Tying the last lace on her running shoes, she placed both palms on the floor and pushed off to stand up. Flexing her feet, she nodded in satisfaction that the laces weren't too tight or loose. Walking over to open the door, she left the bedroom, not bothering to turn the light off since she dressed in the dark. Skillfully making her way down the hallway she knew so well, she smiled as she stopped in front of Duo's door. It was dark outside, maybe six, yet she was fully awake. A few days ago, she talked Duo into going out for morning walks to get her legs back into some semblance of working order. Another week passed from being stuck in that infernal contraption and she wanted OUT. Yet, when he agreed, she bet he didn't plan on BEFORE sunrise. Hilde smirked. She wanted these mornings to be romantic between the two...going for a walk and watching the sunrise didn't get any better than THAT. Feeling even more awake from excitement bubbling in her veins, she reached a fist up and knocked on his door, the sound loudly carrying. Nothing stirred inside, just like she figured. She honestly didn't expect him to be up so early, since he always liked his sleep. Teeth nibbled her lip to keep from laughing. Yes, she knew Duo, and she knew him WELL. Knocking again, she only waited momentarily before reaching for the door handle.
Slowly opening the door, she peeked in and took a look at his alarm. Her lips pressed together when she saw the time. It was a few minutes past when he was SUPPOSED to get up, and she knew once again he hit the snooze. Quietly opening the door the rest of the way, she tiptoed into his room. The sight of Duo sleeping so peaceful made her heart melt and she gave in to the urge to watch him. Stopping next to him at his bed, she kneeled down face to face. Resisting the urge to prop her elbows on the edge of the bed and openly stare, her weight remained on her haunches as her eyes roamed his body. Sleeping in just boxers and nothing else, the sheet rested loosely over his waist, yet haphazardly strewn at best. Duo was known, on occasion, to be an avid sleeper. His chest rose and fell with each deep breath he took, adorably lying on his side toward her. Oh, how she wished she could watch the sun rise on his face, seeing him sleep the entire time. Her eyes and thoughts turned dreamy just thinking about it. Her fingers itched to run along the curve of his shoulder and down to his waist, but her hands purposely fisted to still the action.
"Not polite to stare." He throatily mumbled. One violet eye BARELY peeked open.
She jumped in surprise, than smiled when she realized he was awake. "Why NOT? I have every REASON to. Besides, you were supposed to be UP." She softly chided. "Our WALK, remember?"
"Go away and come back later." He mumbled, turning on his stomach and burying the pillow over his head, clutching it with both hands. He damn well KNEW he was supposed to be up by the number of times his alarm kept going off, but slapped the snooze to catch five more minutes every time. Damn Hilde for her puppy dog eyes and kissable lips. He couldn't very well say NO when she made faces like that!!
Leaning forward to her knees at his prominent ignorant attitude, hands rested on her hips, fighting impatience. Duo basically PROMISED, what she'd weaseled OUT of him anyway, that he'd go with her on a walk...mostly because he didn't want her going out ALONE. "Duo Maxwell, you get your cute ass out of bed and WALK with me. Unless you want me to go by MYSELF again... I know how PISSED you were when I left WITHOUT you."
His protective side flared. A few days ago, she kept telling him to hurry up and when he went to grab something to drink from the kitchen, she told him to catch up and left him behind. He immediately ran out to catch her and almost tied her to a chair to keep her from leaving without him. It took a promise nearly every time for her to wait two MINUTES so he could grab some water for later. Having said his peace, his mind registered the threat she sent him. Cute ass, ne? She thought he had a cute ass? If he wasn't so tired, he would've made a smart-ass comment to her. Instead, he growled from tiredness and intolerance of being woken up so early every morning. "You'll stay put, if you know what's GOOD for you. We'll GO together, but when the sun is UP." It came out muffled from under the pillow, but held the edge of promise and gravity to its tone.
Resigned, her head shook, knowing she'd have to wake him up like she a few days ago. An evil grin sprouted over her face. She LIKED having to torture him awake and THESE were the days she CHERISHED. It made everything that much more FUN in her opinion! Leaning forward to her previous position, a hand slowly snaked out, quietly, over the top of his spine. Pointing her fingers down, she held the rest of her hand out of the way to keep from alerting him. Moving to the starting position at the top of his shoulders, her skin pressed against his and reveled in the amount of heat he produced. Drawing a line across his shoulder blades, her eyes remained half on her work and half on the pillow to see if he would unexpectedly wake up. Stopping in the center, she moved down the middle of his spine, using only her fingernails this time. She smiled when his skin goosebumped as he shivered from her touch. Slowly, she made her way down his back till she hit the hollow of it. Her tongue darted out to wet her lips when she was a mere inch away from his boxers. Her fingers drew a light, lazy circle at the edge and she heard a tired, pleasurable groan under the pillow and felt another shiver. She was making it EXTREMELY hard for him to go back to sleep, and she KNEW it. She was also VERY aware that she was turning him on, but she didn't care. He WOULD get up, and they WOULD go on their walk if she had to do this ALL DAY. The thought seemed inviting, even WITHOUT the punishment behind the reason! But, business before pleasure.
Duo's hands clenched the pillow for what seemed the millionth time since she began her torture. She was making his skin burn where she touched him and making him shiver at the same time. Goosebumps would NOT leave his skin and he was aware of what she was doing to him. Thank GOD he was on his stomach! BESIDES turning him on, she was trying to wake him up, a task that was going to cause her more problems if he DID. He was going to take retribution for her playing her little devil tricks with his mind... His eyes squeezed shut to steer clear of those dirty wayward thoughts. He IMMENSELY liked what she was doing to him; she was creating feelings he didn't know even EXISTED.
When her fingers circled directly over his boxers, his teeth clenched to keep from laughing at her ticklish touch. Then she suddenly stopped, quickly delved her fingers in between the elastic and his skin. His eyes shot open under the pillow. 'What's she-' The elastic pulled up and released a second later, loudly snapping his boxers. He yelped in surprise and the pillow shot off his tousled hair. Quickly turning around, wide eyes stared into Hilde's. She blinked and innocently looked at him, trying to keep a smile off her face. 'Innocent my ASS!' He thought. His hands shot out and he grabbed both her arms, bringing her closer in a searing kiss. When he pulled back, a dreamy look was on her face and, with a groan, realized he was awake and she tricked him to sit up. 'But what a way to wake up!' He realized and evilly smiled.
She started to smile, which developed into a full-blown giggle. "Good morning lazy ass." She commented, grabbing his pillow before he could go back to sleep. Tossing it onto the other side of his room, she backed away from his reach, knowing he would go back to kissing her in his OWN little torture. Standing up, hands rested on her hips. "Now get UP!" She playfully shouted, widely smirking.
Duo flopped back onto the bed and spread both arms at his sides with a moan. Seeing some clothes on top of a dresser, Hilde walked over and grabbed them. Walking back to his bed, she tossed them to him and they landed directly on his stomach with a thud and rush of air from his mouth. Then, without a word, she walked to the door and left so he could get dressed. He sighed, still staring at the ceiling. He spotted a few shadows, signaling dusk arrived. Knowing if he didn't get his lethargic ass out of bed EXTREMELY soon, Hilde was going to come back in and chew him out again. Raising an arm over his body, he grabbed the clothes off his stomach and slowly sat up. He blinked a few times and rubbed a hand through his messy braid, bringing it over his face to wake up. The other grabbed the tail and undid the elastic band. Getting off the bed, he grabbed a brush and undid his long hair. Quickly running it through, he skillfully rebraided it and went to his bed to get dressed, now a LITTLE more presentable, if not more AWAKE. Opening the door a minute later, he nearly stumbled to the front door, spotting Hilde leaning against it with a foot propped up against the wall. Both arms crossed over her chest and one finger rhythmically tapped over her upper arm.
Looking his way, she pushed off the door. "Finally." Turning, she opened it and walked through, leaving it open for him. His head shook with a tired smile and walked through the door, locking it before jogging to catch up with her at the end of the walk. Never get in the way of a rambunctious Hilde Schebeiker; he should've learned that a LONG time ago.
~*~*~
The pair walked half a mile and stopped at a park to sit and rest. Both reclined and he laid an arm across the back of the bench as they watched the sun rise. The silence pertained for a while, save for the chirping of a few birds and the sounds of squirrels moving about in the trees. Hilde felt content; there was no better word for it. "It sure is beautiful." She said, voicing something she marveled over in her head for a while. "For artificial sun anyway." She added with a tilt of her head. Feeling his eyes on her, she smiled softly, self-consciously.
"It sure is." He softly responded, but she knew very well he wasn't talking about the sun. Turning his way, his hand reached up and slowly trailed across her cheek, enjoying the feel of her skin. She scooted closer and leaned her head on his shoulder. Moments later, she felt his arm around her.
He heard Hilde's deep, even breaths as they relaxed and his eyes followed a pair of kids aimlessly running around from one piece of equipment to the next. 'This is perfect.' He thought. 'To only be like this for the rest of my life. No war, no nothing; just peace.' He mentally sighed. 'This entire time with Hilde has been nice. I can't believe how much things have changed. If I were in the war, fighting with Deathsycthe right now, I would've MISSED all this. If there IS a god, I thank you for allowing a temporary halt in the madness. I can live life for a while.' His thoughts strayed back to the first time he met Hilde during the war. Although he was tired of it already, he had to give it SOME credit; he met a woman whom he admired like no other. He thought about all their adventures and how far they just recently came. He smiled slightly. He never thought Shinigami would ever be capable of love. 'LOVE?' He thought, stunned at the sudden thought. The word seemed foreign to him; all he knew was death and revenge for the fallen. Hilde's face floated through his mind and he knew it was true. She held his entire heart in the palm of her hand, taken a little at a time. Though neither of them knew it, she still took it. They'd been through so much together and he couldn't imagine life without her. He thought back to the night it all changed. How she almost died because of HIM and his carelessness. He came so close to loosing her... He shivered, feelings in his mind and heart overpowering him.
Pulling back from the embrace as if sensing something wrong, Hilde looked at him in confusion. "Duo?" She asked, wondering why he pulled away. Perhaps it was time to go back and make breakfast. A hand went under her chin as he felt the softness of her skin. Leaning his head down, he kissed her in desperation, to make sure she was still real. To reassure him that his carelessness had not cost him the one he loved most in the world. Yes, it was true, Hilde WAS the only one that meant the most to him. The only other one that came a close second was Deathsycthe. When he stopped the kiss, she pulled back and looked into his eyes. The kiss was different than normal and she saw some frightening emotions in those violet depths. "What was that for?" She softly asked, smiling slightly to show him she was jesting. Duo gazed down into her beauty and smiled a little.
"I don't NEED a reason to kiss you, do I?" He quietly asked. His eyes darted across her face, memorizing every detail, even more so than was already etched in his mind. She smiled somewhat and it dulled the rising pain in his chest. His hands were stained with the blood of so many...it was hard to tell if he had any humanity left in him. She was the only one that hadn't left him when things got bad. And she was the only one that ever waited for him. When he returned, she was there, a smile on her face to greet him.
"I guess not." She quietly agreed. Her instincts were throwing up flags the longer she stared into his eyes. She saw that look before on countless numbers of people who were hurt or lost something important to them. It was the look of anguish, of pain. Her weight shifted sideways till she faced him. Still looking him in the eyes, she raised both hands and rested them on his shoulders. "What's wrong Duo?" She asked concerned.
His hands rested against her delicate waist, feeling the strength radiate. He broke contact with her eyes and looked down at the bench. How could he tell her what was going through his head? He often thought like this, mostly in times when he could be alone to deal with these emotions. It would be hard to exactly WHY he felt this way and HOW the instances came about. When he didn't answer after a moment, teeth nibbled her lip in uncertainty. Raising a hand to his chin, in determination for an answer to his problem, she turned his head toward her, leveling his gaze again. She was taken aback from the tears swimming in his violet eyes. She had only seen Duo cry once in her entire lifetime, but that was for a different reason. He WASN'T going to ignore her anymore. Everything was fine now, what could be the problem? Her hand rose to caress his cheek, trying to draw his pain away so she could take it instead. She didn't want to see anything but HAPPINESS in his eyes.
"What's the matter?" She whispered, almost inaudibly, unable to voice anything higher. This unknown, unseen pain was eating at her. His eyes gained a serious tone, directed at her. Thinking he didn't hear her, or understand what she said, her mouth opened to repeat herself, louder so he could hear her. His hands gripped her waist tighter in guilt and the tears in his eyes overflowed, one running down his cheek. He couldn't get the words out without breaking down, or choking through halfway. He wanted to tell her, but just stared at her. It was like his mouth refused to obey his brain. He felt she deserved an explanation, to know why he acted this way, but couldn't find the words. Her eyes shone out of worry. He closed up for some odd reason and wasn't telling her. WHY wouldn't he tell her what was wrong so she could fix it? Feeling severe protection encompass worry, she leaned forward and kissed the tear that stopped near his lips, as if trying to kiss away his pain. "Why are you crying Duo?" She asked, blinking at her tears.
Duo's arms went around her waist, drawing her near to steady his frenetic emotions. Hilde's eyes still shone and he cursed himself for making her worry. He never WANTED to see her cry when she looked at him for any reason other than happiness. But simply being unable to talk about a problem that plagued him for so long, perhaps since before the war into his childhood, was the cause of so many problems. Carefully locking his arms around her, his face buried in her shoulder. Her arms wrapped around his neck, one hand softly running through his hair to hopefully help relax him. A tear of apprehension fell from her eye in not understanding. She couldn't figure out what was WRONG and she didn't know what to DO. She didn't want to yell at him, since it seemed tempting to open him up. He ALWAYS took the bait in a skirmish, but she knew that it wasn't the way to go about solving this problem. She felt worry and trepidation build in her chest, but also the need to protect and nurture him, to make him feel better. Since she didn't know what the problem was, all she did was hold him and be held. He knew she'd listen to him whenever he wanted to get something off his chest, she hoped he would do so before too much longer. Whatever was going on in his mind was making him cry; something he RARELY did.
The darkness had always been a friend and now it was a lifeline. Having gotten his emotions under control from the raging storm, he took a breath and exhaled to stay calm so he could speak. Raising his chin to rest on her shoulder, he managed a rough whisper, at least glad for that. "I just don't want you to leave me."
Her arms tightened, her hand still stroking his hair comfortingly. "Why would you think I'd EVER leave you Duo?" She emotionally whispered.
His jaw clenched in trepidation. He didn't want to anger her right now with his thoughts. In the past he told her those same thoughts and she was irritated with him for being concerned when she was obviously 'okay'. It always plagued him because HE caused her to be in the hospital initially, and NO amount of physical health was going to take that much guilt away. But she wanted to know what was wrong and he had to take the chance. "I was thinking about how far we've come since we first met, and how you changed my emotions. I realized one thing about that night I hurt you." She stiffened, knowing what he was talking about. He waited for her to say something, but she gradually relaxed in the embrace. "When you went into cardiac arrest that night, I actually thought about life you. It scared and intensely depressed me. I don't WANT to live without you Hilde." He whispered. He pulled away from the hold enough to match his lips parallel with her ear. "I could NEVER imagine living life without the one you love."
She gasped, and different tears fell from her eyes. Tears of joy and delight of hearing the words she so longed to hear him utter for a long time since he first kissed her. She sniffled and her heart burst with all sorts of emotions, most of them toward Duo. She pulled back, smiling happily through her tears and stared into his eyes. They were a storm of emotions that shone with the light of the rising sun. She didn't know if she could find her voice, but the moment was magical and she wanted to add to it. A hand came up to his chin to cup it as she stared into his eyes.
"I love you very much as well Duo, and I would NEVER leave you...because I wouldn't make it through a day without your love." He sheepishly smiled and she continued through her joy. "I'm glad you said that because I've wanted to hear those words for so long; since we kissed for the first time. I always imagined, DREAMED, that you'd say that to me someday soon." Her head quickly ducked before looking back. "I'm glad I met you all those years ago the way I had. I don't regret a single thing I've done since we met because as long as we were together, or I what I was doing concerned YOU, it didn't matter. I was happy whenever I was with you." Her other hand went to his face, stroking his cheek softly. "I always felt something ever since I first laid eyes on you, but I never knew if you felt anything toward ME. So I kept my heart to myself, but I'm glad I don't have to hide it any longer."
Duo felt his heart burst through tears, his happiness and elation knew no bounds. His heart held more love for Hilde than the universe had stars. She smiled and he thought how beautiful she was, and how beautiful those three little words were. He always thought that saying 'those three little words' did so LITTLE. But he knew he was GROSSLY wrong and couldn't express how he felt other than saying 'I love you'. His hand moved up her back and melted into her hair, pulling her lips toward his in a passionate kiss that flew with ardor. They let out all their feelings toward each other in that kiss, and realized just how much they needed each other. They pulled away simultaneously and saw the sun rose quite a bit since their devoted confessions. He looked at it and then her, noticing how the sun highlighted her hair, how it glistened off her tear tracks, and put sparks of light in her eyes. He felt so proud that SHE loved HIM; words didn't even DESCRIBE how he felt. Jumping up with a bright smile, his hand extended to her. He pulled her to him again, kissing her deeply, then her eyes and nose, kissing away her tears and wiping the remainder away. He let her do the same and entwined their fingers, swinging their arms in a childlike carefree as they made their way home.
Finally back at the house, the two walked inside, feeling a change in the atmosphere. "I'm going to catch a shower real quick before we leave." She informed, walking off to her room. After shutting the door, she looked in the mirror, hardly recognizing the smile that lit her face and eyes; yet knew it was her. It was the person she WISHED to be with Duo at her side...happy. Turning away from the mirror, she turned the shower on and stepped to the far end. Grabbing the shampoo, she remembered the numerous instructions and cautions by her doctor. It boggled her mind just HOW careful she had to be. Though necessary, it was also ANNOYING.
"When you shower, don't turn the water on too hot. Make it lukewarm, because your blood pressure will rise and your skin will also dry out, creating a rash. Don't put your scar directly under the water because the pressure could put undue stress on it. No perfumed or antibacterial soaps, the chemicals in those things could get under your skin and irritate it even more. When you dry off, don't run a towel across your wound; the fabric could get caught under your stitches. Either air dry or CAREFULLY dab at it. Use only a soft soap, and SPARINGLY. Don't get any shampoo or conditioner on the wound, I don't want to take a chance with the chemicals in whatever you use."
Her eyes rolled as she stepped out. She sighed at how restricted a simple shower was, but when she looked down at the discolored skin and blue thread nearly over her heart, she knew it was vital to her health and eventually her LIFE. She wiped her legs down and continued to idly ramble the rest of the 'care instructions' in her head and wrapped a towel around her head, getting ready.
"When you go to wrap your wound up, make sure you put enough medication on it, but don't use too much that it won't allow the wound to breath. Use good-sized gauze, enough to cover, but not enough to make yourself uncomfortable. Tape the edges so it stays and you don't have to worry about lint or dirt getting through. When you wrap the bandages over the gauze, make sure it's loose enough to allow breathing room, but tight enough so they don't fall off."
Carefully shaking her head so the towel wouldn't unravel at such apparent necessaries, she gently wrapped the other around her chest and grabbed the edges so it wouldn't move. Of course, Duo was there, listening intently and taking it all in so she wouldn't be able to FORGET any of it. Cracking the door, she peeked both ways before turning the light off and rocketing the short distance down the hall to her room, loudly closing the door behind her, not taking ANY more chances this time.
Duo heard the door slam and knew Hilde was in her room. Turning his attention back to the tv, he hardly watched it, still reeling from their earlier conversation in the park. He aimlessly flipped the channels with a dreamy smile about the road his life had taken. He and Hilde were living together and they both loved each other, he was hiding out from the war and no one knew he was here...things couldn't get any better. He looked at his watch and knew it normally took her a while to get her bandages wrapped, so he could wait a little bit before he asked what the hold up was. It took a little bit to get around such a horrible wound, trying to keep the pain down and such. A memory popped into his head and he grinned devilishly at it. He was there that day when the doctor was giving out his strict orders about Hilde's wound and he was there every check up to make sure she was taking care of it. A small snicker bubbled through his throat and out his mouth. He bit his lip to keep her from hearing. He knew that she was taking care of it...and WELL. Among a few OTHER things on her person...
Flipping through the channels in a bored fashion, he waited for Hilde to get done with her routine shower after their walk. He sighed. His attention span was shorter than normal and he thought he'd take them out for lunch for a change of pace. Pushing off the couch, he ambled his way around furniture and toward the bathroom door. "HEY HILDE!" He yelled. The water shut off and a minute later the door silently opened. Her upper body jerked through the doorway and she inquisitively looked at him. Opening his mouth to announce his intention for interrupting her shower, he froze, stunned. His eyes drifted to the towel that unraveled from her chest. She was instructed not to wrap it too tightly, or to tuck the end of the towel over her wound. ANY loose-knit fabric like that wouldn't be allowed or tolerated by her doctor. Both arms juggled the clothes she wore earlier around her diaphragm, now covered with the top of the towel that apparently wasn't held on good enough. She looked down in confusion and squeaked in shock seconds later. Not caring about pain, only her embarrassment, she jerked the clothes up to cover her chest before jolting her petite figure to her room, slamming it behind her and his stunned presence. After ten seconds of silence finally reached his ears, he regained control of his limbs and somehow managed to get back to the living room, taking the controls again...idly flipping through stations again.
Duo chuckled. 'Yea, she's been taking GOOD care of it.' He saw THAT first hand. He also saw the beautiful curve of her breasts, glistening with beaded water from her shower, her wet skin shining in the light. His head quickly shook to ward off THOSE thoughts. He didn't want them interfering with his body and causing reactions before they went to the doctor's office. If he let his mind wander, he would never be able to stop thinking about her body. He thought about what he saw that night in the ambulance and he wistfully smiled at the vision of her small body. She was nearly his height, for their age, but her figure was extremely slim...and well balanced. He bit his lip and lightly slapped his cheeks, telling himself to snap out of it.
He turned off the tv and in wonder at what was keeping her. He checked his watch again and got his answer. A loud curse followed by a venomous shout sounded throughout the quiet house, nearly making him jump out of his skin! "DUO, GET YOUR ASS IN HERE NOW!" An eyebrow shot up at the volume. Curiously, he slowly went to the hallway to her room, wondering just WHAT was going ON.
~*~*~
Sighing, she knew it was hopeless. She hated to ask for help with something she'd been doing for weeks, but this was INFURIATING. Wrapping the towel tighter around her waist to keep SOME of her vanity, she told herself it was the only way to get to the doctor's office on time. When she got in her room, she saw they took longer on their walk than normal...for OBVIOUS reasons. She overextended the shower, which was subconsciously making her hurry to wrap her bandages. The medicine was applied and gauze in place, but she was trying to wrap the dressing too quickly and it wasn't coming out the way she wanted. She was quickly becoming frustrated to the point of wanting to take scissors to the damn cloth! So she did the only thing left she knew to do, she yelled for Duo. Waiting for him to come in was agony. She tried to keep her heart from pounding out of her chest and against the wound, but couldn't stop the adrenaline rushing through every pore in her body. Head to toe, she was anxious and slightly afraid because Duo NEVER saw her THIS exposed, save for that one time a few days ago... Her cheeks burned in memory. She SAW the shock in his eyes, but also saw pleasure and was glad he at least LIKED what he saw. When she heard a soft knock on her door, her head quickly shook to rid herself of THOSE thoughts. "Yea." She said loudly, bidding him entrance.
Duo didn't know what he expected, but he was MORE than shocked when he saw Hilde sitting with her back facing him and her lower waist wrapped tightly around the towel from her shower. His palms started to shake and a cold sweat broke out. Taking a deep breath to calm down, it didn't seem to be working. He couldn't even FATHOM he POSSESSED this much adrenaline! He was MORE than flabbergasted to see she hadn't even put any CLOTHES on yet. He stopped with his foot in the doorway and stared at her bare back with his mouth wide open. When the initial shock wore off, he thought of all the evil possibilities that could come out of this situation and shook those off. Thinking of her injury helped to ease his hormones down a notch.
She gave an impatient sigh and carefully turned her head toward him, arms still protectively hunched over the sides of her body. "I need your help because I tried to hurry and I'm starting to get pissed off at these bandages." He snapped out of his reverie and slowly edged over till he sat behind her. Her arms were positioned just so and her shoulders hunched over enough so he couldn't see anything, which he thought was to his BENEFIT right now. If he saw anything he might lose control and they'd NEVER get to the doctor's office. Ahh...the life of a teenage boy with overactive hormones... Oh, the AGONY! "I already put medicine and gauze over the wound, but I'm in too much of a hurry with what little time we have. It'll go quicker if four hands are working instead of two." He quickly and harshly chided himself for the gutter trail his mind took when she spoke that sentence. She was only asking for pure, innocent help here, no hidden messages about it. Slowly giving him the roll of cotton, the two worked diligently and quickly to make her halfway decent.
Feeling the cloth over her upper torso, she was greatly relieved to be somewhat covered. 'The quicker the better!' She thankfully thought. The closeness of him behind her and the way his fingers brushed against her trembling hands when he passed the strip was playing hell with her equilibrium! She grabbed the clip for the roll and secured the tail end in place satisfactorily. Nodding in fulfillment, her head turned to him a bit and smiled her thanks. She immediately caught the fire in his eyes as they roamed her delicate figure and felt a heat from a pit below her stomach. Her skin started to goosebump and the exotic urge to have him touch her in places she knew were always off limit before rose at a frightening pace.
His eyes raised to hers, picking out the need and want in them, equal to what he felt in his own body. 'Which is rational.' He reasoned, trying to placate the sudden state of his hormones. 'We're two young teenagers in love, doesn't get anymore reasonable than that.' Oh, how he wanted to touch her. He wanted to caress every inch of her body. His hand slowly rose on its own accord to her shoulder, but it stopped when she turned another fraction and he saw more of her chest, along with what lay between her shapely breasts...the scar he'd given her for their 'playfulness'. His hand stopped and his eyes dropped to the bed, guilt seeping in with a vengeance. He silently berated himself for wanting her when she was still healing. What if something DID happen? She could tear every stitch and end up in the hospital in even WORSE pain than before!
He leaned back and carefully shielded his eyes, feeling his body return to normal at a rapid pace. "You'd better get ready before we're late." He told her, trying to keep his voice even.
Hilde was taken aback when Duo dropped his intense gaze to her bed, then raised two neutral eyes to hers and broke their spell. Frustration brewed when she saw the guilt in his eyes, before his bangs covered them up. She knew from experience that he did that when he was thinking of something in particular...something that he just helped her shield from harm. Her scar. Anger boiled along with the aggravation, and she wondered if he would EVER stop THINKING about her accursed scar! If he felt guilty about it every time they were intimate, then they would NEVER be together how they should be in the hopeful future! When he moved his weight to stand, a hand shot out and grabbed his arm without thinking and looked into his curious eyes, her own on fire with irritation and annoyance. She had enough of placating to these certain emotions; it was OVER a month already! "Duo." He raised an eyebrow. She took a deep breath of courage; blurting this out in the moment of anger was different than calculated speech. The problem was, she was doing both mind frames. "If you feel guilty every time we are this close to each other, are you ever going to touch me?" She knew her anger and annoyance showed through her eyes and question, but she was past caring. She loved Duo and she didn't want to deprive him of the simple pleasure of touching her body whenever he wanted. All because he felt REMORSEFUL. She WANTED him to touch her, to make her feel things she never knew existed. She didn't want his mind straying to a night that wasn't solely HIS FAULT.
Duo saw the resentment in Hilde's eyes and a small bit of anger came to him as well. He knew she was pissed that he couldn't stop blaming himself for that night, but HE caused it and HE would have to deal! He kept TELLING her that. But her question was honest, and in all truth, he didn't WANT to feel guilty about touching her. Lord KNOWS he wanted to more and more recently! The intimacy of her question threw him for a loop. His mouth gaped open and shut without an answer given. "...No." He dumbly muttered, trying to stand again. Distance was the best thing for him before he lost his resolve, but her grip wouldn't let go. He could see the desire in her eyes and the amount of it made his mouth go dry, and his body heat up. Her entire body faced him and the towel that wrapped tightly around her when he entered was loosely hanging together, a slit showing off a good portion of her upper thigh. Roaming her body with his hungry eyes, he wanted to DESPERATELY feel the softness of her entire body under him with a sudden vengeance. But he wanted to wait until her scar was at LEAST healed enough to DO something that physical.
That small give was enough for him to make up his mind. All the unease and uncertainty, the guilt and shame of her accident, finally eased a fraction with a sure decision. He knew he would touch her and give her what she wanted, and what HE wanted, when the time was RIGHT and they could both exert themselves without worry or fretting about petty details. When, and IF, that night ever came, he didn't want to worry about Hilde bleeding from her chest wound. Decisively nodding, partially in thanks, he unwrapped her hand from his arm and finally stood. "I KNOW I'm worrying too much about your accident-" Her brow rose, "-but I want it to heal PROPERLY before anything else HAPPENS between us. I don't want to take that ONE CHANCE that something could go wrong and you end up in the hospital again." Her eyes narrowed a bit and he stepped forward to tap her nose lovingly. "Just remember that I love you and when the time is right, and when you're HEALED, THEN we'll take the next step. I want it to be special for you AND me, and it's worth waiting for. Now get dressed, we're going to be late." Turning around, he walked from her room and closed the door softly behind him. After it clicked shut, he leaned against the door with a quiet sigh. Hearing quiet movement behind him, he strode away. Stopping in his room, he flung himself on his bed and buried his head in his pillow, groaning loudly at what was possibly the BIGGEST, and STUPIDEST mistake of his LIFE. "YOU'RE A COMPLETE IDIOT MAXWELL!!!"