A LOVE REKINDLED? (Part 2 of 4)
By Bunny
bunny_154@yahoo.com
Standard Disclaimers apply.

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Meanwhile, Mina was having dinner with Serena at the local college 
café, but her mind was elsewhere.

Serena asked, "V-Babe, what's wrong with you? You've barely touched 
your milkshake and triple-cheeseburger with a large side order of cheesy 
fries. What's on you mind?" Mina, however, kept quiet.

Serena gave her friend a sympathetic look, then gave her a mischievous
grin, "is it a guy?" Serena poked her friend in the side jokingly.

"Huh?" Mina looked up from her plate, "I'm sorry I'm not much fun 
tonight. I've just got a lot on my mind." Mina paused for a second before 
continuing, "What would make you think it is a guy that's on my mind?"

"Because I KNOW you. Stuff hardly ever gets to you unless it's in the 
field of men. So tell me, who is it?" Serena leaned closer to her friend.

Mina knew she was going to have to reveal the details sooner or later, so 
it might as well be now. *Besides,* she thought, *it might make me feel
better talking about it.*

She continued, "Well, his name is Malachite, but everyone calls him Mal 
for short. For some reason, I feel that I've met him before, but I don't 
remember meeting anyone that good-looking before. He is really sweet...
I couldn't like a guy any more...but...he's also my first hour English 
teacher." Mina looked down at her plate again.

"V-Babe!! Your teacher!?! Wow, and I thought I was the one who liked 
them old." Serena snickered.

Mina flushed, "No! it's not like that. I met him before class. I accidentally 
ran into him, and he dropped all his papers. I helped him pick them up. I 
didn't realize he was my teacher till I walked into class late." Mina started 
poking her fries with a fork. "I tried to forget about him, knowing it would
never work since he is my teacher, but then I ran into him again later this 
afternoon while on my jog. He was sitting on a bench reading, so I went 
over to go say hi. We started talking for a little bit, and that is when I found 
out that his favorite planet is Venus. I got the feeling that he knew or 
suspected that I was Sailor Venus, so I freaked out and ran away. Now, he'll 
probably never want to talk to me again..." Mina looked at her friend as her 
eyes started to water up.

"Oh, Mina, I'm sure it's not like that. And boy, do I have news for you!" 
Serena's eyes sparkled.

"What?!" she asked, leaning in closer to her friend, eager to hear what 
she had to say.

"Well, I just happen to know where Mal lives." Serena looked proud 
reporting her little tidbit of information.

Mina was shocked. "How!?" she gasped, as she started to get excited.

"He lives next door to Darien in his apartment. We see him once in a 
while when we're leaving or coming back to Darien's place. And you're 
right...he IS good looking!" Serena started laughing as Mina got a big 
sweatdrop on the side of her face.

Mina looked at Serena with hope in her eyes, "You mean he's Darien's 
neighbor?" Mina perked right up. "I've got it!! You can talk to Darien for 
me and have him talk to Mal! It's perfect!" Mina was beaming, as if she 
had a 10,000-watt smile, "Serena, you don't know what a saint you are!!" 
Mina leaned over the table and hugged her friend.

"No prob, V-Babe!! Anytime! In fact, I'll call Darien tonight after dinner 
and tell him your story. That way we can get Operation: V-Babe's Love 
Life into full swing!"

"Operation: V-Babe's Love Life? Geez, Serena! This isn't the army!" Mina 
teased her friend, but laughed at the name, thinking it was cute. *This is 
perfect,* Mina thought to herself, *with Serena's help, maybe he can be 
mine, after all...even if he is a few years older.

** * * * * * 

That night, when Serena and Mina went back to their dormroom, Serena 
called Darien. When he answered the phone, he was glad it was her (besides 
the usual reasons). She told him what was going on with Mina, and before she 
could tell him her plan, Darien freaked out. 

"Buns! Wait, before you go any farther, you'll never believe who came by this
evening and had dinner with me!" Darien said energetically.

"Darien!" Serena whined, "Can't this wait? Mina's love life is WAY more 
important that you having dinner with someone, unless it was Mal..." Serena 
said that last part half-jokingly, having no clue who had dinner with Darien.
 
"Honey, it WAS Mal!!" Darien cried.

"No way!!" Serena freaked. She cupped the phone and told Mina the news,
leaving Darien shouting 'hello?' into the phone while the girls talked energetically.

"Um...Serena?" Mina asked pointing to the phone.

"Oops!" Serena giggled and returned to a confused Darien. "Uh, muffin?" 
Serena asked in her sweetest most innocent voice. 

"Ok, buns, what do you want?" Darien asked sarcastically before she could 
make the request.

"Can Mina and I come over to your place tonight so we can talk about this 
in person?" Serena asked with puppy-dog eyes, even though Darien couldn't 
see them. "Actually, that is a good idea, because I have some important news
 that can't wait." Darien said remembering the 'Venus' crisis.

"Alright. We're out the door now! Love you! Miss you!" said Serena, making 
kissing sounds into the phone, but stopped when Mina grabbed her arm and 
forced her to drop the phone from tugging her to the door. 

"Let's go!!" Mina shouted halfway down the hall, headed for the stairs. Serena 
had to hang up the phone, so she was slightly behind Mina. 

At the speeds those two were running to Darien's apartment, witnesses might 
have thought they were Olympic runners trying to break a record. Darien's 
apartment wasn't far, so they got there in about ten minutes. 

They both ran up the staircase, even though there was an elevator. The 
commotion was so loud going up the stairs, residents of the complex 
opened their doors to see what was going on. Darien heard them coming 
too, so he had the door open when they arrived at his door. *At record
speeds might I add...hehe,* He thought.

Serena ran to Darien's arms at full force, knocking the man over. 
"Good to see you too, buns!" Darien said jokingly. Mina was standing in 
the hall waiting for the couple to get up because they were blocking the 
door way, when all of a sudden, the door next to Darien's opened.

"What's going on out...Mina?" Mal gasped, standing halfway in the hall 
with his eyes fixated on Mina.

Mina turned to see who spoke, and her breath caught for a moment, until 
she said, "Um...hi, Mal." Mina turned beet-red. She didn't know what to 
say or do. 

"What are you doing over here at Darien's tonight? Don't you have school 
tomorrow?" Mal joked, but he too was also red. *How can she be here now?*
he thought to himself.

"Uh..." Mina struggled for something to say. "Well, Serena couldn't wait to 
see Darien. You know how those young lovebirds are." Mina lied. She rubbed 
the back of her head nervously. *Gee! How could I say that! I'm sure he saw 
right through that.* Mina thought. Her face softened and returned to it's normal 
color. *mmm...* she thought dreamily. *His eyes are sooo beautiful. I could 
stare into them forever...*

Realizing the tight situation for Mal and Mina, Darien spoke up. "So, I see you 
two have met," already knowing that they had. It sounded ridiculous to say, but 
it was better then the silence that had fallen over all of them. Mal and Mina just 
stood there staring at each other.

Serena had gotten up by now and was eager to get inside Darien's. "Why don't 
we go inside now, Mina. That way Mal can return home and we can stop 
bothering him for one night. We'll be quieter. Sorry about the hassle!" she 
said.

"No! No hassle! Really!" Mal suddenly spoke to Serena, but he couldn't take 
his eyes off Mina. "In fact, I was just making a pot of hot water for some
cocoa. Any of you care to join me?" Mal hopefully asked, while praying 
internally, *I hope she says yes! I hope she says yes!* 

Serena took that opportunity to get Mal and Mina together. "No, But I'm sure 
Mina would love some! Come on, muffin!" She grabbed Darien's arm, pulled 
him inside, and shut the door behind them leaving Mal and Mina alone in the 
hall before Mina or Darien could protest. 

Darien was shocked of what just happened. "Serena! No! You don't understand! 
Mal knows Mina is Sailor Venus!! That is what I had to tell you that was so 
important!!" Darien yelled.

"What?" Serena's eyes got big, "but, how?" Serena suddenly began to realize 
that leaving Mina with Mal might not have been such a good idea. *Well, at 
least that would explain the Venus thing in that park,* she thought to herself.

"It was a couple of small things actually, and Mal was just smart enough to put 
it all together," Darien said. He was trying to tell Serena calmly so she wouldn't 
freak out and overreact, so he explained, "first he noticed the appearance 
similarities through the disguise, then he noticed her reaction to his question 
about the planets. And finally, she dropped her transformation pen. That's 
when he put it all together." Darien put his hand on his chin, now thoughtful. 
"But what I don't understand is, why does Mina still have the Venus pen 
when you guys don't need them anymore. You all have your crystals, right?" 

"Yes, we don't need them anymore, but they make great pens, and the Scouts 
feel close to them because the pens represent their own planet, and a part of 
themselves. Do you know what I mean?" Serena asked.

"Yes, but I think we should go over to Mal's and check up on Mina, give her 
an excuse that you have to leave or something. I just hope she's ok." Darien 
said as he walked to the door and opened it. 

Meanwhile, Mal and Mina were alone in the hall. They were both speechless, 
and staring at the door that had just slammed shut in front of them. Neither one 
of them really knows what to do next.

Mina was the first one to break the silence. "Hm...looks like we've been set 
up." Mina said as she turned to look at Mal, who was red in the face.

"Yeah, remind me to thank Serena later." Mal joked. The two chuckled at the 
joke. "Well, would you at least want to join me for some hot cocoa? It should 
be about ready now," Mal said motioning to his apartment. 

Mina wasn't really in the mood for cocoa since it was so late (10:30 pm), and 
she had school the next day. "I don't know, I'd like to, but it's late, and I should 
be getting home. I hope you don't mind."

"No! Not at all," said Mal. "Would you like me to give you a ride back to the 
dorms? It's pretty late and I don't want you to get hurt or anything." Mal offered.

"No thanks," Mina blushed. "It's so beautiful out tonight, I think I'll walk. 
Besides, I love to look at the stars."

"Then I'll walk you home. I insist." Mal said as he stepped out all the way 
into the hall.

"Well," Mina paused, then said, "Okay."

Mal shut the door to his apartment and started off down the hall with Mina 
next to him. Soon, they were outside, walking together. *I can't believe I'm 
with her here and now! This is great!* Mal thought to himself. *What will 
I say? I hope she doesn't mind I'm coming along.* He glanced over to Mina, 
who was looking at the stars.

*Wow! I'm really glad he's walking me home. I like the company. I just 
hope he doesn't bring up my running off earlier...* Mina thought. 

"Thanks for coming along, Mal. It's nice to have the company. Isn't the night 
sky beautiful tonight? You can see the moon really great from here." Mina 
said looking at him as they walked. 

At one point, there were no streetlamps to light the way, and street was dark, 
with only the light of the moon to guide them. The air became cooler, and 
Mina put her arms around herself, hugging herself trying to keep off the 
chill. Mal noticed this and, hesitantly, put his arm around her waist. Mina 
moved closer to him as they walked down the street slowly together. 

"Yes, it is beautiful" he replied, looking at Mina instead of the sky. Mina 
noticed this and blushed a bit.

"I'm really sorry I ran off on you earlier. I totally lost track of time and
 forgot about my dinner with Serena," Mina lied, hoping he would buy 
the story.

He didn't. "Really? I wondered if it was something else. My mentioning 
Venus, perhaps?" he asked, shooting her a sly look her way. He continued. 
"I'm not sure why that would frighten someone so much though." He noticed 
Mina looking down at the ground. He then said, "Well, at any point, I'm just 
glad I'm here with you now. I don't know why, but I'm completely drawn to 
you. I know you're my student, but I can't help it. I'm completely under your 
spell."

She looked up at him in the eyes. Mal was entranced, *God, she has the
 most beautiful ocean blue eyes* he thought to himself.

"Um..." Mina stuttered. "Gee! You left me totally speechless!" she laughed. 
"Not even Serena can do that!"

Mal grinned, and said, "Well, I can fix that problem." He boldly took her 
chin and bent down and kissed her.

She was shocked at first, but closed her eyes and melted into his arms. 
*Oh my god!!! He's kissing me!! I can't believe this is happening to me! 
This is great!!* Mina's thoughts were racing through her head as they kissed. 
Finally she came up for air and opened her eyes. She looked at him wide-
eyed. She didn't know what to say except, "Wow!" and turned a deeper shade 
of red.

"I hope you didn't mind I kissed you," said Mal as he looked up at the sky, 
avoiding her eyes.

"No! Not at all!" Mina exclaimed. "I was just surprised, that's all." 
She pulled his face to look at her in the eyes, and said, "It's just 
that I couldn't get you out of my mind all day."

"Me too," said Mal. Mina blushed even further, but Mal said, "No, you 
don't understand. It's like everywhere I looked, I saw you. I was even 
looking at a picture of the Sailor Scouts in the newspaper, and I began 
to think you looked like Sailor Venus!!" Mal began to reach in his pocket.

"Ha ha...funny that." Mina chuckled nervously. "Imagine. Me being Sailor 
Venus. He he. Silly," She chuckled some more, trying to hide her shock. *I 
can't believe it! I think he knows! What will I do?* Mina thought frantically.

*Now I've got her. Her reaction gave it away. She *is* Sailor Venus!* Mal 
thought. He pulled out her pen she dropped earlier. "Well, remember earlier 
when I asked you what your favorite planet was and you freaked out when I 
told you mine? Well, I think I know why. Here." He handed her the pen. 
"You *are* Sailor Venus, aren't you?"

Mina was shocked. She didn't know what to do, except grab the pen and run 
away as fast as she could, but Mal grabbed her arm before she could get 
anywhere. "You're not going anywhere till you answer me." Mal said 
gently, though still holding on to her wrist firmly. Mina struggled trying 
to get away, but she gave up, she swooned, and went limp in Mal's arms. 

"Mina!?!" Mal said, tapping her face lightly with his hand. "Mina wake 
up!! Are you okay?!? Answer me, please!!" Mal's voice was frantic. He 
tried to wake her up, but couldn't. He picked her up into his arms and ran 
back to the apartment. 

Serena opened the door to the apartment and looked into the hall. When 
she saw Mal and Mina weren't there, she went across the hall to Mal's 
apartment and started banging on the door.

"Mal!! Mina!! Are you there?" she cried. "Open up!! It's Darien and Serena!"

"Serena, you're making a scene" Darien said calming down his frantic 
girlfriend. "It's ok, Mal is a good person and would never do anything 
to harm her. I'm sure she's all right. In fact, Mal is just as head over heels 
about Mina as she is about him." He put his arm around Serena pulling 
her away. "They're not here, buns. I'm sure they just went for a walk or 
something. They'll be back soon." Darien smiled warmly at Serena.

Serena calmed down. "I hope you're right. Well, do you want to go for a 
walk to till they come back? The moon is almost full tonight!" Serena said 
with a big smile. She tugged Darien toward the stairs, forcing him to grab 
onto his door and slam it shut.

As the couple walked out into the cool night air, Darien put his arm around 
Serena. "Isn't it beautiful tonight? I'm so glad I'm here with you. I love you 
with all my heart." He bent down and kissed her gently on the cheek.

"You're right. I'm sure Mina is having a great time too with Mal." Serena 
said as she looked up at the stars.

The couple walked about a mile and a half, when they heard frantic running 
coming towards them. It looked like a giant shadow, but as it got closer, 
they could see that it was in fact Mal, and he was carrying something. When 
their eyes focused, they could see to their surprise, that it was Mina he was 
carrying.

"Oh my god, Mal!! What happened?! Is Mina okay?!" Serena wailed, nearly
in hysterics.

"I don't know! One minute we're chatting under that stars, the next, she faints!!
 I'm taking her to my apartment so she can get some cold water, or at least 
sleep in a warm bed." Mal huffed, as he carried Mina in his arms. He continued
 to run to his apartment, and left Serena and Darien confused and worried behind 
them. All they could do was run to keep up with him.

"Hey, wait up!" Darien shouted. "We can help you!!"

He and Serena were soon only a few steps behind Mal. When they reached the 
apartment complex, Mal couldn't get the door open with Mina in his arms, so 
Darien opened it for him. They rode the elevator up to their floor, and all 
waited impatiently to get off. When the doors opened, they all went running 
to Mal's apartment.

Darien opened the door, and Mal went into the bedroom and set Mina on 
the bed. "I'm going to let her sleep since she needs it anyways. I think 
I'm going to call us in sick tomorrow. That way I can take care of her," 
Mal said as he pulled the covers up over her.

"Hey!" Serena whined. "What about me? Mina is my best friend! I want
 to be here too. Can I stay?"

"In fact, why don't we all stay." Darien suggested, looking at Mal, letting 
him know that was more of a command than a suggestion. "Why don't you 
tell us exactly what happened before she fainted," asked Darien.

"Uh..." Mal was beet red. "Um...well...do you remember what we
discussed earlier this evening?" Darien nodded. "Well, I asked her about 
it, and then she fainted. That was it." Mal didn't tell them about him 
grabbing her. *I feel just terrible!! She'll never forgive me now. Man. I 
blew it completely before I even got a chance. How will I ever face her 
again?* Mal's thoughts plagued him.

"Oh, well, I can see why she fainted." Darien said, "but what did she say 
to you then?"

"Well, nothing actually. She fainted before she could answer. I'm a 
horrible person, aren't I?" Mal hung his head and leaned against the 
wall watching Mina sleep. 

"No, I think you may be surprised. Anyways, Serena and I will leave 
you alone for the night so you can get some rest. We'll just be next door, 
so let us know if anything happens, or she wakes up, okay?" Darien said 
as he placed his arm around a silent Serena.

"Okay. I promise," said Mal. He led Darien and Serena out the door. "I'll 
call you if anything happens." 

"All right. See you tomorrow! Goodnight!" Darien said as he and Serena 
went out the door. Mal shut the door behind the couple and leaned up 
against it, exhausted. 

He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head in agony. "What have 
I done? What have I done?" he whispered. He walked back into the room 
where Mina was sleeping and watched her sleep. He then sat down on a 
nearby chair, and let his whole body go limp. He couldn't take his eyes 
off her. He knew he wouldn't get much sleep tonight. 

*	*	*	*	*

TO BE CONTINUED IN PART 3