Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, I can't express how grateful I am for all your praise andideas-I'veeven used a few (hee hee). Sorry this update took so long, but hopefully my next will be a lot sooner in coming! I'm hoping to finish this story by the sixteenth of this month, so wish me luck everyone! Anyway, here is Chapter 14,and I hope you enjoy it!

An hour later I stood in the main hallway of the dormitories frantically dialing Mina's cell number. She picked up on the fourth ring, and I was never so ready to scream at somebody in my whole life. However, I managed to keep my voice down to a furious whisper.

"Just what do you think you're doing!" I murmured fiercely. "How the hell is Serena supposed to be able to visit if she's talking to you right now!"

Mina sighed on the other end, and I could tell she was painting her toenails by the calmness of her voice. Nothing took her stress level down than much needed pampering. I hated to admit it, but I was jealous! If there was anything that I needed right now, it was a pedicure!

"Serena," she began, and I tried not to blow at the annoying calmness in her voice. "You were the one who was complaining that Darien couldn't fall for a boy… Well, here's your chance to make him fall for a girl."

"But-" I began, but she cut me off.

"Look, I knew you were going to freak out if I sent a message with that Melvin guy, but I needed to let you know, and he said he had no idea when you'd be in," she explained serenely.

"Don't dodge the question Mina," I said, my voice dangerous. "How the hell is 'Serena' supposed to be here?"

"Let me worry about that," she said gently. "But you have to make sure that 'Ren' disappears for a while…"

"And what do I tell Darien when I see him? That I got one hell of a haircut?" I asked. "He's not stupid Mina, he already notices the striking resemblance, so stop being so calm about it!"

"Really?" she asked excitedly. "He recognized you?"

"No he didn't!" I began, but stopped and counted to three, determined not to cause a scene, although for the moment, the hall was empty. "He didn't recognize me," I said, my voice much more patient now. "But he did notice that I look a lot like her!"

My mouth dropped open as Mina began giggling on the other end. She was laughing at me! "This situation is not funny!" I exclaimed, my temper flaring to a barely tolerable heat.

"I know!" She finally managed. "It's just that it's so weird hearing you refer to yourself in the third person!"

"Yeah, well that's more scary than humorous," I said dryly, cooling off a bit. "I beginning to wonder who's real: Ren or Serena…"

"Oh don't be so melodramatic!" She scolded. "You are what you are!" She said.

"Yeah, and the clothes don't make the man either," I muttered.

"Stop being such a stick in the mud," She said. "You're supposed to be having fun with this!"

"Sweetie, it's hard to have fun when you're hiding a vagina!" I snapped.

"Well, you won't be for much longer, so chill out," Mina said gently, realizing she was pushing me too far. I sighed.

"It's just hard keeping up this charade, and I don't like lying to Darien. It's not fair to him!"

"I know," Mina agreed, "lying to him isn't good, and that's another thing I wanted to talk to you about."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I want you out of Madison by the end of the semester," Mina said.

"Well, I was hoping I wouldn't have to stay the whole year," I admitted, trying to keep the sarcasm out of my voice.

"I don't want you to, and I've already started to think of something to tell Dad. You'll need to get back here Serena because, let's face it, you're technically not getting any high school credits at the moment. If you stay there any longer than a semester, you won't be able to graduate high school for another year."

"Yeah, I figured I'd leave before the second semester, but we have another problem…" I said softly.

"Oh really? What's that?" She asked.

"Two people know about me," I murmured.

"What?" Mina shrieked, and I cringed. "How did that happen? Serena, how could you blow your cover?"

"I didn't plan it!" I protested. "It just happened! A girl kissed me, fists flew, and well… it just sort of came out!"

There was silence on the other end for a moment. "Wow," she finally said. "That's a story you're going to have to tell later. Do you think these people can keep a secret?" she wondered.

"Yeah," I answered. "I think so. If they don't, well, I'm screwed." I sighed, but then shook my head dismissively. "Anyway, we're still avoiding the major predicament. How is 'Serena' going to visit Madison?" I asked.

"Let me worry about that, all you have to do is make sure 'Ren' is gone." She said, sighing loudly.

"I'm so happy you can relax about this," I muttered.

"Well, you worry too much! Look, I have to go, I have a date with this guy Martin. Be ready on Saturday okay?"

"Mina, you can't go yet! Not until you tell me what's going on!" I insisted. "And who's Martin anyway?" I wondered.

"Nobody important, I can already tell it's going nowhere!" She replied, sounding bored.

"Then why are you going?"

"Can't think of anything better to do!" She answered wistfully. "Look, don't worry about Saturday, the girls and I have everything under control. Let's just say you're in for the make-over of a lifetime!"

"What?" I answered.

"No time to explain! I really gotta go, but I'll talk to you later!"

"Mina! No! Don't hang up the-"

But it was too late, the line was dead, and I didn't feel like calling her back. Great, I thought. Now I get to go through the rest of the week with this on my shoulders. I looked up to see Darien heading down the hall. I smiled and waved, and he returned the gesture, but I could see that he still wanted to be alone. I sighed and headed into my bedroom, slamming the door behind me. I crossed the room to my dresser and pulled open the top drawer. I rifled through socks and boxers until I found what I was looking for.

I pulled the now dried-out rosebud from the scattered pile of underwear, and held it gently in my palm. Although the petals had wilted, the color still burned as fiercely as it had the day I first laid eyes on Darien. I smiled softly in remembrance of how unsuspecting I was when I picked the flower, and carefully put it back in the dark recesses of my bureau. I shut the drawer, wincing at the piercing squeak it made when it closed, and then made my way over to my bed. I collapsed onto it, feeling the slightly painful, but oh-so-wonderful ache of my muscles as they relaxed. A few moments later, I was asleep, dreaming of all the corny things a seventeen year-old girl's imagination can conjure.

I awoke later that afternoon with a dull ache at the base of my abdomen. I groaned as I sat up, instantly realizing its cause. Until that moment, I had forgotten all about my monthly visitor. I normally considered myself lucky, having a six week cycle, but this time my long break between periods was going to prove quite unfortunate.

"Shit!" I moaned, wincing as a particularly painful cramp rippled through my internal organs. "Why now?"

I rose to my feet and hurried out of my dorm, determined to reach the bathroom before I made a mess of my underwear. It was ludicrous! I couldn't even ask anyone for a tampon! I sighed, knowing I was probably going to have to pay Raye a visit before the night was over. No wonder I had been so moody before!

I managed to make the best of a rolled up wad of toilet paper, and left the bathroom relieved because I had caught it in time. Sometimes it really sucked being a girl, but at least I would only have to deal with it for three days. Still, I would need to find something for the cramps, and fast! Somehow, however, I highly doubted that guys included Midol in their manly arsenal. I sighed, and headed towards the phone, dialing in the number to Raye's dormitory.

"You need to get a cell phone, dude…" Someone drawled behind me, and I turned around to see Nathan standing against the wall.

"Hey," I murmured, and turned back around to continue dialing.

"Ren," he began suddenly, and I glanced back at him. To my surprise, there was contrition in his deep blue eyes.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"I wanted to apologize about what I said in the cafeteria earlier. I can be a jerk sometimes, and I got carried away. I didn't realize you would take it so personally, and then Jarod pulled me aside and explained it to me."

My stomach plummeted to my shoes and I gasped. "Jarod did what?"

I'm going to kill him! I though furiously. He's only known one day and he's spreading my secret around!

"He told me about your sister, and how you guys are really close," Nathan clarified. I visibly relaxed and struggled not to breathe a sigh of relief, as I silently thanked Jarod's quick-thinking.

"Yeah, she's my twin," I explained, and he nodded.

"I'm sorry I got carried away. I don't have a sister, but if I did, I probably wouldn't appreciate what I said back there either. I just wanted to apologize for offending you," he finished.

"Thanks," I said softly, and smiled at him. "I appreciate it."

He grinned back, and I was suddenly struck by how cute he was. Lita was right, he did have a killer smile.

"Well, I'll let you get back to your call now. Sorry to bother you," he said, walking away.

"It's no trouble, I'll see you later!" I called after him, and then turned back to the phone, smiling to myself as I remembered Nathan's heartfelt apology. I punched in the number for Raye's dormitory, and silently prayed that she would pick up.

Someone did pick up on the third ring, but it wasn't Raye. Luckily though, she was on the floor, and was on the phone two minutes later.

"Hello?"

"Raye?"

"Yeah, it's me. Is that you, Serena?" She wondered.

I smiled, I couldn't get enough of hearing that. "Yeah, it's me." I hesitated, and then plunged forward. "I know this is going to sound weird, but I'm in a little bit of trouble, and I sort of need your help."

"Sure! Anything! What can I do for you?" She asked.

I glanced around, making sure I was alone. "I need a tampon…" I whispered.

"What?" she asked, "I can't hear you."

"I need a tampon," I murmured a little louder.

"Sweetie, you're going to have to speak up!" she insisted.

"I NEED A TAMPON!" I almost shouted, and then nearly slapped myself in the head for being so loud.

I could hear Raye laughing on the other end, and I scowled. "You need some Midol too by the sound of it," She said through her giggles.

"It's not funny," I muttered, but found myself smiling at the absurdity of the situation as well.

"I can hook you up girl," she finally managed. "Meet me outside the girl's dormitory in fifteen minutes, and wear something baggy! The last thing you need is for some guy to see you carrying a bag full of feminine hygiene products."

I laughed. "Okay, I'll see you in a few."

"You got it," she assured me, and hung up.

I hung up and sighed. This had been quite an adventurous day, but I knew it was probably nothing compared to next Saturday!