"See you!" Maka waved to her friends as they each separated, as they took different ways home. Usually she, Soul, Tsubaki, Kid, Black Star, Liz, and Patty walked home together from Shibusen after school, but after a while they each had to take different routes to get to their own houses. Black Star and Tsubaki left together, while Liz, Patty and Kid went together. That left just Maka and Soul to walk back to their apartment. Alone. Maka bit her lip. At first, she had thought nothing of it, but after a while she got nervous about this few minute walk together.
It confused her at first. She was alone with Soul a lot, they lived together. Why should a little walk bug her? Lately, she had decided to try and ignore it, but her hands began to sweat at the thought of walking alone with the white haired boy.* It made her head spin. Of course, now it wasn't even the walk that was bothering Maka.
She had become increasingly nervous every time the two of them were alone. In the past few weeks too, she had noticed things.... about Soul. Like the way his teeth flash for a second when he smiled, or the way his eyes looked when he was feeling serious. They way his hair looked when he wasn't wearing a headband, and the how it felt to hold onto him as she rode with him on the motorcycle. It made Maka wonder if Soul noticed things about her too.
Now, she was almost silent when she was alone with him. As they walked, all you could hear was the quiet sound of their footsteps. Maka wasn't sure. Should she say something? Or should she wait for Soul to? If he wasn't saying anything maybe it meant he preferred the silence. Or maybe he thought it was best to wait for Maka to speak? She was supposed to be top of the class, but these small things made her head begin to spin.
"So..." Maka had decided it would be best if she spoke. "It's my turn to cook dinner tonight, right? Is there anything in particular you'd like, Soul?" She smiled a bit. Soul paused for a minute, seeming to be in thought. He shrugged.
"Whatever's fine with me." Maka nodded. Now, she suddenly felt like beating herself up for Soul's slow and short response. Couldn't she even start a conversation with him now? This was going to be annoying. She sighed. Soul tipped his head to the side a little and spoke again. "Hey, Maka. You ok?"
Maka stopped for a split second. "I'm perfectly fine." She smiled a little. "Why?" Soul just shrugged again.
"I dunno. You've seemed kinda..... off in the past few weeks." He rolled his eyes. "Nevermind. I was probably just imagining it." He yawned. "Anyways, let's just get home. I'm hungry." Maka giggled a little. Soul was a good partner and an even better friend... he could probably be a good boyfriend.... Maka turned red for a second, before she shook her head. What was she even thinking? She must have been reading too many romances lately, the stories must be floating around in her head.... yet somehow that explanation didn't feel quite true.
Either way, what was she doing, worrying Soul? That was the last thing she wanted. "Maka, you coming?" she heard him call. With a sudden jolt a realisation, Maka found she hadn't moved from a minute, and Soul was a considerable length ahead of her.
"Sorry!" Maka called, and ran towards Soul. She stopped at his side, and smiled. Soul laughed for a few seconds, then turned to return the smile as they continued the walk home.