At first Maka was giddy and brimming with excitement. Justin was very cute, very smart, and had asked her out. It wasn't long however before anxiety began to gnaw at her. She didn't know Justin very well. Had just met him in fact. She had zero experience dating. She certainly wasn't ready for anything very physical. She hadn't even had her first kiss. 3rd grade with Black Star didn't count.
She thought about calling Tsubaki or Patti. But Tsubaki really had only ever been out with Black Star and that couldn't be considered normal on any scale. And Liz dated entirely too much. So she read up on dating protocol and kept her cool. Right up until the last minute when she descended into downright panic.
Three outfits later she was still completely spazzing and Soul was getting irritated with her.
"Jesus Maka, it's just dinner. Chill." He finally exclaimed when she blocked his TV show yet again to ask him how she looked. She didn't know why she bothered, Soul's idea of a complement was a grunt and a cutting remark but he was who she trusted. Besides, out of all her friends he was the only one with a normal dating life. Just what she wanted. Normal.
"Should I put my hair up or leave it down. Date hair should be different right?" He rolled his eyes and took a pillow off the back of the couch squishing it over his face while he groaned in frustration. "Do you like it better when a girl leaves her hair down?"
With exaggerated patience he rose to his feet and gripped both her shoulders to give her a firm shake. "Just go have a good time. He doesn't care what you are wearing or how your hair looks. Just don't eat so much you sick up in his car."
Her queasy stomach quivered at the idea and Maka suddenly had to breathe deep to keep from sicking up in the living room. There was no way she could do this. She could barely attend a party without Soul to run social interference for her. She was going to screw it up. She was going to have a melt down on her first date ever and then she would have a reputation as that crazy un-datable scrawny girl.
The knock at the door had her jumping in her skin and she grabbed Soul with both hands when he made to pull away from her. It was too late to cancel but she absolutely could not go in this state. She was two shallow breathes from a full blown panic attack. "You have to come."
"Wha?" He tried to pull away from her, alarmed by her borderline behavior but she dug her nails in and jerked him back to her.
"Please Soul. I need you. Please."
"Maka, think it through. You do not want me to tag along on your date. That's crazy."
"Call that girl you are dating. Make it a double date. Please Soul. I'll make dinner for a month. I'll do all the dishes. I'll let you have the remote."
The knock sounded again, more insistent, and she whined up at him another desperate please and he squeezed his eyes shut nodding his head even as he wrenched himself out of her death grip. The relief almost staggered her.
"Get your coat." He growled as he went to open the door.
She was so grateful that he was coming that she didn't even give him a hard time about bossing her. She just ran to her room to get her coat and her purse and give Soul a minute to let her date know he was tagging along. Maybe Justin would just assume Soul was overprotective and not that she needed a babysitter. It didn't matter. Double dates were a common thing. Soul would be cool about it so her date would just assume they did this all the time.