Category: Mild Romantic Fluff

Characters: Soul Eater Evans, Maka Albarn

Requested By: Anonymous

Additional Tags: Soulmate AU

"You know, they say that you and your soulmate are born with the same song in your hearts. It's unique to every destined pair, and when you find that person singing or humming the song, you know that you're meant to be."

Maka raised an eyebrow as the pair of girls rummaging through the lockers to her left giggled excitedly between their whispers of fate and romance. One of them, a bright-eyed, brunette young lady, covered her mouth with the tips of her fingers as she chuckled mirthfully. "I've memorized every verse of my song. It's quite a beautiful melody! I can only imagine my soulmate is as elegant and charming as the tune!" Her friend frowned jealously.

"Really? The only way I can describe mine is… a screaming guitar riff." The other girl snickered hysterically and patted her begrudged friend on the shoulder. The girl then leaned in to whisper enticingly into her ear.

"Oh, but you know, that could mean that your soulmate is a tough bad boy! I know someone who fits that description…" At her teasing, the girl with the rock 'n' roll soulmate song squeaked and slapped her hands to her reddening face. Her friend laughed playfully at her expense amidst her pleas to stop jesting. Maka clucked her tongue distastefully and shut her locker with a little more than necessary force, making the metallic clang ring through the hallway. Clutching her schoolbooks to her chest, she strode away haughtily, leaving the gossiping girls to their wishful thinking and crushing on a "bad boy."

"Someone who fits that description…" Who else could they be talking about except Soul?

Soul Eater Evans undoubtedly embodied the "bad boy" persona to the unknowing bystander. Perpetually scowling and slouching with his hands buried in the pockets of his baggy pants, thundering into the school parking lot on a rumbling motorcycle, and more often passed out drooling in class than actually paying attention- that was Soul. Maka had to smile wryly at the utterly ridiculous notion of him being a tough bad boy. Those little first-years might dream up such ludicrous fantasies, but Maka knew better, so much better.

He was rude and uncouth, sure, but Soul had a heart of the purest gold.

Maka had known Soul since middle school. They had been paired up for a class project. Maka had wanted to rip every one of those silver hairs out of his head for the first few meetings; he was lazy and undriven, which infuriated her to no end. She presumed early on that she would shoulder the entire burden of the project upon her shoulders. However, he had surprised her. Near the end of their working period, Soul had stumbled up to her front door after spending all night slaving over an essay that was so eloquent and sophisticated that Maka wanted to weep. Yes, he had surprised her, and now six years later, in their third year of high school, they were the best of friends.

She smirked at the silver-haired boy when she slid into her desk beside him.

"What's that grin for? Did you kick Sideburns' ass in an exam or something?" he drawled as he rubbed his eyes, drifting into the twilight of half-sleep, though the class hadn't even begun. "Sideburns" referred to one Ox Ford, the current leader in class rankings, and Maka's insufferable rival. Though she had smoked him in the midterms last week, much to the prideful boy's chagrin, that was not what had her spirits so high.

"No. I overheard some first-year girls chattering about their crushes on a bad boy third-year," she remarked nonchalantly as she flipped her notebook open. Soul snorted with laughter and laid his head on his arm, watching her write the date in the corner of the notepaper.

"'Bad boy.' What a crock. I have some standards."

"Hehe, I know. They can't help it, though. They're just doe-eyed girls enamored with the idea of finding their soulmates in high school."

"Oh, Maka," Liz chimed from the seat catty-cornered to her, leaning over the enameled chair to smirk knowingly at the bookish girl. "Don't pretend that you're not infatuated with the soulmate stuff too. Just yesterday, I overheard you whining to Kim and Jackie that you would love to find your soulmate before you graduate." Maka's face turned beet red, and she didn't even have to look at Soul to know he was wearing that stupid grin that made her want to slap him silly.

"Liz, huuuush!" Maka hissed and swatted at the air, as if she could reach her to bop her on the head. Groaning, she buried her burning red face into her hands.

Of course she would love to find her soulmate! Even she had her romantic tendencies! Late at night, when there was nothing more to study or learn, she would lie in her bed with a piano melody tinkling in her heart and would try to envision the person to whom it must belong. Maka knew the statistics (she had quite obsessed over them), so she recognized that the chances of discovering her soulmate in high school were extraordinarily slim. Yet, yet, she harbored just the tiniest shred of hope that somewhere in her school, her classroom, even, sat the pre-ordained love of her life.

"Bah," Soul suddenly grunted, and she looked at him in shock. His lips were drawn into a babyish pout. "Who cares about all that soulmate bull? Why should I have to let some dumb song tell me who to love, anyway?" Sniffing haughtily, he buried his face into his forearm and pulled his hoodie up over his fluffy silver hair. A few of the girls berated him for his indecency and ignorance, but Maka didn't. It was truthfully a sobering thought that a song in one's soul made one of the most significant decisions of one's life without any consent or choosing at all.

Maka placed a hand over her heart, recalling the sweet thrumming of piano keys that had existed within her subconscious for as long as she could recognize it as music. Soft and sweet, full of high notes, but in the background of those blissful keys hummed deeper tones of suppressed power and emotion.

Maybe… I don't want to know who that song belongs to.

After class, Soul did something he had never done before- he stormed right out of the room as soon as the bell rang, abandoning Maka to her own devices. He melted into the crowd like a wisp, while Maka struggled to breach the writhing wave of bodies and catch up.

"Soul? Soul!" He disappeared into the mass of students, and Maka ceased her struggles to follow after a few meaningless seconds. Liz clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth and tossed her jacket over her shoulder.

"What's his deal?" she huffed with a raised eyebrow. Maka pouted unsurely, but she had a hunch as to what had ruffled Soul so. He was so angry about all the talk of soulmates… He feels trapped, having to conform to a pre-ordained love. She smirked slightly. That was certainly like Soul, to rebel against such notions. Now that Maka considered it, having to search for a single person in such a vast sea of billions was frightening, and what if, what if, it was impossible to love them? "Yo. Earth to Maka," Liz said while knocking on the side of her head. Maka frowned deeply and curled her hand over her chest.

"Liz… What if you fall in love with someone who isn't your soulmate?" The blonde girl blinked puzzledly at her, then scratched her chin.

"I mean… Well… You're just setting yourself up for heartbreak, I guess. What? Do you have a crush on someone, Maka?" the girl sneered teasingly, leaning in to whisper breathily into her ear. For once, Liz's mocking failed to fluster Maka; she was much too lost in thought. Could Soul be in love with someone and afraid to find that it isn't his soulmate? Who, though? There were several girls within their circle of friends, but Soul had never given any indication that he possessed a romantic interest for any of them. He was skilled at concealing his crush if he had one.

The hallways had emptied, as all the students had funneled into the cafeteria.

"I'm going after Soul!" Maka announced and began stalking in the direction he had vanished. She heard Liz shouting protests after her, but the pigtailed girl ignored them. Her mind was far too bent on the present conundrum: the riddle of soulmate songs and an apparent flaw in the fabric of fate.

The hallways echoed with her footsteps. The rhythmic strikes bounced off the painted brick walls and metal lockers, filling her already disordered mind with noise. Maka had always dreamed of finding her soulmate, but… It was frightening, the idea that your love was destined for a complete and utter stranger. What if they were repulsive? Maka would die if her soulmate were someone like Ox Ford- conceited, prideful, arrogant. How could she spend the rest of her life swallowing those flaws, all for the sake of some "destiny"? Maka swallowed thickly and paused in the hallway to stare down at her feet. It had only been a little thinking, but she understood why Soul hated the concept so much. The pressure was immense, the uncertainty astronomical.

The piano melody floated in her ears, bubbling up from the depths of her soul. Its tune tinkled like morning bells in the breeze, soft and sweet, with that booming undertone of raw, unbridled emotion. She never could place what kind of feeling it was. Lament? Frustration? Longing? It seemed to be all of them and none. She had always found comfort in that melody of her soul, a promise to a love to come. Now it seemed like thousands of chains shackling her to a future she may not want. Whimpering, she pawed her hands over her ears and attempted to drive the thrumming of the piano keys from her subconscious.

The melody dimmed, but not due to her internal efforts. Maka cracked an eye open when she realized the music was not in her head, but in the hallway. When she lowered her palms from her ears, the tune blazed back into its sweet fervor. Someone is… Playing my soulmate song. The epiphany rang hollowly in her chest. Just hours ago, she would have been ecstatic to know her soulmate was within these walls. Now, it filled her belly with the burdensome weight of dread. The music drifted out of the ajar door of the music club's classroom, which was not three yards before her. In just a few steps, she could scamper over, and she would know who her heart was destined for. Or, she could turn around and run in the other direction, perhaps doomed never to know her predestined partner.

Her feet moved of their own accord, drawing her to the door. All she need do is look. She could make a decision then. Right? She was in the threshold before she made a concrete decision. With a small gulp, she peeked through the small gap and prayed, though she knew not for what.

His hands glided over the piano keys, striking them with practiced precision. Back straight, shoulders squared, he looked the epitome of a professional musician. His eyes were closed, and his head swayed to the wave of the music; he was completely immersed in the dream of love that his hands were weaving- sweet high notes, powerful low notes, all colliding together in a beautiful symphony.

Maka had never seen Soul so… liberated.

The door made no sound as she pushed it open, or perhaps its creaking was swallowed by the music swirling around the small classroom. She approached the piano from the side, watching with fascinated eyes as Soul played the instrument like an extension of himself, but he was still too absorbed in the effort to notice her. She had not even the wherewithal to recognize that this meant Soul was her soulmate. The music was just so enchanting, so mesmerizing, that she existed in a reality of only she and it.

Maka jumped when the song abruptly ended. Her eyes fluttered rapidly as she came down from the foggy high, and after a few seconds, she realized he had taken notice of her presence. He had lowered the key cover and was leaning on its black polished surface, regarding her miserably.

"I've known that song for as long as I can remember," he exhaled and began drawing abstract patterns on the enameled exterior, smudging it with his fingerprints. "It's been in my heart and soul for every day of my life… and I really didn't care much. I figured it would become relevant when it needed to, but then… Then I met you, Maka." With a small gasp, the girl straightened up, her cheeks brightening at the insinuations. He smiled self-loathingly. "Then my dumb ass went and fell in love with you knowing that the chances we actually belonged together were one in a trillion. Stupid, right?" He drew his hand over his face with an agonized scowl. "If we were soulmates, we'd've figured it out by now, right? Just… just get the painful part over with and tell me you don't love me, or that you want to wait for your soulmate, and let me get on with my life, okay?"

"Soul." He didn't look at her, just kept his eyes hidden with his slightly shaking fingers. Maka closed the small distance between them to pry his fingers from his face, revealing watery red eyes. "Soul, I'm not going to tell you that."

"Don't pity me, Maka," he snarled and went to shove her away. She caught him by the upper arm, squeezing the flesh there hard.

"I'm not! I'm not, because I… I know that song." His eyes widened, and he stared at her incredulously. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she wrung the fabric of his school uniform coat nervously. "I've known it… for as long as I can remember, too. What you just played is my soulmate song." He slowly lowered his arm with her hands still clinging to it. He swallowed thickly, looking down at the covered piano, then back at her.

"Maka… Do you love me?"

Her cheeks reddened, and she looked away.

"Well, you're apparently my soulmate, so- Ah!" She yelped when he suddenly jumped up to grab her by her upper arms. His face loomed over hers, intense and adamant.

"I don't care about that. That's not the point. If you don't love me, then it doesn't change anything. Not for me. You be honest, and if you don't love me, you turn around and walk out that door right now." Maka's bottom lip wobbled and her eyes flooded with tears, but not because she was scared or heartbroken. She was just so utterly relieved. The very fact that he cared more about her feelings than some pre-ordained will of the deities meant more to her than anything ever could. She sniffed and rubbed at her eyes, searching the depths of her soul for the truth- and she found it.

"Of course I do. Of course I love you. You're my very best friend and so much more. I can't imagine my life without you, Soul, whether we're soulmates or not. I want to be with you forever." His grip on her arms relaxed, and he brought a hand up to cup her cheek. His fingers pushed her hands away from her eyes, and then he swept his thumb over her cheeks to catch her falling tears. His hands were so soft and warm that she could not help but weakly smile.

"Well, that's a relief. I didn't want to imagine my life without you, either, Maka." She chuckled softly. I'm glad. I'm so glad. His red eyes studied her face, like he was memorizing it though he had seen it nearly every day for the last six years. His fingertips lightly traveled her cheekbone, leaving a trail of tingling pink in their wake. "You're the most amazing girl I've ever met," he breathed. His gaze dropped to her slightly parted lips, and it didn't take an Ox Ford to determine his next move. Maka's eyes fluttered shut just as his face leaned in, and when his mouth met hers, she melted into him.

The only way Maka could describe the kiss later was… like she was coming home after a long time away. His lips melded into hers so perfectly, and the sensation was like fireworks exploding over the soft flesh as her nerves rejoiced. She missed him immediately when he pulled away, but in the next instant, the bell signaling the end of the lunch period blared shrilly overhead.

"Better get to class, Smarty-pants," he smirked. Maka grinned slyly and tugged on his arm, pulling him out of the music room and into the hallway. He groaned and shoved a hand in his pocket, but obediently allowed her to tug him along. When they had rejoined the throng of students, she looped her arm with his and grinned broadly. "What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking about how disappointed those first-year girls will be to learn their 'bad boy' has been claimed by bookish little me." Their laughter rang through the crowd, causing quite a few confused glances. Maka giggled and propped her head on his shoulder, jumping a little as it shook with his laughs. In the back of her mind, a piano melody played, blissful but humming with the undertones of a love powerful and pure.