hiiii~ so I just totally came up with this idea last night, and I simply HAD to write it! It was originally gonna be a one-shot, but then I was like, a one shot with, like, 20 pages? I dont think so. So im splitting it up into chapters. This probably isnt wise, as it'll take me a little longer to update my other stories, but screw it. I already have an idea for it and I love it ^.^ so, P L E A S E leave a comment!
Chapter 1- Him
It wasn't on purpose.
It began when Shinigami-sama announced, not only to Shibusen, but to the entire Death City itself, that there would be a huge ball based on the 8,000th anniversary of the metropolis. Everyone in the whole town was welcome to attend it, and for that purpose, it was predicted to be the grandest event Death City had witnessed in years. There wasn't a single person in the town that wasn't talking about it, anticipating the most elegant evening of their lives.
Definitely, though, the excitement was thickest in Shibusen, where you wouldn't be able to go a full minute without hearing whispers about the event. Girls fretted about what dress they were going to wear- as it absolutely had to be the most extravagant and desirable one in the room- while the guys discussed which girls they hoped to accompany, and how they planned to woo them.
That was, everyone but Soul Eater Evans.
Whenever the topic was brought up in discussion, he would sit idly by while the group ran their mouths, ranting about who they were taking. When asked if he was excited about it, he would merely shrug, occasionally yawning in addition. When someone inquired if there was someone he wanted to take, he would respond with a bored expression that convinced them otherwise. When people wanted to know if he was going, he just made a noise that didn't quite clarify things, and the topic of discussion quickly changed.
When the grand night was three days away, his responses were getting more and more agitating.
"Hey, man, you gotta come!" Kilik finally said, saying what everyone was too intimidated to. "There's gonna be free food, dancing all night, and every chick in the entirecity is coming. The entire Death City. Do you realize that puts us at an incredibly high chance to get laid?" Soul raised a brow at this, but Kilik continued. "Now, I don't know about you, but I'm not passing that up. If you want to sit at home and be a loner, that's fine, I guess. I just think you need someone to spell this out for you."
Soul shifted, preparing for his comeback. "Thanks, but I'd rather not go to some high-class ball with a bunch of bitches and whores in make-up, all thinking they're better than you and trying to look better than the next. Seriously- they make shit like that a competition." He leaned back in his chair and clasped his hands behind his head. "Everyone's just trying to be the best. Thanks, but I don't need some ball make me feel cool."
Kilik sighed in defeat. "Whatever, man." Everyone returned to their seats as Stein settled the class down, ending the break.
At lunch, he joined his meister, Black*Star and Tsubaki. The chat between Tsubaki and Maka had been about some stupid, girly t.v. show they were obsessing about, leaving Black*Star and Soul to talk amongst themselves. Unfortunately for Soul, Black*Star wanted to talk about the exact thing he didn't want to talk about.
"Hey," he began. "What are you gonna do about the ball?" He had to wiggle just one eyebrow for emphasis, along with a smirk.
"What do you mean?" Soul asked, although he knew exactly what Black*Star was implying. It was hard to miss with the whole eyebrow thing.
"Tch, you know exactly what I mean." He leaned in. "So? Who are you taking?"
He shrugged, "I'm not going."
This was not a very pleasing answer for Black*Star. "Like hell your not! Come on, dude, don't be like that. You gotta go! You'll be the only one in town not going."
"So I've heard," he muttered, impassive. He had really hoped Black*Star wasn't going to bring this up, but, much to his annoyance, things did not go his way.
He gave Soul a look of pure amazement. "This isn't even about looking cool anymore, Soul."
"You're right. It's not," he spat darkly, making Black*Star flinch. "I just seriously don't like fancy parties. I went to a whole hell of a lot of them when I wasn't even a teenager yet, and I hated them all. I can't imagine things would have changed that much."
"Well," he Black*Star looked defeated. "Maybe...maybe it'll be better when you have your friends there." He began to look even a little pathetic. "C'mon, Soul. I need my best bud with me."
The fact that Black*Star was sincerely asking something of Soul like this moved him. He almost wanted to say yes. Almost.
Instead, he tried not to make direct eye contact as he sighed, "Sorry. I'm not going."
What was that look on Black*Star's face just now? Was it...sadness?
Before Soul could detect what it was, it quickly changed to his trademark, obvious expression- arrogance. "Well, then, at least that's one less person to draw attention from the great Black*Star! Not that anyone could ever outshine me!" he boomed, triumphant expression plastered on his face. "I'M GONNA SHINE GREATER THAN THE SUN AT THAT DUMB BALL!"
"Hey! It's not dumb!"
Soul and Black*Star both turned to see Kid, Patty and Liz on either side of him, looking quite offended. Liz face-palmed herself, which neither of the two boys understood. "Oh, boy, now you've done it-"
"This is the 8000th anniversary of Death City!" he interrupted. "Do you not comprehend the enormity of the situation?"
"Woah," Soul said, raising his hands. "Calm down. So what? They have one every century."
Now Kid looked astounded. "Of course! But this just happens to be the EIGHT-THOUSANDTH YEAR!" And within moments, somehow, flowers were springing up behind him, and his hands were clasped as he jumped on one leg. "The number 8000 has every number in it perfectly symmetrical! This is a once in an eternity- event!" he squealed, as his face lit up and, quite literally, sparkled.
Everyone, including Maka and Tsubaki, who had been listening in ever since the trio came in, sweatdropped.
"Uh..." Soul said, unaware of how to respond to this. "That's...great."
"GREAT? IT'S-"
He was cut off as Patty covered his mouth and giggled, "Yeah, yeah, it's great! Now let's eat!" Then she erupted into a fit of laughter as they all sat down and continued for the rest of their break, Kid reluctantly dropping the issue.
And then, there was Maka.
He knew he would be catching the most hell from her, as she really loved huge festivities like these. She was always so frustrated with him whenever he refused to go to something as insignificant as one of Shibusen's occasional dances. He couldn't imagine her reaction when he would tell her how he wasn't going to attend the gala.
"Oh, please, Soul," she mocked after he had let her know he wasn't attending the event. They had arrived home on the same day as the lunch thing, and Maka was going to check if what he was going to wear was formal enough. "It's a once in a lifetime event!"
"A dance?" he asked, laying back on the couch, remote in his hand. "What are you talking about? Shibusen has dances all the time."
She stood in front of the t.v., blocking his view and forcing him to pay attention to her. "It's not just any dance, Soul!' she scowled. "This is possibly the biggest night any of us will ever have in our entire lives!"
"So I'm assuming you have a date then?"
Oh, shit. Now he did it. He knew how bad that was right after it slipped past his lips. He didn't know why he said it- probably because he was so fed up with people lecturing him to go all the time- but his frustration caught him off guard. Now, she was looking down at him, hurt clear in her emerald eyes.
"Wait, Maka, I didn't mean that-"
"Whatever, Soul," she cut him off, radiating a cold energy as she trudged into her room. Soul mentally slapped himself as she walked into her room. Just before she shut the door, though, she glared, "You don't have to ruin it for everyone else just because you wanna act like a dick." She slammed the door without another word, leaving a painful silence hanging in the air.
Soul groaned as he fell back on the couch, defeated. Dinner was gonna suck tonight.