Forever 7:34

[heavy, oak door. welcomes me inside. handsome but strange. Strange.]

Hello! You don’t know me, but I know you. I know all of you, and I love all of you deeply. And it is exhausting. 

[where am I? this is — I don’t want to be here anymore. goodbye. oh, but I must go. goodbye. so sorry.]

Please! Don’t go! Allow me to explain. Have a seat. I promise you won’t regret it. 

[if you insist. sure. sure. I’ll stay. uncertainty. is this a RED FLAG?]

You can sit there, ah, yes. There. Mhm. Tea? No? Alright, your loss. I make wonderful tea. How about water? No? Are you certain? Well, alright. I’m a bit parched myself, have a look around while I grab a pitcher.

Clink. 

That’s for you. Yes, I know you said you didn’t want any. Because I didn’t believe you! Now, have a drink! It’s good, isn’t it? I told you! 

[it IS good. mouth is dry. crosses his legs. brown slacks. scuffed shoes. smacks his lips. ahh. why is he looking at me like that?]

Anyway, back to the task at hand. Yes, I know you. Here you are, again. Filled with questions. Uncertainties. Loneliness, perhaps? 

[lonely. we all are.]

You aren’t the only one, you know.

[leans in close. white mustache. genuine.]

Do you believe in soulmates? No? Isn’t that funny?

[isn’t that funny]

Oh, it can be funny! Love is funny. It’s a funny thing. I love you, have I said that already? Oh, you don’t know me, but I know you. I know you. Yes, I do. I promise. Believe me, please! It will make things much easier.

[do I hear god? he laughs. he laughs!]

Oh, no, I am not God. I am something much better. Or much worse. But I do know Him. Very great guy. He knows you, too. Of course he does. Knows you very well. Even better than I do. Or worse. Depends on who you ask. Well, there are many people you can ask. But I digress.

[Who? who are you? pocket watch on the left. forever 7:34.]

I am a friend! I love you very much. I want you to know that. Okay? Well, do you? Glad to hear it. I love you very much. You can call me whatever you like. Yes, anything. 

[God? hooked nose. Bite. another drink. elegance.]

Most people call me Sir. One woman called me Dad. I didn’t like that very much. But once a boy called me Pal. I liked that much better. He was a good boy. Great kid. Poor kid. Hate what happened to him. Oh, yes, he’s okay now! Don’t worry. I want you to be my friend. Can you do that for me?

[do I love you I don’t think I do. do I have a choice? only joking.]

Did I ask if you believed in soulmates? Yes? Well, do you? No? Isn’t that funny. Well, do you want to see a couple? Why, a couple of soulmates! Yes. Yes, now. Follow me over here.

[like a crystal ball. foggy. foggy. are there? oh there are!]

Yes, there are people in here! You don’t know them. They don’t know you. Oh, they’re very real. No, they can’t hear you. Oh my, no you can’t poke them! You’re like God, now, only you can’t do anything to them. You’re the omniscient God. You can be in their heads and in their hearts. Mhm. Listen.

[oh, he’s hurting. laugh like santa. what’s the matter? real people. ho ho ho. i want to fix this. may i?]

You can’t. You can only watch. This is what makes my job so bad. One consultation at a time. One per customer. And they don’t remember a thing. Not a thing. It’s a damn shame.

[what’s the matter? walking along. Santa Barbara. alleyway. there’s a woman. a woman. oh, the way he looks at her. is this danger? what’s the matter with him?]

He loves her, can’t you tell? No? It’s obvious. Loves funny, the way it hurts. A scam. Sometimes. Do you believe in soulmates yet? Just checking. Oh, no. I didn’t expect you to. Only checking.

[sunset. recognition. hello! box in the pocket. sitting by the tree. oh, we know. oh, is it happening? oh, she’s crying. oh, she loves it! blonde hair. scar on his lip. beautiful human.]

It’s obvious! You can always tell. Sunsets are for love. Sunrises are for breakups. Oh, well, breakups can happen at any time of day. So can love. But — Ah, well. Maybe you have a point. Life is for love. Life is for pain.

[soulmates? break ip at sunset. yes, me. are they soulmates? please tell me.]

Personally, I remember breakups best at sunrise. Yes. No time to put up the walls. Oh, they’re a shame. You’re right. Do you believe in soulmates?

[expectant and smug. amused and alone. never broken up with. he’s lying. alone.]

Well then, would you like to see another? Atta girl. Here we go.

[scrolling on the map. Austin. bubble tea. boba tea? small kisses. puppy love. oh, this is. puppy, love. years.]

This is my favorite couple. Disgustingly in love. Absolutely disgusting. No, I’m not jealous! It’s simply a joke. Joke with me, will you? It makes it more fun. We’ll need some laughter anyway. You’ll see. Listen.

[touches her hand. electricity.] 

You don’t know them. You don’t know their story. Do you want me to explain it to you?

[puppy love. please.]

He’s always loved Pokemon cards. She loves them, now, yes. She’s a runner. Track and the like, mhm. Uh, met online, I believe. Yes. That’s right. Lots of long distance. Oh, it’s very painful. Should’ve seen them. 

[together now. better. much.]

That’s right. Together now. Oh, a few times. Yes, he loves her very much. She loves him, yes. Oh, no. I’d say it’s equal. They love each other differently but equally. She buys him Pokemon cards and writes about him. He goes on runs and helps her with taxes. Isn’t it funny?

[eyes meet. kiss her. kiss   her  kiss her kissherplease. why? distance? after it all?]

I believe it’s gone wrong, yes. Not sure what happened. Yes. Yes, they do. Still in love. 

[still in love.]

Prove it? Oh, we can’t. We can’t do anything. I told you.

[but they’re still!]

Listen.

> I LOVE HIM. 

[she loves you!]

Yes, she loves him.

> WHAT IF SHE — 

[what if she what? she loves you! doubt. doubt, doubt. doubt. it’s funny.]

It’s very funny. There are a few things that can tear them apart. Oh, I don’t know. Doubt, yes. Like you said. Jealousy. Fear. Insecurity. That’s a lot of fear. It’s really all one thing. Usually ignorance. Mhm. 

[nothing really to be afraid of. can we tell him? she loves, him. if only they knew. stay together. can we tell him?]

> HE’S GOING TO LEAVE ME.

There’s nothing we can do, love. I already said so. I’m terribly sorry. Should’ve seen them. True love. Look at the way he watches her. He loves her. Yes, unfortunately so. They opened Pokemon cards together on the first date. If I remember correctly. Nothing good. But he loved her. Still does. Mhm. 

[hurting. maybe i was wrong.]

No, I’m not sure how they’ve gotten here. I’ve missed a few episodes. Lots of soulmates to watch. No rewind button, unfortunately. 6 years. Since childhood. Still very young.

> I LOVE YOU PLEASE DON’T LEAVE ME.

[ruin them forever. can we help them?]

There’s nothing we can do. I already said so.

> “Does this mean

we’re breaking 

up?”

> “I don’t want it to.”

> “Neither do I.”

[a silver lining!]

Don’t get your hopes up, my dear.

[a silver lining?]

> “It just hurts so much

I hate being away from you. I hate being away from you, Brian, please.” 

> “I know you do! We can make it work. You 

promised— 

> “I’m just not happy.”

Happens all the time. Never with soulmates though. Well, not usually. Yes, they’re soulmates. 

[a mistake!]

A terrible mistake. It doesn't always play out, no. Not always. Terribly sad.

> "I still love you. I think I need you, Ashlyn, please."

> "Please."

[please! plates fall, to the floor. wisp of hair. gone.]

Oh, no. Quite messy, no pun intended.

[crushed. tears. puppy love. hurting.]

Well, allow me to switch this off. No, I must. It's over. I'm sorry. Yes, he's quite crushed. So is she, don't get me wrong. Huge mistake. It happens. Not usually with soulmates, but, you know.

[thinks she's doing the right thing.]

Yes, he needs her. He loves her, how could he not. Oh, well. She wants her independence. She wants a love that's tangible. He's too far away. Oh, I believe you. It happens.

[can we fix this?]

Oh, I told you. We can't do much of anything, my dear. Do you believe in soulmates?

[please, can we fix this?]

You have to go home, now. I'm terribly sorry, Ashlyn. Terribly sorry, my dear.