Soft/Playful
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It's more of an eventless chapter which based more on dialogues, jokes, and emotion.
Hope you enjoy it!
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"Is it too tight?"
Sylvia slightly pulled the end of the bandage to her side to see if it was firm enough.
"Ow!" Lilly groaned as she stumbled onwards due to Sylvia's harsh movement.
"Sorry!" The blonde quickly let go of the girl's arm, making her stumble back this time.
Lilly sat down on Sylvia's palm once again. She had grown tired of losing her balance and falling onto her bruised arm. She held onto the wall of fingers behind her to catch her breath, looking over Sylvia like scolding someone who just ate the last slice of a pizza.
"I'd appreciate it if you be more careful, it's not easy being like this." She said coldly.
"Sorry," Sylvia said meekly as she brought the girl closer to her face to examine the self-made arm sling that she forced Lilly to wear.
"So, it's good? Don't hesitate to tell me if something's wrong, okay?"
Lilly sighed and turned her gaze to her arm. Sylvia had made her put the ice cube on it for almost thirty minutes but her arm was still throbbing. Lilly was still angry with Sylvia, it was her fault after all but seeing the guilt on her face had started to calm her nerves. Besides, she would've gotten stuck inside of a dog's jaw if Sylvia hadn't decided to help her. A part of her was thankful to her for preventing it from happening.
Lilly frowned and glanced up at the giant once again.
"Actually, it looks like a real one. How did you learn to tie the bandages like this?"
Sylvia smiled sorrowfully and breathed heavily, making her warm breath wash over the girl on her palm.
"Well, I wanted to be a doctor when I was in high school. I even took some first-aid classes to ease my curiosity and learn the basics."
She chuckled and looked away.
"I ended up giving heart massages to a few people that I came across. You know, when a car crash or a traffic accident happens and someone proudly pushes everybody like they are a medic or something? I'm that person."
Lilly smiled.
"Yeah,"
She knew those people really well. What they do was an act of bravery that could easily end up in a tragedy if they focus on being a hero rather than saving lives.
"I do know how to give a heart massage but I'd be really scared to apply it on an actual person."
Sylvia smiled shyly.
"I was scared at first too, but when a car crash happens in front of you, you couldn't just ignore it."
Lilly cocked her brows as a mocking smile formed on her lips.
"So you have a soft spot for a survivor yet you love to toss a three-inch girl through a wall? God, you're unbelievable."
It was visible that her little mockery had been enough to make Sylvia uncomfortable. The girl started to rub her neck as she gazed down nervously.
"I was just trying to mess with you. You don't get to see a borrower every day, do you?"
She ruffled her short hair for a second before she turned back to Lilly.
"I didn't mean to hurt you in any way, I just overreacted when you bit me."
Lilly's eyes softened. She placed her hand on Sylvia's palm and gently patted it.
"I know, I'm just mocking with you. Even though you scared the hell out of me back there, I understood that you feel guilty and that's what is important for me right now."
Sylvia smirked a little due to her confession.
"Well, thanks. I'll remind it to myself in the first moment that you try to escape again."
Lilly lifted her hand defensively.
"Woah, hold on. You're not going to keep me here, are you?"
Sylvia let out a soft laugh.
"Well, I can say that we have to see each other longer than you might think."
Lilly was surprised and became a little uneasy to hear this. She was planning to go home and finally get back with her family. She hadn't had any courage to make a move for it until today.
Since she had spent almost two months being terrified of the giant, Lilly had thought that the girl would hurt her once she finds her out. When they'd finally managed to talk like normal people, Lilly hadn't thought she needed to run away from Sylvia.
She didn't quite get what she was talking about.
Trying to back away, Lilly sent her a worried look.
"What do you mean by that?"
The serious expression on Sylvia's face began to scare her. Lilly would be doomed if Sylvia decided to keep her here forever. Remembering the stories that her grandfather had told her, Lilly swallowed hard, trying not to think about the giants who had enslaved her family members.
Sylvia frowned. Her every move was like an electric current for Lilly's poor heart.
"You don't know what happened, do you?"
Lilly was watching her in silence. She didn't know what to say or do. She was just waiting there for Sylvia to finish. Her body had never been so tensed before.
Surprisingly, Sylvia had realized the change in Lilly's mood and let the subject slip away.
"Hey, are you okay? You suddenly became pale."
But Lilly's attention was in somewhere else.
"What happened?" She stuttered as her fear kept growing.
"The pandemic," Sylvia said calmly.
"Didn't you heard of it?"
Lilly couldn't understand what was going on. With a shaky hand, she held onto Sylvia's finger to pull herself up.
"I don't understand."
Sylvia sighed nervously, it would require a long explanation. It was fortunate they had nothing more than the time during a global pandemic.
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"Wow, I didn't even have the slightest idea about it," Lilly gasped in shock.
"Well, you're literally living inside of walls for the past months. It's just normal."
Lilly rubbed her hands together as she blankly stared down.
"My family...they must've been really worried about me."
The tiny girl swallowed hard, letting the tears gave her a blurry vision.
"They must've thought that I'm dead. First the disease and then the pandemic..."
She shakily looked up at Sylvia.
"Even I wouldn't think that someone like me could survive."
Sylvia clumsily put her finger over Lilly's other shoulder, slightly touching against her cheek to wipe her tears.
"But you did it. Even though I don't have any clue of how you manage to live here, you did it."
She cupped her hand behind the girl and stood up from her chair, started to walk towards her bed. Lilly held onto Sylvia rapidly, panicking because of the sudden motion. Sylvia found her little whimpers cute and smiled down at her as well as she sat onto the bed.
After crossing her legs, Sylvia dropped Lilly right on her knee and reached forth to get her phone.
"Actually, I'm pretty curious about it," She said, putting her phone aside.
"How did you manage to live here on your own? Why didn't you reveal yourself to me sooner?"
Lilly lied down to Sylvia's knee, connecting her hands on her chest. It was quite comfortable.
"I didn't plan on meeting you in any way. You know, that's the first rule, you can't be seen by someone else."
Sylvia huffed.
"That's stupid. Showing yourself is an easy price to pay alongside spending your entire life as nothing more than a bug."
Her words were harsh but Lilly couldn't deny their truth.
Getting uncomfortable, Lilly put her hand over her face.
"You got a point, but how did you expect me to trust you when you're...what? As tall as a skyscraper? What would I do if you try to cage me or something? I've heard this kind of stuff before. I would be completely defenseless."
Her voice became a whisper.
"Maybe I still am. It doesn't require much for you to hurt me again."
Sylvia's face softened as she gazed down at the girl in awe. The way Lilly was looking at her was just miserable. Sylvia couldn't see it but the little girl still couldn't help but tremble at her presence once again. It was heartbreaking for Sylvia to see Lilly's fright and know it was for herself. They had started to get along pretty well after their disastrous first encounter but that clearly hadn't meant that Lilly had gone over her fear of the giant. Sylvia couldn't blame her but it would've made her pleased to know that Lilly was feeling comfortable.
"I can't believe it," Sylvia huffed.
"So I really look someone like that? Even you think of me that way?"
Lilly didn't expect Sylvia to be so offended by her words since she was the one to stuck with the size of a trinket here.
"Even me?" She asked, straightening up.
Sylvia clenched her jaw.
"I might look like a mountain to you from down there but it always been like that...I got pretty used to it." She slowly laid her back to the pillow.
When Sylvia laid down completely, her torso had become a valley for the little girl. She couldn't believe how massive she actually was and that was enough to send a shiver through her spine.
"I've always been the tallest kid in the class."
Lilly steadily walked towards the giant's lap, holding onto the cloth beneath her to keep her balance.
"I can't tell it from down here," She smiled softly.
"Everything looks massive to me."
Sylvia giggled at Lilly's attempt to soothe her, but her smiled faded once she remembered what she was just saying to the brunette.
"I'm nearly 6'2 (188 cm). People always talk about my height,"
She exhaled heavily.
"When I start to warm up to them, I always hear them say "Oh, you were not looking like someone polite at all!" or they just tell me how tough I look because of my appearance."
She scratched her neck.
"Don't get me wrong, people have to deal with way harder things than this. I won't act I'm dealing with the worst problems in the entire universe, but sometimes it just upsets me to find out that people are viewing me like this."
Sylvia slumped her shoulders, giving the tiny girl a kind look.
Lilly felt bad for her. She understood what it meant to her. She hadn't gone through something similar to this since she was in peace with her physical features; she was considering her height and weight as average. What meant most for her was the attitude and sincerity. Lilly had never been comfortable with herself and her thoughts. She also had trust issues because of her disease.
Lilly closed her eyes as she tried to stop the flood of memories.
What if they found out about my secret?
Would they see me as an equal?
Would they hurt me?
Why I'm saying things like this?
Why am I like this?
She didn't have the time nor the patience for this right now. Her secret had been exposed and she had nothing to do about it to change it.
I don't want to change it.
"I don't think any of those things about you. It's just... I was worried that you'd turn out as someone cruel."
She rubbed her arm.
"I never let my guard down, I never let someone fully in. Because I'm aware that someday they can use it against me. They'll catch me as you did and bam, I'll be done..."
Lilly stepped onto Sylvia's stomach, feeling she was sinking into the soft skin. She was fast to duck her head down as Sylvia's enormous arms raised, crossing on her chest. Then she looked right inside of Lilly's eyes, pressing her lips together.
All of a sudden her hand descended upon the tiny girl, grabbing the hood of her sweatshirt. She lifted Lilly right onto her chest and dropped her, shielding her hand to the girl's back.
"Do you trust me?"
Lilly was taken aback when she heard the question, she wasn't expecting it.
"Well, I got to meet you just a few hours ago,"
She placed her hand on Sylvia's and squeezed it.
"But since I didn't get crushed, I can say that I'm starting to warm up to you."
Sylvia let out a laugh this time, making her chest vibrate under the tiny girl. It was a weird sensation to feel, it almost felt like an earthquake but it also made Lilly laugh along.
"Then why don't you tell me about it? I mean, I'm dying to hear how did you end up here."
Lilly sighed.
"Prepare yourself then, it'll be a long ride."
Sylvia paused for a second. She frowned, looking around her. After a few seconds, she looked relieved, picking up her phone from the nightstand.
"Wait,"
She got into the messages app and turned the screen to Lilly. She hadn't erased Lilly's message that was full of typos. But she knew that it was important for her, Lilly had risked her life to send it.
"If you like, you can call your mother first. They need to know that you're alive and honestly, I don't think a message will be enough."
Lilly nodded happily and quickly walked towards the phone, trying to keep her balance on Sylvia's chest.
"Thank you, I almost forget about it..."
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"I never forget to take my medication but I was so distracted that day."
Sylvia frowned.
"What kind of disease is this? I've never heard of it before."
Lilly smiled sheepishly.
"Well, you haven't heard of it because it's not completely a disease. I call it that way cause I hate it. But for real, it's something about our family."
Sylvia cocked a brow.
"What, so you really are a borrower or something like that?"
Lilly rolled her eyes.
"Can you stop with that borrower nonsense? They aren't real!"
"Huh, you're the one to talk!" Sylvia smirked.
Rubbing her temples, Lilly gave her a frustrated look.
"It's something like heritage and it's really rare. No one knows why does it happening to us but my family had gotten used to it. My brother can't shift, so I'm the only one in my generation to get to do that."
Sylvia bit her lip.
"How do you purchase your medication, then?"
"We're making our own. I don't have the slightest clue of where its recipe came from but my mom makes it for me. It contains several herbs and seeds. She makes tea out of it every day and I bring it to college with a thermos. The taste is quite heavy and intense so I'm sipping it throughout the day."
Sylvia laughed.
"I've never heard something stupider than this."
Lilly groaned in frustration, that was the first time that she was telling those things to someone, she had hoped Sylvia to be more hyped than this. Why she had to keep interrupting her?
"You would've if you're not such an annoying giant!" Lilly snapped but it was clear that she was also enjoying to argue.
Sylvia's laughs grew stronger, Lilly's little tantrum was enough to make her playful all over again.
"Giant? I'm not the abnormal one here, you are. Maybe I should call you pipsqueak from now on, huh?"
Lilly looked dead in her eyes.
"If you even try to-"
Sylvia's huge hand descended on Lilly, leaving her immobilized under it. Sylvia's fingers were pushing her into the pillow yet she was careful about her bandaged arm.
Lilly didn't get enough time to react when the tree-sized finger coiled around her fragile body, lifting her right above to the giant's face.
Sylvia sneered down at the helpless girl in her palm, ruffling her hair by using her thumb.
"What will you do, pipsqueak?"
She was starting to like being around her. Lilly couldn't stop when she tried to annoy her and that was making Sylvia even more eager to mess with her.
Trying to push the large digit from her face and failing, Lilly decided to go down on a different route.
All of a sudden, her body started to feel broken. Even her bandaged arm started to tremble as her breaths got weaker. Lilly gazed down from Sylvia's hand to the terrifying height, closing her eyes as her head started spinning.
"S-Sylv-"
The smug smirk on Sylvia's face got erased instantly as she quickly opened up her hand, letting Lilly fell onto her palm. But it didn't end there as the tiny girl rolled to her side because of the sudden motion, losing her balance as she rolled over the edge of Sylvia's palm. The giant couldn't be able to close her fingers over her when Lilly started falling.
"Lilly!" She shouted, her mouth agape in fear.
Lilly landed onto the soft fabric of Sylvia's shirt, tugging it as her whole went limp.
The blonde quickly straightened up on the bed and cupped her hands over her, pressing her onto the shirt.
"Lilly? Are you okay?" She asked in panic while she stood up, keep holding the girl in between her hand and the wall of fabric.
She scooped her up and gazed down at her as her in dread.
"Lilly, what's happening?" She gently nudged her shoulder, flinching as the girl responded with a shrill cry.
"Sh*t, did I caused it?"
Sylvia didn't know how to handle the situation, it seemed like her every move was hurtful for the girl. She just watched her warily and waited for Lilly to get back to herself.
Suddenly, the painful cries had morphed into something more unbearable.
Laughter.
Lilly was laughing her head off, rolling onto her side. Her stomach began to ache after she saw the confused look on Sylvia's face, having a hard time stopping herself.
"You should've seen yourself! I can't believe you actually fell for it!"
Sylvia glared at her but a part of her was relieved to find that it was just a joke.
"So funny..." She murmured in irritation.
"I just can't believe you risked your life like that after you gave me an endless speech about it!"
They settled onto the bed once again. Lily laid down onto Sylvia's chest and snuggled into the soft fabric.
"Is it a crime to have some fun? It's been two months since I've talked to anyone, don't be annoying, let me have my moment."
Sylvia couldn't help but laugh along with her, Lilly had started to reveal her true colours to her. She had expected her to continue on her "endless-fear" act so it felt nice to see she was trusting her much to make jokes.
"Alright, alright."
Sylvia gazed up at the ceiling.
"Don't want to make you upset but you still haven't told me about how the things end up here."
Lilly curled into the cloth even more.
"I was so stressed that day because of the finals."
She sighed deeply.
"When the endless bickering of my boyfriend added to the mixture, I got so caught up with it and forgot to take my meds."
She smiled bitterly.
"He had chosen the worst day to break up with me. I was already anxious and I couldn't handle another exam. My hands were shaking during the period but I thought it was because of how angry I was. I couldn't concentrate on the questions so I was the last person to leave the amphitheatre."
"So you're also taking psychology?" Sylvia interrupted.
"Yeah,"
Sylvia rubbed her forehead.
"I left the room earlier than you but I came back cause' I've forgotten my bag."
Lilly grinned.
"That should be the time that I got into your bag. I was having a panic attack due to stress and that f*cking disease. I even became more terrified after finding myself inside a pile of clothes. It wasn't the first time that it happened to me so I was prepared; I always carry some clothes inside of my jacket. It took a while to find it and when I was done dressing up and calmed down a little, I heard someone was approaching me. That's when I saw your bag at the front row and I didn't think twice before jumping inside."
Sylvia huffed.
"Everything would've been a lot easier for you if you talked to me,"
Lilly looked up at her as she remembered how she tried to survive inside the house. She was absolutely going nuts when the beast of a dog found her and tried to play with her. With sorrow etched on her face, Lilly held her bruised arm.
"Everything was so hard at first. I even thought of looking into Luna's bowl to get something to eat," She looked away in sorrow.
The height was making it impossible for Lilly to survive. Climbing onto countertops and getting into cabinets was a complete risk and difficulty.
She opened her mouth to speak about a fuzzy memory but quickly shut her mouth as she didn't want Sylvia to feel guilty all over again.
"After a while, I made myself something like a grappling hook and realized I could use the walls to wander around..." Lilly continued, looking up at Sylvia with a gentle smile.
"...and now we're here."
Sylvia's hand draped over to the girl's body like a blanket. She was feeling both pity and sympathy for her. She had figured it out that her friend had a tough time both with survival and her solitude. Lilly had suffered enough, and now Sylvia was eager to make her feel better and remind her that she's not stuck anymore. All Sylvia was planned to do was helping Lilly to meet with her family again.
"Don't worry about it anymore, you're safe now."
She gently caressed Lilly's hair, giggling as the girl was quick to lean into her touch.
"I'll bring you back to your family after the weekend. I can't go out right now due to the pandemic. You have to wait just for a few days."
Lilly closed her eyes and snuggled into Sylvia's hand more. It had been a while since she felt this comfortable. She had spent her time here by living at stake; always watching out for potential danger. Now, all she could think was the hand that surrounded her little body. Lilly's self-made bed was soft but she would label it as "hard as wood" if she tried to compare it with Sylvia's shirt and she wasn't even talking about her warmth.
"It's fine for me," Lilly mumbled.
Sylvia looked out from the window. It was still dark and they had surely deserved a good night's sleep.
"Let's call it a night then,"
She turned off the lights and pulled the covers over her, still holding the girl by her chest.
Lilly sighed happily as she buried her head in between Sylvia's fingers.
She never felt this happier for two months.
She would get the most out of it.
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A Month Later
"What is it, girl?"
Luna was barking madly for almost a minute and it was just getting on Sylvia's nerves.
She rolled her eyes and stood up as she scowled the dog.
"Okay, fine! We're going to a walk!"
She grabbed Luna's collar and rubbed her fluffy ears.
"You're lucky that you're cute."
That's when she heard a knocking at her door. Gazing over with curiosity, she the end of the collar to the chair to keep Luna inside.
Sylvia's eyes widened as she opened the door.
Strong arms clung around her torso, pulling her into a tight embrace. Sylvia couldn't see the girl's face since her friend had buried her head to her shirt.
Sylvia giggled and wrapped her arms around the brunette, holding her tightly as she had done just a few weeks ago. It still gelt strange to see Lilly in her normal size, she would always stay as the little girl that she had thrown into a wall.
When they finally broke their cute embrace, Lilly looked up at her with a smug grin.
"Wow, you really are a skyscraper."
Sylvia laughed and put her hand over Lilly's shoulder, leading her inside.
"I didn't complain about your size, did I?"
"Pff, it wouldn't change anything anyway, you'll always be taller than me," Lilly said in annoyance while dropping her bag onto the counter. Her arm hadn't fully healed but she had finally got rid of her arm sling.
Lilly plucked her thermos out of the bag and set it onto the table.
"I have to finish all of it today but I waited for you to take a look at it."
She passed the elixir to Sylvia as she crouched down right beside Luna and started to rub all over her face.
"You were a complete pain in the *ss, you know that?" Lilly chuckled as she squeezed Luna's cheeks. She was looking even cuter than before.
While Lilly was playing with the dog, Sylvia was examining the strange mixture. She turned the lid and brought the cup to her face, quickly closing it as the strong smell just broke her nose.
She quickly set it down onto the counter.
"Sh*t, how can you drink that every day?"
Planting a kiss on top of Luna's head, Lilly waved her hand.
"It's not a big deal, it doesn't taste so bad..."
Lilly's gaze wandered inside the room, it was weird to see everything from a different perspective. She kept eyeing the room before her gaze landed on the fridge and she completely froze.
"Did I tell you about the time that you accidentally locked me inside of the fridge?"
Sylvia shivered at the sudden confession and tumbled down the thermos in an accident.
"What? Are you serious?"
Lilly quickly let go of the samoyed and walked over to Sylvia. Unfortunately, the rug was completely covered up with the elixir.
"Ugh, are you kidding me!"
"Sorry!"
Lilly sighed angrily.
"You did that on purpose!"
A sly smirk appeared on the blonde's face as she laid beside the counter.
"Of course not."
It wasn't convincing at all.
"Oh, come on," Lilly said in annoyance as she ran a hand through her hair.
"You still want to see the bite-sized Lilly, don't you?" She rubbed her forehead, looking clearly frustrated by all this.
Sylvia smirked down at her quite devilishly as she crossed her arms on the chest.
"It doesn't matter, for now, you have bigger problems."
She lifted her ankle to show her watch.
"The clock is ticking, it's your last chance to make amends with me. Otherwise, I can't promise about what I'm going to do with you."
Lilly couldn't help but laugh at her little threats.
"I really hate you, you know that?"
Sylvia settled onto her chair to see everything from the front row.
"I couldn't care less."
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After a couple of minutes, Lilly's body got lighter and lighter and her clothes started to surround her entire body. When she spent a few minutes under the ocean of fabric that she was trapped inside, she felt something was pushing the cloth away to find what lied underneath.
The little girl met with familiar hazel eyes which were filled with both tenderness and playfulness.
"That's better,"
She was scooped up by the giant hands, once again being left alone with the giant.
A small smile formed on Sylvia's lips. It wasn't a soothing one but Lilly knew that she could find comfort in it.
"So you were lastly talking about your near-death experience at the fridge..."
"Yeah," Lilly said as she settled onto Sylvia's palm once again, her smile widening more as the seconds passed.
"But I don't think it's a good idea to talk about it since it can give you a few ideas..."
Sylvia nudged Lilly's stomach, looking at her impatiently.
"Oh, come on! You know I can't stay still after you mentioned it! You have to tell me!"
Lilly laid onto Sylvia's fingers, using them as a pillow.
"Okay, fine! Just don't try to mess with me by doing it again,"
"I can't promise anything about it and you know that, pipsqueak."
Lilly giggled and looked over at her friend. She adored her endless energy.
Lilly had never thought she would admit it but she was glad for running into Sylvia.
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And that's the end of the story! I hope it didn't bore you guys too much, let me know your thoughts in the comments!
Have a nice day!
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