Rain on the Pavement

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littlest-lily
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Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Wed Sep 07, 2022 7:03 pm

Hello!

This is a sequel to Raindrops (https://shrunken-women-board.com/phpBB3 ... f=9&t=4248)
Which is a sequel to Rain on the Windowsill (https://shrunken-women-board.com/phpBB3 ... f=9&t=4206)

Or if you prefer, here’s a recap of events thus far!
SpoilerShow
Lily was getting to know her dream guy, Leo, through a dating site and after weeks of chatting they finally decide to meet in person. They really hit it off and she eventually goes back to his place - she comes to find out, though, that Leo has his own plans for how the evening should go.

He reveals that he’s acquired a shrinking device and begins reducing her height against her will, making her gradually smaller and smaller throughout the night. It’s always been his fantasy to have a tiny woman to call his own, and he’s become so charmed with Lily that he wants to keep her, take care of her… and play with her. At first Lily tries to protest and escape him, but she quickly realizes how helpless she is in running, hiding or fighting him off. Not only can the shrinking device manipulate her size, but it can also track where she is so there really is no hope in getting away.

She is forced to cooperate for her own safety while Leo has his fun with her. He continues gradually making her smaller, experimenting with different ways of interacting with her and enjoying himself both in a playful and sexual manner. He is not excessively cruel but has little regard for her feelings as he’s too caught up in the excitement.

Lily does try to confront him during some downtime, and Leo reveals that he’s been planning this kind of thing for a while. He knew he wanted it to be with her after getting to know her, and he shrunk her non-consensually because he also knew she would never go along with his plan. He’s very confident that Lily will come to accept and even enjoy this new life with him, and when she protests at the notion, his response is essentially “suit yourself, I’ll be enjoying this either way.” Her spirit is almost broken that night but she is able to confirm to herself that no, she’s a person and she can’t give up on herself no matter how small she gets (which by the end of the night is microscopic).

After he has his fun, Leo brings her back up to three inches tall, which is how he plans to keep her the majority of the time. He has an intricate miniature house for her to live in with electricity, plumbing, etc, which he will be keeping on the desk in his room. She tries to talk to him again about how impossible it is that he wants her to be happy but plans on keeping her captive forever. He begins showing some early signs of shame and acknowledges how much of a horny jerk he’s been all night. But he reassures her that he can still give her everything she would need for a fulfilling life, down to eventually bringing her back to her full size from time to time once they can trust each other. Lily is flabbergasted by the whole thing but has little choice in the matter.

Thus begins their new life together. Leo does listen to Lily’s concerns and their early interactions are a series of compromises, though largely in Leo’s favor just by the nature of their power dynamics. He is enamored with her but still maintains control over her, and she is scared of him and hates her situation but slowly learns to live with it. Things continue to evolve over the following couple of months.

Over the course of “training sessions” where Leo tries to help Lily get accustomed to being at smaller sizes or in certain interactions, he catches glimpses of some of the trauma he’s caused. When they go back to her apartment to gather a few necessities, he sees her have a breakdown over recognizing all that she’s lost. He slowly learns to be kinder and more considerate, remaining playful but nevertheless working on his impulsiveness. He makes more of an effort to make sure her mental health is okay, including giving her a miniature computer to keep in touch with her friends (though he monitors all of it).

Meanwhile, Lily is forced to accept that she’s trapped. She tries to protest against some of the giant’s antics, especially in the early days, and though he doesn’t completely disregard her, at the end of the day he is the one in charge. She attempts to get someone’s attention while riding in Leo’s pocket and in response he makes her much smaller so that it’s impossible to notice her. She doesn’t want to give up on herself but it’s hard to stay hopeful and it’s exhausting to constantly obsess over escaping.

As Lily stops fighting against her new life so much and Leo learns to treat her better, the two begin to bond more and more. Lily is actually the first to initiate sexual interactions in an attempt to take control of something for once, and her giant partner in turn is much more considerate than he was that first night. She opens up to him more while becoming increasingly comfortable with her own small size. She worries about him when he gets sick and is won over by some of the sweet things he does for her. They spend enough time together that she feels genuine affection for him, despite her never quite forgetting that she’s being held captive against her will.

Eventually, Lily lets her guard down about her own sexual discovery (she was quite inexperienced before all this began). They have sex consensually and both enjoy it, although Lily is horrified with herself as she realizes she’s going too far with her kidnapper. She is conflicted and knows that she needs to have a serious talk with him now that they’ve become so close. She hopes that surely after everything they’ve been through, he wouldn’t be okay knowing how much she’s suffering with the fact that she’s being kept prisoner. She’s afraid to face it head on, though, and decides to give herself one week to put off the conversation and just fully enjoy her time with him.

During the following week, the couple reaches the point that Leo had been hoping for - the both of them happy together. He realizes that he loves her, not just as a shrunken woman to play with but as a person. It’s finally his dream come true. Although he has no idea that Lily is planning to have a very serious conversation with him soon…
As usual, you can expect lots of hand, foot and micro content. And some human drama from time to time :P This one gets a little dark… and quite sappy, meandering and dramatic. But I sure had fun writing it! All the better if someone else can enjoy.


Chapter 1

Deep breaths.

I splash water on my face, trying to get my heart rate to settle down. He’s going to be home soon. I’m out of time. I have to face this.

I fidget with the dark strands of my hair before pushing them back and out of my face, staring at myself in the bathroom mirror. I’m distracted for a moment by a water droplet that had splashed up onto the glass. It’s about the size of a quarter to me but the surface tension is strong enough for the drop to stay firmly in place, not yet sliding down the mirror. Details like this are completely normal to me now. When did I get so used to being such a small fraction of my original height?

For a long time I stare at the green of my own irises, forcing myself to take long, slow breaths through my nose. I try to tell myself that I might very well be worrying for nothing. So much has changed in the past couple of months. Hell, even more has changed in the last couple of weeks. Maybe this talk that I’ve been building up in my head is going to go just fine. Still, I wish I felt a little more prepared. My mind is such a mess.

I pull myself away from the bathroom, stopping by the bedroom to give my little Winnie the Pooh phone charm plushie - which is almost half as big as I am - a quick, tight hug. This helps a little. I glance up at the clock, do some math and know he’ll be back at any second. This does not help at all.

Leaving Pooh behind on my bed, I step out onto the balcony, transitioning from my normal-sized house to the stadium-sized room beyond. I glance around, trying to give myself something to stare at, to ground myself. Looking at the distant carpet below still gives me some anxiety and stirs up painful memories so I quickly move on. I pause for a moment as I look at the window - I’d spent a couple of hours hanging out on that windowsill yesterday morning, enjoying the gentle warm breeze that came in while reading a book and my giant roommate did chores. That was nice.

I keep looking around, unsatisfied with any particular item. I’ve been through hell and heaven both in this apartment. It was here that I was first shrunken down against my will, betrayed by the person I was falling in love with. It was here that I had to get used to being mere inches tall at most, forced to learn how to live in this new world and discover all of the good and bad that came with it. And it was here that I spent so much time with the giant man who captured me. Who looked after me. Who cared about me. And who, despite all of my best efforts, I eventually started falling for again.

My eyes finally fall upon a shirt laying discarded on one end of his bed. I like that shirt. It’s really soft and the fabric is nice and airy, so its pocket is probably my favorite one to ride around in. And the blue is a particularly nice, calming color. I stare at it, imagining the texture of its threads beneath my fingers, the gentle vibrations of a nearby beating heart that’s larger than I am, the smell of cedarwood and fresh detergent and him...

God, I wish the past week didn’t have to end. I feel like I’d finally reached a point where I could say that I’m happy again. After so much fear, so much anger and so much hopelessness, I spent the last seven days letting go of absolutely everything. I wasn’t caring anymore that it was wrong of me to enjoy the time I spent with my captor. Instead we essentially acted like… a couple. A pretty happy one. I continued to face trials every day, still had moments of feeling frustrated with him, plenty of times when I was scared of something he’d do. But I’m able to bounce back so much faster than I used to, the good always outweighing the bad. And it certainly helped that he's seemed so happy too.

But it could only happen because I was in limbo. I made a promise to myself that was so tempting to break, but I know at my core that I have to keep it. The anxiety that I woke up with this morning only confirms how unsustainable the past week’s happiness has been. I have to talk to him. I have to advocate for myself if I ever hope to find long-term peace. I’m not entirely sure what I’m going to say to him today or what solution I’m looking for exactly. But it’s not fair to me that he’s still holding me prisoner. And it’s honestly not fair to him at this point that I’m hiding just how much I’m suffering over it. He wouldn’t want that… I know he wouldn't.

I’m broken out of my reverie by the sound of the front door opening in the distance. My stomach does a somersault and I’m momentarily stunned by the intensity of several emotions at once - nervousness and dread battling against relief and excitement to see him. He’s taking a frustratingly long time to put his things away after work, but finally I hear the thumping of his footsteps coming this way.

The bedroom door is already slightly open and easily pushed aside by Leo's massive form, as tall as a building but such a familiar sight to me now, and he's looking refreshed and happy to be home. Happy to see me.

I’m trying to tame the stupid butterflies in my stomach. I let a smile appear on my face as I call out to him, “Welcome back. Sounds like work was okay today?”

“Yes,” he says with a grin as he starts walking towards the dollhouse sitting on his desk, “Finally, we met all the deadlines this morning and the rest of the day was absolutely boring. It was glorious.”

He brings both hands down to the balcony, and I hop up onto his fingers, long and warm, so that he can lift me up to kiss my small frame and gently snuggle me against his cheek. I feel a pang of guilt at how good his touch feels after a day full of anxiety.

“Thoughts on dinner?” he asks as he pulls me away and I can look into the deep brown of his eyes.

“Is there still some quiche in the freezer?” I ask.

“Yeah, we can do that if you don’t mind waiting for it to defrost. Shall we?”

We go eat in the kitchen and a part of me is wondering if I’m actually able to go through with this. Every time the conversation lulls I’m telling myself, Come on. Bring it up. Now. But the anxiety flares up and the words get caught in my throat, and before I can pull myself together he brings something else up and I pounce on any excuse to avoid the subject.

“You still down for starting Mass Effect tonight?” Leo finally asks as he’s picking up the dishes. “We can continue your sci-fi education.”

“Ohh that’s right. Sure,” I answer, beating myself up internally at having reached the end of dinner and continuing to chicken out.

“Cool! Real quick before that, I need to change out the water tanks for the dollhouse while I'm thinking about it. Want to join me?”

Knowing the process takes a little while, I agree and he picks me up to bring me back to the bedroom. I sit on the desk, pulling my knees into my chest, forcing a smile despite feeling rather miserable, and he continues to chat with me as he messes with the pipes and the filters of the water tanks attached to the house, coming in and out of his bathroom to clean and refill everything. From the way he keeps glancing in my direction, I think he’s realizing that I’m distracted and seems to be debating internally on whether or not he should bring it up.

He takes a stab at what might have been bothering me. “Oh hey, I’m realizing we haven’t talked about your call with Violet at all. How were you feeling about it?”

I’d almost completely forgotten that I’d had a video call with my sister over lunch today. I’ve been so distracted and wasn’t fully there when I was chatting with her. She was doing most of the talking, though. Leo, who was listening in as usual to monitor me, might actually remember the conversation better than I do at this point.

“I’m glad things turned out okay with her boyfriend,” I say truthfully. “I’m happy they could work it out.” I pause for a moment and my mouth is suddenly moving again before I can properly think things through, “Did you catch that she mentioned coming to visit in a couple of weeks?”

I can tell by the look on the giant’s face that he had actually forgotten about this until just now. “Yeah…” he says, snapping together the last of the pipes and sitting back down in his chair. “I did. Sorry, hon. You did a good job deflecting it.”

This is it. It’s the segue I was needing. My heart rate starts picking up. I can’t back out of this now…

“I miss her,” I say slowly, “That part has been… really hard, man. Keeping so much from everyone. Especially my family. Lying all the time. I just… I feel like I’m going crazy.”

He tries a weak smile as a supportive gesture but looks genuinely sad. “I know, love. I’m sorry. Is there anything I can do to help? Other than the obvious?”

“Leo…” My ears feel hot, and my heart is thumping hard in my chest. I take a breath. Here we go. “Maybe we should talk about the obvious.”
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Fri Sep 09, 2022 10:00 am

Chapter 2

I see Leo’s expression shift. We look at each other for a moment. I think he can tell that I’m bringing up something that’s been weighing on me - this issue has been brewing between us for weeks, having gone unspoken for perhaps too long as we became close. I don’t think he was quite aware of it until right now, but in retrospect it should seem obvious. We can’t pretend forever that everything is perfect when there’s still such an obvious elephant in the room.

He breathes in through his nose, sits a little straighter. “Sure. Let's talk.”

I try to tread carefully. “We’ve discussed it before. About getting to the point where we could start growing me back regularly, to my full size. You said that, right?”

Leo’s gaze is piercing, observing me intently. “I did. This conversation’s happening a little earlier than I anticipated, I think. But yes, I figured that once we can trust each other fully that we’d be able to get to that point.”

There’s a heaviness in the air and I try to stay steady. “Do you not trust me?”

At this point he can’t quite keep eye contact, his gaze slipping to the side. “I… I want to, Lily. All things considered, you’ve been handling the transition so well… You've been doing great at staying out of sight in public, and you’ve been keeping quiet on the video calls. But… it’s still only been about two months since you've been here."

Only two months? As if it was a negligible amount of time. As if each day hasn’t been a trial for me. “How long were you wanting to wait?” I ask, gritting my teeth.

He shifts uncomfortably in his chair. “I’m not sure. I hadn’t put a number on it. Can you let me think about this?”

I let out an exasperated sigh. Back in the early days when I was still trying to advocate for myself, it always led to this kind of answer. In general he's so good about listening to me and caring about my concerns… but when it comes to the most important thing to me, he brushes it off. It immediately sets me on edge.

“You don’t really want me bigger at all, do you?” I challenge, tension seeping into my tone. “You like me this small. And you’d rather just keep me this way. Right?”

His gaze softens and he brings his hand up into view. “I do prefer you like this, little one. That’s true.” He gently touches me on the back of the head, and in this moment I feel so frustrated by how he’s acting - petting me like this, using his cutesy names for me. Lately I've been finding these gestures endearing, but right now, when he's being dismissive about something that's upsetting me, it just feels really demeaning.

I shove his finger away from me. “Tell me," I demand, suddenly getting heated, "What exactly do you see me as? Your tiny girlfriend? A… a pet? A sex toy?” That last one slipped out, and maybe it’s unfair, but I’m feeling too riled up to care right now.

Leo pulls his hand back as if I’d burned him. “Jeez, Lily, really?" He looks stung and takes a second to process my tone, my stance, the words I’ve just thrown at him. He lets his hand fall into his lap and says, "I mean, that’s a complicated question to begin with. What do you see yourself as?”

“A prisoner." This one slipped out too. It’s true, but it’s not quite right, and I can tell from the hurt in his eyes that I just did some damage. I immediately want to take it back. “No, it’s…” I sigh. “It’s more than that. Of course it is. Hold on, hear me out.”

He doesn’t say anything, just watches me and waits. I can tell the wheels are turning in his head and he’s starting to question a lot of things about the past couple of weeks. This isn't going in the direction I'd wanted. I have too much pent up and am struggling to control myself. I feel the need to get through to him, I have to make him understand everything I've kept buried…

“Leo.” I pause as I realize my voice is wavering. I clear my throat and try again. “I… I like you. I do. You know how bad I am at lying, you know I've started genuinely enjoying our time together. But… I didn’t… want to like you when this all started. You get that, right?"

He sighs, his shoulders slumping. I’m sensing a bit of frustration in him, maybe because he’s acknowledged and apologized for that initial night several times at this point. "I do. I know I really fucked up that first day. It was way too much shrinking, way too much action, all at once. I know it was terrifying for you and violating and… and I would take it all back if I could.”

I shake my head and press on, wanting to make something clear, something we haven't really tackled before. "That’s not all it was, man. I'm not sure if you realize how… cruel you could come off sometimes. You probably see it more as playfulness. And it's not the same now, but when this all started it was like you were… enjoying taking everything away from me. It just... it still sometimes feels like this is all some kind of game to you."

He considers this. I can tell from the way the expressions dance across his face that I’m presenting him with something he hasn’t fully reflected on before. I give him the time to process it, to realize it wasn’t just the shrinking or even the physical or sexual abuse that was the issue - it was the way he laughed when I was trying to run from him, the way he’d push me past my limits again and again despite all of my begging. How casually he treated my fear.

I start to see a distinct look of shame slowly pass over him as he thinks, and eventually he closes his eyes, taking a deep breath. "I guess I… I think I know what you mean?” he says finally, and it sounds like each word is painful to bring out. “I'm not sure I thought about it that way before. But… the more I think back… I've definitely gotten carried away, especially at first when it all felt so new. I… I was having fun… at your expense. It was just so exciting for me, like all my dreams were coming true, but…" Heavy sigh. "I guess I wasn't treating you like… like a person. I do remember having some 'holy shit, she's really not okay and I need to watch it' realizations later on, so I think it's gotten better over time? I hope it has."

Wow. I didn’t think he would ever be able to acknowledge or even recognize any of this about himself. I’m suddenly wishing his hand was near me again so that I can squeeze it. I can’t believe I’m actually getting through to him. It's like we're sitting in therapy or something.

I keep pushing, wanting to get further. We’ve never been so open about all of this before. "I'm really trying to understand what you were thinking before you shrunk me,” I say, “Because, I mean, it wasn't a spur of the moment thing, right? It was premeditated. I've spent a lot of time with you now and I don't think you're a total narcissist or sociopath or… whatever might lead you to do something so insane. You had that shrink ray ready for a year, you’d known me for a month…” I trail off, staring at his face intently.

He’s still not looking at me, gazing down as he continues to slowly reflect. "What I was thinking… is that we're meant to be, Lily. I knew how compatible we were and I had access to this amazing technology that could make all my fantasies come to life. I was so confident I could make this work long term. Maybe that sounds stupid, now that I’m saying it out loud, after all this time. It was just the ultimate dream for me, and I put a whole lot of thought into the bigger picture and then… didn't really think through the transition process."

Leo glances up at me, looking tense and miserable with shame. Then he looks away again before continuing.

"I'm not a complete idiot, I didn't think you would just be okay with getting shrunken down, obviously you’d freak out. I mean, like I’ve said before, that's why I didn't tell you ahead of time. Maybe subconsciously I did try to deal with that by making light of everything in my mind… But in any case. I knew it would take some time for you to accept it. I guess I just saw it as something we had to get through, and that in the end it'd be worth it, for the both of us. The reality turned out… a little more complicated than I expected. Ugh, maybe I am a complete idiot.”

Silence lingers in the air for a few moments. A part of me feels grateful and impressed with how he's able to put his guard down like this and really think things through. But I still don’t feel completely satisfied with his explanation. How could I? What he did was still insane, still unjustifiable.

He’s right about one thing, though. As people, we’re incredibly compatible. That’s why it’s been such a struggle for me to fight against all this. We’re physically attracted to each other, our interests line up, we have a similar sense of humor, we’ve been able to communicate deeply on so many things. In another life, I think we could have been a genuinely happy couple. But he did so much damage when he made all those decisions that weren't his to make. Irreparable damage, I think.

I’m the one who breaks the silence, unable to keep myself from lamenting, “God, I really wish you'd thought through that transition. I wish you'd been more patient and got my consent… I know you're convinced I never would have agreed. But Leo, I… I really think I would have."

His head snaps up and he looks at me with a shocked expression. He wasn’t expecting this confession. Silently he moves forward, slowly sliding out of his chair so that he can kneel on the floor in front of the desk, his head more level with me. He’s reaching a hand up to me as he moves, and it feels different this time when he touches my back. It’s not this demeaning or dismissive pet, it feels like a genuine moment of trying to connect, as two people.

I hate that I’m starting to cry but I can’t help the tears that are welling up, and the words are spilling out of me now, “I mean, I wouldn’t have agreed to this exactly, not just throwing my life away and moving in with you and letting you do whatever you feel like. I don't know what it would have looked like, and it might have taken some time, but after these months of getting to know you, I… I’ve obviously developed… feelings for you.” I wipe an arm at the tears angrily, my chest tightening more with every second, “And I’ve started enjoying so much of this messed up life. As much as I tried to fight it. I couldn’t help falling in love with you.”

I’ve been so afraid of being vulnerable and revealing too much, but here I am, putting it all out in the open. It’s liberating and terrifying all at once. Both of Leo’s hands are up now, cupping around behind me, gently using his thumb to wipe tears off my cheek, and he looks like he might get emotional himself.

“But it’s not real,” I burst out, pushing against his hand while also holding on to it tightly, trapped between needing space and needing him. “It feels real sometimes but it can’t be real!”

“Why not?” His voice is soft, imploring, his eyes desperately searching mine.

I look back at him incredulously. “You don’t see anything wrong with the relationship we have?”

"Not from my end. I've been happy. I thought you were getting there too. It sounds like you are getting there too…?”

In the midst of all my heightened emotions, I feel a wave of anger. "Okay. Can you just… for two seconds… try to put yourself in my position right now?" I'm shaking as I step towards him, pulling away from his hands, "Can you imagine what it's been like? Even if your kidnapper is the nicest, coolest, most beautiful person in the world, they're still your kidnapper. No matter how much I want to pretend that this is all consensual now and that I could be happy with you, that everything turned out just like you were hoping in your grand plan, in the end I can't just ignore the fact that you're holding me captive, Leo! I can't live a lie like that. It's not fair…” I let out a shuddering exhale. “...to either of us."

I’ve thrown a lot his way. It’s completely deserved as far as I’m concerned, but all of his self-assurance has been crumbling throughout this conversation and he’s starting to look as vulnerable as I am. He’s trying to keep it together, but this is all clearly a revelation for him. This is the unruffled, confident guy who I’ve learned has always gotten away with everything growing up. Who’s never had a plan of his go awry, never had to deal with any serious consequences to his actions, never had any life-altering regrets. And he’s now having to realize just how deeply wrong he was with me. Not only that, but he’s realizing that we really could have had it all if he'd done this right.

Leo pulls back from the desk, letting his hands fall into his lap again as he sits on his heels and lets out a shaky breath. He's seriously struggling right now and maybe I should be feeling for him more, but my own emotions are too raw, too much.

"Look," he says finally, "Even if I were to tell you that you're right. About everything... Put yourself in my position now. You get why I can't just grow you back and let you go, right? Even if I wanted to?"

I can’t believe him right now. I know he’s processing a lot, but at the moment I don’t care. After laying myself bare for him, is he seriously going to make this about himself? My tone is tenuous, just on the verge of breaking as I try to reason with him, "It's not like anyone would believe me if I told them what happened.”

There’s a tinge of defensiveness in his own tone as he lets out a breath of wry laughter. "It's not a risk I can take so easily, love…”

And that’s when I lose control. An angry yell suddenly bursts out of me, "Well MAYBE you should have thought of that before you fucking RUINED my life!”

There's a chilling silence as Leo glances up at me and I see a flash of anger in his eyes that stops me short. In a second it's like I'm suddenly remembering the position I'm in. Three inches tall, stranded up on a table, facing a man who has to be careful with his movements to not hurt me. And I may have just taken things too far and pissed him off. I've never really seen him mad before. I take a couple of fearful steps back.

The giant slowly gets to his feet, rising up and up and up, and I notice the tension in his muscles as he continues to remain silent. He's looming overhead now so that I have to crane my neck back, and he just looks down at me for a moment before finally speaking in a strained voice. "I'm going to walk away now. I need some space to think."

And with that he turns and leaves, closing the bedroom door behind him.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sun Sep 11, 2022 10:44 am

Chapter 3

I'm left reeling and breathing hard as I stare after him. A wave of dizziness washes over me and I try to piece together the last few minutes. I don’t know what I was expecting, but… this feels bad. I should have had a better plan. Why was I trying so hard to dig into the reasons behind his behavior? Why was I so compelled to understand him, to get through to him on a deeper level? I should have just stuck with trying to convince him that we can trust each other enough to grow me back. My feelings got in the way of everything and I lost control.

I hug my arms around myself, feeling chills as I think about the glare Leo just gave me. I’ve never given it too much thought, the fact that he’s not at all quick to anger. I’ve taken it for granted. Even just now, maybe I should be thankful that he was able to keep it reigned in and walk away from the situation before it got any more heated. Then again, if anyone’s anger over this whole thing is justified, should it not be mine? Then again… shouldn’t that be the last of my worries right now? What if he’s the type to hold a grudge when he gets mad? What if things are about to get a whole lot worse for me now? I don’t know. I’m still reeling.

After a while I trudge back into the dollhouse, finding a couch to collapse onto downstairs. I go from breathing deeply to crying to laying silently on the couch and staring up at the ceiling to feeling angry to crying again. At one point I get up to look out the door of the dollhouse and try to listen for any movements, though I hear nothing but silence from the rest of the apartment. The communication device is right next to me, and a part of me is so tempted to try and make contact with him. But I can’t get myself to do it. I wander upstairs, go to my computer to see if he’s online. He’s not. Eventually I’m finding myself lying on the bed, my arms draped over my face in miserable silence. The anxiety of what might happen next is eating away at me.

It’s getting darker in the room as it’s been well over an hour now and Leo hasn’t come back. I half consider getting up and turning lights on within the dollhouse, but I can’t get myself to move. Another hour passes. I wonder if he’s not going to sleep in here tonight. At this point I have no idea whether I’m feeling sad or angry or scared or justified or… or what. I’m just numb. Just waiting.

Another hour. I’m still laying on the bed and today has been so stressful that I’m feeling exhausted at this point. The ball of anxiety in my chest is painful but I think I might drift off into a fitful sleep regardless. As I lay here, half conscious, I feel like I can hear my own heartbeat pulsating in my ears. It’s not until there’s the sound of a distant doorknob turning that I realize I was actually hearing footsteps.

I bolt upright, sitting on my bed frozen. I can’t quite see the giant door opening from my bedroom window, just the movement of shifting shadows in the periphery. I quiver as I’m suddenly feeling terrified right now. There’s a mountain of a man just outside and I have no idea where his mind’s at. Should I hide? No, that’s stupid. I just sit there as the footsteps continue to approach the desk. I hear him sitting at his chair.

“You still up, love?”

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. His voice is soft. Gentle. I feel so relieved at his tone that I almost burst into tears right then from all the anxious buildup. The terror that had overtaken me abates enough for me to feel a sense of longing for his familiar presence.

Still, I also feel a little wary about jumping back into conversation right now. I can’t quite get my throat to make any sound, but I’m able to slide off of the bed and slowly make my way to the open door leading out to the balcony. I stand in the doorway, peering out, and my eyes fall onto Leo’s form off to the side. It’s quite dark aside from the street lights outside, so I have a hard time making out some of the details in his expression, but his gaze is downcast when I first see him, as still as a massive statue. A second later he comes to life, his eyes glancing up in my direction as he notices my small movements.

I stay in the doorway, hesitant, and he lets it be. He tries to offer me a weak smile and I notice how drained he looks. Clearly he wasn’t having the best time in the other room either.

“I’m sorry for storming out like that,” he says, “I had a lot to think about. Um.” It looks like he may have rehearsed something in his head but is having trouble bringing it out now. He lets out an exhale. “I… wanted to thank you. For being honest with me. Some of that stuff was hard to hear, but I’d much rather have you talk to me than have this weigh on you forever."

I don't say anything, just give him a slow nod and continue staring at him. His gaze slips off to the side as he lets out another breath.

"I think I felt frustrated that it all seemed to come out of nowhere. Everything’s been so great lately and I had no idea you had all these thoughts. I wished that you had just talked to me earlier. Until I remembered that… you did. Right at the beginning. It's like you were saying, I wasn't taking things as seriously as I should have. I wouldn't listen to you and eventually you gave up and then kept it all inside. That's on me.”

He looks down at the floor and leans forward, elbows on his knees, his head dipping low enough that I’m above him on the balcony. “I want to make things better, Lily.” His voice is harder now with determination as he speaks, “I’m sorry, I can’t give you your freedom back completely right now, but… I really want to make a more concerted effort on this. I want to do a better job respecting you. And I want you to be able to see your sister when she visits.”

I stare at him, letting out a small sigh. This is the best I can expect, isn’t it? Actual freedom was never really going to happen. If I had any hope for that I was just fooling myself. That part is heartbreaking, but I shouldn’t linger on it, I should be so thankful - he’s not angry with me, he’s not going to hurt me, he’s heard me out and he still cares, he still wants this to work, he still wants to trust me, he wants things to improve–

“Thank you,” I say, finally finding my voice again as I want to try and bridge the gap. Leo looks back up at me and I think he’s feeling relief too. “Thanks for… for listening.”

He smiles. “Of course. Let’s talk more tomorrow, okay?”

I nod, smiling back. “Deal.”

Leo holds my gaze for a moment longer in the near darkness. I'm noticing something that's particularly out of character - there's fear in his eyes. He's so used to being in control and now he's losing his grip on that. He doesn't try to touch or kiss me the way he usually would, giving me my space, instead getting up from his chair and turning to go straight to his bed.

I watch him go, still standing in the doorway to the balcony. I reflect on the fact that, whatever comes next, he's really going to be out of his comfort zone if he’s trying to relinquish any of the power that he has over me. I'm going to need to be patient and careful from here on out if I want this change in him to last.

Wobbling in place, I realize how tired I am. It’s been a long day and at this point my brain is scrambled. I'm not quite sure what tomorrow will look like, but right now I really need to rest. I walk back to my bed and collapse onto it without bothering to get ready or anything. As I lay there and my muscles begin slowly unclenching in turn, the stress finally flowing out of me, I'm starting to feel hopeful. The conversation that had been weighing on me has finally happened. It was messy but in the end… everything’s alright. Leo finally listened. He legitimately cares about me. I really think things will get better. I slide into deep, content sleep.

I wake up to a surprising amount of noise outside. Feeling groggy, it takes me a moment to realize Leo must be in the bathroom, and from all of the banging and shuffling it sounds like he’s moving very quickly. I frown, glance up at the clock, and I realize why. He should have left for work almost twenty minutes ago. This isn’t like him at all, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him run late for anything.

Wiping the sleep away from my eyes, I hop out of bed and catch a glimpse of the giant, a flash outside as he goes to yank clothes from his dresser. He notices me stepping out onto the balcony and briefly addresses me as he’s moving. “Sorry, did I wake you? My alarm didn’t buzz and I overslept, and of course that 9am recap moved to 8:30 because now the director wants to be there.” Over the course of just that sentence he’s somehow managed to pull on a shirt, pants and socks. “Let me grab you a granola bar or something–”

“I’m good,” I call up to him, “I have stuff here, you go.”

He turns to actually face me now, takes a moment to reach down, to look me in the eye, to brush his fingertips against my back. “I’m going to see if I can leave early this afternoon. Then we’ll talk everything out. Okay?”

I smile as I nod at him. “Okay. Now go!

Despite how stressed and flustered he looks, he manages to briefly flash me a wide, loving smile before he hurries off. He leaves his bedroom door wide open, and a few seconds later I hear the front door open, shut, lock. And then the dust settles in the quiet he’s left behind.

I rub my face, still feeling like I’m not fully awake. I wonder if Leo was having a hard time getting to sleep last night. Poor guy. It's almost like yesterday was a dream, I still feel weird about the whole thing. But even just now he acknowledged our talk and the need for us to continue said talk, and I’m glad to see that he seems just as determined to work things out. The only downside is that now I have another day of anticipation for yet another conversation. But at least it’s out in the open - I don’t have to bring it up, I know more about what to expect from him, and he even plans to come home early so I won’t have to wait as long. I might get restless but it’s still much better than yesterday.

With a deep breath to revitalize me, I set about getting ready for the day. I shower, get dressed, grab a breakfast bar and juice from the pantry downstairs. I decide to eat out on the desk, thinking I’ll read a book as I do so. I’m finding it hard to concentrate on the words though as, sure enough, I’m feeling really antsy. I wonder what Leo’s up to right now. He might still be in that meeting he mentioned. I hope he made it in time.

I get up and stretch after I finish eating, and just like yesterday I take a stab at looking around the room to try to ground myself and calm my nerves. I glance out the window and notice how gray the sky is, threatening rain at any moment. I turn to gaze at the map of Middle Earth on the wall. I follow the contours of the giant's bedsheets, left in a swirling pile from his rushing. I look at the lamp on his bedside table, my eyes making my way down the length of it–

I freeze.

Holy fuck.

Did he really…?

He did. The shrinking device is there. Sitting on the distant nightstand. I’m in shock, in complete disbelief of what I'm looking at. But there’s no mistaking it. Leo forgot to bring the device with him in his mad dash to get to work. It’s here, in this room, left behind, it’s here

My heart is racing. What do I do? I mean, even if I could get to it, it’s not like I can use it, right? He’s said so himself, it’s fingerprint activated so only he can use it. He told me that so long ago, though, on that first day, right after manipulating me into getting shrunk in the first place. What if he was lying at the time? Or… or what if I can find a way around it? I’ve never actually seen it up close, maybe I could figure something out?

I'm having trouble breathing, head swimming. I feel an impulse to stay right here, to even march straight to the communication device by the dollhouse and let Leo know. Just seeing the shrinking machine sitting there is making me feel awful, as if I’ve already betrayed him somehow, just as we're starting to form more of an understanding. But no, that’s not how this works. I didn’t do anything wrong. And… I might never have this kind of opportunity again. If I don’t do something right now, would I regret it forever? I squeeze my eyes shut as I have to ask myself the monumental question. At the end of the day… what’s more important? The feelings I have for Leo? Or my own freedom?

My fingers are trembling but I manage a steady breath as I open my eyes again. I have to try something. I have to. I can’t overthink this. I suddenly launch into action, not wanting to waste any time.

Although in the beginning of my stay here I was at a loss for any kind of escape plan, I'm a different person now, and in this moment I suddenly know exactly what I need to do. I hurry over to Leo’s desktop computer that’s still on the desk, unused, heading around to the back of it. There’s a small gap that I can easily fit through between the desk and the wall, and I peer down at the power cable that snakes its way from the computer to the floor. On day one I would have never dared trying to climb down something like this - and the distance to the floor is longer than any of my climbing ropes. But I think I can do it. I have to do it.

Moving quickly so that I can’t second guess myself, I straddle the power cable, like a thick, bulky rope to me, and back up to the edge of the desk so I can lower myself off the side. I wrap my legs around the plastic, test my grip, and then I start making my way down. By sheer coincidence, this is what I’ve been working on the most lately in my DIY gym - I’d asked Leo to set up some ladders so that I can practice climbing down the ropes. All of the training is paying off in this moment. It’s over a 40 foot descent, and as I get lower I can feel my arms starting to shake from the exertion, but I move steadily down, down, down until I reach the point where the cable is plugged into the wall. From here it’s another 10 foot drop to the floor, but it’s carpet and I’m used to much greater heights. I lower myself down as far as I can and let myself fall, rolling along with the impact on the plush fibers and getting back up completely uninjured.

I start running. I’m hurrying out from under the desk, breathing hard after the challenging climb, not to mention the feeling of overwhelm at being down on the floor. I haven’t been down here since the initial night when I'd thought Leo would crush me underfoot, and the feeling of running across the carpet - even though I'm bigger now than I was back then - is unsettlingly familiar. The furniture stretches up so much higher than I’m accustomed to, everything is so much wider and more open than the surfaces I’m used to being on. Even though I spend most of my time here in this room, it feels like a completely different landscape.

Trying to stay focused, I start looking for ways to get up on the nightstand, feeling less sure on how to go about this part. I look at the bed first, try to see if there’s a way I could maybe climb up to its summit as an initial step. I make my way around the foot of the bed, seeing if any part of the bedsheets is draping over the sides, but I don’t see anything that I can reach. I look towards the nightstand, fixating the lamp that’s on it. Maybe I could make it up to its power cable and climb my way to the top? But my thoughts are interrupted as the worst thing happens just then… I hear the front door open.

Shit. He’s back. Not only does this completely ruin my chances… He’s going to find me like this. What the fuck am I supposed to say to him now? Should I somehow try to convince him that I fell down here? That I was planning another playful scavenger hunt for him maybe? Should I actually be honest? And then my thoughts are interrupted yet again as I see the massive figure stepping into the apartment.

It’s not Leo.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Wed Sep 14, 2022 3:53 pm

Chapter 4

My heart is racing and I’m instinctively backing up in fear at the sight of a new giant. I wonder if this is a burglar. From their demeanor, though, that doesn't seem to be the case, nor does it seem like a maintenance worker or something. I can tell it’s a man from his stature and shape, and he’s surprisingly dressed quite formally in business attire. I wonder how on earth he even got in so easily and quietly as I’m certain I heard Leo locking the front door. The man glances around in the living room before he turns and begins stepping towards the hallway, in my direction.

I see his face. And even more shocking than the fact that this isn’t Leo is the fact that I actually recognize who this person is. Older than me but still quite young, about thirty or so. Dark hair that neatly frames his face. Pale blue eyes, almost gray. I happen to know that his heritage is half Korean, half Swedish. Fair-skinned, tall and slim, he carries a certain elegance to him, always well dressed with good posture and a quiet disposition.

It’s my old boss. Nathan.

“Oh my god,” I whisper, in absolute shock. How is this possible? What is he doing here? Am I dreaming right now?

The last time I saw this man was during my one-on-one meeting with him the day before I met Leo. I presented the latest build of an app feature I’d been working on. We briefly made small talk about our upcoming weekend plans. That was it. It was the most normal, mundane conversation before I was to never see his face again. Until, somehow, this very moment.

I’m frozen in place in the middle of the bedroom, my eyes wide, my brain wild with activity. I’m grappling with what this all means and what I should do, when the approaching giant steps close enough to the bedroom that he can see inside… and his eyes quickly fall on me. He pauses, similarly frozen in the hallway for several moments. But he recovers a bit faster than I do.

“Hello?...” he says tentatively and I jump, startled by the sound of his familiar voice. He's generally soft spoken, and I’d actually always liked the timbre of his speech, deep and subdued, rarely raising his voice even when he was being stern. Hearing it at this volume, echoing intimidatingly, is incredibly bizarre.

He sees my movement down on the floor and seems transfixed, pausing again before taking another step. He’s getting close enough now that his footsteps are starting to boom. I fearfully back away again, and then finally I’m noticing that my subconscious has been screaming at me to get a hold of myself. This is someone new - not only that, it’s someone I know. At long last, I can finally get help!

I jump again at the sound of his voice as he speaks softly, “I’m not going to hurt you…” and he’s reaching the doorway now, just a few feet away from me. “I thought I was seeing things. I saw you at the window yesterday, are… are you human?”

Opening my mouth to answer him this time, I find that my voice isn’t working, and before I can clear it, Nathan begins crouching down from where he's standing. He looks like he’s about to say something else, but our eyes have met now, and as he gets closer I see his brow suddenly furrow. Then his eyes widen a little and a crease appears between his eyebrows as a sense of recognition begins spreading over his face. “Holy shit…” he whispers, “Lily? Lily Tealeaf? Is that you?”

“Yes,” I say weakly, and finally my voice is back and I speak louder, “Yes. Nathan, it’s me!”

“What happened?” He frowns, confused and astounded. “How is this possible?”

“It’s… complicated,” I stammer, taking a step forward.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” I say, “Well… not so fine I guess. I look like this.”

He presses his mouth into a thin line, still fixating me with his bewildered frown as he takes a deep breath in through his nose and then quickly glances around the room. “I always thought the way you resigned was odd. This isn’t your home... Did someone do this to you?”

He’s starting to put things together pretty quickly. “Yes,” I say, feeling dizzy. Another step forward and I force the words out, “Nathan, please, I need your help.”

His expression shifts to more focused intent as he nods. “Yes… of course. Do you know of any way of restoring you?”

“On the nightstand,” I say, pointing, “There’s a device there that did it. But I don’t think it’ll work, he said only he can use it…”

Nathan’s gaze follows where I’m pointing and he stands back up again - I recoil, my breath coming up short at the fast transition to his full height. He walks across to the bedside table and immediately picks up the shrinking machine. For a moment he fiddles with it, pushing tentatively at the buttons, and I can’t see the screen from down here but I figure from his expression that nothing’s happening. I guess the fingerprint technology wasn't a lie.

“Well, first things first,” he says as he turns back my way, “We should get you to safety.” He’s bending down again, setting a knee onto the floor, and the expression on his face is still focused and full of concern. “Can I… carry you out of here?” He’s a little hesitant as he reaches an arm out, setting his open palm down beside me.

This is it. I stare for a moment, and while I’m very used to being picked up at this point, it’s so weird seeing someone else’s hand in giant proportions. I flash back to a conversation with Leo about my kinks where my ex-manager’s hands had come up as an example of what I found attractive. The universe certainly is working in very strange ways. Nathan’s hand is paler than the one I’m used to, a little more angular, though he has similarly long fingers and a broad palm. Summoning my courage and climbing aboard, I notice his skin is colder than Leo’s too. Even the way he lifts me up is different, so much more hesitant and unaccustomed to the movement. I still feel like I’m dreaming.

“This is just… crazy,” Nathan admits as he holds me up closer to his face, an exhale of a stunned laugh escaping him as he stares at me, “I can’t believe this is real.”

“Tell me about it,” I whimper. Seeing the face of my former boss magnified like this, when I’m so used to seeing a very different giant holding me, is really throwing me off.

"We're going to fix this, Lily," he says quietly, and then he slowly stands up as he holds me aloft. I notice him tucking away the shrinking device in his jacket pocket and then he starts walking. Whipping my head around, I catch a glimpse of the dollhouse on the way out and feel my chest tighten so hard I almost choke. Everything’s happening so quickly.

I don't even think to ask him to look for my phone or any of my other things, I'm just trying to keep my bearings as we zoom through the apartment and Nathan opens the front door. I've always been in a pocket when going out and am not used to the sight of the open sky, still threatening a storm, the line of other apartments in either direction, the sprawling parking lot below. My rescuer starts making his way down the stairs, reflexively hovering a hand up beside me as if afraid he might drop me. We're quite the sight at the moment, though I suppose his hand's technically hiding me from view, and there's no one else around anyway.

We reach the bottom of the stairs just as a light rain starts to fall, and Nathan moves his palm above my head now to protect me from the water droplets. I'm surprised to find his path very familiar, and though I don't really know the way visually, it feels like he might have parked where Leo normally does. I recognize the silver sedan that my ex-boss drives and he briefly removes his hand from above me, leaning his torso over me instead, so that he can open the door. For some reason, though, the door doesn't budge.

"Shoot, not again…" he mutters, "Sorry, it's been having issues, I'm going to need to use both hands. Can I set you down for a moment?"

He crouches to the ground and lowers his hand, helping me slide off of it. I'm in a new landscape, having never encountered pavement at this size. I'm not wearing shoes so the rocky ground is quite rough against my feet, and it's a little cold from the inclement weather. Nathan set me just underneath the car to keep me out of the rain, and the vast metal ceiling looms above like an airplane hangar.

He stands back up, gripping the car handle with both hands and using a good amount of force to lift it up as he pulls outward. The door opens right as I hear the sound of another car approaching, and as I turn around I'm startled to see tires come into view. The vehicle pulls up next to Nathan's car and there's the sound of a window opening.

"Hey there."

I freeze. It's him. Leo must have realized he forgot the device and came home after all. Tears immediately well up in my eyes at the sound of his voice. Out of pure instinct I almost run out into the rain to see him, having to hug my arms around myself instead, and my whole body is trembling with emotion. I stare at the concrete as it changes color from the raindrops that are starting to fall harder.

"Oh, sorry," Nathan's voice responds, "Am I parked in your spot?"

"No worries, man. Yeah the sign's not super clear - guest parking is that way."

"Understood. Thank you."

I’m crying in earnest now. No matter how this all plays out, none of it can be taken back at this point. Leo's made terrible decisions, but he’s not a terrible person. I’ve spent enough time with him now to know that. He’s about to go upstairs and have no idea where I am or where the shrinking device is to track me. It'll probably send him into a panic. At the very least… I’m about to completely break his heart.

I jump with a yelp as a loud metal something hits the ground not too far from where I'm standing. I hardly have time to realize they're a set of keys that Nathan intentionally dropped as an excuse to bend down to me, an urgent expression on his face.

"That's him, right? Let's hurry." He doesn't give me the chance to climb onto his hand myself, reaching behind me and scooping me up onto his palm. He whooshes me out from under the car and I grab onto his thumb, gasping from the vertigo.

And then we’re inside the car, another new environment, and I’m set down onto a flat, soft surface that’s as wide as a tennis court. He’s put me on the passenger car seat.

Nathan soon follows, his dark hair damp with rain, sliding into the driver's seat and slipping the keys into the ignition without bothering with a seat belt. The car rumbles to life, growling like a great beast, the vibrations running through my body with intensity.

“Sorry, I know this isn’t the safest… I’ll be slow and just find someplace close by to park for now. Can you hold on to something?”

I quickly grab onto the nearby seatbelt strap, and I’m finding myself looking up towards the passenger window. I just want to see him again, just one more time… But I’m too small, too far down, all I can see is the swirling, gray sky and water droplets hitting against the glass. Then we’re moving. I’m jostled a bit but not enough to pose any real danger. Even though I’m not in a pocket I still can’t tell where we’re going, ever at the mercy of the driver as the car turns and rumbles along. We’re in silence for a few tense minutes and then he’s pulling up alongside the road, leaving the car on but slowing it to a stop.

Nathan lets out a sigh, and I stare ahead of me, my gaze unfocused. Now what?
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Fri Sep 16, 2022 10:01 am

Chapter 5

“We made it out at least…” This new giant’s voice, however familiar, is taking some getting used to. I’ve gotten so accustomed to one person over the months. And now he’s gone from my life. “Are you alright, Lily?”

I look up at Nathan, who’s now turned in my direction with an elbow resting on the steering wheel, frowning as he looks over my small frame. I suddenly realize my face is still covered in tears. I wipe them away fervently, knowing I have to pull myself together. It’s done. I’ve escaped. I’ve finally gotten away from my captor, I finally have a chance to go back to my old life, to find help in restoring my size, to see my loved ones. Why am I not feeling any more relieved?

“Don’t tell me you were actually falling for him?”

I stop breathing. Slowly turn my head towards my rescuer. It was an odd thing to say, and there’s something about his tone that takes me by surprise.

His expression has changed. He’s giving me an almost pitying look, and his posture has noticeably loosened up as he looms above me. At work he’s generally been professional and polite with me, only every so often letting out a more casual air, but this is different. Unfamiliar. I suddenly feel this deep, growing sense of uneasiness.

Nathan continues, “This is the man who kidnapped you, right? He’s been holding you captive for, what, weeks now if not months? Playing with your size, treating you like his little pet, posting pictures of it all online. Are you to tell me you’re upset about leaving him now?”

The uneasiness is quickly turning into dread as I stare at him in confusion. “What… how do you know about…”

He leans forward with an icy stare, a shadow of a smile appearing on his face.

“Lily, how do you think I found you, really? That I just happened to walk by? At a point when you just happened to be sitting at the window and I happened to notice your tiny figure three stories up? Come now. What are the odds of that?”

My heart is racing. It's true, things aren't adding up. Even if he thought he saw a small person through a window, why go to the lengths of breaking into someone's place to investigate? I realize it intrinsically now. I’m not being rescued. This is another betrayal. I feel cold. Numb. Terrified.

The titan smiles in earnest and he lets out a breath of laughter as he observes me. “The look on your face right now…”

I almost want to laugh, join in on his amusement. I’m so desperately looking for this to be a horrible joke. For him to reveal a side of himself that I hadn’t known before as just a prankster, someone with a sick sense of humor and nothing worse. But I know that can't be the case. Instead he's revealing a very different part of himself.

I find my voice. “Nathan…” I say, trying and failing to keep steady, “Hold on a second. I really need help right now. Please… You know me…”

I’m slowly getting to my feet, but he doesn’t react to this at all, looking completely unperturbed. His eyes narrow as he sits back up a little straighter to look down his nose at me, relishing in this moment.

“Yes. And I did quite miss seeing you at the office, Miss Tealeaf. You were one of my favorite employees, you know. Good at your job, kept your head down. Docile. Easy on the eyes and already quite petite, so perfect for this whole… fantasy. In fact, I think it’s precisely because I know you that I’ve been so looking forward to having you. Ever since I first saw those photos circulating online. I recognized you right away, I could tell they weren't just photoshopped, and then I knew I had to find you... And your keeper made it all too easy. He’s an idiot, really. The guy doesn’t even use a VPN.”

There it is. He wanted to find me, have me? I feel like I might throw up. Images of my time working with him flash in my mind. I’d never suspected he secretly harbored any kind of fantasy about me, much less this one. It doesn’t make any sense.

Nathan moves and I flinch as he takes his arm off the steering wheel to reach his hand into his jacket pocket. “You made it so easy for me too,” he says nonchalantly, pulling out the shrinking device and holding it up. “This was quite the stroke of luck, I must say. A locked door I could handle, but I figured he would carry this with him wherever he went. He truly is an imbecile. I had contingencies planned, but acquiring this makes things so much cleaner.”

With his other hand he silently reaches forward, and I stumble back in fear, but he’s not reaching for me, instead aiming for the glove compartment to my right. He opens it and immediately finds what he’s looking for: a pair of pliers.

I watch in horror as he puts the device in position and only manage to yell out a “Wait!” before he squeezes the tool and there’s a sickening crunch of metal and plastic. Bits go flying like shrapnel, and I immediately see a huge gash in the device as the screen goes blank. I can feel my mind go blank too. That machine was the cause of so much of my suffering, but now with it gone… I’m stuck like this. I’m trapped at three inches tall and have no idea if that can ever change again.

Nathan looks at me, smiles at the hopelessness on my face, and as he sets down the pliers and broken shrinking device on the dashboard, he uses a fake soothing voice to reassure me. “Oh don’t worry, little Lily. I have no use for this device. But there's plenty more where that came from.”

He reaches into his other pocket. No… no, no, no... But there it is… Out comes another machine. Slightly different in color and shape. But it’s unmistakable. The extent to which this man has come prepared is truly dawning on me.

He holds up the device, turning it between his fingers as he admires it. “This one’s a more recent model too. I’m sure you’re eager to know what it’s fully capable of. All in due time, my dear…”

The titan turns back towards me, leaning forward, and I see an excitement in his eyes that freezes me to my core. He begins reaching a hand out, towards me this time, not in a quick snatching motion but slow, deliberate. I’m completely frozen in place. His forefinger extends, longer than I am tall, and this time his cold touch feels practiced as he gently caresses my face, lifting my chin up. The gaze we share is so intense that my knees almost give out from under me.

“We have so much work to do, you and I.” His voice is soft, chilling, and then he’s pulling his hand away as he continues, “Honestly I think your little boyfriend was wasting your potential. He also kept you at too large a size if you ask me…”

I snap out of my frozen state and start backing away again, even though I know there’s nowhere to run. "Please…” I beg, my voice breaking. “Nathan, don't do this, please…”

A red circle of light suddenly appears between my feet. Like a laser pointer. He’s aiming the device my way, tilts it slightly higher so that the light moves up to my stomach now, and I back away further but I’ve already felt the warmth right where it hits me and then the light turns off again.

“All synced up,” he murmurs, seemingly to himself as he ignores my pleas. And then a second later I feel it. A wave of dizziness. A tingling. A heat. This feels slightly different from what I’m used to - my vision doesn’t become clouded, the warmth is a little sharper in my chest. But the falling feeling is unmistakable. My knees really do give out and I trip backwards onto the slope of the car seat as the surface I’m on moves against me, stretching out, all of the walls of the car pulling back and away, Nathan’s form is growing, growing–

This is a nightmare. It has to be. I’m going to wake up any second now, in the dollhouse. Leo’s probably already up and making breakfast. Wake up. Wake up…

I’m so disoriented that it’s hard to say for sure but I think I’m an inch tall when I stop shrinking. The titan has already started moving, coming closer as he leans forward, and he puts a hand down on the passenger seat, a little ways ahead of me. It’s a casual movement to him, but the impact shakes me and makes me slip again on the slope I’m sitting on. His fingers are a couple dozen feet away and I’m only about as tall as a single phalange, his manicured fingernails almost big enough to be full-sized mirrors. Using his hand as leverage, he leans further, looming above, and I stare straight up at his face and his cold, uncaring gaze flashing silver as he eyes his prey.

A smile plays over his lips and his voice is certainly booming now that he’s three times bigger than he was a moment ago. "Much better. I usually tend to prefer my toys at an inch or less. Especially with where we’re headed - I’d rather you not be so noticeable. Now come here…"

His other hand comes into view, closing in on me, and despite knowing that it’s hopeless I run, scrambling back and along a seam in the ground, deeper into the car seat so that I’m about to hit the back wall of it. I’m struggling and thrashing even as his forefinger and thumb close in, encircling me, but I'm helpless as I’m pinched between his fingertips and he lifts me up.

I can’t believe how well he was able to fake his shock when he first saw me in the apartment. Clearly he’s very experienced with handling a tiny person. He knows how to hold me just so, tightly enough to keep me from falling or escaping him, gently enough to not completely crush me. His movements are slow enough that I don’t black out from the g-force, though he's not worrying about making sure I’m particularly comfortable. My legs and most of my torso are completely pinned between the walls of skin while my arms are free, and at first as he lifts me up I’m hanging on to him, but as soon as he levels out his movements, pausing to hold me in front of his face, I’m pushing against his fingers, wriggling as much as I’m able to. Yes, he’s not crushing me, but his grip is too tight, I’m struggling to breathe…!

He doesn’t offer relief - in fact for a moment I’m squeezed tighter in response to me shoving against him. I cry out in pain, collapsing forward for a moment before looking back up at him in fear. His pale blue eyes, striking in their own right, fixate me with a quiet, calculated iciness that robs me of breath faster than his suffocating grip.

Even back when Leo was at his most abusive, it was different from this. He was delighted about the whole thing. Playful. Nathan certainly looks excited, enraptured even, by the sight of me in his grasp, but there’s a cold cruelty there that chills me to the bone. If Leo ever hurt me, it might have been due to recklessness, but it was always unintentional. Nathan looks like he wants to hurt me on purpose.

“It’s been too long,” the titan says softly, and his fingers shift as he starts rolling me slightly between them. “I almost forgot how good it feels. A tiny woman at my mercy. And how amazing it is that it’s you, Lily. I’ve never reduced someone I know. Much less someone I've worked with… You used to be under me before. This is a whole new level, isn’t it?”

The question’s rhetorical, and I don’t think I could gasp out an answer if I tried. He takes his eyes off me, and there’s movement as he does something with his other hand, behind me and out of sight even if I were to try and look. I hear shuffling, a zipper opening, and I close my eyes for a moment now that he’s distracted, try to take some breaths and get a hold of myself.

Nathan starts talking again as he moves, making me jump and look back up at him. “I certainly wish I could be more open about this. How fun it would be to parade you around. For all of your old coworkers to see the pathetic state that you’re in right now. I’m afraid that will have to be left up to the imagination.” He looks straight at me and I flinch. “Regardless. I’m late enough to work as is. And you, my dear, are very, very overdue for your shift.”

With zero warning, he brings his fingers apart and I scream as I fall a good ten feet onto a hard surface. I wince, breathing fast, looking around wildly. I’m in some kind of square black plastic box, not very much bigger than I am, maybe the size of a large closet. I only have this split second to get my bearings before suddenly I’m in darkness, there’s a loud clicking sound, and everything’s shaking as the box is moving. I slide and slam into a wall, and from outside the box I hear another zipper sound and shuffling as Nathan stuffs me into his bag and starts driving once more.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sun Sep 18, 2022 10:46 am

Chapter 6

For the first several minutes in my dark prison all I can do is hyperventilate. It all happened so fast and it’s impossibly horrifying to process. I quickly worry that I’ll surely suffocate in here, but despite it being pitch black there’s just enough of a gap at the seams of the box that I get a bit of air flow. Everything’s constantly shaking, and I find myself bumping against walls or the entire chamber slowly tumbling every time the car turns a corner. At some point we must be on a highway as things seem to level out, and the box is oriented so that I’m forced to sit right over a corner. I curl into a ball and press the heels of my hands over my eyes, though it’s not any darker this way.

I think of everything I know about Nathan, trying to reconcile the person I knew with the one I've just witnessed. He generally kept to himself, but he wasn’t unfriendly. He’d carry an air of formality and poise that led to a few people - and I counted myself among them - to find him very attractive. He seemed gentle when he spoke, and although he could be firm and wasn’t afraid to speak his mind when offering feedback, he was never mean for the sake of it. He didn't particularly go out of his way to be a supportive boss, but he seemed to care enough about his team.

At the same time, I know next to nothing about his home life, his hobbies, his personality outside of work. And come to think of it… Is it possible that he would get the occasional power trip over being a manager, asking me to do a mundane task he could have easily done himself? Were there any weird moments between us, maybe the odd casual comment referring to how much taller he was than me? Did his gaze ever linger on me too long, like when I caught him staring at me in a meeting, seemingly lost in thought as he twirled a paperclip between his fingers again and again and again?...

A sob breaks out of me as I go from hyperventilating to taking slower but gasping breaths. Am I really that bad at judging someone’s character? How could this kind of treachery happen all over again? Am I even going to make it out alive this time?

If only I’d called for Leo when the impulse came. He might not have gotten home before Nathan arrived, but maybe he could have intercepted us earlier. He has no idea where I am right now. Maybe there’s some hope in the fact that he saw my new captor’s face before we left, but so what? There was no real reason in that moment for him to pay any attention to the random guy who was parked in his spot. Even if he suspects that I was taken against my will and didn't just manage to escape, it’s not like there’s any chance he took note of a license plate number or any other information that could help. He wouldn’t know where to start. He can’t track me. He can’t contact me. This is it. I’m on my own. Kidnapped yet again but the situation feels far, far more foreboding this time.

After a while I try to calm down, to get a hold of myself. I start feeling around the box that I’m trapped in, seeing if there’s any gap or mechanism or something I can work out to escape. Nothing. I feel like I’m going to go crazy in here. Soon I’m getting flung around again as the car resumes twisting and turning. And the only thing worse than being trapped in this small dark prison is the feeling of the car slowing to a stop.

More shaking. Upwards movement. And then there’s a swaying motion, accompanied by the echoing sound of shoes on pavement, then tile, then carpet. Outside I hear activity - muffled voices, doors opening and closing. I wait… and wait…

Suddenly I flinch at a loud noise, a zipper opening nearby, and now it’s just the plastic box that’s getting lifted. Everything is being handled so casually, so carelessly, the dark room I’m in tilting sharply so that I slide back and hit a wall. With a click the lid of the box opens and blinding light floods in. I squint and don’t have time to blink away the brightness before the floor shifts yet again, and with a yelp I fall forwards, tumbling out as I’m dumped onto a new hard surface. Wood, this time.

It’s cold here. The lighting is intense and harsh. I look up and around myself and see a variety of semi-familiar objects - pens, pencils, a mug. There’s a large stage nearby that I soon process to be a keyboard, buildings that I figure out are a computer monitor and various forms of storage. I see half an avocado the size of a parade float, and as I notice the plastic sheen of it, I actually recognize it as a stress toy that I’ve seen get squished hundreds of times. This is Nathan’s desk.

“Look familiar?” The thunderous voice rolls in from above me and I turn to look up at my newest keeper, sitting at his desk chair and gazing down at me with amusement. “I was just trying to remember… you quit back in April, correct? Or, well, were forced to quit I assume. Not very much about my office has changed...” He brings his hand up into view, leaning an elbow onto the armrest of his chair and pointing his index finger out, hovering it over my head as he makes lazy little circles in the air above me. “In fact, I could use a new desk toy…”

He lowers his finger and it’s like a giant to me in its own right, knocking me to the ground with ease. The digit lays on top of me, pinning me down, and then he slides me slightly along the surface of the desk as I wince in pain under the weight of him.

“You didn’t answer me,” he says calmly as his finger slides me back the other way.

“W…what?” I gasp and my voice feels dry, straining.

“You left in April?”

“Y-yes… Ahh, stop, that hurts…”

He doesn’t respond to me, and when he stops sliding me it seems more out of idleness than out of listening to a concern. He keeps his fingertip on me and his thumb joins in now, running along the side of my body and pressing against my legs.

“Hmmm, let me catch you up then…” Nathan’s tone is unhurried as he idly messes with me under his fingertips. “Ravi finally got promoted, that one was well deserved. Lauren was too, she’s a director now. Less deserved. We’ve had to shuffle some projects arounds as a result. What else… Your old position is still open. It turns out you’ve been rather difficult to replace, I’m sure you’ll be happy to know.”

I try to crane my neck back, towards where I know is the door to his office. It feels weird that he’s talking to me so openly, but the door is closed and I'm aware of how well sound-proofed the room is, plus he has me positioned behind a tray of papers so no one could see me if they looked through the window. Still, some people aren’t shy about waltzing in, surely someone will come by at some point…!

My ex-boss notices where I’m looking and smirks. “There’s no one out there right now. Most of the office is out for the summer tech fair. Honestly lately it’s been so boring…” I flinch, whimpering as the giant hand changes tactics again, fingers lengthening out and the entire thing moving up and over me. He covers my whole frame with his palm, positioning it so that I’m right in the center, and while he doesn’t put all of his weight down, I’m completely immobilized as I’m pressed into his skin. It’s dark and the pressure quickly feels unbearable, but my writhing only seems to entertain him.

I’m saved by the sound of an email reaching his inbox, making his computer ding. The hand lifts away to reach for the computer mouse instead, and I gasp for air, flipping over to my stomach and struggling to get up to hands and knees.

Nathan continues talking to me, even as he keeps his attention on his screen. “What a coincidence - I just received a note from HR, they’ve set up an interview next week for your old position. Let's see… Yes, I remember seeing this girl's resume. Seems promising.”

I’m hardly listening to him, looking around as I try desperately to think, to see if there’s anything I could possibly do to help my situation. He doesn't seem to be watching me. I begin crawling towards a box of pushpins, not much of a weapon but maybe it's something–

I'm yanked backwards again as suddenly one of my legs is pinched and pulled across the desk surface. I look up but the titan is still focusing on the screen, merely keeping an eye and hand on me in his periphery as his laid-back voice continues to boom.

“I wonder what she’ll look like… It would be nice to find a good fit for the job who’s as attractive and petite as you were. Not quite as important now that I have the real thing, though. And now I can make you as 'petite' as I want…” His fingers are on top of me again as without warning he scoops me into them and lifts me up.

This is the beginning of an incredibly long day with this unrelenting titan. I’ve become his new stress toy. Even as he’s working quietly on the computer or leans back in his chair as he takes a break or a phone call, he has me in his hand whenever he can, poking and kneading my too-small body, rolling me between fingers, pinching at my limbs, pressing me into his palm or opening and closing his fist around me. He holds me closer to his face from time to time so that he can watch me scramble around on his hand to get away from his finger, nothing but cold amusement in his eyes as he torments me tirelessly. Whenever he needs to use the keyboard, he either gives me a merciful break by briefly placing me down on the desk between his forearms, or he drops me right onto the keyboard itself, where I have to dodge his fingertips lest I get knocked against the keys as he types.

He's careful not to cause serious injury, but he's being anything but gentle. It’s horrible. Humiliating, painful, terrifying... Does he not realize just how much bigger than me he is when I'm an inch tall? His hands are as large as houses, each finger as long as a killer whale, just the fingertips are over half as tall as I am. The ridges of his fingerprints rub painfully when he presses too hard. His fingernails are thick enough to me that they don’t quite scratch, but they can still dig into my skin when he wants to, hard and unyielding. The occasional abrasion appears on my body, and I can feel many bruises already forming.

At first I try pleading with him, getting angry with him, anything I can think of to get him to stop. But not only do my shouts fall on deaf ears, they’re typically followed up with some kind of punishment. He knocks me over or pinches me roughly - he even flicks me once after I scream at him to “fucking listen to me!” just to get me to shut up, and my leg explodes with pain as the sharp whack of his fingernail sends me sliding across the desk. I quickly learn my lesson and stop trying to speak out against him.

He has a few meetings throughout the day and does not bring me with him - instead he opens a desk drawer and dumps me right in alongside the pencils and post-it notes. The first time I spend the entire length of his meeting trying to climb out, making my way to the back of the large cave to look for a gap to slip into, or attempting to leverage a paperclip that’s as tall as I am to pry the drawer open. Nothing works. I’m too small, too weak. Future sessions in the drawer I spend resting instead of trying to escape.

After an agonizingly long morning, the only time I come even close to getting help is just around lunch time. I’m kneeling in Nathan’s palm, and he’s using the ring finger of that same hand to roughly pet my back as he clicks away at the computer, when suddenly the door opens. My head snaps up in shock as I see someone I know - it’s Ravi, an old coworker, one of the nicest guys here, a jovial smile on his face as he strolls into the room.

“RAVI!” I scream immediately, “HELP, I’M-” but the new friendlier giant doesn’t seem to notice a thing before massive fingers curl in on me, closing me into a dark fist and muffling my cries as the hand drops below desktop level.

“Hey, Nathan. Just wanted to see if you'd like to grab lunch with those of us who are here. We’re getting tacos down the road.”

“Sure, I’ll be available in about… ten minutes?”

“Sounds good. We’ll meet you in the atrium.”

My heart sinks as I hear the door closing again, followed by the sound of light laughter that vibrates against my skin. Nathan brings me back up, opening his hand as he coos mockingly, “I’m afraid that won’t work, my little Lily. Even if he heard something, it's far easier to believe it was someone yelling outside. You’re much too tiny for anyone to take note of you.”

Feeling my sanity start to crack, I try to fight against the tears welling up as we make eye contact. I don’t say anything but glare at him as defiantly as possible.

He just looks at me with that infuriating amusement in his icy gaze. “I must say, you've been quite energetic this morning. Normal enough I suppose, but even the feisty ones settle down eventually. Although I am starting to think that your previous master truly just spoiled you… I guess it’s up to me to show you just how helpless and insignificant you are now. We’ll see how confident you look in a few days’ time.”

And with that he unceremoniously dumps me back into the drawer so that he can get ready for his lunch break. I land hard on a notepad, curl onto my side as the drawer closes, and once I’m out of sight I let the tears fall, crumbling into despaired sobs, lamenting at how hopeless it all feels.

How? How could someone who I knew for years turn out to be this much of a monster? I’d seen how messed up certain peoples’ fantasies could be on the forums, but surely for the vast majority of people that’s all it is - a fantasy. How did I end up with someone who really could be so cruel and treat me like nothing more than a plaything? What else is he capable of?

For the next hour I think of Leo. How much more gentle his touch was. The feel of his kisses, so tender and loving. I picture that last moment we shared this morning before he had to run, how he made a point to pause in his rush, to look at me, to smile at me, to make sure I knew that he cared. I go back through every warm memory with him that I can summon. I’m sorry, I think to him, my heart aching, I’m so sorry I left you…

I know my captor must be back when I hear the office door open and close in the distance. For just a moment I allow myself a small hope as footsteps approach. I remember a time when one of my coworkers was dared to sneak into this office and steal a pencil during a manager’s meeting two doors down, and to her credit she came out successful. Maybe it's someone else who's coming in right now. Anyone else, I pray as the floor shifts, the entire room I'm in sliding to the side and the ceiling opening up above me.

But reality hits hard as I squint against the light and am faced with Nathan's tall torso, faraway face, pale blue eyes that stay so frigid even as they light up with interest at the sight of me. Giant fingers appear over the edge of the drawer, and they hover nearby, not quite touching me yet as he enjoys the way I recoil from him.

"You came up in conversation today," he says softly, the smile on his face growing as he circles me with his index and watches me cower, "Everyone misses you, Lily. Such a shame I couldn't bring you along. Could you imagine, scurrying around on the table? Forced to just eat the crumbs off our plates?"

He chuckles and finally picks me up, rocketing me up the length of his body to hold me up in front of his face. I'm breathing hard, having to summon all of my courage yet again as I face him. He examines me for a moment, looking absolutely fascinated by the familiarity of my features, so much tinier now than when he was my manager. I try to take the opportunity to make contact with him, try something while I have his attention.

I put my hands on the thumb pressed up against my chest, stare at him intensely. "Nathan…" I say, struggling to keep my voice steady. I know trying to talk him out of this is pointless, but maybe getting a conversation started could still help somehow. "Please, I just want to talk. What… what are you going to do with me?"

His eyes focus in on mine and narrow slightly. While I don't know the details (and don't want to think about it), I figure that he's had multiple victims at this point. Perhaps he's more used to his toys being completely overwhelmed with fear and had assumed that, after the trials of this morning followed by an hour in solitude, I might have been closer to broken by now. Meanwhile, yes I'm terrified, but I've gotten used to being tiny for many weeks. I probably am able to stay more composed than the average person.

Nathan doesn't seem displeased by this, though. He smirks and brings up a gigantic pinkie to brush against my cheek. I shiver, both from the cold of his skin and fearful anticipation of whatever pain he might inflict on me. But instead he decides to answer my question, his voice little more than a whisper. "Oh, there is so… so much I plan to do. Turn a profit, for one. You know, I’ve made quite a name for myself in certain corners of the internet as a video producer. It's been a nice hobby I must say. I’ve remained completely anonymous of course, unlike that imbecile of an owner you had. I think it’s time I opened my commissions back up…”

This takes me aback, not quite an answer I was expecting. I have no idea what this will mean for me, but a desperate thought comes to mind. If I end up back online… what if Leo sees it? If Nathan was able to track me down this time, could the reverse be true? Based on how he’s been talking I doubt it would be so easy, but…

“What kind of videos?” I ask, trying to keep him talking.

“Well that depends on the customer. I tend to be selective, though. I’ll see what requests come down the pipeline… You’ll find out soon enough.” He’s still petting my head with his pinkie and now he moves it around my face so he can push my chin up, and I wince, the force of it enough to make my teeth clatter together. “Not to mention… I think I’ll be enjoying you in many ways beyond my average pet. Somehow you mean a little more to me, Miss Tealeaf. I certainly hope you’ve gotten used to becoming smaller again and again. Rest assured that I’ll be pushing your limits…”

I'm seething with hatred. And shaking with fear. My resolve to maintain a conversation dissipates.

Nathan returns to his work, sitting down and keeping me in his grasp. The afternoon crawls by and I’m starting to memorize every detail of his hands, the light smell of aloe from the soap he uses, every line of his palms, the surface of each fingertip as he continues to knead and poke and squeeze and pet. The torture leaves me breathless, battered, exhausted… I transition from him to the desktop to the drawer again and again as the hours drag by.

"Hmm.” I'm in the darkness of his hand closed around me when the sudden sound of his voice makes me bristle. “I'm actually wondering if you can help me with something here..."

I cry out as he whips me upwards, holding me right up to his computer screen. I try to catch my breath as I stare up at the 60 foot wall of light and attempt to make sense of what I’m looking at.

"You worked on this project last, right? The Kamtech one. The new dev made an update and now apparently the whole build is broken. The error is in this method but she can’t figure out why there’s a conflict.”

I shudder at his tone as it causes a disconnect in my brain - he's sounding more like my boss used to at the moment. He’s pointing at the screen, at a section of code that I apparently wrote a few months back. I’m feeling woozy, disoriented, and rack my brain with difficulty as I try to figure out what he wants from me. But miraculously, after staring at the oversized symbols for a few moments, things slowly start coming back to me.

“Um… the UI on the original build for this wasn’t great… I was trying to improve latency here…” I slowly explain my thought process, sounding almost zombie-like as I don't know what else to do but follow his orders.

As I try to help with the problem, Nathan smiles approvingly. He sets me down at the top of his keyboard so that he can type an email, musing as he does so, "Perhaps there's no need to hire anyone new after all. I'll just bring you to work more often. And you've been such lovely entertainment too. I think I've gotten quite addicted to this new little desk toy of mine..."

I don't say anything, just stare ahead of me, barely reacting to his fingers flying over the letters in front of me, each keystroke punctuating my growing headache. I vaguely realize that I'm very dehydrated and haven't eaten anything since that breakfast bar many hours ago. Between that and the stress and all of the rough handling I'm starting to feel really dizzy.

A minute later a wave of nausea hits and I see spots for a second. Slipping forward as I lose my balance, I hit the F5 key, not enough to push it down but just enough to make a noise. Nathan glances down at me and pauses in his typing so he can pull back a little and lower his head my way.

"You're looking rather pale, Lily. Too much excitement for one day? We haven't even gotten home yet. Though we'll be leaving in just a couple of minutes, don’t worry…"

I let out a groan as he reaches for me. I need a second. I need to breathe. I've had enough of him touching me. But I can't stop the forefinger from resting against my back, thumb up against my front as the titan muses, "Ah, come to think of it, I haven't fed you today, have I? Must have slipped my mind."

The vice of his fingers grips me just enough to lift me up, too fast. I squeeze my eyes shut against the vicious vertigo and when I open them again I can't see for a moment. Even as I’m trying to blink the black spots away, everything’s blurry, the edges of my vision are closing in, and there’s a rushing sound in my ears as my heart races. I catch a glimpse of Nathan's amused smile and his voice sounds far away as it echoes, "Uh oh... Looks like you're about to–"

And everything goes black.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Tue Sep 20, 2022 3:58 pm

Chapter 7

I’m not quite sure that I’m coming to when my eyes blink open. I’m in total darkness and there’s a buzzing in my ears, almost like the sound of white noise. But I start taking notice of various sensations - the stuffy air quality, the pounding in my head, the churning in my stomach, vibrations against my skin - and I slowly come to grips with the fact that I’m conscious again. I try to push myself to sitting and it’s a struggle at first as my muscles are feeling shaky and sore. I’m reminded that, no, today wasn’t just a terrible dream.

It would seem that I’m back in the plastic box, and from the ambient sounds outside I can tell that we must be on the road. A little confused by the papery texture of the floor, I figure out that Nathan must have put a tissue in here too as a lining. Maybe to make sure I don’t crack my head open as my limp body gets thrown around while he drives. Thankfully I didn’t roll too deep into it and suffocate instead.

I wonder how long I’ve been out, but I don’t have much longer to spend with my own thoughts as the car is already slowing down. I try to take a few deep breaths, steeling myself even as I feel my heart rate picking up.

When the box lifts up I notice I don’t get jostled quite as violently as the last time I was in here, more like a steady elevator in the darkness. There’s a click and I squint preemptively against the light as the lid swings open.

“Oh good, you woke up. Did you have a nice nap in there?” My vision clears and I take in the massive face looming above me. Nathan observes me intently before glancing at something off to the side, apparently the shrinking device which monitors my vitals as his next comment is, “Looks like your oxygen levels are back up too. Much better. I do prefer you to not be unconscious.”

He really doesn’t sound all that worried about the fact that I’d fainted and proceeds to promptly tilt my cage so that I slide out onto his palm. He gathers his things as he loosely wraps his fingers around me and then gets out of the car.

From the sun shining almost mockingly despite it being evening, I can see that the weather has cleared up, the rain having vanished just as swiftly as my previous life did. I peer out through the gaps between the titan’s fingers and catch glimpses of things that are actually vaguely familiar. I’ve been to Nathan’s apartment exactly once as he hosted a holiday party here this past December for his team. The parking garage is just across the street from his apartment building, and the general area is quite nice, dotted with a variety of trees and greenery despite the otherwise urban setting.

We enter the building and from there it’s a quick walk as the target destination is on the ground floor. I stare at the dark wood of the apartment door before it opens, taller and more intimidating than an actual fortress, and I feel a distinct sense of dread. This is another prison. My new world. I wonder what awaits me beyond this threshold.

A wave of cool AC hits us as Nathan steps inside and says, “You remember the layout, I don’t need to give you a tour? I can do a refresher later if you’d like.”

I don’t answer, looking in every direction. Everything feels so wide and distorted from my perspective, but from what I see and can remember I do get my bearings. The entryway leads right into a hallway, the entire apartment on the rather long and narrow side. There’s a coat closet and small bathroom to the immediate left, and then the hall opens up into the living room and kitchen, with his bedroom, which I've never entered, far in the back. The place looks immaculate, and I remember noticing last time that he seems to keep things particularly clean and tidy. Even the air feels sterile. I don’t see a scrap of carpet here, everything is cold and hard and nothing like the cozy space I’ve gotten used to living in.

We enter the kitchen area when the fleshy platform I’m on starts lowering and tilting, and I brace myself as I know what’s coming - Nathan rests his hand on the dining table and dumps me onto its surface before he continues walking on. I hurry to my feet, still feeling a little faint and preferring the more stable ground, but also intimidated by the empty, open landscape. To this day it’s easy to feel as vulnerable as a prey animal, especially when dealing with such a mammoth predator as my new captor has proven to be.

I stay on my guard as the titan returns after having tinkered around in the kitchen and he’s holding something - an almost comically tiny bowl to him that I quickly realize is a dipping sauce plate, a flat and circular one that might typically hold soy sauce. Except in it there’s water. He sets it down in front of me, the clatter of the ceramic sharp against my eardrums. Like a kid feeding his pet hamster.

“Drink up. I’ll be making dinner now - this won’t take long. I recommend you stay put.” Even before he’s finished his sentence he’s started walking away again, moving around the kitchen to pull something together. His movements in the background disconcert me, but any break I can have from him is appreciated.

I hurry over to the round dish. As small as it was to him, it’s closer to the size of a fish pond to me and I have to fully stand to reach over the edge of it. I dip my hands into the water and take avid gulps, relishing in how it feels against my dry throat. My body's grateful for the hydration after the long day I’ve had. I still feel tired, the headache lingering, but this is definitely helping. The table is otherwise completely empty and I saw how far the drop is to the floor, so I don’t bother exploring the area. I sit beside the dish, leaning against its cool surface to rest while remaining wary. And I wait.

Noise and smells start filling the room, and just the aroma of plain rice in the rice cooker makes my stomach complain loudly. I wonder how this is going to go down. Is he going to put something on a plate for me like he did with the water? Is he going to make me wait? Make me earn the food somehow? I’m not sure what to expect from him.

After about ten minutes or so Nathan comes back to the table with a simple meal in tow - some kind of vegetables and meat in a sauce over rice. He just has the one basketball court-sized plate along with his own set of chopsticks and water glass, nothing that seems meant for me. That is, outside of a wet wipe that he pulls out for himself but then tears a corner off and places it on the edge of his plate.

He turns his attention to my small form on the other side of the table and waves his hand out. “Come here. I’m sure you’re starving at this point. I’d rather not have you passing out on me again.”

He’s inviting me right to his plate. Not only would Leo usually make sure I had some amount of utensils or dishes of my own, he would generally cut up smaller pieces for me to make things easier. Not that I expected that amount of care and attention right now, far from it, but the unfamiliar territory as I make my way towards the pile of food is nerve wracking.

The lip of the dish is high enough that I actually have trouble getting myself on top of it, especially with my muscles so sore and weak. I try to hurry, anxious to do it on my own to avoid testing Nathan’s patience or inviting his touch. But I’m still not quite fast enough.

“So pathetic,” he mutters, an elbow propped on the table so he can lean chin against hand as he enjoys watching me struggle. Two long wooden poles appear on either side of me, making me gasp as they pinch my torso. The titan's using his chopsticks to lift me up and onto the plate.

He then proceeds to pick food up instead, starting his meal without addressing me further. I sit on the edge of the dish for a moment, watching a piece of chicken that’s as big as I am disappear into his mouth, making me shudder. I’m not fully sure what's expected of me… but I’m also very hungry. I slowly inch towards a couple of grains of rice, reaching out and snagging a crumb before scuttling back. These aren’t the most relaxed eating conditions but survival mode kicks in as I take in the sustenance.

I notice that as Nathan eats he’s scooting the food more in his direction, forcing me to travel a little further to get the next morsel. I crawl to the closest thing - a tiny piece of broccoli - and suddenly there’s the wooden pole shoving me over, not hitting me hard but knocking me off balance. I scramble away, hearing a sharp exhale above signaling amusement from my tormenter. He toys with me like this for the entire meal, pushing me around, occasionally snatching me between the chopsticks to relocate me, clearly entertained by whatever little game he’s playing.

I’m determined to fill my stomach and manage to do so bit by bit, and my body is once again grateful as I regain some strength. The flavors aren’t nearly as good as Leo’s cooking, but that’s the last thing I worry about right now. My hands are sticky by the end since I wasn’t offered any utensils, and I figure that’s what he provided the scrap of wet wipe for, so I use it. It’s a harrowing meal, but I get through it okay enough.

Nathan’s almost done eating himself when he finally starts talking to me. “Hmm, I’m just remembering that you’re vegetarian. You might have to get over that at some point, I’m afraid. Any actual allergies I should be aware of?”

I glance up at him and just shake my head no.

“You’re being awfully quiet,” he says, mouth curling up on one end. “Earlier I couldn’t get you to stop whining.”

I finish cleaning myself off as I glare at him. “What do you want me to say?” I wasn’t quite meaning to give him attitude, and I wince at the sound of my own tone.

But there isn’t retribution quite yet, his smile only widening at my demeanor. “Honestly I’m rather curious to hear how you ended up in your situation. Let me guess - you never actually had the flu?”

Ugh. I don’t really feel like chatting right now. I just want to be left alone. But I force myself to converse. Building a relationship with Leo ended up benefiting me, after all. This is a very different situation, but I still have to try what I can... Maybe the more he hears me talk, the more he realizes this is me, someone he knows and surely gives a shit about on some level? Maybe he’ll second guess himself eventually.

“No,” I say, answering his question. “It had already been a few days by the time I sent you that email.”

“He gave you access to your email? And that’s what you decided to do with it?"

“No, he… We answered messages together.”

“I see.” He leans back in his chair, eyeing me with keen interest. “You know, it certainly sounds like you two had quite the connection. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’d entered your shrunken arrangement willingly, Lily. Don’t tell me you also share in this fantasy, from the other side?”

My temper flares up. Not only is the taunt absurd, but I don’t want to talk about my relationship with Leo with him. “I don’t,” I respond, tense, “We weren’t… like that.”

He laughs at this. “Fair enough. I suppose you wouldn’t have been so eager to come along with me if that had been the case. Still, the way he wrote those forum posts, the way he’d dote on you… such an odd way to treat his shrunken prisoner.”

I glower. “What, like a person?”

“Oh, is that what you still see yourself as? I’d meant more as a beloved little pet. I mean, look at you… how could you count as anything more?”

This gives me anxiety. I try and insist, “I mean, I… we’re talking right now, aren’t we? As people?”

He leans forward again, lowering his head slightly, and I reflexively recoil, almost falling backward off the edge of the plate. His tone is smooth and controlled as he looks at me with a mirthless smile. “See, that’s what makes this so enjoyable. You have all of the mental and emotional faculties of a human. But absolutely no amount of power. No autonomy. No say in anything that happens to you.”

He abruptly reaches towards me, taking me by surprise, and this time I do fall off the plate, knocked down by an index finger that’s suddenly on top of me, pinning me against the table, crushing against my chest and pushing up on my windpipe. I gasp for air but find none, eyes widening with panic as I struggle against the impossible weight. Nathan lowers further, hulking over me, staring at me with his icy stare.

“It would be so easy to snuff you out of existence,” he says softly, “Just the slightest bit of pressure…”

I stare pleadingly into his silvery gaze, unable to say anything, unable to breathe, only weakly writhing against him. The pressure releases and I’m coughing, putting a hand up to my throat as I push myself up on my elbow, my whole body shaking.

The titan straightens back up. “Have you ever heard of a real person ever being that weak?” He chuckles at the look on my face and terrified demeanor. “Don’t worry, my dear Lily. I don’t plan to kill you.”

I’m not so sure about that. He almost just did. In fact, at this point I’m not sure he hasn’t already taken someone's life.

“What happened… to the others?” I ask him in a strained, shaky voice as I slowly get back to sitting. “Obviously I’m not the first.”

His eyes narrow. I think he’s continuing to be surprised by my resilience. Again, not displeased, just interested. “You're only my seventh, actually,” he says casually, “All of the others I’ve sold off. Which I’m not exactly supposed to do, but I think I’ve done a particularly good job at being discreet. I'm not sure I’ll ever want to get rid of you, though. I’m getting much more enjoyment out of this than I did with strangers.”

Lucky me. Something he said catches my attention. “What do you mean, you’re not 'supposed' to?” Obviously, human trafficking is illegal, but it sounded like there was more to it than that.

He frowns, looking a bit perplexed by my question. “Did your boyfriend never tell you? Acquiring a shrinking machine comes with all sorts of strict rules and regulations. The most important of which is to stay extremely secretive, so that word of this technology doesn't reach the public sphere. Could you imagine the chaos otherwise?”

It’s in this moment that I realize just how little I know about the shrinking device and where it came from. “No, he didn’t… didn’t ever mention that…”

The laugh this time is a mocking one. “Jesus Christ, how is that man still alive? It’s not exactly in the fine print. Breaching some of these rules can literally result in a hit man being sent after you. Well, that’s not exactly stated verbatim, but the severity of the consequences are heavily implied.”

I stare into space, stunned by this new information. Did Leo really not know about this? If he did, no wonder he was so paranoid about trusting me to be bigger again and risk me speaking out. It’s not just about getting arrested on the off chance someone believed me. If word got out he could be… killed? Why didn’t he tell me about this?

But then my thoughts start to fizzle out. Why am I even worrying about it? I can’t speak out anyway, not anymore. None of it actually matters.

“But the risk is so worth it,” Nathan continues, “The power one yields with these devices is absolutely incredible. I’ve upgraded twice now, and the technology has only improved more with time. Speaking of which… I’m sure you’re curious about what my device can do that his older model couldn’t.”

This certainly gets my attention. I’m still recovering from him almost crushing me and the trembling across my body only intensifies. “No, I… please, Nathan, today’s been… too much…”

But he’s already reached into his pants pocket and I’m whimpering as he brings the shrinking device up into view. “Oh, relax,” he says, “I’m sure you’ll be happy about this one.” To my surprise, instead of aiming it my way, he sets the device down next to the plate. He props both elbows on the table, leaning forward as he gazes smugly down at me. “What if I were to have you… grow. To a foot tall.”

I gasp audibly as I feel a sudden tingling against my skin, along with an intense warmth and accompanied dizziness. I’m getting taller as I sit there, everything shrinking around me, my legs bumping up against the dinner plate, the titan looking more like my old boss by the second. I look down at the device, shocked that he’s not holding it or even touching it. I’m also reeling from the fact that since I’ve been shrunk I’ve never been taller than six inches, and now I’m about to double that. The dining table is only the size of my old apartment and shrinking. Everything feels closer, I’m feeling… stronger…

“There,” says Nathan as I reach Barbie doll size, “I bet that feels like a bit of a relief, doesn’t it? Voice activation is particularly useful, I'll mostly be using that to change your size. Ah- hold on, now.”

I’m hurrying to my feet at this point and start backing away from him, looking wildly around, trying to see if I can jump down to a chair or something. Large hands are reaching for me but they look so much less intimidating compared to a few seconds ago, and I try to push against him, my adrenaline spurred on by this new size. Annoyed, he swipes forward faster than I can react to and grips both hands around me, pinning my arms down and immobilizing my legs.

“Let’s not get any funny ideas,” he says, his voice frustratingly calm as I thrash against him, “I just figured I’d bring you up here so I can really show off this next part.”

I’m not listening, fighting him desperately, wanting to hurt him, even if it’s all for nothing, kicking fruitlessly and wiggling hard. I manage to pull an arm free and claw at his wrist, and in response he roughly yanks me off the table, holding me out above the tile. It’s not a fatal drop, but it would hurt, and then the hand that’s around my torso is squeezing, and I cry out as there’s a searing pain in the arm that’s still pinned down. He pinches his thumb against it hard, nail digging in.

“Stop struggling. Now.”

The pressure in my arm is getting excruciating, the joint in my elbow bending farther than it should and any second now he’s going to break it. I’m still far too small to have any chance of besting him. I wince. Relent. And become pliant in his grasp.

“That’s better,” says Nathan, relaxing his grip. He continues to glare at me and hold me aloft, as if waiting to make sure I’ve calmed down. He’s also spending an extra few seconds to take in my features, particularly the details in my face that are big enough to catch at this size. I’m sure I’m looking more like his old employee, too. But this moment doesn’t appear to be at all helpful to my situation. If anything, for the first time, I think I’m noticing… lust?

Shit.

Satisfied at my submissive demeanor, he lets go of my legs, just holding me around the torso now, so that he can bring a finger up to my face and then slowly run it down the length of my body, following every curve with an intimacy that leaves me shivering with disgust. And then he brings me back to stand on the table, setting me down, and I don’t try to run this time when he pulls away.

“As I was saying,” he says with a curt smile, reaching for the shrinking device. “Let’s continue with the demonstration, shall we? Just a quick setting change…” A few button presses later, he puts the device down again. “Alright. Shrink back down to an inch for me.”

My heart sinks along with the rest of me as I head back to miniscule status. But something feels different this time. It’s the same dizziness and tingling and warmth, but… the surface of my skin feels weird too. A tickling, a… shifting… I realize it’s my clothes moving against my skin. My clothes… are getting looser…

I'm shrinking but my outfit is not. This is a new kind of horror as fabric starts billowing around me, hanging over my too-small body, and the collar of my shirt is dipping lower, revealing too much. I pull the fabric up against my chest, but as I take a step back to do so, my leg gets tangled in my shorts so that I trip backwards. I fall into a heap as my clothes take up more and more space, becoming tarp-like, then tent-like, until I’m drowning in the fabric.

I’m left in darkness as Nathan’s voice, growing in magnitude once again, echoes with his laughter. “This one’s rather fun isn’t it? Unfortunately I can’t quite isolate any item that I want. That upgrade is prohibitively expensive, for now. But for whatever reason clothing and other fabric seems to work quite well."

I'm done shrinking now and frantically try to push my way through the dark, stifling maze, looking for some kind of seam that might lead to an exit. But I'm getting assistance whether I want it or not. The fabric shifts violently and I yelp as I tumble, rolling right out of the giant garment that's getting lifted into the sky.

I lay faceup, taking in the bizarre sight of my massive shirt looking puny between Nathan's fingertips. He looms over my small, now completely naked form sprawled on my own pile of clothing, a look of satisfaction playing on his face.

"There you are. And even more enticing now without all those clothes…"

I want to cover myself up, but survival instinct takes precedence as I see Nathan set down the shirt and reach for me instead. He pinches me between his fingers, rubbing them gently together so he can feel every part of me. But gentle for him is still incredibly rough for me, especially against my bare skin. I think I might start hyperventilating from the overwhelm of the nudity and fear of anything remotely sexual on the horizon–

After less than a minute of this, though, he sets me back down on the table, where I scramble to my feet and hug my arms protectively over my chest, pointlessly trying to cover up. I watch as the titan gathers up my oversized clothing into one hand.

“As much as I’d like to enjoy that little naked body of yours," he says coolly, "I think I’ll wait for a different evening, I have other things to attend to tonight. Let’s give you some dignity back, shall we? Adjust clothing to match subject.”

The AI of the nearby device obeys, the pile of gray and black fabric retreating on their own and becoming a tiny pile in the center of Nathan's palm. This has certainly been quite the demonstration. I shiver as I'm starting to feel cold, all the more anxious to get dressed again.

Cruelly, he reaches his arm out several inches further, depositing my clothes a good thirty feet away from my perspective. Left with little choice, I turn and head in that direction, away from where the giant's sitting.

“Wait, Lily. There’s one more setting I want to show you first.”

No more… Nerves frayed and not thinking straight, I pretend I didn't hear him, stubbornly continuing my trajectory. If he could just give me a minute…!

I stop in my tracks. Forced to stop. There's a brand new sensation inside of me. At first it feels like a ball of anxious energy, akin to the pressure I might feel during a panic attack. But it's a different kind of pressure, an insistent force of some kind that I feel in my upper back. I take a stumbling step backwards. There's something… pulling me. As if there was an invisible string looped through my shoulder blades and yanking me back. What the fuck?

I turn to look back at Nathan, my eyes wide with confusion. Bizarrely, I feel the pulling sensation shift as I move, the ball of pressure swooping around to my chest now. He sits there, calmly, back to leaning his chin on his propped up hand as he smirks. In his other hand that's resting on the table is the shrinking device, aimed right at me. His thumb is pressing the button, despite my size staying the same.

The pressure is unbearable and I stagger as I take another step. I try to dig my heels in and resist the pull of my own body, but it's like there's a magnet inside of me and I can't control it. I stumble forward again, try to stop, fail, and continue inching towards the device. Fighting back is becoming too painful and soon I'm taking slow but steadier steps, staring up in horror at my captor as I involuntarily make my way to him.

As I get closer, Nathan brings his hand down, laying it flat before me on the table. I'm forced to climb up onto his fingers, forced to walk down the length of them to his open palm.

"There's a good pet," he purrs, "Such an obedient little thing…"

Only once I reach the center of his hand does he take his thumb off the button and the painful pull finally vanishes. He lifts me up, slow enough that I manage to stay on my feet, and I can do little else but try to hug my arms around my naked chest again as his eyes bore into me. Even this he doesn't allow - he goes to try and pinch my hand to pull it away, but I relent before his ridiculously large fingertips can get a grip on me, throwing my arms aside in frustration at my helplessness and just letting him look at me.

I don't think his face is capable of reddening, but I certainly notice his pupils dilating ever so slightly with arousal, sharply visible against the light blue of his irises. “I can't believe this is the body you’ve been hiding away all this time," Nathan says softly, holding me too close to his face so that he can take in my minute features. "From what you were wearing at work I'd always thought you must have been scrawnier. You are going to be so much fun to play with, little one.”

I can feel the bile rising up in my throat. I hate hearing Leo's nickname for me coming out of this man's mouth.

He smiles coldly and lowers me down again, and I descend much further than I was anticipating, past the table, down, down, down to the floor. He slides me off of his palm and I land between his sock-clad feet on the cold tile, looking around wildly at the new landscape. His other hand appears to dump my clothes down too, this time dropping the pile right on top of me.

"Get dressed. It's time to introduce you to your new living arrangements."
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Thu Sep 22, 2022 9:56 am

Chapter 8

Being on the floor feels particularly dangerous. The tile is like smooth stone beneath me, frigid against my skin. And while I’ve become used to heights, I’m less used to being completely underneath everything, having to crane my neck to make sense of any of my surroundings. I can’t even see the ceiling from here as it’s blocked out by the wood of the table, and the furniture of the living room looks more like mountains in the distance.

I’m hurrying to pick my clothes up when I jump at the explosive sound of Nathan moving his chair back so that he can stand, and the titan stretching up and up above me like a skyscraper is the most intimidating part of all. Being at the mercy of his hands is terrifying enough, but it would be beyond easy for him to crush me even by accident down here. His feet are on either side of me, like large boats, and he slides one of them back so he can peer down at me a bit more easily.

“You’re closer to bug status when you’re down there,” he booms, “The first rule I’d recommend following is to watch where I step.”

Right. Cool. You got it, boss.

I’m getting dressed as quickly as I can and he continues talking as he watches me. “At night and when I’m out I’ll be keeping you contained, but otherwise I’ve tiny-proofed this place so you’re free to go where you wish in the apartment. I’m a little less careful in the bedroom though - there’s carpet so it’s harder to see you in there. Enter at your own risk.”

Now fully clothed, I look around with newfound wonder. He’s really going to let me run around wherever? It’s such a different setup than I’m used to. While this leaves me open to new dangers - mainly, getting stepped on - maybe it will allow for opportunities too. I’ve gotten good at climbing… if I could access a phone or computer while he’s looking away…

“There is a little home base for you, if you will. I’ll show you, it’s in the living room.” I flinch as the giant black mass of Nathan’s socked foot lifts into the air just enough to step closer to me, and I’m backing away quickly even as it lands just ahead and makes the ground shake on impact. “Climb on.”

“W-what?” I yell up at him as I continue to shuffle backwards, trying impossibly to make eye contact despite his face being so, so high up. “Can’t I just-”

Nathan interrupts me with a sigh. “I can’t understand you from here so don’t bother… Which reminds me. I saw that your first owner had an earpiece linkup from his photos. I have one too, I do try to wear it sometimes, but don’t count on that always being the case.” He slides his foot towards me again to bridge the small gap I’d been forming. “Now. Don’t be difficult and climb onto me.”

I gulp, mustering my courage to obey. Maybe it’s better to be on top of his foot than risk ending up under it… Damnit, why didn't he just carry me to where he wanted me to be before putting me down here?

I step up to the fabric of his sock, aiming for the middle of his foot as I would probably struggle to climb up on his big toe right now. There’s mild relief in that the smell isn’t awful - like with his apartment, Nathan seems to really value cleanliness. The sock fabric allows for easy enough handholds, although after today’s trials I’m still finding it harder to hoist myself up than I normally would. I feel particularly worried at a sharp pain in my elbow when I put pressure on that arm, a remnant from when he almost broke it.

Once I get onto his toes, which are big enough that it feels like I'm climbing onto a tall bed, I rush to get further up his foot as I can already feel his muscles clenching and know he’s about to move. I cling to the sock tightly as everything lifts up and turns in mid-air, and the following drop and impact rattles me and almost knocks me off. The titan is walking perhaps a little slower than he normally would, though not by much. We’re definitely covering a lot more ground than if I were to walk on my own, but I still feel anxious to get off of this ride.

In a few steps we’re out of the dining area and into the living room, passing over a threshold in the floor where tile becomes hardwood, and he brings me to the side of a black leather couch. Without warning, the foot I'm on lifts up once more but this time he tilts it downward so he can dump me off. I don't know if he quite realizes how high up he's holding it, though - I see that the drop will be significant for me and as I start sliding down I'm scrambling for a handhold, digging my fingers into the black threads.

"Wha-"

Nathan's voice is a cross between bemused and annoyed as he sees me dangling off the end of his toes, clinging to his sock for dear life. He'd just been pulling his foot away after thinking he'd already rolled me off of him, and in his surprise he has to put a hand out to the couch to maintain his balance. The pain in my arm is searing to the point that I consider letting go despite there being a two-story drop to the hardwood below.

"You seem rather attached to me, Lily," the rumbling voice teases, "How touching."

I'm crying out for him to set me down despite knowing he can't hear me, but thankfully the foot finally slowly lowers so that I can let go from a more reasonable height. Everything has been such small movements for him but I'm left breathless and sore.

As I recover and try to look around at my surroundings, Nathan leans over a little so he can observe me. "It's so interesting to have someone who's already used to being so small. You have some rather impressive reflexes. I hope they serve you well."

I'm going to get a crick in my neck from having to stare up at him. Him towering over me at his full height like this, without bothering to crouch down or anything, is not only disconcerting but demeaning. At least he probably can't make out the hateful looks I'm giving him.

The titan reaches a hand out, finger pointing past where I'm standing. "Now, just here, see this? That's your bathroom. I expect you to keep yourself and your environment clean. Understood?"

I look, having to walk just around the corner of the couch to see what he's talking about. It's a weirdly familiar sight. I'm reminded of one of the rooms from the dollhouse that can detach and serve as a portable bathroom. The door's half open and I glimpse a toilet and sink inside, notice the water tank on the outside. It looks a little different than what I'm used to, a little rough and simpler, probably since it's built for a one-inch tall person instead of a three-inch one.

"This is also where I'll leave food for you if we're not eating together. Otherwise, as I said, you can scurry around wherever you like. Do keep in mind that I can track you at any moment. Not to mention I can make you come straight to me, as you've noticed. If I were you I would be careful about trying to get to any high places for that reason. Wouldn't want you suddenly forced to walk yourself off a cliff, would we?"

I hadn't even thought of that. Could that insane setting on his device really do that? I remember how powerless I was to control the invisible pull on my body… Of course it can.

"Now. I have some work to get done. There's so much to set up if we'd like to get filming started… I trust you can keep yourself entertained."

And with that he walks away. I stare after him for a moment warily, flinching at every footfall, since even as the distance between us grows I can feel the vibrations through the floor. Being down here is going to take some getting used to. But at least - at long last - he's leaving me alone. I can finally start getting my bearings and attempt to settle my nerves.

I go into the miniature bathroom to look around. There's no shower or anything, no hot water. I find a couple of very basic supplies like soap and other sets of clothes, and this is all clearly from the same manufacturer that made Leo's dollhouse - I'm sure there aren't too many options out there to buy from after all. But my captor doesn't seem to have bothered with any kind of other furniture or appliances, probably considering them unnecessary luxuries. I briefly wonder where I'm supposed to sleep, but I remember him mentioning I'd be "contained" at night and quickly realize it's a bad idea to start theorizing.

My next step is to survey the area for any sort of communication devices. It's next to impossible to glean anything about what's on top of tables and counters from here. I make a mental note to try and pay better attention the next time I'm not on the floor. At this point Nathan has settled on the couch in a more casual outfit with his laptop, playing classical music at a low volume. I actually recognize the track, remembering how on occasion he'd have music going on in the background in his office...

It's painful to remember a time when we got along. It feels like I must have run into his evil twin, that there's no way this is the same person who I've known for so long. But disconcertingly he seems to fully lean into the fact that we have preexisting rapport. It's such a twisted thing that him knowing me seems to be part of the appeal. I don't think I'll be getting over the dissonance anytime soon.

I explore for a little longer, assess that he has his computer and phone with him and don't find anything elsewhere that's promising. I briefly consider trying to get in his room to investigate more - I think I could squeeze under the closed door. But the built up exhaustion and physical pains in my body are starting to be too much. I don't think I'll be able to accomplish much more tonight. Perhaps the best thing I can do right now is rest…

I eventually make my way back to the couch and slip just underneath it like it's an outcropping. I take stock of my battered body. The more significant issues are the large bruise on my leg from when he flicked me this morning, major tenderness around my throat from when he almost choked me and especially the arm he almost broke, in an even worse state after that moment of dangling from his sock. There's too many bumps and bruises to count, though, and it even feels like my heart is sore from all the times it has sped up. I'm feeling numb from today's trauma, too worn out to break down or cry right now.

As I sit and gaze out at the kitchen, I think of Leo again, wondering what he's doing right now. I can't believe that, just 24 hours ago, my biggest concern was him bringing me back to my old size and getting him to understand that I was sad or whatever. It all feels so petty now. What I would do to go back to how we were. Being his prisoner was paradise compared to what I've dealt with today. My heart aches as I long for him, but thinking about my previous keeper still feels better than thinking about my current one, so I revisit old memories as I lay down and rest.

A couple of hours pass and I've started drifting in and out of consciousness, giving in to the exhaustion, when I suddenly feel a pressure in my chest that rouses me from my fitful sleep. At first I'm confused, but as the feeling grows more insistent and I start rolling backwards despite myself, I snap awake, immediately recognizing the invisible tug in my torso. Fuuuck.

My body is thankfully doing what it can to recover quickly so I'm feeling better than I did when the evening started, but I'm still in no hurry to face my new master again. For just a moment I try to fight the magnetic pull, scrambling to find purchase against the floor, but it's no use… and I should be conserving my strength where I can. So I get to my feet and follow the tug, walking underneath the couch to the other side. I notice that one of Nathan's feet is resting flat on the floor ahead of me, now bare, and I'm heading straight for it. I fight the insistent pull for a moment when I get to the edge of the couch so that I can try and look around, but then I stagger forward, the device not caring about me getting my bearings.

I don't have a choice in how I approach him, he must be holding the machine in a position that won't allow me to circumvent this obstacle - I'm forced to walk right up to the heel of his foot and then I'm pressing up into his skin, just under his ankle, and I'm trying to push away from him with my hands even as the rest of my body shoves me into him. He feels me though, noticing little tickles, and he stops summoning me with the device, allowing me to stumble back and look up at him.

Nathan's leaning over his knee to look down at me in turn, and I see the closest thing to a fond, gentle look on his face since my capture. "There's where you went. I was about to go looking for you myself. My, you do seem to be quite attached to my feet, don't you? That's perfectly fine by me, I rather enjoy it."

His other foot had been propped against the side of the coffee table in front of him, and he puts it down on the floor now with a boom, so that I'm standing between them. This is starting to feel uncomfortably familiar. An inch tall, surrounded by massive bare feet, a giant gazing down at me with a playful glint in his eye.

He slides a foot my way so that I'm facing off against his toes now. As big as cars, the digits are long and have slightly less of an arch than Leo’s do - I also notice there’s less warmth emanating from them than what I’m used to. They're clean and his toenails are just as well manicured as his fingernails, but that doesn't make them any less monstrous and threatening. I'm slowly backing away but Nathan keeps bringing his foot closer to knock against me, entertained by how easily he can push me around.

"Should I make you worship them?" he muses when I actually fall over, and panic rises in me as he slips his big toe over me and pins me against the floor, covering me completely. This blocks out light and his voice is muffled as it remains nonchalant, "That's a theme that has come up time and time again in these commissions. I was just writing a script for something like that right now. I could use a little break, though, and maybe some inspiration…"

The toe stretches, pressing against my ribs painfully, before it shifts so that I'm laying between his big and second toe instead. At least I can breathe now, and I try to stand up… but this is a mistake. As soon as I'm vertical enough he pinches his toes together, trapping me between them.

He lifts me slightly and keeps me there for far too long, rubbing the digits together, experimenting with different amounts of pressures as he pinches me. It feels similar to the way he played with me between his fingers back at the office, except this time he's paying closer attention, smirking at me from above, enjoying every second of his power over my tiny body.

"Stop it…" I moan, feeling like I might throw up if for no other reason than the unrelenting pressure against my stomach. I try to glare up at him but my expression is probably more pleading than anything. "Can you hear me?" I call, wondering if my voice can reach him now that he's sitting down.

"A little. I don't particularly care to, though. In fact, why don't we make those vocal chords a bit smaller... Shrink to a quarter inch, would you?"

No... Just no… Forget my body. How much more of this can my sanity take?

The reducing sensations take over, and I’m whimpering and breathing hard as I grow smaller between two already massive toes. He’s settled his foot back down to ensure my feet are against the ground, parting the digits so that I shrink down on the hardwood. If there was carpet here I would quickly be disappearing into the strands. Instead I watch walls of flesh stretching higher and higher until they’re over twice my height. Beyond is the titan’s leg, stretching up to where a hand loosely drapes over his knee, and past that his face is growing, larger than ever, especially as he leans forward to watch the show. It's getting difficult to take in very much at once, my gaze darting between the anticipation in his eyes, the slight curve of his mouth, the dark strands of hair shifting on his forehead as he moves.

"Much better,” he rumbles, and while he knows how important it is to watch his volume, the vibrations of his voice still overwhelm me with the prospect of this particular giant having gotten so mountain-like. “This way I can't hear a thing anymore. You're little more than a speck now, Lily. An insect…” His toes flex threateningly on either side of me, the twitch startling me, and his smile sharpens as he watches my reaction. “One that must obey. Start climbing.”

He shifts his foot forward ever so slightly, moving towards me as if to make his point, inviting me to climb the space between his toes. Normally - if I could just stay calm - I’d be able to do this without issue. But right now I’m afraid my arm might give out if I attempt it.

I’m shaking, and in my hesitation Nathan sighs and admonishes me. “I thought you'd be an expert at this? Come, this should be easy for you.”

I try, approaching the wall of skin with trepidation, and reach a hand out to a wrinkle in his flesh. I attempt to do this quickly, get it over with, and I get up slightly before I grab with my injured arm and there's a stab of pain giving me a jolt of a warning. Not wanting to push it, I slide back down. The titan lets out an annoyed tsk, the sharp click of his tongue reverberating and making me cower.

“Maybe you just need the right motivation…”

There’s movement above me and I see his giant fingers holding the shrinking device in my direction. I thought he was threatening to make me even smaller until I feel the horrible pull high up in my chest, making me lurch onto my tiptoes as my body is compelled to move up towards the machine. I have no choice anymore. For a moment I’m just pressing myself up in that small space between his toes, refusing to use my arms, but the pull is painful, it’s impossible to fight and I’m finding myself reaching up, grabbing, climbing, my elbow on fire, and even as I’m crying out in pain I’m still moving up…

Just as I reach the top he lets go of the button on the device, and I collapse onto his big toe, gasping and wincing as I clutch my arm against me.

"See? I knew you could do it. You know, the more you simply listen to me the less I have to use that setting.”

If he would just listen to me for a second maybe he’d understand that I'm fucking injured. Not that he would give a shit. Clearly.

He jostles his foot, tilting it just enough to make me roll to the side. I yelp, tumbling before his toe settles out again as I slide onto the slick surface of the toenail. It’s as wide as a house and slightly paler than his skin - perhaps a spot that makes it easier for him to make out the shape of me. Whatever. I lay there, curling onto my side and taking ragged breaths.

Nathan's settling in above me, leaning elbows onto knees so he can gaze at my tiny form. "Heh. Look at you down there. Are you prostrating yourself? Somehow I doubt that, but you're so small that it's hard to tell. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt. This is… quite the sight for sore eyes… I've always enjoyed these more extreme sizes. It's not always the most practical thing but, putting you in your rightful place like this… there's nothing like it, Lily. Come to think of it, your boyfriend also liked to make you quite small, didn't he? How unfortunate for you. Just goes to show that this is what you're destined to be."

I tense my shoulders, trying to just let his thundering words roll over me. It's not like I can answer him anyway.

"I only wish I could have been the one to first bring you down to size. I was fantasizing about it today at work… Could you imagine? You come into my office for our weekly one-on-one. Realize that you've missed a deadline. You give me that look of yours, that adorable apologetic look, always with the slightest hint of fear at my authority. Except I don't take it so easy on you this time. I make you smaller. Perhaps I give you new tasks to carry out for me, simpler ones, attending to me as an assistant for the day. But the coffee machine is too high up on the counter, and unfortunately you fail even something that basic and I have to punish you, which means you get smaller. The copy machine becomes too large for you to operate, and you get smaller. You're too low to the ground to hand me the file I request. Smaller. You can't even lift the pen that I need off of my desk. Smaller… Soon I wouldn't even use you for work, just put you under my desk so you can massage my feet. But even that would prove too much for you and down you go... Tinier and tinier. And now here you are, my speck. Unable to do anything for me but grovel."

I'm still trying to block him out, but I jump at the sight of his fingers appearing around me. He's not touching me but has brought a hand down to taunt me with his two-story tall fingertips. "You used to be one of my best workers - smart, resourceful, beautiful, well-liked by everyone. And now you're nothing but a piece of dirt on your superior's toe. Where you belong."

"Shut up…" I growl, and the pain in my arm has abated, maybe numbed by the adrenaline stemming from my anger and fear. I sit up on my hands and knees, recoiling as he slides the finger alongside me, but he still doesn't try touching me with it.

"My imagination is running away with me…" Nathan mutters, "But unfortunately it's getting late. I need to show you to where you'll be sleeping… and I think I have just the place. You know, this little play session of ours has been giving me plenty of ideas for the script I'm writing. So thank you for that. Now. Come here, tiny thing…"

The finger he keeps threatening to poke me with moves to the far edge of his toenail, and he curls his toe so that the platform I'm on tilts and I slide down it, bumping up against his fingertip. Ready to be off of his foot, I cooperate from here, scrambling onto the dome of his fingerpad.

He moves slower than usual as he lifts me up, but not enough to compensate for how much smaller I am, and during the ascension I grit my teeth and squeeze my eyes shut, clinging to the ridges in his fingerprint. I don’t even really see where we’re going as he stands up and starts walking. I hear what I think is a door opening and venture to raise my head and look… It seems like we’re in his bedroom now but I don’t have time to make sense of the blurry shapes shifting all around me. I wonder in a panic - is he not going to make me any bigger than this? Is he keeping me at a quarter inch?

It’s a roller coaster as Nathan fetches something from a drawer, handling me too casually as he makes his way around the room, and then we’re back in the living room again and he's crouching down now. I manage to keep the contents of my stomach inside me by the time he finally puts me down - or rather, drops me - onto a soft surface.

I try to get up, sinking into some kind of black carpet-like fibers, and I try to figure out where I am. In front of me is a 40-foot wall leading up to a wide view of the sky where I can make out pieces of the room beyond. Behind me is the opening to a cave, a tunnel of staggering proportions that goes so deep that it’s hard to make out the end of it since all of the walls are black. There’s an odor to the area, a slight musk that isn’t particularly pleasant. Nathan’s put me in a… shoe?

The titan looms above, studying me as he kneels on the floor. “I was going to put you in a sneaker I use for the gym,” he says, “But after the day you’ve had I thought that might be a bit too much, even for me. It’s only your first night here, after all. I thought you might appreciate the softness of a slipper instead.”

How. Fucking. Sweet.

“Oh and one last thing. I’m sure you’re aware already, but according to the device’s readout, you're just on the brink of a sprain in your arm. Not that it would matter for filming tomorrow, but I'm guessing you'd rather let it heal. So. Let's not try anything foolish in the night, hmm? If you’re good and rest up, I’m sure you’ll feel much better by morning.”

I look up at him in angry shock. I didn’t realize the device could be that precise. He knew?

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Miss Tealeaf. I hope you’ve enjoyed the warm welcome to your new life.”

I don’t even wait for him to walk away, he can’t hear me anyway - I let out a long, loud string of curses, infuriated by the humiliation of it all. He really is going to leave me this tiny. He's storing me in his goddamn footwear. I've never heard him talk so much before this evening and it was all just to demean me. And the sick bastard was apparently all too aware that he was injuring my arm and forced me to use it to climb him anyway.

I look up at the walls of the slipper. Since there's a fluffy interior lining, despite being a bit matted with use, there are plenty of handholds that I could have potentially used to climb out of here. Not that I'd know what to do outside of the shoe, but with the state of my arm I probably don't even have the option. Almost as if he'd planned it that way. I continue shouting and cursing and letting everything out until I'm exhausted.

Soon it's like the sun suddenly vanishes as Nathan turns off the lights and thunders away to the bedroom. As I slowly calm down again, I go ahead and explore the little that I'm able. The fibers of the slipper's lining are almost as tall as I am so it's a little cumbersome getting anywhere. I make it to the outer wall, trying to see if I can maybe use my legs and one arm to do the bulk of the work in climbing. But there's no way, especially considering how high I'd need to get - not just on this wall but also to get back down on the other side. I continue to look around for a hole in the fabric or something, but there's nothing of the sort.

I'm so anxious about what tomorrow will bring. But there's nothing I can do but wait. And I'm so… so drained. After an hour of wandering and worrying I finally collapse, just underneath where the distant ceiling of the shoe begins. And I succumb to the oblivion of sleep.
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sat Sep 24, 2022 11:27 am

Chapter 9

It's a rough night. My anxiety wakes me at multiple points, not to mention that the slightest ambient sounds - the AC turning on, a car driving by outside, any kind of noise coming from a neighboring apartment - are all immensely magnified to my particularly tiny ears. Even once the morning light starts brightening the room, I think I'm getting woken up by something that’s outdoors until I realize the thumping is starting to get much louder.

I hurry to my feet as the ground starts to shake considerably. And then the mountainous form of a giant suddenly comes into view above me, the sight enough to take my breath away. What a way to start the day… feeling utterly insignificant. I wait for him to get me out of here, to grow me back to anything other than this ridiculous quarter-inch height.

Nathan's looking straight at me as he approaches the slipper, a cold yet anticipatory smile on his face. It feels like the sky is falling as he begins to crouch down and his face gets bigger and bigger. He must have just gotten out of bed, his slightly ruffled hair giving him a casual look that’s better suited for a kpop star than my always-put-together manager. He's squinting his eyes as he approaches, looking for me down in his shoe, until he finally seems to spot me.

He doesn't say anything for a moment, just observing me from his squatting position, and I in turn process his overwhelming presence with bated breath. Then he smirks a little and gestures with his chin, as if pointing to something beyond me. And he says one word, softly and simply.

"Run."

It takes me a second. My initial reaction is a sense of confusion - I'm immediately tense while not completely understanding why I should be. But my brain's done a lot of work in the background, coming up with all sorts of terrible things that might happen to me. And one of those scenarios becomes immediately present in my mind. He’s about to put the slipper on.

I turn and sprint away, into the depths of the cave. The titan has already started standing back up again, and he's moving quite slowly but not nearly slowly enough. The soft floor and thick fiber strands are a problem, impeding my speed considerably. The full length of the slipper is almost a quarter mile long for me. This is insane. I don’t even know if I’m making the right move, just hoping that the deeper in I go the more space there will be…

I’m just over halfway through the tunnel when the light dims and I’m suddenly knocked over by the ground shifting underneath me. I know there’s no time to lose and I’m hurrying to get back up, but I still manage a quick glance behind me… Sure enough, his humongous toes have touched down at the heel of the shoe. Shit, shit, shit.

He’s savoring this, taking his sweet time, wriggling his foot forward bit by bit, his toes stretching and curling with each movement as they crawl towards me. It’s getting darker and darker. The air’s getting harder to breathe. The rumbling movements are constantly threatening to knock me over, even as I try to use my arms to bounce against the fabric fibers and stay on my feet. I’m focusing on what’s ahead but I can feel the digits closing in, and it’s like being chased by a massive bulldozer that’s better suited for hauling boulders than young women.

The far wall of the slipper is less than 50 feet away when I realize I’m not going to make it. His big and second toe enter my periphery to the left of me, signaling that I’m out of time. Instead of blindly continuing to run, I try to look backwards and aim myself to be between two of the towering fleshy pillars before diving to the floor. Like a tidal wave, the force of his foot crashes over me and now I’m pushing myself down into the ground, covering my head protectively as I cry out in fear. His third and fourth toe are settling above and around me, and I’m in just enough of a gap that I’m not completely crushed. Not yet.

I’m breathing hard and fast and know I have to keep moving. I crawl forward even as the ground rumbles again as he settles his posture, and then the titan slides his foot and the entire slipper backward. This actually helps propel me forward, and I’m grabbing at the fibers, pushing with my legs, crawling my way up under the mounds of flesh that are my ceiling until I reach the edge of them and can get back up to my feet. The toes flex behind me - thankfully I’m no longer underneath them - and then they stretch out again as I’m now feeling the vertigo of the entire cave moving up. He’s starting to walk.

I’m no longer standing and just cling to the lining of the slipper, bracing myself for the impact that comes a moment later, the BOOOM of the shoe landing on the floor again. There’s barely any light, just a few rays here and there that let me know that there’s still a bit of a gap left within the shoe. While his other foot is moving and this one is relatively calm, I’m inching forward towards the wall of the slipper, wanting to get as far away from him as possible. I have to pause and hold on during every other footstep and even when I finally make it to the wall I don’t feel safe.

It’s impossible to tell what Nathan is doing or where he’s moved to, but at some point things start to slow down… relatively. He’s not completely motionless, but he appears to be staying in one general spot instead of actively walking. I hear more noises from high up, a shuffling and clanging of some kind, but I can’t make sense of it. How long is he going to keep me in here??

I think at one point he purposely lifts and slams his toes down just for the hell of it, and I lose my grip for a moment and slide towards the monstrous digits before catching myself and backing up. I let out a cry of anger as I curse at my tormenter, “Motherfucker!

Unexpectedly, I hear an echo outside, slightly muffled from in here but still so loud, and I realize it’s a light laugh. “Good morning to you too,” the titan booms from above.

I almost lose my grip again. I’m so stressed out by my situation that it takes me a moment to register what’s happening. He just responded to me. He must have the earpiece in.

“What, no more insults?” the thunderous voice continues, “I’m perfectly open to hearing them. It’s rather hilarious coming from you. Since when have you been employing such vulgar language, Miss Tealeaf?”

“Nathan,” I gasp, my voice hoarse and strained, “I’m going to die in here. You hear me? You’re going to fucking kill me.”

There’s more "soft" laughter coming from outside. “Such drama. You’re not going to die, Lily. I think I felt you crawling under me a bit ago… but it seems you’ve found a safe little spot now, yes? Just sit tight and enjoy the ride.”

A couple of bigger steps leave me unable to respond, just holding on for dear life.

“Besides,” he continues, “I’d be shocked if you hadn’t noticed before, but… you do know you're more durable when you're smaller, correct? So relax.”

Relax? Why do all these giants think that they can just handle me so carelessly because I'm “more durable” when I'm smaller? Nathan has no idea what it’s like down here. How real the danger is. Sure I might be able to handle a higher fall or greater pressure proportionally than I did at my original size, but the sheer scale of him right now is a thousand percent deadly.

After a moment where I have no idea how to respond, I recoil as the titan begins idly tapping his big toe inside the shoe as he stands there, a rhythmic boom… boom… boom…

“This really is too funny…” he muses, “Now you know what an ant might feel like caught in a shoe. Except you can’t even sting me. You can’t do anything. Let’s see if I can just...”

Everything suddenly starts tilting as Nathan lifts the front side of the slipper up higher and higher, and as I hold on to the fibers desperately I watch in horror as he lifts the digits again like it’s a giant maw below me, ready to swallow me whole.

“...No? You certainly have a good grip.” He sets his foot back down again and my teeth clatter at the impact. “It seems your arm is doing better then? I’m no longer seeing the injury warning on the device.”

With all the adrenaline I hadn’t really checked in on my elbow. I haven’t exactly had the time. Though at least it hasn’t given out yet as I cling here.

“How much longer?” I demand with a pleading tone to my voice, changing the subject.

“What, don't tell me you're not enjoying yourself? Just another minute or so, I’m finishing getting breakfast ready.” There’s a short pause as I hear the shrill sound of something sizzling. “So how did you sleep, little bug? Was it nice and comfortable in there?”

Are we seriously going to just have a casual conversation like this? Nathan takes a step again and I can’t answer, wincing at the up and down of it, trying to catch my breath. I’m sure he’s mostly just been hearing my gasps and whimpers as he moves around, and he’s beginning to lose patience with how long I take to respond to him.

This time, he tilts the slipper so that the toe side is pointing downward. I’m laying on my back now against the wall, but to my horror his toes are above me and start to descend, easily reaching me as he pushes his foot deeper into the slipper. I scream, slipping back between two toes, the masses of flesh heavily making contact with my miniscule body…

“Answer me, Lily…” he says with a sardonic, sweet tone.

My voice is shaking from the pressure and the terror and I have to tilt my head back to respond, “Y-Yes! Yes, it was fine!”

“That’s good to hear. Mmm, looks like I finally made my mark. That’s you I’m feeling, right? It’s not a piece of dirt? Wriggle for me, just to be sure…”

And I do, thrashing and pushing against him until his chuckle is vibrating through me and he finally pulls back, the shoe leveling out. I scramble back from his foot again, panting. Every moment that I’m in here it feels like a miracle that I’m not dead.

"You'll be disappointed to hear that you won't be joining me at work today," the titan goes on nonchalantly, "Seems like one of the devs got sick and they need someone to fill in at the tech fair for the last couple of days."

It’s been hard to fully pay attention to his words, but this is the best news I've heard so far. "A-am I s-staying in the apartment?" I ask breathlessly.

"Afraid so. Don't worry, I'll work you extra hard next week to make up for it. Not to mention we'll have lots of fun tonight during filming… I'll be craving to play with you even more after a long day of work."

There's one last flourish of clanging up above before it gets much more quiet. I get one silent warning, the giant toes ahead of me clenching as the foot gets ready to push off the floor. And then Nathan's walking in earnest again.

The roller coaster ride continues and I'm starting to get dizzy from the vertigo and how stuffy it is in here. Every footfall is painful. I'm about to start begging him for mercy again when he finally stops moving and - thank all that is holy - the toes begin to retreat. Light and fresh air filters back in and I collapse in a heap, relieved and exhausted in the wake of this latest bout of torture.

Nathan's not quite done, though. I should have stayed on my guard. In one abrupt motion, the slipper tilts sharply, the toe side lifting up. Unable to catch myself in time, I fall forward and begin tumbling down the length of the massive slide. It's not a straight shot as my tiny form gets bounced against the fibers, pinballing me down as I slide and roll and fall for hundreds of feet down the length of the cave. The sky suddenly opens up overhead as I reach the heel area, and that's when the titan lowers his hand again, setting the slipper back down so that it levels out.

"There you are. Look who's decidedly not dead. And you were so worried."

The world is spinning after the dizzying tumble, and it takes a few seconds for the blurry image of Nathan's looming face to come into focus. He’s squinting again, trying to make out more of the details in my puny form. Then in one smooth, overwhelming motion he gets all the way back to standing.

“I’ll be getting ready for the day now. I suggest you do the same. You can go ahead and grow back to an inch tall.”

I feel another huge wave of relief. This time I try to stay on my guard, but the titan’s walking away now and the machine has reacted to his words, making me larger and larger in the space until I’m no longer drowning in the fibers below me, no longer quite so oppressed by every ambient sound in the vicinity. I lay there for a moment and just breathe. I sincerely hope that I’m not going to be woken up to this kind of treatment every morning. But I don't have a good feeling about it.

Getting out of the slipper still proves to be a bit of a challenge. Now that I’ve calmed down, I can feel the pain in my arm again - it’s not nearly as bad as it was yesterday but I still want to be careful. Not to mention I’m now feeling the rest of my battered body’s soreness, the entire length of my frame having developed a variety of bruises. I’m glad I’ll at least have a good chunk of the day by myself, though.

I finally manage to climb my way up and out of the shoe. Nathan’s dropped me off in the living room, right next to the bathroom he has for me. I go ahead and do what he says, stepping inside and shutting the door.

Blocking out the rest of the world helps a little. The sink is rudimentary and I do wish I at least had hot water to clean with, but it gets the job done, not to mention the cold is actually helpful for some of the swelling and soreness that I’m feeling. I have a drink of water and go ahead and get changed into one of the outfits provided too - I notice that every item of clothing that’s here is just in plain black. The stuff back at Leo’s place wasn’t exactly high fashion either… At least all of these are relatively comfortable.

Once I’m dressed, I go ahead and launder my old outfit too, cleaning it off in the sink with tender care. This is the last remnant I have from my previous life. These clothes are my only connection to him. I run my fingers over them, try to really be in the moment for a few minutes, feeling the texture of the fabric just as I try to pull together the threads of my sanity. I don’t want to lose myself to despair here. For better or worse, I’ve been through so incredibly much in the past couple of months, and I’ve grown from it. I’ve learned to be more resilient than I’ve ever been before. I have to lean on that now. I have to stay strong.

Despite closing myself up in here, I do still hear noises outside, feeling slight vibrations in the ground whenever Nathan walks no matter where he is in the apartment. He can’t exactly sneak up on me, and yet I’m still never quite sure what to expect when his footsteps eventually begin approaching. I’m just finishing wringing out the water from my old outfit, and I protectively stash it away on a small ledge I find under the sink.

Suddenly the whole room quakes. I fall over, my head missing the edge of the sink by a hair, and lay there tense on the floor as the bathroom lifts up into the air. The door is still closed so I don’t see where he’s taking me. A few moments later, with much less of a descent, the room touches down again, and any of the toiletries that were still up on the counter are promptly knocked off by this point.

“I’m heading out now. Try to make the food last since I’ll be gone until dinner. Not that it should be difficult for you at your size.”

I don’t respond, continuing to sit on the floor of the bathroom. He’s been shuffling around and packing up to leave so I’m hoping he’s just going to exit without further fuss. But of course, no such luck… There’s a sudden knocking on the roof of my hiding place, the sharp tap of fingernail against plastic.

“What, no goodbyes for your master?”

There’s no way this ends well if I keep hiding in here. I take a steadying breath and promptly get to my feet to hurry out the door. I take one quick glance around and I see that he’s placed me up on the kitchen table, and I’m guessing that’s the plate he used for breakfast nearby. Looks like he’s leaving me whatever scraps he didn’t finish. How kind of him.

He's standing nearby and I face him. My heart thumps hard against my ribcage as I can’t help but feel incredibly intimated by the sight of this monster. But I try to force as calm and casual of an air as I can. Like I'm making small talk at the office.

“Have fun at the fair. This is the convention that's downtown, right?”

I'm giving Nathan pause. His eyes narrow slightly as he tries to figure out what I'm up to.

“...Yes.”

“Don’t forget to check out the Firefly Games booth. They always have really good swag."

The corner of his mouth curls up. I'm not sure if amusing him is the right thing to do but I figure I might as well try… something.

"Good thinking," he responds, "Especially since I believe their latest app is a game about little toys coming to life. Might as well get some inspiration for things we can do together, hmm?"

Oh. I didn't know that part.

Nathan reaches out to the nearby counter to pick up a set of keys. "I'm leaving you up there today. Be good and stay away from the edges. I know we've established that your tiny body can handle quite a bit, but that kind of fall might be pushing it."

As if he needs to tell me that. Just leave already, I think bitterly.

He reaches into his jacket pocket, a devilish smirk on his face as he gazes at me, "And you never know, when I get bored…" I suddenly feel the sharp tug in my chest, my body jerking towards him, and it's enough to knock me off balance and I fall hard on the table’s surface. "I can do that from anywhere. I can do any of it from miles away. So stay put. Understood?"

I get back to my feet, trying to look as unruffled as I can. I meet his gaze and respond with the phrase I've always used with him when he gave me a new task at work. "Yup. I'm on it."

He smiles coldly, giving me a small nod, and I'm honestly not sure if I'm entertaining him or getting under his skin. But he seems satisfied enough with my obedience and it's at this point that he finally turns and walks away, boom-booming his way until he’s out of sight down the hall and leaves his apartment.

I sigh and sit on the table, letting myself slump to the side. I’m not sure exactly how I should be behaving around him, I hope that I wasn’t taunting him just now. The screaming and begging didn’t seem to work, though, so maybe a certain amount of obedience is better. I have no idea what I’m doing.

After a few minutes of letting myself rest, I get back up and try to focus. I don’t just want to sit around and wait all day for him to get back, I'll go crazy. Even if it’s placebo effect, I want to tackle the day with intention. Gotta keep my head above the water.

I go ahead and approach the plate he left out for me so that I can eat something. Looks like he had toast of some kind and he’s left the crusts along with bits of egg and avocado. I’m revolted for a moment by some of the bite marks left behind, but this is no time to be picky. I climb onto the plate, and at an inch tall there really is plenty of food here for me to pick at, even while managing to avoid the edges that have touched Nathan’s mouth. I go ahead and prep other portions for myself to snack on throughout the day, setting them off to the side.

Next I take a look at my immediate surroundings. Outside of my bathroom and the plate he’s left the table completely bare, but I still find things to do. I try to see if I’m able to climb on top of the bathroom, and while the building is almost twice as tall as I am, I find a dent in the plastic that’s a good enough foothold that I can climb up. I also discover that, because the building is quite narrow and the walls are made of plastic and not wood or stone, I’m actually able to move the bathroom itself if I push against the corner, needing to use considerable force but being able to rotate it slowly with the right leverage. It would be a lot of work, but if I had the time, I have a two-inch boost that I can move somewhere if I need it. For whatever that’s worth.

I examine every detail within the bathroom. There’s solid blocks of soap and tiny boxes of toothpaste powder that don’t seem particularly helpful outside of their intended use, but I keep inventory nevertheless. There’s a mirror attached to the wall above the sink, and as I knock on it I think it’s actually a thin layer of glass, not acrylic. I bet I could break this if I wanted to. Not much of a weapon, I’m sure, but maybe it could end up useful for cutting things? I keep a mental note of it. There are a couple of towels, and although there's no underwear I count twenty pairs of shirts and shorts. I methodically start tying everything together into one long rope. I figure I could just untie an outfit when I need to change, but otherwise this gives me a few inches of string to work with if I need it. I have zero plan on how I could utilize any of these tools but I do feel the slightest bit more prepared having them.

I take a good look around the kitchen and the living room beyond, climbing on top of my plastic bathroom to help me get a better view. The counters are all pretty bare, though I do notice about a foot up on one side of the kitchen counter there’s a keypad of some kind. A security system maybe? If I ever found a way to get up there could I make it ring? His bedroom door is closed, so while I wish I could look inside for anything useful, that isn’t an option for now. I do manage to glimpse from my perch that over in the living room, sitting on the coffee table, is a laptop. I don’t think it’s the same personal laptop I saw him use last night, though - this one actually looks familiar as I used to have something similar, including the giant sticker adorning the back of it with a picture of a green rocketship. It’s his company laptop, and I guess he left it behind since he wouldn’t need it at the tech fair. If only I could get down from here…

I briefly try to calculate if it would be at all possible for me to use my makeshift rope to reach a chair and climb down from this kitchen table, though I do stay wary about getting too close to the edge after what Nathan threatened. I quickly figure out that there’s just no way. Everything’s just so far away, so unattainable. And even if I could get down I’m not sure how I would get up on the coffee table, much less actually open the laptop to use it.

At least I’m getting the lay of the land, I tell myself. I’ve been spending quite a bit of the morning trying to be productive, and I’m starting to feel fatigued. I didn’t sleep well, and my body is still needing so much more recovery than I’ve been able to get.

I eat a little more, and it’s while I’m kneeling on the plate again that I get my first taste of being summoned from afar, the abrupt tug between my shoulder blades making me fall back. He does it a few more times until I’m starting to crawl back off the plate, letting loose a string of curses under my breath as Nathan continues to toy with me even when he’s not here. After a minute or so of intermittent jolts, he finally gets bored and I can finish eating.

Once my belly’s full, I make my way back to the bathroom, well in the center of the table, and then eventually use the fabric of my clothes rope as a little pillow to try and take a nap on the table. My aches and pains are feeling better when I wake up a few hours later, but along with feeling more energized I’m also feeling more anxious. The clock on the wall is an ever present reminder of my captor’s inevitable return approaching. On the one hand, being stuck up here with so little to do is starting to become maddening. On the other hand… the alternative is so much worse. I’m starting to feel the dread of evening approaching.

The last hour is particularly horrible. I end up sitting in the bathroom, feeling at least somewhat sheltered, and just curl up with my head between my knees, trying to breathe and travel somewhere else in my mind. Trying not to think about what’s coming. Trying not to wonder what he might do.

Until I hear the front door opening. Then I no longer have to wonder.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Mon Sep 26, 2022 7:16 pm

Chapter 10

I feel like anxiety is burning a hole through my chest, each approaching footfall making me flinch. But I’d thought it through ahead of time and I think it would be riskier to stay hidden in here. I force myself to my feet and with a trembling hand open the bathroom door. I step out onto the table just as Nathan steps into the kitchen.

God I miss being three inches tall. Never in a million years would I have thought I’d say that, but being kept at a third of that size regularly really is so much scarier. I’m starting to just picture my ex boss as this naturally massive being - even though I think he’s a bit shorter than Leo in reality, in my mind he’s so much bigger. I try not to let the intimidation show as I greet him.

“How was it?” I call out.

He has an almost feline look in his expression as he sets a couple of things down on the kitchen counter, eyeing me as he rounds the table I’m on. “It could have been worse,” he responds, matching my casual tone, “Although if I have to sit through one more panel on automation I might actually lose it.” I get a chill down the length of my spine as I notice his fingers drifting over to the edge of the table, brushing idly against the surface of the wood.

“G-get any good swag?” I continue, having a hard time keeping my voice steady.

He’s continuing to round on me, his smile growing as he sees right through any of my attempts at delaying the inevitable. “The usual. USB drives and the like. One of the booths was actually giving out mini drones, if you could believe it, perhaps something we could explore later. Oh and I was surprised by the amount of stress toys that were around. Clearly no one received the memo that I already have just what I need…”

The mammoth fingers are sliding in my direction now and my breath gets caught in my throat. I take a couple of steps back, curling in on myself as his fingertips reach me, envelop me–

“Ahhh,” the titan sighs relaxedly as I’m rocketed into the sky and he rubs against me in his grasp. “Much better.”

Nathan keeps me in his hand this time while he gets dinner ready. I’m painfully reminded of what his fingers are capable of as he absently kneads and pets my tiny form, enjoying the way I reflexively writhe in my attempts to protect myself. He’s not being quite as aggressive as he was yesterday, but he’s adding on to the existing pains that already rack my body. Not to mention the emotional torture is still as present as ever - the fear of being handled so casually as he walks around the kitchen, the humiliation of him hardly even looking at me while he works, just fiddling with me like I’m an object.

Thankfully his meal preparations aren’t very involved, as opposed to how Leo would often spend half an hour or more on dinner. I put together from the brief glimpses I get that my tormenter's making packaged ramen. While he waits for the noodles to cook on the stove, he places me on his palm so he can hold me closer to his face as he pokes at me.

At one point he pins my arm down. I yelp at the pain that shoots through it and beg, "Please, man… It's still healing, could you–"

"Shush…" His finger moves to cover my face instead, immediately shutting me up as he pushes me down. I squirm, kicking my legs and desperately struggling against the beast of a digit, and when he slides it off of me again I gasp for air.

Nathan gazes at me with a look that makes me nervous in a whole new way. His pale blue eyes are too close, almost as big as I am, cold even as his pupils get the slightest bit bigger. Hungry.

“Enlarge clothing,” he murmurs. The device is apparently within listening distance as I suddenly feel my shirt getting loose, the fabric slowly getting larger against my body. I brace myself at the expectation that I’ll soon be drowning in fabric again, but after just a moment he says, “Stop.” My clothes are still on me, just a few sizes too big, and as I try to push myself to sitting I can feel the cloth slipping against me, exposing my shoulder inadvertently.

I gasp as the titan promptly slips a finger under my shirt. He knocks me back again so that I’m laying down on his palm, his index covering my abdomen. And then he’s pointedly touching my breasts now, and I wince at the feeling of the ridges of his fingerprint rubbing against my nipples. It hurts and it’s violating and–

There’s an alarm ringing, interrupting the moment. I whimper as the finger pulls away again, and I pull down my oversized shirt to cover myself. The titan looks unbothered as he turns off the alarm and takes the pot off the heat. He closes his hand around me and pauses to dump me back on the kitchen table so that he can finish preparing and serving up the food.

I sit up and slide away on the wood, almost losing my shorts completely, clutching at the only things that are keeping me from being naked right now. Nathan returns holding a bowl, setting it down next to me, and he smirks in my direction as he sits down.

“You look ridiculous... Adjust clothing to match subject.” My clothes start shrinking back, contracting in on me so that I’m able to scoot further away without being so encumbered.

I’m trying to keep it together. Trying to keep myself from screaming at him, from cursing at him, from fighting back or running away. It’s so hard to stay calm. And I don’t even know if it’s doing any good to try and be obedient. To what end?

Unaware and uncaring of the inner turmoil of his little pet on the table, Nathan continues to casually converse with me as he starts eating. “So. You weren’t too bored while I was away?”

I sit, legs folded into me, arms clasped around them. “No, it was fine… I got some rest.”

“Mmm, maybe next time I should set you up with some chores. It would have been nice if you could have at least cleaned that plate I left for you. I’m sure that would have taken you all day.”

My muscles tense up. But better stay here with a task than be taken with him to work. “Sure. Whatever you need.”

He smiles approvingly. I flinch as he reaches for me, but he doesn’t pick me up - weirdly, he pulls at the side of my shirt, not trying to take it off but just tugging and feeling it between his fingers. Examining. Evaluating.

“I’ll need to find you a different outfit for tonight…” he says, mostly to himself, before he pulls away again, “Any guesses as to what the theme will be, Lily?”

“The… theme?” My heart rate is still recovering after his random touch. “For what?”

He frowns with annoyance. “For what we’ll be filming later. Do try to keep up.”

To be honest, I really don’t know what to expect when it comes to the video he plans to make and I’ve been trying not to think about it. “Oh,” I respond, “Uhhh. T-toys coming to life? You know, since… you said you were… inspired…”

He shakes his head, though his more relaxed air is back as he smiles. “Not quite. Maybe next time. I can keep an eye out in the commission requests for something like that, if you like.”

I don’t respond, watching him warily as he continues to eat. I’m starting to wonder if he plans to feed me anything tonight. As if he’s reading my thoughts and wants to make me regret them, the next time the titan lowers his chopsticks, it’s no longer towards the bowl but towards me. The wooden poles, becoming more familiar than I’d like, slip around my torso and pinch against me to lift me up. I hold on to them nervously, my legs dangling, my heart pounding, and I know this can’t be good.

“Care for a bite?” Nathan asks as he’s lifting me above the bowl now, hovering me just over the surface of the broth, and I can feel the heat from here and see wisps of steam coming out of the giant nest of noodles.

“N-not from in there!” I protest, and I try to bring my legs up as I’m getting lowered down, “Nonono, don’t!”

My leg brushes up against a noodle and I wince from the heat. It's not quite scalding but I know it’ll be a whole different experience getting submerged in it, and then I whoosh back upwards as the titan muses, “Mmm, you’re right. We wouldn’t want you all lobster-red for the camera after all.”

He’s not done toying with me, still using the chopsticks to lift me up higher and turn me towards his face instead. I shudder just at the sight of the corner of his mouth twitching up. He's clearly enjoying the effect his taunts are having on me.

“You could always join the ramen…” he says, “Maybe you can find a morsel to pick out from between my teeth.”

I’m thrashing and hyperventilating now as he opens his mouth and brings me closer, and I can’t form words anymore, my voice little more than a sob. The fear of getting eaten alive is a particularly strong one for me - the cavern of his mouth looms threateningly, hot and dark and dangerous, and he brings me so close, enough that I see his tongue undulate expectantly inside. I’m able to push my foot against one of his bottom teeth, and I’m shoving back desperately to no avail. And then the mouth closes into a smile, a laugh, as he pulls me away again.

“Oh, very well. It would be a hassle to dry you off afterwards anyway, and I’m anxious to get started on filming after this.”

He puts me back down on the table again and I’m shaking, wiping the tears off my cheeks. I don’t want him to know quite how terrified I was of that and potentially give him the idea that he should ever do it again, but he doesn’t seem to be paying very close attention to me. He’s busy plucking up a scrap of a noodle from his bowl, only half as long as I am. To my surprise, he brings it right up to my face, practically shoving his chopsticks against my mouth. I recoil.

“Come now, are you not hungry? Say ‘ahhh.’”

I try, opening my mouth as the hot, slippery lump of food gets pressed into my face and I start gagging and am almost knocked over, which elicits another echoing laugh.

“Pitiful…” Nathan says with amusement, pulling back and fishing another, slightly longer noodle out of the bowl. “Here.”

This one he drops right into my lap, and reflexively I jerk away, the heat still a bit too intense. But at least he finally seems to be done messing with me and is actually just giving me food before he returns to his own meal. I carefully pick up the thick rope, which is quickly cooling now that it's away from the others, and I start nibbling at it, trying to fill my stomach while I’m able.

Once he's done eating, Nathan tears me off a piece of a wet wipe before cleaning his own hands off and putting the dishes away. “Make sure to clean off the table too,” he orders and I’m left alone for a few minutes while he tidies things up. I try as usual to make the most of the time without him to settle my nerves again.

When he returns to the table, I notice with a sense of dread that he has the shrinking device in his hand. The machine can do more than just shrink me so I’m never quite sure what’s coming up, but the titan just holds it to his side, as a threatening reminder for now. He bends down towards me and, with uncharacteristic carefulness, he gently lays his hand flat onto the table, palm side up, the tips of his fingers an inch away from me. An invitation. I look up at him warily. His expression is soft in a way that makes my skin crawl.

“Let’s see if we can do this without the extra motivation…” he says soothingly.

Right. Not quite an invitation. A coercion. There is no choice in this. I set my jaw, get to my feet… and walk towards him. Climb up onto the fingers. Step down the length of them. Sit on the center of his palm. Like a good little pet.

“There we go,” Nathan coos as he raises me up, the sweetness of his tone so false that I feel bile in my throat. “That’s not so hard, is it? The sooner you know your place the better. Are you ready to begin your acting career?"

He's started walking, although he's holding me high enough that I feel expected to respond. "I can… try? So, um, what is the theme?"

He has that hungry look again in his eyes, and he's smiling at me with anticipation. "You, my dear, are now my little student. And a naughty one at that."

He's opening the door to his bedroom, and I'm momentarily distracted since this is the first opportunity I've had to get a proper look here. It’s plain and (as expected) very tidy - there’s a standard bed, dresser, night stand. But I’m a little taken aback by a table on the opposite side of the room. He has his laptop in a corner and there are a couple of different cameras set up - on an overhead rig, on an auxiliary arm, a smaller one at the ready on a tripod. Around the table are several different lights and microphones on stands. It’s so much more of a professional setup than I was anticipating.

Nathan brings me to the table, and I’m expecting him to plunk me down roughly as usual, but he’s continuing his kind facade and puts his hand down gently, letting me climb off of him myself. I gawk at the wide expanse, feeling like I’m on a movie set. There's even a few props out - some pencils, a ruler and a notepad, not unlike his desk back at the office.

“I keep the scripts loose,” the titan tells me as he starts going around to the different contraptions and turning them on. “No need for you to memorize anything, I’ll be doing the talking anyway. Think of it more as method acting. React the way you normally would. Well, perhaps it would be better for you to channel how you felt the first time you were shrunken down.” I’m blinded for a second as he flips on a couple of lights. “But don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll be able to elicit the reactions I need out of you…”

He opens up a program on the laptop and I see that all the cameras are hooked up so that he can see the different angles of the cameras all at once on the screen. Each of them are pointed to show the surface of the desk, and I notice myself moving in real time, off in the corner of one of the shots.

Nathan then moves to a nearby closet and pulls out a plastic transparent box - inside I can see hundreds of tiny articles of clothing, all just in my size. He sets the container down not far from me and I'm close enough to tell that these clothes are of much higher quality than the ones that came with the dollhouse. In fact, I wonder if these all were normal-sized at some point and were shrunken later on.

He sifts through the miniscule garments, somehow organized in a way that makes sense to him, and picks out a couple, reaching towards where I’m standing to compare them to my frame.

“Hmm, the commission didn't state a preference… Should we go for standard college gear? Or a school uniform?”

I’m not entirely sure if he’s talking to me or to himself, and he doesn’t really give me a chance to answer anyway. Suddenly he shoves one of the options against me, and I clumsily gather it into my arms.

“This one should fit you well. Go on, get changed.”

Deep breaths, I repeat to myself as I start stripping down right there to put on my new costume. I wish the lights weren’t so harsh as I'm briefly naked, but Nathan doesn’t really look at me as he continues setting things up. I try to remember the types of things I’ve seen before on fetish sites. I’ve come across plenty of collages, though not very many videos, but for the few that I’ve seen there mainly seems to be a giant man or woman doing a whole lot of talking with the smaller person sitting there cowering. I can handle that, right? I can stand there looking scared… No problem…

The uniform I’m having to wear is a pleated and buttoned navy dress over a half-sleeved white top, and it’s actually a little bit tight and short on me, accentuating my figure more than I'd like. I stand there awkwardly once I'm ready, taking the extra time to continue looking around the room. Is this table where he normally keeps his laptop? I wonder if I got to where the cable’s plugged into the wall, could I climb up to this desk on my own?

I jump as the nearby titan abruptly turns to sit at the chair in front of the table, looking me over to make sure I’m dressed before he brings his attention to his laptop screen and brings up a word document. “Let’s see," he mutters, "The starting size on this one… There we go. Grow to eight inches, Lily.”

And I do. I let myself feel empowered as I grow in size, despite knowing that it’s surely temporary and that I’ll still be too small to fight or escape him. For a moment I don’t care. I allow myself to look at Nathan and feel a certain sense of defiance and of satisfaction in seeing him smaller. Even if he’s still a 50-foot giant.

He watches me right back, keeping an eye on me now, just in case I try anything. I don't. We end up just having a bit of a stare off for a few moments. He searches my face before his gaze turns disconcertingly lustful and his eyes begin drifting down over the length of my body.

"I suppose I took the commission in part because I found the theme intriguing. I can't say that I'm disappointed."

He reaches out with fingers as long as my legs, adjusting my collar and sleeves and then tugging down on my skirt. He lets his forefinger linger for a bit too long at my hip and then starts trailing it down the length of my leg.

I get uncomfortable chills at the light touch, and my enhanced confidence at being bigger goes too far - I'm glaring at him and suddenly the words tumble out of my mouth. "Think you should save some of that enthusiasm for the video?"

He pauses, his eyes flitting back up to meet mine. The iciness in his stare lets me know I’ll be regretting that. Nathan reaches over to his laptop, and a few keystrokes later the cameras are rolling. Then his hand moves up to my torso as he grabs me by the waist and gets to his feet, lifting me up in one quick movement. His grip is rough and my breath hitches as I’m suddenly higher than a telephone pole.

“Have it your way. Let’s begin.”
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Wed Sep 28, 2022 6:49 pm

Chapter 11

Nathan lifts me high, up above his head now, at arm’s length. I’m feeling more nervous by the second as I dangle up in the air, gripping at his wrist. What is he doing? He’s started recording but neither one of us are even in front of a camera. Why is he–

And then he lets go. I fall, breath escaping me in a faint, shocked squeak as the ground suddenly rushes up to meet me. Before I can even make sense of it, I’m quickly snatched out of the air again, just before I hit the floor. It’s so abrupt, and the wind gets knocked out of me from the way I’m roughly caught. As Nathan straightens back up again with me cradled in his hands, I’m gasping, shaking from the adrenaline, only managing small wheezing sounds.

“There, there…” I’m reeling as I look upwards, confused by the gentle, soothing voice and the strange new smile on the titan’s otherwise familiar face. “Don’t worry. I’ve got you.”

I’m stunned into silence as giant hands readjust themselves around me so that I’m sitting on one and the other supports my back. His fingers are still gripping my body but in a more delicate way now. I’m moved back towards the table, just over the surface of it as Nathan sits down in the chair, and I notice him glancing over to the computer screen. Making sure that his hands holding me are lined up in frame. I’m now remembering what he said - “I’m sure I’ll be able to elicit the reactions I need out of you.” Him suddenly dropping me certainly worked in turning me into a shivering, fearful mess for the camera.

“There we go, don't be scared… Well, well, Heather.” The titan turns towards me again and I see the pleasure in his eyes as he settles into his character. “When I asked for you to stay after class, I doubt this is what you imagined I had in mind? Now, I’m going to set you down but you have to be a good little student. The rest of the class has already left and gone home so there’s no one around to help you. And it’s an awfully long fall to the floor… So don’t try and run away. Understood?”

I feel an awkwardness to this whole thing - I’m not an actress and the presence of cameras is so weird and I don’t know what I’m doing. But Nathan’s piercing gaze is holding my attention. He looks so comfortable doing this, so intimidating, even as he plays a character that is decidedly more gentle than his true self. I find myself playing along, nodding fearfully at his question.

Carefully, he lowers me onto the surface of the table so that I’m sitting on the wood while one of his hands continues to support my back. “See, you're okay…. Goodness, look how little you are. Just like a doll. I suppose you never expected that your science professor could build something like this, did you?”

He reaches outside of my line of sight and pulls up what looks almost like a gun. For a moment I worry that this is some whole new piece of technology that is capable of who knows what, but I quickly surmise that it’s just a prop. He sets it down on the table beside me.

“I very rarely use this shrink ray on my students after all,” he continues sweetly, “But you’ve been trying my patience, Heather. You’ve neglected to turn in half of your homework assignments. You’ve failed almost every exam. You clearly haven’t been paying attention in class. Well… you’re paying attention now, aren’t you?”

He begins softly petting my head with the tips of his fingers, running them through my hair and brushing against my cheek. I try to shy away and he follows my movements, ever so gently. It all feels so strange being put on display like this, especially since I’m the one very much in the spotlight and Nathan isn’t showing his face, though his voice and hands are doing more than their share in acting out this role. There’s a few moments of silence, something that I begin noticing happens often as the titan looks at the computer screen from time to time, making sure the shot is to his liking and that he’s getting plenty of footage outside of the dialogue.

“Believe it or not…” he soothes, “You still have a chance to earn a passing grade for this class. You see, I need some help on one of my science experiments. Think of it as a little… extra credit? I’d like to test the limits of this machine I made, see how far it can go. And I’d like for you to be my test subject, Heather… The smaller you get, the higher your grade.”

Shit. I guess I’m not going to be at eight inches this whole time. How far is he actually going to take this?

His hand shifts to the front of me as he lays his palm on my lap and then uses his forefinger to start pushing down on my chest, putting pressure right around the clavicle. I’m finding myself slowly forced to lay down on my back as I continue to stare up at him anxiously. Nathan’s able to give me whatever expression he wants from off screen, and he’s giving me a wide, almost teasing smile, more enthusiastic than the soft speech of his character. He’s enjoying this way too much.

“Not that I’m giving you much of a choice at this point, am I? You’re not exactly in a position to say no to my offer… are you?”

Just as he finishes pushing me onto my back, he surreptitiously slides his thumb up against my side and, keeping this motion out of view from the camera, he presses into my ribs hard, thumbnail digging in and pinching me. I react, jerking away from him reflexively and trying to push his hand off. In a more overt gesture, he covers my torso with his fingers, gently but firmly pinning me down on the table to hold me still.

“Ah-ah-ahh. What did I say about trying to run away?”

His other hand picks up the fake shrink ray, and I’m not sure how this is going to go down, but the sight of what looks like a very real weapon is scary, down to Nathan’s finger settling threateningly on the trigger.

“I’m afraid I have to punish you for that, my naughty student. I guess we can start on that experiment right now. I think I’ll shrink you down to… let’s say, five inches.”

The real shrink ray hears this and obeys, and I dwindle underneath him until his hand is able to cover the full length of me. The weight of him pinning me down is getting too heavy and I wriggle and kick at him as I struggle to breathe. I’m not quite meaning to, but despite not having my own prescribed lines I’m giving quite the performance.

And I'm realizing something. In the videos I've seen, whoever was playing the small person was in front of a green screen, and it makes sense that for the most part they would simply sit there and cower, as more direct interaction with the larger person would be much harder to edit. But even in this simple moment, Nathan's hand shifts ever so slightly with each of my frantic movements. This level of realistic detail must be part of why he’s had such success making these commissions. While the internet praises him for the quality of the special effects, all he has to do is actually torment a tiny woman in his possession. I'm deeply recognizing that I'm not going to be just standing around looking scared.

“This is the smallest I’ve ever made anyone before," my captor purrs, "You should consider yourself special, Heather. Now hold still. I need to get a good look at you.”

With the slightest bit of flourish he rolls his hand off of me, uncovering my smaller form for the cameras. I continue laying on my back since he told me not to move, though I’m flinching as he runs his middle finger down the side of me, over every little curve.

“Such a precious little doll. And everything seems to have shrunk in perfect proportion, too. Although to truly make sure of that, I’m afraid I’ll need to get rid of some of these clothes…”

My eyes widen and my heart races. I thought he’d made me change so that I’d be in costume the whole time? He’s wanting me to be naked? As if this whole thing wasn’t humiliating enough. I go to start trying to get up, and then pause in fear of being disobedient, but as I look up at him he gives me a small, encouraging nod. I finish sitting up, and this gives him the excuse to swoop in and grab at my torso.

“Did I say you could get up yet, Heather? I said we need to undress you before we move further…"

I gasp at the sudden sound of cloth tearing. With his other hand he’s pulling at my sleeve and both the top and dress are ripping right at the shoulder and down across the center of my chest. I hadn't noticed before, but there was a miniscule seam sewn into the garment, set up ahead of time for it to tear with ease under the right leverage. One of my breasts is now exposed and the rip tapers out at my hip - I clutch myself, blushing and tears welling up.

This is exactly what Nathan’s wanting, and he now brings a forefinger to gently touch my face and lift my chin. “Oh, don’t give me that look. You know, you’ve gotten a bit of a reputation among the staff. I think you’ve tried to seduce every one of your professors to get out of your bad grades. So you can’t really blame me for taking advantage of the situation.”

He tenderly starts using his thumb to push my arm away and touch my breast, as small as a blueberry to him, circling and massaging it, making me wince and writhe. There’s another quiet pause as he touches me, getting his extra footage and enjoying himself to the fullest as he does so.

"Hmm. Yes, everything seems to be in order. I can feel your heart beating nice and strong too - maybe a little faster than normal, but that's to be expected. You seem to be in perfect health, in perfect proportion… So let's keep going with this, shall we? Don't forget, with each shrink your grade comes up." As he talks he reaches for the gun and aims it at me. “Let’s see you go down to two inches now.”

And with that his fingers outgrow me and I’m no longer sitting on the table as I dwindle down in his grasp. These bursts of shrinking have been pretty frequent, and the warmth in my chest and vibrations along my skin are starting to make me feel nauseous. Not to mention that look on his face, the amusement and excitement that I can see so clearly even as his face looms ever higher and higher.

“You’re getting so tiny now, Heather. I have to be so careful with your little body. Here, these are just really getting in the way now.”

He holds me in place in one hand while he tugs at my clothes with the other, and the rest of the outfit rips into two, first revealing the entirety of my upper body that I’m still desperately trying to cover up, and then he slips the skirt off easily from my legs. My nudity in these harsh lights under the prying lenses leave me feeling incredibly exposed. His fingers are all over me, pushing my arms aside, turning me over in his hands as he examines me in detail. There’s a methodical movement to him, like the scientist he’s embodying, and he’s showing every part of me off to the audience. I occasionally try to struggle against him and he handles me with ease, if anything just continuing to show off the illusion of how skilled he is with visual effects.

“Beautiful,” he coos, “Everything’s looking good. I have to say, I’m feeling rather proud of this invention of mine… And it definitely brings out the best of you, Heather. I admit that I’m feeling a little distracted. You just feel so nice between my fingertips… Your skin’s so soft, you’re so light and delicate...”

He tugs at my limbs, curls me back over a finger to accentuate my curves, bends me over to caress my rear, pulls my legs apart to show off the tiny folds between them. It’s so much. It’s too much. I hate the way he touches me, how violating and overwhelming it feels. I even hate the fact that he's using a different name, finding new ways to erase me. What would Nathan do if I stopped cooperating? If I started cursing and yelling and really fighting back? Would it ruin the video? Do I have any sort of power here if he needs me to act a certain way for the camera?

No, no, no, I have to hold myself back. It wouldn’t help my situation at all. He could edit it out the problem part. I’d absolutely be punished for it. And he would keep going. I’m not getting out of this. I can’t make this end. I just have to bear through it.

The titan places me on the center of his palm, pausing for a little while as he looks at his laptop and makes sure to get me from every angle before he resumes his script. “Hmm. Yes, I’m quite enjoying this. I think it wouldn’t hurt to… make you a little smaller… Your grades really are so abysmal, they need all the help they can get…”

Continuing to keep an eye on the screen, he adjusts one of the cameras to zoom in further on me laying in his hand. Then he picks up his fake shrink ray, aims it at me and announces, “Down you go… I’m shrinking you to half an inch now, Heather.”

His palm is stretching out and out and out, and I’ve been this tiny so many times but at this monster’s mercy I feel anything but used to it. I sit up, trying to shake off the tingling and dizzy sensations, and it’s actually more of a struggle to make out Nathan’s expression now, especially in contrast to the lights that he’s readjusting on me. I want to be out of the spotlight. But the trials are unrelenting.

“Such a miniscule little thing… What a wonderful test subject you’re turning out to be, Heather.” I put my arms up defensively as his giant forefinger approaches, arching threateningly above me like the head of a mammoth serpent. He hovers out of reach for a moment, presumably just to illustrate how small I am compared to him. “I wonder how well your other functions are holding up. I’m clearly seeing the fear in your face. You’re also still capable of anger, your struggles were certainly an indication of that. Can you still feel pleasure?”

No, no, no! The finger starts descending towards me, nudging the side of my body carefully. “All those little nerve endings must be functioning on overdrive. I wonder what kind of effects the shrinking might have on your arousal levels. It's certainly having an effect on mine. You’ve been trying so hard to seduce your professor… Now's your chance to show me what you can do, Heather. Although you’re so little, perhaps I should use a smaller finger.”

The fingertip lifts away, quickly replaced by his pinkie, an only moderately thinner beast. It prods me, pushing me around a bit and pinning me back down on my back before it aims down below and I squeeze my eyes shut, feeling hot tears on my face as the massive fingertip roughly pushes my legs apart.

“Grind up against me, my little student… Show your teacher how much this means to you…”

He shoves me, the entire area far too sensitive against the ridges of his fingerprint, and I wince, eyes still closed, legs shaking. The fingertip’s as big as a truck. I can’t, I can’t, I can’t…

“Do it, Lily.” For a moment, the tone is frigid again, the character put on pause as Nathan gives me an order directly.

I open my eyes, letting out a choked sob. And I grit my teeth as I press my feet down against his palm and begin lifting up my hips, curving my lower back into an undulating motion and putting pressure on his finger. This is still uncomfortable, but better than when he was the one pushing me, and so I perform, rubbing up against him, humping his pinkie until I feel subtle dampness between my legs. It’s nothing like the amazing sensations Leo could give me, it’s cold, it’s methodical, it hurts

"There's a good little test subject," the cloyingly sweet voice is back as he praises me, "How adorable, I can feel the tiniest patch of your wetness. You've answered my question, Heather, it seems your propensity for arousal is unaffected, perhaps even enhanced. Such fascinating research this is turning into."

At long last the finger pulls away and I immediately snap my legs together, my entire lower body trembling. I know intrinsically that we're not done yet, and as impossible as it feels I'm desperately trying to move on, to recover and brace myself.

Nathan pauses, and I vaguely see out of the corner of my eye that he’s zooming in on me again with one of the cameras. He lets his voice get a little huskier, “I have to admit, this is so addicting for me. I need to see how far I can take you… And I’ll have to be quite precise now. Let’s make you an eighth of an inch.”

“Stop…” I whisper weakly, desperately, even though I know he didn’t bother putting in the earpiece. A feeble supplication to the universe.

I cover my face as I shrink again, not wanting to see his palm becoming more of a landscape, although the feeling of the texture of his skin shifting against my bare back is unmistakable, even the sound of his distant breathing becoming oppressive as my mass melts away. The boom of his voice is enough to jolt me back into high alert as everything shakes under its vibrations.

“Just look at you. You feel like almost nothing at all in the palm of my hand. What is it like to be the size of a tiny insect, Heather? There's not very much left of you now. What sort of experiments could I run on you at this size I wonder?"

Get up, get up, I think as I look around wildly. His palm is like a stadium, even more so because it’s hard to see beyond it. In the distance I can see the outline of Nathan’s body and head, but the lights that are aimed at me are too bright to make out the details beyond, and soon I’m too distracted by the forefinger approaching from above like an airplane coming in for a landing. I know intrinsically that I can’t outrun it, but I try anyway, if for no other reason than to try to soften the blow, my legs a blur as I sprint up the bumpy hill of his palm, and then I’m getting close to where his fingers begin and realize in a panic that if I don’t slow down I might actually fall in the gap between the digits.

I hesitate and that’s when the fleshy pillar overhead lands on me, knocking me down, everything going dark for a moment as an incredible weight settles on my body. My entire world is quite literally turned upside down as gravity flips and ceiling becomes floor, and now it’s the landscape of a palm that's rising into the sky, lifting away and leaving me behind on the titan’s fingertip instead. I stare at the too-large hand floating off, my head spinning as I catch my breath.

Nathan leans in, not so close that he gets into the shot, but enough that I catch the silver in his eyes, the manic smile on his face. He laughs softly, a shuddering storm of sound. “At this point there's only so much your little body can take. You're just too insignificant to be of use now. Well, there is still one thing you can do for me… and that's to get even smaller. I'd say you've earned yourself a B for the class at this point. How far will you go for an A, Heather? Will you… shrink to half a millimeter?"

My body’s aching and the tingling only disorients me further, but I push up to sitting, to standing, every instinct in me screaming to be on my guard as the world expands yet again, the whorls of the titan’s fingerprints swelling and rising up as I shrink down and down. It’s all going too quickly, my world shifting so dramatically over the span of a few minutes. Now I’m standing on top of a fleshy ridge, there’s a trench in front and behind me, and I'm trembling at the view, the topography of his fingertip stretching out on all sides. And then his voice rattles me, making me cry out at the intensity - he’s not being as quiet as he needs to be. But I’ve been this small before, I’ve had some experience at least, and I can understand the words that vibrate through my body…

“Incredible. You’re a tiny speck now, Heather. Hardly even visible on my fingertip. It's a shame I shrunk you at my desk instead of in the science lab. I could really use a magnifying glass right now. Soon you'll be more suitable for a microscope.”

I’m squinting upwards, trying to make sense of the titan above me, catching the movement of his lips but so little else as the lights continue to blind me. I worry he might try and touch me again, I have no idea what he plans to do. I’m suspended in limbo, standing on display on the immense pedestal of his finger.

"This is just too much.” The air is vibrating and the lustful anticipation in Nathan’s voice is bringing my terror to the limit of what I can handle. “It’s just so exciting to see just what my invention can do. How… how small can you get?.. I just can't wait any longer. Shrink more, Heather. You need to get smaller. Shrink, shrink, shrink…"

He hasn’t stated a size this time but the shrinking device doesn’t care and I let out a strangled cry as I keep going, keep getting smaller, almost lose my footing as the floor becomes more jagged and I disappear down, down into an alien landscape.

I have no idea how small I am at this point and now the painfully deafening, rumbling voice is getting harder and harder to understand. “Oh dear. I can’t see you anymore. Are you still shrinking? It’ll be difficult to give you an A if I can’t find you. Oh well. Goodbye, Heather…”

“That’s not my fucking name,” I hiss. Delirious.

The vibrations have become incomprehensible at this point. I gasp as in the midst of my surroundings expanding I suddenly notice a shape under my feet, a vaguely round platform that looks suddenly familiar… like something I’ve seen out of a biology book… a single skin cell. And then the shape is gone, no longer distinguishable, getting larger and larger. Is this it? Am I dying? Is he shrinking me indefinitely? I’m feeling dizzy, hopeless, and I can't hear anymore, can't make sense of what I’m seeing, just feel myself getting smaller and smaller and smaller… until there’s surely nothing left.
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sat Oct 01, 2022 12:22 pm

Chapter 12

The last time I'd been this microscopic I'd passed out. In retrospect I think that would have been an easier thing to deal with. Instead I’m all too aware of the time passing while understanding nothing else. My senses are all trying to grapple with my situation. Sometimes I think I’m hearing something - a voice? Is it in my head? Sometimes I swear I see movement, but I turn to look and the kaleidoscope of blurry colors around me no longer line up in my vision.

I think my sense of touch is the first one to return. My skin had been feeling completely numb, but now there’s a tingling in my fingertips and it slowly starts spreading up my arm, and there’s a sharp warmth in my chest. I’d felt like I was floating in space, but I’m suddenly becoming aware that there’s something solid under my feet. And then I start to feel like I’m seeing… something. I can’t quite make sense of it, but I can feel that my eyes are at least trying to focus on what’s in front of me even if they’re struggling.

Another minute or two passes by as my body slowly feels like it’s coming back to life again, despite my surroundings still being one big confusing mess. I start to notice that there’s some light far out in front of me, and that I seem to be under some kind of shadow. I feel vibrations in the air now, like white noise, reminiscent of the booming ambient sounds I used to hear when the AC turned on. I jump as a particularly large wave of vibration hits me. A thumping. A footstep? No, it’s subtly different…

There’s a large structure far overhead. I notice how it’s two-toned. On one side the sky is a light brown color, almost white, and on the other a dark gray, almost black. I notice the edges of the distant ceiling, seeing how they seem to taper inwards, especially on the gray side. Everything else is too far away to make out. What kind of celestial structure am I looking at?

There’s the reverberating thump again. I realize what it is this time, I’ve heard this kind of sound before… The subtle sound of a fingertip on a touchpad. It’s so far away but so distinct now. And then still in the distance but closer, the sound that was mixing with the ambient white noise is sharpening as I recognize the whooshing sound of breathing.

Wait. That's a pencil. I gasp, feeling dizzy and disoriented as things seem to suddenly come into focus and I realize what I’m looking at. I’m right under the tip of an absolutely monumental pencil. I look at the floor and out in the distance and realize the surface I’m standing on, with all its bumps and ridges, is actually the flat surface of the wooden table.

I’m not sure I’m even big enough to be visible yet, but I’m growing and bit by bit things start clicking into place. The alien world becomes more familiar, my brain finally making more and more sense of the sounds and smells and sights. The view of the sharpened pencil point is my main reference, and soon it’s becoming more and more like just a very large building and getting smaller by the second. I step out from under it, trying to see out beyond.

“Ah. I think I can see you…”

I jump and fall over at the explosion of his voice. Not that I'm surprised he's around, but I'm still disoriented. Where is he?..

“Let’s see… You’re reaching almost two millimeters now… It took you long enough.”

There he is. Way out in front of me is the edge of the desk, and looming far above is the titan of my nightmares. He must be sitting at his desk, working idly on his laptop as he waits for me to come back to the world. The cameras are off, as are most of the lights, so my view of him is less encumbered. I’m still too stunned by everything that’s happened to even know how I feel right now. Terrified? Furious? Numb?

I’m creeping up to what must be half an inch tall now and Nathan scoots back in his chair, his hulking form lowering down so his face can be more level with mine. He’s studying me, and I vaguely notice that I’m still naked, though I don’t think that’s quite what he’s preoccupied with at the moment. I settle into my one-inch height, feeling a wave of physical relief at least with the tingling sensation finally abating. I stare into the eyes of my tormentor, wavering on the spot. I think I’m settling on my primary feeling being “numb.” And yet within my vacant expression I manage to make a point of hardening my gaze. Somehow there’s just the smallest scrap of defiance left in me.

He continues to examine me visually, taking me in, and the corner of his lips ticks up. “Was that enough… ‘enthusiasm’ for you?”

Moving slowly, Nathan's head lifts up once more and he stares down at me as he leans casually back in his seat. “I will say, I have plenty of excellent footage. You’re honestly a breath of fresh air, Lily. Nice and expressive without being an insufferable, blubbering mess. Very good for a first go. Despite the fact that I chose a particularly intense script for your introductory one, at least in terms of sizes. I really think you need that, though. Even now, I don’t think I’ve quite broken you in yet… Perhaps a few more trips into becoming microscopic might do the trick. Do look forward to our next filming session, hm?”

With that, he wordlessly reaches to the side and his hand returns with my original clothes that he drops in front of me. I stare at them for a second before bending down to begin methodically getting dressed again.

The titan watches me as he continues from his previous train of thought, "Still, I think I'll reward you with another soft place to sleep. How does that sound, pet? Let's call it early tonight, I'll need to be getting up earlier than usual anyway. Good work today."

I wince, skin crawling with the familiarity of that last phrase. A phrase that used to fill me with a sense of pride when he was my boss. Now it makes me nauseous.

Nathan plucks me up as soon as I'm dressed and with very little pomp and circumstance, he walks over to his dresser, crouching down to open the bottom drawer, and drops me into it. I land on fabric, at this point hardly feeling phased by the vertigo he just put me through, and thankfully I don’t sink into the laundry below me. I glance around just enough to realize this is his sock drawer. And then he promptly shuts me into darkness.

I'm slowly starting to come back to myself. I let myself lay there, in the stillness, and begin quietly talking out loud. "Don't disappear. Don't disappear," I whisper, a mantra I've repeated to myself many times in the past, but I need it more than ever now. I continue talking to myself, mumbling words of encouragement that ring hollow but I'm hoping will give me strength subconsciously. I start listing out what I've been able to gather about Nathan's apartment so far, taking inventory. I fantasize about what I would do if I could go home, see my friends, return to my life. And when that just feels too outlandish, I fantasize about going home to Leo instead. Anything to keep my mind occupied and keep it working, keep it from snapping.

I didn't realize I was falling asleep until I wake up again. It's still pretty dark, but I get a sense that a good amount of time has passed... I actually feel rested. Energized. I guess I had been through enough that the exhaustion finally took a very solid hold of me. Last night seems more like a bad dream… I decide to keep it that way. I have to keep moving forward.

Being careful not to sink too deep into the huge pile of folded socks, I get up and do a bit of exploring. Now that I’m more adjusted to the tiny bit of light that can filter in, I’m able to make my way around the drawer, heading towards the back of it to see if I can find any kind of gap. Miraculously, I do. By pushing against some of the socks, I make enough of a ramp that I can get to the top of the back wall of the drawer. There’s a space just beyond the wall that I could easily fit through, and while it’s still too dark back here to see the ground, I remember that this is the bottom-most drawer. The socks are light enough that I can move them, albeit with some difficulty. If I hung one over the side and climbed down…

My train of thought is broken by the sound of a loud buzzing outside. After a moment I hear a low, booming grumble of a response. I wish I’d done this investigating last night, I’m out of time. I figure it’s probably not the best idea to climb into the back of the drawer anyway without knowing if I could get trapped or not. And if Nathan finds me somewhere I shouldn’t be, not only would I end up punished but there’s no way he’d ever store me in this drawer again. I make a mental note of this potential escape route for later and start heading back the way I’d come as I continue to hear the titan stir.

I yelp as the drawer suddenly opens and fills the space with dim light. The dresser is right next to Nathan’s bed, so he’s able to open it while still laying on the mattress, and as I crane my neck to look upwards, I see no sign of his face, just an arm draped over the side of the bed. His hand enters the drawer, and he’s clearly still waking up as his movements are both sluggish and a little jerky, his fingers digging amongst the socks. I start feeling nervous as he gets closer, not even sure if he’s looking for me or has forgotten I’m here.

“Nathan?” I yell as I duck low, feeling like I should remind him of my presence before he accidentally smacks me.

There’s another annoyed groan. I can’t quite tell, but there’s little enough sunlight coming in from outside that I figure it’s really early in the morning. “...What?” his voice demands.

“C-can I climb out?”

I’m not even sure I’d be able to. Maybe he knows this, because his giant hand suddenly flops over so that it’s palm-up on top of the socks a short distance away. “No. Come to me first, pet.”

I take a couple of quick, deep breaths to steady myself. This is still probably better than him grabbing around blindly. I start climbing my way over, struggling over the soft mounds as I sink into the fabric.

A few moments later he gets impatient. “Would you rather go inside one of these socks for the morning?”

“I’m coming!”

Picking up the pace and hating that I'm even doing this, I finally grab onto a fingertip, and before I can properly hoist myself up, he reacts to my touch by taking things into his own hands. And by that I mean he immediately scoops me into his fist.

I hear a satisfied sigh in the distance as the titan takes a moment to rub and roll my body between his fingers like the little stress toy he takes me for. I wince at the roughness of it, but at least I feel like the full night's rest did my body good, so that any fresh new bruises don't compound quite as much on previous pains. I bear through it best I can. After a minute or so, the hand finally lifts out of the drawer and then lowers down to the floor so that he can dump me onto the carpet.

“Go get cleaned up," he orders, still sounding groggy.

I scramble away, not needing to be told twice that I can leave. I’m really thirsty so I do as he says and start making the trek to the living room, bee-lining towards the bedroom door by going underneath Nathan’s bed. The door’s closed but there’s enough of a gap that I can easily crawl under it, and I see that at some point last night my captor returned the little bathroom to its spot by the couch.

I try to get ready quickly as I formulate a rough plan in my head for what I should try to accomplish while I have open access to the apartment. I hear the titan get out of bed and shuffle around his room for a while before he heads towards his own bathroom that’s attached. I seize the chance to move around without him noticing, running back to his room.

It’s still so unnerving to be on the floor like this. Adrenaline pumps through me as this time I start heading towards the table that we filmed at yesterday. Even from a distance I can see it - there’s a power strip on the floor, and the cord for his laptop is still plugged in. If I manage to climb up it I could make it to the table… And assuming he left the computer open, maybe I could turn it on. I try to hurry, struggling through the tall grass-like carpet, until the ceiling of the table is above me. I estimate it would be a 100-foot climb to the top… Which is huge, but I think my elbow is okay enough now, maybe I can–

“Lily?”

I stop, hands clenching into fists in frustration. I just need time and being this small means it takes several minutes for me to get anywhere. Nathan’s walking out of the bathroom now, and I can just see his socked feet from here as he pauses in his room and then opens the living room door to look for me.

“I’m putting the earpiece in. Where’d you run off to, little bug? I don’t have as much time this morning. ”

I keep silent but curse in my head. I was hoping to at least have the opportunity to take action here while he cooked breakfast. Looks like I’ll be having no such luck today. Not quite wanting him to find me under the table, I alter my trajectory, arcing back towards the dresser.

“I’m in the bedroom,” I respond. “I got ready and came back, not far from where you left me.”

The titan’s footsteps return as I hurry to where I said I’d be. As he rounds the bed and the full height of him comes into view, now dressed for work, I find myself cowering back, heart fluttering at the sight of him from so far down. He responds with an amused smile, enjoying the sight of me on the floor. Like a toppling building, he lowers himself down, smoothly crouching as he leans his elbows on his knees.

“What are you up to down there? Did you just have such a good time in the drawer that you were hoping to spend the day in the dark?” With uncharacteristic sentimentality, he reaches down to pet my head and back. “I warned you about spending too much time in the bedroom. I don’t really watch my step in here.”

I’m bristling, waiting for him to get rough again. “I… was trying to see if I could find someplace dusty. You were wanting me to do chores during the day, right?”

Nathan contemplates this for a moment, and sure enough his touch is getting more careless as he pushes harder on my back. I fall forward, against his awaiting thumb, and then he pinches me into his grip and stands back up with me in tow.

“I have a better idea,” he says, “And you’ll have much more space this way, too.”

I bear with the nauseating walk as he goes through the side door that leads to his bathroom and then sets me down on the counter. This is a new area for me and I immediately start looking around, but as expected, the space around his sink is bare outside of a bar of soap. I spot a medicine cabinet high up on the wall that I’m assuming contains other toiletries, but otherwise this is just a field of hard, empty expanse.

The titan keeps a hand close by, nudging me with his middle finger as if guiding me along while he points at something nearby with his index. I look at where he’s gesturing, on the surface of the counter, and see a faint curved line of brown staining the cream colored floor. I look out further, noticing it forms a circular shape about 20 feet in diameter.

“I haven’t been able to get this coffee stain out. It probably just needs a bit of elbow grease from a teeny, tiny little worker… Think you’re up to the task?”

I pause, feel the pressure of his request as he keeps a finger on my back. "Y-yup," I answer with a nod, "You got it…"

Nathan takes his hand away and crouches down, his subtle movement still enough to make me jump, and pulls something from out of the cabinet below. He stands again and drops the item right on top of me - a massive white sheet. My knees buckle as I’m easily covered by it, and then I hear retreating footsteps as I crawl out from underneath the papery tent. It takes me a few seconds but I figure out he’s torn off a few sheets of toilet paper, presumably to help me with my task.

I don’t have to wait long to wonder where he went before the footsteps approach again. The titan’s holding something this time that he places near me on the counter - the wrapper of a granola bar, a chunk of food still wrapped up within it.

“I’m heading out. As usual, avoid the edges, and that includes the sink. You’re small enough that you’d probably get trapped if you fell in.”

With that, he’s gone. I silently thank whoever it was that requested Nathan go to the tech fair this week. Not only do I get the time to myself during the day, but he didn’t have much time to play with me this morning either. I severely needed the break.

I nibble at the leftover breakfast he left me, and then for a little while I try to figure out if I can somehow use the toilet paper to my advantage, wondering if I could twist it enough to make a rope out of it. But the futility of it becomes apparent all too quickly. He’d only left me three squares of paper - even if I did manage to twist it all up, there is absolutely no way I could use it to get down from this counter. My situation is feeling increasingly hopeless and I’m starting to feel so stupid for constantly trying this hard to escape it.

So instead… I do as I’m told. I rip pieces of paper off, bring them to the bar of soap, and I utilize moisture from where water had splashed from Nathan getting ready this morning to form a lather. Time to clean. I scrub at the coffee stain - sure enough, I seem to be making progress bit by bit - and while having a task to do keeps me from going crazy from inactivity, I’m starting to feel like… like a servant. That’s all I am now, isn’t it? His pet. His toy. His slave.

It’s a very long day. Perhaps it feels even longer because there’s no clock in the bathroom. I measure the passage of time with my hunger cues and by trying to gauge the amount of outdoor light filtering in from the bedroom.

I’m small enough that there’s plenty of granola bar to sustain me throughout the day. He hasn’t left me with any water, though, and that eventually becomes an issue, which is ironic since I’m spending so much time next to a sink. The handles to turn on the water are just too high for me to reach, but I manage to climb up on the bar of soap to help bridge the gap, and by sheer luck the handle is just loose enough that I make it budge ever so slightly until the faucet starts slowly dripping. I do end up making that toilet paper rope, tying it to the faucet and draping it down into the sink so that I can climb in and out of it and get the water I need. At least I’m not completely useless.

There’s no uncomfortable tugs today from Nathan summoning me from afar. He must be particularly busy. I stay away from the edge of the counter anyway, continuing to keep myself busy by working away at that coffee stain.

Eventually it begins to get dark. My captor hadn’t turned on any artificial lights in here, so my only light source is from the windows in the bedroom. I’m starting to have trouble seeing what I’m doing as it gets later and later, and the more time passes the more anxious I get. Surely we’re past the end of the work day at this point?

As evening drags on, I figure that the team probably went out for dinner tonight. I’m feeling increasingly scared in not knowing when he'll be home - it eventually becomes too dark to move around and I stay near the food wrapper as I sit and wait and try to think of other things to keep me distracted. I’m getting sick of granola bar being my only food source for the day, but I count myself lucky that I’m able to eat as is, and that I probably won’t have to eat dinner with Nathan and deal with that additional torment.

But that’s where my luck runs out.

I don’t know what time it is when I hear the front door open, far away. I take some deep breaths. Maybe he’s had such a long day that he’ll want to go straight to bed. Maybe he’ll even forget about me here and leave me be. It’s not particularly comfortable on the hard counter but I’d take it.

I can suddenly see again as he turns a light on in the living room and some of it filters here. Footsteps approach. Another light, a dimmer one but closer, from the bedroom this time. And then the bathroom door, which has been half closed, opens fully, revealing a titanic silhouette. Involuntarily I let out a small sound, like the whimper of a beaten dog.

Immediately I notice something’s off. I’m not sure what it is at first, something about the way he’s standing, the way he’s breathing. As my eyes adjust to the light coming in, I look up to his face, trying to gauge where his mind is at. His dark hair is the slightest bit disheveled. Blue-grey eyes the slightest bit unfocused. And then I catch it - the slightest sweet smell in the air that is very distinctly…

“Oh fuck,” I whisper to myself, my heart beginning to race as I recognize the scent of alcohol.

“Ah, took me a second to find you,” Nathan rumbles, “Look at you all huddled there in the dark…” His words are slurring just a little bit - he isn’t completely drunk, but he’s definitely tipsy. Which is still not good news for me.

He steps forward, not quite stumbling but it’s still a careful, calculated motion, and he lowers himself down so that he can be at eye level with me. There’s less tension in his face than usual, a bit more ease in his smile. He’s actually looking more energized and cheerful than the norm. Disconcertingly so.

“No filming tonight. Let’s… let’s have a one-on-one. Just like old times. Come,” he’s reaching towards me and I don’t even pretend to hide my fear, curling in on myself, arms up defensively, “It’s just you and me, Lily…”
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Mon Oct 03, 2022 3:10 pm

Chapter 13

Nathan’s fingertips actually pinch me with surprising gentleness, despite him otherwise moving fairly quickly, eagerly. He slides his hand along the counter to bring me closer to his face, and although it’s still quite dark in here I can see every detail of him until he holds me right in front of his eyes, unnervingly close to their silvery gaze.

“I’m going to have to be more careful at work,” he says with a chuckle as he holds me there, “It only took a couple of drinks and I let it slip that I’ve seen you recently. I just lied and said it was in passing at a store. I let everyone know that you’re looking well. Though I’d say you look more than ‘well’... I’d say you look…” As he trails off he starts slowly standing again, still holding me so close to his face and showing every sign of inebriated lust. The pause lingers before he finally settles on, “...irresistible.”

He squeezes me a little harder. I wince. He laughs.

“Oh Lily. You really are just so helpless. It's adorable…”

With this he slowly lowers me down, and to my horror he's bringing me to his mouth, brushing his lips against my body. I recoil from the unwanted touch and the smell of alcohol on his breath. His hands may be cold but his lips are warm in contrast, uncomfortably so, and my protestful writhing only seems to invite a more insistent touch as his mouth covers me in a kiss. This affectionate side he’s showing me is disconcerting in its own unique way. Especially as his lips begin to part.

I’m kicking harder now, whimpering a “No no no no…!” The titan’s tongue snakes out and eclipses my tiny frame, licking up the length of my entire body with one lazy flick. I’m quickly covered in saliva and then he does it again, slowly, feeling and tasting every part of me, seeming to enjoy my struggles as I begin to panic. He goes to lick me a third time and his jaw opens wider, and then I gasp as I’m pulled away from his fingers, adhering to the tongue, getting dragged inside the hot, wet cave.

I’m completely losing it at this point and I turn, grabbing onto his bottom teeth and trying to wrench myself away from him. I feel the vibration of his amusement echoing out in a chuckle around me, his breath making my hair whip. I climb further, onto his lip, and I can see out into the bathroom now, but his hand isn’t nearby, and all I'm facing is the massive drop to the floor… like peering over the edge of a cliff.

The sight gives me pause and it’s enough for Nathan’s tongue to swoop in from the side, knocking me back into his mouth. For several terrifying moments he carefully holds me in place between his teeth and I’m feeling everything sway and shake, indicating that he’s started walking around.

Soon his fingers return but not to fish me out - he pinches me around the chest as he sucks on the bottom half of my body, the warm pressure of his tongue immense. I hear shuffling as he’s doing something else at the same time, and then he apparently needs both of his hands as his fingers disappear again, his tongue rolling me up to push me against the roof of his mouth.

I lose track of everything as I struggle to breathe and the titan keeps toying with me idly while he's otherwise occupied in the world outside his mouth. The pressure, the heat, the wetness, the sickly sweet smell of whatever drinks he had are all combining into my own personal hell. I’m screeching, thrashing, trying anything I can to hurt him from in here, to get him to spit me out again. I’m at a point where I would probably jump right off the cliff if I was able to pry myself out over his lip again. But I'm tossed around mercilessly for minutes on end.

At long last, the next time Nathan opens his mouth, his tongue pushes me out, onto something plush - a fabric of some kind - a washcloth, I realize.

“Good lord,” the titan coos as he begins wiping me off, “I didn’t know you could scream like that. Such fuss. And just after our first kiss no less… You wound me.” He laughs lightly. “Did you think I was going to eat you?”

I don’t respond, breathing hard and coughing and trying to wipe the spit off my face, but the giant fingers are taking over, handling the situation on their own terms as he runs the washcloth over me again and again. He gets the worst of it off and it’s at this moment that I’m starting to notice more of my surroundings and the fact that we're in the bedroom now, and I get a better look at him. I realize what Nathan had been doing in the background. His shoulders are bare. I suspect the rest of him is too.

He smiles smugly at me. “Let’s get you out of those wet clothes now. I think it’ll be a bit easier if I make you bigger first… And that way I can enjoy the feeling of shrinking you down again…” He raises his voice a bit, to make sure that the shrinking device, wherever he’s left it, can hear. “Grow to six inches.”

I don’t feel any sense of increasing power this time as I get bigger. At least in part due to the alcohol, my tormenter seems to be particularly unhinged. I do prefer not being quite so miniscule between his fingertips, but honestly I don’t feel that much safer wrapped up in his fist instead. I can see more of him now from my perspective and my skin crawls since that means I'm making out more of his naked body.

Nathan sits on the bed and lays me down in his open hand, promptly pushing the hem of my shirt up to my collar bone. He brushes a finger against my abdomen, running it along the side of my body and back again. Since he's not quite as massive compared to me now, he's able to be a bit more dexterous. The touch is light, and he does give me goosebumps, though not of the pleasant kind. He softly circles my breasts one at a time, closing in on my nipples, not quite touching them.

"I do wonder what the shrinking effect has on all those pleasure sensors," he murmurs, harkening back to his script from the video shoot yesterday. "Tell me, does this feel nice?"

I have no idea how to respond to this. I’m still trembling and trying to recover from the nightmare in his mouth. Maybe the touch would feel good if it wasn't him. But right now my only goal is to figure out what will lead to the least amount of pain.

"I don't know," is my quiet response.

He laughs, and he takes this moment to hold me in place around the waist so that he can yank my shirt off over my head. "I've never been able to get a straight answer from the others either. One of them insisted she loved all of it, no matter how much I pushed her, but it was so clearly a lie. So predictable… so boring. If I'm asking a direct question, I prefer an honest answer."

I stare up at the cold, terrible beauty of his face, trying to search his eyes. Trying to look for some scrap of humanity in there. I say, "It’s… because I'm scared of you. You get that, right?" How's that for honesty.

A crease appears between his eyebrows. I swear I see the slightest amount of hesitation in his demeanor as he wasn't expecting me to admit that. Maybe in his inebriation he’s becoming more endeared to me. Maybe… I can reach him…

Wishful thinking. His soft smile quickly returns as he runs the back of a finger along the side of my face. "Well. That's fair. You probably should be. At the end of the day, I suppose I'm really not all that concerned about your pleasure after all. Not unless it can serve mine."

He's tugging at the bottom of my shorts now, slipping them down and off my legs so that I'm fully naked. My chest tightens at the danger of being more exposed. Nathan's movements are slow now as he relishes over every detail of this. He brushes a finger along the inside of my thigh, eliciting more uncomfortable goosebumps.

I writhe in response, trying desperately to think fast about what the next steps are going to be. I don’t need to look down towards his crotch to sense how aroused he is right now. I can’t stop his hands from touching every bit of me, but maybe I can find a certain amount of cooperation.

I put my hands around his prying finger. Not that this stops him, and my arms are just pulled along for the ride as he continues to stroke my skin. But I dig my fingers into him insistently as I try to make eye contact again. “M-maybe you don't need to force this. What do you want from me, Nathan?”

His fingertip slips between my legs and pushes up against my womanhood, and I gasp and grit my teeth, trying to hold steady. His smile widens but he does answer me. “Well, I suppose forcing it can certainly be part of the fun, but… Hmmm. What do I want from you?”

He holds me out in front of him with his arm outstretched, tilting his head to the side as he contemplates, his gaze full of lust and intoxication. Acting almost as if his arm is getting tired, he slowly starts lowering me down, giving me a full tour of his torso. His muscles aren’t particularly defined, but there’s an elegance to the tone of his abdomen, his body having a certain refined quality to it like the rest of him. A wall of pale peach skin, lightly brushed with dark hair that descends in a trail from navel to crotch. At the bottom is his member, sporting an elegant curve in its own right, and it's about the same height as I am, fully erect. I feel a wave of nausea, seeing more of my ex-boss than I ever would have wanted to.

Nathan sets me on my feet in front of him on the bed sheets, in the gap between his opened legs. I’m only a few inches away from his crotch, but I’m so close to the edge of the bed that I fear any movement on his part might knock me right off, and so I’m forced to move closer to him. He smirks at this and places his hands just behind him on the bed, so that he can lean back slightly in his sitting position and gaze down at my small form at his mercy.

“I’ll turn the question around to you. What can you do for me, little one?”

Okay. I need to buck up. This is good. I mean, it’s horrific, but I’ve just been given a chance here. Get it over with. Satisfy him. Get this done.

I’m distantly hit with a toxic thought that I don’t have time to fully unpack right now. Everything I’d gone through with Leo, all those “training sessions” that I hated but were undeniably effective in getting me accustomed to my size and a giant's body, all of it is serving me in this moment. If Nathan had been the first person to shrink me down I would probably not be functioning by now. But this isn’t the first time I’ve seen a giant penis. If anything, since I'm taller than usual, the one in front of me seems much more manageable than what I'm used to. It’s fucking ridiculous that this is even the case, but that’s the only reason why I’m starting to walk forward right now.

Step after step I make my way closer. I can actually sense the titan’s leg muscles clenching in anticipation on either side of me. I approach his member and slow down just a bit until I’m standing right in front of it, sidling up without quite making contact. A quick surreptitious glance up and I know I have his full attention.

Perform. I reach a hand out and use a single finger to touch him, running it up and up the length of the shaft. It shudders under my hand and I maintain contact, cupping my palm to gently caress the head, as light as if touching the face of a lover.

Nathan makes a quiet sound, a reserved, tense noise in the back of his throat. I notice a drop of precum beginning to form at the slit, just above my eye level. I try to take advantage of it, casually utilizing the slippery fluid to heighten sensitivity as I continue making small, tickling gestures across his skin. There’s another vocalization above me, the slightest moan.

I tease the slit that's providing the precum, and my touch expands as I start putting on more pressure. I know I’m going to have to step this up eventually. My exhale is shaky as I try to think of what to do next. I could try and climb onto the shaft. I could utilize more of my body to rub up against him. Something. I’m so intimidated, so repulsed by it all, and it takes me a moment to realize that in my anxious storm of thought I’ve just been standing there staring for multiple seconds. I flinch at a soft chuckle overhead.

“Is that it then?” I look up at Nathan staring back down with an almost regal air as he’s still casually leaned back.

“N-no, I was just-” I stutter, but it’s too late. The spell is broken.

“It’s a start,” he admits, and his hand floats over to me, palm suddenly up against my back, “And you have so much at your disposal, you just don’t seem to know how to use it… Allow me to teach you. Like this.”

He shoves me forward and suddenly I’m pressed up against the underside of his cock. With finger and thumb he pushes my arms forward, roughly guiding my limbs to form a ring around his shaft. He holds me tighter, constricting the warm pillar and me against it.

“And this...”

My feet then leave the bed sheets as he slides me up, and this time he puts pressure against the back of my neck with his thumb to press my head into the soft skin of his cockhead. He slinks a finger up against the side of my face, pushing against my jaw in an effort to get me to open it. I want to fight it so badly but I also don’t want an injury, and so I open my mouth, almost gagging on the fleshy surface as my tongue slides to the very edge of the slit.

His next exhale is strained. A trickle of precum streams out of him, making me actually gag this time as it fills my mouth, and it drips down the front of my body. Everything’s getting very slippery. He pumps once with me as an aid, sliding me down and back up. His breathing is starting to get a bit more ragged.

“S-see? There’s plenty your little body can do.”

I’m coughing, wriggling, trying to catch my breath, stimulating him in the process. He continues sliding me against his dick with zero pretense of giving me anything to do now, just using me as a tool for his arousal. He’s simultaneously feeling me up with the hand that’s holding me as he runs his fingers along my curves. And he’s gradually picking up speed. I’m starting to get a little dizzy from the whiplash of being rubbed up and down.

“You know what else you could do for me, Lily?” The titan’s voice is heady and he lets out a low moan. “You can get smaller. I want you in your place. I want you completely insignificant. Shrink down.”

The warmth of the shrinking sensation adds on to the friction and heat of his cock. The tingling is making everything worse. And now my body is dwindling, his fingers getting larger around me. His shaft goes from person-sized to bear-sized and I’m still being rubbed up against it, up and down, up and down. Nathan lets out a heavy exhale in pleasure at the feeling of my shrinking right up against him, overtaking me more and more.

Soon I’m completely under his hand that’s as big as an elephant and he begins readjusting me, moving me under his fingers until he’s sliding me to the end of his forefinger to have better control, and I continue shrinking, only catching glimpses of what’s happening, crying out in pain and fear at the rough treatment. His fingertip is becoming more like a wall on my back.

“Stop,” he groans. “Just for a moment… While I can still feel you…”

I’m less than half an inch tall at this point. It’s difficult to breathe as I’m completely soaked in precum. The titan easily slides me back up to the head and he starts pushing me in circles while he continues to pump. The heat is so intense and his breathing quickens as his arousal builds and builds.

I try to twist around, to slip out from under his finger. But the beast of a digit completely dwarfs me, I wouldn’t even know which direction to go. I’m as tiny as a sunflower seed. My struggles do nothing but tickle and tease the tip of his dick.

“Again,” the echoing voice finally gasps, “Smaller. Shrink… ten times smaller…”

I’m barely processing what he’s saying but the effects are an immediate danger to me as I disappear further under his finger, and I’m convinced at this point I’m going to either suffocate or end up crushed. For a split second I realize that I’m being pushed up towards something finite, the edge of… a hole. One that’s expanding even now as I become mere millimeters tall. And then I’m shoved right over the lip of it, sealed inside in a sea of precum, and there’s no more air, no more light, just an insane heat and pressure as I slowly begin to drown inside his cock.

“Hnnngghh…” His groan reverberates from outside, muffled but overwhelming.

The pressure builds, threatening to rip my body apart. And then there’s an explosion of vibrations from one last deep moan. I'm hit with unprecedented vertigo as I'm suddenly flying through the air. I can’t even scream, no breath left inside of me.

I hit something and the next several moments are very fuzzy. I think I black out for a few seconds, my body having gone too long without air. But then my lungs thankfully are working automatically, and it’s the sound of my own gasping that wakes me back up. Even as my vision slowly comes back to me I don’t know what I’m looking at or hearing - moving mountains, faraway hurricanes.

The world is just too gigantic. I can’t handle it anymore. I want to give up. To let myself slip into unconsciousness and never wake up. I let my eyelids close. Let my muscles relax. Enough.

“Damn it..."

The reverberations of the titan’s annoyed voice are distant but they still rattle me, and although I’m feeling so weak, I let out a plaintive whine. Even now when I've given up I can’t get a moment of peace.

There’s a sudden red glow hitting the outside of my eyelids for a few seconds, the spotlight of the shrinking device’s tracker. It dims, and despite myself, I open my eyes again. I realize I’m laying on my back. Laying, or… or floating? I’m surrounded by a thick fluid, hot and musty and white. It doesn’t take much brain power to figure out what it is. I tilt my head and see across the expanse of what looks like an olympic-sized pool of the stuff. I’m sure it’s just as deep, the incredible surface tension the only thing keeping me afloat.

I squint up at the sky. Piece together the familiar landscape of a face.

“Grow to three inches. Stay awake, Lily.”

The white lake starts shifting and soon I’m wincing at a tugging against my skin, the stickiness of the cum an uncomfortable thing to break out of. I start breathing deeper, slowly regaining strength while regaining size, and I start making sense of what’s around me. Nathan’s watching from high above, his eyes fixated on my form coming into view.

I put together that I was jettisoned out of him when he came, and the drop of cum that transported me splashed up onto the heel of his hand. This is probably the only reason I’m still alive as I actually didn’t travel very far. If I’d been shot out further into the distance, I’m not sure I could have handled the fall. Despite me being oh so “durable” as a speck.

A sudden wave of nausea hits me. My chest hurts. I'm overheating. The tingling of the growing sensation is coupling with my dizziness and I think I might black out again.

But the titan’s voice is insistent. “Hey. Breathe. Come back to me, pet.”

“No…” I growl back. Not that he could hear me, I think I’m still well under an inch tall at this point.

I squeeze my eyes shut again to block everything else out, but I do manage to stay conscious. Eventually the tingling stops and I force my eyelids up. Oh hey. I’m normal sized again. No, not… not normal. My normal. My old normal. Whatever.

Like a helicopter, the hand I’m laying on descends until it’s laying on the mattress, and then giant fingers close around my feet to pull me off of the palm until I’m laying on fabric instead. I try to focus my eyes on Nathan’s face looming above me.

He’s definitely still tipsy, that part is pretty clear. From an arousal standpoint, though, he’s sobered up at this point. And I think this is the first time I’m seeing genuine concern. Not in an intensely sentimental way, more like someone who’s worried he broke something expensive. Maybe it was the alcohol that drove him, but he’s probably realizing that he got carried away and went too far with his toy. I notice he’s holding the shrinking device and keeps glancing down at its screen, though he doesn’t share what the readouts are telling him about my vitals.

He stands up and off the bed and I wince as this shakes me. “I’m going to let you rest,” he says, “Keep taking deep breaths and you’ll be fine.”

“Fuck you.” I’m not thinking straight, or I’m just beyond caring, and he definitely heard me this time. He only lets out a sharp, amused exhale.

“I’ll take that brazenness as a good sign. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

At this point things get blurry again. I do rest, my muscles too weak to do much else. The minutes that I’m left alone seem to pass in the blink of an eye, and I distantly realize I’m being handled once more, laying limp as Nathan carries me wordlessly to the bathroom. He opens his medicine cabinet by the sink, lays a washcloth down on the shelf, sets me on top of it, and closes the door. That’s it. No other communication before I'm locked up for the night.

Not that I’m complaining about being left alone. I find myself quickly slipping towards an exhausted sleep, just like last night. I can’t believe it’s only been three days since my latest capture… So much has happened. Too much.

My body still feels like it's in shock, despite some of my symptoms starting to stabilize. I... I think I almost died tonight. I’ve had multiple scares since being with Nathan but I think I really, truly almost did this time. I’m only here because of sheer luck. And then I didn’t die. Which means this is going to happen again. This is just one night of terror among countless others ahead of me. Is this really what the rest of my life is going to look like?

The only thing that keeps my psyche intact now is whispering Leo’s name. I quietly call out to him again and again, imagining him holding me, until I’m no longer conscious.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Wed Oct 05, 2022 11:26 am

Chapter 14

When I wake up it’s pitch black. If anything, I’m mostly realizing I’m awake because I’m coming out of a nightmare. It’s been a bit of a restless night, but although I’m still gripped with anxiety and fatigue, I can tell my body has been working hard to recover. Or maybe I’m just getting used to the feeling of being sore and aching.

Another day. Another trial. Keep. Moving. Forward.

I slowly try pushing myself to a sitting position and wince at a tugging against my skin. I realize that I’m still naked and still covered in cum that’s been drying from the night before. “Gross…” I sigh, feeling absolutely disgusted and humiliated. I tentatively try wiping my arm against my washcloth-bed, but the stuff is really stuck on.

Remembering that I’m in the medicine cabinet, I turn my attention to my surroundings. For whatever reason I’m three inches tall at the moment, bigger than how Nathan usually keeps me, and I’m wondering if I can use that to my advantage. I hold my hands out and carefully move around, finding walls on either side of me. I figure out which one is the door as it budges slightly when I push up against it. I try shoving it harder, and some trails of dim light peek through for a second, but the door’s too heavy for me to get it open.

I wonder if I can find a toothbrush or something and use it as leverage, but I don’t have very much time left to myself. I start hearing activity outside and eventually there’s the click of a nearby light switch before the cabinet swings open and the light blinds me. My body has an immediate pavlovian response as I skitter backwards to the opposite wall at the sight of my captor hulking before me, still shirtless and clearly having just rolled right out of bed.

Nathan’s squinting against the light and seems to be reaching up mechanically for something on a higher shelf before pausing as he catches sight of me. Even though he wasn’t excessively drunk last night, I find small satisfaction in the fact that he looks a little bleary-eyed, possibly sporting a minor hangover. Still, he manages to smirk my way, glancing up and down my naked frame.

“Good morning. I forgot I put you in here,” he says, and after a small pause he frowns. “We probably should have cleaned you up last night. You’re a mess.”

And whose fault is that I wonder, I don’t say.

Leaving me on the shelf for now, the titan pulls back to reach for something outside of my view. “Alright, little troublemaker, let’s check in first… You look like you’re doing better, at least.”

He’s got the shrinking device in hand now, fiddling with the buttons. After a few more seconds he nods at the screen and smiles with satisfaction before holding up the machine so I can see. I’m not familiar enough with the menus to really understand what I’m looking at, but I’m seeing a lot of green numbers.

“There we are. Full bill of health. No concussion or heart failure after all. Which is preferable since I’d rather not lose you. Not to mention we have some filming to do tonight.”

I glare at him. Annoyed. I’m not sure why I feel so irritated by how he treats my injuries as just an inconvenience - it’s completely on brand for him and should be the least of my worries. It’s as if my fear and trauma are just too much to handle sometimes and temporarily take a back seat for these smaller, easier-to-deal-with emotions.

“I guess I wasn’t doing too hot last night then, huh?” I growl.

Nathan’s putting the device down again, hardly seeming to notice my tone. “No you were not,” he answers simply, then turns back to me and raises his eyebrows as he gives me a pointed look. “Perhaps next time you’ll be able to remember some of those lessons I taught you, hm? Then I won’t have to do so much of the work.”

Somehow I doubt that would have saved me. But I don’t say anything further.

The titan reaches up to me, fingers wrapping around my torso. “With that out of the way, let’s get you washed up. I have a little extra time this morning.”

I’m flinching again at the feel of his hand around me, nervous as I briefly try to figure out what he's implying. He’s lowering me down, towards the sink, and I’m hating where this is going.

“Wait,” I say, “Isn’t that what the small bathroom’s for?”

“We’re already right here. It will only take a moment.”

“But… It’s okay, I can–”

A thumb covers my mouth, pushing uncomfortably against my throat. Nathan’s looking down at me with a warning in his glare. “That’s enough. I think I’ve had my fill of that brazenness right now. You’ll get your bathroom break after I make sure you’re properly clean. Understood?”

With some difficulty I nod, keeping my mouth sealed as he pulls the heavy digit off me again. I close my eyes for a second, taking a deep breath as I’m lowered into the sink.

The bath, as expected, is not pleasant. Nathan runs the water a little too hot and holds me under the tap like he's rinsing off silverware. With his other hand he picks up the bar of soap and runs it roughly a few times along the front and back of my body, building a lather before setting it down again. He then uses his thumbs to rub circles along the length of me and I wince at each jab as it's taking quite a bit of pressure to remove the rehydrated semen. Occasionally he needs to pick globs of it off and has to pinch at my skin or yank at my hair. I'm tilted every which way as he works, upside down, backwards, my limbs forcefully bent in various directions. I catch gulps of air whenever I can and generally keep my eyes squeezed shut to avoid the sting of the soap.

He definitely takes longer than is necessary to rinse me off again, slowly running his fingers along my naked, now clean body. I almost have a moment where I protest, an angry scream building inside of me, but I manage to swallow it down again and let him touch me. Eventually the undignified procedure comes to an end, and I let out a small sigh of relief as the water is finally shut off.

Nathan takes the washcloth that was my makeshift bed out from the medicine cabinet and wraps me up in it, massaging me from the outside. For a moment he just holds me squeezed between two hands, enveloped in the stuffy darkness, presumably to let the towel soak up some of the water but in reality it’s suffocating. I start to wriggle anxiously and he opens the washcloth up again, unwrapping me as he cups my small frame and lifts me up to his face.

He looks me over and I sit there quietly, staring up at him somberly as I await some kind of judgment. He gives me a little nod. “That’ll do. You can finish up and get dressed on your own. But first, shrink back down to an inch.”

My shoulders slump and I sway at the dizziness as I dwindle away. A part of me had been hoping he’d forget about the fact that I was bigger, even if that meant my clothes wouldn't fit and I had to stay naked.

Nathan smiles as I reach his preferred size, using a now larger forefinger to poke the top of my head. “Much better.” Then he crouches down to the floor, plucking me off of the towel so that he can set me down on the cold bathroom tile. He shoves lightly against my back with an “Off you go” before straightening back up so that he can get ready.

I start running, glancing back nervously at the sight of him looming so high overhead, casting me in his shadow. I try to focus on what’s in front of me now, and my first step is to head towards the table in his bedroom. He said he has more time this morning. This might be my chance to reach his laptop.

“God… damnit…!” I hiss as I quickly notice from across the room that it’s no use. At some point Nathan unplugged his computer and there’s no longer a cord that reaches the floor. Another impasse. I briefly wonder where he’s put his phone, looking up towards the bed and nightstand to see if it’s poking into view and if there might be something I can climb to get higher up. But as I look around, I glance towards the titan behind me and his phone is currently in his hand. Dead end after dead end.

I shiver, my body reminding me that it’s nude in this too-cold apartment. Fine. I’m not sure what else to try right now anyway. I head back to my little bathroom by the couch so that I can finish getting ready.

Once I’m groomed and dressed, I start wandering around the living room area, making sure to stick close to the furniture and walls, on the lookout for anything useful, keeping my mind busy with thoughts of escape. There’s nothing else for me to focus on. The moment I resign myself to being stuck here is the moment I go insane. But the constantly fruitless search is definitely starting to wear on me too.

Distant footsteps are my warning to duck under the couch. I observe warily as Nathan makes his way around the apartment, absently getting things together. What must it be like for him, knowing there’s a tiny person running around his place as he goes about his daily life? If it were me I’d feel self-conscious, creeped out even. But he looks completely unperturbed, seeming to hardly give me a second thought anytime he’s not directly interacting with me. I wonder if that’s part of what he enjoys, treating me almost like I don’t exist in these moments.

I’m marveling once more at the sheer ludicrousness that I used to know this guy. It feels like the past three days can’t be real. No one at work knows how insane he is and that he needs to be stopped. God, while he was here torturing tiny women, I was one of the people who saw him during the day, joined him in team lunches, smiled at him during meetings, having no idea how much of a menace he is. It makes me want to vomit.

The titan is currently sorting out papers on the dining table while waiting for his breakfast to defrost in the microwave. He suddenly seems to remember something he needs to address and picks up his work laptop case from the kitchen counter, but since the table in the kitchen is covered in papers at the moment, he starts walking my way instead, towards the living room. I keep an eye on his trajectory and recoil at the creaking sound of the couch above me as he sits down. I carefully make my way to the front of the couch, gazing out at the coffee table where he’s typing away on the laptop. My relative proximity to the computer without any opportunity to try and use it is infuriating.

A couple of minutes later, the microwave dings, reclaiming the titan’s attention. He exits out of whatever he was doing on the laptop and moves it over to the couch instead before standing back up. I watch him leave, my gaze darting between him and where he left the computer, currently too high up for me to see. Once he’s gone I venture out further to catch sight of the laptop that he’s left there, on and open on the couch cushion.

My heart is racing as I’m looking at the couch itself now, towards the armrest, trying to see if there’s a path to the top. On the corner there’s a seam in the leather, and criss-crossing over that line is black thread snaking its way up. The couch legs create enough of a small gap at the base that I can’t reach the thread from here, but if I could get up there I’m certain they would be good handholds. It wouldn’t even be that ridiculous of a climb from there, maybe 50 feet or so. I could–

My thoughts are suddenly interrupted as I notice movement above me. I don’t even know what I’m looking at, but a massive structure is suddenly falling towards me and I yell and jump out of the way just before it crashes to the floor. I scramble back up, panting, eyes wide as I try to figure out what just happened. I recognize the Green Rocket company logo on the wide platform that’s now on the ground… it’s just a laptop cover. Nathan must have also left it on the couch and it was balanced there precariously until it finally just slipped off. And even though it’s made of fabric and foam - it’s light enough that I don’t think the nearby titan even heard it fall - I’m sure it would not have felt good if that had landed on me. I’m so tired of being this little and fragile.

“Lily, come here.”

I sigh. That’s the end of my exploration I guess… my master’s calling. I round the couch, peering towards the kitchen at Nathan, who’s busy packing up his breakfast and papers in his work bag. He glances up briefly, catching sight of my small figure, and addresses me as he moves.

“Actually, since it looks like you're already over there you can stay put. I’ll be keeping you on the coffee table today.”

I stop in my tracks. The coffee table’s much lower to the ground than the dining table or bathroom counter. I turn back towards it, immediately looking for a way to get from its surface to the floor, feeling more hope than I’ve had since I’ve been in this apartment.

The titan thunders my way, work bag over one shoulder and a cup in his hand. He kneels down with his other hand outstretched, easily snatching me up from the floor between his fingertips. I wince as my shoulder gets pressed a bit too hard - I’ve tried bracing myself in various ways and have yet to figure out how to position myself so that it’s not so rough when he picks me up. I’m breathing faster when he sets me on the coffee table, rubbing at my arm.

The next steps happen quickly, before I can quite register his intentions. Nathan sets a couple of things down right next to me - a saltine cracker and the lid of some small bottle that’s filled with water. Then he takes the glass cup he was holding and flips it over, setting it down on top of me.

Trapping me inside.
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Fri Oct 07, 2022 11:45 am

Chapter 15

I'm completely taken aback by the sudden prison, recoiling in fear until my back hits a wall. The titan finds my reaction amusing, his face breaking into a grin, slightly distorted through the glass.

“Surprised?" he taunts. "You won’t always have so much space to run around when I’m out, you know. After last night I need you to rest up for the shoot later so I figured I’d keep you more contained.”

I look around, try to assess the space. The confined area is the size of my old living room but I'm still feeling claustrophobic, especially since the air is decidedly stuffier. Nathan drums his fingertips lightly on top of the cup, the thumping making me cower beneath him.

"Look at you in there… Just like catching a bug. Except I don't plan to take you outside and release you. You probably wouldn’t make it very long anyway if I did. We’ll keep you nice and safe in this little cage today.”

He pulls away, shifting as if he’s about to leave, and I hurry towards him now, my voice reverberating on the walls as I yell, “Wait! I’ll suffocate in here!" I wonder if he can still hear me.

He has to lean in a little but still makes out what I'm saying. “You won’t, I’ve done this before. There's a chip in the glass… avoid that, by the way, it’s sharp. Right here."

He brings a hand to the cup again, tapping a fingernail near the bottom of the glass wall to my right, the dull ding of a sound echoing into my prison. Sure enough, there's a small hole where the cup was nicked, though nothing useful for escape as the opening doesn't even reach up to my knee. In fact, it looks too small to properly aerate this space. I turn to face him again, put my hands up against the glass pleadingly.

"B-but…!"

"Would you just relax, Lily?" He's acting annoyed with me but he's still smiling, finding this whole thing very entertaining. "Just don’t exert yourself too much and you won't even notice the difference in air. I should be back mid-afternoon today since it's the last day of the fair. I trust you can behave until then."

He leaves after that and I sit down, leaning back against the wall of the glass before putting my head between my knees. There’s something about knowing I need to stay calm otherwise I might run out of air that makes it very difficult to stay calm. I mechanically take slow, even breaths until I eventually coax myself into a numb, almost zombie-like state and just… wait.

There’s something different about today. Up until now when I’ve been alone I’ve at least found things to occupy myself with and enough freedom to move around. Now I’m just in a small room with nothing to help keep my mind busy. I absently nibble at the bland cracker he left me, take sips of water. Go from sitting to lying on my side to lying on my back to sitting again. I make attempts at traveling to other places in my mind as I’ve been doing these days, but even that becomes too difficult. I’m so mentally exhausted. Hours and hours pass and it’s becoming impossible to not just wallow in all the horrors that I’ve been going through. I have nothing to distract myself from the awful thoughts swirling inside me.

I can’t even decide what has been worse so far. The pain? The humiliation? The fear? The sexual assault? The sheer hopelessness as I’m forced to submit, trapped at this man’s mercy with no way of escape?

It’s early afternoon when my thoughts are briefly interrupted by a sudden incident. There’s a knock on the door. I’m immediately up on my feet, hurrying to the side of the cup to get any sort of view that I can, but the entryway is down a hallway and blocked from sight. Several seconds pass and there’s another knock, a bit more insistent. Was Nathan expecting anyone? Maybe… maybe a maintenance worker? Do they have a key, could they get in now while he's out?

A minute passes. Then another. There’s no more sound. Whoever it was has given up. I’m suddenly registering how incredibly hopeful I was. I feel intense anguish as I realize it was just some small moment that means absolutely nothing for me. Another taunt from the universe.

I fall to my knees, covering my face for a second before I look up again. My eyes land on Nathan's work laptop that’s still sitting across from me on the couch. I glare at it. It’s so close. So fucking tantalizingly, mockingly close. It’s been a constant reminder throughout the entirety of the day that no matter what I do it’s all for nothing. Nothing. Nothing…

I lose it. Something breaks in me and suddenly I’m screaming. Like a toddler throwing the world’s biggest tantrum, I let every buried emotion burst out of me. When the wailing isn’t enough I start hitting against the floor with my fists, pulling at my own hair, throwing myself against the walls–

And then I stop abruptly. I’m staring in front of me at the glass. I actually kind of hurt my shoulder just now, I hit it so hard against the wall of the cup. But… it did something.

The cup budged.

I stand there for a moment, slowly processing. Then I take a couple of steps back, get a running start…

I ram into the wall. The glass budges again.

It’s no small feat for me, this is an extremely heavy item, but… but I can move it. I can slide it. I’m only a couple of inches from the edge of the coffee table. Could I push it that far? And suddenly I have a thought and I rush over to the bottle cap that has my water source and heave it up, overturning it so that the water spills out against the back wall. I run again and hit the front of the glass, and this time it slips a little further, aided by the reduced friction. I can’t even feel any pain from the impacts as the adrenaline pushes me to keep going, hitting and shoving as the glass crawls forward millimeters at a time. I might be using up the air in here faster than I should, but I don't care.

I’m not sure how much time has passed when I finally reach the edge of the table. Suddenly there’s the smallest gap in the floor, enough that I can fit a hand through and breathe in the cooler air. Two more shoves… and I’ve done it. The cup is jutting out just far enough that I could escape it from the bottom. I look over the cliff of the table, breathing hard from the exertion that has gotten me here. It’s a 70 foot drop to the floor. But his laptop cover from earlier is still down there - if I jumped, I think I would land on it and maybe it would be thick and soft enough…

“Stop, stop,” I whisper to myself, “Think.

I look around from where I’m at. There’s a small tray in the center of the coffee table with a variety of items on it - not something that Nathan had thought to keep tidier since he wouldn’t have expected me to have free reign of the area. I quickly put together a plan. And get moving.

Taking a few deep breaths to stay steady, I slowly lower myself into the gap I've created, over the edge of the cliff until I’m only braced on my elbows. The table itself is thick enough that my legs aren’t quite dangling but bracing themselves against a wooden wall. I made sure I was right against one side of the gap, next to the wall of glass. I focus on my trajectory before taking a deep breath and fully lowering down so that I’m gripping with just my hands. Moving quickly, I let go with one hand, reaching about a foot over and grabbing onto the edge again, just past the cup. I duck my head under the glass and shimmy my other hand over. With a monumental effort - thank god for all those pull-ups I practiced back at Leo’s place - I then hoist myself back up and onto the cliff. I’m still up on the coffee table. But now I’m out of the cup.

I take a second to catch my breath. A part of me realizes that at this point, there’s no going back. I’m not sure I could do that maneuver a second time, much less move the cup back to where it started. I either accomplish something major or Nathan’s going to eventually find me like this. This fills me with terror, but also incredible resolve. I have to get to that computer. It’s now or never.

In the tray I find two sets of earbuds, and thankfully they’re the wired kind. I tie my two new climbing ropes together, and tether one end around the handle on the edge of the tray. I toss the other end over the side of the coffee table, and I’m able to do it at the corner so that it dangles along one of the table legs. It doesn’t quite reach the ground, but it's close enough. I start climbing my way down, bracing against the wood of the table, successfully keeping both my grip and my footing steady. The ten-foot drop to the floor feels like nothing at this point, and I manage to land, roll, and get back to my feet without issue. I allow myself to celebrate getting to the ground, letting out an impassioned cheer.

Not a moment too soon, though. I pride myself in my knot-tying skills that I learned in scouts, but I’m not exactly used to tying thick cables. A few seconds after my feet hit the hardwood, I see my climbing rope suddenly shudder as the top of it must have untied itself from the tray, and the entire thing collapses to the floor. Thank god I had made it to the ground first.

And now there's the matter of getting back up. The couch is even taller than the coffee table was, and my muscles are already very sore. But the adrenaline is going strong. And I already have a clear plan in mind this time.

I grab the earbud cables and drag them over to the small bathroom that’s to the side of the couch. I’ve established that I’m (sort of) able to push this structure as well, but I go ahead and get extra leverage by tying the cable to the couch leg and looping it around the bathroom, giving myself an easier grip and dragging the small room bit by bit along the side of the couch until it finally reaches the couch leg. It creates the small boost I need to reach the cross-stitched thread I had noticed earlier.

It’s probably been almost an hour since I first started nudging that cup over, and not only am I feeling tired, but I’m starting to get too close to comfort to mid-afternoon at this point. I’m almost there. I have to press on.

Scaling the side of the couch is surprisingly straightforward, the thread thankfully creating the easy handholds I was looking for. I reach the top of the seat and only have to climb up onto the cushions now. I sidle along the edge of the seat until I get to a spot where two cushions meet, and then I slip myself into the tight gap between them and use the cramped space to my advantage, channeling any parkour ability I have to climb up vertically between the soft but stiff walls.

I’ve made it. I’m gasping, exhausted, but I’m up on the couch. The laptop is in front of me, already open. Holy shit, this is happening.

I run over to the computer and since Nathan just abandoned it as is and let it go to sleep, I only need to touch a key for the screen to light up. A couple of his work things are open, including his email and… his video conference app. I’ve used Zoom to make phone calls before. With some difficulty, I push along the trackpad to slowly get the mouse where I want it, having to use all my weight to click on anything. And then I have to run to the top of the keyboard to input the numbers.

I don’t have very many phone numbers memorized, but for some reason I could always remember my closest friend Cherri’s. I input the digits, starting to get really anxious. This is taking too long, it's past 3pm… I click on the call button. Feel my heart racing as the connection processes.

“...Hello?”

The voice is tentative, confused, clearly not having recognized the caller ID. But it's her voice. She answered. Holy shit, holy shit.

“Cherri!” I yell, almost breathlessly, in shock that this is happening. “It's Lily, you have to help me! I’ve been kidnapped, his name is Nathan Ek-"

Hello?

I jump at the interruption. Oh no. Is my voice not carrying?

“Cherri?!" I shout desperately, as loud as I can, approaching the screen to get closer to the microphone. "Can you hear me?!"

“Oh my god, Lily? Is that you?" She suddenly sounds panicked and starts talking much faster. "I can barely make you out. We've been worried sick, where are you right now?”

I’m straining my throat, frantically trying to give her any information I can. “Nathan Eklund! I’m in his apartment right now! I need help–"

Out of nowhere, I feel a yank and fall over backwards. For a second I’m in shock, staring up at the ceiling as I lay on my back. No, no, no. Not now.

"I can't… I can't hear you…” Cherri says in anguish, “You sound so far away… Say that again?"

The pull hits me again and I cry out in frustration. I’d all but forgotten about Nathan’s ability to summon me from a distance. The timing with which he just decided to toy with me could not be worse.

I’m desperately trying to hold onto the keyboard even as my own body is crawling backwards. I’m screaming my captor’s name again and again as I inch further back from the microphone and I can hear my friend tearing up as she continues to call out for me, unable to make out what I’m saying. I’m too small and too helpless and I’m still moving back, back, until I feel the edge of the laptop… and then I’m plummeting over the side of the couch.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sun Oct 09, 2022 10:45 am

Chapter 16

Well. That didn’t feel good.

I blink up at the sky. Dazed. Sore. I can still vaguely hear Cherri’s voice in the distance for another minute or two, until she eventually gives up and ends the call. How am I okay right now? How come I didn’t at least get knocked unconscious by the 80 foot fall to the floor?

I realize that I’m not on hardwood… the surface below me is soft and pliable. I tilt my head to look around. It’s that laptop cover. This extra foam padding was my lucky break, I guess. Otherwise though… it looks like my luck has run out. I’d managed to put in a call, but while my friend recognized me, it sounded like in the end she just couldn’t understand what I was saying. Come to think of it, why did I even call her instead of calling 911? Stupid… Not that it matters. I was too little to hear. Even after all of that, I’m still fucked.

Exhausted tears roll down the side of my face as I close my eyes and lay there. I really am out of options, aren’t I? I’ve done everything in my power to escape this, I can at least say that. There has to be a point where I give up. I think I’ve finally reached it.

My blood runs cold as I hear the front door open. Oh god, he’s going to find me here. What should I do? I don’t want to imagine what he might do to me if he realizes I was able to escape in any capacity. I try and roll over, finding that my muscles are cooperating to an extent. I’m still shaky, I don’t think I could stand up, but… Think. Think.

I glance up to the nearby coffee table. Stare at the cup that’s slightly pushed over the edge. My eyes trail down to the floor again and I realize I’m not so far away… I can’t think of anything else and I start dragging myself along the laptop cover, army crawling as fast as I can even as I hear booming footsteps in the background, the clattering sounds of a titan putting things away. And then the footsteps are coming in this direction. If I look up, the cup that’s jutting out is above my head now. I collapse back onto my side and let my eyes close.

I hear Nathan rounding the couch and then he pauses for a moment. My heart is hammering against my ribcage but I hold completely still. There’s the subtle sound of shuffling fabric as the titan crouches down, and a moment later I’m prodded by a giant fingertip.

“Hey. Wake up.”

The finger rolls me onto my back as I let my eyes slowly blink open and I frown up in mock confusion, summoning whatever acting abilities that I can. It helps that I really do feel like shit. Nathan is crouching over me, brow furrowed. He looks confused too, but I can tell he’s at a crossroads at the moment. Trying to figure out if he should be angry or worried. It’s up to me to convince him which way to go.

“Care to explain how you got there?” he asks testily.

I take a second to put a hand to my face and rub away fake grogginess, taking a quick glance around and pretending to get my bearings. “I… I didn’t mean to…” I look back up at him fearfully, “I think you were using that setting, right? I was moving and couldn’t control it, it was shoving me up against the glass. I didn’t realize I could… I didn’t want… I didn’t mean to fall…”

He stares at me. I watch him with bated breath, waiting for the moment that he figures out I should have been pulled in the opposite direction and not nearly so far, or for him to see the earbuds that are not quite fully tucked under the couch, or to notice out of the corner of his eye that his laptop just went back to sleep.

Nathan lets out a sigh. “Well, now. That’s unfortunate.”

My shoulders droop a small fraction of an inch in relief. He sounds annoyed, yes, but more at the general situation… I think he believes me. Thank god.

He lets out another irritated sigh as he fishes the shrinking device out of his pocket and begins navigating menus. “Let's see... Looks like you’re fine, nothing’s broken. Still no concussion either. Though I'm getting tired of having to check all the time, little troublemaker."

Right, because I keep hurting myself on purpose... Asshole.

Nathan tucks the device away and leans towards me, his voice softening a tad. "Alright then, let's get you off the floor."

Mammoth fingertips are approaching me again and push down into the foam of the laptop cover, clearly intent on picking me up, although it's going to be tricky if I'm still sprawled on my back. He's being pretty careful, though, and I cooperate to avoid getting squished.

It's oddly an almost tender moment between us, me hoisting myself up on his hand as he gently assists. He’s even moving nice and slow as he lifts me into the air. I wonder if he’s actually feeling guilty about making me fall after helplessly trapping me in the cup. Meanwhile I'm feeling so relieved at not getting in trouble that I'm finding it easier to behave.

“I suppose it was lucky that this softer landing was on the ground,” he says, bringing me closer to his face, “And that your body's so light... It’s ironic that you would probably be in a worse state if you were any larger, isn’t it?” He smirks down at me.

I lay back on his fingers, trying to keep my death glare under control by instead matching his smirk. “You know…” I retort daringly, letting a tinge of sarcasm seep through, “You keep saying you don’t want me to die, but… you could have fooled me.”

He laughs lightly at this, apparently not minding my weird attempt at teasing him. But he shakes his head in response. “You’re worth more to me alive, Miss Tealeaf. And to be honest, I’ve started getting quite attached to having you as my plaything…" He starts petting my tiny head, too rough despite him trying to do it softly. "In the past whenever someone at work lamented at how much they missed you and I agreed with them, it was genuine. I did miss you. I’m quite glad to have you back in my life… and in your proper place now, no less. So no. I’d rather you not die.”

I hope he doesn’t notice me shuddering in disgust. His tone is almost romantic… in a sick, twisted way.

"By the way, did anyone knock on the door while I was out?" Nathan asks, changing the subject.

"Oh yeah," I remember, "I did hear that a little while ago."

"Of course…" He rolls his eyes in annoyance, "Someone at the leasing office is very keen on reaching me, apparently enough to come in person. I'll tell them to come tomorrow. I'm taking tomorrow off, incidentally, since the fair’s over. So we will get to spend the entire day together, my pet."

My anxiety runs high at this. Immediately I'm trying to think about how I might get the attention of the person who's meant to come by, even though if Nathan will be around it'll clearly be impossible. Old habits die hard I guess.

The titan stands up and carries me to the space where living room meets kitchen before setting me back down, on the tile this time. I’m still a little stiff and wince as I slide off of him, but I’m able to sit upright now and look up at him in confusion as he pulls his hand away. So much for getting me off the floor?

“This is where we’ll be filming,” he explains, still looming over me, knelt down on one knee. “I’m giving you another five minutes to recover while I get things ready. But we need to knock this video out this afternoon, it suddenly became a rush order. Besides, there’s someone I’d like to introduce you to afterwards.”

My eyes widen. I’m not looking forward to whatever he has planned for the shoot, but I’m momentarily preoccupied with his last sentence.

“I just bought new software this morning,” he continues with that cold smile of his. “The timing was quite serendipitous. I will now have the ability to sync up a second person to the shrinking device. And there was this woman who kept following me around the entire time at the fair, apparently smitten by the mere sight of me. She was practically begging to join our little family here. So I thought, why wait?”

What?” I exclaim, unable to hide my shock.

His pale blue eyes are frigid but brimming with anticipation, and I’m reminded of when he first captured me a few days ago. “I still need to update the device itself before syncing it to her, but it’s alright. She can wait in the trunk while that processes. And we can film in the meantime.”

I want to throw up. Obviously I know he’s capable of kidnapping, but the idea that he currently has someone in the trunk of his car chills me to the bone. I don’t even think about how sharing Nathan’s attention with someone else might be a benefit for me, or that at the very least having someone else I can talk to might be nice. I’m just too horrified that this monster has found yet another victim.

“Stay right there, Lily,” he orders firmly. “Five minutes.”

I don’t move, cowering as usual at the overwhelming sight of him standing up. I continue thinking about the poor girl who most likely has no idea what’s going to happen to her, and unlike me she’s not going to have a couple of months to learn how to be tiny before she suddenly has to deal with someone like Nathan. My first night with Leo would likely be a cake walk compared to what I expect this devil will do to break her in. But it’s in these few minutes that I start finding the beginnings of new purpose in the wake of the sheer hopelessness of my situation. If I can’t get out of here and save myself, maybe I can at least help support someone else in some small way.

But first… to deal with this titan’s next trial. Nathan’s moving back and forth between here and the bedroom, bringing out mics and camera equipment. I’m not sure how to feel about the change in filming location. Being on the floor like this definitely makes me nervous. At one point I try to call out to him and ask what the theme of the video is going to be, but he can’t hear me. I stretch out my aching muscles as I wait and the dread keeps building.

Finally he looks like he’s done bringing everything out, and this time he comes back with his personal laptop in hand, which he sets onto the kitchen table. He opens up some programs and is hooking up the equipment when he begins talking to me again, not even glancing in my direction as he moves around the room.

“I need my hands free so I’m leaving you down there, but know that I have the earpiece in. I’ll give you the general overview for the shoot.”

He pauses and I do my best to steady my voice and sound attentive. “Okay.”

“This one should actually be very, very easy for you to get into character for,” Nathan says, smiling widely, “Seeing as the theme is particularly relatable for us both. You know. A businessman who shrinks down his assistant and brings her home.”

Another pause and I skitter backwards as he walks by me, fearful especially since he’s still wearing his work shoes and his foot slams down a bit too close for comfort. I force myself to speak again. “...R-right.”

“No costume this time. The customer specifically requested for the outfit to be as plain and nondescript as possible, they actually had no preference between the shrunken victim being a man or a woman. So what you’re wearing now is fine. And just like last time, I’ll be doing the talking so just follow my lead.”

I hesitate, observing his hulking faraway form for a moment before I suggest, “You know, if you give me a head’s up on more of the details, maybe I can… um, perform a little better?”

At this he looks away from his computer to briefly glance down at me with a smirk. “There’s one thing I’ll mention. It will be helpful for your character to show some resistance from time to time. Look to me, and if I’m giving you an affirmative nod that means ‘resist me.’ Otherwise, I don’t think further preparation will be necessary. I prefer those more genuine reactions of yours.”

My palms are tingling with nervous energy and I close them into fists, finding it harder and harder to keep my breathing steady the closer it feels to the beginning of filming. “Sure. You’re the boss,” I mutter in response.

“That I am. Alright, we’re ready to begin. Let’s get you to the starting size - grow to a foot tall.”

It’s odd, I’m ironically starting to fear these moments when I get to be bigger. It’s nice while it lasts, but every time it happens I know that it’s very temporary and that it always precludes a rough ride. The fact that he uses the term “starting size” does not make me think this will be any different.

As I’m growing on the tile, Nathan takes one of the chairs away from the dining table, sliding it closer and flipping it around to face me. I’m up on my feet at this point and take a stumbling step away, wondering at what he’s setting up. I don’t move very far backwards though, as the titan then reaches for me, picking me up before I’ve even reached my new height.

While waiting for me to stop growing, he runs a finger through my hair and over my clothes, at first as if to just smooth me out and make sure I’m camera ready, but soon it’s clear he’s just enjoying the doll that’s in his hands. His cold fingers rub against my body salaciously even once the tingling abates, and I keep my eyes downcast, knowing that if I look at him I will either glare or cry. My heart is still fluttering in my chest with horrible anticipation.

“So…” The sound of his voice makes me snap to attention, looking back up at him. “Do you think you can summon that initial fear on your own this time? Or do I need to elicit that myself?”

Fear is not a very difficult thing for me to tap into right now. I let myself show some of the anxiety that was threatening to burst out of me, my breath growing quick and shallow.

“There’s a good pet… Shall we?”
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Tue Oct 11, 2022 3:38 pm

Chapter 17

Nathan holds me around the torso in one hand as he reaches over to his laptop with the other… and we’re rolling.

Both hands around me again, he strolls into frame, only the bottom half or so of him visible, as he announces, “Here we are. Home sweet home.” His voice is decidedly stronger and sharper than the one he employed the other night, and the authority in it immediately makes me tense up.

He sits on the chair he had prepped and lowers me down so that I’m straddling his knee. I let myself make a show of looking around fretfully towards the ground, genuinely a little nervous about my precarious position on his leg. His face is out of frame but Nathan’s smiling at me approvingly.

“This is where you’ll be spending your weekend, Avery. As your employer I’ve decided you need some special training. Don’t get me wrong, my dear, you’re a wonderful assistant. But there’s still so much that we can work on together.”

He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, caressing my face and then my back, lingering in silence for a moment as I’ve learned he does to make sure he has plenty of footage. From my position on his lap I get a very clear view of his growing erection and desperately try to avert my gaze from it.

“Now the main thing we need to work on today is obedience. And I don’t just mean taking my calls and fetching me coffee, Avery. We already know you’re fully capable of that. I need your complete and unquestioning obedience for all matters.”

He scoops me up to lower me down to the floor now, back down to the cold tile, so that I’m standing a foot or so in front of him. This is the tallest I’ve been allowed to be in months and I don’t even reach up the full length of his calf. I try to take a breath to steady myself as he leans forward and settles his forearms to rest against the top of his legs.

“On your knees.”

The order is abrupt, sharp, and makes me flinch as I look up at him fearfully. He raises his eyebrows nonchalantly, chilling me with his gaze.

“I’m only going to say it one more time. Kneel.

And slowly, hesitantly, I do. My knees touch the floor as I sit back on my heels, balling my hands into fists on my lap and instinctively lowering my head.

“Good. Very good… We’ll work on making you a little quicker to comply, but I’ll let it slide this time. We’re only just beginning after all. Now, crawl to me.”

I can feel the heat build up in my cheeks. But I slide my palms to the floor and begin to obey, slinking forward on my hands and knees. Like an animal. I’m not far from him but I’m naturally moving slower this way, hips swaying, posture curled in submissively.

As I approach him, Nathan reaches a hand down to gently take my chin, caressing it like he’s petting a kitten and lifting my face in the process. “There now. That’s not so hard, is it?”

He continues raising my chin, pressing up on it with one finger, guiding me until I’m forced to take my hands off the ground and stand again. “Back on your feet. I’d like for you to attend to me. It’s been such a long day at the office… Be a doll and help me get my shoes off.”

He straightens back up again and leans back in his chair, eyes still on me. He shifts one foot forward and raises it to hit his heel to the floor, making me jump at the sound. I gulp. Even at Barbie doll height the task seems intimidating.

Shakily I step forward and move to the outside of his foot, trying to figure out the best way to go about it. I touch the leather tentatively, assessing, and then I pull down on the outside of the shoe, just below his ankle. I wrench it loose and then get back onto my knees so that I can pull at the heel, which he lifts up just enough so that I can slip it off. It dangles on the front of his foot now, and pulling off the bulky shoe is difficult but I manage without too much issue.

Nathan employs a condescending tone as I get to work on the other foot, “They must be so heavy for those little arms. I can imagine every task will be more of a challenge for you at this size, but that simply comes with the training. I think I’ll have you polish them later, I’m sure you’d be able to handle that at least.”

This time as I yank the shoe off his foot I lose my balance and fall over, drawing out laughter from my looming co-star. Not giving me a chance to get up on my own, he leans down to wrap his fingers around my torso and lift me to my feet. He trails a finger down the length of my arm so he can gently hold my hand for a moment.

"Such a hard worker. That was excellent, Avery, but you’re not finished." He straightens back up again and with one foot he pushes the shoes aside before sliding it towards me. "Take off the socks too.”

I reflexively begin recoiling at this, already struggling with the humiliation, and when I glance up at Nathan, he gives me a small, encouraging nod. I freeze in place for a second before I remember his earlier instruction - what he’s encouraging is the fact that I’m pulling away. It’s confusing but I don’t have too hard of a time following his actual desire. I take another step backwards.

“Are you refusing?” The words are sharp and make me flinch, and then the titan reaches around to put a hand just behind me, impeding my backwards progress. “Know that I’m not letting anything slide anymore. Even just a moment of hesitation is going to require punishment. Look at me, Avery.”

I press futilely back into his palm as he brings his other hand forward and extends an index finger, holding the tip of it right in front of my face. As he continues speaking he starts moving his finger in a small circle in front of me in an almost hypnotic way. I find myself following its movements, confused as to what he’s doing.

“I know you’re still new to this process. I’m sure you’ll become used to it soon enough. Now… shrink to six inches.”

My back slips down the palm that’s pressed up against me as my whole body tingles. So this is how it’s going to go. I’m starting to understand the scenario and the dread only increases as I’m very aware of his track record when it comes to the amount he’s willing to shrink me.

“Don’t tell me you thought a foot tall was the smallest I could make you?” he says as I dwindle, “Let this sink in, Avery. Every time you disobey you will lose half of your height. Push me too far and I’ll make you… disappear for a time. To let you think about things before we resume training.”

The hand that was pressed against my back is now well over my head. He looms over me, twice as big now, and he straightens back up once more and closes the distance between us with his foot, pulling up on his pant leg to reveal the length of his sock.

“So. Shall we try again?”

I start moving, although I’m still a little disoriented from the size change, and now at six inches the task is a bit more complicated. I walk over to his ankle, reach my arms up and sure enough… I can’t reach the opening of his sock from the floor. Gritting my teeth, I hoist myself onto the top of his foot, using his leg as support as I slowly stand up again. As I reach my hands up to the lip of the sock, I’m forced to look straight up at Nathan while he looks straight down at me, and I tense at the sight of his lazy, relaxed smile as he watches me. Clearly loving just how much he can dominate me.

I pull down on the fabric, straining, pushing it along his leg as far as it will go. Before I can hop back down to the floor, the titan shifts his heel ever so slightly but enough to knock me off balance. Since I was crouching, when my hands slip the whole front of my body tips forward so that my face crashes into where his leg meets his foot, my butt up in the air…

“Stay right there, Lily.”

I freeze as he addresses me directly. He runs a finger from my neck down along my back and I begin trembling, my face still buried into the top of his foot as I squeeze my eyes shut. He gently caresses my rear that's held high and I can’t help but flinch, though he follows my movements easily.

“That’s more like it, Avery. It seems you’re learning your place. But as much as I enjoy you prostrating yourself like this, try not to get too distracted from the task at hand, hmm? Good girl.”

He pushes against my lower back so that my head gets pulled up, and I immediately start moving again, scurrying off his foot. My face is flush with embarrassment, although if the cameras are catching me now it probably looks like I’m flush with something else. I try to focus, tugging and pulling at the fabric until I get it under his heel and can then run to the toe side and slide the sock off.

I hurry to repeat the process with the other foot, having an easier time now that I’ve got a good sense of it. Since it’s taking a little bit of time and he probably feels like he has plenty of this kind of footage, Nathan reaches over to some of the equipment to adjust the camera angles as I move.

“Maybe this can become our own post-work ritual, Lily. Doesn’t that sound nice? You get a bit of your height back, for a short time. And I get to enjoy you attending to me.”

I don’t answer, figuring that since the cameras are still on me he’d rather I not actually talk right now. This seems to be the right move. As I pull the second sock off, he readjusts to face me again and gets back into character.

“Much better,” he croons, “Make sure not to leave any trace of lint or anything behind. In fact, consider that your next task, make sure my feet are spotless before we move on.”

I sigh as subtly as possible, feeling disgusted but knowing I don’t have a choice. I kneel down in front of his toes, picking off whatever little pieces of black fabric I can find between them. I don’t look forward to this becoming a regular thing, another demeaning task that makes me feel like nothing more than a slave. Better than getting roughly handled, though. I suppose I’ll get used to it.

He lets me do this for a couple of minutes until the bigger pieces of lint are removed, and at one point I pause to look up at him, wondering how much longer he wants me to do this.

“Did I say you could stop?”

I jump again at the sharpness of his voice, cower back as I stare up at him in fear. His expression is still quite relaxed, contrasting with the anger that he’s letting out in his voice. I look back down to quickly return to cleaning his foot but it seems like it’s too late - he reaches down to roughly push me up to my feet, one finger at each shoulder shoving against me.

“I’m not going to go easy on you, Avery. I said I need complete and unquestioning obedience. I have to make you understand.”

This feels incredibly unfair, even for the character that I’m playing, but he’s following a script and he needs to get to the next size. He begins circling the tip of his finger in front of my face again, and I want to look away this time, feel my heart racing as I know what’s coming.

“Shrink down to three inches now.”

I tremble as he expands, ever larger, until his finger outgrows me, his foot looming beyond, the frame of his body more and more like a building. Bizarrely this size actually feels more right for me, what I had been considering normal for so long, but I get little comfort from feeling like my “usual” self as all I can do right now is wonder at what’s next.

“You are getting very little indeed. I was originally planning on having you serve me dinner today, but you probably couldn’t even lift up a fork right now. I’m not sure you could even polish my shoes in any kind of timely manner. Let’s try something else...”

When the tingling stopped, so did his circling finger, but to my surprise he now moves the digit lower. He begins stroking at my legs and I hold very, very still in fear as he caresses the inside of my thigh, slowly making his way up. I clench the muscles between my legs as he makes contact with them, continuing to press upwards until I’m on my tiptoes… and then my feet leave the floor.

I balance precariously for a moment, straddling his index finger, and Nathan continues lifting me upwards. The height becomes too much for comfort and I grab onto his finger and try shifting forward, but he discourages this by tilting his hand the other way, preferring I stay on the perilous perch of his fingertip.

I’m high enough to be level with his hips, and he rests his elbow on his knee, his hand still keeping me dangled in the air. He takes a moment to reach out to adjust a nearby camera. The fact that he’s not even looking at me right now is making me want to hyperventilate as I keep glancing down at the significant drop to the tile.

Nathan faces me again and his expression grows stern. “Get up.”

I wince and can feel myself starting to shake as I’m scared to move. But I press on, bringing my feet up and using my hands to carefully get into a crouching position on his fingertip before slowly, hands outstretched, I raise myself to standing. I feel like I’m on the edge of a narrow diving board, the precipice open behind me. I thank all of the time I’ve spent on my old balance beams.

“Walk to my palm.”

Damnit, what if I actually fall? There’s no hand hovering underneath, ready to catch me. He’s probably confident he can snatch me out of the air if necessary. Regardless he’s not giving me a choice, and I know taking too long will be an issue, so I force myself to cautiously tread forward, bit by bit, the few steps over to his palm. His smile widens and his tone remains sharp as he gives me no time to settle before speaking again.

“Good. Sit.”

I do, feeling a little breathless as I drop onto my knees, then my rear.

“Lay down.”

I lean back, my head supported by the base of his fingers, flattening myself.

“Arch your back for me.”

I push my hips up in the air, closing my eyes and just trying to breathe through this rapid-fire series of orders. Nathan slips the index of his other hand underneath the gap that I’m forming with my back, hooking it below me to lift me back up before wrapping the rest of his fingers around my frame.

“Now you’re getting it,” he says with a smirk, “Alright, back down you go…”

I feel relieved not to be so high up anymore, quickly elevatoring downwards so that he can place me on the top of his foot again. But he isn’t finished with his commands.

“Back on your knees, Avery. Look at me.”

My whole body is tense as I kneel, landing heavily against his skin and raising my eyes in his direction.

“I want you to lay down and grovel. I want you to submit to me. Kiss the foot of your master.”

Having found a sort of rhythm, I almost do it unthinkingly. It’s just another task, just another hoop to jump through. But he asked me to look at him for a reason. Because even as he gives me this order, his eyes narrow as he gives me a clear nod. I pause, frozen. I have to remind myself again what that means. He doesn’t actually want me to do it.

As I hesitate, he’s smiling wider and wider at me even as he employs a tone of irritation. “Really, Avery? Is this where you draw the line?”

I would have done it. Just hearing the building anger that he’s pretending to have is making me want to obey. But the real him is giving me a conflicting order. And that’s the one I have to follow.

“This one simple command is too much for you?”

I have to continue just sitting here. Even though I know he’s about to punish me for it. I’m sure there’s nothing but terror on my face, but as I stare at the man above me, at the iciness in his eyes, I am seething with complete and total hatred.

He has to actually bite back laughter to not break character. “You don’t seem to fully understand the situation you’re in. And we haven’t even gotten past the entryway.”

I yelp as he lifts his heel to angle his foot down and I'm sent rolling, tumbling roughly to the floor. I back away from him, quickly trying to get to my feet. This time Nathan brings his index finger to be just above my head instead of in front of my face.

"I’m afraid you are going to need a harsher punishment this time to truly help this sink in. I’m going to make you much, much smaller, Avery. Shrink now."

Oh god… My heart races as I realize he hasn't set an end size. I know what that means. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I whisper despite myself, feeling the wave of dizziness, the intense warmth in my chest, and the finger above me continues to grow as it circles, spiraling downwards as he keeps up with my dwindling height.

For a second I look down at the floor, at the expanse of tile that pulls away from me in every direction, and although this apartment is pretty clean I still see plenty of specks of dirt and dust that naturally gather to the ground… I feel nauseous as I can tell I’m about to join them. I snap my head back up again at the sudden realization that his hand has moved away and now the titan’s foot is sliding towards me, big toe knocking me right over as I reach an inch tall and continue to dwindle.

Far above is an increase in movement and I suddenly see more of Nathan’s massive body as he stands up. He seems to focus on the cinematography for a moment, trying to get a dynamic shot of my descent. I watch his arm, quickly beginning to look like a distant land mass, moving to the side to pick up a giant tower – a tripod with a camera at the top – so that he can bring the camera closer to me.

His toes are like walls in front of me now, and the ground rumbles as he lifts them up, shifts his foot forward so that they block out everything else, looming over me threateningly as the camera swings to be level with the floor. His voice is echoing, rattling my surroundings, almost reaching that point where I’m feeling the words more than hearing them.

“You’re getting so tiny. Smaller, smaller, smaller… Watch out Avery, I might end up crushing you without even meaning to.”

I can’t breathe. There’s a piece of dirt next to me that went from speck sized to marble sized and now it’s a large rock… and now it’s a boulder, taller than I am… His toes above me are like a cloud formation and it feels impossible that they’re connected to the rest of his foot that’s still on the ground. I can’t make out anything else beyond him and still I’m shrinking, dizzy, overwhelmed, wondering how many times he’s going to do this to me, wondering as I do in every single instance if I really am going to shrink out of existence this time.

His words alone create an earthquake as I’m getting too miniscule to function, barely able to make anything out, becoming completely microscopic…

“I can’t even see you now. I’m sure you wish you had just listened to–”

There’s a pause and I think this must be it, I’m too small to understand him. But then… the words continue…

“Seriously? What part of tomorrow did he not understand…”

Then I cower at the sound of explosive wind from an impossible distance above me. An angry sigh.

“We’ll need to start that one over… Lily, grow back to three inches. And get ready to become an absolute microbe in a minute.”

This isn’t making sense. I feel a strong sense of whiplash suddenly take hold, like someone hit the brakes in the middle of speeding down a highway. The tingling and dizziness and warmth are all still there but suddenly I’m moving back the other way, back the way I’d come. I still feel like I can’t breathe. I’m looking around wildly, realizing Nathan’s foot is no longer right above me.

I hear it this time. A booming sound that’s far away, farther than the titan’s voice. I must be a couple of millimeters tall at this point and it hits me… I just heard a knock at the door.

“Oh for fuck’s sake!”

His anger in response is quite genuine. I yelp at the moving mountains of this giant’s nearby legs as he thunders away from me, shaking the earth with every step. I pass the half-inch mark and stare at his distant form as it moves impossibly fast, and I’m screaming as a few seconds later he aggressively approaches me again. He’s zooming my way, crouching quickly, he’s got something in his hand and it’s suddenly plummeting right towards me…

There’s an ear-shattering sound as glass hits against tile. I’m a bit over an inch tall now, big enough to see what’s happening. Nathan, frustrated by the interruption, has just trapped me under the same cup as before to make sure I don’t move from here. But in his anger he’s slammed it down a little harder than he should have. I don’t think he’s even noticed it, but starting at the nick that’s already at the base, a massive crack has formed on the side of the glass.

Then he shoves the cup to the side. Just a small, irritated jerk of a movement before he stands up. To me, though, it’s an entirely different matter. When the cup suddenly shifts sideways, the wall of the glass knocks into me. I suddenly feel a sharp pain in my shoulder as I experience the worst luck imaginable and am knocked right up against the giant, very slightly offset crack. Slicing my skin.

“Ahhh..!” I gasp, still dizzy from the size changing process and looking in shock at the bright red that’s coming out of my arm. It’s not a very deep cut, but it burns, and my first panicked thought is that Nathan is not going to be happy that I suddenly have a very visible injury before we finished filming.

But then it hits me that he’s walking down the hall to the entryway, towards the door. To answer it. He's still holding the tripod he was just using to film me and sets it against the wall in the hallway. I can’t worry about an injury right now. I jump to my feet and run to the other side of the cup just as I hit my three inch target, and I’m ready to start pushing against the wall of the glass to move it, to desperately try to make whoever’s at the door notice me.

It turns out that I don’t even need to move the cup at all. I’m already lined up with the entryway, about 200 feet away from my perspective, and I get the perfect view as Nathan opens the door, ready to angrily berate the interloper. I’m already holding my arms up to wave them, desperately searching for a face as the figure is revealed, as I know it’s absolutely crucial that I get them to look my way. And then my eyes meet Leo’s. And time stands still.
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littlest-lily
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Thu Oct 13, 2022 12:03 pm

Chapter 18

There’s a moment of shocked silence.

My arms are raised over my head. I don’t even move them as I just stare, dumbfounded. My heart is squeezing up in my throat. He’s here. He’s here.

From behind I see Nathan, who was ready to confront the leasing office worker, suddenly stiffen and go silent. Clearly surprised at seeing someone very different. Then his shoulders tense further as he recognizes who’s in front of him instead.

And I see Leo. The wonderful familiarity is enough to take my breath away. And yet he looks different from a few days ago. Tense. Exhausted. But incredibly resolute. When the door opened his gaze was on Nathan for a split second before taking another instant to scan the rest of the apartment, and his eyes are now on me. My little form staring up at him wide-eyed. Battered. Bloody. Trapped under a cup on the floor.

His expression shifts, his eyes are back on Nathan, there’s a sudden flurry of movement. Before I can blink, I watch the titan who’s had me at his mercy for the past four days suddenly stumble back, his head snapping to the side as a sickening cracking sound reverberates. He collapses to the floor, right into the side bathroom coming off the entryway. Leo just decked him in the jaw.

There’s another second of silence. I think even Leo doesn’t quite believe what he just did. But he’s brought back to the present as the front door, no longer held open, starts closing on him, and he grabs it and lets it close behind him as he rushes inside. He hurries forward, past Nathan who’s out cold on the floor, and comes down the hall with his eyes fixed on my position before he drops to his knees in front of me.

Seeing him approach so quickly knocks me out of my reverie, and I take a step back at the overwhelming movement of the giant despite wanting nothing else but to run straight to him. I feel like I just can’t stop staring at him, as if trying to figure out if I’ve finally snapped and he's just some kind of hallucination. His sandy blonde hair is a little extra disheveled, his tan skin slightly paler than normal, his dark brown eyes lacking their usual warmth in the intensity of the situation.

He puts one hand on the floor to steady himself as he uses the other one to reach for the cup I’m in. “Lily…” he whispers, and he notices the huge crack in the glass, lifts it carefully as his eyes observe me with fear. “Oh god… Are you…?”

I realize I must look terrible. I’m sure the stress and exhaustion has done a number on me too, not to mention all the bruises and especially the fresh blood that’s covering my arm.

“I- I’m okay…” I say, failing to keep my voice steady.

He sets the glass down gingerly and shifts closer, looming overhead. His hands are hovering around me now, pausing for a second as he’s afraid to touch me. I step over to one of them, reach out to brush against his fingers. His gloriously warm, familiar fingers.

“I’m fine," I insist, a little more desperately.

“R-right. Let’s get out of here.”

He tilts his palm to help scoop me up in it, bringing his other hand around to cup my body protectively. His hands are shaking. There’s no time to savor this moment, to relish in his touch. I grip him tightly as he gets to his feet, holding me close to his chest, and hurries back to the front door.

I hear it before I see it. Leo’s in the process of reaching for the door when there’s the sound of effort, a voice straining. Previously hidden from view inside the side bathroom, I turn and see him now - Nathan’s on his feet, the silver in his gaze as sharp as a knife. There’s absolute fury on his face just before he lunges.

He makes heavy contact with Leo, who’s at a significant disadvantage this time, caught off guard with hands occupied. Nathan had thrown his whole weight forward so that we’re all suddenly tumbling to the ground. For a moment I’m in darkness as I feel Leo curling his body inwards to protect me. Then he hits the floor hard, and the impact shakes my world violently as I'm bounced around as if in an airplane crash.

Although the soft dark space of the giant hand is like a padded room keeping me safe, I’m still knocked silly for a moment. There’s no time for recovery - I can hardly make anything out, but Nathan is on top of Leo now and suddenly the giants are wrestling. The hand I’m in shoots out to the side, trying to get me out of harm’s way, and I yelp as I roll onto the floor, leaving a small streak of blood on the hardwood. I’m dizzy and shaken but also acutely aware that I can’t afford to not be on my feet.

I scramble up and stare in horror at the scene playing out. Leo’s on his back, and he may be the bigger giant but in this moment it doesn’t matter. The weight of Nathan’s body is heavy enough to pin down his legs, Nathan’s hands are strong enough to reach his throat. Leo puts up a fight, struggling and grabbing at his assailant's arms, but he can't breathe and has no leverage and Nathan is quickly gaining the upper hand.

I’m only about two feet away from the scuffle, feeling completely helpless. I have to do something. But what the fuck am I supposed to do in the face of these moving monoliths?

I look around my environment frantically. There's a shelf against the wall behind me but there's nothing useful on it that I can reach. Much further, back near the kitchen, is the cracked cup. But even if I could fully break it and somehow use the broken glass, there's not enough time to get there and back. In the middle of the hall, looking quite out of place, is the shrinking device. It must have fallen out of a pocket at some point and lays there uselessly on the floor. My panicked gaze passes right over it, knowing I can't use it.

And then I see it. When Nathan had initially left me to answer the front door, he was holding something… the camera, still on its folded up tripod… He’d left it in the hallway, leaning up against the wall, so close to where the two men are now struggling. A tower of plastic and metal but it’s balanced so precariously…

I run towards the tripod, knowing that every second is crucial. The tower is 70 feet tall and the entire weight of it is resting on only one of the three legs. I shove it fruitlessly and yelp at the pain in my arm - it's so heavy to me. Breathing hard, I brace my back against the wall. Put both of my feet on the tripod. And push as hard as I can.

It moves. I fall to the floor and look up wildly. The tower is toppling now, slipping to the side, tumbling down… and hitting Nathan on the shoulder. It does next to nothing to him, causes no harm to his body. But it gets his attention. For a moment, I see him hesitate, see his head turn towards whatever new assailant had hit him from behind.

And it’s enough. The shift of his body allows Leo to get a leg free, and he kicks Nathan in the abdomen, hard. Still disoriented from getting knocked out a minute ago, Nathan loses his balance, one hand landing on the floor. And then he's on the defensive, recoiling back to avoid another kick, stumbling up to his feet as he retreats and Leo shakily gets up as well.

I back away fearfully from the gigantic battle that rages above - the two men thunder past me, a blur as they throw blows and grab at each other, and although only a few seconds are passing it feels like an eternity as I can’t make sense of who's hurting who.

They near the heavy shelf in the hallway, and for a horrifying second I don’t know which one of them is thrown up against it, crying out in pain and rage. But then Leo’s the one who's grabbing at the shelf and pulling on it hard, and the entire thing comes crashing down. The earthquake of it is enough to knock me off my feet, the noise cataclysmic, and it lands right on top of Nathan, pinning him underneath. He stops moving.

It’s only been a couple of minutes since the front door opened, but everything has completely changed in that time. In the quiet that follows the crash of wood and body, Leo stumbles backwards, leaning against the wall for a second, his breath coming out ragged as he stays on his guard for a moment longer. Then he begins scanning the floor fretfully, and in turn I start moving, getting to my feet and running his way to catch his attention. I see the visible relief on his face at the sight of me.

We both know we need to keep moving. Leo looks a little shell shocked and I wince as I notice the red finger-shaped marks on his throat. I worry for a moment that he might pass out in the aftermath. But he keeps it together, taking a couple of steadying breaths before crouching down to pick me up. I hurry onto his hand, and then suddenly remember–

“Leo…”

My voice is weak but I manage to force it out, pointing to the shrinking device still on the floor a foot away. He looks up at it, nods as he reaches out with his other hand and pockets the device before standing back up, holding me against his chest once more.

He opens the front door. And we’re out.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Sun Oct 16, 2022 12:46 pm

Chapter 19

There’s no one around and the journey to the outside of the building is a quick one. We go through one more door and I can feel myself become more alert with the feeling of fresh air filling my lungs, the warmth of sunlight, the view of the buildings and the sky. As I catch a glimpse of the parking garage across the street, I suddenly remember something else.

“Leo, wait,” I call up, “There’s someone else. H-he has someone in his car. In the trunk.”

My rescuer looks down at me intently, taking a second to process. “In his car?” he repeats, and then he’s also looking up at the parking garage across the street, taking a few steps in that direction. We both tense up as something comes into view from the inside of the garage - lights. Police car lights. As Leo walks along the street, I catch sight of the familiar silver sedan that’s parked in our line of sight. There are quite a few police officers gathered around, the trunk of the car is open and empty, and there’s a young woman there, a blanket draped over her shoulders, looking lost and scared but relieved as she talks to the officers.

“Oh, thank goodness,” I say with a sigh, “I wonder how they knew where to find her.”

“That was me,” Leo answers and I frown, looking up at him confused. I’m starting to really wonder how he’s spent the last few days.

He doesn’t elaborate, just keeps walking hurriedly until I notice we’re coming up to his car parked on the street. He continues holding me cupped against him and I can feel his heart still racing as he gets inside and off we go. He drives one-handed in silence for a few minutes, and it’s just to get away, to snake around a few blocks, to make sure we’re safe.

And then he parks the car again, somewhere relatively secluded. This is the first time I can see out of a window while in a car - I see a beautiful park outside with a plethora of flowers and fountains and faraway people walking their dogs. I stare out for a moment, dazed, until my view is blocked again as Leo puts his other hand over me, layering it over the first, tenderly cradling me against his chest. He’s shaking. He’s… he’s crying, I realize.

I look up the length of him, wanting to make eye contact, but I’m too pressed up against him. Hearing his sobs is making me tear up in turn, and I start petting his thumb, running my hand over his skin again and again.

“It’s okay,” I say, forcing a smile, “Really, I’ll be okay.”

He lowers his head as he lifts me a little higher against him, his chin resting on the back of his hand as I’m tucked up inside in an even closer hug. His response is little more than a whisper. “Thank god… Fuck, this is all my fault... Lily, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry...”

My own tears are spilling over my cheeks and I wrap my arms around his thumb now, holding him tightly, pressing into him as he curves his hands around me. The feeling is so comforting. I missed him so much.

“You got me out of there,” I say, “Thank you.

We continue embracing each other for a while, letting out our tears and drinking in the feeling of each other again. It’s hard to believe this is actually happening. I’d been so sure that I was destined to a life of terror and misery with Nathan. But as we sit here it’s like there’s a shift happening within me. Slowly, it’s starting to feel like it’s the experience of the past few days that wasn’t real. A horrific nightmare, one that will surely continue to haunt me for a while yet. But one that I can at least try to move forward from.

Leo finally takes a deep breath in and out, and he’s not quite as shaky anymore, gradually regaining himself. “Oh wait,” he says suddenly, "You’re… you were bleeding, are you still bleeding?” He’s pulling me back now, his eyes still red but his hands holding me steadier as he looks me over.

I look down at myself and feel a vague wave of nausea at how much dried blood is covering me, but most of it doesn’t look particularly fresh, even around the cut itself. “I don’t… think so?” I say, “It wasn’t very deep.”

“Still. Let’s get that cleaned up.”

Leo reaches over to the other side of the car, carefully setting me down on the dashboard before climbing over into the passenger seat, so that the steering wheel isn’t in the way. He pulls a first aid kit out of the glove compartment, laying out some of the contents beside me, and then he unwraps a sterile wipe and begins cutting out a small piece.

“I’ll let you take the reins on this… You’re so little that I don’t want to make things worse. Let me know how I can help.”

I nod appreciatively, taking the wipe from him, and begin mopping up the blood as he goes on to cut up small pieces of gauze and medical tape. The cut stings, and it’s clear that it runs all the way up my shoulder, so I pause long enough to take off my shirt. There’s nothing underneath so I’m now mostly naked as I clean myself off. After a few moments I can sense the giant in front of me is staring, and I glance up at him. He’s studying me, not with lust, but with a dark-eyed intensity.

“He did this to you.” It wasn’t a question but a confirmation to himself as he takes in every mark and bruise that have layered on over the days. I’m still not used to seeing Leo angry, and the fire in his eyes is intimidating, even as he’s aiming it at someone who’s far away from here. “Well… I’m glad I wasn’t jumping to conclusions when I immediately punched him in the face.”

I don’t say anything at first, just continue wiping away at my skin, letting a weak smile peek through. He doesn’t even know the half of it.

“It was horrible,” I finally admit softly, my head swimming, “I… I knew this guy for years, Leo. Not well, but still. I never would have guessed that he could…” I trail off.

Leo is quiet this time, seething. Mechanically I take some of the cotton from the gauze to put on the cut, and quietly we work together to wrap up my upper arm, his much larger fingers having an easier time reaching around me, and then my smaller, more precise hands tucking in the ends. I put my shirt back on and circle my shoulder a couple of times, still deep in thought.

The confession suddenly bursts out of me. “I left you.”

He frowns at me, confused, and my voice is trembling as it all spills out now, “I… He didn’t take me by force. I left with him. I didn't know he was going to come, I'm still not fully sure how he found me, but I didn't even question it, I just went with him. I… I left…”

“Stop.” Leo’s fingertips touch my back, making me shiver but helping steady me. He lowers his head to be level with my face and gives me a stern look. “If you took an opportunity to leave it’s because I made you feel like that was the only real choice you had. Please. Please don’t blame yourself for this.”

I realize I’d almost started crying again, but I let out a breath and nod. There’s no point beating myself up or assigning blame. There are still a lot of feelings for me to sort through, apparently guilt being one of them. I’m sure the guilt is killing Leo too. This is going to take time.

The giant straightens up again, softly stroking my back now. “Honestly, it would have been better if you were able to leave. If you were actually getting… rescued. At first I thought that’s what happened. I thought that maybe you had somehow contacted a friend and I'd missed it. I was devastated, but… figuring out the truth was way worse.”

I arch my back into his touch, appreciating the warmth after days of feeling cold all the time. My chest tightens at what he’s saying though, having trouble not feeling guilty again as I imagine his own challenges over the past few days. “How did you figure it out?” I ask him.

There’s a deep breath as he prepares for the upcoming explanation of his side of things.

“Well… It was probably the heartbreak talking, but… you disappearing just didn't fully make sense to me, I guess. We had just had that heart to heart. You'd left all your stuff behind. No note, no contact afterwards. I don't know, something felt off. Regardless, it was impossible for me to not try to figure out what happened and make sure you were okay. And I knew you were stuck small without me there to use the device. No matter what… I needed to talk to you.

“I checked with my neighbors first, and one of them saw someone come out of my apartment. Her description matched the guy I had seen in the parking lot, and I was confused because I didn't recognize him, he didn't look like anyone you'd been video calling. Then I contacted some of your friends. Asked if they'd heard from you recently, but none of them did. I thought they might have been covering for you, but then I saw them trying to text and call you. The night you were gone I actually talked to Cherri on the phone. Not exactly the circumstances I wanted to introduce myself under but… anyway. She was getting really worried, and so was I. So I… I called the police.”

I stare off into space, taking all of this in. He’s talked to other people about me? To my friends? It’s such a bizarre thought after months of secrecy. I wonder how much people know, but I don’t interrupt him and that’s when he clarifies.

“Granted I still didn't tell anyone about the fact that you were tiny. I figured it might not be the best thing for me to admit, especially without actual proof that it’s even possible. Everyone would think I was crazy. So I left an anonymous tip with the cops, reported you as missing, gave a description of the guy I saw and his car. I was hoping they could at least figure out who had done it. Maybe that was wrong, maybe it wasn't enough... I didn't know what I was doing.

“The more time passed the more freaked out I got, especially when I saw the notification that apparently my shrinking device got destroyed shortly after you left. I tried everything I could think of… I checked your apartment, I was scouring the internet in case anyone had posted pictures of you, I kept checking your emails and messages to see if anything had changed. I did a lot of driving around aimlessly trying to think of where to look. All the wrong things.”

He pauses and more than ever I’m seeing the effects of stress in his body, the dark circles under his eyes from the sleepless nights. I lean into him further, until he’s no longer stroking my back but just supporting the weight of me, and I give his hand a little squeeze. He smiles at this, as if regaining strength from the connection, before he continues with a more enthusiastic tone.

“And then I got a call from Cherri, what… an hour ago? I don't know how you did it, Lily. She told me she heard from you and that you sounded like you were in trouble. She couldn't make out what you were saying, but she said the caller ID listed Green Rocket Co. That was all I needed. I went through your old work emails and found an org chart with pictures. I recognized him. I immediately knew that's who took you. I looked up his address and on my way here I tipped off the police again, gave them his name and told them he had kidnapped somebody. And then… well, you know the rest.”

The rest being him ultimately risking his life to save me. I smile up at him and adjust myself to try and sit onto his hand, reaching my arms out as if asking for a hug. He smiles back and acquiesces, readjusting under me so he can lift me to his face. I kiss the space between his eyes, snuggle into where his nose meets cheek.

“My knight in shining armor," I say softly, "You were such a badass."

Leo chuckles, and the familiar sound of it makes my heart sing. “So were you, little one. It’s all a bit of a blur, but I do remember one thing clearly… I don’t think that camera fell down by itself. That was you, wasn’t it? Even though you're so small. You saved me too.”

I pull away from him, letting out a weak laugh as I sit back onto his palm, strangely feeling almost giddy. “Y-yeah... Jesus. I can’t believe that all just… happened.”

“I know. You have to tell me how you managed to make that call to Cherri.” He suddenly tenses, eyes widening, “Oh, wait - shit - I completely forgot to contact her. Hold on, let me text her real quick.”

He sets me back down on the dash as he pulls out his phone and messages my friend. Man, that is so weird. I wonder how my next video call with Cherri is even going to go, now that she’s sort of met Leo. But that train of thought completely derails at his next words.

“I told her we'd be headed over soon. Is that okay?”

“What?” I do a double take, staring at him in shock. “H-hold on, what now?”

He looks a bit surprised at my reaction as he lowers his phone again. “I'm taking you to her place until I can figure out how to restore you. Unless there's someone else you'd rather go to?”

I’m reeling now, stuttering. I’d figured our next destination was back to his apartment. “We're not… we're not going back to your…?”

He frowns. “Of course not. You almost got killed because of me. All of this is my doing. I'm going to fix it.”

The realization is dawning on me. I had expected that we’d be picking right back up where we’d left off. If anything I’d expected him to be more paranoid than ever about me being discovered. For him to want to keep me close and make sure I’m safe. I hadn’t realized exactly what effect this whole ordeal had on him until this moment.

“You're… you… seriously?”

“Yes.” He leans in and reaches a hand to me again, gently touches my cheek as his gaze captures mine. “I'm letting you go, love. I'm letting you go home… You're too important to me, Lily.”

There's something about those words that hit me deep. Like I'd been waiting to hear them for a very long time. I don't know exactly what this means, what our next steps are going to be. All I know is he's just agreed to give me my freedom back.

Both of us are starting to tear up again. This has been a very emotional catch-up. I take his finger that's on my cheek, holding it against my face, and smile weakly as I say the only thing I can muster out.

Thank you, Leo.
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by littlest-lily » Tue Oct 18, 2022 10:08 am

Chapter 20

“So uhhh… does Cherri… know?”

I’m sitting in the comfort of a shirt pocket, leaning against Leo’s chest and taking in his heartbeat and his warmth. The subtle movements of the car are starting to make me a little sleepy now that the excitement has died down and I’m feeling the fatigue. But there are still a few things we need to figure out.

“Yeeeah… about that…” the giant says, his voice tickling me pleasantly, “I did end up telling her on the way over to get you. But I don’t know if she believed me.”

I nod, readjusting myself. “I guess it would be a hard pill to swallow.”

“Just so you know, I didn’t tell her I was the one who originally shrunk you, not yet. That just didn’t feel like a good idea in the midst of everything else. I said it was a long story, kinda made it sound like an accident…”

“Right. Makes sense.”

I gaze at the fibers of the wall of cloth in front of me. Uncomfortably, I’m remembering a conversation from a few days ago, the night that I’d left. Recalling some of the details that I’d heard about what might happen if other people found out about the shrinking machine.

I pipe back up again, “Are you really okay with her knowing? Nathan told me some scary stuff about the people who make the device. That if word gets out they might send a hitman?”

To my surprise, Leo laughs at this. “Well that's a bit dramatic. Yes, secrecy is important to them, it’s like the main thing in the contract. If you started shrinking random people on the street I'm sure they’d find a way to stop you. But I don’t think they’d kill off their customers for the slightest infraction. They just don't want this to go public.”

There’s a pause and he sighs, subduing himself. “To be fair, I kinda stopped caring about all that when I thought you were in trouble. I would have told the police everything if I thought that's what it would take to save you. But now I should probably rein myself in a little bit… Um.”

He takes a deep breath, absently giving me a light touch through the fabric of his pocket, a nervous fidget.

“It would probably be better for me if not too many people know about this. I’ll only really ask you to wait a couple of days so I can figure out how to get you back to normal. After that… it’s okay. Confide in your friends, do whatever you need to do, let me handle the risk. You’d be doing me a favor by keeping things relatively quiet. But I'm done telling you what to do.”

It’s so strange. Two months ago I thought of Leo as a criminal. I would have called the police if I could and probably would have felt better knowing he was behind bars. Am I being too easy on him if I try to protect him now and keep his secret? After everything we’ve been through, I just can’t imagine betraying him.

“I can keep it quiet,” I assure him, simply.

The nervous touch is replaced by his palm gently pressing against me instead. A gesture of gratitude. I close my eyes as I lean into it.

“So do you have a plan?” I ask, straightening back up as the giant’s hand returns to the steering wheel, “On getting me back to normal?”

We’d gone ahead and tried using Nathan’s device before beginning this drive, Leo examining it for any kind of detail that might override the machine’s former owner. But as expected, nothing worked, neither manually nor by voice activation. I’m trapped at three inches tall once again.

“As soon as I drop you off I'll call the rep I know and explain the situation. I’ll see if I can just rent another device temporarily or something. And I'll actually probably drive out to their headquarters if I can find out where it is - I think it's a couple of states over, but it should still be the fastest way.”

I get a flutter of anxiety at the thought of this. “You're going to go see them in person? That sounds dangerous. I mean, at the end of the day, this is still some weird dark web shit, right?”

I hear the confident smile in his voice. “It'll be fine, love. I know I’ve made a lot of mistakes. But I’ve got this one. I promise.”

We drift into silence for the final ten minutes or so of the drive. I’m continuing to ride up and down the emotional hills that have been fluctuating all day and am currently moving into a strange nervousness. I feel like Leo and I just got reunited and now we're about to be separated again. And how is Cherri going to react to seeing me like this?

***

The car starts to slow down and I'm noticing from the faster thumping of the nearby heart that I'm not the only nervous one. I wait for a moment, expecting to be picked up, and when that doesn't happen I stand up to peek curiously out of the pocket.

The giant's holding his phone and I eventually make out that he's checking police reports. He glances down at me and gives me the recap.

"He's been taken into custody. Getting medical attention right now. I mean I guess I'm glad to find out I'm not a murderer… Sorta. At least he can't get to you anymore."

I vaguely wonder what might come out of that investigation. I'm not sure if Leo and I can both stay completely uninvolved. But it's too much to think about right now. And I do at least feel safer knowing the police have him.

Leo puts his phone away and goes to help me out of his pocket now, setting me onto his palm. I look out the window, see the familiar front of Cherri's townhouse on an unfamiliar scale. I take a steadying breath, looking up at my rescuer. He smiles at me encouragingly.

“You ready?”

This is it. It feels like a weirdly monumental moment. As if everything is about to change drastically.

"So, is this…" I choke on my own words, swallow, try again, "Is this the… end? For us?"

I feel stupid once I say it. I'm the one who had said that what I feel for him couldn't be real. I'm the one who has been asking for my freedom from him. I feel like I have no right to backpedal, but now that this is happening I can't help but feel conflicted.

We both know it’s complicated. Leo catches my gaze, holds it tenderly for a few seconds before leaning in to softly kiss my forehead. I squeeze my eyes shut, trying desperately not to cry at the bittersweetness of it all. He pulls me away again and I just manage to hold it together.

"I love you,” he says, “No matter what. But I completely understand if I never see you again after this is all over.”

I feel a sudden wave of exhaustion. Too many emotions. Too much. I can’t parse through it all. Not now.

I try to voice this to him. "I guess… I think I should probably take some time, at least. Figure myself out.”

Leo can’t help looking a little pained at this. But he nods. “Yeah. That would probably be good for the both of us.” He lets out a sigh and asks again, “You ready?”

I nod back. Now to deal with some awkwardness.

***

We figure it might be best to not just waltz out with me fully visible, to maybe give Cherri a moment to brace herself. I sit in Leo’s hand as he holds it up near his abdomen, curled around me so that I’m hidden behind his fingers as I sit. Over his shoulder he has a tote bag with some of my things that he had pre-packed for just this kind of occasion. I get a view of the walkway off to the side, glowing a pale orange in the setting sun, but I can’t see the front door, only hear it opening and then the conversation that follows.

My heart flutters at the sound of my friend's voice. “Hey… Whoa. Holy crap, dude, are you okay? What happened?”

Leo lets out a breath of laughter. “I’m fine. The negotiations were not peaceful. But the police have him now, it’s over.”

“So… where…?

There’s a pause. “She’s right here. I uh… wasn’t sure if you believed me.”

Another pause. “Well I guess it seems like a weird thing to lie about."

The hand I’m on curls in a little more around me, protectively. “Don’t freak out?”

“I won’t…” I hear a thud against the pavement as Cherri takes a step forward. “Lily?”

She’s directing this to me and suddenly I’m feeling ready - I start to stand and give the giant’s fingers a small push, and he uncovers me in turn, lifting me a little higher. Every new oversized person I see for the first time takes me a moment to process. But as weird as it is to see one of my best friends magnified, looming over me, I feel a rush of joy at her familiar freckles, full lips, deep blue eyes - even as they widen in shock and she puts a hand over her mouth.

“Hey,” I say, awkwardly.

Her shoulders are all tensed up and she actually takes a step back, shying away for a moment. “Fuuuck me,” she finally says in a strained voice, tucking a strand of pink hair behind her ear and ducking down slightly to see me a little better. “I can’t– This is unreal.”

“I know, right?” I respond. I try to smile at her as reassuringly as I can, knowing she’s actually probably going to be struggling with the size difference a lot more than I am.

“Uhh.” She’s glancing up at the giant who’s holding me now, trying to compose herself, “Right. Okay. Go ahead, c-come on in.”

Well. That could have gone worse. Leo and I exchange a smile as he walks into the townhouse, and I relax as I take in the smell of citrus. I love her place and I certainly missed coming over here.

We find a spot that can be my home base - she had cleared off space on her main work desk in her room - and Leo begins setting up my things. He’d brought my phone and purse and everything that I’d owned before, as well as a few things from the dollhouse: the bed, the portable bathroom with toiletries and extra clothes, and a matchbox full of dishes and all the food that was left in the pantry.

While he’s working on unpacking everything, Cherri is babbling avidly in the background, jittery with nerves. She goes on about how stupid she had felt for taking any of this “Lily got shrunk” business seriously but that she’s glad she did, assuring me that her puppy is currently staying at her boyfriend’s place and that I can stay here as long as I need to, that she’s planning to stay home the whole time in case I need anything. I really am so lucky to have her as a friend.

She leaves briefly as she senses that Leo’s finishing up, wanting to give us some space. He crouches in front of the desk, touching the back of a finger joint against my front as we say goodbye.

“I’ll keep in touch with the both of you,” he says softly, “I’m going to fix this as fast as I possibly can.”

I hug his finger tightly. He kisses the top of my head. And then he leaves.

I watch him go and feel the sudden urge to cry again, but I don’t think I have any tears left in me. I sit, dazed, on the dollhouse’s bed and run my fingers over the sheets absently, taking in the new space that I’ll be living in for a few days.

Cherri, now finished with walking Leo out, comes back into the room, watching me from the doorway like she still can’t believe her eyes. She’s clearly freaked out by the whole thing and is a little pale, but she’s really trying to look strong for me.

“Do you need space or do you need support right now?” she asks gently. “I’m here for you, girl.”

I give her a warm smile. “Thanks. I’m okay. Honestly, Cherri, I’m just… really, really tired.”

She nods. “I’ll be in the other room then. I’ll check in on you from time to time, but yell if you need anything, okay?”

She slips back out and I let myself fall onto the bed. Despite the exhaustion it actually takes me a while to fall asleep after so much overstimulation. So much emotion. But when I eventually drift off, I sleep longer than I probably ever have in my life.


***

I spend a good part of the next two days in bed. It's like my body has finally given out, knowing it can afford to be tired now after the extended time with Nathan. I do make sure I'm staying hydrated and fed, but otherwise when I'm not sleeping I tend to just lay in bed anyway and stare out the window.

Cherri got over the shock of my predicament pretty quickly and is honestly the exact support that I need. She gives me plenty of space while also making sure I have anything I might want. And then she's there for me to talk to when I finally start feeling the urge to open up about what I’ve been through.

We spend the entire afternoon of the second day talking as I tell her everything from my first night with Leo to my last day with Nathan. It's hard to get through sometimes, but it’s also incredibly healing to finally be able to share it all with someone. Plus Cherri's studying to become a psychologist so she's a particularly good listener. I can tell she's trying not to armchair diagnose me just from these conversations, but it's pretty clear that I have a good amount of trauma I need to work through. Still, these discussions are starting to help me sort things out, even if my throat is getting pretty sore by the end of it.

Later on in the night as we have some dinner together, my friend starts asking questions of her own now that she has a better sense of all that’s happened.

“So how are you feeling about him now? Leo I mean.”

“...Honestly,” I say slowly, setting down my small piece of sandwich, “I’m so confused. We’ve been through so much. I can’t help being attached to him, but I don’t know if that’s the right thing, you know?"

“I mean… yeah, it’s confusing. He put you in this position - hell, as your friend I don’t know if I could ever forgive him for that. But a lot has happened since and he’s really trying to fix things now. It’s understandable that you don’t know how to feel. Just… know that you don’t owe him anything, Lily.”

I start absently picking off small crumbs from the bread, deep in thought. “What do you think of him?” I finally ask her.

“Me? I hardly know the guy outside of what you’ve told me.”

“Still. Take the therapist hat off for a second, what's your gut feel? You’ve always had a good intuition for people.”

Cherri ponders this for a moment. “I think he really cares about you. I also think he’s in the middle of having to do a lot of growing up.” She smiles. “No pun intended. For his sake I do hope he comes out of this a better person. I just don’t know.”

We both flinch at the sound of her phone buzzing, and the notification is a text from Leo letting us know he was successful and will be back by the following afternoon. The news is a huge relief - I really did feel worried about him going to see these people in person. And it’s also dizzying to think that tomorrow I finally get to be my old size again. My third night here is a bit more restless as I toss and turn from the anticipation.

***

I can hear the knock at the door from the other room and am immediately on my feet. I’m alone in the bedroom right now and listen as Cherri goes to open the door. Soon enough, familiar footsteps are coming my way.

Leo gives me a big smile as he walks in, his eyes lighting up at the sight of me. Fuck. How much am I going to miss this sight? Him towering over me, nothing but love and contentment on his face as he makes his way to my perch, the sheer scale of his hands as they reach down to sweep me off my feet?

I actually haven’t left the desk since I’ve been here. Cherri hasn’t touched me at all - I think she's afraid she might break me if she did. But Leo hasn’t lost any of his relaxed confidence in handling me, only being extra careful as he picks me up due to the recent injuries, all of which have been healing quickly. He's also looking better, although there are still faint marks on his throat and he probably needs way more rest than he's been getting.

"Hey, little one," he gushes as he lifts me up to his face. "I don't get to call you that for much longer."

My heart is thumping hard. Is this the last time I get to snuggle against his cheek like this? I savor it, pressing myself against him. "Hey, big guy," I say in return, "How did it go?"

"Well, they don't rent out shrinking devices apparently," he says, pulling me back, "Nor do they take returns unless it’s to destroy them. But what they could do for me was update and reassign the existing one I had. Especially since they didn't want to keep its old owner in the system after everything that happened."

He pulls the device out of his pocket to show me. It does look a little different now, with golden edging instead of silver. And the screen lights up to Leo's touch. He actually did it. This is actually happening.

"Your car's right outside, by the way. I drove it here, I'll just Uber home. And… I think that's everything. Shall we?"

I can't get words out. But I nod.

The giant takes me back out to the living room where Cherri's been waiting restlessly. I feel so anxious as Leo crouches down, all the way to the floor, setting me gently onto the carpet before straightening up and backing away. I stare up and up at these two massive people who I care so much about. Take one last glance around at the vast world I've spent so much time getting used to.

And the tingling hits me. I waver dizzily on the spot but keep my eyes wide open as my environment shifts, and it's when I hit about two feet tall that it really sinks in. It feels like coming home while also feeling so foreign. Cherri is looking more and more normal as I crawl up in height, and meanwhile Leo is looking less and less like himself. I stare at him, processing him as not a giant anymore, but as a man.

The look on his face started out nervous as he watches all of his grand plans for our life together slip away from him now. But his wide smile as I become myself again is genuine, and the tingling has just barely stopped when his arms are suddenly around me. He pulls me into his embrace and it's so bizarre to feel so much of him at once - my cheek is against his chest but my arms can now wrap around to his back, and he's got one hand gripping my shoulders with the other cradling my head. We've never been able to hug like this, and I bury into him, reeling at how good it feels to not have to be so careful, to be able to hold each other so tightly.

"Welcome back," he whispers. He's so quiet. Everything's so quiet.

I still can't get words out, feeling like I'm in shock. Leo finally lets go and Cherri steps in now, practically giggling as she throws her arms around me too. I hug her back, beaming as we celebrate, and I'm also looking around the room, taking it all in with wonder, as I know that this isn’t some dollhouse, but that the tables really are only reaching up to my waist, the ceiling isn’t so sky-like anymore, I could actually go pick up that glass of water if I wanted to. And then my eyes fall on Leo again as I look at him over my friend's shoulder.

He's stepping back, giving me and Cherri some space, and he's still smiling but it weakens a bit as there's more to his expression now, a sort of dizziness and overwhelm in the aftermath. He’s barely paused to rest in days, he’s been working so hard for my sake. And now it’s done. It’s over.

I finally manage to say something as I pull away from my friend. "Everything's so cramped!" I exclaim, almost bumping into a chair behind me. "And you guys are so short…"

Cherri laughs at this and puts her hand on the top of my head to ruffle my hair. "Hate to break it to you, Lily, but we're both still taller than you. It's a whole lot easier to hear you now, though!"

I laugh in return, pushing her arm away. "Yeah, it's probably you guys that'll have to speak up. It's so weirdly quiet…"

I notice that Leo's looking down at his hand now - at the shrinking device, I realize. He's clearly still dealing with quite a mix of emotions, I can't make out what he's thinking at this point. Finally he says a little weakly, "I should have brought a hammer or something so I can break this thing. I didn't think about it…” He looks up at me and extends his arm. “Here. Take it."

He steps forward, handing me the device. I accept it, stare at the machine in my hand, the screen remaining blank at my touch. Such a small, unassuming little thing. It's caused me nothing but trouble. I would have expected to feel far more hate for it right now. I guess I’m still riding off some kind of high from my height being restored.

"I'll head out then," says Leo, and I inhale sharply as I look back towards him. He's currently smiling at Cherri as he begins shifting back to the door, giving her a nod. "Thanks for watching over her."

"Of course," she responds.

Wait. They’re moving too fast. He’s clearly trying to nip this farewell in the bud. I’m not ready.

He smiles and nods at me too, puts a hand on the doorknob. “See ya, Lily.”

“...Bye.” My response is automatic, lifeless, and I stand frozen as he opens the door and shuts it behind him.

A few seconds pass. And then a few more. It’s just… too damn quiet at this size. I’m so used to there being so much empty space around me. I’m now very acutely aware of the emptiness I feel inside myself instead. Shit, I didn’t even thank him just now.

I know I need the space. I know I need time. I know he does too. I hold the shrinking device in a fist at my side. Squeezing it until it hurts.

A full minute has probably passed with me just staring at the door. Finally, impulsive action. I turn to Cherri. "I'll be right back."

She has an expectant look on her face and answers immediately, "Yup."

I wrench the door open, letting it close as I step out. He’s still here, standing on the street, his back facing me.

"Leo."

He doesn't turn around quite yet, though I see his shoulders stiffen. I begin marching over, down the short, sunny path that leads to the road. Just before I reach him I hear his sigh and he finally turns around. He almost looks a little resentful, clearly having wanted the opportunity to hide his tears and leave our last moments as happy ones. But we’ve shared too much for him to hide from me now.

I smile wryly at the fact that even now, with him standing down on the street and me up on the curb, he’s still easily taller than I am. Not by too much, though… I can still reach the collar of his shirt. I pull, and he almost loses his balance but catches himself right as I bring my mouth to his.

Our kiss is long and gentle and passionate. I run my fingers through his hair and slowly he takes my face in his hands. We melt into each other blissfully. I have no idea if this is right or not, and I’m tired of agonizing over it when it feels so, so good in this moment. I pull back just enough to gaze into the deep dark brown of his eyes, a little red from his crying, but I can still catch that spark in them, still make out the little flecks of gold that I’ve come to adore.

“I just wanted to remember how that felt,” I whisper.

He chuckles softly. “And?”

“You know, still kinda overwhelming. But uh… I think I can handle it.”

He’s still holding my face and closes his eyes, pressing his forehead to mine. “I thought you said you needed time, love?”

“I do. Let’s… actually take it slow this time. Okay?”

He opens his eyes again, examines my face, traces the outline of my cheek with his thumb. Taking all of me in. “Deal.”

There's a car squeaking up alongside us, presumably his ride. Leo begins pulling away, but I take his arm, holding him steady for a moment as I give him a stern look.

“Don’t make me regret this.”

And I press the shrinking device back into his hand.


**********


The end!

Thanks again for joining me on this sappy little journey :) It was such a fun creative outlet for me and I feel like posting to these communities led to me making some friendships that I'm very thankful for! Please let me know what you think, even if it's a private message, it means the world.

There will be more to come~ I grew so attached to these characters that I actually just kept writing them at times when I needed a comfort blanket… They still have a lot to figure out after all, even if there isn’t a big overarching “plot”. So I think I’ll start posting those eventually, let me know if you’re interested.

In the meantime though, I’ve been working on something new! Not sure when I’ll be posting it, life has been particularly busy, but I’ve been having fun doing bits of writing whenever I can.

Until next time, take care!
If you’d like to support me and my work, please feel free to leave me a tip and I will be so grateful! https://ko-fi.com/littlestlily

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Bloodthirstybutcher
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Re: Rain on the Pavement

Post by Bloodthirstybutcher » Tue Oct 18, 2022 10:02 pm

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"People like Coldplay and voted for the Nazis, you can't trust people, Jeremy."

-Super Hans, Peep Show

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