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"Offstage"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, sex (the usual) Pairings: 6x2, ? Summary: It's Duo's first professional job, at a summer stock theatre company in upstate New York. As an intern, he knows he has a lot to learn. But he didn't count on having to figure out how to deal with THIS mess.
"Offstage" Chapter Five The next week left Duo feeling exhausted each night, and he didn't think he had ever been happier. All of the technicians worked together to get the theatre ready. After that first day, working in the scene shop and the off-site actor housing, Zechs had them start on the theatre itself. They cleaned out everything - backstage, onstage, in the audience - and then moved on to the lobby and the bathrooms. They repainted the lobby, built a new ticket counter and replaced most of the molding. Then it was on to the tavern. In addition to being where the company ate their meals, the tavern was open to the public before each show, during the intermission, and afterwards. In addition to having a full bar and partial menu for the public, after the shows each night there was a small cabaret performance, featuring a handful of actors from the show being performed over on the mainstage. Getting the tavern ready meant repainting the small stage, rebuilding the bar, taking care of three pages of repairs that the cook, an old man with a discolored nose that Trowa insisted was named Doktor S, handed them. By the time Friday arrived, Duo had eased out of his shell of embarrassment over Zechs and intimidation from everyone else enough to start hanging out with the technicians each night on the back deck. Zechs usually stayed, for an hour or so, and had one beer with them before he left for the night, and Duo wondered if he was the only one who saw the way Cathy glared at him the entire time and kept shooting warning looks in Duo's direction. Hilde, Duo had discovered, was hilarious, and the two of them could argue for hours about the film adaptations of the Marvel comics. Quatre proved to be just as much of a dork as Duo had first thought he was - every time Duo and Hilde started to talk about The Avengers, he jumped in with complaints about how the movies wrecked the comic books and all of the ways they should do things differently. Meilin seemed to enjoy teasing everyone - that first day with Zechs was just a preview - and her favorite target seemed to be Dorothy, the sound designer. The blonde haired girl gave back as good as she got, however, and watching the two of them interact was a lot like watching a tennis match. Sylvia, while nice, didn't seem to have much interest in spending time with the rest of the group. Whenever they hung out after work, she would bring a book and, while she did still sit with them and drink, she rarely joined in their conversations. Wufei, the wardrobe supervisor, seemed to most enjoy pointing out all of the things wrong with the world. Cathy, when Zechs wasn't around, was actually incredibly funny, and it was clear that she and Trowa thought the world of each other. Duo envied them, a little. He had never had the chance to get that close with any other kids in the various foster families he had lived with growing up, and he had always wanted a brother or sister. Both Trowa and Heero were quiet, but when they did speak up it was to add something hilarious or insightful to the current conversation. They seemed content to just sit in the circle, usually side by side, and let the conversation flow around them. It wasn't until Friday afternoon, as they finished up work for the day, that Duo finally met the owner of Bethel Playhouse. Howard had interviewed him on the phone, months ago, and then called a week later to offer Duo the job. Apparently, he and Duo's professor at CSU, Dr. G, had done a lot of crazy things together back in the seventies, and he had sounded like the most laid-back person on the planet during their interview. Howard, Duo had learned from Dr. G, had been an actor in college, but had decided to work as a stockbroker in the eighties, had made quite a bit of money, and "retired" to the Catskills of New York and purchased the Bethel Playhouse. He had completely renovated it during the nineties, and now it was one of the biggest summer attractions in Sullivan County. "What the hell are you all doing?" Duo, who had been helping Hilde move the stack of 4'x8' platforms stacked against the shop to the other side, out of the parking lot, looked up to see a man with wild gray hair, dark sunglasses, and a vivid Hawaiian print shirt walking towards them. "Howie!" Hilde called out with a grin. "It's after five! Don't tell me Zechs is already turning into a slave-driver." "We're just working for another half-hour, then we're calling it quits for the weekend," Hilde assured him. Howard angled his glasses down and peered over the top. "You must be Duo." "Hi," Duo said, and then grunted with the effort of lifting their platform on to the top of the stack. He walked towards Howard, who was still inspecting him over the glasses. "Yeah, Cathy told me all about you, kiddo." Duo swallowed hard, and couldn't help but bite his lip nervously. "Um..." Howard held out his arm, wiggling his fingers in a clear 'come here' gesture. Duo looked over at Hilde with wide, scared eyes. She just arched an eyebrow at him and gave him a little shove in Howard's direction. Swallowing hard, Duo walked over and Howard settled his arm on Duo's shoulders. "Let's take a walk through my garden." The garden, which surrounded most of the theatre, was apparently almost as big of a deal as the theatre itself, and over the past week people had stopped by daily to take pictures of it. It was, Hilde had told Duo, Howard's pride and joy - and to fuck with his garden was to get yourself fired ASAP. The other thing Hilde had warned Duo about was the Rock. On the far side of the garden, near the edge of the theatre's property line, there was a small, rocky outcropping that seemed out of place with all of the wildflowers around it. The Rock, Hilde had explained, was a place you absolutely did not want to get escorted to. Ever. It was apparently the place where Howard liked to have little chats with his employees whenever they fucked things up. Hilde said that, last year, Wufei had been taken to the Rock and had returned in tears. As Howard steered them towards the Rock, Duo had to swallow hard. Fuck. "So, how are you liking things up north?" Howard asked. "Fine. It's great." "Good, good. Lonely? Homesick? I know it's a big adjustment, being so far from friends and family." "I don't have any." Howard dropped his arm from Duo's shoulders and turned to look at him. "What do you mean, you don't have any?" Duo shrugged one shoulder. "I don't have any family - I'm out of foster care now that I'm eighteen, and I don't have any friends. I was never that good at making them, or, I guess, I never really tried. I got moved around a lot, and there didn't seem to be much point." Duo realized he was talking too much, a chronic reaction to being nervous, and he shut his mouth. Howard wasn't interested in his life story. "Well..." Howard seemed to be at a loss, and Duo sighed. "Sorry, that's not what you wanted to hear. I'm fine. It's cool." Howard frowned a little. "But you're making friends here?" Duo nodded. "Yeah. Of course." He said it before he realized that Howard might not, actually, be asking about friends in the traditional sense. "Good. Good. Lot of good people up here, Duo. Most of these kids... hell, I've known most of them since they were kids. Cathy and Trowa? Those little bastards have been running around here for as long as they could walk. Their mom used to work here, in the box office, before she died, and they used to be in the shows - you know, kid roles and things. Trowa grew out of it, of course, but Cathy still does a few shows with us every year. She's a good person, a good sister - very protective. Has all kinds of ideas about what's right and wrong." Duo wasn't too dense to miss where this was headed. "Look, if this is about-" Howard held up a hand. "Look, kiddo, your life is your own. Your mistakes, your accomplishments - it's on you. But you need to be careful, need to really think about things before you just jump in headfirst." Duo sighed. He'd realized that. He'd realized that, and had it reinforced several times over the last week. For the most part, Zechs ignored Duo - rarely looking at him, hardly ever speaking to him - and that was fine. They were just cleaning up things, and it wasn't like anyone was particularly chatty while they worked. But it stung, whenever Zechs looked over at him, even accidentally, and his eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched. Duo was tired of it, and tired of Cathy's judgement, and- "Is there something in the handbook I missed? Something about staff relationships not being okay?" Howard seemed taken aback by the question. "No, of course not." "Then- then why the hell is this such a big deal? Like you said, my mistakes. I know that. I've known that my whole life and- Look, I'm not trying to be rude, but you're right. It's on me. And yeah, I fucked up, but it's not like we can't work together or-" Duo stumbled, because, thus far, it really didn't seem like they could work together all that well. "It's fine," he said. "Things with Zechs and I are fine, and it's not like we're talking about it with anyone, so I don't get why the hell everyone else is talking about it." Howard looked as if that was the last thing he'd expected Duo to say, and Duo was glad that the man's sunglasses kept his eyes hidden. He really, really didn't want to see how pissed off he had made him. But then Howard chuckled and shook his head. "Did you two rehearse this or something?" Duo frowned. "What?" "You and Zechs - you two work this speech out ahead of time?" "Um... no? Zechs and I haven't really... we're not exactly on the best of terms," Duo admitted. Howard laughed again, and he took off his glasses to rub his eyes. "Oh, kid. You are just like him, aren't you?" That took Duo by surprise. He didn't know Zechs that well, but he didn't think they were similar, at all. His shock must have been obvious. "Stubborn, think you know what's best for you even when you really don't have a clue, and you think you gotta struggle through life all on your own." Duo swallowed hard and looked away. "Yeah, well..." He shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. "Alright, look, I'll tell you the same thing I told him. You sleep with whoever you want, but just remember that sex isn't always just about sex, and when it's not, things get messy, and when things get messy, things get awkward. And I don't like my staff feeling awkward - and I sure as hell don't like it affecting my shows. Understand?" Duo nodded. "Good." Howard clapped him on the back. "Good." Duo wondered if this was over. "And the other thing I told Zechs," Howard added, just when Duo thought he could try to move away, "is this. You're a kid - and you might feel like you're all grown up and all on your own, but you're not. There's people who care about you, and if you ever need to talk about anything, well... hell. I've probably done more stupid shit in my lifetime than you even think is possible." Despite his tension, Duo had to laugh at that. According to Dr. G, that was completely true. "Okay?" Howard asked. Duo nodded. "Yeah. Okay." Howard clapped his back again. "Good. Now head on over to the tavern - they're about to ring the dinner bell, and this way you can skip ahead in line." Duo grinned. "Thanks." "Oh - and try to look all sad and devastated, will you? I did just take you to the Rock." Duo had to laugh again, but then he cleared his throat and tried to look depressed. "Like this?" Howard nodded. "Yeah, that'll do, kiddo." The gray haired man laughed and, just as they started to walk back to the theatre, the dinner bell rang. -o- There were more people than usual in the tavern. The actors, Duo had learned, would arrive at the theatre on Sunday, meaning that tomorrow, Saturday, was both the technicians' last day off before the season began in earnest and their last day of peace and quiet before the theatre was overrun by twenty-plus actors. There were a handful of new people, but everyone else seemed to already know them - except for Heero and Sylvia, who, like Duo, were at the Playhouse for their first summer. Duo grabbed a plate and happily filled it with food before sitting down at his normal table with Hilde, Heero, Trowa and Quatre. He had never eaten so well - food was plentiful, at the caf at CSU, but it also tasted horrible, and he hated the smell and feel of the caf. Growing up, food had always been a source of anxiety - most of the time there was never enough, and even when there was, it was hardly ever good, and mealtimes, Duo had learned, were usually filled with tension and arguments and should be avoided at all costs. It was different, at the Playhouse. It had taken Duo a few days to relax, to realize that when Meilin and Dorothy fought it wasn't, actually, a real fight, and to realize that when Meilin and Wufei argued it was, in fact, very real, but that almost as soon as their final words left their mouths, they settled back down and everything returned to normal. It was weird, but it was good. "Is this seat taken?" Duo looked up to see a blonde haired girl approaching the table. She was wearing a blue sundress that showed off her long, pale legs. Her hair was loose, except for two thin braids that held it back, and she had full bangs that fell over her forehead and framed her deep blue eyes. "Relena!" Quatre was grinning as he stood up, happier and more alert than Duo had yet to see him. "I didn't realize you were here yet." The girl, Relena, set her plate down on the table, and then wrapped her arms around his neck. Quatre's arms went around her waist and, in front of everyone, they kissed. For a long time. And Quatre's hands did not stay on her waist. Duo looked away, blushing, when Quatre grabbed her ass with one hand, and saw that Hilde was smirking, Trowa was rolling his eyes and Heero was frowning. The rest of the tavern seemed to also be taking in the show. Duo saw Zechs enter and look over. "Hey!" he called out, and Relena and Quatre finally broke apart. "That's my sister, Quatre." The painter grinned. "Well, she's not my sister, so what's the problem?" That got a laugh out of most people, even if Zechs scowled, but Relena and Quatre separated and took their seats at the table. "I'm guessing this means the room is full of your luggage now?" Hilde asked. Relena grinned. "I restrained myself this year - only three suitcases and one box." Duo, who had managed to get all of his belongings into a single duffel bag and his backpack, could only guess why she had so much stuff. Hilde groaned, but she was also grinning, and Duo could tell that, in addition to knowing each other, the girls liked each other. Relena looked at Heero and Duo. "Fresh meat?" Trowa, who had been taking a sip of his water, snorted into it. "Not your types, Rey," he coughed. Which earned him a raised eyebrow from Heero and a furious stare from Duo. Trowa just smirked at Heero, and the other man shook his head and looked away. Duo's stomach dropped when Trowa looked his way. There was something in his eyes, something about the way his smirk faded just slightly, that made it clear that he knew. Duo swallowed hard and looked away. "Hey!" Quatre spoke up. "I'm right here." Relena smiled at him. "What are your plans for the day off tomorrow?" "Hopefully kicking my roommate out - sorry Duo - and spending the day in bed with you." "I think I can clear my schedule for that," Relena decided. Hilde rolled her eyes. "I don't understand why Howard doesn't just put you two in a room together - how many years have you two been doing this?" "Three," Quatre said with an aggravated sigh. "It's Zechs." Relena sounded just as aggravated. "No one cares if Meilin and Doro get to room together - but the second I tell Howard I'd rather just be in a room with Quatre, Zechs goes all 1950s blushing virgin on me." She sighed and shook her head. "Older siblings are a menace." "Amen to that," Trowa muttered, and took another sip of his drink. As if on cue, Cathy stood up from her spot a few tables away, where she was sitting with two women Duo didn't recognize - one had blonde hair twisted into two braids and a calm, casual demeanor about her; the other had short, dark hair and looked just a little like Hilde. Zechs, Duo noticed, sat down at a table with two more newcomers - a man with short, immaculately styled hair and a sneer on his face, and a scowling, brown haired woman wearing glasses. "Alright, everyone, as you all know, the actors arrive on Sunday." There were loud groans from almost everyone, and Cathy smirked. "That means that tonight and tomorrow are your last days of freedom. You have tomorrow off, and then we're going to go on the season schedule - which means that you technicians have Mondays off unless it's a changeover, in which case you get a daylight day off on Thursdays." As with most theatres, the Bethel Playhouse had performances Tuesday through Sunday, with the theatre going dark on Mondays. Every two weeks, the theatre put on a new show, which meant that every other Sunday, the technicians had a changeover: striking the sets, lights and costumes from one show and loading in new things for the next show. Instead of taking Monday off, they worked through, while the actors took the day off, and that night everyone - technicians, actors, designers and directors - staged a dress rehearsal for the new show. On Tuesday morning, the technicians worked on any notes or repairs that were needed, and Tuesday afternoon there was another rehearsal before the show opened that night. It was a brutally exhausting schedule, or so Duo had been told. This was his first experience with professional theatre, and he was both excited and nervous about the season getting underway. "That also means," Cathy continued, "that tonight the Tournament of Assholes begins." There were cheers from a few people, but Duo, Heero and Sylvia all frowned in confusion. "For you new kids, the Tournament of Assholes started... what? Ten years ago? It's a chance for each of us to prove what incredibly sore losers we are, and just how fucking annoying we are when we win something." This was said with a glare in Trowa's direction. Trowa smirked back. "Everyone will get a partner - that you have to keep the entire summer. No trading this time, Wufei. We've got three competitions - Cornhole, Beer pong and pool. You'll get points for winning or coming in second or third for each event, and at the end of the season, whichever pair has the most points will be crowned the biggest assholes - and you'll get a really stupid-looking trophy." "And bragging rights," Trowa added loudly. Cathy glared at him. "Yes, and bragging rights. By the way, congrats again on being such an asshole." Trowa smirked, stood up, and took a bow. Cathy glared at him, but she was also smirking as he sat back down. "How are we picking the teams this year?" Meilin asked. "Because last year, you let the winners pick first, and Zechs and Trowa just picked each other again and they won, again." Cathy sighed. "Yeah. I've had some complaints about that. Trowa, Zechs, even though you two won last year - and the year before, and the year before - it's time to broaden your horizons. So each of you will be picking last this time around - if someone else doesn't pick you first. And you're not picking each other," she added quickly. Trowa shrugged, and Zechs looked completely unconcerned. "Right. Wufei, since you and Treize lost last year, you can pick first." Wufei shockingly picked Meilin, who rolled her eyes and grumbled. Treize picked Une, Quatre picked Relena, Hilde picked Noin, Sally picked Cathy and Dorothy picked Sylvia. Leaving Zechs, Trowa, Heero and Duo unpicked. Duo wasn't surprised he hadn't been picked - he was new, and he was scrawny. But it wasn't as if any of those things took a lot of physical strength. Still, it burned, to realize he was going to be picked last. "My turn?" Trowa asked, and Cathy nodded. Trowa looked between Duo and Heero, then glanced over at Zechs and smirked. "I'll take Heero." Which meant that Duo would be paired with Zechs. He didn't need to look across the tavern to know that Zechs was less than thrilled. He didn't need to look at Cathy's face to know she was less than thrilled. He could feel it. Cathy sighed. "Okay. Fine. Cornhole starts tonight on the back deck at eight." -o- By the time Duo made his way to the back deck, it looked like everyone else had had a few beers and were all having a good time. The newcomers' arrival seemed to have propelled the technicians to divide up into groups - Zechs, Noin, Une and Treize all sat together in one corner, drinking and laughing; Sally, Cathy, Meilin and Dorothy had their own space and Duo watched Dorothy get up and drag Sylvia, predictably sitting alone and reading a book, over to join them; Hilde, Trowa, and Heero were setting up the cornhole boards; Relena was sitting on Quatre's lap, off to one side, and they seemed to have completely forgotten about the rest of the world. Only Wufei seemed as out of place as Duo felt. He stood at the periphery of Zechs' group, arms crossed, looking like he would rather be anywhere else in the world but where he was. "Duo!" Hilde called out, and waved him over. "Give me a hand with this." Relieved, Duo walked over and helped them finish setting up the boards. Eventually, Cathy called everyone's attention and explained - the cornhole would be a knockout tournament, which each pair seeded into brackets. Duo looked over at Zechs, but the other man was sipping his beer, looking off into the gathering twilight. Based on Cathy's brackets, they wouldn't be up for a few games, so Duo settled in to watch everyone else. There was a lot of good-natured teasing, a lot of cheering, and a lot of awful throws. It was clear that most of the technicians hadn't spent a lot of time doing any kind of hand-eye coordination sports growing up. But not all. Meilin and Dorothy, in particular, seemed to be not only amazing at the game, but incredibly serious about it. Duo was glad that they hadn't been paired up, considering just how much concentration they were putting in to winning. Finally, it was time for Zechs and Duo to step up and compete against Cathy and Sally. Feeling more than a little nervous, in spite of, or maybe because Hilde cheered his name and everyone else gathered around to watch, Duo stepped up beside Zechs. Zechs handed him the bean bags, his long fingers brushing over Duo's palm, and Duo shivered. "Remember how you let me win the first game?" Zechs asked, his voice low. Duo looked up at him. It was the first time Zechs had voluntarily spoken to him since the ride back from Nan's. Duo nodded. "Don't do that now. This isn't a race to five." "I know what a knock-out tournament is," Duo grumbled, but he felt a flush of pride at the knowledge that Zechs wasn't underestimating him in this - that Zechs fully expected Duo to be able to hold his own. Zechs smirked slightly and nodded. He gestured for Duo to make the first toss. Duo turned away and hefted one of the bags. He bit his lip and sighted along his arm, and then tossed the bag. In cleared the whole with a satisfying swoosh. He smirked and looked over at Zechs. Zechs smirked back. "Don't get too cocky. That's how you lost last time, remember?" As if Duo could forget. He looked away when he felt his face heat up, and forced himself to focus on the game at hand and not think about that night. At all. They won, though it was close - Cathy and Sally were actually really good, but Duo and Zechs sank bag after bag into the hole on the board, keeping a steady lead on them all game. The first round had eliminated half of the teams, leaving only Duo and Zechs, Heero and Trowa, Hilde and Noin, and Meilin and Wufei to compete in the next round. Heero and Trowa beat Hilde and Noin, exchanging casual high-fives and smirks after each successful round of throws, and Duo and Zechs just barely managed to beat Meilin and Wufei. The final round, between Duo and Zechs and Heero and Trowa, was close. A few people - most notably Quatre and Relena - had left the deck already, but most of the staff had remained to see who won. It was nearly eleven, and it was clear that most of them were also fairly drunk by this point - though it didn't seem to have much impact on Zechs, Heero or Trowa. Duo had watched them drink beer after beer, keeping up with everyone else, but now, in the last game, each man glared at the opposing board with clear-eyed determination. They stayed tied or within one point of each other until the final round, between Zechs and Heero. Duo and Trowa stood off to the side and watched. Zechs' first throw landed in the hole, Heero's on the board. Zechs' second landed on the board, Heero's in the hole. Zechs' third throw also landed on the board, and Heero's - in the hole. "Hell yes!" Trowa cheered loudly, and pumped his fists in the air. It was the most vocal Duo had seen him, and he watched the tall man walk over, high-five Heero, and then pull him into a hug. Heero laughed and Trowa smirked at him. Zechs scowled and muttered something under his breath. Duo sighed. "Sorry we lost." "Not your fault," Zechs said, but he sounded irritated. "I-" But before Duo could say anything else, before he could even think of what to say, Zechs walked away, off to the parking lot, and a moment later Duo heard the Jeep's ignition turn and then the sound of the tires rolling across gravel. "There's a reason he and Trowa won every year," Hilde said, coming up beside Duo. "Asshole is just their natural flavor." Duo snorted a laugh. He didn't know much about Trowa - and while he didn't know much more about Zechs, he knew enough, at least, to agree with that. -o- ~ * ~ |
