Tristian started talking and pacing before he even really heard or acknowledged that Ren was trying to speak or saying anything significant. "And like I know I sorry isn't really worth anything, especially not now, but I guess I just got too in my head and I need to say it, and I forgot you're younger than me. And I don't know....I guess I forgot how to believe meeting my soulmate was possible. But it doesn't matter how I feel. I shouldn't make someone else feel like shit just because I'm being pessimistic. I really never want to make you feel like that, for anything, if I can help it."

He paused right around the time Ren revealed that he thought he and Tristian were soulmates and Tristian just stopped and turned to stare at Ren, "W-w-wh-at?" He stuttered, not even sure he heard right, "N-no. T-that can't be right." he collapsed onto the coffee table still staring at Ren, "I....." he paused mind racing but about what he wasn't really sure, mostly it was just white noise, all he could feel was a sense of panic setting in. His entire body tensing with something, no the need to run, but something big and terrifying and not something Tristian wanted to confront. "I mean," he took a deep breath, "I think I'm falling in love with you. But.... I'm never going to meet my soulmate.... I missed my chance or something. I, I just, I don't think....." He looked down, feeling emotions he tried to keep buried rising up, chocking out of him on the last expulsion of breath, "I'm not sure I even deserve to meet my soulmate....maybe that's why I've gone so long without even a glimpse that that person exists for me..."

Wrapped up in his own emotions, Tristian's crashed over him and just washed away. Too much. He didn't even know how to react to those thoughts. Ren hid his face, dragging a hand through his hair, leaving the bangs over his eyes. His entire body felt tense even though he expected this; he still felt his eyes burn. As Tristian continued, all of a sudden, he couldn't stand to stay still any longer. Ren pushed out of his seat, crowding close to the other man.

"No!" His loud voice surprised him, but Ren couldn't stop now. With desperate fingers, he found the spot on Tristian's shoulder that the mark lay beneath. "Who said anything about deserve? I...if anyone." He swallowed hard past the rush of bitterness and pain. "Aren't I enough? Aren't I good? I don't think I can take it if you push me away, so please. Fall in love with me. I lived...so long, waiting to meet my soulmate, just hoping. Cause I knew, everyone finds their's."

His fingers rubbed over Tristian's shoulder, knowing the mark's location even without looking. All over again, he felt the shock rush up his arm, leaving his hair standing on end. This was real. Ren dropped his head onto Tristian's shoulder as his voice dropped to a whisper. "I can feel it. Not just wanting here."

Tristian reeled back as Ren crowded into his space, not sure how to react to the sudden expulsion from him, so he did the one thing that he needed to do more. He listened. He listened to Ren's words and tried to imagine what he could be feeling from rubbing his mark, all Tristian could feel was the desperation in the situation.

But he still couldn't really believe the words Ren was saying. They couldn't be true. It wasn't possible. There was no way someone as amazing as Ren was meant solely for Tristian and no one but. How could Ren be so certain when Tristian couldn't even believe it?

He gently pushed, Ren's head up from his shoulder and stared into his eyes, revealing just how watery his own were, "Hey," he spoke softly, words pouring out of his mouth without thought, "Didn't you hear me? I do love you, or at least I think I could. But we can't be soulmates. You're more than enough. You're too good for me. You're more than I could ever deserve. Or even hope to deserve." He rubbed his thumb gently down Ren's cheek, tender, almost in contrast to the despair in his words. "I wish the universe loved me enough for you to be my soulmate. But I just can't believe it....." he sighed, "I'm too talkative, too much, too annoying. I-I'm better off being...alone--then I won't bother anyone."

Ren felt his own eyes start to water even before Tristian lifted his head, revealing a similar look. Slowly, he could feel his heart breaking, breaking and flying and breaking all over again. He choked back emotions, almost unable to speak. Even if he wanted to though, he couldn't pull away from Tristian's touch. The man held him captive with just a simple brush of a finger. One tender touch and he felt ready to dissolve like putty. Ren felt himself shudder as he breathed out before he brought himself to speak.

"Why? Why can you say you love me but we're not soulmates. Not true..." Because it didn't work that way. Didn't Tristian hear these words, but he couldn't bring himself to chide right now. Even at his best, he couldn't, but now words kept getting stuck in his throat. Why did talking have to hurt so bad?

Even before he realized it, his fingers started to move. Thumbs brushed against Tristian's lips, a distant kiss, hesitant, but strong in their touch. "Not annoying. I'm too quiet and you fill the space. I like all those things about you. I....love you too."

Tristian exhaled shakily at Ren's touch, trying to breath in again seemed impossible and he choked on the air, coughing slightly. The touch was too much, too tender, more than he'd expected from Ren. "How can you be so certain?" he whispered, unbelieving, but wanting to hope. "How can you know that this isn't just a dream? How?" he asked, his voice breathy and aching, full of longing for the hurt to stop and to be with Ren in the most perfect way.

"Prove it to me...." he finally whispered, "Show me how you're so certain. Show me that you're right.... please...."

Prove? For a second, Ren just looked at Tristian, at a loss. Why and how could he prove something like love or soulmates. It was just a thing you knew. But he never once hesitated to try. Leaning forward, his moved his fingers to frame the other man's face and pressed lips to his instead. The kiss lasted briefly, but more than long enough to feel real.

Ren pulled back and without a word, pulled off his shoe and sock. There on the top of his foot, he revealed the mark there. The three peacock feathers looked so elegant there, perfect. Without ever looking away from Tristian, he brushed a finger over the mark. "Touch it. See for yourself." This was the physical confirmation of love and if Tristian needed that, then so be it.

Tristian pressed into the kiss, unable to resist the urge to be close to Ren. He whined when Ren pulled back, wanting the kiss to keep going. It felt amazing, like something pure and perfect that made everything okay. He stared at Ren after the kiss, heart racing and breath coming in pants like they'd shared a much more intense kiss.

He gasped when Ren revealed his mark, not having seen it before, and he had briefly wondered where it was, considering he had seen the model shirtless. He almost chuckled to find it on his foot, but couldn't muster the energy for it. Instead, he tentatively reached a hand to brush his fingers gently over the peacock feathers, and it was like an electric current had travelled up his arm, stealing whatever breath he had left. "Oh...." he looked up at Ren, "Is that....? Wow....."

Ren could only hum in response. Watching Tristian's face as he looked at the mark, touched it, stole his breath. He felt like he looked at a movie scene. Too perfect to be real. A shiver went up his spine and he knew Tristian felt it too. "Yeah," he croaked. Licking his lips, he tried again to speak past his dry throat that seemed to only want to let one word out at once. It took a second, but he continued. "That's how I know. And when you said before...but now you know it's real." If Tristian pushed him away now, he wouldn't be about to deal, but there was no reason to, right? He'd just been afraid, like Ren. But he wasn't afraid anymore of this thing they'd found.

A small smile grew on Tristian's lips, barely visible but there and his fingers kept tracing the line of the feathers enjoying the confirming shocks from each touch, a part of him unable still unable to believe it, but the larger part starting to fill with pure joy. "We're really soulmates?" he asked, maybe saying it out loud would make it more real. Suddenly, he grinned wide and carefree and lurched forward pressing his lips to Ren's in a kiss far more fervent than the brief one Ren had gave him.

Ren was about to nod his head in confirmation once again when suddenly Tristian kissed him again. He froze with shock before tangling one hand in the ponytail that the man wore as he kissed him back. It felt like some kind of dam broke in the two of them, allowing all the magnetism they felt before to come exploding out unhindered. He didn't think he could get enough of the other man's touch. "I love you," he whispered again when he pulled back for air. "I need you."

Tristian pressed into Ren, a different kind of desperation filling him now, the need to be as close to the other as possible. He pulled back from kiss and laughed, joyous in a way he wasn't sure he'd felt before. "I love you, too." he said, voice bright, "And god do I need you, too." He pressed a brief kiss to Ren's lip again, unable and unwilling to be this far away from him for long. "It still seems so hard to believe this is real." he whispered when he pulled back. "Like I'm having the best dream of my life."

"Yeah," Ren hummed, still finding words hard, but because nothing seemed to express this. Tristian's laugh brought a full smile to his lips, the feeling infectious. He couldn't even explain it, but even he felt the need to smile. Taking Tristan's hand in his, he just sat there for a second to take in this change in atmosphere. "So we're both okay with this?" Though unspoken, he already knew he was and just needed that last word to ease his worries. And then, they would figure out where to go from here. He only concerned himself with coming to this point and other than being near his mate, he didn't know where that left them.

Tristian nodded, "Yeah, I'm more than okay with this. I guess I really was being stupid. But I've had my mark since I was twelve. I've waited sixteen years. I got caught up in how hopeless it felt after so long. Which was just dumb. But I don't really think I ever stopped wanting to meet my soulmate, not really. I just didn't think it was possible." He smiled at Ren, soft, content, "I'm glad it's you though."

"Me too," Ren murmured. "I'm real glad it's you." More glad that he could ever express maybe after wanting this so badly. "But I really....what now? I was always searching, but I never thought about what to do once I met my soulmate. Even after I figured it out, I just couldn't think..." It might seem like a silly worry, but he did wonder how soulmates should be. His own parents were the example he wanted to emulate even if they were perfect for each other.

Tristian shrugged, not really sure, "I don't know, I guess we just be together and figure it out as we go? I can't say I really thought about what comes after either, but we're soulmates for a reason right? We're meant to be perfect for each other in every way. So I can't imagine too much changes. Maybe things just get a little bright, a little better?" As he spoke his thumb kept gently tracing the sharpness of Ren's cheek bones, almost reverently, a lifeline reminding him he was really awake.

A smile tilted up one side of Ren's mouth. "That's true." It sounded so simple, but he didn't know why it shouldn't be. He just overthought it and Tristian reminded him of the most important thing. They were soulmates. The rest of it just fell into place after that. He shifted back enough to get comfortable on the couch again, though stayed close to Tristian still, not wanting to end the real feeling that their every contact brought. "I figure you won't mind if I don't feel like going home after this?" he added, though he already knew the answer. Right now though, he couldn't even bring himself to step foot in that big empty apartment.

Tristian shifted over to the couch, pressing himself into Ren's side, like he'd wanted to do so many times before but didn't feel like he had the right to do so. "Do you mean just for tonight or forever?" Tristian asked, teasing. He really didn't care which way Ren meant, but if he meant forever, they'd have to work on combining there belongings. But that'd be something fun to work on.

Ren dragged a hand through his hair, hiding his face for a second. "Tonight?" he answered, a second passing before he spoke. The future looked a little too big for him to think about right now. Now, he just wanted to think about tonight. He smiled again, much softer than before as he let a hand rest in Tristian's hair. He wanted to take it out of its tie to run his hands through, but for now, the effort won out. He just wanted to lay there with his mate. Forever would just have to wait. "...For now."

"Hm. Well you're welcome for either," Tristian finally said, sleepiness starting to settle in after the eventful night. He buried his face in Ren's shoulder, yawning, "We should probably move cuz sleeping on this couch is not gonna be comfortable, and I don't know about you, but I'm about to collapse."

Ren nodded. Between the party and this conversation, he wearied himself both physically and mentally. The hour was late and being an early riser, he already felt that pull toward bed now that the tension drained. "Sounds good. You have something I can sleep in?" he asked with a glance down at the less than sleep worthy clothes clinging to him. He'd rather sleep in nothing than this. Shifting just slightly, he sat up while steadying Tristian with his arm. It looked like he was well ready for bed and the thought of sleeping with Tristian at his side warmed Ren just a little more than he expected.

Tristian pushed up from the couch and reached behind grabbing Ren's hand to pull him up as well. With his free hand he pulled his hair out of the ponytail, not at all about to sleep with his hair up, it just resulted in a headache the next day. He fought back another yawn, before nodding at Ren, "Yeah I think I have an oversized shirt that'll fit you or something. Can't make a promise on the pants with you being taller than me. Hopefully, you have boxers on." He lead them towards his bedroom, yawns growing more and more frequent as he slipped into almost a walking slumber.

Ren huffed a bit, half amused, half indignant. Though mostly he didn't feel enough energy for either one. "Just a shirt is fine." He could sleep in boxers or just in these pants if need be. The shirt was an entirely different thing. The two of them got ready for bed, half awake. They must have looked like sleepwalkers, but even if they moved slow, it didn't take long. Neither felt the need to spend time on their sleep routine. When they finished, they snuggled down together under the covers. Just as they turned out the lights, Ren pressed a kiss to the other man's forehead. "Good night. Sleep well."

Tristian sighed in contentment as he snuggled into Ren's chest, "Love you," he murmured one last time, falling asleep after the best night of his life thus far. And things only started to look better from here, and wasn't that the thing he'd hoped for for years, but never been able to achieve. He slept that night sounder and more comfortable than he remembered feeling in his entire adult life.

Although it wasn't easy, they learned together what it meant to be soulmates. Turned out, it was exactly as natural as Tristian said it would be. When it came to telling the world about their wondrous change though, the two men didn't have much of a chance. Only two weeks later when Tristian met with some of his staff and Ren sat on the studio couch, watching, Piritta came in with Cyril. With the timing, it looked like they came together, both just a little bit late. She leaned over, standing on tip toe to whisper something to him. Ren blinked at them then looked at Tristian to see if he noticed too, though he didn't say anything. But, did they know each other?

Tristian noticed Ren's gaze and followed it to Cyril and Piritta frowning slightly, the two certainly looked cozy. He made a note to talk to them before they left because they were standing entirely too close for strangers. He kept his little speech brief, really just wanting to touch base with everyone after the show, congratulate them all on how well it went and thank them. Plus give them a bit of an idea of where to go from here as orders had started coming in.

Right as he was about to dismiss them, he grinned widely, "Oh and on a more personal note, I found my soulmate. And well, I thought you all should know since it's our very own Ren." He pointed towards the model on the couch, entirely sure he'd pay for making a public announcement later, but he couldn't help it. He was just so happy.