If We're Not Soulmates, Then I Don't Believe In Love

She's My Color

Prompt: Soulmate AU where you see in black and white until you touch your soulmate. Important: must be skin to skin contact.

Camila thinks the different shades of grey might be growing on her. It's been 22 years, about time she gets used to it. But all her life she'd heard of people meeting their 'soulmate' and the world lighting up. She used to be convinced she'd find her soulmate soon, and see all of the beautiful colors the world had to offer. As a child, she'd over-glorified the whole thing. There is nothing wrong with black, white, and grey.

Dinah met her soulmate freshman year of college, a beautiful girl named Normani who was in her dance class. Ally met hers, a youth pastor named Will, a few months later. Even Camila's little sister Sofi met hers, in sixth grade.

Camila was still alone.

Sure, she had her friends. And they were all great, really, but she was romantically alone. In this society, no one dated. If you touched someone and saw colors, then you dated because you were soulmates and almost certainly had to.

She'd never kissed anyone, never went to the movies and made out in the back while the popcorn spilt on the floor, never saw someone else naked except that one time she showered with Dinah. But that wasn't sexual, they were in a rush.

So she felt understandably lonely.

That's how she finds herself in the library past 10 pm, curled up on a lounge chair reading an old lesbian vampire novel. Charming little book by the name of Carmilla. The title is what jumped out at her first, since it was so close to her own name. Apparently there was a web series based on the novel on YouTube, which she made a mental note to watch later.

"Camila?" A familiar voice calls out to her from across the library. "Uhm... it's time to lock up. Sorry."

She'd forgotten that Normani's bitchy roommate worked here. "Oh it's okay. I guess it's too late to check this out?"

Lauren bites her lip, looking back at the shut down computer and then down at all the stuff in her hands. "You can take it."

"Really?" Camila crinkles her brow. "Don't I have to sign it out?" She'd been to many libraries over the years, and never had this been allowed. And if it was breaking a rule, she's surprised Lauren would do that for her.

The other girl shifts on her feet and adjusts the books in her arms. "Look, it's late, I'm tired, and the computer's already turned off. Take it, and come back in the morning to check it out."

Of course, she's just being selfish at the expense of the library. But Camila can take a blessing when she gets one. "Oh my God Lauren! You just saved my whole evening. Dinah's out with Mani, and I don't have class tomorrow so I was planning on reading all night and now I can!"

Lauren winces slightly at the volume of the smaller girl. "That's cool and all, but this is still a library."

"Oh shit." Camila drops her voice to a whisper. "Is this better?"

Lauren just rolls her eyes. "I legally can't leave before you so..." She points to the door.

Camila gets the hint and nods. "Right sorry." She stands, packs up her stuff, and heads out side. The darkness was all-encompassing, and even the stars seemed smothered. Feeling her lungs grow tight with anxiety of walking alone, she takes a step back, only to run into Lauren.