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  Everybody either has a soulmate mark or is going to get one. Every person on Earth has a soulmate, a person that the universe has chosen to be their lifelong partner.

Some people find their soulmate, some people don't. When a person turns eighteen, a small tattoo-like mark appears on their wrist.

My boyfriend and I both have the same birthday, so in a few days, we'll both turn eighteen and find out whether we're soulmates or not.

The idea of him not being my soulmate scared me. I dreaded revealing our marks to each other and finding out whether we were meant to be together or not.

But then again, if by some small miracle they were the same, we would probably end up marrying each other and spending the rest of our lives as a happy couple.

I tried to stay optimistic, but the odds weren't in my favor. What if our marks were different and he broke up with me on the spot so that he could go find his real soulmate?

These thoughts plagued my mind as I was walking to a café to meet up with my boyfriend Zane two days before our birthday, November 11th.

The dead autumn leaves crunched under my blue converse's and a light breeze made my long red hair flow behind me.

Soon I arrived and saw Zane waiting for me at a table for two.

"Oh, hey, Avery!" he greeted, looking up from his phone and smiling at me.

I smiled back and sat down across from him. When I was with Zane, all my worries seemed to melt away. He always knew what to say to make me feel better and how to lighten the mood.

There's no way we're not soulmates, I thought, We're perfect for each other!

And it was true, we were. He was always bright and positive, always trying to make people laugh and feel better, while I was calm and a good listener.

He cheered me up, while I was always ready to listen to his problems and comfort him.

But when it came to looks, we were polar opposites- he had curly black hair that fell into his crystal blue eyes and a tall, lean stature, and I had long red hair, freckles, dark brown eyes and was on the shorter side.

But despite our differences, we always loved each other and almost never fought. I couldn't imagine my life without him, which is why I dreaded our birthday.

He didn't seem like the type to break up with me over a tattoo, but if they were different, then we were probably destined to break up eventually anyway.

"Could I borrow that mystery book you have? It sounds interesting and I wanted to see for myself." I asked Zane, though my thoughts still lingered on our upcoming birthday.

"Of course!" smiled Zane.

He studied my face for a moment before asking:

"Is something bothering you?"

I should have known he would ask that. Zane could read my emotions like an open book.

"Yes, actually." I sighed, deciding that it was best to address the fact that we might not be soulmates "What will we do if our soulmate marks don't match?"

He must've been able to tell how much that possibility worried me, because he put a comforting hand over mine.

"True love isn't determined by a tattoo on our wrists." he said.

He looked deep into my dark eyes with his light ones so intensely my heart fluttered. He squeezed my hand reassuringly and smiled, making me feel a little better.

"So we won't break up, even if we're not soulmates?" I asked, just to make sure

"No." Zane said firmly "I guess you're stuck with me no matter what."

I laughed lightly, suddenly feeling a lot less worried about our birthday

I don't deserve you, I thought lovingly, gazing at Zane's handsome face.

"So I was thinking" started Zane on a lighter note "How about we go to that Italian restaurant you like to celebrate our eighteenth birthday?"

"That sounds awesome!" I exclaimed "And then we can visit that arcade that you like!"

"Sounds like a plan." he smiled.

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The sun was setting. It had been two days since mine and Zane's talk at the café and we were currently. sitting on a park bench, admiring the beautiful view before us.

It was the end of our birthday date and it was time to reveal our newly-acquired soulmate marks to each other. I really hoped that he had a swan on his wrist like I did, but if he didn't, I was comforted by the knowledge that he wouldn't stop loving me because of it.

"On three." I said, getting ready to show Zane my mark "One... Two.. Three!"

I held up my swan-marked wrist and looked at Zane's.

My heart dropped at what I saw- a monarch butterfly. Not a swan.

My eyes began to tear up. So we weren't soulmates? How? We were a perfect couple! My thoughts were interrupted by Zane's calm voice:

"Avery! Avery, it's ok." he said "Remember what I told you? The universe just made a little mistake! These marks don't change how I feel about you. And I hope you can say the same."

I nodded, still not looking up from the mark on my wrist.

"Avery, look at me."

I obliged and met his light blue eyes, shining in the light of the setting sun.

"I love you." he said quietly "And I always will."

"I love you too." I said.

He leaned forward and our lips brushed against each other. We shared a passionate kiss in the dim orange light of the sunset, knowing that we didn't need to have matching soulmate marks to be madly in love...

And they lived happily ever after.

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