Short story: "Don't Drink and Shrink"

[qzar9999]

Inspired by this thread, I decided to jot down a quickie. I was originally going to post it as one complete piece, but my muse is feeling verbose today and I don't have time to finish it before work, so here's part 1 of 2. Enjoy!

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"You're trying to get us drunk, aren't you, Shawn?" said Becky in an accusatory tone.

"Don't be silly, ladies," I responded. "We're already here together. What's a few drinks between friends? Besides, I'll be drinking right along with you, and you know I'm kind of a lightweight." So saying, I leaned across the coffee table and handed her a Jack & Coke with a wedge of lime, then held out another to Cassie.

"Well, so are we. I'm still suspicious of your motives, mister," she said, cocking an eyebrow at me as she accepted it.

"Allow me to put your fears at ease," I said with a smile. I took a large sip of my drink and sighed with satisfaction. "Aaaah. Refreshing. And this is the same thing I got you." Except for that one extra ingredient, I thought to myself. Fortunately the tinge of lime in the drinks would mask the mild-tasting additive.

My gesture seemed to have the intended effect; Becky sipped at her concoction, paused for a moment, and smiled. "Mmm. You do a very good mix," she said, taking a larger swallow.

Following her lead, Cassie took a quick taste of hers, then looked at me with surprise. "She's right, this is delicious!" I watched as she sipped again, managing to conceal my eager grin by taking a big swig of my drink.

It was a typical Thursday night for us. Usually, we'd get together at the off-campus apartment the two shared to study for a Friday morning physics class we all had, then kick back to watch a movie, after which we usually sat around and talked until after midnight. While I considered myself lucky to spend time with these two lovely girls (and I knew some of my male classmates were jealous of me), I'd been unable thus far to get past the friend stage with either of them.

Not for a lack of trying. Seeing these two three days a week in class, and one to two nights during the week, certainly kept salacious thoughts about them percolating in my head. Part of the problem was that I couldn't decide between the two of them. Becky, she of the tall, slim build and wavy blonde hair, was athletic and energetic. She could be a lot of fun in almost any circumstance, made fast friends with others, and was always smiling and laughing. Cassie was shorter than her roommate and less toned, but she made up for it with gorgeous dark curls, deep blue eyes, and dangerous curves. She was a bit quieter, but quick-witted, intelligent, and kind. I clicked with both of them for different reasons and found both of them attractive.

It wasn't helping that I was pretty sure both of them knew that I harbored those kinds of thoughts about them, and kept toying with me over it. The first time your hot female friend "accidentally" bumps her ass against you, or "forgets" that she's wearing something extremely low-cut when she bends over to get something in front of you, maybe it's innocent. But when it happens on a regular basis, well, I'm no dummy. Tonight was no different; Becky had "thrown on" some tight short-shorts, and Cassie had brushed her breasts against my arm while leaning over the table to grab something. I had suspected they might have an interest in me, but nothing ever seemed to come of it and it was equally possible they were just having fun seeing which one could be more flirty with me. They had that kind of friendship.

Well, I thought, I guess I'll solve my dilemma tonight, one way or another. If everything worked according to plan, I might have a memorable night with one of them (or both, in my wildest dreams), or my actions might close that door with either or both of the ladies for good. I noticed they were almost done with their drinks and gulped down the last of mine to try to encourage them.

"Whoa! Were you thirsty, Shawn?" asked Cassie with a grin.

"Maybe a little," I replied. "But hey. If I get drunk first you really won't have to worry about my intentions." That got a laugh from her. Of course, such a scenario wasn't possible; not only had I secretly made my drink weaker, but my little additive would cause an increase in the impact the alcohol would have on them, in addition to its intended primary effect. Which was good, as it meant they'd likely take much longer to notice what was happening to them. "I'm gonna go make myself another one," I said, watching as Becky tipped up her glass and drained the last. "Well, she finished hers, Cassie. Care to polish off yours? I'll get you girls refills while I'm making mine." She hesitated, but after a moment drank the remaining fluid in her cup. I grabbed their empty tumblers in the hand that wasn't holding mine. "Be right back," I said, stepping toward the kitchenette area.

Ok, they've both had their full dosage, I thought to myself while mixing another round. I opened my backpack and pulled out the small electronic emitter that would work with the chemical concoction in their bloodstream. I paused for a moment, considering whether I was proceeding with my plan. I'd been planning and testing for weeks, but no amount of preparation could get me past one simple truth. Whatever happened, my relationship with my friends would never be the same. Am I really going to do this? There'll be no undoing it.

"Oh, waiter!" came Becky's voice in a mocking singsong. "Where are our refills?"

"Just a minute!" I called back, still on the fence about going through with it. I mean, yeah, maybe they did sometimes think of me as more than a friend, but was I really going to force them to address the issue?

"Well hurry up!" she replied. "Or Cassie and I might get bored and start making out, and you'll miss it!"

...Well. That settles that. I shoved the emitter into my pocket, carefully picked up the three drinks, and returned to the living room.

"So Becky, it's your turn to pick. What's tonight's movie?" I asked nonchalantly as I sat the drinks down on the coffee table. "I'll go put it in the player."

"Hmm, let me think," the blonde said. The smirk on her face told me it was probably something Cassie or I wouldn't like. Probably me. "I'm in the mood for something funny. How about...Talladega Nights?"

I groaned. "Again? You know some people don't love that movie as much as you do, right? I mean, I'm okay with it, but I don't need to see it more than once in a six-month period."

"Spoilsport," she teased, sticking her tongue out at me. "It's my call, and that's what I'm picking. If you don't like it, take your drink and go home early." She smirked again, knowing that was something I definitely wouldn't do. After a few moments, she continued. "That's what I thought. Now put it in."

"That's what she said," I retorted, amused at the brief flicker of annoyance on her face before I went to get the disc. Making sure everything was set up, I switched off the lights, leaving the big-screen TV the only illumination. I settled onto the recliner next to the loveseat the two of them were sitting on and pressed Play. As the movie began, I stealthily brought out the emitter under the guise of silencing my phone, adjusted some settings, and turned it on, then resigned myself to sitting through the movie while I waited on my plan to take effect.

At first, nothing happened other than the girls laughing at Will Ferrell's antics and slowly draining their drinks. I was starting to wonder if I'd done something wrong. I was going over my plan in my head when I realized Cassie was saying something. "What?" I responded after pausing the movie. Smooth, Shawn, real smooth.

"I said, would you go make us more drinks? We're still thirsty," she said, giggling a bit.

"An' some kinda snack too, eh, Shawn?" Becky chimed in, sounding just slightly slurred.

"Sure," I replied, rising from the chair. "Do you girls have any chips, or--" I lost my train of thought as I turned to look directly at them. I was at a better angle standing before them than I was sitting in a chair off to the side and I could see that my work was starting to have an effect.

Becky had always been on the tall side for a woman at 5'9", and she wasn't afraid to use high heels at times to give herself a boost. Normally, in her position, the back of the couch would come up to the base of her skull, but now it was even with her ears. Not a major change, but enough to tell me that it was working. It was slightly more obvious with Cassie, who had been 5'3" previously; the top of the couch back was just visible above the top of her head.

Now that I knew, I could see a few other changes. Cassie had worn a dark purple dress today. It was one of my favorite outfits of hers, and I could immediately spot that it didn't fit her right. Normally it sported a neckline just low enough to tantalize without revealing much. However, it hung down lower now, showing some of her magnificent cleavage. The sleeves usually terminated at her elbows, but they had crept partway down her forearms. The dress wasn't hugging her curvaceous hips as tightly as it should have, and her knees had vanished under the hem when it should've been just above them. Her feet, too, weren't flat on the floor, but instead were pointed down, leaving only the toes of her loose socks in contact with the carpet. My gaze immediately jumped to the right to survey her roommate for changes.

Becky's feet were still flat on the floor, but I could see her favorite fuzzy pink slippers were looking a size too big. My eyes traveled upward to the short-shorts and I saw they weren't as short as before--and there was a small-but-obvious gap between the fabric and the tanned skin of her thighs. Her midriff was visible, as it had been before, but I could see that the loose-fitting white button-up shirt and tank top she was wearing had begun to inch down, closing the gap. The short sleeves of the shirt were almost to her elbows, and the tank top straps, visible since she had only partially buttoned the shirt, looked looser on her shoulders. Even her hairstyle looked different; I realized she'd had it pulled up in a ponytail in back, but the tie had started getting looser and her hair was beginning to slip down.

"Uh, hello? Earth to Shawn?" said Cassie with another giggle. "Shawn? Snap out of it!"

"Yeah! Quit yer starin'!" Becky stifled a hiccup before continuing. "Jus' cuz we think yer kinda cute doesn't mean you can...stare at us, like some kinda...creep," she added, seeming to have a little trouble picking out her words.

Embarrassed that I'd been caught ogling them, it took a moment to register what she had just said. "Cute? You think I'm cute?" I looked back and forth between the two women. They both looked a little flushed, but that may have been the booze.

Becky looked briefly puzzled. "Did I say that? I--"

"Um. Just the alcohol talking, Shawn," Cassie interjected. She laughed again, but this one sounded a little nervous. "So how about our refills and some snacks? I think there's chips in..." she paused for a moment as if trying to think, "...in the cabinet by the fridge."

"Right. On it, ladies. Be right back," I said quickly, gathering up their glasses and heading for the kitchenette, trying not to let them see me grinning, and trying to keep my hands from shaking so I wouldn't clink the glasses together.

My heart was pounding in excitement and I took a moment to get a deep breath and calm down in the kitchen. I could hardly believe what was happening. My formula and the emitter were a success--the girls were actually shrinking! Better yet, my settings were calibrated properly, as I had intended the process to happen slowly to help mask what was happening. And then there's what Becky just said, and Cassie confirmed... Maybe this will turn out to be a good night after all!

I poured some chips into a large bowl and started to refill the girls' tumblers--then inspiration struck. I took a quick look through the cabinets and found some glasses that were similar to the ones they were using, but smaller. I wanted to continue to keep them in the dark about what was happening as long as I could, plus I didn't want them to get *too* drunk. With my additive increasing the effects of the alcohol, I wasn't sure how much would be too much, but since they were already both seeming to be a bit giddy, I thought slowing down was a good idea.

I returned to the living room and set the items down on the coffee table in front of the girls. I could see that in the few minutes I'd been gone, they'd continued shrinking. The top of Becky's head was now less than an inch higher than the back of the couch, and Cassie's sock feet were dangling off the floor entirely. I sat back down in my chair and resumed the movie, giving them a few minutes to get back into the film (and take a few sips of their drinks) before turning my full attention on them to watch the process taking place.