Soul had sent her in the house to pick up Shelley, the strangest order from him she'd ever received in her life but as Stein passed her on the stoop and slipped into the passenger seat she'd just vacated she understood. Which means he must be upset with himself, right? That's what Marie said and she's never been wrong about him yet. Though, it's jealousy, right? That's what's eating me as he talks to Franken instead of me… Maka forced that thought to drift off as she entered the living room, an overjoyed Marie clasping her around the shoulders. "Thank you for taking my child!"
"Hey!" Shelley grasped onto her mother's shirt, giving it a shake.
"Baby, I love you, but it's something you'll understand when you're older." Marie released Maka, glancing around her. "Where's your roommate?"
A pang shivered through Maka's heart as she tried to keep a smile on her face. "Franken's talking to him in the car."
Marie's eyebrows narrowed. "Shelley, get your things together upstairs for a second."
"I have my things," Shelley spat back.
"Upstairs and count to one hundred," Marie murmured as Shelley huffed back up the stairs. When the tiny footsteps were finally quiet Marie sighed, "Are you two OK to take her today?"
"I'm fine," Maka attempted but she watched the words easily tattered under Marie's glare. "Medusa threatened me. Soul's trying to figure it out, or at least that's what he's asked me to stay out of."
"Damn it," Marie muttered as she paused to press a hand to her mouth. "Listen… Soul…" She hesitated again as a trembling sigh left her mouth. "I'm sure he'll figure something out. And I know I don't have the right or the place to beg for this, but please don't give up on him."
"I counted to one hundred!" Shelley shouted from the top of the stairs.
"Two-" Marie started but Maka waved it off.
"Come on, Shelley, let's go," Maka called. "I'll talk to you later, Marie."
"Well, both of you better be planning on staying for dinner when you get back, so I'll see you then," Marie huffed.
"Alright," Maka offered a soft smile as she turned to follow behind Shelley. The young girl was bounding for the car, opening the back passenger side door without hesitation. She could hear the girl's squeal and Soul's acknowledgment before Stein exited the car.
As he walked towards her, his face seemed blank, that apathy that she used to see on Soul far too often. "Maka, a moment."
"What is it?" That couldn't be anything but soft as her stomach felt like it left her.
"I will give you the same advice I gave him." Stein paused as he sent a glance back towards the house, reading something at the door that Maka couldn't see. "Medusa's favorite is never physical pain. Her pleasure is watching you hurt yourself, and the easiest way to do that is mental. I'll ask you as this continues to try to react with your head first instead of your heart. I know how impossible that can be, but being tangled up in your feelings is the most dangerous weapon that Medusa has." There was no better punctuation than Stein continuing his walk to the house, leaving Maka simply watching after him.
"Come on, Maka!" Shelley called excitedly as she rolled down her window.
"Coming," Maka called as she hurried to the car and slipped into the passenger seat. She risked a glance at Soul, finding his eyes almost too much to bear. There was that longing in his stare again, the look that made her fingers just ache to touch him. All she could do was let her hand inch closer to his on the shift, touching his fingers tentatively. "Soul…"
"Let's get going. If Black Star beats us there I'll never hear the end of it." He put the car into drive and let his hand slide into hers as his eyes focused on the road. He kept them there along with his thoughts, leaving Maka to be the voice that answered Shelley's for the first hour. The only message that left him was the tensing of his fingers, the grip on hers that wouldn't let go, even if his mind was supplying him with all the reasons he should. Isn't that what Stein meant when he said head instead of heart? That right now, I shouldn't give in to those feelings, let them be what leads me because all that does is put her further into danger.
He seemed to press that anxious message into her hands and Maka turned her look from over to shoulder to him. "Will we be there soon?"
"Another hour," he murmured. Which was nothing more than time for his sinking thoughts and frantic scenarios. Usually talking to Stein left the world clarified or at least Soul set straight while the world itself might be off-kilter, but all Soul had at this point was more questions as Medusa's offer slithered through his mind. Even worse was pulling up to the house, not only seeing Black Star already sitting on the porch but just feeling the ghosts there invading his mind, the whispers of memories he didn't exactly need at the moment.
"Brother!" Shelley was practically out of the car before it stopped, sprinting for the stairs and a smiling Black Star.
He released Maka's hand to put the car in park but she grabbed his arm, halting him in his seat. "When you get out there, shower Shelley with a little love. You've been in your head the whole car ride and I think she's worried." I'm worried, too, but that probably goes without saying at this point.
"Will do," he murmured before slipping from her grasp. Soul hated how right she was, another useless flare of anger at the inequity in the world taking him as he emerged from the car, squinting against the sun. Maka followed close behind him as they moved up the weedy walk to the porch.
It was definitely one of those sprawling farm-houses, stark white clapboard accented by cobblestone around its base. The porch spanned the entirety of the house before disappearing around the side. There was enough of a clearing around the house to be called a yard but the rest was thick with antediluvian woods that screamed unexplored and untouched. Maka had slowed, her eyes trailing along the outside of the house to try to make sense of its size.
"The day I'm actually on time you're late," Black Star snorted a laugh.
"Sorry," Soul threw out weakly before he motioned towards the house. "You two think you can handle starting in there? I'm going to get to the yard first."
"As long as I'm getting paid what I'm promised." Black Star crossed his arms and Shelley mirrored him, shaking her head firmly in agreement.
"Beer and cake in the cooler in the truck. But I'm not opening it until I see some work," Soul smirked as the two grumbled. In between complaints, the siblings moved into the house and Maka began to follow, her foot getting on the stairs before she felt him grab her wrist. "Maybe you can work in the cottage today."
"The cottage?" Maka glanced along the lines of the house again, finding no other building in sight.
"Come this way." He released her and started the walk around the far side of the house, the one mostly obscured on their drive up. Maka hurried after him, feet catching in the tall grass as she tried to follow in his footsteps. A grating sound of hesitation came from the back of his throat but the words finally budged, "She used to joke that this is where I'd live when I got older."
Something tells me this might actually suit him. The quiet, the stillness. The stone cottage sitting behind the farmhouse seemed to solidify that fantasy for her. The idea of a cottage seemed to bring to mind a tiny hobbit hole but this was a house in its own right but at least cozy, seemingly the right size for a family rather than the estate that sat behind them. "You still have time," Maka murmured to him as she caught up, staying barely a step to his right.
That only brought a sigh to his lips as he motioned towards the door. "The library's in there like promised. When you're done snooping, there's plenty of shit to be sorted in the bedroom. Just make it look like you did something or the other two will mutiny."
"Don't worry, I'm not here to slack." Her fingers danced down his arm, finishing by a soft touch to his fingers that didn't catch as he turned from her. "If you need help in the yard, let me know."
"Yeah," he muttered as he waved her off and started back towards the front of the house.
Maka lingered to watch him disappear before heading into the cottage. The rooms flowed easily into one another as her feet made the hardwood squeal. There was a dining room to her left but the true treasure was to her right, dark walnut shelves lined the walls, all of them with only a respite at the windows were perfectly placed window seats offered comfort and natural light. There were titles old and new, tattered spines sandwiched between freshly pressed. It would take time to peruse through the entirety of it and Maka felt herself suddenly hitting Soul's mood, feeling that desperate pull of what could happen. Maybe I'll never get the chance, but she pushed that away and took another few minutes to glance before ascending the stairs.
Soul had been right, there was clutter. It was nothing like those shows on A&E where floor to ceiling was stuffed but there were plenty of lingering memories, piles, and objects at every turn. Organizing was her hope but first, she needed to open the windows, letting the fall air into the stuffy rooms. She didn't catch sight of Soul but the drone of the mower was somewhere, telling her he was busy just as she should be. In the fresh air and her not so bright thoughts, Maka started tackling the problem at hand. It was long and tedious with no real direction but Maka managed to box what looked important and put the rest into more sensible piles or the trash.
The simplicity of the assignment let her mind wander, touching over and over on every moment of that night. Soul never hesitated at her touch, letting her set any pace that she wanted but there was a reserve in him that he refused to break. What that reserve was became the resounding question especially since he had broken it that night. He had reached for her, but the switch was back beyond neutral. And maybe there's a purpose to that. We're both supposed to be thinking with our heads, not our hearts, and touching him dissolves any rational thought.
"Thought you'd still be in the library," his voice cut clear through her thoughts and made her jump out of her skin. A tiny rumble of a laugh followed her sharp intake of breath. "Sorry. Didn't mean to surprise you."
Maka turned slowly to find another surprise that tossed her brain back into a fury. His shirt was stuck to him and his hair was a hand-tossed mess. It would be laughable if her head wasn't already perseverating on the idea of his touch. She could barely fathom putting together a sentence and only managed, "Are you finished?"
"The mowing, yeah, but stopped in for a drink before I went back to hit the weeds."
"Is there water in here?" she managed to bring forth a playful smile.
He snorted a laugh, "Like I said, thought you'd still be buried in books so I was worried." He crossed the floor and Maka stood as he reached her, the hand he was about to offer untaken. "And maybe I couldn't stop thinking while I was mowing."
"I think it's safe to say you never stop thinking," Maka corrected. "Does that mean you're going to tell me?"
His tongue snapped against the roof of his mouth before a frustrated sigh followed, "Maka…"
"Because it's hurting you. And I was hopeful today that when you saw Franken it would fix things like always, but instead, you just seem worse." Her hands hovered towards him but hesitated. "What are you so afraid of telling me?"
Soul caught those indecisive hands at the wrist, pinning them to the wall behind her as he took a step into her space. "That I'm selfish." He tapped her wrists against the wall again to punctuate but his grip loosened, feeling as her fingers slipped past his palm to free her hands that were no longer hesitant. Instead, her arms wrapping around his neck, pulling her cheek to cheek with him. "I'm goddamn selfish and no matter what I plan on doing you're going to get hurt."
"Then it is selfish to plan without me," she murmured against his ear and her voice had never sounded so electric to him even if the words themselves were like daggers. His skin felt prickly against hers, sweat making them feel stuck together. She dipped her head to his shoulder, the smell of fresh clippings hitting her nose.
His hands weren't gripping into her, instead clenching against the wall as she held him. "Maka, you said… you couldn't hate me. Do you think that's still the truth?"
She didn't hesitate for a second, "Yes."
His heart was thundering in her ear as one hand pulled back from the wall and touched her shoulder before grasping desperately as he turned his head so their cheeks met again. There was a molecule of space between his lips and her jaw, his shaky breath saturating her skin with heat. Maka was holding her breath as the hand at her shoulder slid slowly up to her neck and then into her hair. As the fingers tangled there she let them move her, tilting her head back. Now it was his sigh almost against her lips as he murmured, "I'm selfish because all I want-"
The door slammed below them, Shelley's voice trickling up the stairwell, "Maka, I'm hungry!"
All of it was like a ghost of a memory because in a flash he was practically at the doorway again, his fist slamming into the wall as he exited. "I got it, Shelley," his voice grumbled from the stairs.
"Where's Maka?"
"Working hard, unlike you…" and the rest was cut off by the door again.
The air that had been squeezing in her lungs finally released and Maka let her knees buckle, sending her to a hard seat on the floor. There was no doubt in her mind as to what he was about to do, the pre-emptive tingle still burning on her lips, but a slow ache replaced it as the minutes ticked by. He's selfish? She tried to wrap her mind around that admission and the lost opportunity. I wish he'd be more selfish.