It still felt like a freaking nightmare. One moment Vicktor was walking home from a long day of work, just like any other day. Vicktor was walking along a sidewalk with not a worry in the world.  Then something came out of nowhere, like someone turning on a big spotlight, only the beam of light was a weird color. Then, suddenly, Vick was on the ground surrounded by rough mounds of rock and concrete. An ocean of grass on either side of a very perplexed and panicking Vick. It wasn’t till he tried to move that it got really freaky. He had too many legs, hands, or appendages to be more accurate. Just as Vick started to scream and freak out at what his body had become, a loud thumping sound was heard. Vick was afraid it was a jogger or someone running toward him, however, it was a little (or actually, not so little anymore) boy rushing over toward him. Vicktor watched the concerned young boy heading over to him with a glass jar.

The mysterious boy started to speak to him as he reached to pick him up off the concrete.  “I’m sorry. My brother and his friend are playing around again with that machine… but don’t worry I’ll keep you safe.”  The boy carefully held Vicktor as he slowly started to lower him into the glass jar. “I promise you, I’ll try and find a way to fix you and the others.”

This was how Vicktor’s situation came to be. Changed into a random bug and collected by some child with a jar, soon to be put on his desk with several other jars.  Each jar holding a bug like himself in a glass chamber.  The child did the best he could to help them, but well there was only so much the boy could do. Vicktor couldn’t help but look up at the label on his new home with his name on it, BOB. The boy thought it was his name, and Vicktor had a feeling that the other’s names were all made up too.  Still, how could they correct him when he couldn’t understand them even to begin with.

There wasn’t much for a person or a bug to do in a glass chamber by themselves. It wasn’t like he could talk to the others very well. After a week of trying, Vick gave up most, if not all hope on everything. The middle schooler (or whatever grade he was in) couldn’t do much to change them all back, and it was clear no regular person believed his words about them being real people once. A week was enough time for Vicktor to learn that his fate was sealed, as sealed a bug trapped in a bottle till… Well God knew whatever would happen to him.

Vicktor’s thoughts were suddenly jarred when he heard loud noises approaching the open door to the room. Suddenly he saw the boy’s mother coming into the boy’s bedroom.  Luke was right behind her as they both were now in the bedroom.

“MOM!” Luke whined as he stood in his room. He looked upset at the news that he had just gotten over something. “I can’t go,” Luke protested.

His mother on the other hand let out an annoyed sigh, “Luke, you were dying to go camping this summer. That’s why I signed you up and paid for the admissions fee. Remember? You begged me for three days,” Luke’s mom held up three fingers to get her point across to him. “And NOW you don’t want to go?” The irritation in her voice was clear and Luke looked sorry.

“Well… that was before,” Luke muttered.

His mom still looked peeved, “Before what-” Vick watched the boy’s mother look toward him with a look of disgust. “The bugs?!” Luke’s mom almost chuckled at the absurd reason for his hesitation. “You don’t want to go to summer camp because of your little pet collection?” The distaste in her voice was clear and Luke seemed hurt at the tone.

Luke tried to correct the misunderstanding that no one in his family seemed to understand, “But mom they aren’t-”

“Just stop,” His mom cut him off as she walked closer to the several jars on the boy’s desk. Vick couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the mother for not understanding that he and a couple of other poor souls were no longer human in the eyes of other people. Vick was sure he would have laughed the young boy off too if he was telling him that his new bug body belonged to a person. Vick looked up at the mother, her eyes having a clear disgust for him in them. He could almost see the scowl forming on her face just glancing at him. “FINE!” She nearly roared, closing her eyes in defeat, “I’ll look after you silly bugs. But you ARE going to camp. I paid for it, and I will not be throwing money away because of some stupid bugs.”

Luke opened his mouth to say something, but when his mom turned around he shut it. Vick had a feeling he was going to correct his mom but thought otherwise. Seeing that his mom would take care of his “bugs” Luke ran to his mom and hugged her, “Thank you, mom. I’ll write down what you need to do to take care of them!”

Vick watched Luke run out of his room to grab some paper and pen to write down the instructions for his mom. Sure enough, the older woman turned back toward him and the others and he saw the disdain on her face. She truly didn’t care for them. Something that didn’t sit well with Vick as the older woman looked at them like they were exactly what they were to her, bugs.

Luke’s mother kept her mouth shut as she drove her son to camp. He had been going on and on about what she needed to do to take care of some little insects. At first, she was paying attention, thinking it would be simple, little water and food or whatever they ate and she was done. However, it seemed there was much more to the process of taking care of things. Each one had a name, each one had specific rules she needed to follow. It was worse than having to take care of Fido for a few days. If she knew it was gonna be this tedious for some simple scum her son picked up, she wouldn’t have promised to look after them. Yet they were almost at camp, and she wasn’t about to toss out a fully paid week of summer camp for Luke to attend all over some dumb bugs.

“I think that’s all of it, mom,” Luke announced. She didn’t have the heart to tell him that she forgot most of it.

“Okay honey, and just in time,” she spoke, sounding happy as she pulled up at camp. “I’ll pick you up in a week.” Luke was already getting out of the car with all his stuff for the summer camp. There were a few camp advisors there greeting the new arrivals. Before Luke headed off, he gave his mom a huge hug goodbye.

As Luke was walking off he turned around and quickly said, “Oh and don’t forget Mark likes to sunbathe for a few hours!”

“Okay sweetie,” Luke’s mom said, waving him off trying not to roll her eyes. Once he was gone and she was in the car she shook her head. It was only now that she was grateful that Luke had the weird idea to label the bugs in his room, cause she had no freaking idea which one was fucking Mark.

Vicktor had nothing to do. Usually Luke would be here talking or interacting with them occasionally every day. However, with the child gone, Vick was left in a large glass prison with his fellow bugmates next to him. The glass jars help prevent much talking between each other.  Something Vick learned they could talk to one another whenever Luke let them out for a little while.

It wasn’t till the sound of the door to the home opened and closed that Vick knew that Luke’s mother was back. Still, she didn’t come by to check on them. Instead, it sounded like she had other things to do. Sounds of things being moved, a fridge opening, a vacuum, and other household devices were heard through the home over the next hour or so. Vicktor almost thought that the mother forgot about them until finally, she seemed to arrive in Luke’s bedroom.

The look on her face said it all, she wasn’t happy to be here. If that wasn’t clear the sound of her tired and disinterested voice filled the room, “Stupid bugs…” Vicktor backed away on instincts as the mother came into the room walking toward them. He couldn’t help but feel a fear hit him as he watched the mom walk up to the four glass jars on Luke’s desk. Again the older woman spoke, “Alright which one of you is … there you are,” She muttered under her breath as she spotted Mark’s jar with his name labeled over it. She picked up the jar causing Mark to look panicked and unsure of what was going on. It wasn’t till Vicktor watched the mother set the jar on the windowsill of Luke’s bedroom, that he realized what she was doing. She was giving Mark his daily dose of sunlight. A wave of relief hit Vicktor as he watched her shake her head once again as she opened the blinds.

“A bug sunbathing…” A sound of loathing left the woman’s mouth, but that was all. After setting Mark near the window, she slowly walked out of the room to do whatever else she needed to do.

Mark was horrified at what was happening until he realized the older woman was helping him. Luke’s mom may not like it, but she was going to take care of them. Mark calmed down as he relaxed a little more in his jar letting the sun wash over him and warm himself up. The sun helped him forget most of his worries. If he closed his eyes and absorbed the morning rays, it almost felt like he wasn’t a bug anymore. Almost as if he were a normal person again. A dream he was waiting to come true again. All he had to do was pretend he was on a beach or by the pool, just soaking up the sun like any other summer day.

Mark stood, or laid there, it was kind of hard to determine which was which while he was in this new body. Whatever position he was in, Mark felt the temperature and air warm him up, pouring more life into his poor existence. Every minute that passed brought Mark a little closer to serenity as he sat there in his glass prison. Everything faded away as he was solely just finding inner peace and calmness in this fucked up world. Being a bug wasn’t easy on him. The only time he was truly himself was when he was on the windowsill trying to work on his non-existing tan. Could bugs even get a tan?

Mark chuckled at the silly idea. His body was starting to feel warm and relaxed. Almost like he just jumped out of a hot shower. The sunlight gave him the sunbath he needed, Mark was ready to get out of the sunlight. Opening his eyes, Mark turned around and looked at the door that Luke’s mom left through, waiting for her return.

Minutes passed. Mark frowned or he thought he did. Where was the mother? It had been plenty of time, Luke usually gave him thirty minutes, maybe even an hour before he put Mark back. So where was his mom? Time crept by as Mark kept expecting to see the woman return. There were other sounds in the home, but none of them were footsteps approaching the room.

“Uh… MISS!” Mark shouted, forgetting that he couldn’t be heard by her.

It wasn’t till now that Mark started to panic, it was starting to get warmer than he liked. Almost as if he was sitting in a car with the sun slowly warming the insides up, and he couldn’t open the door. Mark felt the unbearable heat starting to get to him. Mark tried to find a place of shade or area with no sunlight, but in a glass jar by the window, there was no such place.

“Oh Jesus,” Mark complained, finding himself pacing back and forth trying to cool down using the airflow. Every minute Mark could feel the jar heat up a fraction of a degree. “MISSES!” Mark called out again just out of the habit of trying to get help. “IT’S GETTING WARM IN HERE!”

Of course, there was no response from anyone. Mark was alone as he felt the baring sun beat more beams of heat down on his back. It felt like it was hotter than the hottest day in history. Mark soon learned that being an insect was less fun than being a human out in the sun. With no sweat glands, there was no way for his body to cool down. His insides were slowly warming up to an uncomfortable temperature. Panting, Mark started to lean up against the side of the glass as he could feel his little body starting to give out.

“too… hot…” Mark panted, feeling the air warm get even hotter. It soon felt like being in an oven or inside a frying pan as it cooked. Mark couldn’t get his legs to move. Unable to help it, Mark looked up through the glass and out the window at the sun. It was getting higher, with more than plenty of time to keep roasting him alive. The time was nowhere near noon for the sun to cast any form of shadows for him. Mark panted and whimpered feeling the blazing heat gleam down on him.

Just as Mark felt like he might pass out from heat stroke something felt off. A part of his back started to feel extremely hot. Hotter than the rest of his body. Mark couldn’t see what was making his back feel like someone lit a match on it, but when he glanced up he saw a solid beam of sunlight blasting through the window and the glass toward him. It looked like the ray of light was being amplified from the layers of glass it was traveling through. All directed right at the spot he was collapsed on.

“OW OW OW!” Mark shouted. “IT’S TOO HOT!”

Mark’s screams were unanswered as he was assaulted by the blistering blast of magnified sunlight. The intensity was worse than having someone use a blowtorch on him. Mark withered as his body twitched and continued to be roasted alive under the baking sun. Mark’s pleas for help withered just as fast as his body. It wasn’t long before Mark couldn’t move any part of his body. He quickly dried up faster than an egg left out on a hot summer sidewalk to cook. The sounds of sizzling and small pops could be heard all around Mark as he felt his body reaching combustion.

The last thing Mark thought as he passed out was wondering what that disgusting smell was. It was like someone was deep-frying insects…

Vick couldn’t watch any longer. He could only listen to Mark’s unanswered cries for help before they grew silent. Still, Luke’s mom didn’t come to check in on them. It was hours after Mark’s weak voice died out. Still, the sun was mercilessly beaming through the window and on him. It wasn’t till the sun passed the house and started to set on the other side of the home did Luke’s mother come back into the room.

She casually walked into the room, with the same displeased look on her face.  By the time the giantess tending to them headed toward Mark, it was well past the time to save Mark. . It was clear this was the last thing she wanted to do. Heading over to Mark’s jar, she picked up the jar without bothering to check in on Mark. She placed the jar back on Luke’s desk next to Vicktor. Sure enough, Vicktor got a look at what was left of Mark. Just a dried-up crispy bug, something the displeased mother would never double-check on.

The mother muttered looking confused. “How much water was it again? One what…”

Vicktor watched the older woman frown in thought as she pondered whatever measurement she was told to use. She slowly turned around and headed out of the room. It didn’t take the woman long to come back holding something in her hands. As she approached Vicktor watched the mom head to the furthest jar to the right. One that belonged to Jessica.

Jessica looked up as her caretaker came back holding some water. Peering up she watched with some relief for her daily water supply only to gasp and let out a shriek.

“Wh-wait! THAT’S TOO MU-”

Jessica wasn’t prepared for the entire cup of water to come splashing down. The force of the water splashed and collided with her knocking her around in a quick instant. The tidal wave of water easily swarmed and overtook Jessica in her glass home. The water was chilling but worse was the amount in the jar. Once Jessica came up to the surface of the now swimming pool, with the amount of water filling the jar, she couldn’t touch the bottom of the jar. Her little legs and body were too small. She was forced to try and stay afloat as the water started to settle and calm down. Jessica panted and breathed as she heard muttering from above.

“Hmmm, maybe a cup was too much…”

“NO SHIT!” Jessica screeched as she felt her body dip a little in the water before forcing herself to keep her head above.

Jessica watched the mother look at her directly and considered something, then she gave a half-hearted shrug, “It’s fine.” Without another thought, Luke’s mom started to leave the room.

“Hey He-” Jessica cried out before sinking in the water only to double her effort to get back afloat in the water. “HELP ME!” Jessica continued to paddle in the water before trying to get to one of the sides of the jar. As she approached the glass, she did her best to use it as support, only for the glass to be too slick from water or from being glass itself. Any amount of effort she put in trying to use it to pull herself up, only caused her to sink and splash into the massive amount of water.

Soon the mother came back, this time with a more realistic measurement, a teaspoon of water. Jessica splashed around feeling her body starting to get sore as the mother carefully poured water in the other jars. One by one, even the now deceased Mark got a splash of water. When Luke’s mom finally came back with the final droplet of water for the last of them, she looked pleased with her job.

The mother slowly nodded and spoke with a proud tone, “There, everyone has water. Hope you all are happy.” Finished with her task, the mother left the room to do other things.

Leaving Jessica to flounder around in the insane amount of water.

“DON’T JUST LEA-” Jessica sank again feeling the water splash into her mouth as she struggled to keep her head above water. It was getting hard to struggle afloat as she couldn’t keep fighting. Jessica wasn’t used to her new form, and to swim with it was way too much to ask for. “Help,” Jessica coughed feeling more water rise over and submerge her head before she frantically kicked to keep her mouth out of the water level. Jessica could see the others watching, unable to help. To Jessica’s horror, she watched each one of them slowly turn away to avoid what was bound to happen to her.

Jessica never felt more powerless and frightened in her life. As much as she fought and struggled, Jessica soon found that her fate was unavoidable now. The water was too deep, and she was wearing down too quickly. What used to be her dipping under the water level for a few moments soon became seconds and soon minutes. It seemed the more water that ended up in her mouth slowly caused her to sink deeper and deeper. It only took a few more dunks before Jessica could feel the chilling water spread throughout her body. She couldn’t move her legs anymore, her body slowly sank downward as everything started to dim. The last thing that Jessica thought was how she no longer was thirsty…

Vicktor did his best not to stare at Jessica’s body that sank to the bottom of the glass jar. The almost three feet of extra water over her head acted like a burial ground for her. He didn’t really know Jessica, however, her demise wasn’t any less impactful. In less than a day, two of them were gone. Vicktor didn’t know how long Luke would be gone, but at this rate, he wasn’t sure if they would make it till he got back.

Luke’s mother let out a disappointed sigh, “Are you kidding me. Two of them died? I didn’t even do anything…” She grumbled as she looked at both Jessica and Mark who hadn’t moved since the other day. Shockingly Vicktor noticed the mom had some form of worry on her face. A deep sigh left her as she grumbled again, “Luke’s gonna have a fit when he finds out.”

There it was, she had no regard for them, just how her son would view her when he got back home only to see his “pets” dead. Vicktor should have known.  He needed to find a way out, a way to escape before he ended up as the next victim due to Luke’s mom being neglectful. There were only two of them left and that was not a good sign when they had a couple of days left before Luke came home.

“What was on the list again,” Luke’s mom spoke out loud. Her finger was on the bridge of her nose as she tried to recall the direction that she had gotten from her son. Vicktor shook his head as he tried to think of what Luke would have told her to do. Finally, after a brief pause the mature woman let out a relieved sigh, “That’s right…”

Vick watched as the large female reached out for his jar and Carl’s. Vicktor let out a startled sound as he was shaken around from being moved off the desk. What the woman had planned was out of Vicktor’s mind as he thought this was the end of him. That was till she lowered him down toward the ground. Placing his jar sideways, Luke’s mom got up, picked up the last jar, and brought it to the floor. “Here’s your exercise time…. But I swear to god,” She said setting down Carl’s jar next to Vicktor’s, “If you little insects cause me any problems…”

The warning was simple, as the mom looked like she wouldn’t think twice about doing whatever she had planned. Vick’s only conclusion was some sort of painful experience. As much as that warning was frightening, Vicktor couldn’t give up this chance. Slowly he crept out of the safety of his glass prison. He saw his last bugmate doing the same. Luckily it seemed they were allowed to crawl around on the floor of Luke’s room. The prying eyes of Luke’s mom gazing at just the two of them. That was until a call came from the kitchen broke her attention on them.

“MOM! We got any ice cream?!” The deeper voice of Luke’s brother rang out through the house.

“Joe, stop shouting in the house,” His mom warned in an almost equally loud voice.

“Fine, but do we!” Joe shouted again, not changing his tone.

Joe’s mom looked so annoyed at the moment, she couldn’t stop from rolling her eyes, “Yes. Yes, we do…”

“WHERE?!” The loud voice called out even louder.

“JOE! WHAT DID I TELL YOU?!” The mother called out.

“What?! You didn’t tell me where? How am I supposed to know where you put it?!”

The annoyance was obvious as it was painted all over her face. She narrowed her eyes before starting to turn and leaving the room. The muttering words of, “...having to do everything around here…” could be heard before she disappeared deeper into the home.

The moment the mother of the two boys left the room, Vicktor ran. He didn’t have a plan, he just knew he had to get out of there. He was close to Luke’s bed and figured it would be the safest place to hide while she wasn’t looking. Looking back at his fellow insect friend, he hadn’t budged an inch.

“What are you doing,” Vicktor called out to Carl.

“Sh-she said don’t cause any problem,” Carl whimpered.

“What are you talking about,” Vicktor called out again. “Do you really think it’s safe in one of those,” Vicktor tried to gesture to the empty jars but failed to do so with his legs, “THINGS?!”

“It was an ac-accident,” Carl protested, trying to convince himself that it was just a fluke for the other two to have passed away.

“AND?! You don’t think there might be another ACCIDENT?!” Vicktor shouted, glancing back at the empty doorway. He couldn’t stand out in the open any longer. If the mom saw him running away, he could only imagine what would happen to him. Still, Carl refused to budge as he stood near his glass jar as if that was his only choice for safety. Seeing as Carl wouldn’t listen to anything Vicktor had to say, he decided he was on his own. Not wasting another second, Vicktor ran under the bed, letting the shadows cloak him as he felt a lot safer under here than out in the open.

No sooner did Vicktor feel the sense of relief did he feel the ground vibrate softly. The shaking grew as the sounds of footsteps on the ground came closer. A pair of familiar feet came plopping into the room only to pause midway toward where Carl was.

The sound of an extremely pissed-off mother filled the room, “What the hell? Hey, where did that other one go!”

Vicktor felt his heart stop as he watched Carl turn toward him. Afraid that he was giving up his hiding spot, Vicktor remained motionless and silent as the mom grumbled some more. “I leave for less than a freaking minute…” It wasn’t till now that Vicktor realized that she didn’t notice Carl looking toward him. Never had Vicktor been happier that no one understood their new bug forms. Instead, the mom seemed to pace around a little.

The mother’s legs started to bend and soon, Vicktor watched as the large face of Luke’s mom started to look under the bed. Her eyes narrowed as she looked under the relatively clean bed scanning, searching, and peering into the dark. Vicktor kept his breath held as her eyes darted around trying to spot him. He was invisible to her eyes as she huffed before getting up off the floor. Vicktor was relieved to see the mom stop looking for him under the bed.

“Just great… there goes another one. Alright walking is over, get back in your jar,” The mom ordered. Carl didn’t have a chance to do as he was told as Luke’s mom’s hand came down toward him in a flash, brushing toward him. She nearly swatted him into his glass jar. Sure enough he was soon shoved and flicked back into the container before the mom picked up the jar and brought it back to its original spot. “Stupid bugs,” Luke’s mom muttered again even louder as it was clear she was upset. “I can’t believe I had to look after you all and than…” there some motions being made that Vicktor couldn’t see, “And you all end up dying or just vanishing!”

If Vicktor had any notion of coming out and revealing his location to the woman, it died at the tone in the angry adult’s voice. She sounded very livid and the last thing Vicktor needed was her taking it out on him. So he stayed hidden in what would be his new home.

The sound of someone else brought Vicktor’s attention back to the doorway, “What’s up?”

The young teen looked almost bored, as his mother sighed, “Nothing…”

A sharp laugh came from Luke’s brother, “Doesn’t sound like nothing. What, did you step on one of Luke’s stupid toys again?”

A deep sigh was heard from the parent, “No. His stupid bugs…”

Again the boy laughed, “He has you watching those things?! OH, MAN!” The laughter went on for a while before he slowed down, “That’s funny. I didn’t take you for a bug lover.”

The silence from the mom spoke volumes as it was quiet for a few moments before she spoke, “Well apparently, it’s not as easy as it sounds. I already lost most of them.”

Another burst of laughter came from the teen, “REALLY?! Oh shit! Wait till Luke hears this!  Our Mom-”

“Joe, if you say one more thing you’re ground,” The mother cut him off with a warning.

“I wasn’t gonna say anything!” Joe complained. He quickly added, “Besides I was gonna help you, but I guess you don’t need it since you’re gonna ground me…” Joe sarcastically said as he started to leave.

“You, help? How are you going to help,” His mother asked, super skeptical at the teens' offer. The sarcasm was heavy in the mom’s tone.

“Twenty bucks,” Joe said, holding his hand out.

Vicktor heard the mom scoff, “Twenty dollars for what?”

“To help. I’ll fix this for twenty dollars. Do you want my help or not,” Joe asked, sounding smug with himself.

“Again… for what,” his mother asked with a layer of annoyance.

“Supplies.”

It was silent for a few minutes before the mom gave in and finally said, “Fine. My purse is-”

Joe was already heading out the bedroom door before his mom could tell him, “Yeah yeah, I know where it is. I’ll be back in a little bit. How many are there?”

“How many what,” the mom called out following Joe.

“How many dumb bugs are there,” Joe laughed.

“Four,” Joe’s mom said as she headed out of the room and after her son. Her voice grew more muffled as she walked away, “Why…”

Joe’s answer was too quiet for Vicktor to pick up but the sound of shuffling feet could be heard throughout the home. Soon a door closed and it sounded like Joe was already gone. Without anyone in the room to spot him, Vicktor moved toward the edge of the bed’s shadow. He wanted to see how Carl was doing. Sadly Vicktor hadn’t thought much out of this plan, now that he was free from his glass prison, he didn’t really know what to do next. Instead he could only observe and stay hidden. Maybe he could get Luke to notice him when he got home. Hopefully that wasn’t too long from now. How long was summer camp again?

As Vicktor was pondering what he was gonna do till Luke came back home, the sound of a door to the home filled the house.  Soon hurried footsteps could be heard thumping closer to the bedroom. Vicktor watched as two pairs of legs walked into Luke’s room.

An uncertain voice from Luke’s mom filled the room, “What did you buy?”

“There’s a pet store down the street,” Joe remarked, heading over toward the desk that held Carl.

“A pet store,” Joe’s mom asked, sounding confused, “For what?”

“To replace the bugs, of course,” Joe chuckled. Vicktor looked out from under the bed and saw the two talking. In Joe’s hand was a brown paper bag.

However his mother looked skeptical, “You're gonna just replace them?”

Joe shrugged, “I’ve done it plenty of times before. He won’t even notice, trust me,” Joe confidently smirked as he started to drop a bug into the now empty jars.

It took Joe’s mom a few moments before she frowned, “Wait… don’t those cost like ten cents at the store? I gave you twenty dollars!”

Joe quickly protested, “Hey, workers comp. It’s my idea so I think I should get paid for it, right?”

Vicktor watched Joe’s mom give a disapproving look but after a moment finally sighed, “Luke better not know about this.”

Joe continued to grin as he laughed, “Like I said… not the first time I did this.  You don’t say anything, I won't say anything.” The grin on his face showed Vicktor how confident the boy was in his plan.

“Fine, keep the change.” Joe’s mom said as she started to leave the room. “I need to make dinner and pick up Luke from camp early in the morning.” Vicktor ducked a little deeper into the shadows as the mother figure headed out the room.

Once the mom was out of the room Vicktor’s attention went toward the only other person in the room, Joe. Not sure what to expect, his curiosity turned to horror in the first few moments of watching. “Wait a second… mom said four bugs. There’s one already here…” A sharp chuckle left the boy as he leaned in toward Carl, “I guess I should fix that.”

Carl didn’t like how this kid was looking at him. The twisted smile on his face, the small twinkle in his eye at seeing him, and how he would “fix it” only left Carl in a more frightened mood. As Carl looked on at Joe who grinned at him, he couldn’t help but back up a little. This kid was in trouble.  It was written all over his poster and look, something that made Carl wish that the mom was still in the room.

No sooner had that thought left Carl’s mind did Joe let out a sharp whistle that shook Carl to his bones (or what he thought was his bones). The smirking boy stood there not moving after his high-pitched noise, never letting his eyes leave Carl’s jar. A soft jingle started to draw closer as something was coming toward Luke’s room.

Joe didn’t even look back as the noise came into the room. “Hey Fido… guess what I got for you,” Joe chirped, not even looking toward the noise. “That’s right boy, I got a tasty treat for you.” Carl heard the jingling pick-up pace as something hurried closer at the mention of a treat. The sound of something swishing through the air filled the bedroom. “That’s right, a savory snack just for you boy. Cause you know you are the bestest boy there is, yes you are. Who’s a good boy” Joe cooed as he grabbed Carl’s glass chamber. Soon Carl was lifted off the desk and carried around Joe and toward the mysterious sound. Carl finally saw who Joe was walking toward. Behind Joe was a large dog wagging its tail excitedly as it stared not at Joe his owner but Carl. Carl let out a panicked noise as the dog’s tail kicked into overdrive at the sudden sight of him. What was a simple wag, turned into a violent thrashing tail.

Joe laughed, “Calm down you dumb dog.”

Fido seemed to listen as his tail slowed, but only a fraction of its insane whipping whacking pace.

“Okay…” Joe tilted Carl’s jar toward himself and squinted, “Carl… Carl? What kind of fucking stupid name is CARL?!” Joe laughed, “God that’s dumb. My brother comes up with the dumbest names for you stupid bugs. I swear if my name was Carl I’d have killed myself already.”

Carl didn’t know which was more insulting, being made fun of for his name and not able to defend himself, or how annoying the teenage boy was snorting and chuckling at him. Just hearing the kid laugh was enough to make Carl want to cover his ears… which he couldn’t.

“Annnnyways… CAAARLLL,” Joe mocked. “I want you to meet my good boy, Fido.” Joe slowly lowered the jar closer to the waiting dog looking too intently at Carl. “Don’t worry he’s friendly. Like so friendly that you guys will be best buds.” Joe let out a snicker, “Like so close, you won’t want to leave him… well till later, like I don’t know, twenty-four hours from now? You know when it’s time to depart. I’m sure Fido gonna give you, my tiny little bug buddy, a nice trip. Trip to where you ask? Well, he’s gonna set you free, to the outside world where you belong. I’m sure this stuffy little room you’re in, my stupid brother’s room is just too small… Nah you need the wide-open outside world! Somewhere to run and be free…” Joe again smirked at Carl, “Well, maybe less running and more freedom. To be free, free like a fart in the wind. A nice poot from my little puppy. Sprayed out of Fido’s backside to make room for something that really matters… like his morning shit. Doesn’t that sound nice? To be turned into a nice little Fido fart?  Let out into the wild.  I can already hear the sound you’re gonna make…”  Joe made a mocking long farting noise before snickering at the sound itself.

Carl was inching backward as Joe was describing his fate. There was only so far that Carl could go before he bumped into the glass. There was nowhere else to go. He was stuck looking at the sadistic boy gleaming over Carl’s upcoming fate.

“I mean just look at that poor little face of his…” Joe said slowly lowering the glass jar toward Fido. The dog’s mouth moved a little as it eagerly waited for Carl. “He looks excited to see you,” Joe cooed. “I think he wants to say hello to you. What do you say Fido? Want to give CARL a kiss hello? Well…” Joe held the opening directly in front of Fido’s mouth. “Go on boy!”

One second Carl was all alone in the jar, and the next a large pink snake darted out of Fido’s mouth and attacked the inside of the glass jar. Carl shouted and screamed as the enormous gooey licker slapped around the jar in search of him. The object flung out nearly hitting Carl as it lapped at him only to be pulled back toward the dog’s mouth. The attack went on as Fido tried again as his tongue lashed out at speeds faster than Carl could track. A large warm wave of moisture nearly hit him as the red and pinkish tongue flung out and licked the back of the jar. It left a nice slimy trail from the path it made on the glass. Carl looked out the small opening and saw Fido tilt his head slightly, eyeing him up for the next attack.

“Come on Fido, we don’t have all day, go get your treat,” Joe urged on.

Fido let out a woof and went back into the fray. Carl watched as the dog changed its tactics as it shot his tongue out, but this time instead of lapping him up, the tongue pressed down on the glass flooring. It slid across the clear material and toward Carl. Like a warm hot sticky carpet, the tongue slipped under Carl’s legs and curled up behind him. Carl landed on the dog’s enormously long tongue as it scooped him up and pulled him out of his safe haven. The moving tongue was all but gentle. The movement pushed Carl back into the soft but firm fleshy taste buds of Fido’s tongue. Carl was being dragged toward an open black hole of a void that only seemed to grow bigger as he got closer. Fido’s mouth hung open wide enough for Carl to be dragged into that cavern of spikes. Those long canine teeth hanging down from the long muzzled mouth. Carl couldn’t see past the wave of red and pink flooring he was stuck to, but he was sure that he had nowhere else to go. The only place he could go was forward, exactly where his warm welcoming was coming from. The scent of hot dog breath reeked its way up the expanding throat as he was quickly dragged toward his doom. Just as Carl was thinking of moving everything got dark and the sound of a jaw snapping shut filled the room. Without a warning, Carl felt the ground ripple and suddenly he was flung forward, flicked off by a simple movement from the dog tongue. Carl landed in a gooey pile of slobber. Damp and drenched in foul-smelling saliva, Carl tried to move, but a wall hit him. The hot warm fleshy skin surged around him as he was pushed toward somewhere deeper inside. A gulping sound was heard and Carl was tumbling and shoved downward with his pile of spite drenching him. The temperature grew every passing second he fell and bounced around the tube. The smell of something foul and sour hit Carl’s senses as he splashed into a bigger chamber of liquid. The smelly scent of dog food and vomit hit hard as Carl splashed into this open room.

A sudden shake and thumping could be heard, vibration throughout the chamber as the muffled sound of Joe called out “Good boy!”  Praising the mutt for his deed of swallowing Carl.

Carl floated in the sea of gunk as the sounds of the heavy thumping reverberated sounds echoed through the chamber, as Fido’s heart pumped blood throughout his body. The sound of throbbing was louder than Carl expected. However, the heartbeat meant nothing to him compared to all the gurgling and groaning the gut was giving off. Sounds of splashing and sloshing filled Carl’s ears as the very sounds of digesting echoed around. Some bubbles and splatters could be heard deeper in this pond of puke. Carl could already feel the warm gunk tickling the joints itching and warming the spots not protected as well as the rest of his body. The sounds of Fido’s body starting to process the little crumb of food that dropped into his gut filled the chamber with rumbling ruckus all around. Carl was hit by a surging wave and warping walls and groans from all around as the stomach started to get to work. Carl gagged on the funky fluids flying around and splashing on him.

Trying to find a way out, Carl was lost in the dark stormy sea of Fido’s belly.

There was only one voice that cut through the chaotic carnage happening in Fido’s gut, and it was Joe’s voice laughing. “See you tomorrow Carl… ops I mean CRAP.”

Fido let out a deep woof that shook the chamber more than it already was and soon the waves became tsunamis as it felt like Fido was moving. Carl had no way of staying above the surface as numerous waves broke and splash on Carl. The sensation of digestion already seeping in, Carl wouldn’t last too much longer.

It was now that Carl hoped that Vicktor made it. Hopefully at least one of them will survive…

“Are they okay,” Luke asked, getting into the car.

Luke’s mom did her best not to look at Luke as she told her son, “Of course they are.”

A concerned sigh left Luke, something that his mother didn’t think her son would make. It sure seemed like he was worried about them. Which made her feel a little guilty about lying to her son. However, how was she supposed to know those little insects weren’t gonna make it. However, she hoped Joe’s plan would work out. Granted she wasn’t a bug expert or anything, but sure enough, they all looked the same. Maybe Luke wouldn’t notice….

“That’s good,” Luke sighed again, “I know that Jessica can get cranky sometimes, and Carl tends to be scared of people.”

Luke’s mom had no idea which bugs he was talking about but figured she would go along with it, “They were at first but nothing your mom couldn’t take care of.” She did her best to not sound annoyed or anything at the mention of the bugs. Instead, she tried to get her son to talk about something other than his bugs. “So how was camp?”

Luke smiled brightly, “IT WAS SO MUCH FUN MOM!” He nearly squealed. He quickly started to talk about all the things they did over the few days he was gone. Luke’s mom sighed as the talk about bugs was gone and now her boy was acting like a normal child. She would have to remember to make sure Luke went out more and played with other kids his age… and not with a collection of bugs.

Vicktor felt his body grow weak and tired from hiding for the past day or so. After watching Carl get eaten by a dog, he wouldn’t take the chance of leaving the underside of the bed. No matter how long he would have to wait for Luke to get back, he would stay hidden till he was safe. Still, it was hard. It wasn’t till the day after Carl died, that Vicktor heard someone leaving relatively early in the morning. It didn’t mean much to Vicktor until he heard the boy’s young voice fill the home as he entered. Luke had finally returned!

Vickor felt joy as he knew the far more caring child was back from camp, now able to properly take care of him unlike the rest of his family. It wasn’t long before the thumping of two sneaker-covered feet came bounding into the room. The voice of Luke filled the bedroom with joy, “I’m back guys! How are you all? Did you miss me?” Vicktor slowly started to come out from under the bed as he watched Luke with his back toward him looking at the jars on his desk. “Jessica, don’t worry I’ll make sure to get you some more water. Did you get your sun today Mark? I know mom said she set you out the other day.” Luke was busy looking after the normal bugs that Joe slipped into the jars, unaware that none of them were the ones he thought they were. Vicktor had to come up with a plan to get Luke to notice him. He recalled his attempts at making signs with his body that would at least get Luke’s attention. Vicktor could try and repeat a few things that Luke had been showing them to do when they needed something from him.

Vicktor pulled himself out from under the bed and more into the open room. It felt odd being so exposed but he needed to do this, otherwise Luke would never notice him. Vicktor stood there and finally, he watched the young boy turn around. Luke had a happy smirk on his face as he headed for the door.

Luke was out the door in less than a second leaving Vicktor alone in the room. The boy was far too fast for him. If he wanted to get Luke’s attention he couldn’t be this close to the bed. As frightening of an idea as moving out in the middle of the floor, Vicktor had to do it. Crawling quickly to the middle of the bedroom floor, he stood there waiting. Vicktor started to get ready to do the signal for help or to be picked up, which was like a jumping action. The moment he heard footsteps, he prayed it was Luke and not someone else. The sound of sneakers squeaking on the floor sent a reassuring wave through Vicktor.

The young boy came around the doorway and into his room, holding a little thing of water. Vicktor started to jump up and down in a way that it was obvious that he wasn’t a normal bug. The first step into the room brought Luke much closer than Vicktor thought possible, and it wasn’t till the second step that Vicktor noticed that Luke was in a hurry and not bothering to look down. It wasn’t till the third step closer that Vicktor saw the flaw in his plan, and quickly tried to abort it. However, the fourth step was already upon Vicktor before he could move.

The dark shadow of the enormous kid’s sneaker came so close to stomping on Vicktor he froze. The underside of the dark shoe passed by Vicktor in a split second before it slammed down so close behind Vicktor that the thump deafened his hearing. However, he was still alive. The sudden shaking on the ground caused Vicktor to fall to the ground as the child continued to walk to his desk.

“Too close,” Vicktor spoke as he shuddered at the thought of being stepped on. “I’ll have to think of something else to do…” Vicktor muttered as he got up and tried to go back to the safe security of being under the bed. However, the moment he went to move, he felt something was off.

It was this time that Vicktor felt something was missing like he couldn’t feel his back legs. Turning around, he looked out in horror as to why. The sneaker that stepped behind him got closer than he thought, as it looked it crushed just the very back part of Vicktor’s body. He was missing a part of his backside along with his hind legs. Something that was now hitting him full force after the shock wore off. Vicktor let out a cry as he tried to crawl using his working legs. He was now working half as effectively as he used to when moving. Vicktor was so distracted by the pain and needed to find somewhere safe to go that he didn’t notice the dark shadow come into view. Vicktor turned and saw the innocent-looking face of Luke looking down puzzled at him.

“Hel-help… LUKE HELP!” He cried out for the large boy’s aid.  He tried to make a sign or signal for the boy but working with half a body was making it difficult.

Luke just peered down at Vicktor before turning back to the jars on the desk. “Uh, sorry guys… please don’t look. I found a bug in my room… I need to get rid of it, mom would get so mad if she thought you guys were running around out of my room by mistake.”

Those words sent a cold shocking feeling down Vicktor’s body. Luke’s head turned back around to Vicktor’s injured body. Any look of pity or sadness was absent on the boy's face. He just simply lifted his foot slightly off the ground and moved it toward Vicktor.

“NO NO PLEASE LUKE! LUKE IT’S ME!!” Vicktor screamed as he tried to crawl out of the shadow that soon washed over his body. Luke positioned his rubber heel just over Vicktor’s broken body. Vicktor struggled to outrun the heel, but the moment it pushed down on him, he knew it was over. For a brief moment, something firm was pushed into his back. Then it pinned him for a slight moment, holding him in place. Slowly that pressure increased and increased. What once felt like a couch on top of him soon turned into a car and then a dump truck. Each passing moment the pressure and weight magnified intensely. Sounds of Vicktor’s cries and muffled pleads were shattered by the sudden shocking cracking noises. His body was breaking apart under the weight and he could feel parts of him being turned into a gooey paste as limbs and sections of his body were obliterated under the unimaginable weight of Luke’s heel.

Vicktor let out one last cry before everything just popped.

Luke slowly and deliberately pushed his foot down on the little bug in his room. The last thing he needed was his mom getting upset about bugs in his room and not in jars. Forcing him to get rid of the others, so killing the thing crawling around on the ground was a no-brainer.

Hearing the faint crunch and smushing sound, Luke nodded before making sure the bug was dead, he twisted his foot a few times. Lifting his shoe, he saw the leftover mark, juices, and paste that was left from the splatter zone of his stomping. 

“Yuck,” Luke muttered. Now he had to clean that up… or did he?

“FIDO!” Luke called. The familiar sound of the collared dog could be heard as it jingled in. Smiling Luke took his shoe off and called Fido over to remove the evidence. In no time the dog was licking and slurping up the remains of the poor insect. Letting Fido have a messy snack, Luck went over to the people on his desk. “Sorry about that, anyway… where was I? Oh right, camp! So the other day I learned how to go fishing. It’s like the coolest thing ever,” Luke gushed as he told his little friends all about the fun he had while he was gone.

Tommy was texting on his phone when he spotted Joe walking Fido.

“Hey dude,” Tommy called out as he approached Joe.  

“Sup,” Joe called out as he turned back toward his dog.

Tommy headed up to Joe and saw he had some weird journal in his hand.  He quickly pointed that out, “What is that?”

“Oh, this?  The vet told me I need to keep track of Fido’s diet.  Mom was worried the other week about him, so now I have to keep track of his meals and bowel movements.  To make sure he’s not sick or anything.”  Joe explained.

As Joe talked, Tommy saw Fido start to squat and push out one of his famous farts.  Tommy laughed, “He’s sure has been gassy lately.  What DO you feed him?”

“Nothing special,” Joe commented as Fido continued to squat in some neighbor’s yard letting out some gas.  “The usual dog food and stuff.”  As Fido pushed out a large perfect pile of poo, Joe quickly jolted it down in the little handbook.  Joe went on, “Just some snacks and stuff but that’s about it.”

Tommy spotted a few little things sticking out of the mound of mud.  He noticed they looked like insect shells either fully intact or broken up, “Uh, you think it might be all the bugs you feed him?”

Joe looked horrified at the question, “What? Those protein pills?  Fuck now.  If anything they help him.  Besides,”  Joe saw Fido was done with his doody duty, and called him over.  “Come here Boy!” Fido came over with a delighted trot.  “Do you want me to stop feeding you bugs?  Is that what you want? Do you boy?”  Fido let out a sad whimper as if he knew what Joe had asked.  Joe gave Tommy a cocky look, “See?  He likes them.”

Tommy shrugged, not really caring, “Whatever dude.  Anyway… I’m bored, want to go fuck around with Mr. Shit’s machine again?”

Joe laughed, “Fuck yeah!”  Joe, Tommy, and Fido headed off to mess around with a device that neither of them knew exactly what it did.  All they knew was that it was fun shooting people with the weird light and having them freak so badly, that they ran off so fast they disappeared before they could laugh at them for being so freaking scared.  It never got old…