#scotcan

Matthew loved being able to watch the trees change from a bright green to vivid hues of red. He could see the entire transformation before his eyes, like a flower opening its petals, and each year fall came, he was mesmerized by the sight before him.

Red and Green. They were the only two colors he could see, a rarity in itself when it came to soulmates. Often, people were able to only see one color before they met their soulmate’s gaze, then the world became all the more vibrant and full of life, dull greys transforming into something magnificent.

He would stand in a room of grey, and that vibrancy he felt would leave. Sometimes he would only see red or green in the monochromatic world, and try to envision the red in the eyes of his soulmate, or the green eyes that would crinkle upwards in a warm smile as they laughed. 

Red was a rare color for people to see, it would make it easier to find them, someone that more than likely had albinism.

Green was more common. He had met people with green eyes, but they were never the right green, not like an emerald glowing under a night’s sky. They were still beautiful, but not the right one.

Matthew always thought about his soulmates, since the only two colors he could see reminded him of them, putting the idea into the back of his conscious made it complicated. It was hard to find one, let alone two. He had slowly become resigned to the fact that he may never see them.

Until he found himself walking outside on a rainy day, wet leaves of red blowing in the wind and landing in puddles, trees baren from the oncoming winter. He had brought an umbrella that was a darker shade of grey, because he enjoyed the type of grey it was, but the curiosity of its color always laid in the back of his mind.

He turned to enter a shop, but roughly bumped into someone. The other man fell backwards, landing his behind on the hard, wet pavement. 

Matthew gasped, reaching out a hand towards him to help him up. “I’m so sorry,” he apologized profusely.

The man groaned, looking downwards to the ground, muttering something inaudible as he rubbed the back of his head. A head of white, messy hair.

He looked up and their eyes met. Red, a red he had never seen before that glowed in flames of life, providing warmth around it, shining brightly over every other shade he had seen before.

Slowly, other colors swirled in his vision. He could see the color of his skin, the true color of the shop’s door, and so many more that surrounded his vision. It had nearly been overwhelming, so he decided to stare into that beautiful red until his eyes adjusted.

The man broke his gaze, looking upwards to the umbrella in wonder before slowly looking down to him again. “You’re-” he began, but cut himself off, entirely at a loss for words.

Matthew smiled then, nodding, a warmth spreading inside him.

He noticed that Matthew’s hand was still offered to him, and blushed out of embarrassment before gingerly taking it in his own. Matthew helped him up and they stood in silence, until, “The names, Gilbert, by the way. What’d they call you before they cast you out of heaven?” He grinned then, and even without the fact of them being soulmates, he knew that it was blinding for any stranger to see.

Matthew quickly learned more about Gilbert’s quirky and upbeat personality, all with an ego that he might have been fond of enabling. They started hanging out, and going on dates.

They discovered that they still could not see certain colors, but mainly, they could not see the colors of their own eyes. Gilbert informed him that his eyes are blue like the sky, that the umbrella he owned was a darker shade of blue. Matthew tried to get him to explain what it looked like, but explaining colors were more complicated and harder then it seemed.

Matthew told him that his eyes are red, like the bracelet he wore from his brother, or like the perfect apple, and the leaves on the trees during the fall that he was always so captivated with. He tried to explain red in return, but imagining the colors when they were never seen before are hard to imagine.

It was on one of their dates that they finally met him.

A locally owned coffee shop that had just opened recently, filled with greens with accents of red. The door to the entrance was large, and a pale yellow, he learned of the color after some research. He sat down at the table with Gilbert, the booths red and the menus green as the waiter served them.

Gilbert prattled on, joking around and leading much of the conversation, waiting with interest whenever Matthew spoke.

A commotion behind Gilbert caused some turning of heads, including said boyfriend, turning to see two men bickering.

One was blond with green eyes, large brows furrowed, lips formed into a pout as his foot tapped impatiently against the ground. He wore an apron covered in flour. Matthew could tell by the name tag that he worked here, and possibly owned the restaurant, with the stance he carried himself with.

The air was tense between them, until the other man cracked a teasing joke, red hair obscuring his eyes as he smirked. 

The first man lightly shoved him, and let out a sarcastic laugh. There was a slight quirk on his lips, giving way that their argument no longer held any heat.

He turned then, intense green facing them. Emerald like the other man’s, his brother, he assumed, but they stood out so much more vibrantly.

Matthew and Gilbert met his eyes, Gilbert’s jaw went slack, and the entire world came to life. More colors exploded around them, unfurling at every corner, moving from the restaurant, to the outside, the sun’s rays filled with yellows inside of the shop, the tables and chairs, booths, to the scratches on the wooden surface all had color, all came to life.

He looked down, and could see the color of his his cup, and the steam that slowly rose from it. 

The stranger looked genuinely surprised, and the man next to him leaned over to him, mumbling something in concern before his shook his head and looked back at him. He eyed the other, as though he was seeing him for the first time, like he was staring at a complete stranger before his shook his head again and spoke.

They talked in hushed tones, until the man with red hair cocked his head towards them, gesturing to Gilbert and Matthew. 

The other smirked and nodded in response, shoving him towards them before dusting off his apron and disappearing into the back again.

The man approached them, standing at the edge of the table, crossing his arms and leaning his weight onto one foot.

Before they could speak, he talked first. “I never really believed in soulmates, you know. Seemed like a hassle, seemed unfair that people couldn’t just see in color when they’re born, and that these people who are fated-to-be get to.” Gilbert seemed disappointed by that statement and Matthew frowned, a despondent feeling rooted in him.

“Don’t expect me to like you right away, just because you two are my soulmates. However,” a small smile formed on his lips, “that doesn’t mean I won’t try, since you two are here and all. Say, you two have room for one more today?”

Gilbert’s grin returned in full force, and Matthew smiled, inviting him to sit next to him.

They discovered that his name was Allistor.

Matthew loved being able to see in full color, but his favorite colors were still green and red. They always stood out to him more, able to easily see the two colors in the room above all else.

They share dates together, whether it be restaurants, picnics, homemade dinners, visiting each others homes. They usually met at Arthur’s restaurant, Allistor’s brother’s business. They got discounts during lunch, and it quickly became their favorite place to meet.

As months passed to years, they eventually all found a home together. Gilbert brought his dog with him, Matthew had his own dog as well, and Allistor had a cat. Their household quickly became a family with all of the additions. Luckily, all of their pets got along, aside from the bump between Allistor’s cat and Gilbert’s dog.

They make dinners together, lay on the couch in a pile and watch movies, sit at the table and share stories over morning coffee and tea.

It was all so incredibly domestic, and Matthew was happy with it. He appreciated simplicity and love, and in their household, not a moment went by without Allistor staring at one of them fondly, or Gilbert’s excited smile, or Matthew’s reminder of how much he cares about them.

They still went out on dates together.

Matthew sat under a tree with Gilbert and Allistor. Gilbert had his head resting on his lap, strumming the acoustic guitar Allistor had bought him for his birthday. He had learned how to play it relatively quickly, a natural talent he had. He did not sing, but he strummed the guitar, a soft melody befitting their surroundings.

Matthew rested his head against Allistor’s shoulder while he leaned against him in return. He listened to his soft breathing in tune with the music. His eyes were off in the distance, but his lips quirked up in the faintest of smiles. 

He looked down to the pond before them, watching as two swans drifted over to the cattails nearby.

He paused to appreciate the scene before him, the blue water of the pond, still, save for the small waves formed from the swans movement, the red leaves of autumn’s return floating atop the water, and the green grass that surrounded them.