Part One - The Magician
Eugene
Eugene Davis was sat at the edge of his bed, copying and pasting pre-written emails to his list of subscribers.
You will soon experience a great heartache…
You will soon come across a large sum of money...
You should get a break from work…
You should work harder at your job…
You are going to get an important call soon…
All of these emails were completely false. Eugene was sending them out, knowing that foolish people would find some strange truth in this universal email and continue to pay him for his advice.
Eugene was a fake psychic. Or rather, he was a real psychic that was in need of some extra cash. Since early summer of that year, he had been living in Japan, studying the Shinto religion and attending classes at Tokyo University. He had taken a job at the university library, working the front desk and reshelving books. However, with the cost of textbooks and basic necessities, Eugene was almost always short on cash.
It had started as a joke. He was complaining over the phone to his brother about how expensive textbooks were and Oliver gave him an idea.
"Why don't you find some way to exploit your psychic abilities," Oliver had suggested, though, in hindsight, he had probably been joking.
Eugene found a website to become a 'certified psychic' and immediately began studying all manners of dubious occult sources. He studied astrology, palm reading, auras and tarot. Though, he had to admit, tarot was his favorite.
He was quite good at reading the cards. His mind did well with free associations. He was always attaching strange emotional connotations to things anyway, so he could put emotions with cards quite easily. Eugene almost felt like he was actually giving people genuine advice when he used the cards. Though, his brother and father would never stop telling him about the psychological trickery of tarot. They would never let him hear the end of their disapproval of his 'part-time job'. Eugene hardly cared, though, it was easy money and he did occasionally help someone.
Since his 'psychic certification' Eugene had started his own psychic website, using the name Apollo Moon. Apollo's website had a place where people could subscribe to get psychic emails once a week for one US dollar per email. It surprised even Eugene how many people were willing to shell out hard earned cash on an email that was basically randomly generated.
Sometimes, though, Apollo took calls and read people's tarot cards over the phone. These cost the client $15 a reading. He would ask each person their name and why they were calling, and based on that information he would weave personal information into his reading. People were often stunned. He had to admit, he was good at what he did, and even enjoyed it as a hobby.
Eugene glanced up at the digital clock on his desk. He had a reading scheduled for 4:30 that afternoon, it was now 4:17. He set his laptop to the side and began to prepare his workspace on the floor. He laid out a silk cloth and set his deck of cards in the middle of it. Reaching again for his laptop, he scrolled through his email inbox to find the information on the client.
Mai Taniyama - I am a student, and I would like to know if I will find love before I grow old and die of a heart-attack.
Eugene laughed at her short message. From this, he knew that Mai was confident, straight-forward, and probably scared a lot of guys off for being this way. Though, Eugene did not want to point this out to her, lest she try to change that about herself. He got the feeling that Mai deserved someone that would appreciate her self-assured nature rather than be intimidated by it.
Eugene read her name over again. Mai… Did he know a Mai from university somewhere? Surely not.
He closed his eyes and began shuffling his deck. He thought of Mai's name in order to focus in on her and direct the cards.
Mai, Mai, self-assured Mai, Taniyama Mai. Will Mai find love? Mai, Mai, Mai.
He stopped shuffling when it felt right and divided the deck into four even stacks.
He dealt the cards into his spread face down, glancing at the clock. It was now 4:29. He picked up his phone and dialed Mai's number.
"Hello?" A muffled voice answered after a few rings.
"Mai Taniyama?"
"This is Mai," her voice was quiet, though she sounded like she was shouting. "Sorry, I'm just getting home from work, I have you on speaker in my pocket."
Eugene laughed, "That's okay. This is Apollo Moon."
Part Two - The Eight of Coins
Yasuhara
Osamu Yasuhara was bored out of his mind. The university cafe he worked at was completely empty, bar his co-worker Mai. He had already done all the washing up and had nothing left to do but stand about and listen to Mai talk.
"So I decided to have him call me," Mai was in the middle of telling Yasuhara the story of how she had wasted money on a fake psychic.
"What was his name again?" Yasuhara feigned interest.
Mai laughed, "Apollo Moon."
"Apollo Moon?" Yasuhara guffawed. "Is he a psychic or a pornographer?"
Mai blushed.
"Definitely a psychic," she said decidedly. "He told me I was going to be bored at work today, and here we are!"
"Fantastic." Yasuhara was ever the skeptic. "He's had a job before."
"Well," May huffed. "Think that all you want but if you ask me, you should try it."
"Why would I do that?"
"I don't know," Mai shrugged. "Maybe it would do you good to have some perspective."
"And what kind of perspective is Apollo Moon going to give me?"
"Well…" Mai busied her hands with folding the wet rag she had been using to wipe off the counters. "He told me that I should stop settling for guys that are intimidated by me."
"You? Intimidating?"
"My attitude. I should stop pining after guys that think I'm too confident."
"Ah," Yasuhara wiped a smudge on the marble countertop with his thumb. "Sound advice. Not really psychic advice…"
"What about you?" Mai's voice was accusatory. "You could probably use some romantic advice! You've been making googly eyes at that cute boy for ages and you still haven't spoken to him!"
"Who? Eugene?"
"Wait, how do you know his name?"
"I write it on the cup, Mai."
"Oh," Mai deflated. "Right."
"I'm not gonna talk to Eugene."
"But," Mai stammered. "But you could talk to Apollo about Eugene and see what he tells you to do."
Yasuhara could not think of a sillier idea if he tried. Pay a whole day's worth of tips to ask a fake psychic about a stranger? Yasuhara would almost sooner throw money down the drain than talk to a fake psychic about his nonexistent love life.
"No." Yasuhara was certain.
"Come on!" Mai pouted, clasping her hands in front of her. "Please?"
Yasuhara shook his head.
"What about this," Mai straightened. "You ask Apollo about Eugene and if you two don't end up together by the end of the year, I'll reimburse you for the reading."
"By the end of the year?" Yasuhara was dumbstruck. "That's four months away!"
"Magic takes time!"
"Ugh," Yasuhara relented. "Fine. I'll ask your stupid psychic."
"Yay! I can't wait to be Maid of Honor at your wedding!"
Part Three - Two of Cups
Eugene
Eugene set his laptop down at his favorite spot in the corner of the university cafe. He was going to treat himself to a coffee while he worked on his next batch of psychic emails. The cafe was completely empty, apart from him and the two students that worked there.
"Hello," Eugene was suddenly startled with recognition. The girl at the till was wearing a nametag that said Mai T.
"What can I get started for you?" Mai gave him a gentle smile.
"Um, just a small vanilla latte, thanks." He was afraid that Mai was going to recognize his voice from over the phone.
If she did recognize him, she showed no sign of it.
Eugene paid for his coffee and went to stand by the counter where the other barista was making his drink. He stole a quick glance at the boy making his drink. His name tag said O. Yasuhara and Eugene vaguely wondered why his last name was written out instead of his first. He had dark hair and glasses that suited his face very well. He was a bit taller than Eugene himself, and by the look of his pink button down shirt, was probably gay. Maybe. Eugene was not very good at telling these things.
"Eugene?" Yasuhara placed the cup on the counter for Eugene to take.
Eugene gave a small nod and a large grin as he took the cup.
"Thank you."
Eugene took his seat in the corner of the shop and opened his laptop. He began mindlessly typing out emails.
You will meet someone important soon…
You will come to understand something about yourself…
You will meet a cute boy in a coffee shop and wonder if he's as gay as you are…
Damn.
Eugene quickly deleted that line. His mind had been wandering back to Yasuhara again.
He glanced up at the two baristas. They were talking and laughing together, Eugene found himself wondering if maybe they were dating. He shook his head, attempting to regain focus. That really did not matter right now.
You should call your family or an old friend this week…
You may soon lose something important to you…
Don't buy any lottery tickets this week…
Eugene glanced up again and was surprised to have caught Yasuhara's eye. He quickly stared back down at his computer. Had Yasuhara been looking at him?
Eugene mentally kicked himself. Of course he and Mai weren't dating, if they were Mai would not have paid to have him tell her if she will ever find love! Unless she had taken his advice and landed Yasuhara…
No. He should be working.
You will make an important decision this week…
Eugene's train of thought was interrupted by the sound of a harsh whisper coming from behind the counter. Mai was apparently trying to persuade Yasuhara of something.
"Sorry!" Yasuhara shouted over at him. "Mai doesn't know when to shut up!"
Eugene chuckled.
"Don't worry about it!" he shouted back, "I've almost finished my coffee anyways."
Eugene turned back to his work.
You will soon fall in love with a complete stranger...
Part Four - Six of Cups
Yasuhara
Yasuhara had never dated. Sure, he had gone out with a few girls, but he had never really liked any of them enough to go on a second date. It was not until his first year of college that he realized he was gay.
Yasuhara had a lot of nostalgia for the time in his life when he was first realizing his sexuality. He had caught feelings for an older guy in one of his classes. The guy was a master's student, a few years older than Yasuhara, called Houshou. Yasuhara found out that Houshou was a member of a band that played occasionally on campus, and he was lovestruck. Who knew Yasuhara had a thing for rugged bass players? Before meeting Houshou, Yasuhara had not a clue. And a rugged bass player getting a master's in World Religion? If Yasuhara had a type, that was it.
Houshou was now in his last year of the master's program. He was in a long-term off and on relationship with a female master's student called Ayako. Yasuhara, observing their relationship, wished that one of them would just cut it off for good.
Realistically, he knew that he had no chance with Houshou. They had only had that one class together by chance. And Houshou hardly turned up in the cafe.
Maybe it was time he listened to Mai and began to take is latest crush more seriously.
Part Five - Knight of Cups
Eugene
Eugene flopped down on his bed, exhausted after a long day of classes and work. He was tempted to fall asleep atop his covers, still fully dressed. He thought better of it, though, knowing that he still had to check Apollo's email before he went to bed.
He groaned, pushing himself back up. He walked to his desk and took a seat, opening his laptop.
Apollo's inbox had three unread messages. One was from an older woman complaining that one of her favorite numbers had turned up in the winning lottery numbers. She had written Apollo a very strongly worded letter, saying that she would have won the lottery if she had ignored his email. She would be unsubscribing immediately.
The second email was almost the opposite. Another subscriber, a young man, was writing to thank Apollo for the advice in one of his emails. He wrote that if it weren't for Apollo's email telling him to trust his heart, he would not be dating the girl of his dreams.
Eugene gasped as he opened up the third email. It was an automated message from the appointment service on Apollo's website. Osamu Yasuhara had booked an appointment for the next afternoon. Eugene read Yasuhara's note eagerly.
Osamu Yasuhara - I'm a student and I work at a coffee shop on my campus. There is a guy that keeps coming in to study there and he's really… Charming? I'm not good at words and my friend Mai said that I should ask advice for how to talk to him.
Eugene was both excited and concerned. His suspicions about Yasuhara's sexuality had been confirmed, yet he was not sure who the guy was. He had immediately jumped to the conclusion that he was the crush, but he doubted suddenly. What if it was someone else?
Eugene shut his computer and began getting ready to go to bed. He would have to wait to find out the identity of Yasuhara's mysterious crush.
The next day, Eugene did not go to the cafe. He went to his morning classes and then went straight back to his dorm. Maybe Yasuhara would mention the absence of his crush on the phone. This, Eugene thought, would allow him to be more certain if it was him.
Time seemed slower. Eugene read, worked on homework, and wrote Apollo's emails for what felt to him like days.
You will soon have a reason to be joyful…
You will soon call someone important…
You are going to find something that will change your life...
By the time of Yasuhara's appointment, Eugene was three weeks ahead of his psychic subscription emails. He shuffled his cards and dialed Yasuhara's number and held his breath.
"Hello?" Yasuhara answered almost right away.
"Osamu Yasuhara?" Eugene asked, cutting his deck in four. "This is Apollo Moon, the psychic."
"Oh," If Yasuhara recognized Eugene's voice, he did not let on. "I forgot about the psychic thing, sorry."
"You wanted advice on a crush," Eugene reminded him.
"I wouldn't call it a crush, really…"
"What would you call it?"
"Um," Yasuhara was silent for a moment. "Fine. I have a crush."
"Right," Eugene continued. "So you wanted advice on your crush. Do you know his name?"
"It's, um," Yasuhara stammered. "Eugene."
Hearing this, Eugene's entire face flushed. He had been excited before, but hearing the confirmation out loud made him jittery.
Shakily, Eugene dealt the cards. He was fully prepared to fake psychic his way all the way into Yasuhara's pants.
He turned the first card over.
"Oh," he pursed his lips. The Magician.
"Is that a good 'oh' or a bad 'oh'?"
Eugene chuckled, "Good, for sure."
"What is it?"
"The solution to your problem is The Magician. That's me."
"Wow," Yasuhara scoffed. "Do you say that to every client or just the particularly gullible ones?"
"No," Eugene frowned, flipping over the next card. "I'm only saying it to you now because I'm extra confident about this reading."
"Fair enough," Yasuhara relented. "Continue."
"The next card represents your job," Eugene explained. "Reversed Eight of Coins. I'm guessing you're bored a lot?"
"You're right about that."
"Okay, I feel like you spend a lot of time at work daydreaming about Eugene."
"Right again," Yasuhara mumbled. "So far I don't think anything you've said has been divinely inspired. You're just telling me really general things that you could easily guess."
"Okay, fair," Eugene agreed. "But what if I told you that I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Eugene likes you too."
"There's no way the cards are telling you that."
"Two of Cups." Eugene sounded as if this explained everything.
"Ah, yes, I know exactly what that means."
"The two of cups represents two lovers in perfect emotional sync, Eugene likes you back."
"Okay," Yasuhara laughed. "But hear me out. I think all of this is absolute horseshit. So, why should I listen to you?"
"Because you paid me to read your cards and that's what I'm doing. You're just too nervous to do anything. You're actually hoping for me to say that Eugene doesn't like you."
Yasuhara sighed, "And the psychic is right about something."
"Are you ready for the next card?"
"Sure."
"You need to get over an old crush."
Yasuhara gave no indication as to whether this was correct or not.
"You're holding onto some nostalgic feelings for someone and you're not talking to Eugene because of this other person. Stop thinking about them."
"What card told you that?"
"Six of Cups."
"Right."
"Am I wrong?"
"No, Great Apollo, you are absolutely correct."
"Last card?"
"Go ahead."
Eugene flipped over the last card, only to discover that there were two cards stuck together.
"Well, Osamu, it looks like you got a bonus."
"Huh?"
"Two cards got stuck together."
"Brilliant."
Eugene studied the cards, trying to decide which one to begin with. He chose the one that had been on top, as it made the most sense to him.
"One of them is the Knight of Cups. This is literally saying 'Hey, Osamu! Go act on your feelings!' so, do that. Go talk to Eugene."
"Right now?"
Eugene laughed, "No, just, next time you see him."
"What's the other card?"
"Right," Eugene stared at the card. The Moon. What could that mean? Secrets? The occult? Oh. Shit. "I think this last card is a message to Eugene."
"Oh?"
"When you see him…" Eugene paused, setting the card down. "Tell him he has a secret to share with you."
"You're kidding, right?"
"Please just trust me. I promise I know what I'm doing."
"Fine, I'd probably never talk to him anyways, so I may as well just ruin my chances early." Yasuhara sighed. "Thanks for everything, Apollo."
The line was dead before Eugene could reply. He could only hope Yasuhara would take his advice.
Part Six - The Moon
Yasuhara
Yasuhara was beginning to worry. It was almost the end of his shift and there had still been no sign of Eugene.
"What did Apollo Moon tell you?" Mai laughed. "That you're going to immediately elope? You look like you're going to die if you don't see Eugene."
"I hope you have the money ready because I'm about to ruin my chances so hard."
Yasuhara sighed, turning his back to the door as he worked on cleaning the espresso machine. No more than ten seconds later, a customer came to the till and Mai began taking their order.
"What can I get for you, Eugene?"
Yasuhara jumped, scrubbing the espresso machine faster.
"A large latte, please!"
Yasuhara set to work making Eugene's drink with practiced ease. He was thankful for the busy work to take his mind off of the fact that he was about to talk to Eugene.
Mai patted Yasuhara on the arm to get his attention.
"You're free after you deliver that drink. I already clocked you out." She winked.
"Oh my god, Mai…" Yasuhara growled.
He took a deep breath as he rounded the corner to deliver the drink to Eugene's table.
"Eugene?" Yasuhara set the drink down on the table, taking a deep breath. "Can I sit with you?"
Eugene gave a questioning glance toward the till.
"My shift just ended."
"In that case, I don't mind." Eugene smiled. "What's up?"
"Um," Yasuhara was unsure of how to begin. "I want to tell you that I think you're really cute and I would love to get to know you better, and…"
It was as if Eugene's grin was the only thing Yasuhara could see.
"And someone told me you had something to tell me." He finished quickly, commending himself for the way his words actually sounded coherent.
Eugene chuckled, "Yes, I have a confession."
Yasuhara raised his eyebrows in question. Apollo Moon must be a damn good psychic.
"I am Apollo Moon."
"Oh," Yasuhara felt stupid suddenly. "Are you serious?"
"Completely." Eugene took a careful sip of his coffee. "I, um, I didn't plan any of this, I swear!"
Yasuhara knitted his brows.
"I can't believe this."
"See how I am the answer to your problems? I am Eugene and I am the psychic."
"Yes, I see that now." Yasuhara shrunk into his seat. This had to be some elaborate joke.
"This isn't a joke either, I promise."
"So you're a mind reader now too?"
Eugene chuckled.
"I'm just a student that got way too involved in telling fortunes to make some extra cash."
"Ugh," Yasuhara groaned. "I'm going to need a moment to recover from all the embarrassing things I said to you and about you."
"You weren't embarrassing."
"Then I need time for this information to soak in." Yasuhara sat back up. "At least."
"How about you recover over dinner with me?"
in all my haste to publish this, I forgot to add an authors note! ugh, right, so uni is completely kicking my ass. (it's barely 8PM and I already am falling asleep at my desk) I've just edited and updated Eugene Davis Saves the Bees, and I'm going to post the last two parts of The Town of Cats tomorrow! I'm super excited for people to read The Town of Cats, I love it a lot. I love this story a lot too. the formatting was refreshing, and letting the cards guide the story was super fun!
thank you to Hannah for being my beta, as always!
please rate and review if you don't mind!
Love, Bee