"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 "

 

Bed and Breakfast:

'Me neither.' Trowa's voice was equally low, as if they were sharing secrets, as if someone might overhear them. 'Fancy that.'

'I fancy you,' Quatre whispered. There was a whole refrain of voices in his head; Heero, Rashid, Iria, the rest of his family, all clamouring that this was a bad idea.

It wasn't fair; other people got to have just one voice as their conscience. Quatre Raberba Winner had a Greek chorus.

Why shouldn't he, for once in his life, get to do something that would make him happy; something a little bit selfish? He liked Trowa and Trowa seemed to like him. Was it so very terrible to want to keep that feeling for longer?

'Good. Can I ask you another question? Can I do this without hurting you?' Trowa slid one arm around his shoulder, pulling him closer.

'Yes.'

'And this?' Trowa's lips moved against his very gently, tongue darting out to lick the uninjured corner.

'That doesn't hurt.' Of course it didn't. It couldn't possibly hurt; that gentle movement of Trowa's mouth on his. Quatre leaned into the kiss, gasping into Trowa's mouth as the man slipped one hand under his t-shirt, and trailed a caress along his bare stomach.

'Sorry. Sorry. I forgot you must be sore there.'

'No, you didn't hurt me. This is all just a little ….'

'Too fast?' Trowa said shrewdly. 'No, I'm sorry. Let's try this instead. We can get comfortable and talk a little bit. OK?'

'OK.' Quatre let Trowa take his hand, and settle them both on the bed; Trowa leaning against the pillows and Quatre snuggled against him.

It was too fast. Of course it was. It had been one thing to flirt, and make out a little, in a crowded club, with plenty of other people around. It was quite another to do it in the privacy of someone's bedroom.

And Trowa's idea of getting comfortable had involved off taking off his t-shirt and then wrapping both arms around his companion.

'Is this all right?'

'It's lovely.'

'Mmm. I told you, last night, in the club, that I liked holding you. I meant it.' His lips danced over Quatre's face. 'It's hard to believe that someone like you is single.'

'It's true.' Quatre gazed imploringly into the other man's eyes. At least that was one thing he didn't have to lie about.

'I wasn't doubting you. I'm just surprised that the rest of the world seems to be blind.'

'I've had one proper relationship, when I was eighteen.' Quatre turned onto his stomach, carefully and propped his chin on Trowa's shoulder. 'I spent three months on Earth, at university in Vancouver.'

'Canada?' Trowa asked. 'I've always wanted to go there. Flights from Sanque cost a fortune, though. Did you like it?'

'Oh, yes. Very much.' He bit his lip, considering. 'I actually won a Mathematics Award at school; the prize was a semester at a university on Earth.'

There, that was true enough. He'd accepted the award, under the proud gaze of his father and Iria and some of his other sisters, but the financial prize had gone to another student.

'Anyway, I met Jordan on my first day and we hit it off straightaway. After I went back home, we tried to do the long distance thing, but it was difficult and then he met someone else and that was the end of that.'

He could hear the little undertone of bitterness in his own voice. Five years on, he could tell it would never have worked. Quatre Winner, on L4, would never be permitted to have a homosexual relationship, but the idealistic, idiotic teenager he'd been then hadn't known very much about the reality of his world.

'Otherwise, it's rather difficult, on L4. There are places, if you know where to look, where you can go for sex, but that's pretty much it.'

'So I hear. That can't be easy.'

Quatre shivered as Trowa ghosted kisses along his forehead. It wasn't just the physical intimacy; it was the understanding and affection in his voice. 'It's so long since I've been with someone like this. Just ….being held.'

'That's a terrible shame,' Trowa said softly. 'Cat, at the club last night, were you looking to hook up with someone?'

'No!' Quatre shook his head. 'Not really. All I really wanted was to get away for an hour or so. Listen to music and have a drink. Would it matter to you? If I'd only gone there looking for sex?'

'I didn't mean it like that.' Trowa was using that voice again, the one that somehow wrapped cashmere-soft concern around his nerves. 'I was just wondering what you were doing in a club that's a notorious pick-up joint if that wasn't what you were after. ' He tugged Quatre into his arms, careful not to touch any bruised areas.

'You looked so sad, the first time I saw you. Propping up the bar, and looking into your glass like it was a crystal ball.'

'Was I?' Quatre couldn't really remember anything about the club until he'd met Trowa; just vague impressions of music and that awful beer he'd been drinking.

He'd eaten dinner alone at a small seafood restaurant recommended by Brian, and then gone shopping for some new clothes. Buoyed up by the glass of wine he'd had with his meal, and by the blatant flattery of the sales assistants, he'd bought the sort of clothes that Quatre Winner very definitely did not wear.

'I had a row with my sister last night. I told you that, didn't I? I'm hopeless at standing up for myself and afterwards I was upset and I just wanted to get out for a while.'

'What was the argument about?'

'Just family things,' Quatre said evasively. 'It's complicated.'

Trowa nodded. 'Was she the person you were in such a rush to call when you woke up then?'

'One of them.' Quatre hesitated, weaving the fingers of his right hand with Trowa's.

He was going to have to call Iria at some point and tell her that his plans had changed. And Heero. Who was on his way to Sanque and, bless his paranoid heart, would be less than ecstatic to find his friend had virtually moved in with a man he'd just met. In Heero's mind, strangers were just enemies who hadn't yet declared themselves to be hostile.

'The other was my friend, Heero. He's actually visiting Sanque himself this week, so I'm sure you'll meet him.' He squeezed Trowa's fingers. 'He tends to be very protective, so he'll probably interrogate you as to your intentions towards me.'

'He sounds like a good friend to have.' Trowa was smiling, obviously envisaging a cosy chat. Oh dear. Still, he couldn't be expected to know that Heero's idea of an interrogation was one that would be banned by most civilised countries.

'Just as a matter of interest, what are your intentions?' Quatre wondered aloud, trying to sound oh-so-casual. It hadn't registered at first, but if Stardust was the notorious place Trowa claimed it was, then he'd presumably gone there for his own reasons. Was that all he was looking for; sex?

'My intentions?' Trowa's eyes were a gleaming emerald-green, glimmering with mischief. 'My lovely Cat, do you really have to ask? We're in bed together; I believe we are cuddling, and I've been very determinedly trying to find out whether you're available or not. Can't you work it out for yourself, or do you need me to draw you a diagram? Because I can do that, if you like.'

'I think I can work it out.' Quatre sat up abruptly. 'I'm sorry. I apparently gave you the wrong idea about what I want. I suppose it was my own fault, being alone in a club with that sort of a reputation. So stupid of me, not to realise what sort of signals I was giving out.'

'Come back here.' Quatre found himself sprawled over Trowa's chest, green eyes holding his. 'I think we need to start this particular conversation over again. I would love to have sex with you, yes. But I'm not going to rush you into anything you're not happy with. I also want to get to know you better, not just physically but I want to know about your taste in food, and your favourite books, and what sort of music you like. And I would really, really love to try to stop you looking as sad as you were last night. You have the most beautiful smile, and I don't think you get to use it as often as you should. I'd like to make you smile more often. Do you think that might satisfy your friend Heero?'

'Satisfying Heero doesn't matter.' The blond gave a shaky little laugh. 'I'm satisfied.'

'Glad to hear it.' Trowa's voice deepened a little. 'So you're not just with me for my body, right? Can I ask what you're looking for?'

Well, that was the big question, wasn't it? Quatre, who knew all about delaying tactics and distractions in business, was clever enough to adapt them to other areas of endeavour. Dipping his head to Trowa's chest, he flicked his tongue around one nipple, giving himself time to think.

'Well, your body's a part of it,' he said huskily. 'But I'd really like to know all the things you said too, about you. I'd like to know whether we can be friends before we try anything more.'

'If you keep doing that, I might decide it's not necessary. I already have plenty of friends.'

'You want me to stop, then?' Quatre bit down, very gently, wondering if Trowa's self control was any better than his. Part of him hoped not. The man was perfect. And kind and funny and affectionate.

He'd been honest, too, about what he wanted. Well, Quatre had been too, up to a point. There were just a few things he'd left out. But everything he'd actually told Trowa had been true.

'I don't think that want is the appropriate word, actually.' There was a moment when he was lost, captivated in Trowa's smile, and then he was flat on his back with the other man leaning over him. He was strong then, and fast. Quatre had known that; it should have been a little intimidating. With Trowa, it wasn't, somehow.

'Two choices, Cat. Either we get up now and I make you breakfast, or … we skip a few steps ahead. Your call.'

Your call. Someone had actually given him the choice to make a decision on his own. That was a novelty in itself. In the end, his stomach decided, producing a rather loud and embarrassing rumble.

Trowa just laughed, getting off the bed and pulling Quatre after him. 'OK. I get it. You need to be fed.'

Quatre grinned. 'I'd love that. I'm starving!'

Preparing breakfast turned out to be a rather awkward affair. Quatre tried to help, got under Trowa's feet and was told it would be quicker if he just sat down and let his host get on with it. Quatre obeyed, sipping a glass of juice and rather enjoying watching Trowa move around in his own space. Trowa was barefoot, and hadn't bothered to put his shirt back on; he'd certainly never had a half-naked man cook him breakfast before.

He didn't get to be in a kitchen very often either, except when he stayed with Heero. It was nice.

He was trying to gauge Trowa's mood, which had definitely changed since they'd left the bedroom. Was he annoyed Quatre hadn't wanted sex; irritated at his guest's teasing; or just preferred to be quiet while cooking?

'Trowa,' he ventured. 'I'm sorry if you thought I was teasing you. I'm not very consistent, am I?'

'What? Quatre, I'm not mad with you.' The other man looked up from stirring a pot of scrambled eggs and smiled. 'Here's one cultural difference between Sanque and L4; it's perfectly acceptable for hot blond guys to tease a little bit. It's encouraged, even.'

He tipped the eggs onto two plates and Quatre's mouth started to water.

'It's not that. I don't even know what you're doing in Sanque, how long you'll be staying here.' He handed Quatre the plate of toast. 'I don't know anything about you.'

'Like I told you, I'm here to visit some old friends of my father. He's very ill, and Father is an invalid; he couldn't make the journey from L4, so he asked me to go in his place. I don't have any definite plans for how long I'll be here. A week, maybe. Although I can't pay a visit looking like this. Are you sure you don't mind me staying here for a few days?'

'I already invited you.' Trowa said quietly. 'A few days isn't very long, though. What happens after that?'

'I don't know.' Quatre buttered a piece of toast, taking time to spread it evenly. 'Honestly. I'm not very happy at home, but my father needs me. I can't just take off, however much I want to. Trowa, what's happening with us? I'm not just imagining it, am I?'

'No. Definitely not.' One long finger touched Quatre's forehead gently. 'You're going to have wrinkles before you're thirty if you keep frowning like that. Maybe we should just see how things go? We might hate the sight of each other by this evening, or realise we both have the most obnoxious habits.'

'I grind my teeth when I'm sleeping. My dentist is always complaining about it.'

'Then maybe I'll never let you sleep. Elimination of problem. I tend to take home stray or injured animals all the time. People too, sometimes.'

'I like animals. And I can't really complain about the people you rescue, since I'm one of them, can I?' Quatre smiled as Trowa leaned over and kissed the tip of his nose. 'I don't think I'm going to hate the sight of you by this evening.'

He wrapped both arms around Trowa's waist and clambered into the other man's lap.

'My lap-Cat,' Trowa chuckled. 'Listen, I don't open the shop 'til two on Sundays and I can always ask Duo to help out, so I could take the day off. If you want, I can drive you to your hotel to collect your stuff. Then we'd have the whole day to play around with.'

A whole day to fill, Quatre thought wistfully, trying to remember the last time he'd had so much time to himself. Iria and his assistant between them liked to organise his life into thirty minute segments. Most days, he counted himself lucky to have enough time for a shower, and a few daydreams.

'I'd rather stay here.' Quatre nuzzled against Trowa's neck.

'Sure. How d'you spend normally spend Sundays at home.'

'Work. Mostly. I sometimes meet my friend Heero but he's a workaholic as well, so we probably don't see each other as often as we should.'

'You don't really strike me as the work-obsessed type,' Trowa remarked.

'I'm probably not, if I'm left to myself. I quite like being lazy. The thing is, my father had a stroke a few months after my nineteenth birthday, and I had to start work straightaway.'

Trowa made a sympathetic little noise in his throat. 'That's rough. So you had to give up university? Couldn't your folks have afforded a manager to run things while you finished your studies?'

'Um, it wasn't really an option. We've always been a family business; nobody wanted an outsider coming in and taking over. My older sister's been in charge for the past few years, and I've been working with her and studying part time. I got my Masters last year, so my father wants me to take over soon. On L4, boys are supposed to inherit. I think it's stupid but my family's very traditional.'

'Poor Cat,' Trowa said softly. 'Your family situation sounds like my friend Wufei's. His family's from L5 originally; they immigrated to Sanque a few decades ago and started off with one little corner shop and now they've built up a whole chain and a few restaurants. There was war when Wufei said he wasn't interested in working in any of them, but his parents came 'round eventually.'

'He's lucky then.'

'Yeah.' Trowa's arms tightened around him. 'So you never really had a choice with what you wanted to do? What did you study anyway? Business?'

'Accountancy.' He tucked his head into the crook of Trowa's warm, bare shoulder. 'I love working with numbers so it wasn't that bad. And I took some music courses as well, when I had time.'

'What do you play?'

'Classical violin, mainly, and I can play the guitar. I love South American music.' He shrugged. 'It's awful. I can't even remember the last time I played. I never seem to have a minute to myself back home. You have no idea what a treat to laze around like this.'

'My pleasure.' Trowa kissed him gently on the lips. 'What is it, then? This family business of yours?'

'Construction.' True. Mostly; even if it was satellites rather than buildings.

Trowa grinned at him. 'Seriously? So you hang around muddy building sites? I can't imagine that.'

'I mostly stay in the office but I do sometimes.' He had, once or twice, visited a major WEI building project, if his press office thought it would make a good photo opportunity. Once he'd even been given a trowel to hold and asked to put a brick in place. They'd probably had to redo it after he'd gone but the photo had been on the front page of all the major papers the next day.

'Mmm. That's kind of sexy; you in a hard hat, giving orders to all these big, brawny labourers.'

Quatre burst out laughing.' Well, I do have a few hard hats.' He had a whole row of them, in fact, on a shelf in his office. It was one of the Winner traditions; once a project was completed, the labour crew presented one of their hard hats to the main office. 'They're not remotely sexy, though.'

'Yeah, they are,' Trowa purred. 'If you're not wearing anything else. OK, since you're enjoying all this lazing around, how would you fancy us having a totally lazy day today? I'll show you the shop, we can go for a walk to the park, get the papers and something for lunch, and spend the rest of the day up on the roof. Maybe have a nap later?'

'That sounds like the most perfect day I could ever imagine,' Quatre told him sincerely, feeling a little bubble of excitement growing inside. He was really doing this! Surely, he deserved one day off from his whole life? Just one day to pretend he had a normal life. 'I'll need to borrow something to wear, though, if we're going out.'

Trowa pulled a face. 'Damn. I was hoping to convince you to walk around naked. I'll find you another t-shirt, and you could probably fit into a pair of Duo's jeans. He usually leaves a few things lying around when he stays over.'

'Ah.' There were icicles suddenly slithering in his veins. 'I hadn't realised that you and Duo were like that.'

'We're not.' Trowa snaked an arm around his waist, stopping him jerking away. 'We never have been. But we stay open late a couple of nights a week; sometimes Duo stays back to have dinner and watch a movie or something and it's handier for him to sleep here than cycle home. He just keeps some stuff in a closet. OK?'

'OK. Sorry. But you two are obviously close friends, and it's a little hard for me to believe that someone as amazing as you doesn't have someone.'

'I do now, don't I?'

Quatre managed a faint smile. It wasn't as if he'd told Trowa everything about himself; he didn't have any right to complain about the other man's unwillingness to share confidences with someone he'd just met. But he had been honest about Jordan; it would have been nice if Trowa had shared even a little of his own history.

'Quatre, I'm not that amazing.' He sighed, picking up one of Quatre's hands and pressing his lips to the palm. 'The last person I was serious about hurt me. Rather a lot. That was a couple of years ago, and there's been no one since then. No one remotely serious.' His tongue sneaked out, tickling slightly. 'Not until last night.'

~ * ~

Chapter 7

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