It was a very special day for Michael & Eve. They have officially been dating for 3 years now.

Michael decided to get off work early to prepare for their date.

"I think I'm gonna head out now." Michael told Eve. "I need some time to get everything ready."

"I can't wait!" Eve said excitedly.

Her smile dropped slightly. "Hey, uh, I've been meaning to ask... I know you like to go all out for me, but I really think-"

"Yeah, I cut back a little this year." Michael replied, cutting Eve off. "That being said..."

Eve's eyes lit up, and her smile returned.

"I did spend a little extra on a special present." Michael's voice trembled slightly. "I... really hope you'll accept it."

Eve's smiled widened. "See you tonight!"

They hugged before Michael walked out the door.

........

"Calm down." Michael whispered to himself. "We've been together for three years now, and our love is still going strong." He took a deep breath. "I'm sure she'll say yes. And even if she doesn't, I know she'll let me down easy..."

Michael sighed longingly before heading back to his apartment. On his way there, he was greeted by Maya.

They had been friends for a little while now, but he still felt like he didn't know her very well.

That being said, he still knew her better than anyone else. Maya was very closed-off and reserved. Michael was the only person she ever opened up to, the only one she felt comfortable around.

"Hey Michael." Maya said meekly.

She had confessed her love to him the day before, which caused Michael to feel very awkward around her. Despite this, he still felt bad for her.

"Uh, hey..." Michael said. "Look, I'm sorry, but uh, I'm a little busy right now. I really need to-"

"I-I'm sorry... about yesterday..." Maya said, interrupting him. "I realize that I made a huge mistake..."

Michael paused. He wasn't quite sure how to respond. He was grateful for her apology, but he really needed to get home. "Look, I appreciate your apology, and I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but I really need to-"

Maya pulled out a strange device from her pocket. Her expression turned cold.

"...I shouldn’t have given you a choice."

Before Michael could even react, a blinding light filled his vision.

........

Michael awoke with a start. He couldn't quite remember what happened. He ran into Maya, she apologized, said something about "giving him a choice" ?

…and then what?!

He couldn’t remember what happened afterwards.

"You're Finally Awake!" a loud voice boomed.

Michael though the voice sounded a lot like Maya's. But she seemed... louder?

After rubbing his eyes, he noticed what appeared to be a massive face looming over him. He fell to his back. He tried to crawl away, but was too petrified to move.

After getting his bearings, he examined the face closely.

He instantly recognized her.

"M-M-MAYA?!" Michael's voice trembled. He attempted to crawl backwards, but stopped when he felt something soft behind him.

"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON?!” Michael thought to himself.

"Calm down, sweetie." Maya cooed. "It's okay. Everything is okay. You're safe now."

Michael stood up. "Wh-H-How? H-How are you-"

"I shrank you!" her voice beamed. "Now no one can take you away from me!"

Before Michael could even say anything, Maya carefully picked him up.

"Aaaawwwww!" Maya cooed, "You're so much cuter like this!"

Her smiled widened. "All tiny and helpless..."

Michael started fearfully into her eyes. "M-Maya, p-please-"

Her expression fell. "No. I'm not going to grow you back."

She opened the drawer of her nightstand, revealing what appeared to be a ray gun laying inside. Although he didn't get a great look at it before, it appeared to be the same one she had pulled out of her pocket earlier.

"Besides, I think the switch is jammed or something. It won't budge."

Michael glanced over to a switch on the side of the ray gun. One side was labeled "shrink", while the other was labeled "grow".

Maya smiled a mischievous smile. "Trust me, if I could grow things, I wouldn't have even needed to shrink you."

Maya closed the drawer and carefully dropped Michael into a fish tank on her nightstand. The tank was completely empty, save for a small blanket along the bottom.

"Here you go cutie!" Maya said with a huge smile on her face. "I hope you like it!"

Michael watched as Maya's massive face filled his entire vision. He desperately wanted to run, but there was nowhere to go. He was completely at her mercy.

"I've got a little surprise for you!" Maya said, walking out of the room. "Be back in a minute!"

Michael sat down and sobbed.

“This can’t be happening…” He whispered.

This was it. This was his life now.