When You Were Young

After hours of thinking and mixing different chemicals, he'd done nothing except make a mess. He hid under the counter at the sound of footsteps approaching the door. The door opened and then he heard Aunt Veronica say, "Well? Any progress?"

He sat under the counter, hoping if he kept silent she might go away. Instead, she came around the corner and then hefted him onto the stool. "I'll take that as a no," she said.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I don't know what to do."

She slapped him across the face hard enough to knock him off the stool. He lay there crying while she screamed, "You know what to do! Somewhere in there you know what to do! How could someone so smart end up so fucking dumb?"

"I don't know," he said.

Aunt Veronica took a flask from her pocket. "I told you the consequences of failure. Now it's time to take your medicine like a good baby."

"No!" He scrambled back until he bumped against a wall. Aunt Veronica filled a tablespoon with glowing white water. "That's how you made Molly little."

"Yes and it'll do the same to you." She approached him with the tablespoon. He stuck out a hand to keep her back, but she swatted it away.

"Wait! I know what to do."

"Oh really? What?"

"If that water can make people little, can't it do the same to plants?" he said.

Aunt Veronica stopped and considered this. "You might have a point. Or you could be trying to trick me into using up the last of this."

"No, I'm not trying to trick you. Think about it," he said. "If it works the same on plants it would shrink the algae into nothing."

Aunt Veronica thought about it for another moment. Finally, she nodded. "All right, we'll try it." Then she flicked the tablespoon towards him. The water hit him in the face. For a few seconds his entire body glowed. When it stopped, his clothes felt looser and the room seemed bigger. Aunt Veronica grabbed his shirt and lifted him up. "You're even wimpier at four than at six," she said.

"Four? But I helped you. This isn't fair!"

"Life isn't fair." She took him by the ear, dragging him down the road. Although it was almost dark, the other children continued to play in small groups. When a wooden ball landed at Aunt Veronica's feet, a pair of girls ran forward until they realized whom their ball had landed near. Aunt Veronica kicked the ball to the girls. "Go on and play," she told them. They skipped away to continue their game.