10
Give Me 120 More Years
“Onew,” Min Ah patted his arm to get his attention. “Over here.”
Onew followed her and Raina to the back where there was surprising sunlight flowing in through a large window. The white room was just the perfect size for an office to conduct business. It was furnished with a long brown sofa, a single sofa adjacent to it, and a long brown coffee table in the middle. Pictures of a college degree and other random posters in frames hung on the wall.
“Sorry, if you’ve been blinded by the light. I find working in the café easier in the dark so I never turn on the light. Please make yourselves comfortable.” Raina offered. Her face had become a little more calm Onew noticed. “I’ll have a list of psychics up for you in a moment.”
“Are there only real psychics working here?” asked Min Ah.
“Yes, I only employ real psychics.” Raina replied shuffling through her drawers.
“How do you know they’re real? Don’t you get scammed a lot?” Onew wondered with his doubtful tone.
“Well, as they say men only know men.” Raina started. “A psychic will know a psychic when she sees one.”
“Psh…” Onew silently muttered wondering why Raina had said that.
“Then why can’t we just use one from here? Would that be a problem?” Min Ah asked.
“Ah…well…” Raina got up from her knees and sat on the chair. “There’s only one here right now but she works a lot of other part time jobs. I’m not sure she’ll have the time…”
“I’ll pay her.” Min Ah cut in.
Onew turned to look at her colleague wondering what had gotten into her.
“I don’t…that may be a bit much,” Raina tried with a nervous smile.
“Well…what’s wrong with it? It could be considered as a one day job,” Min Ah finished.
“I don’t think that’s a very good idea…” Raina tried before the door opened.
“Oh am I pooped!!” Nana stretched walking in without turning to see that she had visitors. “I’m leaving. See you.”
Onew felt his jaw drop a bit before Nana suddenly turned to look at them after realizing that something was strange. Their eyes met and Onew felt himself begin to sweat. He gulped for some reason and felt his heart race strangely, yet painfully. Nana didn’t blink for that minute but she quickly turned away as if nothing had happened.
“I’m sorry for intruding,” Nana apologized then turned to Raina, “I’m leaving.”
Raina nodded hesitantly and watched her friend leave.
“As I was saying…” Raina started.
Onew’s legs moved forward without his brain transmitting the message. The office zoomed out of his sight and he ran through the café. Pushing the door open he stopped on the walk and looked to his right then to his left to see Nana slowly making her way toward the lot where her car was parked. A voice screamed in his head for him to quickly chase after her but he couldn’t find any solid reason why his present self should. Blinking his eyes he turned to look at the ground underneath his feet. Then without a thought he ran after her, grabbed her arm, and turned her around.
Nana turned to look at him and Onew knew then that he was lost.
“Uh…I mean…” Onew slowly let go of her arm and scratched the back of his head. “You work there?”
Nana narrowed her eyes before crossing her arms, “I guess you could say that.”
Onew bit his bottom lip. “And your other jobs…”
Nana tilted her head up at him, “I wasn’t planning on bothering you today. In fact, I was planning on forgetting everything so lets just drop the topic about me being a stalker, ok?”
He watched her turn around and start to walk away but Onew’s hand flew out to grab her arm. Nana spun her head around to look at him making him drop his hand. Instead he quickly walked around her so that he was blocking her path.
“I wasn’t planning on seeing you either,” Onew stated.
“Then…” Nana paused. “Would you mind stepping aside?”
Onew felt his voice fade before Nana began to walk pass him but he quickly blocked her way again.
“What do you want?” Nana asked with the tone of an angry person about to lose her temper after trying to restrain.
“Guest on my radio show,” the words flew out of his mouth.
Why did it feel as if his body had a mind of its own and his mind’s mind didn’t work at all? Just what was wrong with him?
“What?” she couldn’t take him seriously.
“You’ll also get paid,” Onew continued on.
“Do I look like I’m searching for a job here?” Nana said. “Go find someone else, I’m busy.”
“This is an important show and you could also get more job opportunities in the future. How could this possibly have a negative impact on you?”
Nana looked away. “Where?”
“Seoul Radio Station,” Onew answered. “You know where it is, right?”
Her expression suddenly became solemn but he couldn’t find what was wrong. Without a word she quickly walked away.
“Bravo!” a voice behind him cheered with a few claps.
Spinning around he found Min Ah standing there. “Splendid. You’re finally putting some backbone into your job.”
Onew frowned. “What?”
“It’s just…I’ve never seen you work before.” Min Ah teased. “Lets go.”
. . . . .
“Ahhhhh!!!!” Nana screamed pulling at her hair before she threw her hands down onto the couch pillow between her crossed legs. “You’re crazy, crazy, crazy!!!”
Putting her hands back onto her head she leaned forward so that she could bury her face into the pillow. After muffling her breath she finally sat up. She hadn’t ever planned on seeing Onew ever again.
. . . . .
Onew unlocked the door and walked in to find Krystal in the kitchen cooking.
“You’re here again?” Onew asked. “Shouldn’t you be home?”
“Oppa, you really have to start leaving a spare key behind. Or make me one. I hate climbing in through the window,” Krystal started.
“The window?” Onew questioned looking toward the window by the counter. “Say, why did you run out of the house the other day?”
“I thought I heard something upstairs but it might have just been my imagination.” Krystal smiled. “Are you hungry?”
“Then you left with the window open?” Onew continued his question.
Krystal turned to look at the window and slowly nodded afraid of being scolded. “Why?”
Onew turned away and snorted. “So that’s how she got in.”
“Who?”
“Nothing. I want to be by myself so after you’re done leave.”
“Can’t you be nicer?” Krystal arched her eyebrows down.
“That was nice.” he coldly stated.
“That wasn’t,” Krystal persisted, “being nice you could have kept that comment about being alone to yourself and just told me to leave after I finish.”
“That’s exactly what I said,” Onew roughly told. “You just rephrased my whole sentence.”
Krystal turned away from him. “I got it. Sorry for bothering you.”
“Tsh…am I the bad guy now?” Onew asked from where he stood.
Krystal was silent before turning back to him on the verge of tears, “I never said you were the bad guy! You’re the one who’s making me feel bad for trying to be nice!”
Onew’s jaw dropped unable to believe her attitude. “How old do you think you are to be crying over a little thing I asked of you?”
Krystal bit her lip trying not to let any tears spill.
“I just asked you to leave so I could enjoy some silence but here you are crying,” Onew told.
“I’m not crying because of that,” Krystal muttered through a dry throat. “I just wanted to be nice by making you a meal. I just wanted to talk to you because you’re the kind of peace I enjoy after my aunt and uncle’s fight. Is that wrong?”
Onew rubbed his temple before turning back to her, “Yah…”
Krystal turned off the stove and set the pan aside before grabbing her backpack and rushed pass him.
“Krystal!!” he shouted but she’d opened the door allowing a whoosh of wind to fly in and something flew off the counter by the door.
Onew heaved a tired sigh headed to close the door before noticing the white card on the ground. Picking it up he glanced at Psychic Nana’s name and found her telephone number in the lower right hand corner.
After a warm shower and a meal of the food Krystal had made he was lying in bed with a leg propped up against his other knee. Holding up the card he turned it over and over again with his right hand.
“Nana,” he repeated her name. “The psychic.”
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