All the Colors of True Love

“That’s why, due to the chemical imbalance of oxytocin to vasopressin hormones in your brain, your occipital lobe can’t process color until you meet your soulmate.” Ms. Anderson whipped out a bag of Cheetos and stuffed them in her mouth. “So all you loveless suckers may never get to see color, like meeeee!” She wailed.

I slammed my hands on my desk. “Ms. Anderson that’s bullshit! The world is in color and has always been in color!”

The entire class turned and stared at me. “Mindy, are you okay?”

“Did you get enough sleep last night?”

“Are you high?”

“Yes. No. A little bit.” I answered all the questions. “But I know I’m right about this.”

“Mindy!” Ms. Anderson bellowed. “You can’t be high in my class!”

“And you can’t be drunk, but I think we all know that’s not coffee in your mug.”

“Mindy, do you really see colors?” Owen asked.

“Yeah.” I shrugged. “Since the moment I was born.”

“Then you must have met your soulmate when you were born.” Chris reasoned.

Lindsey whistled. “Damn, Mindy. I admire your taste in older men. I’m sure that doctor that delivered you must be pretty hot if he’s able to snag a young thing like you.”

“No, Lindsey. He’s obviously one of the other babies born at the same time as her. They must have seen each other in the NICU or something.”

“Girl, you gotta find your man!”

“Run, Mindy. Run straight to that hospital and find your Mr. Right!”

I leapt from my seat. “I will!”

Out of breath, I arrived at the Saint John’s hospital. “I’m looking for…” I took in a gulp of air. “The birth records from April 6th, 2002 and which babies were sent to the NICU.”

“We’re really not suppose to give out information like that. Patient confidentiality. Especially not to minors.” The nurse declared.

“Please,” I begged. “It’s for love! I think my soulmate might have been born then.”

“Oh, well why didn’t you say that sooner, sweetie? You get a free pass for the laws of this country just because you ‘think’ one of those people ‘might’ be your soulmate.”

“Really?” I asked with beaming eyes.

“No. Now beat it, you sweaty gremlin. I have a job to do and that doesn’t include babysitting you.”

When the nurse stormed off, I noticed a pair of interns behind her that were closely monitoring the scene. After she left, one of them approached me. “Hey kid.”

I held up a hand to stop him. Crime-time TV had warned me about this.

“I’m not interested in buying whatever leftover illegal drugs you guys have here.”

“This is a hospital. All the drugs are legal.”

“Most of them at least.” The other intern called from behind.

“Lisa! Not now! Listen, that’s not what I came to tell you. I heard all that stuff you were saying about love. I think that’s really sweet.” He said.

“So you’ll give me the files.”

“I can’t.”

“Dammit,” I read his nametag. “Patrick, why are you wasting my time? I have a heist to plan!”

He chuckled. “I mean I can’t because that girl over there is already reading them.” He winked at me. “Good luck, tiger.”

I strolled over to the girl hiddened by a pile of files. She was too busy muttering to herself to notice me. “Come on, where’s the beef?”

“Excuse me. I hate to interrupt your mad ramblings to yourself, but can I sneak a peek at those files?”

“Sure.”

“How’d you get them anyway?”

“My father owns the hospital.”

“Makes sense.” I plotted down beside them. “Whatcha looking for?”

“I think my soulmate was born then.”

“Damn, same.”

She looked up. “Really? You know what that means?”

“That we’re soul sisters destined to be best friends and have double weddings?!”

I high fived her. “Hell, yeah. Let’s find our soulmates together!”

In the background, the intern face palmed. “Oh my god, Lisa, it’s happening again!” Patrick turned to her. “Lisa. Lisa. Lisa. Lisa. Lisa. Lisa, stop doing paperwork and listen to me!”

“What Patrick?!” She exclaimed.

“It’s happening again!”

“What? You acting like a child?”

“Nooooo. They don’t realize they’re soulmates!”

“Just give them some time they’ll figure it out like that last couple.”

“Alright, I have a plan!” Patrick declared.

“Patrick, no.”

“We just need them to realize how much they have in common.”

“Don’t say we.”

“We need a conversation starter!”

“Patrick, please don’t.”

“Hey! Nice shirt!” Patrick shouted, before ducking under the counter with Lisa.

Lisa glared at him. “Don’t worry.” Patrick reassured. “It worked out last time.”

She punched his arm and teased with a grin on her face. “Just barely.”

Confused, I glanced around. “Who said that?”

“I’m not sure.” Julie replied, but she smiled. “That is a cool shirt though. I love the Beatles.”

I peered down at my outfit. It was a vintage Beatles band T-shirt. “Oh, yeah. I guess my favorite song would have to be—”

“Help?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“No, I was asking for help. This folder is stuck under a box.”

“Oh.”

“But, ‘Help’ is my favorite song too.” She beamed.

I felt a slight blush rush to my cheeks. I knew noticed this before, but Julie was really pretty. She had two big almond eyes and a smile that filled my heart with warmth. Slowly, I helped lift the box off the folder.

“Here it is. All the babies in the NICU on April 6th, 2002.” She flipped it open. “There’s only two names.” Julie whispered. “Every other baby born must have been healthy enough to stay with their mothers.”

“Julie Rogers and Mindy Manson. That’s us.” I echoed.

I turned to Julie. “Hey, you maybe wanna get out of here and grab a cup of coffee or something?”

She smiled. “I’d like that.”

“Oh! Bam!” Patrick celebrated in a hushed voice under the counter. “Love triumphs just like last time!”

“You still remember the day those two crazy kids met?”

“I remember you got a job as an intern just to sneak a look at the birth records from June 18th 1994.”

“You did the same thing!”

“Yeah,” Patrick smirked and kissed her. “We were pretty crazy, weren’t we?”