Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Since the existence of people there’s been a single phenomenon that no one has understood. Even with how talented technology is; it is called soulmates. Now, not everyone has a soulmate. About 30% of the population didn’t have one, the running theory was that these were simply new people. Those who had never lived before. But so little was known about soulmates so it was difficult to say for sure. But for the 70% of the population who did have soulmates it was seen as a blessing. To know who would best suit you, to know who was the other half of their very existence. Not everyone thought that way though. For soul bounds were messy and complicated. There were many different types, each leading the two bound to each other with varying difficulty and struggle. For a red string could be chased down. A name was simple, the ability to communicate a gift. However, among these, there was one that was seen as more difficult than the rest. Pain sharing.

Aphmau groaned as she got out of bed. She hadn’t done anything yet for the day but her freaking soulmate was always exercising at ass o’clock in the morning. Or maybe it was a normal time for them. It’s not like she knew anything about them. She couldn’t have gotten a helpful soul-bond no! She just had to get the most difficult one to figure out. And sure she probably didn’t help with her working out either; regardless, she wasn’t going to let her sore muscles stop her from having a wonderful first day of school! She may be a sophomore now but that wouldn’t stop her!

Okay maybe she shouldn’t have jinxed herself. Aphmau watched in horror as a tall werewolf loomed over a boy who was sitting in the back. She hated fights more than anything- especially because her stupid soulmate was good at getting into trouble. “Hey!” She shouted at the boy. “Back off!” He turned to her, brown hair and flaming angry red eyes. He walked over to her and began the same intimation routine he had clearly attempted on the other boy. ‘What is it with teenage boys trying to scare me? Mama was right, boys are ridiculous.’

“Little pup thinks she can pick a fight with me?” He began to laugh, a grating annoying laugh. No one was doing anything, everyone in class just keeping quiet. Of course they were. Only this guy was stupid enough to start the first day of school off with a fight. 

“I’m not trying to pick a fight. You stop bothering that boy and sit down. We have class soon.” She rolled her eyes at him, not scared off by his angry face or larger size. She was used to boys using their size to try and scare her off. But she wasn’t helpless either. People underestimate so easily. So she stood her ground and stared at him, indifference keeping her expression still. Inside however, she was preparing. ‘They’d never expect you to make the first move, Aphmau. So that’s what you need to do if it comes to it. One good hit will be all it takes. Let them underestimate you.’ 

“HA!” He laughed again. “You really are trying to pick a fight with me. Come on pup you can’t do anything to me. You really must have a death wish!” 

Movement was heard from the back. The boy she was defending stood up and walked over to the other. “Wasn’t your fight with me?” His voice was deep, lower than most their age. And he was very tall- maybe even taller than the werewolf attempting to scare her off. 

“Oh I’ll get to you soon. Right now I want to deal with this little girl. After all, everyone needs to be put in their place!” The werewolf looked like he was about to start actually fighting, so she did what she was planning on doing. She had already made a fist at her side, checking her thumb position just to make sure she would do the least amount of pain possible. ‘Remember what you were taught Aphmau. A good solid hit is all it takes.’ She didn’t bother going on her toes to get his face. Instead she swung at his chest, near his heart. 

Of course it connected and the werewolf stepped backwards in shock having one arm raised to cover his probably aching chest. The boy behind him used that momentum to grab him by the collar and lifted him up. With one arm he swung the guy out the window that the two of them were standing near. It crashed with a satisfying crunch as the werewolf went flying. 

Aphmau was now face to face with the boy she had defended- who clearly was not in need of her help. Still, he didn’t loom over her. Her arm ached, presumably from the punch she had delivered to the werewolf. She was right. He was taller than the werewolf and looked about as done with her as the werewolf had. Although it was far less menacing a look. He even seemed a bit impressed. 

“Well! That’s certainly a beginning class to remember.” Aphmau whirled around and was met with another large man. ‘Why is everyone so tall?’ He was older, with gray coloring his hair and beard and dark eyes taking in everything. The redness of her hand, the broken window and the werewolf who was laying beyond it. “I’m surprised you defended him.” He spoke, looking down at her. “But class will happen. Everyone to your seats! Or I’ll throw you out a window myself!” 

The rest of the werewolves who were just watching immediately moved to sit down, as if afraid his threat would be real. Aphmau followed as well, less in fear and more because he was a teacher and teachers deserved respect. She walked over to the back and sat there, watching as the boy she defended did the same. She pulled out her notebook and clenched and unclenched her hand a bit. ‘I haven’t hit an actual person before. Maybe that’s where the pain is coming from?’ The boy sat down and she looked at him, meeting him in the eyes once again. “I’m Aphmau.”

He whirled around to her, as if he didn’t expect her to actually talk to him. “You should’ve stayed out of it. I could’ve handled myself.” Aphmau sighed and rolled her eyes again. He seemed irate but it was unlikely he would start something in front of a teacher, who was making a call to the front office and nurses. 

“Could've" doesn't mean you did. Sure you didn’t actually need my help but I wasn’t going to take that risk.” She huffed and went into her backpack, grabbing out her first aid kit. With the chances of soulmates it was dangerous to go around without some aid. She grabbed out an ice pack and slammed a few bandages and wraps at the others desk. “I have a feeling you’ll be getting into a lot of fights with that attitude of yours.” He stared at her in shock. “Just take the damn things. Last I want is someone being hurt as a consequence of your actions.” 

He groaned but actually took them, slipping them into his backpack. “Whatever shorty.” Aphmau was ready to go back to doing something actually productive, like counting the glass shards on the ground and coming to terms with the fact she technically got into a fight on the first day of school- before she was interrupted. “Aaron.” He said before he turned away from her. 

‘So that’s his name. Well it’s a nice name for someone like him. As long as I avoid him I’m sure I’ll have a great time in school.’

Aaron

Aaron really couldn’t believe it. First some asshole picks a fight with him and now some short girl was lecturing him! To be far it was pretty gutsy of her to actually stand up to him. And she stood up to the werewolf and actually punched him. But that was all the more reason to stay away from her. He didn’t want to get into any fights and she felt like someone who would be in them. He clenched and unclenched his hand, the same one he used to pick up the werewolf. Maybe he lifted him wrong? It wasn’t like him to feel sore from that little amount of exercise. ‘Sorry whoever my soulmate is. I’m probably driving them crazy with all the soreness this morning. Well it’s not like we’ll ever meet. Everyone knows that pain sharing is the worst soulmate bond.’ With that mental apology he put all thoughts aside and tried actually paying attention to the class. 

Which went horribly because the teacher was just telling things everyone knew- or everyone besides his desk mate. ‘She doesn’t have ears or a tail. Maybe she’s human. Either way none of my business.’ So he ignored everything and everyone until the bell rang. 

Aaron was about to step out of the door and leave the classroom when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He whirled around, ready to fight if necessary but it just turned out to be the teacher. Aaron let his hands fall to the side. He was asked to stay after class because of what happened with the werewolf kid- Balto he was informed the kids name was. And… ‘Shit that was the alpha? I’m so screwed.’ And there went his hope for a nice normal school year. Well he had already mentally apologized to his soulmate once today. And he had a feeling that would be a common occurrence. 

As soon as he was allowed he left the classroom with new responsibility and pulled out his phone. 

Shu

< You’re going to laugh at me. 

> Why’s that?

< Remember how you reminded me to not get into any fights? 

> OMI FC. Already? I can’t believe you! You promised you be better this year. But I guess I can’t judge you too hard…

> I don’t exactly start the fights that I get into! Wait- did YOU get into a fight?

Aaron stared at his phone in shock. Shu, who was always telling him to be careful. She, who constantly reminding him that talking was better than fighting. She, who even in their online game was a healer since she hated fighting.... got into a fight!?

Shu

< I know, I know. But this was NOT my fault. I walked into class and some guy was bullying another guy. I stood up for him and then let’s just say I punched him. 

> YOU PUNCHED SOMEONE?

< Like you haven’t punched someone before come on. Besides it was dealt with quickly. 

Begrudgingly, he definitely had to agree she was right. He had punched people before. Multiple times. And if what happened today counted as punching he properly punched a few more people then even she was aware of. But as much as he’d tease her, what she said was so like her. He wasn’t exactly surprised that her first fight- to his knowledge was over defending someone. 

Shu 

> Still that’s crazy Shu. Are you hurt at all? 

< Nah not at all. The closest I am to hurt is my fist from punching him so hard. And I’m not even sore from that. 

Aaron sighed at that. At least she hadn’t actually hurt herself. He would’ve told her about his fight but he didn’t want to be scolded. So instead he put his phone back into his pocket. He would do his best to have a normal school year. 

Okay so maybe a normal school year was out of his reach. Aaron stood up straight as two werewolves who tried to fight him were on the ground. This was the third time this week. And it was only Tuesday! Aaron couldn’t help but groan as he walked from the two boys on the floor and to his locker. His body was sore, his arms especially. He has a nasty cut on his face where someone nicked his face with a claw and his knuckles were red and had some skin flaking off. Overall, he looked like a delinquent. Still, he was alpha and was slowly gaining the approval of the younger kids. He was about to grab something out from his locker when he heard something. 

“No I swear to Irene herself when I meet my soulmate I’ll kick their ass.” A high pitched voice that he vaguely recognized spoke. It wasn’t quite venom in her voice, but it was getting closer to that. There was also heavy exasperation. 

“Wouldn’t that just be hurting yourself again?” A male voice this time spoke to her, laughter evident even without actually laughing. It seemed like this was a consistent conversation. It wasn’t exactly unusual for people to talk about soulmates if they had them. Hell, he was even aware of one soulmate pair. If the rumors were to be believed anyways. He grabbed the book he was looking for and shut the door. A few steps away was the spunky girl from his werewolf class. ‘What was her name? It started with an A…. Oh right. Aphmau.’ 

She blew one of the strands of hair in front of her face. “I know that! But they’ve put me through so much bullshit- and somehow it’s gotten worse this school year.” Aaron felt his eyes widen. He wasn’t expecting her to swear. Contrary to his expectations in class she was super involved, asked plenty of questions and only got distracted every once in a while. Certainly no fights like he had expected. ‘First time hearing about her soulmate and she’s swearing at them. I’d hate to be them.’ His eyes fell on her and he noticed something. Small cuts littered her body and her fists were covered in bandages. Aaron bit at his lip at the sight of her. ‘She can handle herself- what is happening?’ 

“Look Aph, soulmates are supposed to be amazing and perfect for you. Maybe yours has some circumstances that cause them to get hurt more?” The boy with her had white hair and green eyes and was quite short for a boy in high school. 

“Listen to me Travis. I get soreness from working out. I can even handle this.” She waves her hand around. Her knuckles were red and peeling a little. “Maybe they’re really into wrestling! But I’m so tired of randomly getting scratches on me. You would think because we share visible injuries and some pain they’d be better. But noooooo of course not!” She threw her hands around in frustration. “I carry so many things around just in case for everyone….” She whispered the last part much quieter. If he didn’t have much better hearing than others he wouldn’t have been able to hear. “Still, I worry. I wish they’d stop getting into so many fights. For their sake.” She walked off, the boy in tow. 

Aaron watched as she walked away from the area, ranting all the while. Maybe he has been a bit careless. The idea of his soulmate feeling like her made his stomach clench up. ‘Maybe I’ll keep an extra eye on her. Just in case some of those aren’t from her soulmate.’  He straightened up and walked to his next class. 

Aphmau

Once again she’s back in werewolf class, trying her best to follow the subject but failing miserably. The teacher was late- again and so she was next to Aaron who seemed to be even worse off than before. She sighed before leaning down and grabbing her bag. She rummaged around the first aid kit and came up with more bandages and a heating pack. She carried some around just in case. She sat up with the items in her hand and pushed them over to his desk. ‘On second thought… maybe I should give him some medicine?’ Sure, having medication wasn’t exactly allowed but they were all old enough to know their allergies. But just in case…. “Are you allergic to anything?”

Aaron was staring out the window where he once threw someone. But he did answer. “Chocolate.” He said, clearly not paying any attention to her or the supplies she was giving him. Aphmau sighed at that and hit the desk lightly, not enough to cause any pain, but enough to get his attention. His eyes snapped to hers, and his indifference expression changed to something more serious. “The hell was that for?” 

“I meant allergies to medication, you idiot.” She rolled her eyes before gesturing to his desk that she had filled with supplies. His mouth opened in an ‘oh’ expression as he looked down at it. He opened his mouth, presumably to argue with her about needing it. Aphmau held up a hand before he could even speak. “Don’t even try with me, mister. Just take what I gave you, and give me back the heating pad at the end of class. I don’t want to know how many fights you must’ve gotten in to get all that.” She turned away before he could respond, not going to let his excuses bother her. 

He made a weird growling sound. It wasn’t human but it wasn’t like their classmates either. ‘And here I thought he was human. Guess if you get into enough fights with wolves you turn into them.’ The idea of that, impossible as it was, made her smile a little. 

Finally their teacher walked in. “Alright class! Today we’ll be learning about pack management.” And so began another class period of something she would not be able to understand without extensive studying. Lovely. 

Aaron

It was the time of the month. Or at least he assumed it was. Three years ago he had woken up in the middle of the night with excruciating pain. It was so bad he could only choke out for Melissa because it wasn’t like his parents were home anyways. She ran over and once she made sure he wasn’t dying- because he felt like he was dying she said it was probably something to do with his soulmate. He remembers gasping and asking what could possibly cause so much pain. And he remembered her answer for that. “It sounds like your soulmate is a girl, Aaron. Based on what you told me- it’s probably her first period.” He remembers just screaming into a pillow at that. 

It got better after the first one. Either she had adjusted to the pain or they both did. There were warning signs. And he was very careful during those weeks. Because he was already in enough pain- well his soulmate was. After about a year it stopped being every month and began being every few and with much less pain. Still, he remembered waking in that much pain. So when he felt the familiar sensation and warning up cramps he just sighed. ‘Guess it’s about time. Sorry soulmate, I’ll do my best not to add onto your pain.’ Normally he had a pretty blasé attitude towards pain. But he’s been trying to be better. It was a month and a half since school started and fights were becoming less and less frequent. Still, by the end of the first day of her period- or what he assumed was the first day;  he was aching and felt exhausted. His back was aching, he felt nauseous and his legs hurt for some ungodly reason. 

When Aphmau walked into class he could immediately tell something was wrong. Her eyes had dark circles under them and were so much less bright than usual. Her clothes weren’t pressed nicely at all. They were actually folded over in some places, like she had stayed in one position too much. Holding onto her side and even walking slowly, the way she was moving clearly signifying that she was in pain. Even her typical lavender smell was muted. She slumped down at her seat and practically dropped her bag on the floor. ‘Okay I know I’m not the most observant of people. But she looks like death.’  “You look terrible.” 

She slowly turned around to face him and he regretted his words so deeply in that moment. Not only because it was rude but… ‘She looks like she’s ready to murder me. Genuinely.’ If he were standing up he would’ve taken a step away. Unfortunately he could not do that. So instead he just looked her in the eyes. Normally he avoided eye contact. It just reminded him how abnormal he was. And others avoided eye contact with him. But she never did. But her eyes were always so bright and full of laughter. Not today though. They were dark and held no amusement.

“I don’t have time for you.” She leaned over, wincing at something before grabbing at a medication and swallowing two- completely dry. ‘Holy shit. And I thought werewolves were scary.’

This might’ve been the first time in a long time he felt actually intimidated. She grabbed out the heating pad she had lent him a few weeks ago, and put it behind her back. His pain felt slightly lessened suddenly. Aphmau practically melted into the heating pad- it was so hot he could feel it from where he was. Probably why his back felt better. “Wake me up when class is over.” And before he could even protest she put her arms down and laid her head on her arms. 

Aaron just stared at her. He could feel the confusion so thick and heavy it was like he was staring at a stranger. Well, more of a stranger. Aphmau, who was one of the few who actually paid attention in class. Aphmau, who would lecture him on the importance of not getting into fights. Aphmau, who handed him never ending bandages. Aphmau, who actually asked him how he got his injuries even if he didn’t actually respond. He glanced down at her, her eyes shut and a band-aid on her cheek. Her lips were chewed up a little, rather than the lipgloss she always wore. Her nails weren’t done and had the skin a bit torn. 

His heart started beating so strongly he glanced around to make sure no one heard. He didn’t know why, but all he wanted was to see the furrow in her brow smooth over, and for her to be more like herself. ‘She’s normally stubborn and obnoxious but….. She is never that aggressive with me. Not even after I push her away.’ Their teacher, Mr. Gavin entered the room but Aaron was so focused on Aphmau he didn’t notice. ‘Is someone bullying her? Maybe that’s the cause for all the scrapes and stuff?’ He looked around and noticed something- some of the werewolves were grinning at her, as if taking pleasure in her pain. He bit down hard on his lip, almost enough to start bleeding. ‘Not under my watch. They must be picking on her because she’s a human. I guess I’ll just have to make sure they don’t pick on her again.’ He nodded and started paying attention again to the lecture. 

Normally he would zone out but today- he pulled out a piece of paper and began following along with the lecture. It wasn’t anything new for him. It wasn’t anything interesting. But she was so studious normally. He wasn’t going to let that change because she was feeling off. ‘Stupid girl.’ He continued taking notes for her the rest of class. Every once in a while he glanced back at her and she was absolutely and completely asleep. Her body had relaxed and her head moved to-.

Aaron froze his writing. She was touching him. Her head had lulled over to where his arm was and she was practically laying her head on his arm. He fought the urge to stiffen up. No he wouldn’t do that. He took some deep breaths and looked down at her, writing with his hand all the while. She was resting her cheek on his arm and there was a wet spot from where she had drooled on the desk. It should’ve been disgusting, revolting and horrible. Instead, he felt a flutter in his chest. Without even realizing it, a smile was on his face. It only lasted a second before another pair of eyes were on him. 

He immediately dropped his smile and glared over to the eyes. A girl cowered from his look. Aaron sighed and continued writing, glaring at anyone who would look at her. Even werewolves should respect when someone is clearly sick.

When the bell had rung and she still hadn’t stirred he was starting to realize that she was serious about him waking her up. Everyone had bolted out of the classroom, the way they normally did. One or two curious students stayed but Mr. Gavin took care of that. The teacher actually walked over and handed Aaron a tissue, so he didn’t have to move. He froze at that. 

“She’s the one who cares the most about this class. She won’t get in trouble.” He said that and then walked towards the window facing the gym and broke it, jumping outside with a fitness that wouldn’t have been out of place in a much younger man. Aaron cleaned her up, left the notes unwritten and nudged her. She didn’t respond. He nudged her again and nothing. Finally he moved the heating pad and she bolted up. 

“Wh-?” Aphmau looked around with slowly opening eyes, making school chairs actually look comfortable. When she began blinking he took that as cue to leave. ‘She doesn’t need to know.’ 

Shu

> Someone did something really nice for me and I don’t know who

< Oh? What happened?

> I’m on my period and I got like zero sleep last night. And I feel asleep in one of my classes. Someone took notes for me! 

Aaron glanced away from his phone. ‘I did that today…..’ He shook his head. ‘No way. Just a coincidence. After all, so many girls are on their period right now.’ Still, he couldn’t help but feel the flutter of hope. Not like he thought Aphmau was Shu. But it made him feel better. As if he has actually been the person helping. 

Shu

< That’s really sweet Shu. I’m sure you’ll find out who it is soon. Most people want credit for good deeds  8D

> That stupid face- but your probably right.

Aphmau

Aphmau was having a wonderful day. It was a nice cool day with the sun warming up the world. She was well established into school by this point and had made so many new friends. Travis, Vylad, Teony, Lucinda, KC, Garroth and even more. She had people to text after school who weren’t FC- although he was still her best friend. It was just nice to have friends and people who would stand up for her. She had even gotten some grades back and she was passing everything! Granted not everything was an easy pass but still! She was humming to herself as she practically skipped through the halls. The worst that had happened was the annoying boy knocking into her frequently. But he never actually caused any pain when he did so. He was very careful about that if she had to guess. Aaron was probably trying to annoy her, not hurt her. 

Her soulmate had also been so much better with the pain lately. It had basically just been aches and sores but nothing crazy. They were always more careful when she was in her period. But that was a while ago and it still lasted. It was nice. Even the large cut on her face had faded, well as much as it would. Her darker skin covered a lot of the bruises and cuts she got. They faded faster than they actually stopped hurting. ‘They’re going to give me a scar at some point.’ She knocked on a wall lightly as she thought that. In a world of magic, one couldn’t be too careful about jinxing yourself. ‘Still they’ve been doing a lot better. Hopefully it’ll last.’ 

She continued humming before she saw an alarming sight. There were three werewolves surrounding someone- and they all seemed ready to fight. Aphmau groaned at this. At least one of them looked smaller and visually weaker. The other two however, seemed tough. She loosened up her body and spoke firmly, the way she was taught in class. “Enough!” The three wolves turned to her. She could now see who they were targeting. The had been ganging up on Aaron. ‘Of course it’s him. Why am I not surprised?’ Still she looked him all over to make sure he wasn’t harmed. He may knock into her all the time even in an open hallway but… she didn’t like the idea of him hurt.  At the current moment it didn’t seem like he was. She felt herself relax a bit. He wasn’t hurt. So she wasn’t too late.

“Little pup wanna fight us? Protecting your alpha huh?” The smallest one spoke up, his voice nasally  and annoying. She rolled her eyes and rolled up her sleeves. Just in case. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about but three against one isn’t fair. Besides, we're during school hours. I really don’t want to have to get involved here. So go back and play nice.” She spoke firmly, and she stood up to the werewolves without a care in the world. Or at least she didn’t show any care. Of course her heart was beating faster, her body becoming filled with anticipation. She’d taken self-defense lessons. Her mom had insisted on it. And since meeting Katelyn, the two sparred frequently. She was short, but she was fit. But human strength wasn’t much on werewolf strength. But that’s why she had to stand up for Aaron. Because he was a human. Albeit a very strong one. 

Aaron sighed at that and stepped forward. “That’s just what I was telling them. Be gone now.” Aphmau could see one of the werewolves falter at that, easily doing what she had attempted to do. Wow she really needed to learn how he did that. He held his arms open in a way that was supposed to show he wasn’t about to hurt them. 

One of the werewolves snarled at that. “Oh sure alpha we won’t hurt you-“ he turned around and faced her with his fists up. “We’ll just attack her.” Fine. It’ll be like that. She didn’t exactly know what they meant when they were saying alpha, although recognition licked at her. 

The boy who spoke started going towards her with his fists up. If she didn’t move she would’ve gotten hit. In one quick move, Aphmau swept her foot near the bottom of the boy's leg. With the momentum abruptly stopping he fell forward, catching himself just barely on his knees. ‘Deep breath in, deep breath out.’ “Can we just call this encounter done?” She took an invisible deep breath, keeping her eyes on the wolf on the floor and the other two still standing, looking at her with bewilderment. 

They looked at each other and then began laughing. They both moved to surround her, close enough they could hit her, but out of the range of her legs or arms. ‘Guess we’re doing this.’ Aphmau raised her arms ready to punch the moment they got close enough. And more than ready to dodge when-

A thud was heard as the smallest werewolf went crashing down on the first. When Aphmau could take in what happened, it looked like Aaron was standing there, his fist extended as the werewolf went down. She blinked at him before holding back a laugh. It was not the time to laugh over that. No matter how ridiculous the two looked on the floor. 

“Leave her out of this. Besides, clearly she doesn’t need my help to take care of you three.” Now that was absolutely not true, and Aphmau didn’t know why Aaron was straight up lying about it. One werewolf alone without the element of surprise would be rough enough. Still, she felt warmth spread in her chest at his assertions. It was nice for someone to have confidence in her. Not that people didn’t have confidence in her! But she was used to being underestimated for her size. Epically by those who were taller than her. He respected her. If there wasn’t so much going on she would’ve smiled at him. 

One of the boys on the floor scrambled up and went to punch her. Luckily, she was watching and missed most of it, only a bit of the hit actually touching her shoulder. He had gotten up faster than she had expected. That was her mistake. It was painful and would definitely leave a nasty bruise. She was about to punch him back when he went flying. 

He had flown like ten feet and landed with a harsh crash as he slammed against a door. She nearly jumped at the crash. Aaron was in front of her, the two werewolves near his feet as he got close to her. He opened his mouth to speak when-

“No fighting in the halls! And on a Friday too?” A girl with deep brown skin that seemed to nearly glimmer under the fluorescent lights came up. The two on the ground turned their heads and there was Teony. Her expression grave and full of disappointment. She took in everything, including the werewolf on the ground a ways away. She marched up to Aaron. “You. I thought I told you to stop fighting?” Teony locked eyes with Aphmau and her concern grew. “What did you do to poor Aphmau?!” She demanded. 

Aphmau shook her head. ‘This is getting out of hand fast.’ She stood next to Teony and grabbed the other girl's hand with her non-dominant hand. She didn’t want to touch the other after she had punched someone- or move her shoulder suddenly. Even though she was pretty sure it was just bruised. “I promise this isn’t what it looks like. They were picking on him and then started attacking me for telling them to stop fighting!” She looked imploringly at Teony. “He helped me! I would’ve gotten hit worse.” Sure her shoulder was aching, but she got out of the fight pretty lightly all things considered. 

Teony sighed and looked at Aaron. It was almost comical to see someone else stare disapproving at him. She was used to being the only one.  “Fine. I trust you Aphmau. So thank you for protecting her Aaron. I’ll write you both a pass for nurse room two. I’m issuing you both detention.”

“Teony!” Aphmau felt her heart beat increase dramatically. ‘Oh Irene no not detention! I’ll get in so much trouble with mom. She’ll kill me- or worse say I can’t play with FC.’ She turned to the darker skinned girl with near teary eyes. But Teony stood firm. 

“None of that Aphmau. You got into a fight instead of telling a teacher.” Teony didn’t sound like she really believed her own words but she still said them. “Aaron, go take her to the nurse.” 

“Yeah yeah I was already planning on that. See you in detention, Teony.” ‘Huh. Apparently the two of them are on a first name basis. I should’ve known he wasn’t listening to me about fights.’ Aaron moved the two steps that were necessary to make them face to face- or rather face to shoulder if she hadn’t been looking up. His dark eyes were staring into hers like she had been the one to start the fight. But her heart was beginning to calm down. His face was a little red, probably from the exertion. Instead of just walking with her- or even walking ahead he….. ‘What the hell?’ 

Aaron crouched down in front of her, where for a brief moment she could see the top of his messy untamed dark brown hair. But before she could comment- or even appreciate being larger than him for a moment he grabbed her body and swept her up in a bridal carry, and stood up like she weighed nothing. Aphmau felt her heart start pounding again. ‘WHAT IS HE DOING?! I WAS BARELY INJURED!’ She couldn’t say anything, staring down at Teony from her new vantage point. 

The other girls eyes were wide as she looked at Aphmau in disbelief. Aphmau would’ve said something to her but she was too startled. “Aaron! What are you doing!?” 

He turned around, and walked with her in his arms to the nurses office. He didn’t respond to her question, just continued walking like she didn’t weigh anything. Aphmau was right up against his chest, her head near where his shoulder was. She could feel embarrassment ripple through her. It was enough that her darker skin couldn’t even hide the angry flush on her face going down to her neck. She took the arm that wasn’t hurting and hit him on the chest. “Let me go you big lug!” Despite that, she wasn’t actually fighting him properly. Because he was quite literally holding her. 

“Calm down you stupid girl.” He finally spoke, the rumble of his deep voice causing her own body to feel it, pressed up against him as she was. “I’m just helping you. I don’t like owing anyone. Consider this as payback if you want.” He huffed and continued walking. 

She stopped lightly pounding on his chest. “Fine. But if anyone sees this-.” Of course she jinxed herself. This is why she always, ALWAYS knocks on wood. Because before her eyes was a large grouping of people, probably at least one hundred students. And because Aaron was taller than most of the people their age or in school, she could see their eyes and faces so clearly. ‘Calm down Aphmau, it’s just a PE class. They have no idea who you are.’ Her own thoughts did not help when she spotted a familiar blond haired, blue eyed boy. 

She could also hear the flicker of a camera. ‘Oh fuck people are watching. They see me.’ She buried her head into the crux of his shoulder, where his neck met. When she did that, she could feel Aaron’s heart beating faster. ‘He must be embarrassed too. He just wanted to pay me back. Albeit in the WORST way possible but….’ Aphmau just closed her eyes and tried to calm down. Now was not the time to deal with this. She could consider what just happened AFTER it happened. The only bit of positive news was that he didn’t smell. With her face basically in his neck if he smelled she would know. He actually smelled rather nice- at least for a teenaged boy. Like charcoal and grass after the rain.

It took a little bit longer and a lot more stares- she could feel the eyes on her. He walked into the nurses room and she could hear the woman’s frustration. “Aaron Lycan! You better have not let those werewolves get you in trouble again. Especially involving this girl!” 

Aphmau unburied her head and opened her eyes as she saw the nurse. “I-I uh…. I promise I’m okay?” She tried for anything besides the anxiety and nervousness she felt. The nurse just tutted and instructed him to put her on the bed. 

“If he carried you here you two must’ve gotten into some form of fight.” She sighed, sounding all done with everything. “Are you injured Aaron?” The nurse turned to Aaron. 

“No ma’am. She’s the one who actually got hurt.” He gestured to her. “She was defending me. I’ll head to my next class.” He gave a softer expression before looking straight at her again. “You should stop interfering.” With that, he walked out of the nurses office. 

“UGH I SWEAR!” Aphmau started yelling now that Aaron was gone. It wasn’t like she was in that bad pain! Her soulmate had done much worse to her than a bruise from a werewolf. It hurt, she wasn’t ignoring that. But the bruise that would come was nothing compared to her rage. ‘When I see him again I swear I’ll kill him.’ 

The woman, who had soft green eyes and red hair sighed at her. “Relax. I’m sure you are in very good health. He tends to worry about everyone before himself. Now let me see why you’re here.” Aphmau brought down her top a little so the nurse could see the redness already formed. “I’ll take care of everything. Just relax during this period. I’m sure you’ll have a detention to serve soon.” 

‘Ughhhh the last thing I want right now is a reminder for the detention. And yeah I know Teony was just doing her job but come on. And Garroth saw Aaron carrying me which means Zianna knows which means my MOM knows!’ Aphmau just hid her face in the pillow. It wasn’t worth thinking about it. She had a detention to serve.

Aaron 

Okay sure, he could admit that carrying her through the hallways was excessive. But in his defense she actually got hit. Like someone put their hands on her. Someone touched her. At just the memory of it, his heart started beating faster and he could feel rage slowly filling him up. He took a deep breath. ‘Calm down Aaron. Don’t lose control over this. She was barely hurt and now no one will mess with her. That’s exactly why I carried her. No other reason.’ He closed his eyes and marched to his next class. He had yet another detention to serve. Only this time he didn’t feel bad about it. No, he would happily serve ten more detentions if it meant she never got hurt again. Lavender surrounded him, and his heartbeat was slowly going down.

His hands felt empty and his shoulder was hurting a little bit, like he banged it against something. Maybe he should’ve carried her on the opposite side. No matter, it wasn’t a big deal. Not to mention everyone would know who she was. The proximity they were in basically spelled out that she was under his protection. Which wasn’t the reason why his heart was beating super fast or anything like that. It was because of a totally unrelated reason. 

‘I still can’t believe she actually got into a fight for me. What the hell was she thinking? She should’ve just walked away from everything. But no, she had to play the hero.’ He rolled his eyes. ‘But that’s who she is as I’ve learned. Hopefully she’ll just take the excuse I gave her.’ 

The bell rang again. He had spent the twenty or so minutes he was actually in class in thought. Well he’ll have extra time to be in thought because he had yet another detention. Who it was with however, now that was the question. He gathered up his stuff and walked towards the room that he had his detentions in typically. He got more stared than usual, but that’s probably from the whole “he carried her” thing. It would die down soon. Or if it didn’t, at least no one would mess with her. And besides, she would smell a lot more like him from the carrying. That was a benefit.

When he arrived it was actually Garroth who was waiting for him. ‘Not the usual person or Teony but I guess that’s fair.’ He only had a few detentions with the boy supervising him. What he didn’t expect though was for the other to come straight up to him with a serious look on his face. The teacher was already fast asleep before anyone else could even get to detention. 

“Aaron.” The other began, not sounding nearly as jovial as normal. No, instead he sounded serious. Aaron quirked an eyebrow at him. ‘What did I do?’ To his knowledge he had never messed with the others' friends. Most people who fought him were troublemakers too. Not the type for the perfect prince to be friends with. “You were carrying Aphmau.” Oh. That’s where this was going. ‘What does he have a crush on her or something?’ That idea didn’t feel comfortable. She had a soulmate so he shouldn’t crush on her. “Is she okay?” 

Aaron blinked for a moment at that. He wasn’t expecting that question. The other was dead serious too. No hesitation in his eyes. He wasn’t even asked what happened or if he hurt her. No, he was just asking for her safety. He relaxed a fraction. ‘He doesn’t think I would’ve hurt her.’ Oddly enough, that was comforting. “She’s fine. Barely got nicked. Took down one of the werewolves before that happened.” Without even realizing it, his voice has softened. He still sounded a bit grumpy but he always did. “She’s one spunky girl.” 

Garroth relaxed at that and smiled a bit, actually directing it at him? ‘Damn he must really like her to smile at me. Does he know she has a soulmate?’ It was gentler than what he gave the adoring fan girls but it was still there. “Yeah she is. We grew up together. If she were any larger or less kind she’d run this entire place.” Garroth glanced at the door, as if to make sure someone wasn’t coming in. There was a touch of nervousness within that-  he had never seen the other boy be nervous. “Be honest with me. Do you like her?” 

Aaron froze. He started glancing around the room as if something could save him from the awkward questioning. He didn’t have to say shit! Instead he frowned at the other boy and stood up. “Why do you ask? It’s none of your business you know.” They were pretty much face to face. Garroth was only slightly shorter than he was. Nothing like the more than a foot difference between him and Aphmau. 

Garroth didn’t back off. He just stared back into his eyes, blue meeting black ones. “Because I saw you carrying her. You’ve helped girls more injured than she was and never did that. You even sound softer when talking to her.” He smiled again, but this time it was less friendly. “I won’t say anything. But don’t you dare hurt her. She’s more sensitive than she seems.” 

The door opened and Aphmau walked in. She had a white bandage covering part of her shoulder where her uniform dipped into the neckline. Still, she seemed in good spirits as she walked into detention. And she began to grin when she saw the blond boy. “Garroth!” She ran towards him and he grabbed her into a tight hug, but not trapping her. He really was gentle with grabbing her, not even touching the bandaged side.  Aaron felt… something. It wasn’t quite rage that surrounded him, but something softer. It was something new. A new feeling. It wasn’t a good one either. 

“Hey Aph! I wanted to make sure you were alright after I saw you earlier. I was just thanking Aaron for taking such good care of you!” Garroth said in a soft voice, and then winked at him. That feeling welled up inside him again. He didn’t like the way she didn’t even acknowledge him. He didn’t like how he called her by a nickname. It made his stomach tense up, sort of like when his soulmate experienced their period. But it was different too. ‘Maybe….’

The two separated and she grinned at Garroth. “I’m totally fine. It takes more than that to take me down.” She turned to Aaron who- he could admit it, was glaring at the other guy. He straightened up, like he had been caught. And this time he could tell. His face did soften when he looked at her. He glanced at the bruise and felt anger course through him again. “Hey Aaron?”

He practically snapped at attention. He bore into the amber eyes, so full of warmth, even when directed towards him. She had gone back to mostly normal after a few days. He wouldn’t admit out loud but seeing the warmth and brightness in her amber eyes made him relieved. The awful feeling in his stomach lessened. “Yeah?” He aimed for calm and collected but his voice cracked a little. ‘Don’t notice that, don't notice.’ 

“Thanks for helping me today. I know I intervened but…” She took a deep breath. “I could’ve been seriously hurt if you didn’t punch him away from me. So thank you. Even if it means I have to serve my first detention.” Warmth flooded his body as he took in her words. She was thanking him? He should thank her! No one ever stood up for him the way she did. But instead of anything actually helpful- or thanking her. Or asking how she was. No instead he just said:

“Yeah no problem. Try not to get into any more fights.” ‘That is NOT what I meant. She’ll hate me again. I’m so sure. She must already be angry that I carried her without permission. Then again she didn’t ask to be put down properly but….’ 

Aphmau began to laugh at that, bright and warm as the noise of enjoyment filled the room they were in. The world seemed to gain so much extra color as she laughed. Like she was the center of the universe. “You are one to talk about fighting Aaron. I’ll see you in werewolf class. Because I certainly hope I don’t have any more detentions with you.” The laughter was so evident that he barely took in the words. Where normally those words would’ve left a sting, he could only hear her laughter directed at him. 

She was laughing because of him. She didn’t take offense to what he had said. His body relaxed even further, more than the other two had probably ever seen. Without realizing it, he was smiling at her. A genuine smile, one he never showed. And when he did realize….. ‘Maybe I do like her. But Shu…. And my soulmate. Not to mention her soulmate!’ Aaron looked away from her as he took his seat and began staring off into the distance. Was he a terrible person? 

But he couldn’t feel too terrible. Because she was still in the room, not really hurt and with laughter in her voice and eyes. 

FC

> Hey Shu I have a question 

< What’s up FC? Everything okay? 

> Yeah everything’s fine. You know you’re my best friend right? 

< Awww ofc I know that! Your my best friend too

> Will you ever tell me who you are? 

Aphmau looked down at the phone with a frown. They had both decided to not tell each other anything identifiable. Besides ages and gender that was. Still she got a pang in her heart at the idea of him never knowing her. 

FC

< We both agreed to not share anything like that. But…. Maybe one day

> Yeah. One day. 

> There’s this girl. I think you’d really like her too, Shu. And she’s really sweet. But you are you. 

Oh. Aphmau felt her heart sink in her chest. Of course he found someone else. It’s not like they were- they were just best friends. No matter how much she wished they were more. Her mom had drilled into her head how important safety was. But she wanted to know him for real so badly.  But… his happiness was what matters. She loved him. Enough that all she wanted was his happiness…. Even if it wasn’t with her.

FC

< I just hope she makes you happy. That’s all I want for you 

> We aren’t together Shu. I promise I’d tell you if we were. Am I wrong for feeling this way? 

Aphmau closed her eyes and blinked away the tears. 

FC

< No you aren’t. We don’t even know each other properly. I just hope everything goes well for you

Everyone had been so excited. It was the sports festival after all! Personally, she didn’t see the big deal. Oh of course she was competitive but… was it even worth it? At least Katelyn was having fun. That girl’s strength was off the wall. Sometimes quite literally. She didn’t know many freshmen besides Vylad and he was not the sportsman type. That was more Garroth. In her opinion, the oldest of the Ro’mave siblings had stolen the athletic ability from the rest of them. 

She wasn’t very excited until there was an announcement. That her group, Sophomore B would be up against Senior B. And the idea of competing with the seniors- well that was fun. ‘Sorry soulmate, you’ll probably get a lot of aches and pains today.’ She normally wouldn’t feel as bad, but they had been doing a remarkable job at not getting the cuts everywhere. In fact her knuckles had even healed up for the first time since the school year started. 

“Hey isn’t that guy you always fight with in the Senior B group?” Vylad was near her, his activities all done. All zero ones he signed up for. Aphmau turned her head to try and know what he was talking about and- oh. 

In the purple color signifying the team was Aaron, who looked very out of place. He seemed to be staring off into nothingness with no one on his team actually talking to him. Recently, she’s noticed that he doesn’t really talk to that many people. Maybe that’s because he keeps on getting into fights? ‘But the nurse did mention werewolves. Maybe they’re picking on him instead of him actually starting the fights?’ If she had been better in werewolf class she probably would’ve figured it out. Unfortunately, she was just barely passing, despite her efforts. Her mom kept getting on her case about it too. So instead she walked over to the seniors and stood in front of Aaron. 

He didn’t seem to notice her and she grinned. ‘Can I startle him? If he’s not looking down…’ Sure, it wasn’t a nice thing to do, but the two of them had an interesting relationship. She got into two fights for him and kept giving him bandages and he let her sleep for two days in class when she was on her period. And he carried her through the school, though remembering that kept on making her blush. Especially when she was thoroughly interrogated by her friends about that. Everyone saw it. Aphmau shook her head and tapped his arm. He looked up and  around before she started giggling. 

Aaron jumped slightly at her suddenly appearing in front of him. “Aphmau what the hell?” His face had some redness on it, maybe from the heat? It was pretty warm today. ‘People with fairer skin burn easily.’ She grinned at the older boy. She wasn’t sure exactly how old he was but he was a senior and pretty big so probably eighteen? ‘I guess I never asked. Is that rude?’

“You need to watch for your surroundings Aaron.” She said with laughter still in her voice. He just sighed at her and raised an eyebrow as if asking her to actually say what she was here for. “Be careful today okay? I won’t get easy on you. It would be against the idea of sportsmanship.” He blinked at her slowly before a grin came to his face. She froze at that, her heart beating a little bit faster. ‘He has a nice smile- FOCUS Aphmau! That’s such a ridiculous thing to think about.’ Still it was a nice smile, even showing a dimple that she never noticed. 

“Why would I ever watch out for short sophomores? Last I checked you were the smallest.” Oh it was so on! Aaron had a huge habit of trash talking her. But he never made it sound particularly mean in any way. It was actually quite soft the way he spoke to her. ‘He’s a lot nicer than people give him credit for.’ “Still, I get to go against you?! Don’t ask for another ride to the nurses office when you lose.” 

She huffed at him, making a groaning noise. “You did that out of your own free will!” She grumbled. It was still a target for her embarrassment, being carried like some damsel in distress over a bruised shoulder. Aphmau stared at his face again, it still looking red. Even though she could continue mocking him she stopped. She started talking to him to help him. And she couldn’t stop. The gym uniforms thankfully had pockets. She grabbed her stick sunscreen. “Hey Aaron, bend down.” Her voice had suddenly changed to serious.

He just stared down at her. It wasn’t a totally unreasonable request but he didn’t look sure about it. Aphmau thought she’d have to ask again but surprisingly, he did as she asked. He had been standing up straight, as he always did when he suddenly kneeled down, putting his body weight on one leg. The two of them were close, and she was actually looking down at him again. But this time she wouldn’t be picked up. “What do you want, Aphmau?” He asked of her, despite the fact he had done exactly what she had asked of him. His face was only a little below her chest, even while kneeling. His black eyes stared into hers, in direct contact. In fact, they were remarkably close together. Aphmau could feel eyes on her back, and even a few of the seniors watching them. At least he hadn’t been directly near anyone. Why couldn’t anyone mind their own business?

“Close your eyes. I have to put sunscreen on you.” She instructed him, leaving no room for argument. The older boy sighed but did as she asked, closing his eyes and titling his head up to her. She smiled, even though he wasn’t looking at her and grabbed the stick sunscreen she carried and gently placed it on his face. His forehead, his nose and especially his cheeks where the warmth in his skin was the worst. “You’re supposed to be the older one here. You can’t even put sunscreen on yourself?” She chidded him for being irresponsible. “You are so lucky I am always looking out for you.” She checked over her work, the white covering his face. “I thought eighteen year olds were supposed to be responsible.” 

Despite her warnings, he opened his eyes at that, the dark color startling her when she looked back down and saw them looking at her. “Who told you I was eighteen?” 

Aphmau paused for a moment. Her eyebrows knit together as she thought about that, really thought about it. ‘I guess he never said he was eighteen. I just assumed…. Wait. How old is he then?’ “Uh no one told me that you were eighteen.” He huffed at that and rolled his eyes. 

“Stupid sophomore.” He stood up, his body covering her vision from how close they were to each other. Aphmau blushed and moved back a little. She didn’t need to be that close to him anymore since she had finished applying the sunscreen. Thank Irene for her skin color. Even if she knew she was blushing, most wouldn’t. The closeness was just a consequence of her helping him, that’s all. Even if he did smell nice. “I’m still seventeen. And for your information I applied plenty of sunscreen.” He still started to rub in the sunscreen that she applied. Aphmau froze at that. ‘Wait…. We’re only a year or so apart?’

Aphmau was just staring at him for a moment, all of her interactions with him starting to make sense. ‘Of course he’s not an adult. That makes so much sense.’ Still she had to say. “You mean we’re only a year apart?” She glanced up at him with a strange expression. She didn’t even know how she felt. 

He looked down at her and sighed. “Yeah I guess so. My birthday is in December. So we’re like a year and a half apart. Why are you looking at me like that?” She didn’t have an answer for him. She knew that her mouth being agape and just looking at him wasn’t right but… how was she supposed to react?! 

“I just thought you were older. I guess probably because you’re tall. But I should’ve known better.” She shook her head and smiled at him. “I get mistaken as younger all the time because of my height.” She grabbed her arms and started stretching. “I’ll see you in our games Aaron. Try not to hurt yourself. My bandages are back in the locker room.” He was still rubbing in the sunscreen, so she grabbed his hands. “You’ve rubbed in the sunscreen enough. It’s made to work for all skin tones. Anyways see you!” She got the sunscreen that came off his hand on her legs, extra couldn’t hurt! As she walked back to her friends who were definitely staring at her. And if she had to guess, Aaron had rolled his eyes at her. 

She glanced at Vylad who was standing with Katelyn and KC. An unlikely pairing for sure, but she wasn’t surprised. Katelyn took Vylad under her wing. Not just because he was Garroth's brother, but because he was the same age as Casey. “Well what was that all about hmmm?” Katelyn didn’t even wait for her to start explaining before she immediately demanded answers. 

“That was nothing Katelyn.” She responded rolling her eyes at the taller girl. Katelyn had no soulmate- she claimed it was better that way. Opened up more of the world for her. But she was constantly teasing her about Aaron. Actually, to be fair most of her friends did. Even though there was nothing there. They made fun of each other and were there for each other. Because she was woman enough to admit he had helped her a bunch. They mentioned him being her soulmate. She thought they watched too many romantic movies.

Katelyn shook her head at that and glanced at Vylad to back her up. “Aph he literally kneeled in front of you for a good minute or two. What did you even say to him to do that? I’ve literally never seen him act so compliant for anyone. Even teachers.” She had a point, but that’s just because they were rivals. She always took care of him. ‘Katelyn just doesn’t get it. She doesn’t know that I’m constantly looking after him. That’s all it is.’ Something in her stomach felt weird when she thought that. Maybe her soulmate was sick?

Vylad nodded at this. “Aphmau she’s totally right. I’ve never seen him do that for anyone! He’s nice to this one kid my age, Daniel but he’s never just- he’s never done that!”

Aphmau sighed. ‘Two against one isn’t fair.’ “Listen. All I said was for him to bend down. That’s it.” She shook her head. “You guys are making it such a big deal. You have no idea how many times I’ve given his sorry ass bandages. That and werewolf class are all we have in common. I was just making sure he had sunscreen, that’s all.” Okay maybe that was a bit of a lie. She did make fun of him a lot- he did too! But they weren’t even really friends. More like friendly rivals. ‘And maybe he does have pretty eyes and a dimple when he smiles but that’s not important!’ 

KC was uncharacteristically not paying much attention. Normally she was the worst contender for teasing her about Aaron. Her eyes were locked on a far figure, but she finally joined the conversation. “Aphmau- sama I promise you he likes you.” The sweet looking meif’wa smiled at Aphmau when she said that. “The way he looks at you! I mean come on. Not to mention you just asked him to do something and he did!” She glanced over in a far direction again. She had been doing that a lot more often recently. ‘I wonder if she’s okay.’ 

She was about to give them the what for- telling them that he absolutely did not like her and there was nothing like that going on when it was declared that her group was supposed to go. It was soccer first. “Come on KC, let’s go win!” She called out before walking over to the soccer matches with the rest of her teammates. Behind her, she could hear Katelyn sighing at something. But that didn’t matter because she was about to crush Aaron. 

He and Jeffrey both seemed to be on the team. The older boy gave a friendly wave to her that she returned. Sportsmanship was very important. As the whistle sounded, she immediately grabbed the soccer ball and began to play, running to the goal post. Of course it wouldn’t be that easy as one of the girls stole the ball away from her and began going towards the net. 

KC managed to block it as she was their goalie and Aphmau grinned at Aaron’s slightly annoyed face. Even if she didn’t score, what mattered was that he didn’t. Aphmau stuck her tongue out at the older boy. He rolled his eyes at her. Yeah that was definitely Aaron. 

Ten minutes later and she was starting to sweat. She had done a lot of the leg work so far, but she hadn’t scored yet. At least her team was up 1-0. ‘This is way less scary than punching a werewolf. Come on!’ With her motivation intact she grabbed a hold of the ball and began running as fast as she possibly could to the other post. One advantage of being short was that she could run like no one’s business. As she ran as fast as possible, a leg tried to get in between and grab the ball. She quickly swerved and while sliding down, kicked the ball into the net, through the seniors defense. 

Aphmau took a few deep breaths after that, hearing the cheers from both her teammates and also the sophomores in general. The game was almost over and they had been given a water break. Aphmau looked down at her left leg and winced. It wasn’t terrible, but there was grass stains and redness from where she slipped down. She wasn’t in too bad pain, but it certainly wasn’t comfortable. The redness would probably develop over the rest of the day. Still, that didn’t stop her excitement. ‘I DID IT! I scored! Take that Aaron!’ Just as she was about to push herself off the ground, a lightly tanned hand came to her. She looked up and there was Aaron. 

If it was someone else she wouldn’t bother, but she took his hand. As he was hauling her up she noticed something with his leg. It was red and was peppered with marks, a little bit of skin having rubbed off. When she was back on her feet thanks to his help she had to ask. “I didn’t notice you falling. What happened?” She pointed to his leg.

“You’re the one who actually fell stupid. I thought you were the one warning me against getting hurt.” He sighed. “I didn’t fall at all. Maybe my soulmate fell earlier. I didn't notice the pain anyways.” Soulmate. Aaron had a soulmate. Of course, that made a lot of sense. Most people did have a soulmate. But… her eyes went back to his leg, his left leg that was scraped. ‘It can’t be….’ He noticed her looking at his leg again and sighed. He said something to her but she couldn’t process it. 

Aphmau blinked slowly, feeling blood rush through her ears. He couldn’t be. It was supposed to be-…. It was just a coincidence. That’s all it was. With all the soulmates someone in the school would have pain sharing, not just her. Yeah it was just a coincidence. She was getting worked up over nothing. Still, her heartbeat wasn’t going down and neither was her near full bodied panic. ‘Soulmates. He’s mentioned a soulmate once I think… And he definitely implied it was his soulmate who had fallen.’ Aphmau glanced back down at her own leg. Suddenly something filled her vision. A hand was waved over her eyes, snapping her out of her thoughts. 

“Did you hit your head?” Aaron’s voice came back into her hearing slowly, the blood no longer rushing through her brain. She glanced back up at him, and he looked concerned. “You know what fine.” Once again the world moved around her and the position shifted. She was back in his arms, being carried bridal style. Aphmau blinked slowly, trying to process everything. She wasn’t even putting up a fight at being carried again. Especially considering half the school was around. Sure she could feel the eyes on her, but she couldn’t process it. Her thoughts kept going in circles, her leg, his leg- his fights he was constantly getting in and her fists cracking. The soreness in the morning and his muscles. Her growing pains that didn’t belong to her and the height of Aaron.

No no she was just reading too much into the situation. KC must’ve gotten to her. ‘Focus Aphmau. What’s happening?’ She moved her leg just a bit, hoping the pain would jolt her back into reality. It worked a little bit. She blinked as the world slowly came back into focus. Aphmau tried moving, only to discover she was unable to. She was somewhere comfortable, but it wasn’t like a pillow. “Aaron?” 

The comfortable spot she was near relaxed significantly and a noise was sounded. Aphmau looked around. She was on the benches and still outside. “Thank goodness you’re responsive now.” A woman with red hair and green eyes- no. The nurse who bandaged up her shoulder. The woman looked at her with heavy concern in her eyes. “I was watching and I don’t think you fell but you were zoned out. Is the pain that bad?”

Aphmau was about to shake her head when she realized her head was resting on- she scooted away from Aaron. ‘Again? How did this happen again?!’ “No- I don’t hit my head or anything like that. It’s just something with my uh….” She glanced at Aaron, his face full of concern and glanced away. “I think I just needed to drink some water.” She lied more easily than she had ever before. 

Seeing as Aphmau was able to sit up by himself the boy stood up. “Thank you Ms. Jen. I promise I’ll stay careful.” He walked away from them, back to the rest of the sports festival. The water break probably ended by now, but the soccer game hadn’t started back up yet. 

The nurse- Ms. Jen apparently looked her in the eyes. “Will you tell me now what happened? I understand you not wanting to tell a fellow student, even if he helped you out. We’re far enough away from any werewolves that you can share.” 

Aphmau started picking at her nails as she debated answering. Aaron had left. But she shouldn’t make any hasty conclusions because that would be ridiculous! She needed more evidence…. “It was my soulmate. I thought- well…” She sighed not wanting to finish her sentence. 

The other nodded and looked her over, checking her head and everything. She had taken water and some paper towels and wiped away the grass stains, revealing the redness and scratches from the grass. “Well I guess that’s as good an explanation as any. Be careful now.” And she gave a soft smile. “And try not to scare that boy anymore? He’s got a real warm heart.” She felt herself smile at that. Yeah, he really did. But he WASN’T her soulmate. “I’ll do my best Ms. Jen. May I be allowed to participate in the rest of the activities?” 

The nurse hummed for a moment. “Only the relay if you want to. I want you to be sitting down for a while now. Go off then.” 

Aphmau stood up and with one last thank you, she walked towards the rest of her friends. Her leg didn’t even really hurt that much. It looked a lot worse than it actually felt. Vylad. KC and Katelyn were all waiting nearby for her. They all looked so concerned for her. 

“Oh Aphmau are you alright?!” Katelyn began fussing over her, much like her mom would’ve done. She waved off the other girls concern. 

“Yeah I’m fine. I just got some soulmate pain and it threw me off. But I scored! That’s what matters.” She tried to give a carefree grin. Unfortunately she couldn’t pull it off well. KC was looking at her weirdly again, the same way she sometimes stares off in the distance. “Just let me sit down.”

KC interrupted. “Katelyn-sama, Vylad-Kun can you guys do me a favor?” She looked at them with a smile, but something was off about it. And Katelyn could tell, if her frown was anything to go by. The cat girl was nervously swishing her tail around, much faster than usual. “I need you two to give me and Aphmau-Sama some space.” 

Katelyn frowned. She didn’t look offended which was a good sign but she was confused. “Uhh why? Is everything okay? I really don’t want to leave her alone after what just happened.”

KC did something really unexpected. She grabbed both of their hands. “Please. Just ten minutes.” Her eyes were earnest and her voice went a little bit deeper. Something was going on. Aphmau looked at her other two friends. ‘Something is definitely wrong with KC. Okay uhhh…’ 

“No worries KC we can head out!” Vylad was easily persuaded and he took Katelyn by the hand and murmured something softly in her ear. Obviously she couldn’t hear it, but Katelyn’s eyes widened and she nodded, heading out with him in tow. And just like that the two of them were walking away. KC let out a sigh of relief before leading her along to an unpopulated bench. 

She took out a pink marker and began writing on her skin. This was pretty normal behavior for her actually. The girl kept all sorts of markers on her and constantly drew on herself. But the words sunk into her skin instead of staying. Aphmau watched with shocked eyes as words appeared, black writing coming back on her skin. The writing was without swirls or any fancy print.

-Hey! Now’s not a great time. Wearing a t- shirt. Later!- 

Aphmau gasped at that. “Your soulmate! You never told me you had a soulmate! I can’t believe I didn’t know!” She grinned at the meif’wa. ‘Yes please tell me everything about your soulmate so I can stop worrying about mine!’ 

Unfortunately it didn’t seem like such happy news to her. Or rather, it wasn’t news but still. “Aphmau…..” ‘She didn’t- oh no.’ “I saw the way you looked on the field. Meif’wa have good eye sight.” She explained before looking down at her arm again. “My soulmate- I think I know who he is.” KC’s bright yellow eyes bore into her own amber ones. “You looked the same way as I felt when I realized. Aphmau… did you find your soulmate?” The other whispered, breaking the illusion that she wouldn’t have to explain. So instead of anything Aphmau felt tears go down her cheeks. 

“I share pain with my soulmate KC. I-…” Her throat felt raw even though it wasn’t in actuality. Once she started talking she couldn’t stop. “My leg- I saw someone else have a leg injury.” She started breathing heavily. “It can’t be him! I mean everything- everything adds up but it wasn’t supposed to be him. It was supposed to be….” Aphmau started picking at her nails again, tears falling down and obscuring her vision. Luckily, her hair fell with it, hiding her shame.

Warmth flooded her body, as the other girl grabbed her in a tight hug. “I know, I know. I promise I’ll tell you everything. If you tell me what you’re feeling too.” Aphmau could only sob into her friend's arms. 

Aaron 

Aaron was concerned. The sports day had started off just fine, with him signing up for the events that he wanted to. It quickly got better as a certain girl came up to him. Even though he was startled- something that was arguably difficult for him it was made so much better immediately because it was Aphmau who had done so. It wasn’t someone trying to challenge him. Part of him wonders if he was able to pick up on it being Aphmau. To the point where he didn’t even feel any fear- or the need to throw her over his shoulder or push her to the floor. He had just been standing by himself when he heard a bit of giggling. And so he whirled around and saw her. 

And sure he was blushing because of all the things she could’ve done she went to him. He knew she had plenty of friends, unlike him. She had even been with them if he had to guess. But she decided to try and scare him and tell him herself that they would be competing. How could he not get embarrassed? She was just so…. Aaron looked down at her and couldn’t help but blush. She had braided her thick black hair and was wearing her signature pink-reddish lipgloss, even in the PE uniform. The smell of lavender wafted off of her. She always smelled like lavender, and it was a good kind too- but there was a little bit of cinnamon. His effort of marking her had also changed things. She was starting to smell like him, of charcoal. Privately, that made him really happy. He was so aware of her now that he knew his feelings. It was horrible. And he couldn’t do anything about it. 

Aphmau had asked something unexpected of him, and had asked him to kneel down for her. It was a really odd request. He had a feeling that she wasn’t aware of him being the alpha. Despite her best effort, werewolf class seemed to be a subject she struggled with. It also probably didn’t help that she was sick when they learned about pack dynamics. If she were anyone else he wouldn’t have done so. He wouldn’t have even done so for Daniel, as much as he enjoyed the kids' company and looked after him. But it was Aphmau. She was special. And he had maybe marked her as the female alpha- but did that really matter? Even if she wasn’t, he probably would’ve done it anyway.

So he kneeled down in front of her and felt the gaze of everyone around them. To a werewolf baring their neck was a sign of ultimate trust and security. For the alpha it was seen as a sign of potential weakness. It meant even more for them. The fact that he was kneeling in front of Aphmau- the female alpha meant a whole lot. But she didn’t know the implications. It was better that way. So when he looked up at her for an extended time all he could see was her plump lips and kind face. She asked him to close his eyes and he did as she asked. He knew that she would do no proper harm to him. Not on purpose. 

So when it turned out she was applying sunscreen on him, he nearly burst out into laughter. She had no idea that it was him blushing. No, her thought process was just on how to take care of him. She was awful at picking up hints. Hell, he was pretty sure that one of her friends had a thing for her she had no idea. That’s part of why he felt comfortable expressing himself to her fully now. She would never know. Still, it was cute that she still tried to help him out, especially when he had just been joking around with her. 

He let her do as she wanted. She couldn’t cause him any harm. She was as harmless as a child to him. Sure, she could hit him or hurt him physically. She was strong for a human, especially at her height and size. But he’d let her. Because if she hurt him, he probably deserved it. When she was making fun of him he was going to respond with the back and forth- until she mentioned his age. He stared at her. ‘I can’t believe she thought I was eighteen. She really is oblivious to everything.’ It was heartwarming honestly. Aphmau had finished and he had stood up. And he could’ve sworn when they were close she had flushed. But he also couldn’t tell. She had walked away from him reminding him to be careful. 

As he watched her walk away, his hands still warm from the brief touch she had given him, he saw one of her friends- a girl with blue hair look at him. He looked away from her. The werewolves were still staring at him. He had already heard whispers that she wasn’t only the alpha female- but that she was his mate. Even though no one knew he was a werewolf they still could tell. 

Just because he had a thing for her didn’t mean he was going to let her win at the soccer match. His pride was in the line there. And sure, maybe he wanted to show off. He could do more than get into fights! But it didn’t end up well- at least the soccer match. Sometime during it his soulmate must’ve fallen and gotten hurt. But that wasn’t what caused him to worry. 

Aaron glanced down at Aphmau, celebrating scoring a goal against the seniors and smiled. He offered her a hand. But she seemed really distracted. To the point that it was concerning. She kept glancing at her leg, then his in a pattern that didn’t seem to stop. She wasn’t even responding! So once again he picked her up and helped her to the nurse. She didn’t even notice the eyes on them, the concerned looks her friends were shooting her- nothing. As if she wasn’t there anymore. Nurse Jen wasn’t sure if she could even sit up by herself. She did eventually snap back to reality and he was quickly shooed away. 

‘I wonder what in Irene’s name is going on.’ Aaron walked towards the rest of the soccer players. The sophomores seemed pretty concerned- and so did the teacher. “We will be cutting the game there. Sophomore team B has won!” The rest of his team mates groaned at that. Well all of them besides Jeffrey, who only looked in the direction of Aphmau’s friends. Well it wasn’t any of his business.

Aaron was walking over to the benches so he could talk to Shu in peace when heard footsteps. ‘Weird. Normally people don’t just come up to talk to me.’ Before, he probably would’ve been concerned it was werewolves. But they’ve started to get used to him. He glanced up and saw a boy. He looked pretty young, with green eyes and reddish hair. ‘This is one of the guys who hang around Aphmau.’

Normally that would make him feel something- the emotion he was starting to associate with jealousy. But he felt rather down. Maybe it was pain bleeding through the soulmate link? ‘Sometimes I feel strong emotions coming from my soulmate. Maybe something happened?’ He started feeling bad about just ignoring the pain he felt in favor of Aphmau. But that was the problem with sharing soulmate pain and nothing else. He couldn’t help in any way. He was useless to help his soulmate. 

The kid sat down next to him, his feet barely reaching the ground. He was pretty short. Aaron was pretty content to drift off when the guy started speaking to him. “You’re Daniel’s friend.” He looked up at that. Daniel was the freshman he had taken under his wing at the beginning of the year. Aaron glanced back at the kid again. He knew all of Daniel’s friends- not because of any particular reason of course! Daniel just liked talking a lot about different things. He picked up on a lot. ‘I know he’s probably mentioned this guy. I just can’t put a face to name.’ 

So he nodded at that. “Yeah I am.” He sounded gruff- even curt. That wasn’t his intention. After all the time he had been in the military academy and with his parents, he struggled with communicating his tone properly. He was working on it, but it was easier said than done. ‘Oh right I’m supposed to introduce myself. Irene damn it I need to get better at socializing.’ “I’m Aaron.”

The boy smiled at him and it was soft. For some reason he was reminded of someone. Not someone he was close with but someone else at the school. ‘Maybe he just has one of those faces?’ Some people just looked at that. The kid opened his mouth and began to speak. “I’m Vylad. I’ve heard all about you from Aphmau and my oldest brother.”

‘She talks about me?!’ Aaron could feel himself flush. Being pale was not something that was helpful for keeping his face under control. But maybe it was a blessing in disguise. He couldn’t express himself properly with his voice- for which he completely blames his parents for. ‘Wait… who’s his oldest brother?’ “I get Aphmau but who’s your oldest brother?” The kid- no Vylad laughed at that. His voice was pretty high pitched and his laugh wasn’t much different. 

“I’m Garroth’s little brother. He talks about how you get detention.” Aaron groaned and put his head in his hands. ‘Prince Charming I swear to Irene you’ll regret that! Are the aids even supposed to mention who’s in detention? First you imply I like Aphmau- which I mean is true but…. COME ON!’ Apparently, his hands didn’t hide his face enough and Vylad started laughing again. “It’s not all bad actually. Actually, Aphmau, me, Garroth and Zane all grew up together. I see her like my big sister.” 

He was confused about that. ‘I know Garroth but who the hell is Zane?’ He furrowed his brows and thought about it. ‘Is it…. No that’s a guy who’s friends with Garroth and Aphmau. Wait…’ He felt his eyes widen. “You mean that emo boy Aphmau complains about sometimes?!” Yes okay they were close enough to complain to each other- or rather she would speak sometimes before class or after class and he would hear her. She wasn’t exactly quiet. 

“Yeah that’s him! But I’m not here to talk about my brothers.” ‘Could’ve fooled me but okay.’ So maybe he was being unnecessarily harsh towards someone who actually came up and talked to him. But he didn’t say it out loud which was what was important right? Interactions were so hard. He didn’t want to be this grumpy and mean. It wasn’t like he was trying either. But he needed to practice not doing that and everyone was either afraid of him, wanted to fight with him, or didn’t care enough to be in either categories.  So the third was the ideal one. Unfortunately not many fell into those. ‘I’m just growing tired of it. I’m allowed to have an off day right?….. Who am I kidding at this rate I’ve had less of an off day and a more of an off life.’ And it didn’t help his stomach felt tight and he felt a rush of emotions- including fear? He shivered slightly at it. 

He tried to ignore his emotions and let his voice soften, the same way it did with Daniel. Aaron wasn't going to scare away one of Aphmau’s friends. Because that would go beyond the relationship they had. “Did you come over here for something?” ‘Shit that sounded mean Aaron.’ He grimaced at himself. Luckily the kid didn’t seem to take much offense in that. He seemed rather easy going. It made sense why he and Aphmau got along. 

Vylad turned his body fully toward him. The boy thought for a moment before speaking. “Everyone says something different about you. Garroth talks about how you get into a lot of fights but never seem to be outright hostile.” Vylad began talking about something he never would’ve expected. “Daniel talks about how you’re one of the nicest people he’s ever met, how you defend him and help him with his homework. And Aphmau….” Aaron did his best to steel himself and his heart. He liked her. That was undeniable. But he wasn’t sure of her feelings towards him. He never was sure about anyone’s feelings towards him. And it was mixed in with shame because of Shu- and his soulmate- and her soulmate. “Aphmau worries about you more than she lets on.” ‘Oh.’ “She always comes back from her interactions with you with a big smile on her face while she complains about you calling her short or something.” 

He couldn’t help it, his body relaxed and he could feel his face soften. The horrible mix of emotions felt a little bit more distant. ‘So she doesn’t hate me. That’s- well I didn’t think she did! But it’s good to have confirmation.’ Vylad finished off in the most unexpected way. “Everyone sees you differently. So I wanted to get to know you for myself. So I can see what’s true and what isn’t.” Aaron stared wide eyed at the kid in front of him and his lips turned upwards slightly. It was just… so unexpected. 

“You know Vylad, you’re pretty weird.” He glanced over to where he had last seen Aphmau. She was sitting with a pink haired meif’wa- someone he often saw her with. Aaron looked away. He had created a rule to not listen to anyone’s conversations that weren’t within human ear range- or watch that wasn’t in human eye range. ‘She really does make me want to break all my rules. Just like Shu does. They really are so similar.’ “You know what? I’ll gladly show you who I am.” He sat back at the bench and looked at the boy. “You wanna know why I get into so many fights?” 

Vylad's eyes widened in shock. It seems he was prepared to be ignored or something by him. That would’ve never happened. ‘People are never so genuine with what they want. Maybe it’s a freshman thing?’ “I-I mean we aren’t that close! You don’t have to say anything!” It was almost sweet how the other boy seemed so shocked by his willingness to explain. For the first time since he had sat down, he seemed surprised, his eyes darting around and his body half frozen.

The smile on his face grew until he let out a small laugh. It was quick, like most signs of his amusement. He wasn’t exactly used to feeling jovial. But Vylad still reacted like he saw a ghost. “Relax kid. It’s not exactly a secret for anyone at this school- well besides Aphmau.” He rolled his eyes at that. “Between you and me she’s kinda oblivious. I’m the male alpha.” And he could see Vylad opening his mouth and already assumed his question. “Nope, I’m not a werewolf. It just happened. That’s why I keep getting into fights.”

“That- that makes so much sense. I can’t even imagine how that even happened!” Vylad stared at him in shock. The red haired boy didn’t seem like the kind of person who was shocked much. When he had sat down, he had seemed almost infallible. It was kind of amusing to see him lose his cool so quickly. 

“Trust me kid, it’s a long story.” He was going to dive into it, to start to explain everything when the crackle of a loud speaker began. Aaron very carefully did not react to it. He always was sensitive but now was not the time to be so. It was officially the relay and he had in fact signed up for it. He actually felt disappointed by this. ‘Every time I connect with someone the bell interrupts. Damn this school and its timing.’ Still, he stood up and gave a flash of a smile towards the kid. “Come talk to me after the race. I’ve got a lot of stories to tell.”

Aaron began walking to the race track. He was fast, faster than anyone would’ve expected. No one expected werewolf speed to come from a human. Not to mention he actually worked out and ran. No matter who he was against, he would win. ‘Maybe that sounds like I believe I’m better than anyone else. But I have to have a hobby besides spending time with Shu and video games.’ So he was at the last leg of the race, and was waiting. It wasn’t like the game was actually going to start anytime soon. 

But he never would’ve guessed who he was up against. Because there, with a bandaged leg, and swollen eyes was Aphmau who was walking over. Her walking was good- she wasn’t favoring one leg over another which was a good sign. The thing that was most worrying was her eyes- they were red and swollen at the end where she had presumably been crying. He was about to ask if she was okay,  when she saw him and her eyes widened. She took half a step backwards. 

Aaron felt his heart crack slightly at that. Because for the first time, fear flickered across her soft features. His heart started beating even faster and he suddenly felt nauseous. The emotions that had subsided rushed back. He felt fear so prevalent he could taste it on his tongue. Feel anxiety so much his body was humming with it. ‘Relax Aaron. I’m sure there’s a good reason that she seems scared. Maybe something happened? Maybe she’s just mad at you. Yeah that’s gotta be it.’ He was just looking at her, and her at him. Aaron focused on taking deep breaths to try and calm the emotions down. He never felt like this- even how he felt about Aphmau it felt too strong. ‘Maybe my soulmate? Yeah that’s gotta be it. Maybe an exam or something.’

She stepped closer to him and cleared her throat, breaking eye contact. Which she never did with him. “Thanks for earlier.” Her voice was hoarse, adding more to the theory that she had been crying. In fact, he’d never heard her voice go so low. Aphmau settled into the lane next to him. 

“Are uh- are you okay?” His voice wasn’t exactly soft, but it was as gentle as he knew how to make it. She looked at him like she had seen a ghost. His stomach felt tight, and suddenly he just wanted to run. Away from his feelings, away from this school. 

“Oh me?!” Her voice went up higher than usual, while still sounding hoarse. It sounded like it hurt. “Oh uh yeah I’m totally fine!” Aaron looked down at her. Her heartbeat was hammering so loudly that even humans would’ve been able to hear it- probably. “I just- I think I found my soulmate.” She looked up at him expectantly. But all he could taste was ash. Ash and anger rising within him. ‘Of course she found her soulmate. I have feelings for two different girls and they both- what the hell was I thinking?!’ 

Still, he managed to choke out something before he spotted the runners coming up in the distance. “I hope they make you very happy.” He didn’t want that. Or maybe he did? The words tasted hard, just like sandpaper. His stomach tightened even further, and if he had already had lunch he would’ve thrown it up. Instead he just felt a horrible sense of unease and anger. He didn’t say anything else. He just pointed at the runners and got into the proper stance. Aphmau glanced up at him once more before her eyes turned steely, and she turned away. ‘Maybe she realized that I like her. Or maybe she’s upset that I wasn’t happier about her soulmate. Whatever.’ 

Aaron felt something touch his hand, and instinctively he grabbed it. His hands wrapped around the baton and before anything else could happen- like his frustration and anger getting the best of him, he bolted. Aaron hadn’t planned on going full frontal on the relay. That wasn’t smart. But he didn’t feel much in control. ‘Don’t you dare change eyes.’ So instead he ran with inhuman force and when he looked down, he was already at the finish line. 

He heard people shouting, noises about how he had been so fast. All he could do was turn around and see Aphmau, sprinting her hardest to catch up to him. ‘This is the distance we should stay. She found her soulmate.’ So instead of waiting for her like he normally would, he took one last look at her and began to walk off. 

Aphmau

She may have been going as fast as she could, channeling everything she had- her emotions and anger, her heartbreak and grief into her running but it wasn’t enough. Aaron had moved so fast she couldn’t even see him. But what she could see was the face he gave while she was running. A horribly heartbroken look. And she realized instinctively, that he didn’t know. He hadn’t realized what she was telling him. 

Aphmau crossed the finish line, to the screams still going on for Aaron- for her soulmate. Vaguely, cheering for her speed, her unexpected strength in her small body. But instead all she could do was stare after the retreating figure. ‘He doesn’t know. And now I have to make the decision. Do I tell him? Do I shackle him to someone who he isn’t close with?’ The idea of forcing anyone, even her soulmate, made her stomach hurt. She dropped the baton and ran into the locker room to begin her sobbing again. Maybe Katelyn or KC would find her. 

Shu

> FC I met my soulmate. And he doesn’t like me. 

Aaron stared down at his phone in disbelief. There’s no way. The odds are so strange. He was home, watching his phone blink back and forth as she was beginning to type. As if he hadn’t already been feeling awful enough. But still, it was Shu, his best friend. So with trembling fingers he responded back. 

Shu

< Are you sure he doesn’t like you? 

> I mentioned it and he freaked out. It was at our school's sports festival though. 

Sports festival…. Without him wanting to, he remembered how Aphmau had clearly just barely stopped crying when he saw her. ‘No- that’s not possible. Stop comparing them Aaron. They have nothing in common.’ Even he knew that was a lie. He always did have a nasty habit of lying to himself. 

Shu 

> I was crying pretty badly so maybe I scared him. He and I are friends though- or at least I think we are. So maybe it’ll be okay. 

‘She was crying.’ The pit in his stomach started sinking even further. His throat felt like sandpaper. His fingers were no longer listening to his head as he typed. 

Shu 

< Did yoi do any thing at festival?

He looked down with bated breath, not even bothering to correct his spelling mistake. His heart was thumping out of his chest and the stress had taken over his body. There was no way his eyes weren’t red.

Shu 

> Yeah I did! I did a soccer match and then a relay. Even though I lost really badly in that second one. 

He couldn’t help it. Aaron threw his phone away from his sight, away from his hands. Because it was undeniable now. He had been trying to deny it for too long.  Blinking back hot tears, he screamed into an empty house. Because Shu and Aphmau were the same person. She had found her soulmate. And that meant…… ‘I’m not her soulmate. I’m not Aphmau or Shu’s soulmate. Because they are the same person.’