Disclaimer: I disclaim all rights to Gundam Wing and its components.
A Lovely Day on the Beach
At the sound of the doorbell, Relena quickly ran down the stairs in excitement, nearly tripping over her bags to get to the door. Heero slowly followed her down the steps, quirking an eyebrow at her rush. After his declaration at the New Year's dance nearly half a year ago, Relena had bashfully asked him to come live with her, hurriedly explaining that as the supervisor of her security, his job would be easier for him to be as close to her as much as possible. Although Heero was surprised at her revelation that she knew the nature of his job, he nonetheless agreed, much to her surprise, but also did not press the matter of how she uncovered his work, much to her relief.
Milliardo, however, was none too pleased about their decision, but luckily for Relena, he and Noin returned to Mars a week after Heero moved in—after Noin convinced Milliardo that his "baby sister" was in good hands, although Heero did little to help matters. He took every opportunity to irk Relena's brother, especially by kissing her right in front of his fuming face or disregarding Milliardo completely when he tried to do the "big-brother talk."
Relena opened the door and stood face to face with Hilde, inviting the other woman in.
"Let me help with your stuff," Hilde offered. Before Relena could object, Hilde turned back towards the van and bellowed, "Duo! Get in here and help me get these bags into the van!"
Relena blinked as Duo walked up to the front door with a frown, but nonetheless picked up the bags wordlessly and carried them to the waiting van. Relena glanced back at Heero, who merely shrugged and followed his comrade's path.
"I don't understand why we must drive to the damn ocean and in a stupid little van, no less."
"Wufei, that's the whole point of the trip," Sally explained for the third time. "We must enjoy the simplicity of life."
"How can you enjoy life when there's the possibility of death looming on the road ahead?"
"Death?" Relena echoed.
Before Sally could explain, Wufei continued. "What else could result from this idiot's driving?"
"Hey!" Duo replied, offended. "I happen to be an excellent driver. Isn't that right, Heero?"
"There's always a chance of death on the battlefield, so it makes no difference if you maneuver dangerously or not."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Duo muttered, sulking from the driver's seat.
After much argument and coercing, the girls finally convinced Wufei and Heero to allow Duo to drive, although Wufei continued to mutter obscenities until Sally threw her hands up in frustration and lunged for Wufei's neck. As Hilde climbed into the back to help Relena hold the older woman back, Duo also turned his head back to observe the commotion, failing to notice that the van drifted to the wrong side of the road and into the path of a gasoline truck. Only when Heero's eyes slightly widened and he growled at Duo to keep his eyes on the road did the latter finally turn his attention to the front, swerving away from the truck at the last minute and back to the right side of the road. The maneuver threw the girls to the side of the man, effectively tearing Sally's fingers away from Wufei's neck, but unfortunately they aimed for Duo's neck. Hilde managed to convince Sally that it would not be a good idea to kill the driver, and she climbed back to the front passenger seat with a glare at Duo, who only smiled sheepishly.
When they finally reached the beach, everyone scrambled out of the car, all breathing a sigh of relief and Wufei falling to his hands and knees on the ground and muttering, "Land!"
"Are you alright?" Quatre asked in concern as he walked up to the group. "You look a little sick."
"You would be too if you had just experienced Duo's driving," Sally muttered, patting Wufei's back.
"Was it that bad?" Alice asked, brows furrowed.
"You have no idea," Hilde muttered.
"Hey, I got you all here safely, didn't I?"
Five pairs of eyes glared at him.
"Okay, maybe not safely, but we're all in one piece!"
"So where are we staying?" Hilde asked, looking forward to relaxing after that near-death experience.
Quatre smiled and gestured before him. "All you see before you is a private cove, and the huts are just a little ways down to the right."
The newcomers followed his arm and gazed in awe at the "huts," which looked more like beach houses with two stories, a balcony on the second floor and a patio on the first. There were five bungalows in total, Quatre explaining that each contained a living room and kitchen downstairs plus a bedroom and bathroom upstairs. Duo whistled in appreciation.
"Wait a minute," Wufei said, narrowing his eyes. "Are we supposed to pair up?"
"Of course, darling," Sally replied as she swung an arm around his shoulders. Despite Wufei's grudging admittance to liking Sally just a month ago, he was still loath to displaying any signs of affection, even in private, still considering "love" as a "weakness."
"Don't complain," Duo moped. "I have to pay for all of it."
"How's that?" Sally inquired.
"Because I lost a stupid bet," Duo whined. "Why didn't you show up before the countdown, Heero? Honestly, you missed out on such an opportunity!"
Heero only focused on his name in Duo's complaint. "You bet on me?"
"Of course I—" Duo began, but seeing Heero's deadly glare, he gulped and continued, "didn't? I…uh…volunteered to pay for the trip." Duo chuckled nervously, and sensing the dangerous aura emanating off his friend, grabbed his bags and dashed toward one of the bungalows.
"But, Heero did show up before the countdown," Relena said, confused.
"I know," Hilde replied, grinning wickedly. "But he doesn't."
"Hilde!" Sally gasped in mock horror, before laughing. "You're absolutely brilliant!"
"Actually, this is my own private beach, so he doesn't really even need to pay for anything," Quatre informed them, rubbing the back of his head.
Hilde looked pointedly at Quatre. "Oh, don't ruin my fun."
"Are we just going to stand around all day and chat?" Midii asked as she and Trowa greeted the group. Needing no more insistence, they headed to the bungalows to drop off their items and change to swimsuits, wanting to take advantage of the warm sun, clear skies, and cool breeze.
As everyone gathered a little ways away from the housing, Duo glanced around the assorted towels, lawn chairs, and coolers. "I see drinks, but no food. Didn't anyone think to pack any food? Do you want us to starve?"
"Duo, you're the one paying for the trip," Hilde reminded her boyfriend. "Therefore, you should be the one providing the snacks. You should be glad we even thought of bringing refreshments."
Duo's jaw dropped. "What! You want me to buy all the food we're going to eat for the next week?"
"I'm not sure that's a smart move, woman. He'd eat all the food."
Hilde opened her mouth to reply, but then shut it and looked up thoughtfully. "True," she finally murmured after a few seconds of contemplation.
Ignoring their jabs, Duo took out a can of soda, shaking it roughly as he plopped down on a blanket next to Hilde. Before she could warn him, Duo popped the can open, the pressure from the inside spraying the dark liquid out through the small opening and straight into Wufei's face.
"Uh-oh." Duo gulped and scrambled to hid behind Hilde, tossing the now empty can at the advancing Chinese man.
"Maxwell!" Wufei lunged at his offender, but found that two arms under and over his shoulders impeded his leap. "Woman! Release me this instance! I must justify this situation!"
"Oh Wufei, relax! It was only accident!"
"The hell it was! He deliberately aimed that pressurized can at me!"
"Wufei, take a deep breath and calm down," Sally advised, still holding onto him. Grumbling, Wufei did as told, inhaling deeply.
"I never thought Sally would be able to control Wufei like that," Relena whispered to Heero.
"Wufei has a weak spot for her, although he won't admit it," Heero replied, turning to face her. Their faces were merely centimeters away from one another, and they leaned in to close the gap.
"Heero and Relena, sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S—OW!" Duo jerked away from the pain and soothed his scalp, glaring at Heero. "How dare you go and pull my braid?" Indifferent to Heero's glare, Duo continued his rationalization. "You were going to kiss her, and I was simply expressing my joy over the fact that you are finally comfortable with openly expressing your undying love for Relena, and also to drop a hint at Wufei to also admit his undying love for Sa—OW!"
Wufei smirked smugly, Sally having been to slow to impeded Wufei's arm from traveling to the end of Duo's long braid and giving it a good, hard tug.
"Really! Between the two of you," Duo glared at Heero and Wufei, "I'll lose all of my hair."
"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but it's getting rather warm here, so I'm taking a dip in the water," Hilde interrupted the bickering, standing up and dusting the sand off her suit.
"Naked?" Duo asked hopefully, following her down the shore.
Wufei rolled his eyes, only to be dragged up by Sally and pulled towards the couple. "What—let me go, woman! What do you think you're doing?"
"I think you need to cool off, Wufei."
Sally smiled at him, and Wufei found that he couldn't say no to his partner, especially since she had her golden hair out of its normal pigtails and was in a two-piece. Sighing, Wufei acquiesced and allowed her to take his hand.
"Watch out surf! The God of Death is here! GaH! That giant tidal wave is trying to eat me!" Duo ran out of the water, exaggerating his movements with wild arm failing and a ridiculously looking hop, causing Hilde and Sally to laugh.
Wufei snorted by his idiocy, only to be grabbed around the waist and plunged into the water by Sally. Wufei surfaced sputtering, ready to yell at the offending woman only to see that she had retreated closer to shore.
"Woman, how dare you—" his tirade cut short by a sudden wave submerged him, forcing him under the salty waters again.
"That was beautiful, Wufei! Absolutely beautiful!" Duo applauded, laughing and holding his stomach in pain. He failed to notice Wufei swim up beside him until he felt his leg pulled away, tipping backwards into the water just as a wave crashed down on him.
Losing interest in their antics, Midii produced a volleyball from behind her back, smiling a challenge at everyone. "Anyone up to a little competitive activity?"
Trowa nodded and stood up, reaching down to help the blonde to her feet.
"Alice?" Midii asked, tossing the ball to the Chinese girl and then glancing at the other couple. "Relena?"
"Sure. Let's go, Quatre. It'll be fun!" Seeing his slightly apprehensive look, Alice grinned and pulled him up, walking after Trowa and Midii to a more open area.
"We'll sit out," Relena called after them, sensing Heero's desire for privacy. "Want to take a stroll?" she asked him. He replied with a curt nod and held out his hand. She smiled and grasped the offered hand, allowing him to help her up before slipping her arm around his waist, lying her head on his shoulder.
Heero and Relena walked in silence along the shore, away from the bungalows and the activities. They walked on the wet and cool sand, the occasional tide licking at their bare feet, simply content to enjoy each other's presence, basking in the warm sunlight and calm air. As the sky turned orange and the first stars blinked into sight, Heero suggested that they turn back, having walked so far that they couldn't even see the others anymore. Relena nodded in agreement, but she suddenly felt a spurt of mischief and pried herself from Heero's grasp. Before he could question her actions, she reached out and pushed him into the water. Suddenly, Relena reached out and pushed Heero into the water. Heero, always fast to react and always prepared for the unexpected, could not react and did not expect the push, and thus fell into the water. Relena laughed, surprised that she had been able to surprise the "perfect soldier," only to be propelled forward onto the fallen soldier, his hand lightly gripping her wrists. She stared down at him as he smirked up at her, a similarly mischievous twinkle in his eye.
Relena smiled back and leaned down toward his welcoming lips until only a breath separated their lips, her cerulean eyes searching his Prussian ones. Heero put one arm around her waist and the other brought her head down to close the gap, pressing his lips to hers in a passionate kiss.
"Where are Heero and Miss Relena?" Quatre asked as the four players settled down on the chairs and towels, joining the other four who were trying to soak up the last of the sun's rays.
Duo grinned and began, "I bet Heero and Relena are…" but a cough from behind stopped the rest of his comment. Duo turned around to see Heero glaring at him, and Relena smiling down at him.
"What were you saying, Duo?" Relena asked sweetly.
"Uh, nothing. Didn't hear you two coming. Well, I'm tired and need to get all this sand out of my hair, so let's head back!" Duo jumped up quickly and walked off toward the bungalows, whistling. Hilde sighed in exasperation and picked up their belongings, dashing after him while yelling at him to hold his own stuff.
"It is getting late," Sally commented as everyone else also stood up and gathered their items. "Are you two coming?" she asked as Heero and Relena hung back.
Heero shook his head. "We'll retire in a moment."
Sally smiled nodded, turned around and took Wufei's free hand in hers, receiving irritated mumbling in return.
When the last of the group trickled out of sight, Heero embraced Relena from behind, allowing her to lean into his warmth. They gazed up at the clear skies, the stars winking at the couple.
Heero bent down to her ear, whispering lovingly, "The stars are shining for you." This elicited a giggle from her, and she sighed and snuggled herself deeper into his embrace. She was now used to Heero's more affectionate side, the one he rarely showed, and she soaked up all the love and protection he offered her. After a few more moments, Heero loosened his hold and turned her around to face him, staring into her eyes.
"I love you," Relena murmured, smiling a little sleepily.
"I love you too."
Suddenly awake and alert, she stared up at him in surprise, searching his eyes for any sign of humor, only to find a loving gaze and a spark of lust. Always the one to proclaim her love, she never expected him to return the sentiments, simply content that he was with her all the time. Overjoyed, she reached up and pulled his face down to hers for a kiss.
"I love you," she murmured against his lips as they pulled away. Heero reached a hand up and pulled her hands down, his other hand pressing something into them.
"What's this?" she asked, looking down. As she opened the velvet box, she gasped at the golden ring with a diamond dove next to a ruby heart. "Heero?"
He removed the ring from its box and slipped it onto her ring finger. "A promise ring. To assure you that I will stay by your side forever." He bent down to kiss her lightly on the lips, smiling against them. "And I promise that one day this ring will be replaced by a band."
Author's Notes:
First, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed the prequel and gave such encouraging reviews for my first story! I was happily surprised so many people read and liked it! Thus, I was compelled to write a sequel. Of course, I must once again thank Chris for all her help and wonderful ideas (finally)—I love you!
Okay, this isn't as good as the first one, even after so much revision. It's much better than the original version, but still not at the same level as my other one-shots. I think maybe I was going for more humor and Heero's proposal (if you could call it that). Furthermore, I've lost interest in the 1xR coupling and can't seem to write the pairing without cringing. Nevertheless, I hope you enjoyed it on some level and always look forward to encouragement and appreciate criticism. Thanks!