~

“Alright, Brian, are you ready to make some plans for tomorrow?” asked Allison Starr.

“Sure, Allie. Let’s do it,” replied Brian Bentley. Allison didn’t notice, but his tone was rather sullen.

“Here’s the schedule. I usually leave for the facility around 8:30 in the morning. The exact time I leave depends on the number of… well, you know… I have that day. I’m almost always back by 5:30 or so,” she explained. Brian raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

“You work that whole time?” he asked. The implication being, you execute people that whole time?

“Not exactly. There’s a lot of waiting in between sessions. Most of the day is spent in their various ‘waiting rooms.’ When it’s time for all the Chevaliers to get ready, the facility lets us know. That’s about it,” she replied. Brian nodded, satisfied with her explanation.

“What this means, then, is that you will have a maximum of nine hours alone. We need to make sure that all your needs are covered during that time,” Allison continued. She pulled out a piece of paper.

“Let’s write ‘em down. Food, obviously. We also need to make sure you’re in a comfortable spot. What else?” she asked.

“Well… I need to be able to use the restroom, so to speak,” Brian said.

“Ah, good point. That could be tough, so let’s come back to that later. Keep it coming, dude,” she replied.

“Being near my ‘bed’ would be nice, in case I want to take a nap or something,” he continued.

“Ah yes, well that one should be easy. You’re still rocking the towel and shirt pocket combo, so we’ll just make sure one is set up near your primary position. On that note, I’ll be sure to put your phone nearby wherever that is, too. Sound good?” she asked. Brian nodded.

“So, ignoring other issues for now, how about my bed as a primary spot? It’s away from any windows to the outside, so nobody would see you. It’s also pretty comfortable,” she suggested.

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Brian answered. “What do we do for food, then?”

Allison pondered for a moment.

“Well, it needs to be something you can eat easily, it needs to be in reach at all times, and it should be something that doesn’t need to be warmed up. The good news is that we only have to worry about lunch,” she started.

“What about some kind of soft bread?” Brian suggested. “You can set up a piece on a paper towel or something nearby, and I can tear some off when I get hungry.”

“Oh, that’s a good idea. Just bread, though? Won’t that get boring?” Allison asked.

“Do what we gotta do. Like you said, it’s only one meal. I’ll eat a big breakfast,” he replied. Allison nodded, satisfied.

“What about water, then? I would put some in a bottle cap or something, but putting it on the bed wouldn’t be very stable. I wouldn’t want it to spill.” They both pondered for a moment once again.

“Ah. Super genius Brian to the rescue. You got a cutting board?” Brian asked.

“Oh, I see,” Allison said, “we set up the bread and water on a cutting board, and put that on the bed. That would keep it stable. Damn, you are a super genius,” Allison replied. Brian shrugged.

“Alright, next I wanted to let you know about something I thought of the other day,” Allison started. She went over to a drawer filled with office and craft supplies and pulled out a spool of string. The very same string that formed Brian’s “belts,” in fact.

“This is ‘just in case’ type stuff, but I wanted to give you a way to make your way back up to safety in case you ever find yourself on the floor. I thought I could tape some long pieces of string to a couple spots inside the apartment, and you could use it like a rope to climb places. Does that make sense?” she asked. Brian narrowed his eyes.

“Could you show me an example?” he replied. Allison nodded, and beckoned him into her palm.

Allison made her way over to the small table in front of the sectional. She placed him on the table, and cut off a long piece of string.

“So, I would tape one end to the edge of the table, here. Then, it would drape down to the floor. If, for some reason, you ever found yourself on the floor, you could use the string to climb up to the table,” she explained.

“Oh, I see. That’s a good idea, Allie,” Brian praised. Allison grinned in response.

“Where else are you going to put some string?” he asked.

“Not in places that are too high up, like the kitchen counter or something, since you could hurt yourself if you fell. So, how about this table, the bed, and that small table with the plant next to the front door?” she suggested. Brian gave a thumbs up.

“Alright, perfect,” Allison said, “all that’s left is the bathroom thing. It’s still early, though, we can figure it out later. So… what do you want to do today, Brian?” Allison asked, her eyes sparkling. To her surprise, though, Brian simply shrugged, his eyes facing downwards.

“I don’t know… I’m kinda tired, I guess,” he said. Allison frowned.

“Is something wrong? Do you feel sick?” she asked, putting her finger to his miniscule forehead to check for a fever. She felt nothing, so she simply looked at him in concern, waiting for an explanation. Once more, he shrugged.

“I didn’t sleep well, I think. Actually… do you… do you think I could spend some time back in the pet carrier? I hope this doesn’t sound rude, but… well, I guess it would be nice to be by myself for a little while,” he said reluctantly. 

Allison was shocked.

What’s wrong? she thought. He’s been so lively lately, why is he looking so downtrodden?

Despite her confusion, she didn’t want to make him feel guilty for wanting some alone time, so she simply gave him a gentle smile in response.

“Of course that’s okay, Brian. I want you to feel like this is your home, too, and everybody is entitled to privacy in their own home,” she replied. At that, Brian flashed a grateful smile, and Allison took him in her palm once more. Soon enough, Brian was resting in his carrier, phone nearby for browsing convenience. 

“Okay Brian, I’ll be around. Send an email to our address if you need something or want some company, okay?” Allison asked, trying not to sound too disappointed that they weren’t going to be spending time together.

“Thanks, Allie, I will. See you later,” Brian replied. Allison smiled and left the room, a small frown overtaking her face once she was out of sight.

Allison found herself resting on the sofa. For the first time in a while, though, she was completely alone. She had her laptop out, but she was simply staring at the screen, not focused on anything in particular. 

It’s only been four days, Allison thought, but it feels really weird not having him near me.

Indeed, the two had been nearly inseparable since she had rescued him. This was partly due to necessity, since Brian needed Allison’s help to do most everything, but also because they genuinely enjoyed being around each other. Their bond had grown immensely in a short amount of time, and Allison was now feeling the absence of that bond.

Was it the kiss? She wondered. Did I go too far, and now he’s uncomfortable?

No… he was joking about it last night, so I don’t see why he would suddenly be upset about it now… 

She put her head in her hands.

Maybe I’m overthinking it. Maybe he’s tired, like he said, and nothing more. People can just want to be by themselves, right? It doesn’t mean that they’re upset about something.

She tried to silence her doubts with that line of thinking, but they soon returned. Groaning, she put her laptop to the side and began to pace around the living room.

Come to think of it, he did seem kinda sad for a minute yesterday, Allison thought.

It’s when he was talking about Cathy, and whether or not other innocent people get the Shrink Penalty. Could he still be down about that? Well, let’s see. What were we talking about before he said he wanted to be alone?

She sat back down.

I was showing him my string idea… more generally, we were talking about how we should prep the house for when…

Suddenly, a realisation began to form.

We were talking about what we need to do for when I go back… to work. Work. Where I execute people his size. The same work where he almost got executed for a crime he didn’t commit.

Just like that, Allison had an idea of why Brian was down. The question then was what she was going to do with that information.

Well, shit. Of course he would be uncomfortable with that. What am I supposed to do, though? He’s going to need to get used to this, so how can I help him get over it?

She began to run through some possible courses of action. None seemed particularly helpful, though.

Should I go talk to him right away? Maybe during lunch? Dinner? Before bed? Fuck!

You know what, no. I’ll let him bring it up to me. I shouldn’t force him, and I’m sure he’ll ask about it when he’s ready. For now I guess I’ll… just… leave him alone.

Allison made a decision. She wasn’t particularly happy about it, though, if the frown on her face was anything to go on. When it came down to it, Allison loved hanging out with Brian, and she was sad that it seemingly wasn’t going to happen that day.

~

To Allison’s dismay, the rest of the day proceeded as expected. Allison gave Brian his space, and she lounged around by herself. She did some cleaning, watched some TV, played some video games, all the normal things one might do on a Sunday. Her heart wasn’t completely in it, though, since she wanted to be doing those things with her one inch companion. Especially after she had just realised that she was coming to like him as more than a friend.

That’s not to say that they never talked, though. They ate lunch together, and Brian occasionally messaged her when he needed to use the bathroom. During these interactions, Brian repeatedly apologized to Allison for wanting to be by himself. He was clearly very concerned that he was hurting her feelings. For her part, Allison continued to reassure him that there’s nothing wrong with wanting to be alone. She simply said that if he changed his mind, or wanted to talk about anything, she was available.

Allison did have a moment of relief, though, when she received an email from Brian. Thinking he needed to use the bathroom or something, she opened it only to find a link to a video of a raccoon eating grapes. The accompanying message simply read “thought you would enjoy this.” Allison grinned from ear to ear, and pulled the video up on the television. She soon found herself dying of laughter, listening to the hilarious sounds of a raccoon going to town on some green grapes.

At that, Allison responded to the email with her own favorite video of a raccoon, one in which the trash panda stole a handful of cat food. Just like that, she was soon engaged in a war of “who can find the best video of a raccoon?” Although she was still sad that she wasn’t around Brian, she found comfort in the fact that they were still able to joke around with each other.

~

After dinner, where Allison and Brian vigorously debated who won their battle of the raccoons, Brian had decided to spend the rest of the evening next to Allison, much to her delight. She could tell he was still slightly troubled, however, and hoped that he would decide to talk about it. To her slight frustration, though, he didn’t. Soon enough, it was time for bed.

“It’s the last time I’ll say it, but I really hope that I didn’t hurt your feelings today,” Brian said as he nestled into his shirt-pocket-bed.

“It’s the last time I’ll say it, you really didn’t. I just hope nothing is wrong,” Allison replied.

“It’s the first real private time I’ve had in over three years, you know. I’ve always been somewhat of an introvert, so it’s been really hard. Thank you, Allie,” he said softly. Allison’s heart softened at this confession.

“You’re welcome, Brian. There’s nothing wrong with alone time. Well… with that being said, though…” she started, the smallest hint of a blush painting her face, “I really enjoy spending time with you, so… maybe don’t do it too often,” she said softly. Brian suddenly felt a little self conscious.

“Yeah… I promise I won’t. I really enjoy spending time with you, too, Allie,” he replied. An awkward silence overtook the room, as Allison tried not to gush too hard at his kind response.

“T-Thank you, Brian. Anyway… goodnight. I usually wake up around 7:00, is that okay?” she asked.

“That sounds good. Goodnight,” he answered. At that, she turned off the light, their awkward exchange erasing any lingering traces of uneasiness in their hearts for the time being.

~

The next morning, Brian had returned to his withdrawn state. It was almost time for Allison to leave, and she had just finished preparing the apartment for Brian. Allison tried to probe the heart of the issue a few times, but Brian had been reluctant to reciprocate.

I can’t let this go on, we really need to address this, Allison thought. I suppose I’ll have to bring it up myself.

“Brian, are you acting down because you’re worried about my job?” she finally asked. Brian’s eyes slightly widened, and he looked up at her from his position on the bed.

“W-what?” he asked nervously. Allison let out a small sigh.

“You don’t need to keep it a secret. I’m not stupid, it makes you uncomfortable that I’ll be out working as a Chevalier, right? That’s why you’ve been withdrawn lately,” she continued. Brian let out a resigned sigh, and steeled his resolve.

“…yeah, that’s right. I just… don’t know how I’m supposed to feel,” he said quietly.

“Well, why didn’t you just talk to me about it? I don’t want you to be all sullen from now on,” she asked.

“I know… I just didn’t want to offend you. It's not really my place to comment on your job.”

Allison was slightly shocked by this statement.

His place? What does he think his place is? she wondered. Brian wasn’t done, though.

“I guess I was hoping I would get over it on my own… I’m sorry,” he continued, hanging his head.

“Brian… why are you acting like this?” Allison asked incredulously. “Why are you apologizing for having an opinion? What the hell are you talking about when you say it’s not your place? If you have a concern, I want to hear it!”

Brian looked confused.

“I just mean… You’ve done so much for me, I don't want to accept that then come around and criticize what you do for work. I should just keep my problems to myself, that’s all,” he said. Allison shook her head vigorously.

“No, no, no, Brian, I don’t want our relationship to be like that. You don’t need to walk on eggshells around me just because I helped you. I want you to treat me like an equal, and I don’t want you to be afraid of saying things that might make me unhappy,” she said firmly.

“But… we’re not, though,” Brian said softly. 

“Not what?” Allison asked.

“We’re… not equals, Allie. You have all the power, here,” he continued. Once again, Allison was shocked.

“Y-you seriously believe that?” she asked. “What have I done to make you feel that way? I’ve been trying so hard to make you feel comfortable and happy,” she said, her frustration rising. Brian’s breath became slightly labored, this was exactly what he had been trying to avoid. 

“I know that, I-I really do, and I’m so, seriously grateful, I promise it’s nothing you’ve done. It’s… it’s just a fact. You’re so much bigger than me, and you’re the only person who knows I’m even alive, whatever happens to me is entirely up to you,” he continued.

“So, what are you implying, Brian? Because of that, you’re afraid to upset me because I might hurt you, is that it?” Allison asked.

Brian did not respond.

“You can’t be serious… I would never hurt you, Brian, how can you not understand that by now?” she continued.

“It’s only been five days since we’ve met, Allison,” Brian said, his tone becoming slightly firmer as he stopped using her nickname. “People who knew me for a lot longer were very quick to hurt me, and they didn’t have the added advantage of being thousands of times my size. Also…” 

He took a deep breath.

“Those people didn’t have a job where they actually hurt people like me all day, every day.”

Allison didn’t know how to react. Her brain was being pulled in multiple directions. She understood the logic in what he was saying, but she couldn’t accept it emotionally. She herself understood the contradiction between her job and how she was treating Brian, but she had been trying not to confront it. Although she had accepted that she would need to be patient when it came to fully earning Brian’s trust, she was still hopeful that the process wouldn’t take too long. Despite her better efforts, she was becoming impatient.

“I… understand that you… have had bad experiences…” Allison started, trying to consolidate her various thoughts. 

“Bad experiences?” Brian repeated, his tone becoming slightly darker. Allison realised she should have chosen better words.

“You know what I mean, Brian, I wasn’t trying to downplay what you’ve been through. I just mean… you yourself said that I’m the only one who has ever truly believed you. I’m different from those people that have hurt you in the past. I thought you had realised that I would never do what they did,” she continued, trying to rectify her mistake. 

“How am I supposed to know that you’ll continue to feel that way?” Brian asked, his own temper rising.

“Allison, it’s only been five days. How am I supposed to know that you won’t change your mind? Won’t get tired of looking after me all the time? Won’t find some flaw in my personality that you can’t accept, and grow to hate me? How am I supposed to know that? Are you seriously going to fault me for protecting myself?!” he continued, raising his voice.

“Do you seriously think so little of me?” Allison asked, her eyes starting to tear up. “How am I supposed to gain your trust, then? How are we supposed to live together if you’re living in fear that one day I’ll decide to hurt you?”

“I don’t know, Allison. The entire fucking world turned its back on me. Everybody who I was supposed to trust abandoned me. My own mother said I was a disgusting murderer. I’m not saying that you’ve been anything less than wonderful, thoughtful, and accommodating since you’ve brought me back here. I’m… I’m just saying that I’m fucked up, okay?! It’s going to take some fucking time!” he exclaimed, trying to stay his own tears.

Allison took a deep breath. Her sympathy outweighed her anger, and she returned to a more stable mental state.

“Okay, Brian, okay. I understand. It’s just… hard to hear that and not take it personally. I want you to trust me. I promise that I won’t hurt you for any reason, let alone for something as silly as an argument. Please, don’t be afraid of saying what you think, okay? Look, I’ll prove it to you. We’re already talking about this, so please tell me your concerns about my job, okay? I promise I won’t lash out,” she said calmly.

Brian looked up at her. Before he could stop himself, he spoke.

“How am I supposed to accept your kindness when you kill people just like me all day long?” he asked slowly.

“W-what?” Allison asked in disbelief.

“That’s my issue. How am I not supposed to feel guilty? You do so much for me, you make sure I’m safe, healthy, and comfortable, but then go out and squish people all day? Why should I be the only one who gets to survive?” he continued, the floodgates having been opened.

“B-Because you’re innocent, Brian! Obviously, because you’re innocent and they’re not!” Allison exclaimed incredulously. Brian shook his head.

“You don’t know that, Allison. You seriously say with full confidence that I’m the only person who was, is, or ever will be innocent that got the Shrink Penalty?”

“Brian, we just talked about this,” Allison said, “the rules are so strict-”

“Clearly not strict enough!” Brian interrupted. “It happened to me, Allison. It fucking happened. There’s no way around it. The system is not perfect. I am living evidence that it can happen, so how am I supposed to sit here while you’re out there supporting the system that wanted me dead?!”

Allison took a deep breath. She promised not to lash out, but it was becoming difficult.

“Brian, listen to me. I’ve been doing this for six months. You have no idea how many convicts say that they’re innocent, but they’re always lying. You want to know how I know? Because they lie about everything else. They lie about what their actual crime was. Like you noticed, we’re supposed to act like we don’t know what their crime is. The ones who claim innocence always lie about what their crime was. I’m trained in facial and body language recognition, okay? Not to brag, but I’m really fucking perceptive. That’s how I knew you were telling the truth. You were the only one who didn’t care if I believed you,” she said, her thoughts spilling out all at once.

Brian shook his head.

“Allison, you place too much faith in the people running those facilities. The only goddamn reason I got the shrink penalty was because the fucking public wanted it. They literally made up evidence the day I turned 21, just so I could be ‘re-sentenced’ to death. Who the fuck gets ‘re-sentenced’ like that?! It’s bullshit. The judge who sentenced me, the governor who supported the decision, fucking all of it was just to get good press, and support for their fucking reelection campaign. How can you see all of that and claim that something like that has never happened before?” he asked angrily.

“Brian, you’re not listening to me. I just said that I personally am able to tell if they’re lying. I was able to figure out that you were innocent, right?” she asked exasperatedly. Brian shook his head once more.

“No, you knew because you were familiar with my case. You were able to notice everything about it that didn’t make sense. You even said that your own mentor planted those seeds of doubt in your head. You’ve had three years to figure out that I was innocent. Even then, you were literally just about to kill me anyway. Like you said, I didn’t care if you believed me or not. I only said it because I wanted to say it one last time. You can’t come that close to fucking up and claim that your instinct is perfect,” he said.

At that, Allison became slightly angry.

“So, what, then, are you saying I’m a murderer? Are you saying that I’ve killed innocent people?!” she asked angrily. Brian held his head in his hands for a moment.

“I’m saying you can’t fucking know! And even if you haven’t and never will, you work in a facility full of people that might! You’re probably the only person there that would have saved me. Even if you get it right every time, there’s no way in hell that those sadistic freaks do!” he shouted. “How can you work in a place like that, then come home to me and feel like everything is fine?!”

“Because the Shrink Penalty does a lot of good!” Allison exclaimed.

“It gives the worst-of-the-worst what they deserve! A fraction of the pain, suffering, and humiliation that they inflicted on the world! I’m doing the world a fucking favor!” she continued. 

“No, no, no. You don’t believe that. If you did, then you wouldn’t just crush them all within five minutes. That’s no different than any other death penalty. If you truly believed that, you would fucking torture them like the rest of your coworkers,” he replied.

“Shut up! Like you yourself said, you’ve only known me for five days, so who are you to tell me what I believe?!” Allison shouted.

“Allison, I don’t know why you’re a Chevalier. I’m not entirely sure you know either. But there is something seriously wrong with the way you’re treating me while you choose to keep doing that job. I don’t know how I’m supposed to accept your kindness unless we figure out what the hell is going on here,” Brian replied.

“Brian,” Allison said sternly, “I’m very sorry that you don’t like the fact that I enjoy my job, but I fucking do. You said it yourself, it’s none of your business why I chose to become a Chevalier. I’ll tell you one thing: the Shrink Penalty does a lot of good, and I’m not going to abandon that good just because I decided to save you.”

“So, the system is fine even if innocent people die?” Brian asked quietly. Allison sighed.

“Brian, you’re the exception. Your one case doesn’t mean we should shut everything down.”

At that, Brian exploded.

“FUCK YOU! So one innocent man is fine, but what about two, huh?!” he shouted.

“Brian, what-”

“What about three?! Well?! What is the exact number of innocent people getting tortured and killed you’re fine with before it stops being acceptable?!” he continued.

“Brian, that’s not-”

“Okay, so ten innocent deaths is fine, but eleven is the cutoff before the system stops being okay. Are you willing to kill them, then?! Why not round them all up and get it over with all at once, huh?! Then you can come back here and watch movies with me, and I’ll be completely fine with the fact that you murdered ten innocent people while I get to be the only one who fucking lives!”

“FUCK YOU!” Allison screamed. Without thinking, she brought her hand up and swung it towards Brian, as if to slap him. Brian saw the palm racing towards him, and once again resigned himself to death. Allison’s brain caught up to her movement at the last second, though, and she quickly stopped her arm. When she looked, her palm was centimeters from Brian. He was still standing, and looking Allison right in the eye, but his breathing was labored, and there were tears in his eyes. Allison drew her hand back, and stumbled backwards, realising that she very nearly hurt Brian- the one thing she had promised not to do.

He’ll never trust me now, Allison thought. Not only was she reeling from the difficult questions Brian had been raising, she now felt like she had proven his fears to be completely valid. She had almost killed him over an argument, and her brain couldn’t take it.

“I’m… sorry…” she stammered, before running out of the room. Trying to keep from breaking down, she grabbed her bag, keys, and phone, and fled to her car. Her mental state was in tatters, but she felt an overwhelming urge to run away. So she did. Soon enough, she found herself sitting behind the wheel of her car. After a moment of heavy breathing, her face clouded over. As if in a trance, she started the car, and calmly began to drive towards her place of work. 

The apartment had fallen silent. There was no trace of the screaming match that had just occurred. There was only a bed. On this bed was a phone, a cutting board, a folded shirt, and a one inch man who had just collapsed.

The silence continued.