the universe was cruel ; a #prekerb #sheith soulmate/hanahaki au fic thread ft #angst and (not so) unrequited love

this is my first time writing sheith so be gentle lol. pls like/rt to spread

Keith's father had told him since he was very young about soulmates. He told him that they'd be like his other half, the one person that the universe had chosen specifically for him.

He said that his soulmark was it's way of telling him who his soulmate would be. That the soulmark would mirror his soulmate's personality.

If they were soft and introverted, his mark would be written in neat, delicate cursive. If they were bolder and extroverted, the soulmark would be rougher, jagged, and worn.

He told Keith that the connection would be nearly unbreakable. It would be intense and overwhelming. It'd be like a string was tied around his wrist, firmly tying him to his soulmate.

When he got his mark wouldn't be determined by age or stage of life. The universe would only grant it when it was deemed necessary; when he needed the unique feeling of love and comfort only is soulmate could provide.

The night his dad didn't come home from work was the same night that the name 'Takashi Shirogane' appeared on the inside of his left wrist.

~*~

A few weeks later, his fathers family organized the funeral. Keith's uncle made sure he showered and looked presentable, getting him a suit (that fit him well enough) and a pair of dress shoes.

He also slicked back Keith's hair, styling it so it was smooth and neat instead of its usual shaggy mess.

His dad would always tease him about his hair - how it was getting to be too long and unruly, how his bangs would constantly fall into his eyes, and how little curls were beginning/starting to form near the nape of his neck.

He would ruffle Keith's mop of hair and tease him with a hearty chuckle that he needed to get it cut soon.

Keith didn't know what he was going to do with his hair now.

(I’m making dinner so I’m gonna take a break for a bit. hope y’all like it so far )

~*~

The car ride to the funeral was long. Keith sat in the passenger seat as he stared out the window. Sandy hills and patches of grass whizzed by but Keith's eyes remained unfocused and glazed over, unseeing.

Everything he saw reminded him of his father.  When Keith saw the long winding roads that ran in the middle of the desert, he remembered how his dad would take him out to reach him how to drive with his old Mustang.

He would always calm Keith's nerves by telling jokes while they were driving together.

When he saw the steep drop off of the nearby cliff, he would remember how his dad would drive his motorcycle out to the cliff and they would watch the sunset together. Some nights his dad would bring fire wood and they would have s'mores together while watching the sun go down.

Those places would always make him feel light and airy, like he didn't have a care or worry in the world. Now when he sees those places, all he feels is a pain in his chest and the overwhelming realization that he would never feel that way again.

(heading to bed!)

Keith watched his fathers’ casket get lowered into the ground with wide, glassy violet eyes and trembling lips. His throat felt heavy and sore, like there was a ball stuck in his throat he could never swallow that was made of fear, loneliness and sorrow.

The funeral service drudged by for another hour or so, filled with relatives and other strangers giving Keith their condolences with the same sympathetic look on their faces. Some relatives he didn’t remember, they probably only last saw him when he was a child.

Keith was sure those relatives were nice and all. He just wished that he could’ve met them on better circumstances though.

-

From the moment the lieutenant had walked into keith's classroom for recruitment, he felt an instant pull in his chest. Keith couldn't stop himself from stealing a quick glance at the recruiter before stubbornly looking back out the window.

The brief look he got of the mans' face was enough to make his stomach flutter and his soulmark tingle. Keith’s eyes widened, because how could his soulmate be a lieutenant from the garrison and how could he be meeting them now?

Keith’s suspicions were confirmed when his teacher introduced the lieutenant as Takashi Shirogane. The moment those words passed his teachers lips, his soulmark started to pulse rapidly beneath his skin like a heartbeat.