"Joe, as a kid, I loved watching I Dream of Jeanie. One of the cool things was when Jeanie would go in and out of her bottle," she told me.
"That I always liked, too. Are you wanting me to turn you into a genie?" I asked her.
She gave a curious look. "Now that would be interesting, but not tonight. Actually, I was hoping you would let me bottle you for the night."
"Put me in a bottle? Whatever for?"
"To let me know that you trust me..." she replied.
"You don't think I trust you?" I asked, astonished.
"I haven't shown you that I can be. I've been having to trust you, but the ring protects you for just about anything I could do to you. I guess I want to prove myself to you," she said.
She continued, "I don't have any control over you or us. So, I want to know if you can let me have it. This is one way, or I can ask for the ring. I think you've got a better handle on the ring than I would. What do you think?"
"It's a weird idea. Basically I have to relie on you to release me from the bottle. Putting my life in your hands, in a sense. I guess I don't understand the need. I'm not really worried about you doing anything to endanger either one of us," I replied.
"That's because you can fix them or even change me," she quipped.
"Amanda, what do you mean?" I asked, unsure exactly what she was implying.
"If I mess up, or you don't need me any more, you can simply change me and walk away. The saving grace is that you would hold yourself accountable for your actions. You easily feel guilty for doing things. If only more people were like you.
"I'm sure you wouldn't leave me as some statue or creature when you don't want me any more. I'm wanting some kind of assurance that I'm not a passing trend or something," she confessed.
I hugged the 16 year old girl in my arms. "Amanda, I think I understand better now. So, you want to demonstrate trust by letting you have some control over me. We can do that."
Amanda cried a little in my hold. "Thank you, Joe."
"You're welcome," I said with a smile. "You like the genie bottle from I Dream of Jeanie?"
Amanda nodded. "I wish a bottle like Jeanie's would appear and that wishes made from within the sealed bottle cannot influence the world outside the bottle."
A ornate bottle appeared on the kitchen counter next to Amanda. It was beautiful with it's shades of purples. A stopper was placed at the top of the long neck. "Look good?"
Amanda picked up the bottle and spun it in her hands. "Yes, it's incredible." Amanda pulled the stopper and tried to look inside. She didn't see anything in there. "Pink couches and pillows?" she asked.
"Ahh, for me, I hope not. I wish the inside of the bottle looked like my bedroom." Suddenly a light shined out of the bottle and temporarily blinded Amanda's right eye.
Time was slipping away and 11 loomed on the clock. "Joe, I should get to bed. See you in the morning?" she promised.
"I hope so. See you then. I wish I was inside this bottle," I stated. In true fashion, I watched Amanda fade away and found myself in my bedroom, alas in the bottle I had just created.
Amanda watched me turn into blue smoke and flow into the bottle in her hands. She shook as I flowed in. Her body was excited by it. After I had gotten in there, she peeped inside. Satisifed I was in there, she put the stopper in. She walked into the living room and put the bottle next to her indoor pool.
Amanda shut off the light in the living room and went to her bedroom. She removed the bathing suit and instantly became 25 again. She watched her body morph and age to the body she knew well. She liked the various things that filled out in the 9 years. Some things she wasn't crazy about, but they defined her. She slipped into a nightshirt and brushed her teeth.
Amanda tossed and turned throughout the night. Several times, she walked into her living room wanting to release Joe. She convinced herself that he was okay and she would let him out after 6. She needed her sleep. Yet, she got 1 hour naps at best for 6 hours.
Her alarm clock went off at 5:45. She stretched and yawned. She needed more rest. She sprang up, showered, dressed and wondered into her living room at 6:15. She sat down on the couch and admired Joe's hotel. She picked up the bottle and admired it. 'Perhaps I will ask him to turn me into a genie,' she mused. Then she wondered what it would be like to turn into smoke and flow inside there. Then she realized she could be trapped in there. And he was trapped now. She trusted him to trap her. 'And he trusted her,' she thought.