One year already.

One year ago Orpheus had made a terrible mistake.

He looked back.

He knew he wasn’t supposed to, but he was so nervous about the possibility of Eurydice not being behind him. But she was.

It was because of his stupidity that she was now forever in Hadestown. To make matters worse, whenever Persephone came for spring, she informed him that Eurydice had found another lover in the underworld now. So even whenever Orpheus eventually died, he’d have nobody in the afterlife.

He had spent the last year completely miserable, quiet and depressed. He barely ate or slept. He lost his passion for music. All he did was work, sleep, regret and repeat.

Until today.

It was winter. November. The usual weather, dark, dreary, frigid, thick blankets of powdered snow covered the ground outside, but the bar was thankfully warm. Orpheus had been returning to the bar after bringing a drink to a customer when he ran into someone, causing them both to fall.

“Oh- oh… I-I am so, so, sorry, I-“

He quickly scrambled to his feet to help up this stranger, but froze when he looked down.

They were so… so….

Perfect.

He felt butterflies in his stomach, his cheeks heated up, turning a light pink. He quickly helped up the stranger and stood there awkwardly, too flustered to make eye contact.

“Uhm- sorry about that…”

He caved. He looked into their eyes. He had never felt this way. He had felt similar when he met Eurydice in this exact same spot and scenario, but he felt so much more alive. He felt joy return to his body, he felt… somewhat whole again.

Had he just met his soulmate?