It didn’t take long for the trio of women to reach the entrance - Debbie, Lisa and the red-haired woman. And when they did, the balding businessman, who opened the door for them, also reached the entrance as well. He looked confused. “I called the MCU-” He meant the Micro Labour Union “-So help should arrive…Wait, where’s Keith?”
Lisa spoke up. “If he’s your coworker, then he’s still inside. Either helping a lady or helping himself to some food. B-” But before she could continue, he just started running inside as well. “Ok, thanks.” Lisa looked over her shoulder in disbelief. “Ok! Who cares if you’re running into danger? I don’t!” She yelled back, but it warranted no response.
“Oh hush. If he wants to save his friend, let them. It’s not like there’s any danger.” Lisa rubbed her left temple. “No danger yet. We’re in a human apartment. The chips looked stale, but not rotten. He’s bound to come back! And I did let him go. See?” She motioned to his form, disappearing into the darkness. "He 's going!”
“Geez, stop fighting you two. We just gotta wait for the Bureau, right?” Debbie looked down. “I don’t think they’re coming…we weren’t supposed to come here in the first place…” The lady’s eyes went wide. “Seriously? Fuck, hate being a tiny. So they don’t wanna warn the giant?” Debbie sighed. “If we make it out we’ll probably be given hush money. And if you speak, well…I won’t advise that. Our world? Pfftch. But if it’s the giant’s word? That’s a whole other th-”.
A loud, thumping sound echoed through the room. Debbie stopped speaking in surprise, but nobody was actually expecting it. Although the sound itself was known in every tiny’s soul: the giant they were discussing was approaching. With the sound of the door being unlocked, the apartment’s owner revealed himself.
He seemed young, probably in his twenties. Slightly tanned skin and a muscular build. His face was hard to see from so far away, but Lisa could tell he was handsome. He had short brown hair styled in an undercut, as well as green eyes. As for his clothes, he wore black sport shoes, white shorts and a white sleeveless shirt. From his clothes, she quickly deduced he was either going to work out, or just did.
He seemed to look frantically for something, leaving the door slightly open behind him. As he did, he started to walk closer and closer to their location. His massive running shoes making louder and louder booming sounds. “I think…we’re slightly off his path.” Lisa commented. “But let’s move further just in case.” Her eyes met the other two women. Debbie nodded, and that was all the confirmation they needed. They made a diagonal away from the bag.
Not that they made much distance before he was practically on top of them. Lisa was right, they wouldn’t be hit anyway. What was actually in his path was the bag of chips he had chowed down yesterday. The three that had stayed, albeit knowing a giant was approaching, were left clueless of the happenings outside…until their world flattened unceremoniously.
The seconds prior to his demise, the balding businessman was making way across to their companions. “Keith! What are you still doing here!” He said, catching both the other attention’s. Keith had stuffed his pockets with crumbs. “O-Oh, I’m just helping her.” His coworker yelled louder. “Don’t you hear the giant approaching?”
The woman finally spoke up. “Do you think he’s here to eat this stale-” And just like that, it happened.
Crunch.
A series of crumbs were refined to smaller pieces under the giant’s weight. His feet had landed almost in the middle of the bag, albeit a little towards the opening. Inaudible among the various things crushed under his feet, most of which were stray pieces of chips, were the two buses that remained there. Debbie was right they’d probably fall apart at the slightest bump, but this meant they were utterly crushed beyond usage. Not only destroyed, but broken into incredibly small pieces, the size of the other potato crumbs.
Although worse than that, was the bald businessman who was rushing for the other two. He didn’t feel anything. He was alive one minute, and then he wasn’t. Pushed to the force in less than a second by a man a million times more powerful than him. The strongest among today’s survivors, reduced to nothing but a splatter. His two companions were luckier, since they had walked further inside to grab chips, they had avoided the same fate as him, although the giant was only in the apartment for less than a minute. They weren’t safe until he was out.
Outside, the trio watched as the bag got stepped on. The red-haired woman gasped in surprise, Debbie grimaced. Lisa’s hands turned into a fist. She opened her mouth, but didn’t say anything. She didn’t know for sure they got done for….but if they did…it wasn’t her fault. She told them to get out…so…it wasn’t her fault, right? It was their fault.
She looked away, ignoring those thoughts. “He left the door open…” She mentioned. “We can’t go back through the underground system since it’s still flooded. If we stay here we’ll end up like them…so we gotta go through there.” She pointed.
“Can we do it?” Asked the red-haired woman. “Even if we get outside, can we still get to safety? I mean, it’s raining, right? And there can be people outside t-” Lisa cut her off. “Listen, reddie. I’m going that way. You wanna stay here? Feel free to.” The redhead bit her lower lip.
"She 's right. It’s dangerous and our chances aren’t grand, but our chances are zero here.” Debbie said, reaching for her cigarettes, but stopped. “Damn, I think I left my lighter in the bus.” She looked back at the bag. “Too late for that.” She smiled, her little joke an attempt to lift up the mood. Seems like it worked.
“Also, it’s Ann.” Said the redhead. “That’s my name, don’t call me reddie.”
The trio continued to walk towards the door, albeit in a slower pace for Debbie to keep up. With their backs facing the giant, they weren’t privy to his movements, but after stepping on the bag, he looked down on what just crunched under his sole, his feet slightly retracting.
He reached down to grab, his fingers grasping pressing against it as he grasped it. He raised it to his face. “Huh, forgot this was here.” He said, loud enough for all the tinies in the apartment. The trio continued walking, relieved the giant was distracted. Not so much for the two within the bag. Especially now that the bag was upright, as opposed to horizontal.
This action caused most of the crumbs that weren’t stuck to the bag’s wall to fall to the bottom, including the two passengers within. The fall to the bottom wasn’t fatal. They were already somewhat deep within the bag and the chips provided some minor cushioning, albeit it was still quite painful.
When they fell, the businessman fell face-first and managed to skink slightly into the pile of crumbs. Samantha, the blonde woman,sank a little too, up to her waist, so only she could see upwards to the opening. An uncaring face with green eyes looking at the collection of crumbs on the bottom. There were many, enough for a fistful or two. He couldn’t see Samantha among them, her blonde hair mixing in the colors - and even if she had a different hair color, the bag wasn’t properly lit, nor was he paying much attention. “Ehhh…” The giant said, squinting his eyes slightly. He shrugged. It was food…
The action took less than a second. He raised the bag by tilting it. The bag went back to vertical, then back to horizontal, this time upside down. And like the last time, gravity worked it’s magic, bringing their contents towards his already opened mouth. “Holy shit!” She yelled as they went down. Keith took a little longer to realize what was happening. “Fuck! He’s going to eat us!”
Samanha looked around, noticing one area that was slightly pressed down, where one of his fingers was pitching it. She tried to hold onto it, but it only secured her a place for a couple of milliseconds, after which other chips pushed her down. This only brought her some time. The businessman fell first, landing on his tongue. Samantha, however, continued resisting. When she was just about to reach the end of the bag, she once more tried to take hold of it, hoping to grasp the opening plastic.
It didn’t quite work, she lost her grip just as quickly, but it was enough to change her position so that she landed on his lower lip instead, among an array of other crumbs. Not that this safety lasted for long either. When he closed his lips, it was enough to make Samantha lose her position and fall down once more. “Seriously?!” She asked, not that anybody was there to hear.
Falling down, past his chin, she looked downwards. This time, if she failed to hold onto something, she would surely die upon reaching the floor. The first thing that came to her mind on what to grasp on was his shirt. It was somewhat thigh against his body, slightly due to sweat, she could still see an opening down the rest of his body. But she didn’t care…third’s time the charm? No, she’d probably fail again…
That’s when it hit her. Her purse. She held onto the handle and moved the body away as far as possible, hoping it would be enough to pass to the other side…and as she reached the collar, her hopes were answered. The purse went inside, while she was outside. The handle curved against the shirt’s collar, halting her fall. She felt like the purse’s handle might come off, so Samantha used her other hand to grasp his shirt. And just like that, Samantha’s life was saved a third time today.
The same couldn’t be said for Keith. When the giant closed his lips, his world was thrown in darkness once more. Since all inside was a pile of crumbs (and him, of course), there was no need to actually chew the food inside his mouth. The giant simply tilted his head back and swallowed everything at once. His tongue only tasting the salty barbecue chips as both those, the remains of the bus, and Keith slid back into his throat. If his mouth was a cavern, then this would be a hole leading right to the bottom of the cave.
“No- wait!” He yelled, but nothing stopped. “I’m here! I’m not food!” Yet crumbs started to fall down. “D-Don’t eat me! I…I don’t wa…I don’t want to die!” Yet he would, and he realized so when his leg didn’t feel something underneath him. Gravity pulled his leg down, which in turn pulled the rest of his body down. He fell down the throat, which began to properly contract to send oncoming nutrients to the stomach. Keith, at this point, was just more nutrients to be digested and devoured.
He wouldn’t last very long. The giant was hungry, he hadn’t eaten in a little while, only deciding to devour these chips to get done with them. He’d land on a pile of crumbs that were already scattered enough that, with his weight, they would just give in and allow him to sink in the acid. He would gasp for air - and the acid would simply enter his system before he closed his mouth. And both from inside and outside, he would quickly be turned into nutrients to be burned in the giant’s next work out. Only Keith and Samantha being aware of his fate.
The giant, already having moved on from eating, began to crush the plastic bag, pulverizing anything that had escaped gravity, before throwing the ball half-way across the room. It landed just perfectly on the bin. “Yes!” He grinned, feeling mighty proud of himself. “Oh, right.” He said, remembering what he was actually here for: his water bottle and gym card. So he went to continue his search. Samantha, meanwhile, continued to hang on his shirt, waiting for a time where, if she were to let go, she’d land safely.
His search would continue for a few more minutes, giving enough time for the trio to reach the door. “Out of the fire and into the frying pan.” Debbie said, as they took advantage of the ajar door to slip past. They hadn’t taken much time to admire the apartment that they had entered. The bag wasn’t far from the door, so they just focused on it. But it was the living room, which was connected to the hallway to other apartments.
The hallway’s floor was covered in carpet tiles, meaning that unlike the normal tiled floor of the apartment, they’d have to walk through carpet to actually get out. “There…” Lisa pointed to the left. There was just one set of doors before the actual lobby. Ann looked up and noticed the apartment number. 103. “Wow, like, that’s pretty lucky. Could have ended up on the end of the hallway.”
“Don’t know if anything today was lucky.” Debbie retorts. “But we’re alive, eh? Just a little more walking on these old bones and we can do it.” She placed both hands against her back and pushed slightly, producing some cracks. “Alright, girls. It’ll be hard to see, but just gotta go straight.” She said, a smile on her face. “I reckon we’re out of here in less than twenty minutes.” And so, they continued their fight for survival.
Samantha continued to hang for dear life. Although her arms were starting to get tired, she’d be damned if she’d die after so many close calls today. With the bus, the bag and the fall, she was exhausted, but not willing to give up. Even as the giant continued to search his house, sometimes turning rapidly, she kept on hanging. One hand grasping the shirt, and the other one both the shirt and the bag’s handle. “God why can’t you just lay down in bed or something?” She asked, not expecting an answer, and not getting any.
Instead, she became privy to his every movement. At one point, he had even grabbed a little membership card. It was only a flash to her, but she managed to catch his name: Logan Hooper. The rest was a blur, as he simply pocketed the card without waiting for her.
Eventually, though, he finally found the bottle he was looking for. He grasped it with his hand, opened it in a swift movement, and began drinking. Samantha gasped as she watched him swallow a lake-sized amount of water. Well, it was a lake to her.
“Aaah~” He said, still holding his bottle. He could refill later at the gym. So he continued his path, moving towards the door he once arrived from. He hadn’t bothered locking it, since he would only be here for a few minutes. So just like the trio, albeit having to actually open the door entirely, he exited his apartment. Then he closed the door and locked it.
Of course, this was noticed by Lisa, Debbie and Ann. They all looked back to see Logan. “Fuck, can’t we get a break?” Lisa asked. The only answer was a booming fall of Logan’s running shoe. “Run!” Debbie yelled.
So the three girls did, but they weren’t covering much space. The carpet was like tallgrass and they weren’t going to win a race against Logan. Hell, even if they were the same size, he would win by a landslide. As Lisa ran, she lost sight of her two companions. She felt tense. They were so close to freedom. Would they make it this far only to die by an unaware jock?
“What th- What is this?!” She heard a voice to her left. “Debbie?” She asked, halting her movements. Lisa hesitated…and then went after her. What she saw, however, wasn’t good. Debbie was stuck in some sort of paste…or sauce…or something of that consistency. Seemed like it had stuck to the tile. “Shit Debbie- I…let me get you out.”
Boom. Logan was close.
“Run.” Debbie said, she looked at Lisa, no tears in her eyes, just a will to survive that had been shattered. “Just get out and go…” Lisa blinked. Debbie didn’t deserve this. She was tough as nails, did everything right to survive, but because she stepped into a mess she couldn’t see, she was going to die? This wasn’t her fault…
“Just go!” Lisa felt tears forming. “Do this for me, ok?”
Boom. He was one step away.
“Alright…” Lisa murmured, and continued to run. She ran, closing her eyes. It wasn’t logical, but she just didn’t feel like opening them. And as she continued forward, she heard a ‘squelch’ behind her, as well as a ‘crunch’.
“Ah shit…” Logan said, stopping. He sneered and lifted up his shoes, one hand holding his leg as he turned the sole towards him. Something red against the sole. “Disgusting…what did I step on?” The answer, if anyone cared to know, was ketchup. As well as Debbie, whose remains were impossible to distinguish.
Her last sight was of Logan’s sole, blocking the lights from lamps and casting a shadow. She didn’t utter a word, and had already ceased from attempting to get out. She led a good life, lived longer than practically everyone she knew. She just wished she had time to light up one more cigarette.
“Man, and these were brand new. What a bummer…” Logan said, still staring at his soles. He had already caused the death of three people after finishing his walk, but the only tragedy he could recognize were his new shoes stepping into something gooey. He sighted…then noticed something just slightly in his field of vision.
“Huh?” He asked, his focus shifting from his shoes to his shirt. Samantha was in a prime spot. Against the white shirt, she stood out, and being so close to his head meant she wasn’t far away from his eyes. Now that she was in the lit by the lamps, as opposed to stuck in a dark bag, she was finally spotted.
Although he hadn’t quite realized it was a tiny woman, Logan just had to pinch the strange object and raise it to his face, where it was easier to see. And squished between two fingers: there she was.
“Shit, what were you doing there?” He smirked, his eyes focusing squarely on Samantha. Despite the hell she had gone through, even now he could recognize she was pretty. Blonde hair that reached her waist, as well as clothes better than most her size would afford. Slim with curves in the right places.
“Holy shit…” She said, unsure whether to smile or scream. “You- oh my god. You don’t know what I’ve been through.” She said, lips curling into a smile, albeit one filled with anxiety at being so close to a giant. She had never been this close to one, and especially not the sole focus of one.
“It started when we were in the underground system, then came the water, and then we had to escape and got into your apartment and then-” But before she could retell her woes, Logan raised an eyebrow. “You were in my apartment? Miss, I think that’s not legal!” Despite his words, his tone was still light and his smile still there.
“Well, look, it’s not like that. It was life and death! You know, like-” But he interrupted her once again. “You know, I think we should get to know each other a little more.” With his other hand, he fished the keys to his apartment, turning around and heading back.
“Look that’s generous of you but if you could just drop me back home or- really…like here…” He laughed and gave her a playful wink. “Naw, I think we should go back home.”
As he unlocked the door and went back, Samantha had to wait a little before processing what was happening. “Wait…am I being…kidnapped?” She whispered to herself. Logan didn’t hear, or didn’t bother replying. He just locked the door back once he was inside.
With Logan back inside, Ann and Lisa were safe from immediate danger. Nobody seemed to be roaming the hallway or the lobby. They transversed the carpet and eventually found each other.
“It’s not raining anymore.” Ann pointed out. “Like, we can go back home.” She said, a smile across her lips. “Just wait for the new guy to open the door and we’re free to go!” Lisa didn’t bother replying, although she agreed with everything Ann said.
She could excuse the other people’s deaths. They choose to stay in the bag. They made the wrong decision. But what about Debbie? It wasn’t her fault. She made every right decision and still ended up dead. If anyone was to blame, it was the giant. No, it was the whole system. It was their fault the water got in, one way or another, it’s because they didn’t build it properly. Or didn’t build a system to drain the water and avoid these issues.
“Fuck them all.” She whispered to herself. Even for the people who stayed in the bag, they only got there because of the system. They wouldn’t be there if it hadn’t flooded. Everything was their fault. All the deaths…and it would all be sweeped up so the apartment owner wouldn’t sue. Bullshit…
“Okay, I see you’re super mad, so let’s just wait in silence.” Ann added, tapping her foot against the floor as they waited.
Eventually, someone would enter, opening the door, and they would get out. They parted ways pretty soon after. Lisa didn’t bother to hear Ann’s explanation. Her mind was elsewhere. She walked, making sure not to fall victim to passengers walking the sidewalk like her. The side closest to buildings was supposed to be used by tinies, so she just kept on that lane.
That doesn’t always mean safety, but she didn’t encounter any close calls before getting home. It was pitch-black when she finally returned to her crummy one-room apartment. She didn’t sleep. She just watched television, waiting for the news.
All that was said is that the place went underwater. It was presumed that everyone in Debbie’s and Lisa’s bus died, including the drivers. Rowan managed to drive back to the entrance, probably because he knew about the water issue earlier than anyone else. He was deemed a hero and was given enough money to not work as a bus driver. The reason was undermined, but it was assumed to be one of the other driver’s fault.
Debbie was right, hush money. Even if he had saved so many people, he wouldn’t get that much money. “Just in case he knows we entered that guy’s apartment?” She asked herself…and laughed. “Fuck! Hahaha!” She turned the remote against the wall.
Lisa would later return to the MCU, but was told to take the cash and not tell the story. When she didn’t take it, she was stripped off her job.
She spent a few weeks spending the money she had secured. She wanted to get her story out, but nobody would listen if she tried to. And she wasn’t going to tell the apartment guy, he killed plenty of people for her to know they were dangerous, even when they weren’t aware.
Just when her savings were about to end, she noticed a strange paper slipped under her door. An eye with a red tear…or maybe it was crying blood. She flipped it to read the message.
‘Giants have reigned us for too long. They’ve proven they’re vile, uncaring, sinful and corrupted.’
‘You’ve been deemed worthy to join us. Prove your loyalty and help us eradicate those guilty of atrocious acts.’
She looked down at the paper, noticing the address on the bottom. Her lips curled into a smile.
