The Shrink Program

Chapter 103

Wait! Don't tell him to-

Havoc pointed accusingly at Jack, his spiky blue hair seeming to bristle as he shouted. "Yea! Put her down, you creepy Brat!"

...Drop me.

I had already begun wildly waving my hands in the "Shut up before you get me killed" sign when Jack's lips twitched into a smile.

Like a real happy to oblige, Smile.

"Don't you dare ... Jack!" I shrieked as the pressure around my ankle suddenly shifted, and I was flung backwards. Freaking out, I scrambled to find something to grab onto....but there was nothing.

What Jack said next, crushed all hope that I was going to survive this.

"Catch gentlemen."

Oh no.

"Stop!" Was all I had time to scream as I was swung forward and up in an underarm throw.

"Please!" I cried desperately, but it was too late. He let go, and I was flung into the air, my stomach dropping painfully to my toes as I was suddenly airborne.

Already dizzy from my time hanging upside, I couldn't make sense of the spinning world around me. All I knew was that any second now I was going to experience a bone-shattering impact with the floor.

Some things are just not meant to fly. Penguins. Lead balloons. Little shrunken delinquents...

"Shit! Assume the fetal position NOW!"

If anything could shock me out of my panic-filled haze, the sound of Garmen swearing did the trick.

Doing as I was told, I curled up as tightly as I could. It made me a smaller target, but at least my head and limbs were less likely to get snapped off.

Always a bonus.

"Catch her Garmen!"

"What does it look like I'm doing!"

A second later, the air was knocked out of me as I was suddenly enveloped on all sides, pressed tightly to a soft, warm surface. I whimpered slightly, utterly confused by the massive movements around me.

What felt like fabric brushed against me on one side, and I could feel the warmth of skin at my back. I smelled peppermint, and even more strongly, blood.

"Miss Trampth, are you alright?"

My surroundings shifted, exposing me to the cold air of the room. Rigid, I let my limbs unfurl enough for me to look up, into the concerned face of Garmen.

The giant man had caught me in against his chest, which explained the feel of fabric I was being pressed into.

"You..." I began, but my body felt so stiff I couldn't even force the word out.

"Are you injured?" He asked again, his clinically calm eyes searching me over for injury.

"Y-you'd think..." I gasped out breathily, my chest tight with anxious breathing. "That it would be illegal... For a cricket couch... to suck this badly at catching..."

The chest in front of me shifted as Garmen let out a relieved sigh.

He smiled slightly, just an upturning of the lips, but the expression made him seem less severe as he raised an eyebrow in surprise. "You survived it didn't you...?"

Speaking of survival...

"Damn it!" Panic shot through me as I shoved against Garmen shirt, and he shifted his hand away to give me room. "Where is he?"