Shrunken Outrage rough draft

Shrunken Outrage

I tapped my fingers as I waited for Carien to return, the thoughts of what I would say to her swirled in my head. Hello. Sorry for the broken door and the missing vase. I meet your brother today. No not that brother your other brother and he umm stole something after I tried to help him. I shook my head.

Hello Carien. I burglar broke in while I was asleep and. . . .

I sat down on the couch and looked at where the glass vase used to be. “This isn’t going to work. I just hope that she doesn’t want to kick me out for this.”

I heard an engine roar in the distance and I walked to one of the windows. Carien’s van pulled into the driveway. “Well time to get this over with.” I gulped.

Carien stepped out of the vehicle and dusted herself off. She was wearing a dark blue blouse and black slacks. She then walked up to the front door of the house and yelled, “What in the world? Sarah what did you do to my front door.”

I rushed to the door and stopped on the other end. “It isn’t as bad as it looks.”

“It isn’t as bad as it looks?” Carien tried to open the door but it fell open almost crushing me. She looked at the fallen door for a few moments, her mouth wide open. “Want to explain this.”

I pulled at my shirt sleeve. “Umm.”

“You didn’t try growing inside the house did you?”

“I can most certainly say that did not happen.”

She narrowed her eyes. “I am going to check out the rest of the house. You knew my rule about growing inside my house Sarah. If I find that you did you will be spending the next few nights outside.”

I crossed my arms. I wonder what the rule is for trying to help your family and they screw me over for it. I sighed and leaned against a wall, looking into a nearby mirror. I just had time to get dressed before Carien had arrived, putting on a plain t-shirt and jeans. I moved my dark bangs from my face. My hair was starting to grow out again. “I need to get a haircut sooner than later.”

“Sarah!”

I slowly walked towards the sound of Carien’s voice. Great. She found the missing vase.

Carien tapped her foot as I entered the living room. “Where is the vase that my grandmother gave me?  That was one of the few heirlooms I was able to get from her before she passed.”

I looked around the room. “I don’t know.”

Carien formed a fist. “You don’t know. What do you mean you don’t know? You were home all day yesterday.”

I gulped. “Ok, the truth is your brother showed up here yesterday.”

“Gary was here? Why would you let him in? I told you not to let anyone in.”

I shook my head. “Not him. Maxwell.”

Carien gave me a blank stare. “You let that creep in to my house?”

I shivered as I felt my skin constrict. “Well not exactly. He is the one who knocked the door down. And I umm wasn’t exactly having a good day up until that point.”

“That is so like Max.” She looked at me. “And what do you mean you weren’t having a good day?”

I pulled at the collar of my shirt. “My neck had grown to an immense amount again, a second bad neck day if you will. I didn’t really plan for an elongated neck it just happened.”

“Right. Look I don’t care about you having neck issues. What happened with my deadbeat brother?”

“I tried to throw him out but he just begged.” I wiped the sweat from my forehead. “Phew. My skin just feels so tight all of a sudden.” I looked at Carien and noticed she was a bit bigger than before. “I am not shrinking am I?”

Carien grabbed me by the shirt. “Yes you are and you and it won’t get you out of this conversation.”

I slowly looked up at her head as it began to rise above my body. “I am stressed out that is why I am shrinking. I haven’t had any Fredricks Fancy products in a few days, since my first day at my new job. Calm down Carien.”

She held me in place and I felt my feet leave the ground. “Just tell me what happened between you and Maxwell.”

“Ok ok. Anything for you to put me down.” I looked down as the ground became farther from my body. “He was in trouble with a loan shark.”

“He didn’t need any money did he?”

I shook my head as Carien repositioned her hands to hold me, her hands now around my waist. I was half my orginal height at this point. “All he wanted was time and I gave that to him. It was after I helped chase the loan shark off he ran off with the vase.”

Carien dropped me to the floor. “I knew Maxell was up to something that is why I told you not to answer the phone or open the door.”

I looked up at her growing body. “What?”

She looked down at me. “He called me a few days ago asking for my help. I knew he was just going to be trouble so I went to a motel until he stopped calling. But it seems like always he seems to come into my life and rip something near and dear from me.”

I was only a foot high at this point as I looked up at Carien. “Why can’t Max just leave me alone?” She suddenly kicked out, forcing me to duck to avoid being flung across the room.

“Carien calm down.”

She looked down at me. “You should have just sent him on his way.” She reached a massive hand down for me.

“Carien what are you doing.” I raised my shrinking arms up to protect myself.

She picked me up and held me in her hand as I continued to shrink, becoming only an inch high before my body stabilized. She closed her hand and I could feel that she was walking somewhere. I pounded on the sides of her fist. “Hey let me out.”

“I need to put you somewhere while I think of what I am going to do next.” She unclenched her hand and I fell into a tea pot. As I shook my head Carien slid the lid on and turned the pot so the spout was facing the wall. “You can wait your bite sized time out in there while I figure out how to get my grandmothers vase back. Next time don’t get involved into my family business.” I heard her thunderous footsteps fade away.

“I need to get out of here before she decides I need more punishment.” I climbed into the nozzle until I came to the wall. I tried to push against the wall in hopes of creating enough room for me to slip out but my tiny arms could not do the job. I slid down the nozzle and back into the tea pot. “I can’t just wait here for Carien to come back. Who knows what she will do. At my size I am at her mercy until she calms down.”

I looked up at the lid. “Maybe I can push it open. I didn’t hear her set anything on top of it.” I looked around the pot. “The problem is getting up there when I don’t have anything to climb on.” I tried jumping and I could just grab the rim of the pot, where the lid rested. There was a small ledge that I could grab if I could just jump high enough.

I leapt once more and my fingers grazed the ledge. “Damnit.” I landed on my butt. “Oww. I almost had it.” I stood up. “Ok.” I squatted down and then jumped up. My fingers grasped the edge of the tea pot and I held on as my body swung into the brass wall. “Ouff.” I held on as I steadied myself, taking in a few deep breaths.

Once I was sure I had a secure grip I raised my left hand and tried to push the lid. To my luck I could open the lid just a little, but not enough to free myself. I took a deep breath and then began to slide the lid to try and create an opening that I could crawl through. The process was slow but steady; soon light shone down onto my face. I squinted as I continued to slide the lid to the side, creating the means of my escape.

Once I had created a large enough hole to squeeze through I reached for the lid and pulled myself up. Once safely on top of the tea pot I took a moment to rest, wiping the sweat from my forehead. “Being this small is hard. Why couldn’t I have just stopped shrinking at one foot? I always have to become really tiny.” I looked around. “Ok now I am out, but how do I get down?” I slid off the curved edge of the pot and onto the table. I then walked to the edge and looked over the cliff side. “That drop looks like it goes for miles.” I gulped.

I looked around for an alternative method that wouldn’t have me ending up as a splattered mess on the tile floor. To my left I spotted a broom that I had left sitting next to the table after I had tried to clean up some of the mess that Maxell had left. If I bear hugged the broom I could slide down to the floor. I walked over and jumped onto the broom, slowly sliding down, clenching my teeth as I felt the burning sensation of friction.

When I reached the bristles of the broom I let go, tumbling down to the ground. I slowly made my way to my feet, brushing dust and hair from my body. “Ok time to get out of here.” I looked around for the nearest door, spotting one to my left that lead to the living room. I began to run, trying to reach the next room before Carien returned. “If I can find a place to hide I can just wait things out until I grow to my normal size. Then I won’t have to worry about Carien flipping out on me when I am to tiny to do anything about it.”

When I was a foot away from the door Carien stepped in front of me. “Sarah? Where do you think you are going?”

I knew at my size she wouldn’t hear my little voice. I ran between her legs as she reached for me. “Hey come back. I want to talk to you.”

No way. Not until you calm down. I turned the corner and saw my purse. I had little choice but to climb inside before Carien grabbed me. I slid under the latch and wormed my way into the purse just as Carien’s fist reached for my legs. “Sarah, stop. Ugh god.”  I pushed my way down between credit cards and lipstick as Carien tried to unlatch my purse. “Sarah, come on out. We have to talk.”

“Not until you calm down.”

Carien’s hand suddenly scooped me up and the lipstick I had been hiding under. “Sarah.” She picked up the lipstick with her other hand. “Look at me.”

I reluctantly turned over and started into her giant head.

“I am not happy with what happened here today but I am sorry for stuffing you into that tea pot. It is just I can’t stand my brother.” She clenched the fist I was in, enveloping me in darkness. “When we were kids he stole some money from a coffee shop and when the cops came he told the officers I had taken the money. Everyone believed him and I had gone to a juvenile home for a few months.” She unclenched her fist. “I am sorry for what I did but I was just so mad.”

“Carien I just didn’t know what to do. He burst into the house and—“

“Sarah, its fine. You have a place to stay here and that isn’t going to change. But you are going to help me get that vase back.”

I threw up my arms. “How?”

“Well we both can drink potions that can make us grow right?” I nodded my tiny head. “Then I think we pay my brother a visit, a giant visit that will make him think twice for trying to screw over my friends.”