Hey! I'm so incredibly sorry that it took so long for me to update. I worked hard on this chapter and made it almost triple the usual length I write in a chapter since it's the grand finale :)

Enjoy!

Maka fell back into her armchair, exhausted from the party. It was a pretty standard birthday party. The cutting of the cake, the embarrassing birthday song, as was customary, followed by presents and then wrapped up by a lot of drinking and of course, the traditional game of 'truth or dare'. She, of course was only tipsy. Black Star and Kidd were the only ones who were full, blown out drunk. She tried to recall how Stein-sensei and Marie-sensei and her lecherous Papa handled their liquor.

They had just one drink and then left, she thought to herself as she remembered. As for her lecherous Papa, she had kicked him out after they had finished the cake.

All in all, it was just like any other ordinary birthday party, yet she was happy. She hadn't had this much fun on a long time. She gave a long, happy sigh, contented and happy.

She snapped out of her daze a she heard the sound of a tap turning, water running, and the clink of ceramic in the kitchen. A quick glance at the clock on the wall told her it was already 3 am. She turned around in her armchair and saw Soul's back towards her, his red shirt sleeves neatly folded up, his jacket hung on a nearby chair.

"Ah, let me help you with that," she said, staring to get up.

"Oh, you're awake. Its ok, I got this. It isn't cool for a birthday girl to the dishes," he said after glancing at her.

"I believe in equality."

"And I don't. I'm treating you nicely so shut up. I'm almost done anyways," he chuckled.

"There probably wasn't much to begin with," she stated. She was still in a good mood, though.

"You may be right. But it's the thought that counts, isn't it?" he grinned. Maka listened to the sound of dishes clinking and water rushing out of the tap. She listened to the way she could hear Soul tap his fingers on a plate occasionally, and the way he would hum under his breath, thinking that she couldn't hear him.

With a final squeak of the tap, Soul walked into the living room, wiping his hands with a dishtowel. Maka's eyes followed him as he rummaged through the stacks of CD's, curious about what was going to happen next.

Finally finding the CD he wanted, she watched as those delicate hands pried open the case and popped the CD into their stereo. His hands were always so fascinating to her, so experienced and accurate. They were a pianist's hands.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the music began to flow out from the stereo's speakers. It was a song with a slow yet catchy beat, the bass loud and strong. She could see the speaker thump with each booming beat. Soul turned and held out his hand towards her, a confident grin plastered to his face.

"Maka… Dance with me," he told her gently. It wasn't an order, it was a kind suggestion however, she could not seem to find the willpower to refuse. He looked deeply into her eyes, completely unaware of the hypnotizing effect they had on her.

Maka finally broke away from those tantalizing orbs and looked his hand extended towards her in surprise, and then looked back at his face, studying his features. His grin was devilishly alluring just as always, but there was a sort of look in his eyes she could not seem to name. Kindness, perhaps? She pushed it to the back of her mind.

"Sure," she accepted his invitation, smiling as she took his hand.

He led her behind the armchair she was previously sitting on and placed one hand on her hip and took Maka's hand, poising it in the air, with the other.

"Umm…I'm not that good at this…" Maka mumbled blushing as she hesitantly placed her free hand on his shoulder.

"Just follow my lead. Relax. It's just you and me," he smiled confidently.

That's exactly why I can't relax, she thought, her heart hammering painfully against her ribcage. She felt like she was about to explode any moment now.

She felt stupid and awkward as they began to dance to the slow beat of the song. Her shoulders were tensed up, her breath was hitched and she kept looking down at their feet in case she stepped on his foot or something. Gradually, though, she relaxed, forcing herself to breathe properly, and her heart slowed down.

Soul, seeing that she had finally relaxed, let go of her waist and gently guided her to move beside him, so that their arms, still connected, were fully extended. He then guided her to coil back into his arms, so that her back leaned against his chest. Her arms were crossed in front of her at waist level, whilst Soul's arms crossed in front of her as well, his hands joining hers. Basically, he was hugging her from behind as they continued to dance.

They were much closer than earlier now. Maka's heart raced out of control again. She tried to comfort herself with the fact that Soul couldn't see blush on her face, since her back was against his chest. Maka tried to calm herself and decided to focus on something else as a distraction. She leaned into Soul's embrace as they slowly bobbed and weaved in the small space in the hall. She could feel his warm chest and his heart beat. Now, that she thought about it, his heart beat was beating pretty fast, for some vague reason.

I guess I'm not the only one suffering, she thought. It must be pretty awkward for him as well. At that thought, she automatically relaxed again. She closed her eyes and took in his scent thinking that the way he smelt made her picture blues and jazz.

Soul stepped closer to her, suddenly. She instantly felt something in her stomach explode. It amazed her how one simply action could make her react so strongly. She loved the way he held her, so gentle, but strong and secure. She sighed, contented that she was being held by him. Even if he didn't love her back, she would be fine. It would break her heart, but she'd be fine, just as long as he was able to hold her like this once and a while.

Soul took a deep breath against her hair, and she knew he was taking in the way she smelt as well. It made her heart skip a beat. Why did her heart have to react like this even though she had decided to stop loving him? She knew the answer. She always had known the answer. As much, and as hard as she tried, she would never really stop loving him.

Soul held her close and kissed the back of her head. Why did he always have to give her the hope that he might love her back? Tears burned in the back of her eyes, threatening to spill out but she held them back. She didn't want to ruin the moment.

Soul buried his head in the crook of her neck and kissed the back of her neck. Maka's heart felt like exploding and that annoying feeling of hope grew within her. She felt like she should be having a heart attack right now. Soul moved back up and kissed her head once again.

"Maka," he whispered into her ear making shivers run down her back.

"Hmm?" she murmured in reply. She didn't trust herself to speak.

"Maka…" he hesitated. She felt his heart beat faster against her back, and felt her hopes rise with every beat. He paused and took several deep breaths.

"Maka Albarn…" he said after what seemed like forever, determination resounding in his voice. She waited as her hopes reached its peak, and felt like she was bursting at the seams. Her eyes opened wide and her body went numb as she heard the one thing she never thought she would hear from him.

"…I love you…" he whispered. He let go of one of her hands and twirled her around slowly, so that she could face him. He wrapped his arm fully around her waist this time, so they were just as close as they were earlier.

Maka's brain was still processing what had just happened. She felt like her whole body was paralyzed. They stood there quietly, still holding each other as the music played in the background. Soul patiently waited for her to fully understand what had just happened. He reached for her with his soul and gently nudged her. She finally looked at him and saw the same look in those deep red eyes she has seen earlier. The look she so easily had mistaken for kindness. The look that sometimes practically broke her heart.

It was love all along? She laughed in her mind. She finally smiled at him, overjoyed, and tears in her eyes. Suddenly, she just felt so complete. She reached up and gave him a tender peck on the cheek.

"Is that all I get?" Soul chuckled as they began to slow dance again.

"For now…" she replied, wrapping her arm around her neck so she could rest her head against his chest.

"So… was that your answer?" he asked playfully.

"Why don't you guess?" she answered, equally playful.

"Hmm. What's my prize if I get it right?"

"Anything you want."

"Anything I want?"

Maka giggled. "Anything you want, "she repeated slowly.

"Alright… I'm guessing that you love me, too," answered, softly kissing her neck.

"Correct," she smiled, tilting her head to give him more access to her neck.

"So now I get what I want, right?" she could feel him grin against her skin.

"That's the general idea," she softly replied, still hypnotized by the feeling of his lips on her neck.

"Then I want what you want," he said. He left a butterfly trail of kisses from her neck to her jaw.

"And what would that be?" she managed to reply as he reached her cheek.

"This." He gently pressed his lips against hers.

It was nothing like she had ever experienced before. She had always felt like kisses were simply a greeting, nothing more, nothing less. She had read in romantic novels how kisses were an expression of love, but she never really understood what all the hype was until now.

Maka had no idea that the kiss she had waited so long for would feel so satisfying. As she kissed Soul, she finally felt what those young girls had talked about in her novels. Maka felt like she was floating on a cloud. It felt like the butterflies in her stomach were going on a huge rampage. The world around them had suddenly ceased. The only thing that mattered was that she was with Soul and him alone.

Suddenly, Maka needed more. The feeling grew in the pit of her stomach, trying to over-power her actions. She never knew that she could feel so possessive. She nibbled on Soul's lip, asking for entry. Soul accepted her immediately and Maka knew that she wasn't the only one eager here.

They explored each other's hot caverns and there was a battle of dominance. Maka was determined but Soul had started to massage a soft spot on her back with his skilled fingers, so she surrendered. Maka couldn't help but feel slightly competitive, so when they broke away for air, she immediately latched on to his earlobe and nibble on it. She felt a certain satisfaction when Soul tried to stifle a groan and pulled away to flash a devious grin at him.

Soul kissed a sweet spot at her neck as an act of revenge. He slowly made his way up to her ear and whispered in a husky voice, "You have no idea how long I've waited for that. "

"I think I've got a general idea," she replied. Her voice was breathy, as if she had just run a marathon. She was starting to get used to the feeling of her heart ramming against her ribcage. She felt her back arch as Soul sucked on a sensitive spot on her collarbone. Soul had the power to induce such powerful reactions from Maka, it amazed her.

Maka's breathing sped up. She could feel Soul breathing heavily against her neck as well. They were no longer playing innocent now. Maka was too distracted by Soul's skilled fingers working their way down her back and by the feeling of his lips on her neck to panic. His lips reached hers once again and another battle pursued. Both of them needed more, their actions grew more aggressive.

Soul led the way, pushing Maka back until they both plopped onto their couch, their lips never parting. Soul balanced some of his weight onto his hands so he that wouldn't crush her. Maka undid the buttons of his shirt quickly and traced the lines of his hard muscles, memorizing. In a quick motion, she flipped them over so that she was straddling Soul by the waist. When he finally realized what had happened, he chuckled.

Soul could the grin on her lips against his neck. He let his hands wander up and down the curves of her waist. He felt something within him yearning to take control once again. He flipped them over just as quickly as Maka had previously; He loomed over her, one hand placed at the side of her head to balance his weight once again.

His other hand was driving her crazy. He drew delicate patterns on her, gently taunting her with his finger tips, deliberately avoiding the places she needed so badly to be touched. He stare was intense and full of passion. His hand travelled down to her leg, drawing dangerous circles on her inner thigh. Maka reached to undo the zipper of her dress when she felt Soul freeze.

"Soul?" she asked, "What's wrong?"

"Maka, I…" he started. She felt like he was restraining himself. He sighed, pulled himself away from her and sat on the far end of the couch.

"Maka, I really, really, really want to do this with you right now, but if we continue, I'm afraid we'll probably go the whole way,' he sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

"And you don't want to go there with me?" she practically stated.

"No! Don't get me wrong, I really want to go there with you but you're not ready, Maka."

Maka folded her hands and pouted like a child who couldn't get her favorite toy. Soul laughed and gave her a quick but tender kiss.

"I want to do this with you properly and all. Our first date and the works," he told her.

"We're already living together, you know," she reminded him.

"Well, I'm a gentleman. A cool guy like me knows we have to take this slow," he grinned.

"You're right," she sighed in defeat. Soul buttoned his shirt back and lay down next to her. He put his arm around her and they both lied there in comfortable silence.

"I think I'm starting to regret passing up the opportunity to get laid," Soul sighed.

"Hey, you missed your chance."

It took way too long, but it's finally finished! Thank you, everyone who favorited or reviewed!

Don't hesitate to review, be it hate, or be it love - my inbox is always available and open =)