After that everyone had their breakfast, chatting amicably, the group split: Chloe, Laura, me and Reed decided to spend some time playing Mario Kart on the TV (we had to struggle a bit linking everything properly, but we succeeded in the end), while Rob with Alexis stayed in their own room, as Mike and Rachel were in their other.

Alexis had woken up alone, still feeling the lingering heat that Laura’s petite body had left behind under the sheets.

For a moment she panicked, not knowing what the younger girl could have been up to, but was extremely relieved to see her hinting a smile, while she was talking with me. 

Now with the accident apparently behind them for good, she wanted to relax a bit with Rob.

She closed the door behind her, with her tiny roommate sitting in her open palm, and sighed “I’m so happy that in the end there was no bad blood between us”.

Rob chuckled “You seriously underestimate us. There is no way that we would hate you for something so meaningless” he paused, as she sat on the chair in front of her desk “Well, that’s true especially for Will”

“What do you mean?” Alexis asked, gently placing him on the desk in front of her, laying down her comparatively massive head onto her arms, her head slightly tilted.

The tiny stood for a second in awe, staring at the beautiful face looming upon him, then cleared his throat and answered “Well, ehm, i mean… i’m pretty sure he never resented anybody in his whole life. At this point i don’t even think he’s capable of resenting someone”

Alexis raised her eyebrows, surprised, and asked “Not even… the people who hurt him?”

Rob shook his head with convinction “Nope. Whenever he was hurt in one way or the other, he always found the fault in himself or in how he acted”

He clenched his fists, and looked away frowning “Even when he didn’t do anything wrong”

After a second, he continued “It’s one of the many reasons i admire him. And at the same time one of the reasons i think he’s beyond help at this point”

He then turned back to her giant roommate, smiling “So, i don’t think he would hate Laura even if she ripped his arms off!”

Alexis’ expression stiffened for a second, then relaxed, and exhaled “That’s a relief. You’re lucky to have such a good guy around”

Rob smirked “Don’t tell me you fell for him already. I’m sorry but as his manager, i must inform you that my client is already busy in getting to know better Miss Laura”

The giant girl giggled, and nudged him a bit with her finger, playfully “That would be bad news, wouldn’t it? Luckily for you, that’s not the case. By the way, did you miss me much this night?”

As Rob fought back laughing her prodding digits, she recalled the time when she actually fell for someone for the first time…

————

… It was quite a few years ago, when the young Alexis was still fourteen years old. She was returning from the supermarket to get some groceries to bring home, and it was a cold winter evening, with the sun on its last legs.

Since males were non-existent in the normal-sized society, there was nothing to be afraid of and it was common for girls of even younger age to stroll around at random times. One of the perks of this peculiar society, i suppose.

She walked absent-mindedly on the sidewalk, watching her boots making shallow imprints in the very thin layer of snow that had just fallen a few minutes before. She was absorbed in thought, trying to predict what would her mother cook for dinner, basing on the list of things to buy she was given. 

She almost didn’t notice the tiny trail on the snow that was going perpendicularly to the sidewalk, until she was basically on top of it.

The young Alexis blinked twice, freezing in place: her raised foot, with the heel already digging in the snow, was currently hiding the point where the line made by the trail interrupted suddenly. She slowly shifted the boot, only to discover a tiny figure, covered in rags and laying in a fetal position.

With a gasp, she realized this was the first time she had seen a tiny in the flesh, and took a step back for the surprise. If she hadn’t noticed him in time a few moments before, he would have been most likely flattened beneath her boot.

Alexis looked around, confused, both to make sure nobody was watching or looking for him, then she approached him again and put down her plastic bags, crouching.

Looking at him more closely, she noticed he was definitely unconscious, and pretty skinny. But what scared her the most was the fact that his skin was starting to turn blue, so she carefully picked him up, placing on her warm gloved hands, and tried to warm him up with her humid breath.

When she felt like it was enough, she looked around again, and quickly pushed him into one of the pockets of her winter coat, and removed the glove to try and warm him more with her body heat, clutching his helpless form.

Then she grabbed the bags she had put down with her free hand an hurried home.

When she entered, exclaiming “moom, i’m home!”, she quickly and awkwardly removed her boots with her only free hand, as the other was still tucked inside the pocket to keep its tiny inhabitant safe. Then she padded to the kitchen, leaving the bags on the table, and bolted to her bedroom. 

Just as she was about to close the door, she heard her mom say “Alex, why do you still have your coat on? You know that i don’t like when you don’t put it in place!”

“I know mom, i’m still a bit cold, i swear i’ll put it back later!” She answered, and closed the door behind her. 

She sighed deeply. Now she had done it. It was illegal for tinies to stay there, and she just brought one home! Did she just put herself in trouble? Was she going to be yelled at?

Alexis shook her head, as if to drive away these worries. No, she did the right thing, it was clearly in trouble, and she only needed to keep him hidden. If they discovered him, she would just play dumb and say she mistook him for a little bird!

She excitedly extracted him from the pocket and placed him on her pillow, and finished to change into her pajamas.

Then she filled a bottle cap with water, and ripped a little piece from her tissues, and placed them to either side of the unconscious tiny figure.

Finally, she laid prone on the bed, supporting her head with her palms and her bare feet swaying restlessly in the air, waiting excitedly for him to wake up.

Now, in her room, the light was much better than outside, so she could observe him more accurately.

Even if it was the first time she saw a male in the flesh, she could say it was approximately her age, with blonde and mid-length hair.

His complexion now looked much better, thankfully devoid of the bluish shade he had before. 

Fascinated, she carefully poked him, studying his tiny body, trying to move him as little as possible, even if a few minutes before she was carrying him around in her closed fist.

As she cautiously touched his face, trying to move out of the way the hair that partially hid his face, he stirred a bit, causing her to jerk back her hand, her heart rate spiking in anticipation and excitement.

The tiny slowly opened his eyes, blinking a bit, apparently trying to adjust his sight to the bright light. As he was finally focused on Alexi’s beaming face, he let out a yelp of surprise, skittering away from her, terrified.

“Hey hey, you have nothing to fear, you’re safe here” the young Alexis cooed, cutting off all too easily his escape route with one of her massive arms.

The sudden movement frightened even more the tiny who had just woken up, and he just froze up, not knowing where to go, jerking his head to watch her looming hand, then her face, then her hand again, then her face… Wait a minute.

“Are you… you’re not the same lady that caught me, are you?” He finally managed to speak, still on high alert.

The giant girl looked at him with a puzzled expression “I didn’t catch anyone though? I just found you lying in the middle of the street. What happened to you?”

However, the tiny boy still seemed suspicious, still curled up and clutching the rags he wore, looking at her with a frightened expression.

Alexis smiled in the most reassuring way possible “Don’t worry, as i said before, you can trust me, i’m your friend!” 

The little blondie gulped and nodded, and started talking “I was just scavenging for food near the wall when a giant blonde woman casually walked over it, saw me and snatched me up, putting me in a bag.

I was terrified but eventually i found a hole in the fabric, and tried to tear it wider until it was big enough for me to pass through it. 

I remember hearing the woman saying that she was going to have fun with me tonight, but i was so scared that i only wanted out so i squeezed myself out and fell onto the snow. 

She didn’t notice me and walked away, so i remained alone out there. I roamed around for a bit, then i heard something approach, and then… i think a shadow fell over me… and i think i passed out, i don’t remember anything beyond that”

Then he fell silent. 

Alexis imagined that the shadow he saw must have been the bottom of her boot. He was lucky that wasn’t the last thing he would have seen…

She shushed these dark thoughts, and whispered “well i’m sorry to hear that, but you’re safe now. ”

He looked down, uncomfortable.

The giant girl pressed on “So, do you want me to bring you back? I can carry you to your family”

He muttered back “I.. don’t have a family”

She looked saddened “Oh… i’m so sorry, i didn’t know. Forgive me”

He finally looked at her in the eyes, surprised. Why would one of the giantesses ask him to forgive her? It didn’t make sense. Based on the stories he heard, they only came to ravage, kidnap and kill. So why was this girl so nice to him?

Before he could answer, a loud voice thundered just behind the door, causing Alexis to jolt and try to hide the tiny boy, who was suddenly smothered under a warm and damp palm

“Alex, i thought i told you to put your coat on the rack! Why isn’t it there yet?”

“I… I was just going to do that Mom!” Alexis lied back.

Then she slowly raised her hand, peeking under it to see a very confused tiny boy. Conversely, the boy saw a flustered and blushing giant girl. They looked at each other, and suddenly, began to giggle at the same time. 

It felt like something finally falling into place, just seeing this little slice of normalcy, was enough for the tiny to completely trust her. 

He couldn’t really explain it, it was a gut feeling.

Eventually, they started to talk and chat, and learned a lot from each other. The tiny’s name was Ryan, and he was just a year younger than Alexis. Within the evening, he had already agreed to stay with her, having nobody to wait for him at home.

They talked, and talked, and laughed, for the day after, the day after that, and in a flash a year had passed. 

Many things had happened, from all the times he was almost discovered by her mom, or when he almost went down the drain as she washed him, or all the times she caught him peeking at her when she changed.

Eventually, they both admitted their mutual feelings, and felt the joy of a young love.

However, that happiness was not meant to last