"Okay, so he's hairless now what?" I said.
"We let him move and speak, so Ace can tell us how sorry he is to have offended us," Josh says.
"Are you crazy?!!" I shout, "He'll pummel us."
"I don't think so," Josh said holding the watch up to touch Ace's face with the watch. He pulled one of
several stems sticking out of the watch, and started turning. I watched as lines vanished from Ace's face, and
he started to shrink.
"What's happening to him?"
"I'm turning back time - but just for Ace. He was 20, and now he's 10. Okay, Ace, ready to move?"
"You!" shrieked the high pitched voice coming out of young Ace's 3 and a half foot body. He tried to bolt from
the shower, but at his new size Josh and I were able to restrain him. Though for a little guy he did kick
hard.
"You sure he's not eight?"
"Nah, dude was tiny until he was 13 then he shot up like a weed.
"So are you going to apologize?"
"Apologize for what? You're the ones who stripped me, shaved me and turned me into a punk kid!" he shouted.
"Yeah, unapologetic bully, I figured as much, but I thought I should give you a chance."
Josh held out the watch and adjusted the stem. I watched as Ace shrank into a helpless baby. I watched the
helpless baby wailing on the floor of the shower. Josh disappeared for a few minutes. I guess he brought a
baby bottle in the box, and took the bottle to the kitchen. He returned with a baby bottle filled with milk,
and Ace's championship jersey. He gave the bottle to Ace and the baby pissed him right in the kisser. Josh
sputtered laughed, and then used Ace's jersey to diaper baby Ace.
"Ace, how do you like being six months old again? Here's the precious thing, Ace, you have the mind of a 20
year old in the body of a six month old. So you remember talking and walking, but your legs and vocal chords
are developed enough for you to do anything. And your brain shouldn't be producing any long term memory
storing proteins for about five years. And short term memory proteins only last about 2 years before they get
recycled, so by the time you can speak you probably won't remember most of this and even if you do who would
believe you. Now I wonder what your buddies will think when they find you?" He carried Ace to his bedroom, put
him in the bed with pillows corralling him. He put the clothes that Ace had been wearing into the box and we
left.
I followed Josh out of the house with the dolly and box. I couldn't believe what he - we had just done. I
hadn't like Ace, but this punishment was too much. He'd probably end up in an orphanage or foster home. And
worst of all Ace essentially would die as the baby body he was trapped in forgot who he was. I felt sick. How
could Josh do this? Who else would he do this to? Me, if I question him? Gulp.