As part of my boredom in the Covid lockdown, I decided to write a few new stories as well as update my favorite story. Think of this first small update in some chapters (for example this one as well as chapter 14) along with a few new chapters that delve into Marleighś and Jackieś relationship. 

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As the trio walked to the cafe Marleigh and Jackie went to several days prior, Jackie had a unique opportunity of being carried by Marleigh as she walked.  She got to see the human faces she would normally never see on the ground. She’d normally only see the bottoms of every human's shoes and at the risk of getting stepped on, she had to stay on the micro sidewalk. Jackie had a smile on her face even though she’d have to pay for breakfast not just for her which was very cheap considering her size but also two hungry human girls. Unfortunately, Marleigh had kept Jackie at waist level so this gave the small girl the highly unfortunate honor of hearing the girl’s stomach rumble every few seconds. At first Jackie thought it was cute but now, it started to become frightening for her. Just the sounds of Marleigh’s stomach  acids sloshing around as they walked creeped her out, and the sounds of gurgling that Marleigh’s body made scared Jackie out even more.

“Hey Marleigh, can you raise me up a bit? It’s not exactly paradise being near your growling tummy.” Jackie called out as she interrupted Marleigh and Carissa’s conversation on the virtual reality arcade Jackie mentioned last night.

“Sorry Jackie.” Marleigh raises Jackie to be in line with her chin, closer to the conversation and far away from the gurgling of her stomach. “So Carissa was telling me about this arcade you wanted to go to soon. Something about a role reversal? Care to explain that?”

“Oh umm well it’s like umm.” Jackie stuttered as she thought of what  to tell Marleigh of the arcade she had in mind. “Well think of ‘role reversal’ as a way for you to see how I see the world.”

“I think she wants to be the dominant one in the relationship.” Carissa interrupted Jackie as she watched the tiny girl lock eyes with anger at her. Carissa instantly knew she’d said the wrong thing to the wrong person.

“Carissa!” Even Marleigh was surprised by this, although she did begin to believe Jackie wanted to be human sized so they could be together, truly. Even if it was virtual. “You don’t have to say it like that. What if you were the micro and Jackie was the big giant human that hung over you.”

“Geez Marleigh, I didn’t mean it like that.” Jackie looked down on the ground as she grew redder and redder. She knew Marleigh was just joking with her and Carissa but she thought it didn’t need to be said out loud. “I just want to see things from your perspective.”

“I know.” Marleigh spoke as they arrived at the cafe. “You know we were just joking around right? At least I was. Carissa was too. Don’t take everything personally Jackie.” Carissa and Marleigh walked towards an empty table, the former grabbing a menu as she sat down. Marleigh gently set Jackie on the table as she herself grabbed a menu. Marleigh’s eyes looked down at Jackie who was shaking and looking around. Fortunately, Carissa noticed it as well. 

“Jackie? What’s wrong? Did the jokes go too far? If so, I’m sorry.” Carissa apologized profusely but Jackie honestly didn’t mind the jokes of her wanting to be the size of a human or just wanting to get revenge on Carissa for what she did. They were both, partially true. But what she was so nervous or skittish about  was the waitress she had last time they were here. Jackie couldn’t for the life of her remember her name but she did remember what she did to make her like this. She completely ignored her and assumed Marleigh was here by herself. It was a complete and total misuse of Jackie’s anger and frustration but she personally hated being looked over because she was a micro. It’d happened before on a much larger scale at the bar a few years ago when she was constantly ignored because the patrons as well as the bartenders didn’t know she was there along with her friends. It was fortunate she or any of her friends had been taken, swallowed or crushed while the drunk humans wandered around.

“No it wasn’t the jokes, Carissa. It’s that waitress from the last time I was here.”

“What? Was she the girl that wanted to eat you?” Marleigh jokingly asked as she crossed her arms and lower her head to the table. “I mean, what are the odds she’d be the same girl that wanted to eat you.”

“No, or at least I’m pretty sure she’s not. It’s been a few years. But no, I just don’t want to be ‘overlooked’ again.” Jackie soon realized how dumb and inconsequential her self diagnosed problem was to the girls who just wanted to have breakfast with her. 

“Jackie, you don’t have to worry about that. If someone messes with you, I’ll teach them not to screw with you.” Carissa gently poked Jackie as she heard the waitress’ footsteps coming in the quiet cafe. 

“Hello ladies, my name is Zipporah and I’ll be your server today. Shall I grab a micro menu for the smaller among you?” The waitress, Zipporah, was the same one from a few days before and she’d learned from her boss to treat the micro customers, if she had any in her section, like any human she would meet. Noticing the tiny people took some hours of training after her boss noticed she completely ignored Jackie the first time she was here. After the training, she saw more positivity with the customers especially the micros who would now walk in via either the micro entrance near the front of the cafe or like Jackie, with her human ‘escorts’.

“Oh sure, she’d love one.” Marleigh spoke for Jackie as she was once more bewildered that her problem wasn’t manifesting like she thought it would. Jackie looked up at the woman as she bent over and handed her a tiny  menu for her to look at.

“Thank you?” Jackie said as she sat down on the table to look at what she had available for herself.

“Anything I can get you all to drink?” Zipporah asked as she stood back up to look at the two human girls. 

“I’ll just get water.” Carissa spoke first.

“Me as well.” Marleigh continued.

Finally, there was Jackie who was still caught up looking at her menu. Fortunately, Marleigh gently poked her to get her attention. “Oh umm water please.” Zipporah soon walked away as she headed back to the fountain to get the ladies their waters.

“See Jackie? You were worrying for nothing.” Carissa said as she leaned back in her seat. Jackie perked up as she pushed all the negative thoughts away from her conscious mind. She smiled as she looked at her friends.

After a few minutes of silence between the three, the waitress came back with their drinks, even bringing Jackie the actual micro cup of water this time. Zipporah put the cups of water on the table as she brought out her pen and paper to take their order.

“Now, what can I get you ladies today?” Zipporah asked as she looked at Marleigh for the first order. 

“So I think I’ll get the scrambled egg plate with bacon please.” Marleigh then looked down at Jackie as was the next one to order. She was still going through her menu, with a frantic look on her face. “You know what? I think we’ll share.” Marleigh said, making sure Jackie would at least eat something off her plate. She nodded but interjected as well.

“Can I also get a small portion of grits please?” Jackie added, putting down her menu.

“Would it be human small or micro size?” Zipporah asked as she jotted it down.

“The biggest size you think a tiny girl like her could eat.” Marleigh joked and prodded as Jackie smiled. 

“And for you mamm?” She went over to Carissa who was sipping on her water.

“Let me get a sausage omelette please.” Carissa then gathered up the menus as she handed them over to Zipporah.

“Alright ladies, if there’s anything else I can you before I put this in?” The girls shook their heads in unison and so the waitress left, leaving them alone once more. At least, for now.

The door chimed, signifying that another customer had entered the cafe. Marleigh looked up to see who it was. It was a natural instinct for her to see if it was someone dangerous or someone she knew. Fortunately for her, it was her sister, Alyssa. Her sister stood around six to seven inches taller than Marleigh herself and they even looked alike, even if they were born almost three years apart. From the freckles around their noses, the bright blue eyes that were like the ocean, if it wasn’t for the obvious height difference, people would think they were actually twins.

“Aly!” Marleigh got up and hugged the woman as Jackie and Carissa looked at her with very confused looks on their faces. Marleigh went up to hug the girl who was equally surprised to see her.

“Marleigh! Oh it’s been too long! How have you been baby girl?” Alyssa hugged Marleigh, suddenly making her look much shorter than she actually was. “How’s my favorite sister been?”

“Good, really good. Hey, Alyssa, want to meet my friends? If you’re not too busy of course.” Marleigh asked as she grabbed her sister’s hand and brought her over to the table. Looking up at the new woman, Jackie saw how much taller she was to the small girl. It absolutely terrified her to the absolute core of her being. Jackie backed up a few tiny steps to try and get the sheer size of Marleigh’s sister as she came up to the table. From where she was, Alyssa was like no other human she’d seen. She seemed like the size of a skyscraper.

“Alright so this is my best friend Carissa, I’ve known her for years. And then there’s my special little girl in my life.” Marleigh bent over to pluck the tiny Jackie off from the table. She was careful not to scare her too much as she opened her hand to show her sister. Marleigh could feel the smaller girl begin to shake, either out of fear or excitement, she wouldn’t know until she unveiled her to Alyssa. Marleigh had always wanted to impress her older sister as she was the person she always looked up to and so she wanted to bring her little micro girl into Alyssa’s life. What she didn’t know was that Alyssa saw Jackie and her people as pests like the average mouse. “This little one name is Jackie. I’ve only known her for a few weeks at that but we’re...talking.”

“Oh my god! You’re dating a micro?!” Alyssa said out loud, filling the cafe with her laughter. “Oh wait until mom and dad hear about this. They’re going to be so embarrassed. The prodigal daughter is dating a micro.” Carissa looked at Marleigh’s face who, for the first time since Carissa had known her, showed genuine anger. But, she kept her composure, for now at least.

“What do you mean? Jackie is my best friend, we met while I was working.” Marleigh held back her anger as she set Jackie back down, sitting in front of her and letting her sister sit next to Carissa who was just as uneasy as the small Jackie who had remained close to Marleigh and far away from Alyssa, not only for her being a complete stranger but also the words she said. Jackie immediately began to have flashbacks to when she was in high school with Carissa. She began to shake the longer she felt Alyssa’s disapproving gaze. That was until she felt Marleigh’s finger ‘petting’ her to calm her down. It worked, for the meantime.

“I just think it’s dumb for a girl like you Marleigh to be dating one of those...things.” Alyssa deliberately avoided using the more common phrase associated with Micros. People as if to say she had no interest in her sister’s lover. “I mean, what if you two are sleeping together and you roll over her? Boom. Relationship done. I mean come on Marleigh, dump her. Better yet, just get rid of her. Like this.” Jackie watched as Alyssa reached out or at least tried to as Carissa once more prevented Jackie from getting taken. “Wow, you two are really protective over this thing. What is she to you, huh? Marleigh’s ‘dating’ her so what could you possibly gain from protecting her?”

“Because, she’s my friend.” That was all Carissa had to say to Alyssa to make her back up from her seat. “Look, the only reason I don’t throw you out right now is because you’re Marleigh’s sister.” Every word Alyssa said infirated all three of them but it mainly went to Carissa’s head as she had once been like this. The memories of that day haunted her as well, almost every day in fact. She tried her best to bury her past but when Marleigh brought Jackie to the apartment, she saw Jackie as a way to repent for her past sins. Carissa tried her best to try to show Jackie that she had changed from her high school days and it started to work. Last night was proof of it. She trusted Carissa and it was amazing. And then to have Marleigh’s sister come in and try to flat out kill Jackie, the one person Carissa valued above herself, she saw herself as her protector. 

“Alright fine. Geez.” Alyssa pulled her arm away from Carissa’s hand as she looked down at Jackie with a sneer which terrified the small girl. “What do you even see in her? You two couldn’t be more different if you tried.” Carissa looked at the scared Jackie move closer to Marleigh as Alyssa interrogated both of them. 

“Well, I guess it’s the difference that makes us close. What, you haven’t fallen in love with Haley Dewitt and George Silva? She’s a human and he’s a micro. The literal darlings of mixed dating.” Marleigh was talking about the great power couple that gripped the world over, or at least the US. Ever since the micro actor and human singer got together, almost every news outlet covered it. Something about the size difference captivated the nation. Marleigh had followed Haley’s career long before she started seeing the Micro George so when she heard they got together, she instantly ‘shipped’ them.

“What about them? He just clung to her, literally. Be honest Marleigh, before they got together, did you even know who he was?”

“Well...no but-“

“Then? You didn’t care about him until after he started seeing your favorite actress.” Alyssa then turned her attention to Jackie who at this point was doing her best to be unnoticeable by the terrifying sister. Unfortunately, her luck had run out. “And you. You really think you have a chance with my sister? One wrong step on her end and you’re done. Please, she could do so much better than you, you little worm. I’m willing to bet you don’t even have the guts to say anything back me because you’re scared of me.”

Jackie stumbled over her words as she thought of what to say next. Truth be told, she was scared, probably more scared than she was with meeting Carissa for the first time in almost five years. “I-I-I’m not scared of you. You don’t scare me.” As much as Jackie wanted to believe she wasn’t scared of Alyssa, a blind man could even see she was about to break from fear.

“Mhmm. Sure. I think I’ve proven my point. I’ll talk to you later Marleigh, hope by then you’ll reconsider this whole thing.” As Alyssa stood up, she gave Jackie a few parting words as well. “I’ll see you around Marleigh. And little one?” Jackie looked up at Alyssa as she shook even more with fear. “I’m looking forward to our next encounter.”

The trio looked at eachother, expecting them to break the silence. That was when Carissa spoke up. “It’s clear you got the more sane genes in the family, Marleigh.” Carissa watched as Marleigh leaned back in her chair. “I guess it’s safe to say Alyssa doesn’t like Jackie does she?”

“I guess so. I’m sorry Jackie, I didn’t think she’d say those things to you. Jackie?” Marleigh felt terrible of what she accidentally put her tiny lover through. It was infuriating for her and Carissa for sure but to Jackie, it was near life threatening. Marleigh leaned in close to Jackie but instead of her getting close to her, she backed up and began to shake.

“I umm, I think I need to go home.” Jackie said with a depressed tone. Her date with Marleigh had been utterly ruined by Alyssa and she felt terrible because of it. She tried her best to just forget Alyssa’s words but she couldn’t shake them off. The sad part was that Alyssa was true with some of what she said. Marleigh could crush her by accident one day and be devastated by the action but in the end, Marleigh would move on. Jackie on the other hand would remain a smear underneath the very feet she admired so much. She felt so uneasy now and even looking at Marleigh wasn’t helping in any way. It was like looking at Alyssa, since they basically had the same face. “Can you call me a cab?” Jackie felt heartbroken to just ignore Marleigh and she felt like breaking into tears. 

“Jackie, is everything alright?” Carissa asked as she moved her hand to bring Jackie up. As soon as she was sure that Jackie wouldn't fall off, Carissa headed over to the restrooms nearby, passing their waitress carrying their food. Jackie could tell that she was hurting Marleigh by wanting to leave but she saw nothing else she could think of to do. Every time she looked at Marleigh now, she’d think it was Alyssa.

“Carissa, where are we going? I thought I asked for you to call me a cab.” Carissa just ignored Jackie as she entered the restroom and set her down by the sink. Jackie crossed her arms as she looked at Carissa as she locked the door. “If this is about me paying, that’s complete and utter-“

“Jackie, it’s not about that. After what Alyssa said to you and your relationship with Marleigh, I feel like I need to pay for breakfast.” Jackie looked at Carissa as she bent down to get closer to her. “Jackie, I’ve met with a lot of micros similar to what you’re going through. Some escaped from China and Egypt to come here and they were traumatised from it. But even in the welcoming states, there will always be well, shitty people that hate you for being smaller than them. Yes, you’re a lot more delicate than me or Marleigh but that doesn’t mean you’re not worth the same as us. Alyssa’s wrong on a lot of things but what she’s wrong with the most is that you two won’t last. I’ve seen micro women marry human guys and vice versa. Plus, your happiness means so much to me and Marleigh. And I’ve never seen her so upset.” Carissa looked at Jackie as she sighed and sat down, some tears rolling down her face.

“I just...felt so tiny. Literally. It was as if Marleigh herself towered over me when Alyssa was talking about me. It made me seem like a bug, nothing more to be stepped or eaten by something bigger than me.” Jackie thought about how she was making Marleigh worry about her, how terrible it made her feel. She shouldn’t be making this into a big deal yet here she was. Talking to the very same girl who she once hated about her problems. “I know I have to be breaking Marleigh’s heart leaving her alone like this and I don’t want to just leave her so I can go home. That’d be so selfish of me.” Jackie covered her face as she expected Carissa to say something more about how Jackie was wrong or she even began to think Carissa would leave her alone and have the waitress bring her to her house.

“Jackie, I know you love Marleigh and Marleigh loves you. I don’t know anyone else that she’s seen. Jackie? She loves you and cares about you. I’d kill to have someone like her in my life.” Carissa started rubbing Jackie’s back as she saw her perk up. “You starting to feel better?”

“Yeah. I’m sorry I reacted like that. I guess I..”

“Overreacted? It’s fine Jackie. Don’t apologize to me, just promise me you’ll talk to Marleigh about her sister later? You know she’s either confused, pissed or both.” Carissa giggled as she picked up Jackie who felt better now as they headed back to the table with Marleigh eating her food with Jackie’s bowl at her side.

“Hey you two, Jackie are you alright, you better now?” Marleigh swallowed her food as she watched Carissa set Jackie on the table. 

“Yeah, I am, thanks to Carissa.” Jackie blushed as she was brought to her small bowl of grits which was actually the perfect size for her.

“Hey, we’ll talk about this later. Alright? When you’re back home and you’re really calmed down.” Marleigh whispered down to Jackie as she took another bite of her breakfast. 

The fear of Alyssa was still there as Jackie looked up at Marleigh but hearing her voice made it better. They were going to get through this.

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And that's the chapter! Please let me know what you thought of Alyssa's character in this chapter. Again, adding her was just an experiment to see how it would go. Anyways, see you next time!