Chapter 5
"Wait" he called again, rushing after her and catching her by the arm. "What do you want?" she asked him coldly, looking away. "I just want to make sure that you are okay. If you go by yourself you might collapse again and as I'm going to your building anyway, I can help you if you do collapse," he explained. He was using it as an excuse, but he did actually feel worried about her. "I'm fine now, I'll be okay," she said and she started walking again, mumbling under her breath while she did so. Darien thought he heard her mutter something like "I won't faint if your not there," but he couldn't be sure. If that was what she had said, it made no sense to him. People didn't faint because other people were there. He ran up to her and just walked next to her. "I'm going to walk you home whether you like it or not. I don't want anything to happen to you. Raye would kill me if I let anything happen and you know it." She really wished that he would leave her alone, but a small part of her wanted him to stay with her; wanted him to hold her and never let go. "Whatever," she told him coldly. She walked quicker, hoping that he wouldn't notice her unsteady walk. "You said before that you had reports to do. Does that mean you're a teacher of some sort?" Darien asked quietly, trying to get to know her. "Yeah, I'm a flute teacher," she informed him shortly, hinting that she didn't want to be asked questions. He didn't take the hint. "Oh, what school do you teach at?" "Tintern," she tried to walk faster than him, but he seemed to be keeping up her quite easily. "I know where that is. It's a very good school. Do you enjoy teaching there?" he felt like he was putting her to question, but he just wanted to get to know her. She wasn't really very co-operative and he felt a bit annoyed that she wasn't offering up any conversation. "Yeah." "Fine then, I won't talk to you then," he told her, his voice strained with a bit of anger. He was more than a bit annoyed at himself as well as at her. He was annoyed at her the most of course, because he was just trying to be nice and help her, but she just blew him off! It was really annoying. They walked together in silence until they got back to the building. "See you later then Serena," Darien said as he went to his apartment, "remember if you need any help, I can try to help you." "Yeah, I'll remember," she replied as she went upstairs to her apartment, not looking back.
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When she got back to her apartment Serena sighed as she got changed for bed. Why had she been so mean to Darien? He was only being polite. She knew that she couldn't love him, but she could just be his friend, couldn't she? A part of her argued that if she was friends with him though, she would love him even more and be spending more time with him. That would be really bad and so she was glad she had been so cold and distant with him, even though she had wanted to be warm and friendly to him. She sighed. Why was life so complicated?
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Raye sighed as she watched them walk down the street together. Serena seemed to be trying to walk away from Darien, but he was keeping up. Raye sighed again as she realized that her friend probably was very angry with her. Even so, she couldn't help but think that Serena and Darien made a cute couple. The way they were walking also made them look like they were a couple. She couldn't help feeling guilty though. She could have helped Serena by taking her to her apartment, or by inviting her over for the night. The problem with that would have been that Raye wanted Darien and Serena to be together. It made sense. She loved him and Raye was pretty sure that Darien loved Serena. In Raye's book, that meant that they should be together.
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Darien couldn't sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He remembered how her friend Lita had told him that there was nothing wrong with her. She had said that, but her face had said something else. For some reason Darien believed that there was nothing really wrong with Serena. He believed, for some weird reason, that she was just under a lot of stress from something. He didn't know why he believed it, but he did. The way his heart had pounded in his chest when he had looked at Serena made him uncomfortable and the way that he had worried so much when she had fainted. He didn't even know her very well and he was more worried about her than he was about himself. It was a weird feeling. No. it couldn't be. he didn't want to be in love. He had only just moved to a new place, he wanted to settle down before he fell in love. He wanted to live his life for a bit longer before he settled down with someone. He couldn't be in love! Besides, she had never been nice to him, so why did he have to fall in love with a girl who'd never be interested in a guy like him? Why? His mother had told him that he'd end up falling in love with a girl who wasn't interested in him. But then again, his mother had been joking then. She was right though. He sighed. Why did life have to be so complicated?
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In the morning he woke up late. He could already hear the haunting melody of the flute in mid-song. He hadn't set the alarm because it was his day off work. He got one day a week off work and he planned to put it to good use, so he always slept in. He looked over at the time on his alarm clock. It read 10:30. No wonder she was playing. He dressed and then had an impulse to go talk to Serena. He wanted to invite her out to lunch and decided on an impulse that he would. He grabbed a breakfast bar and quickly ate as he brushed his teeth and combed his hair. Then he grabbed some stuff and headed out to Serena's apartment.
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She was playing her flute when she heard a knock on the door. Without even getting up to look who it was she knew it was him. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? Unfortunately she couldn't pretend that she wasn't there, as he probably had heard her playing. She continued to play and hoped that he would think that she couldn't hear him knocking. He knocked again, but she just continued to ignore him, hoping he would go away, but he obviously didn't know that. He continued to knock, growing louder each time. Finally she could take it no longer. She stopped playing and went over to the door. She had to restrain herself from throwing it open, she just opened it normally. She had been right, it was him. He was standing in the doorway with a bag that looked like contained books. He smiled at her and she wanted to melt on the spot. "Hi Serena," he said, flashing that gorgeous smile at her. As he did he couldn't help thinking how beautiful she looked. She was wearing jeans and a pink top and he thought that she looked elegant in them. "Hi," she replied as shortly as she possibly could. "I was wondering if you could come out with me and go see a movie or something and then have lunch," he asked nervously, hoping that she would say yes at the same time he wanted her to say no. She thought about it. Her mind was shouting NO, don't go with him, but her heart was yelling YES. "Umm. okay, I guess. I'll just go get my bag," she answered and she walked into the bedroom cursing herself for being weak and Darien for being so. well lovable. She returned to the door, went out and locked the door behind her. "Okay, let's go," she said, trying to sound enthusiastic and not fall over at the same time.
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They went to see a movie and afterwards they went out to lunch. While they were looking at the menus that were on the table, Darien couldn't help but wonder at the change in Serena. She hadn't been cold to him once and she had been very nice to him. She had told jokes and answered questions; she had even asked questions. She couldn't get much more different than she had been the night before, and Darien was enjoying himself immensely. After lunch they walked back to their apartment building and sat outside talking. Serena hadn't been able to be hostile for very long; in fact she hadn't been hostile at all. She couldn't help enjoying herself and she found herself promising to go out with him again. The day had been amazing. They had talked about absolutely anything that they could think of and had found that they had a lot in common. Basically the only thing that they thought differently on was music. While she loved it, he hated it. It was strange that she loved someone who hated the thing that she was most passionate about in life. Then again, she didn't really share his great interest in poetry. She thought that it was okay, but she loved fantasy better. Darien though, was a huge fan of poetry and thought that fantasy was good also. "Well," she thought to herself, "there's a saying that describes this. 'Opposites attract.' At least he doesn't mind hearing music sometimes." She had enjoyed their time together so much before she realized that it wasn't a good idea to get too close to Darien. By the time she remembered that though, she had already promised that she'd meet Darien for dinner the next night.
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What was he thinking? He had enjoyed the day, but what was he thinking asking her out for another date? She had obviously enjoyed the day too, but. that didn't mean he should have asked her out again. He shouldn't have done it, but it was too late now. After all, you can't invite someone somewhere and then uninvite them for no good reason. It just wasn't polite. He was just going to have to go and have dinner with her. It would be fun, after all, she's a good person to talk to and joke with. Anyway he wanted to go out with her. He always felt good when he was with her and thinking about her always brightened his day. That also meant that his day was always bright because he couldn't stop thinking about her. Anyway, he started preparing for the next night.
End Of Chapter 5.
"Wait" he called again, rushing after her and catching her by the arm. "What do you want?" she asked him coldly, looking away. "I just want to make sure that you are okay. If you go by yourself you might collapse again and as I'm going to your building anyway, I can help you if you do collapse," he explained. He was using it as an excuse, but he did actually feel worried about her. "I'm fine now, I'll be okay," she said and she started walking again, mumbling under her breath while she did so. Darien thought he heard her mutter something like "I won't faint if your not there," but he couldn't be sure. If that was what she had said, it made no sense to him. People didn't faint because other people were there. He ran up to her and just walked next to her. "I'm going to walk you home whether you like it or not. I don't want anything to happen to you. Raye would kill me if I let anything happen and you know it." She really wished that he would leave her alone, but a small part of her wanted him to stay with her; wanted him to hold her and never let go. "Whatever," she told him coldly. She walked quicker, hoping that he wouldn't notice her unsteady walk. "You said before that you had reports to do. Does that mean you're a teacher of some sort?" Darien asked quietly, trying to get to know her. "Yeah, I'm a flute teacher," she informed him shortly, hinting that she didn't want to be asked questions. He didn't take the hint. "Oh, what school do you teach at?" "Tintern," she tried to walk faster than him, but he seemed to be keeping up her quite easily. "I know where that is. It's a very good school. Do you enjoy teaching there?" he felt like he was putting her to question, but he just wanted to get to know her. She wasn't really very co-operative and he felt a bit annoyed that she wasn't offering up any conversation. "Yeah." "Fine then, I won't talk to you then," he told her, his voice strained with a bit of anger. He was more than a bit annoyed at himself as well as at her. He was annoyed at her the most of course, because he was just trying to be nice and help her, but she just blew him off! It was really annoying. They walked together in silence until they got back to the building. "See you later then Serena," Darien said as he went to his apartment, "remember if you need any help, I can try to help you." "Yeah, I'll remember," she replied as she went upstairs to her apartment, not looking back.
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When she got back to her apartment Serena sighed as she got changed for bed. Why had she been so mean to Darien? He was only being polite. She knew that she couldn't love him, but she could just be his friend, couldn't she? A part of her argued that if she was friends with him though, she would love him even more and be spending more time with him. That would be really bad and so she was glad she had been so cold and distant with him, even though she had wanted to be warm and friendly to him. She sighed. Why was life so complicated?
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Raye sighed as she watched them walk down the street together. Serena seemed to be trying to walk away from Darien, but he was keeping up. Raye sighed again as she realized that her friend probably was very angry with her. Even so, she couldn't help but think that Serena and Darien made a cute couple. The way they were walking also made them look like they were a couple. She couldn't help feeling guilty though. She could have helped Serena by taking her to her apartment, or by inviting her over for the night. The problem with that would have been that Raye wanted Darien and Serena to be together. It made sense. She loved him and Raye was pretty sure that Darien loved Serena. In Raye's book, that meant that they should be together.
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Darien couldn't sleep. He couldn't stop thinking about her. He remembered how her friend Lita had told him that there was nothing wrong with her. She had said that, but her face had said something else. For some reason Darien believed that there was nothing really wrong with Serena. He believed, for some weird reason, that she was just under a lot of stress from something. He didn't know why he believed it, but he did. The way his heart had pounded in his chest when he had looked at Serena made him uncomfortable and the way that he had worried so much when she had fainted. He didn't even know her very well and he was more worried about her than he was about himself. It was a weird feeling. No. it couldn't be. he didn't want to be in love. He had only just moved to a new place, he wanted to settle down before he fell in love. He wanted to live his life for a bit longer before he settled down with someone. He couldn't be in love! Besides, she had never been nice to him, so why did he have to fall in love with a girl who'd never be interested in a guy like him? Why? His mother had told him that he'd end up falling in love with a girl who wasn't interested in him. But then again, his mother had been joking then. She was right though. He sighed. Why did life have to be so complicated?
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In the morning he woke up late. He could already hear the haunting melody of the flute in mid-song. He hadn't set the alarm because it was his day off work. He got one day a week off work and he planned to put it to good use, so he always slept in. He looked over at the time on his alarm clock. It read 10:30. No wonder she was playing. He dressed and then had an impulse to go talk to Serena. He wanted to invite her out to lunch and decided on an impulse that he would. He grabbed a breakfast bar and quickly ate as he brushed his teeth and combed his hair. Then he grabbed some stuff and headed out to Serena's apartment.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
She was playing her flute when she heard a knock on the door. Without even getting up to look who it was she knew it was him. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? Unfortunately she couldn't pretend that she wasn't there, as he probably had heard her playing. She continued to play and hoped that he would think that she couldn't hear him knocking. He knocked again, but she just continued to ignore him, hoping he would go away, but he obviously didn't know that. He continued to knock, growing louder each time. Finally she could take it no longer. She stopped playing and went over to the door. She had to restrain herself from throwing it open, she just opened it normally. She had been right, it was him. He was standing in the doorway with a bag that looked like contained books. He smiled at her and she wanted to melt on the spot. "Hi Serena," he said, flashing that gorgeous smile at her. As he did he couldn't help thinking how beautiful she looked. She was wearing jeans and a pink top and he thought that she looked elegant in them. "Hi," she replied as shortly as she possibly could. "I was wondering if you could come out with me and go see a movie or something and then have lunch," he asked nervously, hoping that she would say yes at the same time he wanted her to say no. She thought about it. Her mind was shouting NO, don't go with him, but her heart was yelling YES. "Umm. okay, I guess. I'll just go get my bag," she answered and she walked into the bedroom cursing herself for being weak and Darien for being so. well lovable. She returned to the door, went out and locked the door behind her. "Okay, let's go," she said, trying to sound enthusiastic and not fall over at the same time.
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They went to see a movie and afterwards they went out to lunch. While they were looking at the menus that were on the table, Darien couldn't help but wonder at the change in Serena. She hadn't been cold to him once and she had been very nice to him. She had told jokes and answered questions; she had even asked questions. She couldn't get much more different than she had been the night before, and Darien was enjoying himself immensely. After lunch they walked back to their apartment building and sat outside talking. Serena hadn't been able to be hostile for very long; in fact she hadn't been hostile at all. She couldn't help enjoying herself and she found herself promising to go out with him again. The day had been amazing. They had talked about absolutely anything that they could think of and had found that they had a lot in common. Basically the only thing that they thought differently on was music. While she loved it, he hated it. It was strange that she loved someone who hated the thing that she was most passionate about in life. Then again, she didn't really share his great interest in poetry. She thought that it was okay, but she loved fantasy better. Darien though, was a huge fan of poetry and thought that fantasy was good also. "Well," she thought to herself, "there's a saying that describes this. 'Opposites attract.' At least he doesn't mind hearing music sometimes." She had enjoyed their time together so much before she realized that it wasn't a good idea to get too close to Darien. By the time she remembered that though, she had already promised that she'd meet Darien for dinner the next night.
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What was he thinking? He had enjoyed the day, but what was he thinking asking her out for another date? She had obviously enjoyed the day too, but. that didn't mean he should have asked her out again. He shouldn't have done it, but it was too late now. After all, you can't invite someone somewhere and then uninvite them for no good reason. It just wasn't polite. He was just going to have to go and have dinner with her. It would be fun, after all, she's a good person to talk to and joke with. Anyway he wanted to go out with her. He always felt good when he was with her and thinking about her always brightened his day. That also meant that his day was always bright because he couldn't stop thinking about her. Anyway, he started preparing for the next night.
End Of Chapter 5.