I lightly ran a finger along my torso, feeling my muscles contract and reconfigure themselves underneath skin that was tightening with youth. My body was glistening. I turned to see Geoff watching me from the doorway.
“Now we match,” he said.
“I haven’t felt like this in years,” I said. My voice was liquid smooth.
“You haven’t looked like this in years, either,” he grinned.
Even when I was this young before, it wasn’t like this. Somehow, now I had the body of a young, athletic model. Lean and tight. Toned in all of the right places. I hadn’t even seen my face yet. I ran my tongue along my teeth. I brought a hand up and felt my cheek.
“I didn’t believe you,” I said to Geoff.
“Do you believe me now?” he laughed.
It had been one thing when this young kid showed up at my door, claiming to be Geoff. I wondered what sort of practical joke I was being set up for. But then he started talking about things that only Geoff and I knew about. Things that had happened many, many years ago when we’d first met in college. See, things were different back then. Geoff and I had feelings for each other, but we could never have pursued them. It wasn’t until we were both old and gray when we finally met again. The feelings were still there, even after all that time.
The longer this kid sat in my living room, the more I saw Geoff in him. There were certain mannerisms, and something in the tone of his voice. And yet, I couldn’t make myself believe the story he was telling me. A “youth potion” couldn’t possibly exist, could it? It couldn’t be that easy.
“Will you at least try it?” he
begged me, “What harm could it do?”
It could do plenty of harm, I thought. Who knew what was in that bottle that this random kid who showed up at my door was asking me to drink? But there I was, bringing the bottle to my lips.
I can’t explain the warmth that filled me after that. It was like I could feel the years slowly melting away and lifting off of me. It felt like I was glowing. I wanted to watch it happening. I felt Geoff help get my shirt off. I didn’t have a belly any more! I laughed deliriously. As the transformation started to slow, I was able to stand myself up. I felt unsure on my new legs and supported myself on the wall. I stayed there for a moment, examining the details of a body that I seemed to be inhabiting, but was completely foreign to me.
“I believe you,” I said as I caught my breath and my heart rate returned to normal. Even the blood coursing through my veins felt new.
“There’s no one in the world I would rather have shared this with,” Geoff said, coming up to me and wrapping his arms around my waist. I gave him a kiss. The sensation on my new lips was electrifying.
“Now we can really do it,” I told him.
“Do what?” he said with a beautiful smile.
“Spend our lives together,” I kissed him again.
Even though we were both young again, looking at each other through different eyes, and seeing different faces, the love we had for each other was still there. Just like it had been for all of those years before. But now, it felt like we had all the time in the world.