Where We Lay (newtmas au)

Chapter 1

[chapter one] ; I am trying so hard not to act how I feel
*

Thomas has always believed in soulmates. When he first started understanding what soulmates meant, his mother had to physically tear him away from the mirror where he would sit for hours, examining his left eye. The color of his soulmates eye. He was so memorized with the chestnut color. He could spend forever looking at it. He was made to.

But now, at twenty one years old, his his hope is quickly fading. Every one of his friends have found their soulmate and are already married or madly in love. It's a little sickening to watch sometimes. He almost shit himself when he found out his twin sister and best friend were soulmates when he introduced them. He likes to hold it over their heads that they wouldn't have found each other without him.

"Tom!"

Thomas groans internally when Teresa, his twin sister older by two minutes, bursts in his room. He's still in bed, attempting to hide under the covers from the demon reincarnation known as his sister. The covers were ripped off his body, revealing him laying in a fetal position in his boxers.

"The fuck you want, T?" Thomas groans, trying to steal his covers back. Who turned down the thermostat? He hears her snicker and he grabs his pillow to chuck at her, huffing when he misses. She grabs the pillow and throws it back, along with his covers, "C'mon, we heading to the coffee shop." It seems this morning all Thomas is capable of is groaning. "Why?" He drags out, eventually getting up.

"We're meeting up with Minho." He pushes past her to get to his closet, picking out a red and black flannel and blue jeans. "So I can watch you two pretend to study while I sit alone and sulk? Yeah, while that sounds amazing, I'm gonna have to pass," He retorts, tugging his jeans on.

Teresa rolls her eyes, "You're not going to be third wheeling this time. Alby and Brenda are coming along." Thomas finishes buttoning his shirt up, throwing her a look, "Oh, so I'll be fifth wheeling? That is so much better than third wheeling, I get to feel twice as lonelier!" Teresa sighs, wanting nothing more than to comfort her brother, "Tom, you know not everything revolves around finding your soulmate, right?"

"Then why the hell does it feel like it?" He doesn't know why he's feeling this down on some random day but it's been bugging him for several weeks now. "You know what, let's just drop it," He says, realizing she's not going to help is problem in any way. She gives him a sad look before awkwardly patting him on the back. "You know I hate it when I can't help you. Now hurry up and get ready, I haven't seen Minho since last Thursday," She smiles reassuringly at him, slapping his butt on her way out. He sighs as he watched her shut his door. He loves Teresa and his friends, he really does, but they're a pain in his ass.

Saying he really doesn't want to go to the coffee shop was a understatement. It's his second year of college at Harvard and this is the first day he doesn't have a class, aside the weekends, since the semester started. He had originally planned to sleep till the afternoon and play video games until he passed out but that plan is seemingly ruined.

He sprays some cologne on and plays with his hair a bit before exiting his room and entering the living room. There's another local university that Teresa and Minho go to. He shares an apartment close to both universities with Teresa, although Minho practically lives with them, being Thomas' best friend and Teresa's soulmate.

It's a funny story, how Teresa and Minho found each other. Well, it's funny to Thomas. He had been best friends with Minho for several years before ever inviting him to meet his family. He and Teresa were fifteen when they had moved to Wicked City. Teresa and their little brother, Chuck, were being homeschooled due to bullying problems but Thomas insisted on going to public school.

Minho was his first and only friend. It was two years later that Thomas had fully trusted him, and invited Minho to meet his family. Thomas came home one day from school, Minho following behind. They had walked into the living room, the whole family gathered in there.

Thomas' parents, Lisa and Patrick, were sitting on the couch, watching a movie, while Teresa and Chuck were playing an intense game of go fish on the floor. Minho had instantly frozen up and when Thomas looked at him, his eyes were both a chocolate brown. His left eye had been a dazzling blue, and Thomas had, then, realized looked an awful like his sisters right eye.

Teresa's jaw dropped and the whole family watched as her brown, that oddly looked like Minho's, left eye slowly change into blue. And, yeah, that confirmed it.

After Thomas yelling at Minho for quite a while because "That's my fucking sister!" Chuck managed to calm him down and drag him to their shared room. "Look, dude, I'm only nine so I barely understand soulmates and all that shuck but you need to realize that they didn't have a choice. Just like you don't. And whether you like it or not, they're going to spend the rest of their lives together. So stop acting like klunk and just accept it," Chuck was only nine and obviously not allowed to use cuss words so their parents made up new words for him. But he had made a fair point. Man, even a nine year old was smarter than him at the time.

Four years later and he's glad that they found each other. Or that he basically lead them to each other.
When it was Minho and Teresa's fourth year anniversary party, Thomas had made Minho promise that he'd better be the best man and tomatoes didn't compare to the color of Teresa's face.

"Thomster!"

Thomas physically cringes at Minho's nickname for him. Minho came from inside the kitchen to Thomas and grins, slapping his back. Thomas conceals his own grin, shoving Minho away playfully "I thought I told you not to call me that, Min-hoe." The black haired boy just smirks and his eyes crinkle cutely, "You're in for it now," and tackles Thomas with half his strength, showing him he's just messing around. Thomas grins widely, no longer hiding his joy at seeing his friend, and manages to scruff Minho's hair up in the tangle of limbs they're stuck in. Thomas waits for a couple of seconds and, then, "You fucker!"

Thomas scrambles to his feet and sprints to the kitchen, Minho hot on his heels. Thomas laughs loudly as Minho chases him around the island counter. Their fun is cut short, however, as Teresa enters the kitchen, scowling. Thomas stops running abruptly, Minho stopping late and crashing into Thomas' back, sending them to the ground in a heap of cackles and snorts.

"Minho, babe, what are you doing here? I thought we were meeting at the shop?" Teresa asks her boyfriend, still frowning. Minho jumps to his feet, helping Thomas up. "Yeah, well, Alby canceled because he has a date and Brenda is working overtime," He explains, leaving the twins confused. "But what are you-okay never mind. Knowing you, the answer isn't going to make sense anyways," Teresa sighs, dragging them out the door with her, grabbing her keys along the way.

*

"That'll be $5.68, would you like your receipt?" A British, monotone voice asks him. "Yeah, please," Thomas answers, not looking up from his phone. Cut the rope's getting intense. He barely glances up as the cashier hands him his latte, reading his nameplate, "Thanks, Newt." He doesn't bother looking at his face, walking to the Minho and Teresa were sitting in, unaware of the fact that he just passed his soulmate.