Convincing himself that the blush that was creeping from his neck to his cheeks to his ears was simply a bit of embarrassment was entirely becoming impossible for Soul. Even with the woeful look on Maka's face, the way her hands were digging against the roots of his hair to brush the now nubbed strands was forcing Soul's color from that slight tan to utterly pink, starting towards a rose-hued red that rivaled his eyes. It was only made worse by the fact that Maka wasn't looking away from it or even really acknowledging it, just rubbing against the fresh shave of his head.

That's right- shaved. Down to the root. Practically bald. Headbands? Unnecessary. Stealing Maka's clips? A thing of the past. In the nightmarish world he was currently living in, Soul was the absolutely unproud owner of buzz cut courtesy of Black Star's clippers and devious mind. Alright- maybe Soul was not entirely innocent in all of this, having made the common mistake of falling victim to what looked like Black Star's absolute stupidity. Making a bet with Black Star often seemed like a solid plan; that is until the realization hit that while desperately full of himself and rarely the one with a plan, Black Star's bravado was never misplaced.

Black Star was a God, after all.

And this vengeful God had required the ultimate sacrifice- all of Soul's spiky yet silky strands.

"It'll grow back," he grumbled.

That earned Soul nothing more than an epic eye roll. "How did this even happen?" Maka cried mournfully while her fingers continued on their journey as if she could bring it all back with just her touch.

"A bet," Soul replied as the pink definitely disappeared, overpowered by a red glow that was now threatening to burst blood vessels in his ears.

"With who?" That was suffused with the anger that usually accompanied a Maka-chop, and honestly, he was begging for it to free him.

"Guess," he mumbled, hoping to earn himself freedom from her fingers.

Instead, she grasped a little harder, scrambling his brain with a quick shake. "Soul!"

With his hackles raised and all the stubbornness flowing from the flush that her touch was creating, Soul snapped, "Don't see why you care- it's just my hair!"

"It's-" Her lips pressed into a pout as she pushed a huff of air out her nose. "I guess it's-"

"What?" Soul barked.

Those hands instantly moved, and Soul waited with utter certainty for the crack of a book against his skull, but it was two warm palms against his cheeks instead, smooshing them together. "I'll miss it," she murmured, "but I guess you're still handsome."

His jaw was ready to drop, but Maka was holding it in place. Something close to a squeal started in his throat, and Soul barely covered it with a sound somewhere between a choke and a clearing. "Did you just…?"

"What?" Maka's tone was innocent but a dusting of pink had started on her own cheeks.

"You just-" Soul stammered as he grabbed at her wrists to pull her hands away. He instantly found it wasn't her palms that were the hindrance and his voice continued in dips and starts, "Handsome? Me?"

Maka was taking a careful step back, green eyes no longer appraising him as they tried to look busy elsewhere. "You get one compliment- and just to make you feel better about the buzz, that's all!"

He couldn't relent, his fingers steady around her wrists and denying any other step between them. "But you mean it?"

She nodded but still stubbornly refused to look at him again, that pink becoming all too rosy as it flushed down her neck.

"Then…" Soul could barely stop from wiggling her wrists in his hand in utter frustration. Handsome. She said handsome! "What about my regular hair?"

"What about it?" Maka shot back quickly as she fiddled with her wrists in his hands.

"You think that's handsome?" The word half warbled but landed true. He let his eyes drift to the floor, taking at least an ounce of pressure off his chest.

A wobbly but thoughtful hum escaped her. Maka managed to free her hands in his moment of weakness, but instead of a quick escape, her hands went back to his head, fingers sinking in the fuzz. "I liked the headband," she murmured. "Especially the thin black one."

"That one?" Soul balked and continued to tumble into shock as his eyes hit her face, now just as much color spread to her ears as his.

Maka nodded slowly. "But I-" She stuttered, trying to catch herself with a sheepish smile. "I like the way you push it back when you're thinking too hard." Her hand moved to his forehead to mimic the motion.

"So… it's handsome?" he attempted.

"I told you one compliment." She instantly tried to press her lips into a pout but it fizzled under the heat of her cheeks.

"I-" Soul took a deep breath to force his voice to its regular baritone. "I like when you have ribbons in your pigtails."

Any solidity to her expression was gone, mouth gaping slightly as her eyes widened.

"The best is when your hair is down." His hands hovered between them for a moment before reaching up to steal hers away from his head. Tangled together, he brought their hands to his chest, cradling them there. "There, so… compliment for a compliment. OK?"

"OK," she whispered back breathlessly. Maka toyed with her bottom lip between her teeth before she offered, "You're handsome."

He only allowed for a breath before he broke the silence, "And you're beautiful."

To hide the red on her face, Maka pulled their hands down to replace it with her forehead, feeling the tumultuous beat of his heart against her skin. "You mean it?"

"Yeah." Suddenly his chest was rumbling, chuckles vibrating against her face.

Maka still didn't have the nerve to uncover the blush that was holding strong to her cheeks. "What is it?"

"Hindsight's twenty-twenty."

"What's that mean?"

Soul let the laughs ring until he was even more out of breath, just worrying her fingers in his as he gathered up the bravery to continue. "I think I coulda won the bet."

She was tempted to roll her eyes but 'beautiful' was still ringing in her ears, keeping her attitude small. "What was the bet?"

Soul let out a blustering breath. "Gettin' the guts to ask you out. Kinda was supposed to yesterday but, you know…" He finished that sentence with a shrug only for him since Maka was still hiding away. "So, buzz it was."

Maka couldn't help a giggle and his fingers tightened around hers.

"Hey, Maka," he called as he just barely brushed his chin against her hair.

"What?"

"Go out with me?" That still brought a little tremble to his voice but Soul exerted all of his strength for the next, "Not a meister-weapon, a partner-friend thing but a you-me thing."

For a horrifyingly long second, Maka was silent. "Will you grow out your hair again?"

A nervous laugh twittered from his throat. "Well, yeah."

Maka lifted her head, showing him the pink of her cheeks so she could see his. "You really could have won that bet."