"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 9: Submerged

 

When I woke up, it was to Heero gently tracing a pattern with his finger over my lower abdomen. He didn't follow the line of my muscle. His finger traced the line of a long scar, travelling from my abdomen, right by my hipbone and over the side. It felt odd to have him touch it since I could barely feel it. There was a small tickling sensation and that was it.

The scar stood out like a sore thumb. Usually, I hid it with my trunks but apparently the briefs had slid down somewhat during the night, revealing the scar to Heero.

I caught his hand in mine and squeezed.

'What happened?' he asked and I sighed. I'd known the question would come.

'Reef,' I answered, and he looked at me with a raised eyebrow, but he let it go and kissed my shoulder.

I turned around to face him, struck with how gentle his face looked. During the weeks I'd known him, he'd only ever seemed cold. Possibly with the exception of how he'd been against his dog. I guessed I'd never really known him at all.

'Why?' I asked, and he locked his eyes with mine.

'Why what?'

'Why were you so... distant?' I asked, still holding onto his hand with mine, liking the feel of it.

He sighed, and gave me a tight smile.

'You weren't exactly easy to get close to. Then you poisoned my dog.'

'I -' he moved both our hands and put a finger on my lips.

'You did, though I know you didn't mean to. I shouldn't have been so angry with you, but I think I was jealous.'

'Jealous?' I echoed.

'Zee had never ran off before, and now he left every night. I thought he'd found some female that he was running off to, so I followed him to make sure there wouldn't be any puppies,' he said and I chuckled. That would have made more sense than the dog running off to watch a surfer. It would have presented a whole other set of problems however.

'You had me mesmerized the very first night,' Heero said.

'You... watched me ever since Zee started coming?' That was long before we'd actually met and spoken.

'Yeah,' he murmured and moved his hand from mine. He sifted through my hair with his fingers. I hadn't braided it again after the shower. 'I couldn't even see what you looked like, with only the moonlight shining you up, but it was enough.'

My cheeks grew warm and he smirked.

'I didn't see the first time you gave him that treat, but I figured it out when he was vomiting on the floor. He's never taken anything from anyone but me and -' he interrupted himself as his lips tightened and he looked away for a moment. 'So I was jealous.'

'Wow,' I said and placed my own hand on his bare chest and pushed him onto his back. I leaned onto my elbow to hover above him, our lips only inches apart. 'You watched me, for so long, and I had no idea.'

I kissed him and he responded willingly. Other parts of his body were responding as well and I kissed his chin that had a small stubble on it. I moved down, kissing his throat, and then the collarbone. He groaned slightly and I traced the collarbone with my finger, and followed the line down the middle of his chest. I continued through the middle of his abs, stopping just short of his briefs.

Was I doing this? Did I want this? Did he?

He grabbed my hand and rolled us over, placing himself on top of me and I stopped thinking. He pushed his knees against my legs, making me divide them slightly to give room for him. He pressed flush against my body and we captured each other's lips in a passionate kiss.

'Heero!' was called from outside and it was the only warning we got before the door flung open.

I turned my head away, wishing the mattress could swallow me whole.

'Never mind,' Trowa said with laughter in his voice. 'Carry on.'

'Get out,' Heero said in a low, growling voice, reminding me a little bit of an animal.

'On it,' Trowa said and I heard the door close. Trowa's loud laughter made me flinch and squirm a bit under Heero to get out.

'Shit,' Heero said and got off me, and sat down on the edge of the bed.

'I couldn't agree more,' I said, finally seeing the humor in it, and began to laugh. I turned onto my side and leaned on my elbow.

'I'm sorry. The downside of having housemates is quickly becoming more apparent,' he said in an amused tone. I shook my head and started to trace circles on his back. I couldn't get enough of touching him. The indication that he hadn't brought anyone back to the Safe house previously wasn't lost on me.

'It's fine,' I said and sat up next to him. 'You've got work today?'

'Shit!' Heero said and flew up from the bed, making me laugh as I figured out that he did indeed have work today. 'It's Oz Pro-Am today, I'm on the jet-ski.'

'Oh, right. Wufei's competing, right?'

'Yeah. What time is it?' he asked as he jumped the trunks he'd discarded on the floor the previous night. Actually...

I smiled.

'Just after six, and those are mine,' I said when he couldn't quite manage to close the trunks around his waist.

'Shit,' he growled and pulled them off as I laughed, handing them to me before he found his own.

The trunks were still damp from the shower but I changed into them and bundled Heero's underwear up. I'd wash them my next laundry day.

'When does it start?' I asked and followed him out of his room.

'Eight, but since I'm helping out, I have to be there at seven for the briefing,' he answered.

We went into the kitchen where Trowa, Wufei and Quatre were already standing, picking together their breakfast. All of them looked up at us with knowing smiles, and I couldn't help but feel a bit smug since I knew they were thinking the wrong thing. We hadn't done anything, after all.

Still, I blushed, and Heero didn't exactly help when he took a hold of my hand and squeezed before letting go.

'Morning, you two,' Quatre said in his usual voice and with his usual sweet smile. Not commenting on anything.

'Morning,' I said, hoping that they wouldn't say anything about it. I had started to like these guys and was fearful of things becoming weird between us. What if Heero and I didn't work out? What if Heero and I didn't even start to work out? Was there a Heero and I or was I simply jumping to conclusions from our little make-out session that morning?

'Want some juice, Duo?' Heero asked as he was pouring up a glass of orange juice for himself.

'Please,' I said.

'I bet he would...' Wufei said with a surprisingly straight face as he looked down on his plate of fruits, adding a slice of apple to it.

'That's tacky, 'Fei,' I said in forced amusement. He looked up at me with a smile and I knew he was simply trying to include me in their regular banter.

I lost it and laughed loudly. Honestly, I didn't think that Wufei would have been the one to say anything. Trowa, sure, but I hadn't penned Wufei as the type.

It stopped being awkward then, and we had breakfast together out on the deck before we took the pickup truck to Coral where the competition would be held.

The waves were pushing on seven to eight feet, not exactly Wufei's preferred height, and I could tell he was getting antsy as he walked back and forth in front of me. Heero was on the jet-skis and Trowa and Quatre were hidden away at the Legends tent, showing off some boards. We'd even left Zero back at the Safe house, which meant I was alone with Wufei as he went through his jitters.

'Chill, 'Fei,' I said as he took an imaginary wave on the beach for the umpteenth time. 'You can't force it, anyways. Trust your skill.'

'Easy for you to say, you're the Pro,' he said under his breath and I laughed, but then realized something that I'd apparently forgotten during the last few weeks. I was still a registered Pro.

'Hey, 'Fei. Pros can enter this one, right?'

'Yes, thus the Pro in the name,' Wufei answered sarcastically and I jumped to my feet.

'Let's go and register,' I said and he raised his eyebrows, but followed me to the table with the administrators without a word.

'What's the price money for the Pros?' I asked and the administrator lifted some papers to check.

'Five thousand dollars in the pot with eleven entrants,' he answered without glancing at me.

'And registration fee?' I asked

'A hundred, but registration's closed' he said, still not lifting his head.

'You've got eleven, you need one more. Check with the man in charge,' I said and he raised his eyebrow and finally looked up. There was no sign of recognition, but at least he got up, presumably to check with his boss.

'What are you doing, Duo?' Wufei hissed besides me.

I grinned. 'Entering the contest.'

'I notice, but why?'

'I need the money to enter Gundams,' I answered with a shrug.

The admin came back and saw down to rifle through his papers. Again, he didn't spare me a single glance and I was about to ask what the organizer had said when he held out some papers.

'You're in. Sign these,' he said. It was the standard waivers to dissolve the organizers of responsibility in case of injury and I signed them quickly and handed them back to him together with the money.

'The Pro rounds should start around twelve, you'll be in the fourth heat,' he said, handing me a receipt and I thanked him and left.

'If you lose, you're not getting a dime though,' Wufei said as he started waxing his board.

I shrugged. 'As long as I get to the quarters, I'll get the registration fee back, so I just have to be in the top two in the first heat.'

'You don't even know who's competing,' Wufei said.

'There is that, of course,' I said with a chuckle. 'But it doesn't really matter. If I lose, I lose.'

'Yeah,' he said and shot me an odd look that I couldn't place. It looked like he was trying to decide what to say. 'Duo, don't hurt Heero, all right?'

'Hurt him?' I asked, genuinely surprised. 'How would I go about doing that?'

'You're a Pro,' he answered as though it explained everything. To him, maybe it did.

'So? What, you think I'll leave when Gundams is up?'

'Won't you?' he asked, and I realized I hadn't really thought about it, making me hesitate in supplying him with an answer.

He snorted. 'Thought so.'

'No, I won't just leave. I don't know exactly what I'll do. But Wufei, despite what you guys think; we didn't do anything last night. And even if we had, I'm not sure why our relationship is of any concern of yours.'

'I've known Heero since we were kids. He's been through a lot, and I've had to help pick up the pieces. I don't very much feel like doing that when you leave,' he said and got to his feet, board under his arm, and left me sitting.

I stared after him a long while after I'd lost sight of him. Well, damn, wasn't that just a regular punch to my gut? Heero hadn't been a part of the plan when I'd run off to Sanc. But I wanted to fit him into my future.

When Solo and I had been Pro, we did all our travels together. We never had a place where we belonged. We lived in Solo's run-down apartment during the off-season, but it was never a place we belonged. It was a bit presumptuous to think I had a place to belong even now. If I dared to dream there was more between Heero and me than sexual attraction. If I dared to dream, I wanted to stick around.

I wasn't sure I dared to dream. I wasn't sure I had the right to.

Wufei was in the first heat of the day, and I pulled myself out of my own head long enough to cheer for him. The waves were nice, but he lost most of them. He got closed out of the small barrels, or he fell as he dove too deep for a small wave. He caught one great wave that he managed to keep, managing to climb just over 5 points in the heat, but it was pure luck that he advanced into the second round.

He knew it as well, the angry look on his face as he came out of the water told me that. He walked with heavy steps and his eyes fixed on the sand. I was almost surprised I couldn't see smoke billowing out of his ears.

'Hey,' I said as he walked passed me, and he flinched visibly, sighed, and dropped down next to me. Somehow, he'd gone from anger to regret in a heartbeat.

'I'm sorry,' he said and I shook my head.

'You're right. I don't know what I'll do. But I don't know exactly what my relationship with Heero is either.'

'So maybe you should talk to him?' Wufei said with a tilted smile.

'Great idea, genius,' I said in amusement. 'I hadn't thought of that one.' The rush that morning hadn't left me with much time to talk. Even if we'd had more time, I doubted it would have been spent talking.

'Yeah, sorry,' he said, and looked out over the water.

'Hey, 'Fei,' I said carefully, not wishing to upset him. 'You're dipping too much for the small waves, you're submerging your board.'

'I know,' he answered. 'Ever since I started going more for the big waves, I've had trouble. I think the waves will go higher than they do.'

'You could try going for another board for a bit,' I said as nonchalantly as I could, not sure how he was going to take my suggestion.

'You've been talking to Quatre?'

'No,' I answered with a laugh and he smiled.

'Maybe I'll try,' he said and we continued to watch the competition in relative silence, apart from commenting on some moves being made in the water, until it was time for his next heat.

He tried really hard to get his nose up, but it was messing with his flow. It made me regret having said anything at all. It's impossible to change your style in minutes, and I should have kept silent until the end of the competition.

His heat scores were too low to advance further and he looked utterly devastated as he sat down next to me again.

'There's still two qualifiers, right?' I asked and he nodded.

'Yeah, but I'm not feeling quite as confident anymore.'

'Each wave is different though.'

'I can't count on there being big waves during the next competition though,' he answered and he was right.

'You need to get someone to train with you,' I said on sudden thought and he glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes.

'Someone like you?'

'I was thinking of Quatre,' I said and Wufei chuckled softly.

'He's good, but I doubt he'd agree.'

'So, maybe you should talk to him?' I said, mirroring his own words from earlier and he let out a small noise of amusement.

'Touché, genius,' he said and I grinned.

'Reaper?' someone said in a surprised voice behind me. It was definitely a voice I recognized and I grinned even wider.

'Hi Trant,' I said, turning around to see the guy behind me, and I got to my feet.

'Hey, kiddo,' he said and we gave each other a quick hug with a pat on the back. 'I was a bit surprised to see your name on the boards. I thought someone was trying to mess with me.'

'Nope, me in the flesh,' I said. 'It's good to see you, buddy.'

'You too. How you holding up since... you know.' Since Solo.

'First competition today,' I said, and he smiled widely.

'I've got a chance today then? With you being out of practice and all.'

'Don't count on it,' I said, and we both laughed.

'Good luck, Reaper, I have to head out. We'll catch up more later,' he said.

'Anytime's good,' I answered and we gave each other another quick hug before he headed off.

'Someone you know?' Wufei asked with a glance behind him.

'Oh, shit, I should've introduced you,' I said, realizing I'd been rude. 'He's an old pal. Solo and I used to hang out with him when we were at the same competitions.'

Wufei silently placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed slightly, making me look at him in surprise.

'You looked us up?' I asked. It definitely wasn't the first time he'd heard about Solo.

'The article in Surf'd had quite a lot to say about your accident. I didn't read it, but Sally did and she was very... upset about it.'

'Ah,' I breathed, not really surprised at all. I'd actually rather expected it, and assumed that they'd had a lot to say about our crash. She would be upset, who'd want to be friends with a killer after all? Never mind that Wufei had obviously heard about it and was still talking to me. 'It's fine -'

'It's never really fine, losing your friend,' he said in a tight voice, full of understanding. There was no blame whatsoever and I regretted not having read the article. What did he know?

'Thanks, 'Fei,' I said and he nodded. 'Wanna go into the waves for a bit?'

'Yeah, let's go,' he answered and we went a bit further away from the competition before paddling out into the water to catch a few waves before the Pro division started.

'All right, I'm going to check in. See ya in thirty,' I said and headed off towards the check-in tent.

'Good luck,' Wufei called and I raised my arm in a wave. It was bad luck to say thanks, so I didn't. I don't put much weight to superstition, really, but I didn't want to tempt fate. Just in case. Always just in case.

I took the blue shirt that was given to me by the admin so we could be quickly distinguished in the water and put it on.

'Maxwell, nice to see you back,' was said behind me. I turned and grinned as I saw who it was. The day was turning out to be a reunion of my old surfer buddies.

'Hey, Broden. Thanks,' I said and we knocked our fists together in greeting.

'You all healed?' he asked and put his own yellow shirt on.

'Yeah,' I answered with a chuckled. 'They stitched me up just fine.'

He smiled widely. 'Good luck out there, bro'.'

'You too,' I answered.

The horn sounded and we gave each other a grin before rushing into the water and paddling out with the third person of our heat.

There was no shortage of waves for anyone, which fit me perfectly. It meant no one tried to drop in on anyone to utilize priority. Pretty soon I'd caught at least five waves where I should have gotten decent points. None had been great, but the waves were short, and there wasn't a lot of room for showing off. They weren't barreling either so it was all down to the tricks.

The points I got were high enough to get me into the quarterfinals. At least I'd get my entrance fee back, so now I hadn't lost anything on joining. I'd probably earned five dollars.

The next heat started an hour later and I was really getting into it again. I still kept keeping a close eye on my competition. I didn't care if I had priority or not, I would not go for a wave that I saw someone else aiming for. It was still fine during that heat. Potential waves were still coming in frequently, and while I didn't get the best ones when I held back the way I did, I was fairly confident that my tricks would get me through the round.

The opposition was tough, but I scraped through to the next round by half a point.

The next heat was the semis where I'd been matched up against Broden. We gave each other a fist bump as the horn sounded and ran into the water, paddling out to the takeoff zone. The waves had become fewer, but most were taller and longer than they had been earlier. The only issue was how to manage to catch one of the good ones before the end of the heat.

Broden grabbed the first wave that came our way, but I knew it wouldn't amount to much. It was too shallow, and Broden only got a small cutback in before losing the wave.

I waited, and was still sitting on my board when Broden came back up to the lineup on the inside. There was a nice wave coming in, and Broden looked over his shoulder at me to see if I was going to paddle for it. I gave him a nod to go ahead and he charged. It was a nice wave, but not as nice as the one that I knew was coming.

It took a minute, but then it came, pulling me in.

I popped up and rode the top of the wave before dropping down into a cutback to go back into the whitewater. Back again, onto the wave. I picked up speed and went into a bottom turn from which I pushed up over the breaking lip of the wave. I did a three sixty in the air and landed neatly in the whitewater. I grinned. That had felt good! The cheers from the crowd were carried across the water and the elated feeling I got as I heard them let me know that I had missed this. I had missed competing.

I paddled back to the lineup and waited again, watching as Broden took a couple more waves. Heero was on his jet-ski and had to fight the urge to wave to him, just in case he'd think I wanted him to pick me up. Then I turned back to look over the water and there was a wall coming towards me.

I smiled and paddled hard. This would be a tube; I knew it! The wave took a hold of the board and I popped up. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Broden do the same, and he dropped into my path. There was nothing I could do but to turn away, downwards, and I was smacked in my head by the falling lip. It pressed me under the water and held me down for a split second.

I pushed myself upwards and, as I cleared the surface, I was hit by something over the side of my head. It made me dive under again, hoping it hadn't been Broden. But it couldn't have been, he'd been in front of me and I pushed my way up again.

The sun glared me right in the eyes when I surfaced and a splitting pain in my head made itself known. My board was right next to me. I grabbed onto it and hung there for a moment as I closed my eyes. It felt as though I was going to throw up if I moved too much so I lifted a hand into the air so the jet-ski would come pick me up. Then I dropped my aching head on my arms, shielding my eyes from the light.

The jet-ski came and I didn't even check who was on it as I held my arm out. I was grabbed and used the momentum to get the board and me onto the pad and grabbed a handhold with my free hand. When the driver let go of my hand I immediately pressed it against my head, hoping my skull wasn't trying to crawl out through my eye sockets. It felt like it wanted to.

'In,' I said, but I didn't think he heard me. It didn't matter, there was no way I was going to grab another wave and I think it showed.

He rode the jet-ski all the way up onto the beach. I stumbled to my feet and was soon grabbed under the arm.

'Easy, Duo.' It was Heero, and I leaned against him. 'Just sit down, they'll get you a gurney.'

'No,' I whispered, as to not make the pain any worse. 'I'll walk.'

He hesitated, and I moved my foot in the direction where the medical tent was located. It got him moving as well, steadying me.

Someone came in on my other side as well, but I'd already closed my eyes again so I didn't care to check whom it was. I was grateful for the support. It wouldn't do much for my reputation if I was to fall flat on my face in the sand.

'There's a bed right behind you, Duo,' Heero said in a low tone and I removed my hand from my head to feel for the edge behind me. I grabbed it and sat down slowly, weary of moving too quickly. Heero let me go and I had a moment of loss until he placed his hand on my shoulder.

I'd had concussions before, and I had no doubt that I'd gotten one this time as well. Everything felt a bit... tilted.

'I'm Dr. Brown,' someone said in front of me and I heard the scratch of something against the sand, making me flinch. 'Open your eyes, Mr. Maxwell.'

'Do I have to?' I asked but opened my eyes. White spots were playing in my vision. When I'd had my eyes closed the spots had been relatively steady. The pain behind my temple grew as the spots increased in intensity and the doctor shone a bright light into my eyes. It made me turn my head away and squint my eyes closed.

'Any pain in your neck?' the doctor asked and pressed against the back and sides of my neck.

'Nope, just the head,' I answered slowly, looking at him through my nearly closed eyes. He nodded as he jotted something down on a paper then proceeded to check reflexes and balance. He leaned over to his desk and grabbed a bottle of something as well as some swabs. He covered the swab with the liquid and brought it up against the side of my head.

It stung.

'You have a concussion. I'll patch up your wound, then I'll send you off to the hospital for monitoring.'

'I'd rather not go to the hospital,' I said and the doctor prodded at my forehead.

'Does this hurt?' he asked and I focused on what he was doing. I couldn't feel anything beyond the pain behind my eyes.

'No,' I answered and he nodded.

'As long as you've got someone to stay with, I won't send you to the hospital. If your headache gets worse, you need to go.'

It made me hesitate, and realize that I wouldn't even be able to get into the shed for some sleep when I was feeling like this.

'He does, he'll stay with me,' Heero said, tightening his hand slightly on my shoulder and I shifted my eyes to look at him. Unfortunately, all I could really see without moving my head was his hand and a small part of his abdomen. Maybe not unfortunate at all, he's got very nice muscles, even though they were tilted a bit.

'What he said,' I said and smiled. It hadn't even occurred to me that Heero would offer, even though I'd spent the previous night in his bed.

'All right,' the doctor said and moved his hands away from my head. 'You can go home and grab some sleep. Heero, wake him up a few times, and check his pupils for dilation. Some regurgitation is to be expected, but not repeatedly. Take him to a hospital if that happens.'

'I'm right here,' I muttered as he was speaking to Heero about me, but the doctor just continued giving orders to Heero and I left them to it, closing my eyes again.

'Duo?' Heero said and I cracked one eye open to see him in front of me. 'Lie down and rest for a bit. I'll find Wufei and get the pickup.'

'Already done,' Wufei said from a bit further away. I cracked my other eye open to find him standing by the other end of the tent before he came in. He and Heero helped me get to my feet again and led me out towards the pickup.

'Duo, bro!' was called and I heard someone running towards us. 'I'm really sorry.'

'It's fine, Broden,' I said, having figured out who it was without opening my eyes.

'Thanks, bro,' he said, not sounding entirely convinced, and very contrite. 'Get better, man.'

'Yeah,' I answered, trying to be polite even as my head was screaming bloody murder.

The hatch to the back of the pickup truck was unhitched and I winced at the metallic noise as it fell down.

'Sorry,' Wufei said. 'How...?'

'Duo? Can you get up on your own?' Heero asked and I frowned, but thought it should be fine.

'Give me a boost,' I said and placed my hands on the truck and jumped. Heero's hands on my waist helped me get high enough and I crawled up to sit with my back against the cab. Heero got up after me.

'My board?' I asked as I thought of it and Wufei swore slightly.

'It's in the medic tent still, I'll get it.'

'We've got it,' Quatre said. He slid the board onto the truck with a loud, grating noise and I put my head between my knees. It was shortly followed by the sound of the hatch closing and I groaned.

'Duo?' Heero asked and started to stroke my back in small circles.

'All good here,' I said, and he grunted, obviously disagreeing with me.

'Let's go,' he said anyways, and gave a soft tap on the windscreen.

Then it wasn't so good anymore. The truck vibrated below me, and I almost threw up, but managed to swallow it back down. The noises from the wheels against the road, and the racket of the boards against the floor of the truck were overwhelming. I covered my ears with my hands.

Heero put his arm against my back and pulled me closer to him, an invitation that I immediately accepted. I turned to him and scooted down a bit to rest my head on his thigh. He put one hand on my shoulder, and the other started to massage the top of my head gently. I was amazed when it didn't hurt, but rather felt amazing, and it made me forget the pain for a moment.

It came back with vigor when someone on the road decided to blast a horn and I pressed closer to Heero's thigh.

He leaned over me, putting his chin on my shoulder.

'Not so good, are you?' he couldn't avoid saying, and I had to abort a chuckle.

'Peachy,' I said, or whimpered, I wasn't sure.

I don't think I've ever been happier to feel a car come to a stop and to hear the engine shut off. I've never thought of how much noise an engine makes, or how much it vibrates, until every sound and motion made my head scream in pain.

'Come on, Duo,' Heero said and I shook my head against his thigh.

'I'll sleep here. Not moving anymore,' I whispered and he put his hand on my cheek, stroking gently.

'No, I'll help you in. Come on,' he said and I groaned, but obediently got to my knees. I crawled to the edge of the truck and turned to let my legs hang free over it. Heero jumped off and grabbed me under my knees. His other arm went behind my back and he lifted me off and walked towards the Safe house.

'Put me down,' I said, admittedly meekly, when I realized he was intending on carrying me all the way to the room.

'I said I'll help you,' he said and I buried my head against the crook of his neck.

'Didn't say anything about carrying,' I said, voice muffled by his neck and he took a deep breath.

'You didn't have to,' he said and leaned down slightly, almost making me panic. Then the soft mattress of the bed was below me and he gently lowered me onto it. I burrowed my head into the pillows and closed my eyes, suddenly feeling incredibly tired.

'Take the trunks off, Duo,' he said and I sighed.

'Just wanna sleep,' I answered and covered my eyes with my arm, making Heero sigh.

'They're still wet, Duo. I'll help.'

'Just want to get into my pants,' I muttered, but turned slightly as I felt his fingers on the waistband of my trunks, opening the knot of the string. I pushed them off myself, before curling in on myself again, not able to think about much else apart from the flashing pain in my head.

'Go to sleep, Duo,' Heero said and covered me in a blanket that I grabbed a hold of and cuddled tightly to myself.

'Don't leave,' I asked as I felt the bed lift as he stood up. He hesitated for seconds, and I realized I probably shouldn't have asked. 'Sorry, I...'

'No,' he said and I felt the mattress dip as he sat down again. 'I'll stay.'

I let go of the blanket and put my hand around his waist instead, burrowing my head against his side, blocking out all light. He put one hand on my back, and the other on my head, continuing the massage he'd started on the truck.

I don't usually feel safe when I'm injured, but here, with Heero, it was different.

I wanted to dream.

~ * ~

Chapter 10

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