In this world, soulmate marks were simple but brutal. You were born with a black stain somewhere on your body, a reminder of the emptiness that would remain until you met the person who made you whole. If they weren’t your soulmate, nothing changed. But if they were, the stain bloomed into color the moment you touched- iridescent hues spilling across your skin like spilled paint, a permanent sign that fate had tied you together… then moments later you would share a matching birthmark.

A year ago, yours had changed.

It happened when you accidentally fell asleep on Matt during that late night bus ride, your shoulder pressed against his in the exact spot your black mark had always haunted you. By the time you woke up, the stain was gone, replaced with a scatter of galaxies across your skin. Then a birthmark on your guys’ shoulders. You knew what it meant.

But you hadn’t told him. Matt was your best friend- your partner in law, your comfort, the person you leaned on most. You weren’t about to risk ruining that bond just because the universe decided to get involved. So you kept it quiet. It wasn’t like he would’ve known right? He couldn’t even see his changed.

What you didn’t know? Matt already figured it out. People had asked him about his mark vanishing. Friends had whispered. He’d pieced it together with the kind of patience and certainty only Matt Murdock carried. And tonight, he was done letting you carry the weight alone.

You stepped into his apartment, arms full of case files and the exhaustion of the day. The door clicked shut behind you, but before you could even set the folders down, you felt it- his presence, steady and unyielding in the center of the room. He wasn’t relaxed in his usual way. His arms were folded, his chin tilted slightly, like a man already delivering his verdict.

“You have something to tell me?”

Matt’s voice was low, calm, but sharp with knowing. His sightless gaze didn’t waver, pinning you in place. Your throat tightened, because he wasn’t just your best friend anymore. He was your soulmate. And he knew.