That evening they took a taxi into town and had dinner at a restaurant overlooking the jetty. Alicia wore a tan dress and her new heels. Henry couldn’t believe how she had somehow made his ugly feet somehow look so attractive. The feet did not look out of place at all. They were open toed heels and revealed the red polished nails on what used to be his toes. He was once more wearing her white golf shoes under the trousers she had taken up the previous day. Wearing white shoes and dark trousers wasn’t exactly good fashion but everyone was watching Alicia not Henry.
Alicia spent dinner convincing him that they should go shopping and purchase new clothes to fit his short body which he had to admit he was likely to have for the duration of the honeymoon. He finally agreed over desert, hoping that other customers were not eavesdropping on their conversation. They decided on a walk out on the jetty before heading back to the resort.
As they were leaving the jetty a group of youths walked past. They stopped and brazenly leered at Alicia. One of them said to Henry. “Whoa Man! Your daughter is hot!”
“She’s my wife. Not my daughter” Henry snapped back
“Woohoo! Geez man, your punching above your weight! Good luck holding on to her!”
Alicia took Henry by the shoulders and made him walk away quickly. She didn’t want the words to escalate and could sense Henry was angry. Alicia doubted that at his current size he could protect her from the youths if the argument became physical. Fortunately, there was an available taxi near the restaurant. They headed straight back to the resort.
Back there it took some coaxing from Alicia to get Henry to admit that the jibe had hit home. How at the moment he felt he was an inadequate husband for Alicia. He hated been small. He had always been bigger than average. Henry found he couldn’t hide the tears in his eyes as he described how insufficient he felt.
Alicia found herself once for cradling the little man to her breasts, trying to comfort him. Trying to assure him that he was more than adequate for her.
It was in the aftermath of this that they got the doll back out of the safe. Alicia told Henry “It’s your turn to choose”
Henry choose the doll’s hands. They were light blue in colour and like the feet proved to be one sachet with two lobes. This time Henry put the sachet in a glass. Before he drank he said to Alicia “I sure hope I was right in my interpretation of the note” then drank half of the fluid. He handed the remainder to Alicia then added “I’ll need a lot more comforting if I still have your feet tomorrow morning”
“We’ll be fine Henry. This experience is only going to make us closer” before downing the remainder of the liquid. She meant it.