Abandoned Reverence
Author's Note: Alright, alright, I know I said ten reviews, but a certain someone named Sandi reminded me that this is really an aggravating strategy. I really do like to see reviews though, so if you would please just let write one and let me know how this story is going, I would really appreciate it. So, even though I only got four reviews, here is the next chapter. Enjoy! ~_^
-Veledore
Disclaimer: I realize that last chapter I forgot to insert the disclaimer, so hopefully this will be able to cover both of them. I do not own Gundam Wing or any of their characters, but Jeff and Mindy are my own, so don't copy them okay?
* Indicates thought
~ Indicates flashback
Chapter One: A New Routine
Spirals of gray and black tumbled around her mind. She could feel her physical body working-her heart's lethargic thrum, her slow thick pulse circulating the blood through her major arteries, she could even feel her eyes darting back and forth under their lids as they tried to catch sudden spurts of color. Her breathing was deep and did not come from her throat, but from the pit of her stomach. The exhalations produced a steady (if slow) rhythmic sound relaxing to her ears. Hilde never felt as much peace in her daily life as she did when she slept a dreamless slumber.
"RRRIIOOOARRHHH!!!" All at once Hilde was jolted from her perfect world of serenity by a horrific noise. She sat up from her loveseat momentarily disoriented and so was confused when she saw that the source of the monstrous inflection of a snore came from a figure huddled against her couch. The recent night's events flooded her memory triggering both relief and apprehension. She sat tense in a stream of sunlight pouring through sheer curtains covering a large bay window.
The man on her couch moved raising his arm and slumping it over his face. A few moments later-apparently uncomfortable with this position-he dropped his arm letting it hang over the side of the couch. His next action played out in slow motion and later Hilde would remember it in a fit of laughter. With a mighty sigh he pulled his weight over to the right, and fell face first onto the floor. Hilde crept toward the front of the loveseat while the man groaned and pushed himself upright. He sat up carefully using one hand to rub a sore spot on his chin, and the other to prop his self against the couch.
He blinked and opened his eyes first looking around the room in confusion, then focusing on Hilde's face. She was caught off guard by their intensity. They were endless, a no-bottom pools of cobalt water. In a sleepy voice he asked, "Who are you, and where am I?" Even slurred with sleep, his tone held a confidence of one not to be trifled with.
Hilde was more than just a little apprehensive. He didn't seem hostile, but looks could always be deceiving. The pepper spray lay too far off for her to try and grab at, so she decided to answer his question all the while wishing she had not been so foggy of a mind that she didn't call a doctor or the police. "I am Hilde Schbeiker, and _you_ are in _my_ home."
Frowning he asked, "How'd I get here?" once again looking around the room.
Hilde shrugged casually as if it were no big deal. "You fell onto my balcony from God only knows where."
His eyes clouded and his frown turned sinister. He must've had an acute sense for moods, because he suddenly looked at Hilde in alarm and distress. "Are you afraid of me?" he asked maneuvering with one hand closer to the loveseat where she sat.
"Of course not," she replied trying to be discreet as she scooted her self back to the other end of the seat.
"Oh really? Then what's that for?" the man asked cocking his thumb toward the narrow tube of pepper spray behind him.
"Give me a break! You could have been a frickin psychopathic serial killer for all I knew!" she answered shrilly feeling nervous that the stranger could read her thoughts so accurately. "Besides," she added straightening her posture in an attempt to gain control of the conversation. "I have a few a questions of my own, and considering that you are under _my_ roof I would think they would be more pressing."
"Okay," he responded grinning slightly in mockery. "Shoot."
"Well," she began not so sure of herself anymore. "How did you fall on my balcony? You had to have been on the roof to pull a stunt like that, so what were doing up there?"
"I'm not going into details with that one, more for your sake than mine, believe me," he answered with his dark scowl. The subject closed itself with his sudden withdrawal and Hilde was slightly peeved at his stubbornness.
*He's serious though,* Hilde thought. She was not usually a good judge of character, nor could she tell a person's mood by their actions, but there was something in his voice-a warning. For some reason unbeknownst to her, she knew that he wasn't lying. "Fine," she replied. "Can you at least tell me your name?" she asked more as a test remembering the name on the credit card the night before.
Putting on a charming grin, he held out his hand and answered, "Duo Maxwell, at your service."
She hesitated, but only barely reaching out and taking his hand with hers smiling right along with him. She surprised herself by being so genuinely open. *Yeah,* she thought bitterly, *You're usually so stuck on Jeff that you become shy around anyone else.* She pushed the harsh voice from her mind not wanting thoughts of _him_ to spoil something so promising. "Hello? Anyone home?" Duo asked disturbing her thoughts.
"Huh? Oh, sorry," she answered lightly flushed.
Duo gave her a critical look, he was about to say something, but changed his mind and asked instead "Got any food?"
***
Hilde never before met a man (no matter that the number of men she knew besides Jeff amounted to zero) who ate so much. Five eggs, ten strips of bacon, a stack of toast, and three glasses of orange juice were needed to sustain his hunger. Hilde herself only drank a cup of coffee creamed lightly so that the strong liquid could work it's magic in her system.
Duo didn't question her choice of breakfast foods, he could hardly breath considering all the food being shoveled in his mouth. He did pause though long enough to inquire, "What?" when Hilde's eyes never left his plate. She was sure they must be twice their normal size if he had bothered saying anything.
"Sorry," she responded stirring her drink with a spoon. "I can't believe you like my food, my old boyfriend would never let me cook for him. He said my food was worse than his mother's."
Duo raised his eyebrows at the comment and between a bite of toast and a swallow of juice managed to ask, "Is there a current boyfriend?" looking down the darkened hallway curiously.
"No," Hilde replied discouraged. "Jeff was the only one. We go way back, he was my best friend during our childhood and my high school sweetheart."
"You sound like you're still head over heels," Duo commented lightly. "Why'd he dump you?"
Hilde tensed at the question. "_He_ did not dump _me_, I dumped _him_."
"If you're still in love with the guy, why'd you dump him?" Duo innocuously asked.
"Because he's a two-timing lying sleazy jerk!" Hilde retorted shortly. "And I am _not_ still in love with him."
Duo chuckled, "Could've fooled me."
Hilde contained her building rage taking a long deliberate drink of her coffee. When her anger subsided she changed the subject. "So," she started, "Do you have any place to go?"
He took his time chewing slowly on a piece of bacon before providing an answer. "Nope," he said leaning against the back of the chair, one hand tucked idly behind his head. "Trying to get rid of me?" he asked cheerfully taking an obnoxious slurp of his juice.
"No," Hilde replied quickly. "I just have to get to work soon and I didn't know if I should be expecting you when I got back or not."
"I'll be here," he responded easily. "If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I'm a natural born free-loader."
Hilde giggled and went back into her room to change; all cautions and anxieties from the night before thrown into the wind. It felt so good to her-this new freedom. For once in her life she could be bold and not think about Jeff's opinion of her actions. The sun outside radiated a promising brilliance insuring an equally bright day.
***
Hilde stepped out of her not-so-flashy dark blue Ford Escort. Her shoes clicked delicately on the gravel sidewalk intersecting and going past an ordinary looking building-not very different from any other one on the street. Fishing through her purse she found her ring of keys and easily located the one that unlocked the front door. It was gold in color just as Jeff's vow that their newspaper was going to be big as it had been. She effortlessly slid the key into the lock and flicked her wrist in a quick jerk to the right then pushed open the door getting her morning's whiff of print and paper.
She walked past the silent entrance and climbed the stairs immediately turning left and entering her office. There was certainly nothing extraordinary about her dingy room complete with a small desk and two uncomfortable chairs. Papers lined the desk and collected in the corners of the room making simply walking to the table an obstacle. As soon as her purse left her hand, a buzz resonated from somewhere underneath a mountain of papers. Frantically tossing the documents about she finally located the speaker and pushed the button. "Yes?" she asked breathlessly.
"Mr. Sutton wants to see you," the raspy voice of Jeff's secretary sounded through the old speaker.
Sighing in exasperation Hilde responded, "Alright, thank you." and turned back to the door making her way back to outside hallway (just a little to quickly for her taste) *Come on Hilde,* she mentally chided herself. *Get a hold of yourself, you are through with him remember?*
She slowed her pace walking further down the hallway and passing the elderly woman behind a desk before throwing open Jeff's door and sauntering nonchalantly in.
Jeff was seated behind his desk acting as if he were busy by typing furiously on his keyboard. She closed the door behind her softly and he looked up. "You wanted to see me Jeff?" she asked torpidly.
"Hilde, baby. You know, I love seeing your face so early in the morning, it makes the day's brightness seem incomparable," he said standing up and stretching lucidly.
"Oh please Jeff, cut the crap. We're over, remember?" Hilde responded rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. "Now, what do you want?"
"You know exactly want _I_ want," he replied strolling towards her.
Her knees were getting weak-they always did whenever he looked at her like that. He had such a smooth easy demeanor, he never had a problem making her feel so unsure about her own self. How could she doubt him when he always seemed to be right? "Well, you're not getting it. We're done. Get it through your thick head," she replied turning from him as he came before her.
She felt his arms snake around her waist and her body went rigid when he whispered in her ear. "How can you deny a passion like ours?" he asked softly. A warning went off in Hilde's head-Jeff's specialty was with words. Once he got going she became entranced, as caught as a mouse to a piper's tune. "I thought about you last night," he continued feeling her defense weakening. "I had to go outside for a breath of fresh air, and there was the moon. It was so silvery brilliant I couldn't help but compare it to your smile. I remembered how your smile could always banish any darkness in my day." Hilde started shivering, her knees were shaking, her resistance breaking with each word. "And then I saw those stars glittering like little gems, how could I resist thinking about your eyes? Did you know that your eyes have this fire that flames with your dispositions? I think those stars reminded me of when you were in a playful mood. I can remember the very first time I even took heed to the heavens was on top of the Ferris wheel. Remember? Remember what I said?" He paused listened to her breath coming in pants as she struggled to regain her earlier control.
"Jeff, stop. Please," she mumbled.
"I said, 'Hilde! Look! Even the stars seem to be happy that we're together!,'" he replied ignoring her plea. "And then you said, 'Yeah, it looks like they're dancing! They're so happy for us!' We were so young Hilde. And we were so in love. Where did all that love go Hilde? It didn't just disappear. I still feel it. I know you do too." He traced his finger up and down her arm causing goosebumps to arise on the exposed epidermis.
"Jeff," her voice sounded weak in her ears and doubt flooded her mind.
At that moment the door swung open and a perky-in-all-places Ms. Mindy bounded into the room. Hilde felt cold and empty as Jeff's arms snapped back from around her waist. He drifted back over to her desk and picked up a file folder. "Here Hilde," he said casually as if nothing had happened. That was another of Jeff's many cunning attributes-his acting abilities. It was probably why Hilde had never suspected him of cheating before. She grabbed the folder from his hand quickly and turned practically fleeing out the door.
"Are you alright Ms. Schbeiker?" the secretary asked her as tears covered her eyes in a thick glassy coat.
"Yes, I'm fine," she replied in an unsteady voice. She quickly walked down the hall to her office where she closed the door and sank into the rickety uncomfortable chair and sobbed not caring if the ragged cries echoed into the hall. The staff already knew her current predicament. A while later Hilde managed to get a hold of her emotions long enough to take a peek at the assignment Jeff had given her.
*Great, another interview with a convict,* Hilde thought as the time, date, and name of a locally famous serial killer (Heero Yuy) was printed in a neat row on the top of the page. Tips and facts covered the rest, but Hilde didn't pay attention to them. They weren't usually helpful anyway. On the back of the paper was another time and date, this time with youngest House Representative Ms. Relena Peacecraft. Obviously the story wanted to cover both sides of the opinion. *Well,* Hilde thought, *It'll be interesting to meet with Ms. Peacecraft at least. She did cause quite a controversy persuading the House to approve a bill allowing younger people to run for a spot in the House,* Hilde thought raising her down mood slightly.
The phone rang from beneath another pile of papers then and Hilde had to once again rummage through the notes to find it. "Hello?" she answered.
"Hilde?" a distinctly familiar voice said on the other line.
"Duo? Is that you?" Hilde responded incredulously. "How…what…"
"I saw this number on the fridge and thought I should check it out, you know, to see if it was your work number."
"But, I don't have my work number on my fridge," Hilde informed Duo with a frail frown.
"I know, I think I called your boyfriend-Jeb or something. Some guy answered the phone," Duo explained.
"What did he say?" Hilde asked ignoring the mispronunciation of Jeff's name and the false title of her boyfriend.
"I asked him if you were around and he asked me who I was," Duo responded.
"Well," Hilde asked when Duo didn't continue. "What did you say?"
"Who me? I told him it was none of his business, then I heard some old lady come on the line and say that she would put you through," Duo clarified.
"Oh." Hilde wasn't sure what to say next.
"Should I call this number again if I need to call you?" Duo asked patiently.
"No, no," Hilde replied quickly and gave him her own number.
He thanked her indifferently and suggested that she lighten up-her depression was so heavy it was choking him, and he was only contacting her through the phone. She hung up in a panic *Am I so transparent that every man on the planet can see through me?* she thought desperately.
The office suddenly felt too stuffy and Hilde decided that a lunch break would do her some good. Outside a chilly breeze coming off the ocean greeted her cheeks and stung her eyes. She took a breath of salty sea air and made her way down the street toward a small café.
***
Author's Note: So, are you a little curious now? Isn't Duo acting mysterious? And what's Hilde's deal with her old boyfriend? If you want to know what happens, all you have to do is write a review. When I see ten of them, I'll post another chapter. Also, if you have the most brilliant idea for this story and you would like to tell me about it, contact me at: veledore@hotmail.com. I'm not promising that I'll use it because the story is already laid out (in my head), but if your idea is _really_ good, then I'll slip it in there and of course, you'll get credit for it. Tschüs!!
-Veledore
Author's Note: Alright, alright, I know I said ten reviews, but a certain someone named Sandi reminded me that this is really an aggravating strategy. I really do like to see reviews though, so if you would please just let write one and let me know how this story is going, I would really appreciate it. So, even though I only got four reviews, here is the next chapter. Enjoy! ~_^
-Veledore
Disclaimer: I realize that last chapter I forgot to insert the disclaimer, so hopefully this will be able to cover both of them. I do not own Gundam Wing or any of their characters, but Jeff and Mindy are my own, so don't copy them okay?
* Indicates thought
~ Indicates flashback
Chapter One: A New Routine
Spirals of gray and black tumbled around her mind. She could feel her physical body working-her heart's lethargic thrum, her slow thick pulse circulating the blood through her major arteries, she could even feel her eyes darting back and forth under their lids as they tried to catch sudden spurts of color. Her breathing was deep and did not come from her throat, but from the pit of her stomach. The exhalations produced a steady (if slow) rhythmic sound relaxing to her ears. Hilde never felt as much peace in her daily life as she did when she slept a dreamless slumber.
"RRRIIOOOARRHHH!!!" All at once Hilde was jolted from her perfect world of serenity by a horrific noise. She sat up from her loveseat momentarily disoriented and so was confused when she saw that the source of the monstrous inflection of a snore came from a figure huddled against her couch. The recent night's events flooded her memory triggering both relief and apprehension. She sat tense in a stream of sunlight pouring through sheer curtains covering a large bay window.
The man on her couch moved raising his arm and slumping it over his face. A few moments later-apparently uncomfortable with this position-he dropped his arm letting it hang over the side of the couch. His next action played out in slow motion and later Hilde would remember it in a fit of laughter. With a mighty sigh he pulled his weight over to the right, and fell face first onto the floor. Hilde crept toward the front of the loveseat while the man groaned and pushed himself upright. He sat up carefully using one hand to rub a sore spot on his chin, and the other to prop his self against the couch.
He blinked and opened his eyes first looking around the room in confusion, then focusing on Hilde's face. She was caught off guard by their intensity. They were endless, a no-bottom pools of cobalt water. In a sleepy voice he asked, "Who are you, and where am I?" Even slurred with sleep, his tone held a confidence of one not to be trifled with.
Hilde was more than just a little apprehensive. He didn't seem hostile, but looks could always be deceiving. The pepper spray lay too far off for her to try and grab at, so she decided to answer his question all the while wishing she had not been so foggy of a mind that she didn't call a doctor or the police. "I am Hilde Schbeiker, and _you_ are in _my_ home."
Frowning he asked, "How'd I get here?" once again looking around the room.
Hilde shrugged casually as if it were no big deal. "You fell onto my balcony from God only knows where."
His eyes clouded and his frown turned sinister. He must've had an acute sense for moods, because he suddenly looked at Hilde in alarm and distress. "Are you afraid of me?" he asked maneuvering with one hand closer to the loveseat where she sat.
"Of course not," she replied trying to be discreet as she scooted her self back to the other end of the seat.
"Oh really? Then what's that for?" the man asked cocking his thumb toward the narrow tube of pepper spray behind him.
"Give me a break! You could have been a frickin psychopathic serial killer for all I knew!" she answered shrilly feeling nervous that the stranger could read her thoughts so accurately. "Besides," she added straightening her posture in an attempt to gain control of the conversation. "I have a few a questions of my own, and considering that you are under _my_ roof I would think they would be more pressing."
"Okay," he responded grinning slightly in mockery. "Shoot."
"Well," she began not so sure of herself anymore. "How did you fall on my balcony? You had to have been on the roof to pull a stunt like that, so what were doing up there?"
"I'm not going into details with that one, more for your sake than mine, believe me," he answered with his dark scowl. The subject closed itself with his sudden withdrawal and Hilde was slightly peeved at his stubbornness.
*He's serious though,* Hilde thought. She was not usually a good judge of character, nor could she tell a person's mood by their actions, but there was something in his voice-a warning. For some reason unbeknownst to her, she knew that he wasn't lying. "Fine," she replied. "Can you at least tell me your name?" she asked more as a test remembering the name on the credit card the night before.
Putting on a charming grin, he held out his hand and answered, "Duo Maxwell, at your service."
She hesitated, but only barely reaching out and taking his hand with hers smiling right along with him. She surprised herself by being so genuinely open. *Yeah,* she thought bitterly, *You're usually so stuck on Jeff that you become shy around anyone else.* She pushed the harsh voice from her mind not wanting thoughts of _him_ to spoil something so promising. "Hello? Anyone home?" Duo asked disturbing her thoughts.
"Huh? Oh, sorry," she answered lightly flushed.
Duo gave her a critical look, he was about to say something, but changed his mind and asked instead "Got any food?"
***
Hilde never before met a man (no matter that the number of men she knew besides Jeff amounted to zero) who ate so much. Five eggs, ten strips of bacon, a stack of toast, and three glasses of orange juice were needed to sustain his hunger. Hilde herself only drank a cup of coffee creamed lightly so that the strong liquid could work it's magic in her system.
Duo didn't question her choice of breakfast foods, he could hardly breath considering all the food being shoveled in his mouth. He did pause though long enough to inquire, "What?" when Hilde's eyes never left his plate. She was sure they must be twice their normal size if he had bothered saying anything.
"Sorry," she responded stirring her drink with a spoon. "I can't believe you like my food, my old boyfriend would never let me cook for him. He said my food was worse than his mother's."
Duo raised his eyebrows at the comment and between a bite of toast and a swallow of juice managed to ask, "Is there a current boyfriend?" looking down the darkened hallway curiously.
"No," Hilde replied discouraged. "Jeff was the only one. We go way back, he was my best friend during our childhood and my high school sweetheart."
"You sound like you're still head over heels," Duo commented lightly. "Why'd he dump you?"
Hilde tensed at the question. "_He_ did not dump _me_, I dumped _him_."
"If you're still in love with the guy, why'd you dump him?" Duo innocuously asked.
"Because he's a two-timing lying sleazy jerk!" Hilde retorted shortly. "And I am _not_ still in love with him."
Duo chuckled, "Could've fooled me."
Hilde contained her building rage taking a long deliberate drink of her coffee. When her anger subsided she changed the subject. "So," she started, "Do you have any place to go?"
He took his time chewing slowly on a piece of bacon before providing an answer. "Nope," he said leaning against the back of the chair, one hand tucked idly behind his head. "Trying to get rid of me?" he asked cheerfully taking an obnoxious slurp of his juice.
"No," Hilde replied quickly. "I just have to get to work soon and I didn't know if I should be expecting you when I got back or not."
"I'll be here," he responded easily. "If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I'm a natural born free-loader."
Hilde giggled and went back into her room to change; all cautions and anxieties from the night before thrown into the wind. It felt so good to her-this new freedom. For once in her life she could be bold and not think about Jeff's opinion of her actions. The sun outside radiated a promising brilliance insuring an equally bright day.
***
Hilde stepped out of her not-so-flashy dark blue Ford Escort. Her shoes clicked delicately on the gravel sidewalk intersecting and going past an ordinary looking building-not very different from any other one on the street. Fishing through her purse she found her ring of keys and easily located the one that unlocked the front door. It was gold in color just as Jeff's vow that their newspaper was going to be big as it had been. She effortlessly slid the key into the lock and flicked her wrist in a quick jerk to the right then pushed open the door getting her morning's whiff of print and paper.
She walked past the silent entrance and climbed the stairs immediately turning left and entering her office. There was certainly nothing extraordinary about her dingy room complete with a small desk and two uncomfortable chairs. Papers lined the desk and collected in the corners of the room making simply walking to the table an obstacle. As soon as her purse left her hand, a buzz resonated from somewhere underneath a mountain of papers. Frantically tossing the documents about she finally located the speaker and pushed the button. "Yes?" she asked breathlessly.
"Mr. Sutton wants to see you," the raspy voice of Jeff's secretary sounded through the old speaker.
Sighing in exasperation Hilde responded, "Alright, thank you." and turned back to the door making her way back to outside hallway (just a little to quickly for her taste) *Come on Hilde,* she mentally chided herself. *Get a hold of yourself, you are through with him remember?*
She slowed her pace walking further down the hallway and passing the elderly woman behind a desk before throwing open Jeff's door and sauntering nonchalantly in.
Jeff was seated behind his desk acting as if he were busy by typing furiously on his keyboard. She closed the door behind her softly and he looked up. "You wanted to see me Jeff?" she asked torpidly.
"Hilde, baby. You know, I love seeing your face so early in the morning, it makes the day's brightness seem incomparable," he said standing up and stretching lucidly.
"Oh please Jeff, cut the crap. We're over, remember?" Hilde responded rolling her eyes and crossing her arms. "Now, what do you want?"
"You know exactly want _I_ want," he replied strolling towards her.
Her knees were getting weak-they always did whenever he looked at her like that. He had such a smooth easy demeanor, he never had a problem making her feel so unsure about her own self. How could she doubt him when he always seemed to be right? "Well, you're not getting it. We're done. Get it through your thick head," she replied turning from him as he came before her.
She felt his arms snake around her waist and her body went rigid when he whispered in her ear. "How can you deny a passion like ours?" he asked softly. A warning went off in Hilde's head-Jeff's specialty was with words. Once he got going she became entranced, as caught as a mouse to a piper's tune. "I thought about you last night," he continued feeling her defense weakening. "I had to go outside for a breath of fresh air, and there was the moon. It was so silvery brilliant I couldn't help but compare it to your smile. I remembered how your smile could always banish any darkness in my day." Hilde started shivering, her knees were shaking, her resistance breaking with each word. "And then I saw those stars glittering like little gems, how could I resist thinking about your eyes? Did you know that your eyes have this fire that flames with your dispositions? I think those stars reminded me of when you were in a playful mood. I can remember the very first time I even took heed to the heavens was on top of the Ferris wheel. Remember? Remember what I said?" He paused listened to her breath coming in pants as she struggled to regain her earlier control.
"Jeff, stop. Please," she mumbled.
"I said, 'Hilde! Look! Even the stars seem to be happy that we're together!,'" he replied ignoring her plea. "And then you said, 'Yeah, it looks like they're dancing! They're so happy for us!' We were so young Hilde. And we were so in love. Where did all that love go Hilde? It didn't just disappear. I still feel it. I know you do too." He traced his finger up and down her arm causing goosebumps to arise on the exposed epidermis.
"Jeff," her voice sounded weak in her ears and doubt flooded her mind.
At that moment the door swung open and a perky-in-all-places Ms. Mindy bounded into the room. Hilde felt cold and empty as Jeff's arms snapped back from around her waist. He drifted back over to her desk and picked up a file folder. "Here Hilde," he said casually as if nothing had happened. That was another of Jeff's many cunning attributes-his acting abilities. It was probably why Hilde had never suspected him of cheating before. She grabbed the folder from his hand quickly and turned practically fleeing out the door.
"Are you alright Ms. Schbeiker?" the secretary asked her as tears covered her eyes in a thick glassy coat.
"Yes, I'm fine," she replied in an unsteady voice. She quickly walked down the hall to her office where she closed the door and sank into the rickety uncomfortable chair and sobbed not caring if the ragged cries echoed into the hall. The staff already knew her current predicament. A while later Hilde managed to get a hold of her emotions long enough to take a peek at the assignment Jeff had given her.
*Great, another interview with a convict,* Hilde thought as the time, date, and name of a locally famous serial killer (Heero Yuy) was printed in a neat row on the top of the page. Tips and facts covered the rest, but Hilde didn't pay attention to them. They weren't usually helpful anyway. On the back of the paper was another time and date, this time with youngest House Representative Ms. Relena Peacecraft. Obviously the story wanted to cover both sides of the opinion. *Well,* Hilde thought, *It'll be interesting to meet with Ms. Peacecraft at least. She did cause quite a controversy persuading the House to approve a bill allowing younger people to run for a spot in the House,* Hilde thought raising her down mood slightly.
The phone rang from beneath another pile of papers then and Hilde had to once again rummage through the notes to find it. "Hello?" she answered.
"Hilde?" a distinctly familiar voice said on the other line.
"Duo? Is that you?" Hilde responded incredulously. "How…what…"
"I saw this number on the fridge and thought I should check it out, you know, to see if it was your work number."
"But, I don't have my work number on my fridge," Hilde informed Duo with a frail frown.
"I know, I think I called your boyfriend-Jeb or something. Some guy answered the phone," Duo explained.
"What did he say?" Hilde asked ignoring the mispronunciation of Jeff's name and the false title of her boyfriend.
"I asked him if you were around and he asked me who I was," Duo responded.
"Well," Hilde asked when Duo didn't continue. "What did you say?"
"Who me? I told him it was none of his business, then I heard some old lady come on the line and say that she would put you through," Duo clarified.
"Oh." Hilde wasn't sure what to say next.
"Should I call this number again if I need to call you?" Duo asked patiently.
"No, no," Hilde replied quickly and gave him her own number.
He thanked her indifferently and suggested that she lighten up-her depression was so heavy it was choking him, and he was only contacting her through the phone. She hung up in a panic *Am I so transparent that every man on the planet can see through me?* she thought desperately.
The office suddenly felt too stuffy and Hilde decided that a lunch break would do her some good. Outside a chilly breeze coming off the ocean greeted her cheeks and stung her eyes. She took a breath of salty sea air and made her way down the street toward a small café.
***
Author's Note: So, are you a little curious now? Isn't Duo acting mysterious? And what's Hilde's deal with her old boyfriend? If you want to know what happens, all you have to do is write a review. When I see ten of them, I'll post another chapter. Also, if you have the most brilliant idea for this story and you would like to tell me about it, contact me at: veledore@hotmail.com. I'm not promising that I'll use it because the story is already laid out (in my head), but if your idea is _really_ good, then I'll slip it in there and of course, you'll get credit for it. Tschüs!!
-Veledore
