AN: Wow, sorry for the wait... this is a REALLY long chapter. :P Enjoy!

CHAPTER 5:

Soul's POV:
When I woke up the next morning, the first thing that I noticed was that I was aching all over.
The second thing I noticed was that I sitting on the floor in Mesuji's room, leaning against the wall, which was probably the cause of the aches. Sleeping with your back against a wall is no fun, let me tell you.
The third thing was that Mesuji, who had fallen asleep next to me, was no longer in the room.
I panicked for a moment before remembering that her parent's couldn't have known yet - that Mesuji was probably out in the living room or something.
Stretching, I walked out into the hall and went into the bathroom, wincing at my sore muscles.
When I finally emerged into the main area of the dorm, I found Mesuji.
Well, I actually found a pile of yarn covering a chair, that, when parted, had Mesuji underneath.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Trying to untangle this yarn," she replied, "Come help."
"Uh... I need breakfast..." I said, not wanting to get involved.
Just then Maka walked in and whacked me on the head. "Mesuji's knitting you something, the least you could do is help her untangle the yarn."
"Trying to knit, more like," said Kenai, who had followed Maka in.
"Shut up, Kenai," replied Mesuji, "And Maka, it was supposed to be a surprise!"
"Who else would you knit, excuse me, try to knit, something for?" Kenai cut in.
Mesuji glared at him.

"He's right you know." Maka laughed.

"NUH-UH!" Mesuji protested, "I would TOTALLY knit for you or Kenai!"

"What are you making anyway?" I asked Mesuji, who looked up at me with sparkling eyes.

"A scarf!" she cheered.

"Uh…" I hesitated, there was NO WAY I was going to wear a scarf, "Cool?"

"I am putting my blood, sweat, and tears into this scarf." Mesuji scowled, kicking me lightly on the shin.

"I would hope not…" I smirked.

"Well I am!" Mesuji pouted, allowing the ball of yarn to roll off of her lap onto the floor.

"It's the thought that counts, I suppose." I shrugged, "I need food, anyone feel like cooking for me?"

"I will." Kenai volunteered.

"Anyone ELSE?" I asked, knowing the only reason Kenai would even want to cook for me was so he could poison me or something.

"Give him a chance…" Maka rolled her eyes, "He's been watching me cook, and he probably learned a thing or two."

Kenai smiled, "Cool, It'll be done in 20 minutes."

He walked into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, something that smelled like what Maka MIGHT make emanated from the kitchen.

I wasn't sure what it was, though.
Mesuji was still trying to untangle the yarn, as neither I nor Maka had offered to help.
Finally, just as Mesuji succeeded in untying the yarn and my stomach was about to shrink into nothingness, Kenai came out with hot, steaming plates of pasta.
"Oo, pasta!" squealed Maka. "What kind did you make?"
"The creamy kind... Alfredo sauce, I think," Kenai said.
"Yum," said Mesuji, as my stomach growled in response.
"I have to warn you, though," said Kenai, handing us the plates, "I put some hot sauce in to kick it up a bit."
Mesuji immediately set her plate down, and Maka, seeing this, followed suit.
"Don't worry," I said, "I have a very high tolerance to spicy things."
I raised a huge bite to my mouth, and barely chewed before swallowing it.
"See, I told yo-" I started, until it hit me.
The heat, I mean.
"GAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I screamed, running into the kitchen and grabbed a huge glass of water.
I chugged that water faster than anyone ever has.
When I finally recovered my senses (barely) I staggered back into the living room.
"How much hotsauce did you put IN that thing?" I managed.
"Only three bottles," said Kenai, happily eating his own portion, "In yours, anyway."
I then noticed that Mesuji and Maka were also happily eating their portions. "Wha-?"
All three of them burst out laughing, and hurried to explain.
"Your's and Kenai's-"
"I didn't give them any hotsauce-"
"Kenai put almost three bottles in yours, and then a few drops in his-"
"You should have seen your face-"
And then they burst out laughing all over again.
Now it was my turn to glare at Kenai. "If I weren't recovering from that heat eruption, you'd be dead right now."
That only made him laugh harder, as both of us knew I'd have no chance at beating him.

Mesuji's POV:

"Soul Soul…" I smiled, "Last night was a close one, wasn't it."

"Yeah…" Soul sighed, "Too close…"

"I'm glad you didn't get caught…" I reassured him, "You did great."

But then I hesitated.

Was this really what I wanted?

To be closed in by a group of lies that my parents could never find out about?

Suddenly, Kenai looked up at me and asked, "Mesuji? Are you pregnant?"

That almost knocked me out of my chair.

"NO!" I screeched, "WHAT THE HELL!?"

"Yes you are!" Kenai smirked, "Your mind is pregnant with ideas that it shouldn't have even conceived in the first place."

"YOU COULD HAVE SAID IT A DIFFERENT WAY!" Soul growled, "You totally sounded like you were implying that I…"

Soul stopped and turned red, "did stuff…"

"I WILL FLIPPING KILL YOU!" I burst, trying to punch Kenai square in the face.

But he grabbed my hand, when it was about and inch away from his face.

"I have better reflexes than you think." Kenai stated cheerily.

I growled at him. "I'll get you for this," I said angrily.
Kenai feigned innocence. "I don't know what you're talking about. All I said was that your mind came up with some pretty bad ideas, is all."
"You know perfectly well what she's talking about," said Soul.
"Do I? Well, that's news to me!" replied Kenai, grinning mischievously.
I snorted, but stopped pestering him.

If Kenai didn't feel like admitting he had done anything bad, no amount of nagging would persuade him otherwise.
Taking out my knitting needles, I began casting on the yarn and listened to Soul's failed attempt to persuade our personal immovable boulder, otherwise known as Kenai, that he indeed DID know what we were talking about.
By the time Soul gave up, I had finished about four inches - and I'm a really, REALLY slow knitter. Maka had long since disappeared, probably to study or something.

"Mesuji, I was thinking that maybe we could…" Soul started.

"Go away, I'm making you a present." I stated simply.

"Oh… but I was hoping that-"

"NO." I said firmly, "Maybe later."

"Bah." Soul growled, and walked out of the room.

"You know……….." Kenai smirked, "You should treat him better."

"What are you talking about?" I scowled.

"He is your precious little baby angel cakes isn't he?" Kenai taunted, walking over behind me.

"Maybe? So what?" I shot back.

"I don't know, I just thought that maybe you would want to spend EVERY SECOND WITH HIM." Kenai put his arms around my shoulders, "Before we have to leave anyway."

"SHUT-UP!" I spat, "Leave me alone!"

"Fine fine…" Kenai let go, "It's just that he'll be soooooooo devastated."

I considered that for a moment, before standing, "Ok… you win."

"Soul!" I shouted, running down the hall after him.

"What were you wanting to do?" I asked when I reached him.
"Nothing," he said, "It's nothing."
"No really, tell me," I insisted, and then putting on my pouting face, said, "Pleeeeeeeease?"
Soul laughed, and then looked down, acting sheepish. "I was just wondering if you wanted to go to Aix with me..."

"Aix?" I asked, surprised. "Bistro Aix?"
"Yeah, if you want..." Soul replied, then continued, "And I'm paying, so no arguing over the check."
I was surprised Soul was taking me there - it was pretty expensive. Then again, he WAS rich.
Even so, none of my other boyfriends had ever done that - or if they had taken me somewhere fancy, I had to pay for my own food.
"That sounds great!" I said, enthusiastically.

"Cool!" Soul smiled, obviously glad that I had changed my mind.

…

We sat in silence, but that was enough.

All we needed to do was stare at each other.
That conveyed our love for one another.
"Mesuji… I have a question…" Soul suddenly spoke up.

"Yes?" I replied dreamily.

"Why don't you like Kenai?"

My eyes widened, "Why would you even ask such a question!?"

"Because they say all weapons are destined to fall in love with their meisters…" Soul sighed.

"If that's true, what about you an Maka!?"

"Uh…" Soul glanced to one side, "It didn't work out that way for us I guess."

"Anyway…" I looked around nervously, "I can't like Kenai like THAT." I whispered.

"Why?" Soul asked.

"Because of… reasons…" I informed him, not intending to tell him what was on my mind.

"Like…?" Soul continued.

"Just cus'!" I shook my head, "Why do you want to know so badley?"

"So I can avoid anything he says or does that makes you NOT have a crush on him."

I snorted, "I seriously doubt you'd do any of it." I switched to muttering under my breath and said, "Not unless you turn all homosexual on me."
"What was that?" Soul asked.
"Look, it's a delicate matter, okay?" I said quietly. "I'll tell you, but don't burst out laughing or anything."
"I promise I won't," said Soul, laying a hand over his heart.
"Kenai is..." I paused, contemplating how best to say it before deciding on the direct method, "....he's gay."
"He's WHAT?!" Soul's mouth hung open, and his voice had escalated to a higher point than I thought was necessary.
"Gay, Soul. You know, attracted to guys," I explained.
"I know what it means, Mesuji. But... but... he's been sleeping in my room for the past five months!" Soul exclaimed.
I rolled my eyes. "Look, Soul, he wouldn't have put the hot sauce in your pasta if he was attracted to you. So chill."
"So are you calling me unattractive?"
"No, you idiot," I replied, sighing, "I'm just saying that you're not Kenai's type."
"And what's that?" Soul asked.
"Remember Toadface?"
Soul gasped. "Kenai dated Toadface?"

I grinned, and Soul began gulping in air. "Kenai and Toadface? Kenai and Toadface?! Kenai and Toad-"

I decided to stop him before his head imploded with the (albeit untrue) knowledge. "No, the guy I dated BEFORE Toadface, you know, the one with the speech impediment? It turned out he was gay. He and Kenai dated in secret for AGES. Kenai denied it all, though."

Soul gaped, still shocked that Kenai was gay.

I could understand.

It took me a few years to process the information myself.
A waiter came over. "May I take your beverage order?"

Soul continued gaping at me until the waiter cleared his throat. "Sir?"

"Right, right, beverages..." Soul stammered.

"Could I get a green tea?" I asked politely.

"I'll have a margarita…" Soul shot an anxious look at me.

I stared at him in disbelief.

"I'll need to see some ID." The waiter didn't look convinced.

"Sure." Soul pulled his wallet out, and handed a card to the man.

The waiter took one look at it and handed it back to Soul, "I'll be right back…"

As soon as he was out of sight, I growled, "WHAT THE HECK SOUL!? YOU'RE ONLY 17!"

"What? We're celebrating? Besides, he totally bought it." Soul smirked.

I leaned my head to the side, to see where the waiter had gone.

He had walked through a door, and it didn't look like a kitchen.

"Um…" I sighed, before sitting up straight and trying to look as old as possible.

That waiter had most definitely gone to get the manager.

"Why do you look so worried?" Soul asked, not looking to happy with my concern.

"Look behind you." I said through my clenched teeth.

Soul turned around, and saw the waiter pointing to us, with a fairly large man standing beside him.

He didn't look too pleased.

"Crap…" Soul hunched over, immediately becoming as interested in his fork as possible.

"Brace yourself." I mumbled, "Here he comes."

"Hey you two!" The man shouted.

Soul tried to look calm, "Yes sir?"

"What's the meaning of trying to come in here and order alcohol!?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about, I just turned 21; I am allowed to drink." Soul frowned.

"My girlfriend can vouch for me," he said, shooting a pleading look in my direction.

I glared at Soul. I was NOT going to get myself in trouble with the law - my parents would kill me. So I tried to explain.
"I'm sorry about this," I began, "He's actually 17. We're just celebrating, and I guess he got a little carried away."
The manager looked suspiciously at Soul. "Where did you get the fake ID?"
At the word "ID," Soul seemed to perk up, which surprised me. Then, with surprising calm, he said, "Yes, the ID. I'm assuming you saw the name? The name IS correct."
The waiter looked down at the ID still in his hands, paled, and then passed it to the manager, who read it out loud. "Soul Eater Evans... Oh. Oh my. You're really Mr. Evans?"
I glanced at Soul, confused, as he nodded at the manager.
The man gulped. "Well, Mr. Evans, I'd normally ask a minor trying to order alcohol to leave, but in your case, I think I'll make an exception."
Then his tone of voice changed dramatically. "However, I won't serve you any, no matter how much of this company your parents own."
"What was that about?" I asked Soul when the manager had walked off.
"Oh, it's just that my parents own about a quarter of Aix's stock."
"Wow," I said. It was really all I could say. Even MY parent's didn't own that much of one company's stock.
A few minutes later, the waiter brought us each some green tea, a new look on his face - almost reverence.
"Have you decided upon your meal choice yet?" he asked.
I nodded and started talking, right as Soul began too. We both stopped and giggled.
"I'll have the Spaghetti ala Agna, please," ordered Soul, and then turned to me. "Do you want to start with a salad to share?"
I nodded. "How about the butter lettuce with the Dijon mustard vinaigrette?"
He nodded back. "Yes, that one, and we'll also share the calamari."
The waiter turned to me. "And for you, Miss?"
I handed him my menu. "I'll have the pisciscrustulum, please."
"Certainly," the waiter said, and walked off.
I turned back to Soul, who was staring at me, eyes wide.
"What?" I asked.
"You just got the pisciscrustulum!" he said.
"Yeah... so what?" I protested. "I get it every time I come here."
Soul's eyes, impossible though it seemed, got wider. "I've never even HEARD of someone getting it!"

I sighed, "It's good! You should try it! I'll have a bite of your food if you try mine."

"But I got pasta! And I want all of it!" Soul complained, "Besides, paste is gross!"

"Ugh, fine!" I shot back, "I'll eat ALL of your food if you don't try it!"

"No!" Soul stated stubbornly.

"Soul…" I growled, "Don't be immature! You're 17 now!"

Soul looked at me blankly, and then shuffled his feet, "I just-"

"Is all you like pasta!?" I sighed, sitting back in my chair.

"I didn't like eating anything else when I was little… and my parents never forced me…" Soul mumbled, staring at the ground, "I guess I just got used to it…"

"Obviously…" I shook my head, "Well it's never to late to start getting yourself used to other foods."

Soul looked up at me, "You're going to make me have some of you shrimp and squid paste?"

"Yes." I replied.

"Ugh…" Soul sunk down in his chair, trying to seem as small as possible.

Our waiter walked up, holding our food.

"That was fast…" I said.

"Yeah, we're top priority because my parents own the place." Soul grinned, showing his shark like teeth.

I had grown to like that smile so much.

It had only just occurred to me a few nights ago that I was bound to not see him ever again.

What a depressing thought.

I sat with my food in front of me a few minutes later.

I had eaten more than half of the salad (on account of Soul's inability to down greens), and was actually getting full.

"Soul, have some of this." I muttered.

"No." Soul defied my order yet again.

"Come on." I pleaded.

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please????????"

"FINE!" Soul shouted, attracting the attention of most of the café.

I smiled, and cut a slice of my banana leaf wrapped-shrimp and squid paste.

I set it on his plate, and he stared at it in disgust.

"Go on…" I urged.

"Don't rush me." Soul poked it with his fork.

When it jiggled, he looked like he would puke.

I laughed at that.

"Get it over with already." I was now getting impatient.

Soul sighed, and took the tiniest bite possible.

"Well?" I asked.

Soul seemed to contemplate it for a moment, and then said, "Ew.. That's disgusting, Mesuji! How can you eat it? I mean, it's just.... ew," though it was with less gusto than I was accustomed to, coming from Soul.
I looked at him, my eyebrows raised. "Really? For a moment there, it seemed like you liked it."
"Of course not," he said.
I smiled. "Whatever. You're a horrible liar anyway. I'll be right back, I need to use the bathroom."
When I came back, the pisciscrustulum on Soul's plate was gone, and there seemed to be less on my plate, too.
"I thought you said you hated it," I said, slipping back into my seat.
"Of course," Soul replied, "I had the waiter take it away."
"So how much did you have the waiter cut off my plate?" I asked jokingly.
Soul's cheeks flushed briefly. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said, attempting, and failing, to lie again.

"Ugh, whatever."

We ate the rest of our meal in silence, shooting doubtful glances at each other every few seconds.

It seemed to take Soul HOURS to finish his food, probably because he had filled himself up on mine when I wasn't watching.

Finally, he finished, paid, and we left, still silent.
As we came in view of the school, I stopped and grabbed Soul's arm.
"Look, why aren't we talking to each other? It feels really awkward for some reason, and all that happened was that you ate some of my pisciscrustulum."
"No I didn't!" exclaimed Soul.
I grinned at him, though a bit condescendingly.
"Suuuuure...." I said.
Soul glared at me, half joking, half not.
I glared back, though I was entirely joking.
It didn't take long for me to start giggling, and then even less time for Soul to start laughing along with me. We were just two teenagers, laughing at ourselves and this whole silly predicament.
And then all of a sudden, Soul stopped laughing. I stopped too, and stared at him curiously.
"Do you know how pretty you are when you're laughing?" he said, and kissed me.
Normally Soul seemed like a lot younger than his 17 years, but he always grew up a little when he said things like that. I think that since he and I had started dating, Soul had been doing a lot of growing up, not that I thought he wasn't just fine the way he had been.
We continued walking back to the dorm in silence, though it was a different kind of silence than before. It was less "we just argued," and more "we don't have to say anything to each other, and that's okay." Especially since now we were holding hands.

AN: FINALLY DONE :O the fic might end, I'm sorry, I'm losing interest... oh, btw, if any of you like Ouran High School Host Club, ladylily101 and I are doing a collab on a OHSHC fic called "And Then The World Exploded." :)