It's Fun to be Young! (Mercedes/Ryanmo97)

"I'm twenty-two!" Moaned Holly Campbell as she was questioned by the salesperson behind the till. "Look at me, I'm dressed like a ballerina... where am I going to keep my ID? I don't have any pockets in my tutu!" It was no use. She left the store, frustrated, as not a single shop would sell her any alcohol. She was going to turn up at this costume party without anything to drink... and right now, she definitely needed a drink!

This was the third shop she had went to, and the third one that had refused to sell to her because she apparently 'looked about fifteen'. Holly used her driver's licence more times than she used her bank card, and she cursed to herself for doing something silly as leaving her ID card at home. She should have expected to run in to this problem, considering she had lost track of the amount of times she had been ID'd in the past year alone.

To think, she had went to all this effort for nothing. Her hair was bound tightly in a bun while her white tutu danced gently with the slightest of movements. Her denim jacket did not match the rest of the outfit, but it kept her moderately warm. A quick glance to her watch added more bad news. It was 8 o'clock, that meant she was already running late! By the time she got there, this party would probably be nearly finished!

Sighing in disappointment, she no longer cared that passing strangers were giving her funny looks for her choice of costume, and retreated to a diner. She sat in one of the booths next to the window, and ordered herself a cup of coffee. Guess it was going to be a boring Saturday night for her.

Ryan Morris
Age: 35
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 195 lbs.

The diner had been in Ryan's family forever. He was the latest member of his family to own it. It was just a nice quite little place. It wasn't anything fancy. But, they still did good business. It was a pretty typical Saturday night. Ryan just finished up doing some paperwork in his office. He got himself a cup of coffee and looked over the who was in the diner. There was a person in just about every other booth and there were a few people sitting at the counter. But, there was something off.. there was a 15 year old girl in a denim jacket and tutu, sitting by herself in one of the booths drinking a cup of coffee. Ryan walked over to her, "Hi there... Are you lost, sweetheart?"

She had been lost in her many thoughts when the man came over. Her fingers stroked the side of the mug, the coffee barely touched except for a few sips. Holly spent most of the time looking out the window, locking eyes with the strangers that walked past. Some of them were too busy, ignoring everything about them, while others had a quick glance at her... then doing a double take when they saw what she was wearing. Thankfully, only the top of her tutu was really visible to them.

"I'm sorry, what?" Holly snapped back to reality, first checking that he was actually talking to her, then taking a few moments to process his question. Sweetheart? She asked herself, narrowing her eyes a little before replying. "Um... no. Do I look lost?" She asked, not realising that her tone had become unnecessarily snappy, though it was probably a defensive mechanism at yet another man thinking she was younger than she was.

Ryan was taken aback by her reaction. Obviously she wasn't 15. "Oh... I'm sorry... It's just your face and the way you're dressed you look a lot younger. Here, let me make it up to you. This is my diner. Would you like something to eat on the house?" He obviously insulted her and he thought it would be a good gesture to offer her a free meal.

Holly wanted to scream at him for mentioning the taboo subject of her age and appearance. She had reached the point where one more person mistaking her for a child would probably get a hot up of coffee in the face. But he apologised for it, and the poor man had dodged a very hot bullet indeed. For now, anyway. She only had herself to blame. She knew that she looked young, so why did she have to wear something as childish as a ballerina tutu? The smart and sensible thing would have been to wear something that made her older. But lessons would be learned, and it was too late to change her outfit now.

She pushed up the sleeves of her denim jacket further up her arms, her eyes finally diverting away from the man, and on to the table top where the menu sat. She had no real proof that this was his diner, though a random stranger was hardly going to chance his luck and pretend to own it -- unless it was all an intricate set-up for a chat-up line. "I'm... okay... thanks." She spoke slowly, looking back to him. "Ballerinas need to watch their figure..." Holly said, allowing a small-yet-cute smile begin to form.

Ryan laughed at her line about Ballerinas needing to watch their figure. "Yeah... It sounds like you have a lot of trouble convincing people how old you really are. There are people out in California who would kill to have your problem. Maybe you should just quit fighting it and just live life as a young person."

The so-called owner's thought almost caused Holly to burst in to laughter. So he was suggesting that she finally give in to all those times that people had mistaken her for a teenager, and actually live her life as one? Yeah, as if that was going to happen! "Yeah, you have no idea how happy I was when I got my driver's license. So I could finally shove it in someone's face and go 'see, I am 21!'."

By now, the coffee was already starting to cool, though it was very clear that she wasn't going to have much more of it. Holly pushed the cup towards the middle of the table and played with a loose strand of hair that had fallen from her otherwise tight bun, attempting (without much luck) to return it to the rest of them. "I think it's time I go home... get this stupid thing off and get in to something a lot more comfortable." She began, looking outside and sighing. It was still early, but what else was there to do now? Curl up on the couch and watch a film?

"You really should consider it," said Ryan, "I think you could really pull it off," Ryan had a bit of a liking to young girls. But, he would never act on it. But this woman was perfect even though she was older she looked 15. "This is crazy," He said, "I mean we just met and you have no real reason to trust me but would you consider coming back to my place. It's not really that far from here."

At first, Holly thought he was kidding when he suggested she start dressing like a young woman. Not, not just dressing like it, but acting like a young kid as well? But very quickly, when he insisted on it once again, she realised that he was actually being serious with his idea. "No offence..." She began, her teeth pressing down on her bottom lip gently. "...but that sort of sounds kind of... weird. Next, you'll be telling me to start going to Jonas Brothers concerts and putting posters of Justin Bieber on my walls." She laughed nervously.

"I... don't know." She said in response to his offer. "You're right... I don't really know you and my daddy always told me to never go home with strangers." She said, using the childish 'daddy' expression on purpose as to make the conversation a little less awkward than it had become.

"Jonas Brothers maybe," said Ryan, "But never Justin Bieber..." he said with a laugh.

When she said that her daddy told her not to go home with strangers, he said, "Well, my name is Ryan and I own this place. Your daddy sounds like a smart man." he paused for a moment then said, "Tell you what think about what I said. If you are interested in living like a 15 year old again... Come see me.. I might be able to help you..." Ryan then walked away.

She gave him a smile in return, she had clearly taken it too far by mentioning Justin Bieber. She had younger cousins who were in to that sort of stuff, and she always rolled her eyes at how excited they got about things like that. But at least they didn't have the worries of the real world to think about, didn't have to worry about rent or bills, or whether she was going to get fired for constantly turning up late to her job.

What was she thinking? Her thoughts had been clouded with what Ryan had said, and she sat there in a daze for about a minute. When she snapped out of it, he was gone, having headed off to return to his work. She narrowed her eyes and stood up, searching for the man she had just spoken to. This was crazy. She couldn't believe she was even having the smallest consideration about his plan. Why would she honestly want to become a fifteen year old again! "Wait..." She began, walking across the diner and leaning forward against the counter. "...why are you saying this? What do you mean 'live like a 15 year old again'?" She should have walked away. Drank her coffee and went home as quick as she could and away from this man. But no. Holly was instead questioning it, as if there was even a remote chance that she would consider it.

Ryan walked back up to the counter to get himself another cup of coffee. Then he heard the young woman ask him what he meant by living like a 15 year old again. Ryan turn to face her, "Exactly what I meant. 'Live like a 15 year old again.' You about bit my head off when I thought you were younger. Maybe it would be just easier if just embraced it. I have a nice place nothing to big just a pretty simple two story house. But I can use a live-in housekeeper. The job is yours if you want it but you have to dress and act like a 15 year old. If anyone asks we can just say you are a friend of the family. You can't tell me you've never wished you were 15 again."

Holly didn't know what to think. This was the weirdest proposal she had ever been given, and she flicked her eyes from left to right in case any one else was listening in to this. The customers were all too interested in their own food and conversations to listen in, not even a single person stared as she stood there in the costume. Was she hearing him right? Was he actually offering her a job? The sensible voice in the back of her head was screaming for her to take a massive step back. This had bad news written all over it, this man was wanting her to come and live in his house (this man who she had met less than five minutes ago) under the condition that she dress like a fifteen year old. And act like one...

Her cheeks began to burn red at his final sentence. No, she hadn't thought about being fifteen again... or had she? He had a good argument (what are you saying, you silly girl, it's not a really, really bad argument!) and he began to push the right buttons when he spoke about how much easier it would be if she just... pretended she was fifteen again. "But... if I act like I'm fifteen... my life would be so different. What would my friends say? My family? I... I..." She was beginning to become flustered, nervously playing with the skirt of her tutu, no longer giving him eye contact. Usually, she would have her hair to hide behind, but with it tied in the bun, her embarrassment was on full show. Right now, she looked like a lost little girl, and not the twenty-something woman she really was. "Would... would you take care of me?"

When she questioned why he friends and family would say Ryan said, "I don't know what they would say. But, if you are happy they shouldn't question it." Then he looked at her as she played with the skirt of her tutu. She was looking down. She looked like a lost little girl... not a twenty-something. Then she asked he would take care of her. He took his hand and lifted her chin up so he could look her in the eyes. He smiled, "Of course, sweetie...I would take very good care of you."

Holly was so confused right now. This wasn't how the night was supposed to have ended. She was supposed to be at her friend's party, having fun, dancing and getting drunk. Not contemplating the life-changing offer of returning to her childhood days. She should have been asking him why he wanted her to dress and act like she was a teenager, but instead, all she could think about was how it would be like. "I... I don't know." The young woman whispered, doing her best to maintain eye contact. Her fingers continued to play with the feathers of the skirt, the cold exterior she had displayed when she first spoke to him had melted away, exposing the fragile teenage girl that had been fighting the change in to adulthood for the last few years.

"N-no..." She shook her head, unconvincingly. "...this is silly. What you're offering... it's... I can't do it." She looked down at the ground again, remaining rooted to the spot. "I'm not a young girl any more... I'm a... b-big girl now." Her eyes had began to water. "Please.. I just want to go home, please..."

The young girl looked more lost and confused then ever. She looked like she was contemplating her choices. When she asked to go home with tears in her eyes he said "No one is stopping you from leaving," said Ryan, "The door is right over there and it's not locked. If you don't want to do this you don't have to..." He wanted her to know that she had free will. He wasn't going to force her to any thing she didn't want to do.

Her hands wiped away gently at her eyes, stopping the tears from going any further. She didn't know why she was getting like this, it should have been a straight forward 'no' answer, but instead her mind was racing with so many thoughts, it was confusing her. Maybe it was because he had given her this choice on a particularly bad night, one where she had been in a really terrible mood about the whole age thing. But when Holly thought about it, this wasn't a one-off. There had been many nights in the past where getting ID'd had caused her a lot of problems. Heck, even boyfriends were a problem because the only guys that seems to be interested in her were boys wearing school uniforms!

"If... if I say 'yes'...and I mean IF... I can change my mind, yeah? I can do it for one or two days and if I don't like it, I can leave and go back to normal, right?" Holly, don't do this!

Ryan watched as she wiped her eyes and asked if she wanted to go back to normal, she could with no problems, he nodded, "Of course," he said, "one hour, one day, one week, one year, whatever... If you don't want to continue you are free to go... In the interest in full disclosure, we will be having sex."

Holly knew it was a silly question, of course he wasn't going to stop her from returning to her normal life once she started living with him. That sentence sounded extremely weird in her head. Living with him. Living with this stranger, a stranger who didn't even know her name, yet was inviting her to stay. She figured the sex subject would come up eventually, but all she could do was look back down at the ground and nod her head.

After not saying anything for what seemed like minutes, she took a step away from him and took a deep breath. "My name's Holly..." She whispered, barely loud enough for herself to hear. "...can you give me an address or something?" She asked.

Ryan smiled, "Nice to meet you, Holly." he said. He grabbed scrap piece of paper and wrote down his address. "Come over any time tomorrow. Bring only clothes 15 year olds would wear. If you need to pick up some things take this..." Ryan handed her $250 in cash, "I'll see you tomorrow..." Ryan then walked away before Holly could say anything.

The next day, Ryan was at his home a nice 2-story home in the suburbs. He was wearing a t shirt and shorts. He wasn't sure if he would ever see Holly again. If he didn't then he would be out $250, which was just a drop in the bucket to him. But, if he did he was sure they would both be very happy.

The young woman stood there, her hand still held out, the $250 resting on the palm of her hand. She almost had to pick her jaw up off the floor. He'd just given her money... a lot of money! But it came with a rule. She had to go and buy clothes that someone a few years younger than her would wear. Her wardrobe alone had very little from her teen years left in it. A couple of t-shirts that hadn't been worn for a long time, some skirts that she used to wear... all of it was gathering dust.

She spent the next day in the shopping mall, the $250 in her purse. What would happen if she never went? She couldn't just take his money and run, right? She walked in to a clothes store and headed straight for the kids department. A yawn escaped her lips, as she did not get much sleep last night. It was understandable, there was too much on her mind. Holly walked through the department awkwardly, as if unsure what to buy. It just didn't feel right, but the man had given her money. And, there was no harm in at least giving it a shot? Of course there was! He could be a psycho that likes little girls, and as soon as she walked in to his house, he could slam the door and lock it forever.

It was about six o'clock in the evening that she arrived at the address scribbled on the piece of paper that had been handed to her the night before. Carrying a bag full of clothes, she bit her lip nervously as she pressed the door bell. Wearing minimum make-up (something which she hadn't done in a long, long time), Holly stood there in a pair of denim shorts, a white t-shirt (with a glittery cat on the front) and a pair of converse. Barely standing at 5' 3", Holly could have easily passed as someone much younger.

Ryan was in the kitchen making dinner. He was almost done when the doorbell rang. He walked up to the door and saw Holly. She looked more like a 15 year old at that moment then she did the night before. "Hello... I wasn't sure if you were going to come or not... I was just finishing making dinner... Come on in..." Ryan let her in and closed the door behind her. "You can leave your bag there for now..." Ryan then took her into the the kitchen.

The kitchen looked very modern. There were oak cabinets all around. There was a large stainless steel refrigerator and a stainless steel double wall oven next to the door that lead to the laundry room and stainless steel dishwasher by the sink. The counter tops were all black marble. There was a island in the center of the kitchen, with a cook top, a griddle and a grill. There was a bar on the other side of the island with a couple of stools. He pulled one of the stools out for her, "I hope you like chicken..."

There was still something about this that didn't feel right. As he welcomed her in to his house, she took small steps through the door, replying only with a faint smile. He motioned for her to leave her bag where she stood, and Holly placed it carefully on the floor. He had asked her to buy clothes that only a teenager would wear, and she followed his command to the letter. Even her underwear had now been replaced by something a lot younger looking.

She followed him to the kitchen, keeping her distance. The more nervous she was, the younger she looked. As he pulled out a stool, she climbed on to it and nodded her head. "Yeah... chicken is fine..." She began, placing her hands together and slipping them between her legs. "You've got a nice house..."

Ryan smiled, "Thank you." He was cooking some chicken breasts on the grill, "After we eat, I'll show you the rest of the house and I'll let you pick out your bedroom. Tomarrow, we can go shopping to help you decorate it." Ryan got the chicken off the grill and put one each on a plate. Then he took some oven roasted potatoes out of the oven and put some on each plate. Then he put some peas that were warming up in a saucepan on each plate. He set the plates down on the bar. He handed her some silverware, "What would you like to drink? Milk or Water?"

The meal in front of her looked nice, and she held the fork in her hand, playing around with one of the potatoes. "Can I have some milk please?" She asked, curious about the tour he was going to give her, as well as their shopping trip he had planned for them tomorrow. Holly was sure that it was probably nice enough inside that it didn't need redecorating, but then he did want her to live like a teenager as well. Did that mean buying things to make it seem more... childish?

She worked her way through the meal, her legs dangling off the stool and swinging back and forth. "This is really good." She complimented, her voice continuing to be rather quiet.