Chapter Text
Soulmates. The word should be comforting, but it terrified Josh. The day you turn 16, you were supposed to be "blessed" with a marking that matched your soulmates. The word blessed couldn't be further from the truth.
The day of Josh's 16th birthday rolled around, his girlfriend seated across from him waiting for the clock to strike midnight, to see his matching purple star appear behind his ear. Midnight struck, and Debby promptly stood up and left. In a panic, Josh rushed to the mirror, not seeing the mark where it should be. That night, he cried for the first time.
Josh wasn't one to cry, or get emotional much at all. Him and Debby had made a pact, that even if they didn't have matching marks, they would stay together, saying a big "fuck you!" to the soulmate system. So why did it hurt so much when she left? She would be back. Maybe it was the initial shock that scared her away. Josh finally found his mark, on the inside of his wrist, three strange lines that didn't make much sense to him. He traced the delicate lines, knowing they didn't matter but still feeling drawn to them.
His entire world came crashing down the next day at school though, when he saw Debby with someone else. Technically, he shouldn't have been surprised, but he still felt his heart break noticing the purple star behind the boys ear. So much for a happy birthday. He looked down at his wrist, tracing the lines again before heading to class.
It was at this moment that Josh decided he didn't care about his marking. The universe was playing a sick game. Soulmates were a joke, and no one else seemed to notice but him. How could the universe know when you're born, who you belong with? Or was it the choices you make leading up to your 16th that decide? Josh pushed his face into his hands, choking back a sob.
He was doomed, he decided. To live a life alone.
Josh's 18th birthday was just as uneventful. He knew he should have been excited, he was graduating! All he could focus on was the soulmate pairings around him, all speaking hopefully about the future. Faces started to blur, voices fading. An odd feeling was welling up in his stomach and he began to shake. The world around him was becoming an inconvenience.
After the events of his 16th and 18th, you could expect his 21st was also a disaster. His friends tried to force Josh to a club, claiming it would help him take his mind off of the overwhelming thought of his soulmate.
"Not everyone is looking for their soulmate, some people just wanna have fun. Get laid!" They said, an attempt to drag him out of bed. So he went. He did not get laid.
Josh stared up at his ceiling, him underwhelming time at the club behind him. He traced the three lines on his wrist, the light from his lamp illuminating them. Tears silently fell from his eyes as he held his wrist close to his chest. He would be alone forever. Soulmates weren't real after all.