Title: Where’s the baby?
Author: Henra
Email: HenraM@tuxedomask.com 
Rated: G

	The last chapter. . .I think. 
	Aren’t you just going to miss the story when it’s over? ^_^

You know...I'm thinking about moving my site...the two pop-up banners that appear
at the main page is MORE than I can stand. Anyway, why am I saying this? We should 
get on to the story now. 

Oh, and Divine...this is for you...since you HAVE been on my back about it and all...


Chapter four



		Serena looked at herself through the mirror. And it was not an 
attractive sight. She sighed and pulled a paper towel from the plastic box and 
wetted it. She wiped her face with the towel, and used another one to dry her 
face. “Time to go outside now, no matter you like it or not. You’ve been in 
here for more than twenty minutes already,” Serena murmured to herself, feeling 
exhausted. 
		She pulled open the restroom door, and was surprised by how bright 
it was outside the restroom. She put her hand to her stomach, hungry. Serena 
smiled slightly and shook her head. She looked at the big clock. Fifteen more 
minutes until lunch period was over. She walked toward her locker through the 
empty hallway. 
		Suddenly, Serena heard a door closing sound. She almost jumped, since 
it was so loud, and the hall was so quiet. Serena realized that she had never 
been in the hallway alone before, there was always some people around her. She 
breathed in heavily. 
		Footsteps were coming this way. Serena’s whole body tensed. She whirled 
around, thinking that the footsteps were from behind her. It was sort of scary, 
being alone in the huge, open path. Serena wished she had gone to eat lunch instead. 
		“Serena? Is that you?” a male voice called out.
		Serena walked toward the voice, recognizing it in a snap. “Da-Darien?” 
		Darien saw Serena, and ran toward her. He stopped right in front. 
“I was looking for you!” he exclaimed. Serena noticed that he was grinning.
She worked on the combination of her locker. “What’s up?” 
		Darien opened his mouth, then closed it, after he took a good look 
at Serena. “Sere. . .what happened? Why are you--were you crying?” 
		“Hmm-mm.” Serena answered, shoving her language and math books in 
the locker, and pulling her notebook out. 
		Darien lightly touched her arm. “Are you okay?”
		Serena looked at Darien, surprised to see the concern on his face. 
“I’m-I’m fine.” She said, her voice cracking. Serena covered her mouth with her 
right hand, tears rising again. Just looking at Darien made her think of that F. 
		“Oh, God. . .Serena. . . .” Darien pulled Serena toward him, and 
wrapped her in his arms. He kissed her forehead softly. 
		Serena cling on to his sleeve, letting her head rest on his shoulder. 
		They were like that for several minutes. Then, Darien spoke. “Is it 
about that F?”
		Serena gasped slightly, and looked up to him. “How did you know?”
		“Mina told me.” He answered, running a hand through her blonde hair. 
He stared into her eyes. God, she was so beautiful at that moment. Cheeks were pink, 
her lips so full, so kissable. But the thing that captured Darien was her eyes. 
They were almost a clear blue now from crying, the lashes were wet, and they 
looked dark and long. Darien had to stop himself from lowering his lips to hers. 
		Serena sighed. “At least we are both getting Fs.” 
		Okay. Time to tell her now. Darien breathed in deeply and kept himself from
smiling. “Um. . .you know, the strangest thing just happened. I was walking
around, looking for you, and Selena, of course, and I saw this lady. . .a 
cafeteria lady. And she was carrying something, something wrapped in blue.” 
He paused, checking Serena’s reaction.
		She blinked. “Uh-huh. Tell me when the point comes.” 
		Darien smiled. “Well, it caught my eye, and so I asked her what was 
it in her arms. And then she showed me--and I almost fainted.” 
		Serena tapped her foot lightly on the floor. “Uh, the interesting part,
Darien?” 
		“Ah-ah-ah.” Darien looked down at Serena, a mischievous glint lit in 
his eyes. “You see, the strange part was. . .that she was holding a baby!” 
		“A baby?” 
		“Yes. And it was not a normal baby. . .it was a potato baby, hahaha, 
isn’t that funny?” Darien looked closely at Serena, trying to stall time, making 
her guess. He just couldn’t wait when she broke into a smile when he told her 
the whole story. 
		“A potato baby? Wh-why would the cafeteria lady. . .” Serena trailed 
off, realizing something. She gasped and stared at Darien. “You-you-you don’t mean. . .” 
		Darien grinned as if to answer. 
		“Oh, Darien!” Serena cried out, giving him a big relieved hug, “I 
am so happy! Oh, my gosh. . .now we don’t have to get Fs, oh, Darien! That’s so 
cool!” 
		Darien pulled Serena closer and closed his eyes, taking in the sweet 
scent of her hair. He sighed. “Yeah, thank god that blue caught my eye, huh?” 
		Serena wiggled to look at him. She smiled. “Yep, thank god.” She 
said softly. Then she looked around, and frowned. “Wh-where’s Selena now?” 
		“Oh, I told Andrew to baby-sit her.” Darien answered casually. 
		Serena paused for a minute, looking at him seriously. “You actually 
still trust him?” she asked, while smoothing over his shirt collar. 
		“Well, the guy’s so glad that Selena was back, he promised that he 
will baby-sit her for life. . .very carefully, of course.” 
		Serena grinned. “Ditto. Where’s Andrew now?”
		“I think he’s around the basketball court somewhere. . .don’t worry, 
he’s not playing. Just watching,” Darien replied, winking at her. 
		“Well, come on, I wanna hold my baby in my arms again,” Serena said, 
pulling Darien toward the direction of the door. 
		Darien put his arm around her. “Yes, ma’am.” 



		“I am so glad that you found Selena, Darien. . .I-I wouldn’t know 
what I would do if I had to face Serena without finding her.” Andrew said, giving 
Darien a grateful look. AGAIN. 
		Serena laughed. “Am I that evil? Anyway, gimme my baby.” she said, 
extending her arms. 
		Andrew smiled and slowly, carefully put Selena in Serena’s arms. 
		Serena rocked her gently. “Feels so good to have her in my arms again, 
even though she’s only been missing for half a day.” She lifted her head, and found 
Darien staring right at her, eyes holding an amused glint as he watched her. 
Serena suddenly blushed. It was good that they got Selena back. But what about them? 
Were she and Darien an item now? Was she ready to. . .to. . .to 
befriends with the guy she hated just five days ago? Serena was lost in thoughts, 
she stared into the sparkling blue eyes of Selena, just to avoid Darien’s glance.
		“Serena?” 
		Darien’s soft voice startled her. Serena lifted her gaze to his, 
“Hmm?” 
		Darien looked at Andrew, then back at her. “I. . .I think we need 
to talk for a minute,” He said, giving Serena a serious look.
		Serena stared back at him for a minute, not sure what to do. But 
then she quickly handed Selena to Andrew, and walked off with Darien, feeling 
queasy.
            Uh-oh. What were they going to talk about?
		They stopped near the field. Darien turned to Serena, his mouth set 
in a straight line. Darien cleared his throat. 
		Serena’s head was racing about a hundred miles per hour. What was 
Darien thinking? Why wasn’t he talking? She stared at him, waiting. Serena looked 
at the floor, trying to stir something to make him talk. 
		“Um. . .first,” Darien began, causing Serena to look at him again, 
“I think we need to talk about that rumor that’s going around the school.” 
		Serena smiled, her heart fluttering. “Well, it’s true now, isn’t it? 
I mean, you asked me out and everything. . .and I said yes,” her smile faded 
suddenly, “you-you are not breaking off the date, are you, Darien? I--”
		“No! No, no, that’s not what I meant. I mean, I just wanted to tell 
you that no matter what they are saying, ignore it, true or false. It would make 
you feel so much better if you just pretended that you hadn’t heard a word,” Darien 
said, brushing away a strand of hair by Serena’s cheek. 
		“Don’t worry, I’m not a person that’s easily affected by whatever 
other people are saying,” Serena said calmly. She stared at Darien, sort of offended. 
It did sound like he cared about her, but he was telling her what to do again. 
He wasn’t SUGGESTING that she ignore the rumors, he was TELLING her to ignore the 
rumors, and that bothered Serena. She tried to keep her face expressionless. 
		“Oh, and. . .” Darien half-smiled at her, “I already decided that 
our date would be next Saturday, because I want to take you to a special place, 
and it’s reserved this weekend by some other couples.” 
		Serena frowned. “You-you already decided when the date would be?” 
		“Yeah. I already told you--next Saturday, because it’s booked this 
weekend, that place, I mean,” Darien told her again. He shifted his weight from 
left foot to right, and shoved his hands into his back pocket, expecting Serena 
to ask him where was the “special” place. 
		Serena was tense. “Darien,” she said through clenched teeth, “how 
do you know that I’m free next Saturday?” 
		Darien’s mouth opened a little bit, he wasn’t sure that he liked 
her tone. “What? What are you saying?” he asked, looking at her, trying to figure 
it out. 
		“I’m saying. . .you always expect me to be there to agree whenever 
you decide something, and I don’t like that! I really don’t! Darien. . .one 
of the things I dislike about you is that you keep on being the BOSS! Why 
couldn’t you ask me if I am free next Saturday, and THEN decide that the date 
would be on that day? Why do you always ASSUME everything?” Serena really 
couldn’t stand it--her Mom, her teacher, and even sometimes her friends always 
bossed her around, she certainly didn’t need the boy she liked to also boss her. 
		Darien gaped at Serena, shocked. What? Who did she think she was, 
telling him what she disliked about him? He was certainly not used to this. Darien 
gripped his pants from inside the pockets. “Well, excuse me, for wanting to go 
out with you.” 
		Serena sighed exasperatedly. “Darien. . .I WANT to go out with you, but 
I DON’T want you to just. . .just tell me that our date is next Saturday at this 
place I don’t even know without asking me if I was free. It’s like you expect me to 
be free just because YOU want to go next Saturday.” 
		“Fine. Are you free next Saturday?” Darien asked in an irritated voice. 
His body was so stiff, he could snap in two. 
		“Yes, I am,” Serena answered. 
		“If you are free, then what was all that talking about?” Darien asked, 
annoyance shooting through him like daggers. What was with her? 
		“Because I wanted you to ask me first BEFORE you decide when our 
date’s going to be!” Serena exclaimed, her voice rising.
		“And I asked you! Are you happy now?” Darien asked, his eyes flashing. 
He was angry, definitely angry. He pulled out his right hand from the pocket and 
gripped the pole beside him. 
		“Yes! I am very happy!” Serena retorted, turning away. 
		“That’s great! Truly, really GREAT.” Darien said sarcastically, 
his calm face now completely forced. 
		They were both silent for a minute. 
		“You know what,” Darien said quietly, angrily, “I think the date 
might be cancelled.” Then he walked away, a scowl on his face.
		“There you go, deciding everything again!” Serena shouted after him, 
her body shaking. She couldn’t believe it, she honestly couldn’t believe it. 
She turned to walk back to her homeroom building, a direction completely opposite 
of Darien’s. Serena felt sick. 



		“You found her? That’s so great!” Amy exclaimed, jumping up and down. 
		LIta grinned, and gave Serena a little push. “And you went all 
through that ‘F-stress’ for nothing.” 
		“Serena. . .” Mina asked, noticing Serena’s expression, “are you okay?”
		Serena lifted her head, and managed a small smile. “I’m fine.” She 
said in a small voice. 
		Amy knew something was wrong. She sat down on the bench next to her. 
“What’s wrong?” 
		“Darien and I had a fight,” Serena answered, while putting her face 
in her hands. She fought back her tears. Oh, no, she was not going to cry again. 
He was a jerk. A bossy jerk. . .why did she ever change her mind about 
him? And why in the world was she suddenly. . .in love with him? Yeah...she knew 
that now, she knew that she loved him. The realization hit her when she was watching
Darien turn around and walking away. . .she hated the feeling that she had become so 
attached to him, so HELPLESSLY attached to him. . . 
		“And? You guys always fought before.” Lita scratched her head, confused. 
She kneeled before Serena, putting her hands on Serena’s arms.
		“But this fight was different, wasn’t it? Since you guys went through 
the ‘couple-moments’ now.” Mina said softly. She understood, she understood 
what Serena’s was feeling right now, and she sympathized for her. 
		Serena lifted her head, looking at Mina. “Yeah,” She whispered. 
		“Hey, Serena!” 
		Andrew strolled over to them, an apologetic look on his face. “I 
can’t baby-sit her anymore. . .I feel like playing some basketball.” 
		Serena smiled slightly. “Here, hand her to me.” 
		“Glad to.” Andrew smiled back and gently gave Selena over. He waved 
as he ran away. 
		“You know, I feel sorta sorry for Selena.” Mina said, her voice 
sounding livelier now. She touched Selena’s forehead. 
		“Why?” Lita asked. 
		“Because,” Mina said, while pouting, “her parents are having a quarrel.” 
		Lita smiled slightly and Amy giggled a little. 
		Only Serena didn’t find that funny. 
		Not at all. 



		Darien walked around in the hall, looking for something to kick. 
Boy, was Serena different from girls he dated before. He sighed as he stopped near 
the boys’ restroom. He kicked the door open with a bang. Darien walked inside and 
looked at himself in the mirror. “Look at you, all worked up because of some girl,” 
He said, snorting. 
		But deep inside himself, Darien knew that Serena wasn’t “some girl.” 
She was unlike any girl, too unlike. The way she stared at him, the way her voice 
sounded when she explained why she was annoyed, even the way her cheeks became 
pink from irritation. . .he should be annoyed with her already. But Darien found 
himself actually becoming more and more intrigued by her. 
		Darien kicked open the restroom door again. He stood in the hallway, 
wondering what he could do until lunch period was over. “Some basketball would be 
nice,” He murmured as he walked toward the open field. 



		Serena groaned. She tossed and turned in her bed--she couldn’t go to 
sleep. She kept repeating in her mind what happened that day. . .so many 
things. . .the first kiss between her and Darien, losing Selena, the process of 
trying to find Selena, going through a crying stage, Darien comforting her, telling 
her that he found Selena. . .and the whole fight thing. 
		Finally she got up, and walked toward her window. She looked up, and 
unknowingly, a tear rolled down her face. A breeze brushed against her cheeks, and 
Serena began to sob. “Oh, God. . .why do I have to be in love with someone that 
I could hate?” she whispered as she stared into the night-sky. “And in such short 
time, too.” Serena sighed, “I thought it takes you at least more than a few days to 
fall in love.” She said sarcastically. 
		When Serena climbed back to bed, it was almost 1:20 a.m., and she was 
so tired she fell into a deep sleep as soon as she lay down. 
		“Darien. . .” 



		“You guys made up?” Mina asked when she saw Serena at school the 
next day. 
		Serena slammed her locker shut. “NO.” she replied tightly. She 
yawned. . .
		“Boy, you look tired,” Amy said, studying Serena with concern. 
		“Didn’t get a lot of sleep last night?” Lita asked, giving her a 
lopsided smile. Darien and Serena always fought. . .what was it that made this fight 
so different from the others? Mina said it was because of the “couple-moments”, 
but to Lita, it was mostly the bond thing. 
		“Listen, Amy, can you help my baby-sit Selena for first and second 
period? I feel sleepy, I can’t find Darien anywhere right now. . .and I don’t exactly
feel like looking for him everywhere.” Serena said, giving Amy an apologetic 
and pleading look. 
		Amy quickly took Selena from Serena. “Of course, Serena! I would be 
glad to baby-sit her, since Greg got my baby for first throughout third period.”
		They began to walk toward Lita, Serena, and Mina’s homeroom. 
		“Do you want to talk to him, though?” Mina asked suddenly after a 
long walk of silence. She watched Serena, so she would tell whether Serena was 
lying. 
		“Yes,” Serena admitted, while letting out a huge sigh. “I want to talk 
to him, badly. But I just don’t want to be the first one to talk, you know--Darien 
would think that I’m weak and desperate and stuff.”
		“How do you know he would think that?” asked Lita, putting her hands 
on her hips. They stopped walking.
		“Because. . .” Serena trailed off, having no idea how to end her 
sentence. She looked at her three friends. “I just don’t feel like saying anything 
to him, even though I want to, in my mind.” 
		“Mina, you are always the adviser, what do you think Serena should 
do?” Amy asked, half-jokingly as she smiled at Mina. 
		Mina didn’t answer. Her eyes were looking at something behind Serena. 
		“Mina?” Amy asked, turning toward the direction Mina was looking at. 
“Oh.” She said shortly. She made eye contact with Serena, “Darien’s right 
behind you.”
		Serena’s eyes widened, but she refused to turn around. “What is he 
doing right now? What’s on his face? Happiness? Sadness? Longing?” she almost 
winced at the last word that came out of her mouth. Longing? Darien? Who was she 
kidding? 
		Lita chuckled. “Take is easy, Serena.” She was standing beside 
Serena, so she turned around to look at him.
		“Well, he’s not his usual grinning self. . .” Mina answered, eyes 
still concentrating on the scene behind Serena. 
		“And he’s not showing any hint of sadness, OR longing.” Amy answered,
turning back to Serena. “He’s not showing anything. . .he’s just. . .blank.” 
		“Blank?” Serena was getting impatient, “he’s showing blank? 
Nothing?” She sighed, and she stomped her foot quietly. “God, I want to see him.” 
		“Then turn around,” Mina stated matter-of-factly, cocking an eyebrow. 
		Serena looked down at the floor, then nodded as she lifted her 
eyes. She slowly turn around--she didn’t need to appear too anxious, even in 
front of her friends. But Serena knew that her friend guessed that she 
was desperate already, from her actions. Serena turned a full 90 degrees angle, 
and watched Darien as he talked with his friends. He appeared to be very 
calm--certainly not his usual grinning self, like Mina said, but there WAS 
a flash of sadness in his eyes, it was only a little bit, so no wonder Amy 
didn’t see it. Serena looked at him carefully. 
		Darien suddenly felt a pair of eyes staring THROUGH him, then he shook his 
head slightly. “I’m paranoid. . .how can I FEEL a pair of eyes looking at me?” 
but there were, he could sense it. Darien turned toward his right. . .and locked 
eyes with Serena. 
		Serena felt like fainting. But she didn’t know whether it was 
fainting with happiness, or sadness. The longing in Darien’s eyes was instantly 
gone when their eyes met, replaced by emptiness. . .but there was something else, 
something in his eyes that Serena couldn’t read. Instead of trying to find out 
what was it, she looked away. 
		Darien’s heart took a plunge toward his feet. Serena looked away. He 
didn’t know whether that was good, or bad. It could mean that she was starting to 
calm down from the fight, but it also could mean that she was starting to get 
disgusted with him. Darien sighed. Obstacles, that was how things with Serena 
always were. 



		Serena looked around her. No Darien in sight. She looked at her 
watch, only five more minutes until gym class, and if she didn’t find Darien 
and give him the baby soon, she was going to be late. Serena walked to the 
second floor, hoping he was somewhere up there. And she breathed a sigh of 
relief. He was just standing by the lockers. 
            “Darien! Hold up!”
		Darien looked to his left, and found Serena running toward him. He 
felt hope rising in his chest. He cleared his throat, trying not to look too 
enthusiastic. 
		Serena stopped several feet away from him, and to her, it was 
dangerously close. She took a deep breath, and forced herself to look at him 
without breaking. “I have gym today, so I can’t hold her. You don’t have gym, at 
least, I don’t think so, so you hold her.” Serena handed Selena to Darien 
without another word, and started to leave. 
		“So now YOU are bossing ME around,” Darien said icily, barely glancing 
at Serena. Couldn’t she say something NON-business? All day long, he was waiting 
for her to talk. But not about this. 
		Serena whirled around, her hair flying behind her. She narrowed her 
eyes at Darien. “I think I deserve some time being the boss since I was always 
the victim.” 
		Darien smirked and shook his head. “I don’t believe this,” He muttered. 
		“Believe it, okay, whatever it is you are talking about.” Serena 
looked at her watch. “Lunch period is almost over, and I don’t have any food in 
my stomach. . .I don’t have any energy to fight with you. And I have GYM class 
later,” She said quietly, putting her hand on the wall to steady her. It was 
always agonizing to talk to Darien. She just had no idea why.
		The anger on his face was gone, replaced by concern. Darien looked at 
Serena, and silently cursed himself. “Wait here for a minute. Don’t go anywhere.” 
He told Serena, taking off. 
		“Wha-wait!” Serena called after him, confused. What was he going 
to do? She felt like she should leave, but her feet weren’t listening to her. 
Serena stood in the hallway. 
		Darien came back several minutes later. He had been running, Serena 
could tell. 
		Serena stared at him. “Well? What is it?” 
		Darien looked at her, eyes flashing concern. He pulled out a 
chocolate bar from the hand that was holding the baby. He handed the bar to 
Serena, “Here.” 
		Serena took it hesitantly. She stared at the chocolate bar, confused. 
She lifted her gaze to his, “What’s this?” she asked in a soft voice. 
		“It was in my locker since yesterday. Andrew gave it to me because 
I was wiped out from playing basketball. I didn’t feel like eating that moment, 
and I just remembered that I had it when you said you didn’t eat anything. . .” 
Darien trailed off, his eyes fixed on her. 
		Butterflies flew all over in Serena’s stomach. She studied Darien’s 
expression. “Darien. . .” she whispered. 
		“I hope you are not going to refuse it just because you think it’s 
fattening, since that’s what most girls think. . .” Darien said, half-jokingly. 
		Serena smiled a little. She walked up him, her eyes on him the 
whole time. Hesitantly, she lifted a finger and slowly traced over the outline of 
his jaw, then down his neck, around his shoulder. . .Serena’s eyes followed her 
finger and then founded its way back to Darien’s face again. “Thank you,” She said. 
		“For what?” he replied, face showing pieces of puzzlement. 
		“Everything.” Serena answered as she fell into his arms. She sighed,
letting out all the stress and sadness she was feeling. 
		Darien ran his fingers through her soft hair, and put his head 
sideways down on Serena’s. He liked holding her like this, it made him feel like 
he was needed. God, he was so scared that Serena was starting to hate him all
over again. . . . 
            “You know. . .” Darien started, gently letting Serena 
out of his arms so he could look at her, “I feel like two tons of weight have 
been lifted off my shoulders.” 
		Serena smiled up to him. “Me, too,” She whispered. 



		“Good morning, everyone, welcome to the first day of another whole 
new week. This is my top question for today. . .how do you guys feel about this 
whole baby thing now that a week has passed?” Mrs. Dorea asked, smiling gently 
as she made eye contact with every single student in the room. 
		Some people shrugged, and several called out, “Great,” “Okay,” and 
there were some that said, “Bad.” Mrs. Dorea smiled at each answer she heard. 
		Serena looked down at her desk, deep in thoughts. She didn’t want to 
say she loved it--that would attract too much attention. But she honestly did love 
it. It helped her change her mind about her mortal enemy. . .it even got her in 
love--however impossible that was, considering how much she loathed him just the week
before last week. Serena turned slightly and looked at Darien--he was watching her. 
		He smiled faintly, eyes sparkling down at her. 
		Serena smiled back. She turned her attention back to Mrs. Dorea, but 
her mind was occupied with Darien. And their upcoming date, which was going to 
take place next Sunday--they changed because Serena had to go watch her little 
brother’s game. Her lips stretched into a grin as she thought about how blue 
Darien’s eyes looked when he smiled at her just then. Serena looked down in her 
arms at Selena. She pushed away some “bangs” of Selena’s so she could see her 
better. Serena shifted in her seat. 
		Mrs. Dorea then asked everyone to take out their Health textbooks, 
and started to explain what was healthy for teenagers to eat, what was unhealthy. . .
		Serena listened, catching on every word Mrs. Dorea said. Every now 
and then she would change the position Selena was lying in her arms, and then 
toss a look in Darien’s direction. . .she was starting to love senior year. 
		
		The bell rang, and everyone stood off after Mrs. Dorea finished 
her last sentence about the lesson. “Bye everyone, see you tomorrow!” she said 
loudly, and was grinning hard for a lady like her.
		Serena grabbed her books, and pushed her backpack’s strap up her 
shoulder, and turned around, waiting for Darien. 
		He caught her eye and gave a mischievous little smirk. He silently 
walked behind her as they walked out of the classroom, calling out goodbye to 
Mrs. Dorea. Once outside, Darien waited patiently as Serena switched her books by 
her locker, then he grabbed her arm. 
		Serena gasped in surprise, but followed as he led her out of the 
building, into the big open field where no one was in sight. Darien turned to 
her, his lips stretched into a smile so great, it made Serena almost dropped the 
baby. She looked at him. 
		He ran his fingers down her hair. A chill went down Serena’s spine. 
		“Hi,” Darien whispered as he lowered his lips to hers, wrapping 
her in a passionate kiss. 
		Serena’s whole body was on fire as she kissed him back. She put a hand 
behind his tousled hair and inched closer. She closed her eyes, enjoying the taste
of him on her lips. 
            Who broke away first...didn't matter...they were both breathless 
as they stared into each other’s eyes. 
		“I’ve been wanting to do that since I woke up this morning,” Darien 
told her, eyes dancing.
		Serena’s heart stopped. “You did?” 
		“Yeah.” He smiled. “And I’m pretty much satisfied now.” 
		Serena raised her left eyebrow. “So I’m a toy or something?” 
		“No-no, no! Serena. . .I, I. . .I meant, that, that I wanted to do 
that, and I was--”
		“Darien, Darien.” Serena interrupted, silencing him. The two corners 
of her lips turned up into a smile. “I was only teasing you, don’t get all 
sweaty,” She said softly as she put her free hand on his chest. 
		“Oh, god. . .Serena. . .I thought you were serious!” Darien exclaimed, 
taking a step back. 
		Serena stepped closer to him. “What can I say? Gotcha.” 
		“God. . .” Darien wrapped his arms around Serena, “I wasn't thinking
clearly, you know. That was why I couldn't tell.” 
		“It seems to me that you never think clearly.” Serena teased. 
		“I guess that's what happens when you fall in love,” Darien said quietly. 
		Serena was about to say Ha Ha when she realized that Darien was serious. 
She clutched Selena's blanket. “In. . .love?”  
		“Huh?” 
		Serena swallowed. “I thought I heard you say something...about in love.” 
		Darien half-smiled. “I am,” he said quietly. 
		Her mouth had gone completely dry. Serena cleared her throat a few
times, and spoke. “You. . .you are?” She asked softly. “How-how much?” 
		Darien put his hand under his chin, pretending to be thinking. “I've 
fallen pretty hard.” he turned his midnight-eyes on her. 
		Serena closed her eyes for a minute, trying to calm herself before
she started to sweat. When she opened them, she sighed softly. “With?” 
		“Who do you think?” Darien rubbed his thumb softly against Serena's lips.
“You.” 
		The word stung Serena like a bee. A lovey bee. “Oh, Darien. . .I-I 
can't believe it.”
		“Which part? The part I'm in love, or the part that I'm in love 
with you?” Darien asked half-jokingly. 
		“Both,” Serena replied as she fell into his arms. She hugged him
tightly. “I love you, too, Darien, by the way,” she admitted softly. 
		Darien replied by pulling her closer to him.
		“So does that mean we're going to stop fighting now?” Serena asked
suddenly, turning her head so that she was looking straight into his eyes. 
		Darien raised an eyebrow. His eyes danced, amused. “What does that mean?”
		“I mean,” Serena smiled, “are we never going to fight again just 'cause
we are together?”
		“You don't actually mean that you want to still bicker, Serena,” Darien
said, as a slow grin made its way to his face.
		Serena sighed dramatically. “Maybe we should fight sometimes, you know,
just so it wouldn't be too boring for us.”
		“What are you, making future plans for us now?” His grin widened.
		Serena blushed unexpectedly, and turned her face away. 
		Darien laughed, and kissed the top of her head. “But, I don't want to
anything to change too much from the old days.”
		“Me, either,” answered Serena. She buried her head in his chest, arms 
wrapped around Selena protectively. “Darien?”
		“Yeah?”
		“I just love the feeling of Selena in my arms.”
		He chuckled lightly, and hugged Serena close. “And I just love the feeling of
SERENA in MY arms.” 
		Serena looked up at him and smiled. 
		Darien smiled back.


________________________________________________________________
*sniff* *sniff*
This story is over. 
Can you believe it? Wow. 
^_^ ^_^ ^_^ ^_^ ^_^ ^_^
I’m sorry, all you Raye fans, I didn’t include her in the story. Mostly because I 
don’t know how it would be different if she were. 

BE SURE TO VISIT MY WEBSITE AT:
http://fly.to/Moonieround

Peace, y’all!