The time I'm seeing you

By Neesah

Chapter 4: Resolution

Spending lunch and siesta time with Relena everyday was one of the best ideas he ever had, Heero thought as he climbed the giant staircase in the Yuy Manor leading to the suite of rooms in the second floor. He hadn't realized how much he really had missed her since they decided to live apart or how much he had been lonely since then, until now. It had been three months but it felt like only yesterday when he came to the Peacecraft estate for their first lunch date and everybody was pleasantly surprised. Even Duo and their other friends who came to visit Relena a few days later were surprised upon seeing him with her, though he could sense their approval and that other thing he couldn't describe that he always had seen in their eyes whenever he and Relena were together. Now that it was mentioned, he had been seeing that expression in the eyes of every person who knew them as long as he could remember. Exasperated amusement? Frustrated waiting? Mild irritation? Sometimes it seemed to him that they were alternately laughing at and feeling bad for them silently, by the looks of that all-knowing 'they're-so-cute-it's-really-sad-they're-complete-morons' expression on their faces. Well, it didn't really matter. They were happy and content, and that was that.

Well, not really that content, at least personally speaking. He couldn't understand why, but the more time he spent with her, the more he ached to be with her. He couldn't get enough of her, and that was driving him insane. Not to mention scared too. Why? Why was he behaving this way? Why was he feeling this way? And why, in the name of all that was holy, couldn't he forget the feel of her lips on his? True, he had kissed her numerous times before, but on her cheeks, on her forehead, hands, hair and aside from that one short, perfunctory kiss during their wedding which they did in front of a lot of people, never on the lips. And never that long and deep. He didn't know that a kiss would feel like that --- as if liquid fire was consuming him inside out as he suddenly shot up to the sky then plunged downwards. When he pulled away, it took him at least ten seconds to realize that, yes, he was still standing on solid ground and, of course, he never really left Earth in the first place. But the worse thing was, try as he might, he couldn't stop himself from thinking, wishing, that it would happen again.

That compulsion and his ever growing need to always be with her caused him to, one night, ride his horse and visit her during dinner. She was surprised but evidently happy to see him, which in turn made him feel warm all over. He stayed for a couple of minutes after dinner then went back. It felt so good that whenever he found the time, he would also spend dinnertime with her. But not tonight. He had a lot of things to take care of and since he would be going there tomorrow for his 'official' weekly visit, he thought that he could endure one day of not seeing her.

He went inside the master's bedroom, tossed his jacket on a chair and threw himself on the bed. He stared at the ceiling, his hands cradling his head, as he tried to make sense of his actions. Going back and forth everyday and sometimes, twice in a day was physically draining but other than that, he felt refreshed, energized even. It felt right. It felt good. So why was he so confused?

His eyes then darted to the portrait to his left. It was their wedding picture. It was one of the first things he had transferred from his old room to the master's bedroom when he finally settled in this room. Again, he disobeyed another tradition dictating that wedding portraits should be hung in the formal receiving room for everyone to see. Nobody really cared about somebody else's portrait and if anybody would care, it would be him, he reasoned. So he hung it where he would see it, where he would usually see it. For him, it was a token, a reassurance and a confirmation that he chose her, that he married her. That she was his.  

And thinking of her made him glance towards the portrait to his right. Relena's portrait. He stood up and walked over to it, lightly tracing her lips, caressing her jaw as if he were touching the real thing. It was a gift from Quatre, a good friend, painter and future Laird of the Winner Estate. The first Christmas when he and Relena decided to live apart, Quatre made two portraits--- one of him and the other of Relena. He gave Relena's to him and his to Relena, saying that the portraits could fill in for either of them whenever they felt lonely. Though it was a poor substitute for the real thing, it still eased his loneliness for time to time. He even got used to sleeping at the right-hand side of the bed, facing the right wall where he could see her face first thing when he woke up. But he often wondered if Relena felt the same way about him, if she missed him as much as he missed her. And in that case, if Quatre's gift to her was of any help since she hung his portrait on the master's bedroom and not on her own room. The thought saddened him in a way he couldn't comprehend but at the same time further fueled the overwhelming desire inside of him to see her. Right then and there.

So he did the only thing that he could do. He went out to see her.

Relena looked up from her book and adjusted the shawl on her shoulders as she inclined her head, listening to the rhythmic thumping of the rain outside. She had just gone inside the master's bedroom and barely got to the bed with her book when it started to rain. That was, at least, an hour ago yet it still kept on pouring. It felt like the sky was as lonely as she was, she thought. On impulse, her gaze zoned on the portrait on the left wall and smiled. "Heero." Quatre really captured his wildness, his aloofness and everything about him in that picture. She knew she had a similar portrait hanging in the master's bedroom in the Yuy Manor, opposite their wedding picture but she had always wondered if Heero got the same comfort she was getting from just looking at his picture. She sighed again, thinking that it was one of those questions she wouldn't really get any answers to. Heero had his secrets just like she had hers. And this was one of them.

Nobody knew that she actually slept inside the master's bedroom whenever Heero wasn't there. She managed to keep this a secret by making sure to only retire when all the servants were already inside their rooms and by waking very early in the morning to go back to her own room as a precaution if anybody went up to look for her. She knew that she was making her life more complicated but what else was there to do? She needed him. She had always needed him. And now, she needed him more than ever before. The weekly visit wasn't enough to start with, and the daily lunches and occasional dinners made her need to see him, to be with him even stronger. He was like a drug she got addicted to, she couldn't shake him off. That was why she took whatever comfort she could --- staying in his room where his presence was at the strongest. Here, she could fulfill her silent wish—his face being the last thing she would see before closing her eyes, and the first thing she would see when she opened them in the morning. When her gaze traveled down to his mouth, she looked away. "If it weren't for that damned kiss!" she muttered. She blamed that kiss for making her feel this way. True, it never became an issue between them for the following day, both of them behaved as if nothing awkward had happened the night before and it never happened again of course, which, by the way, she suspected was the whole reason why she was feeling more edgy. Because even how hard she tried to deceive herself, the truth always managed to resurface. She wanted it to happen again.     

She shook his head, trying to shake the thought away. Her eyes then settled on the other painting in the room, opposite Heero's. Quatre wasn't the only one of their friends who was a painter. Trowa had some skill too though it was Quatre who helped him improve his craft. They weren't that friendly to each other at first. More precisely, Trowa wasn't that friendly to him at first. Quatre frequently visited her for both business and social reasons and being the Head Retainer, Trowa was civil towards him but a bit wary. Only when he realized that Quatre meant her no harm did he thaw a bit around him. But when the Winner heir started showing interest on Catherine and Catherine seemed to have developed affections towards him as well, Trowa became wary again, even to the point of coldness, which didn't surprise either her or Cathy. Trowa tend to become overprotective at times. But he gradually got passed that phase as soon as it became evident that Quatre wasn't the type of person who would cause anyone harm and the two of them eventually became friends. And the painting she was looking at right now was the first major endeavor Trowa did without Quatre's help. It was also his 2nd anniversary gift to them.

She smiled, remembering that day which Trowa patterned the painting from. Hilde, Duo, Wufei and Quatre came by to spend siesta with her during one of Heero's weekly visits. Heero came back from the fields earlier than usual and showed them around the estate, their last stop being Trowa and Catherine's house. From there, they had a full view of the sun setting behind the mountains. Duo, Hilde, Quatre, Catherine, Trowa and Wufei all had chosen to stay by the rocks where they could watch the sunset sitting down, Trowa wanting to sketch the view but she and Heero opted to stand a distance away, directly in front of them. Heero had his left arm draped over her shoulder while she had her right arm around his waist as she leaned her head against him. A gust of wind suddenly blew, making her tuck a strand of hair behind her left ear while Heero brushed his hair away from his eyes. Noticing that they did the same thing at the same time, she lifted her chin to look at him as he glanced down at her. When their gazes met, they smiled, the beauty of the sunset and their friends forgotten. This emotion was what Trowa captured in his painting, naming it 'The Time I'm Seeing You'. Was this how everybody saw them? Was this what everybody thought they had seen in them, what the others thought they were seeing in each other?

She rose from the bed and slowly walked towards Heero's portrait, her gaze never leaving his as if he was really looking at her. She stood before it, as silent and as still as the person in the portrait, though a myriad of emotions swirled in the depths of her eyes. "Why?" she asked softly. "Why did you ma--" Her voice trailed off when she heard the door opened. She whirled around, her eyes widening with the sight that greeted her.

"Heero!" she exclaimed before running towards him. "You're drenched! What were you thinking going out in the rain like that? Come on in and change before you catch a cold," she told him in a stern voice as she pulled him inside the room and closed the door. She led him towards the bathroom and without thinking, pulled off his shirt, grabbed a towel and started drying him off. When she realized what she was doing, namely that she was standing in front of a half-naked, wet guy and drying him off with a towel in a confined space, her hands stilled. She dropped the towel on his head then jumped back. "Umm, you can finish cleaning up while I ready your clothes. Oh, and I'll get you some hot chocolate too." With that, she hurriedly went out, closing the door behind her.

After Relena left, he stripped off his remaining clothes and took a quick shower. When he was done, he wrapped a towel around his waist and went out. Relena was nowhere to be seen, probably still preparing the hot chocolate, but he saw the clothes she got for him on top of the bed. Grateful that Relena always made sure that his closet in the Peacecraft Manor was stocked, he grabbed them then went back inside the bathroom.

When he went out again a few minutes later, Relena was already back. He walked over to the loveseat where Relena was setting down the tray on a nearby table. She glanced up when he reached her, offered him a steaming mug then sat down, leaning sideways against an arm of the loveseat, also holding a mug in her hands. He smiled at her in thanks then sat down himself, also leaning against the other edge, his body slanted sideways so they could face each other.        

Silence enveloped them as they carefully sipped their drinks, the sound of the pouring rain almost getting softer by then. When he felt warm enough, he put down his mug and noticed that she also put down hers. 

"Now that you're all dry, I think it's time you answer my question," she told him, obviously referring to the 'What were you thinking going out in the rain like that?' comment earlier.

He shrugged. "I was already out when the rain started." Out of the stables, that is. But he would be darned if he would say that one out loud to her.

The look of disapproval and concern for his well-being didn't waver on her face. "Still, you should have sought the nearest shelter. Where were you headed that's more important than your health anyways?"

He watched her for a second, debating whether to tell the truth or not, at the same time also trying to gauge what her reaction would be like for either one. Finally, he answered, "Here."

The concern on her face sharpened. "Why? What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"No, no, everything's fine," he quickly assured her.

"Then why did you come here if there weren't any emergencies that couldn't wait until tomorrow?"

"I—" He paused abruptly as he rocked his brains for an answer. He spent that whole time traveling thinking of reasons upon reasons for his coming here but he suddenly forgot every one of them. Well, except for the truth. "I wanted to see you."

Her eyes widened. She looked as surprised (stunned was actually a better description for it) as when she saw him standing by the door. Remembering that, he asked, "Relena, why are you here?" and by here he meant 'inside' the master's bedroom.

The concern on her face turned into embarrassment. She looked away.  "I'm feeling a bit lonely," she told him softly. Before he could respond, she turned to face him again. There was an intense glint in her eyes that made him forget whatever it was he was going to say. "Why did you marry me, Heero? Why did you let your father make you ask for my hand?"

The question caught him of guard, making his race pulse. In his mind, he could clearly recall a masculine voice asking him the same question not so long ago. But what affected him the most was that he could taste the underlying bitterness and confusion in her question, mixed with something else. Hope? Longing? And he knew the longer he remained silent, the more hurt she would be. Gathering his wits, he replied, "Your father asked me the same thing, you know."

"What answer did you tell him?" she asked in a subdued voice though the look in her eyes clearly told him that she had wanted to ask him about that talk with her father for a long time now.

Deciding it was time to tell her, Heero reached back to that day and told Relena what happened.

*************@@*************

As he sat beside his father and opposite the Peacecraft Laird, he tried to calm his nerves. He had never been this nervous when meeting Anthony, but then, he had never asked for his daughter's hand before. The two Lairds had already finished discussing business and Arren just finished presenting Anthony with their proposal, which was why Heero was currently being pinned by Anthony's thoughtful yet scrutinizing stare. It was only because of years of careful and self-imposed training not to mention inborn talent did he manage to succeed looking calm, cool and nonchalant, the exact opposite of what he was really feeling inside. After a few more tensed minutes, the old Laird spoke. "So, you want to marry my daughter. What is it that your father told you you'll gain with this, hmm?"

Heero glanced at his father and saw that he didn't take any offense with Anthony's comment, and that he wouldn't interfere. "He didn't tell me anything. It was my choice, not his."  Was it just his nerves or did he really see a ghost of a smile on the old Laird's face?

"If it were your choice then I rephrase my question. What is it that you think you'll gain with marrying Relena?"

"I don't think of gaining anything," he answered, his voice as cold as the look in his eyes.        

"Then why do you want to marry her?"

"So I can protect her," he replied. "So I can make her happy."

Anthony remained silent for a while, thinking over his answer. "Do you love her, Heero?"

"I…" he started to say, the coldness turning into confusion, uncertainty. "I don't know. Not really. Maybe not in that way. I mean I care for her. We're friends, that I'm sure of and the idea of her marrying one of those jackals makes my blood boil. They only want to marry her just so they can own the Peacecraft Estate and make her their trophy wife. It makes me sick. Love may be too strong of a word for that and truthfully, I don't think we're old enough to really know about it but a good friend won't just stand by and let something like this happen if there's something he can to do to help. That's what I'm doing."      

"So you're telling me that she would be better off with you?"

"I would treat her better, yes."

"And you're not aspiring to own the Peacecraft Estate for yourself?"

"Why would I? I have my own estate to inherit one day and I don't need to remind you that it's much larger than yours." Only after finishing his statement did he recognize how rude it sounded. "I beg your pa---"

 "It's ok," Anthony said, waving a hand. "Don't worry about it. You're just being honest and one shouldn't apologize for saying the truth." He was clearly amused. "Then tell me this, don't you care about the Peacecraft estate at all? Aren't you interested about its welfare? What if I chose you for my daughter and you became the next Laird? Would you care for it just like you would care for your own estate?"

"Of course I would. It's Relena's and I promise to protect and take care of her and of everything that belongs to her."  

"But what if after I died, you discovered that I didn't leave the estate to you and Relena, that I arranged for a far male relative to inherit it. What would you do?"

Puzzled, he answered, "Nothing. What do you want me to do?"

"But surely it would change everything, right?"

"Except for the fact that the Peacecraft estate doesn't belong to Relena anymore, it changes nothing."

"You wouldn't fight my relative's claim?"

"If there were papers legally stating his claim then what's the point?"

"What about Relena? She would own nothing by then."

"What is mine is hers also She would manage the Yuy estate with me."

"You wouldn't leave her, divorce her or abandon her?"

"Why would I?" he said for the second time, anger and puzzlement lacing his voice.

The Peacecraft Laird stared at him. Then, he asked, "What if I chose someone else to marry her?"

Fear went through his whole body but he tried to answer as calmly and as honestly as he could, just like what he vowed himself to do. "Then she would marry the one you chose."

"What about you?"

"I'll remain her friend." He hesitated, then added, "I'll always be her friend."

Again, Anthony fell silent as he mulled over his answers. "So basically, what you're telling me is that you want to marry my daughter because you don't want her to marry someone who only thinks of the benefits of such a union and not of her welfare and happiness, which you said is your priority. And that you care about the estate though you care for Relena more and even finding out that she won't inherit it will never change that fact. But you don't love her. Not in that sense. Well, you're not really sure since you're not old enough to know what real love is and what it isn't. But what you're certain of is that you're friends and friends help each other, protect each other. And that won't change even if she married someone else." He smiled at him. "Did I cover everything?"

Heero took a deep breath. "Yes, you did."

"I see." Anthony glanced at the Yuy Laird. "Your son is wise beyond his years."

Arren looked at him first before looking at Anthony. "Anyone who can look at himself honestly and see things for what they are and not rush is."    

"Well said," Anthony agreed. "And since we're talking about wisdom, I hope you both don't mind if I impart you with something that might pass for it." Neither Heero nor his father said anything so Anthony took it as a sign of assent. "All beginnings start small. That's because growth entails time and nurturing. Take for example, a seed. It's small and hidden, buried deep, that sometimes it seems like it's not there at all. Yet it is there. It'll then take root while its tiny tendrils slowly creep up to the surface. And the moment it finally breaks through the soil will be like a sudden rush, magnificent yet scary. And once it blooms, ah, there'll be nothing like it. Who would have thought something that beautiful and magnificent came from something as small as a seed?" he remarked, gesturing with his hand. His eyes then captured Heero's for an intense second. "Do you have any questions for me, lad?"

"Just one."

"Then ask away."

"Well, it's not really important. I'm just curious," he began. "Does anyone who asks for your daughter's hand gets questioned like this?"

Anthony didn't even bother to hide his amusement. "If it'll somehow comfort you to know that the others also experienced the same interrogation as you, then yes, everyone got questioned. My motives for the questions are evident and understandable, don't you agree? But I also want you to know that I didn't question them this long and that's mainly because their answers didn't lead to more questions like yours did." He gave him a sly grin. "You talk a lot more and with a lot more sense than you let other people think you do, Heero Yuy."     

"People think what they want to believe, Lord Anthony."

"So true," he replied. "Is that all you wish to ask me?"

"Hn."

 "Well then. I think I asked all the questions I needed to ask. I'll think your proposal over," he told them as he stood up.

Heero and his father also stood up and said their goodbyes. Anthony walked them to the door of the study with Arren going out first. Before Heero could leave, Antony clamped a hand on his arm. "I want to say thank you. I'm glad my daughter has a friend like you."

Heero gave him a small but grateful smile.

"And because of that, I want to give you one piece of advice, the same advice I told Relena a few days ago," he told the young heir quietly. "You believe that you're too young to know what love is. Well, you're right. Love is like a seed. It takes time for it to grow to what it should be. In it's early stages, it's still small, almost unseen, with it deeply buried underneath but it's there all the same. Don't forget that."   

*************@@*************

"So you see, marrying you is all my idea, not my father's. It was my choice. You're my choice."

"Why?" whispered, her expression unreadable.

Heero looked at everything else but her. "I already told you why."

"Because I'm a friend. And you went out of your way to help a friend in need," she stated softly, her voice laced with resentment, resignation and a bit of irony. "Funny, it's practically in the same notion why I chose you."

Surprised, he looked at her. "What do you mean you chose me? Your father picked me for your husband, didn't he?"

"He did. But being the one whose getting married, he said that it was really my choice and that he was only there to scout the field so to speak. So he asked me. And I told him I'll marry you."

His eyes never left hers as he mulled over her words. She picked him. Of all the men seeking her hand, she picked him. If that was the case, then… A smile appeared on his lips without even realizing it nor understanding why. "We chose each other."

Relena couldn't help but smile back, though hers was a bit sad. "Yes, I guess we did." She then lowered her gaze. "But what if things were different? If there wasn't any immediate need for me to undergo an arranged marriage, if I were like any normal girl, like Hilde or Dorothy, who had the freedom to wait and not rush, to let time run its course, what then? Do you think, when the time came, we still would have chosen each other?"

The way she said it made his heart ache. He would do anything, anything, to make that pain and sadness she was feeling go away. Without thinking, he crossed the small distance separating them and lifted her chin with a finger. But the moment their eyes locked, he forgot whatever it was he was planning to do or say. The intensity in her eyes, the feel of her skin, the sweet scent of her hair, the fullness of her lips --- just about anything and everything about her took his breath away. She was beautiful. Remarkably, painstakingly, heart-stoppingly beautiful. But that wasn't any secret. With her flowing, golden hair, delicately-shaped face and radiant, sky-blue eyes, everyone referred to her as the most beautiful woman in the land. And she was. It was the simple truth, though not in it's entirety. She was beautiful, not only at the outside but also at the inside. Light shone from her, as well as beauty. Strength too. And love. No wonder people couldn't help but be drawn to her! But the most fascinating thing was her ignorance of the way she seemed to affect other people, the way she unconsciously elicit a response from them. Like the way she was making him feel right now.

All thought fled from his head, except for one. Giving in to that one overwhelming thought, he slowly leaned down and kissed her. Kissed her fervently, earnestly. Kissed her with all the hunger, the need, the desire that was building inside of him during the past three years, during a lifetime. Kissed her until she moaned and opened for him, finally letting his tongue to dance with hers. Kissed her until both of them, giving in to the need to breathe, finally let up for air.  

When their gazes met, they knew, they understood, as if it was the first time they were seeing each other, really seeing each other. They finally realized what Anthony meant and what was that 'change' that was happening between them. They were falling in love.

And sharing that knowledge, that acknowledgement, they also discovered the answer to Relena's question. Whatever was or whatever would have been would only lead up to this moment, would always lead up to this moment. They would have chosen each other, regardless. The seed was already there and time would only make it bloom.

Heero stood up, pulling her with him. Then in one swift motion, he swept her in his arms. She was startled at first, almost scared but immediately and instinctively wrapped her hands around his neck trustingly as he carried her to the bed. They were married for three years now and it was high time, he thought, that they finally had their wedding night. And if the sounds that followed were any indication, it had been, definitely, worth the wait.  

The first thought she had upon waking up was that she didn't want to open her eyes. She didn't want to discover that that glorious night she had with Heero was only a dream. But she knew she had to open them, there was no escaping it. So she did and found herself staring at his face.

Well, not really his actual face but his face nonetheless. His portrait. She smiled. She had always favored sleeping at her side, at the left-hand side of the bed, facing the left wall where Heero's portrait hung. She knew that Heero preferred the right-hand side of the bed since, he had told her before, it would feel weird to wake up seeing one's own face. Wanting to see the real thing, she turned to her other side. She saw the real thing, alright, but instead of finding him beside her where she thought she would, she saw him standing by the window. He only had his jeans on, his hair as unruly as ever, one hand braced against the wall as he gazed out of the window. She felt her cheeks flush as she marveled at his chiseled face, his well-toned torso, the way his jeans clung to him like second-skin, and she couldn't help but think of what they just did, what they had shared the night before and what they could and would do now that they had gotten past that first stage.

She sat up, holding the white, thin cotton blanket up to her chest, covering her naked body. Sensing her movement, he turned his head. The way he regarded her made her pulse race, and it was only partly due to passion. Something was wrong. He usually looked that way --- gazing out the window with that intense expression on his face --- whenever he had finished thinking of something serious and had come to a decision. She wanted to ask him what was the matter but she couldn't find the words nor the courage to do just that.

"This won't work," he said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What won't work?" she asked, almost afraid of his answer.

"This. Us," he answered, shifting his body to face her. "It won't work."

Her whole world came crashing down on her. And she almost fell down with it.  "Why?" she asked again, her voice strained by the effort not to scream.

"Because… Dammit, Relena, I won't be able to live without you!" he told her in a strangled voice. "A night, two nights, it won't be enough. It'll never be enough. I'll always be thinking of you, wanting you. How do you think I'll be able to get through the day?" He turned his attention back to the window, running his fingers through his hair. "And with our situation, I don't want to force you to…" he trailed off, shaking his head.

Hearing his words, her world was rebuilt in a matter of seconds. To say that she was shocked by his revelation was an understatement. She felt an odd sense of feminine pride and satisfaction that she managed to unnerve this usually unruffled male. The thought made her giddy, and warm, and oh so beautiful. She stood up, wrapping the white sheet around her then walked towards him. "You don't need to force me to do anything. I'm your wife, Heero. I'll follow wherever you go." 

She was standing only a breath away but he still wouldn't turn to look at her. He took a deep breath. "But that's just it. I don't want to force you to make a choice. Between staying here, in your home and being with me."

"Why can't I choose both?"

"Because what I want is for you to always be with me! And because we have two estates to run! How can we choose one estate then stay there? It'll feel wrong. For you, for me, for everyone. Because I'm certain that when faced with the decision, I'll choose to stay in the Yuy Estate. It's mine. I belong there. And it's the same with you. You'll choose to stay here because you belong here. It's yours, the place you called home for 18 years. How can I compete with that? How can we resolve that?"

"Silly, silly boy," she told him softly as she reached out to touch his cheek. This time, he couldn't stop himself from turning to look at her. Her whole world then took on a deep, Prussian blue cast.  "If it's any consolation, you're not the only one who'll be having a hard time lasting a whole day, you know. I won't be able to stand it either. And after all these years, with all these going back and forth between estates, haven't you still figured out the concept of home?" 

His eyes were intense, and a little puzzled. "It's a place where you belong."

She nodded, smiling. "You're right. But it's not always a place. Sometimes it's a person." She paused, taking a deep breath. "And for me it's you. Home is wherever you are, Heero." She saw his eyes widen for a moment, the first time, she realized, that she saw him unguarded, vulnerable. "So don't work yourself over something that can easily be resolved which you just managed to turn big. There, I already gave you a few hints. I think you'll be able to think of an arrangement that will suit us perfectly. Or a variation of a certain arrangement."

She could almost see the wheels turning in his head. She started withdrawing her hand from his face when he suddenly caught it in his. "We can stay in one estate for three weeks then stay at the other for three weeks, then come back again. That way we'll be able to keep an eye on things without neglecting anybody. It'll require constant traveling but we have done that and got quite used to it so it won't be a problem. The important thing is that we'll be together. Everyday." He inclined his head and regarded her. "What do you think?"

She smiled. "It's perfect."

He smiled back and pulled her closer to him. "So, you really mean it? You'll stay with me?" he asked, his voice turning a little gruff as he leaned down towards her.

"I'll stay with you," she answered, her own voice turning husky as she closed her eyes, his lips just millimeters away from her. "Always."  

~THE END~

This is it. I finally managed to finish this ::big sigh:: I really intended this to be just a one shot fic but I had so many things to say that it wouldn't fit in one chapter. So if ever I gave you any cliffhangers or if it was taking me along time to update, and for all the other nuisances, I'm sorry. And to all of you who enjoyed this fic and patiently waited for my updates, thank you. I'm a confessed Heero and Relena fanatic --- I see them in anything and everything around me. Sounds disturbing e? But if it wasn't for that fact, I wouldn't be able to write any fics. Thank God for small blessings.

I know, I know. I should have included a lemon and this fic should have been titled 'The time I'm drinking with you' since they had a lot of scenes where they were drinking. I did this intentionally because one, I kinda rusty with lemons and I don't think a lemon would be appropriate in the atmosphere I already created, and two, the 'drinking' was part of their tradition, custom and their world was ruled by traditions and customs.

Finally, I want everyone to know that I have only three reasons for giving out cliffhangers and it doesn't include being mean. One, it's the way I planned to group the events in a particular scene or chapter, the way it'll correlate with the other chapters, thus making a whole. Two, it's taking me too long to finish a chapter and I decided to post the part that can stand alone. And three, the chapter is getting way too long than I originally intended so I have to cut it. Personally, I prefer one-shots to multi-series fics because I want to see what happens at the end right then and there. But I also learned to accept that there are stories that are just too complex to contain in one chapter.

Okay, that's about it. One down, three more to go (two unfinished GW fics and one Esca) and another one that my demented head is beginning to brew up (GW/Black Jewels Trilogy crossover). Oh, and if I get inspired, maybe the missing lemon scene for this fic. Well, let's just see. Thank you for reading. Til next time!