“Seriously? This was all you could find?” Eli faced his bedroom mirror. He wore black swim trunks with flames going up the side of one leg. “I look like I’m in third grade.”

“They look cute.” Winter’s face hovered above, her voice bouncing off the walls since she’d removed the apartment's roof to inspect him. “At least they’re not girly.”

“Why am I doing this again?” He slid his feet into matching flops, flames licking the straps. “You know I can’t swim, right.”

“Because you already promised.” She brushed his hair with a fingertip. “And I can teach you how to swim. It’s easy.”

He’d promised he’d go swimming if she left him alone for the day — a promise he didn’t expect to have to keep. Amazingly, she didn't bother him all day yesterday. He relaxed in his living room, playing Sublime Conquest without interruption, reaching level thirty nine. One more level and he could start tanking five player dungeons.

He also owed her one for a surprise she’d delivered a couple days ago. She’d allowed him to gorge himself on a rainbow-sprinkled donut, something she’d provided in secret, without Ally’s approval. Except for special occasions, premies were not permitted to eat refined sugar. Something about interference with premie powder, the stuff he ate with every meal to repel animals and insects. He hadn’t minded the restriction — premie powder itself was quite sweet — but he’d enjoyed the opportunity to indulge in one of his past favorite foods, especially at such a mouth watering scale.

He stepped onto her hand and reclined against her fingers. His aching muscles thanked the softness of her skin. “I’m still sore from the other day. You won’t be getting me near the water.”

“Hold still.” The forefinger from her other hand speared him in the chest, smearing a sizeable glob of cold lotion.

“What the heck!” He batted at the invading digit to no avail.

“Sunscreen.” Her other fingers joined in, rubbing the cool stuff all over his skin. “And it looks like the binding worked. You’re not cursing.” She flashed a dimpled grin at him.

“No.” He continued the impossible battle with her gentle but overpower fingertips. “I just don’t want another binding.”

“Well, whatever the reason, it’s working. Now on your stomach.” She pinched him on the sides and flipped him over without waiting, then set into massaging the cream into his back and legs.

He’d exceeded Ally’s language limit shortly after the forced exercise program a couple days ago. Ally was more than happy to do the honors of binding him. He figured she was just looking for an excuse, since she hadn’t been permitted the opportunity yet. Thankfully, she’d only instructed him not to curse. She could’ve just as easily told him to stop playing video games. Not that it would’ve worked (he still cursed when they weren’t listening), but he didn’t want to take any chances.

The back of his shorts dropped down, and the fingertip coated his rear cheeks.

“Hey!” He tried to turn over, but she pressed his spine, expelling the air from his lungs with the force. “Stop it!” He pounded his fist into her palm, but they bounced harmlessly.

“It’s hot outside.” His trunks were back in place and she flipped him over, her eyes glinting blue mischief. “Just making sure you don’t get a sunburn.”

“Next time, I’ll put it on!”

“Here, you can get your face.” She dabbed his forehead with the stuff that remained on her finger.

He rubbed it in as they walked from the bedroom into the living room. Well, she walked. He was merely along for the ride. At least it wasn’t an uncomfortable ride. She’d learned to hold her arm steady, somehow cushioning her own movements as she bounded forward.

“About time.” Ally turned off the tv and grabbed a couple towels from the coffee table. “I told Mrs. Rose we’d be there by one and it’s already one-fifteen. Get Eli strapped in his chair and let’s go.”

Mrs. Rose, a friendly woman in her sixties, lived a few houses down. In the neighborhood, she was commonly referred to as the pool lady. As long as she was home, kids were allowed to use her pool, an inground monstrosity that filled her own back yard and part of her neighbor’s. She was always home and her pool was always occupied. Parents saw it as a free babysitting service, and kids from other neighborhoods had been known to visit. Needless to say, Eli had avoided it since his earliest memories, attending only a single event there, a birthday party for one of his childhood friends.

But, like everything else, he was learning his past lifestyle would need to change, or at least he would need to be more flexible. His family liked the pool, and so he’d have to learn to like it too. He didn’t have to, but life would be easier if he did.

***

“We’re here!” Winter’s cheerful tone was followed by the mechanical sound of his harness releasing. The intense sunlight streaming through Eli’s window became even more intense as the wall to his carrier fell away.

He squinted. He hadn’t been outside since awakening in his final state and his eyes struggled to adjust.

“Put the screen back,” Ally said.

“Fiiiine,” Winter said.

Eli stepped outside as a massive screen structure, like a dome but square in shape, lowered around him. Winter did the lowering, but even for a giant like her, the structure seemed unwieldy. Her arms stretched to accommodate its edges, but she managed. The sides of the structure appeared to be literal window screens, so it couldn’t have been too heavy for her. But, as usual, for him it would be inescapable. His portable apartment, a large red container, and a few reclining chairs were trapped inside the area with him.

“It’s to keep the bugs out,” Winter said. “But if you want to swim in the big pool with us, just let me know.” She waved and jogged off.

“No running!” The voice of an older woman, likely Mrs. Rose, came from behind. Eli turned. The white haired woman reclined in her chair, too large sunglasses occluding her eyes and too tanned skin forming a landscape of wrinkles. Apparently she wasn’t afraid of skin cancer. Or perhaps she’d lived long enough to where it really didn’t matter to her anymore.

Eli walked along the edge of the confinement, dragging his fingers along the screen while taking in the broad expanse of the surrounding area. From what he could tell, the human pool had two sections: a larger one for swimming and a smaller one like a conjoined hot tub. Both had slides, though the one attached to the larger pool was significantly larger. A ‘small’ diving board extended over the lip of one end of the larger pool. Kids of varying ages, he’d counted at least three (not including his siblings) took turns jumping into the water.

“Better not let them see you.” A female voice, confident and relaxed, came from his side.

Eli turned to find a scantily clad girl, not much older than him if at all, lying on a makeshift beach chair. Her skin shone as if dipped in oil and her hair, brown and sporting a single braid, layered her back and sides. How had he not seen her? Probably because she was so...small. Come to think of it, she was the first premie he’d ever seen, aside from himself. And something else about her — she looked familiar.

“Hi.” He stepped closer. If she watched him, he couldn’t tell. Her mirrored sunglasses offered no hints as to the focus of her eyes. “Uh...my name’s Eli.”

“I’m serious,” she said. “They’ll be over here like sharks in a feeding frenzy if they see you.”

“Who?” he asked, having trouble following the conversation. “Why?”

“The kids. They’re bored of me, but you...you’re new. And you’re a boy. So — ”

“Hey look!” Large feet splashed against the concrete in the background. “Haley’s talking to a boy premie. Come see!”

“Too late.” Haley said, crossing one leg over the other as she moved her hands behind her head.

Haley — no wonder she looked familiar. This was the girl Carter had tried to hook him up with, and Parker’s cousin. He hadn’t expected to see another premie, much less a girl that used to go to his school, but here she was.

“Cool!” Another voice chimed in from high above. “Is that Haley’s boyfriend? He looks cute.”

And another, this one clearly from a boy. “Haley’s my girlfriend. She told me so yesterday. She likes big people, not premies.”

The screen dome slid against the concrete, and Eli stepped back.

“No touching the screen, kids!” Mrs. Rose said. “Look but don’t touch!”

“And I thought I’d get a chance to do some sunbathing today,” Haley said, yawning.

“Hey you.” The boy — dark skinned, dripping wet, and scowling — pointed at Eli. “What’s your name.”

“His name is Eli.” Winter stepped into view, clearing space between the younger kids and the dome. “He’s my brother, so stop bothering him. Go back to swimming.”

“We’re not bothering him.” A brown ponytail girl, this one couldn’t have been more than six years old, stomped her foot. “And Sissy’s my sister. I can stay here as long as I want.”

Winter put her hands on her hips. “Well, Eli’s my brother and — “

“Winter, it’s ok.” Ally, wet from the neck down, padded up and placed a hand on Winter’s shoulder. “Everyone can stay, just be nice. Don’t touch the screen and no one’s allowed to remove the screen without a watcher. Got it?”

“Yes, ma’am.” They sung in unison. Apparently Ally commanded respect among the kids. They’d learned, as Eli was learning, not to mess with her.

“Tag. You’re it!” A black haired girl with a yellow swimsuit touched the boy on the shoulder and ran off. The boy, Haley’s ‘boyfriend’, chased after her.

“No running!” Mrs. Rose said before splashes drowned out her words.

Unfortunately, other kids remained, one standing, another sitting cross legged to inspect the new premie visitor. Water from their enormous bodies fanned out in growing puddles across the concrete, much of which seeped past the screen’s edges until it pooled around Eli’s feet. He didn’t mind. The concrete was getting a bit hot.

“Might as well take a seat,” Haley said. “They’ll probably be here for another half hour. The less you do to entertain them, the faster they’ll get bored and leave.”

He selected the nearest chair. This one didn’t recline like Haley’s, but it was comfortable nonetheless. True to her word, the kids remained, pointing and arguing about whether Eli was Haley’s boyfriend. Oddly, they didn’t speak much directly to Eli, if at all, referring to him in the third person as if he wasn’t even present. And thankfully, Winter remained nearby, doing handstands in the smaller pool while keeping an eye on the curious children.

“Haven’t been a premie long, have you?” Haley asked.

“Um, only a few days.” Eli considered his answer. “Maybe a week or two. I had memory problems at first.”

“I saw your YouTube stuff,” she said. “Pretty impressive.”

“Oh...which stuff?”

She smiled to one side of her mouth. “The singing. As for the other stuff...well, I assume you don’t normally go around wearing makeup.”

“No.” He turned his head to give her less of a view of his reddening face. “Not usually.”

“All that just to get into Premoria?” she asked. “You really want to go that badly?”

“Well, yeh. Don’t you?”

“Nope.” She answered decisively, as if it were the end of the conversation.

“Why not?”

“Gotta stay and take care of my little sis. Besides, I haven’t seen anything in Premoria that I can’t get here.”

“Take care of her?” Eli couldn’t believe his ears. “She’s a giant. She can take care of herself. And in Premoria you can get a normal life. Good luck finding that here.”

“You keep thinking that, and let me know how it works out,” she said. “Here I’ve got regular meals, a comfortable lifestyle, people to take care of my every need, including binding, whenever I want. Good luck finding all of that in Premoria.”

“I could care less about binding,” he said. “I’d rather have freedom. Obviously you’re brainwashed. You probably didn’t think that way when you first became a premie.”

“How the hell would you know?” Her chair slid against the ground as she rose to her feet. Whoa. She was tall. Very tall. “And who are you to judge me?”

“Hey.” Eli got up and backpedaled, hands out front in the universal signal to calm down. Even though she was skinny, she towered a full head over him. “I’m not judging. I’m just — I’ve never met another premie before.”

“Obviously.” She stepped forward, crossing her arms.

“They’re fighting!” One of the kids said. “Look!”

“Haley’s bigger. See. I told you. Eli doesn’t stand a chance.”

“He’s a boy. Boy’s are stronger than girls.”

“Nuh uh. Premie girls are stronger than premie boys. My mom said so.”

“We’re not fighting!” Eli tried to get the kids attention by waving his arms. “Calm down!”

Winter arrived, hair dripping water through the screen roof. “You ok, Eli?”

Finally someone who’d pay attention. “Yes. We were just talking and I said something stupid.” He looked at Haley, who’s smirk had lengthened. “Sorry.”

“Wanna come swimming?” Winter asked.

“Uh, not yet,” he said. “Maybe later.”

“Ok.” She skipped away, splashing back into the main pool. Apparently her concern for his safety had diminished — not necessarily reassuring.

While the kids argued about whether premie girls were bigger/better/smarter than premie boys, Eli returned to his seat, sufficiently mortified.

Haley chuckled. “Just messin’ with ya.”

“That was a joke?” he asked.

“Mostly,” she said, returning to her own chair. “I’m a bit surprised though. You really don’t know much about premies.”

“Are they all...like you?” he asked. “I mean…”

“Tall?”

“Yeh.” He could’ve said pretty too, since Haley wasn’t hard on the eyes.

“Generally, yes. Girls don’t shrink as much as boys. End result — on average we end up taller.”

“Oh.”

“Disappointed?”

“No,” he said quickly. He was perhaps a little disappointed, but he wasn’t about to offend her again. “Are you?”

“Well, I do like tall guys.” she said. “But you get used to it. Soon shorter guys, like you, start looking attractive too. And there are side benefits. We don’t need to worry about things like physical abuse or rape nearly as much.”

“You...think I’m attractive.”

She laughed. “Is that all you heard. Typical guy. But yeh. You’re cute...in a helpless puppy kind of way.”

“I’m not helpless.”

“I’m kidding.” she said. “About the helpless part. Not the cute part.” She rolled over to face him. “You need to lighten up a bit. Wanna take a dip?” She gestured toward the red container. “The water’s warm.”

“I can’t swim.”

“Bummer. Afraid of the water?”

“No.” This girl was getting on his nerves. “I just never bothered to learn.”

They sat there for a while, absorbing the sun’s rays, listening to the prattle of the giant children. The kids rotated in and out, jumping in the pool for a while before returning to see if anything had changed in the premie cage. At one point, the boy dropped an ice pop over the screen roof, sending freezing sugar water down on Eli. At least until Winter put a stop to it. Other than the occasional comment about the dangers of running, Mrs. Rose might as well have been a asleep.

“Sissy, let’s do the slide now. K?” The ponytail girl, apparently Haley’s little sister, lifted the edge of the dome, tilting it backward.

“Careful, Amber” Haley rose and stretched her long, limber body. “Don’t tip it over.”

“I’m not.” The little girl held the dome at an angle. “Come on out.”

“I’d invite you, but I’m sure you’re afraid of heights too, right?” She winked at him.

“Nope.” He was deathly afraid of heights, but he couldn’t stand her superior attitude. “Was just thinking it’s about time for a dip.” At least he’d get the sticky sugar water off his stomach.

“Oh really?” Her eyebrows raised.

Winter pulled herself out of the pool and confronted Haley’s sister. “No touching the screen.”

“I’m allowed,” Amber said. “Sissy wants to do the slide.”

“And so do I.” Eli followed Haley out of the screen. Grubby fingers approached from all angles but Winter scooped him up before they could poke and prod.

“You sure?” Winter asked. “I thought you were afraid of —”

“Can’t wait to try the slide,” he said, narrowing his eyes meaningfully at her. “Just once, like we talked about.”

“Oh.” She seemed baffled, but played along.

“Bind me please, Amber.”

“Ok.” Though her hands were comparatively small, they were still large enough to grip Haley in a binding that sent the female premie into an immediate and visibly relaxed state. “My sister’s not afraid of anything. Right, Sissy?”

Haley lazily opened her eyes and smiled, nodding. “Right.”

“Want me to bind you, Eli?”

“Nope. Let’s just do this already.”

“No binding?” Haley asked. “Even I’d probably be too afraid to do it without one.”

“I don’t need bindings,” Eli said, simply. He chose not to remark on her essential dependence on Amber.

“Ok, Mr. Hot Shot. You go first then.”

They made their way to the slide. Amber climbed the ladder and perched at one end of the top, setting Haley down underneath her knees. Winter, significantly taller than the little girl, simply set Eli directly on the slide, in front of Haley. After she withdrew her hand, he caught a glimpse of the descent, and immediately regretted his decision.

“Get down,” Winter said to Amber.

“Sissy doesn’t mind, do you sissy?” Amber said.

“She’s fine.” Haley said. “There’s enough room for everyone. She’ll wait until we’re done before she slides down.”

Ally’s head came into view and dipped down as she splashed into the small pool, the one where the slide ended. Eli inched his way toward the slope. Peering down, he noticed Ally bouncing on her tip toes at the base, arms extended as if to gather him should the need arise. The need would, of course, arise. She knew he couldn’t swim.

“Any day now, braveheart,” Haley said. He could hear her foot tapping against the plastic surface.

His ‘brave heart’ pounded in his chest, making his stomach queasy and his head light. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

Something brushed his hair.

He turned to find Winter’s finger poking him. “Stop, I’m concentrating.”

“Amber is petting Haley, so I figured it would help you calm down,” Winter said.

He looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, Amber ran her finger up and down Haley’s long hair. For her part, Haley didn’t seem to mind at all, as if the occurrence had become so mundane and common she hardly took notice. She did notice him staring, however, and crossed her arms expectantly.

“If you’re too afraid, just say so — “

Without looking ahead, he dropped down and slid forward. His trunks were dry but the slide itself was wet and slick — slick enough to eradicate any friction and send him propelling toward the gargantuan body of water below.

“Fuuuuuuuuuuuck!” He fell onto his side, trying to slow his descent but it seemed only to increase his velocity. He couldn’t recall ever falling this fast in any situation, and if his exploding heart didn’t kill him, impact with the water surely would.

The end of the slide must’ve curved upward because it sent him flying through the air. Ally floated backwards, as if in slow motion, to avoid collision. He splashed hard, landing on his back, and promptly sinking into the water.

Stunned, but alive, he kicked and flailed, managing to get to the surface before his feet connected with Ally’s palm, giving him something on which to stand.

“I’m going to let that word slide.” She half smiled at him. “Proud of ya. I knew you could do it.”

“Thanks.” Her words lifted his spirits more than he expected. He had done it, and all without a binding.

Haley came next, screaming in glee and landing not far away. She waded as Amber slid down, but Ally scooped her up as her sister’s impact wake rolled across the surface. Amber couldn’t stand, so she dog paddled to the nearest step, beaming like the sunshine.

She extended her hand to Ally, clearly requesting repossession of her sister. “Again!”

“Again!” Haley gleefully jumped from Ally’s palm to Amber’s.

Eli motioned toward his sister, indicating the need to speak in confidence. She lifted him to her ear.

“Um.” He stared at the massive ear. He couldn’t believe what he was about to request, but he doubted he’d endure another slide descent without puking. And Haley seemed to be having so much...fun. “I’ll go again but...can you give me a quick binding first? Don’t let anyone see.” It would just be this one time. He’d prove his fearlessness to Haley and have fun, then he’d go back to avoiding it forever.

Even from this angle, he could tell Ally was smiling. She pivoted in the water, lowered him to her chest, where he was concealed by her body and hair. Then she arranged him in her palm and squeezed...perfectly.

“Be brave, Eli,” she whispered. “Be brave.”