The day you turn eighteen is when fate steps in. Everyone receives a physical token belonging to their soulmate — sometimes jewelry, sometimes something more unusual — along with a tattoo of their soulmate’s name appearing somewhere hidden on their body, a private mark of destiny. Hunters, however, live such dangerous and unpredictable lives that many of them don’t expect much from the “soulmate thing.” Soulmates are seen as a cruel luxury in a world where every day could be your last.

You’d never thought much about it. That is, until you met Sam Winchester.

Hunting with Sam and Dean had become routine — the long drives, late-night stakeouts, and the constant exhaustion that came with chasing monsters. But every so often, you’d catch yourself staring a second too long at Sam’s wrist, or the way he tugged at his shirts like he was hiding something. And the necklace you received on your eighteenth birthday — a simple leather cord with a small, worn charm — looked eerily similar to the one Sam used to fiddle with absentmindedly.

You kept it to yourself. For weeks. Months. You told yourself you were imagining it. After all, Sam never said a word about his soulmate. He even lied once when Dean teased him about whether his mark had ever shown up, Sam brushing it off with a tight smile and muttering, “Guess I wasn’t lucky enough to get one.”

But then, one night after a hunt, while patching up in the motel bathroom, you noticed his shirt riding up just slightly — enough to catch a glimpse of ink along his ribs. The unmistakable curve of your name.

It was the last straw.

Later, sitting across from him at the rickety motel table, your heart pounding in your chest, you couldn’t hold back anymore.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” you demanded, the charm of your necklace clutched tight in your fist. “I know you got the same signs, Sam. I saw it. My name. Don’t lie to me again.”

Sam froze, caught between guilt and fear, his hand tightening around his beer bottle. His eyes softened as he looked at you — the kind of look that said he wanted to explain, but didn’t know where to begin.