Experimenting

It was a wonderful experience, flying through the air like a bird, feeling the wind and seeing the sky move. The only negative part was Rui carrying me above her head like a wooden plank. Truth be told, it felt a little embarrassing. On top of that, my uncontrollable body squirmed like a helpless bug. We flew for about 20 minutes, before Rui stopped and slowly descended down.

We landed in front of a building that looked like a student dorm. Rui then put me on the ground without a word and went to the front door.

She’s not leaving me here, is she?

Fortunately, my worries were unfounded. After she opened the door with her student card, she left it open, went back, lifted me above her head, and casually walked in like she wasn’t carrying a 67-kilogram human.

What if someone sees us? I can’t even begin to think about all the misunderstandings that would cause.

Luckily, since it was late, everyone was probably asleep, so we didn’t bump into anyone. We went up a couple of flights of stairs before stopping in front of room 574.

Rui put me on the ground again, opened the door, and this time, she dragged me in by my struggling left arm. I then saw the same blinding light, before everything went black again. It was completely dark, but Rui didn’t seem bothered. She moved around freely without any issues.

Does she have night vision or what? It’s pitch black in here, how can she see anything?
Or maybe she memorized her room and is moving purely from memory. Yeah, that sounds more plausible.

Finally, Rui spoke.

“Now we experiment. Do you still not have enough ‘energy’ to control other body parts?”

Experiment? What do you mean by experiment? I thought you knew how to help me.

I ignored it and typed my answer on the phone I was still holding.

“No.”

“Okay. First, try falling asleep. There are two possible outcomes. The first is that you recover some energy and regain more control over your body. The second is you lose control over yourself and the spi-... Ehm, I mean your entire body will move on its own again. If that happens, I'll just forcefully wake you up”

Well, that doesn’t sound very reassuring.

Since I didn’t have any other ideas, I obliged and relaxed my mind for the first time in hours. Almost immediately, I fell asleep.

*

I think I had a nightmare, because when I woke up, I was sweating and had a terrible headache.

I wanted to look around, but couldn’t control my neck.

Oh, I almost forgot. My body is still messed up.

To reassure myself, I tried moving my right arm and left leg. Thankfully, I still could.

“I see your two controllable limbs are fine. What about your energy?”

I wanted to type, but I wasn’t holding the phone anymore.

“Oh, right. I took the phone away. You were thrashing around in your sleep, and I was afraid you'd break it. Here."

I reached for the small glowing rectangle, but once again, it was locked.

Again? Really? How can she forget that twice?

When she saw the locked screen, she snatched the phone before handing it back to me unlocked. I didn’t know what face she made, but I can imagine she wasn’t smiling.

“I recovered some energy, maybe enough to control some of my arm.”

“Good. Do that then.”

I could now control almost my entire left arm, except for the shoulder.

“Now sleep again, and when you wake up, repeat the process.”

This went on for so long that by the time I could control my arms, legs, and neck, the sun was already rising. When I looked at the time on the phone, it showed 4:53.
At first, I thought it would be fine since it was Saturday, but then I remembered that when my body left the apartment, I had left the door open and hadn’t even taken my phone. To my roommate, Matt, it might look like I had been kidnapped. So, I quickly asked a question.

“Can you take me home so I can grab my phone and some normal clothes? I even left the apartment door open, so my roommate might think I was kidnapped."

“And how do you expect me to do that?”

“Can’t you fly me over there and then back?”

“And be seen flying in the sky by everyone outside? Are you crazy?”

It’s not even 5 am. Nobody is outside right now.

“But if I don’t get at least my phone, my roommate might call the police.”

“Ugh, fine. But I’m flying alone, you’d just slow me down again. What’s the address?"

I was slowing her down? Is she telling me she can fly even faster?

I typed out the address, apartment number, and directions to my room, along with where to find my phone and clothes.

She looked at it, then took the phone, opened the window, and jumped out. I stood there, amazed, as I yet again saw her transform.

*

While she was gone, I had some energy left, so I gradually regained control over my torso and back, leaving my face as the only part I couldn’t move.
Unfortunately, I had no energy left after that, and I didn’t dare fall asleep without Rui supervising me. So, I just sat on a single wooden chair and waited.

*

Finally, after way more time that I expected, Rui returned, holding nothing but two phones.
She handed me one of them before going back to her normal form.

She didn’t get me any clothes? Am I supposed to walk home in my pajamas?

“You seem to be doing alright. Is there anything you can’t control yet?”

She handed me my phone, and I was about to start typing, when I noticed the time.

It’s already 6:40 in the morning? Wasn’t she flying even faster than last time? How is she so late?
Did she perhaps get lost?

I ignored it, fearing she would get mad if I brought it up.

“I still can’t control my face and can’t speak.”

“But other than that, you’re in control over everything?”

“Yes.”

“Hmm, impressive.”

Thank you, I guess?

“But I still sense it’s not quite gone yet.”

“What isn’t gone?”

“You don’t need to know.”

Why did I even ask?

“Just go to sleep again.”

*

When I woke up, I again gained some energy, so I worked on moving my face.
It was way easier than controlling an arm or leg. The only problem was I still couldn’t speak.

Seems like controlling just my mouth won’t be enough for me to speak. I’ll somehow need to control my vocal cords. But how? It was easy enough with the rest of my body, since I could clearly imagine where the individual parts are and how they work, but I don't know either for my vocal cords.

When I typed on my phone to Rui that I still can’t speak, even with enough energy and being able to move my mouth, she actually seemed a little troubled.

“Yes, it’s still there, even if only a little bit.”

I wanted to ask, but ultimately didn’t, since I knew she wouldn’t answer me anyway. Instead, I asked a simple question.

“So, Rui, how did you know I was outside when you found me earlier?”

When I showed her the message, she froze, then looked at me, all confused.

“How do you know my name?”

Huh? Did she actually forget me? Even after we met for a second time playing badminton?

“We played badminton together once. And we even met before that, when you were hiding from some guys in the café I work at."

Rui put a hand to her chin, as if thinking hard.

“That was you at the café?”

“Yes.”

“I see.”

An awkward silence followed.

“So, why didn’t you come to play badminton again?”

“Didn’t want to.”

“Why? You were really good.”

“And? Does the fact I’m good at something automatically mean I enjoy it?”

“Sorry.”

“Hmph.”

She seemed annoyed, so I just let it go. I wanted to have a conversation, but if I asked about any of tonight's events, she wouldn’t answer, and small talk didn’t work either.

Then suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

It’s not even 7 am on a Saturday. Why is someone here this early.

Rui turned to me with a sharp gaze and whispered.

“Hide.”

My first choice for a hiding spot was under the bed, but there wasn’t any space.
My second choice was the closet, and thankfully, I fit in there. Then, Rui opened the door, and I heard a familiar voice.

“Hey Rui, how’s it going?”

That voice, is that Rita?