Chapter 21: Hard to Hear; The Creation of a Soul?

I practically have to take Black*Star's hand to lead him out of the Death Room, he's so stunned by Tsubaki's news that it's as though he has been hit with one of those special attacks that make you get all confused. It's hard to see my friend like this. Yes, he is an egomaniac and a male chauvinist and it's a mystery to all of us how Tsubaki has put up with him thus far, but I really feel for him. I wish this were a video game so he could get a do-over.

There's so much about all this that seems unreal. We're not kids anymore, but we are about as far away from being ready to have kids as you can be. I haven't even seriously thought about whether I even want to have kids and one of my friends is going to have a baby? The whole thing is freaking me out. I feel like I need to buy every condom in Death City to protect myself from this horror. I'm probably going to have heart palpations the next time I'm messing around with Maka and they aren't going to be the good kind. Having a baby is so permanent…like Hiro's legs…at the DWMA we aren't good at dealing with things where you don't get second chances.

I take Black*Star to the gym and grab the basketball that is always under Professor Boomer's desk ready for use by any student needing to let off some steam. I dribble out to the court and throw the ball at Black*Star who almost misses catching it because he's so out of it. He takes the ball and shouts, but his brain is clearly not in the game as the ball hits the rim and bounces back toward him and he doesn't go after it. I run over and grab it and intend to shout it towards him but he abruptly turns away shaking his head, "I don't get it, Soul. I thought we were happy."

I can't help myself; I burst out laughing totally messing up the trajectory of the ball. "Dude, she's your partner not your wife!" We take turns shooting, not playing a game, but keeping ourselves busy while talking.

He looks at me with shock. "What do you mean? We're partners. We're meant to be together. That's how it works. It'd be like you or Maka going off with someone else. It's not supposed to happen." Oh, I am super glad that Maka and I kept our happy news private because having us finally become an official "item" might reinforce Black*Star's delusion that Tsubaki is automatically his lover simply because she's his partner.

"Black*Star, quit being stupid. Being partners doesn't mean you can't date or fool around with whoever you want. Maka and I have always been free to do whatever." Until today of course, when the ethereal "Property of Soul Eater" sign went around Maka's neck and my blood pressure lowered by twenty points, but nothing is going to make me admit that to him.

"Yeah, right! You throw a fit any time another guy hits on her. I saw you go all scythe-arm behind her back when Akira was coming on to her that one day at lunch."

I make a basket from the three point line but he doesn't even notice. "I admit it…I've intimidated the competition, but you're assuming you've already won."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Ugh! Am I really going to be forced to have this conversation? We play basketball and video games together. We don't talk about feelings. That's what I do with Maka. Maybe I can get Maka to talk to him. They like to fight with each other and that way she can be the one to tell him how calling Tsubaki "his woman" made him look like a troglodyte in front of the entire DWMA.

But, unfortunately, Maka is not here and I am. I sigh, besides maybe it will be easier to hear some of this from someone who has been in his shoes…sort of in his shoes. I mean, I love my partner, but I'm not stupid like he is. I'm stupid in my own special way.

"You haven't asked Tsubaki to marry you have you?"

"No."

"Have you two made any kind of promise…agreement… pact… vow… to that effect?" I think of as many synonyms for the word "promise" as I can from the vocabulary lessons Maka bought me.

"No."

"Yet you called her 'your woman' in front of everybody, like she's a piece of property. Black*Star, I was offended and I'm a dude. It's not cool to treat her like that and you came off like a damn meister chauvinist. Demon weapons are people not tools."

"But, she is my woman. She takes care of me and keeps me company and cooks for me and stuff. I need somebody and Tsubaki makes sure this soon-to-be-god gets three square meals a day and gets to have fun and-"

He sings her praises to me yet he treats her like that in front of everyone else? What a fucking moron. I'm definitely going to have to teach him this lesson myself man to man.

"Have you ever thanked her?"

Black*Star is silent and I take that as a no.

"Look, I understand feeling hurt because you didn't know she was seeing someone, as partners you kind of expect to know stuff like that about each other, but that doesn't mean you don't owe her a huge apology."

"Great," he says sarcastically. "She's the one who breaks up our partnership by getting knocked up and I'm supposed to apologize? That's bullshit. I'm not even the dumb one who had sex without a rubber."

"She went out with some dude and didn't tell you. Big fuckin' deal, man. So your heart is broken! Get over it. She's your friend and she's going to be having a fucking baby. She needs your support right now. Quit bein' a douche. It's not cool. I know you care about her."

"So, you wouldn't be mad if Maka had done the same thing to you?"

"That's just it! Tsubaki didn't do anything to you. This isn't about you. Black*Star, you are so full of yourself and how this screws up your plans. Well, you know what? Before I left town she showed up at our apartment bawling- her entire world is falling apart and you're more worried about getting the glory of great combat and having someone to cook meals for you. Who's fucking going to take care of her? I'm no expert on the subject but I think being pregnant is supposed to be a really big deal. Like doesn't she need help or something?"

He grunts at me. "You into her now, too?"

I groan because he successfully steals the ball from me and because he's so damn dense I can hardly believe it. "This is about her. Be her friend," I tell him.

"Easy for you to say. Everything you do for Maka is because you want to sleep with her."

"That is not true. I do stuff because I'm her partner and her friend. I care about her."

"And you have the fuckin' hots for her," he says to me emphatically.

"Yes! I have the hots for Maka, but I guarantee you I would never ditch her if something like this happened."

"I didn't ditch Tsubaki and you know it. She ditched me. You heard her. She asked to be reassigned."

"She might need some space for a while, but just because she's temporarily working with someone else doesn't mean you should give up on the friendship you guys have. Black*Star, you're a better friend than this and we both know it. You're just mad because you know she was a virgin and you thought you were gonna make it with her first-"

"What are you talkin' 'first'? I'm supposed to be her one and only. Ever." Oh, wow that's super realistic.

How do I explain to him that none of us know if she has or has ever had romantic feelings for him? I think he has mistaken her constant companionship as a signal she wants him because most people can't hang around him that much because of what an annoying prick he can be.

"OK, Soul, if you're so damn smart about women and the meister/weapon relationship, you tell me what you would do if Maka came home and said she got knocked up by some dude you didn't even know. You telling me you'd just sit there and talk to her all patient and nice?" He says mockingly and tosses the ball at me aggressively.

"Yes," I say without hesitation while fumbling for the ball. He quirks his eyebrow, questioning the truthfulness of my answer. "And then when she wasn't around I would drink myself into a stupor and probably stay in bed for days feeling sorry for myself," I add.

"See? " He says feeling vindicated.

"And then I'd try to learn more about the guy and if he was cool I'd do whatever I had to do to learn to live with her choice, because I wouldn't want to lose her from my life completely."

"You sure you're not gay?"

I roll my eyes. I hate it when he makes gay jokes. It's so not cool.

"You know what I'd tell Maka if she did this to you? I'd ask her what the fuck she was doin' sleeping with some dude who wasn't you, because you're so awesome."

I lean my head back and laugh. OK, now I remember why I love Black*Star, he totally feeds my ego. "Sorry, dude but there is no way in hell I'm scolding Tsubaki for sleeping with some dude. I know you've wanted her since the moment you laid eyes on her, but her love life's none of my business."

"Then what the fuck are you doing lecturing me for?"

"I said her love life is none of my business. Being a shitty friend is totally my business cause-"

"Don't go all Hallmark on me, Soul. Fuck, what has Maka done to you? You are so damn whipped."

"Thanks man, I appreciate that. 'Cause the high points of my day have been standing here talking to you about feelings and holding you back from throttling Kid for something he didn't even do."

Black*Star stops with the ball under his arm. "There is no way you mean half the pansy-ass shit coming out of your trap right now. Speaking of pansy ass… whaddup, Kid?"

Kid has entered the gym and approaches us a half smile on his lips. "Nice to see you, too, Black*Star. You going to apologize for jumping to the crazy conclusion that I dated and laid Tsubaki behind your back?"

"In his defense it did sound kind of bad what you said," I admit.

The reaper rolls his eyes. "Yes, well, it wasn't as big a faux pas as my father's. I can't believe he announced to everyone Tsubaki was pregnant like that. I feel so sorry for her."

"So, I take it you don't know who the father is?" I say.

"No, in fact it wasn't even Tsubaki who talked to me. Maka told me that Tsubaki wanted my discretion as I would probably stumble upon the truth at some point very soon."

Black*Star hangs his head and mumbles, "Dude, I'm sorry about earlier. I know you would never date Tsubaki."

"Why do you say that?" Kid says. "I might decide I want to. Knowing that everyone thought she would be into me is a great ego boost and she's so gorgeous and thoughtful and-"

"You wouldn't," Black*Star growls.

"Oh, I'm sorry I forgot she's 'your woman'," Kid says teasing him.

"You call Patti and Liz 'your ladies' all the time!"

"Yes, because they are my ladies…and my companions, but I don't require them to be in some kind of romantic entanglement with me. They are simply my weapons and my friends."

"Oh, no! I'm not going to let you lecture me, too," Black*Star complains.

"Oh, good! Thank you, Soul, for having laid the ground work for me to expound upon all the reasons why Black*Star owes Tsubaki an apology."

"You know what? Both of you guys fucking suck."

Kid smiles. "As do you, my friend, as do you. Now come with me and we'll go together to apologize to your friend, Tsubaki. Not your woman, your friend."

Black*Star grumbles as Kid takes him by the arm and leads him out of the gym. I follow behind after tossing the ball back under the desk all the while hoping that Black*Star doesn't somehow manage to dig himself an even deeper hole with the girl he wants to be with for the rest of his life.