The Penalty

“Let me get this straight, James…” he began, folding his arms. “You vanished out of nowhere a few days ago. Then, mysteriously, all the wives from our friend group just happen to take some time off to ‘handle family matters’ far away from their husbands. And now you show up, saying you were cursed, that you’re actually James… trapped in the body of one of the married women you had an affair with? Did I get that right?”

James sighed, brushing back a strand of hair that didn’t belong to him.

“Man, it’s hard to explain any other way, but… yeah. That’s exactly it.”

“Okay…” his friend said, eyeing him from head to toe. “So what proof do you have that you’re really Vivian? I mean, the hair’s the same, the height, the weight… even that little scar on her heel.”

“Oh, she’d never know the score of our last three games,” James said, smirking faintly. “Or who scored each goal. And definitely not that Fred got so drunk at the last one he fell asleep inside the goalpost.”

His friend blinked, then let out a short laugh.

“Yeah, that sounds about right. Vivian couldn’t care less about my friends — says we’re all weirdos anyway.” He rubbed his forehead. “So… assuming I believe this whole curse-and-revenge story of yours, you’re admitting you had an affair with my wife?”

“That’s… exactly what I need to talk to you about.” James drew a deep breath. “I want to discuss the terms for getting your wife back.”

“Wait, what? You expect me to accept you as my wife now?”

“I wish it were that simple,” James said, shaking his head. “But no. The terms are much worse for me. Every day, I wake up in the body of one of the women I cheated with. And each time I make peace with a betrayed husband, that woman gets crossed off the list.”

He paused, lowering his voice.

“Twelve people in the group. Twelve women. Theoretically, twelve days. I’ve already settled things with five husbands, so—best case—I’ve got about a week left before I go back to my real self.”

He made air quotes. “If there’s anything left of me to go back to.”

His friend stared at him in disbelief.

“So what you’re saying is… the James I know is living through some kind of twisted soap opera—one body at a time?”

James gave a weary, half-hearted smile.

“Welcome to my penance.”

His friend squinted, still trying to process it all.

“So… you’re saying you’re cursed, you’ve been jumping from one woman’s body to another, and now you’re here to fix things with me?”

“Exactly,” James replied, crossing his arms.

“Right…” his friend said slowly, glancing at him up and down. “But if you came here to resolve things, why the hell are you dressed like that?”

James sighed, looking down at the delicate lace outfit and letting out a defeated half-laugh.

“As I said… the terms of this resolution weren’t exactly in my favor.”

He straightened his posture, giving a weary smile.

“And judging by your face, we still have a lot to discuss.”