Jordan took another bite of the bacon strip that Ellie dangled in front of him. The savory, smoky flavor coated his tongue, sending a small rush of nostalgia through his mind. It was almost overwhelming how good it tasted, not just because he had always loved bacon, but because it had been a long time since he had something that felt normal. Real food, not that healthy crap Sara eats. Not the carefully setup diet that Sara had been putting him on. Even if it was for his own health.
He glanced up at Ellie, who was chatting away with Mrs. Reeves about some drama at school. She wasn’t paying much attention to him, lazily moving the bacon strip to his level when she remembered. It was the most natural thing in the world to her, and for a brief moment, Jordan could almost pretend things weren’t different. Almost.
Jordan ran his hand over the smooth surface of the countertop. It was warm beneath his fingers, heated by the morning sun streaming through the kitchen windows. The marble was like a stadium floor beneath him, an endless stretch of polished stone, so vast that even if he ran full speed, it would take him a while to reach the other side.
This was what eating at the table looked like for him now, except he wasn’t at the table. He was on it.
The smell of coffee, buttered toast, and eggs filled the air, mixing with the lingering scent of whatever fancy candle Mrs. Reeves had burning near the stove. The kitchen was massive at his scale, a cavernous room filled with monolithic appliances. The refrigerator door swung open as Mrs. Reeves reached for the milk, the gust of cold air rushing out like a winter breeze to Jordan. Every sound was exaggerated. The clinking of silverware, the bubbling of coffee in the pot, the distant hum of the refrigerator, it all loomed around him.
Jordan sighed. He missed when the kitchen was just… a kitchen. When the stove was something he could use, not a structure that towered like a factory. When the fridge was a minor inconvenience if it needed cleaning, not an arctic monolith that could probably fit his first apartment inside.
But more than anything, he missed eating on his own terms.
Ellie, oblivious to his spiraling thoughts, lowered the bacon strip again. Jordan took another bite, the salt and fat melting over his tongue. He chewed carefully, feeling a little pathetic at how much effort it took. Even though Ellie had chosen a softer piece, he still had to work at it. He could feel how much weaker his jaw was compared to before, how much more delicate his muscles had become.
He swallowed and looked up at her. “You know, I can feed myself.”
Ellie smirked down at him, finally giving him her full attention. “I know, but this is way more fun.”
Jordan rolled his eyes but didn’t argue. What was the point? If he insisted, she’d probably tease him more. Besides, fighting over the right to eat like an adult felt pointless when he was sitting on a countertop like a pet waiting for scraps.
Mrs. Reeves turned toward them, setting a glass of orange juice next to Ellie’s plate. “You’re lucky Ellie’s willing to share,” she said with a smile. “I remember when she wouldn’t even let her little cousins have a bite of her food.”
Ellie gasped in mock offense. “Excuse me! I have matured.”
Jordan scoffed. “That’s debatable.”
Ellie smirked and poked his side playfully with her fingertip. He flinched at the contact. Even something as small as a poke was enough to knock him off balance.
Mrs. Reeves chuckled and took a sip of coffee before glancing at Jordan. “I’m glad you’re eating well, sweetheart. You’ve been looking a little thin.”
Jordan shifted uncomfortably. He knew he’d lost weight since shrinking. Littles didn’t have as much body mass to work with, and their metabolism didn’t work the same way as normal-sized people. Every meal was an important one. It was why Generitech had strict dietary plans for the Littles in their care, making sure they got everything they needed.
But here, in a normal household, those considerations weren’t as structured.
Ellie waved a piece of toast in front of him playfully. “Want some?”
Jordan shook his head. “I think I’m good.”
“Suit yourself.” She popped the toast into her mouth and turned back to Mrs. Reeves continuing their conversation.
Jordan sat back on the counter, crossing his legs. The food was great, but it wasn’t just about eating. It was about control. About being able to choose what and how he ate. About not having to rely on someone else.
His mind wandered back to the first few days after he’d shrunk.
The first meal Jordan had after contracting Smallara had been terrifying.
He had been sitting on a napkin, placed carefully on Mrs. Reeves’ kitchen table, still reeling from everything that had happened. His clothes were loose, draped over his new, tiny frame. His hands had trembled as he tried to tear into an apple Sara had placed beside him.
Everything had been too big. Too heavy. Too overwhelming.
Sara had noticed his struggle and, without thinking, had reached down, took a bite of the apple, breaking through the tough outer layer for him.
“There,” she had said, smiling like she’d done him a favor. “That should be easier, right?”
He’d hated it. Hated the implication that he needed help just to eat.
But he hadn’t been able to argue. He had needed the help.
And that was the worst part.
Jordan took a slow breath and pushed those thoughts away. That was then. Things were different now. He was different now.
He wasn’t helpless.
But then Ellie broke off another piece of bacon and held it down to him with a playful wiggle.
“Come on, Jordy, one more bite. For me?”
Jordan sighed, shaking his head. Maybe he was helpless after all.
Still, as much as he hated this whole situation, he couldn’t deny that the food was amazing. The warmth of the kitchen, the casual conversation, the smells of breakfast, it was the closest to normal he had felt in a long time.
And maybe, just maybe, he could allow himself to enjoy it. Even if it meant being fed like a pet.
Related Images:
Non-stressed Mrs. Reeves is nice. I got the feeling with everything that was going on during the week with work, Sara punching someone, Sarah taking Jordan in, etc, that she was a bit more callous than she meant to be. There’s definitely a level of care that she wants to show, just hasn’t really been able to because of everything
Ellie is going to be an awesome guardian too. I look forward to a time where we get to see that.
That is very accurate. She definately came off more harsh because of circumstances. Tiffany does kind of align with Sara in that Littles aren’t equal as tehy are more in between pet and person.
Ellie is a good person. Time will tell if she ever gets a little.
I like that Jordan gets attention from Sara and Ellie. Its kind of a best friend thing sharing him. Add it with Jordan doing fun things with both of them involved while they are in High school and going through their hormonal stuff that I would think he could help with because He is their little and he would be a no judgement zone. Just help.
A wonderful episode; a sense of normalcy, no matter how small in the face of change, can go a long way.
more normal then Jordan has had so far
1.1) “not just because he had always loved bacon, but because it had been a long time since he had something that felt normal.” what could be more normal than bacon twice his hight?
1.2) “Real food, not that healthy crap Sara eats. Not the carefully setup diet that Sara had been putting him on. Even if it was for his own health.” entirely fair, I don’t like eating healthy either, and I especially don;t like others forcing me to.
2) “This was what eating at the table looked like for him now, except he wasn’t at the table. He was on it” and he was almost under it, thanks to Tiff.
3) “When the fridge was a minor inconvenience if it needed cleaning, not an arctic monolith that could probably fit his first apartment inside” it could probably fit two of hjis house inside if scaled to his current size.
4) “But more than anything, he missed eating on his own terms” that’s definitely the worst part of meals for him now.
5) “You know, I can feed myself.” – “I know, but this is way more fun.” I had a similar conversation with my Godson after he figured out how to use a spoon. There is certainly fun to be had feeding someone cute.
6) ““You’re lucky Ellie’s willing to share, I remember when she wouldn’t even let her little cousins have a bite of her food.” Well, the cousins’ “bite” would likely have been more than Jordan’s bodyweight, significantly more than Jordan’s bite. Plus as she stated, Ellie’s having fun.
7) “Excuse me! I have matured.” – “That’s debatable.” Love seeing him tease back, makes the dynamic seem much less cruel towards him (although a physical response from Ellie isn’t great.
8.1) “Jordan shifted uncomfortably. He knew he’d lost weight since shrinking.” could be a result of not eating pellets, or just that day we was in solitary confinelment and barely had any food.
8.2) “Littles didn’t have as much body mass to work with, and their metabolism didn’t work the same way as normal-sized people. Every meal was an important one. It was why Generitech had strict dietary plans for the Littles in their care, making sure they got everything they needed.” Genritech put in a great amount of effort to care for littles, when not exploiting them for profit.
8.3) “But here, in a normal household, those considerations weren’t as structured.” they are when Sara feeds him.
9) “The food was great, but it wasn’t just about eating. It was about control. About being able to choose what and how he ate. About not having to rely on someone else.” That would be better, not having to hope Sara will indulge him instead of
10) “The first meal Jordan had after contracting Smallara had been terrifying. He had been sitting on a napkin, placed carefully on Mrs. Reeves’ kitchen table, still reeling from everything that had happened. His clothes were loose, draped over his new, tiny frame. His hands had trembled as he tried to tear into an apple Sara had placed beside him. Sara had noticed his struggle and, without thinking, had reached down, took a bite of the apple, breaking through the tough outer layer for him.” That was his first meal? The apple thing happened more than 24 hours after he shrank and Sara had claimed him. Sara just forced him to starve him for that long? (I’d assumed she’d fed him when she had her meals like breakfast and lunch, but I guess I was giving Sara too much credit)
11) “There,” she had said, smiling like she’d done him a favor.” Sara thinks everything she does is a favour, even all the bullying.
12) “Jordan sighed, shaking his head. Maybe he was helpless after all” unfortunately he is and this world will take full advantage of that.
13) “Still, as much as he hated this whole situation, he couldn’t deny that the food was amazing. The warmth of the kitchen, the casual conversation, the smells of breakfast, it was the closest to normal he had felt in a long time. And maybe, just maybe, he could allow himself to enjoy it. Even if it meant being fed like a pet.” Trying to find small amounts of happiness makes sense, unfortunately, it means he’s partly given in to serving as a pet.
1.1) I love bacon. I would love it to be that big if I was hungry and had a fast burn rate lol.
1.2) I apricate my wife making healthy homemade meals with as little poisoned factory farming and premade nasty additive stuff as possible.
2) well at least he wont fall off lol.
3) At his small size and lack of heat retention, I would hide in or grab Ellies hand for warmth when it opened.
4) I guess its good and bad, he doesn’t have to do anything and his meals are made and brought to him, the bad he cant pick what and when he eats.
5) I love Ellie having fun with Jordan. Not being mean just having fun.
6) Your right, she isn’t sharing much lol.
7) I love Jordans tease back and I always love Ellies more physical but loving stuff she does. Physical interaction is a important social need for mammals especially small ones for some reason lol.
8.1-8.3) I agree
9) as long as he gets food when he is hungry, i wouldn’t care lol.
10) That doesn’t seem right. I would think her mom would make sure he is fed and she was so exited to have him I would think she would have been eager to do it.
11) In the first chapters your right, now in the later chapters she has been softer I think because of Chole’s influence. They are a great pair and I hope they marry down the road.
12) I think this is were like most littles, there life would be happier if they accepted there transformation and in braced it, instead of fighting it. He gets doted on by two giant beautiful woman. That is something he could have fun with if he would let himself.
13) I look at excepting being a smaller animal being taking care of by a bigger animal and choosing to do it on his terms is better then fighting it and being on theirs. At least he can try to train them to let him snuggle in to his favorite spots on their body and encourage them to give him their pets that make his body feel so good. I found out when I was young that if I tried to convince my self something I had to do like at work was fun then it would go faster and I would enjoy trying to do better at it. The mind is a powerful tool.
1.1) Giant versions of normal things is one of my favourite aspects of shrinking stories.
1.2) To each their own.
3) She’d love that.
4) I like cooking, so I’d miss it if it was taken from me.
5) indeed, she seems nicer than Sara.
9) That is the bare minimum
10) Tiff is very hands off with Jordan, especially in the beginning.
11) Sara still needs to face the music for it, in my opinion.
12) Slaves would have been happier if they just accepted it too.
13) It’s a principle thing, he’s been used, ogled, bullied, intimidated and abused and he has no recourse or even issues with it, he just takes the abuse and lets them keep doing it. Every promise Sara has made has been broken and he never calls her on it.
“I found out when I was young that if I tried to convince my self something I had to do like at work was fun “ That piece of advice pissed me off as a kid (no shade to you for doing it though) because it was always used to justify shitty things being forced on me.
1.1) bacon twice my height is the dream. Jordan just gets to live it. Especially if its a thick bacon.
1.2) The intent was this is kind of laying the ground work for a storyline you saw the resolution of in a side story. Where Jordan mentioned he had to eat pellets for one meal. You see a few teases of that threadline here. I do agree healthy food in my experience has never tasted as good but also having it forced you either by a parent, family or significant other is never fun, But seemingly inevitable when people care about you.
2) This is an example of Sara standing up for him. Tiffany didn’t like him standing on the table. Sara stood up for him and defended him. Now he has full table access without it even being questioned any further.
3) easily i bet. If not more
4) That would be difficult but at least so far Sara has eaten at mostly normal times. Its not like she is eating at exotic times or odd hours of the night.
5) I would agree. its a very relatable thing
6) All of what Jordan ate is not even a noticeable portion of a singular piece of bacon that Ellie ate.
7) Kelli’s response was intended to be playful. Its not like she did a little flick or something.
8.1) The intent is that its pellet related. Setting the stage for why Sara took him to doctors.
8.2) They do. Littles get all the food and nutrients they need.
8.3) Also accurate but I wanted to show how most people aren’t Sara. Which is why pellets are so important.
10) It wasn’t the first thing he ate. As Sara did feed him food before the apple. But it was his first meal. Where he was sitting down at Sara’s house to eat.
11) you are kind of playing both sides here as if she had just watched him struggle and done nothing you would also have criticized her for being cruel. Either option would have gotten a negative response.
12) That is human nature.
13) I think Jordan is in a better situation then Bryce or Madison’s parents for example. Plus, for Jordan, he does see some benefits to the arrangement even if you personally would not. While Jordan does have to give up some freedom he also gets to give up some burdens. How each person would feel about the given choice is a very personal decision. I woudln’t fault anyone personally for being against it or for it. As I can see both sides. I think for me personally it would depend on the guardian and how our personalities and belief structures aligned.
1.1) It’s the dream, but not the norm.
1.2) Yes, for Jordan getting on pellets. Healthy food seems to have less flavour and variety.
2) and it didn’t even go wrong or get turned against him this time.
4) Normal times is alright.
7) Kelli’s in this scene?
8.1) I figured
8.3) Sara’s curated diet is proven to be a temporary measure.
10) I see
11) No, cause if she just opened the apple and didn’t act like she was going above and beyond I’d have no objections.
12) Little nature too, probably, if they could.
13) Jordan’s not in the worst situation, that’s Desmond, My current list goes.
1st Mark,
2nd & 3rd Liam and Noah (tie for obvious reasons)
4th Thomas
5th Scott
6th Lisa
7th Kelli
8th Jordan
9th Gavin
10th Greg
11th Tucker
12th Bryce
13th Cindy
14th Christine
15th Desmond
Maybe I’ve missed something but whose Desmond. Every other name I recognize but I don’t know who Desmond is?
Desmond was featured in a story titled skaters: https://smallara.com/2023/08/20/skaters-episode-1-a-smallara-side-story/
Which I really should get back to at some point.
I would love to learn more about Desmond.
1.1) But it should be.
1.2) If healthy food could taste as good as the unhealthy stuff. We’d have something here.
2) I can hear the shock in your voice.
4) Normal times somewhat regimented would be ideal which Sara does mostly eat the same times.
7) lol, so used to writing Kelli i messed up trying to write Ellie
8.3) Yes canonically because of higher metabolism its very difficult for a little to survive without pellets. Not impossible mind you but difficult as they would need to eat quite often. The pellets resolve that issue. Which is why Sara’s solution was having him eat pellets for one meal to kind of balance out things.
It did result in a broken promise but the other outcome was his probable death.
13) I forgot about mark. I had to do a search to remember he was part of the one shot. I agree with your rankings. Thats probably where would put most people.