"Reminiscing"
Chapter 12: Shattered Dreams
Disclaimers apply here: I don't own Gundam Wing or any of its characters.
Everyone quickly regrouped in the all too familiar setting that was still undergoing small renovations from yesterday's early morning's incident. To them, it felt like time slowed for this particular week...entrapping them for history that was trying to repeat itself once again. Sally emerged from the surgical ward, her eyes showing defeat, "He had a blood clot in his lungs...a pulmonary embolism."
"You told me that everything was going to be all right," screamed out Duo.
"I know...I know," she leaned against a wall, "Sometimes we can't guess what'll happen with patients. These complications just lurk up on us at any given time."
"What's his prognosis then?" asked Une.
"For now, it looks grim...he contracted an infection from his previous gunshot and now everything just keeps piling up. He's lost a large volume of blood and no matter how hard we try, the pressure isn't holding," she looked directly towards everyone, "I'm afraid he's not going to make it...I'm sorry."
Wufei came over to her side and offered her Kleenex, "You did your best along with Stenson and her group."
She took the kind gesture with gratitude, knowing that she wouldn't see his soft side for a while, "I'm sure Stenson might extend visiting hours for all of you...I can probably pull a few strings here and there." She quickly left the group, trying to drown out her failure by busying herself with the task at hand.
Noin quickly left the group and found the room where Relena was now situated in., she found Zechs in a chair just beside the bed. "Hey there." She ran her hands down on his shoulders. A moan came from and she felt his muscles relax slightly. "She's still asleep?"
"Yeah...I don't think it's the sedative now, but more of fatigue from exerting herself to walk."
"I'm afraid I have some bad news on Heero's condition...there was a blood clot in his lungs. Sally isn't too sure if he'll live."
"I see," a nervous sigh escaped from his lips. "I'm now more worried about her," he looked towards his sleeping sister. If Heero died tonight and if she hadn't said her goodbyes to him, he wouldn't hear the end of it coming from her. Their whole relationship might just dissolve in one night and with the brunt of his news coming so close, the entire relations between the earth and the colonies could be jeopardized once again. "I'm in deep, Lu."
"I know you'll figure this out somehow," she bit on her lower lip and looked to her soon to be sister-in-law, "It looks like she might wake up now." She urged Zechs from his seat and she quietly left the room, allowing the brother and sister some time alone. Outside in the hallway, she could see the group in the distance and made eye contact with Quatre. She saw the look he still conveyed.
Duo paced back and forth around a small reflection pool. The sun's rays pierced the surface and reflected off the liquid, striking him at his retinas. "This isn't fair!!!" He screamed as loud as he could, he didn't care if anyone heeded him or not, "The war is over now...it's not fair to take him away like this!" He threw a rock into the pool and the ripples radiated from the corner, distorting his own image and the view of the blue sky. He fell to his knees, "All this work, wasted for a personal vendetta..."
He took a few more minutes to himself and collected his thoughts. He knew his sulking wouldn't erase anything that happened in the past few days. He took a deep breath in and returned back...the sounds of the busy hallways kept his mind off the death situation, but the smells made him nauseous.
"You all right, Maxwell?" Trowa looked up from his magazine.
"I'm fine. Where are the others?"
"Around." His green eyes focused back onto an article. "Do you want to talk about something? You don't seem like yourself lately."
"I'm fine, Trowa...I just want everything to end...on a good note."
"We all want that," he got up from his seat and headed for the door, "I'll leave you two alone. Do you need anything?"
"I'm good...thanks." He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"I'll be back later...Quatre might drop in again..."
"All right," he heard the door close quietly. "Well it's me and you, buddy." He began to fidget with his hands, he hated hospitals most of all, even the room felt cold and out of touch...the steady bleeps on the monitors sent his hairs rising. Memories of his childhood came flooding in and with it, images of his first true friend, Solo. But, there was one bitter image he couldn't erase from his memory...Solo dying in his arms after his failed attempt to find the vaccine to the virus that plagued the colony. "I can't lose another friend," he whispered to himself, hoping that Heero would hear it, "You hear me! Don't say goodbye yet."
Back in Relena's room, she finally awakened in the mid-afternoon. "Where's Heero?" Her blue eyes flashed with fear, hoping that her nightmare of him dying wasn't true.
Zechs couldn't deter from the question, "He's in recovery now, but..."
"But what?"
"It doesn't look good, Relena, he might not make it through the night. I'm sorry, but there's nothing anyone can do." He sat down in defeat. "And there's something else I need to tell you...whether you like it or not." He cleared his throat, "I'm handing the position back to you...you're far more better in diplomacy than I ever will be."
"I don't want it," she seethed, clutching the sheet that lay on her.
"The papers have been turned in and it's official. Lu and I are returning back to Mars, before the transition has been made."
Her voice pitched, "You're running away, Zechs!"
"What's that supposed to mean?" He stared directly into her blue eyes that reflected his own. "I've shed too much blood in my past and let it stay there. I don't want anymore harm come down on our family line. I should have listened to my gut feeling about taking your position in the first place."
The monitors showed a slight increase in blood pressure and heart rate, she decided to put things into perspective and slowly came to an agreement, but still she loathed the position that now beckoned for her return. "The war isn't really over yet...it's still waging inside politics. What [they] fought back then was to secure peace for all of us...the rhythm is still lulling everyone back in." Zechs remained quiet, bracing himself to take another round of her verbal assaults that could come anytime. "I want to see him and don't you dare stop me this time."
"I'll let you this time," he pulled a wheelchair up to her left side. "Easy now, you don't want to tear your bandages open." He wheeled her to the recovery ward and found everyone clustered in a smaller waiting room.
"You're looking more stronger than ever," replied Quatre.
"Thanks...it'll be awhile before I get back on both feet." She counted the pilots and noticed one was missing, "Where's Wufei?"
"He's with Heero right now," chimed in Duo. "He kicked me outta of the room."
"Really?" A shocked look came across her face.
"It surprised me too and here I was expecting Quatre or Trowa to walk back into the room."
"It looks like you have an audience outside right now, Heero. I better make this quick then." He stood up by the bed, "You have to fight this...you were a formidable opponent in the war and I don't want you getting an easy way out...you got that!" He scooted from his position and opened the door. All eyes focused on him for a little before he sent a cold gaze towards them.
"I guess I'll take it from here," Relena looked about the medium sized room. Zechs helped her into the room and left there shortly. She looked out the door's window and saw everyone leaving their seats, giving her a moment of privacy. A knot began to form in her stomach and she didn't know where to begin, "Um...it looks like it's going to be another fine night here thanks to everyone's efforts." She looked upon his messy brown hair and wished that he would just open his Prussian eyes right about now. "We have to stop meeting like this...seriously...first it was me and now you." She wheeled up next to his bed and took his hand into hers, "I'm at a lost for words right now, but...thank you...for saving my life. You probably don't want to hear this, but I'm going to say it anyway...before I regained consciousness...I was dreaming about you and our future. Somehow we beat the odds and had our own little family...our son looked like you." A tear trickled down her eyes, "And somehow you managed to bring me back to life again in my dream. So please hang in there...I don't care if we're together or not, I just want you to live that's my only wish...no strings attached."
She managed to wheel herself to the window and looked out to see a shooting star blaze across. A nurse came by and checked on Heero's vitals and increased the morphine dosage, "Um...miss...it's time for you to head back now."
"Sorry, I must have lost track of time," she blushed in embarrassment. "Good night, Heero," and with that said, it was the last thing she'll ever say to him alive.
The next three days were somewhat a return to normalcy for the Preventers. After their major raid at Norfolk's base, the reporters finally got hold of the full story and aired the details now to the public. Relena flipped through the channels just trying to get away from it, but in the end, the majority of the stations covered the main event except for one that was leaking out another breaking event. The woman news anchor on the screen read the urgent news, "We have just confirmed that Vice Foreign Minister, Milliardo Peacecraft, and his fiancé, Lucrezia Noin, have both been killed in a fatal plane crash en route from a conference held at the ESUN. As you may well be aware of, former Vice Foreign Minister, Relena Peacecraft was attacked in her own home, but is now fully recovering. May our prayers be with her at this time. The ESUN will not disclose who will take the vacant position, but assures that preparations have already been made. And now, returning to the Norfolk Incident..."
"So that's how he's going to be a ghost again." She closed the TV off and without a moment too soon, Zechs popped in hiding his true identity with a waist length grey coat and a hat that covered his face. "I just saw your vanishing act on the news."
"Really?" He looked to see what kind of reaction came from her.
"I still say that you're running away."
"And I still say it's the best way for me to do this...end of story...period. Lu sends her love, but I better be going now." He fidgeted with something that he concealed under his coat, "Here, you might need this."
She grabbed the portfolio from him and opened it, "It's phase two of the Terra Reforming Project..." she was left speechless.
"Nothing is set in stone yet, but with a little work on it...the colonies will sure agree to the new installments for colony expansion."
"Thank you, Zechs."
"No problem, I better make my disappearing act soon, before the press notices something. I'll contact you."
In no more than a minute, he was out of her sight, "Bye Zechs." She looked out into her room, which was now filled with at least ten different flower arrangements ranging from roses to irises. Even Mariemaia managed to drop by with her own unique bouquet of get-well balloons decorated with random smiley faces. She grinned to herself on the last time she had a balloon in her own hands, "So much for synthetic helium..." she thought to herself.
Right then, a flurry of nurses ran to the end of the hallway. "Maggie he's crashing!" one of them shouted.
"I'm on my way," she dropped her pile of charts down on a desk and ran by Relena's room, not knowing that her own patient was watching her.
She managed to climb out of her own bed and walked with her IV stand to the commotion. Nurses had already shut the door behind them, but she stood there looking through a small glass pane. "Heero..." Her eyes became saturated with a salty liquid and she couldn't believe it...he was slipping away from her. Inside the room, she could tell Stenson was giving a fight in trying to save his life, but she looked over to the monitors...flat line. "Please no..." Her eyes darted back to Stenson and she could read her lips, "Time of death..." The words stung more than anything at the moment, she could already feel her chest tightening and reality crashing in.
"Relena, you shouldn't be here," Stenson looked alarm that a nurse didn't catch her standing in front of the room.
"I heard the monitors and I had to come," she sniffled.
"I'm sorry," she patted the girl's shoulder. "It just took us by surprise...he was doing so well until today...he even had visitors...Lady Une."
"I want to see him." She stared directly into the room and watched a nurse taking out the tubes along with the IV.
"Just for a minute."
"Thank you." The doctor helped her through the door and the nurses cleared away in an instant. She gingerly touched his hair and kissed him on top his forehead...it was still warm, "May you find peace now." Right then, a torrent of tears ran out and she felt a hand over her shoulder.
"Come now, Relena."
A voice she knew all too well, "Quatre," she sobbed on his shoulders.
"Shhh now...you're going to get through this. I know you will." He continued to hold her in his arms, trying to comfort his friend. Unaware to them, a pair of brown eyes looked from the doorway and the person quickly rushed down to the basement unnoticed.
The two left the room, while a pair of nurses awaited at the door to move Heero's body to the morgue. The transfer was quick, as the two wheeled the body to the basement using a back elevator away from any passing visitors' view. A female voice told them to leave the body in the middle of the autopsy room and with that room was quiet again. She quickly walked over to the body and injected a liquid into one of his veins. The body contorted for a minute, but it wasn't rigor mortis and right then, there was a gasp for air.
"I see that you're alive now, Heero. You pulled some show back there." She adjusted her long brown hair.
"Did the diversion work?" He looked around his surroundings.
"It did...she thinks you're dead and the others aren't catching on yet." She looked into his eyes, "Are you sure about this?" an alarm went off in her mind.
"I am...it's for the better."
"All right then...but if you slip up somewhere, you'll have lots of explaining to do." She handed him some belongings and turned away. "I've programmed the security cameras ...that way you can make your escape and the funeral arrangements have already been ma-." Before long, she heard the back door tweak shut. "I just hope he knows what he's doing." She went back up to the main recovery ward and went to Relena's room to comfort her...though she felt guilt building up inside her with every passing minute of deceiving the new Vice Foreign Minister.
The winter day burned in her memory as each former pilot and her grabbed a handful of his ashes and released them into the chilly air. The service was short and yet no one wanted to be there, they all wanted their friend to be back. Tears stung her eyes again, but she didn't remove them, he had failed her in granting her one last wish...bitterness enveloped her heart. She tuned out the reverend and other voices as they eulogized the pilot of Wing Zero...her former bodyguard...her friend. But then, the tone changed towards a different couple and with that, another funeral service was combined. It was as if the fates combined the deaths so well in one single blow...only in truth, the three deaths were false.
Hours passed with visitors coming to and fro from her house with their condolences about Zechs, Noin, and Heero. She knew two thirds of them to be false, while the other third was true to her. She just wanted the day to end and she felt like retreating to her room, where it all had began, but now, a freshly laid carpet along with new furniture decorated the room. No one would have guessed the main accident had occurred here. She went over to the window and looked out onto the frosted fields wondering where Heero would supposedly be. Her lips quivered, as her breath frosted the panes, "Why did you have to leave?" Unaware to her, a pair of Prussian eyes looked from a grove of trees and stood silent, just capturing the quiet evening. Five days from now, he knew that she would resume her title of Vice Foreign Minister once again along with administering phase two of her Terra Reforming Project.
"I'm still here, Relena." He walked off onto the cold field and into the silent night, disappearing within the horizon that shifted every so often with the rush of the winds, erasing his newly made footprints.
Well it's finally finished...well maybe...I was thinking about a sequel...perhaps. Please review, I would greatly appreciate the feedback no matter how small it may seem...whether it might be constructive criticism or not. Thanks for sticking around and I hope I didn't let you all down with this story. Last but not least, I would like to say a big thank you to all of my reviewers, without you I don't know how I could have ever revamped my story in the first place. Thank you.