How Did I Fall In Love With You?
Rating: R
Characters: Darren and Anya
Summary: Darren falls in love with his best friend, but makes the mistake of not telling her in time.
Music: Backstreet Boys - How Did I Fall In Love With You
Author’s Note: Nothing much to say here, even though this is my third song fic.
Feedback/Comments: Send everything to Dmmuzicfan@aol.com
Disclaimers: I don’t own Savage Garden or “How Did I Fall In Love With You,” so don’t bite my head off about it.
So, onto the fic…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
20 years
earlier…
“I’m gonna get you!”
Darren yelled as he ran past the white picket fence and through the gate into
the playground. Another little girl had run through the gate just a few seconds
earlier, her long jet-black hair gracefully blowing in the wind behind her. She
laughed as Darren chased her past the swing set and into the labyrinth of
tunnels that made the playground one of the best in Brisbane.
“You can try!” Anya
screamed back as she scaled a three-foot high embankment and headed into the
labyrinth. Breathless and running out of places to hide, she ducked into the
crevice of a dead end and waited for Darren to pass her. She could hear his
footsteps plodding along the wooden walkways as he looked into every nook and
cranny of the labyrinth. Her heart began to thump wildly in her chest as he got
closer, his footsteps echoing in her ears like the beating of a large drum.
“Gotcha!” Darren
triumphantly hollered when he finally cornered Anya in her little space. She
rolled her eyes as he did a little victory dance in front of her.
“It took you long
enough,” Anya retorted as she took Darren’s hand for help out of the
crevice. They walked out of the playground together in silence waiting for
someone to say anything.
Finally Anya spoke up. “You
wanna come over to my house and have dinner? My mom’s making pot roast,” she
shyly invited as her cheeks turned a rosy red.
“Sure, let’s go,”
Darren replied. Even at his young age her sensed the tension between and had a
need to break it. “I’ll race you,” he added, sprinting to an early start.
Anya rolled her eyes again and sprinted off after him.
“Remember when we
never needed each other
The best of friends like
Sister and Brother
We understood we'd never be alone.”
10 years
later…
“Anya, come on! Darren,
Colby, and Ryan are waiting for you!” Anya’s mother called from the bottom
of the staircase.
Anya touched up her hair a
little more then descended the stairs slowly to not trip on her three-inch heels
or her flowing baby blue ball gown.
Darren was the first to catch
a glimpse of her. His sapphire eyes widened at the transformation she had just
gone through. No longer was she the plain little girl from next door. She was
now the beautiful young woman standing in front of him in a beautiful ball gown
waiting to go to the Prom. She gave him a quick glance and smile then turned to
Ryan and kissed him. Darren could feel his heart sink to the bottom of his shoes
as he watched Anya turn into a puddle of mush beside her boyfriend. He knew
these kinds of thoughts weren’t supposed to be going through his head as his
own girlfriend stood beside him, her arm wrapped around his waiting for him to
lead her to the limo.
But this was the first time
Darren had seen Anya in such a new light, her face made up, her hair curling
around her face, the curves of her body fitting perfectly into her dress. This
wasn’t the same girl he remembered chasing through the playground when they
were younger. Everything about her was new to him. She was a completely
different person, and he couldn’t help falling in love with her.
The four friends drove off to
the hotel and spent the night having the best time of their lives, all except
for Darren. He hated himself the whole night for not asking Anya to dance. This
was probably the last time they’d ever see each other, and he was letting it
slip away like the sands in an hourglass. He sat on one of the hard metal
folding chairs as the final few songs were played in the distance. He stared out
at the slowly swaying crowd with hollow, distracted eyes. He didn’t see Anya
approach, but could feel her hand shake him from his mindless trance.
“Daz, do you wanna
dance?” her soft angelic voice asked over the blaring music. Darren stood up,
surprised that she had come up to him for the last dance of the evening. His
arms gently wrapped around her delicate waist as her hands slid behind his neck
to hold him as close as possible without feeling awkward. They swayed in silence
slowly advancing closer to each other until Anya’s head was carefully resting
on Darren’s chest.
“This is probably the last
time we’re ever gonna see each other,” Darren said as he rocked her back and
forth to the rhythm of the music.
“I
know. We’re both heading in different directions. You’re staying here to
become a teacher and I’m heading to America to become God knows what. I just
hope we stay in touch,” Anya answered. Darren silently nodded his head as they
danced the last few seconds of the song together.
“Those days are gone,
and I want so much
The night is long and I need your touch
Don't know what to say
I never meant to feel this way
Don't want to be alone tonight
What can I do, to make it right
Falling so hard so fast this time
What did I say, what did you do?
How did I fall in love with you?”
6 years
later…
Three short, simple knocks
were all it took to awaken Anya from her sleep on the couch. She glanced at the
wall clock, 2:30 AM. Her eyes began to adjust to the darkness as her head
stopped spinning. She lifted herself off the couch and headed for the door in
her purple silk pajamas. She unlocked each of the deadbolts slowly then peeked
out of the crack she opened.
“Darren,” Anya whispered,
her surprise more prevalent than ever before. She swung the door open all the
way and let him into her apartment. It wasn’t until then she noticed his
physical condition. His eyes were bloody red and his shoulders shook.
It had been nearly six years
since they had last seen each other, but Anya had definitely watched Darren
become a musical superstar. In the back of her mind she always thought that he
forgot about her now that he had Colby, but he proved her wrong.
“What happened? What’s
wrong?” her gentle voice asked as he slipped off his jacket and let it fall to
the carpeted floor without making so much as a thud.
Darren looked at her and
realized she hadn’t heard anything yet. The news still hadn’t reached her.
“Colby and I divorced,” he choked. Anya walked over to him and wrapped her
arms around his neck. They stayed in their embrace for what seemed like hours as
he cried on her shoulder.
“I’m sorry,” Anya
finally spoke up as she led Darren to the couch. Her hand gently reached for his
face and wiped the tears that still remained on his cheeks.
With that single touch,
Darren could feel the many years of pent up emotions he had hidden from her all
pouring out of his heart. He drew Anya closer and pressed his lips to hers. She
didn’t pull back. Her own hidden desires exploded from deep within her soul as
she kissed him more passionately. Her hands explored the many features of his
body, his soft, delicate skin, his strong muscles, the thick mane of dark hair
on his scalp. She wanted to know every single detail that made him who he was.
Anya felt Darren do the same,
except he was further ahead of her. His hands had crept beneath her silky shirt
and were exploring the smooth milky white skin of her breasts. He caressed them
with his gentle touch as she slowly unbuttoned her shirt and slipped it off. It
fell soundlessly to the floor as she pulled Darren’s over his head and threw
it behind the couch. They explored the rest of each other’s bodies that night
with soft, delicate kisses.
Anya had never felt whole up
until that night she spent making love to Darren. He made her feel special,
wanted, loved. She was afraid of its end and having to let him go again. The
first time had been a mistake, and she regretted it ever since, but now he here,
his arms tightly wrapped around her waist, his head resting on her shoulder as
they moved together in the rhythm of ecstasy. She promised herself at that
moment she’d never let go of him for as long as she lived.
Darren felt the same way.
Getting married to Colby even though he loved Anya had been the worst mistake of
his life. He should have never left her without saying so much as goodbye. He
spent the last six years a miserable man, and finally Colby couldn’t take it
anymore, which meant it was over between them.
The sun slowly rose above the
skyline when Anya and Darren fell to the couch exhausted and sweating. He curled
up on top of her, his arms still wrapped around her waist as his head nestled
beneath her chin. She gently brushed away a strand of his hair and kissed his
forehead.
“What are you thinking
about?” Anya asked as they looked into each other’s eyes.
“How we can never be just
friends,” Darren answered. “Everything’s changed.”
‘Hopefully for the
better,’ Anya silently added.
“I hear your voice
And I start to tremble
Brings back the child that I resemble
I cannot pretend that we can still be friends
Don't want to be alone tonight
What can I do to make it right
Falling so hard so fast this time
What did I say, what did you do?
How did I fall in love with you?”
“I’m sorry it took me
this long to realize how much you meant to me,” Darren whispered as he played
with a strand of her long, jet-black hair. “The last thing I want to do now is
let you go. It was such a mistake the first time, and I regretted it. But now
you’re here with me and that’s all that matters.”
Anya smiled as her arms
wrapped around his neck to hold him closer. “Promise me you’ll never
leave,” she softly pleaded.
“I promised,” he said as
he kissed her chin.
“Darren?” Anya asked.
“Yes, Anya?” he replied.
“Did you ever feel anything
more than friendship between us?” she questioned, almost wanting to take it
back in fear of how he’d react.
“Yes,” Darren whispered
as a smiled curved up his lips. “I fell in love with you the night of the
Prom.”
Anya laughed. She thought
Darren was kidding about the fact that he loved her, but when she looked into
his sapphire eyes, she saw he was dead serious. Her smile turned into a frown as
she sobered up to her new reality. Her best friend had been in love with her for
the last six years and not his ex wife.
“Judging by the expression
on you face, you probably don’t think too highly of me right now,” Darren
said as he stood up and began to dress. Anya grabbed her shirt off the floor and
covered herself with it as she watched Darren head for the door. “Thank you
for the best night of my life,” he added in a soft, almost comforting tone.
Anya sat on the couch
dumbfounded. Her hands fumbled with the buttons of her shirt as she rushed to
get her clothes on. She didn’t know how to react to what Darren had told her,
but she knew if he left now, she’d never see him again. And that was the last
thing she wanted.
“Darren!” Anya screamed
as she pulled the door open and ran outside in only her silk shirt. She galloped
down the hall until she swerved around the corner and slammed into Darren,
knocking them both onto the floor.
Catching her breath, she
asked, “Did you really mean it when you said you loved me?”
“Yeah,” Darren answered
as he helped Anya off the floor. “I love you, Anya. I always have and I always
will.” His hand brushed away a tangle of hair that covered her face and kissed
her.
“Oh I want to say this
right
And it has to be tonight
Just need you to know, oh yeah
I don't want to live this life
I don't want to say goodbye
With you I wanna spend
The rest of my life.”
Present…
Darren climbed into his black
limo after a long, trying day at the studio working on his solo album. He
couldn’t wait to get home to Anya. His hands wouldn’t stop rapping against
the armrest as the driver sped down the road. Today was Darren and Anya’s
two-year anniversary, and he wanted to make it as special as possible.
The driver pulled up to the
house, but Darren didn’t wait for him to open his door. He ran down the
walkway to the front door and quickly opened it only to find that Anya had
beaten him to the punch. The hallway was illuminated with candles and rose
petals were strewn all across the floor heading up the staircase. Darren
ascended the stairs to the second floor and followed the flower petals to the
bedroom floor. He opened it to find Anya lying in bed waiting for him to arrive.
“Happy anniversary,” she
said, a wide smile appearing on her face in the candlelight.
“You did a great job,”
Darren commented as he slid beside her.
“Thanks, but that’s not
it,” Anya replied. She sat up and took his hands. Looking deep into his
sapphire eyes, she said. “It’s been two years since we realized our love for
each other, and I’ve been waiting for you to ask me a very important question,
but seeing as to how busy you’ve been, I thought I’d just go ahead and ask
you first. This might sound awkward coming from me, but Darren, will you marry
me?”
Darren smiled a wayward smile
at her. She was as sincere as he had been when he told her he loved her.
“Anya, it would be my honor,” he answered, raising his head to kiss her
waiting lips.
“What
can I do, to make it right
Falling so hard so fast this time
What did I say, what did you do?
How did I fall in love with you?
What can I do, to make it right
Falling so hard so fast this time
Everything's changed, we never knew
How did I fall in love with you?”