“Is that Emily? Can you give this phone to her?” Fred pleaded in a hopeful tone.
“I’ll call you right back,” Emily replied and disconnected the call.
“Why is your face so panicked? What happened?” asked Daniel.
“Sir, help me,” Emily whispered pleadingly. She then gave her cell phone to Daniel, her eyes pleading with him to help her.
“Can you tell Dad I’m okay? I think Dad is worried about me, but I can’t possibly answer him in this state,” Emily said hopefully.
“Please, sir.”
Daniel took a deep breath, feeling the weight of Emily’s request. However, he finally agreed to Emily’s request. He immediately pressed the green button on Emily’s cell phone.
“Hello,” came Fred’s voice from the other end.
“Yes, hello,” Daniel replied.
“Wait a minute. I’ll call you back with a video call,” Fred said, then disconnected the line.
Not long after, Emily’s cell phone vibrated, and Fred was making a video call to her. Daniel immediately switched the green button and pressed the speaker button so Emily could also hear Fred’s voice.
Fred looked worriedly at Emily. “I’m really worried about you because I haven’t heard from you in a few days. Are you okay?” he asked in a worried tone.
“Mmm,” Daniel just nodded in agreement, saying nothing.
“Are you still with your current boss?” asked Fred.
Emily immediately crossed her arms as a signal to Daniel to say no.
“No, what’s wrong?” asked Daniel in a nonchalant manner.
“Is he not treating you well? You look thinner and thinner,” Fred said with a worried look.
Emily immediately became panicked and was surprised when she heard these words from Fred.
“He’s very good to me. There’s no need to worry,” Daniel replied in a casual tone.
“Nice? This is the first time you’ve praised him as kind,” Fred said.
Daniel became curious about Fred’s words and wanted to dig deeper, while Emily’s face already looked pale.
“Have I never praised him?” Daniel asked.
“You always said he is cold, arrogant and heartless,” Fred said with a laugh.
Emily felt increasingly uncomfortable with this situation. She closed her eyes, feeling afraid of Daniel. Meanwhile, Daniel stared intently at Emily, who looked down in fear.
“But I agree with you. After seeing him that day, he is indeed very arrogant, cold, and also heartless. How could he get a partner with such a poor attitude?” Fred said again, making Daniel’s anger peek even more when he heard that.
Dad, please say nothing more, or your daughter will end up getting fired, Emily thought.
“Emily, are you still listening?” asked Fred when he got no more answers.
Daniel tried to control himself by letting out his anger. He sighed and then continued. “I’m listening. I’ll call you later. I want to eat,” Daniel said, trying to be calm.
“Oh, you haven’t eaten yet? Well, you eat first,” Fred said.
“Bye,” Fred said, but Daniel ignored him and immediately disconnected the video call.
Daniel’s gaze pierced into Emily, making the atmosphere freezing. No one spoke, and silence filled the room. Emily felt scared and didn’t dare to look back at Daniel because she realized her mistake at the moment.
“Sorry, sir,” Emily said, apologizing to Daniel.
However, Daniel did not answer Emily’s apology. He immediately put Emily’s cell phone with a pretty hard thump on the table, making Emily flinch a little. Emily immediately took back her cell phone and remained silent, with her head still bowed.
“Let me help you cut the meat,” Emily said, trying to help Daniel. Deftly, she sat where the food was served, cut the meat skillfully, and divided it between her plate and Daniel’s plate.
Even though Emily had kindly helped cut the meat and divide it, Daniel remained silent.
Is he still angry with me? Emily thought to herself.
Finally, they ate in silence, without a word being spoken.
“Em,” Daniel called after they finished their meal.
“Come here,” Daniel invited Emily to sit on the sofa in his hotel room.
After Emily sat down, Daniel handed her a piece of paper and a pen, making Emily stare at him in confusion.
“In the state of our swapped souls, write the things I should pay attention to as you, what I should do, and what I should not do. This is to prevent harm to both of us. Think of this as a temporary agreement between the two of us. We also don’t know how long we will be trapped in this body,” Daniel explained to Emily in a cold tone.
They both took paper and wrote several points of agreement that must be observed. They wrote every word filled with caution.
“Are you done?” asked Daniel, and Emily answered the question with a nod.
They exchanged the papers they had written. Emily carefully read the agreement written by Daniel, while Daniel looked at the agreement written by Emily.
Emily carefully observed the important points listed in the agreement drafted by Daniel. Starting from the importance of punctuality, clear communication between the two, discipline, to the demands to learn the work, biodata of every business partner or person he knows, including Daniel’s family.
Of all these points, can I do them well? Emily thought to herself.
“Are there any points that burden you?” asked Daniel.
“No, sir,” said Emily.
“Alright, sign here,” said Daniel.
Emily felt a weight on her shoulders after seeing the agreement, but she had no choice but to give her signature.
“Grocery shopping once a week, watering the plants, doing the laundry. What is this?” asked Daniel as he looked at the key points in the agreement written by Emily.
Without hesitation, he took his pen and crossed out the points that he thought were not important.
“I only agree with the point of respecting personal boundaries here,” Daniel said coldly and firmly. He picked up his pen and put his signature on the agreement.
It was tantamount to him rejecting the whole thing. Leaving only one point I want, what’s the point? How selfish! Emily thought to herself.
After signing the agreement, Emily went back to her room. She sent a message to Fred not to worry about her and that she would be home soon. As her body hit the bed, she gazed at the ceiling.
“I’m too tired of having to deal with him. His demands on me are too much, while I don’t make any demands on him,” Emily grumbled as she pondered her feelings.
“But he’s a CEO, so of course the demands are heavy. I’m just an ordinary secretary,” Emily continued, reflecting on the comparison of their roles and responsibilities.
“I miss my body more than anything right now,” Emily muttered, before finally drifting off to sleep, brought on by the exhaustion and confusion that filled her mind.
***
Daniel passed the time by sketching the face of the old lady they had met in the forest. Although not a professional, Daniel had pretty good painting skills. After finishing painting the sketch, he immediately captured the photo and sent it to Richard.
I want you to find out about this old lady, Daniel texted Richard.
Not long after, Daniel’s cell phone rang and Richard responded to his message.
Yes, sir. Regarding the truck driver, I still haven’t found him, Richard replied.
As he read Richard’s message, Daniel’s facial expression turned colder, showing that there was something that made him dissatisfied or disappointed. There was an obvious tension in Daniel’s facial expression as he read Richard’s message.
Daniel then looked at the sketch of the old lady’s face that he had just painted. The old lady’s face was clearly imprinted in his memory.
“Who are you really?”