Jess walked out of the office building with her two-inch date riding on her open palm. She was used to carrying him at the end of their shifts to the nearby parking garage since it took him forever to reach it by foot. Normally, Drew had no problem being carried to his car, but given the circumstances of this evening, the simple gesture filled him with worry. Was his size a nuisance to her? Did the way he was sitting bother her? All sorts of random concerns popped in and out of his head as she walked along the sidewalk.

            Similar thoughts rushed through Jess’ head. Was he comfortable? Was her gait too jumpy? Was her palm sweating? The walk to their cars only took a few minutes, but it was the longest few minutes they had felt doing this. For tinies, most parking garages had shelving units for their miniature vehicles. Tinies drove electric cars set to their scale and modeled after real vehicles. Underneath the city streets were a network of roads that allowed the mini drivers to get all over the city without threat of being run over by standard-sized vehicles.

            “Would you like me to drive you, or do you want to go separately?” she asked as she reached Drew’s car.

            “I’ll go with you. It would take me a lot longer to drive there myself.” With a nod, she grabbed his car out from its shelf. It was a black and red Dodge Challenger about the size of a tissue box. Tinies usually drove nice cars since they were much cheaper to produce than the real things. She carried his car over to her SUV and placed it in the backseat before getting into the front with her date. Drew looked like a small toy sitting in the passenger seat.

            “So, where are we heading?” Jess asked.

            “There’s an Italian place on 21st I heard was pretty good.”

            “Cool. Pull it up for me, will ya?” Jess tossed her phone onto the passenger seat as she drove off. Drew’s hands were just large enough to be registered by the touch screen. It took some effort for the tiny to navigate the much larger screen, but he got the GPS set up just as Jess pulled out of the garage. “Thanks.”

            It was a short drive to the restaurant. The place was called Mescolare; it was a somewhat classy, local restaurant founded four years prior. It was well-regarded for its quality cuisine, homely atmosphere, and reasonable prices. It was also a rare instance of a restaurant designed from the ground up to serve clientele of all sizes. Along with two different scaled entrances, the restaurant had separate menus cooked by differently sized chefs as well as seating arrangements so all could eat comfortably.

            Jess brought Drew inside and cased the eatery. Between each row of tables were elevated counters holding their own rows of miniature tables. Each counter had lifts connecting the tops to the floor, allowing tiny patrons to eat comfortably alongside the bigger ones. Jess approached the maître d’, a full-sized man.

            “Table for two, please,” she requested. “We can sit together, right?”

            “Of course. Right this way.” The maître d’ grabbed two menus, one the size of a note tab, and led the pair to a table. It was a normal sized table, but on one side sat a small replica of the table with a matching chair. It was a simple solution to an uncommon problem; mixed size couples were rare enough that most restaurants didn’t need to take such measures. After being seated, a waiter arrived with a basket of ciabatta and a small cup of baked bread crumbs and greeted them.

            “May I get you started with something to drink? All of our beverages are on the house for you both tonight, compliments of the owners.” With wide eyes, Jess found the priciest wine available and ordered a bottle. Drew agreed to share it. The waiter jotted down the rest of their order and retreated into the kitchen.

            “What was that about?” Jess asked.

            “I heard this place was runned by an intersize couple. Maybe that has something to do with it?”

            “Oh, that makes sense. For a second, I thought you might’ve had ties to some tiny mafia,” she joked. Drew bit into a bread crumb; to Jess, it was like looking out a skyscraper window to the sidewalk below and watching a man eat at a streetside café. “Hey, I’ve always wondered, does food taste different for you? For tinies, I mean.” Drew looked at the half-eaten crumb in his hand and thought for a moment.

            “Probably,” he replied, “I’ve had big food a few times. It’s usually either too bland or too spicy.”

            “I bet it depends on what part you bite into. It would be gross to just get a mouthful of paprika or something. Sorry, was that a rude thing to ask?”

            “Nah, not at all.” Drew wasn’t even sure why it would be.

            “Good,” she said with a nervous smile. The composure Jess had built up was starting to show its cracks. In her head, she criticized every word she said as it left her mouth and fought back the urge to apologize after every sentence. She talked with Drew almost every day at work and never felt the need to filter herself, but now that they were in this restaurant under the pretense of a date, she became burdened by a self-imposed performance anxiety.

            Beneath the surface, Drew wasn’t faring much better. Butterflies had been swarming his guts nonstop since he woke up that morning, only briefly subsiding when Jess agreed to go out with him. He still couldn’t believe she said yes. They had always got along at work, but there was no chance of them being anything but friends. She had been in a steady relationship for as long as they had known each other, and he was two-inches tall. Maybe she only went out with him out of pity? Or was it a prank? Drew tried to subdue those thoughts, not wanting to ruin the moment.

            The waiter returned with their food. He placed before Jess a caprese salad and spaghetti bolognese, and on Drew’s table, he delicately lowered a miniature plate of carbonara.  The food was as authentic as one could get in Midwest America. The two continued their conversation as they ate.

            “It’s my turn to ask you a question,” Drew said. “Why do big people like going to the beach?

            “The beach?” Jess was taken aback by the question. Though it was technically spring, it was still chilly outside. This was the time when relaxing on the hot sand was most appealing. “Do tinies not go to the beach?” As she mentioned it, she realized she couldn’t recall ever seeing one when she went.

            “No way. They’re a death trap for us. Sand’s a bitch to move around in, and the tide’s too strong to swim in. Plus, there’s all the people running around and laying blankets without looking. Then there’s the fish and seagulls and crabs all trying to eat us.” Oddly enough, thinking about actual dangers helped to alleviate some of his nerves. “But I don’t get what big people like about it. The water’s gross and the sand gets stuck everywhere. Why not just go to a pool?” Jess thought about it for a moment.

            “Well, it’s about the atmosphere. Pools are great too, but spending time in nature is about accepting the beauty alongside the flaws. It’s romantic.” Drew didn’t expect such a serious answer. “I’ll take you when it gets warmer, then you’ll get it. And I’ll keep the seagulls at bay too,” she giggled. As they ate, the couple found it easier to converse. Their anxiousness subsided as they fell back to the usual back and forth they often shared in their downtime at work. By the time the check came, the two had let all pretenses slide and were laughing at each other’s revelry.

            The waiter correctly assumed Drew was paying and handed him a microscopic copy of the bill. His eyes nearly leaped from his skull when he saw how much Jess’ food cost. “Holy shit, do you normally pay this much?” She held up the microchip of a check to her eye. Even squinting, she couldn’t tell what it said and had to zoom in on it with her phone. The prices seemed reasonable to her. If anything, they were on the cheap side considering how good the food was. But then she reached his total.

            “Your whole meal cost a dime!” she exclaimed. Sure, he had been eating literal bread crumbs, but she couldn’t get over how cheap his food was. They held the same position at their company and had both held it for a year. Their salaries were nearly the same, but Drew enjoyed far cheaper living conditions. “How much do you spend on groceries?”

            “About a dollar a week,” he responded. Jess’ mouth was agape. She didn’t want to know what he paid for rent or gas.

Wait, she thought, he doesn’t even pay for gas. His car’s electric.  

Drew picked up on her reaction. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to sound stingy. I never realized how much more expensive everything must be for you.” He didn’t mind spending the money. The reason he chose to work alongside larger people was because of how well they paid. As long as he worked there, he was set for life and would gladly spend it on the people he cared about. Part of Jess was worried about taking advantage of Drew’s fortunate circumstances; the other part didn’t understand why everyone was against her dating a tiny.

Before the two took off, a well-dressed man approached their table. He appeared to be in his mid-thirties and could have easily passed for a super-model. Perched on his shoulder was an equally handsome man of two inches.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you two,” the larger man said. “I am Massimo Valenti, and this is my partner, Giovanni. We are the owners of this establishment, and we wished to extend our gratitude for your patronage.”

“If I may, how long have you been together?” Giovanni asked.

“This is actually our first date,” Jess responded. The two men smiled with delight.

“Che bello. I hope all goes well for you two. You’re welcome back anytime.” The young couple said their thanks and went their way, Jess carrying Drew back to her car.

“Hey, uh, thanks for tonight,” the small man said from her palm. “It means a lot.” He scratched at the back of his neck as he spoke and avoided looking her in the eye. Jess had been so absorbed by her own anxiety she only now realized Drew was in the same boat. She gently poked his shoulder to get his full attention.

“I had fun. Let’s do this again sometime soon.” Her smile beamed down on him with his glinting back up to her.