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"Going the Distance"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: Angst, language, violence, sex, AU Pairings: 1x2x3 Summary: Duo Maxwell has just signed on to join Team Gundam Wing, an upstart League of Legends team looking to win the World Championships. Duo Maxwell, the first openly gay professional gamer. Duo Maxwell, the guy hated by almost all of Reddit. Duo Maxwell, the guy whose own brother hates him. Duo Maxwell, the guy who really just wants to find a team that doesn't hate him. A/N: This fic is an AU that has the boys playing
professional League of Legends. I'm going to try my best to not get
bogged down too much in game terminology or things like that, but,
well, I WILL reference the game and try to explain as much as I can,
as I go. I'm also way too lazy to make up "new" teams for
the league, so I will be using existing teams and players, with the
exceptions of Team Gundam Wing, Zodiac Gaming, and the Valkyries.
So… I will be referencing real people and real teams. "Going the Distance" Chapter Twelve "Get up, it's time to go." Duo groaned and rolled over in his bed. "Leave me alone," he grumbled. Relena, unsurprisingly, ignored him. "Up," she repeated. "Hilde just pulled up and it's time to go." She tugged on his right foot and he finally rolled over to glare at her. "Who invited you on this trip anyway?" She smiled. "Hilde did. Because unlike you, she has taste." Duo sighed and glanced at the display on his phone. "It's eight in the morning. You realize that, right?" "And it takes at least two hours to get to San Diego." She crossed her arms and glared at him until he finally sat up. "Okay. I'm up. Just let me shower and I'll be ready to go." She smiled, mission accomplished, and actually pranced out of his room. Duo shook his head. As much as he wasn't excited about getting up at eight in the morning after a very late night last night, he was excited about this trip to San Diego. With the Spring Split over, there were two weeks before the Playoffs for All Stars started and TGW, like most of the teams, were taking three days off before jumping back into practices. Hilde had suggested an overnight trip somewhere, and they had settled on San Diego, since Hilde wanted to go to the zoo, and Duo just wanted to go somewhere near the water. They had decided this last night when Relena, Quatre and Duo had gone over to the Valkyrie house to party and celebrate the end of the Spring Split. After Relena watched Quatre follow Dorothy into her bedroom, she had joined Hilde and Duo in their vacation planning and Hilde had suggested Relena come along. When Duo had showered and dressed he packed up a duffel bag with a change of clothes - they had agreed to stay the night in a hotel before heading back home late tomorrow afternoon. On his way downstairs he heard the door to Heero and Trowa's room open. Trowa stood there, hair tousled and blinking sleep out of his eyes. "You're up early," he commented. "Yeah, Hilde and Relena and I are heading to San Diego." By the time Duo and Relena had come home last night it had been almost two, and everyone else in the house had been asleep. Trowa nodded. "How long are you going for?" "Just until tomorrow- we'll be back by eight or so tomorrow night." He hesitated. "Do you and Heero have any plans?" Trowa shrugged one shoulder. "He mentioned something about having never been to Disneyland, but I think he's just trying to trick me into wearing a Mickey Mouse hat." Duo laughed at that mental image and Trowa smirked back at him. "Well, you guys take it easy. See you tomorrow?" Trowa nodded. "Have fun," he said and then walked back into his bedroom. Duo imagined he was rejoining Heero in bed, and he allowed himself a brief mental fantasy of those two cuddling together. He missed that, a lot. Not that he and Alex had ever cuddled all that much - he only very rarely had spent the night, when Solo planned on staying over at the ZG house to practice late - but when they had taken the time to hold each other it had been nice. Duo really missed the contact that came with being in a relationship. It sucked not having someone to hug or even just touch. Downstairs, Hilde and Relena were in the kitchen making toast. "Finally!" Relena teased him and Duo stuck out his tongue at her. Hilde looked about as tired as Duo felt, and he imagined she hadn't slept much last night either, but all three of them were excited about this mini-adventure. Relena had apparently found the time to make a road-trip playlist, or perhaps just had one handy at all times, and as soon as they got into Hilde's car she cued it up and Duo had to laugh when music from his middle school and high school days came on. The girls started to sing along to 'Hey There Delilah.' Duo was pretty sure he hadn't heard the song in years, but he definitely remembered the lyrics and he joined in with them. It was a good start to the trip, and even though Duo really would have rather slept through the two hour car ride, they actually sang along to a fair number of the songs on Relena's playlist and by the time they got to the Zoo, Duo was wide awake. The last time Duo had been to a zoo had been the Los Angeles Zoo. Howard had taken Solo and Duo there for Solo's fourteenth birthday, and Duo had gotten lost and wound up inside the ostrich exhibit. It had been terrifying, because the birds were huge and ran really, really fast. Duo still had nightmares about it, and hadn't been back to a zoo in the seven years since then. Still, he tried to keep an open mind as they wandered through the enormous zoo, and he was happy to take pictures of the girls and even allowed them to take a few of him. It was a long day, and at the end it felt like they left with a small menagerie of stuffed animals. Relena insisted on getting something for each of the guys and for Sally. She picked out an a small elephant for herself, an otter for Quatre, a flamingo for Sally, a polar bear for Heero, a lion for Trowa and a kangaroo for Wufei. Duo picked out his own stuffed animal, a panda. Hilde got a gorilla for herself, and joked that she might have to add him to her team roster after Relena murdered Dorothy in her sleep. Relena sniffed and ignored the tease, but it was clear she was very upset about the fact that Dorothy and Quatre were hooking up. It was nearly six by the time the left the zoo, and they took the time to check into a hotel and change clothes before going out to dinner. Relena found a decently priced restaurant on the waterfront by the marina, and they were able to eat outside and enjoy the sunset. They had finished eating and were waiting on their check when the girls checked their phones. "Holy -" Relena started to say. "Oh my God," Hilde cut in. They looked up at each other and then over at Duo. "What?" "Treize was in a car accident." "What?" Duo sat up and tried to glance at Relena's phone. "Une just released a press statement. He's in the hospital." "Is he going to be okay?" Relena shrugged and scrolled through her email notifications. "I don't know. All she said was that he had been in a car accident and was currently being treated." "Yeah, no details on Twitter," Hilde added. "Was anyone else hurt?" "Doesn't say," Hilde said and then noticed Duo's frown. "If he was with any of the guys, it would have said. I'm sure none of them are injured. Solo's fine." Duo was sure she was right. But still, he had the urge to try calling his brother. "I'm going to call Une," Relena said. She pulled out her credit card and left it on the table. "This is my treat - and don't argue, either one of you. I'll be right back." She got up and walked away, already dialing, and Hilde and Duo looked at each other. "I really hope he's okay," Duo said. Hilde arched an eyebrow at him. "What? He's an asshole, but he's still a human being. Plus... I want the chance to beat him again." Hilde smirked. "That loss still burns, doesn't it?" It did. The very last game of the Spring Split had been close, so very, very close, but ZG had won the game when, unsurprisingly, Wufei didn't commit to a fight that Duo wanted him to go in on and Duo had died. ZG had used that advantage to push for the win. Also unsurprising was the fact that Solo once again refused to shake Duo's hand. Treize had definitely taken the opportunity to remind Duo about what he had said before - about TGW not beating them again - and Ralph and Zechs had also had snide comments to make. Only Meilin had been decent about it, telling Duo good game and refraining from rubbing it in that they had won. Sometimes he wondered how she managed to survive on that team. She was good - amazing at Support and she could be as much of an asshole as any of her teammates, but she was at least a good sportsman. "Yeah, it does," he admitted and Hilde smirked. "Don't worry. I'm sure he's fine and you'll have the opportunity to slug it out during the Playoffs." Duo nodded. He certainly hoped so. He hated the smug look Treize always wore, and he really wanted the chance to wipe it off his face again. Relena rejoined them a few minutes later, a grim expression on her face. "What's up?" Duo asked her. She shook her head and sighed. "He broke his right wrist." Duo winced. "How badly?" "Badly enough that he's done for the rest of the season." "So..." Hilde spoke up. "Not trying to sound super happy about this or anything, but that means that ZG is pretty much fucked for Playoffs, doesn't it?" Relena nodded. "Une's working on finding a replacement, but right now they've just got their substitute player, Quinze." Duo frowned. "He's not a Top Laner." "I know. Une said they're putting Meilin back in the top lane for the Playoffs and putting Quinze in support until they figure something out." Duo sighed. "Damnit. Solo's got to be so pissed. He wanted to make it to All Stars so badly this year with his team." Both girls glared at him. "What?" "Who cares if Solo is pissed!" Hilde snapped at him. Relena nodded. "I'm sorry Treize is injured and I hope he makes a full recovery - but in no way do I feel bad for Solo! We're going to take advantage of this. Everyone will. This means our biggest competition - no offense, Hilde - "None taken." "-our biggest competition is no longer a threat. Duo, this means we have a really, really good chance of going to the All Star Games." -o- Quatre had taken "try hard" to a whole new level. A level that left Duo, and the rest of the team, exhausted every night. But it was a good exhaustion - the kind of exhaustion that came from trying new strategies, perfecting old ones and pushing themselves and each other to be better than they had been during the regular season. It seemed like Quatre had decided that having Treize out and ZG likely at their worst was motivation for making sure that TGW was even better. They still practiced from noon until eight, scrimmaging against other teams in the league, and then every night they all stayed up until at least midnight playing Solo Queue. It meant that Duo and Trowa hadn't had the chance to play together on their other accounts, but all things considered, Duo didn't need that distraction. As much as he loved playing with Trowa as his Top Laner, he needed to practice having Wufei as his Top Laner. It didn't do him much good to pull off incredibly plays with Trowa when he knew he would never have the chance to repeat them with Wufei. Sally started using their dinner break as a kind of strategic meeting, going over their strengths and weaknesses and analyzing their opponents, and it really started to feel like Duo was eating, breathing and sleeping League of Legends. Heero and Trowa stayed up late most nights to review games from earlier in the season, watching their opponents games as well as their own, and Duo joined them a few times. The two of them usually occupied one couch and Duo sat on another, but one night, as Duo walked into the living room and approached his usual couch, Heero shifted over on his couch, putting room between himself and Trowa for Duo to join them. Duo hesitated. They hadn't really spoken about Duo's realizations, not since he and Trowa had spoken about how much Duo wanted to play with him on their second accounts that last night of the season, but when Duo looked at them now, at their neutral yet slightly hopeful expressions, he felt all of his questions come back. He had done a great job of focusing on the game, throwing himself into practices and talking out strategies with everyone and he was still his usual self, still make snarky comments to Wufei and joked with Relena and Quatre and, damn him, still found it hard to remember his own name when Heero or Trowa looked at him a certain way, but he had tried not to think about them. About what they had said - and what they hadn't said. "It's just a seat, Duo," Trowa spoke up and Duo shook himself. "Er. Yeah. Of course. I just - is it?" Heero ran his hand over the couch cushion and pressed it down experimentally. "It appears to be," he confirmed. Duo rolled his eyes. "You know what I meant," he grumbled, but he sat down between them, because he wanted to, even if he wasn't sure what it meant - what it would lead to or what any of them wanted or even why this was happening - he wanted to share the couch with them. Trowa queued up the last game between Team Solo Mid and Cloud 9. Both he and Heero relaxed, leaning back against the couch and Heero stretched his legs out while Trowa sat with one knee propped up and the other folded under him. "You can relax," Trowa remarked drily when, fifteen minutes later, Duo was still sitting with his back straight, trying not to invade anyone's space. Duo gave him a look. "It's not like we're going to attack you and give you a hand job in the middle of the living room," Trowa continued. "I - I know that," Duo said, but in his mind he now had that mental image. He wondered what it would be like, both of their hands on him? Trowa smirked and Duo glared at him but eased himself back onto the couch until his back was against the cushions and he folded his legs under him. "Would we call it an attack?" Heero mused from Duo's other side, and Trowa chuckled. Duo sighed. "Seriously. I don't - I really don't get this at all." They both turned to look at him, the game forgotten. "What don't you get?" Heero asked. "You - both of you. Are you... I mean, you're a thing, right? The two of you?" They nodded. "So then - where is this flirting with me coming into it?" Trowa shrugged. "I'm attracted to you. Heero's attracted to you. We discussed each of us going for you on our own but decided we might as well try to share you." Duo stared at him. "What? You - you discussed this? Me?" "Of course," Heero said. "And we made a plan. Not that it's worked. You might be smart, but you're dense as hell when it comes to someone trying to get in your pants." Duo took in a deep breath. "So, you both think I'm... attractive. And both of you have a thing, a thing which has to be great because it's you two - and you... want to get in my pants so you've been trying to get me to sleep with the two of you?" "And failing miserably," Trowa helpfully added. "Since when?" "This is what I'm talking about. You're completely oblivious," Heero muttered. "We spend half the time walking around without shirts and you stare at us," Trowa said, "but you just... don't do anything about it. And then you walked in on us and just... left." "Because you two were -" Duo suddenly remembered Trowa's words. Come in or get out, but close the door. "Oh." So maybe Heero had been pissed at him afterwards not because Duo had seen them together, but because he had walked out? "Is this why you wanted me on the team?" It was Trowa's turn to look confused. "What?" "Relena said you two made a big deal out of wanting me on the team. Is this why?" "No," Heero snorted. "We wanted you on the team because you're a great Jungler. Getting to look at you every day is just an added bonus." Trowa nodded in agreement. "But you have each other," Duo had to point out again, because... seriously. Heero and Trowa were hot, they were funny, they were sexy as hell and they connected on a level that required virtually no communication. They were perfect for each other. Where the hell did they see Duo coming into this? "We do," Trowa agreed. "It doesn't mean we don't have fantasies. It doesn't mean we don't both fantasize about having sex with you." Duo swallowed hard, because he sure as hell fantasized about having sex with them. He knew he was good looking, knew he was in decent shape and he knew that his hair was a thing for some guys. He wasn't that lacking self-confidence not to know that about himself, but he was a mess. He had a lot of baggage, his personal and professional lives were both just waiting to spiral out of control. He was a smart mouth, and while some people could appreciate that, he knew he could be annoying, and for two guys who hardly ever talked, he imagined he was way too chatty for them. So what could they possibly see in him? What could they - Right. They fantasized about having sex with him. They didn't fantasize about being in a relationship with him. They didn't fantasize about coming out and telling the world to fuck off. The didn't fantasize about cuddling on the couch or waking up and making breakfast together or distracting each other in practice by trying to covertly feel each other up. Duo was just a fantasy. Just a sexual fantasy at that. Someone to try out. He tried not to let himself feel too much pain or anger at that realization, but it hurt. A lot. "I, uh." He stopped and cleared his throat. "I think that whatever - this is just a distraction. We've got the Playoffs next weekend and I think Quatre would butcher all of us if he thought we weren't one hundred percent focused on the game. So, we should do that. Just focus on the game." He could feel both Heero and Trowa staring at him as he got up and left the room. Because as much as he meant that - as much as he wanted to just focus on the game and shove down all of the bitter truth that they just wanted to fuck him and move on - he couldn't just sit there with those two and not think about them, about what Trowa had said. And what he hadn't said. ~ * ~ |
