Black Nightshades

Chapter 1 • First Conversation

The deep purple sky poured heavily. The water droplets ran down his window as he traced them with his fingers. The fragrance of the Nightshades, which were beside his table in a huge vase, and the rain was a favourite combination of his. The clock read 11:37 pm on a Sunday night and Gen was working on his next book. He should be but was distracted by a message from a special someone.

32750/75
=6550/15
=1310/3
=436.6

Looking at the meaningless numbers on his hands put a soft smile on his lips. He loved these. In that world there existed a special connection between soulmates. Not exactly a physical one but something similar. Anything written on someone's hand will appear on their soulmate's too.

Gen didn't understand science much, but his soulmate sure did. Since forever all that popped up on his hands were formulas and calculations. Scientific formulas and calculations. Seemed like they were either extremely smart or a person with the memory of a goldfish. Either way, he had always loved those numbers and symbols of elements.

Naturally, curiosity won him over at a very young age. He had tried writing to his soulmate innumerable times. And they had never replied. Not once. But all the more reasons for him to try. Just once more.

Gen: haven't slept yet??

Meanwhile, Senku was busy with work. The entire day he had helped out his mother at her flower shop and did not remember his homework. It was due the next day but he needn't take any pressure. He topped all the classes after all. Homeworks and exams were a piece of cake. Not being able to find a paper he could use for his calculations he used his pen to just work it out on his hand, forgetting that someone else will also be able to see it. He was so immersed in Mathematics that he jumped when his skin prickled. A message for him.

Soulmate: haven't slept yet??

Looking at that all he could think was that the whole thing was stupid. This connection between two seemingly strangers was anything but logical. From the moment he knew about this, the thing he had wondered was how could this be possible and not who is my soulmate? That's just the kind of person he was.

Years passed and he still hadn't figured it out. He may tell others that he wasn't interested in it anymore but in reality, he was. He will always be. He just didn't want to show it.

When asked Byakuya, his adoptive father, he had replied, "Senku, you might think of this as illogical. Flimsy, even. But the day you meet them you will understand."

If Senku was not anything, then it was a romantic. He had absolutely no interest whatsoever when it came to romance. He would rather fall in love with information and facts than a person. That's the reason he had never responded to them. It wasn't his priority. But this time for the the sake of his father's words, he set his pencil down, grabbed a marker and took a chance.

Senku: no
Soulmate: yay! you actually replied
Senku: ya I'm surprised too
Soulmate: soulmate chaaaan :( anyway it's late go to sleep
Senku: may I ask what you're doing
Soulmate: >_< go sleep now soulmate chan we have school tomorrow
Senku: oh I can wake up early
Soulmate: reaaaaly?! I can't tho
Senku: then go sleep
Soulmate: noooo
Senku: why not
Soulmate: cmon
Senku: ?
Soulmate: look we haven't talked in years and we're supposed to be SoUlMaTeS
Senku: I can't be talking to a person I don't even know besides I have stuff to do
Soulmate: so do I soulmate chan but I want to talk to you
Senku: I don't want to