Thank you, Blueeyeddevil06, for being my beta and for all of your encouragement.
This is going to be a short 3 part story. It's already finished. I hope you enjoy it. Love to all my Sailor Moon fans. I wanted to work on something since I haven't posted in this fandom much lately.
Darien stood there in the school hall staring at Serena. She was laughing with her friends, and joy sparkled in her eyes. She was breathtaking.
She so transfixed his gaze that he missed Andrew chuckling as Lexi came up to him nervously clutching a note she'd written. She stepped into his line of sight, held up the letter, and pushed it to his chest. "Here. I… I love you, and I hope you'll read this." When he didn't take it, she thrust it into his hand and immediately took off.
Darien rubbed his eyes with his other hand and sighed as Andrew laughed at him. "You could have warned me she was coming."
"Absolutely I could have! It would've been infinitely less funny, though." Andrew patted him on the back. "Plus, she would have just tried again. They always do."
Darien sighed, tossed the letter in the trash can, and headed to class. He grumbled, "I never encourage them."
He would have continued to comment, but he was cut off by Serena screeching at him. She grabbed his shoulder and pulled him around to face her. She then handed him a note, and he started to smile at her. It quickly fell when she started talking, "Lexi took the time to write about her tender feelings. The least you could do is read them! Don't be such a jerk." She then spun around and stomped away.
Andrew didn't dare laugh at him now. Instead, he said, "Wow, that sucks."
"It's not like I thought I had a chance with her anyway." He then tucked the note in his school bag and headed to class.
The following day before school, Serena ran up to Darien. "Did you at least read her note?"
"Yes, and it was just as insulting as I thought it would be."
He tried to walk away, but she stepped in front of him and asked, "What are you talking about? It was a love confession."
"No, it was just one more girl who was impressed with my grades and my money. I don't read them because when I do, it makes me think less of them every time." Again he tried to walk away.
Serena again stepped in front of him and stopped his retreat. "But, she's in love with you. Everyone knows that."
"No, she's in love with who she thinks I am. She doesn't know a damn thing about me. No one does."
Serena smirked at that. "You don't let anyone except Andrew get to know you. That's not her fault."
"She fills in my silence with her own picture of who I am. She's in love with a figment of her imagination. I'm not the guy she described in that letter."
Serena just sighed, "One of these days, you'll realize that people can love you for who you are."
"What the hell are you talking about?" He started to panic. How in the world did she know he didn't feel worthy of love? He knew Andrew wouldn't betray him and tell her about his past.
"Oh, come on, it's obvious. Why else would you push everyone else away and only have one friend who really knows you? Especially since it's Andrew, and he's the kindest and easiest person to trust that I know."
"I don't like to talk to people."
She rolled her eyes at him, "Fine, lie to me, but I know the truth. You're a good guy. Learn to accept that."
"How could you possibly know that?"
She looked at him like he was stupid. "Andrew wouldn't be friends with you if you weren't." She took a couple of steps to the side. "You can storm off now if you want, fussy-pants."
"Did you just call me fussy-pants?"
"Yup." She then turned and walked away to join her friends that were waiting for her.
Andrew walked up to him and asked, "How was your conversation with Serena?"
"She called me fussy-pants," he said in amazement.
Andrew nodded, "She seems to get you, Dar."
Later, much to Darien's agony, Lexi approached him again in the hall. Of course, he thought, Serena had to witness it too.
"Did you read my note?"
"Yes," he tried to sound curt. He didn't want to encourage her to keep talking to him.
"Would you like to go out for coffee after school?" she fidgeted with her book bag.
"No."
Tears welled in her eyes, "I can meet you some other day if it would work better."
"I'm not interested in you," was his reply, and he started to walk away.
He wasn't fast enough; she burst into tears and whined. "Why? Why don't you like me?"
"I don't really know you. It's nothing personal."
"But a date is how you get to know someone. You actually have to go out with me to know how you feel about me. I love you."
That pissed him off even more since Serena was watching and staring at him. "You don't even know me," he scowled at her.
"What's her name?!" Lexi yelled. "There must be some girl you like if you won't even go on one date with me!"
"I'm not interested in dating a girl who claims to love me without getting to know me first. You're superficial, and that doesn't interest me. Go find some other rich guy."
"That's not why I love you!"
"Why do you love me then?"
"You're smart."
"Superficial. Try again!" He was really pissed now. He didn't like being pressed, and she was starting to scream.
"You're kind."
He was amazed that she saw that. He believed only Serena was able to tell that about him. He was curious to find out if she saw the same thing. "How do you know that?"
"I just do," she stomped her foot.
"That's all you have. A hope that the rich guy with perfect grades is kind?" He was back to being disgusted with her.
"Well, aren't you?"
"What do you think?" He scowled and then walked away from her.
She screamed down the hall after him, "I hate you!"
He turned to look over his shoulder and replied, "Now that I believe!"
Andrew walked next to him and said, "Serena's comforting her now."
"Of course she is," he scowled. "Now I'm a monster in her eyes."
Andrew shrugged, "Have a bit more belief in Serena. She's capable of being kind to someone even if she thinks they're wrong."
"Does that mean she won't scream at me next time I see her?"
"No, I meant it about Lexi."
"I'm the one who made her cry."
"Sort of. It would have sucked if you dated her, and you…" Andrew looked around and whispered, "You're in love with Serena. That would have been cruel."
"It's just my luck that I fall for a girl who isn't interested in me at all."
Andrew laughed, "You like a challenge. Also, she's safer for you to like. If she's not interested, you don't have to become vulnerable around her."
"Bullshit, Freud. I trust her. You've known her longer than I have. Has she ever betrayed anyone?"
"You have a point," Andrew conceded. "But, if I tell you she's the perfect woman for you, then that really isn't helpful, is it?"
Darien glared at him, "No. It isn't."
"At least she broke up with Seiya," Andrew said with a hopeful tone.
"When was that?"
"Yesterday at the arcade. You should have come for coffee. You would have found it interesting."
"Why?"
"They had a big fight about you, and she broke up with him."
Darien looked at Andrew in shock. "Me? How was I involved?"
"As much as I hate Seiya, he's the only one in school who realizes you're in love with Serena. He got crazy jealous about you both talking. When she laughed in his face, he didn't take that well. He told her she wasn't allowed to talk to you again."
Andrew chuckled, "She asked him if that held as long as they were dating. He said it did, and she broke up with him. She screamed at him that she wouldn't date a man who dictated to her who she could talk to, and she stormed out of the arcade."
They made it to class, and they dropped their private conversation. Darien sat there and thought about how he felt about it all. The part that fantasized about her wondered what it would be like just to walk up and kiss her. He shook his head and listened to the teacher's lecture. If he ever kissed her, it would be because she wanted him to kiss her. He needed her to kiss him back.
It was after school two days later when Serena ran up to him. "I feel I owe you an apology."
"And why is that?"
"You were right about Lexi. Her dream is to be married to a rich doctor and have all the material possessions she wants. It wasn't kind that you said she was shallow in front of the whole school, but it was true."
"Do you have to embarrass me by running after Darien immediately after I broke up with you? You look desperate," Seiya yelled at Serena. He stomped up to them with a look of fury on his face.
Serena stomped her foot and yelled back, "I was talking to my friend! You're ridiculous. Oh! And I broke up with you!" She crossed her arms and scowled at him.
"As if you could break up with me," he scoffed. He then turned on Darien, "Stop leading her on. You'll just get another girl's hopes up and crush them."
Darien glared at him. What the hell was Seiya talking about? Serena yelled back at him, "I'm so glad I broke up with you. Just go away!"
"You'll come crawling back later," he replied, ignoring her statement.
She rolled her eyes, "Please, hold your breath. It would be entertaining." She then crossed her arms and tapped her foot. "Walk away now. I was talking to someone who I actually like to be around." She then lifted one hand and made a shooing motion to him.
She sighed then turned back to Darien. "Where were we?"
"It's not important."
"You aren't going to forgive me?"
He cracked a smile, "I don't need to forgive you. I wasn't upset."
"But you were right, and I made it worse by having you read her love confession."
He shrugged, "Even if I hadn't, she would have confronted me. I assume she would have yelled more if I told her I threw it away."
Serena darted her eyes around and whispered, "I don't really like her at all. She's… unkind."
"And you wanted me to date her?" he asked incredulously.
"No! I just wanted you to give dignity to her feelings. It sounds silly now. She doesn't return the favor to other people."
"No, you were right. I needed to read the note. It's about the kind of guy I want to be and not about her. I'm starting to see that now."
She smirked, "The good news is that I hear a few girls say they wouldn't dare give you love confessions now. They're scared of you. Word around school is that you don't ever want to date."
Well, that sucked, he admitted to himself. He hitched up his school bag and said, "Or I'm interested in a girl who doesn't return my feelings." He mused that it worked because he shocked her.
She shook her head at him slightly. "You asked her out, and she said no?"
"I never asked."
"Then how would you know how she feels about you if you don't ask her?"
He smirked, "I'm a genius. Trust me, I know."
She scoffed, "Your emotional IQ has to be one of the lowest I've ever seen. I doubt you'd know."
"Ouch." He tried to force a smile to act like that didn't hurt. That really stung, though.
She shrugged, "Sorry, it's just that it makes my conversations with you even nicer. I know you're not humoring me. That isn't your style."
She turned to go. "I better hurry up to class. I don't want to fail and get detention all in one day."
"You're failing?"
"Well, kinda. I didn't understand the homework due today, and I know I'm going to get a bad grade on it already," she pouted.
Darien swallowed hard, "Why don't I tutor you?" He hoped he sounded casual.
"No way!" She widened her eyes and shook her head.
Ouch. He managed to keep that comment to himself this time, and he was glad. "Okay," he mumbled out instead.
She shoved him playfully. "If anyone sees us study together, I'm going to be the most hated woman in school. So many girls would be jealous."
"That's why?"
"Why else would I object to you offering to help me?"
"I guess there isn't a reason."
She sighed, "If I weren't going to be late for class, I would press you on that lie." She then took off running. He had to admit that she should be on the track team. No one could beat her at sprints.