[Well, this is my first submission.. i hope you all enjoy!]

"Ne, Souru! Wake up! It's nearly lunchtime!"

It was close to 12:00 in the afternoon, and Soul was still snoozing loudly in his bed. Sighing, Maka pushed open his bedroom door to see him snoring. And talking in his sleep again, of course.

"Oi, Souruuu~! Hey.." Chuckling slightly, she shook her head. Maka walked over to his bedside to nudge him awake. In a soft voice, she called again, "Hey.. Souru.." only to be interrupted in mid-sentence by Soul mumbling in his sleep.

"Nnh.. How uncool…" Maka froze, listening to see if he were going to say anything else before she would beat him awake. She picked up the nearest book, preparing for perform a 'Maka-Chop!' But Soul continued.

"Nnh.. Maka.. Daijoubu..? Maka.. Stay with me.. Maka…"

After hearing this, her cheeks flared. What was he dreaming about..? And Why was he so worried about her?

"N-ne.. Souru.." Maka gently shook him, still curious as to what he meant..

Soul began again.

"Maka.. You're gonna be okay.. Just hang in there. I'm going to protect you, Maka. It's all alright.." And just then, Soul puckered his lips, and made a soft "chu" sound.

Maka cupped her hand over her gaping mouth, before it could drop to the floor, while backing away a step. Soul was beginning to stir in his sleep, tossing and turning violently. Slowly dropping to her knees, maka was blushing furiously, her hand still cupped around her mouth.

Just then, Soul loudly cleared his throat, and slowly lifted himself into an upright position. Wiping his eyes, he yawned. He shifted his body so that his feet were dangling from the side of his bed; the opposite side from which Maka was still speechless, sitting upon the floor.

Soul walked through the door, and Maka peeked her head up over his bed and into the kitchen, where Soul was headed.

"Nnh.. Maka?" Soul sleepily called for her, his voice thick with sleep, while yawning once more. Maka bit lightly onto her lip, not sure on what to do.. He would probably be a bit freaked out if he saw her walking out of his room, especially with her shocked expression. So she decided she would wait until he went into the bathroom, which from the looks of it, he was already walking there now. Watching him open the restroom door and step inside before shutting it behind him, Maka ran out of his room and plopped onto the couch.

She rested her chin against her knees, and wrapped her arms around her legs. 'Why.. What was Souru dreaming about..?' She asked herself over and over, with no answer. Maybe he had feelings for her.. Like the ones she had been feeling for him for a long time..

Finally, Soul stepped out of the bathroom, after washing his hands in the sink. (thank goodness.. Most guys don't even wash their hands!)

So Maka straightened her back, and decided to play it cool. Act as if she hadn't seen or heard anything. As he approached her, Maka put on her best, most convincing smile. "Ah, there you are, Maka." He half-smiled back at her, and sniffed.

"Mmm.. Maka. You're making cookies, aren't you?"

Before Maka had tried to wake Soul, she had slipped some chocolate chip cookies into the oven to bake. She knew how he loved her baking, so she decided that she would make a quick batch.

"H-hai," Maka began, nodding. "I thought you might appreciate it if I made you some choco-chips. I know how they're your favorite.." And her smile grew even more sincere. Soul's cheeks flushed slightly, and he nodded once.

"Nn. Thank you.." and he plopped down beside her on the couch. Yawning again, he lay his head against the arm-rest. Despite how he had slept most of the day away, he still looked really exhausted. But Maka didn't feel much sympathy. She nudged him, before raising up to check the cookies.

"Wake up already, Souru." And she turned to walk into the kitchen. Soul rolled his eyes, and closed his lids. 'If only she knew what that freakin' crazy dream I had.. She'd probably shut up and let me sleep then,' he thought. 'But then again.. maybe it's best if she doesn't know. Cool men like me shouldn't show our emotions so much.' His train of thought was interrupted by a loud screech from Maka: "Yoww~~! Ah, hot!"

"Maka!" Soul jumped to his feet and ran to her aid. 'oh,' he thought to himself. 'It's just the cookies. She's so dense..'

"Souru, grab an oven mitt for me will you?" Maka asked, shaking her hands furiously in the air to cool them. "The cookie pan.. It was hot, Souru!"

"You're kidding me!" Soul sarcastically cupped his hands over his mouth. "No way! Is that why your hands are burned?" He then stuck his tongue out at her before patting her shoulder ever so gently.

Maka growled, before Soul opened up a drawer to pull out the oven mitt. "Here," he said, and handed it to her. "Try not to melt your hands this time."

Turning towards the kitchen table, she grabbed the cookbook so she could finally give soul the 'Maka-Chop!' he deserved. Turning again to face him, Soul held up both hands defensively.

"Come on, Maka! You know I'm only playing. Geez, get outta' this mood you're in.." And he smiled his warm, comforting half-smile that Maka secretly loved. She paused, right before she was fixing to bang the large cookbook onto his head. Slowly, she dropped the book back onto the table, and stared into his fiery eyes with great intent.

Soul raised a brow, puzzled as to why she was just awkwardly gazing at him, with this intense look of concentration painting her face. "Nnh.. Maka..? What're you.."

He trailed off, following her eyes right back to his own. Flushing, he scratched the back of his head. "M-maka.."

Maka shook her head, realizing she had just been sitting there, gaping at him. Not to mention, probably weirding him out. She turned, her face flushed, and put on the oven mitt, slipping the cookie sheet out of the oven.

Soul breathed deeply, and Maka couldn't tell if it were a sigh or if he was just smelling the aroma of the fresh cookies. Most likely the second possibility.

"I'll.. Get some plates," Soul said, and got some plates from the cupboard. "Mm-hm, you do that," Maka said quickly, still embarrassed.

Soul sat himself down at the kitchen table, and sat his plate in front of him. He sat Maka's plate right next to him, where he was hoping she would sit. She usually sat on the opposite sides of the table, but maybe today would be different. Maybe today's the day that the fact that soul loved her more than anything on this earth would finally go through her thick skull, though he doubted it.

Maybe he was hiding his feelings too much? Or maybe.. Even worse, she didn't feel the same way..

"Souru, give me your plate." Soul raised from his chair, and handed Maka his plate. She carefully placed 4 chocolate chip cookies onto his plate, and handed it back to him. "Do me a favor?" She asked, beaming.

He raised his brow, and cautiously replied slowly. "Y..es?" Maka giggled, motioning back towards the cupboard. "Get a cup, and make me a glass of milk?"

He rolled his eyes, hissing slightly under his breath. She was so lazy, working him like a slave all the time. Did she not ever go any work for herself? He was always protecting her, doing things for her, bending over backwards to make sure she was happy..

..oh yeah. That was because he was in love with her. Right..

'Thanks, Souru.' Maka thought to herself. 'You're so great. Always doing things for me.. I really appreciate it.' But she would never tell him that to his face. She couldn't let him know how important he was to her. She couldn't let him know.. How.. She felt.

Groaning, Soul pulled out a cup and opened the fridge, taking out a carton of milk. He quickly poured her a glass, and sat it down next to her plate. "You know," Soul began, chuckling. "I spoil you, Maka." And he turned towards her, grinning playfully.

"Pff. Whatever, Souru! All I did was ask you to fix me a drink," She replied, giggling. Then they both laughed together, only strengthening their bond.

Maka picked up 4 cookies of her own, and sat down beside Soul at the table. She took a sip of her milk, and a bite of her cookie. "Man I'm good," she said. "Wha`? Where the hell did that come from?" Soul asked.

"Hn? Oh, all I meant was that I'm good at baking. Ahehe." Rolling his eyes, Soul took another bite of his cookie. Talking while chewing, he said, "Maka, where were you this morning? I got up, and I didn't see you anywhere. And where's Blair? I'm surprised she didn't wake me up by pressing her huge-ass boobs in my face like she always does! Damn sex kitten.."

Maka sighed, remembering how Blair would turn into her human form and jump on Soul, messing with him and pressuring him to 'have fun' with her. It boiled her blood.

"Hah! Whatever! You love it, Souru. All guys love slutty women, right? Then how would you be any different? Men are awful! They don't love girls for who they really are!"

"Pff.. Baka. You don't have a clue what you're talking about. A man can love a woman for who she is, inside and out. A cool man wouldn't only love a girl for her looks, or her body.. That's not how we work."

Maka made a fist at her side, and banged it against the table. "Oh really? Really, Souru? Aha, okay. Men are horrible. We girls never get the love we deserve. We're not just looks! Damn papa, running around on mama with all those girls.. Men can't be trusted!"

"Oi, Maka! Would you calm down? I'm not a huge fan of your dad either, but cool it. You're freaking out over nothing. I hate it when Blair's all over me. It's.. ugh. Besides, us cool men are used to hot women. Sexy bodies don't effect our hearts in the least."

There was a long silence. Maka shook her head, and dipped a cookie into her milk before taking a bite, attempting to calm her nerves. Soul carefully examined her expression, which was now unreadable. "What're you thinking right now, Maka?"

"Huh?" She raised her head back up, to see Soul's face concerned and stern. "I said, 'what're you thinking'."

She looked at him silently for a moment, and cocked her head over to the side. "..Eh? What am I thinking? Uhh.." Soul sat patiently, not moving an inch. 'What the hell is with her today,' Soul asked himself. 'She's chewing me out for nothing! What did I do..?'

"I'm wondering if you love anyone, Souru. And if you love them for who they are, or just their bodies."

Soul paused again. He swallowed hard, and looked off to the side. "Of.. Course I love someone. Doesn't everyone? Life would be pointless without love, you idiot. Yes. I love that person through and through, definitely."

Maka froze. 'Souru.. Loves someone. Who.. Could he be in love with? And what was the deal with earlier? I've got to find out what he was dreaming about..'

"So.. Yeah. There's your answer. Any more questions? Because for some reason, you're acting really weird today and it's pissing me off. Ditch the attitude, will you?"

That was it. Maka got up, and picked up her last cookie. "You.. You..!" She threw the cookie at him, her eyes flooding with tears of frustration.

" 'The hell, Maka? Seriously? Throwing FOOD?" She stomped over to him, and he jumped up from his seat, glaring. She slapped him across the face as hard as she could, leaving a dark red handprint right below his right eye, before running down the hall and into her bedroom.

"Dammit!" Soul shouted, immediately cupping his hand around his cheek. "Maka, wait! Please stop! What the hell is going on?" He walked cautiously down the hall, and stopped in front of her door. "Maka. Come out. Please. I wanna know what's up with you."

He turned the doorknob, and walked in to see Maka's face buried in her pillow. "Go away.. Souru," Maka said in a shaky, muffled voice. He sat down beside her, and began to gently caress her head. He picked up one of her pigtails, and pulled the bow from it. Her hair fell down against the back of her neck, as he repeated with the other pigtail. Once her hair was down, he played with it silently. Minutes ticked by, before either said a word.

"..Who, Souru? Who do you love?" Maka raised back up, blushing slightly. Most likely from Soul sitting her and playing with her hair in such a gentle, loving way.

"You know exactly who it is," he said, his expression emotionless. "You know her extremely well."

"I do..? So.. It's.. .. .. it IS Blair, isn't it?"

"No."

"..Tsubaki."

"No."

"Ch..Chrona?"

"Hell no."

"E-Eruka..?"

"No! no, no, no!"

"Then who? I don't know any other person it could be, Souru! I mean, seriously! Are you sure I know her? I've said everyone! Good God, Souru! I--"

He cupped his hand over her mouth, and sighed impatiently. "Would you shut the hell up already? You know who you haven't said yet. There's only one other person. God, you're so uncool right now." Pulling his hand from her mouth, he grabbed onto her chin and inclined her head. Slowly leaning in, his lips collapsed on top of hers. Freeing his mouth from hers, he continued to explain.

"I'm so in love with YOU, Maka. So much that I can't even stand it. I dream of you nearly every night, you dumbass! Ever since we've met, my feelings for you have only grown stronger! So shut your mouth. Just be quiet, unless you're going to tell me you love me too. That'd be.. Cool."

Maka was so.. speechless. Chills went down her spine, and the only thing she could think about was the electric sensation she experienced whenever his lips had touched her own. How surprisingly gentle and emotional he was, despite him trying to keep his 'cool' image.

"Oh, Souru," Maka began, tears streaming down her fiery cheeks once more. "I love you too. I love you so much. I just never would have thought that you felt the same way.. I mean, I'm not attractive, I'm not sexy or smart, and I.. I just.." And Soul interrupted her, by pushing his lips onto hers once more.

"I don't care. You're perfect, Maka."

Soul and maka had always been a good team. Their soul wavelengths always matched quite nicely. But after that day.. Their souls would be..

.. Forever in perfect sync.