Chapter Text
Soulmates: Everyone has them, no matter the life they have. Whether rich or poor, arrogant or self-conscious, or has mental disabilities. The one you meet by chance, the one given by the stars themselves. They say it is the best feeling in the world, meeting their soulmate. The only way to know who they are is the tells. A person can only have one, given at birth. Sometimes it is being colorblind; seeing only black and white until they stare at their soulmate in the eyes. Others it is a counter on their wrist, counting down until they meet their soulmate. Maybe it is just a simple tattoo, called a soulmark, that matches with the one they are destined to be with. Or it could be a red string attached to their soulmate. Other common tells are wrist stripes, first words or last words said to them, stop aging, and other various ones. Those are the more common tells.
There are rarer tells, like telepathic communication, pain sharing, heterochromia, color fluctuation, danger meters, varying degrees of their soulmates name, or synchronized singing. Telepathic communication is easy to understand, talking in each other’s mind. Pain sharing is when one soulmate gets hurt, the other feels the pain as well, but not gaining the injury. In some cases scars gained also show up on the other’s body. Heterochromia is when the pair has one eye of their natural color and the other their soulmate’s, only going back to one color when they meet. Color fluctuation is when one sees in black and white, and their view gains color when soulmates are closer to each other. Danger meters is how much danger the soulmate is in, and synchronized singing is when one of the soulmates sings, the other is forced to sing with them, no matter if they are awake or not. Finally the name of the soulmate. Can be the first letter of the name, initials, or the full name of the soulmate.
My name is Carla Rose Parker, but I go by Carly or to my family and close friends, pollen or other flower nicknames. I am fifteen years old, and have yet to find my soulmate. My mother’s name is Alice Daisy Lee Parker, and her soulmate is my dad- Richard James Parker. He goes by James. They are both forty years old. I have two brothers. Their names are Tyler and Jamie. Jamie is older at seventeen years, while Tye is only ten. Both of them have found their soulmates. Jamie’s soulmate is a fair skinned girl named Camilla, and Tye’s soulmate is a bronze skinned girl named Ella. Ella has two fraternal triplets named Mia and Allen. Allen and Mia both have soulmates as well. It seems like everyone around me has found their soulmate. Everyone except me.
My best friends Scott and Diana are each other’s soulmates as well. Half the time I feel like I am the third wheel because I have not met my soulmate yet. My only gratification is that I know I have one, because I have my tell. My tell is my soulmate’s name. I am lucky to have their full name on my wrist. Damian Wayne Al Ghul is his name. I do not know how long I spend looking at his name everyday. It is my anchor that keeps me going, knowing that Damian has my name on his wrist. I sometimes even imagine what it would be like if we got married. Carla Rose Al Ghul. I think it has a nice ring to it, even though it might not happen, and it is a bit odd. I mean like, what if he doesn't like me, or something happens to one of us and we die? I heard that when a soulmate dies, you feel empty on the inside, or if your connection is strong enough, you die as well. I think if we were to die at the same time it would be okay. I do not want to feel empty and do not want to wish it on someone else.
Sometimes I imagine what Damian looks like. Is he tall and has strong muscles? Or is he short and weak. I have already decided I will like him in any way, but what scares me the most about Damian is if he will like me, and that he is not a murderer who will kill me or something. Alas, fate has given me someone who was meant for me and I can only learn so much from a name. Until then, I continue to wonder about my soulmate. My star-crossed lover who is destined to be with me. Sometimes, the thought that we would not like each other gets to me. Maybe he spoke another language and we would be unable to understand each other, or maybe he moved on from me and liked someone else instead. That case was uncommon nowadays but still happened. Soulmates not working out or never finding each other.
I decide to shake myself out of my musings and close my diary where I write any thoughts related to soulmates. It is pretty much full of the same things, regarding my loneliness and recluse-like tendencies. How I feel like I do not fit in. The likes of that. My parents gave it to me to “Release your feelings, you are closing yourself off and it’s not good, you will never meet your match if you don’t get out there”. It's complete crap, but okay. It gives me a reason to hide away in my room. Although, at this point, my parents are pretty chill and let me do whatever. They are pretty desperate to get me to meet my soulmate, so I can leave for hours at a time and they will let me. They will only tell me to tell them before I leave. I tend to think to myself too much. Anyways, I roll off my bed, and leave my small room. I walk down a hallway filled with pictures of my family and their soulmates, already accepted as one of our own. I reach the tiled kitchen, and head towards the stainless steel refrigerator. I grab a red apple, and bite into the crisp exterior to the sweet inside. I nod my head in thanks to the apple, and head back to my room.
My room is fairly barren, with pale blue walls and a queen sized bed tucked into the corner, messy bed covers leaking onto the floor. A white desk sat to the left of it, with various knicknacks on top, with a white laptop sitting on top of it with stickers of superheroes’ logos on it. A black plastic rolling chair rests under it, with a black Nightwing hoodie on the back of it. Above the desk was a corkboard, with pictures of various buildings and papers with addresses written on it. Most of the addresses had an “X” next to them. I use the corkboard to try and find Damian. I know that because of his last name, Damian probably does not live in Gotham, or even the United States. I can only hope that he is here, although it might be better if he did not live in one of the most crime-ridden cities, only after Bludhaven.
I try to find my soulmate through his name. I have constantly looked at people’s name whose name is Damian, to no avail. Among the closest to Damian Wayne Al Ghul is Damian Wayne. Although his name is the closest, and he is my age as well, his name does not fit. His name is Damian Wayne, as in Wayne is his last name, not his middle name. Nobody except his family knows what his mother’s last name is, for all I know it could be Harrison. It would make sense for him to be of mixed ethnicity though, due to his bronzer skin compared to Bruce Wayne. It is not like I could ever ask him, as he is rich and I am not. With that thought back in my head, I decide to head out again to my favorite spot in Gotham- Robinson Park, as it helps me distract myself from my soulmate business.
I head out, leaving a note on the kitchen counter to my parents that I was leaving, with my favorite hoodie- the Nightwing one, and usual outfit. My usual outfit consists of skinny jeans, red converse, a random shirt, and my backpack. I keep a switchblade in my pocket because, after all, it is Gotham City. I walk out on the dirty streets of Gotham, and head towards my destination. I passed the GCP, and saw that there was commotion inside. Great, that means that there is either an Arkham breakout or a robbery or something of that sort. I do not mind the danger, because if I die then I die, it is not like anybody will miss me. They will be too busy with their own soulmate and Damian will be better off. We are all supposed to die eventually, so what does it matter if I die a little bit sooner than normal people do? One less person causing global warming and taking up food meant for someone else. I guess that is why I have an avoidant food intake disorder. I feel guilty when I eat so I don’t, or very little. I find myself lost in my thoughts again as I stroll down Otto Avenue, so I can reach the park and possibly sketch a bit. I always have my sketchbook and pencils in my backpack. I make it to the park quickly, and sit down on a bench. I put my bag down and took out my sketchbook and opened it to the first blank page- about halfway in. I look around and see a robin on a tree in its’ nest with three baby robins. I set to work.
I sit there drawing for a few hours, and when I finish it, I notice that it is dusk, and I should go home before too many crooks and crazies start to roam. I quickly pack up, and start briskly walking home. I passed the first set of apartments, a few blocks away from my own. That was when I was pulled into an old, mucky, dirty, grimey alley way. I knew I was in trouble. A group of crooks surrounded me, blocking any chance of escape that I could humanly do. Therefore, I did the smart thing at the time. Scream at the top of my lungs. I was scared, but kept my head on straight, and so when one of the guys covered my mouth, I bit, hard. He grunted out an exclamation of hurt and anger, and backed away. The other few guys,about four or five, grabbed ahold of my arms.
“That b****!” Guy number one yelled out. “You’ll pay for that!” He came back to me and slapped my cheek, and I spit in his face.
I tried moving my legs to kick anyone around me to let me go, screaming again, hoping that the Bats would come to my aid. I also tried moving my arms towards my knife so I could defend myself. To my immense luck, Robin came to my aid, knocking the men out. He flipped off the shoulders of the last thug.
“Tt- imbeciles” He said.
I felt the need to give him something in thanks, and put down my backpack, feeling his curious gaze on me while Batman leapt down from the rooftops. When he landed, I pulled out my sketchbook and tore out the page with the robins drawn on it to perfection. I held it out to him with a steady hand and told him “Keep it, as a thank you for saving me tonight. Sorry it isn’t colored, as I just came from the park where I drew it”.
Robin tentatively grabbed the drawing, and looked at it. He seemed to be shocked at the art, and asked my name. When I told him, he grew still, as if he recognized it. He couldn’t have though, unless he knew me out of his mask. He swiftly grabbed my wrist and pulled it up, showing the name of Damian Wayne Al Ghul. He turned it towards Batman, who looked surprised in his bat way, as Robin seemed to respond to that. They seemed to hold a silent conversation, and I slipped out of his grip and tried to walk away.
“Hold it Parker,” Robin said to me, but how did he know my last name, unless? “You are to come to the cave with me, as it seems you and I are destined to be soulmates, which paints a big target on your back.''
“What- so you are kidnapping me? As cool as that sounds, no thanks, I have to get home to my crap-tastic life. You can talk to me again either at midnight or tomorrow morning. I kinda want to sleep a bit, plus my parents would yell at me for making them worry about me being out at night. See ya!” I call out as I walk away. “I can assume you will figure out my address, so I am the third bedroom and it has pale blue walls if that helps!”
They don’t say anything else, so I think I am in the clear for now. I run the rest of the way to my apartment and then walk into my house. My family is home and in the kitchen. I walk in, and snag a water bottle. I turn around and see my mother motioning to the empty seat at the table that was set up for me. I begrudgingly sit down, as my mom piles on a salad on the plate.
“Pollen, how was your day today? Jamie and Tye spent their days with their soulmates together, while your father and I were at work. How about you sweetie? Also, what did you eat today, or do you have to eat more right now?” She asked.
“Oh nothing much, I ate an apple today then went to the park and sketched some birds in a nest, perfectly perfect like you guys are. Oh! And then, on my way home I was cornered by a bunch of guys and almost mugged at best. Don’t worry though, Robin came and saved me then let me on my way and then I skipped on the way home because I got to see the bat and his companion bird. I also met my soulmate today!” I said with heavy sarcasm, because my parents would not believe I met my soulmate with the sarcasm and therefore would not question it. Either way, they would be worried that I almost got mugged or raped to think of it. I stood up without eating anything. “I am going to bed to get some sleep. Do not bother me. Wouldn’t want to bother your perfectly perfect lives any longer”.
I went into my room and took a shower. I brushed my teeth after I changed into my pajamas and fuzzy socks then turned off my lights. I then climbed into bed, and pretended to be asleep when my dad checked in a half hour later. I fell asleep to the sound of the rain starting to patter against my window.