Reminders (Hamilton - KingBury)

Chapter 1

Samuel Seabury's POV

The loud noise of the my alarm woke me from my dream about, conveniently, today. Today is August 1st, also known as the Soulmate Ceremony.

Yes, the Soulmate Ceremony, the day where kids in their senior year, like me, find their soulmate. Well, hopefully.

At the ungodly hour of 5 AM, I wasn't necessarily excited to meet the possible love of my life. In all honesty, I don't want to meet my soulmate. I want to stay alone with books and cats. I don't want an obnoxious, romantic relationship.

Stretching my way out of bed, I lazily turned off my alarm and trudged my way to the kitchen, ready to eat whatever horrendous meal my mother made me.

I sat in the old wooden chair, one that looked as if it could have been from the 1700s. It creaked as I sat down. In front of me was my mom, who seemed to be cooking oatmeal and eggs. Not my first choice, but in this house, I'll take what I can get.

"Good morning Samuel! Are you ready for your ceremony today?" she inquired eagerly, setting the breakfast in front of me. I grabbed the fork that was already on the table and shrugged.

I ate part of the eggs. "Yeah, very exciting." I replied lazily, continuing to eat. She frowned and got me a glass of grape juice and sat it in front of me.

"Eat up now, we have to be there in an hour, and I want you to look your best, understand?" she told me in a stern tone. Quickly finishing the eggs and leaving the oatmeal and juice nearly untouched, I ran back to my room.

I looked through my closet. The best I had was a green polo and blue jeans. It's better than nothing, plus the black dress shoes would probably help me out a little. I put my clothes on, (tried) to comb my messy mop of strawberry blond hair, brushed my teeth, grabbed my phone and raced to the door.

My mom was already waiting. She was wearing a simple black dress, one you'd wear for a casual work meeting. Her hair was flat-ironed and hairsprayed while an old pearl necklace hung loosely around her neck. She had on nearly 3 inch high heels. Needless to say, she looked better than me.

Giving me a warm smile, she opened up the door and walked me out. I hopped into her car, anxiety flowing through my blood and pumping into my veins. Glancing into the rearview mirror on my right, I looked at my soulmate mark on my neck. It was a little paper, like a scroll.

It wasn't my only one, though. Next to it, sat a tiny crown. I sighed at the thought of me not having a soulmate. It hurt, but it was probably true. Having two soulmate marks is rare. It doesn't mean you'll have two soulmates, it means the chance of you having a soulmate is very, very slim.

I turned my attention away from the mirror, looking at the drivers seat. My mom was already in the car, starting it and driving. She looked over at me for a second, worry and excitement in her eyes. She looked back towards the road.

"Are you okay, Samuel?" she asked me, gripping the wheel tighter. I nodded.

"Yeah, ma, I'm just...scared. Everyone is probably going to find their soulmate, and I...I..." before I could finish, tears pricked my eyes. I looked out of the window, not wanting my mom to see me like this.

"Samuel, don't think that way. We know it's rare, but it isn't impossible, is it? You'll find her, or him, but that's even more rare-"

"Mom!" I raised my voice, cutting her off. She closed her mouth, nodding. I gripped the torn edges of my car seat, trying to release the anger I had.

I knew what I had was rare, it occupied my mind 24/7. I just didn't need her telling me. I shouldn't be talking, though. My mom was born with one mark, as was most of the population. Her soulmate, however, was not. He had 2 soulmate marks, only one matching hers. Her soulmate was my dad. He left, though, once he began to hate the fact that he didn't have one mark like my mom.

Since then, it's always been me and my mom. She went through so much, arguing with my dad on and off. I didn't give her enough credit for how much she helped me.

After fifteen minutes of nearly silent radio static, we got to the ceremony hall. I flattened my green polo and hopped out of the car, quickly shutting the door behind me and looking at my mom.

She was wearing a pearly white smile, one I could never replicate. We walked side by side into the main office where we saw a woman in a navy blue pantsuit rapidly typing into a computer. My mom coughed.

The woman looked at us, a tight smile on her face. "Hello. Name of child, please?"

"Samuel Seabury." she answered, patting my shoulder lightly. I stiffened.

"Age?" she asked, beginning to type more into her computer.

"Seventeen." my mom's voice grew tired, as she was anticipating my end result at the end of today. I couldn't blame her.

"School?" the woman typed faster.

"BSFAAS." my mom replied, seeming out of breath. I internally rolled my eyes at this. I hated my school, as cliché as it sounded. It was what one would call a "rich kid school" even though it was quite the opposite.

I go to Brutner's School For Academically Advanced Students, which is a school about 20 minutes from the little house I live in. It's a big school, and it's for those who are gifted, or "academically advanced." The education was nice, the students and fee were not though.

"Relation to Samuel?" she looked at my mother this time, seeming to judge her.

"Mother." she whispered, voice cold. The woman nodded and typed.

"Alright. Samuel, go into the doors on my left. Ms. Seabury, enter the doors on my right. Once the bell rings, Samuel and the other children will enter the ceremony room, and it will begin. You and the other parents can watch from the multiple TV's in your area, Ms. Seabury. Get a move on, now." the woman informed us. My mother and I both nodded.

Mom turned to face me and told me the basic stuff. The usual 'You will find someone.' this, and 'Don't stress, everything will be okay.' that. I appreciated it, but it seemed to make me more stressed.

Quickly, she went into the waiting room and shut the door behind her. I took a deep breath and opened the door for the room I was supposed to go in to.

The other kids looked at me, avoiding my neck where my mark was. They all looked exceptionally nice. I didn't turn my attention to anyone specific. I sat down in a plastic blue chair by the door, not looking or talking to anybody.

I began to silenly tap my fingers against my pants. This day better go well.