Soul Watch

Chapter 5

I heard the bursting of another balloon from the next room followed by Poppy's "Goddamn it, balloon!"

I looked over to see Torrey in the living room, one of our friends from school, pointing and laughing at her while bending over. I smiled as I watched all of them help Crysta get ready for their Founding. Some of them blew balloons, some cooked up a storm; even Crysta's parents were out busy running errands for the party, and the rest were setting up decorations for the Founding.

A Founding is a big celebration when two soul mates meet that involved families and friends coming together to celebrate the Reunion of two souls after being separated for a long, torturous time. Friends and families would fuss over the couple, bless them, and talk about marriage; sometimes, if not most. A Founding was more significant than any birthday party and more festive than any Christmas gathering; a Founding is the most special celebration anyone with a soul watch could have...or at least, a working one in my case.

We were at Crysta's parent's house, just a two-hour drive away from our college. I sat on the island, busy with my hands deep in potato salad and trying to mash and mix everything evenly while Crysta sat opposite me, writing the obligatory speech after finding your soul mate. It was usually the highlight of the evening where everyone would gather in a room, surround the new couple, and listen to them pour their hearts out to each other before they shared their first kiss in front of all their relatives and friends.

Torrey wiped a tear away from laughing too hard when he saw me gazing at the couple, and he grinned, flashing those pearly white teeth; his chocolate brown eyes twinkled mischievously; his caramel skin shining with a sheen of sweat from laughing and running about too much. Torrey was a total goofball, sparing time to joke around with everyone else as he tried to help out any way he could before usually breaking or destroying something, and people chased him away. Even Monique and Adrianna, usually reserved and slow to anger, chased him away when he ruined the banner with too much blue paint.

He took the new balloon Poppy was trying to inflate mid-blow and came over to me as she yelled after him, "You asshole!"

"How are we girls doing today?" Torrey nodded at Crysta and me as he leaned on the chair I was sitting on. I looked down at the potato salad I was mixing: it was well mixed already, the bacon and cheese evenly spread out. I nodded in satisfaction.

"Pretty good. Look at what a beauty this is turning out." I showed the bowl to him as he ran a hand through his short, trimmed hair. He stared at the contents inside the bowl curiously, like he was examining a contemporary piece of art and did what I least expected him to do. He leaned over me, stuck his head inside of the bowl, and sniffed at the potato salad.

"Torrey, oh my god! What the hell are you doing?" I screamed as I tried to yank the bowl away from his head. He didn't budge. "I have been mixing this since two, so you better get your damn head out of the bowl before you contaminate the salad!" His head came out from the bowl slowly, his lips were stained with a tinge of potato salad, and he licked it with relish.

"Well, there goes the top layer..." Crysta pointed at him with her pen.

I groaned with disgust. "I'm scooping the top layer out." I pushed him aside and got up. "You're sick, you know that?" I glared at him pointedly as he gave me a smug grin.

"Hey, I got an early dinner because of that. So that's totally fine with me."

I groaned again in disbelief as I scooped out the top layer of the potato salad and put it into a smaller bowl.

"Please, I don't want my guests to get food poisoning. If you want some, you could have asked!" Crysta chided him, wagging her pen at him.

Torrey shrugged obstinately, the balloon still dangling from his one hand dangerously. "Nah, what fun would that be, right?"