Reaching the old radio tower, Finn quickly came to the realization that Katelyn was not there. A set of fresh footprints facing the river told him that she’d been there, but there was no way to tell how long ago it was. With her size, she could be miles away. 

“Why am I even out here?” Finn muttered aloud. 

Leaning against the base of the radio tower, Finn sighed as he thought about the inevitable talk he’d have to have with Katelyn when she finally did turn up. While she wasn’t sober when she said and did what she did, it didn’t change the fact that his feelings were hurt. 

“Does she always feel like that?” 

As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Tina was right. Katelyn needed to be the center of attention. The life of the party. She’d been that way as long as he knew her. Day after day in the halls, humiliating him just for some brief approval from her friends. Even though she’d stopped her old bullying ways, the desire to be the center of attention was still there. 

It was glaring. The way she grew when she stood up to Tina in the hallway. She didn’t need to, but she still did. It didn’t bother Finn, having a well-known girlfriend was actually fun for him. But then, there were the times like that night, when Katelyn’s need for attention went too far. When she fell back on the old method of lowering others to get approval from the crowd. And, sadly, the way she’d fallen back on using Finn as a means to get that approval. 

Finn knew he had to stop going down the rabbit hole. Any further, and he’d just turn right around and leave Katelyn to figure things out on her own. As tempting as it sounded, a small part of him was nagging to find her and make sure she was okay. At one hundred and fifty feet tall, she could cause a lot of damage to other people, as well as herself. 

Thinking she’d perhaps gone back to his house to apologize, Finn turned around and began walking back to his car when he heard a huge splash. Jogging to the edge of the hill, he could barely make out Katelyn’s silhouette sitting on the edge of the river. 

“Katelyn,” He whispered to himself, able to feel a hint of anger creeping in as he was reminded of the armpit prison she’d put him in. 

Taking a deep breath to push away his anger, Finn regarded the challenge that lay before him. Maneuvering down the steep hill proved to be even more dangerous than he thought. The fact he was attempting it at night raised the risk of injury tenfold. It took the best balancing he had to avoid tumbling down before reaching the same spot they’d gone swimming in the river. Katelyn was sitting along the edge, holding a boulder easily three times the weight of Finn in her palm. Closing her fist around the rock, she pulled her arm back and sent it hurtling into the black water with a loud splash. 

Not wanting to put it off any longer, Finn carefully approached his gigantic girlfriend, “Katelyn?” 

Her enormous head swung around to face him, followed by a loud sniffle. Choking back tears, Katelyn wiped her nose before reaching out to scoop Finn up in her hands, lifting him up to her face. 

“F-Finn?” She whimpered, as though he was an illusion, “I-I’m so sorry! I’m such an asshole!” She managed to say before a monsoon of tears began streaming down her face. 

“Katelyn…I—”

Hearing his voice, Katelyn broke down even further. Pressing Finn against her tear-stained cheek, she devolved into rambling that he could barely understand. The scent of alcohol on her breath was still strong, and there was definitely plenty of alcohol still in her system, but she wasn’t as bad as before. After a minute or so of sobbing, Katelyn pulled herself together to speak again. 

“I should never’ve drunk so much! I don’t know what I was thinking!”

“Well,” Finn began, “Actually, it was only one beer that kickstarted this train wreck. One! Katelyn, an apology doesn’t fix all of this. If it’s really that easy for you to revert to your old self, I don’t know what to do. I can’t be in a relationship where being treated like a pawn is just a moment away!”

Katelyn’s complete and total breakdown into a gigantic, bawling mess told Finn that she’d gotten the message. If nothing else, her knowing that she was in the wrong made it better. Pulling Finn into her cheek once again, Katelyn cried without holding back as rivers of tears poured from her eyes and into the river. Katelyn knew that she’d messed up. There was no need to yell at her anymore. What she needed in that moment was a shoulder to cry on, and Finn was determined to be that shoulder, no matter the size difference. As tears the size of buckets washed down his body, he felt his anger washing away with them. After a few minutes of drunken sobbing, Katelyn was at a state where she could take a deep breath and focus again. 

“How can I fix this? How can I make it up to you?” 

Finn sighed, unsure just how to move forward. Whatever decisions they made regarding their relationship wouldn’t be made sitting by the river early in the morning. What both Finn and Katelyn needed was some rest before having a real discussion. 

“I think it’s best if we get some sleep and talk about this later.”

Katelyn dramatically nodded her head, “Yeah, yeah, I think it’s best if I sleep this off.” 

Smiling, Finn gently hugged her nose, “Alright, let’s get you home.” 

Wiping away her tears for a final time, Katelyn rose to her feet and carefully held Finn as she climbed back up to the radio tower. Gently retrieving his car, she used it once again as a flashlight to make her way back to the hangar. 

“Uh, Finn?” Katelyn began, “I really, really, really hate to ask you for this favor, especially after everything that happened tonight, but…can I sleep at your place?” 

Finn was about to audibly groan before he stopped himself, “Why? What’s wrong with your house?” 

“It’s the alarm,” She explained, “Even if I disarm it quickly, it’ll probably wake up my parents. And I really don’t need them to see me drunk and naked as I’m trying to stumble up to my bedroom. Is there any way you could sneak me into your place?” 

Finn thought for a moment, not completely on board with the idea, “And you’re sure there’s nowhere else you could crash for the night? What about Gloria’s place?” 

“After the mess I caused at her party, no chance in hell she’d let me stay over. God, she’ll probably go back to never talking to me again.” 

Although Finn knew that sleep was the best thing for both of them, bringing home his drunken girlfriend who had treated him like shit the entire night was the last thing he wanted to do. Besides, his parents would almost definitely catch Finn trying to sneak his girlfriend in, if not the next morning. With both of their houses off the table, there was only one place left. 

“How about we camp out in the hangar tonight?” Finn suggested, pointing towards the structure, “You can sleep off the beer and tomorrow I’ll get you back to your place. Deal?” 

“Okay…” Katelyn replied, sliding the hangar doors open and crawling inside. 

Finn laid down on the cool concrete floor beside her, anger slowly creeping back in as the events of the party began to replay in his mind. Before he had the chance to slip into an uncomfortable sleep, he was lifted up and deposited in her cleavage. Fumbling for the light switch, Katelyn cast the hangar in darkness as she slid the doors shut. Giving her breasts a reassuring pat, she settled in for a rest they both desperately needed. 

Finn wasn’t far behind, begrudgingly admitting to himself that being nestled between Katelyn’s breasts was much better than the flat, unforgiving hangar floor. Still, a boob bed wasn’t going to make up for how she’d been towards him. Nestling in close and feeling her soft skin radiating heat, Finn fell asleep to the gentle thud of her heartbeat, too tired to be mad any longer. 

——

“Finn?” 

Finn stirred awake, but quickly tried slipping back into sleep upon realizing just how tired he still was. 

“Finn,” Katelyn repeated, nudging his head with her enormous finger. 

“What?” He groaned, lifting his head to stare at his hungover girlfriend through the valley of her cleavage. 

Alcohol hung heavy on her morning breath as she sighed. Strands of her blonde hair stuck out in all directions, kinked and bent all out of place. Katelyn carefully brushed away a few strands of hair that had fallen over her breasts before continuing. 

“Can we talk about last night?” 

“Not right now,” Finn muttered, curling into a ball and closing his eyes. 

After a few silent moments, Finn felt Katelyn’s fingers wrap around his waist and pull him into a hug against her neck. 

“Finn, please. I want to talk about it. I want to know how I can make things better,” She replied, tears forming in her reddened eyes as she looked at him once again. 

Finn thought long and hard about his answer, “I just want to know that nothing like what happened last night will ever happen again. It felt like things between us went backwards. Like how they were before you grew, only I was even more powerless to stop you.” 

Katelyn looked like she had so many things to say, but couldn’t figure out how to put them into words. 

“How do we move forward from this?” 

Again, it was Finn’s turn to silently consider his choices. It felt so strange to think about how his relationship going forward was being decided right then and there, in the hangar they’d first hung out in. But a decision had to be made. 

“I think we should spend some time apart. Take some time for ourselves. I just…I think I need some space for a few days.” 

Katelyn looked on the verge of sobbing, tears were already streaming down her face and her bottom lip was shaking. She quickly nodded her head, taking quick breaths in an attempt to calm herself down. 

“Last night was supposed to be so much fun,” Katelyn began, her voice shaky, “And I just had to go and fuck it all up. I just had to go back to acting like my old self.”

As Katelyn began to break down into a one hundred and fifty foot ball of tears, there was a loud knock on the hangar door. Confusion and curiosity brought a quick end to her sobbing as the two of them silently wondered who was there. Deciding to answer, Katelyn reached back to push open the doors with one hand. 

“Hel—” Katelyn began, but froze as a team of soldiers in all black entered the hangar with weapons raised. 

“Return to your normal size immediately! That’s an order!” One of them demanded through a megaphone. 

“What the hell? Okay! Okay!” Katelyn cried, quickly setting Finn on the ground before shrinking herself down. 

Holding his hands up, Finn felt his blood run cold as he tried to figure out just what in the hell was happening. One of the soldiers forced him to his knees and zip-tied his hands together behind his back. Looking over at his girlfriend, Finn watched as four other soldiers sifted through the fabric of her pink shirt until one pulled the naked, normal-sized Katelyn to her feet. She was similarly restrained and forced to kneel beside Finn. Glancing up at the soldiers and their rifles, Finn quickly realized that not a single one was pointing at him. They are all trained on Katelyn. 

“Is someone going to explain what the fuck is going on? Who are you people?” Katelyn demanded. 

An angry Doctor Hopkins approached the two with a determined stride, “Did you two seriously think I wouldn’t find out about last night?” 

Katelyn’s eyes went wide upon seeing the doctor. Finn shrank away from her gaze as well, worried about the punishment in store for his girlfriend. His heart was beating with such force, he was sure the doctor could hear it as she came within a few feet of the two. 

“News of the party is going international. Not a lot of people in high places are happy that what they consider to be a living weapon is getting drunk and using her ability like a careless child,” Doctor Hopkins said icily.

“Nobody got hurt! I didn’t break anything!” Katelyn protested.

“Is that so? Well, a young lady by the name of Tina would beg to disagree! After all, it was her you put in your…I can’t even say what you did to that poor young lady!”

“Well,” Katelyn began, “I mean, technically she wasn’t in my ass. Was she against my asshole? Yeah. But she—”

“You’re not listening to me!” Doctor Hopkins roared. 

Hearing the doctor snap out sent fear coursing through Finn. He’d never seen her so mad, it looked like she was about to explode. Her face was turning red as she squatted down to stare Katelyn in the eyes. 

“Look around you! Care to explain why you two are in a government facility right now? Last I recall, the gate was locked tight. And the main gate sure as hell wasn’t opened with bolt cutters or anything mechanical. I put my ass on the line for you! I assured generals that you wouldn’t become a liability and abuse your power!” 

Finn was too stunned to speak. He’d never heard Doctor Hopkins so mad. Katelyn hung her head low in shame, “How much trouble am I in?” She asked, barely above a whisper. 

“That is yet to be determined. I’ll still do my best to keep you out of trouble, but this fiasco can’t just go away.” 

Suddenly, Doctor Hopkins turned her icy glare to Finn, causing his heart to skip a beat. 

“And you,” She began, “Aren’t getting out scot-free either. Accessory to breaking and entering, trespassing on government property—” 

“No, don’t blame Finn for any of this! It was all me!” Katelyn shouted. 

Doctor Hopkins spun on her heels to glare at Katelyn again. After a few tense, silent seconds, she glanced back at Finn once more. Then again, back to Katelyn. Finn could practically see the gears turning inside the doctor’s mind as she debated different responses. All the while, the soldiers kept their guns trained on Katelyn’s nude body. Nervously clearing his throat, Finn flinched upon getting the doctor’s attention. With her mind apparently made up, she walked right up to Finn, forcing him to look almost straight up at her face. 

“Fine. Finn, consider this your one and only warning,” Doctor Hopkins declared, her tone making it clear she wouldn’t be lenient in the future. 

Finn nodded his head, and a satisfied Doctor Hopkins moved on to Katelyn. 

“As for you, you are to never use your growing ability without explicit permission to do so. I don’t want to see you grow an inch unless I say you can.”

“Yes, Doctor,” Katelyn nodded. 

“And I don’t want you leaving your house without my permission, either. You are effectively under house arrest until further notice.”

“Yes, Doctor,” She repeated, slightly annoyed. 

“Have I made myself clear, you two?” 

“Yes, Doctor Hopkins,” Finn nodded. 

“Crystal,” Katelyn grumbled. 

“Good,” The doctor scowled, “Finn. Go home. Katelyn will be going with us.” 

Finn bowed his head in agreement, slowly rising to his feet. Looking over at Katelyn, he saw her jaw moving back and forth as though she was about to speak. Turning away, he locked eyes with the doctor to find the brief exchange had not gone unnoticed. Doctor Hopkins raised her eyebrow, casting a quick glance over at Katelyn before adjusting her glasses and motioning for Finn’s arms to be freed, “Glad were all cooperating. I’d suggest freshening up when you get home. I’ll be over to get your account of last night once I’ve finished up with Katelyn.” 

“Yes, Doctor,” Finn nodded, “I’ll just give Katelyn back her phone and then I’ll be off.”

Exiting the hangar, Finn saw two heavily armored vehicles without any markings on them that practically screamed covert ops. Whoever they were, Finn knew that Katelyn had gotten into some serious trouble. Retrieving her phone and realizing why Doctor Hopkins had called so many times the previous night, as well as how she probably traced the phone to the airfield, Finn returned it. Rather than give it to Katelyn, Doctor Hopkins held out her hand and quickly pocketed the phone before motioning for Finn to leave before her patience wore any thinner. 

Muttering an annoyed, “Bye, Katelyn,” Finn turned and left for the final time without waiting for a reply. 

Quickly putting as much distance between himself and the airfield, Finn began to worry about what exactly the doctor had meant when she said she would be stopping by to get his account. Was she expecting a confession? And if so, about what? Katelyn had taken blame for everything, which Finn had to admit somewhat made up for how she’d treated him at the party. Not dragging him down with her was just about the least Katelyn could’ve done, but at least she’d done that. Eager to get home and try to process everything that had happened, Finn pulled into his driveway and quickly hopped out. 

Opening the front door, Finn could immediately tell things were worse than he’d initially thought. His parents were watching the news, and Katelyn was the headline. Their heads swiveled to stare at him as he closed the door and began making his way to his room. 

“Finn? Is everything okay?” His mother asked, clearly concerned. 

“No, not really,” Finn admitted, climbing the stairs without looking over. 

Finn’s father looked over, “Finn. What happened?” 

“I need to take a shower. I’ll explain when I’m out. Also, someone from the government is gonna stop by later. Don’t worry about it.” 

Before his parents could say anything else, Finn quickly made his way to his bedroom and grabbed a fresh set of clothes. In the bathroom, he quickly turned on the shower and jumped in the second it was warm enough. 

“Jeez, how much trouble am I gonna be in?” Finn muttered to himself, trying to wash the stench of the previous night from his body. Beer, Katelyn’s sweat, all of it was washed down the drain as he let the warm water clear his head. 

Taking some time to get his story straight, Finn’s attention quickly turned to Katelyn. His mind was locked in a bitter stalemate on how to feel. Half of him was still furious about how she’d treated him like less than dirt, while the other half was worried about what was in store for her. No matter how many times he went back and forth, he kept getting stuck somewhere in the middle. Finishing up in the shower, Finn toweled off and slipped into the clean outfit waiting for him. Just as he’d dried off his hair, he heard the doorbell ring. Knowing all too well who it was, he groaned and made his way downstairs to answer it. 

“Hello, Finn,” Doctor Hopkins greeted in a professional tone. 

“Doctor,” He acknowledged with a nod, “Let’s get this over with, shall we?” 

“Is Finn in any sort of trouble?” His mom asked nervously, walking up behind him along with his father. 

“Don’t worry, Ma’am. He’s in no trouble,” The doctor assured his parents, “All I need is for him to give a statement about last night’s events. In private.” 

She turned around and motioned for Finn to follow. Hanging his head, he begrudgingly followed her to the black SUV parked in the driveway. As she unlocked the doors and motioned for him to sit in the middle row, it dawned on Finn that Doctor Hopkins had come alone. Sitting down in the leather seat, he nervously pulled the door shut as the doctor entered on the opposite side. The heavy tint ensured no prying eyes from the outside could snoop on their conversation. Producing a voice recorder from her lab coat, Doctor Hopkins slammed it down onto the center console with a little more force than Finn thought necessary. 

“Alright,” She muttered, switching the device on, “Start from the beginning.” 

“O-Okay? Well, it all started when Olivia mentioned this party…” 

Finn told her everything he could remember. No detail was spared. Every conversation, every thought he had, and every event, no matter how embarrassing. Hiding the truth was pointless. All the while, Doctor Hopkins stared him down with a blank face. 

“And then, yeah, you guys showed up and rudely interrupted us,” He concluded. 

For the first time since the recorder was turned on, the doctor spoke, “Yes, that’s pretty much the story Katelyn gave. Although there are a few disparities.” 

“D-Disparities?” Finn cocked his head, wondering what he’d gotten wrong. 

“According to Katelyn, you begged her not to go to the party. She says she pressured you into attending when you said you’d rather stay home.”

“Well…I didn’t beg her not to go. I said she could, I just didn’t want to. And it’s not like she forced me to go.” 

“Okay,” The doctor mused, tapping her chin, “And what can you comment on the amount of alcohol she consumed? Katelyn can’t seem to give a clear answer.” 

“I guess she had…two cans, then we went to the hangar where she grew, then she drank two kegs, poured a third one over me, and then I left. I’m not sure how much she drank beyond that point. Or how alcohol would effect her at that size,” Finn admitted. 

“Okay. We’ll have to ask around some more to get a clearer picture. Thank you, Finn,” Doctor Hopkins said, switching off the recorder. 

“Can I go now?” He asked, reaching for the door handle. 

“Not yet. I have a few more questions to ask. Off record,” She added ominously. 

Finn’s heart began beating erratically as he looked over at Doctor Hopkins, who still kept her cold and unwavering demeanor, “Y-Yes?” 

“Well, Finn, I assume it’s clear to you just how much trouble your girlfriend has gotten herself into. I want you to understand that I’m truly going to do the best I can to still protect her. But she’s making that incredibly difficult. There are people—very powerful people—who are on edge now. I’ll do my best to ease their worries, but I can only sweep so much under the rug. To find the truth, I need to ask you: Do you think Katelyn can be trusted with her power?” 

Finn could feel his stomach doing somersaults as he silently pondered the question. Finally, unable to make up his mind, he admitted, “I-I don’t know what to say.” 

“You know her better than anyone. You’ve spent the most time with her and know her the best. How often does she use her power, and would you say she’s careless?” 

“Other than yesterday, she’s only grown one other time. The first day back at school, she grew a little to defend me from Tina when she was bullying me.” 

“Oh, come on, Finn! We both know those aren’t the only times she’s grown! I know she grows when you two have sex, too.” 

Finn felt his face go red with embarrassment, “Okay, fine, she did it the one time I slept over at her place. What’ll happen to her if she’s deemed irresponsible with her powers?” 

“Nothing good…” Doctor Hopkins trailed off, as though she wanted to elaborate but couldn’t, “I’ll try my best to make sure that doesn’t happen. But one more slip up and what happens to Katelyn is out of my control. So long as things go smoothly these next few days, she’ll be allowed back out and life will hopefully go on with all this as just a speed bump in the mirror.” 

“Good, good,” Finn exhaled a heavy sigh of relief, “What should I do in the meantime?” 

“You’re free to do whatever you want. You could visit Katelyn, she said she’d like some company.” 

Finn frowned, “We’re…taking a break from each other for a few days. With what happened last night, I just want some time to myself.” 

Doctor Hopkins raised an eyebrow, “Really? Alright then. Just know that she’ll be lonely.”

“I’ll make sure to call her often,” Finn replied, slowly becoming annoyed at being told how to handle his relationship, “Are we done here? I’ve gotta explain all this shit to my parents.” 

“Yes, I believe I’ve gotten everything I need. Thank you for cooperating, Finn.” 

“No problem,” He replied with what he felt like was a hint of sarcasm before opening the SUV door and walking back to his house before another word could be said. 

Closing the front door and locking it tight, Finn crept to the nearest window and watched until the black SUV finally left. Breathing a sigh of relief, Finn spun around to find his parents right behind him, concern and worry plastered over their faces. 

“Can you please explain what happened last night? Katelyn’s on the news, the government’s at our door, what the hell happened?” His mother demanded. 

Groaning, Finn quickly checked his phone to see over a dozen texts from Katelyn. Not wanting to talk at the moment, he returned the phone to his pocket and looked back up at his parents. Unfortunately, he was going to have to come clean and tell them everything. 

“I think we should sit down. It’s a…it’s a long story.”