"His soulmate appears to be younger than him." The older woman shook her head sadly. "We should have done something else instead of the party. Something like what you're doing right now." The woman glanced up, pain flickering in her eyes.
Oh shit. Amber pursed her lips together, not knowing what to say. One's 20th birthday was usually a cause for celebration. Simply because it was very, very rare for one to not receive their soul bond on their birthday.
It was such a rare phenomenon that usually people would go all out when it came to their 20th birthday. Amber winced. Her parents had offered to do so for her. They had initially wanted to invite all their relatives over for a meeting.
Her son must have had a celebration of sorts, only to disappoint all of the guests when he was later revealed to be the people on the waiting list.
"He's passed the one year mark just a few months back. I tell him that it's fine. Stop worrying so much and be patient. After all, I had to wait for six years before I met his father! But, he's quite convinced he'll have to live alone." The lady said with a sigh, shaking her head.
Amber glanced at her, clearing her throat. "To be honest, one year is quite alright. There's a fairly decent chance his soulmate isn't," she struggled to find the right word. "Indisposed."
Indisposed. Aka long dead from some unlucky event. The percentages for this depended on the global situation. It increased when there was a pandemic or a war, which resulted in the rising death toll. The numbers fell when there was peace and harmony. However, car accidents still happened.
"I know!" The lady nodded vigorously. "But, it's probably because all of his best friends have no soulmate. It pained him to see them lose hope over the years, and he didn't want to be like them. According to him, it saves him the heartache."
"That's really sad. He shouldn't give up so quickly." Amber frowned
"I think so too. Anyway, don't worry dear." The woman smiled brightly. "I'll keep an eye out for you as well."
"Thank you. I'll really appreciate it. I trust Miri but it'll be nice to have someone help her out." Amber glanced at her best friend who was busy sending kissy-face selfies to Deok-Su.
"Maybe you're my son's soulmate."
Amber blinked, her eyes snapping to the older lady's. She was grinning cheekily, mirth dancing in her brown eyes.
"Um, ma'am. I would love that but—"
"I'm joking!" The older lady giggled, shaking her head as she smiled. "And call me Da-hee."
"Oh, I'm Amber. It's a pleasure to meet you Da-hee."
They shook hands on it.
The music was growing louder and louder, and anticipation flickered Amber's frame as she stood to take a look at the stage. Energy crackled in the air, and excitement fluttering within her frame. It was time.
Amber turned her gaze to her surroundings, watching as the light sticks began to glow. They pulsated in time with the beat, spreading across the stadium in waves and waves of colour. The orbs of colour were like miniature fireflies that danced across the sea of darkened bodies with each pulse of the music.
The lights went out and the crowd screamed. She watched enraptured as jets of fire burst forth from the stage, smoke spilling from the depths of the darkness and the crowd going crazy. They surged forward like a tsunami, pressing onto her body and pushing her forward, but Amber didn't care.
The beginning tunes of their latest song began to play and spotlights flickered on all at once. Her breath was strangled from her body as the seven men stepped out looking like gods from the heavens.
A delirious bubble of happiness coursed through her veins and her initial feelings of heat, claustrophobia and thirst washed away into nothingness. Her mind was completely and utterly distracted by the seven men.
They were breath-taking on stage, and a full body shiver surged through her, forcing goose bumps over the surface of her skin. Amber allowed herself to be consumed by the music. She let herself go, completely forgetting about all her worries and troubles.
The three hours passed by quickly, too quickly. The seven men were dancing so hard and singing so well, each performance took her breath away. Amber's heart twisted in pain at the sight of sweat dripping from their brows and the tension in their shoulders as their bodies protested from the exertion.
She spotted a couple of them hiding backstage, bodies bent with their hands on their knees to catch their breaths before entering to dance their part of the songs. They seemed so tired, hidden under the shadows. But the minute they were on stage, they were on fire.
It was very obvious when an artist loved their artwork and she was thankful. So very thankful that they were her artists. That they were her sirens. That they were her gods of music and she was their willing victim. This was years of hard work squeezed into a three-hour show and Amber was a little teary-eyed as she watched them perform.
She didn't even notice when the minutes ticked by, drawing closer and closer to her birthday.
10
They were so close to her.
They stood right in front of her, having travelled across the long aisle that led to the diamond-shaped platform. JieMi took centre stage moving across the stage with a well-executed choreography.
9
The moment the handsome man gave an experimental thrust, his tongue sticking out naughtily, the crowd roared. His fans were going animalistic at the sight, their loud shrieks were starting to sound blood-curdling.
Amber glanced at the fans beside her, noting the perverted glint in their eyes. They were breathing heavily as their screams got louder and louder from his actions. She gulped, turning back to stare at the male incubus before her.
8
Good God. Was he aware of what he did to all these women?
7
Amber's mouth went dry as he ran his hands through dark inky, wet locks. He glanced up at her section, looking at his fans from under thick lashes that fanned over his cheeks whenever he blinked. Amber groaned, feeling a tinge of jealousy in her heart at the sight of those beautiful eyes.
JieMi's eyes were the largest and prettiest in the group.
6
She watched as he cocked his hip, mic pressed to his lips. The lead singer was gorgeous. His face was swathed in dark shadows that highlighted sharp cheekbones.
He swayed his feet moving across the stage in slow, carefully dragged movements that emphasised the shapes and lines of his body. The light bounced off his skin and he turned to give his fans a deadly smirk, revealing pretty teeth.
5
JieMi licked his lips, teasingly running long digits over his flat stomach as he body-rolled with the fluidity of silk rippling in the wind. And then his thumbs were on the edges of his shirt, pulling it upwards to expose mouth-watering skin. Amber's jaw dropped open as he flashed the crowd with the sight of his abs. His body was all sinew and zero fat, his stomach taut for the show, with an alluring trail of hair trailing from his belly button to disappear in his pants.
It was an underwear model's body. The kind that made one salivate over the idea of running one's hands over the flat hard planes. He dropped the shirt at the very next second, smirking naughtily as the fans went absolutely crazy.
He strutted like a model on a catwalk, his body swaying as he moved over the stage. He was being absolutely shameless as he strained his muscles, letting them pop over his skin such that they were lewdly obvious.
She watched, entranced as his fingers skirted over his cock in a salacious manner. They curved, running over places where they shouldn't be going, accentuating areas that she should not notice. There was a reason why his cock had a dedicated fandom after all.
Heat surged over her skin, lighting all her nerves on fire. She was hot and cold at the same time. Her body trembling at the sight of him. Fuck. Get a grip, Amber. She swallowed thickly shaking her head.
She was here to say goodbye to her attraction. Not fuel it!
4
He finally decided to stop bursting ovaries and doubled over laughing happily. He turned jogging lightly to her direction, huge doe eyes scanning the crowd. He squinted at something to her left and suddenly his whole face lit up.
3
It was so unlike him. The smile was genuine and he looked so, so happy. His eyes were twinkling under the light as he beamed so brightly that faint dimples formed on his cheeks.
Amber was reminded of the picture she had seen earlier on her saviour's phone and her heart pounded faster as links were steadily being made in her mind. Amber turned to look, spotting said woman who was waving her hands in the air, looking a little teary eyed.
"JIEMI! Your mom is so proud of you!" Da-hee screamed.
Amber watched as the singer pursed his lips, his eyes turning red as he bowed to his mother in his thanks. Traces of tears were spilling from the corners of beautiful doe eyes as he gave her a final wave before walking back into position, his eyes never leaving his mother.
2
The music changed as the next song played. It was a haunting melody that made chills run over Amber's skin. Her lips stretched at the familiar tune feeling a variety of emotions flicker through her. JieMi pressed his lips to the silver microphone as he swayed his hips to the beat of the music.
"No worries on our mind, no questions to be solved, we are freed from our chains~"
His voice was beautiful. It melted in the air like sweet honey. He let the sound loose, his voice steadily climbing higher and higher as he sang. It echoed across the stadium, bell-like and angelic in quality.
Beautiful.
Her breath rasped in her ears, her heart beating faster in her chest. She was so aware of how his voice made her feel, of how it seemed to brush over her skin. It drowned out the sounds around her and she was suddenly hyperaware of the fluttering beat of her pulse in her neck, her wrist—
Her clit.
"AMBER!" Miri's voice cut into her daze. "AMBER! Your birthday!"
JieMi's eyes popped open, drifting to meet hers as he wrapped up the flawless note a little too quickly. What was going on? He stared back at her and she was wrecked by the need to get to him. She needed to be closer to him. She needed to be with him.
Hazel eyes met dark brown ones.
1
And they switched places.