Muriel lived at the edge of insanity, walking the line between the known world and the one that she inhabited inside her head. She was a dreamer, exceptionally ambitious; intent on leaving her mark on society. She pushed the envelope constantly, burning the midnight oil far too often for it to be considered healthy. Some of her peers described her aggressive approach to science as unstable and arrogant, such was her desire to prove herself in a world dominated by men.

Her latest project was causing her a lot of angst. The annual Breaking Scientific Boundaries contest was in full swing and after a month of sleepless nights, she had nothing.

Null. Zip. Zero. Nadda.

Muriel was at the end of her tether.

To top it all she had a love-hate relationship with coffee. It was her Achilles' heel. She couldn't live with it, couldn't live without it. She needed it to squeeze every last hour out of the day. It gave her the energy and drive that she required to keep in step with the pack. The depth of flavours bound up inside every bean exploded onto her tongue with each sip and inspired the most wonderous and innovative thoughts. Coffee activated the receptors in her brain that connected her left half to her right, merging creativity with deductive reasoning.

But there was a downside; her addiction to the bean had turned her into an insomniac and now her brain was incapable of getting the sleep it so desperately needed to enable her to process her fantastical thoughts efficiently and accurately.

She sat in deep contemplation... it was a conundrum for sure. Then, deciding that she could do with a breather to clear her head, she took a walk down to the greenhouse where she had been splicing coffee plants for the past few years, intent on creating the world's best coffee bean. She wandered into the small space, filled the the little watering can, and gave her precious plants a nutrient-enriched shower. They were all producing beans now and she couldn't wait to harvest, roast and brew... always crossing everything... that one day she would hit upon the bean to beat all beans.

And then she noticed it. A peculiar sight... A little plant nestled between two of her larger more common Arabicas; one that she did not recognise. But it had beans... ripe beans... growing from its pods.

Well... I'll be! Whatever have we here?

She exclaimed aloud to nobody in particular.

She stooped down to take a closer look and then decided on impulse to harvest them and try them out.

She sat back in her chair and stared at the brew in front of her, then raising the mug to her nose, she allowed the sweet subtle aroma to waft up into her nostrils and tickle her senses; it was an olfactory delight. She smiled. If it tasted half as good as it smelled, it was going to be a winner!

She raised the mug to her lips and took a sip, allowing the golden nectar to coat her tongue, and then swirling it around her palate gently before swallowing and releasing the warmth to envelop her entire body in a cozy hug.

Bliss. Pure bliss. She took another sip and another... and then something wonderful and strange happened... the more she drank, the more her mind wandered, her eyes became heavy and she felt sleep calling her name. For the first time in ages, her body relaxed and drowsiness took over. She pulled her fluffy blanket up to her chin and snuggled in... Before long she felt herself drifting off to sleep and having the most vivid dreams she had experienced in years.

The following morning she awoke and raced straight back to the Greenhouse - intent on discovering what magic had happened to cure her insomnia... and then she saw it... her Griffonia plant which produced beans containing 5-HTP (a chemical that inhibits the production of serotonin) had been growing right next to her favourite coffee variety, and in one of her sleep-deprived states she must have spliced the two together by accident.

What a serendipitous accident of epic proportions! she thought... I now have a coffee bean that counteracts insomnia, and stimulates creativity whilst simultaneously relaxing the mind and body... this will help me in all my future endeavours... and it may just be the breakthrough for which I've been searching my entire life.

Three months later Muriel beamed as she stood on stage accepting the award for the 2022 Breaking Scientific Boundaries contest, becoming the first woman to win the accolade since its inception. Coffee lovers the world over could now drink the beautiful bean to their heart's content; coffee-induced insomnia was well and truly a thing of the past.

This is my entry to Cinnamon Cup Coffee #spillthebeans prompt #12 which can be found here

I invite @wrestlingdesires to visit the community and enter the next contest on Monday.

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