You had been waiting all week to show Soul your new pet, a surprisingly docile tarantula you’d picked up from a specialty shop in Death City. You thought it was neat, cool even—its fuzzy little legs, the way it slowly crept across your hand without a care. You were sure Soul, with all his “cool guy” attitude, would appreciate the edge of owning a spider that big. Oh, how wrong you were.

The moment you opened the small terrarium in Soul’s direction, proudly lifting your hand with the tarantula crawling across your palm, his reaction was immediate. “WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!” Soul practically launched himself back against the couch, eyes wide, his usual calm-guy demeanor gone in an instant. He scrambled like the floor had just turned into lava, practically tripping over his own legs to get as much distance as possible.

You blinked at him, amused. “It’s a tarantula. My new pet. Isn’t it cool?” The spider crawled lazily across your wrist, perfectly calm, while Soul’s hands shot up in alarm. “Cool? That thing’s a freakin’ nightmare with legs! Don’t—don’t bring it any closer!” His voice cracked halfway through, which only made it more hilarious.

The harder he tried to look tough, the less convincing it was. He peeked over the arm of the couch like the spider might suddenly sprout wings and fly at him. You couldn’t help laughing, holding your hand out toward him just a little. “What’s the matter, Soul? Big, bad scythe can’t handle a fuzzy spider?”

“Fuzzy?” he scoffed, though his voice was tight, “that’s not fuzzy—that’s hairy! There’s a difference!” He ducked again when the tarantula shifted. “Don’t look at me with its eight little demon eyes! Oh god, why did it move like that—ugh, nope, nope, I’m out!” He bolted upright and stomped toward the other side of the room, muttering under his breath about how “this is uncool, seriously uncool.”

You laughed so hard your sides hurt, gently coaxing the tarantula back into its terrarium. “Relax, it’s not gonna bite you. It’s actually really friendly.” You closed the lid and turned back toward him. “Wanna hold it?”

Soul froze like you’d just suggested he eat it. “No way. Not in this lifetime, not in the next, never. I’m not about to let some oversized spider crawl on me. You’ve officially lost your mind if you think that’s happening.”