A/N: So I thought this would be a very cute one-shot. I mean, I know it looks like it's been taken out of the middle of some story, but I was going for a little 'uncaught moment in time', if you know what I mean. So enjoy, and tell me what you think!

Disclaimer: I own nothing!

It was dark, and I was cold and miserable and annoyed and the boot that had submerged in water only hours ago was slowly freezing, making my foot numb. I realized now that Darien wasn't as bad as I had always thought, which only made me reel with confusion. To think that all it took was everyone we had known, along with some we didn't, disappearing to make us see eye to eye.

"Come here," he said, his gruff voice filling the silence of the night. I glared at him.

"You can't tell me what to do," I muttered, rubbing the palms of my hands together to create some sort of heat.

"No, I can't," he agreed, smoothing out his pristine coat that looked particularly warm to me. God I should have planned ahead. When he said we were going north, I hadn't expected we'd get this far this fast. The two blond twins that had given us a lift in their disappeared dad's plane had gotten us quite far. Now it was snowing outside the cave, and the small fire we had made barely melted me. Besides that, we were in the middle of nowhere.

"I can, however," he continued, looking at me expectantly, "suggest that body heat is one of the fastest ways of getting warm. And I have a blanket that could help, too."

"I don't need your body heat or your blanket," I bit out, even though I desperately wanted to fling myself at him now. But no, he was just being nice to me because I had money and he didn't, and the most important part of this mission was finding our families. Family was everything to him. As soon as he found his parents he'd dump me.

Or at least that's what I hoped was the reason he had been so civil. The other reason would be that he was typically this nice and my judgment of him had been wrong since we were little. But that would mean that I had to accept that I had been wrong about him this entire time.

"Serena, you're turning into an icicle. Besides, you're facing the cave entrance straight on. I'm in front of the fire, so the chill isn't as bad on this side. Come here."

I frowned at him.

"If you don't come here, then I will pick you up and carry you here. I don't need you dead as well."

"They're not dead," I bit out. "And why do you care? I'm probably the last person you'd want to spend the rest of this miserable time with."

"Yeah, you are. You're the last person I know and trust… somewhat. We've known each other since grade three. Honestly, if I could choose someone off the street or you, I'd pick you, because I know you wouldn't kill me in my sleep."

I glared at him. "I just might."

"No, you won't. Without me you'd be stuck here, and you know it. You've been too sheltered in life to be able to get home without a guide."

"Please," I said, rolling my eyes, "I have money. Money is power. I can bribe someone to take me home."

He raised an eyebrow. "Alright, let's say you do. So what's to say that someone won't kill you and assume your identity to get access to your money? Most of the adults have disappeared. A lot of people are desperate. Things are being traded or stolen. You kill me, and you won't stand a chance."

"Oh, and just because you grew up in a poor family that lived in a shed for years, you suddenly know about honesty? I was there when you would sneak erasers and pencils forgotten by people into your pockets. I was there that one time I saw you take a juice box left by someone on the floor-"

"Stop," he said, his voice commanding. For a second, I thought I saw something in his eyes similar to regret and sadness, but then it was gone. "I know what I've done. But it's not like I'd kill you and run off. Just think a little, did I use your money at any time during this trip?"

I frowned. "That doesn't mean-"

"You know what I think? I think that it's been rubbed into your head by your parents and rich friends that my family is too poor to be honest. Too poor to afford bread on the table. And that makes us terrible, dangerous people. But guess what? We make an honest living. My parents work all hours at dead-pan jobs and we just manage to scrape by, and this is by no fault of our own. They're both smart people who graduated college, but during the career boom. They weren't able to settle in."

"You skip class. Only those who are doing illegal things skip class in a private school."

His eyes narrow. "You want to know what I do?" He got up and stalked towards me, grabbed my wrist and hauled me up. "Look at me."

I looked away. He was making me uneasy, suddenly all in my face. His hand around my wrist tightened almost painfully.

"Look at me, damn it!"

"You're hurting me!" I said, trying to wiggle out of his hold. His hand tightened, and I was sure a bruise was forming. With his other hand, he cupped my cheek softly, a great contrast, and pulled my face up so I was looking at him. Sparks flew from his fingertips, distracting me. The heat that was coming from him was immense. "I skip classes in the middle of the day for days, sometimes a week, because sometimes what my family makes isn't enough. Sometimes my dad gets sick. Sometimes my mom's arthritis acts up. Then there's a hole in our budget, and I have to fill it." He was mad, anyone could see that, and I eased my eyes away from his, finding the floor. "Do you understand why I skip now? Does that still make me a bad person?"

I bit the bottom of my lip, unsure of what to say. No it didn't make him a bad person. I had never thought he was. I just… I had hated him, plain and simple, because of what I had seen as a kid, and because he had always been the smart one, the funny one, the hot one. He was perfect, and he shouldn't have been. Because if he wasn't I could have honestly told my friends that I hated him because he wasn't good at anything, and as poor as a wet dog.

"So? Am I a bad person?" he asked again.

"No," I murmured. "No, you're not. And that's why I hate you. You're too perfect. You're too… everything. I just… I can't stand it. You're smart and hilarious, and you don't know you are, which is what I realized in the last two days. You have an honest heart and beautiful eyes and… it's just too much! You're the kid we aspire to be, and because we can't be you, we choose to hate you."

Silence fell on top of us like a blanket, with the only sound coming from the cackling fire. His hand around my wrist softened, and then hardened. We stood like that for a long time.

"Say something," I finally managed, when what seemed to be a minute passed.

I looked up to see him frowning down at me. "Let's go sit down. You're freezing."

He let go of me and walked back to his spot. I watched him go, suddenly embarrassed. I had just spoken like one of those teenagers in the old teen flicks, and had scared him away.

"You sit down, I'll stand," I said, turning away from him.

"Come on. Don't be like that. Come here."

His tone was gentle, almost. There was a spot of impatience in his voice though. My jaw ticked. "Fine," I said. I was tired of fighting him.

I turned back to him and slowly walked over and sat down next to him.

He reached over and pulled out a worn, fat blanket, and draped it over us. Then, to my surprise, he grabbed me around the waist and pulled me up onto his lap, and locked his arms around me.

"W-what are you doing?"

"Look at me."

I looked up, meeting his gorgeous eyes. They were heat and life and fire, all at once making my core warm. I started to look away, but his hand came up from under the blanket and fell on my cheek, shooting small tingles down my neck. Wherever he touched me was fire.

"Darien-"

"I know the perfect way to get you warm."

My eyes fell to his lips, and then shot back up to his eyes. "And how are you going to do that?"

He leaned forward, his breath mixing with mine, warming my face. "Guess."

"I-I don't know," I managed, my eyes straying to his lips again. But no, this was Darien… he was… he was…

I suddenly couldn't remember why I shouldn't be where I was, wishing to kiss him.

"I'll give you a hint." He leaned into my left ear. "It starts with K," he whispered. Then he leaned towards my right ear, "It ends with is."

Before I could say anything, he was in front of me again, this time closer, his nose brushing mine, sending my stomach wobbling. I swallowed, and leaned my head back in anticipation.

Then, finally, gloriously, his lips fell on mine, and it was like a spark of something new, scary but intense enough to make me never want to stop, instantly warming me. His mouth parted, and mine followed, and I leaned forward into him, my arms going to his chest and his wrapping around my back. His tongue did a wild dance with my own, and I took back hungrily, giving him everything and taking just the same.

I was in the middle of nowhere, damp and annoyed, but I was no longer cold.

A/N: Tell me what you think because I love getting feedback! :p Hope you all liked it. :p