𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐬.

go the distance

imagine a world where everyone definitely has a soulmate. as soon as you turn 18, numbers will appear on your left wrist. but what do these numbers represent? it represents how many miles you are away from your soulmate.

ricky was about to turn 18 in two days, meaning those numbers would finally appear on his left wrist. when he was 16, he had no choice but to leave salt lake so he could live with his mother in Chicago. he was devastated, especially since he would be far away from his best friend, nini.
ricky always had feelings for nini but every time he would try to admit, he just couldn't. He always had thought such as, "what if she doesn't like me back? are we better as friends? what if our friendship gets ruined?" He didn't want that, so to be safe, he kept those feelings to himself.

flashback
"ugh, why do you have to leave?!" Nini exclaimed.
"i'm sorry, nins. i don't have a choice." Ricky says with sad eyes.
Nini pulled him into a tight hug. "i'm gonna miss you so much. remember to call me when you land ok?"
end of flashback

it been 2 years since ricky left salt lake. he made a lot of friends in Chicago which is good, and he also met his current girlfriend, mia. You can say she looked and acted a lot like nini. long brown hair with a bit of highlights, pretty brown eyes, and a cute smile. she's also a great actress and singer-songwriter, but there was something wrong. she was not nini, his first love.

ricky and mia were taking a walk around the neighbourhood and chatting.

"hey, it's almost your birthday, do you have anything planned babe?" mia asks.
Ricky looked at his girlfriend with a smile. "maybe i'll just invite our friends to hang out in my house."
"that's nice! also, finally we get to know where your soulmate is." mia says excitedly. "i hope your wrist would say 0, because we're technically made for each other and i'll be beside you when you turn 18."

ricky chuckles nervously. yes, he loved mia, but he loved nini even more.

it was the night before his birthday, all his friends including mia were there. they ate, talked and had fun until they saw the clock. 1 minute til the clock strikes 12. ricky was nervous.

when it hit 12, lynne took out a birthday cake and they all sang for him. after, he rolled up his sleeve to check the numbers. 1,396 miles.

"ok, let's leave the two alone for a while." lynne says to his other friends, leading them to the kitchen and asking them if they wanted some cake.

"mia, i'm sorry i wasn't expecting this. there's probably a mistake." ricky says, holding her hand.

mia looked at ricky with tears falling down her face. "hey it's ok, and i don't think there's a mistake. whatever says on your wrist is final and you can't change that."

ricky sighs. "but hey, we're still good right?"

mia looked unsure. "ricky, i don't think so. it clearly says that I'm not your soulmate. i think it would be best if we just break up. find your soulmate."

ricky had tears in his eyes. he was surprised how supportive mia was. "but we can still be friends right? best friends?"

"of course, ricky! i'll be here every step of the way." mia replies and ricky pulls her into a tight hug.

during the rest of his senior year, ricky always wondered who was his soulmate and why that person lived over 1,000 miles away from him. it was nice that all his friends especially mia were being so supportive.

after graduation, ricky decided to attend college in uc berkeley. he noticed that the numbers were slowly decreasing, meaning he is one step away from meeting his soulmate.

he was on his way to the dorm when he ran into someone very familiar.

"oh my, i'm sorry." a familiar female voice said.
"nini?"
"ricky?"
"wow! it's been so long. how are you?" ricky asks pulling her to a hug.
"great actually, but hey i missed you." nini exclaims.
"ya, i missed you too. you wanna catch up? maybe have dinner?" ricky suggests.
"of course! does tonight sound good?" nini asks.
"alright, i'll see you." ricky smiles.

they both walk away with a huge smile on their faces. sure, they had past relationships over the past 2 years they didn't see other, but they didn't get over their feelings for each other. there was some sort of spark between them.

as soon as ricky returned to his dorm, he felt a burning sensation on his left wrist. the numbers were changing. 10 miles. he was shocked. he couldn't believe that his soulmate was on campus.

it was time for the two to meet for dinner. ricky planned to take her out for pasta since he remembered it was her favorite. they were nervous since they haven't talked or seen each other for so long. after talking about what has happened to them in the past years, which turned out better than expected, nini suggested to have ice cream at a nearby 24 hour ice cream shop. after finishing their dessert, they sat down at a park bench.

"so how's chicago?" nini asks.
"uhm great actually! my school was great, met a lot of new friends and even my girlfriend, mia." ricky replies.
nini gave a sad look. "oh, girlfriend huh?"

"sorry, i meant ex-girlfriend. we broke up during my 18th birthday."

"oh i'm so sorry ricky. but hold on, what kind of girl would break up with their boyfriend during his birthday?? also who the hell breaks up with you?? you're like the sweetest and most amazing guy ever." nini shouts which made ricky chuckle a bit.

"well, she broke up with me because we're not soulmates. my wrist said exactly 1,396 miles but she was right there next to me." ricky replies.

nini was surprised. "1,396 miles? really? because those exact numbers also appeared on my wrist on my 18th birthday."

suddenly, both of them felt a burning sensation on their wrists. they both rolled up their sleeves and it said the exact same number. 0 miles.

they both looked up and smiled at each other. they were both relieved that they were soulmates.

"hey nins, i never got the chance to say this but i like you and not just as a friend. more than that. it was always you. i just didn't have the courage to say it back then. when i was with mia, it was great but there was something missing. i'm not saying this just because we're soulmates ok? i'm saying this because it's the truth." ricky admits which made nini smile and tear up.

nini didn't say anything, instead she just kissed him. "well, i like you too. a lot. that's why it was hard when you left. i also wanted to let it out it's just i was scared that it might ruin our relationship as friends."

"ok how about i finally take you out on date? for real!" ricky asks.

nini kissed him again. "i'd love to!"

note: typical soulmate au inspired by a tiktok i saw :)) sorry about the grammar errors :")
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