#scene one

After the vocabulary lesson, the teacher erased the board.  “Alright class, today we’ll be learning about the red string. By a raise of hands, how many of you have seen it?” Three hands tentatively rose up from different sides of the room. “Three out of forty-four-- more than than I was expecting. When I was your age, none of my classmates had seen it yet.”  One boy in the back raised his hand. The teacher called on him. “Umm, what is the red string? It seems kind of like, ummm,” he said nervously, “It’s like everyone else here already sort of knows about it, but I never heard of it until you mentioned it yesterday.” “That’s a very good question, Andy. Some of your classmates know about it because their parents or siblings have told them, but some parents wait to tell their children until they’re older, or let the teachers tell them.” At this, several of the students let out sighs of relief. Evidently, they’d been as clueless as Andy, but hadn’t wanted to admit it. “The red string,” continued the teacher, “Often referred to as ‘the red string of fate,’ is an invisible, intangible- that’s one of your new vocabulary words- red string that is tied somewhere on your body.” A couple of the children started looking at their arms, checking for a red string. Of course, they didn’t see anything. “The string connects you to your soulmate. Now, many of you already know that much. What most of you probably don’t understand is what a soulmate is, and how the string connects you.” A tall girl in the back of the class raised her hand, and the teacher called on her. “A soulmate is the one person who you’re meant to be with, right? And following the red string will lead you to them-- so romantic,” said the idealistic girl. “It’s not quite that simple, Olivia,” said the teacher, “You three, who can see the string, do all of you have String Since Birth Syndrome (SSB Syndrome)?” The two boys nodded, but the third student, a wispy, short girl shook her head. “It just appeared yesterday, when you mentioned that we’d be talking about it today. I didn’t really know what it was, so I hoped you would be able to explain what was going on.” The teacher looked thoughtful at that. “Hmmm…..Well, Adam and Jared, have either of you ever tried to follow the string?” The boys nodded sheepishly. “Did either of you ever find the end of the string?” They both shook their heads and sighed. “It’s to be expected,” explained the teacher, “You’re both very young and have plenty of growing to do and choices to make. Your soulmate isn’t set in stone, after all.” The girl in the sunglasses was listening carefully, and was now very confused. An invisible string tied you to your soulmate, but who your soulmate wasn’t necessarily determined? And yet some people could see it? Why hadn’t her parents ever mentioned the string to her? Was it because- “In your life, you will make many, many decisions. Some of those decisions will change the course of your future. Where you go to college, what job you have, where you want to live. That’s what it means to have free will. Different circumstances in your life will make you into different people, and your soulmate is the perfect match for the person you become. Some theorize that a person may have as many as seven different potential soulmates. That’s why, other than the occasional SSB, the vast majority of children and teenagers can’t see their string- because you all have so much potential, and could become anyone.” All the children (other than the girl in sunglasses) were staring uncomprehendingly at their teacher. She realized she was going a little too deep for them. “Let me put it this way,” the teacher said, “You guys know how identical twins, who are genetically the same person, can have totally different personalities?” The students nodded, some of the turning to look at Adam and Michael, the two identical boys sitting next to each other. They knew all about identical twins with drastically different personalities. “Well, you’re all sort of like that. When you’re an adult, you could be anything, and choices you make and circumstances that you go through will make you different types of people. And just like twins will need different soulmates, if you become an artist in Paris you’ll need a different sort of soulmate than if the become President of the United States. That’s why you SSB boys couldn’t find the other ends of your strings- your lives are going to take plenty of twists and turns before meeting your soulmates. And the person who might be tied to the other end of that string right now might not be the one you eventually meet.” The kids more or less understood that one. A cheerful looking boy in the corner raised his hand. “So if my soulmate could be anyone, then when will I be able to see the red string?” “Good question, Sammy. Unless you have SSB Syndrome, you won’t see the string unless you’re really ready to meet and commit to your soulmate. That’s why, even if they’ve only just met, unless they’re underage, soulmates will usually get married right away- they know that both of them are committed to building a future together. Which is another reason why there aren’t many kids- or even college students- who can see the string, and why almost no one who can’t see the red string gets married. They aren’t ready to commit.” The classroom starting buzzing. This was definitely news to all of them. It took a few minutes for the teacher took get them all settled down. “Now, as I was trying to explain before you all worked yourselves up into a tizzy, when someone without SSB Syndrome can suddenly see the red string, it usually means one of three things.” The teacher started writing on the board. “Number one, and most common,” she said, pointing to the first line on the board, “People who are already in a relationship. Can anyone guess why? Yes, Jennifer?” “Ummm, because if you’re dating someone,” said a brainy girl in the front row, “They’re likely to be someone who makes you happy?” “Very good, Jenny. Your soulmate is probably not a starving in some third-world country-- they’re someone whom you’d probably meet anyway-- and maybe already have. In which case, it’s very likely for two soulmates to meet and start dating before the red string appears. The red string will only appear when both people are ready, and sometimes, even if they’re dating, two people have too many things to do with their lives before they’re ready. I just want to be clear, though-- this does not mean that just because two people are dating, they are soulmates.” The girl in the sunglasses sighed. This was so complicated. “Number two,” continued the teacher as she pointed to the second line, “Someone who needs their soulmate. Yes, Andy?” “My mom always says that no woman needs a man.” The teacher sighed internally at that one. Andy’s mom was a wonderful single mother, but she didn’t really believe in soulmates. “Like I said, most of you probably don’t really understand what a soulmate is. Now I know that all of you have been really sad at one point in your life, right?” The students all looked at each other. Where was she going with this? “Well, when you’re really sad, sometimes you just need a friend, right? A shoulder to cry on, if you will.” Some of the students nodded along-- including the girl in the sunglasses. “Well, a soulmate, aside from being a romantic partner, is also the best friend you’ll ever have. Sometimes, when someone is going through some hard times, they need their soulmate to help them get through it. That’s probably why you can see it now, Millie-- either you or your soulmate needs someone to be there for them right now.” Millie-- the short girl who hadn’t been able to see the red string until yesterday, looked puzzled. Clearly, she didn’t need anyone there for her right now. “The third reason has become much less common than the others, especially with younger people, but used to be the mainway most people found their soulmates.” The teacher pointed at the third line on the board. It just said one word: Ready. “Sometimes, people are just ready to find their soulmates. They’ve decided what course they want to take with their lives, and they’re ready to share it with someone else.” She erased the board. “Alright, the test will be the day after tomorrow. Does anyone have any questions?” Most of the class raised their hands or started calling out. One by one, the teacher patiently answered each of their questions and was about to let them out to recess when she realized one more student had her hand up. “Yes, Mattie?” The teacher was surprised. The quiet girl rarely spoke, let alone asked questions in class, and the teacher didn’t know much about her. “How will I know if I’ve met my soulmate?” “That’s what I just spent the entire class explaining! You’ll be able to see the--” That’s when the teacher remembered. The aloof girl in sunglasses was blind. A few days later, Millie’s mother was diagnosed with cancer, and she died six months after that. Luckily, Millie had her soulmate to help her get through it. Seven years later, Jared met his soulmate in his AP English class, and he married her two days after graduation. Adam met his soulmate when he went away to college, and Sammy, who’d chosen to stay and work in town, discovered that his high school sweetheart was also his soulmate. But ten years after she’d sat in class and learned about the red string, Mattie was still looking for her soulmate.