...very quickly walked away from my line of sight. I walked in the same general direction she did, but I lost her in the crowd of people. I couldn't spot her again because I wasn't really sure of what she wore. I had been so preoccupied with the realization of the ring's power that I never bothered to take notice of her dress or even her characteristics and appearance. How would I ever make this up to her again?
Of course, I thought. The ring could help me. I wished that I knew the name and address of the woman whose clothes just disappeared and reappeared. I didn't say the wish aloud this time, in the hopes that the ring would know that I made the wish.
It worked as I immediately knew that the woman's name was Melanie Brown and that she lived at 17A Turner Avenue. That was only a few blocks away from where I stood. I could go straight to her. I stopped and thought for a moment. Perhaps that might not be the best idea. It would certainly raise a lot of questions. The hell with it, I decided. It was the only way I could do this and know that I had made amends, at least in my own mind. I wished again that I knew when she would be back at her home. I immediately had the answer that she was going there now.
I followed what I guessed was the woman's own path to her home. It took me about ten minutes to get there. I found that she lived in half of a duplex. This was better than an apartment complex, which I had originally guessed her home would be. Whatever might happen would hopefully not attract as much attention as might in an apartment.
I swallowed hard and walked up to the front door. I did not see a doorbell so I knocked on the door. A few seconds later the door swung open and the woman appeared. She appeared to be about the same age as me, in her late twenties. She had shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes. I didn't have a chance to look at the rest of her before she said, "Yes, who are you?" Her voice seemed to tremble somewhat, as if she was still emotionally overwhelmed.
"Hi," I said. "I need to speak with you."
She raised her eyebrows at me. "About what?" she asked. "I don't even know you."
"I know," I said. "I, uh...well, I'm not really sure how to say this, but I, um...saw what happened on the street."
Her eyes went wide and she looked as if she was going to burst into tears. She stood aside from the door to open a path for me to enter. "Come in, come in," she said as her voice cracked.
I walked inside only a few feet and turned to face her. She took a step outside the door and appeared to glance around to make sure no one else was within earshot. She moved back inside and firmly closed the door behind her. "What did you see?" she asked.
"I, um, saw your clothes disappear and then reappear," I answered. "I caused that to happen."
"B-but how could you have done that?" she asked.
"You're probably not going to believe this, but I can prove it," I said. I held up my hand so that she could see the ring. "This ring grants wishes. It was given to me by an old woman who told me what it could do. I didn't believe her and so I wished for your clothes to disappear, because you were the first person I saw across the street from me."
She walked slowly to her couch and sat down. She buried her face in her hands and I could hear a few soft sobs. She looked back up at me, her eyes now stained red and a teardrop running down her cheek. "Do you know how embarrassing that was?" she asked. "To be violated like that?"
"No," I said. "I have no idea. And I'm very sorry for what I did. That is why I came here. I want to make amends."
"How did you even know where I lived?" she asked. I just held up my hand again. "Oh, right," she said. I was amazed that she didn't question the ring's power. It seemed as if the emotional toll she felt made her vulnerable to other things. "Well, prove it," she said.
"Um...OK," I agreed. "I wish the color of your couch would change from blue to red." In an instant the color of the couch changed. She jumped up when she realized the wish took effect.
"Wow," she said. "What else can that thing do?"
I shook my head. "I really don't know exactly. I've had it for about fifteen minutes, and in that time, I caused your clothes to disappear and reappear, found out where you lived and that you were coming here, and just that." I left out one detail. "Oh, and I asked that no one else remember what happened when your clothes reappeared."
"Wait," she said. "So you're saying no one else saw me naked?"
Again I shook my head. "No, I don't think so, not exactly. I think that they did see what happened, but then they forgot because of my wish. You and I seem to be the only people who remember. I thought that my wish would make you forget as well, but I think my wording was off."
"Why did you want me to forget?" she asked.
"Because I felt bad," I said. "Like you said, I pretty much violated you. But now I'm here, and I'm glad that I'm doing it this way rather than just wishing it away from you."
She wiped the remnants of the tear off her cheek. "I kind of wish you did," she said as a short laugh came out of her. "Oh, I'm such a wreck." She sat back down on the couch. I wished the color change back to blue. "Wait, you didn't even say anything," she protested.
"It seems to know when I make an internal wish," I said. "Gonna have to be careful how I word things to myself even, I guess."
"So what do you want from me now?" she asked.
"I don't want anything from you," I said. "I want to know if there's anything I can do to make things right. Within reason," I quickly added.
"Reason?" she asked.
I explained, "I'd rather not do anything illegal or something that will be permanent and hurtful to someone else. I certainly won't kill someone. Actually I kind of hope it wouldn't let me do that anyway. So what can I do for you?"
She thought for a few seconds. "How about..."