I Dream of a Jeanie Bottle

Today we have a brand new one-page comic by Th3go, depicting a scene that very well could have taken place in I Dream of Natalie. I think teen Nat looks really cute, here. 🙂

Also, for those who thought the end of I Dream of Natalie might be a bit too dark, here’s an alternate ending:

 

— — — I DREAM OF NATALIE ALTERNATE ENDING — — —

 

It Was Inevitable

I was born to love you with every single beat of my heart

I Was Born to Love You  Queen

 

WKRP, Cincinnati, outside the studio

 

“Seriously, Jean?!”

 

“I’ll fix it!  I’ll fix it!  I’ll fix it!” [ POOF! ]

 

“And don’t forget me this time!”

 

Natalie took a deep breath to calm herself, her anger still simmering but contained.  In the control room, Jean was spinning records, the music piped into the hall.

 

Then it dawned on her, what she had just commanded her genie to do.  “Oh God!  David!”  She punched the speed dial on her phone.  “What have I…”  [ POOF! ]

 

Lakeland, Florida

 

David Ross entered the apartment, juggling his keys, grocery bags filling both arms.  His phone chirruped once and went silent.  Dropping his keys and COVID mask into the candy dish occupying a chess table by the door he checked the phone’s memory, Natalie?

 

He set the bags on the kitchen counter and returned to the living room.  He paused, glancing at the van Gogh and Mondrian lithographs, at the bookcase filled with magazines and flowering plants, and at a metal framed picture on the shelf.  A crew cut swimmer and his pony-tailed girlfriend.  Both smiling, both obviously happy.  Two words penned in marker.  “Love you.”

 

There was an empty space on the top shelf.  Something was missing, something felt off.

 

“Daddy, why is mommy crying?”  A little girl, 5 years old, thick brown hair done up in a ponytail with a green scrunch and holding a winged unicorn.  She had glitter in her hair, on her face, on her hands, a veritable explosion of glitter.

 

David turned, just in time to avoid being knocked on his backside by the collision with his wife.  She was weeping as she smothered his face with kisses then reached to pull her daughter into the embrace and hugged them both so tight David thought something would break.  Eventually she let up, holding them both at arm’s length as her tears slowly subsided.

 

“Natalia sweetie.  Let’s get cleaned up for dinner.”

 

Little Natalia scampered off to wash her face and hands leaving David alone with his suddenly crazy wife, a confused expression on his face.  “After dinner,” she said, wiping her eyes, “we have to talk.  I have something I need to tell you, something I really, really need you to believe.”

 

“All right.  After dinner.”  He gave her a kiss and followed their daughter into the bathroom.

 

Natalie turned to look at an empty spot on the shelf, the spot once occupied by that accursed bottle.  It had vanished.  Perhaps Jeanie had finally done something unselfish for a change.  Perhaps Fate or some genie Lord had intervened to prevent a horrible wrong.  It really didn’t matter.

 

Natalie turned away.  It was May 29th, and they were having kibble burgers.