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“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!”
Soul Eater was out of his bed immediately. He sprinted to Maka’s room to see her shaking, curled up in a ball, crying and softly whimpering ‘please be okay’ over and over again.
“…Maka?” he asked softly, trying not to startle her. She looked up with a jolt, eyes wet with tears and bloodshot from a mixture of exhaustion and panic. She’d been having nightmares for weeks, all about Soul Eater. More than once, Soul Eater had protected Maka, saved her life, at the cost of his own health; once when Crona slashed open his chest, once when they fell a few stories and Soul landed on his back (hard), and just recently he got shot in the leg by an opponent of Maka’s. She visibly felt worse and worse about it every time it happened, even though it was Soul’s job to make sure she was okay at all costs.
Maka had been keeping herself from him more and more. She apologized far more often whenever she bumped him slightly. She would jump whenever Soul Eater dropped something. Even small things that used to intrigue her, such as the small marks and scars that peppered his body, made her tear up. Whenever she wasn’t actively with him, she would still be watching, making sure he didn’t get hurt for her again.
He gently walked over to her bed, hiding the slight limp he had as much as possible, now that he had her attention and knew he wouldn’t startle her further. He silently sat down on her bed, got comfortable, and pulled Maka’s trembling form close to him. Maka wrapped her arms around him and buried her face into his shoulder. She held on tightly, as if afraid letting him go would make him disappear forever. She wasn’t breathing right; too hard, too erratic, and it sounded as labored as if she just finished an intense battle.
Soul held onto her, reminding her he was still there and still okay.
“I’m okay. I’m here. It’s not your fault; none of it is. I’m okay,” he murmured, running one of his hands through her hair, rubbing her shoulder in reassurance.
“Yoiuderyterveabeuyttertrauinewr” she muttered into him.
“Come again?” Soul asked with a slight chuckle, slowly trying to lighten the mood.
“You deserve a better trainer,” she declared with tears in her eyes but her voice strong.
“Hell no,” Soul said defiantly. “I don’t need a better trainer because there IS no better trainer. You’re the best trainer out there Maka and I wouldn’t WANT anyone else, much less ACCEPT anyone else.”
She smiled weakly at him, holding him a bit tighter.
“But I get you hurt all the time and what if something really REALLY bad happens to you it’d be all my fault just like the rest of this is yo-“ Maka rambled before Soul Eater pulled her upright and kissed her on the lips sweetly.
“You don’t get me hurt. I get me hurt. I am doing my job. None of what happens to me is anyone’s fault but mine.” He explained, making sure she understood.
She grinned, one last tear falling onto her hand, before nuzzling him and curling up against him, shivering a bit.
Soul smiled and a pulled a blanket back over the two of them. He stayed awake a little longer to look at her; admire the serenity of her sleeping face, listen to the faint chirping noises she made, running his hands through her hair a little more. When he was on the verge of unconsciousness as well, he adjusted a bit until he was under the covers and held onto Maka, allowing her to sleep comfortably for the rest of the night.
When he woke up the next morning, Soul smiled at the fact that he was awake before she was. She was smiling very slightly. The bags under her eyes were a bit paler and less extreme now that she’d had a good night’s sleep for the first time in weeks. She woke up a few minutes later, stretching and purring like the cat-witch that lived with them. She looked up at her partner bleary-eyed. The look on her face suggested that she’d had a good dream after he helped her get back to sleep, but was still very aware of how much he had suffered for her.
He gave her a tender kiss on her sleep-swollen lips before leaving the comfortable (but small) bed. He made breakfast for the two of them (as well as a fish on the counter for Blair) and brought the two plates back into Maka’s room. At first she made him put the plates down so he could cuddle some more, but after twenty minutes of that he made her sit up and eat something.
Maka made it about 3/4 of the way through her breakfast when her mind started to wander. Her expression grew dimmer and she started idly pushing her food around. Then she started to grip her fork tighter than necessary, and then she started digging it into the plate.
“Maka. Stop that. Now.” Soul demanded, in a calm but firm tone.
“I’m sor-ry,” she croaked.
He put down both of their plates and held her in front of him.
“Look at me. I am okay. Nothing that happens to me is ever your fault. I know right now things seem really crappy, but it’ll get better.” Soul Eater said, staring into the eyes of his partner, even though she was looking around the room.
He grabbed one of her hands and put it on his chest and put his hand and rested it on the side of her neck. He could feel their hearts beating in perfect synchronization.
“We are one…” he began
“…and we’re both alive.” Maka finished softly, smiling up at him.
“Damn right we are.” Soul declared, giving his signature smirk.
He got up to start some music playing so that they could get ready for school. They were ready a bit earlier than when they needed to leave, so Soul put on a classical song, pulled Maka over by the waist, and the two danced for what seemed like forever, just enjoying each other’s closeness.