The Lucky Ones

1. Ophelia

      If you would have asked Ophelia if she knew how fortunate she was to know who her soulmate was, she would have laughed in your face. She would tell you how horribly terrifying that it actually was. If you would have asked her if she had always known about it, she would turn cold and try to change the subject.

      You see, Ophelia never knew she was one of the "Lucky Ones" until one day when she was just fifteen years old and she had her first vision. It was a memory so vivid that even now at twenty-one years old it still haunts her.

      She was sitting in class trying her best to focus on the board in front of her, but the pounding migraine she was suddenly developing was causing her trouble. The lights in the classroom were so bright due to the fluorescent hue they gave off, however any time Ophelia closed her eyes the lights she saw seemed ten times brighter. The sunlight from outside showed buildings she had never seen before, and the streets were too busy to be her own town's. The sound of muffled honking started to appear in her ears, and she was suddenly aware of the person she could also see. The strange boy never said a name, and Ophelia did not recognize the boy standing before her. She snapped her eyes open and wondered what it could have possibly been. Unsure of the answer, she slowly closed her eyes again only to be disappointed by the sight of pure darkness, but also the relief of her migraine dissipating made her sigh in satisfaction.

      Soon that was replaced with chills down her spine. She couldn't help herself as she began to think about everything she had seen. The sidewalks, the buildings too tall, and the boy too unfamiliar to be from her small town. The feeling on her shoulder was quite prominent however. She rubbed her shoulder before realizing what exactly the feeling was; being shoulder checked. The brush of a shoulder against her own when she found herself squeezing between the crowded, narrow hallways in school, but what was strange to Ophelia was that she was in the middle of class.

      The shrill of the bell caused Ophelia to jump up from her seat and quickly gather her things before rushing out of the classroom and out of the doors of the school building. Ignoring the sound of her name from her friends, she quickly ran home to tell her parents about the odd event that happened in class. Upon arriving at home, she briskly walked to the kitchen where her parents peacefully sat at the kitchen table enjoying a cup of whatever hot beverage they decided to indulge in that day. This wasn't unusual to Ophelia as they always shared a cup with her to keep her "cultured with the tastes of the world" as they continuously said to her.

      "I had a rather strange experience at school today," Ophelia blurted. To be honest, she was terrified; she wasn't exactly sure on how to bring up the integrity of the situation to her parents who, at the moment, looked at her with blazing curiosity.

      "Ophelia, darling, come sit. Indulge in a cup and then explain to us what happened," her father calmly stated. He could tell Ophelia was nervous due to the horrible habit she had of picking at her nail beds when anxiety coursed through her veins. Ophelia softly sighed and grabbed her mug from the cabinet above the sink. Her mind raced as she found herself staring at the door made of cherry and the knob of brass. Ophelia's chipped nails wrapped around the handle of the clear, glass mug that was perfectly placed in the front waiting for her to get home. Glancing down at the granite countertops, she discovered that her parents had already assigned the package of tea for her to prepare.

      The water in the kettle was still hot upon further examination and picking up the tea bag she saw the word "Chamomile" printed on the little white paper. She smiled; her favorite. Ophelia sat down at the table with her parents as she carefully set the mug down as steam swirled from the liquid. Taking a deep breath, she carefully delivered the information of everything that happened with her in class. Her parents didn't utter a single word, but their nerves grew in the pit of their stomachs. They had always feared for this day.

      "Sweetie, we should probably tell you," her mother began. What Ophelia didn't know was that her parents knew all along. They knew from the moment the doctors took the DNA from Ophelia before she was even born. They even understood that there was a chance it wouldn't work. They were young and had nothing to lose, because no matter what happened; they would always love her anyway.

      "You've heard the stories about the "Lucky Ones" right?. Well you are apart of them. Before you were even born they took your genetics and altered them in a way to make you have a connected soulmate. From our understanding, they did the same thing to another family so that you and that other child will end up together," her mother briefly explained with great caution. Ophelia was never one to lash out or even be bothered by things she could not control. This being said her parents were not expecting the reaction Ophelia gave.

      "...you sold me to science? Why would you DO THAT?!" Ophelia shouted. Her parents began to panic. This was a new side of their child that they have never seen. The usual calm and collected daughter they saw every day grew angry and erratic. Ophelia was spewing questions left and right to her parents as they tried to muster up the courage to say something back to her.

      "Ophelia! NO! We would never sell you. We were young and the thought of you having a better life than what we had sounded like the best option for us. There was a chance it wouldn't take, but it did with you! From what we've been told, your soulmate has the gene too. Ophelia you may not like it, but you're a scientific miracle," her father proclaimed.

      This part was true. Ophelia was a scientific miracle and somewhere out there in the world her soulmate was the other half of the discovery. In the ten years that scientists have been trying to figure this entire project out, there has never been a full success story. In the first trial the gene didn't end up taking in either of the children used. There were a couple of times that it would take in one but not the other. Scientists began to give up hope and tried one last time using two new candidates: Ophelia, being one of them. When scientists discovered that both babies were born with the gene they celebrated, but kept quiet because stage two had to begin. Unfortunately for Ophelia, her journey was just beginning.

      "I cannot believe you two. Did you even want me?" Ophelia questioned with frustrated tears in her eyes. Her hands were shaking and sobs were crawling up her throat begging to be released. She felt cold and her head began throbbing once more.

      "Ophelia, of course we wanted you. We still do! You're our daughter; our own blood," her mother said as she reached for Ophelia's hand which was on the table. Ophelia let her mother take her hand in hers before looking up at her parents as her tears streamed like hot rivers down her cheeks. She lightly pushed the chair backwards before ripping her hand from her mothers.

      "I'm an experiment," she bitterly stated while looking at her father in the eyes. Her mother sniffled and Ophelia's eyes snapped to her before standing up and began to exit the kitchen. The usual warmth of love that Ophelia felt in her heart was replaced with a feeling Ophelia never felt before: disappointment.

      "Ophelia, wait!" her mother exclaimed. But it was too late Ophelia walked away while wiping her tears on her sleeve of the grey cardigan she had been wearing. Behind her, her mother cried with her head in her hands and her father comforting her. The tea sat untouched in what was once crystal clear, but much like Ophelia's mind was foggy.

unedited