Author's Note: The first in a series of shorts on the developing relationship of Trowa Barton and Mia. Upcoming shorts after will be taking place before this one, telling different stages. This started out as an experiment writing in first person point of view, but I'm enjoying it too much to leave it here. I would very much like comments.

I Could Hardly Refuse: The Proposal

"Trowa…," I said, blandly, raising a brow to him as I looked up from my computer. The intensity in his only visible green eye was accompanied by a questioning brow; its gaze occasionally drifting from my eyes downward, still focused on me. Being his partner, in more ways than one, for the past year, I've learned to read his eyes. He rarely spoke, which was okay, even though I loved the quiet tone when he did. His eyes, gorgeous eyes, were always telling.

I removed my reading glasses, commanding his attention to return to my cobalt gaze, narrowing on him. "You know the rumor mill as well as anyone… You cannot believe everything you hear…"

His gaze narrowed to mirror mine, the tell-tale response in them: You did not answer my question…

I gave him a small smile, which I rarely do, even to him. "But… to ease your mind… No, I'm not pregnant…" My smile grew into a smirk at his reaction. His outward appearance didn't change, of course, but again, his eyes said everything. "Don't you think you'd be the first to know?"

The corner of his lip twitched upward into a small smile, which he knew I loved. "I suppose," he said in that sexy voice of his, which he also knew I loved. I watched him as his gaze returned to his own computer and I replaced my reading glasses. Damn it, he was baiting me…

Our relationship at work, at the Preventer headquarters on L3, was as it should be, professional. We took our job seriously. Rarely, did we have a conversation on a personal level at the office. The rumor mill was one reason. So many inexperienced agents under our command required us, as experienced soldiers, to be careful of our attitude in their presence. They were a great group of kids, not that they were much younger than us, but their immaturity was evident, at times. Still, they were always willing to learn and grow.

If anything, I envied them. They had a freedom in their past that I could only dream of. Like Trowa, I had been bred to be a soldier. I recognized the intensity in his eyes when I first met him, the depth in his gaze. It was only recognizable by another soldier of similar background, backgrounds which we never revealed to each other, which was fine. The past was painful, and I was happy leaving it there. So was he. It was one of the things that attracted me to him. He was the only person up here that I could relate to.

I looked back to him over the rim of my glasses as I felt his eyes upon me again, that ghost of a smirk lingering on his lips. There was a devilish gleam in his eye that I could hardly ignore. Damn him… I supposed no one would mind if we took off a few minutes early…

"Mia…" The resonance in his chest seemed to amplify his soft voice, and I smiled against his bare skin. I loved it when he called me that, and he knew it. His long fingers ran lovingly through my bleached hair. The steady rise and fall of his chest took me with it, our breathing falling into sync with one another. "Amelia…," he said, using my given name, causing me to lift my head, my eyes meeting his in the artificial twilight as the colony made the shift from day to night.

My smile fell as he regarded me, a serious expression on his face that I couldn't interpret. My brows knitted together in question as his fingers continued to work their way through my hair.

"Do you want to have children? Someday?"

To say his question caught me by surprise was a gross understatement. I propped myself up onto one elbow as I looked down upon him. His hand paused in my hair, his thumb tracing small circles on my cheek. His piercing gaze indicated his question was sincere, that he had given it a LOT of thought.

"I… hadn't thought about it…" My answer was truthful. The thought of being a mother hadn't dared enter my mind. I was a soldier, born and bred. Trowa knew this. I had no indication what a mother was supposed to do. I don't even remember my own. "I… I don't know that I could…" That was also true. I mean, I had a monthly cycle, so there was certainly a working reproductive system within me. But various injuries I had sustained during the war could still make me less than ideally capable of bearing a healthy child. Surely, my lover knew that, as well.

Trowa seemed to be contempt with my answer, at least for the moment, as his thumb continued its strokes on my cheek. I could no longer read his eyes in the darkness, so I wasn't sure until he spoke again.

"If you could… would you want to?"

I couldn't imagine what would make him curious about this, unless the rumors were getting to him, which was highly unlikely. I pondered over it for a long moment, he had never paid mind to idle gossip before, why had this bothered him? Had he already been thinking about it? "I… suppose… though I can't imagine what kind of mother I'd make…"

As his next words came, I could hear the smile in his voice. "I think you'd make a fine mother. Ariana adores you."

I smiled at the mention of his niece, the daughter of his sister, Catherine, and his fellow Gundam pilot, Quatre. Ariana was an adorable toddler and, for some reason, she had taken an instant liking to me when Trowa and I visited this past Christmas. That had to be what piqued his interest in the topic of children. I remembered the smile clearly defined on his lips as he watched me amuse the little girl with invisible friends, imaginary tea parties, understanding her crayon pictures that looked nothing like what she was describing. I couldn't help the small chuckle as I spoke. "Yes, but entertaining a three-year-old for a few hours then giving her back to her parents is vastly different than being the parents getting her back…" My argument was cut short as he pulled my head towards him, his lips taking mine in a tender, loving kiss. He knew damn well how to muddle my mind…

"I know," he said after breaking it. "But I'd like to try…"

My eyes widened as I regarded him in the dim light now being provided by the street lamps outside our apartment. "Trowa…" I paused a moment, trying to find words. "Trowa… parenthood is not something you TRY and just throw aside if you don't like it…"

He gave a soft chuckle. "Okay, wrong choice of words…" His hand continued to work through my hair after he kissed me again. "I WANT to have children… with you…"

"That's… a rather long-term commitment, Trowa…" I stopped, frowning as he rolled away from me, taking his hand out of my hair. He sat up on the edge of the bed, his back to me. I hadn't meant to upset him, surely he knew I was being truthful. I raised a hand to lay on his shoulder, but he leaned away from me, letting my fingers simply trace down the length of his backside as he turned on the lamp sitting on the bedside table. "Trowa…?" I asked as I heard the side table drawer open and close. I sat up as he remained silent, pulling the bed sheet up to cover my bare chest, and he shifted around to face me again, that seriousness returning to his eyes, more focused on me than I had ever seen it.

"I know," he said softly, a tenderness in his voice. "But it's a commitment I want to make… if you do…" He presented me with the item he had withdrawn from the drawer and the gasp that escaped me was completely involuntary as he took my hand in his. "This is all that's left of Heavyarms," he said, knowing that I wouldn't immediately recognize the type of metal the ring had been crafted from. "Would you wear it as my wife?"

That was one hell of a proposal… I could hardly refuse it…