"Uptown Guy"

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

Pairings: 3x4, 1x2

Summary: Life starts to look up for a bookshop owner and a garage mechanic when a cute guy moves in across the street.

"Uptown Guy"

Chapter 3:

I woke up alone the next morning.

It took a few seconds for my sleep-starved, sex-sated brain to stop panicking.

His clothes, which had been strewn over the floor were neatly folded on a chair; he hadn't seemed like the sort of guy who'd walk out naked. If I craned my neck, I could just make out his car parked behind Howard's; Duo must have put it there last night.

Plus from the kitchen; I could hear and smell breakfast being prepared; bacon sizzling; coffee percolating; the ping of the toaster.

Wow.

He hadn't left; he'd just got up to make breakfast.

I'd definitely snagged a treasure this time. I suppose the decent thing would have been to go and help him out a bit. Doing the indecent thing - lying there, waiting for him to come back and going over certain memories - was way more entertaining.

It hadn't just been a dream brought on by way too much caffeine. I'd had those; this was different. And the dreams had never included the guy staying around to cook for me.

After we'd got back from the restaurant, I'd invited him up for a drink. A few hours later, we'd even managed to get around to putting the kettle on. At some point, we'd definitely made coffee. I couldn't remember drinking it.

'Good morning.' There was just a tiny suggestion of shyness in his smile; very endearing. He'd also somehow assembled two very impressive looking plates of Eggs Benedict out of whatever remnants of food were hiding in my kitchen. Shit; I was going to have to revise my ideas on perfect happiness being a mint-condition, signed, first edition of 'Lord of the Rings' or getting Celine Dionne's autograph. Perfect happiness was a hot, naked blond carrying food and coffee.

'Hey. I don't rate breakfast in bed very often.'

'You should.' There was a compliment in there that made me smile.

'It's not very much, I'm afraid.' Quatre slid carefully in beside me, balancing the tray with one hand. 'I couldn't find a lot of food.'

'I'll go shopping later. You can tell me what sort of stuff you like. Actually I didn't even know that I had bacon.'

'It was lurking in the freezer behind a pizza; I defrosted it. Do you not normally bother eating?'

'That's the problem with living next door to Howard's. I don't tend to keep a lot of food here; Duo says I treat the diner like my own personal larder; I think some of the things in the freezer are actually his.'

'I hadn't realised that Duo lives with you.' He'd seen my living arrangements; one bed in one bedroom. One room, period, with a tiny kitchen and bathroom tacked on at either end.

'He doesn't. He stayed here for a few months last year after he broke up with the guy he'd been living with. For the record, he slept on the couch the whole time.'

'Oh,' He swallowed, flushing slightly. 'I didn't mean to pry. It's none of my business.'

'Yes, it is. I don't know about you, but I'm not into one night stands.'

'Nor am I.' His expression was floating somewhere between relieved and embarrassed. 'I never do things like that, but last night was…. I'm not being too presumptuous, Trowa, am I?'

'No.' The kiss involved a lot of teasing and a little tongue at the end. 'Keep that up and I'm definitely going to keep you.'

'Keep what up?' He gave me that wicked little grin that I remembered from last night.

I grinned, remembering what had happened post-grin. 'I really, really hope you don't have anything planned for this morning. Or for the next week or so. After that, I might possibly let you out of this bed.'

Another kiss. 'I'm so sorry. I have some things I absolutely have to do this morning. But after that, I can come straight back. Will that do?'

'I'll think about it.' I took a swig of coffee. It was perfect; he'd obviously watched the way I'd made it last night. 'What are these things you absolutely have to do?'

Quatre put down his cup, ticking items off on his fingers. 'I still have a couple of car loads of things to move from my old apartment. Then I have to look for somewhere to live.'

'But you're going to live over your shop, aren't you?'

'I don't think I can.' He shuddered. 'It's terrible. There's a whole civilization of mould and the most hideous peeling wallpaper. I think I've got rats; I heard scurrying noises yesterday. And the carpet is soggy! It's like walking on a swamp or something.

'Did you not look at the living quarters before signing the lease?'

Quatre shook his head. 'Not properly. My original plan was never actually to live here. I meant to use the upstairs space for storage and maybe an office, so I didn't really pay much attention to it. Even when I realised I couldn't afford to keep my apartment, I thought it would take a couple of months to sell it and look for something cheaper, and then one of my sisters' friends got a job in Sanque and she needed a place to live straightaway. She's even offered to buy most of the furniture, but now I don't have a place to live and I don't really have time to start looking. I don't know; maybe this whole thing was just a stupid idea from the start.'

He hung his head, those lovely fingers twining around each other nervously. 'I don't have any experience in retail. I've put all the money I have into this, and I've been planning it for ages but it was always something that was going to happen in a few months' time, and now it's suddenly real and it's terrifying!'

I wrapped both arms around him, loving the way he just nestled against my chest, one finger tracing the dragon tattoo. 'You said last night it was your dream to do this. You really want to give up and go back to whatever job you were doing because you've got a couple of damp walls and a rodent problem?'

'No!' He took a deep breath. 'Thank you. You're perfectly right. I'm being an idiot, aren't I?'

'Actually, you're not. I remember the day I signed the lease on this place, three years ago. I had hourly panic attacks at the thought of how much in debt I was. You're handling it pretty well.'

'You're very kind,' he said seriously. 'And no, I don't want to go back to being an accountant. Can you remind me of that if I start panicking again, please?'

'I'll give you hourly reminders,' I said equally serious. 'I didn't know about the accountant thing. You kept that pretty quiet last night.' We'd talked about dreams and music and books but never mentioned anything so mundane as jobs.

'Was an accountant,' he corrected. 'Don't hold it against me, will you?'

'I'd like to hold you against me. I'll try to forget about what you do. Did, I mean. You don't look anything like an accountant.'

'I look different with clothes on. Actually, that's another thing I need to do this morning. I was finishing some files at the weekend; I have to drop them back to the office by ten.' He glanced at his watch. 'Trowa, I'm really sorry, but I should be going.'

'Correction. We should be going. I can borrow Howard's pick-up to get your stuff; that'll save you having to do a few runs in your car. We can drop the files off at your office first,

'You don't have to do all that for me.' He looked absolutely stunned. 'I can't put you to so much trouble. What about your shop?'

'I have a couple of part-timers who help out; I'm sure one of them will be available. Or Duo and Howard can keep an eye on things. Now come on. If we get up now, we can run across the road and see how bad your place really is. It's likely only damp because it's been shut up for months. We can leave the windows open to give it a good airing, and we can stop at the DIY store on the way home.'

'But…'

'Quatre, shut up.' I stopped any further protests by kissing him. 'It's no trouble. And I'm expecting all sorts of favours in kind.'

'Breakfast in bed?'

'Among other things.' I reached out to pinch his ass. 'In and out of bed. Now, I'll make a couple of calls to get someone to cover the shop so you move that cute butt of yours. You know where the shower is.' He should; I'd taken him there to clean up, midway through proceedings. I was going to have to get a bigger hot water heater. 'The sooner we go, the sooner we can get back here.'

'Yes, master.' He reached for his jeans and made a face. 'Right, I definitely need to go to my place first. I need to get some fresh clothes.'

'I guess you do at that.' I couldn't stop smiling; we were both going to need to throw last night's clothes in the washing machine. I normally had way better control than that, and he'd proven that he had, later on, but that first time had been rockets detonating and volcanoes erupting, and I was proud that I'd actually managed to drag him inside the shop first and slam the door.

'Hey, Tro. Hi Quatre. I hope my buddy here looked after you OK last night.' Duo intercepted us as were crossing the road to Quatre's place. Of course. He winked. 'You know, bought you a nice dinner and stuff.'

'He was the perfect host,' Quatre said, bland as cream, totally unruffled by Duo's teasing. 'I only hope Heero looked after you half as well.'

Duo, for practically the first time I'd known him, blushed. Yes! God, this guy was amazing.

'What?' I frowned at my best friend. 'I thought you didn't like Heero or whatever he's called.'

'Yeah,' Duo fidgeted with the end of his braid. He never does that. 'I guess we made up. So what are you guys up to?'

'Going to take a quick look at Quatre's apartment, and then move the rest of his stuff,' I supplied. 'Do you think I could borrow Howard's truck for a couple of hours?'

Duo shook his head, following us upstairs. 'He's going to the suppliers this morning. You can take the garage pick-up if you want. I'm going to be in all morning. Zechs just called to say his baby got a little scratch last night and he wants me to take a look at it.'

'He's taking his baby to a garage?' Quatre's forehead wrinkled as he glanced between us and we both laughed.

'He's my boss,' Duo filled in, 'and the 'baby' is a 1932 Rolls Royce Phantom. The love of his life; well possibly after his boyfriend but we're never quite sure which of them comes first.' He snickered. 'Or, well, that would probably be Wufei. Get it?'

'That's terrible,' Quatre groaned, laughing anyway and pushing the door open. Another plus; he got Duo's jokes straightaway. 'Ugh. Look at this place. It's a total nightmare.'

Duo and I exchanged glances; it wasn't anywhere close to a nightmare. Sure, it smelled a bit musty and damp, and there was hideous floral wallpaper and an equally awful carpet with a swirly pattern in blues and pinks, but it was perfectly habitable. By our standards anyway. If Quatre hated it that much, though, we could always do it up, very slowly, and he could share my place. And my bed. And shower. And hallway.

'It's not that bad,' I said firmly. 'Really, Quatre. I promise, we can get this place fixed up in no time. It'll look way better without this wallpaper and with a couple of coats of paint. There are probably real wooden floorboards under the carpet; these buildings are all over a hundred years old.'

'Honestly, I'm not sure if I can afford any redecorations.' He was starting to look a bit panicked again; I think maybe the giant roses on the walls were getting to him.

'Don't be stupid,' Duo snorted. 'Tro and I will help out for a few beers and pizzas, or you can pass on a few Cds. It'll be fun.'

'I don't want to be any bother.' He was looking at me. Damn, I should have been the one to offer first.

'How could you be a bother? You cook, you're a very efficient bed warmer.' I winked at him. 'I'll save a fortune not having to turn on my electric blanket. Or not eating out all the time.' Duo wandered off to explore, and I gave Quatre a quick hug. 'Listen, go and get changed. We'll collect your stuff and hit the DIY store on the way home; get some paint and stuff. And don't worry, OK? You can stay with me for as long as you want.'

Duo was in my face the minute Quatre closed the bedroom door. 'So what happened to Mr. I Don't Do One Night Stands.'

I shrugged. 'I still don't. He's more than that. I thought you liked him.'

'Sure, he seems nice, but come on, you haven't even known him a whole day! And I somehow doubt you two did a whole lot of talking last night. Tro, you saw the way he looked at this place when he walked in; what if he decides he can't take living like this and hightails it back home?' He saw my face and his expression gentled. 'Sorry, man. I just don't want you getting fond of him and getting hurt, you know? Maybe you should just lay off a bit?'

'Too late. I'm already in way too deep.' He didn't even make a joke about it. 'What happened with you and the Heero guy?'

'Not a lot. Not like you two, apparently.' His mouth twisted. 'He took me for dinner, then we went for a drive by the sea. He has a really cool car. He said he'd call me.' He shrugged. 'Whatever. Bit of a role reversal, right? You get shagged on the first date, and I get a chaste goodnight kiss.'

'Did you like him?'

More fidgeting with the braid. 'Yeah. I'll tell you later, OK? I'd better go. Zechs and Wufei are due in with the baby and you know what Wufei's like with punctuality. 'See you in a bit.'

'Duo! Wait a sec, will you?' Damn; too late. He was gone. Nothing in nature moves as fast as Duo Maxwell when he's running from a conversation he doesn't want to have.

'What's wrong?' Quatre asked, coming back just as his front door slammed.

'Duo had to go. I don't think things went well with him and your friend last night. Shit. Now I'm worried about him; he was really hurt by his asshole of an ex; he doesn't need any more grief.'

'Heero's not like that,' my lovely little blond said quietly. 'He's the most honorable person I've ever met. If he's interested in Duo, I promise he'll treat him well.'

'Yeah,' I muttered. 'He'd damn well better.' Shit. It probably wouldn't endear me to Quatre if I beat up his best friend. 'Let's go. You said you had to be at your office by ten.'

Quatre's apartment block was a fancy development by the harbour with a uniformed doorman and a chandelier and fountain in the foyer. Shit. If this was his natural habitat, how the hell was he ever going to settle in a couple of rooms over a shop? His or mine. He'd changed into an expensive-looking tailored suit; another clear indication that his world was very different. I didn't even own a suit. And his former office had been the most gleaming of all the skyscrapers in the Business District. A very far cry from where I lived.

His apartment was the penthouse. Naturally.

'I didn't realise accountants got paid this well. You're quite sure that you want to change careers?'

'Very sure,' he said positively. 'And I didn't actually get paid quite that well. One of my parents' companies owns this development, so I got a discounted price. It's still too expensive if I don't have a guaranteed income, though.'

Right. His parents owned companies. Plural. And they still weren't apparently prepared to support their only son in setting up his own business.

'Aren't you going to miss this place?'

'Do you like it?' Quatre looked around like he'd never really seen the place before. 'To be honest, I've never really felt it was like home. It had all been professionally decorated before I moved in, and I never got around to changing anything. I will miss the views, but most of the time, I was working so hard, I didn't really get to relax here.'

'Why did you study accounts if you hate it so much?'

'I don't. I love working with numbers. What I hated was spending twelve hours a day in a cubicle with corporate accounts that went on for ever and not seeing a living person all day. When I was a student, I did some work experience with an accountant's office that dealt only with small businesses. I really enjoyed that; I got to meet all the business owners personally and I felt I was helping them.'

'You could always do something like that as a sideline to the shop, you know. I'm terrible with accounts and I spend a fortune to get them done for me. Quatre, you do realise that shop keeping is pretty much a 24/7 job, right? It's not a hobby that you can play around with. Not if you need to make a living from it.'

He nodded. 'But it's something I'm really interested in. and I'll actually be working with people. It's different.'

He wandered over to me, putting both arms around my waist and resting his cheek against my shoulder. 'You were much more encouraging this morning. Why do I get the feeling you're trying to put me off?'

'I'm not.' I kissed the top of his head, very gently. 'It's just seeing this place; seeing you in your work clothes. I totally get now why you thought the room over the shop was a dump. Shit, you practically live in a palace.'

'A palace that I never had time to invite friends to,' he responded softly. 'I was working over sixteen hours a day; it was expected at my firm with the junior employees. Sometimes, I just fell asleep at my desk and didn't even bother coming home. I don't mind working hard; I just thought I'd lose my mind if I had to spend another day in a cubicle with no windows and look at yet another spreadsheet. I knew I needed to get out and when I met you last night, I realised just how much I'd been missing. Just going for dinner and talking about things that didn't have to do with work, and having fun and being with someone who's interested in me.'

I just about melted into his kiss.

'I'm really interested in you too, Trowa. Just in case you didn't pick up on that.'

'I think I sort of got that part, actually.' I smiled at him. 'You know, we could go back to my place right now, or we could make a few good memories of this place before you have to say goodbye to it?'

 

~ * ~

Chapter 4

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