Sick Day Off
* The dice told me to do it! * (2+5)
Disclaimer: Hi, this is Kage Otogi, Yuki-sama's "inspiration." * giggles * She's on the phone with me right now, and she expects me to fix all the crap she goofed up, so… Yeah, here goes! Let's see if I can figure this out now… Oh. Whoops. Damn. Why was I here again? Oh yeah… I'm supposed to write a disclaimer and upload the story… Hm… Maybe I'll get Yuki-sama kicked off by saying that she does seem to think she owns Gundam Wing and all… Hmmm… Nah, I'll be nice. ^_^ Yuki-sama doesn't own the G-boys. She wants to, though. And she's yelling at me because I'm threatening to say she's a forty-year old man. Oh well. ^_^ Oh, and she wants me to warn you that the R stuff will be coming soon. But I don't think I will. That's it. ^_^
What Duo meant to say:
'Ah, another new day with my friends. What a wonderful day to be alive!'
What escaped his mouth as he fell back to his bed, clutching his face:
"ITAI!!! OH HOLY GOD, MY HEAD!" His voice hurt his ears as well as his throat and he quickly stopped cursing, choosing to rock back and forth in pain instead. His eyes stung.
His ears were throbbing.
He couldn't swallow.
His skin was practically on fire.
And to top it all off, it was his first day off in four weeks!
"Itai…" he croaked as he removed his hands from his face. He cringed as he attempted to open his eyes. It wasn't working.
After a brief moment of hysterical panic, he could see, and immediately he wished that he couldn't. Everything was bright and painful to his poor blue orbs and he was forced to squint. Groaning loudly, he rolled off his bed to land in a heap of aching muscles on the floor. On his hands and knees he began to crawl out of his room and across the hall to the bathroom. Quatre had chosen the safe house, so naturally it was nearly twelve feet to the other room, which in Duo's opinion was the size of a living room. His own room was actually a closet he had redecorated.
Making his way towards the shower in a daze, he drug himself in and lay on his back, his lungs heaving with the effort it took to move. A few minutes passed before he reached up and turned the water dial.
Water poured down from the shower nozzle, quickly soaking him in hot water. He opened his mouth and swallowed painfully, letting the liquid moisten his throat. He closed his eyes as the water filled the tub around him, since his loose hair was clogging the drain. His mouth lay open to the drizzling spray and his poor swollen glands eased off a bit in the steam. He told himself he would get up in a minute as he drifted off to sleep…
"Duo, what the hell is wrong with you?!" Duo's eyes flew open as lips clamped over his own. He screamed, his throat suddenly coming alive with searing pain. There was a weight on his chest and he shoved the body that was pressing down on him with all his strength. His instincts told him to retreat and he suddenly found himself pressed up against the bathroom wall, his legs still moving to get him out of there. He looked up a second, his face panic-stricken. Then he blinked.
"Heero?" he said hoarsely. The Perfect Soldier lay sprawled across the bathroom floor. Heero was sitting up slowly, rubbing his neck. "Heero?" Duo asked again, fear and confusion mixing in his expression. "What were you…?" His voice drawled off as his gaze went to the puddle of water collecting on the floor. He could hear the shower and gasped as he saw the water spilling out of the tub that was currently overflowing. "Ut-oh…." he said raspily. He rubbed his throat, wincing. Drowning didn't exactly help his cold.
"Ut-oh? Is that all you're going to say?!" Duo stared at the dark haired boy; he didn't strike him as someone who would demand gratitude, but he had seen stranger things.
"Thanks, Heero?"
Nope, that didn't work… it even sounded a bit sarcastic in his raspy whisper.
Concern.
Worry.
Fear.
All emotions Duo had never seen in Heero were suddenly there beneath a mop of brown hair. Prussian eyes shimmered with a light Duo was sure no one had ever laid sight on. It scared him.
"Duo… never… Why would you?" He edged closer, looking away for a moment. He thought of something and jerked his head upward, his face bright and pleading. "Never leave me!" he cried, like it was a marriage proposal. "Never try that again!" He was sitting on his knees in front of Duo, his hands on the boy's shoulders. "Please; I'll do anything, just don't leave us alone…" The un-braided boy was speechless and Heero went on. "I'll give you a reason to stay!" he whispered passionately, with determination. His face came closer to Duo's and he hesitated, looking for any sign of response. Duo merely stared blankly, unaware of what was going on. He was still partially in shock at what had happened. 'I've had a near-death experience,' was popping up every two seconds. His lack of expression looked more like a morose mask than anything else and Heero felt the urge to change that.
So he kissed him.
Hard.
On the mouth.
He poured all his effort into the action, quickly mastering the art in seconds.
Duo's eyes widened in surprise as every thought in his head flew back, as if he were thrown into a room and they were locked out in the hall. He knew he was blushing, but only out of embarrassment. Heero's kiss felt… different, but not the way he imagined such a kiss would feel. It was so empty, and full of questions. Did Heero love him? Like him? Did he love Heero? 'No!' Like him? 'He's sexy and shit but he's my friend.' There you have it.
But before Duo could break the kiss, Heero did. He flashed the boy a brilliant smile that nobody had ever witnessed, mistaking the blush that spread Duo's cheeks for the color coming back to his face. 'I've done it!' he thought. 'I'm making him better!' He pulled the fragile boy into his arms, burying his face in the wet twists of Duo's loose hair. The boy was shivering, his legs still in a puddle of icy water, and Heero held him closer. Minutes went by in silence before Duo submitted to the warmth of Heero's body, anything to keep him from freezing.
"I'm tired," he mumbled sleepily. "Can you put me in my bed?" Heero smiled. Duo could be so cute sometimes.
"All right." He lifted the limp body in his arms, carefully holding him to his chest as he turned off the faucet and carried the exhausted boy back to his room.
He kissed the American on the forehead as he fell asleep and left the room to talk to the others.
Duo opened his eyes. It had worked! He sneezed loudly and rubbed his eyes in pain. "Why me?" he croaked. He coughed, deciding that he desperately needed some medicine. Every time he moved it was like Hell. He sneezed again before realizing he was laying in sopping wet clothes and his hair was just as soaked.
Groaning, he got up, shakily grabbing some dry clothes and sat with his back to the headboard of his bed, peeling off his shirt. He grew frustrated with his pants, though; they refused to come off. Wet hip huggers are never a pretty sight. At such a rate he would die of pneumonia.
This was the last straw for Duo, and he cursed, forgetting his raw throat and triggering a coughing fit. He broke down on his bed as the excruciating pain tore through his chest, causing his lungs to burn as his breath came out in ragged gasps.
"Duo?" The boy looked up with tears in his cobalt eyes as Wufei poked his head into Duo's bedroom. He was suddenly hopping into the room. "What's wrong?" he demanded, his eyes roaming over the shirtless, wet, and crying boy. "What happened?" A tear rolled down Duo's cheek.
"My pants won't come off!" he wailed hoarsely. Wufei went pink.
"They won't?" he squeaked. Duo shook his head. "Do you want me to…?" The boy nodded pitifully as he wiped his face clumsily with the back of his hand. "O-okay," Wufei agreed to it, suddenly feeling very light-headed. He came to Duo, tugging the zipper of his jeans the rest of the way down. He saw Duo shiver and rapidly said something to fill the suddenly uncomfortable silence. "Why are you all wet?" he blurted out. Duo looked up, shaken out of his daze. What on earth had possessed him to have Wufei take off his pants?!
He blushed wildly.
"I- um…" he stammered, his voice painful to listen to. The Chinese boy looked up, seeing Duo's face turn beat red.
"Did you catch a cold?" he asked, concerned. Duo nodded.
"I woke up like this and I went into the shower to-" He cleared his throat in an attempt not to sound so hoarse. "I lay down in the tub and turned on the hot water." His voice squeaked as Wufei's hand accidentally brushed over bare skin. He broke into another coughing fit, finding it a lot less painful with the Chinese boy's palm on his back.
"Then what?" Wufei persisted as he began to work on the irremovable pants again. He was ever so slowly getting them past Duo's pale hips. He just knew his nose was going to start bleeding soon.
"I fell asleep in the tub."
"It didn't fill up, did it?" Wufei sounded worried.
"Yeah," Duo croaked.
"Well, you're not drowned. What happened?" Duo swallowed as he realized his boxers were being pulled down too. He hastily caught the waistband with his fingers, clutching at it as he blushed even more.
"H-Heero saved me." Wufei's eyes narrowed. "He thought I had tried to kill myself. And- ah." Duo shuddered violently.
"What, what happened?" the Chinese boy asked sharply. Duo shook his head.
"That tickled," he rasped.
"Oh. Sorry." Wufei tried to concentrate on the pants.
"He thought I had attempted suicide, and kissed me!" the longhaired boy croaked, exasperated.
Wufei's eyes went wide. "WHAT?!!"
Duo clutched his ears.
"Itai… I think I have an ear infection…" He whimpered.
And then… Quatre walked in.
The scene through his eyes was the following: Duo was slumped up against the headboard of his bed, his hair loose, and holding his head. His face held an expression of pain. Wufei was pulling the other boy's pants down, while Duo held onto his boxers. Wufei seemed outraged about this.
"WUFEI!"
"Gah!" The Chinese boy was suddenly victim to a flailing and screaming blonde boy. He was being pummeled by a blur of fists until he caught them both in his hands. Quatre turned to Duo in a panic.
"RUN DUO, RUN!!" he cried. Duo stared, a smile spreading across his face as the blonde struggled against Wufei.
"Quatre, calm down. My pants are stuck, that's all." He coughed.
"What?" Quatre's eyes widened. He looked at Wufei suspiciously. "You sure?"
"Winner, does Maxwell ever lie?" A small vein was pulsating in Wufei's forehead. Quatre jerked his hands out of the Chinese boy's hold. Almost a minute passed before anyone spoke.
"Then you won't mind if I help?"
"Nani?!" Duo squeaked. He began to cough violently. He calmed down enough to stand up and head towards the door. "I- I can do it myself!" he stammered as he stumbled out into the hall, retreating to the bathroom. The door slammed closed and Wufei glared at Quatre.
"Happy?" he hissed.
It was nearly an hour later that Duo emerged, holding a shredded pair of jeans. He had grown impatient, and frustrated, finally taking scissors to them. He found his room empty, and a pair of pajamas had been laid out for him. Smiling at Wufei's thoughtfulness, he tugged on the loose clothes, groaning and cringing as he moved his aching muscles.
He had never experienced such a cold.
'Maybe there's something in the medicine cabinet that could help.'
He shakily began on his way towards the kitchen, keeping his hand against the wall for balance as the world tilted around him. The halls were empty, and only the sound of a flute and a violin reminded him the others had the day off, too.
Slowly but surely, Duo made it to his destination, having developed a headache by the time he got there.
Entering the kitchen, he made a beeline to the medicine cabinet. He grabbed as many bottles as he could and dumped them on the table, easing into a chair. He rubbed his weary eyes as he set to work, searching for a cold medicine. Preferably one that also solved all the confusing problems his life seemed to enjoy offering him. But for some reason all he could find was a bottle of Benadryl.
It was heavy in his hand and he shook it to see how many were left in the bottle. There wasn't any noise.
"Hm?" Duo pried open the top after a moments struggle and a curse to all child-safe lids. A mass of pills was within the container and he shook it as he held it above his open mouth, waiting for the medicine to fall. The tablets were slowly loosening and readying to land upon Duo's tongue when-
"Duo!! Duo, what are you doing?!" The still unbraided boy's eyes darted towards the kitchen door.
Shit.
Heero was standing with his eyes wide and his mouth open.
There was a moment where neither moved. "Duo!" Heero gasped again. Duo swallowed hard.
And then he realized:
'I just ate a whole fistful of Benadryl didn't I?'
"Shit."
*
"He wouldn't let you take any Ipecac?" Wufei glanced over at a very green Duo, who was slumped in the passengers seat.
"Ahuh." Duo nodded, bringing a hand to his mouth. "I had to use my finger to…" He gagged for a second remembering the horrible ten minutes he spent in the bathroom once he had escaped the evil Japanese boy's clutches. "He threw away all the bottles in the medicine cabinet, all of them!" He sneezed, and dragged a hand through his hair in frustration.
"That's why we're going to CVS now, so just relax or you'll somehow manage to make yourself even sicker." Wufei's tone was surprisingly soothing, and Duo turned to look at him, smiling brightly.
"Thanks, Wu." Wufei smiled back, using his ability to drive along an empty road without looking.
'Man do Duo's eyes look beautiful in this light…'
The American's smile broke as he began to cough, wheezing and choking. He doubled over, his face turning red.
Retch.
So it wasn't Duo's day to be sexy. Can you blame him? (who said yes?!!!)
"I'm really sorry Wu…" Duo croaked, pulling off his sweatshirt to mop up the mess by his feet.
"Don't be sorry. Maybe we should get you some Pepto Bismal too…"
"He threw it away," Duo mumbled, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. His throat was screaming with throe, and acid doesn't exactly help a raw anything. His eyes were watering. He felt a hand on his back and he let his eyes fall shut as Wufei commenced rubbing his back. "He kissed me again…" Duo murmured. The massaging stopped. "And I think he grabbed my ass…" The American was sleepily resting his face in his hands, his elbows on his knees.
Wufei's truck was slowly speeding up.
"He WHAT?!" He nearly took out a mailbox. Duo's head jerked up as he regained his posture.
"Heero… Uh…" He cringed visibly, bringing his arms up to shield himself as the truck swerved, avoiding a tree. "Wufei, you're kind of scaring me."
The vehicle abruptly stopped.
"I'm sorry…"
"I- I, uh, said, he, uh… kissed me again." Why was Wufei getting so upset? Duo frowned. "Wu, we're holding up traffic." Wufei glanced at the rearview mirror. And old woman in a boat or a car was patiently waiting for them to move.
The truck began towards CVS again.
"Did you tell him to stop?" Wufei's voice wavered as he asked the question; he could feel Duo's eyes on him. The other boy raised an eyebrow as he covered his mouth to cough.
"I was too busy having a panic attack and attempting to get away from him," he responded hastily.
"Mm." Wufei had an odd feeling that perhaps Duo didn't like Heero. He smiled.
"Why are you so happy?" Duo poked him. His voice had a raspiness to it that made him sound irritable.
"Nothing."
"Fine then." Duo shrugged. He turned on the radio to fill the silence and sat back in his seat, the music lulling him to sleep.
What seemed like a second later, Wufei was tapping him on the shoulder. The car had been stopped for quite some time, the Asian watching his friend contently, brushing his bangs from his face, running a tan finger over the boy's pink lips, and finally giving into waking him. "We're here," he said quietly. Duo yawned, rubbing his red-rimmed eyes with the backs of his hands.
"Hai…" he murmured, allowing Wufei to help him out of the truck. He almost squealed with joy when his friend kept his arm around Duo's shoulders and his hand on his arm.
It seemed so natural to both that they hardly noticed how close together they were standing when they reached the medicine row of the store.
"Mm, that one looks good." Duo rested his head against Wufei's chest.
Wufei blushed. Couldn't Duo tell what he was doing to him? Maybe they could find some tissues…
"Aa, ahuh. Benadryl?" He nearly whimpered as he was forced to let go of Duo to kneel down and pick up the pink box. He stood again, reading the warnings on the back; he wouldn't let anything happen to Duo from now on.
"What's it say?"
"Gah-" Willowy arms were wrapped around Wufei's neck, a croaking and harsh voice sounding from beside his ear.
'Oh God.' This was almost as bad as with the pants thing. "Um… Well, it basically says you'll be nervous, hyper, and sleepy. Which is a very strange combination." Wufei blinked. "Duo?" There was no one behind him anymore. He spun around just quick enough to see a braid whip out of sight. "What is he…?"
Duo was racing painfully to the large refrigerators where they kept the fruit drinks and sodas. He threw open the cold glass door, grabbing a water before turning to run back.
If Wufei was being so amorous, he definitely wanted to be around.
Rounding a shelf, he came to an abrupt stop. "There you are, where'd you go?" Wufei put his hand on Duo's shoulder. The boy did some maneuvering and suddenly Wufei's arm was draped around his and his arm around his friend's waist.
So rarely did the Chinese boy allow the American to touch him, but lately…
Little did Duo know that the time that he had accidentally left the bathroom door ajar during his bath time, someone had been watching him. Wufei had been minding his own business, walking to his room, when he heard the water in the bathtub running. He went to close the door for whoever was in there when-
Well, to put it bluntly, he saw Duo naked, from head to toe as he stepped into the shower.
And he no longer called him Maxwell, nor baka, and was especially considerate towards the boy.
Wufei snapped back to attention. Duo was drinking the water and the box of pills was open. The American finished
* The dice told me to do it! * (2+5)
Disclaimer: Hi, this is Kage Otogi, Yuki-sama's "inspiration." * giggles * She's on the phone with me right now, and she expects me to fix all the crap she goofed up, so… Yeah, here goes! Let's see if I can figure this out now… Oh. Whoops. Damn. Why was I here again? Oh yeah… I'm supposed to write a disclaimer and upload the story… Hm… Maybe I'll get Yuki-sama kicked off by saying that she does seem to think she owns Gundam Wing and all… Hmmm… Nah, I'll be nice. ^_^ Yuki-sama doesn't own the G-boys. She wants to, though. And she's yelling at me because I'm threatening to say she's a forty-year old man. Oh well. ^_^ Oh, and she wants me to warn you that the R stuff will be coming soon. But I don't think I will. That's it. ^_^
What Duo meant to say:
'Ah, another new day with my friends. What a wonderful day to be alive!'
What escaped his mouth as he fell back to his bed, clutching his face:
"ITAI!!! OH HOLY GOD, MY HEAD!" His voice hurt his ears as well as his throat and he quickly stopped cursing, choosing to rock back and forth in pain instead. His eyes stung.
His ears were throbbing.
He couldn't swallow.
His skin was practically on fire.
And to top it all off, it was his first day off in four weeks!
"Itai…" he croaked as he removed his hands from his face. He cringed as he attempted to open his eyes. It wasn't working.
After a brief moment of hysterical panic, he could see, and immediately he wished that he couldn't. Everything was bright and painful to his poor blue orbs and he was forced to squint. Groaning loudly, he rolled off his bed to land in a heap of aching muscles on the floor. On his hands and knees he began to crawl out of his room and across the hall to the bathroom. Quatre had chosen the safe house, so naturally it was nearly twelve feet to the other room, which in Duo's opinion was the size of a living room. His own room was actually a closet he had redecorated.
Making his way towards the shower in a daze, he drug himself in and lay on his back, his lungs heaving with the effort it took to move. A few minutes passed before he reached up and turned the water dial.
Water poured down from the shower nozzle, quickly soaking him in hot water. He opened his mouth and swallowed painfully, letting the liquid moisten his throat. He closed his eyes as the water filled the tub around him, since his loose hair was clogging the drain. His mouth lay open to the drizzling spray and his poor swollen glands eased off a bit in the steam. He told himself he would get up in a minute as he drifted off to sleep…
"Duo, what the hell is wrong with you?!" Duo's eyes flew open as lips clamped over his own. He screamed, his throat suddenly coming alive with searing pain. There was a weight on his chest and he shoved the body that was pressing down on him with all his strength. His instincts told him to retreat and he suddenly found himself pressed up against the bathroom wall, his legs still moving to get him out of there. He looked up a second, his face panic-stricken. Then he blinked.
"Heero?" he said hoarsely. The Perfect Soldier lay sprawled across the bathroom floor. Heero was sitting up slowly, rubbing his neck. "Heero?" Duo asked again, fear and confusion mixing in his expression. "What were you…?" His voice drawled off as his gaze went to the puddle of water collecting on the floor. He could hear the shower and gasped as he saw the water spilling out of the tub that was currently overflowing. "Ut-oh…." he said raspily. He rubbed his throat, wincing. Drowning didn't exactly help his cold.
"Ut-oh? Is that all you're going to say?!" Duo stared at the dark haired boy; he didn't strike him as someone who would demand gratitude, but he had seen stranger things.
"Thanks, Heero?"
Nope, that didn't work… it even sounded a bit sarcastic in his raspy whisper.
Concern.
Worry.
Fear.
All emotions Duo had never seen in Heero were suddenly there beneath a mop of brown hair. Prussian eyes shimmered with a light Duo was sure no one had ever laid sight on. It scared him.
"Duo… never… Why would you?" He edged closer, looking away for a moment. He thought of something and jerked his head upward, his face bright and pleading. "Never leave me!" he cried, like it was a marriage proposal. "Never try that again!" He was sitting on his knees in front of Duo, his hands on the boy's shoulders. "Please; I'll do anything, just don't leave us alone…" The un-braided boy was speechless and Heero went on. "I'll give you a reason to stay!" he whispered passionately, with determination. His face came closer to Duo's and he hesitated, looking for any sign of response. Duo merely stared blankly, unaware of what was going on. He was still partially in shock at what had happened. 'I've had a near-death experience,' was popping up every two seconds. His lack of expression looked more like a morose mask than anything else and Heero felt the urge to change that.
So he kissed him.
Hard.
On the mouth.
He poured all his effort into the action, quickly mastering the art in seconds.
Duo's eyes widened in surprise as every thought in his head flew back, as if he were thrown into a room and they were locked out in the hall. He knew he was blushing, but only out of embarrassment. Heero's kiss felt… different, but not the way he imagined such a kiss would feel. It was so empty, and full of questions. Did Heero love him? Like him? Did he love Heero? 'No!' Like him? 'He's sexy and shit but he's my friend.' There you have it.
But before Duo could break the kiss, Heero did. He flashed the boy a brilliant smile that nobody had ever witnessed, mistaking the blush that spread Duo's cheeks for the color coming back to his face. 'I've done it!' he thought. 'I'm making him better!' He pulled the fragile boy into his arms, burying his face in the wet twists of Duo's loose hair. The boy was shivering, his legs still in a puddle of icy water, and Heero held him closer. Minutes went by in silence before Duo submitted to the warmth of Heero's body, anything to keep him from freezing.
"I'm tired," he mumbled sleepily. "Can you put me in my bed?" Heero smiled. Duo could be so cute sometimes.
"All right." He lifted the limp body in his arms, carefully holding him to his chest as he turned off the faucet and carried the exhausted boy back to his room.
He kissed the American on the forehead as he fell asleep and left the room to talk to the others.
Duo opened his eyes. It had worked! He sneezed loudly and rubbed his eyes in pain. "Why me?" he croaked. He coughed, deciding that he desperately needed some medicine. Every time he moved it was like Hell. He sneezed again before realizing he was laying in sopping wet clothes and his hair was just as soaked.
Groaning, he got up, shakily grabbing some dry clothes and sat with his back to the headboard of his bed, peeling off his shirt. He grew frustrated with his pants, though; they refused to come off. Wet hip huggers are never a pretty sight. At such a rate he would die of pneumonia.
This was the last straw for Duo, and he cursed, forgetting his raw throat and triggering a coughing fit. He broke down on his bed as the excruciating pain tore through his chest, causing his lungs to burn as his breath came out in ragged gasps.
"Duo?" The boy looked up with tears in his cobalt eyes as Wufei poked his head into Duo's bedroom. He was suddenly hopping into the room. "What's wrong?" he demanded, his eyes roaming over the shirtless, wet, and crying boy. "What happened?" A tear rolled down Duo's cheek.
"My pants won't come off!" he wailed hoarsely. Wufei went pink.
"They won't?" he squeaked. Duo shook his head. "Do you want me to…?" The boy nodded pitifully as he wiped his face clumsily with the back of his hand. "O-okay," Wufei agreed to it, suddenly feeling very light-headed. He came to Duo, tugging the zipper of his jeans the rest of the way down. He saw Duo shiver and rapidly said something to fill the suddenly uncomfortable silence. "Why are you all wet?" he blurted out. Duo looked up, shaken out of his daze. What on earth had possessed him to have Wufei take off his pants?!
He blushed wildly.
"I- um…" he stammered, his voice painful to listen to. The Chinese boy looked up, seeing Duo's face turn beat red.
"Did you catch a cold?" he asked, concerned. Duo nodded.
"I woke up like this and I went into the shower to-" He cleared his throat in an attempt not to sound so hoarse. "I lay down in the tub and turned on the hot water." His voice squeaked as Wufei's hand accidentally brushed over bare skin. He broke into another coughing fit, finding it a lot less painful with the Chinese boy's palm on his back.
"Then what?" Wufei persisted as he began to work on the irremovable pants again. He was ever so slowly getting them past Duo's pale hips. He just knew his nose was going to start bleeding soon.
"I fell asleep in the tub."
"It didn't fill up, did it?" Wufei sounded worried.
"Yeah," Duo croaked.
"Well, you're not drowned. What happened?" Duo swallowed as he realized his boxers were being pulled down too. He hastily caught the waistband with his fingers, clutching at it as he blushed even more.
"H-Heero saved me." Wufei's eyes narrowed. "He thought I had tried to kill myself. And- ah." Duo shuddered violently.
"What, what happened?" the Chinese boy asked sharply. Duo shook his head.
"That tickled," he rasped.
"Oh. Sorry." Wufei tried to concentrate on the pants.
"He thought I had attempted suicide, and kissed me!" the longhaired boy croaked, exasperated.
Wufei's eyes went wide. "WHAT?!!"
Duo clutched his ears.
"Itai… I think I have an ear infection…" He whimpered.
And then… Quatre walked in.
The scene through his eyes was the following: Duo was slumped up against the headboard of his bed, his hair loose, and holding his head. His face held an expression of pain. Wufei was pulling the other boy's pants down, while Duo held onto his boxers. Wufei seemed outraged about this.
"WUFEI!"
"Gah!" The Chinese boy was suddenly victim to a flailing and screaming blonde boy. He was being pummeled by a blur of fists until he caught them both in his hands. Quatre turned to Duo in a panic.
"RUN DUO, RUN!!" he cried. Duo stared, a smile spreading across his face as the blonde struggled against Wufei.
"Quatre, calm down. My pants are stuck, that's all." He coughed.
"What?" Quatre's eyes widened. He looked at Wufei suspiciously. "You sure?"
"Winner, does Maxwell ever lie?" A small vein was pulsating in Wufei's forehead. Quatre jerked his hands out of the Chinese boy's hold. Almost a minute passed before anyone spoke.
"Then you won't mind if I help?"
"Nani?!" Duo squeaked. He began to cough violently. He calmed down enough to stand up and head towards the door. "I- I can do it myself!" he stammered as he stumbled out into the hall, retreating to the bathroom. The door slammed closed and Wufei glared at Quatre.
"Happy?" he hissed.
It was nearly an hour later that Duo emerged, holding a shredded pair of jeans. He had grown impatient, and frustrated, finally taking scissors to them. He found his room empty, and a pair of pajamas had been laid out for him. Smiling at Wufei's thoughtfulness, he tugged on the loose clothes, groaning and cringing as he moved his aching muscles.
He had never experienced such a cold.
'Maybe there's something in the medicine cabinet that could help.'
He shakily began on his way towards the kitchen, keeping his hand against the wall for balance as the world tilted around him. The halls were empty, and only the sound of a flute and a violin reminded him the others had the day off, too.
Slowly but surely, Duo made it to his destination, having developed a headache by the time he got there.
Entering the kitchen, he made a beeline to the medicine cabinet. He grabbed as many bottles as he could and dumped them on the table, easing into a chair. He rubbed his weary eyes as he set to work, searching for a cold medicine. Preferably one that also solved all the confusing problems his life seemed to enjoy offering him. But for some reason all he could find was a bottle of Benadryl.
It was heavy in his hand and he shook it to see how many were left in the bottle. There wasn't any noise.
"Hm?" Duo pried open the top after a moments struggle and a curse to all child-safe lids. A mass of pills was within the container and he shook it as he held it above his open mouth, waiting for the medicine to fall. The tablets were slowly loosening and readying to land upon Duo's tongue when-
"Duo!! Duo, what are you doing?!" The still unbraided boy's eyes darted towards the kitchen door.
Shit.
Heero was standing with his eyes wide and his mouth open.
There was a moment where neither moved. "Duo!" Heero gasped again. Duo swallowed hard.
And then he realized:
'I just ate a whole fistful of Benadryl didn't I?'
"Shit."
*
"He wouldn't let you take any Ipecac?" Wufei glanced over at a very green Duo, who was slumped in the passengers seat.
"Ahuh." Duo nodded, bringing a hand to his mouth. "I had to use my finger to…" He gagged for a second remembering the horrible ten minutes he spent in the bathroom once he had escaped the evil Japanese boy's clutches. "He threw away all the bottles in the medicine cabinet, all of them!" He sneezed, and dragged a hand through his hair in frustration.
"That's why we're going to CVS now, so just relax or you'll somehow manage to make yourself even sicker." Wufei's tone was surprisingly soothing, and Duo turned to look at him, smiling brightly.
"Thanks, Wu." Wufei smiled back, using his ability to drive along an empty road without looking.
'Man do Duo's eyes look beautiful in this light…'
The American's smile broke as he began to cough, wheezing and choking. He doubled over, his face turning red.
Retch.
So it wasn't Duo's day to be sexy. Can you blame him? (who said yes?!!!)
"I'm really sorry Wu…" Duo croaked, pulling off his sweatshirt to mop up the mess by his feet.
"Don't be sorry. Maybe we should get you some Pepto Bismal too…"
"He threw it away," Duo mumbled, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. His throat was screaming with throe, and acid doesn't exactly help a raw anything. His eyes were watering. He felt a hand on his back and he let his eyes fall shut as Wufei commenced rubbing his back. "He kissed me again…" Duo murmured. The massaging stopped. "And I think he grabbed my ass…" The American was sleepily resting his face in his hands, his elbows on his knees.
Wufei's truck was slowly speeding up.
"He WHAT?!" He nearly took out a mailbox. Duo's head jerked up as he regained his posture.
"Heero… Uh…" He cringed visibly, bringing his arms up to shield himself as the truck swerved, avoiding a tree. "Wufei, you're kind of scaring me."
The vehicle abruptly stopped.
"I'm sorry…"
"I- I, uh, said, he, uh… kissed me again." Why was Wufei getting so upset? Duo frowned. "Wu, we're holding up traffic." Wufei glanced at the rearview mirror. And old woman in a boat or a car was patiently waiting for them to move.
The truck began towards CVS again.
"Did you tell him to stop?" Wufei's voice wavered as he asked the question; he could feel Duo's eyes on him. The other boy raised an eyebrow as he covered his mouth to cough.
"I was too busy having a panic attack and attempting to get away from him," he responded hastily.
"Mm." Wufei had an odd feeling that perhaps Duo didn't like Heero. He smiled.
"Why are you so happy?" Duo poked him. His voice had a raspiness to it that made him sound irritable.
"Nothing."
"Fine then." Duo shrugged. He turned on the radio to fill the silence and sat back in his seat, the music lulling him to sleep.
What seemed like a second later, Wufei was tapping him on the shoulder. The car had been stopped for quite some time, the Asian watching his friend contently, brushing his bangs from his face, running a tan finger over the boy's pink lips, and finally giving into waking him. "We're here," he said quietly. Duo yawned, rubbing his red-rimmed eyes with the backs of his hands.
"Hai…" he murmured, allowing Wufei to help him out of the truck. He almost squealed with joy when his friend kept his arm around Duo's shoulders and his hand on his arm.
It seemed so natural to both that they hardly noticed how close together they were standing when they reached the medicine row of the store.
"Mm, that one looks good." Duo rested his head against Wufei's chest.
Wufei blushed. Couldn't Duo tell what he was doing to him? Maybe they could find some tissues…
"Aa, ahuh. Benadryl?" He nearly whimpered as he was forced to let go of Duo to kneel down and pick up the pink box. He stood again, reading the warnings on the back; he wouldn't let anything happen to Duo from now on.
"What's it say?"
"Gah-" Willowy arms were wrapped around Wufei's neck, a croaking and harsh voice sounding from beside his ear.
'Oh God.' This was almost as bad as with the pants thing. "Um… Well, it basically says you'll be nervous, hyper, and sleepy. Which is a very strange combination." Wufei blinked. "Duo?" There was no one behind him anymore. He spun around just quick enough to see a braid whip out of sight. "What is he…?"
Duo was racing painfully to the large refrigerators where they kept the fruit drinks and sodas. He threw open the cold glass door, grabbing a water before turning to run back.
If Wufei was being so amorous, he definitely wanted to be around.
Rounding a shelf, he came to an abrupt stop. "There you are, where'd you go?" Wufei put his hand on Duo's shoulder. The boy did some maneuvering and suddenly Wufei's arm was draped around his and his arm around his friend's waist.
So rarely did the Chinese boy allow the American to touch him, but lately…
Little did Duo know that the time that he had accidentally left the bathroom door ajar during his bath time, someone had been watching him. Wufei had been minding his own business, walking to his room, when he heard the water in the bathtub running. He went to close the door for whoever was in there when-
Well, to put it bluntly, he saw Duo naked, from head to toe as he stepped into the shower.
And he no longer called him Maxwell, nor baka, and was especially considerate towards the boy.
Wufei snapped back to attention. Duo was drinking the water and the box of pills was open. The American finished