Three weeks have passed since the terrible events that Tom witnessed. The boy was eating his breakfast and laughing from a video on YouTube that a friend threw to him.

The first days were given to his fragile psyche especially hard. He firmly decided to pretend that he did not know anything, but he was very afraid that he would not be able to play this role to the end. Whatever one may say, Tom remained an ordinary twelve-year-old boy who could not compete in cunning and discernment with adults. Whatever one may say, There remained an ordinary twelve-year-old boy who could not compete in cunning and insight with adults. And this, not to mention the fact that hiding the fact that you witnessed a murder is a difficult task even for an adult.

Tom thought that the police, who had already started working on the search for Edward the next day, would soon turn their eyes to him as well. The boy was afraid of interrogation, because he knew that whether the uninformed would play badly.

But Tom was not only afraid of the police. His much-loved sister instilled fear in his childish head just by her presence next to him. It cost Tom a huge effort to maintain calm in the moments when they were alone. Luckily for Tom, Rachel was adept at playing the heartbroken girl. She organized a search for Edward, and when she returned home, she often locked herself in her room.

Watching his sister's excellent performance, Tom became even more afraid of her. The boy could not believe that grief could be played so plausibly at all. Sometimes he even thought that everything he saw on that ill-fated day in his sister's room was just a figment of his sick imagination.

But Tom resolutely pushed these thoughts away. The last thing he wanted was to doubt his own eyes. Here cold logic intervened in the boy's reasoning. Thinking only about madness means not being prepared for the threat that may come from your sister. If Tom is not himself, then it is his in the hospital ward. If his sister really knows how to shrink people, Tom may be in a much more unenviable place.

During the first week, such thoughts did not let Tom go for a minute. Every action and word the boy passed through a lot of filters in his head. It would be superfluous to say how much it exhausted him.

But the days passed.

Rachel was gradually coming to her senses. The search for Edward ended unsuccessfully.  It couldn't have been any other way. Rachel stopped locking herself in the room and began to pay attention to her brother again. The kindness and care that she had previously lavished on him returned a hundredfold. Now it was much more difficult for Tom to accept Rachel's warm kinship feelings than when Tom was in the dark, but gradually he learned to relax and behave naturally in the company of his sister.

The fear of interrogation by the police also turned out to be groundless. The detective only visited the family home once and did not deign to pay attention to Tom at all. That's why now Tom could carelessly get ready for school, humming some stupid song to himself. He was happy that his fears had subsided. He was happy that he could lead an ordinary school life.

But, nevertheless, his shoulders shuddered slightly when he heard familiar footsteps. His sister was coming down the stairs. But the sound was so light that Tom was instantly relieved from his heart. The fact that Rachel's feet were walking so weightlessly could only mean that their hostess was in a wonderful mood.

***

The rays of the sun broke through the leaves outside the window and gently glided over Rachel's beautiful face. The muscles around the girl's eyes tensed as if trying to ward off the annoying light. But, although Rachel was not an ordinary girl, she certainly could not measure her strength with the sun. Of course, she could have curtained the window, but it would not make the day night.

The rays of the sun broke through the leaves outside the window and gently glided over Rachel's beautiful face. The muscles around the girl's eyes tensed as if trying to ward off the annoying light. But, although Rachel was not an ordinary girl, she certainly could not measure her strength with the sun. Of course, she could have curtained the window, but it would not make the day night.

The right foot reached the floor a moment before the left. Quite unexpectedly for Rachel, there was a wet crunching sound at that moment. For a moment she wondered what it could be. But the very next second, a satisfied smile slowly crept over her face.

She lifted her leg, placing it on the knee of the other leg. Her foot was wrapped in a snow-white sock. Now the heel of the sock was adorned with a bright red spot, which, moreover, was slowly expanding.

"Oh, how could I forget that I'm not sleeping alone today?" the girl said in a feigned anxious tone.

"I should have been careful!"

Rachel grabbed the elastic band of the sock with two fingers and began to slowly remove it. As soon as her heel was exposed, an unsightly sight appeared to the girl's eyes.

The body of a young man was sprawled on the pink skin of her heel. Before Rachel's foot touched the floor, he was probably about an inch tall. Now his legs turned into a thin paste with an uneven layer of smeared on the skin of the girl.

The guy's face exuded horror, but only barely audible moans left his mouth, not an animal cry. A common man would find this a little surprising, but Rachel knew from experience that people often behave in this way if their bodies are damaged so severely. The reasons why this happens were not interesting to the girl. She put it down to a painful shock, but she didn't know for sure.

The man's eyes darted over Rachel's face, but when she spoke again, they stopped on her lips.

"Sorry, I still forgot about you two."

The intonation made it clear that the girl was enjoying what she was saying, but this time there was not a drop of affectation in her voice.

"It will probably hurt you to find out that your friend was much luckier."

With these words, Rachel finally took off her sock. Then, with the same sock, she took the mutilated man off her heel and exhaled him onto the desk next to the bed. After wiping her heel, she threw the sock into a nearby trash can.

Then the girl lifted her left leg off the floor. But this time just a little bit. The left sock was taken off carelessly and the person who had been there all night fell head over heels to the floor. His colorful summer shirt was the first thing that caught the eye.

One moment and a person is captured by a gentle girl's hand. Unlike his friend, this guy shouted at the top of his voice. But Rachel was also used to such an annoying squeak.

Rachel picked up the tiny man from the floor and, carrying him to the table, casually dropped him next to the legless one. Rachel's eyes greedily absorbed the fear coming from the two crumbs and solemnly shone.

Yesterday these two had the imprudence on their car in a puddle and doused Rachel's clothes with water. Rachel's light outfit was ruined. The guys, noticing what they had done, immediately stopped. They apologized to Rachel for a long time, offered to take her home and pay for the spoiled things.

But Rachel is not used to forgiving even smaller offenses. The fact that the guys kept their height for so long was explained only by the fact that the street where everything happened was quite crowded. So Rachel pretended to accept the apology and asked for a ride home. The road to her house brushed the edge of the forest, and therefore was a great place to cover your tracks.

Then everything is simple - Rachel asked to stop, got out of the car and immediately reduced it along with the unsuspecting guys. Two terrified people were shaken out of the salon through the torn door into the palm of their hand, which, in turn, threw them into the pocket of the girl's bag. Rachel trampled the junk on which the boys were moving into the asphalt without much pleasure and threw it into the bushes next to the road.

"So, yesterday I made you a promise that I would let you go if you survive after a night spent with me."

The guy with the shattered legs showed little interest in her words. Apparently, the loss of blood affected. According to Rachel's estimates, he should have died within half an hour. But his friend was hanging on every word of the giantess. The hope of escape still lingered in his soul.

Rachel remembered about the two poor fellows who were staying in her bag, only in the evening. The girl no longer had the strength to come up with a more interesting way to end them. Besides, the guys treated Rachel very well and she didn't really want to torment them so much.

Therefore, the girl decided to give the guys a chance. She decided to give them life if they could survive in her socks until morning. No, of course, she wasn't going to give them their size back.

To make the crumbs feel her words, Rachel spoke very seriously.

After all, their reactions are the most precious thing. The legless one, as expected, did not show any bright emotions, but rather tensed a little. It was much more interesting to watch the second one. As soon as Rachel said that she would give them life, it was as if a rod was taken out of his body. His legs gave way, and he sank smoothly onto his ass. Immediately recovering himself, he jumped up again and shouted some words of gratitude to her.

Rachel was touched by the reaction of the boy and she allowed her face to break into a gentle smile. But soon catching herself, the girl erased her smile. These guys weren't bad enough to give them hope with a smile.

"The bad news is that I'm not going to return his size to anyone."

The wounded man seemed no longer to be listening, but the joy in the eyes of the healthy one noticeably diminished. Rachel didn't bother to study the man's emotions, but she could have sworn that his face was distorted under the pressure of a mixture of despair and fear.

"You should understand yourself that this is impossible. I make people smaller and I would really like only people who are no bigger than my little finger to know about it."

A boy in a multi-colored shirt rubbed his eyes with his palms-apparently, he was wiping away tears.

"Believe me, you shouldn't be so upset. In any case, you are much luckier than your friend."

Then Rachel lightly touched the legless guy's chest with her fingernail.

"Without medical help, he will die in half an hour."

This time the girl's words reached the ears of the dying boy as well. He tried to scream, but it came out badly. Shortness of breath and impotence from blood loss affected. But this desperate attempt seemed interesting to Rachel.

"So be it, I'll listen to what you're whispering there."

She brought her right ear as close as possible to the bleeding guy. Rachel's gut told her that she was about to hear something interesting and it did not let her down.

«I'm asking you to kill me.»

Rachel felt a twinge in her chest. And her perverted soul could feel pity for its victims. But the soul was perverted for that, that it could even melt this painful feeling into pleasure. Therefore, Rachel was not afraid to give herself completely to this feeling.

«Are you in that much pain?»

Even the most astute person would not have heard a note of falseness in her trembling voice. The huge eyebrows gathered on the bridge of the nose and the tense muscles around the eyes also looked like a completely natural manifestation of pity for the suffering poor man.

No one expected such a drastic change. For several long moments, confusion hung on the faces of the crumbs. But the pain, like nothing else, brings back to reality, and therefore, after a few seconds, the wounded boy nodded hesitantly.

Rachel's eyes seemed about to fill with tears. She sucked in a sharp breath and spoke.

«Good. Anyway, it's my fault.»

A tear still rolled out of her right eye. Lifting her chin, she fell to the surface of the table next to the guys. If they were a little smaller, such a drop could easily drown them in itself.

Rachel, who had been sitting on the bed by the table, stood up. Carefully picking up the mutilated body, she put it on the floor not in front of her.

«So I hope it will be less painful.»

As she spoke, she seemed a little embarrassed.

All this time, the guy who remained on the table was shouting something, probably begging her to stop, but the girl did not listen. The boy was lying next to the heel of his right foot. The distance was too great to tell for sure, but Rachel could have sworn that she could see a face distorted with sobs.

«I'm not asking you to forgive me. Just know that the pain will be short-lived.»

The girl raised her foot and at the same moment, with lightning speed, brought down her heel on the poor man. Death was instantaneous. The human body often reminded Rachel of an overripe cherry, from which a stone was taken out. If you crush such a cherry, the juice flies far away, but the pulp just flattens the floor with the sole.

Anger caused a pain in the girl's head the second her foot landed on the floor. If you lower your foot on the cherry at a sufficiently high speed, the pulp will also go into flight.

«Fuck, fuck, what a fool I am!»

Red drops covered everything within a meter radius. The legs of the chair and the bed, the drawers of the table, eventually the floor. Rachel was so captured by the moment that she forgot not only about her promise not to kill anyone on the bare floor, but also did it so carelessly. A half-hour cleaning service was now provided for her.

All the pity for the murdered boy evaporated as it was not there. The girl only regretted that she could not bring him back to life, only to send him to the next world again.

Stupor. Her eyes darted nervously around the room until they caught a movement on her desk. For the last few moments, Rachel didn't think about the man at all. He was rushing rapidly to the far edge of the table, apparently terribly frightened by what had happened.

Rachel grabbed it roughly and held it up to her angry face.

«Where are you going?»

The breathless guy could not utter a word.

«You know, now I don't envy you oh so much.»

The girl's pursed lips parted, revealing an intimidating grin.

«You're terribly unlucky. Just terrible bad luck.»

The grin turned into a cruel grin.

«After all, I didn't want to kill you at all. I was just thinking of reducing you to the size of dust particles and leaving you to yourself. I'm afraid to even imagine how difficult your life would be, but in any case, you would live.»

The guy shifted his frightened eyes from one of Rachel's eyes to the other.

«Now your death is inevitable.»

With these words, the girl took the boy's right leg with her free hand and crushed his knee with her thumb nail. The guy screamed.

"If it makes it easier for you, then know that you have done nothing to deserve this. It's not your fault. I'm just a cruel bitch."

The other leg was broken in the same way. The boy's screams became so loud that Rachel was seriously afraid that someone might hear them.

"Please!! I.. I don't want to die!"

The boy went from a simple cry to pleading for life. At first, Rachel, accustomed to screams and pleas, did not react in any way, but then, when her fingers were already aimed at the defenseless hand of the guy, an interesting thought flew into her head.

"Hmm ... Can I really heed your pleas?"

Ignoring the moans and screams, the girl threw the tiny man on the table.

"Well, do you still want to live?"

The boy could barely sit up. The way his legs were bent unnaturally indicated that he would no longer be able to move on them. And, nevertheless, the damage he received was not close to the injuries of a recently deceased friend. Therefore, it is not surprising that the boy certainly wanted to live. He nodded his head vigorously.

This was exactly the reaction Rachel had been waiting for. A sly grin appeared on her face.

"Well, that's good. I won't kill you. And even more than that, I will grant you freedom."

The boy nodded, but neither joy nor relief was reflected on his face. Maybe he was afraid to scare off the chance that appeared, or maybe he just didn't believe the giantess.

"But I will have to take a number of measures that will minimize the possibility that someone will notice you. These measures will definitely complicate your life, but only if they are implemented, I will let you go. Do you still agree?"

For a moment, the guy stopped nodding. His face took on a thoughtful expression. But he didn't think for long. In any case, he had no choice but to agree to any conditions.

Rachel's grin widened even more. The girl opened the closet and took out a pair of white sneakers. They could not be called new, but they had not yet lost their color or shape.

"You're starting from here."

Rachel tapped her index finger on her sneaker. The guy's confusion seemed so funny to the girl that she couldn't help laughing. She took a crumb with two fingers and threw it inside the right sneaker.

"It probably stinks a little there."

Then Rachel sniffed picturesquely. "But after a night in my socks, you must have already got used to it."

The boy was tossing and turning in the center of the heel of the sneaker. Falling to a decent height for him, although it did not add new injuries to his body, it still disoriented him. Rachel waited patiently for the baby to come to her senses.

Finally, the boy calmed down and looked up at his tormentor. The twilight inside the sneaker made it impossible to read his emotions on the boy's face.

"Well, almost everything is ready. Don't worry, I'll leave you alone soon. Just the finishing touch."

The girl smiled coquettishly, she was clearly in anticipation of something special. And in a moment it happened. And so the tiny boy began to shrink again. This did not happen rapidly as the first time, but slowly and smoothly.

"While it's going down, let me enlighten you a little about your situation. By the time I finish the reduction, you will be so small that it will be almost impossible to see you with the naked eye. Especially if you don't know where to look. No one will ever notice you. Your attempts may get you into trouble. I don't advise you to get out of my sneakers for a while at all. At least for the next few months, I will wear them very often, so you will not need food. Sweat and dead epithelial cells are not very good food, but you can still survive by eating it. Trust my experience."

Rachel could hardly contain her laughter at the last sentences. She remembered how she once fed a man with roughened skin for a whole month, and forced the water to suck out her sweaty socks. Although his skin color soon turned a sickly gray, who knows how long he would have lived if Rachel hadn't accidentally spilled hot tea on him.

"You don't have to be afraid of being crushed. The fibers of the sock and the track will protect you from this. Probably. And here's what you really need to worry about: not drowning and not suffocating."

While Rachel was talking, the guy had shrunk so much that she could no longer distinguish him. When the poor guy's height did not even exceed the thickness of her nail, she decided that enough was enough. Bringing the sneaker to her face, the girl turned to the baby for the last time.

"Our meeting has come to an end. At least for me. Hee-hee. Finally, I will say that you should try to crawl away from the center of the insole and do it as soon as possible. After all, today I will go to school in these wonderful sneakers."

After these words, the girl took off both sneakers and put them near the door. Rachel understood how hopeless the little man's situation was. Her actions were not mercy. Rather, on the contrary – she condemned the guy in the colorful shirt to possibly even more suffering than if she had just mocked him for a few minutes before killing him. Even if his legs hadn't been broken, he probably wouldn't have been able to survive in this hell of flesh and sweat for a long time. In his current state, he will most likely die after a few hours of torment.

The thought of what a terrible fate awaits an innocent little man again lifted Rachel's mood. Now even the upcoming cleaning did not cause bad emotions in her. The girl fluttered out of her room with a light gait to get a bucket and a rag from the toilet.

***

Tom's intuition did not deceive him, his sister was really in a good mood – her satisfied smile just couldn't help but catch his eye.

"Morning, bro! You always get up so early, don't you really want to lie down for an extra half an hour?"

In fact, Tom got up with difficulty. But he could not afford to wake up later.

"The bus will not wait. And you know it, sister."

Tom answered a little irritably because this conversation in its various variations had already happened many times.

"And no, I don't want you to give me a ride,"

Rachel just grinned. It was clear that Tom had guessed correctly what she wanted to say.

"Okay, okay, brother. "

Rachel ruffled Tom's hair and went to the bathroom. The sound of water immediately came from there. Without knowing why, Tom started as soon as the muffled hum of the water reached his ears. His body tensed and a piece of bacon stuck in his throat. Tom coughed reflexively. The bacon still did not want to leave his throat, which even made the boy a little afraid.

In his attempts to clear his throat, he did not notice that his sister had returned. It was only when she lightly slapped his back with her palm that Tom realized about her presence. Strangely, either from surprise, or his sister's blow really helped, but a piece of bacon immediately flew out of his throat. And with such ease that it was hard to believe that he could even get stuck.

"How are you, Tom? It looks like Mom is right, forbidding you to sit on the phone during meals!"

Rachel sounded annoyed, but her eyes, which had been worried at first, were now relieved. Tom decided not to tell his sister about what really made him choke and dutifully feigned remorse.

His sister's concern spread like a pleasant warmth through Tom's body. But before, he would not even have paid attention to such a trifle. Her love for him seemed unconditional, as did his love for her.

But now it was difficult to be sure. After all, Tom used to consider his sister sweet and kind to everyone who surrounded her. The idea that she could bring grief to someone simply could not arise in his head.

Now Tom had to endlessly prove to himself that his sister really loved him. That is why now he said with a sincere smile:

"I'm sorry that I scared you, sister. From now on, I will be more attentive. " The

warm, caring look of his sister was his answer.

"Okay, Tomi, since everything is fine with you. I have to clean up my room before school, so I'll go."

Tom noticed a green plastic bucket standing by the doorway only when Rachel picked it up. Goosebumps ran through his body. If he was eating there now, then no doubt he would choke again. 

A bucket full of water. The same bucket that his sister used to destroy the remains of her boyfriend a week ago.

Is it really again... no, it just can't be.

A dry lump rose in the boy's throat.

"Sis-ster"

Tom tried to keep his voice calm, but it was hard for him to do it.

"W-why do you need to clean the room?"

Rachel, apparently considering the question not so important, did not even slow down her step. Already from the stairs, she shouted that she had spilled tomato juice. Tom remained sitting at the table, confused by his own thoughts. The video was over a long time ago, and the cooling food did not want to climb into the throat at all.

"Did she tell the truth?"

Only this question could be asked by his agitated head. The worst thing is that Tom understood that now he would not be able to drown out his anxiety with simple self-persuasion. He knew he could do more. He knew he could check for sure. You just need to go up to the floor and look into your sister's room.

Nevertheless, the boy knew that he would never dare to do this. And, unfortunately, Tom was not afraid that his guess would be confirmed. First of all, he just didn't want to die.

Staring at the half-eaten bacon, the boy suddenly realized that it was unlikely that he would ever find enough courage and courage to talk to his sister about what he had witnessed. And it was very bitter for him to watch a wall being built between him and his beloved sister, which will never collapse now.

"And who told me half an hour ago that he was in a hurry to catch the bus?"

His sister's voice brought Tom out of his reverie. It was almost eight o'clock in the morning. It had been ten minutes since the boy was supposed to appear at the bus stop. He noted to himself with sadness that it was not at all typical for him to fall out of reality under the yoke of thoughts before. How carefree his life was.

Rachel had already put on her makeup and dressed. The girl was dressed in a blue cotton shirt and white tight jeans. Recently purchased snow-white sneakers completed her light look. In Tom's eyes, she looked adorable, but otherwise, as always.

"You look great, Rachel."

"Thank you, unfortunately I can't say this about you. When did you forget how to iron things? " The

girl gently pulled the sleeve of his shirt. There were several creases left by the iron on it. Tom, for whom the folds were a revelation, scratched his head hesitantly.

Rachel let out a sigh, but not because she was annoyed. Her brows drew together, and her eyes lit up with pity again.

"I've noticed, Tom, that you've been constantly immersed in yourself lately. I'm not going to ask you what's wrong. Just remember that I'm always on your side. "

"I know, little sister"

At that moment, Tom himself believed in what he was saying. He suddenly felt that her kindness and care simply could not be insincere. Maybe that's why his sister couldn't contain the emotions inside and wrapped the boy in a tight hug. And she didn't care at all that his brother's face was literally drowning in his chest.

"And now we're going to school. On my car. And I won't accept any objections."

And Tom didn't want to argue at all. In his heart, all of a sudden, there was a hope that his connection with his sister was not doomed to break, and while this hope was glimmering in his heart, he decided to just rejoice at it.