Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater.

Black Jacket
by.
Poisoned Scarlett

The top was something Maka would never ever think of wearing in such a public place like the beach.

It was stripped, pink and brown, but it only went around her bust. It left her shoulders bare, her stomach completely exposed. The bottoms qualified as underwear if it weren't for the material they were made of.

But Liz had insisted – gone as far as buying it for her, pushing her into the changing rooms, and removing anything else that she could use instead of that scant bikini – and now Maka had no choice but to wear what she had been given. She contemplated just coming out in her clothes, a short pleated skirt with a loose tank top, since Soul hadn't changed into swim shorts this time around.

He was in his blue flannel shirt, black jeans and black shoes. He'd put on his designer aviator glasses and bluntly told everyone he would spend his time lying on the sand, catching up on his sleep. His Deathscythe schedule was more rigorous than he'd anticipated and Maka had agreed that he needed a few leisure days for all his hard work.

How come HE gets to walk around in his clothes, though? I've worked hard, too! Maka inwardly protested, staring at herself in the full-length mirror. She could see the poor excuse for a bikini top (which was more like a strapless bra than anything) accentuate her usually-lacking bust, which was a plus although it didn't encourage her to walk around in it. She felt so overly exposed, so naked, wearing something that could easily pass as underclothes.

And they were so bright and eye-catching, too.

What had Liz been thinking when she bought her this?

"Hey! Are you ready, Maka, we're wasting daylight here!" Liz shouted, banging once on the door.

"Almost! I just – have to tie my hair back!" Maka lied, hearing Liz sigh loudly and shout that she'll wait for her outside. The instant her footfalls faded, Maka tore out of the changing room and frantically looked around for her bag. She found it sitting next to Tsubaki's on the bench against the north wall, said girl still in the changing room by the looks of it, and Maka dug around it until she found Soul's thick leather jacket.

He'd told her to hold onto it until nightfall but Maka doubted he'd mind if she used it to cover herself up. He might even insist – she just wasn't cut out for such skimpy clothes. Sure, she'd filled out some since she was thirteen, but, at seventeen, that didn't mean she was a complete beach goddess like Liz or Patty or even Tsubaki.

She considered herself normal; average.

As in: not pretty enough to be strutting around in a two piece that seriously looked like it needed to be worn underneath regular clothes…

"Liz?" Maka called, peeking out of the dressing rooms. She saw her chatting up some guy some ways ahead, quite immersed in conversation by the looks of it. Maka pursed her lips and went back inside, calling for Tsubaki.

"Yes, Maka-chan? Is there something you need?"

"Are you almost finished?"

"Almost, but you can go ahead without me! Remind Black Star he needs to apply sunscreen or else he'll get a terrible sunburn, too!"

Maka heaved a sigh. "Okay, I'll see you outside then…" And she dragged herself out; Liz still trying to get that guys number. She caught Patty's roar of laughter down the sidewalk instantly. And there they were: waiting for them, all dressed in their swim wear save for Soul, who looked like his typical cool self in his clothes with those stupid glasses that she privately admitted actually suited him.

"Black Star!" Maka barked, catching their attention. She ignored Patty's stifled giggles and ignored Soul's risen brow at her. She refused to take off the jacket, even if it was ninety outside and the sun was beating down on them. "Tsubaki asked me to tell you to put on sun screen before you become the god of all sunburns." She sarcastically said.

"What? Sun screen?" Black Star laughed, hands on his hips. "Gods don't need sunscreen!"

"Don't complain to me when you're all burnt from the sun." Maka dryly told him and, before she could stand next to Soul as per usual, she felt someone grab her by the shoulders and tear the jacket off her frame.

"Wha - ?"

"Oh, no, you don't!" Liz cackled, as Maka desperately tried to take back the jacket. "You came here to get wet, Maka, THE JACKET COMES OFF!" She leered at her, holding it up and away from her.

"NO! GIVE IT BACK!" Maka pleaded, reaching for it. She stopped when she realized, dressed as she was, the top might slide up more than she'd like and the bottoms might reveal more than they should. She pressed her arms to her sides, feeling both mortified and furious. "Liz, please, can I have the jacket back? I don't…feel comfortable wearing this in public…" Seriously, it looked like she'd just taken off her clothes and decided to go swimming in her underwear!

"But, why?" Liz smirked. "You look so hot without it! Why are you hiding your goods?"

Maka flushed, arms crossed over her stomach. "Because I'm not used to wearing this! Now give it back!"

"Nope."

"Liz!"

"No can do, Maka." Liz turned away from her, smirking. Her sharp eyes caught Black Star's quick two-over, Soul's unabashed stare at his meister and the blood that was beginning to trickle down his nose. Liz knew she'd done well when she picked out that bikini for Maka – the girl just didn't know how good she looked in it, that was all. But she would soon! If she caught Soul's gradually worsening nosebleed...

"Liz, give Maka my jacket back." Soul spoke up, sounding bored once more. She noticed he was rubbing his nose as if it itched when in reality he was trying to rub away the nosebleed. "She doesn't wanna' walk around half-naked like you!" He snatched the jacket from her grasp before she could react, ignoring her outrage as he handed it back to Maka wordlessly.

"Thank you, Soul!" Maka gratefully said, pulling it over herself once more. He got one last, good and long, stare at her exposed body before the jacket covered it all up. Before Liz could complain, Tsubaki appeared with a bottle of sun screen, already squirting some into her palm so she could apply it on her stubborn meister.

"NO! Gods don't need to use that type of stuff, Tsubaki!" Black Star whined as if he were five again, glaring at Liz when she snickered. Tsubaki merely hummed patiently, applying the sunscreen as if he were a child. He gave up trying to escape her grasp by the third time, thankfully.

Patty was happily blowing up her giraffe floaters.

Kid was somewhere by the edge of the shore, scrutinizing some sea shells as he had finished picking a spot for them and had set up all the blankets and umbrellas.

And Maka sighed, tugging on the jacket; wanting to take it off but feeling too self-conscious to do so. As if reading her mind, Soul spoke up.

"Y'know, you don't look half-bad in it."

"...You think so?" Maka asked, doubtfully. She let the long sleeves of his jacket cover her hands self-consciously. Soul scowled at the red streaks on the back of his hands, rubbing the blood off on his jeans and hoping no one would notice. "I don't think so. I don't really have the body type for it..."

"You do." Soul firmly said, and then quickly added: "I mean, you're not that flat anymore. At least you have something to show now – OW!"

"Shut up, you jerk!" Maka snarled, giving him one last kick to his shin before storming toward where Kid was; grumbling under her breath the entire time.

Soul shook out his leg, his possibly bruised arm, and scowled in her direction. But the scowl quickly morphed into a smirk when he saw how most guys veered away from her when they caught sight of the clearly male jacket over her shoulders; a nonverbal warning to any bastard who took interest in her.

Because she was painfully blind to just how hot she looked in that bikini.

Soul wasn't necessarily put off by her obliviousness; it only made keeping her to himself a lot more easy, given she wouldn't try anything and he could easily mark her with subtle signs like hanging around her…or letting her wear his jacket a lot more often.

Stretching out his arms, following his meister into the sand, Soul couldn't help but feel utterly smug that it was his jacket she was wearing and no one else's.


A.N: I wrote this story for the sole reason of trying out Microsoft Word (since I downloaded it into my computer a few days ago). I can't stand how it keeps saying I'm writing sentence fragments within dialogue. Stupid Word. I like OpenOffice better. It isn't constantly nagging me to revise my effin' grammar XD

Scarlett.