"That was fast."

"That was nothing."

Heero turned around to look at Relena, who was shaking her long blond hair out as she lifted off the motorcycle helmet.

"Well, it was fast for me. But then I've never been in a Gundam."

"Yeah. Nothing else like it." He dismounted the bike, turning to offer a hand to Relena. She took it, smiling up at him.

"Sometimes I wonder what you must have felt like. When you were flying. When you'd fight."

He gave a shrug as they started walking along the seawall. "It felt good, sometimes. Not as good as not having to..."

She frowned, tilting her head as she gazed at him. "But you had to again today. Because of me."

"That wasn't your fault."

"They were after me."

"And a few other things." He stopped momentarily and brushed a strand of hair back from her face. Her eyes swirled up at him, hopeful but uncertain. "I swore to protect you, no matter what. That's why I'm here."

"I know." She beamed, her girlish face radiant in the moonlight that bathed them in its soft glow. He'd thought this before, but in her white formal gown, she looked positively angelic. She whispered a soft, reverent, "Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me. Even though you already did. Several times," he added.

She laughed, a sparkling sound. "Well, thank you for checking on me. And for helping me get away for a little while."

"Any time."

"You mean that?"

He peered at her through his long, unruly bangs. "Yeah."

She tipped her head. "Well, of course you can't always be around. I don't expect that, you know."

"I know."

"But it's nice, having you here." She surprised him by all of a sudden grabbing his hand. "I really just wanted to see you. It's been… a while." She gave his hand a quick squeeze, then dropped it. Heero wondered what to do about that. He just scratched his head awkwardly.

"Yeah… Sorry about that. I didn't want to bother you. Figured you were busy."

"I have been." She grinned.

He chuckled. "I can see that."

They came to the end of the seawall and, without hesitation, Relena walked straight off the drop-off point, a good five feet off the ground. She hadn't even bothered kicking off her heels, landing on her feet with a soft poof. Sand scattered all around her. She laughed and called up to Heero.

"So are you always going to swoop in and fight my battles for me?"

He landed beside her. By then she had slipped off her shoes, holding both in one hand. She dangled them playfully as she walked. He followed, no idea where they were going.

"Not always," he answered her question. "Not all of them. The ones that involve nuclear warheads… Yes." He paused, assessing her face closely. "And the ones I don't think you should have to fight alone."

She sighed, absently tracing a heart with her toes. "But you fought alone. For a long time."

"Yeah." Heero paused. "Till you showed up."

She whirled around to look at him. "Me?"

"Uh-huh." A smirk tugged at his lips. "You found me washed up on the beach that day and just wouldn't leave me alone."

She laughed, sounding almost embarrassed. "I must have been pretty annoying, huh?"

His eyes sparked as he looked straight at her. "You were something."

"Well." Relena dropped her gaze to the sand. "I've tried not to bother you since. At least, not on purpose."

Heero stepped a few feet closer to her. "You don't bother me."

"Not since the last time you had to bail me out, you mean."

He tugged on one of the poufy sleeves of her dress. "Maybe you should try to stop getting kidnapped."

His motion caused the sleeve to slip, revealing a sliver of bare shoulder. Relena glanced over it, right into his eyes. "Where's the fun in that?" she teased. She turned again, facing the ocean. "This beach reminds me a little of where we first met."

"Different coastline," he quipped, for some reason fascinated by the big bow at the small of her back. Did that thing hold her dress together, or was it just decoration? What would happen if he yanked on it? He tried. Thing didn't budge.

Relena didn't, either.

"But still…" she sighed.

Heero looked up. "There weren't any stars that night."

"There were. It just wasn't dark yet. It was sunset."

"Ah." He stuffed his hands into his pockets, figuring he ought to stop fiddling with her dress. "What did you do after I ran the hell away from you?"

"Stayed with the paramedics you'd injured and waited for new paramedics to arrive." She gave a small shrug. "Then I walked home."

He gaped at her. "You walked home, after all that?"

"Sure."

He chuckled again. "You really are something."

She laughed, too. "Someone had to come along and keep you on your toes." She wagged a finger at him. "And that's not easy."

"You're the first."

"The first what, exactly?"

He didn't have an answer. He wasn't sure. All of a sudden this conversation, this walk, this evening seemed headed some place that wasn't at all familiar. And yet, he felt strangely comfortable. Like he'd been prepared for this all along. Maybe even a year or two ago, he knew.

The girl he had tried to destroy, who had chased him down, at once weakened and strengthened his resolve, his will to fight.

His will to surrender.

"Come to think of it," Relena trilled, keeping up alongside him, "almost every time we've seen each other over the past year has been because I've been captured, or nearly captured, save for that one time you visited me out of the blue. Do you remember?"

Did he remember. That time she twisted her ankle. He'd caught her crying. She yelled at him. She later fell asleep, and he held her. He hadn't done that before. He knew even she didn't remember that part.

His voice rumbled. "I don't forget stuff like that."

"That's good. I was hoping your memory was better than mine."

"What do you mean?"

She spun around to face him, now walking backward.

"Heero." She said in a serious, commanding tone. "That time last summer, when we were about to evacuate the colony… what was it you said to me?"

What he'd said?

Heero thought back. The colony they were on was about to detonate. Just as Relena was about to board an escape shuttle, Heero snatched her by the arm, pulled her in and…

Oh. He hadn't said anything.

He swung his eyes over to her. She smiled slyly, just for an instant, before flushing and turning her face away.

Now he understood.

"I can't remember," he feigned, edging just a touch closer to her. "Maybe you could refresh my memory."

A gasp fluttered out of her mouth, followed by a brief giggle. Of course. Relena wasn't that kind of girl.

He felt a drop of moisture on his skin and glanced upward as the skies threatened to open.

"Oh," Relena muttered. She held up a hand, palm facing up. "Rain. We should head back." She turned toward the seawall.

Heero grabbed her by the bow, pulling her back.

Wait.

He didn't have to say it. She stilled, and slowly turned her head.

He bent his head to hers, his other hand clasping her lower back before tangling itself in her long tresses, as his lips crashed against hers.

If their first kiss had been a little rough, this one was violent. Desperate. Her hands clutched his face before reaching up to tousle his hair. He pulled her hair, a little harder than necessary. She responded with a soft moan, nibbling his lower lip. He did the same to hers and felt her start to fall backward slightly as her knees seemed to buckle. She grasped the back of his neck for balance.

Fatter raindrops demanded their attention. Heero was busy kissing Relena's face and neck.

"We should go," she gasped.

"We'll go," he agreed, thumbing her jaw as he trailed more kisses across it.

This was new. He wasn't afraid, and neither was she. And for once they could take their time, drink in the moment, with no more threats, or fires, or pending explosions.

Well. Except for the obvious.

A thunderclap pulled his attention away, just for a second.

"All right." He gave in. "We're going."

They ran together, hand in hand, back to the seawall, where Heero gave Relena a boost up. She turned and offered her hands to him; he took them, even though he didn't need the help, and allowed her to help hoist him up. They trudged back to his bike, Relena lifting up her heavy, soggy skirts.

"Is it safe to ride this thing in the rain?" She frowned as she surveyed the bike.

He handed her a helmet before sitting and revving the engine. "You're safe with me."

"I know." Relena smiled shyly, fastening the helmet. "I've always known that." Her brow furrowed slightly. "Where are we going, though?"

Heero threw her one last look over his shoulder before he pushed up the kickstand.

"We'll see."

Fin.

Happy Birthday, Relena!

- RFP