Miriam's Story Corner

"Miriam?"

"Yes, Love?"

"With how I am...do you think I'll find...'the one' for me?"

Miriam laughed. "I never took you for the romantic type."

Miriam sat with her sibling on the floor of her room in front of an elegant mirror. The sunbeams filtered through the blinds of the window and created a ladder-like pattern across the ornate rug. The atmosphere was warm and inviting, much like Miriam herself.

"Have you ever heard of the Red Thread of Fate?"

Her sibling shook their head.

"The Red Thread of Fate is a belief that originated in Asia," Miriam started. "It is said that an invisible red string connects two people."

Miriam grabbed a spool of thread from a drawer in her vanity. She tied it around her finger and her sibling's as a visual representation.

"The string will stretch," Miriam walked across the room unravelling the string. "The string may even tangle."

She approached her sibling and tied a simple knot in the thread before pulling it apart.

"But the string will never break," Miriam stated. "So no matter what happens, nothing can separate you from the one you are destined to meet."

Her sibling stared at the string, twisting it between their fingers. Their blue eyes sparkled in the sunlight and Miriam began a story.

"A story goes, a young boy was on his way home when he stumbled upon an old man standing in the moonlight. The old man shows the boy the red thread that connected him to a girl, his soulmate. The boy scoffed and threw a rock at the girl before running away. When the boy grew up, his parents arranged a marriage for him. His soon-to-be wife waited in a room, her face concealed by a veil. When he lifted the veil, not only was the woman the most sought-after in their village, but she also had a scar on her eyebrow that she covered up."

Miriam's sibling gasped, their eyes wide. Miriam smiled.

"The woman was indeed the girl that the old man had shown him when he was younger. After what he had done, after the many years that had passed, they were reunited. There is someone out there for everyone. And even if you decide that there isn't, no one is a better soulmate than yourself. So yes, I believe that there is someone out there for you. It may take some time before you find them, but they will come into your life when fate decides as much. In fact, your soulmate doesn't even have to be someone you are romantically attracted to. They can be someone you simply enjoy being around. You just have to promise me to take care of yourself and love yourself in the meantime, okay?"

Miriam's sibling stared at the rug underneath them. They wrapped the thread around their finger and unwrapped it multiple times, imprints of the string formed on their skin. They pursed their lips and their jaw clenched.

"I mean it," Miriam said, seriousness in her tone. "You are whoever you want to be. Do not let anyone tell you that you have to act or dress a certain way. Their opinions only matter if you allow them to. If you want to wear extravagant ball gowns, wear them. Bows and frills? Buy them. No one can stop you except yourself. Only you can be your greatest enemy."

"Isn't that a bit weird, though?" Miriam's sibling asked.

"What is?"

"Not having a romantic partner to spend the rest of your life with? Everywhere I look, someone has their...person."

"It is perfectly normal not to be attracted to anyone in such a way. This is known as aromanticism. There are plenty of people who live perfectly conent without a romantic partner. You do not owe anyone your love simply because society makes you believe tat you do. The only person you have to love is yourself."

Miriam's sibling never looked up from the ground but they had heard every word their older sister had to say. A tear glistened in the light and they jumped into their sister's arms.

"I love you, Shirleigh."

Shirleigh's muffled cries filled the silence.