Brown University, Nina never believed that she would get in. Her experiences at her boarding school in England had pushed her over the top, even though she had graduated from an American high school. Her work on the Treasures of Egypt exhibit had secured her spot in Brown's ancient civilization major. She was still shocked whenever the letter came in. Gran would have been so proud of her, in the same way that she was proud whenever Nina got into boarding school. The offer of a full scholarship from both had been total surprises, yet she knew that she deserved it.
Arriving at her dorm was the same familiar feeling as when Nina first arrived at Anubis House those few years ago. The nerves and excitement ran through her like a truck, though this time she was sure that there was no mystery that she had to solve. Finally, she wasn't the Chosen One, she was just Nina Martin, a university student.
"Nina?" A girl's voice called out from the bathroom. "Is that you?" Nina thought the voice sounded familiar, but it wasn't until the flash of brown hair appeared in the doorway that she recognized them.
"Mara Jaffray?" She exclaimed, taking a few steps over to hug her old housemate. Nina hadn't gotten any information about her dormmate, having only been told that they were an international student. "I didn't realize that you'd come across the pond for college." She pulled away, keeping her hands on the other's shoulders.
"Why wouldn't I, Nina?" Mara asked, a look of confusion gracing her features.
"I don't know.." A blush creeped across Nina's cheeks. "There's just a lot of good universities over there." She had actually looked at a few, but none of them had a program that focused more on Egyptology than Brown did.
"Brown has an amazing pre-medical program." The darker haired woman sat down on the bed that she had claimed as her own.
"Ancient civilizations." Nina spoke her major nodding. She hoped that Mara would understand. It was strange, sitting across from someone from Anubis House once more, but Mara was one of the only people there that didn't know about Nina's insane time in England.
"You always were interested in Egypt, you and Fabian." The other woman smiled, almost like she was insinuating something. "I think he said he was going to study ancient civilizations as well. He didn't say where." She offered, though Nina already knew that much. Nina had been told by Amber that Fabian was going to Oxford to study Egyptology and other ancient civilizations. Despite being on separate continents, the two girls had remained quite close.
"Oxford." Nina held up her hand as though it was obvious. "Amber told me whenever he got in." She sat on her own bed, not caring that it wasn't made. She wished that she had kept in touch with Fabian, but after sending him the Dear John letter, she couldn't bring herself to message him again.
"What ever happened with the two of you anyway?" Mara asked. Nina thought about not answering, but she had spent the last year and a half trying to get over what had happened after leaving England.
"My Gran got sick, and I needed to stay home. I didn't want to hold Fabian back." Nina sighed, laying back on her bed. Only Amber knew her true feelings for Fabian. "I didn't want to end things, but continuing a relationship from three thousand miles away? I couldn't." She fought back the tears from falling. A year and a half and she still wasn't over him.
"It's why I ended things with Mick." Mara walked over to Nina's bed, placing her hand on her roommate's shoulder. "I understand, but we are supposed to have meetings with our major professors." Suddenly, Nina shot up, remembering exactly where she was supposed to be.
"You're right." The golden haired woman stood, grabbing her satchel and began running towards the library. She checked her watch, cursing herself for being five minutes late. Nina hated making a bad first impression, but she was used to it. Every single first impression she ever made tended to be terrible.
Arriving in the library, Nina found a seat with the other people of her major. She wasn't too late, glad that the professors were just finishing introducing themselves as she sat down. About ten others sat in the little study room. She took a good look at those she could see. These were her classmates. These were the people that she needed to befriend.
"Let's go around the room and introduce ourselves. You will all be getting to know each other quite well over the next four years." The oldest professor spoke, gesturing to a dark haired man in the front row. Nina had yet to see his face, but something about him seemed familiar.
"I'm Fabian Rutter." The man turned around, and Nina's eyes met his. His brown eyes shined, and his half smile that she had so missed appeared on his face. "I attended a boarding school in England that had once been owned by the Frobisher-Smythe family. It was there that I developed an interest in Egyptology." The entire time his eyes never left hers.
Nina sat there, waiting until her turn. She kept her eyes on Fabian. Her body was frozen in time. It was like she was a teenager again, and her heart fluttered each time he looked back her way.
"Nina Martin. I actually went to Amun boarding school with Fabian." She tucked some golden hair behind her ears. For the first time she allowed herself to look away from Fabian. He was really there, and he wasn't going anywhere. "I helped work on the Treasures of Egypt exhibit whenever it was housed at the school. I'm most interested in Egypt, but I have developed an interest in other ancient cultures as well." She sat back down, her heartbeat slowing down.
Nina could not concentrate for the rest of the meeting. She wanted to talk to Fabian, to catch up, but she couldn't. Even though he kept looking back at her, she didn't believe that he actually missed her. She had broken his heart, and Amber made sure that she knew that.
As soon as they were released, Nina rushed from the library towards her dorm.
"Nina!" Fabian's voice called out from behind her. She turned around to see him approaching her with the biggest smile on his face. "I didn't realize you were studying ancient civilizations as well."
She nodded, allowing herself to smile back at him. "I thought you were going to Oxford? Amber said—"
"Amber left before I got accepted into Brown. It was always my first choice. We talked about it once." Fabian interrupted before he looked down at his shoes, and Nina's gaze followed. The memory of that conversation had been forgotten when she applied to the Ivy League school. It was the best program for Egyptology, and now she remembered where she heard it from.
"Oh… I remember…" The golden haired woman looked back up at Fabian. "Maybe that's why I chose Brown… we talked about their program." She added quickly, hoping that he didn't think she was trying to follow him. Though if she had, she probably would have gone to Oxford.
"You didn't know I was coming." Fabian reached out and grabbed Nina's hand. It was almost like old times. They stood just close enough to one another, their hands interlocked. She looked up beneath her eyelashes, green eyes meeting brown. A spark shot through her. She leaned slightly closer. Seeing him for the first time in a long time brought up memories that Nina had tried so hard to push down.
"Nina! Fabian?" Mara's voice came from behind Fabian. Nina peeked over his shoulder, cursing her new roommate for ruining the moment. "Fabian Rutter, in the flesh…"
He turned around, and Nina caught a glimpse of his surprise. "Mara's my roommate." She spoke, her chin resting on his shoulder. Even after five minutes, she fell back into her comfortable habits. She was unable to stay any distance from Fabian, and he seemed to welcome it. It was almost as if their bodies had a magnetic pull.
Nina noticed Mara and Fabian looked at each other in a strange way. She held onto his arm gently. Any touch made her feel safe. "What's that look for?" She chuckled, eyes darting between the two of them.
"At prom… the two of us, we kissed." Fabian gestured between him and Mara, and Nina's heart dropped.
