Chapter 5

Abigail Langdon was exhausted. It had been a long day yesterday, although the trouble started only in the evening following the incident at the park. After the young boy ran away, Olliver continued to cry and struggle in her arms. It had been extremely difficult to calm her baby boy. However, her troubles did not end there. Somewhere around two-thirty in the morning Olliver had started hiccupping and sighing in his sleep and that is when Abigail realized that the toddler was burning up. He had high fever. She immediately woke up Olliver, forced him to swallow some paracetamol and started placing cold towels on his forehead. It had been a long night. Olliver’s fever had gone down just a tad bit but it was clear that she would have to go to the doctors’ soon. She had checked his mark and was relieved to see that it was not swollen or infected. Usually, the marks took care of themselves and the need for medical attention would be rare. Abigail was concerned about the fever. It certainly seemed connected to the incident yesterday. She was sitting in the living room, sipping her strong, bitter black coffee as she waited for her boy to wake up. She was aware of Cecily’s continuous chatting but she was too lost in her thoughts to make sense of anything.

It was about an hour later that Olliver came out, still flushed red and rubbing his groggy eyes. Abigail immediately checked him again and was tensed to know that the fever had not gone down at all. She picked him up, got him ready so they could go to the doctors’ as soon as possible. Cecily had recommended a good doctor who was also knowledgeable in problems related to bond marks.

“Ma, are we going to the park?” Abigail was startled hearing Olliver’s question.

“What? No no, baby, you have to go to the Doctors’ . You re burning up, baby.”

“I know I have fever, but we have to go to the park! Please mama, let’s go there. He will be there, I know it. I want to see him again, please, mama, Please!” The toddler’s eyes filled with tears as he was pleading and Abigail’s heart melted.

“Listen, baby, we have to sort out your fever first, okay. We will go to the park in the evening, is that okay?”

Olliver thought about it and nodded, “Yes, probably. I mean he might come to the park at the same time as yesterday, so..”

“You must be Ms. Langdon and this is young Olliver. Please have a seat.” Cecily too had accompanied the two of them to the doctor’s place, for moral support, she said. However, the way her eyes shined and her cheeks flushed when she interacted with Dr. Blake Cooney, led Abigail to believe that she had a soft spot for the man in front of her. They had been at the full-fledged clinic for nearly an hour now as Olliver underwent some tests and scans. And finally it was time for their consultation.

The moment Olliver sat down in the chair he said, “You were in the military earlier, weren’t you?”

All the adults were taken aback by that, although Abigail was familiar with Olliver’s smart way to analyze people, she had not expected him to say something like this to the good doctor. She stuttered and started to apologize but the doctor waved her off.

“Yes, indeed, I served in Afghanistan as well. And I am surprised that you could see that immediately. It’s been years since I left the military. Do I still have that stiff stance?

Olliver snorted, “Yes, you walk like a soldier.”

Dr. Cooney chuckled. “He is one hell of a smart boy, isn’t he? So, what seems to be the problem?” The doctor started studying reports and frowned. The child had high fever, which seemed to have gone down a notch after he had administered an injection as soon as the women had reached the clinic. But he didn’t seem to have any infection or allergy.

“I know, I don’t have any infection. My fever is because of the boy I met at the park yesterday. That is why I told Ma to take me there but she insisted on coming here.”

Dr. Cooney looked at Abigail sharply, surprised at what the little boy was saying.  The boy, Olliver, was unlike anyone he had ever met. He was smart as hell and the doctor could not possibly dismiss what he was saying. Could the boy be talking about what he thought he was talking about? He took a calming breath and gained control of his reactions. 

“Is that so? You met the boy at the park, is it? Did you introduce yourself?”

Suddenly, Abigail leaned in. She did not like where this was going. She interrupted, “Doctor, Olliver is just..” Blake waved her off though. “Please it’s okay. It’s not the first time I have seen such cases..” You don’t know the half of it, Abigail thought and she asked Cecily to take Olliver out and get him a juice or something.

“It’s okay, I know you want to talk to the doctor alone. But, you will take me to the park in the evening, right?” Abigail couldn’t answer him. She was unsure if it was the right course of action, so she just waved him goodbye as her friend coaxed the boy to follow her.

Few moments passed in silence as Abigail and Blake weighed each other. “Doctor, if he does not have any infection or allergy then what is it?”

“You tell me, Ms. Langdon. Looks like you are not telling me everything. You have not talked to Olliver about soulmate bonds, have you?”

Abigail sighed and shook her head, “What has that got to do with anything? I mean, his mark did come to life yesterday but we are only visiting here. We don’t even know who that boy was. Surely, it will just fade away with time, especially when we return to London.

“What color has the mark turned, ?” Doctor asked and Abigail suddenly felt nervous. Dr. Cooney was assessing her reaction and when the woman in front of him swallowed nervously and kept silent he understood. The mark had turned ink-black. There was no going back now.

“I see,” he said. “Ms. Langdon, I understand you are afraid because Olliver is so young but soulmate marks are meant to protect people and match two souls who are compatible beyond this world. This connection is a pure and magical thing.”

Abigail nodded. “Ms. Langdon, you are not marked, are you?”

Abigail shook her head. “I thought so. It’s very normal for an unmarked person to not understand the full extent of what a marked person goes through. Olliver’s mark has burned because he met ‘the one’ at the park. There is nothing you can do now, except help the two boys meet and become friends. They will find their own way from there. You cannot keep them apart. Consequences for forced separation are dire.”

“Dr. Cooney, it’s not that simple. I don’t even know who the boy is. I mean, I am just visiting for a few days. We live in London.”

“Ms. Langdon, these factors will not affect Olliver’s mark. The only thing that will happen if you go back to London without making a connection with the boy and maintain that connection, even long distance, is that Olliver’s health will deteriorate. Usually, at such young age separation from the soulmate affects physical health.” Abigail’s eyes widened at what the doctor was telling her. She had heard such stories but had not encountered something like that herself. But she had much bigger concern.

“I don’t know doctor, this all seems unreal. He is so young. What if the boy hurts him? And what about the sexual aspect? It’s just that ..”

Cooney chuckled, “I don’t know why, but soulmates does not only entail sexual attraction. Soulmates are so much more than that. Usually when soulmates find each other at such a young age, they play together and with other children like normal kids. They just bond better, know each other better. Sometimes they feel each other’s pain and have the urge to protect each other. The sexual aspect does not come in until both kids’ bodies become sexually aware. You don’t have to worry about anything. Soulmates are incapable of hurting each other.”

Abigail sighed, “You don’t understand. It is not as simple as that…” She rubbed her face and started debating if she should tell the doctor everything. Blake observed her again and realized there was really something more that was bothering her.

“You have not told me everything, have you? What is it that is actually bothering you?”

Abigail sighed and banged her head on the table. After a moment she looked up with tears in her eyes, “Oh doctor! Olliver’s soulmate, the boy. I only saw him for a few moments before he ran away. He is around 17!”

Now the doctor too was stunned and rendered speechless.