A Rose amongst the Thorns
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon nor any characters belonging to the anime :)
Serena opened her eyes, startled. As her vision became more focused, she saw large azure eyes staring down at her.
"Mina! What the hell are you doing? You scared me half to death," the just-woken girl cried out in fright, taking a deep breath to try and calm her quick-beating heart.
"Serena, it's midday already. What were you doing last night?" her friend asked, making herself comfortable on the bed.
"Uhh…I don't know. I guess I must've fallen asleep late because I was thinking about…" she stopped, suddenly.
"Thinking about what?"queried Mina, her eye-brow arched.
"Oh, nothing really. So, did you come over for a particular reason, because I'm still kind of sleepy," the yawning girl asked, changing the subject.
"I wanted to ask you where you got off to Friday night. First you're dancing with that hunk and then you just disappear!"
"I was just…feeling a bit tired, that's all. Sorry, I should have told you guys before I left," she lied, hands fidgeting.
"Hmm, well I guess I forgive you," she said as she leaned in and hugged her friend who was still in her crumpled pajamas.
Serena watched the girl that sat in front of her. Her sapphire blue eyes were sparkling with excitement like a girl who knew a secret and was dying to tell someone, a silly grin on her face.
"Oh, go on, spill it. I know you want to," she finally told the girl who looked like she was about ready to burst.
"Well, you remember the host of that party on Friday night, Andrew? We danced together the whole night; he wouldn't let any other guy dance with me! And then last night he called me and we talked for hours on the phone. He's so heavenly…" trailing off, enjoying her own state of bliss.
Serena smiled sadly as her ecstatically happy friend continued talking about her new found love interest, oblivious to everything around her. She could still picture Darien standing in the ballroom, his arm outstretched towards her, a dazzling smile on his face. Sighing, she shook the image from her mind, trying to forget him.
"Serena? Is something wrong?" Mina asked, suddenly aware that something wasn't right with her usually bubbly friend.
"Oh…nothing's wrong. How about we go have some breakfast? I'm starving!"
"Breakfast! You do mean lunch, right?" the blue-eyed blonde laughed, reassured that if her friend still had an appetite, it meant she was fine.
Darien sat in one of the booths in the arcade where his best friend worked. Although Andrew's family was one of the wealthiest families in town, he liked being independent and not having to rely on his parents for all his expenses. So, at the protest of his parents, he got a job at the local Crown Arcade when he was 16 and had been working there since.
"Andrew, what am I supposed to do? How am I supposed to find this girl if no one knows who she is?" the frustrated man asked in irritation.
"I don't know, man. I'm not sure if I can be of much help," Andrew replied while handing his friend a cup of steaming coffee. "Maybe you should just forget about her."
Darien took a sip of the hot, brown liquid and sighed the hundredth sigh that day. He couldn't forget her, it wasn't that simple. This girl was different to all girls he had known before. Her beauty was astounding, not just because she was physically attractive, anyone could be beautiful on the outside. It was her soul that made her special, a golden aura that surrounded her complete being, touching everything and everyone around her. Her lapis blue eyes twinkled with an innocence that he never thought existed, her purity shining throughout her and everything she did.
"I…I can't. I have to find her," the raven-haired man stated, resolutely.
A black haired girl sat at one of the tables in the local arcade, two friends sitting opposite her. Her fingers tapped noisily on the table, her impatience showing as she waited for her other two friends to arrive.
"Where are those two? Mina left ages ago to find Serena," Raye demanded to know, breaking the silence.
"Oh, they'll be here soon, Raye. Don't worry," smiled Amy, calmly.
"Yeh, look. Here they come now," Lita informed the others while waving at her two friends who had just walked into the arcade.
The two blondes sat down next to their friends, apologetic smiles on their faces.
"Sorry guys, didn't mean to take that long. Someone took their time getting out of bed," Mina teased, giving her friend a cheeky look.
"Don't blame me! Who was the one who kept blabbing on about Andrew?" Serena exclaimed in defence.
"Andrew! Is that why we're eating at the Crown Arcade, Mina?" asked the girl with dark ebony hair, her lavender eyes narrowed at the blushing girl in front of her.
Before the girl could be bombarded with more questions, a sandy-haired man walked up to their table, a notepad in his hands.
"Hi, what can I get you guys?" the man asked, his hand reaching for the pen in his pocket.
"Hi Andrew!" four girls cried in unity, giggling at the ever-reddening girl sitting beside them.
"Hey Andrew…" the embarrassed girl said, looking up at the man with her baby-blue eyes.
"Hey Mina, so these are the friends you were telling me about," Andrew laughed, a broad grin on his face.
The honey-blonde girl nodded while flattering her long eyelashes up at him, making all her friends pull gagging faces at each other. Leaning over, he whispered something into her ear, causing her to giggle madly in response. The four friends watched as the two entered into a flirting match, electricity flying energetically between them. Standing up, Serena stuck her tongue at the pair of love birds in front of her, causing all her friends to laugh even harder.
"Well, since it seems we no longer have a waiter, I'm going to order our food at the counter," she told her group before turning around and walking straight into someone.
"Hey! Watch it…" she began before looking up into a pair of familiar cobalt eyes.
Darien studied the girl who had just walked into him and drew in a quick breath, not quite believing who stood before him. Two neat odangoes adorned her head, the rest of her golden hair flowing down her back, almost brushing the floor. Bright blue eyes blinked in surprise, while normally pale cheeks were blushing pink. Her slender body was enveloped by an oversized jumper, a long skirt reaching down to her shins. It was her.
"Serenity, it's you! I've finally found you!" cried Darien happily like a little boy who had just found his long lost toy.
Oh no! I've got to get out of here, Serena thought before turning towards the exit and scrambling out of the arcade.
Taken aback for only a second, the man chased after her, leaving Serena's friends to stare blankly after him.
"Please! Don't run away from me again!" begged the distraught man, his black hair unruly in the wind.
The desperateness in his voice caused her to stop in her tracks. It hurt her to hear him like this. Turning around, she finally decided to face him, her head held high and her shoulders pushed back.
"What do you want from me?" she questioned him, not an ounce of a tremble in her voice.
"I want…you. Or at least to get to know you," he replied, hand reaching out towards her.
Stepping back, she glared up at him, fire burning in her eyes.
"You want to know who I am? I'll tell you. I'm someone who isn't just unpopular, but also gets picked on constantly by Beryl and her groupies. I'm a nobody. Serena Tsukino, reject of Crossroads High," she finished dramatically, tears glistening in her eyes.
A moment of silence passed as he digested the information, a stunned expression on his face. Shaking her head, the petite blonde allowed the tears to run down her face and fall to the ground. Surprising her, Darien pulled the girl into his arms, holding her close.
"I don't care about that, I only care about you," he said with a warm smile, gently wiping the tears from her face.
Serena looked up at him through tear-stained lashes, opening her mouth to say something but instead found lips pressed against hers. The kiss was soft and tender, yet filled with passion at the same time. His tongue entwined with hers, causing her to buckle slightly at the knees. It seemed as though everything else had disappeared around them and they were the only ones left that mattered.
What am I doing? I hardly know this guy and I'm already kissing him! the thought flashed through her head, forcing her to break away from him.
"What's wrong?" he asked, breathless from their kiss.
"I've…I've got to go!" she yelped in alarm, turning on her heels once more and running all the way home.
Darien stared after her, mouth opened agape. What is with this girl and running away from me?
Author's Note: Omg! Omg! Thank you all SOOOO much for your reviews. I'm so happy that you guys like my story:D I'll try to keep up the good work :) Please keep reviewing for me!
To ka0ri-chan: Sorry, I guess I should've cleared that up in the last chapter. I, personally, don't think that a mask is able to hide your identity so much that so a person who knows you wouldn't be able to recognise who you are. That's why Beryl knew it was Serena but Darien didn't, because he had never met her before. :)
To Sailormoonhannah: Yeh, but don't cliffhangers make it so much more interesting? This chapter doesn't have much of a cliffhanger, so it's all good. Hehe.