The Red String | ONC 2024

1. The Goddess of Love

Admina hurried down the marble halls, glancing from side to side while also trying to appear casual. It was a tough line to walk, but she was pretty sure she did it flawlessly. She was pretty sure she did everything flawlessly— it was part of being a goddess, after all.

She got to the Viewing Room and slid the doors open. The place was completely dark, no one in sight, but she'd expected that. Everyone would be at that stupid party tonight; it would be at least another twenty minutes before anyone even noticed she was gone.

Admina approached the edge of the Viewing Room and looked down on the humans below. She sighed to herself, wondering where it had all gone wrong. Everything seemed fine on the surface, sure. But she knew better. There just wasn't as much love coming from them as there used to be. There certainly wasn't as much as she would have liked. And the less love there was in the world, the less power she herself had. What what to do, what to do?

Well, the answer seemed simple enough— she'd have to create love. It was the perfect plan; she'd bring joy to the humans below while increasing her own strength. Everyone would win, and she couldn't see a way it could possibly go wrong. Now, she just had to decide on who the lucky couple would be.

She gazed down over her loyal subjects, tapping her chin dramatically as she pretended to decide. But the truth was, she already knew.

Her first choice was Logan— the tall, muscular senior with the chiseled jaw and nearly-passing grades. She'd always adored him. And so what if he laughed a little too loud and focused just a bit too much on his own accomplishments? That didn't mean he wasn't deserving of love, did it?

But who would she match Logan with? Admina let her eyes wander over the city. Suddenly, she had an idea. Why not pair him up with Emma Malik? They went to the same school, and if anyone needed a little love in their life, it was Emma. She was wound so tight; someone like Logan was sure to loosen her up.

Admina watched her two subjects for a minute, marveling at her own genius. They really were lucky she was here to help. And as she could see, neither of them were currently attached to anyone else. Perfect. She waved her hand and whispered her favorite incantation. It wouldn't have been noticeable to any of the humans, but a small red string tied itself lovingly around Logan's little finger before winding its way through the town towards Emma's house. Once it found her, it proceeded to wrap around her finger as well. The string glowed a deep blood red for a minute before fading back into the aether.

There, Admina nodded to herself in satisfaction. Now, Logan and Emma's fates were bound together. Admittedly, she should have done it when the couple were much younger— infants, ideally. But better late than never, right?

"It'll never work, you know." someone said from over her shoulder. Admina jumped and spun around. Hiari, the God of Light, was leaning against the door frame, smirking that simpering smirk of his. Great. She hated when he looked so self-satisfied.

"What won't?" Admina asked, shrugging and putting on her most innocent face. She leaned casually on the railing next to the Viewing Window. "I was simply watching the little people of Fairview."

"Of course you were." Hiari agreed, still grinning. Then, sauntering across the room to join her, he looked through the window himself. It took him almost no time to spot the brand-new red string binding her two humans together. He started laughing to himself before finally turning to face her.

"Those two?" He raised his eyebrow and pointed. "Why on earth would you ever pick them?"

"You wouldn't understand." Admina scoffed. He knew nothing about love, about passion. "Can't you feel it? The love they share?"

"Love?" Hiari grinned wildly. "That's not love. Can't you tell?"

"Don't be ridiculous." Admina scoffed. Nobody knew love like she did, and she could feel the emotions bubbling between the two humans as sure as she could feel the floor beneath her feet. Hiari would never understand. He was just like the rest of them— so sure he knew her job better than she did.

Well, he'd just have to wait and see. These two were tied together— their fate was clear. And if Admina had to help them along a bit, so be it. But her humans were going to fall madly in love. Then Hiari would see. Then they would all see.

A/N: Sorry, I had a slight problem and had to repost this chapter. So any reads/comments/votes that any of you made during the first week are gone. I'm sorry about that, but I did read the comments and I appreciate them!