soulmates | swaggersouls

i

      "so, do you have a boyfriend yet?" my mother suddenly asked. i had been back in melbourne for approximately ten minutes, and we're already having this conversation.

      "mom, i was just on a twenty hour flight, can we not do this now?" i pouted, my simply mother sighed. i was visiting my parents for a couple of days before going to PAX australia and had just landed at the airport after a long-ass flight that i thought would never fucking end.

      "i understand, i just want to make sure you'll be okay if something happens to me or your dad. your career isn't exactly going to sustain you, you know." she says softly. 

       i look at her briefly, "i honestly don't get you guys sometimes, first i'm not allowed to have a boyfriend at seventeen and now i'm twenty two and you're trying to get me hitched as fast as possible. i don't know what i'm doing here. so i'm sorry if i turned out being a disappointment, okay? i didn't sit my ass on a plane for twenty hours to get scolded for all my decisions." i say suddenly, i hadn't slept much recently and everything was piling on top, stress was building up and i wasn't sure where to go anymore.

         my mother  simply frowned and said nothing, there was now a tension in the car between us as she cleared her throat and started the car and drove us home. i had grown up in melbourne for the first eighteen years of my life, i started youtube when i was sixteen and things changed from there. views started picking up and subscriber numbers grew. once i had hit 100k i decided to move to the u.s. to focus on it more there. that, and to get as far away as possible from my family. they were never supportive of my decision to move to america or even do youtube in the first place. 

       they claimed it was "a waste of time", and i should have gotten a real job. my father was a little more supportive. he encouraged me to chase my ambitions, just don't lose sight of what's important either. my mother, on the other hand, wanted me to be successful in anything else other than what i was already doing. i found myself in a toxic situation and household and decided to put as much distance between us as possible.

       i hadn't formally spoken to them in a good three years, it was only now when i decided to come back for PAX australia. i tried to find a decent hotel not too far from the venue but they were all booked. and i didn't feel like getting murdered in a cheap-ass motel, so unfortunately, i had to stay with my parents. 

       the remainder of the car ride was silent, only the radio playing softly in the background generating any noise. about thirty minutes later we arrived at my childhood home. it hadn't changed much since i left, only the paint being a little dimmer than i remember. we pulled into the driveway slowly and got out of the car. i got my bags out of the trunk and headed inside. 

       upon entering i was immediately greeted by my one of my closest and best friends i've had since i was a girl. my dog aurora and my cat, sabrina. aurora was a golden retriever with the prettiest fur i had seen. i was seven when i first laid my eyes on her at the animal shelter, and we were inseparable ever since. as for sabrina, i had loved sabrina the teenage witch as a girl, so naming the first cat i ever got sabrina meant the world to me.

        aurora barked happily, her tail wagging vigorously and her paws finding it hard to stay still, i dropped everything i was holding and gave her a hug, sabrina running up and placing her soft head on my hand. my mood changed immediately, i had deeply wanted to take them to america with me, but they weren't allowed to be taken out of the country. 

         seeing them after all this time made me remember how much i had actually missed this place. i heard a door close from deeper within the house. soon my father came into view and smiled brightly, i went over and gave him a long hug.

         "i missed you so much," he exclaims, i chuckle softly.

        "i missed you too," i say, he was practically beaming in happiness. 

        he checked the door to make sure my mom wasn't in yet, "she giving you a hard time, yet?"

        i giggled softly, "just a little."

        he let out a sigh of relief, "that's good, she hasn't stop pestering for the past four years, though."

         i laugh, "god, i've missed you."

        the both of us walked to the kitchen and sat down as my mother came in and said she would be taking my bags upstairs to my room. i sat on the stool by the kitchen island as my father passed over a snack.

         "so, how's youtube going for you?" he asks, taking a bite out of a banana.

         i smile, "it's been going great, actually. i've made some pretty good friends but it's kinda hard to actually keep a friend group when they all have their own."

         my father smiled softly, "i'm sure you'll find some good ones eventually. it's only a matter of time. for now, why don't you go down to the cafe you always loved? i heard their book shop has some good books you like."

          "that sounds like a wonderful idea, actually." i reply, "alright then, i'll head on over for a couple hours. i'll be back for dinner." i call out, already heading out the door to the shop not too far from my house.

           walking down the sidewalk really brought back several memories from before i left. i missed the old neighborhood i lived in, i missed the people, and i missed my favourite place i had ever since i was a kid.

         i stared at the little coffee and book shop. i was never really the "social" kid, and if i wasn't at school or at home, i was here.

           i entered the small shop, heading over to the counter to order my favourite drink from the shop. the barista smiled and took my order. i paid and decided to browse at the books in the bookstore. they had added vinyls ever since i had left and it sparked my interest. i would've spent hours browsing the records if a certain book didn't catch my eye.

        the cover was in a medieval style, and weirdly enough it was in the medieval genre. going over the summary it was a sort of romance-type fiction with it's nice balance of mystery and action.

         call it cliché, but i loved shit like this. i smiled softly as i pulled it out to properly read. i sit down at the chairs around the shop and quietly drown out the rest of the world as i begun to read.

         minutes passed and i had read about a chapter and a half. i was heavily induced into the plot and didn't notice the barista calling my name until about a minute later.

            i chuckled nervously as people around the shop looked at me. i apologized quietly to everyone else and awkwardly took the drink. i was heading outside before i contemplated actually buying the book. i stared at the price before i realized that i had literally no money and hardbound books were expensive as fuck.

         i sighed softly and gathered my things before heading out of the shop to go home. i opened the door and looked at my phone to text my family i was coming home, unaware of the person in front of me who apparently didn't see me either.

         the both of us crashed into each other, resulting in a minor chaotic moment. i dropped my drink and swore to myself.

         "for fucks sake i really can't get my motherfucking shit together, goddammit." i swore.

           the person in front of me chuckled quietly, "well aren't you one with words?"

            i looked up at the figure and scoffed softly, "yeah, sorry about that."

           "no, no it's fine. i can fuckin relate, honestly" he smiles.

            i smiled softly, and then i realized this boy had the prettiest fucking eyes i'd ever fucking seen.