AN: Yeeeeah, this was supposed to come out Monday, because with great care a deliberation, I planned the chapter releases to be in time for Thanksgiving. Today, I realizedI would be a week late. Because I'm a complete dumbass. Anyway, hope everyone enjoys!
Chapter Two
The temperature had dropped since this morning, the smell of autumn hanging heavy as the air whipped around his body in bone-chilling waves. Physical discomfort was the furthest thing from his mind at the moment. So was the fact that he might get fired for walking out early. He was too busy coming up with plans to broach this afternoon's discovery with Maka. He couldn't tell her outright that he had overheard her. That would only embarrass her and an embarrassed Maka was a defensive Maka, one that wouldn't listen. An abrupt confession was also out. What was he supposed to say, 'Hey Maka! I've been in love with you for six years! Wanna catch a movie or somethin?'.
His eyes narrowed as their apartment came into view. The whole thing about his supposed coolness and her lack thereof was not setting well with him, either. Just telling her that it was a stupid thing to think wouldn't be enough. Once Maka got an idea into her head, dynamite wouldn't blast it out. He loved the girl, but she was stubborn in capital letters.
Another thought struck him, causing him to trip on the stairs. If he hadn't put such an emphasis on being cool, could he have gotten the girl sooner? Maybe they could be like Black*star and Tsubaki, already engaged and set to get married as soon as they graduated from college. People had thought those two had been moving pretty fast since middle school, and had cautioned them about rushing into things before they had experienced other relationships. They had taken a break in senior year to try dating other people, but had both been so completely miserable that it had lasted less than a month.
Finally, when it was apparent that Black*Star was more out of control without her influence and that Tsubaki wasn't as outgoing without him to make sure that she became involved, both of their families agreed that they complemented each other's personalities. They, like Soul and Maka, had moved in together after high school, and Black*Star had proposed about a month ago. Soul had been happy and excited for his friends, but a small, jealous part of him wished that it could have been him and Maka.
He was going to have to think about his approach very carefully. It was painfully clear that now that he knew she shared his feelings, he wouldn't be able to keep letting this slide. The best thing to do was feel her out, devising a plan that would prove to her he didn't give a damn about coolness if it meant he could be with her, then springing it on her in, ironically enough, a cool manner. Blushing and stuttering over a box of candy and some flowers was not going to cut it. It was far, far too late for that. He needed a balls to the wall, go big or go home type of action that would leave no doubts in her mind. He walked into the apartment, jiggling the door closed as he absentmindedly wondered if he could fit fireworks in there somewhere...
Furious shuffling noises were coming from Maka's room. Following the sounds, he discovered her pacing back and forth, shoving what looked to be the entire contents of her closet into a suitcase.
"Wow, Maka. Thought you were just gonna spend a few hours with your dad, didn't realize you were runnin' away from home."
Maka dropped her fuzzy bunny slippers in surprise, so engrossed in her packing that she hadn't heard him come in. He scooped them off the floor and belly flopped onto her bed, the springs creaking ominously.
"Hey, Soul. I still plan on staying at my dad's for as short a time as possible, but Liz called a few minutes ago. Patty's not feeling well and Liz wanted to know if I could stay over and watch her for a couple of days while Liz is in class. I'm going straight over there as soon as I'm done with Papa, so you're on your own for supper tonight. I bought some stuff today, but it's for later, so don't eat any of it."
Soul played with the slippers, miming a humping action with the innocent pink rabbits. "How do I know what I can eat and what I can't?" he whined, sounding like a six year old.
She snatched her abused footwear away and stuffed them into her suitcase. "That's simple. If it looks good, don't eat it."
"Great, so while you're chowin' down on high quality grub at Kid's place, I'm stuck with instant crap or takeout?"
Maka jammed in a few more sweaters and Soul raised a brow. Why was it women packed for a few days like the were going on an expedition to Everest?
She gave him a cruel grin. "Good food and heat, too. By the way, why didn't you warn me this morning that ours had gone out? I called for you, but you left without answering."
He sat up. "I thought I was quiet. How did you know I was still there?"
"Because you just told me, you jerk!" she growled playfully, throwing a pair of thick socks in his face, causing him to sprawl backwards more in surprise than at the force of impact.
Sitting up once again, he couldn't help going fishing for info. "So, besides class and being called in to play Florence Nightingale, did anything happen today?" he asked casually.
Maka paused in the middle of cramming in several pairs of jeans to answer. "Nothing much. I went over your paper and corrected a few spelling and grammar mistakes, and I went to the store. That's about it. Oh, I ran into Black*Star and Tsubaki. From the look of the contents of his cart, I think now would be a good time to buy stock in antacids."
He waited to see if she would say anything else, but curiosity was killing him, so he finally prompted, "Sounds about right. Run into anyone else while you were out?"
Her face creased into a frown at the thought, her movements becoming sharper and more vicious. "Actually, I did. Jennifer Walters, remember her? Or you might still see her on campus. I haven't, since she's not in any of my classes. She was asking about you."
"I've seen her around, but I try my best to avoid her. She was always kind of a pain, but it was worse after that whole shitty prom thing she dreamed up. It was bad enough she went around tellin' people I asked her out, but sayin' that we did...stuff later made me wanna puke."
"Oh? You didn't look like you minded her too much at prom." she said with a brittle cheerfulness.
Careful, Soul. Tread gently, for here there be monsters. "I was doing my best to be polite. C'mon, Maka. I never even dated her. Do you really think I'd go out and have a one night stand with her?"
There was a heavy silence before she answered. "I guess that's true. I never really thought you did, with her or any other of the girls that claimed you had."
Soul jerked upright in shock. "What, are you sayin' there're girls going around telling people I slept with them? What the hell!"
Maka rolled her eyes at his naïveté. "Come on, Soul. You know there are guys who brag about scoring with hot girls, even though everyone knows that the only action they get is from their own hand. Do you really think girls are any different?"
"I guess, but why me? I've never given them any reason to think I'm interested."
Maka closed her suitcase, leaning on it in a futile attempt to get it closed. "Yeah, but that's part of the charm. The cool, aloof hot guy, finally succumbing to their advances. It didn't help that you never called Jennifer out for lying. Now they think they can say whatever they want and get away with it."
"I was trying to be nice about it, damn it! Everyone thought she was a loser, so I figured if she needed to lie like that to feel good about herself, then fine. As long as you guys knew it wasn't true, I didn't give a shit what everyone else thought. Who knew it would come back to bite me? And why did you never bring it up if you thought I was with other girls?"
"I never could believe it. Like you said, you'd never dated, and you're not the hit it and quit it type." She eyed her worthy opponent, aka the suitcase, then hopped on top of it, trying to force it closed with her weight. "Also, the fact that when one girl said she was with you, I knew it would be impossible. It was that weekend when we did the forty-eight hour video game marathon at 'Star's house, remember?"
Soul groaned. "Oh gods, that was one of the worst ideas ever. At least the part where we did it right before we had school on Monday instead of waitin' till summer. So besides Jennifer, how many other chicks have I supposedly been with?"
"Only three or four, so don't let it go to your head. I don't know why you're surprised. A lot of girls want a piece of you. What really amazes me is that none of them has gotten any, unless there's something you're not telling me!" she teased, bouncing as she wiggled the zipper.
"I'll have you know I'm factory fresh! Mint condition, never been out of the box! My virtue remains intact, and-hey, move over, you're never gonna get it closed like that."
He took her place and she was finally able to get the zipper fully closed.
"Thanks. I think I'm all packed, so now I can..." her eyes drifted to her alarm clock. "Holy crap, I'm late!" she grabbed the handle of the overstuffed suitcase, knocking him aside in her hurry. He followed her mad rush to the door, handing Maka her coat.
"Slow down, your dad can wait a few extra minutes. Be careful, and don't drive too fast; there are nuts out on the highway. And is your phone charged?"
Maka shrugged into the coat he held out for her. "I won't drive fast, I'll wear my seatbelt and yes, my phone is charged. Is that all, Mama Hen, or can I go now?"
He surprised her by pulling her into a tight hug. After the initial shock wore off, she returned it, giggling when he murmured into her ear, "I just want you to be careful. It's gettin' close to Christmas, and if anything happened to you, I'd miss out on a present."
"You big softy. Just for that, I should buy you a trance fusion CD instead of what I had planned. You can let go now. I'm only going to be gone a few days, but you're acting like I'm leaving for space."
He pulled back to look at her, grinning crookedly. "I know, but I'll still miss you. It always sucks around here when you're gone."
"Really? And here I thought it would be more fun without me to keep my eye on you."
His eyes darkened, and his voice took on a husky quality. "Life's always better when you're around, Maka. You should know that by now."
Her cheeks darkened, and they were having what could only be called a moment when there was a crash from downstairs as the neighbors began fighting, effectively breaking the mood. Maka turned quickly, picking up her suitcase and opening the door.
"Gotta go now. I'll try to call you while I'm gone. Bye!"
"Bye. Call me once you make it in for the night."
The door clicked shut behind her, and Soul glared down at the noise that was coming from the floorboards. Maka was going to be gone three or four days; that left him with enough time to come up with a plan. He went to his room to put on his headphones, filled with determination. As long as he didn't screw up, Maka would finally get a confession by Thanksgiving.
A sharp pain in his neck awoke him the next morning. He had fallen asleep sitting up and had developed a crick. Wincing, he slid his headphones off and set them on his bedside table, mentally cursing the couple that lived below him. Their fight had gone into extra rounds, and he had fled to the sanctuary of his music collection to escape them. He had briefly considered stomping on the floor to signal them to quiet down, but the very real possibility of them joining forces and turning on him prevented him from doing so.
It had been so bad that he had missed Maka's phone call, and only the fact that he felt his phone vibrate when she texted him let him know she arrived safely. Her father had been too busy with packing for his trip to do anything to get on her nerves, so the visit had actually gone much better than she had feared. Afterwards, she had settled into a spare room at Kid's place, and had decided to go to bed early so she could sit with Patty in the morning when Liz left.
Soul hadn't bothered to tell her about the neighbors, knowing she would just worry. He had sat up listening to his music and trying to think of a plan, but he couldn't focus enough to come up with anything good. The ideas just became more and more bizarre, and if he remembered correctly, at the end he had even considered the possibility of having a gussied up goat ask her in his stead. He blamed that one on a lack of food, since he hadn't had anything to eat all day except a stale sandwich that the deli at the store had put in the breakroom.
Stomach growling, he heaved himself from the bed, checking the time on his phone. Class started in about forty-five minutes, so he needed to get a move on. Replacing his sweatshirt with a navy blue hoodie, he went to the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face and run a comb through his hair, adding a thin black headband to complete the look. He ran back into his room in a mild panic until he saw that Maka had already printed out his paper for him, corrected and ready to be turned in. Stuffing it into his backpack, he headed for the kitchen to get something to eat. Since Maka wasn't there, he was able to indulge in his bad habit of drinking straight from the milk carton as he scanned the fridge and cabinets for something that wasn't off limits to eat. Finding nothing that wouldn't take more time than he had to fix, he settled on one of Maka's energy bars, grimacing at the grainy texture and cardboard flavor. Swallowing another mouthful of milk to wash it down, he stuck the carton back into the fridge and left the apartment, careful to lock the door behind him.
An hour later saw him cruising down the street to work, a pleased grin on his face. Mr. Stevens had accepted the papers from the class and then, since it was the last class before break, dismissed them early. Soul decided to go straight to work, to see if coming in before his shift would get him off the hook for leaving yesterday. He had done his usual Mission Impossible routine to get in undetected and had been halfway suited up before his boss had come in. Bracing himself for the inevitable chewing out and possible firing, he was surprised to find that Mr. Simmons was almost...gleeful? Oh, this did not bode well.
"Evans my boy! Glad to see you came in early! You've got a fine work ethic there. I've always thought of you as one of my best employees!" he gushed, pounding Soul on the back.
Soul eyed him warily, discreetly shuffling away a few steps. This unaccustomed niceness was freaking him out. He could count on one feathered hand the number of times his boss had spoken kindly to him and the results had never been in his favor. And now he was practically glowing, forcing Soul to come to the conclusion that his turkey was as good as stuffed.
"I just got some exciting news and it affects you too! Care to take a guess?"
Soul shook his head dumbly, feeling the invisible noose tighten around his neck.
"Channel 5 called, and they want to do a spot on the store the night before Thanksgiving! Just think of all the last minute customers that'll bring in! And the best part is that they want to get some good shots of you out front with the hay bales. They say watching you interact with the kids will make a great human interest story. So be ready to suit up by six on Wednesday night, since we're gonna be live on the seven o'clock news!" he bounced off, leaving Soul to sag against the wall in dismay. After all the trouble he'd gone through to avoid any kind of notice on this job, and now he was going to be plastered all over the evening news? This was just about the most uncoo-
A wide, evil grin split his face, sharp teeth glinting under the dingy fluorescent light. The idea was sheer brilliance. Everyone would come out a winner. Maka would get her confession, the news station would get a better human interest story than they had bargained for, and he would have the sweet satisfaction of taking the attention away from Mr. Simmons and his grubby little store and putting it on the girl he loved.
Securing his turkey head on jauntily as he went over the details in his mind, he skipped out through the store, gobbling merrily at anyone who was in his path.
Wednesday found Soul in a jumble of mixed emotions, his nervous system stretched beyond the capacity any mere mortal could bear. He hadn't been able to sleep the night before with the endless scenarios playing on a constant loop in his head, outcomes ranging from strongly plausible to badly written AU. Even the knowledge that she felt the same way did nothing to cease his misgivings, for he knew that just because a person had certain feelings did not necessarily mean they wanted to act on them. He believed she would say yes, but he would not take that for granted. The plan was marvelously simple, and as he went over it for what had to be in the triple digits time that day, he could find very little room for error. In fact, it was almost too simple, giving him nothing to do to prepare while he waited for Maka to come home.
Speaking of which, it was a little after five, and she had said she would be home by then. He paced around the living room, his eyelids flickering to the beat of the ticking clock. A howl of frustration was building up in his throat, when he heard the front door creak open and Maka stepped in with her suitcase in hand and her face flushed from the cold.
Springing to the door, Soul wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into a bear hug as he swung her in circles, causing the suitcase to clatter to the floor. Maka squealed in surprise, pounding on his arms to be let down.
"Soul, what the hell is wrong with you! You're acting like Black*Star, you big goof!" she laughed breathlessly, wondering what he could possibly be so excited about.
"What, I'm not allowed to miss you? When I said it sucked whenever you're gone, I wasn't kiddin." he said, setting her back down.
Not giving her a chance to regain her breath, he grabbed her by the wrist with one had to drag her along, scooping up her luggage with the other.
"Gah! Where's the fire? The only time I've ever seen you with this much energy was when-Soul! You better not have been living off of coffee and Pixi Stix again, or I swear, I'll-"
Soul dumped her suitcase on top of her bed, and then began to help her out of her coat. "No, mother. I've been eating an ethnically, if not nutritionally, balanced diet of pizza, Chinese, and Mexican food. If you want to eat any of that in the next six days, I warn you now, I WILL cry."
Maka nodded with mock gravity as she undid her scarf, draping it along with her coat over her desk chair. "Got it. No crab rangoon for our dinner on Friday."
"Whoa now, woman, let's not be hasty! Exceptions can be made!"
She stretched her arms up over her head, her breasts pushing forward just enough to divert Soul's attention from his mission at hand. Wait, what did she just say?
"Say wha?"
"I said, It's good to be back home, and that I missed you too. Since we have to get up early, I think I'm going to have a bowl of cereal and go to bed. Patty was feeling better, and she and Liz kept me up way too late last night. You should try to get some sleep too. I don't want to have to physically drag you out of bed in the morning."
Soul swiftly switched focus from her tits to his crumbling plans. "NO!" he shouted, causing her to jump and stare at him as if she thought he may have been alone longer than his fragile little brain could handle.
"What I mean is, you can't go to sleep yet. I need you to stay up and watch the news while I'm gone, okay?"
Maka gestured to the laptop that was sitting on her desk. "Can't I just look whatever it is up on the net?"
He sighed in mounting frustration. His plan hadn't taken into consideration that getting Maka to do one thing when she wanted to do another was like trying to herd cats through a corn maze.
"That won't work. What I want you to see is gonna be live on the local news. Could you do me this one favor? Pleeeeaase?"
She peered at him suspiciously. "Soul, you're all jittery and hyper, your eyes are dilated and you're rambling about the news. If I discount the possibility that you've become a drug addict in the last three days, that leaves me with the only option of you being up to something. What's going on?"
"All I'm asking is that you watch the damn news and you're makin' a federal case out of it! Is it really that hard for you to do?"
"I think you're forgetting that the last time someone wanted me to watch the news , it involved a naked Black*Star, a Renaissance fair, and two dozen ferrets. Can you blame me for being nervous?"
Soul deflated. He had forgotten about that. It had taken a lot of time and effort, but he had managed, and he wasn't too thrilled that she had decided to bring it up.
"Okay, I can understand your reservations when you put it like that. Would it make you feel any better if I told you Black*Star wasn't involved at all?"
"Sadly, it does. I'm still worried, though. I don't think I've ever seen you get so worked up over something before. You're usually so laid back, and the fact that you won't tell me what's going on isn't helping any."
Placing his hands on her shoulders, he tried to calm down so he would stop freaking her out. "Hey, you trust me, don't you?"
That seemed to make it worse. "Dear lord, Soul! Acting all secretive and then pulling the 'do you trust me' card? Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Nothing good ever comes after asking that question!"
"Maka, I promise, nothing bad is gonna happen. Do I have to beg?"
She searched his eyes questioningly, trying to discern what was behind this odd mix of seriousness and excitement. Her shoulders slumped in resignation.
"This is really important to you, isn't it?" she asked softly.
The weight of what he was going to do hit him, and he licked his lips nervously, his voice becoming raspy with strain. "Yeah...yeah, this is probably the most important thing I've ever done."
Maka gave him a small smile, pushing her misgivings to the back of her mind. "Sounds like it should be pretty cool, then."
His fingers twitched up to play with one of her pigtails. "I sure as hell hope so...but if you don't like it, just...go to bed before I get home, and I'll understand."
Watching his mood drop, Maka felt somehow guilty, as if she had killed the elation he had been experiencing before. "I'm sure whatever it is will be great, and I promise I'll watch. Happy now?"
"You promise? It's on channel five, and it starts at seven. I'm not sure what part it'll be on, but you'll know it when you see it."
"Okay, fine! Channel five, seven o'clock, I got it! I'll be watching!"
"I mean it, don't look away for any reason once it starts. No changing the channel, or leaving the room. Now swear, or else I'll...I'll do something incredibly masculine and ill-advised!"
Maka snickered at his melodramatic threat. "Somehow, I get the feeling that that's what you're doing tonight. But I promise, I promise! I won't take my eyes off the tv. I won't even take a book into the living room with me. Let me put on my pajamas and get my cereal, and I'll head for the couch right now. There's only a little more than an hour to wait, anyway."
"Sounds good. You go ahead and do that, and-wait, is it that late already? Shit! Gotta run, Maka, bye! Don't forget the channel and the time!"
He dashed to the door, Maka right behind him. "Soul, be careful! Don't forget those nuts you told me about on the highway!"
Pausing halfway out the door, he grinned sharkishly. "How could I forget? I'm one of 'em!"
Listening to the sound of his footsteps rapidly fade away down the hall, Maka let out a puff of air, blowing up her bangs. She headed off to change like she had promised Soul, her eyes flitting to the tv as she passed. Tonight promised to be...interesting. She just hoped to hell that it didn't involve bail money.
Since the heat was actually working, Maka settled on a red and green plaid pair of fuzzy sleep pants and a forest green henley. Rooting through her suitcase, she emerged with her bunny slippers, sliding them on her feet and then padding to the kitchen for a bowl of rice crispies. She was still perplexed as to what Soul could be up to. You would think after knowing him for so many years that she would be able to figure him out, but Soul was still full of surprises.
She scowled at the nearly empty container of milk. Then again, some things never changed. At least he had left enough this time for a small bowl, instead of putting it back completely empty. As her cereal began to crackle at the contact of the milk, Maka smiled fondly. It was hard to believe the sullen, slightly bitter boy she had first met was the same person that had ran out of here in such high spirits today. Her first sight of him, in that yellow and black track jacket and the strange headband with the patch and pin on it had set her teeth on edge. The fresh trouble with her parents had soured her views on men, and she thought she recognized his type. But while talking with him, she had seen flickers of something deeper in his eyes, something that seemed to resonate with her. He had been trying so hard to come off as cool and aloof, but when he had said what he did about Black*Star and not holding his family against him, she had been able to catch a glimpse of the kind boy hidden below the surface.
The more she hung around him at school, the more at ease with him she became, until she fell naturally into the habit of going to his house most days after school. She had been surprised to find that he lived alone with his grandmother, but after he had explained his situation in a few brief, terse sentences, she felt like she could understand why he had chosen to move here. And his affection for the older woman was obvious, in the way he could go from teasing her one minute to doing something for her without being asked in the next. Their interactions had fascinated Maka since she rarely saw Soul so emotionally open. As time passed, he became a happier person around his friends, although he was naturally sarcastic and a bit gruff. She had always gotten the impression that he felt closest to her out of their group and she appreciated the trust he placed in her when he talked to her about his problems and general thoughts on life.
XXX
The trouble started in eighth grade during science class. They had been told to choose partners for a project and it seemed like the whole female population of the room had made a beeline for Soul. Jealousy had struck her in the stomach hard and fast, and it was with horror that she had realized that it wasn't because she wanted to be his lab partner, but because she didn't want any other girl that close to Soul. Which was stupid. He was just a friend. A good friend. One that she saw every day, whether they had school or not. Who she felt safe enough to trust her problems with. Whose presence alone made her happy, especially when he smiled that pointy toothed smile that made her breath hitch and her knees go loose and no no no oh shit no she was in love!
She had been snapped out of her revelation by Soul, who had joined her at her table and was waving his hand in front of her eyes with concern. She had asked him why he had chosen her instead of one of the other girls, mentally slapping herself as the words left her mouth. He had looked at her like she was crazy, and asked why he would partner up with them instead of his best friend. His answer elated and crushed her at the same time. She hadn't been expecting him to go down on his knees and confess his undying love for her, but Maka knew that being slapped with the best friend label doomed you to advancing no farther than a certain point, love-wise. It was the unenviable position of being intimately close while having everything you wanted just a fingernail's breadth out of reach.
Those odds were bad enough, though she had seen a few overcome them. She might even have tried for something more, but there was another factor to deal with. Soul had a preoccupation with things being cool. If it wasn't cool, then he didn't want it, and Maka knew she was as far from the definition of the word as it was possible to be. As she watched him out of the corner of her eye, she wondered if she would ever get the guts to tell him how she felt. Because even if he was hung up on coolness, he wasn't a shallow jerk, and that knowledge kept a small spark of hope alive. She decided to wait and see if maybe, with enough time, he would come around. Until then, she would concentrate on being the best friend she could possibly be, because he was too important for her to do anything less, regardless of whether or not he chose her or some other girl.
But he never did. Maka waited and waited for him to show some kind of interest in anyone, but he remained single. For one brief, horrifying moment she had wondered if he was gay, because that would kill any chance she might have without some really, really expensive surgery. Then she had remembered the colossal nosebleed he had gotten when some girl had had a wardrobe malfunction and her mind was put at ease. He was interested in females, so she didn't need to change her name to Manka just yet.
His permanent lack of a love life, coupled with her desire to settle things once and for all, had finally spurred her to admit her feelings. Senior prom was coming up and if she was going to put her heart on the line, she might as well do it while she was feeling confident and sexy in a dress she had picked out for the occasion. A small, girlish part of her had hoped he would ask her to prom, and she had waited for any hint that he was thinking along those lines. It had gotten down to three days before prom, and the only thing she had managed to get out of him was the fact that he was going. Because, of course, it wouldn't be cool to miss it. Oh, how she wanted to purge that word from the English language! She had been so frustrated that she had groused to her friends at lunch that prom was stupid and she probably wouldn't even go. They had been sympathetic, understanding her depression, knowing that Soul was at its source.
Somehow, they were all aware of her feelings without having been told. It was like she was walking around wearing a flashing neon sign that anyone could read. Anyone except Soul. The night of the party came and she got ready with great care. She donned the dress that the sales lady said showed off her slim build to its best advantage, and placed her usually pigtailed hair into a smooth updo. Makeup was kept to a minimum; a coat of coral lipgloss and a touch of eyeshadow. And a few breath mints popped into her purse. Just, you know, in case. All this primping was more for her benefit than Soul's. He wasn't the kind of person to be swayed by looks alone, or he would have dated one of the girls that had asked him out long before now. But Maka wanted that little boost of confidence that came with looking your best, and she had never needed it more than she had that night.
XXX
It had taken her longer than she had anticipated to beat her simpering father off of her and she had been late. Maka crunched down on her cereal viciously as she remembered what had happened when she got there.
XXX
She had felt the music before she entered the building, the bass pulsing through the ground. The sheer volume nearly blasted her back when she had opened the door to the auditorium, but the couples on the dancefloor seemed unaffected. Her nerves became more strained as she searched for Soul. Honestly, he was the only guy in the entire school who had white hair! Why the hell was it so difficult to find him? A flash of white from the far side of the room caught her eye. Finally! She smiled and began to cross the room.
Then froze.
The smile dropped from her face.
The noise from the music became inaudible.
The colors of the pretty dresses and decorations bled to gray.
All of her senses were focused on
one
single
thing.
Soul was smiling down at a girl, his hands on her shoulders. Maka felt her heart drop into her churning stomach. She knew Soul didn't feel comfortable touching many people, and the fact that he was doing so now made it heartbreakingly clear that what she had been planning on telling him tonight had been useless. At least she wouldn't have to face the embarrassment of rejection. Now she could focus on being happy that he had found someone, while pretending that he hadn't ripped out her heart and done a sombrero dance on it. She would do that right after she went home and ate a gallon of Chunky Monkey and watched a full season of Friends.
Her eyes adjusted to the shadows and she recognized the girl Soul was standing with. Oh, HELLS NO! It was bad enough that her hopes were shot, but she thought he had least had taste! But no, out of all the girls he could have chosen, it was Jennifer Walters. Her tits were pushed up unnaturally high and threatening to spill out of her tight red dress. Jennifer was one of those loud, obnoxious girls who always tried to force themselves into the center of attention. Maka couldn't understand it; Soul hated drama, yet here he was with the queen drama llama herself! Fearing that she would do or say something she would regret, she spun on one black high heel and left the building.
XXX
Maka put her bowl in the sink to wash later and made her way to the couch, pulling the thick striped blanket of of the back and snuggling into the corner. She had been so relieved when Soul had explained the next day, but she had lost her nerve to confess and had never quite regained it. After they had graduated, he had brought up the subject of becoming roommates while they were in college to save money and she had jumped at the chance. She was closer to him than ever before, but sometimes she wondered if that was a good thing. It was a difficult situation, because living as they did almost gave the feel of being a couple, even when she knew that wasn't the case. There was also the very real possibility he would find a girl he wanted to be serious about, and she knew if that happened she would have to move out. She loved him enough to be happy for him, but it would be asking far too much for her to stay there and watch.
She clicked the tv on, the reception fuzzy for a few minutes before clearing up. Tuning it to Channel 5, she saw that she had made it just in time to catch the opening notes of the station's music. Her heart sped up as she tried not to think about what Soul could possibly be up to. Maybe if she focused on a soothing mantra.
Black*Star was not involved.
Black*Star was not involved.
Blaaaaack*Staaaaar was nooooot invoooooolved.
That helped some, but she knew that Soul had the potential to come up with a scheme that rivalled any of Black*Star's. And he would probably be better at pulling it off. Face paling at that last thought, she forced her attention on the announcer's words, trying to guess which story he mentioned was coming up could be related to Soul. The high school debate team winning nationals? Nope. A robbery of a liquor store across town? Nope again. Man wins world record for eating the most live fish? Disturbingly possible. Mother gives birth to quintuplets on bus? No, he would have been more emotionally scarred than that. She snickered, remembering the green look of horror on his face when they had watched that birthing video in tenth grade.
The station broke for commercials, leaving her as clueless as when it first started. Fidgeting, she hoped it wasn't near the end off the broadcast. Maka didn't think she could wait that long. The weather was next and she sat through the mind numbingly boring segment with her fingers plucking at lint balls on the blanket. After the weather they went to a live broadcast at the grocery store she had gone to yesterday. She watched as a group of small children mobbed someone dressed up in a ridiculous turkey suit. Poor bastard. And Soul thought his job was bad! She would have to remember to tell him about this when he got home.
The reporter with the slicked back black hair flashed a wide, tooth-whitened smile into the camera as he stood in front of the store.
"Good evening! This is Chuck Rodgers coming to you live from Simmon's Fine Foods, where behind me, you see TomTom the turkey spending the last few hours before Thanksgiving having his picture taken with the children of customers."
He gestured beside him to a short, sweating fat man with a poor attempt at a comb-over on his shiny scalp and a cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth.
"Joining me here is Eugene Simmons, owner and manager of the store. Tell me, where did you get the idea for TomTom the turkey?"
Behind them, the group of children had somehow gotten the poor bird onto the ground and surrounded him, feathers flying into the air to the accompaniment of joyful shrieks and a long, lone, mournful gobble.
The smug manager rocked back and forth on his heels, doing his best to portray the image of a modest, caring small-town business owner. "Well Chuck, the truth is, I love children. Nothing makes me happier than watching their faces light up with happiness."
On the couch, Maka gagged.
"I've been in the retail business for years and noticed how much the kiddos enjoyed the other holiday mascots like Santa and the Easter Bunny. And I thought to myself, why not have one for Thanksgiving? So then I..." he rambled on to the camera, unaware of the stealthy turkey that had commando-crawled away from its tormentors to come up on the other side of the reporter to whisper into his ear. Sensing that he was being presented with a story far more interesting than what he was currently covering, the reporter adeptly cut the other man off and signalled to the cameraman that they were going to keep rolling with this new development.
"Hey, everyone! TomTom the turkey here has a little problem, so we're going to help him out. Go ahead, TomTom. Say what you need to say!" he pointed the mike at the bird, who began to speak in a muffled but faintly recognizable voice.
"Thanks. I had planned out what I was gonna say, but it sounds stupid now, so I'm just gonna, uh, wing it, no pun intended. So I've been in love with this girl for way too long. No, really, it's been like this forever. We started out as best friends and before I knew it I was totally in love with her because she's the most awesome, perfect girl there is. But I never said anything because I knew that somehow I'd fu-screw it up. That hasn't worked out so well, so now I'm laying everything on the line. Ah, hold on a sec." he fumbled around, tugging the costume head off to hold under one arm.
Whut.
What?!
Whatwhatwhatwhat?!
Maka's jaw nearly dropped through the cheap flooring. She. Could not believe. What she was seeing. Was that her Soul standing there in a mangled turkey suit, hair matted and unkempt, cheeks red with embarrassment? Soul I-Won't-Even-Look-At-A-Fake-Mustache-Because-Costumes-Are-Lame-Evans?
HOLY FLYING CORNDOGS! IT WAS! She leaned forward in anticipation of his next words.
"I love you and I want you to be my girlfriend. Because I'm not cool without you, Maka. By myself, I'm nothin' but a giant turkey."
For several moments, Maka sat there feeling nothing at all. Her brain, the Nerdtron9000, was frying its circuits to come up with a rational, level headed response. None was forthcoming. So she did what any other girl would do in this situation; she squealed the rooftops down. Leaping to her feet, she ran in place before jumping up and down, screaming at the top of her lungs the entire time. She would have continued to do so for an interminable amount of time had it not been for the downstairs neighbor pounding on his ceiling and yelling at her to keep it down.
Dropping back down onto the couch, she grabbed a throw pillow, burying her face in it to muffle her screams. She had a boyfriend! And not just any boy, but Soul! She grinned goofily as she squeezed the pillow to her chest.
"Cool!"
Soul stood outside the door to the apartment, afraid to go in. He had totally blown it. Everything had been fine up until the moment he had the mic shoved in his face and then suddenly, the cool and well-rehearsed lines he had prepared had flown out of his mind. Soul was suddenly having an out of body experience where he watched from a point directly above himself as his mouth spewed the most atrocious flood of word vomit he had ever heard in his life. He had one chance to get his point across and finally, hopefully, move things along with Maka and he had FAILED MISERABLY. He sighed, smoothing back hair that was still slightly damp from when he had stuck his head under the sink in the restroom to try and get it under control.
Not only had he sounded like a dweeb, but he had looked like he had stuck his finger in a light socket as well. Briefly considering whether he should stay out here and die of hypothermia and embarrassment, Soul came to the conclusion that he would probably only end up with a wretched cold and look even more like a loser than he already did. He turned the knob, reluctantly prepared to face the music.
The apartment was dark, and his stomach dropped at the fact that she hadn't waited up after all. Well. Breakfast would be toast and a heaping helping of awkwardness and humiliation.
"Fucking shit." he growled, kicking off his sneakers. And as if he had spoken some kind of magical phrase, the lights flickered on, revealing Maka curled up in a blanket on the couch.
Scratch the breakfast plans; he would be having a midnight snack instead.
He dropped onto the other end of the couch gracelessly, ready to get this over with.
"Hey." he said tonelessly, eyes averted, not ready for the penetrating stare he knew she would be sending his way.
She replied shyly, not sure how to approach him now that things had taken such a drastic turn.
"Hey."
"You watched it?"
She nodded.
"Well? Put me outta my misery, Maka. I'm kinda hangin' here."
"Soul, was that really you on tv?"
"Sadly, yes, yes it was."
"In a...turkey suit?"
"Just keeps gettin' better and better, doesn't it?"
"Confessing? To me?"
"In a pathetic, gobble gobble sorta way, yes."
He was forced to look at her when she reached forward and took one of his hands to pace in her lap, her fingers stroking his soothingly. His mouth went dry at the sight of those eyes, those eyes that got to him every time, gazing at him with a warm glow
"You didn't have to go to all that trouble, you know. I would've said yes if you had just asked me." her voice was choked with a strange mix of relief, elation and mirth.
Soul scooted closer, the hand in her lap turning up to catch hold of one of hers while his other arm slid around her shoulders. Maybe he hadn't screwed up as badly as he thought.
"Maybe so, but I was always afraid I'd scare you off if I asked for anything more. It wasn't worth losing you as a friend. Besides, I had to do somethin' like this, since you seem to have this weird notion that you're not cool enough for me."
Maka's hands slapped over her mouth as she jerked away from where she had been leaning in the crook of his arm.
"Oh lord, I just realized! That turkey the other day was you!"
Soul scrunched his face in confusion. "So you saw me? But I was behind the display."
"Most of you was. Your tail feathers were sticking out. I just thought you were hiding from the herd of kids that looked like they were after your dark meat." she giggled.
"Yeah, that was me back there. I saw you and Tsubaki, and panicked like an idiot before I remembered you couldn't recognize me. Glad I did, though. One thing still bothers me; why would you ever think you were anything other than cool? That was one of the first things I ever noticed about you." he grinned. "Besides the pigtails and the nice legs, of course."
Maka leaned back into him, her head resting on his shoulder. "Because I'm not cool, Soul. I'm nerdy and violent and uptight. I can be short tempered and a bit of a prude."
She felt him shrug. "So?"
She leaned back again, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "What do you mean, so? None of those things are cool!"
Soul leaned forward, bringing a hand up to cup her jaw so they were face to face.
"Yeah, you are all of those things. But there's nothin' wrong with that. And I think you're confusing the world's view of cool with mine. Maka, you're a lot more than just the things you said. You're strong, hot, funny and hot. You're smart and a really nice person and did I mention you were hot?"
Soul had leaned closer to her as he spoke, and now their foreheads were together as she shook with laughter.
"Thanks for the ego boost. So you're telling me I meet with your approval?"
His thumb brushed over her lower lip to stroke her cheek, turning the laugh into a shaky sigh.
"I've always had damn high standards, Maka. And you've always, always exceeded them."
She raised her hands to rest on his shoulders. "Say it again Soul. What you said on tv."
The pitch of his voice deepened, causing her to shiver as his lips brushed hers as he spoke. "I love you, Maka, and I want you to be my girlfriend."
The tips of her fingers traced lightly over the back of his neck. "I love you too Soul. And I definitely want to be your girlfriend."
As soon as the words left her mouth, he pressed their lips more firmly together, his arm that was around her shoulder tightening its grip while his other hand came to rest on her waist. The kiss was soft and gentle at first, but grew in hunger and passion as she leaned backwards, pulling him on top of her. The blanket slid unnoticed and unneeded to the floor, his body heat scorching Maka through their layers of clothes. He experimented with licking and nibbling her lower lip, sucking it between his sharp teeth to hear her whimper.
The grip Maka had on the back of his neck tightened, and her legs shifted to wrap around his waist. He settled between her thighs, giving a small thrust to test her reaction. Taking the moan she let out as a sign of approval, Soul did it again, hissing as she raised up to meet him. His weight was braced on the hand that was gripping the arm of the couch, his other hand roaming from her hip to the curve of her waist and back again. Everything was fuzzy and it was hard to focus, because her body was a wonderland and he was skipping through it like Alice and everything about her was screaming 'eat me' and 'drink me' and he needed to SLOW. THE FUCK. DOWN. Because he was moving way too fast and he wasn't sure how far she wanted to go even though this was really, really nice and-
"Hey Soul?" she asked, nipping at the skin along his jaw.
"Aaaah...um, yeah?"
"Remember when you said you were still in the box, mint condition? You weren't kidding, right?"
It took him awhile to wrench his attention from the movement of their hips long enough to answer. "Yeeesss, I meant it...well, I mean, I've kinda...shifted the contents myself, but that's-"
"How about we open the box?"
Oh. Oh. That sounded wonderful. His thrusting became a bit faster at the thought. The night was going even better than expected; he had finally gotten his confession off his chest, and Maka had welcomed him with not only open arms, but open legs as well. Soul latched his mouth over the skin of her neck, his hand sneaking up her shirt to finally, after years of fantasizing, grip one of her firm, perky tits. The skin was incredibly soft and he couldn't get enough of rubbing and kneading it, running his thumb over the hardening nipple. She cried out his name, her hands tugging his shirt up to his shoulders.
KNOCK KNOCK
...They paused for a moment, then resumed their actions.
KNOCK KNOCK
It couldn't be ignored any longer; some fool was pounding at their door. Soul let out a strangled whimper. It wasn't fair! The only thing that was supposed to be pounded tonight was Maka's pussy!
KNOCKKNOCKKNOCK
"Yo, open up! I'm freezin' my godly balls off out here!"
"Black*Staaaar." Maka growled.
"You know, that's really not the name I wanted you to be moaning."
"Oh, shut up and answer the damn door."
He peeled himself off of her and stalked to the door, throwing it open to reveal their soon-to-be-late friend. Black*Star hefted a large cardboard box, pushing his way in past Soul.
"'Bout damn time. Thought I was gonna have to break the door down. Were you guys already asleep or somethin', because I...I...yi."
He halted in mid-step, taking in the disheveled appearance of his friends. Their hair was messed up from fingers running through it and their clothes were twisted and rumpled.
"Shit. I interrupted somethin', didn't I?"
Maka was the first to break the tense silence. "Black*Star, what are you even doing here? Shouldn't you be getting ready for tomorrow?"
He shifted uneasily. "That's actually why I'm here. We lost power at our place a while ago. It's probably not gonna come back on anytime soon, so Tsubaki an' me gathered up the stuff we had for tomorrow that needed to stay in the fridge and went over to Kid's. He said there was no way he was lettin' me near his kitchen sooner than he had to, so I left Tsubaki there for the night since they have reliable heat. I thought I could borrow your fridge and crash on the couch, but I can see that now's not a good time. I'll just sneak into Kid's place and-"
Maka waved a hand at him. "No, it's fine. Soul, go help him put stuff away while I grab some spare blankets and a pillow."
After issuing her orders, she headed down the hall. Black*Star toted his box into the kitchen, uncomfortably aware of fiery red eyes burning into his skull. He had barely set his load on the table when two hands wrapped around his neck and began to slowly throttle the life from him.
"You! I finally had my hands full of tits! WHAT. THE. HELL were you thinking coming here?!"
Maka poked her head into the kitchen and Soul plastered a fake smile on his face, giving Black*Star what he hoped looked like a brotherly noogie.
"Soul? What are you doing?"
"Ah, haha, nothin', just messin' around with 'Star!"
"Oh. I thought you were trying to kill him for cockblocking you, but whatever. I set up the couch. Night guys."
"Never can figure out how she always does that." Soul muttered.
Black*Star rubbed his throat. "You know Maka. All perceptive and shit. Look dude, sorry for bustin' in like this. If I'd known you guys were finally gonna get it on, I woulda made Kid take me in."
Soul sighed. He couldn't stay mad at Black*Star, not when he was being that apologetic. "It's fine. Not like I told you."
Soul began to unload the contents of the box into the fridge.
"But still. I know you've been hopin' to get with Maka forever, and I ruined your first- wait. That all felt kinda spur of the moment. You guys are usin' protection, right?"
Soul nearly dropped the glass jar he was holding. "Yeah, I'm not totally stupid. Maka's on the pill."
"Good. Wasn't ready to be an uncle quite yet."
Soul snorted. "I don't think you have to worry about that for a while. Hey, you can go ahead and use my bed. That couch is freakin' uncomfortable to sleep on."
Black*Star raised an eyebrow. "Bro, I don't think she's gonna be up for any action while I'm here."
Soul glared as he slammed the refrigerator door. "I know that! But I can at least cuddle, damn it!"
"Sure thing. I can always use your headphones if the...cuddling gets too loud."
"Shaddup."
Soul opened the door to Maka's room and slid in, closing the door behind him with a soft click. Maka propped herself up to look at him.
"Forget it. I'm not doing anything while he's here."
Soul rolled his eyes. "I come with honorable intentions. C'mon, I just want to sleep with you. Emphasis on sleep."
She bit her bottom lip. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea."
He crossed the room and slid under the covers next to her. "Hell, I know it's not. But this is as close as I'm gonna get to gettin' you in bed tonight, so I can deal with a case of blue-balls till morning."
"When you put it so romantically, how can I resist?"
They shifted around until they were comfortable, with her lying on her side as he spooned up behind her. He held her close as she drifted off to sleep, leaving him to muse about the old saying about spooning leading to forking. There would be no shift in utensils tonight, but tomorrow they were leaving early for an uninterrupted evening at home, or screw forks; the next person that disturbed them was gonna get knifed. Mildly puzzled over how he had gone from sexual to place setting themed analogies, his eyes drooped closed, and soon he began to snore softly, his breath ruffling her hair at the base of her neck.
