Universe of Soulmates

"Meet Me in Paris"

Meg, Caleb, Dustin, and Evan couldn't believe that they had, after six years of being inseparable, were going to the same college. They had barely a thing in common, but they all had one secret in common. The four of them could wield the four elements. And, somehow, they'd managed to evade the government for the eight years they'd been able to do so.

Meg, the most level-headed of the four, had control of Earth. She often made flowers bloom and kept grass green and even talked to the occasional animal. The latter was done rarely, but she did understand some animals—dogs, cats, raccoons, and coyotes were among the short list—but learned how to ignore and not engage with them on most occasions. She always felt connected to the Earth in a special way, and her element only enhanced the connection.

Caleb, the air-headed fast talker, had control of Air. It was unsurprising considering he preferred the outdoors and feeling the warm sun on his skin. He liked when a little breeze picked up and even more when there was nothing but the sun shining and a blue sky.

Dustin, who controlled Fire, has a temper far greater than any of the others, combined or otherwise. He was always passionate about whatever he put his mind to and the others always enjoyed that side of him. He always had the ability to deal with heat far better than the others, and was able to help make the water heater work better and the furnace work more efficiently.

Lastly, Evan, who controlled the most powerful of the elements, had the qualities of the strongest leaders and modesty that was incomparable to any other. Wielding Water wasn't just about rivers and oceans and rain, but the lifeblood of every living being. From trees to insects to animals, he knew that he couldn't abuse his power. It was only under the most stressful and necessary of situations that he used it to do more than summon water from the tap into his glass.

"This is the start to the rest of our lives." Meg stared at the huge building in front of them with a smile on her face.

"It'd be nice to have our soulmates, though." Caleb wasn't ever a pessimist, merely a realist. And he was correct about the soulmates—having them made life infinitely better.

"Well, we have each other. And we're pretty awesome people." Dustin, thanks to the fire burning inside him, rarely had anything outside of a smile on his face and far too much energy. "Plus, Paris is the place we're supposed to meet them."

"There are seventeen cities named Paris. It's not an exact science," Evan rationalized.

"True that. So, Meg, are you going to help us get our stuff into our dorms on the tenth floor?" Meg would've gotten annoyed with their request, except she liked them too much. Plus, they all agreed to do her laundry for a month if she said yes. Which she had during their drive to the campus.

"I already said yes. But, I don't have to—" Meg is cut off by a flurry of "no"s. She liked that there weren't many others, so anything she did wouldn't be on full display for the university. "Okay. I just need you guys to make sure no one else is watching for two minutes while I get everything through the doors." They all nod, pulling up stopwatches on their phones and she makes quick work of their boxes of things while they ensure no one is watching. But, despite their due diligence, someone does see. Someone who would say that it was dangerous to have powers except she, too, had powers of her own.

Jasmine could shape metal to her mind's desire and, when she was feeling truly vindictive and powerful, shift the iron in one's blood into a solid mass. She hadn't done that on a person, or any animal that she knew someone would miss. Thanks to an overpopulation of squirrels that often turned to roadkill, she figured out that power thanks to something that was already dead. As she watched Meg work with tree roots to move things, she became enthralled by the actions before her, and like there was a connection between the two of them that she wouldn't have expected.