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"Wish Upon a Star "Written By: Waterliliylf Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. All rights
remain with Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. No profit being
made here. Rating: R Warnings: sap, angst, fluff, AU Pairings: 3x4 Summary: When you wish upon a star, it makes no
difference who you are, unless you're the heir to the Winner business
empire. So when you do find a means of escape, how long can you hold
on to the fantasy, and the man of your dreams, before reality takes
over? "Wish Upon a Star " It's Raining Men: Duo was running late on Monday morning; late enough that he had to take the tram instead of cycling. A seriously sucky start to the week. He went through the usual morning rituals – make coffee, feed fish, water plants, drink coffee – at top speed, and only slowed down when it came to locking up. That was too important to rush; he'd had his own place for nearly nine months, which wasn't quite long enough for the shiny novelty of it all to have worn off. His own place. It was a bit sad, and he'd never tell anyone, but he got a massive thrill out of shutting the door behind him when he left, locking up his own little world to keep it safe, and then coming home and knowing that things would be just where he'd left them. In a weird way, he still thought of Trowa's apartment over the shop as 'home', but this place was his sanctuary. The rent cost more than the budget he and Tro had initially worked out between them, but he didn't have any other major expenses, and he was getting more and more art commissions these days. Once he'd seen the sunny, open-plan apartment for the first time, he'd wanted it; really wanted it. Trowa had lent him some of the deposit money and the two of them had trawled through garage sales and second-hand places until it was all cosy, like a real home. Utterly perfect in Duo's opinion. He gave the key one last twist in the lock, patted the gleaming front door – there had been a couple of cans of paint left after decorating Wish - affectionately and ran. Normally, he tried not to use public transport during the week; not at peak hours anyway. It was just too crowded, and reminded him of things he tried, most of the time, to forget. When he'd first arrived in Sanque, a bus or train of tram full of people had been his happy hunting ground, full of prosperous people, and there was always some idiot with a handbag hanging open, or a wallet thrust carelessly into a back pocket. It wasn't like he'd wanted that sort of life for himself; it was the reason he'd left L2 in the first place. Trouble was, he'd stowed away on a shuttle, and arrived illegally, and Sanque had strict laws on employing illegal immigrants. The very few employers who were willing to flout the law generally weren't the sort of people you wanted to work for. Duo had tried a few places; at some point, you got fucked over and dismissed after a week's work with no pay, or else the boss intimated very strongly that payment would be forthcoming only after another sort of fucking. No thanks. Duo had tried to do the Robin Hood thing; only stealing from people who looked like they could afford to lose a few bucks. Which sort of made practical sense anyway; what was the point in stealing from an impoverished student or road-sweeper? He'd been a damn good pick-picket as well. He still sometimes messed with Trowa's head by pinching his wallet or keys or whatever and putting them in a different pocket. It was nice not to have to do it for a living though. Duo caught his tram courtesy of a wild leap that earned him several disapproving looks and a lecture from the driver. No chance of a seat, of course but that was OK. It was only twenty minutes. Duo grinned at himself in the mirror; life was weird. He was crammed into this tin box with a load of other sweaty commuters, all yawning their way to work on a Monday morning, and the previous night, he'd been wined and dined and driven around like a prince. By an actual freaking prince, if you could believe that. Well, no, he wasn't really. But his ancestors had been royalty in Sanque, even if the country was now a republic and Zechs still had some sort of title; baron or count of something like that. And plenty of moolah obviously. It had been a weird kind of evening. Duo reached out one finger and drew the word Zechs in the condensation on the window pane. He didn't like to be called Milliardo, which was fair enough. Who would? He was a catch; that was how Hilde would describe someone like him. Hot and loaded and oozing charm and breeding and sophistication. Not really Duo's type, although he wasn't quite sure what his type actually was. Bookish guys who owned bookshops maybe. Hilde always said he was way too picky when it came to going out with anyone and she was probably right. The trouble was, prospective boyfriends tended to get measured against Solo, the memory of Solo, and Trowa, and usually came out lacking. How could they not? Solo was the person who'd kept him alive, the first person he'd ever loved. And Trowa had given him a job and a place to live and the precious gift of his friendship. It didn't hurt that the guy looked like a one-eyed wet dream either. He'd never met anyone who came close to how either of them made him feel. Of course, he'd never met anyone quite like Zechs before. He'd never been whisked away from work in a Ferrari, which he'd wanted so badly to drive, even to sit in the driver's seat for a second and put his hands on the wheel and pretend, like a little kid, but Zechs hadn't offered, and Duo hadn't wanted to ask straight out. They'd stopped outside one of the super-fancy restaurants on the harbour-front, and Zechs had just tossed the keys to some uniformed guy, like in a movie, and led Duo inside. It was the sort of place they probably wouldn't have let him in by himself, but you got the feeling that Zechs did whatever he wanted. He'd bally-ragged the head waiter guy into giving them a table by the windows and it was only when they finally sat down and got their menus that Duo had realised it was a sushi place. Barf. Even when he'd been living rough on the streets, Duo hadn't been able to bring himself to stomach raw fish. Zechs had been apologetic as hell, and wanted to go somewhere else, but Duo insisted it was fine, that he'd just eat rice and vegetables. He'd tried a couple of fishy things, but they'd been uberly gross, even doused with that spicy sauce. Apart from the food, it had been an OK night. He'd had a couple of Japanese beers and told Zechs a little bit of edited stuff about himself, and listened a lot more to Zechs talking about himself. He still wasn't quite sure whether the blond had picked up on the fact that Duo wasn't all that comfortable talking about his past to a stranger, or whether he was his own number one topic of conversation. He'd tried not to feel uncomfortable at the way Zechs was looking at him, like a particularly juicy piece of salmon or whatever. After the meal, as soon as they were in that sweet, sweet car, Zechs had propositioned him, very smoothly and charmingly. Duo had turned him down, bluntly and a bit awkwardly. Things had all gone sort of shitty at that point. Zechs had taken one hand off the wheel and placed in on Duo's knee, and told him not to be such a tease. Duo had removed the hand, very definitely, along with a little twist of the wrist to show that he was serious. The bloody man had just laughed and said enough was enough; they both knew perfectly well what was going to happen and that Duo could stop playing hard to get. At which point Duo had lost it. He'd met these sorts of guys before. They put together the equation of long hair and L2 accent and fitted clothes, and came up with the solution that they all meant someone who was gagging for it, or would at least put on a good performance if the money was right. Admittedly, Zechs had apologised profusely, and said he'd misread Duo's signals. The drive back to Duo's place had been the best part of the evening. Zechs had stopped trying to impress him and they just talked a bit. He'd apologised again, before letting Duo out, and given him a quick kiss on the cheek. It had been sort of nice, that kiss. Zechs smelled great, and his hair had whispered against Duo's cheek and his lips had been very gentle. He hadn't, obviously, offered to stay in touch. Which was sort of a shame. He hadn't been that bad, and he was gorgeous. Still, you only got one chance with someone like that. The world was probably full of hot guys climbing over each other to get into bed with Zechs. No way would he want to waste time on the one who didn't. Oh well. He'd always be able to say he'd dated a prince –sort of- for one night. That was cool. Trowa was at the bookshop when Duo walked in, which was unusual. Monday morning was normally his time for running around and doing errands. 'I'm on my way out,' he said, in answer to his look of surprise. 'I forgot my card for the Cash and Carry.' 'Oh, right. Where's Cat?' 'I just dropped him back at his hotel. He had to get his stuff; he's getting a cab back here.' 'Mmm hmmm. So he's going to stay for a bit?' Duo plonked down in a beanbag and looked up at him curiously. This, all of it, was way out of character. Waifs and strays, both of the human and animal kind, got brought home and kept until they could be re-homed. Of course, some of them, like him and the cats, got kept. Boyfriends, on the other, hand, tended to be kept below radar. Duo knew damn well he wasn't celibate; but boyfriends came and went all the time, and didn't get absorbed into his actual life. Trowa Barton, master of compartmentalisation, just didn't do cross-overs. Duo had been kept firmly in the 'stray' category until his promotion to 'friend'. That was how it worked. Blondie was getting him to break all the rules. 'For a while, yes.' Trowa flicked his hair back, blasting me with both eyes at once. 'Is that a problem? I thought you liked him.' 'I do. But you hardly know him. I mean, he seems a nice guy, but do you know, actually know, anything about him? I tried asking Zechs last night, and he was really evasive, and said he didn't know him that well either.' 'He doesn't know him that well,' Trowa said, a bit defensively. 'I asked Cat about it. Their mothers used to friends, that's all.' Duo nodded. Zechs had told him that much last night. It had been a surprise that the friend of Tro's new rescue project happened to be a prince, no less, but Zechs had said that mothers had been friends as young girls. Duo remembered reading somewhere that Zechs' mother had just been a normal person who'd made it as a model and ended up bagging an aristocrat for a husband. 'Look, Tro. I get that you like this guy. Hard not to, right? I just think you should maybe get to know him a bit better. Hell, it's like he just appeared out of nowhere, and now he's suddenly moving in with you.' 'He's only staying for a few days,' Trowa said tetchily. 'You saw what those bastards did to him. He needs somewhere to rest up for a while. And his wallet was stolen; it'll probably take a couple of days for him to sort that out.' 'And you're bankrolling him in the meantime?' 'Duo! It's not like that. Stop making him out to be some sort of freeloader. He's staying at the Sheraton; he obviously has money.' Duo whistled. 'I'm sorry, OK? I just don't want you to get hurt.' He didn't need to say again. The word hovered in the air; five almost tangible letters hanging between them. 'I know.' Trowa sighed heavily. 'Sorry I snapped. I just …. like him a lot. And I know he's only going to be here for a few days, but I want to spend as much time with him as I can. Maybe we could try some sort of long distance thing if we still like each other.' 'Right.' Duo tried to sound positive and encouraging, just to get Trowa to smile. For a realist, he was prone to occasional bouts of wishful thinking. Sure, he could carry on a relationship with a guy who lived on the other side of the galaxy, in a place where it was illegal to be gay. Shit. 'That would be cool. So d'you guys have plans for today?' Trowa nodded. 'If you don't mind holding the fort here, I thought we'd drive up to Lake Nova for a hike. He's never been anywhere like that.' 'Sure! It'll be quiet today, and I did skip out on you yesterday.' 'Shit, I forgot you went out with Zechs last night. How did it go?' 'Some of it was OK,' Duo said honestly. 'He brought me to a sushi place though, so it maybe wasn't the most successful dinner date ever.' Trowa winced. 'Didn't he offer to bring you somewhere else instead?' 'Yeah, but we were sitting down by then and he'd already bullied this waiter guy to get us a special table, and I just couldn't be bothered having to go through all that again.' He grinned. 'I ate a shitload of rice. Probably the most expensive rice on the planet.' 'I'm not sure if I like the sound of you being treated like that.' Trowa sounded like a disapproving parent; it made Duo laugh. 'He was OK, really. Anyway, how come you know him? You're hanging around with princes who happen to be world famous photographers and you don't think of mentioning it to your best buddy?' 'I don't exactly know him. He used to date Wufei.' Duo jerked up straight. 'Wufei as in Wufei ? Seriously? Is there anything else you haven't bothered to tell me? Like you've been out with Johnny Depp or something? Or Cathy's secretly married to Orlando Bloom?' Trowa laughed. 'It was years ago. It didn't end very well so 'Fei doesn't talk about it. And I'm sure I must have mentioned Zechs before at some point. He's involved in the SOS project with me; he does all the promotional photographs.' His smile faded; that was never one of his shiny, happy topics. 'So, how did you two get on?' 'OK. He does thinks he's God's gift, and he's so full of bullshit that it's a miracle his eyes aren't brown. He kept going on about all the famous people he'd worked with, like I was meant to fawn over for being so amazing. And then he expected me to go home with him!' 'You didn't?' Trowa asked sharply. ''Course I didn't!' 'Good.' Trowa stood up, keys in hand. 'I'd better go. Call me if anything comes up. If you get a chance, there are still those boxes of new books that came in on Saturday that need to go on the system. And don't worry about that guy; you deserve someone way better.' That comment kept Duo glowing for the next few hours. Cat turned up in a cab, not long after Trowa had left, trailing suitcases and a violin. The driver actually helped them carry the stuff inside, so presumably Cat had given him a hell of a tip. Not a freeloader after all, then. Or else a highly successful one. He seemed a lot more relaxed today; sort of sparkly and happy. Really, really cute. Lucky Trowa. They were so damn adorable together. Trowa came back a few minutes later and they left together, holding hands and laughing like two kids on the mitch from school. Mondays were a quiet days, mostly. Duo spent a couple of hours rearranging the shelves, which always got messed up on weekends, and served one or two customers. He quite liked having the place to himself, now and again. 'Don't worry about that guy; you deserve someone way better.' The words were still dancing in Duo's head when he put the 'Back in 10 mins' sign on the door and went out to get something for lunch. God, he loved Trowa. He really did. No one else in the universe would think that Duo Maxwell, with his sordid, squalid past, would deserve anyone better than an honest-to-god aristocrat. When he saw the florist's van outside the shop, he thought at first they'd got the wrong address. It happened every so often; the lady who ran the boutique next door was very attractive and guys were always sending her flowers. It wasn't a mistake though. The delivery was very definitely for D. Maxwell. They were from Zechs; an extravagant arrangement of highly coloured, exotic blooms. Duo dumped them on the counter, not sure what else do with them, and fingered the little card, trying to work out how he felt about all this. No one had given him flowers before, ever. He wasn't sure if it was something guys did. But Zechs obviously meant the gesture as some sort of apology and that was kind of sweet. He wasn't sure if he really liked the actual flowers either- the arrangement was sort of stiff and showy. Duo preferred flowers growing in a real garden, or the way Catherine arranged them; just dumped in a glass. They had probably cost a fortune. The message was very brief. 'Apologies for my behaviour last night. Please let me make it up to you.' Duo didn't quite get what that meant. Were the flowers and the card the way of making up, or did it mean Zechs wanted to see him again? Shaking his head, he headed for the backroom. Zechs had his number; he could call if he really wanted them to meet up again. For now, Duo had work to do. Ten minutes later, he was swearing luridly at the computer. Shit. Trowa had installed a new programme the previous week, and offered to show Duo how to use it. Duo, of course, had said not to bother; he'd pick it up as he went along. Which he hadn't. Tro had given him a crash course the previous day, but Trowa had obviously been thinking about his new blond pet and had neglected some of the finer points. 'Computers,' Duo declaimed to the empty shop, 'are an abomination. They should all be gathered up and burnt.' 'Computers,' said a strange voice out of nowhere, 'are machines, and as such are only as good as the people operating them. Machines are never to blame for human incompetence..' What the fuck? Duo hadn't heard the door open, hadn't heard the little bell which signalled that someone had come in. But there was, undeniably, a man standing in front of him. Not bad looking either. Maybe his fairy godmother had finally decided to make up for ignoring him for so many years and got her act together, sending him a daily quota of hot guys. And this one was pretty tasty. Not as showy as Zechs, but a great body and eyes to die for. Eyes to dive into and wallow around in all that lovely blueness, the way you always wanted to jump into the blue, blue sea on holiday shows. Pity the personality clearly didn't match up to the nice exterior. At least, Zechs had been charming and courteous. This guy was out and out rude. 'May I help you?' Duo made his tone icily polite, sort of how Zechs had spoken to the waiter in the sushi place, on being informed that he'd have to wait for a table. The rude guy actually grinned. 'I just wanted to look around. Nice flowers.' Duo wasn't sure if that was meant to be mocking or complimentary. Maybe the grin was actually a sneer in disguise. Not too great a disguise even; just a quirk of his lips. 'Yeah.' Duo reached out and touched one red, ferny-looking thing. 'My boyfriend sent them to me.' OK, that was sort of a lie. But this guy with his messy hair and those damn eyes was unsettling. And rude. Very rude. Maybe he'd run off if he knew Duo was gay. He didn't. 'I'm Heero.' He said it like it should mean something. 'Yeah? Sorry, did you have a book on order or something? Oh, wait. You mean you're Cat's Heero?' 'His friend, yes. He told me about this place. I just wanted to see it.' 'Sure. Knock yourself out.' Literally. Duo looked down at the keyboard, hoping the guy could take a hint, and hit a random selection of keys. Nothing happened. 'Let me.' Heero was suddenly behind the counter with him. In the very small space. He moved as fast as Trowa. Duo swallowed as the other man's fingers flickered over the keyboard, and the screen flashed to life. 'You had Caps Lock on. That freezes this programme.' 'Cool! Thanks. How d'you know all this?' 'I like computers.' He offered Duo a rather shy, rather charming smile. 'I don't think they're an abomination at all.' Duo grinned back, unable to help himself. 'I didn't mean that. really. You don't have to take offence on behalf of the whole PC nation.' Heero laughed. 'I won't. I'm sorry if I sounded rude. Things sometimes sound better in my head than when I say them aloud.' 'Yeah, me too. Sometimes. People don't always get what I mean. Oh, sorry, I'd better get this.' Damn. Bloody 'phone. Always ringing when you were trying to chat up the cute, cuuuuute guys. 'Wish Upon a Star. May I help you?' 'Duo? This is Zechs.' 'Oh, hey. How's it going? I got your flowers; you didn't have to do that.' Duo babbled on, hyper aware of Heero beside him. The guy had actually started entering inventory lists. 'Yes, I did. I behaved unforgivably. I would very much like to make amends, if you would let me take you out again?' Duo fiddled with the tuft of his braid. Typical. Cute guys were like buses; you waited for ever and they all turned up at once. 'Please,' Zechs coaxed. 'I'll treat you like a prince. And I promise not to pressure you into anything.' 'No raw fish?' 'Not a single scale.' That made Duo grin. Zechs actually had a sense of humour. And he was obviously interested. He'd be a fool not to say yes. The guy ticked all the right boxes for a prospective boyfriend. What guy in his right mind would turn down a date with a handsome prince? It was what everyone in the universe wanted, right; for someone to utterly sweep them off their feet? 'OK then. But I'm not free 'til Wednesday.' 'Seven o'clock. If that suits you, I'll pick you up at home?' 'Cool! I'll, ah, I'll see you then.' Heero, seated at his elbow, glanced up. Lovely, lovely eyes. Cobalt compared to Zech's arctic blue. 'Do you have other inventory items you want me to enter, or is this the lot?' 'You don't have to do any of it. Really. It's my job.' Heero produced another of those endearingly shy smiles. 'I don't mind. I like computers. And I'm saving this one from any more verbal abuse.' 'Well, if you're sure.' Duo leaned on the counter, watching the other man's fingers race over the computer. He was just being stupid; he didn't even know if Heero was gay. He'd have to ask Cat. 'Have you had lunch yet? I've got a couple of bagels from the deli down the street. We could split them if you liked?' 'I'd like that.' Oh-kay. Question answered. Duo didn't have that much experience with guys, and he wasn't overly vain, but he knew what that sort of look meant. It was true what they said; guys were like buses. You
waited for ever and then a whole bunch turned up at once.
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