Run

Map Of The Soul

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Written by Authoress Kamara

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Chapter 2: Run

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Kai almost collapsed when he realized who the voice must have belonged to, half from the shock and half from the terrible state he was suddenly in.

The fear was still throbbing like a bruise in the back of his head, a stronger feeling than he had ever experienced from his soulmate before.

And he knew whatever happening must be bad because his soulmate must have be so desperate for help that he decided to contact him.

“Help me, please “.

There it was again, the voice shaking, sounding so pained.

Though weak, it was unmistakably a male’s voice, he noted.

After twenty years, this was the very first voluntary signal Kai had ever heard from his soulmate.

He should have been angry, or disappointed or something like that.

But he couldn’t feel anything right now other an overwhelming desire to help.

“I’m here “. Kai whispered replying in a soothing way he could think of. “It’s okay, I’m here, you are okay “.

*

*

Finn despised the fact that his soulmate existed, despised the fact that he had something like that to live for.

And he loathed that he was finding it harder and harder to ignore that the person on the other end of the connection was out there, and that they had saved him more than once.

There had been nights when Finn had woken up, sweating from nightmares, flashbacks and he needed someone so badly, that he had let down his walls and allowed his connection to flow freely.

He never spoke—he just listened.

And he heard his soulmate, heard him singing and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever heard.

And the voice had pulled him out of his terror just enough to let him fall back asleep again.

When he woke up later that day, Finn had absolutely hated himself for allowing something like to happen, reminding himself that opening up wasn’t worth it.

But now was different.

He was going to die on the bus and that made him so weak he didn’t care about anything else when he decided to reach out and contact his soulmate.

“I think I’m gonna die, I’m gonna die on this bus, I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe “. Finn mumbled breathlessly.

He couldn’t even control his thoughts anymore, something was breaking in him.

“Oh my God, relax, it’s okay, you are fine, just listen to me”. His soulmate responded sounding a little frantic.

Finn focused more on the lowness of the voice speaking to him and how good it felt, how it allowed him to loosen his grip on the seat a little bit, breathe a little better.

It was his voice more than anything, more than his actual words, the way it seemed to have its source in his mind and it seeped and flowed like a calming river through all of his senses.

“Keep talking “. Finn muttered before he could stop it, his head still light to think of the regret he might have later.

“Sure, sure, anything for you, it’s gonna be okay, just focus on my voice, just listen to me, you are going to be alright “. His soul mate continued from the other end.

Finn pressed his head against the headrest, his forehead digging into the rough fabric, the pain distracting him from the crushing seas of terror all around him.

He focused on the voice speaking to him, breathing deeply as he listened. He could actually relax, and it was because of his soulmate’s voice.

He loosened his grip on the armrest even more, taking in air through his nose, as slowly as he could.

“Just breathe “. Came the voice again, so soft and gentle.

The voice paused for a moment.

“Any better ?”. The deep thrum of it was laced with concern, washing over his panicked thoughts like honey, irresistible.

Finn couldn’t stop himself from replying with a weak “yeah”.

*

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Kai ended up lying on his bed, even after Adonis came home, awake talking to his soulmate for seven hours.

After the initial conversation, his soulmate had stopped responding, but he continued anyways.

Underneath the soft talks, he could sense hesitation from his soulmate and that told him the latter didn’t want to interact with him.

Perhaps, the anxiety forced him to.

Even so, Kai was pleased he could be there for his soulmate, for his other half, for his everything.

He only wondered why this was the first time he had ever heard from him.

Him.

His soulmate was a he, that was for sure.

And Kai was overjoyed by the little fact he learned, maybe he was getting somewhere with him. Maybe, they would finally meet after this little interaction.

His frail voice, still echoed in his mind, weak and desperate.

“Keep talking “.

Like his words were the only thing anchoring him down.

Maybe they were.

**

**

The next morning, Kai woke up to the sound of his alarm blaring, waking him up harshly.

Any presence his soulmate had had the night before had entirely gone and he couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.

However those thoughts were momentarily pushed away from his mind when he glanced at the time on his phone.

7:45am.

He was supposed to give a campus tour at 8:30.

He realized with a jolt practically throwing himself out of the bed and at the dresser, quickly settling on a loose button-down shirt and jeans with a rip in them.

Playing with his hair in the mirror quickly, his waves setting into something that looked vaguely presentable as he grabbed his recommended glasses.

Looking himself over quickly once more, adjusting his shirt collar and muttering a ‘good enough’, he threw a beat up pair of converse on his feet and booked it out the door, snatching his bag on the way out.

“Have a nice day, Kai!!”. Adonis yelled out from his bed laughing having witness the morning breakdown his roommate had.

Kai didn’t have time to respond as he ran out the door.

The trip to campus where the tour was scheduled to meet would take a good ten minutes and it was already fifteen minutes past eight.

If he ran, he could make it, and he did run.

He probably looked psychotic but it was fine because he skidded into campus at exactly 26 minutes past eight which was a good time for him.

He was really conscious about this tour because he needed the money.

The sky was clear and Kai suddenly realized that in his frantic rush, he had forgotten his jacket, the cold coming upon him suddenly.

Glancing around at all the people bundled up in in warm coats, he rubbed his hands shivering.

Several people had already gathered for the tour and Kai made small talks with them, at best as he could, masking his shivers with a bright smile.

Half of the people showing up were kids thinking about getting into the university and the other half were already enrolled and there to stay but didn’t know their way around.

Either way, Kai remembered freshman year, just a year ago before he had made any friends; he had been late to class so many times because he had gotten lost.

Until finally, Fox Everett, a sophomore then, showed him around and that’s how they became close friends actually.

Anyways Kai remembered how alone he was in his first weeks of being a freshman and he didn’t want any of the new students coming in to feel the same way.

Once the full group had showed up, he flashed his trademark smile, leading them around, pointing out significant buildings and adding in whatever useful information he gathered from his own experiences.

However, there was one person hanging at the back of the group who stood apart.

From what Kai could see, he noticed the boy looked exhausted, dark patches showing distinctly under his eyes against the lighter tone of his skin.

As the group talked among themselves, he gradually made his way to the boy.

“Hey there!”. Kai said in what he hoped was a friendly tone.

The other boy looked up through the parted hair that swept over one side of his face, quirking an eyebrow but not saying anything.

A hint of a scowl flashed across the boy’s lips but Kai ignored it, determined to be very friendly.

He stuck out a hand, trying again, flashing out another smile. “Hi. I’m Kai Webster “.

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TBC

Written by Authoress Kamara