“Project Regrowth bears fruit,” and “Project Regrowth brings hope to millions” there were dozens of headlines in dozens of languages worldwide. The first rumors had come out on the internet of course, Jake had ignored them, he had other things to worry about beyond conspiracy theories, but when the official announcement of a cure for shrinking appeared on TV Kacey wasn’t nearly as surprised as he was. Of those impacted by the shrinking phenomena, some saw it as the end of a long nightmare, others as a return to normal after two years of strangeness.

Jake watched, sitting in Kacey’s lap, as the scientists made the televised speech, smiling and thanking supporters and promising that the regrowth treatments would be available soon. The spokesman droned on and on about how the cause of the phenomena, but Jake was quickly lost, instead turning his thoughts to what this meant for himself.

“It’s really happening,” Jake whispered, “Kace… they’re going to fix us.”

“Yeah,” she said softly… “I guess they are.”

Will you still want to be with someone like me? she wondered, when you’re big again?

He seemed to sense her thoughts, and he looked up at her with a small smile, “I’m not going anywhere Kace,” he said reassuringly. “Hey, we’ve seen enough of this, why don’t you put on an anime or something?”

“Can it be an Isekai?” she asked hopefully

Jake laughed, “I don’t know how you don’t get tired of those, but sure.”

…

“FREE GODDAMN COFFEE FOR EVERYONE! TODAY ONLY” Ash shouted at the top of her lungs.

The usual customers cheered, Mandy triumphantly lifted a souvenir Star Wars coffee thurmace, “to Project Regrowth!”

“TO PROJECT REGROWTH!” the customers joined in, clapping and applauding while Andy blushed, leaning against the massive cash register.

“You guys are too good to me,” he muttered, embarrassed.

“Half these people only come in because there’s a tiny working the counter,” Ash chuckled, “you’re practically a local celebrity Andy.”

“I could’ve sworn it was the powdered donut recipe.”

Ash scowled, “They’re good, but not ‘tiny working the counter’ good.”

…

“Miss Black,” Jake said pleasantly, sitting on her desk.

“J-Jake,” she said nervously, “With project Regrowth, you’ll be full size three fourths of the time, but-“

“Deb,” he said, chuckling at her reaction from his use of her first name. “Let’s talk turkey.”

“Oh hell,” she muttered, “I can’t afford to pay you what you’re worth, but-“

“I’m staying,” he chuckled, “but I want a turkey, every November.”

She blinked, “a-a turkey?”

“Did I not say, let’s talk Turkey?” Jake laughed. “Deborah Black,” he said, saying her full name as he stood up and walked defiantly across her desk, “you hired me as a shrinkee, you gave me bonuses, you bought me an expensive custom tiny workstation, you let my girlfriend have a job, you bought me a cake for my birthday…” He sighed, looking up at the towering businesswoman, “I would have to be a goddamn fool to leave this firm,” he laughed, looking up at her, “my demands are not related to salary.”

“Name them,” Miss Black said with a smile, tapping a pen on the desk and causing the shockwaves to echo beneath Jake’s feet.

“A new gaming PC every two years,” he said with a smirk.

“That’s not for you Jake,” Ms. Black said with a small smile.

“Nope,” he agreed. “I want a ham on Easter, and a turkey on Thanksgiving.”

“I’m giving you your first week back at full size as a paid vacation,” she said with a grin, “why don’t we start there?”

“Sounds good,” Jake said, standing up on her desk and walking towards her outstretched finger. He gently clasped it, shaking it up and down with both hands.

…

Jake sighed, watching the line for the Project Regrowth clinic move at a snail’s pace. He was sitting in Kacey’s palms, and he wasn’t the only tiny guy in such a predicament. They’d gotten there early, but the line had already been outside and around the building. It was a warm day, and Kacey looked longingly at a soda machine nearby.

“We can always come back tomorrow,” Jake said with a small smile, “it’ll probably be less crowded.”

“No,” Kacey giggled “we’ll stay in line if it takes all night, you’re driving us home today.”

…

“Good afternoon, Mister Anderson,” the bubbly nurse said, checking his information on a small tablet. “If your guardian could just place you on this table here…”

Kacey followed instructions, placing him on a plain white examination table, then moved to sit in a chair nearby. The nurse hummed happily, taking his temperature with a small no-contact thermometer.

“The checkup seems a little silly,” the Nurse said with a shrug, “you tiny guys are pretty much always in amazing health.” She sighed, “okay, before we get you your regrowth band, you need to be aware of a few things.”

“I’ve read it all online,” he said eagerly.

“Perhaps, but it’s standard legal stuff,” The Nurse said, “so to begin with, your regrowth band will return you to your normal size by cancelling out the shrinking particles, but for safety reasons you will still have to be tiny every fourth week, you’ll also probably have a size shift during that period.”

“Those can be such a pain in the ass,” Jake muttered, “you couldn’t fix those too?”

“Nope,” the Nurse said with a sad smile, “sorry!”

“Better than nothing,” he said with a grin.

“The next thing you need to be aware of is that you will not have any of your abilities when you are full size, many shrinkees in our trials found themselves taking greater physical risks, having gotten used to a world where they were almost unkillable. You’re back to plain old flesh and blood,” The Nurse said with a wink, “so look both ways before crossing the street.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll keep him safe,” Kacey said, giggling.

“Now if you should get injured, remove your regrowth band immediately,” the Nurse said, “you will revert to your tiny size, and your invulnerability and healing will return.”

“Sounds good,” Jake nodded, “if I break a leg or something I’ll just take it off and put it back on!”

“That’s the spirit!” the Nurse said, “okay… let me just get yours.” She took a pair of tweezers and lifted a small black watch, the just his size, out of a large box. The tweezers extended to him, leaving the device in front of him.

Jake slowly walked towards the device that was giving him his life back, picking it up and examining it eagerly. It was a boxy black watch, with a digital display and a few buttons. He slipped it on his wrist, tightening it and getting comfortable.

“You might want to step out of those doll clothes,” the nurse said, “you’ll tear them to pieces when you activate your band otherwise.”

“Right,” Jake said, slowly lowering his pants and undoing the Velcro on the back of his shirt. He stood on the table, looking up at the world that had been so big to him for the last two years. It’s finally over, he thought numbly.

“The first activation of your band can be a somewhat intense experience,” the nurse warned.

Jake took a deep breath, and then looked to Kacey, who smiled and gave him a thumbs up. With a triumphant motion he brought his finger to the bright red button the side of the band, and pressed it.

…

Jake’s world warped and twisted, he blinked as visions of Kacey, Ash, and Andy seemed to fly by him. Everything he’d done for the last two years, it was all replaying, like a skipping video. He felt nausea welling within him, but he focused on Kacey, and as she seemed to hold him in her hands, the feelings subsided. The rest of the world faded, leaving just the two of them in a vast white space. He was safe here, loved, and he always would be.

…

“JAKE!” Kacey shouted, slapping his cheek lightly.

“Rmmm…” he groaned, blinking and sitting back up. “What happened?”

“You regrew and then rolled off the table,” the Nurse said with a shrug, “it happens sometimes.”

He looked around, blinking in shock at the full-size world that had been given back to him. He laughed a little nervously, standing up and towering over both Kacey and the nurse. He briefly remembered his one day he’d had at full size, how rushed he’d felt… the things he’d had to try to get done, there was time now… he could spend a whole day laying on the couch if he wanted, his life was back.

“I’m back,” he whispered, stunned.

“I never thought you left,” Kacey said softly, hugging him close.

“This is always so touching,” the nurse said, wiping a tear out of her eye, “Uh, Mr. Anderson, did you bring any full-size clothing?”

“Damnit,” Kacey muttered, “I knew I forgot something!”

…

Jake walked to the car in the billowing hospital gown. He and Kacey had briefly debated just returning him to tiny size for the ride home, but the nurse had offered them a patient gown, and revealing though it was he’d enthusiastically taken it.

Jake climbed into the car, gripping the steering wheel with a sigh, letting the textures become familiar to his hands. Kacey got into the passenger’s seat, staring at him a moment.

“This is going to take some getting used to,” she giggled.

“Yeah,” he breathed, adjusting the mirrors. He glanced down at the cupholder, his usual riding spot for so many outings, and at his insistence the one clean spot in Kacey’s otherwise messy car. “Let’s go home,” he said quietly.

…

Jake looked around the one-bedroom apartment, chuckling at the maze of dirty clothing Kacey had left on the floor. Kacey seemed somewhat embarrassed to have him see it at her full size, and she hugged against him.

“I uh, I’ll try to be neater,” she squeaked.

“I lived through two years of you at a few inches tall,” he chuckled, leaning down to pick up a discarded pair of her underwear. “I’ve had it worse.” He sniffed the panties, and his face grimaced, “although when I’m at full size, your dirty clothes don’t have that ah, effect.”

Kacey giggled, and before he could react she forced her panties into his face, rubbing them back and forth while he laughed and wrestled her off.

“You love it,” she teased, “take a big whiff Jakey!”

“Quit it!” he laughed, forcing her back and picking her up. She squealed as he carried her to their bedroom, and then started laughing as he tossed her on the bed.

“Fuck yes,” Kacey growled, looking at him eagerly. There was a ripping sound as Jake tore the paper hospital gown off, stepping towards her and giving Kacey a good look at his herculean form as she pulled her own clothing off.

She’d slept with him at normal size before of course, but it had had an air of… novelty maybe? His one day at full size had included a few rounds in the sheets, but today was different, and as he slid into her she gasped, smiling and panting for more.

As Jake began thrusting into her, she moaned, wrapping her arms around his back and demanding more as Jake ravaged her, a fitting “revenge” for two years where he’d been her toy, now she was his, a mess of lust and love as he picked up speed.

“YES!” she screamed, reaching orgasm at the same time he did. He collapsed on top of her, and they panted together in a tight embrace.

“Let’s do that every day,” Kacey said dreamily.

“I like the way you think Kace,” Jake said, twirling a loch of her brown hair between his fingers.

“It was so good, I can’t ever let you leave,” Kacey said, a mischievious grin coming over her features.

He frowned, “what do you-“ the world blurred, growing to massive size again as he shrank. His head spun, and he looked up at the titanic form of Kacey, grinning as she loomed over him, his regrowth band dangling in her hand.

“Slipped it right off,” she teased. She frowned, “uh oh, now it looks a little big for you…”

“I just need to touch it Kace,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“I don’t know, we should probably hold off on that until we know for sure,” Kacey said with a smug grin. Jake watched as she placed it on the nightstand, then leaned over the side of the bed for something. When she sat back up, she had a balled sock in her hand, and slowly, teasingly, opened the top. “Whew,” she said, waving her hand over it jokingly, “we waited in that line for a long time Jake, in the hot sun too!”

She used her hand to waft the smell towards him, that ripe rank odor of her sweaty feet. He felt his will weakening, while he’d gotten pretty good at resisting Kacey’s pheromones over the last two years, after spending even a few hours at full size it was like the first time all over again. He stumbled across the gigantic bed in a daze, his giggling girlfriend jokingly holding the tunnel of her sock up just out of his reach.

“Ooh look at this nice warm sock,” she teased, “my tiny Jakey would fit so well in it…”

“Please Kacey!” he begged, feeling himself growing hard again. He clenched his fists, feeling an instinctive need to be near her, to let her scent smother him like a b

“I want one of those light up gaming keyboards,” she demanded with a grin, “a fitting tribute to a goddess in exchange for some time in her wonderful sock.”

He blinked, “H-How much are they?”

“Oooh, wrong question,” Kacey giggled, jiggling the sock in front of him, “the correct response was, which one do you want Kacey?”

He gulped, using all of his willpower to stop himself from jumping pathetically for it, “done,” he said, licking his lips.

“Good boy,” she reached for him, her powerful fingers wrapping around his shrunken body as she dumped into the dirty piece of footwear. He tumbled against the sides, the rank odor of Kacey’s foot coating him as he reached the toe of the sock.

To Jake it was heaven, his senses were quickly overwhelmed by the bliss of Kacey’s scent, wrapping around him like a blanket as the pheromone effect erased any of his willpower and independent thought. A moment later he looked up to see Kacey’s toes blocking out the light, her foot sliding in to join him in the smelly prison.

Jake grunted as he was pulled tight against the soft sole of her foot, the slightly damp cotton of the sock constricting as she pulled it on. A moment later he wheezed as she stepped onto the carpeted floor, putting her full weight on him as she casually got dressed again.

“I’m out of energy drinks,” Kacey said with a grin, walking towards the door. Jake’s world compressed again as she slipped her shoe on, feeling her prisoner squirm as toes the size of his head squeezed and teased him in the dark prison. “I figured you might as well come to the store with me.” She paused, realizing something, “I need to get you some food too,” she realized with a laugh, “a toothbrush, your own soap…” For a moment she thought about pulling him out of her shoe, placing the regrowth band back on him, and simply shopping as a regular couple… then she giggled, feeling him squirm helplessly against her sole.

We’ll go shopping for his stuff later, she thought, scrunching her toes over him again.

…

Andy stared at the photo of him, his mom, and his sister, the one Jake had retrieved for him during a fortunate size shift all the way up to his old height. The two had died years ago in a car crash, leaving him alone with a father who hadn’t shed a tear when it happened, and the man’s harridan of an affair partner who soon became a harridan of a stepmother.

He was full size again, the small boxy regrowth wristband snug where a watch would normally sit. Ash had closed the coffee shop for the day, and she sat across from him in the living room, curled up on her couch reading a book. She seemed to notice his contemplative look, and frowned.

“Something troubling you?” she asked with a small smile, “I would think you’d be excited, finally being full size again.”

“Yeah,” he sighed, giving her a grin, “I’m still shorter than you though…”

“By about two inches,” she smirked, “you are big enough for some of the toys in my closet now…”

He gulped, Ashley had an impressive collection of bondage paraphernalia, most of which had been useless on him at three inches tall. Now though…

There was a knock at the door, interrupting his thoughts. Ash got up to open it, letting Kacey and a full-size Jake enter the apartment. Jake had a risk board under his arm, and he greeted Andy with a nod and a grin.

“Looking good!” he laughed.

“You too,” Andy said, nodding with a grin at the other restored tiny. It was weird looking up at Jake, they’d both shrank to the same size, and now he was returned to his full-size foot stature, broad shouldered and muscular. Andy had picked up a more athletic figure over the last two years himself, you couldn’t really stay scrawny when you had to navigate the world at a few inches tall. Andy grunted as Jake embraced him suddenly, and he struggled to return the hug.

“We fucking made it man,” he said, releasing his friend and stepping away.

“Yeah,” Andy agreed, “we did…”

Jake thought a moment, “hey, I’ve been meaning to ask you, since we’ve got to spend every fourth week tiny, do you want to sync ours up? I was thinking we let ourselves shrink starting like next Friday.”

“Sounds good to me,” Andy said, nodding, “being tiny sucks, but it sucks a little less when you’ve got someone else around.”

“My thoughts exactly,” Jake said with a nod and a smile.

“If you two are done with your bromance, I’m going to be taking Asia,” Ash said, setting up her Risk soldiers.

“Pfft, you can’t hold it,” Kacey said, “too many ways in and out.”

Andy looked around at the three of them, then sighed, “hey, can one of you set up my guys? I just need to go take care of something really quick.”

“Where are you headed?” Jake asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I won’t be gone long,” he said, reaching for Ash’s car keys on the counter, “but, this is something I want to do by myself.”

The three of them watched silently as he left, “what was that about?” Jake asked uncertainly.

“Kacey, can I borrow your car?” Ash asked with a sigh.

…

Andy’s dad and stepmom didn’t live far away, and he brought Ash’s car to a stop in front of the upscale McMansion. With a scowl he saw his stepmom had bought a new car, a sporty red thing that screamed excess. He sat in the driveway a moment, trying to think of exactly what he wanted to say. Finally he decided that it would be better to just wing it. His hand shaking slightly, he opened the car door and began the long walk up the paved pathway to the front door.  

His stepmom answered right away, a drink in hand as usual, and when his dad saw him in the doorway he got up from the couch with an annoyed sigh.

“I was wondering when you’d show up,” she giggled, leaning against his dad, who just scowled at him.

“What are you doing here?” his dad asked, crossing his arms. He gave a smug smirk, “what have you been up to these last two years anyway? You shrank, and then we never heard from you again.”

“He was probably living off garbage like a rat,” his stepmom laughed. She rolled her eyes as she saw the regrowth band on his arm. “I can’t believe those assholes in the regrowth project convinced congress to buy those things for you, you’re the perfect example of why that whole thing was a waste of money.” She laughed, “I mean seriously Andrew, you never did anything with yourself at any size, just like your-“

“Shut up!” he snarled, startling them. “The night I shrank, I was going to tell the two of you to go to hell, that I never wanted to see you again!”

“It seems someone finally found a little backbone,” his dad laughed.

“Yeah, I did,” he said angrily, “I realized it’s not fair to Mom and Lily to just walk away, so I came by to give you a warning.”

“A warning?” his stepmom chuckled, “okay, shoot kiddo, this should be funny.”

“I know you’re thinking about running for office,” Andy said darkly, “and if you do, I’ll be sure to stop by your opponent’s campaign office to tell everybody about all of our family’s dirty laundry.” He smirked, “I’m sure that sleeping with a man before going to his wife’s funeral will play real well with the voters.”

Both of their eyes went wide, “you little shit!” she sneered.

“If we take that off,” his dad said suddenly, a dark look in his eye as he pointed to Andy’s regrowth band, “you’ll be small again… who knows what could happen.”

Andy suddenly felt a chill as his dad pushed by his stepmom. He’d known they were terrible people, but would they really-

“I wouldn’t pal,” Jake said coldly, walking up the driveway alongside Kacey and Ash. Andy’s dad stepped back intimidated by the towering former football star.

“Everything okay Andy?” Ash asked, going to his side and giving the older couple a dirty look.

“Yeah,” he muttered, “I was just leaving.” He shot one last hateful glance at his father and stepmother, before letting Ash lead him back down the driveway. When they reached Ash’s car he smiled, “thanks for coming after me.”

“I always will,” she said, hugging him close, “you don’t have to do anything alone, ever again.”

…

The four of them had returned to Ash’s apartment, and they’d spent the night eating pizza, playing Risk, and planning all the things they’d do now that Andy and Jake were back to their full heights. By the end of the night, they’d all been talking about a trip they’d take to the mountains, joking and laughing about the time they’d have.

Finally the evening drew to a close, and Jake and Kacey waved goodbye, heading out to their own apartment. Andy sighed and gave a small smile as Ashley turned to him, a predatory grin on her face.

“So Andy,” Ash purred, closing the distance between the two of them, “being big again has got to be nice…” She giggled, running her hands through his hair, “but… would you mind if I just…” she was reaching for his regrowth band, and he smirked, not resisting as she began to fiddle with it. A moment later the world seemed to jump, and he fell to the floor, the massive tent of his shirt collapsing over him while Ash triumphantly held the watch sized device overhead.

Her pale hand darted down through his collar, snatching him up off the floor eagerly. She squeezed him, a quick pump that caused him to grunt as she giggled at her trapped boyfriend.

“I’m feeling… hungry,” she said, licking her lips slowly.

He sighed, “Ashley, your stomach is full of pizza, not tonight.”

She pouted, “fine, I guess I’ll just have to do something else with my favorite toy,” she gently ran a finger over his head, ruffling his hair and enjoying the way he squirmed in her grip. She slowly sauntered towards the bedroom, hooking her fingers around her jeans and pulling them down. She opened a drawer on her dresser, pulling a bottle of lubricant out and squeezing it over him, causing him to cough and sputter as the silky liquid coated him.

“So, I finally get back to normal, and this is what you want to do?” he asked, smirking, “play more tiny slave?”

“We’re just getting started Andy,” Ash said in a breathy voice, “I’ll give you back your size after you warm me up, I’ve really gotten used to this…” She slowly brought him down to her panties, sliding him in and moaning as he made contact with her opening.

Andy felt the warm lips embrace him as she pressed her hands against her panties, and he crawled eagerly in, feeling the walls around him contract and moisten as Ashley flopped herself on the bed, eagerly fingering herself as Andy went to work.

…

Life after the regrowth was like a dream, and Kacey and Jake, Andy and Ash, all settled into a pleasant routine. Jake no longer needed to carpool to work, and Andy was able to do more than take orders at the coffee shop, even covering shifts when Ash wasn’t there. Andy and Jake shared their “small week,” and while it was as inconvenient as ever, it was an easy thing to endure.

Kacey’s art and her online blog about her and Jake had exploded in popularity, in the tumultuous social climate for former shrinkees, stories of what people had done during the “small years” were becoming increasingly popular. She found herself playing games less and less, working on her art more, and for the first time she proudly told Jake she wanted to start splitting the bills.

Today Jake had asked her to meet downtown on the riverfront, specifically Ralph’s, the same bar they’d been in two years ago on Shrinking Day. The weather was overcast, with a cool breeze that let her know fall was on the way as she looked over the guardrail at the rushing water.

“Hey stranger,” Jake said with a smile, walking up to her, still in his shirt and tie from work.

“Hey,” Kacey said quietly, “any reason you wanted me to meet you here?” she glanced at Ralph’s Bar, the placed they’d been on Shrinking Day years ago, “feeling nostalgic or something?”

“A little,” he said, hugging her shoulder a moment. “It’s been a crazy few years, huh?”

“I still can’t believe we’re here like this, together,” she said softly, “you’re mostly back to normal you know… you could have any girl in the world Jake.”

Jake snorted, “Kacey, I lost everything on Shrinking Day, a lot of people did… you stood by me, you saved me Kacey.” He took a breath and separated from her, dropping to one knee.

“J-JAKE!?” Kacey squealed. She watched, entranced as he pulled a small box out of his pocket, opening it and revealing a large diamond ring.

“Marry me, Kacey?” he asked with a grin.

She couldn’t bring herself to talk, nodding eagerly through the tears as she leapt at him, pulling him into a hug. Being on his knees he stumbled back a little, not realizing how close he was to the street. Kacey let go of him, wide eyed. Suddenly Jake heard a truck horn, then pain wracked his body as the world went dark.

…

He groaned, blinking himself awake, “I’m afraid… he will never walk again,” he heard a despondent doctor say.

“H-Hey,” Jake muttered, catching the attention of Kacey, a pair of nurses, and a doctor.

The doctor looked down, “Young man,” he said slowly, “you’ve suffered a series of spinal fractures, the damage is-“

“C-Can one of you help me get my regrowth band off?” he muttered, “I can’t really feel my arm.”

The doctor froze, and with a scowl marched to the side of the bed, throwing Jake’s blanket off and revealing the small boxy watch-like device on his wrist.

“Why didn’t any of you just take this off?” the doctor said in an annoyed tone, “any time someone comes in here with one, that should be the first thing you do!” He reached down and unclasped Jake’s band, causing the world to spin as his hospital bed grew to field sized. The pain disappeared, replaced by a dull soreness. A moment later Jake was able to stand up again as his bones and nerves knitted themselves back together.

“Ugh, thanks,” Jake muttered, stretching.

“Stay small for the next two or three days to make sure everything heals properly,” the doctor muttered, “other than that, you’re free to go.” With that he turned and left, the nurses following him.

“Sorry,” Kacey said, walking over to the side of the bed with a giggle, “I tried to tell them.”

Jake shrugged, watching Kacey grab his regrowth band and slip it into her purse, the large ring glinting in ‘the light as it sat on her finger.

“Sorry I accidentally pushed you into traffic,” she giggled.

“It happens,” he said with a smile, “well, I’m stuck tiny for the next few days…”

“Ugh, does this mean I’ve got to get up at the crack of dawn to drive you to work tomorrow?” Kacey asked, reaching for him.

“Afraid so,” he said, feeling her warm fingers wrap around him as she lifted him off the bed. “Should we talk about wedding plans?”

“Tomorrow,” Kacey said with a grin, “let’s just… enjoy today. I don’t have any tiny clothes with me, and I don’t want to carry you out naked…”

She looked to the hospital room door, giggling as she brought him up to the neckline of the shirt she was wearing. He bounced down her chest as she maneuvered him between her breasts, the soft pillows seeming to suck him in and hold him in place.

From the slightly grimy feeling of her skin he could tell Kacey had probably spent most of the day in her gaming chair, and he felt himself losing control as the stale smell of her skin began to seep into him. With a happy sigh, he let himself slide the rest of the way into Kacey’s cleavage, losing himself to the rest of the world as she carried him home.