
      Paradise


      Author: aria


      Rated: NC17



      Chapter 2
      The next two weeks flew by and before they knew it was time to leave. 
      Serena had spent a week packing and unpacking, making sure she had 
      everything. She was really looking forward to spending some time with 
      Malachite, you know without his meetings or soccer practice cutting into 
      their time.
      Smiling, Serena zipped her suitcase for the final time. This was going to 
      be a great trip. Her father practically drove her right to the boat.
      "Now have a good time dear. Just not too good." He scowled. "Im not sure 
      I like the idea of you and HIM together on a boat."
      She knew exactly who he was referring to. "Oh daddy! Dont worry! Besides 
      weve got chaperones." She rolled her eyes.
      "And Ill be there too." Darien leaned in the passenger window. "Ill keep 
      an eye on them sir."
      "Im holding you to that Darien."
      Serena shoved Dariens head back out the window, squashing his glasses 
      into his face. "Im not totally incapable you know." They always treated 
      her like a child. Seething, she got out and grabbed her bag. "See you in 
      two weeks daddy."
      "Bye pumpkin. Bye Darien."
      "Bye." Serena and Darien stood waving to him as he drove off.
      "Darien! You dont have to suck up to him you know! He already loves you!" 
      She stormed off in the direction of the enormous boat.
      "Sere! Wait! I didnt mean it like that!" Darien ran after her lugging his 
      baggage with him, tripping and stumbling along the way.
      By the time he caught up with her, she was already on board and in the 
      arms of Malachite.
      "Hey Chiba! I see you still havent figured out how to use your legs yet." 
      He chuckled at his own joke.
      Darien grinned at him, totally unfazed. "Mason. I didnt think youd make 
      it. I wasnt sure if theyd enough room on board for both you and your 
      ego." He walked past them enjoying the way Malachites face reddened in 
      anger. "Talk to you later Serena."
      Darien managed to find his cabin some thirty-five minutes later. He had 
      wandered the deck trying to find it himself for a while then gave up and 
      asked someone, only that someone obviously had had no clue either. He sent 
      him completely in the wrong direction. Finally Darien found the right 
      door. He walked in and dropped his bags. It looked as though his roommates 
      had already been in there. Clothes and shoes hung off the beds, the 
      bedposts and even the lamps. Wearily he walked over to the one bed that 
      wasnt covered in junk and fell onto it. Talk about a great start to a 
      vacation or what.
      Serena let Malachite lead her down the decks.
      "Sere, I have a surprise for you." He stopped her in front of a door. 
      "Close your eyes."
      Smiling brightly, Serena did as she was told. She heard him open the door 
      and felt herself being drawn inside.
      "Ok open them." He smiled hugely. "Were sharing a room."
      Serena opened her eyes to see the most incredible sight. The room looked 
      like something out of a fairytale. It was decorated in white and trimmed 
      with oak giving it a large open feel. Every inch of the room was covered 
      in flowers of every sort and color. She walked into the room looking at 
      all the little details. It was perfect!
      As she turned back to Malachite, she spotted one major flaw. There was one 
      bed.
      It was a huge beautiful four-poster, with a lacy canopy and Serena would 
      have otherwise loved it. But in this situation it was still just one bed.
      "Mally? Was there a mistake or something?" She searched the room 
      fruitlessly for another bed hidden somewhere.
      "Nope." He swept her up in his arms. "I pulled a few strings and got us 
      the honeymoon suite."
      "H...honeymoon suite?" she squeaked.
      "Yeah. Itll be great!" he nuzzled her neck and murmured into her ear. "We 
      wont have any distractions."
      "Uh...yeah...great." Serena extricated herself from his arms. "I need to 
      unpack." She walked stiffly to the other side of the room and picked up 
      one of her bags.
      Malachite took the bag from her and put it on the bed them hugged her 
      again. "Whats the matter?"
      "Nothing." Still in his arms, she leaned forward and started taking her 
      things out.
      "Serena, whats the matter?" he stepped in front of her and leaned forward 
      so her eyes were level with his. "I thought we were ready for this."
      "I...Im not so sure." She saw the flash of hurt in his eyes. "Its just a 
      big surprise. I guess I just have to let the idea settle first." Serena 
      kissed him on the nose.
      Malachite nodded. "Yeah I guess. So unpack and Ill see you in a while." 
      He walked to the door.
      Serenas smile faded. "Youre not going to help me?"
      "I cant. I have to go help get everyone settled in. See you later." He 
      shut the door behind him.
      She stared at the door a moment then continued unpacking. That wasnt 
      anger in his eyes, was it? She shook her head and hung up her dresses. He 
      wouldnt be mad. Not over something like that.
      ----
      She quickly finished unpacking and then headed back on deck to check out 
      the facilities and to try and find Malachite.
      On the ship she was pleased to find a mall, three pools, and about a 
      billion other things to do. She quickly hooked up with Raye to do a little 
      shopping. It was amazing how shopping on a boat could be so exotic when 
      compared to shopping on dry land.
      "Serena, look at this dress. Itll look fabulous on you tonight." Raye 
      held out a flaming red sequined dress.
      Serena looked at it and shook her head. "Nah. It washes me out too much." 
      She flipped through a rack. "How about this?" she pulled a white sheath 
      out of the sea of clothing. Serena held it up against her and looked down. 
      The snow white silk was embroidered with delicate golden suns, moons and 
      stars.
      The raven-haired girl nodded. "Thats perfect. Im sure Malachite will 
      love it."
      Serena frowned at the mention of his name.
      "Whats the matter?" Raye put an arm around her shoulder. "I thought he 
      went all out and got you guys a room together and everything."
      Serena nodded sullenly. "Yeah."
      "And thats not a good thing?"
      "I dont know." Serena grabbed the dress and stalked toward the shoe 
      department.
      "You mean you guys havent..." Raye nodded at her blush. "Ah. I see the 
      problem now."
      "Its not a problem!" Serena slumped on one of the chairs and sighed. "I 
      was just taken off guard and now I think hes angry at my reaction."
      Raye sat on the chair next to her. "And what was you reaction?"
      She hid her face in her hands. "I asked if it was a mistake."
      "Oh dear."
      "Youre telling me." Totally depressed, Serena eyed the wall looking for 
      matching shoes for her dress.
      "So are you ready to do it?" Raye did the same.
      "I dont know. I dont know." She got up and took several pairs back with 
      her to the chair. "How are you suppose to know if youre ready?" Was there 
      like a sign that lit up in the sky? Did you hear a voice that boomed 
      saying Youre ready! Go for it! She stuffed her feet into the shoes and 
      stood up. "How are you suppose to know?" she looked at her reflection in 
      the mirror and stuck her tongue out in disgust. "I wish it was like 
      picking out shoes." She kicked the offending footwear off and slipped on 
      the other.
      Raye nodded. "You just know though, dont you?"
      "Well I havent heard any ringing bells or seen any fireworks yet." Serena 
      walked around in the shoes and smiled. "Ill take these."
      ----
      By the time they finished with all the clothes the sun was high in the sky 
      and the party was in full swing. The bad was playing loud calypso music 
      and people were scattered everywhere some in the pool, others playing 
      volleyball. The rest were resting on the decks soaking up the sun and 
      enjoying the music.
      Serena and Raye headed out wearing their new bathing suits. Serenas was 
      peach coloured and had matching sarong and flip-flops. Raye wore a bikini 
      in her signature flaming red. They found the other girls in the pool 
      playing volleyball with several boys from their class.
      Serena waved and walked over to the side. "Hi everyone!"
      "Hey Serena! Raye! Come on in!" Lita flipped water at them.
      Raye dove in while Serena stood at the edge. "Not yet. Has anyone seen 
      Malachite?" Serena wanted to talk to him about what happened earlier.
      Amy nodded, while trying not to be dunked by Greg. "Hes over by the bar!" 
      she managed to get the words out before going under the water.
      Serena laughed and turned around, looking for the bar. Normally the bar 
      would serve alcoholic drinks but for this trip it had been converted to a 
      juice bar. And Malachite was there amid a group of people as usual. She 
      waved and walked over. "Hi Mally."
      "Oh hey Serena." His eyes wandered over her figure appreciatively before 
      he wound his arm around her waist possessively. "Get settled in alright?"
      "Yup." She leaned up against his bared chest and smiled. He looked happier 
      now.
      "I was just telling everyone whats in store for us on the trip."
      "Really? Im kinda curious myself." All she knew was that they were on a 
      Caribbean cruise. No one had told her any of the details.
      "Well were headed to an island not too far from Jamaica. White sand, 
      clear blue water. Sounds great doesnt it?"
      "Definitely."
      Malachite tightened his grip. "Well wed better get changed for dinner. 
      Talk to you all later ok?" he barely gave Serena a chance to say goodbye 
      before tugging her along with him back to the cabin.
      When they reached it he quickly ushered her inside and shut the door. 
      Malachite pulled her up and crushed her against him then claimed her lips.
      Apprehension formed a knot in her stomach and she began to fight him off 
      instinctively. She pushed as hard as she could against his shoulders and 
      stumbled back into the door. "Malachite!"
      He gave her a hard look. "What?" The single word sounded hard and angry.
      Serena stared at him a moment, terrified at what he might do. When he did 
      nothing, she took a deep breath and then quietly went to the closet and 
      picked out her dress. "I'm going to get changed for dinner." She walked 
      into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. Shaking slightly she sat 
      down on the toilet and ran her fingers through her hair. What have I done? 
      Is he truly angry? What will he do? She sat there for a while longer 
      obsessing over what she had just done. Just when she was about to get up 
      and get dressed she heard some loud rustling, like someone getting dressed 
      hurriedly, and a door slam. The door to the room.
      Serena winced at the loud noise. "I guess hes really mad." Feeling 
      guilty, she got up and put on the dress she had hoped Malachite would be 
      the first to see. She checked herself over, making sure her hair, makeup 
      and dress looked perfect then headed back out to dinner.
      She walked into the enormous dinning hall. Everyone was dressed in their 
      evening finery and looking very uncomfortable in the process. Malachite 
      and the girls she picked out immediately at the head table and looking as 
      though they were having a fantastic time. She walked up and took the seat 
      next to her man. "Hi everyone!"
      "Serena you look fantastic!" Raye winked and looked over at the guy 
      sitting next to her.
      Jadeite Smith and Raye had been dating on and off for the past couple of 
      years. Saying that their relationship was tempestuous had to be the 
      understatement of the year. Yet here they were eating and laughing like 
      they were the perfect couple.
      Serena smiled at them. Amy and Greg were sitting together, Lita and 
      Nephlite and Mina and Yaten. Everyone looked fabulous and happy, with the 
      exception of her other half.
      Malachite looked like he was far from happy. He didnt get up when he 
      dragged the seat back next to him to let her sit down. Nor did he respond 
      when she gave him her customary greeting peck on the cheek.
      "Hi sweetie." Serena peeked up at him through her lashes and saw that he 
      still wasnt smiling. Instead he took a swig of the drink at his side.
      "Serena! Check it out!" Lita clumsily lifted her glass and shoved it in 
      her face. "Their letting us have wine with dinner!"
      "Cool." Serena looked over at Malachite again. "So what are you drinking?"
      "Red."
      Serena stopped a waitress as she hurried past. "Ill have a glass of red 
      wine, please."
      She nodded and was off again.
      The dinner went by without a hitch. Everyone had a fantastic time. Serena 
      quickly forgot about her earlier misgivings. After a few toasts, one by 
      Malachite and the others by the principal and a few of the faculty that 
      came along. The band played on and on, giving their own little twists to 
      current favourites.
      "Wanna dance?" Malachite grabbed Serena and practically dragged her to the 
      space cleared for dancing in the middle of the room.
      "Malachite! Whats come over you?" Serena danced stiffly in his arms.
      "Nothing sweetie. Just anxious to dance with the most beautiful girl in 
      the room, thats all."
      Serena found herself being dragged roughly to him much to her 
      embarrassment. "Malachite!" she tried to keep her voice low, but it was 
      hard considering his roving hands.
      "Lets go back to the room." Malachites hot breath reeked of wine.
      "W...we should stay here with the others." Panic started to skitter 
      through her now.
      "Come on." Malachite tugged her along behind him, none too discreetly, out 
      of the hall and to their room.
      Darien stood on the other side of the room talking with one of the 
      teachers when he saw Serena and Malachite move onto the dance floor. 
      Serena looked a little less than happy. If he didnt know better, hed say 
      that she was desperate to get away from him. Darien turned back to his 
      coffee and took a sip. Dont get involved, Darien. Thats what he told 
      himself when they left the room together.
      Malachite slammed the door shut behind them when they got into the room. 
      Serena backed away from him. Slowly moving to the other side of the bed. 
      "Malachite, please." Serena didnt know what she was pleading for, but she 
      knew that she had to get away from him. The predatory look in his eye 
      terrified her.
      Malachite slowly stalked her across the room.
      Serena hiked up her skirt and jumped on the bed. As she tried to run 
      across, Malachite grabbed her legs and pulled her back to him. "Stop 
      Malachite! Please!"
      Malachite simply grinned and pinned her body with his own and began to 
      tear at her clothes and hair.
      Frantic now Serena started kicking at him and shouting as loud as she 
      could. It was like she was having an out of body experience. This couldnt 
      be happening to her. He couldnt be doing this to her. Not her sweet 
      Malachite. This wasnt him. She screamed again when she felt the sheer 
      cloth start to give way. Serena lashed out, hitting something solid with 
      her fist.
      Malachite fell back with a groan.
      Released, Serena jumped up and ran for the door as fast as she could. But 
      she stopped at the door. Something wasnt right. Why wasnt he chasing 
her?
      She turned back and cautiously crept back to the bed. Malachite looked 
      eerily still. Serena tapped on his shoulder and jumped back afraid that 
      hed grab her again. He didnt budge. More concerned now, she shook his 
      shoulder. He didnt move. Oh my god! Serena rolled him onto his side and 
      looked at him. He didnt look alive.
      Screaming she ran out of the room. Straight into Darien.
      "Serena whats going on?" he heard her screaming down the passageway and 
      decided to investigate.
      "I killed him!" Serena tugged on Dariens arm dragging him away from the 
      room.
      "Whoa Serena. Whats going on?" He grabbed her arm and stopped her.
      "Malachite. He...he...and I... and now hes..." Serena sobbed 
incoherently.
      "Calm down, Sere. Now tell me what happened." Darien steadied her by 
      putting his hands on her shoulders.
      "Malachite. He tried to...to...to attack me. And I hit him and I think I 
      killed him." Serena buried her face in his chest.
      "Let me take a look." Darien stemmed his anger for Serenas sake. He 
      followed her to the room. As she said, Malachite did look lifeless. He 
      shoved his glasses up and bent closer to take his pulse. It was there. 
      "Sere hes not dead. My guess is he just passed out from too much wine." 
      He turned to her and took her hand, pulling her out of the room with him.
      Darien held her to him. He could feel her shudders of relief, or was it 
      guilt? "Shh...Its ok. Hell be fine. Now tell me what happened." He set 
      her back and looked at her. He immediately noticed her appearance and the 
      state of her clothing. He tried to straighten it out to protect her 
      modesty, though he wasnt sure if she even cared at this point. Anger 
      coursed through him, burning a path from his heart throughout his veins. 
      Darien bit it back and as calmly as he could, looked Serena in the eyes. 
      "What did he do to you?"
      Serena took another trembling breath. She didnt want to look Darien in 
      the eyes. It was as though if she did he could read into her soul at 
      times. And now was one time that she didnt want him to. "Nothing."
      "Serena cut the crap!" Darien tilted her chin so that she had no choice 
      but to look him in the eyes. "Tell me what he did to you."
      "He...he was drunk. Its not like him. Hes so gentle and sweet." The 
      words were forced and fell like stones in the cool air. Serena sighed. 
      There was no use lying. "He...he...attacked me." There wasnt really any 
      other way of describing it.
      If he was angry before, Darien was well on his way to becoming the next 
      erupting volcano now. "What do you mean attacked?" he knew very well what 
      she meant and from her present appearance, Malachite was incredibly brutal 
      as well. He turned on his heel and walked back to Serenas and Malachites 
      room.
      "Darien! Wait! What are you going to do?" Serena grabbed onto his arm in a 
      futile attempt to stop him from advancing any further.
      "Im going to kick his ass! Thats what!" Darien shook her off and 
      continued on his rampage.
      Serena fairly jumped on him, knocking off his glasses. "Please Darien, 
      dont."
      Darien bent down to retrieve his glasses. "Why not? Look what he did to 
      you." He waved his hand up and down indicating her clothes and hair.
      "Please just dont mention it to anyone." She didnt want word to get 
      around.
      Darien stared at her, incredulous that she would want to protect his 
      reputation even after what he did to her. "Fine. But if he even touches 
      you again hes getting a butt kicking of a lifetime!" Darien grabbed her 
      arm and started pulling her along with him.
      "Where are you taking me?" Serena kept up to him as well as she could, but 
      her much shorter legs didn't have a chance of keeping up with his long 
      strides. She stumbled.
      Sighing, Darien picked her up easily. "To my room. If you dont want 
      people knowing about what he did, youd better fix yourself up."
      "What about your roommates?" Serena managed to keep up now that he slowed 
      a little.
      "Theyre still partying by the pool." At least thats what he was hoping. 
      When they finally reached his room, he quickly stuck his head in and took 
      a quick look. No one was there. "See?" he led her into the room and shut 
      the door behind them.
      "So now what?" Serena couldnt see the point of being there. None of her 
      clothes were there. Then she saw him pull a drawer open. "Oh no! No way am 
      I going to wear your clothes!" she slowly moved back towards the door.
      "Dont be such a baby! I know my stuff isnt exactly what youre use to 
      but its better than what youve got on now." He gazed pointedly at her 
      torn dress.
      "Alright." Serena sighed resignedly. He was right after all.
      After arguing about what to wear for about 20 minutes, they finally 
      decided on a pair of his jeans and one of his t-shirts. Serena decided it 
      didnt look that bad once she rolled the legs up a little. She fussed with 
      her hair and tried to clean up her make up as best she could. "Do I look 
      ok?"
      Darien nodded. "Much better." He had to admit that he liked how she looked 
      in his clothes. He cleared his throat roughly. "Want to head back to the 
      party?"
      Serena shook her head. "No. Not really."
      "Back to your cabin?"
      She shook her head again. "No."
      "Ok then follow me." Darien led the way back out into the hall.
      "Where are we going?" Serena followed him out and moved quickly to his 
      side.
      "Youll see." The rest of their trek was held in silence. Darien turned a 
      corner and stopped. "Were here."
      Serena looked around. "So whats so special about this place?" it didnt 
      look so great to her. Just a bunch of railings and lifeboats.
      "Come here."
      Serena did as he asked, and walked to his side. Darien gently took her 
      hand and brought her with him to the railing.
      "Look."
      Serena took a look down and gasped. At the side of the ship were dolphins 
      leaping in the glistening water. "Theyre beautiful!" she watched as they 
      danced and played in the wake left by the ship. "How did you know they 
      were there?"
      "You just have to look." He smiled gently then pointed at the sky.
      Serena followed the path his finger traced. In the inky blue sky, silken 
      clouds obscured the silvery moon with a wispy veil. Everything that was 
      touched by the gentle fingers of moonlight was lit up with a soft glow. 
      Serena gasped. Shed never really taken the time before to look at the 
      things around her. Now that she had, their beauty stunned her.
      "Thats not all. Close your eyes." Dariens blue eyes connected with hers.
      Serena did as she was told.
      "No take a deep breath."
      His husky voice was so close to her ear she could feel his breath gently 
      caress the nape of her neck. For some reason her knees went a little weak. 
      Trying not to acknowledge the slightly disturbing action her body took to 
      him; Serena concentrated on doing what he asked.
      "What do you smell?"
      Serena opened her eyes and looked at him. "The sea."
      "I think you can do a little better than that." His gentle fingers closed 
      her eyes once again.
      Serena took another breath. The first thing she noticed about the air was 
      it was fresh. There was nothing polluted or stagnant about it. Then the 
      saltiness and then she noticed the chill. "Its wonderful." She took 
      another purifying breath and turned to Darien. "Absolutely amazing."
      He put an arm around her shoulder. "Come on. You look a little cold."
      They walked a little while around the decks. Serena couldnt believe how 
      comfortable she felt when she was with Darien. Whenever she and Malachite 
      went for walks it was less than relaxing. They always seemed to want to go 
      in different directions or at a different pace. It was never like this. 
      Never slow, never relaxed like it was with Darien.
      He stopped in front of a bench. "Wanna sit?"
      "Yeah." She needed a moment to sort out her thoughts. Serena never once 
      thought that she would end up on a bench in a secluded section of a cruise 
      ship with Darien of all people. Not that she didnt like it. That was the 
      problem, she like it a little too much.
      Darien sat next to her and wrapped an arm around her shivering shoulders. 
      Poor Serena. She really didnt deserve to be going out with a jerk like 
      Malachite. The only problem was she didnt see it. She should be with 
      someone kind and caring. Someone like you eh Darien? He snickered a little 
      to himself. Shes got you talking to yourself now. You know this isnt 
      good! He grabbed one of the blankets that someone was kind enough to leave 
      on the bench and wrapped it around both their shoulders. He sighed 
      resignedly. Hed just have to wait for her to come to her senses.
      "Thanks." Serena leaned back and concentrated on warming herself up. This 
      was nice being snuggled up to someone without having to worry about him 
      attacking you. Serena frowned. Malachite. She should really go and see if 
      he was ok. She fisted her hands. No she shouldnt! Not after what he did 
      to her. Serena peeked up under her lashes at Darien. He wasnt really that 
      bad looking. Shed never been into glasses though.
      Serena gasped inwardly. What was she doing? She was sizing up Darien as a 
      potential boyfriend thats what! She sat up a little straighter and looked 
      around. Like that was going to help her stop thinking about him that way.
      Darien felt her start to pull away. "Whats the matter?" concerned that 
      she was too cold or still worrying about Malachite, he tip her chin toward 
      him. "Are you ok?"
      Serenas eyes widened. There was no denying it. Darien was quite 
      attractive. She watched at as the breeze blew his ebony bangs into his 
      eyes. Eyes that were the deepest blue shed ever seen and was threatening 
      to drown in. her breath hitched in her throat when they flicked down to 
      her mouth. She knew before he even began to move close what he was going 
      to do.
      In an agonizingly slow movement Dariens lips settled on hers. They were 
      soft and warm and oh so tender. Her heart thudded so loudly she was sure 
      he could hear it. Shed never felt like this before when Malachite kissed 
      her. Hed never made her feel like she was going to melt away into a 
      puddle and explode into a million pieces at the same time, like she did 
      now. Her eyes fluttered shut and her hand found it way up his strong back 
      and into his hair.
      Darien trembled from the force of the feelings coursing through him. He 
      never imagined that hed be kissing her like this in this lifetime. His 
      arms enfolded her, pulling her fully against him. Her soft curves moulded 
      themselves to his hard chest. Fitting perfectly against him. It felt 
      so...so...perfect. There was no other way to describe it.
      Thats why it was such a shock when she pulled back and jumped off the 
      bench.
      "Serena?" Darien stood up too unsure why she would break the kiss so 
      abruptly. Guilt began to build when he saw the tears start to form in her 
      bright eyes.
      "I cant..." thats all Darien heard as she ran away from him.
      "Serena!" Darien could only stand and watch Serena disappear down the 
deck.