Disclaimer: Gundam Wing does not belong to me.

Author's Note: Um...I have yet to figure out who is talking in this.....oh well. This is a really
short fic that came out of nowhere. Well, actually, it _did_ come from somewhere, but I'd rather
not get into that. :-)

Warnings: Actually, for once I don't have any. Angst, I guess, but that's about it.

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It hurts.

It hurts me to watch you do this to yourself, to watch you keep the pain inside. Buried.
Why won't you let me close? Why can't you just drop the pretense, drop the mask?

I know that there is more to you then what you chose to let the world see. Layers, upon layers
hide themselves behind that face you wear. I have caught glimpses of the man that lies
beyond it.

But it's just that, a glimpse. Prehaps I know more about you than anyone else, but it's not
enough. I have a burning need to see everything.

I suppose I expect too much, especially when it seems likely that you use that mask of yours to
hide from yourself. Yet how can I ignore those tantilizing signs of something more?

Don't try to hide it from me, I've seen it. The flash of regret and sadness whenever you think
you've hurt me. Sometimes you have, you know, but I'm stronger than you think. I have my pride,
and I don't give up easily.

Just like I refuse to give up on you.

You know, it has occured to me from time to time that you might feel the same about me. God
knows I have a mask of my own. Several, actually. Different from yours, it's not a mask that
is obvious. But then, yours isn't so obvious to most people either, is it? Just me.

Maybe it would help if you saw someone else drop their mask? More specifically, me? I'm not sure
if it'll work, but at least now I have a course of action.

Yeah, a plan. Great, let's get to it.