A Pinch of Peculiar

Dust danced between the sunbeams shining through the front window of the old shop. The smell of lavender and mildew drifted through the small space, which was filled with a maze of bookshelves, many of them pressed at odd angles against each other. The individual shelves were organized in a similar manner, each decorated with random objects—books, jewelry, herbs, vials, clocks—all ranging from magical to ordinary.

  Lena had spotted the shop as she roamed the cobblestone streets outside. Her father had warned her not to visit this side of town, claiming that it had taken her mother from him. She always thought that was a tale her father told to instill fear in her so she wouldn’t venture this way. Also, to hide the real reason her mother was gone: she abandoned them. Lena was a curious creature, though, so when she wandered a few streets over to the area her father had forbidden and saw the hanging sign with “A Pinch of Peculiar” written on it in swirling letters, she was drawn inside the old store.

The bell above her rang as she opened the wooden door. Stepping inside, the ancient floorboards squeaked and groaned beneath her boots. While scanning the cramped space, Lena glimpsed a white tuft of hair peeking from between shelves and followed it to the back of the store to see who else was there. The owner sat at the front desk, hunched over a book. When he looked up, he sprang back in his chair, startled.

“My dear, I didn’t hear you come in! Welcome to my shop. Is there anything I can help you find?” his eyes crinkled beneath the gold circles of his glasses, smiling.

“No, just browsing,” Lena answered.

“Well, take a look around! Don’t be shy. I don’t get many visitors nowadays.” Lena wondered why that was, offering an uneasy smile before turning back to the shelves.

She approached the first one, picking up a glass bottle filled with a dark liquid that sparkled purple as she tilted it.

“Ah, be careful with that one. It will make anyone who drinks it fall in love with you,” the shop owner said, wiggling his eyebrows up and down. Lena was skeptical about this. She turned the bottle around, reading the label: “Love Potion.” Intrigued, she carried it in her hand while continuing to look, in case she wanted to purchase it. She was sure that if she set it back down, she would never be able to find it again.

She weaved in between the bookshelves, her eyes roaming each ledge until they caught on a mirror resting against the wall across from her. As she approached it, she noticed that her brown hair seemed less full of color, almost gray. Her face had little lines forming around her forehead, eyes, and mouth. Were those… wrinkles? She was only seventeen; she couldn’t have so many wrinkles. She pivoted toward the front desk.

“What’s wrong with this mirror?” she shouted in the owner’s direction.

“Nothing is wrong with it,” he claimed, appearing beside her. “It is simply showing your reflection.”

“I don’t look like that,” she argued.

“You do right now, dear. You can’t expect the shop to allow people to discover all of its secrets, can you? Don’t fret, you will go back to your normal age once you leave, but the longer you spend here, the older you’ll grow. If you aren’t careful, you may just grow too old to live, and that would be an awful mess for me.”

At his words, Lena’s eyes grew wide, and she swore she felt her heart slow its beating beneath her ribcage. She needed to get out of here. She ran for the door, swinging it open so hard that it slammed into the wall behind it. The shop owner hobbled after her, yelling, but she couldn’t hear his words over her pounding feet and the blood roaring in her ears.

Lena didn’t stop until she was back in the safety of her own home. Once she mustered up enough courage, she slunk to her bathroom mirror, dreading to see if her reflection had truly gone back to normal. Peering into the glass, she realized the owner had been right; she once again looked like her usual self. She let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

It wasn’t until that point that Lena noticed the weight in her left hand. She let out a groan, looking at the bottle with the purple liquid. She had stolen it. She briefly contemplated returning it, but she certainly didn’t want to go back there after what she had just experienced. She turned the vial over in her hand, wondering if it was really a love potion. Her rapid aging in the shop must have been some sort of magic, so it was possible that this potion was legitimate. Although, Lena considered that the mirror could’ve been an illusion.

She decided she would test it. The worst that could happen is that someone she chose would fall in love with her, and she figured that wouldn’t be so bad. If it didn’t work, the mirror must have been a hoax, and she would return what she had stolen to the shop owner. She pondered who to choose for this endeavor. She had to pick carefully, in case the potion worked. Her mind wandered to thoughts of the boy who owned the flower cart she visited every weekend, with his kind eyes and unkept hair. He was polite and interesting in the few conversations they had. She decided that he would do.

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The next day, Lena made her way to the flower cart. She carried two cups of coffee; the one in her left hand had the potion already added to it. As she approached the cart, the boy’s face lit up at the sight of her. Lena extended the cup. “I brought you a coffee,” she said. “I figured you might be a little chilly out here.” Indeed, it was a brisk day, one that made your nose cold and your fingers numb.

The boy gratefully took the warm liquid. “Thank you,” he replied. Lena raised her own cup to her mouth, watching over the brim as the boy drank his. Nothing happened. She frowned a little. Looking down at the assortment of bouquets, she purchased one with white roses and turned to leave.

“Thanks for the coffee,” the boy called after her, raising his cup. Lena glanced over her shoulder as she walked away, hoping to catch a glimpse of the potion at work, but nothing gave away that it was. The boy continued to help other customers without sparing her another glance.

Lena lay in bed that night, disappointed that the potion hadn’t worked, but also a little glad. It meant that the mirror incident had been fake, and the shop owner was just an old man playing tricks. She prepared what she would say to him when she went there tomorrow to return the bottle. She hoped he wouldn’t be too angry with her. After all, it had been an accident.

A knock came at the door then, interrupting her thoughts. It was so soft, Lena thought she had imagined it. Then it became more aggressive, urgent. Who would be here at this time of night? By the time she rose out of bed and went to the door, the knock had turned into a frantic fist pounding on the other side. Lena debated whether she should open it. She contemplated getting her father, the only other person in the house, but she feared waking him for nothing. He worked long hours and needed rest.

Lena grabbed the fire poker from beside the fireplace before placing herself back in front of the door. As she opened it, she reeled back the poker, ready to swing, and stopped short as she took in the person standing on her porch. It was the flower cart boy with his fist raised mid-air, ready to bang on the door again. “Hi,” he said, his breath floating into a cloud in front of him. She signaled for him to come inside, closing the door behind him.

“What are you doing here?” Lena hissed. It came out harsher than she implied. The boy winced.

“I’m sorry, but I had to see you,” he said. She noticed his brown eyes were strangely fixated on her face, refusing to look away. He was watching her as if she were going to save him.

Save him from what, she didn’t know.

He stepped closer, touching the ends of her hair with his fingertips as if in a trance. “You’re extravagant,” he whispered. Suddenly, he leaned down, drawing near for a kiss. She quickly thrust both of her hands out, shoving him backward.

“What are you doing?” she asked, wrinkling her eyebrows together.

“I’m not sure,” he said, blinking. “I’ve felt strange all day. I haven’t been able to get you out of my mind since this afternoon. I haven’t been able to eat or sleep. I was going to wait until tomorrow to see you, but then, all of a sudden, I found myself standing on your doorstep,” he explained.

Lena felt dizzy as her mind raced to piece together what he was saying, realizing what was happening. The potion must have worked, which meant the aging in the shop was real; magic was real. She looked at him in disbelief. This was what she had wanted, right? Now she just needed to figure out what she was supposed to do with him. Not tonight, though.

“It’s late. You should go home and get some rest. I need to, as well,” Lena said, pretending to yawn.

“I don’t think I can leave you,” the boy said, exasperated.

“I’ll visit you tomorrow,” Lena stated, trying to convince him to go.

After a moment’s pause, he asked, “Do you promise?”

Lena nodded her head. At this, the boy slowly strolled toward the door, still reluctant to leave her. She opened it for him, trying not to be rude, but desperately wanting to go back to bed. “See you tomorrow,” he said with a bright smile. Lena attempted to give him one back, but knew it fell short.

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The next day, Lena headed to the flower cart as promised. When the boy saw her, he eagerly took off his apron, flung it on the cart, and flipped the “Open” sign on the front to “Closed.” Jogging over to her, he flashed her another charming smile and unexpectedly gathered her into a hug, causing her feet to lift off the ground. Lena was beginning to enjoy the attention.

“I thought we could take a walk,” the boy said. He grabbed her hand, leading her through town. As they walked, they rounded a corner and arrived at a fountain, strung with twinkling lights and filled with water that was a startling purple color. Lena did not appreciate the unnatural shade of the water, as it was eerily similar to that of the concoction she had given the boy.

Abruptly, the flower cart boy got down on one knee and reached for a small box, opening it to reveal a ring with a large sapphire gleaming in its center.

“Are you proposing to me?” Lena stuttered. The boy looked slightly confused, as if he was also unsure of what he was doing.

“I think so,” he said.

“I’m not going to marry you. I barely know you,” she blurted, trying to stay calm as the people nearby stopped to stare. The boy’s face fell. He stood, setting down the ring, and grasped both of Lena’s hands in his own.

“I can’t bear to be apart from you, though. Not even for a moment.” His face contorted, as if in pain from just the prospect.

“This was our first date. You couldn’t have possibly expected me to agree to this,” Lena said, incredulously.

“I-” the boy began but was swiftly cut off. His face scrunched as he clutched his chest, his features pinched.

“What’s wrong? Are you alright?” Lena asked, worry flooding her voice. The boy fell to his knees. “Help!” Lena shouted at the people nearby as she crouched down with him. A few pedestrians ran over, unsure of what to do.

On his back now, the boy was motionless. Lena moved his hands away from his chest to feel his heart. It was barely beating. A soft thump could still be felt under her palm, but she didn’t know how much longer it would keep pumping for.

Lena pushed to her feet and ran. She didn’t stop until she saw the sign with the swirling letters. Bursting into the shop, she saw movement toward the back and knew she had startled the owner again. He stood up to look at who had caused the commotion, his eyes growing dark as he caught a glimpse of the girl who had stolen from him. She rushed back to meet him and spewed her apology.

“Listen, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to steal, but you scared me with the aging incident, and I didn’t realize I had the potion until I got home. I intended to return it, but I was intrigued and used it. I need your help,” she said, out of breath. She waited under his scrutinizing gaze. His features softened after a moment, seeming to accept this apology.

“What do you need help with?” he inquired.

“I used the love potion on this boy and now…it’s like he’s dying,” she explained. “His heart is barely beating. It happened right after he proposed, and I told him No because we’re practically strangers.” Lena never thought she would say anything so absurd in her life. The old man contemplated this.

“It sounds like you broke his heart,” he said. “I mean, literally—not in the figurative sense,” he chuckled. Lena looked at him like he had gone mad.

“How do I fix it?” she asked, not caring about the logic behind magic, since there seemed to be none.

“You can’t, I’m afraid. Unless you have a way to unbreak his heart.”

“He’s going to die because of me?” Lena asked, devastated. The owner sat down and thought for a moment.

“All magic has a price, dear. You used the potion to make him love you; the drawback is that you may never break his heart or he will die,” the owner explained. “Since I suspect you have never dealt with magic before, I’ll make you a deal. Would that interest you?” the owner asked, raising his eyebrows. Lena frantically nodded. “I’ll give you the antidote for the potion and, in return, you give me your soul.” Lena blinked. She couldn’t have heard him right.

“My soul,” she laughed a little. “That hardly seems like a fair trade.”

“A life for a life,” the owner smiled. Lena took a step back.

“I can’t give you my soul,” she said, mouth still gaping at the prospect.

“Then your boy will die,” the owner said simply. “The clock is ticking. Who knows how many more beats he has left in him?” He was right, of course. Lena needed to decide, and quickly.

“What would you do with my soul?” She couldn’t believe she was even considering this.

“It’s not as bad as it sounds, really. I’m an old man and I would like to retire, but this shop needs someone to care for it.” As if in response, Lena felt a warm breeze wash over her face. “I need someone to take my place. I would bind your soul to the shop so that mine can be free.”

Lena thought about it. This meant she would have to live and work on this side of town. She would have to leave her father because he could never know that she owned a shop in the very sector he despised. There was a boy’s life on the line because of her, though. Lena made her decision then.

“Deal,” she said. Lena clasped her hand with the old man’s. There was a swirl of air that surrounded her, lifting her hair off her shoulders, and then a whoosh of breath escaped her lungs. Feeling light-headed, she braced herself on the desk in front of her, catching herself before she collapsed onto the floor. Lena heard the old man let out a sigh of relief, and, looking up, she could’ve sworn he stood a little taller. Once she had recovered, she jutted her hand out, palm up. “The antidote. Now,” she said. She hoped the boy was still alive. The owner reached under the desk and handed over a vial the size of her pinky. Lena wasted no time, racing out of the shop and back to the fountain.

When she arrived, more people surrounded the boy. She pushed through them, popping the cork off the vial. Raising his head, she pushed the vial with the amber liquid to his lips. She pressed her fingers to the pulse at his neck, panicking when she didn’t feel anything. Finally, a weak beat bumped against her fingers, and then another. His pulse quickened in speed, and the tempo began to match that of her own. Lena’s eyes filled with tears when the flower cart boy opened his. He gave a tired smile as he attempted to sit up. The crowd went up in cheers around her, as if she weren’t the one who had almost killed him in the first place.

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The boy apologized profusely for his crazed actions. He claimed that he didn’t know what overcame him. Of course, Lena knew, and her heart hurt with guilt at his distress and confusion. He withdrew his proposal, but asked if they could try another date. She couldn’t very well break his heart twice, so she agreed to one.

After that, she tried to resist going back to the shop as long as she could. She made it a day before she felt a tug on her skin. She knew it was her deal pulling her toward her demise. It was a week until she couldn’t bear it any longer; the tug had turned into the feeling of her skin being torn from her body. She needed to leave and fulfill the deal.

She left her father a note to inform him that she was going to spend some time traveling. She couldn’t tell him the real reason why she was leaving, and she wasn’t sure she would be able to handle the anguish on his face when she revealed that his only child was deserting him. Maybe he had been telling the truth all along; that place had truly seized her mother from them.

Regardless, Lena set out that night to be the new owner of A Pinch of Peculiar.

Gabby Russell is a fiction writer and English student at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. When she's not composing short stories or working on her New Adult fantasy novel manuscripts, she enjoys reading speculative fiction, baking, and traveling to new places. She lives in Upstate New York.

Image credit: Kelly Wright via Midjourney, Ideogram, and Canva.