*special chapter*

"Stop thinking about him," Annia told her as they exited the café, "you know what awful reputation that Crassus has, his younger brother can't be any different."

The curly haired woman, stopped to fan her face as the hot June sun bathed her in warm delights.

"Scratch that," Annia said, and crossing her arms she looked her friend with a sympathetic gaze, "all the guys in that Delta Nix frat are off limits!"

It had been only a week since Maia's mysterious encounter with the ravishing Rex, and all she could think of was how good his lips tasted on hers. The news of Crassus' baby brother, had spread like wild fire through campus, and all the girls were in hysterics to get a glimpse of the new guy in Delta Nix. Little did they know, someone had already gotten ahead of them.

"Promise me you won't meet him again," Maia's best friend urged her, as they walked down the university campus towards their dorm rooms. "I know enough about those Nix guys to tell you they can't be good news."

Maia didn't know what to tell her. She trusted Annia with all her heart, but a part of her couldn't just forget the stranger responsible for her past few sleepless nights. She wanted to tell her best friend how caring he was, and how much she made her laugh.

But Annia hated the Delta Nix guys.

"Do you promise me?" Annia asked, as they reached her dorm room.

"He hasn't called me at all since we met anyways..." Maia sighed, "Chances are he even forgot my name."

"Thank God!" exclaimed she, "If he called you, you'd have to actually talk to him, and no good would come out of that."

A part of Maia was sad that she got no texts from him, or any calls for that matter. But they weren't going to see each other anyways. It was only a kiss they shared.

Oh, but what a kiss that was!

"See you tomorrow in philosophy?" Annia asked, as she unlocked the door, and slipped inside. "Don't forget, tomorrow we have a revision for the midterm!"

"Save me a seat?"

"Last row, at the windows?"

Maia nodded in approval of their ideal seats, and they parted with a quick hug.

"Going to the rooftop again?" Annia questioned, peaking quickly through the door as she reopened it.

"You know I'm the only one who has the keys now that Mrs. Dunkin is away." Maia explained. "There are a few things I promised to put in order before the weekend."

"See you tomorrow then!"

"See you tomorrow," Maia replied, as she pranced up the stairs.

She reached to look through her bag for the rooftop keys, and saw her phone screen light up with a notification.

Her heart skipped a beat as she nervously unlocked her phone.

Could it really be him? Has he finally texted her? But why now? And what would she say if they met?

Oh, how she waited for a call, a text, anything!

"Bloody hell," she cursed, feeling her heart sank as her eyes locked onto the green bird on her screen, "I'm so deleting this freaking app."

She cursed Duolingo, and her 354 days streak. But most of all, she cursed herself for naively thinking he'd text her randomly, after ignoring her for an entire week.

Annia was right, as usual. Rex was most likely just as bad as his older brother.

She jammed her phone back in her bag, and reaching the top of the stairs, she twisted the keys to open the rooftop door.

"He can take his pretty white hair, and those," she paused, biting the inside of her cheek, "and those freaking lips of his and shove them down-"

Twisting the key to lock the door from the rooftop, she turned around hitting her head, making her fall on her butt.

"Are you alright?" the deep husky voice she dreamed about for the past few nights ringed in her ears, and she felt the baby hairs on her back stand up.

The sun bled behind his towering physique. A plain white T-shirt hugged his well-defined torso, and those strong arms, she so very clearly remembered wrapping her tightly in his embrace not too long ago.

"Maia?" Rex exclaimed, as he extended a hand to help her up. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing..." she said, feeling her cheeks turn red, as he helped her up.

He remembered her name!

Maia's heart raised in her chest, and she could have sworn it was so loud he could hear it. They locked eyes, and she couldn't help but smile back at him.

But what has he doing here? Did he know it was her dorm? But if he knew her, why didn't he call, or text?

"My aunt let me use the space for a little, while she's away," he explained, tucking a few strands of white behind his ear, as he leaned on the cement balustrade.

"Mrs. Dunkin is your aunt?" she asked, and she felt his eyes looking her up and down curiously.

"Yes," he replied, "on my mom's side." He dug his teeth in his lower lip, and rubbed the back of his beck with is hand as he stepped closer to her.

"You?" he whispered, tenderly grasping the tips of her long hair between his fingers, gently playing with it, as he recalled its softness tickling against his skin. "What are you doing here?"

His cologne brushed against her senses, numbing at her conscience that repeated Annia's warning in regards to the Nix frat guys.

"I help around," she mumbled as she felt their fingers intertwining, "Sometimes, I help around here."

He raised Maia's chestnut hair closer to him, the fresh smell of honey and chocolate tainting his reason, just like it did when she passed by him at last week's party.

So fresh, and so sweet. And yet so tempting!

"I've been thinking of you..." he confessed, brushing his fingers up her arm. "That kiss..." He paused holding his breath, and he rested his forehead against hers as they both closed their eyes. "Please tell me I'm not the only one who has been losing my mind."

Maia's skin burned where they touched, and it seemed like all the sound around them had numbed out. The cars on the road, the loud voices, the birds and the jazz music coming from the dorm beneath. It all went silent. It was just them, and the world around stopped.

"What did you do to me?" he asked her, placing a tender kiss on her forehead as he caressed her cheek. "I..."

Maia felt her chest burning, and her mouth ran dry. She felt his breath against her cheeks, and although her eyes were closed, she knew that his lips were so very close.

A kiss was inevitable, she thought. Her hands trembled at the thought, her heart trembled too. And for a moment, she forgot the promise she made her best friend many times that day.

But Rex suddenly pulled away.

"I am sorry," he said, "I should go..."

"What?" she exclaimed, almost too quiet for him to hear.

"Crassus was right," Rex mumbled, as he covered his mouth with his hand.

"What?" she whispered, fazed by the sudden change. She had so many questions to ask, so many curiosities.

"I probably shouldn't be here right now."

"You are leaving?" she asked, tightening her fingers on the straps of her bag, "You're gonna leave just like that?"

He ran a hand through his hair and exhaled sharply, looking at the ground.

"I really shouldn't be here right now." Rex rummaged through his pocket and pulled a set of keys as he headed towards the rooftop door.

"That's what you said when you left that night," said Maia.

Rex turned around; his jawline clenched.

"You never called me back, you know," she added, feeling all the imaginary dialogues she had with herself in the past few days slip out without control.

He sighed, and stepped closer to her.

"They told me I should stay away from you, you know," she told him, "That, just like your brother," she paused, as his eyebrows lowered in an expression of displeasure. "Just like the Delta Nix guys, your reputation precedes you."

His fingers tightened around the keys.

"They asked me to promise not to see you again."

It was a split second, and the two were yet again too close for their own good.

"And are you?" he questioned, lifting her chin up to face him.

"Hmm?"

"Are you going to stop seeing me?" he whispered, his raspy voice echoing in Maia's ears, sending shivers down her spine, stirring that fire inside her chest.

She placed her right hand on his chest, the other over his shoulder, where they laid just a week before, and in a teasing, almost too soft of a manner, she slightly brushed her lips against his.

She found herself drowning in his mismatched eyes yet again, and it felt like they were two fireworks fizzling, just before they are ready to burst out in flames.

"You aren't the only one who has been losing their mind, Rex" she murmured, and their lips pressed against each other leaving their thoughts and reason behind.

A/N: As many of you asked about Maia's background story, what was she like in our world, and at the suggestion of a dear friend, I decided to create a special side story, in a hypothetical parallels universe, where the protagonists of 'Nympha Postmortem', are normal collage students, and see how would their relationship would have progressed then! Let me know your thoughts on this! This side story is expected to be published along side the main story line, every other 4 chapters or so. :D

Questions!

What do you think happened the first time Maia and Rex met?

Is Rex much different than you expected as a normal everyday guy? Is he perhaps too daring?

Do you like the idea of Annia and Maia being BFFs in this special story line?