Chapter 49: Rehabilitation or Just Having Fun
Early the next morning. Darius was lying asleep in bed. Mikayla entered his room.
‘It’s breakfast time,’ she announced loudly.
‘Just ten more minutes, please?’ pleaded Darius.
‘Sure, if you don’t mind missing paintball,’ said Mikayla.
Darius climbed straight out of bed and ran into the kitchen. There was a stack of pancakes on the dining room table.
‘This looks like a meal I’m more familiar with,’ he said as he started placing the pancakes on his plate. Mikayla smiled as she went on the balcony to smoke a cigarette.
After he had finished the pancakes, Darius threw himself on the sofa. Mikayla washed the dishes.
‘What time does the paintball start?’ asked Darius.
‘After lunch,’ said Mikayla.
‘Hey, I could have stayed in bed,’ replied Darius with a whine.
‘This morning we need to discuss the exercise you did on the computer before we can do any fun stuff,’ said Mikayla.
‘Fine,’ replied Darius.
Mikayla sat on the sofa next to Darius. She selected a few interesting examples. She asked Darius why he felt a particular way about them. ‘I can tell by your responses that you still think a lot about Denise,’ said Mikayla.
‘I try my best not to think about her,’ said Darius. ‘But she keeps popping up in my head.’
‘It doesn’t work that way,’ replied Mikayla. ‘You can’t choose to just stop thinking about something. You need to occupy your mind with other things.’
‘Wish it was that easy,’ said Darius.
Mikayla got off the sofa. ‘I want to show you something.’ She led Darius into her bedroom. She opened up a cupboard. On the top shelf of the cupboard were two paintball guns. ‘Which one suits your fancy?’ she asked him.
Darius pulled them both down. ‘I want this one,’ he said as he pointed to the green gun. ‘It’s bigger and can carry more paintballs.’
‘Let’s see if size really matters,’ said Mikayla with a smile on her face.
Mikayla prepared lunch as Darius loaded the paintballs into the guns. ‘My gun holds almost twice as many balls,’ said Darius as he waved the paintball gun around. He accidentally fired off two paintballs, which splattered on Mikayla’s lounge wall. ‘Oh no, I’m so sorry,’ said Darius.
‘Don’t worry,’ said Mikayla. ‘It’ll wash off.’ Mikayla placed lunch on the table. ‘I hope you like meatballs.’
Darius excitedly gobbled down the meatballs. Mikayla washed the splattered paintballs off her wall.
‘Do you want any of these balls?’ asked Darius.
‘No, I rather not play on a bloated stomach,’ replied Mikayla.
About an hour later, they arrived at the outdoor paintball arena. The game host explained the rules of the game. Darius and Mikayla were tasked with defending Rico the Sape’s flag. Five other players were tasked with capturing the flag. To win, Darius and Mikayla needed to shoot all the members of the other team.
The first game went badly. Darius was shot in the first minute. Mikayla eliminated two players before being eliminated herself. The second game went badly too. Rico ran towards the other team, making it easy for them to take the flag.
After the second game, the other team shouted a few insults at Mikayla. That made Darius angry. Darius huddled with Mikayla and Rico. ‘I have a plan,’ he said. ‘Both of you move to the back of the arena. ‘I’ll make a big loop and sneak up on them.’
The next game began. Darius tried to implement his plan. Unfortunately, he was seen immediately. He was eliminated before he could eliminate any of the other team members. Mikayla shot two of them before being eliminated. Rico’s flag was captured with ease.
It was the last game. ‘I have a plan,’ said Mikayla. ‘We can use Rico as cover and a shield. They are not allowed to shoot the Sape.’
The game began. The other team could not see Darius and Mikayla. They strolled casually up to Rico to take the flag. Mikayla signalled to Darius. They popped up from behind Rico. Darius shot two of them, and Mikayla shot the other three.
‘We won,’ shouted Darius.
‘No, you and your grandma lost 3-1,’ shouted back one of the other team members.
‘I’m only six years older than him,’ shouted back Mikayla.
‘Age doesn’t matter,’ shouted Darius. ‘She’s more badass than all five of you put together.’
‘That’s wonderful. Just don’t forget your walking stick on the way out,’ shouted the same team member.
After the paintball game, they took a walk around the inner perimeter of the Jeed Agriculture Zone.
‘Those paintballs sting a little,’ said Darius.
‘You will have some nice bruises,’ said Mikayla. ‘They will hurt more than us. Our guns had more power, and we hit them from close range.’
‘I haven’t had this much fun in a long time,’ said Darius. ‘I’m feeling happy.’
‘The programme is beginning to work,’ said Mikayla.
‘No, it’s you,’ said Darius. ‘You’re saving me.’
‘You’re making the effort. That might be the biggest part,’ said Mikayla. She pulled out another cigarette.
‘You are really into these smoke sticks,’ said Darius.
‘My guilty pleasure,’ replied Mikayla. ‘I guess you’re curious. Trust me. You’re better off without them.’
‘You said try new things,’ said Darius.
‘Maybe just put these at the bottom of the list for now,’ replied Mikayla.
‘I wouldn’t mind a swim in the pool,’ suggested Darius.
‘Sounds like a great idea,’ replied Mikayla.
Darius and Mikayla returned to the apartment to put on their bathing costumes. Darius wore colourful board shorts, and Mikayla wore an orange bikini. They went to the roof pool for a swim.
‘I see your bruise,’ said Mikayla. ‘Right on your stomach.’
‘I can’t see yours. I feel disappointed,’ said Darius.
’I have indestructible skin,’ joked Mikayla.
‘Does that mean I can use you for target practice?’ asked Darius.
‘Sure, I’ll let you have three shots to my one on you,’ replied Mikayla.
‘Just joking,’ said Darius.
‘I wasn’t,’ replied Mikayla.
Mikayla climbed out of the pool to sunbathe. Darius continued swimming.
About an hour later, Mikayla got off the sunbed. She prompted Darius to leave the pool. They returned to the apartment.
‘I have a simple task for you,’ said Mikayla as she opened her laptop to reveal a questionnaire. ‘Complete these twenty questions while I prepare dinner,’ she said to Darius.
She prepared a spicy curry with rice, and Darius completed the questionnaire.
‘I completed it,’ said Darius. ‘I think I aced it.’
‘Excellent,’ replied Mikayla. ‘Then again. There are no right or wrong answers.’
Mikayla put the dinner on the table along with a few cans of beer. ‘Are you ready to taste some real heat?’ she said with a smile.
’Bring it on,’ replied Darius as he gestured with both hands towards himself.
Darius very slowly made his way through the meal. His face was bright red. He needed a big swig of beer after every few mouthfuls. Mikayla had no problem handling the heat. She finished long before he did. She enjoyed watching him suffer through the meal.
‘I did it. I’m exhausted,’ Darius gasped after finishing the last mouthful.
‘Let’s take an evening walk to let that meal settle,’ said Mikayla.
They talked and walked for about an hour before returning to the apartment. They both went to bed. Darius was up several times in the night to visit the toilet.
Early the next morning, Mikayla was back in Darius’ room. ‘Breakfast time, sleepyhead,’ she said with enthusiasm.
‘Not fooling me this time,’ said Darius. ‘I’m getting my extra ten minutes.’
‘I made you pancakes again,’ said Mikayla.
‘You make great pancakes,’ said Darius sleepily.
‘Glad you love my cooking,’ said Mikayla.
‘I think I love you,’ said Darius, still half-asleep.
‘Up you get,’ said Mikayla. ‘Show me your love by eating your pancakes before they get cold.’
Darius slowly got up and plodded into the dining area. ‘I have some news,’ said Mikayla. ‘I’m very pleased with your progress. I think I can clear you to return to Adoy much sooner than I initially anticipated.’
‘I don’t think I’m ready,’ replied Darius. ‘Here is so different from Adoy. It’s easier to do better here.’
‘Then apply to stay here,’ said Mikayla. ‘There is a spare apartment in this building.’
‘What reason could I give for applying to move here?’ asked Darius.
‘I’ll get you a job. That’s not a problem,’ replied Mikayla.
‘Great, I’ll apply,’ said Darius.
Mikayla provided Darius with the link to the webpage where he could apply. They filled out his application together. After completing the application, the system informed them that Darius had to wait three months before being considered for approval.
Darius looked disappointed. ‘Don’t worry, you could stay as my guest until your application is approved,’ said Mikayla. Darius smiled and gave Mikayla a big hug.
Shortly afterwards, he sent a short video message to his family explaining his change in plan.
For the next several hours, Mikayla and Darius discussed Darius’ plans for the future as well as how he could avoid falling into the same traps again. They ended the morning with Darius making a video about his journey so far. Mikayla made them both sandwiches for lunch.
‘Now, it’s time for the fun part of the day,’ said Mikayla. ‘We are going to Virtual Reality World to try out their new monster adventure. After that, we head back here and get ready for tonight’s party.’
They played ‘Monster Adventure’ for three hours. They defeated all five levels.
‘That was amazing. We were so amazing,’ said Darius in excitement as they left the building. ‘We must have set a record for first-timers.’
‘We make an awesome team,’ said Mikayla. ‘We proved that yesterday too.’ They gave each other a high-five in celebration. After that, they headed back to the apartment to change for the party.
‘I have no idea what to wear,’ said Darius. ‘I didn’t plan for such a party.’
Mikayla looked through Darius’ clothes. She picked out what she thought would be the best combination of clothes for him to wear. Mikayla went off to get ready. Darius changed into his clothes. He waited about an hour in the lounge for Mikayla as she got ready.
Finally, Mikayla entered the lounge. She was dressed in a long but tight gold dress. She wore her hair up. She had dark makeup around her eyes.
‘Wow, it looks like you want to steal the show,’ said Darius.
‘Just looking for a wild time,’ replied Mikayla with a smile.
‘I’m not sure what to do,’ said Darius, sounding a little stressed.
‘Stick with me at all times,’ said Mikayla. ‘Follow my lead and play along with everything I say. You have nothing to worry about.’
When Darius and Mikayla arrived at the party, they became the focus of attention. Mikayla introduced Darius as her new young boyfriend. The other party guests seemed convinced by her story. Darius just agreed with everything Mikayla said.
As the night went on, they both had plenty of drinks. Darius was feeling the toll of intoxication. Mikayla was far less affected. She pulled off her gold dress to reveal a very skimpy gold bikini. She got in the hot tub with Darius. He was beginning to struggle and needed a little help. She began kissing him to distract attention from them.
Mikayla’s friend handed her two pills. Mikayla swallowed one pill and put the other on her tongue. She pushed her tongue into Darius’ mouth. He swallowed the pill. A few minutes later, Darius began to come around.
‘You had too much to drink,’ Mikayla told him. ‘You can’t handle as much as the others yet.’
Darius began kissing Mikayla. A naked couple jumped in the hot tub with them.
‘Want to have some fun with us?’ asked the naked male.
‘Maybe another time,’ replied Mikayla. ‘This is a new experience for him.’
Darius shook his head. ‘I just need to clear my head,’ he groaned as he got out of the hot tub.
Mikayla followed him to the other side of the roof. ‘Do you want to go back?’ she asked him.
‘Just give me a moment,’ responded Darius. ‘I don’t want to ruin your fun.’
‘I don’t think there is much fun left in this party,’ said Mikayla as she looked over at a young female vomiting. Darius and Mikayla left the party and headed back to the apartment.
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