      Chance Encounters


      Author: aria


      Rated: NC17



      Chapter 2
      September 1998
      Serena dropped her box outside the suite door and opened it. Somehow she 
      and the girls managed to get the same room as they had the year before and 
      so did the guys. She picked up her box and walked in. "Hello!" She looked 
      around. "Anyone home?"
      "Serena!" Mina tackled her. "Hey! How are you?"
      "Great how are you?" She put he box down before she dropped it and gave 
      her friend a hug.
      "Fantastic!" She opened the door and shouted into the hall. "Hey you guys! 
      Guess who's back!"
      They came out of their suite. "Serena!" They all hugged. "How was your 
      summer?"
      "Good. How were yours'? She spent the entire summer running around 
      Vancouver doing things for her superiors at The Sun. It was a nightmare 
      but it was fun.
      "Great!" They helped her bring up the rest of her stuff from the car. They 
      all went back to the girls' room and sat and talked, trading stories about 
      the summer. Everyone had a summer job that they seemed to take to quite 
      well. Now they were pretty much ready for another gruelling year at 
      university.
      Lita grabbed her arm. "So what ever happened between you and Darien?"
      Serena shook her head. "Nothing much. We've talked on the phone like we 
      usually do. But after he visited me in Vancouver that time he hasn't had 
      the time to visit. He's just too busy. When he wasn't doing a concert or 
      interviews or travelling he was teaching at some school in Prague."
      "Wow! Talk about busy! Too bad you guys couldn't spend more time 
      together." Lita patted her arm.
      Serena shrugged. "We're always on the phone so it's not that bad." But it 
      was that bad. Serena just wanted to spend more time with him. As it was 
      they were spending whatever downtime Darien had, on the phone. If they 
      didn't get to spend some time together soon they were going to go crazy. 
      She was beginning to think that they might as well not have a 
      relationship. Serena pushed the thought of not seeing him out of her mind. 
      It was too terrible to think. "Where's Raye? Isn't she back yet?"
      Everyone shook their heads. "She's suppose to be back tomorrow it think."
      "Cool."
      Everyone got into their routines over the next few weeks. Classes, 
      studying, hanging out; it was the same thing over and over everyday. The 
      girls added some variety to the monotony by shopping and working out. They 
      even went hiking when they had the time. It was fantastic to have the 
      woods right behind the residence. There were trails for kilometres. For 
      Serena it was heaven. Still she wished she could share it all with Darien.
      Serena engrossed herself into her work, so that she could keep her mind 
      off of him. Her room was piled with books for research and she hardly had 
      time to hang out as much as they use to. She found that any time she 
      wasn't working she was thinking about him, so she kept her mind going on 
      other things.
      There was a knock at the door. Serena looked at her clock it was almost 
      2am. As usual the rest of the girls were fast asleep and couldn't hear 
      anyone knocking or at least pretended not to, content in letting someone 
      else get out of bed. And that someone was usually Serena.
      She was in the middle of her usual late night reading session when she 
      heard the noise and went to investigate. Serena was disappointed that 
      Darien hadn't called today. Usually by this time she would have heard from 
      him at least once. So she wasn't in the best of moods as she slowly walked 
      to the door. She was too tired to bother with the peephole. "This had 
      better be important." Serena opened the door a crack and peeked out ready 
      to yell at whoever it was.
      "It is important. I haven't seen you in too long." The accented voice came 
      floating through the tiny crack.
      "Darien!" The choked whisper left her lips as if she was afraid that a 
      loud noise would make the vision of him disappear. The fatigue evaporated 
      leaving unbelievable joy. She swung the door open and threw herself into 
      his arms.
      "Serena!" He looked just as tired as she was but he dropped his bag and 
      picked her up anyways and hugged her inhaling the fresh floral scent that 
      was as much a part of her as her golden sun-spun hair. "God it's been too 
      long!"
      After he left her in Vancouver, it was nothing but one problem after 
      another. He couldn't believe the horrible luck that plagued him. Piano 
      strings mysteriously breaking, venues not being ready, interview times 
      getting mixed up, things mysteriously going missing; it drove him crazy 
      especially since all he wanted to do was be with Serena. Over the months 
      he got more crazed to see her. So he took the first chance he had and flew 
      over.
      He pulled back and looked at her, etching her features into his mind. She 
      looked very much the tired student in her T-shirt and shorts. Her hair was 
      pulled back into a ponytail and wisps of it had escaped and framed her 
      face. He smiled. It had gotten longer. She looked adorable. His eyes were 
      drawn to where 'U' on her UNBC T-shirt outlined her nipple. He watched as 
      it grew tight under his gaze.
      Serena licked her lips nervously. Darien looked incredible. His hair was 
      tousled and he had a shadow of stubble on his face. She brought her hand 
      to it and touched it lightly, liking the rough feel of it on her fingers. 
      Serena had never seen him with stubble before. It made a nice change. He 
      took her hand and kissed her palm.
      He swung her up in his arms and carried her to her room. Serena enjoyed 
      the way that the world slanted at a crazy angle.
      Darien laid her on the bed and joined her there hovering above her. 
      "Serena I missed you so much." He kissed her again and again, unable to 
      stop himself. She tasted sweet, like nectar. Darien groaned his pleasure. 
      It felt so good to hold her in his arms again. He pulled up to look at 
      her. Her eyes were half closed and her smiling lips were swollen with his 
      kisses.
      Serena didn't want him to stop. "Darien, I missed you too." She pulled him 
      down to her and kissed him, nibbling at his lips. She ran her hands 
      through his hair and held him to her. She pulled up his shirt and dragged 
      her hands over his bare, muscled stomach.
      He drew a sharp breath. "Serena!" It came out as a harsh whisper. Darien 
      loved it when she touched him. He kissed her neck and nibbled a path to 
      her collarbone. One hand wound itself in her hair while the other found 
      it's way up her T-shirt to gently caress a breast. He kissed her again, 
      enjoying her sweet taste. He moved his mouth to nibble on her ear and then 
      to trail a path of kisses down her throat. Darien caressed her breast 
      through her shirt with his lips. Serena moaned her pleasure. "Darien!"
      His name brought him back to his senses. Grudgingly, he pulled back. 
      "Serena... we have to... stop." His chest was heaving as he fought for a 
      breath. He hadn't meant to attack her like that. He struggled to get his 
      body under control. "I'm so sorry I..."
      Serena was confused for a moment, and then realized what they were doing. 
      What they almost... She blinked a few times then looked at him. He was so 
      controlled. If he hadn't stopped... Aware of the feeling of 
      disappointment, Serena caressed his cheek. "It's ok Darien. It wasn't only 
      you." Serena sat up and tried to steady herself. She hadn't realised how 
      much she wanted him.
      "Serena...what you must think of me." He looked ashamed of himself.
      She put her finger on his mouth. "Darien, don't do that to yourself. I 
      didn't exactly say no." She hugged him and could feel the tension in his 
      body. "Darien it's ok, really. It was inevitable."
      "Chre..." He tried to apologize again.
      Serena shook her head. "Darien, don't." She gave him a look that told him 
      she was serious. "Come on you must be tired." She let him have the bed 
      while she took a couple of blankets and lay on the floor.
      "Serena you take the bed." He looked guilty now.
      "Darien." Her tone was authoritative.
      "Ok ok. Good night chre." He took off his shirt and jeans and got under 
      the covers.
      "Night Darien." She kissed him good night.
      The night went by so fast it felt like she blinked. Serena awoke with the 
      feeling she was being watched. She rolled to her side and found Darien 
      watching her from his perch on the bed.
      "Morning Darien."
      "You are so incredibly beautiful." He smiled as she blushed. "It's true 
      chre."
      "Well you're not too bad yourself you know." She stood up. He pulled her 
      down onto the bed. She let him, laughing all the while.
      He gave her a kiss. "Sere, I have to go."
      Her eyes were huge. "No! You can't go already! You only just got here a 
      few hours ago." He had to be kidding. "We haven't even done anything!"
      He knew how she felt. "I'm sorry chre but I must."
      "Why did you bother coming then?" Serena looked at him. "We barely even 
      got the chance to talk." Her temper started to flare.
      "I needed to see you Serena. It's been way too long since we've seen each 
      other." He kissed her palm. "You understand right?"
      She scowled then sighed. "Yeah, I do. It's so unfair though." She ran her 
      hands through her hair in frustration. "When will you be back?"
      "Soon."
      "You said that last time."
      "This time nothing will stop me." He grinned. "Nothing."
      She looked out the window expecting to see daylight. Instead, the sun was 
      barely up.
      "Darien what time is it?" She looked over at her clock before he could 
      answer. "It's not even seven yet!" She looked at him. "Can't you stay a 
      little longer?" She kissed his neck and then turned her attention to his 
      ear lobe. She nibbled lightly.
      Darien moaned. "Serena please." He swallowed and stood up pulling Serena 
      up with him. "You don't know what you do to me." He held her against him.
      Serena could feel the evidence of his desire against her body. She 
      shivered and looked at him open mouthed.
      "Yes, so as you can see, I cannot stay here any longer or else...you 
      know." He looked pointedly at the bed.
      At this moment Serena was thinking that 'you know' with Darien wouldn't be 
      that bad.
      He saw the look in her eyes and smiled. "Oh no. We are not doing anything 
      until you are absolutely sure you are ready."
      Unbelievable. She linked her hands behind his neck and kissed him. "You'd 
      better go, Darien. Before I try and jump you again."
      He laughed as he pulled his jeans on again and pulled on a sweater. "I 
      will be back soon chre."
      She walked him to the security door at the entrance of the building. She 
      saw that a cab was there waiting for him.
      He gathered her up in his arms and kissed her. "I love you. I'll call from 
      the plane."
      "Ok. Bye Darien." *I love you too.* The words echoed throughout her entire 
      body. But she couldn't say them out loud.
      "Bye chre."
      She watched as he got into the cab and waved as it sped off.
      The girls were awake and roaming when she got back to the suite.
      "Hey Serena. Where were you?"
      Serena held up envelopes indicating she had been gone getting mail.
      "Who was here?" Raye's eyes were squinting against the light in the 
      gradually brightening room.
      "What do you mean?" She blushed a little.
      "My room is right up against yours and I could hear your voice plus one 
      last night." She arched a brow at Serena and grinned. "Methinks Serena had 
      a visitor last night."
      Serena turned to the cupboard and concentrated on getting her mug off the 
      shelf and making coffee.
      Min and Lita's attentions were attracted now. "Did we hear visitor?" They 
      looked at each other than back at Serena. "Oooh!"
      "You guys are such a pain!" She sighed. "Darien came over last night."
      "Really?" Where is he?" They all looked at Serena's closed door.
      "He's gone. He had some business to attend to." Serena took a sip of her 
      coffee.
      Disappointed that they wouldn't get to meet the amazing Darien le Conte, 
      they sat at the table and drank their coffees.
      "So it was just a one nighter eh?" Lita wiggled her eyebrows.
      "No, nothing like that. He just wanted to see me. It's been a long time 
      since we've seen each other." She smiled.
      "So you're telling us that he flew half way around the planet to spend one 
      night with you and you didn't do anything? Ok sure."
      "We talked. That's not nothing." She walked to her room and contemplated 
      reading one of the books for a course. Her mind changed when she saw an 
      envelope on her desk. Her name was written on it in Darien's handwriting. 
      Serena walked back out and sat on the couch.
      "What are you doing for Halloween Sere?"
      Serena opened up the letter and started reading. "I don't know yet I was 
      thinking of just hanging out here and getting some work done." She was 
      still reading Darien's letter. He wrote about how much he loved her. 
      Apparently he wrote it while she was asleep because he talked about how 
      she looked while she was sleeping. He also apologized for not being able 
      to stay longer. "Why? What are you guys doing?"
      "Well we were all invited to a party at Chris' house off the hill." Min 
      and Malachite were making goo goo eyes at each other. "You should come, 
      Malachite and I are going as Romeo and Juliet."
      "How sweet, you guys will be so cute." She finished reading the letter. 
      "Looks like Darien won't be back for a while he's heading to Germany next 
      then Vienna right after. That sucks!" She turned back to Min. "I don't 
      have a costume so I don't think that I'll go." She picked up the letter 
      and envelope and took them into her room, putting them back on the desk. 
      "Well I don't know Chris all that well anyways, so I'll just stay here and 
      catch up on some reading or something."
      "You gotta go! We're all going." She started listing everyone that was 
      going and what they were going as. Just then Andrew walked in the door.
      "Is she trying to talk you into going to the Halloween party? Min leave 
      her alone."
      "Nope. Not until she says she's going."
      "Maybe alright? I might go."
      Min smiled, mission accomplished. She knew that Serena was as good as 
      there. "Let's go get you a costume then!"
      They spent the next two hours at the mall looking at costume ideas and 
      trying to decide what to get. They went through hundreds and hundreds of 
      costumes it seemed. Finally they chose a Venetian Carnevale type costume, 
      complete with a full-faced mask. It was gorgeous. It had a hooded royal 
      blue velvet cape and matching embroidered ball gown that had a beaded 
      bodice.
      "This is perfect for you!" said Mina when Serena came out of the changing 
      room. Serena did a couple of turns and looked at herself in the mirror.
      "I like it too." She moved the painted porcelain mask over her face. "It's 
      perfect." The mask was painted white. Around the eyes were vibrant swirls 
      of colour which made a nice contrast to the white. Around the mask itself 
      were folds of colourful ribbon. And underneath the right eye was a crystal 
      teardrop. She touched it. Serena motioned to the shop assistant. "I'll 
      take this one."
      "Wonderful choice Miss."
      Serena changed out of it and handed it to her through the curtain. And 
      emerged herself a moment later changed back into her own clothes. "I guess 
      we should head back to Rez huh? I've got a paper to finish off."
      "All you ever think about is work. Don't you want to hang out for a bit 
      longer?"
      "Nah, I think I'll head back. You wanna come with?" She handed the money 
      to the cashier.
      "Yeah I don't have any bus fare on me." Mina looked disappointed that she 
      didn't want to goof around anymore.
      Serena picked up the bag and the two girls walked out and headed to the 
      car.
      Back at the parking lot they ran into the guys, who were all piling into 
      Seiya's car.
      "Hello ladies." Seiya was wearing his leather jacket and jeans. He pointed 
      at the bag.
      "What have you got there?"
      "It's Sere's costume for the party. You're going right?"
      "Might. Not sure yet."
      "You gotta go!"
      Andrew rolled his eyes as if to say 'here we go again'.
      "Possibly. If I get my work done by then. I have some labs to finish up." 
      He opened his door and got in. "We gotta run. Later!"
      "Later!" The girls walked back up to their suite. Lita and Raye were there 
      having lunch.
      "Hey there."
      "Hi where have you two been?" Lita put down what was left of her sandwich.
      "We got Serena a costume for the party. Have you got yours yet?"
      "Yup I've got mine and Raye has hers too right?"
      "Yup. I'll get it." Raye and Lita went to get their costumes.
      Raye had a Robin Hood costume and Lita had a hippie girl one. Min went and 
      brought hers out as well, a beautiful pink Juliet costume. So Serena 
      pulled the costume out of the box and showed everyone the one she just 
got.
      "Wow! That's beautiful. This is going to be great. The guys are going too 
      aren't they?"
      Mina nodded. "Yup they are."
      Replacing the dress, Serena stretched. "I think I'll try and finish that 
      paper off now. Later." With that she disappeared into her room.
      Before long, Halloween night was here. Like every other night that 
      required a lot of preparation the bathroom was buzzing with energy. The 
      girls were running between mirrors and things were a blur of makeup and 
      powder. It got to the point where they had to split up. Raye and Mina 
      stayed in their bathroom while Serena and Lita went across the hall to see 
      if they could use the guys' bathroom.
      Knocking on the door they walked in. "Hello?" Anyone home?" They came out 
      of their rooms one by one dressed in their costumes. Seiya, Andrew and 
      Kyle were dressed as the Three Musketeers and Malachite came out dressed 
      in his Romeo outfit. The guys had a good laugh at his tights.
      "Leave me alone!" He looked miserable. He shuffled into the bathroom and 
      looked at himself in the mirror and grimaced.
      "Aww leave the poor guy alone." Serena looked at their bathroom and 
      shuddered. It was a mess. "We were wondering if we could borrow your 
      bathroom."
      "Yeah go ahead." They didn't seem to care so Lita and Serena approached 
      the mirrors and put their things down beside the sinks. Careful not to 
      touch anything, they applied their makeup.
      "So what are you guys going as?" Andrew jokingly tried to flick up their 
      robes.
      Lita took a playful swipe at him. "You'll just have to wait and see to be 
      dazzled."
      "Ha, it can't be better than ours!" The boys did a little swashbuckling 
      routine and bowed.
      "Wow did you guys practice that long?" Serena carefully applied her 
      lipstick and smiled.
      "It was wonderful." Her tone was obviously sarcastic but it was lost on 
      them. They thought he was being sincere so, proudly they did it again. 
      Serena looked at Lita in the mirror and they shook their heads. Serena 
      pulled out a curling iron and Lita pulled out a straightening iron. The 
      boys just looked at them confused.
      "Ok Lita has curly hair and she's trying to straighten it. Serena you have 
      straight hair and you're trying to curl it. Why don't you just leave it 
      the way it is?"
      "You guys wouldn't understand. It's a girl thing."
      Seiya looked at them "Try us. We can understand it."
      "Ok. With Lita's outfit she needs straight hair to make it look right. 
      Sure, she could go with an afro but that's not the look that she's going 
      for. While with my costume, for the look that I'm trying to achieve I need 
      slightly curled hair." She curled another strand. "And besides it's nice 
      to change your look every now and then."
      The guys just looked at them and crossed their eyes. "Ok you were right 
      it's too confusing for us."
      The girls pulled out the hairspray next and started spraying and styling 
      their hair. Serena pulled her hair up into a high ponytail and arranged a 
      few curly wisps around her face. Lita put a headband on and combed through 
      her hair, hoping it looked right. The guys watched, fascinated with the 
      ritual. "You do this all the time?"
      "Yup."
      "Why?"
      "To impress dopes like you, that's why."
      "Ok." They continued to watch the rest of what the girls were doing. They 
      applied the finishing touches, critiqued each other and picked up their 
      stuff.
      "Ok. We're done with this part. We'll be back in a bit." They left to put 
      their costumes on. Serena walked past the bathroom in their own suite and 
      noticed that Min and Raye were finishing up their makeup. "You guys look 
      great."
      "So do you. Need any help with that costume of yours?"
      "I'll yell if I do, kay?"
      "Right."
      Serena went into her room and took the costume off the hanger. It weighed 
      a ton but it was so gorgeous she didn't care. Carefully she pulled the 
      gown over her head, so that she wouldn't ruin both her hair and the dress. 
      She pulled her arms through the sleeves, which were tight until they got 
      to the elbow where they opened up and the ornate lace fell loosely. The 
      full skirt practically filled up the entire floor space of her room. Fold 
      after fold the velvet hung forming the voluminous skirt. She had to wear 
      crinoline and a hoop skirt to keep it full. She put her shoes on and 
      stepped out to the hall. "Can someone help with the laces in the back?" 
      Raye started lacing her up.
      "Is that too tight?"
      "Nope. It's fine." She held her breath until Raye was done. "Thanks. Can 
      you imagine having to wear this sort of thing everyday? I'd go crazy."
      "I know what you mean." She adjusted her hat. " You look fantastic 
though."
      "Thanks. I'd better cuz I'm wearing like ten pounds of underwear." She 
      joked. "So do you."
      "Thanks."
      Serena fastened the cape around her shoulders and pulled the hood on. She 
      picked up her mask and held in over her face. "So you think I can 
      disappear into the crowd?"
      "If that's what you want to do then you definitely picked the wrong 
      costume." Seiya came up behind her. "You look incredible."
      "Thanks."
      "How do we look?" Lita and Mina came out of their rooms. Lita was wearing 
      an authentic looking hippie outfit complete with furry vest and sandals. 
      Mina was wearing a pink Elizabethan dress that she obviously loved. It was 
      evident in the way that she kept picking it up and running the fabric 
      through her fingers.
      "You ladies look wonderful." He bowed and offered his arm. Lita took it. 
      "Shall we go then?"
      "Yeah let's get going." Some how the girls all managed to fit in Serena's 
      car, while the boys took Seiya's car. They followed Seiya to the house. 
      Already there were cars lined up the street and you could hear the music 
      coming from the house. They all headed for the door, but instead of 
      knocking, Seiya just opened the door and walked in. People were 
      everywhere. It was completely packed a mass of colours and sounds. They 
      tried to find their host in the crowd and finally spotted him in the 
      middle of a crowd in the living room. They said their hellos and went and 
      mingled. As usual, Serena and Raye paired up and wandered through the 
      house talking to people they recognised and met a bunch of new people. 
      Raye pointed at a girl dressed as Cleopatra coming toward them. It was a 
      girl they knew called Amy who lived in the other Rez.
      "Hey girls! Looking good! I love the costumes."
      "Hi Amy. How are you doing?"
      "Great! I did well on my exams and I'm totally in love."
      "Really? Who's the lucky guy? Anyone we know?"
      "I don't think you would know him. He just moved up here to work." She 
      looked into the crowd. "Be right back. I think I see him." She disappeared 
      into the tangle of dancing bodies.
      Must be love huh?" Serena nudged Raye and they laughed. Amy hardly ever 
      fell for any guy. Serena was feeling quite happy for her friend until she 
      returned pulling someone in a fencing costume behind her.
      Grinning widely she stood beside him. "This is," she nudged him to take 
      off his mask. "Jeff McCormick."
      Serena's smile faded, as she stood wooden. She watched as Raye smiled and 
      shook his hand. The old feelings surfaced again. She couldn't believe that 
      over three years the anger had not faded one bit. Serena bit the inside of 
      her cheek to keep from making a scene. He turned to her and smiled. She 
      wanted to smack the smirk off his face.
      Fortunately for him, her small bag began to vibrate. She pulled out the 
      phone and looked needlessly at the display. She grinned hugely. *How does 
      he do it?*
      Smiling she looked at them. "Sorry, I have to take this call. Excuse me." 
      Quickly she walked onto the small porch, weaving through the crowd, and 
      answered the phone. "Darien?"
      "Serena chrie. How are you?" He paused for a moment, listening. "You are 
      at a party, non?"
      "Oui, but I am not having that good a time."
      "Pauvre Serena. I am sorry that I could not be there to entertain you. It 
      is Halloween, non?"
      "Yes."
      "What costume are you wearing then?"
      "I'm dressed up as a woman from the Venetian Carnevale." She looked 
      through the window and saw Amy, Raye and Jeff still talking. "You know 
      with the masks and capes and things."
      "And you must be stunning. You will send me pictures? I want to see how 
      beautiful you look."
      "Of course." He could always make her smile. "Darien, when will you be 
      coming my way again?" She wanted to see him again.
      "You have changed your mind?" He sounded hopeful.
      "Perhaps," she teased.
      "I told you. If you need me just call and I will be there." He sounded 
      like he was smiling.
      "I will, Darien."
      "You will go and try to have a good time now ok?"
      "Ok I'll try, but I'm not promising anything."
      "Good girl. I will call soon. Je t'aime, Serena. Bye!"
      "Bye, Darien." She hung up the phone. Still smiling she walked back into 
      the house. Feeling a bit saner after the talk with Darien, she walked back 
      to Raye, Amy and Jeff.
      "Was that Darien?" Raye asked. "Like I really need to ask huh? You have 
      the goofy grin again."
      Amy grabbed Serena's arm. "You're going out with that French piano guy on 
      the poster? Raye filled us in. She said he gave you his own phone so that 
      he could talk to you. That's amazing! What's he like?"
      Lita came up behind them, "Going out, nothing. He asked her to go with 
      him, but she turned him down."
      "You what? I can't believe you did that! I would have dropped everything 
      and gone with him." Her heavily made up eyes were huge. "Have the rest of 
      you met him?
      "Of course. He was at our place not too long ago." Lita left out the bit 
      that no one ever saw him besides Serena.
      "And you guys didn't call me? Argh! Boy would I love to meet that guy. 
      Talk about yummy!" She grinned and licked her lips. She caught Serena's 
      amused look. "Sorry Sere, but it's true!" She looked at the figure beside 
      her. "Oh did I introduce you to Jeff yet?"
      Jeff wasn't even listening to the conversation, he was too busy looking at 
      a group of girls dressed as an assortment of Barbie Dolls.
      Lita shook hands with him.
      "Serena, Jeff." Amy smiled at Serena as if she had the greatest treasure 
      in the world with her.
      Serena controlled her impulse to hit him and tell Amy what he was really 
      like. Maybe he was different with Amy. She hoped for her sake that he was. 
      Serena nodded stiffly at him. "Hi."
      He gave her his most dazzling smile, one Serena remembered very well. 
      "Hello, Serena. Nice to see you. Since when did you start carrying a cell 
      phone?"
      Amy looked at him. "Weren't you listening? Her millionaire French 
      boyfriend gave it to her so that he could talk to her." She stopped and 
      gave Jeff a questioning look. "You guys know each other?"
      Serena smiled as sweetly as she could, "A long time ago."
      Jeff smiled at her. "Yes, we knew each other in high school. What did you 
      do after school? You seemed to disappear off the face of the earth."
      Serena just smiled. "Excuse me I see someone I want to talk to." Back 
      rigid and shoulders back, she walked away and headed over to Seiya, who 
      she saw delighting a group of people with some more of his amusing 
      stories. Serena waved at him. He waved back and headed over to her.
      "Having a good time?"
      "I was until I ran into someone. I was heading to the kitchen for a drink, 
      want one?"
      He nodded. "I'll come with you." They walked into the kitchen, weaving 
      their way through the crowd. There were a couple of guys playing 
      bartender. "Two beers!" The guys couldn't hear him. Seiya tried to shout 
      to be heard. Didn't work. Finally after using a mixture of hand signals 
      and a very strange miming technique he managed to get the idea across. One 
      of the guys opened the fridge and pulled out two beers. He handed them to 
      Seiya. He opened hers for her and handed it to her. He looked at her and 
      screwed up his face. "Hold on." He looked into the kitchen and reached 
      around the corner. "Here use this." He handed her a straw. "It just 
      wouldn't look right with you drinking out of the bottle."
      "Thanks."
      "So who messed up your night?" He took a sip.
      "No one important. What have you been doing?"
      "Nothing much. Why do you always change the subject when the conversation 
      turns to you?"
      "I do not."
      "Yes you do. Every single time."
      "Can we talk about something else?"
      He shrugged, "Sure I guess. As long as you know."
      "Whatever."
      "My guess is it's that guy that you're looking at with daggers in your 
      eyes."
      "Huh?"
      "The person that ticked you off is that guy over there talking to Lita and 
      Raye."
      "What makes you say that?"
      "You look like you want to tear him limb from limb that's why."
      "Maybe I do. It's none of your business though."
      "Why has he got you so upset?" He put his hand on her shoulder and slowly 
      slid it down to her hand and held it. "Did he grope you? Want me to go 
      punch him out for you?" He laughed. She didn't smile. "He didn't, did he?" 
      his tone got serious.
      "No nothing like that. It's just something that happened a long time ago."
      "I see, want to talk about it?"
      "No, not really. It was just something horrible that I tried hard to 
      forget. But seeing him brought it all back and I wasn't ready for it, 
      that's all."
      "Old friend?"
      "Definitely no."
      "I see. Wanna go for a walk?"
      "Yes." She put down her beer untouched on a table. He led her through 
      throngs of people and out the front door. "Fresh air." She inhaled deeply. 
      She hadn't noticed how suffocating it was in the house until she got 
      outside. She breathed again and looked at Seiya, and noticed that he was 
      looking at her.
      He smiled. "Curls were a nice choice."
      "What?"
      "Your hair. You said curls were what you needed and you were right."
      "You mean you were actually listening? I was just babbling something cuz I 
      thought you weren't."
      "I listen to you. I'm a very good listener you know."
      "That's nice, unfortunately I don't like to talk too much."
      "Well there are times to talk and there are times you shouldn't." He 
      turned to her and gathered her up in his arms. "Like now is a non talking 
      time." He bent down and kissed her cheek. Before she could react, he 
      pulled away and started walking again. Serena hugged herself and kept 
      walking, staying out of his reach. She wasn't comfortable with him kissing 
      her. It felt like she was betraying Darien even if she didn't kiss him 
      back. She scowled. I'm not letting him do that again.
      "There's a park just over here." He led her down a darkened sidewalk. The 
      park was small but it had a set of swings and a bench and it was well lit.
      She went to sit down on the bench but he stopped her. He pulled the cape 
      that he was wearing off and put it on the bench in one grand sweeping 
      motion. "My lady."
      "Thanks." She sat down. He sat down next to her. "So now what?"
      "So now you tell me what's so horrible about that guy."
      "So you had this all planned out? You brought me here so that I would tell 
      you." She tried to stand up. He pulled her back down.
      "You have to tell someone before you hurt yourself. You can't keep 
      yourself closed off forever you know."
      "I'm not closed off."
      "Oh yeah? How come you won't date anyone except for a guy that's half a 
      world away from you and shows up maybe once a month? Whenever anyone gets 
      close, you freak out. No one really knows anything about you. And you say 
      you're not closed off? Ha!"
      "Not true." She stared at him. "I've dated before."
      "Really? So how come you never talk about him?"
      "Why should I? We broke up a long time ago."
      "You must want to talk about him sometimes."
      "Never."
      "Why not?"
      "I don't want to." She got up and arranged her skirts. "Now if you're done 
      with the interrogation I'm going home. Tell the girls that if they want a 
      ride they can call me and I'll come get them. Good night."
      She walked down the dark sidewalk and back to her car. She got in, started 
      it and sped away, tires squealing. Speeding down the darken streets she 
      could only think one thing, she needed to talk to Darien. Grabbing her 
      bag, she searched for the cell phone. At a stoplight she pressed a button 
      and dialled up Darien. She waited while it rang.
      "Serena! What a surprise!"
      The light turned green and she sped up the hill to the university.
      Darien paused for her to answer, but heard nothing except light breathing. 
      "Chre? Are you all right?"
      She heard his hand muffle the phone and him telling people to leave. 
      "Darien, I...I don't know why I called." She did know. She had to get away 
      from here before she went crazy. It was problem after problem on top of 
      classes and assignments and research. Now Jeff's appearance on top of 
      everything! She needed a break. "Did I interrupt anything?"
      "Nothing that can not wait." She heard some shuffling papers. "Is 
      something wrong?"
      "I just wanted to talk to someone." She took the corners without even 
      slowing down.
      "That is why I am here. So tell me what is troubling you."
      "I think I'm just worn out." Serena couldn't get into the story just yet. 
      She promised herself that she would tell him about Jeff soon. She parked 
      her car in her space and turned off the engine. She took a deep breath. 
      "What are you doing in the next few days?"
      "I have a concert in Vienna in three days but until then I think I am 
      free. Would you like me to come get you?" He sounded happy.
      "I must finish off one last essay then I have a week vacation. I should be 
      able to finish it off in a day or so."
      "Fantastique! Hold on." She heard clicking and could only guess that he 
      was checking his schedule on his laptop. "Merde! I cannot come I have some 
      interviews to do. I can send Nephlite though, is that ok? When would you 
      like to leave?"
      "How does two days sound?"
      "It is not soon enough but it will have to do. Two days it is then. I will 
      have Nephlite pick you up and he will fly with you to Vienna ok?"
      It was just so easy. "Great I'll be waiting for him. See you soon, Darien. 
      Bye!"
      "See you soon, Je t'aime Serena. Bye!"
      Smiling she hung up the phone and got out of the car. She needed a break 
      from this place for a while and to see Darien. He had a way of making her 
      forget all of her troubles and she loved talking to him. Serena knew she 
      would have to tell him the truth now but it didn't bother at all. It was 
      about time that she came clean to him. She locked the door and sighed.
      "Was that you're boyfriend?"
      Startled, Serena spun around and found Jeff standing in front of her.
      "What do you want?" She pushed past him and walked up the path to the Rez. 
      He followed. "Leave me alone. I have nothing to say to you."
      "Nice night isn't it?"
      "Yes and I want to keep it that way so please leave me alone." Her skirts 
      swished around her as she practically ran up the stairs.
      He kept up with her. "I just wanted to say that you look beautiful 
      tonight."
      Serena stopped dead and looked at him. "No. remember who you're talking 
      to. I know you." Serena eyed him cautiously. "What do you really want?" 
      She knew the way that he could charm women with a look, a word, a smile; 
      and she also knew when he wanted something. And right now he definitely 
      wanted something. He didn't answer. Serena turned and kept walking.
      "Can I at least come in?" They stopped in front of the suite door.
      She turned to him, blocking off the door with herself. There was no way 
      that she was going to let him into her new life. "No. You can say whatever 
      you want to say here." She nodded at the spot he was standing in.
      "I want to get back together with you." He looked into her eyes earnestly.
      She didn't know whether to laugh at him or to hit him. "Ha! Right!" She 
      opened the door and walked in. "Not if my life depended on it." She 
      slammed the door in his face.
      He banged on the door, "We were good once! I need you! We're good 
      together."
      The door swung open, narrowly missing his head. "And you ruined it! How 
      could you do that to me? You claim to love me! And stupid little me, I 
      believed you! I was in love with you and I would have done anything for 
      you. I gave you everything! Everything! Two years we were together and 
      right after we...we..." she choked. She couldn't bring herself to finish 
      the sentence. "I find out you've been cheating on me for months and that 
      you've left me for some stupid girl!" She gritted her teeth. "And to top 
      it all off, everyone else in the entire school knew before I did. I had to 
      find out from Dave! It was so humiliating!"
      "I was an idiot." He took her hand apologetically.
      "Well I'm not one anymore!" Shaking his hand off, she turned to walk back 
      into her room, but he grabbed her arm, hard. "Let go of me." Her voice was 
      dangerously quiet. She drew her other arm back to punch him.
      "I don't think you want to do that." His eyes glittered angrily.
      "No, but I do." Before Serena knew what was going on, Jeff was on the 
      ground. Seiya picked him up and dragged him down the hall. "Don't ever 
      show you're face here again." He dropped him in front of the door to the 
      stairs.
      "You shouldn't have done that!" He wiped the blood from his lip and 
      stumbled off.
      Serena turned to Seiya, "I can handle myself alright? I don't need you to 
      rescue me."
      He didn't pay any attention. He was still trying to register what was 
      said. "Is everything that you said true?"
      "Yes, ok? Now you know. I dated that pig and it ended very badly and for a 
      very long time I hated men. Now that I'm finally getting on with my life 
      he jumps back into it and tries to drag it to hell again. Is that what you 
      wanted to hear? Happy now?"
      "Of course not. That's terrible what he did to you." He began to 
      understand where she was coming from. No wonder she didn't let herself get 
      close to anyone. That must have been a terrible thing to go through. He 
      walked to her and tried to give her a hug. She backed away.
      "I need to get this dress off it weighs a ton." She walked back into the 
      room and kicked her shoes off. It was obvious that she was still totally 
      infuriated. Seiya followed, trying not to get knocked over as she stomped 
      past him. In the kitchen she filled the kettle and turned it on.
      Continuing like he wasn't even there, she pulled out her favourite mug and 
      put a tea bag in it. Then she headed down the hall trying to untie the 
      back of her dress as she went. Seiya undid it for her as she stormed past. 
      She looked at him. "Thanks. You don't have to hang around you know. I'm 
      not going to slit my wrists or anything." She couldn't hide the venom in 
      her voice.
      "Could you just relax? I know what happened so you don't have to act all 
      tough anymore ok? Why don't you just let me help?" Serena reached behind 
      her and was trying to loosen the ties but Raye did them too tight.
      Serena released a frustrated breath and gave in. "Fine but just loosen 
      them ok? And if I catch you smiling I'll punch you out." She lifted her 
      arms and let him work on the ties.
      "Who did this? And how are you breathing?" He tugged at them and slowly 
      got them to loosen.
      "Raye did. As for the breathing question I managed all right I think." She 
      inhaled and took in the first full breath of the entire night. "It's 
      definitely nice to get it off though." She took another breath and the 
      bodice slipped. Her eyes widened and she clutched the fabric before it 
      slid too low. "Be right back!" she rushed off into her room, practically 
      dragging the dress behind her.
      Seiya grabbed the whistling kettle and filled her mug. He brought it with 
      him to the table and sat down and waited for her to come back. He took off 
      his cape and draped it over the back of the chair and picked up the 
      forgotten hat off the floor and put it on the couch. Several minutes later 
      she came back dressed in her usual relaxation clothes, her sweats. Her 
      make up was still on and her hair was still done. It looked a little 
      strange on her after seeing her in the elegant dress; the sweats did not 
      do her any justice. She sat down across from him.
      "Is this mine?" He nodded. She picked it up and took a sip. "I'm sorry for 
      being so nasty to you. I know you're just trying to help. But really I'm 
      ok. I'm use to handling things on my own."
      "You don't have to though. You have all of us. We really care for you and 
      you can trust us. You know that." He smiled at her. She looked at him 
      sideways. "I know you can take care of yourself, I saw the way that you 
      were going to deck that guy, but it's not always enough."
      Serena sighed and took another sip. "It was last time."
      Seiya laughed, "You mean you hit him before?" She nodded. "He should have 
      learned the first time."
      "Some people just don't learn that easily." Cupping her hands around the 
      mug she shuddered. "Is it me or is it a little chilly in here? Seiya got 
      up and looked at the thermostat he fiddled with the dial and sat back 
down.
      "Wonderful Rez heating never works, just like the rest of this place." He 
      banged on the wall; it felt like the whole building shuddered. Or it could 
      have been because Mina slammed open the door at just the same moment.
      Crying hysterically she ran into her room and slammed the door. Seiya and 
      Serena looked at each other and the door swung open again. Malachite ran 
      to Mina's door and started banging on it.
      "Come on Min, open up. Please." There was no answer. "Please! Come on! Let 
      me explain!"
      As quietly as they could, Serena and Seiya crept out the door and into the 
      hall. Raye and Lita ran up the hall. Serena stopped them. "What's going 
      on?"
      They stopped, "Where did you guys go?" Raye shook her head. "Whatever. 
      Anyways, Malachite was dancing with this girl at the party, nothing 
      horrible just dancing not even touching. Anyways someone mentions how good 
      they were together, emphasis on the word were, and Mina freaks out. Turns 
      out she was an old girlfriend and Min's all insecure, they fought, she ran 
      out and it's a total mess."
      "Oh man. Maybe we should leave them alone for a while." They headed over 
      to the boys' room.
      "Serena what happened to your arm?" Lita pointed at her arm that was 
      exposed when she pushed her sleeves up.
      Serena and Seiya looked. Her arm had turned into an ugly collage of 
      purples and blues. She pulled her sleeve back down. "Nothing, we took care 
      of it." She felt her temper rising again, forcing herself to calm down she 
      followed Seiya into the room with the girls following behind her. Seiya 
      looked as mad as she was.
      "Is that why you guys disappeared? You were in a fight or something?" Lita 
      went to Seiya. "Are you all right?"
      "Yeah I'm fine. You shouldn't worry about me, it's Serena that the loser 
      was after." The girls turned to her. She gave him an accusing look.
      "It's all right. I've had worse before." She shrugged and sat down on the 
      couch.
      "What happened?" Raye sat down next to her. "Does it have anything to do 
      with that guy at the party?
      "Yeah." She slumped on the couch. "Jeff is my ex. It didn't end too well 
      with us in high school. He decided to follow me home and try to talk me 
      into going out with him again. Like that is ever going to happen." She 
      sighed. "I said no, he grabbed my arm. Seiya punched him now he's gone."
      "You're so brave!" Lita beamed at Seiya. Raye and Serena rolled their 
eyes.
      Serena got up. "I'm going to the gym." She was still worked up over the 
      incident with Jeff and needed to vent her frustration somehow. Serena 
      walked to the door and opened it. Seiya walked over and closed it before 
      she made it through.
      "Oh no you're not. Haven't you had enough today? Why don't you just hang 
      out and relax with us. We'll watch a movie, drink some coffee and chill 
      out." The girls agreed. She let herself be led back to the couch and sat 
      down again.
      For the next few hours they sat around and talked about nothing, watching 
      action and comedy films. At around 4am they decided to go and check on 
      Mina and Malachite. Quietly they snuck in the door, peeked around the 
      corner and looked down the hall. Malachite was asleep against the wall 
      outside of Mina's room. Feeling sorry for him they grabbed a cushion and 
      blanket off the couch. They put his head on the cushion, placed the 
      blanket over him and left.
      "I guess you guys are my guests for the night." Seiya pointed at the 
      rooms. Since Kyle and Andrew aren't back yet we can assume they won't be 
      for the rest of the night and Malachite obviously won't be using his room 
      so you guys can crash in their rooms, they won't mind. The girls were too 
      tired to argue, Raye took Steve's room, Lita took Malachite's and Serena 
      took Kyle's.
      The next morning they were waken by shouting in the kitchen, Andrew and 
      Kyle were back, and they had girls with them. One by one the girls came 
      out of the rooms and looked at them. The girls that they were with did not 
      look impressed with Serena and the others. The guys just stood 
      open-mouthed staring at the half dressed girls coming out of their rooms. 
      It was obvious that they had no clue why the girls were there in the first 
      place.
      Seiya came out of his room. "I'll explain. Probs across the hall with the 
      happy couple. The girls needed a place to stay so I offered your rooms. 
      Ok?"
      The guys shrugged. The girls looked happier knowing that they weren't 
      girlfriends.
      "I was just making these lovely ladies some breakfast." Andrew gave his 
      girl a cuddle. "Want some?"
      Serena, Lita and Raye smiled at the girls and said hi. "Nah we'd better 
      see if he coast is clear over there." Hesitantly they headed over and 
      opened the door slightly. No shouting. They walked in and looked down the 
      hall. The cushion was abandoned. Since he was nowhere in sight and he 
      hadn't returned to his own room, they could only assume that he was in 
      Min's room with her. Happier that they had made up; they went to the 
      kitchen and made breakfast.
      "She must have taken him back huh?" Serena filled the kettle.
      "Yeah, she must have. They belong together." Raye rummaged through the 
      fridge looking for something to make. She settled on several eggs and 
      cheese. "Anyone up for an omelette?"
      "Yeah sure." Lita handed her the frying pan and began washing up the left 
      over dishes from last night.
      Serena made coffee for everyone and brought them to the table. Raye 
      followed moments later with the omelettes and they all sat down and had a 
      nice breakfast.
      "So what is everyone doing on the break?" She asked between mouthfuls of 
      omelette.
      "I'm heading home," said Raye, "I miss my horse." She sipped her coffee. 
      "How about you guys?"
      "I'm going home." Said Lita. "I miss mom and dad. I know it sounds corny." 
      She looked over at Serena. "You're quiet. What are you doing?"
      "Darien is sending one of his men to pick me up and take me to meet him in 
      Vienna." She tried not to sound too pretentious.
      "Really? Cool!" Lita's mouth was still full and pieces of omelette hit the 
      table. "Oops. Sorry. When?" She mopped them up with her napkin.
      "Tomorrow." She sipped her coffee. "I hope I get the essay done. I can't 
      go if I don't. I should get going, it needs quite a bit of work still."
      As Serena balanced her food and wandered down the hall, she could hear the 
      girls asking, "Can we come with you?"
      "Sure, I'll ask Darien, if you're serious. You really want to come along?" 
      She was sincere in wanting them to come along. It would be fun.
      "No. We're just kidding. We don't want to intrude." Serena's generosity 
      was astounding. Here she was about to go to a foreign country to meet with 
      her boyfriend whom she hasn't seen much of in months and she was welcoming 
      them along.
      "Alright but you can come along on the next one if you like." She sat at 
      her desk and kept the door open so she could talk to them still. She put 
      the food in her lap and opened the book on top of the stack on her desk. 
      She had read some of it earlier and marked off pages that were of use to 
      her. The turned her computer monitor on and read what she had written 
      beforehand. She went back a few lines and rewrote a few words, making it 
      sound better and then continued on remembering where she had left off. 
      Over the next three hours she typed madly and only stopped a couple of 
      times to think of a way to articulate what she was thinking and then 
      continued typing, she didn't even notice there when someone walked into 
      the room behind her. She felt the presence and turned around, finding 
      Seiya standing there smiling.
      "Hard at work I see."
      "Yeah. How long have you been there?" She was still reading a book while 
      she was talking to him. Serena was on a role and when she got going it was 
      hard to stop. "Sorry, what did you say?" She just realised that he was 
      talking to her again.
      "Do you want to go to the gym for a bit?" He spoke slowly and distinctly 
      like he was talking to someone who didn't speak the language all that 
well.
      She took a swing at him. "Ok," she imitated him. "just for a little while 
      though. I think I deserve a little break. Go and wait in the living room 
      while I change ok?"
      "You mean I can't stand here and watch?" Laughing he ran out of the room 
      as she threw pillows at him.
      A little while later she joined him in the front room dressed in shorts 
      and a T-shirt. "What took you so long?"
      "Sorry, I had a brainstorm. But I'm ready now." Serena revealed a notebook 
      and pen concealed in her jacket. "Just in case."
      He shook his head. "You gotta relax a bit!" They walked down to the gym. 
      "The girls tell me you're pretty handy with the punching bag." They walked 
      in the room and saw that it was free.
      "Show me what you got." He took off his coat. She did the same and started 
      practicing her kicks and punches on the bag. Nodding, Seiya was impressed. 
      "Here you might find your balance will be better if you hold your 
      shoulders like this." He adjusted her shoulders and she tried it.
      "Hey you're right. Thanks. You know Tae Kwon Do?" She looked up at him.
      "Yup and you do too from what I've seen." He hit her playfully on the 
      shoulder. "Wanna spar?"
      "Sure if you're not afraid of a little girl whipping your butt." She 
      wiggled her eyebrows.
      "You're on." They picked up their stuff and headed over to an empty gym. 
      Serena sat down and took off her shoes and socks. Seiya did the same. They 
      stood up and faced each
      other.
      "Ready?"
      She nodded. They bowed and it began. Serena was quick, her size was an 
      advantage for her. She was light on her feet and she could make her kicks 
      hurt, which surprised Seiya since she looked deceptively frail. He had to 
      keep on his toes to avoid getting hit.
      Seiya made it look easy. His powerful kicks were almost too hard to block 
      and his punches were solid. His height made it a bit hard for her to get 
      into him but she managed to connect a couple of times. Easily he dodged a 
      couple blows but she caught him off guard from the other side with a swift 
      kick. He grabbed her leg and took her down. Somehow she managed to grab 
      him and take him down with her. They hit the ground with a thud. He tried 
      not to land too hard; most of her was under him.
      "Are you alright?"
      "Yup." she smiled. "Again?"
      "You bet."
      And they started again in a frenzy of jumps, spins and kicks.
      An hour later, they sat down on the floor gasping for breath and laughing.
      "I haven't had this much fun in such a long time." Serena rubbed a sore 
      spot on her leg, while he rubbed his arm.
      "You've got a very hard kick." He grimaced when he touched a tender spot 
      on his ribcage.
      "Thanks, you're aren't exactly weak either." She grinned, "I feel great. 
      You have no idea how hard it is to find a sparring partner." She put her 
      socks and shoes back on.
      "I know." He stood up. "We should get you back to your paper."
      Serena's smile faded, "Yeah I guess." She walked out the door. "Race ya!" 
      and took off out the door and up to Rez. Laughing Seiya followed behind.
      They were laughing when they ran through the door of the girls' suite. But 
      that quickly changed when they found the girls sitting in the living room 
      looking unhappy.
      "What's the matter you guys?" Serena was worried at how they looked.
      "It's Min and Malachite." Lita whispered. "They didn't make up. He left 
      sometime last night and no one knows where he is. She's sorry that she 
      went off the deep end and wants to apologize but she can't find him 
      anywhere. She's in there calling everyone she can think of right now." she 
      nodded toward Mina's room.
      "Shit!" Seiya looked worried. "I'll go call around." He walked out of the 
      suite.
      "No one has seen him?" Serena sat down with the girls.
      "Nope. We're all worried sick!" Lita stared out the window.
      "He's probably out letting off some steam, he'll be alright." Serena 
      looked over at Mina, who just came out of her room. "Any luck?" She shook 
      her head while tears streamed down her face. She sat down on the couch and 
      put her head in her hands. The rest of the girls sat down beside her and 
      hugged. Than moved back and looked at her helplessly as she cried.
      "Why couldn't I just believe him? It's all my fault! He could be hurt or 
      something." All anyone could do was watch her shuddering shoulders and say 
      encouraging words but they didn't help at all.
      "He'll be ok." Was all anyone could say. Seiya came back into the room and 
      looked at Mina.
      "We'll find him, don't worry." He tapped Serena on the arm. "Can we talk?" 
      She got up slowly looking at Mina. Lita and Raye nodding indicating that 
      they would look after her. Serena led him to her room.
      "What's the matter?" She could see that something was wrong by the way 
      that his brow was set. "Tell me."
      "I found him." He didn't look happy.
      "That's good news isn't it?" She looked at him. "Why didn't you tell 
Mina?"
      "I don't think she wants to know where I found him."
      "I don't like the sound of this." Serena sat down on her bed and motioned 
      for him to sit on the chair. "Where was he?"
      "According to a friend. He went to the bar last night and got completely 
      smashed. Then he went over to his ex's..."
      "Oh my god." Serena put her hand to her mouth. "He didn't."
      "Well I called her up. And her roomie answered and she said that they were 
      still asleep, so I guess they did." He shook his head and ran his hands 
      through his hair.
      "That jerk!" she got up and started pacing. "What are we going to tell 
      Min? She'll be crushed." She remembered how she felt when it happened to 
      her. Seiya saw the shadow come over her face.
      "Hey, calm down. He wouldn't do that to her. He loves her too much."
      "Yeah right." Her voice was dull. "I guess we should go get him." She got 
      up. "How are we going to get past them?" She jabbed her thumb in direction 
      of the living room.
      "Don't know," he looked thoughtful. "We can always say that we have to 
      pick up someone or that we promised to drive someone down or something 
      like that."
      "Yeah I guess." She nodded. "It will have to do. Let's go." Lamely they 
      made their excuse to the girls and ran to their cars.
      "I'll drive," Seiya dragged Serena to his car. They jumped in and they 
      sped to the girl's house.
      "What's her name anyway? I still don't know." Serena clutched the handle 
      of her door as he took a corner.
      "Kaitlin." He looked over and laughed. She was gripping the side of her 
      seat so hard that her knuckles were white. "What's the matter don't like a 
      little speed?"
      "Sure, when I'm driving. You know me and the whole control issue." She 
      shut her eyes as he took another corner.
      He slowed down and she opened her eyes to see a little house at the bottom 
      of a cul de sac. They got out and knocked on the door.
      "Cute house." Serena looked at the yard and had to admit that she liked 
      it, though it was a bit worse for wear. It didn't look like anyone cared 
      for it in a while. The door opened, on the other side was a tall dark 
      haired girl in a towel.
      "Hi Seiya, what are you doing here?" She smiled brightly at him but it 
      faded when she saw Serena. "Hi." She pulled up her towel a bit.
      Serena just nodded amused at the display she was putting on.
      "Krissy, where's Malachite?" She stepped back from the door and let them 
      in. Krissy was still eyeing Serena.
      "He's in with Kaitlin." She paused in front of a mirror and toyed with her 
      hair. "You're welcome to wait, but remember it is Malachite and Kaitlin, 
      they could be a while." She said, obvious in what she was suggesting.
      Seiya ignored her and went straight to a door and started pounding on it. 
      "Malachite! It's Seiya. Open up!"
      Moments later the door opened. Serena could see a girl in bed and looked 
      away. Malachite opened the door a bit more seeing the both of them. 
      Thankfully, he was still fully clothed, they were wrinkled but they were 
      still on him. Serena pulled him out into the hall. He looked terrible. He 
      was squinting and his hair was everywhere. "How'd you guys find me?" His 
      voice was hoarse.
      "Magic." Serena couldn't make herself sound nice. "How could you do that 
      to Min? You have a fight and then run out on her with your ex, which was 
      the reason you were fighting the first place." Seiya put a hand on her 
      shoulder.
      "Sere." His voice was quiet. "I'm sure he has a good explanation." He 
      looked at Malachite, expecting one.
      Malachite ran his hand through his hair and for a moment, it looked like 
      he didn't remember what had gone on the night before. "We were fighting 
      and it seemed hopeless. I was banging on the door until I fell asleep and 
      when I woke up I tried again." He stopped. "I was so frustrated that I 
      left and walked to the bar at the bottom of the hill. I had a few drinks." 
      He rubbed his temples. He'd had way more than a few drinks. "And I found 
      my way over here. Kaitlin and I remained friends after we broke up. She 
      said to come to her if I ever needed to talk. I definitely needed to talk. 
      So I got here and talked. And that's all we did all night." He closed his 
      eyes. "This must look so bad."
      Serena snorted. "Well yeah it looks bad!"
      Seiya cut in. "You're sure."
      "Of course I am. I love Min. I wouldn't do anything like that to her."
      "I don't believe you." Serena stared him down.
      "You should." A tall mousy haired guy came out of the kitchen. "He's 
      telling the truth."
      "Who are you?" Serena glared at him as well.
      "I'm Dan, Kaitlin's fianc." He grinned at Serena and Seiya. "We stayed up 
      all night talking him through it." He gave Malachite a playful punch in 
      the shoulder. Malachite almost toppled over. "You better take him back to 
      his woman so they can make up."
      Seiya nodded. Serena walked over to Malachite and gave him a hug. "I'm 
      sorry I didn't believe you."
      "It's ok, I don't think I would believe it either." Then he stopped and 
      his eyes widened. "Do you think Min's going to believe me?"
      "I'm sure she will, it's the truth isn't it?" Serena felt better. Seiya 
      led them out to the front door. Krissy was still in a towel.
      "Bye Seiya." She held the door open. A breeze blew her towel open 
      slightly. "Oops!" she giggled and shut the door.
      Serena rolled her eyes. Yeah like oops I didn't throw myself on him 
      enough. She got in the front passenger seat. The guys didn't seem to 
      notice Krissy's little accident. Malachite got in the back and Seiya took 
      his seat. She shut her eyes and held on as he sped them back up to the 
      university.
      Back at Rez, Malachite headed straight for Min's room. Serena and Seiya 
      walked up at a more leisurely pace. "Hope they work things out huh?" 
      Serena nodded. She sincerely hoped that they would work things out. They 
      were pretty good together.
      "Yeah. They will." She stretched. I should get back to my paper, it still 
      needs some work."
      "Yeah I have some things to do too." He punched her in the shoulder and 
      walked off.
      "Later!"
      "Bye!" Serena went into her room and sat down at the computer. She read 
      the paper over several times, but couldn't think of anything to add to it. 
      She tried staring out the window hoping that the trees would give her some 
      inspiration but nothing came to her. She scanned her room trying to find 
      something interesting to stare at and her eyes came to rest on her duffel 
      bag on the shelf in her closet.
      The trip! In all the confusion she almost forgot about it. So instead of 
      beating her brains out over the paper, she decided to pack for her trip 
      tomorrow. Smiling she pulled down the large bag. She would get to see 
      Darien again and get away from this place. Suddenly, her phone rang. She 
      picked the cell phone off the desk and answered.
      "Darien, I was just thinking about you." She smiled to the phone.
      "Serena, chre. Good things I hope." He laughed. "I just called to see if 
      you had changed your mind."
      "Stop teasing. Of course I haven't changed my mind, I'm looking forward to 
      seeing you again." She walked over to her closet and scanned her clothes. 
      "I was just packing as a matter of fact. What's the weather over there 
      like right now?"
      "It is not very warm." He paused to look out the window of his hotel room. 
      "Some days are nicer than others but I would say to bring a varied 
      selection. Or we can just go shopping when you get here."
      "Oh no, I'll bring some of my own clothes. You shouldn't spoil me like 
      that." Her tone was light.
      "Why not? You deserve it." He was laughing. "You should be spoiled, 
      especially by me."
      "Ok if you say so." She giggled. He did know how to make her laugh. "So 
      what are we going to be doing?"
      "I have a couple of concerts while we are here but after that I am all 
      yours. We can tour the city, Vienna is very beautiful and has many things 
      to offer."
      "Ok then so I'll pack a couple dresses for your concerts and some casual 
      clothes for sightseeing. Sound ok to you?"
      "Perfect as always." There was a knock on his end. Serena heard some 
      mumbling and then she heard Nephlite's voice shout hello. "Nephlite says 
      hi."
      "Hi Nephlite!" she shouted into the phone.
      "Sorry chre but I must get going I have another interview in a few 
      moments." She could hear him shuffling papers.
      "Ok I'll talk to you later then."
      "Oui, je t'aime, Serena. Bye!"
      "Bye, Darien." She heard a click and the line went dead. She put the phone 
      on the desk and plugged it into the charger that Darien sent not long 
      after he left the first time. There was a knock at the door. "Come in."
      Lita and Raye walked in. Serena had her head in the closet and was sorting 
      through what she would bring, tossing to possibilities onto the bed.
      "Hey there, packing for the trip?" They sat down on the bed.
      "Yup." Serena looked over her shoulder and noted the strange looks. 
      "What's wrong? Are they fighting again?"
      Raye smiled and wiggled her eyebrows. "Quite the opposite really."
      Serena looked at them both. "No."
      They nodded. "Yeah."
      "Oh," Not sure what to do, she turned on her stereo, loudly. "Or do you 
      think we should leave?"
      They shook their heads. "We'll just hide in here for a while if that's ok 
      with you."
      "Yeah sure, you can help me pack." She continued slinging clothes onto the 
      bed. "Tell me what you think about this outfit." They shook their heads 
      and she hung it back up.
      Lita went through the pile on her bed and started folding. Raye started 
      sorting through her shoes picking out what would go with what outfit. By 
      the time they were done, the bag was stuffed full with just about 
      everything everyone could need for a week.
      "Do you think we can go out yet?" It had been an hour since the girls came 
      into the room.
      Cautiously, Serena opened the door and the three girls strained to hear 
      anything. Hearing nothing they walked out to the living room. Still 
      hearing nothing they relaxed and sat down on the couch.
      "Looks like the coast is clear." They talked for little while longer and 
      then split up to finish off work.
      An hour and much swearing later, she finished the paper. She printed it 
      and stapled it and read it through another time to make sure it sounded 
      alright and that everything was there and in order. Proudly she walked out 
      of her room and showed Raye and Lita. "Look it's finally done. Twenty-two 
      pages of genius, complete with contents, works cited and cover page."
      "Great! I have no idea how you can possibly write twenty-two pages of 
      anything."
      "With time, patience and lots of fluff right Sere?" Mina came out of her 
      room smiling.
      Serena laughed, "You got it!" Happy that it was finally done, Serena went 
      and made herself a coffee. "Anyone want one?" Raye and Mina nodded. Serena 
      brought theirs out and put them on the table and went back in to retrieve 
      hers. They sat at the table.
      "So what's with you and Darien?" Lita looked over at Serena. "Are you guys 
      serious?"
      *Je t'aime, Serena.* "We're just... Uh, kinda going out sorta thingy." Her 
      face went red and she tried to hide it by drinking out of her mug.
      "You're embarrassed! Oh my god Serena Cole is embarrassed about 
something!"
      "Am not! It's just that I don't like to talk about myself." She still had 
      her face in her mug.
      "So are you guys together?" Mina was still smiling.
      Serena grinned sheepishly.
      "Are you giddy when you talk to him on the phone? Does he make you laugh? 
      Are you attracted to him?" Mina flicked a finger for each thing she 
listed.
      "Well yeah. Have you looked at him?" Serena thought about his looks and 
      smiled. "And yeah to the rest of that too."
      "You'd have to be dead not to have looked at him!" Raye started getting 
      into it too now.
      "Do you guys talk all the time about everything?"
      "Yeah."
      "And now you're going with him to a foreign country, I'd say that you were 
      together."
      Serena smiled. "Yeah we are. To be honest I think I'm in love with him." 
      It was kind of liberating to say it out loud.
      Lita stood up, "Nice to hear you finally admit it!" she laughed.
      "You've noticed?" They all nodded. "You've all noticed?" She blushed 
again.
      "Who wouldn't? It's pretty obvious, Sere." Min patted her on the back.
      Serena smiled and stood up and finished off the last bit of her coffee. "I 
      have to go hand it in now," She waved her paper. "I'll be back in a bit." 
      She threw on her coat and walked to the Library building where the Art 
      Department Professors had their offices.
      She pushed the button on the elevator and waited. It opened up and several 
      people filed out, including Jeff. He looked at her and turned away. She 
      didn't pay any attention to him and got on the elevator along with some 
      other people. *I wonder what he was doing?*
      Serena shook her head and got off on the forth floor. She walked past the 
      secretaries' desks and down a hall lined with information posters and 
      office doors. She stopped off at the appropriate door and put her paper in 
      the folder marked with her class number on it. She stopped to read some of 
      the posters and finding nothing of interest decided to return to Rez. She 
      headed back the same way she came. Walking through the Wintergarden, she 
      saw some people she knew and stopped to say hi.
      At her room, tired from the day, Serena lay on her bed and fell asleep.
      Serena woke when there was a knock at the door.
      "Serena? You want something to eat? Dinner's done." Raye asked through the 
      door.
      Serena sat up and looked at the clock, it was 6:30. "Yeah," She got up and 
      opened the door. "Thanks." She and the girls sat down to a chicken 
      casserole a la Raye. They laughed and talked about the day and what they 
      were going to do on their vacations. They all agreed that Serena had to 
      take plenty of pictures of everything she and Darien did, well almost 
      everything. They clean up after dinner and watched some TV. The guys came 
      over just as they sat down.
      "Hello ladies!" They walked in a single file into the room. Without asking 
      they sat down on the floor and watched with them.
      Malachite got up and went to the fridge. "Have you got anything to eat?" 
      Mina got up and fixed him up with some leftovers.
      Lita looked over at Seiya. "Don't you guys feed that boy?"
      He nodded. "All the time, but all the food on Rez couldn't fill him up."
      Malachite sat on the floor and dug in. "Quit it! I'm a growing boy." Mina 
      sat down beside him smiling.
      "I think you should start paying Raye for her catering services, you know. 
      She's the one who slaved over the hot stove to make that." Serena smiled.
      He simply nodded still shovelling food into his mouth. At around ten they 
      all decided to make it a day since most of them were leaving in the 
      morning. Raye was driving home and was leaving first thing in the morning. 
      Mina and Lita were leaving on an afternoon flight. Andrew and Kyle were 
      from the same town and were taking the bus back. Malachite wasn't going 
      anywhere and Seiya was driving south to visit some friends. They said 
      their good byes in case they didn't see each other in the morning. They 
      exchanged hugs and well wishes and went to their respective rooms. All 
      except for Min and Malachite who opted to stay in his room tonight. Lita 
      was happy about that.
      "They are so loud! It drove me so nuts last night I actually threw my 
      pencil bag at the wall to shut them up." She ran her hands through her 
      hair.
      "Did it work?" Serena hid behind Raye when Lita glared at her. "Sorry!" 
      They all laughed.
      "So when is Darien sending that guy to get you?" Raye stretched her arms.
      "Don't know yet, he's going to call when he gets here." Serena looked at 
      her watch, "I hope it's not too early."
      "Yeah well I have to get up early so I think I'll call it a night." Raye 
      walked to her room.
      "G'night. See ya when I get back."
      Serena gave her a hug. "Yup. Have fun."
      "You too!" she gave Serena a sly wink. They laughed.
      "Later!" Serena got to her room and sat down on her bed. She made another 
      check of the stuff she was bringing. She looked in her purse for her 
      passport and wallet. Satisfied that everything was in order she went to 
      sleep.
      The next morning, Serena woke up to a scraping sound in the hall. She got 
      up to go see what it was. In the hall was Raye, trying to be as quiet as 
      she could, dragging her bag down the hall.
      "Hey need a hand?"
      Raye smiled gratefully, "Yeah that'd be great." Serena took one strap and 
      she took the other and they managed to carry to bag down to her truck. 
      Which she moved up to Rez court for easier loading. "Thanks. So any calls 
      yet?"
      Serena shook her head. "Nope not yet. But I wasn't expecting anything this 
      early anyways. Have a good trip, drive careful and all that stuff ok?"
      "Take care kay?" They hugged and Raye got into the truck, waved and drove 
      off. Serena jogged back up to Rez and up to the suite. In the kitchen she 
      found Lita making a coffee. "Hey."
      "Hey, where have you been?"
      "Just helped Raye get her bag down to the truck."
      "Is she gone now?"
      "Yeah."
      "I wanted to say good bye." Lita didn't look too upset though. "Coffee?"
      Serena nodded. "Are the guys gone?" She headed across the hall to find out 
      for herself.
      Their room was a mess as usual Serena looked around and noticed bags piled 
      by the couch. "Hello?"
      Seiya came out of his room. "Hey there. Not gone yet?"
      "Nope neither are you I see." She smiled at him. He gave her a hug.
      "Take care of yourself ok?" He looked down at her.
      "I will, don't worry. When are you leaving?"
      "Not 'til later this after noon. I prefer to drive at night."
      "Just be careful ok? It's starting to get icy you know."
      He nodded. "I know."
      She looked down the hall, "The rest of the guys gone?"
      "Yup except for Malachite." He rolled his eyes.
      Serena knew that look. "Let me guess, they're loud?"
      "Let me tell you." He laughed. "None of us got any sleep. You could hear 
      Andrew and Kyle cursing them this morning."
      Serena laughed, "Same problem with us. They really should insulate the 
      walls better. But I bet they won't, since we are here to study and not 
      for...extra curricular activities." She wiggled her eyebrows. "Coming over 
      for some coffee?"
      He laughed. "Sure." He grabbed her arm and stopped her. "Serena, 
      about...what happened. You know that night at the fire."
      She looked at him. It seemed like eons ago. "Yes. I remember."
      "Maybe it's best that we forget about it." He stopped and took a breath. 
      "I see how happy you are with Darien and... well I want you to be happy."
      "Seiya..." she stopped. She didn't know what to say. "Thanks." They 
      hugged. "Friends?"
      "The best." He pulled back. "Take care and have a good time. But not too 
      good." He winked. "I want to hear all about it when you get back. Just 
      make sure you omit certain details, ok?"
      "You too."
      He smiled at her and followed her into the girl's suite. Serena was 
      relieved that the whole situation was sorted. Now she wouldn't feel guilty 
      whenever she saw Lita with Seiya.
      "Hi Seiya, coffee?" She unconsciously started fiddling with her hair. 
      Serena looked at Seiya and raised her eyebrows as if to say 'See? She 
      likes you'.
      He ignored her look. "Why I'm here."
      She poured him a mug and they sat down at the table.
      Mina came into the room looked at them at the table and walked into her 
      room without a word.
      Serena looked at Seiya, "I guess she heard you guys complaining." Serena 
      shook her head.
      "She's a bit sensitive huh?" Lita whispered. They nodded. Lita was about 
      to say something else but Serena heard the cell phone ringing.
      "Hold that thought." Serena ran down the hall to answer the phone. 
      "Darien?"
      "Hello chre. How are you?"
      "I'm good, how are you?" Just hearing his voice brought a smile to her 
      face.
      "Great, now that I'm going to see you in a few hours."
      "I'm so excited!" Serena started hopping up and down. "I can't wait."
      "Me neither." His voice was a whisper.
      Serena shivered with delight she couldn't wait to see him again.
      "I just called to tell you that Nephlite should be there by about four 
      o'clock. I told him to come and get you himself, so you can expect him at 
      your doorstep ok?"
      "Ok I'll be waiting." She smiled looking at her bag.
      "I have to go I have another interview. They are getting to be such a 
      pain." He joked. "We will talk soon. Je t'aime, Serena."
      "Je t'aime aussi, Darien." The words just rolled off her tongue.
      There was a long pause. "Say it again." His voice was hoarse.
      "Je t'aime, Darien."
      "Serena...." She heard knocking on the door. "Merde! They are here. 
      Remember where we left off ok?" Damn reporters!
      "Yes. I will."
      "Bye, chre."
      "Bye Darien." She hung up. She said it so easily to him. She couldn't 
      believe it herself. Serena walked back to the front room. "Hey."
      "Hey, so was that Darien?"
      Serena nodded grinning broadly.
      Lita and Seiya looked at each other and smiled. "Awww, isn't that cute?" 
      Serena rolled her eyes at them. Mina came out of her room and walked past 
      them and out the door again.
      "Ok that's starting to bug me." Serena couldn't believe that Mina was 
      acting this way.
      "You? I have to spend an hour on the plane with her." Lita grabbed a fork 
      and faked stabbing herself. "Not to mention the trip to the airport. It's 
      going to be agonising."
      Seiya punched her arm. "She's just mad, she'll get over it." Lita rubbed 
      her arm and pouted.
      "I guess I should be getting ready." Lita got up. "We leave in an hour." 
      She went to her room, still rubbing her arm.
      Seiya shrugged, "I gotta go double check I have everything. So I'll see ya 
      before you leave ok?"
      "Alright, talk to you later."
      He gave her a hug and left.
      Wandering around her room she checked the thermostat adjusting it to keep 
      the room warm. She moved her plants to the bathroom and filled the bathtub 
      part way to keep them watered. Then, she went through the entire suite and 
      cleaned as much as she could.
      By the time she was finished, it was three o'clock and Mina and Lita were 
      long gone, though neither of them looked happy about leaving together. 
      From what it looked like, Mina didn't appear to be wanting to talk to Lita 
      any time soon. Serena hugged them before they left and wished them a good 
      vacation, she didn't wish them a good flight because it was obvious that 
      it wouldn't be one.
      She then showered and got dressed in jeans and a white fitted shirt and 
      left her hair down. Satisfied that she would be comfortable for the long 
      trip she sat and watched TV waiting for Nephlite to arrive. An hour and a 
      half later, half way through Oprah's interview with Brad Pitt, she got a 
      knock on the door. She turned off the TV and quickly walked to the door 
      and answered it. On the other side was a tired looking Nephlite. "Hello 
      Serena. Are you ready to go?" He rubbed his eyes.
      "Yes, but you're not." She pulled him into the room and sat him down on 
      the couch. "I'll make you some coffee, you look like you could use it."
      He slumped down on the chair. "Thank you. That's very nice."
      "It's no problem." Quickly, Serena fixed him a coffee and brought it over 
      to him. Slowly, as he finished the mug off he seemed to wake up and become 
      more alert.
      "That's better. We'd better get going though, we have a long trip ahead 
      and Darien is going crazy as it is." He smiled at Serena, "He is so glad 
      that you decided to come over. He has missed you so much. You are all he 
      talks about." He shook his head incredulously.
      "I can't wait to see him either." Serena grinned looking as happy as she 
      felt. "Are you sure you're alright now? Do you want any more coffee? Some 
      breakfast?"
      He shook his head. "No we should get going. Besides we can get some on the 
      jet."
      "Jet?" Serena assumed that they would be taking a commercial flight.
      "Yes, Darien sent his plane." He looked around for her bags. "Can I take 
      them for you?"
      Very impressed, Serena handed him the large bag while she took her carry 
      on and purse. Wow, Darien had his own plane. She made one more quick check 
      of the suite and then joined Nephlite in the hall. She grabbed her coat 
      and locked the door. Nephlite led her down to Rez court to a long black 
      limo, the same one she was in before. Nephlite took her bag and put it in 
      the trunk and opened the door for her. They got in and sat down. He told 
      the driver to take them to the airport and off they went.
      The flight went slowly for Serena. She spent her time looking out the 
      window and talking to Nephlite about several topics ranging from herself 
      to Darien. She was so excited she couldn't sit still she would get up and 
      explore the plane and even got to look in the cockpit. She looked in awe 
      at all the buttons and controls, much to the amusement of the pilots. 
      Finally after Serena's third trip to the cockpit, they landed in Austria.
      They got off the plane and got into the limo that Darien had arranged to 
      pick them up and take them to the hotel. Serena stared out the window as 
      Nephlite pointed out different sights. She hardly saw any of them. All she 
      could think about was Darien, and the fact that in several minutes she 
      would be seeing him again. They finally arrived at the hotel after weaving 
      in and out of traffic for some time. Serena looked up at the huge hotel. 
      It looked very old.
      "Nephlite this place is gorgeous! It's huge! Where is Darien?" She 
      strained to see the top.
      "You two are in the penthouse." He smiled at her look of surprise. "Don't 
      look so shocked. You aren't afraid of heights are you?"
      Serena shook her head. "Nope! I guess we should go in and get unpacked 
      huh?" She couldn't wait to see Darien again.
      Nephlite smiled knowingly, it seems Darien isn't the only one going crazy.
      They walked into the hotel. The concierge recognised Nephlite and sent a 
      bellboy to take the bags and take them up to Darien's room. The elevator 
      ride was the longest one she had ever taken in her entire life. Finally, 
      the door opened to reveal a hallway. The bellboy led them to the door. He 
      put the bags down and held out his hand as if by habit. Nephlite handed 
      him a few bills and he left.
      "They are such bother." He knocked on the door and walked in taking the 
      bags with him.
      Serena's eyes widened at the splendour of the apartment. There were fresh 
      flowers in vases, strategically placed all over the room. Expensive 
      furniture decorated the lightly coloured room. Huge windows on the far 
      side of the room showed the view of the city and were draped with heavy 
      curtains. She looked around but didn't see Darien anywhere. Disappointed 
      not see him, she turned to ask Nephlite where he was, but he had 
      disappeared. In his place she found someone else.
      "Darien!" She jumped into his arms. He swung her up and held her in the 
      air. Serena clung to his broad shoulders and looked at him. It never 
      ceased to amaze her how happy she was just to see this man.
      "Serena." He held her next to his pounding heart. She looked radiant. He 
      couldn't believe how much he had missed her. He nearly went crazy waiting 
      for her to get here and now that she was he didn't want to let go.
      He looked even better than she remembered. He was dressed in jeans and a 
      tight black shirt that showed off his upper body. His eyes sparkled with 
      happiness when he put her down.
      "Serena I missed you so much!" He held her out at arm's length and looked 
      at her. "You look incredible, chre." She could have been wearing a potato 
      sack and she still would have been stunning.
      "I missed you too." She hugged him again loving the warm, protected 
      feeling. "You look great."
      He hugged her again, he forced himself to pull back. "Merci, Let me show 
      you around."
      He put his arm around her waist and guided her around the penthouse. It 
      had two floors and on the first floor she found a grand piano that sat by 
      the window. There was a bar and a huge entertainment centre with a very 
      large screen. The stereo was in a corner and there were stacks of CDs next 
      to it. The kitchen was off to the side and had a huge fridge that was 
      filled with everything. They walked out the other side. There was even a 
      fireplace off the other side of the living room.
      The second floor was as lavishly decorated as the first only it was one 
      big room. One big bedroom. The windows were decorated with the same heavy 
      curtains that were downstairs. They were drawn so Serena couldn't look 
      outside. She would have to take a look tomorrow. She noticed the bed. It 
      was a king-sized bed with big fluffy pillows strewn at the head of it. 
      There was a large walk-in closet that Serena walked in and out of several 
      times. Darien smiled at her as she did, loving her innocence. Next he 
      showed her the bathroom, she loved it even more than the closet. There was 
      a gigantic Jacuzzi tub and plants and soaps sat in dishes by the sink and 
      the tub.
      "This is amazing! I have never seen anything like this." She looked up at 
      him. "You stay in places like this all the time I suppose."
      He nodded. "Yes, but you can not know how lonely and boring it can get 
      staying in them alone." He took her hand. "Come, you must be hungry."
      Her stomach grumbled. She hadn't eaten anything since she was at Rez. She 
      couldn't eat on the plane because she was so excited and now she was 
      starving. He led her to the kitchen and opened the fridge. "What would you 
      like?"
      She stuck her head in under his arm. It was filled with everything. She 
      pointed at a coke and what looked like Black Forest cake. He pulled them 
      out and cut two huge slices then replaced the rest of the cake. They went 
      and sat down on the couch in front of the fireplace and gorged themselves.
      "This is so good!" Serena took another bite.
      "Yes, it is." Darien was still looking at her. He wiped some cream off of 
      her lip with is forefinger. "You are so cute."
      Serena blushed. He played with her fingers and kissed her hand. He stopped 
      and turned her arm over. He had spotted the bruise on her arm.
      "What happened to your arm?" He looked concerned.
      Serena looked at him and considered lying but couldn't, not to him. "This 
      guy grabbed my arm during an argument." She tried to downplay the whole 
      thing.
      "Who did?" His jaw was clenched. Darien felt an overwhelming urge to get 
      his hands on who ever did this to her.
      Serena saw him suddenly tense up and knew what he was thinking. "Please 
      calm down, Darien. It was nothing. My ex boyfriend wanted me to go back to 
      him. I said no and he got mad." Serena decided that it was time to tell 
      Darien the whole story. She told him everything from beginning to end.
      Quietly he listened to her recount her high school days as she told him 
      about how she was terribly hurt by Jeff.
      She told him how she thought she was in love with him. And after going out 
      with him for two years, just after she lost her innocence to him, she 
      found out that he had been cheating on her for months. She felt like such 
      a fool. And how after her final exams, though she had the grades to get 
      into any university in Canada, she ran away to take refuge in the jungles 
      of Indonesia to try and take the pain away. She explained how it did help 
      a little but she was unable to let herself trust any man, that was until 
      she met him.
      Serena told Darien how she fell for him that night they went for coffee. 
      She had never met anyone like him before. He was everything that she could 
      ever hope for in a man. He was fun to talk to, interesting and very 
      worldly. She told him how she was crushed by the encounter with Sabine and 
      that it almost made her want to forget about Darien as well. "If you 
      hadn't come that night you probably never would have heard from me again." 
      She shook her head. "I think I would have totally shut down completely." 
      She looked into his eyes. "I can't believe I let you talk to me though. If 
      you had been anyone else, I would have kicked you out without listening."
      He took her hand. "I'm glad that you did listen. To tell you the truth if 
      you had called security I would have kicked up quite a fuss." He wriggled 
      his eyebrows.
      Serena smiled. "I'm sure you would have." She could just imagine the 
      perfectly poised and reserved Darien le Conte kicking and screaming 
      because a girl wouldn't talk to him. That would be something for the 
      papers.
      "Serena why didn't you tell me?" He hugged her and took another look at 
      her arm. "I wouldn't have left you there that night if you had told me 
      this." He would have stayed and talked things through with her. "How could 
      anyone treat you like that?" His eyes glittered angrily at the thought but 
      then he realised that Serena didn't need him to blow up right now. She 
      needed him to care for her, to show her how much she meant to him. Show 
      her what real love was like. "Is there anything that I can do?"
      Serena shook her head. "You've already done more than most." Her voice was 
      rough. "You made me feel again."
      Darien was in seventh heaven when he heard her say that. Tenderly he 
      kissed the bruise. The sweet gesture brought a tear to her eye. He saw it 
      and looked past them, into the depths of her eyes. "I love you Serena." He 
      moved closer. "I promise you. No one is ever going to hurt you ever 
again."
      She looked into his eyes and knew that he meant it. "I love you too 
      Darien." She held her breath as his lips got closer to hers. Gently he 
      kissed her. Serena's heart leapt. It wasn't the first time he kissed her, 
      yet somehow it felt completely different. It was sweeter, better. 
      Gradually the kiss deepened. Timidly, she put her arms around his neck and 
      with one hand toyed with is hair. He brought his hands up to frame her 
      face, loving the feel of her smooth skin on his fingertips.
      Serena moved closer melting to him letting herself feel for the first 
      time. The feelings alarmed her at first. Serena never felt anything so 
      intense before. She pulled back and looked at him. When she was with 
      Jeff...she stopped thinking about him. Nothing with Jeff could even 
      compare to this. Her first impulse was to suppress the new sensations. A 
      tiny part of her mind tried to desperately, but her heart told her to go 
      with it.
      Darien saw the struggle within her. Gently, he rained kisses over her face 
      then returned to her mouth, teasing her tongue with his.
      Serena. All of his senses were filled with her. Her scent, her taste, her 
      feel; everything about her had his body screaming for more. He needed to 
      show her what genuine love was like. Her taste was intoxicating and he 
      wanted more. Darien had thought about kissing her like this since he first 
      saw her, but nothing prepared him for the real thing. He let all of his 
      feelings for her cascade into the kiss. For once he was able to let 
      himself go completely. The incredible feeling had him trembling when he 
      pulled back to look at her. A hand on either side of her face he looked 
      into her eyes. There were no doubts or fears there. Just love and desire.
      The intense look in his eye told her he was asking if she was sure. 
      Without a word she found his mouth with hers and kissed him, a deep and 
      drugging kiss. She was very sure. He groaned, pulling her closer to him. 
      Effortlessly, he picked her up. He continued to kiss her, light and 
      promising, as he carried her to the stairs. Serena wound her arms around 
      his neck and lost her self in the sensation his lips gave her.
      Half way up the stairs, Darien pulled away. Serena gave him a confused 
      look. Had she done something wrong? The look he gave her told her that she 
      hadn't. The blood was roaring through her ears so loudly that she hadn't 
      heard the knock at the door. Carefully, Darien set her down on her feet 
      and went to answer the door, mumbling something about killing who ever it 
      was as he went.
      Nephlite stood at the door, looking quite worried. "Darien, I'm sorry to 
      interrupt, but you have another interview in a few moments." He glanced up 
      and saw Serena on the stairs and gave her an apologetic look. "Serena, my 
      apologies." He looked at a rumpled Darien and back at an equally 
      dishevelled Serena and realised what he had done. "Oh, I'm really sorry." 
      He mumbled something else and looked at Darien. "They will be here in 
      about ten minutes." His ears went red.
      "Nephlite, it's ok." Serena tried to ease the awkward moment. Darien 
      patted him on the back and Nephlite left.
      Darien joined Serena back on the stairs. Serena looked at him. "He's such 
      a nice guy huh?"
      "Yes, but with terrible timing." He put a hand on her cheek and kissed her 
      in a way that had her knees weakening again. With great difficulty he 
      dragged himself back. "Come we must get dressed before I kiss you again 
      and we embarrass poor Nephlite in front of the reporters." He smiled 
      pulling her up the stairs.
      "We?" Serena looked at him. She ran her hands self-consciously through her 
      tousled hair.
      "Of course, they will be very interested in my girlfriend, non?" He put 
      her bag on the bed.
      "Come on, I want the world to know."
      Serena grinned at him and began going through the bag. What did you wear 
      to an interview? She pulled out an iridescent deep blue silk suit, a white 
      blouse to wear underneath, black ankle boots and an accessory bag. She 
      looked up at Darien and shyly headed for the bathroom. Even though just 
      moments before she was ready to completely give herself to him, she wasn't 
      ready to change in front of him yet.
      Smiling, Darien shook his head at her modesty. "You are so cute." Serena 
      peeked out from behind the door and stuck her tongue out at him. He 
      laughed again and proceeded to get dressed. Several minutes later, she 
      emerged dressed and accessorized to perfection.
      Darien walked over to her and held her hands out and looked at her. 
      "Amazing. You look wonderful. They will love you."
      "You look great too." He was wearing a pair of black trousers and a dress 
      shirt. Darien made even the simple combination look utterly devastating.
      He kissed her hands then reached behind him. "I have something for you." 
      He led her over to the bed and sat her down. "Close your eyes, chre." He 
      smiled when she did without hesitation.
      She felt his fingers on her neck as he removed the necklace that she was 
      wearing. It was replaced with something heavier and cooler.
      "Ok open your eyes."
      Serena opened her eyes and gasped. He held a mirror in front of her so she 
      could see.
      On her neck was a sparkling sapphire the size of a teaspoon. It was shaped 
      like a teardrop and hung on a chain of diamonds. Serena stroked it with 
      her fingers as if to see if it was an illusion. It was very real.
      Surprised, Serena looked at Darien. "Darien, it's gorgeous!" He leaned 
      down and kissed her neck. "How did you know that I love sapphires?
      Darien knelt down beside her looking at their reflections in the mirror. 
      "You told me." Serena looked confused. "Remember that night I found you? 
      And we went for coffee? You told me you love the colour blue." He winked. 
      "And sapphires are blue so I figured that you would like them."
      Serena nodded, "And you told me that you like green." She kissed him on 
      the cheek. "This is the best gift I've ever gotten, Darien. Thank you."
      "You don't have to thank me." He caressed her cheek. He turned at the 
      sound of the front door opening down stairs. "I think I hear Nephlite 
      downstairs." He took her hands and helped her up. "It's time for you to 
      dazzle them."
      The interview went by quickly and was straightforward. They asked 
      questions about Darien and he answered clearly and concisely. He spoke 
      openly to them answering all of their questions with a smile. They also 
      asked questions about Serena. She answered shyly while she clung to 
      Darien's hand for moral support. Then they asked about the two of them, 
      questions about how they met and where they were headed. Smiling, they 
      answered them all except for the one about where they were headed. Serena 
      looked at Darien and he winked. "No comment." The woman interviewing them 
      looked a little disappointed but didn't push the question. Finally they 
      took photos of the adoring couple, thanked them copiously and left.
      "That was simple." Relieved it was all over Serena looked at Darien as he 
      shut the door.
      "Yes, it was with you here." He smiled at her. "So what would you like to 
      eat? You never did finish off that cake. You must be starving." He led her 
      to the kitchen.
      "I could really go for a steak right now." Serena remembered she saw some 
      in the kitchen earlier. She rubbed her stomach as it growled again.
      "Ok I will make you one." He reached into the fridge and pulled out a 
      couple of steaks and some vegetables for a salad.
      "You know how to cook?" Somehow she couldn't see him cooking.
      He nodded, "Of course. My maman made sure that I knew how before I left 
      for university."
      "Sounds like my mother. So you want any help?" She reached for the 
      vegetables.
      "You can make the salad if you like." He was already at work seasoning the 
      steaks.
      Serena took off her jacket and started making the salad. Working in such 
      close proximity had a devastating effect on Serena's senses. She was aware 
      of his every movement. She shivered every time he brushed past her. By the 
      time the food was done she didn't know what she was hungrier for, the food 
      or Darien's kisses.
      They sat down at the dining table and silently ate dinner. They looked at 
      each other again and again, the tension almost tangible. Serena eventually 
      gave up trying to eat and put down her fork claiming that she was full, 
      Darien did the same. They caught each other's gazes.
      Darien watched Serena fidget with her napkin and unconsciously lick her 
      lips. He watched and became conscious of the fact that he wanted to trace 
      its path with his own. Darien grasped her arm and guided her over to the 
      couch. He sat down and pulled her down on his lap. For a long time they 
      just sat there like that, no one talking, just holding each other and 
      staring into the fire.
      Serena couldn't remember the last time she felt so content. It was so easy 
      for her to relax with him. She leaned her head against his chest and he 
      rested his cheek on the top of her head. Gently, he put a finger under her 
      chin and lifted it so that she looked up at him. Slowly he bent down to 
      kiss her.
      Unable to contain her fatigue any longer, Serena yawned into his 
      mouth.Darien looked at her dismayed look and laughed. "Pauvre, Serena. So 
      tired. Come, we sleep now, non?"
      Serena nodded and yawning again, let him lead her up the stairs.
      They stood looking at each other in the bedroom. "I need a bath." Serena 
      blurted it out. She suddenly felt tense and knew that a bath would prolong 
      the moment when he would climb into bed with her. She was sure it was what 
      she wanted yet she was incredibly nervous and needed to delay the 
      inevitable. She started to walk to the bathroom door.
      He patted the bed. "Come. Lay down and I will run the water for you." 
      Serena walked back and lay on the bed and waited like he asked. A few 
      minutes later he returned. "It is done." She went to the bathroom and shut 
      the door. Darien had filled the tub with bubbles and lit scented candles 
      around it. Serena smiled at his thoughtfulness. On a chaise next to the 
      tub lay a gorgeous ivory coloured silk negligee and matching robe. She 
      couldn't believe that all this was for her. The tightness in her shoulders 
      began to come back when she saw them.
      Carefully she took off the necklace and put it on the vanity in the corner 
      of the room. She took off her clothes and climbed into the tub and lay 
      back, feeling the fatigue drain from her. She closed her eyes and lay 
      back. She lay there thinking of what she was about to do. She willed 
      herself to relax and concentrated on listening to the water swirl around 
      her.
      Darien had noticed how tense she was. And he didn't want to rush her into 
      anything that she would regret later on. Darien decided to follow her 
      lead. When she was ready he would be there. He sat on the edge of the bed 
      and waited for her to come out. When she didn't come out in twenty 
      minutes, he decided to see if she was ok. He didn't want to walk in, 
      though, out of respect for her modesty. Darien knocked on the door. 
      "Serena, are you alright?"
      Serena was half asleep when she heard him knock. "I'm alright. I'll be 
      right out." She got out and pulled a towel off the pile and dried herself 
      off. She slipped on the negligee and carefully tied the robe, making sure 
      everything was covered. She then brushed her hair and taking a deep 
      breath, walked into the bedroom. He was waiting for her beside the bed.
      the sight of Serena's lithe body barely veiled in the clingly fabric 
      nearly undid all of Darien's good intentions. "Serena, you must be getting 
      sick of hearing this, but you look incredible."
      She blushed and fidgeted with the tie on the robe. Serena was so nervous 
      she thought that she was going to pass out. "Thanks." She looked at him, 
      "Um...are you going to..." she looked at the bed.
      He walked over and took her hands, guiding her to the bed. "No chre,"
      *No?* She looked at him puzzled as she got in the bed.
      "You are tired and if I stay here tonight neither of us will get any 
      sleep. I will be downstairs on the couch." He kissed her, a gentle 
      lingering kiss. He pulled back, "Bonsoir, Serena." He left the room.
      Serena felt a slight twinge of disappointed but it didn't last long. As 
      soon as her head hit the pillow she was asleep.
      ----
      The next morning, Serena woke up to beautiful music drifting up the 
      stairs. She looked around the room and remembered where she was and what 
      had happened the night before. Smiling she stretched and sat up. The 
      curtains were still drawn but the bright sunlight still shone through. 
      Getting up she walked over to the window and drew the curtains revealing a 
      gorgeous view of the city. She took a moment to look out over the city and 
      watch the people bustle by and the cars zoom past.
      It was amazing how the atmosphere outside differed so greatly with what 
      was going on inside the apartment. Inside she felt relaxed and content, 
      while outside people and cars rushed around in a frenzy of movement. She 
      went to the bathroom and found Darien's shaving equipment out on the sink, 
      the whole room smelled like his after-shave. She inhaled deeply and then 
      went to the vanity to find the necklace. She picked it up and let it twirl 
      in the morning sunlight. He was so different from the guys she had known. 
      He didn't push her, he was sweet, giving, intelligent, funny... the list 
      just went on and on. Smiling she put it down and headed downstairs to find 
      Darien.
      She pulled the robe around her and practically skipped down the stairs. In 
      the living room, Darien was practising a piece that Serena recognised as 
      Mozart. She smiled, he looked more like a starving student rather than a 
      world famous musician. He was barefoot and wearing raggedy old jeans and a 
      T-shirt that looked equally as old. His eyes were closed and he was 
      immersed in the melody as his fingers caressed the keys. Serena stood on 
      the bottom step listening to the music letting it fill her heart. It was a 
      sweet, uplifting piece and reminded her very much of the man playing it. 
      Serena smiled and crept up behind him and wrapped her arms around his 
      waist. He stopped playing.
      "Mmmm. Bon matin, chre. Did you sleep well?" He turned around and gave 
      her a kiss.
      "Heavenly. How about you?" She loved looking at his face.
      "Ok but I think I would sleep better if I hadn't fallen off the couch so 
      many times." He laughed at Serena's shocked look. He stood up and pulled 
      her body to his. "I was just kidding. I slept well. I did not wake you did 
      I?" Serena shook her head. "Good." He disappeared into the kitchen. And 
      came back with a plate of crepes and a bowl of fruit salad. She joined him 
      on the couch. "What would you like first?"
      "Mango," She went to pick up a slice but he beat her to it. He held it in 
      front of her mouth. Shyly she ate it from his fingers, trying not to touch 
      him.
      Slowly, piece-by-piece, Darien fed her the fruit until the entire bowl was 
      empty. Several times her lips made contact with his fingers and he thought 
      that he would go mad with wanting her. He fought every instinct that made 
      him want to pick her up and take her upstairs. Determined to go slow, 
      Darien gently kissed her tasting the fruit that he just fed her.
      Serena kissed him back. She had never been treated with this kind of 
      reverence before in her entire life. It both confused and thrilled her. 
      Darien tasted of coffee and something that was entirely him. His hand 
      moved up to her cheek and he lightly caressed her skin sending shivers 
      down her spine. Serena moved herself against him and wound her arms around 
      his neck. Darien let out a soft groan. She felt so good next to him. His 
      hand slid to her shoulder and he pushed the robe off, letting it slide to 
      the floor.
      Serena shivered when the cool air touched her heated skin. Darien nuzzled 
      her neck and kissed a path to her collarbone. His determination to go slow 
      crumbled when she let out a soft moan. He picked her up and continued to 
      kiss her as he carried her up to the bedroom. This time there was no knock 
      on the door to stop them.
      He laid her on the bed and looked at her. She had a perfect body. He let 
      his gaze slide down the length of her and back up again to linger on her 
      breasts. They tightened at his hungry gaze. Shyly, Serena tried to cover 
      herself. He gently took her hand away and put it to his pounding heart. 
      Still holding her hand he knelt down and lowered his mouth to her breast. 
      Lightly he began to tease her with his tongue and teeth through the thin 
      fabric.
      Serena couldn't breathe. She thought that things would go quickly after he 
      brought her upstairs, but he continued to give, continued to wreak havoc 
      with her senses. She was confused but couldn't stop to analyse. She 
      couldn't think with him doing the delicious things he was doing. His mouth 
      returned to hers and his tongue explored the recesses of her mouth. Her 
      body arched as he slid the silk and lace from her body. He pulled back to 
      look at her.
      "I have wanted to look at you for so long." His breath was as fast and 
      uneven as her own. Serena reached up tentatively and pulled his shirt off 
      over his head and ran her fingers over his chest. She wanted to feel him. 
      Darien groaned.
      Serena wanted him. She had never wanted anyone like this before. She 
      pulled him down to kiss him. Darien came down to her, his hard body 
      pressed tightly against hers. He did things to her she never imagined. 
      Made her feel things she never dreamt of. Not one part of her body was 
      left unexplored. Her hands were in his hair, holding him to her mouth so 
      that she could taste him with hot, wet kisses.
      Darien forced himself to go slowly, to show her how much she meant to him, 
      to show her what love was like. He skimmed his hands down her body. Darien 
      continued to kiss and touch, making her writhe and claw at his back. He 
      had never felt a pleasure so intense before. Slowly he drew his hand up 
      her thigh and Serena convulsed.
      Confusion and pleasure hit Serena all at once. She tried to fight it while 
      yearning for more. She fought for breath as the climax hit her. She clawed 
      at Darien as the waves of pleasure washed over her. Darien brought his 
      mouth back to hers taking in her cries and driving her up again.
      She writhed underneath him. "Darien." Serena wanted to scream his name but 
      could only whisper it. "I need..." she couldn't think, couldn't breathe. 
      She tried to pull him down to her.
      He resisted. "Tell me." He needed to hear her say it. Needed to know how 
      much she wanted him. He ravaged her mouth then drew back, breathing 
      heavily. "Serena look at me and tell me." He kissed her again hovering 
      just above her.
      "Darien, I need you!" Serena kissed Darien with everything she had. He 
      took her in one long thrust. Darien watched her face as she screamed with 
      pleasure and her body convulsed again. It was the last thing he knew 
      before passion dragged him under.
      An hour later Serena woke to find Darien gazing at her. "Hi." She smiled 
      feeling warm, replete and absolutely fantastic.
      He kissed her. "Hi." He pulled her over to him and held her. He toyed with 
      her hair breathing in her scent. Lazily, he ran his other hand down her 
      side.
      "Darien, I..." she looked at him. "That was..." Incredible. Amazing. 
      Fantastic. No word seemed able to encompass what she was feeling. What she 
      felt when she was with him. It was all too amazing. "I've never..."
      He looked at Serena and kissed her. "I know. Me neither, chre." Darien 
      felt wonderfully languid. Gazing at her, he took in her dreamy look and 
      felt a surge of supreme male satisfaction. He did that to her. He made her 
      scream his name in ecstasy. Darien smiled and nibbled her fingertips. 
      "Stay with me."
      She turned to him and smiled. "I would love to, but I have to get back to 
      school." She ran her fingers over his chest again.
      "I know but what am I going to do without you?" He hugged her. "I love 
      you."
      "I love you too. We'll figure out something." She twisted her head around 
      to look at him. He had a grin on his face. "What?"
      "I want you." He kissed her again and pulled her against him letting her 
      know how much he wanted her.
      Serena giggled as he pulled the covers over them.
      ----
      Later that afternoon they decided they should get up. Darien had cleared 
      his schedule for the day so that they could spend some time together. They 
      got dressed, Serena in a grey wool skirt and sweater while Darien wore a 
      sweater, leather jacket and khaki pants. Arm in arm they walked down to 
      the lobby to catch a cab so that Darien could show her some of the sights 
      of the city.
      Down at the front of the hotel, several tabloid photographers were waiting 
      for them to come down. Obviously they had gotten wind of Darien and 
      Serena's romance and were waiting to ambush them. At their approach the 
      photographers made a mad scramble to get as close as they could to Serena 
      and Darien and started taking photographs of the happy couple. Taken off 
      guard, Serena stopped dead and looked at Darien, he did not look happy. 
      Cobalt eyes flashing angrily, he quickly took off his coat and put it over 
      Serena's head, leading her through the rabble to the waiting cab. They got 
      in and sped off.
      "They are such sleaze!" Darien looked out the back window. Serena handed 
      his coat back to him.
      "Do they do this to you a lot?" Serena looked at him and rubbed her finger 
      over his creased brow as she tried to blink away the flash spots that were 
      now blurring her vision.
      "Only when then think they can exploit something." Degree by degree she 
      saw him relax.
      "I just don't want them to turn what we have into something cheap and 
      ugly." He put an arm around her waist. "They will be following us now, 
      would you mind if we took in the sights another day?" Serena shook her 
      head. "How about we go for dinner instead?"
      "Sure."
      Darien leaned forward and told the driver to take them to a restaurant 
      instead.
      "I know a very good restaurant." He kissed her feeling a little guilty 
      about not taking her out like he promised. "You understand right?"
      "Yes, don't worry. The last thing I want is a bunch of people taking 
      pictures of me." She looked over at Darien and smiled encouragingly. 
      "Besides I'm starving. I haven't had a decent meal since I got here." She 
      jabbed him lightly in the chest. They both knew why that was.
      Darien laughed as they settled back for the ride.
      The cab stopped in front of the restaurant and they got out. They walked 
      past the doorman and into the foyer. The maitre'd recognised him 
      immediately and almost tripped over the leg of a chair in his rush to get 
      to Darien.
      "Herr le Conte! A pleasure to see you! We have a table for you sir, right 
      this way." He personally led them to an intimate little table off to the 
      side of the room, a discrete distance from the windows. "Here you go. I 
      hope this is satisfactory." He pulled out the chair for Serena, Darien 
      waited until she was seated and then took the seat opposite to her. "Would 
      you like anything to start?"
      Darien picked up the wine list and scanned it. "Do you have a house red?" 
      The man clapped his hands and a waiter appeared at this side. He spoke to 
      him in German and the waiter disappeared returning moments later with a 
      bottle of wine. He held it out over his arm for Darien's inspection, who 
      accepted it with a nod. He pulled it back and opened the bottle. Darien 
      then looked over at Serena and she nodded. He proceeded to order for the 
      both of them. Done, Darien thanked the maitre'd and the man hurried off.
      "They really like you here don't they?" Serena smiled at Darien and 
      laughed. "Did you see him nearly kill himself to get to you?"
      Darien laughed. "You'd be surprised what people do when they know that you 
      have money." He picked up his wine glass, she did the same. "To chance 
      encounters."
      "To us." They touched rims.
      The rest of the meal went by excruciatingly slow for Darien. He watched as 
      Serena took bites of the food and sips of wine. Everything she did was so 
      seductive even the simple act of eating had his body reacting to her. 
      Darien shifted in his seat and continued to watch. She had a cute habit of 
      licking her lips unconsciously when she knew she was being watched. 
      Finally she finished eating, delicately wiped the corners of her mouth 
      with her napkin, looked over at him and smiled. She evidently had no idea 
      what effect she had on his senses.
      Serena saw the look on his face when she gazed at him. He was so gorgeous! 
      Butterflies fluttered in her stomach and she shuffled her feet around 
      uncomfortably. Her foot touched his and a jolt went through her, god she 
      wanted him.
      He leaned across the table and took her hands in his and proceeded to kiss 
      every one of Serena's fingers, not caring who wanted to look. He noticed a 
      lot of people did but it didn't bother him in the least. All that mattered 
      was being able to touch her. To feel her silky ivory skin against his. She 
      looked so beautiful sitting across from him that he just couldn't help 
      himself. His dark blue eyes sparkled mischievously as he grinned at 
      Serena's obvious discomfort.
      "Chre, relax." He kissed her palm.
      Serena shivered and licked her lips again. He brought his finger to her 
      lips and lightly ran them over the path her tongue took. Her lips parted 
      as she drew an uneven breath.
      Darien dragged himself back into his chair before he couldn't stop himself 
      from making love to her right on the table. "Serena, you don't know what 
      you do to me." He smiled at her rapt expression. "Do you want dessert?"
      She wanted Darien, not dessert. Wavering from her body's powerful response 
      to his, Serena just shook her head no.
      Darien called to the nearest waiter. The maitre'd appeared at his side. 
      Obviously he had been watching and knew that they were done eating. Darien 
      paid the check and stood up and pulled Serena's chair out for her.
      "Herr le Conte, I have taken the liberty of calling a cab for you. Just to 
      warn you there are reporters waiting for you outside." Darien nodded and 
      thanked him. "We hope to have you again soon," he kissed Serena's hand. 
      "You two make a lovely couple." The man walked off grinning from ear to 
      ear having done something for Darien. Serena smiled at Darien and shook 
      her head. Quickly they left the restaurant and jumped into the cab, 
      rushing past the photographers.
      The cab ride home was quiet, but not at all as relaxed as their trip 
      there. They stared silently at each other the entire way. Experimentally, 
      Serena put her hand on his knee and slowly slid it up his thigh. Darien 
      gasped and grabbed her hand and put it to his heart. She could feel it 
      pounding in his chest. He toyed with her hair and lightly touched her 
      cheek then pulled her over for a searing kiss. The cab finally pulled up 
      to the hotel. Hurriedly Darien paid the driver and they quickly walked 
      into the lobby and pressed the button for the elevator.
      At the penthouse they all but ran through the doorway. Darien grabbed her 
      arm and dragged her to him. Pressing her up against the door he kissed 
      her, hot, wet kisses that made her knees weak and her heart pound. He took 
      off her coat and tossed it forgotten over his shoulder. Serena gripped his 
      coat with both hands and dragged it off then stuck her hands under his 
      sweater and pulled it off over his head. She ran her hands all over his 
      chest loving the feel of his muscles on her hands.
      Darien moaned. "I want you Serena."
      Serena pulled back and smiled wickedly. "You'll have to catch me first!" 
      She turned and ran up the stairs.
      Laughing, Darien followed.
      Several hours later they sat in the bath with bubbles up to their noses. 
      Serena leaned up against Darien's chest and sighed. She felt so happy and 
      content with him. It amazed her how they clicked. They liked the same 
      movies, laughed at the same things and had the same interests. She was 
      surprised at how intimate they had become in such a short time. It wasn't 
      long ago when she couldn't even imagine herself with a man and now here 
      she was sharing a bath with the most incredible man she ever met. He was 
      perfect. He challenged her mind and made her laugh. And physically, Serena 
      shivered at the thought, never had she felt anything like what Darien made 
      her feel.
      Darien nuzzled her neck. "What are you thinking chre?" He whispered 
      against her neck and wrapped his arms around her waist.
      "Mmmm, I was just thinking about how perfect this is." She smiled 
dreamily.
      "What do you expect when two halves of the same being come together?" He 
      smiled at her shocked look.
      Her sky blue eyes widened a little, betraying her surprise. "You've read 
      Plato?" She took a hand full of bubbles and stuck them on his nose.
      "Bien sur."
      Serena looked up at him and grinned. He was a surprise a minute.
      "You don't think that I'm only interested in music do you?" he looked at 
      her in mock disbelief. "You think that I am just a dumb musician."
      "Of course not..." her words came to a spluttering halt when he dumped 
      water over her head. "Oh, you asked for it now!" She started splashing 
      water at him. Of course he fought back. By the time they were tired out, a 
      few inches of water was left in the tub along with some rapidly 
      disappearing bubbles. Laughing, they got out. Darien grabbed a towel and 
      started to dry her off.
      Smiling, Serena snatched the towel away from him. "Uh uh, no. I'll dry 
      myself off."
      He gave her a hurt look, but his smiling eyes betrayed him. "But why?" He 
      picked up another towel and returned to the pleasant task of drying her 
      off.
      Serena grabbed that one as well. "We'll never get out of here if you dry 
      me off."
      Darien leaned over and kissed her, picking her up at the same time. 
      "That's the idea." He was still kissing her when he joined her on the bed.
      ----
      Serena stretched lazily when she woke the next morning. Reaching over she 
      found the other half of the bed empty except for a single red rose and a 
      note. Disappointed that he wasn't there she sat up. Serena unfolded and 
      read the note.
      Serena, I wish I could be there to see your beautiful eyes open when you 
      wake but unfortunately I am needed at the opera house. Please forgive me. 
      Whenever you are ready I have left instructions with the concierge to get 
      a limo for you and bring you to the opera.
      Je t'aime, Darien.
      PS. There is a surprise for you in the closet.
      Smiling, Serena got up out of bed and walked over to the closet. Opening 
      the door Serena stuck her head in and found a giant teddy bear smiling 
      back at her.
      "Aren't you cute!" Serena scooped it up and gave it a big hug. Feeling 
      something cold on her neck she lifted up the bear and looked at it. On 
      it's neck hung a key on a gold chain. Serena took it off and looked at it. 
      Puzzled, she brought it with her to the bathroom and placed it on the 
      vanity as she took a quick bath and put her make up on. Twenty minutes 
      later she was dressed in jeans and a silk blouse. She went back into the 
      bathroom and picked up the key and fastened the clasp around her neck as 
      she walked down the stairs. She would have to ask Darien about it when she 
      saw him. She stopped in the kitchen for a bite to eat and grabbing her 
      coat walked to the elevator and took it to the lobby.
      The elevator doors opened and she walked out. The concierge immediately 
      spotted her and walked over. "Fraulein Cole! Good morning! The limo is 
      waiting." Several other guests overheard him and looked over at her 
      apparently wondering who she was. He escorted her to the limo. Serena 
      cautiously looked out and was surprised to see that there were no 
      photographers around. The concierge noticed her look. "They all followed 
      Herr le Conte to the opera. So you don't have to worry. At least not until 
      you get there." He looked over at the driver "Staatsoper." The driver 
      nodded. "He will take you to the Opera house where Herr le Conte is 
      waiting." He took her hand and helped her in the door. "Have a good day." 
      Grinning broadly, he shut the door and Serena was off.
      Serena stared at the buildings as they whizzed by. Vienna was such a 
      gorgeous city she hoped that she would get a chance to see the sights 
      soon. The car stopped and the driver opened her door. Serena got out and 
      looked at the building before her. It was incredibly ornate and looked 
      very old. She hardly got a chance to admire it when she was swarmed by 
      photographers. Serena rushed past them, up the steps and into the 
building.
      Inside was just as busy as it was outside. People were everywhere running 
      about getting things set up for tonight's performance. Serena walked in 
      and looked around for Darien but couldn't see him so she walked in a bit 
      further. Not noticing that she had attracted the attention of a security 
      guard who now approached her.
      "What are you doing here?" He grabbed her arm and dragged her to one side, 
      away from all the activity. "Only authorized personnel are allowed in 
      here."
      Serena just looked at him stunned. "I'm here to see Monsieur le Conte, now 
      if you will let me go!" She tried to pull her arm away from him but he 
      wouldn't let go.
      "How do you know Herr le Conte?" It was obvious he wasn't about to let her 
      go.
      Serena glared at him. "That's none of you business! Now let me go!"
      "No. You're coming with me!" He gripped harder and pulled her along behind 
      him. "You cannot just come in here and expect to see a man such as him 
      without authorization." He looked very angry. Serena wasn't about to back 
      down and continued to try and break his grip.
      "I'm his girlfriend!" Desperate to get away from him Serena started to 
      scream, "Darien! Nephlite! Help me!" She tried to pull away but again she 
      couldn't. She contemplated hitting him but it would just make matters 
      worse. So she continued to scream for Darien.
      Darien was in the middle of a sound check when he heard noise coming from 
      the entrance. It's probably another photographer trying to sneak in. It 
      was happening frequently lately and was becoming almost routine. He 
      decided to check it out anyway. Darien stuck his head out the door and 
      came out of a room to see what the commotion was all about. He ambled his 
      way down the hall and into the large room where he stopped dead in his 
      tracks. His eyes widened when he saw what the guard was doing to Serena.
      Enraged, he ran over. "Let go of her right now!" Darien roared as he 
      grabbed the guard's arm and removed it, none too nicely, off of Serena. He 
      put his arm around her protectively, glaring at the poor guard. Serena had 
      never seen him so angry. "What do you think you are doing?"
      "She was trying to sneak in." He said weakly. The guard looked confused.
      "This is my girlfriend!" Disgusted with him, Darien looked at Serena's arm 
      making sure she wasn't hurt. Sufficiently reassured that she wasn't, he 
      turned his attention back to the guard.
      "Get out of my sight! You're fired!"
      Serena stepped in between them and placed a hand on Darien's arm. "Darien, 
      he was just doing his job. He didn't know who I was." He still looked 
      incensed. "Please, Darien, he didn't hurt me." Serena caressed his cheek 
      and looked into his eyes asking him to understand.
      Jaw still set he nodded. Serena gave him a hug.
      The guard gave Serena a grateful look, "Thank you, fraulein. I am so 
      sorry." He bowed.Serena just waved her hand. "It's ok." She hugged Darien 
      when the guard went back to his post.
      "You know that I cannot refuse you." Darien lifted her chin to kiss her. 
      "You are too understanding."
      Serena wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back. "And you worry 
      about me too much." The crowd that had gathered began to disperse now that 
      the show was over.
      "Of course, I don't want anything to harm you, ever." The necklace caught 
      the sunlight attracting his sharp eyes. "Ah, you found the key." He 
      fingered it lightly and let it fall back to her chest. His eyes lingered 
      on the slight valley where the key rested. He tore his eyes away and 
      looked into her eyes.
      "Yes," she touched it. "I haven't figured it out yet." He pulled her onto 
      the stage and sat her down on the piano bench.
      "You do not have any idea?" He kissed her, she looked so sweet. She shook 
      her head.
      "It's the key to my heart." He saw the look on her face and knew that she 
      didn't believe him. He laughed. "Ok, ok. It is the key to my home in 
      Paris."
      Serena's eyes widened.
      He put his finger on her lips. "Now before you say no." He knew she would 
      refuse. He sat down beside her and put his arm around her waist. "I want 
      you to have it. It is for whenever you decide to come and see me and for 
      when you decide to stay."
      Serena looked at him speechless, all she could do was throw her arms 
      around his neck and kiss him. Finally she managed a breathless, "Thank 
      you."
      He took her fingers and kissed their tips. "I told you before you do not 
      have to thank me." He stood up. "Now would you like to see how we set up 
      for a proper concert?" Serena nodded.
      A couple of hours of frenzied activity later, Darien had everything set up 
      the way that he liked and they returned to the hotel to dress for the 
      performance.
      Like the day before, breathless from the ride back they rushed through the 
      lobby and back up to the penthouse. Once in the room, Darien grabbed her 
      and kissed her. They fell onto the couch laughing.
      "Mmmm, I missed you today chre." He began kissing her neck, knowing how 
      much she enjoyed it.
      Serena closed her eyes. "I missed you too, Darien."
      "When I saw what the idiot guard was doing to you I nearly went crazy." 
      Slowly, his clever hands unbuttoned her blouse and explored the skin bared 
      underneath. His mouth followed his hands, moving lower and lower. "I don't 
      know what I would have done if he had hurt you."
      Serena's eyes closed. She ran her fingers through his silky hair. He 
      moaned. Her eyes snapped open. The concert! "Darien...we have to get 
      dressed." The last thing on Serena's mind was getting dressed. His tongue 
      was doing exquisite things to her senses. Serena shivered. But it was a 
      big performance that he couldn't miss... "Darien..."
      "That is the good thing about being the performer. They cannot start the 
      performance without me." He gave her a mischievous grin and continued to 
      tease her with his tongue.She gave him a playful shove. "Darien, come on!" 
      Serena knew if he kept persisting she would be helpless to stop him.
      "But we won't get back here until quite a while later."
      That caught her attention. Serena stopped and looked at him, "How much 
      later?"
      Darien smiled. "Well we have the performance, then the reception, then we 
      have dinner with a bunch of boring people and then we come home." He 
      pouted. "I need you now."
      Serena laughed, "Let's get dressed." She pulled him up off the couch and 
      up the stairs. Getting dressed with Darien in the room took a great deal 
      of self control. He gave her looks that almost had her forgetting about 
      getting dressed all together; but somehow they managed.
      Tonight Serena wore a full length, emerald green gown. The full skirt 
      showed off her already tiny waist and her creamy skin was exposed by the 
      off the shoulder bodice.
      Darien was wearing the same sort of tux that she met him in. Black with 
      tails, he looked very elegant in it. She saw as he came up behind her in 
      the mirror. He put his arms around her. "Magnifique!" He smiled at her 
      reflection. "I have something else for you." He pulled her over to the 
      bed, sat her down and kneeled in front of her. "You know how I feel about 
      you. And I know that you're going to say it is too soon, but I wanted you 
      to have this." He opened the case he held in his hand. Inside, nestled in 
      the black velvet, was a gorgeous diamond ring. It was a princess cut 
      diamond, the square cut brilliantly reflected the light. It was set in 
      platinum with smaller trillium cut stones on either side. Serena stared at 
      it stunned.
      Serena gasped. "Darien, this is too much! First the necklace, the clothes, 
      then the key and now this..." He silenced her with a kiss.
      Darien took it out of the box and put it on her trembling hand. "Chre, 
      please. You don't have to say yes, I just want you to wear it. Just 
      knowing that you will be thinking of me every time you look at it is 
      enough," He kissed her hand. "For now."
      Serena held her hand out to admire the ring, then looked back at Darien. 
      He smiled at her tenderly. "Darien, it's magnificent." She almost thanked 
      him again, but instead decided to kiss him. Serena let every emotion that 
      she was feeling pour out in her kiss. Fear, love, excitement, happiness, 
      everything.
      Darien caressed her cheek and laid her back on the bed. He followed her 
      collarbone with his finger and kissed her neck, nibbling and licking. He 
      ran his hand over her breasts and down her side lifting up her skirt. 
      Darien slowly caressed her thigh running his hands up and down them 
      lightly. Serena ran her hands through his hair and pulled him to her for 
      another soul stirring kiss. She played with his tongue, drinking in the 
      taste of him.
      "Darien." She whispered his name over and over. Loving everything he did 
      to her. Darien kissed his way down her body pulling off her panties and 
      unhooking her stockings from the garters at the same time. Then slid his 
      way back up; kissing her toes, her ankles, her knees, her thighs and 
      further. Serena closed her eyes and let the sensations hit her. Her back 
      arched as the climax hit her. Gasping for breath she dragged him back up 
      to her. Needing to feel his body against hers, she tore at the buttons on 
      his shirt and bared his chest. Quickly she pulled both the coat and his 
      shirt off in one smooth movement. Then she started working on his 
      trousers. She tugged at the button and pulled at the zip until she managed 
      to release them. He kicked them off and entered her slowly savouring the 
      feel of her.
      Unhurriedly he began to move, rocking rhythmically, Serena felt the 
      tension start to build again and urged him on. She wrapped her legs around 
      his waist and moaned. He plunged into her gently at first, but as the heat 
      began to build he moved faster and faster until Serena was screaming and 
      he shouted her name at his stunning release. For a while he lay there 
      listening to her breathing slow.
      Careful not to crush her he moved to her side and laid a hand on her 
      heart, feeling it beat.
      "Serena. I have never felt this way about another person before. I can't 
      get enough of you. I want to be with you all the time. Make love to you 
      all the time." He kissed her fingers. "I can't believe I'm behaving like a 
      hormone crazed teen."
      "I know how you feel. I never wanted to be with anyone the way that I want 
      to be with you." It was the truth, never had she felt like this for anyone 
      else. She never wanted or needed anyone like she did this man. She let her 
      fingers roam over his chest and kissed his shoulder. She sat up and looked 
      at her dress and laughed, "I think I have to find something else to wear." 
      The bodice hung limply while the skirt was crumpled up around her waist.
      Darien sat up and looked at her. "I think you're right. I'm sorry. We 
      ruined it." He got up and put his trousers back on. "I'll find you 
      something else to wear." He opened up the closet and looked inside. "How 
      about this?" He held up the black dress she wore to his other performance.
      Serena shook her head as she took off the other dress. "I already wore 
      that to one of your concerts remember?" As soon as the words exited her 
      mouth, Serena realized how ridiculous it sounded. Darien didn't seem to 
      notice as he continued to search patiently for another dress.
      He looked at it and nodded. He reached in and pulled out another black 
      one. This one was full length with a slit up one side. He held it for her 
      perusal.
      "Ok that'll have to do." Serena walked up to him and he slipped it on her. 
      She handed him the sapphire necklace that she retrieved from the bathroom. 
      He fastened it for her. "Darien, do you hear something?"
      Darien stopped and listened. "It's Nephlite. It must be time for the 
      performance. Merde!" He hurriedly redressed himself and Serena helped with 
      his clothes.
      She quickly smoothed the wrinkles out of his clothes with her hands. She 
      ran her fingers through his hair and then took care of her own. One quick 
      touch up of her make up and she was ready. Satisfied that they looked 
      presentable, they went downstairs.
      If Nephlite noticed, he didn't say anything. "You two look wonderful. 
      Shall we?" He opened the door for them to walk through.
      Serena spent the rest of the night in a dream state.
      Like the last performance, Serena sat with Nephlite in the front. She sat 
      watching the way that Darien would weave a spell around the entire 
      audience. The captivating performance ended with a standing ovation led by 
      Serena herself. Wiping the tears from her eyes she clapped until her hands 
      hurt grinning broadly at Darien all the while.
      Nephlite led her backstage and again they were encountered with the usual 
      swarm of females throwing themselves at Darien. He reached over and took 
      her hand pulling her into the middle of the throng. He held her to him 
      while he signed autographs and made chit chat with the giggling ladies. An 
      hour later he finished signing the last book and turned to Serena.
      "Done! Now to the reception. Are you ready chre?" He kissed her hand.
      "Yup, let's go!" He led her into another room that was full of 
      photographers and expensively dressed people. Everyone applauded as they 
      entered the room, flash bulbs flashed at the couple as they smiled 
      happily. They posed for a few photos and then proceeded to mingle. Darien 
      introduced her to too many people to count. Several hours later, the 
      reception wrapped up.
      Serena looked up at Darien, "Darien, how do you do this all the time?"
      Smiling he caressed her cheek, "It gets easier with time, chre. We can 
      skip out on the dinner if you are too tired." He leaned down to kiss her, 
      lights flashed again.
      Serena leaned against him, "No I'm alright, it's all for you isn't it? I 
      can't skip out. How would it look for your girlfriend to not show up at a 
      dinner in your honour?"
      Darien laughed and touched the tip of her nose with his finger. "Alright 
      but as soon as you have had all that you can handle you will tell me?" She 
      nodded. He tipped her chin up to look into her eyes. "Sure? I don't want 
      you getting too tired." He winked.
      Laughing, Serena smiled at him. "Don't worry I'll tell you."
      He led her out and into the limo. They got to the dinner and it looked 
      like it was something out of a fairytale. Bouquets of roses stood in the 
      middles of the tables. Each plate was nestled in a bed of roses and 
      elaborately folded napkins stood in the middle.
      Darien pulled out her chair for her and then sat down to her left. 
      Nephlite appeared and sat down on her other side. The rest of the tables 
      quickly filled up and then dinner was served. There were toasts and 
      speeches, most of which were for Darien and Serena. The rest of the dinner 
      went quickly. They ate and talked with everyone, pausing to look at each 
      other frequently. Then the table was cleared and there was more talking 
      and drinking. Fine wines, fizzy champagnes and well-aged liquors flowed 
      while the tangy smell of cigars tinged the air mingling with the expensive 
      colonge and perfumes worn by the partygoers.
      Darien looked over at Serena and smiled at the way that she could talk to 
      everyone even though there was an obvious language barrier. She was 
      incredible. He watched the way that she would listen to the person talking 
      to her, looking them directly in eye like they were the only other person 
      in the room. She would then answer with a smile and if she had difficulty 
      understanding would smile and shake her head and then have another go. 
      Even though it was obvious to him that Serena was tired, she never let on 
      to anyone else. She continued to smile and talk like nothing was bothering 
      her at all. Everyone adored her friendly demeanour and generous 
      personality. She looked at him and smiled. Darien's heart beat faster. He 
      had to find a way to keep her with him.
      Serena was enjoying herself even though she did have doubts about the 
      dinner. It turned out to be quite fun. She met some very interesting 
      people and had some good conversations, although some of them were a bit 
      harder to understand than others. She looked over at Darien and smiled. He 
      looked so good sitting there in his tux. Darien looked like he was 
      enjoying himself as well. He looked over at her and smiled. She took his 
      hand squeezed it and returned to the conversation still holding it.
      A while later, they were in the cab on their way back to the hotel. Serena 
      cuddled up to Darien, she leaned on his chest and simply listened to his 
      heartbeat. She was exhausted. The events of the night whirled through her 
      mind when she closed her eyes. It all seemed like a wonderful dream. Just 
      a few days before she was a regular student and now she felt like a 
      princess. It was mind-blowing. Serena closed her eyes and sighed. Before 
      she knew it they were back at the hotel. Darien took her hand and helped 
      her out of the cab. Arms linked, they walked slowly through the lobby, the 
      easy, unhurried walk of lovers. They waved hello to the concierge and got 
      into the elevator. They arrived at the penthouse moments later.
      Darien led her up the stairs and into the bedroom. He undressed her at a 
      leisurely pace and then undressed himself. He left the clothes forgotten 
      on the floor and picked her up and laid her gently on the bed. He got in 
      beside her and he held Serena tightly to him until they fell asleep.
      The next morning they woke up together. Serena reached over and put her 
      hand on his chest. She loved the wonderfully secure feeling she felt 
      waking up next to him.
      He reached over and pulled her to him. "Bon matin chre." He kissed her 
      neck.
      "Morning Darien." She stretched lazily, enjoying the feeling of waking up 
      with him. "What shall we do today?" She giggled as he started moving 
      lower. "Darien..."
      He slid his way back up her body. "Oui chre?" he gave her his most 
      innocent look.
      She laughed. "What do you want to do today?"
      He grinned. "I was showing you what I wanted to do today." Serena lightly 
      punched him in the shoulder. He smiled and went back to what he was doing. 
      "We have plenty of time."
      Serena closed her eyes and smiled. "That party last night was fun." She 
      shuddered as he kissed the back of her knees. She got a muffled 'yes' as a 
      response. "That... Countess was a... riot." Again a muffled response. 
      Serena gave up on trying to have a conversation her mind was blanking out. 
      Darien slid back up to her and kissed her. She moaned and let herself 
      drown in the sensation.
      A couple of hours later they went downstairs to the kitchen to get 
      something to eat. They settled with a bowl of muesli each. They took their 
      bowls to the couch and sat down.
      "Darien is that the newspaper?" She pointed at the folded paper by the 
      door.
      "Must be. Nephlite probably dropped it off." He got up and picked it up. 
      Still holding the bowl, he opened up the paper. He looked at it and 
      frowned.
      "What's wrong Darien?" She saw the look on his face. She put her bowl down 
      and went to him. Serena peeked over his shoulder.
      On the front cover was a picture of the two of them kissing at the dinner. 
      He flipped the page. Inside were several pictures of them. Some were from 
      the dinner and the reception the night before. Others were of them hiding 
      from the reporters. She couldn't read what they said about them but she 
      did notice that one of the pictures had a circle drawn around her left 
      hand, accentuating the ring Darien gave her. She looked over them again 
      and then at Darien.
      "I hate reporters!" He crumpled up the paper and threw it aside.
      Serena rubbed his shoulders. "Darien, so what? They took a few pictures. 
      It doesn't matter."
      He turned around and hugged her. "I just don't like them intruding." He 
      shook his head. "I just don't see why they have to do it."
      "It's their job. Our job is to not let it get to us. Who cares if they get 
      pictures of us having a good time. As long as it's a not picture of us 
      having too good a time." She winked at him. "So how about that tour you 
      offered me?"
      He agreed, it was pointless to let them ruin their fun. How was she always 
      able to get him out of a bad mood? He smiled at her. "Let's get dressed!"
      They ran back upstairs.
      They got dressed into some comfortable and warm clothes and went to see if 
      they could find Nephlite anywhere. They found him in the lobby a little 
      while later talking to some local women. Darien smiled at her as they 
      approached. "He draws women like moths to a flame."
      Serena laughed, "Like you have any trouble."
      He gave her a mischievous smile. "Hey Nephlite!" They walked up to him.
      The women looked at Darien and Serena and smiled.
      "Hey you two. I was wondering when you would decided to leave your little 
      love nest." He smiled.
      Serena blushed.
      Nephlite saw the blush and smiled wider. "This is Gretchen and Inga." He 
      motioned at the women. "Gretchen, Inga, I would like you to meet Darien Le 
      Conte and Serena Cole." They all shook hands and traded hellos.
      Serena noticed that the women were giving her some curious glances. 
      They're probably wondering what I'm doing with Darien. Serena shrugged, 
      she couldn't care less about what they thought about her.
      Darien simply replied to their looks by pulling her closer to him.
      Darien looked over at Nephlite. "We were wondering whether or not you 
      would like to join us in a little sight seeing." He looked at the women. 
      "You are welcome to join us."
      They shook their heads. Nephlite looked at Darien and shrugged. "I think I 
      will stay with them."
      Darien rolled his eyes and smiled. "As you wish. We'll see you later ok?" 
      He and Serena approached the main desk and asked for the concierge. He 
      noticed them before anyone could reach him. He left the people he was 
      talking to and walked over.
      "Herr le Conte, Fraulein Cole! Out for a day trip?" He smiled warmly at 
      them.
      "Yes, we were wondering if you could tell us some of the better sights to 
      see?"
      The man's excitement was evident. He quickly walked to the desk and pulled 
      out a pen and paper and started writing directions down and drawing little 
      maps to different sights. He took a look at it and nodded to himself. 
      "Here you go. Those are the better sights that tourists don't often see."
      Darien took it from him. "Thank you." Serena smiled her gratitude. Darien 
      led her out of the hotel and they walked to the first sight on the map.
      It was fun to walk around the city. It was gorgeous. The moment they 
      stepped out of the hotel, it seemed like they walked into another era. The 
      buildings were so different from what she was use to seeing. They all look 
      so old and dignified. She gasped in awe at the monuments and took some 
      photos.
      Ignoring the photographers, Darien put his arm around her waist as they 
      stopped to take in the sights. He looked down at her and smiled. She was 
      so sweet. She made even the simple things, like walking around looking at 
      sights, fun. He loved the way that she took pleasure in the small things. 
      The little shops, the people, the sounds, the smells, they all delighted 
      her. He noticed that she often turned her camera to the flowers and 
      people. Serena looked at him and smiled. His heart stopped. She was 
      incredible. Unable to stop himself Darien leant down and kissed her.
      "Mmmm, what was that for?" Her eyes darkened with his kiss. She put her 
      arms around his neck.
      "For being you." He looked at her face and realized he loved looking at 
      her.
      "You're so sweet." She kissed him.
      "It's true. I am totally in love with you, Serena." Darien took her hand 
      and they continued walking.
      "I'm so in love with you too." Serena meant it. She loved every moment 
      with him. She loved his wit, his charm; in short everything about him. She 
      smiled at him. They walked around the rest of the sights on the list 
      talking along the way. After taking in their fill they headed back in the 
      direction of the hotel. It was getting dark by the time they got back. 
      They walked by the concierge and said hi then headed to the elevators. 
      They leaned against the back as they rode it up to the top. Darien held 
      her to him and grinned happily.
      Serena observed some of the older guests tutting and shaking their heads 
      at their display of affection. Uncomfortable under their scrutinizing 
      gaze, she tried to extricate herself from Darien's arms. He held on 
      tighter. "Darien..."
      "Chre, who cares what they think." He whispered the words against her 
      neck.
      Serena knew he was right. Why should she care what total strangers thought 
      of her? After the elevator stopped several times to let people on and off 
      they finally reached their room.
      Quietly they took off their coats and shoes. Darien pulled Serena through 
      the room and sat her down on the couch. He kneeled in front of her.
      "Serena." He looked up at her, eyes sparkling. "Please stay with me. I 
      need you to be with me. Je t'adore."
      Serena put her hands on his cheeks. "Darien, I love you too." She stopped.
      "But you must finish school. Is that what you were going to say?" He took 
      her hands and kissed them.
      "No. Yes." Serena shook her head. "I want to. Believe me I do. I want to 
      be with you always." She looked at the sparkling ring on her finger.
      He looked at it also. "Serena, I will not push you. The decision is yours 
      to make and I know that I cannot change your heart."
      "Darien, my heart is yours. Never doubt that. I promise that I will come 
      back to you as soon as I can." She kissed his cheek. "I could never keep 
      away from you."
      "Serena, I will wait forever if I must." He drew her toward him and kissed 
      her, an incredible, deep, stirring kiss.
      Serena's eyes filled with tears. "I won't make you wait that long." She 
      reached for him and kissed him back.
      ----
      The rest of Serena's stay was pretty much the same, concerts, interviews, 
      sight seeing and she enjoyed every minute of it. She had a great time with 
      Darien, he made everything a lot of fun.
      On her last day there, they decided to stay in and spend some quiet time. 
      After a long day of making love and talking, they sat together on the 
      couch in front of the glowing fire and cuddled. Serena fixed dinner this 
      time and they ate it on the floor in the warm glow of the fire delighting 
      in the flavour of the food. Afterwards they did the dishes together and 
      then settled on the couch, listened to music and talked.
      "So how is it you are not as poverty stricken as the rest of the 
      students?" Darien looked into her eyes.
      Serena laughed. "They aren't poverty stricken. It's more like a lack of 
      free flowing cash." She thought of how her friends had to save and stick 
      to a budget.
      Darien laughed. "Ok then how come you have a free flow of cash?"
      "My parents are pretty well off. And I have a pretty hefty trust fund." 
      She looked at him.
      "That would explain why you have such nice things." He pointed at her 
      diamond earrings and her silk blouse.
      "Yeah. Why? Has that been bothering you? Cuz I assure you I don't have 
      another world trotting boyfriend hidden anywhere." She took his hand and 
      kissed his talented fingers.
      He laughed. "I was just curious. You never seemed like the rest of your 
      friends."
      "Really? In what way?" Now it was her turn to be curious.
      He shrugged. "You are more grown up. I saw how you handled yourself at 
      your first dinner. You took it like a pro. Other women your age probably 
      would have talked about the latest music video on MTV or something." He 
      gazed into her eyes. "But you talked to everyone even though I knew you 
      were tired and couldn't understand some of what was going on." He sighed. 
      "You're just incredible."
      Serena blushed. "Thank you. It means a lot coming from you." She smiled. 
      "To tell you the truth I was dreading going to that dinner. I thought it 
      would be a long boring affair, but it was quite fun. Especially that 
      countess and that husband of hers."
      "Ah, would you believe that he is her fifth husband?"
      "No. That's not true!" Serena feigned shock. The countess was an eccentric 
      woman. That Serena picked up right away, it didn't shock her in the least 
      that she's been married so many times.
      "I hear that she wants to be moving onto her sixth soon."
      Serena raised her eyebrows. "Sixth?" She looked at Darien. How could 
      anyone want to be married six times? "You're joking! Who?"
      He puffed out his chest importantly.
      "You're kidding." Wide-eyed Serena looked at him.
      He shook his head and grinned. He loved teasing her just to see her 
      reaction.
      "She's like seventy years old!"
      "She's only fifty." Darien said in mock indignation. They started 
      laughing. Serena gave him a light punch on the arm. He grabbed her and 
      started tickling all the little spots he found over the week that made her 
      giggle. They fell off the couch and onto the floor as they tickled each 
      other.
      Laughing Serena pulled Darien down to her and kissed him. He kissed her 
      back and started undoing the buttons to her blouse. He stopped and dropped 
      his head on her chest when he heard the knock at the door.
      Darien looked at her and sighed. "Hold that thought. It's probably 
      Nephlite coming to say goodbye." He climbed off of her and walked to the 
      door and opened it.
      Serena got back onto the couch and straightened her blouse and hair.
      Darien opened the door and swore when he saw it wasn't Nephlite. He tried 
      to shut the door but she stuck her foot in. "Va t'en!"
      She looked over and saw Sabine standing on the other side of the door in a 
      trench coat and what looked like underwear underneath. *Here we go again.*
      "Sabine, what the hell are you doing here? I told you I don't want to see 
      you ever again." Darien looked calm, but Serena could see the anger 
      blazing in his eyes. She knew Sabine was trying his last nerve.
      Sabine simply squeezed her way past him and into the penthouse. "You don't 
      mean that, Darien." She purred. "We are so good together." She put her 
      hand on his chest. Darien backed out of reach.
      "Leave right now." His voice was edged with ice.
      Serena sat on the couch watching. Sabine saw her and strode over.
      "So you are spending time with that child." She sniffed disdainfully. "How 
      nice." She looked at Serena, slowly circling the couch were she sat like a 
      shark circling its prey. "So you think that he loves you? I bet he told 
      you that you were the only one for him." She eyed him. "He told me that 
      once. He'll soon bore of you like he did me and the others." Darien 
      muttered something at her under his breath.
      "As a matter of fact he has." Serena stood up and faced her. She wasn't 
      going to back down this time. "And he doesn't look like he's going to get 
      bored of me anytime soon."
      "Stupid girl! Once he has had his fun he'll toss you aside."
      Serena stood glaring at her. Just one punch...
      Darien came up behind her, he knew what she was thinking of doing. He put 
      his hands on her shoulders as if to say she's not worth it.
      Sabine had a superior smirk on her face until she looked at Serena's 
      clenched hands and saw the ring. Her expression quickly changed.
      Eyes narrowed, she whipped around and angrily struck Darien in the face. 
      He stood there and took it without flinching. "How dare you! You leave me 
      for a child! A little girl that you can mould into whatever you like!" she 
      glared at him. "I will never forget this." She swung open the door. 
      "You'll pay!" she glared at Serena. "Especially you, you little whore!" 
      She stormed out the door slamming it hard enough to rock the vase of pink 
      and white roses on a table nearby.
      Darien exhaled, shut the door and sat down next to Serena. "I'm sorry 
      about that chre. She just will not leave me alone." He attempted to put 
      his arm around her. "Maybe she has gotten the message now." He toyed with 
      the ring on her finger.
      Serena moved away so that she could look at him. "Is that why you like me? 
      Because I'm young and nave?"
      Darien gently placed his hands on either side of her face. "Serena, you 
      know that's not true. I love you for you. You're intelligent, funny, and 
      beautiful. You've brought a light into my world that I have never known or 
      never knew I needed." He reached over and picked a rose out of vase 
      sitting on the table. "If this rose was not to have any sunlight what 
      would happen? It would whither and die, non? It is like you and me. 
      Without you I would surely shrivel up and die. With you I am able to enjoy 
      life. Making you happy is as essential to me as breathing. I need you. You 
      are my soul mate." He looked into her eyes. "Serena you do believe me 
      don't you?"
      Such beautiful words. Serena looked at him, looked into his eyes. She saw 
      the love there. "Yes, I do." He kissed her. She pulled back. "But what 
      about the other girls she talked about? Have you been out with many 
      women?" It never occurred to her before that there were other women 
      besides Sabine and herself.
      Darien shook his head. "There were no other girls. I am not the type to go 
      looking for casual relationships." Serena studied his face looking for any 
      signs at all that he was lying. She saw none.
      He would never lie to her. She nodded. "I can't see you doing that 
      either." She sighed. They were very much alike. Serena could never imagine 
      having a fling with anyone and she knew that he felt the same. "Do you 
      think that she will do anything to me?"
      Darien shook his head again. "She likes to threaten but never has she 
      followed through. She has a temper but she wouldn't do anything like that. 
      Sabine doesn't have it in her."
      Serena wasn't so sure though. She saw the look on her face. Sabine would 
      have killed her right then and there if she could have.
      Darien saw how tense Serena was and started to massage her shoulders. 
      Serena needed some time to think. "Darien, I think I'll go and take a bath 
      ok?" She shrugged him off, got up and without looking back, walked up the 
      stairs.
      Darien's heart ached as he watched her go up the stairs. It was as if she 
      erected a wall of ice around herself. In an instant his warm, loving 
      Serena was replaced with a wintry, impenetrable figure. Damn Sabine! 
      Because of her Serena was closing off again. He had to do something before 
      she closed off completely and he lost the best thing in his life. Darien 
      got up and walked to the stairs then stopped and shook his head. She 
      didn't need him to crowd her right now. Instead he walked to the living 
      room and picked up the phone and started dialling.
      Serena walked into the bathroom and turned the taps on. Slowly, she 
      undressed and got in. Closing her eyes, she leaned back and listened to 
      the water splash. Serena thought of all the things that had happened over 
      the past week and then about what Sabine had said. No, everything that 
      they had done and said this week was real. It had to be. Serena turned on 
      the jets and let them pound some sensation into her numb limbs. No one can 
      pretend happiness like that. The smiles and the kisses and the love were 
      all real. She shook her head. Darien did love her and she loved him. To 
      hell with Sabine.
      Serena soaked for a little while longer and then decided to go back down 
      to talk things through with Darien. She knew she couldn't do this to him. 
      He was always up front with her and it was time that she learned to do 
      that with him. She got out of the bath dried herself off and put on jeans 
      and a T-shirt. Barefoot she headed down the stairs. She found Darien 
      waiting for her at the bottom. She noticed that Darien's poise was gone, 
      in its place were tension and apprehension. Serena was shocked by his 
      haggard appearance. He had never looked like this. Her heart went out to 
      him. Darien did love her as much as she loved him.
      Anxiously, he looked at her. Darien's heart stopped when she simply stood 
      there looking at him. Her face didn't betray any signs to what she was 
      thinking. Even her eyes seemed guarded. Then slowly Darien noticed them 
      change. Serena looked into his eyes and held out her hand. Darien let out 
      the breath he was holding, smiled and took it.
      "Serena." He held her to him and breathed in her scent. Relief coursed 
      through his entire body.
      She buried her face in his chest. "Darien, we can't let such a wonderful 
      week end on a sour note."
      "I agree." He rested his cheek on top of her head. "That is why I'm taking 
      you back myself."
      Serena smiled at him. "Really?"
      "Oui, I cleared my schedule so I can take you home and then I have to 
      return the next day and meet Nephlite in London."
      Serena jumped up and threw her arms around his neck. "That's great! We'll 
      get to spend a little more time together."
      "I am glad that you still want to spend time with me." He took her hands 
      and kissed them. Smiling he picked her up and carried her back upstairs.
      ----
      The next morning they woke up and packed up Serena's things and a couple 
      shirts and jeans for Darien. They stopped by Nephlite's room and said 
      goodbye and then headed out to the limo.
      The concierge rushed over and took Serena's hand. "It was a pleasure 
      having you here, Fraulein." He kissed it.
      Serena smiled. "I had a very pleasant stay." But she wasn't going to tell 
      him it wasn't because of the service. She looked at Darien and smiled. 
      "Very unforgettable."
      He grinned even wider. "We hope to see you again soon."
      Darien took her hand and helped her into the limo and then got in himself.
      The plane ride was uneventful, they sat and talked about what they would 
      do when they got back to the university. Serena wanted to finally 
      introduce him to her friends. Close to ten hours later they landed. They 
      got in the first cab they saw and took it up to the university. Serena led 
      the way up to the suite. They were laughing when they walked in the door. 
      Inside Lita, Raye and Mina had already returned. It looked as though they 
      were making coffee and getting ready to watch some TV.
      All three looked over when the door opened. "Serena!" Happily they dropped 
      everything and came over to give Serena a hug.
      Lita hugged Serena and then looked over at Darien. He was very attractive, 
      the posters of him didn't do him any justice. "So this is the guy you've 
      been keeping to yourself huh?" She smiled at him and extended her hand. 
      She noted that Darien looked as happy as Serena did. Darien took it and 
      kissed the back, he did the same for Raye and Mina.
      "Darien, this is Lita, Raye and Mina." Serena gestured at each girl as she 
      said their name.
      "Bonjour, everyone." Darien smiled warmly at them. He returned his 
      attention to Serena and put his arm around her waist casually. "You are 
      Serena's roommates, non? She speaks of you all a lot." He was amused by 
      their looks of admiration.
      Raye smiled. Serena never looked happier or more relaxed. "You two look 
      very happy."
      Darien and Serena looked at each other and grinned widely. She felt like 
      she had the words 'Sexually Satisfied' stamped on her forehead. Blushing, 
      Serena ran her hand through her hair.
      Mina watched her as she did. The light glinted off something in her hair. 
      Min looked at Serena's hand and spotted the ring. Gasping she grabbed her 
      hand and brought it to her face. "Oh my god! It's gorgeous!" The other two 
      came over and looked at it as well. All commenting on how beautiful it 
      was. "I gotta go show Malachite! Be right back!" Mina dashed out of the 
      room and across the hall.
      Serena looked at Darien. "Malachite is her boyfriend." He nodded and 
      smiled.
      Mina came back dragging Malachite with her. "Look!" She pointed at the 
      ring. Malachite ignored her for the moment, focussing on Darien.
      He stuck his hand out. "You must be Darien." They shook hands. "Take care 
      of that one," he nodded at Serena. "She's quite a catch."
      Darien smiled at Serena, "I know. I intend to."
      Darien and Malachite sat down on the couch talking while Serena proceeded 
      to show the girls what she got during her trip. She showed them pictures 
      of the sights and they all ohhhed and ahhhhed. Then she pulled out the 
      necklace and they all took turns looking at it. Mina put it on and pranced 
      around the room with it. Serena shook her head. She pulled out the teddy 
      bear next. She left the negligee in the bag. Then showed them the key that 
      still hung around her neck. Then she reached into her purse and pulled out 
      the key chains, postcards, and miniatures of the sights that she got them.
      "I didn't know what to get you so I got these." She passed them out.
      Mina still hadn't taken off the necklace. "I want this." She admired her 
      reflection in the mirror, toying with the sapphire. "I think it looks 
      great on me."
      Darien walked up behind her and took it off. "Sorry, this is Serena's."
      Mina stared at his reflection, and shivered when his fingers touched her 
      neck. That gorgeous guy was so close to her and just touched her neck. 
      There was such a raw magnetism about him. She could imagine why Serena 
      looked so happy. Min grinned foolishly at him. Malachite looked at her and 
      shook his head in amusement.
      Serena tried not to laugh, but Min's reaction to Darien was so funny that 
      she let out a little giggle.
      Darien, oblivious to the effect he had on Min, brought it back to Serena 
      who put it back in its case. "Chre, I need a shower can you..." he nodded 
      down the hall. Serena knew what he wanted.
      "I'll show you where the towels are." She got up and he followed. Handing 
      him one of her own towels and pointed him in the direction of the 
      bathroom. "This stuff is mine." Serena pointed at the clutter of shampoos 
      and bodywashes that were hers and she left him to it.
      "Merci, chre." He leaned over and gave her a peck on the cheek and 
      disappeared behind the door.
      Smiling, Serena returned to the living room.
      "He's amazing!" Mina was babbling now. "His eyes, oh my god, that accent 
      and his body! Wow!"
      Serena shook her head in amusement.
      Pushing Mina aside, Lita pulled her over and sat her down on the couch. 
      "So how was your vacation? What did you guys do?" She grinned as Serena 
      blushed. "Like I need to ask. You're positively glowing! So what's 
      he...you know...like?" The girls sat down around her looking for an 
answer.
      Serena stared open mouthed at her. Not knowing what to say she looked at 
      Raye to defend her.
      Raye laughed at her helpless look, "Don't look at me! I'm curious too!"
      "You guys!" Serena's face went red.
      "Must have been a great weekend. Look at this!" Mina was going through 
      Serena's bag and had pulled out the negligee.
      "Min! You guys are terrible!" Serena tried to get it away from Min but she 
      ran away from her and after a short chase in the living room she passed it 
      to Lita.
      "It's brand new!" Lita fingered the lace. "Did he buy it for you?"
      "Give it back!" Serena reached over and grabbed for it but unfortunately 
      for her, Lita stood up and held it over her head, well out of Serena's 
      reach.
      Lita giggled, "I'll take that as a yes. So you guys kept pretty busy then 
      huh?" She wiggled her eyebrows.
      Darien had finished showering and stood at the entrance to the living room 
      and was listening to the conversation. He shook his head and decided to 
      rescue Serena from her taunting friends. He walked in.
      "Oui, we did." Smiling sexily, Darien walked up behind them completely 
      naked except for the towel that hung low on his hips. All activity stopped 
      dead as everyone stopped to look. He was still wet from his shower. Beads 
      of water clung to his muscled chest. As he moved towards them, the beads 
      slid down his stomach. While the girls stared at him slack jawed he took 
      the negligee from Lita's hand, "We will be needing that right now." He 
      picked Serena up in his arms and carried her to her room.
      "I can't believe you just did that." He dumped Serena laughing on the bed.
      "Your friends are funny." He grabbed the bag and started looking for 
      something to wear. Darien quickly dried himself off and pulled on a white 
      T-shirt and jeans.
      "You honestly have no idea how good looking you are do you?" She watched 
      his every
      movement mesmerized.
      He shrugged, "Who cares as long as I look good to you?" He grabbed her and 
      kissed her. "Now are you going to take a shower?" Serena nodded. "Ok I'll 
      go out and talk to them." He patted her bum. "See you in a bit."
      Serena took a hot shower and felt a lot better. She came out dressed in a 
      T-shirt and jeans. She walked out into the living room and found Darien 
      entertaining everyone with one of his stories. She stood in the entrance 
      way and watched him, smiling happily. He looked up and saw her and smiled. 
      He walked over and took her hand, pulling her over to where he was 
      standing before.
      Lita smiled and looked at Serena. "I know you told us that he was 
      interesting and funny, but we thought you were making it all up." She 
      looked back at Darien and grinned. "We believe you now."
      Darien, nuzzled her neck. "Chre, je suis trs fatigu. I'm very tired." 
      He translated for the rest of the group. "I must get some sleep." He 
      winked and walked into Serena's room.
      Serena watched him walk down the hall and tried to figure out a way of 
      joining him without making it obvious what they were going to be doing. 
      She turned back to them and laughed at the looks the girls gave her. 
      "What's the matter with you guys?"
      Raye shook her head. "That guy's incredible! You are so lucky. He's good 
      looking, smart, funny and from the way you look after spending a week with 
      him, I'd say he's fantastic at everything." Raye emphasized the word 
      everything. "And he so obviously loves you." Raye looked at the dreamy 
      look Serena had on her face. "Can I have him?"
      Serena just smiled. "Nope sorry."
      "Can we work out some sort of schedule so that we can share him? You know, 
      you have him Monday, Wednesday, Friday and the weekend and we get him the 
      rest of the time."
      Serena laughed and shook her head. "You'll just have to find your own good 
      looking, smart, funny, great at everything guy."
      Raye pouted and then laughed.
      "Can I look at the ring again?" Mina held Serena's hand up to the light 
      and stared at the sparkling stones. "Wow!" Serena's necklace caught her 
      eye again. "You never did tell us what's up with that key." She arched a 
      brow at Serena.
      "Oh right, it's the key to his home in Paris."
      The girls just groaned. "He gives you everything!"
      Serena yawned. "Sorry guys but I gotta get some sleep." She got up and 
      headed to her room.
      "Yeah right!" The girls threw pillows at her as she walked away.
      Serena opened the door and found Darien standing at her desk waiting for 
      her. "So this is your room huh?" He spun around in a circle. "It's so 
      small."
      Serena laughed. "It's the biggest room in the suite, you should see the 
      others."
      He shook his head and looked in her closet, "You like shoes huh?" He 
      pointed at the sea of shoes on the floor. "What is with women and shoes?" 
      His attention went to the garment bag hanging in the closet. "Is this the 
      dress you wore on Halloween?" Serena nodded. He opened it up and looked at 
      it. "How about this? Do you want to go to the Carnevale for real? I've 
      never been and I think it would be fun for us to explore."
      "Yes! I've always wanted to go." She smiled at him. "Do you have time 
      though?"
      He nodded as he pulled out the mask and grimaced. "This mask is too sad 
      for you though," he touched the teardrop. "We'll have to get you a new 
      one."
      She smiled. It was her old self. She definitely didn't feel like hiding 
      herself behind a melancholy mask any more.
      "I have a week vacation in February. We could go and have fun for a week."
      "Great now all we have to do is find you a costume." Serena was already 
      getting excited.
      "You could be a dashing count or something like that." He was so dignified 
      that she couldn't imagine him as anything else.
      "Serena, chre." He smiled. "It is three months away. We won't have to 
      worry about that for a while. But we are here now." He wiggled his 
      eyebrows. "So what can we do in your tiny room?"
      Serena laughed and hugged him as they tumbled onto the bed.
      A couple of hours later they emerged from the room contented and smiling. 
      Everyone was in the kitchen. They turned to them and smiled knowing 
      exactly what they had been up to.
      "Hi guys." Steve, Kyle and Seiya were in the kitchen, Serena gave each of 
      them a hug.
      "How were your vacations?"
      "It was great! We hung out with the old gang and got food cooked for us 
      and laundry done for us." Andrew and Kyle were grinning. "What more can 
      you ask for?" They looked over at Darien. "You must be Darien." They shook 
      hands with him. "We've heard a lot about you."
      Seiya smiled at Darien and shook hands with him. "Hi there, hope you're 
      taking care of her." He tried to punch Serena in the shoulder. Serena 
      blocked it and hit him instead. Darien looked impressed. "She says that 
      she doesn't need it, but she does." He teased.
      Darien laughed. "Would you all like to join us for dinner?"
      They all looked at each other. "Sure!" They all scrambled about as 
      everyone started to get ready to go out. "It sure beats cooking 
      ourselves." Darien and Serena sat at the table. She watched Darien as he 
      watched everyone running about. He looked very amused.
      "You all do this every time you go anywhere?" Serena nodded. "Bizarre."
      "You think this is bad? You should have seen us on Halloween. It was a 
      nightmare." Serena took his hand. "Come check this out." She led him to 
      the bathroom and pointed at the girls trying to put makeup on all at the 
      same time. They mock screamed and tried to hide their half made up faces 
      from him. Darien shook his head and laughed.
      Mina looked over her shoulder. "Is it going to be fancy?"
      Serena and Darien looked at each other and nodded. "The fanciest!"
      Min panicked and ran into her room to find something suitable to wear. 
      Serena shook her head. There was no where in town that was that fancy. 
      Serena and Darien went to her room and found something to wear. Serena 
      settled on black slacks and an ivory silk blouse. Darien wore his jeans 
      and a white dress shirt. After a smouldering kiss, they emerged once again 
      from the room. All the girls apart from Min were ready, she was still 
      adding a few finishing touches. Serena put a little lipstick on and was 
      happy with the way that she looked. She looked at her smiling reflection. 
      She did have a glow about her. Serena looked at Darien's reflection and 
      smiled at him. After Mina finished up they headed across the hall.
      Serena turned to Darien and whispered, "Hold your breath." then opened the 
      door. In their room they still had cases and cases of beer cans and liquor 
      bottles from Andrew and Kyle's little get togethers stacked in their 
      closet and unwashed dishes piled in the sink. Darien's eyes widened. He 
      now understood why she said to hold his breath. The boys gathered in the 
      living room and did a mock runway type walk.
      "Ready then?" Everyone nodded. They all walked down to the parking lot. 
      The girls and Darien walked to Serena's car.
      Darien looked at it and nodded. "Cute car chre." Serena smiled. They all 
      got in, Darien in the front and the three girls in the back.
      She drove past Seiya's space and yelled, "Follow me!" then sped off. Seiya 
      quickly caught up and followed close behind as Serena drove downtown. They 
      parked in a parkade and walked around the corner to a theme restaurant 
      called 'Niners'. The girls liked to come here when they were shopping and 
      when they wanted to celebrate something. Inside was a fifties type motif.
      They waited for about twenty minutes in the waiting area before they got a 
      table. Serena was impressed at how Darien sat and waited with the rest of 
      them. He certainly wasn't like other celebrities who demanded to be 
      treated better than everyone else. Instead he was patient and even joked 
      about to past the time. If it was possible, Serena fell for him even more.
      They all sat down and looked at the menus. Serena didn't really need to. 
      She ordered the same thing every time she was here, Caesar salad, chicken 
      fingers and an iced tea. Darien looked it over and didn't know what to get 
      so he got the same as Serena. Everyone else got more exotic sounding 
foods.
      They spent the next few hours talking over their food and sharing stories. 
      Everyone got along well and Serena was happy that Darien fit in. After 
      dinner they decided to go over the street and play pool for while. It was 
      great. Darien played very well even though he swore that the last time he 
      played was in university. He and Serena played against Seiya and Lita, 
      while the other four played each other. Then they would switch.
      They finished off the night at one of the local night clubs. Everyone but 
      Serena, Darien and Seiya drank. They danced and sang along to the music 
      until the early hours of the morning. The walked back to the cars, well 
      most of them walked, Andrew and Kyle needed a little help, and they drove 
      back to Rez. They were helping the boys up the walkway when Serena saw 
      Jeff and Amy walking toward them. She stiffened unconsciously and Seiya 
      glared at him.
      Darien saw their reactions. "Is that Jeff?" Serena nodded. Darien's jaw 
      clenched.
      Serena put a hand on his arm and shook her head. "He's not worth it cher." 
      Darien nodded.
      Amy smiled at everyone but Serena and Seiya. She gave them a dirty look 
      and kept walking. Jeff pretended not to notice them at all.
      Darien looked at Serena. "What is the matter with her?"
      Serena rolled her eyes. "That's his new girlfriend. She's probably mad 
      that Seiya hit him."
      Slowly they climbed the stairs and walked into the suite. They washed up, 
      got into bed and fell into an exhausted sleep.
      The next morning Serena woke with Darien kissing her. "Morning chre."
      She stretched and kissed him back. "Good morning. Did you sleep alright?" 
      She leaned back to look at him careful not to tumble off the side. The 
      tiny bed could barely hold them and they had to find some interesting 
      positions to fit them both on comfortably. They settled with pressing 
      themselves together as close as they could and entwining their limbs. It 
      worked out quite well.
      He nodded and played with a strand of hair. "When will I see you next 
      chre?" He looked a little sad.
      Serena's heart sank, it was their last day together. "Christmas?"
      Darien shook his head. "I am spending it with my parents. Would like to 
      come?"
      Serena shook her head. "I gotta spend it with mine. New Years?"
      "I have a concert in Madrid." He ran his finger over her lips. "You could 
      come." Serena shook her head.
      "Then I guess it will have to be the holiday in February."
      Serena's eyes started to well up.
      "Don't cry chre, we'll find a way. I promise." He kissed her, sealing the 
      promise. Serena closed her eyes as tears streamed down her cheeks. He 
      continued to kiss and caress her trying to reassure himself as well as her 
      that everything would be ok. They lay holding each other for a long time 
      before they decided to get up. Darien had to catch his plane soon or else 
      he wouldn't make it to London on time.
      They got dressed and walked out to the living room. The girls were there 
      having breakfast. They each gave Darien a hug. Then he and Serena headed 
      across the hall. The guys were watching TV, they said their goodbyes as 
      well. Quietly they walked to Serena's car and she drove to the airport.
      Neither said a word the entire trip. They got out of the car and Serena 
      walked him to the terminal. They sat there miserable for a few minutes. 
      Darien turned to her. "Come with me." He knew what her answer would be 
      before she said it.
      Serena shook her head and wiped away a tear.
      "I will be back soon, I will think of something." They stood up and he 
      gave her a deep kiss. He held her to him and had to will himself to let 
      her go. He gave her one last look and walked out to the jet.
      Serena waited until the plane had disappeared into the cloudy sky before 
      she returned to Rez.
      Totally depressed, Serena walked into her room and shut the door. She 
      curled up in her bed and tried to think of when she could see him next. It 
      was hopeless. Between his schedule and her classes they didn't have much 
      time to talk on the phone much less fly half way around the world to be 
      together. Serena put her face in her pillow and cried herself to sleep.