Conflict Resolution Part 2 of 2

What a disaster.

Soon the panic and fear shifted into frustration. Anger. Blame.

Elle wheeled on her feet, now looking down at the formerly tall Joe. Her anger swelled by her relatively tall stature.

Joe, for his part, stared up at the seemingly giant woman. Suddenly feeling less imposing in the face of her anger.

"You idiot! This is all your fault! Look at us!"

Joe through his hands up defensively. "My fault?! You were, uh, we were both trying to get a hold of the thing!"

"You should have just listened to me! Going to try and give me orders now, little guy?"

Joe grimaced at the insult. "I guess my holding onto it meant I got a bigger dose..." He said, mostly to himself. "Listen, just stay calm... I'm sure..."

Elle cut him off. "'Stay calm?!' You did not seriously just say that - we're smaller than Barbie and Ken, Joe!"

The man was about to respond, his fear amplified by their new size difference. "I...I'm sure if we..."

"Shut up." She snapped. "What was that?"

Joe's focus was more on the furious, bigger woman before him, but eventually he heard it too.

"Someone's here!" Elle said through tight lips. Her voice quieter now, as though there was any risk of their tiny voices being heard.

"What do we do...?" Joe asked, his own panic far outsizing his stature.

"Hide!" Elle was already moving.

"W-wait!" Joe said. "We need help! Shouldn't we try..."

The woman was already away. "I'm not letting anyone find me like this! Remember what we were here to do!?"

Joe started to follow, looking back at the enormous device that had rendered them their new size. The prospect of facing this giant alone was not appealing. He saw the light flicker on in reception, and a silhouette moving into the office. The anxiety was too much, and he followed after Elle, rushing towards a nearby desk chair.

The would-be thieves cowered beneath the legs of the chair, the sound of footsteps approaching amplified by their reduced sizes. They didn't have eyes on who was here, but both retreated deeper into the gloom to hide as whoever it was moved around the space, completely unaware of the two shrunken people nearby.

Joe's decision to hide felt like the sane one as the size of the stranger was made clearer, they were positively puny compared to the fully sized stranger. He hid himself lower, not wanting to be found. Elle's curiosity was overpowering though, and she was less concealed.

"Wait, isn't that..." She whispered. "Thats one of the new girls on the marketing team..."

Joe dared to raise his head. "Laura?"

"She must have forgotten something..."

"Just get it and go... don't come over here... don't come over here..." The man whispered, trying to send his thoughts to Laura's mind.

Laura's rifling through her desk ceased, as the shining flashlight caught her eye. The pair cowered, both nearly shrieking as the young woman stomped into view, coming to stand before the seemingly discarded items. She was absolutely titanic by comparison.

"Thats weird..." Came an idle voice from far, far above the trembling pair.

"She wouldn't even know what that is..." Came Elle's voice.

Then, the new addition to the company bent down and lifted the flashlight and mysterious device into her hands.

"Oh shit." The pair said in unison once more.

Elle screamed. "No!"

Joe yelled. "Leave it!"

Yet even in the silence, their voices were too diminutive to be heard by the giantess. Without another thought, or any regard for the panicking pair, she turned and began to leave - the discarded items in tow.

"Get back here!" Elle yelled, trying to get the woman's attention.

Joe through his hands to his face, shocked at how badly this had turned for them.

The thieves watched as their prize simply walked from the office.

Joe and Elle were tiny, helpless and trapped in the dark. Their gaze turning to each other.

"If you had just...!"

"Well if you hadn't...!"

The tiny pair's raucous argument barely more than squeaks in the silent office.

The End