What happened the night prior was probably something that would have happened to anyone in my situation.  As much as we like to convince ourselves otherwise, the world is a scary and dangerous place.  We don’t give credit because we don’t want to, but there are so many accidents, killings, injuries, and more happening every single day.  The entire world is a walking death-trap just waiting to spring, whether you slip and crack your skull on the side of your bath or get bit in the garden by a poisonous snake.  The world isn’t danger-proof, no matter how many precautions you take. 

When you’re the size of a doll, it’s even more reinforced.  Not even considering all of the dangers I just mentioned, how dangerous would it be to be on your own at doll-size?  A puppy finding a chew toy in you would lightly chew at you for play and you’d be bleeding with more holes than a victim of a school shooting.  Slip and fall down a concrete step and you could instantly have one less limb.  Even the slightest movement could be disastrous for you.  No one could blame me for clinging to Hiroshi that night. 

The next day proceeded much like the previous day, with the exception of a life-threatening fall.  I woke in her hands, sitting at the kitchen table, that same smile looking down at me.  There was food ready for breakfast, chopped up small enough for me to eat.  It was all very soft, fluffy foods.  Almost a repeat of the same meal from the night before happened again with me indulging in the food until I felt like I was about to pop.  After that, we went for a bath, completely void of the forceful, sexual aspect the last bath had in it.  Thank goodness, too.  The last time I’d taken a bath with her, she’d made me smaller.  I didn’t think I could take that again, whether she was being nice to me or not. 

After we took a bath, she took me back into the bed room and set me down on the floor as she sat in front me of.  Her legs came around me as she sat in an indian-style form.  It was almost like a small fence moving around me.  I didn’t see her feet, but her legs came up to about my chest.  I could see over them like a fence, other than when I was looking back towards her.  She, clearly, looked as tall as a house, even while sitting down.  She just smiled, again, staring down at me before finally speaking.  It was almost like she just got caught up in staring at me that she wanted to stay that way. 

“You can play or run around for exercise while you’re in there, little one.  You don’t have to worry.” 

I looked up to her as she spoke that and then looked around.  It was true.  The area I was in was actually fairly lengthy.  Whenever someone sits indian-style, you never really imagine a lot of open space between your legs.  The way she sat, though, I had about a small room’s capacity of space.  I could easily do exercise here, if I wanted to.  Even if I wanted to job around the border around her legs.  Not that I really felt like exercising and running at that moment, but I guess she thought I might.  I ended up just sitting down, leaning against the outer edge of her leg that was on top of her foot.  I could feel the two separate parts behind me.  Her heel for about half my body’s height, and then a crease to where her leg was on top of it. 

As I sat there, I started to feel something through the floor.  It was shaking, but only slightly.  It didn’t feel like something fell.  Just a sort of buzzing through the floor.  I felt around and eventually I heard it too.  It sounded kind of like buzzing.  Not like a bee, of course, but more like the buzzle you feel through the ground when you’re in a workshop and start using a drill.  I thought about what it may have been.  I had no idea.  I listened closer and eventually realized it had a pattern to it.  It would buzz for a couple seconds, stop, and then start again.  Always the same length of time.  Always the same feeling. 

I looked up to Hiroshi and asked her what it was.  Surely she could hear it too, even if just barely.  As soon as I said it, she looked around.  First to the right, where a closet was, paying a little close attention to it.  Then to other areas of the room.  Her gentle smile disappeared for a moment as she spoke.  But she looked back at me and shrugged her shoulders. 

“I don’t hear anything at all.  Don’t worry about it, little one.  Just sit there and relax here with me.  I’m sure it’s nothing at all.” 

A few minutes went by, and I stopped hearing it.  Was it just my imagination?  Or was it something else?  It was so subtle, but so familiar to me.  My mind was at a loss.

----------------

Rebecca stood by the front door of the house and just stood there, looking out the door.  She stared out, intently, as if expecting or hoping to see something coming.  In fact, she was.  She was very much hoping to see someone coming: me.  She stared out the window with an unchanging gaze.  In her left hand, she tightly gripped her cell phone and in her right, she was pressing against the wall.  She was dressed in a robe, clearly having just gotten out of bed. 

Then her phone buzzed and it caught her gaze.  She pulled it up into view and saw that she’d received a new text message.  She opened it and recognized it as a co-worker. 

“Hey, Becks.  How are you doing?  Talk to me when you get here today. -  Boss”

Rebecca just stared down at her phone and closed the message.  Letting out a sigh, she started going back and forth through her contacts.  She had to call someone.  There was a lot on her mind and she was going to call someone.  Eventually, she came upon the contact she was looking for.  She tapped it and put the phone to her ear.  She could hear the dial tone go through and then a few rings. 

“Come on, honey.  Please pick up…”

It was unknown to me at the time, but she was trying to call me.  I had been gone for a few days now, and it was very unlike me to just not show up at home.  Where else would I go, anyways?  She just stood there, waiting for the phone to pick up, and it eventually went to my voicemail.  Her grip on the phone tightened as she started to get a sad look on her face.  She questioned whether or not to leave a message or not. 

So, she eventually recorded a message and lowered her phone again, a tear running down her face.  She then continued to stare out the window.  She knew she needed to get ready to go to work soon.  But, deep down, she just wanted to keep staring out that window.  As she began to move away, she sighed to herself again. 

“It’s been several days now.  Where is he?  What should I do?”

As she spoke these things to herself, she started to go back and get dressed, another stressful day ahead of her…