Author's note: So, I have a new obsession with one shots. They're easy, quick, and lets me flit between my obsessions. PERFECT! I have too many chapter stories that I feel guilty for not finishing. Ah, well. This one is cute and light. It's realistic I think in terms of the characters. I know the summary sounds boring, but I think this is actually a good piece. Let me know if you agree/disagree/are ambivalent! Reviews are how it's done y'all.

A Good Book

Soul entered the room exposing his shark teeth in a loud yawn. His bleary red eyes spotted his partner compacted into a ball on the couch.

"Hey, where did you disappear to for half the morning? You missed breakfast." Despite her slight frame that screamed malnourished academic, Maka never missed any of her four square meals. When she didn't respond he gave her a look.

"Maka." She giggled. "What the hell?" He walked around the furniture to get a better look at her and found a book practically pressed against her nose. Soul scoffed, crashing onto the couch and kicked his feet up to rest on the coffee table. Normally she would yell at him to get his fungus feet off the table from which she ate but she still didn't seem to notice his presence. "Nerd," he mumbled while clicking the tv on.

Three episodes of The Walking Dead later, Soul got the itch to get up and move. He slapped some athletic gear on and slid a headband through a mane of unruly white hair because it was the only way to keep it out of his face.

He sauntered through the living room, "Yo, Maka, I'm gonna to drag Black Star's butt out of his training ritual to shoot some hoops." He didn't even stop walking toward the door to tell her because he knew she wouldn't be listening. He wasn't even sure why he bothered.

Black Star lived in the same apartment complex, so it didn't take long to break into to his place. Tsubaki was meditating on a mat while Black Star counted off his 1,034th one handed push up. Neither of them looked up upon his entrance because their friend's breaking and entering habits were common. Black Star didn't even slow his pace when Soul sat on his back to add resistance to his work out. He figured he might as well help out if he was going to wait. The teal haired combatant launched his body a short distance into the air to switch arms.

Soul dribbled and spun to avoid Black Star on his way to shoot. Both of his companions were very good competitors in different ways. Black Star's play was aggressive which made him capable at stealing the ball and traveling the court, but he always went for fancy skill shots that were beyond him, so he didn't score much. Tsubaki had a lot of natural talent. She was light on her feet and scored all net for every shot, but her mild nature got in the way of gaining possession unless someone passed her the ball.

In a blur of teal, Black Star swiped the ball and traveled half the court before Soul could catch him up.

He bounced the ball high in the air to set himself up for a slam dunk but missed fantastically, "He shoots, and he scores! The crowd goes wild, they'll be chanting his name for hours!" Tsubaki deftly caught the ball of the rebound and flitted around Black Star's efforts to steal the ball back. She shot Soul a kind smile and passed the ball when she came into shooting distance. That was another thing she did. For all her skill, Tsubaki was a team player to a fault. Soul shot a three pointer off the back board.

"So that's 98 points for us and 15 for you," the tall weapon commented. Her long loop of black hair swayed in the breeze. "You're doing a lot better than last time." They had gone along with Black Star's assertion that he could compete on his own against his two friends because it would have taken them have an hour to make him concede that Tsubaki was the best player among the three of them.

"Hahaha! I'm winning by that much huh? It's to be expected of the man who will transcend god!"

"You're losing by that much idiot," Soul growled at him.

"Eh? You think you can beat me Soul?" Black Star confronted him loudly, radiating an aura of competition.

"I am beating you! I could take you one on one any day, punk!" They grinned evilly at each other while sparks of tension jumped between them. They attacked simultaneously. A few well meaning punches and a head lock latter, they settled down to take a water break with a more dignified Tsubaki who had known better than to try and break up the scuffle. A few punches between friends was how the men in her life showed affection.

"So where's Maka? I miss how she 'accidentally' trips up Black Star on the court." The teal haired star grumbled darkly while Soul snickered at him.

"She's holed up with a new book. I can't get a word out of her."

Tsubaki started, "You mean The Soul Reaper's Folly came out today?"

"Where are you going so suddenly?" Black Star asked confused.

"To the store. I have to buy that book!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"Women," Black Star said incredulously. Soul nodded in agreement.

"I'm home," Soul announced with a dopey sun at his back, drooling at the edge of the horizon. He leaned against the door frame and shook his head. It looked like his partner hadn't moved an inch. "Is this really how you're going to spend you're entire day off from school? You read so much as it is, this is ridiculous!" He glared at her for a while.

"Hey Maka, I'm all sweaty and I'm gonna sit on the couch!" He dove onto the couch and rolled around to make sure there was no question that it had soaked up a fair amount of sweat. That should have earned him a one way ticket to a hospital bed via a 300 page hard back.

He stomped into the kitchen and rummaged around the fridge. He returned and carefully placed the stalks of fungi on top of his partner's loose dirty blond hair. "Hey Maka! You've been inside so long that mushrooms are growing out of your head!" Her eyes continued to scan the pages at a rapid but measured pace. He growled and snatched them off her head in one swipe. He bitterly chomped a large chunk out of one of them.

Soul ran back into the room with Maka's favorite teddy bear and a pair of scissors. "Hey Maka! I'm thinking about adopting Dr. Stein as my role model so I'm gonna dissect Arnold and rearrange his limbs." He snipped the air a few times for dramatic effect but she only turned a page with a dry rustle. He was almost curious enough to see what would happen if he went through with it, but the weapon decided he valued his life too much.

He returned empty handed and took in the silence. "FIRE!" he shouted suddenly, but she didn't bat an eye. "I'm just going to strip right here in front of you Maka, is that ok?" he asked throwing his shirt off. He waited again for a reaction but was predictably disappointed. The girl was a prude. If she weren't stuck in novel nation her head would have exploded. She had accidentally walked in on him in the shower once and acted awkward around him for a week afterwards even though he had been concealed by the shower curtain when she came in. Soul decided that making anymore of an effort to gain her attention would be uncool, so he decided to wash up.

By the time he finished up it was past time for dinner, and it was his turn to get food. When it was Maka's turn she usually ordered take out, but Soul was partial to cooking. He tossed a pot of water onto the stove and heated up a buttered pan.

Ten minuets later he heard the soft padding of bare feet on the tile. He did a double take when he realized that it was Maka and not the emperor of China. A visit from a foreign dignitary more likely at the moment than getting Maka's nose out of her book.

"What time is it?" she asked softly.

"7:30."

"P.M.?!"

He quirked an eyebrow at her, "Yes Maka, the sun's gone down."

"No way! I haven't eaten anything all day!" her stomach snarled right on cue. She clutched it in pain and groaned. "I smelled your cooking and the beast woke up." She stuck her nose into the air and inhaled deeply, "Are you making my favorite?" she asked in an odd tone.

"Yup."

"With the-"

"Pork slices, green onion, and sprouts. Yeah." He plopped more pork on the skillet and it sizzled enticingly. Soul chuckled at his partner's expression of longing. "You can't have any if you're going to read that book while we eat!"

"What?! But it was jus-"

"I don't care! I've been trying to get you're attention all day and you flat walled me. I don't feel like sharing my food with an absent person. I'll eat it all myself, and you know I can."

"I thought I heard a buzzing sometimes," she mumbled. It annoyed him how long it took her to decide what to do. "Alright! Fine, I'll be nice to you."

"Eating my food and treating me like a person is your version of being nice?" he countered.

"How's this, I'll do the dishes after dinner and you can have my undivided attention for the rest of the night."

Soul smirked- and that's how you get out of doing dishes, "Deal. Is that book thing really that good?"

"Yes," she replied without a second's hesitation. "He's my favorite author of all time. All of his characters are so interesting, his writing is so eloquent that you can picture everything, there's action, violence, romance, mystery, humor . . . it's everything you could want in a book."

"Hmph."

They settled down with their ramen to watch a movie that Soul had been waiting to see for a month. It was supposed to be really good, but the longer it went on the more he realized that it had no story. The action and graphics were fantastic, so he watched it for the mindless aesthetic appeal until he got bored and turned to ask Maka if she wanted to do something else. She was asleep with her face sliding gracelessly down a pillow. He snorted, then he realized that she was supposed to do the dishes. He would just make her do them tomorrow morning. With Maka asleep, he struggled to think of something to entertain himself with. Homework was out of the question. He glanced at the barely one day old book whose spine was already broken. A surprising amount of curiosity washed over him.

Maka blinked in the lamp light after being woken up by the sound of raucous laughter. She scrubbed her eyes wondering if this was one of those dreams you have after you thought you've already woken up. Soul was reclining on the couch reading her book.

"This stuff's not half bad."

The meister sat in confusion for a few moments. "If I'm not allowed to read anymore tonight, then you can't read it either," she said trying to grab the book from Soul. He evaded her.

"You were asleep and I got bored. You should go to bed."

"You wanted to do something together," she argued.

"You're too tired to do anything. Look, I can see the bags under your eyes," she said pointing at her face. "You look like a zombie. How early did you get up to buy this book anyway?"

"I wouldn't be tired if I were reading," she snapped making another grab for the book by reaching across Soul's body.

"You just want to hog the book for yourself! You're addicted Maka. I hear you can get professional help for that- although, when they start on you they'll probably incarcerate you for life in the looney bin."

"You're being obnoxious, give me my book back!" she persisted sprawling across him to reach her goal.

"Ok, compromise. How about we share."

"What?" She was too baffled to keep reaching. Soul turned her body so that she was leaning comfortably against him and then he held the book in front of the both of them. "This is never going to work. I'm way ahead of you," Maka grumbled but her attempt at annoyance sounded weak. "But I guess you can borrow it for tonight." She wriggled down a bit and closed her eyes. Soul only had to bend two inches to kiss the top of her head. Maka's eyes flew open and her face flooded with heat. Soul could see the tips of her ears turning red. He smirked and turned the page.