Title: You Never Know
Author: aquaxeyes
Rating: T for language, may change in later chapters
Full Description: Serena Laraway gave her career up in hot pursuit of love. Three years later, the ex-supermodel returns to L.A. alone and heartbroken, with only a screenplay-in-the-making to her name. She's swearing off love this time, but what she doesn't know is that love's been waiting to snag her back at home all along..and it comes in the form of Darien Scott!
Author's Announcements: I love the perceptive reviews I received from the last chapter. In answer to the questions, there will be a few snippits in this chapter but for the most part Serena's past will be revealed in the next chapter. I just wanted to focus on Darien's reaction to her being the screenwriter before I threw in the whole big horrible past thing. I mean, let's face it, he's going to figure out that Serena's bad drinking habit is something she's picked up in France, and he's determined to figure out why she's developed it so that he can stop it.
I have to warn you, Serena's past hasn't been the most clean. So there will be some cursing, the infamous "F" word, and all. Sorry if it disturbs you, but I'm trying to make her past true to life.
One last thing.. It's been a while since I've updated this story, so I took a moment to read the past chapters and.. I don't know what frame of mind I was in when I wrote this stuff. All I know is that this story has got to be the most OCD story I've written yet. I started this story a long time ago, when I hadn't been as good, so I hope that in this chapter you'll be able to tell the different style I've been developing since I began.
Special thanks to my latest reviewers! Shrouded Mist, moonfan2012, serenity11287, kireisnowtenshi, Silver Moon Goddess1, Sunny38, supersaiyanx, x Such Great Heights x, sakura sake, Silver Moonlight-81, wow.., ffgirlmoonie, Dertupio, xraquellie, ), katto, sailor-moon-is-eternal, CassieJamerson, starlitejewelbaby, jessicam242, Edward4ever1992 and iloveebfanfics. No numbers this time, but still, lots of love to you!
So far this fic has gotten over 9500 hits and is on 37 favorite and 72 alert lists.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the story.
Part Six. The Talk.
"I'm not above embarrassing myself."
Darien ran a hand through his hair and checked to make sure Ami, who was driving Serena's car, was still behind him in the rearview mirror. She was. He glanced at his odometer. Heavens, the woman could not be daring and go even two miles over the speed limit. 'At this rate, Ren will lose consciousness.'
Which looked quite inevitable from where he was sitting. The way she stared listlessly out the window of the passenger's side, her head lolling to the side every once in a while, had him worried. What was going through her mind? Was she realizing how stupid she had been, taking drinks from a guy who obviously wanted to sleep with her? That thought made him lose his footing on the accelerator.
Ren? Sleeping around? 'That's.. that's crazy!' Sure, she was a supermodel, and she had a boyfriend she went all the way to France for once upon a time, but sleeping around? It sounded as ridiculous as her drinking.. or smoking.. 'Or writing a damn brilliant script.' Instead of losing his footing, his hand slipped on the steering wheel. Quickly he recovered, but the thought was still there. 'How could she write something so clever? So inspiring? So real? Her life couldn't be as hard as those characters'..' He looked at her again, but her face remained directed toward the window.
It suddenly hit him that Serena Laraway was nothing like what he expected. She was much better. Despite her flaws, her bad habits and her on-and-off irritation toward him, she was an interesting young woman full of complexities and secrets he was oh-too-curious to find out. And if he was ever going to find out, he was going to have to let go of what he thought she should've been like and accept everything.
Serena bent her head against the cool glass, letting it battle against the unnatural warmth of her forehead. 'Stupid, stupid, stupid..' she thought to herself, 'When will I ever learn?'
Drinking had always been a problem with her. By the time she was eighteen she was travelling to night clubs with the rest of the party team, except for when international fashion shows dragged her and Mina away. And when she left for Paris, it only became worse. She couldn't believe how worse..
Serena closed her eyes, remembering just how bad it was in France. Sure, she went to school, she had an awesome roommate whom she could go out with, but she was slipping, sliding down this path to self-destruction. And the way she was going around, chasing after Beau to try and get his attention again..
She swallowed hard, partly to get rid of the urge to hurl and partly to stop herself from remembering. The last thing she wanted to do was take a trip down memory lane with Darien sitting right beside her.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
She contemplated it for a moment. "No."
"I know," Darien said after a moment's pause, "Dumb question."
They sat in a silence that was neither awkward nor comfortable, until Darien said, "You might not ever thank me for pulling you away tonight, but at least you'll know it was for your own good."
"Could you spare me the lecture on morality here?" Serena asked, pinching the bridge of her nose. "The last thing I need right now, or ever, is for you to start sounding like my mother."
Darien stopped himself from saying something mean just to retaliate. She was right. She'd already taken too many verbal punches from her mom that day and was probably acting the way she did at the club to simply act out. She needed a break. "Okay," he said and went back to watching the road.
"Where are we going?" Serena asked, looking out of the front windshield for the first time.
He almost laughed but then remembered that he was trying to be nice. "My place."
'Ahh..' "Why?"
'Oh, great.' "Because you asked if I could take you home with me." He almost lost it then, trying not to laugh at the implications of his answer. 'Maybe I should just stop teasing her.. Nah!'
Serena crossed her arms and huffed. "I would never have done such a thing!"
'Ha!' "That's what you said about kissing me--"
She groaned, burying her face in her hands. "Don't bring that up again!"
He chuckled. "But I think it's funny that you would say the same thing about--"
"Darien, I swear I will puke all over this lovely car of yours and hope it splatters all over you if you continue!"
"You wouldn't dare!"
Serena gave him a smug glance. "Don't be so sure of yourself, buddy. I'm not above embarrassing myself."
"I noticed--"
"Hey, where are we going?"
'Ahh..' "Good grief.."
It wasn't long after that they arrived at Darien's house. Ami got out of her car and proceeded to help him drag Serena out of the car. A series of drunken babbles, sharp curses and controlled swaying later, they had the blonde inside, upstairs and on Darien's bed.
"Mm," she said, grabbing and locking a pillow under her head, "So soft.."
Darien tried to hide his smile from Ami as she walked past him to get a trash can. She came back and placed it on the ground by Serena's side. "If you need to vomit," she said, indicating the receptacle before jumping at the sound of Jaime barking.
The little terrier appeared a second later, running straight from the threshold to the bed. In an amazing moment she jumped on the bed and trotted to Serena's face, licking her nose. Serena just smiled and petted the puppy accordingly.
"Ren," Ami said, "Just remember to go to sleep on your side, okay?"
Serena wrinkled her nose. "Don't worry about me, Soph," she said, eyes half-closed, "I'll be fine."
'Soph?' Darien furrowed his brow, watching as Ami mirrored his expression. "Who?" he asked, but the blonde didn't hear him.
"She's out," Ami declared and stepped out of the room. Darien followed her.
"Do you mind if I call and see if one of the other's can't come and stay with her?" she asked, checking her watch. "I have to assist in a surgery tomorrow--actually early today."
Darien nodded. "Of course."
Ami nodded called a number on her cell phone. Rei must have picked up, because Ami immediately started to speak in a different language. Darien stood there, not knowing what to do except keep looking at his traitorous dog nestled next to Serena in a picturesque scene. 'How.. cute.'
Ami snapping her phone shut brought him out of his thoughts. "Lita's got her hands full with Mina, but Rei is on her way."
"Good," Darien nodded and mustered a smile. "Thanks for helping me take care of her."
"Oh no," Ami shook her head, "Thank you, Darien. It's strange but.. well.."
She didn't continue. Darien angled his head so that he could maintain eye contact with her. He didn't want her to look away, because she looked like she was about to say something important. "What?"
Ami bit her lip, then answered. "We're supposed to help Ren. When she drinks too much, we're supposed to tell her that's enough, or take her home. When she's about to puke, we're supposed to be there to hold her hair back. But sometimes we just get caught up in everything that's going on that we don't do those things."
"I hope you're not beating yourself up about not stopping Ren before things almost got out of hand tonight," he said. "Look, she was already upset when she got to the club. She was going to drink herself half-blind with or without us being there."
Ami simply nodded, and sighed. "I don't want you to think I tell everyone these things about her. She's a very private person. None of us really know what happened to her in France. But since she seems to be getting close to you--"
"Wait, Ren and I?" 'In what dimension and on what planet?'
The bluenette smiled. "She asked you to take her to your home, not hers. And she's bonded quite well to your dog. I think she trusts you more than you know."
Serena giggled, watching Mina shamelessly hit on another male model she'd invited to the Dark Rose. She flung her hair behind her back as she talked to him, one hand placed confidently on her hip, the other right above his shoulder, propped against the wall. With a tip of her chin, she let out a soft laugh, exposing her neck to his line of vision.
Serena could see a lump gather in his throat and a larger one at the front of his pants and giggled all the more. "Oh would you quit encouraging her? She can hear you, you know," Rei chided, taking a swig of her martini.
"Are you kidding? She's like ten feet away," Serena argued, her hand coming up in a gesture.
"Don't point!" a then-self-conscious Ami said, knocking her hand down.
Serena just laughed, teasing her blue-haired friend by pretending to lift her arm to point again and again. Lita sighed behind them. "Why does Mina get all the action?"
Serena stopped taunting and turned to Lita. "Because it's Mina's birthday party."
"It's not just because of that," Rei pointed out. "Look at her. Mina reels them in by the dozen on a daily basis."
Serena shrugged, giving the bartender a nod for another shot. "We could all do that if we wanted to."
"Oh, I want," Lita said, watching Mina and the model with envy, "It just never happens."
The blonde psh'd her friends. "My dears, it only takes confidence, a lot of phallic gestures and the idea of temporary interest that could fizzle out at any given moment, and you got 'em," she concluded, snapping her fingers like a magician."It's as simple as that."
"If it's so simple," Rei sniffed, "Then why don't you do it?"
"Because I'm not pining for action like you and Lita."
"Ren!" Ami scolded, shaking her head.
"Then prove your theory," Rei huffed. "Show us that you've got Mina's routine down."
Serena laughed. "Why would I do that?"
"Because talk is cheap," Rei answered. "I doubt that big mouth of yours can actually back your theory up."
"Rei!"
"Face it, Ami," Serena turned and said, "Friends like us don't come censored."
"Whoo!" Mina cried out, finally joining the four. "Is it hot in here or is it every other gorgeous guy that's been hitting on me?"
Serena laughed and passed her friend a drink on the rocks. "More like every guy you've been hitting on, Mina."
"What's the difference?"
Lita sighed at Mina's nonchalance. "You're just too skilled."
"Don't exaggerate, Lita," Serena argued. "Mina is still a young grasshopper."
She thought that would be the end of the discussion, but Rei crossed her arms. "I'm still waiting for you to do it."
Mina looked at her friends. "Do what?"
Serena tilted her head sideways. "Come on, Rei. Don't take the action crack so seriously."
"Guys, what are you talking about?"
"That has nothing to do with you saying you can get any guy you want," Rei said.
"Wait, you think Serena can't hit on a guy?" Mina asked incredulously.
"Not just that," Ami corrected. "They think Serena can't hit on a guy like you can."
"Which is how?"
"In one word," the bluenette said and smiled, "Shamelessly."
"And the supposed catch is that I can't have a man eating out of the palm of my hand as a result of such shameless come ons," Serena added.
"Go on, Serena. I want to see it, too. Maybe we'll be able to learn a thing or two," Lita added.
After a bit of contemplation the blonde gave her friends a furtive smile. "You sure about this?" Even Ami nodded. "All right. Fine," she said, "Choose a guy."
She was sure Rei was going to choose some guy Mina had already flirted with, more specifically the guy who was standing by the DJ--Mina had transformed him into complete mush, convincing him to go choose a song and dedicate it to her for her birthday--but Rei surprised her by saying, "Ooh, I haven't seen that one all night."
The girls turned, tracking Rei's eyes to a guy sitting at a table by himself, focused on his drink. Unlike the surrounding male models, he was dressed in black slacks and a green button-up shirt. He had thick, dark brown hair that grew out in waves that accented his face. Serena could make out a sharp nose and hazel eyes.
"A loner?" Lita guessed.
"The closest thing to a wallflower at this bash," Mina noted. "He certainly hasn't hit on me."
"Tragic," Serena sarcastically bit out, and the friends resumed their staring.
Ami shrugged. "He's cute enough, from this distance."
Lita, Rei and Serena turned to the doctor with shocked faces. "Ami.." Serena said, aghast, then smiled, "I like."
Serena's shot arrived. She drank it in one quick gulp and turned in the direction of her target. "Watch how it's done, ladies," she said and strolled over to him.
Serena was pretty confident about her mission, but halfway into her trip, something weird happened. The closer she got to him, the more attractive he became. In fact, by the time she was five feet away from him, she realized he didn't look anything like the typical Californian. His hair belonged to a grown-up cherub, his face almost perfectly symmmetrical. He was.. breathtaking.
"Hi," she said.
"Hi," he answered, just staring at her.
Serena shifted her weight to her other foot. "I'm sorry, I went through the guest list myself and I can't quite place you."
He cocked his head. "Is this a private party?"
"Sort of. It's my best friend's twentieth birthday bash," she answered. She watched his face morph with confusion. "I.. take it you didn't know about it."
He shook his head, his beautiful hair following the movements.
"You know of Mina Bellamy, though," she said, her voice turning it into a question.
Again, he shook his head. "I'm kind of from out of town.."
"I kind of noticed."
He smiled at her innocent quip. "Does this mean I'm going to get kicked out by those nasty-looking bouncers?"
Serena shook her head adamantly. "No. If they ask, tell them you know me."
He leaned forward. "And you would be..?"
"Serena Laraway," she said, offering her hand.
"Beau Cassidy," he said in return, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips.
Serena melted, not expecting him to do that. The man known as Beau offered her the seat next to him. She took it with as much grace as she could. "That's an interesting name," she commented. "French."
"Oui, ma chère," he responded.
"Ahh, fluent in three words," she said.
He matched her smile with a grin of his own. "I'm more fluent than that," he said.
"I didn't catch much of an accent."
"That's because I've spent a lot of time in the States."
"So you're originally from France. Hmm," she said, pressing a finger to her chin, "that's really out of town."
"Okay, so I lied," he admitted, the smile not leaving his face.
"Why would you lie to a stranger?" she asked, truly intrigued.
"Because in France," he began, hesitating just for a second, "I'm kind of a big deal."
Serena laughed, tipping her head just the way Mina did earlier. "I liked that. You were so modest."
"Hey," he said, pretending to be miffed, "It's the truth."
"I don't doubt you, although you've already lied to me once," she teased. "What do you do then?"
"Music," he answered, pausing as a passing waiter gave them two flutes of champagne. He handed one to Serena and she took it from him, their fingers grazing for a split second. The frisson of shock that came with it confused her. She ran her gaze from their hands to his face. Given his expression he was just as affected by that as she was.
Her eyes never leaving his, she raised her glass. "To meeting new people," she said.
"To meeting new, very fascinating, and very beautiful people," he cheered, and tapped her glass with his.
Serena didn't know what to say so she downed half the glass. She knew he was watching her, which made her all the more fidgety. She watched him dig into his pocket and pull a card out. "Do you ever pass by Pomona?" he asked.
"Why are you asking?" she asked, her heart fluttering in her chest.
He handed her the card, but closed her hand so she couldn't see what it was. The plastic dug into her skin, but she didn't notice as his hand covered hers. He leaned forward. "I'd like to see you again, along with this. If you can, bring this to the Glass House in two days, at around eight." He gave her a quick kiss right under her earlobe, stood and left.
Ami, Rei and Lita bombarded her with questions when she found the strength to wobble back.
"I didn't realize he was that good-looking!" Rei exclaimed.
"Was it hard to talk in coherent sentences?"
Serena smiled at Lita. "Very."
"But it was quite the seductive interaction you had going on," Ami commented.
"Yeah," the blonde nodded numbly.
Lita grinned. "What did you think of it?"
"In one word? Magical."
The girls gushed for three minutes as Serena filled them in on the conversation. Once the giddiness subsided, Ami asked, "So what did he give you?"
The card, long-forgotten, was still within her vice-like grip. She looked down, opening her fingers, and gasped. The man had given her his French driver's license.
Darien waited for Rei to close the door behind her before speaking. "She still out?"
"Out cold," the raven-haired woman replied, following Darien downstairs.
"I appreciate you staying for her," he said, leading her into his living room.
"Oh, trust me," Rei said, taking a seat on his couch adjacent to him, "I've done worse for Ren."
Darien's expression turned amused. "Worse than spending the night at some random guy's house, you mean?"
Rei gave in and smiled. "Yeah."
"I'm intrigued. Are you going to elaborate?" he asked. 'Damn me and my curiosity.'
"I was the one who picked her up after she got in a fight--the fight--with her parents three years ago."
Darien stopped, surprise having caught him off guard.
Rei smirked. "I know. All of us have our own secrets about Ren, I suppose."
Darien put two and two together. Rei knew Ami was telling him things about Ren that she didn't know. Just like she was about to tell him something Ami didn't know. 'I'm kind of a weird choice for a confessional..' "What happened?"
Rei's eyes scanned his furniture, seeing something in the past. "She was so angry, more angry than I've ever seen her. She almost didn't tell me what she and her parents yelled at each other about. I didn't know what to do except feed her Hagen Daz ice cream. Then slowly, stuff about the fight came out, bit by bit. And then she started talking about going to Paris."
"She wanted to move in with Beau?" Something arose in his gut at the thought--something that was not jealousy--but he ignored it.
"This is where I personally thought it got sketchy," Rei said. She folded her hands on her lap then separated them, feeling more comfortable with that. "Well, you see.. Ren and Beau weren't together."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Beau broke up with her the day before she fought with her parents." Rei frowned. "Moving to Paris was her idea of trying to get back together with him."
That gave Darien a lot to think about. "It didn't work."
"Mina was right," Rei conceded. "Ren's different. This is hard to explain, but Ren and I.. We don't get along on a good day. Or at least we didn't use to.. But now, I'd give anything to have the old Ren back. The one who had something to say about everything. The one who didn't seem so.. broken."
Darien was quiet for a moment. What Rei said actually got to him. Maybe it was because he wasn't there when Ren just took off, but hearing it from Ami and now her, he realized not everything was as black and white as it looked. "She's lucky to have friends like you, friends who read her so well."
Rei opened her mouth to way something but the sound of Jaime barking inside Darien's room had them rushing back upstairs.
'What's going on?' Darien took two steps to the door, his hand on the knob and twisting. 'We were only gone for two minutes..'
Rei stood motionless alongside Darien at the sight of Serena standing outside on Darien's balcony, cigarette in one hand, trash can in the other. She took a long drag and slowly brought her hand to the trash can, ashing. It was surreal; she was so deep in thought she seemed to treat the cigarette as a prop on a set. If he hadn't smelled the tobacco burning she would've convinced him that it was.
Rei took a tentative step forward. "Ren.."
It took Serena a moment to register that Rei and Darien were actually standing behind her. She'd woken up from her memories, a dream she was sure lasted only seconds in reality, troubled. Haunted. It was so easy to pretend what she'd gone through was someone else's story when she came back to L.A. She was too busy planning on how she would crash Mina's birthday party, trying to lapse back into her old life, to really think about it. But despite not thinking about it, despite trying to run away from things that had happened in France, she couldn't escape the fact that she wasn't the same anymore. The half-smoked cigarette in her hand attested to that. "Sorry," she said, motioning to said cigarette, "It calms me down."
Rei's face was kept neutral and Darien nodded. "It's okay."
Serena silently reeled. Earlier at the studio, Darien practically bit her head off for smoking. Now, it was like he was giving her the go-ahead. 'What's with his eyes..? Like he understands.' "Thanks," she murmured, staring at him.
Just seeing her like that made everything click in Darien's head. There was a darkness to Serena, a deep, tormented quality to her, like a shadow nobody saw until she actually let them see it. It was that same darkness he found brilliant about the script. 'It makes sense.'
Without any warning whatsoever, Rei said, "Ren.. What happened?"
Serena had to force herself not to whip her head to her friend. Instead, she took another hit before looking up at the sky and saying, "No matter what I say, you're going to think I'm some spoiled celebrity offspring who isn't used to getting my way."
Darien picked Jaime up while she'd been talking, but he was hanging on her every word. "Want to give us the benefit of the doubt?"
She ashed her cigarette again and brought it to her lips. 'Think about what you're about to do, Ren. Don't tell them. Don't say anything.' Then, before her thoughts could continue to stop her, she said, "Beau.. he used me." 'It was so easy to.'
A sick feeling assaulted Darien when he heard that. Serena could've meant anything by that. "He didn't.."
"When I got there, to Paris, I called. And called and called. He didn't pick up for weeks." She tried not to sound bitter as she drudged the memories up, but the attempt was fruitless. "I figured I'd give him some space, so I went on with school, got myself an apartment with this crazy-cool girl that went by Sophie and tried to keep a low profile."
Rei spoke up. "So when he did pick up--"
"Actually," Serena interrupted, "It wasn't like that. I stopped calling because I couldn't stand seeing the paper and magazine articles showing him partying it up night after night." 'With a new girl' hung in the air, but no one dared to say it. With two quick hits she finished the cigarette and put it out, tossing the butt into the trash can and setting it down. "It wasn't until I'd run into him on the street with two random girls and a paparazzi trail that he bothered to notice me."
Darien was trying to follow along, but his anger was slowly starting to come into focus. Serena might've been acting like she was detached from that story, but he knew that it was only because she'd buried that pain so deep inside of herself that she couldn't let it show. 'This Beau character is quite the asshole.' He just went back to France and went on like he hadn't been in a relationship and ignored Ren when she tried to contact him.
"Let me guess," Rei said. "You were disgusted by him, but he apologized. He even invited you out for a drink or seven. You were skeptical at first, then you caved."
Serena simple nodded. "I caved every time. Then it got worse."
"Define worse," Darien murmured.
Serena tapped her foot nervously, then quickly forced the rest of it out. "He got me hooked on drugs."
She waited. And waited. And finally, Rei burst. "Serena Catherine Laraway."
Darien was too shocked to say anything. He heard about stuff like that all the time--it was Hollywood, so yeah, seriously--but this was someone he knew. Someone his best friend considered family. Someone who could actually tame Brandon Logan. Her parents were his heroes, for crying out loud! So yeah, when Serena said she became a drug addict, it was a damn big deal.
Serena tried to shrug off Rei's reaction, but inside she felt all mixed up. She was disappointed in herself, ashamed even. Yet she felt relieved to finally tell someone that, to finally tell one of her good friends that. The secrets she kept to herself were eating at her, clawing at the fragile structure she'd built. All the anger, hurt, and grief.. especially the grief.. 'It's in the past, Ren. The past.'
Clearing her throat, she gave Rei a humble look. "I know it was a big deal--"
"How long?"
"Eighteen months," she answered automatically, steeling herself from the raven-haired duo's shock.
A familiar fire lit up Rei's eyes. "What were you on?"
Serena shrugged. "All sorts of stuff. Pills, shit you could shoot up.." She bit her lip at Rei's face. "Soph eventually found out and got me clean." 'After the worst had already happened.'
Darien eyed her carefully, suspiciously. Sure, she was telling them a lot--which, in itself, was surprising enough--but he still felt like she was holding back. Still not telling them something. That was a scary thought. "Is that why you came back?"
"Partially" almost came out of her mouth, but she snapped her mouth shut. She couldn't bring herself to answer, but she didn't want to lie. Not to her best friend, and not to Darien. She blinked twice then put on a worn smile. "I'm beat," she said, letting out a yawn. Hoping they'd take that cue.
Rei nodded, obviously jumping for said cue. "All right," she said, sighing deeply, "Do you want me to take you back to your car?"
Darien started to object, but Serena nodded. "Yeah, I'm feeling better now."
"You sure?" he asked, not quite ready to believe that.
"Yeah," she repeated. She gave him a warm smile, one that gave him a slight shiver. "Thanks. You know, for everything."
"Okay, I give in."
She furrowed her brow, staring at Darien's face like he'd grown a mole. "Give in?" she echoed.
"What is it about me that you hate so much?"
She crossed her arms in a childlike fashion. "What?"
"Is it my sincerity, my sense of humor, my hair?"
"You're being ridiculous," she said. And yet, he looked at her for a real answer. "No!"
"Then what is it--"
"I'm completely attracted to you!"
Darien pulled back, the news hitting him hard. "Right. Attraction, hatred. I can see how you'd get those two confused."
"Well, when you put it that way," she bit back sarcastically.
"Were you going for hatred? Because--"
"Ooh, you--you.. I forgot my line."
Serena smiled, despite Natalie's confession. "You self-righteous bastard; I concede and you get even more conceited."
"Thanks," Natalie said and quickly added, "Sorry."
"You're fine," Serena encouraged. "Take it from "Well, when you put it that way"."
The brunette was just about to do so when the door opened to reveal Brandon. He didn't acknowledge Andrew, Reika, Darien or Natalie, simply looked at Serena and asked, "Can I talk to you for a sec?"
Unable to read his current expression Serena nodded and turned to Natalie and Darien. "Keep going," she said. "You're doing good." Once she closed the door behind her she turned to her godfather with a stern face. "What--what is it?" she asked, worried about what Brandon would say.
Brandon made sure the hall was clear before saying, "A young man named Beau has been calling for you at the studio."
Serena clenched her hand, a year full of memories rushing through her mind. And last night.. Last night she'd talked about him, was forced to remember him again. It was crazy how just thinking of him could still make her miserable, and now he was trying to get a hold of her? Even now he couldn't give her any peace.
Brandon saw her hesitance and asked, "Do you know him?"
She slowly nodded. "Yes--no. Well, I don't want to see him ever again."
Brandon gave her a sympathetic look. "I told Elsa to ignore his messages."
She made sure to give him a long grateful look. "Thank you."
End Part Six.
A glimpse at the next chapter, Part Seven. The Past.
"Do you have some sort of lost and found I can give this to?" Serena asked and pressed the ID against the window.
The woman reluctantly looked up, squinted at the ID then beckoned for her to slide it through the ticket box. Serena did so just as reluctantly.
The second the woman picked the ID up she nodded. "Oh yes," she said. "He told me you would come. Here.."
