Soulmates

It is raining. It is always raining. Since the world government has implemented ‘world climate control’, the rain never stops. It is true – there are no extreme natural disasters, like hurricanes, droughts, or floods. The temperature is almost always the same – comfortably warm. There are no seasons, no hot summers, no blooming springs, and no snowy winters. Forever autumn. And it rains all the time.

It is Saturday morning. Jack leaves his tiny flat on the fifth floor of the old grey concrete building. He wears a rain-resistant coat with a hood over his head, blue jeans, and a pair of black galoshes. Jack takes the usual route through the city, following familiar streets, looking at the same wet buildings as always, observing glowing advertisement signs he is so accustomed to seeing. ‘New Raincoat Designs – Order Now!’ he reads a giant red slogan floating in the sky. All of this is predictable and boring.

He does not meet many people during his stroll people don’t go outside anymore. There is no reason to. There are no stores and no places to visit. You can order everything you need from your flat and get it delivered almost instantaneously. You can also visit any place you want safely from your room – virtually, experiencing it just like you would in real life.

Jack stops at the corner of 6th Street and 3rd Avenue. He walks into one of the very few shops, this one sells freshly baked croissants. It feels good to touch a warm, soft piece of bread and immediately bite. It is a guilty pleasure impossible to be delivered, you must get out to have it. The process is fully automated, of course. The camera at the store booth scans Jack’s eye irises, identifies him, and indicates order acceptance with a buzzing green light. Thirty seconds later he receives a fresh, warm croissant delivered through a small window in the middle of the booth.

Jack never ventures outside of his home, except on Saturdays. He does not need to go to work. Everyone receives a ‘life sustainment allowance’ from the government, so nobody has to work anymore, except for a very few geeks who oversee and maintain the systems. All city functions are fully automated and governed by artificial intelligence, so human interference is rarely needed. Jack spends days sitting quietly in an ergonomic chair – the only one he has – in his flat, looking outside transparent walls, absorbing rain. Sometimes he listens to dark jazz and loses himself in music. Nothing happens in his life – except these Saturday strolls.

Every Saturday morning, he walks for about an hour across the city, always following the same path to a secluded park in the French Quarter. On one of the benches in the park, he meets a beautiful woman. She always sits there, waiting for him. Jack does not know her real name. He calls her Ivy. During their first encounter, they engaged in a conversation about a beautiful plant curling behind the bench, and Jack decided to call her Ivy, in remembrance of the event changing his life forever. Ivy and Jack are soulmates. They share the same interests and they can talk about a topic of passion to both of them for hours. Sometimes they are arguing and sometimes they just sit in silence, watching and listening to rain.

Jack has been meeting Ivy for the past two years. This is the highlight of his week, his raison d’etre. He waits for a Saturday all week long and then keeps thinking about their conversation the following week, replaying it in his head over and over again.

They did not develop a romantic relationship. She never mentions anything about herself, and Jack never asks. He does not talk about himself either – he feels this is a boring subject, not worthy of their time. Besides, she does not ask, just nods her head when he adds a remark about his life as if she knows everything there is to know about him. They only discuss topics of interest to them both: human mind, music, art, beauty… Sometimes they just sit there in silence, holding hands, but there is nothing romantic in these moments. They know exactly what the other one is thinking and feeling. They are soulmates.

Today, Jack has decided this time will be different. He finally needs to understand who she is and why does she come to the park every Saturday to talk to him. He needs to know, he cannot continue to live in darkness like this. The fear of suddenly losing her without any knowledge of where to search is too great. Life without Ivy would be impossible.

He arrives at the park and follows the trail through the greenery. Once in a while, he encounters an old statue on either side of the trail, a trace of time immemorial. These statues are colored dark green, covered in moss and fallen leaves; standing there, as a grotesque forest creature suddenly turned to stone. Eventually, Jack finds their bench. Ivy is already there, as usual, he sees her far from the distance. Their eyes meet, they don’t need to say ‘hello’. They smile at each other, and Jack sits beside her on the bench.

He talks about how beautiful raindrops are on her long curved black hair and the ivy bush behind them. She says beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Then he finally gathers the courage to ask her who she is, where she is from, and why she is here. Ivy does not respond. Jack confronts her and begs her to open up to him. She says she cannot tell. Jack says his life has no meaning and no substance without her, he only feels truly alive during their meetings. He needs to know more about her, he asks Ivy to come with him and stay forever. What is the reason their encounters are limited to Saturdays only? She does not say a word, just smiles sadly and places her hand in his. He threatens to leave and never come back, he is willing to end his life as the fear of the unknown is tearing him apart. She is silent. He stands up, says ‘goodbye’, and starts walking away. She calls him back, he turns around and sees tears in her eyes. He does not understand what is happening.

“If this is so important to you,” she says, “I will tell you. I cannot afford to lose you. You are my soulmate.”

“Yes, it is very important to me. It is more important than life and death. There is no life in this godforsaken place when you are not here.”

“It might mean the end for both of us, but it has to end sooner rather than later, anyway…” she says enigmatically. “You see, I feel completely different about this place. It gives me solace, peace of mind. I would be content to stay here forever, and it will be the ultimate joy and happiness to spend my every moment with you.”

“Then tell me what the problem is? Why can’t you just do that?”

“It is impossible, unfortunately…There is a different option, however. The one that might destroy us both. Are you ready for that?”

“If it means the end of this miserable existence without you, hoping to survive a week to have a brief moment of delight on a Saturday – then, yes, I am ready!”

“I am sorry…” Ivy says, looking at the grass, as corners of her lips turn down. She reaches into the pocket of her raincoat and gives him a little red box. “Hold it and stay here,” she says. “We will switch places”.

“Switch places? What do you mean?”

“This box is a thread connecting me with where I physically am. I am giving this thread to you. I will walk away, and you will use this thread to follow my path back.”

“Your path?”

“Yes. Back into my world. Your world – this bench, this park, the rain – all of this is created as a virtual reality from my dreams, thoughts, feelings, and emotions. It is my secret place where I can hide. The only place I am truly myself, where I feel at home. And you are created as my soulmate. We are yin and yang. Perfect match. We are two halves of the one, united forever, yet so different. This is the reason our conversations and encounters are so rich in thoughts and feelings. This is why you are miserable here, while I find calming bliss.”

“So…you are saying I am not real?”

“I did not say that…am I real to you?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Reality, like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder. You are real to me and I am real to you and this is what matters.”

“Yes, I understand. You are a part of me, I cannot lose you. I do not exist without you.”

“As long as you remember this and keep coming back here, we will be together. This is about us. What we are going to do will either kill us both or make our lives a little bit more tolerable.”

She stands up, turns around, and leaves. He sits on the bench for a few minutes, watching her disappearing silhouette in the rain. Finally, he looks at the box, which starts heating up and glowing brightly. The intensity of the glare forces Jack to close his eyes. He feels like the world around him starts spinning, and he is slowly descending into a bottomless void, disappearing into nothingness… Then he opens his eyes and sees sunshine.