Emotional Tingle episode 1

EMOTIONAL TINGLE
(Mind Reader at School)
Episode 1
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Written by Author Nath
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Dim candle-light reflected from his face to his hand which was obviously sketching a drawing on a cardboard paper. His pencil wiggled along with the movement of his fingers. He perplexed, not only to get the stylish beauty of the feminine cloth he was drawing but also by the heat of the candle-flame. Sooner did he capture the magnificent colour of the gown with a red crayon before picking the paper up, admiring it and smiling sheepishly. Whoa! The smile was a replica of his heart; an overwhelmed feelings he wasn’t in control of rather he allowed it flush down to his toes and had his feet trembling involuntarily. Could that be love?! Yes, the young boy was definitely in love, though not with the grandiose drawing but with the person he tended giving such a gown to. Oh, holy shit! How can he afford it?

Nevertheless, quickly, he folded the cardboard paper and hurried out to the dark on a bicycle. He rode blindly through the stony path of the road thereby bouncing his butt on the seat of the bicycle like a tennis ball. Luckily, the half moonlight helped his visibility as he made a right turn to DeMar Street which has storey buildings. To him, going there is like migrating from hell to heaven because his home was just a mud house without electricity. The buildings at DeMar also reminded him of how poor they were. Fortunately, with the drawing in his hand, nothing matters more to him again until he got to one of those buildings. He jumped down from the bicycle recklessly and allowed it to run into the nearest bush. One could see him sneakily walking into the building without fence yet. He wore a knicker and an oversized polo that constantly tries to fly away from his tiny body. 😂 He left his hair bushy but in an afro-style, well caved and neat. That actually projected his innocent ebony face, hence making it catching to the eyes.

Haven entered into the compound, he used a ladder to climb to the window of one of the rooms. He was an expert on it like it wasn’t his first time. One step at a time on the ladder, he got to the aluminum window and knocked on it. Quickly, a girl opened it and wasn’t too surprise to see him.

“What the hell a-g-a-i-n, Crucifix?!” she whispered as she stressed the ‘again’.

“I’m sorry, Raina,” Crucifix apologized immediately.

“You’re sorry?!” The young girl glanced behind her. “What if I was naked?!” she lamented.

Crucifix didn’t answer that. However, he watched Raina walk out of the window to lock her door to avoid any of her parents berging in. She was actually in a jean trouser and a pink crop-top. A sixteen year old with a voluptuous physic and tantalizing complexion. 😍 I know you may be thinking she’s the girl that had Crucifix’ feelings trembling his feet. No! She’s far from that. She was just a kind friend Crucifix was lucky to have.

Intensively, Crucifix never averted his eyes from her as she was hurrying back to the window like am angry mother.

“Raina, i…”

“Don’t tell me you want money from me again just to get a gift for your crush, Crucifix.” she interrupted him.

“She’s not my crush! She’s a girl I love!” the young boy retaliated.

“How can she be your love when, first, you’ve not spoken to her for once, and, secondly, she doesn’t know who you are. You’re just dropping different kinds of gifts at her doorstep, claiming that they are what she wanted. I still don’t know how you know she wanted all those things without spoken to her even for once!” Raina exhaled deeply, staring at him to explain.

Oh no! The boy could not! He couldn’t tell her his God-given ability to read people’s mind by just looking deep into their eyes. That was a secret he needed to keep for a reason best known to him alone, and, of course, to his grandfather too.

“Raina, I.. I… I mean love reveals these things to me.” Crucifix found his voice. He noticed she wasn’t buying it, so he elaborated the illusion. “When you.. when you love someone, the person’s thoughts become your thoughts too…” He paused strangely.

“Hmmm..” Raina sighed. “Okay, what has love revealed to you again that she wants this time around”?

“This..” Crucifix displayed the drawing before her.

“What the…” Raina grabbed the paper from him surprisingly. “Crucifix, I don’t have money for such a gown!”

“But you live in a big house and your father is wealthy”

“Are you kidding me?!” Raina glared. “My father’s wealth isn’t mine neither is it in my control. Or do you think I can just walk up to him and say, ‘i need money’ or go to his bank account? Hell no! I’m just a teenage girl whose parents will ask, ‘what do you need money for?’ because I have everything I want.”

Crucifix became mute and sad with his head bent down pitifully.

“Wait..” Raina’s voice gave him some hope so he raised his head anticipatedly “I think I have this kind of gown.” the girl rushed to her wardrobe. Even if she wasn’t looking at Crucifix’ face, she could tell he was hopefully happy and she didn’t want to disappoint him. Just as she thought, she found the gown in her wardrobe, the same colour and style. “I think this is what you’re looking for.”

“Perfect!” Crucifix smiled. He watched her fold the gown into a cellophane and handed it to him. “Thank you so much, Raina!” he friendly cares her cheek and wanted to climb down the ladder.

“Cross!” Raina called him differently which also means Crucifix. Hearing the name, he knew it would come with a deep statement. So he looked up to see the beautiful girl looking down at him. “What’s her name?” she asked him.

“I hear them call her Margret.” he replied with the same tone.

She exhaled again. “Cross, you can’t impress a girl with gifts if she doesn’t love you. Why can’t you talk to her? Approach her.”

“Whatever she might think of me in her mind, I have a strong feeling she’ll love me too. The biggest wall you have to climb is the one you build in your mind.” he replied.

Bemused, Raina asked, “What do you mean by that?”

“You won’t understand, Raina…bye.” he began climbing down the ladder again, leaving the girl confused.

Of course Raina wouldn’t understand, No one could except him and his grandfather..
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Margret’s mind was filled with an undying passion to know the source of the spring of miracle that is, unquenchably, transforming her life and making her world a paradice on earth; she gets whatever comes her mind like a sorcerer. It was ridiculous initially when she came back from school one day, heartbroken and sad, remembering the death of her parents, so she needed a shoulder to cry on, a listening ear and words of encouragement. Surprisingly, she opened the door of their house to see a paper on the floor.

“No doubt, it’s a bill.” She mumbled and picked it up.

She flung her bag on the nearest chair, slid her hair as the rattling sound of the unfolding paper filled the sitting room. Unwittingly, she read the content thus: “Margret, life isn’t about waiting for the storm to past. It’s about learning to dance in the rain. The rain will always fall and will always stop to give way for the sun to shine. Do not think about your loss. Be hopeful of what the future have instock for you. Hope is like the sun, which, as we journey toward it, casts the shadow of our burden behind us…”

Not only did the young girl gain emotional strength from the content of the latter, she was also amazed to know that she had been hoping to receive such words of encouragement. Like someone read her mind!! Who could that be!? Quickly, she dashed through her door, stretched her head West and South, hoping to see who must have read her mind and dropped the latter. Fruitlessly, she walked back into the house, gazing at the letter once more. That emanated the beginning of the running spring of miracle in her life.

Now, it’s over a month Margret has been receiving anything she thinks in her mind without knowing who was dropping them for her at her doorsteps. Actually, at some point, she would believe that she had some kind of supper power. On the other hand, she would believe that she was a freak.

She lives with an old nanny in a house of those who adopted her as a daughter ever since she lost her parents in a car crash. Unfortunately, Mr and Mrs. Adams, her Forster parents weren’t living in town. That was why they had to get a nanny for Margret since her eight years old. Nevertheless, she’s now fifteen, preparing for her sixteenth birthday. She had dressed up for school, hung her bag behind her and surged towards the door. She wore a black short skirt, white canvas and a white top, totally fair in complexion. Immediately the young girl opened the door, as usual, she found a package. Swiftly, she picked it and opened it to see the red gown, perfect and beautiful.

“Mama Eda?!” she called for the nanny as she was slowly entering back into the house.

Eda hurried out to the living room. She was quite old but not too old. Gray hair could be found on her head. “Has God sent you another package, Margret?” she asked hilariously.

Margret looked at her. “It’s no more funny, mama Eda. I saw this dress somewhere yesterday and I wished to have it, and now found it at my doorstep just like other things i thought in my mind to have. Who’s doing this for goodness sake?” she became emotional and sat down on a cushion.

“Oh dear,” Eda sat beside her. “Maybe you must have told someone about this.”

“No! I didn’t!”

“Maybe someone is reading your mind.”

“That’s not possible.” Margret stood up disorganized. “I really want to know who’s behind this. If it’s a man, why can’t he walk up to me. The love and care is too much!” She turned to her nanny saying, “I really want to know who he is!”

Eda stared at her in the silence for the pronoun she used. Smartly, Margret read the meaning of her gaze then ch¡pped in immediately saying, “..or who she is.”

Eda smiled. “My dear, whosoever he or she may be, there’s a reason for the animosity. Maybe it’s your boyfriend.”

“No!” Margret smiled. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“Then you have a secret admirer or lover.”

“Then he must be in my mind for him to know my thoughts.” They giggled and hugged before she proceeded to Kenny High School.
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The morning sun surrounded Crucifix’ residence; a mud bungalow with a zinc roof. It was set out to the fringes of the city without close neighbors. Suddenly, a broken sound of a wood came from the house followed by rosty sound of papers. Oh, you won’t believe it! That was Crucifix breaking his save-box and counting his money. He sat before a table filled with the money as he picked them from the the highest amount to the lowest.

“Cross, what was that hullabaloo?” His grandfather’s voice came from the door. He was stunned to see the huge money on the table thereby taking him closer to it, enhanced by his walking stick. “Crucifix, I never knew you’ve opened a church or did you steal from offering box?”

The boy smiled. “It’s my savings, Papa.” he said.

“Savings? For what? when I feed you?”

“Man shall not live by bread alone, Papa.” He stood up from the wooden chair, on boxers alone. “Papa, I.. I..” he stammered. Of course the poor boy had to stammer because it was really heavy for him to explain the purpose of the savings regarding the catastrophe caused by the same unspoken purpose happened in the last few years ago. But he must! As a matter of fact, he opened his mouth extensively and said, “Papa, I.. I want to go back to school. A new school, Kenny High precisely. I’ll be of good behavior with no drama and… and…” he swallowed hærd.

“Cross, this is not you speaking. There’s something in your mind. There’s a reason for this decision. Tell me, why do you want to go back to school? Kenny High for that matter. We can’t afford that.”

“Leave that to me.”

“No, the last time you were in school, your ability to read people’s minds set the school ablaze, and that was the fift and last school I promised to put you. I’m not going back to my words.” the old man began walking out from the room, but stopped at the emotional voice of his grandson.

“Papa, you told me that the biggest wall i have to climb is the one i build in my mind: to never let my mind talk me out of my dreams, trick me into giving up, and never let my mind become the greatest obstacle to success. You taught me to get my mind on the right track and the rest will follow.”

Geb, the grandfather, turned to see tears filled in the eyes of his boy. He saw the passion burning in him, a passion driven by what he didn’t know. Oh, yes, driven by love, love for Margret, a beautiful damsel who had no idea the fire she had set on Crucifix’ heart. What a pity, the old man was blind to see that. Nonetheless, he said, “My boy, the mind is its own place, and in itself, can make a heaven of Hell and a hell of Heaven.”

“There will be no hell, Papa.”

Geb exhaled thereby creating an intensive tranquility. The sound of his feet and walking stick filled the room as he walked to the boy’s bed, sat down and placed the stick in between his legs. He gestured for the boy to also sit. “Fine, I’ll allow you to go.” he began, seeing the joy on Crucifix’ face. “But you must not be pushed around by the fears in your mind. Be led by the dreams in your heart because when the heart speaks, the mind finds it indecent to object.”

“Thank you, Papa.” Crucifix hugged him from sideways.

“Know how you get into people’s mind for the mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” the old man concluded.
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Crucifix was more than happy to really know that he was going back to school. But, oh, no! His savings wasn’t enough yet to get him registered at Kenny High. He never bothered because he knew exactly what to do to complete it.

Twelve noon, the young black boy rode his bicycle to Mary’s Kitchen, a popular restaurant at the gate of Kenny High School where he had the contract of chopping woods for the fat woman to cook with after which he gets paid. Margret goes to the same restaurant with her friends every school day to have her lunch. Oh, yes, it’s what you’re thinking; Crucifix fell in love with her there at first sight and always read her mind from there too. Unfortunately, even though Margret was always going there, she had never set her eyes on Crucifix because the boy wasn’t working there as a waiter, but stays at the backyard chopping woods only. There was a small broken wall at the back of the kitchen through which he secretly admire the girl and today was no exception.

Margret arrived to the restaurant with two of her friends, chatting about the red gown that miraculously appeared to her doorstep.

“I wish I were you, Margie” Rose, one of the friends, said. “Whosoever that grants this your wishful thinking may be your God.”

“I think is someone that loves you, Margie.” Alice, the second friend ch¡pped in.

“What type of love is that one? I don’t like it! If it’s a human, it must be a wizard or a witch to know what goes through my mind.” Margret emphasized.

Notwithstanding, plates of rice were served for them. Other students could be found in the restaurant eating and chatting silently too. Suddenly, Margret became chocked by fish bone, she rush up, for the first time, went to the backyard to cough out the bone. She bent down beside a vegetation coughing until she got it out. She felt a kind of relieve as her breathing rate returned to normal. Just when she straightened up, looked beside her to see Crucifix, staring at her with an axe in his hand while one of his legs rested on a log of wood. He was on trouser and a single, sweating seriously.

Margret didn’t know why she was still standing and staring at the boy she just saw him for the first time, but Crucifix was confident in his reasons and feelings.

“Hi..” he broke the silence between them.

Margret snubbed him and walked out from the backyard. Oh no! That wasn’t the reaction Crucifix was expecting. Sad….
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TO BE CONTINUED.