"Which doctor are we going to go see?" Tsubaki asked, walking beside me.
"The only doctor we know," I answered, a shiver running down my spine. Maybe if I explain myself to Professor Stein, he'll have mercy on my soul and won't let Papa kill Soul. Or maybe he won't care, and will stay out of it, getting his sick kicks out of my misery. Wow, I'm such a happy person.
As we ascended the mountain of stairs to go into the DWMA, Tsubaki looked back at me as I climbed sluggishly behind her. I'd been a lot more tired lately, and this wasn't helping. She reached her hand back to me, offering me help. I thought about rejecting, but decided against it. Tsubaki and I made it to the top twice as fast, and were on our way to the dispensary when I heard an annoyingly familiar voice behind us.
"I, BLACK*STAR, WHO WILL SURPASS THE GODS, WANTS TO KNOW WHERE YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE GOING," Black*Star practically screamed across the hall, causing everyone walking by to turn and stare. I put my face in my hands, trying to close up like a telescope. Tsubaki smiled in sympathy.
"We're going to the nurse's office. Maka hasn't been feeling well, so she wanted to go get her temperature taken," Tsubaki lied with ease. I looked up at her with wide eyes, wondering if Black*Star was going to buy it.
"Oh, okay." Of course he would. "Just make sure you guys are back before the end of class. I have a show to put on and I don't want you to miss it. That goes double for you, Tsubaki." And then he would add something in there to draw attention to himself. I sighed in relief, promising Black*Star that I would have Tsubaki back to class in time, and pulled her into the office. Luckily, Stein was sitting at his desk.
"Oh, hello Maka. What can I do for you?" He asked, seeming a little distracted. Perfect.
"Well, Professor, I was wondering if you could do a certain test for me." I was losing confidence fast. Stein raised an eyebrow.
"A test?" He prompted me. I swallowed.
"Yes. A test," I mumbled again. I couldn't see his eyes; the glare on his glasses hid them. I wasn't sure he'd heard me until he spoke.
"What are your symptoms?" he asked, the glare not leaving his glasses. I was getting nervous now.
"Well… My symptoms started three days ago…" I trailed off. I let my mind wander back to that day as I recounted the story to Stein and Tsubaki.
Three Days Ago
"Ugh…" I mumbled, grabbing a wad of toilet paper to wipe my mouth. I flushed the toilet and sighed. I had suddenly become very nauseous, and I nearly hadn't made it to the bathroom in time. I heard a knock at the door.
"Maka, are you okay in there? I thought I heard you throw up," Soul's concerned voice floated through the door and into my ears, making me feel slightly better. I stood up shakily, taking slow steps to the sink to brush my teeth.
"Yeah, I'm okay." I called through the door, hoping to calm his worries. I opened the door and smiled. Concern slowly faded from Soul's red eyes, making me feel a little bit better. He gave me a crooked smile and sighed in relief.
"I was afraid you were getting sick or something. Are you sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." I reached up and kissed his cheek. We'd been much closer since the incident three weeks prior, but we still hadn't kissed each other's lips since then.
"Good. Now, I hope you're hungry, because I made you scrambled eggs. Your favorite." I walked into the kitchen, and suddenly wished I was back in the bathroom. One whiff of those eggs and another wave of nausea ran through me. Only this time, I didn't make it to the bathroom. I staggered to the sink and poured myself a glass of water, gargled, and spit the nasty taste out of my mouth. When I remembered that I had just puked all over our kitchen floor, Soul was already cleaning it up.
"I'm sorry," I began, but Soul put one hand up to silence me.
"It's cool. Go brush your teeth. You can stay home today if you want." There was no way I was staying home from school when Ox Ford was that close to tying with me for top of the class. I gave Soul my most determined look.
"I'm feeling much better now. There's no need for me to stay home. I have to make sure to kick Ox's ass academically if I'm ever going to show my face in the DWMA again!"
Soul chuckled and kissed my forehead again. I smiled and grabbed his hand, leading his toward the door.
"And the first step to kicking Ox's ass is getting to school on time."
Yanked back to the present, I saw Stein studying me. I blushed, realizing I had just revealed my real thoughts about Ox Ford to our teacher. But Stein must not have noticed, because he was busy scribbling on his clipboard.
"Anything else?" he asked, putting me on the spot again. I thought back to just yesterday, coming home from school.
Yesterday
Ugh…why am I so tired? I thought, sprawling myself out on the couch. Soul was playing basketball with Black*Star and Kid, so he wouldn't be home for a while. I turned on the TV, smiling when I saw a new episode of "Glee". I began singing along to the first musical number, and before I knew it, I was dreaming I was in the show. I was about to pull a Rachel Berry and belt out the final note in "If It Kills Me" by Jason Mraz, when someone shook my shoulder, startling me awake.
"Wake up, Maka," Soul murmured, shaking my shoulder again. I opened my eyes, not feeling the least bit rested. That concern I was growing so used to seeing in Soul's blood-red eyes had come back, but I wasn't in the mood to deal with it.
"I'm so tired…" I croaked out, my voice hoarse from sleep. Soul cupped my cheek with his calloused hand.
"I'll make dinner. You go back to sleep, okay?" And I did go back to sleep. I slept all the way through dinner and the night. At some point, Soul had picked me up and put me in bed, because that's where I was when I woke up the next morning.
Stein was no longer looking at me; he was too busy studying his clipboard. He began turning the screw in his head, contemplating something.
"Maka, I know this is an awkward question for your teacher to be asking, but let's think of me as your doctor for right now, okay?" I nodded. "Now, I need you to tell me something. No one's going to get into trouble, but have you been sexually active recently?"
Oh crap. I'd forgotten that I'd have to spill the beans about what had happened. I swallowed; mustered up every ounce of courage I possessed, and looked Stein in the eyes.
"Yes." I squeaked. I cleared my throat. "I mean, yes." I said, my voice steady this time. The glare still hadn't come off of Stein's glasses, but I could tell with my soul perception that he was feeling a whirlwind of emotions. I opened my mouth to speak, to apologize, when my father came bursting through the door.
"MY MAKA IS SEXUALLY ACTIVE? WHO DEFLOWERED MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER? WAS IT YOU?" Papa grabbed a random boy out of the hall, pressed his blade to the poor kid's throat.
"No, Papa! It wasn't him! I don't even know him!" That was a lie. Okay, half a lie. I did know the kid, just not well. We sometimes studied together in the library, but I couldn't remember his name right now. Stein grabbed Papa and set him roughly in a chair, which he then tied Papa to and threw him in a closet. That's when he pulled out the needle.
Now, I've faced kishin eggs, had probably broken every bone in my body, had faced numerous witches, but the one thing I was scared of more than anything was needles. I shrank back into Tsubaki, who had been sitting beside me quietly the entire time. I could feel Stein trying to contain the madness in his wavelength as he inched closer to me, needle in hand. Needless to say, it didn't make me feel any better.
"Now, in order to do the test I need to do, I need some of your blood. Okay, Maka? I'm not going to hurt you, I swear." I knew he was trying to reassure me, but it sounded like he was talking more to himself. Again, it didn't make me want him to come any closer to me with that syringe. I clutched Tsubaki's hand for dear life as Stein jabbed me with the needle as swiftly as possible, taking the blood he needed in seconds. I almost passed out when he told me it was over.
"Tomorrow's Saturday, so I'll call you at home with the results tomorrow. Now, get to class before you two are late," Stein added cheerfully, probably trying to take his mind off of the task at hand. I sighed (I'd been doing that a lot lately) and walked out of his office, feeling terrible about myself.
"Who knows, Maka. Maybe the test will be negative," Tsubaki said, trying to cheer me up with her optimism. But I didn't want to be optimistic. And I already knew the result of that test.
"Come on, Tsubaki. I promised Black*Star you'd be back before the end of class."
Gah, that chapter was short. I kind of wanted to focus on Maka telling Stein the symptoms that she'd been having. Originally, I had Maka tell Stein that she needed a pregnancy test, but then I wanted to have him ask her if she'd been sexually active, and he wouldn't if she'd asked for a PREGNANCY test, because the answer would've been obvious.
Oh my god, I have the perfect idea for part of the next chapter. But you're going to have to wait until the next chapter to see it. Sorry for teasing you.
Oh, and the reason why Stein was a "whirlwind of emotions" is because I think he sees Maka almost as a daughter. If you squint at them in the canon-verse, you might see it, too. :)
A couple of notes on this chapter:
1. If anyone notices the reference in this chapter, I'll freaking love them forever. Because I don't think too many people will. But you guys have surprised me before.
2. Tsubaki lies to Black*Star all the time. He buys it because he knows she'll come clean and tell him the truth when she's ready. That's why their love is so strong, and why they get along so well.
3. Yes, I'm having Soul and Maka get closer. No, they never told each other "I love you" after the incident. And, as Maka stated in her flashback, they haven't had any lip kisses since then.
4. Soul is so concerned for Maka because he still feels awkward for sleeping with her. He's still convinced that he took advantage of her when she was drunk and is trying to make it up to her. He thinks it makes him look cool. For the record, yes, it does make him cool. Infinitely cool.
I think that's all for this one. If you see anything else, just tell me. Bysies!