Chapter Text
Long, long ago, in a world like our own, there lived a girl. She was sweeter than honey, prettier than the blooming flowers and as dazzling as the sun in the sky. There also lived a boy, as passionate as a poet, as sharp as the wind and as determined as a flame left in the dark.
Their story was one of two souls who unbeknownst to them, were interlinked and had their chapters secretly unfold into the same tale. Their paths crossing continuously until no longer could the blinding truth keep its light dimmed and it was forced to reveal itself in its true unsheathed, unabashed glory.
It was no such tale of ‘love at first sight’, no, not at all. In fact, their love manifested slowly, creeping up on them like ivy trailing up a tree, finding them in ways which were unexpected and terrifying like nettles hidden amongst the blades of green grass.
The girl hadn’t yet uncovered what it meant to truly ‘love’ and the same could have been said for that boy. They both found themselves stumbling down cobbled paths which seemed to be the clear, obvious road they were destined to go down.
Although, those very paths were not their own to tread.
Through tangled vines and webbed up lies, the girl found herself drowning in more sorrow, devouring her in harsh waves and similarly, the boy was stuck in a disguise which consistently changed, but never felt honest and true. His reflection in the mirror is no longer him, but rather who the people want him to become.
But fate always finds a way.
And it was only when their paths had finally interwove themselves at the very end of their roads, when they were finally able to see the monochromatic colours of the world burst into something vibrant and beautiful. When they had been gifted the sight to take notice of what was always silently there.
They had realised that it was each other’s hearts they were supposed to hold. Only each other's soul they should ever love.
That the boy and the girl were always destined to have their like-flames burst into the blazing glory of one.
But, oh, how I wish I could say the story ended there. How their tale ended happily and could have always been filled with such sweet delight.
Yet, it was in that very same moment their love had become true when fate had decided it was its opportune moment to strike.
With a sorrowful swipe of destiny's hand, their love was left shattered as if made from the most brittle of glass.
And the girl would lay there, with roses blooming from her pooling blood leaving the boy to only weep and curse for his lover. Pitifully begging that the stars take some mercy upon their souls and mercy on the fact that his aching heart could now never be whole.
That his burning fire in his heart was now beginning to dwindle against the striking winds and fall into the vast black unknown of darkness.
But as the stars and fate listened to his woes, they decided that as the final act of remorse for their wilted love, destiny shall bestow a final gift upon all of man.
One which lit up new flames of hope in hearts of incomplete souls.
One which was in place to make sure every man and woman would know that somewhere out there there is another heart like your own.
To prevent the final heartbreak this girl and boy had.
One must simply use this new gift we all have.
It was a singular pen which would need not only no ink, but also no paper. Running off just the bare skin of a hand, to allow written words to be spoken between pairs of souls.
A new way to push every soul together, no matter how far their paths may currently be.
And so, the soul-pens were born, acting as a guiding light towards everyone’s kin-flames. Born in honour of these tragic lovers' long lost names.
May each heart find its reason for beating, and may each flame shine anew.
For this newfound way of finding love should be treasured and let the ink guide you.
Nene took a deep breath making way for clean, fresh air to enter through her nose and into her lungs. In and out, In and out, the subconscious cycle which like a fan on a warm summer's day, cooled down the simmering angst which bubbled up with the understanding of what a typical Monday morning would bring.
For Nene it was the return of the foreboding feeling of being back to the building riddled with judging glances and mocking voices. It was an all too quick goodbye to yet another momentarily too short weekend, another which she had yet to properly savour before it had slipped just out of her grasp.
It left Nene with the simmering feeling of despair which could soon quickly boil over the feeling of excitement that seeing her friends typically brought and as yet another pawn in the mundane schooling system, all Nene could do was let out a pitiful pout and a sorrowful sigh in a silent hope that perhaps this week would be better than the rest of them.
Nene found herself feeling grateful that Kamome Academy was only a short distance away from her house. The walk being quite short but scenic, as if it was something plucked out of a romantic’s daydreams or pulled from a picturesque movie. There were light pink cherry blossom petals gently swaying down the humming breeze dancing along in small swoosh motions until they eventually sprinkled across the concrete pathways. Granting the dull, grey concrete with warm fuschia sprinkles lighting up the pathway with a newfound sense of life and joy. The cherry blossoms rained down atop Nene’s skin lightly, as if they were attempting to softly envelope her skin with a gentle embrace.
Occasionally, the low buzz of cars and the melodic chitter of the nearby birds could be heard. It left her senses tingling with a quaint feeling of peace as she let herself get slightly more absorbed in nature’s little song, letting it try and blow Nene’s worries away with such a soft touch.
However, despite how close she lived to Kamome Academy, Nene still oftentimes found herself encased in a routine of falling slightly late each morning. Only just entering the building before the jarring rumble of the first bell echoed across the Academy, the officiator that the school day (and all the hell which is brung alongside it) is in action.
The scent of freshly-cut grass welcomed her senses, the healthy, vibrant patches of green waved softly with the wind in a small hello as Nene, now slightly more rushed, strolled past Kamome Academy’s steel, black gates. Entering the hallway Nene was met with the ever-so-familiar sight of walls tinged with that same peach colour from the honey-orange lights which emitted proudly from the lights engineered carefully into the sides of the walls and hung from the roof. The familiar patter of black shoes clicking against the old, wooden floorboards as Nene’s steps became increasingly more hurried, but still remained light and dainty. Akin to the gentle droplets of rain falling onto a window during summertime, noticeable but not too prominent.
The first unusual thing Nene noticed was the fact that even after the first bells ringing, students still littered across the hallways when typically they’d be making their way to their respective classes with a small grumble and hurried goodbyes to their friends.
The second unusual thing was that the students who were hanging about had small beads of sweat lining their foreheads, fingers uncomfortably twitching and shaking in the air.
The third and final unusual thing was how if the students didn’t seem to be overwhelmed or drowning in nervousness, they appeared to be positively beaming in excitement. Their smiles shining like the blazing sun, eyes gleaming with a light which Nene could have sworn was never present before.
The tension was spilling from every person in the hallway, so thick that Nene was almost swimming in it as her magenta eyes carefully traced the room in a nervous flicker, wanting to unravel the mystery which lay before her eyes before the nerves of the unknown consumed her and left her dry.
What on Earth was happening on what should be this normal, typical, ordinary Monday morning? Was Nene just simply forgetting that something was supposed to be happening?
Before Nene had a proper chance to effectively mull over the seemingly endless web of possibilities, each of them wanting to stick itself into Nene’s mind like a grating thought which stays in the back of her head like a mocking whisper for hours on end, a warm, gentler, soft-spoken voice manifested from behind her. “Nene!” It had called so sweetly.
twirling around in a much less graceful spin than what Nene had originally would have liked it to be, she was pleasantly greeted by gorgeous amethyst eyes which expensively gleamed underneath the light, seemingly unaltered by whatever the hell was happening in Kamome Academy that morning.
The eyes of course, belonged to nobody else, but Nene’s very own best friend and the unofficial disney princess and most popular girl in all of Kamome academy herself, Aoi.
Aoi, of course, was the definition of beauty. She had silky, violet hair which looked to have been effortlessly woven into two perfect hoops behind her ears, a small angelic halo of lavender light shining brilliantly around the roots of her hair. Overall, Aoi had looked like the human embodiment of a heavenly being of sorts, one which had descended onto Earth to bless the rest of mankind with her enchanting grace and heavenly spirit.
With clear, snow white cheeks burning with a slight tulip pink hue, Aoi’s heart shaped lips curved into a light, joyous smile, overflowing with true unaltered happiness.
“Aoi!” Nene beamed, her tone rising in excitement as the worries which burned against her chest were quickly washed away. Her lips curving upwards in an uncontrollable grin at the sight of Aoi. “Is something going on?” she decidedly asked, eyes swiftly flicking between the people towards her left, then the people towards her right. People still anxiously gathered in the hallways, speaking in voices just hushed enough that Nene couldn’t understand what they were saying, but could hear the small tremble and urgency in their tone.
Aoi hummed, following Nene’s line of sigh briefly before letting out a short-lived giggle, seemingly amused by the question Nene posed. “Oh!” She smiled, covering her lips with her face. Taking a second to fully absorb Nene’s body language. “I’m surprised you aren’t shaking with nerves or excitement Nene!” Aoi laughed again, making Nene pause and raise a confused brow.
“Shaking? With nerves or… excitement?” Nene repeated in a gentle mutter, fingers reaching up to cup her chin in thought, but still no light bulb lit up above her head, no ideas came flooding through.
“Well, we’re getting our soulmate pens today! I had always thought that you’d be the most energetic out of all of us!” Aoi said in a hushed whisper, clasping onto Nene’s hand.
Nene’s eyes widened, her body instinctively freezing up as if she had been encased with ice. Her brain spinning in a constant loop in a feeble attempt to try and process the information given. It’s today.
It's today, It's today, it's today, it's TODAY!?
Gaining the ability to move again, her fingers pushed away from Aoi’s shooting backwards like a dart recently thrown before they quickly reached into the roots of her hair. Pulling and ripping the blonde strands from her head.
How on earth, Nene wondered, her brain still stuck in a tornado of thoughts, each being as loud and as impossible to understand as the next, could she forget that today (today!) was the day she had been mindlessly daydreaming, fantasizing and sighing about since she had first even discovered the concept of soulmates!?
“Today… It's TODAY!?” She finally shouted, all of her previous thoughts now finally catching up to her in one large, catastrophically overwhelming mental explosion. One which may as well have left smoke flowing from her ears and left her face stained with a flush which could only be described as a volcanic shade of red. Some students spared Nene a short lived concerned glance in her direction, but most, fortunately for her, were still caught up in their own bundle of nerves and excitement.
“Aoi! How could I forget!- Oh- Do I look alright? Do I look nervous? Ah! Who do you think it is? Oh-” She paced, words tumbling from her tongue like a marathon runner, cheeks glowing with that same rosy hue as she finally began to unravel her hands from blonde strands.
Aoi, ever the sweetheart, only giggled at Nene’s reaction. She smiled as she gently shook her head at the other girl, finding some amusement towards not only her forgetfulness but the sudden spark of emotion which had been ignited in her. “You look fine! But…” Aoi held onto her words, glancing upwards at a clock which had been usefully hung up on the wall directly in front of them. “We should probably start heading to class! I think the suspense might start killing you if we don't!" She so cheerfully suggested, beaming as she readjusted her hold of her bag, and led a still slightly trembling Nene to their classroom.
Barely concealed by the sweet aroma of budding, lively plants which were emitted from the small arrangements of flowers and plants which the gardening club (of which Nene and Aoi were both proud attendees of) had carefully planted across the classroom. There was a prominent tension of worry and anxiety clinging onto the room like ivy wrapped around a tree. Each person had either wide eyes, anxiously checking the room every couple of seconds, waiting ever so patiently for their teacher to arrive with the pens. Or they had crystalline sweat forming on their hands or foreheads desperately waiting for the anxious pull of their heart to come to a stop.
Students were largely gathered in pairs, standing by desks engaged in a not-so-quiet gossip about who their soulmates could be. Some guesses were realistic, with some murmuring about how they hope their true love is their current boyfriend, others weren’t so much, with guesses about how their soulmates were definitely going to be idols or someone thrust into a life of fame.
“What do you think Nene?” Aoi hummed, placing her bag besides her chair. Weird. Normally, Akane would do that for her, or at the very least someone else.
Was everyone really that caught up in all of the soulmate pens stuff to forget?
Would Akane really forget to do such a thing for the girl he was indefinitely going to find out was his soulmate on the day they realise that fact?
Deciding not to mull over that for much longer, Nene thought over Aoi’s question, thin lips pursing into a line as her fingers quizzically pointed at her chin. Nene let out an almost inaudible hum, “Well, I hope my soulmate is well, Kind, respectful…” She beamed, keeping her standards low before she soon chimed again. “Oh! And maybe he should be taller than me- Be handsome and princely and maybe a guy who would also treat me like a princess! Maybe he would be rich- Ooh, What if he’s the dark and mysterious type? Rough along the edges but so sweet on the inside!-” Nene rambled, already losing the grip on any and all realistic expectations she had for her soulmate, allowing it to tread into more day dream territory than what it should have.
Aoi giggled once again, but soon her amethyst eyes took on a more teasing glint to them. “That doesn’t exactly sound all too much like Amane, though…” She innocently smiled, taking a seat on the wooden chair. Her eyes still followed Nene watching her with a knowing expression on her face as she mused at the sight of Nene’s eyes widening and shining with more light than what they had before, twinkling like twin ruby gemstones pulled beneath the Sun’s benevolent rays of gold and her cheeks flushing an embarrassed hue of rose from the idea.
Nene opened her mouth to string out a retaliation - perhaps some half convincing denial of her poorly concealed feeling for her friend and classmate, Amane. But, she was (and probably for the greater good), cut off by the sound of the school bell ringing and vibrating against the halls. Like a siren disrupting the sea of peace with a song sweeping in for the kill and ready to drown you into the world filled with a new normal.
A new piece in the puzzle that is a soul was found and now it is time to begin piecing it together.
A new chapter in this tale of love had finally begun being written.
Kicking everyone out of their hazed trances once and for all, the extra sound of the class’ professor harshly kicking the door open, a motion which made it recoil slightly against his wood desk echoed across the classroom.
The teacher had a large rather expensive looking leather(?) box which he cradled in his arms, as if one singular wrong movement could cause whatever was inside said box to shatter into billions of tiny, irreparable glass shards. He immediately caught the attention of everyone in the room, causing most students, including Nene herself to quickly scurry over to their respective desks. Their gazes each latching onto the midnight black box in his hands, enthusiastic and dreamy whispers filling the room in an uncontrolled hush.
And as much as Nene wishes she could say she was overflowing with excitement. She couldn’t quite hear the full commotion over the erratic, aggressive beating of her heart ringing continuously in her eardrums like some syncopated rhythm. It was like a bash of the timpani, the crash of a cymbal. Loud. Unignorable.
Pale fingers began to tremble and shake as she tried pulling out her own chair, vision now slightly hazy as she sat down. Nene’s mind was now flooded by the tsunami that is her thoughts, the waves getting larger and larger by the second, threatening to devour and swallow her body whole with anxiety.
This sickening, harrowing sense of worry pooled in her stomach and infused itself with the blood sprinting through her veins. Her ribcage feeling abused and her heart feeling like it was actively having its heartstrings played with like a lyre- no, worse than that. It felt like a feline had clawed open her chest and had begun ripping her heart out in its entirety, cruelly playing with it in some sort of game just before it went for its feast.
“Everyone! Settle down!” The teacher began, placing down the large box on his desk with a quiet ‘thud’. His eyes racked across the classroom in a silent understanding for why everyone had seemed particularly on edge and lively that morning.
“Today-” He started again, taking in a sharp intake of fresh air as if he too was deeply anxious about this moment. “Might be for some of you the most important day of your life, for others this may just be yet another stop on this larger treasure map of being alive.” He recited, putting in minimal effort into this monotone speech, dulling out the atmosphere and tension in the room slightly.
As he carefully lifted the lid off the leather box, a lot of students made uncontrolled chirps of delight, taking in air fearing that after this they might lose the ability to breathe. Inside, there were tons of smaller, thinner black leather boxes. Each of them now having a shimmering, metallic engravement which spelt out the owner’s name in a brilliant silver.
The teacher proceeded to continue with his speech about the significance and the story of the soul-pens, what they do and why they had ever come into existence. Or well, Nene presumed he was, as she wasn’t exactly able to pay the most attention with as keen of an eye as she really wished she could have been. Finding herself to have been too entangled in the choking vine which fed off her worries and left her with more scenarios to fear than what she ever thought could have been possible.
Chanting whispers saying that maybe, the sweet, sweet dreams of her soulmate running up to her in a park, cherry blossoms dancing around them. Affectionate giggles of laughter and love being all that could be heard, a simple, easy love which she had always yearned for. Like a bee dreaming of the loveliest flower which only blossoms in summer. Of her soulmate holding Nene close, a smitten expression in his eyes as he proclaimed his never-dying love for Nene again. A scene plucked from the most honey-drizzled dreams she had, Wasn’t going to come true. The dream which Nene had always nurtured deep within her heart no longer felt like it was inching closer and closer, but rather, it felt like it was quickly inching away.
That every romantic moment Nene had always longed for, the ones she yearned over, was always going to be a reality she would never truly have the ability to taste.
What was she doing? Nene couldn’t be thinking like this! Not when meeting her soulmate and having someone love her was so close to being real. Something she could finally scream upon all the rooftops and proudly exclaim she had experienced in its full genuine glory.
Nene couldn't think like this when she was finally no longer going to be the girl who was always fumbling two-steps behind everyone else. No longer a simple, ignorable bystander in everyone else's story as they could so effortlessly get with anyone who they desired if they really wanted to.
She was so close to finally proving that radish-legs and all, she deserved to have her own tale of true love too.
But, just before Nene could allow herself to slip into yet another haze and whirlpool of thoughts, a slight kick - which in all honesty felt more like a light graze - against the back leg of her chair swiftly bung Nene back to reality.
Deciding that now it was just a little too late to sudden begin paying attention to whatever her teacher was saying now, (and also out of pure curiosity for what someone could want at a time like this), Nene spun her upper body around. Leaving her face-to-face and eye-to-eye with nobody else than her good (but so-very-annoying) friend Amane.
His captivating eyes staring into hers slightly teasingly like made from crystalline and perfect amber, immediately entrapping Nene with just that one singular look her way. His eyes never truly revealed what he wanted, but they would occasionally glimmer with freckles of gold, as if his irises were made from the light reflected from the sun onto the moon, which he adored so dearly.
Those same eyes were almost masqueraded by his lightly scruffed up black hair which pooled down his face in messy strands like the unfolding black sky at night. Amane looked so infuriatingly good for a boy who apparently put little thought into his appearance most days. (Curse people and their naturally good looks! Curse these stupid radish legs!) And as if the world had to add insult to injury, soft rays of beaming, golden sunlight kissed and glowed against certain strands of his hair from the window, granting him an undeserved halo of light across his midnight roots.
“What do you want?” Nene whispered, her tone dripping with unconcealed impatience and curiosity, fingers subconsciously tapping against her wrists.
“Nothing! Nothing!” Amane grinned, holding up his hands in a fake surrender. His mouth winding itself up into that stupid, smug grin of his. His head leaned on the palm of his hand smugly, golden eyes still staring into Nene’s unwaveringly. “You wound me, Yashiro… Can’t I talk to you just because I want too?” He pouted, voice oozing with sarcasm and a hint of joy from watching Nene get so easily wound up like a string.
“I’m just… A little curious, Y’know! Who do you think your soulmate would be?...” He hummed, his foot lightly pattering against the back of Nene’s chair again in a small ostinato. He pretended to think for a short moment before continuing. “I mean- Whoever your soulmate would be, they’d end up with a little radish after all!” He mused, smirking again, watching with a proud content as Nene rolled her eyes in displeasure.
“I’m not a radish!” Nene retorted, taking a short, sparing glance down at her ankles which she had grown up as being insecure of. Not wanting to play this interaction much more thought than what she already was however, Nene swiftly turned to face outside the window. Watching with a faint feeling of discontent as the sun began to drift away ever so slightly, beginning to bless over places with its radiant, illustrious light. “Any guy would be lucky to get with me, you know!” Nene sighed, crossing her arms and turning back to Amane behind her. Her lips pouting slightly and her cheeks puffing out like her hamster, the sight making Amane stifle an amused laugh.
Amane opened his lips slightly ajar to indefinitely tease her some more, but no words ended up falling through. With Amane getting ultimately distracted by the sight of a small, thin leather box getting placed atop Nene’s desk. “Huh…” He breathed, eyeing over the box for a short second prior to shrugging his shoulders and leaning back in his chair nonchalantly. “Guess you’re one of the first to get one! Lucky you!” He beamed again.
Unable to contain her emotions, Nene quickly twisted herself over, staring at the taunting black box in bewilderment and worry. Inside was every answer Nene had yearned to know for years of her life. Inside was so many possibilities and the gateway to one large part of her future, of the rest of her life.
This was the moment she had ever so impatiently waited for since the very moment her romantic heart had learnt about the soulpens.
So, why?
Why did the thought of opening this sleek black box terrify Nene to her very core? Why did it make her heart twist uncomfortably in her chest and let the waves which carried that sinking foreboding feeling drown her completely? Why was Nene now feeling that same sudden wave of nausea and sickness spill into her stomach making her want to wretch out everything she has ever eaten? Why could she feel vines digging in and clawing at her heart, dragging it down roughly letting it bleed out pitifully?
Nene’s hands felt heavy, her legs faint as her pale skin trembled ever so slightly as she tried reaching out, even though it felt like gravity itself was pulling her away from the box.
The gnawing feeling that perhaps Nene wasn’t ready and that she wants- no needs to wait longer until she could discover the identity of her soulmate was all consuming and almost all powerful.
But it was through Nene’s own sheer will and determination which let her push past against the sea of whispered which echoed relentlessly on her mind like a gramophone stuck on loop.
What if her soulmate was rude?
What if her soulmate didn’t appreciate her?
What if her soulmate’s disappointed?
What if she doesn’t even have a soulmate?
The what if’s echoed and bounced backwards and forwards in her mind, spinning like a tornado, but still she reached forwards. Ringing like white noise filling her senses and only dissipating when she finally, finally, had her fingers graze the lid of the box.
The lid had her name engraved in that same metallic, silver writing she had seen prior, it looked so perfect, so alike to what she had dreamed it would have been and as much as Nene wanted to spend more time admiring the elegance of it all. She couldn’t bring herself to spare even another second admiring the pristine intricacies of the box. Nene just couldn’t.
Nene’s heart rapidly bashed itself against her ribcage, like erratic thunder. Powerful, frightening, thrilling as she tentatively lifted the lid. Shoving down the anxiety that this was yet another pandora’s box waiting to be opened. That perhaps Nene couldn’t bear to deal with any consequences this moment may have.
Letting out a quiet gasp, Nene did it.
Nene opened the box.
And inside, gentle light of fuschia shrouded Nene’s vision, albeit temporarily, but present nevertheless and once the beam gently faded she finally saw it.
It was beautiful, well, as beautiful as a pen could be Nene supposed. It was a soft pink made out of something that looked to be made from glass, but it didn’t seem so brittle as if it wouldn’t- or rather - couldn’t shatter at all. The nib was a translucent flamingo pink like colour and the grip of the pen was a rose red. The fountain pen itself looked elegant and classy, already surpassing everything that Nene had fantasied it would be.
She lifted the pen ever so carefully out from where it so snugly fitted into the box. Granting herself a moment to glide her fingers alongside the glass, feeling the precise cuts and designs etched onto the small pen before she tested how it felt between her fingers.
Nene beamed at how the pen wasn’t the slightest bit uncomfortable to hold, as if tailored for her very hands, which all things considered, it probably was.
Now all that was left was for Nene to test writing on her skin with the pen…
Nene had heard from her parents that the writing of the pen felt akin to that of the light trace of a feather tickling your skin gently. Something faint and barely noticeable. She had also read claims from people online stating that it felt like a sensation closer to pins and needles than anything, a small tingling numbness which can go without much recognition against her skin.
Leaning her arm on the cold, wooden desk Nene began to write in the neatest handwriting she could muster up.
“Hello!! I’m ******* ****! I'm your soulmate!!!! It's really nice to meet you! :)”
Nene looked at her arm confused, her mind reeling. It… Blurred out her name? She had never heard of the soul-pens doing that before… Maybe she should try it again!
“******* ****”
“******* ****”
“It isn’t letting me write my name!?!?!?”
Letting out a frustrated sigh, Nene buried her head into her desk. How was her soulmate supposed to even know who she is if she can’t even tell him her name! Does this mean he can’t tell her his name? Is this some sort of mistake? Some new rule implemented by the Gods that you can’t share names?
Nene’s head pounded, confused and irritated she groaned, trying to bury her face into the wooden desk hoping that perhaps an answer would find itself engraved into the grains of the oak.
The fact that they couldn’t share names made this whole soulmate thing so much harder! Nene thought the soulpens were supposed to help you find your soulmate- not do whatever this is!
After another short moment of trying to rack her mind for any comprehensible answer, Nene lifted her head. The grasp which she had on the pen tightening ever so slightly as her knuckles turned white. She wanted to try again- she wanted to just make sure that maybe that was just another mistake. But, as Nene raised her right hand, ready to try again, a soft tingling sensations like butterflies gently crawling up her arms had started to manifest itself.
The feeling began directly underneath the area where Nene had written, trailing upwards towards her hand before coming to a slight pause for a second and then continuing underneath. A dark onyx black ink flowed and formed on her skin like water pooling from a fountain, slowly forming words which came packaged together in two small sentences on her wrists.
“Hello! It's nice to meet you! I would write my name, but it's quite clear how that would go…”
“If it means anything to you, your handwriting is pretty familiar!”
Her soulmate had stopped writing, but Nene had already felt a small smile unknowingly creep up on her lips once again. Their handwriting was pristine and careful, all the words perfectly clear and legible like a typewriter come alive. Her heart pounded, the feeling of giddy butterflies circling her chest arsing, making all of her woes dissipate.
"It is!? Oh! We might know each other then! That’s great!”
Nene really did wish someone warned her about how awkward it really is to start a conversation with your soulmate - especially if you don’t even know his name!
Looking down at her wrist and seeing that she was getting no immediate response, Nene decided that rather than sitting down and impatiently waiting, she would have a look at how her classmates are responding to their soulmates.
Yes! Maybe then she’d find someone else who can’t say their name to their soulmate!
Aoi from what Nene could see hadn’t written anything yet, still taking her time to admire her own soulpen. Hers looked slightly different to Nene’s, with Aoi’d fading from lavender to maroon where Nene’s faded from pink to red. Even the way Aoi’s soulpen was cut looked differently, hers having a a flatter grip followed by a line of small glass-looking circles which slowly shrank in shape the longer you progressed down it.
Aoi carefully twisted the soulpen between her fingers a couple times allowing herself to have a look at the nub of the pen, her face brightening like a blooming flower in spring, her face studying the pen in front of her with a hint of curiosity mixed with sheer delight. Her pink lips tilting into a small smile, a sight which Nene was certain could light up the entire world.
Though what really caught Nene’s focus was the fact that Aoi had a lot more restraint than what Nene could ever wish she would have. Aoi slowly placed the soulpen back inside its small leather box and then securely closed the lid on top, obscuring it from her and everyone else’s curious view. The box was left in the centre of Aoi’s desk, and Nene could see the disappointed huffs and grumbles of other students in their class when they realised that Aoi was not, in fact, their soulmate. Aoi paid them no mind though, just as she normally would, still having her attention directed towards the small box as she smiled at it contentedly.
If Nene had to guess why Aoi was avoiding using her pen immediately it was probably so she could use it in her own privacy without any prying eyes or curious stares directed her way. Maybe Aoi wanted to show it to her friends or family, before she finally used it…
Or maybe, Aoi already had an idea on who her soulmate could be! Nene smiled faintly, the entirety of Kamome Academy already presumed that Aoi’s soulmate if it had to be anyone there, it would have been Akane.
Akane being the most devoted man to Aoi and also happened to be her childhood friend. Willing to do anything the violet haired girl asked of him, even if it was towards his own detriment. Akane would ward off any unwanted attention from Aoi and constantly show her his undivided, unwavering love each moment he found a good opportunity.
Nene always wondered what it would have been like to have her soulmate be someone a little like Akane…
Speaking of Akane, Nene diverted her attention towards the seat next to hers. Watching as Akane stared down at his arm with his brows tightly furrowed and his lips pursed into a thin line. His copper eyes, now slightly widened, kept tracing over his skin repeatedly as if he was trying to make sense of something. He clutched onto his soulpen tightly, the nub inches away from his skin as he decided what he should write.
His face looked pale and his hands, Nene noticed, were lightly trembling. He looked shaken and confused, he looked around the classroom for a short moment, briefly making eye contact with Nene, but he didn’t seem to be taking much notice.
This was weird, Akane wasn’t having the reaction Nene thought he would. No, Nene thought Akane would be writing furiously on his arms, excited that his undying love for Aoi was true! But… Nene understood though, perhaps Akane was second-guessing this whole soulmate thing just as much as Nene was earlier.
Akane raised his free hand away from the table and hurriedly placed the pen back inside of its box, seemingly giving up on the idea of writing anything at all. His hands pushing strands of ginger hair away from his face in one quick motion before they unceremoniously fell back down into place. His orange eyes dimming out still like a flame stuck in the wind as he stared at the box blankly.
Maybe Nene wasn’t the only one who went into this with a preconceived idea of what was going to happen with their soulmate, after all.
Deciding that she should probably leave Akane alone with his thoughts, she turned her torso over so she could see the boy who sat directly behind her. Amane had his eyes set on the soulpen looking at it with complete awe shining in his eyes.
She had a clearer view of what Amane’s soulpen looked like, as Amane had a seat which was slightly closer to her than where Aoi and Akane did. His soulpen was a golden yellow at the nib and it looked as if it was a glistening star in the pool of darkness that is the night sky. The yellow faded into orange at the grip and then towards the end, it turned into a stunning blood red. Amane, similar to Aoi, hadn't seemed to have written anything on himself yet, but rather had spent his time studying the details of the fountain pen closely. Allowing his fingers to carefully trace and circle the unique glass cut with his fingers in delight.
So what if Amane hasn’t written on himself yet? That’s none of Nene’s business whatsoever! It didn’t matter if there was this newfound sinking feeling in her chest and it certainly didn’t matter if Nene could now only hear the erratic thunder of her heartbeat again!
Its not like Nene had not-so-secretly been harbouring a small crush on Amane for a while now!
Nene blinked, her hands falling loosely by her sides as she let out a sad huff, her eyes tracing Amane allowing her to take this moment in.
There really was no way that Amane would be her soulmate anyway, was there?
Nene turned herself around, her heart aching at the sight of him.
Why was she upset? Nene had her own soulmate now, Nene has the one thing she had always wanted right… here…
Sure! She might not be able to even tell her soulmate her name and her soulmate can’t tell her his- but that's only a small barrier they will be able to cross!
And yeah! maybe she has absolutely no idea what to even say to him or what they could even talk about, but they can deal with that in time!
And fine! Maybe she did really want her soulmate to be someone who he isn’t but… This is fine, right?
It just has to be fine, right?
Afterall, they are soulmates.
Before Nene could notice the tears forming in her eyes, the sensation travelled up her arms yet again, instantly catching her attention.
“Sorry for taking too long, I was thinking. Look, I just want to know, you’re not *** ***** are you?”
“God dammit! You can’t write names at all…”
“I’m sorry, I know this is rude. Shit, I just thought my soulmate would be someone else. I don’t want to just lie and say I’m not surprised about that, I mean I’m sure you’re nice and all, but, wow. I just feel stupid.”
Nene looked down at her arm, magenta eyes slowly scanning the words repeatedly until they started making sense. When the gaps between each word became blurred, something which could have been caused by either the pooling tears which threatened to spill from her eyes or how excessively she had read the same few sentences on repeat, she looked up.
The weather once sunny and beautiful now felt cold and harsh. Picking her up only to throw her back down to the ground cruelly.
This had to be some cruel joke, maybe some form of karma for something she might have done in her past life because how did Nene find herself with a soulmate who also wanted someone else!?
It would have been hypocritical of her to say that she couldn’t understand it, but it didn’t make the spitfire in her heart burn any less! Nene laughed pitifully at the irony of this, the sound was pained and not too funny, but still she quietly laughed at her woes.
Of course the first thing she had discovered that she and her soulmate have in common is the fact that they’re both in love with other people!
Nene, ignoring the salty tears which had now begun to trickle down her cheeks like raindrops against her window. Ignoring the atonal discorded melody which buzzed in her mind like a whirlwind. She picked up the soulpen once more and began to write.
“You too? I guess we have something in common now, don’t we? Hah… We both wanted somebody else… Thanks though, for being honest! I appreciate that…”