Soulmates and Exceptions #Wattys2016

"THE Talk" Part 2

     "Spencer, your mother was sixteen when she and I..." Michael hung his head. "She was seventeen and I wouldn't turn eighteen until just after Jackson was...um...more of a reality than a dream of the future." It was Spencer's turn to pale. He and his brother had done the math years ago, but never said anything. It wasn't something that was mentioned – ever – in families, not to mention to people outside of the family.

     Jackson, uncomfortable with the course of conversation, ground his teeth before speaking. "Is that why you're giving them their gloves now? You all think Spencer and Gabriella are drawn to each other. Don't you?" The parents inhaled sharply in a panic. Spencer stared at his brother, noticing his clenched jaw and balled fists. Brea put her head in her hands. She was excited that their parents thought that she and Spence could possibly...but even with that excitement, her head started to throb. "You made me promise to wear these stupid things all the time around Brea, and now you think Spencer's the risk? I've been harassed even more than usual for the past six months because you gave me my gloves early, and...Spencer?"

     "How can you even think that?" Spencer stood up and blurted out. Anything to take the focus off of him and Brea. "I told you! I am never getting matched!" Michael looked on skeptically.

     Jackson stood and faced his brother, as if to challenge him. "It certainly seemed like it the other day! All curled up on the couch! You really looked like you hated..."

     "You've done that with Brea too!" Spencer countered.

     "Boys! That's enough!" Shouted Michael. They sat instantly. Their father rarely raised his voice at them when they argued

     Rose tried composing herself. "We have our own reasons for doing this. Reasons that are none of your concerns." She looked at her daughter with her head still in her hands. "Gabriella, you need to pay attention. I'm going to tell you all about what happens once you've found soulmate." Gabriella did as her mother told her, removing her hands from her face and trying her best to pay attention.

     John and Michael looked relieved that they weren't going to be the ones to explain things in detail. They were happy to sit there as Rose's support.

     "Once you feel drawn to someone, and you're certain that's what the feeling is, it's very difficult to focus on anything but finding them. I know you all have the ability to focus on your studies for now, but once you actually set out to seek them, here's what will happen: at least one of you will definitely feel drawn. Sometimes it's the girl. Sometimes is the boy. Sometimes it's both. The closer you are to them, the stronger it feels. Regardless, you'll find each other. You touch and your marks will appear."

     "Why did Jacks get his gloves early?" Brea interrupted.

     The adults silently determined that Michael would answer. "Gabriella, Jackson was turning eighteen the next week. Even if he isn't totally sure about where he's being drawn, if he finds her, and she's not eighteen yet, their marks could appear if he touches her." Jackson reached for a throw pillow to bury his face into. Spencer clenched his jaw, vowing to have a deeper conversation with his older brother as soon as he could. "If the person being touched isn't eighteen, there's a risk that the mark will still appear." He looked into her eyes, the stress of the topic showing on his face. "Like I said, I care about you like you were my own daughter. As a dad, I wanted to make sure that Jackson could stay in school a bit longer, and not have to worry about him possibly finding a soulmate that was younger. I'd want her to have a chance to finish her schooling, maybe find a trade. I'd want the both of them to get a better start together than his mom and I did."

     "By younger, you mean me?" Brea whispered under her breath, trying to grasp onto everything said.

     "Can we please change the subject?" Jackson blurted through the pillow.

     Rose continued, "Gabriella, I can explain the answers to some of your questions about these things later. Maybe I'll tell you about me and your father." Brea nodded and rubbed the butt of her hand against her brow – her headache making her feel a little dizzy. "Now where was I? Oh yes, touching. Once you've found each other, one of you will take off your gloves and touch the other. You can touch an arm, their cheek, anywhere on their skin, really. You'll, feel a sensation on the left side of your chest, near your heart. From that spot, you will feel a stinging, then a warmth spread out through your body from your head to your toes."

     "What's the stinging?" Brea asked softly, a little worried. She hated anything that stung – insects, needles, and now, apparently, being matched.

     "The stinging is your soulmate's mark appearing on you. It'll be a sort of golden color. It doesn't stay that way, once you and your match..." Rose suddenly became embarrassed.

     "When you and your soulmate bond on a..." John attempted to take over.

     "On a deeper level. It changes from the golden color to more of a reddish-pink coloring. It eventually fades to more of a flesh-color, like a scar, the longer you're together." Michael finished.

     The three kids looked at each other briefly and independently wondered how exactly how their parents would have been able to handle this if they didn't have each other's support.

     Rose found her voice to continue. "This is very important. It's one thing to find your match and receive your marks. You will still be able to wait if you need to finish your schooling."

     "It won't be easy. Trust me." John muttered, running his fingers through his brown hair.

     Rose cleared her throat. "As I was saying, it won't be easy with all of the excitement you'll be feeling, but it can be done. You and your marks will be extra sensitive to the touch and the presence of your soulmate until you've fully bonded with each other. However, once you've bonded with your soulmate, it'll be impossible..."

     "It'll be impossible to keep your hands off of each other." Blurted Michael. "It's this crazy feeling of needing to be joined..." his hands twisting together in descriptive representations of what he was trying to explain.

     "Michael!" John cut him off.

      "That's not how I would have put it, but Michael's right. After you've bonded for the first time, and your marks change, you'll want to start your family. Actually, the deep, intense need to begin your family doesn't really go away until..." Rose stated as a matter of fact.

     "She gets pregnant?" Questioned Spencer, much to the embarrassment of Brea and Jackson.

     "Yes." John nodded. "Well, when she gets pregnant and has a baby. The feelings will slow down a little then."

     The rest of the conversation continued at an uncomfortably slow pace for the teenagers. All of them stunned at some of the more blunt statements coming from their parents' mouths. Even Jackson was bewildered – this was a much different talk than he was given. A few minor questions were asked, each of the three not feeling comfortable enough to ask anything deeper, while everyone was together. Once their parents felt comfortable that they all knew the rules and the importance of them being followed, the parents allowed them to go about their business.