Hey everyone! I really hope everyone liked the last chapter. And I want to extend a thank you to everyone who reviews. It's really appreciated. And just a reminder, this fic is rated M for a reason, so if that isn't your thing, please hit the back button now. For everyone else, enjoy!
Serena stared up at the board in front of her, watching the flight times and destinations changing, and tried to decide where it was she was going to go. She really hadn't thought this through very well. She'd just wanted so desperately to get out of Tokyo, that she hadn't thought of a destination.
"Serena? Is that you?"
Serena could feel her face going pale at the sound of a familiar voice behind her. She turned slowly, and found herself looking up at Andrew. He was dressed in a suit and tie and carrying a bouquet of roses.
"Oh, hey Andrew. What are you doing here?"
"I'm just picking up my fiance, what are you doing here? Going on a trip?"
"Something like that," Serena said, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to another. "I uh, I should really get going. I don't want to miss my flight."
Andrew frowned as he gazed down at Serena's sullen face and knew that something was wrong. He just didn't know what.
"Is everything okay?" Andrew asked. "You don't seem like you usual self."
"I'm fine, really. Just a little tired. I had a late night and an early morning."
"Oh, right, Darien and the girls had a birthday party for you last night, right?"
"Yeah."
But even as she answered, she wouldn't meet Andrew's eyes. She knew he would be able to tell that she was lying, and she really didn't feel like discussing this with him, or anyone right now. Suddenly a voice rang out over the intercom system, announcing a flight arrival.
"I should get going, that's Rita's flight."
"Okay then, see you later."
"See ya, and happy birthday Serena."
"Yeah," Serena muttered under her breath. "Happy birthday to me..."
Serena watched as Andrew walked away and breathed a sigh of relief when he was finally gone from her sight. She'd already wasted the last three hours trying to figure out where she was going. It was time she finally decided. Turning on her heel, she headed over to the ticket counter. It was time to choose her destination.
Darien dialed Serena's phone number for what felt like the tenth time in the last five minutes, but only got her voice mail. After Rei had left his apartment, he'd quickly dressed and started texting and calling Serena. But she was either out of range, or she was ignoring him. Not that he could blame her. He would ignore him too if he'd walked in on the scene that Serena had witnessed this morning. He sat on the edge of his bed, his hands shaking as he looked down at his phone. Where could she be? There were only a handful of places in Tokyo where she might be without phone signal, but he couldn't see her going there. She would want to be somewhere secluded until she was ready to talk to the other girls. And a sudden pang went through him. The other girls. It was only a matter of time before Serena told them what had happened, and then they would hate him to. If only he could explain to them what had happened. Of course, in order to explain, he would have to remember what had happened first. Why couldn't he remember? He remembered kissing Serena goodbye as she left, and wishing her luck on her exams, and he remembered closing the door behind Ami, Lita, and Mina as they left. They'd all planned on sharing a taxi home that night. But after that, everything was a blur. And why was he so shaky? His whole body felt off center, like his balance was off. This wasn't like him at all. Maybe it was just his nerves? He was so anxious to get a hold of Serena that it was getting to him physically.
Darien sighed, his phone slipping from his shaking hands. He bent to retrieve the phone when something beneath the bed, caught his eye. Kneeling down, Darien pulled out a grey metallic shopping bag. The label on the front of the bag wasn't one he was familiar with. Opening the bag, he peered inside and felt a wave of confusion wash over him. Inside lay a blonde colored wig. A woman's wig. Pulling the wig out of the bag, he could see that the hair had been styled exactly like Serena's, though it was now a mass of tangles having obviously been shoved into the bag in a hurry. He looked in the bag a second time and pulled out a half empty medicine bottle filled with strange little pills. He turned the bottle over in his hand and found that someone had torn the label off. There was nothing else in the bag. And for the life of him, he couldn't figure out where any of it had come from. And why was it under his bed? He thought again of his earlier conversation with Rei, and a strange sinking feeling began to build in the pit of his stomach. No. She wouldn't. She couldn't have. Could she?
Just then, Darien's cell phone went off, the shrill alert echoing in the empty room. For just a moment he dared to hope that it was Serena finally getting back to him, but Andrew's name flashed across the screen. Opening his messages, his eyes widened as he stared at the screen. The message read:
Saw Serena at the airport. She didn't look so good and was acting kind of strange.
-A
Forgetting about the wig and pill bottle for the moment, Darien bolted out of his apartment and raced downstairs to the garage where his motorcycle was parked. The airport. His beloved Serena, his princess, was at the airport. He had to stop her before it was too late. Things weren't as clear cut as they appeared. He just needed to explain it to her.
Lita was sitting on the floor of her apartment, tears slipping down her cheeks when Mina and Ami arrived. The mail had come a half an hour ago, and there'd been only one letter. She recognized Serena's handwriting immediately, and for a moment she had wondered why her friend hadn't bothered to just call her. But then she'd opened the letter. She'd had to read it twice just to be sure she wasn't hallucinating. Serena was gone. And there was nothing anyone could do about it.
"Lita? Are you in here?"
Ami's voice filtered in from the entryway. Lita almost always left the door unlocked when she was expecting company. That way the other girls could freely enter the apartment if she wasn't able to answer the door right then.
"I'm in here," Lita said, her voice sounding tight and strangled.
"There you are," Mina said walking in. "For a minute we thought you'd- hey, Lita, what's wrong? Is everything okay?"
Lita shook her head back and forth, trying to regain control of her emotions. She wasn't usually this emotional, but being friends with Serena for so long had opened up a side of her that she didn't normally show people.
"No," Lita said, wiping at her tears. "No, I am not okay."
"What happened?" Ami asked, sitting on the couch beside her.
"Serena's gone."
Ami and Mina exchanged careful glances, both of them confused.
"What are you talking about? What do you mean she's gone?"
"I mean, she's gone. She left Tokyo and she doesn't know if she's coming back."
Ami and Mina erupted into a loud series of questions. They both wanted to know what had happened, and why she was leaving.
"See for yourself," Lita said, handing Ami the letter.
Ami took the tear stained paper from her friend's shaking hand. Mina sat beside her, reading over her shoulder.
"I can't believe this...she's really gone," Ami said.
"How could Rei and Darien do something like this to her?"
And that was the million dollar question. Serena was loyal to a fault, and gave her all to the people she loved. How anyone could go out of their way to hurt her was beyond them.
"What are we going to do, now?" Lita said. "Without Serena the Sailor Scouts have no leader. Are we just supposed to give up? And what happens if there's an attack? Do we just act like we don't know what's going on?"
Mina looked Lita, the wheels in her head already turning. It was true that without Serena they lacked a leader. But that didn't mean it had to be the end of the Sailor Scouts. They would find a way to make it work, until Serena was ready to come back. They had to. The safety of the Earth was on their shoulders.
"The Sailor Scouts go on," Mina said. "It's what Serena would want us to do. She would want us to keep going, until she comes back."
"Mina, you read the letter. She doesn't even know if she's going to come back. For all we know she could be gone for good."
"No, she'll come back. She has to. She's our princess, and the future queen of Crystal Tokyo. She has to come back."
Ami and Lita nodded their agreement. Mina had a point. Serena was never one to give up. Not when it really counted. She would never put her own personal problems over the safety of others. But it also brought up the very real concern of whether or not Crystal Tokyo would even happen now. Could they still have the future that was promised them, if Darien and Serena were no longer a couple?
"What do we do about Rei?" Ami asked. "She's going to show up here and act like nothing happened."
"If she knew what was good for her, she'd stay away. As far as I'm concerned, Rei is no longer one of us."
"Lita..."
"What she did was wrong. And she needs to own up to what she did."
"Lita's right," Ami said. "Rei needs to face the consequences for what she's done. Serena's gone because of her actions, and Darien's. They both need to take responsibility. They don't get to be let off the hook that easily."
"So what are you suggesting?" Mina asked.
"I'm not sure. We can't just kick her out of the Sailor Scouts. Whether we like it or not, she's one of us. But for right now, maybe it's better that she take some time off. At least until we can find a better way of dealing with this."
"I think that would be best," Mina said. "Now we just need to figure out a way to tell her."
Darien raced through the air port, his eyes scanning the crowd for any sign of Serena. Was he too late? Had she already boarded a plane? Weaving his way through the crowd, he caught sight of her. Her blonde hair a glowing beacon in the sunlight that filtered in through the large windows.
"Serena! Serena, wait!"
But she didn't hear him. Darien forced his way through the crowd, dodging irritable travelers and slipping in and out of the way of luggage carts being pulled across the busy airport. He could see her better now, she was still dressed as she had been this morning, a pink jacket thrown over a pale green top and denim shorts. Only now there was a pink duffel bag hanging from her shoulder. And a panic so fierce it nearly undid him, raced through Darien's veins. He could not let her leave. Not without at least trying to explain what had happened last night. Especially after finding that bag. If he could just convince her to come back with him, to look at what was in that bag. Maybe she could help him piece together the missing parts of last night.
"Serena!"
He called her name again, and this time she heard him. Serena turned almost painfully slow and just stared at him, her face blank of all emotion. She'd never looked at him that way before. There had always been nothing but love and joy written across her face when she looked at him. Now there was nothing. It was like he was looking at a stranger.
"What are you doing here Darien?"
"Andrew texted me. He said he saw you here. I had to see you. We need to talk about this."
"There's nothing for us to talk about Darien. You slept with Rei, on my birthday of all days. And you destroyed our future."
"Serena, it's not that simple," Darien insisted, an almost desperate tone in his voice. "It isn't what you think."
"Then what is it Darien? Are you really going to stand here and try to justify sleeping with my friend?"
"I'm not justifying anything, but it's not as simple as you think. There's a lot that you don't know. If you'll just come with me-"
"Come with you? Are you serious right now? After what you two did, I can't even stand to look at you, let alone go anywhere with you. Just...just tell me why, Darien. Why Rei? Why last night? Why wasn't I good enough for you?"
"Serena, you are good enough. You are everything to me."
"I used to believe that once. But after this morning, I know it's not true."
"But it is true," Darien said, pulling Serena close to him. "I love you Serena."
"You have a funny way of showing it. How dare you try to tell me you love me after what you've done! How dare you destroy the life and love that I trusted and then try to tell me you love me! You and Rei have ruined everything! You've destroyed our future!"
"We can still have a future Serena."
"You're right, we can. But it won't be Crystal Tokyo, and it won't be the future that Rini deserved, that we were supposed to have."
Tears were now spilling down Serena's cheeks in rivers, and she could see the pain and guilt written across Darien's face. But it didn't matter. The damage was done.
"Serena, we can still have that. We can still have Rini. She can still exist."
"She already exists," Serena shot back. "She just won't have the life she should have had."
"Wait, what?"
Shock and confusion raced through Darien as he gazed down at Serena. Was she really saying what he thought she was saying?
"Just go home Darien. There's nothing you can say or do that will make me stay. Just go."
"No. Not until you tell me what you meant by that. What do you mean, Rini already exists?" Darien said, grabbing her by the arm. "Answer me Serena! Are you pregnant?"
"Yes," Serena replied, not meeting his eyes.
If the floor could have opened up and swallowed him, now would have been the perfect moment for it. Serena, his princess, was pregnant. And she was leaving him.
"Please don't go Serena. Stay in Tokyo, don't leave. Not now. Let me prove to you that this isn't as bad as it seems."
"I can't," Serena said.
"Why not?"
"Because no matter how hard I try, I just can't get the image out of my head. I can't stop picturing you with her. And if I stay, it'll only get worse. I have to do this. It's what's best for everyone. Goodbye Darien."
Darien could do nothing but stare after Serena as she walked toward the gate, and walked out of his life. Pain like he had never known raced through him, like a piece of himself had been severed away, and the wound would never heal.
He didn't stay to see which plane she got on, or to watch it take off. The pain of Serena leaving him was too much. Instead, Darien returned home to his apartment, the evidence of Serena's party still littering the tables and counter tops. The banner that read; Happy Birthday Serena, lay crumpled on the floor. And it was suddenly like he couldn't function. Without Serena, nothing seemed worth the effort. Just then, his cell phone went off. Pulling the phone from his pocket, Rei's name flashed across the screen, and a strange sort of anger crept through him. He ignored the call and waited for it to go to voice mail. And just like clockwork, Rei left him a message. Going to his voice mail, Darien put the phone to his ear. Rei's too cheerful voice flowed out of the speaker"
"Hey Darien, it's Rei. I was just wondering if you'd given any thought to what we talked about this morning? I thought maybe we could get together later tonight to talk. I'll be at Lita's this afternoon but give me a call when you get this okay? Bye."
Darien deleted the message as a rage he couldn't explain seeped into his veins, going soul deep. Rei was behind this. Somehow, he knew she was behind all of this mess. His gaze shifted to his bedroom, and an idea struck him. There was only one person that bag could belong to. Only one person who would have been in that kind of hurry to have forgotten it. She probably wanted to meet up at his place tonight so she could try and get the bag back before he found it. And one way or another, he was going to make her admit it.
Grabbing the shopping bag from where he'd left it, Darien headed out of the apartment, and made for the garage. Rei had said she would be at Lita's this afternoon. So that's where he would confront her. He wanted witnesses for this.
Lita, Mina, and Ami were still trying to figure out what to do about Rei when they heard the front door of the apartment open and close.
"Anyone here?"
All three girls exchanged glances filled with anger and sorrow. Rei had finally decided to show herself. Maybe she figured they didn't know yet. But she was about to learn otherwise.
"There you all are. No one answered when I came in. I was starting to wonder," Rei said.
Rei walked into the room, seeming far too pleased for someone who had just slept with her friend's boyfriend, and came face to face with three very angry sets of eyes.
"What's going on?" Rei said, looking at her friends.
"Why don't you tell us, Rei. Anything you want to share?" Lita said, unable to keep the anger out of her voice.
Rei looked at each of the other girls in turn and couldn't quite figure out what was going on. For a moment, she thought that maybe Serena had talked to them, but she knew for a fact that the last of their group was not here. Her shoes weren't sitting by the door as they usually would be if she were here. There was no way the others could know. So why did they seem so angry?
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"Don't you?" Mina said. Before Rei could speak there was a loud knock on the front door, and all eyes turned toward the entry way as the door opened and closed. A moment later Darien walked in, carrying something behind his back.
"You," Lita hissed.
"What do you want?" Mina asked, glaring up at the older man.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but this won't take long," Darien said. "Did any of you leave anything at my place last night?"
Mina, Lita, and Ami exchanged glances, confused by the sudden change of subject. After what Darien and Rei had done last night, it had seemed quite the odd question.
"None of us left anything," Ami said, motioning to Lita and Mina. "We made sure we had everything when we left."
Darien shifted his glance to Rei who was looking a little flustered. Did she know what it was he was getting at?
"What about you, Rei? Did you leave anything? Cellphone, a piece of jewelry, or maybe...a shopping bag?" Darien said, holding up the metallic bag he'd found under his bed this morning.
Rei's face paled as she looked at him, her eyes darting from the shopping bag he held in his hand to the front door. And he could practically see the wheels in her head turning. She was wondering just how quickly she could get to the door.
"Of course I didn't. Why would I have left anything?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe you forgot to get rid of the evidence," Darien said, as he looked at the other girls. "I know Serena must have told you what happened. But before you judge me, you should know that I found this under my bed this morning."
And with that, Darien emptied the contents of the shopping bag onto the floor. The blonde wig and pill bottle spilled onto the floor, and the room filled with shocked silence.
"Is that what I think it is?" Mina said, looking at the tangled wig that had been styled to look like Serena's hair.
"It's a woman's wig. And it looks just like Serena's hair," Darien said. "Though I'm more interested in what's in that bottle."
Ami had picked up the bottle in question, examining the little pills inside. She'd seen them once before, in a class she'd taken at the university. And the look on her face as she looked up at Rei told everyone what they needed to know.
"What did you do Rei?"
"I-I don't know what you mean. I've never seen that stuff -"
"What did you do Rei? How could you use something like this?"
Rei was looking like a deer in headlights as she looked back and forth between her friends and the man in front of her. She'd purposely left the bag under Darien's bed. He kept his place so clean that the chances of him actually looking under the bed and finding it had been slim to nothing. And it would still be in place for tonight. Then she could use it again. Or so that had been the plan.
"Okay, fine. I admit it. It was me. The bag is mine."
"But why did you have it?"
Rei shifted from one foot to the other. What she'd done was underhanded, but it had been the only way to get what she wanted, the only way to make Darien hers.
"Admit what you've done Rei. Now. Or I will never respect you again," Darien said, a dangerous growl in his voice. "You owe me that much."
Rei looked at him with defiance in her eyes, and a stubborn set to her jaw.
"Fine. When everyone left last night, I put the pills in your drink. You'd already been drinking and were tipsy enough that you didn't even notice the pills in your drink."
"And the wig?"
"I put it on and pretended to be Serena. You were already so drunk and with the pills in your system, you didn't know the difference. You didn't even notice when I took the wig off."
"You were never drunk were you?"
Rei smiled then, a self satisfied smile that made Lita want to reach out and wipe that smirk right off her face.
"No. I just pretended to be getting drunk so that when we woke up the next morning you would think we'd both been in a drunken stupor."
"You despicable, selfish bitch," Darien growled. "Do you even realize what you've done? You have ruined everything!"
"I didn't do anything you didn't want to do," Rei sniffed. "You were more than willing to be in bed with me."
"Because you drugged me! I never would have touched you, otherwise!"
"I think we both know that isn't entirely true. You have to have felt something for me to get into bed with me."
"The only thing I feel for you Rei, is disgust."
"That isn't true! You want me as much as I want you! You said as much last night!"
"Last night, when he thought you were Serena?" Mina said. "How could you do that to her? How could you betray her like that? She's your friend!"
"Serena's nothing but a simpering cry baby! What's so special about her? Why should she get someone like Darien? She doesn't deserve him! I've always loved him!"
"You are so selfish," Mina said.
"There's nothing selfish in taking what you want."
"Yes, there is," Darien said, looking at her. "Serena is gone because of you! She's gone because of your selfish actions!"
"Oh don't be ridiculous. She hasn't gone anywhere."
"I saw her get on the plane," Darien growled. "I went to the airport to stop her from leaving, but she didn't listen. Serena is gone, and it's your fault. Now she's out there somewhere, pregnant and alone. And I can't even tell her the truth because I don't know where she is!"
Rei was shaking her head back and forth. It couldn't be true. They were just making things up to make her feel guilty for taking what she wanted.
"You're lying."
"It's true, Rei. Serena sent Lita a letter. She's gone. And she may not be coming back."
"Well if she isn't mature enough to-"
"Enough! Get out Rei. Get out of here now. You aren't welcome in my home."
"Oh come on Lita-"
"No. I don't want to hear anymore. You have jeopardized all of our futures out of your own selfish needs. Just go."
Rei didn't say another word as she turned and walked out the door, leaving her former friends behind her. If that was going to be their attitude, then she didn't need them. She would be fine on her own, and she would find a way to make Darien hers. She had all the time in the world, now that Serena was gone.
So what did you guys think? Good? Bad? Please review, and remember to be kind! See you all in the next chapter!