The Body Swap (Completed ✔️)

12 // "Nothing's Right, We're Stuck In Each Other's Bodies!"

12.

Nathan is only too glad to have had the meeting with Blessing's academic advisor over. He smiled brightly, nodded his head when he was supposed and managed to cry and portray a harrowing sob story of how life is getting to him and that's why he's attendance is low and his grades poor. He assured that everything would be back on track once everything at home was sorted.

Now he finds himself power walking back to Blessing's shitty apartment, only too excited to see Lana and jump start his plan. First of course he needed to make sure that Lana swam in the same direction as her sex otherwise there was no point. It also dawns on him that it takes Blessing nearly twice as long to get anywhere because of her small stature, even power walking didn't take off that much time.

Bursting into the apartment and into the kitchen, Nathan sings Lana's name joyfully but much to his dismay he's met with only silence and realises that she must still be at her lectures. Annoyed and dejected, Nathan drops Blessing's back onto the kitchen floor haphazard and makes himself an egg sandwich. His mind wanders to how his parents especially his mother are and realises that he should do one good deed. Unlocking Blessing's phone, he scrolls and finds "Giver of Life" and assumes that is her mother and sends a general text asking how she is and that he loves her.

From previous conversation, he gathered from Blessing that the relationship between the mother and her were strained and that she did not get along with her two older sisters. As far as she was concerned she was a lone wolf who relied on the heavy support of her friends where her family had failed,

"Feminists always seem to have daddy issues," Nathan mumbles to himself realising that Blessing has never had a prominent male figure. That's probably why she equally hates and loves men, he adds to his thoughts.

He finds himself for the rest of the afternoon confined to Blessing's room but this time instead of watching those ridiculous feminist videos and exhausting his mind with the Black Lives Matter videos, he watches sermons, reads transcripts of the Qur'an online and prays. After what seems an age, he steps out of the room to find the apartment still empty and realises he would have enjoyed dismissing and abhorring Blessing's loud and weird friends. At least then he could listen to their conversations with contempt.

He returns to the bedroom and decides to put on a video about why marriage is a device to keep women within the reaches of patriarchy and bigotry but he swiftly falls asleep on the desk. Startling himself awake, he realises the room is dark and he reaches for the desk lamp however it is not within grasp and panic begins filling his bones. The last thing he wants to do is start seeing dark shadows. Kicking back the chair, he lunges across the room and switches on the main light and darts his eyes around the room only to realise that there is nothing there.

Meanwhile, Blessing herself is wondering where all of Nathan's friends have disappeared to. After enduring a three-hour lecture about why stretching is important for the muscles, she returned hoping to have some semblance of conversation. After all, as much as she disliked his friends, especially the cretin Sam, they were people to talk to. It was evening know and the dishes were still piled high in the sinks, the TV was switched off, the place reeked off the ten bins lined up against the wall and there were marks and dirty rings on the floor. Yet Nathan's friends were still nowhere to be found.

Narrowing her eyes, Blessing calls Nathan who suspiciously and coincidently explains that her supposed "annoying" friends were nowhere to be found. Blessing bites back by saying at least her friends didn't assault women. A low blow but it momentarily silences Nathan who then explains that he's coming over. Rolling her eyes, Blessing saunters to the window and gazes out to the darkening world and realises that the roads and pavements are empty.

Screwing her face, Blessing checks the time on Nathan's phone and realises that it is only half 5 and there is no way that everyone would've gone to bed. Straining her ears, she realises that the world outside is eerily still and there is a deafening sound of silence. Alarmed, she starts to the door and wrenches it open before Nathan has time to knock. Grabbing her own body by the arm, she drags little Nathan and throws him against the window and points frantically outside.

Perplexed, Nathan sticks the head out of the window, gazes around and concludes that the roads and pavements are indeed empty. He then proceeds to open his mouth whereby a shrill scream erupts from his core and blankets the silence outside. Wrenching him back into the kitchen, Blessing shakes him and asks what he's doing,

"What, it's not as if someone is around to hear me," he chuckles folding his arms across his chest. Twisting the neck, Blessing's face is eclipsed with anger and Nathan apologises holding the palms up,

"Okay I'll admit it's a little weird that one minute there's loads of people around and the next there's no-one," Nathan motions a "puff" with his hands.

"The last time I saw the place teeming with people was when I was walking through the courtyard. The minute I get here there's no-one so I assumed everyone was at lectures but I look outside and then there's that!" Blessing points frantically outside, "come on Nathan, don't you think that's more than just a bit weird how we've seen no-one for a couple of hours and outside is mysteriously apocalyptic?" She states waving the arms in the air theatrically,

"Allah explained that as long as I pray I shall forever be at peace," Nathan explains, closing the eyes and clasping the palms together in a motion to pray,

"Yes, yes I know, praise be Allah but Nathan look outside!" Blessing continues frustrated at Nathan's lack of seriousness,

"Do you want to know why I'm not freaking out? Really? Truly?" Nathan huffs placing the hands on the hips. He finds that he enjoys doing this gesture as Blessing's wide hips make for a good resting place for the hands, "it's because one day I woke up in this small black body, I'm now seeing shadows of creepy alien looking things-," Nathan begins but is cut off by Blessing's jumping up and down,

"Aliens! You mentioned aliens! Don't you remember that the last time you and I mentioned aliens was about three years ago," Blessing jumps up but smacks the head painfully against the ceiling. She forgets she's tall,

"You know what, give yourself a concussion and hopefully I'll wake up back in my body," Nathan taps the foot irritated and Blessing's burst of excitement. She continues pacing up and down the kitchen, talking about aliens and how she feels that something isn't right,

"Of course nothing's right, we're stuck in each other's bodies!" Nathan rolls the eyes getting more irate the more frantic Blessing becomes. Blessing realises this and pauses mid-step and sentence and gazes at her own beautiful self but the eyes reflected back are that of confusion and puzzlement. Of course, Nathan is shooting her explanations down, no matter how bizarre they may sound, because she realises he's plotting something. Beneath that puzzlement and confusion is underlying mischief and a plot to spoil. She recognises that look from only three years ago.

"You know what Nathan, you can leave," she says straightening the shoulders. Surprisingly, Nathan shakes his head and opens the fridge and pulls out a packet of cheese,

"Didn't you say it yourself? The place is absolutely empty and I'm not going to sit by myself all night. Might as well listen to you rant about fucking aliens," Nathan explains going through his cupboard and pulling out a cheese slicer,

"You want to listen to me?" Blessing asks in a soft surprised tone,

"Well I have no choice; beggars can't be choosers. Now, you were saying about the aliens..."

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