Sessediz

Plot: This is based on the lyrics of the currently popular song "Closer" by The Chainsmokers (pull it up on Spotify or Pandora if you haven't heard it yet). I'm not sure if this is a one shot or will be more. There's definitely more in my mind that I could write for this and verses from the song that I haven't yet incorporated in the story (because putting it all in at once seemed over-bearing). Let me know if you would like more to add to this chapter ;)

Rated M: Possibly for (not too far off) future scenes? Up to y'all

D/S

Please check out my other Darien/Serena (Sailor Moon) fanfictions Do More Than Just Exist (supernatural) and Outside the Walls (old world and pirates) and let me know what you think!

Serena Tsukino:

"Thank you again for taking the time to meet before this weekend, Mrs. Kou," I stopped walking once we reached the exit of the conference room. It was just after 6 p.m. and I was ready to get out of this white suit set and cuddle up in bed watching Charmed reruns.

"I was glad to make the trip, Ms. Tsukino. We were very impressed with your presentation," the thirty-something-year-old woman smiled. "It's so wonderful to find ambitious young women working hard to create their own business."

She was, of course, referring to my ownership of the hit restaurant Moon Rise in Brooklyn. I was looking to move the accomplished eatery to a very recently vacated spot in Upper Manhattan. The space was larger, far more luxurious and would bring in more business from those with deeper pockets.

"Speaking for Starlight Realty, I think that your plan is fairly solid. You've put a lot of work into this restaurant and I look forward to dining at your new location," my eyes widened in excitement, "Ms. Tsukino, welcome to Manhattan!"

"Oh, thank you," I grinned widely reaching for her outstretched hand, "Thank you so much. This is a dream come true!"

Mrs. Kou tilted her head to the side and indicated she shared my happiness, "And one well deserved. I will give you a call on Monday to discuss the paperwork and we'll get everything moved along." We bided our goodbyes and I almost squealed with happiness as I watched her leave the hotel lobby. This has been a project six years in the making, ever since I ran away from home to start my own business. If only he could see me now.

I walked to the sitting area to call Lita and give her the good news. She had worked so hard with me to get Moon Rise off the ground and was, in my opinion, the best chef I could have ever happened upon.

"Tell me you're joking, Sere. If you tell me now, I promise to not be too pissed off with you," I could hear her flipping through our cable channels as if this wasn't the biggest news of our lives.

"I'm not joking, Lita. We won the deal!" I heard a thud noise followed by a string of profanities. Lita was finally as ecstatic as I had been for the last ten minutes. "Listen, I need a drink to celebrate. Want to meet me at The Bell Bar? It's off of the lobby of Juuban Suites across the bridge."

"I'll have to take a taxi, and it is Friday night, Serena," Lita remarked but I knew she was just as excited to celebrate as I was. "Lemme get dressed and I'll be over as soon as I can manage. Should I call the girls?"

"Definitely. I feel like partying." We ended our call and I made my way to the glowing bar to reserve us a table.

Darien Shields:

"No, I said I wanted the meeting this Monday morning. Wait, what do you mean the place was already bought?" I stopped walking as I heard Jed's response through the phone, "A restaurant? Which one?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose; this is just not my week. First I was incorrectly told the time of my flight back to New York and had to rearrange my meetings for the week including the Starlight Realty meeting, then my girlfriend Rita dumped because I'm apparently 'never around' and now with my schedule all changed around I missed out on my shot to move my consulting business to a bigger location in Manhattan.

"Moon Rise? Yeah, I've heard of it. Didn't we go there last year for the anniversary celebration?" I sighed after hearing his response, running a hand through my shaggy dark hair, "I know the food's good, Jed." Who cares if the food was 'exquisite' or not? They had stolen the best property to open up on the Upper East Side since 2012. "Listen, just—just find me another location. We need to start expanding while we have the clientele we have now. If we sit around for too long our momentum could die out."

I turned my phone screen off and placed the device back in the pocket of my dark grey suit. The walk home from the office was always soothing, especially after a tiring week, but now I mostly wanted to get roaring drunk. Andrew and his girlfriend were on a weekend trip upstate so there was no one to drink with back home. Maybe I'll meet someone at the bar, I thought as I made a B-line for Juuban Suites. Their bar, despite being a part of a hotel, was a happening place to be. The lights were neon and black with old mahogany wood furnishings.

Normally I wouldn't go out to the bar dressed in my work suit but after hearing that my coveted property was just bought out by a restaurant, there was no time to waste heading home for a change. A fucking restaurant, I seethed.

It was almost 7 p.m. by time I reached the hotel. It was Friday night so the lobby was busy with guests checking in, some business meetings just releasing and the businessmen who attended those meetings getting ready for a night of blowing off steam. Entering the bar, I smirked at the vision before me.

There was a beautiful woman sitting at the bar in a white suit jacket and matching mini skirt; her long blonde hair in a sleek, upright ponytail. My eyes followed the curves of her body from her gorgeous hair to the firm breasts not far below and the long legs starting not long after them.

I loosened my tie a bit and walked over towards her, "What will you have, Miss….?" She turned to face me, her bright blue eyes now evident that she had more beauty that what I had already witnessed.

"I'm not drinking yet, my friends are on their way," she smiled, her lips turning upwards. Wow, she's beautiful.

"Surely you could have one drink on my behalf?" I flirted again, hoping she would accept.

She nodded to the bartender for his attention which she received right away, "Martini, dry, three olives," then looked to me, "on his tab." The bartender went to work building her drink.

I sat down on the stool next to her, "So, what's your name?"

"What's yours?" she smiled to herself.

"Darien. Darien Shields."

"Darien Shields of… Tucson, Arizona?" she received her drink and took a sip; still no longer sharing eye contact with me. How does she know who I am? "You don't recognize me, do you Darien?"

"I—I don't," I looked at her more closely before recognizing that small scar on her right eyebrow, "Serena?" She took another sip and smirked. "God, Serena, I can't believe it's you. Wow, you look so much—." I was at a loss for words. The last time I saw her she was walking down the street in Colorado shopping with her friends… That was four years ago. God, she's changed.

"You've changed a little bit too, Darien. Still bar hopping, I see."

"It passes the time." I nodded to the bartender for his attention but he indicated that it would be a moment for me.

"Mm, until it passes you out."

She sure is cockier than I recall. "What brings you to New York?"

"Business, actually."

"You? In business? That's a laugh."

Serena pulled the short skewer of olives to her mouth and slowly bit off the first one on the end. "You know, that's what you told me in Arizona six years ago, yet here I am."

I looked to the bartender, "Godfather, please," and then back to Serena, "Care to explain this business you have?" Serena just smiled to herself not answering my question. Man, she's gotten hot.

"We're in a bit of a change right now. Maybe once our transition is settled I'll tell you more." Sure, Serena. Sure. "What about you? What's going on in your life? It's been four years since we met in Boulder."

"Oh, a little of this, little of that. My consulting firm is also transitioning right now. Our current office is seven blocks from here." The bartender placed my drink on a small napkin. "Have you spoken with your parents since everything went down?" This surprisingly didn't seem to be a sore spot for her.

Serena had run away at seventeen after she got tired of everyone's comments about how lazy she was and how unsuccessful she'd be. I didn't see her again for two years until that day in Boulder, but at that time she was just waiting tables at a local restaurant. "Mom and I are doing well. Daddy still gets angry from time to time but he's glad that I'm doing well in the city. I think it's just residual from dealing with me in high school."

"How's Sam?"

"Chemistry major at Clemson. He got a half-ride scholarship."

We continued to catch up with small stories and banter. Though there were still qualities that reminded me of seventeen-year-old Serena, this woman before me was much more mature and alluring. Her now long blonde ponytail shimmered under the neon lights of the bar.

"So, are you seeing someone?" I asked, curious.

Serena twirled the empty skewer around the inside of her martini glass, "Why? You interested?" she gave me a knowing look. I leaned closer to her.

"Perhaps," I returned her look with my most charming smile. Oh, how I would love to have her thighs—

"Serena!" we heard a voice call out. I turned to see who had interrupted my pursuit.

"Oh, hey guys!" Serena jumped off her seat and closed the distance between her and a small group of ladies. One of them had long blonde hair like Serena's, another with long raven hair and the last with medium-length brown hair. They all chattered about something and began giggling and bouncing hysterically. Serena made eye contact with me and I raised an eyebrow. "Ladies, this is Darien Shields from my hometown."

I nodded towards them, standing up from my seat. "Nice to see Serena's finally gotten some friends," I teased. The two darker-haired women didn't really respond but the blonde laughed along with my joke.

"I had more real friends than you did in high school, Mr. Shields." Serena turned to her friends to say something and then back to me, "Have a good evening, Darien." And then they were gone. I shrugged it off as nothing but as the evening grew into the night I found that I couldn't get my mind off of my old flame. She's not quite like the Serena I remember… I wonder if she still kisses as good as she did in high school?

I had seen them go over to a table near the center of the bar and they took turns dancing and staying at the table with the drinks. When I saw her going back on the dance floor, I made my move.

I rested my hand on her waist, "Care to dance?"

Serena Tsukino:

Lita had just returned from the bathroom when she walked to our table, "Serena, why don't you go ask your friend to dance?"

I glanced over at Darien Shields who was still at the bar having drinks and was now talking to a girl with a bright red pixie cut. "Why would I want to dance with him?" I sipped my drink and Lita rolled her eyes.

"Because you two obviously have a history," Yeah, who doesn't? "Go on, Sere. Tonight we're celebrating the new restaurant. Have a little fun," she mused. I looked to Darien who was now nowhere in sight and tossed my drink back. I deserve a little bit of fun, even if it's with Darien Shields.

I ventured to the dancefloor in hopes of finding him when I felt a hand on my waist. "Care to dance?" a deep voice asked. When I turned, my eyes met the dark blue orbs of the man I had been searching for.

"I suppose so," I smirked as if I wasn't just looking for him. He held my body close to his as we swayed to the beat, his hands tight on my hips. Darien still towered several inches over me, but his long, now messy, bangs almost made it hard to see his eyes. As if he could read my mind, he removed a hand from my hips and ran it through his black mane, pushing the sweaty hair in a new position. His eyes narrowed as an old R&B song came on and he leaned down to whisper in my ear.

"I don't live far from here," his husky voice sent shivers through my body down to my core. Darien pulled back to make eye contact with me again, his eyebrows raised in anticipation.

I glanced over to Lita who was giving me a dorky thumbs' up and nodding quickly. I guess they'll take the subway back. "My car is parked in the alley outback. I could drive us." Darien laced his left hand in my right one and led us out to the hotel lobby. He opened the front door before the bellhop could and gestured for me to exit. We giggled with our slight inebriation as I searched for my vehicle. I pulled my keys from my purse and pressed the lock button a few times to follow the beeping sound. "There it is," I pointed to my shiny black Rover.

"Nice car," he remarked. "Kind of expensive, aren't they?"

I shrugged, "Not for me." That car was my pride and joy. Sure, it costs more than I could really afford but soon that would no longer be a problem. We both opened our doors and climbed inside. My body started to tense up as my mind started to catch up with the situation. I'm about to sleep with Darien Shields. The air felt thick and I wondered if he was having similar thoughts of me. I honestly never thought that we would get to this day. I put the key in the ignition and it roared to life.

The radio was turned to a mix station with an old song playing. I suppressed a giggle when I heard Darien speak. "Do you remember when we used to listen to this song all the time?" That was a great summer. It was Blink-182's "Bored to Death" and I remembered it well. Darien and I kissed for the first time to this song.

My eyes shifted from the radio screen over to Darien's hungry eyes. In a fleeting second, he closed the distance between us and enraptured my lips in a kiss. His hands held my face steady as his lips moved over mine smoothly, then roughly and then smoothly again. He unbuttoned my suit jacket and helped me shrug it off. Pulling me closer to him, he trailed his lips and the tip of his tongue over the skin of my jaw, neck and then shoulder.

He paused for a moment and muttered something. "What did—you say?" I asked between heated breaths.

"When did you get a tattoo?" he repeated.

"Oh, three years ago." The one he had seen was the sun and moon mandala tattoo that Raye helped me to design. "That's not the only one I have."

He knitted his brow and then smirked, "Oh, really?"

"We haven't really seen each other in six years, Darien, four in the least. I'm full of surprises," I winked. This seemed to be the comment to push him right to the edge.

"Drive," he commanded and I obliged, rolling the car forward and onto the street towards his Manhattan apartment.