Though she takes pride in being an avid reader, Maka can only produce three words to explain how she had been feeling about Soul since the kiss in front of her apartment.

Giddy, awkward, and tense.

Maybe 'anxious' and 'expectant' could be included in the list as well. It's been a couple of days since then, and it is now Friday morning, and this will be the first time she's seeing Soul since Tuesday evening. They had seen each other in the hallways and everything, and exchanged pleasantries, of course, but neither had struck up a conversation.

They had agreed on doing one more training session before Stein's class next week, so they are meeting in the gym again and for the first time in her life, Maka is nervous about training.

To be fair, she was also nervous when they were training for the first time but that was because of the issue they had with resonating then, not because she wants to kiss her sparring mate. But this time it was both of those issues that were causing her to be anxious.

Now she's in the gym, waiting for him in her sweatpants and she's jumping up and down a little to try to quell her nervousness. The sound of her shoes on the floor or the movement in her clothes does nothing to help calm her down. He hasn't arrived yet, it's already 10 minutes after their agreed upon time, and her thoughts are running wild. She's convinced herself that he won't show up, he's realized he doesn't want anything to do with her and that they'll never speak again. It's dumb to think all those negative things, she's sure, but it's not like she can help it. What if it's not dumb but a fact? She runs her hands over her hair and pulls a little, hoping to quell her stress even just a little bit.

She still can't completely place the anxiety she feels with him in contrast to the comfort she's started to experience when thinking about him since Tuesday. Hesitation is still very much there when thinking over the things that happened between them, and what she might want to happen after this; and that combined with this crazy attraction she's feeling, she's sure she's gone mad.

But when she hears his footsteps on the gym floor and turns around to find him in his gym clothes all ready to go, she stops her pondering to admonish him instead. "Where have you been? We said we'd meet here 15 minutes ago!"

"I know, I'm sorry! I got held up in a meeting with Kid, not like I can leave that early, right?" He apologizes, but he seems agitated as he almost throws his bag on the stool.

"Was it a bad meeting?" She asks, trying to gauge if he's mad at her now because she tried to scold him or something else. He cocks his head to the right and squints his eyes just a little, like she's the one that needs to be figured out.

"No, why do you ask?" Is his answer, but his tone is agitated still. He's speaking faster than usual, and his eyes are darting around the room, never really settling on anywhere.

"You just seem a little on the edge."

With a sigh, he drops himself on one of the stools that she'd been pacing in front of. "I am on edge. He's sending me on a week long mission on Wednesday to hunt for a witch. Which means it might even take longer than a week, because fucking witches are good at covering their trails. I can never trail them right."

Maka walks over and plops herself right next to him on the stool, much calmer now that she knows his mood isn't about her. "Why are you so stressed about being away for more than a week?"

The blush that graces his ears is adorable, and she can only imagine what it looks like on his face because he doesn't turn back to her. "Well, we should train as much as we can to understand why we can't resonate, right?" he asks, but sighs and continues immediately. "Nope, never mind. That was a lie. I just still didn't take you out on that date, and I'm worried that if I go away in the mean time your feelings might change."

Her mouth is hanging open slightly, for how confident he's been about everything that's been going on between them, she didn't expect such a vulnerable streak from him over things she's been worrying about herself. It makes her feel even closer to him, if possible at this point. She doesn't have to wonder about that blush for much longer, because he's looking at her now and it feels like he's trying to read her soul.

"You're being awfully honest." Her voice comes out in a whisper, so low that she's almost sure he couldn't have heard it even with the gym's echo, but he surprises her with how intently he seems to be listening.

"You were very honest with me on Tuesday. I'm just getting you back." With that, he places his hand on hers on the stool, turns back to watch the empty gym and they're silent for a few minutes after that. Maka's heart beats rapidly, as if they hadn't done way more than this hand holding before. But this feels way more intimate.

"I want to be honest with you."

Even that line takes so much courage for her, that she's not sure she'll be able to keep up with just how honest she's being. But when she sees his smile as he completely turns his body towards her and clutches her hand, she's sure that she will definitely try, and squeezes his hand in a silent promise to herself. "It's kind of crazy how comfortable I feel with you, even though we've had like 8 conversations in total in ten years. It's crazy, right?"

He shakes his head silently and his eyes settle even deeper into her eyes before replying. His smile twitches as he gently rubs her hand with his thumb. "Is it even crazier that I feel it too?" She copies the shake of his head, and they stay like that for a while before Maka clears her throat and changes the subject. Being this open is still uncomfortable, no matter how much he makes her feel safe.

"Well, can't your meister use soul perception to find the witch? I'm sure Kid gave you enough information to find the general area she'll be at. After that it should be easy to lay a trap to get her out of soul protect, and use soul perception to trail her."

His look changes into one of confusion, and it transfers to Maka as he says: "What meister? I've never had a meister, Maka. Thought you would know that." Now his face reads something else that kind of resembles hurt, but she can't exactly place it. She's still too wrapped up in her shock to even try to interpret that.

"You've never had a meister? But you're a Death Scythe."

"Have you ever met Justin Law? I'm not exactly like him, but point is it's doable. I've worked with meisters without weapons, and managed to make myself into a Death Scythe like that."

Maka is incredulous, her eyes are as big as saucers. She never thought about the difference in power between them, especially when his soul is this tiny thing with spiky hair, but she's looking deeper now, and she can feel the strength and courage rippling off his soul, and she whispers a wow that she hopes he doesn't hear. According to the grin, he does hear. Her voice shakes, a little breathless when she says, "That's impressive."

He continues like he doesn't hear it, but the widening of his smile gives it away. "Besides, I wouldn't be training with you if I had a meister, right? Cheating isn't cool."

Cheating isn't cool. One sentence causes her body to feel peace she's not felt in so long, it's overwhelming. For some reason that she's unaware of, she's fighting back tears, so she turns her had away in hopes that he won't notice. "It's not the same, though, we're just studying for class, right? You're helping a friend."

His laugh is playful before he jumps back to teasing her, with a glint in his eyes. "Friend, huh? Do you make out with all of your friends?" She gasps before freeing her hand from his and slapping his arm lightly. "Soul!"

Before she can hit him on the head again, he catches her hand easily and pulls her back closer to himself. "I'm just saying, we're going to have some problems if that's the case. You made me feel I was special or somethin'."

It's all she can do to stare as his crimson eyes search her emerald ones. She feels his breath on her face when he sighs, and it feels lonely when he lets go of her to get up, but he remedies it immediately when he offers her his hand. "What?" She asks confusedly, but takes it and lets him pull her up anyway. He pulls towards the door a little, but Maka doesn't budge before an explanation.

"I'm taking you on that date before I leave. We'll train tomorrow or the weekend, okay? I promise. I just want to do this before I go." She knows her mouth is left open in shock and her eyes are darting anywhere that isn't his face, this is definitely a plot twist and she feels a churning in her stomach. But she collects herself quickly to pull on a face that she hopes is indifferent.

Maybe the reason she agrees so quickly is just because he has a way with words, or his charisma, or that he reschedules the training instead of cancelling, but she can't find any excuse to say no. Maybe she doesn't want to. Especially when he's leaving for probably more than a week, somehow it already feels lonely knowing he'll be who knows how far and facing what.

"Where are we going?" His smile is huge as he starts pulling her back towards the corridor again, and they're walking hand in hand towards the changing rooms. Maka feels warmth running through her body, stemming from his hand, and it's the worst on her cheeks, especially with the few people still at school staring at their hands.

"I'm taking you back to my place, I'm cooking the best pasta ever as you have a glass of wine, and then we are watching a movie that you will choose before I drive you back to your place. How's that sound?"

"Any movie?" She asks when they're in front of the changing rooms, still hand in hand and he nods. "Any movie." He confirms.

"Oh, you're so going to regret letting me choose. I'm doing the dishes, right?"

"You're so gonna regret me letting you choose. I don't have the biggest selection. Also, nooo way you're washing dishes. It's not cool to make the girl you like do any work when you cook for her."

From the outside, they must look like two blushing idiots, because he definitely does, and she's sure her own blush is even brighter than his. She would laugh if she could move her face, but it's probably permanently stuck now with the shock and happiness and embarrassment. "Yeah?" She asks, hoping he'll understand what exactly she needs the confirmation on. Desperately, too.

"Yeah."

She can't help the smile that creeps on her face, and it's huge when it blooms. "Good." She whispers, and they stay watching each other for the billionth time. They're being super corny today, she knows, but it's not like she can help it. He nudges her towards the changing rooms with a whispered go change, and she obeys even though she'd be content just staying in that moment like that.

Soul is all changed, leaning on the wall again when she comes back out, and he's chatting with a girl that she doesn't know. The girl seems almost perfect: wavy, brown hair on her shoulders and beautiful brown eyes. Tiny nose, slightly blushed cheeks, and even Maka can appreciate a pair of good jeans. Even through all that beauty, there is something negative she can't quite chalk up to anything, except it's definitely a negative energy, so she does something she doesn't normally do…

That's not something you use soul perception for, not like she can tell if the girl has any feelings for Soul through it anyway. She can't find anything other than the fact that the girl is someone very self-assured and strong. So she tries pushing down the negative feelings as she calls out, "Hey, I'm ready," and gives the girl a forced smile.

"Okay, let's go." His eyes are squinted as takes her hand, tells the girl that he'll see her later, and they start moving towards the main doors instantly. She could swear she saw the girl's charming smile turn into something she could only call toxic, before becoming a frown completely.

"Who was that? I don't think I've seen her around." The question leaves her mouth against her wishes as they go out into the fresh air, and she curses herself when he lifts a brow towards her, and squeezes her hand slightly.

"Not sure about her name, she's an upperclassman. We chat from time to time when we see each other. She was just asking how it's going." The door closes in a loud slam as they start going down the stairs.

Maka looks back towards the entrance, mind still on the last expression on her face, and misses the way he looks at her with worry. It also weirds her out that Soul doesn't seem to know the name of someone he chats with occasionally, but chalks it up to him being a Death Scythe, especially one without a meister. A lot of people probably talk to him daily. She hums as a response and he squeezes her hand again. Cheating isn't cool, his voice rings in her head again when he does so. The sentence still feels her with the same peace as it did some minutes ago, but it feels less of a light quip now.

Half an hour and another terrifying bike ride later, they're at his place and she's given the glass of wine she was promised as he cooks and she's looking around his movies. His place is very clean and nicely designed, though a little emptier than her own place. It's an open kitchen with a kitchen island in the middle, before cutting to the living room. The entire place smells familiar, his cologne is basically everywhere, and it makes her sigh contently. Even though it's the first time she's been here, it feels like she's completely welcome here, a warm, cozy feeling.

"Why do you only have action flicks? Do you not have anything else you enjoy watching?" She asks, clearly amused as she's trying to decide between two different movies which basically had the same plot, some spy thing.

"Well, if I watch movies that require actual attention, I can't fall asleep in front of the TV, can I?"

That was as good a reason as any to watch a movie, and she finds herself humming before putting the movies back into the drawer before trying to figure out how to turn the TV on.

"We might need to do this at my place next time, then. That, or I'll need to bring over some movies." Still fiddling with the TV, she doesn't notice the way he stops, watching her with an almost nervous intensity before nodding and mumbling an awkward 'okay.'

She manages to turn on the TV, and places the movie inside the player to get it ready to play before moving to the kitchen and leaning on the fridge to watch him cook. It's almost hypnotizing, the way he moves around the kitchen. He cuts everything so precisely, the muscles on his arms flexing with every move, and he's so focused with his brows furrowed that he almost looks angry with the food.

She focuses on his hair and stance for a moment, and compares it to the way precise way he's cutting the tomatoes now. Taking another peek at his soul is almost irresistible, and she finds the sheer size of his power washing over her again. It's almost like he's trying to hide how strong he actually is by putting on an act of aloofness.

Somehow it's all very… alluring and she gets lots in following the motions with her eyes, finding herself with her glass half empty.

Shaking her head to get out of her stupor, she clears her throat, and places the glass to somehow pace herself before moving to the sink and rolling up her sleeves to start with the dishes even if he had told him before that he wouldn't let her do that. Before she can even turn on the water though, he's pushing her with a bump of his hips away from the sink while complaining. "No! I told you, no dish washing for you tonight!"

Maka giggles to herself at his tone. She mentally adds a Bad Maka! at the end of his sentence and lets him nudge her aside. She keeps watching him work his magic on the pan. It looks like it's going to be delicious, smells mouth-watering already, but she knows enough cooking to only barely keep herself alive, so she really can't be sure. It'll definitely turn out better than anything she can make.

Soul can't feel more hate towards Kid when he hears her giggle at his resistance. He doesn't want to go away for a week just when they have started getting close like this, and it's disappointing that he has to go for so long.

What Kilik had said a week ago about her turning down offers for dates is ringing in his head, both giving him hope and ripping it from his heart. She has so many suitors, there had to be a reason she chose him instead of them, right? But also what if it was a personal thing, and she's just decided that she'd try dating now and he was just the first person who seemed worth it, and there would be more after him?

He can feel a frown forming on his face as he decides that he doesn't want any others for Maka. The feeling he recognizes as a slight jealousy leaves a bitter taste in his throat as he tries swallowing it down with no luck.

There is no way he guesses the answer of why Maka's on a date with him now, he thinks, Maka seems to be very complicatedly layered, and asking her that straight up is out of the question. Her reactions earlier in the gym had given him hope however, and the courage to ask to take her out at that exact moment. The fact that they would still do the training session sometime in the weekend is also a plus, now he has an excuse to spend more time with her before he leaves next week. Since she seems so invested in the idea of a next date, he's already hoping to coax another date out of her after the training.

He plates the food, it's just spaghetti with tomatoes and olive oil, the only thing he had the exact ingredients for since it's his favorite pasta dish. "I hope you like a little spice," he says as he places some basil on top of both dishes. The smirk that tries to creep on his face is pushed down as he watches her basically drool over the dish. "It's spicy? It looks so good!" She chirps, and the smirk is uncontrollable now.

With their glasses of wine refilled, they head for the living room and place everything on the coffee table before settling on the couch. He waits for her to take her first bite of the pasta to start the movie, and he's glad he did because the delighted squeal and happy face she made is just adorable. "Soul, this is delicious! How did you learn to cook like this?"

The truth is that this one is probably the best dinner he's made in the past couple of years at least. He doesn't tell her that, that information is need-to-know. He points to the huge cookbook on the coffee table, "Takeout started tasting gross at some point, and living alone gets boring easily."

She hums happily as she takes another bite, and he starts the movie. It's not interesting at all compared to Maka sitting on his couch with her face glued to the screen, eating the food he made very contently, and the shy smile she gives him when she turns around to find him staring is better than dessert, sending a thump through his heart.

The plates empty quickly, and are placed back on the coffee table as they both start nursing their glasses of wine. He wants to get closer to her now that the plates are out of the way, but can't imagine a way to do that without attempting lame tricks at that moment, his whole cool is gone. Before they're half an hour into the movie, before he could make his move, the phone starts ringing. With the biggest huff, he gets up and goes to get the phone.

Maka gets up right after him to bring the plates to the kitchen, the least she could do, as he answers the phone and sighs loudly before even saying 'hello', upon hearing the person on the other end of the line. "What do you want, Kid? Thought I was off the clock after that meeting."

Ah, must be important if Kid calls at this hour, Maka thinks to herself. Kid usually doesn't like bothering people when they are off work/school, unless it's genuinely important. "You can give me the information before I head off. I'm on a date right now."

Even though it was never a secret that this was a date, she's immediately shy upon hearing the word. It's a good thing that his back is towards her because she can already feel her face start to flush. This is her first date that wasn't labeled as a 'casual hang-out' but one with clear intentions. This date is real, even just using the word acknowledges it. This date makes her feel good, wanted. Liked. That's what he had said, right? It makes her heart literally skip a beat, it's shocking that that's actually possible.

He lets out an exasperated groan, and his voice is annoyed as he says, "Dude, is that really why you called? Calm down, I just cooked for her and we're watching a movie." There is a brief pause where he sighs again. "She's here, I'm handing her the phone since you don't seem to trust me with her."

With that he turns around and holds out the phone for her with an amused smile despite his tone earlier. Her hand reaches for the phone automatically, and the receiver to her ear. "Hello, Kid," she greets confusedly.

"Oh, hello Maka. I just wanted to make sure our common friend is treating you well. Please inform me if he fails to do so." Kid has his own way of being protective of her, and it always feels nice to know he cares. It's amusing that he has this older-brotherly streak for her. Especially since he is the god of death, you know.

"You know I can deal with it if he steps a single toe out of line," she answers grinning, hoping to annoy Soul a little, but he grins right back. It's like he knows that she can and will deal with it, and he likes it. It sparks a small fire inside her belly. She looks downwards at the floor before kicking the corner of the rug absentmindedly. "But I will still let you know if that's the case, promise."

"Good, well, I will not bother you more on your date. Have a good rest of your evening." The second he finishes the sentence; the phone clicks off. The phone is passed right back to him, he grips her wrist lightly as he takes it and places it back in its place before pulling her slightly towards himself.

"'Deal with it' how, exactly?" he's still grinning as he pulls her a little more and places his hands on her waist when she's close enough. His eyes are clearly on her lips as she answers his question with one of her own.

"Why did Kid want to make sure you're treating me well?"

"Well, he didn't believe me when I told him you'd said yes to a date with me, no clue why." He still seems amused as he continues, "So he wanted to make sure…" His eyes are locked on hers as his tone softens, and his hand brushes her cheek so lightly she almost doesn't feel it. "That I was being genuine when I told him how into you I am."

Shivers run down her spine and she practically can't breathe when she realizes she can feel his breath on her face as he's speaking, but she's still starting to remember her chat with Liz about him. "I want to ask you something," she starts. Her tone has to be enough to convey how important and hard this is for her to ask, because there is just no way she can say that out loud.

When he pulls back just a little to give her some space, her chest heaves with the size of the breath she takes. "I want to know how many of the rumors about your 'conquests' are true." The air-quotes are there as the word conquest leaves her mouth, and her hands are placed on his arms after the gesture, squeezing just a little.

"Okay, a question I've been expecting," His tone feels more reserved now, almost as if he's measuring each word he's about to say, and Maka wonders if the timing of the question fucked up the moment they had, but she needs to know. The moment doesn't matter if she doesn't get this information.

"Some of them are… maybe two or three," He takes in a shaky breath as he confirms, one of his hands leaving her waist to mess up his hair. She feels cold without it. "But not all of them, and conquest wouldn't be my word of choice."

Noting that he sounds genuine, she listens with a quiet focus, catching the words as soon as they fall out of his mouth. "I did date two or three of those girls, but it was always them who asked me. And the furthest it went is two dates and a couple kisses."

The hand in his hair falls back onto her shoulder this time, and he's slightly squeezing it as he continues. "I think one of them started the other rumors out of bitterness that I didn't want to continue. I couldn't be bothered to confront them about it, didn't think it'd get this far." He scoffs before adding, "They are all part of this fan club or whatever it is that they call that gossip factory."

One of her hands move out of its own accord to his neck, rubbing the side of his chin with her thumb to bring him some comfort, to let him know it's okay. It would have been okay either way, she realizes, as he nuzzles slightly into the touch. She wants to remove the frown from his face, so she tries to make a joke about it. "Should I be scared of these fans of yours?"

But he doesn't laugh as he closes his eyes with a deep breath, and doesn't speak for a few moments before she urges him with a call of his name. Suddenly, his eyes open, all bright and focused on her, and he asks her: "Do you believe me?"

Intense, is a word she'd use to describe the way he's looking at her now, almost as if he needs her to believe him. "I do," she answers truthfully, because she does, she believes that he's being honest and open, and decides maybe she owes him her openness, too.

"I might have asked Liz about it at gym," she turns her head from him in shame for a second, because she's been prying, it's really none of her business, but he must have been amused by it since his hand is on her chin immediately to pull her back. "I wanted to know if the party meant more to me than it did to you." she ends her sentence while watching his face soften and the uneasiness leaving his body.

"I know you did. What did you find out?" The change in mood is so quick her head spins a little. He's looking at her lips again, she realizes before closing her eyes. Her voice is barely a whisper, but it gets the message across when she answers him.

"I think it was amazing, too."

Her eyes are still closed when he uses the hand on her chin to pull her towards himself, lingering there for only a moment, probably watching her breathe him in. Then his forehead is on hers for just a moment before he places a kiss on her cheek. Then her chin, her nose, all over her face before her lips and the gentleness of his kisses make her feel so delicate, even treasured.

But when his lips finally meet hers, that softness is gone in an instant, and it feels raw, somehow vulnerable this time. A new urgency fills them both and it's almost like they're continuing where they left off at the party. But it's only a brief kiss, not too long before he pulls back to breathe a question on her lips.

"Was that out of line? You still didn't tell me how you would deal with that." He teases with a small smirk, as he lets one of his hands roam up to her hair. She holds her breath as he undoes her pigtails one by one, and runs his hand through her hair once before settling it on her nape.

"Oh, shut up," she whispers, and he lets out a hearty laugh before pulling her face towards his again, this time kissing her much more slowly, more chastely, just giving her little pecks as he places his other hand on her neck. She lets both of her hands fall to his waist to pull him closer, trying to coax him into a longer kiss.

"Soul," she tries to push but the whiny quality of her voice makes her cringe. His answer is some unintelligible mumble that sounds something like her name. "Stop teasing." This time she sounds more breathless than whiny, and as he lifts his head, she opens her eyes to see his pupils have dilated a little.

His eyebrows rise high on his face as he repeats her request more to himself than her, and sighs contently when she nods. He starts running his hand through her hair, and another shiver runs down her body when his nails scrape her scalp. Any breath she takes is shaky, and eventually cuts off with a soft hiss when he places his lips on her neck in soft kisses.

"You good?" he murmurs, his voice low and slightly rough, sending a wave of warmth through her, almost pulling her out of the blissful bubble he placed her in. Almost.

"Really good," she answers and punctuates it with a small moan when he runs his teeth on the skin of her neck. She can feel his smile right where he bit her and can't help but smile herself.

She pulls his head upwards to meet hers, and when he obliges, she kisses him deeply this time, unhurried as she melts right into him. It feels like such a safe cocoon right then, and she just lets herself memorize the feeling of being completely warm, secure, and at ease.

When they finally pull back, both breathless and flushed, he gives her a huge smile and brings her right back into a tight hug. With her face buried in his chest she breathes in his smell and tries to not think about the fact that he'll be gone for at least a week, and how much she's going to miss just being in proximity to him.

All the worry fades away when he twirls a lock around a finger and murmurs, "You know, I really like your signature dorky pigtails," he stops for a moment as if waiting for the hit he guesses is coming, but she's much too happy in that moment to punish him for that. I'll just do it later. "But taking them out is so much better."

He grows quiet after that, and starts drawing mindless patterns on her back, like he's contemplating something. Another moment of shaky legs and sighs and back rubs goes by, and he pulls back with a serious expression. The hand on her waist tightens a little, his voice is almost as soft as silk when he repeats something that makes her chest tighten with excitement.

"I really, really like you, Maka."

The next words that come out of her mouth seem to calm him a little as his face falls back into an easy smile and his body clearly relaxes. Saying it has the exact opposite effect on her though, she feels all the hair on her body standing up, her pulse still skipping, and even her voice trembling a little. Still, it was surprising how easily it flowed out of her mouth.

"I really, really like you too, Soul."

I KNOW ITS SO CORNY TO END IT LIKE THAT but the whole chapter is corny anyway so who cares, right? Sorry. Next chapter will be more adventure than romance and I'm thinking this story will actually be a little more than 5-6 chapters long from how much bigger it keeps on getting (dirty pun not intended but welcomed) the more I write, so. Not too long though, definitely. We'll see.

I'm not sure how many people keep up with this, but for whoever wants to know I think I'm going to be able to write maybe one chapter in the following two week period because I'm taking some standardized tests for masters application and its time to cram... Pray for me