Chapter Text
Soulmates weren’t a myth, they weren’t stuff of legend, they were real. And it hurt. You see, Soulmates can feel each other’s pain, while one person gets hurt, the other is left with the scar. It was strange at first, not many people understood what was happening, but it was clear when you met your soulmate, because all your scars burned, they seared, but god, the euphoria one would feel when they finally got to touch their soul mate? It was worth all the pain.
Claire’s first scar appeared when she was nine. She was in class, when she felt the pain searing across her hand. She gasped, looking down and blood had now formed in her palm. The worse the wound is, the harsher the pain. Sometimes, if the connection was strong enough, the other person would bleed too. They were called Bleeders. And Claire was one.
She didn’t exactly want to believe in it, the whole soulmate thing. There had to be some explanation as to why it was happening other than ‘This person is your soulmate’; she wanted there to be a reason to why she could feel this other person’s pain.
It was also rare for people to touch each other. Family, yes, but friends or lovers; It was rare to touch them. It was a complicated life to lead when someone you touched could potentially be your soulmate. It was the touch of your soulmate that could drive you insane. It’s said that people would go ravenous towards each other, the immediate reaction was to kiss, to be as close as possible to one another, making it to be the most intense and world shattering moment.
Claire didn’t like to be touched. She received hugs from her family, or kisses on her cheeks from her mother and father, but when it came to men - she didn’t take pleasure in it. Some women liked the thrill of danger they got from kissing a man that wasn’t their soulmate, sleeping with them even. It wasn’t a desireable thing to Claire. She had kissed, and had sex, but it just felt like a couple of minutes of an accelerated heartbeat.
So, Claire didn’t like to be touched.
Claire had been working at the Jurassic Company for years. It dealt with a lot of different things, it’s own research devision, an animal division unit with investments in theme parks as well as other educational and corporate planning systems.
Claire wasn’t the CEO, but rather, the head of all departments. She was just underneath a CEO, and she did a hell of a lot of work for her job. She oversaw everything that is put through Jurassic Company. This also helped with avoiding unnecessary touching, as most people bowed or nodded in greeting.
There was a new head of the animal division coming to work at Jurassic Company. This meant Claire had to deal with someone new, most likely cocky, who thought they knew the job. Claire had to have meetings with them to make sure they knew what this job meant, and how they would go in the first few weeks of their new job.
Claire stood at the doors of the elevator, waiting patiently for them to open to the new employee. They would be meeting in Claire’s office, but because her assistant, Vivian Krill, was out for the day, which meant Claire had to escort them to her office instead.
The elevator doors opened, and there stood a tall dusty brown haired man, and Claire instantly straightened up. She wasn’t exactly sure why, she felt the need to...impress him. He was big, in the sense of how toned he was. His blue shirt with the rolled up sleeves was tight, showing off his chest and arms. Claire could feel an immediate flush run over her cheeks when she realised she was looking at him in such a way. She pressed her lips together before giving him a warm smile.
He smiled back as he exited the elevator, then suddenly extended his hand to her. “Owen Grady.” he introduced, but Claire backed away. The folder she had clenched in her hand was now up around her chest as she grew the small bit nervous.
“Claire Dearing.” she nodded and directed him to her office. She kept walking and Owen soon went to her side.
“Oh, you’re one of those soulmate nuts that don’t touch anyone.” he spoke in such a way, it made Claire feel like she was on the edge of something. She didn’t know what the edge she was on, but it made Claire feel like she could jump and fall into it.
“I’m a regular person who likes personal space, Mr Grady.” Claire mentioned over her shoulder, opening up her door and walking through. She sat at her desk, pulling herself into the gap and gesturing for Owen to sit down. “Do you not believe in soulmates?” she questioned him. It was something she had asked herself, not expecting to actually say it allowed.
“Of course I do. I’ve got the scars the prove it, don’t I?” he chuckled as he sat down. Along his arm, she could see, small marks here and there, just small scraps, but he did have one on his brow that intrigued her. “I just don’t see the point in trying to avoid everyone when they could be your….something.” he said with fondness, and Claire’s chest grew a little tighter. He could really love his soulmate. Claire took a deep breath in before looking at her folder.
“So, Mr Grady, to get you and your job running smoothly,” she began explaining, turning the pages and making sure they were all in order before she was to hand the folder to Owen. “you and I will be working together so you understand all the rules and regulations, along with what your job entails. This will be done over the course of two weeks, so please, take your time with me seriously.” she slid the folder to him, and his hand came so close to hers, she instantly pulled it away. She was so notified, but felt her cheeks go red and her throat go dry.
“Of course. But you know, I go by Owen.” he straightened in his chair before a small smirk appeared on his lip. She cleared her throat. He nodded before taking the folder fully and standing up.
“Noted.” Claire nodded as he was beginning to leave. Claire started to work on more papers, pulling them from the side of her desk to the centre as she worked on them.
“Do you go by Claire?” he called out and Claire looked up to him. He had a shimmering smile on his face and Claire bit her lip.
“It is my name, so yes.” she gave a small to him.
“I’ll see you around Claire.” he gave one last nod before exiting her office. She smiled to herself at the mention of her name from his lips.
*~*~*
Claire didn’t mind Owen. He kept a reasonable distance except when he was flirting, and even then she didn’t mind. Their banter and teasing made it all feel comfortable. They had been working together for a week and he had managed to annoy her into a headache, making her laugh like it was the last thing she was going to do, and make her smile wider than any other person.
She knew that Owen was going to be coming to a meeting that day after he was finished with some animal training. He had been excited all week to finally get to work with the animals and then tell Claire about how it went. He was like a child sometimes, so eager to do anything and everything.
Sometime later, as she waited for Owen to arrive, a searing pain erupted on her forearm, so much so that the blood started running furiously at the open wound. “Goddammit!” Claire swore to herself. She clasped at the wound and yelled for Vivian. She didn’t respond. Claire got up from her desk and held it tightly as she walked to her assistant’s desk. She thanked herself for taking off her blazer otherwise it would have been stained in blood by now.
Vivian wasn’t at her desk, but Claire could have sworn that sworn that she heard Vivian a few moments before Claire was hurt. Claire needed to find the Bleeder Kit, and she didn’t have time to waste. She found it just underneath Vivian’s table and took it to her office. A Bleeder Kit was essential for Bleeders as it helps both soulmates.
Bleeder Kits have special bandages, ointments, and cleaning products that had chemicals lacing them; this provided sufficient care for the wounds while simultaneously helping the injured soulmate. Claire didn’t know who came up with the idea, or how they knew what this kit would do for people, but she thanked it everyday.
A Bleeder wound would heal fast; they don’t require the same car as the injured soulmate. So, in a couple of hours, Claire’s injury would be gone and the scar that should have been her soulmates, was hers.
Claire quickly wiped down the wound, a sting running from the wound up her arm as she kept wiping it. It didn’t seem deep, but it hurt a hell of a lot. There were 2 distinct lines, and a third fainter one, that would just be a small scar compared to the others. Claire wrapped up the wound in a bandage and took a deep breath. She hoped her soulmate thanked for that one day.
Claire placed her blazer on, a sudden chill running down her back. She pushed her worry to the side for her soulmate, and continued to work. Whenever Claire wanted to avoid something or to get her mind away from dangerous thoughts, she would work. It was healthier for her to dive into work then to dwell on all the thoughts in her head.
“Miss Dearing, are you alright? There’s blood on the floor.” Claire heard Vivian call out. Vivian walked into Claire’s office, shock on her face as she followed the trail of blood Claire had forgotten to clean up.
“Just a bleeder wound, I’m fine.” she reassured Vivian, who seemed more concerned than ever. “Where is Mister Grady?” Claire asked, looking at the time on her desk clock.
“We sent him home, that’s why I wasn’t here. There was a problem today in one of the animal pens and he got scratched by one of the wild dogs.” Vivian explained and Claire’s wound began to ache.
“Did he have to be treated? Like tetanus shot? Stitches?” Claire became more worried than she thought she was going to, her fingers rubbing together as she waited for a response. Vivian didn’t looked very fazed, but there was a thought in Claire’s head that she couldn’t shake, two things happening around the same time? It’s just not possible.
“I think he had the tetanus shot soon after, probably won’t need stitches. Though, they said is soulmate acted fast enough to cover their own blood that it helped him. Good thing they were quick.” Vivian told her, and went to get desk, ready to clean up Claire’s mess.
“Very much so.” Claire muttered to herself, watching Vivian leave. Claire looked down at her arm, her brow narrowing at a thought. Could she be right?