Here is the very, very, very long-awaited chapter 7. Gomen for the delay! Enjoy! Disclaimer: Sailor Moon and all characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi, Kodansha, Toei, and lots of other people, but I'm not one of them! But this story belongs to me, so don't take it! "Endless Waters" Chapter 7 Serena lifted a hand to her mouth to suppress her scream. The door that she had opened led to some sort of storage closet, and Darien was lying on the ground, unconscious, a bloody gash on his forehead. She took deep breaths to try to calm herself down, but it didn't work. Thoughts that prevented her from being calm raced through her mind. Serena closed the door quietly behind her and looked around the room. She had to get Darien to safety...but how? In the corner of a room, there was a bin. The type of bin that the housekeepers used for carrying sheets and pillowcases. It was large, large enough for Darien to fit in and be covered with a sheet. But would it work? Serena wasn't dressed as a housekeeper, but she didn't have any other options. She crouched down and began to lift Darien up into the bin. "Ugh. Someone's been eating too many sweets," Serena grunted. Once Darien was safely in the bin, she covered him with a clean white sheet and opened the door. Her body trembled as she pushed the bin out of the room and out in to the hallway. She made sure to twist the cool metal keys to lock the door, and then headed towards the elevator. Luckily, no one else was in the elevator, and it made no stops on the way towards her floor. Serena let out a huge sigh of relief when she finally made it into her room and locked the door behind her. She quickly removed the bed sheet from Darien and gingerly placed him onto her unmade bed. He groaned as she covered him with the comforter. "Shh, it's okay, Darien," Serena said soothingly, standing over the bed. The thought brought a tear to Serena's eye, but she blinked it back and went to get a wet washcloth for Darien's forehead. Right as she was about to step into the bathroom, the door flew open, and Katie rushed into the room. "Serena, no one knows what's...oh my," Katie stopped mid-sentence. "Um...I found him in a closet....or something...it's okay that he's here right? It's just that..." "Sere, of course it's okay! And don't you worry, I'm sure he'll be fine and maybe he just tripped or something....Anyhow, I'm gonna go to sleep again, wake me up if you need any help or if they explain what's going on." Serena smiled weakly. "Alright." With that, Katie climbed into bed and fell asleep almost immediately. Serena switched off the main light, leaving only the dim light of her lamp for her to see by. She went and wet a washcloth in the bathroom, then gingerly placed it on Darien's forehead. He moaned slightly. "Shhh," she whispered. "It's okay, Darien. You'll get better. You have to! For Allison....for me....," she turned around as she said the last words. Serena switched off the lamp and lay down on the hard floor, soon falling asleep. ******************************************** Darien woke from the throbbing pain coming from his forehead. He touched it and realized there was a wet cloth on it? Where was he? He sat up a nd saw someone lying on the ground next to the bed. As soon as his eyes adjusted to the dark, he realized who it was. he thought. He looked around and realized that he was in a standard room, and Serena's friend was sleeping in the other bed. He breathed a sigh of relief. But how did he get here? He glanced down at Serena, crumpled on the floor, using her arms as a pillow. Her sundress from the night before was wrinkled and her hair was falling out. he realized. Darien slowly started stepping out of the bed. Serena's eyes shot open as she felt something on a strand of her hair. She looked up at the bed, her eyes locking with Darien's. There was silence for a second. "Thank you," Darien whispered. Serena just nodded, her eyes not leaving his. Darien leaned down and put a hand on Serena's shoulder. She didn't resist. His head slowly moved closer to hers, and they both closed their eyes.... Suddenly, just as their lips would've touched, they heard a sound from the other side of the room. Katie was sitting up in her bed, looking down at her sheets uncomfortably. "Katie, this is Darien," Serena explained, "Darien this is Katie." She flicked the light on. Katie smiled a Darien, and he mustered a smile back, effectively masking his frustration. "Well then...I'm gonna go get some breakfast," Katie mumbled, climbing out of bed. "I would be careful," warned Darien. "You mean...about going outside? About whoever did this to you?" asked Serena uncertainly. Darien nodded. "What exactly happened?" "I'm not sure...exactly. I was just standing in the control room, talking to one of the officers-Brickens-then someone came up behind me and held me by the neck. I told Brickens to run and get help. He ran off, and then someone punched me in the face." Darien rubbed his forehead. "After that, I kept drifting in and out of consciousness, but I know I was being moved. Then they threw me into a room or something....my head hit the floor and then I remember waking up here." He turned to Serena. "How did you find me?" "I was going back to the karaoke room because when I...when I left I had left my purse there. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going after I found it and I found some sort of closet and you were....you were in there. I just got so worried and freaked out...your forehead was bleeding horribly and I didn't know if you were alright!," Serena's voice cracked and she turned and sat on her bed, looking away as a tear coursed down her cheek. Darien went over to the bed and sat next to her. "Hey," he said softly. "Don't worry....I'm fine. Where's the brave, optimistic Serena I used to know?" Serena turned to look at him, tears falling from her eyes. Then she threw herself into his arms and sobbed. Darien was surprised at first, but then responded by wrapping his arms around Serena's small body and kissing her forehead. An ocean of memories came flooding back to Serena. Things that she had never forgotten, but at the moment were so intense they seemed like they were happening all over again. But deep down she knew that things could never be the same, not with Allison in the picture. But just for this moment, Serena wanted to forget about Allison and let her true feelings show just one more time. Katie uncomfortably looked away as the couple embraced. After a few minutes, Serena forced herself to pull her forehead from Darien's chest. "Darien, this isn't right...us being together..." Darien took his arms from Serena and looked at her quizzically. "Why not, Serena? Why can't we be together?," Darien asked in frustration. "I don't get it!" "As if you didn't know? As if you didn't know that you're-," Serena was cut off the speaker in the room. "Sorry for the delay," apologized a voice, sounding less-than sympathetic. "We were only having a small problem, but it has been taken care of. We will continue to move shortly." "That's McNoll!," Darien exclaimed furiously. "That two-timing idiot! I should've known!" Katie and Serena stared at him, puzzled. "Here, let me explain. I'm only captain of this ship while my dad's on a trip to Asia. McNoll's second-in-command and has always hated me because dad asked me to fill in as captain instead of him. It all makes so much sense! McNoll hijacked the boat!" End Chapter 7 Whoo! One more chapter down (Now maybe you guys won't hate me;) Sorry it's taken so long...it's been hectic. Anyhoohaw, feedback is definitely a very, very good thing. Hope you enjoyed chapter 7...coming soon... Chapter 8! TTYL! ~*Tess*~ 10-13-01 Note: please don't be offended by the hijacking thing...if you are, I'm extremely sorry. It was written before 9-11.