AN: Hey guys! So I hit a milestone follower count on Tumblr and I'm doing a double post to celebrate!
Pre-Airport
The first time it happens was by weird circumstance.
"Uh, Mr. Evans just stepped out for a second, this is Maka Albarn-"
"Woah, wait really?! Even better! This is Soul's brother! Wes! I don't know if he's told you much about me or how I got all the looks in the family. But he's been awfully close-lipped about you! You two dating?"
Maka was still stretched awkwardly over her desk and Soul's to reach the phone. Normally she would have never answered, but their answering machines were on the fritz and he had just stepped out to get them more coffee. She realized she hadn't answered the (dreaded but all too common) question.
"Ah, no. We aren't?" Way to go Maka, add a nice little inflection at the end and make it sound like a question.
"Yeah sure you aren't. Well, whatever you're calling it these days, he better be treating you right. And same goes for you actually! He's a sensitive guy, my little bro. Heart's easily broken. This one time in like fourth grade I stepped on his favorite toy robot and the poor guy crieeeeeed! Oh god, it was bad. Mum had to get him a new one and even then it just wasn't the same he said! Oh and then in college he was totally hellbent that he'd found the girl of his dreams. Like gonna marry her, have kids, white picket fence and a dog type deal. Even brought her home for Thanksgiving! Well turns out she was more turned on by all the money and was kinda sleeping with two other guys. Yeah that sucked. Oh! And this other time..."
Soul walked back into the office, two steaming mugs of coffee in hand, to catch Maka's horrified look at being caught still stretched over their desks and on the phone with his brother. "Uhhhh Soul just got back here, it was um, nice to talk to you!" She stole her mug back and shoved the phone in his hand and mouthed it's your brother to him.
He looked at the phone in his hand and then at the base and contemplated just hanging up. Against his better judgment, he found himself bringing the receiver to his head. "Wes?"
"Dude! She sounds hot! Is she hot? Last update I got was that life sucked less and you and the bitch were getting a new office, 'cept you two seem pretty chummy now, eh?!"
"Shut the fuck up! Wes, that isn't! I can't! Would you just?!"
"So she's got the legs huh? You always said you were a boob guy but I always knew it was the legs."
Maka wasn't sure what Wes had just said but Soul's face was a very interesting shade of scarlet. " Do you fucking mind?! I'm at work!"
"Yeah, so you probably shouldn't be swearing."
Soul fell back into his chair and shot Maka a desperate look. She shrugged and sipped at her coffee, still trying to picture a little Soul playing with toy robots. Maybe Wes would have pictures he wouldn't mind sharing...
"What do you want, Wes?" He ground out.
"Oh you know, just to say hi, check in, make sure you're still alive, you know how our mother likes to worry."
"And?"
"Aaaaaand see if you had any intention of actually coming home for the holidays, maybe with a plus one? Eeeeh?"
"Wes you know I really can't-"
"Sure you can! One week! The world will not stop turning! You've missed Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner for the last three years! Do you know what that has done to our Italian mother?! You know how she is about us and food! Soul, you gotta come home for at least one of them this year, otherwise I've heard from a good source that she'll be bringing the food to you. The source is our mother. She told me. Her. In your apartment. Cooking. Do you even own a spatula?"
"Oh god, she wouldn't." Soul ignored the comment about his kitchen lacking, he actually had a pretty nice set up. Maka liked it at least.
"She would, she can, and you know she will. Your choice. Bring Maka! I wanna meet her!"
What was even more fascinating than watching Soul blush was watching the color drain from his face until he was as white as his hair.
"No."
"Which means you'll think about it."
"No, Wes-"
"I'll tell Ma you have a pretty little girlfriend and that you're holding out on grandkids."
"You fucking wouldn't."
"Try me, little brother. So! Thanksgiving?"
"...Christmas."
"Even better! We get to do presents! Tell Maka I can't wait to meet her! Bye!"
The strangled noise Soul made startled her so badly, coffee sloshed out of her mug, but Wes had already hung up.
"I hate my fucking life!"
Maka just shot him a look while she mopped up the spilled coffee with a tissue.
The second time it happened she wasn't really thinking.
She'd been watching TV while Soul took a quick shower and her phone started to ring. Except, it was Soul's. Getting the same model phone had both been genius and supremely idiotic at the same time. On one hand it made it really easy to help each other, but it was also confusing as hell sometimes when they grabbed each other's phone.
"Albarn speaking."
"Oh, hey Maka! You sure you and Soul aren't dating? Cause it's way past business hours or even casual ooh we just were out getting drinks!"
Well shit.
"Speaking of which, knowing my brother he totally hasn't mentioned Christmas to you right?"
"Uhhh-" Damn her lack of eloquence when talking to this man!
"Yeah, didn't think so. Surprise! You're spending Christmas with the Evans family! It'll be fun! We do presents and a feast, got a couple fun traditions. You'll see! Assuming you can come, right?"
Historically Christmas was not much fun in her house, and she had assumed that her dad would be working like he typically did (being a detective sucked sometimes), her mother would be god knows where, and so she realized she'd only expected to have a nice little Christmas with Soul...for the first time...in the apartment... But she supposed going with him to see his family would be better than spending it alone watching his apartment.
"Yes?"
"Fantastic! Oh awesome, this is gonna make my mother's entire year!"
She heard the bathroom door and started to panic. What if Soul didn't want her at his family's Christmas party? What if that was why he hadn't invited her. "Are you sure this is okay!?" There was an edge of panic in her voice. She really was just Soul's coworker nothing more! Though the fact that she was in his boxers and waiting to go to bed in his bed said differently. Wes didn't have to know that though.
"Oh yeah! No, it's totally cool." Oh god, he really was Soul's brother. "Mum's gonna love you and you know, Soul's going to appreciate having you there. Even if he doesn't say it." There was a certain amount of seriousness in Wes' voice that she hadn't been expecting.
"We really aren't dating though."
"So? You're still his friend right? That's what matters, isn't it?" There was a pause and then he teased, "His special little girlfriend!"
Maka sighed, "I'll make sure it's okay with him, thank you for the invitation, Wes. Have to go now before he figures out who I'm on the phone with and has a heart attack." Wes laughed hysterically until she finally hung up on him. Soul joined her a minute later and was surprised when she flopped over against him and buried her face in his shirt. Maka thought about bringing it up, but he was really warm and smelled really good and their show was on. She'd talk to him about it later.
The third was kind of accidentally on purpose.
She later blamed it on being half asleep and only one coffee in but she was also quite curious when Wes had called Soul on Skype. It was early Sunday morning, they had woken up all tangled together (she could practically still feel his hand on her back from where it had snuck under her sleep shirt and the way his scruff felt on the pads of her fingers) and once again Maka had to remember that he wasn't actually her boyfriend.
They had managed to get out of bed, both quietly disappointed they couldn't just stay like that, and Soul announced that he was going to go get the morning paper (he liked the funny section, Maka liked the crossword puzzle) and some breakfast (meaning a bagel with lox for him and a butterscotch scone for her) from the corner store.
And so Maka found herself on his couch curled up under the throw blanket reading blogs online with her first cup of coffee. When the music first started to play, she had glanced at the tabs trying to find where it was coming from. Then finally the Skype call bubble appeared with a picture that looked an awfully lot like Soul.
She clicked video call before she realized what she'd just done. Her hair was up in a messy bun, she was not in an appropriate state of dress to be skyping with her coworker's brother, and she hadn't even finished her first cup of coffee! But the video flickered to life, the camera adjusted to the lightning and she was looking at another Soul. Except...not.
Wes' hair was slightly tamer, his face just a little narrower and his jaw wasn't quite as strong as his little brother's. He was by all means still quite handsome, just...not Maka's type (and her type was Soul). "Uuuuh."
"Maka? Well, course it's you you're dating my brother and on his computer, who else would you be? Yo! Okay, now you really can't even try to pretend that you and my brother totally aren't doing whatever you're doing. Damn, I'm surprised you don't have any hickies! Is he losing his touch? Come on! You can't let the passion go so soon! I can give him a few pointers if you want. Know a few good tricks myself."
"We aren't! I just sleep- slept! I just slept over...late night working." God her face was red in the little video of herself.
"Uuuh huh, suuure. Late night working, is that what you kids are calling it these days? I really can't keep up with you youngings" He grinned and oh god, they had the same grin. The exact same. She was not caffeinated enough for this.
"No, Wes, I swear we aren't!"
"Yeah suuuure, whatever you say, sister-in-law." Maka tried to reason with herself that she was a powerful business woman and that squeaking and hiding under her blanket was inappropriate. Not that it stopped her from squeaking and hiding under her blanket while Wes laughed at her. "Awwww, look at you! No wonder he loves you! You're precious!"
"Stop! We aren't! I'm not! I am not precious!" She popped out from under the blanket to glare at the computer screen. Never had Maka been so flustered in her life.
"Yeah, okay. Whatever you say. God, Mum is going to love you. Be prepared to have your cheeks pinched. She does that sometimes. She can't help herself. But you are allowed to laugh when she does it to Soul. I do, it's pretty cute."
"I still haven't asked Soul."
"What, to marry you? Come on, girl! Get on that! You seem like a strong, empowered, feminist! He'll totally say yes!" Maka wasn't going to lie, she had considered it.
"About Christmas, you dolt!" Well, calling him names wasn't the most professional or even mature thing but she wasn't properly awake yet.
"Oh. Do that too then. And then ask him to marry you! Ohhhh, if you want you can do it at the party! It'll be super romantic and Mum will totally freak."
"I am not asking Soul to marry me at your family's Christmas party." Maka said as slowly and evenly as she could.
"You aren't?" The voice didn't come from the computer. That voice hadn't come from Wes. It came from Soul who was standing in the doorway looking at her very confused.
So Maka did what any responsible, powerful business professional, empowered feminist would do. She squeaked and hid under her blanket again while Wes cackled and Soul tried to process what was happening.
"Way to go little brother! Ruin your big Christmas surprise!" Wes called from the computer between bouts of laughter.
Soul made a strangled noise and rushed to the computer, "Wes!? What the fuck, dude!?"
Which just made Wes laugh harder. Right until Soul snapped the computer shut and practically threw it to the ground.
Wes continue to cackle in his apartment.
He'd call Soul and apologize for scaring Maka so badly in a few days. Assuming it was actually Soul who picked up. He snickered at that. Christmas with those two was going to be fun.
The rest of the morning was spent awkwardly trying to coax Maka out from under the blanket with more coffee and the butterscotch scone Soul had got her.