Control Yourself!

Chapter 1
Chapter 1

Kim grabbed the dustpan and bent over to sweep the small pile of dust into it. She was wearing out. It was long days like these that made her regret the cleaning contracts she did in her spare time. It was enough to take care of two kids all day and make John’s life comfortable -- cleaning the University in the evenings was really zapping her.

She leaned on her broom and looked around. This was one hell of a confusing room, with odd and very expensive looking equipment arranged and covered up carefully. It made her feel kind of privileged to be in here. She knew the biology faculty were working on something revolutionary in this very room, but the news clip she had seen on TV did not give any details as to the nature of the project. Kim had always been a curious person. She would just take a little peek, that’s all... no harm in that, right?

Under the cover of the largest machine was a keypad that said crazy things like ’molecular regen,’ or ’Cell transf.’ It sure looked like something from the Outer Limits.

Suddenly, she heard voices coming closer to the door. What would happen if she were caught in here? She quickly threw the cover back over the machine, and hid behind a closet door as the two people entered.

’Well, you will see what I mean. The transfer is definitely not consistent with respect to genetic substructure.’

’Tom, this could have heavy implications for the whole project you know...’

The two men were wearing lab coats, and one was carrying a small old dog.

’Damn!’ Said the one scientist, moving Kim’s mop to a corner. ’Those cleaners should NOT be leaving their mops and brooms lying around in here! I forgot to slate this room as off-limits for general University staff.’

The men were babbling out biological jargon, most of which Kim did not understand. She did, however, make sense of what they were trying to do. They were working on a way to reverse aging!

’Put the dog in front of the MRA.’ Said Tom.

’I have set it to four years,’ he said calmly. ’Now come over here, and I will show you how to operate this.’ The other man put the old dog on the floor, and joined Tom at the controls.

’You just move this lever forward, and push the green button... the ray builds, and shoots out after five seconds of delay.’ He did as he explained, and nothing seemed to happen for a bit. Then the dog, who was near death from old age, sat up and started happily panting! It worked!

’Ok, we will leave it at four years for the rest of our work tonight. You go and get another dog, and I will get the charts.’

The two men grabbed the dog, and left.

Kim thought she was dreaming. This was incredible! People would be able to choose how old they wanted to be, no longer subject to the pains of old age! This little machine was going to stand the world on its ear. Then she realized that the general public could never be allowed to use this technology. Over-population was already a big issue on this planet, and such power would have to be kept under wraps (except of course for the elite members of society).

Kim was a rash person, even at 30. She saw a window of opportunity, and decided against all rational thought to jump through it. She knew she only had a few seconds before the men would return. Furthermore, this room would be off-limits in the future. This was a chance to trim a few years off her face, slim down her hips, and get a bit of energy back. No one would even notice four years difference in her age.

She ran to the machine, and pushed the lever forward, hit the button, and jumped in front of the MRA thingy. Her ears were throbbing with the pulsing sound of her heart, as the power built up in the machine. She heard a high pitched noise, and felt a shudder go through her body, starting from the pit of her stomach, and working its way out to the tips of her toes and fingers. She was buzzing all over, and it was almost ticklish in nature, making her giggle. Then it stopped as sudden as it had began. Her heart was still beating loudly. She had really done it!

She wanted to see the effect in a mirror, but she had to get out of this room before she got caught. She grabbed her cleaning supplies and headed out the door. As she was closing the door, Tom came around the corner.

’Hey, what are you doing?’ He inquired, walking towards her quickly.

’Oh, sorry sir, I forgot my cleaning supplies in there...’ She said meekly.

’I don’t want you or anybody else going in there again, understand? That room is supposed to be off-limits to general staff.’

’Oh, my apologies, I’ll pass the word on.’ She said smiling.

Kim was dying to see what the MRA had done to her. She went to the washroom and looked in the mirror. Nothing. Not a single thing looked different about her. She still had as many wrinkles, still had a few wisps of gray hair, and still had the extra pounds she had gained in the last four years. Drat! She was still a knockout, with blonde hair down to her waist, well developed breasts, and bright blue eyes, but she was slowly suffering the effects of old age. She sighed.

She put the cleaning supplies in the janitor room, and headed towards the stairwell. From down the hall, she overheard Tom talking on the phone in his office.

’No, the machine is set up for canine species... if we want to use human subjects, we have to adjust the levels. A dog’s life is much shorter than a human one, after all.’ He was saying. Kim let the information sink in. If the MRA was set up for dogs, what would happen to humans that used it? She suddenly became very afraid. What if she got cancer, or worse? She shouldn’t have been such a fool -- why was she always so impatient and quick to make judgements? She dashed down the stairs, trying to mentally calm herself. Was she just nervous, or did she feel a slight ’buzzing’ sensation in her stomach? She stopped in the stairwell as the numb sensation engulfed her body. She was terrified! She was crying in fear as her body started quivering at the core. It was the exact same feeling as she had felt at the machine, but stronger. There was a slight ’lifting’ sensation in her chest area. Afraid of the sensation, she tried to stop it somehow, and found that she could minimize the feeling by internally pushing it away. She made it get smaller and smaller, until it had stopped. She looked at her hands and the rest of her body. Everything seemed ok.

She went to another washroom, and looked at herself. It had worked! She looked the same as she had four years ago! Tom was wrong, the machine worked fine on humans, and she had gotten exactly what she wanted!

’Sometimes, the risk is worth it.’ She said to the 26 year old Kim in the mirror, beaming with joy. She posed a little bit, puckering her lips and pushing her breasts out, her fingers running through her long hair. There wasn’t a trace of gray in it now!

She happily sung to herself on the drive home, anxious to see what John’s reaction would look like. She resolved that she would never tell anybody what she had done, lest she get into serious hot water with the University. Hell, she could actually go back there as a student now! John saw his wife pull up, and went to meet her at the door.

’Honey! You look... fabulous! I should send you out to work every night, it seems to give you a youthful look.’ He said, grinning. He reached out and cupped her cheek, kissing her fully.

’Yeah, right... Maybe I should send YOU out to mop floors every night, mister!’ She replied, hooking her thumb through one of his belt loops to pull him closer. Their hips rubbed as they swayed a bit, kissing. Kim felt like she could rip his clothes off right in the doorway, to hell with the neighbors!’

’You do look great though honey, did you dye your hair or something?’

’Yes, I dyed it three days ago, and you’ve just noticed now??’ She said, mischievously grabbing the front his shirt with two hands as though she were going to beat him up.

He proceed to pick her up, and carry her to the bedroom, where they spent the rest of the night giving immense pleasure to each other. Kim wanted to keep going, but John had to put the breaks on.

’How can you have so much energy after so much work?’ He asked her, as they turned out the lights. ’You were AMAZING tonight!’

’It’s just my longing for you, love. All night I mop and think of you, craving, lusting, desiring, wanting... Aaaaagagggh!’ She said, jumping on his neck like a vampire.

The next morning turned out to be a real bummer. 11 year old Chelsea was fighting with her little sister Amanda again.

’She was in my room again, mom!’ She protested. ’She ripped my Ricky Martin poster! It’s not fair... never go in her stupid room!’ 5 year old Amanda just couldn’t understand her older sister’s need for independence.

John couldn’t find his keys, the toast burnt, and the car wouldn’t start.

’Damn it! The headlights are still on from last night!’ Said John, coming back in the house to call a taxi. ’There’s no way I’ll make it in time now!’

’Oh, I’m sorry honey, I must have left them on. Just tell your boss you’re married to a nitwit.’ Said Kim, feeling guilty.

’Don’t worry about it, the world won’t end if I don’t show up on time.’ John said, dialing the phone. He kissed her just as the taxi company answered the phone.

“Yellow Cab!” The voice said.

“MMMPHHhh… -click- “ John hung up as Kim pushed him up against the wall, grabbing a fistful of his hair with her left hand. They kissed passionately for a good minute. Surges of pleasure drifted up Kim’s body as she moved her other hand up his chest. She was fully enraptured when she suddenly felt that odd, numb sensation that she had felt in the stairwell. She took a step back, acting like nothing was happening, while she tried to regained control of the strange sensation.

“What’s wrong Kim?” John asked.

“Nothing, I just… look, you should really get to work, sweetie.” Said Kim, in fully back in control. She was worried - had she changed more?

“Kim, what’s going on with you? You look… different. Are you sure you’re ok?”

“John, there is something I have to tell you, but not now… we’ll talk tonight, ok?” Kim handed John the phone.

John left in the taxi, and Kim went upstairs to the bathroom to inspect her body. She DID look younger! She was looking at a 24 year old self in the mirror!

“Oh my god!” she whispered. What if she kept getting younger? Not that the change was all bad; she looked absolutely stunning.

“Mom, are we going to school soon?” Came Chelsea’s impatient voice from outside the door. Chelsea was being very difficult these days. She seemed so overly legalistic and picky about her routine. School was a big responsibility for her, and she met it with vigor.

“Yep! Get your shoes on girls!” Kim said through the door, running her fingers over her firm and upright breasts. Her nipples were hard and sensitive. She put on makeup to cover her new-found youth. She never wore makeup on normal days, so she hoped it would divert some attention from her obvious lack of wrinkles.

She walked the girls to school, amazed at how much energy she had. She raced Chelsea for almost a block, something she very rarely ever did. Dropping them off, she briskly walked back home to call her best friend, Teresa. She had to tell somebody, this situation was really eating at her. She met up with her friend at a local pub.

“Hi Kim,” Teresa said warmly, hugging her. “You know, you should wear make-up more often girl, it makes you look years younger!” She commented.

“Uh, yeah… listen, let’s go for a walk in that park down the street, there’s something I want to talk to you about.” Said Kim nervously.

Teresa eyes got wider as Kim told her story. She stopped walking and grabbed Kim’s arm.

“Kim, you HAVE to talk to that scientist… you don’t know what you’ve done! You could die from some sort of weird disease or something!” She said, with obvious concern.

“Yes, I know, it was really stupid. I don’t know why I did it…” She started crying, and Teresa held her close. “I want to talk to John first, and then we will both go and see this guy. Hopefully, I am just experiencing the after effects of the ray.”

“Oh sure, ” John said with mirth, after she told him that night. “Just trying to make me feel old huh?” He wasn’t about to buy into another one of Kim’s practical jokes. She had fooled him on a number of occasions with incredible stories. “I knew you liked to play the little girl, but this is going to extremes, dear.”

“No, I’m telling you the absolute truth John, please believe me!” Kim pleaded.

“Is Kim gonna become daddy’s little girl?” Said John, playfully crawling towards her on the bed.

“Fuck off! I’m serious, ok? Look at me! Do I look 30!? I don’t even have one gray hair anymore! Look at these!” She yelled, lifting her night shirt to display her tits. “Do these look familiar? Kind of like the ones I had 6 years ago?” She was fuming, and she felt hot with anger. The hot emotion grew, and became that strange buzzing, shakey feeling, this time in her chest. She was really upset, and she felt her body changing in sync with her anger. She shuddered violently. She was kneeling on the bed pressing her hands into it, feeling her thighs burning hotly, and getting slimmer. John studied her face with amazement as she lost a few years right before his eyes. His mouth dropped open as Kim’s face became a perfect pearl shape, and her nose turned up slightly. She now looked almost exactly the same as she did the day he married her! Kim withdrew, and crouched over, trying to get control of the process. It subsided after a few seconds, and a 21 year old woman looked up at John with dead calm.

“Believe me now?” She asked.

“Oh my god, we have to get you to a hospital! No wait! We have to call that guy Tom or whatever his name is…” John said, leaping off the bed and pacing back and forth in the room. “Why the hell did you do that?” he said, his hand on his head.

“Look, I am NOT going to the hospital at 11:00 pm, John. Let’s call Tom first thing in the morning.” She said, trying to calm her husband. “

Please just tell me you’ll help me through this. I just need your support right now” she said, looking down at the bed. John came and put his arm around her, stroking her hair.

“Of course I’ll help you… I will always be on side babe.” He said, comforting her. She was so lucky to have this wonderful man in her life. She slumped in his solid and strong arms as he held her. They held each other for a long time, saying nothing.

Tom was nothing short of furious after John broke the news to him. They arranged to meet him at the University.

“You have done a very stupid thing, Kim. There is very little I can do. This technology has never been used on humans, and constructing a reasonable model of expected outcomes would take months, which we do not have.” He said, waving a finger in the air. “Your most foolish assumption was that you would be subjected to merely four years of age regression. Did you stop to think how long 4 years is to a dog?” He lectured. “Though I am somewhat elated that the MRA works on the human species, I can’t help but be disappointed with the fact that my first subject has been given an overdose!”

“Ok, ok, we know that she blew it, but we need a plan of action here.” Replied John, “How young do you think she get? Is there a way to slow the process down?”

“Well, I do have a theory about the effects of the MRA, but it hasn’t been tested. It is really complex, but in essence, the molecular reaction is triggered by parasympathetic response mechanisms, and hormonal fluctuations.” He explained. “To put it in simple terms, the process is effected by emotional reactions. Because animals like dogs have no rational ability, the MRA has it’s full effect. Theoretically, humans would have to be under emotional stress, devoid of rational thought. This would set up a chain of events leading to age regression.” Kim realized now why she had regressed at certain times-she was under stress at those times!

“You theory is right!“ She said. “I get younger every time I get mad, or excited, or upset!”

“Ahhh…” Tom said, rubbing his face. “Well, in that case, you may have some hope. The effect of the ray is temporary, only lasting a few months at best. If you remain calm, and stress free, you may be able to escape the full consequences.” He said. He walked around the room, rubbing his face and hair, putting the whole thing together.

“There is a big danger, however. Your maturity is reduced along with your age, stemming from a lack of neural capacity. If you begin to lose maturity, it will logically be more difficult for you to control your emotions. A negative cycle could begin, accelerating the regression sequence, and making it more likely to happen with each reduction.”

John looked at Kim. Could she somehow remain calm enough to get past the next few months? Just getting a little bit angry was enough to shrink her last night, and she had a nasty temper.

“Tom, do the effects get weaker with time? Maybe I could just go on vacation for a few months, or something… I have two kids, and I get stressed a lot at home.”

“No, do not do that! Can you imagine what would happen if your purse got stolen in an airport, and you suddenly started dwindling in age? You must not break your routine. Yes, the strength of the molecular restructuring will diminish with time… UNLESS it is offset by a negative maturity cycle.” Tom warned. “I will try to develop a working model of the problem. In the meantime, you should be taking it easy. I will investigate the possibilities of using tranquilizers to slow the process… I will be in touch.”

 

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