Invincible ➵h.s

~Chapter 1~

*Eighteen Years Later*

And it began.

I walked slowly, the soles of my shoes padding softly against the brittle pavement. I looked up and felt my eyes widen at the building in front of me.

The rather large and white building which towered way above was very nerve-wracking... for me at least. The glass doors gleamed in the sunlight as people continuously pushed through them. Some people were clearly not affected as they walked into the building. These were usually the type of people that look about forty years of age and above. While others, like me, were extremely nervous.

I bit my lip in anticipation as I kept walking. What if things don't work out? What if I mess up? What I don't have an assigned partner?!

The possible scenarios buzzed in my head as my mother placed a hand on my shoulder, breaking my thoughts.

"Iris," She spoke. "It'll be just fine." Her hand moved from my shoulder and instead moved a piece of stray hair out of my face.

"I want you to know that no matter what happens, you'll always have me." She comforted, her voice wavering. "You bags are in my car. If you're going to be moving out immediately, come and grab them, alright?" My mum's voice completely gave up on her in the end as tears fell from her eyes.

I wrapped her in a hug and let a few tears of my own fall onto her shoulder.

This is it. My life as a single woman is over. I'm going to be moving in with my fiance... my fiance that I don't even know!

"Mum," I started, "I promise I will come back and visit you."

I leaned back and wiped my eyes. She passed me a small and suppresive smile as I mirrored her actions.

"My little girl has grown up so fast. Please take care of yourself... I don't want you to end up like me." She whispered, her smile fading.

"I promise I will. Hey, I may be taller than you but I'm still your little girl!" I defended.

This lightened the dull mood. We chuckled quietly as a sound on the loudspeaker broke our moment.

"All citizens that are attending the ceremony today, please make your way inside, as the line-ups will be closing in fifteen minutes." A monotone voice ordered.

"Take care of yourself." I said, placing a kiss on my mum's cheek.

"You too, sweetie."

I bit my lip to prevent any tears as I took a hesitant step back. "Bye, mum."

She dabbed at her eyes with a tissue paper. "Good-bye, Iris."

I coudn't stare at my mum any longer or else I know I would breakdown again. I turned away and took a shaky breath, stepping towards the glass doors of the government building.

I pushed open the door and took a step inside. The hall was unsurprisingly large yet only a small portion of people were inside it at the moment. There were two queues; one line for males and the other for females. I added myself to the line of girls. I noticed a heavy-looking metal door at the beginning of the line and mentally shuddered at the whole scenario. The line was constantly getting longer.

I looked down to the bracelet, which adorns my wrist, as a distraction. The senseless metal lied against my warm wrist. A single wavy line was neatly sprawled across the middle, with a single dot on each end.

I didn't even realise when I had approached the beginning of the line. I saw the girl in front of me disappear behind the heavy-duty doors, before turning my attention to the woman behind the counter.

"Wrist please." She ordered.

In short terms, she was intimidating.

I reluctantly held out my wrist with the bracelet on it. The lady unclipped in the blink of an eye. My eyes widened at the sight. We aren't supposed to remove our bracelets... ever. I watched carefully as she inserted my bracelet into a slot. The slot consisted of a deep indentation in the sleek wall. With a ding, the bracelet popped back out.

"Wrist please." The rather annoyed woman repeated.

I did as she said and nodded my head as she threw information at me.

"Your bracelet has been activated. It shouldn't tingle unless you are near or nearing your future partner. Thank you for your attention." With that, the bracelet was back on my wrist, with a click.

I glanced up and walked towards the door, after thanking the woman. The door slid open and I shakily walked through it.

Once again, the hall was quite large. Despite its size, it was unbelievably cramped with people. Everyone was rushing all over the place. The air buzzed with chatter that radiated excitement. The atmosphere was happy... almost uplifting. I noticed how there were people of all ages, eighteen plus.

I squeezed through the crowd and managed to find a vacant bench. I sat down and shut my eyes, relaxing myself a bit. I don't know anyone here, so far.

I just need to calm down, it'll be alright.

I was completely silent for what felt like five minutes. A sudden shuffle from beside me made me open my eyes.

To my left sat a rather gorgeous woman. Not that I'm gay (which I'm not), but she's absolutely stunning. Her dark brown hair cascades down her shoulders, clearly straightened. Her brown eyes show kindness and her lips are curved up into a friendly smile.

"Are you feeling alright?" She asked me, smiling a bit.

I nodded and returned the smile. "Thanks for asking."

"It's no problem, really. You look really bored so I decided to give you some company. It's never easy the first year." She blabbered.

I chuckled and nodded, "That's for sure. Is it your first year here?"

She shook her head, "No, I'm volunteering here with my fiance. I found him a year ago... which was, by chance, my first year."

"Wow," I managed, "You found your partner in your first year?"

That's definitely not what happened to my mum.

She nodded proudly. "People tell me that I'm lucky. But hey, who knows, maybe you'll find your partner here, today." She paused and swept her hair back. "It's your first year, am I right?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Oh, I'm Rissa, by the way. You can call me Iris if you'd like."

"Iris," She smiled. "I like that. I'm Sophia." We shook hands and we talked a bit about how her first year was. We exchanged numbers too, which made me feel good about myself.

"I'm so sorry but I have to go check up on how the others are doing. I'll see you around, yeah?" She got up.

"That's alright." I bidded her 'bye' just as a voice on the loudspeaker scared the living shit out of me.

Everyone's attention was on a rather tall woman who was standing at the front podium. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen. May I have your attention please?"

Her hair was slickly straightened and she has a very formal attire, giving the impression that she must be very high in government. She was old but not old enough to be in a Retirement Home.

"I am Emily Green and I would like to welcome all of you to this year's Annual Companion Discovery Ceremony. I hope you all will find you Soul-Mates today.

"In a few moments, you will be searching for your partner. Only your partner will have the same bracelet as yours, I'm sure you already knew that." She smiled at the crowd and continued, "Please be advised that not all of you will find your partners today. If that is the case, you will be asked to attend next years' Ceremony and on and on until you do so. That is all." She smiled, "Good-luck."

That's when the chaos began.

A/N: hi i hope you all liked this chapter. Please please please vote and comment and spread the word. I will love you forever if you do so :)

-maya xox