Chuxi Zhao wiped the sweat from his brow for the umpteenth time, a preemptive measure. He didn’t want his perspiration to drip onto his notes. Heaving a sigh, he glanced up towards the slit-like “windows” positioned at the ceiling where sunlight poured into the otherwise fluorescent and grim library basement. Chuxi knew better than to long for outside, however – it was the middle of August, and temperatures stretched into the triple digits. Usually the library provided a cool oasis on campus, but at some point last week the air conditioner had broken, leaving industrious students like him to suffer. Normally, he’d relocate back to his dorm or some kind of café, but the particular book he needed was “on reserve,” so he couldn’t leave the building with it.

He forced his eyes back to the page and attempted to decipher the soup of symbols in front him, but the stifling heat prevented any kind of productivity. He should be tougher than this. Back in Hong Kong, it got so hot people literally died, and neither his school nor his shoebox apartment had air conditioning back then. He supposed his time at Peking University had made him soft. Surely not as soft as the Americans, though. He looked around the deserted library basement and marveled at the waste of it all. Even in grade school, emptiness like this would be a travesty.

Admittedly, the library wasn’t completely empty. A brunette girl hunched over her work a few tables diagonal from him, suffering with him in the unbearable heat. All he could see was her back, but Chuxi felt a whimsical connection with the girl, a fellow grinder. In fact, her presence in the library was doubly impressive because the undergraduates had just begun their fall semester, whereas Chuxi and the other graduate students had been here for a month. Chuxi could see the girl’s pencil wiggling back and forth, and he could just make out her nose when she occasionally swiveled her head to scrutinize at her laptop screen. He imagined she was pretty.

Impulsively, he gave her a nod of respect that no one would see. Maybe one day he would try to talk to her. Heaving another sigh, he got back to work.

…

Chuxi awoke with a start, his body covered in sweat. His first thought: how long had he been asleep? Hopefully he hadn’t lost too much time. His second thought: where was he? He didn’t recognize his surroundings at all – he appeared to be in a massive, completely empty gray room with light coming from somewhere behind him. He spun around, but what he saw left him incredulous. Some distance away he recognized the wheels and legs of his black desk chair – all perfectly normal – except a single wheel came up to his chest. It didn’t seem possible, but somehow Chuxi had shrunk.

Not one to panic, he began walking towards the chair while running through some basic questions in his head. How had this happened? He had no idea. He hadn’t been near anything particularly unusual that might have caused this, and he’d never heard of anyone mysteriously shrinking in this fashion. He quickly abandoned that train of thought. How could he return to normal? Could he return to normal? Again, no idea. If someone had done this to him, they must’ve had ample opportunity to do whatever they pleased to him while he slept. Besides, he couldn’t fathom why anyone would actively shrink him. He quickly abandoned that train of thought as well.

While he couldn’t conceive of how this had happened or how he might fix it, both of those took secondary priority to more pressing issues: food and shelter. Whatever had shrunk him had evidently shrunk his clothes as well (jeans, black shirt), not that he needed any clothes in this heat; and since he was already inside, shelter wouldn’t be an issue either. Really, he just needed to get some food, and even that wasn’t necessarily urgent. He tried to avoid it if he could, but he could go a few days without food. Still, judging by how many people he had seen in the library since he had been here, it could be far longer before he could get any sustenance. With his backpack on the desk and well out of reach (not that he had any food in it), everything pointed to one option: it looked like he’d be talking to his fellow grinder sooner than he thought.

With his mind made up, he began navigating the city of desks and chairs. The plain gray desks loomed over him like prisons, obscuring his vision of where he hoped the brunette still worked. More immediately, previously overlooked odds and ends stood out against the white tile floor. Bits of paper, pen caps, and the occasional paper clip lay strewn across the ground, forgotten. He scooped up one of the latter, a bright orange one, and hoisted it on his shoulder. Thankfully, the paperclip didn’t weigh much, even if it was over half his height, which he estimated at somewhere around four inches. With this realization came a spike in the low-level panic he had successfully suppressed so far: he was tiny! Taking a deep breath, Chuxi redirected his nervous energy towards something more productive: adjusting his grip on the paperclip, he broke into a jog.

Upon turning the corner of yet another plain, gray desk he stopped in his tracks. There sat the brunette, towering over him like some secretarial Statue of Liberty. Her sheer size left him awestruck and sent his heart racing. She had her hair in a ponytail, and a pair of noise-cancelling headphones protected her ears from the oppressive silence of the library. From his position behind her, he still couldn’t see her face, but she wore a plain T-shirt and gym shorts, and her backpack sat on the ground by her chair. Nevertheless, one detail in particular got him especially excited: her feet. At some point she had (understandably) removed her shoes and socks, allowing her toes to breath, which in turn worked out perfectly for him. All he had to do was prod her feet with the paperclip in order to get noticed. Rejoicing in his good fortune (he honestly didn’t know how he could’ve gotten her attention otherwise), he ran towards the desk.

He slowed down considerably as he drew closer. His eagerness to get close to her feet was blunted significantly by the smell emanating from not only them, but also her discarded sneakers and socks. She must’ve gone on a run before coming to the library, only to have her feet fester in the sweltering heat of the library, ultimately producing the inhumane odor Chuxi presently inhaled. His current size seemingly amplified the effect, and he eyed a formerly white sock with trepidation as he skirted the edge of the desk chair towards his target. The sheer humidity of the air beneath the desk told him that these items were still wet with her sweat. As he retreated further beneath the desk, the smell of her feet intensified and penetrated his nostrils despite his best preventative efforts. A new wave of the stench hit him, seemingly with physical force, as he marched grimly past the opening of one of her pink running sneakers. When his eyes began to water, Chuxi had to remind himself that this wasn’t her fault: it wasn’t like she was purposefully subjecting him to her pungent foot aroma.

Finally, Chuxi came to a stop in front of his target, and also the source of his newly-acquired headache. He regarded the pair of feet with a mixture of apprehension and hope. She sat with her legs stretched out as far as they would go under the desk, crossed at the ankles. He felt somewhat safe where he stood across from her soles. On a whim, he craned his neck to follow her smooth, shapely legs upwards until the desk blocked the rest from view. The fact that these tremendous appendages belonged to someone was tough to reconcile.

Here, almost at the back of the generously-sized desk, her sweaty scent had reached its zenith, and Chuxi felt like he stood in a sauna derived from her feet’s secretions. He tried not to think about the unpleasantness of his predicament and set to work bending the paperclip into a long pole. However, after a few minutes of flexing and grunting, it became clear that he wasn’t strong enough. He looked at the monolithic feet in front of him, each more than twice his height. He wondered if he should just walk up and try to use his hands, distasteful as that might be. He shuddered at thought of rubbing her sweaty soles.

In the blink of an eye, the brunette dragged her feet back under the chair, shifting into another position. Her sudden yet simple movement scared Chuxi. He hadn’t felt this startled since his childhood, when he saw the bullet train for the first time. Such tremendous masses shouldn’t be able to move like that.

In any case, that settled that for him: he wasn’t going near those things. Just a twitch of one of her toes could break his arm – or worse. With this in mind, he cast about for some way to make this work, always with one eye warily keeping watch on the girl’s feet.

When his gaze settled upon her pink running shoe, he had an idea. With one hand covering his nose, he ran over to the reeking footwear and set about jamming one end of the paperclip into one of the shoelace holes. Once he felt that the paperclip was satisfactorily secure, he braced his feet against the rubber sole of the shoe, providing the leverage he needed to pry apart the paperclip. With that part straightened, he clambered back around and repeated the process, inserting another end of the paperclip and bending. After a few minutes, Chuxi had mostly bent the paperclip apart. He considered stopping and using what he had, but eventually decided to press on. He was nothing if not thorough, and besides, he wanted to have as much distance between himself and those monstrous feet as possible. He was so engrossed in this task that he didn’t immediately respond when the girl asked him what he was doing.

“Umm… hello?”

Badly startled for the second time today, Chuxi lost his balance on her shoe and fell into a heap on the floor.

“Oh I’m sorry!” she apologized quickly as he rushed to his feet. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Chuxi stood up straight, head lowered, and his hands at his sides in what he hoped looked a non-threatening pose – not that he could threaten her in even the smallest capacity.

“Oh my God! Are you bowing at me? That’s ridiculous – please stop.”

Uncertain, Chuxi raised his head up. He confirmed his initial suspicion: she was very pretty. Soft, milk chocolate eyes regarded him with a mixture of curiosity, confusion, and alarm. A tentative smile curved her lips, as if that was her default expression emerging despite the unusual circumstances.

A long pause ensued, neither party sure how to proceed in this wholly new situation. As uncomfortable as Chuxi felt at this moment, he knew the girl felt more so, simply because she was bent at the waist with her head under the desk, one hand braced against the top, and the other gingerly holding a sock (that’s how disgusting they were). He surmised that she must have spotted him while getting ready to leave, negating the need for his paperclip struggles. Holding this position must be tougher than some yoga poses, and when she began to get red in the face, he finally said something.

“Hello,” he blurted.

This brought out an immediate sigh from the girl. “I was worried you couldn’t speak English,” she explained. Then she frowned in thought. “Wait, hold on. Everyone can say ‘hello.’ You can speak English, right?”

“Yes, I can,” he called up.

“Well that’s good,” she said. Chuxi could make out the signs of strain in her face. “Umm… well… do you have a name? Are you a person?”

He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. “Yes, I’m a person. But wait – maybe you should pick me up and put me on the desk or something. You don’t look very comfortable.”

The girl blushed even redder, if it was possible. “I’m not the most flexible,” she smiled. “Here.” She placed her palm flat on the ground in front of him, and he clambered on before she slowly raised him up to the desk. He marveled at the pink skin of her hand: soft yet very firm, these tree-trunk fingers could end his life all too easily. His new size did not help his penchant for dark thoughts.

Chuxi tried to hide his nervousness, even as another part of him wondered if that was even necessary. At his size, could she even see his face? Once he clambered off her hand onto a page covered in scribbles (organic chemistry, he noted), he turned to face the girl, who looked visibly relieved to be sitting up straight again.

“I’m Chuxi,” he said, trying to project his voice as much as possible. It felt like was he talking to a building, a feeling he tried his best to ignore.

“Sushi?” she asked hesitantly. “Like the Japanese food?”

“Sure,” he replied, not bothering to correct her. He never did.

“Well, I’m Haley.” She extended a pinkie, which Chuxi automatically shook. After what he had been through in the last hour or so, he was beyond questioning anything. “And I must be studying too much, since I’m seeing little men with paperclips under my desk.”

“There’s more little men?” Chuxi asked urgently.

“What?” she asked, confused.

“You said ‘little men’ just now. Are there more little men?”

“Oh, I did?” she pursed her lips in thought. “Yeah, I guess so – that’s just a turn of phrase, though.” She shook her head and blinked, as if expecting him to disappear. When he didn’t, she shrugged and continued. “No, you’re the only little man I’ve seen today.” Chuxi didn’t know how to feel about that: was it better that he was the only one? Probably not. “So… are you a little robot or what?”

Sudden laughter escaped from his lips in spite of himself: at this point, him being a little drone definitely seemed more probable. “No, I’m not,” he said. “I was actually studying back there,” he pointed towards his own workstation a few desks over, “when I woke up this size. I have no idea what happened to me.”

“Oh, so that was you!” She squinted at him, as if seeing him for the first time. “You do look a little familiar.” She looked down at him with her soft brown eyes, that same tentative smile on her lips. She clearly had no idea how to feel about this either. “You seem to be taking this all in stride.”

Chuxi laughed again, this one a deeper, truer laugh that came from the belly. While it felt good to laugh, part of him felt like that was all that kept him from crying. So far he had successfully fended off the realities of his new size, but how long would that last?

“Thanks,” he said finally. “Listen, I don’t mean to impose, but at this size,” he gestured to himself, “I’m utterly helpless. Do you think you could, I don’t know, take me to the front desk or something?”

“Absolutely not,” Haley replied forcefully, sending a thrill up Chuxi’s spine. “There’s no way I’d leave you with those old bats. They can’t even get the air conditioning fixed.” Her expression softened, possibly because she realized how imposing she was to him. “I’ll take care of you for the time being.” She put a finger to her lips as she thought. “I think our first move should be to take you to a doctor.”

That seemed like a sensible plan. While he wasn’t sure that a doctor could do anything, it couldn’t hurt. Honestly, he was just grateful that she was doing anything for him in the first place. “Thank you so much,” he said, trying his best to convey just how appreciative he was. It struck him that up until that moment, he had no idea if Haley would help him at all. Now that she had pledged at least some modicum of support, he felt a part of the tension inside of him release.

“I know a doctor nearby who I really trust,” Haley explained with a smile. “We’re really close; I even have her cell number. Plus, she’s really smart – she’ll know what to do. The only thing is…” she trailed off, but not ominously. A mischievous sparkle lit up in her eye, teasing him.

“What is it?” Chuxi asked.

“She’s my gynecologist.”

Chuxi watched as Haley went about packing her things. She had quite a bit to clear up: textbooks, notes, headphones, pencil bag, computer, charger, and even a wireless mouse. Although he couldn’t replicate it, Haley obviously had a system for packing her things. Like an assembly line worker, she automatically stored each item in a specific compartment of her many-pocketed backpack. Despite the large number of items, it took her less than a minute to get everything in its place. With that, she slung her bag over one shoulder and then placed her hand on the desk.

“Thank you,” said Chuxi. He stepped on before immediately settling into a nervous crouch. He wasn’t afraid of heights or anything, but it seemed like the smart thing to do.

“No problem, Sushi,” said Haley cheerily. At some point she had shaken off her initial tentativeness in favor of a sunnier disposition. Chuxi had to admit that it was rubbing off on him a bit: he took comfort from the warmth radiating off her tremendous palm as opposed to feeling resentment or even fear. “Watcha working on over here?” she asked as she deposited him back onto his desk, sparsely populated with only a textbook, a pencil, and a single sheet of paper.

“I just started working on my PhD in Statistics,” said Chuxi.

“Wow,” she said. “You must be really smart.”

“I wouldn’t say that.” This time, he watched as she gathered up his things. His backpack only had two pockets, but he appreciated how Haley tried to organize his meager property for him – pencils in the small one, notes in the big one. “Hold on,” he said just as she was about to put in the textbook. “That’s actually on reserve. I think you can just turn it in to the front desk.”

Haley rolled her eyes at just the mention of the front desk. Leaving the textbook on the table, she slung both backpacks over one shoulder (his was pitifully light) and then regarded him, her lips pursed in thought. “I feel like we should hide you, right?” she said finally. “I mean, if I were you, I wouldn’t want to attract any attention.” Chuxi nodded his agreement. “Well, do you mind riding in my pocket? I don’t know if you’d be safe in my backpack. It’ll only be for a little while – my car is right outside,” she added hurriedly.

Chuxi gave her a thumbs up. “No problem,” he clarified, in case she couldn’t see his thumb and thought he was brandishing his fist at her.

“Ok – I’ll try not to jostle you too much.” With that, she placed her hand on the desk, and once again Chuxi climbed aboard. With her other hand, she pulled the pocket to her brightly-colored gym shorts, giving him easy access to his new means of transportation. Not wanting to show any sign of fear, Chuxi hopped into the pocket and immediately took up a position lying down in the fabric, not unlike relaxing in a hammock. He gave her another thumbs up, to which she positively beamed. “See you in a bit.”

With that, she released her pants fabric and Chuxi’s whole world became a single shade of neon green. Well, that and the smell. He had tried to ignore it before, but now with her pocket closed the air had become quite sour. It wasn’t nearly as bad as the smell of her feet from earlier, but she clearly had used these gym shorts for their original purpose: sweaty exercise. No matter – he would endure.

Presently, he heard Haley scoop up the textbook – and then she began walking. To his surprise, the motion really wasn’t bad. Instead of lying in a hammock, it felt like lying in a hammock – at sea. He guessed that since her pocket was positioned on the side of her garment, her leg didn’t bump into him with every step, and actually her motion rocked him gently back and forth. Aside for the smell, Chuxi kind of enjoyed it.

Before he knew it, light poured down on him from above, where Haley’s face greeted him like morning sunshine. “Did you have a nice trip?” she asked, making a hook with her index finger and sending it down to him. Taking the hint, he sat as if on a swing, and she ferried him out to her car’s cup holder.

“Yeah, it was actually kind of nice,” Chuxi said truthfully. Haley smiled before suddenly frowning. She snapped her fingers, and then rummaged around in her side-door compartment before returning to him. “You shouldn’t sit in that disgusting cup holder,” she explained, lifting him out again. With her other hand, she covered the (truthfully immaculate) surface with far too many tissues – at least a dozen – and then put him back down.

“You didn’t have to do that,” said Chuxi, “but I really appreciate it.”

“Don’t be silly.” Just then, her phone beeped loudly. Drawing it out of her other pocket, she read the screen before grinning brightly. “Dr. Turner said she can see you right away.”

“Really?” asked Chuxi, surprised. In China it could take months to see a doctor.

“Well, I told her it was an emergency, and that I didn’t want to talk about it over the phone.”

Chuxi’s feelings of gratefulness multiplied in an instant. “Thank you so much.”

“It’s not a big deal,” she brushed it off. “In fact, this whole thing is kind of cool. You shrinking like this has to be some kind of scientific phenomenon.”

“Yeah, I guess… but couldn’t it have happened to someone else?” Haley burst into laughter, and she kept laughing all the way out of the parking lot.

“Hey, Sushi,” she said, once she had calmed down. “If you’re from China, how did your English get so good? And I mean that in the best way possible,” she added hurriedly. “Most of the Chinese kids in my classes have pretty thick accents.”

“So I actually attended an international school in Hong Kong starting in grade school. Everything is taught in English there.”

“That’s really cool. So you’re from Hong Kong? What do your parents do?”

“I’m actually from mainland China, the southeastern region. My mother works on a rice farm more inland, and I’ve never met my father. When I scored well on a national exam, she sent me off to school. I don’t see her very often, but I’ve been trying my best so that I can give her a good life later. Wait – are you crying?”

“No,” Haley denied vehemently, even though the truth was plain to see. She sniffed loudly and wiped her eyes. “You’re lucky I’m driving, or I would hug you so hard your guts would pop out!”

“Wouldn’t be too hard for you, I suppose,” he panned. Once again, Haley burst into a fit of giggles. For the next few minutes, the conversation flowed easily between them. Haley was just starting her junior year, but upon Chuxi’s prodding, she explained that she was already studying so hard because she hoped to take the MCAT – the entrance exam for medical school – in a month. That explained the organic chemistry. Chuxi told her he lived in a single in the graduate student housing, and that since he had been there he hadn’t done much. (“Well, duh! You can’t be out drinking while your mother’s working in a rice field!”) Haley had a younger brother who was applying to college now, while her parents owned a diner out in California.

“What made you choose Vanderbilt?” asked Haley.

“Honestly, it was all about money. I have a full scholarship here, and other schools wouldn’t offer me the same thing.”

“Nashville isn’t Hong Kong,” she said.

“I guess… but I’m a country boy at heart.”

“You are too funny!” giggled Haley. Chuxi doubted that; she seemed like the type of person who laughed a lot. “Anyway, we’re here. Do you mind riding in my pocket again?”

“Not at all,” he replied. Seconds later, he rested in Haley’s smelly but otherwise comfortable pocket. He could feel her walking into a blessedly cool building, whereupon she spoke a receptionist.

“Ah, Ms. Stephens, Dr. Turner has been expecting you. If you’ll just follow me to an examining room…”

Just like that, Chuxi found himself standing on a far too large examining bench. His heart thumped in his chest as his eyes passed over the similarly far too large examining equipment. Doubts crept into his mind: what did he hope this doctor was going to do for him? He began to pace nervously.

Without a word, Haley pulled up a chair and sat close by, hovering over him like she was his mother. “You’re in good hands, Sushi. Dr. Turner really is the nicest lady.” Somebody knocked on the door. “That must be her – come in!”

In walked a blond woman – a quite beautiful bond woman. She wore a chic black blazer and skirt with a deep purple blouse, and her fashionable black pumps clicked on the white tile with each step. Her sleek glasses did little to contain two shining green eyes. Clearly this wasn’t Dr. Turner; not only was she far too attractive, but she also wasn’t wearing a whitecoat, or even a stethoscope.

The woman crushed Chuxi’s presumptions when she pulled Haley into a fierce hug and said, “So good to see you again, Haley. How are you?”

“I’m actually fine, Dr. Turner – for once. I actually was hoping you could take a look at my friend.”

 “Okay. Where is she?”

“He’s actually right here,” said Haley, gesturing to him.

Dr. Turner’s eyes locked onto him, only just now noticing his presence. They widened perceptibly, her green irises shining all the brighter for it. Her shapely lips formed a circle of incredulity.

“What in the world…?”

Two green orbs confronted Chuxi with an intimidating intensity. Dr. Turner’s face hovered just in front of him, so close that he could’ve jumped into her gaping mouth if he wanted to. He could just make out his reflection in her glasses.

“Well this is certainly… unusual,” she said, the warmth from her breath washing over him with scent of coffee. “I’ll be honest with you Mr....?”

“Chuxi.”

“Mr. Sushi?”

“Sure.”

“Well, I’ll be honest with you Mr. Sushi, I’ve never seen a patient like you before. That being said, let’s go through a normal workup and see if we can’t figure something out. Sounds good?”

Chuxi nodded.

“Well first off, tell me everything you can think of concerning your new size, and don’t leave anything out.” Dr. Turner pulled up a roller chair and leaned back before crossing one leg over the other. She gazed directly at him, as if some clue might scurry out of him at any moment.

Taking a deep breath, Chuxi dove into his account of what had happened. It took him less than a minute to recall everything that occurred with the incident: he was studying in the hot library basement when he somehow lost consciousness. Upon awaking, he was entirely normal except for his size. Beyond that, he couldn’t say much.

“Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?” Chuxi nodded again. “Well first off, are you aware of this sort of thing happening to any of your family members?” He shook his head. “Okay, and since this happened to you earlier this afternoon, has your size changed at all?”

“Not that I’ve noticed.”

“And you’ve felt perfectly normal otherwise?”

“I believe so.”

“Do you have any idea what might have caused this? Perhaps a chemical you’ve ingested?”

“No idea.”

Dr. Turner adjusted her glasses on her face and then brushed a stray lock back into place. “Well, I didn’t expect to learn much from your history… but maybe your labs will tell a different story. I’ll need to obtain a hair sample, a skin sample, a urine sample, a stool sample… and a blood sample.” Haley, who had been attentively sitting nearby, winced visibly. “Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of you; but if it makes you uncomfortable, we won’t even do it today.” Chuxi gulped. Surprisingly, he had never been afraid of needles, but at his size, even the smallest needle would be more like a spear. “I’d be really curious to see if your cells are proportionately smaller, and also if your DNA has been altered in any way. We can do some of those things with the other samples, but a blood sample would really help me to get the broadest and clearest picture possible.” Dr. Turner removed her glasses and her eyes softened. She placed her palm face down next to him, presumably a gesture meant to comfort him. Fleetingly, he realized that at his normal size she would’ve touched his shoulder or knee. He stared at the glossy finish of her manicured nails, each one the size of his textbook. “I can imagine how crazy this all must be for you; but trust me – I’ll do everything I can to make sure you’re well again.”

“Thank you very much,” said Chuxi, although he felt conflicted. On the one hand, he definitely appreciated Dr. Turner’s commitment to his well-being; on the other, he doubted that she could do very much for him. To his knowledge, this had never, ever happened to anyone. If it had, surely it would’ve been publicized, and since it evidently hadn’t, maybe there was some sort of cover up? That certainly didn’t bode well. On the other hand, he simply couldn’t accept that he would remain this size for the rest of his life. That reality would have to sink in later, if at all.

“How about this?” offered Dr. Turner, perhaps sensing his distress. “Let’s send you home for a week. Since your shrinking seemed to arrive out of nowhere, maybe it’ll also disappear just as suddenly. If you’re still small in a week, then we’ll think about getting some of those samples.” Dr. Turner looked at Haley. “You wouldn’t mind taking care of him this week, would you?”

“Of course not,” she replied right away.

Dr. Turner returned her gaze back to him. “And you wouldn’t mind spending a few days with my beautiful patient here, would you?” She asked with a teasing smile. Chuxi gave a thumbs up. “Then it’s settled. Come back to my office in a week.” She made ready to leave, but then paused, and leaned in once more. “Before I go: do you have any questions for me?”

“Actually, I have two questions.”

Dr. Turner nodded warmly. “Fire away.”

“First, can I give a hair sample today? I think that’s something I could handle.”

“Of course!” beamed Dr. Turner. She spun on her heel and began rummaging about in a drawer. From where she sat by the examining bench, Haley smiled supportively. Moments later, Dr. Turner returned with a plastic tube, which to Chuxi was about the size of a bucket. With an encouraging expression, she held it out just in front of him, her hands now covered by purple nitrile gloves. “Put in as many strands as you feel comfortable with.” With a slight grimace, Chuxi began plucking out his hair, one at a time. Once he had deposited a dozen or so, he signaled that he was finished. The tiny black strands looked positively microscopic in the tube. He wondered if the lab technicians would be able to even find the samples let alone examine them. “Okay, all set,” said Dr. Turner, capping the tube and applying a label to it. “Now what was your other question?”

Chuxi hesitated, suddenly uncomfortable beneath her green gaze. “Well, um… I was wondering… who is going to pay for all of this?”

“Don’t worry about that at all, Mr. Sushi,” Dr. Turner veritably scoffed, really before he had even finished his question. “You just worry about getting better, and let me worry about the money. Now, is that everything?” Chuxi nodded, feeling a bit overwhelmed. He couldn’t conceive of something like this happening in China. “All right then, we’ll see you in a week. You take care of him, ok Haley?”

“Yes, ma’am,” she replied cheerfully. A quick ride in Haley’s pocket, and Chuxi was back in the cup holder once more. “So what did you think of Dr. Turner?” asked Haley.

“She’s amazing. How did you get to know her so well?” Haley’s smile, which had been basically a fixture up to this point, faded upon hearing the question. Chuxi quickly backtracked. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”

“No, no, it’s fine,” she brushed it off, her smile returning, albeit at half strength. “If you’re going to put your trust in me, I should put my trust in you.”

“Are you sure?” asked Chuxi.

“Of course,” she said, her lips curving fully now. “So basically, I’ve got this disease called endometriosis. It’s where tissue from my uterus grows where it’s not supposed to. It’s extremely painful, but it comes in cycles aligned with my period.” Her expression became sheepish. “Sorry – that’s kinda gross. Anyway,” she continued hurriedly, “long story short, I was in so much pain for a very long time, but no one would believe me. One doctor actually wanted to refer me to a psychiatrist! Luckily, I ran into Dr. Turner, and she’s just so… well, you met her. She’s just the best.”

“That’s a really nice story,” said Chuxi. “So you’re all fixed up now?”

Haley’s face fell once more – Chuxi’s face prickled with regret. Why was he being so nosy? “Well, not quite. The thing about endometriosis… well, I’m infertile.”

Chuxi had only known this girl for a few hours, but this news hit him like a sledgehammer. Haley would never have children. This girl who was so giving and kind – the universe was so cruel. “I’m so sorry,” he said lamely.

“Anyway,” Haley perked up, “I want to be a gynecologist just like Dr. Turner, at least to save girls like me from suffering for so long. The sad part is that endometriosis isn’t even that uncommon. Would’ve been nice to know that a bit sooner.”

“You’ll be a fantastic doctor,” assured Chuxi.

“Thanks,” smiled Haley. “Sorry to be such a downer.”

“Not at all.”

“Anyway, we’re home. I’m excited for you to meet my roommate, Julie. She’s way cooler than me.”

Haley had a roommate? For some reason, he didn’t like that. Admittedly, he was introverted by nature, but he also hoped to minimize meeting people at his present size. Still, Haley seemed excited about it, so he supposed it would be fine. What’s the worst that could happen?

This time Haley didn’t bother to put him in her pocket: her apartment had its own individual garage. She went up a short flight of stairs before coming to a white door covered in garishly colored Greek letters, along with a bunch of hearts, stars, and glitter. “Julie’s very into her sorority,” explained Haley as she unlocked the door. “Home sweet home!”

Her combination kitchen/living room wasn’t the biggest, but it was cozy – and to him it might as well be a stadium. A large couch and coffee table stood in front of a respectably-sized TV, and a dinner table with four chairs rounded out their furniture. A variety of pictures hung on the walls, but a long painting – a landscape depicting mountains – stood out among the rest.

“Did you paint that?” he pointed.

Haley blushed. “Yeah – it’s nothing.” She called out louder, “Julie, you in here? I want you to meet somebody!”

“Now?” came a female voice. “I just came back from a run!”

“Oh okay, no problem.” She looked down at him. “I’m gonna go use the bathroom. Do you mind if put you on the coffee table?”

“Sure.” She smiled and set him on the black surface before leaving the room. Chuxi stared at the door, a weird feeling in his stomach. How things had changed in such a short amount of time.

Just then, a different door swung open and Julie walked into the room. She held a cellphone to her ear. “Yeah, Haley invited someone over for me to meet.” She quickly scanned the room, her wavy blond hair swinging with her motion. Still in her running clothes, she shrugged and headed towards the couch. “I don’t know if it’s a guy.”

Chuxi waved his arms and shouted, “Hello, my name is – ” His introduction was cut short by a pair of massive feet slamming into the coffee table beside him, knocking him off balance. Instantly, the fragrance of Julie’s feet invaded his nostrils.

“Honestly, Haley’s been kind of a ghost recently. She’s studying all the time for the MCAT.” Chuxi watched in horror as the blonde girl reached forward to peel off one of her pink socks, still not noticing him. He jumped and shouted frantically, but to no avail. Without so much as a “How do you do?” Julie unceremoniously dumped her sock directly onto Chuxi, knocking him down with a wall of stinky, wet fabric. “It’s the entrance exam to med school, duh!”

Chuxi struggled to get out from under Julie’s disgusting sock, but right as he was about to escape from its clutches, Julie dropped the other one on top of him, burying him once more in a cotton tomb of wetness and heat. He couldn’t believe that Julie hadn’t seen him, but now it looked like he had to suffer through an awful encounter with her sweaty clothing. Chuxi had always hated locker rooms growing up, but his current situation was taking it to a whole new level. This girl’s filthy socks literally suffocated him, sending waves of nausea through him with each perspiration-infused inhalation. He felt panic rise within in him, and he began to thrash about uselessly. He could think of few things more unpleasant than this, Julie’s intimate steam bath.

Finally, he heard the bathroom door swing open.

“Oh hey Julie, I thought you were gonna shower first. Did you get to meet – oh my God! Where’s Sushi?”

Their voices came to Chuxi loudly, yet muffled.

“Sushi? You didn’t get me any, did you? Because you know I that stuff.”

“No, no, that’s his name!” said Haley apprehensively. He could hear her just overhead now, presumably scanning the table for where he might be. “Could you please get your feet off of the table?”

“Sure, Haley,” murmured Julie, clearly perplexed. Little did she know, a tiny man struggled to breath beneath her sodden socks, inhaling the stench of her feet.

“Oh my God,” Haley exclaimed as realization hit her. In an instant, the weight of the sock vanished and light poured down on him. Lying on his back, he regarded two attractive female faces, one horrified, the other confused.

“What is that?” asked Julie. “Some kind of doll?”

“No, Julie,” said Haley, both exasperated and relieved. “This is Sushi, the person I wanted you to meet.”

“Uh…”

Chuxi stood up and waved to her. “Hi, my name is Chuxi. I… uh… mysteriously shrank in the library today, and Haley has offered to take care of me.”

Julie’s eyes darted to and fro between him and Haley. “What the Hell? Is this some kind of prank?”

“It’s not a prank,” Haley protested. “He’s a real person – just smaller.”

“So what was he doing under my gross workout socks?”

Haley grimaced and immediately dropped the socks she had been holding up to that moment as if they were snakes. “I don’t know – you must’ve dumped them on him while you weren’t paying attention.” She gave him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, Sushi, I shouldn’t have left you in the room by yourself like that.”

“It’s okay,” Chuxi waved it off, even as Julie’s powerful scent continued to crowd into his head. “If I was her, I wouldn’t have noticed me either.”

By now, Julie openly gaped at him, her blue eyes wide with surprise. She clearly had a hard time processing this, and Chuxi couldn’t blame her. How often did people shrink to four inches tall?

“Can I hold him?” she asked finally.

“He’s not a baby,” laughed Haley, seeming to relax. “Ask him yourself.”

Julie gave him a broad smile. “Whaddaya say?”

“Sure,” Chuxi nodded. Without warning, Julie’s hand shot forward and her fingers surrounded him in a firm embrace. He sank into her skin like quicksand, and it pressed his arms to his sides, leaving only his head free. The experience was frightening, to say the least, but he fought hard to keep from showing his discomfort.

“Wow, he’s so light!” laughed Julie as she brought him up to her eyes. In his periphery, he could see Haley’s smile falter – she looked worried.

Attempting to put his friend at ease, Chuxi laughed as well and cracked a joke. “I’d been meaning to lose some weight.”

This elicited a peal of giggling from Julie, whose hot breath washed over him like an ocean wave. “You’ll have to tell me your dieting secrets,” she said, lowering him back onto the table. He breathed a sigh of relief when she released him, and he had to actively force himself not to rub his shoulders. Her fingers had been tight, but overall it wasn’t too bad. He could imagine how easy it would be for her to crush him in her fist. In fact, from her perspective, her grip was probably quite dainty. Still, the experience made him appreciate the way Haley picked him up that much more. He sent her a grin, and she beamed back.

“Well, I’m gonna go hop in the shower,” Haley announced. “Why don’t you two get to know each other?”

The door to the bathroom clicked shut, leaving Julie and Chuxi in an awkward silence.

“Sorry about my socks,” said Julie finally, a sheepish expression on her face. “That must’ve been pretty disgusting.”

“You’ve clearly never been in a men’s locker room,” Chuxi countered.

Julie laughed behind her hand, her blue eyes sparkling. “You trying to say I wasn’t working hard enough?” she fired back. “I just ran five miles in this blistering Nashville heat – I’m surprised those socks didn’t knock you out.”

“Well I can’t say they smelled like roses…”

“Damn straight,” said Julie with a devilish smirk. “Imagine if you had tasted some of it. That would’ve been bad.”

Chuxi tried to hide the slight edge of nervousness to his laugh. This was weird. Why was she still talking about this? “So how long have you been rooming with Haley?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Oh, we just started rooming together this year, but we’ve been friends forever. We lived on the same floor freshman year,” she explained. The conversation was more mundane from that point on, which Chuxi was glad for. Maybe he was overreacting, but he had definitely felt uncomfortable just then; it was easy to feel that way when a cloud of her foot stink still hung over him, not to mention that he wouldn’t win a fight against her pinkie finger.

When Haley walked in a little later, Chuxi couldn’t help but feel a surge of relief. He hadn’t realized how attached to her he had become, but given his predicament, perhaps it shouldn’t surprise him. “You two getting along?” she asked cheerily.

“Haley, I love this little guy,” replied Julie enthusiastically. “Can we keep him?”

“We’ll have him until he gets back to normal.” She sent her friend a teasing look. “Maybe if we’re extra nice to him, he’ll want to see us afterwards.”

“That shouldn’t be a problem, right Sushi?” said Julie. “Anyway, I need to wash up and head out. Nice to meet you.” She waved at him and walked out of the room.

“She’s a nice girl, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, definitely,” he agreed.

Just then, Julie came back in and scooped up her socks where Haley had dropped them. “Almost forgot these,” she said before giving Chuxi a conspiratorial look, “Just between you and me, Haley is a total neat freak. If I had left these out here, I never would’ve heard the end of it!” Haley made a noise in protest, but Julie just laughed it off. To Chuxi’s surprise, Julie brought the socks to her nose and took a whiff. “Oh wow, these do stink!” Giggling, she winked at him and marched out the door. “See you later, Sushi!”

This time, she was gone for good – but her fragrance lingered.

“You don’t smell too great either,” noticed Haley.

“You don’t like my new cologne?” he cracked, eliciting a long laugh from his friend. He liked that. Eventually, she calmed down and fixed him with her soft brown eyes.

“Let’s get you a bath.”

Chuxi stood by the sink as it filled with water – and bubbles.

“I’m kind of jealous,” admitted Haley as she dumped in more suds. “I haven’t had a bubble bath in forever.” He looked at her reflection in the mirror – she wore a simple white T-shirt with a towel wrapped around her head – Chuxi couldn’t help but notice how beautiful she was. She dipped her finger into the water. “I hope you like your baths warm,” she smiled.

With that, she twisted the faucet off and began rummaging through a drawer. A moment later, she withdrew an unused contact lens case and set it by the edge of the sink. “You’re gonna smell pretty girly,” she apologized before squeezing a bit of her shampoo into the case followed by a dollop of her body wash.

“I like Dove, but I usually go with the ‘Gentle Exfoliating’ kind,” he sighed with theatrical disappointment. “I guess this ‘Deep Moisture’ stuff will have to do.”

With a laugh, Haley flicked some water in his direction. He managed to dodge most of the liquid, but perhaps he shouldn’t have – he still reeked of Julie’s feet, easily overpowering the pleasant scent emanating from the bubble bath. His clothes needed a bath just as much as he did.

“Why I wash your clothes for you?” suggested Haley. When Chuxi didn’t rush to strip for her, she gave him a knowing smile. “You know, I feel like most guys would jump at the opportunity to get naked in front of me.”

“I’m not most guys,” Chuxi replied, applying as much cheese as possible to the four words, and then he paused melodramatically. “How many four inch tall dudes do you know?”

“You’re the best four inch tall dude in the world,” giggled Haley before extending her hand towards him and turning her head to the side. “Now if you’re done with the jokes, just leave your clothes in my hand and I’ll take care of them for you.”

Chuxi stared at the soft pink skin in front of him, mesmerized by the detail he could see at his current size. He swore he could see her heartbeat pulsing through her skin. She was larger than life – a majestic, unfathomable creature. Well, really he was just tiny, but the effect was the same.

“Hurry up! Quit being so shy,” Haley teased.

“All right, all right – but no peeking!” he ordered. He thought about making a crack about his currently microscopic member, but thought better of it. If he was honest with himself, he was surprised he hadn’t blurted out something similarly stupid already.

Once he had slipped out of his stinky clothes, he tossed them onto Haley’s hand before leaping into the bubbles. It felt amazing to completely submerge himself, something he hadn’t done in years. Back on the surface, he wiped his face and found himself facing the mirror. A quick glance upwards revealed Haley gazing down at him, her eyes sparkling in a way that made him uneasy – but in a good way.

“Like what you see?” asked Chuxi slyly.

Her eyes shot up and met his via the mirror. “Oh!” she yelped, her face turning red. She scurried out the door, calling, “Take as long as you need.”

Chuxi spent the next few minutes thoroughly enjoying his bath. Using an old meditation technique he was taught in high school, he actively relaxed his body, and before long a modicum of peacefulness washed over him. His current circumstances weren’t horrible: he was in the care of a kind, beautiful girl, and he had a doctor behind his cause as well. Plus, maybe he would regain his size overnight, and this whole problem would disappear just as mysteriously as it had arrived. For the time being, it wouldn’t be hard for him to maintain his schoolwork – all of his classes were recorded and posted online, and he didn’t have any tests, which he physically needed to attend, for at least a month. If by then he still hadn’t regained his height… well, he’d cross that bridge when he came to it.

He allowed himself to soak a few more minutes in the warm water before reaching for the contact lens case. Scooping up an outrageous amount of shampoo in his hand, he set about eradicating the last of Julia’s foot stench. He scrubbed even harder when he recalled what it was like beneath her sweaty sock.

Thinking back on his unfortunate encounter with Julie’s lowest article of clothing, Chuxi couldn’t decide how he felt about her. She seemed nice enough – it wasn’t like she had done it on purpose – but something about her had rubbed him the wrong way. On the other hand, he was probably just overthinking things, as he often did.

Just then, there was a knock on the still-open door. “Come in,” called Chuxi. Haley’s head popped in, whereupon she immediately melted into a fit of giggles. “What’s so funny?”

“You’re covered in bubbles!” gasped Haley. A glance towards the mirror revealed what appeared to be a cross between a yeti and Santa Claus in the sink. “Anyway, here’s a towel if you need it,” she said, placing several paper towels on the bathroom counter. “Do you think you’ll be much longer? I made us some dinner.”

“I was just about to get out,” said Chuxi.

Haley nodded. “Okay, I’ll be back in a couple minutes to get you.”

Once she had gone, Chuxi hopped out of the sink and dried himself off with the paper towels. There was plenty of it to go around, so he tore off an appropriately sized strip and wrapped it around himself. All-in-all, it wasn’t too bad.

He hadn’t waited long when Haley’s arm wrapped around the door like a gigantic snake. In her hand was a plush, purple-and-gold Crown Royal bag, which she deposited on the counter. “Not sure if you’re naked in there,” explained Haley from around the corner, “but in there is your clothes. Hand-washed I might add.”

“Thanks,” said Chuxi. “How did you get them dry so fast?”

“I threw them in this bag and then in the dryer and they were done in no time.”

“Ah, the perks of being tiny,” he joked. “I’m ready, by the way,” he added. Haley came in and set her hand down on the counter, and he clambered on, taking up his usual crouch. This time, though, she extended her thumb inwards slightly, allowing him to brace himself against it. Looking up, Chuxi gave her a grateful nod. She smiled back at him, and he noticed that she had removed the towel and now her wavy, golden-brown hair flowed down to her shoulders. Maybe the fact that she literally towered over him had something to do with it, but Chuxi couldn’t help but stare – she looked beautiful.

“Like what you see?” asked Haley with an arch of her eyebrow, throwing his line back at him with a smirk.

Chuxi’s face reddened instantly, and he quickly looked away and pretended not to hear, fooling no one. “How long did that painting take you?” he asked quickly, pointing towards where it hung on the wall.

“Oh, that took probably about forty hours total. I took a painting class to fulfill my art requirement, and that was my final project. It’s nothing special, but I like it a lot.”

“I think it’s amazing,” said Chuxi truthfully.

“Thanks,” Haley said. “I definitely want to keep painting as a hobby.”

She set him down on the table where their dinner waited for them. Ingeniously, she had balanced a stack of post-it notes on top of a shot glass for his own miniature table, and what appeared to be the cap to a medicine bottle sat next to it, serving as a makeshift chair. The proportions were a little off, but it worked well enough. “You didn’t have to do that,” he said.

She brushed it off. “Please – it didn’t take me any effort at all.” Not for the first time, Chuxi felt his heart swell with gratitude. Inwardly, he made a resolution to take Haley out to the fanciest dinner he could afford once this was all over. “I know your name is Sushi, but I hope you like steak.”

“Are you kidding me? In China, beef is a delicacy!” On his table was a plate made from a spinach leaf, and on that leaf was a dinner consisting of a generous portion of steak (although at his size, what wouldn’t be generous?) cut into tiny strips, a few grains of rice, some mashed potatoes, and a few smaller, shredded spinach leaves as well. A fortuitously-sized pen cap filled with water served as his cup. Slack-jawed, Chuxi gaped openly at the meal, marveling at the dexterity it must require to portion his food like she did.

“Well?” she asked, looking down at him from where she sat across the table. “Dig in!”

“I kind of don’t want to,” he admitted. “It would be such a shame to eat this work of art.”

“Oh stop it,” Haley blushed.

“No, really,” Chuxi pressed. “How in the world were you able to cut these so small? It’s practically surgical!”

Haley hid her smile behind her hand. “I’ll put that in my resume when I apply to medical school: ‘Demonstrates surgical precision while making meals for tiny men.’” They shared a laugh before Chuxi took a seat at his miniature table. “Oh, also… I hope you don’t think I’m racist, but…” she looked pointedly at a pair of pins that he just noticed by his plate. “I couldn’t think of a way to make you a miniature fork and spoon.”

“These will do just fine,” he grinned, taking up the pins like chopsticks. They were a bit large, like the ornamental ones his mother brought out on special occasions, but they were nothing he couldn’t handle. Her face was like the sun when he scooped up a strip of steak and stuffed it into his mouth.

The pair proceeded to have a pleasant dinner together. Haley told him how hard she had been studying for the MCAT, and how she had been doing on practice tests. He asked her who she usually hung out with, and she replied that being a pre-med necessitated ridiculously long hours of study, which in turn precluded her from too much socializing.

“If I do get to go out, I usually just tag along with Julie to her sorority stuff,” she said. “In fact, I’m kind of an honorary sister there. Speaking of school, what are you going to do about classes?”

Chuxi explained to her how all of his classes were online, so for the short term, it shouldn’t be too difficult for him to work from home. He teased her about how much food she was eating – from his perspective, truckloads of food had disappeared into her mouth.

“Are you calling me fat?” she fired back with a wolfish grin. Chuxi murmured something unintelligible, and she laughed at his awkwardness. “Oh my God!” exclaimed Haley suddenly. “Shouldn’t you call your mom?”

“Definitely not,” said Chuxi emphatically. “She has enough to worry about. Besides, she doesn’t even have a phone. I usually just mail her postcards.”

“But… but…” stammered Haley, unwilling to accept that his mother wouldn’t know about what had happened.

“It’ll be fine,” he assured her.

“Okay…” Haley submitted, “but if you’re not better by next month, you’re sending her a letter whether you like it or not!”

Chuxi laughed, but Haley maintained a serious expression. “Okay, okay, we’ll send her a letter in a month,” he gave in.

After dinner, Haley cleared the table, taking care to put the supplies for his makeshift dining room in a box and stowing it in a drawer. Then she carried him to her room. “My room is a mess,” she warned. “Don’t judge me.”

Naturally, her room was quite the opposite: it was immaculate. A neatly made double bed covered by a sky-blue blanket was in the far left corner, diagonally opposite the door. A desk hugged the wall directly to the door’s left, while a couple wardrobes flanked a window directly in front of them. Like the rest of the apartment, the room was small, but cozy.

“Wow, is it really nine already?” she said before setting him on the desk. “I know you’re not supposed to go to bed right before eating, but it’s been a long day. You wanna just call it and sleep?”

Suddenly, he realized just how bone-tired he felt. “Yes, please.”

“Okay, let me try to put together a bed for you.”

Chuxi watched in fascination as she went about crafting a miniature pillow for him. First, she ripped up some tissues before double-wrapping it in some more tissues. Then she applied a piece of tape to hold it all together.

“These are clean, I promise,” she said, removing a pair of black stockings from her dresser, “and I wouldn’t give these to you if I didn’t think they were the most comfortable things in the world. They’re satin. You wouldn’t mind using these as sheets, right?”

“No problem,” he said.

“All right – and you can use one of my T-shirts for a blanket.” With that, she brought the assorted items to her bed and laid them long-ways on a pillow, which itself was like a California King for him. She returned back to her desk and took him to his new bed. Then she gathered up her pajamas and left the room.

Shortly, she returned dressed in a pair of gray Vanderbilt sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt that had “Relay for Life” across the front. She came to his pillow and set down the contact lens case from earlier, only this time it was filled with water on one side and a bit of toothpaste in the other. “Do you mind using your finger to brush? I’ll think of a way to make you a toothbrush tomorrow.”

“Not at all,” he said.

She smiled, and the pair began brushing their teeth together. Once he finished, she took the contact lens case back to the bathroom. “You know,” she said upon her return, “it kind of feels like we’re…” she trailed off abruptly.

“Kind of feels like what?” he asked suspiciously.

“Nothing,” she said with a slight curve of her lips. With that, she slipped into bed beside him, his pillow parallel to her body.

“Aren’t you going to move me to the desk or something?” he asked.

Haley narrowed her eyes at him. “You’re not gay, are you?” she asked jokingly.

“N-no,” he stuttered, “definitely not. It’s just… I don’t know… uh…”

“Yes, I know,” Haley laughed, “but what if you suddenly grow back overnight? I can’t have you knocking all of my things off the desk, now can I?”

Chuxi stared at her, amazed. That hadn’t occurred to him at all. “You really think of everything, don’t you?”

“I try,” she said, “and don’t worry – I don’t move at all in my sleep. I’m like a mummy.”

“Really? Then why do you have a double bed?”

She fixed him with a cunning look. “Do you really want to know?”

“Oh,” said Chuxi, blushing scarlet. “I guess not.” He climbed underneath the covers, pleasantly surprised by how soft her stockings felt.

With a yawn, Haley reached over him and switched off the light on her nightstand, plunging the room into darkness. He smiled ruefully at the numerous glow-in-the-dark stars peering down at him from the ceiling. He thought about trying for a witty remark, but couldn’t think of anything.

“Good night, Sushi.”

“Good night, Haley.” For a few seconds, he listened to his heart beating in his ears. “Haley?” he said suddenly.

“What’s up?”

“…I’m really glad I met you… and thanks again.”

“Aw, I’m really glad I met you too, Sushi, and you’re welcome. I know you’d do the same for me if we were in China.”

They fell into silence, and before long Haley’s breathing came at the slow, steady rate of a peaceful sleeper.

Eventually, Chuxi fell asleep too.

That night, he had seemingly a hundred dreams: in many of them, he woke up back at his normal size, and he and Haley made passionate love. In others, he had shrunk down even smaller than before, and Haley couldn’t find him when she awoke. In still others, he was running across the floor of the library, unnoticed by a towering Haley who eventually crushed him beneath her sweaty bare foot.

There were many more, but in one particularly vivid dream, he saw Julie standing in the door way to Haley’s room, watching him.

Chuxi awoke with a start, and not for the first time that night. Sitting up, he looked down at himself and then at his surroundings. He was still tiny.

Sighing, he looked at Haley’s clock and saw that it read five o’ clock. Swiveling his head back left, he saw his gigantic bunkmate sleeping soundly, her arms tight to her side. Evidently, Haley hadn’t budged since last night – she really did sleep like a mummy. If she was careful about getting up in the morning, making her bed would be a cinch.

Meanwhile, Chuxi’s bed was quite the opposite. He had kicked his “blanket” and “sheets” every which way over the course of his fitful, dream-filled night. His latest nightmare was one in which he had somehow gotten trapped in Julie’s running sock. He had snapped awake just as she was inserting her foot into his stinky prison. Chuxi smiled ruefully. Of course that didn’t make any sense: who would go running in a used sock?

Realizing that he had no shot at falling back asleep, Chuxi took a deep breath and thought about his next move. Thanks to Haley’s extreme generosity, he had at least a week of relative security. She had done such a fantastic job of taking care of him so far, he quite frankly looked forward to spending more time with her. He also had the help of Dr. Turner, who presumably would run every test known to mankind on him – surely that would yield something. Given these circumstances, it seemed obvious that his best action would be to take no action at all and simply bide his time. While this frustrated him, he figured he’d at least have plenty of time to think over alternatives.

Chuxi caught himself staring at Haley. Since she was lying on her back, he had an excellent view of her profile. Her nose sloped gracefully down from her blemish-free forehead, and her lips looked as soft as pillows. He wondered what it would be like to walk across her face. Fleetingly, he wished she would open her eyes so that he could appreciate those too.

He got his wish.

Her eyelids fluttered slightly before opening fully. Chuxi immediately twisted around so that he was facing the foot of the bed, his face burning with embarrassment. He fervently hoped that she hadn’t seen him staring at her like some goon.

“Oh, you’re awake,” she said in a raspy, just-woke-up voice. “Wow, it’s not even six yet.”

Trying to seem casual, Chuxi stretched his arms out over his head and looked over at her as if he’d just noticed her. “I guess that’s what happens when you pass out at nine.”

“I should do that more often,” she said as she carefully slipped out of bed. As Chuxi had predicted, it took her a flick of her wrist to return her bed to its originally pristine state. “I’ll be right back,” she said as she headed out the door. Chuxi heard a toilet flush, and moments later she returned for him. “Do you need to go #1 or #2?” she asked with a completely straight face.

“Uhh… just #1,” he blushed.

“Okay,” she said with a small smile. She took him on a short ride to the bathroom where she rested her hand on the toilet seat. “Do your thing. I’ll be back in a bit.”

He did as he was told.

When she returned, she wore a bright orange blouse and a pair of white shorts, both of which nicely complimented her sunny disposition. Without wasting any time, she scooped him up from the toilet seat and set him down beside the sink where the surprisingly useful contact lens case already waited, filled with toothpaste and water. Chuxi washed his face and brushed his teeth while Haley did the same above. When he was finished, he watched her apply some make-up, happy for an excuse to openly appreciate her beauty.

“Done,” she said, clicking the top of her mascara shut. “You’ve been waiting patiently,” she observed, glancing down at him through the mirror. “How about I go scrounge up some food?” She brought him out to their living room where she set him down on the table and began bustling about the kitchen. “Do you like your eggs scrambled?” she asked.

“Of course,” he replied.

In no time, Haley returned with a bowl of grapes, some toast, and a veritable mountain of scrambled eggs. She made a second trip for his miniature furniture as well as a tiny meal that she had once again portioned off with astounding precision. “Let me know if you want seconds,” she said. This time, a piece of bread acted as his plate, which was piled high with eggs, a single grape sliced into smaller pieces, and a hunk of bread smothered in butter. This time, the same pen cap from earlier was filled with orange juice. He could get used to this.

“So what’s the plan for today?” asked Haley between bites.

“I sort of figured I would just stay here while you went to school. It would probably be a bit hectic out there, and anyway I don’t want to be seen like this.”

“Make sense,” she nodded. “You won’t get bored just sitting on my bed all day?”

“Well, everything hinges on whether or not my iPad can recognize my hand. I think it should be sensitive enough. What are your plans for today?”

“I’ve got lab in the morning and then class in the afternoon.” She gave him an apologetic look. “It’ll be tough for me to get back to make you lunch.”

Chuxi waved it off. “Just leave me some leftovers from breakfast and I’ll be fine. I usually only eat twice a day anyways.”

“That’s bad for you,” scolded Haley. “If you only eat two big meals a day you tend to overeat.”

“I don’t know about you, but I feel like I could use a little extra weight,” he panned. A piece of egg flew out of her mouth as she laughed, and both of them saw it, plain as day. Haley’s face became bright crimson before she quickly brushed the offending morsel off of the table. “Don’t worry, I’ve been doing that constantly,” grinned Chuxi. “You just can’t see it.”

“Ew!” Haley scrunched her nose at him while clearing the table.

It wasn’t even six by the time the pair returned to Haley’s room. She set him down on her bed and began rooting around in his backpack for his iPad. “How do you want to set this up?” she asked.

Chuxi thought about it for a moment. “Just leave it flat, I guess.” At 9.5 inches tall, the device was more than twice his height; leaving it flat would make it so he could reach every part of the screen if he needed to.

“You’re gonna be able to just watch all the lectures on this?” asked Haley dubiously.

“Let’s find out.” Chuxi walked over to the device and pushed the unlock button at the top. That worked fine, but now came the important part. He walked down to where the screen said, “Swipe to unlock,” bent down, and dragged his hand across the screen. Haley clapped gleefully when the home screen appeared. “Well, at least something is going my way.”

“Okay, well I should head over to lab and start prepping. Let me get you a few things for your day first, though.”

Chuxi nodded and began bringing up his lecture recordings.

…

The clock read 11AM and Chuxi had been able to get through several lectures since Haley had left for lab. He had set up a command center on her bed consisting of his iPad and a little desk (which was actually his table). He used a piece of lead to write, and he had a practically limitless supply of paper in the form of post-it notes. All-in-all, his situation wasn’t too bad.

Presently, he heard someone enter the apartment. Probably Julie, he thought to himself. Sure enough, he heard her voice through the door. “Haley? You in here?” Chuxi debated whether or not to respond, but the question was made moot when Julie opened the door and looked in. “Haley?” She spotted him almost immediately. “Oh, hey Sushi.”

The blonde walked in and took a seat on Haley’s desk chair. He paused the current lecture. “Hey, Julie. What have you been up to?”

“Oh, I just got back from a run,” she said, stating the obvious. While sweat didn’t exactly drip down her face, her skin looked flushed, and dark splotches showed in the armpits of her gray T-shirt. “Have you been studying since this morning?”

“Yeah, it’s been a – ” Chuxi stopped mid-sentence when Julie suddenly raised her feet onto the bed and placed them uncomfortably close to where he sat at his desk. The effect was instantaneous: not only did the noxious stench of her freshly worn socks taint the air, but the temperature also rose perceptibly from the heat.

“It’s been a what?” Julie asked, lounging comfortably in Haley’s chair. Her long, toned legs stretched away from the edge of the bed like some gigantic, tan bridge.

“Uh… it’s been a bit of a drag,” he said finally. Inwardly, he wondered if he should say something about Julie’s aggressive feet positioning. Already, his eyes began to water from the acrid smell of her socks.

“Yeah, school sucks,” agreed Julie. She leaned forward and began to peel off her sopping-wet socks before dropping them on the bed beside her glistening feet. Her pink soles rose up more than twice his height directly in front of him, ending in ten toes, each bigger than his head. They wiggled at him, as if they knew he was looking at them. “If I didn’t run every day, I’d go crazy.”

“Exercise is important,” said Chuxi weakly. He didn’t think it was possible, but the odor perceptibly worsened.

“I know. It feels great to just run – even in this heat.” Julie reached forward again and began to stretch back her toes and knead the flesh of her feet. This served to amplify the scent yet further. “Ah, that feels amazing.”

“Stretching is important, too,” he mumbled, literally dizzy from the smell. He badly wanted to say something, but he just as badly didn’t want to make things awkward. Frozen by indecision, he continued to endure.

“I like you, Sushi,” Julie said, her blue eyes twinkling. While his head swam in the pungent aroma of her feet, it was impossible to deny that Julie had the classic, blond-hair-blue-eyes look that any guy would swoon for. “This weekend we definitely have to get drunk together!”

Abruptly, she crinkled her nose in disgust. “Oh my God, what’s that smell? Is that my feet?” There was absolutely zero chance she just now noticed her foot stink, Chuxi thought to himself. Julie removed them from the bed and stood up. “Oh God – I left them right by you this whole time. Why didn’t you say anything?”

“I – ” began Chuxi, but Julie talked right over him.

“I guess you’ve spent so much time with them you’re used to it by now. Maybe you actually like the smell?” By this time, she was halfway out the door. “No, that would be crazy,” she said, seemingly talking to herself more than him. “Anyway, I’m gonna hop in the shower. Good luck with the studying, Sushi!” Julie shut the door, but her giggles continued as she walked down the hall.

She left behind a thoroughly uncomfortable and confused graduate student; and to his dismay, she also left her socks.

Chuxi had a dilemma. On the one hand, the horrible stench produced by Julie’s socks continued to make his life unpleasant. There they lay, their formerly bright colors dulled by years of abuse and sweat. On the other hand, removing them would require him to touch the detestable heaps of toxic waste. Just the thought of it made his insides squirm. Relocating was out of the question: he simply couldn’t get a good grip on the smooth surface of his iPad, and even if he could, there was no guarantee that he could move it with his meager strength. Ultimately, he decided to bite the bullet and get it over with.

Grabbing some tissues that Haley had left him, he used them as a buffer between himself and Julie’s toxic socks. To his dismay, the flimsy paper became immediately soaked with her sweat. Chuxi sighed, gritted his teeth, and then set about wrestling the dirty fabric off of the bed.

While he worked, Chuxi had plenty of time to think about Julie. The sour aroma of her feet permeated the air, making it impossible to focus on anything else. As he replayed their short encounter over in his mind, he couldn’t believe that someone could be so self-absorbed. How could Julie blithely set her feet so close to him, especially after a long summer run? As a sorority sister, she had to have at least some semblance of social grace – surely she knew that shoving her feet in his face wasn’t okay.

Still, the next logical conclusion presented its own problems. Had she intentionally subjected him to her feet, with the sole purpose of making him suffer? Did she want to hurt him? He couldn’t fathom what her goal was with this, and he could see no reason why she should dislike him. Then again, it could be worse. If her goal was to torment him, she could certainly be more aggressive, given their size discrepancy. Quite frankly, while the smell of her feet was rancid, it was the psychological aspect of her hazing that posed the largest threat. While she wasn’t openly bullying him, he had been in enough similar situations growing up in Hong Kong to recognize it for what it was, and to therefore resist at least on a mental level. Of course this was all assuming she was doing this on purpose – maybe she was just a complete ditz.

With a final shove, he managed to rid himself of the offending socks, although the smell inevitably lingered. He couldn’t do anything about that, but what he could do was try to find out more about Julie. Once Haley returned, he could hopefully get to the bottom of this.

…

She didn’t get back until 4, and by that time the smell had finally faded, although occasionally he would get a whiff of it – he couldn’t tell if it was actually there, or just his imagination. Either way, this suited him fine, particularly because he didn’t intend to tell Haley the details of his encounter with Julie. If he still reeked, he didn’t know how he’d explain it away. Chuxi definitely didn’t want to jeopardize his friendship with Haley by leveling unfounded accusations at her best friend. No, he would just poke around a bit, nothing more.

“How was your day?” asked Haley as she set her backpack down.

“Not bad,” Chuxi replied. “I got a fair amount of work done. How about you?”

She sighed, her smile looking a little worn around the edges. “It’s been a long day,” she said. “I know it’s just the start of the year, but I’ve got a killer schedule. I don’t know how I’m gonna make it if every Wednesday is like this.”

Chuxi winced sympathetically. “I hate it when they just pile it on you like that.”

“Tell me about it,” she groaned. “Did Julie stop by?”

“Yeah, she did for a bit,” he replied. Chuxi chose his next works very carefully. “What a character, huh?”

Haley laughed, the sort of laugh that mother’s make when their baby does something stupid. “So you noticed, huh?” She wore a long-suffering look.

Chuxi hadn’t expected this response at all, but he thought it best to remain noncommittal. “Yep,” he said simply.

“She’s just a bit all over the place,” explained Haley. “That’s why she can never keep a boyfriend.” She emphasized the “keep” in order to point out the obvious: Julie was a looker, and should have no problem getting a guy. “Honestly though, she’s a really a good person. She just plays games with people – guys, mostly – and ultimately they’re self-destructive.” Her voice took on a different tone, as if she had thought this through on a number of occasions. “Really, she’s just like any other girl I suppose,” she said with a rueful smile. “Why, did she come in here complaining about Kyle?”

Not quite, Chuxi thought to himself, but he wasn’t ready to divulge Julie’s strange behavior just yet. “Something like that,” he said instead.

Suddenly, a loud rumble issued from Haley’s stomach, a decidedly unfeminine sound that sent her cheeks on fire. “Uh… are you hungry?” she asked weakly.

Chuxi shook from unsuccessfully suppressed laughter. “You’d better make something… or else you’d eat me!”

The rest of the evening went by uneventfully. Haley made another wonderful dinner (spaghetti and meat sauce with some assorted peppers), and they chatted about a variety of subjects. Ludicrous though it may seem, things were starting to feel almost routine – like he and Haley had known each other for months instead of just hours. Chuxi admired her meticulousness, which extended into all aspects of her life. She seemed to know exactly what she wanted to do, and she pursued those goals with a single-minded drive that was at once powerful yet comforting. While she put pressure on herself to succeed, she certainly didn’t seem miserable.

For his part, Chuxi tried to be witty, and Haley rewarded him with plenty of giggles and smiles. He hoped he was actually funny, and not that her prodigious generosity compelled her to offer pity laughs. After dinner, they returned back to her room and Haley began to lay out her schoolwork.

“Sorry,” she said with a pained look, “but I really need to try to keep up. Julie is having a party at our house this weekend, so that’s like a day and half out the window.”

“No problem,” he replied. “Being tiny doesn’t give me a free pass either.”

Haley smiled that same, wonderful smile that turned his heart into a turkey melt. “How about this? Let’s grind out three solid hours, and then we can watch some TV or something. Deal?”

“Deal.”

The three hours crawled by as Chuxi tried to stay productive. Predictably, he spent much of his time just staring at Haley, who somehow made hunching over some notes look sexy. Her ridiculously long legs didn’t hurt. From his vantage point on the bed, he could see her graceful figure from top to bottom. It seemed like bad form to fall in love with his savior, but this was hardly a fair fight – Haley was irresistible.

At three hours on the dot, she stood up and stretched her arms up to the ceiling, like some incredibly attractive skyscraper. Then she collapsed back into her chair and spun around to face him. For a fleeting moment, Chuxi had a surprisingly traumatic flashback to Julie sitting in that same chair, her awful feet rising up to torture him with their mere presence. In fact, Haley seemed to raise her legs up to do just that, but a split second later she crossed them at the ankle and leaned back, satisfied from a long day’s work. Chuxi scoffed inwardly at his silliness – Haley would never do something like that. And even if she did, why was he letting this disturb him so profoundly? They were just feet, he told himself unconvincingly.

“I gotta say, it’s really nice having you here, Sushi,” announced Haley. “I don’t know why, but I’m way more productive right now – maybe I should keep you around.” Instantly, any thoughts of Julie’s feet vanished, and visions of Haley and him dating sprouted up in their place. Yes, it had already come to this, he realized. He was hopelessly infatuated.

“I wouldn’t mind that,” he replied, trying his best to keep it cool. “What are we going to watch?”

“I dunno…” Suddenly, she broke into a wide grin. She asked: “How about a Chinese movie?”

“What? Really?” stuttered Chuxi, taken aback.

“Why not?”

“Uh… ok,” he said, racking his brains. Meanwhile, Haley just looked at him coolly, resting her chin on her hand. “How about…” Time seemed to stretch on interminably, and inexplicably, frustratingly, Chuxi began to feel nervous, like he was defending a thesis. He desperately cast about in his mind for something that would impress her, she of the soft brown eyes who made him feel so small. “Kung Fu Hustle?” he blurted finally.

“You got it!” she sprang out of her chair, and mere moments later, Chuxi found himself watching the opening credits to one of his favorite movies in a decidedly unusual position. With a bunch of pillows propping her up, Haley had her back to the bed and her computer on her lap; meanwhile, with a bunch of Haley propping him up, Chuxi had his back leaned up against her. With her breasts hanging above him and the rise and fall of her breathing, it was impossible for him to watch the movie – not that he was complaining. He could feel her heartbeat thumping against him, like tiny serial earthquakes, and he began to sweat from the sheer heat emanating from her body. Again, not that he was complaining. It was surreal – like a dream.

And like a dream, it was suddenly over. The closing credits scrolled down the screen, and he looked up to see Haley’s face peeking down at him. She smiled broadly, but Chuxi also saw redness rimming her eyes – while the movie was technically a comedy, it did have a poignant ending. “What a movie!” she exclaimed.

“Glad you liked it,” mumbled Chuxi. This particular movie-watching experience had left him completely drained – but in a good way.

“You look tired,” she observed, a concerned look replacing her smile. “Let’s get to bed – same setup work for you?”

He nodded and mustered up a reassuring smile of his own – and before he knew it, he was laying on a pillow next to this girl who made him feel so strongly. Life seemed to speed up when he was with her.

…

It wasn’t until late the next morning that Chuxi had a moment to sort out his feelings, because he certainly couldn’t do any meaningful thinking while Haley was around. Ultimately, though, it was very simple: he was falling – no, had fallen – in love with her. Desperately, helplessly in love. He hoped she felt the same way, obviously, but even if she did… well, he was tiny. He was desperate and helpless in ways beyond his emotional state, and the harsh shortcomings of his situation would become all too clear very shortly.

He heard the apartment door swing open and shut, followed by loud, purposeful steps that could only belong to one person: Julie. A sense of dread filled him, and it only spiked when the towering blond entered the room, clearly having just completed a run (did this girl ever go to classs?).

“Hey, Sushi!” she said, her tone somehow ominous. She wasted no time in plopping herself down on Haley’s chair, before practically slamming her sock-clad feet on the bed – déjà vu. His iPad actually bounced from the impact. He winced from the smell. Julie smiled, but the curl of her lips was so different from Haley’s. There was no mistaking it now: she had nothing good in mind for him. Unable to help himself, Chuxi fixated on those socks, and Julie gave him a knowing look.

“I’ve been thinking about you all day.”

Without warning, Julie snatched him up from the bed, her tremendous fingers squeezing him menacingly. “I heard you were a great study-buddy,” she said as she left Haley’s room. “I could use a good luck charm.” Despite the dizzying motion of her hand, Chuxi could see that they had entered Julie’s room, a much messier affair.

Once seated at her desk, Julie’s hand moved down towards the cluttered surface… only to continue past, where she set him down on the floor. “Since there’s no room on my desk,” she explained, “you can stay under here.” Of course her statement was patently false, but Chuxi knew better than to argue – in fact, he decided that his best course of action was to say nothing at all. If she wanted to subject him to her bizarre impositions, then so be it. He just hoped that she wouldn’t go too far, because if it came to a physical confrontation… the outcome was obvious.

“Stay put under there, okay?” she called down from on high. “I wouldn’t want you to accidentally get hurt.” Her point made, Chuxi moved as far away from Julie as possible. Much like the desks in the library, this one had three solid panels as opposed to legs, which effectively served as walls for him. He hunkered down in a corner and waited.

After several minutes had passed, Chuxi dared to hope that this was the extent of what Julie had in store for him. While the structure of the desk served to trap the stench emanating from her feet, there was plenty of distance between him and where they rested, curled up beneath her chair like a pair of great beasts. High above him, he could hear Julie’s fingers typing away. Maybe she really was studying.

The timing couldn’t have been any better. The moment when Chuxi had relaxed his guard just that little bit, Julie shoved her feet directly into his corner. It felt like being hit by two bulls wrapped in cotton – filthy, sweat-soaked cotton. A fleeting glance upwards revealed his tormentor leaning back in her chair in a theatrical stretch, one hand raised far backwards while the other covered a yawn, as if she were completely unaware of the drama unfolding beneath her desk. Chuxi didn’t believe it for a second.

After the initial impact, Julie began to rub her feet and toes all over him, forcing him to shut his eyes to prevent her acrid perspiration from turning him blind. Inevitably, her playful jostling resulted in him ingesting some of her disgusting fluids, which, combined with the hellish smell, made him gag violently. This awful battering continued on for what seemed like an eternity, but when one foot suddenly drew back it was far from over. She was simply removing her sock.

Like a wrestler tagging in, the newly bare foot replaced the sock wearing one. If there were any lingering questions about Julie’s awareness of his predicament, they were well and fully answered when she dexterously wrapped her big and second toes around his head, exposing Chuxi to the grimy recesses between her toes. Here the smell became worse than anything he had ever experienced in his entire life, and it didn’t help that the rest of her foot pressed down on him like a trash compactor. He gasped and struggled for breath, unable to gain relief from the air tainted by her reeking toes. Worse yet, his desperate attempts for air only served to send Julie’s nauseating sweat down his throat, making him cough and sputter.

Just when he thought he might seriously vomit or worse, Julie stopped. Shaken, Chuxi raised his head and looked up to see Julie gazing down at him, her eyes wide with surprise. “Oh my God, Sushi,” she said, her hand over her mouth. “I didn’t know that was you down there!” Of course she was lying, but Chuxi was just thankful that her assault was over. “Why don’t I put you somewhere safer?”

Alarm bells went off in his head, but he didn’t try to run when she reached down and grabbed him. Even if he wanted to, brawling with Julie’s toes had left him utterly drained. With her tree trunk fingers wrapped around him, it didn’t surprise him at all when he saw Julie’s other hand reach for her discarded running shoe, fresh from a long day of use.

“Have you ever wondered what it’s like inside a woman’s shoe?” she asked, her hand hovering over the open mouth of her sneaker. Chuxi didn’t know how to respond to such a ludicrous question, so he just remained silent. “Well, anyway, you’ll be safe in here.” She gave him a not-so-gentle squeeze before dumping him unceremoniously onto the soaked insole.

Enough time had passed since her run that the heat emanating from the shoe remained bearable; the smell, however, hit him like a kick to the head. A quick survey of the worn cushion revealed relentless abuse, such that the punishment from Julie’s feet had transformed what had once been white into a pitiful gray. Worse yet, his feet sank into the fabric like he was standing in a swamp. The sheer amount of sweat that bubbled up disgusted him. He got a much closer look at that insole when Julie dropped the shoe on the floor and he lost his balance. Bracing himself with his hands, Chuxi just managed to avoid face-planting in the vile fabric.

“Just hang tight there until I finish studying.” Julie smiled down at him, her wickedly amused expression framed by golden locks. “That insole is so comfortable for my hot, tired feet, so… I dunno, take a nap there or something!” Then she disappeared, leaving Chuxi to suffer in the dank confines of her shoe.

At first he was angry, but his mounting fatigue quickly overcame his indignation. Julie could brush aside any resistance he could offer, so why bother wasting energy on it? In truth, he had entered survival mode long ago – all he wanted now was to make it through this. Scratch that – all he wanted was to see Haley. For the first time, he wondered if he would even make it that far. Julie could end his life on a whim, but was she really a murderer?

Suddenly, a shadow passed overhead. He turned to look upwards, but it wasn’t Julie’s face that greeted him – it was her foot. Finding energy that he didn’t know he had, Chuxi rushed towards the toe section, crab-walking desperately backwards. Julie’s big toe came towards him like a battering ram, and it required a wild twisting effort on Chuxi’s part for him to avoid getting his head crushed. Unfortunately, this meant he had positioned himself in the most disgusting place possible – between her first and second toes.

Immediately, the heat and smell intensified. With his head wedged between her toes and the rest of his body beneath her sole, he felt like a mummy in a coffin – but unlike a mummy, he was still alive. Julie had spared him her full weight, but even without actively applied pressure, it was like lying beneath a hundred mattresses. Sweat began to form in the crevice, drowning his head in liquid filth. Added to that was the ever-worsening stench of Julie’s foot, which hugged him so intimately in the worst way possible.

It was no wonder it took him so long to figure out.

First, he heard a mechanical buzzing noise. It sounded far off, as if in another room, but then again anything would, given the circumstances. Then, the pressure coming from Julie’s foot began to rise and fall rhythmically, forcing him to inhale in the interludes, such that she controlled his very breathing. Naturally, the heat and sweat increased exponentially, completely drenching him in her vile perspiration. Even then, it wasn’t until he heard the first moan that it all fell into place. The buzzing noise, the rhythmic pressure, and now Julie's sighs -- how could he miss it?

Julie was masturbating.

Chuxi awoke with a groan. He could be forgiven for hoping to find himself in his cozy bed, full-sized an able-bodied. Instead, a sadly familiar odor greeted him, and he opened his eyes to see Julie’s billboard face. A quick glance around revealed that he sprawled atop one of Julie’s sodden socks, the sock itself atop her desk.

“Good morning sleepy!” Julie gave him a kilowatt smile, as if she hadn’t just practically raped him. Chuxi chose not to respond. “Aw, why so grumpy?” she pouted. He remained stoic, and for several moments, they simply stared at one another: her smile fixed, his face blank.

Then her eyes narrowed. Julie slammed her open palm onto the desk, knocking him back with frightening ease. Like a close-range thunderclap, the sheer sound of it sent his heart fluttering. “Listen to me, little man,” she hissed. “If you value your life you’ll keep your mouth shut about our afternoon together. Understand?” The last word hung in the air like the smoke from a discharged gun.

Chuxi swallowed before nodding slowly.

“Good.” With that, she scooped him up, sock and all, and carried him away. As she left the room, she gave him a squeeze, forcing his face into the filthy fabric once more. Nothing was said, but the message was clear.

I own you.

…

Three days had passed, and in those three days, something of a routine had developed. Of course Chuxi didn’t breathe a word to Haley. At one point he had seriously considered it, but right as he had opened his mouth she preempted him with, “I’m actually really excited for this weekend; and thanks to Julie, I’m actually gonna be social. I don’t know what I’d do without her.” So Chuxi shut his mouth.

When Chuxi really thought about it, he knew she would never believe him. Even if they weren’t best friends, how could anyone take his claims seriously? “Your best friend is abusing me with her feet.” Yeah, that would go over well.

So instead, he endured. And really, “endured” was the only word to describe it, because Julie certainly wasn’t going to de-escalate after that pivotal afternoon. Every morning after Haley left, Chuxi waited in fear for his tormentor’s arrival and a fresh new session of abuse. Without any attempt at pretense, Julie would stride into the room and lift her feet onto the bed before pointing at those same worn socks. “Worship me,” she would command with outrageous haughtiness.

Still, even after inhaling her post-run stench and licking the filth from between her toes, Chuxi counted himself lucky that she never became violent. That moment when she slammed her hand against the desk weighed heavily on his mind – how could it not? – and while he was always at least peripherally aware of how relatively puny he truly was, he never felt it in such a visceral way up to that point. Now though, he happily played the role of meek submissive, hoping to stave off any potential physical harm. Ultimately, the last 72 hours followed the same pattern, and in that time his emotions alternated between joyful to terrified.

Presently, he swallowed another mouthful of Julie’s acrid, salty sweat. When his gut heaved liquid back up into his throat, he couldn’t tell the difference between her sweat and his bile.

“That’s enough for today,” Julie said from above. Her feet shifted away from him like a massive, receding wave before disappearing beneath the edge of the bed. “Haley and I are boozing a bit today, and obviously I have big plans for us.” She gave him a wicked smile, but Chuxi didn’t share her mirth. He shuddered to think of whatever new abuse she had in store for him. With that, she rose from her chair and walked to the door, but just then he realized something critical.

“Julie!” Chuxi blurted, stopping her midstride. She turned her head back to look at him, her expression one of genuine surprise more than anything. Chuxi realized that this might be the first time he’d spoken to her in days.

“Yes?” she asked. She actually sounded curious.

“I… uhh…” he faltered for a moment, but then figured he might as well take the plunge, especially since she didn’t seem angry at all. He pointed to his iPad, which she had pushed off the bed with her feet at some point. “Little help?”

Julie’s eyes narrowed, and those eyes pinned him down not unlike her feet did on a daily basis. For a long pause, she didn’t move – long enough for a bead of sweat to trickle down his back. Then she threw her head back and laughed.

“Oh my God you are such a nerd!” She walked over and scooped his iPad back onto the bed, laughing all the while. “I can’t believe you actually want to study after everything you’ve been through.”

Chuxi looked up at Julie, not sure what to make of this latest interaction. She only briefly glanced at him before turning back for the door, her expression rueful yet unreadable. It felt like the fourth wall was being broken, like he was speaking to the villain in a play. It also felt very dangerous, like sticking his head between an alligator’s jaws.

“Well I suppose my little slut can still study up when daddy’s away.” Then she slammed the door behind her.

…

Haley inspected and re-inspected herself in the mirror, twisting her neck in obscure ways to examine every inch of herself. She looked stunning in a white dress that was form-fitting without being overtly sexual – also it was dotted with oranges.

“You sure you don’t want to come out with us?” she asked, not quite pouting.

“I’m not much of a drinker,” he replied evenly. “Also, the logistics of such a trip are daunting. Have fun though. You deserve it after this week.”

“No, I think you deserve it more than me. What with everything you’ve been through.”

Chuxi allowed himself a smile. “You have no idea.”

Haley smiled back and said, “I promise I’ll come back a bit earlier. But you have to promise me you’ll have a drink with me then. I know a few tasty recipes.”

“Well if your bartending is as good as your cooking, count me in.”

“Awesome. Well then see you in a bit.”

Chuxi heard the general hustle of Julie and Haley in the common room, punctuated often by Julie’s laughter. Looked like she had already gotten a head start. Finally, he heard the front door slam and the apartment became silent.

This lasted for less than a minute when the door opened once more – naturally, it was Julie. She came barging directly into Haley’s room, saw him immediately, and then seemed to hesitate, as if having an internal discussion with herself. “Ah, what the Hell, Haley can wait a sec.” She slipped a foot out of her sandal and lifted it up to him. “C’mon, lick between my toes. It won’t even be that bad since I just showered.” Chuxi obediently hustled over and began to run his tongue along her skin. She was right: her feet tasted much better after a shower as opposed to after a run. “Anyway, listen up. No don’t stop licking. Can’t you do two things at once? Okay, so when we get back we’re gonna play some good old Truth or Dare. You will pick Dare, understand?” Chuxi nodded while licking. “You’re a smart kid, so I’m sure you know where this is going.” Chuxi nodded again. “Good. Okay that’s enough. We’ll be dancing it up somewhere so our feet should be nice and fragrant for you. I think Haley’s wearing her leather boots, and believe me, those things do not breath well. How funny would it be if you’d rather lick my feet than hers just because they stink more. Which they probably will – I mean I’m going open-toed tonight. These are definitely cuter though.” Julie seemed drunker than he initially realized. “Anyway, I know all about your little crush on Haley.”

Chuxi looked up at her.

“Oh, so I hit a nerve, did I? I see the way you’re always pining after her. It’s kind of pathetic, really.” Chuxi had no idea how or why, but Julie was finally able to get a rise out of him. White-hot fury boiled up in his chest, anger that he had been able to suppress up to this point despite all the abuse he had endured at the hands of this college co-ed. He literally shook – but before he could do something ill-advised, she had already left.

“Hope you like licking Haley’s feet as much as mine!”

Just as soon as it arrived, his anger dissipated. He felt like a burnt-out husk – suddenly all he wanted was to sleep. Unfortunately, every time he closed his eyes he saw Haley’s feet rushing towards him, her face twisted into an awful sneer.

It was gonna be a long night.

Four loud thumps rattled the table like four trees crashing into the earth – or four nails into a coffin. Slack-jawed, Chuxi stared up at the four bare soles rising above him like monolithic pillars.

“I wouldn’t have picked ‘Dare’ if I knew Julie was gonna say this!” teased Haley. Her apologetic smile seemed so far away, offering cold comfort for what was to come. On the other hand, Julie’s downright malicious grin sent a mixture of anger and fear into the pit of his stomach. For some reason, being humiliated by Julie’s feet didn’t bother him very much, but this… this just felt completely, urgently wrong.

“What are you talking about? This’ll be a piece of cake,” he joked.

“Well, what are you waiting for then, Sushi?” asked Julie in leading tones. “Kiss our feet – starting with Haley’s.”

Trying to hide how profoundly this deflated him, Chuxi puffed his chest out and resolutely approached Haley’s right foot. He resolved long before they had arrived to show absolutely no emotion or weakness during the ordeal to come. If nothing else, he would be light-hearted and joking about the whole thing for Haley’s sake – he would die before making her feel guilty.

The first thing Haley had done upon arriving was remove her boots and socks, so they had had a few minutes to air out. Nonetheless, Julie had been right about how poorly those boots circulated air, because the odor emanating from Haley’s feet was rancid. It smelled like an awful combination of old leather, sweaty laundry, and the mustiness of feet in general, and despite his efforts to breathe through his mouth, he could never truly shake off the stench.

As he drew closer, he could see a thin sheen of sweat on the surface of her skin, but like the smell he tried to ignore it. In another step, he could go no further without walking into Haley’s sole. From this close, he couldn’t see her face.

“Sushi, wait!” exclaimed Haley, suddenly. She withdrew her feet from the coffee table and gave him a worried look. “This is kind of weird, Julie – I don’t feel comfortable with this at all.” Chuxi could tell that she’d been drinking: her words came out a little slurred and her cheeks were noticeably red.

“Oh don’t be ridiculous,” chided Julie. “It’s just a little fun, right Sushi?” Julie gave him a pointed look that couldn’t be misinterpreted.

“Yeah,” said Chuxi brightly, even as he groaned inwardly, “wouldn’t be a dare if it was easy, would it?”

Haley hesitated, clearly feeling reluctant about the whole thing, even in her inebriation. For that, Chuxi’s heart soared, but he knew that no amount of trepidation on Haley’s part could keep Julie from getting her way. “Okay… if you say so,” she murmured. She brought back both of her feet from below the table and gently placed them in front of him.

Like a diver plunging off the board, Chuxi thrust his face forward into his friend’s smelly sole and pressed his lips against her moist skin. Without warning, Julie’s derisive laughter boomed from just to his right: at some point she had shifted positions to get a better view of his humiliation. Chuxi couldn’t recall ever being this close to Julie’s face, but the fact that she so intimately witnessed this act somehow made it that much worse. He hoped she couldn’t see his skin burning from embarrassment.

“C’mon, Sushi, what kind of kiss is that? Put a little tongue into it!”

Chuxi complied immediately, and with both arms he attempted to pull Haley’s foot into an awkward embrace before dragging his tongue across her dirty skin in a sad imitation of an impassioned kiss. Her sweaty foot tasted predictably foul, but Chuxi tried his best to imagine himself kissing Haley’s lips instead.

“He’s… he’s doing it?” asked Haley, plainly mortified.

“Yeah!” crowed Julie. “He’s making out with your stinky foot!”

Chuxi felt a sudden pressure on his back. Julie’s hand was pressing him into Haley’s foot, and it came as no surprise when she began rubbing his helpless body up and down her sole. “Julie! What are you doing?!” Despite the alarm in Haley’s voice, Julie paid her no head. She continued to press Chuxi into the dirty sole, clearly relishing the discomfort she inflicted on him. “Julie, stop!”

Without really seeing it, Chuxi gathered that Haley had grabbed Julie’s wrist and was grappling with her in an attempt to get him out of his predicament. Suddenly, the wall of flesh in front of him vanished, and Chuxi looked up to see Haley glaring at Julie, her eyes like icicles. “Drop him,” she commanded.

For a long moment, nothing happened. The heat from Julie’s hand rose by the second, and perspiration began to form around him. Thankfully, she didn’t squeeze. Then, she released him, and he dropped down to the safety of Haley’s waiting palm.

He hadn’t even landed before he heard Julie’s retreating footsteps. They pounded into the ground in a quick, furious staccato, not unlike an angry child running to her room. Still, the tension he felt in the air was decidedly unlike a prepubescent temper tantrum: it felt like the air was tainted with venom.

A few seconds after the door slammed, Haley finally exhaled. “I’ve never seen her like this,” she said apologetically. “I don’t know what it is, but it seems like she’s a different person lately. I’m really sorry about all of this, but please don’t think too badly of her. Julie can get a little crazy sometimes, but she’s honestly a good person deep down.”

Chuxi gave her a wan smile; he was more tired than anything. “It’s not a big deal, Haley,” he deflected. He knew he was losing a big opportunity to expose Julie’s borderline psychopathic behavior, but the fact that Haley was defending her friend even now made him hesitant. Plus he was really exhausted – he didn’t know if he could slog through such an inevitably intense conversation. “She was just a little drunk – why don’t we wash up and just call it a night?”

“Deal.”

…

Unsurprisingly, Chuxi couldn’t sleep at all that night. When he wasn’t rolling around in his makeshift bed, he suffered from horrible nightmares – predictably, many pairs of gigantic feet haunted him in his dreams.

One particularly vivid dream placed him inside of Haley’s shoe. She had no idea of his presence, and instead she walked around with him trapped beneath her pungent foot while he begged for mercy. This went on for some time before he heard a tremendous voice coming from every direction at once: it was Julie.

“Come on into my shoe, Haley,” she boomed, impossibly loud. In the way of dreams, Chuxi somehow knew that Julie was as huge to Haley as Haley to him, and his friend’s protests confirmed it.

“How did you get like that Julie?” she asked, her fear evident.

“Just crawl under my foot, you little bitch,” Julie snapped, and when the air he breathed became even worse than before, he knew that Haley now experienced his fate as well.

He awoke in a cold sweat.

Breathing heavily, it took him a few moments to gather himself. A quick glance to the side revealed Haley’s massive form, asleep and still. He stared at her for an inordinate amount of time, just drinking in her beautiful face enhanced by moonlight. Her deep, regular breathing soothed his unraveling nerves, but he didn’t want to fall asleep again.

He got up and made the short hop over to Haley’s nightstand, where his iPad lay hooked up to the wall. Not really thinking, he logged onto Facebook and began shamelessly stalking the girl sleeping right next to him. He clung to this shade of normalcy like a shipwrecked sailor to a piece of floating debris. Of course Haley looked beautiful in all of her pictures, but he was surprised by how cheerful and normal Julie looked as well – they really seemed happy together. He would never have guessed what she would do in order to satiate her bizarre fetishes.

Suddenly, he noticed the sound of soft sobbing. It had been going on for some time, he realized, but up until this point he had only registered it subconsciously: Julie was crying. And if he took into account the many walls and feet of distance between them, it became clear that this was the wracking, bitter crying of someone in real distress.

For a while, he just listened, his feelings understandably ambivalent. After everything she’d done to him, why should he care if Julie was upset? Still, he couldn’t quite bring himself to revel in her pain, or whatever it may be. The sobbing continued, like the forlorn cries of a ghost.

Usually he liked to mull things over ad nauseam, carefully weigh and consider each option. This time, though, he surprised himself with a decidedly uncharacteristic impulse decision. It happened so fast, he honestly didn’t realize what he was doing until it was already done. He gazed in a mixture of awe and trepidation at the iPad’s screen, not quite believing what he’d done.

Conversation started today.

Chuxi Zhao: Hi.                                                3:09AM

Unmistakably, he heard the electronic chirp of an incoming message coming from the other room. The sobbing began to abate slightly, before coming to an abrupt stop. A whole minute passed. And then:

Julie Hall: hi                                                     3:11AM

Chuxi had never felt this tense while conducting a Facebook conversation. It felt like Bruce Lee was training inside of his chest cavity; his heart constricted so violently it hurt. Chuxi licked his lips.

Chuxi Zhao: Are you ok?

Mixed emotions warred inside of him, and with each passing moment those emotions intensified. Julie certainly took her time with her responses. They were like two nervous teenagers on AIM.

Julie Hall: yeah. why?

Chuxi Zhao: Oh. It’s just that I can hear you from Haley’s room.

Julie responded immediately this time. While Chuxi had no way of knowing, he thought she might be getting angry.

Julie Hall: its none of your business

Chuxi Zhao: Ok.

Chuxi hit send and then made a running start before leaping back onto Haley’s bed and diving under his makeshift covers, not unlike a child running from the dark after flipping the light switch. He lay there, trying in vain to calm his racing heart, willing his breathing to come in slow, steady intervals. Boy, had he done it this time. If he thought Julie was hard on him before, he couldn’t imagine what new forms of hell she had in store for him. He must’ve been lying there for five minutes when his screen lit up: a new Facebook message.

Julie Hall: its just…

Julie Hall: ive never seen Haley like that

Tentatively, Chuxi crawled back to the iPad, as if he were walking into the gaping maw of some great beast – or really, Julie’s maw, as the case may be. He shook his head vigorously, trying to dispel the terrifying mental image. He chose his next words carefully.

Chuxi Zhao: You want to talk about it?

Chuxi barely breathed at all as he waited for her response. He wasn’t even sure what he hoped for, but this felt like progress; any interaction with Julie – and not her feet – had to be a good thing. Julie was a person, a person with feelings and goals and dreams. Surely she couldn’t turn his attempts at consoling her into another opportunity to humiliate him. With this in mind, he proceeded to commit the unthinkable.

Chuxi Zhao: Why don’t you come over here and get me? We can talk in your room.

He exhaled explosively. This had disaster written all over it.

When he heard the sound of Julie’s door creaking open, all of the strength in his muscles drained out of him as if he was made of jelly. Her decisive footsteps rang through the short hall between the bedrooms, and a second later Haley’s door swung open silently. Chuxi silently cursed her for her scrupulousness: unlike Julie, Haley would never stand for a squeaky hinge.

There she stood, a dark silhouette in a shadowy doorway, and Chuxi felt the sharp sting of regret as he beheld the truest thing to a real and present threat on his life that he’d ever come across. Without speaking a word, Julie strode across the room and snatched him up. Chuxi considered screaming for help, but then decided against it: as scared as he was, he had come this far – he might as well see it through. He made a mental note to remember how he felt in this moment; perhaps his steadfast decision-making would provide him some cold comfort when he was made to lick the filth from between Julie’s toes.

By this point, Chuxi had grown accustomed to traveling in Julie’s grip. The trip back to her room barely registered at all, such was the anxiety he currently felt. He landed in a nerveless heap on the surface of Julie’s desk – a glance behind him revealed their Facebook conversation on the comparatively gigantic screen. It mocked him like an ironic billboard.

That same screen provided the only light in the room, illuminating Julie’s face in pale blue. Her eyes and features took on an otherworldly aspect, an effect accentuated by her inscrutable expression. They stared at each other in this fashion for an indeterminate time – then sparkling moisture began to well in her eyes.

Almost reflexively, Chuxi tried to console her. “Hey,” he said softly. This only made it worse: Julie’s body began to heave with poorly suppressed sobs. He took a different tack: putting on a winning smile, he cracked a joke. “Would it make you feel better if I licked your feet?” Julie began coughing mid-sob, as if his remark had caught her so off-guard that she had aspirated some saliva. Feeling a shift in tone, Chuxi pressed forward. “I bet they smell really bad right now,” he said in a goofy, sing-song voice.

Now Julie began to laugh in earnest, if only for a bit. She actually smiled, a genuine, warm smile – it was the first time Chuxi had ever seen that expression on her. She pressed the palms of her hands into her swollen eyes and heaved a massive sigh.

“I’m so fucking stupid,” she said at last.

Chuxi began to hope. “What do you mean?” he asked gently.

“Haley is my best friend in the whole world.” Her voice quivered. “My only friend; and now she hates me.” Julie could barely get that last part out, and an awkward hiccup punctuated the end. Fleetingly, Chuxi speculated that she was still drunk.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Chuxi said firmly. Even as the words tumbled out of his mouth, he wondered what his end goal was. He pushed the thought out of his mind; best not to think too much about the conversation he was having with a sociopathic dominatrix many times his size. “Haley loves you; she’d forgive you for anything. Hell,” he blurted, “she’d probably forgive you if you stomped me to death right here and now.”

Julie looked at him sharply. He had meant it as a joke, but at some point it dawned on him that he was advocating his own death. He trailed off lamely. Then she laughed, a deep, full laugh from the belly. Blood roared in Chuxi’s ears.

“I don’t understand why you’re being so nice to me,” Julie shook her head ruefully. “After everything I’ve done to you.”

“Oh?” he panned. “In America friends don’t make friends lick their sweaty feet? I thought it was a cultural thing.”

Julie smiled, but it was a sad, timid smile. Chuxi had never seen this side of her before; he felt like an explorer landing on some unknown continent. His life these last few days had just been a shocking development followed by an astounding turn of events followed by an unforeseen twist and more, but Julie’s change in character really took the prize for most unexpected. He fought the urge to pinch himself. “But you really think Haley will still be my friend?” she asked, her voice weakening again. “I just… I really need…” She broke down.

In a flash of intuition, Chuxi suddenly realized that something else was going on. He sensed something deeper and darker beneath, like a great sea monster lurking beneath the waves. “What is it? You can tell me – I mean, I can clearly keep secrets.”

Julie’s disposition deteriorated before his eyes, and she began to shake with quiet, wracking sobs. She sounded so hurt – like an abused puppy. For the first time in a long while, Chuxi felt bigger than someone. With slow, tentative steps, Chuxi walked over to where Julie’s hand rested on the desk, and in as sincere a way as he could manage, he stroked her thumb. He had been in some pretty surreal moments up to this point… but this was another level.

Slowly but surely, Julie pulled herself together, but her expression and voice remained bleak when she spoke again.

“Sushi… I think… I think I…”

“It’s okay… what is it?”

Julie sobbed once more, and her words came out in a thin whisper.

“…I think I was raped.” 

Of course she had, was Chuxi’s first thought. Like when he turned the corner on a particularly difficult physics problem, it all fit into place. Julie had suffered the ultimate indignity, and now she was visiting that same pain on him. While it didn’t completely justify her mistreatment of him, it moved her bizarre behavior into the realm of things that made sense.

A glance upwards revealed his gigantic tormentor in all sorts of distress. Chuxi cast about for something to say that would cheer her up, but ultimately came up empty handed. “I’m so sorry,” he said lamely.

Julie stared ahead blankly, clearly in a different time and place. “I really liked him at first,” she spoke, her voice forlorn. “I first met him freshman year – hard to believe that was almost two years ago.” The words started to pour out of her, still with a raspy edge. “Objectively, he’s gorgeous – unbelievable abs. And those eyes.

“I wasn’t a virgin. I had just broken up with my high school boyfriend when I arrived on campus, so I guess I was ready to jump into something new. My first boyfriend was nothing like him.

“We went on a few dates. I didn’t really know what I was doing, but the fact that he even bothered to take me out to coffee, to the freshman prom, whatever – well, I felt like I was doing it right. We eventually had sex, and I’ll be the first one to admit that it was consensual. It was amazing.

“Maybe too amazing – because we had sex like six times a day, but when I got tired of it, he actually got mad. He said there was something wrong with me, told me I ‘wasn’t normal.’ I didn’t even think it was coercion at the time, exactly. I just of thought he was right and did my best to please him.

“He wasn’t outright oppressive at the start. It was more of a gradual thing. For instance, he would have me blow him after he worked out, but before he showered. He insisted it was ‘better’ immediately post-workout, ‘like a protein shake.’

“It was awful. His cock would be still coated in sweat, and of course he never shaved his pubes. I did it only once or twice a week at first, but then it became an everyday thing, his ‘workout BJ.’ It wasn’t until much later that I let him cum on my face after each one as well. Honestly, I don’t even know how he convinced me – I never thought I’d ever be that girl.

“Shit got progressively weirder after that. One day when we were taking a shower together he asked to piss on me. When I said no he basically exploded, just on the verge of physically violent. I would’ve run away, but by this point he lived in a fraternity and we were naked in one of the communal showers. So I let him piss on my face, and even swallowed a bit of it too. We cuddled in the bed afterwards, and fuck me if I didn’t convince myself that it was all okay.

“It wasn’t until midway through spring semester that I found out he’d been cheating on me. Of course he had. I was devastated, but I let him talk me out of breaking up with him.” Julie snorted. “I gotta hand him that, he really knew how to talk. And somehow he was getting handsomer by the day. Really growing into his body, I guess. And fuck, maybe part of me actually enjoyed being humiliated. Like I was getting some kind of sick thrill from it. I hated myself as much as I hated him.

“He didn’t stop cheating on me, I later found out, and of course the depravity continued. It really became too much when he started with the choking. I don’t know why that in particular. Over the course of a month I’d probably drank gallons of his piss, but I guess something about not being able to breath made me snap.

“I broke up with him finally, just before summer vacation. I still don’t know how I did it. It was then that Haley and I got really close. I mean, we were friends before, but she was really there for me. At some point I just broke down in front of her and told her everything. The best thing about her is that she didn’t judge me for one millisecond. Not one. She urged me to report him, but just the thought of it made me nauseous. There was zero chance I was gonna say something. She didn’t judge me then, either.

“He was abroad the next fall, and the next spring I had an internship off campus. I had finally begun to feel whole again.

“But then we were both on campus over the summer taking classes. I saw him at a party. I wanted to seem cooler, stronger – prove to him that I was past him. None of that mattered. I’m more embarrassed than anything how easy it was for me to hop back into bed with him. I mean, sure he was nice at first – he always is. But something must just be fundamentally wrong with me, like my brain is wired the wrong way.

“When he convinced me to video-tape us fucking, he had me wrapped around his dick for life. I have no idea where that file is, but it’s been pretty much back to how it was for the last few weeks. He probably still cheats on me, and I’m still his ‘cum dumpster.’” Julie took a deep breath. She looked visibly tired. “Haley doesn’t know about anything that happened over the summer.”

They lapsed into silence. Chuxi felt a distinct sensation of horrific claustrophobia, as if the room was being pumped with poison gas. Julie’s account felt like a knife in the chest.

“I’m not trying to justify myself at all, Sushi, but when I saw you under my sock that first day, that disgusting sock that I had just run in for miles, I almost had an orgasm right there. I guess whatever sick pleasure I get from being controlled by him goes both ways. Also, he always hated my feet – somehow that made it even better – so I guess that’s where all the weird feet shit comes from. Sometimes I’d imagine you were him. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry. Really, really sorry.”

Chuxi tried his best to smile, but it was a struggle. He tried to crack another joke, but nothing came to mind. He went with a different tack. “Julie, listen to me,” he said in a deathly serious tone. “I completely, unequivocally, categorically forgive you. As far as I’m concerned, we’re friends, and I’ll always be there for you. Always.”

This didn’t have the intended effect: tears slid down Julie’s cheeks as silent sobs wracked her body. “I don’t… I don’t know what to say. Thank you, Sushi,” she managed. “Thank you so much.” Without warning, she snatched him up and pressed him against her cheek, the closest equivalent to a hug that she could manage. Her cheek was still moist from crying, soaking the makeshift robe Haley had fashioned for him. She drew her hand back, and Chuxi got a close-up view of her movie-screen face. “I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you.”

“Well, you know, I didn’t really do anything.”

“Actually…” suddenly, Julie’s voice went from timid to sultry. Chuxi had almost forgotten how attractive Julie really was, but clearly she hadn’t. The college co-ed knew exactly what her appearance could do. “I think I know just the thing.” Her tongue snaked out from between her lips towards his crotch, which, to his dismay, stood completely erect.

“Hold on, Julie,” Chuxi protested weakly. “I don’t think this is such a good idea.”

“I think it’s a great idea,” she replied huskily, clearly working herself up as well. Chuxi watched helplessly as her tongue parted the front of his robe. When the wet, saliva-coated tip made contact, he groaned involuntarily. It didn’t even necessarily feel that good, but just the idea of what Julie was doing to him profoundly heightened the sexuality of the moment.

“Please don’t,” said Chuxi more firmly, his thoughts turning to Haley. “We shouldn’t.” Abruptly, Julie pulled back. Her expression said it all: how could he reject her? “Please don’t take this the wrong way,” he said, “but I really don’t think this is a good idea.” Julie seemed to deflate before his very eyes, almost as if she, too, was going to shrink. Getting rebuffed like this was probably the last thing she needed; he couldn’t leave her like this – what if she tried to hurt herself? He desperately searched for a way to fix this, but ultimately Chuxi could think of only one solution.

“But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a little fun,” he said slyly, injecting his words with a jovial air. “You know, I’ve kind of been holding back this whole time.” She gave him an inquiring look.  “I’m known from Hong Kong to Beijing for giving the best foot rubs.” Julie’s lips curled up at the corners. “This is a one-time offer though, got it, missy? It’s your last chance to get a piece of this.” He emphasized the last word by pointing at himself with both thumbs. “Whaddaya say?”

“You… you really want to?” Julie asked tentatively, but not totally able to hide how aroused his offer made her.

“Come on,” Chuxi played it off. “What’s a little foot massage between friends?”

Julie gave him a hungry grin, and Chuxi had a flashback to those malicious smirks she gave him all too often. But this one was different. He could see it in her eyes. He had zero doubts. “I’m gonna make you regret saying that,” she said playfully.

“Bring it.”

Chuxi spent the rest of the night at the mercy of Julie’s feet. Sure they smelled awful, particularly after a long night of dancing and walking, but Chuxi didn’t mind. In fact, and he honestly had no idea where the notion came from, but he almost enjoyed it a little – how quickly things change.

Julie wasn’t kidding earlier, either. It started slowly: she raised her feet up onto the desk and he gave her a simple foot rub. She tried to be discreet about it, but Chuxi couldn’t help but notice her hand sliding into her panties.

After a few minutes of that, she snatched him up, crossed one leg over the other, and brought him to her sole. Just before pressing his face into her flesh, she stopped – she was asking his permission! After everything he’d been through, the situation was downright absurd. Although if you got down to it, recently his life had been the definition of absurd. Chuxi could hardly suppress his laughter.

Julie scrunched her nose at him. “What’s so funny?” she growled.

“You wanna make a safe word?” he replied. She gave him a blank look.

“If I say ‘Beijing,’ you gotta stop whatever you’re doing,” he explained. “Otherwise, go for it.”

An ocean of gratitude stood behind Julie’s eyes. “Sushi… you are literally the sexiest person in the world.” Then that erotic expression returned. “Now stick out your tongue.”

He ended up licking practically every inch of her feet that night. When she shoved his head between her big and second toe, she came massively, an incredible, earth-shaking orgasm from both of their perspectives, really. At some point she put him inside her running sneakers and they had a redo of their first sexual encounter. Chuxi could hear the vibrator working away inside her vagina as her sweaty toes hugged him in a noxious embrace. It might have been his imagination, but he noticed decidedly less pressure this time around.

Later, she removed him from her shoe and placed him at her feet. “Worship me,” she ordered, her voice thick with pleasure. He hastily obeyed, kissing and licking her toes. Over the course of the night, their romp involved multiple pieces of her footwear, and her orgasms numbered in the double digits when it was all said and done.

Afterwards, she gave him a bath and thoroughly washed his robe. “Beijing! Beijing!” he shouted when she tried to peek at him naked. She froze instantly, and her fearful expression sent him into peals of laughter.

“Oh my God, you little shit!” she hissed. She made a mock swipe at him, but he was already safely in the tub. She sat on the toilet while he washed up, her eyes carefully averted. “How badly do my feet smell?” she asked suddenly.

“To be honest – really bad,” Chuxi confessed. “Honestly, it’s hard to reconcile someone so beautiful having such stinky feet.”

“You think I’m beautiful?” she asked it like a little girl being complimented for the first time.

“Well, of course,” he replied.

She tried to hide it, but Chuxi definitely saw her blush.

The sun was peeking through the windows when Julie finally stood outside of Haley’s door, Chuxi resting comfortably in her palm. They had exchanged good byes, as if he was going on a long trip, but it looked like Julie had one more thing to say.

“Yes?” Chuxi said archly.

Julie averted her eyes. “I know you’ve got a thing for Haley and all… but…” she returned her gaze back to him, a more familiar mischievous grin on her face. “Let’s just say I’m not giving you up without a fight.”

Chuxi stared at her, stunned. He was at a total loss for words, which only caused her smile to broaden.

 “And let’s face it – we fucked first.”