"Light on the Stage"

Written By: Impish

Rating: R

Pairings: 1x2x1

Category: AU, Drama/Romance (but not in a "hearts and flowers" way)

Warnings: AU, some angst, things teenagers do that they're not supposed to (smoking and drinking), general reckless behavior. Additional warnings will be doled out chapter to chapter.

Summary: Two messed up kids in a small country town are drawn to each other, and together, form a brand of music from the old.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing or the songs used to inspire this piece. I will give a shout out to any inspirations found within.

Notes: I'm so sorry I've been taking so long with these parts! Love me anyway?

"Light on the Stage"

CHAPTER 6: I Got Friends


The noise inside the house was hardly muffled by the screen door, but Duo hadn't closed the outside one, so the familiar sounds of unrest seeped out into the front yard where he was stuffing two fishing poles and a tackle box into his back seat. Jenna and Ben had been wrestling over the remote to the TV all morning, with their mother yelling at them both intermittently to shut the hell up because she had a migraine. The dogs were barking loudly at the neighbor's cat, who was taunting them by pacing back and forth just outside the window, while AJ's stereo got progressively louder to cover the rest of the noise.

Duo closed the car door and went back inside to grab a piece of summer fruit for the road. He registered the phone ringing somewhere underneath Jenna's abrupt screech, but didn't bother to pick it up. It wouldn't be for him.

Then Jenna, whose ears were always seeking out the sound of a ring, abandoned her fight and ran to the phone in hopes that it was her ex-boyfriend calling to tell her how much he missed her. She was disappointed to hear a female voice on the line instead.

"Duo?" Jenna said into the receiver, wrinkling her nose.

Freezing where he stood, Duo half turned his head to listen.

"Why in hell would you want to talk to him?" Jenna wanted to know. Her mother began yelling at her for her language.

Duo rolled his eyes and crossed the room to snatch the phone out of Jenna's hand. "Hello?" he greeted and shoved her away.

"Duo? Um, it's Relena," said the voice on the other end, no doubt thrown off by Jenna's manner of greeting.

"Relena?" Duo repeated with curiosity, "Hey, how's it going?"

"Good, thanks. I'm sorry to bother you…" she said, and he thought he detected a faint strain to her voice, though it could have been the connection. "Catherine gave me the number."

Duo grinned. He imagined Relena was only calling him because Catherine didn't have Heero's number. Hoping that Heero's number wasn't what she'd called to ask for— he had no idea how to pass that one off— Duo said, "No bother, what can I do for you?"

"I think I…" she started, but the rest was drowned out by AJ's stereo, which he had turned up even more because Ben, now in charge of the remote, was shouting at him to turn it down.

Duo turned away from the noise and went into the kitchen, pulling the phone's chord over his head for more length. "Sorry, Relena," he interrupted, "Could you repeat that for me?"

"Oh…" she cleared her throat and raised her voice, "I think I might have left my jacket down there last weekend, when Catherine and I met up with y'all before we went out that last night," she told him, "It wouldn't be any big deal, but I'm fairly certain my wallet's in the pocket."

"Over at Sweetstone, huh?" Duo said, running a hand through his bangs. He thought about it for a second, and remembered seeing a jacket over the bar when they'd gone out there the day before. "Jean jacket, right? I think I know where it is, but how should I get it to you? Can you drive back here?"

Relena sighed in relief, the slight strain disappearing from her voice. "Sure, no problem."

"Well, a bunch of us were planning on heading out to Sweetstone tonight, if you want to swing by and pick it up. You can hang with us, too, if you'd like," he offered.

"Oh, that sounds like fun. Thanks, Duo," she said amiably, "Around what time?"

"Sometime after dark." Duo told her vaguely, then gave her directions to Sweetstone from I-35.

They hung up and he put the phone back on its hook, ducking a wayward cushion that had flown across the living room from the direction of the couch, where Jenna and Ben were again fighting over the remote. He didn't bother closing the door behind him.



Duo was sitting comfortably between Heero's bent legs, leaning back against his chest. The bridge they sat on was old and unkempt, its blackened boards eaten and splintered. It was too narrow for a car to pass over, so the El Camino was parked off the side of the white gravel road, the grass and weeds around it threatening to creep into the car and swallow it whole. The two fishing poles were propped up over the bridge's railing, the lines cast into the lazy creek below and a tackle box and a cooler full of beer sat beside them. Duo's guitar was on his lap as he hummed out a tune, scribbling or crossing out marks he'd made on a torn sheet of paper that was held down by a rock on the boards next to them.

"She called me da da da to say she loved me so… la da da she changed her mind…" Duo experimented softly, "I guess I should've known it wouldn't be alright, since… damn it."

"No, that was good." Heero told him, resting his chin on Duo's shoulder. "Keep going."

Duo grunted with derision, but stretched his right hand out, gave it a shake, and started again, "I guess she changed her mind… Well I should've known it wouldn't be all right… 'cause I can't live without her, so I won't even try." Duo stopped and scribbled the improvement down with his chewed-up pencil, muttering, "Oh, that's so much better…"

"Why's it so… upbeat?" Heero asked of the melody. His throat vibrated against Duo's skin as he spoke.

"You'll see when you hear the whole thing. It's like… self-depreciating humor, or… whatever." Duo pursed his lips. "…Anyway, it'll sound better that way with a full band." He added absently.

"A full band? You really think Walker'll bring that many people?"

"Hell yeah." Duo snorted.

It had only been a few people when they'd gone out to Sweetstone the other night. He, Heero, Maiser, Sylvia, and a few of her girlfriends had gotten drunk on a handle of bourbon and played around with some songs, able to play to a slightly fuller sound with Maiser on bass guitar. Now that Walker was back in town and sure to bring a party with him, they would be able to play as a real band. It was something Duo had been itching to try.

Duo continued, "He said something about a guy he knows with a drum kit and someone whose roommate has a guitar… or something like that, anyways." He set the pencil down and yawned, wiping his brow with the back of his hand.

Heero looked at their poles. "You know, I really don't think this is a great spot. We haven't caught anything all day."

"Hmm… There's a crawfish hole down the stream some… We should try down there, next time, I think.

"Híjole… It's hotter than a stolen tamale out here." Duo muttered, dropping his head back on Heero's shoulder and pulling the brim of his Stetson down against the harsh glare of the afternoon sun. "Did I tell you that Relena chick called me?" he suddenly remembered.

Heero shook his head and finished off his beer, crushing the empty can in his hand and tossing it in the cooler.

"She said she left some stuff, so she's gonna come by tonight." Duo said, palm reaching out to cover the back of Heero's hand. His eyes were taken by the way their fingers looked twisted up together, his golden tan against Heero's slightly browner bronzed skin. He pressed their knuckles to his lips and said against them, "You know, I really think the girl's desperate for some friends. She seems nice enough… I wonder why she's so lonely."

"Well, maybe she'll make some tonight. One more shouldn't make a difference." Heero said and pressed a kiss to Duo's shoulder. "Show me some more of that song."

One more, it turned out, made quite a bit more difference than either of them expected.



The night started out slow and easy.

Sylvia and a few others were drinking a bottle of tequila and playing poker at one of the round tables beyond the dance floor. Heero, Duo and Maiser worked through some songs, both those that Duo had written and old favorites. After they were warmed up, those playing poker abandoned their game to request songs they could dance to.

"Give us some Hank," called Sylvia.

"Give us some Merle," demanded the boy next to her.

"Give us some Cash!" yelled a voice from the open doorway. It was Walker, beer in hand. There were clearly more people behind him. "That's Johnny, of course. Unless, you know, you wanna give me some hard cash. I'm a bit low on dinero if you wanna help a guy out." Walker grinned.

"Walker, I'm so fucking broke I can't pay attention." Duo snorted, hopping down off the stage to greet them. "Not that I’d lend your degenerate ass money anyway. You'd blow it on weed in less than a day."

"That's good news for me," A big blond said, pushing his way around Walker. " 'Sup, Maxwell?"

"Hey, Alex," Duo greeted. He didn't know Alex all that well, he just knew he was the guy to go to if you wanted to get stoned beyond recognition. "So, Tweedle-Dee… where's Tweedle-Dum?" Duo asked of Alex's partner in crime.

"Easy, Maxwell," Mueller said, walking in behind Walker and Alex, a chest of beer in his arms. "We've come bearing gifts."

"Don't worry; it just gets better." Walker told Duo, and he stepped aside, allowing the crowd outside to begin pouring in. With them came another chest of beer, two guitars and amps, and a drum kit.

Duo's lighted eyes watched the instruments pass inside and he rubbed his hands together in gleeful anticipation, "Oh, you do bring the greatest presents…"

A few of the boys helped them set up all the equipment, and Duo, Heero, and Maiser were introduced to Alex and Mueller's roommate, a good-looking Hispanic kid named Chase who owned the drum kit. Someone found a microphone and stand in a back room and hooked it up as well.

The rest of the room was standing around in clumps, almost everyone with a drink in hand. Another round of poker was under way, and a few people had started up a game of Quarters. Once everything on stage was set up, Mueller picked up one of the guitars and began tuning it. Heero stuck with his guitar and Maiser his bass, but Duo, wanting to try something that wasn't his usual acoustic, picked up the other guitar they had brought. Chase took his seat behind his well-beaten drum kit and was the first to start warming up.

The others joined him, taking their time warming up and screwing around. Duo was pretty impressed by Chase's skill, and though Mueller wasn't anything special, he could play well enough that he would be beneficial and not a negative addition. They managed to put together a few of Duo's songs before Walker got impatient.

"Hey, Maxwell!" he called out over the noise of girl's gossiping and guys trying to talk themselves up enough to get lucky. "Since I was nice enough to find you a band, how 'bout playing us some fucking music!"

There were noises of agreement, and several requests were shouted out.

Duo held up a hand and looked out into the small crowd, smirking. "Alright… who wants to hear some Jerry Jeff Walker?"

With a roar of approval, they launched into "What I Like About Texas" and then moved onto "Texas On My Mind." There were more girls than guys in the dancehall, and so there were mostly couples of girls that were two-stepping together, giggling over how stupid they felt with no one to lead.

The patched-together band was finishing up a rendition of Billy Joe Shaver's "Live Forever" when Relena came in. Walker, seeing a cute girl he didn't know, was beside her in a heartbeat, offering a drink. She took it, shyly, and then waved at Duo and Heero.

Heero winked at Duo and nodded to her as she stepped closer. Duo gave Heero a slightly devious smirk and spoke into his mic, "I think I just spotted a pretty lady walk in… why don't you come on up here to the front, Miss Relena."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Heero shake his head with small amusement. A few guys whistled as Relena blushed and made her way through the dancers to the edge of the stage.

Duo took his microphone out of its cradle and said, "Now, this next song here's gonna to be dedicated to you, sugar, so make a request that means somethin'."

He knelt down and held the microphone out to her. She paused for a second, took it, and caught him by great surprise when she said, "I'd really like to hear one of yours, Duo." She turned to face the crowd and raised a hand up. "What do ya'll say?" she asked them, "Ya'll wanna hear one of Duo's songs?"

The crowd's answer was obvious and loud, the cheer accentuated by clapping and whistles. There couldn't have been more than a few dozen people there, but the hard surfaces made the volume intensify significantly and the narrow length of the room made it seem like there were more people packed inside than there actually were.

Relena turned back and smiled slyly, handing the mic up to Duo.

"Better make it good, I guess." She told him.

With a soft look of surprise on his face, Duo turned to Heero and held out his guitar. "Let's play the new one, I guess. You take lead, Mueller can take the other part, and I’ll just sing.

"Clever, Miss Relena, very clever." Duo said down to her, not speaking into the mic. He stuck it back in its cradle as Heero set his guitar down and slung the new guitar's strap over his shoulder.

Mueller jumped into the song with enthusiasm. The sound of his guitar with the understated tapping of Chase on the drums was energized and filling, and the perfect set-up for when Heero joined in with an open chord. Chase simultaneously kicked the drums up, and then Maiser launched in with a lively bass line. Heero's part soon opened up as Duo took the mic in his hands and began to sing.

"She called me late last night
To say she loved me so…
It didn’t matter anymore.
See she never cared,
And she never will.
I do all I can…
I guess I’ll just have to wait until then!

"If I get drunk
Well I’ll pass out on the floor now, baby
And you won’t bother me no more!
If you’re drinkin’
Well you know that you’re my friend,
And I say… I think I’ll have myself a beer.
I think I’ll have myself a beer!"

Perhaps it wasn't the friendliest song to dedicate to a nice girl, Duo thought as Heero ripped into a short solo, but it was a good song for a party, a good song for drinking, and that was all they needed or wanted right then. Duo grabbed the mic and pulled it to him like he would draw a person to him for a hard kiss, and let the words loose.

"She called me late last night
To say she loved me so…
But I guess you changed your mind
Well I should’ve known
It wouldn’t be alright…
Cause I can’t live without her,
So I won’t even try!

"If I get drunk
Well I’ll pass out on the floor baby
You won’t bother me no more!
If you’re drinkin’
Well you know that you’re my friend
And I say… I think I’ll have myself a beer.
I think I’ll have myself a beer!"

The line was punctuated by a beer tossed to him out of the crowd, from suspiciously close to where Relena stood, and the hall laughed when he cracked it open and drank it down right then.

The guitar solo was longer and wilder here, and it filled Duo with something bright to hear it; to hear people cheering for it, cheering for the music he and Heero made. The lights on the stage lit his soul and set fire to his voice as he sang the last of the song.

"Maybe someday… I’ll think of what to say.
Maybe next time, I’ll remember what to do!
She looks like heaven…
Maybe this is hell.
She said she’d do it all again…
She promised not to tell!

"And if I get drunk,
Well I’ll pass out on the floor baby
You won’t bother me no more
She said! It’s okay, boy,
'Cause you know we’ll be good friends…
And I said, I think I’ll have myself a beer!
I think I’ll have myself… whoa-oh, oh, ohh!
Ohh, ohh, oh, ohh,
Ohh, ohh, whoa, ohh, yeah!"

Duo and Heero sang the last bit together, sharing the mic and sharing the ovation from their audience. Heero's wild guitar faded into the insane roar of the small crowd, but just then, Duo noticed those closest to the door suddenly backing away and quieting down. He looked to the now open doorway.

There were two police officers standing in it.

"Oh, *fuck*." He murmured under his breath, quickly covering the mic with his hand. Duo drew a finger across his throat in a signal to the band to cut it. The hall fizzled into quiet, and as soon as people realized cops had caused the abrupt silence, it suddenly held half as many people. Every shred of alcohol was magically out of sight.

There was a crackle of a radio, and the officer's shoes rang out loudly across the floor.

"Now, something tells me you kids do not have permission to be here, am I right?" the officer said loudly, kids backing away with every step he took.

Duo hopped down off the stage, holding a hand out behind him, telling Heero to stay put. He walked straight up to the officer, a path cleared easily for him.

"I invited them." Duo said, getting the cop's attention.

The policeman stared him down. There was a bulge in his cheek that told Duo he had to be extra nice if he didn't want to end up getting dip spit on him. The cop looked down at one of the coolers by the wall.

"What's in the ice chest?" The officer said gruffly. Duo's level gaze did not waver.

"Ice." he said.

The officer glared at him, but Duo never blinked. The cop stepped back and looked around the room. The kids that hadn't drawn back into the shadows, snuck into other rooms, or climbed out the windows, were frozen, looking at each other nervously.

"Kids, this property is—"

And then the door opened again. This time, a boy and girl their age, both blonds Duo didn't recognize, stood there. The girl hung back and leaned against the doorframe, but the boy strode forward with purpose towards the officers and Duo.

"What in the hell are all these…" The boy drew up shortly, light eyes staring at someone just behind Duo. "…Relena?"

What the hell is going on here now, Duo wondered as Relena moved a little closer to him.

The newcomer's eyes flicked briefly to the two uniformed police officers, then over the rest of the room. When he spoke again, his tone had changed abruptly. "Relena… I didn't think anyone would be stopping by until later. Who are these gentlemen?"

Relena cleared her throat daintily and moved forward as if she were stepping into a well-practiced role. "I'm sorry to have come so early, Quatre." She smiled flickeringly at the policemen. "Officers, may I introduce Quatre Raberba Winner."

The boy named Quatre walked over and held a hand out for the officers to shake. "How can I help you, officers?" he asked with confidence. "You couldn't have had a noise complaint… our closest neighbors aren't for miles."

"Our?" Duo asked lowly in Relena's ear, looking her acquaintance up and down. Dangling from his left hand was a key that matched the one Duo and Heero used to get in, only it was on a keychain.

He certainly wasn't from the country, Duo recognized immediately. He wore ripped dark-washed bootcut jeans and a form-cut red t-shirt bearing some artfully faded logo on the front, and looked to be as tall as Heero and with a similar build, only his was narrower across the shoulders. His hair, the color of sun-dried apricots, was only half-dry, tossed over his eyes, and all of it together made him look like he'd either hiked here from a truck stop through the rain, or he'd just walked in out of a photo shoot for a Calvin Klein fragrance. It wasn't raining, so Duo had his money on the model thing.

The officer looked unconvinced. "This is your property?"

Quatre held up the keys. "My father's. He's allowed me to have some friends over this evening. That's not a problem, is it? You could call him, but I'm afraid he's out of town."

One officer turned in to his partner and spoke lowly, and Duo caught the name "Winner" several times. The other shook his head, muttering, and the first growled back at him.

He turned back to Quatre. "Our apologies then… Mr. Winner. We had no idea you were in town, and had reason to believe there were trespassers on your property."

"I thank you, but these are all my guests. I'll be sure to let you know if we have any unwanted ones, officer."

To Duo's surprise, the officers made no more arguments; they just left. The room was hushed, listening to the sound of the squad car driving away.

"Well, what are you waiting for, people?" Quatre said loudly. "Get back to partying!"

There was a bare moment's hesitation before the room erupted into noise, people suddenly appearing from the shadows and from behind the bar, though at least a quarter seemed to have disappeared into the night. Heero was the first off the stage, coming to stand behind Duo, but the others headed straight over to the coolers that were filled with a great deal more than just ice.

"So," The boy named Quatre said, clapping his hands together and rounding on Relena, "Why *are* all these people here? You're a lot more exciting than I gave you credit for, Miss Relena." The tone was playfully mocking.

Relena pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow. "Would you believe this all to be coincidence? I had no idea this was your place."

Duo decided it was a good time to step forward again. "Hey, man," he said to Quatre, holding a hand out in an act of peace, "Sorry about all this… I'm the one who got everyone out here."

Quatre tilted his head back appraisingly, but didn't acknowledge the gesture. "What's your name?" his tone almost implied a "boy" on the end of the question.

"Duo Maxwell." He answered, hand unwavering. Heero stepped up behind him and stared at Quatre evenly over Duo's shoulder.

Quatre's head tilted again to look at Heero, and then over at Relena. A small smile played on his lips and, after a pause, he firmly shook Duo's hand. "Well, then, Duo. It's good to meet you. Consider yourselves officially welcome."

"Thank you." Duo said in an imitation of Quatre's flippant tone, and Quatre looked at him differently.

"I like you." Quatre chuckled, as if he'd passed some sort of test, and called back over his shoulder, "Dorothy, for god's sake, the entertainment's over. Get out here."

From beside the doorway came a rather scripted laugh. "I disagree," the girl's voice said, "I find that this continues to be quite entertaining."

Duo knew the girl that emerged after it was, in an obvious way, not from Texas, just as he'd known Quatre was from the city. She was blond as well, but her hair was lighter, like the blinding white of the noon-time sun, and its considerable length was held back from her face by a chic headband. There was something distinctly catlike about her, from the slinky way her hips swayed and the deliberate crossing of her feet as she stalked over, to the focus of her eyes on her prey.

"Relena," She greeted, eying the other girl almost licentiously. "Always a pleasure."

"I'm sure." Relena murmured demurely. She cleared her throat. "I thought you were back home for the summer."

Dorothy gave a half-smirk, one eyebrow tilted at the same angle as her lips. "I'm visiting Quatre. After all, who wants to go home to parents like mine when I can abuse the hospitality of parents like his? We decided to see what interesting fun we could stir up down here, since his parents are having a boring cocktail at the big house in town."

"Which begs the question…" Quatre said with blatant curiosity, "Why are *you* here, Relena?"

Relena smiled at him. "Oh, Duo was nice enough to invite me to hang out with them. I met him and Heero last week when I came down to look at a horse. They're friends with the girl I bought her from."

"Oh, yes, your cowgirling." Dorothy said sparklingly, clapping her hands together. "Fascinating."

"Ah, on the subject of last week… I locked your jacket up behind the bar." Duo told Relena. "How'd you get into that bar without your wallet?"

"I had my license in my pocket and Cathy lent me money for the cover." Relena replied, looking slightly cross at Dorothy's comment.

"So that's why you kept letting that old guy buy you drinks." Heero said, giving her a small, amused smile. She blushed, but Dorothy gave her a vague look that was somewhere between surprised and impressed.

"How the hell do you guys all know each other?" Duo asked.

"School. We attend Kinston Prep together in Dallas." Relena told him.

"I have to say, Quatre, the people here seem much more amusing than the crowd we left in Dallas… what is this town called again?" Dorothy asked.

"Current City." Duo replied. "Though the 'current' part is a bit of a misnomer."

"And so is the 'city.'" Heero added flatly.

Dorothy made a noise of amusement. "Oh, yes, I think it would be much more entertaining to stay here for a while, don't you think, Quatre?"

Quatre smiled pleasantly. "I think you could be right, Dorothy. Relena, you're welcome to stay here with us, if you'd rather not drive back tonight. There are extra bedrooms upstairs."

Relena looked surprised by the invitation, but covered it by saying, "Oh, I didn't realize there was even a second story. Thank you, I may have to take you up on that."

A little later, Duo and Heero went outside for a smoke. They had taken four steps outside the door when Heero had Duo pinned against the wall, tongue pressing into his mouth.

Duo pulled back, nipping at Heero's lower lip, and breathed, "Well… how long have you been wanting to do this?"

Heero kissed him again, tonguing him deeply, but only for a second. "Too long," he growled.

A fierce grin leapt to Duo's lips and he dragged Heero around, pressing his body back against the wall. He kissed him, mouth closed, but it was just no less wild, their lips biting, mashing, bonding together. Heero's hand wounded in the base of Duo's braid and forced a tilt to his head, and Duo's tongue retaliated, working its way back into Heero's mouth.

Duo abruptly broke away, saying, "Well… I'm sure as shit glad we invited Relena."

Heero just laughed and kissed him again.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Beer" is by Cory Morrow
"What I Like About Texas" by Jerry Jeff Walker
"Texas On My Mind" by Jerry Jeff Walker
"Live Forever" by Billy Joe Shaver as sung by Cory Morrow

Chapter 7

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