Author: Hikari
E-mail: Machi_NO_Tenshi@Excite.Com
Story: Tenderly
Part: Chapter 3
Rating: R


->AN:
	Ok, this chapter is Rated "R" for violence.  So, you can't 
say you weren't warned!
	Also, as a little disclaimer...  The paragraph from Arabian 
Nights is *obviosly* not mine.  It's an excerpt taken from the 
translated version by Richard F. Burton and is a great book to read 
if anyone is willing to take the time.

	Enjoy!


TENDERLY
Chapter 3:

	Arriving back to David's house from their date, Serena 
threw her purse on the couch.  Turning to her boyfriend she said, 
"So David, what do you wanna do know?"

	"Well," he said.  David's gray-eyes began to glitter with 
intent.  "How 'bout we play a rousing game of 'Truth or Dare'?"

	"Alright."  Serena sat herself next to her purse.  "Do you 
want to go first, or do you want me to?"

	Sitting himself across from her, he proved into her eyes.  
"Why don't you start?"

	"Ok..." Serena lowered her gaze.  Something was wrong with 
David.  He never acted this way; he didn't even like the game 
'Truth or Dare'!  "I guess, truth or dare David?"

	He grinned as he answered, "Truth."

	"Alright," Serena scratched her head for questions to ask 
him.  "umm... Am... I...  beautiful to you?"

	"Yes."

	"Your turn."

	"Truth or dare?"

	Serena thought for a second.  "Ok.  Truth."

	David bent closer to the couch as he looked directly into 
Serena's face.  "Have you ever cheated on me?"

	Her eyes widened at the question.  'What did he just ask?'  
"No!  I've never cheated on you."

	"Alright."  He leaned back, his hands applying pressure to 
the arms of the chair.  "I suppose that makes it your turn next."

	Serena tried to calm her voice.  "Truth or dare?"

	"Truth."

	"Do you think I've been cheating on you?"

	"Yes."  David smirked, trying to suppress a laugh.  "Ok.  
Truth or dare Serena?"

	"Wait a second!"  She stood up.  "What do you mean 'YES'?!" 
Slowly, her voice began to rise as the anger from his answer got 
to her.  "Are you saying that you really believe that I've ever 
cheated on you?!"

	"*Sit*-*down*-*Serena*!"

	Without thinking twice, Serena's butt hit the couch.  The 
tone David had just used meant that he was not in the mood to take 
any crap from her.  But... she had never used that tone of voice 
with him.  She didn't even know what had gotten into her.  "I'm 
sorry."  She whispered.

	"Now answer the question," David stood up.  "Truth or dare?"

	'I guess it doesn't matter what answer I give him.'  Serena 
thought. 'I've already tried one... might as well try the other one.'  
Raising her head in defeat, she answered.  "Dare."

	Picking up the phone, David threw it to her face in anger.  
The phone hit her cheek and jaw-line making a snapping sound, 
before falling on her lap.  "I dare you to pick up that phone and 
call up your lover and tell him that you are nothing more than a 
*sl^t*!"

	Serena moved her hand to her cheek.  It felt like something 
inside her face had popped!  She could only stare at the phone in 
disbelief towards David's request.  "I don't know what you're 
talking about."

	His hand reached out and grabbed her hand from her cheek, 
pulling her towards him.  "Oh!" He said as he cupped her face in 
his hand, applying pressure to her cheeks.  "But I think you do."  
David reached for the phone and pressed it to her face.  "Come ON!  
DIAL THAT S*N-OF-A-B*TCH'S PHONE NUMBER!!"

	Serena tried to struggle but David merely applied more 
force.  "Whom are you talking about?!" She cried.

	David pushed Serena to the living room's floor.  "DON'T 
TRY TO ACT F*CKING INOCCENT WITH ME!"  He threw her the phone once 
again and quickly began to unfasten his buckle, sliding his belt 
loose from his pants.  "NOW DIAL DARIEN'S PHONE NUMBER!"

	'What?  So this is all about Darien?'  Serena looked up 
at David in uncertainty.  "What does Darien have to do with any 
of this David?" 

	"F*CKING B*TCH!"  David cried as his belt cracked like a 
whip upon the skin of Serena's back.  "I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN CHEATING 
ON ME WITH HIM!!  I KNOW YOU'VE BEEN MAKING A FOOL OF ME ALL THIS 
TIME!"  And as his voice rose with every word he said, so did the 
force of the belt on her back.

	The pain from the belt rendered Serena unable to hear his 
words.  She felt as if she was slowly dieing, and could almost 
swear that she felt blood trickling down her back.  "Please!  David 
STOP!!  Can't you see you're hurting me?"  Serena turned her head 
to look at him from her huddled position.  "Da- "

	His belt hit her face, snapping it to the other side.  
Serena's body soon followed her head.  David immediately grabbed 
her by the throat, straddling her body to prevent any struggles.  
"I'LL MAKE SURE YOU THINK TWICE ABOUT EVER FOOLING ME AGAIN!"  
Bringing his other hand to her throat, David slowly started to 
squeeze, ignoring the wheezing sounds that she began to emit.

	Serena began to panic.  She had been beaten up by him 
before, but he had never tried to cut off her air supply!  Feeling 
around with her hands, she grabbed the first thing she found.  
With all the strength she could muster, Serena slammed the phone 
to the back of David's head.

	The shock caused David to release Serena from his hold.  
Seizing the chance, she quickly stood up, grabbed her purse and 
ran out the door.


		*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


	Serena had been driving around for hours without lead.  
She wanted to go somewhere to rest but didn't know where to go.  
She needed to go somewhere were she could be safe... where she 
could have a little time to heal her wounds.

	She put her car into park as she struggled to think.  
'Where could I go?  I can't go home...  Mother would probably 
yell at me for getting into a fight with David.  John- He would 
probably be almost as bad.'  Serena banged her head on the wheel 
in frustration.  Turning her head to the street, she saw a short 
black-haired man walking past a coffee shop and stopping in.  
'Of course!!  That's it!'

	Starting her car up again, Serena placed her signals in 
order to get back in traffic.  Everything felt the same as when 
she had started to drive away from David's house, except that 
this time, she knew where to go.


		*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


	~Ding*Dong~

	"Coming!"	Serena heard Darien's footsteps as he 
approached the door.  "Heeellllo - *SERENA*!"

	Darien stared bewildered at the girl in front of him.  
Serena looked as if she had been in a fight and come out on the 
loosing end.  He reached a hand out to bring her inside his 
apartment but as it landed on her back, he heard the most 
horrible cry of pain escape from her lips.

	"Please don't-" Serena started but was unable to finish 
her sentence.  The stress and pain that had been caused to her 
today had finally taken its toll.  Serena fainted at Darien's 
touch.


		*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


	Serena lifted her head from the pillow.  "Uh?"  She raised 
her body a little trying to look around the room.  "Ahh!"  The act 
was an ordeal because her back was torturing her.

	"Serena?"  She heard Darien yell from somewhere.  "Are you 
awake now?"

	"Yeah..." She tried to lift herself off the bed.  "I'm 
coming."

	Darien stood in the doorway.  "Don't be foolish Serena."  
He walked to her side of the bed.  "Just lay back down and 
relax...  Sleep a bit."  She could see him smiling down at her 
from the corner of her eye.  "It's pretty late incase you didn't 
know."  He brushed her bangs way from her face.  "Don't worry.  
Nothing is going to happen to you while you're here."

	"Darien..." Serena yawned.  "Am I in your room?"

	He sat himself on the side of the bed.  "Yeah.  You're 
also sleeping in my bed."

	She blushed.  'How did he know that was what I really 
had meant to ask him?'  She hid her face in the pillow trying to 
find the courage to ask what she wanted.  "Darien..."

	"Yeah?"

	"Could you sleep with me tonight?"  Serena blushed a 
deeper shade of red.  "Just like old times?"

	"Alright."  Darien walked to the other side of the bed 
and looked under his pillow to change himself for bed.  He then 
walked towards the bookshelf in his room, and took out a thick 
hard-back orange book that read on the side "The Arabian Nights 
Entertainment:  The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night."*

	He slid underneath the navy blue sheets of his bed and 
propped himself up with one of his pillows.  Serena turned her 
face to the right.  She wanted to look at him, as she had always 
done in the past.  Darien looked down at her.  "Are you ready?"

	She nodded.  "Uh uh."

	"O-K!  Where had we left off?"  Darien flipped around 
the pages he had not touched since college.  "Do you remem- 
Forget it I found the page.  Ah!"  Darien cleared his throat.  
"The 39th night."  


	>"Yet" (continued Shahrazad) "is not his story in any 
	wise more wondrous than the history of the merchant and 
	his children."  The King asked "And what was that?" and 
	Shahrazad began to relate<

>*The Tale of Ghanim bin Ayyub, the Distraught, the Thrall o' Love*<

	>It hath reached me, O auspicious King, that in times 
	or yore and in years and ages long gone before, there 
	lived in Damascus a merchant among merchants, a wealthy 
	man who had a son like the moon on the night of his 
	fullness and withal sweet of speech, who was named 
	Ghanim bin Ayyub surnamed the Distraught, the Thrall o' 
	Love.  He had also a daughter, own sister to Ghanim, 
	how was called Fitnah, a damsel unique in beauty and 
	loveliness.  Their father died and left them abundant 
	wealth,---<


	Darien stopped.  He gazed at the sleeping girl next to him, 
then, looked at the book again.  'Funny,' he thought.  'At the same 
moment Shahrazad decides to stop... so does Bunny decide to sleep.  
Oh well!'  Darien placed the bookmark inside the book and placed it 
on his nightstand.  Switching the light off, he heard Serena mumble 
something.

	"G'night Muffin."

	Even with all the darkness surrounding them, Darien just 
stared in shock at Serena.  She hadn't called him 'Muffin' in years!!  
The sensation of hearing those words pronounced by her sweet lips 
caused a huge smile to part across his face.  He relaxed himself 
against his pillow and turned to lie on his back.

	Darien was close to falling asleep when he felt Serena's 
arm snake its way across his stomach and grab his side, using it 
to pull herself.  She cuddled herself towards him, taking the 
opportunity to whisper softly into his ear,  "thank you."

	He caressed her hand, linking his fingers in with hers.  
"Don't worry Bunny...  everything's gonna be fine."


		*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*


	Morning came a little too early according to Serena, yet, 
according to the clock on Darien's nightstand... it was eleven-
forty.  Rubbing her eyes sleepily, Serena managed to stammer out 
of bed and make her way to the full-length mirror behind Darien's 
door.

	She gazed at her appearance and blushed a deep red.  She 
was only dressed in underwear!  She ran to Darien's closet and 
found a shirt to place over herself.  Now, somewhat dressed, she 
walked to the living room with the hope to find Darien there.

	Looking around the apartment, she noticed that Darien was 
gone leaving only a note next to the breakfast he had prepared for 
her.  Taking a closer look at the note, she read its contents and 
smiled.  He told her he would be back home at lunchtime, and that 
he hoped she enjoyed her breakfast.

	"He's so sweet..." She whispered as her fingers lightly 
traced the edge of the dining table.  Her smile widened as she 
recognized what he had given her for breakfast.  Two eggs sunny-
side-up with a curved strip of bacon at the bottom and toast on 
the side.  "It looks just like a happy-face!"

	Sitting herself down to eat, she took no notice of when 
the front door was opened.  Sneaking up behind her, Darien covered 
her eyes with his hands and leaned against her ear whispering 
softly, "Guess who?"

	At the shock, Serena leaned forward and caused his hands 
to tighten their hold on her face.  "Ahh!"  She yelped.  Her face 
sore from yesterday.

	Darien immediately backed away.  "Are you alright?  Did I 
hurt you?"

	Serena took a deep breath.  "No."  She turned around to 
face him.  "It just hurts a little."

	The worry in his eyes made her realize what was coming.  
"Serena," Darien pulled up a chair next to her and sat down.  
"What happened?"

	"Nothing."  Serena made a move to stand, but was stopped 
as he reached out and held her wrist.  "Really!"

	"Please Serena... I want you to tell me the truth.  I 
won't tell anyone if that's what you wish.  But *please*, just 
tell me!"

	"I- "

	Darien stood up enveloped Serena in a hug, making sure not 
to touch her back to much.  "Please...  you now you can trust me."

	Serena's eyes just stared blankly into the unknown.  
Everything Darien was saying did not reach her...  all that 
registered was the warmth she felt from him.  That sense of 
trust, of kindness, of...  of...  of security!!  'That's it!'  
Her mind screamed.  'That's what his voice makes you feel like!  
Like nothing can hurt you.'

	Mentality, she remembered David and the way he made her 
feel.  'But I thought that's what I wanted!  It is what I want.  
Isn't it?  ISN'T IT?!!'

	Darien's fingers slid through her hair as he tried to 
soothe her.  She had begun shaking a little while ago and he 
knew that she was no longer paying attention to him.  All he 
could do was wait.  "It's alright."

	"NO, IT'S NOT!!"  Serena screamed as she untangled 
herself from his arms.  "I LOVE HIM!"  Her legs gave way as she 
fell to the floor and began to cry even harder in desperation.  
"I just don't understand why he does it anymore..."
	
	"Serena," Darien crouched down beside her.  "I think you 
need some help."



To be continued...

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