Author's Note:

Another chapter up! (And it is long!) I'm so excited now because it is finally getting good- at least in my opinion. Hopefully you agree? Hope you enjoy and as always comments are much appreciated!

Futureprincess

You Again?

Chapter 10

"How about we order?" I suggested.

I'm actually starving right now. I sorta forgot to eat this morning and that is never good for me. I can barely function without something in my system and sadly today I'll have to wait before I get my caffeine fix of the day since Noodles is not, unfortunately, widely known for their great coffee.

We both got up to wait our turn behind the non-creepy non-eyeless man and his girlfriend or wife or whatever she is.

From the corner of my eye I could vaguely see Darien not so stealthily hiding a laugh through a cough.

"Shut up." I muttered but that just made him more amused.

He didn't get to make any snide remarks though since the couple ahead of us was done and it was our turn.

I quickly rattled off my order to the rather handsome teen behind the register. He read it off again to confirm then gave me the price. I dug into my purse to take out my credit card but Darien put his hand on mine to stop me.

I glared at him and tried to shake his hand off but he ignored me and pushed me aside and smiled at the teen- why is he nice to everyone else?!- and gave the guy his order. For a second I thought he meant to put his food on my bill but then he proceeded to take out his wallet and handed his visa over.

"Hey! I'm quite capable of paying for my own meals, thank you very much." My hands were now placed firmly on my hips.

Darien took our number from the register guy who smiled at us one last time and then he placed his hand on the small of my back to guide- more like push actually- me forward so we could go back to our seat. I fumed silently until we were once again seated.

"What the crap, Darien?" I said, irritated.

"What the crap?" Darien smiled. "That the best you can come up with?"

"Just answer the question. What the crap? I can pay for myself. This is a meeting, I should actually be paying for you." I said, stubbornly crossing my arms across my chest.

"Well, it is unofficial and seeing as I'm the one that asked you to go I should pay." He replied, rather reasonable reasoning actually. I didn't really have a good comeback and to be honest this was probably the stupidest thing for me to fuss over so I forcibly relaxed my face- a feat that took all my effort since around Darien I'd trained myself many years ago to always be on full alert.

"So." I said awkwardly. I didn't know what we were going to talk about. This was Darien Shields. What on earth did I have in common with him?

Then I realized the most obvious thing and caught myself before I rolled my eyes at my own stupidity.

"How did you come up with your story anyway?" I asked.

I was rather curious. It was a very intriguing story and he'd done a brilliant job with it. The first thing that I always wonder about when I read a book is where the inspiration came from- mainly because I need to find my own muse badly and I figure it can't hurt to know other people's. With most people the story has some element of truth behind it. Some part of their life that they use- and obviously embellish.

Darien was apparently no different.

He shrugged. "I drew on some of my past experiences."

I smiled at that.

"Which part? The one where a bunch of strangers tried to kill you- although that one I could understand." I added as an afterthought and we both smiled. "Or the part about you being a demon?" My smile widened. "Wow, this is your life story isn't it?"

Darien actually had the good humor to laugh with me at that one.

"They're not bad demons." He pointed out.

"And that is where the story strays from reality I'm assuming." I smiled.

"What happened to diplomacy?" He asked but he was smiling so I knew that he didn't mind our banter...

Now that I think about it, I don't think he's ever minded it. I'm the one who usually ends up with the deeply bruised ego- he always walks away unharmed.

"You'll live." I said with another smile that he returned.

It was rather surprising for me to be sitting at the same table as Darien Shields and actually be having a good time. This banter was fun- because it was aimed at him.

"Anyway," I said with a wave of my hand to urge him on. He hadn't answered the question yet.

Was it just me or did he seem to stiffen slightly? Was it only my imagination or was there a flicker of unease in those always-humorous midnight eyes?

"Well," He began, "My parents died when I was six." He added a shrug after this as if to dismiss the issue altogether. As if to say, "no biggie." The gesture would have been appropriate for a different conversation- a less depressing one.

"I'm so sorry." I said but he quickly cut me off and when I looked back up at him (my eyes had fallen to the tabletop at his confession) his eyes held mine with a fierce determination.

"It was a long time ago, I can't even remember. Please don't let this change your disposition toward me or anything. This doesn't change anything."

And then I understood what that determination was. He didn't want my pity. This was something I completely understood. It was something Darien and I had in common. He didn't even know how much I understood his position.

"And let me guess, you discovered a coven of hidden demon friends when you turned thirteen?" I asked with a teasing smile. He smiled in return.

He understood.

"I wish. I'd always dreamed of something like that." He replied and I looked at him in surprise.

"You dreamed that you'd befriend a bunch of demons?" I asked incredulously. "You were weird even as a kid Shields."

His smile widened and he added, "Hey, they're good demons remember?"

"How could I forget?" I rolled my eyes.

"Anyway, if you'll stop interrupting me…" He leveled me with a teasing glare and then continued, "I'd grown up watching too many cartoons, too many superheroes so I'd always thought maybe I was one of them." I didn't interrupt to voice my surprise at Darien ever watching anything as childish as cartoons- he was so serious in high school (well, about everything but me that is) "And before you make some snarky comment about being too old for that, I was six. And I didn't hold out hope past the age of ten." He smiled a wistful smile. "So yea, I always sorta thought that there had to have been a purpose to their death, you know? I was a kid, I didn't understand the concept of death. Just death. No reason for it, it just is. And that kinda started the whole tale."

"Why now though?" I asked curiously.

"It has been a work in progress for years." He said with what seemed like a frustrated laugh. "I started it I don't even know how long ago and it just sat idle on my computer for years and years until one night I just sat down and typed and it all came out. Flowing from I don't even know where. I stayed up all night and eventually collapsed from exhaustion. Had to take the day off of work and when I woke up I went straight back to it. I don't know what the final push was from but it just came."

And at his description I felt one of the seven deadly sins. Envy.

I'd never had that kind of inspiration. That's why my stories never got anywhere- like Darien's had for so many years.

But I was still happy for him. I squashed the horrid emotion and smiled at him.

I was about to open my mouth to say something but a waiter- the same handsome teen from before came over to place our plates in front of us. He handed Darien and I our silverware. I smiled and mumbled a 'thank you' and he left us again.

As Darien unwrapped his silverware from the napkin his mouth turned down in confusion.

"What?" I asked.

"I think this is for you." He said and handed over a little piece of paper that had apparently been hidden inside the napkin. I took what he offered curiously and a smile broke out on my face.

"That is not for me, honey. Totally yours." I said in a teasing voice.

The slip read, "Name's Cal, call me- (555) 555-2634" There was a heart next to the name.

I couldn't hold back my laugh.

Cal- our waiter's name apparently- smiled impishly over at us- mainly at Darien and waved a shy sort of wave.

Darien waved back awkwardly with a bewildered look on his face.

"Go for it." I told him. "He's cute."

"'What the crap'- I believe are the right words in this situation." Darien said still looking shocked.

"Aw, you don't have to pretend with me Shields." I teased and Darien rolled his eyes at me and took the paper in his hand to ball it up but then noticed the nervous waiter waiting for a reaction and took it under the table. He threw it down but from Cal's position it might have seemed like he put it in his pocket. Aw, Darien didn't want to hurt Cal's feelings.

"That is just cruel Shields." I informed him. "Poor Cal's gonna be waiting on your call."

"I'm sure he'll live." He said sarcastically then his bewildered expression returned. "I'm here with you, why would he think I'm gay?"

"It isn't a date." I pointed out matter-of-factly.

Darien rolled his eyes at that.

"Well, how the heck would he know that?" He asked.

"Could be the fact that we've been arguing most of the time." I said, putting out my index finger to begin numbering reasons. "Or maybe because if we were on a date you'd probably be way more courteous. Or because you haven't once tried to hold my hand or otherwise show affection. Or the fact that no one over the age of fifteen goes on a date at Noodles. Or maybe." I would have gone on but Darien reached out to stop my hand from numbering off.

"Okay, I think those are plenty of reasons."

But to my shock, he didn't drop my hand. He held it on the table. Just as I was about to smack him for his behavior I noticed where his eyes flickered- over to poor Cal.

"That is just cruel Darien." I said and tried to move my hand away.

"Unless you want to give poor little Cal over there false hopes just go with it."

I looked down at my untouched plate in dismay.

"I'm really hungry." I whispered pitifully and Darien cracked another smile.

"I won't let you starve."

He let go of my hand and… oddly enough I didn't feel relieved. My hand still felt a little warm from his touch as I picked up my fork and dug into my plate… The meal wasn't nearly as satisfying as I would have hoped.

Throughout the rest of lunch we continued our banter but it was rather pleasant. He didn't make many snide remarks and to my total surprise I had a nice time. We laughed and joked like old friends- not enemies. He asked questions about my group- Amy, Ray, Lita, and Mina. Surprisingly enough, he remembered them by name. He even remembered Ray's little- actually big (but he doesn't have to know that)- crush on him.

The conceded jerk's recollection of that memory was with a smile. I frowned at him.

"She's married." I'd pointed out rather grumpily. I'm not sure why.

But he didn't seem dismayed by Ray's marital status- as I'd actually somewhat anticipated. He was thrilled to hear that life for his former classmates was going so well. When I mentioned Mina's singular status he brightened a little too much.

"I remember her. She was always so nice." He said with a wistful smile.

That reaction annoyed me.

Not that Mina wasn't nice- it's just the way he said the word nice wasn't at all nice. It was more of guy's meaning of nice.

Girl Definition of Nice: Being kind and gentle.

Guy Definition of Nice: Having big boobs, small waist, and a pretty face.

But when I pointed that out to him he was flabbergasted. He seemed genuinely offended that I thought "so little of his character"- as he'd said. That I would think that was all he cared about. Then to prove his point he told a story of Mina volunteering to help the student council set up the blood drive when they were short on volunteers. I blushed in embarrassment but to Darien's credit he didn't humiliate me further by exploiting the opportunity.

Other than those two incidents nothing too unpleasant was said. The occasional teasing remark didn't piss me off as it usually would have- mainly because I was discovering that Darien didn't mean his comments in a mean way (at least not anymore). It was just his way. And he is actually a decent person- a fact I grudgingly admitted to myself by the end of the date—I mean meeting.

I accidentally got a glimpse of the clock on the wall behind Darien when my head was tilted back slightly- I was laughing. I was shocked to see the time. It was nearly 2.

I'd spent nearly two hours with Darien without dying or killing him! It was a miracle.

Darien noticed the direction of my gaze and glanced at the clock too. He seemed just as shocked by the time if his expression is anything to go by.

"Well," I said. "This was rather pleasant Darien. You behaved. Congrats." I smiled at him.

"Can't say the same for you- about behaving anyway. Pleasant I'll agree with." He returned my smile with a crooked grin of his own.

We got up and headed toward the door.

Now this was the tricky part for two reasons. Number one being I'd missed the bus that I'd originally planned on using- it had left at 1:05. But I'm pretty sure there will be another one so the other tricky part is to get Darien to go away so he won't know I didn't have a car- he might have been nice today but I'm not going to risk giving him more ammo.

"Well, bye Darien." I waved at him- more of a shoo actually.

"Let me walk you to your car," he surprised me by saying.

"Darien, I'm quite capable of walking by myself." I replied quickly and not very nicely but I have to get him away.

"We're in New York, you can never be too safe."

"It's bright out- daylight. I'll survive. Don't worry I'm not afraid."

"Okay, fine. I'm afraid. Humor me." He rolled his eyes.

Crap what was I going to do now? I didn't have a car to go to!

Then I spotted one car among many, very bright and shiny. I liked it, it looked like a car I would buy- if I had the money. I walked up to it- it was a silver car- I wasn't sure what kind. Just pretty. I went to the driver's side and pretended to look through my purse for keys.

"You can go now. I'm fine. I'm safe. Almost in the car." I looked up from my purse and made another shooing hand gesture. Darien looked at me- with his signature one upturned brow.

"Um, Serena." He said with what appeared to be a repressed smile. He moved his hand to the back of his neck in what looked like a nervous habit. Who knew! Darien Shields has nervous habits! He isn't perfect after all! (not that I ever thought he was. Other people maybe, not me)

"Yes, Darien?" I replied with a roll of my eyes, hoping to make him go away faster- before the owner of this car came out and beat me with a (very pricey- if the look of this car is any indication) stick.

"Um, Serena." He repeated again. It was almost a stutter- which reminded me of Brad which made me almost laugh out loud right there in front of a stranger's car. But my mirth was totally forgotten after the next words came out of his mouth. "That's my car."

Well, crap.