Turned Upside Down

Chapter 4

Evan was relieved it was Saturday, a day he could stay locked inside his apartment without raising suspicion. He needed time—time to think, to process, to somehow make sense of the horrifying reality he'd been thrust into. He felt raw, a mixture of relief and exhaustion from the bizarre ordeal, his mind tangled with questions he couldn't begin to answer.

After a quick shower, Evan found himself in the kitchen, absently pouring a cup of coffee as he stared at the faint morning light filtering through the blinds. He kept expecting to feel that strange warmth creeping through his chest again, waiting for the tingling to start up in his fingers and toes. Every few minutes, he'd look down at his hands, flexing his fingers, almost expecting them to start shrinking. But everything was normal—for now. He took a deep breath, letting the steam from his coffee wash over him, grounding himself in the mundane, comforting smells of breakfast and home.

As he took a seat at the kitchen table, he let his gaze wander around the room, taking in every detail—the refrigerator magnets he'd collected over the years, the slightly chipped mug he'd been meaning to replace, the pile of unopened mail on the counter. All these little, ordinary details felt like anchors, reminders of the world he'd always known, the world he was desperately trying to stay connected to.

What's happening to me? The thought circled through his mind, looping endlessly, but every time he tried to pin it down, to find an answer, he came up empty. There was no logical explanation, no science or medical reason he could think of for why he'd shrunk to the size of a toy twice in less than 24 hours. The whole thing felt like something out of a nightmare—or worse, a story no one would ever believe.

Evan slumped in his chair, cradling his coffee between his hands as he thought back to the first time it had happened. He remembered the warmth building in his chest, the way his vision had blurred, how the walls and furniture had seemed to stretch and expand around him. The sensation of shrinking had been surreal, like something from a bad dream, but the fear he'd felt was as real as anything he'd ever experienced.

He took a sip of coffee, grimacing at the slight bitterness as he tried to push down the creeping sense of dread. He wished he could tell someone, just to hear them tell him he wasn't losing his mind. He thought about calling Mason, replaying last night's call in his mind. Mason had just thought he'd just fallen asleep at his desk. He could still picture his friend shrugging it off with a laugh, completely oblivious to the nightmare Evan had been living.

But if I tell him, Evan thought, he'll think I'm crazy. They all will. And then there was the problem of proof. How could he prove this was real? It wasn't like he could control it, could just shrink himself on command to show someone.

He pushed himself away from the table and began to pace around his apartment, hoping that maybe movement would help him think more clearly. Every shadow in the room seemed to loom just a little larger, every corner a reminder of the strange, giant world he'd been stranded in last night. The thought made him shudder.

Maybe there was a trigger, something he'd done that had caused it to happen. He mentally replayed both incidents, but they seemed completely random. The first time, he'd just been relaxing on his couch; the second time, playing a video game with Mason. No connection. No common thread. Only that strange warmth in his chest.

By noon, he was bored and restless, feeling a bit like a caged animal pacing back and forth, his mind still spinning uselessly. His body ached from the tension, his muscles knotted and sore. He decided to do something, anything, to distract himself. He picked up a book from his shelf, trying to lose himself in the familiar comfort of fiction, but the words kept slipping past his eyes, refusing to stick. He tried watching a movie, but the plot blurred as his thoughts wandered, always circling back to the unanswerable questions clawing at his mind.

Around mid-afternoon, he tried cleaning, hoping the physical activity might wear him out, but it only made him more aware of the spaces around him, the vastness of the floor, the towering height of the cabinets. Every time he walked past his desk, he could feel his heart race, a visceral reminder of the hours he'd spent stranded there, staring into the shadowed depths of his own apartment, helpless.

Finally, exhausted, he sank back onto his couch, staring at the ceiling, feeling the weight of his solitude pressing down on him. For the first time, he wondered if this would ever stop—if he'd be able to return to a normal life, or if he'd forever be haunted by the threat of shrinking at any moment.

A faint sound outside the window drew his attention, the distant laughter of kids playing, the low rumble of cars passing by, and he felt a pang of longing for the normalcy that seemed to be slipping between his fingers. The sunlight filtering through his blinds shifted, casting long shadows across the room as the day wore on, and Evan found himself watching them, letting his mind go blank as he sat on the couch with the television playing quietly in the background.

The shadows grew longer, the sunlight fading as dusk crept in. In the dimming light, the stillness of his apartment felt heavier, almost oppressive, and he felt a shiver run down his spine. Despite his exhaustion, sleep seemed impossible, the thought of another night spent shrinking and helplessly stranded keeping his mind wide awake.

But as the city lights outside flickered on, Evan finally dragged himself to bed, lying on his back and staring at the ceiling, trying to find solace in the routine of closing his eyes and letting himself drift. But deep down, he knew the routine no longer held the comfort it once had.