I Think I've Fallen In Love

2

Logic

After Logan finished his coffee, Roman practically forced him out the door. 

It was late afternoon, and the traffic was bustling. People rushed past him on the walkways. Logan couldn't help but to feel a moment of panick as he watched all of these people rush by him. What if that girl in the red coat was his soulmate? What if it was the one carrying the school bag?

He wondered if any of the other people passing by had an almost expired watch. How many had already met their soulmate? How many of these people had kids who were watching their timers right now, longing for it to speed up, as he had when he was younger?

He clutched the coin in his hand, the sides biting into his palm due to his tight grip. 

For good luck, he thought as he pressed into the crowd. Hopefully. The flow of bodies carried him every which way, some people elbowing him, some giving him a wide berth. 

Logan continued to press through the crowd of the busy city.

 His breath hitched as he looked at the timer imbedded into his wrist. Fifteen minutes. He forced himself to breath normally.

Logan's destination was the park, and it was a pretty short walk. He tried as he walked to clear his mind, but it was in vain. 

His head was filled with thoughts of everything, and nothing. It was becoming harder and harder to focus. The late afternoon was cold, and he wished he'd worn something more than a jacket and scarf.

It was slowly getting colder, and he was tempted to turn around and go home. But he was drawn to the park. He wouldn't meet his soulmate hiding in his room from the cold, as much as he wished he could.

So he kept walking. And kept watching. His clock ticked on his wrist, a feeling he had long since accustomed to. The sky would be getting dark soon.

The steady pounding of his feet carried him on, soothing him as the numbers counted down. His breathing steadied and his heart rate speed up. He seemed to be acutely aware of everything, yet numb at the same time.

He noticed the softer ground as he reached the park, the heavy breeze, a brightly colored jacket, a street sign. The trees rustled. There was laughter coming from a playground not to far away. A bell ringing, a phone buzzing, the enticing scent of a flower, a tall, darkly dressed figure as his timer stopped ticking.

Anxiety

Patton had dragged him to the park. It was cold and miserable and his timer was almost out, but Patton had forced him to the park. 

Wee. Fun.

"Pat, why are we here?" Virgil moaned, slouching by a tree.

He shrugged happily, saying, "I dunno. It just felt right, you know?"

"No. No Pat, I don't know." Virgil sighed loudly. "Can't we at least go somewhere inside?"

"I mean... we could. But this is so nice!"

Virgil shook his head, exasperated, but didn't continue to complain. Outwardly, at least. He sat down, pouting, and shivered. Why did it have to be so cold?

Virgil examined his timer, though he'd spent so much time doing that in his life it was ingrained in his memory.

It was just a thin strip of metal, circling the entire wrist. A small screen on the inward side showed every second that ticked down. It was practically a second heartbeat.

 Everyone was born with them. Not all of them were running. Some stopped running halfway through. 

People used to try to remove it, but it acted like a vital organ. Most people died. Some were left vegetables. Neither of those were very good options, in Virgil's opinion. He decided to let Fate have its way with him.

At twenty minutes, Patton left to buy a warm drink for himself. Virgil decided to wait at the park, despite his complaints only minute before. Patton was confused, but left Virgil without complaint. Virgil himself wasn't quite sure why he did it.

At ten minutes, Virgil tried to pretend he was okay. He wasn't. His breath was out of control and he was light headed. Was it like this for everyone? This panic? He didn't think so.

The watch hit five minutes. His vision swam, and he worked to breath. He was panicking. What if his watch hit zero and no one was there? What if they decided to not come? What if it stopped ticking in the final minutes, like Virgil had always feared?

Virgil watched as his timer ticked down, minute after minute disappearing until there were only seconds remaining.

He stood, taking a few paces forward. No one was in sight.

His clock ticked down to zero, and there was no one there. His heart sank.

Someone tapped on his shoulder. He spun, so surprised he nearly screamed. It was a handsome guy in his late teens, like Virgil himself. He grabbed Virgil's hand, pulling up the sleeve to look at his timer, which was no longer ticking. He compared it to his own, which was also silent and showing 00:00:00:00:00

The teen glanced up hopefully at Virgil, and he couldn't help but feel a swell of happiness. This guy was his soulmate?

"Did- did your timer just stop?" The man asked carefully. Virgil just nodded dumbly, staring at him with wide eyes.

"Hello. I'm Logan." The man straightened his back, pulling down Virgil's sleeve and stepping back. Virgil spluttered for a moment, still shocked.

"I... uh... Virgil. I'm Virgil." Logan's serious face showed a hint of a smile.

"Virgil. I like that name."

Virgil shuffled awkwardly.

"Yeah... I guess. So, do we, like, go get coffee, or something?"

"I have already had some today, but I wouldn't mind another."

Virgil had no clue where to go, but the teen, Logan, gestured in a direction and took off.

He followed, heart fluttering. Maybe, just maybe, this could work.

Here is the next new chapter! I'm hoping to finish my construction quick, but please be patient. As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed! ❤️