"Rip Current"

Written By: yaruna

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing isn't mine! I'm not pretending they are, I simply love messing around with the lovable characters. Any similarity to existing works is purely coincidental.

Rating: R

Genre: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Romance…? Alternate Universe

Warning:Probably some OOCness. Kind of bastard Heero in the first chapters. Some swearing. Won't pass the Bechdel test. Somewhat cliché, I think. Hmmz… what more… oh yeah, I'm a bit of a sadist, people will get hurt… sorry about that

Summary: Feelings are running high on the shorelines. Duo has arrived on the shores of Sanc Island and is making new friends, and enemies, among the locals as they surf their way towards the big competition. AU

A/N:I live for feedback

Sit back, and let the waves take you for a ride.

"Rip Current"

Chapter 8: One Eighty

Warning: Heated moments ahead

I never did get time to catch that fish. Quatre had been waiting for Zero and me to leave the water and had practically shoved me onto the back of the pickup together with what felt like half of the people from the beach. With everyone having at least one board, it was quite crowded.

Somehow, I had ended up sitting next to Heero, pressed flush against his side. He was tight as a spring, and I was sure he was still angry about that morning. Not that I was sure what he had to be angry about. I should have been the one that was upset about it.

Zero was lying on Heero's other side, with his front paws and his head over Heero's abdomen, eyes closed.

'I think you exhausted the dog, Maxwell,' Wufei said with a raised eyebrow. I felt Heero tense a little more next to me and I was amazed that was even possible. It made me hesitate and wonder what I could say that wouldn't make Heero even angrier with me. It seemed like he was pretty touchy when it came to his dog.

'He kept wanting to go out for more,' I said, silently. It was true; every time I had started to get up from the water he had simply jumped in and swam away, making me follow him. It had kept going like that until Heero had whistled for his dog. At that point I had been a bit relieved. Even though the waves were small, it's quite exhausting to surf for hours. It doesn't matter how well trained you are.

'He's a lab, he loves water,' Heero said just as I'd given up on him answering. He placed his hand on top of his dog's head. Heero looked pleased, and I was mesmerized by the small smile on his lips. It curved upwards ever so slightly and he looked serene as he petted his dog.

'He was great, you should take him on your board some day,' I said. He turned narrowed eyes towards me and he had lost that peaceful smile. It made me regret havings said anything at all.

He shook his head. 'Maybe.'

He didn't sound convinced, and I frowned, wondering what could have happened to make him so reluctant to try something that his dog apparently loved.

Zechs stopped the car and everyone cleared out of the pickup truck. Heero was gone from my side as soon as he had room to move. I left at a more sedate pace, grabbed my board and placed it on the rack by the Safe house before I dropped my backpack off inside. I was sure that Quatre wouldn't mind it. We gathered up all the food and headed down to the beach.

I shouldn't have worried about not having gotten time to catch that fish. As soon as Quatre had noticed I had nothing to eat he had happily shared what they had bought previously; claiming that they had gotten more than they would be able to finish anyways. I figured it to be the truth since I'd seen exactly how much they'd gotten, so I accepted and vowed to pay him back later. It was the best dinner I'd had in months.

It didn't take long before Zechs had offered me my first bottle of beer. With what felt like everyone watching I hadn't wanted to reject. Actually, I hadn't seen any harm in trying it and quickly found it to be rather tasty.

It was a great barbecue, and I felt included. It felt as though I was being accepted by the locals. That's a huge deal in the surfing community and it's something that doesn't come easily. I could only surmise that I'd met the right people in Quatre, Trowa, Wufei and Heero. Even though Heero and I didn't see eye to eye.

It seemed as though those four were legends around here, and it didn't surprise me. It wasn't only that they were great surfers. Over the weeks I'd observed them I'd noticed a kindness and willingness to share knowledge I'd never seen in Elto. These four never boasted about their skills to anyone. Instead, they readily agreed to show a trick or two and helped them nail it.

On Elto, everyone I knew pushed to be the best, and woe whoever helped anyone not in your own crew. I liked the tradition on Sanc better.

Quatre sat down next to me, making me stop my musings.

'I thought you were underage,' he said in amusement, inclining towards the bottle of beer in my hand. I noticed he held a soda in his hand.

'Oh,' I lamented. 'You had soda as well.'

'Yeah, up for grabs. Want one?'

'Nah, I'm finishing this one,' I said and held up my... what...? third bottle of beer?

'All right. I'll be back in a flash, Duo,'

'Flash? That's a superhero you know,' I said.

He nodded and had a wide grin on his face. 'I know.' I didn't understand his amusement.

He left me to sit alone so I got to my feet, intent on finding some company. I felt an odd sensation of vertigo for a moment after I stood and I paused to let it pass. I frowned, confused at what was going on but shook it off and headed closer to the water.

The surf was starting to pick up again and I felt that familiar pull, that feeling of wanting to be out there and catch a wave. While there was always the wish of catching the perfect wave, any wave would do, really. I just wanted the rush of it.

In retrospect, it was quite stupid of me. Going back to the Safe house to get water wasn't stupid, but taking my board with me on the way back was. Going out into the water was outright ludicrous.

I knew the alcohol had affected me, and I knew how stupid it was to try and surf while under the influence. I wasn't planning on surfing though. I merely wanted to sit out there for a moment. But I haven't always been the smartest of guys, and when I felt a wave come my plans went out the window. I turned around and paddled with the wave.

I didn't pop up, feeling that I would probably fall if I did. I held myself up with my arms and went with the flow as the wave started to barrel. The wave was quicker than I'd expected and I cursed when it shut me off. I lay down flat, pressing downwards on the board as the wave crashed down on top of me.

The whitewater pushed me around a bit, but I was never pushed under the surface and I laughed happily. It had been an amazing wave after all, and I turned to paddle out again.

'Stop,' someone called and I turned to see Heero on the beach.

'It's glorious!' I shouted in answer. He didn't look happy.

'I'll come out and get you,' he said in a stern voice and I frowned.

'So come,' I called and I saw him open his mouth, and the rise and fall of his chest as he sighed.

'Fine,' he said, took off his shirt, and got into the water. It surprised me; I had not thought that he would.

He came up next to me and nimbly joined me on the surfboard. There was a moment when I thought it might actually be able to hold the both of us. Then it started to slide away from under me, and I squeezed my legs tighter around it. It wouldn't have any of it however. The board flew out behind me, making me slide straight into Heero's arms and then we were submerged in water.

I pushed my head above the surface and shook it to clear my eyes from my hair. Heero was doing the same in front of me. He looked a bit like a drenched dog. Though he didn't look as happy as Zero did when he was drenched. I began to laugh loudly and pulled the board back to me, crossing my arms on it, letting it keep me afloat without needing to tread water.

Heero looked at me with a glare, but I saw the edges of his mouth twitch, and he also put his arms on the board.

'Let's go in,' he said, amusement in his voice and I nodded in agreement this time. We swam towards the beach.

When I stumbled my way out of the water I was still grinning. Heero reached to steady me and helped me up a bit further before we sat down on the beach.

'You're an asshole, you know that?' I asked.

'You're the first that's openly called me one,' he answered, amusement plain in his voice.

'I tend to let my mouth run off,' I said and turned to him, bending my left leg under me so I could get closer. 'If you weren't such an asshole, I think I might like you.'

'Yeah?' he asked, and leaned closer, making me swallow. I could see every line in his face, the way his wet hair clung to his forehead, the water drops tracing his perfect jawline before dripping down, and I groaned. It made him smirk

'This is why you're an asshole!' I said and started to pull away. 'You're just teasing me!' Teasing me through simply existing. I wondered if that was a good enough reason to take out a restraint order.

He grabbed a hold of my arm, making me stop all movement. He put his other hand behind my neck with which he pulled me towards him and our mouths met. I was stupefied for a moment, but then I buried my hands in his wet hair and met his kiss with an equal passion.

There should have been fireworks.

We pulled back for a breath, and I opened my eyes that I didn't remember closing.

'Damn,' I muttered and Heero let out a breath, again wearing that smirk. It didn't feel quite so superior or teasing anymore. It was sexy.

'Yeah,' he agreed and I chuckled.

On impulse, I pushed him onto his back and straddled him, leaning down for another kiss, which he happily met. His hands traced a line over my back, making me shiver and press closer to him. He chuckled throatily against my mouth and I felt him grow hard against my inner thigh. My heart was beating wildly against my chest.

'Gods, Duo,' Heero groaned and pressed his hips upwards. I couldn't breath as my own hardness was caught between us. I buried my face against his shoulder and felt his hands stray towards the waistline of my trunks. He traced the edge with his fingers.

I drew a shaky breath and raised myself up above him again. My mouth was inches above his, but as I leaned down to claim yet another kiss he put his hand on my shoulder, pushing us over and putting him on top.

Then he inhaled sharply, cursed, and got up. I blinked as coldness came over me at the loss of his heat.

''Ro?' I asked, confused. He had been just as excited as I had been. As a guy, it was quite difficult to hide. He stayed with his back turned against me and his head tilted downwards as his shoulders rose and fell with his heavy breathing.

I pulled myself together and sat up, curling my legs up in front of me and grabbing a hold of them. I let go when I realized how insecure and vulnerable it made me look.

'This is why you're an asshole,' I muttered and stood up. I grabbed my surfboard from the sand and when I'd straightened I was grabbed from behind. The surprise made me drop my board right back down onto the sand. I took a deep breath to stop all the feelings that were trying to surge up to the surface. I was getting tired of this game.

'I know,' he said. 'But you're drunk, Duo. I'm not doing this with you when you're drunk.'

I turned around in his embrace, staring at him with wide eyes. Was it a game? Or did he genuinely care?

'I'm not drunk. I barely had anything to drink,' I said, excusing myself, but when thinking about it, he was probably right.

'Sure,' he said and stroked his finger gently along the length of my arm, making me shiver. I had a hard time keeping myself from touching him in return.

'So, when I'm sober...?' I asked tentatively and he let out that husky laugh again. I licked my lips.

'Yeah. If you're still interested.'

I could only nod in affirmation and moved my hands to my braid, playing with it distractedly when I felt the sand in it.

'You got sand in my hair,' I told him and he laughed.

'You got sand in mine first,' he answered

He bent down to pick up my surfboard before settling his free arm around my back, leaning his hand against my hipbone. We headed towards the Safe house, but I disentangled myself from him by the beach showers.

'I can't sleep with sand in my hair,' I said and watched him as I undid my braid. Slowly.

'No, that would be... unwise,' he said, watching as the tresses of my hair unraveled. I saw the telltale sign of his once again growing attraction, and it was my turn to smirk. This was quite fun.

'Now who's teasing?' he asked in a deep voice.

I chuckled and turned the shower on. The water ran over my head, quickly clearing my hair of all sand. Heero stepped up behind me, and it felt as though I molded against his body. He used one hand to push my hair away from my neck and kissed it even as the cold water from the shower was rushing over both of us. I moaned at the feeling and bit my lip as I felt his lips curl against my neck.

'You're damn hot, Duo,' he said and I shivered at the mixture of his hot breath, the cold water, and the heating from my groin.

'Funny, I feel quite cold,' I said, trying to seem ignorant. I'm pretty sure the hitch in my voice as he nibbled on my ear made me fail.

'Let's get going then,' he said. He grabbed my board, took me by my hand and led me to the Safe house. Once inside, he handed me a towel that I gratefully accepted and wiped myself off.

Heero watched me unabashedly and I felt oddly vulnerable with my hair spread around me, and a towel around my shoulders. Where I had previously felt so confident, it suddenly felt as though I was merely floundering, and I took a hesitant step towards him. What was I supposed to do now?

'Let's go to sleep,' he said, with a gentle smile, and I blinked as he led me to his room.

'Sleep?' I asked dumbly and sat down on his bed.

'Yeah, we'll talk more tomorrow. Get out of your wet trunks though, I don't want a wet -' He shook his head. 'Just take them off.'

I did as he said and kind of regretted I'd had to focus so much on that so I had missed when Heero had done the same. He'd already changed into new underwear when I'd looked up.

'Here,' he said and held out a pair of briefs.

'I have my own in my backpack,' I muttered, but accepted them and shimmied into them under the towel. I shouldn't have been feeling so embarrassed. For crying out loud, I had been completely ready to have sex with the man only minutes ago.

'Hey, 'Ro,' I said as I lay down on the bed.

'Yeah?' he asked as he crawled in behind me. He snaked his arm over my waist, pressing me close to him. The warmth from his body was a stark contrast against the coolness of my own skin and I shivered. He pulled up the sheet above us before he brought his arm back.

'I don't normally just... jump into bed with anyone.' Actually, this was a first.

'Me neither,' he said and placed a kiss between my shoulder blades.

'I've... actually...' I started. I'd wanted to say I'd never done it before, but I didn't think he'd be interested. I wanted to bury my head in the pillow when Heero pushed against my shoulder. He made me turn onto my back and I was met with a vision of his face. He hovered above me, eyebrows furrowed, his blue eyes looking warm in the soft glow of the sunset whose light trickled into the room.

'What?' he asked.

'You're like the ocean, 'Ro. You're pulling me in, but I'm afraid I'll drown,' I said, the words leaving me without any thought and he moved his right hand to touch my chin gently.

'I'll catch you,' he said and placed a soft kiss on the edge of my mouth. 'Sleep. We'll talk more in the morning.'

I was already drowning.

~ * ~

Chapter 9

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