The day was hot and sunny, its rays threatening to burn up the circus and everyone in it (or so as a certain black-haired boy said). However, John and his cousin, Jade, were safely protected from the heat. They were inside a tent, which was surprisingly cool due to the electric fan the fortune-teller had put inside. At first, their older cousins, Jake and Jane, had wanted to join in, but Jane had suddenly spotted a stall that sold baked goods. Jane had quickly gone over to the stall, dragging Jake along.
The fortune-teller in question was finishing up John's turn, looking into a gleaming crystal ball which looked more like a sphere of light. The light radiating from it lit up the violet eyes of the fortune-teller eerily, making her look like the villains in Jade's cartoons. Her answers seemed truthful and realistic, as if the things that she was telling them were real.
Then again, since when did a fortune-teller predict things correctly?
Soon, it was Jade's turn.
"So, is there anything you would like to know, Jade?" the fortune-teller's calm voice, similar to a psychologist's, broke into her thoughts of her robot-in-progress at her home.
"Huh?" Jade's head shot up.
The fortune-teller smiled and repeated her question.
"Oh, well..." the girl trailed off as she thought about the questions she wanted to know the answers to.
"How would my soul mate look like?"
John looked at Jade with an amused expression on his face.
"Jade, seriously?" he asked, trying his hardest not to laugh at the embarrassed look on his cousin's face.
"Oh god, I didn't want to say that!" Jade's expression was now a mixture of embarrassment and shock. The fortune-teller smirked briefly, but it quickly faded back to her original smile which calmed the other girl a little. The fortune-teller studied Jade's face intently.
"Accident or not, I can see that you want to know the answer to this question. I might as well answer that as your time will be up soon," the Seer said, her voice still soft and relaxing. She broke away from Jade's face to look into the sphere on the table in front of her. Her expression suddenly changed into one of shock and amusement, and one could see she was trying her hardest not to laugh.
"Does the person look funny?" John questioned, also trying not to chuckle at the sudden look that came across the fortune-teller's face.
"No, in fact, he is what one would describe as 'cool'." The voice was strained, threatening to break her reputation as calm and collected with laughter (or more likely, giggles). After a few moments, she calmed down and started to describe the boy in the crystal ball.
"He has light blond hair. His skin is pale as well, but he has freckles on his cheeks if one looks closely. Both his skin and hair has a sharp contrast to the black aviators he wears all the time, even when sleeping. He is slightly taller than you, Jade, and quite muscular due to years of strife with his older brother. He speaks with a Texan accent."
The fortune-teller paused, wondering if she should say more about the boy.
Maybe not, she thought. Let her figure her soul mate out on her own.
"Thank you!" Jade said cheerfully. "I think our time is up?"
The fortune-teller looked up from the crystal ball, then at her watch.
"Yes, your time is up. That would be a ticket, please, and have a good day," she replied. John quickly tore off a ticket and gave it to the Seer. He smiled, wished her a nice day as well and went out with his sister. After the cousins had exited, the Seer closed the tent curtains to not let anyone see her.
Rose Lalonde proceeded to break into laughter. She doubled over, chuckling, before cooling down and wiping the tears away from her eyes.
A week later, Jake and Jade were walking towards an apartment in Texas. Jake, the owner of a large movie company, was going over to the apartment to meet the owner of a big puppet franchise. Jade was just accompanying her older cousin as she knew he didn't like going alone to places, no matter how adventurous he was.
She found the puppets (smuppets, apparently) very amusing from what she had seen of it. Googly eyes, large noses and let's not forget, plush rumps. Very, very plush rumps. With ass holes. She had spent a few minutes laughing at them.
Back to the current location. Texas, right?
Right.
Suddenly, while Jake was checking his phone for messages and when Jade was playing a squiddles-related game on hers, the girl accidentally knocked into a boy who had his head down whilst walking to a nearby convenience store. The two of them fell on the hot surface of the pavement, Jade over the boy.
"Oh my God, are you okay?" Jade got up and helped the boy up. Then she gasped.
Blond hair.
Pale skin.
Freckles.
Aviators which showed no sign of his eyes.
Her train of thought was derailed by the boy's reply, which merely consisted of a "yeah, don't worry about it."
Dave Strider started to walk off in the direction he had headed for earlier calmly, reminding Jade of the fortune-teller the week before. She didn't see the blush on his face as he walked faster towards the store.
...What the heck?
Jade looked down at her shoes, blushing. Then, she proceeded to walk on as if nothing had happened.
Maybe I'll meet him again! He's probably my soul mate, right? Jade thought.