Hey, hey, hey!
Just to give you a heads up, I might end this little story on the 8th, 9th or10th chapter. I dunno, we'll see how it goes. While we're on the topic, in the second chapter I left possibly the most subtle clues to the anime of my next story. Find it if you can! *Evil cackle*
Enough waffling, here's the 6th chapter!
Soul heard Maka's door close as he put the dishes in the sink. I'll clean up tomorrow. Soul made his way to the door which led into his room and crashed on his bed. He thought through the events that took place today. Black*Star will have a field-day with this... As he got ready to embrace sleep, he turned and looked at the wooden Knight Piano that sat against the wall, as he did every night and like every night he said to himself: Not tonight. Then, promptly, fell into a deep sleep.
Maka stirred from her sleep and mumbled as foggy dreams started to fade and the soft calls of birds registered in her senses. Her eyes opened to see a ceiling which she didn't recognise, the direction that the light entered the room was all wrong. Her hand slowly reached out to her oak bedside table where she put her phone before bed and check what time it was.
Her hand came into contact with nothing.
Surprise jolted through her half-asleep body and forced her body up and snapped her eyes wide open in shock. She was in a whitewash room, which lacked personality. Then the memories of yesterday came flooding back to her as clear as a summer's day.
"Oh... right." Maka said to herself uneasily.
She shifted out of the unusual bed and slowly opened the door. There was nobody to be seen out in the apartment. Maka was half expecting Soul to be cooking up a full British breakfast due to the hospitality he showed yesterday. Maka shuffled over to Soul's bedroom door and gentle knocked. Maka received no reply and knock again. Still, no response. Lazy bum. Maka didn't want to rudely disturb him from his sleep, yet she wished he'd wake up. As Maka looked around her surroundings while thinking she remembered the shower. If that doesn't wake him up, then I don't know what will! Maka grabbed a towel from her bag but stopped before opening the door. Should I wait and ask if I can have a shower...? I mean, it is HIS place... And then, for a reason unknown to her, she adopted a tone of voice similar to Soul's. Eh, he won't mind.
While Maka was musing in the shower she realised the voice she had while debating whether to wait for Soul or not. She thought it was strange that she'd suddenly use it and how similar it sounded to Soul's tone. . Her mind couldn't understand it. She could spend forever wondering about that under the warm waterfall of Soul's shower but wasting Soul's hot water seems move her farther might do.
"..." At the thought of her father a mix of anger, disappointment, betrayal and a mix of other emotions that make her sick to the stomach. She distracted her mind as not to think of that man.
Maka left the shower and smelt the pleasant smell of sausages; she turned the corner and saw Soul sitting at the kitchen counter with his back to her, occasionally glancing at the sizzling sausages.
Maka was about to call out but suddenly turned red as she realised that her body was only covered by her towel. She silently scampered to her room and huffed heavily at the thought of Soul turning and seeing her... well, you know. I need to be more careful...
When Maka opened her door Soul hadn't noticed yet, she was wearing the same clothes she changed into yesterday; she thought that there was not point into changing again. It's not she had been wear the clothes for the whole day.
But the thing that caught her attention was that Soul was holding his head in the palm of his left hand and in his right he was holding a novel.
Soul was about 200 pages in a novel.
He was reading a book.
The cover was red and had a beautiful picture of a dragon with its wings unfolded and a shining moon behind it and the moons trails of light spreading across cover. On edges there were lines that lead into each corner which had symbols of a tree, a serpent, a snow capped-mountain and a drop of water. Also the general cover was a carven with stalagmites rising from the ceiling and floor.
That design and amount of detail told Maka it was a fantasy novel.
"A fan of fantasy, huh?" Maka said with a confident smile.
"Huh?!" Soul whipped his head around pulled the book out of her view. "M-Maka?! What are you-"
"Relax Soul. I didn't know you read books and especially fantasy. How many pages?"
"Erm... about... 400 pages..." Soul was flustered and hesitated to answer.
"Wow, decent size Soul." Maka said as she sat on the stool opposite to him.
Soul looked away, still embarrassment and placed the book on the table. "Sausages are ready..."
Maka had never seen Soul like this... he was almost cute.
She giggled at the way he held himself, all embarrassed and holding his arm as he prepared their breakfast and a defined blush across his face. Wow, I really got to him.
Maka picked up book and read with interest.
Maka said aloud: "The Rose Cord*. By JD Oswald, huh?" Maka turned the book, intrigued. "'Fleeing the vengeful Inquisitor Melyn, Sir Benfro is drawn to the last resting place of a great dragon of legend, Magog, deep in the ancient forest. Through Magog's spirit, Benfro discovers the true nature of his forebears – a history of unimaginable power mastery over mankind. But with this knowledge comes terrible danger.' Mmm... This sounds good... 'Errol Ramsbottom's dreams of becoming a great Warrior Priest have been shattered by his discovery of the dark secret of the Holy Order's power. And yet as a chosen novitiate he is trapped, unwillingly drawn deeper into the sinister plans for war which will engulf Gwlad. With the forces of magic gathering, so the destinies of Errol and Sir Benfro further entwine...' Not half bad Soul."
"Since you're so interested, it's the second book." Soul huffed, keeping his eyes glued to the meal.
Maka pushed the book back to Soul's side of the kitchen counter and began to wolf down her breakfast because she only ate a pizza for dinner yesterday.
Maka felt a bit bad for making Soul embarrassed, I mean, maybe she went a bit too far reading out the blurb.
"Soul, being a reader isn't bad. I read a lot, you know?" Maka tried to make him feel better.
"O reeeally? Who would have guessed?" Soul sneered.
Maka grinded her teeth at his sarcasm. Well, this is a greeeat start.
The room was filled with an awkward silence. "Sorry Maka, I overacted." Soul spoke out after a few minutes which felt longer.
"I don't mind." Maka said, she really didn't. She thought about the embarrassing stories about her that would set her off like that.
"Yeah, well Black*Star would call me a bookworm just like yourself."
Maka resided the urge the hit Soul on the jaw. "I wouldn't tell him, if that's what you're asking."
"Thanks." Soul ate the last of his breakfast. "Well, I'm gonna get ready."
"For what?" Maka asked.
"I'm not gonna spend the day in bed clothes you idiot." Soul had a towel in hand from which he got somewhere unseen to Maka.
As Soul made his way to the bathroom, Maka thought to herself. Fantasy books, huh? Perhaps Soul isn't like every other guy out there...
"Where are we going?" Asked Maka with a grumpy face as the two of them walk down one of the many cobbled streets of Death City.
"As an apology for snapping, I thought we'd go out somewhere and have a nice day or something like that..."
"What a gentleman..." Maka half-joked. Soul smirked in response. Well, at least Soul is back to normal.
Thankfully the rain had stopped in the night and today was a shinning summer's day. It always bothered Soul how quickly the weather changes. As the sun arched from morning to (almost) midday Soul and Maka arrived at the 'Headstone Hall' bookshop. Maka remembered this was where she met Soul yesterday.
Soul turned and looked at Maka with lazy eyes. "I was thinking we get a coffee first."
"Still tried?" Maka guessed with a hint of a laugh.
"Still tried."
"Sure. Let's go." Maka turned 180 degrees and started to coffee on the other side of the street.
"Whoa, whoa, where you going?" Soul almost thought that Maka just started to walk randomly down the street.
"To the café, of course." Maka gave him a look as if he had just said that the sky wasn't blue.
Soul shuck his head and a smile went across his face. "I don't say it in front of Kid but there's a café on the second floor of the bookshop and, frankly, I think its better."
"Sure, why not?" Maka followed Soul in and up the stairs to the café.
Something was bugging Soul. He couldn't put his finger on it but Maka seemed a bit out of sorts. She hadn't really said much more than short sentences since the book episode. Normally, she would have said "Well, why didn't you tell me?" when he explained about the café but she didn't. Soul just couldn't figure it out. Geez, you're her Weapon and you can't even work out what you did wrong. A voice in his head taunted him. Then, a voice which could have belonged to his Meister, said in a reasoning tone: You can blame yourself for something you're not even sure you did. What is going on in that silvered-haired head?
"Sir?" A male voice pulled Soul's mind back to his body.
"Huh?" Soul was standing at the register of the small, cosy café of Headstone Hall. Ordering two lattes for himself and his Meister. Oh, right. Thank god no one's waiting behind me. "Sorry man, did I order two lattes?"
"Yes sir." He said with a smile. "Is that all, sir?"
"Yeah."
"Only a moment, sir." The barista* quickly created two lattes just as ordered.
As the barista put the lattes in front of Soul and took Soul's money for the coffees, he had a sly smile on his face and a boyish look in his blue eyes and the said something completely unexpected. "So, is that girl you got with you making you daydream?"
Annnnnnnnnnnnd done!
*The Rose Cord is actually a real book which I'm reading at the time being and it's a blast!
*A barista is a person who works in a coffee bar. (Please don't kill me if I used it wrong)
I hope Soul reading novels is ok with you guys. I think it's a nice little bit in the story which will make it (hopefully) cuter.
Replay to 'FanGirlofDeath': Thanks for reviewing! I checked out the first chapter of your story and left a review :3
Thanks for reading!
~Soul