Nick awoke the next morning with a dull, throbbing headache. He slowly sat up on the couch, feeling oddly woozy and disoriented. He sat for a minute but it didn’t go away. Concerned he had come down with something, he decided to go about his morning and hope it would pass. He rose and headed towards the bathroom – but he immediately tripped over his own feet, stumbling clumsily to the ground. Cursing, he picked himself back up and shuffled his way into the bathroom.
He got in the tub and turned the knob all the way – but he couldn’t figure out why the water came out at his feet. He wanted it to come out through the showerhead, not the spout. But it just wouldn’t do it, even though he had turned the knob as far as it would go. He grunted in frustration and continued to turn the knob back and forth for a minute or two, becoming increasingly upset.
He was about to just shut it off and storm out of the tub angrily, when he finally remembered the diverter on the top of the spout that he was supposed to pull.
Jesus … he had been using showers like this his whole life – how could he have forgotten something so simple, so routine? He shook his head, blaming it on grogginess. But still, the whole affair left him feeling slightly uneasy. Though, by the time he finished his shower and left the bathroom, the woozy feeling seemed to have passed, and he mostly forgot about it and moved on.
Having forgotten to bring a change of clothes, he ventured out into the living room in just his boxers, wondering what to wear. His old clothes were much too baggy now.
That’s when he noticed a small, neatly-folder stack of clothes sitting on the coffee table next to the couch. He picked up the small shirt on top and held it in front of him. It was his size, or maybe just a bit smaller. He squinted but eventually put two and two together and realized Michelle must have picked this out for him at the mall the night before.
He actually found the light blue short-sleeve polo, plaid shorts, and white sneakers quite satisfactory. He put them on and looked at his reflection in the window. “Not bad…” he commented. The preppy-ness of the outfit suited him well. The only issue was its size: everything was clearly one size too small on him, his shirt feeling constricting, his extremely tight shorts pinching him uncomfortably around the waist, and his feet feeling crammed inside his shoes. He began to doubt if he’d be able to put up with this all day long. It was a damned shame, too – he looked good.
But then his eyes wandered down to take a closer look at the insignia over the left breast: it was a small, round, red bird’s head, from the game Angry Birds.
His eyes went wide. “What the fuck!?” he blurted, suddenly thrown into a brief but unexpected panic, as if being seen in this shirt would be the end of him.
‘High-schoolers don’t wear Angry Birds stuff – this is kids’ shit!!’ he thought angrily, his confidence shaken. He looked over at his reflection again – but this time, instead of seeing a confident, upper-class jock ready for college, now all he could see was the image of a small boy trying to be something he’s not, like a fifth grader whose mom had picked out a more grown-up looking outfit because she thought it’d look cute on him. He had to get this shit off of him right away. He grabbed the bottom of his shirt and began to lift, thinking, ‘Oh, Michelle’s gonna pay big time for this …’
“Hi, Nick,” Michelle’s unmistakable, sexy voice called out loudly from behind, startling him in mid-thought. His heart suddenly racing from fright, he turned to face her.
She was already dressed for school; her hair was done up in a simple ponytail and she was wearing an unusually modest, unflashy outfit—just a loose pair of jeans, flats, and a simple plaid long-sleeve shirt, also quite loose on her, and buttoned up almost to the top to reveal as little as possible. It reminded him of the kind of clothes Michelle might have worn back in the day when she had been more focused on her schoolwork than her looks, something that would allow her to just blend in to the crowd (well, honestly, he was just guessing – he couldn’t actually remember what she used to wear, it just wasn’t something he ever had cause to notice).
Of course, she could never just ‘blend in’ now; it was impossible to completely hide the magnificent curves of her body underneath. Now her outfit simply left more to the imagination, tantalizing one with her body’s hidden potential brimming beneath the surface.
Michelle saw him looking at her body. He looked away in momentary embarrassment, but Michelle didn’t seem to mind, only looking down at her outfit as well and remarking timidly, “Yeah … this fit a lot better last night … but I seem to have shrunk a few more inches since then …”
“Really? Again?” Nick replied immediately, surprised at this new development, and even a little dismayed.
Michelle shrugged. “No big deal, though. Just a few inches this time, not a whole foot.” But then, as Nick turned the rest of his body to face her, Michelle’s face suddenly lit up. “You look perfect! I had hoped it’d look this good on you – Oh, but it’s a bit too small! I’m sorry …” There was no hint of sarcasm in her eyes, only satisfaction, or even … desire?
“Hey!” Nick protested, his anger suddenly welling up as he remembered that stupid logo. “Jesus, Michelle … ANGRY BIRDS!??” he exclaimed, annoyed by her lack of concern. “What the HELL were you thinking! I can’t go to school dressed like this!”
Michelle seemed taken aback by his reaction. “Oh no! … you don’t like it,” she replied sadly. “I’m sorry … I only had a couple minutes before the mall closed, and this was the best I could find in the boys’ section. If I had had more time, maybe I—“
“The BOYS’ SECTION!??” he yelled as a gut reaction. “Why the hell were you shopping THERE!!?”
“Please don’t yell at me, Nick!” she replied, sounding surprisingly hurt while taking a step back in distress. “I’m sorry, but there’s just no way you could have fit into men’s clothes now…” It seemed to pain her greatly to tell him this.
Nick snorted in derision. “Oh yeah? Then why are these clothes so damned small on me!??”
“You’re right, I misjudged your size,” she conceded. “But,” she added uncomfortably, “you’re not exactly … on the border anymore, Nick. The smallest men’s shorts only go down to a 28 inch waist, and those you’re wearing now are only 24 inches. I mean, you’d fit in a 25, maybe 26 tops, but …”
Nick gulped and looked down, tugging at the tight waistband of his shorts. He noticed the band was made of a slightly elastic material, the kind intended for kids who were still growing. It was a sobering realization for him.
Still … he couldn’t go to school wearing kids’ clothes. No way. “I’m not wearing this,” he stated resolutely, reaching down to begin peeling his shirt off.
“Wait!” Michelle exclaimed. He paused, and she stepped forward quickly, imploring, “Please, could you leave it on … for me??”
Nick blinked suspiciously. “Why, so you and your friends can laugh at me?” he spat. “So you can make fun of stupid little Nicky with his Angry Birds shirt??”
“No! Not at all!” She looked mortified. “It’s hardly even noticeable! I knew the logo was there, but I picked this shirt out anyway, because I knew it would look sexy on you.” She blushed, an almost dreamy look in her eyes. “And I was right…”
Nick froze. The temperature in the room seemed to spike upwards by 20 degrees. ‘Holy shit …’ he thought as he looked up at Michelle. In his arousal, his eyes scanned her body down and then up as his brain tried to process this new information.
When he looked up into her eyes, though, he realized she had been watching him coyly the whole time. Embarrassed to have been caught in the act, he averted his eyes as his cheeks grew red. ‘Pull it together, Nick!’ he scolded himself. He couldn’t just give in to this; if he did, it would make it far too obvious how he felt about her. So he gave the best excuse he could think of. “Th-That’s … irrelevant. They’re way too small for me anyway. There’s just no way I can wear these all day. Sorry.” He crossed his arms on his chest and looked up into her eyes with finality.
She blinked and regarded him for several seconds, but then Nick saw her eyes flit briefly down to his body again, her lips parting slightly as she did so. “I’ll be right back …” she said anxiously, almost skipping to her room and returning a moment later – with a small red vial in her hand. “Nick …” she began softly, her timid voice charged with electricity. “Would you possibly be willing to … take the potion again? Just a tiny dose … just so I can see you wearing these clothes today? Please …? Just this once …”
His eyes stared mesmerized into hers for a moment, entranced by the excitement and intensity of her gaze. For one long moment, he was lost.
He finally managed to snap out of it, shaking his head violently. He would not let her dictate things like this. “I said no!” he growled.
Michelle took a step backward in dismay. “Oh, I’m … so sorry …” Her feelings apparently hurt, she whirled around, set the vial swiftly down on the coffee table, and stepped quickly down the hall and out of sight.
Nick yanked his stupid, overly-tight clothes off and flung them to the ground. After digging out last night’s baggy outfit and putting it on, he stood motionless in the living room for a time, fuming silently, angry at Michelle for what he saw as trying to manipulate his emotions for her benefit – or was he just angry at himself for nearly succumbing to her?
But, after a minute, he began to have doubts. Maybe she WAS truly interested in him, and truly wanted to see him looking good. If that were the case, then …
Whoa … hold on a minute. All this could play PERFECTLY into his hands – if he were able to get Michelle watching him all day long with that same dreamy look in her eyes … oh, just think how much she would want him by day’s end …
He chuckled to himself, his laugh almost sounding sinister as he felt the power beginning to shift in his favor. Oh, how the tables had turned.
Yes, of course, he was attracted to her (what straight guy wouldn’t be?), and yes – he had to admit – he had probably given this away just a little bit. But at least he knew HE could control it – no question. Michelle, on the other hand … she was already slipping; it was obvious. She was already having a hard time hiding her feelings for him. But if he could keep her like this all day long, she wouldn’t even know what to do with herself – she’d be totally under his control …
He had no doubt now that her attraction to him was genuine. Just think how badly she had wanted him last year, when she couldn’t have him – and why would she be any different now? People can’t just change who they’re attracted to, just like that. Heck, if anything, she seemed even more game for him now, after an entire year of waiting and letting her feelings for him build up more and more, driven wild by not being able to have him.
And she had probably figured that by making herself a little taller and a little prettier, he would suddenly just change his mind. Just like that. It was probably her plan all along.
He wondered, too, if the potion he had helped her make last night had had some extra effect on her – after all, it had made him black out ... so something must have happened to her too, right? “Reciprocal … something-or-other” – isn’t that what she had said earlier? He was proud to have remembered that comment of hers, being as smart as he was.
He thought some more: maybe, just maybe, if he was getting smarter each time, then … well, she would have to be getting dumber, right? Maybe that explained why she was suddenly coming on to him so much – she must have become more simple-minded, probably less able to keep control of her emotions and baser urges …
By god, that was it!! Each time he could convince her to take the potion, she’d become even MORE head-over-heels for him. And – dear god – if she’s like this around him now, what will happen once he’s returned to his old height, his old looks … so much taller, stronger, sexier! Holy shit … she would literally just melt in his hands! He could use her to get literally anything he wanted … and he would take great, great pleasure in seeing this once-so-dominant girl become utterly submissive to HIM.
Oh, yes, he hadn’t forgotten what she had done to him these last few days. The kind of shit she had pulled on him just couldn’t be forgiven, no matter how hot she was. Sure, he might allow himself the pleasure of having his way with her, at least a few times – it would be a shame to let a body like hers go to waste, of course. But she had made a terrible, terrible mistake letting him get a hold of the formula to make him smarter because, with his growing intellect, he could devise whole new modifications to the potion that even she couldn’t think of – starting with making her shrink back to her old, pathetic self and seeing how she likes it.
But why stop there? A truly sadistic grin crossed Nick’s face as he imagined doing the most terrible things to her – and he would love every minute of it. Nick clenched his fists, feeling a renewed confidence and power coursing through his body. His revenge on her was only just beginning; she had absolutely no idea what she was in for … and he aimed to keep it that way for the time being.
So, today, he would wear this stupid outfit; he would keep his same confident, cocky attitude, the one that he knew would drive her wild; and all the while he would continue to lure her farther and farther into his trap. It would take time, and careful planning on his part. But the payoff in the end would be immense.
Without hesitation, Nick picked up the vial Michelle had left on the end table, popped it open, and gulped down his half of the red liquid. Still wearing his baggy clothes from yesterday, he calmly and casually approached her closed bedroom door and knocked. “Hey, Michelle!” he called out impatiently.
She opened the door almost immediately, as if she had been hoping he’d come. But she seemed visibly disappointed upon seeing that he had changed outfits away from the one she liked. She sniffled a bit – still clearly shaken – but stepped forward into the doorway, looking down – WAY down – at Nick as she waited for him to speak. Surely this wasn’t her intention, but he felt intimidated by her size again, if only for a moment. A part of him looked forward to a time, not long now, when he wouldn’t have to look up to her anymore.
“Here,” he said gruffly, extending the vial up to her.
Michelle, seeing it was half-empty, suddenly broke out into a giddy smile. “You—You drank it, for me!?”
Nick wasn’t about to let her have that satisfaction so easily. “Whatever. I’m just doing it to get smarter again.”
“Oh … sure. That’s fine,” she replied quickly, reaching down and taking the vial from him.
Nick wasn’t sure she had gotten the idea. “I mean it, Michelle,” he said forcefully, grabbing her wrist. “I’m not doing this for you; I’m doing it for me. What you said about my appearance wasn’t a factor at all.” He released her wrist and stood back smugly. Better to be forceful now and get his point across. He had been too nice to her earlier and had to make up ground.
“Oh … well, that’s … too bad,” she replied with a disappointed frown, then added quietly, and rather kindly, “Well, even if you don’t wear your new outfit, at least I can help you get smarter.” She quickly drank her half of the potion and set the empty vial down off to the side.
Again, nothing happened. “Oh … I’m sure it’ll kick in at any moment, like last time,” Michelle said with only semi-confidence. They stood in awkward silence for a bit, Michelle looking down into his eyes and Nick looking around the hallway idly, as much to save his neck the discomfort of staring up at her as wanting to maintain his cool attitude.
“So …” Michelle began, breaking the silence. “… think you’ll change outfits once your clothes fit you better??”
Something within Nick stirred when he looked up and saw the hopeful glimmer in her eye. He suddenly was having trouble formulating words. “Uhh … sure …” he said, somewhat distractedly. That WAS part of his plan, after all.
Michelle’s eyes lit up with delight. “Really!?” Her eyes took on a faraway quality again. “I can’t wait …” she said, speaking her thoughts aloud as if she didn’t realize Nick could hear. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to control myself today …”
Nick’s eyes widened, despite himself. She seemed to sense his reaction, flashing him a more-than-friendly smile. But he hardly had time to avert his eyes before Michelle announced suddenly, out of the blue, “Wait – I can feel it starting!”
She was right; he could feel it too – the sensation of sinking just a bit closer to the floor, the vertigo of seeing Michelle rising and expanding upwards at the same time, regaining all the height she had lost and then some, her head creeping up almost to the top of the door frame.
She smiled with deep satisfaction, her body having expanded to fill her shirt just that much better now. Nick, meanwhile, was too distracted to notice his own shorts slipping farther and farther down his waist, until soon enough they fell down altogether, landing in a heap around his ankles.
Nick, horribly embarrassed, swiftly picked up his shorts and held them up with his hands around the waist. “I’ll go change now,” he said bluntly, not knowing what else to say.
“Please do …” Michelle replied with a sly grin as Nick turned and headed toward the living room. He slipped easily out of his much-too-large clothes and went right into his new outfit, the one Michelle seemed to enjoy so much. There wasn’t anything eye-poppingly sexy about it, he mused … but perhaps it wasn’t the outfit so much as the potion making her more susceptible to his looks.
Nick glanced once again at his reflection in the window – god, he looked so young and … small. He couldn’t have been much more than four feet tall now. But he quickly got a hold of himself and glanced at the clock; it was about time to head to school – assuming, of course, that Michelle would let him take his car to school.
Nick snorted. He knew Michelle wouldn’t be doing stuff like that anytime soon. Things had changed.
He grabbed a muffin from the kitchen and ate it quickly as his breakfast. “Ready to go, Nick?” Michelle called out from down the hall.
He gave a muffled reply in the affirmative and picked up his backpack, waiting for her by the door.
She emerged soon afterward, pausing more than just a moment to get a good look at him in his surprisingly well-fitting new clothes. She didn’t say a word – but she didn’t have to. Her eyes said it all.
They passed into the garage, and Michelle got out his keys. But just as Nick was approaching his Escalade he felt a familiar pang of dizziness and disorientation, just like he had experienced that morning.
“What is it, Nick?” Michelle asked concernedly, seeing him stagger.
He regained his balance and replied, “Nothing! I’m fine.” He gingerly circumambulated his car, opened the driver’s side door and hopped in. Michelle entered the passenger’s side, still eyeing him with concern.
He used to love the size of his SUV, an ideal fit for someone 6’6” tall. But right now it was a damned inconvenience. He had had to almost literally climb his way up into the seat, at which point he immediately discovered his seat was pushed way, way too far back – Michelle’s doing, no doubt.
In a foul mood, he reached down to his left and fumbled with the seat controls. He wiggled one of the bars, but it only tilted the back of the seat. He tried the other bar, wiggling it up and down but finding to his displeasure that it raised and lowered the bottom cushion, without sliding it forward.
He fumbled with the controls some more – Why did they have to make these things so damned complicated?? After about ten seconds, Michelle chimed in softly, “Um … do you need help w—“
“No, I can do it!” Nick retorted angrily. He kept fiddling until – Oh. He just had to push the little horizontal bar forward. It was that simple.
This was the second time today that something completely routine had completely slipped his mind. It couldn’t be a coincidence. He had officially begun to worry now.
“Nick … are you sure you’re OK? I can drive, if you want …”
“I got this,” Nick replied gruffly. He adjusted the seat forward as far as it would go and reached for the gas pedal with his foot. He could just barely reach it, only after sliding his butt forward as far as possible on the edge of the seat and stretching his leg straight out. But then he realized that, from this position, he had no absolutely chance of seeing over the dashboard; he would be driving completely blind. Damn him and his full-size SUV; it was simply too big, there was no way around it.
“I … don’t really feel like driving today anyway,” he said – but they both knew it was just an excuse. “You drive.”
“Sure, Nick,” Michelle replied calmly, with surprisingly no hint of sarcasm in her voice. She really had changed, it seemed. They swapped sides, and Michelle pushed the driver’s seat all the way back again before pulling out of the garage. Neither of them spoke on the way to school. Fortunately, the fuzzy feeling in Nick’s head had cleared again by the time they had arrived, leaving him looking forward to the coming day at school.