Soulmate

Chapter 36: Mission Germinfestation

Alexander

    I called and told the guys that I was going home, but I didn't tell them that my soulmate was MIA. Sooner or later Patrick will find out, but I'll be sure to keep it hidden as long as possible. Maybe I can fall off the face of the earth for a week until I meet her, and we can pretend that we've known each other for the sake of our egos. I hope her ego isn't as big as mine. I hope she comes across more humble, so she can balance me out. I hope all of this waiting isn't for nothing. What if I end up alone? What if the matching system has failed? What if I'm never going to meet my soulmate?

    I tried not to think about every bad thing that could've possibly gone wrong today as I walked to the front door. What if she died and they had to rematch me? Would there be another soulmate for me? Is there even one perfect person for me out there or is this all a lie? Is society trying to control us and trying to make us believe that we live in a perfect world? What if these people's "soulmates" aren't even real? What if we just want to believe it so much that we make things work, and that we make ourselves work with this person? As much as I didn't want to believe all of these thoughts, they continued to spin around in the back of my mind as I burst through the front door.

    My thoughts distracted me to the point that I had forgotten all about Cheyenne and Michael being at my house, and I had forgotten that my mom was preparing dinner for me and my soulmate. I froze in the doorway as Ian and Viena played on my tablet, Michael and Dad talked at the table, and Mom and Cheyenne were in the kitchen preparing dinner. It felt like all eyes were on me and I swung the door closed. I forgot that I was going to have to explain to my family that I hadn't met my soulmate today. Why didn't I better prepare myself? How in the hell was I supposed to do this?

    Instantly, my dad narrowed his eyes at me, but fortunately Cheyenne opened her mouth before he was able to. "Where is your soulmate? Is she coming over later?" she rambled as she chopped an onion on the counter. Mom glanced at me, but went back to cooking as if she was trying to distract herself, at least she wasn't on my case yet.

    I bit my lip; I didn't know where to go or what to do. If I came in and sat down, then I was trapped, but if I didn't, then I was being awkward. There was a lump in my throat that I couldn't swallow. "Well, I didn't meet her," I blurted out because I couldn't think of any better way of saying it. Honesty is the best policy, I suppose.

    Cheyenne stopped chopping, Mom stopped fussing, Michael looked up from his phone, and Dad's jaw dropped. The only sound was Viena and Ian giggling from the couch. Oh, to be young and not have to worry about soulmates. "What did you just say?" my dad hissed. He glanced over at Michael as if he wanted to hide me from them, like I was a disappointment to my perfect family. Yeah right, my dad just wanted us to appear perfect, even if it was only to his son-in-law. I opened my mouth, but he interrupted, "No, don't say it again. What did you do? What in the world did you do wrong?" He wanted to curse at me, I could sense it in the way his mouth moved to form words to fill in the blanks. His voice would be raised if there wasn't company, and he would lose his composure. Sometimes I wanted him to show the world what a monster he could be.

    I forced back the urge to roll my eyes, instead I glanced at the kids who seemed completely oblivious. "Well, I went to workout like I planned, then I went to a diner, and then my timer kept ticking down. When it got to zero, it flashed red, and then it restarted. Now it says I have another week to wait," I explained, listening to my voice shake. I wished I could control it the way my dad does.

    He grabbed his phone of the table and stomped to his office. I held my breath as he walked away. Mom gave me her attempt at a smile, but it looked more like a wince. "Well, dinner's almost ready. Could you please help the kids wash up, Alex?" she asked and then she turned away from me and continued cooking.