Chapter 3: Party Games

As I stepped into my world after acquiring my powers, I knew I would never be the same again.

- Alyssa

The nightclub was crowded and the mood was buoyant, with groups of friends either dancing together or remaining seated with their beverages. My own friends were sitting together at one of the tables, present company included. I was dressed modestly, not too skimpy or provocative compared to my friends. I had no desire of drawing the attention of men who might want to make advances on me. I was already taken. I had a boyfriend back in the UK who was attending a different university. I intended to remained faithful to him, despite the reality that we were often apart and rarely got to see each other. I was always careful around other male company. I think I had a fixed smile as I gazed around the room, watching all the people, the scenery, the vibe and atmosphere of the night club.

"You seem really happy tonight, Alyssa." My friend Isabella was looking at me oddly.

"What?" I responded, snapping out of my dreamy mood.

"I said you seem unusually happy. You're not drunk, are you? You've only had one WKD."

"Oh no, I'm just feeling optimistic." I beamed at her, but my eyes were looking off into the distance.

She shrugged. "Okay." She turned her attention to the others, who were more engaging.

I surveyed the area, looking at the various inanimate objects and devices. I was tempted to use my powers, but I wanted to avoid being detected or arousing suspicion or panic. I did get an opportunity to use them when I was getting dressed and applying make-up, without my roommate looking, but that was in a small isolated flat. This place was full of activity and pleasure seekers. It would be the perfect place to test my powers. I was tempted to pull some pranks on people, but I was worried that I might go too far and accidentally injure someone. I scanned the surroundings looking for an opportunity to prank someone or use my powers in some unseen way.

Hmmm. There was a guy that stood out from the crowd, a young man in the process of lighting a cigarette. I always hated smoking and that was the one thing I hated about Spain. Most of the locals smoked heavily and I had to endure the stench of tobacco everywhere I went. But not tonight, I smiled to myself.

When the man was about to pull out the lighter in his pocket, I mentally yanked the cigarette out of his mouth and it fell on the floor. He tried to bend down to pick up the cigarette, but I made it roll towards me. I amused myself keeping the cigarette rolling as the man tried to catch it. I finally relented and let the man retrieve it. He stared in confusion at the elusive cigarette.

I turned my attention to a couple of youths arguing in Spanish. One of them had a bottle in his hand holding it by the neck, which indicated he was about to strike the other male with it. I disarmed him before he could smash the bottle into his opponent's face, sending the bottle flying into a large potted plant. A few seconds later the bouncers broke up the fight and escorted the two hotheads out of the club. I felt like a hero for preventing either one of them from receiving a serious injury.

I looked around, hoping for other opportunities to prank people and practice my moving things with my mind ability, but I was interrupted by a message on WhatsApp. Huh. The message was from JR again. He was an older male friend I'd met in the UK while we were both attending an IT seminar. We'd became drawn together when we discovered that we were both practicing German and agreed to be speaking partners. Once a month or so I'd receive a message in German from him asking me how I was doing, and if I had time to meet up with him. Unfortunately I'd have to tell him that I didn't have time to meet him. I wasn't trying to avoid him or break contact with him, I was really busy.

"Who's that from?" My female friend asked.

"Just a friend," I answered.

"Is that the one that keeps persisting and asking if you're available?"

"Yeah."

"Alyssa, he's a guy in his 30's and he's asking a 19 year old if she has time for him? Kind of weird, don't you think?" she said with a frown of disapproval.

"Yeah, I know. It would be weird dating someone who's much older than me, besides he's not bothering me," I tried to assure myself.

"Well Alyssa, just be careful, that's all I'm saying," she cautioned me as she took another sip of her drink.

I nodded and turned back to the crowd. There, I found a couple who stood out from the rest of the crowd. They were arguing loudly in Spanish and I could hear it from where I was sitting. I could understand enough of it to realize that it was turning into something ugly. The female tore herself away from the table and walked away in anger as the boyfriend started to rise to follow. I noticed the glass of beer on the table. It was pretty much full and gave me an idea of what to do. Taking the girlfriend's side of the conflict, I used my mind to knock over the beer, the beverage splashing all over the boyfriend's crotch. He jumped back in shock and looked down at his jeans soaked in beer. I smiled at the sight of exacting justice on a man who could have gotten violent with his now apparent ex-girlfriend.

A few minutes later we were waiting for a taxi outside the club when I saw the same couple arguing again outside a Chinese takeaway. Eventually the boyfriend got physical with his girlfriend by grabbing her and several bystanders at the takeaway rushed out to break up the fight.

When the male bystanders were escorting the shocked girlfriend, who looked like she was about to cry, the boyfriend took the opportunity to spit at her. A real gentleman. But as he spat a huge glob of saliva I halted the spit projectile in mid air. The boyfriend gazed confused at his own saliva just floating and fluctuating in the air. Before he could react, the projectile of his own saliva flew back right into his face. The would-be spitter looked shocked and bewildered. What the hell just happened?

I laughed at the sight until I heard one of my friends calling. "Come on Alyssa, we're going home." I stepped into the taxi with my roommate, still laughing about the fitting punishment I'd just dished out on the abusive boyfriend, reveling in the comeback.

He was a spitting image of humiliation.

My mood was interrupted when Clarissa began complaining about the way the taxi driver was acting. He was driving intentionally slow so he could charge his passengers a higher fare. I grinned to myself; two can play that game. I stared at the climbing red numbers, imagining that the meter numbers remaining the same on the screen. Yes, just as I'd hoped, the numbers remained frozen.

When Clarissa and I arrived back at our dorm, the driver was shocked to find that the taxi fare was far less than he had expected. Frustrated, he grudgingly accepted the fare displayed on the screen.

Clarissa was already sound asleep by the time I settled in my bed, still lying awake. I was too excited to sleep and I quietly practiced moving things with my mind and the ability to produce electrical energy from my fingertips. Would these powers eventually fade or they were permanent? Or maybe they would continue to develop and mutate over time? I didn't know whether to be nervous or excited about the changes?

Despite those fears, I decided not to seek a medical doctor to analyze or diagnose the changes in my body, but I knew that somehow I needed to find the answers to my questions. But it would have to be with someone discreet, someone I could trust with my secret.

How do I find them?

To be continued…