A Rose By Any Other Name

Chapter 2: French Toast

Kid awoke to the sound of a piano being played, and very well at that. He yawned and sat up, stretching his tired limbs. It took him a minute or so to remember where he was and why he wasn't at Gallows Manor, his home. He was at Soul and Maka's apartment until the renovations on Gallows Manor were complete. He yawned again and stood up, groaning as realization set in that his clothes were wrinkled. "Stupid asymmetrical creases," he muttered to himself. Kid quickly smoothed his clothes out and made his way to the bedroom door. With every step he took, the piano music grew louder and louder. Wow. I had no idea Maka knew how to play, Kid thought to himself as his hand closed around the cold metal doorknob. He twisted it slowly so as not to alert anyone to the fact that he was awake, afraid that if he did, the beautiful melody would cease leaving only dull displeasing silence. However, when Kid opened the door, he was completely surprised to see that it wasn't Maka playing the piano. It was Soul!

Kid was a swirling combination of stunned and impressed. He had no idea that Soul had another talent aside from acting to cool for anyone and everyone around him. Then again, Kid really didn't know that much about Soul Evans to begin with, aside from what he already knew. Kid actually hoped for that to change sometime in the near future. He wondered who really knew Soul. Surely, Maka knew the real Soul behind the facade he held so perfectly in place. He watched as Soul picked up the pace, moving his body to the beat as if he had not even a single care in the world. Kid wondered what it was like to feel like that, like nothing mattered even if for only a moment. Soul looked so calm and serene. Kid noticed his eyes were closed. Soul didn't even need to see what he was playing. Simply amazing, Kid thought in awe.

Kid's plan to not be seen or heard was going wonderfully- until Kid momentarily lost his balance and loudly elbowed the door. Kid cursed under his breath as Soul's eyes snapped open. Upon seeing Kid, Soul flailed his limbs and fell from the piano bench right onto his rear. Kid's mouth gaped open as he watched Soul fall from the bench to the floor. "Dear god, Soul, are you okay?!" Kid asked torn between rushing over to help him and standing his ground. Soul cringed and glared ruby red daggers at Kid, causing him to flinch. "Well, I was being stalked while I was playing the piano and now I'm in pain and on my ass. Jee, Kid, do you think I'm okay?" Soul asked with far more sarcasm than was necessary. Then again, Kid supposed he did deserve it. If he would've just minded his own business, this wouldn't have happened. Kid sighed and made his way over to the embarrassed pianist. He held out his hand towards Soul, an apologetic expression plastered on his pale face. Soul grabbed Kid's hand and hoisted himself up. "Thanks a lot," he muttered.

"Sorry for snapping like that. I just don't play for people often," Soul said shrugging. Kid frowned. "Why not? From what I heard, you've nothing to be self-conscious about." Soul shrugged again. "I just don't like to I guess," Soul said, trying to make it clear in his voice that he wanted desperately to change the subject. "So," Soul said clearing his throat, "You hungry?" Not knowing what else to do, Kid nodded. "Cool. What do you want? I can't make much," Soul said rubbing the back of his neck. Kid thought about it for a moment before answering. "I'll take two eggs Benedict with a croissant and a caramel macchiato for my coffee." Soul blinked at the boy for a moment. "You're kidding me right? Please tell me you're screwing with me."
Kid frowned, his eyebrows furrowed. "I... uh," he stuttered feeling lost. Soul couldn't help but to laugh. "Let's get something straight, Kiddo. This isn't Gale's Manor," Soul said. "This is 'Soul and Maka's Apartment.' We don't have the fancy crap you eat all the time, so stop acting like a stuck-up rich kid or you can go without food," he said in his trademark flat tone, completely throwing Kid off. Kid frowned and clenched his fists slightly. "It's Gallows Manor, not Gale's Manor," was all Kid could manage to say. He was left speechless by the fact that someone, let alone Soul, had called him a stuck-up rich kid. It wasn't like he was completely clueless to the fact that people called him a stuck-up rich kid behind his back, but no one had ever dared to say that to his face. Could it be because his father owned and ran the school that they all attended?

It took Kid a good minute or so to find his voice. "I'm sorry," he muttered, head angled down so that his bangs hid his beautifully pale face. Soul sighed. "Yeah, okay. Want some French toast?" Kid faltered again. What the hell? How could Soul be over it that quickly? It was almost inhuman! Then again, Soul probably thought it was uncool to linger on silly things like that. Kid sighed. "Sure, French toast sounds appetizing at least." Soul rolled his eyes and got to work while Kid sat at the small four-person table. He stayed silent until Soul finished and set a plate of French toast down in front of him.

"Feel free to let me know what you think of it," Soul said tossing the frying pan he'd used into the sink. "I'm trying to improve," he said with a small smirk. Kid picked up a fork and knife and cut off a piece, popping it into his mouth. Almost immediately, Kid's face lit up. "Soul, this is simply amazing! You're quite the chef," he said waving the fork at a very flattered Soul. He chuckled and dragged a hand through his snow white hair. "Glad you like it." He sighed. "If only Maka were as appreciative of my cooking as you are. She doesn't think my food is any good." Kid shot Soul a puzzled look as he took another bite of his breakfast. "Really?" Soul nodded. "Yeah. She even tried to get me to take cooking classes," he said laughing. Kid grinned a little bit at this. "I don't think I'd ever let Liz or Patty convince me to take a cooking class," he said flipping his oddly patterned hair out of his face. "I should dare them, or better yet pay them to," Soul said flashing Kid his signature smirk. Kid rolled his golden eyes and focused his attention on the delicious breakfast in front of him.

When he was done, he stood up from the table and slid his plate into the sink. Soul was sitting at the piano, quietly tapping out notes every so often. Kid came to stand behind Soul and slid his hands into the pockets of his suit coat. "What is that you're playing?" Kid asked, curious. Soul picked a pencil up off of the music holder and changed a few things in the sheets of music he had in front of him. "It's nothing really," Soul said flatly. "Just something I wrote." Kid knew this shouldn't have come as much of a surprise to him, but it did nonetheless. "What? You play and you write?" Kid asked sounding impressed. Soul nodded, a faint grin turning up the corners of his mouth, giving Kid a glimpse of the boy's sharp teeth. "Did I mention I play the guitar too?" Kid blinked at Soul. "Wow. Simply amazing." Soul couldn't help but laugh a little. "It's not really that big of a deal. Musical talent sort of runs in my family. My older brother, Wes, used to play the violin. I don't know if he still does or not, but I would imagine so." Kid frowned, suddenly very confused. "You have an older brother?" Soul frowned and shifted awkwardly on the bench. He was a little sensitive on the topic of his family, most of whom were dead. "Yeah. So, got any plans for today?" the angsty teen asked, trying yet again to change the subject. Kid shot Soul a troubled look. Had something happened between Soul and his brother? Oh well. Kid decided it was best not to pry. Soul would tell Kid if ever he felt like it.

"Kid? Did you hear me? I asked if you had any plans today," Soul repeated waving a hand in front of the black-haired boy's face. Kid blinked and snapped out of his trance. "Sorry. No, I've no plans that I can recall," he said with a small shrug. Kid didn't miss the small grin that flashed across Soul's face. "Perfect. You can help me run some errands," he said, the slightest hint of amusement in his otherwise emotionless voice. "Wait, if Maka's not out running errands, than where is she?" Kid asked. Soul shrugged. "Maka and Tsubaki have some silly book club thing today," Soul explained. Kid sighed. "Oh. Alright then," Kid said sounding almost disappointed. Soul raised an eyebrow at the teen. "Hey, if you don't want to come, you don't have to. No one's forcing you," Soul said, hands in his pockets. Both his tone and expression were indifferent. "I really could care less either way, so do what you want." Soul walked over to the door of the apartment, grabbing his keys out of the bowl. He started to walk out the door when Kid yelled after him. "Wait!" Soul stopped and looked over his shoulder at Kid. "What?" Kid sighed and closed his eyes. "I'd feel weird if I was in your house with no one else here, and it's because of that reason and that reason alone that I'll go with you." Soul rolled his eyes and flashed Kid an amused smirk. "You may be one of the smartest people at Death City High School, but it amazes me sometimes just how stupid you can be, Kid," Soul said shaking his head and walking out of the apartment with a speechless Kid on his tail.

"Alright, so this is the stuff we need," Soul said handing Kid the shopping list as they walked into the Wal-Mart. Kid's golden eyes scanned over the list written in Maka's girly handwriting. "I figured you could get one half of the list and I'll get the other half. We'll meet up over by that cookbook display," Soul said. He took the list from Kid, being careful as to tear it into two symmetrical halves, knowing that if he hadn't, Kid would have thrown a fit right there in the store. Once the deed was done, he handed Kid his half. "If you have any problems or can't find something, text me," Soul said before walking off, leaving Kid standing in the middle of the unfamiliar territory known as Wal-Mart.

Kid whimpered pathetically. Truth be told, he'd never even been in a Wal-Mart before. Part of it was his obsession with symmetry and his tendency to violently hate anything asymmetrical. Nearly everything in the place was too terribly asymmetrical. The other part of it was that Liz and Patty did most of the shopping. Kid never had to do a thing when it came to that. Wow. Thinking about it, maybe this was what Soul had meant by "stuck-up rich kid." Kid sighed and looked at his half of the list. Bread, Salami, Swiss cheese, pepperoni, Cheetos, Pringles. Kid barely resisted the urge to groan. "This sucks," he muttered to himself, making his way to a random isle. He was halfway through the candy isle when he heard an unfamiliar voice call his name.

Kid spun around and recognized a girl with long brown hair who he thought to be in one of his classes at the high school, though he had no idea which class. "Oh. Uh, hi," he said awkwardly. The girl walked over to him. "Jacqueline. I'm in your History class," the girl said with a faint smile. "Right, I knew that," Kid muttered sounding apologetic. She flipped her hair over her shoulder. "So, what brings you here?" she asked, twirling a strand of long brown hair. What should I say, Kid asked himself. "Oh, I just decided to go out today," he said shrugging it off. "Oh," Jacqueline said smiling. "I've never seen you here before," she said still twirling the same strand of hair. "Well, that's because Liz and Patty do most of the shopping," Kid said without much emotion. "I'm not really that fond of public places," the awkward boy admitted. "Yeah, you sort of came across as that type of person," Jacqueline said shrugging. "But that's okay! Some people just don't like to be as social as others," she said taking a step closer to Kid, who really didn't seem to notice the sudden change in distance between them. "You just have to surround yourself with people who, I don't know, get you," she said taking another step towards Kid.

Jacqueline released the strand of hair she'd been obsessively twirling and let her hand drop to her side while Kid just blinked at her. "People like me," she said, a sudden change in her tone and body language. The brown-haired girl took a rather large step towards Kid so that their bodies were practically touching. Kid suddenly became very aware of how the distance between them had quickly been eliminated, and nervously wondered what to do. He took a step back to keep his balance- and backed up right against a wall. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, I'm screwed, Kid thought as Jacqueline took another step forward. Now Kid was trapped. His eyes frantically searched for an escape. I could just dive to the side, roll across the ground and make a run for it, Kid thought just as Jacqueline put her hands on the wall on either side of Kid just above his shoulders. No, no, that will never work! The floors are far too dirty and this suit is dry-clean only! Kid froze, his breathing halted. He knew what was coming next, but he was too shocked to move, even as the girl closed the small gap between them.

At first, Kid just stood there completely unsure of what to do. After a few seconds though, he seemed to relax into the kiss. He let his body take over and his arms wrapped around Jacqueline's waist, pulling the girl closer. Kid felt her gasp, and he smirked into the kiss. Jacqueline matched Kid's smirk and tilted her head so they could get even closer.

Kid wasn't sure why he was reciprocating. Typically, he stayed as far away from deep romantic feelings as he possibly could. In fact, the only thing Kid had ever really truly felt deeply about was symmetry. He'd never even considered having similar feelings for another person up until now, but a person could change... right?

"Coffee... coffee... Where the hell is the damn coffee aisle?" Soul mumbled as he trained his red eyes on the signs above each aisle. "Great, there it is. All the way at the other end," Soul complained, rubbing his forehead. Grocery shopping was a total pain in the ass and something he absolutely hated doing, though he always seemed to be the one doing it. Yet Maka somehow found it necessary to constantly complain about how all Soul ever did was sleep, eat and watch TV. Just because he wasn't as studious and as knowledgeable as she was.

Soul sighed and shook his head, turning his attention back to his half of the shopping list. He could worry about Maka and her personality issues later. Right now, he decided it was best to stop in the candy aisle on his way to the coffee aisle to get some snacks for Maka, Kid and himself. However, what he saw when he entered the candy aisle was definitely not what he expected to see. What the hell?! Soul thought, unable to fully comprehend what he was looking at. One of the girls he recognized from his class, and… was that Kid? No, it couldn't be Kid. Though, Soul couldn't miss the unmistakable three white stripes in the boy's hair. Well I'll be damned, Soul thought, grinning and shaking his head. Well, might as well make this fun for me, he thought, picking up a few candy bars and dropping them loudly into the shopping basket he'd been carrying. The noise did the trick, and both the black-haired boy and the girl he'd been kissing jumped and gasped.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" Soul asked trying not to go into a laughing fit. Kid gasped a second time, looking around the girl to see Soul standing there with a smug look on his face. The boy's usually pale face turned fifty shades of red from the sheer embarrassment he was feeling. He knew he'd hear about this to no end when they returned to Soul and Maka's apartment. "I, uh, I was just… Soul, let me explain, I was, uh." Soul went into hysterics as Kid fumbled blindly for an explanation, which only made Kid feel more self-conscious about the situation. "Kid, relax. I'll be over in the coffee aisle. If there's anything you want, I mean if there's any coffee you want, just come find me and let me know," Soul said. Still laughing, the white-haired boy shook his head and left the aisle, leaving the two blushing teens alone.

"I'm so sorry about that," Kid apologized frantically, grabbing a fist full of black hair in each hand and shaking his head. He'd never been so embarrassed before. "No, it's fine," Jacqueline said with a sweet smile. "Besides, now that he's gone, we can pick up where we left off," she said, her tone and body language changing same as before. However, this time was different. Before Jacqueline could close the gap between them a second time, Kid carried out his initial escape plan and dove to the side, rolling on the ground and then right onto his feet. "See you at school!" was all Kid could think to yell as he made a mad dash for it, turning out of the aisle and heading for the books and CD's. That was a close one, he thought to himself when he was away from her. He didn't even care that his suit was soiled. He leaned against one of the book shelves, panting. Of course. My first time in a public place like this and that happens, he thought, shaking his head. Oh well. No sense in dwelling on it. It happened, now I'll just have to accept it. He sighed pulling his half of Soul's shopping list out of his pocket, deciding now was as good a time as any to get the job done.

Neither Soul nor Kid spoke on the way back to the apartment. Kid was still far too embarrassed after the candy aisle incident, and Soul was racking his brain to find a good way to bring it up again. He waited until they were putting groceries away in the apartment to do so. "Mind explaining just what the hell happened back there?" Soul asked putting away the cereal boxes. "I wish I could, but truth be told I don't even know what happened myself," Kid said shaking his head as he put away the coffee Soul had gotten. "I was wandering around trying to figure out where everything when she approached me and started talking to me," he said, reliving the whole event in his head. "The next thing I knew, she had me pinned against the wall and then we were," "Completely making out?" Soul asked with a raised eyebrow. "Eh, yeah, something along those lines," Kid said rubbing the back of his neck and angling his head towards the floor so Soul wouldn't see the blush that was rapidly spreading across his face. "I guess I should apologize for sneaking up on you like that," Soul said with a nervous chuckle. "It was uncool of me. I should've given you two your privacy." No matter how damn funny it was. Kid chuckled and stood up straight, dragging a hand through his striped hair. "Actually, if I'm being quite honest I'm somewhat glad you stepped in when you did. After that, I was able to make a clean getaway without any trouble." Soul laughed and high fived Kid. "Well then, I guess I'm glad I could help."

"Hi you two," Maka said walking through the door a few minutes later. "Oh, hey Maka," Soul said as he finished putting away the last of the groceries. "Did you and Tsubaki have fun at your book club thing?" he asked taking three cans of Dr. Pepper out of the refrigerator. Maka smiled and nodded, taking one of the cans. "Yeah, we had a great time! We're reading this really cool book, well I think it's cool anyways. You probably wouldn't like it," she said making a face. Soul laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, you're probably right about that." Maka giggled and clasped her hands behind her back. "So, did you two have a good day?" she asked. Soul glanced at Kid and grinned. "Well, one of us did anyways," he said, snickering. Kid angled his head so that his bangs hid part of his face, which was quickly becoming red yet again. "Wait, I don't understand," Maka said frowning. "What happened?" Kid sighed and took one of the two Dr. Pepper cans that remained in Soul's grip. "I'm going to call Liz and Patty and see how they're holding up," he said flatly before walking into Soul's room and shutting the door. "Whoa, what's his problem?" Maka asked, frowning. "Oh, Kid's just mad because I caught him making out with some girl when we were at Wal-Mart earlier," he said making a face. Maka's mouth dropped open in surprise. "What girl?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "You know Jacqueline from our History class?" Soul asked, and Maka nodded. "Yeah, well when I got to the candy aisle, those two were playing tonsil tennis," he said with a small grin. "You're joking," Maka said putting her hands on her small hips. Soul snickered and shook his head. "Nope. It took me by surprise too," he said shaking his head.

Maka and Soul both looked to Soul's bedroom door behind which Kid was. "He said he went in there to call Liz and Patty," Maka said frowning. Soul shot her a confused look. "What's up?" he asked. Maka shrugged and shook her head. "Well, it's just a hunch but I think Kid just used that as an excuse to leave the room," she said still staring at the door. It was Soul's turn to frown, and he too looked to the door. "Really, you think so?" he asked. Maka nodded. "Soul, I think you should go talk to him," she said turning to the white-haired boy. "What? Why me?" Soul asked, a bit caught off guard by Maka suggesting that he should be the one to talk to Kid. "Because," Maka said crossing her arms. "You were there, you saw it happen, so he'll probably feel more comfortable talking to you about it." Soul opened his mouth to protest, but there was no use. Maka was right, and Soul knew that. "Damn," he mumbled rubbing the back of his neck. "This situation isn't cool at all."

"Alright, you two have fun. I'll talk to you later." Kid sighed and slid his phone shut, tossing it onto Soul's bed. Liz and Patty were currently having the time of their lives at Disneyland in California. They'd invited Kid to come with them, but he had respectfully refused. There were far too many people for him to feel comfortable there and he didn't want to ruin their fun by complaining about how asymmetrical the character's costumes were the whole time. Though, given the day's events, he was beginning to wonder if staying back while the girls went on vacation was such a fantastic idea.

"Kid, open up." Kid's thoughts were interrupted by Soul banging on his bedroom door. "Dammit, Kid, this is my room. I should be able to enter at will. So unlock the door and let me in before I break it down, which by the way if it comes to that you will be paying for it." Seconds later, the door swung open. Soul expected to see Kid standing there, but found him sitting on the bed and listening to Soul's iPod instead. "Locking me out of my own room is really uncool," Soul said, scowling. "So is listening to my iPod without my permission for that matter," he mumbled, crossing his arms. "What're you listening to anyways?" Soul asked, deciding to take a delicate approach to the candy aisle incident. Kid lowered the headphones halfway and looked at the iPod screen. "Geek in the Pink by someone named Jason Mraz," Kid said, mispronouncing the last name. Soul chuckled and sat next to Kid on the bed. "Not a bad song choice," he said. "Look," he said suddenly, removing the headphones from Kid's head and surprising the black haired boy. "I don't know why you're so damn embarrassed. Jacqueline Dupré is one of the most popular girls in the entire high school. If the other guys knew you got to make out with her, you'd be worshipped," Soul said getting to Kid to crack a smile. "Oh, I don't know, Soul," Kid said shaking his head. "I've never been good with romantic things or strong feelings or, well, feelings for that matter," he said with a small smile. Soul cracked up, falling back onto the bed. "Stick with me, that'll change really quickly," he said, laughing. Kid rolled his eyes at the white haired boy, but couldn't help chuckling a bit himself.

"Thank you, Soul," Kid said, smiling. "I definitely feel less embarrassed than I did," he said rubbing the back of his neck. "Well that's good. Wouldn't want you being all quiet and awkward for the rest of the night," Soul said with a playful smirk. "I would appreciate if you refrain from telling people what happened today," Kid said. Soul grinned and nodded. "Figured that much. Don't worry, Kid, you can trust me," he said before whipping a pillow at the rich boy. Kid blinked in surprise, then frowned. "You dare start a pillow fight with Death the Kid?" he questioned. Soul faltered before being smacked in the face with a pillow. "If we do this, Soul, you'll lose," Kid said, smirking. Soul sat up, a pillow in hand. "You're going down."