AN : Oh God , I'm sorry you guys . I'd promised a quick update and BLAH . My internet died for a while and when it did get fixed , everything was ultra laggy so it couldn't handle uploading chapters onto and error messages kept coming up . I virus scanned and everything so it's a bit faster and uploading things aren't a problem anymore . Enjoy the scandalous chapter you've all been waiting for !

DaOnleeSam : General Hospital was okay , haha ; not for me though . I'm more of a Korean drama / cartoon / reality show kind of girl . Sorry for the wait and I hope you like it .

serenity287 : Oh no , another late update :XXXX I loaded it so I hope that makes it a bit better .

iluvboys : Sorry for the lateness and hope you enjoy !

gracious : You'll see :D Sorry for the late update .

Iced-over-angel : Dun duh la luhn ! Darien's here :P

TsukinoGoddess : No negative publicity — everyone knows they're just friends and that Andrew's her main man ;P . But tabloids will make their appearance soon enough .

Kiweee : Oh goodness I caused more aggravation :XXX Sorry for being so late and I hope the action in this chapter is enough to make up for it .

Disclaimer : I do not own Sailor Moon

Love on the Catwalk : Chapter 10

dizziified

Reason to Change #10 : Heartbreak builds character

"Andrew!" I shouted as I caught glimpse of him.

"Serena?" he questioned as he turned around. I practically attacked him as I latched myself across his shoulders.

"What's up?" he laughed as he eased me off.

"I didn't see you in a while," I shrugged and flashed him a small smile.

It was true. Work kept us so busy that we barely had enough time to see each other. Whenever he had work, I didn't and whenever I had work, he didn't.

"Are you going for lunch?" I asked as I took a step back to give him space.

"Mhm," he nodded and ran a hand through his hair.

"Then … can I go with you?"

"Ah." He gave me a sorry face. "Sorry, Sere—already had lunch plans."

"With who?" I pouted.

He laughed. "It's just lunch!"

I pouted even more and seeing my expression, he reached over and pulled me in for a small kiss on the forehead.

"How about I make it up to you with dinner tonight? I'll cook."

I gave him the eyebrows. "You're cooking?" My mind flashed back to the picnic outing.

"Okay, okay," he laughed with hands up in defense. "I'll take you out to somewhere nice."

"… Okay," I gave in. "But you better be ready to pay because I feel like duck tonight!"

"Of course, mademoiselle," he replied, giving a fake fancy tip of his hat before giving me another kiss and walking off.

'Now I have to go eat lunch alone … again.'

It had only been a few days since the project started and I hadn't really made friends yet. Everyone seemed nice and all but they all had their own cliques and I didn't feel like intruding or keeping them from talking as they normally would.

Suddenly, I felt large hands go over my eyes and deep breathing in my ear.

"Guess who?"

His voice was low and a bit husky, mirth dancing in his tone.

I smiled and turned back, prying the hands off. "Darien Shields, what happened to your posse?"

He shrugged. "Well, Serenity Tsukino, I just thought you'd like some company."

I scoffed and started walking away. "I don't need your pity."

"Hey, hey," he called after me as he jogged up. "I just want to talk—you know, catch up."

"I think I'll be fine on my own," I retorted, pushing through the revolving doors.

"I'll pay for lunch," he offered, the tantalizing wager hanging in the air.

I paused, ear perked.

"I know you'd never pass on free food," Darien said, walking up right behind me.

Slowly, I lifted my head and glared before smirking. "I want Applebee's!"

"Ha ha, Applebee's it is."

"Good, 'cause I'm dying for some baby back ribs and cheesecake!" I giggled and ran ahead of him, arms swinging and heels clacking.

scene

Applebee's was packed but luckily we snagged a two-seater by the window and had already put in our order: an appetizer sampler, honey BBQ baby backs, honey grilled salmon, loaded mashed potatoes, and a berry lemon cheesecake later on for my dessert.

"Appetizer's here!" I chimed upon spotting our waitress. "Thank you!" The girl simply smiled, swiftly turned her gaze to Darien, and then walked away.

"How obvious," I sighed as I dipped a tortilla chip in dip before munching on it.

"What do you mean?" Darien asked, picking up a buffalo wing.

I eyed him incredulously. "Did you not see her swooning?"

He shrugged. "You get used to it."

I shook my head. "I don't think I'll ever get used to being a model."

"Don't worry," he waved off. "You will."

1"So ...," he trailed off. "How are you and Andrew doing?"

"We're good," I replied. "I feel like I haven't seen him in ages though."

"Didn't you guys go out on a date not so long ago?"

"Our last date was ..." I started mentally counting in my head. "More than a week ago."

"Oh really?" He cocked an eyebrow.

I looked up at him. "What? Did he go out after that?"

He shook his head dismissively. "It's nothing."

"He was probably out with Mina Aino," I grumbled and viciously chomped on a celery stick.

"Hey, hey," Darien interjected. I chose to ignore him and raved on.

"Seiya saw them together twice last week and when I asked him where he was he told me he was out with 'friends'."

"Maybe he doesn't want you to get all crazy and jealous on him."

"Isn't it worse that he's lying to me about it?"

"Andrew's a good guy," Darien told me. "Just trust him."

"But ... what if something happens between them?"

"Serena." His voice had a slight warning to it.

"I mean," I continued. "It's Mina Aino–she's so much prettier than I am and, well, I don't know..."

"Serena," he sighed. "Have some faith in him. Andrew's not the cheating type and he's crazy about you."

I stayed silent for a while, taking in Darien's words and weighing everything out. My distress must have showed because Darien gave my shoulder a small squeeze.

"Trust him."

I gave him a feeble smile. He really was a good friend.

"Cheer up!" he commanded with a smile. "How about I treat us out to a round of chocolate smoothies after work? Chocolate fixes everything."

"Hm...," I nodded and scrunched my eyebrows.

Chocolate fixes everything? Where did I hear that before?

scene

"Ugh," I grunted as I collapsed on the table.

"You okay there?" Cintia asked me with a slight laugh to her voice.

"How much more filming can we possibly do?" I groaned. "I've done my section about a million times over!"

"There're only a few days left," she reasoned.

"Thank God!" I exclaimed and sat up. "I don't get why they did everything so last minute! I might as well live here since I'm here all the time."

Cintia laughed and pat my head. "Break time's over, Serena. Let's get to work."

I sighed. "Go on without me—I'll be there in a bit."

It was already the 20th and everything was still very hectic. I'd been in and out of the studio ever since last Monday—even on days I wasn't scheduled to come in! Patricia kept telling me to come in with more and more things and kept thinking of more and more concepts—bring more pictures, bring some of your old clothes, bring in some blahblahblahblahblah.

I'd gotten pretty close to all the project members over the past week. They were all pretty nice to be around. Even Mina seemed more tolerable… though she did hang around Andrew quite a bit.

"Just leave it alone," Darien had said. "Trust him."

… but still.

"Serena."

Speak of the devil. "Yes, Mina?"

"Get up before you get Patricia mad," she warned and painfully pushed in my seat.

I grunted and hastily pushed my chair back. "I'm up, I'm up."

I followed Mina into the conference room and frowned when she sat next to Andrew. Darien gave me a look as if he was asking me if I wanted him to move over so that I could sit next to Andrew but I shook my head and settled for sitting next to Darien. I gave Andrew a tired smile before turning to Patricia.

"I just want to tell you all that the project is going along very nicely and to congratulate you for your hard work thus far," Patricia announced when everyone settled in. After a few moments of soft clapping, Patricia cleared her throat.

"Right now, we will be going out in teams of two to volunteer in different parts of the community. The pairings and locations were on the schedule but in case any of you have forgotten, I have a copy of the chart right here."

I racked my mind for what I was supposed to do today but came up with nothing. Who was I with again?

"Serena, you're with me," Darien said as he nudged me with his elbow.

"Really? Where are we going?"

"Clinton Senior Center in Midtown Manhattan," he replied.

"So we're—," I started but flinched when I heard a shriek to my right.

"OH MY GOD!" Mina screamed. "Look Andrew, we're partners!"

I flinched when she pounced on him and squeezed him tight. Oh, if I had laser vision…

"Where are we going?" Andrew asked with an all too fine-with-it voice.

"We're helping paint a mural on a park wall," she answered. "Wow, I haven't painted in so long."

Andrew laughed. I felt the green-eyed monster in me raging to be let loose. GRAWR!

"Come on, Serena," Darien nudged me and steered me away from the two. "The seniors are waiting."

I grumbled incoherently and dragged my feet as he pulled me away. That Mina Aino! I don't trust her one bit.

scene

"You must be the volunteers," a rather portly yet happy-looking woman greeted us and enthusiastically shook our hands when we entered the center.

"Yeah," I replied shakily—she had a very firm grip.

"Thank you for having us," he paused to glance at her rather flashily decorated name tag. "Pauline."

"Oh, it's nothing," Pauline shrugged off. "Thank you for coming!"

I exchanged a look with Darien and bit my lip to keep from laughing. It was a totally 'whoa-someone's-had-a-bit-too-much-caffeine-today' exchange.

"Well, it's lunch time right now and you two are the only volunteers from now so that you won't be interrupted in your filming. Follow me to the cafeteria and I'll introduce you to everyone!" she exclaimed, all smiles.

I giggled as Pauline trotted off ahead of us and giggled even more when Darien playfully pushed me to the side.

"Whoa!" I yelped when she suddenly turned around to face us as we reached the flapping doors.

"I almost forgot the name tags!" she shouted and pulled out two black pins, extending her short arms to hand them over.

"They're blank," Darien stated, flipping it over to look at the back.

"Yes they are!" she shouted. "We're going to be decorating them after lunch during creative arts. It'll be fun!"

I laughed and pinned on the blank nametag. "Can't wait!"

"Excellent!" she shouted, arms raised. "Now follow me to the cafeteria."

I couldn't help but chuckle as even the cameramen started to blurt out muffled bits of laughter.

"Are you ready?" Darien asked as we paused in front of the flapping doors. I nodded and pushed the doors open.

"Wow." There were a lot of old people here.

Pauline animatedly waved us over to her. I smiled widely and nudged for Darien to go first. That woman was crazy.

"Everyone!" Pauline boomed when we got to the front. "These are the model volunteers I was talking about yesterday! They will be with us until after activity time so please give a warm welcome to Miss Serenity Tsukino and Mister Darien Shields!"

The seniors looked up from their food and clapped.

"Oh, she's so beautiful," I heard one grandma say. I looked in her direction and smiled.

"My name is Serena and I hope that we'll all have a great time today!" … Pauline was rubbing off on me.

"Thank you for having us," Darien added. There was applause before the seniors resumed eating and we stepped aside.

"You should just go around and say hi to everyone right now!" Pauline smiled before scurrying away to a random table.

I looked up at Darien and smiled, pulling his arm. "Come on, let's go."

"Coming," he replied.

Boy was it going to be a great day.

scene

"Let's go get a little something to eat."

Activity time had come and gone but we were having so much fun that we decided to stay until the center shut down for the night. I was currently walking along the city streets with a rather pooped out Darien in tow.

"God, that was tiring," he commented as we sat down at a back table in a swanky café/restaurant joint.

"But it was fun," I smiled, scanning the menu. Oou, they have so many desserts.

"I'm starving," he said, looking over the menu as well. "That senior food was so …."

"Unappetizing?"

He laughed. "I was going to say bland but that works too."

"I think it's because we lose our taste buds as we grow older." I cocked my head to the side. "We acquire different tastes."

"Hmm," he murmured before putting down his menu. "You ready?"

"Yeah," I nodded.

We ordered and soon enough, the food came out and we chowed down, not carrying much conversation but concentrating on our food. Right now I was working my way across a strawberry cheesecake as Darien sipped some coffee.

"Are you sure you should be drinking that?" I asked. Caffeine was definitely a morning substance for me.

He shrugged. "It's only what, eight?"

I laughed. "Don't come to me when you can't fall asleep."

"I drink coffee at night all the time." He continued to sip.

"Well, today was fun."

"Hm," he nodded. "Never knew there was such a diva in you."

I blushed, thinking back to the whole karaoke incident. "Hey, you're the one who put me up to it."

"You've got a really nice voice," he complimented, setting aside his coffee and leaning closer.

"I was in choir for a while," I replied. Oh the choir days of high school. "And I even wanted to be a singer for a while … but face it, I was ugly and not going to make it."

"You're not ugly," Darien said.

I laughed long and hard. "Before this whole makeover Seiya gave me, no one even looked my way. I was that loser girl at school that people made fun of or talked crap about from a distance. There was no way that I would ever make it to being a singer."

"But look at you now," he said. "You're a model on magazine pages around the world."

I blushed. "But honestly, I'm still the insecure, ugly girl on the inside."

"Serena, you are beautiful so there's nothing to be insecure about."

"I dunno." I poked at my cheesecake. "I'm a lot more confident about myself but it's still like—wow."

He cocked a questioning eyebrow and leaned back and sipped his coffee.

"I mean," I continued. "I'm a model with a gorgeous boyfriend and I'm in magazines—magazines, Darien. It all seems too good to be true, you know? I feel like this world is going to crash around me soon."

He sighed. "Serena."

I looked up as he reached over and grabbed my hand. I started and looked up at him with wide, questioning eyes.

"Listen up because I'm only gonna say this once."

I nodded as he took my other hand.

"You are just about the most beautiful woman I have met in my life—inside and out. This isn't a dream and you've deserved all of this. So just sit back and enjoy it—there's nothing to worry about."

"Promise?" I grinned.

"I swear on our friendship that you have nothing to worry about," he laughed.

We shared a moment of content smiling before he squeezed my hand and withdrew back to his seat.

"Thanks, Darien."

"Hm?"

I simply smiled and took another bite of cheesecake. Maybe it was time to stop worrying about everything.

scene

"Clean."

"So … have you slept with Andrew yet?"

It was Friday and I had ended work early so I'd called Seiya and set up another night of nigiri madness. This time we'd gone out and bought ingredients to make our own facial masks. They lay abandoned on my kitchen counter since the moment we got home and I had just started putting them into my refrigerator out of spoilage worry.

"No," I replied curtly as I emptied the eggs out of the carton and into the egg container.

Seiya gave a low whistle. "What is that—a month of no sex now?"

"A little more," I replied, closing the frig. "That is, if he wasn't sleeping around when we were just seeing each other."

"When's the one month anniversary?"

"On his birthday—the twenty third."

"Really?"

"Yeah," I answered. "Big coincidence, right?"

Seiya nodded. "But I honestly feel bad for the man." He tutted before flopping onto his stomach and propping his head on his hands.

"Why?" I asked, sloshing water into my ice cube tray.

"Sex is like … a drug," he tried to explain.

"A drug?" I questioned, closing the freezer and heading over to join him on my blanketed living room floor.

He nodded. "Once you have it, you're hooked and to have it taken away is just plain torture."

"Really?" Torture?

He shrugged, sitting up. "That's how it is for guys."

"I see …."

"… Is something wrong?" he asked, concerned dribbled in his tone.

"I—I don't know," I sighed. "Lately Andrew's been pressuring me to … you know."

"Have sex?" Seiya filled in.

"Yeah," I nodded, reaching over for a pillow and clutching it to my stomach. "And I feel really bad whenever he gets all disappointed and …."

"And …?" Seiya pressed.

I clutched the pillow tighter and lifted my eyes to meet Seiya's gaze. "And I'm afraid that he's going to go somewhere else for it."

Seiya frowned. "If he can't wait, he's not worth it."

"But you said it was torture," I quipped.

Seiya sighed and took my hand. "Do you love him?"

"Well, yeah, but—."

"Does he love you?"

"… Yes."

"Then he'll wait," Seiya concluded with a squeeze of my hand. "Andrew's a good guy—it'll be fine."

"But I still feel really bad," I said. "And what if he can't wait?"

"How far have you gone with him?"

I blushed and looked away before glaring indignantly. "Cheater! That's another question!"

He raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, fine."

Reaching over, he dipped an ebi nigiri in soy sauce and plopped it in his mouth. "Clean, see."

"I did not need a visual, Seiya Kou!" I cried and blocked the view with my hand.

"Oh, grow up." He rolled his eyes and finished eating.

"Look who's talking," I retorted, making a face with much tongue exposure.

"Hurry up and ask your question!"

"… Are you ever going to settle down?" I shifted so that I was now lying on my stomach with the pillow under my propped arms.

"It depends," Seiya replied, leaning on my couch.

"On what?" A pro-gay marriage president?

He met my eyes. "On if I meet the right person. And if that person loves me back."

"So you'd marry a girl." It was a statement, not a question.

"If she's The One."

"Ah … I see," I nodded, turning over onto my back and staring at my ceiling. Hm … I really should paint this place over.

"Hey, Usa."

I opened my eyes to see Seiya's face looming overhead.

"Yeah?" What is it?

"When we turn 30 and if both of us are still not settled down, let's get married." He was now lying down besides me so I turned to face him.

"Hm? Why so young?"

He gave me the eyebrows. "Thirty is not young, Usagi. You're biological clock is ticking."

I laughed. "Okay, Seiya Kou; if I am not married by 30, I will marry you."

"Seal it with a kiss!" he demanded.

"What!" I laughed. That buffoon.

"Come on, Usa," he pouted.

"No way! I have a boyfriend, thank you very much!"

"It's not like we haven't kissed before …."

"But that's different!" I sputtered. Those were elated kisses out of sheer excitement.

"Hmph, now we know what your dare will be!" he proclaimed and pushed the nigiri plate to me. "Choose wisely."

"I'm shaking in my boots," I replied before picking up a random nigiri and stuffing it into my mouth. "Too bad it's clean."

He smirked. "Doesn't matter. Now, how far did you go with Andrew?"

I blushed. "Um … at one point I was topless. But other than that, just groping and making out."

"Oh." He raised an eyebrow. "So no hanky-panky in the panty?"

"No!" I shouted, crimsonly colored.

"If you can't have sex, why not a hand job?" he suggested. "Or a blowjob."

I scrunched my nose. "But that's so …"

"Trust me, Usa; it's nothing like the real thing."

"But it's just as intimate," I retorted. "Just because you didn't break your hymen doesn't mean you haven't carried out any sexual activities."

"Okay, okay," Seiya backed off. "My turn again."

He then reached for a unagi nigiri and dipped it in soy sauce.

"Bon appétit," I smirked.

Sucker.

"Ugh, dirty, shit!" Seiya exclaimed, reaching for the glass of water.

My smile broadened. "Now what should be your punishment? Hmmm …."

"Hurry up so you can lose and do my dare."

I rolled my eyes. "Let me think! Hm … ah! I dare you to …."

"… Yes?"

"… run around the block three times—."

"Done," Seiya scoffed.

"—in just your boxers," I finished cattily. "Or are you wearing briefs?"

He face vaulted. "Boxer briefs, Usa, boxer briefs."

"Whatever," I replied, running a hand through my hair. "My turn."

I scanned through the remaining nigiri piece—seven left.

'I should play it safe with the tamago.' There were three of those.

"Ha! Clean," I cried triumphantly, peace sign in hand.

"Okay, then," Seiya started. "Do you think that you will stay a virgin until marriage?"

"I would hope so," I started. "I guess it might be hard but I don't think that relationships should be based on sex. I don't know—I was raised like that and I want to save myself for the one I marry. It's like the least I can do, you know?"

"Okay," Seiya nodded. "Clean." He didn't even pick his up before saying it.

"When did you lose your virginity?"

"Ah." He leaned back as if reminiscing. "High school, junior year."

"Junior year …," I dragged out, trying to remember who he had been dating at the time.

"Olivia Kakyuu," Seiya filled in.

"Oh yeah," I nodded. The beauty of a redhead and princess of our high school—she had been nice enough.

"She wasn't a virgin," Seiya went on.

"What!" I cried. She had sex before junior year? "I thought those rumors weren't true."

Seiya shrugged. "She acted all innocent but she was pretty dirty on the inside. She wanted to have sex all the time."

I scrunched my face up. "I'm so disappointed in her. How did she manage such good grades if she did that kind of stuff?"

"You know—a little persuasion and that was all it took."

"How could you date someone so disgusting!"

"Hey, I was young. And plus, I improved my tastes by going out with you afterwards."

"Shut up," I said, hitting him with the pillow.

"HA HA!" he laughed before sliding the nigiri plate over. "Your turn."

"Oh, hm … shiromi." The moment I looked up, I knew I'd made a grave mistake. And yes, upon dipping and biting, my tongue was re-introduced to the inferno known as wasabi.

"Dirtayy." Seiya said with an almost naughty wiggling of eyebrows.

"I don't want to!" I protested.

"Come on," he teased. "What's a kiss between friends?"

"I have a boyfriend!"

"I'm gay."

"So, what? No one really knows that."

"It's not like he's ever going to find out …."

"… Fine." I admitted defeat and crawled over to him.

"That's my girl," he smiled, pulling out his digital camera.

I glared at it for a few moments. 'No one said anything about a picture."

"Face it," he retorted. "You lost."

I sighed. "Let's make this quick." Closing my eyes, I leaned towards him, lips posed.

It was brief. He covered my lips with his own only long enough to take a picture and give me a little extra peck.

"Now that wasn't so bad, was it?" He smiled cheekily and mussed my hair.

"That picture better not get out," I warned him, sending him a serious look.

"'Course not."

"Well, now it's your turn," I declared. "Let's go now. I'll hold your clothes and I'd be more than happy to take a picture."

"Are you sure you can handle this, Usagi?" Seiya smirked devilishly.

"Oh, don't flatter yourself," I scoffed, kicking his leg when I got up.

"That kind of hurt."

"Get up before I kick something else."

I smiled.

That certainly got him running.

scene

"Well, isn't someone happy today?"

"Shut up!" I bit out, but was still unable to keep from smiling. Darien laughed and sat down next to me.

Today is the 20th, the last day of work and three days before Andrew's birthday/our anniversary. Everyone save Mina, Andrew, and surprisingly, Patricia was already here and waiting for the last day to start.

It was going to basically be a free day of no work whatsoever. We would be shown clips of volunteering and testimonies along with draft magazine articles and final advertisements. We'd nibble on finger food and slurp on freshly squeezed fruit drinks all the while.

"I know you're all happy too!" I added. "Come on, you can all dance now; I promise I won't tell Patricia."

Then I engaged in a mini dancing fiesta with Hye as other laughed and sang along.

And then Patricia came in so we all settled down as if nothing had happened and it didn't take long for Andrew to show up. Mina didn't come until a few minutes before starting time.

"Sorry," she had said. "The traffic is killer today."

Psh, sure. "Killer traffic", huh?

"Alright, now that everyone is here; let's get started," Patricia announced. "I'll give everyone a few minutes to grab a plate of snacks and a drink and then we will begin."

I made a beeline for Andrew and hugged him from behind.

"Hello, Handsome," I whispered, leaning my head on his back. "I miss you."

He twirled me around and gave me a sorry face. "Sorry, Sere–I've just been a bit busy lately."

I frowned. With who?

"But we're good to go Saturday, right?" he continued. "We're all gonna go clubbing but afterwards we can go somewhere alone."

"Okay," I replied.

He smiled and I almost melted. I can never stay mad at him for too long.

"Let's go grab some food," he said, leading me from behind with his hands on my waist.

I smiled. I love him so much.

scene

Everything was perfect. The draft articles were vibrant and eye-catching and the clips hilarious and heart-warming. The project as a whole was nicely executed and I was proud to have been a part of it.

It is to debut as a one hour and a half special on July 10th on Bravo. I couldn't wait. The ads were getting put up on buses and billboards tonight and they honestly exceeded my expectations. It had what you were for or against and a picture relating to the topic along with miscellaneous information to the side. Mine read "pro-self" with a profile of me in the middle of walking out of a door. The back side of me was the old me and the front side was the new me.

"Now, could you all sign this poster?" Patricia asked us, sliding on of the ads over to us. It was the one with all of us together as pieces on a huge game board (it was a spin-off of the board game) and read "This crazy game of LIFE" with life bolded, capitalized, and in a different color.

"Cute signature," Adrianalaughed as I capped my pink sharpie.

I giggled. "Looks like a bunny, right?"

"Mhm."

"Is this it?" I asked Patricia as I slid back the sharpie.

"Oh!" I exclaimed and reached for my handbag. "Let's take a group picture! I didn't get one of those today." I'd taken the part of a paparazzi spy throughout the day with Seiya's dica.

"Everyone gather up," I instructed as I perched the camera on a bookcase, zooming in for the perfect fit. "It's going to take 10 pictures in one go so you have to pose fast. Ready ... go!"

And then I shot off towards the group and stood at the very edge next to Boydand struck the classic V-sign pose ... and then a cutesy one ... and then an angry one ... and so on and so forth.

"I'll email these out to everyone," I laughed as I fetched the camera and looked through the pictures before depositing it back into my purse.

"Alright, everyone," Patricia said. "It's time for you to all say good-bye and you all have to be outside the building by thirty minutes."

And so we just lounged around and I took more pictures before heading to the bathroom–all that juice was making my bladder want to burst!

"Ah!" I let out in surprise upon seeing Mina fixing up her mascara when I stepped out of the cubicle.

"Hi," she smiled briefly as she flicked her gaze my way.

I nodded back and went over to wash my hands.

"This was fun, wasn't it?" she asked, moving on to her other eye.

"Mhm," I nodded. "I met a lot of new people and everyone was really nice."

"Hm, yeah," she hummed offhand-ishly. "It was ... different."

"What do you mean?"

She closed her mascara and moved onto blush. "It was nice volunteering and all but I wouldn't ever do it again."

"Oh...," I trailed off, turning off the faucet.

"I mean," she went on. "Yeah, it was fun painting the park and stuff but it was so ... icky."

"Oh, really, now?" I retorted. This woman ...

"Mhm," she nodded, reapplying some lipgloss. "I don't usually go for these kinds of project but my agent said it'll boost my reputation and attract more people to watch my new movie."

"So you only did it for looks?" Is she serious?

"Pretty much," she answered, smacking her lips before flashing me a smile and grabbing her handbag on the counter. And then she dropped it and everything spilled out.

"Oh, shit," she cussed as she bent over to retrieve her things. "I'm such a klutz."

"Here, I'll help." I crouched down and picked up her cell phone and makeup.

"Thanks," she said as I handed them to her.

"Is that all?" I asked as I scanned the floor one last time. Something caught my eye and I reached over to pick it up.

It was a ring. And not just any ring, the male version of my couple ring. Now what would that be doing in Mina's bag?

"Is this–is this yours?" I asked her, holding it out for her to see.

"Oh!" she exclaimed as she snatched the ring away. "Hotel people called me and told me that they found it in the room I had checked out of when they were cleaning up so I went down and picked it up before work."

That would explained the "killer traffic". But what the hell was the ring doing in her hotel room!

"... Is it yours?" I ventured, eying as she slipped it into her bag.

"I don't wear men's jewelry."

"Then whose is it?" I pressed.

She smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know?" And then she clacked off in her Prada heels and left me squatting on the bathroom floor.

scene

Andrew was waiting for me when I got out and had offered to drive me home. He seemed a bit off as he handed me my handbag and opened the door to his car.

"What's up?" I asked bluntly, turning to him when I got in.

"What do you mean?" he replied tersely.

"You're acting really weird," I pressed, trying to get him to answer my question.

"It's nothing," he bit out. "Put on your seatbelt."

"No. Tell me what's wrong and I will."

"I told you, it's nothing."

I frowned. "It's not noth–."

"Will you just drop it!" Andrew shouted angrily.

I felt my eyes widen in shock and my body unconsciously pulling back. Andrew had never shouted at me before.

"What the hell is the matter with you?" I asked, the shock causing it to come out as a whisper.

Andrew tightened his grip on the steering wheel before abruptly turning to face me. "You did slept with Seiya."

I was dumbfounded. "Excuse me?"

"I looked through your camera while you were in the bathroom," he replied disdainfully. "You kissed him and he's walking around in his boxers. All this time you kept telling me that we can't have sex and then you run off and do it with him!"

"We didn't do anything!" I shouted back. "It was just a game."

He scoffed. "Well I'd love to play that game."

"Seiya's–," I started before stopping myself.

"Seiya's what?"

Gay.

But I couldn't tell him that.

"He's like my brother; that's disgusting. We were playing Truth or Dare and he dared me to kiss him just to make me squirm and I dared him to run around the block three times in just his boxers. Nothing happened."

"Oh really?" Andrew asked sarcastically.

"Why are you being like this!" I vented and ran a hand through my hair. "You're the one who did who knows what with Mina Aino!"

"... What did you say?" He looked a few shades lighter.

"I ... she had your ring in her bag." I met his gaze and bit my lip to keep from crying. "She told me that it was in her hotel room–and don't tell me that one of the two other guys with that ring just so happened to be in there."

I glanced down at his left hand as he unconsciously drew it away. His ring finger was bare.

"How could you do this to me?" I whispered, tears starting to leak through.

I felt tortured as he sat there not meeting my eyes. He wasn't even going to bother denying it.

"I thought you loved me," I went on.

"... I do," he finally replied.

"Then why did you cheat on me?—with her?" Why, why, why?

I held my breath when he drew his and looked me square in the eyes

"Because I still can't forget her."

And then the world as I knew it collapsed around me as my heart shattered and vision disappeared.

scene

"Serena, open this door, right now."

I ignored Seiya and went right on staring at the ceiling.

"Serena, you have to eat," Seiya went on.

I stayed quiet. Maybe if I didn't say anything, he'd go away like last time.

"I swear to God, I'll break this door down if I had to," he warned me.

'That's what you said last time.'

I heard him sigh. "Serena, I'm going to come back in an hour and I expect for you to have washed up and eaten something."

When I heard my apartment door open and I close as he left, I turned over onto my side, to see a picture of Andrew resting on my side table. I picked it up and launched it across the room and into the wall.

After Andrew had told me that he couldn't forget about Mina, I had broken down with his admittance to have cheated on me and have feelings for the woman. I'd gotten out of the car and ran to the closest street to hail a cab.

Andrew didn't follow me.

I flopped onto bed the minute I got home and just bawled until I couldn't cry anymore. My contacts disappeared in the process but I frankly didn't give a crap about where they had gone too.

Bleary-eyed, I crawled onto my computer chair and googled Mina Aino and Andrew Bradshaw. Many, many, many links came up–fansites, articles, and all. I engulfed myself in pictures of the "golden couple" and read everything I could about them. It didn't take long for me to realize that Mina Aino was the very same long-term ex-girlfriend who had given Andrew the necklace–the necklace he wore everywhere he went.

They had broken up on bad terms–she had apparently cheated on him with her costar, Yaten, on her new movie, On the Other Side, during filming.

But the question was—why hadn't I known about all of this? Why hadn't Seiya told me? Why hadn't Darien? Andrew?

I felt like a fool. I knew that there had to a logical reasoning behind my scorning of Mina Aino—my instincts were always right. … Had Andrew gone out with me because I looked like her? Did he imagine her in my place every time we were together? Every time we hugged? Kissed? Was I just a replacement?

I don't know what time it is—and frankly, I don't care. I think a day passed since I first entered my room. Or was it two? Three?

Seiya had been checking up on me since … yesterday? I think he got worried when I didn't pick up my phones.

I wonder if he was feeding Luna ….

I felt my stomach growl and I frowned, running a hand over my tummy. How could I think about eating at a time like this?

My cell rang once—indicating a text message. I lazily grabbed it off my side table and flipped it open.

It was from Andrew.

Opening the message up, I saw two words: I'm sorry. I stared at it for a while before I felt a sharp pain tear across my insides and the tear-fest started all over again.

"Serenity Tsukino, I'm coming in!" I heard Seiya shout before ramming assaulted my door and a deafening entry resounded throughout my room. I just went right on crying and clutching my cellphone.

"What happened, Usa," Seiya cooed as he gathered me up and rocked me back and forth. "Give me your phone."

I wailed as he pried it out of my grasp and cried even harder when he read the message out loud.

"What did Andrew do?" he asked tentatively, rubbing my back as I cried into his shoulder.

"He—he," I hicked.

"He, what?" Seiya pushed me back and stared into my eyes. "What did he do?"

"He did it," I blurted, not meeting his gaze.

"Did he rape you?" Seiya asked in a scary tone.

I shook my head and Seiya sighed in relief.

"Then what?"

I looked up and whispered, "He slept with Mina Aino." And then the tears started flowing again.

Seiya's hug was cold—like he was trying to comfort me while wanting to rip something to shreds at the same time.

"First things first," he started. "We have to get you to eat something. I made you some soup so you can eat that before telling me everything, okay?"

I nodded, too exhausted to resist as he lifted me up princess-style and sat me down by my kitchen counter. A tray of chicken-noodle soup and a glass of water were already there waiting for me.

I ate in silence, spoon scooping mechanically and sipping occasionally at the glass of water. It felt strange eating again and I was surprised to see how quickly I downed the bowl—I must have been pretty hungry. I just sat there as Seiya cleaned up my things—listening to the running faucet water and the clanking of plates.

"So what happened?" Seiya asked putting a hand on top of mine.

"Mina had his ring in her purse," I started, voice hoarse and muted. "And said it was in her hotel room. And then Andrew saw the pictures from our sleepover and got angry. So I brought up the ring and he didn't deny it." I looked up.

"Go on," Seiya prodded.

"And he said that he couldn't forget about her. And then I ran off and he didn't follow me."

"So it's over."

I looked up, startled. "I—I don't know."

Seiya looked over me, concerned. "Serena, you can't possibly keep going with the relationship after he's done something like that."

"But I still love him."

"Does he love you?"

I faltered for a second before replying. "Yes."

"If he loved you, he wouldn't have slept with Mina," Seiya reasoned.

"He does love me," I said. "I think… I think that it was real. And I can forgive him for what he did."

"Serena!" Seiya gripped my arms. "He slept with another woman! That should be the end of it."

"Seiya, you're hurting me," I cringed. He let go immediately and let out a frustrated sigh and ruffled his hair.

"I drew a bath for you," he finally said. "Think about it while you're in there and tell me your answer when you get out."

I nodded before slipping out of my highchair and padding my way over to the bathroom. Seiya had drawn me a bubble bath and restocked my shampoo and conditioner. A crisp new bathrobe hung on a hook with my towels and a little rubber ducky was sitting on top of the soap.

I stripped down before tentatively stepping into the bath. The water was nice and warm—almost hot. Sinking in, I felt my muscles loosening and dunked my head under before coming up to wipe the bubbles off my face.

"Should I break up with Andrew?" I asked aloud, leaning back and resting my arms on the side of the bath.

A part of me was screaming: "THAT BASTARD! HE'LL BE LUCKY TO EVEN BE ABLE TO FACE THE PUBLIC AGAIN AFTER YOU'RE THROUGH WITH HIM!" while the other said: "You love him and he made a mistake. You can forgive and forget." But could I really?

I sighed and sank lower into the tub, reaching over for the rubber ducky and giving it a squeeze.

"What do you think?" I asked. It looked back at me with unblinking eyes as it re-inflated itself.

I sighed and stared at the ceiling for a while before reaching for the shampoo. It would be no use to sit around doing nothing—Seiya might think I drowned myself in the tub if I stayed too long.

scene

I tightened the bathrobe belt around me as I got out of the bathroom and saw that Seiya had moved to the sofa and put coffee out for us.

He looked up as I crawled onto the sofa across from him and dried my hair with the bathrobe hood.

He cleared his throat. "Your decision?"

"… I'm going to try to work it out," I answered honestly. "He's one of the best things to have happened to me and I don't want to lose him over this."

Seiya stared at me long and hard before sighing in defeat. "I know I won't be able to talk you out of it. But I can't guarantee that guy's safety, okay?"

"Seiya!" I gasped. "You won't do anything drastic, will you?"

"I won't mess him up … to badly."

I glared. "Seiya Kou, this is between me and Andrew—I don't need you getting all over the place and causing a big mess."

I frowned at his silence. "Please, for me."

"… Fine," he grumbled, crossing his arms. "But you just say the word and I'll be all over that bastard in no time."

"Thanks, Seiya." I smiled softly. "That's what I love about you—you respect my wishes but you've always got my back."

"No problem, Usa," he smiled. "Are we all better now?"

I nodded and giggled when Seiya extended his arms for a hug. I practically leapt into it and he lifted me up and plopped me down besides him.

"So," he started. "Are you going to the party tonight?"

What? "It's tonight?"

"Mhm," he nodded. "You've been in your room for quite the while."

"Oh my God, wow." I was in my room for three days! Three days!

"Well, it's five right now. That gives us five hours until the party."

"What will I do?" I whispered. How should I act?—as if nothing happened? Should I cry? Scream? Hurt someone?

"I say you slap Andrew and—," Seiya started.

"Seiya, please," I said in an all too tired tone.

"—or I can be quiet now."

"Do you think that he'll … take me back?" My voice quivered and Seiya's face fell.

"Serena, he should be the one begging for you to take him back."

"But what if he doesn't want me anymore?"

"Serena," he said, wrapping his arms around me in a warm hug. "I don't know about the whole Mina business, but if Andrew is still the same guy that I know, he does love you—at least a big part of him does."

I sniffed into his shoulder and let out a loud sigh.

"Now no more tears," Seiya commanded, wiping them away. "We need to get you dressed to kill and ready to make that bastard sorry that he ever even thought of another woman."

I giggled. "You're right; let's go."

And so, the chaotic five hour commotion began.

scene

"I'm nervous," I confessed, breaking the silence in the taxi backseat.

"Don't be ridiculous," Seiya dismissed. "You look gorgeous."

Seiya had spent many many beauty product on me over the past five hours—anti-puff cream, facial peels, lotion, perfume, hair spray, nail polish, makeup; the works. The end result? A bomb-shell of a smoky-eyed me.

I was wearing the "little black dress"—a corset-like sweetheart top and rather short bottom that ended in a small hem of ruffles. My hair was gelled and slightly wavy, given a little oomph a la blow dryer. Pair it all with black Jimmy Choo slingbacks, a black snap purse with silver findings, and my ring and I was all set.

Seiya looked as dashing as ever in a dark burgundy dress shirt and black pants. It'll never cease to amaze me how well he can shape up in a matter of twenty minutes. It took me hours.

"We're here," Seiya announced, opening up the door and giving me a hand out. We had paid beforehand to avoid getting honked at for causing traffic in front of the club.

"You know what you're going to do?" he asked me as we crossed the street to the entrance.

"Yeah," I nodded, offering the bodyguard a small smile as he let us in.

"Where are you going?" Seiya asked me as I started to slip away.

"To get a drink!" I shouted, barely hearing myself above the music. "To loosen my nerves."

"Don't drink too much!"

I nodded and turned back around to make my way to the bar; bumping into people and saying excuse me the whole way.

"One Long Island Iced Tea, please."

"Make that two."

I whipped around and trailed up the bill-doting hand to meet familiar blue eyes.

"Darien!"

"Serena," he nodded, handing me my drink as it came.

"Thanks." I took a deep swig before looking back up. "Where's Andrew?"

He shrugged. "Should be in the back somewhere. Haven't seen him in days."

I paled. "What?" Was he out with her?

"My cousin came up from Pennsylvania so I had to stay at my parents' house for a while," he replied. "Why, did something happen?"

"It's nothing." I forced myself to smile. "I just need to talk to him."

He downed his drink in one go before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand and nodding to the back. "Let's go."

He guided me by the arm—pulling me through gyrating body parts and flocks of party girls. Twice I almost lost my present and thrice I almost lost him in the wave of people.

"He should be around here," Darien informed me when we reached the back area with the sofas and tables.

I squinted and scanned the area—trying to make shapes out of the hazy darkness and flashing lights.

And then I saw them.

Mina was straddling Andrew and gripping his hair—making out with him, tongue and all. Everything slowed down for a moment—the music faded and all I could see was the sight in front of me.

I felt Darien twirl around and try to block my vision but it was too late, the damage was done. Before I knew it I had torn out of Darien's grasp and poured my drink on top of the two.

"Serena!" Andrew shouted, pushing Mina off him and trying to get up.

"How could you do this to me!" I shrieked, long graduated from grief and well into hysteria.

"It's not what you think!"

"It's not what I think! Then tell me Andrew Bradshaw, what was Mina doing on top of you with her tongue half-way down your throat!"

"It—!"

I cut him off. "Happy Birthday, Andrew. Hope you enjoy tonight's festivities alone—unless you're planning on spending it with that, that, woman." It was obvious that I wanted to call her something else—bitch, whore, stupid boyfriend-stealing bimbo; take your pick.

I threw my present at him and started tearing when my ring wouldn't slip off. When it finally did, I hurled it at him too before storming off and pushing people around without saying sorry.

Could this night get any worse?

scene

"Get away from her," someone growled and I felt warmth being ripped away from me and turned to pout before smiling widely.

"Darien!" I chirped before latching onto him and pressing up against him.

He pushed me away and I pouted more. "How many drinks have you made so far?"

"Not too much; maybe one?"

"Serena…," he warned, trying to keep me off him.

"Okay," I gave in, giggling. "I had six!"

"Let's get you home, right now."

"No!" I snatched my arm out of his grasp and went running off to find a new dance partner—weaving through the crowd and taking advantage of my lithe frame.

After I had barged out of the club, I'd run as far and fast as my heels could take me before looking around for a good place to get a drink. One thing led to another and I found myself downing strange beverages on end and dancing with random men and frat boys.

"Serena!" I heard Darien shout.

"Let's dance," I commanded sultrily to a random cute guy. He only happily agreed and I found myself gyrating once again to a new song.

It felt nice. I felt incredibly attractive and just … free; dancing without a care in the world. Everything was hazy and bright and I loved it. I knew I was drunk but I couldn't care less if I tried.

"Serena." I saw Darien's fist around my wrist and he yanked me away from my latest dancing partner.

"Do you know how long it took me to find you?" he asked. "Are you crazy?—running off on your own and getting drunk. Do you know how many people can take advantage of you here?"

"Shh," I shushed, putting a free finger to his lips and gently easing his hand off my other hand. "Dance."

I started to sway my hips into his, locking my arms behind his head and closing my eyes. I felt hot all over, unbearably so.

"No, Serena," Darien said, unlocking my arms. I simply strut around him and started pressing against him from behind.

"Let's dance, Darien," I purred, putting a hand on his hips.

"Serena." His voice was serious and he firmly held my hands together in one hand and turned me around with the other. "You're drunk."

"I know," I replied, struggling against his grip.

"We need to get you home before you get yourself into even more trouble," he sighed. "Let's go, Serena."

"… I think I want another drink," I announced as we passed by the bar.

"No you don't."

"I really do," I insisted.

"You don't need another drink in your system." Darien dragged me along by the arm.

"But I—Mattykins!" I shouted, spotting the familiar blonde frat-boy.

"Serena?" he said, squinting over at me. "Holy shit, you remember my name?"

"Of course!" I chirped.

"Is there a problem here?" Matt asked, eying Darien's hand around my arm.

"We'll be going now," Darien said, shooting Matt a glare and continuing to pull me.

"Hey—," Matt started, looking ready to smash his drink into Darien's face.

I sneakily shushed Matt with my free arm and motioned for him to come closer.

"What is it?" Matt whispered once he came into hearing range.

"This guy won't let me have another drink but I'm dying for one," I whispered back. "Would you do me a huge favor and give me yours?"

"Ah, I'm kinda thinking that you could go without one," Matt replied honestly.

"I'll give you a kiss on the cheek," I offered, bringing out my sexy smoky eyes.

"I'm down with that," he grinned, leaning closer, cheek extended. I giggled and planted a nice, long peck on his cheek and laughed when he blushed.

"As promised," he said, handing me his drink. It was blue and funky looking. Me like.

"Bye, Matt," I waved, careful not to spill the drink.

"See ya later," he replied before blending in with the crowd.

I quickly downed the drink and stumbled when I came to a stop. A large hand pulled the glass away from me and I frowned.

"Where did you get this drink?" Darien asked sternly.

"Not telling," I replied. "But it was yummy."

He sighed and shoved the glass into some passerby's hands before pulling me along. "Let's try to catch a cab."

"Whoa, I feel a little woozy." My head spun a bit and I tried blinking it away.

"You shouldn't have drank so much," Darien said, slowing down. "Let's buy you some water before we head home."

I nodded obediently, feeling slightly sleepy and too tired to fight back.

We walked around a while and Darien got me a bottle of Fiji from a 24 hour deli. We stood on the sidewalk as I slurped it down, not caring if it trickled down my chin.

"Come here," Darien said, napkin in hand and wiped the dribble off. "Well, my phone's dead so we can't call for one. Do you have yours?" I shook my head.

"We can, we can take the subway," I slurred, recapping the bottle and handing it back to Darien. He looked around and opened up my purse and put it in.

"I have a Metrocard in my wallet," I said, swaying slightly. Darien steadied me and looked around for a subway station.

"Let's go down to a main street." I felt him give me a small tug and I almost fell over.

"Whoa, there!" he exclaimed before re-steadying me. "You okay?"

I hummed. "I'm really … tired."

He looked a bit troubled before he turned around and bent a bit over. "Hop on."

I laughed weakly. "My butt will show."

He stood off and started unbuttoning his navy top. I just stared at him as he took it off and proceeded to tie it around my waist.

'Darien's kinda cute. And muscle-y.'

"There," he said, getting back into piggyback-loading position. "Get on."

I giggled and leaned over, looping my arm around his neck and bending my legs. He secured his hands around my knees and hefted me around for a bit, getting a better grip. Silently, he started to walk forward. I placed my cheek on his back and breathed deeply and settled in.

"Darien?" I asked after a few minutes.

"Yeah, Serena?" he replied.

"I think you're cute."

He laughed; his rumbling shook my body. "I think you're cute too."

I smiled. "How cute?"

"Very cute, Serena."

Silence—the skidding of shoes on pavement and faraway cars.

"Are we there yet?" I murmured, falling in and out of sleep.

"We're here," he answered, letting me down.

I wordlessly shuffled through my purse for my wallet and handed it over. He took it and slashed us both in before taking me back on his back and handing me my wallet. I stuffed it in my purse and snapped it closed. We made it just in time for the train and he sat me down on an edge seat before sitting down next to me.

"Why do you have a $50 Metrocard?" he asked as the train started moving.

"Ah…," I started. "I had to go to Jupiter for Lita's … something. And it was … rain, raining. And work. No cabs so I took the subway but small money. Bought a $50 Metrocard but missed the … thing anyway. And I was wet. But someone …."

"Someone…?" he questioned.

"Bought me a smoothie," I finished. "Chocolate."

Darien was quiet for a while and I felt myself swaying around.

"Sleep on my shoulder," he said, moving a little over so that I had more space. I smiled and leaned to my right, settling into his shoulder.

"Darien?"

"Yes, Serena?"

"Am I cuter than Mina Aino?"

He paused. "Way cuter."

"Ah," I yawned. "Why didn't silly Andrew see that?"

And I fell asleep. But I could have sworn I heard him say, "He's a fool."

end Love on the Catwalk : Chapter 10

AN : WOW that was long . Hope you liked it and thanks for reading ! Reviews always welcome :D