Chapter Text
Everybody has a soulmate.
Everyone has a tiny clock ticking down by the second on the inside of their arms, all leading to that one fateful moment. There were people had two, three, some even ten- but that was extremely rare. There were people that had none, they were called the Unbounds. Looked down upon by society for something they couldn't even control.
You, on the other hand, have two Watches. Each with the same number counting down in unison.
Your mother had called it a blessing. Your sister, who had only one Watch, grew up jealous of you. Your father always spoke of the day he would meet his little girl's soulmates.
Soulmates were honored. Loved and cherished. Revered. It was never questioned, never thought to be unjust or immoral. Free will of love was always an option, but it was looked down upon unless your soulmate had Denied you or died. Here in which lies your problem.
What if your soulmates Denied you? What if they took one look at you and decided they didn't want you? If they did want you, what if they died soon after?
Your mother had told you to stop thinking those horrid thoughts, that everyone felt nervous about meeting their person, but you weren't sure it was nervousness. It wasn't anxiety, or doubt, or uneasiness. It was dread. You had this unsettling fear of meeting your soulmates, always had, always trailing you along through life like a shadow you were too scared to turn around and face.
As you rushed down the bustling and busy streets of New York City, you fought the instinctive urge to pull your sleeve up. You tried to distract yourself, fiddling with your purse strap, running your hand through your hair, anything that wasn't looking at that foreboding countdown. Your mind drifted- letting your instincts take over, and let your eyes unintentionally skim over the Watch.
3 days, 2 Hours, 17 Minutes, 56 Seconds.
You were doomed.