I awoke in a large canopy bed, with the curtains drawn. I got up and found that I had on a nightgown and was still clutching duo's jersey. I felt my stomach drop for a moment and felt a tear roll down my cheek. No! I pushed them away, I don't want to start that again. I could hear voices from down the hall, and I realized I must be at quatres mansion. I sighed and got up, reluctant to leave the nice warm bed. I found a pair of slippers under the bed and put them on. Still holding duos jersey I ventured towards the voices. The hall was dark except for a light from a door at the end that was half covered with a curtain. I looked at the window which revealed it was night time, and the moon was just coming out. I looked at my pale reflection, staring back at me from the window pane and suddenly had the urge to cry again. I pushed the thought away and kept walking to the light. I stopped just outside the curtain and listened for a momemt. From the sound of it, all 4 gundam pilots were there. Quatre was trying to calm down heero, who was for some reason yelling at trowa. I could hear quatre saying, "please, you must be quiet, you'll wake up lita!" that qot heero to quiet a little, although he still went on furiously at trowa, but I couldn't here what he was saying. I sighed, and entered the room. I stood there by the door, leaning up against the wall. Wufei noticed me first, coughing and head motioning in my direction. Heero spun around to yell at him but stopped when he saw me. He cleared his throat and blushed. Trowa and wufei stifled their uncomfortable lsughter as quatre came upt to me. "lita, its good to see you up." He smiled warmly and put his hand on my arm. I smiled meekly at him and looked at heero. He looked away when I caught him looking at me. I looked back at quatre with a questioning gaze, "what has been going on?" I asked quietly. Quatre looked at the others nervously before he spoke. "Oh, nothing really, just some arguing." He coughed and motioned to a chair by the fire. "please will you sit?" As I followed him I looked at the other pilots quizzically. Trowa came up once I had been seated and handed me my school bag. "here, lita." He said warmly. "I picked this up for you." I smiled at him and thanked him. I looked down, away from their uncomfortable stares and tried to tell them I was sorry. "Hey, guys, im really sorry that ive been acting so weird…. Its just that everything is so…….." Heero and quatre simultaneously cut me off with, "No!" I looked up and blushed. They looked at each other, blushed and heero began. "Really lita, you have a right to be, unsure of things." He coughed and went on as the others stared at him with their jaws dropping. "Everything has been crazy lately and you've been taking things too fast. Once you ease up a little things should start to become more clear." That's when he looked away and became particularly interested with a painting over the mantle piece. Quatre recovered the quickest. "He's right lita, you need to take it easy, your pushing yourself way too hard." He smiled piteously, and I got to my feet. I looked at the pilots, my friends. "Thank you all…..I don't know what to say…. Only that if I didn't have you guys, I probably wouldn't have made it this far……" I smiled sadly and pushed the thought of crying in front of them to the back of my mind. I looked at quatre as everyone in the room blushed with smiles as sad as mine. "quatre, thank you so much for, erm, picking me up, today." I finished awkwardly. "Oh, it was really no problem, you know your welcome to stay here as long as you want." He smiled. "Thank you. Please excuse me, im very tired…" I looked at each one of them in turn and gave them thankful smiles, then exited the room, followed with goodnights. I made my way back to the room I was staying in for the night, and climbed into the luxurious bed. That's when I broke down, and cried myself to sleep.
In the morning, I woke up to rain pelting the window. I scowled at the day, and the little light shining through, stung my sleep dazed eyes. I sighed and looked around. One of quatres many servants must have been in, because my clothes were washed and laying on a chair. On the bedside table, was a note. I picked it up and read it:
Dear lita,
Just wanted to let you know that I had a mission and I had to go.
If you need me for anything, or for any reason, you can let quatre
Know and he'll get the info to me. Im sorry I couldn't tell you in
Person, but you were asleep and I didn't want to wake you. I hope
You know, that when I get back, im going to move into quatres
Mansion, seeing as how all the other guys are staying here, plus
The free room and board wouldn't be bad. You do know that you
Could live here if you wanted to or needed to. We would be happy
To have you with us. Well, I have to go, but ill see you when I get
Back.
Heero Yuy
I was puzzled by heero's letter. He'd never done anything like that before. That sure left me with things to think about. I sighed and got out of bed. I made sure the door was locked before I pulled off the nightgown. I realized that it was one of the ones I had left here at quatres the last time duo and I had visited. Duo………. NO! I pushed back the thought, and grabbed my jeans. I pulled them on and grabbed by black tank top. Someone knocked on the door. "just a minute, please." I yelled. Pulled on my shirt and walked over to the door. I opened it to reveal quatre. "hello, lita!" he said brightly as he saw me. "oh, good morning quatre." I answered. He asked me if I was hungry, and wether or not I needed anything. I told him that I would appreciate a ride home, and that I had several things to work out. He said that he would be happy to give me a ride home and that I was welcome as long as I wanted to stay. I thanked him and shut the door. I sighed and walked around the room. I knew that I would love to stay here with the other 4 pilots. With duo and my friends. However I had to deal with my home first. I looked at duos jersey, it had been washed and was on the bed where I could hold it while I slept. I pushed back the sad memories and thought of the last time duo had worn the jersey. He was smiling and asked me if he could store it in my locker for a while. Oh duo…… He wouldn't want me to be sad because of him, I thought. I attempted a smile, and pulled the jersey on over my shirt. It was deep red, and written in gold-colored writing on the back was "Duo Maxwell." I felt better when I had it on. I used to wear duos clothes all the time. I shook my head, grabbed my school bag and put heeros letter in it. I left the nightgown on the bed, incase I needed it here. I tucked my jacket through my backpack strap, hitched up my backpack on my shoulder and exited the room. I found quatre in one of the livingrooms by a fire, reading. Trowa was practicing his flute, also. He smiled sadly at my requeat to leave, and looked slightly unnerved at the fact that I was wearing duos jersey but agreed. He rang for his headman rasheed and I said goodbye to trowa, and quatre. Wufei had accompanied heero on his mission so I would see him when he got back. Rasheed drove me home, where I had a great many things to sort out.