Night of the Giant Everything by R. L. Stine Read Free Book Online Page B

“Tell me right now. Tell me how you are doing this. You are totally freaking me out.”
    “You’re
freaked out?” I shouted. “What about
me?
I’m the one who is freaked out, Ava. You did this to me. You and Courtney.”
    “Are you
crazy?”
she cried. She tightened her fingers around me and lifted me off the floor. She swung me up and sat me down on the edge of her green table.
    Her blue eyes narrowed as she studied me. She poked me in the stomach with a pointer finger. “I … don’t believe this,” she murmured. “Steven, it’s really you? You really shrank?”
    “I — I — I —” I sputtered. “Stop poking me! I’m not a doll.”
    She lowered her gaze. “Where did you get those black plastic shoes? And—and … what are you wearing, Steven?
Doll
clothes?”
    I swung a fist in the air. “Ava, I swear, if you laugh at me, I’ll
kill
you!”
    She laughed. “Steven, you couldn’t kill a
flea!”
    “STOP LAUGHING!” I shrieked.
    She stopped. “Sorry. It isn’t funny. It’s … frightening.”
    “Yes. Frightening,” I agreed. “I don’t thinkyou’re listening to me, Ava. It’s your fault. It’s totally your fault.”
    She squinted hard at me. She brought her face closer. Her head was as big as my whole body. “My fault? Why are you saying that? How could it be my fault?”
    “That drink you and Courtney g-gave me,” I stammered. “It shrunk me. You did it. You gave me those chemicals, and they shrunk me.”
    “But, Steven —” she started.
    “You’ve got to help me,” I said. “Tell me what those chemicals were. Tell me what I drank. Maybe a doctor will know an antidote. Maybe —”
    “Steven, listen —” She brought her face closer.
    “Just tell me!” I screamed. “What was in that drink?
Tell me!
“
    She sighed. “Okay, okay. Stop screaming like that. I — I’ll tell you.”

23
    The window curtains flapped in a strong breeze. I could hear the TV from the den. And I could hear every pounding beat of my heart as I waited for her to speak.
    “It was vinegar,” she said.
    I stared up at her. Her words didn’t make any sense to me. It was like she spoke in a foreign language.
    She frowned at me. “That’s all it was, Steven. Just vinegar.”
    “Vinegar,” I repeated the word. My mind was spinning. “You mean—?”
    “Just vinegar and water. No chemicals,” Ava said.
    “But you said —” I could barely choke the words out. I was totally stunned. “You said you went to the chem lab. You said you mixed up a bunch of chemicals.”
    Ava shook her head. “You believed me? That was all a lie,” she said. “Courtney and Iwanted to pay you back for being such a jerk. I wanted to pay you back for dropping those eggs on my head.”
    “Vinegar,” I muttered. “Vinegar.”
    “That’s all it was,” Ava said. “No chemicals. Nothing bad. Just vinegar from the bottle in our kitchen.”
    “Then how did this happen to me?” I cried. “Why did I shrink?”
    Ava studied me, thinking hard. “Are you allergic to vinegar?”
    “No! No way!” I squeaked. “I’m not allergic to vinegar! Ava—look at me. I’m, like, six inches tall. I’m wearing doll clothes. That’s not an allergy. An allergy doesn’t shrink you down to the size of a chipmunk!”
    “Okay, okay.” Ava clamped her hands over her ears. “Stop screaming. Your squeaky voice is hurting my ears.”
    “Well, what am I going to do?” I asked. “What if I start shrinking even more? What if I shrink till I’m out of sight?”
    Ava scrunched up her face. “It’s weird that you’re a magician. I mean, you like to make things disappear. And now you … well …”
    “It’s not weird,” I said. “It’s terrifying. Ava, you’ve got to help me.”
    She jumped up. “I’ll get my parents. They’ll freak when they see you. But they can take you to our doctor. Maybe he can help.”
    “Thanks,” I said. Sitting on the edge of the table, I crossed my arms over my chest.
    Ava turned back at the