"I am not," Linda insisted. "And if I am, it's because this isn't something that should be happening."
Mikey put an arm around her. "Don't worry," she said, in a comforting manner. She wasn't sure why her mother was worried, but she felt a sudden need to protect her from whatever it was.
Linda found herself relaxing a bit at the touch, at least for a few seconds, before she realized Mikey was now a head taller than her. She pulled back. "You're still growing," she exclaimed.
"I don't think so," Mikey said.
Linda looked down, and saw that her hands had disappeared completely into her sleeves and her bathrobe was starting to drape on the floor. "I'm shrinking?" she exclaimed, her voice cracking again...she cleared her throat, but it stayed at a higher pitch than she expected.
"It isn't so bad," Mikey said. "I mean...it doesn't hurt at least, does it?"
She hadn't even noticed it was happening. But she'd been focused on Mikey. Linda slipped out of the bathrobe. She usually slept in a long t-shirt, unlike the nightgown Mikey was wearing. The t-shirt, however, was also draping itself along the floor.
Mikey took the bathrobe from her and put it on. It fit her, covering her nightgown, which was good, because wearing only a nightgown was feeling a bit breezy.
"Mikey," she said. "If...you're a girl now...it's important you know what that means..." she started. "I need to tell you...just in case."
Mikey looked at her, with an indulgent smile. "Okay..." she said, sitting down so she could see Linda better. "Like what?"
"Girls and boys are built differently," Linda said, trying to figure out how to put this. You know how when you plug the cord into your tablet...girls and boys are like that."
She got an amused look. "Am I the cord or the tablet?"
"I...I..." she trailed off having lost her train of thought. She tried to get back to the analogy, but the thought made her a bit uncomfortable. She felt a discomfort in her stomach, and clutched it with her hands, wincing a bit...
"What is it?"
"It feels like I have to go to the bathroom," she said. She tried to move, but still couldn't move very far. It felt easier to move her arms, but her feet felt difficult to lift.
She opened her mouth and took a deep breath, and found herself inhaling the fog in the room, it felt cold and wet all of the sudden. She began to shiver.
