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"The Princess With The Purple Heart"Written By: ExecutiveShrimp Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, it belongs
to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. Written for pleasure not
profit. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: Smut, angst, AU Pairings: 1x2, Summary: Don't ask, don't tell
"The Princess With The Purple Heart" Nineteen He sits in the back row of the auditorium of the community center. A lot of people have gathered, but everyone is quiet and facing forward. General Khushrenada stands at the microphone podium at the center of the stage, halfway into a speech that details Corporal Yuy's bravery at length. He speaks with sincerity and admiration and casts looks at the man of the hour and gestures at him. Heero stands to the General's right, looking sharp in his dress uniform. His shoulders are rigid and proud, wearing the midnight blue coat with red piping, which is cinched at the waist by the white belt that has the ceremonial sword strapped to it. His legs are endlessly long in the sky blue pants. The white gloves and cap complete the formal nature of the uniform. Duo is wearing the same dress blues, as are all the others from the Marine Corps. Their entire unit is present, with the exception of Lindsey, but the young soldier wrote a brief letter that their Staff Sergeant read out loud before calling the General up to the stage. As the speech goes on, Duo knows the Corporal is struggling not to squirm as he stands at the center of everyone's attention. He knows him well, and he can see it in the tightness in his mouth, even from far away. Heero keeps looking at the front row, where his family is seated. He can't look any further out, he doesn't dare to make eye-contact with anyone else, because it would make him more self-conscious. The seats are filled with over two hundred people easily: extended family and friends, neighbors and other people from the community, as well as a number of his brothers in arms, not just from the unit he served with on tour, but from his time during basic training as well. Everyone has come to honor him, because everyone knows that his bravery is not limited to that one moment in the desert and they are all grateful. Duo peels his eyes away from the man when he feels a hand land on his knee. He looks at the hand first and then at his mother's face. She smiles reassuringly at him. Just like Duo can read the nervousness on Heero, she can read it on him, and she offers him comfort. "… And thus, it is with great honor that I present to Corporal Yuy The Silver Star Medal," the General concludes. "Your heroism serves this country and your men beyond the expectations that come with the uniform. On behalf of every man and woman of the United States Marine Corps, I thank you for your courage." With a flat, square box in his hands he steps away from the microphone and marches over to Heero. A private comes on stage to stand next to them and takes the box from the General and holds it open for him. The medal – which is actually a gold star, hanging off a red, white and blue ribbon - gleams in the light and Duo smiles when he catches Heero sneaking a peek at it before stoically forcing his gaze up ahead, but his Adam's apple moves as he swallows. Duo is pretty sure the Corporal is more afraid now, than he was running into the line of fire to get that grenade out of range. The General takes the medal from the velvet-lined box and solemnly pins it onto Heero's dress coat, over the left side of his chest and then adjusts the star to make sure it hangs straight. The Private snaps the box shut and struts off stage. General Khushrenada takes a step back and salutes the Corporal with sharp, precise movements. Heero salutes him in return. Every enlisted man and woman in the audience rises to their feet and gives salute as well. Duo stands stiffly and his hand trembles next to his forehead. Heero doesn't see him and it's probably for the better; he doesn't want to ruin this moment for him if it turns out Heero didn't want him there after everything that was said last time they met. Heero and Khushrenada shake hands and that's when everyone else stands up as well and applauds. Heero smiles uneasily with a blush on his cheeks. He makes a small bow to humbly convey his gratitude and then hurries after the General, walking off the stage, where everyone proceeds to crowd him to congratulate him in person once more. His mother is the first to stand in front of him and she hugs him tightly and for a long time and then appraises the gold star while clasping a hand over her mouth, obviously emotional at seeing her son be validated like that. She seems like a lovely, caring person and Duo hopes he'll get the chance to meet her. His own mother locks her arm around his and presses her cheek against his shoulder. "You may not have a medal, but I am just as proud of you." "I know, mom. But thanks." They remain at the back. He doesn't bother getting in line to shake hands with Heero, because he has to say things that have to be said in private. He waits for everyone to finish congratulating him and for the crowd to gravitate to the left side of the space where a buffet of finger foods is laid out, and people break off into smaller groups to catch up. Duo spots his unit, raiding the tray of crab cakes and waving him over. He motions for them to give him a minute and he gets a couple of thumbs-up's in response. He detaches himself from his mother and asks: "Do you mind if I talk to Heero alone for a little bit first?" "Of course not, darling. Go right ahead. I've waited years for you to introduce me to him, I think I can manage my impatience a little longer," she says smugly. He leaves her at the back row of chairs and walks up to the front, where Heero stands surrounded by his close relatives. His mother holds onto him the way Duo's mother held him just now, with their arms interlocked and her cheek on his shoulder. Heero got his blue eyes from his mother. Hers sparkle with pride. As he approaches, Heero notices him and visibly stiffens. Duo politely inserts himself into the circle of people and tries not to let his nerves get the better of him, feeling everyone's eyes on him. He salutes his friend first. Seeing him in his dress uniform, with the impressive medal pinned onto his chest, triggers the formality in him. Heero returns the gesture with the question about what Duo is even doing here evident in his eyes. "Congratulations," Duo starts and he nods at Heero's mother as well. "Thank you," Heero responds stiffly. "I was hoping we could talk. In private? But only if you want." The delay lasts only a second, but it drags on like eternity for Duo. "…Sure." He steps away from his family and motions for Duo to follow him. The Lance Corporal trails after the decorated soldier and he is led down a hallway to a private, administrative office. The desk is cluttered, with an old desktop computer monitor in the corner, and the walls are covered with posters from past events hosted at the center. One of them features Heero and three other soldiers that Duo assumes are locals; it advertises a going-away and good-luck party and it's dated the day before they shipped off for their last tour – the tour that changed everything. The location was obviously chosen for the ceremony because it has played a part in Heero's life, rooted in his community and their support for him. "I hope it's okay that I came," he expresses. Heero brushes it off as meaningless by pointing out: "Everyone's here, so…" "I'm not here out of duty." "Okay. Why are you here?" He shoots back. "To do something brave in the real world, for once. To take a chance and put myself out there, even though I know I'll likely get hurt." Heero stares at him and waits. "I've loved you for a long time, you know this. But I want you to know that I'm in love with you," he declares. He takes a deep breath and straightens his shoulders. Heero appears unaffected by the confession and it hurts, but he can't let that deter him. Heero deserves to know how he feels. "I let my fear get the better of me. I'm not as brave as you and I fucked up waiting for you to take the lead; waiting for validation from you when I should have had the guts to own up to my feelings on my own. I let you down and I'm sorry." After a meaningful pause, Duo continues: "I broke up with Hilde. I told her I'm in love with someone else. I told her I'm in love with you." Heero draws in a shaky breath. "I'm not telling you this to win you back, I'm just saying this because I don't want my best friend to remember me as a coward. I want him-" He chuckles sheepishly, "I want you to know that you are worth every risk and that you mean more to me than anybody else, even when I can't have you. It's not that I'm not scared anymore, but being brave isn't about not being scared; it's about facing your fears. And I am. I owe that to you." Heero is giving him nothing but silence, but Duo feels encouraged by the fact that he hasn't been walked out on, or told to piss off. "I told my mom too; that I'm in love with you." Finally, Heero speaks and his tone is laced with concern and care. "How did she take it?" Duo smiles and his eyes become watery. "She's here," he states simply. "She wants to meet you now more than ever." Telling his mother – and then later his sister – had been the hardest thing Duo had ever done. He had been sick to his stomach, but when they smiled at him, he had never felt better. "…I told my mom as well," Heero discloses. "I called her from the plane and told her why I was going to stay in New York for the first week. Or… was planning to, anyway." "And she's here too." It's evidence that she was also supportive. "She said she's known for a while that I might be gay." He chews on the inside of his cheek. "I didn't know." Duo dares to let out a chuckle at the dry remark. Heero deflates and he shakes off his defensive posture. He leans back against the desk and casts a pensive look out the window. "I think I might have overreacted last week." "No, you had every ri-" "No, please, you don't have to do that," Heero interrupts and he goes on to explain: "It should be okay to be scared. And maybe it's good that you wanted to really think about it first and not jump into anything blindly. You could have handled it better, but the same goes for me. I just got-…" He squeezes his eyes shut and clamps his fingers around the edge of the desk, on either side of his hips. "I got so jealous. The thought of you sleeping with her drove me crazy. I thought that I couldn't give you what she gave you. That it meant that you couldn't love me because I'm a man, and you still preferred women." "I prefer you." A smile tugs at Heero's lips. "I wasn't being reasonable. I was exhausted and emotional. We should have talked everything out first. I shouldn't have let the whole bracelet-thing get to my head like that, but that was right after I thought I could lose you and everything I was feeling in that moment was so… intense." He makes a vague, waving gesture with his hands to represent all kinds of stimulation overwhelming him. "I filled in blanks when I shouldn't have. I thought that was the talk that we were supposed to have, but now that I can think more clearly, I know it wasn't the time and the place. This, this is the talk. Everything before now is off the record," he decides. "Yeah?" Duo's voice has a silly, hopeful tone to it. "Yeah." He nods definitively. "Then let me just say – officially – that I'm in love with you and I want to be with you and while I'm still afraid of what that might cost me, I will be brave in the face of my fears." He reached into the pocket of his pants and opened his palm to show the black bracelet. "Because I know for damn sure you're worth it." Heero pushes off the desk and in one step he is standing closely in front of Duo. "Can we redo 'the whole bracelet thing'?" "Is it going to mean what I want it to mean this time?" Heero contends cheekily. "I don't know. It means that you're gonna be stuck with me and won't ever be able to get rid of me. Is that what you want?" Heero doesn't say anything, he just holds out his hand, with his fingers pinched together. Duo gets the cue and he slips the elastic bracelet onto his wrist. Duo grins from ear to ear. This time, he can feel how official it is; he feels the weight of the moment and it grounds him. It makes him feel anchored in the real world and he likes it. He throws a look over his shoulder at the door. Confirming that the coast it clear, he takes off both their white caps and reverently presses a kiss to Heero's lips to seal the deal. Heero blinks his eyes open after Duo pulls back and he lets out a chuckle when the Lance Corporal plops his cap back on top of his head, crooked. He reaches up to adjust it. "What happens now?" "Now? Now I'm gonna wipe this stupid grin off my face and I'm going to introduce you to my mom." "And then what?" He shrugs. "And then we're gonna go back to your place and I'm going to make love to you." Heero smiles. "It's that simple, huh?" "This part is." He leans in to kiss him again, tilting his head to avoid knocking their caps off. They kiss more passionately this time, because Duo can't help himself. Seeing Heero so happy, just makes him want to make him even more happy and then drink it all up. "I guess we'll arm-wrestle to decide if you move to New York, or if I'm staying in San Diego," he jokes. Heero lets out a rumbling laugh. Duo pinches his brows together in a frown and thinks better of it, remembering all the times Heero beat him at arm-wrestling. "Actually, no. I'll just have to convince you that New York is better." He thinks for a moment and offers facetiously: "We have Broadway." Heero scoffs and counters: "We have Tijuana." "Dammit… Yankees!" "Pfff. Comic Con." "Empire State Building," he says dramatically. Heero quirks an eyebrow. "Surfing." "New York pizza." "In-N-out." Duo laughs and shakes his head. He flings his arm around Heero's shoulder and guides him out of the office so he can rejoin the party in his honor. He suggests flippantly: "Rock-paper-scissors?" Heero chuckles. Before they walk back within view of the other guests, Duo pulls the Corporal against him more tightly and he studies his features in the dim lighting of the hallway. "I love you, Purple Heart." "Love you, Princess." ~ * ~ End
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