NEVER BROKEN: A SailorMoon Fanfiction

Home Truths

Darien's office was located in a very tall and new building, the lobby of which could pass for a hotel's receiving hall. There was that mix of executive and social elegance in the place that Serena found a little daunting. She would never have come here if Darien hadn't insisted. She wondered what it was all about.

She spent the entire day in the hospital, stayed with her dad. The nurses looked after James now, so she thought the least she could do was to be near him when she could.

Did Darien want them to go home together? Is that why he asked her to come to his office? Or perhaps they were going out for dinner. She shrugged at the thought. For a man of Darien's affluence, dinner in a fancy hotel or restaurant was a common thing. There was nothing special about it.

He brought her to the hospital in his car this morning. He visited James in the latter's room and Serena marveled at how happy that small gestured had made her. What more, she wondered, if he could love her?

She came to the reception desk. A male attendant was in charge.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I'm here to see Mr. Lawson."

"May I have your name, please?"

"Serena. Serena Lawson."

"I take it you're Mrs. Lawson?"

"Ah... yes. Do I need an ID or something?" She honestly didn't have one on her, save for a school ID in her maiden name.

"No, ma'am. Definitely not. Mr. Lawson described you perfectly." The attendant gave a sheepish smile.

Serena moved her head in acknowledgment, not sure how to take the employee's words. How exactly did Darien describe her? She wouldn't give her husband the satisfaction of asking anybody what he thought of her.

"Would you mind telling me what floor he's in?"

"I'll ask somebody to accompany you, Mrs. Lawson." He pressed a button on his desk and another uniformed employee came immediately.

The younger man let her precede him to the lift and escorted her up to Darien's floor. She was aware that the Lawson Corporation owned the building, but she was not sure about the rest of the offices in there.

Serena was alone when the automatic glass doors opened to accommodate her. She was quick enough to note Raye's arrested face. But the woman was able to hide her surprise the next split second.

"Hi," Serena offered.

"Hi," was the short return.

She's not going to make this easy, Serena thought.

"May I see Darien?"

"He's quite busy. You'll have to wait."

"That's okay. Can I wait here?" Serena indicated the large sofa in the far end of the reception, across Raye's desk.

"Please."

Serena quietly walked toward one end of the sofa. She let her eyes roam the entire office. Glass panes and doors everywhere, elegant tables, expensive vases, exquisite but fake flowers adorning them, paintings on the spaces that allowed walls, certifications, the company name and legalities in frames, some recent awards earned—Darien really had everything. Even the perfect woman who, to Serena's mind, was very much like him.

What did he need me for? I need him.

That was the painful truth. She looked at Raye. The woman appeared busy, answering phone calls every now and then, checking up something on her computer, picking up a sheet or two from her printer, filing papers on various folders. She must be really good at her job to be Darien's executive secretary this long. If she was not mistaken, Raye was nearly a lawyer (she hadn't taken her exams). She didn't need to work for Darien. Her family was also affluent. She certainly didn't need this job.