Arthur hadn’t gone for lunch and hadn’t even gotten up from behind his desk for the last two hours of class, for fear of what would happen when he stood up.

Arthur had wanted so much to carry on with life like nothing had happened, but an hour into class he started getting that trickling feeling in his back again. So instead of standing in front of the class, he felt that he needed to stand behind some sort of barricade. He used his desk. It would hide the fact that he could gradually feel himself getting smaller in front of the prying, invasive eyes of his female students.

Now that the class had ended, Arthur felt that it was safe to leave. He stood to his feet and had his fears confirmed. Both his pants and shirt had become baggier than before. What started as a tailor cut shirt was now at least one size too big for him. He picked up his briefcase and noted its heaviness.

“There will be adjustments made to that and your other belongings soon enough”

Arthur spun around to see Shawna standing at the door.

Arthur decided to be sarcastic,“So you’ll make me a tiny briefcase that’s in direct proportion to my body, no matter how small it gets?”

“Exactly” Shawna replied. Arthur hadn’t expected her answer to be so blunt.

“Beth would like to see you as soon as you’ve changed, Mr. Spence. Tonight will be your first night staying with her. Transportation has been arranged.”

Arthur didn’t know exactly how tall he currently was, but began to detect a small change in the tone of Shawna’s voice. It was like she was talking to someone younger than she was. Could it be my size he wondered?

* * *

Arthur was once again in his room and had changed out of his baggy clothes into his new outfit that had been left behind for him. As usual, his new clothes fit perfectly.

The room had been reverted to its original state of an unused office space. His bed and belongings were gone. Even the wall measurement chart had been painted over with a coat of white paint. They should have given it two coats, Arthur thought, as he could still see the measurement marks, even through they were faint.

Arthur approached the wall, feeling his heart beat accelerate. Much as he feared the results, he had to know how tall he was. Arthur stood beside the markings…

…He was four feet, nine inches tall.

Just as this terrible truth was being absorbed by his brain, Arthur heard noises from behind him. It was Beth’s voice and she was talking with someone. Arthur looked towards the door as Beth’s body appeared in the doorway.

“All set Mr. Spence?”

Beth stopped and her mouth hung open. Once again Arthur had to endure the astonished delight that ran across Beth’s face each and everytime she saw that he had gotten smaller.

“Just look at you!” she said, running towards him.

And that was the first time that Arthur felt fear of Beth. To see her approaching so quickly, his mind quickly trying to adjust to their new respective sizes, reduced Arthur to a cowering stance, as if he instinctively wanted to protect himself from this creature that rushed towards him. The feeling was embarrassment. He felt ashamed of cowering, but he could no longer help it. Beth was beside him now and noticeably taller than he was.

Arthur closed his eyes as Beth’s arms once again tried to embrace him, but this time he didn’t resist.

“Oh I’ve wanted to hug you for so long, Mr. Spence”

Beth happily pulled him towards herself, tighter and tighter, squeezing him tightly, one hand on the top of his head. They remained this way for several seconds before Arthur began to struggle. He began to push. To pry.

His breathing increased and he felt the beginning traces of suffocation aavhis face was mashed below Beth’s chin which rested snugly on the top of his head.

“No, no, she said, I’m not letting you go so easily this time” she saidvlaughing.

Though it would have been difficult, Arthur most likely could have escaped, but the fear brought on by his dwindling size prevented him from doing so. Finally he gave up struggling and released the outward force he exerted on her embrace. The second that he stopped trying to push Beth away, she hugged him tighter. Arthur’s face ground into her upper chest, until all he could see was black.

Then, after several more seconds, she let him go. Arthur fought to catch his breath, only to see Beth smiling at him. She touched the top of her head with the palm of her hand and then without moving it up or down, moved her hand overtop of his own head.

“I’m almost six inches taller,” she announced.

Beth turned toward the door.

“Isn’t that great?”

There was another female in the doorway.

“You’re finally mine” she said to him, causing his heart to drop.

Beth turned to introduce the woman standing at the door.

“Mr. Spence, this is Andrea. She’s my personal driver and she’ll be taking us to my house now…sorry, to our house”

Arthur could do nothing but stare, wondering what moving into Beth’s house would entail for him…

At four foot nine, Arthur was beginning to notice the changes in everyday life. Climbing into the car was different than normal and so was fastening his seat belt. Beth tried to help him, but he pushed her hands away and did it himself. He didn’t need the humiliation of being helped by this young enormous woman.

Beth tried to talk to him during the drive, cheerful despite everything that had happened. Arthur refused to answer any of her questions. He decided that if she insisted on taking him to her home, that the last thing he would do was cooperate with her.

The car stopped and the two of them emerged from the back seat. They entered the home and were immediately greeted by Beth’s mother and sister.

Beth’s mom was named Marie and Beth’s sister was named Adele. Beth’s mom was in her forties while Adele was in her early twenties, like Beth (Adele didn’t live there he soon learned, but decided to pop by that day in order to meet Arthur).

Arthur stood by the door, being smiled at by three pretty female women, all of whom were taller than him by at least eight or nine inches. He could see the family resemblance as they gleamed at him, trying their best to welcome him into their home.

“Adele doesn’t actually live here, Beth said, so she’s going to be leaving soon”

Adele frowned at this suggestion. “I am not. I’m staying for dinner”

Beth didn’t seem too excited by this thought, but soon brushed it off.

“Come on in, Mr. Spence”

“Yes, please, her mother said, be our guest”

All three of them continued to look down at little Arthur as he tentatively entered their house. Being just shy of five feet tall impressed on him how vulnerable he actually was. He was constantly on guard, as if he expected to have to fend off an attack at any moment.

Nothing could be further from the truth however, as the three women only wanted him to feel at home.

“I’d like to be alone” he said.

Beth nodded.

“Of course”

She then stepped towards him, but as she did, Arthur took a step away from her. Beth looked instantly hurt. Arthur turned and walked further into the house, unaware where he was headed. Once he walked into a room, he turned and closed the door behind him.

He immediately approached a nearby telephone, picked it up and tried to dial his wife. No one had come into the room yet to stop him, which was a bit surprising. He finished dialing and waited.

The number you are trying to reach is no longer in service, the voice said. Arthur hung up, tried again, but was met with the same recording.

Arthur set down the phone glumly.

Arthur sat down onto the bed, aware that the height of the mattress seemed higher than his own bed. He looked around the room, wondering who it belonged to.

Then Marie walked in. Beth’s Mom was not an unattractive woman, with curly dark blond hair and a slightly inflated waistline; she was still in good shape. She smiled at Arthur and quietly closed the door behind her.

“Sorry to intrude” she said, approaching.

“Is this your room?”

Marie nodded. Arthur estimated her height at about five feet six inches, that made her seven inches taller than him. She sat beside him and Arthur felt the springs in the bed give way, as she sat herself down. His own weight was being displaced, as the impression she made on the mattress was greater than his own. Marie noticed this too and smiled awkwardly.

“You keep getting smaller and you’re going to make me feel overweight” she chuckled.

“You’re not even close to being overweight” Arthur replied, looking to the floor. Marie was closer to his own age, so he felt a bit easier talking with her.

“I just wanted to say that I’m here to help make things easier for you”, she said, “both for you and for Beth”

Arthur looked over at Marie sitting next to him on the bed.

“For Beth?” She nodded.

“What things do you need to make easier for her? She’s got it made. She’s the talk of the town…she’s the talk of the country for that matter. She’s got me, her own little man, who’s probably going to get smaller and smaller every day”

“This wasn’t easy on her either” Marie said gently.

Arthur got up off the bed. This comment had irritated him a bit.

“Not easy on her?”

“No. It’s been very trying”

Arthur shook his head. Here he thought he could talk with this woman, but apparently that wasn’t the case.

“This was thrown on you, but remember it was thrown on Beth too. She didn’t have much say in the matter”

“What are you talking about?”

“Have you ever heard of anyone turning down a Lotto win?”

Arthur couldn’t think of this ever happening.

“Can’t, can you? That’s because no one has ever been allowed to turn down the offer. Everyone who wins is supposed to be so overjoyed at having their choice of male at their side that no one ever bothered to think that Beth never really wanted the attention”

“So why’d she choose me then?”

Marie looked at him sympathetically.

“She had to choose someone, didn’t she? They weren’t about to allow her the option of backing out”

“No?”

“None at all. She was expected to choose someone and that someone happened to be you. If you think about it, no matter who she chose, someone was bound to feel betrayed, don’t you think?”

Arthur had to agree.

“That doesn’t make it any easier on me” Arthur said, sitting down onto the bed again.

Marie nodded, “No, I don’t imagine it does”

Marie stood to her feet and Arthur could feel the bed give way. She wasn’t that big, he had to remind himself, he was just a bit small.

“Do you want to stay in here for a while?”

Arthur nodded. He needed to think.

“You might want to change into your new clothes. You’d be more comfortable for tomorrow”

Arthur looked up, as Marie was about to close the door.

“Tomorrow?”

Marie started to gently close the door.

“I better let Beth explain”