"Sam," Jon said. "There's something really important that I have to tell you."
"Yeah?" Sam asked, from his position beneath the blankets.
"I, uh, know why you've been acting weird all day," Jon said.
Sam sat up quickly. "What? You mean you noticed everything?"
"Don't see how I wouldn't." Jon sat down on a desk chair. "I mean, you forgot I was a gymnast?"
Sam fell back onto his bed. "You weren't a gymnast before today, Jon."
"See? That's what I mean," Jon said. "And that's why I decided I need to show you something." Jon pulled something out of his pocket. "I was given an amazing artifact, and I did something stupid with it, and I want to make things right. The stone in my hand grants wishes, and I think a bad wish on my part accidentally affected your mind somehow."
Sam perked up again. "What? You mean we can fix this?"
"Sort of," Jon said, then looked away. "See, the stone can't reverse any wish that's been made with it. So you've got to be careful with your wordings. I, uh, don't want to make things any worse than they already are."
Sam's eyes shot open. "You mean I can just say 'I wish' and get myself back to normal?"
"Well, you have to be holding it," Jon said nervously. Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to tell Sam about the stone.
"So give it to me!" Sam jumped out of bed and came over to Jon. "You did this, so you owe me. Let me make a wish."
"Well, that's sort of why I came here in the first place," Jon said, holding the stone behind him protectively. "But I was hoping we could think things out first before we made a wish, to make sure it comes out right."
"Jon, you don't have half a clue how bad today has been for me," Sam said. "I don't care about anything else besides making things right as quickly as possible. You're holding the thing that can fix me, so hand it over."
Jon, always loyal, couldn't stand this kind of pressure from one of his friends. Despite his better judgment, he held the stone out for Sam, who grabbed it immediately.
Sam held the stone up in the air triumphantly and cried "I wish ..."
