Small Stories

The Count

Chapter 1

0003 days 07 hours 35 minutes 32 seconds
3 days. Only 3 more days until my friend, Bella, meets her soulmate. My name is Alice. I'm 22 years old. Bella is 21, soon to be 22. We live in a small apartment in New York City. Somewhere, someone else has the same numbers as she does. Are they as nervous as she is? Are they excited? Scared? Or all of the above? Because I know she is.
With each minutes passing, the more fidgety she is. One minute Bella is walking across the room, an occasional skip here and there. And the next, she is tapping her foot anxiously on the ground.
"Calm down Bella, you still have three days." I told her. She looked at me and nodded slightly before talking. "I know. It's just, three days. I remember looking at my wrist exactly ten years ago, and dreaming of this moment." Bella explained, getting a drink of water, each drop filling the small glass. Our 'watches' as we call it, appear when we are two months from turning twelve. Which is exactly ten years ago for Bella.
No one knows how. No one knows when, I think it's when we sleep, they just... Appear. We're not closer to finding out either, it's just going to be a mystery.
"Let's go for a walk." Bella suggests pouring the rest of the clear liquid down the sink. I agree and stand up, slipping my shoes on. As we exit the building, the smell of gas and the sound of construction undergoing overtakes my body. We take a left and head to the nearest park. Children running, and swinging. Some, scratching at their wrists, notifying me that they got their 'watches' last night. I smile at the thought and look back down to Bella's wrist.
0003 days 07 hours 14 minutes 15 seconds.
My feet take me to follow Bella, towards a small bench, as we sit I overhear a small conversation a few metres away from me.
"I'm Mary"
"Jack, I guess we're soul mates then, huh?"
I tune out of their private conversation and look down at the ground.
"I'm starving! I feel like a burger, wanna go?" Bella asks, breaking the comfortable silence that hung. I give a small nod and jump up starting to walk towards the fast food joint nearby. "You coming?" I question, looking back at a still sitting Bella.
"Yeah"

As we enter the restaurant my stomach growls at me, signalling I'm hungrier than I thought. The man in front of me kept looking around, then back down to his wrist. I wonder how long he's got? A minute? People this nervous usually don't have long. He looks about 24, 25? That's a normal age. Suddenly a male comes through the door, looking around frantically. The man in front of us leaves his spot to makes his way to the newest customer, looking at his 'watch' occasionally.
"I'm Ben" were his first words to his soulmate.
The new customer looked relieved as he replied with his own name.
"Peter"
I smile at myself as someone else found their one and only and ordered my food. I hope Bella gets someone that's right for her. Fingers crossed.