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"Defying Gravity"A Romance in Three PartsWritten By: Kaeru Shisho Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Gundam Wing
or its characters, nor do I make any monetary profit off this story. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: AU, yaoi, some language Summary: A multi part story of romance starting
with a turning point vacation, developing throughout a dangerous UC
mission, and moving ahead through the unexpected challenges of a summer
vacation. "Part Two: It's Back to Work"
Chapter 1
We acquired the house with a year-to-year lease and moved in the next weekend. Winner wrangled furnishings to remain in the house for our use, like the tables, chairs, couches, washer and drier. We ordered beds to suit our tastes and Winner applied the pressure for weekend delivery. With four of us supplying the muscle moving in was over in an afternoon. Duo, staying off his strained ankle, unloaded the kitchen boxes. Only he would know where to find anything in there for the next few weeks. He could claim domain over the kitchen or the whole place, as long as he found his way to my room at night. Because none of us owned anything of value, which wouldn't fit in a locker- except for Winner- it didn't seem practical to even lock the doors. We, however, had our enemies and our ingrained war habits. Barton, Duo and I installed a state-of-the-art security system. Barton and I placed the sensors, while Duo implemented the necessary programming. Winner and Chang tested it, but they are not the best at infiltration; Barton and Duo are. Chang knew that this exercise was mostly for Duo's benefit. He needed to be kept busy and off his feet. Being injured with limited mobility conflicted with his outgoing personality and active, growing body. I was pleased to discover that Duo still chose me with which to work off of his excess energy. When his injured ankle could fully support his weight again, I promised to show him the joys of running. In the meantime, he seemed to enjoy inventive, and sometimes combative, sex. Our bedrooms stood across the hall from one another, with Winner and Barton sharing the master suite at the end. Chang's room was on the other side of the house with the kitchen in between. This arrangement afforded us all our privacy. Chang especially did not want to hear the activities of four sexually-active, homosexual friends. I didn't blame him. Duo was loud and explicit. Duo was loud in bed with me. I don't know why I would have thought or expected otherwise. He was noisy when he was excited or happy, and he had been very vocal at the cabin. This, however, was a typical thin-walled house shared with others, so I was shocked at first. The notion that he would be reticent and wish to avoid contact with me crossed my mind. When we left the mountain cabin, he clearly stated that he wanted our affair to remain a secret. For the few days the five of us remained in the Preventer's dormitory before moving, Duo checked into the infirmary. Possibly, he didn't want the other agents to perceive him as an injured animal. He wouldn't say. As talkative a man as he was, he concealed more inside- but not during sex. Once we had a room to ourselves, he let me know exactly how he felt, what he liked, and how he liked it. He turned me on like no one else. Up to this point sex for us was great- all oral and manipulative contact. Anal sex was off limits. Neither one of us was ready to play the submissive role. He, in particular, adamantly refused to consider the possibility in the future. I knew that I wanted that extra closeness. I also knew that meant that it would be me who would have to open to him, and I needed better control over my killer reflexes before that could happen. Counseling helped us all. Barton agreed to accompany Winner. I believe resolving their sexual problems drove him to action, but Barton had his own personal issues to consider. I believe my self-improvement impressed him. As his partner, he had pointed out behavioral changes from time-to-time and told me how much easier to work with I'd become. Not in those words. He spoke nearly as infrequently as I. The possibility to live a fuller more complete life after being a driven Gundam pilot was real, but it required application and the active cooperation of others. Duo would not allow me to participate in his therapy sessions, nor would he join me during mine. Our relationship had to remain at home, at any cost, so it seemed. He did not want his homosexuality known around the workplace. How he could gain anything from counseling without revealing this most important aspect of his life, I didn't know. Possibly, he did tell his therapist that he was gay, knowing it would be confidential information, but he didn't discuss the content of his counseling sessions with me. Once we passed through the doors of our house, however, he was mine. My libido surpassed his, surprisingly. I always imagined an energetic, outgoing guy like him would be more aggressive; instead, I initiated our sexual activities. Still, he freely demonstrated his affection around the house. Duo enjoyed our contact. He snuggled on the couch, touched me constantly, and kissed me without warning and in front of the others, the other ex-Gundam pilots. This triggered several outbursts from Chang until one day Duo stunned us all. Barton and Winner were watching the news broadcast on the television. Duo and I were engaged in a private, passionate kissing activity, while making dinner. Chang had been in his own room, but chose to join us. "Take that disgusting behavior out of the kitchen if you are preparing my food," Chang said. He hadn't meant to sound so sharp. I knew he had had a bad day at work and was dumping on us, but Duo wouldn't have known. So when Duo broke away suddenly, I was afraid he was angry or hurt. Instead, I noticed something else, a playful, yet dangerous, glint in his eye. Chang should have left. "Aw, are you feeling left out?" Duo asked him "Not at all. I am hungry and impatient." Duo's grin widened. He closed in on the other man with an awkward shuffle, nearly loosing his balance due to his braced ankle. Chang reached out to catch his fall, and ended up with an armful of Duo. Had he simply kissed Chang and laughed, it would have been one thing, a joke, but he held Chang's head in place and kissed him hard, thrusting his tongue inside and grinding his groin into our friend. When they parted, Chang was red-faced and breathless. I was stabbed with jealously, a blow painful enough to make me fall backwards onto the counter. Chang sucked up a lung-full of air, shouted curses in Chinese, and stomped off. Duo smiled smugly and chuckled. I hit him. He blocked my punch. "Hey! Why d'ya do that?" "You're my boyfriend!" I announced. "You don't do that to other guys, even as a joke, which I hope it was!" Duo struck back, and I blocked, catching his fist in one hand and bearing down on him, rotating and pushing him over the sink. He was a good fighter, ruthless when pushed, but I was stronger and his bad leg further disadvantaged him. He pushed, my arm struck the faucet, and his face was drenched in cold water. That pissed him off. He wrenched us around and we toppled onto the floor, where he attempted to pummel my face and chest. The impact of the fall knocked my breath away, but I gripped his wrists before much damage happened. I used my brute strength to gain leverage to flip him over. Weighing him down with my legs and chest pressing full length along his and holding his arms above his head, glued to the floor, I controlled his movements. He was spitting mad. I was turned on. I chanced he wouldn't bite me and pressed my lips to his, running my tongue across his lower lips and moaning as blood rushed to my lower parts. The urge to thrust my hips overpowered my willpower for self-defense, and I dry-humped him there on the kitchen floor. "I have to agree with Chang this time," Barton drawled from the bar separating the front room from the kitchen. "At least finish making dinner for the rest of us before you start in on each other." "I think Wufei liked you better when you were in denial," Winner said. When Winner giggled, I was truly mortified by my behavior. Thankfully, Duo had done a complete turn-around and was able to laugh it all off. We finished cooking, called Chang back, and apologized profusely- both of us. After that we set some ground rules for out-of-line behavior in the shared rooms, which rarely got broken. A day later, Duo and Winner took off. I envied their friendship, always. Duo spoke with his best friend with ease about topics he wouldn't with me. I should have felt thankful that he'd open to someone, and I was, but I wished it could have been me instead. I wondered how long he could balance one of us as best friend and the other as lover. I wondered how long I could bear it. "Yuy?" Barton found me staring after Winner's car. "What?" "I was going for target practice. Wanna come?" "Sure." I did feel like shooting something. On the way, my partner shared some interesting information. Barton was a man of few words, as was I, but, with caring insight, he managed to unlock a few doors of private information I had sealed away. Winner affected him that way, making him sensitive and caring. I had no doubt that the two friends loved each other. It was reflected in the way Barton treated others now. "You got it bad, Yuy." "Do I?" "Yeah. You are in love with that little twerp and he's afraid of how vulnerable that makes him if he gives in and love's you just as much." "What makes you think that?" "He tells Quatre, who tells me. Oh, Quatre doesn't tell his friend's secrets intentionally. He tells me how things I used to do he sees Duo doing, and we talk about it." "So it is a self-confidence issue," I sighed. "I don't know why. He's smart, talented, and attractive. Why does he feel less than he is?" Barton shrugged. "I ain't the shrink." "He makes disparaging remarks about himself at times, being a street kid from L2, where being a homosexual teenager meant you were either a whore doomed to die, or dead." "Sounds like you do know what his problem is, then. He needs to see gay men who have made a success of their lives and are proud of it." "How about us?" "I don't know. We don't count, I guess." Barton had nothing more to add and our conversation turned to more mundane subjects after that. His words stuck in my head, though. I wondered where I could find the right role model for him. He made my life so complicated. This is no complaint. Put me in a bedroom alone with Duo and there was nothing better this side of the universe. (o) Duo required a cane or crutch to walk for over two months. During that time he stayed home, learned to change the sheets and do laundry. His cooking was marginal at first, but no one complained when we came home and food was bubbling on the stove or baking in the oven. About the second week after we moved in, I found Hilde in the kitchen when I arrived home. I knew she and Duo had been "just friends" awhile, but I was also aware of how much she liked him and how much she wanted to make more of that friendship. I wasn't about to leave them alone. Apparently she had taken the entire day off to take Duo to the market, buy groceries, and teach him some cooking techniques. Once he mastered the basics, she told us, he could follow any recipe successfully. As a housewarming present, she presented us with two cookbooks and a few of her favorite tools—a sharp peeler, a micro-grater, a large mixing bowl, and a long wooden spoon. I have to give the woman credit. After that, there was no holding him back. Duo's cooking was matchless and adventurous. I wished he would never return to work. That first day of training was his culinary turning point. Another bone of contention was raised again that day, too. "Sally is coming over," Hilde told me, "with Wufei. Oh, and so's Relena and Dorothy." "Relena?" I hadn't seen her in months. Duo's eyes caught mine as he studied my reaction. I had told him of our one kiss, which had happened a long time ago. What had moved me to kiss her was a complex mix of leashed in emotions, but not love. I did not pine for her. She was a friend and the leader of our peaceful colonial-earth alliance. Nothing more. I had told Duo repeatedly that my heart was his and his only, to cherish or not. I hoped now that my eyes reassured him of that fact again. "Uh, huh," Hilde went on. "A real surprise. She just called and missed running into you at headquarters, so we invited her over for dinner." "Sounds like a party." I looked from Hilde to Duo and smiled. I tried to make that a supportive smile. "I'll go shower quickly." I think I handled the evening well. I was politely attentive to everyone. I made a point to compliment the cooks, especially Duo. I knew he wouldn't want me to kiss or touch him, not with the women present, so I behaved with restraint, while not seeming aloof. When the Relena and Dorothy prepared to leave, I kissed Relena's hand and she hugged me, hoping for more, possibly, but accepting what I could give. I knew I had performed admirably. Sally and Hilde joined the five us for a movie. I was amused by Chang's refined manners in the presence of women. He had matured, no longer cursing the weakness of women, but admiring their strength, and, in Sally's case, their feminine attributes. He was attentive, offering them the best seats, drinks, and snacks. Chang was a perfect gentleman, alarmingly so. I think he had been taking lessons from Winner, although, he had grown up in a wealthy clan. Surprising to me, Winner and Barton did not hide their relationship from our guests, nor did they flaunt it. I envied them all night, longing to wrap an arm around Duo, hold his hand, and kiss him. I think Duo knew how I felt. He slipped me looks every so often, and once he clipped me on the back of the head when he passed. I snagged his braid and gave it a tug, but nothing else. I knew that when the girls went home, I would still have the room across from his, and possibly share it. To make sure Hilde did go home, after recognizing the signs of a hanger-oner, I offered to drive her home exactly five minutes after the movie ended. Sally was Chang's problem. "Oh, no thanks, Heero," Hilde said. "I got my car and since there wasn't any booze I can drive. What, you got a hot date tonight?" She looked around as if to search for the girl I was hiding, and caught Duo staring straight at me, eyes wide, startled. His expression was a dead giveaway, if you had a mind to think of two men as hot dates. I stepped up gallantly. "No. I have paper work to do and some research." "On a Friday night? You are too dedicated, Heero. You ought to get out more. Have some fun, you know?" "I'll do that, Hilde." She kissed me on the cheek, and Duo, too, and then left, promising to come next week for baking lessons. I walked her to the car and thanked her for Duo's cooking lessons. "Duo's confidence in the kitchen has improved." "And you're eating better, heh, heh. It's been my pleasure. I mean, anything to get a little closer to him, ya know? Not that it makes any difference. He doesn't get my hints. I mean, what's a gal to do to get him worked up? Any ideas? You live with the guy." "I'm afraid not. I'm not the one to ask." "Didn't think so, seeing as you never date either. I should ask Wufei, I guess. Well 'night!" When I entered the house, Chang was speaking to Duo. I didn't see Sally in the room. I hung back to give them a moment to finish. "He saved your ass, Maxwell, although why you wish to continue this ridiculous pretense, I don't know. Here, I thought he was the natural killer, but it's you who's killing him slowly." Whatever Duo was about to say, didn't get said. Sally returned from the bathroom, thanking Duo for cooking the "delightful" meal. It would have been awkward for me to pull Chang aside a tell him to mind his own business, so instead I headed to the kitchen to load the dishwasher and wash any remaining pots and pans. I was drying my hands when I heard a footstep behind me and felt a pair of sinewy arms wrap around my waist. "Thanks." "Thank you for the nice dinner, Duo." "Yeah," he said. "Hilde wants to get closer to you, you know. She told me so. She asked me for advice, from which I excused myself." Remembering what I knew Chang had already said to him, I added, "I told Relena I was gay some time ago. It wasn't right for me to lead her on any longer. She held too influential and public a figure for me to play games. I made her unhappy; it was difficult to do, but she appreciated my honesty." "Are you saying you think I should be upfront with Hilde?" he asked. "It's up to you, Duo. Sooner or later word will get around that I'm gay. If you're seen spending time with me, conclusions will be drawn, like it or not. I'm not advertising myself, but I'm not going to lie either, if someone asks." "So you're warning me?" "Yes. If you attempt to hide your sexuality, you take the chance that someone might discover your secret and reveal you at an inopportune moment." "Or I can host a coming out party and tell all, huh? I'm not sure, no, hell, I know I can't do that, not yet." I sighed, feeling his pain and uncertainty wash over me, then smiled. "Then I will do my best to protect your image." "Thanks, Heero. I don't deserve what you're willing to give me all the time." "Oh, Duo," I said holding him tight against my chest. "I love you. It's not about deserving or not. It just is." He shook his head. "Come on, stud. Enough talk." I let him drag me to his room and rip off my clothes. It was such a rare event for him to be the aggressor, I wanted to relish the moment. And him. "You know," he said in a husky, sexy voice. "Sally's staying over, in Fei-man's room." "You are kidding." "No, I'm not. Fei-man got the girl, finally." To celebrate, we made love very, very quietly, with some light jazz turned low. (o) I knew Commander Une wanted Duo back on the job, the same job doing undercover, infiltration work, the worst and most dangerous. While he was home and incapacitated I took every opportunity to investigate job openings with Preventers and show him other choices: security, recruit training, tech design, computer support, and, as he pointed out, the garage. He promised to think about it. Really. And I believed him. I also knew Une wouldn't let him go without a fight, so I decided to take action while he was still home convalescing. First thing back at work on Monday morning, I knocked on the office door of our superior. We had words. "He begs for it. He loves it. He insists," Commander Une said. I frowned and replied, "A john told me that practically word for word minutes before I arrested him." "What? You asked me why I gave Agent Maxwell the toughest duties, and I told you the truth. He won't take the average jobs, and there's plenty of work out there waiting for his special talents." "Yeah, and you're not assigning him those other jobs, just the brain-rape ones. I'll bet every pimp thinks the same way." "I beg your pardon, Agent Yuy. You are over-stepping the boundaries of decency and proper protocol. You have no right--" "He's treated here like some high-priced whore. Paying him for his services, while he gets his brain fucked over and over. Well, I'll tell you, whores don't like it. Sex is a commodity, and they hate it all. It's demeaning, painful, and dangerous, but they do it to survive." "He's getting therapy." "Don't give him the jobs. Don't give him the jobs no matter how much he begs, because now you know what you're doing to him, and that he doesn't love it or want it or need it. He simply hates himself so much it's his punishment, his absolution for..." I paused and thought first. No I would not be the one to "out" him. "...for whatever sins he believes he has committed. And he'll continue until he makes a mistake and dies. I don't want him to die, Commander Une." "I certainly don't want that either. I would like to know how you obtained this personal knowledge about the man when three weeks of counseling hasn't uncovered a single problem." "I, uh... he's my friend. We share a house with others. We talk." "You talk." "He talks to Agent Winner as well." "I see. If I re-assign him, that will pose the problem of getting him a partner. Someone like you, serious, capable, but not you." "No, not me. I would recommend someone older, confident, successful, and, um...gay." "Why is that?" "He would not respect a weaker man, and an overly aggressive male would make him lose confidence. Gay would be perfect." "You have been thinking about this a considerable amount, haven't you?" "Yes. I believe it would be in his best interests to take a job elsewhere, something non-violent. I don't know if he agrees, but he said he'd think about it." "And if he won't, then you are covering the bases, are you?" "Yes." "Well, thank you, Agent Yuy. I will think about what you have told me. Now, I have a meeting to catch, if you don't mind my rushing you off." "No. I'm done." I nodded sharply, and left her office, hoping I had not said too much, but confident to have done the right thing. I wouldn't know the fall out until months later when Duo returned to duty at Commander Une's request. This time, I lost every battle on every front that mattered. (o) "Isn't that Zechs Marquise?" Chang asked. "Milliardo Peacecraft," Winner corrected him. "Code name 'Wind', once he joined the staff of the Preventer Intelligence Bureau. I wonder what he's doing here in Sanc again? He's been working off-Earth." "I thought I detected a foul stench." "Wufei! He's on our side." Winner smiled. "He's only four years older than us. Funny, during the war he seemed far more grown up and we were like kids." "Kids playing war with the biggest kick-ass killing machines made," Barton put in. "What's the excitement? You ready for lunch yet?" "Lunch? It's not even eleven, Trowa," Winner said. He frowned, but his voice gave away his pleasure at being desired by the other man. "Bored back at work already?" "I have interests," Barton muttered. He and Winner exchanged conspiratorial smiles. I knew Duo had been in to see Une first thing. I had hoped he would have stopped by to see me and let me know how their meeting had gone, but he hadn't. His meeting with her a couple weeks before hadn't ended well either. He had been itching to get back into action, and she was holding him in a waiting pattern until a partner arrived Yes, he was still an agent ready to log dangerous missions. I hadn't seen him leave her office, so I guessed he must still be inside, waiting. I had attempted to go see him myself, but someone had found a reason to block my path, delay me with questions, or require my personal attention for just another minute-- like my room mates, presently. I looked up and asked, "Why are you all at my desk? Our appointment isn't for ten minutes." "Platinum-blond prince at two-thirty," Barton said. "I wonder what he's doing in this building?" Winner asked. I moved to my door. My eyes narrowed as I watched Zechs stride gracefully through the building to Commander Une's door, then knock and enter. Chang could recognize my mood down-swing immediately from the increase in tension across my jacket and the condition of the balled up paper in my fist, the draft of a report I'd been working on all morning. "You know, don't you?" he asked me. I turned toward the door. "Duo is in Une's office. She called him in today to meet his new partner." "He's never had a partner before," Winner said. "Did he ask for one?" "No," I said. "I did." "You asked our boss to get Duo a partner?" Winner asked, his eyes growing as he realized the complete truth. "He doesn't know you did that?!" Chang clicked his tongue and sniffed. "I thought you two were close." I twisted my head and stared into his obsidian-black eyes. "What do you mean?" "You should know him better than to do a stupid thing like that. Maxwell will not forgive you for interfering. I wouldn't, if it were me." Chang drew his breath and lifted his chin in a haughty manner. "Oh, Heero," Winner moaned. "I know who's not getting any for awhile," Barton muttered. "Can we go now?" I was reeling. I hadn't thought that Zechs would ever return to earth. It troubled me that the man met my description of a partner for Duo too well, although I had no idea whether or not he was gay. He was certainly handsomer than necessary, striking in fact. I felt the familiar twinge of jealousy and uncertainty churning my gut. It was possible that I had made a tactical error. "No, Trowa," Winner said, oozing patience. "We have that appointment with the commander, and you know it. Look here she comes." "Oh, joy." Barton stiffened and turned warily in the direction Winner pointed. Chang joined us at my desk. "She's smiling. That's always a bad sign." "Gentlemen," Commander Une purred. "You have made this so convenient for me, gathering together like a pride of lions. Oh, I'm sorry; I guess those are mostly female. Pack of wolves, then. Well, come along little puppies and I'll make this quick and painless." "My dentist once used a line like that on me," Barton muttered. "Did he hurt you?" Chang asked, taking the bait. "No way. I told him I like it slow, hard, and in the ass—" "Trowa!" Winner shouted, cutting him off. "That's not true or funny. His dentist is a lovely woman," he said to us before turning back to his wayward boyfriend. "You never say a word to her." Barton shrugged, Chang glared at him, and I hid a smile. The commander pretended she hadn't heard. She entered her office. "Gentlemen, I'd like you to meet our head of infiltration and undercover strategies, Milliardo Peacecraft. I know you all recognize one another, but this time we are all going to be friends and work together. He will be Duo Maxwell's partner."
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