Okay, ALMOST done! Next to last chapter, I swear! "Love Waits for You" by Stormlight ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Chapter Thirteen ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Serena felt like a rabbit. A rabbit that was being stalked by a VERY pissed-off wolf. She knew that she was only making a very difficult situation worse by running away from it, but she just couldn't bring herself to face him. Not yet. She slowed in front of the arcade, peeking inside to make sure the coast was clear, knowing that people were giving her strange looks, but not really caring. She was far more worried about the looks she'd be getting from someone with "eyes like the mysterious sea" if he found her. "Blech! Did I really WRITE that?" she asked herself, wrinkling her nose. "Boy, if someone had written ME something that sappy, I'd probably laugh my head off, too!" She sighed, bowing her head, but brought it up a moment later when she saw a familiar figure sitting in a booth inside the arcade. It was Ryan. **Now's probably a good time to tell him that I don't want to see him anymore,** she thought nervously. **Even though I know Darien won't ever love me, I still don't think it's fair to lead Ryan on when I obviously don't love him...** Before she could change her mind, she straightened up and walked into the arcade with her head high. Too late, she forgot that Darien was probably waiting for her inside. And indeed he was. She saw him with his head bowed over a magazine, facing the door; no doubt awaiting his chance to corner her and wring her neck for abandoning him that morning. Well, she'd just tell him that she had to get home before her mom realized she was gone. It was true, after all, and no sooner had she made it back into bed then her mother had knocked on her door to wake her up. She'd managed to get out of going to school by pleading she was sick, and her pallid complexion and the dark bruises under her eyes had been enough to convince her mother to let her stay home. She might have enjoyed it more, of course, had Luna not decided to go all mother hen on her and scold her for going off alone. She finally solved that problem by tossing the cat out the window. Luckily there was a tree outside for her to land in. At any rate, as soon as the doors of the arcade whooshed open, Darien raised his head from his magazine, and ended up looking Serena straight in the eye. She gulped. He did not look happy. Frowning, she raised her chin as he stood up and turned away from him, heading as fast as she could to Ryan's booth, sliding into the seat and shooting a triumphant glance at Darien, who clenched his fists. For a moment she feared that he'd actually go over and drag her away, but suddenly he relaxed, and his tight expression became serene. He met her gaze, his own filled with a strange knowing, and nodded his head once. Then, to her utter surprise, he sat down again and began to read once more. **Well, THAT was weird!** Serena thought in confusion. **What was all that about?** Her brow furrowing, she turned around again, and realized that Ryan was staring at her with a raised eyebrow, glancing back and forth between her and Darien. She laughed nervously as a sweatdrop appeared on her forehead. "Er...good afternoon, Ryan!" she chirped. "Lovely day, isn't it?" "Hmmm...so what do you want, Serena?" he asked, putting down his fork. She bristled. "Well, it's nice to see you, too. I'm fine, thanks for asking!" she snapped, glaring at him. He snorted. "Chill out, babe," he replied, taking another bite of pancakes. "So what's on your mind?" Serena hesitated before deciding that the direct approach might be best. "I don't think this relationship is working out, Ryan," she began stiffly. "I tried, but you just don't seem to care, so I think it's best that we don't see each other anymore. We can be friends, of course, but..." "WHAT?!" Ryan interrupted, sputtering. "Y-you're breaking up with ME?!" Serena blinked. "Well...yeah," she replied. To her shock, he began to laugh. She stood up abruptly, clenching her fists. "What's so funny?!" she yelled. "You think it's funny that I want to break up with you?! Well, fine! I'm outta here!" She turned to march away, but he reached out and grabbed her wrist. "Let go!" she snapped, trying to yank it away. "C'mon, Serena. Don't be like this," Ryan said, his voice soothing. "Sit down and let's work this out, okay? Whatever got you mad at me...well, I'm sorry. We can work things out, right?" His voice lowered into a seductive purr. "You know you mean the world to me..." Serena felt her anger draining away as he looked at her through lowered eyelids. It was that look he'd given her when he'd first asked her out, and that he sometimes used to calm her down when she got mad at him. She could never resist that pleading gaze. She felt it working now, and she half moved to sit down again, ready to talk about what she felt. He could make things better...he always could... But something stopped her. She felt someone watching her, and turned her head just enough to see that Darien stood there, his eyes burning into her, looking mad and worried all at once. When he saw he'd caught her attention, he shook his head slightly, as though begging her not to give in to Ryan's manipulation. She hesitated, and he shook his head again, mouthing something that looked like, "Don't do it..." "Serena, are you even listening to me?" Ryan's voice cut through her confusion like a sword, making her start with surprise. She blinked, then looked down at Ryan, who was glaring at her with open annoyance. As soon as she looked at him, however, that secretive, seductive mask slipped back over his face, hiding his irritation easily. It seemed that Darien wasn't the only one who hid emotions well... "Ryan, I have to go," she told him firmly. "I'm sorry, but I just can't take this anymore. Everyone kept trying to tell me...but I wouldn't listen. But I've thought it over, and I've decided that I don't love you, and I don't think you love me, either." "Love?!" Ryan burst into laughter again. "Who said anything about love?! Is that what you thought? That I loved you? Boy, you sure have this whole dating thing wrong! It was just for fun!" he exclaimed, shaking his head. "Boy, you are a kid, aren't you? Don't you know anything?" It was no more than she'd expected, but it still hurt like the dickens. She could feel Darien's eyes burning into her, and it only made the humiliation worse. She sucked in a sharp breath and stared at Ryan through tear-filled eyes. "No, I don't guess I do," she replied, her voice gone deadly soft as she fought to hold back anger. "I'm sorry I wasted your time...but I'm even more sorry I wasted mine. See you around, Ryan." With that, she turned and walked away. "Yeah, well, good riddance!" Ryan sneered. "You were too immature for me, anyhow! Go back to your dolls, kid! Who needs ya?!" Serena felt herself go stiff with anger at his insults, but she refused to stop, to go back and deck him one in the jaw like he deserved. It would only prove his point. She wasn't grieving that she'd lost him; she was relieved...and she was also mad as hell. Who did that creep think he was? Just 'cause he couldn't handle being dumped! And HE was calling HER immature?! **Guess it proves that all guys are a bunch of hormone-driven morons! I'd rather do without any of them, if that's how they all act!** she thought furiously. "Serena." She stopped, wincing. Oh, yeah. She'd forgotten about him... "Serena, maybe now we can talk, huh? Don't know why you ran out this morning. I'm assuming you had a good reason, right? So...want to go to the park?" Darien asked quietly. "I...um...not right now," she replied carefully. "I'm going home. Promised Molly I'd study with her. See ya later!" "Not if I can help it." Before she could jump away, he'd reached out and grabbed her arm, then proceeded to drag her to the back of the arcade. "HEY!" she yelled, digging in her heels. "What do you think you're doing?! I'm getting a LITTLE bit tired of you treating me like a little kid all the time! Hey! Are you listening to me? Hel-LO!" Darien ignored her protests as he dragged her through a door and slammed it behind him. Serena stopped yelling long enough to take note that they were in the employee lounge. "Hey, we're not supposed to be back here!" she yelped. "I asked Andrew earlier if it was okay. He's in full support of me, so begging him for help won't do you any good, either," Darien replied, steering her to a stool pushed against a corner of the wall and forcing her to sit down on it. She did so with great protest, glaring up at him. "I should've known! Men are all alike! Of COURSE you'd stick together! I don't see why us girls put up with any of you! We'd be better off on our own!" she snapped, crossing her arms. She would have said a lot more, but Darien's hand over her mouth silenced her. "If you would shut up and listen to what I have to say for ONE MINUTE...then maybe we could resolve a lot of misunderstanding," he told her darkly. "I've been trying to talk to you for days, but you keep running away! Why, Serena? What are you so afraid of?" "I'm not afraid of anything! Least of all you!" she protested. He quirked a smile. "You're also a lousy liar," he replied playfully, ruffling her hair. She flinched under his touch, and his teasing smile faded as he brought his hand down to cup the side of her face. "Talk to me, Serena," he commanded. "Tell me what you wanted to say in that poem. I want to hear it from you directly." "So you can laugh at me about it? How stupid do you think I am?" she retorted. "You weren't ever supposed to see that poem! I-it was nothing but a stupid homework assignment for school! I didn't mean a word of it!" The lies slipped heavily from her tongue. "Well? Are you happy now? We talked, and now you know the truth. I'm going home." His jaw tightened, and he took a step back away from her. But he was still too close for comfort. When she stood up, her body just touched his own, making shivers run up and down her spine as he gazed down at her. He obviously wasn't about to move, so she took a sidestep, and ended up against the wall. Now she knew why he'd sat her there instead of the old couch on the other side of the room. Less room for her to run away. Typical manipulations... A hand smacking the wall beside her made her jump, and Darien lowered his face to her own until he was just inches from her. "I don't believe you," he whispered, his eyes burning straight into her soul in a very unnerving manner. Gathering her courage, she started to tell him that she didn't care, but his mouth suddenly darted in to cover her own, effectively silencing her protests. She was in shock. He'd moved so quickly, and now the feel of soft, warm lips once again moving against her own was enough to send her reeling. She whimpered slightly as he suddenly increased his assault on her lips, pressing her head back against the wall in his fervor, and in reply to her slight cry, he slipped a hand up to cradle the back of her head while his other arm slipped about her waist to pull her close to him, enveloping her in warmth. His kiss went from fierce to gentle in a single moment, turning from something wild and untamed into something tender and protective. He whispered her name tenderly against her lips as his hands stroked softly through her hair, up and down her back... Serena, for her part, was not sure if she should kiss back or knee him. It was like the other day all over again...only moreso. At least, the kiss Darien was giving her now was making the other one look like a peck on the cheek in comparison. She had never been so warm in her life... Finally, he lifted his head and gazed down at her, his eyes gentle and his breathing somewhat ragged. "Serena," he whispered, closing his eyes. His hands trembled slightly where they rested on her back. "Serena, what you don't understand is that..." he began again, but was suddenly interrupted when the door crashed open with a loud bang and three waitresses barged in, laughing and gossiping among themselves. They stopped dead in their tracks upon noticing Darien and Serena, still locked in their somewhat compromising position, and one of the girls raised an eyebrow. "Um...are we interrupting something?" she asked coyly, taking keen note of Serena's flushed cheeks and quick breathing, the way Darien held her so possessively close. Darien let Serena go and reluctantly stepped back, telling himself QUITE firmly that it was NOT the waitress's fault for interrupting them...after all, it probably wasn't every day that she came into the employee lounge to catch two customers in the middle of making out... "No, nothing," he replied quickly, glancing at Serena, who seemed only too happy to let him do all the talking. "Andrew gave me permission to be back here. We had some things we...needed to work out." "I see." The leader of the group seemed highly amused, and her companions giggled and shot each other sly glances. "I take it you two have...worked everything out then?" one of them asked. "I have to go now!" This sudden shout came from Serena, who took the opportunity to dart past Darien and flee from the room, not even bothering to glance back. Darien called her name (as though that would actually have any effect!), then muttered an embarrassed farewell as he followed her from the room, leaving the girls to whisper behind him. He was gonna have a lot of explaining to do to Andrew later on...but he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. As for now... She had been just about ready to give in before those blasted girls had burst in on them, he thought in annoyance. Another moment, and he could have told her everything! Even now he could be back there with her, kissing the sweet breath out of her and listening to her tell him what he most wanted to hear. Even the thought was enough to send his heart pounding in his throat. He KNEW she loved him, but she was afraid to admit it, and he could hardly blame her, after everything he'd said and done to her in the past. But if she would just sit still long enough to let him prove how much he loved her, then it would all work out, and by golly, he was not going to give up so easily! He'd chase her all over creation if he had to, but she was going to hear him out if it was the last thing he did! He sat down on a stool at the bar and absently ordered his usual cup of coffee, not even noticing that it was Andrew who gave it to him. "Boy, somebody sure is depressed today," the young man joked as he slapped Darien on the shoulder to wake him up. "Clare told me about the little...um...scene in the room. I take it you didn't win her over yet, huh? Although scaring the girl half to death probably wasn't the best way to go..." "Oh, shut up," Darien muttered with a half-hearted smile. "It was the best way I could think of to shock her into silence." Andrew snorted. "You were just looking for an excuse," he teased. "So did you get to tell her anything? Did SHE admit anything?" "No, and I think she was too shocked to speak," he replied with a chuckle. "But...it was close. If we'd been left alone a little longer..." "You might've had the poor girl down on the floor by then," Andrew replied with sly innocence, and received a knock upside the head by Darien's hand for his pains. "OW! Okay, that was low!" he replied, laughing. "Look, it's obvious she's not gonna come to you willingly, okay? So...you gotta lure her to you. Trick her into meeting you someplace. Say...the gardens in the park? Someplace where there won't be other people, and where she won't be able to run away so easily. Or...do something that'll capture her attention enough so that she won't WANT to run away." Darien looked skeptical. "Like what? Threaten to throw myself off a roof if she doesn't hear me out?" he asked wryly. Andrew laughed. "That...would be a little TOO dramatic," he replied. He paused, rubbing his chin in thought, then a sly smile crossed his features. "Say...has Serena heard anything from her 'secret admirer' lately?" he asked. Upon receiving Darien's curious glance, his grin widened. "I think...maybe it's about time she finds out who this guy really is..." Continued...