A.N: ALRIGHT! I'M BACK! Tell me what you think of this chapter. I'm not sure if I like it.

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Chapter 9: So close.

Serena and Darien hadn't spoken much since the costume fiasco. But they were too busy to worry about that right now, because tonight was going to be the night of the Halloween Party!

Serena stared at her Nurse's outfit that lay across her bed. I never should have bought it, she thought. What is Brett going to think of me? She asked herself, shaking her head

Ami walked into the room, carrying a bag filled with things to eat. She'd not seen the costume before; because Serena wouldn't show it to her the day, she got it. Ami looked at Serena quizzically, and followed her line of sight towards the bed.

Ami's eyes widened considerably, " You're going to wear THAT to the party?" she questioned, pointing at the garment as if it were the devil incarnate.

"Well…yeah," Serena replied, frowning a little.

"Um… okay," Ami said warily, before putting her food on the table, looking a little skeptical.

"Do you think it's a little much?" Serena asked, glancing at Ami and back towards the costume worriedly.

"Maybe… Why don't you put it on, then I'll tell you."

Serena nodded and headed for the bathroom. Several minutes later, Serena re-emerged. I feel naked, she thought as she looked towards Ami, who was about to take a bite from her sandwich and froze when she saw Serena, and could only stare at her, then burst out laughing.

"What?" Serena cried out defensively.

"Puahaha! Serena… you seriously can't tell me you don't see it."

"See what?" Serena pouted.

"That you totally look like a porn-star!" Ami giggled, taking another bite from her sandwich, looking at the costume with a broad grin on her face.

"So what am I gonna do? Brett's gonna be here in 30 minutes! I don't have time to do anything else!" Serena whined, crossing her arms over her partially exposed chest.

"Don't look at me! It's your fault… You bought it," Ami shrugged, swallowing.

Knock-Knock

"Oh god…someone's at the door. Ami, can you answer it?" Serena asked, quickly.

"No… You answer it! I'm hungry."

"Argh… Fine," Serena growled and stomped to the door, and opened it.

It was none other than, Brett Stanley who stood on the threshold -- Serena's eyes widened in horror. Well this is embarrassing, she thought as she stood there before him. Brett remained silent for a second or two before finding his voice and whispered, "Serena…?"

"Um… yes…" she looked innocently at him. Brett stood there dumbstruck, not really knowing what to say, "You're early," Serena managed.

"Uh, yeah… Sorry! My friend wants us to get there earlier before everyone else, so she can get to know you…" Brett said, staring at her.

"Oh, okay," Serena, answered tilting her head slightly. Crap… what am I gonna do? She exclaimed inwardly.

"So are you ready?" Brett asked nicely. He was dressed as the Phantom of the Opera. He looks really good, Serena thought.

"Yeah, I'm ready. Lemme go get my purse... I will be quick."

Brett nodded, and waited outside her door.

As Serena came out of her room, Darien emerged from his. Darien had on a mafia outfit. Pinstriped pants, suspenders, and a white t-shirt. His hair was slicked back. He looked handsome -- as always -- but for some reason, Serena found him oddly more attractive than ever.

Darien looked at Serena, gave her a smirk, and then walked off.

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Brett and Serena arrived at the party about 15 minutes before the other partygoers. The host of this party was Mina Aino.

When they arrived outside the door, Mina was standing there smiling courteously, wearing a cute fairy outfit. Her hair was pinned up and the little ringlets fell in a golden cascade. She looked perfect, "Hi! You must be Serena!" She greeted, smiling cheerfully.

Serena smiled back, and shook Mina's hand, "I like your outfit," Serena commented as they stepped inside the house.

"Oh, thank you! Yours is hot," Mina said as she closed the door behind them.

The house was totally decorated! It looked amazing. There were cobwebs, cauldrons, skeletons…everything that you could think of. It reminded Serena of a mini-haunted house, "Wow, you did a fantastic job with decorating!" Serena complimented, completely awestruck.

"Oh, thank you! I and my friend Lita did all this."

"Lita… I've met her before," Serena replied , as they took a seat on a nearby couch.

"Yes, I think she's mentioned you, too," Mina answered, as she poured some drinks, handing Brett and Serena each a cup, Lita came out of the kitchen.

Lita wore a zombie-looking outfit, "Hey Serena! Nice to see you again!" she declared, taking a seat next to Mina. As they all got re-acquainted, the doorbell rang. It looked like most of the guests were beginning to arrive.

Serena met a lot of new people that night, and a couple of guys actually approached her and asked for her number. She just played it off, and never gave them her number, blushing as she did so, "How do you like it so far?" Brett questioned as he stood by her side.

"Oh, it's lovely! Thank you for taking me. Everything looks so great," Serena smiled, taking a drink from her glass of punch, finding she really liked Brett. He was so sweet and kind to everyone.

"I'll be back! I'm gonna make my way around the room and say 'hi' to everyone," He explained, as he left Serena to mingle.

Serena nodded, and waved -- bye.

She then noticed someone walk into the room at the corner of her eye, and turned to get a better look. Darien? He was with his friend, Andrew, who was smiling and hugging Mina. Serena watched him talking to Mina for a while before making his way towards the table laden with an assortment of delicious food. He hadn't seen her yet.

Serena disappeared into the crowd, trying to hide herself. Lita was standing amongst a group of people and came over to Serena, "Hey! You all right? You look a little pale," Lita questioned, looking a little concerned.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine thank you," Serena lied, smiling.

"All right…well if you need me, I'll be in the kitchen… I need to finish the cake!" Lita explained before walking away.

Serena ran to a corner and stood there, as if trying to blend in with the wall, but it didn't work, Darien caught her. He smiled, and walked over to where she stood, "Why hello there sluttish nurse," he joked, holding a cup of punch.

Serena looked at him quickly, but didn't say anything. Feeling angry, she folded her arms and looked away, "What's the matter?" Darien asked, looking at her, "You sick or something? You look pale…"

"I'm fine," Serena answered, a little too quickly, I just didn't want YOU to see me, she thought to herself.

"It's your costume, isn't it? I told you! You're too conservative to wear stuff like that," he told her, leaning against the wall next to her.

"I'm wearing it aren't I? I'm fine with my costume. I like the lack of clothing," she lied again, catching the scent of the cologne he had on.

"Why do you always try to pick a fight with me? You know I'm gonna end up winning every time," Darien asked, smiling cheekily as he playfully nudged her with his elbow.

Serena glared at him, before directing her gaze elsewhere and spotted Brett on the other side of the room. He looked as if he was trying to find her.

"Well, it was nice running into you again, Darien, but I think my date is looking for me," Serena said and walked off, swaying her hips as she went.

Darien shrugged, and plunged back into the crowd.

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A couple of minutes later, Mina asked everyone to be quiet, "All right everyone! Lita and I have come up with a couple of games for this evening's entertainment! We're gonna do a scavenger hunt! There's going to be four teams, each team has a Polaroid camera, and there's going to be several clues and stuff that you guys have to figure out, find, or do. You're gonna need to use the camera to take pictures, as evidence that you've found, or figured out the clue or riddle. Each team gets one hour before the scavenger hunt is over. The first team back, or the first team that has found everything within the time-limit, wins a 100 dollar gift card. All right, Lita will divide you guys into your teams."

Brett was in a team with Mina, Andrew with Lita, and Serena was in a team with… Darien. There were about five to six people in each team.

This is fantastic! Serena thought to herself as she found her teammates: Riley, Dustin, Darien, Jessica, and Brad.

As they greeted one another enthusiastically and got to know each other, Serena tried to stay away from Darien as best she could.

As Lita and Mina handed everyone their cards and cameras, the guy named Dustin approached Serena and started talking to her, "What's your name?" he asked, smirking at her. He was tall. His hair was brown, his body well built, and his eyes, green. He was wearing a Roman toga -- a reef woven into his hair.

"I'm Serena," she answered, smiling politely at him.

"Your outfit is nice," he commented, as his eyes skimmed over her body. Serena could feel his eyes traveling down the length of her body. She didn't know what to do, so she just stood there awkwardly, as he continued to look at her. She felt extremely exposed and uncomfortable.

Finally, Lita yelled," All right everyone! Set all your watches to the same time! You all have an hour! You can start…now!"

Everyone sprinted through the door, cheering and shouting. Once her teammates were outside, they gathered to examine their cards. Dustin stood close to Serena, and Darien stood opposite – studying the card, trying to figure it out, "All right," he shouted, " We have to find a jack-o-lantern. It's not smiling, it's frowning, and it's not an orange pumpkin. The clue says it's about 6 houses down to the right… We have to take a picture of it. Let's go!" He finished as he sprinted down the street.

Everyone followed his lead. It's hard to run in high heels! Serena thought as she tried to catch-up with her teammates.

When they reached the house in question, everyone was out of breath. They looked around, trying to find a pumpkin, but there was none to be seen, "Are you sure you read that right?" Riley asked, as she took the card from him.

"I'm pretty sure…" Darien said, looking puzzled.

As Riley tried to figure out the clues, Darien looked at Serena. She stood across from him, her arms crossed. Her face looked flushed, but she looked stunningly beautiful, even though her outfit was a little showy. Darien saw the guy beside her ogling her, and whispering something in her ear. He noticed how she tensed up, and looked extremely uncomfortable, "Okay! It's not the 6th house, it's the 8th," Riley said, as she started running in the direction of said house.

"There is no eighth house!" Jessica yelled after her, "It's a neighborhood park!"

"Well everyone, split up, and start searching for the jack-o-lantern," Brad suggested and they all agreed and spread out.

Serena walked towards a slide, and Dustin followed her. Darien went with Brad towards a teeter-totter. As he searched, he looked up, and noticed Serena yelling at Dustin, who was touching her inappropriately. Serena was trying to hit his hands away from her body. Dustin, unperturbed, advanced on Serena, and wrapped his arms around her waist, forcibly trapping her in his arms. She tried to push him off, but he was too strong for her. He was smiling, and brought his face down to her neck, kissing her. Serena screamed.

Darien stopped what he was doing, and ran towards her, "Get off her you bastard!" he shouted as he ran towards her.

Dustin was too preoccupied to pay any attention to Darien and continued to harass Serena. She fought him with all her might, to defend herself -- screaming and shouting.

Darien grabbed Dustin by the scruff of his robe, and pulled him away from Serena. Darien's fist made contact with Dustin's face. He put everything he had into the blow -- a loud smack emanating from the punch – and one punch was all that was needed. Dustin never knew what hit him as he fell to the ground. He was moaning in pain, sprawled out on the ground. His nose, bleeding.

Serena watched in horror as it unfolded like a scene in a movie. Shocked and frozen to the spot. Darien looked angrily down at Dustin, "You better stay away from her from now on… You sick pervert."

Everyone had ceased what they were doing by now, looking disbelievingly at the scene before them.

Darien was breathing hard. He looked at Serena and walked towards her, "You okay?" he asked gently, catching his breath.

"Um… yes...are you okay?" She questioned, looking at his swollen hands.

He nodded, bending over, putting his hands on his knees. He looked up at her, his dark-blue eyes, boring into hers, "Come on, I'll take you home," he offered, as he stood up, taking her hand.

She didn't argue with him this time, her hand in his. She chanced a glance back at Dustin as she walked off with Darien. He was still lying on the ground, everyone stood around him now.

Darien and Serena walked in comfortable silence, her hand still in his. She looked down at their clasped fingers and lifted her eyes to his. His face was expressionless. The moonlight shone on his perfect manly features. Serena had never noticed before how well built, and how tall he actually was until this moment. He towered over her. She looked back down at their entwined fingers. His hands were so large, compared to her delicately small ones -- their hands fitting together just right -- he suddenly turned his head, to look at her. She was looking down at their hands, and she was batting her long eyelashes. Her long hair was gently floating in the October breeze. He never noticed how truly beautiful she was, until that moment. The moonlight made her look more beautiful than she already was. He hadn't realized they were holding hands until he saw her looking down. It felt right, so he didn't let go.

He couldn't stop thinking about how that guy had touched her. How dare he, he thought to himself. And he didn't know why a guy touching Serena in that way would make him so furious.

Eventually, they reached his car; Darien opened the passenger door for her. She smiled sweetly at him, and climbed in and Serena finally spoke, "Thank you Darien," she said quietly, looking at him with those beautiful cerulean eyes.

"You're welcome," he replied, as they drove along the road now flooded with silvery moonlight.

"Are you sure you aren't hurt?" Serena questioned, looking at his right hand.

He was holding the steering wheel with his left hand -- his right resting to one side, "Yes, I'm fine," he replied, moving his injured hand out of view.

Serena looked at him questioningly and frowned, "Don't try to hide your hand from me! I know it hurt you," she told him determinedly, grabbing his arm and gently taking his right hand in hers, examining it carefully.

Darien looked at Serena -- his big, callused hand, resting in her small one. She ran her fingertips over his bruised knuckles. He winced in pain.

She gasped, "Oh, I'm sorry! See? I knew you're hurt." She chided in a soft tone, pouting.

"I'm sure it hurt Dustin more than it hurt me," Darien announced, smiling at Serena.

"I'm sure it did," Serena answered, smiling back, letting go of his hands, "When we get back, I'll get some ice and patches for you."

"I see you're gonna play nurse with me, how ironic," he chuckled, grinning.

"Oh shut up," Serena replied, laughing.

They soon reached the University, and made their way up to the dorm rooms. Darien opened his door, and let her inside.

Serena walked in, and turned on the light. It was pretty tidy for a guy's living quarters. She looked at their posters and frowned at the girls in bikinis. Darien watched her reaction and smiled.

"Do you have ice?" Serena asked, turning to face him, "Yeah, it's in our mini-fridge…over there," he pointed, taking a seat on the couch.

Serena found a towel on the floor, and picked it up. She walked over towards the fridge to get some ice to make an ice pack. Sitting beside him on the couch, she cradled his injured hand in her lap and gently placed the pack around his hand.

She looked up at him, and smiled, "I never told you how much I like your costume," she said, looking at it.

"Thanks. I've already told you how I like yours," he joked. She simply rolled her eyes.

After a while, she got up, and placed his hand on the couch, with the towel still wrapped about it , "Can I borrow one of your shirts and put it on? I feel naked." Darien nodded.

He watched as she made her way to his closet, opening it, and looking thoroughly through it, before picking one -- it was a red t-shirt that said," Your Mom."

"Nice t-shirt," she joked, as she put it on over her outfit. The shirt was quite big compared to her. It looked like a nightgown when she put it on. Darien smiled. She looked cute in his shirt. His sleeves fell to her elbow, and the hem fell to about mid-thigh, her legs still visible. Serena came back and demurely sat on the couch once more beside Darien and lifted his hand and placed it back in her lap. She carefully examined it, noticing it was still al little swollen and red. Without thinking, she kissed it gently, "There, all better," She said, smiling. It was a natural motherly, older sister thing. She suddenly realized what she'd done, and looked up at him, her mouth open, "Oh! I'm sorry…" she said, embarrassed.

Darien smiled, looking at her tenderly, " It's fine. I liked it."

She lifted her eyes, and met his gaze. Darien wanted so badly to lean in and kiss her, but he had to refrain from doing so. He might scare her away, especially with all that'd happened today with Dustin.

They just stared at each other. Neither of them noticed that their faces were getting closer, and closer to the other's, until their faces were inches apart. Darien could feel her warm breath on his face, and could smell her hair. Serena's eyelids lowered, her eyes now focused on his lips. Darien stayed perfectly still, watching her.

She moved a little closer, and then stopped. They were so close, Darien could almost taste her.

As he was about to close the distance between them, Serena's cell phone went off. She jumped in surprise, snapping back to reality, she answered it, "Oh, Hi Brett," she said sounding a little deflated.

Darien turned away, "I'm fine, and Darien took me home… Yeah, thank you though; I really did have fun… yeah… Oh, ok… and please tell Mina and Lita thank you for everything… okay… All right… Bye, see you Monday." She hung up.

She glanced back at Darien, awkwardly, "Well... I guess I should go," she said, getting up.

Darien also got to his feet, "All right," he said, sounding a little disappointed.

"Thank you, Darien…for everything." She went up to him, and gave him a hug, her head resting on his chest. Darien slowly wrapped his masculine arms around her tiny waist. He couldn't help but notice how their bodies fit together so perfectly. But of course, all good things had to come to an end.

She reluctantly pulled away, and looked up at him, giving him a warm smile. She got up on her tiptoes, and quickly kissed him on the cheek. He looked down at her and smiled.

Serena walked towards the door, Darien following closely behind. She suddenly stopped and turned around, "Oh! I forgot about your shirt," she exclaimed.

"No, that's fine. You can have it," he told her, waving his hand. He opened the door for her.

"Okay, thank you, Darien. Bye," she smiled, and walked out.

Darien closed the door behind her, and went back to the couch, putting the towel full of ice back on his hand. This had certainly been one eventful night.