A Splash of Color

one [edited]

Amber

In the world, there is a thing such as soulmates that exist; someone who is said to be your other half. You are supposed to feel/know instantly when you meet that said person, and you can live happily afterward. It's not that simple, mostly when there is a vast world out there with billions of people to meet. Even more challenging when you live in such a small town.

There are also different types of soulmates such as: seeing a red string that connects to your soulmate when your eyes close, having a phrase your soulmate says tattooed on your skin at the age of 16, hearing songs that your soulmate sings in your head. Last, but not least is the most common, which is not being able to see any color until you meet your soulmate. Despite its commonality, this is not the case for the small town in which our protagonist resides. In this town, the talk of soulmates was never heard of, which is what made people who did inherit the traits flee to the bigger cities.

I lay in bed and stare mindlessly at the plain ceiling. My eyes were tired, but I could never sleep long enough. Maybe I'm bordering the line to insomnia, I should get that checked out. I slowly turn on my side and look at the clock on my nightstand. 6:45 am. I sigh as this is the tenth time I've woken up at this specific time. Every morning for the past ten days it's been like this. I stare at the ceiling and look over at the clock and it displays the same exact time. Not a second before or a second behind, always on the dot. I sit up slowly, letting my body process that I'm getting up before I get light-headed. As I stand I make my way to the attached bathroom and flick on the light. I groan at the sight of blacks, grays, and whites filling my vision. I don't know why I ever think that once I wake up this soulmate stuff would disappear.

After I finish my morning routine, I head to my closet and pick out an outfit. I mostly have darker-toned clothing, but they're all different once you take a closer look. I decide on some ripped skinny jeans and a long black t-shirt. I go to my dresser and pull out a bra and put that on before putting on my t-shirt. I put on my socks then I slip into my black and white converse. Grabbing my beanie from my dresser and put that on before getting my bag. I head out to the living room of my apartment and walk into the kitchen and grab a quick snack before taking my keys and leaving.

I walk leisurely down the sidewalk and greet the people that are already starting their days. I had lived in this town before, and I had grown to love it when I was a kid. It wasn't until my parents noticed I couldn't see color, I noticed the almost anxious looks they had that day. A few weeks from that day, my parents had decided to move to the inner city where every day is filled with hustle and bustle. I met people who had soulmate bonds just like I did, which I didn't know until I had started school there. I found out that it was common for kids or teens to have such things. I liked it, I was able to make more friends there, but I missed my one close friend Shanti. She and I were two peas in a pod, and I found myself crying every now and then because I missed our old home. It wasn't until I was old enough, that I decided to move back to the small town, getting an apartment with the help of my parents until I found a job to pay for things on my own. While doing so, I bumped into Shanti again and she introduced me to the job that we both currently work at.

I reached the building I was going to and walked inside. I greet my boss and head to the back to drop my bag off in the staff lockers. I put on my name tag and head back to the front. "Amber, can you restock the shelves for me?" I hear my boss ask. I simply nod and push the cart to collect the books and restock them. I walk while pushing the cart towards the large tables we had here. I picked up the books and set them in the cart and walked down aisles and placed them on the correct shelves.

As I headed back to the main counter I noticed my friend Shanti walk in. She smiled at me and I nodded in acknowledgment before she headed to the staff room. I placed the cart on the side of the counter and sat down in the swivel chair. I sighed and grabbed the book from the shelf underneath the counter. Opening it to the page I left off on and I continued to read. "Hey, Amber." I quickly look up and see Shanti coming towards me. "Hey," I say, looking back down to my book to continue reading.

"I can tell it's going to be another boring day," she says while glancing around the place.

"Hmhm."

"So, what are you reading today?" She asks, taking a look at the book I have with me today.

"Diary of the Oxygen Thief," I answer while turning to the cover to show her.

"Hmm, I haven't heard of that one." I shrug and just continue to read.

The story of how Shanti and I became friends isn't that special, if anything, it's almost like a cliché. Back in grade school, during one recess I sat off to the side of the playground when a group of girls came and picked on me. Shanti noticed and yelled at the girls and almost got into a fight with one of them if it weren't for the teacher arriving on time. From then on she was like my protector, so to speak, and we've been friends ever since. She didn't immediately know of my condition, but when she did she accepted me for who I am without judging me, which I was thankful for.

"Shanti, could you scan the return books from the bin back into the system?" Our boss asked her.

"Yeah, sure," she says. She takes a seat in the chair beside me and rolls over to the return bin. She grabs the wireless scanner and starts taking out each book, one by one, and scanning them. I set my book down and roll over to the computer and make sure the books are going back into the system as "available". "Thanks, Amber."

"You're welcome," I mumble.

A couple of hours later, Shanti and I's shift is over. We both head to the back and grab our things and head out. "Hey Amber, wanna grab dinner?"

"Yeah, sounds good," I answer.

"Could I also spend the night? It's gotten pretty rough at home."

"Yeah, that's fine," I tell her.

"Thanks." I nod and we both walk to the usual restaurant by the library where we always get dinner. She orders our meals since she knows what I like, and once we get the food we head back to my place. Once we get to my place, we both relax on the couch and she talks to me and I simply listen to what she has to say, occasionally, I would hum a response.

After our dinner, we both get ready for bed. Shanti opens her drawer and pulls out some pajamas she's leftover here. My place is basically her second home when she wants to get away from her parents. They've started fighting a lot and she came over the first time they did. Ever since then she's always had a few pieces of clothing laying around my apartment.

I put on my shorts and leave on the t-shirt I had on. I get into bed and Shanti walks over and gets in on the other side. "Goodnight, Amber." I turn off the lamp on my nightstand and lay down and try to get comfortable. I find myself staring at the ceiling like I always did and closing my eyes.