Chapter Text
Already he’s aware that he’s seen this one before, but he can’t complain. He’d say it was his favorite, but that just didn’t seem fair to him. How could he compare a million moments of his lifetime to each other?
But this one was special, for whatever reason. It always started the same, he saw his figure sitting on the beach in a cloudy town. He wished he could figure out exactly where, wished he could just get one hint, something to keep him going. Now wasn’t the time for wishing, though, now was the time for pretending he was already living the life he was anxiously waiting for.
He looked at the figure sitting next to his own carefully, it was no more than a blurred out image, a smudged spot of ink on a beautiful, rolling canvas. He wanted so badly to reach out to them, to learn their name, he wanted to scream out and ask for them to come to him.
Then he was calm, like everything in the world had finally clicked, he sighed in relief as the effect of the dream took hold of him once more. He heard laughter, muffled, indistinguishable, beautiful. He wondered if they were a musician, everything about them felt melodic. He saw the future him sitting, smiling wider than he knew was possible, his fingers intertwined with the blurry blob. This version of himself was so happy and carefree, his hair was longer and curlier, a look Vernon still couldn’t imagine he’d pick out, but he must have, because there he was.
He had more wrinkles around his eyes, probably from smiling so much, but he was still young. Vernon wagered this was only a few years in the future now, two or three if he had to absolutely guess a timeframe. That seemed so soon but not soon enough all rolled into one.
The present day Vernon closed his eyes, letting the dream take over him completely, filling his head with blurry memories that hadn’t even happened yet.
Vernon was always in a bad mood when he woke up from that dream. Sure, he’d wake up refreshed, cheeks tinted pink, his heart beating impossibly fast. He’d have a good day that day, because that’s just how it worked. Have a vague dream about your future, your days going to be great, as if some twisted god was re paying him for the suffering he had to endure while he waited for his predictions to come true.
He was 20 now, still young, he tried to remind himself of that often, but the waiting game was still difficult. He knew he didn’t have much longer to go, he had seen himself only a few years older looking so happy and content, but for the present timing, he was basically miserable.
Life wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t great. He worked in a shitty coffee shop in downtown New York, the pay wasn’t great but he had a few coworkers he genuinely enjoyed. He went to school three days a week and took another three classes online, although if it were up to him, he’d have dropped out completely by then.
His parents were artists, and they were lenient with him to an extent. They understood that he had a mind much like theirs, he wasn’t really cut out for a run of the mill nine to five business job. He wanted to make music, and his parents supported his dream, but they also wanted to make sure he continued working on something “practical” as well.
So he was a music major, which was easy enough considering he genuinely enjoyed the subject, but something about all the rules and deadlines made him want to rip his hair out. Sometimes he wished he could just blow up overnight and not have to worry about another music theory essay ever again. But this was real life, and real life meant real hard work and dedication to get things you wanted, or at least that’s what his mother always nagged him about.
So for the time being, he worked in a shitty coffee shop, he went to a shitty community college, ate a lot of shitty pizza and hung out with a lot of not-so shitty friends.
He finally mustered up the strength to roll out of bed, he wasn’t tired by any means, if anything he had a ton of energy and his biological reaction to the dream was telling him, “carpe diem bitch! Today is going to be great!” but even with all the positive endorphins racing though his body, he couldn’t help but feel just a little hopeless.
“G’morning,” his roommate, Chan mumbled to him, not looking up from his phone as he shoveled cheap ramen into his mouth.
“Morning, ramen for breakfast? Really?” Vernon chasticized, rolling his eyes at the younger boy.
Chan shrugged, still not looking up from his phone.
“I’m making pancakes, stop eating that.”
This finally got Chan’s attention, he slowly pushed the ramen away and looked at his roommate with a smile, “what’s the occasion?”
Vernon didn’t look over, trying to hide how much he was blushing, “guess.”
“Oh, another dream then?” Chan’s eyes widened, “you’re getting them more frequently! Do you think you’ll meet her soon?”
Vernon shrugged, “I don’t know. Also don’t say her.”
Chan frowned, “sorry, I forgot.”
“It’s okay… you just never know, you know?” Vernon said, ruffling his messy hair and earning an annoyed look, “plus something makes me think that it’s definitely going to be a guy anyways. We’ll see soon, hopefully.”
“Cheers to that,” Chan sighed, “sometimes, I feel like it’s never going to happen for me. I hardly ever get dreams.”
“You’re like 19, you have plenty of time.”
“You’re only a year older than me and you’re constantly sulking, take your own advice.”
Vernon scoffed, “I’m not sulking.”
Chan hummed, “okay bud, keep telling yourself that. The pancakes ready yet or what?”
“Sometimes I feel like I’m a full time nanny,” Vernon sighed, earning a uproar of laughter from Chan.
The rest of the day continued as usual, Monday morning, music production class at 10 AM until 12 PM, quick lunch break, music theory from 12:30 PM until 3:30 PM, maybe have time to take a quick nap before work, usually not though, work anywhere between 4:30 PM and 1 AM, walk home, have Chan’s leftover pizza, study, go to sleep. It was like this six out of seven days a week, the same boring routine, the same boring walk to and from his apartment, school, and his job, the same dirty city filled with nasty people who didn’t respect anyone who wasn’t wearing a three piece suit.
So maybe everything went right that day, he aced his music theory exam, got a free slice of pizza from the bodega, had time to nap before work, and got a good amount of tips that night. Really, he couldn’t complain, by all counts he had a textbook perfect day, but he couldn’t shake the anxiety in his stomach that twisted his intestines like vines around a window sill.
It wasn’t late yet, and he didn’t have any classes on campus the next day, so he decided to continue using his dream induced good luck and ask his friends if they were up for a night on the town. Maybe he’d meet somebody cute at that tiny club downtown, and even if he didn’t, at least he knew he could get hammered without having to worry about a hangover the next day.
He sent a quick text to his group chat, asking them to meet him at the Wave for a few drinks and a good time, he knew at least one would say yes, he could count on that.
Chan immediately replied, reminding Vernon with a sequence of curse words that he had lost his fake ID at the fault of Vernon himself. Really, it wasn’t his fault that he dropped it down a sewer drain, Chan should have known better than to trust his clumsy self with anything of any value.
With Chan out, that left Jihoon and Mingyu, they were both 21 and had no reason not to join Vernon on his city escapade. He had met them through Chan who seemed to know literally everyone in their school.They were soulmates, and had known for a few months now, and even though they were fun to hang out with, Vernon couldn’t help but feel like he was missing out when he saw them interact with each other. He was feeling good tonight though, like something great was going to happen, and he wasn’t sure if it was the dream high or the heaps of caffeine he had drank that day, but he wanted nothing more than to hang out with his closest friends.
So he was a little pissed off when they told him they had plans, it was their 7 month-iversary, or something stupid and cheesy like that. Mingyu was really into all that kind of stuff, and Jihoon was really into Mingyu so he went along with it.
Vernon sighed, leaning against the old brick wall of the club, wondering if he should just walk home and watch Netflix with Chan. Even as he started to pull away, however, he felt that he shouldn’t leave. He felt like something inside that club was going to change his life.
He walks in and orders a drink from the burly bartender, not even flinching when he’s asked for his ID. He knows it will work tonight, he doesn’t have to worry about that.
He nurses a Jack and Coke that is a bit too strong for his taste and wonders what the fuck he’s even doing here. He doesn’t even really enjoy nightlife, really only participating when his friends drag him out once a month, but he can’t ignore the nagging in his head telling him that he is supposed to be here, that the universe is trying to align something, so don’t be difficult.
He’s on the dance floor aimlessly talking with a blonde girl a few years older than him, they’re both bored but they try to hide it. He finds comfort knowing that she’s probably here for the same reasons as he is, and he inwardly sends out a prayer that she finds what she’s looking for soon as well. She’s good enough conversation, so he dances with her, still working on finishing his first drink.
About an hour into dancing mindlessly with some stranger, (maybe her name was Ellen? He isn’t sure, he isn’t really paying attention) he starts to wonder if he should just head home after all, say fuck it to the universe because it is taking far too long and at this point he just wants to be curled up on the couch, watching bad reality TV with his best friend.
He says his goodbyes to the girl, giving her a knowing smile and he swears he sees a twinkle in her eye and he understands completely. He’s almost at the door just as he bumps into someone.
“Oop, sorry,” he murmurs, steadying himself on the table next to him.
“Vernon?” the person asks, and his voice isn’t recognizable at all, he assumes he’s an acquaintance from the coffee shop or something.
Vernon looks up at the man and doesn’t recognize him at all, not even as someone he’s seen in passing. He seems to be around the same age as his friends so he wonders if he’s a friend of Chan’s he hasn’t met yet.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” the man stumbles, “I’m Joshua, I always forget to do that, shit.”
“Okay,” Vernon breathes, “okay Joshua, no offense, but I have no idea who you are and we’re in a shady area, and I’m starting to get a little freaked out.”
Joshua turns a bright shade of red, “oh, no, no! Okay I need to start explaining,” he pauses, looking at Vernon seriously, “I’m here to guide you.”
Vernon snorts, “guide me? Okay buddy you’re going to have to back off before I make you-”
Joshua shakes his head, “I’m so bad at this oh my God I am so sorry. Please hear me out, I’m a soulmate guide.”
Vernon tilts his head, “a what? I’ve never heard of anything like that before.”
Joshua nods excitedly, “they aren’t that common! You see, most soulmates are generally pretty close in proximity, hiding under each other’s noses before they finally realize. Eventually, they’ll meet, in a coffee shop, or at a park, you know, the usual stuff.”
“But,” he continues, “for some people, it’s a little different. Somewhere during your life things got a little… mixed up,” he hesitates, “it’s nothing you did, just the way things worked out. Things out of you and your soulmates control. Anyways, for whatever reason, you two have been separated, and I’m here to help you find them!”
Vernon blinked, feeling overwhelmed but mostly confused, suddenly the one drink he had felt like twenty and the room was spinning.
“Okay, you look like you’re going to pass out,” Joshua tsked, “let’s get you home.”
“You know where I live?” Vernon asked in a daze.
Joshua nodded, “I know a lot, Hansol. Now c’mon, Chan is waiting.”
Vernon didn’t even bother asking how he knew his real first name, or how who he knew who Chan was, he figured if this guy was going to kill him he wouldn’t have picked him up in such a public place, and if everything he had told him was true, Vernon was more than excited to be meeting him.
Chan stared at the older boy incredulously, “okay, so are you like, an angel or something? A witch?”
Joshua snorted, “no. I’m human just like you two, I have a soulmate. We’ve been together for two years. I just happen to have a gift.”
Chan scratched his head, “so you’re like… psychic?”
“I don’t really like that word,” Joshua huffed, “but to put it simply? Yes I suppose I am psychic.”
Chan nodded, “cool,” he looked over at Vernon who was still in shock, “have fun Nonnie, I’ll be in my room.”
Joshua yawned, “okay, I’m exhausted. Do you have any spare blankets? I didn’t really have time to pack anything. Some comfy clothes would be appreciated as well.”
Vernon blinked slowly, “wait, so you’re staying here?”
“I mean, I’m only helping you find your soulmate, at the very least you could give me a place to stay.”
“How do I know you’re not just some freeloader,” Vernon asked, suddenly feeling like he hadn’t made the best decisions all night.
Joshua sighed, “you’re being so difficult, you know? Here,” he said, pulling out a handful of crumpled papers and shoving them at Vernon, “my credentials, certified by the ISA.”
Vernon looked at them carefully, “what the hell is the ISA?”
“You really are clueless, pick up a history of soulmates book someday, kid. It’s the International Soulmate Association. Google it if you have to, I’m the real deal, babe.”
“Okay,” Vernon said carefully, handing back the papers, “I believe you, but now you expect me to just go to sleep after you’ve basically told me you know who my soulmate is?”
“I don’t know who your soulmate is,” Joshua corrected, “I know the general area they’re in, and I know some of the memories you two share, and I know some of the places we need to visit for you two to meet by chance, but that’s it. I’m only here to get you started on your own journey.”
“So… you’re basically a glorified travel guide.”
“Well, when you put it that way, it sounds way less cool,” Joshua smiled brightly, “now how about those PJs and blankets?”