Maka woke up shaking in the middle of the night.

She climbed out of bed and went into the living room. She sat on the couch, holding her head down between her knees.

Not real. Not real. Not real. Not real. Soul is still alive. He's sleeping in the other room. Just to be sure, she got up and crept up to his door and peeked inside. Sure enough, he was sleeping in his bed. Maka felt as if a hundred tons of weight has been lifted off her shoulders. She let out some air she didn't know she was holding as she sat back down in her spot and hung her head once more. His scar. How could she forget that a wound that bad has left a scar? He still has to get it checked, and that is all my fault.

It's only been a week since the defeat of Kishin Asura. In fact, a week today, she realized. She tried not to think about it too much, and when she did, it only made her feel even worse about herself. But she was constantly reminded about it. Everybody kept asking her about it. That's all it would take to get upset and almost break down on the spot. Soul would come up with an excuse to leave. He was her savior. In more ways than literally jumping in front of her when Crona fought them. And when they fought the kishin... She let Soul get hurt. He could barely stand after the fight. Soul was supposed to protect her, but that doesn't mean that she couldn't protect him. She made it her job. She didn't want anything like the fight with Crona to happen again. But she did. And now the nightmares were worse. And she was worse.

On top of the nightmares, she still hasn't told Soul that she is both a meister and a weapon. If she did... she didn't know how Soul would react. So she was waiting it out. Finding the right moment and words. After all, it's only been a week. She'll tell him soon enough.

Keeping Lord Death quiet, however, was proving to be extremely difficult. He knew that Maka was keeping it from him, and kept trying to start conversations with them about it. He knew the sooner Soul knew the better. If Maka kept it a secret much longer, he would definitely be mad. And not because she was both, but because she kept it to herself for so long.

Now, sitting on the couch she mumbled "Stupid. Weak. Stupid. Weak. Stupid. Weak." to herself quietly.

But not quiet enough.

Maka heard a sound and looked up with tears in her eyes.

Soul was standing over her and was looking down at her. He wiped a tear from her cheek and knelt down in front of her. He took her hands in his and looked into her eyes.

Maka moved her eyes away and found herself looking at Soul's scar across his chest and let out an ugly sob. How could I let him jump in front of me when I was the weak one? I should have been the one who got injured or killed. I don't deserve him as a partner. She started full out crying and didn't care that Soul was witnessing it.

"Maka, what is it?" Soul whispered.

"A-another nightmare. I-I'll be o-okay." She sobbed as she put her head down.

Soul pulled her into his arms, bringing her into a comforting hug. "I'm alright. It's just a scar." Soul knew about her nightmares. He caught her once before, screaming in the middle of the night and crying hysterically. He had forced her to tell him the truth. The nightmares had been going away, up until the fight with Kishin Asura. Every night since then, he's heard her walking around the room late at night. He never actually got up to comfort her until tonight, because he figured she'd get over it. Just like everything else. She was strong. But after hearing her opening his door and crying tonight, he knew she needed him. Needed him to comfort her and tell her it's okay. Needed him to hold her and protect her from everything, including herself.

"No!" She cried. "It's not just a scar! It means I'm not good enough to be your partner! It means that I'm stupid! You shouldn't have jumped in front of me! She should have killed me! Or at least given me that scar! As for Kishin Asura, I let you down. We should have defeated them. Instead, you got hurt. You don't even know how I defeated him without you."

"You saved the world because you're brave." He said softly. "Crona is now in the DWMA because of you. It was an accident anyway. Anyway, I'm supposed to protect my meister." Maka winced when he said that last sentence, and he picked up on what she took it as. "But I protect you because I want to. I need to. Why would I let you get hurt when I could've done something? I need you. I need you to live. Even if it means me dying."

She didn't say anything and seemed to be in shock. He sat on the couch. "Maka, you're the one that defeated the Kishin Asura. By yourself. Without a weapon. You still haven't told me how. Whenever I ask Lord Death he says you did with bravery. Scared the crap out of him. I believe that you did do that, but there must be more to it than that. There's something you're not telling me." She still didn't say anything. "Do you not trust me? Do I not mean that much to you? I'm tired of guessing, Maka. I need to know now. This is really taking it's toll on me. You're not the only one that's hurting."

It's the moment Maka has been dreading. He confronted her. And to make it worse, Soul thinks that she doesn't need him. With Soul in this state, it could end badly. What do I do?

"Soul, I trust you."

"Then why won't you tell me how you did it?" Soul challenged.

"Because I defeated the most powerful Kishin that there ever was." Maka cried out to him, hoping he'd understand. "I'm going to have some issues talking about what happened."

"I've given you space. I've given you plenty of time." Soul's voice softened. "I need you to tell me just why you are so devastated. Why you have been so distant from me. You need to at least begin to talk to me about this, or else you won't ever be okay."

Maka sat down beside him, but didn't say anything.

"Please, Maka." Soul said quietly.

She breathed in deeply, preparing herself. "I don't know how you'll take it."

Soul panicked a little. This won't be good. "Whatever it is, I'll be okay."

"When all of you guys were unconscious, he beat me up. I went unconscious as well. He kept hurting me, even though I was already out for the count."

Soul tensed up, angry that he would keep hurting her even though she was not able to fight back. He slid his arm around her and pulled her to his shoulder.

"I wasn't awake. But I started fighting back."

Soul listened, confused but nonetheless let her carry on. How could she continue fighting, by herself? Without him, or any weapon really, she couldn't continue fighting. Unless she was like Justin -

Oh.

Suddenly, he had an idea of how she continued to fight, without a weapon. Her dad is a weapon. Her mom was a meister.

Maka could tell by the way he tensed even more than before that he figured it out. But she knew she had to say it regardless.

"My subconscious must have known that I could wield myself. I have both weapon and meister blood."

"You don't need me." Soul said quietly as he pulled his arm away from Maka and stood up, not wanting to have this conversation anymore.

"But I do." Maka grabbed onto his arm, keeping him in place.

"No you don't." Soul said, looking to his door, but not making a move for it even though Maka let go of his arm.

"Soul, sit down." Maka said as firmly as she could, hoping for the strong girl inside of her to come out. But with all the crying, she sounded weak and like she was pleading. Which she was.

He sighed and sat back down.

"Soul, technically I don't need you." Soul flinched and looked back to his door. "But technicalities don't always work out, and the things that make no sense do. Like, how can time have no beginning or end? It makes no sense but it works. Technically, we should all be dizzy because the world is spinning. But we aren't. Why do we get dizzy with just a few spins, since the world is spinning so fast? Technically, I don't need you. But I do need you. Do you ever think that I need you?"

Soul remained quiet. Maka realized that it never even crossed his mind. She hugged him, not caring if he was going to hug her back or not. He needed to know just how important he was.

"I need you. You're not just my protector. You're not just a weapon to me. You're more than that. You're the only person that I've ever let in. How can you think that I could handle anything if you weren't here?" Some more tears fell out of her eyes onto his shoulder. She felt his arms wrap around her and his head lean down onto hers. "The others are my friends, but without you... I... I wouldn't let them in. I wouldn't let them near me again. They would remind me of you. And I can't replace you, or them. And you know how I am with my dad. So I wouldn't have anybody." She let out another sob. "And... I wouldn't find another weapon. I can't be my own weapon, because I already found my other half. That's you. Our souls... they resonate stronger than any other pair I know. Without you, I wouldn't be able to do much." She breathed in a jagged breath. "Don't you ever say that I don't need you. Ever again. You're lying to yourself."

Maka felt tears that couldn't possibly be hers drop onto the back of her neck. She pulled away from the hug to see that he was crying. He put his head down onto her shoulder, hiding his face from her. He was crying. Not. Cool.

"Soul..." She said softly.

"Am I really that important to you?" Soul said weakly.

Maka broke apart at the sound of his voice. "Of course you are."

They sat there holding each other. Maka felt relieved that she finally told Soul, but terrified that Soul never really felt as if he was important.

"How long have you felt like you aren't important?" Maka asked him quietly. "You act like you own the world."

He seemed to be thinking it over as he pulled away. "I guess being abandoned by my parents as a child leaves scars." He said bitterly.

Maka's face dropped. "Soul, I thought they sent you here like they would a boarding school?"

"No. They didn't. That's what I told you, but they abandoned me. Left me in an orphanage." He got up and walked to the kitchen and grabbed a glass for water.

"Maybe they were broke? Couldn't raise you on their own anymore?" Maka followed him and searched her mind for every possible reason that wasn't all that bad.

"Maybe." He turned his back to her to fill the glass. "Or maybe they just didn't want me. They didn't even give the orphanage any information about themselves, or me. Just left me at the door like in those movies. Could have came in at least. It was open."

"I know at least one person that wants you." Maka said as she stepped closer to him. "I don't know what your parents were thinking, because they missed out on the best guy I've ever known."

Soul turned to face her and seemed to be searching for something. Maka knew what he was looking for.

She took a step closer, and then another, until they were so close he could feel her breath on his shoulder. He seemed... amazed... that she was doing this herself. But her, being the innocent that she was, probably was just going to hug him or some totally uncool thing that like.

When she tilted her head up ever so slightly to look at him, and didn't make a move for a hug, he knew that he was not imagining it.

He wouldn't let her kiss him first, though. So he leaned down and pressed his lips softly against hers. When she didn't pull away, he put his hands on her waist and pulled her that little bit closer to him. He felt her hands move to around his neck.

He couldn't help but think the kiss should have lasted longer. They stood in the embrace for a few seconds before they pulled back. Maka smiled at him and Soul smiled back. Not his usual half-smile. But the full one that happened only when he was truly happy.

Maka looked out the nearest window and noticed that it was already starting to get light out. Soul stifled a yawn.

"I guess we stayed up for a while." Soul said as he looked at the clock.

"Yeah, but when did we get up?" Maka asked as she wiped her eyes.

"Good question. But it's only 5 now, so if we go back to bed now, we will get a couple hours of sleep."

"Alright," she mumbled as Soul walked past her towards his room.

"Soul..." He heard just as he got to his door.

"Yes?"

"Can I..." She said quietly. "Can I sleep with you? I... I don't want any more nightmares."

He smiled at her. "Yes."

They were soon in his bed, laying down beside each other, Maka acting awkward, and Soul being pretty cool with it. Of course he's cool about it. Maka thought to herself as she pulled some blankets over herself and looked over at Soul, who was already comfortable and had his eyes closed.

"You can stop staring anytime you like." He said.

"Your eyes are closed. How could you see me?" Maka asked, embarrassed.

"Ah, so you were staring at me." He grinned.

"I... uh..." She mumbled to herself and took her eyes away from him. She felt Soul pull her closer to him, which she didn't object to.

He mumbled some words in her hair, sounding like "Go to sleep."

She didn't object.

Hey guys! So some of you guys might be aware but I took a couple small ideas from the other fanfiction I was doing back 2 years ago or so. I discontinued it, so, sorry. My plan is that this is going to just be a series of one-shots. So, if you like it, I guess you should follow, or maybe even favourite it. If so, I love you forever. 3 Not that I won't love you if you don't like it, but... Okay, I'm just making this weird. Alright.

I didn't do a spell check, but I'll probably fix any errors I made in the next few days. (Hopefully).

So please review and do all that cool stuff that makes me super happy :)

Disclaimer: I do not own Soul Eater. If I did, the SoMa aroma would be through the roof. :)