The incessant and obnoxious banging on her salmon pink bedroom door jolted her awake. She released a strangled groan, something very akin to a tortured little animal. "Maka, get your ass out of bed! We're going to be late." For the first time in her student years, she was running late. She was really known for her perfect attendance and today was the unfortunate and blasted day of breaking the streak. She released a piercing hiss when she impulsively jumped out of her sky blue comforters. She fell face-first on her tiled floor. "Soul!" She called her partner in a desperate attempt. The white-haired boy in question automatically barged in her bedroom when she cried for help. The expression on his fair face morphed into immediate worry and barely controlled panic.
"What hurts?" Was his first question. Soul practically sprinted to her fallen side and slowly kneeled down so that he could situate her gawky pale arm around his broad shoulders. "I'm not sure. I think I sprained my leg." He eyed her suspiciously. "How? I didn't see you do anything drastic and impulsive yesterday." His tone was light, teasing and sarcastic to ease the building tension. She saw the worried expression on his slightly worn face and she was harshly hit with a pang of nostalgia. She remembered him deliberately protecting her from Arachne's onslaughts while Chrona distracted her aunt. Another tidal wave of nostalgia and added melancholy winded her. She felt remorseful because even though Chrona managed to save all of them from the Kishin Asura's spreading and corrupting madness, she didn't get to save her at all. And it pains her that Chrona was stuck inside the black sphere on the moon, thinking that she didn't have any friends at all.
"What's wrong?" Her face must have given something away because Soul observed her with his piercing ruby eyes. "I just remembered Chrona, that's all." And the tension rose to level 100. Soul's face became sullen, somber before placing her back on her messed-up bed. He kneeled down to check both her legs. Nothing seemed to be amiss except, well, for the terrible swelling of Maka's right shin. Soul visibly flinched at the injury. "Where did you even get this?" Maka's skin tone turned into a shade of beet red at the solemn inquiry. She finally remembered. "Well?" Her partner crossed his arms on his chest and quirked a thin eyebrow when he noticed her sudden squirming. She was reeking of embarrassment.
"I fell down the stairs of Shibusen while going home." Maka unconsciously popped her knuckles, something she usually do when anxious or embarrassed. She was currently feeling both. Apparently, Soul already knew her nervous and bad habits. "You're lying. I know that you can climb up and down the stairs with perfect ease. You can't fool me." He said in a singsong voice, a devious smirk curving its way on his amused face. "Fine. I tried to carry Kid." Her partner's interest perked up, judging by the sudden beam coming from his smug face. "I– I was just trying to help. He didn't get any sleep and when he finally did, the sun was already setting. I needed to get him home. He's the new Shinigami now and I don't want someone to ambush him or anything. And besides, he looked so tired and he obviously earns a good night sleep so I brought him to the Gallows. In the process of doing that, I suddenly lost balance and must have sprained my leg. I didn't notice." His meister went on and on with her explanation. She was obviously blushing and she didn't spare him any glance, fearing that she might unconsciously reveal her secrets to him. She already did. It was so obvious that she'd fallen hard for the new Lord Death.
While his partner continued with her stuttering excuses, he already exited her bedroom to get an ice pack for her swollen leg. He put the little cubes of ice he got from the freezer in a bag and brought it to her. She was still on with her multiplying excuses. He dabbed the ice pack on her right leg to stop her from talking. She did. She released a sigh of utter relief. "Mhm, that's better." She softly mumbled under her breath. "Now, I'm totally late for class." He habitually declared after comprehending the time from Maka's wall clock. "I'm sorry." Her relaxed face suddenly fell. A frown concaved on her face and she looked authentically remorse to Soul. "Nah, it's fine. Anyway, I'm going." He ruffled her bed hair before exiting the room.
Maka, suddenly suspicious at the sudden change of routine, jumped out of her bed and forgot that she was injured. She managed to bring herself upright by carefully using the wall as support. She wobbled her way out of the bedroom. She saw Soul picking up his blue helmet that matched up with their motorcycle, his ignition keys and book bag. "Wait, you're not staying?" It was a silent agreement that when one of them is either sick or injured, the other would stay to take care of him or her. "Who would take down our notes and assignments?" She knew that he was right. She also knew that he was using her academics as a weapon so that she would not try to ask and force him to stay. "Fine." Her lower lip jutted into a childish pout and she crossed her thin arms on her petite chest. Soul released a hearty chuckle. "And besides, I need to ask some medicine and extra bandage from Stein so that you're up and about the very next day." He strode in front of her and gave her a goodbye hug. She finally relaxed and melted on her partner's chest. "Now, back to bed." He released her and shooed her away. "I'll text Blaire to keep an eye on you." He showed off a toothy grin before walking back to the front door. "Okay. Goodbye, Soul." She lightly waved at his retreating figure.
"Get well soon, Maka." The front door closed and clicked and she was left alone. She released a sigh. Great. She really hates being left behind in their apartment because she was injured. She would rather take great lengths in order to get to school. She was already bored. Maka clearly hates the feeling of being unproductive but she couldn't help it. She was currently incapable in taking up long distances with her sprained leg. She couldn't even walk from one spot to the other without wobbling or falling down. Just her luck. She released another frustrated sigh before staggering towards the entrance of the kitchen. She already lost the ice pack Soul gave her but she would deal about it later. At least Soul left her a plate of breakfast on their dinner table but a cup of coffee was missing from her usual set and that unnerved her greatly. She decided to try and make café au lait, a type of coffee that was really famous in New Orleans. She went to stove to boil some water and make a cup of highly caffeinated drink for breakfast.
An hour and a half later, someone rapidly knocked eight times on the front door. It was not Blaire.
Dear readers, whether anonymous or not,
Did you miss me?
Sorry for the really late update. I was uninspired and had writer's block. Everything I wrote for the next installment of Coffee Breaks was rubbish. I didn't want to disappoint you with an ugly chapter so I just didn't update at all. I hope you like this particular one. This chapter showcases the brother-sister relationship between Maka and Soul. I really like to think of them that way. Of course, I have nothing against SoMa shippers.
This installment was more words, less description in order to make you all feel the normalcy in their lives despite their previous struggles and hardships to attain sanity around the world. I hope you like this one! Again, I'm really sorry for the super duper late update. The next one would be on Thursday so stay tuned! I'll probably do early updates since it's our summer vacation!
Question of the day: Besides Soul Eater, what other anime/manga do you love?
I really love Shingeki no Kyojin, Free! Iwatobi Swim Club (they are already showing their next season), Ouran High School Host Club, Sword Art Online, Shaman King, etc.
Read and review!
Sincerely, Star.