Author's Note:
I'm sorry I had to kill Mina. Trust me, I really do like her. But that b*tch stole her best friend's boyfriend! That's unforgivable. Haha, I know I made her do it, but there again, is yet another display of the power of an author – to create heinous crimes for a character and have the audacity to be angry at them for it. Ahh, life is good. ;)

Disclaimer:
Sailormoon. Not mine.

Do Dreams Come True?

Chapter Three

            For the next three months, Serena and Darien saw each other more than they had in the last five years. Whenever he felt sad or lonely, he knew that she was merely a phone call away. In order to take care of Rini, he had taken time off from his company – the investing firm he had built from the ground up, which was now a multi-million dollar establishment. This being said, he had little else to do but sit around at home and watch his daughter nap. He took advantage of the hours that Serena was not at work to entice her over for dinner with her children, or to cook at her place while she rested and caught up with the kids. Tonight fell into the latter category.

            However, when Darien arrived, he noticed immediately how quiet the small apartment was in comparison to its usual joyful boisterousness. "Where are the kids?" he asked after giving Serena a hug. "Lita came by and stole them," she laughed, undoing her perky ponytail with a flick of the wrist. Darien noticed that her hair was getting much longer and commented on it.

            "Yes, well, I decided that I'm sick of short hair. There are so many more things you can do with long hair." Like run your hands through it, Darien thought with a hard swallow. He could only imagine how silky and soft it would feel in his grasp as he tipped her head back and rained kisses down the graceful column of her neck. His fantasies were interrupted as Serena pulled him down onto the sofa beside her.

            "Sit for a while and talk to me," she demanded, smiling cutely. She folded her bare legs beneath her and tugged at her T-shirt to cover more of the slightly tanned, exposed skin. Darien was helpless against her irresistible charm. Placing Rini on the couch between them, he kicked off his shoes and sank into the plushy cushions of the couch as he propped his feet up on the coffee table. "What do you want to talk about?" he grinned, all ears for yet another conversation involving Serena's future plans, what schools she would like her kids to go to, how she wanted to open her own boutique of custom-made clothing… She surprised him by shaking her head.

            "The question is, what do YOU want to talk about?"

            Darien was momentarily taken aback. "You want to talk about me?" Despite their renewed friendship and the fact that she was the only person he really talked to, he still found it hard to discuss his emotions with her. He had always been a private person anyways. However, Serena was not to be deterred.

            "Tell me how you've been feeling the last few months. I see you almost every day but you never tell me what's on your mind." At this, she frowned and was magically transformed into that petulant and pouty teenage girl he had dated so long ago. Darien had to restrain himself from reaching out and kissing the frown off her lips.

            "Well, I suppose I'm just… dealing the best I can," he replied, shaking his head. "To be honest, it's a little odd talking to you about this." Serena looked away quickly, afraid that if he looked at her, he would see the overwhelming desperation in her eyes. She was desperate for him. The past few months had convinced her that she had never truly gotten over him. In fact, despite the knowledge of his betrayal and his consequent marriage to Mina, she was still deeply in love with Darien.

            "Don't feel awkward," she said brightly. "That's behind us now. We're just two old friends telling each other about our lives. God knows I tell you enough about mine. Now it's your turn." Darien ruffled her hair affectionately – a bad idea since he found that he could not, for the life of him, move his hand away. Smoothing down the blonde locks, he rested his hand on her shoulder and began to talk, letting all his inhibitions fall away in the comfort of her presence.

            "Mina and I… we had never been particularly close. Besides you, the one I knew best was Rei. But when you went abroad that year, Rei was caught up in school and Chad. Andrew, as you know, was away with Rita for most of the year on their honeymoon. There was no one for me to talk to when I was lonely. I guess Mina felt the same way because we started talking more and I found out that she was more than the ditzy blonde girl with the good looks.

            "You never asked how it happened. How Mina and I got together… well, I don't know if you want to hear it, but it's part of my story, so stop me now if you don't want to know."

            He looked at Serena expectantly, but she merely nodded for him to continue.

            "She started to spend nights at my place. Her parents were fighting and it was lonely being in her room at night, so she and I would sit up late at night talking about anything and everything. It got to be past midnight, so I offered to let her stay over and pretty soon, she was spending every weekend with me. The other girls noticed, of course, that Mina and I had become closer, but I don't think they realized how much time we really spent together. They themselves didn't seem much of one another – everyone was busy with school.

            "One night, there was a thunderstorm. Mina usually slept on my bed and I slept on the couch. For some reason, I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep, so I went in to check on her. I guess the thunder was bothering her too, because she was awake and kind of just sitting there. She was scared and asked me to keep her company, so I lay down next to her, put my arm around her, and we talked. Up until that point, I admit that I was attracted to her, but I kept telling myself that it was just physical. But that night, I realized that I was in love with her. I loved her personality, the light she brought to my life, the cute way she had of mixing up her English phrases… She was just so optimistic about everything. I hadn't realized how depressed I was until I got closer to her and started feeling happy about life again.

            "A part of me died with her. We had such plans for the future – we were even planning where we would retire when Rini graduates from college. I never thought I'd lose her… Sometimes I wish Rini hadn't been born so that Mina would still be alive. I know that's wrong though; Mina would have wanted Rini to live, to experience all the things she did while she was alive… But God, I miss her so much!"

            At this, tears flowed from Darien's eyes and he leaned his head back on the couch in exhaustion. A small sniffle caught his attention and he turned his head to see that Serena, too, was in tears. Wiping his own pain away, he turned to give her a hug. "Why are you crying, Muffin?" he asked gently.

            "I thought I'd hate you for not loving me anymore. I thought I would hate you and Mina forever," she said haltingly, unable to stop weeping. "But I couldn't stop loving two of the people closest to me, and even hearing your story, all I can think about is that we both lost someone we love so much."

            Darien was overwhelmed. He could not believe that, far from being angry at him in the retelling of his betrayal, Serena empathized with him and felt her own pain for Mina's death. He used the edge of his sleeve to soak up the tears staining her cheeks, but when that gesture did little to stop the flow of tears, he did the only thing he could do in that moment.

            He kissed her.