Thirteen

Weekend morning, Xiao Ai took Xian Xiaoya to Dr. Eddie Ming’s clinic. As they entered, Xiaoya noticed the unique interior design—the walls were adorned with artworks, all enigmatic oil paintings and abstract sculptures she couldn’t decipher. They ascended the spiral staircase, Xiaoya following behind Xiao Ai. When they reached the second-floor landing, Xiao Ai’s necklace slipped from her pocket, tumbling down to the base of the stairs below. She hesitated for a moment, as if something had been wiped from her gaze, sensing the necklace’s fall was more than mere accident.

She had placed it securely, yet oddly, the necklace seemed to have slid out on its own. She told Xiaoya to go ahead into the upstairs consulting room and wait for her while she went downstairs to retrieve it.

Descending the spiral staircase, something peculiar happened—upon stepping onto the first stair, the staircase began to elongate. At first, she didn’t notice, but the further she went, the more endless it seemed. After minutes of walking, unease set in—was she dreaming?

She had to get her necklace back, but the stairs appeared to have no end. Only after traversing nearly a dozen spiral turns did she finally reach the ground floor. The necklace gleamed, easily spotted and reclaimed. But when she looked up, the staircase had truly twisted into countless spirals—how long would it take to climb back up? Going down was easy, going up a challenge.

Nonetheless, she had to try. With determination, she raced upward, climbing several spirals in one breath, panting heavily as she looked up and saw she was barely halfway. Sweat poured down her face, breath growing ragged. After a brief pause, she pressed on. When only three spirals remained, she was nearly spent… but she forced herself onward. Just as she was about to reach the top, with only half a turn left, she could see the old wall clock—its hour and minute hands frozen, while the second hand and pendulum moved, ticking relentlessly: tick-tock… tick-tock… Suddenly, the minute hand moved unexpectedly! Xiao Ai heard the sound and her heart seemed to stop; darkness flooded her vision and her body tumbled down the stairs.

Then she abruptly awoke—

“Xiao Ai! Are you alright?” It was Xiaoya speaking.

Xiao Ai realized she was lying on a soft sofa, unsure when she’d gotten there.

“What happened?” She touched her head, eyes barely open, vision still blurred.

“You were just hypnotized.” The voice was unfamiliar, not Eddie Ming’s, yet carried a strange sense of déjà vu.

Rubbing her eyes, Xiao Ai saw a man in a white coat standing before her. He appeared about thirty-five, wore metal-rimmed glasses, his hair slicked back in a scholar’s style—refined and dignified.

On Xiaoya’s side, the man’s face remained indistinct; no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t make out his features—a strange phenomenon. Earlier, she’d bumped into the wall when entering the consulting room and thought she’d lost a contact lens, so everything appeared blurry.

Who was this man? Xiao Ai didn’t know him, and where was Dr. Eddie Ming? Puzzled, she listened as the man introduced himself, “Let me introduce myself. I am Horlen, also a hypnotic therapist.”

Both Xiao Ai and Xiaoya were surprised—where was Dr. Eddie Ming? He was the one they’d arranged to meet. They nodded in response; Xiaoya, unfamiliar with the place, remained silent.

Xiao Ai asked, “We’re here to see Dr. Eddie Ming. Is he available?”

“Unfortunately, he’s out today. I’m here in his stead—his temporary replacement. We’re partners. I seldom see patients directly, but Dr. Ming had an urgent matter, so I’m filling in.”

“I see. Then we’ll address you as Dr. Horlen.”

“Alright.” Dr. Horlen nodded.

“Dr. Horlen, have we met before?” Xiao Ai asked deliberately.

Horlen chuckled softly. “My memory tells me… we haven’t.” He paused, looked at them, and slowly said, “You both seem a bit fatigued. Would you like to undergo hypnosis therapy together?”

“Together?” Xiao Ai and Xiaoya exchanged glances.

“Yes, you can be hypnotized together. Though your symptoms differ, I can see that. Still, you can undergo hypnosis jointly. I specialize in treating patients with differing conditions through synchronous hypnosis. You might find it worthwhile.”

Xiaoya found this novel and glanced at Xiao Ai to see if she was willing. Xiao Ai, however, hesitated, feeling uneasy.

“I’d like to try. Do you think it’s a good idea?” Xiaoya asked.

Horlen said, “It’s just a bit of rest. You’re both exhausted. Simultaneous hypnosis lets your minds rest together—a soothing experience for the brain.”

Xiao Ai remained uncertain. She repeated her question, “Wasn’t I just hypnotized?”

“Yes, when you ascended the stairs, you were unknowingly hypnotized. That’s my latest quick-effect technique—induced without the subject’s awareness,” Horlen admitted.

“So I was your test subject for the new method?”

“I won’t deny it; you could say that.”

Suddenly, Xiao Ai recalled the necklace. She quickly felt for it in her pocket—it was still there. This meant the moment it slipped was when she began dreaming. Her vigilance wasn’t misplaced; she had indeed slipped into a dream at that instant.

Listening to their conversation, Xiaoya thought the new hypnosis method sounded promising. “Let’s try it. I think it’s fascinating,” she urged Xiao Ai.

A flash of intuition crossed Xiao Ai’s mind. Recalling Horlen’s mention of “consciousness rest,” she sensed something was amiss, uncertain if she was being overly sensitive or overthinking. She immediately grabbed Xiaoya’s hand, stood up, and prepared to leave.

“Sorry, I suddenly remembered something urgent. Dr. Horlen, we’ll come another time. We’re leaving now,” she said as she walked, not pausing.

Xiaoya, pulled away, felt disappointed—why not try? Maybe it would dispel her recent nervous tension.

Horlen watched them descend the stairs, his expression impassive. He adjusted his glasses, silently calculating, but no one could fathom his thoughts.

After leaving the clinic, Xiao Ai held Xiaoya’s hand, walking a long way before finally letting go. Suddenly, Xiaoya rubbed her eyes and said, “Strange, I actually didn’t lose my contact lens.”

“What’s wrong? What contact lens?” Xiao Ai asked.

“I thought I’d lost it because I bumped into the wall when entering the consulting room. I really couldn’t see anything clearly at the time.”

“And now?”

“I didn’t lose it after all—I can feel it’s still there, and now I can see everything clearly,” Xiaoya replied, perplexed.

“How can that be? If it’s not the contact lens… could it be—”

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand any of it.”

“Could you have been hypnotized earlier?” Xiao Ai speculated.

But Xiaoya shook her head decisively, “No. You fell asleep—I saw that—but I didn’t. I just couldn’t see clearly.” She pondered for a moment, then suddenly remembered something. “Wait, that’s not quite right. I could see one thing clearly—the old clock hanging outside the second-floor door.”

“When you saw the clock, what time was it showing?”

“Around 11:55, I think.”

“No, it was 8:48.”

“No, I remember distinctly—it was just before eleven struck twelve.”

“That clock is broken—only the second hand and pendulum move. If it doesn’t move, how could it change?”

“I saw it too—only the second hand and pendulum moved, but it wasn’t 8:48. Its position was fixed at 11:55.”

Neither would yield, each certain of what she’d seen.