Heart and Soul (Soul Eater X Reader)

Chapter 12

        "I think you all know why I brought you to the training center," Maka said, standing over the three of us.
"Because you don't want us to get our full eight hours?" I asked, as Ruby and I leaned on each other on the bleachers.
We had gotten back to Death City at noon the day before and all went our separate ways after reporting to Lord Death. Then I was woken at four in the morning by Ruby barging into my apartment with a text from Maka.
"Our fight in Denver showed me that we still have some improving to do. Namely you need to work on your melee attacks if you're going to be using Soul...and I need to work on my aim," Maka was saying to me, adding the last part very bitterly.
"Okay, then why am I here?" Soul asked from where he lay on the bench next to us.
"If Y/N's going to learn to use you, she actually has to—y'know, use you,"
"It's called a stick, Maka. I'm still not 100%," he grumbled.
Maka rolled het eyes and clapped once-hard-startling Ruby awake, "No more complaining! This is what we do!"
"Not me and Soul. I thought the whole point of being Death Scythes was that we didn't have to do this bullshit anymore," Ruby complained, anyway, all while following Maka to the shooting range half of the center.
"Sorry to disappoint. Now transform,"
I demonstrated for Maka, before handing Ruby to her, guiding her hands in the right way to hold her. She fired a few shots for me next. She really was awful.
"Okay, first off—keep both eyes open. Line up this, this, and the target...now take a deep breath, exhale slowly, and slowly squeeze the trigger,"
Bang!
"Better,"
Maka grinned at me, fired off a few more okay shots, then turned away, "Okay, we'll come back to this. I'll get you started with Soul."
After we woke him up, Soul transformed and jumped into Makas hand. She led me to the simulation area where, at her command, dummy opponents jumped at her one by one. She gracefully swung Soul about, barely breaking a sweat. It reminded me of a dance.
"Now you try," she was holding him out to me.
I groaned, "Er...Okay."
One by one the dummies jumped out at me. I swung as fast and hard as I could, but it wasn't enough, and I got knocked on my ass. Maka took Soul from me and helped me to my feet.
"Okay, I see what you're doing wrong," she showed me again, slower, without the simulation. She passed the scythe across her shoulders, over her head, hand to hand, and back easy as breathing.
"It's not a baseball bat and it's not about how hard you can swing. See? Use the momentum and the weight of the blade to your advantage," she swung faster now, taking out the now stationary dummy who had taken me out, with her usual battle-cry scream, before passing Soul back, "Try again."
"Does the screaming help?"
"Yes, yes it does."

We trained for what felt like ever, Maka shooting and me swinging. Ruby and I took a short break to grab something from the vending machines down the hall. While she lingered in the hall, I headed back, but as I reached the door to the training room I paused at the sound of shouting,
"—just because you've never been able to handle it!"
"Handle it! I care about you, Soul. And if Y/N is so okay with you sacrificing yourself, then she must not,"
"She cares," Soul sounded very hurt, "She just understands my role!"
"Why don't you just admit it, Soul?!" Maka cried, "Admit it and I'll drop it!"
"Admit what?"
"That you love her!"
I pushed the door open to see Soul opening his mouth to speak. Then his eyes landed on me and his lips snapped shut.
"We're done for today," he said instead after a dreadful, awkward pause. He pushed past me into the hall, but turned back, "You wanna walk with me?"
"Sure. I'll meet you outside," I grabbed my stuff, avoiding Makas eye and not saying a word.
Then just before I left, I said, "See you later, Maka."
She had been standing in the same spot, arms crossed and staring at a spot on the floor, but my voice roused her just so she glanced in my direction, "Yeah, see yah, Y/N."
Soul and I walked back to his apartment in comfortable silence. When we reached it, he turned to me, suddenly nervous, "Would you come inside for a bit? I have something to show you."
"Sure,"
We dropped our stuff on the kitchen table, and Soul went straight to his keyboard, "I just started working on this yesterday, so...y'know, be cool."
I grinned, "You know it."
He started playing and the goosebumps rose on my arms. With the first few notes, I thought it was just a pretty song, then I got an inkling, but about thirty seconds in, I knew I recognized it. "Is this from (favorite anime/Studio Ghibli movie)?"
"Yeah," Soul said, continuing playing, "I noticed you really liked this score, so I learned it."
He finished the song and turned to me, swinging one leg back over the bench, "What'd you think?"
Instead of answering, I looked him right in the eyes and asked, "Maka was right, wasn't she?"
"What?"
"That's what you were going to say back on the mountain,"
"I told you I don't—"
"You were going to say you love me,"
Soul frowned at me for a long moment, "I don't know, okay? These feelings just came out of nowhere."
"But you do have feelings for me...Would it help if I told you I have feelings for you too?"
"Are you saying you'd like to...be more than friends? M-More than friends with benefits, I mean,"
"I do. If you want to,"
He looked away from me, saying again, "I don't know. I'm not really good at the whole feelings thing. I need to think."
"Well, don't strain yourself. I'm gonna get going. I'll see you—"
He jumped up, "No, stay. Please? We don't have to do anything, just sleep. Just stay."
"Soul, I don't know if—Soul?"
His eyes had lost all focus and he wavered. "Soul?" I said again when he didn't respond, before diving forward to catch him as he dropped,
"Soul!"