Our TG Captionpage 12
written by... radel
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Ben chuckles, a deep rumble that seems out of place considering the situation. "Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough, won't we? Though, I'm not exactly looking forward to reliving high school." He glances down at his slightly protruding belly, a testament to years of happy marriage and less-than-strict dieting. "My back already hurts just thinking about those tiny desks."
You take a long swig of your beer, the initial shock wearing off, replaced by a strange mix of amusement and unease. Alex, or rather, Alexa, in her youthful exuberance, was almost infectious. Almost.
"It's... definitely something," you say, trying to process the image of your formerly nerdy, now giggling schoolgirl friend. "I mean, you seem... happy?"
Alexa beams, her pigtails bouncing. "Of course! Think of all the things I can do differently this time! Maybe I'll even join the cheerleading squad!"
Ben raises an eyebrow. "Somehow, I don't quite picture you with pom-poms, Al... Alexa."
A sudden wave of dizziness washes over you. The familiar feeling of your body shifting, changing, but this time it's accompanied by a strange sensation of shrinking, of bones realigning in ways they haven't in decades. Your clothes suddenly feel enormous, hanging off a frame that feels far too small.
Panic flares in your chest as you look down at your hands, now smaller, softer. You scramble to your feet, a strange lightness in your limbs. Looking at Ben, his face is a mirror of your own shock. He's shorter, his hairline receding to where it was in your late teens, his build leaner.
"Oh, no," Ben whispers, his voice higher pitched than it was moments ago. He runs a hand through his noticeably thinner hair. "Not again."
You stumble towards the reflective glass of Ben's patio door. Staring back at you is the face you haven't seen in decades – your teenage self, all awkward angles and youthful uncertainty. The flannel shirt you were wearing now swamps your smaller frame.
"It's happening to us too," you say, your voice cracking with the unfamiliar pitch. "We're... we're going back."
The transformation continues, the world around you seeming to grow larger as you shrink further into your younger self. The comfortable weight of adulthood is replaced by a lighter, more energetic, but also more vulnerable feeling.
Ben groans, looking down at his own rapidly shrinking body. His jeans are now baggy, his t-shirt hanging loosely. "This is insane! My kids... my wife..."
Alexa, still in her schoolgirl form, looks from you to Ben with wide, concerned eyes. "Oh no... this isn't good, is it?" Her earlier excitement has been replaced by a dawning realization of the implications.
The de-aging stops abruptly. You stand there, two teenagers again, staring at each other in disbelief while a giggling pre-teen Alexa looks on. The comfortable suburban backyard suddenly feels like a strange and unfamiliar landscape.
"So..." Ben says, his voice still a little shaky. "What now?"
You look down at your younger hands, clenching and unclenching them. The memories of your adult life are still vivid, a strange overlay on this younger version of yourself. The knowledge of the future, of Ben's happy marriage, of your own experiences, feels both precious and utterly useless in this moment.
"I... I don't know," you admit, a wave of disorientation washing over you. "But I guess... school's out?"
Alexa giggles again, though this time it sounds a little more nervous. "Maybe we can all go together?"
The thought of navigating high school again, this time with the memories of adulthood and alongside a de-aged Alexa and Ben, is both absurd and strangely compelling. The Arbitrary Abeyance had certainly lived up to its name. The wave was gone, but its return, in this bizarre and unexpected way, had thrown your lives into utter chaos once more.
The beers and steaks are forgotten on the table, now looking comically oversized next to your smaller frames. The comfortable familiarity of Ben's home has been replaced by a sense of surreal displacement. The future, once a known quantity, is now a blank slate, colored by the strange twist of fate that has turned back the clock.
What do you do next? Do you try to make sense of this new reality? Do you try to find a way to reverse the de-aging? Or do you, like Alexa, try to embrace this bizarre second chance at youth?
You take a long swig of your beer, the initial shock wearing off, replaced by a strange mix of amusement and unease. Alex, or rather, Alexa, in her youthful exuberance, was almost infectious. Almost.
"It's... definitely something," you say, trying to process the image of your formerly nerdy, now giggling schoolgirl friend. "I mean, you seem... happy?"
Alexa beams, her pigtails bouncing. "Of course! Think of all the things I can do differently this time! Maybe I'll even join the cheerleading squad!"
Ben raises an eyebrow. "Somehow, I don't quite picture you with pom-poms, Al... Alexa."
A sudden wave of dizziness washes over you. The familiar feeling of your body shifting, changing, but this time it's accompanied by a strange sensation of shrinking, of bones realigning in ways they haven't in decades. Your clothes suddenly feel enormous, hanging off a frame that feels far too small.
Panic flares in your chest as you look down at your hands, now smaller, softer. You scramble to your feet, a strange lightness in your limbs. Looking at Ben, his face is a mirror of your own shock. He's shorter, his hairline receding to where it was in your late teens, his build leaner.
"Oh, no," Ben whispers, his voice higher pitched than it was moments ago. He runs a hand through his noticeably thinner hair. "Not again."
You stumble towards the reflective glass of Ben's patio door. Staring back at you is the face you haven't seen in decades – your teenage self, all awkward angles and youthful uncertainty. The flannel shirt you were wearing now swamps your smaller frame.
"It's happening to us too," you say, your voice cracking with the unfamiliar pitch. "We're... we're going back."
The transformation continues, the world around you seeming to grow larger as you shrink further into your younger self. The comfortable weight of adulthood is replaced by a lighter, more energetic, but also more vulnerable feeling.
Ben groans, looking down at his own rapidly shrinking body. His jeans are now baggy, his t-shirt hanging loosely. "This is insane! My kids... my wife..."
Alexa, still in her schoolgirl form, looks from you to Ben with wide, concerned eyes. "Oh no... this isn't good, is it?" Her earlier excitement has been replaced by a dawning realization of the implications.
The de-aging stops abruptly. You stand there, two teenagers again, staring at each other in disbelief while a giggling pre-teen Alexa looks on. The comfortable suburban backyard suddenly feels like a strange and unfamiliar landscape.
"So..." Ben says, his voice still a little shaky. "What now?"
You look down at your younger hands, clenching and unclenching them. The memories of your adult life are still vivid, a strange overlay on this younger version of yourself. The knowledge of the future, of Ben's happy marriage, of your own experiences, feels both precious and utterly useless in this moment.
"I... I don't know," you admit, a wave of disorientation washing over you. "But I guess... school's out?"
Alexa giggles again, though this time it sounds a little more nervous. "Maybe we can all go together?"
The thought of navigating high school again, this time with the memories of adulthood and alongside a de-aged Alexa and Ben, is both absurd and strangely compelling. The Arbitrary Abeyance had certainly lived up to its name. The wave was gone, but its return, in this bizarre and unexpected way, had thrown your lives into utter chaos once more.
The beers and steaks are forgotten on the table, now looking comically oversized next to your smaller frames. The comfortable familiarity of Ben's home has been replaced by a sense of surreal displacement. The future, once a known quantity, is now a blank slate, colored by the strange twist of fate that has turned back the clock.
What do you do next? Do you try to make sense of this new reality? Do you try to find a way to reverse the de-aging? Or do you, like Alexa, try to embrace this bizarre second chance at youth?
What do you do?
Create your own Path!