Hello hello! Tea here! So sorry for such a long wait! I don't even remember when it happened, but all of a sudden my life got super crazy. Then I ended up getting really rundown and now I'm sick. So, I forced myself to finish this chapter despite not being able to breath out of my nose. I would've finished earlier today had I not played Bioshock Infinite for LIKE 5 HOURS. (If you haven't already, GET THE GAME) I'm proud to say I'm a hardcore gamer, and the Bioshock series is my favorite. I hope I haven't lost all my followers in my absence! I read all the recent comments and oh gosh you guys are the best! I love hearing from everyone about each chapter! Speaking of, I really hope you enjoy it! Comments and Reviews are appreciated!

Chapter Fourteen . Touch

- Maka -

Sunlight splashed down from the sky, dribbled through the treetops and on the ground below. One of these sunbeams conveniently glaring on Maka's face causing her eyes to squint, even in sleep, until at last she cracked them open. Maka's vision gradually sharpened, and the first thing she noticed was not her lush surroundings but a disheveled white bush instead. She raised her head, bobbing it tiredly in attempt to focus her attention on the white. It was Soul's hair, the stark color sticking out like a painfully sore thumb in the midst of jungle. ...Soul's hair? Maka's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and she quickly snapped her head around in all directions to better reassess her current situation.

Soul's arm draped heavily around her waist, his other thrown carelessly beside him. His legs were sprawled out, creating a convenient crook for Maka's legs to rest between. Soul's head rested on a moss clump, his hair spraying around his face in a bed head mess. His mouth hung open, allowing deep breaths to stream in and out past his razor-sharp teeth. At some point during the night one of her pig-tails must have fallen out, because her hair splayed down on the ground with all kinds of twigs and moss clumps in it.

Maka sighed, and propped herself up on Soul's chest. As much as she wanted to get back to the house and shower, she couldn't bring herself to wake Soul up. Not only that, but his heavy arm draped over her waist restrained any kind of escape. So, for the meantime Maka had to play the waiting game...something she was terrible at.

She released a deep yawn and flicked her emerald eyes back on her sleeping partner. His eyes remained shut, shadowed by his hair. Maka rested her elbow on his chest, and placed her cheek in her scraped palm. She inspected his face, idly watching the way his bottom lip quivered slightly as he released a breath... Maka stiffened, and her eyes widened as memories from last night suddenly flooded into her head. Her mouth dropped open and she slapped her hand over it to restrain herself from releasing a strangled cry.

She had kissed Soul.

-Wait, no. He kissed her. Didn't he? Maka gaped, unable to close her mouth. They had kissed, give or take who leaned in first. Book-smart, Maka-chopping, death-scythe Meister Maka Albarn kissed Soul Eater Evans. Her first kiss, at that. Maka glanced down at his lips once more, now remembering the feel of them on hers. They were surprisingly soft. Maka's blush darkened as she hung her head shamefully for allowing herself to think in such a way. Now that she did recall the incident, Maka couldn't help but think Soul must have felt pressured into doing so. What else could he do having a girl cry like she did? Maka groaned quietly, feeling even more embarrassed. She was foolish to think that there were any kind of feelings behind the kiss. He was only trying to comfort her. And besides, they were partners, a relationship that went no further than Weapon and Meister.

Of course, that's not what Maka really wanted. She had always cared for Soul, even when they first became partners. She trusted him, not just as a Weapon in battle, but as the only man in her life worth trusting. Not only that, but she was constantly in tap with his soul wavelength. It was impossible for her to not regard him specially, because she was always so close to his soul. Although there were some things she couldn't understand about him, they both suffered from the black blood at some point, so she even had an idea of the darkness that resided deeply within him. Maka was dense when it came to love, so it took a few more years for her to realize that these feelings went past mere respect. Luckily for her, Soul was just as dense. Or rather, unobservant toward these feelings. Maka tried her best to keep them at bay, hidden deep within herself, but in a relationship where their lives were constantly in danger, and safety was only ensured in the complete trust of one another it was next to impossible to hide something from him.

So why had she kept these feelings hidden for so long? The obvious, of course. Soul would never feel the same way she felt about him. And, if he were to find out, their relationship from there on would go haywire. Maka couldn't bear to lose him, so keeping her feelings a secret seemed like the best thing to do. So she carried the weight of keeping it from him, and accepted the fact that their relationship wouldn't grow past a partnership. However, with recent instances, Maka doubted where that line was, and she struggled more than anything to understand what was going through his mind. For example, their new sleeping arrangements back in Death City, even now, with Soul sprawled beneath her, -or more importantly, last night. Was there any other reasons behind his kiss than just to comfort her? She would never know until he woke up, but even that frightened her. How would he react once he saw her? Would he treat her any differently?
Maka frowned, as doubts clouded over her. She let out a deep sigh and extended her hand toward his face. Making sure not to disturb him, she carefully brushed his hair with her fingertips. She would have continued to do so too, had she not heard a low grumble from the back of his throat. Maka immediately whipped away her hand, her face guiltily heating up.

Soul stirred beneath her, slowly retracting his arms to rub his face. Maka scrambled off him immediately, finally set free. She settled back down a safe distance away from him and took advantage of his sleepiness to recompose herself. "G-Good morning."

Soul sat up, and yawned deeply. He opened his eyes and rubbed away the sleepy tears that bubbled in the corners of them. His hair was completely disheveled with moss clumps in it. He wiped away the drool from his chin and flicked his hazy crimson eyes on Maka.

Maka stiffened underneath his gaze and glanced at her hands in her lap. "Good morning, Soul." She repeated with warming cheeks. Maka was nearly about to cry mercy under his heavy silence until at last he spoke.

"I gotta piss."

And with that, he stumbled to his feet and wobbled off, disappearing into the brush ahead of them.

Maka's mouth hung open as she stared after him. Her face heated up in embarrassment and frustration. They had kissed, slept in each others arms and the first thing he said was that?! She jumped to her feet and scowled angrily. She was upset, not just by his behavior but for even allowing herself to think anything would change. With a hot face and tight jaw, Maka grabbed the Malulem from its hiding place and stomped off.

"Oi, Maka! Wait up!" Came Soul's gruff voice from behind.

She quickened her pace.

The walk back to their house was silent for the most part. Occasionally Soul would question Maka's silence. He would ask if her wounds hurt, or if she wanted to stop and rest. Maka knew that wasn't his reason for prying. He merely wanted to know why she was so infuriated with him. And she was. Maka had never been so irritated by someone, well, other than her Papa. Needless to say, she answered all his questions with a head-bob of acknowledgement. If that. Eventually he took the hint, but Maka could still hear him shuffle behind her and sigh deeply which only meant that he was seriously thinking. A pang of guilt would creep up on her every so often though. It's not like he could know why she was so upset. But soon her anger would spark once more and she would strut off brimming with smoke.

They reached the village and stopped to restock on food. It involved some conversation, but Maka made sure to make her words crisp and short. Like the way her mother used toward her father, back when she was still young. When at last they reached the house, the sun was just beginning to dip down in the sky. Maka unlocked the door and opened it to their luxurious, vacant house. She couldn't help but sigh wearily, at last allowing some of her true exhaustion show. The serene vacation home made her want nothing more than to shower and curl up in bed. They shuffled into the kitchen and dropped the food bags.

"I'm going to shower." Maka informed her partner curtly, and swiveled quickly to make her exit.

"Maka, wait." Soul replied, reaching for her.

Maka stepped away from him and walked out the back door without a word. She opened the door to the Master bedroom and grabbed her bathrobe, immediately disregarding her filthy tethered clothes in the trash bin. Grabbing her toiletries, she left the room and continued her way around the house to the bathroom.

The bathroom made her slightly uncomfortable, considering how open it was. It was a luxurious outdoor bathroom, and even though no one from the village was close, the idea of bathing out in the open made her nervous. The bathroom was made of stone and marble for the most part, built around the back bend of the house. It consisted of a single sink, toilet and shower, all of which were scarcely covered from view. The shower extended from the back wall of the house like two arms, creating a slanted semi-circle. It was surprisingly spacious inside, the smooth walls dappled with flat shower heads. There was some coverage from the sides, but caught at the right angle and Maka would be totally exposed. It had no back, for the single reason of the breath-taking view it would block if there was one. From the shower, Maka could look down at the jungle, see a stretch of beach, ocean and other mountainous islands in the distance.

Maka released a breath and tugged at her tangled pig-tails. She bent forward to flick on the water and shed off her robe but a voice caught her attention. Soul's.

Maka choked on a scream and jumped up, clutching at her robe as her entire face flushed. "S-Soul! What are you doing?!" She squeaked out.

Soul's hands immediately went up and his face reddened seeing her clad in a robe. His gaze flicked up quickly, but uncertainty, as if to gauge her reaction. "S-Sorry!" He started, "I just wanted to apologize." His voice softened and his gaze fell to his feet. "For upsetting you earlier today," he frowned as if wanting to say more, "and this too." He added in a bit sheepishly, flicking his hand toward her appearance.

"You waited until now to tell me that?!" Maka exclaimed, her face still bright red. She huffed, and recollected herself. "I accept your apology Soul, but you didn't have to." Maka desperately searched for an answer to explain herself without exposing her feelings. Or rather, exposing any more of herself than what already was.

Soul frowned slightly, his cryptic maroon eyes steadily measuring Maka's gaze. "Maka?"

Maka's chest tightened and she glanced away from him, afraid of being caught. She studied the ocean view, watching as the setting sun's rays reflected off the waves.

"Come here."

Maka flicked her gaze back on Soul, appraising the tiny wooden stool he had placed just outside the shower. Her eyebrows arched up curiously.

"Just sit. Trust me?" He said, his last word curving up into a quiet question.

Maka obliged, meekly. She sat down on the stool, tightly tugging at her robe. She was surprised to hear the water flick on. Maka whirled around with wide emerald eyes.

"-gah, shit!" Soul jumped around, surprised by the water spraying from the walls, not the top.

Maka burst out into laughter, bubbles of giggles getting caught in the back of her throat. By the time he found the off switch his clothes were soaked and white hair drooped over his eyes and face.

"Damn." He grumbled, unhappy with his newly wet apparel. He flicked his crimson eyes back on Maka and he watched as she laughed. A small grin tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Maka covered her mouth to hide her giggles. She smiled back, noting the faint pink dusting on his cheeks.

"Alright, alright. Turn back around." He said with a slight chuckle.

Maka did, and rested her hands in her lap. She heard the water flick on once more, but this time from above. A small splat by her side caught her attention. She glanced down and her hackles raised in embarrassment when she identified the noise for Soul's wet shirt beside her. "S-Soul?" She squeaked, her face reddening once more.

He made a grumble of acknowledgement, but nothing more. She could hear him shuffle around behind her. Shinigami, if he was taking off his pants Maka would die of embarrassment.

"Lean your head back."

This threw her off. Maka titled her head back and released a small gasp when warm water hit her hair. Chills suddenly spread along her body when she felt Soul's long fingers weave in her hair.

"You've got moss, twigs, and pebbles in here, you'll never be able to get everything out by yourself." Soul murmured in a cool voice, right behind her shoulders. Maka suppressed a shudder.

He spent some time fingering through her tangled hair, delicately plucking away at the dirt that clumped within it. The hot water felt wonderful on her scalp. Maka closed her eyes and eventually relaxed enough so that some water trickled down her face without stirring her.
Soul was quiet behind her, even as he reached for her shampoo and drizzled it on his palms. When she felt his occasional cool breath on the back of her neck, goosebumps rose. He lathered her hair with the shampoo, gently massaging through her hair in circular motions. His fingers reached her scalp and he rubbed her temples before sliding them back around her ears.

Maka sat motionless, slightly drooping back into him in a near-sleep state. She felt his fingers trail down her head, behind her ears and she released a soft noise of contentment from the back of her throat. His hands suddenly paused, just long enough for Maka to question if it had happened or not. She heard a short breath from Soul, but that too could've been her imagination. His hand smoothed over her hair, letting water fall from it.

"Maka." Soul murmured just over the streaming water.

Maka slowly blinked open her eyes, upon hearing her name. Her vision was slightly distorted and her head leaned up against something. She rubbed them weakly, surprised by how sleepy she felt. She swiveled around to Soul and stiffened when she realized their intimate proximity. Her emerald eyes trailed down to his bare chest, and along his long scar. Her hand reached forward. "Soul-"

"Finish your shower." He caught her hand just before her fingers reached his scar and he held it rather tightly. He offered her a small grin, but it didn't reach his crimson eyes. He bent down to grab his shirt and stood up.

Maka jumped up after him, staggering to the side from her sudden vertigo. Her robe slipped off one of her shoulders. He was there though, suddenly beside her with his hands on her shoulders to steady her. "Thank you." Maka murmured, peering up at him through her wet eyelashes.

Soul released a deep sigh, his shoulders rolled and eventually drooped. He ran his fingers through his disheveled white hair before he flicked his eyes back on her. They studied her carefully, his eyebrows knitting together. His face relaxed and at last his eyes softened from their cryptic stare. "You're welcome, Maka." His voice was quiet as he extended a hand forward and tucked a wet loose strand of hair back behind her ear.

Maka's face warmed when his fingers gently brushed her cheek. But just like that, he turned around and walked back toward the house without another word. Maka stood there, loosely holding her robe as she watched him vanish from view. She slipped from her robe and walked in the shower, flicking on all the water. She vigorously scrubbed at her body, doubting it was the hot water that made her skin feel so alive.

.

And so, the very first shower experience. ;) Things are progressing for our otp! Well, I hope you enjoyed it! Sorry for any grammatical errors, I rushed through it since I still feel sick. Next chapter will be in Soul's perspective! Soon we'll find out whats going on in our favorite weapon's head! Please leave reviews and comments! Thanks!