A.N: Wow! I got a lot of reviews for the last chapter! Yay: )
Sorry about the cliffhanger thingy, and my computer crashing. Everything's good now!
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Ch. 28: What Happened?
Previously, on Getting to Know You
"Darien?" the girl asked, shocked.
Darien stopped in his tacks and looked at the girl. "Rory?"
"Who is she?" Serena whispered to Darien as Andrew talked to her.
"Uh…. She… she's my ex-girlfriend."
Serena didn't know what to say! This gorgeous girl is Darien's ex! Serena thought. "She's your girlfriend!" Serena whispered in awe.
Darien looked down at Serena. He gave her an uncomfortable look.
Rory turned to Darien, and smiled sweetly at him. He only gets more and more handsome, she thought to herself. "How are you doing?" she asked, her green eyes boring into Darien's.
"Fine," he said, coldly. Serena could feel his hands around hers, tighten. She looked up at him, and then to Rory.
Something bad must have happened between them, Serena thought. The girl turned her head and looked at Serena, smiling. Her smile wasn't one of those 'I-like-you-lets-be-friends' smile. It was one of those malicious, secretive looking smiles. Serena didn't smile back, she just looked at her.
"Who is this?" Rory said, not taking her eyes away from Serena. She looked her up and down, from head to toe. She's pretty, Rory thought as she examined her.
"I'm Darien's girlfriend," Serena responded before Darien could, a hint of irritation in her voice.
Rory raised her eyebrows up. "Girlfriend, huh?" she said, one of her smiles creeping onto her face again.
Serena clenched her teeth together, her free hand forming into a fist. "Yes. Do you have a problem with that?" she asked, calmly.
Darien tightened his grip on Serena's hand even more. "Serena…." He whispered warningly.
Ami gave Andrew a look, as if telling him to do something. Andrew coughed, and said," Alright, well it's getting late. I think we should go. Nice to see you again, Rory," he said as he patted her on the shoulder and walked off.
"Bye, Andrew," she replied as the group walked off together. "And I'll see you later, Darien." And she walked into the restaurant.
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The ride home was completely silent, and awkward. Everyone could sense tension in the air.
Serena had a million questions swarming in her head as Darien drove them home. She was angry, but she knew she shouldn't be because he did nothing wrong. Jealousy boiled in the pit of her stomach, as she frowned.
Darien glanced over at Serena. He could tell she was mad by the look on her face, and by her body language. He knew he was going to have to tell her about Rory and him eventually. Why did she have to come back into my life when things were finally starting to look up? Darien thought as he turned into the University.
When they parked, Andrew and Ami got out quickly, and got a head start. They did not want to be in the middle of what they knew was going to happen.
Serena and Darien sat in the car, watching their friends walk back to the building together in haste.
"Look at them run," Darien joked, with little enthusiasm in his voice.
Serena didn't say anything. She had her arms crossed, looking straight ahead, a pout clear on her face.
Darien gave a sigh as he looked at her. He unbuckled his seatbelt, and turned to face her. "Alright, what do you want to know?" he asked, resting his head on the window.
"Everything," Serena said, still not looking at him. She didn't know if she would be able to handle what he was going to tell her. Rory was beautiful! How did she even compare to someone like that?
He inhaled. Where do I even start? "Alright. Well… I met her about 2 years ago.I used to surf a lot, and she was one of the lifeguards at Newport Beach. One day, I had a really bad wipeout, and I hit a reef, and got stung by a jellyfish. Her and another lifeguard came and helped me, and she aided me in the lifeguard house. She asked me on a date, and I agreed, since she helped me and all. We just really hit it off, and pretty soon we were going out. I was with her for about a year and a half before I broke up with her," he finished.
"Why did you break up with her?' Serena asked, now looking at him.
Darien was quiet for a few moments, but then answered her question. "Me and Rory were always busy, so we didn't get to see each other as often as we wanted too. Then Rory moved into an apartment by herself, and I came over one day to surprise her because we hadn't seen each other in a couple of weeks. When I got there, I knocked on the door, but no one answered. So I turned the doorknob and it was unlocked, and I walked in. I heard a loud noise coming from her bathroom, and when I looked in, I saw her and my friend Daniel in the shower….." Darien didn't finish his sentence. It was still hard for him to even talk about it now.
He didn't have to finish his sentence. Serena knew. She suddenly felt guilty for being angry at him.
"So… so I just left her apartment. I broke up with her the next day. I remember it like it was yesterday," Darien said, his eyes focusing on nothing. "I went over to her apartment, and told her what I saw, and she broke down. She just kept apologizing, trying to come towards me, but I'd push her away. I'd never felt so betrayed in my life. It was like someone had hit me in the stomach a hundred times, and ripped my heart out. She'd call me every night, and leave messages on my phone, telling me how stupid she was and that it was a mistake. I eventually had her number blocked. She came over to Andrew's house several times and tried to talk to me, since I was living at Andrew's house. He'd always answer the door, and tell her I wasn't there, or come up with other excuses. Eventually, she stopped trying. Then me and Andrew came here, to college. I haven't seen her in a little over a year, until tonight," he finally finished. He slowly looked back at Serena. Her eyes were full of sympathy, tears welling up.
Serena didn't know what to say. What do you say to that? She felt awful for being angry at him. Right now, she just wanted to pull him into her arms and hug him. She knew now why he never really talked about Rory. "I'm so sorry, Darien," she whispered, reaching out and grasping his hands
He gave her a weak smile, squeezing her hands warmly. "I know," he whispered back.
Even then, Serena could see the pain and hurt in his eyes. She couldn't understand how anyone could do him like that. It made her heart ache for him.
"That's why it's hard for me to ever completely trust someone," he said, looking into her understanding blue eyes.
"You can always trust me, Darien. I could never hurt you," Serena said, looking him deep in the eyes.
Darien could tell that what she said was genuine, and true. Serena and Andrew were the two people he could always count on and trust. They were the only two people who fully understood him. He knew she would never hurt him purposely, and he loved her for that.
"I know," he said, smiling at her, giving her hand another loving squeeze. "Is there anything else you would like to know?"
"No," Serena said, shaking her head.
"Okay. Let's go in, then. It's getting cold," Darien said as he let go of her hand and opened the door. Serena nodded and followed in suit.
They walked in together, hand in hand.
Darien walked Serena to her door, and stood there, facing her. Serena looked up at him, and brought her arms up, and wrapped them around his neck, giving him a hug. Darien chuckled and hugged her back, resting his chin on her head. "I love you, you know that right?" he asked quietly.
Serena nodded her head against his chest, smiling. "I know, And I love you too. Did you know that?" she said, pulling away from him, and looking up at him, grinning, arms still around his neck.
Darien smiled, and nodded. "I know."
Then he bent down, and kissed her. He knew he was in love with just a simple kiss. He felt her love through her kisses, her hugs, and by her eyes. He never felt the way he felt with Serena, when he kissed Rory. Rory's kisses were tantalizing and full of lust, while Serena's kisses were loving, sweet, and meaningful. It drove Darien mad whenever he kissed Serena. He felt a million different things when he kissed her. When he kissed Rory, he didn't feel like he was floating on cloud nine. It was different with Rory. Rory was nothing more but puppy love. He love, loves, Serena. Not puppy love, but Love. The real deal.
Serena slowly pulled away, her eyes fluttered open. She hoped he felt that kiss just like she did. She smiled up at him, and kissed him again quickly, then opened the door, and walked in.
Darien smiled at the closed door lovingly, sighed, and then went into his room.
Things were back to normal again. But Darien had a feeling it was only going to last for so long.
