Hello again, everyone!
I would have got this out earlier, but I was out holidaying.
(YAY! Me and some of my family members went to Thredbo (It's a mountain resort place thingy in Australia for those who don't know) for a week. It was a bit freaky though, 'cause we're currently in bushfire season in Oz and we had to drive through 4 hours of smoke, plus five hours of no smoke to get there. It would have only taken like, two hours, but every quick road there was closed.)
And I actually saw the fire. Not up close or anything, but it was across the river we were driving along.
Unfortunately we had to leave Thredbo early because the fire moved 10 km overnight until it was only 15km away from where we were staying, and the whole place was covered with smoke.
Anyway, I got back only recently, and decided to get this chapter out quickly, because I'm going away for ANOTHER week next week.
Mercury Ice Storm: I'm sorry I couldn't get this out for your birthday… let's just call it a belated present. ^_^
Key:
Bold = emphasis
Italics = thoughts
Awaiting Good Fortune
*******Chapter Eight: Unusual Housewife
Usagi had heard people term eyes as 'the window to the soul.' It sounded very poetic and sappy, but it was very true.
She had pondered the term a while ago, and come to the conclusion that you could always find the truth about a person by looking hard into their eyes.
Usually, when she looked at someone, she would see a good person (although sometimes the goodness of a person was hiding, and covered by the darkness of greed and anger), but most of the time when she looked at Heero, she saw that the windows to his soul had their curtains closed and planks of wood nailed across the windowpanes.
If Usagi had realized that she had been staring thoughtfully into his eyes for more that five minutes, she probably would have looked away, but because she had slipped into her own sort of dream-like state, she continued to stare.
"You're lonely…" slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it. She snapped herself out of her daydreaming and clapped a hand over her lips. His eyes widened a bit and she turned away at lightning speed, blushing furiously.
She stared at the floor bashfully until she worked up the courage to talk again.
"I'm sorry… I didn't even realize what I was--"
"Forget it," he said, not harshly, just in his usual monotone. He closed his laptop, exited the lounge room and climbed up the stairs.
Gah! How embarrassing! Usagi thought as she let her gaze move from Heero to the television screen. She stared at it for the twenty minutes that remained of her favourite show, then sauntered into the Dining Room and plonked herself down on a chair next to Minako.
"What's wrong, Usagi?" Minako asked, worry lacing her happy voice. As she saw the odd look on her normally happy friend's face.
Usagi let her head fall to the table with a bang in response. Duo looked at her curiously.
"Is that… normal, Mina?" He asked as his brow puckered in a frown.
"I don't know…" Minako replied, poking Usagi in the side of the head to make sure she was still alive. "Hey, Usagi? What's wrong?" She asked as she continued to poke her long-haired friend.
"Well…" Usagi began, her voice slightly muffled due to the fact her face was mashed against the dining table, "It was really embarrassing… but…" She lifted her head and angrily plucked away the hair stuck to her face. "Well now that I think about it, it wasn't too bad… but it was really weird at the time… I don't know…"
Usagi sighed and looked at them both, expecting them to comment.
They stared blankly.
"Yes… and this embarrassing deed would be…" Duo said, making circling gestures with his hands, almost saying 'insert your embarrassing deed here.'
Usagi barked a laugh as she came to her senses and looked at them incredulously.
"You think I would tell you two? Hah! You would never let me live it down!" She stuck her tongue out and pranced out of the room, ignoring their shouts of 'you can trust us' and 'we would let you live it down, honest!'
As soon as she was out of their sight she leaned against the wall and listened in on what they were saying.
"You know, it was probably just a confession of love for Heero or something," Duo said.
"Just a confession?! JUST??! They just confessed there love and we weren't there to see it!!" Minako said furiously, followed by a stomp that just may have been her climbing onto the table and striking a dramatic pose.
"Hey… You're right!!" Duo exclaimed as another stomp could be heard. (Usagi assumed it to be Duo climbing onto the table to join Minako in her dramatic pose striking.)
A small silence followed.
"Yeah, but… what would have been so embarrassing about that, I mean, wouldn't they be happy?" Duo pointed out unsurely.
"Oh, yeah… well, maybe they didn't confess their love… Hmm… Ah well, let's just get back to our mission," Minako said as a scrambling noise reached Usagi's ears. (She decided it was the two of them climbing carefully off the table and returning to there original seats.) "So where were we… OK, strike plan number 17, Heero wouldn't talk if we emptied several bottles of Orange Juice into his underwear drawer, he would just beat you up." Minako said matter-of-factly.
"And scratch plans 3 through to 16 as well, they would also result in beatings," Duo added.
Usagi rolled her eyes and her friends' plotting and walked into the kitchen.
"Hey, Mako... can I get please some quick food? I need a bit of cheering up," Usagi mumbled as she sat down on one of the two old rickety stools in the Kitchen. Mr. Colt was far too busy creating a spectacularly bad-tasting masterpiece and did not notice her. Her tall brunette friend did, however, and swiftly made a savory treat. Usagi took it graciously and began to munch on it. "Mmm… thanks Mako, you're a pal."
Makoto grinned.
"You're welcome. But, hey, Dinner's in less than 45 minutes so I can't make you another one," she said, shooing Usagi out of the Kitchen then returning to try and put some flavor into Mr. Colt's monstrosity.
"Fine, I'll go and mope somewhere else," Usagi said jokingly and walked into the ballroom.
She'd decided in her first few days at the boarding house that she liked the ballroom. It was very empty (it's only furnishings were some paintings on the walls, a piano, the chandeliers on the roof and a portable CD player/radio), but it gave the impression that it could be very beautiful if someone put some effort into it.
This place would be beautiful… she thought wistfully as she walked into the centre of the room and took it in. I can see it now… flowers everywhere, lights and wonderful music… she sighed happily. I can't wait for the first school dance…
She twirled on her heel and walked over to the old wooden piano shoved up against the wall. On the top of it was an dusty and large portable radio. She flicked it on and turned the tuning dial slowly until she reached her favourite station.
"And we're nearly to number ten on the countdown for this week, here's number 11…" A young man's voice said charismatically as the song began to play. Usagi smiled and sat down on the piano chair, listening to the exciting beat of the music and chewing on her snack. When she had finished it, the countdown was halfway through the fourth song.
She looked at her watch and saw that dinner was only eighteen minutes away, and was just about to leave the Ballroom when she heard a surprised and loud squeak from upstairs. She didn't even have time to ponder who it was because Ami came sprinting into the Ballroom, cheeks red from embarrassment and panting from her dash down the stairs. She rushed towards the piano and hid around the side of it, clutching some of her books to her chest and trying to make herself smaller to avoid the embarrassment she had just fled from.
"Ah… Ami? What's wrong?" Usagi asked, turning down the volume of the radio and hopping off her seat to sit next to her distraught friend. She was panting heavily, and her answer took a long time to get out due to her gasping.
"I… was… stud-…-ying… and I didn't… realize…that it was… boy's… shower hour… and… I finished studying….so… I picked up… a few books… and… went out of my… room… and…" She ducked her head to hide her reddening cheeks and began to breathe heavily.
"Ami, you're hyperventilating. What happened?" Usagi queried, eager to know what had the got usually calm and serene Ami so flustered. Her blue haired friend panted a bit more then took a deep breath and lifted her head, ready to continue her story.
"Well, I…" She sighed. "I went out of my room, and as I said I had forgotten that it was boy's shower hour and I hadn't heard the call to go downstairs, so… I went out and saw… Quatre." Her cheeks began to grow redder.
"What's so bad about seeing Quatre?" Usagi asked, confused.
"He was only wearing a towel around d his waist! That was it!" Ami exclaimed, her whole face crimson as she ducked her head again. Usagi gasped then began to laugh uncontrollably.
"You…! You forgot…! And…! Oh, that's a classic!" Usagi doubled over and began to pound the floorboards with her right hand as tears began to squeeze out of her eyes. "And you…! You squeaked!"
"Usagi! It was embarrassing!" Ami frowned. "Usagi!" Ami poked her friend in the shoulder, trying to make her stop laughing. After a minute or so she managed to calm herself down and sit up straight with a serious face.
"OK, OK. Ami, calm down. Just apologize to him or something later, and then just agree to never speak of it again or keep it a secret. I'm sure he was just as embarrassed as you," Usagi reasoned.
Maybe I should do that to Heero… he was probably as embarrassed as I was… well maybe not as embarrassed…
"Yes. That's a very logical answer, Usagi." Ami nodded, her wits coming back to her.
"Well, I do have occasional spurts of wisdom," Usagi said with a shrug and a smile.
"Thanks, Usa."
The dinner bell rang as soon as Ami's words finished.
"C'mon, I'm hungry! Let's eat! You can apologize to Quatre after," Usagi said, standing up and offering her friend a hand. Ami took it, pulled herself up and walked together with Usagi out of the Ballroom, joining the other boarders as they filtered into the Dining Room.
Almost everyone at the dining table was glowing red. Ami and Quatre were two embarrassed tomatoes sitting together, Rei and Wufei were crimson with fury as they sat opposite from each other in a silent staring competition, Minako and Duo were about to burst from holding in their laughter at one of their more recent plots, Makoto was blushing slightly because she was seated next to Trowa, and Usagi was slowly getting redder due to the face that every time she looked up she saw Heero Yui's face.
Unfortunately for Usagi, she had come in last, and the only remaining seat was the one opposite Heero, so every time she took a bite she would see him. He was never looking at her, but it was still just as embarrassing for her.
But what was unnerving her even more that Heero being opposite was the fact that there was silence. Well, except for the sound of chewing. But apart from that there was silence. Absolutely no banter, no voices, no kissing chants… just silence.
I never realized how quiet mealtimes are… Usagi thought happily, reveling the feel of the lack of noise. (It was a rare occurrence when absolutely no one was talking in the Boarding House. Even at night, when everyone was trying to get to sleep, Minako and Duo's voices could be heard conversing through the walls.)
Quickly deciding that it must have looked odd to be sitting smiling at the Dinner table doing nothing, Usagi quickly returned back to her food and speedily polished it off… as well as a second and third helping.
The rest of the boarders finished soon after her, and since it was Minako and Duo's turn to clean up, everyone began to exit, leaving the prankster pair to their job.
As Usagi left the room, she saw Rei and Wufei glare at each other in the Entry then turn away and begin to climb up the stairs. However, realizing they'd done the same thing, they stopped and glared silently, turned their backs on each other, then moved down the stairs back into the Entry. When they reach the bottom, they stopped, glared, then moved towards the corridor leading to the backyard.
Usagi looked on as they moved around the room tegether, wanting to laugh hysterically but having the wits not too.
I think Minako's right when she says those two are going to get together…
After realizing that their moving glaring contest wasn't going to come to a dramatic climax anytime soon, Usagi let her eyes wonder to another part of the room.
Near the table in the middle of the Entry, an alarmingly red Ami conversed with Quatre. (Usagi could only see the back of Quatre's head, but from the look of his red tinged ears and neck, he was blushing too.) Ami seemed to be trying to apologize, but Quatre was waving his hands as if to say 'don't be sorry, it was an accident.'
Smiling at how the two of them were each trying to be polite, Usagi turned her head to see Makoto and Trowa walking up the stairs.
They weren't walking up the stairs together, Trowa was a good six steps ahead of her, and Makoto was walking up the stairs behind him, looking as though she was too afraid to walk closer because she might look like she was stalking him.
Poor Mako. She should just ask him out and be done with it.
Just as Usagi was about to bound up the stairs and suggest the course of action to her friend, she heard a strangely destructive noise coming from the inside the Kitchen behind her. She spun on her heel and trudged towards the noise as was shocked (but not really shocked) to see Minako and Duo having a water fight and fencing with kitchen utensils, having completely forgotten about their cleaning task.
She opened her angered mouth to tell them to stop fooling around… but it turned into an evil grin as she realized the more mess they made, the more they'd have to clean up. She backed away slowly, then bolted up the stairs and raced to Makoto's bedroom. She knocked on the door loudly.
"Mako! It's Usagi!" She exclaimed happily and waited for her friend's response.
"Hey Usa, door's open." Came the muffled reply through the door. Usagi grabbed a hold of the doorknob, twisted it then let the door fly open after she gave it a little push.
"Mako, I just had a great idea…" Usagi began, walking into the room and letting her words trail off to make sure Makoto was interested. She was, as it turned out, so she put down her romance novel and turned around in her desk chair.
"What…?" She asked slowly, not sure if Usagi was trying to be helpful or acting like Minako. (Last time Minako said 'she just had a great idea' for her, it was that she should hide in trees and 'accidentally' fall on the guys she liked.)
"Well, you know how you like Trowa…" She trailed off again, waiting for a reaction.
Makoto blushed and her eyes widened a bit.
"Y-yes…" She stuttered.
"I think you should ask him on a date!" Usagi threw her hands in the air dramatically. (Makoto half expected confetti and streamers to come shooting out of nowhere.)
"Why?" Makoto asked blandly, unfortunately popping Usagi's excitement bubble.
"Because, he obviously isn't going to make the first move, so why don't you?" She explained exasperatedly.
"So what do you suggest I do? Just walk right up to him and say, 'Hey Trowa, I was wondering, do you want to go for a shake or something on the weekend?'" Makoto asked sarcastically and rolled her eyes.
"Well…yeah." Usagi shrugged.
"You know…" Makoto stood up and walked over to her, her chin in her fist as she seemed to turn something over in her mind. "…That's just crazy enough to work!" She patted Usagi on the shoulder and grinned.
"Yup, I'm brilliant," Usagi boasted and poked out her tongue. "Well you can do that whenever you like, I gotta go do stuff, but remember to give me a full report and date details!"
Makoto laughed nervously.
"O-OK. I'll just finish this chapter," she said as she scuttled back to hr desk and flipped open her book.
(Usagi briefly wondered just how many times she'd read that particular novel but discarded the idea when she realized that Makoto pretty much always had it in her hand.)
Smiling at the thought that Makoto would finally go on a date after such a long while, Usagi walked down the corridor. Originally, she had intended to go to her own room, but she ended up standing in front of Heero's door. She prepared her knuckles for the vast amount of knocking they were about to undertake.
She reached out her arm and knocked three times…
…and was really surprised when the door flung open without her having to knock again.
"What?" Was the frost-covered word that was thrown at her monotonously from the boy in the doorway.
"Ah… I…" She took a deep breath her jovial attitude had just flown out of some windoe in her mind, leaving her nervous. "I just wanted to ask you not to tell anyone what I said about Mamo-ch--… Mamoru. They all think I've gotten over it so…" She looked up from her fiddling hands (she didn't even remember looking down, though) to see his hard, icy blue eyes staring at her. Panic started to flood inside her as he gave her no response. "You won't tell anyone will you?" she squeaked, almost hysterically, jumping forward and grabbing onto his tank top.
She didn't know why she was getting really worked up, (it wasn't really that bad, afterall) but the thought of all of them having to comfort her again over a matter that was gone made her want to cry and bring back memories. She wanted to be away from Mamoru… she loved him but it hurt her… it pained her because…
Don't go there, Usagi. Please, just don't think about him. Don't cry…
"You won't…please?" She gasped out as unwanted memories of Mamoru began to surge through her head. She could feel tears coming…
Oh, God… not in front of Mr. Emotionless…
"I won't," she heard him say, almost exasperatedly. She let go of his top as soon as he spoke and exhaled with relief.
"Thankyou," she said softly. She wiped the beginnings of a tear out of her left eye and looked up with a forced grin. "So… have you thought of a way I can pay you back yet?"
"No." He turned and walked back to his desk, sat down and began to type on his laptop, intensely radiating the signal that said 'go away.'
"Well, you'd better. Those two things have a used-by-date y'know. One month and they're moldy," Usagi stated matter-of-factly as continued to stand in the doorway, knowing it was annoying him. She'd even half forgotten about her embarrassment and teary moments earlier. (Teasing the icicle in front of her was that much fun.) "Better think of something, the clock's ticking…"
"Hn."
"Yeah well, not my fault if you don't get a favor in return. Say, what're you doing there?" She asked as she invited herself into his room and peered over his shoulder. Before she could get a good look at what he was doing, he tapped a combination of keys that closed all open programs and left the screen with an empty desktop. (And it truly was empty. His desktop was simply a luminous blue that had 'Heero Yui' in the upper right corner.) "Well, well, Mr. Secretive are we?" She said slyly.
"Out," he grunted.
She put her hands on her hips and pressed her lips together.
"Not until I pay you back once," she said sternly, fully intending not to leave. Use-by-date or not, Usagi was one who preferred to pay off her debts. (They could be very nasty and creep up on you at the most inconvenient of times if they were left unpaid.) Heero stood up and turned around to look down at her. "And don't you even consider pushing me out, Heero." She narrowed he eyes, trying to look menacing. (It probably didn't look frightening at all considering that he was taller than her.)
"Out," he repeated.
She scooted back a little (being so close to him was a little unnerving) and planted her feet firmly. And on a whim poked her tongue out at him. He smirked slightly (ever so slightly) and crossed his arms over his chest.
"Fine," he said, almost challengingly. "But what could you do for me?" He asked as he raised an eyebrow faintly.
"I--" Usagi cut herself short as she realized there probably was nothing she could do for him. "Well you're smart aren't you? Think of something!" She challenged right back at him.
"Hn."
When he simply began to stare at her (Usagi thought that he must have just been thinking), Usagi decided to look around his room to find something she could do for him. Her eyes eventually fell on his bed.
"Ew… maybe I could make your bed for you or something… I'm the most unorganized person in the world but even I can be bothered to make my bed…" She looked on distastefully at the doona and sheets that were in disarray on top of his mattress. She couldn't believe that she hadn't noticed it earlier.
"Fine," he said with a short nod, efficiently ending the conversation and turning back to his laptop.
"What? I just have to make your bed once and that's it?" Usagi asked as she scrunched up her nose in confusion.
"No," he said curtly.
"Well what then?"
"Make it for the next three weeks," he stated easily. Usagi squawked.
"Three weeks?" Usagi asked, shocked.
"You wanted to pay me back," he countered, not really caring about the conversation while he opened up a document on his laptop.
"Alrighty then. So I guess I start now, huh?" She asked as she walked towards the bed pushed against the wall.
"Hn."
"Kind of defeats the purpose though, I mean, you're going to be going to bed soon anyway…" she chanced a glance at him, only to realize he was giving her a glare (a mild glare, but a glare nonetheless) that told her to shut up. She ignored it. "Sheesh, I feel like a housewife… making a bed for a guy… nothing wrong with being a housewife (my mum's one, you see), but I don't think being a housewife at 15 sound too good. I mean, you've got you're whole life to live. Of course, when I get through Uni and get a job, maybe meet a nice guy later on and settle down, then being a housewife would be fine." She explained, all the while making his bed. (She knew her chatter annoyed him, so she tried to keep it up.)
"You know, I don't think I've ever met a house-husband. Sounds weird, doesn't it?" She suddenly let a short, but still quite loud, laugh that made Heero jump a bit. "I just got the funniest picture of you running around a house wielding a feather-duster and wearing an apron! House-husband indeed!" She calmed her mirth and patted his now made bed quickly. "Anyway, all done. I'll make it again tomorrow, after breakfast. Bye!"
She bounced out of his room before he had time to say anything (although it would have been quite astounding if he did) and went into her room, just noticing Makoto and Trowa out of the corner of her eye.
Go for it, Mako!
As she finished off the last word of the chapter, nerves took a hold of her. She shakily put down her book and stood up, breathing in deeply and exhaling loudly
Go for it, Makoto! You've got nothing to lose!
She nodded to herself and marched out of her room and into the corridor. She turned left sharply and planted herself in front of Trowa's door…
…her nerves came back to her then.
Don't worry! Calm, calm…
She breathed a few deep breaths then tapped on his door with her knuckles. After a few seconds, the door opened to produce Trowa. He didn't say anything, just looked at her, waiting for her to explain her presence.
"Oh, um… Trowa. I--if you're not doing anything on the weekend… um, do you want to go and have lunch with me?" Her last few words came out a bit hurried. He continued to look at her until finally (after almost a minute) he nodded slightly.
"OK," he said and closed the door.
Makoto stared on in shock, then brightened and grinned as she realized what just happened. She turned to her left (ready to go and tell Usagi the good news), only to be faced with the sight of Minako and Duo at the end of the corridor near the stairs grinning devilishly. They looked at each, both took a deep breath then bellowed their amazingly annoying chant.
"Trowa and Makoto sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes the love, then comes the marriage, then comes the baby, in the golden carriage! Trowa and Makoto…"
Makoto flushed then walked briskly to Usagi's room. She slipped inside and closed the door before Minako and Duo had a chance to creep in.
"I see it went well then?" Usagi questioned with eyebrows raised, closing the magazine she was reading and standing. "So…?"
"Well… I asked him if he wanted to go to lunch with me on the Weekend and he said OK…" She shrugged as a big smile spread across her face. Usagi began to bounce up and down excitedly.
"Oooh! A date! The first date of the year for the five of us! Well done, Mako!" Usagi gave her a big hug. "But what're you going to wear?"
Makoto gasped in shock. "I haven't got a thing!" She began to fret as pictures of her eating lunch on a date in school clothes popped into her head.
It took Usagi ten minutes to calm her down.
"STOP IT, ONNA!!" Wufei finally (and gracefully) broke their combined stubborn silence.
"Stop what, IDIOT?!" She turned and faced him, a rage-filled inferno burning in her eyes.
"STOP FOLLOWING ME, YOU WEAKLING! YOU ARE SIMPLY TRYING TO PREVENT MY TRAINING!!" Wufei bellowed and pointed an accusing finger at Rei. She batted it away angrily and pointed her own finger.
"HARDLY! YOU'RE STOPPING ME BECAUSE YOU KNOW I'LL WIN OTHERWISE!!" She put her hands on her hips and stuck her nose in the air. Wufei stopped at bit before retaliating (her stance looked like a feminine version of his own) then came back at full power.
"DO NOT FLATTER YOURSELF, WOMAN!! YOUR DEFEAT IS UNAVOIDABLE!! Wufei roared, his eyes full of anger.
"DEFEATING YOU AGAIN WILL BE MY GREATEST VICTORY, WUFEI CHANG, AND YOU WILL NEVER FORGET IT!!" Rei yelled angrily. They both glared furiously at each other, then made for the stairs. They stopped and glared at each other. "I am going to go to the training hall," Rei said, icily calm yet wavering a bit with pent up anger, "And do not follow me."
She spun gracefully on her heel and walked down the corridor, leaving an infuriated Wufei standing in the Entry with his mouth moving angrily but no words coming out. In the end, he just settled for screaming out one word to her.
"ONNA!!!"
*******End chapter 8
Was going to make this chapter longer but it's past midnight and I'm tired…
Won't have another chapter out for awhile because I have rowing camp for four days…
Can't think of anything else…
Except…
Sleep…
Bai Bai,
~Jemjols
PS: And, as always, REVIEW!! (please?!)