The remainder of Tanner's night was plagued by cycles of unconsciousness and awakening. Over and over again he had dreams of himself trying to stand up to Marcelle and midway he'd start to shrink. She'd smirk, holding her hand to her ear saying she can't hear him all the way down there and then playfully lift him up to her face and the dream would end with her laughing as he infinitely shrunk into her palm.

No later than after the sun came to a complete rise Blair came bursting through Blake's door already looking energetic enough of someone who has been up for several hours already.

“Guys it's terrible!” She announced. Naturally Tanner stepped out of his house and a half dazed Blake stumbled out of her bed at the matriarch's commotion.

“Julie called and said she was going to pick up Tanner in the afternoon.” Her statement woke Blake up completely.

“So soon!?”

Abel walked in scratching his head at the two overreacting women. Tanner was in the same boat of confusion at his unexpected popularity. “Girls you knew he was going to have go back home eventually right?”

Both Blake and Blair tuned him out. “We have to go somewhere special!” Blake said.

“Should we go to the movies?” Blair suggested.

“Booooring.”

“Oh wait, I know we can go to the pool at the gym!” Blair suggested again.

“A pool?” Tanner parroted.

Blake was on board with that idea. “Heck yeah, it'll be awesome.”

“Yeah, but that sounds awfully... public.” Tanner added.

“Actually it's usually pretty dead on Sunday. If we left now at this hour I bet, we'd be the only ones there.” Abel explained.

Tanner looked to Blair and Blake who both were already sporting there. “Please don't make us beg for you to come with us.”, faces that he swore had some magical power to make him agree to anything. For once though he required no additional convincing and wanted to go forward confidently as he learned from Blake last night. “Let’s do it.”

In a half hour everyone was downstairs and ready to go out. Most shockingly 'everyone' included Gail. Whether it was of her own volition or if one of her parents made her go was unknown to Tanner, it was clear though she was along for the ride. He wanted to say something to her, but she stood off away from the group and walking past him without so much as a word. The worst of it was in the car where Blake, Gail, and himself (in Blake's lap) were in the backseat. Tanner tried to mind his own business, but always took quick glances over at the quiet girl who had her head buried in a book.

So this is what the cold shoulder feels like...

Abel was proven mostly correct when they entered the gym, aside from the lone receptionist that greeted them and two people on treadmills the gym was empty. Abel secluded himself at the weight section while the girls took Tanner to the pool.

To Blake and Blair's glee they were the only people there. “Open pool!” Blake announced, tossing away her clothes to her swimming shorts and top that lied underneath and heading right on in. Having no swimming attire of his own Tanner settled with disrobing to his boxers and following after Blake into the pool.

“Tanner you can swim!?” Blake asked, suspecting that she was going to have to help him somehow by finding something for him to float on.

“Hey, I don't bathe in sinks all the time without learning a thing or two.” While far from a NCAA swimmer, after fumbling around in the sink enough when taking baths he eventually managed to teach himself how to stay afloat and maneuver around the water with decent proficiency.

Last but not least Blair disrobed into what was nothing short of a full bikini that left little to the imagination and showed off as much of her proud body as legally possible. “Not bad for a mature woman huh?” She flaunted, rotating briefly admiring her own figure.

“Uh...” Tanner submerged himself up to his cheeks so she wouldn’t see his flustered face. It was a good thing Blair couldn't read minds because the honest answer was that he was completely mesmerized looking at the mighty canvas of her 6'0 body that was almost entirely nude barring her breasts and crotch. If she wasn't already vain beyond comprehension, he may have been willing to inform her that if she stopped fretting about her age for 10 seconds she’d notice that she'd still easily have 90 percent of men wrapped around her finger at the drop of a hat. It’d be disingenuous not to include Blake in that description too, though more modest than her Mom she was at the unfortunate high school age where most guys were still too immature to look past her overwhelming height.

It almost felt taboo for him to think of them in such ways when he considered Blake as another sister and Blair an aunt. Putting that aside and looking past their eccentricities it was undeniable that they were both stunning; statuesque, beautiful, and strong. All traits that made for jaw-dropping women, that most ordinary or insecure men wouldn't appreciate. Of course he’d have to deal with them teasing him relentlessly if he ever admitted it to them.

“Mature woman? Is that your way of saying old?” Blake answered.

“Excuse me!? You're going to wish you looked like this when you're my age and after having two kids! Do you know what that does to a woman's vag-”

“Gross!”

“Hmph.” Blair grunted before entering the water. “Gail are you going to come in?”

“No.” She bluntly responded, settling for resting her feet in the water while she continued reading her book. Compared to her Mom she was dressed far more conservatively in a pair of black swimming trunks and a compression shirt that hugged her small frame.

Now that she was in the water Blair wasted no time swimming over to her daughter for her back talk. As they squared up Tanner was left in an unenviable no man’s land between the two mountainous women. In terms of sheer size and the watery setting it'd make for a convincing face-off between sea monsters. He was morbidly curious to who would win that battle if they went at it, that is only if he wasn't in the crossfire.

“Wait! The rules say no horse-playing.” He yelled out, pointing to the rules sign.

Both of them stopped to take a glimpse at the sign before staring back down to Tanner who thought he might have been better off keeping his mouth shut. He was right about the rule, however with no one on duty to enforce it as far as the towering gals were concerned the only rule in effect was free for all.

“Does that include splashing too?” Blake smirked running her hand through the water and sending a wave Tanner’s way. Bracing himself he closed his eyes and held his breath as it came and sent him back several feet, it would be a surfers dream come true to be his size and have someone able to produce spontaneous waves on the spot.

After regaining his equilibrium, it was time to retaliate. “Very funny, two can play that game!” Tanner performed the same motion as Blake, though he was reminded in an instant that her size gave her a distinct advantage in the amount of water force she could generate. Compared to what Blake dished out to him, a drop of rain would’ve the same effect that Tanner had delivered just now. Blake grinned wider seeing Tanner’s epiphany that he was easy pickings for her fun.

“Um, time-out?” Tanner was about to brace himself for a second barrage until Blair intervened splashing her daughter in the face.

“Hey, no fair!” Blake complained after being sneak attacked.

“That’s for calling me old!”

Blake was playing around with Tanner before; with her Mom having jumped in from the fray the kid gloves were off. They were tossing water in each others faces nonstop and weren't likely to stop until someone gave up, Gail from the sidelines sighed at their childishness and stepped away before they got herself or her book wet.

Tanner knew he was way out of his league thinking he could hang with the two amazons engaged in a watery war and tried to swim away from the action. With as much distance as he covered it still didn't compare to the explosive motions of the two athletic behemoths, soon Blair abandoned all splashing mayhem to full on shoulder tackle Blake into the water and the resulting impact produced enough ripples in the water to send Tanner away.

The good news was that he was unhurt, however that collision made him drift farther away than he would've liked. More troubling though was the fact they were both too riled up to notice that two young women had made their way to the pool. Tanner glanced over and back at the two college aged girls who were chatting to each other and at the rough-housing mother and daughter who were in their own world. It would've been arduous, time consuming, and possibly dangerous to try and swim back over to them while they were tussling. On the flip side though, the girls undressed and looked ready to enter the pool in very close proximity to his floating location. He could only imagine the trouble and turmoil that’d ensue if they noticed a 3-inch guy floating around in the water.

Tanner wanted more time to think his options over but the girls jumping and splashing into the pool made him have to adapt on the spot as the impact of their landing plunged him deep underneath the water. He tried to make the best of the situation to try and swim back over to his party, being right under the girls though was a crippling detriment that left him like a gerbil on a wheel. He could never get far enough away to be unaffected by their movement. Every motion made by their submerged lower bodies continually juggled him wayward from his destination. He was also sure his undergarments slipped right off of him as result, but more troubling was the fact he needed to come up for air.

“What the hell is that?” A girl with short blond hair pinned up in a bun asked, seeing an item floating at the surface and fished it out into her palm.

.“They look like little boxers?” Her companion who possessed longer dark brown hair that she wore down inspected. By virtue of sheer luck they were distracted by the boxers while Tanner emerged to replenish his lungs. His luck ended when the blonde noticed his presence before he dived back under.

“Hey, there's something behind you.” She said.

Tanner was frozen in place in paranoia, unsure of whether he should make a wild dash away from them or not. Granted, it's not like he had good odds of out swimming two fully sized people.

“Is that some kind of toy?” The brunette asked as she looked behind her.

They think I'm a toy? Thinking fast on his feet, Tanner played along with their initial assumption as the brunette drew closer and scooped him out of the water into her hand. It was a panic reaction that seemed better than whatever response he anticipated they may have to what he was in reality, the caveat now though was that he'd have to remain utterly still or the whole facade was out the window.

The blonde swam over closer to her friend to get a closer look as well. “A toy? Complete with a dick and balls?”

“Well I didn’t say it was a kids toy.” The brunette added.

Don’t move, don’t move, don’t move, don’t move. Tanner repeated this mantra to himself like his life depended on it. Making any sudden motions right now would only make them freak the fuck out and what would happen from there is anyone's guess. He kept his breathing to the shallowest increments and through sheer grit and determination kept himself from blinking, shaking, and any other nervous reaction.

“I can't believe how life-like they've made it.” The brunette said as she started probing all over his body with her pointer finger. She was gentle for the most part, but a few of her pokes were a tad rougher and caused Tanner to grunt, he kept it low enough for them not to notice. The brown haired lass continued her test of authenticity at his lower region and began to prod and rub at his genitals.

Oh you gotta be kidding me. Tanner lamented and bit on his gums, every time he felt an involuntary response he kept biting down, soon enough his gums started to bleed in his attempt to use pain to block the stimulation that the young woman was unwittingly providing. As valiant as his efforts were, it was a done deal as soon as an iota of blood headed downstairs and seconds after his entire manhood sprung to attention.

“Holy crap, it can even get a boner!?” The blonde noted.

The brunette was puzzled. “That’s dumb, what the heck are you supposed to do with a boner that small?”

Gee thanks, asshole. Tanner thought to himself.

“Maybe you’re supposed to stick the whole toy in yourself?” The blonde speculated.

“Why not just buy a dildo? They have shit that's way bigger than this thing.”

“I knew a girl in my class one time who was into tiny dudes. If business class taught me anything, it's that there's a market for EVERYTHING.”

“You think it may vibrate too?” The brunette inquired.

“Where would you even put the batteries in it?”

“I bet I know.” The brunette answered.

No, you really don’t know. Tanner was almost in total panic and almost ready to drop the charade when the girl flipped him over onto his backside. He didn't think much of it at first until every hair on his body spring to life from the astonishment of her finger that she started prying with to gain access into his butt.

“Jesus Christ, do they want me to lube my finger just to get it in there or something?” The brunette complained, thinking her digit was too large to fit inside what she thought was Tanner's battery chamber.

“Try harder.” The blond suggested.

Screw this, the gig is up!

“…Can I have that back?”

The two girls turned to face the person talking to them and pointing right at the ‘toy’ in the brunette's hand. Though he didn't turn to look, Tanner recognized the voice belonging to Gail.

“Oh this little guy was yours? Sorry, we were just wondering how it worked.”

Gail heard some of their comments from afar and their assumptions of what Tanner was. Which was the very reason why Gail’s face was rose red since as far as they knew she was asking for the return of a sex toy.

“We found his boxers too.” The blonde said. “Where'd you even get it anyway?

“...Amazon.” She simply answered trying to keep the talking at a minimum. “So can I have him- it please?” She quickly corrected herself.

“Hey, we understand go do your thing.” The brunette winked as she deposited Tanner into Gail's hands and the blonde returning his boxers. With that at an end Gail scurried away into the bathroom and into the first empty stall.

Finally in a safe spot Tanner relaxed his tense body and took deep breaths; his nerves were shot after having to keep a poker face for longer than he ever has. “That was…an experience.”

“Are you alright?” Gail asked.

“Surprisingly yes.”

Gail stood up and was prepared to leave. “Let’s get you back to my mom and sister then.”

Her suddenness left Tanner flabbergasted and despite the oddity of the circumstances it did yield a chance for them to talk that he couldn’t pass up. “G-Gail wait.”

“You don’t have to thank me.”

“It’s not that, um are you mad at me?”

Gail stopped in place when he asked. “About the Ingrid thing? No. Who am I to judge you if that’s how you feel?”

“I thought, I may have messed up and you didn’t want to be friends anymore.”

Gail’s face softened as she considered how distant she acted. “…I guess I was sort of ignoring you. I’ve never liked anyone before and didn’t know how to talk to you after yesterday.”

Tanner was instantly relieved after hearing that and glad he didn’t ruin one of the first friendships he’s made in who knows how long.

“I’m sorry for what I said about Ingrid, I know she’s an important person to you. I haven't given up, but I'll still be a good friend and support you.”

“I appreciate that.” Tanner smiled.

“Do you think she likes you back?”

“I guess there’s only one way to find out.” He sighed. “Love is hard.”

“It is.” She replied. “Almost as hard as you.” She added at the end, a small smirk appearing at the corner of her lips.

“Is that supposed to be some kind of innuendo?” Tanner asked at the hint of some sort of sexual context that he didn’t expect to hear from her.

“You may want to put your boxers back on.” She clarified. Once she said that Tanner grasped what she meant and looked down at his still erect cock and held his hands over his privates.

“I- um. oh.” He stammered, too flustered to say anything else. Gail covered her mouth and giggled quietly.

Back outside Blair and Blake were trying to be as inconspicuous as possible as they inspected the pool, having finally ceased there squabbling for long enough to realize that Tanner wasn't near them anymore.

“How could you have possibly lost him?!” Blake chastised her mother.

“Me!?” Blair rebuked. “You were the one who started it all!”

“Did not!”

“You wanna go for round 2!”

“What are you two doing?” Gail asked at her family members who were about to lose sight of their objective.

They turned to look at her and the tension dissolved in an instant to see Tanner safe in her hand.

“It was a good thing he wasn't in any danger.” Gail rolled her eyes wondering why she had to be the responsible one among her two elders.

“It wouldn't have happened if you didn't call me old.” Blair huffed at Blake.

“Says the one coming to a pool in a beach bikini.” Blake countered. Just like that the two looked ready to lock horns again

“Don't you think that's enough action for today?” Gail sighed.

“Fine.” Blair and Blake simultaneously said, staring daggers at one another.

Shenanigans and all, the group ended up spending more time at the gym than intended and didn't have much time to do much else aside for waiting for Julie's arrival. Gail and Tanner waited downstairs, while the others were upstairs getting his stuff in order.

“...Do you think you'll be able to visit again?” Gail's eyes drifted back and forth as she summoned the fortitude to ask.

“If Ivory puts me off of house arrest we'll see.” Tanner responded truthfully.

“...Blake visits you guys a lot, if you don't mind..can I come see you too?”

“Like you even need to ask.” Tanner smiled giving her a thumbs up.

Moments later as anticipated Julie knocked on the door and was greeted in by Gail.

“Holy crap, you're still alive.” Julie's tone had a mixture of sarcasm and genuine surprise that he survived in the household of high octane people.

“Or you could be senile and be seeing my ghost right now.” Tanner offered as an alternative viewpoint.

“Wouldn't be the strangest hallucination I've had.” Julie replied, briefly thinking back to the drugs she tried back in her college days. In a heartbeat after Julie came in, Blake and Blair nearly tripped on the stairs as they rushed down to the front door to say bye, followed by Abel.

“Take care of yourself Tanner, I'll try to keep those two out of trouble.” He laughed, giving Tanner a fist bump.

“You're going to have your work cut out on that one.” Tanner replied.

The ever expressive Blair barged her way to the forefront and picked up Tanner right from off the hallway table and bear hugged him right into her chest, erratically rocking him back and forth. “Tanner we're going to miss having you so much!” She whined and lifted him straight up to plant a big wet one right one his face.

Tanner half-hardheartedly laughed and wiping his face with his shirt. “I'll uh, miss you too but relax you're acting like you'll never see me again.” He said, shaking his head clear of the cobwebs after being shaken.

“Oh I know dear, but you're practically part of the family!”

“Lemme see him, it's my turn!” Blake announced plucking Tanner right out of her Mom's hands and into her own. While more subdued than her, she still nuzzled him to her cheek. “It was so great having you over, I'll be sure to bug Ivory everyday to let you stay over again!” Similar to her Mom, Blake released him to give him a more reserved kiss on his cheek, granted it still covered most of the side of his face.

“I'm going to need another shirt at this rate.” Tanner said wiping his face again.

“I'm sorry, I have a little sister already.” Blake said pulling in Gail by the shoulder pulling her into her much larger body. “But, I've always wanted a little brother to complete my set.” She beamed looking back and forth at her much smaller younger sister in her arm, and the tiny little brother she never had in her hand.

“You're such a weirdo.” Gail attempted to sound aloof, though a trace of a smile still appeared on her face. “I want to hold him too for a second.”

Blake obliged handing him off to her younger sister. As soon as she did, Gail quickly leaned in to give him a fast peck on his forehead. This one left Tanner speechless, despite being much more restrained than Blake and Blair, he expected the dramatic shows of affection from the latter two. Seeing even a fraction of it from Gail though caught him off guard.

“Don't give me that look, think of it as a...” Gail twirled a stand of her hair “Good luck kiss.”

This time neither Abel nor Blair ruined the moment, Blake however was a different story.

“Hold up, so do you like Tanner or something?” She asked.

Gail looked away. “...Shut up.”

“You lot are an interesting bunch.” Julie stated with no traces of sarcasm, but as an honest assessment.

“I hope I can see you all soon.” Tanner waved as Gail passed him along to his last destination to Julie.

“You ready to go back home?” She asked.

Tanner nodded. As ready as I'll ever be.