The day the strain first showed in Roger began like any other day but before it was over, he had lost almost 7 inches, There could be no denying it, Roger was somehow actually shrinking in height.. By days end, Roger was a couple of inches shorter than his wife Nicole who stood at just 5’ 6”. At the time, they had no idea that he had contracted an incredibly rare type of virus, what the medical profession now calls the strain. Roger just realized that something was terribly wrong and that his life was never going to be the same again. On day one, he could never have envisioned just how humiliating his existence would become in only one short year.
When he arrived at work, things felt off to Roger. He did not know what though at first.He just had this feeling that something was terribly wrong. He just couldn’t figure out what. As the morning moved along, it became more obvious as he lost inch after inch. What the hell could make a person shrink in size, he thought to himself as he watched everyone around him seem to grow taller and taller from his perspective. After some embarrassing moments at the workplace, Roger decided he needed to get out of there and he told his boss that he was feeling under the weather and he needed to take the rest of the day off. He had no way of knowing it but, he would not to be able to return to the office anytime soon.
Arriving home in the afternoon, the first person he ran into was his 15 year old daughter Jenna, home from lacrosse practice with her friends Kelsie Mckenna and Julie Wilcox. The three girls were somewhat preoccupied, fortunately and they did not notice that Roger was smaller than usual. By now he had lost an incredible 5 inches from his original 5’ 11” and he stood around 5’6” tall. His clothes were feeling looser and the sensation of getting smaller was very uncomfortable and physically disconcerting on him.
Jenna did recognize that something was not right with her dad. Her dad never rushed by her without giving her a big welcome and a hug! This time, he had done just that, barely even acknowledging her and her friends, This was not at all like her daddy, Jenna though. When she approached him in his study, she asked him about it.
“ What’s wrong dad? You aren’t yourself at all. You didn’t even give me a hug or a smile and thats not like you at all.” She looked at him and she knew something wasn’t right. “you uhhhh look different daddy” unsure of what she meant exactly “Are you ok?” she said worriedly.
Roger remained seated as his daughter approached him. Jenna stood around 5’ 3” and Roger knew that if he stood up to hug her, she would easily recognize his smaller height. He reached out to her instinctively, taking her close to him, but never standing up. “Everything’s ok Jenna honey. I just don’t feel right today” he explained to her. “Please go to your friends Jenna, I’m fine…...really” not wanting to worry the girl. “I will feel much better after I rest a little, I promise.” He feigned an unconvincing smile.
Unconvinced, Jenna sat down next to her father and gave him a very big long hug and then a kiss on the cheek. She loved her daddy very much and although Roger did not take favorites among his kids, he had to admit that this adorable girl had a very special place in his heart. “Are you sure you’re ok daddy? You’re making me a little worried with the way you are acting.”
Already at such a young age, Jenna had established herself as a kind caring young woman and of all his daughters, Roger was certain that she was going to be a wonderful and nurturing mom some day. “I’m fine honey, really. Go to your friends. Thanks for worrying about your old man”
She gave him a disbelieving look and shrugged her cute shoulders, She was displeased at being sent away this way as her dad often would do to her. “You better not be lying to me daddy. Really. I can handle things. I am not a little girl anymore and you need to start trusting me and treating me like i can be depended on.” She shook her head, frustrated with being treated like a child still. But when she saw her father’s sad expression, she couldn’t help herself. She smiled at him, sheepishly and got up to walk away. As she headed out, Jenna’s long dirty blonde hair bounced around behind her. She refused to tie it down, liking it to flow naturally she said. with the occasional exception of wearing a ponytail now and then. Roger had to admit to himself, his middle daughter was extremely mature and was quickly becoming a woman before his very eyes…..and he didn't like it one bit, her growing up without his consent.
Jenna returned to her friends, “Guys, something is really not right with my dad. I can feel it. I have to call my mom and tell her right now. Would one of you mind grabbing my dad a big glass of lemonade and bringing it to him in his study, please?” Kelsie was up in an instant and said cheerfully, “ I really like your dad Jenna, I will be glad to get him some lemonade and keep an eye on him for you while you call your mom.: Jenna smiled at her friend appreciatively.
As Jenna called her mom up at work, Kelsie got the lemonade and some pretzels and brought them into the study, surprising Roger who was not expecting more company. Kelsie Mckenna had been Jenna Thomson’s good friend so many years so Roger had seen plenty of her in his house since she around 5 or 6 years old. He liked her alot and he was pleased that Jenna had such a nice girl for her best friend. Jenna was always very respectful of his authority and she followed the rules of the house, even more than than his girls did!
Like his daughter, Kelsie was a pretty blonde girl, more of a natural blonde though as his daughter had some brown mixed in with the blonde. Kelsie didn’t seem to have any idea of just how cute she was which made her all the more attractive. She had no heirs about her and was just extremely engaging and lovely. She had a stunning little body too for one so young.Roger imagined Kelsie was going to be extremely popular with the boys very soon but at 13 years old, he didn’t think she had started dating yet. He was sure it wouldn’t be long.
Kelsie stood staring at Roger but she was not sure why. With a perplexed look on her face, Kelsie stood there just looking at him. “Mr. Thomson,” Kelsie smiled “Jenna thought you could use a nice cool beverage and a snack to help make you feel better so I volunteered to bring it to you.” Kelsie Mckenna beamed genuinely as she handed over the refreshments to him. When he took them, this gave her a second to look him over and he definitely did not look right. Jenna was right, she thought to herself. But there was more to him not looking right, something bizarre and inexplicable seemed to be happening, but what?
She continued to stare at him and all of a sudden, Kelsie grew even more confused as her analytical side starting to work overtime. From her expression, Roger knew that she was putting two and two together and that worried him. After all, Kelsie was a very bright girl and she had seen him so many times in the past, enough to know he was usually a lot taller than her. Now it had to be obvious to her that he was only 4 or 5 inches tall!v From her expression, Kelsie had to know that he there was no way he should be that short.
“Mr Thomson, I know how weird this is going to sound, “ Keslie was trying so hard to be polite and not sound stupid but she was fairly certain she was right about this. “ You uhhh seem like you used to be quite a bit taller to me before, but that’s impossible, right?” Kelsie giggled nervously and played with her long hair trying hard not to look foolish. She didn’t want to insult Mr Thomson but she was really intrigued by this mystery and maybe a little freaked out too.
“Don’t be silly Kelsie, I think you are just a little confused is all.” Roger was quick to deflect her observations by attacking the absurdity of her thought, pretending the idea was ludicrous to him. “I think you are probably just taller than the last time you saw me. I’m afraid I have always been a little short for my taste and you just never noticed that hun.” Roger tried to sound convincing in his lies in order to protect his privacy. He was sure he was doing a poor job as Kelsie’s look said she wasn’t buying into it. Her pretty face had a look of disbelief on it.
Kelsie was completely unconvinced, however she did not want to debate the issue with her best friend’s dad. She had always been taught to show respect and to defer to adults and getting into an argument with Mr Thomson was out of the question. She reasoned that he was a grown up and adults often had good reasons for being untruthful and that was why he must be lying to her now. Perhaps there was something bigger going on here that he was trying to hide?
Despite this, she really didn’t want to let the subject drop as she was very intrigued. She giggled nervously yet she tried to inquire further because Kelsie, a petite 5 1 had always been a lot shorter than Mr Thomson. She knew exactly where she came up to on her own dad and he was only about 4 inches taller than her. Looking at Mr Thomson, she recalled that she’d always been close to a foot shorter than him but now but now she looked up to him the same way she looked up to her dad! Measuring him next to her mentally, perhaps Mr Thomson was even closer to her height that her dad was now. Kelsie considered all this with a slight twinge of wonderment and even exhilaration at the idea. But then Kelsie had always been fascinated by the unusual , and she often liked to play what if games in her head. she told herself that this was completely impossible and far fetched even for her own imaginative mind. However at the same time, she was really fascinated and excited by the possibility. No one could possibly shrink in size, could they? She wondered to herself.
So Kelsie proceeded carefully with her next statement “No offense Mr. Thomson but I am pretty sure I am not growing much at all anymore.” She giggled gently again to lower his defenses. Kelsie had learned the power she had by being girlish and how it always worked with guys of all ages. “You really sure you have always been only about 5 4? It just seems you have always been a tall guy to me!” She hoped he would let his guard down and show some inadvertent reaction to her inquiry. Maybe he would by accident let it slip out and admit whatever it was that was going on. She really was dying to know what was happening to Mr Thomson but he was good at stonewalling her and he wasn’t volunteering anything. In fact, He turned annoyed at the questioning; “ Kelsie listen, I really don’t mean to be rude but what you are saying is preposterous. Think about it will you? You aren’t making any sense, silly girl. He laughed unconvincingly. “ I’d really like to drop this subject right now, i’m beginning to get frustrated by your silliness.” Then to temper it when he saw her hurt expression, “ Please dont be upset hun, I am having a really bad day and I am short tempered. I didnt mean to hurt your feelings sweetie.Why don’t you go back and hang out with Jenna and Julia and I will work on resting and in improving my disposition. I am feeling a little weary you know.”
More intrigued than ever Kelsie smartly played along. “ Oh I understand completely Mr Thomson. I’m fine, don’t worry. I get stupid things in my head all the time and I guess I still let my imagination run wild sometimes. Of course you are right Mr Thomson, I can be twit sometimes! What was I thinking anywho? Haha” She wanted to cover herself so that he wouldn’t be suspicious of her curiousity. “Please don’t mention my foolishness to Jenna sir, I’d be so embarrassed if she knew how dumb i can be sometimes.”
Kelsie poured it on thick but it seemed to work as he relaxed almost immediately, maybe partly because he wanted to believe he had convinced her. “Oh of course sweetheart, don’t give it a second thought. It will be our little secret, I would never say anything. We all have our silli moments now and again. It’s all forgotten, really.” He relaxed a little now, reassured that his secret was safe.
Before leaving the study, Kelsie ran over to Mr Thomson and gave him a big hug which Mr Thomson ate up, leaving him totally reassured. He smiled broadly, “ Now go hun! oh and thanks for the lemonade, you’re such an angel.”
“No problem Mr Thomson. Glad to do it!” She walked away humming pleasantly, not looking at him as she left the room. However, she smiled to herself. She had hugged him with ulterior motives. She was measuring herself and how much she had to step on her tipytoes and now she was firmly convinced. The more she thought about it, the more she was intrigued by the concept. What if Mr Thomson were really shrinking in size? She didn’t know why but the idea was very very cool to her. She was certain about one thing, Jenna’s dad was definitely smaller than he had been and she was determined to get to the bottom of this awesome mystery!