Flash Fiction - Interdigital

Nathan cursed as he hopped out of bed, the sound of his cat vomiting snapping him out of peaceful slumber. The moment the sole of his foot connected with a fresh pile of feline feculence, he knew he should have put on his slippers first.

The smell of vomit and feces filled the room, making Nathan retch. He rushed to the ensuite, slipping on the tile and leaving a brown streak in his wake, like the path of some nasty shit slug. He managed to stay upright but was soon on his knees, tossing up his TV dinner.

It was then that he noticed the ravaged body of his cat in the shower. The poor kitty’s stomach was torn open, innards spilling out like a display at an offal buffet. Nathan felt his stomach lurch again, but he choked it down when the thought popped into his head.

What did I step in?

Shifting onto his behind, Nathan lifted his foot. The substance looked very much like shit, but the small, segmented green worms fanning out from the muck were unlike anything he had ever seen before.

Nathan stood and flushed the toilet, hopping on his clean foot as he waited for the tank to refill. He wasn’t about to set foot in the shower, so the shitter would need to do. After what seemed like an interminably long time, the sound of rushing water in the cistern ceased. Nathan jammed his foot into the toilet and flushed again. The water rushed out and washed most of the shit from his foot, but the green creatures clung on for dear life.

He screamed as they wriggled between his toes, heading for the splits and cracks that came with athlete’s foot. The things wormed inside, burrowing into the flesh and fanning out in all directions. Nathan could see them move just below the surface of the skin, their bodies growing fatter as they gnawed through nerves and tendons.

The pain was unbearable as they surged past his groin, pausing long enough to gorge on the gusset. By the time they reached his belly, they were huge. If anyone had seen Nathan writing on the cold tile floor, they may have mistaken him for the world’s first pregnant male, but what burst free of his stomach was definitely not human.