Book of the Dead

by HopefulEVOLution

When Nina Martin returns to England for the beginning of Year 11 at Liverpool International, she expected to finally be a normal teenager for once but it all changes with a mysterious dream. Not only will she learn more secrets of the Frobisher-Smythes but of her own family history and a great destiny that has been waiting for her. (Year 11 - First Half ).

1. House of Theory

Disclaimer: I do not own House of Anubis, the characters in it, or the locations used in it. But I do own the plot.

A:N: Hello people of the fanfiction world! I'm GothicHispanicChick and I'm obviously new here! I got inspired to publish my story by a well-known author by the name Definition of a Writer (you should read her/his story, Scarred, it's really amazing!). I will try to upload new chapters ever Wednesday! Until then, enjoy the story!

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When the thorn bush turns white

That's when I'll come home

And I'm going out to see what I can sow

And I don't know where I'll go

And I don't know what I'll see

But I'll try not to bring it back home with me

- Full Moon;The Black Ghosts

---

Preface

In all my life I've always been searching for answers for the questions that I would ask myself often and try to figure out that complication that it would be provided in my life. I never saw myself as just a regular teenager or that I belonged to the life I used to live in. I felt that there was a part of me missing. Lost, even. But then I found it.

I stared across the dark field, breathing heavily that my lungs could burst out through my chest, and stared into the emotionless eyes of my closest friends as they struggled to breathe air into their deprived lungs. I have never seen anyone so fragile, so pale-skinned, so defeated and quite eager for a rescue. I wasn't that rescue; I can only stand there, watching them sprawled across the blood-stained, grassy ground.

As they all stared back at me, I can already hear them calling my name in pure fear and begging for my assistance. I quickly turned away from their gazes - which was a mistake - and then found myself staring into the eyes - those lifeless, vacant eyes - of the hunter.

I've never had a chance to sit back and think how my death would seem like when I cross paths with it. I've never expected it to look like this. However, it would seem like a completely pathetic excuse for me to grieve over the fact that the dream is to end soon in a matter if seconds, even after all of the amazing things that had happened.

Ever since I moved into this house - in this House of Anubis - life has given me an opportunity to try out the many things I've wanted to do - wanting to feel - and showed me things that seemed beyond normality of life itself. Despite the tensions, the betrayals, and the hardships I've been through with my housemates, I feel nothing but genuine gratitude. I'll die with gratefulness for the friendships, the romance, and the difficulties that these wonderful peoples have given me.

I stared back with ease as I watched hunter smile at me in a pleasant - and sickening - manner and then sauntered forward to end me permanently.

---

I still remember the time I found out about my scholarship to Liverpool International - a prestigious boarding school in the country side of England, London - and how speechless I was when I saw the envelope in the mailbox early in the Sunday morning. I was completely taken back in surprise to learn that an exclusive school from another country has applied me to their system, but at the same time, I didn't really want to go.

If I left America to attend at a school in England then it meant that I'd have to leave behind everything important to me, like, my three close friends from my neighborhood, and my only close relative, Evelyn Martin - my Gran. But she insisted that I should because it would be an excellent opportunity for me to have a good future. Gran encouraged me to accept the application to the Frobisher Academy, despite the fact that she knew of the changes that will occur when I go on that plane and head over to Liverpool, England for great education. She may leave a smile on her face but I knew that she was struggling to let me go and watch me leave Tarzana, California, so I told her that I'd decline the offer.

However, after I'd give it some thought, I decided to accept the application no matter how much it pained me to leave behind everything I hold close to my heart. I wasn't known to be the best liar in the world - Gran knew that, I knew that - so it was a difficulty for me to convince Gran that I was certain that I wanted to attend Liverpool International.

Neither I was sure if my choice was the right one, but I continued to repeat my words to Gran until she gave in and was convinced that I wanted to go. I didn't want to leave her behind or my hometown.

England was a whole different country across the world and being a minor teenager to travel across with no adult supervision was quite terrifying - an action that I took with great horror. I didn't detest England, but I couldn't help feeling like I stand out since I'm probably the only International American female student attending in Liverpool International.

I loved California. I loved the glaring golden sun and the active, busy streets of the city.

In the brochure it said to be one of the top prestigious boarding schools in the country side and would have everything that a student needed just like it said in the facts. There will be a house mother named Trudy Rehmann - who happens to be one of the most thoughtful and caring person I've ever met - to keep the house organized and the meals prepared for every four to five hours of the day. Also, a caretaker known by the name Victor Rodenmaar Jr. - who is strangely mysterious and very strict about his rules being followed - to keep the residents protected from harm and get ready for school on time.

The brochure even said that the teachers used to work in one of the most exclusive universities of London so they have a lot of experiences in teaching students in every category and give excellent education to the mind.

I looked up in the Internet for more information about this academy and the house I was about to move into just to be sure that my choice is the right one. It said that there hasn't been an accident or crime in the Anubis House ever since it was built in the 1800's and that it was currently constructed as a home for nine family members or companions. That eased up my thoughts on my choice a little.

Although, by the time I've gotten to England and moved into Anubis House, strange things suddenly started to transpire.

When I moved into the house one of the residents named Joy Mercer disappears unexpectantly and all traces of her existence have been eliminated from the school by the community staff. Joy's best friend, Patricia Williamson, was in dismay to learn about her disappearance and had accused me - during the time she wasn't really fond of me - for being involved.

I had to go up in the attic one night to bring back an artifact and prove that I wasn't involved with Joy leaving, but when Patricia had locked me in there, I made a bizarre discovery; the recorded diary of a young girl who I had met as an elder woman, Sarah Frobisher-Smythe, who lived in the house a long time ago. On the tapes, it was revealed the house had a secret mystery, a mystery that nobody knows about. Given an Eye of Horus shaped locket by Sarah with mysterious powers, I decided to investigate the house's mystery alongside my boyfriend, Fabian Rutter, and my best friend, Amber Millington. We formed a secret group called Sibuna (Anubis backwards) which members were expanded to include Patricia once she finally made peace with me among learning that Joy's disappearance is connected to the house, and Alfie Lewis - a well-known joker of the school and house - joins in the mystery as well.

Eventually, Jerome Clarke - a school prankster of nothing but mischief - joins into the mystery later on.

Prior to Sarah's death, Sibuna and I learn that Victor is the son of Victor Rodenmaar Sr., Sarah's childhood guardian who was after what is revealed to be the Cup of Ankh that gives immortality to the one who drinks the elixir of life from it. Furthermore, Victor is the current leader of the Society dedicated to finding the Cup and obtain immortality through the Paragon - or who they thought originally was - Joy. However, a former Society member named Rufus Zeno attempts and succeeds in getting the Cup of Ankh after it was revealed that I was the real Paragon because I was born on the seventh hour of the seventh day in the seventh month.

After that mystery was over, everything slowly turned back to normal and everyone went to their separate ways for the holidays in winter break.

It wasn't until the beginning of the new term that another mystery suddenly started when I tried to keep the Cup of Ankh hidden from everyone in the Society and had accidentally released the spirit of an forgotten Egyptian ruler named Senkhara. She had come to me for the Mask of Anubis, as she wishes to enter the afterlife and reign as a god. She had cursed me and my friends with a mark that is called the Mark of Anubis, which presents peasants or servants who threatened Anubis this life threatening mark. It resembled a tattoo, letting us know how serious she truly is about taking away our lives if we don't solves the puzzles, clues and riddles, and receive the Mask of Anubis in time. During the quest of the Mask, I learned that she was wiped from history because she assassinated King Tutankhamen.

When we managed to solve every clue and task, we got a hold on the Golden Mask, but then I found out from Fabian that Senkhara was plotting to use my body to enter the afterlife - to enter the Field of Rushes - because she has no physical form. Unfortunately, when I put the mask on, we found out that it wouldn't activate without the missing piece of it; the Frobisher-Smythe Gem. The missing artifact was brought to me by Eddie Miller, whose maiden name is actually Edison Sweet and was known to be the Osirian - the faithful protector of the Paragon - and had saved me from being taken away by banishing Senkhara with her own crown and an odd incantation.

After that, everything was back to its usual normality. Patricia and Eddie still throw snide remarks at each other, but their relationship is going really strong. Alfie had gotten back together with Amber after finally setting their differences aside. Mara had started a newly formed relationship with Jerome after the mystery. Lastly, Fabian and I have gotten back together; only our relationship seems to have grown more profound than it was before.

After the hardships we've been through, the complications we had with the childish feud between Fabina and Jabian, and the ridiculous jealousy, we were brought together closely. It turned out that us breaking up had been a mistake because we both thought that the other wanted to remain as friends when we actually wanted to be in a higher standard than friendship.

We all have spent together during the last week we had and have created memories that we can think back and laugh about before we went our separate homes. Honestly, even though I may be away from Liverpool during summer vacation, I can still feel some of the mysterious powers of the locket lingering around me as I continued to wear it every day.

My Gran was driving me to the airport with the windows rolled down all the way and a song of a famous band, The Black Ghosts, known as Full Moon was blasting through the small speakers of the radio as I felt my hair whip across my face with the rushing wind of a late summer season. I was wearing my favorite plaid jacket over my black tank top and my denim shorts. My only accessories are the Eye of Horus locket clasped around my neck and a pair of sunglasses. School was about to start in England next Monday so I had to be back a few days before so that I can have my new set of uniform and supplies ready. All of my things have already been shipped overseas yesterday so I didn't have to worry about that at all. Gran had bought me more clothes during the summer, saying that it was a reward for the good grades I've gotten on my last report card, and I had to bring in more than one suitcase because Gran insisted me to take the new clothes with me.

I made sure I didn't have an American flag sticker on them like I did the first time I traveled to England. I wondered how all my friends were doing as different questions flooded in my mind. What have they done during summer? How much have they changed? Did they stay the same? Have they thought of me?

I've spent half of my vacation sending e-mails through Facebook or writing my thoughts about them on my Twitter page and talking to them through Skype. Originally, I wasn't going back to school this year because Gran was ill lately, but she had gotten better and demanded me to head back to school in England because she was certain that she was feeling healthy.

I wasn't sure if it was the best choice to leave her here alone when I know that she was in a critical state of her age, but I still agreed to go.

"Gran," I said to her - the last of a thousand times - as she swiftly parallel-parked in a legal zone in the front of the airport. "Are you sure that you're feeling well enough to be alone? Because I can still stay here for school."

I can see Gran sighing softly as she stared at the small picture frame of my mother that she has on the dashboard and tapped her thumb against the leather material of the steering wheel. I was also looking at the picture, too. My mother almost looked like me, except her honey brown hair had been dyed into a platinum blond and had faint laugh lines. I feel like I was staring at an older version of myself.

Then I turned my gaze over to Gran, my solemn expression slowly forming into a concern look. How can I leave my loving, outgoing and slightly ill grandmother to fend for herself? Of course she has Noah Morgan - a neighbor who has been living next to our house for the past twenty years and seems to have a tiny crush on Gran - so the bills will be paid on time, there will be healthy food stored in the kitchen, gas filled in her car, and someone there make sure she takes her medications every three hours, but still...

"Nina, I want you to go," she lied. Like me, she isn't exactly the best liar in these situations, but she's been saying this lie so frequently lately that it sounded almost convincing to me now. "Stop worrying about me. I'm fine, I promise."

I nodded with a sigh, knowing that there was no other way to make her change her mind, and reached for the handle on the door but I didn't climb out of the car just yet.

"Tell Amber I said hi," Gran told me. She was crazy about Amber. She'd became attached to her last year before summer break when she'd helped me through an awkward stage of my adolescent; Gran would be forever grateful for her saving her from the horror of a grown up granddaughter who needed to learn how the human body works when it gets intimidated.

"I will," I smiled slightly. "I'll even let Fabian know how you're doing."

"I'll see you soon," she insisted. "You can come home whenever you want - I'll be right here at the airport as soon as you are back."

But as she spoke these words, I can see her hope through her eyes.

"Don't worry about me," I urged. "I'll be fine. I love you, Gran."

She pulled me in a tight embrace for a minute, before I climbed out of the car then gathered my luggage from the back seat and I got on the plane, and then she was gone.

It's a six house flight from California to Boston, another hour in a small drive up to London, and then a four hour travel to Liverpool by train. Going across a country through a plane doesn't exactly bother me; the fact that I was a minor sitting alone in a cart with an older man, though, I was a little worried about.

During the summer break, I was able to earn my driver's license after I've officially turned sixteen in the month of July, and I've gotten in touch with Trudy to see if she can help me purchase a car I had my eye on while I was in search for the Mask of Anubis. She was very generous about the request and had agreed to buy the car with the money I had sent her after I had switched for UK dollars.

When I reached the train station, it was still daylight but not that warm enough for my skin to absorb the vitamin D. I didn't find it as a bad omen for me to not feel any blistering heat - just used to the feeling. I'd already said my farewells to the usual warmth I get from Tarzana.

The same cabbie was waiting for me by his small black taxi. I smiled when I saw him through the window and elbow my way out through the door. Whenever I see him it would remind me of my first year here in Liverpool and how he welcomed me in his country, despite the fact I was an American.

He gave me a friendly, quick one-armed hug when I stumbled my way toward the taxi.

"It's good to see you again, love," he said, giving me the usual welcoming smile as he automatically carried all of my suitcases and stuffed them in the trunk in the back of the taxi. "You certainly haven't changed. How is your grandmother?"

I only brought two suitcases and one bag. Most of my other sets of clothes were left in California because I wouldn't be able to pack up the new ones that Gran had gotten for me. I was afraid that there was barely any space in the trunk for the bags, but it had accustomed its size easily.

"Gran's fine. It's good to see you again." Even though I only see him once a year, I sort of saw him as an Uncle of mine that I visit from time to time.

Along the ride we would exchange a few comments on the weather, which was warm, remembering of how eager I was to come into my new school or how helpful he was to me when he knew how nervous I was. After that, I just stared out the windows in silence.

It was still as beautiful as I still remember it to be. Everything in the country was still green, possibly even more than it was last year; the trees, the moss covering their carved trunks, some of their branches leaning over the dirt road slightly, and the grass strands were standing tall by the edges of the musky dirt.

It was all green - a unique area filled with nature.

And then, after a few miles, we were going through a small thinning of the forest, and eventually, we were driving into a clear meadow that I recognized to be connected to the lawn of the familiar house I desire to see again. I glanced up at the hazy light that was beaming through the leaves faintly; the trees keeping the small meadow casted over by grey shadows, letting the small buds of flowers become visible from within the hovering grass strands.

Finally the car stopped in a gentle halt in front of the one destination that kept me eager throughout the entire trip from home. The house still remained the same; timeless, graceful and seemed a thousand years old like it usually does. The soft, deep brown painted on the wooden walls were a bit faded, but it was still in well proportion. The windows are still in part of the original structure it was built in the 1900's. The taxi was the only car in sight at the moment, though I can hear the rubber of the tire crunching over the ground as other upcoming vehicles approached.

A wicked smile crept across my face as I climbed out of the taxi and slammed the door light behind me, my excited eyes never breaking their gaze on the marvelous house.

"Welcome back to Hogwarts," I muttered to myself. I turned around to see the cabbie unloading my luggage from the trunk and pulled out my wallet from my back pocket to take out the amount of money I owed him, before I handed it to him.

"Thank you," he smiled at me briefly, accepting his tip before he handed me my last bag and shut the door to the trunk with a click as I slung the strap of the bag over my shoulder. "Enjoy your term here in England, Ms. Martin."

"Thank you," I nodded.

He flashed me another genuine smile before he swiftly turned his heel around and walked around the front of his taxi to the driver's side. He waved at me as he climbed into the car and the engine roared to life as he turned it on then he disappeared through the thinning of the woods.

I gripped onto the handle of my suitcases and made my way to the familiar house I've grown fond of, glancing around at the clear green yard, the leaves of the trees gently swaying along with the light breeze that flowed by. The gardeners really did a good job cutting up the grass and planting in fresh flowers to beautify the place for the students arriving from vacation.

I held my suitcases tightly in my hands as I walked up the stairs of the house, walking up through the bright shade of gold from the sun and onto the porch. I can feel myself getting anxious to see my friends again; I smoothed my hand over the light curls of my hair, as if to soothe away my nervousness.

I opened the door widely before I carried my bags into the house and entered the foyer. A smile stretched out on the features of my face at the sight that has appeared in front of me.

The inside was still the same as it was last year; there was absolutely nothing out of the ordinary and no sign of any removal of an object. The designs were still the same as they were carved on the year they were made, the well shaded doorframes were still perfectly squared, arched and the tiles of the floor were polished thoroughly that I can literally see my reflection mirroring off of them. The massive staircase still cemented the east side of the foyer. The wooden railings still have the designs carved exactly like my locket - like the Eye of Horus - and the floorboards were covered by a light layer of dust from the small holes of the attic above.

I saw that there were other suitcases left to lone in the quiet foyer, each recognizable to me by its graphical designs - mostly because I read out the names written on the name tags. My smile widened as I put my suitcases aside and dropped my bag beside them.

Coming out through the doorway of the kitchen, drying off with a ragged apron tied securely around her waist, and swiping off the sauce stains on her blouse, was Trudy. She still has the same chocolate brown skin, her features were still beautifully defined as they were last year - I couldn't help but be struck again by her outrageous perfection. Her friendly open face, her sets of curly, dark hair, reminded me of those silent movies that Gran like to watch. She remained small, slender, and less angular but more rounded than she usually was.

She was dressed casually, wearing only light colors that matched the atmosphere circulating around the house. She was laughing in amusement at the loud commotion that was occurring in the dining room, which I figured to be caused by Jerome and Alfie. I can hear the other's voices wildly chatting away, telling the other about their small adventures during summer break.

When she looked up from her hands, she seemed surprised and delighted to find me standing in front of the entrance of the foyer, never noticing that she had dropped her rag.

I pursed my lips into a tight line, trying to hold back an urging laughter that was prepared to burst out from within me.

Trudy finally broke out of her fixed trance on me as an excited grin stretched across her face and literally flew across the room toward me with her arms spread open, inviting me in a heartwarming embrace.

I didn't hesitate to accept and rushed into her arms, burying my face in the bend of her shoulder, relishing this reunion I've been dreaming to become a reality for the last two months. Ever since I've moved in Anubis House, she had taken care of me like her own daughter and talked to me like she was my mother, so being away from her was a devastating feeling for me. I missed her so much.

"Hello dear, it's so good to see you again," she said, releasing me from her hold, her smile widening into a beaming grin. "How was your flight?"

"Dreadful," I groaned, rolling my eyes. "That is the last time I'm sitting in front of a family of seven children who have ADHD."

She grimaced. "They must have been a handful. I bet you've worked up an appetite after that."

"Starved." I nodded.

"Well, just leave your bags here and go fix yourself up a plate. I've been baking everyone's favorite all day, you know," she chimed, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and leading me into the living room as she gave me my upper arm a light, tentative squeeze.

"Good. My stomach has been desperate to digest some of your chocolate cake." And it was. I didn't have enough time to eat breakfast back home because I accidentally overslept and had little time to get ready before the plane departed. And I can tell that Trudy was pleased, also, because she loved to see how much she is appreciated by us.

When I look over at the table in the dining room, I was taken back in surprise to see everyone constantly laughing and yelping as various foods were tossed across the room, staining their clothes or getting stuck between the strands of their hair. Sadly, today's breakfast was a classic American breakfast; fluffy pancakes, scrambled eggs, roasted bacons, oatmeal, and a glass of cool orange juice.

"Ah!" I gasped when Alfie had accidentally squirted an amount of syrup across the room and made contact with my face, forcing me to close my eyes tightly momentarily so that it wouldn't ruin my vision. Then I glanced down to see my tank top completely drenched in sticky syrup and smelled of fresh pancakes.

I blinked my eyes as I wiped some of the substance away from beneath my eyelids with my fingers and then glanced up to look over at the see that everyone has stopped their rebellious food fight to look over at their direction. They seem to be shocked at my unexpected timing.

"Nina!" A feminine voice was heard screeching out a high-pitched squeal that made everyone cringe and I winced when I felt my ears throb at the volume before a set of slender arms wrapped themselves around me.

My eyes would have popped out of their sockets if the female hadn't released me to pull back and look at me, basically beaming to see my presence in the same room as her. Due to the amount of oxygen literally being squeezed out of me, my vision on the person came out as a golden blond and light pink blur, so I had to shake my head to clear it up. When my perspective has returned, I realized that the multicolored pastel blur is actually Amber, and a wide smile broke out on my face.

Before I could even speak out a one-syllable word to her of how much I've missed her, another set of arms was wrapped around my shoulders, the impact of the unexpected force nearly tipping me over but I managed to keep my feet firmly planted on the wooden floor beneath me and returned the gesture.

"It's about time you got here." I heard, which I recognized, Patricia's voice commented as she pulled back with a large grin on her glossed lips and brushed back a few loose locks of her hair behind her ear, revealing that she is wearing violet-red hair extensions as her highlights.

"It looks like I've missed the food fight of the century," I noted, planting the same grin as hers on my face. I can already feel the atmosphere become warm around me, thanks to the two hugs I've received from Amber and Patricia. I could sense the excitement surfacing from them, too.

"Where have you been, Nina?" Mara asked with a light giggle as she approached me and gave me a quick hug so that I wouldn't get more stained by the squirts of syrup or the corn flakes stuck in her dark hair. "You were supposed to be here a few hours ago. We were worried about you."

"There was a slight delay on my flight," I replied with a shrug. "It took them a while to find a replacement pilot because they've been low on staff members. You know, summer break over and all."

She nodded in understanding.

"Well, at least you're not jetlagged," Patricia added.

"I wouldn't say that," I muttered under my breath, but they seem to have heard me, and the four of us broke into a giggling fit. Honestly, I really hoped that my brain would be brought back to life during my travel here but it seemed that the train only made it worse.

Just then, I saw a familiar blob of short dark hair caught in the group of guys standing by the table.

"Hey, Nina!" Joy called enthusiastically. She ran around the obstacles in front of her as she came to me, a streak of black hair and tanned skin, coming to a sudden and graceful stop in front of me. Patricia and Amber shot cautious glances at her, but I liked it. She was warming up to our friendship - it was becoming natural for her.

"Hi Joy," I responded, and she bounced forward to engulf me in a friendly embrace, her arms holding me tightly to her as she welcomed me home.

If Amber and Patricia had looked cautious before, they now looked staggered. They didn't know that Joy and I have exchanged our e-mails and phone numbers on the day I left back to California or that we've contact each other a few weeks after June had started. We found out that we actually have a lot of things in common in the basic things, but we've grown fond of each other's personalities, despite the complications we had with our feelings for Fabian.

There was a shocked glint in my eyes, too, not expecting Joy to show me how much she had missed me in public, in front of the eyes of our many peers, but I was also pleased that she seemed to approve of me so entirely now. I returned the hug, chuckling softly.

"You know, you really have a bad habit of making people worry about you," she smirked once we let go of the other and placed a hand on her hip as she raised an eyebrow. She seemed like a mother scolding her daughter for coming home after her curfew.

"You'll get used to it," I shrugged. I took this moment to glance around at the girls, finally noticing their choice of clothing and feeling extremely insignificant for standing between them while wearing plain clothes. They were dressed amazingly, almost looking high class.

Joy was wearing a skirt - short, khaki-colored, completely casual for a return back home - and a light blue blouse that really fitted together with her skin tone. She probably thought that her hair didn't seem important for her, and ended up pulling it back into a pony tail.

I looked over at Mara; she seemed like a decent girl. The plain white shirt hugged tightly enough to reveal some of her feminine curves, and the knee-length jeans have, somewhat, material that seem to look like leather but allowed her to breathe in the cool air of the vents. Her short, dark hair was loose, covering the side of her face like a halo.

My gaze then shifted to Patricia. She was dressed very...dark. She was wearing a new Guns n' Roses shirt, with a fishnet worn underneath, and a denim skirt. She would have gotten in trouble by Victor for wearing something that may seem too revealing if it weren't for the web-designed leggings she has on. Her short, red hair was still free, straight and luscious.

Amber, lastly, didn't surprise me so much by how well dressed she is. Ridiculously, even, but I simply couldn't see her wearing any other clothes than the ones she has now - extremely tight jeans with knee-length boots under a long pink dress kind of shirt - I think Gran would call it a tunic - with a belt around the middle. She had an elegant necklace on, too, that matched her boots.

It isn't exactly labeled as a Welcome Back outfit but it really is known as Amber Millington, and I wouldn't change that.

From the corner of my eyes, I noticed that the guys were scrambling forward toward me, chuckling at the food fight that had happened and stumbled to a sudden halt in front of me. Alfie was the first to step forward.

"You're not going to greet me like an alien again, are you?" I asked with a teasing grin as we exchanged each other a quick hug so that I wouldn't get even filthier than I already am.

"Not today, Nina," he grinned, his dark brown eyes letting out a shimmering twinkle of delight. "You're talking about the old Alfie. Right now, you're looking at the new and improved Alfie Lewis."

I giggled. It is really easy for me to feel lively and very relaxed with Alfie's positive attitude radiating onto me, spreading throughout my system whilst untangling my tense muscles.

"And by new and improved, he actually means that he just got cleaner clothes," I heard a masculine voice retort nonchalantly, making everyone to burst into laughter at the comment, and Alfie send a scowl over his shoulder with gritted teeth.

I raised my eyebrow in amusement, and glanced behind Alfie to see Jerome standing a few feet behind the group with his arms crossed over his chest - tall and leonine. His hair seemed more curlier and was in a darker shade of blonde - if that were possible. I figured that he must have decided to dye his hair over the summer.

"At least Alfie has some changes unlike you, Jerome," I retorted, tilting my head to the side. "You obviously haven't changed a bit. A little bit taller, but nothing else new."

He untangled his arms from his torso and held his hands up in surrender as he chuckled. "Fair enough."

"But, now that I look at you more closely, you do seem a lot taller," I smirked. "It's hard to believe you grew so tall over the summer. I feel like a dwarf."

Jerome seemed pleased by this.

Alfie waved that off. "Nah, that's just his hair."

At that, everyone laughed but Jerome just seemed to be very disagreeable by it, deadpanned, not showing any signs of humor at all.

Standing beside Jerome was Eddie, grinning widely at the bickering session that is taking place between me and Jerome. He is leaning against the armrest of the long sofa with his hands stuffed inside his pockets and his foot probed against the side.

Last year, after he found out that he was my Osirian, I thought that things between us would be a bit complicated or that Eddie would try to remain distant of me because he felt awkward of being known as my counterpart, but he seemed to be completely calm about it. He'd gone back to be exactly he'd acted before - flirtatious and a bit conceited - the moment he was free from the temporary obligation to protect me. He was still making sure that I was doing fine, just as a precaution, but remained the same.

I send a smile at his direction, and he copied my movements as he gave me a tentative wave. It wasn't a flirting smile, just a friendly way of letting him know how grateful I am to him for banishing Senkhara and saving me from being taken away.

My eyes have instinctively shifted over to the next person in the room, and my head stopped altogether when my gaze met his. My face instantly began to heat up, the tip of my ears were burning red as my pulse quickened.

There he was, standing there in front of me, covered in oatmeal from his head to his toe, and staring directly into my eyes - gazing deeply into the depth that is my soul - with that famous lopsided grin of his that would cast a spell over me. His hair - dark and silky - seems to have gotten longer during the summer because the tips were all oddly longer than the other and were leaning over his eyelids. It seemed shaggy, also. He also seems to have grown taller, probably a foot or two over my head and has some slightly visible muscles still in the process of growing. His skin was less pale, though, he was still light enough to be known as an albino.

But this wasn't why I couldn't look away from him - I was under the control of the spell that his dark blue eyes have engulfed me in.

I stared because his features, his open face, was so captivating, and was devastatingly, impossibly handsome. Most of the housemates can't see it, but, whenever I look at him, to me, it seem really rare to find a beautiful face like his in public. It's usually common to find him in the cover of an issue in a magazine, airbrushed in the pages beside a small article. Not even a really talented artist could capture those angular - and perfect - features of him. He was a pure gift.

The way how he was leaning motionlessly against a table near by the doorway, he seemed like a marble tribute to a forgotten Greek god of beauty. The many dreams I've had of him in those endless nights had not done him justice. And he was waiting there for me, just like he normally does.

My breath has disappeared from within me momentarily; my head started to feel lightheaded or is this how it felt when I'm stuck in cloud nine? Even after being with him for four months - not counting the time we've broken up - I still couldn't believe that this degree of good fortune is still known to be my boyfriend. Mine. Nina Martin.

"Nina," Fabian breathed out conversationally. My unstable heart suddenly leapt up to the middle of my throat, reacting at the sound of his husky, sensual voice pronouncing my name so heavenly. I love the way it rolled off of the tip of his tongue.

I glanced behind me, expecting to see Amber instructing everyone to leave the room discretely, but surprisingly, the large room was completely empty. Very subtly giving us some privacy, I suppose.

I turned back to Fabian, my confident smile becoming sheepish, and slowly stepped closer to him as my fingers fiddled with the hem of my tank top. I can feel the heat of my face travel downwards through my blood veins and then reached my heart, causing it to beat back into life beneath my chest.

"Hey," I was impish, pressing my lips into a tight line as I brushed back a few loose strands of my hair behind my ear and glanced down at my feet so that he wouldn't see the pink shaded blush embedded on my cheeks.

"Hi," By the tone of his voice, he seem to be in the same boat as me. We'd spend an entire month away from each other last year for the holidays and it wasn't so terrible because we only spent two weeks gone but it has been three months since we saw each other in person. It sort of brought a heavy tension between us.

"Um, so...how was your vacation?" I asked to break the silence.

"Quite eventful," he murmured softly. "I've spend the holidays at my Aunt's house near Liverpool and it turned from a visit to an interrogation."

"Really?" I stifled a giggle. "What happened?"

He sighed softly, the corner of his lips twitching upward as he weaved his fingers through his dark brown hair and combed them back, allowing me to see more of his face. I spotted some light shade coloring his slightly pale cheeks.

"My mum seem to have told her about you and I when I told her you're my girlfriend." He bit his lower lip, scratching the back of his head nervously. "My Aunt nearly ate me alive with the thousand questions she has wanted to ask me. She even asked me when I'm going to ask your hand in marriage."

I couldn't contain my laughter, and laughed freely, my shoulders shaking slightly by the force of my laughter as my eyes began to get misty by the sensation of my throbbing ribcage - I can feel them beginning to hurt, due to the walls of my chest tightening around my ribs.

"It's not that funny," he pouted in mocking hurt. He stepped further to me; his arms stretched out and then wrapped them around the curve of my waist before he held me against him. The rhythm of our hearts have blended together once the contact was made, only my rate accelerate when I felt his fingers splayed over the small of my back.

"It was really embarrassing," he muttered.

"I'm sorry, I just imagined how red your face must've been when that happened," I managed to choke out between my fading giggles and slumped against his torso for support for my strength in my legs has disappeared. "I-it must have been priceless!"

Fabian rolled his eyes, but the smile on his face never slipped away, and just tightened his hold around me.

"And what about you?" he asked in order to change the subject. "How was your break?"

"Endless," I groaned, resting my forehead against his collarbone - his muscles completely harden, well define and smooth - and pressed my lips against the fabric of his plaid shirt as I fluttered my eyes closed. I inhaled his humanly scent through my nose, and it was arousing.

"How come?" I can feel him raising an eyebrow.

"My old friends from middle school came back from their school in Maine and every day, we would go to some different boulevard, "I murmured quietly into his shirt. "The one place we went to mostly is Santa Monica, so you can imagine the sunburn I've been through."

I felt his chest let out a rumbling sensation as he chuckled heartily, and I formed up a childish pout, knowing that he cannot see me. I gave him a light swipe across his arm, though, he just continued to chuckle.

"Not funny," I grumbled.

I felt him press his lips against the crown of my head, slowly curling into a grin and his hand started to move around my back in a slow, circulating motion, as if he was trying to smooth out my tense muscles with his fingertips. Then, he maneuvered his head away from mine and shimmered it down to the crook of my neck, pressing his lips against the junction of my shoulder as his arms cradled me like a small child.

I slithered my arms around his torso, stretching them out from behind him, and interlocking my fingers together as I buried my face in the side of his throat. His quick pulse thudded against the side of my head, and I couldn't help but smile, pleased to know that I have a great impact on him.

He held me for a minute, rubbing my back and breathing on my neck, absorbing the peaceful, quiet moment.

"I missed you," he whispered softly into my ear a second later, nuzzling his head deeper into my neck, "so very, very much."

I couldn't be sure what I should say when my head was spinning so crazily by the sound of his husky voice ringing in my dreams like a hollow echo. I breathed in and out slowly, keeping my head very still.

"I missed you, too, Fabian," I whispered back in the same soft tone as his. My voice sounded weak and breathless in contrast to his.

Moments passed, and eventually, I've raised my head up from his shoulder but I never pulled away from him while he remained still against me. I just ran my fingers through the soft locks of his dark, shaggy hair, and the other hand laid on his upper back, feeling the lines of his muscles through his blue striped shirt. He also pulled his head back from my shoulder and then he was right there, his face close to mine. His impossible beauty stunned my mind - it was too much, an excess I couldn't grow accustomed to.

"I've been thinking..." he paused with a shy smile.

"About the new edition of The Solar System Is Your Friend coming out in a few weeks?" I smirked playfully. "I heard that it has better graphical pictures this time."

"Silly, Nina," he chuckled. "The new edition is nothing compare to the one I used to have. Also, the one who wrote it put nothing but false information since it was written by the author's son."

"How'd you...?" I trailed off, shaking my head as I shrugged my shoulders. "Never mind."

He smiled, smug.

"Show-off," I muttered.

"No," he continued, "I was thinking about something that I've wanted to do for those last three months." And he slipped his arms away from my waist before he took my face in his hands gently - like I was a porcelain vase that was too delicate that it could break by a touch - his dark blue eyes staring into mine intensely.

I couldn't breathe.

He hesitated - in the way that a man would hesitate before he kissed a woman, to gauge her reaction, to see how he would be received. His fingertips trembled against my face in anticipation.

Though I understand the main reason of his hesitation; Fabian was cautious to test the chemistry between us, to see if the kiss we had shared three months wasn't just a fling, to make sure that fireworks would still explode between us like an explosion whenever there is close proximity.

And then his warm, smooth textured lips pressed very softly yet firmly against mine in a swift motion. Pressure was applied between us, the force of his lingering lips pressing against the flesh of mine and intoxicated my mind with each gentle, feathery brush exchanged. The patterns of his fingers rubbed across my face as he slid them over to the back of my head to pull me closer to him, deepening the kiss a bit but not enough to part our lips, and then carefully gripped onto the hair on the nape of my neck, fisting it.

Neither of us was prepared for my reaction to this kiss - it was inevitable.

I let out a wild gasp, breathing in the minty scent of his breath and then slid my arms around his neck, tangling my fingers with the strands of his dark hair as I parted my lips. I felt his warmth flood into my mouth, making me inhale sharply through my nostrils as the skin of my arms tingled in delight.

Instantly, his lips stopped performing the seductive dance with mine, becoming completely stone and unresponsive as my fingers weaved through the soft touch of his hair - like a blanket made out of cotton. I didn't stop - I couldn't stop - I've desired for the past three months, and I would mentally kick myself for withdrawing.

Soon enough, Fabian's lips were slowly brought back to life as his mouth curled up to a smile and felt him release my hair from behind. He reached around to separate my hands from his hair and brought them up front as he gently broke apart from me, to my dismay, letting out a shaky breath. I caught the scent of his breath again. It was delicious.

A small whine surfaced from the back of my throat, and when I fluttered my eyes open, he was smiling in triumph.

I pouted and he chuckled.

Although, I was a bit surprised afterwards when I heard footsteps being produced behind me and glanced over my shoulder to see Trudy entering the common room with an uncertain smile. She seemed a bit ashamed of interrupting out moment - our first moment after three months - but I've forgiven her from the second I saw her.

"I'm sorry for interfering, but Nina, we need to take your luggage upstairs to your room to keep the foyer clear," she said. "Victor's orders, "she added.

"Okay." I nodded.

I looked back at Fabian, who was shyly smiling down at the floor while scratching the back of his neck nervously, and then reached for my hand out to gently brush the back if his with my knuckles. His eyes flickered up at me in curiosity, but he immediately understood when he saw the look in my eyes - when he saw hope reflecting off of my pupils - and then nodded.

I smiled brightly, my eyes never breaking their gaze on him, as I slipped my fingers tenderly through the gaps of his and then interlocked our hands together in a lovely grasp. Goosebumps rise up on my skin, my muscles were trembling in shaky waves of shivers and the small hair on my arm stood tall at the feeling that his calloused hands make me sense.

Fabian wasn't even trying and I was already going weak in the knees just because I'm holding his hand. This boy can easily affect me without trying, and I let myself be consumed by him.

The house inside was still a very huge, four-bedroom building, very elegant, that was originally built in 1890 by Julian Frobisher-Smythe, the father of Robert Frobisher-Smythe. What I remember from Victor last year, this house wasn't really named Anubis House until 1922. The original inhabitants were Robert and Louisa Frobisher-Smythe along with their daughter, Sarah Frobisher-Smythe.

After their tragic death, Victor Rodenmaar Sr. became the new owner of the house and the guardian of Sarah. Victor's father told his son that if he didn't make Sarah tell them where to find the treasures and the ingredients of the elixir of life, he would send Victor Jr. away to an orphanage. Sarah had told them both many times that she was not going to tell them where they were hidden.

The Cup of Ankh was known not to be the only treasure hidden in the house and hopefully the Mask of Anubis is.

The entrance hall is large and grand with magnificent chandelier, a sarcophagus, and a massive staircase to the upper floor with banisters on the stairs that are shaped as the Eye of Horus.

As I gripped onto the handle of my suitcase, I glanced around at the entrance hall, a small smirk forming on my lips, and thought about the time I've spend with Sibuna.

The first door to the right leads to Trudy's bedroom. The first door on the left leads to the living room I've recently left, which has brown leather couches and single chairs. There is also a fireplace - which was used last year when winter season came around and I sat close to the fire - and a television set near the windows. To the back of the living room is the dining room which has a table - a table splattered with food - large enough to seat at least eight people, but nine can fit comfortably. Also in the dining room is an old telescope and a painting of the Frobisher-Smythe's. At the back of the dining room is the door to the kitchen. At the back left of the kitchen is the laundry room and the back door.

Leading from the entrance hall is a hallway with the boys' rooms and their bathroom. The first door on the right is the bathroom. The second door on the right is Fabian and Eddie's room - it is also Mick's, shrinking the size of the bedroom with the bunk bed that had been put in there. The final door on the right is Alfie and Jerome's room. I've only been in their room once so I barely remember how it looked inside.

It took only one trip to get all my stuff upstairs, because Fabian and Trudy have taken my other set of luggage. I looked over at the small office - Victor's office - to the left, my eyes narrowing as memories of Sibuna ransacking the area for Ankh cup pieces started to flood into my head. The one I remembered was the time I tried to get a piece from Victor's safe and the time I found a piece hidden in Cobierre - Victor's taxidermy Raven - with Fabian.

Standing in that room would always bring a cold chill over my spine. Especially with the piercing stare that Victor would do to get someone to cave in on something.

Opening the door on the right, I entered the corridors first before I held the door for Fabian and Trudy as they walked in also. I saw Fabian flash me a smile when he passed by me and I couldn't stop the grin from creeping onto my face as I watched him follow Trudy to the bedroom I share with Amber.

I was certainly stuck in cloud nine - hypnosis has proven that theory to be correct.

I observed the corridor around me as I headed to my room. The door on the left is Amber and my room - which was also known to be Sarah's old bedroom. The doors at the end of the hallway is the room that Patricia shares with Mara and Joy - I wonder how Mara can survive with the two of them at the same room.

I came cross with one hallway, and stopped as my eyes made contact with the sight of a familiar wooden door. Pressure was applied on my lower lips as i pierced my teeth through the flesh, basically breaking its skin and nearly drawing blood. My heart accelerated, my chest pumped forward with the rhythm of the beating, and my breathing became erratic as I thought back at those dark nights I've spend up in the attic to find different clues that would lead me closer to the Cup of Ankh or the time that the mystery of the Mask of Anubis began with a doll - Sarah's doll.

There, taunting me with its stillness in front of me was a new - well, new by being sanded - door. It was still faded brown, with a big, rounded lock and elegantly designed knob. To my intense surprise, I've missed it. I didn't know if it would open again, but I can only wish to go up there again to remember all of the times I've been up there - no matter how scary or life-threatening it is up there at night - and looking through the knick-knacks in order to solve a mystery that I have to solve.

I know that Victor has probably put that lock on the door because last year Amber had planned a small reunion there for the Sibuna members - including the unwanted invitees - and Victor had caught us. He was precautious of us in case we decide to sneak up there again.

I took a curious step forward toward the wooden door and then -

"I see you've returned Ms. Martin," a deep, spine-chilling voice had said gruffly behind me, causing me to jump at least a foot off of the floor and gasped lightly as I turned around to see who it is.

"Victor...," I exhaled, a hand flying up to my thudding chest. "It's nice to see you again."

"Likewise," he nodded; his hands were sliding behind his back and raised a quizzical eyebrow as he stared down at me sternly. I started to feel uneasy under his gaze. "I do hope that there won't be any more of your treacherous behavior like last term."

I pursed my lips into a tight line. "That's what I'm going for."

Victor nodded. Then, an awkward moment of silence fell upon us and a heavy fell on my shoulders as I tried to avoid his gaze fixed on me. I kept staring down at my fingers while fiddling with the hem of my plaid jacket, playing with the lone string lazily, and tracing the wooden patterns of the floorboards. Strands of my hair have fallen forward to conceal the uncomfortable expression that is on my face. I wondered how long he is going to stand there staring at me.

My wondering thoughts were answered when I glanced up to see that Victor has suddenly disappeared from in front of me and then looked around me frantically for any signs of him.

Some things never change; this was my first day of school here all over again. I never understood how he can just suddenly appear and then disappear in the blink of an eye - the first time I met him, the only impression that had come to my mind was that he came from the Cullen family of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series and he is Jasper Hale (my favorite fiction character) because he can always change the mood of the atmosphere when he comes in the room.

I shrugged my shoulders and headed down the hallway again. I went into the west bedroom that faced out over the front yard. The room was still the same as it was before; all of my belongings have already arrived here and were stacked in the edge of the bed. The wooden floor, the lavender walls, the designed ceilings, the light pink lace curtains around the window - these things certainly stayed the same.

The only thing that has been added was a desk that held a second-handle computer, with the phone line for the modern stapled along the floor to the nearest phone jack. The window had also been rebuilt to have a small sitting area in the window sill.

There was a small bathroom at the other side of the hallway, just across from the room, which I would have to share with the other girls. I should probably start to label my toiletries so that I wouldn't mistake it with another if they have the same.

One of the best things I love about Fabian and Trudy is that they aren't the type to hover over the small trivial things. They left me alone to unpack and get settled, taking my stuff out from the boxes to place them on the empty spaces of shelves. Every object I put on each wooden slide would remind me of a memory of a moment I've spend with my friends, whether it was anything related to Sibuna or just another plain day passing by.

The one I remember most was how I felt when I came over to school here on my first day. Liverpool Internationalhad a frightening total of only three hundred and forty-three - now forty-five - fewer students; there was more than six hundred people in my class alone back home in the Frobisher Academy. All the kids here had grown up together in this boarding school - their grandparents had been toddlers together.

I had been known to be the new girl from a big city, a mystery, an expectation that was not expected, an American.

Most of the boys had first looked at me in disappointment - upset that my appearance wasn't what they've wanted, not what they've been expecting to see. They probably thought that I was going to be tan, sporty, blond - a cheerleader, or an athlete - all of the things a boy, a British boy, would see an American as.

Instead, I was fair-skinned, my hair was light brown with a hint of honey highlights in them and my eyes were an unexplainable mixture between green and blue, unlike my friends who all have plain blue or clear green. Mine look like they've been in contact with a chemical reaction. Other people have told me that I had always had been slender, but soft, so it was obvious that I'm not exactly an athlete; I didn't even have the necessary hand-eye coordination to do a simple waltz without humiliating myself - and harming those around me in the process.

When I finished putting my folded clothes in one of the drawers of the old dresser, I took my small bag of bathroom necessities and went to the communal bathroom to clean myself up after a day of travel. I yanked the comb through my tangled, dried up hair as I looked at my reflection in the mirror. Then I splashed a few suds of water over my face, washing away the anxiety I felt for my arrival back here in Liverpool, England and lowered my head down a bit, my hair falling around my face as I stood down at the constant ripples of the water.

I was glad I was alone, though. It was nice to be alone once in a while, not have to force a smile and seem pleased to be away from home, away from Gran; a relief to stare dejectedly at the running water and let a few tears finally escapes. I didn't let out a complete breakdown - I would save that for lights out when I have some personal time to think about how my Gran is doing without me at this moment.

I can see my depressed expression reflecting off of the clear water. I hadn't looked this rough in a while - the only time I've ever been seen like this was when I was stressed about the limited time I'd have to find the Mask of Anubis before Senkhara took away the line of my many close ones. I looked absurdly messy - my eyes seemed dead in a hazel color scheme, grey and slightly black. For a moment I felt embarrassed having Fabian and the others to see me like this.

It was obvious that Trudy had decided to fix me up breakfast - I could smell the addicting aroma of food on sizzling pans and someone rummaging around in the kitchen. The others are probably cleaning out the dining room from all the splattered meals that she had prepared or I would have heard a loud commotion occurring downstairs. I figured that with Jerome and Alfie down there, they would keep the others occupied enough for me to freshen up.

I took my time letting the warm water heat the skin of my cheeks and steam soothes my throat. The water droplets slid over my forehead and eyelids, it felt nice. I towel dried my face, and then placed all my things in the leftover spaces of the cabinets before I left the bathroom.

The floorboards were surprisingly cold as I walked out of the corridors, slowly, and started down the staircase, completely taken back to feel soft fabric across the base of my feet. I glanced down for a moment to see that the steps were all covered with a red carpet. It was dark, matching the theme of the house, but it seemed too elegant to be in an ancient place like this one. Though, I had no doubt that it had been Victor's doing. Keyword: no access in staircase.

There was a startling noise of someone clearing their throat and I jumped, breaking out of my contemplations. I leaned over the railing a bit and saw Eddie looking up at me from the entrance of the living room, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Everyone is wondering what's taking you so long so I was just about to head up and drag you here," He said casually.

I smiled a little. "I guess I saved you the trouble of coming up the stairs and myself from being dragged me down like a ragged doll."

Eddie chuckled a bit and shifted his weight. The crooked smile he has on his face was actually a really charming sight to look like - his face was open and friendly - he seemed like he had finished doing a photo shoot for an upcoming cologne add in a magazine.

A light, whiny yawn broke out of me and I swayed a little where I stand. I was still a bit tired from my flight because I never got to relax and my eyes drooped slightly. Definitely wish it was lights out already. I needed to crash - now.

"Someone's tired," Eddie noted in amusement. "Obviously you didn't eat anything yet since you got back here."

"That obvious, huh?" I asked with a tired grin. Of course it was obvious that I was tired, still. My eyes were rimmed in red and the shadows under my eyes were pronounced clearly.

I saw him nod his head to the side. "Fabian's in the kitchen fixing you up some breakfast. Think you can make it to the kitchen on your own without crashing?"

I nodded weakly and started moving down the steps slowly again to the foyer. Slipping over the edge of the carpets fabric, my feet flew out from under me as they often did and I almost hit the ground hard. Or I would have, had Eddie not caught me and steadied me in his arms. My face had hit hard against his chest as I fell, and while it was doubtfully softer than the floor, it didn't feel particularly great.

"Sorry," I mumbled, my voice muffled by his chest.

"Oh, sure, you can make it," he commented sarcastically, pulling me back away from his chest and playfully ruffled my hair like an older brother would do to his younger sibling.

"Shut up."

Suddenly, he threw me over his stone shoulder, gently, but with a swiftness that left me breathless. I protested as he carried me easily to the dining room, kicking and giggling loudly, but he ignored me. He sat me right side up on the chair I usually sit on at the table.

The dining room was cleansed from all the food that had been splattered all over the walls and the surface of the counter, but I can still see some stuck on the carves of the ceilings. Despite that, the kitchen and dining room was bright, happy, seeming to absorb my mood after that small trip Eddie had given me.

I pouted my lips and crossed my arms over my chest as I gave him a playful glare.

"What?" he raised an eyebrow, his dark green eyes looking at me with an innocent glint.

"Was that necessary?" I asked nonchalantly as I leaned back against the chair.

He shrugged. "Eh, Yakker's orders; do whatever it is necessary to get you down here."

"Nice to see how dedicated you are to your girlfriend," I replied with a sly grin.

Eddie rolled his eyes. "Don't get used to it."

"Can't blame a girl for trying."

"Whatever - enjoy your breakfast," he nodded slightly before he turned his heel around and walked around the table to head over to the living room.

I smirked slightly as I watched Eddie approached Patricia at the couch and slumped down beside her while she flickered through the channels of the television until she found one specific program playing - Parental Control. I'm not really fond of this show because there are some girls who would let herself so easy with the guy and show little respect to themselves to the entire world. But if they find it interesting to watch then it isn't my place to tell them what they should watch.

I walked into the kitchen and saw Fabian walking around, searching through different ingredients as the pan on the hot stove sizzled loudly, the surfacing steams containing the pleasant aroma of scrambled eggs. I leaned against the doorframe while I watched him in amusement, a lazy grin never leaving my face as he danced around the kitchen, oblivious of my presence. I didn't feel like eating, but he seems to insist physically and I was never good at winning arguments.

The intense and emotional atmosphere was agreed, unspoken, to be tucked away safely behind the walls of my bedroom and now that we were out in the freedom of the open kitchen, both of our moods were lightened as the weight of our reunion was slightly lifted off of our shoulders. It was still all around us, in the back of our minds, and I knew we still have much to discuss, much to catch up on, but I was enjoying this moment of normalcy. It was like the old times when things were simple before - just Fabian and Nina - nothing more.

"You know," I started as Fabian turned to my direction with a plate full of delicious breakfast and nearly dropped it when he saw me standing a few feet from him, "you should really consider having your own cooking show."

The corner of his mouth twitched upward at my amusement and soon enough, he had a wide grin plastered all across his face as he approached me. The heat of his natural warmth was radiating onto me as he neared me, causing my heart to break apart and melt into a heavy puddle at the pit of my stomach.

"I can see it now," I continued. "Cooking with Fabian Rutter: the ins and outs of the kitchen."

He couldn't help to laugh at my enthusiasm and took a step closer to me as he kindly shoved the plate of American-styled breakfast in my hands before he captured me in a gentle grasp around my waist. I had to inhale sharply to prevent myself from letting out a gasp when he had pulled me closer to him but not enough because of the plate between us.

"Fabian, you didn't have to make me breakfast," I sighed softly, glancing down at the tempting meal in my hands. "I can fend for myself pretty well."

He didn't answer. Instead, he put one arm behind my back, the fingertips of his touch was softly brushing lightly over the small, and led me to the large table. He pulled out the chair for me before I sat down and placed the plate on the table as he pushed me near it. I watched him with interest as he walked around the table and slumped down on his chair beside mine.

"I'll consider on that offer of having my own cooking show someday," he answered excitedly while he reached to me to take my hand in his and gave it a tentative squeeze, his thumb rubbing over the back of my hand in a slow circulating motion. "But I think I'll pass on that. I'm not one for the limelight."

Fabian smiled at me as I took the first bite of the waffles, some of the syrup slipping out of my mouth and dripping down to my chin. I quickly wiped them away with an unused napkin I found on the table. I caught his gaze on me as well as he did, and the both of us broke into a comical laughter.

"Really, Fabian, I can't eat properly with you staring at me like that," I said to him, a few light giggles escaping my lips. His intense eyes were making me feel nervous.

"Clearly," he nodded, grinning. "I'm sorry - I'll just look out the window instead."

He turned his head to watch out the kitchen window as I took another bite, never taking my eyes off of him. I saw him look over at me from the corner of his eyes as I chewed and swallowed. I lifted my fork and pointed at him.

"Cheater," I accused.

Our snorted laughter continued as our morning proceeds on in much of the same fashion - the light-hearted togetherness of our relationship captured again in the midst of all the turmoil. The others have joined us to finish up the empty spaces of their stomach and talk about the things they've done during summer break.

Three plates of eggs, two bowls of cereal and our glasses filled with orange juice prone to be less than enough, but Trudy's food supply was completely wiped out, so breakfast time was officially over.

All the boys were fully stuffed - Trudy had given everyone the rest of the time a leeway. Even Mick and Alfie were too tired to jet off outside with the girls.

Everyone was crashed sporadically all over the house. Jerome was sitting - well, sort of - at the large cleared sofa, arms folded on the armrest as a pillow in front of him. His shoulders would twitch ever so often, but I was pretty sure that he was out like a light. Mara was making sure of that. Eddie was in a single chair with Patricia sitting on his lap and leaning against his chest while Joy was sitting on the armrest beside him, animatedly speaking to her best friend and her boyfriend about their many adventures. Amber, somehow, managed to convince Mara to give up the pillow that Jerome was sitting on while she tried to keep him from awakening; the she turned the narrow space between the couch and the coffee table into a small resting area. And Fabian was leaning his head up against the foot of the couch, nodding down to his chest every second but he never woke up from his slumber and a few light murmurs were heard passing his lips once in a while.

This was the quiet after the storm - breakfast being the absolute climate chaos that it always is. Trudy went up to her room to rest, and I plopped down on the floor nest to Fabian's motionless body, cuddling up to his warm side. Listening to the deep, gentle breathing of the two boys and the clicking of Alfie playing in his PSP nearly lulled me into a light sleep - the one that I've wanted to have all day - but I immediately fought against it, knowing that I would wake up later on.

The time passed by like a blur. Dinner had ended a bit early due to Jerome and Alfie causing yet another food fight because they were bickering over whether Jet Lee or Jackie Chan were a better fighter in martial arts. Everyone was assigned to so a chore to clean up the mess we've done - I was in charge of doing the dishes. I didn't find it to be a challenge but Amber call it as a medieval torture used to make her fingers withered and wrinkled.

Dishes had taken up enough time for me to burn. I was at least glad for the distraction. Washing with the dish soap and drying up before placing them aside was monotones but required more concentration than sitting on my bed, pretending to read an article on Winter Pony Grooming.

"Hey, Nina," Mara greeted when she came into the kitchen with a new set of filthy plates and glasses, then set them next to me at the sink.

I sighed a bit. "Hey, Mara."

"So," she tilted her head to the side as she watched me take a plate out from the pile and started to scrub out the debris from the silverware. "I have something to ask you."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Jerome and I are heading out in town to watch Just Go With It before school starts again," she replied with a shrug. "And we were - well, I was - wondering if maybe you and Fabian would like to come with us...Probably to do that double date you guys promised me."

"Umm," I clicked my tongue as I brushed back a few strands of my hair behind my ear, not bothered by the fact that I still have my hands wet and covered in small bubble of soap.

"It's alright if you don't want to," she insisted politely as I pretended to scan one of the plates for any smudge of food.

"No, no, I'm sure Fabian would love to go," I quickly said, dipping the plate into the sink full of water, and splashed myself accidentally but I didn't worry about it. "And I've been dying to watch that movie since it came out. Of course, I'll go with you guys."

"That's great." She was ecstatic.

"When is the movie and what time?"

"It's actually tonight at eight," she answered.

"So I've got like -" I glanced at the built in clock of the microwave. It was seven-thirty right now. "- half an hour to get ready."

"Yeah, sorry for asking you at the last minute." She seemed ashamed of herself for the lateness of the hour and her eyes were searching in mine for any signs of forgiveness.

I didn't have to forgive for something like this - she was probably waiting for the right time to ask me.

"Don't worry about it," I shook my head. "I'll be ready in less than a minute...unless Amber pitches in and chooses an outfit for me."

She jumped. "Let's hope not."

"Let's get going - my Amber senses are tingling."

It was hard to decide what to wear. Not even one of Amber's fashion magazines gave me any detail how to dress when your British sweetheart take you out in his hometown for your first proper date with him. It was a real shock that now even my best friend's issues or articles on clothing haven't given me any ideas - although it did make sense since my style in clothes was completely different to hers.

Unfortunately this kind of job was not enough to keep me occupied. It definitely had little free time and it was getting out of control. I was the rope being tugged to the side by anticipation so intense that it was very, nearly painful and an insidious fear that picked at my resolve. All of these keep getting triggered by the thought of how this evening would end. Will it be perfect? Or will it be a catastrophe? I had to keep reminding myself that I'd made my choice, that I've already committed a promise to Mara, and I wasn't going back on it.

But a tiny voice in the back of my head would bring me back to the hyperventilating state again, worried, taunting me about the consequences that might happen if this night was ruined. At how much it were hurt very...if it ended badly.

I felt hyper also; I wouldn't stop my hands from twitching while I would apply a small layer of lip gloss and glitter some eye shadow on my eyelids. I stopped for a moment and rustled in my used shoebox of CD's until I found my favorite album, The High Road, by Jojo then popped it in the small stereo before I pressed on the play button. I turned the volume up enough to drown out my thoughts with the sound of her voice singing the lyrics of her song, Let It Rain, and resumed on getting ready.

I concentrated on relaxing individual part of my body, but I would seem to slip right back into the same hectic frenzy, only it'd be more intense. I dressed in a rush, smoothing my collar against my throat, fidgeting with the tan sweater till it hung right over my jeans. I sneaked a swift look out the window to look at the weather. It was cloudless, the moon was dominating the dark sky - I'm going to need my jacket, and probably some boots.

"So, are you nervous?" I heard curiosity in Amber's voice when she spoke and glanced at her through the reflection on the full length mirror as I yanked the brush through the small tangled knots hidden in my hair.

"Why would I be?" I really didn't want to answer that question - not even my conscious is advising me to be honest with her and tell her the truth. We were in the same page on this one.

"It's been months since our last double date and that ended as a complete disaster," I saw her reflection grimace at that memory and I bit my tongue to stop the small smile that was threatening to break out on my face. "Anyway, a second date is also like a second chance for the couple to make a better impression of themselves than the last one. So try to look your best."

"Amber, we're only going to the movies," I rolled my eyes then backed away from the mirror and placed my brush on the dresser. "What's the point of looking my best if we're going someplace that's dark and watching a romantic comedy?"

"True," she mused.

Then I saw Amber climbed off of her bed and walked around it in a quick, graceful lope that would even make Tyra Banks' walk on the runway seem pitiful. I watched, amazed at her lithe dancer's step till she reached her makeup kit from the nearby nightstand and glided over to me, faster than I would have thought possible. My eyes darted down at the small pink tube in her delicate fingers.

"Use this," she suggested, tentatively placing the small tube in my hand and winked at me. "Believe me, you'll need it."

I raised an eyebrow at her before I stared down at the tiny tube in my palm, turning it over to see the label of the product, but then my expression lightened as I read it and laughed. Cover Girl - a lip gloss tube. Of course.

"And why would I need this?" I asked out of curiosity. Why would she offer me some of her best products?

"Duh, for when you and Fabian have a moment, of course," she scoffed, almost as if my question was really oblivious to the main reason behind her giving me the lip gloss. "It's cherry scented lip gloss. Fabian will definitely have trouble to control himself around you when he smells this."

"Wait, what?" For some unfathomable reason, my mind was slow to follow Amber's words as she spoke them.

"You and Fabian are no longer just best mates, you know," Amber explained calmly. "You two are a couple, Nina. A couple. Do you know what that means? Being someone's GF?"

I blinked. "Um, going out on dates?"

"Almost, but no, it's not just going out on dates," she shook her head. "It's being someone else's date. Being in a serious relationship means that you'll have to be very committed with each other. There will be times that you two will...um...start new things like - remember the time your Gran and I talked to you about-"

"I remember!" I exclaimed, interrupting her before she could even begin recollecting of the time that she and Gran had spoken to me about how the human body worked when it is intimidated. I didn't want to relive that time again.

"I'm just saying, Nines, you're sixteen," she added. "You're in the age where your hormones start to act up. It will start very slowly, but then it would grow-"

"I get it, Amber," I chuckled nervously. I felt a large amount of blood rush up to my face, beating my cheeks into a bright red shade.

Amber looked like she was about to say something else when I was saved from my phone ringing up on the shelf beside my bed. I climb over the mattress, and reached up briskly for my backpack, trying to not tumble till I managed to get the phone out before I slumped down into the plushness of the mattress.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Nina, it's me," Fabian's husky, British accent sounded through the other send of the phone line. I tried hiding my answering smile from Amber, who was nosily leaning over my shoulder a bit, a little too close for comfort, trying to listen to our conversation. I leaned further away from her for more personal space.

"What's up, Fabian?"

"Nothing much. So listen, Jerome just told me that you agreed with Mara that we were going to the cinema tonight," he replied. "Is it true?"

I grimaced. I knew that I was forgetting something. I'm a fool; how can a girlfriend forget to tell her boyfriend that they're going on a double date tonight?

"Umm...yeah, it is," I answered slowly, nervous at the reaction I might receive from him. "I'm so sorry, Fabian. I just thought Jerome or Mara already told you because she invited me. I assumed that-"

"N-no, that's alright. I just needed to make sure that it was true. You know how tempted Jerome can be when it comes to pranks."

I thought I heard a smile in his voice, but I might have been imagining things. He sounded a little nervous, too. Apprehensive.

"Yeah, I know what you mean," I giggled with a grin, and I can hear him chuckling in the other end. "But still, I should have told you just in case."

"Don't worry about it," he quickly said. "I can get ready in time. I'll meet you outside in a minute."

"Sounds good. Bye."

"Bye," he answered, and hung up.

I turned around to see Amber's eyebrows raised in astonishment as she watched me open up my backpack a little too widely to return my phone to the inside pocket again.

I raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You forgot to tell Fabian...about your...date?" she asked, exaggerating the syllable of each word. "Wow, Nina, seriously?"

"I know," I sighed. Wow didn't even cover how embarrassed I am at this minute.

"Nina!" She stared at me incredulously as she made a gesture with her arms.

"I know!" I groaned inwardly, lowering my head down to hide my face in my hands and allow my hair to fall around me like a screen of water, concealing my face from Amber.

I heard her sigh, and then the bed let out a protesting groan beside me as she rose up. I felt her gaze down at me for a second before I heard her giggle lightly.

"You're nervous, aren't you?" She sounded smug.

"Yes," I admitted; how can I deny it? She could see it reflecting off of my eyes. "It's just like you said - a second date is like a second chance and I'm worried I'll mess it up."

"Don't worry about yourself, Nina," Amber smirked. "You could be wearing rags or have your hair messy on this date and Fabian would still fancy you. He should be the one worrying - he has a problem to stutter a lot when he gets nervous."

"Oh, Amber," I murmured, chuckling lightly at her attempt to make me relax as I rose up from the bed and headed to the mirror to finish brushing my hair. I do wonder how Fabian would act throughout the entire night. I hurried with my hair, speculating.

Amber stood a few feet behind me, looking like a statue to the Greek goddess, Hestia, staring abstractedly at my reflection in the mirror. Then her eyes flickered to the alarm clock on my nightstand, and she smiled heartily as she approached me from behind. She took my brush from my hand and continued with my task to finish combing my hair while I just stood there calmly, trying to distract myself from my thoughts so that I wouldn't start hyperventilating. Amber's words kept me haunting - I was going to faint.

Once she was finished with my hair, I peeked out the window again to see if anyone was on the front yard yet, but nothing - no one was spotted. I had just finished brushing my teeth and was drying my hands when Amber had called me from downstairs. It made my heart thud against my ribcage painfully. I had literally flew across the corridors and nearly tripped over the steps of the staircase as I raced down to the foyer.

Nervous - that was the perfect word to describe the waves of shivers that is washing over me.

Trudy was also waiting with Amber, also looking equally excited. The sound of Jerome's voice howling my name outside the wooden doors of the house, as I slipped my arms through the sleeves of my jacket, and then exchanged the cordial goodbye before I elbowed my way outside into the cold evening, the cool, misty air brushing my flushed cheeks.

There was a light sheet of fog surrounding the house, not enough to blind my vision of the forest but it was enough for me not being able to see anyone within the radius. I locked the door behind me before I shoved the key in my pocket and my feet carried my weight through the mist of the fog - driving me to continue forward - while the rest of my body was stuck in purgatory. My heart was pleading for the sight of Fabian again, desperate to be united with the beating of his heart and torturing me by drumming against my chest harshly.

I was only a few feet away from the gate when I noticed a familiar, still, figure. Fabian was leaning against the small brick gate, speaking to Jerome and Mara casually, with his arms crossed over his chest. As he spoke, he was staring intently at my direction, almost like he was expecting me to arrive anytime soon since his eyes seem to be searching through the screen of the fog.

I felt my heart rate spike as my legs continued to bring me closer to him, noticing that his disheveled hair seemed a little longer than it had been this morning.

Fabian wasn't smiling at first - his face was scrunched into a concentrated expression. But then his expression lightened as he spotted me appears from within the grey ocean flowing by.

He straightened himself as I reached him, and he held out his hand for me. I took it eagerly, forgetting, for a moment, my nervous demeanor. His skin was, as always, tender, calloused and very warm. His hand gave mine a gentle squeeze, my mouth opening slightly in his presence as I caught up in marveling in the miracle of him - of his beauty and perfection - and my heart gave a not-so-gentle squeeze of its own.

His eyes - purely blue and clear - were shimmering like shards of crystals as he stared back into mine. I watched him carefully as he took a single step toward me, causing my breathing to grow slightly pathetic. I wanted nothing more in the entire world than to absorb his body warmth, and as if he could read my mind, his other hand slowly reached out to me. He gently glided his fingertips along my cheek and then cupped the side of my face inside his hand.

I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch - drinking in the feelings that my body had been deprived of for so long. I couldn't stop myself from crossing the rest of the distance between us, burying my face in his marble chest and wrapping my arms around his waist, pulling me closer to him. I heard him quietly sigh as his arms found their way around me, and his nose buried in my hair.

It was...magical.

My eyebrows furrowed when I felt his chest rumble slightly as he laughed to himself lightly.

"Good evening," he chuckled.

"What's wrong?" I pulled away from him to glance down at myself to make sure I hadn't forgotten anything important, like boots, or pants.

"We match," he laughed again. I realized he had a long, light tan jacket with a white turtleneck sweater underneath, and dark blue jeans. I laughed with him, hiding a twinge of regret - why did he have to look like a gorgeous model when I couldn't?

"Nervous?" he asked.

"Very much - I feel like we're redoing our first date all over again," I exhaled.

"So am I." He nodded, giving me a reassuring smile as he gave me a light tug, silently and politely asking me to follow him.

It was surprisingly difficult to concentrate on listening to Jerome and Mara speaking while feeling his gaze on my face. I compensated by walking more carefully than usual through the silent, fogged road.

I clung onto Fabian's arm as Jerome drove us down the silent road, darkened and slick by the mist of the fog, in his 2001 Aston Martin V12 Vanquish. Trees and ferns rushed by in a green blur. The muscles in Fabian's arm would shift and flex with each movement as we turned down the sinuous, haphazard roads.

We didn't turn to any familiar places - not toward the small town of Liverpool, not deeper into the city of England, not even to the trail back to the capital metropolis of London. Fabian had taught me enough about maps and direction for me to guess we were going east - away from familiarity. I didn't know how long it had been, but we've spent long enough sitting in the car while the windows splattered on the base of the windows and some tiny leaves got stuck to the moistened glass.

For the most of the time, we basically spoke about the amazing End-of-the-Exhibition party held in Anubis House. Occasionally, Fabian would ask a random question that he hadn't gotten to on the first year he had met me. He asked about my childhood friends, my school grade teachers, my childhood pets - and I had to admit that after losing two Guinea Pigs (Bubbles and Squeak) at the age of seven, I'd given up the whole institution.

Jerome had laughed at me hysterically while Mara tried to stifle her own, but I was more captivated by Fabian as he laughed at that story, louder than I used to - chiming bells echoed throughout the silence of the car, ringing into the deep depths of the forest, and then bounced back to us.

When we reached our arrival at the theatre, I realized that we were near the Edge Lane Retail Park in Montrose Way and that there was a long line for the ticket booth of the movie we're planning to watch. I was a bit solemn that we wouldn't be able to see Just Go With It - I've been dreaming, praying and hoping to see this movie ever since it came out in theaters on December eighteenth (United Kingdom release) last year - and then head back home before it was time for lights out. However, I was surprised that Jerome had already bought the tickets earlier through his phone and was relieved we didn't have to wait in line.

The employee at the snack counter was female, dressed in a pulling back t-shirt and ridiculously low riding slacks. She had taken up our orders, leaning across the counter toward Fabian unnecessarily to adjust the napkin holder beside the popcorn machine.

Casually, he leaned away from her so she couldn't brush against him and didn't smile. She leaned further, shamelessly, and Fabian took a step away from her, raising his eyebrows in surprise. She got the message.

"Your orders will be ready shortly," she said briskly, and then walked away from the front counter, swaying her hips with unnecessary force.

I knew there must have been a potent frown across my face because Fabian had tapped my arm behind the counter with his and formed that crooked smile for me - my knees have lost their battle against strength and went limp.

"Smile, Nina," he encouraged. "We're on a date."

The needless, nervous butterflies in my stomach erupted again at the mention of the word date. It just seemed so formal. This restraint was nice. Contrary to the theatre where Gran and I occasionally go to back home, this one had built-in food courts, arcades and employee dress codes - though by the look of some of their outfits it was obvious the dress code only extended as far as color.

"Is this your first time coming to the cinema?" Fabian asked as he leaned against the counter lazily with his elbows supporting his weight. Mara and Jerome were discussing about what Jerome had done during the summer with his father, John Clarke, and his younger sister, Poppy Clarke or about Mara's travels to North America.

"Yeah, it is," I replied as I took a brochure from the display box on the counter and opened it to see the many hot spots of England. "It feels weird - everyone here has that exotic British accent while I have an American tone."

He smiled in amusement as he watched me scan over the names of the hot spots. "Well, relax. This is supposed to be a fun night for you - for us."

I tucked my hair behind my ear and smiled shyly, dropping my gaze to the brochure. Beaches. Clubs. Diners. The assortment of places was overwhelming.

"Do you think that the Mask of Anubis is safe at the British Museum?" I questioned casually, trying to decide between the beaches or the parks are the best places to relax in.

Fabian grunted and he pushed himself off of the counter, bringing his gaze very close to mine as he inched closer to my side. By now, our arms were brushing against each other; our warmth was colliding in the contact.

"Nina, normalcy, remember?" He raised one of his marble brows. "Everything about this mystery is over. From now until the end of the night we're not going to think about anything else but you, me and normal human things. Okay?"

I nodded.

He smiled a gentle smile and reached over to me to grab my hand in his, tracing the veins in the back of my hand with his thumb. The tiny blue rivers shone through my transcend skin easily and made me look frail. At first, I felt awkward with Fabian being so subtly affectionate in this setting, but his stare became so intoxicating that I hardly noticed when the employee strolled up with an annoyed expression and placed our snacks on the counter, only holding the jumbo sized cup filled with Coke Cola.

She flipped her ponytail obnoxiously, and then turned to Fabian. "Which one of you charming lads ordered this large soda?"

"I did," Fabian answered nervously, probably noticing the flirting smile and caramel-colored eyes staring at him like he was the final piece of meat to ever exist in this planet, then he took out his wallet to pull out the amount of dollars - or pounds, as the British would say - as well as Jerome did. I tried to remain calm and steady as I took the bucket of buttered popcorn and my medium sized Coke Cola.

"Of course such a handsome lad - or should I say bloke - to buy something so large for themselves," she said seductively, trailing a thin finger along the outline of the edge of the counter, her eyes observing him from down - way down - to his toes and up to his eyes that only I should be captivated in instead.

I can hear Jerome chuckling under his breath at the whole scene, finding the entire exchange completely humorous to watch, and stopped abruptly when Mara had elbowed him in the ribcage to silence him, quietly scolding him in hushed tones.

"My name is Abigail, and you are?" she purred, leaning over with one hand on the counter, and the other hand gliding down the front of Fabian's sweater.

From the corner of my eye, I can see Mara widen her eyes in shock at Abigail's boldness of being so seductive so carelessly while Jerome tried to stifle his contained laughter and I had to tighten my grasp on my soda cup to prevent myself from acting so recklessly. But, when I saw her raise her hand up to Fabian's face, her fingers tickling the flesh of his lips - those gorgeous lips that have been tainted by her filthy intentions.

"I-I'm actually - we need to go - I-I already have a-"

I placed my snacks on the counter before I wrapped my arms tightly around Fabian's, embracing him closely to me while sending a hard glare at the female employees' with all the raging hatred I've mustered for her.

"He is actually taken," I retorted, basically hissing. "And by me, so if you don't mind, Abigail, we would like it if you just hand over our snacks and let us enjoy our date."

She scowls, her eyes narrowing. She hisses out a curse at me in a low breath, basically saying that I was nothing but a piece of trash in contrast to Fabian. I fired back, only saying something clearly indecent that I hoped Fabian hadn't heard me say, because even I was surprised to say that I was completely clean unlike the much semen she has trapped between her legs, and I knew my eyes were blazing amber by now. Finally, Abigail purses her lips, as if considering whether or not that I was worthy enough to continue with this charade, but then she turned back to Fabian.

"Sorry, love. You're not worth the time-" I gasp to retrain myself from pouncing at her for saying that. She honestly has no idea how much Fabian is worth in this lifetime. "-Didn't mean to intrude. Enjoy your evening." She flipped her hair over her shoulder, sending a wave of sickly strong perfume in our direction that smelled far less enticing or attractive then she thinks it is.

I retract my arm from Fabian's, brushing a lock of my hair behind my ear before I took my medium-sized coke and bucket of popcorn. I shook my head, trying to clear the flaring flames of utter jealousy burning through my veins, erasing my fuzzy thought of the events that had just transpired a few seconds ago.

"What just happened?" Jerome asked obliviously, gesturing a hand toward the disrespectful employee and me with a raised eyebrow, probably referring to what it was that we've spoken - or cursed - at each other while I turned around to head over to the ticket department.

"I have no idea," I can hear Fabian murmur behind me closely, so he was probably following me.

In the booth, we've decided to separate our group to different ways - Jerome and Mara take the lower section while Fabian and I took the upper chairs - so that we'd be able to spend the time with our loved ones without interruptions or feeling awkward to show our affections toward the other.

Once we took our chairs at the top, Fabian sat back and watched me put my cup of soda in the cup holder, feeling thoroughly content. His hair was glistening by the lights from above - turning a shade of lighter brown but again darkening as the lights of the booth slowly dimmed out into blackness.

I tried not to feel self-conscious with his eyes settled on me and looked around at the other people in the booth. To our left sat a couple a few years older than us - maybe early thirties. They weren't talking to each other - the woman talked quietly into her cell phone, though still rudely in a public setting, and the man with her, whom I assumed was her husband, browsed lazily though his Blackberry. No eye contact, no physical conversation.

I frowned. It made me sad, seeing this disconnected couple, and I was glad that Fabian and I have a better relationship.

In the corner, a sweet-looking older man sat alone, gazing up at the film playing on the screen. He wasn't wearing a wedding ring - but his finger seem to worn and strangely bare. Like he used to have one.

A small family to our right caught my eye. A young woman - early twenties - and a husband that looked only a few years older. She was thin, possibly considered average but pretty in her utter simplicity. The man was darker, dressed similarly to Fabian.

They were talking to each other, smiling occasionally, and they were happy. What drew me to them, however, wasn't their sweet togetherness, but what was between them; a small child - a tiny little girl - sitting quietly in the chair in the center. She had braided dark hair - dark like her father - and a beautiful, full face. She was younger than two - and her parents obviously loved her - handing her a straw or a napkin to play with every few minutes, pushing her hair out of her face, leaning in to kiss her forehead, all while talking to each other, keeping a steady flow of conversation.

I felt bad for staring but I couldn't ignore them. They were just...happy. I hoped our relationship reflected what I see theirs did.

Fabian noticed my gaze and leaned toward me a bit, the flesh of his lips lightly brushing over the skin of my earlobe. I was trembling violently.

"You'll have a family like that again someday," he whispered lightly into my ear, his cool breath flowing across the tip of my ear and caressing my flushed cheeks. "If you want it, though."

Tearing my eyes away from the mesmerizing family, I looked into Fabian's eyes, understanding the implication of what he was saying.

"If you wanted it," he repeated a little quiet, his eyes still locked with my face - searching for any signs of the reaction that he expected me to have.

I didn't answer at first - clouded by thoughts of everything at once. The life full of mystery with Sibuna forever. Fabian forever - being together. Getting married. Having tiny, dark-haired children.

It was a lot to think about - a lot of responsibility, and a lot of pressure.

"I want you," I answered simply. I knew I wanted Fabian. I needed him - I didn't know about anything else.

His eyes slid from my face back to the family that could - if we wanted and if fate allowed - resemble our own someday.

"I'm glad you do," he said rather matter-of-factly.

I didn't feel like watching the film anymore; my brain and heart were too full of emotion to be considered vacant.

Fabian sat quietly through the whole movie, too consumed by the plot and subconsciously taking a handful of the popcorn between us. Watching, letting my eyes drink in his presence, I sat and stared at him shamelessly, not bothering to even peek over at the screen. He looked older today, somehow. Maybe it was the clothes - I wasn't sure. It was strange. Fabian was stuck in an awkward phase between being a kid and being a man. I couldn't hear myself calling him a man in my mind - but he was certainly no kid. He was far past looking - and acting - like a child, but his eyes still held some fragment of innocence - some essence of something unattainable I couldn't put my finger on.

I still consider Alfie and Jerome a kid, too. Maybe even Eddie. His discovery of being my Osirian had added a few physical to him - mentally, too, I was sure. But Fabian? I didn't know which category I'd place him in. Mick was in the awkward in between, too. A kid with too much responsibility. A man with a heart too young.

I know what I consider myself though. Had I ever consider myself a child? Gran never did. I was born a forty year old, she'd joked. I never felt like a child.

"We graduate in four years," I whispered softly, trying to not be too rude to those who are watching the film.

Fabian nodded while his forehead was creasing. "Yeah, but that's a long way to be thinking about right now."

I thought about it. "Yeah, I know that. But it's never too early to be thinking about your future when you have time to."

"And college?"

"No college...At least, not after I graduate."

Fabian looked at me skeptically. "What kind of places are you harboring, then?"

"I thought I might just stay around here - in England - and take a break. Focus on protecting the treasures of the house."

"Nina," he groaned, his tone suddenly serious, as he placed back a handful of popcorn into the bowl - which was now his fifth take. "Let's not talk about the house right now. We're on a date. But you can't put your life on hold just to make sure that the treasures of the house are safe. If it hasn't been found during the 1900's then it certainly wouldn't be found now. The Frobisher-Smythes made sure that no one would never find it."

I thought about that. "I just wanted to stay here for a bit. Just to make sure that everything is...settled, before I head over to college."

"Nina," his lips pursed together. "Sarah has kept the treasure protected for years, along with her family. What makes you think that it still needs to be protected?"

I wasn't fooling him.

"I just think college is an unneeded distraction right now," I said casually.

"Or the life in Anubis House is."

I sipped at my soda through the straw, eyeing him, before I swallowed. "It's my call."

Fabian nodded solemnly. "It is. But it is your Gran's also, you know."

That was a bit of a snag.

"I haven't told Gran yet." I admitted.

"Ah." A grin spread across his face, his voice sounded relief of my answer. "I don't need to worry yet. Your plans will change."

"College is not a big deal," I tried to tell myself.

"Right."

"Besides I can make my own decisions - I always have." I crossed my arms over my chest as I leaned back in my chair and tilted my head slightly to the side. "From the sound of it, you want me to leave for college."

Fabian popped a carnal in his mouth, leaning the slightly empty bowl out of the way. "That's not the point," he retorted sincerely.

"Then what is it? I mean I thought you'd be kind of excited. A year here in England while protecting the treasures of the house like Sarah did - and at the same time, being here with you."

"That would be exciting, but I just...I just don't want you to waste your life over something that will be safe," he explained tenderly.

"You are my life," I admitted shyly, my cheeks instantly flushed light pink through my honesty.

He studied my face and reached out again to touch my hand. Then he glided up to my face to touch his fingertips to my cheek. His expression was unfathomable.

"Just make sure that the choices are right for you - no matter what," He assured me. "I just want you to be happy. I am certainly happy right now, as long as you want me."

"I'll always want you," I breathed. "Forever."

"I'm glad."

I nodded, seeing that the movie has ended from the corner of my eye.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked. I nodded.

Standing, he took my hand and we walked down the stairs, along with the rest of the departing crowd. Hoping Fabian wouldn't notice I tossed a glance backwards toward the friendly family we'd been watching previously.

The woman looked up from her daughter, feeling my gaze on her, and locked eyes with me. For a moment, we just looked at each other - then her calm face broke into a gentle, knowing smile, her lips moved, ever so slightly, and her husband, with is arm thrown over the back of his daughter's chair, glanced over his shoulder to look at me then smiled, too.

He winked in a friendly manner, and the hand thrown over the chair gave me thumbs up.

Awkwardly, I smiled, pushing my hair back between my ear and nearly tripped over where the carpet floor turned into a smooth tile as Fabian pulled me along. There was a silent understanding between us - we were very similar. They were just further along than we were, had taken the path that might be an option for me - for us. A realistic option that I can learn to be okay with.

Fabian's eyes fell down at me and I lightly squeezed is hand as I flashed him a gently smile. It widen when I saw him return the smile and the affectionate gesture.

I was looking around at the area, watching as the familiar landmarks that verified we were entering Liverpool flashed by us while we drove down the lone road. The giant rock that I always thought looked like a bear went by first, followed by the tree that hung slightly over the road almost looking as if it could fall at any second.

Fabian and I still had to speak the entire ride back home so far, and the long we kept quiet, the more nervous I got. Sometimes he gazed into the dominating moon, sometimes he glanced at me -my face, my hair being brightened into a bronze brown by the pale light of the white planet, or at our twined hands.

Mara and Jerome were also in their own world.

We were already reaching the front of the house now, and I felt another gentle squeeze from Fabian, making me widen my smile. It was very quiet and dark; there were clouds approaching by. The porch light was on so I know Victor was still awake.

The four of us climbed out of the car after Jerome cut the engine off and we walked through the night, so quietly I had to peek at them constantly to be sure they were still there.

In the darkness, Jerome looked a bit different - still pale, still dreamlike in his beauty, but still has that aura of childish innocence.

Fabian reached the door ahead of us and opened it for us. I paused halfway through the doorframe while Mara and Jerome entered.

"The door was unlocked?"

"No, I just used to key from the top of the door frame."

I stepped inside, flicked the porch light off and turned to look at him with my eyebrows raised. I've never knew that there was a key hidden on the door frame.

"Let's get you up to your room before we get scolded by Victor," he insisted.

I worked my way upstairs, my trend slow and tired as I walked up the stairs to the girls' dormitory with Fabian behind me. I shut the door of the corridors quiet enough so that the sleeping Victor in the office wouldn't be awakened and then we sprinted on our toes to the door of my bedroom.

I shifted my foot across the floorboards awkwardly, feeling suddenly uncomfortable as the heavy tension fell upon my shoulders and bit my bottom lips nervously. I glanced up at him through the screen of my eyelashes, noticing that his eyes were also on the floor and his foot was tapping with nerves.

"I had a fun night," I managed to choke out, for my throat had gotten dry and was swollen by intensity.

"Despite the fact that we've spent through the entire film talking?" He may seem to attempt to make it sound like joke, but I can tell that he was nervous about my response by how his voice wavered slightly.

"Yes - despite that, I've had a lot of fun out tonight with you," I reassured him with a small giggle as I reached over to him to take his hand in my own and looked up at him. "We should do this again next time."

Our eyes locked, and is feet stilled but neither of us so much as breathed. I could see the hesitation in his eyes, the uncertainty. I didn't know what he would see in mine. Indecision? Insecurity? The underlying desire that I could feel if I tried hard enough?

He moved forward a fraction of an inch. Had I not been hypersensitive to every part of him at this moment, I wouldn't have noticed it. My head moved in response, less even than he had moved - if that were possible.

Fabian took this as consent.

Never taking his eyes off of mine, he leaned forward - slowly and deliberately - until his warm lips brushed across mine. Instinctively, I leaned toward him by instinct until there was pressure applied between our lips. I heard his intake of breath, felt it as the air rushed over my lips, and relished the head of his hand on my neck. His lips moved slowly, innocently, lovingly over mine. His warmth radiated over me.

I felt no wall between us - for once, nothing holding me back. I felt no pain and responded without guilt, pulling myself closer to him and memorizing the feel of his mouth on mine. I'd never been kissed - really kissed - before. Though innocent, it was unreserved and real as anything about Fabian was.

Suddenly he took my face in his hands almost roughly, and kissed me in earnest, his unyielding lips moving against mine in an unstable rhythm that I can't seem to follow whilst clouding my mind with its intoxication.

There really was no alarm for my behavior - obviously I know I should know when and yet I couldn't seem to stop myself from reacting recklessly as I had this morning. Instead of maintaining controlled, motionless, my arms reached up to twine tightly around his neck and my body was flushed up against his toned figure. I sighed and parted my lips.

Fabian staggered, breaking my grip effortlessly and separated his lips from mine with obvious reluctance as he gasped lightly for air. Though I can tell from his eyes that he was practically beaming.

He pressed his forehead against mine, his ragged breath tickling my tingling lips and the tip of our noses brushing up against the other gently. I leaned against him, fluttering my eyes closed and bracing my hands on his rising chest for support as I tried to regain my breath.

"Sweet dreams, Nina," he whispered to me, his wide grin visible even through the dim lights, but I could tell that he was a bit upset that the night had come to an end.

Then he pulled back from me, tentatively stepping away from me and heading to the door while he kept his gaze on me. Once he opened the door and his foot passed the door frame, he was out of sight in seconds.

After a moment of admiration, I entered my room and quietly closed the door behind me before I leaned against it as a pleasant sigh slipped out from within me. Tonight had been perfect - the best first (actually, second) date I've ever had. I couldn't wait till morning came around.

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A:N: And so begins the journey of a new term. Just to clear things up this is my version of the third season of the series (even though I enjoyed the original with angst since Nathalia wasn't in it anymore )': ). This story came up a week after the second season had ended. Some characters of the third season may make an appearance in the plot and same of the old ones may return. The mystery will be connected with previous ones of the show but with slight twists in my own way.

I will try to update the story on every upcoming Wednesday. Hope you all look forward to it! I'm excited to finally have this published and hope you all enjoy it as much as I did writing it!

Btw follow me on my Twitter: RestoPrgurl16 to check for any updates of the story!

Reviews are love. Show me the love and I'll update faster! See you next time!