A/N: Okay, so I realized just how short these chapters are. So I'll give you two this time, just for a teaser. ^_~

Just a note for those who haven't read any of my other stories: I try to keep as close as possible to the characters' original personalities in most of these. So if someone is acting rather uncharacteristically, there's usually a reason, and if you look closely for details, you'll get a lot more enjoyment out of my stories. ^_~ Enjoy:

Chapter 2: Battered Faith

The next day, Duo was on his way out the door when the phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Duo, hey!" Relena's voice came over the phone line. "What are you doing today? Do you want to go see a movie?"

"Uh. . . oh, I can't, I'm sorry. I already have plans," he said reluctantly.

"Oh. . . yeah. . . okay. . ." She didn't sound like she really believed him, but before he could explain it further, the line went dead.

"Dammit, Relena, don't you see I'm doing all this for you?" He replaced the phone in its cradle. "No, of course not, you're not supposed to know. If you knew, it would all be useless." He sighed, locked the front door, and set out to make arrangements for the most perfect birthday Relena had ever had.

While Duo was making plans and setting arrangements, Relena went to the house Trowa and Quatre shared. When she knocked on the door, Trowa answered.

"Relena?" He looked surprised — well, as much as was possible for a man whose face almost never showed emotion, unless you knew him very well.

"Can I talk to you? It's about Duo."

"Sure." He stepped aside, allowing her to enter. She followed him to the living room, where they took seats at opposite ends of the large couch. "What's the problem?"

"I. . . think Duo's cheating on me."

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, he's been acting really strange lately, and he's been avoiding me."

"Did you talk to him about it?"

"Yes, he never gives me a straight answer."

Trowa sat back. "Hmm. . ."

They both looked up as Quatre entered the room. "Relena?" He, too, looked surprised. As much as the group would have liked to, they didn't often visit each other, and almost never showed up on each other's doorsteps so spontaneously. Relena least of all of them.

"She thinks Duo's cheating on her," Trowa answered Quatre's unspoken question.

Quatre's eyes widened. "Why? What did he do?"

"He's just been acting oddly, avoiding me, and he never confides in me anymore like he used to. He never tells me what he's doing."

Quatre sat next to Relena and put an arm around her comfortingly. "I'm sure it's not as bad as you think."

"But, what if it is?" she asked, tears forming in her eyes.

Quatre hesitated, looking at Trowa for help. Trowa just shrugged. Neither one of them knew what to say to that. Duo, cheating on Relena? They were stumped.

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A/N: another warning: this is not, I repeat NOT a Relena-hating story. As shallow as she may seem at times, especially in this particular story so far, one must remember her sheltered, yet lonely upbringing. She, like the G-boys, was pretty much forced to grow up on her own, and very quickly. She seems so snotty in the beginning of the show only so that her maturity and development can be seen more clearly by the end. Unfortunately, most people can never look past their first impression of her. So, as I said, she may seem kind of shallow right now, but later her reasons for being so untrusting are explained.