Frozen: Chapter 2
By Symee-Sama

Disclaimer: I do not own the song 'Frozen' and I don't own Gundam Wing. Trust me on this.

You only see what your eyes want to see.
How can life be what you want it to be?
You're frozen
When your heart's not open.
-Madonna
It was cold. That's all Relena could think of as she stepped outside, all she allowed herself to think of as she saw Heero moving towards her. An awkwardness pervaded the atmosphere as he stepped closer to her, gently taking her arm and leading her towards the car.

"How are you, Heero?" She asked, her heart not really in the words. "How are the wedding preparations going?" He didn't say anything, merely looked away from her, as she tried to fill the silence with questions and small stories.

It was ironic. She was the most well-spoken person he knew, but around him, she started to fall apart. Piece by piece, until there was nothing left of the strong woman that he knew was there. There was only, a girl, hurt and rejected who stared at him with vulnerable, tear-filled eyes.

"Everything's fine," Heero said finally, turning back to look at her, and noting the dark circles under her eyes. "You haven't been sleeping again. You've been taking your medicine haven't you?" She nodded wearily, resisting the urge to bring her hand to her temple.

"I'm just tired, that's all." She smiled brightly, but he saw right through it, and frowned until her smile faltered. "I had a nightmare that woke me up. I am taking the medicine." She watched as some of the tension faded from his eyes, and wondered why he seemed so concerned.

He turned away from her again, looking out the window, and cursing himself letting this become so hard. "She's been asking to meet you," he began softly, and could almost sense her stiffen beside him. "It would mean a lot to me if you would meet with her, Relena."

"Of course," Relena's voice was tight and her smile forced. "I would be happy to meet her. Is there any particular time that she would like to meet?" She glanced down at her organizer. "If you want, I can take an extra hour for lunch."

"That will be fine," Heero smiled at her, meaning to be reassuring, but instead, breaking her heart just a little bit more. "She'll be thrilled when I tell her. She's been talking about nothing but you for weeks now." He stole a glance at her, wondering silently to himself when he'd become so afraid to look at her.

"Does she know, Heero? About you and me. Does she know?"

"There was no you and me," Heero said brusquely, knowing that his words were hurting her, and silently wishing that he could do something to ease her pain. "Relena, whatever you feel for me, you've got to let it go."

"I know," it took all of her experience from dealing with people to keep her voice steady.

"I don't love you," he twisted in the seat and practically snarled at her, hating that she could make him lose control this way. He was going to be married, and he wouldn't let any feelings that he might still have for Relena ruin this for him. "I never did."

"Do you think I don't know that?" Relena snapped, her eyes losing their distance, and filling with tears. "Damn it, Heero! Don't you think that I don't know that you never loved me? You wanted to kill me for God's sake, and my convoluted teenage mind twisted that into love. I don't even know how I did it. From murder to love, but I somehow made the connection."

Her shoulders slumped and to Heero's eyes, she seemed to collapse inwards. "Relena..." he began slowly, reaching for her hand, and biting back a curse when she flinched away from him. "Listen, I didn't mean to hurt you, but you've got to let this go."

"Whether you meant to hurt me, or not, the end result is the same." Relena flashed him a smile, and wiped at her eyes. "But don't worry, I'm a big girl now. I don't need you to help me through this. You will call your fiancée and tell her that I'll meet her for lunch?" Heero nodded and turned away from her.

"Isn't it odd?" Relena laughed softly as Heero pulled out his cell phone and started punching in numbers. "I don't even know her name. You've never mentioned it, Heero."

"It's Midii," he said and pressed the phone to his ear. "Midii Une."

8&8&8&8&8

Heero kept an eye on her throughout the rest of the day, and was strangely proud of what he saw. She didn't cry. She didn't beg or break down. Instead, she held herself with a quiet dignity that he admired. Especially during her lunch with Midii.

He had expected her to be rude, or at least annoyed with his fiancée, but Relena had proven that she was better than that. Smiling, and laughing with Midii, and acting for all the world like she was enjoying herself. If Heero hadn't known her so well, he would've been fooled by the good natured smiles, and the light hearted conversation, but he saw the hollowness in Relena's eyes as she entered the car after saying goodbye to Midii, and he knew that he had hurt her again.

He tried to make small talk as they made their way back to her office, but for once, Relena remained quiet. Nodding at appropriate intervals, and giving polite answers when she had no other choice, but other than that she was silent.

And it irritated the hell out of him.

He finally decided that she had sulked enough, and turned to face her. Not really sure if he was mad at her, or himself for making her this way. "Are you done moping yet?" He asked, frustration making his voice harsher than he wanted. "You're acting like a child."

Relena turned and gave him a level stare. "Let's get one thing straight," her smile was a mere baring of teeth, and Heero knew that he had gone too far. "Ever since I was young, I was taught restraint. I was told that it wouldn't ever do to let people know if you were angry, or hurting. It was best to deal with those feelings by yourself, where you wouldn't bother anyone.

"This small car ride is going to be the only time that I get to sort out my feelings until after six tonight, so you will let me take my moment to compose myself. You will let me mope or complain or do whatever I want until this car stops, and then..."

She sighed softly, and as Heero watched her struggle for the composure that she prized so much, he noticed how much older she looked than she should. "And then, I will do my job. I will do my part to help govern the ESUN, and no one will even be able to tell that something is wrong, but you will give me this car ride. You will not make me feel guilty for having emotions."

"Relena..." He reached for her, wanting to ease her pain away, and knowing at the same time, that it was partially his fault that she was upset at all. "I'm sorry –"

"Don't," she flinched away from his touch, pressed her back against the door, blinking back the tears that had suddenly sprung into her eyes. "Don't touch me." She watched his eyes ice over, and could almost feel the temperature of the car lower by a couple degrees.

"As you wish, ma'am," he nodded, and turned from her, seeming to not even realise that she was in the car with him anymore.

How could he have been so stupid? To think that she would want someone like him to touch her. Someone who had killed, someone who had destroyed countless human lives to comfort her. He wished that she wasn't in the car so he could laugh at himself, but instead, settled for regaining the mask he had been known for during the war.

Cold indifference to the world around him.

He knew that he had hurt her again, but it was for the best this time. He was getting married, and it was time for her to get those fanciful notions out of her head. He didn't care for her, he told himself vehemently. She was simply someone to protect.

Heero nearly sighed before he caught himself. He could bullshit himself all he wanted to, but he did care for her. He cursed himself inside his head. That was the problem. He cared for her too damn much. So much that he would give his life for her in a heart beat.

And it scared him to realise that he could care about someone that much. He wasn't supposed to. He was a soldier, and had been trained to be as devoid of emotion as possible. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes, and noticed that to the casual observer, she seemed in good spirits once more, and ready to face the world of politics.

But then their eyes locked, and Heero knew the truth. Whatever hurt and frustration he was feeling right now, was multiplied in her.

This was for the best he told himself, and believed every word. It wasn't right for people to feel this strongly about each other. Their feelings were much too potent, much too uncontrolled to be allowed to survive.

8&8&8&8&8

It was nearly eight by the time that Relena's offices had emptied enough for her to let her façade fall. It had been a long day, one that hadn't been made easier by the extra hour she had taken for lunch. If anything, her lunch had been the most difficult part of her day.

She liked Midii, genuinely liked her, but every time she looked at her, she was reminded that Heero didn't love her. Didn't want her. So she had smiled, and forced herself to enjoy herself as Midii talked to her about politics, the upcoming wedding, and about Heero.

That had been torture. Midii asked her question after question about how Heero was around her, and she had answered, smiling the entire time, and dying a little more with every answer she gave. Midii had seemed somewhat relieved to learn that Relena had never been in a formal relationship with Heero. Relena supposed that anyone would have acted that way. Who would want an old ex-girlfriend around?

No one, she answered herself bitterly, but an ex-nothing was something else entirely. Heero seemed content to watch her suffer through this entire debacle, and had already told her that Midii was to know nothing of what she felt for him.

Her ears perked up as she heard a sound nearby, and her politician's mask was on instantly. She was calm and in control of herself. "Who's there?" She asked, pleased that there was no trace of the hurt she felt in her voice.

"It's just me," Trowa stepped into the light of her lamp, and she breathed a sigh of relief. "I didn't mean to scare you."

Relena smiled up at him. "I suppose you came to see if I was ready to leave?" At his nod, she continued. "Just let me clean up here, and I'll be right with you."

She collected her papers, and filed them carefully, before turning back to him. He was pale, she realised suddenly. He was very pale and drawn, with circles under his eyes. "Are you feeling well, Trowa?" She asked, reaching up to place a hand against his forehead. "You haven't got a fever, but you look pale."

"No paler than you," Trowa countered, and when she looked at him uncomprehendingly. "When I was young, I was with a group of mercenaries who, at my request, took in a young girl about the same age as me. She had blonde hair that flowed down her shoulders, and bright blue eyes that seemed to reflect the light of the world back at you. She had an innocence around her that I found irresistible, but I never let her know how I felt, I couldn't you see. I believed if I let anyone in, I would get hurt."

He paused, and directed a level stare at her, seeing that she was beginning to understand. "She betrayed our position, and got all the mercenaries killed. I saved her life, and when I stood with her, looking down at the wreckage of our camp, she told me she loved me." He nearly sighed as he pictured the look on her face. "And I ignored her and walked away."

"Did you ever find her again?" Relena asked quietly, and Trowa nodded.

"Just recently, I saw her, but in the arms of another man." His smile faded, and he turned away from her to face the wall, not wanting her to see the hurt in his eyes, the raw emotion that threatened to overwhelm him.

Relena walked over to him, and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, silently acknowledging the pain that they both shared. Trowa relaxed slightly under her touch, his fists unclenching as he turned back to face her, a sad smile on his face. "Who was she?" Relena asked, and watched his smile falter as he struggled for composure.

"Her name was Midii Une."

Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed. I liked hearing your thoughts on the first chapter. I decided to do something a little different with the pairings and not pair up Heero with Sylvia. It was pointed out to me in a review for a different fic that she is used fairly often as the 'other woman'. Midii seemed like a nice change. Good? Bad? Comments? Review and tell me!