My thoughts were racing as I tipped the pure alcohol bottle towards the petri dish. Personally I was disgusted by the bacteria on it.

It was green, spotty, moist, and worst of all was it came from my face! I couldn't be more disgusted with myself and I knew that I would never see my body the same again, but that wasn't important right now.

What did matter was of this was going to work. The ritual itself is meant to restore a person's youth.

I'll admit that I am by no means old but my 20's are almost behind me, and I'm not ready to decline in all manners of health just yet!

My biggest concern wasn't really if this would work, but rather what might happen if it did.

Would it be as harmless as the bacteria has only been alive for a few days and therefore the sacrifice would only make me a few days younger?

My fear gripped me tight as I imagined the worse possiblity that if it does work and the bacteria on that tray included skin pieces that are as old as I am then I'd become a defenseless baby again!

Then again that is impossible. No part of the human body exposed to the outer layers is truly as old as the human body itself. With all of the skin we shed I'd actually be surprised if there was any living human tissue in that dish.

But wait! What if the ritual sees the age more than the form of the sacrifice?! The bacteria is only days old! It'll think I'm sacrificing babies!

In that moment I put the petri dish down, setting the alcohol aside. "I can't do it...I just can't."

I stared at the bacteria. It disgusted me greatly, but the risks were just too great. "Honestly, I've probably aged more in the last five minutes than I have in the past month. This can't be worth it."

I grab the dish and blow out the candles, sighing before calmly walking upstairs.

I toss the petri dish in the trash and walk towards the sink. "Really, I bet I'd at least feel a few years younger if I jogged three times a week. You know what? I actually think I'd like that!"

I smile to myself before squirting the hand sanitizer on my hands and rubbing them thoroughly.

I laugh, the joy of the idea of being healthy is as easy as taking a pleasure walk through the park was already making me feel younger!

My laughter soon ended as I noticed my skin start to feel more supple, smoother. I watched as my skin got plump and then skinny again as my hands steadily became smaller and less developed.

I gasped, "The ritual! Oh no! The sanitizer!!! Nooo!!! I was right!"

Before long all that remained was a pile of clothes on the floor and an underdeveloped embryo too small to even be noticed by the human eye.