Maka looked up from the chalkboard when she heard the familiar crash of Stein's chair as he attempted to roll over the threshold of her classroom. It amazed her that he still did that.

"Can I help you?"
"You're needed outside, in front of the school. I'll teach your class for the rest of the afternoon." he replied, twisting his screw.
Maka looked up at her students, weighing the risks of leaving them with the crazy professor. None of them looked too happy about it – the stories of Stein's experiments were legendary.

"Ok, but no dissections. They're working on theory of soul resonance at the moment – not a subject that requires dissection!" She reminded him as she grabbed her coat and left the classroom.
Stein looked at his watch. He figured five minutes head start would be enough.

Maka strode swiftly through the corridors of Shibusen, wondering why she had to leave her class to Stein. If her father was trying to set her up with another weapon while Soul was out of town again, then she might actually give him brain damage this time. She emerged from the door, looked around the courtyard and her heart stopped.

There, by the stairs, was a man with a shock of white hair in a leather jacket that fit his broad shoulders in a way that should really be illegal. Maka blinked hard, hoping it wasn't her mind playing tricks on her again. He must have sensed her presence, because at that moment he turned around and Maka froze. It was him. It was Soul.

Her poor lonely heart suddenly started beating again, but it was too hard, too fast and its beat was roaring in her ears. Soul took his hands out his pockets and shrugged slightly, which was the equivalent of any other man throwing his arms wide yelling come give me a hug. It didn't seem fair that he looked so perfect. The sun was glinting off his white hair and his garnet eyes sparkled.

Maka knew she was romanticising and she knew she should just approach him calmly like the grown woman she was, but her body suddenly wasn't under her control because she was running to him as fast as she could, sprinting with a desperate need, and his damn infuriating smirk widened and then she was leaping and she was airborne and he caught her, his arms locking firmly around her waist as she buried her face in his neck and wrapped her arms around him in return.
She was laughing with tears in her eyes as they spun in each other's arms. Maka relished the feeling of his strong arms around her, the smell of leather and motorbike oil and Soul enveloping her as he crushed her to his chest.

Soul finally set her down carefully, as if she was something precious, and looked deep into her eyes as if they could tell him all the secrets of the universe, keeping her safe in his arms. He closed his eyes and she felt his soul reaching for hers, their foreheads touching. Maka eagerly reciprocated and they plunged into a soul resonance.

The leaves spun around them and their souls swelled as they welcomed each other back after almost three months apart. Soul drew Maka close and she buried her face in his chest as he breathed in the scent of her hair. They were together again and nothing could ever feel better. After some period of time – it could have been a few minutes; it could have been an hour for all they cared – their souls separated.

Maka clung to her weapon, unable to believe he was here, home, almost a whole week early.
Soul grinned. He loved coming home to her – it was the one time she let her walls down and let him hold her the way he wanted to. He ran a hand down her back and kissed her temple, resting his cheek on top of her head. He looked across the courtyard to see a grinning Stein surrounded by students. He tried not to be too surprised – after all who wouldn't want to see a cool guy like him?

"Maka, we have company" he murmured in her ear, his voice low and rough. He grinned again when he felt a faint shiver run down her spine.

Maka reluctantly withdrew her face from the warmth of his chest and opened her eyes. They widened hugely when she recognised her class staring at her, struck dumb by the idea of their fearsome Miss Maka clinging to a man. She mentally cursed Stein to eternal damnation and flushed furiously as she leapt away from Soul.

"Professor Stein! What are you doing?" she demanded.
"Showing them an example of a perfect soul resonance" he replied in a flat voice, completely unfazed by Maka's fury as he blew a stream of smoke skywards.
"Hey Professor, you said you'd cover her classes for the rest of the day right?" Soul called, taking advantage of Maka's speechlessness.

Stein nodded, fiddling with his screw again.
Soul bent slightly at the knees and swung Maka over his shoulder, ignoring her protests and the blows raining down on his back.
"I'm taking her then. See you round, Stein." Soul turned and started down the stairs, extremely grateful she didn't seem to have a book on her. He liked his skull the way it was.