"I am the genie. You have 3 wishes. What are they?" says the genie.
"Well, wishes are things that we hope could come true, outcomes we want to be real, ideas we-" I begin.
"I KNOW WHAT WISHES ARE!" the genie screams.
"I'm not sure that you do," I add, shaking a finger admonishingly at him. "That's quite the temper you have, you should work on that," I add helpfully.
"Your wishes. Tell me what they are." This is said so quietly but with such vehemence that it makes me feel ill. "Tell me."
"I don't know," I say, my honesty surprising me. "I want to be happy - that wasn't a wish - like Holly Golightly but I don't think she actually was happy - her brother Fred, you know - and I think she was probably used in a variety of ways and the film is fluffy and lightweight whislt the book is crushing."
I pause and look up. The genie is staring at me.
"Ok, ok, ok. My first wish. I want him to be happy. I need him to be happy." The genie continues to stare at me. "I want him to make music again. Please make him make music again. I wish that he would make music again!"
Nothing happens. The genie continues to stare at me, dark, piercing eyes looking through me.
"That wish," says the genie, "appears to make you happy but not perhaps him. However, he will make music again."
The genie closes his eyes and mutters. "It is done," he finishes. "You have two left."
I consider briefly. "I'm ready," I say. The genie waves me on. "There is a type of cartoon - and they are cartoons - that attracts a certain type of dreadful person to them. The type of person who covers their room (in their mom's basement) with pictures of hentai and Sailor Moon. They are almost always socially dysfunctional manchildren who prefer 2D women to 3D women because at least their pretend waifu won't look at them with horror as they remove their belt from their overweight frame and drop their shorts ready to-"
"I think I have heard enough," the genie interrupts. "What do you wish?"
"I wish for anime to go away," I moan. "Make it go away."
A pause. "It is done. Your last wish?" asks the genie.
"I wish to have a ... well, this is a rather delicate request. I need something adjusted. You know," I say dropping my eyes to my crotch, "Where I feel tingly in my downstairs?"
The genie laughs, the first time it has looked anything other than terrifying.
"Oh human, this is such a common request. We genies almost expect it! Of course I can help! How many inches would you like added to it?"
My brow furrows. "Added? I don't want anything added. I think you've misunderstood."
I unzip and the entire world literally explodes and there were ninjas and dinosaurs with lasers on their heads and WAH METAL played everywhere and oh God it was amazing.
- FIN -