Darren jonas walked down the dark deserted hallway a few more steps. for the third time that night he spun around, positive he had heard something.

It was nearly pitch black in the hallway, and the whole scene was starting to creep him out. He was in the Girl’s Dormitory at cardinal Valley University in North Carolina at three A.M. on a Sunday, well technically a Monday morning, so he kinda deserved it. The problem was that he didn’t like it, and Darren was sure he’d seen at least six different horror movies that started like this.

“Damn, the black guy always dies first.” He murmured to himself as he inched along the wall, started toward his destination once again. He was headed toward the elevator to get out of this building once and for all; at least until the next time he came here. Darren sighed a couple of times and mentally calmed himself,

“You have nothing to worry about, you’re a grown-ass man Darren,” He muttered to himself, “C’mon, you’re not afraid of the dark anymore.” coaxed himself in a soft whisper.

CREAK!

Darren knew ge heard something this time! Forgetting all logic and throwing his masculinity to the wind, Darren took off toward the elevator, nearly throwing himself into the wall and pushing the call button repeatedly. He glanced back over his shoulder; he could hear footsteps. Who was it? what did they want from him?

The door opened and Darren rushed in, slamming the lobby button and sliding against the wall. He sucked his stomach in and flattened himself so as not to be seen.

“Please close. Please close.” He quietly prayed to himself. The footsteps however, were getting louder and coming closer to him. Darren panicked, it was almost there! A bead of sweat dropped down Darren’s face as his demise neared. Then, just as the door started to close a hand shot into the elevator, pushing it back open.

It was a girl; just a girl. There was Darren, big bad Darren afraid a little college girl!

He only got a quick glimpse of her, she turned away almost immediately to push her floor button. He noticed her hair though, short and straight. It was Raven black and about shoulder length.

“Whoa, you scared me!” Darren said, relaxing and stepping away from the wall. He felt stupid for being afraid of anything. Damn he was such a dork!

How could a grown man be afraid of the dark for goodness sakes? Darren was just about ready to kick himself!

“I scared you, I’m sorry.” She said, a little hint of a giggle in her voice just as the elevator started moving. Her voice was kinda cute! she started to turn toward Darren when suddenly the lights went out!

“What’s that?” He asked quickly, panic rising in his voice. Darren glanced around in total darkness, he couldn’t see anything. Something wasn’t right, something bad was about to happen.

And then it did.

“Ahh!” The girl shrieked as the car shook and faltered. The sound of loud screeching metal filled the car as it dropped suddenly. Darren flew back against the wall, and then forward against the girl. The car twisted downward on one side and Darren was knocked off his feet before a loud clamp sound brought the car to a stop.

Darren cracked his neck and stood up, trying to regain his bearings. He blinked several times to adjust to the darkness before turning to what he thought was the girl.

“Are you okay?” he asked. She giggled again, her voice coming from his left.

“Oh, such a gentleman!” she exclaimed, laughing a little, “Yeah, I’m all right, thanks for asking.”

“What happened?” Darren asked.

“The elevator stopped, don’t worry, it happens all the time.’ She said calmly. Darren sighed,

“Really?”

“Yeah, last time it was stuck for two days, luckily no one was on it” she said. Darren frowned, not that she could tell in this darkness. At this rate they’d die in the elevator! Darren backed against the wall with a thud, sliding down into a sitting position. He heard the girl move something before the car went silent.

After about twenty minutes, the girl finally broke the silence.

“So . . . what’s up?” She asked. Yeah, it was stupid, but at least it was something!

“Not much, hanging in an elevator, stuck for some indefinite amount of time. No food. No drink. Imminent Death, but I’m TiVo-ing the season finale of Law and Order, so it’s cool.” Darren said calmly. This was his normal personal; smooth and calm.

“Hehe.” she giggled again, making Darren smile. She really did have a cute laugh.

“What’s your name?” He asked, shifting into normal conversation. She hesitated,

“Well, I don’t know if I should tell you, my mother always told me not to talk to strangers.” she said playfully. Darren smirked,

“Okay, I’ll start. my name is DJ. I’m a Cancer, I enjoy Candlelight dinners, Long walks on the beach, and Jupiter’s third moon; Metis.”

She laughed again, asking, “Are you always this funny?”

Darren shrugged,

“Only on days that end in an ‘Y’.” He said. She laughed again, Darren continued, “You’re pretty funny too though.”

“Really?” She asked.

“Yeah, but looks aren’t everything.” He said. She responded with a ‘hmpf’ before laughing again.

“Is it just me, or is it really hot in here?” The girl said. Darren smiled, partially because she was right, and partially because he was actually having fun, as much fun as you could have in a broke down elevator stuck between floors in the pitch black at three in the morning anywise.

“Yeah, I’m sweating. Is this dorm always so humid?” He asked.

“Yeah, so why are you in the girl’s dorm at three in the morning anyway? Girlfriend?” She asked. Darren hadn’t expected this, yet had just the right comeback.

“Do you have a boyfriend?” Darren asked.

“I asked you first DJ.” She replied. Darren opened his mouth when he heard her rummaging through her bag,

Hey, I’ll answer! I swear, you don’t have to go get the heavy artillery.” He said in mock panic.

“No, no, I was just getting my fan, see!” She said. Darren assumed she held it out, but he couldn’t actually see anything.

“I can’t see, it’s pitch black in here.” He muttered.

“Oh, yeah. well if you could see, you’d be looking at an authentic Japanese Seiza, or a folding fan. I got it on a trip to Tokyo!”

“Really?” Darren asked. He’d been to Tokyo before himself.

“Yeah, I speak Japanese!” She said with an air of authority. Darren smirked once again,

“Hoonto, Nihongo ga joozu desu ka?” Darren replied in a sharp tone. Even though he spoke in Japanese she responded in English,

“Yeah, I’m pretty good at it. for a beginner at least.” Darren could her her voice echo the swoops of her fan moving back and forth. They were quiet for a moment before Darren started up the conversation again, he was really starting to like this girl. He couldn’t explain it though. Some attraction, some pull, something made him want to get closer to her.

“So Fan Girl, are you going to tell me your name?” He asked,

“I don’t know Mr. Hilarious, should I?”

“Mr. Hilarious huh? Perhaps I should use that as my stage name. It has a ring to it.” He joked.

“Stage name?” She questioned.

“Yeah, I do stand up at the club on 51st avenue. You should come see me some night, normally Fridays. You still think I’m funny right?”

“Yeah, but I didn’t know you actually did stand up! That’s amazing. I guess I bagged a good one!” She said, then Darren heard something that sounded suspiciously like a hand being clamped over a mouth.

“Bagged a good one? Heh. Well there’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Darren said coyly.

“Like what?” Fan Girl challenged.

“I don’t know, ask away, this wait’ll go faster if it’s interesting.”

“Hmm. Okay, what does DJ stand for?”

“Darren Jonas. Next question please.” He said, faking a yawn.

“Okay, how old are you?” She asked.

“Twenty. C’mon Fan Girl, I give you the key to my vault of secrets, and you ask my age!”

“Glasses?”

“Contacts, you know if you’re going to be boring, I’ll just leave.” He said. She laughed along with him, “Honestly though, I’m blind without my contacts in, literally!”

“Okay, so what’s your major?”

Darren yawned again before answering, “Law.”

“Are you a virgin?” She asked. This peaked Darren’s interest.

“Good job Fan Girl, you’ve finally gotten the gist.” He said. This ride just might get better after all.

“God, it’s so hot in here.” Darren said, reaching down and pulling off his shirt. He still had on a white T-shirt on underneath; not that it mattered because it was pitch black anyway. No one could tell in this light, or lack thereof.

“What are you doing?” Fan Girl asked.

“Taking off my shirt, it’s really hot in here.’ Darren replied. They’d been sitting in the elevator for god knows how long, Darren had lost count after two hours.

They’d been talking the entire time, about each other’s lives, friends, enemies, weaknesses, strengths. He felt like he’d just gotten a new best friend!

“So tell me something Fan Girl.” Darren said.

“Yeah.”

“Your name.” He still hadn't’ figured out her name, they had spent about twenty minutes of guessing and all he’d found out was that it started with a “C”.

“Well Darren, how about we play a little tit for tat. You tell me something and I’ll think about it.”

“Okay, what?”

“Do you have a girlfriend?” She asked too quickly, Darren could tell she’d been waiting to ask this.

“No.” He replied solidly. Believe it or not, he was starting to develop a kind of crush on Fan Girl.

“Do you have any significant others, friends with benefits, anything?” She asked anxiously.

“Nope, are you looking for something?” he asked.

“Yeah, I am actually. I am trying to figure out what you’ve been doing in the girl’s dorm at three in the morning.”

Darren opened his mouth to reply, but Fan Girl cut him off,

“Honestly.” She added. Darren snorted a little, of course he’d be honest!

“Okay, see, my sister goes to school here, and she’s been sick for the past couple of days. So I decided that I’d bring her some soup and stay the night with her, like I used to do when we were growing up. She likes that.”

“Aww . . . sweeeeeeeeeeet!” Fan Girl said, holding out the “Sweet” for a sickeningly long time. Darren felt his cheeks grow hot, and he blushed . . a little.

“So why are you worried about whether or not I have a girlfriend? Interested?” He added, turning the conversation to a less embarrassing point.

“I dunno.” She said in a completely unconvincing voice, but Darren let it slide. There was a couple of clanks of movement, then Darren felt Fan Girl’s head against his leg. he stretched out his hands and hit something. Rubbing his hands a little further he realized he was touching her! She had laid out across the cabin.

“Hmm, you know if you break it, you buy it.” She said, laughing. Darren realized his hands were still on her and pulled them back quickly like acid.

“So Fan Girl,” He said, turning the conversation away once again, “do you have a boyfriend?”

“No.- And no significant others, friends with benefits or little sisters.” She finished. Darren already knew the little sisters part though. He laughed, and absentmindedly put his hand into Fan Girl’s hair. He ran his hand through it, continuing their conversation.

“So, how old is your sister DJ?” Fan Girl asked.

“She’s sixteen. one of those child prodigies. Imagine having to her your parents say ‘you should look up to your little sister’! I got teased endlessly about it. Now we go to the same school.”

“Your sister is Samantha?” fan Girl asked. Darren smiled,

“Yeah, you know her?”

“Yeah.” Fan Girl sat up, sitting next to Darren with her back against the wall as well. He felt his breath pause as their shoulders rubbed against each other. She continued without moving them apart, “I really admire you for taking care of your sister. You know Darren, I always told myself I’d fall for a guy like you immediately.” She wrapped her arms around his bicep, hugging him close.

“Ah-” Darren started to say something, but Fan Girl cut him off.

“Tell me something.” She said in a soft voice. Darren nearly choked on his next word,

“What?” He felt something on his cheek. Fan Girl had reached up and touched his cheek.

“What do you look like?” She whispered. Her hand slid across his face, gently tracing his features with her fingertips. Darren didn’t know how to answer her question, not that he could’ve. His mind was a blank.

Electricity was coursing through his nerves. Her touch made his skin tingle, and not just his face, but from his head ot his toes his senses were on fire.

“You know what Darren, I feel like I can see you.” She said, leaning over him. Darren could feel her in front of his face.

“Do you really now?” He asked, trying to be smooth. Trying to be calm. Trying to act like things like this happened everyday and her ouch wasn’t making his go cuckoo for cocoa puffs.

Key word: trying.

Because Darren jonas wasn't’ smooth. Wasn’t calm. Things like this never happened to him, and he wasn’t just cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, but his brain was screaming about honeycomb while cinnamon-y swirls were flying around silly rabbits with bags of clovers and blue moons.

To put it gently; the boy was going crazy.

And Fan Girl still hadn’t removed her hand. Darren felt Fan Girl lean further over him. Her face was inches from his, and he could feel her breath hit his neck. It was spicy and cinnamon; sultry.

“Darren.” She said in a hoarse whisper. Darren couldn’t help himself, everything was going haywire.

“Yeah.” He said, forgetting everything as his mind blanked out.

“I think I’m falling for you.” She said slowly. Then she leaned in, planting her lips on Darren’s. His body went rigid as her lips enclosed his. Shivers sizzled down his sculptry spine, sending his nerve ending flaring wild.

Just like her breath smelled, she tasted cinnamon. Small spaces of tingling sensations fluttered his mouth as the shockwaves still sailed through his system. her hand still traced his face, rubbing his cheeks and trailing his features. her body was hard pressed against his, their proximity only adding to the madness.

He was in heaven.

She stopped the kiss as Darren groaned inwardly. He hadn’t wanted it to stop. She kept close to Darren, sliding her hand off his face.

“Wow.” he shot out in-between breaths, Darren could feel his heart pounding. Fan girl was breathing harder than her was, and Darren could hear it.

“Yeah.” She said in-between breaths. “Wow.” Darren wanted so badly to kiss her again!

And he did.

He didn’t pause as he leaned in once again. Their lips made contact again, but this time it wasn’t soft and sweet tike the first one.

This one was hard, hot, and heavy.

Darren pressed into Fan Girl as she wrapped her arms around his neck, breaching his lips with her tongue. She slipped her tongue into his mouth and twirled in around in a fashion Darren hadn’t realized existed, but it still amazed him. He couldn’t remember a time when he’d felt better. Now his tongue was in her mouth, exploring every crevice as the pleasure centers of his brain went crazy. Her taste, still of cinnamon spice was delicious. Her smell, soft peppermint, was intoxicating. Her touch, soft and fast, was fleeting and her warmth, sizzling and steamy was enticing.

Somewhere during the kiss they had moved from sitting to standing, but Darren was much to engrossed with Fan Girl’s lips to notice little things like the rest of his body. He backed Fan Girl against the wall, taking her hands and holding them above her head.

His fingers trailed down her arms, barely touching her, but still making the hair on her skin stand on end. his hands followed down her body, caressing her sides, stomach, waist, backside, thighs . . . and then back up again.

Fan girl grabbed Darren’s shirt from the bottom and yanked it up over Darren’s head. Her fingertips trailed down his chest, running over his pecs and his abs. Her hands smeared sweat over his rigid muscles,

“Ohh,” She half purred, “An eight pack. I thought those were reserved for Usher only.” She breathed out in a low sexy tone.

“It comes from track.” Darren said, snorting it out during his heavy breathing.

“Well, you know what?” She said.

“What?”

“It’s damn sexy!” She said, jumping up and wrapping her legs around his waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck and began their passionate ruse once again.

He curled his hands around her voluptuous butt for support, holding her up. His mouth traveled away from her lips, kissing her cheek, then moving ot her left ear.

She moaned, grabbing him tighter. Darren loved this power, the power to drive girls crazy. She moaned again and Darren could’ve sworn he’d heard his name. She squirmed a little as he continued to nibble, suck, flick and play with her ear.

He moved down further, kissing her neck. Licking her throat and tickling her senses.

She reached her hands down and pulled her shirt up over her head, throwing it across the car.

Darren backed her against the wall again, still holding her up. He planted his lips on her neck again. Streaming his tongue in circles on her throat.

She moaned again.

His tongue traveled lower, slathering her upper chest. he kissed the top of her breasts, running streaks around both. He let his tongue slide down in-between her breasts, her legs clamping him tighter overtime her did. Darren slid his hand across her back quickly, unstrapping her bra in one fell swoop.

His tongue went lower, and she moaned,

“Oh my god!” She muttered, twisting her head in pleasure. She used her sexiest voice, “Darren, I want you to fu-”

But Darren didn’t get a chance to find out what she wanted, because at that instant the elevator dropped what he guessed could only be seven flights.

The two fell to the ground with a thud, Darren hitting his head against the back wall. His contacts flew out of his eyes and he was positive he’d broken his finger. His thoughts however immediately transferred to Fan Girl,

“Are you all right?” He asked. She laughed,

“Always the gentlemen. Yes, I’m fine DJ. Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I lost my contacts though.” She giggled, moving something around.

“It’s okay. You’re not missing anything, it’s still pitch black. Here’s your shirt lover boy.” She said right before Darren felt what he only assumed was his shirt hit his face. He pulled it up over his head, slightly disappointed that the elevator decided to end the best make out session of his life. Damn, he wanted her so bad!

More than that though, she was amazing! She was funny, and laughed at his jokes. She was smart, she took honors classes. She was moral, and cool. She was fun-loving, liked to do things and they had grown up in the same state! They had everything in common, they liked the same bands, books, movies and everything!

SQUEAK!

They both turned as the elevator door opened. Darren heard Fan Girl rummaging behind him, but he was just looking out into the lobby. It was the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen! Sunlight! Shimmering and shining through the halls, magnificent freedom!

“Darren- Shit! It’s daylight!” Fan Girl said.

“Yeah.” Darren muttered in awe, simply amazed. Suddenly Darren felt a blur scuffle past him. It was Fan Girl, running out.

“I’m so sorry Darren, I’m going to be late, I have to go. We should pick this back up sometime!” She shouted as she ran.

Darren couldn’t see a thing, he never even got to find out what she looked like. He just glanced down at his feet; which he couldn’t see either.

“Wait!” He called out, watching her fading figure move through the doors, “What’s your name?”

He never got an answer. His angel just flew away. Left him alone.

FIN