DISCLAIMER – I do not own Gundam Wing.
Chapter Seven
Trowa held Heero up, to keep his unconscious body from slipping under the surface of the water in the pool. He had a hold of Heero under his arms, with his hands clasped in front of Heero's chest. The warm water of the pool was an uncomfortable 81oC. Well, it was uncomfortable for him. To Heero, Duo, and Jinx, the water probably felt like a blessing.
Wufei had Duo and Quatre was holding Jinx in positions similar to the way Trowa was holding Heero. The primitive hydroheater didn't have the normal harnesses used in more sophisticated medical centers, which meant the three healthy pilots had to strip down to boxers and get in the pool to hold their friends.
He thought he felt Heero move. Suddenly, Heero's hand came up and held Trowa's hands against his chest, taking Trowa by surprise. Heero noticed the hands were decidedly unfeminine and let go, turning to see who was holding him.
Trowa smiled, happy to see Heero alive and well. "Welcome back," he said.
"Thanks," Heero said softly. He looked around to see Duo and Jinx still unconscious.
Trowa came up behind Heero, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry," he said, "I would have checked to see if she was still holding me, too."
Heero looked at him with wide eyes, but Trowa only smiled knowingly and didn't offer further explanation.
The clown placed his hands firmly on the edge of the pool and lifted himself effortlessly out of the water. Trowa turned back around to face Heero in the pool. "You need to stay in here for another thirty minutes," Trowa told him, looking at the chronometer on the wall to emphasize his point. "I'm going to start warming up the shuttle." He grabbed a towel from a nearby rack and dried himself off. Then he collected his pants and shirt, got dressed, and left the healing room.
Heero looked down at the water. It came up to his shoulders. He glanced at Wufei holding Duo. The water would be about to the base of Duo's neck if he were standing upright, Heero figured. Wufei was having no problems keeping Duo's head out of the water.
Quatre, on the other hand, was a different story. The water line was already halfway up Quatre's neck, and Jinx wasn't much taller than Quatre. He was struggling to keep her head from being submerged.
Heero walked slowly through the water to Quatre. "Here," he offered. "Let me take her, the water's too high."
"Thanks," Quatre said, relieved. "I was afraid I'd drop her." He gently placed Jinx in Heero's waiting arms and swam to the ladder at the side of the pool.
Heero smiled. Of the pilots, Quatre was the only one shy enough to wear a t-shirt in the pool. All the rest of them settled for wearing only boxers. Except Jinx, of course. They had left her navy shirt on, and she was still adorning Heero's boxers. Hm, they had to find her some more suitable clothes soon, Heero thought.
He was content to hold her here, in a mock embrace. Unlike the others, Heero held his charge facing him.
Wufei noticed. After Quatre left, Wufei decided to inquire about it. "Heero," he started, "do you like this girl?"
This was strange. Talking to Wufei about females? Heero wasn't going to lie this time around. "I do," he admitted.
Wufei nodded.
"I knew you did," a small voice spoke up. Duo was awake.
"How long have you been awake?" Wufei asked him, releasing his hold on Duo.
"Long enough to hear Heero say…" Duo smiled as he talked.
"Shut up, Duo," Heero interrupted.
"Nope," Duo joked, "I don't think you said 'shut up, Duo' just a little while ago…"
Wufei was already out of the pool. "If you ladies are going to bother each other like this," he said, drying off, "then I'm going to help Trowa and Quatre get the shuttle ready for departure. We're still expected this afternoon, you know." He pulled his pants on. He'd left out mentioning that they were expected at Relena's later that afternoon. And Wufei wasn't planning on mentioning that; he was sure that Heero was well aware of where the shuttle was headed next.
Duo watched Wufei leave and then dunked his head under the water. He spurted water everywhere when he surfaced. "How much longer do we have to stay in here?" he asked, already bored.
"Another twenty two minutes."
"Darn." Duo began swimming laps to keep himself busy.
Heero just held Jinx. Her skin seemed darker today than it had yesterday. In fact, now that Heero thought about it, her skin changed color all the time. When he first saw her, her skin tone was the same as Duo's. Then, that night he met with her downstairs, her skin was tanned. It was still copper-toned the next day when they left for the mission. After it started getting cold, though, her face and the rest of her skin paled. Now, it was getting darker again. Perhaps she was a chameleon, he mused.
Jinx's arms came up out of the water and wrapped around Heero's neck, reflexively hugging him back. He was sure she was still unconscious, but he held her closer. She responded by snuggling her nose into the base of his neck to rest her head on his shoulder. He liked this type of sleepwalking.
Duo was tired of waiting, and he jumped out of the pool. He dried with a towel quickly and got dressed with lightning speed. As soon as he had all his clothes on, he rushed out of the room to find the other pilots, and to leave Heero alone with Jinx.
Jinx moaned a little as she woke up. She sprang back from Heero, startled that they had been holding each other. In her quick movement, she immediately took a big mouthful of water and had to spit it back out.
"Ew," she said, sticking her tongue out.
Heero reached out and put a hand on each of her shoulders, pulling her back close to him. She floated to him easily through the water. Heero gently placed his arms around her waist, lifting her off the floor of the pool. Jinx smiled at him and held him close.
She regretted having to let go of him, but they had to leave sometime. Heero helped her out of the pool. Jinx didn't have a dry shirt to wear, but Quatre had thought ahead. He'd brought a bag full of clothes for Jinx, including some jeans and t-shirts as well as dresses for all kinds of formal occasions.
Heero smiled as she entered the shuttle where the Gundam pilots were waiting patiently for her. Even with all those new clothes, she'd decided to keep wearing his jeans.
* * * * * * * *
Sally Po breathed a sigh of relief as Wufei's face confirmed the success of the rescue mission. She'd been waiting on pins and needles in Relena's palace, as had everyone else present. Wufei cut off transmission.
Walking down the hallway to the receiving room, Sally was greeted by the anxious faces of Relena, Noin, Hilde, and Catherine, who had taken time out from the circus to visit her brother. "Don't worry, girls," she said with a smile. "All Gundam pilots are present and accounted for."
* * * * * * * *
Trowa landed the shuttle in Relena's backyard. She was sure to be pissed about him scorching her rose bushes, but the bitch deserved it, he reasoned. Trowa had never forgiven Relena's sleeping with Quatre for no other reason than to make Heero mad.
"Nice killing of the rose bushes," Wufei commented.
"Thanks."
Together, they shut down the systems of the shuttle and locked it down. The Gundam pilots and Jinx gathered their respective bags, including the ones salvaged from the first shuttle for Heero and Duo, and made their way to the palace.
Of course, Relena was there with a gigantic smile to greet them all. Trowa winced as she hugged him first. That's what I get for having the longest stride, he thought to himself. Maybe he should start walking slower from now on.
She hugged Quatre, who seemed to shrink back from her embrace, and Wufei, who had a look of unequivocal disgust on his face. The other girls present greeted the men as well.
Relena stopped short when she noticed Heero and Duo walking on either side of another girl as they approached the back porch of the palace.
"Relena!" Duo called out, dropping his bag and giving her a big bear hug. After he set her back down on the ground, he indicated the foreign girl standing next to Heero. "This is Jinx, she's an operative for the Preventors. You remember us talking about her, right?"
It took Relena a moment to get over her shock of seeing another girl. "Uh, hello," Relena said taking a while to recover her composure.
"Good afternoon, President Peacecraft," Jinx said, bowing, showing off her superior skills at keeping composure.
"Relena," Heero said, giving her a nod and effectively taking Relena's attention away from Jinx. He stared at her coldly, unblinking. Relena stared back and smiled, trying to discover what emotions lay behind his impassive blue eyes.
Jinx flinched inwardly as they stared at each other. She knew he still loved her. He had practically admitted it to Quatre yesterday morning. Walking over to Duo, she held his hand and started walking to meet the other persons present.
Something flickered across Heero's eyes, Relena noticed. What she didn't know was his perfect soldier façade had been broken by the quick pain he'd noticed from Jinx, not some realization of burning desire as Relena hoped.
* * * * * * * *
Sally whistled at some of the gowns lying on her bed in the room she shared with Catherine. "Man, Quatre really knows how to pick some nice ones," she commented to no one in particular. She and Catherine had gone through the bag Quatre had given Jinx in order to dress her for the formal tonight.
She turned around to look at Catherine doing Jinx's hair.
"Done," Catherine announced, smiling broadly at her latest achievement.
Jinx was wearing a dark red and simply styled dress, with thin straps that crisscrossed in the back. She walked to the full-length mirror, her dress flowing around her feet. Catherine had done her hair up halfway, letting most of her massive hair curl in tendrils down her back. Jinx ran a finger over the scars on her left upper arm.
Sally came up behind her in the mirror, wearing a sleek black dress with silver lining and a slit up to her mid-thigh. She placed a hand over Jinx's shameful marks. "No one will notice," she told her. "And I doubt if anyone will care."
Walking away from Jinx, Sally motioned to Catherine that they should leave.
"We'll meet you downstairs soon, Jinx," Catherine called out lightheartedly to her as they disappeared beyond the doorway.
Jinx stared at herself in the mirror. Here she was, looking like a real woman and in a beautiful dress. Yet in all her life, she had never felt more naked. She sighed. There was nothing she could do about the brands now, she thought. Grabbing a sheer and matching shawl, she wrapped it around her shoulders and examined her left arm again. Even though the material was see-through, it concealed the scars well enough for them to go unnoticed.
Satisfied with her appearance, finally, she made her way down the stairs to the party.
* * * * * * * *
"You're acting like a maniac," Wufei said, annoyed with Duo.
"Hey, I'm just excited," Duo explained. "Lets dance, Wu-man!" Duo grabbed the champagne from Wufei's hand, handed it to Quatre, and dragged Wufei out onto the dance floor.
"What is your malfunction!?" Wufei screamed at him, pulling his hands out of Duo's and trying to distance himself from his over-enthusiastic friend.
"Duo," Sally said from behind him. "May I cut in?"
"Of course," Duo said, bowing elaborately to her.
Wufei was thankful to be rescued by Sally, and looked forward to dancing with her. The black dress she wore made her completely enticing. To his surprise, instead of Sally dancing with him, she started dancing with Duo.
Muttering all the way back to where Quatre and Trowa were standing, Wufei grabbed his drink from Quatre's hand and chugged it. Trowa laughed at him as Wufei reached for another glass that passed by on a waiter's tray.
After their dance, Sally and Duo came over to the three waiting gentlemen.
"So where's Heero?" Duo asked, downing a glass.
Trowa nodded in Heero's general direction. Duo turned to see Heero leaning against a pillar in the shadows, obviously trying to avoid Relena who was desperately searching the crowd for him.
Sally and Wufei left to dance, with Wufei glaring at Duo as he walked past.
"Wow," Quatre uttered, looking past Trowa and Duo at something. They turned to see what he was looking at.
Jinx was walking through the clumps of people standing and socializing. She looked relieved when she finally made her way to them, avoiding the advancements from other men.
"I hate formals," she said with a sigh, her arms wrapped around herself.
"But you do it so well," Duo said with a tease, hugging her with one arm.
"You do look beautiful tonight," Quatre said, blushing a little and kissing her on the cheek.
"I must agree," Trowa chimed in, kissing her hand politely.
"Thanks," she smiled, blushing and looking down. Trowa offered a glass of champagne, but she shook her head no and turned it down with a smile. "Where's Heero?" she asked.
"Avoiding Relena," Quatre answered, pointing to where they had last seen him. "Oh, no. She found him."
Duo watched as Jinx's crimson eyes came to rest on Relena and Heero. He saw them flicker with a strange light as Relena threw herself on Heero in an embrace. Heero didn't necessarily respond to her advances, but at the moment, Duo doubted it mattered. Jinx was a victim to a bad case of jealousy.
"Come on," he said, tightening his grip around her waist. "Let's show Wufei how to really dance." Jinx couldn't turn down an offer like that.
* * * * * * * *
Heero backed away from Relena's unexpected show of affection. What the hell was wrong with her? First she sleeps with his best friend, now she's Miss "Oh I missed you so much, Heero." This shit doesn't happen to anyone but him.
Relena was blabbing on about something. Heero wasn't paying attention, but he did pay attention to the way Duo had his hand on Jinx's waist as they danced around Wufei and Sally. And he definitely noticed how beautiful and sexy Jinx looked in the dress that was a shade darker than her eyes.
"Hm," Heero responded to one of her questions. Relena was still talking on and on like he cared. He hadn't seen her in three years, save for the brief meeting the other week. He had been so mad at her, and had blamed her for his being mad that he couldn't bring himself to even be present in the same room with her. So why was he here now? He couldn't figure out why. Maybe cause Jinx looked so good.
As if on cue, Jinx looked over Duo's shoulder and smiled at Heero.
* * * * * * * *
"What was that?" Duo asked, that teasing tone creeping back into his voice.
"Nothing," Jinx replied, smiling with slight embarrassment and placing her head on Duo's soft tuxedoed shoulder. "He really does love her, doesn't he?" she asked, her voice tainted with sadness.
"No, I don't think he does," Duo replied, talking softly so that no one could hear him but Jinx. "Maybe he used to, but she hurt him. And I don't think that it's forgivable." He tightened his arms around her waist, and she responded with a sigh and started playing the end of his long braid through her fingers absentmindedly. "I think he likes you, though."
"What?" Jinx's head snapped up as she stared Duo in the eyes.
"I think he likes you," Duo repeated.
"No he doesn't." Her voice was low and quiet, and it had a different emotion permeating though it. Duo wasn't sure if he could name it. Failure?
"I think he does," Duo insisted as she laid her head back on his shoulder, melting into his comforting arms. "Heero needs someone like you, Jinx. You and he are so alike, it's almost scary. But it's a good thing, for the two of you. Neither one of you are familiar with this whole emotions, compassion, and humanity thing, which makes you perfect for each other. You can rediscover the worlds lost behind your training. And you can do it together." Duo ended his speech, proud that he finally found the right words to say to her. If only he could tell Heero now, then maybe they'd actually admit their feelings for each other.
Jinx didn't answer. She was deep in thought, trying to sort out her own emotions, and Duo knew it. So he didn't try to bother her or talk to her. He just held his friend as she struggled with her own heart and mind.
The dance ended, and Quatre came up timidly. He tapped on Duo's shoulder, because Duo was still holding Jinx, regardless of the cessation of music. None of the other guests were left in the dancehall. "Hey Duo, the dance is over," Quatre announced.
"I know, I know, I know," Duo groaned, releasing Jinx and stretching. They'd been dancing, or rather holding each other, for the last hour and a half of the formal. As he stretched, the shoulder of his jacket brushed against his cheek, and he felt that it was wet. Confused, he looked at Jinx.
Trowa walked up and put a hand on her shoulder, noticing her tears before Duo did. Quatre handed her a handkerchief, and she took it to dab away the rest of her tears.
"I'm sorry," she said wearily.
"No need to apologize," Quatre told her, putting an arm around her shoulders to lead her up to her room. She didn't resist as he took her up the stairs to where Relena, Wufei, and Heero were waiting. Duo and Trowa were following; each of them grabbed an extra bottle of champagne before leaving the empty dancehall.
Heero's eyes flashed in anger again at seeing Quatre with his arm around a saddened Jinx. Quatre was used to that look. Heero's eyes had been working overtime as he glared at Relena for her stupid babbling, then at Duo for dancing with Jinx. It had gone on like that all night long.
Relena was too dense to notice the tension. "I'm sorry guys, but with all the diplomats in town, and the girls visiting, I only have three rooms for all of you. And with her here…that could present a problem." Relena was glaring at Jinx.
Duo was quick on defense. "No problem," he insisted. "We're all soldiers here. As long as there are enough beds for us, then there is no problem at all. Regardless of who's here with us." Trowa and Duo were both glaring back at Relena now.
Wufei gave up on the whole situation and threw his stuff in the middle room, closing the door behind him after he entered.
But it did present a problem, Duo thought. Quatre and Trowa were most likely to bunk together, and he and Heero were too. That left Jinx to bunk with Wufei, and Duo did not wish for the horrors of sleeping in the same room as Wufei on anyone. Except maybe Relena right now…
"Well, Heero," Duo started, picking his bag off of the floor in the hall where they had all piled their belongings. "I'll see you in the morning." He opened the door and walked into Wufei's room.
Heero had a hard time controlling his surprise. Duo was setting him up to share a room with Jinx? He glanced over to where Quatre and Trowa were. But they had already gone, having slipped out of the tense hallway and into their room. Heero was left with Relena and Jinx, alone in the hallway.
He nonchalantly shrugged at Relena, as if this sort of thing happened everyday. He picked up both his bag and the bag of Jinx's that Catherine had thoughtfully repacked and set in the hall with the pilots' bags. With a bag in each hand, he held the door open with his foot for Jinx.
Relena stalked off in a huff down the hallway.