Intro
Many years had passed since I had first entered my father's academy, since I had broadened my circle of friends. We had all changed. Some had opened up, others mellowed out, but we had all grown up (to an extent). Our various relationship dynamics had changed too, some more than others.
...
Soul stood by Tsubaki, his hand loosely clasping hers in a gesture of encouragement. She stuttered a great deal before she was able to say it: "Soul and I are dating". She looked to Soul. The question written plainly in her eyes: Did I do O.K? Soul nodded. Revealing their relationship to us was a daunting concept. Soul would always be proud of the quiet courage she displayed in accepting that undertaking, I could see that much in his expression.
Blackstar took a moment to salvage his unhinged jaw (his shock had rendered it so). Thankfully his joy was greater than his shock. His quiet partner and his best friend, he was ecstatic for them both. "FINALLY," he boomed. In the following moments, severe spinal damage was potentially inflicted in the form of an overzealous hug that enveloped Soul and Tsubaki both. Maka, I could see, felt the same joy, though she displayed it without the theatrics. I think we all smiled more than we had in some time.
...
Blackstar fled from his own home on a regular basis once Soul started coming over in a 'romantic capacity'. To my great distress, it was my home he chose to invade in those circumstances. I'd come home and he'd be there, eating all the food and messing up the place. Liz was barely ever home, she'd be out with her boyfriend-of-the-month, so I'd have to deal with Blackstar and Patti. It was like some twisted form of babysitting. I was at my wits end when it happened.
...
I was late home on the day of Soul and Tsubaki's six month anniversary. I should have anticipated that Blackstar would be at my home in avoidance of the romantic evening Soul had undoubtedly planned, but I hadn't. So it was a complete shock to walk in on Blackstar and Patti having very loud sex on the dining room table. They were so caught up in each other's sweaty limbs that they didn't even notice my entrance or my very swift exit. Needless to say, that table was later replaced, though I never told Patti that I had burned the old one.
...
"Kid, what are you doing here?" Maka asked, surprised at my sudden appearance on her doorstep.
I didn't answer her, just walked through her home to collapse on her sofa. I slid my hands down my face as if the action would scrub away the images that had been branded onto my poor, abused eyes.
"Kid, are you okay?" Maka questioned, concerned. She lowered herself gently into the space beside me.
"Do you want the real answer or the pleasant answer?" I said, from behind my own pale hands.
"The real answer, of course. I'm your friend. You can answer me honestly. So tell me Kid, are you okay?"
"I'm fucking traumatised." I don't often curse, but I thought it appropriate to express how I felt at that moment. Maka squinted at me a little, though I could tell she didn't really mind. Soul swears like a sailor. She just wasn't used to hearing that sort of language from me.
"Kid, what happened?" She placed her hand gently upon my arm.
"They were there when I got home." I could still hear echoes in my head of the...moaning.
"Who?" she asked.
"Blackstar and Patti."
"Patti does live with you."
"They were defiling the dining room table." That poor table...
"I know you like to keep things tidy but I hardly think that damage to a table warrants being 'fucking traumatised'. You conquered your OCD years ago. You've been managing so well."
"Maka, they were having sex."
"Oh," she said in a small voice.
"Yeah," I offered awkwardly. "Can I...Can I crash here tonight?"
"Of course," Maka answered brightly. "I'm glad of the company actually. It's been so quiet since Blair moved out and with Soul being gone so often..."
"Thanks."
...
The following day Blackstar announced that he and Patti were now dating. I offered Patti the best smile I could muster. She seemed to accept my attempt at a pleased expression. Though I felt like hurling my guts out at the image of the two of them having...you know, I was actually very happy for Patti. She deserved someone who could keep up with her boundless energy. Who better than Blackstar?
...
From then on I took refuge from Blackstar and Patti's boisterous love making at Maka's apartment. She was always pleasant and seemed grateful of my presence. I suspect she was actually quite lonely. Her best friend and her partner were still too caught up in each other to pay much attention to anyone else. She was probably the only reason I wasn't lonely. We'd known each other for years, and I counted her as a friend, but I was starting to realise how little time I'd actually spent with her. I also realised I was in the same boat as her. Both my partners were consumed by their love lives and the few other friends I had were all in relationships too...except for Maka. She'd had a few boyfriends over the years, mostly jackasses, and had given up on the miniscule, infinitesimal, microscopic amount of faith she'd had in romance. I was loath to admit that I was glad of her perpetual singleness.