Daily Writing Exercise: Urban Fantasy, random soulmark ‘verse because I haven’t ever played in one of those. Reasons. I have thems. Fake song lyrics, depressing soulmarks, angst, angst… 438 words.

500 Words Story Index

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I don’t need your H-E-A’s
   Your destinies
   Your fated mates
No, I don’t need your H-E-A’s
To find 
      My ever after
I’ll find 
     My ever after
Just watch 
    My ever after anyways!
– Happily Ever After by Solo Sisters, Notareal Records.

I’ve known since I was old enough to read, how my future would play out. It’s right there circling my wrist in someone else’s handwriting.

Some folks have ambiguous soulmarks. For them, the inky letters that trace out the first few words their other half would say were something commonplace and harmless. Like ‘Hello’ or ‘Excuse me.’ The sort of thing you’ll hear a thousand times before it clicks.

Other folks were lucky and got something unique enough that there’d be no mistake. I had a classmate who’s line was ‘Oh my god, the squirrel is on fire!’ and that can’t possibly happen more than once. I hope.

But people like me, we had the second half of a conversation.

Which meant I’d speak first –I don’t know what words I’ll say– but whatever it is it’s enough that they recognize me and what I mean.

And part of me hopes I never ever speak them.

Because their words, the ones that creep around my wrist in letters barely big enough to read, say the one thing I don’t want to hear.

You have to leave, I’m married.

When I was little I came up with a thousand things other those words could mean, besides the obvious. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve had to face the truth.

Soulmarks are a magic you can live without. 

You won’t die of a broken heart if you chose to walk away, no matter what romance movies tell you. And that’s if you even get the chance to choose. Even with the internet and mark-matching sites, the world is still so very very big and there is a large percentage who never meet their partner.

So people do what they’ve always done and date and marry and raise a family… as if the words weren’t there. And that’s what my soulmate will do.

And that’s what I should do, but I won’t.

I’ll go out and meet new people and visit new places and act as if the words are the happy daydream that everyone else is chasing.

Because I don’t want to hear the words, but I will. I’ve devoted my life to finding them, to show them my wrist and let them know that their choice of a happy life cost me mine. 

Because I never got to pretend there’s a Happily Ever After beyond my words and they owe me an apology.