CINDIES SHORT STORY: The Third Wish final part

“Well, maybe....”
“What do you mean, maybe?”
“I didn’t really tell you the whole story. I’m only free if your wishes go well. I already have
one strike against me for that first wish. Especially since you had to use the second one to cancel
the first one. To be honest with you, I lied about the witch and when I let you assume all the
times I was imprisoned was because of women. The truth is, even though the fairy did put me in
the bottle the first time, the other times were because of the wishes. I’ve never had anyone wish
for the right things. All the wishes have been shallow. Money, fame, trophy husbands and wives.
It’s always the same thing.”
Beth felt sadness as she looked at the forlorn genie. He was so beautiful, but he seemed to
have a good heart, too. It wasn’t fair to him that he was responsible for the wishes of superficial
people. She had to make sure her next wish would help both of them.
“Jai, let me think a little while on that third wish, okay? I want to make it count.”
“Sure, that’s fine. I’ll just go back into the bottle until you’re ready for me.”
“So…do you want to hang out with me for just a little while? Watch a movie or something
before you go back into the bottle?”
“I guess there’s no rule against that. Sure, why not?”
Beth picked a horror movie on a channel that wasn’t quite ready to let Halloween go yet.
The movie was cheesy, and she and Jai laughed at the stupidity of the characters. She made
popcorn, and they watched another movie. She didn’t know when she had had so much fun.
When the second movie was over, Beth turned off the TV. Jai turned to her and said, “What
happened that keeps that sadness right there just on the edge of your emotions all the time?”
She told him what happened with her fiancé. Everything she had kept bottled up since last
year came tumbling out of her, and she found herself sobbing into Jai’s bare chest. She became
aware of the implications of her face against his warm skin, and she found herself blushing at her
actions. His hands were stroking her back, and she wanted it to last forever, but she knew this
wasn’t right.
“Jai, I’m sorry. I can’t believe I went all blubbery on you,” Beth said as she dried off her
face and his chest with the afghan that had been on the back of the sofa.
“It’s fine,” Jai said in a husky voice. He wouldn’t look at her. “But I’m not supposed to get
involved with a wisher, so I think I better get back into the bottle before….”
“Before what?” she asked softly.
The genie dissolved into the red mist and poured himself into the vessel. Beth shook it and
called out to him, but he wouldn’t answer. She sighed and tried to calm herself. The closeness
between them, both physically and emotionally, had shaken her. She knew she had to make a
good wish so he could be free. She would never forgive herself if she was the cause of his
imprisonment. Maybe sleeping on it would give her the perfect idea.
The next day, Beth went to the office without touching the bottle. There was no need to
summon Jai if she hadn’t thought of her wish. She and her boss met with Bradley Randolph, and
an agreement was made. It was as if they had never gone out, had never kissed. When she looked
at him, she didn’t even know why she had been attracted to him. Yes, he was drop-dead
gorgeous, but it was just window dressing, really. There was no substance to this man. Not like
Jai, who was equally beautiful, but with such a big heart. She had to help Jai be free.
On her way home that afternoon, she stopped and grabbed take-out Thai food and some
expensive chocolates. She wanted to make this last wish count, and she also wanted to spend
some time with Jai before he was free. He had somehow touched her soul in the short time she
had known him. She wanted to do the right thing for him. Hopefully, she would know what to
wish for to free him.
When she got home, Beth put the food on plates and set them out on the table. She rubbed
the bottle to summon Jai, and he came out immediately. There was a sadness about him, and she
wondered if it was because he knew she would wish wrong just like all the others before her. She
hoped she proved him wrong.
“Look, I brought food. You can eat, can’t you?”
“Of course I can eat. I don’t have to, but I can. Thanks for thinking of me.”
He was mostly quiet during the meal, and it made Beth feel terrible. She offered him the
chocolates for dessert, and that seemed to perk him up a bit.
“There’s nothing better than good chocolate,” he said with a small smile. “I wish I could
have chocolate anytime I wanted it.”
Suddenly, Beth knew. She realized what the perfect wish would be. It was a mystery to her
why she hadn’t thought of it before!
“Jai, I’m ready.”
He looked at her, and she was lost in his black eyes. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I know what I want more than anything else.”
He looked weary as he stared at her. “May I make one request before you wish?”
“Anything,” she said.
“May I have just one kiss before you wish?”
She smiled at him, knowing for sure that she was making the right choice. “Of course.”
He lowered his head to hers so slowly, it was almost agony. The butterflies in the pit of her
stomach were finally awakened as his lips met hers. Desire slammed into her as his kiss
deepened and his tongue slowly captured hers, soft, velvety, and hot. She wound her arms
around his neck and molded her body against his, the power of her need surprising her. Just as
she was feeling as if her body would melt from the intense heat, he was gone.
He had dematerialized into the red mist and materialized back into his human form far
across the room. His breathing was rapid, and he wouldn’t look at her. “That was a mistake.”
“No, don’t say that, Jai.”
“It was, Beth. I don’t even know what you’re going to wish for. I might be back in that
bottle, and you’ll be with some man you’ve wished for and will eventually regret being with.”
“I know what my wish will be, Jai. And you’ll be free. I promise I won’t let you down. No
more superficial, selfish wishes.”
He closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, he said, “Okay, I’m ready. Tell me
your wish.”
Beth took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She looked at Jai steadily, and not breaking
eye contact with him, she said, “I wish…I wish that you will be free forever, never to be
imprisoned in the bottle again.”
Jai’s eyes widened at her words. He looked over at the bottle when it started shaking then
spinning around and around. The vessel that had imprisoned him rose from the floor and started
spinning faster and faster. Cracks appeared in the glass, and then it broke into millions of tiny
pieces like grains of colored sand. Beth and Jai stood, fascinated, looking down at what was left
of Jai’s bottle. Then he rushed over to her and pulled her into a tight embrace, his face buried in
her neck.
“Why, Beth? Why waste your wish on me?”
She pulled away to look at him. Touching his face softly, she said, “Waste? Why is it a
waste to free an amazing guy from a prison he doesn’t deserve? There was nothing I wanted
more than to see you happy and able to live whatever life you choose. I don’t regret it for a
minute.”
He pulled her close again, and she could feel the wetness of his tears on her neck. Jai lifted
his head and kissed her hard, his arms like vises around her. His tongue sought hers and she
willingly gave him everything he asked for. After he had kissed her senseless, he lifted his head
and looked at her, a wide grin on his face. He said, “I could get used to this.”
“Count on it,” she said with a grin of her own.
It was Halloween, and all of Beth’s friends had gathered at her house for a party she had
gone all out for. She loved Halloween, and she couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate it than
being with her fiancé and all her friends. Jai was all decked out in his pirate’s costume, and Beth
had one that matched. As she went into the kitchen to fill the bowl with more candy, Jai pulled
her into his arms for one of his mind-blowing kisses. They had been together for a year, and their
ardor hadn’t lessened one bit. They had set a date for a December wedding, hoping it would
snow so they could leave in a horse drawn sleigh.
“You’re going to make me spill all the candy,” she said.
“You’re the only candy I need,” he teased.
She grinned and kissed him again, quickly, then evaded his grasp, giggling as she took the
candy bowl back into the living room. Just then, the doorbell rang, and Beth went to the door to
dole out more treats. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see the little girl who had
left the bottle the year before. She wanted to throw her arms around the little girl and thank her,
but she didn’t want to scare her. Beth gave out candy to all the kids, giving an extra helping to
the genie. The kids turned around and started down the porch steps. The little girl turned around,
winked at her, and said, “I hope you enjoyed your treat.”