Title:
Loveliness
Pairing(s): Heero/Relena
Genre:
Romance
Rating: K+
Spoilers: none
Summary:
A vision of loveliness does not need words.
Author's Notes:
Written for the 1XR livejournal Christmas theme challenge even though
it is a little late.
Disclaimer: The characters used in
this fic aren't mine. They belong to Bandai and whatever other
company has a say in their fate.
She always reminded him a bit of a little girl.
He knew she wasn't, of course. Her liveliness and words and viewpoints in life made that all too clear. But still, sometimes, when he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, he couldn't miss the traces of the blond-haired girl who had used to follow him to the ends of the earth it seemed with her ideals.
Christmas with her was warm, and inviting, and cozy. He tried to enjoy it, and smile a little when she gave him extra helpings, telling him he never ate enough to alleviate her concerns about his health. He just took her plate, filled it with her favorites, raised an eyebrow at her, and watches a blush grace her cheeks.
On Monday, Relena dropped a glass while she was putting the dishes away. It shattered, and she swore. Her bother scolded her, and he found himself smiling a small smile. She caught him looking and grinned.
Tuesday was quiet, and he felt cold and grey. The sky stayed dark, and the snow reminded him of rain.
With Wednesday came Christmas carols, wrapping paper, and new sweaters. Their hands brushed when he handed hers to her, and he felt like smiling without really knowing why. She sang 'Silent Night' softly to herself, and cut snowflakes out of paper. They stuck them to the windows together, and he told her she had a pretty voice.
Her cheeks went rosy, for a minute.
On Thursday he watched her sit in front of the fireplace as she scribbled into a diary, her hair falling into her face like a curtain of blond waves. He remembered what she went through and thought she was always the strongest person he knew.
With Friday came a snowball fight – it had started innocently enough with Duo throwing snowballs at every present outside. Pretty soon there was a flurry of snowballs going back and forth between the gang, the sound of laughter in the air as everyone tried to hit each other.
"They're so silly sometimes," Relena said with a small giggle.
He watched as the snowflakes glistened on her eyelashes. "Yeah."
On Saturday, everything glistened with winter and beauty and quiet loveliness. In a flurry of scarves and coats and mittens, the house emptied, and the yard was filled with delighted shrieks and laughter.
He waited for Relena as she searched for her scarf.
"You don't have to wait," she told him.
He knew that. "I want to."
She smiled, and he couldn't help but think how pretty she was.
On Sunday, they were the first ones up, sipping hot cider and talking about meaningless little things that suddenly seemed very important. Relena decided that it would be lovely if they were to go outside and make snow angels before the sun rose. She looked over at him for any sign of displeasure but he simply stood up and offered his hand to her.
He handed her her jacket, and paused in the doorway.
"What?" she asked. Her eyes sparkled.
"Nothing," he said, and kissed her, and outside, the sky slowly turned gold instead of grey.
end