The first half-hour of Kevin's party passed without anyone remarking about Sonya's height. They were much more interested in the outfit she had chosen to wear. Even though her silvery top covered her up a decent amount, it didn't stop people from noticing that underneath she was wearing some very skimpy clothes.
Sonya snuggled Derek tightly whenever they asked about it. "Tonight, I'm Derek's personal play toy," she'd say.
Derek was feeling a little embarrassed by the attention, and the way Sonya spoke about it, but it was better than admitting the truth. At any rate, he couldn't deny the alluring sensation of knowing that he was now much taller than his girlfriend for the first time...and probably only time...in their relationship. He couldn't stop wondering just how far she was willing to shrink herself.
Every ten minutes Sonya had remembered to discreetly click her heels and instruct her boots to raise her up an inch. Presently, she had them set at eleven inches.
"Isn't it hard walking around in those things?" Derek asked her as they watched one of the football players singing badly to Kevin's karaoke machine.
"Relax," Sonya said. "When they reach one foot, I'm going to stop growing them and let the shrinking take over. By the time anyone notices how short I am, they'll be too drunk to think it's real."
Derek couldn't argue that logic. He'd managed to accept some pretty bizarre things when he was drunk a few times. "All the same," he said, "The minute people start giving us the wrong look, we're out of here."
"Loosen up, Derek," Sonya said as she tugged on her leash. She pulled him over to the punch, which had in all probability been spiked.
"Hey, I thought I was supposed to lead," he joked, holding up his end of the leash. She smiled enticingly as she handed him a cup of punch.
"Okay, from now on I'll let you pull me around all you want. I'm your personal shrinking slave girl."
"Sounds pretty hot," Kevin said. Sonya whipped around in surprise to see him standing right in front of them. "Derek, where can I get me one of them slave girls?"
Derek and Kevin had an interesting relationship. Kevin was a player on the football team, and not nearly the best. He had been unsuccessfully campaigning for a rugby team, but the school kept refusing him for "budgetary reasons." He was very competitive and didn't beat around the bush as far as his jealousy of Derek's book smarts. He and Derek kept their friendship alive by exchanging smarmy half-assed insults. All the same, Derek and Kevin had shared some very fun times together, and Kevin had helped Derek come out of his shell several years ago, back when he was mortified at the prospect of playing on a sports team. In fact, it was thanks to Kevin that Derek and Sonya had met.
"Sorry," Derek told him. "I got the last one." He pulled Sonya tighter, and saw her smile out of the corner of his eye. Then he heard her whisper "Twelve inches" and the faint clicking of heels. Her body rubbed against him briefly as she grew back up to six-three.
"Too bad," Kevin said just before he sipped his cup of punch. "Hey...this tastes kinda funny. But it was fine this afternoon." He mocked innocence, but Derek could tell he had fully expected this to happen.
"Weird. Anyway," he continued after downing the entire cup, "Glad you came. We need some of the more level-headed people around in case things get crazy. Not that I'm going to name names." He glanced at a few specific people, but Derek already knew who he was referring to. Several of the more self-confident jocks had a history of mischief at these parties.
"Maybe you should have kept the circle a little smaller?" Derek suggested, knowing Kevin would never heed that kind of advice. He peered across the room as guests number sixty and sixty-one entered through the door dressed as Grandpa Time and Baby New Year. They were the third such pairing so far that night.
"Hey, it comes with being one of the most connected guys in school," Kevin slapped Derek's arm in a knowing gesture. Then he took a long look at Sonya's outfit, as if noticing who she was for the first time. "Sonya! I knew it! I totally new it! You've been fooling us all for years!"
Sonya turned bright red as Kevin mocked her now foot-high platforms. Derek gave a quick glance at her to make sure she was all right. He saw that the sleeves of her silver top had grown suspiciously long. The ends dangled so low, only her fingertips were visible.
"Oh no, Kevin," Sonya said in an absolutely flat tone. "You've found me out. Whatever am I going to do?"
Kevin laughed, rubbing her red hair. "Don't think I'll forget about this! But I gotta say, short girls are much more my thing anyway. Don't be so hard on yourself. We'll all accept you for who you are."
"A sexy woman?" Sonya guessed.
"Damn straight. HEY! TERENCE!" Kevin jumped to be seen over the crowded room, having just noticed someone entering the party. He pushed his way through the guests, leaving the two alone again.
Sonya discreetly tightened her skirt's belt. "Seriously, we should shrink him next," she said. Derek couldn't have agreed with her more.