Rhys had been waiting for this day for his entire existence. He was meeting his Dominant for the first time. There was a week until he was 21. This is the best day in many young Pandorians' lives, was today. The Twin Flame assignment. He would get a week trial period to get to know his hopefully soulmate. He was a little worried because he was a little sassy and had a smart-ass mouth. That mouth of his had definitely gotten him into more situations than it has gotten him out of.
Rhys is a healthy Bengal hybrid. A gorgeous brown-black speckled tail with a white tip swished back and forth behind him. He was lightly tanned. Two white-black speckled ears were nested ever so perfectly in his auburn brown/reddish hair. He had one mechanical arm and the other was the arm he was born with.
Rhys looked into the mirror for the seventh time. Vaughn had let out a loud sigh as Rhys played with his hair.
"You're a dork. Your Dominant is going to love you no matter what. I mean I adore you and I'm not even your perfect match." Vaughn assured the sub before him.
Vaughn was Rhys's best friend. They grew up together, Vaughn was only 4 years older than he was, but the age gap never really came between them. Their mothers knew each other from work and the two learned to do pretty much everything together. A lot of people who met Vaughn would assume he was a sub. But as his birth and his secret personality showed, he was definitely a Dominant. Rhys saw how he was with his Submissive. He was harsh but within reason. Vaughn cared for his sub and only pushed to pre-set boundaries.
Rhys was also kind of friends with Vaughn's sub, Hugo Vasquez. He merely went by his last name, per his request. Rhys had known Vasquez for around 2 years now. Vaughn had met him when he was 23, he had to give up on a bad pair at the age of 21, she was rude to his friends and family even after being told to knock it off. And nothing comes in between Vaughn and his family. Vasquez was a high-maintenance sub while Vaughn was pretty low-maintenance. Vasquez was a taller man and on the muscular side, while Vaughn was lanky and thin with lean muscle packed in there. They were an odd pair but Rhys only judged a little.
His fingers played with the ends of the chestnut locks, twisting them. Vaughn just watched him carefully, arms crossed and body leaning against the door frame.
"Will you stop fussing? You. Look. Fine." The older of the two said, exasperated.
"I won't stop fussing until all of this is over. I am so freaked out right now. I'm nervous. I think I'm gonna faint." The tanned sub pouted.
"Deep breaths. You'll make it."
"What if I accidentally answer a question wrong? I'm gonna off myself." The cat boy rolled his eyes.
"Oh, will you be quiet..." Vaughn chided him. "Just go to the office, take your test to the best of your abilities and then take the hour or so for a match. Take your vape with you, it'll ease your mind, plus they'll send a message to your echo when your results are in. Now get." He said with finality as he kicked Rhy's ankle gentle to get him going. Rhys gave a small playful hiss in response.
-
Rhys arrived at the tall building, kind of astonished by the not-so-subtle pink glow emanating from the windows. It looked more like a love hotel than a corporate building to find your soulmate, but who knows? Maybe it's both.
He walked in the rotating door, focusing a little too hard on not getting stuck in the door. He made it out in one piece and walked up to the teller.
"Hello, I'm here for my appointment. My name is Rhys Little." He started but before he could finish he was handed a bright orange file with a lot of paperwork in it.
"Fill that out then hand it back then you can take your test." The lamb hybrid behind the counter spat, not looking up at him. He looked over the folder, which indeed said his name, grabbed a pen and hustled over to one of the seats in the waiting room.
-
It felt like an eternity before he was finished with all of that paperwork, which was all of his information, such as his biometrics, his interests and hobbies, and what his work experience was. Some things he didn't know quite how to answer so he just winged those parts. He handed the folder back to the lamb hybrid and she handed him another packet with his name on it.
"Testing room 4." She said from her keyboard. He sighed and trudged off to the testing room. He closed the door behind himself and started to fill out the test.
Halfway through his testing, he heard a commotion in the lobby, he pushed his chair out and peeked out from his solitary room to see dark brown hair and someone being thrown.
"I'm not filling out your damn test again, I've already filled it out three times. I'm sick of wasting my time here. If there's not someone for me then stop leading me on and let me live my life by myself! Stop wasting my time, I'm very important and not getting any younger," The man screamed. Rhys felt bad for him but also for the workers because it was kinda sad that they hadn't found anyone for the man yet but also the workers have nothing to do with that. He sunk back into his chair and went back to his test.
He did make it through the test and left the testing room. Now his nerves were definitely on fire. His vape wasn't going to do the trick. Good thing he brought his actual cigarettes. He turned his test in.
"We'll message your echo when you're ready." She said, snatching the test from him. He smiled and hurried outside, digging through his bag for his cigarettes, which he found but couldn't find his lighter.
"Well, fuck me," He grumbled. He stuck his cigarette in his mouth, slipping the pack back in his bag. There had to be a lighter in here somewhere. He searched and searched until someone tapped his shoulder. He looked up to see a lady dressed in purple. "Huh?" He looked up, confused.
"Need a light, sweetcheeks?" She asked, holding out a lighter. He nodded and stood up and couldn't help but look at her chest. It was just out there.
"Uhh, yes. Sorry..." He said, dragging his eyes away. She happily lit his cigarette for him.
"You just take the test? How do you feel?" She questioned him, lighting a cigarette of her own.
"Nervous more than anything. Like there's a whole lot going on with me, hopefully, I get someone who can deal with all of it." He mumbled, taking in a long drag.
"We've all got our issues, honey. But if I know anything about this place, they can find someone for anyone, even people who aren't looking." She smiled with radiating confidence.
"I hope whoever I get can just learn to love me for who I am, I've been waiting all my life for this. I don't wanna end up like those defiant people who swear off the test, think they're gonna find someone on their own and then end up living all by themselves for their whole lives. I mean I know there are cases where that works out but just the numbers and-" She cut him off before he ran circles around himself.
"Honey, you'll be okay. Just take a deep breath and a long drag of that cigarette." She instructed, and he listened letting the nicotine and air seep into his lungs. He closed his eyes for a moment. He decided to sit up against the building and to his surprise the woman sat next to him, taking out her own cigarette.
"Hi, I'm Rhys."
"Well hello, Rhys. I'm Moxxi. Are you feeling any better?"
"Relatively, I mean I'm still nervous but I'm not spiraling anymore." He took another drag from his cigarette. "What are you doing out here? Taking the test?" Rhys looked at her.
"Oh no hun, I work here part-time. I help with the matchmaking," She informed, a slam could be heard against the building. "Aaand dealing with him. Well, dear, duty calls." With that she got up, sighing and brushing off her shorts.
"Be careful, he sounds angry," Rhys worried.
"Oh don't worry. He won't hurt me, he's mostly just bark. Towards me at least." And she was gone as soon as she came, like a whirlwind back into the building.
Rhys continued to sit there for a while, not quite sure how long had passed, but he was playing on his phone and vaping. Finally, a ping went through his echo.
'A match has been found, please report to meeting room 1 within the next hour. -TFINC'
He stood, knocking the loose gravel from his pants and took a few last hits, just trying to calm his nerves to the best of his ability. He didn't want to cause a bad first impression. He walked back through the double doors, his tail wrapped around his left leg. He looked around until he found a sign that said 'Meeting Room 1' and he entered the room. A tall human female was standing at the head of the room and he was clouded with confusion until he saw the big logo across her shirt that she worked her.
"Hello, Rhys Little?" She inquired.
"Yes, that's me." He was handed his bright orange folder and the chair was pulled out for him.
"My name is Jess and this is the meeting room and this is where you will get your first glimpse and impression of your soulmate. All of your information has gone through a computer program and a team of matchmakers. They believe they have found a very good match for you. If there are any problems with your match you have one month to come back in for non-retesting reassignment, if more time than that passes then you will have to retake the test and fill out all of your information again. Is all this information understood?" She instructed with a smile. Rhys nodded. "We thank you for going through with the testing and we hope this is your happily ever after. Our number is on the back of your folder. Your partner will be given all this information in meeting room 2 before being sent in here to you." She patted Rhys on the shoulder and then left the room.
Rhys sat there for a few moments before the door opened. He stood to greet his new partner but as the man walked into the room, his eyes went wide.
They had to be kidding him right? There just was no conceivable way.
That was Handsome Jack of Hyperion.