NEURONE!

5 - Cat Versus Lion

Uju paced around the room as she waited for Simi to return. Since they had found out her ability and its connection to the serum Miles injected her with, Simi had been persuading her that they tell him about it and also get him to help her hone it. She had only agreed to it this morning because Simi had been playing an annoying song while she had been trying to sleep.

She was regretting her decision as it meant she would have to see Miles every day. She couldn't stand that so she had to think of a way to dismiss him without making Simi unhappy.

You probably don't understand why Uju hates Miles as much as she does. I'll tell you but not now. Right now, I have to give her ideas to complete her quest.

“Yes. I'll annoy him until he quits on his own. Simi can't blame me if he decides to leave.” She muttered, a smug smile creeping onto her face as she thought of ways to frustrate him. With each ‘evil’ thought, the smile on her face grew wider.

“Is this also a side effect of the serum?” A male voice with a strong British accent ruined the moment and even without looking, we both knew who owned it.

“Nah! She's always been like this.” Simi said and Uju turned to face her. She had a fake smile on as she looked at Miles. He nodded at her and she looked away immediately.

‘Play nice.’ She heard what she had come to term as ‘Simi's inside voice’ and she threw her a glance. ‘If there's anyone who can help you gain mastery over your abilities, it's him. So, even though you don't like him, fake it.’

“Whatever.” Uju shrugged and Simi blew her a kiss and went into the kitchen, leaving them both in the living room. Uju sighed and turned to face Miles. He was seated on the couch, his blue eyes glowing with excitement as he watched her. Only when he smiled at her did she realize that she had a scowl on all the while.

“Come sit.” He said, pointing to the space beside him on the couch. Uju stared at it and went to sit on the other end. Folding her arms across her chest, she threw him a stare. He shook his head before reaching for a bag Uju didn't know he had.

He opened it and brought out a series of portable equipment of which Uju could only recognize a heart monitor. She frowned as he moved closer to her and wrapped it around her left arm. She looked away as he checked her blood pressure. Once he was done, he removed it from her arm and began to place objects on her forehead that stuck.

She moved away from him and he calmed her, explaining that it was the electrodes of an EEG machine and was being used to monitor her neural network. Since she didn't understand what he was saying, she just let him continue, knowing that Simi would avenge her if he did something to harm her.

A dull sound began to echo in her head causing her to block her ears but it didn't stop. Then, a sharp pain settled at her head making her scream and pull out all the electrodes. It continued and she held her head, crying. She heard his voice telling her to stay calm and breathe.

She listened to his instructions on breathing techniques and as she followed, she found herself slowly calming.  The pain in her head subsided and the echo gradually turned into voices. There were a lot of them and each voice was different.

“What's going on?” She heard Miles say and she opened her eyes to look at him.

“I hear voices. A lot of them. I can't hear any clearly. It's all just noise.”

“Close your eyes.” He said softly and she obeyed. “Inhale deeply. Exhale. Now, concentrate on one voice. What do you hear?”

Uju frowned as she directed her focus to one voice. It was the loudest and she could sense frustration and anger building up in her as she got closer to it.

“This old woman is so messy! Ugh! James better get here quickly.” She muttered, repeating everything she heard in a monotonous voice 

“Okay, that's great. Another.” His voice flowed gently and for the first time, she didn't find it annoying.

“I hate being sick.”

“Wow, that ass is th...” She stopped abruptly, frowning as she felt the lust rising in her. “Ewww!”

“Concentrate.” She heard his voice and this time it angered her.

“How do I get money to pay his hospital bills?”

“I'm sorry, Mom. I can't do this anymore.”

“Good. Now bring it home. To Simi.”

She opened her eyes and stared at Simi then shut them. Her voice was low as she spoke.

“Those eyes. I could get lost in them and forever be happy. And his lips... Why is Uju staring at me? Are you reading my mind? Stop it.” She stopped and opened her eyes, staring wide-eyed at Simi.

“Sorry, she's practising.” Miles apologized immediately, however,  he didn't seem repentant.

Simi frowned and folded her arms across her chest. “Really? With my mind? Why not yours?”

“Exactly. Why not yours?” Uju raised a brow as she threw him a suspicious look.

He shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips as he stood up. “Believe me, Uju, even I get lost in my mind. You can't handle it.”

Uju scoffed. “Oh really! I'd love to see for myself.”

“No. You're not getting into my mind.” He said sternly and Uju felt challenged.

“You think so?” She reiterated, standing up and on her toes to make her look intimidating. I found it funny and I'm pretty sure Simi did too because even though Uju was taller than most girls, she was short compared to Miles. Standing on her toes, she still had to lift her head to look at him. She was like a cat standing up to a lion.

“It's okay, guys. You can use my mind.” Simi said, pulling Miles away from Uju. It felt odd seeing she and Uju switch roles as 'troublemaker' and 'peacekeeper'. “However, tell me first so you don't say out my daydreams about my celebrity crush.”

“Whatever. I'm done for today.” Uju stood down and after shooting glares as daggers at Miles, began walking into the room.

“Please, don't mind her. She's just cranky since I ruined her sleep. She'll be better tomorrow.” Uju heard Simi say as she entered the room.

She lay on the bed and slept off afterwards. When she woke up, Simi gave her a lesson and made her promise to be nicer to Miles. She did as she promised and the next few days went on without a hitch. She expanded her psychic radius, learnt how to focus on one mind, communicate through telepathy, and briefly control minds.

Miles made it a fun process and she had almost began to stop hating him when she decided to read his mind. She wanted to know if she could trust him and she tried to pry into his mind. Not only couldn't she get in but he noticed and they got into an argument. Simi had gone out and there was no one to settle it. In the process, Miles said he didn't want anything to do with her and she said she felt the same so he began to leave.

While he was leaving, Uju lifted the bottle of wine she had bought as a thank you for him with her mind and smashed it against the wall. It surprised both of them and they stared quietly at it for a while. Then, Miles left and Uju went to clean up the mess. After she was done, she tried to do what she did before and after hours of trying, she was finally able to lift the table with her mind.

It drained her mentally and physically and she laid there waiting for Simi to return from the market. By the time she returned, she couldn't move her finger and had to be carried into the room.