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"The Boy Next Door"Written By: t-shirt Disclaimer: Gundam Wing and its characters are
copyright to Sunrise, Bandai, Sotsu Agency, and associated parties.
I make no money with this fic. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: AU/Teenage Romance, Fluff, angst, sap,
eventual lemon, underage partying! Pairings: Eventual 1x2, 1+4, 2+3, 2+5, 3xOCs leading
to eventual 3x4 (they don’t know each other at first), mention of
(brief) past 3xHilde , 3+2, 3+5, eventual 5xM, 5+2, 5+3 Summary: This is the story of 4 teenage boy’s who grew up in the same neighborhood and the events following Quatre’s introduction to their school in which they learn some of the confusing and sometimes hard lessons of life. Beta'ed by Mechante Fille" ^-^ *snugs* "The Boy Next Door"
Ch 8 “You couldn’t hit the broad side of your Mama’s butt!” An angry grimace contorted Chris’s face as he lifted his arm and let fly but the softball missed its target by a good eight inches. “HA!” the chubby man usually found in the school cafeteria barked from his precarious seat above a tank of frigid water. “You throw like a woman! Get lost ya panty waist! Let a real man have a shot!” “Why you,” Christ grumbled, digging into his pocket only to be stalled by a firm grip on his arm. “Evening, Willie!” Noin shouted, laying her money down. “Well, well!” the man grinned, making his face look even stranger in the clown make up. “If it isn’t little miss brains! Shouldn’t you be home feeding your book worm dirty thoughts!” “It’d be better than that swill you call lunch!” Noin laughed, taking the first ball in hand. “Can’t please the pallet of every perky princess that pokes her nose AHH!” SPLASH. Noin smirked as she picked up another ball. ** “Who’s next?” “………….” “Come on!” “………….” “Anyone?” “I’ll have a go,” Colton bravely stepped up to the mat. The three boys who had so far accepted the challenge to spar with Chang Wufei sat nearby nursing their assorted bruises and cuts while the spry Chinese boy danced about the mat to loosening up for his next opponent. “This will be a demonstration in kick boxing,” Master O explained as he helped Colton pull on a padded helmet and a pair of small, padded mitts like the ones Wufei was wearing. “Just keep your hands up to protect your face,” he instructed the rock climber before pushing him toward his opponent. The moment he stepped inside the ring Wufei’s left foot left the ground, first smacking him the right side of his head then the ribs and subsequently the right knee, bringing him down in a heap in less than five seconds without ever lifting his other foot off the ground. “Geez, Fei!” Duo shouted from the sideline. “Lighten up! Give the guy a chance already!” Wufei smirked but backed off, his black eyes shining with mirth from within the bright red, padded head gear he wore. Colton shook it off but was considerably more wary as he got to his feet and faced off. Wufei was forced to use a slightly more complex sequence of moves this time but Colton still hit the mat in less than five seconds. “One more and its over,” Master O consoled, helping the dazed boy to this feet. Colton nodded but staggered when he saw two Wufei’s instead of one, dazedly lifting his mitts as he’d been instructed so when the first blow fell the equipment at least took most of it. “Show off!” Duo shouted, laughing gleefully when Wufei raised both hands, doing a fair impression of a Rocky film as the surrounding crowd roared approval. “Someday someone’s gonna kick your ass!” the braided boy yelled over the din. “Anytime you’re ready,” Wufei egged, dancing backward in invitation. “How about me?” The Chinese boy grinned widely as Hiiro stepped on the matt, quickly pulling his helmet off before working on removing his mitts. By the time he was ready the crowd had doubled and Wufei’s shirt joined Hiiro’s on the ground as they faced off. “This should be good,” Trowa grinned, glancing at the hungry excitement in Duo’s eyes. “Yeah.” Trowa chuckled, shaking his head at his friend’s obvious infatuation and turned his attention back to the show just as Wufei launched a quick attack. Hiiro countered each blow with practiced precision much to the spectator’s approval, earning a loud roaring response when Wufei went down but the Chinese boy quickly snapped back to his feet, never missing a beat. Master O watched from his higher vantage point with his usual masked pride but the satisfaction in seeing his pupil and future master’s honed skill shown in his almond shaped eyes. The freestyle competition ended in a draw but Hiiro wasn’t done with him demonstrating the fact by tossing his partner a set of the wooden practice swords from the rack beside the mats. “Take him out!” Choo Hee cheered, letting her presence be known and Wufei sketched a flamboyant bow to her just before he was forced to use his swords for what they were intended or get pummeled instead. The crowd grew as the fight escalated; the loud crack of wood against wood drawing the curious closer as Hiiro and Wufei spun and parried in a show of precise control and long hours of dedicated practice. By the time the spectacle was over the line for signing up for classes at the Chang Dojo reached far out into the main fairway and beyond the next tent and Wufei graced his Japanese friend with a grateful smile as they left the mat. “You’re incredible!” Choo Hee praised enthusiastically as she bounced on the balls of her feet and gazed in utter adoration at her winded Sensei. “Not too bad,” Duo smiled at Hiiro, mirroring the girl’s doe-eyed expression with at least a small effort toward restraint. “Duo! Look what I won!” The long haired boy caught the little girl who had jumped without preamble into his arms without a second thought. “Hey, Sugar Plum!” he smiled. “What’s this?” “A frog,” Alice explained. “I won it with a dart. It’s got a squeaker, see?” Duo made a surprised face when she squeaked it. “Michael! Come back here!” Mary Ann shouted, leading the rest of the brood toward them. “But I wanna to go on the Ferris Wheel!” “You’ll get your chance, sport,” Duo consoled the sulking boy. He knew what it could be like to be the only boy in a house full of females. “I’ll take him.” Duo’s smile was fit to light the heavens at Hiiro’s offer. “Oh, no,” Mary Ann replied, washing the remnants of cotton candy off Cammie’s face. “You don’t have to trouble yourself.” “Aww, come on!” Michael protested. “It’s no trouble,” Hiiro shrugged. “You want to join us?” he asked of their long haired member who answered him with a brilliant smile. ** “Looks like the summer schedule might turn out all right after all,” Wufei commented and licked his spoon clean of butterscotch syrup. Trowa nodded absently but his gaze never faltered from staring out into the passing crowd. Wufei’s brow knit. “Maybe I’ll show Choo Hee some special moves.” Again Trowa merely nodded as he scanned the crowd. “Think she’d look good in black rubber and a blind fold?” “Maybe,” the taller boy replied, making his Chinese friend laugh out loud. “What in the world are you thinking about?” Wufei wondered, getting his answer when a certain blond boy appeared at the booth opposite their table and Trowa’s eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning. A moment later Wufei was alone and shaking his head as he dug into the remains of his sundae. “Hi,” Trowa smiled, stepping up beside Quatre. The blond boy paused a moment to glance at him then resumed his transaction, accepting the three small, plastic rings from the booth’s barker. “Um… how’ve you been?” Trowa tried when there was no ready reply. “Fine,” Quatre smiled, turning his back slightly as he prepared to toss the first ring. Trowa watched as it slid unerringly over the long neck of a spindly bottle filled with bright red liquid and came to rest on the thick body below. “Nice shot,” the taller boy praised, earning a quick, arrogant smirk for his effort. “I haven’t seen you at the sims lately,” he commented while Quatre lined up for another go. “I’ve been using the ones at the base,” the blond explained, nailing another perfect shot. Trowa’s heart sank with the confirmation that Quatre had been purposefully avoiding him. “Ours are better.” “Perhaps,” Quatre shrugged, picking his next target. “If it were merely a matter of mechanics.” Trowa bit back the need to retort and let his frustration flow, instead opting for a more direct approach. “Listen, I’ve been wanting to talk to you about what happened.” Quatre let fly the last ring which found it’s mark much to the dismay of the young woman who was responsible for the game as she went about unhooking one of the huge, pink and black dogs from the rack overhead. “What about it?” Quatre asked, turning an unconcerned eye on the taller boy, his casual air and careless tone tightening the barbed wire around Trowa’s heart but he couldn’t let this moment pass. “I…” he began only to be cut off by the sudden presence of a young man whose arms were filled with large, stuffed animals. “Geez!” Derek laughed as Quatre piled on the pink and black dog. “Another one?” “What can I say?” Quatre smiled, turning a coy eye on Trowa as he led his human carrier away. “Games just come naturally to me.” Trowa bit down so hard on the inside of his cheek he tasted the tang of blood as he watched them walk away. ** “I don’t wanna go home yet,” Michael whined a little more pitifully than normal. “It’s late,” Mary Ann reasoned. “Everyone’s tired.”“I’m not,” the boy protested, yawning hugely as he crawled into his usual seat in the back of their minivan. “I’ll take her,” the young woman, smiled pinking only mildly when her cheek brushed Duo’s in the exchange of the sleeping Alice. “Do you need help getting them home?” Mary Ann smirked as the light of hope danced among the glittering reflection of the carnival in his eyes. She glanced back at Hiiro who had Cammie slumbering on his shoulder and Mika’s hand clasped safely in his hand and replied. “I’ve got it. Go have fun.” Duo beamed a bright smile helping to secure the rest of the kids and seeing them off before sighing happily but he tensed when he suddenly realized he was standing in the dark parking lot with no one but Hiiro by his side. “Trowa said he’d meet us by the arcade,” he commented, moving back toward the fair. Hiiro fell into step beside him but seemed at a loss for anything to talk about. They had covered half the distance back before he finally found his tongue. “There’s a new movie coming out this weekend.” “Right,” Duo nodded a little too hard. “A thriller, right? Some alien thing?” Hiiro nodded. “I was thinking of going Saturday night if you’d like to come along?” Duo smiled, seeming overly pleased. “That’d be nice. Wanna take my bike?” “Can I drive?” Hiiro smirked. “Hey, you got top last time, it’s my turn,” Duo replied, flash frying his face when he realized what he’d said. The banter wouldn’t have meant much if he’d been with Trowa or Wufei but considering who was standing beside him he was certain he was about to burst into flames. “Fair enough,” Hiiro smiled, bumping him playfully in the shoulder and effectively defusing the eruption. They had reached the fairway and quickly rejoined their friends, the only one of which that wasn’t from their immediate group being Derek who had, at some point, snagged a large, black garbage bag to carry Quatre’s many prizes in. Duo caught the warning glance from Wufei but wasn’t sure past the point of it having something to do with Trowa what it meant until the tall boy’s eyes darkened dangerously when Derek dared lay a hand on Quatre’s hip. “Anybody need a drink?” Duo quickly cut off whatever was about to spill out of Trowa’s mouth as he had a feeling it wasn’t going to be good. The plan sort of backfired when Wufei was the only one to take him up on it. “You want a snack or something?” Derek asked his date but Quatre quietly declined. The motors of the adjacent ride whirled beside them, the music sounding crass and much too loud. “We could check out the Ferris Wheel,” he suggested, receiving another shake of Quatre’s shaggy, blond head and Trowa decided it was time to quick fucking around. “Quatre,” he began, stepping closer. “Look, all I wanted to do was talk…” “Geez,” Derek groaned impatiently. “Can’t you at least leave one for the rest of us?” “I’m not talking to you,” Trowa warned. “Don’t listen to him,” Derek advised his date. “He’ll use you just like he has everyone else.” “Shut up!” Trowa growled, hitting him hard with straight fingers in the chest. “Hey!” Duo barked from ten feet away, having seen the heated exchange but too late to stop Derek from being knocked backward, his eyes flashing dangerously as he shoved back at Trowa. “Stop it!” Quatre scolded, reaching for them both but Trowa’s anger had been fired, all the frustrations he’d been harboring since that day on Mortani’s Rock came crashing down all at once robbing him of his good sense and sending his fist crashing into Derek’s jaw. “SHIT!” Duo howled, dropping the drink and funnel cake in his hands on the ground as he rushed forward but too late to stop Derek’s momentum as he fell into Quatre and knocked him through the chain link fence beside them. Trowa saw it all in slow motion, the metal giving way, his hand just missing catching Quatre’s sleeve as he fell. He heard Duo’s shout but could do nothing as the blonds’ arms splayed, his sleeve catching in the chain of the ride, a second later his arm was jerked viciously into the mechanism, the pulley jumping horrifically as the appendage moved between it and the chain, spitting Quatre’s arm out the other side and throwing him to the ground. “QUATRE!” Trowa roared, falling on the writhing blond, his entire body shaking so hard he could barely turn him over. The sight of Quatre’s bloodied arm bringing stinging tears to his eyes as the roar of machines and absurd gaiety surrounding them swam in his mind. “Shit!” Duo cursed again, falling in front of them, his shirt already off as his knees dug into the dirt. “Get help!” he snapped at the stunned Derek as he began wrapping Quatre’s arm tightly. Trowa fought back tears of anger and shame as he fumbled to help but Duo smacked his hands away. “Wufei!” the long haired boy rasped but the Chinese boy was already there using his belt to tie a tourniquet around Quatre’s arm. It all went by in a tumultuous dream, a nightmare from which Trowa could not wake. He’d blown it big time. Not only had he fucked up his chances with Quatre, he’d managed to seriously injure him in the process. It wasn’t a matter of if he won him anymore, all he wanted was to make damn sure he healed quickly and never got hurt by anything ever again. Derek had the good sense to back off and let him cope; he needed to be close to Quatre and the other boy appeared to understand on some level that whatever was happening was beyond his comprehension. He hung out long enough to see them onto the ambulance, Trowa insisting on riding along in spite of Quatre’s adamant requests that he not. Quatre drew the line at having Hiiro and Duo come along however, as his arm had stopped bleeding for the most part and the paramedics were fairly certain it wasn’t broken. Duo made them promise to call from the hospital, taking comfort in Quatre’s angry disposition when he told them flat out he wasn’t a damn baby and he could handle it on his own. “You think he’ll be all right?” Duo wondered as they watched the ambulance pull away. “Quatre’s tougher than he looks.” Hiiro assured him. “He’ll be fine,” Duo sighed, letting some of the tension drain from his shoulders but the shadow remained in his eyes. “Yeah, but I’m not so sure about Trowa.” ** “I don’t know, computer graphics have come a long way but the design was still a little hokey.” “What?” Duo grinned, munching the leftover popcorn. “You’re not into tentacles and teeth?” “I’m just saying they could have spent a little more time on plot and character design instead of action,” Hiiro argued. “Well, I’ll give you that,” Duo chuckled, tossing the un-popped kernels and empty bag in the trash can as they passed. He turned his eyes out toward the water marveling at how lovely the sea could be on a chilly, moonlit, early winter night. “Are you cold?” Hiiro asked, pausing on the old, weathered boardwalk that saved them from toasted toes in the hot sand on long summer days. Tonight the long, raised walkway was devoid of any other living being save the odd moth that flittered by on silver wings to disappear in the tall grass along the dune. “A bit,” Duo shrugged, turning his caller against the light breeze. Hiiro glanced sideways at him, his steps veering in an intercept course and Duo barely contained his smile when Hiiro’s arm gripped his shoulders. The shivering stopped almost instantly in the Japanese boy’s warm embrace, prompting him to offer a grateful smile that Hiiro happily returned. They walked on in companionable silence, neither willing to risk the moment, both content to simply enjoy each others company until they passed into the shadow of a small gazebo that was built into the pathway and Hiiro stopped. Duo’s breath hitched when he looked into the smoldering blue eyes that regarded him, the moment burning with blinding clarity into his mind as they slowly gravitated together, their mouths brushing so softly it sent a shiver down Duo’s spine that had nothing to do with the cold. Hiiro’s hand tightened its grip on his shoulder drawing him more in front of him as his breath shortened, his arms slipping smoothly around Duo’s waist while the braided boy’s snaked around his neck. There was a quiet moan, though neither was sure who had made the sound as they kissed, the action a slow, rolling movement that mimicked the swelling of the ocean tide but Duo was certain it was he who gasped when Hiiro’s hand rounded his ass. The need was in him, he wanted so badly to offer himself, craved to be held by the boy that had haunted his dreams for as long as he could remember but as he drank in the sweetness of his kiss his mind flashed on a moment from long ago and a pain he’d never really gotten over. Hiiro gazed at him curiously when he broke the kiss and pulled away, clearly confused by his sudden reluctance. “I’m not a girl,” Duo declared, bringing a strange crease to Hiiro’s brow. “You know that right?” “Duo…” “It’s not like I dress in drag all the time,” Duo went on, putting a little more distance between them as his mind started fitting the pieces together. “That night,” he said, looking somewhat ill all of a sudden. “That’s when you started showing an interest in me.” “What are you talking about?” Hiiro questioned, visibly shaken by the sudden change in his date. “We should get back,” Duo stated shortly, heading for the parking lot and his bike. Hiiro tried several times to speak to him casually on the return trip but after the third time of being brushed off he gave up. They parted with few words and returned to their respective homes, neither quite certain of what had happened between them. ~ * ~ tbc... |
