They snuck out of the party without saying goodbye and took a cab to Heather’s place. She knew it would be a long ride, what with her living on the opposite end of the city, and she almost dreaded to think what the fare would amount to. She sat glued to the window, looking at empty streets and flashing neon signs as they drove through the commercial district. Whenever she glanced at James during the ride she could see him doing the same thing as her. She could also tell the change was already happening, his body getting slowly, but surely, smaller. In the darkness of the cab she couldn’t tell for sure how tall he was by now, but she knew he must’ve been below the five feet mark, more than a foot shorter than her. She tried to imagine what he was thinking of, sitting there with his face turned away from her. Was he worried? Scared? Possibly even ashamed of his condition? Whatever was the case, if it was any or all of those, he managed to mask it well so far.

Neither of them spoke since they got into the car. She didn’t want to discuss his current problems in the presence of the driver and it seemed neither did James. Or perhaps he had nothing to say to her for the moment. But she had no need for words. She brought her hand closer and gently grabbed his, surprised how small and delicate it now seemed under her touch. Now he faced her and they looked into each other’s eyes for a brief moment before he leaned in. They kissed again, commencing with slow, delicate pecking and moving on to another sparring match between their tongues. And despite how good the sensation was, Heather couldn’t help but feel bizarre about it. She could tell his lips were now smaller than hers, she could feel her tongue dominating his own, now that it was bigger, wider, stronger. And she knew he could tell so too, that he was aware of how she was steadily growing larger in his eyes, how the difference would only deepen with time.

He insisted on footing the bill when they finally made it to her place, saying he no longer had any need for money and she figured she couldn’t really argue with that. Still holding hands, they went upstairs to her apartment. She took her sandals off as soon as she entered, the cold floor soothing her tired feet a bit, and led him to the living room. But they still ached and the moment she took a seat on the couch, she groaned.

‘What’s wrong?’ James asked from the opposite end. His face was slightly obscured in the dim light of an old floor lamp standing in the corner.

‘My feet are killing me. Those shoes were a bit too tight. It was hard to get that model in my size so I had to settle for one smaller. And now I realize that was a bad idea.’

‘Want me to rub them for you?’

She gave him a funny look. ‘You never offered to do that. Hell, I never knew you could do that.’

‘You never asked me to.’

She smiled and put her feet in his lap. Leaning back, she watched him lift her right foot with both hands, starting to slowly massage it. For a moment she was once again reminded in the difference in their statures. His hands, caressing her skin ever so gently, looked so small even from the distance. Soon you’ll be as tall as my foot. She thought. And then as tall as my toe. And then you’ll get even smaller. You poor thing. But the pity she momentarily felt towards him was soon replaced by a relaxed sensation of the tension and the pain dissipating from that area.

‘Wow. You’re actually good at this’ she said, smiling.

He smiled as well, his eyes fixed on the foot he was holding. ‘I know.’

‘Who taught you how to do that?’

‘No one. I learned it myself through trial and error.’

‘With other girls?’

His smile was gone. ‘Yes, with others.’

‘I bet they had nice feet.’

‘I guess?’

‘I bet they were small and pretty, unlike mine.’

‘Yours are pretty too.’

‘Are they now?’ she asked, a coy smile spreading on her lips. ‘Tell me something more. Go ahead, humour me. Tell me you thought of my feet when you were rubbing theirs. I bet a pair or two went through your hands in the past year, I bet-‘

‘I haven’t had anyone after you’ he interrupted her with a calm, but stern expression. ‘Anyone since things didn’t work out between us.’

‘Why?’

‘Because at first I was too bitter to look. And when I finally stopped being bitter I realized there was no one else like you. So I figured – what was the point?’

She fell silent for a moment as he continued his work. Eventually, she asked: ‘Aren’t you going to ask if I had anyone since then?’

‘No, and honestly, I couldn’t give a-‘

‘I haven’t either.’

He looked up and towards her face. ‘Why?’

‘I told you I couldn’t move on.’

‘Well, you’ll finally have a reason to. I’m not long for this world, remember?’

She was silent again. She wanted to console him, to soothe him somehow. Tell him he wasn’t actually dying, that it was more of a passing from one form of existence into a different one. But she knew he wouldn’t believe that and neither would she. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the world beyond, the microscopic dimension but she could picture James wouldn’t survive it very long anyway. Another surge of sadness overwhelmed her as she realized his fate was to end up as food for a microbe or an amoeba. Another humiliating and undignified death, another empty, symbolic grave.

‘I still don’t understand. It took my father months to… vanish. Why is it so fast with you?’

‘Because it’s a severe case, or so I had been told. But it doesn’t matter as long as I can spend the last few hours of this life with you.’

‘I wish there was anything I could do to help.’

‘You already did. I won’t have to face it alone.’ His gaze went down again as he took her left foot in his hands, massaging it with as much care as the right one before. ‘Do they hurt less now?’

‘A lot less, thank you’ she said with a relaxed smile. ‘I wish I knew before how good you were. I missed out on so much pleasure.’

‘So did I.’ He lifted her foot to his face and kissed her on her big toe, gently. Then he lowered it and resumed the massage.

‘Do it again’ she said and he obliged. ‘And again’ she added, her smile growing wider. He didn’t have to be asked the third time and Heather enjoyed as he lied soft kisses around her foot, his lips wandering from her toes to her heel. Eventually, she pulled her foot back and told him to unbutton his shirt and again, he obliged. She placed the foot on his chest, it now being her turn to massage him, as she moved it around and enjoyed how softly his chest hair tickled her. Circular motions, the soft skin on her sole against the warmth of his upper body. She moved her foot down, now caressing his abdomen, and from there she went lower, between his legs. She barely pressed that spot and she could already feel him getting hard, getting ready, she could hear the change in his breathing and knew how much he wanted it. He unbuckled his belt and tossed it aside, then hurriedly unzipped his pants, revealing his underwear. Helping herself with her toes, she unravelled the prize and began to work it, starting by caressing it with her wide soles. Then she pressed his cock against his stomach with one foot and stroked it with the other one, all the while smiling as his moans became deeper and more frequent. He looked so small down there, so small compared to her feet but she did not mind and, judging by the sound, neither did he. But the fun didn’t last for long and before she knew it he overjoyed himself all around her feet. He tried to apologize, awkwardly. This never happened before, you know me, I’ve been out of the loop lately, all the usual package. She laughed it off and asked him to fetch her some napkins, pointing to the nearby table.

‘Hey! Who told you to put the shirt on?’ she asked as she wiped herself, noticing him dressing back again. He stopped buttoning up, took the shirt off and cast it in the corner of the couch. From her spot Heather noticed he was already getting almost as tall standing as she was sitting, much to her displeasure. It was happening too fast, way to fast to her liking. If she wanted to enjoy him to the fullest, she had to hurry. ‘Come. Sit down and catch your breath. You deserved it’ she added, tapping the couch. She embraced him when he did so, one arm around his back, the other around his waist. She brought him closer, holding him tight against her breasts which were still hidden beneath her dress. ‘Did you like it?’

‘Tremendously’ he whispered, his eyes closed in delight.

‘My, what a fancy way of putting it’ she giggled and leaned down, pecking him on the forehead with his lips. Then she did the same on his nose. And then her lips found his again. She no longer cared how his diminished tongue felt against hers, other than the fact it felt good. Getting lost in her excitement she only wished nothing would interrupt this moment. And as it often happens in situations such as this, something did – or rather someone.

‘My pants are slipping down’ he interrupted her in an apologetic and awkward tone, visibly ashamed by the fact.

‘Then take them off. I want to watch’ Heather told him without skipping a bit. She leaned back, stretching her arms on the top of the couch and watching James clumsily undress, shedding his overgrown clothes and underwear. Soon he stood before her, naked, and she grinned at him. She reached her arms in and brought him closer for a few more passionate kisses, her hands wandering around his shrinking body while his, much smaller, stroke her cheeks, her neck and her hair. She could feel him dwindle beneath her touch and shiver from excitement at the same time. Time was running out for them both. She stopped kissing and caressing him and slowly stood up, watching him take a step back as she rose over him to strip off. First went the cardigan, then the dress fell to the floor and she pushed it away with her foot. Taking off her bra, she thought for a moment to let James do it, but then decided not to waste time on him fumbling with the strap. Her panties were the last to go in slow, sultry, enticing motions, all to enhance his appetite. By that time he already stood less than half her height. But fortunately for both she still had some use for a man this size. She wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and pulled him closer, pressing his face against her crotch. He didn’t have to be told what to do and Heather soon felt his tongue wriggle around her lips, licking his way in, playing with her clit as if it was a cherry. He held on to her cheeks with his tiny hands, grabbing them as hard as they could allow him to, as the giantess he was pleasuring moaned in ecstasy, getting louder with each passing second. She held on to him as well, her hand still resting on his neck, although by then she no longer had to force him to do the job. And before long she climaxed as well, the sensation of which made her collapse onto the couch in the spasms of pleasure, her moaning echoing around the room.

‘Look what you’ve done to me’ she told him with a smile through half-opened lids, as the feeling passed her over and her body calmed down. She could tell he was proud of himself and she couldn’t blame him. In fact, she was proud of him herself. She rose again, even slower than before, and looked down on her little lover, a playful smile never leaving her lips. In a surprising move she lifted James off his feet and giddily carried him into the bedroom despite his assurances he could walk there by himself just fine. She placed him gently on the bed and lied down herself, on her back. Once again, James didn’t have to be instructed on how to please her. He started with her breasts, kissing them all around until her nipples hardened, then sucking on them until she moaned once more. Satisfied with this, he resumed kissing her, his lips wandering down. From her left breast to her abdomen and from there to her crotch. But this time he decided not to have a taste; being erect, he chose to make love to her instead, one last time. He latched onto her skin, grabbing her around the waist as tightly as he could, all the while she embraced him with her legs. But despite his eagerness, despite the rush of energy surging through his body, he soon realized his member would not be enough to please her. Thus he resigned himself to using his fist. Then both of them. And when he deemed that insufficient, he used his head. All the while Heather moaned and screamed from excitement, her convulsing body growing larger and larger around James as he pushed his entire self to its limits, all in order to pleasure his giant lover, promising himself he would accomplish that. After all, this would be the last thing he would ever do. One last dance, one finishing push, one final chance to go out in some semblance of glory.

‘If my math is correct, I came twice. You – three times. Which means that you still owe me one’ Heather murmured with a blissful smile on her face. ‘But I guess it’s a bit too late for that.’ Still lying on her back, she looked towards her left breast. Perched on top of it was James, now barely less than two inches tall and still getting smaller. She could see him slowly dwindle before her eyes in the weak orange glow seeping into the bedroom from the street lamps. He was sitting near her nipple and looking at her, his face calm, having come to terms with the inevitable. It was only a matter of time now. Soon he will be reduced to being just a speck, lost on the vast hill of her breast, no bigger than the freckles scattered around it already. And then he will vanish, disappear, as if he was never there. Was this what his whole life amounted to? To fade away on the expanse of a female body, to be then preyed upon by bacteria or washed away with the next shower? Was it fair for a man who gave her so much pleasure to suffer such denigration? Was it just that, once again, she found herself unable to save someone she cared about?

As she mused, he got even smaller. So small, in fact, that at first she didn’t notice him. Yet there he was, now standing, no bigger than a quarter of an inch. Her nipple was larger than he was, taller than he was. ‘So I guess this is a goodbye’ Heather whispered, forcing herself to choke back tears. ‘I’m sorry you have to go. But I’m happy we could spend some time together. I hope you enjoyed it. And… I still wish I could help you, somehow.’ If only there was a way. Not to stop the process, not to halt it, she knew this couldn’t be helped. But to at least let him live on, through her.

There is a way. She realized. She brought her hand up and reached for him, her thumb and forefinger pinched to grab him. She worried he would get scared and try to run, but he didn’t. She picked him up, very gently and carefully, barely feeling his minuscule body between her fingertips as she brought him to her eyes. ‘You won’t fade away’ she told him, staring into his face, his head now being the only visible part of him. ‘You’ll always be a part of me’.

And then she carried him away, over the length of her body as she brought her hands together between her legs. With two spare fingers she slid open the fleshy gate, then placed him deep inside, within her. She closed her legs and lied on her back. For a moment she could’ve sworn she felt something down there, if only a tingle, before it dissipated. Maybe her final gesture was pointless. Maybe it was, in the end, still a form a death for him. Or maybe he could find a way to survive, actually become one with her. And finally, maybe one day she would become his entire world. Entire universe. Whatever lied beyond, she was certain he could learn how to grasp it. And if not, she took some consolation in the fact his final moments were spent in pure bliss. And that he ultimately didn’t have to suffer this whole ordeal by himself, scared and alone and forgotten.

But for now the only certain thing was sorrow. And the tears that finally came rushing down, flowing from her eyes onto the pillow as she sobbed well into the late hours of the night.