Soul Mates

by John R. Little

  That’s what it feels like when you meet your soul mate.

  “I used to do that trick. It’s always very popular with the audience, but I haven’t done it in about twenty years. The last time . . . my assistant was badly hurt.”

  “Oh. What happened?”

  “The trick relies on her twisting her body quickly, so her legs curl in above her chest and stomach. It looks impossible from the audience because there isn’t a lot of room, but if the box is constructed properly, it’s actually quite easy.”

  He remembered the screams and the blood . . .

  “I don’t know what happened. I just know that her legs weren’t out of the way in time. Maybe she was distracted, or maybe she couldn’t get her feet free from the ankle braces in time. I—I really don’t know. I just know it was terrible. The saw cut her thighs badly and it took a long time for her to recover.”

  “Oh my God. That must have been so awful . . . .”

  He nodded and forced himself not to let a tear drop from his eye.

  Jeremiah reached to Alannah and hugged her.

  “I’ve never told anyone about that before, and here I meet you, you’re still practically a stranger, and I’ll tell you anything.”

  She smiled and hugged him back.

  “I’m glad you can do that.”

  After holding each other for a few moments, they slowly separated and sat back down, but this time Alannah reached over to take Jeremiah’s hand.

  “I’d trust you if you want to bring that trick back to your act.”

  He stared at her, not knowing how to reply. He hadn’t expected to even consider that trick again. Eventually he said, “Thank you. We’ll see how it works out.”

  * * *

  An hour later, Jeremiah and Alannah were in his apartment above the dance studio. He showed her some of the magic tricks that he had there, but he could only scratch the surface.

  “There’s at least a thousand tricks here, mostly small, table magic stuff. Can’t do those in my act unless there’s a camera and a couple large screens for the audience to see what I’m doing, so I normally only include a few each show. Audiences like the bigger tricks.”

  “Do you do the thing where you just disappear and then reappear somewhere in the audience?”

  “Sure, that’s standard.”

  She walked around the room, seemingly lost in all the gadgets he had there. He watched and enjoyed the look on her face as she glanced among all the items.

  After she browsed for a few minutes, he found the courage to do what he’d wanted to do all day. He went to her and put his hands gently on the sides of her face.

  She was scared. Vulnerable. He wanted her to be relaxed for this.

  “Close your eyes,” he whispered.

  She did so without question.

  He gently kissed her forehead. His lips stayed on her skin for five seconds; he wanted this memory seared into his mind. Then he kissed her all across her forehead, wanting to taste every bit of her.

  Each kiss was soft and loving. He kissed her temples and then moved to kiss her eyelids and the space between her eyes. He took his time, cherishing every time his lips touched her.

  Her cheeks were next, and her nose. He was forming a map of kisses, and he knew she was enjoying it as much as he was. She didn’t move other than tiny bits to have her face press against his lips. He could hear her breathe.

  He moved lower, kissing her chin and every square inch around her mouth. Her mouth was open, wanting him to kiss there, but he moved to her neck, while his hands touched her hair. He wanted to kiss her mouth, but he wanted to draw out the tension and suspense. His lips kissed every bit of her neck and then he kissed a path back toward her face, and quietly kissed all around her mouth again.

  Finally, he held her cheeks in his hands and his mouth found hers. He kissed her softly, held her there, and then again. His tongue licked her lips slowly, exploring every little bit of them.

  Only then did he kiss her slightly more passionately, and that’s when she kissed him back.

  The kissing went on a very long time.

  * * *

  He wasn’t sure if he led them to the bedroom or if it was Alannah, but one way or the other they ended up sitting on his bed, and he was undoing the buttons on her blouse.

  She looked at him, wide-eyed.

  “Are you okay?” he asked. He stopped when he saw the uncertainty in her eyes.

  She pursed her mouth and nodded.

  “It’s just that . . . I’ve never . . .”

  She hugged him, not able to finish her sentence.

  She’s a virgin?

  Even though that thought had once crossed his mind, Jeremiah was amazed. She was so pretty, he assumed she’d had lots of boyfriends.

  “It’s okay,” he said as he held her tightly. “I think you’ll like it.”

  He felt her nod, and he kissed her again. She relaxed and allowed him to finish undressing her before he took his own clothes off.

  Her body was amazing. As they lay down, he felt every part of her, wanting to know every little bit of her.

  She tentatively reciprocated, and she whispered in his ear, “Please be gentle. Please.”

  Her voice reminded him of the fragility he had sensed in her, and he swore to himself to go slow and be sure she liked everything he did.

  Afterward, she was cuddled in his arms and he wanted her there forever. In a ridiculously short time, she had become the most important part of his life, and he would never do anything to let that change.

  Chapter 13

  2015

  And so Alannah became Jeremiah’s assistant and his lover.

  They spent every minute together, polishing the act and ensuring that everything would go without a hitch.

  Alannah was only nervous about one specific trick—where Jeremiah would be throwing daggers at her while she was pinned to a target. That concern lasted until he explained how the trick was done.

  “Really?” she asked. “That’s it?”

  “Yup!”

  He had explained that she would be pinned to a target, and he showed her the daggers he would be throwing, which were as real as she had expected.

  However, when he threw them, the knives never left his hand. He made the motions to throw them, but then he palmed the knives and slipped them into a secret pocket of his jacket. It looked like he’d thrown them.

  Hidden behind the target, which was in front of a curtain, another assistant used a special machine to push a knife in from behind in an instant, making it look like he’d thrown it at her; instead it was punched in from the rear. The spots were carefully selected ahead of time to be close to her body.

  It was absolutely safe but looked incredibly dangerous to the audience. They couldn’t see the knife fly through the air, but they never questioned that. It just looked like it was going super fast, making the act even more dangerous.

  “It’s kind of a disappointment to know how it works,” she said. “It takes the magic away.”

  He laughed. “Well, if you want, I can really throw the knives, but . . . .”

  “No, that’s okay!”

  “You’re right, magic is only special when you don’t know how it’s done.”

  Alannah would be the prime assistant, but there were always a couple of others. Jeremiah usually hired those from a temp agency in whatever city they were performing in. They didn’t need to know how the tricks were done, and they left just as puzzled as the audience, but they helped to move things around on stage and they looked pretty, which distracted the audience when Jeremiah was busy doing something he didn’t want them to notice. Even so, he always made sure the temp assistants signed a non-disclosure agreement for anything they might happen to see.

  The first time Alannah performed with him was in Atlanta. They were booked for a three-night show in a theater attached to a Hilton hotel. The room held five hundred people and all three shows were sold out. That didn’t surprise Jeremiah, but it did make A
lannah a bit nervous when she first walked onto the stage.

  She was dressed in a skin-tight white bodysuit covered with red sparkles. The other assistants wore similar suits but without the sparkles. Alannah’s fears soon evaporated when she saw that the audience loved her.

  The show went without a hitch, and they did some post-performance celebrations back in their hotel room afterwards.

  As they were falling asleep, Jeremiah said, “I’ve been looking for you my whole life, babe. I can’t believe I’ve finally found you.”

  “I feel the same way.” She nuzzled closer to him and squeezed his arm. “I’ve never felt so loved and so wanted before.”

  He kissed her one more time and they gradually fell asleep together.

  The world was at peace, and Jeremiah and Alannah couldn’t have been happier. The only person who wasn’t enjoying their new life was Savannah.

  * * *

  It was spring and the world was waking up to the sounds of birds chirping. Savannah Clarke was also waking, but she was taking a few moments to stretch and get her bearings. It felt like she’d been sleeping a very long time. She swiveled off the bed and went to the bathroom to splash some water on her face.

  The twins were now almost twenty-three, and they’d reached an odd turning point. Up to now, Savannah had called the shots in their lives, but now it seems that was changing. Alannah was the one making the big decisions now, and Savannah didn’t like it one little bit.

  She brushed her teeth and thought about the soup kitchen. She was expected there at 5:00, and it was only a little after 7:00 a.m. now.

  The apartment was quiet. Too quiet. She turned on the radio to hear an ages-old song by Elton John, “Island Girl.”

  Somewhat suiting, she thought. I feel like an island these days, cast adrift by my sister, who only cares about that guy.

  She tried to shrug off her feelings.

  As always, she went to their shared diary and read Alannah’s latest entry.

  Who needs Facebook?

  Savannah tried not to smile as she read about how happy her twin was, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t help but feel happy for her.

  She slammed the book shut and put it back without making any notes of her own.

  Savannah ate a couple of pieces of toast with peanut butter, and as she munched, she realized she was curious about this Jeremiah guy, and she was going to figure out what the fuss was all about.

  After having a shower and getting dressed, she walked outside and felt the glorious sunshine warming her skin. It was already sixty-five degrees and was supposed to go up to eighty later. It felt like it was already there, and she smiled at the trees as she walked, looking at the new buds bursting to life.

  She knew where Jeremiah lived, of course. She knew pretty much everything about him. Alannah wrote non-stop in the diary about every little detail. Savannah knew his favorite foods, what he sounded like when he laughed, and every minute of his schedule.

  Right now, he would be in his studio apartment, working out details for his next show.

  She knew she didn’t have to knock. Alannah was welcome there anytime and the door wasn’t locked. It’d been years since she’d deliberately impersonated Alannah, but now it was time again.

  He was sitting in the living room, and when she entered, a big grin spread across his face.

  “Hi! I wasn’t expecting you!”

  “I missed you. I hope it’s okay.”

  Jeremiah jumped to his feet and moved quickly to her. He gave her a long hug, holding her head close to him, and then he leaned over and kissed her. At first it was a gently soft kiss, and Savannah tried to pretend this was normal, something they did all the time. She kissed him back and then his tongue found hers and the kiss turned more passionate. She reached around him as he did the same to her. Somehow the kiss was still loving and gentle, and she felt lost it in, not wanting it to stop.

  He pulled her to him and she felt his erection pressing against her. She pushed herself to it, expecting that’s what Alannah would do.

  Besides, it felt nice.

  Jeremiah broke the kiss and reached around to pull her ass even closer to him.

  “God, I want you.”

  “Me too,” she said. And she did.

  He led her to the bedroom and smiled as he undressed her and then himself. Savannah stared at his naked body and reached out to touch his chest. She closed her eyes and felt along his body, wanting to know this body that had been making love to her sister

  He caressed her in return, while she moved her hands down to his cock. He was rock hard and he gasped when she rubbed him.

  “I want to fuck you,” she whispered.

  She knew Alannah had likely never spoken like that, and she could tell that he liked hearing her talk like that and liked her feeling him like that. She wanted this to be one time he would never forget.

  They sat on the bed and then lay down beside each other.

  Jeremiah kissed her hard again as she continued to rub his cock and play with his testicles. She knew she was getting wet.

  He pushed her to the bed and kissed her neck and breasts. Her nipples were hard, and now she really wanted to feel him insider her.

  “Fuck me,” she whispered.

  He moved over her and she helped guide him inside her.

  “God, you feel so good,” she said.

  He kept on kissing her as he started to push slowly inside her, going deeper and deeper.

  Savannah had had sex at least a hundred times, but this was the first time she could call it making love. She felt Jeremiah’s emotions and understood why Alannah was so happy. She felt every bit of him inside her and wanted nothing but for it to last forever.

  She exploded, and as she did, she moaned and tried not to scream out in ecstasy. She didn’t want to scare him. As she came, she pulled him to her and felt him coming as well. He grunted and pushed again. It felt like her orgasm lasted a million years.

  When they were finally done, he rolled off and lay beside her.

  “Wow,” he said. “That was amazing.”

  “Yes,” she agreed. “It sure was. I don’t know what came over me . . . .”

  “Whatever it was, it can happen anytime. I like that side of you.”

  Savannah felt a bit of guilt now. “But you like me like I am normally, right?”

  He smiled and rubbed her cheek. “I will always love you. Always and forever. No matter what.”

  She nodded and forced a smile. “Okay. I love you too.”

  She kissed him again, relishing the feel of their tongues touching.

  Chapter 14

  2015

  The next eight weeks were like a wonderful dream to Jeremiah. He and Alannah worked three cities, and when they weren’t performing, they spent a lot of their time together, either practicing or just enjoying each other’s company.

  They made love often, and over the course of those eight weeks, there were six times when Alannah came out of her shell and treated him to some very special loving. He loved the way she took charge those times and talked dirty to him. She would tell him what positions she wanted and he would follow, ready to try something new.

  He never understood what triggered her to be more outgoing, but he also loved how she was most often: quiet, gentle, sensitive, and fragile. He loved how she trusted him to take care of her, and he was always reminded to do exactly that.

  “I’ll never hurt you,” he said often. “Never.”

  He knew she believed him.

  It was hard to find a single waking minute when he wasn’t thinking of his dream girl. He was truly blessed to have found the girl he had been looking for his whole life.

  It was late May when he made her a simple meal of homemade chili and some toasted garlic bread. They ate at the small table in his studio, and they talked about the weekend show in Newark. Jeremiah hadn’t performed there before and was looking forward to it. He hoped he could find some free time to take Alannah to New Yor
k City for a bit of a holiday.

  “I’d love that,” she said when he offered the suggestion.

  Her broad smile showed how happy she was with the idea. He saw that smile a lot, and it always made him queasy.

  “Oh,” he said when they were finished eating. “I have something for you.”

  “What for?”

  “Just because.”

  He handed her a small unwrapped box. She opened it and plucked out a ring from inside. It was a silver-colored band with a series of small diamonds running along it with smaller diamonds on the edges.

  “Oh, I . . . it’s beautiful!”

  “Do you know what it is?”

  She hesitated, looking hopefully at Jeremiah. “I think so—”

  He chuckled and got down on one knee.

  “My beautiful angel, I’ve known from the first minute I saw you that I needed to spend my life with you. You’ve made me happier than I’ve ever been, and I believe you feel the same way.”

  She nodded vigorously.

  “Will you marry me?”

  “Oh my God, yes!”

  She fell to the floor alongside him and kissed him over and over and then grabbed him and held him close to her.

  Jeremiah could feel her heart beating rapidly. His was doing the same. He closed his eyes and savored holding her.

  “We’ll always be together,” he said.

  They silently clutched each other for several minutes before finally separating.

  “When do you want to get married?” she asked.

  He laughed. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead. Do you have any thoughts?”

  “Well . . . I’m not really sure. I need to have some time.”

  “Of course. There’s no rush. It’ll happen when it happens. If you want a big wedding, that’s what we’ll have. If you want a small one, that’s fine, too. Hell, we’ll just elope if that’s what you want.”