cloud covered enough to not be too warm, the breeze is light and pleasant. I’ve yet to be bothered by a single fly or gnat and the sound of distant birdsong fills the air. The garden is in full bloom around me, carpets of peony and iris encircling the patch of soft green grass where I’ve laid out a blanket. The park is completely empty of any other people on this Saturday morning, just a beautiful, quiet, peaceful spot.

I hardly take notice of any of it. At the moment, my attention is entirely on the little creature before me who’s taking tentative steps over the surface of our picnic blanket. Her three-inch frame is just heavy enough to make the cloth bend under her bare feet as she absently meanders back and forth in circuitous patterns, her hands making wide gestures as she tells me a story. I’m currently laying on my stomach, propping myself up on my elbows, a long-abandoned book tucked under one forearm. A perpetual smile tugs up the corner of my mouth as I can’t keep my eyes off of this tiny woman who unknowingly has my heart under lock and chain.

“So what was I supposed to do then?!” Evie exclaims, throwing her arms out emphatically as she looks up at me.

“Did you think the basement was haunted?” I ask, biting back laughter as I wonder what direction this tale will go.

“Of course I did! Why would the freaking chief of staff lie to me about what he saw?!”

She pivots on her heel to resume her pacing, causing her hair to whip and her dress to twirl just above her knees. God, she’s so cute.

“But of course, he had already left because he thought it would be hilarious to let the youngest team member close up shop alone on Halloween night. I never imagined he’d be hiding down there to jump out at me. Worst prank ever.” She pauses dramatically before a sly smirk forms onto her tiny face. “But what he didn’t know was that I was carrying a crowbar I found just behind the basement door.”

“Oh, damn!” I say, my eyebrows shooting up. “Is this about to take a really dark turn?”

“Nah. I did swing when he popped up, but the light was so dim that I completely missed. Scared the crap out of him though… Served him right. Anyway, that’s another reason why I don’t like going underground.” Evie lets herself collapse onto the picnic blanket so that she’s lying on her back. “Much prefer the sunlight anyway. I wish the weather could be this nice all year round…”

As much as she seems to be enjoying the sun, the beam that’s shining down on us at the moment appears to be blinding her - she’s squinting and putting a hand up to her face. I scoot forward a little bit, looming over her so that my head casts a shadow onto her body. She gives me an appreciative smile.

“Yeah, I can definitely tell the fresh air’s doing you some good,” I murmur.

“It is!” she exclaims, stretching her arms over her head contentedly, “I’m totally high on it.”

“I should open the windows more often at home then. It would be good to air out the place anyway.”

“Sounds great. And thanks for bringing me out here so often, Aiden! I always thought this was such a dinky little park and never came here in the before times. Such a fool I was…” She flips over onto her stomach and gazes out past the edge of the picnic blanket. “Think it would be a bad idea to go exploring? I’ve never really done that.”

“Mmm, I don’t see why not. Let’s just watch out for things like broken glass. And bugs.”

“You mean like that giant scorpion?” she says, pointing out ahead.

“What?!” I yelp, head snapping up to look wildly at where she’s gesturing, and without thinking I’ve already darted my hand forward to form a wall in front of my vulnerable friend. I scan the grass and barely register my own confusion before I hear the melodic sound of her laughter.

“Kidding,” she says, sitting up so she can tap my wrist reassuringly, “April Fools.”

“Jesus, Evie.” I grin weakly as I look back down at her, feeling pretty dumb for having fallen for that. Surely she would have sounded at least a little concerned if it had been for real. “Who’s the prankster now?”

“Yeah, I don’t know if I’m cut out for it. I didn’t mean to scare you, I feel bad now.”

“Don’t. You got me good. I’ll just need to come up with some form of revenge,” I tease, extending my index finger to poke at her stomach and making her giggle as she skitters backwards.

In the back of my mind I’m processing what she just alluded to. It’s already April 1st. In just another week it will have been two months since the incident that dramatically changed both of our lives. We’ve settled into such a comfortable routine that I almost wonder if we’re doing something wrong, that it shouldn’t have been so easy to figure this out.

Well… okay, not everything has been easy. Especially at night when I go to bed and all I see are images of her when I close my eyes. But I’ve kept my promise to myself. And despite how much I’ve been struggling with these problematic feelings, I know she still has it way harder. She spends most of her life alone on a desk.

I’ve actually been feeling a bit worried about her lately. Evie’s been incredibly resilient throughout this whole thing - she hardly ever seems intimidated anymore by how much bigger I am, or the size of the rest of the world for that matter. She has all sorts of projects for herself now, having made a whole new wardrobe and crafting tools, and recently voicing interest in building furniture too. We’ve even started discussing maybe opening an Etsy store for her to sell miniatures once she gets the hang of it. Considering how recently the shrinking happened and the fact that we have no idea if or when we’ll ever be able to fix her, she really has been amazing in making the most of her situation.

But something’s a little off. Over the past week or two, I can’t help but feel like she’s been trying to keep particularly busy in an effort to stay distracted from something. There are a million things that could be bothering her. Boredom. Loneliness. Frustration over her limits. Missing things about the past, worrying about the future. Whenever I try to ask about how she feels, she always tries to reassure me that she’s doing fine.

As much as I care about Evie, that’s one thing I don’t love - the way she closes in on herself sometimes. I wish she would open up to me more about whatever’s troubling her… She’s always there for me when I’m feeling down, but it tends to be a one-way street. I’ve found myself wondering time and time again if I’ve done something wrong or if there’s more I should be doing for her.

At least the outdoors seem to be putting her in a genuinely good mood. She gets back up to her feet now as she asks me, “Are final exams coming up soon?”

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” I sigh, “I’ve still got a while, they start mid-May. But it’ll be here before I know it…”

“You’ve already started on that Hydrology paper though, right? I’m sure you’re way ahead of schedule.”

“Yeah, I’m trying not to procrastinate… Especially because work will get really busy just before exams too. But I’ll still have so much studying to do.”

Evie’s slowly making her way towards the edge of the picnic blanket, but she turns around now to give me a sympathetic look. “Not gonna lie… I don’t envy you. As much as I wish I could go back to class.”

I shift my weight so that I can lean my chin on my hand, smiling down at her as I take on a lighter tone. “Oh yeah, about that. I’ve been meaning to tell you, I’m planning to sneak you in with me on Monday. I thought it might help with your studies.”

"Wait, what?” Evie freezes in place and looks at me wide-eyed, going a shade paler and beginning to stutter. “Are you s-serious? How would we even… why would we–”

“Ha.” I poke her right on the forehead this time as I give her a smirk. “April Fools.”

A wave of relief washes over her before she smiles up at me, crossing her arms and wrinkling her nose. “Touché… Alright. Now we’re even. I’m gonna go explore." And with that she turns and marches towards the grass.

I watch her for a moment, marveling at the ease with which she traverses what must be an unsteady, bumpy terrain. She looks so much more confident now than she used to be… As if she was made to be this little. Though in reality, no human this small belongs in the world, and I straighten up a bit to scan the patch of grass ahead, feeling paranoid about any potential dangers. Evie looks a lot more cautious once she gets to the edge of the blanket, reaching out to feel a nearby blade of grass.

“In all seriousness, I do wish there was a way I could come with you,” she says, keeping half of her focus on our conversation.

“I mean, we could try,” I say, also only half paying attention, “More than anything else, it just seems like that would be incredibly boring for you. Just stuck in my pocket for however many hours.”

“What I’d be worried about is other people. Those chairs are really close together. All it would take is someone walking by while you’re sitting down and there’s a good chance they’d see me.”

“That’s if they’re looking… I wouldn’t expect anyone to try and look. Plus, there would be a million other conclusions to draw first before someone would assume I’m actually carrying a tiny person. Much less confront me about it.”

“Still…” Evie’s fidgeting with the blade of grass that she’s holding. She sounds very nervous, but in that trying-to-hide-it kind of way. “I guess I’d rather not take that chance.”

I take a moment to focus in on her again. Such a little thing… Yes, in some ways she’s gotten more comfortable with her stature. But in other ways she’s still appropriately scared of the outside world.

I lean over sideways, lowering my head to try and get her attention. “You know I’d never let anything happen to you, right?”

She lets go of the grass and it bounces back up, though it’s thoroughly rumpled now. She looks me in the eye and her cheeks are notably more pink. “I-I know,” she says and she gives me a sweet smile that makes my heart melt.

It’s another one of those moments. One where I so desperately wonder how she feels about me. Where the hopeful part of my mind thinks that just maybe… there’s a chance that she’s interested in me too. But I know it’s too risky to ask. I feel like such a hypocrite, wishing she’d open up to me more when there’s this monumental secret that I’m keeping from her. But this is different. It could ruin everything.

Evie looks away again, breaking the spell she had me under. She stares at the dirt just ahead of her and then slowly extends her leg, taking one tentative step. She touches down, feels the earth for a second, and the other leg is quicker to join the first. The grass reaches up almost to her chest, so she has to push it aside as she walks into it, traversing about an inch or two forward before she stops.

“I need to figure out how to make shoes,” she comments, lifting one leg to look back at her already-dirtied foot. “I wasn’t exactly wearing hiking boots when I got shrunk, my old flats won’t help me here.”

I scoot forward again, hovering behind her fretfully. “Seriously, let’s look out for bugs.”

“Will do. Though I’m not particularly afraid of them…”

I chuckle softly, keeping my eyes just ahead of her for anything that looks alive. “Yeah you say that, until you see the spider the size of a–”

“Aiden!”

I stop short. Evie and I stare at each other, frozen, our eyes slowly widening. The voice came from behind me. We’re not alone.

I’m not sure I can answer these properly haha, it can go so many different ways for me depending on the context. It sorta comes down to the question of what does “my” giant mean? Because if we have a consensual romantic relationship, then I’m not sharing. If I’m his prisoner then I don’t consider him “mine” (and I couldn’t give 2 shits what he does with other women).

@Aborigen Hey, thanks so much for the representation! Also that was fun to fill out, I’m curious to see what other people write

@frollo Yeah I’m particularly bothered when people aren’t transparent about it (and pretend it’s their work, try to sell it, etc)

Chapter 20
Evie

Sometimes it’s hard to even remember there’s a whole other world outside of Aiden and me. I’ve been stuck with only one other person for so many days now that I consistently lose count. I like him, thankfully. I like him a lot. He’s my anchor, my comfort blanket. But it’s not until this moment that I realize he’s been my everything.

I reflexively cower at the sound of another voice. Somehow every time we’ve gone outside, we’ve been lucky and not run into anyone - at least, not when I was out in the open like this. The only other person I’ve physically seen since shrinking was someone who might have killed or tortured me if he had his way. The memory floods my system and I start trembling.

I can’t see her yet, but I’m starting to sense vibrations through the ground, the rhythmic thumping of approaching footsteps. This is clearly someone who knows Aiden since she called out his name, but right now he’s not reacting with recognition. He’s just staring at me, having gone very still with shock.

I need to hide.

If we had responded right away, maybe I could have made a dash for his pocket - he’s lying down so he probably could have scooped me right in without it looking suspicious. But we’ve been hesitating too long. So instead I finally leap into action and do the only thing I can think of. I dart right under the edge of the picnic blanket.

“Aiden?” The girl says again, and she’s closer now. This time he reacts. I’d ducked under where the fabric had buckled, a little cavern half held up by grass. The blanket roof quakes as the giant above me sits up.

“Oh, hey Taylor! How’s it going?”

“Not bad! I work nearby and was headed home. It’s been a while, how’ve you been?”

They’re so loud. I find myself holding my hands against my ears, trembling as I try to process what’s happening. He’s just chatting casually with a friend… Everything’s fine… I slowly get used to the volume as they talk, eventually pulling my hands away again. I didn’t realize how much Aiden has been tempering the intensity of his voice when he’s with me. It’s probably similar to how it’s become second nature for me to project my own voice more than I used to.

Gradually I calm back down as I listen to the nearby titans talk. This is an old classmate of his - I find out that they used to have an evening class together last semester. She must be a PhD student since she mentions the thesis she’s working on. I start feeling a little awkward about listening in on their conversation like this… I stare at the ground and begin idly messing with bits of dead grass and dirt, some of the grains more like pebbles to me.

I can tell Aiden’s trying to evade this and keep the conversation as short as possible. This makes me feel even more uncomfortable, and I wish I could tell him to take his time, I can wait. I haven’t caught a glimpse of her, but she certainly sounds really nice and easy to talk to… I wish…

I wish I wasn’t down here. I wish I was normal. I want to jump in, say hi, have him introduce us. Chat for a while in the sunshine. Instead I’m sitting here in the dark. In the dirt.

A couple of minutes into the conversation, I let out a quiet sigh as I reposition myself, going from crouching to sitting. I glance up as I do so and almost let out a yelp of surprise. There’s movement in the grass. A second later I see the outline of some kind of animal. It’s about the size of a small dog… but it has too many legs. I catch the shape of its head and realize it’s an ant.

I hold very still, distracted from the booming conversation in the sky by this creature that’s even smaller than I am. It meanders vaguely in my direction, like a lobster looking for algae at the bottom of the sea. I’m fascinated by the way it behaves, the erratic movements as it circumvents blades of grass. It looks completely unbothered by its place in the world, not even capable of lamenting how tiny it is. I find myself smiling at it.

“So what’s your thesis about?” I say softly, chuckling to myself. For a moment I think the ant might be reacting to the sound I made as it pivots towards me, antennae wiggling furiously. Can ants even hear? Maybe I shouldn’t find out. I keep my mouth shut.

Eventually it wanders off to the side, but with a growing sense of unease I notice it’s not alone. Two more appear, moving closer to me this time, and then there’s a fourth one. These aren’t fire ants, I think they’re carpenter ants but… can they still bite? I start carefully backing away, and they don’t quite give chase but still fill in the gap that I’d left behind. Nervously I turn and crawl deeper under the blanket, trying to find a safer spot. The fabric shifts as I push against it, creating a longer cave, until finally it collapses behind me and I’m left in a little pocket of space. At least this blocks off the ants. But now I’m really in the dark. Blades of grass press in on me from every direction, poking at my face. I’m feeling increasingly claustrophobic.

Oh, thank god. Aiden’s conversation is wrapping up.

“Well, it was good to see you! Take care.”

“You too, Taylor, have a good one.”

I feel the thudding vibrations, now growing fainter over time as she walks away, and then I hear a sigh before a fervent plea, little more than a whisper that’s further muffled by the blanket.

“Evie? Where are you? I’m so scared of crushing you right now…”

Pushing upward on the heavy fabric, I get to my feet, loudly calling, “Here! I’m right here!”

I feel movement in the ceiling. For a second I desperately pray that I’m really not about to get crushed, but then suddenly I’m blinded by light and the blanket lifts right off of me as Aiden folds it back. When my vision clears, I realize with a panic that there are at least a dozen ants that are now gathered near me, moving in every direction.

“Pick me up, pick me up!” I yell, hopping and pressing into the wall of fabric that the giant’s still holding. His other hand comes down quickly, grabbing me between his fingers a bit less delicately than usual in his haste, and I catapult upwards.

“What’s wrong, are you okay?” Aiden asks breathlessly as he rights his hand out, letting me slide onto his palm.

I try to catch my breath, peering over the side of his hand, but the ants are now harder to make out in the grass. I look out past his shoulder, catching the shadow of the other giant, at this point much further away. Then I look up at the face of my friend, who looks tense and confused.

“Y-yes,” I finally stutter, “Thank you, I’m good. You were right about bugs being scarier now… But nothing bit me, everything’s fine.”

Aiden nods, glancing to the ground. He might not even be able to make out the ants in the grass from here. “Sorry that took so long,” he says, looking at me again, and then he winces at the state I’m in. “Next time we’ll have a better plan… so that you don’t have to crawl around on the ground.”

I look down at myself and realize I’m covered in dirt. “Oh wow, yeah, I need a bath!” I exclaim with a laugh, now able to see the humor in the situation. “And I barely got any exploring in first. I suck at this.”

As if he’s gotten permission from the fact that I’m making light of it, Aiden cracks a smile too. “Nah, this is how it’s supposed to happen. You’re becoming one with nature. We’ll be able to go camping together in no time.”

We decide to go home then, and I’m relieved to retreat into the comfort of his shirt pocket as we traverse back across campus. Once I got used to it, I’ve been finding the swaying of his gait weirdly relaxing. And we can still talk when I’m in here, quiet conversations that occasionally get interrupted by him clearing his throat, signaling we’re about to pass by other people.

At one point we run into another acquaintance of his, a guy this time, although they don’t say much outside of “Oh, hey!” before they move on. I don’t even catch the dude’s name. I just hold as still as I can through the encounter and find myself wishing again that I could meet this person too.

My thoughts drift back to when I was younger and had a fuller social life. I think of my old best friend Lynne and her oversized smile - she was the best baker and gave the best hugs. I haven’t deeply thought about her, or any of my former friends, in quite a while. The list of close friends I had was short, and most of them were from before I graduated high school. Before my mom was… no longer in the picture. Things were pretty different after that. Still, even just acquaintances like my classmates and coworkers, I miss being able to talk to them.

I start standing up within the pocket the way I always do once I hear the keys go into the lock, popping my head out as Aiden steps into the apartment. The air inside is actually a little cooler than the air outside, highlighting the changing of the seasons.

“Home sweet home,” I sigh as I hop from hand to desk.

I feel so tempted to go flop onto my bed after all of that excitement, but I thankfully remember how filthy I am first. I had tried to refrain from picking bits of dried grass out of my hair while I was still in the pocket, so that I didn’t leave too much of a mess. I instinctively grab my dress around the waist, desperate to clean it and myself, before I stop myself. Yikes, I’ve gotten so used to having a giant around that I almost just stripped naked while he’s still standing right here. I know we’re pretty comfortable around each other, but that would be wildly inappropriate.

“I’ll start making lunch while you wash up,” Aiden says brightly, and I’m not sure if he could tell what I was itching to do. “Paninis alright?”

“Yesss, paninis sound amazing,” I respond, grinning up at him and trying to casually let my arms hang loose again until he eventually leaves.

I start getting a bath ready, finally able to rip my clothes off now that I’m in the bathroom. I’m still having intrusive thoughts about how Aiden might have reacted if I’d suddenly started undressing, and it makes me blush furiously with embarrassment. It’s not like he’d be able to see much detail unless he got real close. But still…

After waiting for the water to warm I slip into the ceramic tub, and then shortly after I jump at the sound of Aiden’s voice nearby.

“Just a warning - I’m about to open the window, okay? Cover your ears.”

“Okay!” I yell back and follow his advice, though I still flinch at the thunderous crack of the window opening a second later. Sounds of the outdoors drift in - cars driving by, the ebb and flow of a warm breeze, distant voices of passerby a story below.

The heavy footsteps retreat and I sink deeper into the tub, feeling an intense warmth in my cheeks that has nothing to do with the bath. He’s built this bathroom with privacy in mind, and I trust that he’s not trying to peek in here anyway. But usually he doesn’t even come close to the desk when I’m bathing. Maybe he’s also getting a little too comfortable…

Armed with clean skin and a fresh new outfit, I happily come out to eat once the food’s ready. Aiden’s cut me a tiny triangle of grilled sandwich that he’s pressed as flat as he can - I can smell the fresh herbs, the shredded chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella… I feel really proud of him actually, and maybe a little proud of myself too. His cooking game has been on point lately and I’d like to think I had something to do with it. I still wish I could cook something for him, though. I don’t think I’ll ever not feel embarrassed about the fact that he needs to feed me like I’m his pet mouse.

We chat about his classes for a little bit as we eat, and as the conversation stalls my mind wanders to something I’ve had tucked away since this morning. “Hey, um…” I start hesitantly, “I don’t mean to pry. The girl at the park today… Taylor? Were the two of you close?"

I notice a narrowing of Aiden’s hazel eyes that he does when he looks a little perplexed. I suppose this feels out of left field. “You’re not prying. But nah, we weren’t that close. Super nice girl, she got along with everyone in that class. But we never really hung out outside of school.”

I feel a bit deflated. I try again.

“What about… um, I’m trying to remember where you’d sit in Biochem. It was always with this burlier guy, right?"

“Yes, you’re talking about Diego… Okay, that guy is one of my friends. We’ve known each other since we were kids.”

Feeling a bit more successful, I perk up and continue questioning, “What’s he like? Wait – how have you been friends for that long if you moved around so much?”

Aiden had taken another bite so he takes a second to swallow before he explains. “Our parents were friends, so I’d see him every summer when I’d visit my aunt in Arizona. We kept in touch pretty well and ended up coming to the same college. And then somehow this semester we figured out how to be in a class together despite us going for completely different careers - he goes to the nursing school here. He’s um… quite the character. I’ve known him forever so we butt heads a lot, but he’s a good guy.”

“Do you see him much outside of class?"

I’m starting to push this a little far. My giant friend tilts his head but still answers me, “A little bit, we get lunch pretty often. And he drags me to the gym every chance he gets.” His eyes narrow again as he adds, “I’m trying to figure out what you’re getting at… it looks like you have something on your mind?”

Right, okay, my barrage of questions isn’t very subtle.

“This morning, um…” I say and then sigh, “I think it just kinda hit me that you probably don’t see your friends as much as you used to.” The confession is heavy with remorse that I’m sure isn’t lost on him.

Aiden’s silent for a little bit, pausing in his eating and observing me intently with a small frown. “Please don’t worry about that,” he finally says gently, “I still see my friends. You remember, I’ve gone out to dinner with them before?”

“Yeah, like, twice…” I say, sounding more guilty by the second. “Just… please feel free to go out more than you do. I’ve got the fridge, I’ve got entertainment, I’d be fine staying on my own more often. I don’t want you to abandon your social life for my sake.”

“I… I appreciate it, Evie.” The corner of his mouth ticks up and he does that thing where he lowers his head just a bit to better meet my gaze. “But you’re my friend too, you know. I never mind spending time here with you, okay?”

Damn. His kind words never fail to make me blush.

I nod appreciatively and then swiftly find a way to change the subject. For today I forget about it all, and I manage not to think about old friends from a previous life. I have him… At least I have him.

@Olo So having the girl “deserve it” is actually not a trope I personally enjoy. Even as a kid, if a bad guy who did the shrinking got shrunk themselves in the end and justice was served, I didn’t like it that much. I think it’s because it makes it harder for me to self insert/empathize with the tiny. Not that I think I’m totally flawless or anything lol, but I don’t think I’m deserving of getting shrunken down against my will. And nah, even in my imagination I don’t have any interest in being “bad” and deserving of punishment. I suppose I just prefer the idea of the shrinkee being an innocent victim (or it’s a happy consensual thing).

I’m curious to know how other tiny ladies feel though

I don’t know how much I have to contribute, but my feelings around feet are complicated so I figured I’d just share them lol

I definitely don’t think I have an “IRL” foot fetish. I don’t generally mind them, and I find some more appealing to look at than others, but that’s about as far as it goes. Then again, like Chloe said, I think I’m far more adverse to the idea of admitting to a foot fetish than a size one, so maybe I’m subconsciously suppressing something for all I know.

In any case, it’s a very different story when it comes to sizey scenarios. Then I’m totally down for foot play! Part of it is the fact that I’m into almost any body part as long as it’s gigantic, but there is something extra about being down on the floor at his feet where I’m most vulnerable, or about being pinned under a single toe - there’s an extra layer of domination/humiliation/playfulness there that I enjoy a whole lot. I still vastly prefer handhelds, but I think I might actually like foot play over mouth play (not by much, but still).

But I do have mixed feelings about a lot of foot content. For one, I personally have zero interest in them being smelly/sweaty, I’m not into the gross factor in general, and that can be really hard to separate. I’ve even seen some foot fetishists say that it comes with the territory and you can’t have one without the other (I disagree, but a lot of the content still seems to revolve around that aspect).

And then the other downside I’ve found is that I haven’t always had the best experience with the people who are into it. I used to include a bit more foot content in stories, and I stopped doing that as much, in part because I felt like I was getting negative attention - those who commented on that part tended to just demand more and ONLY really cared about that (and I just assumed everyone else wasn’t really into it). I now suspect that my vision of things is skewed, because I’ve run into multiple people who like all kinds of things and yet it was only later on that I realized they liked the foot stuff as well, because they didn’t really talk about it at all (heck, I might put myself in that category). It’s enough of a taboo, even in these subcommunities, that maybe people either are all about it and go ALL in, or they opt not to mention it at all, even if they do like it. Maybe I’m totally off here, just speaking from my own experience!

@SmolChlo I’m notoriously bad about taking pictures when I’m hanging out in VRC. I do like this little moment when I was trying to take some selfies right as my friend goes in to grab me lol

Chapter 21
Aiden

It’s been a few days since our eventful visit to the park, and while the adventure seemed to give Evie a little pep in her step at first, I can tell the pain behind her eyes is getting worse. It’s so subtle but it’s there. I see it in the way she blankly gazes out of the window, or how she’s losing interest in her studies, or her sluggishness when she’s cleaning her space. It’s getting to the point where I wonder if I need to sit her down to have a conversation about it. I’m hesitating because I’m not even sure she’s conscious of any issues herself, and every once in a while I wonder if I’m making the entire thing up. I don’t want to make her uncomfortable if I’m wrong, so I keep putting off talking to her.

School’s getting pretty busy anyways. Work’s increasingly hectic too as more and more students start showing up to my office hours, to the point that I feel like I’m teaching mini lessons for large groups outside of my usual teaching days. I try to stay ahead of my workload, knowing it’s going to get especially crazy in a few weeks as we approach final exam season.

After a particularly rough Wednesday where I finish my day way later than usual, I see a text from one of my friends as I’m about to head home, inviting me to dinner plans with a few other guys. I remember what Evie had told me about spending more time with my social circle… I wouldn’t have time to swing by the apartment first, but she should have enough lunch leftovers in the mini fridge to cover for tonight. Although that would mean her eating the same thing for lunch and dinner… I wonder if going out would be too selfish of me.

But then, the more I think about it, I don’t want to go out. Apparently when I’m feeling stressed, the selfish desire is to go home and see her… So that’s exactly what I do.

I can already feel the tension in my shoulders begin to evaporate the moment I step through the doorway and see Evie’s small figure over on the desk. She gets up from sitting in front of her phone, adorable smile at the ready.

“Did the presentation go okay?” she calls out once I’m close enough to hear.

I just want to scoop her up and bring her to the couch so I can hold her while we chat. But I keep myself in check - I only just got back, I should give her a second to transition from whatever she was doing.

“It went alright, I think,” I respond, stepping up to the table. “I’m just exhausted. Are you hungry?”

“I’m actually fine for now, I had a pretty big lunch,” she asserts. “Do you have a lot of studying to do tonight?”

I’m in the middle of pulling my wallet out of my pocket to retrieve my usual daily note. I still found a way to write a quick response between classes.

“I have a little bit to do but it can wait, I desperately need a break," I sigh. With my free hand I slowly use two fingers to walk my way across the surface of the desk towards my tiny friend. “I was kinda wanting to watch an episode of something…?” I say hopefully.

Evie laughs at my approach, matching the gait of my fingers to meet me halfway, then she playfully shoves at my hand to try and get it to flip over, which I immediately let her do. “You know I’m always down. Lead on!” she chirps, and then smoothly climbs aboard.

Yessss, I think to myself, another layer of stress melting away at the feeling of her body on my palm. I love how easily I can lift her right up… There’s just nothing like having a finger-sized friend to relax with.

Having been distracted by my precious little prize, I’d almost forgotten that I’m still holding the note with my other hand. I go to set it down into our paper mailbox, when I realize it’s already occupied.

“What’s this?” I ask, leaning in to take a closer look. Sitting in the box is a teeny tiny paper crane, only about half an inch in length.

“Oh yeah, I forgot!” Evie exclaims, holding tightly to my hand as I bend over and she goes along for the ride. “I tried origami today, I found a how-to video. I thought it could be fun to write notes inside.”

I put down my letter to delicately pick up this new creation. It’s so small… As I cup my hand, the paper bird tumbles down the length of my fingers before it comes to a stop. I hold it up to my face to try and make out the details. It’s a little on the bulky side just due to the thickness of the paper, but the folds are incredibly precise.

“That’s so cool, Evie,” I mutter, imagining her folding up this thing, in awe of the fact that to her the starting piece of paper must have still been sizable. “The only problem is I don’t think I could open this up without destroying it. I wouldn’t want to undo it anyway…”

I sense her eyes on me as I hold her at chest level and she lets out a chuckle. “I thought you’d say that. Don’t worry, I didn’t write anything in that one. I can make them bigger, that’s just the only square bit of paper I had.”

“Can I keep it?”

“Sure, knock yourself out.”

I carefully put this new adorable prize back down, letting it roll off my palm to the desk. I make a mental note to find a safe spot on my nightstand later to display it.

“Okay, let’s go veg out,” I say, straightening back up and smiling at my miniature passenger, and she eagerly nods in agreement.

Ever since a certain event I’d rather forget, I usually try to avoid putting Evie anywhere near my lap. Instead I deposit her right up on my shoulder, and she walks along the top of it with nimble, confident footsteps. I open up my laptop to power it on, making conversation with her as the computer boots up.

“So what have you been up to today? Other than learning a new origami talent?”

“I’m still trying to figure out the best way to make work gloves. I think I might need to re-learn how to crochet.”

“Hmm, not a bad idea. Need any more toothpicks or anything?”

“No, I’ve still got a few. I might need more sandpaper soon though?”

“Sure, I have some left. I’ll cut out more pieces for you after this.”

“Thanks, Aiden.”

The computer’s on now and I start navigating to the latest anime we’ve been tackling from our list, a lighthearted comedy where the main character’s trapped in a fantasy world. I feel Evie pad over to my neck and sit down right beside it, and I fight back the urge to shiver with pleasure. She keeps talking as I click.

“That woodworking forum has been inspiring though. I think I made a friend on it.” Her tone shifts a little lower. “Well, sort of. We talk most days in any case.”

I go very still. There was something about the way she said that, it’s setting off all sorts of alarm bells in my head. Something is slowly dawning on me.

“That’s great,” I say gently, “But… it’s not quite the same, is it? As seeing a friend in person?”

She leans her weight against my neck. She’s too close for me to see her but I can feel a subtle trembling, and she speaks so quietly that I wouldn’t be able to hear her if she wasn’t right below my ear.

“No.”

I close my eyes. Finally. This is it, I know it. I can tell by the strain in her voice. At long last I’m figuring out what’s been weighing on her so heavily. As soon as I have the thought it all seems so obvious.

I want to look her in the eye. I offer Evie my hand again, holding it right in front of where she’s sitting on my shoulder. “Can we talk about this?” I ask softly.

She doesn’t move right away, her whole body tensing up. I hear her take a deep, shuddering breath and I’m trying to be patient and let her climb on voluntarily. Finally, she slides forward, silently stepping onto my palm.

I bring her out in front of me and she avoids my gaze, her face a mask of calm. “It’s fine,” she says tightly, forcing a smile but still not quite looking at me. My jaw clenches at the sight. She’s closing right back up again.

“Hey, there’s no shame in admitting that you’re lonely,” I tell her, “It’s beyond understandable.”

She’s completely silent now, gazing off to the side. For whatever reason, she obviously has a lot of practice when it comes to hiding her true feelings. But she’s still not very good at it. It’s so clear to me that she was born with her heart on her sleeve, and she’s the most in her element when she isn’t weighed down by whatever pressure she’s putting on herself.

The quiet drags on and I’m beginning to feel frustrated. “C’mon, Evie, talk to me.”

“What’s the point of admitting it?” she says sharply, finally looking at me. “I can’t do anything about it anyway.”

I’m a little taken aback by the snappy tone that’s very out of character. But I keep my tongue in check and don’t miss a beat, not wanting to squander this opportunity. “Sure you can. We’ve got options. I know you didn’t have time to make friends here, but what about friends from before? Maybe we can at least set up a phone call?”

“I haven’t kept in touch with any of them. I haven’t been that close with anyone.” There’s a pain in her voice that’s unlike anything I’ve heard from her, and it hurts me to see it.

“What about that girl from when you were younger - the one who got you into anime? It sounded like you were really close with her, right?”

“I… God, I don’t even know if she’s a her anymore.”

I do a double take, not having expected this response. “Come again? You mean she’s trans?”

“Maybe? I don’t know, at one point she started talking to me about being confused about her gender. But I never really found out what came of that. My mom overheard us talking about it and… I haven’t seen her since. I had to change schools and everything.”

Yikes. I’ve gotten the impression that her mom was neglectful when Evie was a kid, but this is something else. “That’s… pretty extreme,” I say, “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“It was always like that. I’ve learned to deal with it. I’ll be fine, Aiden. You’ve had a long day, let’s just start the episode and forget about this. Please don’t worry about me.”

It’s true that this hasn’t started out as the relaxing evening I was hoping for. But I’m glad I decided to come home. I cup both hands around her, and with a new, very careful gesture, I brush my thumb against the side of her face.

“Of course I’m worried about you,” I insist earnestly, “Listen, I can’t be the only person you talk to for the rest of your life. Right?”

A tear spills down her cheek then, abruptly. She pulls away from my thumb and wipes at her face angrily, her movements stiff and jerky, before she lets out a frustrated sigh. “I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried looking Lynne up on social media before with no luck, I’m not even sure that’s her… their name now. I haven’t seen them in ten years.”

My heart rate’s picking up. She seriously hasn’t had a friend in ten years? It’s not like she’s unapproachable. It’s not making any sense.

“No… no coworkers?” I attempt weakly.

“Aiden, I’ve got no one. Please. I don’t want to get into it. Please, t-trust that I’m okay. I’m still happy here. It’s fine.”

I can feel her shaking and now there’s fear in her eyes along with the pain. I don’t understand. But I finally decide to back off.

I’m silent for a few moments, desperately trying to think of a different way to help. And then an idea presents itself out of the gloom like someone trying to get my attention from behind. I consider it, turning it around in my mind, until I think it might actually be the right answer. I can only pray that Evie will be open to it.

“Okay…” I finally say. “Hear me out.”

@SmolChlo Seems reasonable to me! I would not being a fidget toy myself 🥰

@Aborigen Can’t tell you enough how appreciated it is that you gave us a voice in your show! I’m sure I can speak for everyone when I say the doors to the dollhouse are open for you to hang out anytime

@foreverlurk Dammit! So much for a micro size benefit being harder to spot…

Chapter 22
Evie

God. How did he talk me into this?

I’m pacing along the edge of the ottoman, mechanically breathing as slow as I can. It’s not keeping my heart from practically vibrating from how fast it’s beating.

I hadn’t realized just how fragile my world feels. One misstep and everything could shatter…

I pace back and forth and back and forth, until there’s a sound coming from outside of the apartment that makes me stop in my tracks. Distant voices are echoing in the hallway, getting closer. One of them I recognize. The other one I don’t.

My stomach is twisting itself into a knot and my heart might very well explode. The jingle of keys, a sound that usually fills me with joy, might as well be a death knell. I’m all the more disoriented by the fact that I’m on the ottoman right now and not the desk as usual. The door clicks and starts opening and I hold my breath.

There she is. My new would-be friend.

And the most unexpected thought hits me. She’s so small.

Okay, that’s really dumb. Obviously she’s still massive, easily the size of a building to me. But as the two giants walk inside, I can’t help noticing that the top of the stranger’s head doesn’t even reach Aiden’s shoulder. She must be under five feet tall, quite petite to the average person. A couple of months ago I would have had to look down at her instead.

I catch sight of her face and it completely matches her delicate frame. She has deep green eyes that look so big, perhaps in part due to her smaller facial features. Freckles dust the space across her nose and below her eyes, faint yet still visible against her pale skin. Her strawberry-blonde hair is tied into a loose side braid that hangs over her shoulder with a ribbon tying it off. Despite her relatively nonthreatening appearance, the only other time I’ve seen a second person in the room since shrinking was Dr. Little, and I’m trembling–

“Evie?”

For a moment my attention is pulled away by Aiden’s voice when he steps towards me, smiling warmly as he takes the lead.

“I’d like you to meet my friend Moira,” he says, just a formality since he had already told me her name beforehand, and he slowly lowers himself to the floor by the ottoman. Even though he’s not touching me or anything, his proximity is helping my nerves to settle somewhat.

Moira follows and her eyes meet mine. If she feels any sort of shock at the sight of me, she hides it well, giving me a wide, friendly smile. She’s wearing a really cute spring floral dress, which she smoothes out before she descends onto her knees before me.

Even her voice is delicate, and she seems to intrinsically understand the need to not speak too loudly. “It’s so nice to meet you, Evie. Thanks for having me over.”

I swallow, hoping my own voice doesn’t fail me. It’s still tripping me out seeing another person like this. “It’s nice to meet you too.” Okay, good, I got it out. I might have sounded a little shaky, but I think I’m starting to calm down.

My new acquaintance seems to hesitate then, and with a quiet breath in I try to step up to the plate this time. I reach a hand out as if wanting to shake hers. She straightens up a bit but otherwise hardly flinches before her smile softens and she extends her hand to me, instinctively reaching out her index finger. I take it with a shy smile.

Holy crap… I’m actually taller than her finger. I’m so used to Aiden’s hands, and it’s strange to see one that’s quite a bit smaller - not to mention her skin’s a little softer and paler, and her nails are painted. I linger on this last part, tilting my head to take a look.

“That’s a nice color,” I remark, letting go of her finger and gesturing at the pearly dark blue, almost black hue of her fingernails.

“Oh, thanks!” she says, stretching her fingers out to look at her own hand for a second. “I know it doesn’t really match the season, but I was feeling a darker shade.”

“Aaaand it sounds like girl talk has already started,” Aiden says with a laugh. “I’ll let you two chat while I get dinner going.”

“See now, I’ve always thought Aiden would look good with a nice pastel color,” Moira says with a little smirk at the giant who’s now standing up. “What do you think, Evie, maybe a lavender?”

“Nope, nope, I’m outta here.” He’s still chuckling and I tentatively join in on the laughter, although I feel a new wave of anxiousness as I watch his figure retreat. This was part of the plan, I know he wanted to give us some time to talk, but being alone with a gigantic stranger is nerve-wracking all the same.

Moira’s gentle attention is back on me now. Her big green eyes with mile long lashes might have been unnerving if it wasn’t for the fact that this girl seems to have a resting happy face. “So Aiden tells me you’re getting him to watch Fruits Basket soon?”

Oh, good, she’s into anime too. I’ve always found a shared nerdy interest to be a great conversation starter. “Yeah, I’ve only ever watched the original when I was younger… I’ve never seen the full story so I’ve been wanting to check it out.”

“Ooo, I’ll make sure not to spoil the ending then! Which of the two guys are you rooting for?”

“Um… You know, I don’t usually like the angry types, but I remember the guy with the orange hair was growing on me…”

It’s a little awkward that we’re just kind of ignoring the fact that I’m three inches tall. But I’m honestly thankful for it. I wouldn’t have thought I could ever experience this again, simply discussing common interests with someone and seeing how our personalities mesh, nothing more. It’s nice to be momentarily unburdened by the size difference. I’m still uncomfortable with the whole thing, but the more I talk with this easygoing and charming girl, the more I loosen up.

I find out that Moira works at a local ceramic studio teaching pottery classes for kids and adults alike. She met Aiden through a Magic tournament three years ago, they bonded over some fantasy author I’ve never heard of, and then they started their own mini book club for a time. She loves animals, practices Tai Chi and plays guitar as a hobby. I feel like such a boring person in comparison, but she never acts that way, eagerly asking me questions about my interests in turn.

I’ll admit it. She’s so nice. If I was my normal size I would have already asked for her contact information and promised to take one of her pottery classes. But… can I really trust her the way I am now?

Distant sounds and smells drift over from the kitchen as we talk, but I haven’t realized how much time has passed until I notice the sound of approaching footsteps coming from behind me. An arm reaches out far over my head, holding a gigantic plate of food.

“Here you go,” says Aiden as he hands our guest her portion. “Sorry guys, that took a little longer than I thought it would.”

“No worries, this looks great,” Moira says, gratefully accepting the food from him, and then he makes another round trip to the kitchen to fetch the rest.

“‘Scuse me, Evie…” is my warning before large fingers appear from behind, slipping around my body to gently relocate me a few inches to the side. Aiden sets his own plate down on the ottoman then as we use it as a makeshift dining table.

For the first time, Moira seems to openly react to my stature. Her eyes go wide the moment I get picked up, and she’s blinking in shock even after the fact. At first I have no idea why and nervously shy backwards in confusion.

“I can’t believe how casually you just did that,” she finally says to Aiden, before bringing her attention back down to me, “Y-you’re okay being… manhandled like that?”

I guess I hadn’t really thought of it that way. “I’m fine!” I say quickly, “We kinda had to get used to that sort of thing. Just makes life a little easier.” I crane my neck back to look up at my friend sitting by my side, shooting him a smile. He looks a little embarrassed at having been called out for the spontaneous gesture, but he returns the smile anyway.

Moira looks from me to him and back again as she mutters, “No kidding…”

I walk up to Aiden’s plate, having noticed that my miniature dish and toothpick utensils are resting on the edge of it, and I take a seat to settle into the meal. It’s the homemade gnocchi I taught him how to make, along with his signature pesto sauce that I’ve had a couple of times now. I would have expected him to just cut up a few pieces for me, but it looks like he actually rolled out some tiny balls of dough before cooking them, as small as the peas that are also in the dish. They’re still bigger than softballs to me, but I appreciate the effort all the same.

“Damn, Aiden,” says Moira after she takes a bite, “I didn’t know you could cook like this.”

“I couldn’t,” he replies nonchalantly, then points down to the top of my head, “You’ve got this one to thank.” My ears go warm but I proudly sit a little taller.

Our guest covers her mouth to suppress a giggle. “Have you seen Ratatouille?”

“That’s what I said!” I exclaim.

Aiden laughs and hangs his head in mock defeat. “Alright, I get the message, I guess I need to see this movie.”

“Maybe Evie can finally get you to fill in the gaps on all the kids movies you missed out on during your sad, sad childhood.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to watch them!” he says with the feigned exasperation of a running joke. “But no one else ever wants to watch them with me.”

“I will absolutely watch them with you!” I pipe up, surprised at my own confidence as I hold my own in this conversation between titans, “Be careful what you wish for. I could marathon Disney movies all day long.”

Aiden lets out a breath of laughter and tells Moira, “Evie’s really big into animation too - clearly.” He taps me lightly on the shoulder, now directing his attention to me. “You should ask her what her hobby is.”

“Other than guitar?” I say, getting excited at the lead up.

“Yeah, I guess I have a lot of little side projects,” Moira admits, “I’m actually an animator too. If I can manage it, that’s my true long term goal, I’d love to do it for a living.”

“Whoa, seriously?” My eyes widen and I’m almost feeling a bit starstruck. “Do you do 2D or 3D?”

“Both. I’ve only started learning 3D modeling in the past year or so, but I’ve been definitely preferring working in three dimensions so it’s really become my focus. Sort of ties in with the pottery thing and the Etsy shop.”

“I didn’t know you had an online shop,” Aiden says with raised eyebrows.

“Yeah that’s a pretty recent thing too. I’ve been busy!”

I’m glad Moira and I had the chance to talk one-on-one since I otherwise would have probably been too timid to say much of anything as we eat, but instead the conversation is lively. It feels like fresh water for a withered section of my soul, slowly restoring a part of me that I didn’t realize was dying. We talk about her side hustles, then deviate into stories from past jobs, and Aiden and I pop in with tales of our own from when we were younger.

As is the norm, I don’t even manage to get through half of my plate before calling it quits. I used to feel bad about this, as if I was wasting massive amounts of food. But in reality the amounts that are left would barely register as a few crumbs to the average person.

The evening starts winding down and soon enough it’s time to draw this social event to a close. As our guest politely alludes to the fact that she should be headed home soon, I feel a warm pressure from behind. Aiden’s gently leaning the back of a finger against me, a surreptitious movement that’s actually a signal we had planned out ahead of time. I clench my hands into fists and take a quiet, steadying breath. Then, without quite looking at him, I nod.

“Before you head out, Mo…” he says slowly, “Would you want to try holding her?”

Moira starts, surprised at the suggestion. I knew I never could have made that request on my own, so I’m relying on the big guy to break the ice. Although now as I sit here with nothing more than a shy smile to offer, I feel a little ashamed for not having the courage to handle this myself.

“S-sure,” she says nervously and then she pointedly meets my gaze, appropriately bringing me into the discussion. “Is that alright with you, Evie?”

“Yeah!” I say with a slightly too-high tone of voice, getting to my feet. “It’s… I know it’s weird. But sometimes it’s, you know, unavoidable, so…”

“No, it makes sense,” she says with a half smile. “I’m just a little scared."

Scared? Of me? I take a step forward, tilting my head up at her, and joke, “I won’t bite, promise."

“No, it’s not that. Just…" She shifts uncomfortably as she keeps her eyes on me. "I don’t know… How can I not be worried about carrying a human life in my hands?”

I feel a warmth in my chest that’s melting away the fears and doubts. This right here is all it takes to realize that… yes. I can absolutely trust this girl.

After a brief pause Moira quickly adds, “I’ll be really careful. But you might need to walk me through it?"

I’m at a loss for words now, not at all prepared to give any kind of instruction. My initial experiences with getting picked up were completely at the whims of the titans who had shrunk me.

Aiden comes to rescue. “Just lay your hand flat right here," he says, clearing off Moira’s empty plate from the ottoman to give us some space.

She dutifully does so, palm side up, the tip of her fingers just an inch or two away from me. Her hand really is so much smaller than what I’m used to. The entire thing is only about as long as a hammock. For a moment I feel worried about climbing on, afraid of hurting her somehow, like trodding on someone’s foot. Until I remember how little I weigh.

I’m still nervous, but I remind myself that I’m way more used to this kind of thing than she is. In an effort to rip the bandaid off, I stroll forward as nonchalantly as I can, stepping onto her fingers and walking down the length of them. Her skin feels soft against my feet, and there’s a very subtle smell of almonds from whatever moisturizer she uses to combat the drying effect of working with clay every day.

“See?" I say, feeling a little self conscious as I stop at the center of her palm and smile up at her. “No big deal, right?”

Moira hasn’t moved at all, just looks at me with gentle awe. “I wouldn’t say that," she murmurs and matches my smile right back. I’d like to think that this is the moment our beautiful friendship officially began.

@foreverlurk An all powerful giant can be exciting sometimes, but I think it’s much more interesting for him to have flaws and insecurities and vulnerable moments and all that jazz