Orange is the happiest color. That's what Frank Sinatra said, at least. To this day, I wonder if that's still true or not. If it was, then my life was nothing but a living rebuttal. There was nothing happy about me, not one bit.
I guess that's pretty melodramatic, huh? I should learn to be more optimistic. Here goes nothing: I lived a good, loving life, beloved by my parents as any only child is. Things were happy—I was happy—for a while. But then the world had different plans for me.
"Darling," my mother cupped my cheeks, smiling down at my apprehensive face. "There's nothing to worry about. You're just going to go on in there, and the Seer will tell you who your soulmate is. Then you can come back home and we'll celebrate, alright?"
I smiled up at her, feeling the nervousness tuck itself away in the deep recesses of my chest. So, without any further ado, I walked into the mysterious building, hands together and close to my beating heart.
"Welcome, girl," the old woman spoke to me in raspy tones. "Tell me your name."
"Clementine."
"Ah, yes, Clementine. Today is your fifteenth birthday. Are you ready for me to determine your fate?"
Nervous tendrils wrapped themselves around my core. But there was no backing out now. I nodded. The old woman smiled, gesturing to the table that sat between us. I took a seat, and gently, she guided me backwards until I rested on my back. I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. I felt a cool hand rest onto my forehead as the woman mumbled strange words over and over again under her breath. My heart beat roughly against my chest, but I stayed still.
After what felt like an eternity, I felt her hand move from my forehead. Hesitantly, I opened my eyes. She just looked down at me, a terribly serious expression filling up my body with apprehension.
"I'm sorry, child," the Seer sighed. "But I didn't see a name."
Being a Blank is about the worst thing you can be in this world. No soulmate, no future, no possibility of ever being able to support your family. My parents were devastated, even more so than me. All the affection and love I grew up with suddenly vanished, leaving me with serious whiplash. I had no tattoo on my body, no soulmate, no nothing.
But as the years rolled by, I got over it. At least a little bit.
YOU ARE READING
Orange
RomanceIf you don't have a soulmate, you're a Blank, and left with nothing in life. This is the reality that Clementine knows. But as secret lovers and developing crushes begin to weigh in on Clementine, she begins to realize that it isn't her that's the p...
