Part 2: Ketchup
"Ketchup," The boy says staring at Duo's unchartered, greasy fries. "Makes everything better."
Duo turns to look at his fries as the boy sits next to him, laying his tray next to his. "My name's Heero Yuy."
Duo picks up the packet of ketchup and smears some onto a fry.
"Duo Maxwell." He says placidly, chewing. "So what's about the fiasco this morning?"
Heero smiles thinly. He has nice blue eyes. "Tradition."
"Tradition?" Duo asks, vaguely interested. Ketchup really does make everything better. "What do you mean?"
"It's tradition in this school to lock the new guy in the Janitor's Closet."
"Some tradition," Duo mumbles under his breath, but Heero chuckles amusedly, hearing it.
"I know."
Duo fishes something in his pocket, takes it out and places it on the table. He chews another fry dipped in ketchup. Heero stares at the bottle on the table and then back at him.
Duo doesn't mind Heero staring at him, really. He's gotten used to people doing it around him all the time. The sound of the cafeteria has suddenly lessened in volume as Duo rattles the white bottle and pours out the contents onto his palm. Lexapro.
It's a pill, which he swallows down, with a river of mineral water.
"You still owe me a thank you,"
Duo looks at Heero.
Heero has nice eyes.
When Duo gets home, his mother doesn't bother to ask him how school was. She just watches as Duo's stepsister Relena sits playing the piano. Her flaxen hair cascades down her shoulders gracefully as she presses the keys with adept precision. She smirks as he stops and watches them both in the living room.
Duo envies her as he marches up the staircase into his room to do his homework.
When he's finished with Lit a knock begins at the door. It's his father. "How was school?" he asks, letting himself in and Duo grins and tells him how he was locked into the Janitor's closet first thing in the morning. He also speaks of Heero—Heero who has nice blue eyes.
His father smiles and looks out the window, peering down into the darkness. On the horizon, the skies meet against the backdrop of the moon. "I wish mom were more like you." Duo sulks as he watches his father. "She seems to like Relena better now." His father looks at him with gray eyes. "You both have violet eyes," Is all he says.
There's another knock at his door, and Duo rolls his eyes as the maid enters. "Master Duo," Her voice is fragile like a china doll. "Your mother calls on you to come down for dinner."
Duo sighs. "I was talking to my father," He tells her exasperatedly.
The maid stutters. "Your father…?" It's as if she can't believe it herself.
Dinner is stale. Peas, mashed potatoes and chicken. Duo swallows the peas down as he eyes his family: Relena sits like a princess beside her father as Duo's mother talks about her meeting to her new husband.
Duo's father is absent in the table, and Duo understands this because he knows how his father wants to keep to himself.
"Pass the ketchup please?" Relena's eyebrow rises. Duo's mother and Relena's father stop talking. Duo gives them an innocent smile as he gestures with the bottle of ketchup on Relena's left.
"Ketchup," He explains as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "Makes everything better."
Relena makes a sound low in her throat, her lips pursed as she grabs the offending bottle and hands it to Duo. "Thank you," Duo says.
After dinner Duo picks up the white bottle by the sink. He turns to the mirror, catching sight of his long chestnut hair hanging loosely behind his shoulders to the back of his knees. He watches himself in the mirror as he moves, the change of color in his eyes, the shape of his face as if it's something he's unable to decipher.
A sigh of resignation escapes his lips as he picks up the bottle, shakes out a pill and swallows it down without water.
"Duo?"
It's his only friend Hilde by the door of the bathroom. "What is it?"
"I'm glad that you finally have another friend besides me." Hilde grins cheekily and crosses her arms, leaning against the doorframe. "So is does this Heero guy look cute?"
Before Duo can answer, Relena makes her way into the bathroom in a flurry of pink robes. She gives Duo a look and snorts derisively. "Been talking to yourself again Duo?"
"No I—" When Duo turns to the bathroom door Hilde is nowhere to be seen.
***
"Duo wait."
Duo turns around at that voice and stops dead in his tracks. The sky shines like a distant star burning against a sea of blue overhead.
Heero runs up to Duo, panting. He places both hands on his knees to steady his breathing and it isn't before long when he says to Duo, "Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?"
Duo stares at him as if he's speaking some foreign language. Duo lets out a sardonic smile. "I mind that you asked."
Heero rolls his eyes and wipes his mouth with the back of his arm. "I'm serious."
"So am I."
"I want to get to know you."
Duo stops the second time around; and it's getting old now—this constant playing with his emotions, and not keeping Heero at bay with his current condition.
"You can't."
"I think it should be my choice and not yours,"
"Then why did you ask me in the first place?"
"I was just giving you an early warning."
Duo glares at Heero as he finds himself closer than he'd been a few seconds ago.
"You don't know what you're getting yourself into."
Heero moves implausibly closer, and Duo can feel the heat of his body—the breath that Heero draws which pulls Duo close, and the heartbeat pressed against his own, and the flutter of Heero's eyelash as he takes the back of Duo's hand and kisses the underside of it.
Heero looks up at Duo's shocked expression, his thumb caressing the violet eyed boy's left cheek firmly. "Don't kiss me," Duo whispers desperately.
"I won't."
Heero, and his lies.
Tbc.
Thanks for the reviews.
