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Seiya was fourteen the first time it happened. She had been sprawled on the bed, ignoring Taiki and Yaten, who were arguing about whose turn it was to feed the cat, when a pink message has started to appear on her palm, weak and indecipherable.
Her pulse had taken off like a rocket, and she'd thrown the comic book down, shouting frantically for her sisters to shut up and get their butts over to look.
Taiki and Yaten had been able to decipher Seiya's excited noises enough to understand two words: Soulmate Writing.
As the youngest sister, they had all been waiting or the day when the writing would start to show up on Seiya's skin.
Yaten had been first, her soulmate's peachy lipstick staining through their bond and onto her lips. Taiki and Seiya had laughed. Of course Yaten would be one of those people whose first contact was through makeup. Then, six months after Yaten had written angrily back telling her soulmate not to wear such a vulgar color, neat blue cursive had appeared on the back of Taiki's hand.
Taiki and her soulmate got along better than Yaten and hers, but Seiya knew that Yaten already harbored an affection for Minako, despite not having met her.
As Seiya had stared at the pink ink on her skin, she had wondered how she'd get along with her soulmate. She hoped her soulmate was a pretty girl and not a gross boy, but maybe her sisters had gotten all the luck in the girl department. She sure hoped not.
Yaten and Taiki had put their dispute aside to crawl onto Seiya's bed too, both eager to see what would come through the new bond.
When the ink became clear enough to read, Yaten had rocked back on her heels and laughed, and even Taiki stifled her snickering.
Seiya felt her heart falling and disappointment seeping in as she stared at the words.
"Buy eggs and milk! Ha!" Yaten continued laughing, clutching her stomach. "Oh, Seiya, fate sure knows how to pick 'em!"
But Seiya didn't let her disappointment linger. Instead, she popped the cap off her favorite blue pen and wrote beneath the list "Hi, I'm Seiya!" She followed it up with a small heart, which she immediately regretted.
"Is there an unsend?" Seiya had asked, frantically, to which her sisters had only continued to laugh.
They patted her head as if to say, "You poor naive child," before they left to continue fighting over the cat.
After five minutes staring at the little shopping list on her palm, Seiya was definitely worried that the heart had been overkill. Leave it to her to freak her soulmate out at first contact. She was going to die alone. No one would ever love her. Her life was over.
Until, of course, she had glanced at her palm again and seen a new message forming. She'd squealed, holding her left palm closer, waiting eagerly to see her soulmate's reply.
The messy pink handwriting came through faster the second time, revealing the words, "OMG! I'm Usagi! Nice to meet you!"
Seiya had felt a grin splitting her face as she reread the message over and over, clutching her palm to her heart. When she looked back down, she noticed that Usagi had drawn a little bunny face after her message, and Seiya felt butterflies floating in her stomach.
For months, Usagi and Seiya had sent each other little messages, getting to know each other. Seiya learned that Usagi was also in grade 8, and that she had a cat named Luna, and that she loved drawing. In return, Seiya told Usagi about how she wrote songs and played basketball and American football and softball. Usagi was very sweet and supportive, and Seiya yearned to meet her.
About five months into their chatting, Seiya mentioned one day that she was sore from practice, and when Usagi asked what happened with a small frowning bunny, Seiya had explained that she'd been elbowed in the breast during basketball and was still sore.
Usagi had gone silent for several minutes, long enough for Seiya to worry that she'd said something wrong.
Finally, the familiar handwriting appeared with a simple question.
"Are you a girl?" Seiya read the message out loud to herself, her eyes widening and a hint of panic gnawing at her gut.
She had written back quickly, "I am." She thought about writing more, but she suppressed the urge and waited to see what Usagi would say.
Another few minutes of staring blankly at her arm, praying for a response, and Usagi's handwriting had finally come through again. "Oh my god. I'm so sorry. I assumed you were a guy this whole time."
Seiya had felt tears pricking at her eyes. Oh no. Oh god, why? With a shaky hand, she had written back, needing to know, "Does this change things?"
The pink ink had appeared on her skin in record time. "No!! Of course not! Seiya is still Seiya regardless of your body." Seiya sighed in relief, and then giggled when she saw the follow-up. "I'm bi anyway," Usagi assured.
When the pair started grade 9, they made a pact that they would aim for the same high school so they could be together. Although, being teenage girls, they didn't think it through very far with the details, but that promise of going to high school together carried them through rough weeks. They lived too far to visit conveniently, so instead, they began mailing things to each other.
Seiya mailed Usagi a bunny plushie she won at the local arcade along with a photo of herself blowing a kiss. Usagi sent signed copy of their favorite manga since the author had been touring in Tokyo, but not down south. The package from Usagi also contained a stack of selfies, taken with a Polaroid, that had Seiya swooning.
For Usagi's 15th birthday, Seiya had stayed up late for a week straight to record the songs she'd written for her girlfriend with some help and background vocals from her sisters. Usagi loved them all, and Seiya was proud of herself for getting it done and mailed on time. She couldn't look at sheet music for a week afterward, but she continuously hummed the songs to herself.
A month later, Usagi sent Seiya a letterman jacket for her birthday. Usagi had sewn it herself. It quickly became Seiya's favorite piece of clothing, and for the first few months, it smelled blissfully of Usagi's strawberry scent. The icy blue body contrasted with the white sleeves, and on the back, Usagi had embroidered a large S sitting in a golden star. Seiya practically overhauled her wardrobe just so she could match it to every outfit.
Some time later, Seiya's parents called her down to the family room on a Friday evening in August. Sitting there was a thirty-something woman in a red pencil skirt and a ruffled white blouse. Her name was Akane. She was there to offer Seiya and her sisters a record deal.
"But how have you even heard my music?" Seiya asked, sitting there in awe, her beaten up gym shorts and red tank top feeling far too casual for such a moment.
Akane smiled, her hazel eyes twinkling. "I'm the handler for Kaioh Michiru, the concert violinist. She and your soulmate, Tsukino Usagi-chan are close friends. I heard your songs and I want to make you a star."
After Akane left the contract with Seiya and her family so they could look it over for the weekend, Seiya wrote to Usagi in all captital letters, "YOU NEVER TOLD ME YOU HAVE A FAMOUS FRIEND!"
Usagi took a few minutes to write back, finally asking, "Which one?"
Seiya flopped onto her bed, not sure what she was feeling at that moment, but knowing she wanted to scream into her pillow.
"Which one? Idk, maybe the CONCERT VIOLINIST!!" Seiya replied in disbelief.
Usagi's response was faster this time. "Akane-san came to see you!"
"Yep," she affirmed, grumbling as her pen ran out of ink on the last letter. She threw the pen in the direction of her trash can and pulled another one out of her nightstand drawer.
"Are you gonna take the contract?"
Seiya paused, staring at the words and thinking it over. "If I did, I wouldn't be able to go to high school with you next year." After waiting a few seconds, she drew a small frowny face.
About a minute after that, Seiya felt lipstick materialize on her lips, and a few seconds later, a pink kiss showed up on the back of her hand. Usagi's classic pink ink followed closely. "Seiya, I love you. I know we promised we'd be together, and we still will be. But I don't want to hold you back. I want you to explore and live and have fun. I'm willing to wait an extra year." Usagi added, "After all, we have forever."
"Really?" Seiya wrote back, her lower lip wobbling just a bit.
"Really."
The next few months were rough on them both. Akane worked fast. Days after the family lawyer looked over the contract and Seiya and her sisters signed it, she found herself among a team of stylists, sound technicians, and video directors. Seiya agreed to record all but one of the songs she had written for Usagi. The one she refused them the rights to was far too intimate, and Seiya wanted it to be for herself and Usagi alone.
The flurry of showbiz ended up taking up most of Seiya's free time. Akane forbid Seiya and Usagi from communicating on their skin on shooting days, and for the first time, they were forced to use text messages instead. It was not as quick or as intimate, and Seiya hated it, but Usagi continued to encourage her.
The first concert of the Three Lights took place in Kyoto. Seiya sent the recording to Usagi, and Usagi sent back a picture of herself wearing a handmade Three Lights tee shirt. That made the rehearsal days just a bit more fun.
Seiya may have hated the grind behind the scenes, but god did she love being on that stage. She was honest enough to admit that she loved the attention, the applause, and then way everything felt so natural when she performed. It was similar to the feeling she got from playing sports, but even stronger.
Once the music videos had all been shot, it came time for the tour. Seiya began counting down the days until they were in Tokyo. Spring was just beginning, and part of Seiya felt guilty for not being at the entrance ceremony with Usagi, for not holding Usagi's hand as they walked home together, but she contented herself with knowing that she just had to wait a little longer. They would tour the country, stopping at every major city for a week and finally ending in Tokyo for a Christmas concert.
Usagi would be at that last concert. Seiya planned on giving her a promise ring when the time came.
By the time their CDs hit the shelves, the Three Lights were already the next big thing. They had gotten over 10,000 downloads of their album the day it launched on iTunes and other music apps.
Usagi joked about selling Seiya's autographs to the girls at her school, and Seiya sent her a pouting emoji in return.
Their skin-to-skin messages became much rarer, but somehow more intimate. Seiya shivered one night as a small pink heart appeared on her inner thigh. She hid it the next day, so in love with the little heart that she let it stain her skin for the full 24 hours until the magic of their bond wiped it clean.
One night when Seiya missed Usagi something awful, she sat in the dim light of the hotel suite and wrote a little melody on her inner thigh before using her bright red matte lipstick to draw the impression of a kiss. She wrinkled her nose at the feeling of the lipstick as it dried, but when it was done, she was quite pleased with herself.
When she woke up the next morning, Usagi had drawn their initials together in a stylized heart on their left breasts, so that it rested above their pounding hearts. Seiya couldn't help the smile that overtook her.
The following weeks were spent writing new songs. Usagi's birthday was coming up again. Her 16th. Seiya wanted to do something just as grand as the year before. Between school (well, more like her tutor) and work, Seiya managed to create and record one private song meant only for Usagi. She recorded it alone, nothing but her and an acoustic guitar in the studio that night.
Two days later, she mailed Usagi the private song along with an advance copy of the Three Lights new album and a couple of candid shots the photographers had taken of Seiya and her sisters during rehearsals and concerts (Seiya made sure to include the ones where she was wearing the custom letterman). She also included a gift card to Usagi's favorite restaurant with a note, "Because I can't take you to dinner in person yet."
When Usagi received the package, she spent a solid half hour texting Seiya about how much she loved it. Seiya was amazed her phone hadn't fallen off the desk while she was filming.
"You're spoiling me," Usagi warned that night, as they video-called. Seiya's new song played in the background on loop.
"Absolutely," Seiya replied, leaning closer to the camera and winking. "You're my girlfriend. It's my right."
Usagi scoffed, rolling her eyes and looking very much like she might flick Seiya's nose if she could. "Well, then I'd better up my game."
Usagi got the address for where Seiya would be staying during her birthday week, and sure enough, a package arrived, covered in bunny doodles, two days before Seiya's birthday.
Seiya impatiently waited those two days until Usagi gave her permission to open the box. Inside, Seiya found a few Tokyo-exclusive Pocky flavors, a framed painting of the two of them on a date with the Tokyo Skytree Tower in the background, and a new garment that Seiya loved instantly. A handmade bomber jacket. Seiya held the jacket up reverently. Her eyes tracing over the black torso and down along the cream and black sleeves.
She pulled the jacket on, inhaling the now-familiar scent of her girlfriend. Se ran her hands over the embroidery. She recognized Usagi's art style on the back where a blue serpentine dragon coiled around a white moon. Seiya loved everything about it. She wanted to tattoo the design on her back, but for the time being, she was content just holding the precious garment.
"You always manage to outdo yourself," she told Usagi that night as they video called for the third night in a row. Usagi was yawning and doing her homework, but Seiya's enthusiasm made her smile.
"Mako-chan helped me with the embroidery this time. It was much more complex than the star last year," she murmured, another yawn consuming her last three words.
Seiya smiled fondly. "I love it. And I love you. Thanks, Odango."
Usagi gave a sleepy little grin. "I love you too."
A chuckle escaped Seiya's lips. "You should go to bed, Love. You're about to fall asleep at your desk.
"Not yet," Usagi protested weakly. "I haven't given you your goodnight kiss."
Seiya laughed softly, keeping her voice down to avoid waking Yaten who was sleeping on the other side of the thin wall. "It's gonna become a habit at this rate," Seiya teased.
"You say it like it would be a bad thing," Usagi replied, rummaging through her drawer for a minute before she pulled out the Pink Blossom tinted balm she favored these days. Seiya could taste it on her lips as Usagi applied a quick layer. After rubbing her lips together, Usagi pressed a kiss to her hand.
Five seconds later, Seiya held her hand up to camera, smiling gently. "I got it." Seiya pressed her lips to the same spot, pulling back to compare their marks.
Usagi held up her hand. "Message received."
Seiya didn't want to say goodnight, but they both had things to do in the morning. "Goodnight, Usagi. Sweet dreams."
"Goodnight, Seiya. I love you."
"I love you too," Seiya promised as she reluctantly hit the end call button.
She pushed back from the desk and sighed. Only four more months. Then they could be together.
The next few months proved to be a whirlwind. Usagi had just published her first manga and Seiya may have used her stardom to promote the book. Meanwhile, Seiya and her sisters were making more and more appearances off the stage. She was requested for several commercials, including a nasty-tasting vegetable juice, a new video game, and a new clothing line. Seiya wasn't overly fond of filming commercials, but they paid well, and she, being a hopeless romantic, contented herself with imagining how she would spoil Usagi when they would eventually move in together.
Seiya managed to talk her way through several dozen interviews with talk show hosts up and down the country. Of course all of them wanted to know if she already knew her soulmate, and what "he" was like. To which Seiya smiled amicably and reminded as politely as she could manage, that her songs all addressed a girl. Some days it was harder to maintain the smile than others. Sometimes she just wanted to scream, "I am a lesbian! I like girls exclusively! Fuck off!" But miraculously, she managed to bite her tongue against the constant, "Gal pals," problem.
As November drew to a close, Seiya went shopping for a promise ring. She had Minako and Ami video-conferenced in on her phone since they, by some strange twist of fate, were not only her sisters' soulmates, but also two of Usagi's closest friends.
With their help, Seiya picked out a silver band with two entwined hearts. One heart had a small blue sapphire and the other had a small white sapphire. Seiya was nervous about it, but Minako, ever boisterous and quite opposite from Yaten, encouraged her to move her relationship wth Usagi to the next level.
"You guys have been talking every day for two years!" Minako exclaimed. "You've been girlfriends for a year and a half. Make your move!"
"But we've still never met in person," Seiya worried. "What if it's too soon?"
Minako groaned, throwing her head back. "You two are literally made for each other! And believe me, if any of these three relationships is ready to move to the next level, it's yours and Usagi's." Minako looked to the side. "God knows Yaten never initiates anything."
"Taiki and I are taking things slowly by a mutual agreement," Ami defended, sending Minako a disapproving look. "Usagi-chan will love it," she promised, soothing Seiya's nerves.
In what felt like the blink of an eye, Seiya found herself on the train ride to Tokyo three weeks later, her nerves jangly and the ring kept safely tucked in her jacket's pocket at all times. Just one more week of appearances and meet-and-greets, and then it would be time for the concert and for her to give Usagi the ring.
She felt like she might throw up as they pulled into the station. Usagi was outside, waiting for her somewhere in the station. They were going to spend the week together as much as possible, and then end with a bang at the concert. Then Seiya would go back down South until the spring term, when she would start at Usagi's high school for year two. After that, the Three Lights would do concerts exclusively in the Tokyo region until she'd graduated.
The train slid to a stop, but Seiya's stomach didn't. She hoped she didn't look as nervous as she felt. Usagi's penchant for teasing rivaled her own, and there was no way she wanted to look weak the first time she could hold her girlfriend in her arms.
Yaten nudged her shoulder forcefully. "Get up, Seiya. You're not the only one waiting to meet someone."
Seiya took a sharp breath, gathering her wits and her bags as their entourage started to disembark. She had forgotten that Ami and Minako would be out there too, waiting for her sisters. She had gotten so caught up in Usagi and the ring that everything else had faded into the background of her thoughts.
She stepped of the train, her duffel bag slung over one shoulder and her bomber jacket offering a sense of comfort as her gaze swept across the skyscrapers overhead. She had been to big cities before. Hell, she grew up in one. But nothing compared to the sheer awe she felt staring up at the sprawling silver city that loomed above the station's skyline.
Seiya hiked the jacket's collar up as they covertly moved through the crowds. Her sunglasses were dark and she nearly tripped going up the stairs. The baseball cap she normally wore had been traded in for a warmer beanie. Her hair was loose for the first time in ages; half for warmth and half to hide her identity.
She shivered as she pushed up the sleeve of her jacket and sweater, checking to see if she had heard from Usagi. The strip of skin between the sleeve and her leather glove protested the sudden cold.
Sure enough, she saw the standard pink ink on her forearm. Her lips pulled into a small frown as she read, "The station was too crowded. I'll be waiting for you at the park across the street. Minako and Ami are getting a table at the cafe around the corner."
Seiya relayed the second half of the message to her sisters. They had free time in the city until 6pm, so after looking to Akane for approval, the three sisters split off and made their way to the main exit.
Once outside, Taiki and Yaten adjusted their scarves. "We'll see you soon," Taiki said firmly, making sure Seiya understood she was expected to rejoin them.
Yaten shivered. "Ugh. Let's hurry and get out of the cold." She gave Seiya a long look over the edge of her sunglasses. "Don't be an idiot," she advised before stalking off to find Minako.
Seiya rolled her eyes, checked for traffic, and crossed the street to the park.
Just as she reached the edge of the park, she heard crying, and she stopped short behind a bush, watching Usagi kneel down beside the crying boy. She had to admit she was curious about how Usagi was with kids. Seiya certainly hoped to start a family with her one day.
Usagi placed a hand on the boy's head and smiled warmly. After a moment, she said gently, "If you keep crying, you can't have fun with your friends, right?" She gestured to the other winter-bundled children waiting a few yards away. Seiya was struck by how gentle Usagi sounded. It was not unlike the voice she used when they were on the phone late at night after they were done teasing.
The boy sniffled, standing straighter. "Yeah!"
Usagi grinned, her cold-flushed cheeks almost as pink as her ear warmers. "Oh! Good boy!"
The boy beamed back, moving to strike several poses that Seiya recognized from anime. "High power! Hyper! Jet!"
Usagi watched on in mild amusement as the boy ran off to rejoin his friends. "Go for it!" she called, chuckling once the kids were out of sight.
Seiya could feel a smile burning on her face. She was very much in love. She plastered her trademark grin on as she rounded the corner.
"Yo!"
Usagi's head turned in her direction. "Seiya!"
"Sorry! Were you waiting?" Seiya asked, her grin growing wider as Usagi puffed her cheeks out.
"Of course I was! It's cold out here," she complained, marching forward, her puffy white coat swishing with each step. "What made you-" she cut herself off as her foot slipped on a discarded can.
Seiya watched in what felt like comical slow motion, as Usagi miraculously landed directly on her knee. Seiya felt mix of concern and laughter bubbling up as she watched.
Usagi howled in pain. "Ouch! Ouch! I hurt my leg!"
Usagi was bawling at this point, and Seiya valiantly stifled the chuckle she felt in her chest. Instead she tried to keep her face carefully neutral. It didn't last long. A small smirk established itself on her face as she parroted, "If you're crying, you can't have fun."
Usagi froze, her eyes narrowing up at her girlfriend. "You were watching?" Usagi blushed, turning to the side and pouting.
"Need a hand?" Seiya offered, still smirking.
Usagi huffed. "I'm fine." She stood, brushing her pants clean, pointedly ignoring Seiya's outstretched hand.
"Oh, good girl!" Seiya teased, continuing on.
"Hey!" Usagi gave her a flat look.
Seiya forced a serious expression onto her face, trying very hard to keep from laughing. "Aren't you going to do it?"
"What?"
Seiya grinned at full force, striking the poses, "High power Hyper!-"
"Shut up!"
Seiya and Usagi glared playfully for five seconds before they both doubled over laughing. When Usagi stood and wiped the tears from her eyes, she gave Seiya an appraising look. "You're wearing the jacket!"
"Of course!" Seiya stood and made a show of giving Usagi her best angles in the jacket. "It's my favorite thing. Well this one and the varsity jacket, of course."
"Very nice, Ms. Kou," Usagi said, holding her pen like a reporter's microphone annd deepening her voice. "Tell us, Japan wants to know, who are you wearing today."
Seiya played along easily. "Well, this jacket here is a custom-piece. I'm afraid it's quite exclusive. You see my gorgeous girlfriend made this for me by hand, if you can believe it." Seiya lowered her sunglasses so she could stare into Usagi's beautiful blue eyes. "It's a Tsukino exclusive."
"Love in every stitch," Usagi agreed, letting the act drop and reaching a hand out. "One of a kind, just like you."
Seiya felt the blush rising to her cheeks. She fumbled for a response. "I-uh...Thank you," she mumbled into her collar.
Usagi giggled, grabbing Seiya's hand and squeezing it. "Welcome to Tokyo, my love."
Seiya squeezed back, taking a few seconds to gaze around the skyline. "It's a beautiful view."
"It is," Usagi agreed.
Seiya smiled. "The city is nice too."
She watched the realization cross Usagi's face. Cheeks going from a flushed pink to a burning red. "Did you just...?
Seiya started walking toward the cafe, dragging Usagi along by their joined hands. She glanced over her shoulder and smirked. "Yep."
Usagi stomped up to Seiya, stopping in front of the idol.
"Can I help you?" Seiya teased, leaning down so they were eye to eye.
Usagi smirked, grabbing the collar of Seiya's jacket and planting a kiss square on her lips.
Seiya forgot how to breathe. Her eyes grew wide before she melted into the kiss and let her eyes drift closed.
When Usagi pulled back, Seiya very nearly whined at the loss of those perfect lips.
She might've stood there in a daze for the rest of the afternoon if Usagi hadn't used their joined hands to drag Seiya along.
Now it was Usagi's turn to look back over her shoulder and grin. "What happened, Smooth Talker? Cat got your tongue?"
Seiya felt the dopey grin all over her face. She let Usagi lead the way. She reached her free hand into the pocket of her jacket, tracing the seam of the ring box with her gloved finger. Any doubts she'd had quickly fell away as she watched Usagi grinning in the winter sun. She had seen that beautiful smile so many nights. And she wanted nothing more than to cherish that smile, this girl, forever.
She pulled the hand from her pocket. Soon. Not today. But very, very soon, she promised herself.
Just as they rounded the corner, Seiya caught up with Usagi, leaning down to press a quick kiss to the top of her golden head.
"I love you."
"I love you more."
Seiya's lips twitched up again. "We'll see about that."