Chapter Text
“I heard your parents aren’t soulmates?”
A boy, roughly two years older than him, decided to approach him, looking surprisingly rugged for a child his age.
Or maybe…I am still too young and inexperienced to face him. And his grandpa and guardian will be so pissed. So he can't.
Laurie, with mild disappointment, gazed down at his tiny arms and hands. He understood what the other child was looking for – a fight. But he didn't want to get into a fight with him right now. Not because he was scared, but because he was at a disadvantage. That child was huge!
So, as always, Laurie opted for a more diplomatic answer that would hurt him less.
“Yes, they aren’t soulmates. Are your parents soulmates?” he smiled.
The boy blinked, probably not expecting such a friendly response, but he strengthened his resolve to pick a fight.
“That’s right! They are soulmates. Unlike yours that cheats on their own soulmates,” the boy shouted, indicating his intention to rile him up.
However, Theodore Laurence would not provide him with that satisfaction. Taunts and expectations of a curse due to his parents' love were something he had grown accustomed to. People thought they would be punished by the Gods because his parents defied fate.
"They didn't cheat on their soulmates, but they love each other. Do your soulmate parents love one another?"
He turned up the charm, knowing it wouldn't be long until the boy turned around and left him alone.
“What’s it to you, huh? It doesn’t matter as long as they’re alive, unlike your parents,” the boy sneered menacingly.
Laurie felt hurt but did not dare say anything. He knew it was a fight that he would surely lose. Nevertheless, he stood his ground, silently enduring the judgments and prejudices surrounding his family.
“Huh! You can’t talk now, huh? Because I am right! Your parents died because they defied the fates,” the boy smirked. Taunting him.
Laurie looked over to the side and saw his caretaker a few steps from approaching him. Maybe he can be petty once in a while.
"They died as a result of an accident, not because they defied fate. I'm sure your parents are still alive because no one has ever planned an accident for them, or should I plan one for them?"
The youngster quickly flushed red and was going to punch him, but his guardian arrived just in time to stop him.
An act of petty revenge.
Laurie knew what he said was wrong, but he didn't care at the time. After all, the boy didn't care about hurting his feelings.
—
Babies are born with marks that can be seen everywhere on their bodies.
It depicts the first words said by a soulmate to their other half. It can be a single word, words, or even pages as long as it is the first thing your soulmate spoke to you.
Meeting your soulmate represents and invokes a love so strong and pure that it can withstand any suffering and destruction that comes its way. Having a soulmate is a blessing because your soulmate is the person who understands and respects you, embraces you for who you are, and will unconditionally love you.
Laurie thought so until he witnessed his parents' love. They displayed a love so powerful, pure, and passionate that one may mistake them for true soulmates. If it weren't for the fact that his father's true soulmate holds such a vengeance that she spread rumors that his mother was his father's mistress and that his mother damaged their relationship.
That, however, is not the case. Not at all.
His mother met his father first and fell in love. They are aware that they each had soulmates but they chose each other, they chose their love.
Laurie, with his young heart and head, is determined to do the same. To choose love.
However, it appears that fulfilling that wish will be difficult for him.
It is widely acknowledged that encountering one's soulmate is a challenging endeavor, even with the assistance of the soul mark. Words are sometimes exchanged without either party realizing they are destined for each other. The quest for someone based on a single word or sentence is more intricate than it may seem, resulting in a convoluted interweaving of minds and souls. That is, of course, if you are fortunate enough to cross paths with your soulmate.
However, Laurie seems to be among those fortunate individuals whose mark is so distinctive that it explicitly reveals the name of his own soulmate.
At the tender age of four, Laurie became aware that his mark bore the name of his soulmate. The name delicately wrapped around his ring finger, akin to a ring binding him to destiny.
I’m Amy
Knowing his soulmark elicited no reaction from him, for he was not one to rely on the concept of soulmates. His determination to find love on his own terms remained unwavering. Regardless of any predestined connection, he firmly believed that the choice of a partner should be entirely his own.
He didn't bother waiting for her, nor did he have any intention of doing so. His life continued, untouched by the expectations tied to the name imprinted on his finger. The notion of a predetermined soulmate held no sway over his decisions or emotions.
Laurie, in stark contrast, was acutely aware that the name "Amy" would inevitably leave an indelible mark on his life. It lingered in the recesses of his mind, a constant reminder that some connections, whether sought or unsought, could shape the course of one's existence.