My Secret

Maka stared at her reflection in the employee bathroom, inspecting every small aspect about herself. Maybe she wasn't the cutest person in the world or the girl with biggest breast size, but she was a strong, independent woman who could handle any obstacle. It wasn't that hard for her to control her temper – even if the person it was directed to deserved it. No, she was always able to keep her cool around her overbearing father (well, sometimes) so this boy was no different. It wasn't like Soul Evans had any control over her and her emotions. She could handle him.

Tugging down her skirt that was far too short in her opinion, Maka left the bathroom. She stopped by the kitchen to pick up her tray of food, and left. The young maid stood in front of the door that would lead her to the dining area for a few seconds to collect her bearings. Taking a deep breath in, she released a more relaxed one out. There was nothing difficult about Soul Evans.

Her fake smile flew across her face like it was completely natural as she opened the door, and walked toward the table where the white haired boy was sitting.

"I brought you your meal, young master."

Setting Soul's food in front of him, Maka tried to avoid eye contact with him, but failed completely. Those deep crimson eyes of his were watching her intently, and she felt like they were boring into her. It was slightly uncomfortable, but it was also intriguing. She found it interesting to think that for a boy who received confessions on a daily basis, he sure spent a lot of his time at a maid cafe.

"Have a nice meal."

Maka gave a small curt bow like she had been trained to do and turned on her heel. However, she hadn't even walked two steps before he cleared his throat, drawing her attention back to him.

"Is something wrong, master?"

She tried her best not to let her smile falter or her irritation show. She was Maka Albarn; she could get through anything, and that included snarky, shark tooth bastards who refused to leave her alone.

That sly smirk crossed his lips, and Maka felt her irritation and curiosity rise. "I was wondering if you could write something sweet and caring on my rice omelette. You know, since you're so good with words."

The way he said it made her skin crawl, and she would have strangled him if she weren't working. He definitely knew how to get on her nerves, she had to give him that, but she refused to let him see it. No, she would keep her straight poker face on, and let him guess exactly how she felt about him.

She grabbed one of the ketchup bottles off one of the tables nearby, and bent oversion beside him. It was the most embarrassing position for any girl to be in next to a man, but she had to do it. If she didn't, Blair would chide her for going against the conduct that was expected from a maid.

In the sweetest voice she could muster, Maka asked, "what would you like me to write, master?"

From the corner of her eye, she saw Soul lean in closer to her and prop his chin in his hand. That smug bastard's warm breath hit her cheek, and a shiver ran up her spine. She tried not to react to it because it would have ruined her cool stance, but it didn't work. Her body involuntarily shook, and his small chuckles scraped on her eardrums.

"Mmm how about you write whatever your heart desires? Dazzle me with your kind words, pigtails."

Maka inwardly flinched at the stupid nickname. He knew how much she hated it, and he only said it to irritate her even more.

Wracking her brain, she searched for the perfect word to write on his dish. It had to be something that portrayed her feelings for him perfectly and were rude enough that he would leave her alone. She couldn't put something as weak like idiot or predictable like jerk. No, neither of those fit him quite well at the moment. It had to be something brilliant and wonderful.

A light bulb clicked in her head, and she squeezed the bottle to push out the red goop. Her hands carefully guided the ketchup falling as she wrote in cursive in case one of her co-workers walked by and saw the word she was writing. She couldn't risk her job just because she wanted to get rid of Soul. That was counterproductive and would only mean he'd bother her while they were at school. Plus, she really needed the job and the money.

She finished off the word and stood back up, smiling down at him. "There you go. I hope you enjoy your meal, young master."

His eyes had never left her face throughout the whole process (she only knew because she felt them when she was writing). She breathed a small sigh of relief as he looked down, and waited for him to get pissed off at her. In red scrawled on his omelette read the simple word bastard, and Maka was proud of herself for her efforts. The word was bound to get under anyone's skin, even a cool guy like Soul Evans. No one expected a maid to be so cruel and vulgar; it was the perfect plan.

He looked back up at her and smiled. "Aww I didn't know you felt that way about me. You're a real angel, pigtails."

Maka glared down at him, her false smile was long forgotten. Her plan had backfired and she couldn't believe it. He was supposed to be angry at her, but instead he was praising her. Soul must have been a real masochist if he actually enjoyed being called a bastard.

She put her sweet smile back on, and flipped one of her pigtails over her shoulder. "Glad to be of service, idiot."

Walking back to the kitchen, she tried to ignore the stare her co-worker Liz was giving her. She could already guess exactly what the other blonde would tell her. She would ask why Soul was always at the cafe, and why he always insisted on sitting in her area. The hell did she know why. Soul was a mystery to the entire student body, which included herself. Even if she was a mind reader, she was sure she wouldn't be able to find anything out. His brain was probably empty, and gathering dust every day.

Maka placed the tray on the counter in the kitchen, and sighed. If Soul was going to continuously visit her, it was going to be a hard year. She already had to see him during the day at school, but having to serve him in her maid outfit after school was worse. A part of her was surprised Black Star still hadn't shown up to tease her about it, and another part of her wondered if Soul had even told his best friend her secret.

That was exactly what she needed; the loud mouth idiot would surely tell the entire school about her after school activities and then her reputation would be ruined. No one would see her as the strong authoritative student president. All they would see was a lousy maid who was weak and took orders from men for a living.

Sighing, she went back out to find Soul gone.

She didn't get a chance to find out if he had indeed told Black Star that day, but she was able to the next one. As usual, he sat at the table in the far corner that had long been deemed part of her section, and she walked over to take his order. On her way, however, she decided she wanted to cut the small talk and get right down to the issue at hand. There was no use beating around the bush; they should have both known the question would come up eventually.

"Have you told Black Star about this?" she asked.

Soul raised one delicate eyebrow in confusion. "Why do you think I'd even tell him?"

"Because," she sighed, "he's your best friend and I figured this would be great blackmail for the two of you."

The smug grin spread on his lips. Maka's gut told her what he was about to say would be bad. It flipped inside out, and small goosebumps crawled up her skin.

"You're right. This is great blackmail, isn't it? Which is why I haven't told Star."

She wanted to breathe a sigh of relief and jump around, but she held herself back. Soul always had his own motives for anything he did, and there was sure to be a catch with this.

"What do you want?" she groaned.

"I'll keep your secret under one condition."

She was hesitant, but she still reluctantly answered. "And what would that be."

"Meet me in the back alley after your shift, and then you can find out." He handed her the menu that was lying on the table and leaned back in his chair. "As for now I'll take the usual, and be sure to write some more of your caring words."

She could have sworn he winked at her, but her mind didn't register it. Instead, it was focused on what his condition could possibly be. Knowing him it was definitely something she would not like.

Snatching the menu from his hand, she stomped to the kitchen fuming. She heard small footsteps following her, and she knew who the girl was before she spoke.

"So your boyfriend's back. That makes it, what, two weeks now?" Liz asked.

"He isn't my boyfriend."

"Uh huh. Sure." She heard the smugness in the girl's voice and was instantly reminded of Soul. "I know he is. You can't fool me. Why else would he come in here all the time and sit in your section?"

"Liz, really. He isn't my boyfriend," she sighed. She had been trying to convince the other blonde that he wasn't since he first appeared, and frankly, she was tired of it.

"And you aren't meeting him in the back alley to make out."

Maka stopped and gaped at Liz while the other girl continued to walk in front of her. "You mean you heard that?"

"Yep!" she practically sang out. "Be sure to give him a butt squeeze for me!" Liz winked at her before disappearing into the locker rooms.

Maka wanted to follow her and tell her the truth, but her feet remained planted on the ground. There was no explanation good enough for Liz which meant she was stuck with the belief that Soul was her boyfriend. As if her life couldn't get any worse.

She could not wait for her shift to finish so she could beat the shit out of him.