This one's mostly just fluff. Lots fluff. *I disclaim* I don't own Soul Eater. Just this fluff. I'm up to my ears in fluff.
SoMa Week 2015
Day 6: Worth It
Description: Soul and Maka are having a difficult time financially. So when Soul suggests a romantic – and expensive – dinner date, Maka is immediately opposed to the idea. But after much prodding, Soul finally manages to convince her, and it's definitely worth it.
Maka figured that the trouble had started when she was dancing with Soul during that quiet evening. Blair was out, the phone didn't ring, and the shared Eater and Albarn apartment was quiet and serene. The moment was perfect, so Soul had wasted no time in setting up his old-fashioned record player. It began playing a slow dance song as the weapon grabbed his meister's hand, prying her off the couch. Maka giggled a little when Soul pulled her against him, and almost immediately they began dancing. Their movements were so simultaneous, it was as if they shared one mind. Absorbed in each other, both were prepared to dance the night away.
Except, without any prior practice and no warning, Soul attempted to dip Maka. Unfortunately, neither of them was quite prepared for the action, and Soul ended up losing his balance. Maka fell backward, and Soul followed like a shadow as they landed in the direct center of the coffee table.
Predictably, the table snapped in two.
It wasn't like in movies, where the music screeched to an abrupt halt while the fallen couple stared into each other's eyes on the floor. Rather, the music continued to play while Soul cursed loudly, rubbing his throbbing hand, which had been the first thing to hit the table. Maka rubbed her back and winced as Soul stood. He offered her his hand to help her stand, and she accepted it before she was pulled to her feet. The first thing out of her mouth after the ordeal was "How much do you think a new table will cost?" Soul tried to hide is displeasure; the romantic moment was gone in a flash.
It seemed like the entire apartment had taken the destruction of the coffee table as some sort of cue, as furniture and appliances began breaking rapidly. Suddenly the microwave door would only open if you hit the top of the appliance with your fist. The freezer froze everything; the ice cream had to be chiseled out of its carton, and no amount of adjusting the temperature control would convince the freezer to warm up a few degrees. The clothes washer began to shake and rumble so loudly that it seemed as if it was trying to take off for the moon, and it began leaving small, unexplainable grey dots on the whites. The dishwasher stopped cleaning and drying altogether, although it continued to sit there and sound like it was doing something when it was on, and Blair's favorite chair suddenly gave out and collapsed on top of the poor kitty one day.
The expenses required to essentially replace the entire apartment were immense, and it was driving Maka up the wall.
On one particular evening, Maka was frantically trying to balance their checkbook. Sitting at the kitchen table, surrounded by bills, her computer, a calculator, and with a pencil in her hand, she muttered to herself. Soul slipped up behind her, casually wrapping his arms around her shoulders before resting his head on hers.
"That looks boring," He remarked.
Maka tried to shake him off. "Well, it's necessary," She grumbled. "We need to figure out how we're going to pay for everything that broke this month."
Soul clung tight until Maka gave up trying to dislodge him. "C'mon," He said. "All work and no play makes Maka a dull girlfriend. Plus," He smirked, "I've got something that'll make you smile."
Maka turned to fix her partner in an irritated glare. "What?" She snapped. Soul grinned as he straightened up, pulling a slip of paper from his pocket. Maka's gaze traveled to the paper, but then her eyes widened.
"Is that a reservation for Bistro De Alma?" She asked, staring at the text. Soul chuckled.
"Uh-huh," He said. "I've got the whole evening planned. Just a relaxing night with just the two of us," He beamed at her. But to his surprise, Maka groaned in aggravation.
"Do you realize how expensive that bistro is, Soul?!" She spat. "That must've taken a chunk out of the checkbook!"
Soul lowered his hand, his grin slipping off his face almost like Maka was wiping it off with a towel. "I thought you'd like it," He muttered. "It'd help you relax."
Maka fixed Soul in a glare that he often translated as her I-might-be-about-to-chop-you-so-keep-all-books-away-from-me look. "But we don't have enough money to pay for it, Soul!" She protested. "We've still got to buy a new dishwasher, and pay a mechanic to fix the freezer, and we still haven't bought a new coffee table, and-!" She was about to say more, but Soul promptly grabbed her shoulders. There was only one surefire way he knew of that would get her to stop ranting.
He pressed his lips soundly against hers for a good five seconds, and he could feel the tension ease from her shoulders. Their kiss made a slight smacking sound as he pulled away.
"Look," Soul began again, looking straight into her eyes. "You need to relax. All right? I can hand wash the dishes, and we can deal with freezer-burnt ice cream bars for a little while. And the stuff that was on the coffee table is doing just fine in that box next to the couch," He told her. "So let's go out for the night. Just tonight; and then you can checkbook all you want."
"But-!" Maka started to object again, until she was swiftly silenced by another peck to her lips.
"Please?" Soul practically pleaded. Maka raised an eyebrow in confusion; she had never seen her weapon act so eager to go out to dinner. "I already paid for it, so if we don't go, it's a waste of money, right?"
Maka sighed; she couldn't argue with that. "Fine," She mumbled. Soul grinned, hugging her briefly before practically sprinting back to his room.
"You won't regret it; I promise. It'll all be worth it," He said confidently as he was lost from view. "I'm gonna get changed into something nicer, 'kay? You wear that cool red dress!" He could be heard shouting from his room. Maka stared after him as her perplexity continued to rise; what had gotten into her partner?
Maka sighed. The two were finally seated at their table, and the waiter was scurrying off with their drink orders. "I'm pretty sure you broke the speed limit on the drive here," She grumbled. "Speeding tickets aren't cheap, Soul."
Soul groaned a little. "Stop worrying about money, Miss Tightwad Albarn," He said, barely glancing at her as he looked down at his menu. However, as soon as her eyes flicked down to look at her own menu, Soul's gaze traveled upward. A smile crept across his face as he shamelessly stared at his girlfriend of nearly five years. She had her blonde hair pinned back on one side, which displayed one of her diamond dangle earrings, while the other side flowed around her shoulder and framed that side of her charming face. She wore the dress he had requested; the red satin one that ended right above her knees and had one shoulder strap, and around her neck she had fasted the necklace that matched her earrings.
"Are you gonna get your usual?" Asked Soul, still watching his meister with a look that made him seem phased out.
Maka sighed a little. "I would, but I never realized how expensive it was," She replied. Soul rolled his eyes before reaching a hand across the table and setting it on Maka's. Her eyes flicked upward, and Soul met her gaze.
"Look," He told her gently, "We're here to relax. Don't think about how much it costs, all right? Just have a good time, and we can work around the price. Okay? Don't worry about it," He said reassuringly. Maka sighed and nodded, turning back to her menu.
Their drinks were served shortly, and the rest of the dinner went smoothly. They talked for a while about whatever came to mind, things like how Maka's students were doing, what boring things Soul had to do as a Death Scythe, and laughing about the fact that Stein and Marie's five-year-old child already shown an interest in taking things apart. But for some odd reason, Soul immediately tried to change the subject when Maka brought up Tsubaki and Black*Star's recent marriage.
"Maka," Mumbled Soul, suddenly directing his attention towards his plate and away from her, "I don't really want to talk about that."
Maka frowned. "Why not, Soul?" She asked, taking a bite of her pasta. "I just said that it was a nice wedding, which it was, so what's your problem?" She sipped her drink a little when Soul didn't respond. "You're not still mad about the fact that I wouldn't dance with you in front of people, are you?"
Soul shook his head. "Nah. Just forget about it," He said. "It's not important. Let's just talk about something else."
Maka was still concerned, but she shrugged. "So, I heard Sid and Nygus have been secretly dating for the past couple months," She began, and the issue was dropped.
"Soul, what are you doing?" Maka spoke into Soul's ear, struggling to be heard over the roar of his motorcycle's engine. "You just missed the turn to go home!"
Soul smirked. "I didn't miss a turn!" He called back. "I know exactly where we're going!"
Maka sighed, placing her head against Soul's as her ash-blonde hair billowed around her face. She tightened her grip around his torso, showing that she trusted him, but she began to notice that his chest was heaving as if we were taking deep breaths. The meister's brow furrowed, but she said nothing, choosing to blame his condition on stress from the Saturday evening traffic. Even so, pinpointing the source of the problem didn't make her any less worried for her partner.
Soul pulled the bike to an abrupt halt in front of the stairs of the DWMA. He switched it off before sliding from his seat and offering his hand to Maka, who looked around disconcertedly.
"Why are we here?" She asked. Soul grinned at her, trying to erase all the signs of his stress, but Maka noticed that sweat still beaded on his forehead.
"It's a surprise," He said as Maka stepped off the motorcycle. He squeezed her hand a little before leading her up the stairs.
They walked in silence, but one they reached the top, Soul turned around. "That's what I took you to see," He said, pointing at the setting sun. Its drowsy face was framed perfectly by the city skyline, and the red rooftops seemed to glow in its fading radiance. Maka's eyes lit up as she surveyed the picturesque landscape.
"It's beautiful," She breathed, stepping close to Soul. The Death Scythe smiled down at her.
"Beautiful," He repeated, softly and to himself. Soul's hand slipped down around Maka's waist before he spoke louder, "We first met at this Academy."
Maka looked up at Soul and nodded, a sweet smile on her lips. "It was one of the best days of my life," She told him.
Soul smiled back. "And the first day of mine," He said. "My new life, anyway."
Maka giggled a little, and Soul's felt as if his heart was pounding enough to crawl up his throat. "Y-you are my life, Maka," He said, cursing himself inwardly for his stutter. "And I love you. With my entire soul."
Maka blushed. "Since when are you one to gush your feelings?" She asked, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear like she did when she was nervous.
Soul took a deep breath and gulped down his qualms. "Since I decided to do this," He whispered. He gradually assumed that fateful position, causing his meister's eyes to widen.
Soul was down on one knee. Maka's hand came over her mouth in shock as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the telltale black box.
"Maka Albarn," He said delicately, trying to keep his voice from quivering as he revealed the dainty emerald-crusted silver ring in the box, "Will you marry me?"
Maka's wide green eyes flickered from the ring, to Soul, and back and forth. Her heart was beating rapidly, and her lips were having trouble forming words. Without warning, and without her consent, she suddenly blurted out, "That must've cost a fortune."
Soul felt the world grind to a halt. The earth stopped turning, oxygen ceased to exist, and his heart shattered like glass under Maka's words. His other knee slipped to the ground, and his arms dropped down beside him. The ring's box fell to the ground when he lost his grip, causing the black-felted plastic to clatter upon the cobblestone. The ring slipped out and rolled a few feet before shaking to a stop and clinking on the ground.
The silence stretched on, and a gentle but cold breeze stirred up dust and caused their hair to flutter in the wind. Soul bowed his head, clenching his fists at his sides. Maka tried to keep from punching herself.
"How could I say that?!" She wanted to scream, but instead, she walked over to where the ring had fallen. She picked it up slowly, looking over the miniscule emeralds embedded in the top of the silver finish. She looked back at Soul, and her heart clenched in her chest when she saw his shoulders shake and heard small, short breaths. Maka had never seen her partner cry before, and tears threated to push at the corners of her own eyes when she saw his sorry state, but she pushed it down and walked back towards him.
Soul didn't even look up as Maka sat in front of him. "Hey," She said softly. When Soul turned his gaze upwards to meet hers, Maka held the ring out. Soul's eyes widened. She was giving it back to him. She wanted him to return it, and to get a refund. He didn't think his hopes could be crushed any smaller, but now they had been ground into dust. His vision blurred as more tears threatened to spill down the wet tracks that traced his jawbone.
But as he continued to watch her, Maka pointedly took the ring and placed it around her own finger. It fit perfectly.
Maka held her hand out, admiring her new adjournment. She turned to smile at Soul. "Worth it," She beamed. Her fiancé stared at her, blinking a few times. Suddenly he lurched forward, wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace. Maka closed her eyes as she returned the hug, holding him and stroking his snow-white hair with one of her soft hands. She pieced together his heart with that gentle touch, and months later, she slipped a gold band on one of his own fingers.
The price of the wedding didn't matter. When it came to each other, they were always worth it.
Fluff is fun; I like writing it. I hope you all enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it! Drop a review and let me know what you think. One chapter left; let's make it count!