Story Idea: Polin #39- Soul Marks
On your 18th birthday you get a soul mark - one that would be identical to your soulmates. Colin is devastated that his does not match Marina’s.
Trying to lighten up his mood days later - his brothers teasingly console him by saying that Penelope could get his mark when she turns 18 and that’s when she overhears him say that he would never marry her because he didn't think she's his soulmate.
And as is Penelope's life a couple years later she gets an identical mark. Now she plans to hide it because she can’t handle his disappointment.
“Penelope Featherington is certainly not my soulmate.”
OK I'm going to attempt to do a Colin POV where he suffers and pays for his words.. And also maybe gets some hope:
"I don't have a soulmate"
She said it so casually, with such resignation and lightness, as if she didn't realized she had just pulled the rug from under his feet. He felt like he couldn't breathe and could see his brother's concerned eyes from across the room.
"I'm so sorry Pen!" his sister exclaimed and Penelope just shrugged "It's ok, it wasn't meant to be for me." she said and he finally identified some emotion on her part about the whole ordeal through the slight tremor in her voice.
He wanted to hug her, he wanted to console her, he wanted to ask her to give him a chance, to tell her she was his even if he wasn't hers, that he was bound to love her his whole life. To beg her to let him love her, even if she could never love him.
And the Hyacinth said the damming words "Don't worry, I read that there's others without one and that a theory has proved that it just means you have multiple ones, that you can choose who to love"
Penelope looked at his sister en shook and he wanted to strangle her. There was no need in making things more difficult for him, he had already made things difficult for himself assuming she was bound to get his mark, that she would be his and he would be hers and that would be it. His best friend would be his wife.
But alas Penelope just said "Oh!" with a barely there grimace and quick glance at himself that made him wonder if she knew he was bound to her, that she could choose him, and still choose spinsterhood over him. And even if it was just a passing through, and even if he imagined it broke his heart all over again.
"Truly I think it's because my real soulmate is Eloise, I'm just not meant for romantic love" she quickly added holding his sister's hand as the pair smiled to each others.
"Yeah well, if mister weird flower ever shows up he'll have to deal with the fact that you're my soulmate too" retorted Eloise haughty making Pen giggle in that way of hers that always made him feel better... Only this time it took his breath away in a completely different way.
"I... Need to go..." he's stammered needing to get away, needing to feel his pain where it wouldn't taint her.
"We promised Dupont we'd meet him at the club, right Benedict?" Anthony completed, in that commanding tone he hated when it chastised him but now couldn't be more grateful for.
"Yes!" exclaimed Benedict, inmediately turning to Pen and adding "Don't worry, I'm sure there's someone so hopelessly in love with you he will not mind having to pry you from my sister's clutches".
This made Penelope laugh, a true uncontrolled laugh that gave him a bit of hope until she said "I seriously doubt that".
And he hated and loved his brother simultaneously when he responded with a wink and a "Believe me, I know him". Leaving Penelope speechless as he crossed the room and he and Anthony pulled him outside.
"You know, literally trying to drown your sorrows won't do anything to help your case" said Anthony as Colin his pity party with the second half of his 3rd bottle of whiskey.
"Doesn't matter, I was cursed by my own words and now bound to live a cursed existence" his brothers looked at each other as Colin continued to mope.
"Stop being so overly dramatic Colin, there must be a solution" Anthony said with a confidence that felt more staged than Colin's weary heat could take.
"When I said she was certainly not my soulmate I knew I was lying before I even finished the sentence, and now it's true. She's not mine, I'm hers but she isn't mine"
"Look at the bright side" said Benedict carefully "she could have gotten a reciprocated mark that wasn't yours, you still have a chance. Slim as it might be"
And Colin contemplated his brother's words, he was right in a way. He imagined Penelope in the hands of an unknown man, matching marks and smiles, her bright eyes shining for this stranger, her twinkling laugh encompassing someone else, her beautiful thoughts shared with her soulmate as he watched on the sidelines. Worst of all he imagined her leaving, moving out of her house into her husband's, out of Colin's life into her soulmate's, and knew that God had been merciful enough to let him keep her in his life. It still didn't cure the pain he felt, he knew nothing but her ever would.
"I'm never gonna marry. It's her or no one" he declared, knowing he could never pretend to be like her, to be able to choose when his heart had been settled on her before he even understood it was, before he comprehend that everything he felt for her was love and not friendship.
"Then we make sure it's her" said Benedict resolutely. And at Colin's grateful expression Anthony couldn't help but add "After all, how hard can it be to convince her to give you at least one chance? Your devotion alone should be able to get you a chance"
They had no idea.
