Title: The Broken Flowerpot Part 9
Rating: R
Pairings: 2x5x2, 12
Warnings: Angst, Yaoi, Lemon
Spoilers: Yeah, kinda, some of the very last episodes
Disclaimers: I wish I owned them...but I don't. So I borrow them, use them, and put them back on the shelf where I got them. And for those of you who wish to sue me in hopes to gain money, you will be sadly disappointed to find that I don't have any!
Author's Notes: "The Broken Flowerpot" is the first installment of a trilogy, of sorts. I will be breaking this down in several bite-size portions for easier reading!
He was so deep in thought he didn't see Wufei come in the door until he was standing right in front of him. Wufei, seeing the serious expression on Duo's face, waved a hand in front of the violet eyes and chuckled to ease the tension he saw.
"Earth to Duo, are you there?" Duo's face went from serious to hurt to normal in a matter of a heartbeat, and Wufei wondered what was going on.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm here." Duo laughed lightly and stood up to embrace Wufei. "So did you have a good chat at the cemetery?" Wufei's face paled noticeably, and Duo's heart, in seeing Wufei's reaction, fell through the floor. But his face remained the same as he shook Wufei to get the scared look off his face. "You know, with Treize? Was he more talkative than normal?" Wufei gave a weak chuckled as he cleared his throat, his obvious sign of nervousness.
"No, he was still the same Treize, quiet as a grave." Wufei wanted to laugh at his play on words, but for a moment there he had thought Duo had seen him with Trowa in the cemetery and he didn't want to explain to Duo why he had the quiet Heavyarms pilot spying on him.
"I'll bet Lizzie will just be bouncing off the walls to see you again, love." Duo said, stressing the word 'love' a little more than usual. "We should get going before she gives away our table." Duo practically shoved Wufei out the front door, grabbing his keys from the hook and going down to the garage.
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"Oh Lordy Lordy it's WUFEI!" Lizzie squealed, wrapping her arms around Wufei in a very large bear-hug. Wufei, grinning at her, kissed both of her cheeks and tickled her under her chin.
"Yes, I'm back, Lizzie. At least for a little bit." Wufei grasped Duo around the waste and brought him in close next to him. "I was on a mission earlier, so a couple of friends of mine kept Duo company while I was gone." Lizzie nodded, a slight grimace coming to her face.
"Yes, darlin', I remember them. The one was just adorable! So sweet and caring!" Her eyes lit up, and Duo knew she was remembering Trowa. "And the other, well," Lizzie threw up her hands. "Well, let's just not go there. He seemed a little out of place, if you ask me." Wufei laughed as Lizzie led them to their table, handing both men their menus and waving for a waiter to bring them their drinks.
"I already have your drinks, honeys, so don't worry about that. Do you already know what you want to eat?" She glanced at Duo. "Duo, sweetheart, you still need some meat on them bones. I should bring you out some meat and potatoes again." She glanced at Wufei, a frown creasing her brow. "And you also, Wufei honey." She grasped their menus and took them away. "Good ol' fashioned meat and potatoes for the both of you." She said with finality. Wufei started to argue but she held up a hand. "You both are just going to disappear on me one day if I don't start feeding you right."
Duo chuckled, and Wufei soon joined in as Lizzie made her way to the kitchen. Duo sipped his drink, and he set up his silverware in the way that he liked it.
"This will be the second time in less than a week she has served me meat and potatoes." Duo grimaced playfully. "I can already feel my arteries clogging." They both laughed lightly and waved at Lizzie when she glanced up at them.
"So, how was the mission? Did it go all right?" Duo asked, stirring his straw. Wufei nodded, sipping his drink.
"Yeah, it went all right, I guess. There were a few small skirmishes, but nothing too serious. We had a couple of injuries, but nothing fatal, and we tried to keep the opposing side alive, as well. They lost four people in an explosion that they caused." Both men scooted their chairs in and placed their napkins on their lap when they saw Lizzie coming up with their food.
"Here you go, lovies, eat it on up, now, you hear? We have to fatten you up otherwise the next time you come in I'm gonna be able to see right through you." She laughed heartily, causing the two men to laugh as well.
"Thanks, Lizzie. You're a sweetheart." Duo said, making Lizzie blush slightly.
"Aww now don't go makin' me all flustered, Duo honey. Just you eat up so that there's nothin' left on those plates, y'hear?" She pointed at both of them and they raised their hands in submission and began to eat the very large steaks that were on each of their plates. "Good boys. Now I'm gonna go back to work and I'll come and check on you in a bit, okay?"
"That's fine, Lizzie." Wufei said, grinning through a mouthful of baked potato. Lizzie just laughed as she headed down to check on some of the other tables.
The conversation was non-existent as both men tried to eat the heaping plates of meat and potatoes. They only got about half-way done when they couldn't put another mouthful down. Lizzie came back up to check on them and her face was creased with a frown.
"You barely ate anything, boys." Duo patted his bulging stomach.
"Lizzie, we couldn't eat another bite if you paid us." He stood up and pinched her cheek. "But we will take home the rest so that we can eat it when we do get hungry again." He sat back down and Lizzie grinned, a blush creeping over the bridge of her nose.
"All right dears, I'll just bring out some take-out boxes for you." She started to walk away, but turned back. "I'll also wrap your desert up for later, too." She winked at them, and both Wufei and Duo glanced at each other.
"You don't think..."
"She might have, but I don't..."
"If she did I will just..."
"Here you go, boys. Boxes for your dinner and a bag with your desert." Lizzie said, placing the bag and two boxes on the table. Duo reached for the bag and opened it up to reveal two plastic containers with two pieces of apple pie in each. Duo looked up at Lizzie, his eyes big and a child-like grin on his face.
"You made apple pie for us!" Duo said, hugging the larger woman.
"She made apple pie for us?!" Wufei exclaimed, also jumping up from his seat and hugging both Lizzie and Duo. "Oh you are simple the best, Lizzie! Nobody beats your apple pie."
Lizzie was one big blush when she was finally able to walk away from the table. She never would let them know, but they reminded her of her two sons that had died during the One-year war. And when she could, she would make them their apple pie, just like her sons used to eat. She glanced back up at the two men that were getting ready to leave, and she sighed quietly. Even though their preferences for each other were a little out of place for her, she would never think of seeing them apart. They were always so happy, and she loved them dearly.
"Good night, Lizzie! Thanks for the pie!" Duo said, kissing Lizzie's cheek as he left. Lizzie blushed again before frowning, patting her apron. She reached inside one of the pockets and pulled out a fifty-mark. She chuckled, shaking her head. They were also very good tippers.
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They walked into their front door, and Duo was hit again by the thoughts of Wufei cheating on him. Duo glanced at Wufei, and although Wufei looked rather normal, he had lost some of his weight and there were circles under his eyes. He was hiding something, Duo knew, and his heart seemed to break when he realized that Wufei was, indeed, doing something behind Duo's back.
"Hey Duo, are you okay?" Wufei asked, concern written on his face. Duo wanted to smile and say yes, but he couldn't.
"I'm fine, really, it's just that I noticed that you lost weight, and that you haven't been sleeping well because of the circles under your eyes." Duo grasped Wufei's shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "Is there something you want to tell me?" Duo couldn't erase the hopeful note in his voice as he asked the question, and he waited for Wufei to tell him the truth. Wufei paused, and Duo's hope shattered.
"No, Duo, there's nothing wrong. The mission just wore me out. That's all." Duo nodded, releasing Wufei and stepping backwards. He looked at the floor, not wanting Wufei to see the tears in his eyes.
"I-I see." Duo started to walk away, but Wufei stopped him.
"What's wrong?" Duo did look at Wufei this time, and Wufei gasped when he saw his violet-eyed companion crying.
"I-I k-know about you and Trowa, Wufei. Heero saw you two together today at the cemetery." Wufei's face drained of blood and his skin turned a ghastly shade of white. Duo looked away, not able to look at Wufei any more. "I didn't want to believe him. I wanted to believe that it was just a misunderstanding, or that you would tell me that he stopped by." Duo paused, taking a deep breath. "But you didn't, and I even asked."
"Duo, I-"
"No, Wufei. Don't try to tell me about it now because it doesn't change anything." Duo looked at Wufei, tears in his eyes and trembling lips. "I just need some time to think, that's all." Wufei reached out to touch Duo, but just as he was about to touch the skin, he pulled back, pursing his lips and nodding, hurt.
"I will go to the grocery store, then. I'm sure we need some food." Wufei reached for his Preventer's jacket and pulled it on. "I'll be gone for about an hour. Is that enough time?" Duo nodded, not looking at Wufei, and Wufei quietly left the apartment, the door closing with a soft 'click' behind him.
Forty-five minutes passed, and Duo had done nothing but pace, sit, and pace some more, all the time thinking about what he was going to do. He loved Wufei with all of his heart, but to still be with him after he'd gone and cheated on him? Duo wasn't sure what he was going to do, and time was running out.
There was a hesitant knock on the front door, and Duo frowned. "What would Wufei knock on our own front door?" He mumbled quietly to himself as he went to open the door. He frowned when it was Heero standing there, soaking wet from the thunderstorm that had recently appeared.
"What's wrong, Heero? Why are you here?" Duo asked, his voice tired. Heero stepped in, shrugging out of his jacket. Duo stepped back so that Heero could fit in the room, and he crossed his arms over his chest.
"I just saw Wufei again, and he was on his cell phone. He was talking to Trowa, I could hear it." Duo winced, but other than that showed no emotions. Heero frowned. "Did he tell you?" Duo could feel his hold on his emotions starting to crumble. "Did he say why he was with Trowa?" Duo's shake of the head was barely noticeable.
"No. He didn't." Heero's face went into a mask of concern, and he placed a hand on Duo's shoulder and led him into the kitchen.
"I'm sorry Duo. I thought that he would tell you about it." He pushed Duo down into a chair gently, and for some reason, Duo let him. Heero pulled a chair up so that he was next to the braided man, and he tilted Duo's head up with a finger under his chin. "You know I'm here for you, don't you?" Heero's fingers stroked the side of Duo's face, but Duo didn't pull away. Heero's face inched closer to Duo's. "I will always be here for you." Heero's voice was barely more than a whisper as his lips slowly descended on Duo's.
The kiss was gentle, sweet. Duo was shocked to find that he actually enjoyed it. Heero was not pressing, nor demanding, just tender. Duo opened his mouth to let in Heero's invading tongue. But as his lips parted, he heard a painful gasp, and he knew instantly that it didn't come from either himself or Heero.
Duo broke the kiss hastily, Heero not quite understanding why it had stopped. But the painful sob from the kitchen doorway was all that he had needed to know. He heard Wufei drop the bag of groceries on the floor and run out of the apartment, Duo following close behind him.
At this time, he allowed a grin on his features and he slowly stood up and cracked his knuckles. Everything was in motion, and there was no going back. Everything he had worked for on this mission was coming to fruition now, and he started to walk to the cemetery to see the end of it.
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-A/N: So...did you like it? can you guess what happens? Well, I could be mean and say that I won't post the next chapter until I get more feedback...but I can't do that to my faithful readers! ::sniffles and wipes away a tear:: I love you guys!! You make me so happy!! ::sobs...then tried to calm herself:: Anyway, there is only one more chapter left, and perhaps and epilogue before I start writing the sequel...and yes, there is a sequel even though this story can stand just fine on its own. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chappie and please...REVIEW!!!! Thanks!! ::winks::