Chima's Apartment - Afternoon
It had been three hours. Three long, exhausting hours of Naila clinging to Chima like a koala, showering her with kisses and declarations of love. Chima's face was permanently flushed. Her patience was hanging by a thread.
Matteo was still crying in the corner. Alice was still recording. Wony was still handing out tissues. Fatimah was still thinking.
"This is hopeless," Chima groaned, with Naila wrapped around her arm. "She won't let go. I can't even go to the bathroom."
Naila looked up with adoring eyes. "I'll come with you!"
"NO YOU WON'T!"
Fatimah paced back and forth, her brow furrowed. "There has to be a way to break the hypnosis. It's not permanent. It can't be."
Wony was scrolling through her phone. "I'm searching online. 'How to break hypnosis.' 'Hypnosis reversal techniques.' 'What to do when your friend's crazy Italian cousin accidentally makes her fall in love with you instead.'"
"Does any of that exist?!" Chima demanded.
"Surprisingly, no."
Alice finally stopped recording and joined the discussion. "Okay, but think about it logically. Hypnosis is just suggestion, right? So maybe we need a stronger suggestion to override it."
Fatimah nodded slowly. "That's... actually a good point, Alice."
"Even a broken clock is right twice a day," Chima muttered.
Naila kissed Chima's cheek. "You're so smart, Chima."
"I'm not smart! I'm just exhausted!"
***
A few minutes later, Fatimah gathered everyone in a circle. "Okay. We need to give Naila a suggestion stronger than Matteo's original one. Something that will override 'love the first person you see'."
Matteo raised his hand weakly. "What kind of suggestion?"
"Something that makes her realize the truth," Fatimah said. "That Chima is her friend, not her lover."
Chima perked up. "Yes! That! Please!"
Alice cracked her knuckles. "I'll do it!"
"You don't know how to hypnotize!" Wony reminded her.
"I'll fake it!"
"NO!"
Fatimah stepped forward. "Let me try. I've read about this." She knelt in front of Naila, who was still clinging to Chima. "Naila. Listen to my voice."
Naila looked up lazily. "Hmm?"
"Naila, you are sleepy," Fatimah said gently. "Very sleepy. Your eyes are getting heavy..."
Naila yawned. "I'm always sleepy..."
"That's... not helping."
"Fatimah, you're making her MORE sleepy!" Chima cried.
"Just... let me finish." Fatimah continued. "Naila, when you wake up, you will remember that Chima is your friend. Just your friend. You don't love her romantically. You love her as a sister."
Naila's eyes fluttered closed.
"Yes... it's working..." Fatimah whispered.
Naila opened her eyes again. "Chima... I love you..." She kissed Chima's cheek.
"IT DIDN'T WORK!"76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGosTCntIuK
Matteo approached hesitantly. "Maybe... maybe I need to apologize. Directly. To her."
Fatimah looked at him. "Try it."
Matteo knelt in front of Naila. His voice was shaky. "Naila... I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have hypnotized you. It was wrong. Selfish. Stupid."
Naila blinked at him. "You did something wrong?"
"Yes! I made you fall in love with Chima when you should have fallen in love with me!"
Naila tilted her head. "But I already love Chima."
"That's the problem!"
"Seems fine to me," Naila said, hugging Chima tighter.
Matteo buried his face in his hands. "I can't win."
Chima patted his head sympathetically. "You really can't."76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡESbGhxTyIR
Alice was bouncing with excitement. "Okay, my turn! I have an idea!"
Everyone looked at her warily.
"What is it?" Fatimah asked.
"TRAUMA!"
"WHAT?!"
"If we scare her enough, maybe it'll break the hypnosis!" Alice explained. "Like in the movies! A sudden shock can override brainwashing!"
Chima looked horrified. "You want to traumatize Naila?!"
"She's already traumatized! Look at her, she thinks she loves YOU!"
"THAT'S NOT TRAUMATIZING! THAT'S JUST BAD TASTE!"
Wony stepped in. "Alice, that's not a good idea."
"Fine, fine," Alice pouted. "But it would have been funny."
"Funny for WHO?!"76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTLqtvpjWI
Wony cleared her throat elegantly. "Perhaps we need a more refined approach. Let me try."
She knelt before Naila with perfect posture. "Naila, darling. Look at me."
Naila looked up. "Oh. Wony. You're pretty."
"Thank you. Now, listen carefully. You are a person of taste. Of refinement. Of elegance. Do you really want to be in love with someone who wears mismatched socks?"
Chima looked down at her feet. "THEY'RE NOT MISMATCHED! ONE IS JUST DARKER!"
"They're different shades of black," Wony said flatly. "That's mismatched."
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT MY SOCKS!"
Naila looked at Chima's socks, then back at Wony. "I don't care either. I love Chima."
Wony sighed. "The elegant approach has failed."
***
A few minutes later, Chima had reached her limit. She was on the floor, Naila still wrapped around her, looking utterly defeated.
"I can't do this anymore," she whispered. "I'm going to be stuck like this forever. Naila will follow me everywhere. She'll sit on my lap at work. She'll kiss my cheek during meetings. She'll..."
"Chima," Naila said sweetly. "I love you."
"I KNOW!"
Matteo was now lying on the floor next to them, staring at the ceiling. "I ruined everything. I came to find love, and instead I turned my cousin into my crush's crush."
"That's the most confusing sentence I've ever heard," Wony said.
Fatimah sat down heavily. "There has to be something we haven't tried."
Alice suddenly snapped her fingers. "Wait! What if we use the original trigger?"
Everyone looked at her.
"The original trigger," Alice repeated. "Matteo's hypnosis started with a phrase, right? 'You will love the first person you see.' Maybe if we reverse it... make her see someone else first this time..."
Fatimah's eyes widened. "That's... actually brilliant."
"FINALLY, someone appreciates me!"
***
They quickly set up a plan. Chima would hide. Matteo would position himself in front of Naila. When Naila woke up, the first person she'd see would be Matteo.
"But what if it doesn't work?" Matteo worried.
"It has to work," Fatimah said firmly. "This is our last shot."
Chima carefully extricated herself from Naila's grip, sliding away like a ninja. She hid behind the couch.
Matteo took her place, kneeling in front of Naila.
Fatimah spoke softly. "Naila. Wake up. Slowly."
Naila's eyes fluttered open. She blinked. The first person she saw was Matteo, looking at her with nervous hope.
"Matteo?" Naila said, her voice confused.
Matteo held his breath. "Yes, Naila. It's me."
Naila looked around. "Where's Chima?"
Chima popped up from behind the couch. "I'M RIGHT HERE!"
Naila's expression shifted. She tilted her head. "Chima... you're my friend, right?"
Everyone gasped.
Chima's heart leaped. "Yes! YES! I'M YOUR FRIEND!"
Naila nodded slowly. "Right. I remember now." She looked at Matteo. "You hypnotized me."
Matteo winced. "I... yes. I'm so sorry."
Naila was quiet for a moment. Then she sighed. "I'm too lazy to be angry right now. But don't do it again."
"I won't! I promise!"
Naila stretched. "My head feels weird. And I'm tired. Can I sleep now? For real this time?"
Fatimah rushed to her side. "Yes, Naila. You can sleep."
Naila lay back down on the couch, closed her eyes, and was asleep within seconds.
Everyone collapsed with relief.
***
They were all sitting around, exhausted but relieved. Naila was peacefully sleeping on the couch, no longer clinging to anyone.
Chima had never been so happy to be free. "I never thought I'd say this, but I'm so glad Naila is back to normal."
"You mean back to being lazy and sleeping all the time?" Alice teased.
"Yes! EXACTLY that! I'll take lazy over clingy ANY DAY!"
Matteo was sitting in the corner, looking ashamed. "I'm sorry, everyone. I really messed up."
Fatimah looked at him. "Yes, you did. But you learned a lesson, right?"
Matteo nodded vigorously. "Yes! Never hypnotize anyone from YouTube! Or anywhere! Hypnosis is dangerous!"
"Especially when you don't know how to undo it," Wony added.
Matteo buried his face in his hands. "I'm so embarrassed."
Chima walked over and patted his shoulder. "Look. You're my cousin. I love you. But if you EVER do something like that again, I will personally make sure you regret it."
Matteo looked up. "You'll hurt me?"
"No. I'll tell Naila to be clingy with you. Permanently."
Matteo paled. "That's... that's worse than violence!"
"Exactly."
Alice was reviewing her recordings. "This is GOLD. So much content. 'Failed Hypnosis: The Full Saga.'"
"ALICE, DELETE THAT!"
"No way! This is history!"
Wony looked at her watch. "It's been five hours. I need to reapply my skincare."
"You've been here for five hours and you haven't done your skincare?!" Alice gasped.
"I've been saving lives, Alice. Priorities."
Naila stirred on the couch. Everyone froze.
She opened her eyes sleepily. "Hmm... what time is it...?"
Everyone held their breath.
Naila looked around. "Why are you all staring at me?"
Chima approached cautiously. "Naila... how do you feel?"
"Tired. Hungry. And lazy."
"And... how do you feel about... me?"
Naila tilted her head. "You're my friend, Chima. Why?"
Chima burst into tears of relief. "SHE'S BACK! SHE'S NORMAL!"
Naila looked confused. "Did I miss something?"
Alice patted her head. "You missed A LOT."
"Too much effort," Naila said, closing her eyes again. "Tell me later. Or don't. I'll probably forget anyway."
Everyone laughed.
Matteo approached Naila timidly. "Naila... I really am sorry."
Naila opened one eye. "For what?"
"For... for making you fall in love with Chima instead of me."
Naila thought about it. "Oh, that. It's okay. I was too lazy to really be in love anyway. All that hugging and kissing was exhausting."
"EXHAUSTING?" Chima cried. "I WAS THE ONE BEING HUGGED AND KISSED!"
"Still exhausting," Naila yawned. "Goodnight."
She fell asleep again.
The room filled with laughter. Even Matteo cracked a small smile.
Fatimah looked at her chaotic group of friends and shook her head with a smile.
"You know," she said, "I really need to start charging therapist fees for this group."
Chima snorted. "You'd be rich by now."
"I'd be a billionaire."
Alice held up her phone. "Group selfie! Everyone say 'Naila is cured'!"
They all crowded together, even Matteo joining in. Alice snapped the photo.
"Perfect!" she announced. "Caption: 'We survived the hypnosis. Barely.'"
"Post it," Chima said. "The world needs to know what we went through."
Wony quickly fixed her hair. "Wait! I need to look good!"
"You're in the background, Wony."
"I'm ALWAYS the foreground!"
The argument continued, but it was light, warm, filled with laughter.76Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCIMj2W9sYa
and then Add to home screen.