Disclaimer: 40, 40, I got 40 million. Do I hear 50? Fifty! I see fifty! Do I see fifty-five million? Fifty-five, fifty-five … going once, going twice, sold! Gundam Wing and Sailor Moon sold to the ninety-year-old in a wheel chair! There. I don't own Gundam Wing or Sailor Moon anymore. :P
Thanks go to Ashika, Autumn Hime, and Serenity-Moon for editing and beta-reading. :D
Chapter 16: Change of Heart
Even though Usagi was worried sick about what could or would happen next, she was not one to forgo sleep in order to worry.
In the end, it all came down to one question: now that she had got what she wanted, did she want what she had got?
She didn't know.
The time limit in Gundam Wing loomed over her like a shadow demon and there really wasn't much she could do.
She didn't know how Hiiro felt.
She barely knew how she felt. When had things in life stopped being so clear-cut?
By morning, she had only come up with one fact: women were hard to please.
…………………
He dreaded the rising of the sun for it symbolized duty rearing its ugly head. Hiiro had never, not once in his life, been in any situation similar to this. He stood at a crossroads, between Relena and Usagi, both of whom had pledged their love for him but were both also out of his class.
"Hiiro?" He felt his shoulders tense at the sight of Usagi, blonde hair and all, looking oblivious to his anxiety in her pink moon-dotted pajamas. His heart began thumping erratically as she blinked and smiled at him from across the breakfast table.
"What?" he asked, flustered.
Again, she smiled that beauteous smile and replied, "Can you pass me the syrup?"
Hiiro was violently jerked back to reality.
…………………
Due to some excellent strategic planning by Quatre, everybody found that they were called out of the house in the afternoon, whether sent on an errand to acquire bananas, or carried out the door by a nonchalant Rashid and forced to perform manual labor in Quatre's football stadium of a garden. Everybody, that was, except Hiiro, Usagi, and the guy at the bottom of everything – Quatre.
Usagi rolled her eyes. It was obvious what Quatre was doing though she did have to give the blonde points for trying his hardest to get out of the soon-to-be battle zone by claiming he needed to be shut up in his study for the afternoon. Hiiro seemed unaware of this scheme and that would be the cause, she supposed, of the rather violent sounds of banging coming from the study. Quatre was probably tearing his hair out at the moment. She predicted that if this act of nonchalance between Hiiro and herself continued for another hour, Quatre would be bald.
So, because she would have hated to see a bald Quatre and because she was never one to play hard to get, Usagi decided to jump right into Quatre's plans. And maybe beg his forgiveness for the delay and loss of hair later.
"Hiiro, can we talk?"
His startled expression was so priceless that she almost whipped her sketchbook out and started sketching. But she quickly decided that Hiiro would find that much less amusing than she.
He nodded silently and she stepped further into the room. There was no turning back now.
"Hiiro, I meant every word I had said before and during the bet and … and … I truly do love you." Usagi found that writing sap was very different from acting out sap. It was so much easier to have Relena shout out random declarations of affection in the manga than to actually do it herself. She suddenly felt her respect for Relena mount another notch.
She shifted from foot to foot and cleared her throat as silence met her question head-on. "Hiiro?"
"I'm sorry." Her heart sank. "I don't love you."
She looked away. "Then … don't bother fulfilling the terms of the bet. I'd rather you not."
He looked uncomfortable and swept his eyes around the room, looking anywhere but at her.
"Can you tell me why?"
His eyes caught hers and stared at her so piercingly that it suddenly became difficult to think up coherent thoughts. "I'm not real, remember?"
The words were almost sarcastic but the tone was oddly emotionless and casual.
"I-" The rest of the sentence stuck at her throat.
"I'm sorry."
"So am I," she returned bitterly and walked out of the room before he could see her cry.
…………………
"You did WHAT?!" The walls shook as Quatre raged. Duo was long gone, running out of the room before another word could be uttered. Wufei shrunk back against the wall while Trowa tried to blend in with the shadows. Only Hiiro stood stock-still in the face of a thing even more ominous than a Gundam ready to obliterate a colony – Quatre's anger.
"Do you know what I DID for you? All the trouble I went to?! Do you know how STUPID it was for me to send DUO to go get bananas and WUFEI and TROWA to prune the rose bushes? Do you KNOW how much money it would take to FIX everything again?!"
Wufei let go of a snicker. Everything Quatre said was true – Duo had come back at around 5:00 that day, proudly announcing that Kroger had decided to have a sale on bananas and he had bought one hundred and twenty-four pounds of it. Quatre had turned so white when the men started rolling boxes of bananas into his mansion that Wufei had thought he was going to faint. And the garden incident…
He scowled. It was all Trowa's fault for not telling him that if you pulled the cord on the lawn mower, it would start mowing the lawn. Therefore, it was also all Trowa's fault that half of Quatre's rose bushes were mangled and there were patches of where the dirt almost showed due to the cut grass. And it certainly wasn't his fault that he couldn't tell a flower from a weed and when asked to weed the garden had dug up all the flowers. Give him a break.
Quatre was bright red and had started shaking Hiiro violently by the shoulders. By then a faint light of panic was evident in Hiiro's eyes as Quatre continued ranting.
"Now, if you don't give me a DAMN good reason, I will make you eat all the DAMN bananas that DUO bought!"
Wufei shrank back a few more inches as Trowa inched towards the door. It was bad enough that Quatre was bright purple and that he was yelling but when the blonde Arabian started cursing, one had to prepare for the worst. Wufei was positive that by then, Duo had already put up the temporary bomb shelter in his room and dragged both Usagi and Relena in there with him. He was also painfully aware that Duo was out of harm's way while he was still behind enemy lines.
But he was also sure that he wanted to hear Yui's reason.
"We're from two different worlds. She's from the past and I'm merely a character she created."
Quatre's face darkened but remained purple. "That is the lamest excuse I have ever heard," he replied softly, letting go of Hiiro's shoulders and stepping back several paces. Hiiro narrowed his eyes at the blonde suspiciously as if he were afraid that Quatre might pull out dynamite at any moment and light it.
"Go apologize to her and admit that you love her – don't you dare lie, Hiiro Yui! – and then maybe, MAYBE, you won't have to eat bananas for dinner."
The three of them began to file out of the room in a solemn line as Quatre stood by, looking as if he were ready to bark out, "March! Left, left, left, right, left."
Wufei glanced over at Hiiro. The panic was gone from his eyes and the Asian pilot honestly admired him for standing in the path of tidal wave Quatre and still remaining as stoic as ever.
The admiration somewhat lessened with Quatre yelled out, "QUICKLY!" and Hiiro flinched. Wufei knew for sure that Yui was officially traumatized for life. The Perfect Soldier had been broken, and he would never be able to look at Quatre the same way.
…………………
The door creaked open, and she jumped back, scowling. "Don't you knock, Hiiro?"
"We need to talk."
"About what?" She looked back down at her magazine coolly. He reeled back in surprise. This Usagi was very different from the one that afternoon.
"About … this situation."
"What situation?"
He ignored her icy voice. "I admit that … that … I feel something towards you."
She didn't answer, didn't even look up.
"But … but what about the Eve Wars? How can it ever end? What of this … 'manga' that I'm in?"
Finally, Usagi looked up, eyes hard as steel. "Is that all I am to you, Hiiro? Some deity that dropped in on your doorstep who could stop the war?"
She got up and started pushing him towards the door. "Th-that's not what I m-"
The door slammed in front of his face.
Quatre was NOT going to be happy about this.
…………………
Pure attempts at humor. Not very good ones either. I promise it'll get more interesting! I just need to get all the emotional junk out of the way … hahahaha … grrr. But anyhow. This chapter was very … turbulent. But probably not as bad as the next one. I think they confronted each other about three times about emotions in the next chapter … ~sigh~ But I'm getting back onto this one! Since GM is done and all … and I really have nothing to use as an excuse. ^^
Notes:
Kelly: Heh … you still think it's interesting. Here's more though! :D
Lady-Tomoyo: Heh … "tomorrow" in Gundam time served on a platter! Have fun! :D
Amanda: Thanks! Here's more!
Fantasia: Heh heh … well … I actually check it more often but at that time … my life was messed up. Sorry about what's been happening in your life … I hope you got my email but … it seemed messed up.
Donna: Heh … nothing happens next.
Callisto Star: Gosh … I barely remember what happened last chapter. Yeah, the trivia question was a bit weird but I really couldn't think of any other logical reason for one of them to lose and the other to win. Ironic, y'know. ^^;;; I'm so lame … but that's the genius of it! :D
Kimono-pebols: Thank you! Yes, Usa/Heero do rule! :D
Solus Nox: Longer chapter … hmmm … I'm not sure this one is longer. Heh.
Ashika: Heh … this was before I "met" you, ne? How weird … well … great to have you here! :D
Sailor Grape: I do now! I actually know what's going to happen … I think. ^^;;; But you got over the writer's block, right? Since you're updating again? ^^ Anyhow, thanks for the review! :D
Juxagirl: I barely remember that … seriously. But the Wufei part … I remember feeling so pathetic after I posted it. It's as if I were trying to be funny but nothing's happening. But thanks for your support! :D
Himesama16: Really? Wow … Heh … this chapter was uploaded at about 12:00 midnight. And I wonder why people can't see it .. I guess the others never truly find out what the wagers were … hmmm … how sad for them. :P Thanks for the review! :D
The Desert Fox: Well … the whole competition was messed up and I somewhat tried to explain it. Hiiro is in the Gundam world and all the trivia was from the "real world" so he really shouldn't have known any of that … But the Usagi part … well … luck, I guess. ^^ Date? What date? Sappy moments are not my forte so … I avoid them like heck. ^^;;;
Cheska: I updated again! Yay! :D Must kiss? Uh-oh … edges away. ^^;;
Shannan: Heh … I hated it. But you already know that … ^^;;;
Serena Yuy: Duo is kawaii, ne? Hmmm … that is an idea I've been wondering about lately … hmmm … Duo/Usa is cute too, hmm? ^^;;; But seriously…~walks off talking to self~
Dreamertwin: Fulfill the terms? Hiiro? Nah! He always gets out of doing things. Because he's perfect. Dang it.
Email: angelight97@yahoo.com. If you're interested in being emailed before updates, email me at angelight98@hotmail.com. Thanks! ^^