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Title:   Intro to Chemistry
Part 1: Pre-lab/Hypothesis
Author: Fawkes
Email:   [email protected]
Rating: PG
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Disclaimer: Sailor Moon is owned by Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha Ltd.,
Toei Animation Co., or VIZ Video, but, tragically, not by me. Please
do not sue/ plagiarize/ etc. Thank you, and enjoy!

' ' denotes thought

~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@

The Moon Palace was in a state of chaos. Delegates from each
planet in the solar system were arriving within the hour for a week of
political meetings and festivities, which would be crowned by the
Imperium Silver Ball. So, in addition to preparing quarters for the
Royal families of each planet and organizing rooms for the government
committees to meet, decorations had to go up for a fancy dress ball.
The Palace was in chaos, but Neo-Queen Serenity remained calm.
A pillar of strength, she easily glided across the ballroom, making
suggestions to her assistants about the details of the week to come.
"Your Majesty, I need your approval for tonight's menu..."
"Queen Serenity, the group from Mars will be bringing ten extra
guests! What rooms can we give them?"
To each question, the Queen had an ideal answer.
"Your Highness, what about the orchestra for the ball?"
"Your Excellency!"
"Neo-Queen Serenity!"
"Serena Tsukino!"
"Serena... but shouldn�t you address me as Queen Sere..."
"Queen! Detention is the only thing you�ll be queen of, if you
don't wake up this instant, young lady!"
Miss Haruna�s words bit into Serena�s head, ending her dream in
an instant. "Miss Haruna! I�m sorry! It's just that I was up late
last
night working on my math homework, and I guess I overdid it a little
bit," she apologized sheepishly. 'Say nothing of saving all of Tokyo
from that Youma, not that I�ll ever get credit for that...�
"Well, your studying won�t pay off if you don�t pay attention
in class! You�ve been called to the counselor�s office- don�t fall
asleep on the way over."
Sighing, Serena gathered up her books, took the hall pass from
a glaring Miss Haruna, and dejectedly made her way out the door.
'Shoulda known it was a dream- like I'd ever be that on top of things.'
Try as the young girl might, things like schoolwork never quite fell
into place. She danced to a different tune; it was part of her charm,
at least that's how most people saw it. Maturity would come with time.
But as she made her way down the empty hall, Serena couldn't help but
wish there was some way she could magically become more responsible,
more sophisticated, more like the Neo-Queen Serenity from her dreams.
She sighed again. Seeing that she�d reached her destination, she
stepped through the doors and into the brightly lit office.
She nervously approached a secretary who was typing on a
computer. "Um, excuse me, I got this hall pass telling me to come
down here..."
The lady smiled kindly, and extended her hand to take the slip
of paper. "Of course, Serena, Mr. Kawamura is expecting you. His
office is right down that hall, second door on the left. You can head
on back."
Beaming back at the lady, Serena thanked her and headed down
the hall. When she reached the correct door, she knocked tentatively.
"Come in!"
Serena entered, and found a middle-aged man sitting behind a
large desk. Mr. Kawamura�s dark hair was thinning in a patch on top,
and he was a little thick around the middle, but combined with his
friendly smile, these features reminded Serena of a favorite uncle.
Her uneasiness about the appointment eased slightly.
"Ah, you must be Serena! I�m Scott Kawamura, the guidance
counselor for your grade. How are you today, Miss Serena?"
"Well, I�m... I�m hanging in there, Mr. Kawamura."
"Glad to hear it! But I�m afraid, Serena, I�ve called you here
to discuss some rather serious news. It seems that your grades in
math and science haven�t been the most outstanding. Such marks
normally result in summer school..."
Serena instantly panicked. "Summer school?!?! Oh, Mr.
Kawamura, I can�t go to summer school, I just can�t! I always look
forward to summer vacation, I mean, it�s my one break, and I..."
"Calm down Serena, deep breath! I�ve discussed the matter
with your science teachers, and they universally feel that you might do
better in a slightly different setting." Reaching into a drawer, Mr.
Kawamura pulled out a brochure. "This is an application for an
internship at the Turner Pharmaceuticals Research Lab downtown.
They�ve announced that they will be offering assistant positions to
students around your age."
Handing her the application, the counselor continued. "We all
learn differently, Serena. While sitting in a classroom, listening to
a lecture may work for most students, some flourish more with hands on
experience. There�s nothing wrong with that. Your teachers and I felt
that the concepts may seem more interesting to you if you could see
them in action. It�s up to you, but if you serve as an intern at the
Lab for the remainder of the semester, and your grades show improvement
during that time, we�ll waive the summer school."
Serena glanced anxiously at the brochure. On the cover was a
picture of a woman in a lab coat and safety goggles, concentrating as
she mixed chemicals from two flasks. It certainly looked more
interesting than a lecture, and anything was better than summer school,
but she just wasn�t sure...
"Mr. Kawamura? But what if I mess something up? I mean, I�m
not exactly the best at chemistry, and I�m klutzy to boot. What if I
totally ruined someone�s experiment?"
The older man smiled gently at the girl�s apprehension. "I
wouldn�t worry about it, Serena. They won�t have their middle school
assistants doing anything too terribly complex. Besides, it�s part of
your supervisor�s job to train you. It won�t be anything you can�t
handle."
"It may not be too much for most people, but I'm probably the
one person who could still manage to screw things up."
The counselor regarded the young girl for a moment. With a
kind smile, he began to speak. "Serena, I know this will sound like a
lecture, but bear with me for a moment. When I was your age, I felt
much the same way you do now. My grades were low, every teacher
criticized me... nothing seemed to go my way, and I felt like a failure
in school."
"Then, one day, when I was walking home, I heard a noise coming
from behind a tree in the park. It sounded like crying. I decided to
investigate, and when I peered behind it, I found a little girl with
tears running down her cheeks. I asked her what was wrong, and she
told me about how some older kids had been making fun of her after
school. I listened. It was so easy, and as her story unfolded, she
began to feel better, just because she had someone to talk to. I knew,
in that moment, that this was my purpose in life- to listen to people,
and help them if I could! That is why I decided to become a
counselor."
"I won't kid you, Serena, it wasn't easy. Schoolwork didn't
come quickly to me, as I said, but I knew I had to work if I wanted to
achieve my dream. Every time I studied, every little effort I made was
a tiny step in the right direction. Nobody would have thought I could
do it, but it's as Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, 'What lies behind us
and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within
us.'"
"Do you have a dream, Serena?"
The girl hesitated. How could she tell him what her goal and
purpose in life was? Ruler of the Silver Millennium? He would think
she was insane! But as she looked into the understanding face of the
counselor, her voice came. "I'm not exactly sure at this point, but I
think I'd like to help people too, Mr. Kawamura."
He smiled. "I had a feeling I know what lies inside of you,
Serena Tsukino. You can see it in your eyes. So, what will be your
first tiny step?"
Serena glanced at the brochure with hesitation. "Do you
really think I could do it?"
He nodded, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
"Well then... I guess I�ll give it a shot!"
"Excellent decision, Serena! If you�ll just fill out that form
and return it to me by the end of the week, we�ll get you set up. Here
are the tax forms, you might want to get some help from your parents in
filling those out."
"Tax forms? But why do I need tax forms?"
"Didn�t I mention it? The assistants get paid, not much,
but..."
"Paid! You mean I get money and I get out of summer school!?!?
This is the best!"
The counselor chuckled at the girl�s instant enthusiasm. A
bell chimed, and the sound of students filling the hall filtered into
the office. "Great, Serena. It looks like it�s time for your lunch,
so I�ll let you go ahead. Don�t forget to turn the form in soon!"
"Thanks Mr. Kawamura, thanks so much!" And with that, the
chipper blonde skipped out into the hallway in search of her friends.

~~~~<~~@   ~~~~<~~@   ~~~~<~~@

"Amy! Lita! Wait up, will ya?"
The tall brunette and shy blue-haired girl turned around. "Hey
Serena," Lita greeted "We were wondering what was taking you so long."
"Yes, if there�s one class Serena�s sure never to miss, it�s
lunch!" Amy joked pleasantly.
"I was pretty worried after you got called out of class.
Miss H was totally harsh, Serena, don�t pay attention to her. So
what�d the counselor say, anyways?" Lita asked as she opened her
typically gourmet lunch.
It was embarrassing, but there was nothing Serena couldn�t tell
these girls, so she filled them in on the state of her grades and the
solution at the lab.
"Serena, that�s great!" Amy cried, "I�m applying for an
internship at Turner Pharmaceuticals as well! We can go down there
together after school!"
Relief washed over Serena. If Amy was going to be there,
everything would be fine. She was probably smart enough to run the
lab herself- she could show Serena what to do. "Oh Amy! I can�t tell
you how glad I am to hear that! I was so totally scared of messing
something up, but if you�re there, everything will be fine."
"Say, Amy," Lita cut in, "How�re you going to have time to work
at this lab, do all of your homework, and take an extra computer
course? Say nothing of Scout Business!"
"Oh Lita, it shouldn�t be a problem," the girl genius smiled
brightly, "after all, I�ve worked ahead in each of my classes almost
to the end of the year, so I should have plenty of time to take on
this apprenticeship. Besides, working at a research company like this
will be excellent experience for when I apply to medical school."
"Sometimes, Amy, it just makes so much sense that you're the
Scout from Mercury."
"Why�s that, Serena?"
"Because you are definitely from a different planet!"

~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@

She sat at the counter in the arcade, but the young girl was
oblivious to the sounds of video games and laughter that surrounded
her. She was leaning forward on her stool, her hair spilling over her
shoulders to hang towards the floor, concentrating in earnest on a
piece of paper before her. She did not hear the approach of the young
man, and didn�t even notice the chocolate milkshake he slid towards
her until it was practically under her nose.
"Hey Serena, what�s that you�re writing?"
The petite blonde started as she noticed the shake, and beamed
at the boy behind the counter. "Hi Andrew! I�m applying for an
internship at Turner Pharmaceuticals, and this is the form I have to
fill out."
"A job at a research lab? But why, Serena, it seems so... so
not you!"
Serena felt her face flush slightly as she recalled the reason
she was really applying. Although she now thought of Andrew like
a favorite older brother, there had been a long period of time,
before she knew about his girlfriend, Rita, when she had liked him as
much more than a friend. Even with her feelings past, she didn�t
want to look foolish in front of the older boy.
"Well, uh... my counselor thought it would be a good...
supplement, to help me out in science and maybe bring my grades up..."
"Hey, that�s a good idea, Serena! I�ll bet the experience will
make the stuff seem more interesting to you."
Serena laughed, relieved that he hadn�t made fun of her.
�Shoulda known Andrew would be nice about it, unlike some people...'
"Turner Pharmaceuticals, that sounds kinda familiar from
somewhere. Where have I heard that... oh yeah! Darien�s going to be
working there, too!"
Serena felt her heart sink. Now there was one person who would
definitely not be nice about the situation, and if he was working at
the lab, he was bound to find out sooner or later. Not that she cared
what he thought about her, of course, she just didn�t want to put up
with his taunts.
"He gets to run his own experiment and everything- even has his
own lab as long as he�s working there. It�s a really great
opportunity, I mean, not many college students get to do something
like this. You�ll probably even see him around!"
"Bully for me," Serena muttered, glancing down as she began to
stir her shake distractedly.
Andrew was quick to pick up on her change of mood.
"Aw, come on, Serena, Darien�s not so bad."
"Not to you, maybe. Oh Andrew, why does he have to tease me
so much, anyways?"
Andrew paused, debating what to tell her. He had some
personal opinions about why Darien teased this girl so much, but he
knew his best friend would not respond well to him sharing them out
loud. Heck, Andrew hadn�t even brought the subject up with Darien yet!
"Don�t worry about it, Serena. It�s not like he dislikes you or
anything." The bell to the arcade door chimed, and Andrew glanced up.
"Here he is now. Hey Darien! Guess what?"
Serena assumed her most pleading face, and mentally begged
Andrew not to tell his friend anything. She could break the news to
Darien in her own time, or maybe, if she was lucky, he wouldn�t find
out at all, and then she would never have to tell him about her low
grades.
"Hey Andrew, what�s up?" Darien greeted easily, casually
sliding onto the stool next to Serena. "And everybody�s favorite
Meatball Head! Bugging Andrew, are we?"
"First off, my name is not Meatball Head, it is Serena! And I
was not bugging Andrew, he came over and started talking to me!" she
responded shrilly. "Believe it or not, some people actually enjoy my
company..." she added under her breath, turning back to the comforting
milk shake.
Andrew sighed, pouring Darien a cup of coffee. �No Serena, I
don�t think it�s that he doesn�t enjoy your company, no, not at all...�
"Well, Darien, don�t you want to hear the exciting news?"
Darien reluctantly pulled his gaze from the sulking girl to
regard his friend. "What�s that?"
"Well, Serena�s going to be working at Turner Pharmaceuticals
as well!"
Darien almost spewed coffee all over his best friend, and had
to cough hard to keep from choking. He would never have guessed in
a million years that Serena might apply for one of the middle school
research assistant positions. But if she did, he might get to see
her every day! Heck, she might even be working with him in his lab...
Of course, Darien did not choose to share these thoughts with
the young girl, about how fun it would be to work together, or that
he wouldn�t have guessed she was so interested in science. Oh no,
what Darien said was, "Meatball Head? In a chem lab?!?! You�ve
got to be kidding, Andrew! She�s a walking safety hazard! I�ll
bet you don�t know a thing about chemistry, do ya Meatball Head?"
Bristling at his remark, Serena drew herself up to her full
height, trying not to seem quite so young and small. "So what if I
don�t? It�s not like they�re looking for professional chemists or
something! I�m sure I�ll learn as I go along. Besides, I�m not that
klutzy, thank you very much!" She rose in order to storm from the
arcade in a huff.
Alas, the Fates did not smile upon the young girl. Her nose
haughtily in the air, Serena didn�t see the chair from the caf�
carelessly left in the walkway just behind her stool until she was
tripping over it. Wheeling her arms frantically, she fought to
reverse her momentum and not go crashing forward onto the floor. Here
she succeeded, but she overdid things a bit, and instead went reeling
backwards. She would have crashed into Darien, had his reactions not
been so fast. The fact that he had turned completely around in order
to get a better view of the girl�s irate exit didn�t hurt, either.
Quickly standing and extending his arms, he caught Serena from behind
in a bear hug and stopped her flight to the floor as if she weighed
nothing.
"...you were saying?"
Serena felt the heat rise in her face, and had a terrible
feeling that she had just invented a new shade of red, bolder than
anything previously seen. The worst part of it was, she wasn�t sure
if she was blushing due to her timely gracefulness, or her sudden
closeness to Darien. Even in her flustered condition, she couldn�t
help but notice the broad, firm chest behind her that murmured as he
spoke, the way his arms completely engulfed her tiny frame, or the
rich smell of his cologne.
Blinking hard in a futile attempt to clear her head, Serena
scrambled to get back on her own two feet. For the briefest second,
Darien�s embrace didn�t yield, but then, he moved his hands to her
shoulders, and helped her regain her footing. Turning her to face him,
he grinned crookedly at the scarlet girl. "Gotta watch those jumping
stools, they�ll get you every time."
Serena racked her brain for a face-saving response. "I...
it... you, uhh... Oh, forget it!" She turned and dashed from the
arcade, carefully avoiding the cursed stool.
Shaking his head after the retreating girl, Darien turned back
to Andrew, an amused expression on his face. Oddly, Andrew seemed to
be regarding him with equal amusement. "Say, Andrew, what�s with the
smirk?"
"Oh, I think you know what it�s about."
"What on earth are you talking about?"
"Gee, I dunno! Could it be my eternally serious, oblivious to
girls best friend, suddenly morphing into Mr. Knight in Shining Armour
and grinning like an idiot?"
"Grinning like a... I don�t know what you�re talking about."
"Uh-huh, yeah sure. Time to spill, mon freur. You like her,
don�t you?"
Groaning, Darien sank to his stool. Leaning his elbows on the
table, he buried his hands in his hair, studiously avoiding eye
contact with Andrew. "Listen, Andrew..."
"Oh, I�ve been listening! And watching, too!"
"Serena�s fun to tease and all, but, I mean, seriously... what
kind of girl do you think I�d go for?"
"Well, let�s see, based on your past experiences, you will go
for no girl, and will ignore the flocks of them throwing themselves
in your path. The Darien Chiba I know does not think he needs a girl.
But, had you asked me what kind of girl *I* think you should go for,
I might have answered a cheerful, sweet, enthusiastic type who would
bring a little sunshine into your sterile, structured life. Let�s
see now, who do we know with those qualities?"
Darien sighed, and regarded Andrew wearily. "So what if I did
like someone..."
"Admitting you have a problem is the first step. Talk to Dr.
Andrew, Darien."
"Will you... can't you be serious for just one minute?"
"Sorry, Darien, it's just too easy. I mean, how many thousand
girls have I seen gazing at you with stars in their eyes, while you
calmly go about reading your newspaper, or whatever other mundane
thing you happen to be doing? And now I see you come in here, and
it's almost like a different person! You may just be making fun of
a middle schooler, but there's a spark in your eyes that I've never
seen you have, even with girls you were dating. I'm your best friend,
Darien, you can't hide stuff like that from me."
Darien looked up at Andrew, who stared unflinchingly back. "I
guess... there�s no use denying it, I mean, you already know! Yes, I
like Serena; I�ve liked her probably from just about the moment I met
her, but what does it matter? There�s no way she�d ever go for me."
"And what makes you so sure of that?"
"How about the fact that she glares at me every time I enter the
room? I can barely get two sentences in before she�s headed for the
door!"
"That may be because you choose those two sentences so very
wisely! For gosh sakes, Darien, why do ya haveta tease the poor girl
so much? Just be nice to her for once!"
"It�s not like I don�t want to, Andrew, but I can never think
of anything to say! She�s so used to me making fun of her, if I told
her what I really thought, she�d probably just laugh at me."
Andrew shook his head at his friend. "Now listen to me, Darien.
I know it sounds crazy, but I think Serena�s more interested in you
than it may appear. You should see the way I catch her staring at
you sometimes, when she thinks nobody�s paying attention. There�s
definitely something there, take it from someone who has some, Ahem!
Personal experience with what Serena�s like when she gets a crush on
a guy."
Darien bristled at the reminder of how Serena used to hang on his
best friend�s every word. "It�s no use, Andrew. She�ll never look at
me the way she used to look at you, not with the way I�ve treated her.
I don�t know why I don�t just give it up." He tossed some bills on the
counter to cover his coffee, and started to turn towards the door.
His exit was delayed by his best friend�s vice-like grip on his
shoulder. "Because you really like her, that�s why! Listen, Darien,
you�ve got it all backwards. You�re all tied up in not looking
ridiculous and keeping your reserve, but those are the things that
are making you unhappy! I�m your friend, I know you. What you want
is to rip the cool exterior away and be able to share your real self
with someone, to not have to hide anymore. Your trying to hide your
emotions so you don�t get hurt, but you�re just hurting yourself by
keeping them in. You owe it to yourself, and to her, to do something
about all of this."
Darien regarded his friend skeptically. What Andrew was saying
made some sense, but... "But... what are you saying I should do, just
tell her? Just call her up and say, �Hey Serena, I�ve been thinking,
instead of screaming at each other twice a day, we should be boyfriend
and girlfriend, what do you think?� What girl wouldn�t swoon?"
"So you�ve got a ways to go, so what? Gotta start somewhere.
Just do something nice for her for a change."
Darien glanced down at the counter. 'Something nice, something
nice, something...' His eyes met a partially completed application
for one Turner Pharmaceuticals. Although the form wasn�t finished,
he quickly noted that Serena had already written her home address.
Looking up, he saw that Andrew, too, was seeing the form for
the first time. "Andrew, are you thinking what I�m thinking?"
"Wouldn�t want her to lose that, now would we? Knock her dead,
Dare."
Grinning, the lucky application gripped in his hand, Darien
turned and exited the arcade.

~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@

Meanwhile, Serena was not in the best of spirits. The events
at the arcade were such a sharp contrast to the dream she�d had of
being the competent, graceful, reliable Queen Serenity. 'Just when I
thought things were turning around, just when I was feeling so
motivated, something like that happens! Does it even matter what
I do?'
Sighing, she reached into her bag to pull out the half
completed application, but didn�t find it inside. 'Great, I must have
left it at the arcade! I just cannot deal with this tonight, I�ll
have to go get it tomorrow.'
Faced with this new act of forgetfulness, Serena's eyes began
to well up with tears. 'Why do I even try?' She glanced out the
window, at the tree in her yard. She thought of Mr. Kawamura.
'I won't give up... I can't! Everybody's counting on me.
I'm not beat yet, I can try one more time.'
With that thought, she pulled out the book her class was
starting in English and examined the cover. '_Watership Down_ by
Richard Adams... wait a minute, this is about bunnies! Maybe it
won�t be so bad after all...' And for the first time ever, Serena
Tsukino eagerly tore into an English assignment.

~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@

'Let�s see... 2402, 2406... there it is, 2408 Skylark Drive.'
Darien regarded the house with apprehension. The confidence he had
felt after his pep talk with Andrew had faded somewhat as he neared
the address listed on the form. Leaning against a tree, Darien stared
blankly at the form he held in the fading light. It appeared that
Serena had been skipping around when filling it out, and a completed
section near the bottom caught his eye.
"Personal Statement (write a few sentences about yourself, and
why you are applying for this position):" The lines below were filled
with Serena�s girlish, curvy handwriting.

"I�m probably not the most likely person to apply for this position.
I'm not very good at science, and have no experience in this area.
My real interests are in people, in my friends and family. But I�m
determined to better myself, for them, if not for myself, and I
promise that if you give me the opportunity, I�ll work as hard as I
can and do my very best job."

Darien was surprised by her words. Most people would have lied
about their qualifications, but not Serena. He had never thought very
hard about how she might feel about her grades; to him, they were just
an excuse to talk to her and tease her every day. But her statement
here revealed pain at her poor performance, along with a determination
to work hard and improve. It was a new side of Serena, one he hadn't
seen before. 'She hides it well... there's more to this girl than I
thought.' Darien suddenly wondered how scared she must be, applying
for an internship in a chemical lab. For an experienced, straight A
student like himself, it wasn't such a big deal, but for Serena, well,
he could see why it might make her nervous. 'As nervous as I am now?'
he wondered.
Taking a deep breath and straightening his green jacket (AN:
which may be ugly, but is not nearly as bad as that horrible pastel
jogging suit from Sailor Moon R), he climbed the steps to the house
and rang the doorbell. An attractive lady with long, purple hair
answered the door. "Hello, what can I do for you this evening?"
"Hi, my name is Darien Chiba. I�m a..." he searched for an apt
description "...friend of Serena�s. She left this at the arcade, and
I thought I�d return it to her."
He started to hand the form to Serena�s mom, but she
interrupted him. "Oh my, how nice! I�m Serena�s mom- please call me
Ilene. I�ll just run and get her so she can thank you personally.
Please, come in!" After ushering him into the living room, she turned
towards the stairs. "Serena! Come here a minute, please!"
A familiar voice echoed down the stairs. "But Mom, I�m
actually studying! Can�t it wait?"
At this, both Darien and Ilene couldn�t help but smile.
"Sweetie," her mom continued, "there�s someone here to see you."
"Oh, alright. Coming!"   Within seconds, an enthusiastic girl
came bounding down the stairs, two streamers of golden hair trailing
behind her. When she reached the bottom of the steps and glanced up
at her visitor, her jaw dropped. "Darien? Wha... what are you doing
here?"
Clearing his throat, Darien extended the form towards the
confused girl. "Hi, Serena. You, uhh... left this at the arcade. It
wasn�t too far out of my way, so I thought I�d, ya know, drop it off."
Now things were getting simply too abnormal for Serena to
comprehend. Not only was Darien Chiba standing in her living room, he
was doing something nice for her! He had even addressed her using her
first name. "Oh! Uhh, thanks, Darien. I guess I didn�t think about
it when I left." At the memory of her hasty departure, Serena flushed
once more. Taking the form, she focused her eyes nervously on the
couch. "It was... nice of you to bring it by."
Darien smiled at her adorable awkwardness. "No Problem. Well,
I guess I should be going. It was nice to meet you, Ilene. I�ll see
ya around, Mea... Serena."
"Yeah, see you tomorrow." Serena waved weakly as he stepped
out the door, shutting it behind him. She remained staring at the door
for several moments, vainly attempting to process the encounter.
�Since when is Darien so... since when does Darien act like that?�
"Ahem!"
Snapping back to reality, Serena glanced up at her mom, who had
one of those annoying, knowing smiles that only a mother can make on
her face. "What is it, Mom?"
"Well, Serena, that certainly was a nice young man. So good
looking, too! Why hadn�t you mentioned him to me earlier, dear?"
The daughter groaned. "Mo-om, I�ve mentioned him to you about
a thousand times! Darien? The one who calls me Meatball Head? The
jerk who lives to torment me? Recall?"
Something clicked in her mother�s head. �Lives to torment you,
eh? That�s what you think, sweetie...� She smiled wider. "Well,
dear, he seems just fine to me. Maybe you should invite him to dinner
sometime, to thank him for returning your paper, what do you think?"
Serena groaned louder, and tromped up the stairs. "Don�t worry,
Mom, my prediction is that he�ll be back to his normal self soon,
making my life perfectly miserable."
Ilene chuckled to herself. �We�ll just see about that.�

~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@    ~~~~<~~@

AN: Does anyone else's Mom do this, or is it just mine? Ok, here
is my Big, Pathetic Plea: EMAIL ME! Not only if you happened to
like it, but especially if you feel sort of "eh" about it. (I'm
assuming all the people who passionately disliked it didn't make
it this far, and are flaming me at the moment- hey, at least it's
email!) But what I really want is for all of the Eh people to tell
me why it was Eh and what I can do to make it More Than Eh.
Thank you!