The Shrink Program

Chapter 4

"You wouldn't!" I cried, my stomach sinking as he stabbed the spoon into my cake. He met my glare, his red eyes quietly mocking as he ate the small spoonful of cake...

Causing me to snap.

I grinned, the evil grin you get when you know that you're about to massacre a room full of people.

I don't care how big he is, I am going to kill him.

With a battle cry, I leapt at him, only to be grabbed mid-air by his giant hand.

.... Since when did Vain have reflexes?

"Let me go!" I screamed indignantly, pushing against the fingers wrapped around me.

Vain only watched me patiently as I struggled against his light grip, which didn't budge in the slightest.

I had been in enough fights to know, I was pinned. Vain was beating me. Single handily.

And the longer I fought, the more helpless I was going to feel.

I'm not meek, and stubborn is my middle name, so everyone in the room was a little surprised I suddenly stopped struggling.

Humiliated, I forced myself to hold still, knowing that I wouldn't get out of his hold otherwise.

There was a long, awkward pause as I silently admitted to myself that I had lost, and Vain overcame the shock that I had actually given up without much of a fight.

Sobering, Vain set me gently back down on the tabletop.
"Do you understand now, Maddison?" He asked quietly.

Idiot. I had always understood.

Cheeks burning, I stubbornly shook my head. "Just because you took away my cake, I won't..."

"You will, Maddison," He interrupted firmly, the exasperated signalling the end of his patience. "Because the reality of your situation is that you are too small to defend yourself."

With the words he poked me in the chest with one giant finger, the gentle movement still causing me to stumble back and swipe at him with an angry hiss. "No matter how loud your bark is, it won't change the fact that you have no bite."

He stood up, the loud screech of his chair making me flinch in pain. He towered high above me, and I had to tilt my head all the way back to look at his tired expression.

"If you really want to pass this program and return to normal, you're going to have to learn how to swallow your pride and depend on others. You can't do this alone. Face that reality and let me help you, Maddison."

I wanted to cry. I wanted to shout at Vain. To tell him that I didn't need anything from him. That I didn't want to drag him into this mess...

Instead, I just stared at my feet silently, shoulders hunched and hands balled at my side.

"So, you hate me that much?"

The question jerked my gaze up. Vain's face showed nothing but calm, but I could tell that the question was genuine.

"You know it's not like that," I muttered, averting my gaze back down.

Guilt.

Fear.

Even a little bit of resentment.

No. I hadn't been avoiding Vain for the past two years because I hated him.

I still trusted him with my life.

I just didn't trust myself with his.

"All I know is that I want to, and am willing to help you," Vain explained with a sigh. "Whether you accept my help or not is up to you."

Vain nodded to my brother and turned to leave. I glared at my shoes, feeling angry and embarrassed. And maybe a little...Guilty.

"Vain." I snapped, causing him to look over his shoulder at me just before he left the room. I met his gaze seriously.

"Do you think I did it?" I asked defiantly. Despite my best efforts, the question still came out more hesitant than I would have liked. "That I really vandalised that house?"

It was an awkward question to ask, especially if the answer turned out to be yes.

But I couldn't even begin to take his offer seriously if he didn't believe me when I said that I was innocent.

"Don't be ridiculous, Maddison," Vain studied my small frame as I stood haughtily on the table. Face betraying nothing, the pale boy shook his head dismissively.

"Of course you didn't do it."

The tension in my shoulders relaxed, filling me with more relief than I would like to admit.

Yeah. Faith and friendship were nice and all, but now my last excuse to turn him down is a bust.

I bit my lip, unable to say the next words. A large part of me was screaming that this was a bad idea.

A small, very desperate part just whispered that it wanted to try anyway.

Vain seem to read this in my expression.

"I'll pick you up in the morning, Maddison," he said, turning his back on me without any other words passing between us.

With that, Vain walked out of my Kitchen.

And back into my life.