Chapter Text
“Yeah, probably means my soulmate is a super-hot ginger who loves cats.” Lance boasted, his shirt slightly raised to show off the tattoo on his left hip. It was tiny, about the size of an actual cat paw, with claw marks topping each of the small toes. It was a vibrant colored red which was striking against his olive skin. If it had been an ink tattoo, it would've been entirely underwhelming, but it wasn't ink; it was magic. The paw peeked right above the hem of his pants, allowing easy access to his audience.
His peers marveled at it, one daring enough to reach out and lightly touch the exposed skin, all of them oohing and ahhing when contact was made. The attention made Lance’s shit-eating grin even wider. It was only his first official day at the flight academy and he was already loving it. He was determined to be number one and stand out, and his uncommon soulmark was just the way to hit the ground running.
While soulmarks themselves were common, it was rare for someone to have anything other than the name of their other half. Soulmarks were meant to be easy maps to each other, but there was a lot of room for things to go wrong. People could have only a first or a last name instead of both. One of Lance’s cousins had the misfortune of just having Dan on her arm. Do you know how many Dans there are in the world, Lance?! Was the single most uttered phrase from her mouth. He had even heard of some real shitty circumstances like people whose soulmark was a cryptograph that needed an unknown cipher. Yet nearly every person on the planet had a name in some form, and Lance had a red paw print.
There were thousands of myths about why only a whopping .5% of the population got tiny pictures, but in reality it was unknown. Lance liked to believe it meant that he and his soulmate were even more connected than other people, but he had no way to prove it. Besides, voicing that opinion came off as real douchey to the remaining 99.5% of the world. The most convincing theory, and the one Lance actually felt comfortable talking about, was that the souls would be bonded the same way in every reincarnation. The bodies would change, but the image would be important in every lifetime.
Lance could care less about the science behind why humans had them, and was much more intrigued by how they influenced daily life. Whenever he touched the paw print, Lance felt a tingling warmth on his hip. Which he would have assumed was just an endorphin rush from excitement if it wasn't common knowledge that all marks were emotionally connected. Every time he touched his tattoo, his soulmate could feel it. Somewhere out there, was the love of his life, and whenever she touched her soulmark, if she was happy or sad or angry, Lance could feel it- all from a little touch. He liked to show off and brag, but deep down Lance was marveled by the universe and how lucky he was to have such a connection.
“Must mean she has a tattoo of a small brown piece of sh-” a voice said above the small yet lively crowd.
“Nobody asked you, Keith!” Lance all but screamed at his smirking rival. The two of them had been paired together during evaluation for the academy and no matter what Lance did, Keith always pulled slightly ahead. It drove him insane, and that alone was enough to make him hate his competitor. Keith being a complete asshole was just the cherry on top of the hate cake. “I bet you don’t even have a soulmark since you’re such a jerk!”
Keith rolled his eyes, “Of course I do, idiot. I’ve only ever met, like, two people who don’t.” Most of the people who did not have a soulmark were a-romantic and were more than okay with not having a cosmic pre-destined partner. Some, however, were people who wanted romantic love, and were devastated once they discovered they had no soulmate. Lance shuddered, not even wanting to think about what that must be like.
Just the idea of that kind of loneliness made Lance reach for his own mark. He realized that by doing so, she would be feeling his anxiety which made him immediately switch to reassurance. He didn't want her to worry after all! Sure he didn’t know her name, but that didn’t matter. He was going to find her someday and love the shit out of her. Until then, he was happy knowing that her hip was tingling right that second; she knew that he was sending her a happy, loving warmth.
While Lance had zoned out, Keith’s demeanor changed drastically. His cheeks had a red flush, and his mocking tone was replaced with annoyance bordering on disgust “Like I have anything to prove to you anyway.” he muttered before storming away, not bothering to look back even once.
“Yeah, keep walking, buddy.” Lance called after him, half expecting a retort. Keith turned down the hall and as soon as he was out of sight, Lance muttered, “Asshole.” He turned to the group he was originally conversing with, most of them a little shocked by the exchange they just witnessed. Lance reached up and rubbed the back of his head, grinning awkwardly to expel some of the tension, “So have any of you guys met your soulmates yet?!”
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Keith slammed the door behind him, his cheeks still flushed and his heart pounding. This can't be happening, this can't be happening, this can't be happening he repeated to himself like a mantra, as if saying it enough would make it true. He had suspected, of course. It would have been naïve not to at least entertain the idea, but there was a big difference between suspicion and tangible proof. A difference so big Keith felt like he had swallowed a lead balloon. He lifted his shirt to look down at the little blue cause of his agony.
He had felt it as soon as that idiot touched his hip.
First the anxiety, but then the calming warmth that only a loving soulmark touch could give.