Thank you for the reviews! Not much news in this chapter, just some foreshadowing and fluff before all the drama and angst arrives.

Chapter 4 - Fucking head case

"Anger: an acid that can do more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to anything on which it is poured."- Seneca

"Trey! Alex! Come down here right now. We're going," Kirsten called. She looked at Sandy. "Please, Sandy, no stupid jokes."

"Stupid jokes? What on Earth are you talking about?" Sandy said, looking shocked.

Trey walked out of his room, wearing a red toga. "I'm ready. Let's go already."

Alex walked downstairs, she was wearing a purple stola and a lilac palla. "I'm here," she said and headed to the door. She walked outside and went to Ryan. She jumped onto his back and wrapped her arms around him. "Let's embarrass Trey a lot, okay?" she whispered.

Kirsten walked outside and looked at her children. "Seth," she looked at him. "No stupid or pervy jokes. No one wants to know about your sex life. And don't talk as much as you usually do."

"Yes, ma'am, " Seth said.

Kirsten looked at Ryan and Alex. "No fists flying, you two. At all. Your fists stay to yourself. Is that clear?" When both of them nodded, she continued. "And, please, behave! Don't embarrass me." She looked at Anna and just smiled at her. She was really thankful to have at least one normal child.

"What? Jodie-slut isn't coming? She practically lives here now," Trey said, looking at everyone.

"She's too busy having hot, steamy sex with Maria. You know, that ex of yours," Alex said with a smirk.

Trey glared at her and then just followed Kirsten.

Alex giggled. "Ha! Did you see his face?" she said, still laughing. She looked at Ryan.

"That was great," Ryan said as he followed his mother, Alex still on his back. "Is Jodie really having sex with Maria? Isn't she married now?"

"Yeah. She told me yesterday that they've been fuck-buddies for a while. Even when she was with Trey," Alex said.

"Ouch!" Ryan said. "Please tell Jodie to stay away from Lindsay, okay?"

"She already knows that Anna and Lindsay are off limits," Alex said. "Don't worry, you get to have Lindsay all to your big, fat self."

"I'm not fat," Ryan grumbled.

"Alex, will you get off of Ryan's back?" Kirsten asked, sighing a little. "You're not five."

"But, mommy, I like Ryan's back. And his back likes me, too," Alex said in a whiney baby voice.

"Why do I even bother?" Kirsten muttered.

Marissa walked downstairs with Summer. "Good luck," Summer said and hugged Marissa.

"Thanks, Sum," Marissa said. She hugged her best friend back. "Now, go before my mother starts yelling."

Summer smiled a little and walked through the doors. "I want to know about everything that happens," she said before closing the doors.

"Marissa," Julie called. She looked at her daughter. "You look nice." She smiled a little, as Marissa frowned. "Go sit in the living room. They should be here soon."

Marissa stared at her mother. Had she really just paid her a compliment? She shook her head slightly. "Alright," she said and walked to the living room and sat down. She looked at all the slaves who were carrying food and drinks.

"Kiki!" Julie said as everyone walked in. She hugged Kirsten and looked at her children. Her look stopped on Alex. "You must be Alexandra." She reached out her hand.

"Please, call me Alex," Alex said and shook Julie's hand. "It's nice to finally meet you. My mother has told me so much about you."

Julie smiled a little and turned to Trey, who had been just angrily glaring Alex. "Well, come on. Marissa is already waiting. And Caleb will be late, he's really sorry. But you know, being the Emperor and all. He's always so busy." She guided Trey to the living room with her.

Kirsten, Sandy, Seth and Anna followed them, but Alex and Ryan stayed behind. "What's wrong?" Ryan asked as he noticed that Alex was a little pale.

Alex shook her head a little, coming out of her daze. "Marissa. The girl I told you about and kissed. Her name is Marissa," she whispered. "What if Trey is going to marry her?"

"Don't worry, even if she is Trey's soon to be bride, she still likes you. There is no way that a girl would like Trey more than you," Ryan said. "Now, let's go and make Trey look bad."

Alex nodded. "You're right," she said. They followed everyone else to the living room.

"Alex, this is Marissa," Julie said and pointed to Marissa, who was talking to Trey. "I don't believe you two have met."

Marissa looked up and her eyes widened. Her Alex. She couldn't believe that Alex was in any way related to Trey, who seemed to be an ass.

"Hello," Alex said with a nod. It was really hard for her to pretend that she didn't know Marissa. And to not just kiss her. She and Ryan sat down opposite of Marissa and Trey.

"Now, Alex, tell us about Egypt," Julie said. She sipped a little wine.

"It was nice there. The pyramids are truly amazing. And the castle where the Pharaoh lives is incredible," Alex said. "And the upper class women are gorgeous. The wigs, the make and jewelry up is beautiful. Leaves the Roman clothes to shadow. I missed Rome, though."

Marissa just looked at Alex as she spoke and ignored Trey, as he talked something about himself.

"That's nice. I have always thought that our clothing is boring," Julie said. "Why don't you wear Egyptian clothes anymore?"

Alex shrugged. She glanced at Marissa from time to time. "I never really wore the wigs. Just clothes and jewelry. And I do live in Rome now."

"Hello, I'm sorry for being late," Caleb said as he walked in. "Sandy," he said with a nod and Sandy nodded back. "Trey," he looked at the boy.

"Sir," Trey said with a nod.

"Honey, this is Alex. Kirsten's other daughter. She just came back from Egypt," Julie told Caleb.

Caleb walked to Alex and took her hand and kissed it. "Pleasure to meet you," she said while checking out her body.

Alex smiled politely. "Emperor, it's a honor to meet you."

Caleb sat down next to Julie who started to talk about something again.

Alex practically stared at Marissa for a few moments and then stood up. "Excuse me, I need to get some air," she said and walked outside.

Marissa watched Alex leave and stood up. "I'm going to go get some air, too." She quickly walked out, before anyone could say anything. "Hey," she said softly, as she saw Alex.

Alex glanced at Marissa. She was sitting on a bench near the bath. "Hey," she whispered. "How come you didn't tell me you're the Emperor's daughter?" She looked at Marissa, who was now sitting next to her.

Marissa looked at the ground. "I didn't think it's important," she answered. "And I was afraid that when you find out, you wouldn't want to see me anymore. And I really like you, so I didn't want to risk that."

Alex smiled a little. "See, that's where you're a dummy. I wouldn't just stop seeing you because of your father." She looked into Marissa's eyes and took her hand. "I really like you, too."

Marissa squeezed Alex's hand a little and rested her head onto Alex's shoulder. She closed her eyes and sighed softly.

"Trey and mom are probably going to kill me for this, but do you want to get out of here?" Alex looked at Marissa.

"I'd love to. I really don't like your brother. And I don't need to watch how Caleb drools over you any more," Marissa said as she stood up.

"I'm just too hot to resist," Alex said with a smirk. "Beach?"

"Beach sounds great," Marissa said with a smile. She still held onto Alex's hand.

Marissa quietly walked in from the back door of her house. She and Alex had spent the whole night on the beach, just talking. And kissing a few times.

She quickly walked to her room. She just hoped that her mother wasn't waiting for her there. As Marissa opened her room door, and noticed that her room was empty, she sighed with relief. She went to her closet, took out some new clothes and took off her wet ones. She changed her clothes and started to brush her hair.

Julie walked into Marissa's room. "What were you thinking? Running off with that Egyptian whore like that! I was so embarrassed. And Trey, he was so angry," she yelled. "And don't think you'll be going anywhere, missy."

Marissa looked at her mother and set the brush down. "Are you going to stop me?" She crossed her arms on her chest. "And never call Alex a whore again." She glared at her mother and then walked out.

"She's such a little me," Julie angrily said to herself.

Alex sneaked in from the front door. She sighed with relief when she didn't see her mother. She ran to her room and lay down onto the bed. She closed her eyes; she wasn't really tired, even after spending the whole night on the beach with Marissa.

"You fucking whore!" Trey yelled, as he opened Alex's room door. He walked to her bed and lifted her up, throwing her against a wall. "Stay away from Marissa," he hissed, his face close to hers.

"Or what, big brother? You're going to throw me around some more?" Alex looked at Trey. She knew she was pushing her luck, because her back already hurt from the one blow against the wall.

"Just stay away or you're going to regret it!" Trey put his arm against Alex's throat and pushed slightly. "Tell me that you're going to stay away."

Alex's eyes widened slightly, it was a little hard to breathe. "Are you that insecure?" she whispered.

Trey pushed harder. "Tell me!" he yelled. He pushed his arm a little harder again.

Alex shook her head. She raised her knee and hit Trey into the groin.

"Bitch," Trey hissed. He pushed his arm harder against her throat for a few moments. Then let go and stormed out of her room.

Alex leaned against the wall, holding her throat and breathing hard. "Fucking head case," she muttered.

Marissa knocked onto the open door. "You okay?" she asked, seeing Alex breathe hard.

Alex looked at Marissa. "Trey just almost killed me. Just give me a moment." She smiled weakly.

Marissa looked a little shocked. "What? Why? Oh Goddess, are you okay?" She rushed to Alex and put her one hand onto Alex's shoulder.

Alex smiled; Marissa was adorable. "Because of you. He told me to stay away from you. He's an insecure dickhead. And, obviously, a fucking head case."

"Oh," Marissa said, biting her lower lip worriedly. She was afraid that Alex was going to do what Trey said. And she hated Trey for hurting Alex.

Alex noticed that Marissa looked worried. "Don't worry, I'm not going to do what he said. First off, I like you. And second, I have never listened to Trey and I'm not planning to start now."

Marissa smiled. It was good to know that Alex wasn't just going to stay away because of Trey. "I actually came here so we could go somewhere, but if you want to stay in…"

"Considering the fact that Trey is in this house, I'd rather go out than stay in," Alex said, walking away from the wall. "Where are we going?"

"I was thinking that we could go to one of the public bath houses," Marissa answered.

"You want to see me naked, huh?" Alex teased, smirking. "You do know that we won't be naked, right?"

Marissa rolled her eyes. "We're not going because I want to see you naked. Just thought we could socialize. With other people."

Alex smiled. "Is it okay if my best friend comes with us? She should be over here soon."

Marissa nodded. Even though, she wanted to be alone with Alex. And have her all to herself. "Okay."

"And don't worry, as soon as she sees an attractive girl - or a girl at all, actually- she leaves. We'll have plenty of time to be alone. "Alex smiled. "Want to see some of my paintings and drawings? You know, while we wait for Jodie."

"You do art-y stuff?" Marissa asked. She smiled a little, as Alex nodded. "I'd love to see them."

Alex walked over to a wooden chest that was in a corner. She took out a black and white coal painting. "Just something I did when I couldn't sleep." She took another one. "This is my favorite." The painting just had a upper class Egyptian woman on it.

"It's beautiful," Marissa said. "Is there a story behind it?"

Alex looked at the painting, her eyes glazing for a second. She looked at Marissa, thinking what to say. But as she opened her mouth to say something, she noticed Jodie standing in the doorway. She quickly turned to face her best friend. "Hey." She had one of those 'thank you, thank you' looks.

"Hello there, lovebirds," Jodie said as she stepped in. She sat down onto the bed and looked at Alex and Marissa. "Are you going to introduce us?"

"Marissa, this is Jodie. Jodie, this is Marissa," Alex said. "And we thought that you could come to one of the public bath houses with us."

"Sue thing. Lots of almost naked women, why wouldn't I want to come?" Jodie stood up and walked to the door. "Coming?" she asked.

"Yes, we'll be right down," Alex said and turned to the chest. She put the two drawing away.

"Sure thing. Lydia needs to be corrupted anyway," Jodie said and headed downstairs, after winking at Alex.

"Can I pretend not to know you two, while we are in public?" Marissa asked, looking at Alex. She felt a little weird because of the painting, but decided to ignore it.

"We can pretend not to know Jodie together," Alex said and took Marissa's hand as they started to walk downstairs.

Jodie looked at them. "You are so sickly cute together. Ugh! I can't eat anything today, without the fear of throwing up." She rolled her eyes and opened the door, heading out.

The girls had been at the bathing house for about an hour. Jodie kept looking around, checking if there were any hot girls. "I'll leave you two lovebirds alone now," she said as she noticed a lonely girl at the other end of the bath.

"Hey, there, I'm Jodie. You seem a little lonely…"

Marissa laughed. "Jodie is weird. And a slut."

"Oh, yeah, she is. Both of those things. But she's also a great friend. She visited me the most when I was in Egypt. My family came rarely, but she practically was living there." Alex smiled slightly. "And you can't forget the fact that she's a nut job."

Marissa smiled. "Summer is kinda weird, too. Half the time you can't understand a word she says. But she's a great friend. And thanks to me being you know who's daughter, my only friend."

"One friend is really all you need," Alex said. She leaned against the wall. "Ow!"

"What's wrong?" Marissa asked, concerned.

"My back. Trey threw me against the wall. And he's stronger than I remember," Alex said. She pulled away from the wall.

"Poor thing," Marissa said. She stood behind Alex. "Let me see." She pulled the cloth away from Alex's back a little. "Wow. Your back is just one big bruise." She let go of the cloth and wrapped her arms around Alex. She kissed the other girl's cheek and neck.

"I'm already starting to feel better," Alex said, grinning. "But I don't want to have sex in a public bath house, where people are watching."

Marissa smirked. "We're not going to have sex right now," she whispered against Alex's neck. She kissed Alex's upped back. "Let's just enjoy this." She stopped kissing Alex and leaned against the wall, pulling Alex with her.

Alex leaned against Marissa and placed her hands onto the other girl's. "This is nice," she whispered.

"Mhmh," Marissa agreed. She rested her chin onto Alex's shoulder.

Alex walked in from the front door, smiling brightly. After going to the bathing house, she and Marissa had gone to the beach. And by now, it was already dark outside. "I'm home," she called.

Kirsten walked out of the kitchen. "You. Me. Talk. Kitchen. Now!" She glared at Alex and then walked back into the kitchen.

Alex gulped. Her mother didn't use full sentences only when she was really angry. She took a deep breath and walked into the kitchen. "Look, if this is about last night, then Trey already tried to kill me for that."

Kirsten was already ready to yell, but stopped. "What? What do you mean?"

"I came home in the morning, went to bed and Trey came into my room. He called me a fucking whore and threw me against the wall. Then pressed his arm against my throat and just pushed. Plus, he threatened to kill me if I don't stay away from Marissa," Alex answered. "My back still hurts," she whined slightly.

Kirsten sighed. "You should stay away from Marissa," she said, looking a little worried. "She's getting married to Trey soon."

Alex shook her head. "No, mother. I'm not going to leave her. I like her and she likes me. I don't care if she's getting married to Trey." She sighed a little. "Can I go to bed?"

"Sure, honey. We'll talk more in the morning," Kirsten said with a small smile. She kissed Alex's forehead. "Good night."

"Night, mom," Alex said. She walked to her room and walked over to the chest. As she opened the chest, she took out the painting of the Egyptian woman. Sighing, she just looked at it.