"The Adventures of Three-Inch Caulifla"
Five Days Later…
Sucrose Lane, Hideout
Caulifla's POV
Ugh, pushing balls of folded socks was a pain, but I had no choice. Lavender's next tea blend shrunk me to the size of a doll. What's worse was the side effects. If I acted selfish, my body shrunk. To avoid becoming an ant, I'd changed my act. Since my back still hurts, I occupied myself by cleaning my gigantic bedroom. Piles of used socks, crumbled wrappers, and bread crumbles looked like grotesque mountains.
Before taking Lavender's program, I wasn't used to cleaning after myself. My rebellious stage took a lazy route and I would shutter when someone told me to pick up trash. Trash which I littered. As a three-inch doll, carrying life-sized objects was a hassle. With my back not completely healed, carrying those objects took hours. Thank god the blend didn't minimize my saiyan strength. While I dunked socks into the laundry basket, Olive entered, her footsteps rocking the floor.
"Hey, sis. I'm going out. Wanna come with me?" That was the first; Olive never asked me to join her. Although, Olive is my right-hand woman, so I couldn't deny the offer. Once I put all my dirty clothes in the basket, Olive plucked the collar of my Action Girl outfit. Kale kept Action Girl dolls, along with the outfits. I shouldn't ask why Kale didn't donate them, but without those outfits, walking around naked and tiny looked embarrassing. "I got a hand purse you can ride in."
North City, Clothes Shop (Twenty Minutes Later)
Dequan's POV
Aw, look at the women. Dad told me to respect them. Never judge them by their looks, but by their personalities. Today, me and a saiyan soldier monitor the Clothes Shop. So far, no robberies. My time at the Sadala Defense Force has been fun. Met new friends, showed my heroic stunts, and kept my dad's promise. Until his untimely death by a terminal illness, he wanted me to become a proud soldier.
From then on, I trained hard, worked harder, and studied diligently. That was two months ago. During our parol, my eyes caught a fine woman with locks of black hair flowing behind her. I could've sworn she looked familiar. "Hey, Dequan! Got a call from our supervisor. He wants us to return to headquarters."
Before leaving, I saw the woman's hand purse. A tuft of wild, spiky black hair poked out of its opened zipper. Wait, that tuft looked familiar, too. Ah, my mind's wandering off. I followed my partner back to headquarters, and we visited the supervisor's office. "From studying the documents, I'm pleased of the process, Dequan. Keep up the good work. Also, visit Cabba. He's beginning a new mission soon." I nodded, bowed down, and went after the ace.
He was at the cafeteria, gulping a milk carton and wiping crumbs after consuming a hearty sandwich. Damn, I forgot about lunch. After grabbing grub, I sat next to Cabba, who had an uneasy frown. "What's up, man? The day bringing you down?" I patted Cabba's back, which startled him. He nearly dropped his milk carton. "Uh, no. I'm alright. Just thinking about something else." Cabba's mission took place in outer space, so we'll be taking the duo ship. While we walked out the cafeteria, a question floated inside my head. About the tuft of black hair. I thought hard until concluding where I'd seen that hair.
"Cabba? Does your friend have wild, spiky hair?" He stopped near the vehicle session's entranceway, his eyebrows furrowed. "Uh… I'm not getting you, Dequan. Almost everyone in headquarters has spiky hair." Eyes rolled, we motioned ourselves to the nearest duo ship. Once Cabba pressed a button that opened the ship's door, I asked another question. "I mean, is there a friend outside of headquarters who has spiky hair?" He wasn't getting my point, so I described the woman's features from what I recalled. Black hair, triangular-shaped eyes, light skin, and wore revealing clothes.
Well, her baggy pants weren't revealing, but her tube shirt was. The description got through Cabba. "Oh, you mean Caulifla? Why do you want to know?" Caulifla? Yeah, she mentioned her name last week, but she left without asking me questions. "What do you see in Caulifla?" We entered the ship as Cabba checked the control panel. He described Caulifla having a thug-like attitude. That explained the attire and hairstyle. And how she spoke. Oh, she sounded like a badass.
We sat next to each other, waiting for the ship to warm up its engines. "In conclusion, Caulifla has an attitude problem, looks down on people, and treats her friends respectfully. However, she is a good person. I've heard she gave up the training tent, because of what her negligence caused Kale." He continued, saying more about Caulifla's obsession with training and how it affected her friends. Man, I didn't know she was a healthy freak. My type of woman! "Thanks, Cabba. Let's finish this mission and rest." We sailed off of Sadala and headed to our mission.
Two Days Later…
Madame Lavender's Tea Shop (10 am)
Caulifla's POV
I regained my original size after dealing with the doll life. Upon returning to normal, I realized how neat my bedroom looked. The girls respected my hard effort and congratulated me. Their encouragement pushed me further into completing Lavender's test. "I see your progress is improving, Young Caulifla. Great, we're almost at the finish line. For your last lesson, this tea blend will open your perspective. Now, you must flip yourself."
What Lavender said sounded confusing. 'Flip yourself' was another quote that had a deeper meaning. Lavender lectured about the tea blend altering a person's personality. "It'll flip to the opposite personality. For example, a malicious person would drink this blend and wake up feeling joyful and selfless." Oh, I get the point. In a week, I'll be different. The one thing I signed up to this program. Oh, and my back. "Are you ready to take the last lesson, Young Caulifla?"
This is it; Kale and I will reignite our friendship. "Yes, I'm ready." I took the box and thanked Lavender for all she'd done. While leaving her shop, I was about to bypass the park, when Dequan hollered at me. "Caulifla, hold up!" He jogged towards me, my chest pounding from how gorgeous he looked. Without his SDF armor, Dequan appeared casual and hot. I stood near me, his smirk spreading wider. "I'd called your hideout, and a girl named Olive said you already left. There's something I need to say. Can you hang out with me?" H-He's asking me out!? On a date!? I couldn't hold in my blushed cheeks as I clutched the box close to my stomach. "S-Sure."
What was I thinking!? I wasn't ready for whatever Dequan had. Fortunately, we walked through the park, holding hands. I carried the box under my arm, as we strolled on the pathway. "It's a coincidence that we met three times this month. Fate might tell me you and I were meant for each other." What does fate have to do with our unexpected date!? Aw, I can feel beads of sweat pouring down my back! I pulled my arm off of Dequan and shook my hand. "I'm sorry, but I should be going. Thanks for the stroll."
I flew away, my heartbeat slowing to its original rhythm. Dammit, I'm supposed to be a thug, not a love-struck fanatic. However, Dequan differed from the other soldiers at headquarters. I can't quite understand what though. Hours passed and night rose. It was almost bedtime, so I brewed my last cup of tea this month and drank it. Before going to sleep, Kale opened her door and poked her hair out. "Caulifla?"
"Yeah, Kale?"
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For making a difference. I know your goals broke our friendship, but together, we changed our lives. Honestly, if it weren't for your obsession with that tent, I could've…"
"Lost your crap and destroyed North City?"
"Yes."
"Well, if it weren't for you and Olive, my back would have snapped in half."
"Hehehe, yes, that is true. How is your back anyway?"
"It's getting better."
"Good to hear."
"Kale? I'll be ending my program with Lavender. Once I'm done, we can rebook the resort I canceled weeks prior?"
"Yes!"
"Aw, that's great. Good night, Kale."
"Good night, Caulifla."
(Tomorrow, I'll be a different woman, but it'll be the woman Kale deserves.)