Sofia might have dozed off at some point, with tears dripping down the sides of her face onto the pillow, making it wet with her sadness and the repulsive prenuptial papers clutched into her cold fist.

A sudden series and variety of noises jolted her awake from the fitful slumber.

At first, disoriented, she just quietly looked at the darkness of her room.

The noises began almost instantly again.

She blinked, her eyelids feeling heavy because of the tears that had dried on her lashes. Slowly, the locked door of her room came into focus but the noises was not coming from the door, it came from behind her, from the window.

Sofia's breath stuck in her throat in alarm.

Someone was at the window, and suddenly she felt too afraid to look back, not sure of what she would see. Suddenly, she regretted being so stubborn and not listening to Max's rant about closing the window before going to bed. Now she had a late night intruder in her room.

Someone grunted from the window, and then panted heavily, muttering something incoherent and quite irritatedly.

Sucking in a harsh breath of fright, she sprung up on the bed and whirled around. Her eyes widened in horror seeing in time as two large hands gripped the window frame.

Sofia stumbled out of the bed, and in haste, grabbed the vase from the bedside table. There she stood in an attacking pose with the vase upraised in her trembling hands.

What if there was more than one intruder?

The possibility chilled her spine.

She realized too late that it would have been wiser dashing to the door, unlocking it and running away screaming help, the bastard was already lifting the silhouette of his huge body and crawling inside. The twin thumps of his boots making contact with the floor snapped Sofia out of her momentary frozen state.

"St... stop!" Her voice stammered, giving away the inevitable fear.

The huge male form paused. She could not see his face but could tell his eyes were fixed on hers.

"M... my husband will come out of the bathroom any moment, so don't you dare take a step forward or I assure you, your bones will end up reformed into fine powder." Her unsure voice elevated with each word, hoping the lie would get real.

Surely, if she screamed real loud Max would without doubt come running and hollering from his room and bulldoze his way inside through her locked door.

Damn it! Why did she have to lock the door! Oh, yes, the prenuptial papers. Damnation!

Taking in a long breath, Sofia was getting her lungs ready to start the screaming.

But then, the silhouette man let out a sigh. "I'm that husband himself. Unfortunately, my dear wife has locked her door. Bathroom be damned, the husband couldn't get inside the room itself."

Sofia's mouth fell open in surprise.

It was Max!

Stumbling back towards the wall, Sofia switched on the light. And truly, there, before the window stood Max with fists on his hips in an irritating manner.

"Why the hell did you climb up my window!" she asked befuddled.

"Maybe because the door is locked, that's why." Max scowled. "I can't believe I'm actually grateful at the moment that you kept your window open!"

With all her might, Sofia threw the vase aiming his head. Max gasped and jumped aside in time, the vase went flying out the window, a distant shattering noise confirmed it's now broken state.

Max straightened and narrowed his eyes at Sofia, looking at her face skeptically. "Why did you lock the door, Sof?"

"It's my room and I can lock the door anytime I see fit," she said in a seething tone but then her stomach dropped. This was not her house, and it seemed that this room was also not hers. It was all written pretty clearly in the prenuptial agreement.

With the knowledge her anger wavered, melancholy descended upon her again at being judged so low in Max's eyes. She had really thought that they had both gotten over the past, but by sending the prenuptial agreement at this point, he had proven the otherwise.

"I've been knocking for some time, I thought something wrong has happened. And clearly I was right in my assumption it seems," he squinted his eyes and paused for a second. "You've been crying." It was not a question.

She might have drifted off in thoughts, for when Max spoke she discovered that he had come nearer, though the bed between them still kept them apart.

"I've been sleeping," she said looking away.

"And you're a pathetic liar, Sof," Max scoffed, shaking head, his eyes still raking all over her face. "Those swollen eyes speak for themselves. Now will you please tell me what has happened all of the sudden that you had to cry yourself to sleep, locking that blasted door?"

What more could one expect from a smart-ass lawyer?

His eyes turned from prudent to anxious. "Has someone said something offending to you? Did something bad happen at the diner? What is it, Sof, please talk to me!"

"You're so contradicting that it gets too unbelievable sometimes," Sofia crossed her arms, her confusing eyes searching his face for answers.

"You have the gall, Max, standing here and asking me all this, behaving like you care after throwing this at my face!" Her finger sharply pointed at the prenuptial agreement on the bed, crumpled and slightly soaked with her tears. She couldn't help the angry tears gathering in her eyes, her voice wavering with the hurt, hand slapping away the lone drop of tear escaping her eye fast.

Max looked bemused at the papers before leaning in to pick them up.

The puzzlement on his face, as he straightened the papers to read, made Sofia feel dubious however.

Why did he look like he knew nothing about this!

Slowly, his eyes widened as he read. "It is our prenuptial agreement!" he said shocked.

Sofia frowned at his expression. "Of course, it is," she snapped.

"How did you get it?"

The corner of her lips tilted up in dilemma. "You sent it to me last night?"

"No!" he cried, brows pulling together. "I did not send it to you, Sofia. Bloody hell... I've already revoked the agreement."

"Then how the freaking hell do I have it in my hands now!" Sofia threw up her hands in exasperation.

Max raked his fingers frustratedly through his unruly hair and then suddenly with an angry grunt he tore apart the agreement. Throwing the pieces of destroyed papers over his shoulders, he stormed around the bed and stood before her.

The frown on Sofia's face eased away, as he caught her off guard by cupping her cheek with one hand, the other grabbing her arm gently. He tilted her face up so she looked at him.

"I did not send it to you," he said, eyes searching hers. "I revoked it a while ago, Sofia. I've been a stupid bastard in the first place to draw a contract like that. After knowing the truth... after knowing everything, I mended that mistake right away."

His gaze softened to an incredible level as he stared at her. "You have equal rights to everything that I have, that I own, that I am."

"Max," Sofia choked, her own hand went up on its own accord to rest on his hand that cupped her cheek that was growing warmer under his touch. "I don't want your money, I never wanted your money. I won't take anything from you when I leave—"

"Damn right. You won't have to," Max indulged, his eyes affectionate.

Sofia looked up questioningly, her tired eyes crinkling at the corners.

"You won't have to take anything from me," he repeated, eyes speaking more than she could understand. "All of it is already yours anyway."

Exhausted with everything Sofia closed her eyes, her head bent in stupor.

"For a second there I thought," she mumbled sleepily. "You were pushing me away again."

A husky chuckle escaped his mouth, his breath hitting her face made her shiver.

"It was most definitely not me, darling," his voice grew serious with determination. "The bastard behind this stunt will be severely punished that I swear."

She exhaled a short puff of breath, not being able to help herself she leaned into his warmth. His hand that was holding her arm slid to wound around her shoulders, bringing her closer, his other hand still caressing her heated cheek softly.

Slowly, he guided her to the bed, under the covers and into his embrace.

A fire lit up in the pit of her soul. It was from the smoldering heat of emotions she held for this man. She realized it would only grow with time and with each one of his significant and insignificant actions, words and gazes, until she combusted altogether. And a simple locked door would never be enough to keep it at bay. He was unstoppable.

--

The next morning, she left her bed early with Max lightly snoring away. However, she had stared at him for some time before doing so, ritualistically admiring his sleeping face.

She recalled last night and everything that had transpired. Max's words—she felt had a hell lot of underlying meanings in them, they had traveled straight to her heart and had settled there quite comfortably.

As she sauntered down the stairs, she thought of how they were sleeping one night in his room and then the next in hers. Like their relationship their sleeping arrangement was floating around from one room to the other.

It must be the most bizarre marriage in the history of all marriages. She thought with a smile and a shake of her head.

Picking up a sandwich from the plate, Sofia smiled at Debbie standing beside the dining table.

"Thanks, Debbie. You've got quite the talent in cooking," she praised. "I would have hired you at my diner if you were not already working here. However, remember the job offer will always be there."

Debbie beamed. "This coming from you, Sofia, it really means so much. Thank you."

"Are you trying to steal my staff, wife?" came Max's voice as he jogged down the stairs.

Wife. Eh?

His freshly showered wet hair ruffled due to his long strides, his muscles flexed scrumptiously beneath that black suit hugging his body.

Debbie greeted him and sauntered into the kitchen saying something about tea and kettle and so on.

Sofia took a huge bite of the sandwich as she attempted distracting herself so that she didn't end up looking like a ripe tomato.

She blinked as he dragged back the chair beside her and sat down, and she felt dizzy as the smell of his cologne surrounded her. And suddenly she was choking on the bread crumbs in her throat.

Blasted cologne! Blasted husband!

"Hey!" The next second, Max was thumping and rubbing on her back to ease her turmoil.

"Easy there," he mumbled worriedly.

But he was unaware that it only added to the torture. At this rate, she was so going to pass out and die.

The touch of his large hands almost covering her entire upper back put little shocks into her spine. She was a trembling mess soon enough.

Holy hell!

As she calmed down a little from her coughing fit, he poured some water in a glass and held it to her lips. Sofia leaned back, slumping sideways into his chest. She sipped some water, looking up over the glass at his concerned eyes.

"You alright now?"

"Yes." Sofia nodded and held her breath when he wiped away the tears trailing down her face from the coughing fit.

"Hell, Sof!" he chastised. "Eat a little slowly, will you?"

Sofia playfully smirked, sniffling and straightening away from him. Almost instantly she missed his warmth. "I wouldn't die from simply choking on food."

A deep scowl formed on his face. "I would highly appreciate it if you don't include the death word in your sentences."

Whoa!

Sofia was shocked at his reaction but she tried to smile it off. "Now, now, no need to get so serious, scared pants."

Debbie arrived from the kitchen then with a kettle filled with steaming tea.

"Sir," Debbie said putting the kettle on the table. "I got a call from the agency an hour ago. They want to have a face to face talk with me in the office about my paychecks, though they were not specific about the issue. Do you think Mevil has got any hand in whatever this is?"

Now, it was Max's turn to splutter on the tea he had just been having a long sip of.

Shaking her head and hiding a smirk, Sofia began thumping on Max's back who glared hard at Debbie. Sofia saw the poor girl squirm.

She clucked her tongue and delivered a ferocious thump on Max's back. "No need to look at the poor girl this way," Sofia said calmly, she watched as Debbie quickly disappeared into the kitchen, probably sensing they needed some privacy. "I already know about it all."

That made Max turn to look at Sofia warily. He took her hand in his that had been thumping on his back. "Are you mad at me?"

Sofia shrugged. Sighing, she took her hand away from his. "I would have appreciated if you hadn't hid it from me."

"I didn't want to stress you," Max said dragging a hand down his face, recapturing her hand into his persistently. "Sofia..., please understand that I've seen you suffer enough because of that bastard. I would be damned if I ever let his shadow come within even a foot around you."

Her heart soared. Max truly had a way with his words.

"I'm not a weak woman, Max," she reached up with her free hand to move away the few wet strands of his hair that had come to fall on his creased forehead. "You need to understand that try all you may, you cannot keep all the dangers and worries away from me."

"But if I don't at least try to do just that, Sof, then what kind of a husband I'll prove myself to be?" he indulged, catching her hand before it withdraw from his forehead and held it against his cheek, the unshaved stubble prickling her skin sensually. "I've all the rights to protect you, my wife, and not even you can deprive me of that."

Did she just suffer from a heart attack? It must be a heart attack, for she felt like her heart had just pushed up against her chest attempting its level best to come out of her flesh and skin and fall right into his palms, literally.

"But Max," she croaked, stammering pathetically. "Y... you don't have to."

"Why though? Because we're supposedly just friends?" he asked, suddenly his eyes glinted as if challenging her to answer that. "Because we're not a normally wedded couple?"

Sofia fumbled for words in her mind, feeling torn between wanting to tell him what was in her heart and wanting to ask where he was going with all this. And it was tragic that both the ways were equally heavy, she was stuck aimless in the middle.

She was already rendered speechless and to mute her further, he pressed his lips at the back of her hand that he had been holding to his cheek.

--

Sofia went over to Hayden house during lunch hour.

Lolo had called again to let her know of the theme of the Halloween tea party - a coven. They were all to dress up as witches. Sofia recalled she had just the apt dress for it, a fancy black one in fact, inside a trunk in Hayden House, under her bed.

"You'll look like a witch, Sofi," Skyler gushed, smiling from the bed.

Sofia held the black dress against her body while looking at her own reflection in the mirror.

"Exactly, that's the point," Sofia glanced back at Skyler and after pondering for a second decided that it was time to bring on the dire question. "Skyler, how's everything going on these days? I mean... school and your preparation for final exams?"

Skyler flipped through the pages of a magazine, she shrugged absentmindedly. "Not bad. As not bad as it can get."

"And Neil?"

"Not bad—" Skyler froze, her head snapped up to meet Sofia's skeptical eyes staring back at her through the mirror.

"What about him?" Skyler chuckled trying to ease it off, the sound came out nervous.

Lowering the dress, Sofia whirled around and looked directly at her cousin. Her theory was at last confirmed by the caught-red-handed look Skyler had on her face.

Gotcha!

"So, how long it's been going on?" Sofia asked with her arms crossed.

Skyler was flipping the pages of the magazine like a maniac now as she avoided looking at Sofia in the eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Sofia sighed and slowly walked near the bed, she sat down beside Skyler and took the magazine from her hand. "Skyler?" her voice was soft as to not scare the girl.

Skyler sighed defeatedly, grunted anxiously and clasped her hands together. "How did you know?"

"Let's just say I guessed the obvious." Sofia leaned in to hold her cousin's tightly clasped hands comfortingly. "Do you love him?"

Skyler nodded, a shy smile grazing her lips. "Very much." And then Skyler was lunging forward to hug Sofia. "Sofi, he makes me happy. He's the one for me."

Sofia patted Skyler's back affectionately. "Just be a little careful, Skyler. Right now it probably is just sparkling romance that you can see, but things may not always stay the same and challenges may rise." She moved back from the sisterly hug to look at Skyler's flushed face. "Don't give the reins entirely to the heart for it has the tendency to leap without a care. I don't want either you or Neil ending up being hurt."

Because love is more a battle of emotions than a bed of roses. Sofia could tell, for recently she was experiencing it, face-first.

"Oh Sofi, but is it not what love is all about?" Skyler had a faraway, dreamy look on her face. "And the leap may actually be so worthwhile."

Sofia didn't know if it would be worthwhile but it surely sounded tempting enough.

She recalled of this morning and she recalled the mysterious determination she had witnessed in Max's smile, wicked promises in his last gaze as they parted ways for the day.

And probably love is also anticipation. Sofia waited with bated breath, for what she did not exactly know herself.

https://www.wattpad.com/story/150356620-wattpad-block-party-summer-edition-iv