Dear readers, thank you if you still follow this story despite me being terrible at updating it. It means a lot. I hope you enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the pop-culture references that are used in this chapter. Nor do I own the characters.
Soul found talking/texting with Maka surprisingly easy. The girl was easily ticked off, funny and brutally honest. He felt a comfortable companionship build between them, though they hadn't seen each other in person since Lullaby.
She was interested in his life but never pushed subjects he wasn't comfortable with. He liked to tease her about her boring lifestyle. Maka taught the second grade kids at Death City Primary School. She loved them to death though they could be a handful sometimes. When Soul asked what she liked to do in her free time she said reading (big surprise), volunteering at the animal shelter and working out. Apparently she was taking selfdefense and kick boxing lessons, which explained her slim and fit physique.
It wasn't until the second week of texting that Maka started asking more questions about him. Most of the time he gave vague answers, not wanting to spill everything to someone he didn't know that long.
It was on a Friday afternoon and Soul had just returned from work. When he checked his phone he saw a new unread text from Maka.
{M} Hi Soul, how was your day? I'm staying at home for the night, catching up with my series. Make sure you eat something.
Soul smiled a little. The girl was a saint. She always asked how his day was and was adamant on making sure he was eating, sleeping and drinking enough. It had started when he send Maka a message at four hour am. Of course she hadn't replied at the time but she did give him hell the next day when she noticed the message's timestamp. Soul was strangely comforted at her concern.
{S} What are u watching?
{M} American Horror Story, The Walking Dead, Supernatural and some animated shows.
Soul chuckled. "Nerd." he mumbled with a little grin.
{M}What do you watch?
{S} Whatever's on tv. I don't really follow shows. Soul send back. He used to watch some of those shows as well but ever since he got locked up, he lost track. Used to watch TWD and Supernatural.
{M} No way! Which season are you?
{S} Can't remember.He smiled a little bitterly, looking at the old tv. Been a while.Soul knew he sounded vague and it probably would raise some questions but it was better than no answer at all. He got a reply five minutes later.
{M} Wanna come over to watch some?Not that far into TWD.
Soul swallowed, unsure how to answer. It was kind of tempting to accept the invitation but he wasn't sure if it was a good idea.
{S} Are u sure u want me to intrude on your precious nerd time? ;p
{M} Haha very funny. But it's cool. You can come over if you want. We can get some take out if you're hungry.
Soul could feel his stomach rumble as he read her answer. Having no food in the fridge, he let his stomach decide. {S} Sure, what you want? I can grab some on the way to your place.
Maka send her address and Soul grabbed his keys and wallet. He still wasn't sure if this was a good idea but he decided to ignore his doubts and just roll with whatever would come his way.
Soul ended up buying Chinese food and found his way to Maka's apartment. He knocked the door, suddenly feeling nervous. Wasn't it a little strange to come over to a girl's apartment who he only met a handful of times? Probably, but he didn't have long to question it because Maka answered the door with a radiant smile. "Hey Soul, come in!" she said as she opened the door wider.
"Hey, I-I bought Chinese." Soul said with a crooked smile as he raised the plastic bag.
"Nice! I'm starving! Only had breakfast today."
Soul raised a brow. "So you're always giving me shit for not eating enough but you can skip meals without any consequences."
Maka rolled her eyes with a smile. "The kids were finger painting today. I had to clean up the mess during lunch break and didn't have enough time to grab something to eat."
Soul scoffed. "Kids huh."
"Oh shut up, kids are adorable." Maka walked into her little kitchen, followed by Soul. "Can I get you anything to drink?"
"Same as you're having." Soul said as he leaned against the doorpost. "And no, kids are hyperactive little monsters."
Maka grabbed two wine glasses and a bottle of red. "You just don't know how to deal with them."
"You're most likely correct."
Maka chuckled and walked back into the living room. Soul took the containers and handed one to her. "I wasn't sure what you wanted so I just ordered some rice with chicken and veggies. If you don't like it you can have some of my shrimp."
Maka smiled. "Nahhh chicken's perfect. Not really a fan of fish."
Soul feigned insult. "How can you say such a thing!"
She chuckled and playfully pushed him. "Loser."
Soul couldn't help but chuckle. It felt weird how at ease he felt around her. Even though they hadn't known each other quite that long.
"So, what do you want to watch?" Maka asked, disrupting Soul's thoughts. He looked up and saw Maka had already connected her laptop to her tv. It looked quite expensive for a small apartment like hers.
"I only watched the first season op The Walking Dead, which is only about five episodes." He admitted.
"No problem, I'm at season two anyways. Had to put the show on hold because I was catching up with Supernatural."
"Please don't tell me you're up to date with that show."
Maka blushed a little. "It's really good." she whispered.
Soul grunted dramatically. "You really have no life bookworm!" He only got an eye roll as a response.
Maka opened her laptop and started the first episode of season two's The Walking Dead. As the intro began, they started eating. Soul was paying little attention to the episode, he was most of the time looking around the apartment. Maka lived in a cozy studio apartment, a little kitchen and living room with a small staircase that led to what Soul assumed to be her bedroom. He was unsurprised to see the walls lined with stacks of books. "Did you read all of those?"
Maka looked up from the screen, following Soul's eyes. "Not all of them. I used to visit a lot of flea markets with my family and I always bought whatever book seemed interesting to me." She chuckled sheepishly. "I guess it kind of got out of hand."
"God can you be even more bookish?" Soul asked, fake exasperated. It earned him a punch to the shoulder and he had a feeling it'd leave a bruise.
They watched five episodes of the Walking Dead before Soul noticed Maka starting to doze off. He gently nudged her shoulder. "Hmm?" Maka blinked and sat up straight. She rubbed her eyes and smiled sheepishly at Soul. "Oh sorry."
"It's fine. It's getting late so I should probably go home anyway." Soul got up from the couch.
Maka followed him to the door. "It was nice seeing you again."
"Yeah we should do this again." Soul wasn't aware of his words until he saw Maka's somewhat surprised face. "Ah-only if you want of course!" he quickly stammered, looking down at his shoes. When he heard a soft chuckle he looked up. Maka was smiling at him, eyes filled with mirth. "Just get home safe first okay? We'll text." She said.
Soul quickly nodded, still a little embarrassed. "Sleep tight."
"You too Soul." The way she spoke his name still rang through his head by the time he had returned to his little apartment
Soul woke up from his alarm, instantly chucking it to the wall. After some lazy scratches and yawns he got out of bed, ready for another boring day. I have to find a better job, he thought to himself as he poured some milk over his cereals. While working at the grocery store was easy and didn't take too much energy – if you didn't count dealing with annoying customers and staff members – it was way below his standards. He could do better if he'd put some effort in but he didn't have the connections to find something better.
Maybe I can find some place where I can play. Soul blinked, a little surprised at his own thoughts. He hadn't thought about playing the piano ever since he joined Black Blood. But who knew, maybe this would be a nice extra to his whole 'starting anew' plan.
He spend his day at work, letting it pass him without much notice. Soul had decided to spend his evening visiting some small clubs to see if he could find a place that'd hire him for a gig. He asked some colleagues for suggestions and soon set up a route for himself.
"See you guys tomorrow." He shouted as he left the store, pulling his hood up. The first was a little English pub. Like Soul expected, it wasn't much. A bar, some tables and stools and a very small stage in the back. When Soul asked the bartender what kind of music was played he got a 'mostly folk stuff' as a reply. Not really in his alley.
"Hey kid." A voice called out to him when Soul was about to leave the place. He looked around, searching for the caller, when he saw a man with bright red hair – seriously was that even natural? - beckoning him. He was nurturing a glass of whiskey, blue eyes watching him carefully.
"Can I help you?" Soul asked a little suspicious. He wasn't familiar with random people calling him out. Unless it was because of some shady business deal.
The red haired man handed him a black business card. "Heard you looking for a place to play." he said, his voice a little slurred from the alcohol.
Soul checked the card and saw only a few blood red notes were pressed on the front. When he checked the back he read the words 'Angel's song, jazz club'.
"Stop by if you're interested." The man said as he pulled his wallet out, probably paying his tab.
"Ah sure, thanks." Soul mumbled a little stunned. "Wait what's your-?"
"Ask for Spirit." Was the last thing the man said before exiting the tavern. Soul, still surprised, looked at the bartender as if he had the answers.
The bartender chuckled. "You'll get used to it. He only shows emotion when he's with his daughter and believe me, that's not a pretty sight to behold."
Soul chuckled weakly, trying to play it off. Still, the man – Spirit from what Soul assumed – left a nagging feeling. He spend the rest of the evening wandering around for some more options but he soon discovered Angel's Song was probably his best shot. Every other place that allowed live music was either fully booked or not up to his taste.
Feeling mentally exhausted – talking to strangers always took a lot of his energy – he went back to the apartment and ordered some take out. He'd visit the place later, Soul promised as he started flipping channels.
Before he fell asleep he heard his phone buzz.
