Surviving on Your Own

The Chase

The sleeping pills have been a blessing and a curse over the past month. Manager has taken me out of the shows all month-long, says I'll be good to perform in a few more weeks. I don't really care though. I've just been spending my time sleeping.

Catherine comes over every night to make sure I eat dinner. Some of my appetite has come back, but not much. She stays and chats with me, though I rarely reply to her, but I do appreciate it. I apologized for my behavior. She seemed grateful for that.

Sleeping again is great when I don't dream. Not all are bad, but when they are, they're horrible. Most of my nightmares have to do with Quatre. They're almost always about the time he nearly killed me with Wing Zero. In some of them I actually die. And I always wake up panting and drenched in sweat. The good dreams are amazing though. Most of those are about Quatre too, but some involve Wufei, Duo, or Heero. In my dreams they're all happy and enjoying the peace we fought so hard for.

Catherine just came in, with what looks like a pot of soup. She gives me a funny look. "Trowa, are you alright?" She asks. I nod my head. Why wouldn't I be?

She tilts her head. "Aren't you worried about Quatre?"

I give her a look that I'm hoping says 'what do you mean?' Cathy seems to understand my silent communication. "Haven't you seen the news?"

I shake my head as I stand, and walk over to the television and turn it on. The news station - the only channel I watch - is covering Quatre from earlier in the headline at the bottom of the screen reads "Winner Heir Forced to Step Down". What the fuck?

I turn the volume up. The news anchor tells me the board members of WEI have made him step down because he lost ten million dollars by gambling. Reporters ask him a bunch of questions, none of which he answers. The look on his soft pale face is heart breaking.

I start packing a duffel bag as quickly as possible.

"What are you doing?" Cathy asks from somewhere behind me.

"Leaving," I state.

"Leaving where?" She sounds panicked.

I turn to look at her. "I'm going to L4."

Just when I think she's about to argue with me, she nods in agreement. She envelopes me in a warm hug. "Be safe, okay?" she whispers, and leaves my trailer.

I need to get to the nearest spaceport, fast.

I had to pay an arm and a leg for the red-eye to L4. Thank God for my war funds. I arrived on colony an hour ago, and now I'm busing it to the Winner estate. I feel really anxious and awake. I left my pills behind, shit.

Once I'm off the bus I run like fucking hell. I run right up to that gate and press the intercom.

"Who are you?" The intercom asks me.

"Trowa Barton, I'm here to see Quatre," I reply breathlessly . Damn talking is hurting my throat again.

"Mister Winner is not seeing anyone right now, please leave," the disembodied intercom voice says.

I punch the wall by the intercom. "Tell him I'm here, he'll let me in! Or tell Iria, please!" I angrily yell back.

It's quiet for a few minutes and I'm on the verge of jumping over that damn fence just to get to the front fucking door when intercom man speaks again. "Iria Winner will see you."

Good! The gate opens, I jog up to the mansion. The door is open when I reach it. Iria pulls me, she looks distraught. "Where is he?" I ask.

"I have no idea," she says and her eyes fill with tears. "He had his driver take him straight to the port and he left in his private shuttle. His phone is disconnected and we have no idea where he's gone to." She begins to sob.

My duffel falls off my shoulder and onto the marble floor with a thud. I'm too late. He's gone.

I hold Iria as her cries make her entire body trembles. "We'll find him," I say into her hair. "We're going to find him." Even if I have to chase him all through the galaxy.

Hey fun fact that I just learned, or saw, whatever. If you go to gundam wiki, and look up Lagrange Points, they'll show you a map of the colonies in space in relation to earth! L3 is all by its lonesome.