Singularity: The Red String Around Your Neck

A/N: Hello! Thank you for reading this story. Just an observation, whenever I add people texting back and forth, I'll indicate on their names which " 》" will be their messages. Example: 《JACK - VINCE》(Jack's texts will start with a "《", Vince's with a "》". That's all for now! Please, enjoy. Looking forward to reading your comments.

Soulmates are attached by an invisible red string. Wherever they go, even if they’re far away from each other, the string never breaks, always connecting their souls together.

Most people have their strings wrapped around their fingers - their pinkies to be exact. It’s common knowledge, learned on biology class, just another part of the body to study about.

You can only see your own string once in a lifetime: it happens when you and your soulmate realize you’ve found each other for the very first time.

On extremely rare cases, the person is born with the string wrapped around their neck instead of their finger. Reportedly, it only happened a couple of dozen times in the history of humanity. People who are born with a neck string are considered weak by society, because while others would only feel a pressure on their fingers if their soulmates were with someone else, they suffocated. While others would only feel their fingers burning if their soulmates were to die, they could die too from the burn in their throats.

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When you meet your soulmate, you have to be lucky to notice it at first sight.

Jack always thought he would be one of the lucky ones. He's always heard from his parents about how magical it was for them; they had just met each other, and the first time their eyes met, both could see their red string for the first time ever, wrapped tightly around each their fingers.

Jack spent all his childhood dreaming about how his soulmate would look like, how they were, what they might be doing. He used to draw his daydreams, how their first meeting would go, what hair color the other would have, what kind of flowers they would like. And then he dreamed of the other seeing his drawings and smiling.

He fell asleep while staring at his smallest finger countless times, wishing he could see the string he couldn't feel around it, but knew was there.

For most people, it takes time to know.

Two of Jack’s classmates, for example, who have known each other since kinder garden, only found out they were soulmates weeks ago. They said they looked at each other one day and it was like they were seeing each other for the first time, then the string turned visible to their eyes. They were always inseparable. This just made them realize that they loved each other more than they thought.

Jack understood that. Sometimes love takes time. Sometimes souls need time to know each other before they give in to their fated love, unlike others that already come from so many lifetimes of sharing the same love, like his parents.

Despite all of his dreams and hopes for a future filled with love with someone he couldn't wait to meet, everything ended in a blink of an eye.

Jack had always been told, in school, by his parents, by everyone, that you're not supposed to sleep with anyone but your soulmate.

"If you ever sleep with someone else, your soulmate will feel your string tightening around their finger, more and more every time you do." they told him. "Same goes the other way around."

He thought it was so silly that people even had to say that, because why would anyone want to be with a person they're not supposed to be with? But he learned the worst way that it's actually very common.

It happened when he was seventeen. He was home alone, studying on his bedroom, when he felt an uncomfortable pressure on his finger. He thought a bug had bitten him. Or that he had hit it on something. But he looked, and there was nothing. The pressure kept growing and growing to the point where it started to hurt, leaving a ring shaped purple bruise, and Jack's eyes filled with tears as realization hit him. It was his string. His soulmate was with someone else.

He cried himself to sleep that night, as everything he ever believed in came crashing down on him all at once, to a point where he didn't even know who he was anymore.

Now, Jack is in his first year of college. The only time he ever thinks about his soulmate anymore is at nights like these, when he's in someone else's bed, between kisses and moans, hoping their string is letting the other know exactly what he's doing, making them suffer as much as it made him on that night.

After he’s done and his partner is passed out next to him on the bed, he grabs his phone to text his friend.

Jack > Theo

《 Can you pick me up?

《 I’m on the other side of campus and I’m gonna be late for class.

》 I can’t, sorry.

》This new kid is arriving today and the principle asked me to show him around and take him to his dorm.

》He has some type of illness apparently.

《Oh, c’mon, can’t you ask someone else to do it?

《 And even if you’re a little late, no one’s gonna be mad at the sick guy.

》Jack…

《Okay, whatever. I’ll see you later then.

》Seeya.

》And ask whatever fuckboy you slept with to give you a ride to class for once.

《 Yeah yeah.

Jack locks his phone screen and sighs, glaring at the sleeping figure next to him.

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Vince looks around the halls, searching for the room where his first class will be. He’s excited. He never thought he would ever get into college, but he always dreamed of it. He adjusts his scarf and sighs as he reaches what seems to be the right door. He was told a boy is going to meet him after, to show him around and explain how everything works. He hopes he’s nice.

“Hi! Are you new?” A girl approaches him. He nods shyly at her.

“Nice to meet you, I’m June. My class is here too. You can sit with me if you want.” She smiles at him as she opens the door, making way for both of them to get in. Jack bows at her and smiles back behind his facemask.

“Thank you. I’m Vince.”

He follows her and sits beside her, making sure to adjust his scarf again. He feels his phone vibrating on his bag and takes it quickly, before the class starts.

He picks up.

“Hey!”

“Hi, Sev.” Vince smiles at his friend’s voice.

“How are you, Vince? Everything okay?”

“Yes! I’m okay! It’s nice here, people seem to be kind.”

“Ah, I hope so. Please let me know if you need anything.”

“I will. Thank you.”

Vince waits, his friend going silent for a moment.

“Also… How is it? I mean- You know.”

Vince sighs, lowering his voice.

“It’s… The same, I guess. Last night I woke up choking on air again but my mom got me on oxygen really quick, so it ended up okay.”

He adjusts his scarf.

“I’m so sorry, Vince.”

“Not your fault, Sev.”

Vince sees a teacher walking in.

“Class is about to start. Talk to you soon, okay?”

“Okay. Good luck with everything.”

Vince hangs up and puts his phone away, paying attention to the class.