PG To Be In The Spotlight Part Three Recovery by: Shell Presto Another alternate reality fanfiction, proving that one instant in time, one little, insignificant change, can alter the course of history, or at least a relationship. Disclaimer: I wish I owned Sailor Moon, but that honor goes to Takeuchi Naoko and a whole slew of companies. On the other hand, I worked hard to write this story, and it is mine, so don't take it. Thank you. Note: You won't recognize the song because I was working with the translation of it. Go to my web page ( http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Bridge/3542/index.htm ) for the original lyrics, my translations, and a link to get an mp3. Serena woke up the next morning depressed. All she could think about was Darien. He was in the hospital because he protected her. She looked at the clock, it was a good hour until she had to be at school. she realized. It wasn't as surprising as it should have been; she couldn't sleep right. Guilt kept her up. Serena's mother was shocked to see her come downstairs so early. Ilene hadn't even had a chance to finish making breakfast. "That's alright, Mom," Serena insisted. "I'll pick something up on the way to school." Then she grabbed her lunch and headed out the door. She lied, of course. Her feelings played on her stomach, removing her appetite, even for lunch. She dragged herself slowly in the direction of home that day after detention (she hadn't been paying attention in class). The answer still wasn't clear to her. All she could think about all day was Darien on that strecher, trying to smile despite his pain. The young girl didn't even have the heart to tell Luna what happened, knowing that the cat would rub it in her face. Indeed, what had happened was the perfect example of why drawing attention to herself would interfere with Sailor business. Just then she passed in front of a flower shop. It was a bright, sunny day, warm. The door to the shop was open for fresh air, letting the delightful fragrance of late spring flowers waft into the streets. How could Serena pass up entering? She loved flowers. They always made her feel special, even wonderful on holidays or when she was feeling down. Serena noted. The thought sombered her. After a few minutes of arguing with herself, she bought a small bouquet of yellow and white flowers, then headed to the hospital. Distraction seemed to guide Serena that day, as she stopped once again, this time to watch a piece of the news. ".......will be holding a new, official talent contest throughout the Tokyo Prefecture. Sign ups will be held from 9am to 4pm at participating malls. A fee of $2.00 will be required......" Serena's blue eyes lit up like wildfire. "ALRIGHT!!!" she cheered, punching her free fist into the sky. Everyone stared as a blonde pigtailed girl ran through Tokyo and into the local hospital. Finding his room wasn't the hard part for Serena, the true difficulty lied in figuring out how to approach Darien with all of her mixed emotions so close to the surface. Nervously, quietly, she rapped on the door before opening it a crack. Peering in, she found no movement in the room, and entered slowly, shutting the door behind her. Darien was asleep on the bed, his forehead and shoulders were covered in bandages, with only the sheets over his bare chest. His clothes, torn and rather bloody, sat in a heap on the chair at his bedside. Serena frowned. "Darien?" she called softly, wanting to wake him but still fretting to. When he didn't wake for her, she hung his clothes over the back of the chair and sat down. There wasn't much to do, no magazines could be found, so she ended up studying his form and features. She couldn't believe just how gorgeous Darien was when he was quiet. He really was a sight for sore eyes when he wasn't insulting her. A blush lingered on her placid face until, a half an hour later, Darien's eyes fluttered open. He stared at the white ceiling, unaware of his visitor. Then he heard her soft voice, "Oh, you're finally awake." His eyes widened dramatically then darted to see the source of the words. Utter confusion plastered itself on his face as he stared at the girl in disbelief. "M... Meatball Head? What are you doing here??" A fistful of flowers suddenly flew at him, stopping mere inches from his face. "I bought you some flowers!" Serena blurted out. She then thought to add, "... to make you feel better, 'cause you're in the hospital." Not moving his torso at all, he took them from her with a stiff arm. "Thanks, Meatball Head." He was still shocked to have a visitor, the whole experience seemed surreal. Darien had an irrelevant fear of hospitals, not so strong as to make him freak out when in one, but definitely strong enough to make him uncomfortable. He always recalled his childhood, or lack of one, in the dead, white hospital rooms. With Serena there next to him, the fear calmed down, and he didn't feel lonely at all. A smile spread over his lips as he looked at her. "Thank you, Serena." "I'm sorry you got hurt because of me," she apologized for the second time. He grinned. "It's okay, really. No hard feelings." He was too thrilled to be mad at her. Serena took his smile as an invitation to bring up a more desirable subject. "So.. they're now holding an official talent search. Big companies are sponsering it and everything; the sign ups are this weekend..." "Good luck." She looked at him in confusion, "What do you mean? Aren't you going to enter it with me?" "You didn't say a partner was required...." She stood up, and, with enthusiasm, stated, "But I NEED you! I don't sound as good without you, and you really add to the song." Darien's cheeks turned a rosey hugh at the compliments. He sighed, "I doubt that's true, but if you want my help you have it." "REALLY!?!" He nodded as best he could with his sore neck, and Serena jumped up cheering with an enthusiasm on her face that made her look like she'd explode with joy. "YAHOO!!" she shouted. "We're gonna be stars!!" She skipped to the door, turned and said, "Make sure you get better fast, and call me when you get home. My number's listed." Then she bounded out the door, which closed with a dull thud. Disappointment washed over Darien's face as he stared at the closed door. "She left...." he mumbled to himself. "She just wants my help with the contest, not to visit..." He was still holding the flowers in one hand, a sight now sickening to him. He tossed them to the ground in defeat; he really thought she'd come to check up on him, to talk to him. His eyes turned to his bloody clothes, and he realized he was only in his underwear. Disappointment turned to bitterness as Darien cursed his horrid misfortune. He was lonely. If only he knew why Serena had originally visited, his spirits would have lifted, but they did not. Darien hated hospitals. He got to go home the next morning with instructions to take it easy. Unfortunately, the depression followed him home. The only sign of life in his apartment was the blinking light on his answering machine; Andrew wanted to know where he was. Still, Darien was too exhausted to reply to the call, instead he turned in until the afternoon. He had to leave to get some over-the-counter pain killers, as his head was killing him. It was hard to focus his eyes as he walked out into the midday sun. He realized, with regret, that he should have asked Andrew to go out for him, but, although they were friends, Darien hated to rely on him, or anyone for that matter. He didn't have any close friends, no one he was willing to tell when he was hurting, so he staggered along to reach the store. Serena's eyes lit up upon seeing him up and about. "DARIEN!" she called, running up behind him. She came to a screeching halt just as he turned towards her. "You're already out! That's great! When can we practice for the contest?" He couldn't understand why it irked him so. Serena was just a girl looking to live out her dreams, he acknowledged that fact; he knew it was like that when he consented to help. Why did it suddenly matter to him so much that she should be outwardly concerned for his well being all of a sudden? He scowled at the teenaged girl, forcing himself to believe that she was the most horrid sight on the face of the planet. "Ya know, Meatball Head, you shouldn't even waste your time. There's no way in heck you could win that contest, and I don't care who you're paired with. I don't see the point in helping you embarass yourself, and since you don't need a partner to make a fool of yourself, you can just count me out." Serena's happy smile cracked under his words. Her eyes glossed over and her lower lip quivered. As much as she wanted to say something, she could only get a few low whimpers and tense breaths to pass her trembling lips. Instead, she fled, running as far and as fast as her legs could carry her. Her heart beat quickly as she sobbed. Darien grinned fiendishly as he watched the girl run. he reasoned. As he turned to walk away, he noticed something on the ground, one of Andrew's shirts. While pondering on the newly picked up item, he got his medicine and headed home. This time it was his sadistic mood that followed him home, and once again a new message flashed on his machine. He grinned as he hit the button. Then he heard the message from Andrew: "Hey, Darien, Serena came to arcade and told me you were in the hospital. I have to work all day, but I'll come by the hospital if you don't call by tonight. Anyway, Serena seemed really worried about you, and she mentioned your clothes were all messed up. She asked if I had access to any of your clothes-- you know, you should give me a key to your apartment for emergencies like these-- and was upset when I said I didn't, so I gave her my extra one fromt he back room to take to you. Why am I saying this? You'll know this by now.... Anyway, I just wanted to say you can keep the shirt if there's blood on it, don't worry about it then. If not, just give it back when you stop by the arcade. I hope you're feeling better." Darien was incredulous. "Oh, why the heck did I act like that?!" He immediately began flipping through the phonebook until he found her number, then quickly dialed. Every ring seemed like torture. "Hello," the slightly high pitched, young voice rang in his ear. "Hello?" It snapped him out of his slight panic. "Uhm, is Meatba... Serena there?" Sammy replied, "She's home, but she's bawling her eyes out over some contest or something. She said she doesn't want to be..." "SAMMY!! YOU SPORE!!! DON'T TELL PEOPLE THAT!" Her voice was audible, albeit distant. The voice continued, somewhat giggling, "Anywho, as you can tell, she doesn't want to come to the phone." Darien felt horrible. "It's really important. Get her to come on. Tell her it's Da...." "Tell her it's Andrew." He heard Serena's little brother yell up to her, "Serena, Andrew really wants to talk to you!" Even in her sorrows, Serena flew down the steps and snatched the phone off her brother. "Andrew, I.." "I'm sorry." It was all he could think of to say, and as soon as she recognized his voice, a dead silence filled the line. It took him a long time to figure out what to say next. He knew he had to apologize more thoroughly, but it was so hard, and he rarely ever sincerely apologized to anyone. It had been forever since he had done so. He let the words come slowly, carefully, "I'm really sorry for what I said, Serena. I can't explain why I said those things, I didn't mean them. I can't give any excuses for what I've done; I was wrong and I'm sorry." Serena remained silent, considering his words and the honesty in his voice. "It's okay, Darien." He added, "I'd like to be in that contest with you, if you're still interested, if you still think you want my help." "That'd be great, Darien," she said with tempered enthusiasm. "The sign ups are tomorrow morning, at the mall." "I'll be there." He paused a moment, then remembered. "Oh, and thanks for the shirt, Meatball Head. Even if it was a little late." To be continued... Took me long enough, huh? Sorry about the wait, folks, but I've kinda got two very hard lit classes that have waited til the end of the year to cram in a couple extra assignments. (Warning: if you have read both the Iliad and the Odyssey, the Aenead can be a very boring book to read completely through. (Not to say it doesn't have it's high points...)) Anyway, all questions, comments, and overall criticism (or praise) will be highly appreciated when received (if received, you have to write, ya know?) at mangetsu@email.com ^_^. The summer is coming up, so you'll be seeing a lot more of my stories in larger quantities. I hope you all check them out. Thanks for reading and hope you stick around for the next part! Ysbeidiau Huelog (fits this story well, considering my writing) -Shell Presto ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com