-ˏˋ autumn, new york
Amidst the relentless chaos of New York's crowded streets, where the air hummed with hurried footsteps and the city skyline loomed overhead, exists a subtle touch of elegance.
Ballerinas thrive in this city. With some of the nation's finest schools and companies, it is no surprise that the graceful dancers are drawn to the center of the Big Apple.
Even though Minjee, a gifted ballerina, had lived in New York all her life, she was no exception.
After graduating from Juilliard and getting the opportunity to join one of the best ballet theater professionally, she moved closer to the center of the big city, securing her own apartment with her best friend a few years ago.
Autumn painted the streets and towering buildings with hues of amber and gold, the air crisp with falling leaves, dancing on the wind.
Minjee loved this season. At this time of year, there was always an excuse to go out and get hot drinks. It also gave her the opportunity to bring out her warmer attire.
Not to mention that she was born in the season.
Gracefully, the ballerina navigated the busy throngs of people bundled up in coats. Her hazel eyes fixed on the familiar path ahead as her long legs graced her forward, heading towards her favorite cafe to meet up with her friends.
She wrapped her long fluffy coat tighter around herself at a particularly colder gust of wind, promising the nearing of December. Wavy, dark hair cascaded freely around her shoulders, as her nose and cheeks naturally tinted rose. Plush, pink lips formed into a slight pout as she regretted not taking a scarf with her this morning.
As Minjee moved, a few heads turned in her direction.
The girl was captivating, to say the least. Her elegant presence effortlessly commanded attention from those around her, yet she remained blissfully unaware.
While she unintentionally drew attention to herself, her own focus was drawn to something else entirely.
Her gaze locked onto a couple, a man and a woman, as they let out a noise of surprise before tightly embracing each other. On their wrist, a timer flashed zero, before slowly turning gold.
Soulmates, finding each other.
In this world, everyone has a soulmate, and each couple has a connection crafted by fate itself.
There are various ways these connections manifest, such as a timer ticking down to the exact moment of meeting, matching tattoos, the red string of fate, or the names of soulmates imprinted on wrists.
Some connections are less telling, involving shared emotions, pain, or memories.
Even if not physically noticeable, a small symbol related to the connection appears on the wrist.
Once soulmates find each other, the connection locks into place, turning gold upon physical contact.
Most people receive their connection between sixteen and twenty years old. Although it can happen between twelve and twenty seven, it becomes less likely to appear the older you get.
There is no logic or science that can explain it, only that it is in the hands of fate.
Despite fate's efforts to connect everyone and guide them to each other, not everyone is fortunate. Some go through life without finding their soulmate or receiving their connection at all.
This particular thought had been weighing on Minjee's mind a lot lately.
Hazel eyes danced around the streets, seeing more soulmates together or, at least, a hint of their connection. Despite her love for love stories, a sinking feeling started to form in her stomach.
At twenty three, she had completed numerous rounds around the sun, yet there was still no sign of her connection.
She did her best not to let it bother her, reassuring herself that there was still time, but silently, it ate at her. She longed for that connection, yearning to know that her soulmate was out there.
The sinking feeling melted away as her favorite cafe, Nook & Nibble, came into view. The twinkling lights of the cozy shop reflected in Minjee's eyes, lifting her mood immediately.
A little bell chimed overhead as she stepped through the threshold. There she was greeted by warmth and the cozy smell of coffee and baked goods.
"Good morning, Minjee," the owner, an older lady, greeted the ballerina upon entering, a light smile decorating her sweet face. "The usual, like always?"
"Good morning, Mrs. Smith," Minjee returned with a bright smile, dimples dented into her cheeks. "Yes, please."
Mrs. Smith gestured for the ballerina to go to her usual booth before turning around to start on her drink.
Before she could start making her way over, she heard a loud commotion behind her.
"Minnie!" The familiar voice of her best friend, Yuna, shrieked.
Turning around, she saw her friends already seated in their usual booth by the window. Yuna excitedly waved at her to come over.
"I know you missed me and all, but damn you saw me a few hours ago," Minjee teased the loud girl with a light smirk, her eyes sparked with mischief as she made her way over.
"You know I can't live without you," cried Yuna dramatically, pulling her best friend into the booth next to her.
Across from them, their friends Elena and Belle watched with amused eyes.
"Yeah, how could you let the poor girl wait for so long?" Elena chimed in, Belle silently chuckled as her shoulders shook a little.
"I am so sorry, bubs. My pilates class went on longer than expected," playing long, Minjee's dramatics matched Yuna's. "Please forgive me."
"Alright, but don't ever do it again," demanded Yuna as she wiped invisible tears.
The girls bursted into laughter, unable to contain it anymore.
When the four friends talked, you almost wouldn't have guessed that they were all professional ballerinas at one of the largest ballet theaters in the USA. However, you would notice the grace they held when you looked at them.
"Alright, alright. Now that Minnie is here, I have an announcement," Elena practically bounced in her seat, grabbing the attention from the two dramatic girls in front of her.
"You're getting married?!" Yuna blurred out, shouting before thinking. She immediately covered her own mouth, just then realizing how stupid it was, knowing her friend was still single. Slowly she turned red, mumbling an apology.
Elena's eyes widened comically, and Minjee hid her face in her hands.
Belle was the first to break the silence with her chuckles, snapping the others out of their shock.
"Really, Yu?" Belle teased, which resulted in receiving a weak glare.
"Well, not exactly," Elena answered Yuna with a laugh, bringing the attention back to her, as she placed her right arm on the table and rolled up her sleeve.
There, upon her fair skin, laid her soulmate symbol.
A small ribbon, now glowing gold.
"I met my soulmate last night."
Three sets of eyes stared at the golden symbol, before looking up at Elena's face. A light blush covered her skin as she herself seemed to glow.
After a beat of silence, chaos erupted.
"Oh my god! When? Who? Where?"
"Tell us everything!"
"I am so happy for you."
The two dramatic best friends could learn a thing or two from their calmer friend. Belle embraced Elena, while the other two excitedly fired question after question.
"Her name is Mika," Elena started, "I was on my way to get a midnight snack... oh don't look at me like that, I really needed something. Anyways, the ribbon started to get tighter when suddenly I noticed that the direction where it was going had completely changed. When I turned around, she was right there."
The girls squealed and giggled along with her as she told the story, explaining that they went to get a snack together and had talked for hours.
Minjee was truly happy for Elena. Despite her excitement about the announcement, the sinking feeling returned. Two out of three of her best friends had found their soulmates now.
Belle had found her soulmate a few years ago, a sweet man called Cooper. Where the girl is very calm, the man is the equivalent of a golden retriever. He adored Belle, and Minjee could not wish for a better match for her friend. The first words they spoke to each other shone golden from her wrist, peeking from under her sleeve.
Even though Yuna had not found hers yet, she knew exactly when to expect them. The timer on her wrist ticked down each day, now reading just under thirteen thousand hours. Leaving Minjee the only one without a soulmate connection.
Self doubt took over for a second as she glanced down at her own, empty wrist.
Why did she not have one yet? Did she not deserve it?
No, she would not let this take over again. She would not be bitter.
Suddenly, a hand wrapped around her wrist, making her look up into Yuna's concerned eyes.
"No, I'm fine," Minjee immediately stated, not wanting to put a damper on the good vibe. But as she glanced at Elena and Belle, they had the same concern in their eyes.
"Really, I'm fine," she insisted, before trying to turn the topic back to Elena, "Tell us more, El."
But she could not fool these girls, as they knew her too well. They had seen how the lack of the connection had taken a toll on their friend, and they would not let it happen again.
"Min, fate has big plans for you, I am sure of it," comforted Belle, grabbing her hand.
"Just you wait, your connection is gonna make all of us jealous," Elena encouraged, making Minjee giggle.
"Fate would be stupid to leave someone like you without a very lucky soulmate," her best friend stated, giving her a stern look. Minjee rolled her eyes. If only she could believe this herself.
"Aww, you guys do care," she teased her friends, putting her head on Yuna's shoulder, as she hoped to lighten the mood again.
Just then Mrs. Smith came over with four drinks on her tray. A simple black coffee for Belle, an iced coffee for Yuna even though it was getting colder by the day, a hot chocolate for the coffee hating Elena and a caramel latte for Minjee.
"Congrats, dear," she nodded to Elena, as she laid eyes on her golden symbol. "You deserve it."
Elena thanked her, eyes sparkling again.
They all thanked the woman before they took a sip of their drinks, sighing contentedly.
"I heard that Raphael is making some role changes in the Nutcracker," Yuna changed the subject to their instructor, grabbing the attention from the girls around the table. The four principal ballerina's immediately fell into discussion.
"I'm not surprised, I just hope I will have the same role as last year," grumbled Belle, taking a long sip from her coffee.
"At least it gives us a challenge," Minjee encouraged the girl with a light smile, grateful that the subject had changed, "I'm excited to start practicing again."
"As if the practices aren't challenging enough already," whined Elena, making the girls giggle together.
While they drank their coffee and hot chocolate, they discussed the latest tour they had done with their company and the shows that are yet to come.
✧ ˚ · . · ˚
The four girls entered the practice room an hour before the session was scheduled to begin, having already changed into their dance attire.
Several principal dancers were already there, engaged in stretching and warming up. Greetings were exchanged before everyone turned to their respective routines.
Elena and Belle started their stretches, while Minjee walked up to one of the mirrored walls. Yuna followed closely behind.
Minjee focused on sleeking her hair back into an elegant bun to keep the strands out of her face. Yuna sat on the ground, adjusting one of her pointe shoes, mumbling to herself that it was time to break in a new pair.
Once Minjee was satisfied with her hair, she turned around and draped herself over her best friend. Yuna protested, attempting to lean away, but she knew it was to no use. Minjee, a lover of physical contact, would not let her friends escape her affection.
"I need to break in a new pair as well. We could do it together again."
"We will probably practice until late today, so we'll have to do it tomorrow then."
"That's fine by me, as long as I could sleep in for once."
Rolling off of her best friend, Minjee began stretching, doing a split and reaching forward. From the corner of her eyes, she saw that Elena and Belle were already practicing turns and moves, while more from their group walked into the practice room. Some came over to greet the girls. Naturally, Elena was the main topic of conversation.
"I heard that Elena found her soulmate last night," mentioned Skyler, clapping her hands together with excitement.
"Whoever her soulmate is, they are very lucky," Emily smiled.
Just then, two of their ballet masters and instructors entered the practice room. Raphael LeClaire and Natalia Serov had worked with them for years now and had molded this group to perfection. The respected instructors were stern and intimidating when needed, but most of the time they were fun people to be around, ensuring that their ballet dancers were doing well.
And it wasn't for nothing, as the group was one of the best.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back," Raphael clapped his hands together, making everyone in the room turn to him. "We have received many compliments from our tour around the states. Let it be fuel for our next show."
Natalia nodded, looking around the room. "You did well, but let's not slack off. We'll have to prove ourselves again with winter approaching."
"Some of you may already have heard, but there will be some role changes in the Nutcracker this year," announced Raphael, before turning to Belle with a teasing look, "But do not worry, not all will differ."
Belle smiled, bowing a little bit.
"Let's get started!"
⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅
A/N: i can't believe this is really happening. first chapter written and posted.
i have always had many ideas for stories and loved the concept of soulmates. you can actually find a whole list about them on my page.
this story idea popped into my mind a while ago and i spent a lot of time working it out. everything is planned and prepared, so i finally felt confident enough to start working on them.
and don't worry, jimin will make an appearance soon!
let me know what you think. i'd love to hear it.
i really really really hope you enjoy the rest of the story ~
love, ily