The Lion and The Dove

Burning to meeting

Bryce walked into school, and made sure to cover his wrists. He didn't want people to know about his tattoos (That's why he wore an extra large sweater). "Hey! Happy Birthday dude!" A voice yelled out from behind him. He jumped and quickly turned around grabbing his wrists on instinct. He sighed with relief when he saw his best friend Matteo.

"Why so jumpy?" His friend laughed, eying him weirdly.

"No, no reason." Bryce lied looking at where his tattoo was inked into his skin.

"Oh! You got your tattoos, that's awsome! Let's see them!" Matteo said, a giant grin spreading across his face and taking a step towards Bryce, who started to panic.

"No!" He shot back, taking a huge step backwards. Matteo's eyebrows squashed together and he looked at Bryce like he was crazy.

"What's wrong with you?" He asked, narrowing his eyes, and jumping to look at his friend's wrist.

"Nothing. I-I'm fine." Bryce lied tugging at his sleeve trying to cover up his already covered tattoos.

"You don't seem fine." Matteo said, wondering why he was hiding his tattoos. He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, and then noticed the oversized sweater.

"Why won't you let me see your tattoo? It can't be worse than mine." He said, slowly rolling up his sleeve and showing his friend the small smiling avocado man wearing a top hat and a monocle on his wrist. He quickly covered it up before anyone saw.

Bryce puffed out his cheeks and sighed. "Fine. Just," He looked around the crowded hallway. "Don't, freak out." He said. That peaked Matteo's interest. "Why would I freak out?" Instead of answering him, Bryce rolled up his sleeve and showed him his tattoo.

Matteo looked eagerly at his friend's tattoo. He rose an eyebrow and looked Bryce. "That's why you didn't want to show me? Because it's girlie?" Bryce rolled his eyes. "No," He told his friend quietly. "It's because of this." Cautiously looking around the hallway for any unwanted glances, he took hold of his sleeve and puffed out his cheeks out again, wanting to back out and run. With one quick motion he yanked up his sleeve and looked away, wanting to yank it back down again.

"What the hell..." Matteo said doing a double take on his friend's tattoo. He took off his glasses and cleaned them, then put them back on to make sure he wasn't seeing things. "You have the same tattoo?!" He yelled out and Bryce jumped on his friend and covered his mouth.

"Shut up!" Bryce hissed and he did a quick scan of the hallway and sighed with relief, as he saw no one had paid attention to them. "How the hell do you have two of the same tattoos??" Matteo asked, his voice muffled through Bryce's hand. "I don't know, midnight hit and these appeared. My aunt has no idea how it's possible either" Matteo said muffled words.

"What? I didn't understand a word you-" Bryce told him, but then realized he still had his hand over his mouth. "Oh, sorry." He apologized, taking his hand off Matteo's mouth.

"Why does your hand smell so gross?" Matteo asked, pretending to gag.

"I don't know, I don't think I've washed it." Bryce replied and Matteo ignored the explanation, and brought the conversation back to his tattoos.

"How the hell do you have two of the same tattoos??" Matteo asked this time in a hushed voice, they were still in the middle of the hallway.

"I told you, I don't know, they just app-" out of nowhere a horrible burning pain sliced through his left arm. He yelped in pain jumped away from Matteo. He grabbed his left wrist as it burned like someone was branding his arm. "Ow ow ow." He cried out clutching his left wrist. People in the hallway were looking at him like he was insane.

"What's wrong with you?" Matteo asked, watching his friend clutch his tattoo and cry out in pain.

"My, my tattoo," Bryce said through clenched teeth. "It-it burns." He breathed out through this teeth.

"Then that means she's close." Matteo realized, and he quickly scanned the hallways. He almost immediately caught sight of an ash blonde girl, who looked to be in similar pain to Bryce. Matteo recognized her, she was in his Biology class.

"Bryce! Bryce! I found her! I found her!" Matteo said excitedly as if he was playing a game of Hide N Go Seek with her and he was it. Bryce turned around and looked up, and through his pain squinted eyes he saw her. She was short and pale, her hair was really long and wavy, and he noticed it was ash blonde. She had a slight scar across her cheek, and her lips were a dark almost blood red. He couldn't see her eyes very well because they were squinted closed.

"That's her?" He asked, looking at the girl and trying not to cry out in agony again, as his tattoo pulsed like it had its own heart.

"Yeah I guess, I know her she's in my Bio class."

"What's her name?"

"Uhhh." Matteo scratched his head trying to rack his mind for her name. But he couldn't remember for the life of him.

"I think it's Amber? Maybe not... I don't remember." He shrugged, scratching the back of his neck.

"I thought you said she was in your class." Bryce said and Matteo shrugged again.

"I don't talk to her so why should I know her name?" Bryce rolled his eyes and looked back at his soulmate who was leaning against a wall of lockers clutching her arm. It looked like she was in a lot of pain.

"Well? Go." Matteo said waving his hands and ushering Bryce to go.

"What?" Bryce asked, quickly turning and wincing as his arm burned more.

"She's your soulmate, go talk to her." Bryce looked at him wide eyed. "Oh my god, she's not gonna eat you! Go talk to her." Bryce looked at the girl again, feeling his chest go tight.