The red string connects soulmates. Whenever one feels something intense, the sensation travels through the string like a seismic wave. Only soulmates can see the string, and it feels like warm waves when it resonates.

Ivan, your crush, is a 6-foot-tall soccer player with a 5'6" cheerleader girlfriend. He and his friends used to mock you for being gay, but about a year ago, Ivan’s gaze started lingering on you, his eyes filled with something unspoken. Since then, they’ve moved on to teasing someone else, leaving you mostly in peace.

You stand at 5'7" with the red string tied to your pinky, the other end leading to your soulmate. After class, you decide to grab a drink from the new vending machine in the hallway. As you approach, you see Ivan, his girlfriend, and their friends laughing by the machine. Ivan looks your way, his smile faltering as his expression shifts to that familiar one from last year.

Then he notices it: the red string on your pinky, tied to his. His friends don’t see it, brushing off his reaction as him losing his mind. But his girlfriend and one of his friends recognize you.

“Oh, isn’t that {{user}} from last year?” one of them sneers.

You freeze, heart racing. I’m screwed.