Monday came all too soon for Serena. She sat up from her bed eyes puffy from staying up late all weekend. She yawned, and just before she could fall asleep once again she felt sharp feline claws across her face.

"Luna!!!!!!!!!"

"Wake up lazy bones. Weekend's over. It's time to refocus your priorities on school." Serena eyed her alarm clock.

"AH! If you were going to wake me up you could have woken me up sooner. I'm going to be sooooooooooo late!"
"Oh! So now I'm responsible for your schedule. Maybe you should try resetting your alarm clock on Sunday nights," Luna advised caustically. Serena ignored her and dressed at an alarming pace. She soon rushed out the front door while Luna sat behind wide eyed. In Luna's teeth hung Serena's lunch.

"Poor girl. I wonder if she'll make it through the afternoon."

The lunch hour was the longest Serena had ever been in. Deprived of her lunch she went from person to person but her sluggishness prevented her from reaching anyone before they themselves had devoured their lunches. She spent the rest of the day too tired to respond to Miss H's badgering and consumed in the noise her stomach emitted. Patricia considered giving the girl detention, but felt sorry for her and let her leave early instead to get food.

Serena looked like a zombie as she drudged down the street that equaled her usual route home passing the arcade. Just as she reached the doors of the arcade she felt a hand on her shoulder.

She whipped her head around expecting to see a tall, handsome man with sapphire eyes and black hair of a shade equally deep. Instead she brought her shocked gaze down nearly a foot to view huge coke bottle sunglasses. Her exhilaration instantly fell and she resumed her drained expression.

"Hey Serena!"

"Melvin. What are you doing here?" she muttered to the nerd.

"I noticed you were more than sluggish today. I wanted to see if-if-icouldtakeyoutoeatlikeonadate." Serena, being the glutton she was, missed the last four words of Melvin's statement.

"EAT?!" her mouth drooled. "As in now?!" Serena drooled.

"Uh…yeah," Melvin felt worried. Did I miscalculate her lethargy?

"What are you waiting for? Let's go." Serena's sudden adrenaline rush enabled her to drag Melvin to the nearest food dealer. The arcade!

Serena and me on a date! This is too much. What does this MEAN? Melvin struggled to match her pace as they sat at the first booth there. Serena immediately raised her hand to motion Andrew over to her. Luna walked through the open arcade doors and spotted Serena just as she was about to make her order.

"May I have a triple hot fudge sundae...," Two feline eyes blinked. I hope that's all!, "... two orders of fries, a double cheeseburger, three apple pies, and five donuts?" Serena requested. A boing could be heard as Serena's cat collided with the floor. Spoke too soon.

Melvin opened his wallet and looked inside it solemnly. It wasn't thick to begin with. But...it's worth it to be with the prettiest girl alive.

"May I have a sundae, please?" Melvin knew his wallet could not survive more than that. Otherwise he'd have to pay with his watch.

Andrew quickly brought back a sundae for each of them and the rest of Serena's order. He then looked up startled as he saw a suave figure enter the arcade expectantly. Darien scanned the space, looking first at the counter where Andrew usually worked and then at the many booths of couples, before finally settling his darkening eyes upon Serena and Melvin in a booth near the back. He visibly stiffened, but only to Andrew's sight.

Andrew backed away cautiously with a worried grin on his face as Darien glided coolly up to the pair. Serena, oblivious to the six foot three college student vacuumed down her fries and double cheeseburger. Just as she was about to start eating the pies, she felt a shadow block the light streaming in through the windows of the arcade. When she finally looked up she let out a shriek comparable to the noise made by a swarm of bats and leapt to the top of her seat.

"Darien?!" Serena stammered.

"Having a nice time on your date? I hope you don't scare him away from your horrific eating habits," he interjected with his usual haughtiness.

He thinks I'm on a date? Where would he get an idea like that? Let's see...Booth. Check. Food. Check. Well, at least half of it. Four-eyed geek Melvin. Che-- Melvin! Serena's skin crawled.

"On a date?! With Melvin?" She said pointing at her stunned friend. "Ewww." Darien's eyebrow rose. At the same time his body slackened and he let a mischievous grin come across his features.

"But Serena, I thought I meant something to you?"

"Melvin...we're just friends okay," she said praying he would take a hint.

"You've found someone else haven't you? It's this guy, isn't it?" Melvin said dejectedly.

"No. Not exam--." Suddenly, Darien sat down in the booth right next to Serena and draped his arm around her.

"Actually she's taken."

"WHAT?!" Serena's voice raised three octaves.

"Oh, okay. I see, I'll just leave you two alone," Melvin said looking as if he had taken a strong blow in the jaw. He slowly stood up and dragged his feet out the arcade with his tail between his legs. Serena watched feeling slightly guilty. She brightened when she sighted Molly walking away with a twittering Melvin moments later.

"Whew..." Serena sighed letting her gaze fall. Then her eyes met another pair with a strange glint in them.

She raised her arms and leg in an attack stance, then relaxed when she realized with whom she was sitting.

"Darien! You're still here!"

"Hahahahahaha! Serena, you're a strange girl. Well, it's been fun, but it seems I've gotta go. See ya later!" Darien stood up with a genuine smile on his face, waved, and walked off. Luna then claimed a seat on Serena's shoulder.

"That was odd. He was actually smiling, and not once did he call me Meatball head..."

"Isn't that what you wanted?" Serena's feline companion smiled knowingly at her owner.

Stars floated in Serena's eyes as she stared at the ceiling and nodded.

"Uh huh..." A blonde with a bow watched Serena from underneath the main counter clinging to a white apron. Andrew looked down her peeved.

"What are you doing here?' he whispered hoping she would allow him to keep working. Mina simply ignored him and whipped out her walkie-talkie.

"Step one. Successful."

Darien sat in a coffee shop drinking his usual coffee, with no cream or sugar. A newspaper shielded all but his green jacket. A jacket Frank was all too familiar with.

"'Ello old friend," the professor said.

"Oh, hi, glad you could make it," Darien finally looked up from the black and white print.

"Huh? Interesting. I've never seen you with so much fire in your eyes in all the time I've known you," Frank said before sitting down across from Darien. Darien sat aback with worry plastered across his face. Am I that transparent? Darien squirmed under further examination by his scholarly looking friend.

"Erm...uh...yeah... we've known each other ...for about...er...7...years...," Darien added uncomfortably.

The grey-haired man finally sat back in his seat squinting his eyes beneath his large eighties glasses. He finally began to speak.

"Have you--been struck by cupid's arrow?" He asked beaming with curiosity. Darien jerked straight up and sweat dropped. He gripped his coffee cup and attempted to nonchalantly take a sip, but his hand shook too much.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Ah, gonna try to deny it, eh?" Frank peered up at him from beneath his glasses with eyes full of wisdom. "Well, it won't work! I haven't known you that long to have not learned a thing about Mr. Darien Shields. You may hide your emotions from most but I can detect your soul simply by looking here." Frank leaned forward and pointed a wrinkled finger an inch from Darien's left eye. Resignedly Darien rubbed the back of his head.

"Guess that's why you're the professor, haha."

"So..." Darien's eyes widened awaiting Frank's next question. "What is this girl like?"

"Hmm?"

A few days later, Serena's four closest friends sat in a booth talking to Andrew who was recently on break. He leaned against the side nearest Mina and Lita laughing. Mina and Lita, who usually passed their time around the arcade hunk flirting, laughed along with everyone else.

"So, after Serena fell into the fountain, the monkey from the accordion player leapt on her soaking wet head and starting eating her meatballs!" Mina recounted the events taking place at yesterday's field trip to the park. The quintet doubled over with laughter. They clutched at their stomachs with red faces.

"Ha-ha. Leave it to Serena!" Raye cried.

"Yeah! I've never seen such a thing before!" Mina said failing miserably to control her laughter.

"Um, Mina," the blue-haired brainiac's cool voice cut everyone's joyous pain short. "Statistics show that you klutz out one percent more than Serena." Everyone sweat dropped except Amy.

"Statistics, shmatistics. Can't judge everything by books," Mina said failing to mix meaning with quotation for the millionth time.

"Mina, dear, it's 'You can't judge a book by its cover' and, uh, that has nothing to do with the conversation," Lita corrected.

"I bet you couldn't get a quote correct if your life depended on it," Raye joked.

"Well, at least I get better marks than Serena," Mine defended.

"What was that?" Serena asked sneaking upon her guilt-ridden group of friends.

"Ahhh!"

"Oh, Serena, fancy seeing you here!"

"We planned to meet here three days ago..." Serena bluntly replied. Aware of her friend's betrayal she sat next to Amy and Raye. Suddenly, Mina curled over in pain.

"Girl, you havin' a seizure or something?" Lita asked. Serena allowed a discrete smirk to appear before the arcade doors opened again. Andrew lifted up his sleeve and felt a slight vibration on his wrist.

"Well, girls, seems my break is over. I'll have to talk to you gals later. Anybody want some drinks?" Andrew asked once the table calmed down. In a matter of seconds Darien stood next to his best friend.

"I would like a triple hot fudge sundae, Andrew!" Serena cried as her hand rose in earnest.

"Failed another test, Meatball Head?" Darien asked with candid interest.

"Huh?" Five heads looked up at Darien. However, instead of being surprised because of Darien's dark blue blazer, they were puzzled by his question.

"What did I say?" Darien asked with sincerity. I don't like the way they're all looking at me...

"How would you know if Serena failed another test?" Amy finally asked voicing everyone's thoughts. Meanwhile, Serena dug into her briefcase and pulled out a wrinkled sheet of paper. She then shoved it in front of Darien's face, displaying an infamous thirty out of one hundred. Darien meanwhile twitched in irritation. What's their point?

"She always orders a fudge sundae after she fails--." Darien halted his train of thought when he realized his mistake. How did he know that? The priestess chose to break the ice.

"Well, Darien...," Raye had an unpleasant smile on her face, "since you know Serena sooo well, maybe you could give her tutoring lessons." After making this breath-catching statement, Raye wiggled her eyebrows making Mina, Lita and Amy sigh heavily and fell across the table. I guess that works!

Meanwhile, Darien tugged at his collar as Andrew cheesed.

"Yeah, Darien, why don't 'cha!" Andrew instigated before walking back to his post. Serena squirmed next to her traitorous friends. Me, alone with...Darien...

"Well, I would, bet, err, I--," Darien tried until he was cut off by Luta's voice.

"I think it's a great idea. Studying with us never seems to work, so maybe an older-male-influence could help..."

"Yeah, we were going to study over at the Temple," Raye started giggling incessantly, "but, you can have 'er," she finished as she pushed Serena out of the booth into a pair of strong, chiseled arms. Serena looked up through blonde bangs at a Darien. Mina stood up, deciding to take action.

"Yeah, you two should get going!" Mina, too, acquired Raye's contagious giggling. With that, she shoved Serena's briefcase into her hands, "By the way, I think Serena needs a change of scenery! How about she goes to your place," and forced the pair out the arcade doors. "Study hard!"

"Whew. Good job guys. I honestly didn't think it would work!" Lita finally said when Mina sat down again.

"I still think we still should've locked them in a closet."

"We still got them together! Step two: successful!" Raye argued while resting her fist, not so lightly, atop Mina's head.

"Anyway, this means we've got to be ready for step three. Operation Daffy Duck and Super Sonic: Cupid Fire!"

"Alright!" the four girls shouted.

Outside two teenagers stood awkwardly, the female clutching her bag to her chest and staring at her school shoes, while the male jingling his keys and watching cars go by.

"So, what should we do?" Darien finally asked. Serena's face screwed in concentration. Well...

"I think we should do as we're told. Four teenage girls can be a lethal combination," Serena decided.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he chuckled. He then started walking down the block without another word of explanation. She let her feet lead her after him.

"Hey, where are you going?!" she demanded playfully.

"To my apartment, Meatball," Darien said simply. He looked back and gave Serena a grin that made her freeze in her tracks. The way he said Meatball...it was almost endearing...No, I'm just imagining things...

"Come on," Darien woke her from her shock. He was already several paces ahead of the short blonde. She followed timidly, though it was already difficult for her to keep up with his long strides. After a block of walking Darien looked back upon an unsure looking meatball headed female. She was about five feet behind him, her sunshine-colored pigtails flowing behind her. All of a sudden he stopped in his tracks to wait for her.

"Keep up, and stay by my side." A question mark was almost visible on the center of Serena's forehead. "So that if a car comes it doesn't hit you," he explained. He quickly turned and looked ahead, about to continue walking. Serena blushed beside him, ready to comply with his father-like request. Who knew such a scrooge had a gentlemanly bone in his body?

They walked side by side all the way until they reached a ritzy apartment building .The complex had a sophisticated entranceway with a green carpet stretched in front of it, the bricks seemed aged, but in a regal sense, and the doors slid open to reveal a lobby with marble flooring. He lives here? She soon followed him into a stainless steel elevator that you could view your reflection in. Serena tied her hands behind her back and stared ahead spotting two unfamiliar faces together in the mirror image. Though opposing in height and hair color, they seemed to fit comfortably together. As if they were meant to stand always at each other's side. She mused over these foreign thoughts the whole elevator ride. Oddly, Darien was equally quiet. They returned to reality at the beeping of the elevator. For what seemed an eternity, the mirror image spread apart until it disappeared with a silent hallway in its midst.

The pair made their reappearance in Darien's kitchen.

"Hey! Where can I find some real food around here?" Serena sighed looking inside Darien's fridge. Everything inside matched the rest of his apartment, spotless, expect for the essentials, and a sad lack of personality. There, on the shelves merely sat milk, bread, butter, cheese, and a few slices of some lunchmeat. Darien looked over her.

"You could make a ham sandwich," he suggested, not used to having company in his apartment that warranted special treatment.

"Ham? Grrr, I meant real food! Don't you have any cookies or something?" She said, turning to look at him like a lost puppy.

"Um, no? I do have some chocolate, though," he added.

"Yummy! Chocolate!" Her mouth drooled at the mere thought of it.

"Uh uh, you can't get a piece until we start doing some homework. You know, the reason we're here in the first place?" he teased.

Serena pouted some more, before conceding. She flopped down on the floor at a coffee table with a view of his balcony. Soon, he sat down adjacent to her.

"So...what do you need help with?" Darien began. Following his cue, Serena started scratching her head and giggling nervously.

"Well...," Serena responded.

"That bad, eh?"

"You have to ask?" Darien chuckled.

"I guess you're right. Can you at least tell which subject you're having the most difficulty with?" Serena started shuffling in her bag and struggled to pull something out. Finally, she plopped a thick math book on the table. Darien sighed. Of course.

"What are you studying now?"

"Trig-trig-a--trig-on-a-tree-?" Serena scratched her head.

"Trigonometry," Darien corrected.

"Yeah, that." Darien sighed. This might be a little difficult. He slipped on his glasses to start of his tutoring session. Soon after, snickers could be heard from beside him. He stared through his glasses at his small companion.

"Hahahahahahahahah! This is priceless!" Serena fell on her back laughing like a hyena. "The suave, Darien Shields...wears reading glasses! Hahahaha!"

Oh brother.

Some time later, a shout could be heard for miles across Tokyo.

"Yes! I understand! If the sine is four-fifths and the cosine is three-fifths, then the tangent is four-thirds!"

"Good job, Serena!" Darien congratulated. He laughed heartily. He managed to help Serena with math! No offense, but this had to be at the top of his list of impossible feats. Suddenly his body was showered with warmth and Serena's head buried in his chest.

"Thank you!" She looked up at him, her cheeks burning. For seconds it seemed as if time stopped as his sapphire eyes stared into her azure ones. And then, the spell broke just as easily. Serena scurried off of his body and began to walk around his apartment attempting to busy herself, while putting space between her and immeasurable tension. Unfortunately, all she succeeded in doing was creating an uncomfortable silence as thick as an autumn fog. Serena searched for something, anything to end it. Her next question inadvertently stung every nerve in Darien's body.

"How come you don't keep any photos of your family? It's as if they don't exist." Darien strove to the balcony and pressed his hand on the glass. He opened his mouth paining to find the right words. He took a deep breath before proceeding.

"I don't remember them. For as long as I can remember, I've been on my own. We were driving in the country and there was a terrible car crash. Next thing I knew, I woke up in a hospital without a memory of anything but that moment. The only thing familiar to me was the name Darien, and this is who I've been ever since." As he finished his confession, he felt two hands gently grab his face and turn his head so that he was looking into Serena's focused eyes.

"All this time. I saw such loneliness and fear in those eyes as if you were guarded," she said not tearing her gaze from his. "Now I know why. I'm glad you told me," she said finally letting her hands fall. She continued, looking at the floor, "Darien...,"she looked back up begging him to understand. "You don't have to be alone again!" Serena said, leaping into his arms. He allowed his arms slide around her figure as he smiled contentedly. The hug was interrupted some moments later by a knocking on the door. Reluctantly, Darien walked over and opened it, awaiting a visitor. Much to his surprise, however, no one awaited him. Just as he was about to close the door in exasperation he spied a plate of heart shaped cookies and an envelope. He picked both up and was startled by the writing on the envelope.

'For Serena and Darien!'

When he looked inside the envelope two tickets peered up at him. Serena looked around his shoulder filled with curiosity.

"Ooh! A carnival tonight!" Darien looked at the excited girl and nodded. He handed Serena the envelope and its contents to examine. A part of Serena pondered the handwriting. That look's oddly like Mina's script...She's also the only one I know who dots her eyes with hearts.

"I guess we're supposed to go." Darien laughed. We've been set-up! Though, without protest he grabbed a helmet out of his closet. Serena cocked her head to the side. "You'll see," he assured her.

"Haha. You made it out alive, Lita?" Mina asked giddily.

"Aw, come on! It was a piece of cake. It's not like I've never done it before!" Lita chuckled.

"Are you sure they got the message?"

"Oops! I guess I was so busy trying to escape, I didn't think to check!" Raye sighed.

"Wait! Is that Darien and Serena?"

"What was that Amy? I couldn't hear you over the motorcy--" Raye looked up shocked. At that moment everyone saw it. Two blonde, oddly-shaped pigtails flew in the wind as a bike sped down towards the park.

Everyone sighed. "I wish I thought to set myself up with a guy," Lita said aloud.

"Ditto."

"Aw, come on guys, at least Serena's happy," Raye watched the space where her closest friend and date had just driven as if in a daydream.

Lita began whispering to Mina," Never knew she cared so much." Amy soon joined her two friends' gossip.

"Well, she does have Chad, after all," Amy said smartly.

"Hey, I heard that!"