A/N: Here's chapter 2! Happy reading! -S

Connor felt like a stalker.
His presence in the school cafeteria caused some eyes to turn to his direction immediately. Connor Murphy didn't spend his lunch hours in the school cafeteria, but today was different.
Connor caught himself staring at Hansen's back again. Seriously, if anyone paid attention to him for more than a second - unlikely - and knowing his reputation, they might feel the need to make sure Hansen was safe.
Connor felt like a creep but at the same time, he could not stop staring at Hansen. He couldn't stop thinking about him and what happened earlier that morning.
Considering everything, it seemed that Connor had finally found his soulmate. However, at the age of 18, most of the years which he had believed there to not be a soulmate for him, he was skeptical. He was thinking about doing a pros and cons list and immediately felt like a loser.
Then a thought occurred to him.
If he indeed had a tattoo representing his soulmate - Hansen? - wouldn't he have a tattoo representing Connor?
This is the moment where if this was a movie, Connor would immediately know what symbol or picture to look for. However, Connor had no idea. What did the universe see as a representation of Connor? A frown? Bottle of nail polish? A joint?
Connor really hoped poor Hansen didn't have to grow up with a tattoo of a joint on his forearm.
Connor sighed. Who's to say Hansen even was his soulmate? Maybe by some freak accident Hansen just happened to know a lot about trees, completely unrelated to the tattoo on Connor's arm. Maybe his soulmate was crushed under this-this dragon's blood tree and killed instantly and that's why Connor never found them.
Even with all the doubts filling Connor's head, he had to make sure. He had to see Hansen's soulmate tattoo.
Only problem is, how can Connor, the high school's resident delinquent and anger issues kid, just walk up to Hansen, the resident nervous and reserved kid, and ask to see his tattoo?
Connor let his forehead fall to the surface of the lunch table. This was stupid. Soulmates were stupid. Stupid universe, stupid soulmate tattoos and stupid Larry.
Connor sighed again. He knew he couldn't let this go. He had never paid particularly much attention to Hansen before, therefore he had never had a negative thought about him either, unlike most of the student body, but today had really shone a different, new light on the fidgety boy in Connor's eyes. He was too invested now. Even if Hansen wasn't his soulmate, maybe he could help find them, he did seem to know an awful lot about trees. Who has a favorite tree species anyway?
The bell rang. Connor had officially wasted his lunch hour on absentmindedly staring at Hansen. Shit. He got up and started making his way toward the doors. He needed a cigarette to clear his head.
He was just about to push open the main doors, when Hansen's blue shirt came into his field of vision. He was fumbling with a locker combo near the main doors. Connor stood still for a second, and then his feet started moving without much thought being put into it.
Suddenly he was standing next to Hansen, who noticed a person in his personal space right away.
He looked unsure.
"H-hi? Am-am I in your way?" Hansen asked.
"Huh? No! No, it's fine." Connor replied and scratched the back of his neck.
"Oh. Good." Hansen said and apparently was expecting Connor to go about his business, but instead Connor just stood there and stared, not knowing how to approach the problem at hand, which made Hansen look just as nervous and uncomfortable.
"I uh… I was wondering…" Connor started, still unsure how his sentence was going to end.
"Ye-yeah?" Hansen replied nervously. He still seemed like he was worried he'd done something wrong.
Connor mentally face palmed. This had to stop.
"Shit, okay, I'm not good at this, social interaction shit, so: Since you saw mine, I was just curious, what's your tattoo like?" Connor blurted out.
Hansen stared at him wide eyed, surprised to hear what Connor had to say. He blinked several times before finally talking.
"O-oh, uhm, sure, well, h-here." Hansen stuttered and lifted his left arm to show Connor his soulmate tattoo.
Connor held his breath for a while, preparing himself, for what? He wasn't quite sure.
Still, he wasn't prepared for what he saw.
Hansen's skinny forearm was filled with scribbles that looked pencil made. The style was messy, but after a second look, you could clearly make out a silhouette of a melancholy looking young man.
Connor was speechless.
Connor used to love drawing, but Larry had thought it was girly and a waste of time, so Connor let it go.
The crazy part?
Connor was pretty sure the last picture he ever drew, was forever tattooed on Hansen's arm.
Connor wasn't sure how long he'd been silently staring at Hansen's arm, until Hansen spoke up.
"Does-does that mean something to you?" He carefully asked.
Connor lifted his eyes from Hansen's arm to his face. His uncertainty was mirrored in Hansen's eyes.
"What?" Was all he could get out.
"I-well…" Hansen tried to find his words too. "The, uh, the dragon blood tree on-on your arm? It, it kind of surprised me cause, I mean, it would be something I could imagine being on my- my, uh, you know, and I figured a long time ago that my tattoo represented my soulmate, and, well, so my soulmate would have a t-tattoo representing me, and-and I obviously looked for tattoos that could, you know, be, well, me, but I was never sure about-about any, ever, except, that, well… I was just really surprised about your tattoo, but of course I could be wrong, I'm not saying you, that you know, you would be my- I'm not saying this has to be it, it was just- it was the most… I don't know, I just felt… something. But I mean, it's a two-way street, I could totally be talking out of my- uh, maybe I'm wrong-"
Connor was afraid Hansen might have a stroke or forget to breathe, so he stepped in.
"Dude, Hansen, calm down."
Hansen snapped his mouth shut right away. "Sorry."
"No, don't apologize." Connor reassured him and took a step closer, suddenly aware of the public setting such an important conversation was taking place.
"Okay, sorry, I mean, uh, shit." Hansen sighed.
That made Connor laugh. "I've never heard you swear before."
Hansen blushed. "I, I mean I try not to, much, you know."
Connor smiled. He hadn't smiled this much in a long time.
"I uh… I used to draw. And uh, that, that thing," he said, pointing at Hansen's arm, "is literally the last thing I ever drew. So…" He explained, letting his sentence and its meaning hang in the air between them.
Hansen was quiet for a while, looking at his tattoo. Then he looked up at Connor.
"Why'd you stop?"
Connor was left frozen in place again. That was not what he expected Hansen, now pretty much confirmed as his soulmate, to say to such revelation.
"I, why did I stop drawing?" He asked. Hansen nodded. "Uh, well, my dad… My dad is an asshole." He stated simply. Hansen nodded again.
"I get it. I mean, I think I do. Mine's… Mine's not- not the greatest either, so…" Hansen explained. "Anyway, I hope… I hope you won't stop for, you know, for good, because… Well I always liked my tattoo, it-it's beautiful. Really."
Connor suddenly felt a warmness he never felt before. Hansen had been right there, in the same school, in the same classes, for years, and he had no idea he was so… He just fit. Being around Hansen didn't make Connor angry or uncomfortable. He didn't feel like a loser. He felt… Normal. Good. He felt good.
"So…" He spoke up, a ghost of a smile on his lips.
"So…" Hansen - he should probably refer to his soulmate by his first name, so, Evan - echoed.
"You wanna go for a ride?" Connor asked, desperately wanting to get out of the smelly high school and learn everything he could about Evan, his soulmate.
"Sure." Evan said, the most beautiful smile taking over his pale face.
Connor smiled back.
"You nervous?" He asked, his voice making it clear that he wasn't just talking about a car ride, but their future.
Evan blushed and looked down before turning to look Connor in the eye, smiling widely.
"Not really."

Please review! xx -S