Disclaimer: Just letting the demons play.

Sanouske S. Sagara: Evil? Me? Oh, thank you! You're so sweet!

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Chapter 10

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Heero ignored the insistent rhythm and just kept staring forward at nothing.

BANG BANG BANG

After the echoes subsided, Heero heard Trowa's voice pleading from the other side of the large metal door and so he reluctantly pulled his limp frame from the sofa and shuffled over to the door, shivering from the contact of his bare feet on the wood floor.

He reached down, yanked upwards and revealed a reserved looking brunette. He didn't say anything in greeting, he just turned and went back to the sofa where he curled back into himself.

Trowa had tried to think positively about his inability to reach Heero for the past four days, entertaining ideas of the overworked photographer taking a spur-of-the-moment holiday with a certain novelist, or perhaps he'd gotten a job offer in some exotic locale.

But when Wufei appeared in the café earlier today, his hopes had been crushed. Not only did it mean that Heero was not off having fun with Wufei, but Wufei looked awful. Trowa watched from behind a bookcase as Wufei made his way to the counter, slightly slouched, looking disheveled, and ordered a few pastries before silently shuffling back out the store. As he left, Trowa caught a glimpse of Wufei's face and saw dark circles under his eyes.

It was then that Trowa made plans to go see Heero after work. Trowa sat down on the sofa at Heero's feet and looked at his longtime friend who just lay there, staring forward as if dead.

"Heero…..what happened?"

Trowa sat and waited patiently for his friend to answer, but Heero only blinked.

"You haven't returned any of my phone calls. Did I do something to upset you?"

Heero blinked once, slowly, and turned his blank look on Trowa.

"No."

"Then tell me wh---"

"I need you to be honest with me."

"Of course."

"Does it look like I'm…..selling myself?"

Trowa frowned, not sure what exactly Heero meant by the question.

"Are you asking me if you've sold out?"

Heero let out a bitter bark of laughter, the first emotion he'd shown since Trowa showed up.

"I already know I did that. No, I mean….do I have a reputation of being…a whore?"

"What? Where did this come from?"

"Nothing, never mind. Forget I asked."

"Not a chance. Now tell me what's going on right now."

Heero sighed and knew he had no choice at this point. He could see the concern on Trowa's face and now he was using a stern voice. He won't let up until I tell him. But maybe I don't have to tell him everything.

"I guess…..I never bothered to think how it looked because I don't care what others think about me."

"Heero…are you telling me you've slept with those women?"

"No, of course not. They hang on me, slip me their numbers, but I just ignore it."

"But to an outsider, it looks like--"

"Guess so."

Trowa nodded now, putting some of the pieces together. So someone has accused him of being…..loose and deceitful….someone whose opinion does matter to Heero. And since I know it wasn't me or Quatre…. Trowa followed Heero's gaze and got his answer. Why didn't I notice it when I arrived?

Hanging on the wall was a large black and white photo of Wufei. Heero had told him how good the pictures turned out and Trowa was so grateful to see that sparkle in Heero's eyes again. He hadn't seen him this excited about his work in a very long time. And now that I've seen one of the pictures, I can see why.

Trowa turned his attention back to Heero, making sure to keep his voice gentle and even.

"Heero, if you don't care what others think, why are you letting this upset you now?"

Trowa watched Heero carefully. He saw his jaw tighten and his eyelids drop just a little more. His hand, previously curled up under his chin was now gripping a handful of his shirt. Wufei it is. Trowa bowed his head slightly, the barest of smiles visible.

"I see. So there is someone other than myself whose opinion matters to you after all."

Heero lifted his head up and attempted a glare but failed miserably and let his head fall back to the sofa.

"Heero, what happened with Wufei?"

"Who said it was Wufei?"

Trowa kept his patient and understanding eyes fixed on his best friend and waited for him to drop the defensiveness. They'd known each other too long and too well for these games and Trowa wasn't about to tolerate them. And Heero saw that as he looked to his friend and he suddenly stood up and walked to the kitchen.

Trowa waited, listened as Heero rummaged through his cabinets, cursing a few times before slamming a metal canister on the counter. Trowa looked up to see Heero giving a golden canister a dirty look, as if trying to burn it with his eyes alone.

"What's that?"

"Tea. Take it."

Trowa stood up and went to the counter, opening the tin and inhaling deeply. The scent was strong, spicy, complicated. He closed the tin and pushed it back towards Heero.

"Thank you, but no. This isn't my type. Too strong. Perhaps Wufei would enjoy it."

Heero, having regained enough of himself, glared daggers at Trowa.

"I'm not amused."

"But you are being petulant and rude."

The two remained in their standoff for several minutes before Trowa spoke up again.

"I've cleared my schedule for the whole day. We can do this for as long as you like. Or, you can stop being childish and just tell me what happened."

A few more minutes passed before Heero growled loudly, slamming his hands on the counter, palms flat.

"Damn it, Trowa! Why didn't he come to me and ask?! Why did he wait until I told him….! Shit!"

Heero let his forehead come to rest on the countertop and let out some strangled noise. Trowa reached out and began stroking Heero's head.

"Did he say how he came to his conclusions?"

Trowa's voice was soft and he waited for Heero to answer, knowing he was trying to gather himself. Heero, unbeknownst to everyone except himself and Quatre, was a very emotional person. Unfortunately he was very adept at keeping it hidden, thus giving people the assumption he was cold and uncaring.

"He said….he saw things and….Dorothy said something to him."

"What did he say when you told him he was mistaken?"

"I was too….upset."

"Have you tried calling him?"

"The whole next day."

Heero stood up straight again and took a deep steadying breath before walking over to his worktable. He reached up and grabbed the framed picture of Wufei, slipping it back into the cardboard box it had arrived in a few days ago. He brought it over and leaned it against the counter base in front of Trowa and then grabbed the canister, sliding it until it hit Trowa's hand which was still resting on the countertop.

"Heero…..are you sure--?"

"Just take it. It arrived a couple days after…..just take it and leave."

Trowa wished he could make his best friend's pain go away but he knew the only person who could do that was Wufei. He watched as Heero lay down on his sofa again and curled into himself like a child. He retrieved a blanket from the bedroom and draped it over Heero and brushed away some dirty locks from his face. Don't worry, Heero. I'll find a way to make you happy again.

To be continued…