Author: Phoebe
Title: Whispers of the Heart
Disclaimer: The characters are not mine and I don't think they're your's either, so hopefully... The people who actually do make money on them won't be mad... (The fact that I'm not one of these people makes me mad....)
Authors notes: If Alexa writes fluff scented angst then I guess I could write angst scented fluff or whatever this turns out to be. I don't know; this came to me while watching "My Cousin Vinny" which, while it has nothing to do with that movie, makes an interesting trivia fact.
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She opened her eyes and stared at the man next to her. His brilliant blue eyes closed in a peaceful sleep. Dorothy smiled at the man. She had never quessed how handsome Quatre would look while he was sleeping. Suddenly her eyes began to water. This wasn't possible; why would he want her? He had surprised her before, but she couldn't believe that she was here lying next to him. Dorothy pulled away from Quatre and curled into a ball, the blankets caressing her skin. Touching her the way Quatre had; soft, gentle.
She shut her eyes; she didn't want it to be like this. Would Quatre even remember what had happened when he woke up the next morning?
*****
Everything about that evening had been a surprise. Being invited to a dinner party at the Winner mansion? It had been a long time since she had last faced Quatre. She tried to stay away from him. But Dorothy had agreed to go to the dinner with Relena Peacecraft. These dinners provided a chance for prominent people to ally themselves in business and in politics. It was important for Relena to go, but she did not want to attend alone.
Quatre hated these dinners, he always had. The upper class business sharks lying to each other all night long. The way everything, from the seating at the tables to the color of the napkins, was interpreted politically. If it wouldn't have been such a great insult to never attend them, he would have stopped going long ago.
He watched the guests arrive, slowly. Each wanting to be more fashionably late than the next. He made sure to greet everyone of them politely as he mingled. He hated the fact that they were all trying to cheat each other. Trying to cheat him.
When Dorothy and Relena entered the hall, Quatre greeted them warmly. Dorothy had been hoping that she could slip in unnoticed, and panicked when his sincere eyes had met hers.
"Hello, Dorothy! It's good to see you." He meant it. She could tell from his eyes. She had begun to wonder if Quatre could lie. 'Why would he be happy to see me?' she asked herself. Quatre greeted Relena and was called off into another conversation. Already the other guests had noticed that he was paying more attention to the two women than he was to the rest of them. Tales of political intrigues had already begun to circulate. Throughout the evening she heard rumors ranging from Mr. Winner bribing the vice foreign minister to sleeping with her. No one had noticed Dorothy. No one except Quatre himself.
The evening wore on, dinner was served, followed by dancing. The young men bragging of their business savvy and money were beginning to wear on Dorothy's nerves. Her current dance partner was particularly annoying. He seemed to step on her feet at every turn. She was staring at the collar on his jacket and trying not to get angry when suddenly a hand came down on her partner's shoulder.
"Excuse me," said Quatre as he stepped between them. Dorothy blinked, he was the last person she expected to dance with. Quatre was an incredibly smooth dancer. "Dorothy?" He said after a moment. His eyes focused across the room looking at no one.
"Yes..." she answered quietly, following his lead.
"I just want you to know, I don't hold a grudge about what happened on Libra." He said quietly. "I never did." Dorothy looked up at him and he met her eyes quickly then looked away.
"Ah..." Dorothy didn't know what to say.
"I know it's sort of hard to talk like this. But, can you imagine the rumors flying around if we had this conversation standing still?"
Dorothy was dumbstruck. He heard the rumors, but he didn't put them to rest. Why? It suddenly occurred to her that he had planned this. Disguising their talking while they where dancing. No one would pay attention to them like this. But if they had stopped and moved to the side of the room everyone would have noticed. Strategy.
"I'm sorry, Quatre, please forgive me," she said.
"Dorothy, I forgave you. _Before_ you stabbed me," he stole another look into her eyes. "The couple next to us is giving us weird looks." He sighed as the dance ended. He bowed while holding her hand.
"Thank you, Quatre,"she whispered. He nodded over her hand, then he paused, looking at her as though he had more to say. Then, as another song started, he moved away through the dancers. Finding another partner. And continuing to dance.
Dorothy made her way to a table and sat down. As the dancing continued well into the night, she noticed that Quatre barely ever stopped, and as soon as he did, he was mobbed by the very people he did not want to see. She didn't deserve his forgivness, but she should've known he would give it. He never told these people he didn't trust them. Why should he act any different with her?
She walked out of the room and onto the long balcony overlooking the ocean. Settling into a chair, it dawned on her that she wanted more than his forgiveness. A lot more. She sat alone on the balcony while the festivities continued inside.
Dorothy awoke with a start. The music had stopped. She stood and walked into the ballroom. It was empty. She continued through the house. She had lost track of Relena earlier in the evening and was sure she had left the party. She entered a small den. The lights were out, she still hadn't seen another person. On a small corner table an elaborate chess game was set up. She stopped and studied the board for a few minutes. With a smile of triumph she moved the black knight.
"Check mate!" she said.
"Bravo," said a male voice from across the room. Dorothy felt the blood draining from her face, she had thought she was alone. Quicky she looked up.
Quatre sat in an arm chair, his jacket lying along the back, tie undone, along with his vest. On the table sat a bottle of expensive vodka. It seemed he had been sitting staring into a shot of it when she came in.
"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," he said. She had never seen him drink anything more than one glass of wine with dinner or one cocktail afterwards, yet the bottle was half empty. "I didn't know anyone was still here," he said, setting down his shot glass and standing up. He looked steady but his eyes seemed glossed over. He walked over and studied the chess board. "Not many people would have seen that one. Are you alright?" He was standing right next to her now. Looking straight into her eyes. She was melting.
"Yes, I'm fine," she said wavering. "I..." He stopped her, putting a hand on her cheek. He leaned in and kissed her, softly at first and then more passionately. He stopped and looked at her. Dorothy put her arms around him, returning his kiss. This time it seemed harder to stop. He pulled back from her with an effort.
"Do you need a car brought around?" He asked uncertainly after he had regained his breath. "Or..." she covered his mouth with hers, giving him her answer.
*****
Tears were running down her cheeks. She wished she hadn't walked into that room. Everything had been so perfect. But now the scene in the den was haunting her. Would he still have wanted her? She was staring at Quatre while her confused thoughts rushed through her head. As her eyes refocused, she realized that he had opened his eyes, immediately a look of concern was on his face.
"Dorothy...?" He said, his voice nearly faltering. "What's wrong?"
"I...we...shouldn't have done this..." She said.
"I'm sorry, Dorothy-"
"How much vodka did you have?" She asked now angry at herself for being so stupid.
"Doroth-"
"How drunk did you have to be....to want _me_...?" She said, her voice suddenly quiet. She turned away from him. After a moment he put his arms around her pulling her closer.
"I didn't have any vodka, Dorothy," he said.
"What do you mean? I saw you...I-"
"Dorothy, did you see me drink any?" He asked calmly.
"Half of the bottle was gone..." She said.
"Are you implying that _I_ could drink half a bottle of vodka and not pass out?" he said. She could hear the smile on his voice. "And you stopped me from having the shot I poured myself. It's still sitting on the table in the den."
"Why, then?" She said still crying. "Why would you want to be with me?"
He pulled her closer turning her around and kissing her.
"Is it so hard for you to believe that someone might just _want_ to be with you?" He asked almost angrily. He hugged her tight as if keeping her from running away. She might have run, but his low whisper stopped even the thought. "I love you, Dorothy. I always have."
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Author's note: Wow, another phoebe P.O.S. That I will now send to Alexa for editing because well...my grammar SUCKS! As I said it just struck me in the middle of "My Cousin Vinny" and I had to write it...(The other mega fic that 'never seems to end', is not done yet and getting on my nerves.)....so...tell me what you think?