Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: I am terribly sorry this has taken so long. Writing took a backseat this last semester at school because of the sheer volume I had to do for Newspaper and English. Well, hopefully I can be a little more prolific now that summer is here! Also, please check out my latest story, "Oracle", if you enjoy this story so far!

Chapter 3: Life in Short
The morning was pale and gray, and Tara woke with a start. Catherine's bed was still made, and it was the best to assume that she did not leave Trowa all night. It was a day off for the performers, so Tara dressed modestly in pale violet and gray warm-ups that had seen many a cold and lazy day. She looked at herself in the mirror, her gentle curls unruly and her eyes seemed heavy with guilt. Why should she feel guilty? She did all that she could, but it was not good enough. The words stung her a bit as she admitted them to her messy reflection. She sighed and tied her hair back, and left the trailer toward the kitchen; she needed coffee. As she wandered there, she thought over it again. Yes, Trowa and Relena had been caught, and yes, it was sad, but was it right? She was cheating on her significant other, and he went right along in hiding. Were their affections nothing more than a lust for one another? What else would keep lovers hiding from the world? When she got to the kitchen, she saw Catherine sitting alone, looking tired. Tara got a cup of coffee for each of them and sat next to her quietly.
"You all right?" Tara asked, setting the cup down next to Catherine's hands.
"Yeah, I'm just tired," Catherine rubbed her eyes, and then picked up the cup of warm liquid, "he's so angry."
"Trowa?"
"Yes," Catherine sighed and took a sip, "he's not sad, or mourning, he's just angry that she went back to Heero."
"Did you know about them, Trowa and Relena?" Tara put down her cup and hugged Catherine about the shoulders warmly.
"I knew he was seeing someone, but not her," she chuckled sadly for a moment, "he probably didn't tell me because he knew I would object and try to change his mind."
"You really would have?"
"Well yes," Catherine turned and looked at her, "don't get me wrong, I want Trowa to be happy, but a taken woman, Relen Peacecraft and the girlfriend of one of his good friends no less, is just not a good situation for him. It was destined to end before it started."
"Maybe." Tara mumbled, remembering the day at the beach when she and Trowa talked about his relationship. He was waiting for the let down, he knew it was coming, but he still carried on the charade. He knew his fate.
"'Tis better to have loved and lost, then to have never loved at all." Tara found herself mumbling aloud.
"What was that?" Catherine rubbed her eyes again and yawned in a cute manner.
"Just thinking, he knew it was going to go downhill," Tara explained with a break to sip her coffee, "so why did he do it?"
"You've really got to care for the person, to the point where toy would do anything to be near them. Maybe Trowa felt that way, or at least he thought he did. It would explain why he was faithful, why he was willing to keep it in hiding." Catherine responded.
"I find that sad."
"Why?"
"Because he gave so much, and he deserves so much in return," Tara looked at Catherine, "don't you think it's unfair?"
"From my heart, yes, but from reality, no," Catherine sighed in reply, "he did it to himself, and all we can do now is support him." Tara nodded, putting her feet up on the bench and hugging her knees. Her concern for Trowa was great now, and she was partially relieved when he walked into the kitchen. He looked tired, but stone cold. The air suddenly felt icy as he crossed the room and sat down near them. His mood did not lift for weeks despite Catherine and Tara's attention.
The days waxed from winter to spring, and then on toward summer. The employees received three weeks leave before summer began. It would be their busiest season, with the shortest time spent on the road as they traveled from one big city to the next, setting up for one or two weeks at a time. Trowa's mood improved a bit with the announcement of the three weeks vacation. He was not terribly thrilled to hear that they were to be spending that vacation time at L2 colony. He was mostly dreading an encounter with on of his friends. He knew that his encounter with Heero would be fresh on everyone's mind even though some time had passed. He stood outside the airport with a particularly angry little snarl on his face when someone jumped on his back with a carnal laugh. He stood ramrod straight and blinked, and then tossed a glance over his shoulder to discover that Tara was his attacker.
"Come on Trowa," she smiled in an overly forced way, trying to make him laugh, "we are going on vacation! No packing, unpacking, performances, hungry lions, flying daggers, or boss to worry about!"
"She has a point." Catherine said off to the side while putting her bag on their carrier and pushing it toward the entrance. Trowa sighed and inwardly admitted defeat, and a smile crept across his face as he slid his arms underneath Tara's legs in order to carry her comfortably. She nearly yelped as he lifted her up, but was quite happy that all of her pestering was finally beginning to pay off. Catherine smiled back at them, throwing them the off comment of how they could by mistaken as children, but inside she was happier than she had been in awhile.
On the shuttle, Tara's mood had dipped a little low. She stared out of the window, wondering just how long it had been since she went to space. Her brow furrowed, not being able to remember much of the last visit, and she knew it was because she simply blocked it out long ago. Life was much happier as it was now anyway, so what was the point in fretting over the past? All of her former memories were locked away, with nothing but a scrapbook of lessons to keep safe and sacred. Trowa watched her with interest while Catherine did her best to ignore anything about flying. Tara's eyes suddenly changed focus, and found that she was staring at the slight reflection of Trowa in the glass instead of the stars and the Earth far below. She turned around in her seat to face him and his curious eyes.
"Hmm?" She tried her best to sound sleepy.
"You're quiet for having been so energetic earlier," he had never broken his gaze, "something wrong?"
"No," she chirped in an attempt to be childish, "I was just, quite literally, staring off into space."
"Have you ever been to the colonies before?"
"Yes."
"What for?"
"Vacation." The reply was short, but Trowa felt it would be rude to pry at her. After all, she had been the one who was prying at him to be happy for so long, one of the only people trying to make him feel better, so he let it be.
"I don't really want to go back." His eyes finally moved from her to the seat in front of him, blankly staring at the gray upholstery.
"Because all of your friends are up here?"
"Most of them are." He looked back at her again, "Tell me what you think. Do you think it is wrong to want to shirk your friends? To just put them aside and never have to deal with them again, friends that were so close to you at one point, that you could have sworn that you shared blood with them?" Tara was a little taken back for a moment, but managed a slight answer.
"Well... to be honest, I cannot think of a time where I had a friend that close but," she paused for a moment, "I don't think you should set them on a shelf forever. Sure you would have the memories, but you would also have the memories of what drove you apart, and that would make everything so bitter sweet. Why not try to heal?"
"It makes sense," he smiled and leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes for a moment, "thank you."
"You're welcome." Tara mumbled. A short time later they were in the terminal at L2, greeted by none other than Duo Maxwell.