THE INSIDE-OUT BOY

THE INSIDE-OUT BOY

by Tom Lampos (a.k.a. Mr. Tom)

Once upon a time, there was a boy named Larson. He was just like all the other kids at his school but there was one difference. A big difference. Larson was the Inside-Out Boy. At least that's what everybody called him.

You see, Larson was born inside-out. His muscles and bones and organs were on the outside of his body and his skin was on the inside. This made him look very strange and caused him to be laughed at and made fun of at school.

This made him sad but he still participated in school activities and played with everybody just like he was a normal kid. In fact, there was this one girl with red hair named Zadie that the Inside-Out Boy liked. She was very pretty but didn't pay much attention to him. One day during recess, the Inside-Out Boy walked up to her and asked her if she would play with him. She shrieked and said, "Oh no. Get away from me, you Inside-Out Boy. You're scary looking".

This hurt the Inside-Out Boy's feelings worse than they have ever been hurt before. He was so upset, after school he ran home crying. But then, he remembered about a mean, old witch that lived in the woods behind his home. He thought if he went to visit the witch and was nice to her, she could use one of her magic spells to change him into a normal boy.

So, the next day, the Inside-Out Boy went into the woods to see the witch. But, Zadie, the little red haired girl was playing nearby and saw him walk into the woods. She was so curious to see where he was going, she had to follow him to find out.

The Inside-Out Boy walked deep into the woods where the trees were so thick and tall, there was hardly any light. Then, he saw the witch's old house. He walked up to the door and knocked on it. The witch opened the door and saw the Inside-Out Boy standing there. "What do you want, little boy?" The Inside-Out Boy told her about the red-haired girl saying those hurtful things and how he yearned to be a normal boy. The witch felt sorry for him.
"You are a brave boy to come here and ask me. I don't get many visitors, you know. Most people are afraid of me because I'm old and ugly. They think I'm mean and will hurt them".
"I don't think that", said Larson.
"Well then, I will mix up a potion and cast a spell that will make you a normal boy. You will no longer be the Inside-Out Boy" the witch said.

"Oh, that would be great." the Inside-Out boy said. So, after the witch was finished with her poition, she sprinkled it on him and a cloud of dust formed around him. It was spinning and spinning until it stopped and settled on the floor. The Inside-Out boy looked at his hands and his arms and feet and stomach and he was overjoyed. He looked just like any other normal boy. He was so happy. He was no longer inside-out.

Just then, there was a noise in the bushes. It was the red-haired girl. She had followed Larson all the way to the witch's house and was spying on them. This made the witch very mad. In fact, she was so mad, she picked up the bottle of potion she had just used on Larson and threw it at the little red-haired girl. Some of the potion spilled out and fell on her. A cloud of dust formed around her. It was spinning and spinning until it settled on the floor. But, this time it had the opposite effect. It turned the little-red haired girl into an Inside-Out girl. She looked at herself and saw what had happened. She was so upset, she ran home crying.

The next day when Larson arrived at school, everyone couldn't believe he was no longer an inside-out boy. In fact, he was actually a pretty handsome boy and many of the girls now wanted to include him in their games.

Then, Zadie came to school and all the other kids could see that now, she was an Inside-Out girl. Everyone was very shocked and nobody wanted to play with her. So, she played by herself in the corner. She was very sad. Larson saw this and he knew just what to do. He went over and asked Zadie if she wanted to play a game. This made Zadie very happy. They both played and laughed and had a lot of fun together.

Then, Larson thought that maybe if Zadie went back with him into the woods and back to the witch's house, she could say she was sorry and maybe the witch would undo the spell. Zadie was very afraid of going back to see the witch. The last time she was there, the witch was very angry when she saw Zadie was spying on her. But, Larson told her not to be afraid. The witch had been kind to him and if Zadie was nice and apologized to the witch, she may be nice back.

So, after school, they both went back to the witch's house and knocked on the door. When the witch opened it, Zadie stepped forward and sternly said, "Miss Witch, I would like to say I'm sorry for spying on you the other day. I was wrong and I apologize".

The witch looked at Zadie and then at Larson. Larson smiled at the witch and winked. She knew what Larson wanted her to do. So, she got her bottle of potion and sprinkled it over Zadie. And after a few moments, she turned back into her original little red-haired girl self. She was very happy and hugged the witch to thank her. This startled the witch at first. Witches don't get many hugs, you know. She couldn't hold back a smile.

"Now, go away, both of you and never bother me again" the witch screamed. "You don't really mean that, do you", Larson asked her. The witch looked at him and smiled, "Of course not. You two can come and visit me anytime you want". That made Larson and Zadie very happy. They turned and walked home, waving goodbye to the witch.

And they all lived happily ever after.

THE END