Luke got to the airport an hour before Magda's flight was due to arrive. He was wildly eager to meet his new wife. Her pictures showed a stunning woman. The man who had facilitated the marriage assured him that the photos were really her and had not been retouched. Once his car was parked, Luke made his way toward the reception area. There were plenty of people there. He hated crowds because he was so short, barely over four feet tall, and slender. More often than he cared to remember, he had been mistaken for a boy in his middle teens. It didn't help that he had soft features and, at 21, still couldn't grow a beard.
He got close to the front of the close-packed bodies but his height made it impossible for him to see over other people. With some wriggling and squeezing he put himself in front of everyone else. Standing behind stanchions and the ropes between them, Luke checked his watch every few minutes. He shifted his small feet restlessly. A flight before the one he wanted landed. A security worker opened a section of rope to allow newcomers to pass through. Some of the people around Luke departed with newly arrived passengers, easing the congestion slightly.
From the beginning his plan had gone well. He had learned about the availability of brides during an on-line search. The obscure country of Microslavia was little more than two long valleys nestled between endless mountain ranges. The women were meek and obedient to their husbands and, best of all, short of stature. And the one he had picked for himself, Magda, was busty and wide-hipped under her colorful native garb, but with a trim waist.
The agency that arranged everything (for a fee) had been endlessly helpful. Their representative, Largo Krill, had seen to every detail. Luke expressed concerns that Magda might simply want to use him to gain entrance to the US, achieve citizenship, and then move on. Largo took extra steps to have the marriage made official in both countries well in advance, and to make it ironclad so that she or he couldn't back out for a minimum of five years (all done for an extra fee). He had even completed additional paperwork so that Luke would be able to travel to her country as easily as she had been able to come to his (which involved only the slightest additional payment more). The two nations were on good terms and wanted to keep it that way, which is why both had made special exceptions that allowed unions like this to be made even before the parties involved had met.
As Luke stood there, time seemed to slow to a crawl. But at last the big board overhead noted that her flight had landed. A short while later the big double doors at the far end of the space opened and people streamed through. He searched for the face of his new spouse, with its dark almond-shaped eyes, high cheekbones, long narrow nose, and full-lipped mouth, all framed in waves of cascading black hair. The small man stood on tiptoes. He reminded himself that because she was short like him, Magda might be hidden behind someone.
The automatic doors closed for a moment and then opened again. More passengers flowed through them. There were several men with briefcases, a man and woman with a half dozen children, an unnaturally tall woman who towered over everyone else, a young couple who bickered as they approached, and an old man with a carved cane. Luke's eyes darted around, searching fruitlessly.
The abnormally tall female couldn't be from Microslavia. She had the same dark wavy hair as Magda. The broad face was similar. But she was at least six and a half feet tall, if not closer to seven. As she got nearer he saw that she possessed the same attractive figure, though at that exceptional height, her full bust and generous hips proportionately large, she was almost threatening. Her long legs suddenly carried her ahead of everyone else. She was coming straight toward Luke. Her piercing eyes locked on his and she grinned widely, teeth gleaming.
Stopping directly in front of the short, confused man, she looked down over her massive bust and said, "Little husband. I am here."
"No, no," he said softly, overwhelmed by her sheer size. "You must be mistaken. I'm waiting for Magda Garr."
"Yes, yes. I am her." She put her hands on his shoulders and squeezed affectionately, but also hard enough that it hurt. "We are married."
Luke tried to pull away but couldn't break her grip. "I think you're... um... wrong?"
"No mistake. You are Luke. Mister Largo Krill fix everything. We are married now, you and I. For always."
Magda bent forward, hugged him to her bosom, and straightened up without letting go. He was lifted off his feet and hung there, legs dangling, as she kissed his forehead. People walking by turned their heads at the odd sight. The freakishly tall woman and the boy - or was that an oddly short adult man? - provoked smiles, along with whispered exchanges and barely stifled laughter. Luke's soft cheeks flushed.
He hissed at her, "Please, Magda. Put me down."
"Ha, ha. Okay." She carefully set him on his feet, handing him as if he might be fragile. "Why are you..." Her brow creased as she searched for the right word. "... upset?"
"I thought you would be, um, not so, err..."
"So tall?" She chuckled. "This happens. Man thinks he is getting short size girl from eastern valley. They are tiny like you. But I am big healthy girl from farm in western valley. You are so lucky." She took his hand and resumed walking, dragging him along. He nearly had to run to keep up. "Luggage being sent to your house. Our home. Mister Krill think of everything."
From behind he marveled at her bottom, so wide and full and firm. In a daze he made sure they got to his car. She fit on the passenger seat but only barely. He got them to his place and they went inside. Magda took off her light, hand-woven jacket and long skirt, to reveal a white sleeveless blouse that exposed her arms, along with brief culottes that left her legs bare. And what arms and legs they were, well formed and obviously strengthened from working on the farm. She stepped out of her rather primitive shoes and flexed her toes. Magda had oversized feet to go with the rest of her, but they were narrow and not unattractive.
She gestured toward Luke's windbreaker. "Now you take off that. I have been waiting. Now is time to consume... constitute... con-sue-make..."
He understood what she was trying to communicate. Luke offered, "Consummate?"