"How are the burns?" A dark voice asked from the corner of a shaded ally to my right.
I turned my head to the ally, recognizing the voice. Soul. It was definitely Soul. That was his melancholy and smooth voice. I'd hate to admit it but I know his voice anywhere.
I halted. Suddenly I felt the bandages around my body covering my latest injuries: third-degree burns and scar tissue.
"Go away." I hissed flatly.
Soul appeared out of the shadows. Rubbing his left hand like he suffered one of the same burns, he moved beside me. We stood almost shoulder to shoulder in the ally. He'd grown an inch taller last summer. Now when we stood next to each other the top of my head reached in height to his forehead. Soul wore the latest style of jeans and a baggy T-shirt. His gray hair had been cut army style.
His eyes were an ugly blue and his skin a feverish white. Soul always seemed on the verge of being sick-though I know not from what. He couldn't catch your average human cold-he had a second form made out of a scythe's metal after all. Actually, now that I think, it's me.
Soul moved the hair out of my eyes. I flinched at his chilly skin. Ignoring me, he laid an arm over my shoulder, letting his hand fall across my collarbone.
Suddenly my pain and anger was interrupted by cold water and white fog.
Souls arm felt so good.
Wait! Let me explain! I hate Soul's guts, permanently. But we have an emotional link. I was simply enjoying his mental landscape. His mind had come closer with mine the second he put his arm around me. You ever wanted to see into Soul's head? Well I can and I'll tell you: there's nothing to see. He's absolutely empty, tranquil. Fathomless. Soul's head is like a cold patch you put on your sore back.
We both started walking again.
"You remember when I chewed that tablet your father gave me to improve our compatibility? Since then I've always shared half your emotions. Today, and yesterday…No, I'll not be kind: since Tuesday your agony has been stabbing me in the back. And it's freaking Friday, Maka. Keep your dark wallowing to yourself!" Soul said through his teeth, his arm tightening around my shoulder.
I said nothing. I just let the blank emptiness coming from Soul splash over me. Soul had no emotions-or he masked them very well. I had been so full of emotions that upon meeting Soul, who I hated, I didn't want Soul to leave. The problem with Soul is this: he was really good at reading my emotions. Though I don't know why, and, it's always been unnerving how good he is.
So as soon as he felt relief echoing off my head he stopped and glared accusingly at me, his limp hand crawling up my neck to rest under my chin. I frowned, then felt my insides get dumped in freezing water when I realized what he was planning. I glared hatefully and struggled to pull away. Soul's arm, annoyingly, held me in place.
I suppose there's another detail I must explain about Soul. The closer his body is to mine the better we can both influence the other's mood and thought process. The same probably applies to me. Although I've never tried to influence Soul's moods-he never gave me reason to-and he had rarely influenced mine outside of throwing his arm over my shoulders-which quickly exhausted my small worries or aches, all this had changed recently from the burns. The baggage of being a hero was also taking it's toll. I couldn't tell how many time's I'd spent being physically and mentally pulled, and then pried, every which way. Or bleeding to death. Or feeling like I'd spent every conscious moment running for my life. Three words: emotional baggage aplenty.
This was too burdensome for weak ugly Soul to handle. And after walking me home all week, crowding me with his presence to stop me causing him pain, and getting no reward, Soul was retaliating.
Soul brought his face a centimeter's distance away from me.
His blank mental state washed over me.
"Is this good enough?" Soul's eyebrows arched in concentration. His eyes trying to attack then inside of my brain.
I felt his mind's faint coolness sweep over my burning terrified mind more. But we both realized at the same time…
"Not enough…" Soul scowled. He set his shoulders.
"Soul. Don't." Seeing where he was going I pulled my head back, trying to get his face out of my face, but it didn't work. Soul rolled his eyes. He starred me down with blank eyes-willing my sadness to cool off-which left me more and more aware of his cold hands on my neck and his large face.
"It's not your choice. You've been especially attacking me all day with your grief. Think of someone besides yourself for once." Soul whispered angrily.
Then he took his other arm that wasn't holding my neck and put it gently under my chin. His grasp tugged my face to his. Stomach clenching, I cussed at him, clamped mouth shut, through my nostrils. I was not letting him kiss me. Then Soul opened his mouth. He revealed long black fangs and sharp white teeth. The teeth dripped with a line of saliva. My mouth went weak. I felt his lips and teeth meeting my closed mouth that he pressed open. His slimy tongue licked my teeth and the roof of my mouth and the insides of my cheeks. My tongue curled to the back of my throat.
I was horrified and disgusted. I was tasting Soul's saliva in my mouth. I'd never thought he'd be kissing me in a dark alley like this. I recoiled. But Soul wrapped his arms around my back and squish me to him. My torso pressed against his chest. I felt his hard muscles on my soft skin and the loud thump of his heart. I felt infuriated. The mental picture of calm he was trying to drench my mind in wasn't working.
Soul backed off, slackening his grip a bit. I gasped for air, wiped my face, and gulped.
"What was that?! What the heck are you doing? I never though you'd…You're worse than everybody!" I yelled. My hand reached back and slapped him, hard. My hand caught on fire.
"Ow! Burn marks!" I clutched my hand. This was all too much. Suddenly this week, Soul's mouth and the rest of him, and being burned so much my skin ached every time the wind blew was all to much. A fresh wave of sadness tore at my heart, muddled with hate and despair and the deepest darkest low I'd experienced that week. Tears just gushed out of my eyes. I coughed around my swollen throat. It hurt to breathe. Add that to the list of ailments. Doubled-over, I gasped for air.
"Ahhh-ha. Why is my life like this?"
"There you go again. A record all time low for this week."
I looked at Soul. My pain reflected in Soul's profile-he was bent over and gasping broken breaths. He winced, barring his teeth at me. I watched his eyes fill with single-minded determination.
"I don't care anymore."
I opened my mouth, angry. "You think-"
Soul didn't wait for me to finish. He picked me up and slammed me roughly against an alley wall, knocking the breath out of me.
"Aahh!" I yelled.
Soul didn't respond. Soul wedged my legs open around his hips bringing his body as close to mine as possible -so I was trapped between him and the wall. Without pausing to consider the rules he was shattering and the hate and cringing he incurred he wrapped his arm around my back and pulled me tightly against him. I was pressed totally against his chest-only his and my shirt between. Both of our heartbeats sped up. I looked at him. As he looked at me, his eyes were dark and fathomless.
"Soul. Let me go. Please." I begged, crying.
He pinned my arms underneath his. I totally couldn't move.
"I hate you. I hate you I hate you I hate you." I turned my face away from him and exhaustedly closed my eyes. I wished I could just go to sleep and not be here.
"This is your fault." He said, angry and in pain.
There was no way that I could move or fight him off. He had me totally backed in a corner and at his mercy. Now that he had lifted me off the ground and I was unable to move an inch in any direction he opened his mouth again. Soul sank his lips and teeth into my mouth and continued his assault. He sucked my tongue. He bit my lip.
At his every touch my mental landscape was drowning in another flood of cool water that made me blank and calm.
He continued kissing every inch of my mouth for an eternity until finally my mind went blank and sank into the ocean of calm. I stopped crying. I laid immobile in his embrace.
Soul relaxed his grip. He wrapped an arm around my back and helped me stand. My legs had gone weak.
I coughed.
"Feel better?" Soul spit. There was blood in his mouth. Mine.
"Bite me." I hissed, turning my eyes from the spit to look at him sideways, glaring. "Oh, wait, that's right. You already did."
I felt funny-like I'd been injected with a numbing medicine. I couldn't feel the cut in my mouth-I couldn't feel my mouth. It. Didn't Hurt. My burns were nonexistent.
"But the burns don't hurt anymore, do they? See, you're already getting tired."
"You freaking bas-yawn-I hope you go to-hnn uh." My muscles went slack. My eyes closed. The only thing holding me up were Soul's cold hands.
"There, see. You're already asleep." Soul grinned, and let out a long sigh. "Finally."
