Soulmarks and Destiny

The Perfect Gift

Frowning, I stared at the things I had laid out in front of me.
All those things were possible birthday presents for N'Ram that I had bought over the last few weeks.
However, none of them felt like the perfect gift.
I rubbed my face and sighed.
Should I ask N'Duen for help?
On the other hand, I don't want to bother him with something related to N'Ram again…
Maybe I should ask Bohn?
I pondered over it for a while and then decided against that idea.
As great of a friend as he is I don't believe he'd be much of a help.
Mek or Boss then?
Hm…
I think Mek said that he and Boss had a study date today so it's probably better not to bother them.
Really can't wait to ask Mek how it went and whether Boss is still as oblivious as before.
We did put a lot of thought into the set up of it.
I'm pretty sure that if Boss doesn't realize that Mek likes him Bohn is going to kick his ass to the moon…
I grinned as I remembered how done Bohn had been as he had announced his willingness to kick Boss into the next stratosphere.
As much as I love him (as a brother), he's as dense as a brick.
Chuckling, I focused on the problem at hand that I still hadn't found a salution for.
N'Ram's birthday.
Finding a gift really shouldn't be this hard.
All of these items are things that he might enjoy but maybe I should choose something that'd strengthen our bond?
Something like…
I looked around trying to find inspiration in the things I had in my room.
Much inspiration couldn't be found, however, since it was mostly filled with plants.
Plants!
That's it!
That's how I can establish a stronger bond!
It would also be a subtle hint towards our soulmark.
I can't believe I didn't think of that earlier!
My beloved babies are the perfect gift for almost everyone after all!
What plant would match Cool boy's energy…
Hm…
Maybe a cactus?
No, that's too prickly and he's not exactly a cold person or extremely hard to approach.
Aloe Vera?
He does have a calming aura but it doesn't really represent his soft side…
Flowers don't really match either.
They're pretty and he's pretty but his personality doesn't really match any flowers thst I can think of.
Gifting him herbs, trees or anything like that doesn't feel right.
Also, who gifts a whole ass tree??
Even if it's like a banana or apple tree they still take up a lot of space and most people prefer buying them themselves anyway.
Looking around once again I tried to think of all plants I'd ever heard about.
After half an hour I still had nothing and I fell onto my bed, now genuinely frustrated.
I can't believe I'm struggling this much. Maybe I'm thinking too hard…
What would my friends do?
…
They'd probably look it up in the internet using something along the lines of 'birthday gift for boyfriend' or what to buy as a birthday present'.
They really are that uncreative.
I've seen it with my own two eyes just a couple weeks ago!
Sighing, I rolled onto my side and hugged my pillow.
This won't get me anywhere.
Let's see, what kind of person is N'Ram?
He's quiet and looks rather cold but is actually a cinnamon roll and a very kind and sweet person.
He loves dogs, his friends and knows how to fight.
Some people think that he's intimidating but he's just shy and a bit socially awkward.
N'Ram listens to others very carefully and us very observant too.
If someone close to him feels down he tries to cheer them up with little presents, like he did with N'Duen last week.
He's very gentle and considerate.
I looked at the soulmark and traced it gently with a finger.
"What would be a gift that you'd like, N'Ram?", I murmured thoughtful.
Despite him being gentle he's also quite prickly.
Striking up a conversation with him is rather difficult too as he looks more intimidating due to his tattoos and cold attitude towards strangers.
I still vividly remembered the first time I tried to talked to him and got ignored.
A cactus then, perhaps?
Or maybe…
I let my eyes scan the Rion once more until I spotted something.
A carnivorous plant.
I abruptly jumped up and walked over to the small plant.
It looks harmless but isn't…
And it's not hard to care for which makes it a good gift for people who don't have much experience with taking care of plants.
Smiling I gently put it down again.
"You're the perfect gift", I muttered and with that in mind I went to the store I usually go to.
"N'King! It's good to see you again. How are you doing? How may I help you today?"
I smiled and greeted the employee.
"Hello P'Cloud. I'm doing well. How are you? I'm looking for a venus fly trap"
"Oh? Don't you have one already?", he asked curiously but went to grab it anyways.
"Yes, but this one is a present", I answered.
P'Cloud turned around gave me a cheeky smile.
"A present, huh? Must be someone important if you're giving them one of your beloved plant babies"
I rolled my eyes at his teasing and smirked.
"What can I say, a carnivorous plant is just perfect for my soulmate"
"Your soulmate?! You finally met him?!", P'Cloud exclaimed and excitedly hit my shoulder.
"Where? Is he a new classmate? What is he like??"
"In university, a freshman and he's a bit intimidating but very sweet", I answered amused.
"Sounds like a fun guy! You should bring him along the next time you come here!"
"We aren't that close yet, P'. Besides, I don't even know if it will work out. He loves his dogs after all",
P'Cloud frowned for a second.
"Is that so? Hm… well, if he's as sweet as you say that shouldn't be a problem. Why don't you ask him to help you with your phobia? That way you can be around him more often AND get used to dogs!"
That's actually not a bad idea…
I nodded and smiled.
"Thanks P'!
" You're welcome! Have a lovely day and take care!"
"You too“
Now that the pressure of trying to find the perfect gift had vanished I was in a great mood.
I wonder how N'Ram is going to react?
Happily humming a tune, I made my way home.
What a wonderful day it is!
The sky is blue with barely any clouds in sight, the wind is warm and the plants are happy.
Even the dogs are happily barking.
And coming closer.
They're coming towards me.
Wait.
THEY'RE COMING TOWARDS ME?!!!!
I froze as fear spread through my body, making it impossible to move.
What do I do, WHAT DO I DO??
The dogs had almost reached me and I still couldn't move.
Somebody, anybody, please help!!
"P'King! Be careful!"
N'Ram???