Wherever You Are | c.h. | Soulmate AU

6

An: have a double update bc I'm frustrated with this story and just want it to be over 😂

Our practice is nothing out of the ordinary besides our added guest. In fact, two hours into practice I have almost managed to forget he is even present until we finish off our run through of the set. We are in the middle of designing a new one for our tour with the Chainsmokers that begins in two months. He coughs in the corner and my head snaps up, my eyes squinting together as I remember he is here.

"Do you boys mind taking a break to talk to me?" He asks, when he notices we've reached a stopping point.

"Sure." Luke shrugs, deciding on our behalf to grant the request.

I raise my guitar strap over my head and set my bass down before joining them in the chairs that rest along the wall of the practice space.

"First of all, thank you for allowing me to come observe your practice space today. I know this is a privilege you didn't have to extend to me."

His eyes drift between the four of us and I appreciate the sentiment of his statement but it does little to calm my agitation with his being here in the first place.

His focus seems to return to me each time he makes a statement and I wonder why that is. Why when he is asking questions he can't help but study me, even as the others reply to his curiosities and I remain silent.

"So, who amongst you has found their soulmate?" He asks after five or so introductory questions.

I suck my teeth and avert my eyes. I would rather be literally anywhere but here right now.

I can feel the burn of the other boys eyes on me as they try to decide how to approach this question.

"Um, well we try not to discuss the whole soulmate thing, actually." Ash says cautiously.

I hold my breath inadvertently, hoping that'll be the end of it but I know better.

"Aw, come on. Might help you find them!" The reporter, Anthony, presses.

"Well," Ash's eyes cut to mine and I mentally curse him. Anthony doesn't miss the panicked look shot to me.

"Ah, so you haven't found yours then." He says, his voice even and his eyes settling on me as he crosses his arms.

He seems to take my non response and cool stare for his answer and sits up, suddenly a lot more interested.

"What's your tattoo look like?" He asks and My face scrunches at the audacity he has.

"You think I'd tell a reporter what my soulmate tattoo is? So you can write about it and I'll have a hundred girls trying to convince me they are mine? No thanks." I scoff.

"Wouldn't you like to speed up the process a bit?" He asks curiously and I feel myself growing frustrated. This is exactly why I hate shit like this.

"It won't help speed it up. If anything it would slow it down and leave me confused never sure if I found the right girl or not." I confess, being a whole lot more honest than I had intended to be.

"Which is it?" He asks, his eyes focusing on my left arm and the many tattoos etched across my tan skin there.

I'd gotten so many to help conceal which of them was my real one. It was an effort to protect myself and I got them each touched up randomly to give them the appearance of darkening. I'd never wanted my celebrity to be a hinderance to the process and I didn't want the first time my soulmate saw me and connected our tattoos to be across the pages of some cringey tabloid.

"You tell me." I say boldly, leaning forward and extending my arm and challenging him to figure it out.

"Got a few on my chest and ankles if you wanna investigate those too." I smirk. He'll never figure it out.

His fingers grip my forearm as he turns my hand over to look at the ones on the back of my arm.

"Soulmate tattoos are almost always on a limb. It's the easiest place for them to be seen or noticed by your soulmate. So I believe it's one on your arm." He says and I struggle to swallow the lump in my throat as my eyes dart over to the other boys.

Fuck, I'm such a cocky little shit, what have I gotten myself into.

"If I'd done no research I'd think it could be this one here." His fingers taps against the bird with my sisters name resting next to it. "But I have, and I know that's your sister's name."

Fuck. He was prepared for this.

"If I had to guess," he says looking up at me with a smirk. "This is your real one." His gently taps the skin on the inside of my elbow and the Letters, lines and shapes that make up the marking there.

My real tattoo.

I purse my lips, my jaw set. I'm angry that he figured it out so quickly. I'm annoyed and quite frankly a little embarrassed that I'd been so confident he wouldn't be able to.

"I'm right aren't I?" He asks, his hands maneuvering my arm so he can get a better look at it.

"Do you know what it is?" He asks and I bite my lower lip.

"It's a chemical structure. I'm not sure which one but I remember seeing these in one of my daughters lesson plans. She's a chemistry teacher, I could ask her for you."

His words are sincere, his eyes kind and I feel my agitation with him lessen slightly.

My throat is dry and I have a hard time getting it to work before forcing out a sentence. "Um, yeah. That'd be cool."

"Let me text her." He mumbles. "We'll come back to this." He says quickly moving back to topics more related to our band.

He asks about tour and new music, our album, our lives as transplants to America. All the while I sit back staring at his phone until it buzzes on the table.

"She said she's just around the block at the shopping center. My camera is broken on my phone and I'm sure you don't want your number out there. Could she just drop by?"  His eyes find mine and he looks for his answer.

I consider it for a moment. I've wanted to know what it meant for so long and this just feels too easy.

"She's not like a crazy fan or anything, right?" I ask seriously. The last thing I need is some girl blabbing about my soulmate tattoo all over the internet and creating all the same problems I worry this man's article may.

"Nah, she's more of a classic rock girl like her dad." He smiled fondly.

"She'll have to sign an NDA about my tattoo just like you will. Management won't let you print it, I hope you know that."

"I understand" he says, his hands gesturing that he has not protests. "I just remember what it was like before I met mine and if I can help, I want to." He says shrugging his shoulders.

"Let me just give Bex a call and the address." He says holding up a finger and standing to walk towards the door to get a better signal.

My eyes snap up as he says the girls name, the inside of my arm flooded with sparks of electricity at the sound of it.

An: WHO'S READY

This story is going to be short because I am just genuinely not happy with it and I have a much better idea for a new story I can't stop thinking about.

Thanks for reading,

Ily
Sav 🖤