The Experiment

Apartment 147B

Relena signed the last line of the document and dated next to it, before looking up at the clerk with a relieved smile. "Alright, Miss Darlian," Todd nodded taking the document back to his side of the desk. "We'll get started right away finding a suitable tenant for your apartment," he assured her as he tapped the papers against his desk setting them in firm order.

"I can't tell you what a relief this is," she said with an easy laugh, "I've been stressing about this for weeks. But I just can't go through that eviction process again."

Todd nodded in complete understanding, "At LeBel & McCracken, we're very careful about the selection process, but if a tenant does prove a problem, we'll deal with them personally," he said with a ready smile.

Relena pushed her chair back from the desk as Todd extended his hand towards her. "Thank you," she said briefly taking his hand. Their service might not come for free, but Relena was positive the fee would be worth it, if she ever ran into another tenant like Howard.

Turning to leave the office, Relena truly felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She'd done the responsible thing, Relena even smiled to think of what Sally would say when she'd tell her. 'About damn time,' sounded sharply in Relena's head. Walking out of the tall office building near the downtown of the city, Relena stepped up to the side of the road and hailed a cab.

"147 Bay Street, please," she said as she slid into the back of the cab. As the vehicle pulled away from the curb and merged with the traffic, Relena watched the passing hustle and bustle of the city. It always amazed her, how many people and cars flowed the streets at almost all hours of the day.

She'd grown up in this city, and yet still she thought there ought to be a time when there was a break in the commotion. Not that she minded the pulse of the large city, she'd grown up here, it was home. As the cab pulled up in front of her brownstone, Relena slipped the driver the money along with a tip, appreciating that he hadn't felt the need to fill the silence with useless babble or irritating music.

Reaching into her purse on her left shoulder, Relena fished out her keys as she climbed the steps to front door. Absently she paused to reach into her mailbox for the usual letters and bills waiting there and tucked them under her arm as she inserted her key into the lock.

…

It was early evening when he reached the outskirts of the sprawling city. He hadn't intended to come here specifically, only to get away. They'd brought him here on more than one occasion during his training, to observe and learn how to blend in. He moved deeper into the heart of the city, picking streets at random, his eyes scanned continually as he walked.

He wasn't just looking at the people he passed, or the cars parked along the edge of the sidewalk. He noted the rooftops too, the dark alleys, places that were both advantageous and dangerous at the same time. The sun sank quickly behind the landscape of the city, as he moved further on, the buildings grew steadily taller around him. It created a sense of being closed in, which he didn't appreciate.

Cramming fists deeply into his pockets, he shifted direction, eyes ever sharply searching for a safe place.

…

It was a few days after Relena had signed the contract with LeBel & McCracken, that she happened to glance out her front window, and caught a quick glimpse of a man moving down towards the basement apartment. She didn't know if the firm was taking a potential tenant through the apartment, or if the lease had already been signed. But whichever the case might be, Relena felt relieved the problem wasn't entirely in her hands now.

She found herself glancing out that front bay window through the course of the day, hoping to catch a further look at this new stranger. What she'd briefly seen had attracted her immediate interest. Dark brown hair and broad shoulders were about all Relena could remember, and she felt certain her imagination was already distorting them completely.

Relena shook her head at her own foolishness. While a new neighbour would be nice—arguably exciting if it was this young man—one that paid rent on time would be even nicer. But that aside, she still had a job to do, and couldn't spend time wondering about something as unimportant as this.

It took some effort, but Relena managed to push thoughts of the basement apartment from her mind and focus on her job for the rest of that day. She suspected after the second day that she'd been mistaken, or no lease had been signed. As she didn't catch sight of anyone coming or going, and saw no moving truck, she suspected the man had decided against the place.

Relena was coming up the steps of her brownstone a week after signing the agreement, and reached into her mailbox for usual junk. As she unlocked the front door, Relena's eyes glanced down to the top letter and stopped. It was addressed to her brownstone, but not to her name.

"Heero Yuy?" she said the name curiously, as she stepped back from her door. Relena moved towards the stairs and glanced over the stone railing towards the door of the basement apartment. She saw no sign of someone having moved in, and glanced back down at the letter, it had no return address in the left corner of the small square envelope.

Flipping the enveloped in her hand to make sure there was nothing on the other side, Relena shrugged and walked the letter down to the other mailbox. She hesitated a moment before dropping the letter inside, wondering if she'd be further ahead to knock and meet this Heero Yuy, but quickly decided against it.

As grateful as she was that the apartment was let, Relena couldn't shake the memories of her last tenant, and while curious, she wasn't eager to dive back into that again. With one last glance at the basement door, Relena made her way back up to her front door and stepped inside her house.

Running her own bookkeeping business allowed Relena to set her schedule, and work mostly from home. She did like to visit her clients in person at least once a week, to make sure no issues cropped up that could be easily avoided. So Relena often found a reason to leave her brownstone during the day, but never caught sight of her new tenant though she did glance down towards the basement door on more than one occasion.

She was coming back down the street to her home when a light spring rain started to fall. Relena picked up her pace, reaching into her purse for her keys without trying to let too much rain inside. When she looked up in front of her brownstone, Relena came to a sudden stop when she saw a man coming up the stairs from the basement.

Dark hair, only barely damp from the falling rain, fell in an unruly way across his forehead. Broad shoulders and muscular arms led Relena's eyes down to a narrow waist and strong legs. She pulled her eyes up to this stranger's face immediately, just as he was looking up to see her too.

Their eyes met, and Relena felt her breath catch in her throat at the intense cobalt gaze that found hers. In a moment that lasted no more than a heartbeat Relena saw so much in those large dark eyes. Pain was the first thing she noticed, a deeply held hurt, filled with confusion. Relena blinked in surprise as the rain fell harder down on her, and the man pulled his gaze away.

He seemed not to notice the rain at all, as he turned to make his way down the street while Relena dashed up her steps to the protection of her doorway. Under shelter Relena watched him until long after he'd moved from sight, and she shivered at the memory of his eyes. With a slight shake of her head, Relena shook off her stupor and reached into the mailbox.

She was not unsurprised to see an envelope addressed to Heero Yuy in there, it was almost an everyday occurrence of late. Glancing out at the falling rain, Relena decided to quickly open her door and grab an umbrella before taking Heero's letter down to his apartment.

…

Relena found herself more interested in meeting this new neighbour, after that brief encounter in the rain. But as curious as she was about who this handsome stranger was, she was still hesitant to really seek him out and introduce herself. Relena told herself she was losing some objectivity to fantasy as she thought about those eyes, and what she'd witnessed in them.

She wasn't generally prone to fits of fancy revolving around attractive men she happened to see or meet. But where Heero Yuy was concerned, Relena found her mind continuing to wander back to thinking about him. She'd even caught herself at one moment testing out how his last name sounded with hers.

Relena blushed as her own foolishness, forcing herself back to her work. She had briefly considered calling up LeBel & McCracken to get some information from them about Mr. Yuy. She wanted to satisfy her curiosity about him, but quickly discarded that idea as it somehow felt like prying.

Coming up her steps a little after noon, Relena glanced down the stairwell that led to the basement door. Unsurprised to not see her tenant coming or going, Relena turned her attention towards the mailbox, curious to see if there was another letter in there for Heero Yuy. Drawing out the usual junk and bills, Relena felt a pang of disappointment that there wasn't a plain envelope in there for him.

Tucking her mail under her arm, Relena turned towards her front door when her foot collided with a package. It was wrapped in brown paper nearly the same colour as the brownstone, and Relena crouched down to see the address. She felt herself smile when she saw the name Heero Yuy on the front of the package.

This was her chance, there was no excuse not to knock on the door and see if he was home, in fact it would be wrong of her not to speak to him. Who wanted a package just left at the door where it could be stolen?

Hefting her purse higher onto her shoulder, Relena crouched down to get a proper hold on what turned out to be a rather heavy package. She made her way to the stairs and hesitated a moment, trying to hold the box off to one side a little so she wouldn't trip coming down the steps.

Relena felt her heart foolishly pick up speed once she was standing before the basement door, her right index finger reaching for the buzzer. She told herself, at this time of day there was every possibility he wasn't even home. But as she heard the bell ring inside the apartment, Relena felt her stomach flutter when she heard movement within.

The door opened a crack, and Relena saw a flash of deep blue eyes somewhat hidden by unruly bangs. "Hi," she said brightly, definitely wishing she didn't feel quite so awkward. "I keep getting your mail," Relena wanted those words back the minute they'd left her mouth, but felt a slight sense of relief when the door opened a little wider.

He looked at her, with confusion, before his eyes darted to scan the street and what Relena could only assume was the roof lines of the brownstones across the street. "No one knows I'm here," he said focusing that intense gaze back on Relena.

"Somebody does," she said, hoping a smile would ease her earlier words. His voice was nicer than she'd hoped, deep, smooth, and confident. "Didn't you notice the letters in your mailbox?" she asked, her own eyes glancing towards the large box labeled 147B.

He looked from her to the box and back again, before his hand lifted the lid. Relena saw that all the letters were still inside, she hadn't noticed when dropping them off that they had just been piling up. Those piercing blue eyes returned to Relena's face then, "No one knows," he repeated, and Relena felt a spark of concern ignite in her.

Trying to remain light, in face of this odd encounter, Relena huffed a soft breathe and adjusted her hold on the package that was getting heavier by the moment. "Is your name not Heero Yuy?" she asked tipping the box slightly so he could see the name displayed on the package.

His eyes darted a little wildly as he looked from the package to Relena before scanning the street again. "Where did you find this?" he asked, that smooth voice taking on a note of danger, as the door to his apartment suddenly swung open wider, and Relena found herself being drawn inside.

"It was on my doorstep," she told him, that earlier concern ratcheting up to a sense of alarm at his demeanour.

Heero took the box from her then, with a curse, those incredible eyes narrowing as he brought the package briefly to his right ear. "Move over there," he said gesturing deeper into the main room of the apartment, and feeling stunned Relena found herself complying without question.

Relena watched as with careful but deliberate movements Heero opened the door to the apartment, and with an ease—that stood out to Relena in that instant—he tossed the package out of the building before slamming the door. That was the last clear imagine Relena saw before the explosion threw her off her feet.

…

Gasping a sudden choking breath, Relena tried to fill lungs that burned for oxygen, while at the same time finding herself gagging on thick dust. Her ears rang painfully, and for a moment she couldn't tell where she was or what had happened. Trying to open her eyes a crack to get her bearings, Relena was forced to shut them tightly against the stinging debris floating thick in the air.

She felt the beginnings of panic creep through her, as a flash of memory struck her. But she lost hold of it, when she realized she was laying down. Her body jerked, or tried to; she was pinned beneath something heavy and unmoving. Opening her eyes again, but only so far as to peek through her lashes, Relena tried to see where she was and just what had happened.

Sunlight filtered onto her from the front of the room, the beams sparkling with dust and bits of drywall. She stared at it, catching hold of another flash of memory. This was the basement apartment of her brownstone. She'd been in here many times, it was by no means a dark place, but she'd never seen it so bright as this.

Focusing eyes she could still barely open, Relena tried to look around herself, most of her vision was obscured by something laying on top of her. Someone, she realized suddenly, and that too brought a hasty memory: those dark penetrating eyes looking out from a handsome face.

"Heero?" she said his name, or at least she felt she had. Relena still couldn't hear over the roar in her ears. She tried to take stock of herself, her left arm was trapped beneath her, but she could move her right. Shifting her right arm as much as she could, Relena quickly came into contact with Heero's arm.

Relena felt him shift at the light touch of her hand, a second before his entire body jerked on top of her. "Are you alright?" she tried to ask, still not quite able to hear her own voice.

His head came up, and Relena caught a brief flash of those cobalt eyes. She saw panic in them as he tried to get off of her. As he gathered himself, Relena saw pain contort his face. He'd only lifted himself less than an inch off of her, but it was enough to allow Relena to twist onto her back. Her left arm immediately began to tingle with the restored blood-flow, and Relena flexed her fingers to make sure they were attached and uninjured.

Hauling herself out from under Heero, Relena saw the near animal instinct in Heero's darting eyes, but he still seemed unable to lift himself. Sitting up Relena gasped, though that immediately threw her into a coughing fit over the dust that had lifted at their movements. Heero had used his own body to shield her from the explosion.

Relena's eyes swept down Heero's body, seeing pieces of wooden shrapnel sticking out of his right shoulder, waist, and leg. She winced at the sight of it, her eyes darting to the missing door of the apartment, and couldn't help wondering how the damage hadn't been worse. Her attention snapped back to Heero as he continued to struggle to get his feet under him.

"We need to get you to a hospital," Relena actually heard her voice this time, and it felt like the world of noise around them suddenly came into focus.

"No," Heero hissed, his eyes briefly meeting hers and she saw his overwhelming need to get away. "That's where they'll look..." he muttered, the words vague, but his agitation clear. His breaths came in short pained grunts as he forced himself up onto shaky legs, despite the obvious pain he was in.

Relena felt a little shocked to realize she'd gotten to her feet as well, hands out ready to catch Heero as his right leg buckled beneath him. "You're hurt," she said, knowing that fact should have been obvious to him.

Heero's eyes flashed as he looked her, "No hospital," he stated again, chest heaving with his agitation.

She stared at him in stunned silence. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, but now didn't seem to be the time for them. Relena watched as his eyes darted first one way then another, but never towards what was left of the doorway. He was looking for escape, that much was clear. Relena's mind settled on a plan of action before she'd even realized she was considering how to help this man.

"Can you walk?" she asked, and started slightly when the full weight of his gaze landed on her. He looked unsure, lost, but not frightened. Heero finally took a tentative step, only to have his right leg buckle beneath his weight. Relena stretched out her hands to support him, feeling the pounding of his heart through his sweat and dust coated shirt.

Relena slipped herself beneath his left arm, looping her fingers through the belt loop of his jeans, trying to take as much of his weight as she could manage. For Heero's part, he just stared at her in evident confusion. "Come with me," Relena heard herself saying to this stranger, "I know a place where you'll be safe."

Heero eyed her, those pain-filled cobalt eyes suddenly guarded and cautious. He was clearly wondering if he could trust her. In the end, Relena didn't think it was her attempt at a reassuring smile that had him moving with her help towards the back exit of the apartment, but rather the sounds of oncoming sirens.

Briefly, fleetingly, Relena wondered at a man who would avoid hospitals and showed a hint of fear at the sound of sirens. Who was he that she was trusting to help escape from an explosion which had nearly taken their lives? Relena glanced at this man through the corner of her eye as they came out into the alleyway behind her row of brownstones.

Heero's head was down, his eyes focused on putting one foot in front of the other. He was almost completely coated in dust and debris from the explosion, and Relena doubted she looked any better. With that in mind, she picked their direction with care, trying to keep off the busier streets that would draw attention to them.

It occurred to her that she could hear a growing increase to what was usually just the occasionally horn blast from a passing car. Relena wondered how much damage the bomb had done to Bay Street, and she felt her stomach drop queasily at the thought that anyone else might have been caught in the blast.

Relena could hear more sirens screaming even as they moved steadily away from the blast zone. She'd promised him a safe place, the words had left her mouth before Relena had even had a chance to consider what she was saying. Adjusting her grip on Heero's left wrist, Relena glanced again at his face.

It wasn't just that she had imagined herself infatuated with a virtual stranger, and it wasn't that he had saved her life by shielding her with his own body, though she couldn't deny that was part of it. No, the real reason she was speaking without thinking, and guiding this stranger to a safe place, was because of what she'd seen in his eyes. Not just the pain, from before on the sidewalk, but the near blind panic to get away.

Those captivating eyes were squinted with pain as Relena helped Heero down another narrow alley towards their destination. She knew it wasn't far under normal circumstances, she'd walked there countless times just for the enjoyment of the walk itself, but now it felt as though it were across the city. Heero made no complaint, nor any other sound beyond his slightly laboured breaths.

He'd held himself decidedly stiffly when she'd taken his arm in the apartment, but as they pressed on towards their destination, Relena found her shoulders taking more of his weight across them. And she was, for the very first moment of her adult life, grateful for the work her personal trainer had forced on her. Difficult though this was, Relena wasn't slowing under the strain.

Glancing up, Relena saw their destination in the distance and breathed a sigh of relief. "Almost there," she told Heero, hoping to encourage him. His head came up, eyes glazed with pain taking in their surroundings. Relena released her hold on Heero's wrist briefly so she could fish into her purse for the key she needed.

Retaking Heero's left wrist, Relena felt him stiffen against her, and she glanced at him to see his eyes locked on the sign above the rear exit. Relena patted his wrist lightly with her hand, drawing confused eyes to her. "Trust me," she said to him, knowing it was asking a lot of someone she didn't even know.

Those shockingly blue eyes sought hers, looking deeply into her own, and Relena could see the questions there, could see the risk he clearly felt he was taking in trusting her. He drew a slow painful breath, and finally nodded his head once. Together they made it across the back parking lot and Relena inserted her key into the door.

Pulling the door open, Relena helped Heero inside the back storage room. "Sally?" she called towards the front of the clinic.

"Relena?" a surprised voice called back from down the hall. "I wasn't expecting to see you today," Sally said, as she walked into the back room, and came to an immediate stop at the sight of them. "What the hell happened?" she demanded.

Relena could only imagine what the two of them looked like, coming in here like this. "Sally," the name escaped lips that wanted to tremble, with tears Relena suddenly felt pricking at her eyes. She hadn't expected what the sight of a friendly face would do to her ability to hold it all together. "I'm sorry, I didn't know where else to go," she forced the words out through a wobbling voice.

Sally's eyes swept over them, lingering for a moment Relena thought on Heero. "Why not the hospital?" she asked with evident shock.

"No," Heero hissed sharply, his body tensing in Relena's arms.

Just as she said, "Someone's trying to kill him, Sally." Relena felt somewhat numb at those words, it felt like someone else had just said them. "He says they'll look for him at the hospital..."

"That explosion on the news," Sally said looking shocked, her face paling at the implications, "That was at your place?"

Relena nodded, feeling her eyes well with tears again, "Please Sally," she managed to force out, knowing she still needed to keep it together.

Heero moved suddenly trying to shake off Relena's hands, "This was a mistake..." he muttered, turning to try and leave.

Sally sucked in a sharp breath when she caught sight of Heero's back. "Hold it right there," she said sharply, and immediately closed the distance between them. Sally's hands moved towards Heero, and Relena saw him stiffen.

As Sally came into his personal space to get a better look at his injuries, her eyes narrowed. "You aren't going anywhere like this," Sally told her patient, all business, and Relena released a shaky breath.

"Bring him into the last exam room," Sally instructed, briskly, "it's got the largest exam table. I'll be right there, just let me lock up the shop first," she said moving back towards the front of the building.

Relena moved back towards Heero, taking a cautious hold of his left wrist, and felt him tense. "This is a bad idea..." he said, but allowed Relena to draw his arm across her shoulders.

Catching her fingers in his belt loop again, Relena glanced at his face, seeing his distrust through still slightly watery eyes. She tried to offer him a reassuring smile, "Sally knows what she's doing," she said with confidence.

Heero managed a flat look as they made their way towards the last exam room. "She's a vet," he said bluntly, sucking in a sharp breath as they stepped inside the room.

"Wasn't always," Sally was quick to say as she came up behind them. "I made the switch when I got tired of my patients talking back to me," the doctor said as she stepped around them and walked over to the exam table. She was carrying a large blanket in her arms, which she quickly spread across the cold metal table.

Turning to face them, Sally gestured to the exam table, "Alright lay down so I can take a look at these injuries," she ordered, but at Heero's continued hesitancy, she sighed. "I was a fully certified doctor, only made the switch about five years ago," she added, gesturing towards the table, pointedly.

Relena felt Heero stiffen in her arms, his breath hitching a little as he looked from Sally to the table wearily. "Hey," she said softly drawing his eyes briefly to her. "Trust me," she whispered, unsure why the words left her lips, and even less sure why those two words got Heero moving towards the table.

Sally lowered the surface of the table as much as it would go, and stepped over to help Relena get Heero settled on the blanket. Once he was positioned, Sally raised the table, and quickly moved over to her supply cupboards. Relena found herself on the left side of the table. Heero hadn't completely relaxed on the blanket, trying to keep Sally in his line of sight.

Relena reached out a hand to rest on Heero's left arm, and felt how tense his muscles were as he jerked slightly to focus on her. "It's okay," she said, drawing his attention back to her.

"This'll go easier if you relax," Sally commented as she slipped a pair of blue surgical gloves onto her hands.

Heero finally lowered his shoulders to the table, and twisted his head so he was looking at Relena. His eyes weighted heavily on her, not just for the pain she saw there, but for the sense of trust she felt he'd placed in her. Relena offered him a weak smile, lightly biting the inside of her cheek to try and keep herself from breaking into a sob right there.

"I'm going to cut away your shirt," Sally said as she came to Heero's right side with a pair of scissors. Belatedly the doctor remember to add, "okay?"

Heero tipped his chin towards his left shoulder once, before Sally began cutting the fabric from the back of the neck towards the hem. Sally then carefully cut the material away from the shrapnel in his shoulder and near his waist revealing the blood and damage done.

The doctor didn't put the scissors aside once she'd finished with Heero's shirt. "You'll loose the pants too I'm afraid," Sally said as her eyes glanced briefly at the large chunk of wood protruding from Heero's upper thigh. She exchanged a look with Relena that seemed to say Sally wasn't the least bit sorry.

"Just don't tell anyone I'm here..." Heero ground out fiercely, his eyes darting towards Sally as best as he could.

"Who's there to tell?" Sally asked, as she made short work cutting down the back off Heero's pants. "There's a Cocker Spaniel in back just coming around from surgery, but I doubt she'd care..." Sally trailed off with a shrug.

Relena squeezed Heero's wrist, bringing his frustrated glassy eyes back to her. "Trust me," she said again very softly, "she really does know what she's doing."

"That she does," Sally agreed as she put aside her scissors, and stepped back to the cupboard to get some more supplies. "Before I get going here, do you have any allergies?"

"No," Heero growled softly.

"Alright," Sally nodded, pulling out a small vial and a couple pre-packaged syringes. "I'm going to prepare a few locals for you," she explained, starting to fill the first syringe. "I'd prefer to knock you out completely for this, but I'm just not set up here for it."

Relena's eyes drifted from Heero's face to his exposed back, Sally had left him in nothing but his shorts, socks, and shoes. She felt her cheeks heat as she realized she was staring at this nearly naked, gorgeous stranger. Now was not the time to be distracted in this way. "What can I do to help?" she forced herself to ask, hoping that she could conceal where her head had been at.

Sally glanced up from the needle she was preparing, "Keep him talking if you can," she said, nodding towards the chair that was behind Relena against the wall. "This'll take a while."

Drawing the chair closer to the table Relena lowered herself onto it, bringing herself almost to eye level with Heero. Their eyes met, though Heero's glanced back towards Sally more than once. Relena tried to think of something to say, anything that could make this process easier for him. "When did you move in?" was the first question that slipped out of her mouth.