He waited anxiously, the toe of his shoe drawing circles on the linoleum floor. Sighing as violet eyes lifted from the ground to glance around the baggage claim carousels again before settling on his watch. Grumbling impatiently, he was only placated by reminding himself the reason he was currently standing in the crowed airport. He settled down as he told himself he'd been waiting MONTHS for this, what were a few more minutes? After all, Duo Maxwell would do anything for the love of his life.
Smiling to himself, Duo turned and glanced at his reflection in metal of a nearby support pole. He still couldn't believe the person staring back at him was indeed himself. A little over a year and a half ago he'd been almost double his size and miserable. Though you'd never guess it by talking to him, always cheerful and upbeat, he hid his pain well behind the sunshine of his smile. Though there was one person who'd seen through it, the one person who could read him like a book from the time they'd met. Smoothing an errant wrinkle in his shirt, Duo decided to take a stroll down memory lane while he waited.
"Trowa you found anyone yet?" Duo asked as he jumped his toon around Chillwind Camp. They'd been trying for almost twenty minutes to fill up their group for a Black Rock Depths, or BRD as it was abbreviated, run. Even though they already had a tank and healer, the two hardest roles to fill, they still couldn't seem to get any more damaging classes to bite.
"Not yet, the group's almost full though, someone will respond eventually." Trowa answered, voice coming through his speakers radiating calm and cool. Duo sighed; this was the worst part of doing instances. "This is all Zech's fault you know." He grumbled. Quatre's bright laughter echoed in his room as he responded to Duo's accusation. "Now now Duo, you know he had a date tonight. He's been waiting for Trieze to ask him out FOREVER! There was no way in hell he'd pass that up for WOW."
"I know, that doesn't mean I can't make myself feel better by blaming this on him!" It was true, as much as Duo and his friends enjoyed playing World of Warcraft; it was an unspoken rule that Real life (aka the RL) always came first. It was rules like that that kept you from becoming one of those shut-ins whose whole life revolved around WOW.
"I'm back, we find anyone yet?"
"Ahh Wufei welcome back! How was the bathroom?"
"Die in a fire Maxwell."
"That bad huh? Want me to send my grandma over there to clean it for you? After all you never know what kinds of germs are lurking in a dirty bathroom!"
"Maxwell I swear one of these days I'm going to take that braid of yours, wrap it around your throat and-"
"As interesting as this conversation is, I felt it appropriate to interrupt and inform you that I got someone." Trowa cut in before Wufei could finish his threat. "Finally! I thought I was going to die of boredom…which is kinda weird. You shouldn't be allowed to die of boredom while playing a video game!" Quatre giggled, Duo's strange observations always served to amuse him. His aquamarine eyes glanced over to the side of his screen as he heard the long awaited drum beat signaling someone had at last filled the final spot in their party. "Wingz huh? Not a bad name I guess. Did he say what he was Tro?" He asked as he ran toward the flight master to begin his trek toward BRD.
"Who cares? It's a hunter, he's not going to be rolling on my shit and that's all that matters!" Duo responded as he buffed a nearby questing Paladin. "He's Marks, so his damage output should be pretty good." Trowa replied as if Duo'd never spoken.
Wingz: Hello, thank you for the invitation.
"I'm giving him the vent info, I really just don't feel like typing and this instance is wicked long."
"Duo you're so lazy."
"Quat aren't you supposed to be the nice one?"
Scythe: hey we're all on vent if you want to join us.
Wingz: Sure, what is the information?
Scythe: gundam .typefrag .com port: 3254
Wingz: Alright, I will be right on.
"This guy has a problem with contractions…" Duo muttered to himself as they waited for their newest member to connect. When ventrillo announced that "Wingz" had joined their channel Duo squirmed in glee…he was really against having to type things out.
"Hello everyone." The new voice, laced with an accent Duo couldn't quite place, came through his speakers and served to intrigue him. This, of course, also signaled a roll call.
"Hello, I'm Trowa aka Heavyarms the rogue."
"Hi! This is Sandy, your smexy priest of a healer, but you can call me Quatre!"
"I'm Shenlong, I'll be your tank. Attack whatever I'm attacking and we'll get along fine."
"Ignore that, it's more fun when he drops aggro and has to scramble to pick it back up!"
"Keep it up Maxwell and I'll just let the shit kill you!"
"Hahaha, love you too Fei! Any who, this is Scythe aka Duo, and I'll be your Laser Chicken!"
"Laser…Chicken?" Wingz asked bewildered as he'd never heard the term before.
"Yup!"
"Duo is a Balance Druid, but he says that calling himself that or a Moonkin is too boring, so instead he decided on Laser Chicken. Just go with it, it'll make your life easier." Quatre replied taking pity on the poor new guy.
"Quiet Quat! You're gunna make him think I'm weird or something!" Duo scolded.
"Maxwell that statement is contradictory since it implies that you are, in fact, normal."
"Ya cut me deep Wu-man!"
"If only that were true…"
"…I sometimes wonder about your sanity big guy…I really do."
"I ALWAYS wonder about yours!"
"Hahaha, so now that you know you've joined a group of loony toons, you probably wanna run for the hills huh?"
There was a short pause before an answer was forthcoming. "I found it rather funny, but I did have trouble understanding some of the things you said. My English is not perfect yet."
"I thought I detected an accent but I couldn't place it! Where ya from new guy?"
"Tokyo."
"No shit really?"
"Yes…"
"That's awesome! I so wanna go there one day! I'd have to learn the language first though."
"Where are you from?"
"Nowhere as interesting as Tokyo. We're all from the same area of New Jersey in the States."
"Ahh America, I have always wished to visit there as well. Maybe I could teach you my language if you help me with my English."
"No shit really? Dude I think I just may love you! I'm Duo, if you hadn't guessed already, what's your name?"
"A pleasure to meet you Duo, my name is Heero."
"Duo and Heero sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G."
"Trowa, do me a favor. Reach over and slap your boyfriend upside the head."
"Ow! TROWA!"
"Sorry Quatre."
That was how they'd met, after that they would seek each other out online whenever they were on. They quickly became friends, Heero teaching Duo Japanese and Duo helping him perfect his English. They grew comfortable with each, two old friends who'd never met face to face. Though Duo's Japanese would never pass for native he could still carry on a conversation quite well and Heero's family quickly fell in love with him. It was four years later that Heero would drop a bomb on Duo. One that would change both their lives.
"YOU'RE WHAT?" Duo was sure his voice cracked as he attempted to get those two words out.
"You heard me."
"You're serious? You better not be fucking with me Yuy or I swear to god I will throttle you!"
"Hahaha, no I'm not 'fucking' with you, but you can't tell the others. I want it to be a surprise."
"Oh my god they're going to die! This is so awesome! Say it again Heero please!"
Heero chuckled at Duo's enthusiasm. "I'm coming to America for Christmas."
Duo was elated; he was finally going to be able to met Heero in person! And to make it even better his parents insisted that Heero bunk with them for the entirety of his three week stay. That elation though evaporated as he walked passed his dresser mirror. Duo was pushing almost three hundred pounds, and while he knew that Heero had seen pictures of him before and never held it against him, it was going to be different in person. What if Heero was disappointed? "Suck it up Maxwell, this is Heero! You're his friend and that's all that matters!"
Duo managed to push his insecurities to the back of his mind as the time of Heero's arrival drew closer. Heero had wanted him to keep his trip a secret so he could surprise their friends and Duo had managed to do this with all but one case. It was, of course, impossible to keep a secret from Quatre. The blonde monster had even managed to deduce that Duo had had a huge crush on Heero since before he'd ever seen a picture of him! It was because of this almost supernatural ability that Duo, his father, and Quatre waited in JFK airport that December for Heero's first arrival in the United States.
"God I'm so nervous." Duo muttered to himself straightening out his hoodie. The big black zip-up had become a security blanket of sorts. He was almost never seen without it during months when he could get away with wearing it. It was large and dark, meaning it camouflaged his large body well. Quatre patted his arm comfortingly as if he knew what his friend was thinking. "When did his flight land?" The blonde asked, trying to occupy Duo's mind. Duo glanced at his watch. "About twenty minutes ago."
"Found him yet?" Duo turned to look at his father who was just returning from the food court with a cup of coffee. "Not yet dad." Mr. Maxwell grunted. "Remind me to tell him to fly into Newark the next time he visits or he's walking back to the house. That's hell of a drive."
"Hahaha, give him a break dad he's been on a plane for seventeen hours!"
"There he is!"
Duo spun around at Quatre's call and immediately spotted Heero coming toward them. The first thought to pop into his head was, 'Oh my God, his pictures do him no justice.' Heero was built like an athlete, finely sculpted in all the right places, dark shaggy brown hair falling into beautiful blue eyes, and a smile that almost split his face in half. Duo's self-consciousness returned full force as he took in the Adonis that approached. 'He's going to be so disappointed…'
His depressing line of thought though wasn't allowed to continue for as soon as Heero was close enough, he dropped his bags and wrapped his strong arms around Duo. Pulling him close and squeezing tight, Heero pressed his face close to Duo's ear and whispered. "It's nice to finally see you in person, beautiful." And Duo's heart melted.
It was a week later in the basement of Duo's house that the talk Duo had been dreading reared its ugly head. They were sitting on the couch, speaking in Japanese for privacy's sake, after all, Duo's older brother Solo was upstairs and sounds tended to drift, when Heero looked him dead in the eye.
"You're not happy are you Duo?"
Those six little words almost caused Duo'd world to break. "That transparent eh?" He asked shakily. Heero shook his head and brushed Duo's hair from his face. "No, I just know you. I could always hear it in your voice and now I can see it plain as day in your eyes. Tell me sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Duo waited a few moments, expecting Heero to already know, after all, how he could not tell. "You serious? You really don't know?" He asked. When Heero shook his Duo gasped in a breath that had threatened to turn into a sob as a tear slowly made its way down his cheek. "Look at me! This is what's wrong! Me! I'm wrong!" Heero looked perplexed.
"I don't understand."
"Heero I'm a fat ugly beast! I mean no one will say it to my face but I know they all think it! Do you know what my mom and grandmother have said to me? 'Duo you'd be so beautiful if you were thin.' I know they don't mean it the way it sounds but still…it really hurts. I mean…doesn't that…doesn't that mean, I'm not beautiful now?"
Heero grabbed Duo and pulled him close, holding him as he cried out his pain. When the tears finally subsided Duo was too embarrassed to lift his face, he hated crying in front of people. To him it was a sign of weakness, yet Heero had hidden his face in his chest, instinctively knowing Duo wouldn't want him to see that. When he'd calmed enough Heero lifted his face up and locked his eyes with Duo's bloodshot violet eyes.
"Now I want you to listen closely to me and remember that I have never lied to you got it?" He waited for a nod showing he had the other's complete attention before continuing. "You are not ugly. You are the most beautiful person I know. You have the biggest most caring heart I've ever seen in one person, you'd bend over backwards to help not only a friend but a complete stranger as well! It makes me so proud to be your friend Duo Maxwell. So take these words to heart, you are perfect and if anyone ever tells you differently they are a damned liar and I will beat the shit out of them. Understand?"
Duo sniffled a bit but the smile on his face showed how truly happy Heero's words had made him. "You mean it?" Heero nodded. "Every word. The only thing I worry about is your health, I care about you a lot Duo and I don't want to lose you. If you want I'll help you lose weight, but it's something you have to decide on. I love you for the person you are, everything on the outside is just the wrapping paper."
Duo hugged Heero for all he was worth.
Duo smiled to himself, that had been the first time Heero had told him he loved him. He'd let it slip, Duo doubted he even realized he'd said it, but it was all the encouragement he'd needed. Heero bought him a Wii Fit for Christmas and told Duo to exercise on it for one hour every day. That had been it, Duo thought Heero was going to set him up with an entire diet plan but all Heero had said was, "Diets don't work Duo, you have to decide what's right for yourself. The Wii Fit is a fun way to exercise so I figured you could start with that."
Heero had gone home two weeks later and Duo cried for days afterward. He resolved though, to use Heero's present as he'd promised. Eight months later when he flew to Tokyo to visit Heero, he'd already lost 65 pounds. Heero had been so proud of him, telling him he believed in him and knew Duo could do anything he set his mind to. They'd decided shortly after Duo had gone back home that they wanted to give the long distance relationship thing a chance. Texting each other every day, and catching each other on Ventrillo whenever possible, all had been going well though they missed each other terribly.
Duo continued his battle against the bulge and eventually made it down to 165 pounds, his target weight. Then, five months into their relationship, Heero dropped another bomb on him.
"YOU'RE WHAT?" And Duo knew his voice cracked that time.
"You heard me."
"You're serious? You better not be fucking with me Yuy or I swear to god I will throttle you!"
"Haven't we had this conversation before?"
"Heero!"
"Haha, calm down Duo."
"Calm down he says! Are you kidding me?"
"No baby, I'm not kidding."
"Heero?"
"Yes beautiful?"
"Say it again please?"
Heero laughed, the rich sound of it filling Duo's bedroom.
"The computer company I work for had an opening in one of their New Jersey offices. I requested the job and now I'm going to be moving there in a month when all the paperwork has gone through."
"I love you so much."
"I love you too baby."
So here Duo was, waiting in Newark airport (because Heero had taken Mr. Maxwell's threat to heart) for the love of his life to come walking down the stairs and to the baggage claim so they so they could hopefully live happily ever after. But where the hell was he? His plane had landed forty five minutes ago! Duo sighed and rubbed his forehead. He was about to begin search procedures when he felt warm breath on the back of his neck.
"God you get more beautiful every time I see you."
"Heero!"
Duo spun around, grabbing the Japanese boy tight and hugging the life out of him. "I've missed you so much!" Duo stretched up planting a sweet kiss on his boyfriend's lips before burying his face in his chest.
"I've missed you too. Tadaima Duo-koi."
Duo looked up eyes wide as his brain automatically translated for him. 'I'm home Duo-love.'
He smiled, one lone tear sliding down his cheek.
"Okaeri Heero."
AN: Whew, I didn't go into as much detail as I was planning but I wanted this to be a one shot and if I added everything in it would've ended up being a series lol. Anyway, for anyone who's curious this is based on a true story. My story actually, though, like in Hollywood, a lot has been changed. I doubt anyone cares about that but I figured I'd add it in as a fun fact. If you guys really like this I might expand it into a series but as of right now I'm satisfied how it turned out. Let me know what you guys think!
I'm really annoyed that FFnet took out all the breaks I used to break the story up. /sigh I had to go back in and put them all back, that was a pain in the ass.