This passage begs the question of what is a soulmate.  How many times in a person's life have they encountered love?  Time after time it comes and it goes.  The passion zips in and out for a person in a great many ways, but along with the ideas of romance comes a deeper question.  What is a soulmate?  According to one relationship expert's definition, it is 'a colloquial expression meaning someone you were destined to spend your life with, the other half of you, such that when you find him/her you suddenly feel complete and all is well forever'.  However as it is also noted about the word 'soulmates' is that in life, it generally doesn't work that way.  TPTB would like us to believe that Port Charles new format has brought about the emergence of soulmates within Ian and Eve because they've shared many lifetimes together according to the island morca and they've made love a few times in the present state of PC.  However, do they fit the true definition of a soulmate?  Can strong sexual attraction and intense situations experiences lead to a joining of souls forever?  TPTB would like you to believe that is the case with Ian and Eve and as noted by Dr. Kate, a relationship expert, ' there are many people you could marry and be compatible and happy with for the rest of your life.  The story would just be a little different with each person.'  So how can Eve be sure Ian is the one for her?  

When the talk of soulmates is brought up whether in a fictitious or real world, it is noted that the deep belief in that one true soulmate can cause people to make impulsive decisions as in Eve's case where she jumped into a whirlwind relationship with Ian during a rough patch in her marriage to Kevin.  However attraction and excitement isn't always the grounds for true soulmates.  For example, with Eve and Kevin, she believed in the soulmate idea because she felt they had tremendous chemistry, and decided they should just get married right away because Kevin was her soulmate.  Then later, as we PC fans saw, the marriage didn't not work because chemistry alone was not enough to sustain a good marriage, especially when the hard times came about with interpersonal conflict and the arrival of Ian Thornhart.  Eve went from being completely in love with Kevin, to waking up one morning head over heels in love with Ian, which perhaps leads one to assess the situation and wonder just who is Eve's soulmate?  Eve's belief in her happily ever after has lead her from person to person searching for the one and only soulmate in her world, but alas it has turned into a string from person to person as she continually passes up the one person who is perhaps the most compatible for her in Chris Ramsey, which is quite unfortunate.  

Now before anyone gets ready to string me up for my assessment here, I'd like to point out a few of the obvious points about Chris and Eve.  Yes, they have not taken the plunge to lovers, but in the world of true, profound love and compatibility, sex is a minimal part of soulmates.  To really commit yourself to someone who is your match you need to ask yourself a few basic questions and see if they really fit into the relationship.  Some of the points noted for true soulmates are as follows:

RELATIONSHIP
--You go to each other for advice, and you almost always come away feeling better about things.  (Eve is constantly turning to Chris for support.  Case in point this current situation with the pregnancy where she can't go to Ian about the situation.  Now granted the odds are stacked up against him, but if the two of them were really in touch with one another like they claim to be Ian would know that something just isn't right with Eve and he'd sense it in her, much like Chris does.  He's always been able to read her and even when he's having a bad moment, he knows how to reach her and make her smile pushing his own concerns aside.)
--You are supportive of each other's decisions, even when they suck -- er, we mean, you just don't agree with them. (Now in this case it could be argued that Eve locking Chris in a closet on his wedding day to Julie doesn't fit, however in the case of Chris with Eve, even when he was so obviously in love with her, rather than telling her that things would Kevin would result in disaster, he supported her every step of the way guiding her along even when things fell flat on her face and her world came crumbling down around her.)
--You tell your honey when he/she has hurt you, instead of holding a grudge.  (How many times has Chris forgiven Eve for their mini-tiffs despite his heartbreak over losing her?)
--You are generally able to resolve fights to your mutual satisfaction. (Somehow at the end of it all, it seems to turn back to Chris and Eve regardless of who they are seeing at the time.  When things are at their lowest, they find their way to one another and pull each other through.)
--You both know that relationships take work, and you are willing to go the distance.  (In the case of Chris, he'd go above and beyond the call of duty to ensure her happiness.  Time after time he's taken up for her hoping for the best for her and always lending a shoulder, hand, ear, etc., for her needs in the hopes of making her life easier.  He's been her constant support system most of the time and found a way to try to do what's best for her regardless of the cost (i.e., Burning the murder victim shrine during the GHK mess)
--You respect, admire, listen to and just plain like each other!  (Martini nights anyone?!?!?)
--You share enough of the same interests and friends that you don't feel like you are always on your own.  (For so long all these two had were one another so it's no surprise how they come together as well as they do.  Both have confided in one another and shared parts of themselves that have not been given to others in their lives.)
--You are willing and prepared to regard each other as your *most important* familial relationship after you get married.  (Case in point Chris offering Eve to give her the world should she accept his marriage proposal.)

According to the research if a majority of these statements are true about your relationship, you're in great shape as far as a relationship goes and the experts say go for it.  However one might argue that Eve is not in love with Chris, but perhaps that is only half true.  Yes, right now she believes her future is with Ian and they have the sexual attraction/excitement/intensity thing, but when things really boil down to it, she couldn't ask for a better soulmate than Chris Ramsey.  He knows her inside and out, accepts her on all levels and loves her unquestioning as she is a very special person in his life.  To Eve, Chris is her one true soulmate on the spiritual (not necessarily sexual) sense and with him in her corner, she is sure to have the best of things in life.  Is Eve Chris' soulmate?  Well, that is a tricky question.  I believe he'd like to think so, but perhaps the true test is yet to come in the future as we've yet to see the root of Eve's heart where Chris is concerned.  There is no denying that Eve firmly believes she's in love with Ian, but does that make him her soulmate?  I guess it depends on what you consider a soulmate to be, but in terms of someone who stands by you through everything, supports you, adores you, puts your interests above all else, loves you, feels comfortable with you, makes you smile, shares your laughter and your tears and always has your best interests in mind, well Eve has that in Chris and hopefully she'll see that before the one true thing in her life vanishes before her eyes.  Friendship is a special thing and the love they have is one that is far too important to be ignored.