I'd never met Soul's father. I've heard many stories about him, but because of the restraining order, he's never been able to come visit. I know there's a lot of tension between him and Soul's mother, though I don't really know the exact reasoning behind their divorce. It happened when Soul was young; probably 4 or 5. They'd moved in across the street from my mother and I. At the time, Soul's brother still lived there.
I don't remember much about Soul's older brother, Wes. There was a huge age gap; almost 7 full years. Wes was 11 or 12 when they moved in, and he was very different from Soul. While Soul was loud and social and happy, Wes tended to stick with himself, in his room. Him and Soul didn't get along so well; I blamed the age gap. Wes's refusal to play with Soul led to Soul and I's great friendship, but it resulted in a distant relationship between the two brothers.
Ms. Evans always raved about Wes's musical abilities. I don't remember if I ever heard him play, but his talents were obviously present because by the time he was fourteen, he was receiving many prestigious offers from private music schools. He eventually accepted one and left the Evans household, returning only for holidays and school breaks. His visits home slowly became very rare, and now Soul and his mother must travel to downtown Death City to see him.
I understand why Ms. Evans doesn't want to tell Soul. Not only would he worry endlessly, he'd also hate his father. And while Soul's father is anything but good, he shouldn't have both of his sons disown him. It's hard living your life without a present father; I'd know.
My dad passed away when I was only 2 years old. By the time he died, he was practically a walking cancer cell. I really don't remember my dad that well, given my young age, which hurt me more than anything. Everyone who knew him said he was a great person and an even better father.
My throat begins to constrict and I feel my eyes watering. I quickly wipe them, willing the water to go away. I pull myself together and begin my homework when my phone begins to vibrate. I glance down and see the words "incoming FaceTime" with Kid's face filling the background of my screen. I slide the accept.
I open my mouth to begin talking, but Kid is already going a mile a minute.
"You'll never ever believe what the balloon company did. I am appalled." Kid exclaims. His face is red, and it looks almost like he's been crying.
"What happened?!"
"We ordered 800 balloons for the prom. Each box should contain one hundred balloons, and when I counted, one had 99. 99, Allie. That means there's 799 balloons, which is disgusting! Uneven! Revolting!" I stifle a laugh as his eyes get watery. Kid has always had an obsession with things being perfect and even. This is probably killing him.
"Kid, it's okay. We can just order another pack an-"
"And what?! Have 899 balloons!? We can only order in sets of 100, Allie!" I think for a moment, considering the options.
"What's the problem with having 799 balloons, Kid? Nobody is going to be counting them."
He groans, running his hands down his face. "You're as helpful as Black Star." He said.
Kid was the student body president. He was adamant about getting things done and having them be perfect. I, being his Vice President, often oversaw the production and made sure everything went smoothly. Black Star is the student body secretary simply because nobody else was running for it and he wanted to win. He does nothing to help, never shows up, and doesn't contribute anything. Kid and I split up his workload between the two of us, and somehow we manage to get it all done.
I look back at the screen and see Kid's face is in his hands, his body shuddering. He can be so pathetic sometimes. "Do you want me to call the balloon company tomorrow and see what they can do?" I ask, forcing myself not to laugh.
He sniffles. "Yes please." He begs. I uncap my pen and scribble CALL BALLOON COMPANY on my hand. I turn my wrist so my hand faces the camera for Kid to see. His shoulders relax a little once he sees it.
"Thank you." He said.
"Anytime." I began working on my homework when something hit me. I angle myself back towards my phone, making sure he was still there.
"Kid?"
"Yes?"
"Today, in Stein's class. You we-"
"Today was a complete mess. A catastrophe. Those idiots... Stein did that to me on purpose." Kid said, his eyes holding a murderous rage.
"Before the mess happened. You looked so upset. Was something bothering you?" I ask.
Kid looks at me, a confused look on his face. "Of course I was upset. I was stuck working with Soul Evans."
I frown. "What's wrong with Soul?"
"He's stupid. And he thinks he's so cool. I've never liked him."
"That's a lie, you hung out with him all the time in elemen-"
"I hung out with him because everybody else was friends with him. I've never once wanted to be associated with him." Kid argues, rolling his eyes. I sigh, shrugging my shoulders. Once Kid has a thought about something, he never changes his mind.
"I'm sorry. I didn't know." I said quietly.
"Don't feel bad. I don't mean to talk badly about him, I know you're friends with him and all, but I really can't stand him." He explains. I nod, looking at my homework.
"I still have to finish the math packet, so I'll talk with you tomorrow."
"Alright, night." My phone dinged, letting me know the FaceTime had ended. I quickly finish my homework, and hear my mom shout that dinner was ready. I pack my bag up and skip down the stairs.
By the time I'd eaten and helped clean up, it was almost 8:30. I go up the stairs and into my room, shutting the door. It was too early to go to sleep, so I grabbed my phone and looked for something to entertain myself with. I ended up on YouTube, scrolling through some funny videos, when my phone begins to ring. Soul's name flashed on the screen.
"Soul?" I ask, hesitantly. Soul normally doesn't call me; we usually just text each other. My mind begins going a mile a minute: did his mom tell him? Did she tell him that we knew? Is he furious that I hadn't told him? My heart constricts at the thought.
"Hey Al!" He said. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding; he didn't sound angry.
"Hey, what's up?" I ask.
"I need to ask you a favor, and I knew if I didn't ask you now that I'd totally forget."
"It's not homework answers again, is it?"
I hear him laugh. "No, I already did my homework. I was going to gloat about it at the end of the call."
I grin to myself. "Well? The favor is?"
"Will you wear that sweatshirt I gave you today to school on Friday?"
"Uh, I guess. Why?"
"The boys want to do something special for our game Friday since it's against our rival, and they decided on letting our girlfriends wearing our sweatshirts." My jaw drops at his words, my heart rate speeding up. Girlfriend?
"You don't have to do it if you don't want to. I mean, it'd be totally uncool to force you... But just throwing out there that if you don't wear it then Blair will probably harass me about it." He explains. I laugh.
"Um, sure. That's fine."
"Great! You're a lifesaver, Allie." I laugh nervously. If Soul heard it, he didn't mention anything.
"Also, I can't drive you home from school Friday because of the game. I can take you home from that though."
"Okay, that's fine. I can ask Tsubaki."
I can hear the smile in his voice. "Alright. I gotta shower and get ready for tomorrow. Good night, Al."
"Good night Soul." I said, looking out the window at his room. He sat on his bed, holding his phone to his ear, watching me as well. We smile at each other, and I hang up. He stands and leaves his room.
I lay sprawled out on my bed, my mind a mix of emotions. Why did the idea of being Soul's girlfriend freak me out so much? I'm reminded of what Tsubaki said earlier today, and how I felt when he was with Maka. I never want to lose the friendship I have with Soul. If we became romantic and something happened, I'd lose him. I couldn't be with him... Yet the thought of him being with anyone else made my chest hurt.
I groan and throw a pillow across the room, angry at myself for being so conflicted. I usually always had an answer, always had a remark, ALWAYS had a clear thought.
But right now, my mind was a jumbled mess.
AN: Has anyone else ever had a person mess with your head, intentionally or unintentionally? I think it's inevitable.
Please follow, fav, or review! Or all three if you want :) the support is GREATLY appreciated!
~Greenybean