Jake Peralta had a problem. A really big problem. That he couldn't find a solution to, cause as far as he knew no one on earth has ever had this problem before. Jake Peralta was the only one this messed up.
How big of a screw up do you have to be to screw up destiny? All that predetermined shit- it's freaking fate. It's how the world works, how it's always worked. Every person had a soulmate, with the same time counting down to the exact moment they meet for the very first time. It's how the world goes round.
It's destiny.
Everyone has the match. The perfect one. The perfect love, made for each other. It was fate. It had to happen.
So how the hell did he screw up destiny? How did he manage to screw up fate this bad? This never happened to anyone else. Jake tried to find out what to do, and he actually went to libraries and read books. He did research and spent hours in the nonfiction section reading every book on the soulmate subject. No answers.
This had never happened to anyone before.
Nothing even mentioned the hypothetical situation of this happening to any human being because it was literally impossible.
Even with all the biologists and psychologists doing studies, and neuroscientists trying to figure out the answer and explanation to why this all worked, they were trying to find out how it worked.
No one ever considered the possibility of it not working. It always worked. There wasn't anyone out there who did what he did. Felt like he did.
How much of a failure did you have to be to screw up destiny? How did he screw up this bad?
How did he fall in love with someone who had a different timer?
How could he fall in love with someone else's soulmate. How could he fall in love with that person's perfect match.
He had a timer of his own. A countdown of his own.
He was supposed to be someone else's soulmate. It wasn't just the fact that the girl he was in love with was destined for someone else. He was destined for someone else.
That stranger's perfect match was supposed to be Jake Peralta- both their timers were counting down to when they would meet.
That person was supposed to have him as a soulmate, that was how the world worked.
It wasn't just Jake falling in love with someone else and being miserable himself. He was screwing up destiny for that person who had been waiting their whole life to meet their perfect match, their only match, only to find out it was him.
Not only does your soulmate countdown to the right time, you're also supposed to feel love at first sight. If you get a look at them years before you actually meet each other for the first time and your respective clocks hit zero, you still get that jolt when your eye crosses them, even if it's just a glance over a crowd and you can't tell who it is. You get that jolt.
Safe to say he hasn't felt that jolt.
Amy Santiago's countdown was longer than his. By two and a half years. Luckily they weren't one of those people whose countdown ended with them being 45 years old. But that was just about the only lucky part about it.
Senior year.
His countdown had two months left as of now.
When he'd been in love with Amy for three years by now. His chest freaking ached when he thought too hard about it. They'd been best friends for ages. Since they were kids. He wasn't sure exactly when he fell in love with her. He definitely would've gagged if anyone brought up the idea of kissing Amy back in middle school because 'ew! Gross! She's my friend! You don't kiss friends!'
It was slow. This falling in love thing. Nothing like the love at first sight that everyone was supposed to experience. It wasn't supposed to be this drawn out process that filled you to the core. Until you're filled with this undeniable feeling that's overwhelming and overflowing and all consuming. All he knew was that he'd finished falling in love with Amy years ago. He's been completely head over heels in love with Amy Santiago for years.
As his timer dwindles down, Amy keeps asking him if he's excited.
He always lies and says yes.
Author's note: Hello! It's me! Back with another AU!
I love soulmate AUs, but I always get hung up on one problem when reading them:
Do abusers not exist in this universe? Does whatever is in control of assigning soulmates take abusive tendencies into account when pairing partners together? Do they just try and pair all the bad people up? Do abusers just not have soulmates at all?
I know it's fantasy and suspension of disbelief, but I need to know what I'm supposed to be believing first! Just tell me abusers don't exist in this universe and you've got my suspension of disbelief covered.
Maybe it's the Asperger's, but I always get so hung up on that detail when it comes to soulmate AUs.
Anyways, here's the Peraltiago AU where they're not matched up with each other and still end up together anyways (plus teenagers!) I can't stop mixing my AUs.
I think this might have around 5 chapters. Don't worry, it won't be a slow burn fic, because I have no tolerance for sustained angst. I just want them to be kissing already!
