Another AU inspired by a prompt I saw on Pinterest.
MIKE'S POV
Soulmates. The idea was stupid, don't you reckon? The fact that someone out there, was randomly assigned to be your "other half". I found it quite stupid, thinking that you have to find your soulmate.
But I guess you had to, facing the circumstances.
My mother and father told me from a young age about how everyone is born with a certain disability, and your soulmate was born with one that compliments the other. When you meet, both of your disabilities heal.
But the issue with me was, I'm blind.
I've never been able to see the "great and amazing earth" as everyone described to me. Or at least, tried to describe.
Nobody really understood how it felt to not know what anything looked like. I had never seen my reflection, never seen my parents, never read a book without having to trace my fingers along the embedded codes.
Everyone pitied me, not because I was blind, but because they assumed that I must have lost my soulmate.
But to be honest, this was how things had always been. It was sad, yes indeed, but I'm used to it. Soulmate or not, I just have to accept that I'll never be normal.
"Michael!" I sigh, recognizing my mother's voice better than anyone else's. I reach over across what I was told was my bed, and felt for my walking stick. I grabbed it, and sat up, guiding myself out of my room.
"There you are. You haven't left your room in days, why don't you go outside?" She asked sternly, I could imagine she had a frustrated face on her.
"It's kind of hard to enjoy the world when you can't see it, mom." I reply shortly, crossing my arms.
"Oh honey. You need to overcome this. I know it's hard for you to be blind, but don't let that destroy any joy in the world." She places a hand on my shoulder, and I find myself leaning slightly into her touch.
"Fine. But if I get lost and never come home again, I blame you." She chuckles, kissing my forehead gently.
"You always find the way home."
And with that, I guide myself out of the house, and into the mysterious place called the world.
***
ELEVEN'S POV
Soulmates. What a dumb thing. Who the fuck thought it was a good idea to make people destined to be together? And added with the fact that you have to have a disability just to find your soulmate, it all infuriated me!
And, with just my luck, I ended up being deaf.
Torn from the sounds of the place we call earth.
Hearing aids were much too expensive, and were just a pain in the ass. People around me were kind enough to learn how to do sign language, and were pretty helpful.
But that wasn't everyone.
I lift my eyes from my hands when I see movement coming from my door. It's opened now, with my adoptive father, Hopper, standing in the doorway.
"Hey." He signs, and I offer him a smile.
"So, we're running out of some groceries that we need and I have to go down to the station. Could you please go to the store and buy some things?" His signing is slow, making sure I understand.
"Sure, do you have a list?" I sign back, and he nods, placing the list in my hand.
"Be safe, love you, and thank you." He signs, before walking out of my room.
I stand up, and grab a discarded sweater. I slip it over my body, and walk out of my house.
I lived in a small town, the population wasn't too big. The people were kind, and the majority of them had learned sign language as soon as they found out I was deaf.
There were still some people with their disabilities; the ones who hadn't met their soulmates yet. But more had met their soulmates, and therefore had no disabilities.
I wave at a girl around my age named Max, who was without her left leg. People automatically told her that her soulmate must have lost their right leg.
She grins back at me, before wheeling into the small town library.
I continue on my path to the store, and once I reach there, I take out my list of groceries to purchase.
I walk into the dairy aisle, and see a boy around my age. His curly hair was rested against his pale skin, and his eyes were fixated on the milk section, feeling around for the milk he wants.
Soon, sounds begin to flood inside of my ears. The clinking of the metal shopping carts; the soft chatter between the customers; the soft humming of the freezers; and even the low murmuring of the boy.
I gasp, and shock myself even further by hearing the audible noise.
The boy looks over at me, and soon his expression meets mine.
MIKE'S POV
My eyes fix on a girl across the aisle. Her light brown hair test gently on her shoulders, and her brown eyes are wide.
Wait.
It dawns on me; I can see!!!!
We meet eyes again, and we share that knowledge without words. We were soulmates.
I walk to her, discarding my walking stick. She slowly smiles at me, and I happily return the smile.
"I-I'm Mike." I smile, reaching my hand out.
She looks at the hand, before turning away from it and grabbing me into a tight hug. It's strange at first, but soon feels comforting.
"I'm Eleven." She softly cries against my shoulder, and I feel small tears rise in my eyes.
"I'm so glad I met you." I mumble into her hair, so grateful to see the world for the first time.
"We must keep in contact. I want to help you adjust, and I hope you can help me too."
I nod, eyes going over every beautiful feature that I had been blessed to be able to see.
She takes out a small piece of paper, and rips a piece off. She pulls a pen out of her purse, and scribbles some numbers on there.
"Call me, and hopefully we can help each other." She smiles, and I grin back, gently placing the paper in my pocket.
"I'll see you around, Eleven."
"I'll see you around, Mike." She grins, glancing at me for a few seconds before walking back down the aisle with a skip in her step.
I decide that exploring the town wasn't a thing to do right now, and rush home to tell my mother, and to call the beautiful girl named Eleven.
***
Hey guys! So I'm so sorry that I've been gone for so long. I'm not in a very good place mentally for me, so writing for fun is something that is harder for me to do.
I will try to update my other stories though, but please stay with me if I don't because it's hard as my mental health gets worse.
But I hope you enjoyed this AU. I love you all and thank you to everyone of you who has supported me, left kind comments, and messaged me so kindly. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.
Word count: 1103
