Yooooo, so hi :) how's it going?
Thank you to all of the people who reviewed the last chapter, I really do appreciate it! I always find myself going back and reading them over and over when I get stuck. It really does mean more than you know.
I have some news for you all in the author's note at the end of this chapter, so please give it a read.
I tried my best to make this one pretty long for you guys (almost 7,000 words, can I get a whoop, whoop!) since it's been too long since my last update and I'm a monster. I'll try to be better! This chapter also has minimal edited so please point out any spelling/grammatical errors you may find ;)
Enjoy!
Chapter Seven: Morning Brew
There's just the slightest bit of sunshine sneaking its way through her curtains, somehow managing to lay directly across her closed eyelids, the fucker. The peace Maka had sunk deep into is now disrupted by her less than adequate curtains, but no fuss; all she has to do is turn over and all is good with the world. She can do that, right? She tries but fails, awaking from the best sleep she has had in a long ass time. Not wanting it to end, she stubbornly snuggles down into the mattress, content and warm and elated that she doesn't have school or work today. A sigh of satisfaction escapes her lips as a hand moves gently along her side and mid-back, tucking itself under her. She can't help the smile from spreading across her face as she cuddles closer into the comfort of the warm chest and … wait. Maka's eyes fly open to be met with maroon clothed pecs and her heart shoots through the roof. Ever so slowly, she tilts her head back to look up at the man cradling her as his breathing remains soft and even. Although she relaxes slightly at the sight of Soul's sleeping face resting half hidden in her pillow, she can't seem to calm down. What had happened last night? She attempts to recollect the previous night, but is too distracted by Soul's peaceful god-like features as he snoozes. Maka then allows herself to just accept and bask in this moment, knowing full well that this handsome dope hadn't done anything to her, he's too nice, too gallant, and she loves that she can trust him. She decidedly snuggles into his chest, her arms snaking around him to hold him close. She's scared of what she's become, what he's turned her into; she's never been one for romance or being led by her feelings, but … her feelings for him are all she can focus on sometimes and she thinks that maybe she's become somewhat of an actual human being because of it.
She feels his heart skip against her temple before his arms pull her in even closer, his nose falling into her hair before taking a drag. He's awake, she knows he is, but she refuses to move and ruin this moment. She's the happiest she's been in a long fucking time and, whether she deserves it or not, she is going to take advantage of the opportunity.
Soul has just begun to rub small circles into her back, making her melt, before her door is thrown open and they both jump.
"Time to wake up, lovebirds! I'm gonna be late!"
"Can't you knock?" Soul asks, glaring over at his friend with malice. "This is a girl's room, dingleberry." Maka's room.
"You know, the thought hadn't occurred to me, but noted. Now, get the fuck up, please, because I don't want to be late for work." Blake exits the room with his signature shiteating grin as he waves back at them gingerly. What a monster … Soul is already thinking of ways to fulfill his future revenge.
Soul and Maka sit there in silence as they stare after the closed door. He scratches the back of his head as he sighs; his idiot friend just made this whole situation a bit more awkward than it needed to be.
"Well, … that was sudden …"
"Yeah, kinda makes it impossible to fall back to sleep, doesn't he?"
"No, kidding," she giggles. Finally, fucking finally, their eyes meet and he has to bite back the overwhelming urge to start cheesing as hard as he possibly can. Maka's hair is an intricate mess of disheveled honey; her makeup is smudged around her eyes, but it makes her beautiful emerald orbs stand out even more. He clears his throat as he pulls his gaze away from hers, running his hand up and down his face. Blake will most definitely barge through her door again if he doesn't leave within the next thirty seconds and wouldn't that just be the worst.
"Do you … uh, have anything on today?"
"I'll have to check my schedule." He can hear the smirk in her voice and he jokingly rolls his eyes, silent puffs of laughter leaving his nostrils.
"Well, if you can find time in your busy schedule, we should hang out today." He's shifting to get out of the bed, stretching his legs out before relaxing them over the edge to stand. "I'm pretty free today for once."
"Yeah?" Maka throws the covers to the side, no longer concerned with keeping warm and cozy as she watches Soul reach up to the ceiling, the slightest of skin peaking out from the bottom of his shirt. She shivers, whether it's the cool air swarming and consuming her or the thought of Soul's muscular abs, she doesn't know nor does she care to find out - she's basking, damnit.
"Y-" Soul looks down to find Maka's hand lightly grasping the hem of his shirt and is met with her staring up at him, bottom lip between her teeth and her cheeks a light flush of pastel pink. "Yeah." It comes out more breathless than he had meant it to, but when the girl that he's currently pining after is looking up at him like she wants him to kiss her, it's forgivable. A knock on the door has his heart shoot up to his throat and back for the second time that morning and his shoulders sag as her hand lets go of his shirt. Fucking figures.
"Maka? I have to get to the school to work on a project with my classmates. Blake is out here waiting for Soul."
"Yeah, we're coming." She moves past him and opens the door, and just like that, the moment is fucking over. Killjoys, cockblockers - the both of them. Begrudgingly, he follows her out into the living room as he runs his fingers through his likely birdnest-like mane. He was in such a good mood earlier this morning. Being rushed by Blake has everything moving too quickly for his liking and they're out the door before he even realizes what's going on. He isn't awake enough for this shit.
"I guess I'll see you later?" He says it hopefully and he doesn't even care if he sounds desperate; with his right hand leaning against the doorframe as he looks down at Maka nodding her head with an adorable little grin on her face, he feels like the fucking man.
"See you later."
"Hey, asshole! Let's gooo." He regrets a lot of things, one of them being his promise to drive his worst best friend to work. He pushes off of the frame and waves before jogging down the hall to the elevator. He turns to find her watching after them as the doors slowly shut, blocking her from his view. Tsubaki and Blake are talking - about what, he hasn't a clue; he's tuned them out and has no interest in what they're saying. It's exactly what they deserve. He blinks the dryness from his eyes as he leans heavily against the wall, arms crossed, and allows his mind to think solely about a blond-haired, green-eyed earth goddess… he's not even sorry for the small smile that takes over his lips at the image of her messy hair and crazy makeup from a full night's sleep popping into his mind. Shit … he's fucking head over heels for her … and he's not even mad.
She's screaming. She looks like she slept in a bed of charcoal. Why didn't she wash her face and take out her fucking contacts before falling asleep? Oh, god … Soul saw her looking this ratchet and didn't say a word … her life is a joke. She's so over herself right now - what a miserable existence.
Blake won't shut up. His hysterical laughter is making his cheeks burn - whether it's with anger or embarrassment, he isn't sure nor does he care to find out.
"Could you, like shut the hell up and leave me alone?"
"Awwww, come on, cowboy. Don't be like this."
"Need I remind you that without me, you'd be on bus right now, late for work?"
"I'll probably be late anyway, seeing as you're driving at a snail's pace. I mean, my God, man."
"I can pull over right here and leave you to sprint those last two miles."
"Okay, okay," Blake pats his friend's shoulder, unable to throw his arms up in mock surrender as they ride his bike. "I just think it's cute, and pretty amazing if you think about it. I mean, if I hadn't paired up with Maka for this project and hadn't met Tsu, we wouldn't have ever gone over to their apartment. I probably would've never found out who your coffee girl was and you would have never gotten the chance to fall asleep in her bed last night. I assume that that's all you two did."
"Oh, fuck you," Soul shoots, lacking any real venom. "Even if something had happened, it'd be none of your fucking business."
"I'm just glad that you two were finally reunited. You suck when you're pining."
"Speak for yourself, lover boy. You sigh non-stop."
"All I'm saying is that I've never seen you so interested before. Sure, you're in tune with your emotions and all that mumbo jumbo, but dude, think about the last time you were ever serious about a girl. I've never seen you so smitten."
"Smitten?" Soul turns into Stein's garage parking lot, slowing to stop before kicking out his pedal. Blake slides off, taking off his helmet as he shakes his head so that he doesn't have helmet hair.
"Smitten." He confirms, putting the head protection into the compartment. "I've never seen you flirt with anyone like you do with Maka. And I totally approve, ya know, she's one spectacular lady. I just … I don't know, man. I'm happy for you."
"... thanks, man."
"Don't blow it," he smirks, smacking Soul's shoulder lightly before saluting him with two fingers. "She's way out of your league. Catch ya later."
"Yeah…" Soul sits to think for a moment before readjusting his helmet and pushing off to head back home. Everything Blake had said is true, he really does like Maka. He has since the day they met at the coffee shop. She has his humour and tastes and, God, is she just radiant. He feels his chest tighten at the thought. Could he possibly…? Isn't it a little too soon for that? Would he date her? Yeah, totally. That's what he's aiming for. Would he sleep with her? Well, he's done the sleeping next to her bit already, but he'd sure as hell have sex with her too, under the appropriate circumstances. He can admit that he finds her attractive and that he really likes her, but for how long? He's never felt this way about anyone before, true, but he's been known to kind of … lose a feeling pretty quick. He's not stupid, he knows the point Blake was trying to get across - don't be a sick son-of-a-bitch and break her heart, dirtbag. He sighs as he zips through traffic, turning into his apartment's garage and parking. He had started this without really thinking about what it could turn into. Grabbing her coffee and sitting to flirt with her had been a spontaneous act on his part, and very much out of character, but he hadn't been prepared for this. It was a random feeling that he got when he looked down at her, those wide shamrock eyes looking back at him.
In all honesty, he's been avoiding it - the big, scary L word - out of some deep insecurity and fear that he isn't capable of it. His father sure as fuck isn't capable of it … He has decided not to be anything like his old man. Soul shakes his head, not wanting to think about that - ever. Throwing the thought into the abyss of fire and destruction in his brain, Soul kicks down the pedal and turns off the bike before getting off and heading to the elevator. For now, he'll just try to figure out things with Maka - how he feels about her, how she feels about him - ya know, continue to take things nice and slow before he gets serious. He just wants to be sure … so that he doesn't break her heart. Right now, he doubts he could, he's too smitten.
He pulls out his phone as he steps out of the elevator straight out to his apartment, tapping on Maka's name and starting a message.
"Sooooooo …" Blair leaves the single, drawn-out word to hang in the air as she smirks the smuggest piece of shit smirk that Maka has ever seen and she shrinks away from her, rethinking her life decisions. She thinks Blair is extremely nice, but … she scares her sometimes.
"Sooooooo … what?"
"You know what, don't act coy. Who was that exceptionally attractive young man you came home with last night?"
"Who?" That earns her a look of disapproval and Maka hates that even more than the mischievous twinkle in this woman's eyes. "H-he's just … someone…"
"Someone who stayed overnight," she sing-songs. "Come on, you have to give me more than that."
"Well, … he's, uh… I met him a while back at this coffee shop and - you know, now that I think about it, it was actually pretty hilarious how we met - we ordered the same thing and we kinda stood next to each other awkwardly when the drinks came out and - get this - he took my coffee! Without a word, and just, like, walked away with this smirk on his face. Oh, man, I thought I was about to have an intense confrontation, but he silently led me to this table in the corner and we just kinda, I don't know … hit it off?"
"Oh. My. Gosh… You're in love!"
"What?! No!" Maka can't suppress the rising blush as it ascends up her neck to take over her face. She realizes only now how carried away she is, rambling, thoroughly telling Blair the details of her and Soul's first meeting.
"You've got it bad, girl. I'm so jealous. Aaaahh, young love~ How nice."
"I- we- no!"
"It's best to just accept and embrace … speaking of which, have you two~" Again, the woman leaves her sentence to hang in the air and - Maka isn't stupid, she knows exactly what she's implying and, NO - the insinuation has Maka turning two times as red.
"Blair!" She's pretending to be appalled, but once again, Blair sees right through her.
"That's a solid no," she snorts. "He sure is a cutie, though, and very polite. I approve. What's his name?" All Maka can do is shake her head aggressively in the negative, weighing the pros and cons of hitting her head repeatedly on the desktop. Why does she feel like she's being interrogated? The worst part about this whole situation is the fact that she can walk away at any moment and yet she's just standing here, willingly being berated with questions about Soul. Maybe it's because, even though she's embarrassed, anything that has to do with him has her walking on cloud nine. She has a guy to girl-talk about and she's elated to the moon and back.
'Coffee?' It's only 8:30 when she receives his text and she laughs because same.
'Meet you at Res?'
'Or I can come pick you up ;p' Stupid, sexy, doof.
'Or that XD'
'Be there in 20?'
'30?' She just got out of the shower and needs to get ready. She wants Soul to see her in her thirty-minute routine.
'K. Bring some workout clothes ^^'
'Um … what?'
'Shhhhhh, don't worry 'bout it.'
'...'
He doesn't reply after that, so she's only slightly worried about the coming events. She does what he's asked of her regardless and packs a small bag with gym clothes and sneakers in it. Her outfit plans may suffer - namely her makeup and hair - but so be it. What an odd feeling; she's never been so trusting of anyone before. She must be possessed.
Maka quickly blow dries her hair and opts for loose curls; even messy, they look acceptable, and decides on a more natural makeup look because sweat ruins many, many things she holds dear. Soul has already seen her looking like a slob once today, twice is just too much for her heart to handle. By the time she's done, 20 minutes has passed her by and she scrambles to dress herself before she hears a knock at the door. She only has her underwear on and is jumping into her pants as she yells out her bedroom door.
"Just a secOND!" Awesome … the perfect moment to fall flat on her face. She groans as she wiggles on the floor to pull up her jeans, extremely thankful that Soul can't see her in this sad state.
"... you good? Did you fall?"
"No!" she hisses. "Just dropped something!" She hops up and runs back into her room for a shirt, quickly throwing on the first t-shirt she sees and running to answer the door. "Sorry!" she apologizes as she swings it open, huffing slightly at her misfortune. Soul smiles and then looks shocked, just standing there gaping at her as an awkward smirk glides onto his face. His eyes are directed toward her torso and she automatically covers herself, not thinking to look down at what his fiery gaze could possibly be glued to.
"I'm not sorry," he teases, finally looking up at her face.
"What?"
"Was it on purpose?" He reaches out for the bottom of her shirt as he steps forward, forcing her to stumble back. Soul lets the door close behind him as he yanks at the thin fabric.
"W-was what on purpose?"
"This," he yanks her shirt once more, pulling her slightly to him as he does so. "I was wondering whether it was an invitation … or a mistake?" He hopes it was the former, but he decides to keep that comment to himself. She finally takes the hint and looks down at her shirt and, low and behold, she's wearing a red bra under a black, see-through shirt and, oh god ... her ears are burning. FUCK.
"OH MY GOD!" He's bent over laughing at the way she slices - or more accurately, karate chops - at his hand and runs for her room, slamming the door behind her.
"No need to be embarrassed!" he yells after her.
"SHUT. UP!" Her life is a joke.
It takes quite some time to get her to come out; there's a lot of bribing with food involved and stifling laughter, but the flushed Maka wills herself to leave the safety of her bedroom after about fifteen minutes. She's finding it difficult to look him in the eye, though …
"Sorry," he says, confident and loud. "I shouldn't have teased you … I just, it took me by surprise and I, well, kinda liked it, if I'm being honest …" There's a drawn out silence between the two, both of their cheeks burning. "I guess, maybe, … should I go home?"
"What? No, no! You don't have to go or anything I, uh, … I'm just a bit embarrassed, is all. I was in such a hurry to finish getting ready that I wasn't even paying attention to my clothes." Maka buries her face in the couch pillows as she flops down, curling up into the cushions. Soul chuckles as she does so, taking fucking chances as he sits down at the other end by her feet.
"Well, … I for one enjoye-oof!" Pillow to the face. He stares blankly at her for a moment before she throws another one at him, no real malice behind her swing. In fact, he catches her lips quivering to hold back her smirk - it isn't working - and he grabs a pillow himself. "I admit, I deserve both of those, but throw a third and you're gonna get it."
"Is that a threat?" she challenges, grabbing another pillow.
"You bet your hiney, it is." Pillow to the fucking face. "Ohhh-hohohooo, … it's on." He opens fire, making sure not to hit her too hard. She's like a fucking ninja, though, what the fuck? He has absolutely no idea how she dodges that and manages to hit him yet again. He allows his jaw to drop open comically as the last pillow falls from his face, making her snort. She's fucking cute as shit, holy moly. They're still sitting on opposite sides of the same couch, but he thinks he might have an advantage if he stands. He grabs two of the offending plushies and towers over her. As soon as he's up, so is she, running from him as she giggles and squeals. He has no other choice but to give chase.
"No, no, no, no, no, no!" She zips to her room, but Soul is too close behind her for her to shut the door - him and his damned tall person advantages - so she jumps for her big, bed pillows instead, arming herself. As she turns to hold them up over her head, Soul launches himself in her direction, his arms wrapping around her waist as he takes her down with an, "Oof!" They tumble, Soul barely managing to save himself from falling off the edge by rolling them back the other way. They're both laughing hysterically as Maka tries but fails to hit him with the exact pillow they had shared last night. Soul lightheartedly brushes her hand aside.
"Don't even think about it," he snorts from above. She's still giggling and all he can do is smile as he appreciates the wrinkles by her eyes alongside the tears from her laughter, her smile lighting up her face. She's absolutely beautiful in every way that he's seen thus far and he can't get enough of her. There's this way about her that captivates and draws him in, much like right now. Soul catches himself before his head can dip any further down toward her laughing face. His treacherous hands are already on her waist and he curses to himself. Soul has never felt like this for anyone before, sure he's had a thing here and there, but they had all ended partially because it just didn't feel right and because they had moved too fast. This would be moving too fast, and he didn't want this feeling he had for Maka to stop.
Busy swarming his mind with thoughts of his grandma and all of her cats - he can't put a number on them, they always seem to multiply - he doesn't notice soon enough how her eyes stare up at him, wide with curiosity and expectation. Quick - think. Without a second thought, his fingers crawl about her stomach, attacking her with tickles.
"Aaaaahhhh, no! Stoooohahahahahaaaaapppp! Eeeeeeeee!" Her voice comes out high pitched as she attempts to wriggle out of his grasp, her arms flailing about before her hands connect with his torso. Much like a fish out of water, Soul flops off of the bed, his arms straight to his sides as his body goes rigid. It is truly a sight to behold. Maka is looking down at him from her perch on the bed, ready to attack if needed. Her hair is tousled about and her breathing laboured. Soul is laying face down on the floor, arms still strictly at his sides.
"Truce?" he says into the carpet.
"What? Already?"
"... until further notice?" He absolutely despises being tickled; sue him.
"Baby …" She's giggling as she gets up and makes her way to the kitchen, lightly tapping his ankle with her toes like she had the night before. He grumbles before finally pushing himself up to follow her.
"I am man enough to admit to that," he announces confidently. She whips around at how close his voice sounds, but he's still standing over by her door, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed; that stupid, addictively attractive smirk cast over his face. 'And what a man he is.' Her mouth is dry, too dry, so she turns to fill up the glass in her hand with water; she is parched. She brings it to her lips, tilting her head back as she gulps the liquid down, and Soul can't tear his eyes from her jugular. His heart skips for a moment as he indulges before he consciously fills his brain with Gram-Gram and her cats, Pooky, Chichi, and Doe. He lets out a shaky breath, stepping away from the wall, and shuffles awkwardly until she's finished her drink.
"On that note," he announces as she sets her glass down. "Are you all ready to go get coffee?"
"Oh," she hesitates, not sure if she really wants to leave the privacy that her apartment gives them in favour of Res. She likes coffee, she likes Res, but she likes being alone with him way fucking more … "Uh, yeah. Just let me grab a few things first." Maka makes her way past him to her bedroom and grabs her gym bag and purse, making sure she has her phone, wallet, and keys inside before returning to find Soul patiently waiting over by the balcony. He's looking straight out at the building across the street with no real interest with his arms crossed over his chest. The high sun is reflecting off of the many windows outside to shine into the room, illuminating his already dazzling features. She's feeling a bit light headed at the sight of him just standing there and she wonders just how she's been able to comfortably interact with this man until now. A shuffle of her bags has him turning to return her gaze far too quickly and she has to force herself not to divert her eyes when meeting his lava abruptly.
"All ready?"
"Yup," she flashes a smile, attempting to hide just how enthralled she is with him.
"Good. You have a backpack."
"I figured it'd be easier on the motorcycle."
"You'd be correct." He adorns a toothy grin she's only seen on him a handful of times. His smirk is to die for, but this grin of his is faint-worthy. She bites her lip and nods toward the door, tucking stray hair behind her ear as she goes to slip on her shoes.
"So, what surprise do you have in store for me?" He's holding the door for her as she double checks to make sure she has everything.
"Well, it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you what it was, now would it?"
She thinks that this is the first moment in the entirety of their … friendship(?) - or something like that - that she decided not cared for Soul. Why? Basketball … the surprise is basketball. Maka has never played the sport in her entire life. Maka is a fantastic bowler, play at your own risk when battling her at chess, but basketball? She can't - no - she won't embarrass herself in front of him a third time today.
"You look like a deer caught in headlights," he laughs, dribbling the ball as he walks - like it's so easy.
"You promised this would be fun …"
"I did, because it is." She gives him a dead stare, making him gulp just a bit. "Or … at least, I think it is …"
"Well … I guess I wouldn't know, really."
"I'm sorry, what?"
"I … I have a confession to make …" Soul waits patiently, placing the ball on his hip as a long, bare, muscular arm hangs languidly over it to keep it in place. It's so god damned distracting. "I've never actually played basketball."
"... like … ever?"
"Not once." Soul's face lights up at that, something obviously piquing his interest. Maka suddenly hosts a very heavy feeling of foreboding, her feet stepping back from him on their own. "Stop looking at me like that, it's weirding me out," she groans. "Can't we do something else?"
"Sorry, but no can do. I won our little bet the other day and this is my reward." She gasps as soon as the words leave his smug lips, a hand laying over her chest.
"I trusted you."
"You shouldn't have." Him and his smart mouth have her trying to hold back a smile, once again, failing miserably. Damn, even when she's mad at him, she can't be, not really. He's too cute to stay mad at. He's like a puppy - pees on the floor and you cuddle him as you clean it. Maka shakes her head because, no, he's much more like a wolf in sheep's clothing, the traitor.
"I won't be much of an opponent, so …"
"Oh, now that I know you really don't know jack shit about basketball," he steps in closer, holding the ball behind his back as he leans forward. "I'll have plenty of fun teaching you." Yikes, so seductive is his voice and so sultry are his lips. She's absolutely and undeniably done for.
"I'm not so sure you will," she smirks, attempting to hide away her rapidly beating heart at their proximity. "I can be a handful." Aaaaand she shouldn't have said that because his eyes drag up and down her body as slow as slow can fucking get, an eyebrow-raising at whatever the hell his sexy ass is thinking. She just knows he's got something smart to say and all she can do is wait for it, possibly prepare herself for the words to drip from his sly mouth so that her reaction won't be quite as tremendous.
"I'm sure you are." Fuck. He meant it sexually, she knows he did. "But I guess I won't know until we get started." She's panting. Lord, have mercy on her soul.
An hour later and she can comfortably dribble while skipping around; it's actually pretty fun. She's missed every shot she's thrown, her aim is shit, but she's pretty good at defense, she finds.
"Let's work on your shooting," he chuckles, grabbing the ball as it comes back down from yet another failed attempt at getting the damn ball into the fucking basket. They couldn't have made it just the slightest bit bigger? No? Soul ushers her over to the free-throw line, handing her the ball before stepping behind her and her heart won't shut the fuck up. She's pretty sure her whole body is thumping with anticipation as his hands smooth over her hips. He taps her feet with his, trying to spread them.
"Legs shoulder width apart. Relax, but don't slouch." His hands graze up her sides to her shoulders, pleading with them to chill the fuck out with his magical hands as he massages her lightly. He then finds his way down her arms and over her hands that hold the ball, lifting them together. "Hold the ball like this, your dominant hand under and your supportive hand on the side- oh … are you a lefty?" he asks, noticing how she rolls the ball so that her left hand is underneath it.
"Yeah. I can write with my right, but it was slammed in a car door when I was a kid, so it goes numb if I hold a pencil for too long."
"Wowza, sorry to hear that." He manages to mimic her position, not all that used to using his left hand to shoot. "Did you break it? Your hand, I mean."
"Yeah, not too bad, but bad enough … anyways, I had to learn how to use my left hand so here I am. So, … now what?" She can't take it anymore. His chest is so close to her back that she can feel the heat radiating off of him, making her squirm in his lose containment.
"Ah, um, so when you lift the ball to shoot, don't look over the ball. Use the window under it, like this." Their arms lift so that she can see the basket from underneath the ball, making her hum in understanding. "Give yourself enough push and line up with the basket with your dom hand. When you release, you want the ball to spin by using your middle and pointer fingers to aim." Soul momentarily takes the ball from her to show her what he means, only pushing it up above for it to land back into his grasp. She watches as shows her how he bends his knee in a slight jump before pushing up and shooting the ball.
"Here, give it a try." He steps behind her again, toes guiding her feet apart once more as a hand lands on her hip, the other on her right shoulder. Trying desperately not to think about his hands, he follows his instructions and bends, bringing the ball up above her head as she aims to shoot. She doesn't give it enough momentum to make it to the basket, but the arch it makes while it spins in the air is really pretty.
"Good! That was perfect, just a bit more oomph behind it and it would've gone in!" He goes to get the ball, bringing it back to her. "One more time." She takes it from him, keeping everything he's taught her in mind before throwing it up and into the hoop with a whoosh.
"Oh, my god! Did you see that? I just scored!" she squeals as her arms go up in triumph before reaching out for him, almost tackling him to the ground. She doesn't even realize how her arms embrace him by themselves, her body spinning them in her excitement. "That was awesome! I want to do it again." She quickly steps away from him for the ball, going back to shoot again and again until she's finally tired of it. She also doesn't notice how quiet and content Soul is just staring at her, a handsome smirk on his face. She huffs as she makes another basket, a huge, glorious smile on her face.
"Ready to play?" he asks, grabbing the ball for her.
"What are we playing for?" She's acting coy as he passes the ball to her, obvious amusement in her face. His hands go to his hips, smiling as he bites his bottom lip.
"What? Think you can win against me?"
"Maybe, maybe not." She shrugs, shooting and swishing the ball again with a smirk. "Guess we'll have to play and find out."
"Is this going to be one of those things where you actually are fantastic at ball and went to nationals when you were in high school and all that bull, because if so, I will pay you back tenfold." She laughs wholeheartedly, her body shaking.
"No," she shakes her head. "I honest to God have never played basketball before today."
"... Alright then. Same bet as before - anything the winner wants."
"Deal."
He's been holding back this entire time, the fucker. He moves so well and the score is already seven to four. If she were better at stealing the ball from him, she probably would've been in the lead, or at least have an even score; her aim is now much better after learning how to shoot properly. He's like a magician, though; every time she thinks she has him, he somehow manages to evade her and make a shot.
"You could hold back a little, you snot," she huffs, supporting herself on her knees as she catches her breath.
"I thought you were the type to get pissed if I were to take it easy on you." He's smirking. She both hates and adores it. "You need to keep your eye on the ball."
"What do you think I've been doing this whole time?" she snorts, rolling her eyes. "It's my ball, isn't it?"
"It is," he agrees, bouncing it to her as he prepares himself. "Not that I'll let you make another shot."
"You have no choice in the matter." Maka begins to dribble forward, her right arm out to keep him away from the ball. "I will defeat you."
"Highly unlikely." Swish. Take that, ya turd. She loves that faking move he had shone her. She sticks her tongue out playfully as she walks away toward the ball. "Why you …"
"You taught me too well," she says, shaking her head. "You shouldn't have tried to play fair."
"Alright then. If you want me to play dirty, I can most certainly do that." She doesn't take him seriously until a while later when they start what could be the last play if he scores. It's her ball again and she's doing really well keeping it from him, but his hands. Fucking hell. He definitely knows how to play dirty. His hands are on her, he's pushing his body up against her back - his hot, sweaty, muscular body, good Lord - and she's finding it exceedingly hard to focus. His defense is no joke. Neither are his abs.
"What's wrong, earth goddess? You're acting like your feet are stuck to the ground."
She looks up quickly to shoot back a sassy remark only to have her nose accidentally brush against his. It takes her completely by surprise, not at all having been aware of how close he is. Seems that in trying to take the ball from her, he had had to lean down so far to reach that it brought his face almost parallel to hers. They stay close for a moment - almost close enough to be kissing - both of their eyes wide as they stare at one another. She's the first to break under the pressure of his overwhelming currant stare, her hold on the ball letting up as she bashfully looks away. She can feel her cheeks heating up and really doesn't want him to witness just how red she can get. Before she can pull her hand away completely, she feels a single finger wrap itself around her index finger and she bites her lip.
"Like I said, …" he mutters, the breath from his speech tickling her ear. "You should keep your eye on the ball." All at once, his large, muscular hands disappear from over her slender fingers, along with the basketball she had so desperately been attempting to keep away from him. She's too slow to take action against him, turning just in time to witness the magical way that Soul scores his last needed point to win their bet with an amazing dunk. It all happens in slow motion for her as he glides through the air before shoving the ball into the hoop. He hangs for a short moment and it's like time is standing still until he drops from the basket and looks over his shoulder at her, that smug smirk of his on his dumb, dumb face. He uses his shirt to wipe sweat from his chin, the sight of his sweat glistening abs nearly giving her a heart attack.
"My win again, Albarn." Fuck … there's no mistaking it, she's fucking in love with him …
I really should finish my current stories before starting other ones. I've recently gotten into the Frozen - specifically Anna x Kristoff - fandom and have been sprouting ideas non-stop... I apologize, you all deserve better.
I hope you all enjoyed that chapter! Don't forget to feed me some love! I always look forward to your thoughts and theories on what will happen next! And as always, don't be scared to point out spelling/grammatical errors, just don't be a jerk about it.
Author's note: So, some of you may already know, but I'll be traveling through South Korea and Japan for three months come September! I'm extremely excited about it! I will be starting a blog for while I'm there and possibly after, as I really like to travel. I'll make sure to let you all know when I get it up and running. I also wanted to let you all know that I now have a Tumblr (koreantrash101MuchLove-kt) and Twitter (koreantrash101) if any of you would like to follow me :)
Again, thank you all so much for supporting and encouraging me!
Much Love~!
k.t.
