"The Meaning of
Life"
Written By: SkyLark
Pairings: 1x2x1
Warnings: AU, Neko, male pregnancy, sap, angst
Betaed by ShenLong Deb *hugs*
Archives: http://www.gundam-wing-diaries.150m.com/gw/SkyLark/gwSkyLark.htm
and http://www.mizunoamy.bravepages.com/skylark/skylarkfics.html
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Gundam Wing, or its characters.
I just love playing with them.
Third fic in the Neko series
"The Meaning of Life"
Purring quietly as he woke, Duo had a small smile on
his face that had been in place through the night. His violet eyes
blinking open, he found himself wrapped around his peacefully sleeping
lover. Thoughts of their prior bout of lovemaking flooded him, warming
him at recalling how tender Heero had been.
Carefully, the neko moved to extract himself from the
loose arms draped around his bare waist to relieve his filled bladder.
Other than a few low moans from stirring, his partner remained asleep
while turning onto his side to face Duo’s half of the bed. Once
freed, the cat-eared boy grinned to himself.
Placing a soft kiss on the artist's forehead, the neko
turned himself to leave the bed when he looked down to find a red
spot of blood on the bed where he had been lying. Taken aback by the
sight of it, he gasped sharply.
Instantly alert at the sound, Heero's eyes snapped open with a worried,
"Duo?" Following his partner's line of sight down,
he cried, "Duo!" Not even taking a moment to blink, he moved
the other teenager to a clean place on the bed and got him to lay
on his stomach amidst his insisting that he was fine.
The large spot was as long and wide as a hand print and nearly bled
through the thick sheets into the mattress. That was the least of
the Japanese youth's worries as he inspected the cat-tailed boy's
backside as best he could. With no visible lesions or bruises, his
heart sank in knowing that the damage would all have to be internal.
Biting his lip, Heero finally allowed his lover to turn onto his side
to face him. "Oh God, Duo, I'm so sorry," he whispered in
a pained voice. "I had no idea that I had hurt you like that."
A hand reaching up to brush his long, loose hair back from his face,
Duo shook his head and reassured, "I've been telling you I'm
fine. I'm not in any pain at all. You didn't hurt me." His best
friend's mouth opened to protest and he quickly raised his hand to
stop him.
To prove his point, he sat up and leveled the other
young man with a firm look as he stated clearly, "You. Did. Not.
Hurt. Me. If you had, you know that I would have stopped you. And
I wouldn't lie to you, now, if I was even a little sore."
Slowly looking over to the spot on the bed, Heero frowned, "But...
that blood-" He was stopped when a hand lightly turned his head
back to his partner.
"I don't know why I bled like that," the neko shrugged.
"Something must have torn a little, but I don't even feel
it, so don't worry." Leaning forward, he pleaded quietly, "Please
promise me that you won't worry about this anymore, or think that
you damaged me in any way. You couldn't have been more gentle with
me last night if you tried."
Little by little, the artist heeded his little lover's words and allowed
them to ease his concern. He knew that Duo was not one to hold back
if anything felt wrong with him... especially after their last scare
when his own body makeup was breaking down on him. If he truly was
in any pain, he would have made it known. Besides that, he was sitting
up without so much as a wince of discomfort.
Even if he was trying to make light of how he felt, he would not have
been able to hide something like that.
Finally, Heero nodded, "All right. I won't worry... too
much." Satisfied with that, Duo grinned in relief and gave him
a chaste kiss of appreciation. Looking back to the sheet, he cringed,
"I better get these sheets off and cleaned up before mom starts
her laundry and sees this." The last thing either of them needed
was a concerned lawyer on their hands. Especially one as good
at 'examining the witnesses' as his mother was.
That in mind, the Japanese student leaned in to kiss his partner's
forehead and suggested, "You should probably get a shower. By
the time you're finished, I'll be back in time to help you brush the
knots out of your hair."
Nodding, Duo rose from the bed with a smile, heading to the closet
to collect his deep blue robe. His tail slipped through the hole in
the back as he tied the front closed. With a wave and a smile, he
stepped from the bedroom and closed the door after him.
Half-way down the hall, a sudden wave of nausea overcame the neko.
Caught off guard, he quickly covered his mouth and ran the rest of
the way to the bathroom. Quickly sealing himself off from the rest
of the house, he fell to his knees before the toilet while throwing
the lid up. Bent over the opening, the few contents in his stomach
from the night before poured out of him in a couple of retches.
A few heaves later, Duo was finally able to catch his breath enough
to push himself up and flush the toilet. Rinsing his mouth out in
the sink, he splashed his warm face with cold water a few times until
the last bit of wooziness passed. He reached for a towel and looked
to his pale face in the mirror.
"Must be coming down with something," he thought aloud while
drying himself. Prior to leaving his school for the summer, there
was a case of a stomach virus going around. It looked as though he
and Heero were not as lucky to go unscathed by it as he had thought.
* * * *
Later that afternoon…
“Solo!” Duo cheered as his ‘brother’
entered the house with a duffle bag in each hand. Grinning widely,
the blonde, white-furred neko lowered his belongings just in time
to open his arms for the tight embrace that befell on him.
Laughing, Solo purred and pat the braided teenager’s
back with a warm, “Good to see you again, too, Duo.” When
he was released, he gave his other approaching friend a one-armed
hug and nodded in greeting, “Heero.”
The artist smirked and nodded back. “So, how was
your first semester in computer science?”
Unable to hide his excitement, the boy’s white
cat ears and tail perked up as he answered, “Fascinating! It’s
pretty awesome getting into a field that is constantly changing and
growing! There’s a lot I’ll be able to do when I have my
degree, but I won’t have to stop learning as I’m working.”
It amused Heero to no end to see that natural wish to
constantly learn that was embedded in the nekos. From the time that
Duo had taken his true form, he was curious and intrigued by everything.
He could never take in enough. Now that they had been freed to the
world, Solo and his clan were no different.
Cassie, Jena, Andrew and Carson filtered into the living
room and were happily reunited with their friends just as Danielle
came in through the other entrance leading to the kitchen. “Mom!”
the band of cat-eared teenagers chorused at the sight of her before
all but running in to each other to have a chance at embracing her.
Smiling from ear-to-ear, the red-headed woman gladly
hugged each of the nekos as she welcomed kindly, “Hello, my darlings.”
Being one of the first humans that the lot had come in contact with
besides Doctor J and his team, she was dubbed their ‘mother’
for the care and generosity she had extended to them.
More than just that, Danielle had seen that the nekos
had the same ruling that she had seen bestowed on Duo- that they were
every bit as human as she or anyone else. And so it was only right
to Solo and the others that she be called their ‘mom.’
Her hands clapping together, the retired lawyer winked
to her charges, “I have milk waiting in the kitchen for all of
you, so make yourselves comfortable and we can all get caught up.”
She stepped aside for the nekos to step from the living room while
rubbing their arms and backs as they passed by.
Alone once more in the room, Heero and Duo watched them
disappear from their sight with smiles on their faces. “My mom
sure has come a long way,” the Japanese teenager commented proudly.
“To think that she is the same woman who had passed out when
she first saw you like this.”
They both shared a quiet laugh at that before the braided
teenager’s violet eyes lost their focus. As his lover stared
off seemingly at nothing, Heero picked up on a change in the cat-tailed
boy’s demeanor. “What is it, love?” he urged gently.
Shaking his head in returning to the present, Duo’s
braided head turned to meet the cobalt eyes on him. A small, sad smile
tugging his lips, he answered quietly, “It’s kind of wrong
for me to be thinking it, but…” His lover’s head tilted
a bit in confusion.
Frustrated at looking for the right words, the neko
shook his head again and frowned, “I’m not as… unique
as I was before Solo and the others were discovered.” The corner
of his mouth tugged up as he shrugged, “I almost liked being
the only neko around because it made me special. And I miss that feeling.”
Biting his lip, Duo’s grin slipped away. “That’s
a terrible way to feel, isn’t it? Pretty selfish of me?”
“No,” Heero reassured with a grin. Lightly
cupping the side of his partner’s face, he rubbed his cheek with
the pad of his thumb. “I think it’s understandable. But,
you are unique. There will never be another Duo Maxwell like you.
And you’ll always be special to me.”
As those words sunk in, the cat-eared boy’s eyes
widened and closed against a few tears. Leaning into the touch, he
purred loudly. “Thank you,” he whispered sincerely. Opening
his eyes, he smiled, “That’s all I need to know.”
The artist closed the distance for a soft kiss. Pulling
back, he smirked, “Besides, it’s good that there are other
nekos to keep the interest of the media off of you. I’m sure
that you don’t miss having to avoid being followed by photographers
and reporters.”
Shuddering, Duo replied quickly, “No. I can’t
say I miss that at all.” His grin returned, threatening to split
his face. “That is one of the many good things about not being
the only neko around anymore.
Heero snickered and took his lover’s hand into
his own whilst leading him to the kitchen. “Come on,” he
said quietly. “Let’s go catch up with the others.”
Still smiling, the braided teenager followed as his tail wrapped around
their joint hands.
* * * *
Later that evening...
Nearly a whole section of the popular Italian restaurant in town was
filled up as Heero, Duo and all of their friends were gathered together
for the first time since Spring Break. Everyone was talking amongst
one another as they retold all of their adventures from the past semester
and shared some of their plans for when they graduated the following
year.
Everyone was abuzz over Trowa and Dorothy's daughter, Leslie. Now
a year-and-a-half in age, the little girl was nothing but smiles and
giggles as she was passed from one waiting pair of arms to the next.
While she was pleasant to all, the little one was, of course, most
intrigued by the nekos. And they were all too happy to accommodate
her curiosity in them by offering their tails or lowering their heads
for a gently rubbing of their tall ears. Her newlywed parents
were happy to sit back and watch the whole process proudly as they
sat together with their hands joined.
Quatre and Relena spent a great deal of time holding the child with
a glow in their eyes. With their wedding planned for the following
summer, it would only be a matter of time before they would be starting
a family of their own.
Wufei and Sally were seated across from the engaged pair and cast
each other a few glances. The braided doctor was well into her practice
as a private physician, but always made time for her boyfriend when
she could. As soon as he graduated, then they would be able to talk
more about their future when there was even more opportunity to discuss
the matter.
Every time she was set down, Leslie knew to clumsily walk over to
the next couple of chairs where the next people of interest were waiting.
She giggled as she was lifted up with a theatrical grunt from Duo.
"Who's a cute little Leslie?" the neko crooned
and purred to the little girl while setting her in his lap. The
child laughed and focused her emerald eyes on the cat tail that
he waved in front of her. Gently taking it in her hands, she clapped
with it a few times. Chuckling deeply, Duo rained a few kisses on
her head of blonde hair.
Heero shook his head in amusement and reached over to offer a couple
of fingers that Leslie latched onto with a hand that she freed from
the tail. "I can't get over how big she's getting so quickly,"
he stated with a small smile.
Sighing, Dorothy patted her flat stomach and replied, "I know.
I still can't believe that I gave birth to that."
Trowa snickered and kissed his wife's forehead. Giving him a loving
grin in response, she squeezed his hand. While their situation may
not have been the ideal scenario for starting a family, they were
no less happy than any of their friends. They just happened to get
a little head start on the family building process, and there was
nothing wrong with that.
Her cool blue eyes turning to the braided neko, the academic law director
smiled, "And I understand congratulations are in order, Mister
Maxwell, on your being signed back with the Truman and Harrison law
firm for next semester. They had nothing but rave reviews when
it came to your performance with them."
Blushing, Duo ducked his braided head and shrugged, "I was just
helping where I could. I'm sure that they would have been happy with
any student that was sent to work with them."
Dorothy's grin only warmed as she replied sincerely, "No need
to belittle what you have done, Duo. For your field of interest, there
are few firms as well noted and respected as Truman and Harrison.”
The young mother offered a hand for Leslie to grip onto
as she continued, “Getting a foot in the door is not easy, but
they had been impressed by your showing at school. And now that they
actually want you to return, it only goes to show the hard work and
professionalism you've shown. You should be very proud."
At that, Heero reached over to hold his lover's hand and smiled when
their eyes met, "I know I'm proud of you." His blush deepening,
the neko couldn't help the appreciative curl on his lips while he
squeezed the hand in his own.
Wufei snorted and rolled his eyes, "Still acting like high school
love birds." He smirked when his girlfriend elbowed him in the
ribs and raised his hands in surrender. Duo and Heero paid no mind
to their friend's comment and took it for the sarcastic josh it was
meant as.
Of course everyone around the table expressed their affection for
their counterpart differently. While they were not the most visibly loving,
what Wufei and Sally had was never questioned. As far as the most
outwardly demonstrative of their feelings, Heero and Duo were up there
with Relena and Quatre... especially ever since the latter became
engaged.
From his place at the table, the braided neko took in the happy young
pair. A blush on her cheeks, Lena was sitting closely to Quatre as
they conversed quietly amongst themselves like lovers sharing an intimate
secret. No doubt they were discussing more on their wedding plans.
Duo's violet eyes then turned to Trowa and Dorothy as Heero handed
their daughter back over to their care. The way Leslie's green eyes
lit up with her giggle as she reached out for the Latin teenager made
something in his chest hurt.
Suddenly stricken by a new jealousy, the cat-eared boy frowned to
himself. There was no need to be jealous of what his friends had.
While he and Heero would never be able to be married, there were services
for domestic partners that would bind them legally. And as far as
children, they could always adopt if they so felt the need for their
own family to grow.
But there was still something that nagged Duo about the whole thing.
They could have the same things everyone else had, but it would be
very different.
Uncomfortable with where his train of thought was heading, he shook
his head and returned to the present just as he felt the need to relieve
himself. Politely excusing himself, the neko kissed his partner's
cheek and rose from the table to head to the bathroom.
Closing the stall door behind himself, he lowered his pants to find
a faint, red stain inside his boxers. Violet eyes widening, Duo tried
to keep his panic at bay. When he was finished, he balled a wad of
toilet paper to protect his undergarments.
Just as he had that morning, he did not have any discomfort and so
the blood was a mystery to him as to what could be causing it. Heading
back out of the bathroom, the teenager made it a point to tell Heero
that the bleeding had returned...
...if it continued.
* * * *
Sleeping that night was a challenge to say the least.
He was not in pain and certainly tired enough that he could have rested
the whole night through.
But his mind was racing. And the fears of something
being wrong with him yet again kept Duo up most the evening.
After everything that he and Heero had been though,
he really was not sure he could handle yet another challenge to have
to overcome. Being poked and prodded in every way imaginable, he did
not want to have to endure any of that again.
Heero shifted in his sleep a bit, but kept a firm hold
on the neko with a quiet sigh. Nuzzling close as he bit his lip, the
cat-eared boy’s tail draped around their waists.
They were finally happy and on the brink of really moving
on with their lives. For anything more to stand in their way of that…
Unable to keep his eyes open any longer, Duo’s exhausted mind
drifted off into a restless slumber in the early morning hours.
Just as he felt sleep pull him away, he did say a quick
prayer that everything would be all right in the morning.
TBC
chapter 3
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