Assassination: Rendezvous Point
Last
Kiss...A Breath of Understanding
Throbbing...
Pulsating...
Excruciating...
That's all
that Heero could remember. First, the
intense throbbing at the part in his arm where he'd been shot. Secondly, the pulsating at his temples. Finally, the excruciating pain that seemed
to shoot and sting at every part of his body.
"Damn
it," he grumbled angrily when he
realized he was leaving somewhat of a trail of blood. Heero pushed himself into an alley, will was just about the only
thing that kept him going, and could feel his energy draining. Just before he blacked out, however, he recalled
a promise...
~:~:~:~:~:~:~
Flashback
~:~:~:~:~:~:~
"Promise
me you won't die !"
"I
can't promise that, Relena, try to understand..."
The young
girl sighed in complete despair and turned around, folding her arms around her
chest. Duo stepped up, looking behind
him momentarily to study his fellow pilots, and gently called Relena.
"Relena,"---he
began, ignoring the wild alarms breaking out wildly---"this isn't a
mission."
Relena
blanked out suddenly, surprised at Duo's outburst. "It isn't a mission...?"
"Relena
this is an assassination attempt against you---indirectly."
"What
do you mean?"
"Rendezvous
Point, do you have any idea where it is?"
Relena
shook her head no and stared in silence at the braided baka. "It doesn't
exist. Rendezvous Point is a name
soldiers estalished for a street, a kind of path a soldier or civilian
travels."
"But
you said it didn't exist."
"The
path to your death.
"Oh."
"And
we received a letter---it said you were on your way to Rendezvous Point. We're not sure if this is a real attempt or
just a bluff, but we gotta go to that citation...and one of us might not come
out alive..."
Duo let his
last words sink in. 'One of us might
not come out alive'. Relena faltered
and turned to face Heero suddenly.
"Promise
me!!" she shrieked, as the pilots
made a quiet exit. In turn, Heero
pressed her close against his chest, ignoring the small pounding of her fists. Gently, he stroked her hair and dropped soft
kisses on her golden tresses. "I
can't promise you that..."
"Please...even
if you have to lie----just please say that you will!"
"I
can't. I would never lie to you...I
would never lie to you."
Relena tried
to hold back a sob, but failed when Heero bent down so that he was eye-level
with her. Both his hands were placed
determinedly at each side of her cheeks, which had become somewhat wettened by
her tears. He held her closely, so that
his forehead touched hers.
"Listen
to me, Relena."
"I can't ! Don't you
understand! I need you to live---and I need you to survive. Promise me!"
"Relena...I...."
"Just
two words, Heero, just two damned words!"
Relena
quickly pushed Heero away and dried her tears with the sleeve of her
blouse. "I understand, Heero Yuy. You cannot say two words, then I shall not wait for you to say
them !"
The young
woman made a quick motion to turn and run, but was stopped by Heero's grip at
the fold of her arm. "Relena,
please..."
Relena
turned around, her eyes glued to the ground as Heero pulled her closer. "God, Relena, please don't make this
harder for me...I'm doing this to protect you..." as he spoke, Heero
tugged on Relena's waist, and practically
crushed her against him.
"Please,
just two words."
"Rel---"
Relena
pressed a finger to his lips and closed her eyes. "Please..." She
allowed Heero to pull her forward, their foreheads touching as they had been
only a few moments ago. Relena sniffled
sadly, but couldn't help the gasp that escaped her when Heero gently pushed his
lips against hers. It shocked her
senses. The tingling sensation that
rushed through her body was inexplainable...she was also surprised at the
softness of Heero's lips, for one reason or another, she'd always thought his
lips would be harsh and crude.
It was her
first kiss...
The two
settled down leisurly on the couch, cradled in each others arms. He was so warm, she wanted to stay snuggled
close to him forever...but, he was going to leave. She breathed in deeply and bit back tears as Heero squeezed her
tight, his arms gently traveling her slim back. "I will never forget you." he murmured into her hair.
Relena pushed sullenly at his shoulders, his hair somehow falling over
her in unruly tufts.
"When
will you leave...?" she asked softly.
"Tomorrow night," the young man responded serenely. Relena shifted uneasily under the Heero's
weight and reached out to caress his velvety features. The young man allowed her the small pleasure
of stroking his face, but eyed her with reserve. "Stay with me tonight."
The
statement was more of a command than a plea, and for Relena that was a big
step. "Relena---you're not
thinking straight...I'll see you tomorrow."
"No!"
Heero just
kinda stopped in his tracks. Relena had
never raised her voice---especially not at him. Biting his lips, he turned around and studied Relena's anxious
features. "We shouldn't, it's not
right, especially under such circumstances."
"Please.
I shall never ask of anything more from you, just this..."
Heero
sighed deeply and stared wistfully into Relena's eyes. Then he ran his fingertips through his hair
and quickly wisked up the young girl.
She weighed nearly nothing in the arms of the strong soldier. "Damn it, Relena. Why do you have such an effect on me?!"
Relena just
blinked and adjusted to the sudden darkness in Heero's bedroom. For safety reasons it was located right
beside her office and bedroom. Let's
just say that Milliardo hadn't been to enthusiased by the layout, but after
some apparent coaxing from Noin, he'd given in.
"Okay,
I'm staying with you tonight. I'm here,
you're here, now sleep and I'll wake you up tomorrow."
"Heero!
That wasn't what I meant!"
"Then
what was it that you meant...?"
Relena
blushed heavily and buried herself within the folds of Heero's sweater. "Please, Heero, just for tonight. You can forget about me later...but
please---give me this night..."
The young
man sat up and stared oddly at the ground.
Damn it...what could he do?!
When he
glanced up and saw those pleading sky blue eyes, however, he knew exactly
what...he just hoped he was right...
~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~
The Next Morning
~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~:~
"Promise
me."
"I'll
try."
"Promise
me---"
"If it
means that much to you --- I...I promise, Relena..."
"That's
all I wanted to hear..."
Heero
sighed uncertainly as he cushioned his head on his arms and studied the
ceiling. The ceiling...it was like his
best friend. Whenever he had problems
it was back to the ceiling...
He was
thrown back to reality, when he felt the gentle tap on his arm. He stared
blankly in her direction, the blue of his eyes piercing through her. Relena simply snuggled closer to him, and
sighed contently when she felt the warmth that escaped his bare skin.
"I
always thought you were cold...I mean your skin and stuff."
"I'm
human, Relena. I have internal organs,
I have a heart, and of course I have body heat."
"That's
not what I meant, silly."
Heero
reached out to caress Relena's hair. He
fiddled around idly with a strand, while hearing her soothingly explain what
she'd meant. Finally, he wasn't able to
resist, and fussed her hair into a giant mess.
When Relena eyed him annoyedly, he met it with a cocky grin...a grin...
Sighing,
Relena pushed herself away from Heero and also studied the intriguing designs
on the ceiling. "You, know, it's
funny... the ceiling in my bedroom had a different pattern..."
"Yeah.
The ceiling, that's the first thing I notice in every room I've been."
Relena
wasn't sure whether or not Heero was serious.
For one, his face held the same stoic expression it'd always had. She smiled inwardly, he really hadn't been
cold last night...
"Relena,
did you..."
"No, I
didn't."
"Oh."
"Don't
worry, I won't."
"How
do you know?"
"Just
a guess..."
"Right. Since when do you gamble on life?"
Relena
socked Heero on his arm, and quietly cringed at the pain it sent flying down
her fist. The young man turned towards
her, the small fist that had contracted with his arm barely tickling him. "It hurt, didn't it?" he asked as he reached for her hand.
"A
bit..." Relena answered, trying to
keep her face from contorting into an expression of pain. Heero gently rubbed her fist, laying idle
kisses on it, and then pressed her palm against his cheek. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply,
he'd have to imprint that moment on his memory.
"Heero,
can you kiss me again?"
Heero
stared confusedly at his beloved princess, but obiediantly leaned over and
pressed soft lips against her own in an attempt at a last kiss. He pushed his soul into that kiss, he knew
well that it might as well be his last.
Relena noticed. Sullenly she
pulled away and mouthed the words 'Goodbye'.
Heero nodded and fought to keep down the stinging sensation threatening
to overpower his eyes.
He pushed
himself off Relena and disappeared into the bathroom.
"Promise
me, Heero..."
~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~
End
Flashsback
~::~::~::~::~::~::~:~
"I'm
sorry...Relena," he whispered
vaguely, before his head hit the ground and all was swallowed by darkness. Then, in a swirl of commotion, he could feel
his body lighten, and somehow shrieking sirens surrounded him...was he dead?