"What do you mean, you can't change my schedule?!"

Roman's voice rang out against the pale walls of the counselor's office. He'd spoken a bit louder than he'd meant to, and she was wincing.

Her name was Mrs. Caroline, and she was pretty nice. She was tan, with wavy brown hair and brown eyes. She seemed nice, and her office had muted colors, pillows, and a salt lamp. It was nice. She had a large rug with an intricate decoration, in lots of colors. There were plants on her windowsill and books on a shelf. He wouldn't be surprised if she had cats. She wore a flowing maroon shirt, jeans, and tall boots with a slight heel. She was really pretty, and Roman desperately wanted to know if she was a lesbian, because... no reason. (author dies in gay)

She adjusted her glasses, kept her smile from slipping, and simply said "It doesn't fit your schedule."

"Can't you change my schedule?"

She sighed, rubbed her temples, and showed him her computer screen.

"Look, you have third period art, right?"

"Yes."

"World Studies is only available in the fifth period."

"So..."

"Your fifth period class, Geometry, is only available in fifth and second period."

"Ok..."

"Your second period class, Spanish, is only available in the second and sixth period."

Roman kept his mouth shut, not liking where this was going.

"Your sixth period class, Chemistry, is only available in sixth, fifth, and seventh, and your seventh period class, Theater, is only available in seventh and first, and your first period, World History, is only available in-"

"Ok, I get it."

She smiled.

"I'm sorry, Roman, but you have to stay in art for right now. They do offer World Studies for your next year, but I'm sorry, your schedule cannot currently be changed."

Roman looked sadly at her awesome rug. He really wanted to find out who his soulmate was, and the only clue he had was the one on his arm. He formed his expression up, keeping himself from reflecting how disappointed he was. It was fine, really. He had the rest of his life to find his soulmate, and there were other ways he could do it.

He met her eyes, put a smile on his face, and sat up straight.

"Thank you. I guess I need to go to my next class. What period is it?"

"It's second."

"Thank you."

At her nod, he headed out the door, and back into the boring hallway. Second period was... Spanish. He mostly wanted to learn Spanish because it was a romantic language, though he did like being able to call people names without them knowing what he was saying. He walked down the slim hallway, determined to stay cheerful. He'd find his soulmate, sooner or later. It was fate,, and fate is rather inescapable.

He got to spanish, gave the teacher the late slip, and settled into his seat. Well... not quite settled. It's hard to settle into hard plastic. He looked around, already restless. The teacher was droning on, something about genders and stuff. The kid next to him was alert, taking notes and actively focusing. The kid in front of that kid, what was his name? Matthew. Matthew was half-asleep, staring off into space. Matthew Jacobs. He was in Roman's middle school, they did... biology together? Something like that. Also seventh grade history, though Roman only remembered because they had been partners. It was probably that one assignment about native americans... that one about uh... nomads! Nomads and how they lived and all that. Roman didn't really like history.

Brooke was on the other side of him, a stupid popular girl. Well, she was smart, but she was stupid. Sure, she was in AP classes and advanced courses, but she didn't seem to be doing anything with her brain. She was just surviving and living. She'd go on to have a good job, a husband, kids. She'd one day realize that the world was bigger than her, and maybe she'd feel sad, that she didn't do more. Sad because she just had her singular existence, and she never realized how much more she could be. Roman didn't want that life. He didn't want to wake up one day, and realize he wasn't anything. He didn't want to live a simple existence and die a simple death. He wanted to be something, do something. He wanted to break the chains of normalcy trying to control his life, and actually be more than anyone thought he could be. He wanted to change the world. He wanted to be something big and bold, and he wouldn't go down easy!

But he was still just human. He'd still die. He'd eventually be forgotten, no matter how big he made himself. One day, none of it would matter. He might make the world a better place, but he could only do so much. He wouldn't be anything. Not in the scheme of things. They were all gonna die, and everything we have worked for for thousands of years will be gone. All of those great leaps and bounds, all of those accomplishments, none of it would matter. Everything people bled and fought and died for, all of it would be gone.

He focused back on Spanish. Words, words, so many words. His head couldn't keep up.

He got bored really quickly, and traced the outline of his Mark. It was beautiful, really. He didn't know what it had to do with his soulmate, and he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know.