Queen of the Clueless #2 of 3 (COMPLETE)

Chapter 24

Neil

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Sol looked really apologetic, which he appreciated, but he wasn't mad. He had already driven the horrendously long way from Manila just to see her mother. A few minutes—or hours, however long this strange party was going to last—wouldn't matter.

He didn't mind that he didn't get to even shake Mrs. Delloro's hand. Their arrival was expected but still sudden, and someone had quickly told Sol that she absolutely must pass by her house to change. He refused the same invitation, opting to stay at the party instead, despite being inappropriately dressed for the occasion. In any case, he didn't want to be put into someone else's suit and shoes just to fit in.

He didn't mind the wait. He played chess, and knew that some games ran long; it didn't mean the victory was less satisfying. It would give him time to think about what exactly he would ask for, once he had Mrs. Delloro under his control. Should he go simple, and just get her to agree to Sol moving in with him? Or aim higher, ask for more?

Neil couldn't help but do an inventory, based on that quick glance he got of his girlfriend's mother. Earrings, necklace, three rings, watch, bracelets. All big, all gaudy, but worth something. Maybe he could work in a housewarming gift request, or two, or three. He knew he should make this count, because he wasn't going to make it a habit to travel to Naga just to shake her hand and ask for things.

He hoped that the inability to control Sol wasn't genetic, or today's effort would have been in vain. But there was just the one way to check, so he took the chance anyway. That didn't mean he couldn't practice while waiting though.

He made his way to the bar and introduced himself to a man claiming a rum drink there. Theo Delloro, Sol's uncle. He seemed eager to get back to his table, so Neil made this one count – he asked what car Theo owned. A Hyundai SUV, similar to the one he had driven on the way here. Neil asked if he could drive it while in the city.

"Here," Theo said, and his keys landed on the bar right in front of Neil.

"You know what, I changed my mind," Neil said, handing him back the keys. "But maybe I'll talk to you again about it later."

So that worked. He wasn't sure how, but it did. Within minutes of meeting somebody, they would do anything he asked. He had no clue what people felt when it was happening to them; he didn't see or feel anything different.

Except that they actually did what he asked.

It took a while for him to realize that he was making this happen somehow. It started with simple things, like a pen, or a sandwich, or someone's notes. Only Sol seemed strangely unaffected by this. When he needed something (like money) and she was the nearest person around, he had to get it the old fashioned way.

But for other people it seemed to work, and for other things too, like money, laptops, phones. He tried telling someone to forever do as he asked, and it didn't work. Something about the touch, it wore off eventually. They'd forget that they had given so generously to him, or they'd kind of remember, but couldn't explain why they did it. He would have to come into contact again—a handshake, a fist bump, a light tap on the shoulder—to get something else.

Taking an actual car from someone else was a bit extreme, but there was no way his own clunker would have made it through the trip. And his neighbor had three cars anyway, and of course he handed over the keys to the SUV with a smile.

He wondered when this started, because it sure wasn't around just two years ago, when he was first "exiled" to Manila. His parents had overreacted to some of his friends being involved in a shitstorm in the middle of senior year. Someone was high and got into a car, hit a pole, sent someone to a hospital. It wasn't him, he wasn't the one who got high and drove, but they punished him for it anyway.