Mission to the Past
Chapter Five: Romance is in the Air
"EEK!" Minako cried. "I'm so nervous! What'll I wear?"
It was six-thirty on Saturday night. Ami, Makoto, Minako, Usagi, and Rei had decided to get together at Usagi's house to get ready for the dance.
"Calm down," said Usagi.
"That's easy for you to say!" Minako wailed. "Your date has been your boyfriend for the past two thousand years!"
"True," Usagi acknowledged.
"Okay, now, let's see," Minako said, surveying the assortment of clothes she had brought. "I want to show off a little, but if I'm too revealing he'll think I'm forcing myself on him. Oh, what to do!"
"Just wear an outfit that you feel comfortable with," Ami advised. "Choose something that shows the real you."
"Ami's right, as usual," Makoto said. "Though I've never heard her give fashion advice before."
Minako looked over her choices one more time before selecting a creAmi yellow, off-the-shoulder dress. It was tied with a white sash at her waist. The skirt fell to her knees. Her shoes were white flats, and her nails were done in gold. The only jewelry she wore was a simple, heart-shaped gold locket on a thin chain. Her hair was in its usual bow.
The hour really seemed to fly by. Before they knew it, the doorbell was ringing.
"AAH!" Minako cried. "They're here!"
"Ami, Makoto, your dates are here!" Usagi's mom called up.
"Coming!" the two girls cried back. They rushed downstairs, Makoto in her long forest green dress, and Ami wearing a baby blue skirt and a modest matching top.
"Hi, Trowa," Makoto greeted her date.
"Hello, Quatre," Ami said shyly.
"Hello, Makoto," Trowa said.
"Hi, Ami," said Quatre.
"Okay, girls, have fun!" Mrs. Tsikino said. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do! Bye now!" The four teens exited as Ms. Tsukino shut the door behind them.
Less than five minutes had passed before Mamoru showed up to pick Usagi up. "Hiya, sweetheart!" Usagi greeted her boyfriend.
"Hi, Usagi," he said. "Let's go." They walked off, Usagi hanging on to Mamoru's arm.
"You treat her right, you hear me?" Usagi's dad yelled. "Keep it decent! And don't even think of--"
"Have fun, you two," Mrs. Tsukino cut him off, saving her daughter from complete humiliation.
Next to arrive was Duo. Minako was so nervous by this time that she nearly fainted. However, she managed to walk downstairs calmy and greet her American date with a smile. "Hi, Duo."
"Hi. I brought you something," he said shyly, holding out a yellow rose corsage.
Minako thought it amazing that she didn't melt right then and there. Somehow, she managed to take the corsage and pin it on. "Thank you so much," she said. "It's beautiful. And it goes perfectly with my dress."
Duo grinned, happy that she liked it. "Well, shall we go?" he said, doing a mock bow.
"Yes, we shall," she answered, doing a mock curtsy in return. They started to walk to the Community Center, where the dance was being held. Luckily, it was nearby.
As they turned a corner, they ran into Chad, who was looking very frazzled. He was also looking extremely unusual in a suit, and Minako thought Rei would find it a change for the better.
"Do you have the time?" he asked frantically.
Duo checked his watch. "Seven thirty-one," he told him.
Chad panicked. "Oh, man! I'm late for Rei! I was supposed to pick her up at seven-thirty!" He raced for the Tsukino house.
Duo looked a bit puzzled. "He's only a minute late."
"Yeah, but to Rei, that may as well be an hour," Minako told him, full of sympathy for poor Chad. Rei was probably going to explode at him.
Sure enough, a few seconds later, Minako and Duo were stopped in their tracks by a shrill scream coming from the Tsukino residence.
"HOW COULD YOU! YOU'RE LATE! YOU WORTHLESS SCUMBAG! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR THIS!"
"Rei, I didn't--"
"NO EXCUSES!"
Duo and Minako exchanged glances. "Maybe we should hurry," the latter suggested.
Duo nodded. "Let's."
They got to the Community Center without running into Rei, who was pulling poor Chad by his ear. The dancing hadn't begun yet. Minako looked around for her friends and spotted them standing at the refreshments table, with the exception of Rei, of course. "Come on," Minako urged Duo. "I'll go introduce you to my friends." The two made their way to join the others.
"Hi, Duo," Trowa, standing with Makoto, greeted him.
"Hey, Trowa, Quatre," Duo said. "You know Minako, right?" They nodded.
"Guys, this is Duo," Minako introduced him to her friends. "Duo, this is Usagi, Ami, Makoto, and, oh, there's Rei." The very grumpy fire priestess came to join he friends, followed by a miserable Chad.
Quatre suddenly noticed a familiar figure lurking in the shadows. "Hey, is that Wufei?" he asked.
Duo and Trowa followed his gaze. "Unbelievable," Duo muttered. "It is him. Wufei, what are you doing here? I thought you weren't going to come."
"I changed my mind," the Chinese teen answered.
"What about Heero?" Trowa asked. "Is he coming?"
"Oh, you might see him around," Wufei said, smiling mysteriously.
Before anyone had time to wonder what that meant, a horrible, loud noise erupted from the speakers.
"YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH."
Everyone in the room covered their ears.
"YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH YEAH."
"Make it stop," some people wailed.
"I THINK I DID IT AGAIN."
The DJ felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned around and found himself face to face with a brown-haired, cobalt blue-eyed, very angry boy. "Whaddya want?" the DJ asked.
"Excuse me," the boy said. He drew back his fist and punched the DJ in the face. Then he stopped the awful excuse for music. "We apologize for any inconvenience we have caused, and that includes hearing damage," he said into the microphone. "Now we'll play some decent music." Decent music started.
Duo blinked. "What is it?" Minako asked.
"Oh, nothing," Duo said. "It's just that I know that DJ." He took her hand and led her on to the dance floor. "Come on, let's dance."
They danced for a long time, stopping every now and then to get some refreshments and talk. All their nervousness was completely gone.
After a while, Wufei, who had danced, but not much, got a sneaky idea. "Hey, Heero," he called.
Heero looked up. He was enjoying being the DJ, much to his surprise. "What?"
Wufei said mischievously, "I'm sure Duo wouldn't mind if you played something slow."
Heero smiled. "No, I'm sure he wouldn't mind at all." He switched to a slow dance.
Almost without thinking, Minako and Duo leaned close. Minako rested her head on his shoulder. They swayed slowly, lost in their own little world. Minako felt blissfully happy. Now I know how Usagi feels when she's with Mamoru, she thought. It's the most wonderful feeling in the world.
After that dance, Heero played some more fast songs, and few more slow ones. Duo found himself wishing the night would never end.
But around ten-thirty, people started to leave. Quatre, Trowa, Heero, Wufei, Duo, Minako, Usagi, Ami, Makoto, Rei, and Chad went out for pizza. Usagi had asked Mamoru to come, but he had said he was too tired. This, of course, had sent Usagi into a fit of wailing. She carried on for a full five minutes before Rei finally shouted for her to shut up.
At the Crown Arcade, everyone talked and laughed and ate their pizza, but to Heero, something seemed to be missing. Then it hit him like a sledgehammer. Duo wasn't laughing, or cracking dumb jokes, or being generally annoying. In fact, he wasn't talking at all. It was kind of eerie. Heero wondered for a while what was wrong with him, until he realized the truth: Duo was busy looking at Minako.
"Minako," said Ami, "are you alright?"
Minako was smiling and looking dreamily into Duo's eyes. "Hmm? Oh, yeah. I'm fine."
Ami didn't look convinced. "You've been awfully quiet, especially for you."
"Come to think of it," Wufei said, realizing what had already come to Heero, "so have you, Duo." He, Quatre, and Trowa gave a little shutter at the thought of Duo being quiet.
"I have?" Duo said. "Oh. I guess so."
By now, everyone was fairly sure what was wrong with their usually talkative friends. Makoto decided to do a little test. "Say, Minako," she said. "You want to face me in that F-1 racing game?"
Normally, Minako would have jumped at the chance, but she just said, "No, thanks."
Her friends exchanged meaningful glances. It was definitely love. If it wasn't, Minako had been kidnapped by aliens and replaced by a look-alike zombie.
Around eleven, Usagi, Rei, Ami, and Chad realized they ought to be getting home. The boys and Makoto, of course, had no curfew, and Minako was too dazed and lovestruck to realize anything.
"I'll walk you home," Duo offered.
"Okay," Minako agreed, not wanting to have to say good-bye any sooner than absolutely necessary.
Out in the cool night air, they were happy just to be together. The stars were shimmering brightly, and a full moon hung in the sky. It seemed natural when they took each other's hands.
They walked in silence. At one point, Minako sighed contentedly and said, "The moon sure is beautiful tonight, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Duo agreed. "But not as beautiful as you," he added, facing her.
Minako felt herself blush furiously, but she didn't look away. They had reached her house, and a quiet breeze blew their hair. They were standing very close, but neither felt uncomfortable. "Listen, Duo," Minako said quietly. "I had a really great time tonight."
"So did I," Duo said, leaning closer. "It's funny. We just met, but I feel like I've known you forever. Do you believe in destiny?"
Minako smiled inwardly. More than you know, she thought. "Yes."
"I don't know if it's real," he said. "But if it is, that's what brought me here tonight." They closed their eyes and moved toward each other. As they were about to kiss, Minako pushed him away.
"Hold on," she said, peering at the bushes behind him. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. She walked over to them. "Alright, you guys, out!" she yelled.
Silence.
"Give it up!" she said exasperatedly. "I know you're in there!" She flung the bushes apart. Usagi, Rei, Ami, Makoto, Quatre, Trowa, Wufei, and Heero were crouched there.
"Uh, nobody here but us bushes?" Usagi said meekly.
"I told you we'd get caught," Rei grumbled.
"She knows us too well," complained Makoto.
"Well, we shouldn't have been spying anyway," Quatre and Ami said together.
"Come on, you guys, leave!" Minako ordered, pointing to the road. Grudgingly, they all stood up and walked away, leaving Minako and Duo to finally have some privacy. Minako walked over to the boy was standing. "Now, where were we?" she said.
"Right here," Duo whispered, and kissed her tenderly on the lips.
Minako felt as though her breath was taken away, and it felt wonderful. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him back.
Duo wondered for a split second if he could possibly be happier, then all thought was pushed away. They stood there, embracing, wishing they could stay like that forever.
After a little while, though, they pulled away. "I have to go now," Minako said reluctantly. "Duo, thank you for everything. I love you."
"I love you too," Duo told her. They kissed once more, then she turned and went inside.
Duo walked home thinking he was walking on air. As he entered the house, he had a huge grin on his face, and he was singing, slightly off-key. "'L' is for the way you look, at me, 'O' is for the only one, I see..."
"So what happened?" Quatre asked.
"Did you kiss?" Trowa wanted to know.
Duo apparently didn't hear them; he continued singing. "'V' is for the very,
extraordinary, 'E' is even more than anyone that you'd adore..."
"Yep," Wufei confirmed. "They kissed."
Duo walked upstairs, changed, and went to bed. The last image in his mind before sleep claimed him was Minako's smiling face, and Minako's beautiful laugh sounded all through his dreams.
* * *
Minako sat at her windowsill, brushing her long hair and smiling. She had already changed into her white pajamas with yellow polka-dots. Artemis watched her curiously.
"Well?" he said finally. "What happened?"
"What happened when?" Minako asked, more than slightly spaced out.
"Just now," Artemis said impatiently.
"Did something happen just now?" Minako wondered.
"With you and Duo!" Artemis yelled, losing all patience.
"Oh, that," Minako said. She giggled.
Artemis
grew worried. "Minako, did you have
anything at that dance, er, alcoholic?"
"Of course not," she said.
"Then what did you and Duo do?" Artemis cried exasperatedly.
"He kissed me," Minako said simply. Remembering made the sensation come flooding back.
"Wow," Artemis whispered. "You're really growing up, aren't you?"
"Oh, stop," Minako said, blushing. "You sound like my mother."
"But it's true," Artemis insisted. "I've known you for four years now, Minako, and this is the first time anything like this has happened to you. You're not a little girl anymore."
"Oh, Artemis," Minako protested. "You're so sentimental." But the thought made her blush more. It was strange. Even though she was the most boy-crazy of her friends, this was her first kiss.
Hopefully, it wouldn't be her last.
* * *
"So spill it, Minako," Usagi demanded as she, Minako, Ami, Makoto, Chibi-Usa, and Rei made their way through the crowded shopping mall on Sunday. "What did you guys do after you so rudely made us leave?"
"Rudely?" cried Minako indignantly. "You were spying on us!"
"The specifics don't matter," Usagi waving her hand dismissively. "Just tell us. What happened?"
"Well," Minako confided, "we kissed."
"Oh, wow!" exclaimed Chibi-Usa.
"How was it?" Rei wanted to know.
"Wonderful," Minako breathed. But in truth, 'wonderful' was an understatement. It had been incredible. It had left her head spinning ever since.
"How, exactly, did you kiss?" Usagi asked slyly.
"That's none of your business!" Minako said hotly.
"When's the next date?" Makoto inquired.
"I don't know," Minako said. "Soon, I hope."
Rei wondered if Minako was really in love this time. She decided to put it to the test. "Hey, Minako, what do you think of that new rock star, Terry Lamone?"
"Oh, him?" Makoto said excitedly. "He's majorly dreAmi!"
"His songs are rather fun to listen to," Ami said.
"Wow, even Ami's interested," Usagi commented.
Minako just shrugged. "He's okay."
"Minako's not drooling over a totally gorgeous rock star?" Usagi gasped.
"It must be love," Chibi-Usa said. "Either that, or she's lost her mind."
"Well, I mean, he's fine, as rock stars go," Minako said. "But really, I'm perfectly happy with Duo."
"Wow," her friends murmured.
Suddenly, Usagi remembered something. "Oh, hey, guys, Michiru's got concert next weekend, and she asked if we wanted to go, and if any friends of ours might want to come. Do you know anybody?"
"I could see if Duo and his friends are interested," Minako offered.
"Great!" Usagi said. "I'm sure Michiru will be glad."
They wandered through the mall some more, stopping every now and then to window shop or wait for Makoto to finish drooling over some cute guy. After two hours, they still hadn't found anything to buy that was within their price range, so they headed to the arcade instead.
* * *
Notes: Hmm, that one was short. Hope you don't mind. What did you think? Too sappy? As always, e-mail me, PLEASE, and don't flame me. This especially goes for Duo/Hilde match-up fans, and Britney Spears fans.
FYI: The song Duo was humming was by Nat King Cole:)
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing, Sailor Moon, or the rights to "Oops! I Did It Again" or "L-O-V-E." I only dream about making money from this, and that's one dream that won't come true. Sigh.