The oldest is born with a bare wrist and, parents being parents, they agonise over it until the marks begin to form. Over the course of time - four months to a year is the average, according to all the child-rearing literature - the marks darken into proper letters.

The youngest is either born with those smudgy marks or gains them over the next day or so, and they form into proper letters as the baby ages. It's rare, but sometimes letters form from the squiggles sooner than the average, and this is taken as a sign that the bond between the two is incredibly strong.

Newt's wrist remains creamy pale and blank for nearly two years - agony for his parents - until one night he wakes his parents with a scream, crying about a sudden and almost burning itch in his left wrist. When they manage to pry his fingers off to see what has hurt their beloved baby boy they are shocked to see the stark black letters where mere hours before had been empty, pale skin.

Needless to say the shock soon melts into unadulterated glee, and Newt is raised hearing the story at parties, dinner dates, family gatherings. His mother might one day burst from pride at the thought that her son has a soul bond so strong that the letters formed in a matter of hours instead of the months or years they expected. Despite all the cooing and attention this gathers for Newt, his older sister Sonya has never resented it. She's two years older and although she saw the name on his wrist when they were little and he was in the bath, she's never been anything but proud and supportive.

Of course, his parents don't reveal what his wrist actually says. Because that's a secret to be kept at all costs until you're absolutely sure the person you're telling is the Soulmate branded on your skin.

There are lots of different ways to keep your wrist covered that don't mean wearing the ugly black cuffs that doctors hand out like sweets, and you don't always have to wear long sleeves. Parents buy cartoon-printed fabric for their little kids, girls buy them in fabric or shiny plastic from Claire's with whatever's in fashion emblazoned on them, things like Twilight, Teen Wolf and One Direction. Older girls cover them with make-up, teenagers hide them under layers of knotted fabric Concert wristbands. Shops sell the premium ranges of delicate, skin-tight lycra cuffs in a range of skin-tones, to make it look like it's not there. Those are similar to the ones that parents buy for their children when their letters form before the stage where the child is able to understand that they should be hidden.

Newt's mum talks about her teen years and her love for beaded bracelets and ribbons, which she would wear with her watch to cover her wrist up. His dad spent his years before he met Newt's mum in a bit of a Goth phase, so he had an endless number of fabric and leather cuffs and a penchant for long sleeves. Newt's mum still sometimes wears a collection of bangles even though once you've found your Soulmate you don't really have anything to hide any more.

But, like all things children are told to do or not do, there are always those who break the rules secretly. Siblings confess in whispered conversations after light out. Giggling pre-teen girls tell their friends at sleepovers when exchanging secrets, revelling in the romance of it all and the knowledge that one of the boys they know matches the name, and might even have their name on his wrist to match. There's always that one kid who blurts it out at nursery school, only to be hushed by an anxious and stressed out teacher. Boys try to find out the names on others' wrists in an attempt to find teasing material, or concoct plans to find out if the girl they think is bonded to them actually is. Of course this carries a heavy penalty at school if they get caught, and worse if their parents find out.

But that's the whole point of rebellion.

Newt has never in his life been the rebellious type, not even when he got old enough to understand that the boys at school would certainly bully him if they found out what was written on his wrist. Because the name of Newt's Soulmate definitely isn't someone from school, and it definitely isn't any of the girls he knows.

The name on Newt's wrist belongs to a boy.