Stephen looked over at the machine sitting in the corner of his room, tucked away in its small, shrunken form. It would be so simple for him to chuck it out in the trash, get rid of it, and be done with it. Alice had gone home an hour earlier, her face plastered with a large grin and cheeks flushed and it took every single bit of strength for him to avoid looking at the smiles on Amanda or Miranda's faces. Girls were more trouble than they were worth...at least sisters, anyway.

"Penny for your thoughts..." came a voice from behind. He looked over his shoulder and blinked a few times...