9th Street had a bad fame in the entire city. It was rumoured that people who find themselves there often disappear, never to be found again, like there was some kind of demon living there, capturing unsuspecting passerby's. The press called this urban legend as the Wraith from 9th Street. Of course, the police and city authorities completely denied that anything like that exists, all the investigations never led anywhere. The official culprit responsible for occasional disappearances was a nearby river, or to be more specific, people drowning in it.

There was only one store on the 9th Street. It belonged to Oda Tanaka, an elderly Asian man, selling groceries from nine in the morning till seven in the afternoon. There were people that dared setting up their own shops from time to time, but sooner or later they were driven out by the terrible reputation this place had. Reputation didn't end on the Wraith. There were few local gangs harassing business owners, bikers, and few illegal businesses that everyone knew about, and yet noone ever said a word out. People were scared, and kept to themselves. Nobody wanted to become a snitch with broken thumbs and legs.

Oda Tanaka however didn't care about every day bickering and fighting. Nobody harassed him, nobody even dared looking at him in a wrong way. It was said that he had a powerful protector, that once got rid of a few crime bosses before settling down in this city. It was said that the Wraith from 9th Street personally watches over this store and his owner.

Jerome Johnson, for his friends JJ, a local ganster wanna-be was about to test it. The store owner just closed, but was still inside, alone, counting the money. JJ had a loaded gun, a mask on his head and was about kick open the doors, when he noticed a blue flash. And then the world got a lot bigger for him...

***

"You ready, Dan?" Around fifty years old woman with a worried expression asked her son.

"Yes, mom. I have everything in the bag, my breakfast and clothes to change into just in case."

A young adult, dressed up in Metallica t-shirt, jeans and running shoes waved his mom goodbye and left their apartment. He was excited. Today was the first day of his new job, and he really wanted it to work. He got fired few months earlier from the courier company for alleged stealing. Dan's story was different than what his co workers told their superiors, but it was his word against several other people that had seniority over him. After that everyone sane enough to do a background check didn't want to hire him which put him in a troublesome spot. His dad left years ago, leaving no contact data or anything, sending only one post card from Mexico. Mom, however, stayed with him, worked hard every day. After finishing high school with mediocre grades Dan knew he was becoming a burden for her. That's why he wanted to started earning his own money and at least pay for some of the bills.

The job that accepted him wasn't the greatest. In fact, it barely payed anything above the minimal wage, but he didn't complain. The owner said yes to him over the phone, not even asking for a face to face interview, which was odd, but Dan decided not to question it, taking in the opportunity.

Today was the day to sign the paperwork and officially start working. His shift would start at ten, and end at around eight in the evening. Dan knew that the store he was going to work in was placed in a 'bad' neighborhood, but he didn't really believe the rumours or urban legends fueled by wild imagination of newspapers and their reporters.

***

Bus took Dan a couple of streets away from his final destination, so he had to walk the remaining mile. It was a warm morning, and the streets were filled with cars speeding to work.

He saw the store from afar. It was a two floor high building, first floor clearly served as a shop area. Dan couldn't see through the tightly curtained windows what was above, but he suspected that it was some kind of apartment. Without much hesitation, he pushed the doors.

The inside of the store looked typical for this type of establishment. The merchandise was on shelves separated from each other by the walking alleys. After a second Dan noticed that the wares were sorted by the type of food, drinks, and refrigeration, with visible prices next of the items. Right next to the entrance was a counter with cash register and the owner behind it.

"Welcome at Oda Tanaka's store."

Older Asian man, supposedly Tanaka, said. Curiously, there was no signs of an Asian accent in his speech. Store owner was half hunched over and it was clear to Dan why he needed to hire anyone to help him.

"Hello. I'm Dan Hargreaves. I was supposed to start working here today."

"Ahh, Dan. Hello, hello." Older man, making small steps, strolled around the counter to shake younger man's hand.

"Let me just close the store and then we can talk."

Tanaka moved closer to the doors and locked them. He also flipped a sign on them to show people that the store is temporarily closed.

"Let's go to the office."

They moved through the alleys to the back of the store. Then, a corridor filled with several doors led them to the small office area which contained a desk with computer on it, two chairs and a file cabinet.

"Okay, here is my résumé."

Dan said before they sat down, handing over the papers to Tanaka, but he just raised his hands.

"No, no need. I know all about you. You are hired. Here are the papers. Read them and then sign."

Dan looked over the contract and it was fairly standard. Nothing special there, except for the signature that was placed right next to Mr Tanaka's name. Young man deciphered it as Sterling, and wanted to ask who that person was, but decided against it. He was sure that if this knowledge is necessary for him, Tanaka will tell all about that person.

After signing the contract and sending a text message to his mom that the job is indeed real, Dan found a spot for his things, put on a work t-shirt with stores logo, and began to work. His first tasks were simple and didn't require much from him. Just cleaning the floors, stocking shelves and familiarizing himself with the store. Mr Tanaka was at the counter, serving clients. In the afternoon Dan started to learn how to work with cash register, scanning bar codes, printing bills, and efficiently counting the change. It went slow for him and he did a few mistakes that Asian man had to correct, but he was told that in a few days he will get used to it and be a fast and efficient worker. Dan hoped it was true.

Few minutes after seven they closed the store and it was time for cleanup. Dan first polished the counter and then moved on to working with the mop while Tanaka was counting in today's income and checking the stock.

Being done in like twenty minutes with main store area, he moved on to the corridor leading to the office. Dan noticed that one of the doors earlier closed was slightly open now and he could see it was connected to a staircase leading above. He didn't know whether he should clean there or not, but decided against interrupting his boss and went to do it. Who knows, maybe he could score some bonus points for the initiative?

He pushed through the door and he heard a crunching noise, like he stepped on something. The lamp barely provided any light, so after initial inspection he thought it's just some kind of bug. Dan cleaned his shoe with a mop and proceeded to make sure that this part of the floor is spotless as well.

***

Victoria Sterling was watching from above, well hidden in the shadows. She was initially infuriated by the fact that her most recent toy almost escaped, but seeing what happened left her in a state of confusion. It was the first time she saw another human being kill a shrunken person, aware or not. She initially wanted to shrink this new guy and punish him for what he did, but she decided against it. It wasn't really his fault. And Oda Tanaka would not approve losing an employee for no reason...

Rob was riding through the sleeping city on his motorcycle. He was just a simple biker that a few weeks ago got chosen by his gang boss to become the night rider. Or, as mundane people knew it, a courier. His task was simple - get to the stash at three in the morning, take out a small package with merchandise, and bring it to the boss's hideout. He was also told to specifically not go through the 9th Street, even though it was the shortest route. Well, a few days ago he almost got busted by the patrolling cops a few blocks away, so he decided to go against the orders of his boss, and tried riding through the dreaded street. And... Nothing happened.
Feeling cocky, the next night he tried it again. And again. His roaring engine was causing apartments lights to turn on, being so loud that nobody in the area was able to sleep. On the fourth night he noticed an angry looking woman, sitting on a bench next to the store. He waved at her before speeding into the night.

He didn't know that the fifth night was about to be his last. That the woman he was not letting sleep would take matters into her own hands. That the next time he was passing her, there would be a blue light signaling his incoming doom. That he would become just a tiny speck at the sit of his bike, before laws of physics fire him off in the distance like a catapult under a crashing bike. That his shattered remains would be carefully scooped up with a tissue and just thrown into the trashcan. 

And that his bike from now on would serve a much more responsible owner.

***

For the next week Dan was coming to work at ten. He wasn't needed earlier. Oda Tanaka was at his spot at the counter and kept giving instructions to a younger man.
The work wasn't so hard, but there was a lot to do, so Dan was busy with stocking shelves until break time. During afternoons he was manning the cash register under the sharp eye of his boss. His mistakes were becoming less frequent, he could count money fast enough so that the clients stopped getting impatient while he was giving them a change. And, after work, he moved on to clean.
After that first time, the doors towards the staircase were locked, so maybe he wasn't meant to go in there are all.

Next week he began to take his lunch breaks outside, on a bench nearby. Dan saw that there was pretty much nobody ever sitting on it, and it looked clean enough. Few days later, when five minutes of break on the bench, he heard a feminine, soft voice.

"Hi, is this sit taken?"

The woman asked. He looked up from his double cheese sandwich. She looked a few years older than him, shorter than him, maybe five foot seven. She was wearing a simple, purple summer dress. He liked her oval face. From the bottom of her round hat he could notice strands of blond hair.
In her right hand she was carrying a plastic cup with some kind of cold, dark liquid inside. Probably a soda. Her deep, blue eyes looked at him with anticipation.

"Shah pfafen." Dan said, but his mouth was full, so his words became an non articulate mumble. He swallowed and then tried again. "Sorry. Its not taken, please, have a sit."

He said and moved his backpack so she could have more space.
She sat with an uncommon to the kind of place grace and mannerism, crossing her legs, looking into the distance, and taking a sip of her soda.
Dan thought he heard a scream or a shout when she did that, but it was barely audible and didn't repeat itself, so he soon forgot about it.

"I've never seen you in this neighborhood. Did you just move here?" She asked, still looking away from him.

"No, I live in the other side of the city. I'm just working for mister Tanaka. I'm Dan." He introduced himself, extending a hand.

She looked at him for a few seconds, considering what to do. Finally, they shook hands.

"My name is Victoria. How do you like the job at the store?"

"It's good. My boss keeps me busy, but he is fair in his demands."

He said, while biting on the sandwich again.

***

Victoria was looking for an opportunity to talk to this guy alone for some time now. Observing him every day from the distance, she learned his working habits and that he spends his breaks here. She decided to give him a chance, maybe he isn't as despising as the rest of this world. Her attitude towards most humans was obsessively negative and life had worth for her as long as it was useful and didn't bother her. The woman's firm belly grumbled loudly, as it was working through her most recent victim. A mugger that thought he could get away with robbing her on the street in broad daylight. She picked him up just an hour ago, and now he was swimming in her digestive acids mixed with a cheap soda.

There was also one more tiny hidden in her sock. She literally shrunk this one on the way to this meeting. He tried to hit on Victoria but she was in a hurry and didn't want any delays. After initial rejection, he tried again, asking for her number. That was the greatest mistake of his puny life.

She looked at her conversation partner that clearly didn't mind the louds sounds of her stomach. He finished his sandwich and she knew that there was still time before his break had to end. 

He was only twenty two, but looked handsome enough for some unlucky woman to fall for him. His skin was a bit pale, probably didn't spend that much time outside. His face actually looked pretty decent, for her standards. It was a bit round and she liked the way he smiled while not exposing his teeth. Maybe they can be friends, or... Or maybe she can take him into her apartment and turn him into a new plaything?

She considered and wanted to say something, when she felt an annoying movement around her ankle area. She moved her feet and pressed the back of her shoe to the ground, just a bit, not strong enough to obliterate the tiny, but sufficiently enough to show him that she doesn't tolerate annoying people.
Finally, she could focus on what to say, she opened her mouth and...

"It was nice meeting you, but I gotta get back to work. See you around." Dan said, packing his things and leaving.

She was left alone, cursing herself that she didn't speak earlier. She craved conversation with him. To see what kind of man he was, to see if he deserved to stay and walk among other humans...
It was too late for that today.
But it wasn't too late to torment a tiny inside her sock.

***

Victoria went back to her apartment using a staircase behind the building. The person that she wanted to speak with was just a floor below, working, cleaning, selling. But she had also someone else to entertain her.
After removing her shoes, she violently plucked out the tiny from her sock and checked his condition. He was breathing fast and his chest area had blue marks on it. Probably a sign of broken ribs.
Seeing how she isn't going to get much use of this one, she decided to finish him off by just squishing him. With him being just a one inch shrinkie, it wasn't a problem at all.
All she needed to do was to close her gloved hand into a fist... and done!

Devon punched as hard as he could. He didn't hold back, he didn't use any arbitrary percentage, he didn't use just his fist, but also had a bit of a runup and knowing how to use his entire body to throw a punch he hit as hard as he could. He had to.
Devon and his friend, Michael, were car dealers celebrating a huge sale they made just a few hours earlier. Walking from bar to bar, being completely wasted, they found themselves on the 9th Street without even realising it. Not finding any place to drink, they saw a store. They didn't have enough mental capacity to check if it was opened, trying to overpower it instead and causing a large commotion. They saw a person coming down to them and asking to leave. Devon's friend responded in not so kind manner and he... disappeared.
The remaining car dealer didn't want that to happen to him, he just wanted his friend back. So he tried his odds.
Right when Devon felt his fist connecting with the strangers face, he felt himself collapsing, dropping to the ground.

***

It was Friday already. Dan looked at the clock with impatiently, but here were still three minutes left to his break time. He could already see her through the store window, sitting on the bench and waiting for him.
Ever since that first time, they were meeting at the same hour, on the same spot, on every working day. Both of them barely shared any personal information during that time, just chatting about current events, weather, and how they felt. These daily conversations barely carried any deeper weight or meaning and yet it was something to look forward to in the daily routine. A break, that everyone needs for mental health.
Just as he finished restocking an expensive champagne bottle, the clock hit the break time.

"Go. Don't keep your mistress waiting."

Oda Tanaka said, looking at him with a serious expression. Dan thought for a short second about his strange choice of words before quickly grabbing his backpack and going outside.

She was there, sitting on a bench, her hair glistening in the sun rays. She didn't wear a hat today, and there was another change to her usual attire, a pair of large sunglasses.
Victoria was playing with something in her hand, but it was too small to see from the distance, and when Dan got closer, she dropped it inside her purse.

"Hey." Victoria said, when he sat down.

"Hello."

Dan grabbed his usual sandwich and started eating. None of them spoke in the next few moments, waiting for him to get his fill and actually umake lunch break live up to it's name. Swallowing down the last bite, he washed it down with water.

"How was your day so far?"

"Aside from the early morning, fine." She responded, while moving her head to look at him.

Then he saw it. A large bruise around her left eye.

"Are you okay? What happened?" Dan asked worried.

"Just... I had a visit from annoying neighbours. Don't worry, the speck that caused it already regrets it."

"Did you go to the hospital and checked it out just in case?" Dan asked. Inside he was boiling with anger at whoever left an ugly mark on a beautiful face.

"I'm fine, don't worry. What about your day?" She asked, knowing already the answer.

He looked at her one more time. She insisted, clearly not wanting to talk about it, so he dropped the matter.

"You know, the usual. Well, except for the fact that I memorized another set of codes, this time for cigarettes."

He grinned with pride only known to retail sellers.

"Nice, congratulations."

"Other than that I was thinking if I should cycle to work, you know, get that fresh air."

She nodded, without saying anything.

"So, I was wondering..." He started, clearly with something serious in mind.

***

Time stopped for Victoria. She knew that he was about to ask her out. After the morning issues she wasn't sure if coming today was a good idea. It still hurt and having a black eye brought back her self evaluation issues. She always tried so hard to look good, to be the best she could be. Or at least to be better than all those people. But now she just looked like another hoe from the street.
She saw Dan differently. His hair was usually in slight disarray, he was quite loud in chewing his meal and she didn't like the careless way of him handling his backpack. He was full of flaws that should make him disgusting for her. And yet, she liked him. She liked a normal human, and was willing to go so far for him to include him in her daily routine.
Victoria knew that she was probably getting too friendly with him. That sooner or later he would just become another disappointing memory. She had plenty of those in her life, why should she get more?

"... Would you be interested in going out with me tomorrow? Like, to go see a movie, or something?"

The question has been asked. There was no taking it back. Victoria wished for a moment that he was just a bench friend that she spied on when she was bored. But he asked for more now. And she had to refuse. Her mind was set, so she said...

"I'd love to."

Her insanity answered for her, being stronger than her will. She didn't mean to! She was supposed to say something else!

"How about we meet here, tomorrow at noon, and then we can go grab a bite or something?"

He asked again. She could still change her mind, she could find an excuse. She could say no!

"That sounds wonderful. Can we exchange phone numbers, just in case?"

"Sure."

Victoria opened her purse and was about to pick up her mobile device when she saw a tiny that managed to turn on the touch screen and desperately trying type something. She flicked the shrunken person away, into the other side of her purse, and picked up her mobile cell phone.
After exchanging numbers and him leaving on the break, she pulled out tiny from her purse and while looking at him, gulped with anxiety. Victoria knew she was getting a bit careless with her tinies. She had to be more careful. Otherwise the entire world would turn against her.
With that thought she moved the tiny body between her fingers, and then broke it with one move.

***

Back at her apartment, she was preparing for tomorrow, trying to decide what to wear. It wasn't an evening date, so she shouldn't go too sexy, just only enough to make everyone else jealous of his partner. Obviously the black eye is still going to be there, but hopefuly sunglasses and a bit of makeup could cover it... For the most part.
But what about the colour? Her every day purple wouldn't do.
She tried picking, while playing watching a tiny trying to escape from the table she put him on. She told him that if he can go down on his own, and survive, she would return him to his normal size.
He was sliding the table leg in a slow pace, taking his time with the task. When he was almsot at half way mark, the giant woman got closer to him, bending over, opened her mouth and gave him a long lick, causing the tiny to lose balance and drop to his death.
Victoria looked at the stain on her floor, and said:

"Yes, red will do."