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omegaremix · 10 months ago

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Sunday Records shopping list, 2018.

Sunday is the best day to go to a record store. Why have we opened this record store? For you. To see your smile when you look at the records. And, hear your story about how a song or album changed your life. The people who come into the store are happy to be here. We see glowing faces. We see people who are taking a moment out of their busy day to relive a memory that was special to them or discover a new song they never heard before. A very cool thing to witness and be a part of. See you on Sunday. Come in and flip through.

That’s what Sunday Records says on its page. No exclamation marks. No explosive excitement. It spoke to us in a kind pleasant way. They made a point that after a crazy work-week, there should be one day for everyone to enjoy themselves and spend the time relaxing. I’ll co-sign on that statement.

I learned of its existence from my former co-worker and friend Kryssy who made a video of it for journalism. Opened since November of last year, it’s named after the only day of the week it’s open. It seems odd because all businesses nationwide are open at least five days a week to stay alive and for its owners to maintain a living back home. Not Sunday Records who’s open for business for only a few hours per week. I wondered how? Brian is a city lawyer whose second passion was opening this store. He wins either way. It was the longest drive so far for music. Close to 28 miles driving out east to Riverhead, to be exact. Long stretches of road on the Long Island Expressway makes you have Brown Bunny moments where you’re in a zen-like state driving only 55 m.p.h., conjuring up all these mundane events during these trips like the weather, certain people, and anything else that comes to mind. There were plenty of police on the highways, one in an SUV parked on the side of the road with his lights flashing, mercilessly firing a speed-gun in our direction. The 7th precinct is right off the highway in Yaphank so that explains it.

Riverhead is a plain normal leisurely town with plain normal leisurely people. It does nothing to anyone. It’s right at the split of the east end of Long Island buried in trees and near the water. Sunday Records was almost straight-forward to get to with a round-a-bout to switch county roads. I walk in and there were no more than 10 people of all ages 17 and up. Some by themselves, some with boyfriends. There was a listening room behind its’ storefront window for visitors to sit and enjoy the music. All stores have genres, new releases behind the counter, staff picks, dollar-bins, and maybe four-for-a-quarter in all formats. Sunday Records has none of it. There are no bargain bins but titles are priced starting at $3.00 each for singles and $4.00 to $20.00 for most LPs. No CDs or cassettes, only vinyl. It’s the one store on the island to truly pull it off. No behind-the-counter new releases, no registers. Brian, the owner, was sitting behind the dee-jay booth playing tried-and-true classics.

“How are you? Have you ever been here before?” he asked in which I kindly answered “no”. “As you see, all of these records here are categorized by radio station. Over there: there’s WEHM for all the newer stuff, WBAB for classic rock, WLIR for the Eighties, new-wave, and pop hits. Other stuff we have, we have jazz and rockabilly at that back wall, and other music we have listed as ambient.”

That’s right. All albums are categorized by Long Island radio stations, not by genres. Either he worked in broadcast or just like thousands of Long Islanders and I, he loves his classic radio. I should know. I never seen any record store who organized themselves by call letters over genres. Then I realized, I’m now organizing my favorite jazz / fusion songs by channels I watched as a kid in Brooklyn, and my Omega projects are organized by seasons. Then we go back to Brian, whose own system was a first. Commercial radio has formats, so does Sunday Records. That’s the thing. WLIR’s credo was they “dared to be different” and it worked. It’s why there’s a newly-released documentary about it. Adult-alternative station WEHM operates in Manorville with both Billy Joel and ex-wife Christine Brinkley having minor stakes in it. WBAB is Long Island’s long-standing rock station which pioneered the album-oriented format (AOR). All three I never listened to as WEHM’s signal is too far east for me to reach (but there’s streaming, right?), and as an Eighties kid I always listened to Z100 and other stations forward. They’re still in alphabetical order and by artists, not all hope is lost. In fact, it’s in perfect alphabetical order. There’s almost no room for error where people pull things out and place them in the wrong bin. Brian has it down to a tee. All records sold are in plastic sleeves and labeled at the very top right-hand corner. It was easy for my eyes and fingers to scan through the 100 or so wooden 12” bins and 30 7” shelves. I zipped through the entire store in less than three hours. Sunday Records’ majority of stock were chart hits. Classic rock like The Who, Rolling Stones, Ted Nugent, Lynyrn Skynyrd, and so forth were classified under WBAB. They also carried a lot of No Age (which I picked up), Hot Chip, The XX, Sleater-Kinney, Arcade Fire, and other Pitchfork-approved artists mostly under the WEHM umbrella.

But if you’re a fan of new-wave, synthpop, and early industrial, then Sunday Records welcomes you with open arms. As it falls directly into Sunday’s format (WLIR), artists like General Public, Simple Minds, Yaz, Heaven 17, Lene Lovich, Art Of Noise, and Culture Club are featured. Tom Tom Club, Re-Flex, Modern English, Roxy Music, Spandau Ballet, Dead Or Alive, Freur, APB, Kissing The Pink, and so much more. They had plenty of Depeche Mode, Joy Division, and New Order, too. I was even surprised in seeing 12” singles from With Sympathy-era Ministry and Front 242. Less than half of these artists I just listed I never even thought received radio airplay and I totally missed it. It was the Eighties and synth-based dance music was huge, though it wasn’t the only genre they played. Whatever few records not classified under Sunday’s radio system is labeled as ambient, as I did find a few copies from Baby Ford, Aphex Twin, Groove Armada, and other electronic acts. But like radio, Sunday Records abides by format. If it doesn’t fit that format, then it’s not there. That meant no hardcore, underground punk, hip-hop or noise to be found. Not to say that’s bad thing, because if there’s a system, then it’s done right.

I was pleased to find what I did. Three Cabaret Voltaire records which made up giving them up earlier. There was Images In Vogue’s self-titled release whom cEvin Key of Skinny Puppy used to drum for. Nitzer Ebb’s As Is was all for the taking. Hello again, Strawberry Switchblade. My stay there shined with the purchase of many singles that I listened to during my Eighties gamer youth, singles from Dead Or Alive, Tony Basil, Suzanne Vega, J. Geils Band, and Utah Saints. More synth-pop goodness from Fad Gadget and Gary Numan, the first of each artist in my library. How about singles from Malcomb McLaren and Public Image Ltd.? Stray Cats and Madness were two from the turn-of-the-decade rockabilly and post-punk. Finally, there’s Todd Rundgren’s “Hello, It’s Me” and Siouxsie Sioux’s “Hong Kong Garden”, two singles that hit the spot during a essential springtime at Stony Brook.

Let’s not forget the full-size records. I was very relieved to find Steve Jones as everything he does is gold. Steely Dan’s Pretzel Logic was one of the few I was missing of theirs. Why not Patti Smith’s Easter just because? And if there’s only one Doors’ album to have, it’s their greatest hits containing all their songs from a friend’s mixtape given to me in junior year. The only jazz record I picked up was Ramsey Lewis’ Tequila Mockingbird which had “Skippin’”, once used for WABC’s late-night movie intro which has yet to surface.

Of all the visits during this run, here’s where I passed up the most records. There were two Aphex Twin records I gave up as I knew I had them already on disc. Kraftwerk’s glow-in-the-dark “Neon Lights” single caught my eye and yours, too, if you found it. At $40.00, I couldn’t even touch it. That was the second most expensive title Brian had. That honor went to a real metal tin copy of Public Image’s Ltd.’s Metal Box priced at a hefty $125.00. There was Johnny Lydon hiding behind it, looking at me with his sad face when I seen its’ First Issue. It was sadder to put it back on the shelf because $20.00 was too much for a release I may find for less later. The same went for a newly-pressed Velvet Underground non-peel version for $22.00. I also gave up two Parliament records, Mothership Connection and Motor Booty Affair on picture disc, both for at least $25.00. Parliament is one artist I can never seem to find at a low price.

Halfway through some intense searching, some weird dude came in all dressed up in a patterned polo, jeans, and a twee handlebar mustache. I’m not kidding. He was half a cowboy minus the ten-gallon hat. He’s minding his own business thumbing through the crates as I learned it was Caboose, former staffer of the Stony Brook Press. I gave him 20 minutes for him to turn around and notice me. That’s when I spotted him. Time’s up, Caboose. He sees me in “holy shit!” ecstasy. We haven’t seen each other since our time at Stony Brook. Knowing I been going across the island, he had to catch me at one of these ten stores. He had his ninth chance and found me here. Congratulations. It wasn’t until recently that he took up record collecting, which he didn’t have in him back then. He was still heavily into anime and had a few visits in the city lined up for the rare Japanese metal band coming to the states.

“Do you buy records because you really like them or just for the art?” Caboose came across as inconsiderate and snide, but this was a legitimate question as I myself made purchases based on record cover or artwork alone. Make no mistake I was familiar with all the artists I bought today. Not that it mattered. He then asked how many records I have. Let’s just say he almost died right in the store. We kept on catching up with each other. Both of us haven’t seen our fellow Press staffers in our paths since but one of our own, The People’s Republic Of James, was in the hospital for diabetic shock. As we’re talking, Frank Zappa’s “Catholic Girls” came on from Brian’s dee-jay booth and it was the most cringe-worthy thing I ever heard. It’s well-known that Zappa pushed the envelope for creative freedom and our right to enjoy blue comedy. I’m all for it, but it’s way below me now. There were perverse people in my life who still get a kick out of it, insignificants with drop-out mentalities who still operate on cheap one-track minds I want no part of. But a few minutes later, Brian offered us to play Public Image Ltd.’s Album, so all was back to normal. Caboose mentioned to Brian that I was from WUSB and a conversation struck up. Brian asked about my show and my experience at Sunday. I thought it was great that his store was set up for a specific nostalgia factor that truly hit home and personal. Towards the end of my search, more people entered saying positive things about Sunday Records. I couldn’t agree more. With a few more sacrifices, it’s time to pay up.

There was one more thing he wanted to show me as he added up my records. Some of them had stickers designating some copies as “screamer & screecher of the week” as per number and week, referring to WLIR’s special feature where its’ dee-jays nominated their favorites and listeners chose the winner by call-in vote. A feature that ran for 17 years of the station’s history, that, if someone were to see each entry (and Discogs has it posted, don’t worry), would see WLIR’s evolution over the years. Many people think Brian’s an eccentric only being open on Sundays and classifying records by radio station. I agree. But guess what? It’s a good eccentric. Here’s a guy who cares about the history of radio so much that he’s made a store of it. I swiped my card, signed off my purchase, shook his hand and said thank you.

Nine down, one to go. The experience at Sunday Records had me thinking of how different people classify things in their lives and how they make it work. It also had me thinking what was really out there decades ago and what else I could’ve picked up living as an Eighties kid. The only record store left to visit is now Innersleeve in Amangansett all the way inside Long Island’s south fork and right before Montauk (The End). I’m not going at it by myself. I’d like to enlist a few of my friends to chip in, and come with me to put the finish on a great record-store run.

Cabaret Voltaire The Arm Of The Lord

Nitzer Ebb As Is

Strawberry Switchblade Who Knows What Love Is?

Steve Jones Mercy

Patti Smith Easter

Ramsey Lewis Tequila Mockingbird

Doors, The Greatest Hits

Cabaret Voltaire Drinking Gasoline

Utah Saints “Something Good”

Image In Vogue self-titled EP

Steely Dan Pretzel Logic

No Age Losing Feeling

Dead Or Alive “Brand New Lover”

Cabaret Voltaire The Drain Train

Public Image Ltd. “Home”

Gary Numan “Cars” / “Metal”

Malcomb McLaren “Soweto” b/w “Zulu’s On A Time Bomb”

J. Geils Band “Centerfold” b/w “Rage In The Cage”

Fad Gadget “One Man’s Meat” b/w “Sleep”

Tony Basil “Mickey” b/w “Hangin’ Around”

Stray Cats “(She’s) Sexy + 17” b/w “Lookin’ Better Every Beer”

Madness “Our House” b/w “Cardiac Arrest”

Todd Rundgren “Hello It’s Me” b/w “Cold Morning Light”

No Age Eraser 7”

Suzanne Vega “Luca” b/w “Night Vision”

Siouxsie Sioux & The Banshees “Hong Kong Garden” b/w “Night Vision”

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gottlem · 5 years ago

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one out of a thousand others. (lemyanka)

summary: lemon meets her soulmate on the same day she starts at a brand new school - the only problem is she has no way of knowing , out of all the people she meets, who it actually is. (4.9k)

a/n: well, this took so long to write, so i hope u like it !! i was gonna write this for crygi but i decided to write it for these two instead even though its a lil less popular lol. this is purely self indulgent bc i LOVE soulmate aus so. here we are. also title taken from a line in falsettos lol

“So, Pri, you meet your soulmate tomorrow right?” Boa was right, according to the date marked on Priyanka’s upper thigh, tomorrow was the day. It still didn’t quite feel real yet, that she would meet the person she was meant to be with forever. Part of her was terrified that they wouldn’t get along, that somehow, something had gone wrong at some point. Part of her couldn’t wait to meet someone she should be able to just click with so easily. People wait their entire lives to meet The One, and right now, she only has to wait one more day.

“Yeah tomorrow’s the day! I wonder what they’re like” Priyanka hadn’t planned to do or go anywhere out of the ordinary, she would go to school, go home, and see wherever else the day might take her. But for now, she just had to get back home after school. They spent the walk home bumping into each other's shoulder and theorizing about what her soulmate might be like, though there was only one problem.

Boa, Priyanka’s best friend and self-proclaimed-platonic-soulmate, had no idea that Priyanka was expecting her actual soulmate to be a girl. There wasn’t necessarily a reason she hadn’t yet told Boa, it just never came up. And now it was too late to bring it up, too awkward. Except she’s meeting her tomorrow and Boa will either be completely oblivious, or will figure it out far too quickly.

Avoiding pronouns got old fast, but luckily it was still relatively easy to stick with using they/them, seeing as though she was talking about someone she didn’t know. She could keep this from Boa for just one more day, and then she’d just have to figure out how to break the news. Or maybe she wouldn’t even have to, maybe Boa would just be able to sense it from how they interacted. The uncertainty of it all was quite concerning, but she was sure she would push through it anyway.

Priyanka did not sleep well that night. She was going to meet her soulmate. The girl that would complete her, make her a better version of herself. It was scary, but exciting. She couldn’t wait, really. No matter how nerve-wrecking it became the more she thought about it, she also felt comforted. It was meant to be. She was about to find someone who will love her so strongly, and someone she can love right back. She was lucky, really, to find her soulmate so young. They’d be able to grow together, face the world and adulthood together when the time came. She had the rest of her life ahead of her and she couldn’t wait to spend it falling in love with her other half.

Lemon couldn’t wait to meet her soulmate. The only problem was she would have absolutely no idea who is. She thought long and hard about the ways she could whittle it down, but the only distinctive factor was that she knew her soulmate would be a girl, and they would meet tomorrow. Maybe she would just know? Maybe they’d catch eyes in the hallway and something would just click. That’s what she hoped would happen anyway, but knowing her luck, there would be no such thing.

She was starting a brand new school tomorrow, slap-bang in the middle of a school year. She was about to be the new kid. It was just unlucky that the very day she would start a new school, consequently meeting hundreds of kids, she was also supposed to meet her soulmate. Of course, whoever it may be should know straight away that their soulmate is Lemon. She’d be the only new girl, and therefore the only person they meet that day. So, at least they’re not both completely clueless, right?

Lemon fell asleep almost the exact moment her head hit her pillow. She had spent the last hour or two taking extra care in the shower, brushing her teeth, and going through her usually skipped over skincare routine. She even read her book for an extra half hour in an attempt to calm her butterflies, it worked well enough for her to fall asleep. Her dreams were fuelled by a mixture of anxiety and excitement (though some would argue they’re exactly the same) but she didn’t remember any by the time she woke up.

When the sun rose that morning, Lemon could feel herself getting giddier by the minute. It was a beautiful day - sunny, but not too warm. The perfect day to meet your soulmate. Walking into the doors for the first time, Lemon watched as unfamiliar faces passed by her with questioning looks, wondering who she was. Some of them had already begun to introduce themselves, unbeknownst to the date of her mark.

Lemon was sure she’d be fine. She was outgoing, and always willing to make new friends, so being the new girl wasn’t as scary as it should be. However, when every single person you meet is a potential soulmate, things start to get overwhelming. Her morning consisted of getting slightly lost on the way to her English class, introducing herself to 60+ people before lunch, and constantly being on the lookout for the look in someone's eye that tells her she’s the one. She never found that look.

Priyanka was having an awful morning. She had heard whispers of a new girl in school, and her heart managed to sink and soar at the same time. She promised herself she wouldn’t look for her, they would find each other when the time was right. And apparently the time was right just as Priyanka was speed walking, and definitely not paying attention, towards the dining hall for lunch after promising Boa she wouldn’t be late. She was fishing for her phone in her bag as she bumped into a wide eyed girl that she didn’t recognise.

In a flash, the girl was on the floor, picking up the books that Priyanka had managed to whack out of her grip.

‘Good going Pri, you just had the most cliche fucking meeting with your soumate and she probably doesn’t even know it, happy?’

Priyanka was quick to bend down to help the girl, apologising for being so careless. The girl looked up and smiled, Priyanka thought her heart might have stopped in that moment.

“It’s okay girl! Let’s just blame it on the fact that I’m the new girl so by the laws of the universe, something at least a little embarrassing has to happen to me. I mean, it wouldn't be a complete first day if it didn’t. I’m Lemon.”

“I thought I didn’t recognise you, I’m Priyanka… Wait, did you just say Lemon? Like the citrus fruit?”

“Well, my real name is Lena, Lemon’s just a nickname. Literally everyone just calls me Lemon though, especially pretty girls who don’t look at where they’re going. Besides, yellow does suit me, don’t you think?”

Priyanka did think. She thought this girl, Lemon, was stunning. And she was right, yellow was her colour. Her hair was a light blonde, but the ends were a pastel yellow and her shirt an even brighter yellow; Priyanka thought it must take some guts to wear such a bold colour on your first day, but you’ve got to make an impression somehow right? Besides, she was well aware that Lemon would have the same date she did on her thigh - which meant Lemon knew she was meeting her soulmate today. Chances are, she didn’t have any idea who it would be though, Priyanka couldn’t even imagine how many new people Lemon would have met today. But that would mean Lemon didn’t know that she and Priyanka were soulmates, only Priyanka did. So she would have to be the one to make some kind of move. She can’t watch her soulmate just walk away.

“Hey, do you have anyone to sit with at lunch?”

“I was planning on walking around aimlessly trying to find a clique that looks like they wouldn’t wanna bite my head off, so no, but I’m assuming I do now?”

Priyanka just took her soulmate’s hand in response, taking her to the dining hall to meet Boa. She hoped she could keep it together for the next 60 minutes. It shouldn’t be that hard. All she had to do was avoid the topic of romance and soulmates and she would be fine. Boa knew that bringing it up with a stranger was a bit too intimate for the first hour of knowing someone, so hopefully she wouldn't have to worry about her.

Luckily for Priyanka, her friend didn’t think twice about her invitation for Lemon to join them at lunch, assuming that her soulmate would be a boy, which Lemon was not. On the other hand, it meant that Priyanka spent an hour with her soulmate who probably had no idea they were meant to be, but who also kept flirting with her anyway. It was torture. She couldn't even tell her, not with Boa there. So when Priyanka wrote down Lemon’s instagram handle, she decided she would come clean to her tonight.

Lemon had long abandoned the idea of finding her soulmate through glances in the hallway. She figured her soulmate would have the sense to know that she’d be meeting too many people to be able to single out the one, and she would make the first move, or at least say something to clue Lemon in. But that didn’t seem to happen all day.

Eating lunch with Priyanka and her friend was nice, but she had no reason to believe they were soulmates. As far as Lemon knew, Priyanka could just be trying to make up for the incident in the halls. Eventually her soulmate would show herself, but that didn’t stop Lemon from letting herself think that maybe her soulmate was sitting right in front of her.

Walking home that day, Lemon felt defeated. She wasn’t any closer to knowing who her soulmate was than when the day first started, except now she knew she had most definitely met them by now, unless she bumped into someone on the way home. She didn’t. She unlocked her front door and went straight to her bedroom. Her body felt heavy, she just had to lie down for a minute.

A notification from her phone was what woke her up a couple hours later. She barely even realised she had fallen asleep until she checked the time and it was already 7pm. There were two notifications, both from Instagram. She had one new follower, and a private message. It wasn’t too surprising to Lemon that both were Priyanka, remembering she had given her handle to the girl earlier that day.

itsmepri: Hey, Lemon! How was your first day?

lemongivesyoulife: well i accidentally slept for almost four hours the second i got home, so i would say it went exactly the way i expected

itsmepri: It only gets worse from here girl

lemongivesyoulife: yeah i’m rlly looking forward to my breakdown scheduled in about two months time :))

lemongivesyoulife: but honestly i’m just glad nobodys been shitty to me yet, i’m just waiting until someone decides to ~prey on the new girl~

itsmepri: Don’t worry too much! Most groups just kind of stick to themselves, so if you just stay with me and Boa, you shouldn’t get into too much trouble

itsmepri: Only if you want, you don’t HAVE to be my friend just because I accidentally ran into you on your first say (sorry again for that, Boa’s a bitch when you keep her waiting)

lemongivesyoulife: i’d love that, actually ;)

lemongivesyoulife: and again don’t even worry about it! something tells me it happened for a reason

Priyanka had planned to tell Lemon that they were soulmates, she really had, but there was something stopping her that she couldn't quite place. Maybe it was fear that Lemon would be disappointed, maybe she liked the way Lemon flirted with her without even knowing. Whatever it was, it was clear she wasn’t quite ready to come clean yet. At 11:59pm, Priyanka’s phone started to ring, showing Boa’s display name, because who else would call her at midnight on a school night.

“This better be good if you’re ringing me at midnight to talk about it”

“I don’t know if it’s good, you’ll have to tell me.”

“Tell you what, exactly?”

“Who’s your soulmate? What are they like?”

Fuck. She really should have thought of something to say. The problem was, if Priyanka told Boa what was happening, that Lemon was her soulmate and only she knew, she would end up trying to take things into her own hands. That would be… disastrous. She just wanted to have everything go at her own pace. She could come clean to Lemon once they were good enough friends, and then they avoid the awkward ‘we don’t know each other well enough to officially date but also we’re soulmates so automatically we’re kind of dating anyways’ phase. Everything would fall into place. She just had to lie to her best friend for a bit. No biggie.

“Helloooo? Pri? You there?”

“Yeah I’m here. Just zoned out”

“God, did you even meet your soulmate?” Here goes nothing.

“Yeah. We’re uh, taking it slow for now. We bumped into each other when I was walking home. We’re just keeping things on the dl so we can really get to know each other first.”

That didn’t fully satisfy Boa. She wanted to know far too much far too quickly, but Priyanka managed to dodge the giveaway questions. It wasn’t easy, but she survived that phone call without giving anything away, feeling a sense of dread for when she’d eventually have to tell the truth.

The next day, Priyanka and Boa are joined by Lemon at lunch again. She sat herself down with blushing cheeks and a toothy smile, and without even greeting her new friends first, she asked “Can you tell me everything about Gothy?” Priyanka tried her best not to show her distaste towards the girl, and instantly asked why, trying not to sound defensive already. Maybe it was nothing.

“She asked me on a date. I think I’m gonna go.”

Priyanka wanted so badly to tell her not to. But she still just wasn’t ready. What stung the most was Boa, whispering into her ear, telling her that at least Lemon’s not being shy about her soulmate. Priyanka left lunch early that day, not without warning Lemon to be careful.

Gothy was in a few of Lemon’s classes, but she found out on the girls second day that they had gym together too. She didn’t mean to see her mark, honest. But she did. And she was the new girl. So why shouldn’t she have some fun? It’s not like she had a soulmate she was betraying, her whole body being void of a date.It was easy to flirt with her, easy to ask her out, and easy to get her to say yes. Lemon probably assumed that Gothy was her soulmate, and was finally trying to make a move. She couldn’t be more wrong.

“Hey Boa?” She couldn’t believe it took Gothy trying to play some stupid fucking mind game for her to finally tell her best friend that she was gay. But hey, at least she was doing it.

“Whats up Pri, you ok?” Her voice sounded crackly over the phone, but talking about this in person was just too nerve-wracking.

“I uh, lied, about my soulmate… It’s actually Lemon”

Silence.

“No, Lemon’s soulmate is Gothy, why else would they be going on a date?”

Well, at least she didn’t question the part where her soulmate’s a girl, right? Always look on the bright side.

“Well. You and me both know that Gothy would do anything to fuck me over, ever since we fell out last year she’s been waiting for the right opportunity. She knew my date. I don’t know how she saw Lemon’s but she must have at some point, or maybe she told her? Either way, Gothy’s mean, but she’s smart. She’d have figured out it was me and Lemon in no time”

“They have Gym together”

“Oh.”

“Okay but what about Gothy’s soulmate?”

“Gothy doesn’t have one. She told me when we were friends and I just kept it a secret because, well I guess it's not really anyone’s business. But now she’s just causing trouble”

“I had a feeling it was Lemon. They way you look at her, it makes me want to meet mine. You do realise you’re going to have to tell her at one point though, right?”

Telling Boa was one thing. Coming clean to Lemon? Yeah she wasn’t ready for that, at all. Especially not with Gothy involved. It pained her to hear Lemon gush about the girl every other day over lunch, she knew Gothy could be charming, and when Lemon had flirted with her she felt desired. They would be a perfect pair. Except they’re not. Because Priyanka is her soulmate, not Gothy. And there is only one way Lemon could find out.

About two weeks had passed of Priyanka trying her best to ignore Lemon and Gothy’s relationship when she got a text from the yellow haired girl at 1am on a Wednesday night (technically Thursday morning).

lemmy<3: u were right about gothy :(

Her heart sank. Sure, if she and Gothy ended things, it made everything so much easier for Priyanka, but it still didn’t feel nice to see her soulmate upset.

pri: Oh no what happened??

lemmy<3: ik its super late

lemmy<3: and u don’t have to say yes like at all. pls feel free to tell me to shut up n go to sleep

lemmy<3: but could i maybe come over and sleep at yours tonight? i need some company

lemmy<3: i need ur company

pri: Ofc, come through the back, it’s quieter. I’ll be waiting there for u

Lemon was there in no time. When the back door opened, tired eyes met teary ones as Lemon ran forward to hug her friend. She would feel bad about crying in front of someone she hadn’t even known for that long, but something about her presence made her feel like she was at home.

Priyanka lead Lemon up to her bedroom, and they lay side by side on her queen sized bed, faces staring up at the ceiling, and sour tears slowly hitting the pillow. It was silent for a while.

“Hey Lem, we have school tomorrow, you should try and get some sleep hun, you’re going to be exhausted.”

There was no reply, Lemon just turned onto her side, facing away from Priyanka, her shoulders shaking slightly, she was trying to keep them still. All Priyanka could do was turn around and wrap her arms around the girl. She played with her hair until she heard the sniffles turn into light snores. She couldn’t help but think they sounded cute.

Gothy wasn’t mentioned again until the Saturday night after the incident, when Lemon had stayed over for the night, at Priyanka’s suggestion. The soft yellow glow of a lamp was the only thing that lit the girls faces as they talked into the hours of the night. Just as Priyanka was changing into an oversized long shirt for bed, Lemon spoke up about Wednesday night.

“I met my soulmate the day I started at school. There was no way of telling who it was, not with the amount of people I met that day. So when Gothy asked me out, I just assumed that she knew we were soulmates. I found out the hard way that that was so fucking far from the truth” Her voice was barely above a whisper, and it sounded so fragile, as if she could barely keep it together. She almost laughed at the end, though it was empty and void of any humour.

“How did you find out?” Priyanka began to make her way back to the bed, Lemon just stared at her.

“How do you think? I looked, there was no mark, not anywhere. She didn’t even acknowledge it when I pointed out that it was just, nowhere. I left. I’m just happy I realised before we did anything, you know?”

Priyanka shivered at the thought of Gothy taking advantage of Lemon like that, she felt guilty. She could have avoided this if she had just told Lemon. But it was too late now, even if she told her tonight, it would be like salt on an open wound. She’d give it another week, for Lemon’s sake.

They didn’t talk about Gothy after that. They were both quick to move the conversation as far away from romance and soulmates as possible, and once the touchy subject had finally been forgotten about, the hours passed like minutes and soon enough Priyanka’s eyes felt heavy.

“My head hurts”

“It’ll be because you’ve had your hair up all day, Pri, just take it out”

“But it’ll still hurt once it's loose!” Lemon chuckled affectionately at her friend’s whining.

“C’mere”

Priyanka didn't even fight it. She sat opposite Lemon on her bed, so their knees were touching. Lemon turned her to face the other way, and took her ponytail out.

“Lie down” She patted her lap for Priyanka to lay her head there, and the girl happily complied, giving out a content sigh when she felt gentle hands massage her scalp. It didn’t take her long to drift off to sleep, never feeling Lemon take her hands away from her hair.

It was once Priyanka had been asleep for maybe five minutes max when her leg moved, causing her shirt to ride up just enough to see the date marked on her thigh.

When Priyanka woke up, Lemon was nowhere to be seen. She was going to check downstairs to see if she had decided to grab herself breakfast, but she noticed a small handwritten note on her bedside table.

“i started to feel sick so i went home just after you fell asleep. didn’t wanna wake you up. -lemon”

Priyanka sat on the edge of her bed with a huff. She seemed fine last night, so how could Lemon have fallen ill so quickly? That was when Priyanka caught her mark just out of the corner of her eye. If she could see it when she was sat down, then…

Shit. Fuck. She needed to talk to Lemon. She couldn't just show up at the girls house, she didn’t even know where she lived, so she settled for the next best thing - ringing her until she picked up or turned her phone off. She lost track of how many times she had pressed the call button by the time she got a text back.

lemmy<3: what is it?

priyanka: you didn’t leave bc you were sick, did you?

lemmy<3: why didn’t you just tell me? Instead of letting me wonder and wonder and end up getting hurt?

priyanka: please come back and let me explain! I promise i won’t keep you long

lemmy<3: no, not today. sorry.

Her messages stopped getting delivered after that.

Priyanka and Lemon didn’t see eachother again until lunch on Monday, when Lemon hesitantly sat down at the table, already occupied by Priyanka and Boa. Priyanka just looked up at her, smiling sadly, and hoped that she’d at least stay for lunch.

Lemon wanted so badly to find somewhere else to sit. She didn’t hate Priyanka, she could never, and she wasn’t mad either, she didn’t think. She just needed some time to digest. Priyanka had weeks to come to terms with the fact that they were soulmates, and Lemon found out after she discovered she had been lied to about hers by someone else.

They both looked like shit. Priyanka couldn’t find it in herself to smile as much as she normally does, and Lemon’s shoulders lost their usually perfect posture. Plus, she had resorted to wearing her glasses to school, even though she hated them. Crying in contacts was never good for her, and right now she couldn't quite hold herself back for a whole day.

Boa noticed something was off between them not even a minute after Lemon sat down, she had wondered why Priyanka had been so withdrawn over the weekend. Guess she had her answer.

“Okay, so I’m just gonna go… you two need to sort out whatever is going on between y’all, kay? Kay.”

Neither of them said anything for a minute. Priyanka just played with her food, while Lemon played with the idea of taking off her glasses so she didn’t need to see Priyanka have this conversation with her.

“I uh, couldn’t really sit anywhere else. I don’t have many other friends after what happened with Gothy. Now I’m the new girl who fell for a girl without a soulmate. I didn’t even like her that much. I don’t feel connected to her.” Priyanka hummed in response.

“Do you feel connected to me?” She hoped Lemon would say yes.

“I don’t need to answer that; we’re soulmates, Pri. I wish I knew that sooner though”

“I know. I know and I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I was just scared. I was scared because I knew that I’d meet you, I knew you were coming, and I was still taken aback. I didn’t expect this stunning, flirty, yellow haired girl who is funny and caring and-”

“Stop it. I know I’m great” Lemon flipped her hair behind her as she slipped into a mock valley girl voice.

“See! That’s what I mean. You must be hurting, so much, and you’re sitting in front of the girl who was so shitty to you, cracking jokes?” Lemon laughed softly, a pity laugh if anything.

“ Yeah, you’re right. I am hurting,” her tone lacked any humour from before, “ And I get that you were scared and didn’t know what to do, and I’m not mad or anything. I promise. I just- can we maybe not speak for a bit? Get some space? I just need time. God, I hate it when people say that, but I think that’s what I need. And I promise, when I’m over whatever I’m feeling, I will more than gladly start this adventure with you. I’m glad you’re my soulmate. I promise”

And with that, Lemon stood up and left.

It was only Wednesday afternoon when Priyanka next heard from Lemon. Though she couldn’t complain, she had started to miss her before she even left the dining hall two days ago.

lemmy<3: i miss u

pri: not that i’m not happy to hear from u bc i am, but what happened to space?

lemmy<3: fuck space

pri: ok yeah

pri: fuck space

lemmy<3: what are u doing rn?

pri: nothing, why?

lemmy<3: we’re going to the beach

pri: right now? it’s a school night? and it’s like 6, there’s not much time

lemmy<3: we’re watching the sunset. pick u up in ten. see u soon x

Priyanka didn’t know Lemon could drive until she pulled up outside her house, windows down, looking as beautiful as ever. She was quick to hop in the passenger seat and let Lemon drive to the sound of the radio and the wind. She tried, really tried, to keep her eyes ahead of her, but she couldn't stop stealing glances at Lemon. Her eyes were focused on the road, and the ends of her lips were upturned slightly. She looked happy. It suited her.

The beach was colder than they had anticipated, but it gave them an excuse to sit closer to each other as the sky turned pink and purple and orange. They talked in soft voices, just loud enough for the other girl to hear clearly, but that made their words seem more intimate. There was one point, where the sun had just begun to disappear behind the sea, when Lemon reached for Priyanka's hand, who took it back and squeezed it lightly. Lemon’s head rested on her shoulder until the sun was completely replaced by a black sky and a myriad of stars looking down on them.

The drive home was quiet, they were both tired, and both hyper-aware of the fact they’d have to wake up early for school tomorrow. But tomorrow didn’t really matter much, not when they had their whole lives to spend together. Lemon dropped Priyanka off at her house with a hug, a beaming smile, and a promise to text her when she got home.

Priyanka received a text from Lemon much sooner than she expected, after only five minutes of Lemon being gone.

lemmy<3: come outside

lemmy<3: i think i forgot something

She opened her door to see Lemon looking at her with stars in her eyes.

“Lem I really don’t know how I can help if you’ve forgotten something, we went in your car.” Priyanka sighed, “okay, what did you forget?”

“This”

And just like that, Lemon took a step forward and pressed their lips together softly. They stayed like that for a minute, Lemons arms around her neck, their lips slowly moving against eachother. It was surprising how easily they just fit together. They felt like they could stay like this forever, but eventually Priyanka pulled back, knowing they’d have to stop eventually.

“Hm. I’m glad you remembered that. Can’t believe you almost forgot.”

#THERE IT IS Y’ALL #lemyanka soulmates #it had to be done #priyanka #lemyanka #lemon cdr #lemon queen #lemon x priyanka #ft gothg kendoll a lil bit #also boa

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