Adia awoke, eyes closed under the soft blindfold they'd shown her before the anaesthetic. The last she remembered was trying to count down from ten to one…and then it all faded as she went calmly to sleep, and was taken to the operating theatre. Her mind skipped back to the phone conversation she'd had the previous week.
---Flashback---
"Adia? This is Doctor Aimes. We have a proposition for you."
"Who's we?"
"The hospital has been testing a new procedure, which you're a perfect candidate for."
"You mean…" Adia's breath came short, and she had to thump her ribcage to get breathing again.
"Yes. They might be able to cure your vision. Now, the procedure is still experimental-"
"Can they make me blinder?" she asked sarcastically. "How much?"
"As it's still in trial, it's free. It's worked on ten other patients, so-"
"I'm in, alright? How soon can they do it?" Impatiently, she waited for his answer.
"Well, they can probably fit you in next week."
"Next week?" she had asked incredulously, but her heart was jumping in her mouth. To be able to see again…
"Yes."
"Fine. Just tell my dad the details. I'm going out. Bye!" She ran out to tell Quatre.
---End of flashback---
Trembling, she slowly lifted the blindfold. She hardly dared to hope…. and flinched at the light flooding into her long-disused retinas. But…light! So long without it, and the sudden euphoria hit her like a tsunami. There was something resting on her legs.
The first thing her eyes landed on was the source of the weight. Quatre was asleep, arms folded and head resting on them, blonde locks hanging randomly across his forehead. He seemed to glow in the sudden brightness, her golden haired friend.
Adia couldn't help it; she laughed, and Quatre awoke to the sound of joy spilling from her, rubbing his eyes with his hand, taking the sleep from his lashes.
"Quat, I can see!" she laughed, turning her head swiftly to look all around the small room. Everything was beautiful, everything was bursting with colour, from her bag to the faded wallpaper. "I can see!"
He laughed, and then he noticed her eyes. Discoloured for so long, they were now a deep mahogany brown, and tears of happiness sparkled in them. If the eyes were the windows to the soul, then before hers had been misty and lost; now it was joyful and exhilarated, and her laughter made her face beautiful.
Adia's laughter slowed and stopped, and her hand reached out and touched his cheek, as if to assure herself that he wasn't an illusion, like those pictures in her dreams. "It is you," she whispered, then screamed with laughter once more, jumping from the bed and looking out of the window.
"It's snow," she breathed, fogging the pane slightly with her breath, then rubbed her arms rapidly, even though the room was warm. She had on one of those thin night-gowns the hospitals give out, and scrambled back under the covers, shivering, partly with excitement.
"I can see," she whispered once more, then burst out crying with shock.
^^^
"What will you do now?" Quatre asked as they left the ward, holding her bag. Adia had finally been allowed to leave, after much fretting on her part, once the people at the hospital were sure she was fine.
"Well, first things first, I'm dumping this lot at home." She took the bag from his strong fingers.
"Then, I'm going to see a movie," she grinned, walking backwards along the street, looking back at him. "Want to come?"
"Alright," he replied, smiling at her simple wish. "What do you want to see?"
"I don't know," Adia replied, stopping still in the middle of the street, a pondering look on her face. "I don't know anything about what's on at the moment." It hadn't ever bothered her before, being unable to watch what happened. "You choose."
"Fine," he told her, grabbing her arm and turning her around to walk next to him. "But that means you can't complain."
^^^
"That was cool," Adia remarked, as they left the cinema. The movie had been a comedy/ romance. They had laughed together, flicking popcorn at each other. "So many things to see, so little time…"
Quatre looked at her and watched as her large brown eyes took in everything around them, drinking the surroundings like water to a camel. "I think you'll be better at surveillance than Heero," he commented, continuing along the street, arm in arm with Adia. "You look like you see everything, at least, at the moment."
"Oh, Heero's boring," she replied absently, and ignored his shocked gasp.
"You know Heero?"
"Duh," she told him, frowning. "Like I said, my dad's a Preventor."
"But-"
"Don't stammer, it makes you sound stupid," she remarked, smiling widely at his confusion. "He visits my dad sometimes. 'Course, I've only ever heard his voice."
"Well, thanks for telling me," Quatre said reproachfully, and stopped when she stared at him.
"Quatre, you actually sound resentful!" she commented wryly. "That's probably the Quatre equivalent of swearing!"
He blushed, and she grinned, pinching his cheek. "That's more like the ikkle Ketwa I know," she teased, giggling as he rubbed fiercely at his now burning face.
"You're shorter than I am!" he retorted, and she looked up at his face.
"You're right, I am," she said, puzzled. "When did I get this short? I never noticed-"
He turned quickly and tweaked her nose, then ran off as fast as he could when she squawked with surprise and indignation, then raced after him, their laughter rising into the heavens.
^^^
They slammed through the door, Adia laughing breathlessly as Quatre tickled her, trying to choke out her surrender but laughing instead and falling onto the floor of her room.
"Stop it, I give up, I give up-" she managed, gasping for air. Quatre stopped, and she realised he was pinning her to the floor. Unable to help herself, she reached up and stroked his cheek.
"It is symmetrical, you know," she told him, smiling slightly. It had been one of the first things she'd said to him. ~ And oh, so soft. ~
Quatre smiled back, trying not to lean into the touch. Her fingers were gentle across the sensitive flesh.
Adia's hand traced his jaw line, fluffing the soft, fair down on his skin and watching the way it settled after her fingers had passed. It was too much for him.
Quatre bent down and kissed her abruptly, and she gasped with surprise. Pulling back, she struggled to get enough air in her lungs to speak. "Quatre, I don't think-" but he kissed her again, and she couldn't resist any longer. She knew she wanted to, but…he was the heir to the Winner family, and she was the daughter of a coarse policeman. He should marry for his family, not just fall in love because he wanted to, provide for his sisters…
"Quatre, I can't…" she stammered, pulling away and standing up. "You shouldn't, you know."
He just looked at her, puzzled. He knew she loved him, but why was she so hesitant?
"You shouldn't just do what you want, you have to think about your sisters."
He laughed then, and grabbed her by the wrists. "Adia, I'm a billionaire." He kissed her. "I didn't ask to be, but I am." Kiss. "It's enough to look after generations of Winners." Kiss. "Isn't it reason enough that I love you?" He kissed her again. God, she was so beautiful to him. Even when she had been blind, those misty eyes hadn't changed anything. It was who she was that made her beautiful, not whether her eyes were brown or uselessly white.
Adia kissed him back, then. She knew she loved him, and she still knew that her thoughts on his marrying for his family were still true. But she could ignore that, if just for a little while.
---Flashback---
"Adia? This is Doctor Aimes. We have a proposition for you."
"Who's we?"
"The hospital has been testing a new procedure, which you're a perfect candidate for."
"You mean…" Adia's breath came short, and she had to thump her ribcage to get breathing again.
"Yes. They might be able to cure your vision. Now, the procedure is still experimental-"
"Can they make me blinder?" she asked sarcastically. "How much?"
"As it's still in trial, it's free. It's worked on ten other patients, so-"
"I'm in, alright? How soon can they do it?" Impatiently, she waited for his answer.
"Well, they can probably fit you in next week."
"Next week?" she had asked incredulously, but her heart was jumping in her mouth. To be able to see again…
"Yes."
"Fine. Just tell my dad the details. I'm going out. Bye!" She ran out to tell Quatre.
---End of flashback---
Trembling, she slowly lifted the blindfold. She hardly dared to hope…. and flinched at the light flooding into her long-disused retinas. But…light! So long without it, and the sudden euphoria hit her like a tsunami. There was something resting on her legs.
The first thing her eyes landed on was the source of the weight. Quatre was asleep, arms folded and head resting on them, blonde locks hanging randomly across his forehead. He seemed to glow in the sudden brightness, her golden haired friend.
Adia couldn't help it; she laughed, and Quatre awoke to the sound of joy spilling from her, rubbing his eyes with his hand, taking the sleep from his lashes.
"Quat, I can see!" she laughed, turning her head swiftly to look all around the small room. Everything was beautiful, everything was bursting with colour, from her bag to the faded wallpaper. "I can see!"
He laughed, and then he noticed her eyes. Discoloured for so long, they were now a deep mahogany brown, and tears of happiness sparkled in them. If the eyes were the windows to the soul, then before hers had been misty and lost; now it was joyful and exhilarated, and her laughter made her face beautiful.
Adia's laughter slowed and stopped, and her hand reached out and touched his cheek, as if to assure herself that he wasn't an illusion, like those pictures in her dreams. "It is you," she whispered, then screamed with laughter once more, jumping from the bed and looking out of the window.
"It's snow," she breathed, fogging the pane slightly with her breath, then rubbed her arms rapidly, even though the room was warm. She had on one of those thin night-gowns the hospitals give out, and scrambled back under the covers, shivering, partly with excitement.
"I can see," she whispered once more, then burst out crying with shock.
^^^
"What will you do now?" Quatre asked as they left the ward, holding her bag. Adia had finally been allowed to leave, after much fretting on her part, once the people at the hospital were sure she was fine.
"Well, first things first, I'm dumping this lot at home." She took the bag from his strong fingers.
"Then, I'm going to see a movie," she grinned, walking backwards along the street, looking back at him. "Want to come?"
"Alright," he replied, smiling at her simple wish. "What do you want to see?"
"I don't know," Adia replied, stopping still in the middle of the street, a pondering look on her face. "I don't know anything about what's on at the moment." It hadn't ever bothered her before, being unable to watch what happened. "You choose."
"Fine," he told her, grabbing her arm and turning her around to walk next to him. "But that means you can't complain."
^^^
"That was cool," Adia remarked, as they left the cinema. The movie had been a comedy/ romance. They had laughed together, flicking popcorn at each other. "So many things to see, so little time…"
Quatre looked at her and watched as her large brown eyes took in everything around them, drinking the surroundings like water to a camel. "I think you'll be better at surveillance than Heero," he commented, continuing along the street, arm in arm with Adia. "You look like you see everything, at least, at the moment."
"Oh, Heero's boring," she replied absently, and ignored his shocked gasp.
"You know Heero?"
"Duh," she told him, frowning. "Like I said, my dad's a Preventor."
"But-"
"Don't stammer, it makes you sound stupid," she remarked, smiling widely at his confusion. "He visits my dad sometimes. 'Course, I've only ever heard his voice."
"Well, thanks for telling me," Quatre said reproachfully, and stopped when she stared at him.
"Quatre, you actually sound resentful!" she commented wryly. "That's probably the Quatre equivalent of swearing!"
He blushed, and she grinned, pinching his cheek. "That's more like the ikkle Ketwa I know," she teased, giggling as he rubbed fiercely at his now burning face.
"You're shorter than I am!" he retorted, and she looked up at his face.
"You're right, I am," she said, puzzled. "When did I get this short? I never noticed-"
He turned quickly and tweaked her nose, then ran off as fast as he could when she squawked with surprise and indignation, then raced after him, their laughter rising into the heavens.
^^^
They slammed through the door, Adia laughing breathlessly as Quatre tickled her, trying to choke out her surrender but laughing instead and falling onto the floor of her room.
"Stop it, I give up, I give up-" she managed, gasping for air. Quatre stopped, and she realised he was pinning her to the floor. Unable to help herself, she reached up and stroked his cheek.
"It is symmetrical, you know," she told him, smiling slightly. It had been one of the first things she'd said to him. ~ And oh, so soft. ~
Quatre smiled back, trying not to lean into the touch. Her fingers were gentle across the sensitive flesh.
Adia's hand traced his jaw line, fluffing the soft, fair down on his skin and watching the way it settled after her fingers had passed. It was too much for him.
Quatre bent down and kissed her abruptly, and she gasped with surprise. Pulling back, she struggled to get enough air in her lungs to speak. "Quatre, I don't think-" but he kissed her again, and she couldn't resist any longer. She knew she wanted to, but…he was the heir to the Winner family, and she was the daughter of a coarse policeman. He should marry for his family, not just fall in love because he wanted to, provide for his sisters…
"Quatre, I can't…" she stammered, pulling away and standing up. "You shouldn't, you know."
He just looked at her, puzzled. He knew she loved him, but why was she so hesitant?
"You shouldn't just do what you want, you have to think about your sisters."
He laughed then, and grabbed her by the wrists. "Adia, I'm a billionaire." He kissed her. "I didn't ask to be, but I am." Kiss. "It's enough to look after generations of Winners." Kiss. "Isn't it reason enough that I love you?" He kissed her again. God, she was so beautiful to him. Even when she had been blind, those misty eyes hadn't changed anything. It was who she was that made her beautiful, not whether her eyes were brown or uselessly white.
Adia kissed him back, then. She knew she loved him, and she still knew that her thoughts on his marrying for his family were still true. But she could ignore that, if just for a little while.