A/N: Finals week is almost over! This was inspired by a tumblr Soulmate AU a while back, I just edited 80% of this. Take care always!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything, ever. If I did, we'd have an A&A Movie by now. In Italy. and a Wedding. Anyway
"Everyone's born with a tattoo that matches the one of your soulmate's…" Ally murmured out loud, her hand still on her forearm.
Her best friend, Trish was less optimistic than most. With her tattoo being three dots on her hand, she frankly thought the tattoo soulmate was rubbish. That is, until she met a tall redhead one day in the food court drawing pacman eating the exact three dots she had on his own hand.
Her parents even had matching tattoos even though they didn't want to reveal it until after their fifth date. A simple little tree shaped tattoo on their back hip.
Now Ally, she at first was ecstatic about this. Fairy tale books, romance movies, laugh but then cry buckets at the end shows- you name it. She loved love. It was beautiful. She'd squeal about it when she'd see a couple with matching tattoos- oh how lucky they were! Especially with her tattoo, she was in particular delighted with this one. Not just because it was more intricate in design and played a lovely pun with her last name, but something about it gave her peace.
Although she kept this kind hearted spirit, through the years, and one boy gone wrong (that didn't match her tattoo but she wanted to try), she's toned it down.
She took an almost full time job at her dad's business, and takes classes at her school of her dreams - University of Miami. Maybe not the school of her dreams, but for this time of her life right now, it suited her. And she started working harder, she realized she wanted to focus more on the important things- her education, family, work, herself. "And I don't need a silly mark telling me who I can be with. I should be able to choose on my own. I should have my own choices." Ally realized one night. Despite the objections of her best friend and parents, she did not need it. Other people have done it too anyway.
She swung open the door to the tattoo parlor, stepping inside.
A young man walked around the corner, clad in dark washed jeans, a dark gray long sleeve shirt, necklaces dipped down to the center of his chest. "Hey, how can I help you?" He asked with an easy smile, setting aside a white hand towel on the front desk. He had slightly long blond hair, paired with a soothing color of hazel eyes.
"I would like to get my tattoo removed." Ally declared. She took a quick scan of the place around. It was clean, dark maroon velvet chairs, not as dim as she imagined and no waiting line.
He leaned his hands on the desk top leisurely. "Soulmate one or willingly got?"
"Soulmate." She resisted letting her fingers slide over the smooth skin on her forearm where her tattooed mark was.
"Did he turn out to be a dick or something?" He asked lightly, humor lighting up in his smile.
A small laugh was choked back.. "No, I just don't want it anymore."
"Don't believe in it? You can follow me by the way." He looked at her curiously for a second before he tilted his head, waiting till she could easily follow him.
"No I… It's more like," She scrunched her nose in thought walking and sighed. "I don't need a tattoo dictating who I end up with, you know what I mean? Maybe I don't even want a soulmate, maybe I just want someone who I can choose. On my own accordance and feelings. And with this out the way, I can focus on other important things." She stated, sitting on the cushioned seat with a firm nod, hands in her lap.
"I didn't think of it like that." He pulled up a wooden stool to be beside the chair. "I'm Austin." He smiled, holding out his hand.
Ally formed a smile, looking up at him from his hand. "Ally." She shook his hand. She ignored the weird tingly feeling after they let go hands as she let out another sigh, letting down her hands and running on through her chestnut curls. "This is my first time to a tattoo parlor."
"Well they're not all evil. We have no control over the real soulmate tattoos, just in removing them." Austin chuckled, grabbing rubber gloves. "And giving news ones." He added quickly with a shrug.
Ally grinned a little and looked around the room decorated with designs and symbols in frames for references. "You must've been giving tattoos for years."
"Not that many. I'm only 23." He made a crooked kind of smile.
"23?! I'm 22." Ally's eyes widened, startled.
"What, did you really think I was that old?" Austin chuckled, putting one large hand on his hip.
"N-nooo…" Ally bluffed, her voice hitting weird octaves as she flipped her hand. At his raised eyebrow, she lowered her head. "Okay… but it's more like, experience connected with more years, you know…?" She used her pointed finger to direct it at her palm to demonstrate. "And you're obviously qualified enough to remove and give tattoos."
Austin let out another chuckle, nodding. "Well if it makes you feel better I have been under practice with my uncle since I was 17 - not exactly legal but close enough - and you're working with the youngest tattoo parlor owner in Miami." He beamed proudly.
"Oh wow, what credentials and honor." Ally grinned, a sense of teasing in her voice as she put a hand on her chest.
Austin rolled his eyes lightly with a smile, his cheeks light pink before he pushed some of the golden bangs that fell in his eyes back. "I'll do my best to bestow that honor. Even though I'm the one honored to have such a pretty customer." His mouth corner tipped up slightly.
Now it was Ally who turned pink a little. "I...uh…"
"Don't worry, I won't make any more comments like that." He said quickly after, sitting on the stool, moving on from the subject to make her relax. Ally gave a small smile, a weird mix of relief and disappointment as she settled again in her chair.
She could almost physically feel the tattoo on her forearm. For a second she almost forgot about it and why she came here. "I'm a little nervous." She blurted.
Austin glanced at her and seemed like he sympathized with her. "If it's not that big, it shouldn't hurt too bad. Let's see it." He held his palm out waiting.
Ally held up her forearm, letting Austin hold it gently in his hand.
It was on the side of her forearm, a small moon and sun intertwined together. The drawing laid upon her smooth porcelain skin, a soft contrast to the ink.
"I know it's kind of cheesy. Some people have actually told me they wished theirs looked like mine." Ally babbled, conscious that someone other than Trish was looking at it up close. "But it's funny because my last name is Dawson. Daw-sun. I always liked that part. It matched me." She giggled a little.
She turned her head to look at him again and Austin's eyes lightly jumped up to hers from the tattoo. He kept his gaze on her a second longer than what she expected before he carefully let go of her arm. "It's not cheesy. It's pretty. In its own way."
"Thank you." Ally blinked, a small flurry in her stomach as she clasped her fingers around her tattoo again. "What does yours look like?"
Austin turned to his side and lifted the side of his shirt.
Ally immediately sputtered, eyes growing large.
"It's not all over, it's just my side." He chuckled, explaining. Ally in her alert straight posture, relaxed a little.
Austin held the shirt up high enough so she could see small stars speckled on the side of his torso near his ribs. They weren't many but it was sparsed out yet close enough to tell what they were. Her brown eyes widened in awe, settling them on the tattoos. "Oh…" Her eyes slowly trailed more to the side, the part of his stomach that was also exposed, clearly showing defined muscles there.
Austin smirked, letting down his shirt. "Too left."
She sputtered. "I- I was not! I was looking at the stars. Those are actually so cool. And unique. Your body is basically a sky." His eyebrows shot up. "N-not saying that you're a sky- you're a human - that sentence actually turned out really weird, can we just forget I said that?" Someone get Ally a piece of hair.
His smile grew briefly before lowering his head to clear his throat and nodded. He reached over to the cabinet to turn on the extra lamp.
After Ally's embarrassment died down, she peeked at him again. "Have you met your soulmate yet?"
He shook his head.
Ally stayed quiet as he began hooking up the machine. Of course he hasn't, or he wouldn't have flirted with you earlier like he did Ally.
He finished setting up everything and turned to her. "Are you sure you want to remove it?"
Ally looked at him again, expecting his look to be condescending, but instead, it was a little wary and unreadable. "Y… yes. Why?"
His eyes glanced back at her forearm. "Just making sure." He sat back next to her on the stool. "Your own feelings and accordance, right?" He murmured.
Ally stared at him, feeling like there was a hidden message in his words. She tried to read his expression before slowly asking, "Can I get a drink of water first?"
He nodded, sitting back up straight. "Down the hall."
She thanked him and got up, scuttling down the hall from the room. She found the water fountain, bending down to take a drink. As she moved her arm up to wipe the small excessive water on her chin, she looked at her tattoo.
She held it up to eye level, tracing it with her eyes. She remembered Austin's hand wrapped around her small forearm, the feeling making her shiver in remembrance.
"No Ally. Just because some pretty boy calls it pretty, doesn't mean you change your mind." She whispered to herself. "And yourself pretty…" She shook her head quickly to clear her head. Still… she's been with this for 22 years. Some things are meant to be let go.
When she returned to the room, Austin was standing, hovering around the cabinet with the tools, his sleeves rolled up. "Ready?" He smiled as she walked in.
"Yeah." She said in a low voice with a returning smile, re-taking her seat.
He reached over to adjust the seat height and she froze.
As soon as she felt her freeze, he did as well.
Her eyes were on his forearm, an area on the upper side near his elbow. Where on his tanned skin, was a moon and sun intertwined together, the exact same as hers.
Austin eyes widened briefly. "Ally-"
"Is that yours? Like… yours, yours?"
He struggled before retracting his hand and nodded. Ally stood up, her forearm lifted while she kept looking over at his forearm.
"Austin, it's… it's the same."
Again, he just nodded.
Ally stared up at him in shock. "B…"
Austin looked guilty before opening his mouth. "I couldn't tell you. You were so persistent on getting it removed and told me how you want to like someone on your own accordance. And then you just so happened to come here, where I work, for me, to remove it."
"You… you were going to let me remove it?"
"That's what you said you wanted."
Ally heart tightened and swelled. Then her eyes looked around before landing on a certificate on the wall that read "Austin Moon."
Moon.
"Austin… Moon." Ally moved her pointer finger to herself." Ally Daw'sun'."
Austin took a look at his tattoo, holding it up to eye level. "Makes sense, if you ask me."
And for a moment, a small chuckle left Ally.
She remembered the slight tingly feeling before when their hands touched. Austin looked a little flustered as well, standing there while she didn't say anything. Then experimentally, Ally reached her hand out so her forearm brushed against his and a spark went between them that made them both jump.
With wide eyes, they ogled each other before Ally took a step forward and pulled him down by the collar. Their lips pressed against each other, meeting in synchronization, a jolt going through their bodies. Austin was tentative at first before lowering his hands to hold her waist, Ally's hands moving up to the back of his hair.
When the pulled away, Austin's eyelids fluttered a little before looking down at her in a daze. "So are you still going to remove it?"
"It's not exactly needed for anymore, but you're right, it is kind of pretty." She smiled.
Austin chuckled, pulling away to turn off the machine. "Where do you live?"
"Where I live? Why?" She asked, confused. Was he actually a stalker? Was her soulmate actually a creepy stalker? Was he actually-
"So I know where to pick you up for our first date."
Oh.
He turned to her. "You said you wanted to like me on your own accordance."
She blushed. "Not you specifically…" She picked up on what he actually said. "And who said I would go on a date with you?" She probably would've agreed the moment she stepped in the parlor if she didn't have the decency.
"Your kiss kind of did." Austin chuckled.
"Austin." She groaned a little. He smirked, tilting his head a bit at her. Then, she remembered something. "Wait. If that's your soulmate tattoo… then what were the stars?"
He paused before answering. "So that if I didn't find my sun, I'd at least have the stars."
And she kissed him again and asked him out for their first date.
ps the tattoo is most definitely the shape of the necklace austin got her ally
okay have a good night/day, beauties!