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"Unexpected Development"Written By: Clara Barton Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing. The following
is an intellectual exercise with no intention of profit. That said,
these characterizations, words, and situations are mine. Please ask
before reprinting. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Language, angst, sex Pairings: 1x2x3, 1x3 Summary: After a one night stand on Halloween, Duo tries to forget about his unforgettable neighbors. Continuation of the Unexpected arc. A/N : Continuing in the Unexpected arc.
"Unexpected Development"
Chapter Three "Stop fidgeting." "I am not fidgeting." "You're playing with your hair, the buttons on your jacket, the cuffs of your jacket - you've retucked your shirt three times now. You're fidgeting and you need to stop." Duo opened his mouth to argue but closed it when Dorothy Catalonia arched one meticulously shaped eyebrow at him. "This is why I told you to come to the gallery at eight thirty and not seven thirty. You're working yourself into an anxious mess when you should be at a bar getting pleasantly buzzed so that you can waltz in here half an hour late and charm the critics and the buyers. At this rate you're going to be shaking hands with your sweaty palms and your lips are going to be bleeding. Seriously. Duo - hang on." Dorothy put away the Iphone that seemed to be an almost permanent attachment to her left hand and walked over to the small bar set up in one corner of the gallery. She came back with two glasses of champagne and handed one to Duo. "Drink it," she ordered. "Chug it actually because if you sip on it you're going to start thinking and worrying again." Duo glared but accepted the glass and did as instructed. When he had emptied it Dorothy took it from him and handed him the other glass. "You can sip this one," she allowed. Once again Duo followed her instructions. He let the pleasant tickle of the champagne ease him, focusing on how it felt, how it tasted, and he tried his damnedest not to think about the fact that his show was opening in ten minutes and in all likelihood would be attended by virtually no one. "Good," Dorothy said when he finished off the second glass. "Now take off your jacket." "What?" Duo ran his hands over the Lanvin suit jacket. Hilde had helped him pick it out at Barneys and while he wasn't in love with the price tag, he had to agree with Hilde that the nearly two thousand dollar suit was almost worth it considering just how well it fit him. "Take off your jacket or you're just going to keep messing with it all night. Duo glared at her but when she refused to look away and arched an eyebrow at him again, Duo sighed and did as instructed. "Happy now?" He asked, handing over the expensive jacket that he was convinced he would never have occasion to wear again. "Hm." Dorothy tapped one perfectly manicured finger against her lips. "Roll up your sleeves." Duo didn't even bother to argue but followed orders. Dorothy nodded and then reached out and tugged on his black tie. "Go ahead and take this off too - and unbutton the top two buttons of your shirt." "Do you want me to just strip down to my boxers?" Duo suggested. "And then have to deal with you whining about being cold all night? No thanks." Dorothy collected the tie from him and then nodded in approval. "Yes, much better. How do you feel now?" Duo hated that he felt better, more at ease, more himself. He glared and Dorothy smirked. "Why again are you my agent?" Duo muttered. "Because I'm a brilliant, terrifying shark and you're just...a seal or an otter or something. Or a duck." "A duck." "Hm. Something cute and harmless." Dorothy explained while she pulled out her phone again. "Something cute and harmless that needs protection because it's just too cute and delicate for this world." "Okay, maybe you think calling me cute is a compliment but I am not harmless and I am not delicate." "Mmhm," Dorothy didn't bother looking up from her phone. Duo sighed and looked around the gallery again. It was hard to believe that he was standing here in Art 3, minutes away from his first show since just out of college. He knew, on some level, that he was being ridiculous. He was a successful and well known photographer in the fashion industry - he knew what he was doing. He took damn good photographs but the work on display tonight was a far cry from the glamorous shots of models and celebrities that graced billboards and magazines. Instead, twenty four prints hung on the walls that were almost the exact opposite of what people would expect from a fashion photographer. The first time Duo had gotten a gig on his own and not as someone's assistant had been doing a publicity shoot for a Las Vegas hotel. After wrapping for the day he had headed to downtown Vegas, to the sadder, squatter, crumbling part of the Strip that was rarely headlined and he had had a few drinks at a dive bar with some locals and taken their photographs and he had been struck by just how incredibly different life really was from the staged photographs he had taken just a few blocks away. That had been the start of something that Duo had considered a hobby - photographing the locals wherever he worked, capturing real life, capturing real happiness that wrinkled the faces and eyes of people who weren't perfect. Over the years he had shown Hilde a few of the photographs, he even had the one from Vegas hanging on the wall in his bedroom, and a series of them were on display at his studio, but he had never had any intention of showing them - of selling them. Until Dorothy had seen them at his studio back in February when she had come by to drag him to an industry Valentine's Day party and that was that. Dorothy had spent months putting this night together for him, had kicked his ass every step of the way and squashed his self-doubt whenever she was around and now here he was, in a gallery he had always admired, surrounded by photographs of people who would never, in a million years, be featured in Vogue. Of course, those were the only people he was surrounded by. It was 8:05 and the only ones in the gallery were Duo, Dorothy, the gallery manager and the bartender. As if following his thoughts, Dorothy reached out and put one hand on his arm. "Duo, people are going to come. Yes, they are late. But they will be here. You know as well as I do that no one in this industry is punctual unless a paycheck is involved. Go get another drink." "You make me feel like an alcoholic," he muttered. "You do buy your wine by the case," she replied. "I do not -" She arched an eyebrow. "One time. One time I bought wine by the case and you just won't let it go, will you?" She shrugged. "I will as soon as you stop reminding me about Milan." Her comment brought a smile to Duo's face as he remembered. He opened his mouth to start teasing her but was distracted when a trickle of people entered the gallery. "Go get a drink," Dorothy repeated, smoothing down the front of Duo's shirt. "You need to have something to choke on when the art critic from the New York Times tells you she loves your work." -o- It wasn't the unmitigated disaster that Duo had foreseen. It was, instead, something of a success. Even Duo had to admit that to himself at nine-thirty when he smiled and shook hands with yet another person who told him they had expected to see photographs of Gisele or Lara or Alessandra and how surprised they were to love his photographs of normal people in normal places. Duo was both appreciative and mildly offended. He knew the fashion industry was shallow, but the sheer number of people who seemed shocked to find ordinary people attractive was disconcerting. Of course, congratulations from an appreciative public weren't the only disconcerting events of the evening. Wufei Chang had kept his word and shown up, saving Duo from Michael, an overly handsy ex, by not quite rudely butting into his monologue about Duo's work and how much he missed Duo and really, they should get together some time soon, he had a new apartment and he was sure Duo would love the view. Wufei had shown up, had said something snide about Duo's apartment no doubt having a superior view and suggested that Duo had better things to do than go on an apartment tour. Michael had looked confused and Duo had had to laugh before greeting Wufei and turning away from Michael, hoping he would take the hint. "Your work is..." "Not super models, yeah, I know," Duo sighed. "I've been hearing that a lot." Wufei frowned. "I was going to say that your work is very honest. Very true." Duo had to arch an eyebrow at how sincere and complimentary Wufei sounded. The other man's cheeks were flushed. "I knew you were talented, obviously. But until seeing these photographs I did not appreciate just how intelligent you really are." Duo just barely refrained from dropping his jaw. "I, ah... uh, thank you," he finally managed. "No, thank you for showing these - for sharing these. I think I can understand you better than I ever thought I would." Duo was left completely speechless by the praise. "In any event, I wondered if you were available for private commissions." "Uh, yeah," it took Duo a moment to respond. "I've been hoping to memorialize Nataku and after seeing your work, if you're available, I think you are the right person to capture her." Duo blinked. "Uh, Nataku. Your cat?" Wufei nodded. "I, ah -" Wufei held up a hand. "I'm sure your schedule is packed, it doesn't have to be soon. But I think the experience would -" "Wait, wait, wait." Duo couldn't help but remember what Hilde had said to him the day after Thanksgiving, when they had passed Wufei out walking his cat and Wufei and Duo had exchanged nods. Bet you'll be the next one he puts on a leash, Hilde had said. She was convinced that Wufei had been flirting with Duo at Thanksgiving and kept hinting about Wufei asking him out and surely - the man wanted to pay him to take photographs of his cat? Two years ago Duo had been hired by an attractive, wealthy middle aged woman to take photographs of her - as a present to her husband for their anniversary she had claimed - and had tried to seduce Duo. It had been incredibly awkward and had left Duo vaguely suspicious of any 'private commissions.' "Wufei, I'm flattered, really," Duo said, trying to figure out how to get himself out of this situation. "But I'm not really available. I -" "As I said, there is no rush." "No, I mean... you're attractive. Hell, you're incredibly sexy and you're smart and now that you don't glare at me every time you see me I've got to admit I kind of like you but I'm a mess and I'm just not... I'm not good at casual sex and I'm not really in a good mental place to start a relationship and I've had probably a few too many glasses of champagne," Duo finished, realizing he had said way too much. Wufei's eyes narrowed. "Let me assure you," he said, "I have absolutely no interest in pursuing a relationship with you." "Oh. Uh. I just -" "While I find you attractive I've dated men like you before and I know we would spend more time arguing than anything else. After tonight, after seeing your work, I appreciate you too much to want to grow to hate you." "I... thanks?" Wufei scowled. "Wait, you really just want to hire me to photograph your cat?" "Yes." "Oh." Duo didn't know whether he felt relieved or insulted or amused. Probably a mix of the three. He dug one of his business cards out of his back pocket and handed it to Wufei. "My email address is on there. Just, ah... send me a few dates for January and I'll see what I can set up?" Wufei took the card. "Thank you." He looked around the gallery again. "And thank you again for allowing me to see your work tonight." "Thank you for coming. I - I really appreciate it. Your opinion actually means a lot." Wufei smirked slightly, but he nodded. He started to walk away but then he stopped. "The photograph of you - at the entrance to the gallery. Who took it?" Duo felt himself blush. "That would be me." He hadn't wanted to do it, had really just wanted this collection to stand alone, but Dorothy had gone on a tirade about branding and self-love and he had had to tune her out, had agreed to do a self-portrait if she would only just stop. Wufei nodded again. "Your work is stunning - what you see in the people around you, the way you capture the simple joy of living is very moving. But I think my favorite piece is the photograph of you." "Because you find me attractive?" Duo couldn't help but tease. "Because you look raw and exposed and you are perhaps the exact opposite of the industry you work in." With that, Wufei left him alone. Of course, he wasn't alone for long. One moments later Dorothy was introducing Duo to a new group of people that he just had to meet. His face was starting to hurt from smiling at people so much by the time he saw Hilde and Quatre walking through the gallery. Hilde threw her arms around his neck as she hugged him and whispered in his ear, "I told you," referring to her constant assurances that tonight would be a success, that he was more than just a fashion photographer. Quatre complimented several of the photographs before offering Duo a nervous smile. "I, ah, I have a proposition for you after seeing these," he said. Duo looked between Hilde and Quatre. Hilde was smirking and Quatre was blushing. "You've got to be joking." Hilde had said she had always wanted to have a threesome - especially after Duo's reports of how amazing his night with Heero and Trowa had been. "I, uh, no?" Quatre looked confused. "Of course, maybe you're too busy. I mean, I'm sure you are - especially after word gets out about this show. I'm sure you're going to have all kinds of people wanting to commission you and you're -" "Work. You have a work proposition." Duo decided it was better to clarify before instead of in the middle of embarrassing himself this time. "Yes." Quatre looked between Hilde and Duo. Hilde, meanwhile, was frowning but then, suddenly she seemed to understand Duo's confusion and she burst out laughing before she slapped a hand over her mouth and walked away from them, her shoulders shaking. She waved away a concerned Quatre. "I, ah, I wondered if you might be interested in taking some publicity photographs of the children at the music school. I think that your talent - and your name - would go a long way to helping us raise more money and -" "Yes. Absolutely. I would love to." Cat portraits, underprivileged children and super-models. Duo was pretty sure he had expanded his market demographic to such an extent tonight that even Dorothy would be impressed. Actually, on second thought, Duo wondered just what her reaction would be when he told her that he was going to take photographs of someone's cat... His fantasy was interrupted when Hilde managed to recover herself and came back over to them. "Really," she said as she wiped her eyes. "Everything looks amazing - everyone here is so impressed and I'm so proud of you and so happy." "Thank you," Duo said and shook his head when she giggled. "Is everything ok? Did I miss something?" Quatre asked with a frown. "I'll tell you about it later," Hilde assured him. Duo felt himself blush. "You will not." "Oh I most certainly will," Hilde retorted before tugging on Quatre's arm and continuing on their tour of the gallery. Duo shook his head and sighed. He allowed himself a smirk as he looked around the gallery. Not an unmitigated disaster at all. "Congratulations." It was one word, but from that voice - Duo had to swallow hard before he turned around to see Heero standing behind him. "Thank you," he said and he frowned as he looked for Trowa. "He couldn't make it tonight," Heero said, of course knowing what Duo was doing. "Oh. Ah, no worries." Duo hated how disappointed he felt - almost as much as he hated how content he was he hear Heero just say one word to him. "He wanted to come," Heero assured him, " but he had to do some last minute revisions on a project. His deadline is tonight - he just got the request for revisions yesterday and he hasn't slept. He's going to come by tomorrow - we both are. He's been looking forward to seeing your work ever since we found out about the show. We both have." They stared at each other, and Duo didn't know if he had ever been more aware of the physical presence of another person before. He didn't know if it was the five glasses of champagne or if he really was just that pathetically in love with Heero but his fingers itched to touch Heero's skin, to peel off the sweater he wore and feel his heartbeat. Duo swallowed hard and broke his gaze away from Heero's dark blue eyes. "Your work is amazing," Heero said. Duo nodded, then realized that the gesture probably seemed like arrogance and not a silent thank you. "Thanks," he said. "I - I'm really glad you were able to see it." "I've never seen... your photographs are so real. So unapologetically honest and beautiful, Duo. I knew you were talented but this -" Heero looked around the crowded room. "This really is incredible." "Thank you, Heero." Duo winced after he said his name - winced at just how blindingly obvious he was being because just saying Heero's name felt like an admission of his feelings. Heero seemed to be on the verge of saying something, but then he nodded to himself. "Congratulations again. I'll let you get back to your mingling - I see your agent coming this way and if she's anything like mine then she'll be haranguing you to go meet someone more important than me." "You're important," Duo protested. Heero arched one eyebrow and the question in his expression was unmistakable. "I mean, you're a New York Times best selling author," Duo hastily added. Heero nodded again. "True," he said with a small smile. "And I'll be sure to tell the critics I see over there how much I love your work." Before Duo could say anything else, Dorothy was at his side and Heero was walking away. Dorothy looped one arm through his and smirked. "I told you," she said, oblivious to the look of longing he sent towards Heero's back. "Told me what?" Duo asked, shaking himself mentally. "That tonight was going to be an incredible success. Not only have almost half your pieces sold but someone wants to buy your self-portrait." "What? That isn't even part of the collection." "I know. And you won't believe how much money he's offering for it. So you're welcome for that too." Duo snorted. "Thank you," he said and turned to look at her. "I mean it. You set all of this up - you made this happen and I really appreciate it." "It's my job to make your life perfect," she said with a shrug. "It's why you pay me such an obscenely high commission." "I pay you an obscenely high commission because I neglected to read the fine print on the contract you shoved at me at six am one morning," he muttered. "That too," she agreed. "Now do you want to tell me how you know Heero Yuy and why you were looking at him like a lovesick puppy or do I need to get it out of Hilde instead?" Duo looked at her in shock. "As I said, it's my job to make your life perfect. If I don't even notice you sighing romantically over a very attractive, very talented, very taken writer then I wouldn't be able to do my job." "I was not -" "Yes, you were. Now, come meet this darling couple on the board of the Met and then you get to escape for the evening." "But you just -" "Tomorrow you will tell me all about Heero Yuy. But tonight, Duo, is about you." -o- TBC ~ * ~ |
