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"Romance Vignettes "Written 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: R Warnings: Yaoi, AU Pairings: 1+2, 3+4, 5+6 Summary: For your thanksgiving Holiday reading.
All six Gundam pilots get a stab at telling how Duo and Heero finally
get together, with diversionary glimpses into their own romances. "Romance Vignettes " Part One Chapter One - Duo "Hey, Quat! Long time no hear!" I loved getting a call from this particular friend. Quatre was always up to something interesting. "Shhh!" I was amused by Vid-phone-image Quatre setting a finger to his lips in the well-understood signal for silence as lowered his voice to a whisper. "Is Trowa in?" he asked. I made an act of looking around the small, dimly lit office that housed the computer security business Trowa and I had been running for about a year or so. Then like a flash I moved to within inches of the vid-phone screen. "JUST ME, BABY!" I shouted and laughed. Oh, the face he made! Rich. The friend on the other end of the call didn't laugh. He gave a twisted smile and The Sigh of Tolerance. "I need your help." "Sure, always at your service. What's up?" "Actually, it is Trowa. Something's wrong. I went out of my way to 'accidently' run into him twice while he was installing the new surveillance system at the Sanc offices and, well, he's been so awfully quiet." "Um. You know, he's always quiet. Nothin' new there." "That's not what I mean, and you know it. You notice it, too, don't you?" "If what you mean is how's he's been moping around more since you started dating Wufei, then yeah." "Oh, that's just not- Oh, I see! You don't think-? No, that's just silly-" "Silly? Trowa is a lotta things, but silly isn't one of them," Duo said. "Well, he is silly if it's me he wants to date and never asks. Wufei asked." I had to sigh my own patented Sigh of Sick-of-Brick-for-Brains-Friends. Totally unenthused to play romantic liaison, especially for one who really had the means to do this on his own, I started to fill in the information that somehow had gotten past my remarkably intelligent but bizarrely ignorant friend. "Wufei completed his degree in history and he inherited the Long Clan wealth and insurance from the L5 destruction and he's a senior agent with Preventers. He is coming at you from an equal status. Trowa's just a guy working his way through life with a sketchy background and uncertain future. He's got nothing to bring to the table." "The table? I'm not expecting suitors to lay out offerings to entice me. What makes you think a thing like that?" I pivoted the vid-phone viewer so that the monitor faced a grimy window and spread my arms to invite my well-heeled friend to look out over a parking garage and a brick wall, decorated with graffiti. "I'd say that your office-you know, with its 275 degree from the 500-th floor view of the Sanc Kingdom instead of this- is a mind-blowing distinction that doesn't get past Trowa. And that's just the tip of the Winner iceberg that covers Earthsphere like a-" Quatre waved his hand. "Wrong metaphor. You want sand dunes not icebergs." I was growing exasperated now, which I tried to communicate with a heated look and an edge to my voice he couldn't miss. "It's damned intimidating. You and that ginormous family of yours... Oh, yeah, and that corps of Maguanacs you got hanging around you, too." "My... situation... in life doesn't bother you. It shouldn't be a deterrent to-" "I'm not in love with you, dipshit!" "Oh." "Yeah. O-oh." "And you think Trowa is?" "Is...?" Say the damn words, will ya? Quatre huffed. "Is in love with me! You'd think I would recognize such a thing, if it existed, wouldn't you? I'd feel it here." He pressed a hand over his heart. "You mean that space-heart thing you say you've got? Yeah, you'd think that would work." I sniffed. "That was sarcasm, by the way." "I know-." "Well, there's no fooling you, heh, heh." I shouldn't have let up on him and started joking around; it gave him a chance to become all uppity again. "And it does work, sometimes." I made a grand gesture to clear the slate of all empathic hocus-pocus. "Forget that shit. What matters is how you feel about Trowa- and about Wufei, for that matter." "I like Wufei and Trowa." "Uh, huh." Give me a break, buddy. "I do!" "That's not the point. Trowa is hurting because he doesn't think he can compete with Wufei, if it comes to that-" "Trowa has a good job. You both are starting a new company. Working hard. I admire hard work. It's commendable-" "It's drudgery, actually. And, as I was saying, he's quiet because he doesn't want to say the wrong thing." "Well, he can't say the wrong thing since he never manages to say anything. He hardly knows me anymore, and I certainly don't know his mind. Did he confide his feelings with you?" "Ah, sorta." "What did he say? Or do you have a secret-silence pact?" "A what? You are weird, Quatre. C'mon, you know how he is. Holds his cards close to his chest." "But he said something to you that makes you think he- he is attracted to me?" I nearly crossed my eyes automatically, and then did so out of frustration. "Yes!" Quatre waited expectantly. "Why do I feel like one of the girls here?" I blew out my breath in a long noisy stream. This had a calming effect for me. It also gave me a space to think in. Wording this next part was gonna be tricky. "Okay. It went like this: Trowa goes, 'I love,'- and he either said 'cats', as in C-A-T, or 'Quat's', as in your, - 'smile.' But since you'd just beamed at us in passing at Dorothy's party and there were no pussy cats around and we hadn't been talking about the toothy grins the big cats give him at the circus, I figure he meant you." "Oh." Quatre looked disappointed. "You had to be there to get the full impact," Duo told him. "It's just..." "Whoa. Fading out like that means I get to fill in as I want." I allowed my lips to pull into a smile while making him wait and imagine what I'd pull out of my hat next to shock him. "Let's see... Oh, I got it! It's just... that he's so mysterious and normally so cool-or is it that's he's so hot?" "Duo." The pounding of Quatre's fist on the monitor frame demonstrated more irritation than the tone of voice, which he'd kept under tight control and very correct. "I have given him ample opportunities to say something. He could ask me out; he could ask me to have coffee with him. But he doesn't... think of me in that way." "And Wufei does, you think?" "Wufei and I enjoy... We share several interests and can go about making plans to do them together. He's not afraid to invite me to join him or to talk." "And that's enough for you? Don't you want to feel your heart go pitter-patter all excited like?" "Of course I would, I mean, I do, a little. It's something! Darn it, Duo!" "You started it!" I blew out my breath, which worked so well before, letting off more of the accumulated tension. "Listen, if 'Fei does it for you then, great. I'll just head back to my lopsided desk and mind my own business, but you asked why Trowa was down, and I told ya. Leave me outta your sordid love loops from now on." "Oh, well, bye-" I cut the call. Trowa knew his own mind and what he should or shouldn't do to win the Winner of his choice. He didn't need me to interfere. If he asked for advice, I would tell him to move on and find someone in his own social circle, but I knew Trowa would never ask. "Besides," I muttered into the void of the room, "I've got my own stupid, hopeless love life to attend to, should I want to torture someone." Getting Heero to consider me as something more than a friend was probably about as hopeless a goal as I could dream up. At least Trowa knew Quatre was capable of dating men. I hadn't observed Heero showing any level of sexual attraction for anyone of either sex. "Dream on, baby, dream on." Chapter Two- Heero So, there came a day when I thought Duo had lost it. He and Barton had been cosseted in Une's office for over an hour. The commander wanted to subcontract their new security business, since they refused to fall under her spell and return to working for her as permanent employees. I was present in the building for a similar, though, unrelated reason. In my opinion, Une wanted all the Gundam pilots close at hand and under her command. In my case, she felt I had a duty to train new recruits, even if only part-time with Preventers paying for my education-something she considered worthless but negotiable. I could use the money, so I was considering her latest offer and thinking to run it past Chang, when Duo bounded up to me. "Hey, 'Ro? Imagine meeting you here, heh, heh... Um, so while I have your undivided attention, I was wondering-" "What do you want?" I asked to hurry him along a little. Wufei wouldn't remain at his desk for much longer and I did want to see him. "Can I count on your for a hand moving this weekend?" he asked. "Moving? As in moving to another apartment? Didn't you just do that less than six months ago?" "Well, yeah. That place was a dive. I don't know whatever possessed me to think that rat's nest woulda worked." "Are you sure about this new apartment?" I wasn't and I hadn't even seen it. "Oh, yeah. It's pretty sweet. Gotta balcony and all. So... you in? Hey, Tro'! Look who I found lurking about the building." "Are you surprised?" Barton asked. He and I exchanged greetings, what Duo called our "nods of respectful recognition." I didn't think Trowa Barton was surprised to see me. We had talked over what we thought Une's offer would be the night before. "Have you checked out Duo's new apartment?" I asked. "Time to clean the bathroom?" Trowa asked Duo, a gleam in his eye. "Hey! I clean every so often and that's not why I moved from the last place!" Trowa shook his head to the negative and looked at me. "He trying to get you to move him again? You've helped him move no fewer than two times a year since you'd both started at Preventers. I might-" "Don't need the observation, Tro'," Duo broke in, pushing his business partner to the side. "Indeed," chimed in Chang, leaning at the open door to his office. "We can all count." Seven. This would make it the seventh move. I was still living in the same apartment I'd started with. Trowa tried getting a word in edgewise again. An unsolicited word, I might add. "Just saying that I could lend-" "Barton, this needs your urgent attention. Whether or not you join Preventers or remain subcontractors, the commander has asked me to examine this new charter for security upgrades, and I'd like your input by Monday." Chang dragged him to his open door, then, looking momentarily Duo's way, added. "It will consume his weekend. The entire time, since you'll be preoccupied with your move." He shoved Trowa inside his office. "Mine, too," he tagged on as he closed the door and secured the lock. "Oh." Duo faced me, his eyes wary at first. "So, you gotta excuse, too?" I shook my head to the negative; no excuses. "All right." I was nearly blinded by his grin. "You'll do it? You'll help? " "What time should I show up?" He'd say noon and I'd be there at 8:00 AM. "How 'bout we get started not too early, catch some lunch...?" The rest of his imaginative plans and what I was about to say had to wait. Four agents and one commander's assistant blocked the aisle. "Mr. Maxwell? Commander Une would like you to return to her office. You left your cell phone and briefcase-" "-Coulda brought them to me-" "-and one more signature is required," she finished. Chagrined, Duo nodded and turned to go back. "I rushed out when I saw you here, uh, not forgetful. Um... I'll catch you later. You'll still be here?" "I will talk to Wufei in a moment; I have an hour before I have a class to catch." "Cool! I won't be long." I knocked on Chang's door and Barton opened it. "Maxie hiding?" he asked, probably wondering where Duo was. I explained the particulars and he smiled faintly. "One look at you and it's a mind swipe," is what I think I heard him mutter as he wandered off in the direction of Une's office. "Yuy." Wufei sighed as if he shouldered the problems of the world, and with his job, he probably did so on a regular basis. "You know Maxwell does this just to get your attention." "Does what-work?" "Don't play clueless with me, Yuy. That's just beneath you." "I wasn't! I don't know what the hell you're talking about." I did not try to read minds-Chang's, Barton's, Winner's, but especially not Duo's. It was hard knowing Duo's mind. I'd known him for years, but I didn't know anything important. "Let me explain to you just as I did with Barton," Wufei said. He paced the length of his desk, arms behind his back, reminding me of one of my tottering, loquacious, professors. "I'm not a child-!" "In a way, you both are- both you and Barton, maybe we all are deficient socially." I think he added that last part to head off my denial. Then he threw me, as Duo once said, a curve ball. "How aware are you of Duo's feelings for you?" Frowning covered for my surprise, or was supposed to. "I thought so," he said. "I will say no more and spoil the fun, but I am curious if you know your own... feelings toward him?" Nothing was stranger than addressing my feelings about another man, a good friend, with another man, also a good friend, unless actually discussing those feeling with the man was next. I hated strange, so I glared a substitute for a wordy reply. Duo should have been done at Une's office by this time, and I had decided to take her offer in spite of what Chang would advise, so I turned and left his office. If I had a few minutes to spare, I'd rather share them in Duo's company. That was answer enough for anyone. Or should be. If they were listening carefully. Chapter Three - Quatre Now that Trowa and I had come to... an understanding (foolish man thinking his silent treatment would make him seem mysterious and, so, enthrall me to him, which it did, so not so foolish- except that making "obtaining Quatre" a contest which he could win against Wufei worked fabulously for me). I had a little magic planned for my dear friend Wufei for his part. But first I had to do something for Duo and Heero. I wouldn't let Duo use any more excuses. He'd relocated, again. And Heero had graciously helped him, again. And Duo had already mourned over Heero's reliable, but platonically inclined, assistance. Trowa had cleared Duo's calendar of intrusive work-related activities. It was time to talk and apply a little pressure, with love. In order to do that I needed Duo out of his element and weakened, and I had just the way to do that. "Duo, I know you don't like going to the dentist-" "I don't even like talking about going to the dentist, frankly," Duo said in an attempt to end the conversation. "So I found the best, I mean the absolutely crème de la crème pick of all the dentist bouquets." "Picks in a dental bouquet? Ewwww," Duo joked. Joking was a good sign. "I am nearly at your door." "What?! I-I got loads of stuff to do today!" Duo's panic-stricken voice had risen a couple octaves. "No, you don't. Trowa told me your calendar was clear." "Tro' baby! You wouldn't give me away, would you?" he wailed to no one, because I knew Trowa wasn't in the office with him. He'd been with me. "Ha!" I laughed. Duo stopped his moaning. "What?" "OZ missed the boat entirely with us when it came to getting information. Torture was not the way." "Well, there's limits, I suppose-"he attempted to argue, "-so, what?" "Sex," that shut him up, "on the other hand worked pretty well, at least for me-" "What?!" Duo wasn't usually this repetitive. He was usually very imaginative with words. "Trowa?" "We've had a date or two." "You have? When-?" "Too late!" I laughed and knocked at his office door. "I'm here." Getting Duo out the door required promises of a "tell-all" over a fine dining experience, but out the door I got him. "Trowa's car? No limo?" "He's generously dropped me here and lent me his keys. We agreed that limo riding was too ostentatious for going to the dentist." "You did? So where is he?" "Not here. Busy. He'll be in shortly to cover the office, so don't worry about that." I smiled and made a fuss of adjusting the seat for my shorter legs, fastening my seat belt, and starting the car. "It's on his schedule." I took a quick look over at Duo and found him slunk into his seat, eyes closed. "Just relax and it will be over and done with in no time!" I told him. He remained unmoving and silent for the entire, short ride. He sat up when I set the brake. "Looks like a house," he said. "On the outside, it does. Very cozy and warm atmosphere in side, which should put you at ease." At the desk sat a young lady tapping at a computer and another smiling and handing out toothbrushes and floss to a pair of children about to leave. I checked Duo in and took a chair next to his and waited. After leafing through a "Who's Who" and spotting his face, Duo slammed the magazine down onto the coffee table and glowered. I couldn't make out his grumbling words, but I didn't require that in order to determine his state of mind. He needed a joke. Now, I have never been able to tell a joke. I could rarely recall one when one was needed, either, not like Duo, who seemed able to pull them out of the air. Knowing this, Trowa left me this morning with a joke I could use. I won't go into the cost of this wisdom for personal reasons. "So, Duo. How many Gundam pilots does it take to get you to the dentist?" I asked, gamely. I didn't expect him to answer, so the moment his eyes met mine, I proceeded to recite the comeback line, "Five. Because-" He held up a hand to stop me and grinned. "Or just one hot one implying seductively that there's a reward in the end." Oh! He'd called me hot! "Duo Maxwell? Hello, the dentist will see you now. How are you?" My look of shock must have been exactly what he had been counting on. It surely bucked him up. Duo stood with a smile, shoulders back, chin up, and marched forward, following the hygienist into the inner realm of the dental kingdom. I could hear his chattering replies down the hall and the laughter of other people in his wake. Perhaps it was the circus themed décor and small furniture that clued him in that this was a children's dentist and that he was an exceptional exception. Forty minutes later, he danced out, waving toothbrushes, floss and a toy from the treasure chest. "All right! Over and done with. Bill in the mail. All clear and good. Now where we off to?" The buoyant, cheerful Duo was a pleasure to be around. I knew to let well enough alone and not tease him about his antics and silly dentist-hostility. We drove to the shopping district and parked in the first space I could find. "We can walk a bit before lunch?" I checked. "Oh yeah. My teeth are all slick and smooth. Not ready to spoil that yet! Do they sparkle?" He gave me a toothy grin and I laughed at him. "Yes, Duo, they do." We window shopped down one side of the street and then stopped at a fountain. He seemed to need to talk, and I was willing to listen. That's what this was all about, after all. "So, you and Trowa, huh?" "Y-yes." That wasn't where I wanted us to begin, however. I thought he wanted to explore his feelings following "the move" with Heero first. Not Trowa, his other best friend. Well, that just meant I'd have to turn the conversation that way. "He called me and asked me out a week ago. It's been very... quick, but we... like each other tremendously." "That's good. I knew you'd click." He gave me an "about time" look, but instead of saying it, he asked, "So, what about-?" Duo was thinking about Wufei, of course, and I felt that we needed to blow past that immediately. "We are just good friends. Really." "No hurt feelings?" "None at all. Actually... oh, I shouldn't say." "Aw, Quat, I can keep a secret. You know that." "It's not a secret exactly. It's just that... well, I introduced him to somebody and I noticed sparks." "Good sparks, I take it." He meant that as a question as indicated by his arched eyebrow. "Very, very good sparks. And, no, I won't say who it is. That's up to him." "Humph." He may have been disappointed that I wasn't giving away Wufei's secrets, but he didn't continue to press me. He didn't even seem grumpy about it, so I decided it was time to explore his inner Duo. "So, what about you?" I asked cautiously. Always tread lightly around sensitive topics that might cause bruising to one's image of manhood. Trowa had mentioned that Duo met people at bars occasionally. Nothing meaningful, though, and nothing leading to intimacy, he was always quick to add. I just hoped that should Heero not be interested in him-no, not that, more that Heero might not be ready for the sexual assessment phase of a relationship (was Duo, even?), possibly, was what I was thinking- he would be able to move on and leave Heero behind without jettisoning a large portion of his heart in the process. "I have tried. I've been on so many setup dates I've lost count." "I'm sorry." "Me, too. God, if I hear one more 'You'll love her, Duo. I just know you will!' I'll scream. Honestly, I will!" "Do you want to date some new girls then?" I wasn't sure. All I knew about was his obsession with Heero, which he wouldn't admit was sexual; at least, he never told me he was gay, and he knew I was. "As a friend, maybe. I would like to go out with anyone. At best, I could grow to like a girl, whoever she might be. The romance, I know, might simply never materialize." He looked at me now and his eyes were sad with a touch of fear. "Quat. I get nothing from girls. Nothing like what I get around... you-know-who. No rush of excitement. No fluttering heart. No nothing. I don't want to think about what's wrong with me." "It doesn't work that way, Duo. Stop being so negative. There are folks out there, other men (let's not tiptoe around this any longer, shall we?), that could be very nice possibilities, if you'd give them a chance, I could try-" "Eh! I know what I want, that's not my problem, the knowing, sorta. It's the getting it. I've been adrenalin junky for sure-" "You can say that about all your best friends," I put in. "Right, those who'd all once been Gundam pilots in the war. I was afraid of being something else, nothing I wanted to face just yet. You remember when I took off right after the war? And you know I did that again after leaving Preventers and before Tro' and I, you know, this business of ours." "I thought you were setting down roots here in Sanc now. Is it not the case?" "Yeah, I am, little short stumpy ones, heh, heh. But back then I was traveling in search of a place to call home and where I'd fit in." "I didn't know-" "Oh, yeah. I tried many places. I really didn't fit in anywhere. But I haven't given up. Yep, I think I'm going to try again- next week, actually." "That soon? You, you're just driving away in search of... what exactly are you looking for again?" I asked, confused. "Someone to make wherever I'm living feel like home." Did that mean he was finally letting go of Heero? I had to know for sure. "But I thought you were attracted to -?" He stopped me from saying "Heero" when he smacked a hand over my mouth. "No, don't say it. Please, okay?" I nodded and he took away his hand. "Things haven't changed in that department, but I can't keep just waiting, doing nothing with my life forever while he moves on in whatever land of oblivion that he lives in, can I?" "No. No one would expect to put your life on hold waiting." Still I could just kick Heero for hurting Duo this way, as unintentional as it was. "So, have you chosen a destination?" "I have a security installation to do for some Hollywood celebrity. Trowa and I take turns traveling, you know. So, I'll start there and take a few days off to take a look around." There was such a sad, vulnerable look in his eye, I couldn't help but pull him into a hug. "Well, I wish you the very best, Duo. Would you call me and let me know how your hunt is going?" "Sure," he smiled, "Unless I get lucky. Then you won't hear nothing till I get back home. Hey, let's eat at that place; I could dig me some chili and fries." Chapter Four - Trowa "Duo's changed." It was no deep revelation on my part. I just said what everyone else was thinking. Duo had taken off a week from our business, which turned into two weeks, in order to travel and "find himself", as he called it. I don't know what he found or where, but I wouldn't mind getting me some. He simply glowed, and that's saying something considering how alight the grand ballroom was. The Sanc palace ballroom. The glow had begun earlier, when he returned to Sanc ten minutes before I was about to leave the office. I'd just stuffed a few extra surveillance taps into my pockets, just in case, when he banged past the outer door. "Home at last! You still here?" "Yo, Maxie. All the way in back." Duo and I managed the palace security, a real coop of a contract acquired with the help of contacts-Quatre and Relena and Commander Une. That was too daunting a team for Duo and me to fight, and too lucrative a contract to turn down. We were not under Une's finger, exactly, an important part of our decision. Une's only involvement was minimal. We had assembled a team of ex-cops and Preventers mostly, to walk the beat inside and out, and she hand-picked those men. We did get final approval. So, while Duo was gallivanting around Hollywood and then someplace in outer space, I guessed, I'd spent the last two weeks upgrading the current technology, which hadn't been bad, and testing all the equipment, which all worked fine. I was already wired for action and dressed for a party in an all-black tuxedo ensemble Quatre had recommended. It was all okay. I'd get my turn at some time off real soon. I planned to hijack Quatre for a very special holiday, if he was agreeable. "You have time to dress." I informed Duo, tilting my head just enough to point out his similar all-black tuxedo ensemble wrapped in plastic and hanging on the hook his jacket usually occupied. "Wow! You look... spiffy." "You will too." And that was when I got a load of this new Duo. Oh, yeah. He had the glow. "This for me? Dude, this has got to be Quat's influence." "You don't think I have fine taste?" I was practically drooling, and this was my work partner, best friend, and my boyfriend's best friend! "Heh, heh... Oh, you got the taste for the finer things in life, all right, but you wouldn't have picked out these fancy-ass threads on your own." We both knew Quatre Winner was definitely one of the finer things in life, the finest in mine. The wonder of that astonished me when I thought about it, so I tried not to ponder that very often. I counted out a few breath mints, tossed them in my mouth, and scanned the last minute list for things left to do, while Duo tossed off his street clothes and jammed arms and legs into shirt sleeves and pant legs. I tried very, very hard not to watch. "Team's already in place?" "Y-yes," I answered and then cleared my throat, swallowed, and kicked myself, mentally, in the head to re-start my thinking process without a fucking glowing Maxie blinding me. "They have all checked in. We had a run-through last night and a final test of the equipment this morning. All's good." "Super." This was the first in a string of heavy-duty, winter season galas leading up to the Mid-Winter Festival of lights, the New Year's Celebration and finally tapering off with a Valentine's Day Dance. After that, there was a month downtime for cleaning and staff vacations before the spring season of events started the whole ball rolling again. Huge. Massive. Mahusive fun for all. It was a lot of work for us, but it suited our skills and made us a shitload of moola , Duo's words. "Help me with this tie?" I turned and reached over to take the tie ends and froze. Up close and personal, I was a caress-width's and career-ending's space away from a real knockout. Who was this man in my office? Duo Maxwell, of course, but his hair seemed smoother, shinier, his shoulders straighter, and he just oozed confidence. His aura was fresh and new as if that dark cloud of his past had lifted and blown clean away. "Tro'?" "Um, yes. I can tie that." He adjusted his earphone communicator. "Testing... 1...2..3.." "Loud and clear." I stared until our eyes met. "Have a good time, did you?" "Yeah, great, in fact." "We have time to talk about it," I offered. I even leaned back onto the desk to demonstrate I was willing to wait him out. "Think so? Okay, well... I started out at the airport, staring at the schedules, and not seeing anything that moved me." "A plane? Not the shuttle off-planet?" I asked, thinking he'd visit a colony after the Hollywood gig. "Not this time. Anyway, then this dude I'd gotten to chatting with recommended a place called Blissfield. As it turned out, that was a neighborhood in San Francisco." "That's where I'm going," he said. "Going home. You oughta come and check it out." "I don't know." "Whatcher got to lose-?" My remaining self-esteem? My sense of humor? Self-respect? "Nothing important." "-and yer got everything to gain." Duo smiled and adjusted his cummerbund. "So I got me a one-way to San Fran and slept most the way." "Good." I slept when I could, too. "Funny, the first person I saw as I disembarked had a braided ponytail halfway down his back. His back. Just like I did. That's when I felt there was some hope." "Another long-haired guy made you feel at home?" I asked. "At the time, yeah. I got a taxi, eventually, to take me to 'Blissville' and it was the gay district, I discovered, but what the hey, right? I went to spas and clubs and-"His eyes appeared a little unfocused, preoccupied looking, and then suddenly re-focused. "Whoa! Would ya look at the time! We gotta hustle." Not really, but I could tell he was getting to the uncomfortable part of his story, and so I let him off the hook. I was gay and so was Quatre and Wufei, although none of made a show of it, especially in the workplace. Heero concealed his feelings completely. Sealed and locked away, so who knew for sure? Looked like my friend and partner was homing in on his sexuality, so I stood back, and gave him all the space and time he'd be needing to come to grips with it all. Like he had me. So, it was later on that I was standing alongside Chang, Yuy, and Quatre, all watching Duo cruising the ballroom. A couple years ago, when we'd all been employed by Preventers, we'd been teenagers fresh from the war, entering a man's world without mature social skills and zilch dating experience. And now, here came my Maxie with this new-found sexuality, strutting his stuff and looking damned good. Moments after my comment, Chang made a like remark, "Maxwell has changed." "He seems so confident," Quatre said. "He wears a tuxedo well, don't you think, Heero?" "Hn." I was thinking attractive and sexy. It's a good thing I can keep my mouth shut. "He draws attention," Chang huffed. "Unprofessional." "Not really. He's supposed to appear as a guest," I said, correcting him. "Some guest! I don't see anyone else writhing like that!" Chang sneered and sniffed. "Disgusting behavior." Duo was dancing. Cuffs pushed up, baring his lower arms, seemed daring and looked very, very hot. Dancing. Oh, yeah. He was extremely attractive. "I'd never noticed just how stunningly gorgeous Duo was," Quatre said. "Charming, naturally, but he simply-" "Glows?" I suggested, wishing my boyfriend would chill a bit with the gushy comments. "Yes, glows. And, he's having no difficulty finding dance partners," Quatre seemed pleased to announce. Zechs Merquise appeared from out of the shadows and in two strides, loomed over Duo. "Is he asking Duo to dance with him?" Quatre asked. "I wonder if Zechs ever noticed him before?" I'd never seen Chang move so fast. From his careless slump against a column, to the taunt man of action, my martial arts trained friend sprang to full attention. "Zechs has no interest in Maxwell," Chang said with a sneer, and then added in a hiss, "Does he think this is some sordid sex club?" "Zechs should recognize his own palace." I tried to be funny. I actually hoped Chang would stick around and continue to spout insults at Duo, being unable to verbalize anything close to a compliment. Shouldn't that ruffle Yuy to action? Unfortunately, we'd heard all he had to say on the subject. Chang gave me a nasty look before hastily marching off in the direction of the scene of interest. At least I could still goad Heero with Quatre's assistance. "Maybe Maxie'll dance with me?" I wondered aloud. Quatre saw my wink and understood what I was trying to do. We both wanted to jumpstart Yuy to make a move, give Duo some signal of interest. How could he miss noticing Duo wriggling his ass out on the floor? Well, he couldn't. Heero Yuy's glower was riveted to Duo. I couldn't tell if the man was angry, disturbed by Duo's behavior or his appearance, or hypnotized. So, I decided to keep commenting about different elements I noticed, speculating about doing something about it, until Heero exploded. "Perfect fit on the tux," I mentioned to Quatre in particular. Credit where credit is due. "It is, isn't it?" he smiled at me. "You're not worried about how well I guessed his size, are you?" "Should I be?" I put no heat into this query. Watching Heero's continuing agitation, fist clenching, teeth grinding, and growling entertained me more than it should have, probably. "When did Duo return to Sanc, did you say?" Quatre asked me. "A few hours ago." With that I started ticking off some points of interest. "Said he had a great time in San Francisco. Met lots of friendly folks. Found a hairdresser he liked. Nice trim on the bangs." "Feathering, like mine. I think that earing is new," Quatre added, catching on to my plan like the smart guy, boyfriend, he was. My boyfriend. I was really growing to like the sound of that, so much that I felt assertive enough to tag on, "Yeah and it matches his eyes, I think-" Heero snorted and snapped, "His eyes are bluer than that amethyst stone." Before we could react, he was striding away toward an exit door. "Well, he reacted," I noted, "but I don't think you should take his abrupt leave-taking as a good sign." "He noticed the color of Duo's eyes," Quatre said, triumphantly, "and that I do take as a glimmering of hope."
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