Authors Note: Thank you to everyone for your reviews! Here is the next chapter. And for those who missed the note the first time around I say again, this is an alternative universe story, there are no transgenics or pulse etc.
EDGE OF LOVE
Chapter 2 - Ground Rules
The smell of coffee was tickling Max's nose. The delicate point twitched at the scent although her eyes remained closed in sleep. Alec grinned to himself and moved the mug of coffee from side to side, wafting the delicious warmth of the drink up Max's nose. She twitched again and her lips pursed as though she was drinking, her small pink tongue slipping out to wet her full naturally red lips.
Alec swallowed hard and decided his game had lost whatever amusement it had possessed. Max is the biggest pain in the ass, I cant even tease her while she's asleep without her getting back at me. "Max…" He drawled softly.
There was no response from the heavily sleeping girl lying under a heap of blankets. Two thing Alec had learnt about Max very early on in their life living together was one, that when Max slept, she slept like the dead. Two Max rarely slept. She was constantly plagued by insomnia which annoyed Alec no end when he was trying to sleep and Max was up watching TV or playing music with no consideration for their fellow humans.
"Max!" Alec said sharper this time. Still no response other than her lips arranging themselves into a pout as Alec moved the coffee away from her face to set it down on the bedside table. Sighing to himself Alec went for the classic waking Max scenario. He stood and in one quick movement yanked all of the warm covers off her sleeping body.
A childish scream of shock came from Max as she bolted upright, her hands blindly trying to grab the edge of her blankets before Alec pulled them completely out of reach.
"No you don't" Alec tugged the blanket to the floor and fought and lost the urge to grin at the sulky girl who was sleepily rubbing her eyes like a 5 year old.
"Lemme 'lone. Wasser 'ime?"
Alec smiled as he correctly translated Max's morning version of the English language. "The time is almost class time which in answer to your first question of why I cant leave you alone."
Since the pairs mutual soaking Max and Alec had set up a few ground rules to their relationship. The first of which forbade Alec from touching Max's underwear. The second forbade Max from speech while Alec was watching the TV. Number 3 banned girlie calendars from communal areas. The latest rule, number 4, banned Max from hitting below the belt. (This was installed after a particularly nasty fight over the last ice cream bar in the mini freezer).
Thanks to these guidelines their interaction had settled down to a friendly animosity, with occasional lapses into above belt violence on Max's part.
After Max finally crashed out after several nights of not sleeping she was unlikely to wake on her own accord, or the alarm clocks. Therefore, after getting punched in the arm and chest for not waking her for a morning test once, Alec had taken to getting her out of bed on the mornings when she finally slept and had class. On the whole it worked effectively since he discovered her attachment to her blankets and her addiction to coffee and it saved him from a lot of bitching.
"Donn wanna ger up." Max mumbled crossly. Alec smiled cheerfully at her.
"Oh sure you do." He picked up the mug of coffee he had prepared and gave an exaggerated inhalation of the bittersweet aroma. "Otherwise whose going to drink this wonderful freshly ground Colombi-" Alec didn't even get to finish his sentence as Max snatched the mug from under his nose. She was astonishingly fast for someone who had been speaking like a prehistoric cave woman just seconds ago.
"Hmmm." Max murmured as she gulped the hot liquid with a blissful expression. Alec flopped down on her bed and watched as she padded over to her wardrobe, dressed only in an oversize T-shirt. He checked out her long slender legs appreciatively even as he reprimanded himself for thinking of Max in that way. That would be just asking for trouble and Alec was enjoying their semi peaceful - semi friendship.
Max started to pull her night wear over her head and Alec started in surprise, realising that Max had forgotten that he was still in her room. "Uh-" A choked sound of surprise came from his throat and Alec could have cursed himself as Max pulled her shirt back down before he could see more than her smooth tanned back. She spun around, facing Alec who leapt to his feet.
Holding his hands out in surrender Alec pre-empted Max's inevitable yells. "I know I know, get out Alec!" Alec ducked out of her room. "I'll see you in class!" He called over his shoulder as he left their apartment with a smile on his face.
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Max ran down the hall to her lecture theatre. She was late. Max wished she had skipped the shower she had indulged in, she would be lucky to get there before the professor who was a real dragon when it came to dealing with his students.
Skidding to a halt at the large double doors, Max peeked in and breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of kids still chatting among themselves. She wasn't too late. Stepping into the room Max scanned for a vacant seat. She groaned as a familiar face gave her wave and gestured to an empty seat beside him. Alec. Desperately Max checked the rest of the room before accepting the inevitable and moving to sit beside her room mate.
"Hey Maxie." Alec grinned at her, still happy from the almost strip show she gave him before. "Feeling human yet?"
Max scowled at him as she collapsed in the chair he had saved for her, (not that he would admit to doing that). "I told you not to call me that." She snapped.
"Yeah well I told you not to leave the toilet seat down but you ignored me on that one." Alec pointed out.
Max rolled her eyes as she settled herself more comfortably and pulled out her note book and pen. "Whatever." The nick name Maxie made her feel uncomfortable, bringing back memories of her past. Max shook of the prickly feelings of unease. Everyone had a past, college was supposed to be the time when you could start a fresh and that was exactly what Max planned on doing.
Alec looked at Max as her expression became dark and despondent. Sometimes she got into these moods. At first he had simply put in down to her being a hormonal girl, but now and then he got a feeling there was something else bothering her. After all it wasn't like he knew everything about her. They had hardly made peace, let alone started doing the sharing, bonding thing.
Still Alec couldn't help the concerned tone that came from his voice. "You alright Max?"
Tensing Max turned to give him a flip answer when she saw the sincerity in Alec's eyes and the wary defensiveness of his pose. It was like he was waiting for her to bite his head off and he yet he was risking asking her anyway.
As Max hesitated the doors opened and she looked down at the unfamiliar man who had walked into the lecture theatre. The students in the room automatically hushed as the 30ish man walked up to podium. Max's breath caught. He was only medium height with an average build but there was something about the spiky dark blonde hair and intellectual features that made her eyes widen and her heart skip a beat.
Alec heard Max's sharp intake of breath and looked sidewise at her, his brow furrowed.
"Wow. Check out the hottie new professor." Came the whispered voice of a girl behind Alec to her friend next to her. Alec's face scrunched up in disbelief as he looked from Max to the anonymous girl and back to the new professor. Nah.
"Good morning. I am Professor Logan Cale and I will be taking over from Professor McFee for the remainder of the semester as he had taken leave of absence due to ill health."
"There is a God and he loves the girls in this class." The anonymous girl whispered again behind him. Alec scowled but to his immense shock Max blushed as she to heard the comment. Alec edged away from both girls as if they might be carrying something contagious.
"Do you mind? Some of us are here to learn you know." Alec said muttered curtly to the anonymous girl. Max shot him an incredulous look and Alec closed his eyes in self abasement. Did I really just say that?
"…So if we continue where you left off with the Bronte sisters collection of poems…" Professor Cale continued with the lecture while Alec thumped his head back repeatedly against the back of his seat as Cale's voice droned tediously over the boring subject matter.
Max however leaned forward and gave the lecture more attention than Alec had thus far seen her give anything.
Why did I take Poetry again? He wondered as Max attentively scribbled notes. Oh yeah it was that or higher Mathematics.
"…and that was the lower end of the machine." Cale ended a sentence with a broad smile. A ripple of female laughter echoed around the theatre and Alec and a few of the other males of the class looked around perplexed. Was that a joke?
Alec sighed. I should have taken Maths. He leaned back again and closed his eyes, willing the class to end quickly.
"…so that's a 3000 word analysis before the next class."
Alec jerked as the sound of students packing up their stuff woke him. "Wha- uh" Wiping his hand quickly over his mouth in case he drooled Alec tried to look as though he had been awake the whole time.
Max shot him a smug look as she slung her bag over her shoulder. "Nice look Alec, ever thought of a bib?"
His mind still fuzzy from sleep Alec struggled for a retort "Well you- at least I-" He broke off as Max shook her head at him in amusement before heading down to where Professor Cale was putting away his notes. "Oh screw it."
Max stood beside the podium waiting for Professor Cale to notice her while the other student filed past her. "Is there something I can-" Professor Cale turned to face her and paused as he took in the sight of Max. "-help you with." A smile creased his face and Max smiled hesitatingly back at him.
"Hi Professor Cale, I'm Max Guevera. I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed the lecture." Max said as she offered her hand.
Professor Cale took her hand in his and squeezed it gently. "Please, call me Logan, I hate being so formal with my students."
Colour tinted Max's cheeks prettily. "I've read your anthology. Your poems are amazing."
Logan shrugged in a self conscious manner that was a tad practised. "Thanks, its always nice to know people read my stuff occasionally."
Alec came down from his row and caught the last part. "I didn't know you wrote anything." He said cheerfully as he threw an arm around Max's shoulder, knowing even as he did that it was an invitation for pain.
Sure enough a sharp elbow met his stomach with a discrete amount of force. Logan smiled plastically at Alec. "Well not every one is a wide read as your…" He hesitated looking at Max with a raised eyebrow. "…girlfriend."
Max gave up any pretence of politeness and shoved Alec's arm off her shoulder. "He's not- I mean we're not-"
"- We live together." Alec smiled charmingly and stepped closer to Max, ignoring her furious glare.
"Platonically!" Max snapped quickly. "Really there was a mix up with our names." Max stumbled over the words and Alec grinned.
"Which all worked out for the best. Well we're running late aren't we Max. Good class Professor Cale." Alec looped his arm through Max's and started to pull her out the door.
"Its Logan." Professor Cale answered Alec with his eyes fixed on Max.
Max smiled and Alec rolled his eyes, pulling her through the doors which swung shut behind them.
"Alec!"
TBC.
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