“All right then!" The man stood from the couch and strode over to the box, taking on the affectations of a flamboyant stage magician. "Watch in amazement as the Great Olivini turns himself into a child!”
He kept the pair of Sesame Street undies in one hand, and noticed the looks of rapt attention on the faces of his nephews. For modesty's sake, Oliver stepped behind the sofa. With a grin, he told them to close their eyes.
Connor kept his eyes shut tight, but Oliver saw his other nephew keeping his eyes slightly open.
"No peeking, Jackson," he said.
With a dramatic sigh, Jackson followed instructions and screwed his eyes shut.
“Okay, get ready for some magic!” Oliver said as he stepped outside from behind the couch wearing the Sesame Street underwear which barely fit his massive frame but that was about to change.
“Uncle Oliver, why are you wearing kid’s underwear?” Conner asked confused.
“Wait for the magic!”
And with that Oliver felt dizzy as the room spu Suddenly, Oliver felt as though his whole body was shrinking. His mighty biceps felt as though they were deflating as did his shoulders, pecs, abs, thighs, and yes, even his crotch. It felt like the world around him was growing while the reality was he was shrinking back into his thin frame he possessed when younger, the muscles and the strength they gave him draining quickly.
In mere moments, he went from being a 6'5 foot Adonis with bulging muscles to a small boy.
While they had watched the transformation unfold before them, they found themselves staring at a nearly naked little boy even smaller than their ten-year-old selves.
"It's me!" Oliver said. "That's the trick."
"Uncle Ollie?" Jackson questioned in a dubious tone
"What happened to you?" Jackson asked, walking around the large sofa for a better look at this impostor.
"I told you, magic," Oliver said.
The boys glanced at each other, and somehow decided that Jackson would act as spokesperson. "This is a trick, did you use some sort of projector?”he declared.
Oliver giggled at their attempt at grown-up skepticism. "I'll show you," he said. He slipped the ring off his finger and held it out in the palm of his hand.
His nephews bent over the ring, studying it.
"It's a magic ring," he said. "I found it."
Connor broke into a grin. "So, that's why it took you so long to come to the door when mom knocked. You were a little boy then, too?"
Oliver nodded excitedly. He felt a high level of energy once again, but he was getting slightly self-conscious standing dressed in a pair of Sesame Street undies in front of his fully-dressed nephews. With the boys standing so close to him, he realized what a difference a few years could make at such young ages. His slightly older nephews loomed over him.
He was giddy with fun as they began to accept the reality of the situation.
"And all because of this?" Jackson asked, swiping the ring right from his transformed uncle's hand.
That was unexpected. "Jackson, give it back!" He piped in a whiny tone.
"I just wanna look at it," his defiant nephew replied.
"It belong to me," Oliver said, feeling a little panicky without the ring in his possession. "Hand it over."
Challenged by someone so much smaller than himself, Jackson drew himself up into a defiant stance. "Make me," he dared with a wide grin.
"C'mon, give it," Oliver said, lunging toward his nephew only to smack into a suddenly outstretched hand.
He hadn't meant to play so rough, but in protecting the ring, Jackson pushed his much smaller uncle all the way to the floor. The stunned little boy fell back onto his butt, then stared up at his much larger nephews as they crowded closer.
It must have been the shock… or something… It hadn't hurt… but he felt his eyes fill with tears. He knew as a grown man he shouldn't even consider surrendering to tears, but his emotions veered quickly out of control.
His nephews stared at him in uncomfortable surprise as their little uncle bawled.
"Maybe you should give it back," Connor wavered.
"I'm not giving it back," Jackson dug in his heels. "He's just being a cry-baby."
"Am not!" Oliver shrieked, only to find himself sniffling as the burst of crying seemed to shake him.
"Uncle Ollie's a cry-baby," Jackson teased.
"Well, he is littler than us," Connor pointed out quite reasonably.
"If we keep him like this, we're in charge until Mom gets home," Jackson tried to persuade his wavering sibling.