Using the money his parents gave him to buy his train ticket, Jonghyun set off the next day in search of the one who could make Jinki normal again. Holding the dollhouse in his arms, he bravely stayed awake during the entire ten-hour trip. Spotting a girl in the same compartment as him, who seemed to be making something. Trying hard not to stare, Jonghyun imagined that Jinki was sitting by him, while he continued to see what the girl was doing. Lifting up her completed doll, she looked at it with a bright smile before starting to stick pins into it.

“Don’t stare at her too much, Jonghyun”

“What is she doing? Why is she poking that?”

“It’s called a voodoo doll, you’ll see a lot of people like her when we reach”

“Why do you seem so unaffected by this? Are you so used to seeing it?”

“Jonghyun, I’ve been used as a voodoo doll for many years, so this is not new at all”

Shocked by what Jinki had just admitted without thinking, Jonghyun wisely remained silent for the rest of the trip. Noting Jinki visibly shiver, Jonghyun figured that they were very close to their destination. As they exited the train, Jonghyun held on to the bag in which he had kept the dollhouse, and gripped Jinki’s hand tightly. At first glance, the place looked very peaceful, like a normal place in the centre of town. However, as they walked along the streets, Jonghyun could detect a sinister vibe around them all. Hearing Jinki’s stifled sob as they passed by a pretty looking house, Jonghyun needed to answer as to where they were.

“I used to live here with my parents. I can’t believe that the house looks exactly the same”

“Why don’t we see if they’re still here?”

Ringing the doorbell, Jonghyun waited until the door was opened by a middle-aged couple. They were too young to be Jinki’s parents, but it was always better to ask.

“Hello sir, ma’am. Are you relatives of Mr. X and his family?”

“No, but we bought the house from his family years ago”

“Do you know where they are now?”

“Mr. X and his wife died a few years ago, during an explosion at the festival”

“What about their son?”

“Son? They didn’t have one. They lived alone”

How could Jinki be wiped out of everything like this? Staring at the floor as he walked away, Jonghyun brought Jinki’s hand to his lips and kissed the palm.

“I’m your family, Jinki. I’ll always be here”

Following Jinki’s directions, Jonghyun walked towards the other side of town, through the forest that still remained as it used to be. Strangely, he couldn’t hear the sound of any birds chirping. The surroundings seemed to be too quiet, which made him feel extremely suspicious of who or what could suddenly jump out at them. There was only one house on this side of the forest, which would probably be where the witch lived. Just to make sure, Jonghyun walked closer and peered through the large window. Although there was no sign of her, the large cauldron from all those years ago was still in the centre of the room. Knocking the teak wood door politely, Jonghyun and Jinki were in no way prepared for whom they would see. Expecting an old woman to answer, Jinki felt rooted on the spot when it was the witch herself, who looked as if she hadn’t aged even a day since the day he had last seen her.

“So it’s you. I’ve been expecting your visit for a long time, but who is this boy with you? Oh, I remember. Hello Jonghyun, I hope you travelled comfortably”

Surprised that the witch could even see Jinki, Jonghyun felt a bit afraid that she already knew who he was.

“How do you know me?”

“Come inside and bring my dollhouse with you”

Her face twisted into a sinister smile that sent made his hair stand on end, but no matter how hard he tried, Jonghyun couldn’t take a step behind at all. Had she put a spell on him? Betrayed by his own legs that started to move into the creepy house, Jonghyun didn’t feel so confident anymore. Falling to his knees, Jonghyun began to plead with the witch.

“Please bring Jinki back to normal, I beg of you”

“Why would I do that? He is the most valuable voodoo doll, that I use in all my spells. Let me show you”

Waving her hand and chanting, she brought Jinki back to his true form. Although what had happened was good, Jonghyun couldn’t control the warnings his mind was screaming at him. Somehow, every thought of his told him to get out of there as fast as he could. The witch took out a doll that looked like Jinki and stared at Jonghyun with that eerie smile again. Picking up a sharp needle, she rammed it into the head of the doll in her hand. Instantly, Jinki screamed with pain and fell to the floor, holding his head.

“What are you doing to him? Please stop it, you’re hurting him”

The next second, Jonghyun felt a pain worse than anything he had felt so far. It was the same as that one random headache he had experienced. Sinking to the ground beside Jinki, he squirmed with pain, as the woman just watched them both with her smile growing wider.

“I didn’t realize the bond you both would have. It really is true that you’re soulmates. There’s no way I can allow either one of you to leave. I need you both”

Anger fuelling his adrenaline, Jonghyun grabbed the object closest to him and flung it at the witch, who screamed and dropped the doll. Pulling Jinki by his hand, he tried to run through the house, to the forest where they would be safe. The wide door slammed shut in front of them with a crash, and it was then that both the boys felt real fear.

“Did you really think I would be stupid enough to let you get away that easily?”

This time, she was holding a wand as she walked towards them. The spell she had put on them seemed to be still effective, as Jinki and Jonghyun were forced to walk back to the room with the cauldron. Jinki, who already knew what was going to happen, hugged Jonghyun for the last time, before turning to the person who had done this to him.

“Ma’am, please let Jonghyun go. I’ll do whatever you want me to do, but please release only him”

“Stupid boy, your pleas fall on deaf ears. You should know that by now. You may as well get to know why I chose you. I knew that you hadn’t thrown the rock into my cauldron, but I needed you because of your pure heart. I knew your potential, and now you’ve found someone whose heart is as pure as yours. If he hadn’t been brave enough to bring you here, I would have never known about your deep connection”

Jonghyun couldn’t do anything but just stare as his heart started beating louder. This time, there really seemed to be no way of escape. He couldn’t even move his arms anymore. Standing transfixed to the spot, he watched Jinki’s tearful face as the witch took his hand and pricked his finger. Holding the doll under his hand, so that his blood would drop onto it, he observed the Jinki doll changing into him.

“Soulmates you are, and soulmates you will remain for all of eternity”

Those were the last words he could hear before the world as he knew it, turned black. The witch looked at her two beautiful dolls with satisfaction as she put them back into the dollhouse, this time, facing each other. Her dolls would prove to be very useful in spells, and perhaps they would bring in some more victims for her to use.

“Now, to whom should I send the dollhouse next?”

Epilogue

“Kibum, look what someone had sent me for my birthday. It’s such a beautiful dollhouse, and it even comes with two dolls. Let’s play with them”

“Alright, alright Taemin. We have the whole night anyway”

“Just look at how beautiful these dolls are! They already have names - Jonghyun and Jinki”