"I love you, Darien."
She was standing before him looking beautiful and vulnerable her jade eyes full of unshed tears and all he could think of was back to a pair of sky blue eyes that had begged only for his love. A few weeks ago hearing her declaration of love would have made him jump for joy but now things had become so muddled and murky that he couldn't think straight. However, somewhere deep in his being, he could feel his soul clamoring someone else's name, "Serena." Somewhere lost inside of him the answer was there, shouting her name out loud.
As he stepped aside to let Glory in the small apartment his mind kept torturing him with thoughts of another. Standing in front of him was everything he thought he had always wanted and still his heart wasn't content.
Yes, the woman in front of him was too stunning for words.
Yes, he had desired her desperately.
Yes, he had convinced himself that she was that essential part missing from his life.
However, one night in the arms of a certain blonde had eradicated all those theories. The moment his arms had wrapped around Serena he had felt peace for the first time in his life. In her arms he had truly found that part of himself that had been lost for so long.
At first it had terrified him to feel a love so strong. Even with Glory he had never truly allowed himself to be vulnerable, had never let her in beyond the gates of his heart. But, with Serena everything had changed. In only one night she had tumbled down all the walls he had carefully erected all his life.
She had seen beyond the smirk he presented to the world, she had always known that he wore a façade to mask his loneliness. And it pained him to finally understand that she had been there, waiting for him to wake up and see the beautiful gift she was offering; unconditional love.
As these thoughts settled in his mind an old forgotten memory of Serena interrupted his maudlin and he was flung to the past.
"Dari wait up! He heard a childish voice calling his voice. The morose boy that he was at twelve turned to look at the little eight year old ball of sunshine that was spiraling toward him at a dangerous speed. He caught her in his arms before her face made contact with the asphalt.
"Dari, I've been looking for you all over the place." Her voice was out of breath and exited as she continued, "I wanted to give you something."
He glanced down at the tiny girl he was holding in his arms and saw one of the sweetest countenances he'd ever clapped eyes on, framed by a mop of curly blonde hair and beautiful sky blue eyes.
He remembers thinking that she looked almost ethereal like his very own little angel. Fascinated he had stared at her perfect little face keeping his expression solemn as he heard her endless chatter.
"I kept looking for you all over the place. I kept looking and looking and I couldn't find you anywhere. But know I found you", she squealed delighted. Suddenly she had become quiet and had tipped her head to study him. In a small, shy sweet voice she whispered, "I have something very special to give you." She thrust out a tiny fist and dumped a shiny object onto his palm.
It was a silver dollar, which she had been saving to buy her favorite comic book.
She gnawed her lip and lowered her eyes twisting the edge of her sundress in her hands.
"I know things are hard since your mommy got sick. I wanted to help but I didn't know how. I hope this helps you a little bit and next week when I get my allowance I'll be able to help you more," her voice slowly faded as she saw the stunned look in his face.
Darien's heart squeezed and his voice came out choked and dangerously closed to tears, "Thank you, Sere." He couldn't return the dollar that had meant so much to her because it would hurt her feelings and for the first time since his mother had gotten sick he didn't feel so alone anymore. The little girl threw her arms around him and gave him a resounding sloppy kiss.
"I'll always be here Dari.
He looked at the tiny powerhouse that was smiling broadly flashing him that irresistible dimple and knew he had lost his heart right there on the spot.
"Darien?" Glory's voice brought him crashing back to reality and as he cleared his mind from the assaulting memory all of a sudden things became clear.
He had been lying to himself all these years. He had always known that his heart belonged to Serena and it would always belong to her alone. Somehow in the rush to succeed, in the clamber to forget his mothers death he had lost his way. He had been afraid to love that way again with a beginning but no end. He had fooled himself and in the process hurt the only other person that loved him unconditionally.
As he looked at Glory he comprehended that all this time he had been hiding behind her. He knew his heart had never been completely invested in her and so the chances of being truly hurt had never really existed. He took a deep breath and found the courage in himself to put things aright.
"Glory I need to..."
Before he could proceed her fingers on his lips stopped him.
"I know it's to late," her tearful voice interrupted.
"I knew it the moment I walked in. The look in your eyes, I knew it couldn't be for me."
"Glory, I."
"No, Darien please let me finish", the tears were threatening to spill and her voice had become strangled with emotion.
"I loved you, Darien from the beginning I always loved you. However, I could never make you smile the way she did. I could never make you laugh with so much emotion and so much happiness as she did. I lived in constant fear that one day you would realize your true feelings. I kept waiting for the moment that you would wake up and see the love that she offered shinning in her eyes." She looked at his stunned expression at her revelation and only smiled sadly.
"Yes, I always knew how she felt about you. Everybody knew how she felt about you. I think you were the only one who refused to see what was in front of you. Nevertheless, I loved you and I thought that maybe, just maybe I could make you happy." She shakes her head and this time the tears fall freely form her beautiful emerald eyes.
"I never meant to hurt you, Glory. I just couldn't find my way home. The first time I saw you, I thought that perhaps you could complete that part that was missing."
Darien was quiet for a moment as he saw the girl in front of him tremble with heart wrenching sobs. He put his arms around her and pulled her to him caressing her hair softly.
"God, I am so sorry. I have made such a mess of things and now I've hurt you both. I just wish I could take your pain away and make things right somehow." His voice slowly paled and his heart contracted at the pain he had caused with his insecurities.
Glory pulled herself away from his arms and tried to gather her composure as best as she could. "No Darien, I did this to myself. I went into the relationship with my eyes wide open. I had sensed form the start that your heart wasn't invested completely and I still wanted you. This is the reason why I cancelled the wedding. I couldn't go through it knowing that at any moment you were going to realize your true feelings."
She walked away from him allowing him time to digest the truth of her words.
"Tonight I came to see if perchance there was a possibility that I was wrong. When you opened the door and I looked in your eyes I knew that all was lost. You finally found yourself."
She turned to look at him her smile a bit shaky but honest and sincere.
"Be happy Darien. Allow yourself to be truly happy, you deserve it."
The words died on his lips and he couldn't find anything to say. He pulled her into his arms for a final hug. He knew this was goodbye. In his own way he had loved her and he was man enough to recognize that she had helped him to see the folly of his way.
Glory closed her eyes and breathed in his scent as she allowed herself to feel the joy of being in his arms for the last time. She loved him but she knew their story wasn't meant to be. Somewhere in this life a new beginning was waiting for her and she would be brave enough to take the chance. For now she would grieve and say goodbye to the love that had given meaning to her life for so long.
The couple stayed intertwined each of them letting go of a dream silently. The door had been left slightly ajar and unbeknownst to them a figure was poised on the other side watching them embrace.
Serena had swallowed her pride once more. She had decided to seek him out and demand to know what was truly in his heart. Never in a million years did she ever think she would be confronted with the sight before her eyes. Her already shattered heart finished breaking as she looked at the couple before her. Her mind tormented her with the realization that this was the reason why he hadn't sought her out.
She couldn't take any more pain and she feared that this time she would truly go mad. The only thing that kept her from losing her mind was the precious gift she carried within her. And her heart broke for the last time as a strangled sob escaped her lips.
Darien opened his eyes just in time to see the shattered blue eyes of Serena. For one moment blue met blue and in that instant Darien was filled with dread as he saw her whirl around and run out of his life.
"Serena!!!"
Hey guys I hope that at least someone is still reading this story. Sorry it took so long to update, there was a loss in my family and I just wasn't able to get the energy up to finish this story. I know this chapter isn't so great so please bear with me I'm about to wrap up the story in two more chapters so I hope someone out there is still reading it. Thank you very much to all those that reviewed the last chapter I loved all of your reviews!!! Like always I do not own anything so no suing allowed. Hey guys your comments are always appreciated drop me a line and tell me what you think and if you still want to read more of this story.
