It can't be him

Chapter 4

August 2022

THANVI

Thanvi couldn't sleep a wink the previous night. So many questions and concerns were looming in her head. Who is her soulmate? He's most probably from Korea. How are they going to make it work? She probably ran into them in one of the places she went yesterday. But she had met so many people yesterday. How will she narrow it down? Should she even try to find them? The tattoo is blue, so it won't affect her that much physically. Maybe with the right medicines, she would be able to live without being with them. But for how long will that work? There are side effects to these medicines. Are the side effects worth it? What worried her the most was who her soulmate would be. What if he's not what she's looking for? What if his political views and life goals don't align with hers? What if he's a racist? Or misogynist? Or worse, both? All these thoughts were driving her crazy when a knock on her door grabbed her attention. She opened the door to find Zach standing in front of her in a Dr.Strange t-shirt and sweatpants. He seemed to have just woken up. "Let's order breakfast now so that it'll be here by the time I'm ready," he suggested, letting himself into her room. He settled on the couch, finally looking at her. "Did you not sleep well? You look tired.'' Zach inquired. "Zach, I'm screwed." a troubled-looking Thanvi told him. "Why? What happened? What's wrong?" Zach asked, suddenly worried for his friend. She stared at him, her eyes troubled and teary. "Spit it out, Thanvi!" Zach scolded her, frustrated. She pulled her top down, low enough for him to see her new tattoo. He stared at it, shocked but mesmerized by the floral design and blue color. "When? Ho-how? Wait- WHO is it?" he asked, still in shock. "I don't know. I noticed it while showering last night." Thanvi replied. "Do you have any clue who it is? It has to be someone you met yesterday, right?" Zach pressed, trying to help. "I don't know! I met a lot of people yesterday. I went to 4 agency buildings and a restaurant yesterday. It could've happened anywhere." Thanvi argued. "We have a meeting to get to in 45 minutes. What am I gonna do, Zach?" Thanvi was so close to having an anxiety attack, that Zach could sense it too. "Calm down for now. Your panicking is not gonna help us. You might fall sick if you exert too much. Go freshen up. I'll let Maria know. She will know what to do." Zach advised her. Thanvi nodded, her logical side knowing that it was the best game plan for now.

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Thanvi and Zach were sitting in her room, freshened up and trying to get some food into their systems, when Maria barged into the room. "How are you feeling? Do you really not have any idea who it is?" Maria asked. It was clear to Thanvi that Maria was distressed. "No.... what should I do now, Maria?" Thanvi asked the older woman. Maria was one of the very few people Thanvi trusted blindly. Maybe it was because she had been with them since their pre-debut days. Thanvi trusted her competence. She always has a solution for every problem. "Let's put you on medication for now. I will inform the agency about this. Give me the list of all the people you met and places you visited yesterday. I'll go through it and find the person. I'll do everything I can to bring them to you today. I promise. Now, are you still planning to attend the meeting today or do you wanna stay back and rest?" Maria asked. Thanvi already felt relieved hearing the determination in Maria's voice. She felt assured. "I'll attend the meeting. I have to meet Seventeen too. So I can't stay back here." she replied. "You don't have to come. I can handle it this time. You should rest." Zach argued. "I'll be fine after taking the meds. I can't postpone meeting Seventeen either. Besides, I'll go crazy if I stay here alone. I need distractions." Thanvi reasoned with her friend. If it was totally up to her, she would not try to find her soulmate. She does not wanna acknowledge the bond. But unfortunately, she needs her soulmate, even if she does not want them.

"Not to add to your stress, but I think you should see this," Maria said, passing Thanvi her tablet. "The interview with Hellen aired a few hours back. There's a lot of backlash regarding your opinion on soulmates. Our PR team thinks it's better for you to stay off social media for a while. They'll publish an official statement clarifying your stand and threatening action against hate comments. They don't want you to react for now." Maria told them. "Would this affect her solo album release?" Zach asked. "Not as long as the collaborating artists don't pull out. Besides, there are two months left for that. It'll be forgotten by then." Maria shrugged. "Alright. We should start now. I don't wanna be late for the meeting." Thanvi said, grabbing her things and moving towards the door. She was already hating the day and it had only begun.