[Title]: When It Rains
[Pairing]: 1+2
[Rating]: PG
[Warnings]: Shounen ai, sap, some profanity.
[Disclaimer]: Don't own the boys, just the story.
[Author's Note]: An old one-shot I wrote by hand many years ago in Florida, when our power was knocked out by a hurricane. Edited a bit now before re-posting. Trying to get all my old work up before I start writing new ones! Please enjoy!

The room began to darken as a string of storm clouds passed overhead. Pausing momentarily in his rapid typing, Heero gazed out the window, open to allow a cool breeze into the bedroom, and stood up to approach it. A few fat raindrops splat against the windowsill, wetting him in the process. Heero sighed, reluctantly closing the window as the rain began to increase, and plunged himself back into the stifling humidity of the room.

His laptop was the only source of light in the darkness. He continued typing, ignoring the oncoming storm outside. A flash of lightning briefly lit up the room before Heero heard a key fumble in the lock of the door, and heard the door fly open and slam shut. He didn't bother to look up as Duo rushed into their shared dorm room and tossed his backpack aside.

"Whoa," Duo said, shrugging off his jacket, "I was lucky to make it back in time."

Heero grunted, and continued typing.

Duo stretched his arms above his head, grinning, until a loud boom of thunder reverberated outside and rattled the window. He jumped and recoiled farther away from the glass. Heero caught the gesture out of the corner of his eye, but put it aside, drawing his attention back to the mission report. He didn't have time to worry about Duo's strange behaviors when all he could think about was the undercover recon work they'd planned for the next few days.

For the next half hour, the thunderstorm worsened. Heero talked back and forth with Doctor J on his laptop, exchanging information. Duo tried to complete some of his homework; as long as they had to stay there, he and Duo were forced to keep up appearances and act "normal", so as to not arouse suspicions. However, with every thunder clap and burst of lightning outside, Heero noticed more reactions from Duo, moves Duo appeared to be trying to hide from him; he would briefly falter in his cheerful humming, but pick the tune back up just as quickly; he would flip through pages in his textbook to hide how his hands trembled, or repeatedly wipe his palms on his jeans as if they were damp. Heero was baffled with this sudden nervous behavior in his partner, but it wasn't until Duo almost fell off the bed when he finally spoke up.

"Is something wrong?"

Duo's back went rigid. He ruffled through a few loose-leaf papers absentmindedly. "Uh… what?"

"Is something wrong?" Heero repeated.

"No, of course not."

The pair continued working without interruption. After another ten minutes, the bedroom brightened with a particularly impressive display, followed by a deafening roar of thunder. Heero quickly turned his head towards Duo, wanting to catch his reaction. The braided pilot gasped softly, his body going rigid again. He was clearly sweaty and pale, and Heero could make out how glassy Duo's eyes were in the glow from the lamp Duo had turned on beside his bed.

"You're afraid of thunderstorms," Heero stated quietly.

Duo's eyes widened as his body relaxed a fraction. "What? No I'm not."

"Yes, you are."

"What the hell ever gave you that idea?" Duo replied, his voice taking on an edgy tone.

Heero seemed indifferent, speaking as he typed away. "You're not as stealthy as you think you are."

"Oh, just shut up."

Duo looked away, nervously drumming a pencil against his open textbook. Heero watched him through his peripheral vision, wondering what was going on his head. When Duo looked back up again, Heero darted his eyes back to the screen. "Okay, okay, you caught me. I'm… not too fond of thunderstorms."

"You're afraid of them."

"Yeah, you said that already. Get over it."

"Why would you be afraid of something so minor as this?"

He could see Duo starting to get worked up, his eyes glaring at Heero now. "Since when do you get to decide what I can and can't be afraid of?"

"It's just a thunderstorm, idiot. It can't hurt you."

"Yes it can! It could, at least..."

"I expected you to be stronger than that, Duo."

"Screw you, Yuy!"

"Why do you have to be so defensive? I was only asking you a question."

"No you weren't! You were making fun of me."

"I was curious as to why you – a Gundam pilot – would be afraid of something so ordinary as a thunderstorm."

"Dammit, you wouldn't understand. Leave me alone."

"Why do you think I wouldn't understand?"

Heero stopped typing when he heard Duo slam his textbook shut with an exaggerated snap and toss it off the bed. He risked looking over at Duo, expecting the other to be furious, maybe even cracking his knuckles, ready to strike him. But instead, Duo looked… well, upset. "Why wouldn't you understand?" Duo began in strained voice, "Because, god, Heero, I've been homeless my whole life. Storms meant… f-for us they meant pneumonia… and flooding… and sleeping in cold, wet clothes hoping to find someplace above ground. Rain meant danger. A-and for a kid, storms were loud and scary, and no one was there to look out for me and tell me things were gonna be okay. I guess it's just a phobia I was never able to shake coming out of there…"

Heero froze at the sudden confession, momentarily stunned. Not quite what he had been expecting, but it made a lot of sense now.

"Now… just leave me alone, okay?" Duo got up suddenly, kicking his schoolbooks aside. Heero could make out how red Duo's face was as he crossed the room behind Heero's desk.

The blue-eyed pilot steered his gaze back to his laptop, but he didn't feel like typing. A strange lump had formed in his throat. He felt disappointed in himself. Now he had embarrassed Duo, made his partner miserable, and ruined his own futile attempt to bond with him. He thought for a moment that maybe getting Duo to crack would reveal some new funny quirk about his partner, or give Heero something new to make fun of – Duo was always poking fun at him – to bring the two of them closer. Duo seemed to be the only person Heero cared much for at all, and as a result, he often yearned for the other's acceptance.

Heero grew upset himself realizing his efforts had only the opposite effect on Duo, and was now certain Duo was mad at him.

He looked up cautiously, watching as Duo shoved open his closet door, and practically rip his t-shirt off to change into his ratty pajama top. Heero admired the other's svelte figure sadly. Duo was stunning… But an image of a cold, starving young Duo plagued his thoughts now. The thought was just too grotesque.

Duo supported him all the time, on and off the battlefield, and Heero completely failed at returning the favor.

Duo was busy unbraiding his hair in the mirror, his quick, nimble fingers weaving their way through his plait. His face was emotionless. Heero struggled for something new to say, but came up empty. Though it hurt to do so, he resumed typing. His face was now red with some emotion he did not fully understand, and the lump in his throat persisted.

Surprisingly, Duo broke the awkward silence. He stepped away from the mirror after his hair was brushed and re-braided, and returned to the edge of his bed, facing Heero's desk. "I'm sorry, Heero. I shouldn't have just blown up like that. You were just trying to make conversation. I don't know what's gotten into me tonight…" He paused. Heero was far too curious to continue typing, and stopped to hazard another look at Duo, attempting to appear indifferent. "I guess I'm kind of embarrassed. You did bring up some good points. I mean, I'm a goddammed Gundam pilot, after all. I just couldn't seem to overcome that fear over the years. It stuck, for some reason."

Heero watched Duo, relieved to find no anger left in his partner's face. "Why don't you go to bed? It's getting late, and the storm is dying down."

Duo looked out the window, watching as a new torrent of rain burst from the clouds in sheets. Thunder echoed from far away. "Or not," he said, smiling a crooked grin. "I can't go to sleep with this. It would keep me up… I guess I could try more homewo-"

"Would it help if I joined you?"

Duo looked up as if surprised, Heero noted, observing him closely. "Eh…" Duo started, scratching his head nervously, "It might… but I wouldn't want to bother you. You look like you have work to do."

"I'm almost done."

"…Are you sure you're okay with this?"

"I wouldn't have offered it if I wasn't."

Duo smiled charmingly. Heero felt like his cheeks might burn again. Really stunning. "Thanks so much, Heero! I would appreciate it."

"No problem. Just give me a minute."

Heero typed swiftly for another five minutes, eager to wrap up his research and go to bed with Duo. Said boy stretched out lazily on his bed, holding his pillow to his chest, and with every rumble outside, he clutched it tighter. Shutting the lid to his laptop blissfully, Heero stood up and dressed for sleep, washing up and returning to stand in front of Duo's bed.

Duo's eyes were closed, and he looked a bit nervous. Heero crawled on top of Duo's bed, positioning himself against the wall and beside Duo's resting head. A sleepy, violet eye opened, took in the sight of Heero before him, and Duo smiled, curling closer to the other warm body. Heero was unable to control the urge to stroke Duo's bangs from his eyes. Duo didn't appear repulsed, so Heero breathed a soft sigh of relief. He hoped his presence was helping Duo fall asleep despite the storm.

After a few minutes, Duo had successfully fallen asleep, and Heero shut his own eyes to try to do the same. Though the storm was noisy, all he could hear was the soft hum of Duo's breathing, and soon he too fell into slumber beside his partner. He hated hearing about Duo's past, about how he once suffered, but Heero knew that now they were together, he could protect Duo from any storm, and that idea brought him great comfort.

The next morning, the sky was a clear, crystal blue, all storm clouds having long gone, taking the stagnant humidity with them. It was a beautiful day, and despite a rapidly flashing red light on Heero's laptop – no doubt another message from Doctor J – both boys intentionally slept in.