Soulmate Watch

Kelsey Hill

I had been waiting for this day since kindergarten. My teacher had told us about the watches on our arms and what they did. One kid in class had already had his watch reach zero and he was honored in the class because he had already met his soulmate somewhere throughout the day. We all had to sit down and figure out when we would meet our soulmate. One kid had his at 5 minutes, another's read in 17 years she'd meet him, and this one girl's had it as 6 months and 2 days from now. I was scared when I couldn't figure mine out. All that it read was 9999d 59h 59m 59s. I asked for help and the teacher was also confused because my watch was at such a high number. She said that i'd just have to wait a while (over 27 years).

The next day I had come back to school happier because I saw the days had dropped by one. Slowly over the years the days dropped until it was at 0000d 00h 00m 59s. I had been waiting for this day my whole life, I was 32 now and I had seen all my friends meet their soulmates and settle down. I sat outside in the small café I frequented and just counted the seconds.

It was down to 3 seconds and I was getting nervous. I scanned the crowd for anybody who seemed as nervous as me. 1 second and my eyes landed on a man who was fidgeting in his seat a few feet from me. I smiled and was about to get up when I glanced at my watch and saw the time: 9999d 59h 59m 59s.

I was confused and looked up to see the man was walking toward the bathroom and not me. I was hurt. I knew how long I had to wait again but it seemed so unusual. The maximum amount of time someone had to wait that has ever been recorded was 27 years 16 days and 8 minutes. That was only because she had been in a coma when he met her so she didn't know it was him till when she woke up. These thought were racing through my head and I simply stood there in the café with a sad look on my face. One of the servers came up and asked me if I was okay.

"Yes, I just thought I'd meet him here," I said sadly. I quickly pulled out the money to pay for my drink and made my way back home. I opened the door to my small cottage style house. Max, my poodle, came tearing around the corner to see me. "At least I know I have you," I said to him as I fell to the floor and let the tears come. Max was confused for awhile but when he heard my whimpering and saw the tears sliding down my cheek he curled up with me for comfort. 27 more years, I have to wait at least that long.

~~~~~~

I've waited 81 years to meet my soul mate. My watch has wound down three times now and I have five days left till it runs out again. I have gotten pictures taken of me and i can now be found in the Guinness Book of world Records but, even with my fame I still come home to an empty house. Max died when I was 30 and ever since then the house has stayed quiet. My friends all passed away and I'm the last of my group left. Each year that passes holds nothing special for me and I just wait for the death i've been wanting for quite a few years now.

Two weeks ago I got the good news that I had contracted a deadly virus. At first the doctors had said their cures and vaccines would kill the virus and boost my immune system so I wouldn't die. But, after 12 days of treatment I only got worse, so now I'm stuck in this hospital bed waiting to never wake up again.

I don't know why but I checked my watch again: 000d 00h 05m 07s. Five more minutes till it resets again. I let out a heavy sigh and glanced around my room again. The plain white walls and floors did nothing to calm my tears again as I knew this would be the last time I would -just maybe- meet my soulmate. I felt a numbness form in my chest and I hope it would be my end, finally. The feeling sharpened into daggers and I couldn't contain the cry the escaped my mouth because of the tearing feeling. A nurse quickly rushed into my room and, seeing me start to convulse and shake, called for a doctor. When the doctor came rushing in I held a smile on my face and when they strpped me down I whispered to him, "It's time. I can finally go." With those last words I checked my watch a final time and closed my eyes. I didn't feel the needle they desperately stuck in my arm because I was already gone. The last thought I had was my time left: 0000d 00h 00m 56s.

The warmth I felt on my skin woke me and I noticed the white walls of my hospital room were gone, replaced by yellow sunlight and a floor of clouds. In front of me I could see a golden gate and I walked toward it. I heard a rustling behind me and turned to see a man in all white with beautiful wings sprouting from his back. His grey eyes and tanned skin made him look intimidating but his short brown hair softened the look. All this I observed in a moment's look and the next moment I heard a soft beeping. I looked down to see my watch had stopped. Actually stopped.

So this was the man, or angel. He looked happy as if he'd been waiting for specifically me. "I guess you're the guy," I said. My light and young voice surprised me and I looked down at my body and saw I had gone back to my 30 year old shape. I laughed slightly, "So, I'm blessed with you and my new body? How?"

He laughed a deep rumble starting in his chest and bubbling over. "I don't care how or why. I've waiting here for an eternity just watching and waiting for you to come. I'm just glad you're here now."

I gave a nod and walked over to him. Linking my arm in his I led us both past the gates and into Heaven. "So then, we've got to make up some lost time. How about we start with some coffee?" Nodding, we both walked over the clouds and talked about nothing.