When Bertie was 9, he had been given some money for his 9th birthday, and decided to go and look at the shops after school. He found a science fiction magazine with a cover story about shrinking, and went to buy a copy. After he had handed the money to the shop assistant, he turned to see that a beautiful lady was behind him in the queue, and she was holding a copy of the same magazine to purchase.

“It looks interesting, doesn’t it?” she asked.

“Yes,” said Bertie.

She bought the magazine and then followed him out to the street.

“Since we both like the same magazine, would you like to come over for afternoon tea, and we could read it at the same time and then talk about it? I’m Doris.”

“Yes please Mrs….”

“It’s Miss,” said Doris, “I never married. I always wanted to meet a tiny boyfriend, ever since I was 17 in my second last year of high school. I used to think how wonderful it would be to have someone who was only as tall as my finger. But I never did. I’m 36 now.”

She drove him to her home, and they had pancakes together and then sat down on the couch to read the shrinking story. They talked about it for a while, and then she drove him home, to save time.

It was years before he was old enough to get to her home again under his own steam, and by then he had learned enough from Miss Corlani’s science class to build a machine that could control the dimensions of time and space. He was 13 and keen to see Doris again. He set the time controls for the year that he calculated that she would be 17. He set the location controls for her house and then arrived on her desk at around 1 ½ inches tall on an afternoon, after school for her. The Ring of Reversal’s side effects had gotten him too. He thought of her longing and realised that he was now in a much better position to win her over, even though this Doris had never seen him before.

He had quite literally appeared on top of her desk, while she was sitting there doing her homework.

Doris looked over at him in surprise, and put down her pen.

“Where did you come from?”

“I teleported in this machine,” he said, unwilling to confuse her with talk of being from the future.

“I’ve always wanted to meet a little boy like you. I’m Doris,” she said, thinking that he had teleported from another planet.

“Then I’m glad to be the one you’ve met. I’m Bertie,” said Bertie.

“You look younger than me. How old are you?” she asked.

“I’m 13,” said Bertie.

“I’m 17,” said Doris, and then added in a delightfully mischievous voice, “I hope you like older women.”

“I do now that I’ve met you,” he said.

“Little Bertie, I think I’d like to kiss you,” said Doris.

Her relatively huge lips had looked inviting enough even before she had issued such an irresistible offer.