Another chapter...so soon? I start a new job sometime this week so I'll probably get busy again so I just wanna get as much as I can while i'm sittin around doin nothing. Enjoy guys. i cranked this out just for you!
Ch. 25: The Lady in Red
Soul sighed noiselessly into the phone as he listened to his brothers concerns over his upcoming nuptials. He'd seemed to become Wes's shoulder to lean on. He was worried currently over his fiancés lack of picking up her phone.
"I'm sure she's just busy. She's probably preparing for her finals as well as getting stuff together for the wedding." Soul repeated for the second time since he'd got on the phone. He could practically hear his brother fidget on the other end.
"Yes, yes I know. I'm just worried about her ever since she was attacked." Wes whined.
Soul rolled his eyes. "Soul..." Soul furrowed his brows at Wes's change in tone.
"Hmm?"
"Since you much closer than I and know you way around the city could you do me a favor?" Wes wheedled. Soul sighed again, aloud.
"Seriously?" he asked exasperated.
"Please?" Wes begged. Soul grunted.
"Fine." I'll have her call you. He grumbled unhappily. He could hear the smile and relief in his brothers' voice.
"Thank you, Soul." Soul just grunted in response before hanging up the phone in the mess hall. Liz looked up from the bowl she'd been stirring to smirk at him. Soul just snorted before stealing a cigarette from her pack and striding out the kitchen door and thru the dining hall toward his quarters to grab his goggles and change before heading to the office.
He tucked the cigarette behind his ear hidden under unruly locks of white hair. He hadn't meant to pick the habit up again but when talking with Liz a few weeks before it'd been an attempt to make her feel more at ease, but it had soothed him as well. This was really the reason he'd started in the first place.
Oh, spiting his parents had been a good reason but it had really helped ease his tension during long hours of studying for mid-terms and finals, and of course helping him get over his anxiety of publicly performing after the years of his parents making him hate it.
Walking thru the office doors he ran smack dab into Maka walking out. She made a loud surprised sound as she fell back only for Soul to overcome his surprise first and grab her arm.
"Whoa there." He ginned helping her back to her feet. She gave him a small smile as she straightened herself out
"Sorry, Sergeant, but I'm in a hurry." She told him before running around him.
"Hey, but..." She waved over her shoulder
"We'll talk later, promise" She said sending him a smile before trotting out the door.
"Uh…ok..." He scratched the back of his head in confusion. He supposed he'd just have to ask her about it later. He smiled at Steins secretary before jotting down his name, date and time and strolling out of the office toward the storage sheds.
He rolled his bike out and swung a leg over the seat as he plucked the cigarette out from behind his ear and dug into his pocket for the little red bic lighter he'd picked up in town a few days prior. With a quick flick he lit it up and took a long drag letting the soothing acrid smoke fill his lungs and calm his mind as he sat in the shade of the shed.
He wasn't really sure if you could smoke on base but hell, Liz smoked in the freaking kitchen! He released his hold on the smoke letting it slip in wispy tendrils out around his sharp teeth, letting his mind wander and staring out into the desert.
The sweltering mid May heat had already set in, sun beating down all around him, baking the sands and creating a hazy view of the distance beyond the barbed fence. The dry air causing him to lick his lips
There was so much going on lately. His brothers' wedding was fast approaching the army games were also coming up and his relationship with Maka was slowly but surely becoming more serious. He sighed blowing out another long stream of smoke seemed like everything was coming to a head in the coming months. Like his life was being orchestrated toward these events by some greater power.
He snorted around his smoke. Ridiculous…
He took one last deep drag bringing the burning ashes to the butt before throwing it down and stomping it out with his boot. He had more important things to do than sit her musing. He pulled the goggles down over his eyes and with a quick well practiced swing of his leg the kickstand was up and the motor running. He revved it once for good measure before pulling out of the shade and into the bright may sun.
It was relatively quiet for an afternoon in Vegas when he pulled up in front of Blair's apartment building and hopped off his bike. He pulled his goggles up onto his forehead and started up the stairs to the second floor. He walked down the hall looking at the numbers on the doors until he found the one he remembered from the night he and Maka had taken her home.
He wrapped on the door a few times before stuffing his hands in his pockets and waiting. He rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet until he heard quick light steps coming toward the door.
The door swung open and he held his hand up in a lazy wave but was caught mid movement as the woman standing in the doorway was most definitely not his brothers purple buxom soon-to-be but rather his lithe sandy blonde girlfriend/commanding officer.
"Maka?" His mouth hung open.
"Soul?!" She squeaked taking a few steps back. Only then did he notice that she wasn't wearing the army dregs she'd been wearing a mere hour ago when he'd last seen her.
"What…are you wearing?" he asked bewildered, his jaw hanging slack. She grabbed two handfuls of the fabric above her thighs. He tilted his head. Draped over her lightly tanned skin was a dress of the most vibrant and shining silk red he'd ever seen. A single strip of crimson wrapped around her neck and crossed over her chest, where it cut just low enough to be alluring, but leave something to the imagination and transitioned into soft flowing layers of fabric around her abdomen.
A bright ruby color bled into a deep crimson around her hips and continued down to where the fabric flared and swished about her ankles meeting matching red leather stilettos.
Maka flushed. "It's...my bridesmaid dress." She mumbled. A head of purple hair peaked over her shoulder.
"Soul!" Blair cheered, maneuvering around the embarrassed younger woman to glomp tightly onto her soon to be brother-in-law. Still to stunned to do much he allowed the older woman to squeeze him before stepping back and inviting him in.
He stepped into the apartment shutting the door behind him. He turned to Blair.
"Well Soul, what do you think?" Blair asked holding her hands up to Maka in a presenting fashion. Whose eyes were looking everywhere but at him. "Doesn't she just look amazing?" Blair squealed clasping her hands in front of her. His eye slid back to Maka who had stopped wringing the fabric of the dress but was still looing sideways away from him.
"No." He mumbled. Maka's shoulders tensed. He smirked.
"Stunning. Absolutely stunning is the only way to describe it, Blair." Blair squealed happily bouncing around on the balls of her feet as Maka turned the same shade as her dress but gave him a small smile none the less.
"I should go change out of it, Blair." She nodded as Maka turned and walked down the hall the backless garment giving Soul a view of soft tanned skin before she disappeared into the bedroom at the end of the hall.
Soul shook himself before turning to Blair.
"Oh, Blair, the reason I'm here. Wes called me. He's worried that you haven't returned his calls today." A look of comprehension dawned on her face.
"Oops. I left my phone here when I went to pick up the dresses and called Maka as soon as I got home. I'll call him now." She smiled pulling her phone out of her pocket and calling his brother. Soul flopped onto the couch as she walked into the kitchen already in full conversation with his brother.
Maka emerged from the bedroom after a few minutes in a pair of jeans and a lime green T-shirt. She situated herself onto the couch next to him. Still obviously a little flustered. He smirked wrapping his arm around her shoulders.
"I didn't know you were going to be playing dress up with Blair." She gave him a soft punch to the arm that he would never admit still kind of stung.
"We're not. The dress just came in today and she wanted to make sure it fit right so alterations can be made in time if we have to." He made an affirmative noise. "Now what are you doing here, following me around?" His head whipped to face her and she smirked. Looked like he almost game himself whiplash.
"I am not following you." He huffed. "Wes wanted me to check on Blair when she didn't answer his calls. He's been all nervous about it since those guys tried to mug her." She nodded in understanding.
At that moment Blair walked back into the living room, slipping her phone into her pocket.
"Wesley is ok now, and he says thank you, Soul." Soul nodded standing up off the couch and sliding his hands back into his pockets
"I need to be getting back now." Blair nodded. Maka hopped up and stood beside him.
"I do as well." She smiled at the buxom violet haired woman.
"Aww, you're leaving already Maka?" Blair mewled. Maka just nodded.
"I have paper work that needs to be finished, but Soul and I will see you week after next at the rehearsal dinner." Soul nodded and Blair cheered considerably.
Blair waved as the both walked down the stairs and out of the building back into the May heat.
"Mind if I ride back with you, Soul? Blair picked me up." He shook his head and she slid onto the hot leather seat behind him.
"Hey" He called turning to look at her over his shoulder as he slid his goggles down over his eyes.
"Hmm?" She looked at him curiously.
"You wanna stop and get something to eat before we go back, its Chefs surprise tonight." She grimaced before nodding vigorously.
"Yes, please." He chuckled as he kick started the bike and made a sharp U-turn in the parking lot of Blair's making his tires screech before pulling out into the street on route to the nearest burger place in town he could find.
Anything and he meant anything was better than the lumpy pile of meat and near rotten vegetables he and Liz threw into what they called 'Chef's surprise'. It was a compilation of whatever they had left over before the new supplies arrived.
Even in the arid May air he shivered. You really didn't want to eat it.
He felt Maka's arms tighten around his waist as he gunned it down the hot black pavement.
There were of course, other, perks. He grinned.
He loved Chef's surprise night.
Ha! Another chapter. That's probably the quickest update I've done in a while. But after nearly 3 years the end is drawing near. 3 or 4 chapters I estimate remain. The rehearsal and wedding I think will be separate chapters.
~Malthazar LOS