Michelle Brown was already rather tall for someone of her race, not to mention her gender. This was just one of the many factors that set her apart from the other women Clara eyed in her little convenience store.

However, when you’re a tenth of an inch, a tall woman looks even taller. To a concerning degree.

From Clara’s point of view, Michelle was 4,600 feet and 10 inches tall. Clara wasn’t even sure how to comprehend her at this size. In her panicked state, she of course hadn’t worked out the exact math to calculate Michelle’s relative height. However, she could tell that she was now the largest… thing she had ever seen. Far taller than any living being, manmade structure, natural formation, anything. She was bigger than any object she had come across during her short 20 years of life. Of course, this would have been true for any human being on earth who wasn’t an alpinist.

Clara would have much preferred if Michelle stayed completely still, in order to give her time to comprehend her incomprehensible size. But, of course, she wasn’t that lucky. Just a few seconds after she swung the door open, Michelle took her first step into her apartment.

Clara was launched about five feet into the air as Michelle’s boot touched down onto her wooden floor. She simply didn’t expect Michelle’s foot to approach as quickly as it did. In just a split second, Michelle’s boot traveled the distance of about 1,164 feet—at least, to Clara it did. In reality, Michelle had an average walking stride for someone her height.

It was this shocking speed that made it unable for Clara to brace herself. She found it impossible to brace herself for the subsequent footsteps, as well. In just four steps, Michelle reached the couch in the center of her apartment. The fourth and final step was the closest one to Clara, knocking her away from the site of impact and about ten feet into the air. It took Clara about a minute to recover from the mild pain that shot through her body as she skid across the floor.

However, as soon as Clara stood back up and dusted herself off, the somewhat dulled and muffled sound of an explosion filled the air. Once she looked upwards, she realized that Michelle taking a seat on her couch was the source of this sound. Clara was currently 1,000 feet away from Michelle's left foot from her point of view, which placed her safely out of the range of her legs while she was seated. Clara figured it would be a pretty good idea to stay within this range, so she wouldn’t be crushed to death by an errant movement of Michelle’s boots.

However… looking back on it, Clara didn’t fear for her life too much when Michelle was literally stepping over her. It was as if she didn’t care about the trajectory of the massive pieces of footwear at all.

Clara was snapped back to reality as Michelle suddenly began to speak. Even though Michelle’s boot rising directly over her head wasn’t enough to make the tiny woman’s heart drop, the words that came out of Michelle’s mouth certainly were.

“...Where is she?”

Clara’s mouth hung open as Michelle inquired about her whereabouts. Amidst the internal turmoil that was brought about by her shrinkage, Clara almost forgot.

She had a date set up with Michelle. And right now, she thought that she had bailed out on her.

But, could Clara blame her? Did Michelle have a reason to think otherwise? Assuming that your date was nowhere to be found because they were shrunk down by your sister wasn’t very logical. But, the fact of the matter was that this is exactly what happened.

And Clara couldn’t have her longtime crush believe that she stood her up for no good reason.

“H-Hey! Michelle!” Clara cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted from the top of her lungs—an experienced yeller from her time as a convenience store clerk.

But… no response. Michelle didn’t so much as tilt her head in Clara’s direction. Her crush not so much as looking at her—ouch. This pained Clara, but she couldn’t linger on it for now. She just had to try again.

“Michelle!!” Clara shouted even louder, causing her to reel back and cough afterward. Once she leaned back up, she saw that she once again elicited no response from Michelle. In fact, Michelle was turning to her side in order to pull her phone out of her purse.

Of course, anyone thinking with a shred of logical reasoning would be able to deduce that Clara was far too small for Michelle to hear. Truly, how could she hear someone less than 83 times her size? The very edge of her brown boots rose a mere two inches above the ground. And yet, Clara, standing at less than a tenth of an inch, didn’t come close to measuring up to the tip of this footwear. This wasn’t even to mention the comparative distance between the two women.

Indeed, there was no logical reason for Michelle to ever be able to hear Clara at her newfound size. But Clara wasn’t thinking logically right now. The tiny woman nearly doubled over and clutched her chest as she realized that her crush was paying her no mind. Perhaps she hadn’t realized it herself, but she could be quite the dramatic romantic.

She was here! If only she could explain this all to Michelle; explain to her that her sister shrunk her down in order to keep them from dating. That makes for a pretty good star-crossed lovers story, huh? Not to mention her homophobic mother and father. After she explained what happened, Michelle could find a way to grow Clara back to her original size, and Clara could drive them off into the sunset, away from overbearing sisters and unaccepting parents. From there, they could buy a cot together in the middle of nowhere, and decorate it exactly how they want. Clara imagined the two of them snuggling together in a large bed after a long day of organizing furniture and painting walls. Clara places her hand on Michelle’s cheek as they face each other, and Michelle pulls Clara closer to her body using her longer and stronger arms. There they lay, gazing into each other’s eyes, finally enjoying each other’s company after the turmoil it took them to get here. Of course, Clara soon breaks the silence with some snarky joke, eliciting a small giggle from her typically quiet girlfriend. These are the moments that Clara lives for.

Or rather, that she will live for. She just had to get Michelle’s attention first.

Clara was snapped out of her fantasy as Michelle began quietly speaking to herself again. Apparently, amid Clara’s fantasy, Michelle started to look at her phone.

“Aw man, she said she’d be here at 7:00… Did I get stood up?” Michelle uttered as she let out a sigh soon after, and leaned back on her couch.

No, she didn’t! Clara had been here since 6:00! It was then that Clara realized that Aleena had told her to arrive an hour before Michelle did, to ensure that she had enough time to shrink her. But that wasn’t her most pressing concern right now.

Clara began making a mad dash towards Michelle. If she couldn’t hear her from this distance, then she’d just have to close in on her! About 1,000 feet between the two women from Clara’s perspective… the average runner would be able to traverse this distance in about 8 minutes, but Clara was sprinting like there was no tomorrow. She would probably reach the tip of Michelle’s left boot in five minutes. Of course, she was truly sprinting across a distance of about 15 inches. Nonetheless, from there, she could try getting Michelle’s attention again.

However, as she passed the 7-inch mark after about three minutes of running, a wrench was thrown into Clara’s simple plan. She shouldn’t have expected Michelle to remain completely still as she ran towards her.

Clara froze as she craned her neck far, far upwards. By now, she was so close to Michelle that it was hard to see the top of her head. However, her head wasn’t the source of any danger to Clara. Michelle leaned down from her position on her couch, and began tugging at the top of her boots. It didn’t take long for her to realize… Michelle was taking off her boots.

Clara was initially dismayed by this fact due to the fact that it meant that Michelle was giving up on her. If Michelle was starting to relax herself to the point that she was taking off her footwear, that meant that she was completely letting go of any hope that Clara would eventually arrive. And that realization sent a painful shot straight through Clara’s heart.

However, a much more tangible threat to Clara was Michelle’s boot.

Of course, Michelle was completely unaware of the presence of a 0.09-inch woman in her house; and one that was in such close proximity to her, no less. As such, there was absolutely no reason for her to care about where her boots fell after she slid them off of her feet.

Michelle started with her left foot first. Slightly raising her digit above the ground, she unzipped the boot from the top down and then slid the top of the boot down and then completely off of her foot. Now that it was off, Michelle held the boot beside her leg for a brief second, before she dropped it down to the floor. To her, the collision it made with her wooden floor was nothing of note. However, to Clara, the massive, leather piece of footwear seemed to be nearly 630 feet tall, far taller than any building she had seen in person. The sole of the boot landed some distance away from her, but its descent didn’t end there. The top portion of the boot continued falling to the ground, in the direction of Clara.

Clara simply looked upwards as the massive boot fell towards her. To her, this boot represented something more—that Michelle believed that Clara was the type of person to stand her up. As such, she found it hard to find the will to move out of the way. What a terrible first impression…

Luckily for Clara, she was out of the boot’s site of impact, though just narrowly. As a seemingly massive wall of leather fell just a few feet away from her, it felt like a bomb went off next to her. Clara immediately lost the hearing in her right ear—whether it was permanent or temporary, she didn't know. In her left ear, all she could hear was a loud ringing sound. Of course, just a split second after this occurred, Clara was launched through the air as a result of the boot’s landing. She was tossed to her left about a hundred feet, only lingering in the air for a few seconds, and then skidding across the wooden floor for the rest of her travels. She fortunately wasn’t as injured as she could have been in a worst-case scenario—just a bruise or two on her arms. However, she hardly felt anything physically as she tumbled, her emotional turmoil far more painful.

The impact of Michelle’s left boot knocked Clara in towards the seated woman, but as Michelle took off her right boot, she dropped it safely away from Clara’s body, on the outer side of her right foot. Indeed, as Michelle lowered both of her digits on the ground, Clara’s miniscule body now lay right between her bare feet, mere three inches away from her left foot.

As Clara slowly stood back up, she found herself face-to-face with Michelle’s enormous body for the first time. That is, sure, she had come close to her massive boots. But being this close to Michelle’s bare feet was different. This was actually her body.

To Clara, the two three inches between her and Michelle’s foot seemed to be two hundred feet. This gave her almost a full view of Michelle’s foot as it lay flat on the ground, which was impressive given its sheer size. From Clara’s point of view, the bare foot appeared to be 627’11” in its entirety. Additionally, her now-visible ankle rose 219 feet into the air, from which her foot sloped down. It was right above these ankles of hers and her black leggings stopped. This meant that the foot completely encompassed Clara’s field of view.

Lacking the energy or willpower to turn herself around, Clara’s dejected eyes simply lingered on the inner surface of Michelle’s left foot. As a result… she took in all the details of the foot of her dear crush. First and foremost, the foot was rather proportionally long. This made sense, given that Michelle stood at an abnormal 5’11”. Clara could tell that if the two women placed their feet next to each other at Clara’s normal size, Clara’s foot would only be about 3/4ths the size of Michelle’s. Additionally, the top of Michelle’s foot curved deftly inwards from her ankle to her toes, conveying that there was little fat on its top surface. Speaking of her toes, they were exceptionally slender, reflecting the rest of her foot. Michelle had a Greek foot type, in which her index toe was slightly longer than her big toe, as opposed to a Roman or Egyptian foot type. All of her toes curved down towards the floor, rather than lying completely flat on the ground.

Michelle’s foot was slightly paler than the rest of her body—Clara had remembered the complexion of her crush well, and this was noticeably lighter than what she remembered. So it seems as if the Asian woman did get out enough to become slightly tanned. Indeed, it was evident that Michelle did indeed take care of her body; every inch of it. Her foot was exceptionally clean, and it’s innermost surface was largely devoid of wrinkles. It looked like a foot that was commonly pedicured and looked after; the foot of a princess.

Clara expected nothing less from her crush. Of course every inch of her body was utterly immaculate—even the lowest part of it. In a way, her foot seemed untouchable. Or rather, she didn't want to touch it. Clara felt a nagging thought in her head that told her if she were to make contact with her foot, it would be somehow sullied. Disgraced.

She would maintain this distance. It was enough for her to simply gaze upon the lowest point of Michelle’s being.

As if completely invading Clara’s line of sight wasn't enough, Michelle’s feet quickly affronted her sense of smell. After about five seconds of the digit lying still on the wooden floor, Clara picked up on a scent emitting from it. It wasn't extremely strong, but it was certainly there. Furthermore… the smell wasn’t bad at all. It took Clara a moment to pinpoint what exactly the foot smelled like, she eventually settled on a comparison.

Rain. Her feet faintly smelled of rain.

However, smell wasn’t the only sensation that emanated from Michelle’s feet. A brief second after the smell of rain invaded Clara’s nose, a wall of heat slammed into her tiny body. Befitting the smell that permeated the air… this heat quickly made Clara’s surroundings humid and muggy. Clara almost immediately felt a bead of sweat form on her head, and then another. Before she knew it, she was fanning herself and pumping her shirt. Clara could tell that this wasn’t the heat that was generated by intense physical activity. After all, Michelle had spent the past few minutes sitting down on her couch, and she presumably drove here rather than walking. No, this type of heat was completely different. This was just natural body heat, pure and simple.

This was a sensation that was generated by Michelle doing absolutely nothing. And yet, it was enough to completely cause a shift in Clara's world.

Clara’s admiration of Michelle’s foot was completely interrupted by the heat that now engulfed her body. What was she even thinking? She didn’t have the time to just stand around—she had gotten this close to Michelle for the sole purpose of getting her attention. Now that she was much closer to her, Clara readied herself to shout upwards at Michelle once more. Surely she would be able to hear her from this distance.

And hopefully, Clara could get her to move her feet away from her.

Clara cleared her throat and tapped her chest. This was all-or-nothing. If Michelle didn't hear her from her, then she would have to change her strategy. Maybe hitting her foot as hard as she could would work. Anything to let Michelle know that she was here. To let her know that she would never stand her up.

“Michelle!!!” Clara cupped her hands around her mouth once more as she arched her back and tilted her head upwards, shouting up at a complete 90° angle. Upon hearing herself yell, Clara realized that the ringing in her left ear had finally dissipated, although she still couldn’t pick up sound from her right ear. Nonetheless, Clara retained this position for almost ten seconds, waiting for a response.

Instead, Michelle remained completely still. Although Clara couldn’t perfectly make out her face, the massive woman seemed to be lost in thought, and certainly not focused on a tiny woman right underneath her.

Suddenly, Clara became remarkably angry. Was this Aleena’s intention? To make her feel invisible? Because that’s what Clara felt like, though she would never admit it. For about a year now, Clara felt like she completely flew under Michelle’s radar, like her crush wasn’t even aware of her feelings towards her. Clara never faulted Michelle for this, but now… the frustrations that have been festering for over a year were now bubbling up. Michelle didn’t acknowledge her feelings whenever they interacted from behind a convenience store counter, and now that they were right next to each other, Michelle didn’t acknowledge her at all.

But she wouldn't let this stand. She wouldn’t let Aleena win. She would make Michelle aware of her presence, one way or another.

With balled fists and newfound determination, Clara decided to walk over to Michelle’s left foot. However, just after she took her first step… the massive foot in front of her began to shift.

Clara froze once more as the pale, pedicured foot started to rise up into the air. The slender figure looked far less dainty now that it was suddenly hovering above her tiny body, shrouding her in shadow.