The remainder of the classes were less of an issue compared to the first few. Yae wouldn’t let me leave her lap and held me close even during the breaks. She had wanted to make up after earlier this morning, but it also seemed like she was starting to enjoy being able to hold me close. I tried to get her to let me go, but she chose to ignore me whenever I made that particular demand. 

Since I was stuck, Takahashi took the opportunity to poke fun at my expense, pinching my nose from a safe distance where my flailing arms couldn’t reach her. She laughed mentioning she had done the same to Okazaki but it was more satisfying with me. The two seemed to have started getting along since Okazaki wanted to hear more about me while Takahashi wanted more information she could hold over me.

As for lunch, I was thankful Yae shared her meal with me because I did not want to go buy mine at this size. It was a consequence of being unable to get ready in time this morning as well as a reward. Yae held me against her as she reached into her bag to take out her bento. I expected her to just divide up a portion for me, but instead, Yae tried to feed me.

“Okay, Touya. Say Aaaah~n.”

“Um… Yae… I can eat on my own.”

Honestly, I’d have normally been enthused, if also embarrassed, but my current size made Yae seem like a mother trying to feed a baby. I was pulled back, wanting to refuse. Unfortunately, by doing that, I wouldn’t be able to eat. 

“... It’s a little surreal, but I think I like this Touya... In fact, I think I’m getting used to you being smaller now. Are you sure you don’t want me to feed you?”

“I’d be over the moon normally, but like this? I’d rather not. Come on, Yae. I can eat on my own.”

“... You can? Well, if you don’t want to, then go ahead and try.”

Yae literally pulled the lunch box away from me when I shook my head. My reach had shrunk with my height, so she was leaving me no choice but to let her feed me.

“Fufu~! Kirishima-kun, she really has you where she wants you.”

“Shut up, Takahashi. Yae, you’re being way too forward here...”

“I know… But I can’t help it,” Yae blushed. “This feels natural somehow, Touya. So please? Just once? Aaah~n.”

“At least I’m not the only one...” I gave up. This must’ve been one of desires Yae and the girls were awakening to with us at this size. Eguchi was in the same boat as I was with Yukimura holding him tightly in her grasp while the other girls fed him. “Aah...”

“And the baby boy gets fed.”

The yawning Takahashi really was testing my patience. Well, at least Yae washappy. If this was what she called getting used to my height, I wondered if she’d get even less hesitant as I got smaller though. Lunch was light on the events in any case, but it really highlighted my inability to fight back against Yae’s demands. It really hit home that I had gotten physically weaker.

Speaking of physical, one course that stood out to me was physical education. Though the day before hadn’t had anything noteworthy, I had to admit me being 52 cm tall put things in an all new perspective. There were a few differences as to why.

The first difference was with changing. Normally, the girls changed in the classroom while we boys moved to a different classroom, but it was switched today because it would take too long for us to travel to the other classroom according to Kawamura-sensei. The trip to the back of the gym still took us a while, however. We boys must have been a sight, our small forms walking through the halls where the doors were all propped open for our sakes.

The second difference was, of course, the height difference between the boys and girls. The field and gym were reserved for our class because of the Reduction Week program, so when we arrived behind the gym, we saw all of the girls already there in their shorts and athletic clothes.

I think Fujimoto described the sight best. “Damn. It’s like a forest of bare legs.”

Comparing the girl’s legs to trees was fairly accurate in my opinion because of our 52 cm bodies. The thickness of their legs were comparable to tree trunks and we could walk right in between them without needing to bend or duck. They probably wouldn’t notice if we were quiet enough too as we were completely below their line of sight. The girls were as tall as houses to us after all. 

The third difference was surprisingly not the sports we would be playing. Kawamura-sensei told us we’d all be starting to play soccer. I would have thought that while Reduction Week was going on, sports were an impossibility for us boys. The balls were around half our height while there was no way we could protect the entirety of the giant goals that were far higher up than before to us. However, Kawamura-sensei told us she was prepared.

This was what the third difference really was..

While the girls would be playing in the regular soccer field, we boys had a makeshift one for the day. There were several plastic soccer nets and toddler’s soccer balls in a proportionally smaller field lined with chalk.

“A friend of mine from overseas sent a bunch over a few years back. I brought the one I let my little boy use at home too. This should work for the day,” Kawamura-sensei proudly informed us.

So we would be playing like little toddlers while the girls would be on the actual field. The difference was more than a little embarrassing to consider, but Kawamura-sensei seemed to think it was a great idea. She sent us off to play, and play we did.

“Touya-kun, over here!”

“Nakano! I’m open!”

“Kirishima, Eguchi-kun, over here!”

Despite the initial humiliation, once you think about it, a soccer game is still a soccer game. We boys would still be willing to play. The exercise and sweat were also a great way to relieve the stress and our worries. It was difficult to adjust, though. The toddler’s soccer ball we were provided was 15 cm in diameter which, in proportion to us, was twice the size of a standard ball. Additionally, because we had gotten smaller, even its light weight was noticeable to us. We were actually being given a workout trying to play.

“Look out!”

“Huh?”

Crash!

It was clear we wouldn’t be able to play the girls properly especially when Honda sent a ball flying straight out of where they had been playing. A ball half our size flew down from above and slammed into Nakano. It knocked him to the ground, bounced off him, and knocked off our team’s goal. We could feel the weight of the impact just standing nearby.

“Hoeeee… Sorry, boys,” Honda rushed over realizing what she had done. She was in such a rush, however, that she tripped on her own two feet, falling onto Nakano when she hit the dirt. “O-Ouch… That hur… Kyaa! Nakano-kun!”

We weren’t exactly sure whether to be worried or jealous for Nakano who had gotten the wind knocked out of him twice, especially since Honda lifted his dazed body up while it was still pressed against her prominent chest.

In the end, we rooted for him a little because she worriedly went to take the boy to the infirmary. I chose not to help because Honda seemed serious about her decision and also because that was technically Takahashi’s job for the duration of the week.

Thud!

Speaking of Takahashi, she had just collapsed right next to me. As the boys were playing right on the sidelines of where the girls were, she sprawled out on the ground right next to me next to all the spare soccer balls.

“Gah… Hah… Hah… No more…,” she gasped, breathing heavily. I chuckled before a shadow fell over me. Turning around, I bumped into Yae’s leg and was knocked back.

“Aoi-chan, you really are bad at sports,” my childhood friend remarked. “You were only in the game for five minutes.”

Five minutes. I was aware Takahashi was an indoor-type and had little stamina but not this little. Perhaps it was because of my current size, but for some reason, my first thought was that I expected to be much stronger and capable. 

Standing beside Yae’s pillar of a leg, I looked down at the massive Takahashi. “So even the sleepy genius has a weakness. I didn’t think you’d be so weak, Takahashi,” I smirked. 

That smirk disappeared when Takahashi sat up. Even while sitting down, she was taller than me, and of course, stronger. Just because she lacked stamina didn’t mean she had less strength than little old me. She placed her hand on my head, completely engulfing my face with her palm. I had lost another 2 cm during class so it became even easier for her to do so.

“Give me a break… It’s a weakness, but you’re not making use of it today...” the out of breath Takahashi pushed me back gently, but it was still enough force to make me stumble 3 steps back and drop the ball I was holding while our game was postponed.

“Come on, Aoi-chan. Stop that,” frowned Yae. She then turned to me. Leaning forward and bending her knees, she asked, “Are you boys able to play just fine, Touya? It’s really surreal watching you all play like that.”

“You’re telling me… It’s like watching toddlers playing a professional game… It’s weird…” Takahashi remarked.

I didn’t like the comparison, but I suppose the height difference was made clear whenever any of the girls went by the boys’ court. The fact that we were around the lower half of their thighs in height really drove home that we were the size of infants to them. The fact that these were toys designed for toddlers hammered that in.

“The ball’s a bit bigger and feels a bit heavier, but it's not too bad to play like this at least. ” I shook my head. “We’re at least more used to playing the game than you girls.”

“I won’t deny that for the two of us. I’m not as bad as Aoi-chan, but I know I’m not athletic,” Yae giggled. “But heavy? Is it really?”

Yae plucked the ball I was holding between my arms with one hand and lifted it above my head. She was surprised by how light it felt. “This is heavy for you, Touya?”

“Proportionally, I’ve lost a lot of weight and muscle mass as I got smaller,” I reasoned. I found looking up at Yae holding the ball above me to be a little nerve-wracking especially because even if I jumped, it was out of my reach.

Yae giggled seeing me fail to grab the ball when she wasn’t even holding up over her head. To my dismay, seeing this gave the tired Takahashi something to hold over me. I could see a smirk overwrite her tired expression as she stood up to join my childhood friend. “Can’t grab it, Kirishima? Come on. Asano’s not even trying.”

“This is just something that’s to be expected with Reduction,” I told her as Yae lowered the ball to a more manageable height. Unfortunately, when I reached for it, she pulled it back up. “Hey, Yae, c’mon. There’s no way I can reach it.”

“Fufu~,” she laughed. “Sorry, Touya. You just looked so adorable trying to grab it.”

“Here,” Takahashi said as she picked up a normal soccer ball and dropped it. 

“O-Ooof!” I was caught off guard when the black and white sphere that was half my size fell. I had to use both hands to catch it, but even then, my knees buckled and I fell on my butt. It was surprising how heavy it seemed to me now.

“Wow. And you called me weak,” the sleepy-eyed girl was amused. She bent down to pick up the ball again. I was a little defensive and kept my hands on the ball, but because I was still holding onto it, I found my feet leaving the dirt.

“W-Whoa!”

“Hm…? Jeez. you’re really light now, Kirishima. Barely any heavier than the ball,” the girl was astonished. “I thought you’d at least be a few kilos.”

“He was as light as a doll earlier,” Yae remarked, recalling when she held me during lunch.

I let go of the ball and dropped back onto the ground. I was aware that my mass did not reduce at the same rate as height, but I didn’t think it’d be so easy for Takahashi to pick me up though. It was humbling.

“I get the idea,” I frowned. “Now can I get the ball back, Yae?”

Yae nodded and returned the toddler’s toy to me. I was ready to head back to the game but Takahashi stood in my way with her long legs.

“Y’know, maybe you should join your game, Kirishima,” she suggested. 

“That’d be unfair and you know it. All you have to do is sit down and you’d block your goal. And you can just walk right over us without any effort,” I frowned at the girl’s suggestion. 

“... I’m all for having an advantage...” Takahashi admitted. “I don’t think you’d be a match against two pretty, strong girls like us, Kirishima-kun.”

Strong, she said. Unathletic is what I’d say. Yae had a small build and Takahashi led a sedentary life-style. Neither of them were sports club members for a reason. On a normal basis, I’d be unimpressed by her remark, but this week wasn’t normal. With their legs alone taller than I was, it looked to me as though both of them had vastly more muscle and strength than my twig like arms and legs. Takahashi had a presence she knew she could flaunt over me.

“How about you join us, Touya?” Yae suggested. She was also excited about our friend’s suggestion. “We can play a game of girls versus boys.”

That would be even worse.

“You’re kidding, right? That’d be a super unfair game.” Not only was the power difference between the boys and girls incredible now, but we could hardly hold the balls let alone move them. Also, the normal sized goals were many times our size so there’d be so many openings for our goalie.

Yae and Takahashi knew that well.

“It’d be an easy game like that,” Takahashi thought. “It’s a super big handicap if they can’t budge the balls though. Maybe we should let them use their hands too.”

“We’d have to cut the numbers too to keep it fair. Maybe just three girls against all of the boys? They won’t be able to stop any high shots, and it’d take them forever to go around the field,” Yae added.

“Ooh. I like that idea. Can we get this game going then?” laughed Takahashi. “I’d love to take down the boys without even trying.”

“Please don’t damage our pride like that.” I hoped Yae was just playing along and not being serious. However, my words were ignored as the conversation above me continued between the two giant girls, leaving me stuck between their legs looking up.

“Honestly, I think even if it were just the two of us against them we’d win. There’s no way they’d be able to push the ball into the goal with one of us around.”

“Girls,” I called them.

“That does sound easy, Aoi-chan. It sounds like bullying though. I can imagine just bowling them all over with one kick of the ball.”

“Girls, c’mon,” I jumped up and waved my arms out but neither of them looked at me.

“I mean, if they’re as light as Kirishima, we’d have to worry about accidentally kicking the boys down. Heh, I bet you’d be able to knock them down just by walking.”

“You two can’t be serious,” I shouted, I gave a smack against Yae’s pillar of a thigh but then had to move out of the way when she shifted about in thought. She seemed to really like the idea.

“I don’t know actually. Maybe we should ask Sensei if we can arrange a game?”

Tweeeeeeeet!  

I was actually thankful that the sound of a whistle in the distance caught our attention. It stopped my two friends from getting too into their conversation talking over my head about their idea to play an unfair game of soccer against us much shorter boys. 

Kawamura-sensei was pointing at the three of us.

“What are you three doing just chatting!? Asano and Takahashi! Three laps around the field! Kirishima! One lap!”

“Oh no. Looks like we’ve been caught,” frowned Yae.

“Eh? Why three for us?” Takahashi balked at the thought of more physical exercise.

“It’s probably because I’m smaller,” I answered. Now they looked at me because I was technically being given a lighter sentence. 

“That’s still not fair, Touya. I’m slow at running, you know that,” Yae didn’t approve of my grinning. 

“Let’s just get it over with.” I accepted the punishment and started to run first. At the very least, Yae and Takahashi were getting what I considered to be karma for ignoring me. “Sorry, girls, but I’ll be going on ahead.”

“Eh? Hey, Kirishima-kun, don’t just ditch us like that!”

“Touya! Wait! Let’s catch up, Aoi-chan!”

“Eh? Hold on.”

I didn’t wait and gave myself a head start. I appreciated the two fewer laps and would say that I was glad to be smaller for once. Though I was proportionally smaller now, I was still more athletic than Yae and Takahashi. I wouldn’t have to rely on my endurance and stamina as much to clear one lap unlike the girls who had three. It’d still finish before them despite the handicap.

… Is what I thought before a leg immediately arched over me. It was inevitable that Yae would catch up to me, but I didn’t think that within just three steps, Yae would already clear the distance I had crossed.

“Hah! Got you!” Yae exclaimed as she ran past me. I had to stumble out of the way because she ran past me, my body easily slipping between her long, towering legs. It was like going under an overpass, one made of legs over 2 m tall.

“Grk!” I grit my teeth as I saw Yae stick her tongue out at me. She hadn’t appreciated my head start. 

“Hah… That was easy,” Yae realized and decided to slow her pace. Even then, she was still ahead of me. “It looks like I’ll be the faster runner for once.”

“This is hurting my pride,” I grumbled. This was worse than this morning because I actually had a head start this time. Given that her legs were longer than I was tall, I knew it was to be expected, but experiencing being overtaken so easily was surprisingly more humiliating than just thinking about it. 

I didn’t have time to think further, though, as Takahashi’s leg stomped beside me as she jogged by, causing me to stumble further off course. “Serves you... right...,” she said between heavy breaths. She was already tired. “If we’re getting... three laps... you can bet we’ll… lap your tiny butt.”

Even with her poor stamina and pace, Takahashi also pulled ahead of me. I scowled and picked up the pace. To avoid those girls showing me up further, I’d have to finish my one lap before they finished their three. No, I’d have to push harder so they wouldn’t lap me at all. Was this going to be possible?

The increasing gap between Yae’s position and my own told me otherwise. I was under a third of my height so the entire soccer field was over three times bigger. I was at a disadvantage against the two titanic girls who could clear in one step what I needed four for, but in spite of this, I was still going to try.

I had to at least beat Takahashi even if I exhausted myself doing it.

Physical Education.

Though we had spent the whole day on the floor with the girls told to ignore us, we weren’t going to be as ignored after lunch while they changed or while they went to the gym. The former was obvious enough as they didn’t want us boys peaking, but the latter meant we’d still be taking part. I had thought we’d have the chance to not take lessons the entire day. Just by wandering around, we had already gotten enough physical exercise in.

But that was not the case. We had to gather up by a Reduction Transport container with our things while the girls left the room to change. They actually checked we were all present before leaving. That was why Sensei had given Takahashi a notebook. It had our class roster on it and since she could recognize most of us boys (through putting her face far too close for comfort to us), she checked we were all there and left us to the other health committee girl in charge of transport.

It took time, but once inside the liftable steel box that resembled an animal carrying case, we were expected to change into our athletic clothes. The walls of the entire interior of the box were all lockers.

I heard from the other boys that the container was different from the one they were in yesterday to take them to where had stayed overnight. This one was a lot smaller, the size of a purse, but a lot more roomy, probably due to our size. The steel box also lacked the cushions the other carrier had. This was, in a sense, a miniature locker room.

“Okay, boys. You can head on out,” we were told by the health committee girl. We stepped out to find ourselves outside behind the gymnasium in the dirt field like we had been the day before. Only now, the sports field had become an expansive plain.

Well… all but one side - the edge of the dirt field that connected with the grass field that was also used for soccer. The grass, we found to be almost as tall as we were. We could easily get lost in such a forest of green considering our heads would barely stick out if we tried pushing our way through the thick grass field.

“Jeez. We’re less than grass,” I heard Aikawa mumble. We really were. A number of us guys were looking around confused at what was to come.

“What the heck are we going to be doing in class today?”

“They don’t seriously expect us to wander around here while the girls are playing, do they?”

“Where’s Sensei?”

“Um… Guys… what’s going on?”

Our questions went unanswered as the voices of us boys talking and shouting at the health committee girl’s feet never made it to her ears. She picked up the purse sized carrier that held all of us and waved good-bye.

We were left grouped together at the edge of the dirt field unsure what to do. Another important question to ask, however, was where were the girls? At our present size, a majority of the schoolyard was out of focus due to being distant and out of reach. We did not see any giant figures out in the direction of the school or gym. Had we been left alone? That was a terrifying thought.

Slam! Thud! Wham!

“Hey, they’re here now!” “Really? Let’s see.” “Oh, wait up!”

Well, that thought did not last long. From outside of our vision, the girls ran over from further into the grass field. It wasn’t long before all around us were the girls in their gym clothes. We were completely surrounded by them as they formed a circle all around us. 

This surely was an experience. The girls stood, kneeled, sat, and squatted around us in a circle about 4 meters wide while we boys stood in the center, taking up less space than a single soccer ball. Speaking of soccer ball, we could see one underneath Hozuki’s foot - the building sized black and white sphere firmly kept in place by the giant athletic girl’s foot. We were thankful she was keeping it steady, but she was also looking straight down at us. All of them were.

“Wow. Just look at them next to the grass. They’re seriously shrimps.” “What do you expect? they’re like a bunch of ants. You can hardly see them.” “I wonder what they’re thinking right now.” 

“Can I pick them up?” “You idiot. Sensei said we’re not allowed to.” “But I’ve been wanting to all day.” “I know. It’s so unfair.”

“... Hey, Airi-chan... Eguchi-kun’s down there, right...? Let’s scoop him up and go...” “Eh? N-No. We shouldn’t do that!” “S-Shizuku-chan, you’re scaring me.”

“Wow. I was thinking it’d be funny to play against them yesterday, but that looks impossible now.” “Yeah. The ball’s so much bigger than them. Hozuki-san, make sure you keep that steady. We don’t want it rolling over them.” “Shouldn’t we be more worried about stepping on them? We’re not wearing those soles anymore.”

Surround sound conversations thundered above us, some of which more nerve-wracking than others to hear. We had been around the girls all day, but having all of them surround us sent us boys grouping together. We were back to back staring up with trembling legs.

Yoshikawa and her friends were chatting amongst themselves while glancing at us. Tsujimoto and her friends were squatting, dangerously leaning forward to the point of nearly losing balance and falling over us. Eguchi’s admirers, Shima and Satou especially, were trying to hold back the expressionless Yukimura, their struggles sending earthquake-delivering stomps across the ground. Hozuki and her friends were being cautious despite Hozuki’s usual apathetic tone.

“Y’know, I kind of get why Sasakura-Sensei didn’t want the girls to pay attention to us now,” I heard someone say.

I agreed. While we were on the floor all day, we weren’t surrounded on all sides by the girls nor were we under their observant gazes. It may have just been because of the perspective (since we hadn’t gotten that small), but we certainly felt under the microscope.

I was now 6.5 cm tall, half of my height from when I woke up this morning. This meant the size of everything had doubled again since the day had begun. The girls were now 50 m tall from our perspective - kaiju sized. Even the JSDF would be challenged by them if they were our size. How could a couple of ordinary boys fare against a group of kaiju scale girls in gym clothes?

Primal fear and instinct were starting to take priority for a couple of us. I could see some guys breaking out into a run while others felt weak in the knees. When faced against an overwhelming monster, wouldn’t you? While the girls weren’t monsters, they were certainly the size of the famous ones we knew of.

“Maybe we should run? That’s what my body’s telling me,” Nakano suggested.

“I’d agree with you. I’m in the mood to yell ‘Gojira!’ and run in panic too, but there’s nowhere to go,” I shut down Nakano’s idea. We were surrounded on all sides. If we ran into the grass, we wouldn’t be able to get beyond a few centimeters through the thick turf and if we tried running around the dirt, we wouldn’t even make it to the nearest girl unless we ran for a good few minutes.

“Wow. Look at them go. They’ve really slowed down,” Hozuki remarked, noting how little distance the fleeing boys covered. When one step from them was twenty to thirty of ours, we’d clearly look slower to them. 

Stomp!

Yawn. 

A familiar sleepy sound entered my ears after a powerful stomp that sent all of the running boys to the floor. Turning in the direction of the sound and looking up, I saw Takahashi leave the circle and approach. In just two steps, she was already on top of us, her shadow covering the entire area where all of us boys were.

“Hey, boys,” the girl’s half-lidded eyes turned towards us as she waved from above. “Whoops sorry, let me get you the stuff you need for today.”

The stuff we needed? Did she have to get so close just to tell us that? She didn’t, but judging by her tone of voice, she was enjoying being able to lord her height over us while she did her job.

“You are having way too much fun this week, Takahashi!” I shouted up. Of course, my voice didn’t reach up to her ears. It was too soft and weak, only able to reach past her knees. Takahashi could see me vent however so she knew what I was thinking.

“Don’t be like that, Kirishima-kun. Just hold on. Asano, can you bring the fields over?”

“We’ve got them, but Aoi-chan, you were supposed to be the one carrying this,” Yae called from a distance.

“Careful now girls. This set up’s pretty fragile,” I also heard Kawamura-sensei’s voice.

The circle of girls cleared away for Yae and Kawamura-sensei to pass. It was an astounding sight to see the giants move aside - as major as seeing the sea split.

“Clear the way. Come on.” 

“Is over here fine, Sensei?” 

“Almost. Hey, Takahashi, help already. Hold on to those ends, would you? This thing’s light, but it'll break easily if we’re too rough on it. We need to lower it slowly.”

“Fine...”

“Easy does it.”

All of us boys were caught up in a cacophony of stomps, clamoring, and tremors as Takahashi moved to help Yae and Sensei gently (to them) set something down. What was going on? We couldn’t tell while the girls were setting up because we were thrown about by just their footsteps. A dust storm was kicked up around us because of their movements knocking around pebbles and dirt from the field. We had to cover our faces to prevent our eyes and noses.

Only when the set up was complete did we discover what Yae and Kawamura-Sensei had brought outside.

“Whoa. Are you serious?” “They did this just for the program?” “Wow… this seriously makes it obvious how small we are.”

What was in front of us was a platform that was roughly a centimeter tall. On the platform, though, was a number of soccer fields - a miniature set of professional soccer fields including goals, bleachers, and lights that were precisely to our scale had been brought out and placed next to the grass field. Yae and Kawamura-Sensei had carried the government seal and sponsor logo decorated platform like they would a board of wood. The Reduction Program had brought along another surprise to us boys. 

It was much appreciated to know we had something on our scale. However, seeing things our own size with the girls nearby really made the Kaiju comparison obvious. It was easy for any of the girls to step onto the soccer field platform. Their feet would take up a majority of the field as well as evidenced by Sensei’s imposing sneakers as she stood above us.

Whoever made this, however, was very courteous of us. Besides the soccer field and equipment, there was also a structure on the side of the bleachers that we figured out were restrooms. The lights weren’t necessary considering it was day time, but there were even digital scoreboards and vending machines, so there had to be a power source somewhere as well.

“Why didn’t they bring this in yesterday?”

“I’m guessing it was delivered here too late. Deliveries are always late to the nurse’s office,” I tried answering the question as a health committee member. “I’m willing to bet we’re getting something for tomorrow too.”

This wasn’t a model. We were all aware of that. Though it looked like one, every structure was properly our scale and not at all over-sized. Nobody could grow grass turf so evenly this small. Nor could they wire the electrical lines that led up to the overhead lights that only made half way up the girls’ shins. This was something reduced to our level.

Stomp. Stomp.

Kawamura-Sensei’s feet stood on both sides of the thin platform as she stood over it. We stretched our gazes up to listen to her speak while I could see Yae behind her complaining to Takahashi for not helping out. 

“Okay, boys. The folks down from the program were nice enough to send you some proper sized equipment. They shrank this whole thing down just for you all to play. It should be the right size I hope. The soccer balls are all locked up in the center, so you can go get them and play to your heart's content today.”

So we would be playing soccer in these miniature fields while the girls were playing in the grass. That was one way of giving us the same experience despite the differing scales, and unlike the previous day, the goals and balls were of their proper size and weight for us to use.

Sensei let us go play and made the girls go and do the same out in the grass. She didn’t supervise us because she had her hands full dealing with making sure the other girls were behaving. That meant we were left behind along with the rest of the spare soccer balls she kept in the grass nearby as a sort of wind-shield for us.

That was both good and bad honestly. 

There really wasn’t much of a need to watch us anyways considering how small we were. We weren’t that willing to leave the safety of the platform. We were given enough free reign to set up and play our own team matches against one another as well as rest up and use the facilities for the class period.

However, that also left us exposed to the outside world - more specifically: the girls.

After Sensei walked away, the girls started approaching to visit whenever they got to take a break from their game.

First was the gyarus.

“Hey boys, you up for a photo session?” Watanabe asked on behalf of the gyaru squad with their photography enthusiast Nomiya.

“Shino-non~, I totes don’t think I can get everyone’s permission all at once,” Nomiya was being the reasonable one, though the fact that she was tucking the phone she snuck into class in her cleavage told us she was the one to suggest the photo op. We were treated to the view of the undersides of their breasts blocking the view of their faces until Sensei caught them and made them run laps.

Some time later, Eguchi’s admirers showed up...

“Airi-chan, it’s okay. Don’t squirm so much.”

“B-but…”

“They’re the boys, not bugs or anything. Don’t freak out.”

“... Eguchi-kun’s there… But where...”

Or rather, they tried to. Shima’s poor reaction to small things was keeping her away. Yukimura was more than willing to lean in to see if she could find Eguchi, but he was blending in very well with the rest of us who were trying to play while under her gaze. I could swear Eguchi was beaming from being able to relax without his admirers right up in his face. Did the popular guy like them or not?

“It’s troubling having no time to myself. Even I want to just hang out with the guys once in a while,” Eguchi told me.

He earned the disdain of many of the single guys. Popular guys were so insensitive.

“Look who’s talking, Touya-kun...”

Honda’s clumsiness took a turn for the worse again too when she once again sent a soccer ball flying in our direction. We were all knocked down when the white and black meteor landed less than a meter away from the miniature. It then bounced right over us. We couldn’t believe what a close call that was, but had to hold back those thoughts when Honda came running over to get the ball. The heavy earthquakes caused by her running over kept us on the floor.

That was not the worst part of Honda’s accidents though. She was so focused on getting the ball, she forgot about the miniature at her feet and ran in a straight line following the soccer ball. Her foot actually landed in the center of one of the fields, knocking several of us into the air and stomping Nakano straight down. We were all worried for the injured boys, and were thankful to see they made it out alright, although winded and unable to form a coherent sentence for a few minutes.

“Nakano… are you alright? Speak to us,” I tried to slap some sense into the boy.

“Honda-san… maybe you need to go on a diet…,” the boy mumbled. We weren’t sure if he was serious because the way he said it made it seem like he wasn’t fully conscious.

This was definitely the problem with being so small. We were not exactly in the view of the girls, so accidents like this were more than likely to occur. Even on her way back, Honda didn’t realize what she had done, though her footprint had left a deep mark on the miniature.

“Yo, boys. How about a game?”

She reached down to my court in particular and, with her hand, tapped the floor. A few of us fell over and dropped the ball, earning her laughter.

After the accidental chaos caused by Honda came someone who was more purposefully willing to cause us trouble.

“Hey boys. How are you squirts doing?” 

“Hozuki… Sometimes I can’t tell who’s worse. Her or Takahashi,” I complained though my voice never reached her.

Hozuki was having fun interrupting our soccer game with just one hand. She used one hand to act as a goalie after she flicked Aikawa out of the way. It was easy for her to block our shots with her fingers, blocked our paths with her palm, and plucked the ball between her thumb and index finger with ease like it was a piece of lint. The sporty girl was treating us like ants in an ant hill she wanted to mess with.

“Hey! Hozuki-chan!”

“G-Geh! Yoshikawa...”

Our Class Representative came later to pull her away. She also had to be scolded. Honesty, every girl in the class approached out of curiosity. There wasn’t a dull moment. We were all like a class pet they watched with mild interest. Was this why some kids kept ant farms? 

This was how our gym period passed, in any case - as a little attraction for the girls to come see whenever they wanted. What was the purpose of this part of the program, I wondered. Perhaps they just wanted us to get some exercise or perhaps they wanted us to get used to the girls looking at us while we did what was ordinary to us.

But the worst had yet to come, honestly. At least, that was the case for me.

Five minutes after Hozuki stepped away, a certain girl who was already exhausted from physical activity dragged her way over to where we were. Her shadow fell over us as she took a seat in the grass beside the platform.

“Gah… jeez… I can’t keep up with those girls…,” she gasped. 

Takahashi had come by. Her stamina was as terrible as ever. While we continued playing, a number of us guys stayed cautious. She came over to us for a reason. And knowing her personality, I knew it would be to fool around a little.

This was clear when her finger touched one of the tall poles that the lights were attached to over the miniature soccer field. Though it did not break, we could hear it creaking as it tilted with just a gentle touch.

“Jeez. This is even lighter than a cardboard diorama. I’m surprised it’s not blowing away in the wind,” I heard her mumble. She then looked down at us less than 7 cm tall boys. “You guys hanging in there? I bet you’d love to play a game with us.”

We certainly wouldn’t, especially considering how we’d easily get lost in the grass. Takahashi was so easily pushing down with her weight.

To my dismay, the girl found me as I was playing by the goal. Her hand descended, snatching me by the collar of my shirt.

“G-Gah! W-Whoah!” I wailed as I was abducted and yanked upwards into the sky. I was brought in front of Takahashi’s face.

“Found you, Kirishima,” I was greeted by the girl’s sleepy-looking eyes and her smug smile. “C’mon, what do you say? We talked about it yesterday. You should join us for a game. I could use the extra help since you know how bad my stamina is.”

I groaned and shook my head. She was just playing around with me. 

“Yeah, I guess it would be too tough, wouldn’t it?” Takahashi was getting her energy back the more she tried to joke around with me. She lowered me back to the ground, but I found that instead of being placed back in the miniature, she put me down in the grass. I couldn’t stand on the grass, though. I sunk down between the blades of the evenly cut turf. It felt like I was standing in untamed tall grass, which is precisely what it was in my perspective. I tried pushing my way through but it was to no avail. All I could do was look up because my head was the only thing properly above the grass.

To make matters worse, Takahashi stood back up. Her shoes caused the very grass she was standing on to bend, as though bowing to her weight. The soles of those shoes were something I could see clearly because I was below them.

“I don’t think you can really play a game wandering through the grass like that,” she stifled a laugh by covering her mouth with her hand. She then used her right foot to roll one of the spare soccer balls over. “And I don’t think you can even push this at all, can you?”

“W-Whoah. Hey, stop!” My face lost its color when I found myself in the shadow of the building sized white and black sphere. Takahashi rolled it right over me. I did not bother trying to lift or push away the enormous orb. Instead, I ducked under the grass as Takahashi tried to bowl me over with it. I was safe because the turf was able to hold its weight until it passed over me.

“Heh,” she smirked, raising her foot just slightly to intimidate me with its shadow. “Now I really want to play a game with you, Kirishima. I really want an easy win for once.”

That wouldn’t even be a match. It was an ant against an elephant, and Takahashi knew that. She just wanted to poke fun at me as much as she could. It frustrated me to be essentially bullied by her. She was lucky I wasn’t going to be normal sized until the week ended. I confirmed mentally that I was definitely going to retaliate against her when the week was over.

Karma, however, came for the girl quickly. It came in the form of one angry childhood friend of mine.

“A~o~i~cha~n~,” Yae dragged out the girl’s given name in a sing-song-like fashion. There was no joy or innocence in her voice, though. A chill went up both of our spines. She was clearly mad because of what Takahashi had been doing. “Just what do you think you’re doing to my Touya?”

“A-Asano!” the girl snapped alert. She turned around and immediately took a few steps back. She had heard Yae get all possessive with me. She knew better than to get Yae jealous or angry. This was not a Yae either of us wanted to face. “I-I was just… just hanging out with Kirishima.”

“A~o~i~cha~n...” Yae’s voice got a little darker. This brought back bad memories for both of us. Yae was a nice girl, but having known her since childhood, she was not someone you wanted to provoke. “It looked like you were trying to step on Touya. If you keep trying to pick on him like that, I’ll get angry.”

“Y-You’re already angry, aren’t you?” It was more than a little nerve-wracking seeing Takahashi so panicked. She turned her attention down to me. “Jeez… My bad. I get it. I’m sorry, Kirishima. I went a little too far. Just call off your girlfriend will you?”

She wasn’t my girlfriend yet, nor did I have any ability to calm her down. The apple didn’t fall very far from the tree. Just like I didn’t want to anger Ayame-san ever, I never wanted to make Yae mad. Takahashi was the one earning her wrath this time.

She was only lucky that Yae had come for a reason.

“Aoi-chan, just give me Touya,” Yae sighed, shaking her head. “Sasakura-sensei wants me to take him to the infirmary. I won’t get angry if you hand him to me right now.”

Takahashi did just as Yae had asked, as gently as she could. I was plucked out of the grass and dropped into Yae’s cupped palms. The girl was relieved to see that I was alright, but then she turned back to Takahashi to give her a glare.

“Aoi-chan… we’ll be having a punishment game next week, alright? No exceptions,” she threatened. I could visibly see the other girl swallow her saliva.

“Fine…,” Takahashi knew she was in the wrong. “I’ll do whatever you want next week, Asano. Just don’t get mad like that again, okay? It’s seriously freaky when you act like that.”

“I’ll do it whenever you go too far, Aoi-chan,” Yae denied her request. She let Takahashi go, though. Leaving us alone as she walked away from the miniature soccer field with me in her hands.

“Sorry about that, Touya,” my eardrums were blasted by Yae’s powerful close range voice as she held me on her palm in front of her face. “Aoi-chan has been letting all this power get to her head. I really should’ve stopped her.”

“D-Don’t blame yourself over this, Yae...” I stammered out. It was hard to after being battered by Yae’s hot breath and loud voice right after being picked up and raised dozens of meters up. 

“S-sorry,” Yae noticed my discomfort and started to whisper. “I forgot how loud I probably am to you right now. You really are so vulnerable now, Touya. It makes me worried about you.”

I frowned. I didn’t want to make her worry for me. I knew reassuring her would be difficult considering I couldn’t do anything without her as my caretaker at the moment. The only thing I could do was to try and change the subject.

“What does Sasakura-sensei want with me, anyways?”

Yae was grateful for the change in topic as well. “Sensei said that because we signed up for the exemption, she has some things to give us. It must be because you’re staying with me after school.”

“Things? I didn’t hear about this in our meetings. What things would she give?” I asked.

“I’m not sure… Oh, hold on, Touya. I don’t want you to fall off,” Yae warned me before closing her palm up again. There wasn’t anywhere to hold on. In fact, she was the one holding onto me. “Uwah… This really is a surreal feeling. You’re even smaller than you were this morning.”

I couldn’t reply to her, but I could agree with her. Being 6.5 cm tall now, I fit perfectly inside Yae’s closed hand.

“Well, we’ll find out what Sensei wants to give us when we get there, Touya. For now, I’m at least glad Aoi-chan didn’t do anything bad to you.”

Those were Yae’s last words to me before she started to increase her pace. I couldn’t do anything other than be taken along for the ride when she clenched her hand a bit tighter reflexively. I tried to regulate my breathing inside the hot, cramped grasp of my childhood friend as she left the soccer field while in her PE clothes to get to the nurse’s office.