1 Chapter 1

I roll on my bed, trying to think of something to do; it feels like I have been trapped in this room for a decade, but yet it hasn't even been an entire month. I pick up my phone for the millionth time to see if anything new was happening in the quarantined world we live in until an email pops up on my laptop. I had my university email up since it was finals week; the end of this week would officially mark the end of my first year in college.

But sadly, I don't get to end it at the college I go to. Instead, I sit and rot here as hundreds of thousands of people either risk their lives to defeat the virus or die from the virus. As I sit up to look at the email, I groan. It was another email from the Office of the President, but this time it wasn't a COVID update.

In a way, it was but with the same cry for help with donations. Still, this one had a section that involved us students and the fact that the government is issuing something to help everyone find their soulmate. I slowly pause the music that I was listening to read the written paragraph without any distraction.

It has come to my attention that the government is issuing a new order that doesn't involve the Coronavirus. This order is more like a project, but we need everyone's cooperation for this to work.

They call it the Soulmate Project.

This project will begin at midnight tonight. People over sixteen shall of the name of their soulmate appear on the wrist. Along with that, they will feel their soulmate's pain and have any mark appear on them. The latter only relates to hair color and drawings on oneself, not scars and/or injuries.

The government is implementing this project because they heard from an unknown source that there are too many people who don't have a soulmate or that some people live with the wrong significant others and are in a toxic relationship.

I regret to inform you that if you do not have a name on your wrist as of midnight, you shall report to your state's place of government to see your fate.

After that, the rest of the email only repeated the same thing about where to find information. I rolled my eyes and closed the email, but then a thought struck me as my phone started ringing with a Facebook video call. Quickly, I switched tabs over to Facebook and answered my roommates' call.

She wasn't going to be my roommate next year, but I still cared about her as a sister, "You okay, Aili," I asked Allison Ransom. She seemed to like that nickname better than Alli.

"What the hell do they mean our fate," she asked, and my focus went back onto that.

"I don't know, but we're going to find out soon," I said, and she nodded

"Did you see that they added a link for more information about it," she asked me, and I shook my head

"No, I just read that paragraph and closed the email," I answered, and she looked at me wide-eyed, "what?"

"Are you deleting every COVID update that the president sends," she asked, and I shook my head once more.

"No," I answered, "I just hit the arrow to go back to the inbox," I said, and she sighed. "What are you going to do if your soulmate's a girl," I asked after a minute.

There was a moment of thinking before she answered, "I don't, I'll give it a shot," she answered.

"What if we're soulmates?"

She looked at me as if I grew a second head, then shrugged, "I mean, I wouldn't mind trying it with you; we already know each other pretty well."

I nodded as I divided my screen to look at the link, "So have you read this link yet," I asked to try and get away from the subject. It was one of those things that just came out.

To my right, Aili shook her head, "I was too busy freaking out about the fate thing," she admitted with a blush to which I smirked at

"Hey," I began, "it's fine. I'm looking at it now," I paused in reading. "It's a government page about the Soulmate Project. It says here that once the soulmates find each other that they both get a makeover that night and have to move in with each other."

"Already jumping to the living with each other stage," Aili said in disbelief. "That's like the last possible stage before sex and marriage; that is depending on your religion."

I chuckled, "I know, but there's nothing that we can do about this," I said. "Do you seriously going to think that people are going to object to finding out who their soulmate is?"

"No," she answered shyly, then she brightened up, "You want to stay up until midnight to see what names we get?"

I shrugged, "I'm fine with it since I'm usually up at midnight anyways. But no phone calls or video chats since my mother and stepfather might be asleep by that time," I answered, and she nodded.

"As long as you promise to try and get some sleep afterward," she said, "no seizures, we want your soulmate to meet you alive instead of dead."

"I promise," I said, and she smiled.

After that, we talked about what we were doing to keep ourselves occupied during quarantine until eleven o'clock where my mother came in and told me to stop the video chat and try to get some sleep.

"I understand if you're going to stay up until midnight to find out who your soulmate is but your stepfather and I are going to get some sleep. You two can keep talking through text but no obnoxious laughter," she said, and we both nodded.

"Night, mom," I said, and she said it back before closing my door, "talk to you through text," I said to her, and she nodded as the call ended.

I sighed and got up to change into pajamas so I could go to be right after I saw the name of my soulmate.

My thoughts were still on the fate thing, the one thing that link did not explain, as I crawled back into my bed, a futon with a mattress topper and a queen size sheet. I switched between talking to Aili and reading up until a minute before midnight.

Aili: You nervous?

Me: Yeah, I did just broke up with someone like two days ago; what if it's him?

Aili: It won't be; send me a picture once yours appears

Me: Bet

I looked at the clock as the seconds ticked by

5

4

3

2

1

I took my hand off my wrist and look at the name

Allison C. R.