Pickup Artist (Bradbury Week 1)

364 words

Casey Simms was the best looking guy at his high school. Most of the attractive girls liked him, and he had recently gained a reputation as a heartbreaker following the suicide of a girl he had rejected after she fell in love with him earlier that week.

As he walked down the senior hallway of his school, he spotted a man who looked out of place. He wore a turban and exotic colorful clothing.

“Casey Simms?” the stranger asked.

“Yes, what can I do for you?” Casey asked.

“I’m a genie, I was a criminal in the year 5150 and I was forced to participate in a social experiment where I grant the wishes of people in your century.”

“With those clothes, you’re likely to get put on a 5150 hold in a psychiatric ward!” Casey replied.

“I have a reason to meet with you today,” the genie continued.

“Why? I have everything I want, I’m rich, great looking, and popular!”

“It’s the matter of the girl whose heart you broke. She killed herself because you rejected her!”

“I don’t care, and I don’t see how it’s any if your business!”

“You found my lamp nearly a month ago, and your wish was granted. I warned you of breaking the rules. You can’t have a negative effect on future history or society!”

“I don’t recall making a wish!” Casey replied.

“You were unattractive and unpopular,” the genie explained. “I made you the best looking guy in school, and rich beyond the dreams of avarice!”

“I don’t remember any of that!” Casey replied.

“You weren’t meant to. But now, I’m undoing the wish and bringing that girl back to life. This time, you will remember your life after your wish was granted, and you’ll have to regret the day you broke that girl’s heart!”

The next day, Casey walked to school. He was unattractive, poor, and unpopular. He watched as all the popular good looking kids socialized, and remembered when he was good looking. The girl who had killed herself was alive again, and everything was restored back to normal. If only he had been a better person, he could’ve kept his wish.

The End