Meet me. Tyson. 15-year-old schoolboy. There’s something very unique about me that you’ll notice when you first look at me. I’m TINY. And by tiny, I don’t mean that I’m short (though you wouldn’t be wrong if you said I was) but I’m puny. I’m less than half the size of a grape. Nobody knows how it happened. My birth left both my parents and the doctors with a lot of questions. What’s more is that my size was made up for in durability. It would seem that I’m indestructible. Despite all the dangerous situations I have found myself in over the years, I’ve always come out of it on top. Unscathed, if mildly annoyed by the inconvenience. Just because I’ve yet to be hurt by something doesn’t mean that my life is free of hassles. It can be an outright pain in the ass at times. If I could change this condition and be a normal size like everyone else, life would be so much easier. I might even learn to appreciate the sensation of pain!

With all of these challenges my parents, Valerie and Tucker, decided to home-school me for most of my life. The idea of me being lost when I was so young and even smaller than I am now was their worst nightmare. When I was super young, I’d get lost in whatever room they brought me into. I was closed up in the pantry and the fridge; lost under table cloths; and even between the cushions of the enormous living room sofa! You could understand they wanted to be careful when I was young and, frankly, not very mindful of the dangers in being so small.

Perhaps more than anyone, my saviour has always been my big sister Ashley, and she was BIG in both height and personality! She’s also my best friend in a lot of ways. Ashley was 17 years old and had just started junior high. She had milky white skin, long brown hair and very thin. Her great body was definitely the outcome of both good genes and her healthy habits. Ironic that such a tall girl would have such a tiny little brother. She loved school more than anything as it was the place where she got to see her friends every day. Being the tiny kid I was, I never had such an opportunity and projected all of my needs for friendship on to her. She fulfilled this for the most part, but it didn’t help that when I was home-schooled, I craved to be around other people my age. Well, mom and dad wanted it now and I wanted it too. I’ll never be able to live like a ‘normal’ teenager so to speak, but I can certainly make an effort in the big bad world that is high school in America. Who knows, maybe I’ll form a little clique of my own and be the most popular freshman ever!

There was a real challenge with all this though. Ashley was always so damn clumsy and forgetful! If I had a dollar for every time I was stuck under Ashley’s enormous feet, I’d probably be the richest kid in the world. I don’t know what I hate more: Being stuck under feet, or the fact that Ashley was always so careless. She never did it with any malice of course. She loved and respected me like any sister should treat her brother. But when she was scatterbrained, I’d find myself in the most uncomfortable situations involving her feet. In her socks, under her sole and even trapped inside of her shoes. Sometimes for hours! It was a chronic fear I lived with every day and I made sure to make my presence known to everyone that was in the room with me. Especially to Ashley: the ditzy sister with the biggest and smelliest feet that you could ever imagine. Those feet of hers were truly a source of tyranny in my life. What was worse was that she knew this and sometimes teased me about it.
“Look out! It’s your big sister’s feet!” she would say, swinging them at me and full of giggles.

After talking it all out at the dinner table the night before with my family, the plan for my first day of school was in motion. Ashley would take me to school with her in her pocket, and I’d be observing all her junior classes and seeing the school from her point of view. I have absolutely no idea how I would ever navigate the school for my own freshman classes, not without being stomped on (unintentionally) by all my peers anyway.

Ashley was wearing casual clothes. Warm green coat, t-shirt and jeans. She was also wearing her black converse without socks, which typically spelled bad news for me. I really, really hope she keeps me away from them throughout the day. Last thing I need is her foot stink on my first day of school. She put me in a loose pocket down by the waist of her coat. She put her iPhone next to me. As Ashley walked, the weight of the phone caused the edge of her jacket to swing around. I have to admit, I was a little unsettled by this.

“Excited, little bro?” she asked me. “You’re going into a whole new world. Far away from mom and dad’s house!”

Despite whatever anxiety I had, I couldn’t lie about my enthusiasm. Home really did feel like a prison at the worst of times.

“More than you can imagine, Ashley! I’m gonna finally be around other kids. I’ll finally have the chance to make friends!”

Ashley looked down at me smiling. She said nothing back.

“…Oh, and I’ll get to learn lots of new things too, of course!” I continued. Gotta play the enthusiastic student at least a little.

As we were walking through the school’s gates, Ashley sighted her friend Courtney. I’d always had somewhat of a crush on her given how beautiful she was. She was a tan blonde, dressed not so differently from Ashley today. I also caught sight of a pair of Birkenstock’s sandals and Courtney’s slender long toes. How I’d hate to get stuck under her feet!

“I’ve missed you so much since Friday, gal!” Courtney exclaimed. She had a way of getting Ashley excited.

“Oh, me too Courtney! Also, take a look! My tiny brother is having his first day of school at the ripe age of 15!” Ashley replied.

Ashley loved to tease me, but it was in jest. As she opened her pocket up, Courtney peered in and gave me a smile. I think she could feel my excitement mixed with my anxiety.

Before the school bell rang, Ashley and Courtney chatted amongst themselves as they walked about the grounds. I swear they lost interest as me as their own private conversation went on. I held on tightly to Ashley’s phone like a security blanket and occasionally moaned out to her in the hopes that she’d remember me, her little brother that she was completely responsible for, was still in her pocket. This didn’t look good at all. An intense nervous feeling met my stomach.

Ashley waved her arms in the air in excitement. Courtney had said something to her that made her laugh so hard she swung her body around in excitement. The feeling of her pocket moving about in the air was like being on a rollercoaster. Before I knew it I was airborne and heading right for the cold, hard floor.

I landed on the ground. After I opened my eyes following the fright of the fall I saw the last thing I wanted to see right up close and personal.

Courtney’s feet.