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Yet another week passed by in a flash. It was their last day together. Abby had asked Cain if he could call to ask for more days, he didn't think they would but he called anyways. And just like he thought, they didn't let him. They wanted him back at the dorms with the group whether his injury had healed or not and he was expected to report in early morning the next day. At hearing this Abby felt a panic attack coming and not wanting Cain to see, she locked herself in her room. It was almost becoming a habit to her, hiding in her room whenever she felt like she was going to have a panic attack.
She was however not the only one feeling a strong emotion at that moment. While she felt fear, Cain felt frustration. Just knowing he couldn’t do anything to help her made him feel this way. He had spent many hours looking for information on body switching but the only things that came up in his searches were dramas and movies. He even watched some of them in hopes of getting at least an idea but they all were the same, none of them were helpful.
They had already tried to reenact the moment they switched bodies which was something that was always done in all the dramas and movies but that also never worked. The characters that switched bodies always had to go on living the other person's life until something magical happened at the end that made them switch back. But in real life nothing magical ever happened, except for their body switch that is.
Cain however noticed that a lot of the time when characters were able to switch back it was because they went to see a psychic that told them what to do. They of course had to do a series of things first as switching back bodies never seemed to be an easy thing in either movies and dramas but in the end they were able to do so. Neither him or Abby had thought of seeing a psychic but it made him wonder if they would have already switched back had they gone to see one on the first day.
He wasn't sure how Abby would feel about seeing a psychic so he hadn't told her but he was going to see one that morning. Mrs. Kang was supposed to be the best in Seoul and it was because of this that she only saw people with appointments. And when he called to make one, she wanted to give him an appointment till the end of the month. But as they couldn’t wait that long, he had to tell her it was urgent and that he would pay twice as much if she were to see him sooner. He had already borrowed money from some of the members so money was not an issue for him. As Abby was in her bedroom, he decided to leave her a note saying he was going out but would be back soon.
The place wasn’t far so it only took him a few minutes to get there by taxi but once he was there he thought the driver had taken him to the wrong place. All along a stone pathway were weeds sticking out and at the end of it was a tiny shack surrounded by overgrown shrubs that looked to be half dried. If it weren’t for the cats that roamed outside, he would have thought there was no life there.
Had it been a dark rainy night, he wouldn’t have even dared walk up to the old wooden door. Luckily it was daytime and with a clear sky, the sun was shining. "Mrs. Kang!” As there was no answer when he knocked, he yelled out the psychic’s name. “I have an appointment!"
"Cain, is that you?"
His posture stiffened at hearing his own name. He hadn't told her his name or even the situation he was in over their phone call. There was also the fact that his voice was that of a woman's and not of a man's, yet she called him by his name.
"Cat got your tongue my boy?" The wooden door opened with a loud creak and an old lady with a head full of white curls, glasses and freckles walked out.
"Halmeoni!" His head jerked back at seeing the same old lady from the clinic, the one that told them she was late to her appointment.
"I've been expecting you. I didn’t think it would take you this long to call though. But where is your body? Why is the girl not with you?"
Her words only meant one thing and that was that she knew. Cain’s eyes widened at the realization. But although he was shocked he was also excited at the possibility of her being able to help them out.
“I can.”
“Excuse me but can what?” He tilted his head to the side.
“Well you were wondering if I would be able to help you switch back and I can.”
He hadn’t even yet asked her such a thing but she knew. It was as if she had read his mind.
“I actually can read your mind. And not only that but I can also feel your emotions. You are love-struck. You like the girl, don’t you? The girl whose body you now possess? You’ll do anything for her.” She sounded so certain of her words but she was indeed correct.
Cain backed away. He always thought mind reading would be scary if it were possible and just the fact that someone could read his mind creeped him out. He wondered if there was a way to somehow block her out from his thoughts.
"There’s no way to do that.”
"How is this even possible?" His voice came out shaky. She had been spot-on about everything. Even as he was on his way there Cain still had his doubts. There was always the chance of being scammed with such things after all. But after everything she said he was certain the psychic in front of him was legit. There was just no way she was a fake as she knew everything without him even telling her.
"Of course I’m legit. I would never scam people. Those who do are just despicable." She tsk at the end.
"Ok. I get the point. You can read my mind and I can't really stop all my thoughts so I'll appreciate it if you just stopped saying everything I’m thinking aloud."
"I've only been doing so to prove myself. I always do this with all my clients as I want them to feel sure they are trusting the right person. So my question to you now Hwang Cain, do you trust me?"
She most likely already knew his answer but just wanted to hear him say it aloud so he did, "I do." And he meant it. He was sure there wouldn't be another psychic like her.
"So now that you trust me, I'll need the girl to do so as well. Bring her to me. She is a part of this after all. She has to hear what I have to say just as much as you do."
"I think she was sleeping when I left the apartment..." He had assumed so as there were no sounds coming out from her bedroom.
"I understand you don't want to wake her but I only work when everyone that is involved is present. If she's not here then I'm sorry but I won't be able to do anything for you. One hour, that's how much time I'll give you to bring the girl. If both of you aren't here by then, I’ll move on to my next appointment.”
It had taken him less than 15 minutes to get there so he was sure they could make it back in 30. He ended up being lucky as a taxi passed by just then. All he had to do was wave out an arm to get the driver to stop.
Once back at the apartment complex, Cain ran all the way to Abby’s apartment. She lived on the 6th floor but the elevator was under maintenance so by the time he got there he was out of breath and sweating. Running up the five flights of stairs had been the most exercise he had gotten in those two weeks. He had even started to get used to his new sedentary lifestyle and that wasn’t really a good thing considering how he eventually had to return to being his old active self.
If it weren’t for the disinfectant wipes and spray being by the door he would have forgotten all about having to disinfect himself. He was just that much in a hurry.
"Did you go out somewhere?" Abby had just walked out of her room for the first time when she saw Cain spraying himself by the door. Had she not been hungry, she would have stayed in bed longer.
"Yes but I came back for you because she wants to see us both."
"She? Who are you talking about?" Abby stood in front of the pantry as she pondered over her choices of cereals. Jolly Pong, Oreo O’s, Corn Flakes, Coco Balls, and Chex.
"The halmeoni! She's a psychic!"
"What halmeoni?" She reached out for the box of Jolly Pong. It was her first time seeing her favorite cereal in cocoa flavor so she wanted to try it.
"I'll explain on the way but can you please just come with me? She can help us!" Cain glanced at the clock on the wall by the kitchen and saw that 20 minutes had passed since he left the shack. They still had time but he just couldn’t wait to get the answers they needed.
"Help us? You mean switch back?!" Abby’s hand dropped to the side and with it the opened box of cereal, out came small brown puffed wheat balls. They were by her feet but instead of bending down to pick them up, she looked at Cain.
"Yes! Now come on! The taxi is waiting for us!"
Before Cain started to explain anything to Abby he had to lie to the taxi driver and tell him they were going to practice lines for a drama. The last thing he wanted was for the guy to think they were crazy because what he had to say was just that, crazy. It was why he didn’t blame Abby for not believing him. He had to tell her every single thing Mrs. Kang had told him along with his reactions just to get her to believe him. The only part he left out was that she could feel emotions as he would have then needed to reveal his feelings for her and that was something he wasn’t yet ready to do.
Upon their arrival at the shack, Abby felt reluctant to even step a foot out of the taxi. Just looking at how unkempt the place looked on the outside made her think the inside was just the same. There were however two reasons why she ended up walking up the stone pathway. The first being that inside was someone that could possibly help them switch back and the second being the tuxedo cat that had walked up to them. It appeared to be one of the many other cats there. With it’s big green eyes that were almost the same as her favorite color, she just couldn’t resist but to follow after it.
“Glad to see you were able to bring her." The old woman awaited them by the door, she looked at Cain and then at Abby. "Hello Abby. I can see you are worried about the inside being as unkempt as the outside but worry not. I may no longer be able to clean the outside but I can assure you I keep the inside very clean. You may not believe it but I wipe everything down after seeing each of my clients.”
Once inside Abby looked around and noticed the place indeed looked clean. It was even well adorned with paintings, vases of flowers and candles. There wasn’t a lot of furniture as the shack was small but the wooden coffee table and cushions on the floor along with the shaggy blue rug in the middle all looked impeccable. She felt relieved at knowing the place was as clean as she said. She could only imagine how many people the psychic saw in a day.
"I actually don't see as many people as you might think, perhaps only 5 or 6 per day. Not everyone believes in psychics so it's not like I have people knocking on my door all the time."
Abby let out a gasp, she had read her mind just like Cain told her.
"I thought you had a busy schedule, that's why you didn't want to give me an appointment until the end of the month." Cain crossed his arms. He didn't like it when people lied to him and he had to do a lot of insisting, begging and even bribing just to get the appointment they had.
"Do you really think I want to work long hours boy?” The old woman lowered her glasses and looked at him. “I make my own schedule so I decide how many appointments to take in a day. You should feel honored I’m missing one of my favorite dramas just to see you two. So now let's not waste any more of my time.” She turned to Abby. “I have a question for you girl, it’s the same one I asked the boy, do you trust me?"
Abby had never really believed in psychics but that was before. Considering how she read her mind, she had no doubt Mrs. Kang was what she claimed to be. She believed her and therefore trusted her. "I do."
At her answer the old psychic looked under her table and pulled out two twigs only to then place them atop the same table. Abby found it weird for her to have such things but then noticed how the twigs looked to be snapped. They reminded her of the twig she had tried to get at the clinic that had ended up snapping in half when she fell.
"This is the same twig from that day. The one you tried to grab but ended up fainting while doing so. It snapped in half and that's what caused your bodies to switch. You two thought you switched bodies because one of you fell on top of the other, didn't you?"
Both Abby’s and Cain’s mouth fell open. Neither of them would have guessed they had switched bodies because of a twig.
"There were other twigs on that tree” The psychic continued. “but this specific twig called out to you, didn't it? It sensed your need and it wanted to help you but not in the way you wanted it to."
Cain had no idea what she was talking about but Abby did, at least partly. The twig had indeed called out to her if she could even think of it that way. It was the twig that stood out to her the most even though there were others there. And she had wanted the twig so it could help her open the door. But what she didn't understand was what the old woman meant by saying the twig wanted to help her but not in the way she wanted.
"Matchmaking and healing. Those are the two purposes of this twig. The other twigs on the tree have different purposes. But this specific twig wanted to help you find love and to heal. You’re sick, aren't you? With two mental illnesses?"
"I am." It was another thing the psychic was right about and it made Abby wonder if she also knew what her mental illnesses were.
"First it was Agoraphobia caused by a car accident then it was Germophobia caused by the pandemic. Am I right?"
"Yes." She nodded eagerly wanting to hear more. For her to even know such details gave Abby hope that she would be able to help them.
"Have you ever heard the saying to kill two birds with one stone?"
Abby nodded a second time. It was a popular saying so of course she would know it.
"Well your destined love will end up being the cause of your cure to your mental illnesses. It may not make sense to you now but it will later."
Cain had been silent up to that point and had just been listening to their conversation but there was one thing he was curious about, why him? From what he understood the twig wanted to help Abby out but where did he fit in? Did the twig also want to help him with something? They were questions he asked himself.
The old woman interrupted Cain's thoughts by clearing her throat and looking at him. "Why you? Is that what you want to know? Why not someone else?"
He nodded in response. It turned out that her being able to read his mind wasn’t as bad as he thought. At least that way she would know what it was he wanted an answer to without him even having to ask, at least not verbally.
"You are the perfect cure to her illnesses and you also happened to be at the right place at the right time.” At seeing Cain open his mouth to speak, the old psychic extended her hand out to stop him. “I already know what your next question is, why are you the perfect cure? Well don't feel too special just yet. You’re an idol, aren't you? You are surrounded by hundreds and even thousands of fans constantly which something like that would be the worst nightmare for someone like Abby that is an Agoraphobic Germaphobe. But in order for her to get rid of these illnesses she'll need to be exposed to the things she fears most. Because those fears are the cause of those illnesses, if she no longer has them then she'll be cured. So facing her fears is a must and there is no better way to be exposed to those fears than by being an idol."
It meant the switch hadn't happened because it was him but simply because of the fact he was an idol. But he wasn't the only idol, there were hundreds of others. It could have been any of them and all simply because of what they were. It could have even been another member from Adam or even a girlgroup member. As Cain was having all these thoughts, he started to feel guilty. Had he not been there then Abby might have been able to switch bodies with someone else, possibly even a female idol. And of course she would have felt more comfortable switching bodies with someone of the same gender.
"Well don't feel so down boy." The psychic lifted Cain's chin up. "You are special but in another way. Any other of the members of your group might have been able to be her cure but in the end you will still be the cause of her betterment because YOU were the one that ended up being there at that moment and at that place. It may seem like a coincidence but it had to be one of you. So really there were only seven other people that could have done the job, not just any idol like you were thinking. It couldn't have been a female idol. It had to be a member from your group."
"It had to be someone from Adam because one of the members is Abby's true love, the one she is meant to be with." Cain heard the psychic's voice inside his head. She had spoken to him and only him. His eyes widened at the realization.
"Is it going to be me?" He thought.
"That I do not know. The spirits won't tell me such a thing. All I know is that it could either be you or someone connected to you, meaning another Adam member. And this is why the body switching could have only been done with a member from your group. Because one of you happens to be her soulmate."
Cain wished it was him, he really liked Abby.
"All I can give you is some advice, you have to be patient with her just like you are now. She’s a hurt soul. Her heart was broken before and it will be hard for her to let love into her life once again. She'll need time to heal. Then once she has healed she can love again because only then will she allow that feeling back into her life. So you must not abandon her. Abandonment was the cause of her heartbreak."
Abby noticed there was something strange going on between Cain and the old psychic. They were both staring at each other but neither of them had spoken a single word in a while. She tapped her hand on the table to get their attention. There was something she wanted to know.
"You want to know something, don't you? Go ahead, ask." The old woman turned to see her.
"Well you said the twig's purpose was matchmaking and healing but you also said something about the other twigs having a different purpose, does this mean the tree is...sp-special?" Abby wasn't really sure what to call it. She had never heard of a tree that had twigs with "purposes".
"It is.” A smile appeared on the old psychic. “I planted that tree with my mother and grandmother when I was a little girl. They too were psychics. And when a tree is planted by three psychics that are blood related, that tree becomes special. It is blessed by the spirits and those spirits will forever be the guardians of that tree as they are the ones that give each one of the twigs a purpose."
“I was right then! That tree was special!” Cain turned to look at Abby with a look of I told you so.
"Well time's up you two. My next appointment will be arriving soon.” The old woman gave them each a piece of the twig. “Take these with you and wait for them to bloom flowers. Once the flowers have bloomed you will each have to eat them and then you will go back to your own body."
"Excuse me but did you just say we’ll have to eat flowers?” Abby’s nose wrinkled at the thought. She was willing to do anything just to be back in her own body but eating flowers was something that had never crossed her mind.
“It’s the only way. But don’t worry, they won’t taste weird and they won’t make you sick.”
“So when will they bloom?" Abby looked down at the twig she held while she tried to see if there were any traces of flowers blooming.
"They will bloom once the twig's purpose has been achieved, meaning you'll have to be healed and you've kissed the one you are destined to love."
"So never?" The idea of her no longer being an Agoraphobe or Germaphobe seemed almost impossible but what was even more impossible to Abby was the fact she would find someone she was destined to love.
"Never say never my dear. You never know what the future holds for you." The old psychic winked at her as they walked out.
