MAXIM: A New Type of Human (Oddily Series #2) (33 page)

Then Nexa gestured for Oddily to join in on the fun. Oddily was hesitant. She had never done anything like this before. She didn’t know what silly thing she could do to him; but then, she spotted his exposed stomach and grinned. After sneaking up to him, Oddily leaned over and quickly kissed his navel. When Maxim began to moan, she ducked behind the couch with Nexa. She could feel a fit of giggles coming on so she covered her mouth. On the other hand, Nexa couldn’t stay quiet. She was making all kinds of muffled noises.

When his moaning stopped, and there were no other sounds in the room, Oddily became curious. Could Maxim still be asleep? She came to her knees and peeked over the back of the couch.

“He’s not there!” she whispered in wide-eyed wonder.

Nexa came to her feet and smiled.

“He must have…!” Before Oddily could say more, Nexa shushed her and then whispered, “Brace yourself. Maxim is playing with us!”

Oddily’s sweet face lit up with excitement when Nexa signaled to her to sneak upstairs with her. She also indicated that Maxim was on the prowl and they needed to keep an eye out for him.

Nexa led the way, stopping every so often when she came upon one of Maxim’s usual hiding places. So far, the coast was clear. They had made it up the stairs and were now sneaking down the hallway.

Oddily’s anticipation elevated to a level of overexcitement when Nexa stopped and listened. “Did you hear that?”

A deep guttural sound erupted from up ahead, and Oddily’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh my gosh! What was that?!”

Nexa grabbed her by the arm and ducked inside one of the bedrooms. “It’s Maxim. He’s imitating the roar of a grizzly bear.”

“He’s convincing!” She gulped loudly.

Nexa gave Oddily a double take when she saw the uncertainty in Oddily’s eyes. “You’ve never played games like this before, have you!?”

Oddily shook her head.

“Okay! You stay here while I show you what typically happens.”

Nexa left the bedroom and headed back in the direction of the stairs. Soon after, Maxim passed the room where Oddily stood, and she spotted him moving in the direction of his sister. He was grinning—having fun!

All of a sudden, there was another deep guttural roar, and then a high-pitched laugh from Nexa. Oddily poked her head out of the room just in time to see Maxim grab Nexa up in his arms and squeeze her with a bear hug.

Oddily began to feel silly for letting her nerves get the best of her, especially after seeing the innocent fun she missed. However, when Maxim released Nexa and growled again, she knew the game wasn’t over yet. She was to be Maxim’s next victim!

What happened next was not only surprising to Maxim and Nexa, it was unexpected by Oddily as well. An over stimulated imagination had caused her to scream loudly before taking off down the hall.

I don’t know if I should chase her sis. She sounded scared.

Don’t bother,
Nexa grinned.
After she runs the full loop, she’ll be heading straight at us.

Oddily had forgotten that the hallway was circular; so moments later, she was taken aback when she ran into Maxim and Nexa again. She slid to a stop and blinked hard at their smiling faces. “You must think I’m completely nuts!”

Nexa nudged her brother. “What do you think? Is she nuts?”

“I’m not sure; but if she is, we must be infected too!”

“Oh, come on you guys!” Oddily began to laugh. “I feel stupid enough without your teasing!”

Maxim began to growl again, with a predators look in his eyes, but this time Oddily was ready. When Maxim lunged forward and grabbed her up in his arms, she wrapped hers around his neck and hugged him fiercely.

After a long playful hug, Maxim released Oddily and then apologized. “I’m sorry to ruin the fun, but I need to sleep for awhile. I’m exhausted!”

“I know what!” Oddily said cheerfully. “While you rest, I’ll go and get a manicure like you suggested earlier.”

“How will you get to the nail salon?” He asked.

“I’ll take her.” Nexa volunteered. “I could use a fresh coat of polish myself.”

Maxim smirked and countered, “You don’t wear nail polish!”

Nexa spoke again through gritted teeth. “Yes I do…remember!”

“Oh yes.” Maxim quickly amended his statement. “You do wear it once in awhile—a pretty shade of pink.”

Maxim, I’m going to strangle you if you don’t shut up!

Maxim snickered at his sister and then turned to Oddily. “Give me a kiss and I’ll see you later.”

37

Maxim was sitting on his bed, and had just removed his shoes, when Oddily poked her head into the room. When he saw her, he held out his hand. Oddily smiled at the gesture and came to stand before him. He took her hand and pressed it to his lips. “You’ve changed your mind.”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to leave you.”

After pulling her down on his lap, Maxim cradled her in his arms. He sat holding her, carefully, lovingly, for a long time without speaking. Oddily was filled with contentment by the way he held her—as if she were a cherished prize to him. However, gradually, she became aware that the muscles in his body were tightening. Her heart leaped and then began to pound as his lips pressed to her throat.

“You do know how much I love you?” he whispered.

Oddily became giddy with happiness while she gazed into his handsome face. “I love you too…more than anyone in the whole world!”

Maxim threaded his fingers through her long hair. His pale blue eyes were so intent, his smile so tender, she felt her heightened energy level begin to subside.

“Nexa says you don’t believe in marriage.” She spoke lazily, as if her comment was commonplace.

Maxim lifted a long strand of hair and rubbed it on his lips. “She’s right. Our father taught us to believe in the ways of the future. Besides, legally, Nexa and I don’t exist. We have no paper trail to claim otherwise.”

Suddenly his smile widened mischievously. “Where is your hair brush? I want to brush your hair.”

“I’ll get it!” Several minutes later, Oddily was back sitting between Maxim’s legs while the brush moved through her hair in long deep strokes. For a long time, the only noise in the room was the swishing sound of the bristles in the thickness of her hair.

“I like that,” she whispered. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

”I’ve never had someone else brush my hair before.”

“It is so long!” He mused as he shifted the heavy mane of hair over her right shoulder, his warm fingers brushing the nape of her neck. Then the light touch was gone and the bristles of the brush were once again moving through her hair.

Oddily tried to hold onto her contentment, but Maxim’s comments about marriage had put a damper on their intimate moment together.

“Would you ever consider marrying me anyway?” She asked impulsively.

Maxim hesitated in mid-stroke as she glanced at him over her shoulder, and then put the brush on the bed avoiding her gaze. “I don’t see how I could, under the circumstances. Besides, we’re going to be together for the rest of our lives. Isn’t that enough?”

Maxim caught Oddily’s disappointment and cursed beneath his breath.

Oddly felt a crushing blow to her heart and thought maybe she would be sick. She began to swallow her spit in an attempt to calm her stomach, but it wasn’t working. “Would you mind if I go downstairs and rest on the couch—just for awhile?”

Maxim wanted her to remain with him but he could see that she was upset, or sick…maybe both.

“I have a better idea. Follow me!”

Maxim wrapped his arm around Oddily’s shoulder and guided her to a room around the bend in the hallway. Unlike the rest of the rooms, this one had a door.

“I don’t remember that door there before!”

Maxim kissed the top of her head. “That’s because I just installed it.”

“That’s strange. Why would you do that?”

“I did it for you!”

“But why?”

“It’s just that sometimes, like right now, you seem to need your own space. I thought it over and came up with the idea to surprise you with your own room. I’ve been secretly working on it for over a week now. It’s not finished yet, but the bed is in place. It will be more comfortable for you than the couch.”

Maxim opened the door and then waited for Oddily to enter the room. Oddily smiled, despite her heavy heart and upset stomach, when a golden four-poster bed with intricate carving of angels, came into view. “How do you like it?”

“It’s beautiful!” She said, gawking at the feminine bedcover in a soft shade of gray.

Maxim was pleased to witness the same childish excitement he had seen many times before. “While you get yourself comfortable, I’ll go and scrounge us up something to eat. What can I get for you?”

“Nothing…I’m fine, thanks!”

“Not even chocolate ice cream?”

Oddily’s sweet tooth spoke for her. “Mmmm, okay!”

After Maxim left, Oddily sat on the floor away from the bed and continued to stare at it’s magnificence. She wanted to lay down and rest her head on the fluffy pillows; but if she did, she wouldn’t be able to enjoy the sight of the bed very well.

Then she had a disturbing thought. Should she continue to stay with Maxim if he didn’t intend to marry her? Tears began to well up in her eyes as she came to her feet and, in a moment of defeat, she dived onto the beautiful bed and buried her face in the pillows. Her emotional upheaval continued to surface even after Maxim had come back with the bowl of ice cream.

“Here you go!” Maxim waited for Oddily to sit up, but she didn’t move. Instead, she kept her face covered, pretending to be asleep.

Maxim stared at her curiously and then left the room.

After a few minutes, she raised her head to make sure she was alone, and then sat up to stare at the closed door. It was unlike her to deceive him, but dismissing her questions about marriage in the nonchalant way that he did had hurt her feelings.

Then a curious noise, like the humming sound of electricity, began to make her ears tingle. She automatically glanced towards the window and none too soon. She was just in time to catch sight of an orb of light as it floated through the glass pane into her room.

When Oddily saw it, she anticipated that she would scream and bolt for the door but for some reason, she didn’t! In fact, her overwhelming sadness was momentarily forgotten and, in it’s place, a feeling of awe and wonder. When the orb of light moved towards her, she spontaneously held up her right hand as if wanting to touch it. Did the light understand her desire? Maybe it did, because the light brushed against her fingertips, sending a burst of energy up her arm. Oddily smiled in amazement when her hand and arm began to tingle.

Then she held up her left hand and spoke. “If you can understand me, touch my other hand.”

A split second later, the light did as she asked and made that hand and arm tingle as well.

“You do understand!” She gazed at the glowing ball. Obviously, it was intelligent. She wondered what kind of creature was floating before her. But then it abruptly left, as though it had never been there at all. The light had flickered and then skyrocketed out the window. The sight of its departure reminded her of a shooting star so she quickly made a wish.
I wish I may, I wish I might, have Maxim propose to me tonight.