Ch 5: Emotions

Life is all fun and enjoyment, I thought. I was too late to discover that it wasn't so... too late when is discovered myself, my powers. But life gave me a second chance. Here's my story, the story of a woman.

I was born to rich, normal parents, or so I thought. Through my teens i had everything i wanted, be it the Barbie girl, round the world tour, or the Mercedes I got when I was still seventeen. Money was power, and it could buy anything. I was in the second last year in school when I met someone...

He joined my school in plus 2. From the first day itself, I fell for his good looks and cool attitude. I knew I was in love. The moment I looked at him something started burning in my head. It was not like the simile 'burning passion', this was real, physical. I felt some kind of connection between my mind and his, and felt my emotion passing on to him. It was really weird, but the same day, he asked me out. It was heaven from then on.

We dated for months. Then in December, he had to go to visit his parents in Dubai. I didn't see him for a month. When he returned everything had changed. He didn't like me, he never had... It was all my doing, my power had forced him to love me against his will. I was crestfallen. I can still remember that day - it was my 18th birthday.

When I returned home, mom and dad were waiting with my presents and birthday cake. I fell crying on mom's outstretched hands and opened my heart. She took the whole incident with much less surprise than I expected. I asked her, "Mom, is there something I should know?" She replied.

Days passed on, but after knowing 'the truth', it was never the same. Suddenly life seemed to have more meaning. I felt some kind of responsibility to human race. Though we were the superior race, we were the aliens on this planet. The feeling of being alien in a place you called home, it's unnerving.I joined CET the next year.

It was the second day in college that I saw the man of my dreams. He had the looks of Tom Cruise and poise of Hugh Grant. I told myself never to tinker with her emotions. As I walked past him, I tried a weak smile hoping he would notice me. It was beautiful... Amazingly, he asked me out the next week. I couldn't utter the words to express my happiness, but i think my nodding head conveyed the message to him.

That evening, we were at Lords. I was sipping on the last drop of limejuice, when I unintentionally started to pass on my emotion of love unto him. I stood up, trying to control the power. I told myself "I shouldn't make him fall in love with me. It will ruin his life. How would he ever understand that I can control emotions..". He tried to calm me down, and told the story of his life. He didn't know why he had the power or where it came from. His parents were so distance from him that they never cared to reveal to their son 'the truth'.

All that is history. We married and have a son, Deepak. Deepak's dad told me few weeks ago that our son's in love. He wasn't sure the girl felt the same for the boy. And then the day came when the dreaded accident happened. I had gone out shopping and saw the whole thing. Deepak suddenly shifted in his seat and the scooter went out of control. I ran towards them, but the crowd prevented me from getting anywhere near. I saw a girl getting out of the car that stopped just inches from Deepak. My power burst out upon her, and I could see the effect. The girl (whom I later came to know was the girl my son was after) felt an instant urge to help my son. She took him to the car and drove him home. I called out to my hus, but my voice was drowned in the crowd.

When I reached home, dad took me aside and said to me, "Our son knows I can read minds. The time arrives that he should know 'the truth'. And one more thing, the girl he's after, the one who saved him today, is Hari Seldon's heir!"