Reviewer: It Was Me Signed [Report This]
Date: July 03 2025 10:06 AM Title: Chapter 40 - Life is Cool by the Pool

These last two chapters have been amazing!

Seeing Ben and Angie dive so deeply into their relationship so soon has been a bit intense, and I mean that in a good way! From them throwing the L-word around to Ben climbing/rubbing up and down Angie's body to the pet names, you wouldn't think that these two have been an item for less than a day. I'm really enjoying seeing these two together!

Speaking of that suntan lotion scene, that was actually more sensual than I was expecting out of this story, so I was pleasantly surprised when I read it! I think you did a good job of giving us a clear picture of the scene and making it sexy yet keeping enough particular descriptions out of it to keep in line with your PG rating. Yeah, I would have loved to have heard more intimate details about Angie's body (especially those legs!), but this story is more on the wholesome side, so I came away from this scene grateful that you put it in rather than disappointed that we didn't get more. Nicely done!

And that trunk changing scene, with Angie playing dress-up with him? So good! I liked her playfulness at seeing him naked, especially since Ben had been all over her body even before that point. He may not have seen her naked, but I still think turnabout is fair play here! But man, Ben admitting that feeling like a doll was a good thing in that instance was actually really sweet! He doesn't mind being Angie's little dolly!

Backtracking to the previous chapter, though. Ben climbing onto Angie's face to give her that kiss melted my heart! And Angie wanting to be awake for it next time to enjoy it properly made me smile, too. As did Angie returning the favor!

It was cool to see Angie and Ben bury the hatchet with Sabrina. She was so cool about him being tiny; when she first showed up, I thought for sure she was going to try to grab him or something. Once she found out it was him at Tiny Treatments, I just assumed that she would feel manipulated and be upset about it. But Ben's complete honesty and emotional vulnerability won Sabrina over in a convincing way, and she accepted that his advice that day had been legitimate.

I also liked that Sabrina seemed concerned that Ben might still be tiny for Regionals. She didn't seem to think at all about the advantage that might give her team, instead worrying about her new friend possibly missing it. This made sense to me for two reasons: She's not nearly as icy as she used to pretend to be, and the competitor in her wants to go against the best at their best, and a tiny Ben probably isn't him at his best (then again, tiny him seems to be winning a lot of people over already, so maybe her teasing about getting sympathy from the judges might prove true).

It also made sense to me that Angie struggled to get along with Sabrina at first. Despite what Ben told her and Sabrina clearly putting in an effort, that rivalry mode can be hard to turn off in your brain sometimes. Actually, this kind of backs up what she said in the newer chapter about possibly giving him a hard time if she had found out Ben's secret on her own. That was a hard admission for her to make, I'm sure, but at least that validates Ben's decision to keep quiet about it for as long as he did.

I love Rosa! She's so sweet and considerate, and she has that almost motherly quality to her, even if she's not trying to fill that role. The way she "embarrassed" Angie by telling Ben the PowerPoint story was classic mom stuff, even if it was also sad. Because yeah, how fucked up is it that she had to master PowerPoint and chart her academic process in ELEMENTARY SCHOOL just to hold her parents' attention for a bit? I know Rosa said they're all good people, but honestly, Angie's parents don't sound like they're good people.

But yeah, Rosa giving Ben some insight into his new girlfriend was such a great little scene. It was cool to see Ben truly be curious about the reality of Angie's life growing up instead of just judging her by the outdoor kitchen and the hedge-walls surrounding it, which I feel like a lot of people would just do. So kudos to Ben for having an open mind and for Rosa for realizing the truth during her 11 years with the family.

One thing I'm wondering about is why Ben hasn't thought to tell his friends about his situation yet. I know he's got a lot going on and is ... distracted by Angie in that bikini, but I figured he would reach out to at least Morgan by now and that they would all be blowing up his phone trying to get the scoop on what happened with the big confession (although I can see why Morgan maybe wasn't in a rush to do that). I thought before that Tiny Treatments had a small device that let him access his phone (or did I misunderstand what Kimberly was saying when she brought him his big phone during Angie's last appointment?).

Either way, I think they're not going to be too happy about not hearing about Ben's ... condition yet, especially Morgan. "Yeah Ben, I said maybe don't tell me about Angie and you for a while, but you being tiny? I need to know about that!" I'm guessing that she'll probably be the one to take over watching Ben when Angie's parents get back Sunday night.

Like I said, these chapters have been really great, elevating this story to an even higher level. They're well worth the extra day or two between them (especially when I get busy and fall behind! Ha!).

Author's Response:

I got a bit too close to what was appropriate for the rating (even though I can change it), but it worked out!

I'm glad you like Rosa! I had the idea of introducing Angie's maid for some time now, and it was nice to finally be able to introduce her.

About your question, I guess it was more of an oversight on my part, but also trying to progress the story properly and not making more time to add in messaging between them. I felt like it would slow down too much again if I focused on that, much like before.

As always, I appreciate your theories and thoughts! I've been slowing down updates while making chapters longer, hopefully that works out for the best.