And some good news for the story! I think I know how to get the rest of the boys in here!
"Heero, Duo! Come in and get washed up!" an adult voice called from inside the large Victorian house in whose yard they were playing.
"'K!" the two boys called in unison, jumping up and brushing the sand from themselves before dashing towards the door. Before Duo ran into the house, however, he glanced over his shoulder. His blue-violet eyes studied a half-hidden tan mansion through the small stretch of forest between the two houses. His mouth twitched a bit, waiting to see movement that never came.
"Hey! 'Sa matter?" Heero chirped, poking his head back around the doorframe.
"It's so...quiet," Duo replied uneasily, pointing at the house. He laughed, breaking the melancholy air around him. "I never realized how much noise mommy and daddy made before."
Heero giggled. "Yeah, it's always something! You're not worried, are ya? You can call them before we leave if you want." His expression softened.
"No, I'm not worried." Duo smiled brightly. "They've been gone longer. 'Sides, the longer they're gone, the longer I can stay with you! I like having parents that travel."
The taller boy grinned mischievously. "So do I. It's almost like we live together sometimes. Come on, let's go!" He tugged the other boy into the old house.
Once inside, the woman that had called them looked them over. She sighed and shook her head. "Heero, honey, I told you not to get dirty." But then again, when doesn't he? The thought made a smile cross her colored lips.
"I'll go change," Heero said with a small sigh.
"That's my boy," his mother grinned, tweaking her son's nose when he walked by and nonchalantly giving Duo's braid an affectionate tug. They both laughed and took off running.
Within moments the couple was back, Heero in a fresh change of clothes and both boys giggling. "We're ready to go!"
Heero's mother smiled. "Go on out to the car, boys. We'll be there in a minute."
The children did as they were told. Heero tugged the door of the SUV open, and they climbed inside, the boy also pulling the door shut. "I'm hungry," he admitted, kneeling on the floor and putting some toys of interest on the seat.
Duo joined him on his knees. "Me too. I'm glad we're going to JoJo's. They have good food."
They were still in animated conversation when Heero's parents came out to the car. The two seven year-olds sat in seats next to each other, Duo in the middle and Heero by the left window seat, piling their toys on their laps. Heero's father opened the sun roof, causing the two to point and laugh in delight. They played contently in the back seat of the vehicle and sang with the radio during the ride. Fifteen minutes later the SUV rolled to a stop at a stoplight.
"Look, kids, a hawk!" Heero's mom called, pointing to their right.
"It's pretty! Cool!" came the chorused answers.
The light turned green, and Duo looked up as the vehicle began to slowly move forward. He glanced to the right and frowned. "Heero-"
That was as far as he got before the dump truck he'd seen barreling towards them collided head-on with the black SUV. The all-terrain vehicle almost immediately flipped and would've rolled had the dump truck not been pushing it through four lanes of rush-hour traffic on its roof. Other vehicles swerved to get out of the way, but not all of them succeeded, and the SUV was hit an additional three times before the dump truck veered to one side and ran off of the road.
It was about that time that Heero and Duo stopped screaming.
There was an almost forbidding silence as the two hung upside down, held in place only by their seatbelts. "Duo…are you okay?" Heero finally whispered, reaching out and taking Duo's left hand in his right.
"Yeah," he replied quietly, gripping his friend's hand tightly.
Sounds of car doors slamming and running feet filled the void of silence the two youngsters had found themselves in. Voices were shouting to each other and others, trying to detour traffic and deciding who was calling ambulances.
"Oh my God…" an unfamiliar female voice murmured before calling, "Hello? Is there anyone in here?"
"Yeah," Heero said, looking to Duo uncertainly.
"Hurry! There's a kid in here!" the woman yelled. "What's your name, hon?" she asked gently.
"Heero."
"Heero, is there anyone else in there with you?"
"Yeah. His name is Duo. He's my friend."
"Hi, Duo."
"Hi," he replied shyly.
"You two just sit tight, okay? Don't move, and we'll get you out as soon as-" The voice ended in a scream.
Suddenly a violent jolt on the back of the SUV sent Duo flying out of his seatbelt. He screamed as he came face-to-pebble with the moving pavement that the still-open sunroof left exposed. The sparks from the metal caught him in the face, and his screaming went up an octave as he was hurt. His hold on Heero's hand, however, saved him, jerking him back to face the taller boy instead of the ground, and he held his feet against the seat. He locked tear-filled eyes with his best friend. "Don't let go!" he whimpered, clutching tightly to him.
"I won't," Heero promised softly, barely heard over the crushing of metal. He used both hands to hold onto him, unconsciously digging his fingernails into Duo's skin. Duo's gaze switched to the back windshield, and he gave a short shriek as he saw it covered in blood. He could barely see a body imprinted in the mess. Even as his young mind registered this, the SUV slid to a slow stop.
When it had stopped moving completely, a different voice greeted them. "Boys? Are you okay?"
"Uh-huh, yeah," they said uncertainly, still holding onto each other.
"The one's out of his seat belt."
"We can't get to him."
"How are we going to flip this thing over if he's out? He could get hurt."
Heero and Duo looked at each other. It was then Heero saw the unshed tears of pain in Duo's wide, frightened eyes. Without letting go of Duo's hand, he pulled the boy up against him so that Duo was sitting in his lap, held in place by his strong arms.
"He's safe."
"Go."
"Boys, hang on tight!" a voice warned, and the SUV was being rocked violently back and forth. Moments later it rightened. In the distance they could hear sirens and horns blaring. "Here come the ambulances."
Duo was shaking in Heero's arms, and Heero was suddenly aware that his friend was wet. The right side of him was covered in blood, and he was breathing quickly. "Duo?" Heero asked apprehensively. "Duo, look at me." The braided boy did as he was told, though he kept his eyes down. Blood ran down his face in trickles from half a dozen different places. "You're hurt," he said, tone worried.
"I'll be okay." He gave his friend a faltering smile, and his short statement caused blood to spill from his mouth.
There was a loud screaming sound of an electric appliance that made the boys' teeth hurt, and any further conversation was cut short as the saw cut through the door of the SUV. Moments later there was a clatter of metal, and Duo felt large hands grab his sides.
He shrieked, more in pain than surprise, as he was hauled off of Heero's lap. Their hands were torn apart, and Heero made a feeble grab for his friend. When it failed he tried to undo his seatbelt, but it was jammed, and no amount of wigging could free him from his prison. He looked up at Duo, who was being securely held by a fireman, only to see the blue-violet eyes widen in horror and a scream erupt from the boy's mouth as he stared at the front of the SUV.
All the child could see was blood, body parts, and general carnage, the only things that remained of Heero's parents. Blood dripped from the roof and ran down the dashboard. Mrs. Yuy's head was attached to her neck by a mere sinew of stubborn muscle, and the right side of her body was unidentifiable from the side of the SUV. The skin was gone from most of Mr. Yuy's face, looking almost like a peeled apple, and his head was split open for all to see. Upon closer inspection, Mrs. Yuy's legs were also missing and would later be found fifty feet away from the scene of the original impact. Bones and organs stuck out of odd places on the couple's bodies, and the overall effect was worse than many firemen present had seen in their time of duty.
Duo's scream was cut off, however, when the fireman holding him turned, and the boy lost sight of the SUV. "Put me down! Let me go! Heero!" the seven year-old yelled, voice shrilling from pain and fear. "Put me down!" He shrieked several times as he was handed from fireman to medic. A well-placed kick made the medic turn in pain, allowing the boy the sight of the SUV once again. He'd barely locked eyes with Heero when the situation got even worse.
The SUV exploded in a huge ball of fire.
Duo stared, mouth open, eyes huge, as his best friend was lost from sight behind the flames. He could hear Heero shrieking, and tears began to pour from his eyes. His loudest scream yet tore from his throat, but this one was a word howled in such a broken, pained way that it brought tears to some eyes.
"Heeeeeeeeeerroooooo!!"
Reviews:
Nikkler - Awww, I feel so loved! LOL, thanks! I hope you like this one!
Ashen Skies - I honestly just don't know where to put them! [sweatdrop] I hope they fit in this new spot I have them in, that's all I can say. Don't worry, there'll be plenty of 1x2! Thank you for the grammar check – I'll try to go back and fix it when I can. Thanks!
Die Spitze - Thanks! I'm going to try to put some longer chapters in. Does that mean I get more reviews? [wink]
fiery-icicles - I'll try to work them in. Thanks a bunch!
Chibis Unleashed - Yeah, I liked the swings part myself. I actually saw something similar to this when I was at a park once…Thanks for the review!
bluep - Thanks! I'm working hard to keep this thing going, believe me…
Riath - It'll be OOC for awhile, and Heero will never quite be IC I don't think, but he will be frosty towards others. Thanks for the review!
sharl-tn - That was probably the longest AN I'd ever written. I went ahead and moved the review replies down here, so you can get to the story faster. [wink] Thanks!