Darien silently regarded the short-petite blonde standing before him. He studied her features and thought her quite attractive, especially her eyes. "I see you know who I am," he said wryly.
"Yes, my father has often spoken of you," Serena said flatly, meeting his gaze unflinchingly.
"What exactly did he say about me?"
"Just to stay away from you, I'm afraid that's all," Serena sneered. With that, she picked up her drink and turned on her heel, about to make her way through the crowd back to her table. But she turned to face him once more. "Oh, and if you and your little friend don't stop following me around, I'll file a report on you two. You know it's against the law to stalk people,"
"Well that will be a problem, Meatball Head, as I'm getting paid to do so," he said smiling, knowing this would get her flustered.
"Excuse me…what did you just call me?"
"Meatball Head, it was your childhood nickname, given you because of your unusual hairstyle," Darien replied as he watched her sweet face go beet red. She pouted and the way her tiny hands clenched into fists as she growled like a tigress made him chuckle to himself with delight.
"Why you conceited jerk! At least I had friends when I was a child. I bet you were the loner of your school. It would explain why you have to follow someone like me around," Serena's voice increased in both fury and volume as she reached the apex of her tempestuous retort. She stamped her foot, spun around, returned to her table without another word, and gulped down her drink feeling both angry and upset. Serena had no idea about what his childhood was like, and only resorted to the childish insults, as she couldn't think straight with him so close.
~*~
Unhappy about their first meeting, Darien returned to his table only to find his partner in a conversation on his cell phone. He knew Serena was attempting to get him riled up, but the feisty blonde had not a clue she unwittingly spoke the truth concerning his sad and lonely childhood, but quickly pushed the feelings aside. Darien set down the two drinks he'd ordered at the bar and waited for Melvin to end his conversation on the little black box. After waiting five minutes, Darien grabbed the phone from Melvin's hand and placed it on the table after turning it off.
"What on earth did you do that for? And do you know who that was you just hung up on?" he asked with a look of disgust and surprise on his face.
"I don't really care. I needed to speak with you and you were taking too long," he explained impatiently.
"I was talking to Mr. Crown …you know, our boss," he snapped sarcastically.
"Relax…Andrew will call back if it's important," Darien said unashamedly, dismissing his friends concerns with the wave of his hand.
"But it was import-- Melvin never finished the sentence, for the cell phone started beeping accompanied by it’s resonate buzzing on the table. But before Melvin had the chance, Darien scooped it up first.
"Hello?" Darien said with a grin. "Yes, this is Darien. Yes Andrew, I'm the one who hung up on you," Darien said unapologetically, then gave a lengthy description of his encounter with Serena Silver. He told Andrew they were currently keeping an eye on her. He then told Andrew that Serena was now aware she was under surveillance.
The tension between the two men wasn’t lost on Darien as Andrew abruptly ended the conversation.
Darien, feeling frustrated through the phone back to Melvin as if contaminated with a deadly virus and took a long sip from his glass. He looked towards the table where Serena sat. Once again, he found her talking with the young redheaded waitress.
"What was all that about?" Melvin enquired.
"Andrew wants us to move to the next phase of the plan," Darien said shaking his head.
"Already…? Isn't that a tad early?" Melvin asked, also unsure of the wisdom of this move.
"You know, that's exactly what I thought, too. But then again, he's the one signing the checks. So if he wants to move things forward as ill-conceived as either you or I might think…its fine by me…it's his call," huffed Darien, unhappy his carefully thought out plan was being changed. Melvin was adjusting his files on the laptop while his partner continued to stare at the ‘mark' while nursing his drink.
~*~
"You've gotta be kidding. You really want that in a man?" she laughed.
"Yes, it would be so romantic if the one I loved turned up on my doorstep dressed in a tux with a dozen roses in hand," Serena said as a far-away look moved across her sweet face.
"Ah, and I bet you'd like ‘him to ware a mask, top hat, cape and fly you to the moon, eh?" Molly continued as she laughed until her stomach hurt.
"Not bad, Moll …a little dramatic, but I bet the moon would be nice," Replied Serena as she smiled at the thought.
"Damn, I've got to go, Ser, Miss Lita's signaling the break's over." Molly sighed.
Once again, Serena found herself watching Molly as she dissolved into the crowd and remembered she had work to complete also. She finished her drink, and put on her winter coat she'd found in her closet that morning due to the freak storm. She took one last look at the table from where Darien sat watching her every move. But Melvin was typing away on his laptop. She hoped they'd leave both herself and her family alone.
~*~
The next morning, well after other people had started their day, the sound of a high-pitched alarm woke Serena from her wonderful dreams. She tried to go back to sleep. But after a few unsuccessful attempts to shut up the annoying noisemaker, she rolled on her back and groaned resignedly. It was at that moment she felt something thump against her side. She rolled over to find her black, shorthaired cat staring at her with bright emerald-green eyes. Serena intuitively knew Luna, her cat, was waiting for her breakfast, which was late as with most mornings.
Climbing out of bed, Serena moved from her bedroom towards the kitchen with Luna hot on her trail. After placing the cat's food dish on the floor, she rummaged about in the fridge for something to eat, and finding only left over pizza and half a case of beer from a few nights back. Serena, Never one for cooking, did what she did most days, and went to her neighbor's across the hall for breakfast.
Serena's two-bedroom apartment -- and the entire block for that matter -- belonged to her father. And most of the people living there worked for him. It was only six stories with 10 apartments on the first five levels. The sixth floor boasted a series of larger luxury apartments including an art studio Serena's father had especially designed for her mother.
When Ilene was still alive, she was an exceptionally skilled sculptor. The studio was a wedding gift for her. Serena often visited the solitary studio where her mother's art was on display. Serena's father gave her the studio after Ilene's death. She had never felt comfortable with the idea of changing a single thing from how her mother had left it. She somehow felt this studio was the only real thing she had that connected her with her mother, for she loved coming here. Most of the occupants were aware of its existence, but Serena allowed not a soul inside.
While Luna was busy munching her food, Serena left the apartment to hunt down her own breakfast.
After many years living in the familiar apartment block, Rei Hino had learned to unlock her door in the morning knowing the apartment had a high security system and only people with passes were allowed in. It was either that, or otherwise it meant confronting a starving blonde banging on her door at dawn. Rei had prepared a range of foods both Serena and she enjoyed, for Serena's tastes were quite predictable and Rei had it down to a fine art. With the electronic tone and creak of her front door, Rei knew Serena had arrived. She had two plates for their scrambled eggs at the ready.
"Wow, you look like hell," commented Rei as Serena entered the entrance hall. "What did you do to yourself? Let me guess…you painted the town red and got yourself smashed last night, right?" Rei joked raising her eyebrows as if they would spring at the blonde girl at any second.
"Well actually Rei, yes that's exactly what I did. I was at Lita's club last night," she said by way of explanation for her disheveled state.
"But you don't drink," Rei said looking at the bloodshot eyes, tangled hair and Serena's pale complexion.
"I met him last night, and even talked to him," she said simply. Rei found this news Intriguing and asked who she was talking about. "You know my stalker, mister tall dark and hansom."
"He's still following you."
"Worse, my father informed me yesterday this guy has a partner now. I saw him, too," Rei exhaled and looked at her friend, handing her a plate of delicious scrambled eggs on thick buttered toast. Just the way they both liked them-- sprigged with a little black pepper and sweet basil.
"Yeah, they're getting more arrogant by the day. So close I bumped into the one named Darien," she said, noticing the plate of food before her for the first time and started to eat.
"Then what happened?" Rei asked as Serena washed down a mouthful of food, taking a sip from her hot cup of coffee.
"Nothing much, we exchanged a few choice words…quite vocally I might add, and I left soon after. I arrived home late last night almost tripping over Luna again. I swear that cat waits up for me. It's as if she's my guardian, or something," Serena said with a chuckle as she thought about the faithful black cat she loved.
"Ah well, hurry up and eat the rest of your food. I have to get to work soon. You know what your father's like, he doesn't like anyone to be late," Rei said as the two women made light work of their remaining breakfasts and washed it all down with delicious freshly brewed coffee and made ready for another day.
"Right…and what is it you do again. Sorry, I keep forgetting," Serena said apologetically while giggling at Rei's arching eyebrows as she rolled her eyes shrugging in resignation.
"Aah…for the hundredth time, Meatball Head, I'm his physiotherapist," she sighed shaking her head with a smile forming on her ruby lips.
"Physio -what...?"
"Physiotherapist, it means I treat injuries and other physical conditions he has due to the fact he's getting on in years and requires a lot of body work to keep him in good health and active. I also treat his clients whenever he asks me too, part of his ‘Give me your business, and I'll take care of you' plan,"
"Oh, so you basically give massages." Serena asked, like a young child.
"No, that would be a massage therapist," Rei could see Serena was about to ask a thousand more questions and smiled as she stuck the last piece of toast in her mouth and laughed before returning to her room to finish dressing, put on her make-up and grab her things. Serena ended up sitting there eating the last of her cold breakfast that was barely edible. She asked herself why she bothered coming here to eat this morning when a high-pitched bell rang.
"What the hell is that?" Serena cried, almost jumping out of her skin after putting their plates in the sink to be washed.
"It's the front door, Meatball Head, would you go answer it for me?" yelled Rei from her bedroom.
Grumbling, Serena approached the door wanting to knock out whomever it was continually ringing the goddamn annoying doorbell. When she flung the door open to give them an ear-full, she stopped dead in her tracks. She recognized whom it was standing there. Instantly, Serena's mind went into matchmaker's mode, for she knew her female friend liked the man standing before her on the threshold.
"Hello Chad, nice to see you this morning," Serena said all bright eyed and cheerful.
