It was a April evening. The sun was setting casting out rays of light on to the river making it look more golden then green. The sky was a warm pink and orange. Darien smiled down at Serena. Her hair in her favorite blue baseball cap. Her shorts and green t-shirt grass stained from playing football earlier. She was his best friend. Truly the only girl he could really hang out with. One of the boys. He laughed lightly. She was as close to as close to him as a sister.

"Why are you laughing?" Serena asked curiously. Her white and blue tennis shoes hanging off the dock just about the water line.

"Nothing Meatball Head," he said and taped her head lightly.

Serena smiled and looked out onto the river. This was her favorite place to go. And she was going to miss it terribly this summer. But more so she was going to miss Darien. They had been bestfriends since the day she first moved into the house next to his, 11 years ago. He was outside tossing a ball with Andrew when she saw him. It was then when Andrew threw the baseball and aimed poorly tossing it in Serena's direction. She caught the ball with one hand. From that day they were inseparable. Serena could run, climb and hit just as well as one of the boys, if not better. But over the years, mainly through her young adolescence, Serena began to see Darien in a different way. Suddenly when she looked at him the urge to tackle him to the ground no longer ended with her smiling and laughing in a triumphant win but rather her lips meeting his and well.... her day dreams would end in different ways.

But she always managed to shrug it off. Darien was dating Beryl and had been since they were 15. Almost years three years next month. She sighed inwardly. The only upside to this summer was that she would not have to accompany Darien to another store to pick out a present for Beryl. But that seemed dim compared to not being able to seem him for a whole four months.

"Why are you going away for long again? And missing the last three weeks of school?" Darien half asked half teased.

Serena rolled her eyes and shook her head in a jokingly manner. She had told him many times before. "Because, loser, I've been accepted into an early summer semester at NYU. And you know they just don't give those scholarships to anyone." she laughed lightly. "I do have other interests then playing foot ball with you all day," she leaned over and hit his leg.

"Ouch, That almost hurt," Darien replied. "Okay so that answers why you are leaving school early and missin' out on the first part of summer. But remind me again why you are spending the rest of the summer away?" Darein asked sitting down next to her.

"Because, my cousin will be in the city with me and then we are going back to help her mom, my aunt Sarah, through the last two months of her pregnancy. My uncle Jack travels alot and wont be around much at all for the last part it." Something she know he isn't to thrilled about but as assured her over concerned mother that he would be glued to his house for the next year to help to be with her aunt.

"Well..." Darien started, "I'm going to miss you Buns."

Serena rolled her eyes. "Seriously i havent worn my hair in that style since I thirteen and then I cut it off."

Darien smiled and reached to her hair tied in messy pony tail. The touch of his hand on back of her neck made her tingle. " Ahh, yes but it grew back." He then quickly grabbed her hair and yanked it playfully, in turn Serena punched him in the arm. Instantly Darien's left hand when to his abused right arm. "Okay," He huffed "that actually did hurt. Damn you getting pretty good at that."

Serena shrugged and smiled. "I'm going to miss you too, I mean after all, who is gonna beat you up when I leave in a week?" and then with a quick movement she shoved Darien into the river. Serena laughed hard as she watched him fall into the water and spite out mouths full of liquid. "Oh, Pay back is a Bitch!" Darien yelled with a smile.

Serena got up quickly and began to run home yelling over her shoulder "Catch me if you can!"