The elevator chime broke the silence. Mindy shifted her weight from one leg to the other, unfolding her arms. The tired young lady was spent, so preoccupied with her workload that she even had to skip lunch for the day. She was starving and exhausted, and the tiny needle of frustration that finally made her burst was a certain someone nearby. Or, something, depending on who you’re asking.

The elevator arrived. Mindy stepped inside, so very desperate to just get home. Her jaw was clenched, hard as stone, the frustration seeping through her face. The walk home was short, her attention elsewhere for the majority of the trip. As Mindy hastily trekked through the bustling streets, her obviously frustrated expression made many ponder just who or what had lit such a fiery rage within the poor woman. Even as Mindy reached her apartment minutes later, her anger was still fresh.

Immediately upon entry, Mindy dropped onto her comforting sofa. She pried away the boots desperately clinging to her sore feet, heavy steam trailing behind her sweat soaked socks as they slipped from their respective cages. Mindy peered down the left boot’s opening, the dark insole faintly visible under the lamplight. Dark patches of sweat, lint, and other grime were scattered across the musty surface.

Mindy frowned. She clearly was searching for something, but what? Flipping her boot and giving it a rigorous shake, a tiny pale figure fell to the floor. It was so small it plopped to the ground without so much as a peep. Now exposed to the light properly, it was clear what it was; a person, no bigger than an inch or so, coated in the common filth one would find deep in the pit Mindy’s hellish boot. They laid flat on their back, positioned just inches from Mindy’s black sock. Up above, Mindy’s glare was as heavy as her foot.

“You are so worthless,” Mindy spat, “I knew I shouldn’t have listened to Matt.”

The tiny speck could barely lift themself to meet Mindy’s gaze. Their body was exhausted, their senses still recuperating. Their nostrils burned, Mindy’s musk still lingering in their lungs. The only moisture that prevented their tiny mouth from drying away was Mindy’s invading foot sweat. Funnily enough, the tiny shared the same feeling of starvation as Mindy.

Boot grime isn’t exactly filling, as one might expect.

While the tiny was busy regaining its senses, Mindy was cooking up just what exactly she should do with this pathetic bug she was “gifted.” Unbeknownst to the speck, Matt, their previous owner, had practically sent them on a suicide mission. He knew Mindy had a short fuse, especially if she’s forced to skip lunch. Matt deemed the toy a dud and handed them off, sealing their fate.

“You enjoy your time suffocating in my boots? Cuz I sure didn’t. I’ve had toe lint that felt more comfortable than you. Ugh, I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to this stupid shit…”

Oddly enough, Mindy voicing her dissatisfaction filled the tiny’s heart with a drop of hope. In some small, minute chance, maybe Mindy would give them back to their original owner, the aforementioned Matt. Ah, but whatever punishment he would cook up for them could prove worse than the past week they spent in Mindy’s footwear…

Just as the tiny was weighing their chances, Mindy was quick to stab the tiny’s heart with those small shards of hope she had just unintentionally planted.

“I’ve never found you bugs worth anything, honestly. Matt’s a moron for trying to turn you things into toys. I guess I’m the idiot this time for listening to him…” Mindy’s words trailed off, her monotone ranting continuing while the small speck sat in silent compliance.

“He needs to learn the one thing you freaks are actually good at…”

Mindy slowly bent her knee, her foot reeling back until her heel bumped the sofa…

“Popping like a bug.”

Then, with speed far too great for the tiny speck, Mindy’s foot shot forward like a hammer to a revolver. Her toes wrecked into the tiny like a semi, the force too much for the miniscule bug. Off and away from the ground they soared, blasted away from the carpet, bouncing and skipping like a stone over a pond. They traveled what felt like a hundred feet, but didn’t even surpass a single yard. They did, however, travel far enough to escape the soft comfort of the carpet mat, and landed on the cold hardwood floor instead. How lucky for them.

They were in shock, the pain hiding itself for only but a moment. It slowly crept up their body, spreading like wildfire. Their legs were mangled, the bones possibly already shattered. Both arms seemed functional, but it was by no means pleasurable to move them. The groans of agony didn’t take long, but before the tiny speck even had time to suffer in the intense agony, Mindy was already looming above. She wasn’t finished.

“Ew.” Mindy muttered, the pathetic sight before her causing her lip to curl in disgust. Such a pathetic display, like that of a wounded insect. It almost made her feel a small shred of pity. It wasn’t nearly enough, clearly, as Mindy then raised the very same foot that just minutes ago held the small bug captive in her boot. The tiny’s vision was overtaken with the looming sole just inches above them. Just a subtle wiggle from Mindy’s toes sent dirt raining down around the speck. They were completely lost under her foot, no longer visible to Mindy. But she was by no means an amateur; she had squashed and pulped many insects before, and this worthless speck would receive the same medicine.

The sock descended upon them, the eclipsing sole blotting out more and more of the last light they would ever see. Mindy’s aim was perfect, the tiny pressed into the ball of her foot. First came the smell, but they were already far too familiar with it. The steamy, thick, devouring odor that consumed their mind and trumped the oxygen in their lungs. Next came the filth, the sweat, the grime; As the pressure increased, their jaw was forced open, sweat seeping into their mouth, drenching their tongue, burning their eyes. They were forced to swallow whatever sock lint and sweat slithered into their mouth, and quickly thereafter the pressure became too great to even breathe. Heavier and heavier, harder and harder; Mindy shifted her weight more and more and more. The weight was coming fast, the bug’s body was giving way, their ribs at the breaking point. Mindy felt the lump flattening, faint popping hinting at their bones collapsing. The speck couldn’t move- they couldn’t think. Mindy raised her heel, the final bit of pressure forcing down, and one final-

POP.

Warm, gooey liquid spurted under her sole, the final pop signaling the end for the pathetic bug. Lifting her foot on her heel, Mindy inspected the aftermath. Whatever didn’t cling to her sock was left smeared to the hardwood floor.

Mindy sighed, rubbing at her temples. A tiny bit of stress left her, now having one less tiny problem to deal with. The sorry little thing met the same end as many others, treated how Mindy truly viewed them; a bug, crushed and smeared beneath her foot. A stain, accompanying the other grime and dirt on her sock.

Mindy peeled away her socks, tossing them away to join the overgrown pile of dirty laundry. She nabbed a tissue from the kitchen, wiping up what little was left of the insect decorating her floor. Mindy tossed the disgusting trash away with the other garbage, her mind erasing the memory of the tiny almost as fast as she squashed them. The miniscule remaining gore that soaked through her sock and clung to her bare sole was easily washed away during her shower.

Popped, smeared, and forgotten.

Mindy chowed down on some grub, finally satisfying her hunger. One last sigh left her as the day was closing. Let’s hope any more tiny critters don’t have the misfortune of crossing Mindy when she’s hungry. And let’s hope Matt’s other possessions improve on their work ethic.

Lest they all find themselves popped under Mindy.