If I have any readers left...
Chapter Two
The sound of cars passing by. Rough pills on the bed sheet. Sweat covering his entire body. These were the first things he noticed when he awoke.
His eyes fluttered open and surveyed the room. With the exception of light passing through a broken spot in the blinds, the room was fairly dark. The only furniture was the bed, a dresser, and a small desk. The desk's chair was pulled out, and on it sat his shirt, jacket, and shoes.
Where the hell am I? Zechs thought. Sitting upright, he tried to recall what had happened, but his memory failed him. Maybe I'm dead. No, there's no way this could be Heaven or Hell, or even Limbo for that matter.
Zechs stood up and put on his shirt and shoes. He then looked down at the items on the desk. A hairbrush and two hair ties. A pair of glasses. A book sat next to the glasses. A Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne. Well, whoever brought me here must have a taste for classic literature.
He sighed and walked to the door. Time to meet my captor.
When he opened the door, he almost ran into Wufei Chang, nearly giving both of them heart attacks.
Startled, WuFei stuttered, trying to spit out a sentence. "Marquise. Y-You're awake."
Zechs' expression was identical to the Chinese youth's. "Wufei?"
"I- I was just coming to check on you. You've been out cold for over a day."
"A day?! What am I doing here?"
"You passed out." WuFei looked down. "At Treize's grave. I couldn't just leave you there, so I brought you to my apartment."
His eyes widened. Treize's grave? I...I can't remember anything from yesterday, let alone visiting Treize's grave. He closed his eyes, trying to regain his senses. "I see."
"You had a fever of 38.9°." (A/N: about 102° Fahrenheit)
Well, that would explain why my shirt was off.
"I trust you're feeling better?"
"Yes," he responded quickly, barely giving him time to finish his sentence. "Much better."
There was a long silence between the two. Finally, the silence was broken by a loud groan from Zechs' stomach. He looked down uncomfortably.
Wufei spoke his next words slowly. "Perhaps you're hungry?" He proceeded cautiously with his words. "I can make you something if you want. I don't have a lot, but I can take you to the kitchen."
The older man winced at the thought of anyone, let alone a boy who was formerly an enemy, being charitable toward him. His stomach, however, begged to differ. He decided to take the boy up on his offer when it let out another low growl.
"Yes, that's fine, thanks."
He followed Wufei through a living room that looked as if it had been hastily organized. Ten or eleven books were stacked atop a coffee table that hadn't been dusted in God-knows-how-long. There were cracks covering the discolored walls, which were probably white at one time. The kitchen was not much better. Dirty dishes were stacked high in the sink.
Funny, Zechs thought, but I never thought Wufei's house would be so badly kept. I don't know him very well, but he just- I don't know -struck me as more of a perfectionist.
Wufei seemed to read his mind. "I'm sorry it's so messy. I've been meaning to clean, but I just don't have the time."
Zechs sat down at the table. "No need to apologize. My house gets like this sometimes," he lied. My house has never been this bad.
Without so much as a smile or even a grunt of acknowledgement at the comment, Wufei opened a cupboard. "Like I said, I don't have much. There's ramen, macaroni and cheese, soup..."
Although he knew it was rude, Zechs spaced off, beginning to question the boy's motives. Why is he doing this? What possible reason could he have to help me? I was sure he thought of me as nothing more than an enemy. After all, that is how I used to think of the Gundam pilots, except maybe Heero Yuy. Why would Wufei possibly help someone like me? Then another question appeared in his mind. Just what was I doing at Treize's grave? I'd only been there once before.
Then a realization. The dream! I remember having that godawful dream. It began to replay through his head.
"Marquise?"
He jumped slightly and inhaled, realizing he hadn't been breathing for about fifteen seconds. Then he looked up at Wufei's confused expression.
"You look pale. Are you not feeling well again?"
"Wufei?"
"Yes?"
"Why did you bring me here?"
He paused. "Because you were passed out and running a fever."
"I know, but why did you help me when you could have just as well left me there?"
Wufei couldn't tell if he was being rude or just curious. His mind fumbled for an answer. "I was simply basing my actions on human instinct." He pulled out a can from the cupboard. "I'm making minestrone, is that okay?"
Zechs folded his hands and rested his elbows on the table. "Is that the only reason?"
Wufei was losing his patience. "I was just being a good samaritan, okay?"
"But I'm an enemy. Why would you bother helping an enemy?"
Losing it...
"The war is over, Marquise. You're not an enemy, just another man."
Zechs' voice became quieter. "Why offer me this hospitality?"
Losing it...
"I told you, human instinct." His eyes narrowed as he stirred the soup.
The blonde chose his next words carefully. "There must be more to it than that."
Lost.
"Look, if you want to play Twenty Questions with me, you can leave right now. I found you there, you were less than conscious, I brought you here. There's nothing more," he snapped.
Zechs didn't say anything. He definitely didn't appreciate being snapped at, but he was still too confused to be in any position to talk. I've obviously pissed him off. There's something he's not telling me, and there's no way I'll get it out of him now.
A spoon and bowl of minestrone were set in front of him. "What do you want to drink?"
"Water is fine."
In a matter of thirty seconds, a glass of ice water was also on the table.
The Chinese teenager's expression had faded from anger to something Zechs couldn't quite read. "It's just..." he started, barely above a whisper.
Curiosity filled Zechs. "Just what?"
"It's just...that when I saw you at Treize's grave..."
The blonde looked up.
"...you seemed to be...talking to him or something. I- I don't know, you just seemed really upset."
Talking to him? Why would I...? It must have been about the dream. He stared at his hands and talked quietly. "I really can't remember anything from yesterday."
"Your car is still at the cemetary. I can take you there whenever you'd like, just tell me when you're ready."
Zechs picked up the spoon and smirked. "That eager to get rid of me, are you?"
Wufei's expression was blank. "No, I just figured you wouldn't want to stay in a dump like this any longer." He left the kitchen.
I wonder how he managed to keep my unconscious body from falling off this motorcycle before. Zechs pondered this for a while. Wait, I don't think I want to know what kind of position we were in.
He sighed and continued to maintain a safe distance away from the boy in front of him.
It had been a half hour drive from Wufei's house to the cemetary. As they approached Treize's gravesite, Zechs got an unsettling feeling of déjà vu. I just barely remember driving down here yesterday. I was in a hurry. But why?
He realized they had stopped and Wufei had gotten off. Seeing that they were at their destination, he swung his right leg around to the other side and stepped off without a word. Brushing himself off, he walked down further and looked over to where Wufei was staring.
Wufei caught his glance. "I suppose I'm the only one who knows you're alive."
Zechs figured that Wufei was referring to his own headstone. "I suppose so."
"I can keep our meeting a secret if you wish."
"Yeah." A gust of wind blew by. "I should really thank you, Wufei. I'm lucky you came along."
Wait. Why was he here?
Wufei looked down. "I know this is really none of my business," he looked sideways at the man standing next to him, "but try to get some sleep. You look like hell."
He's actually concerned? "I haven't been able to really. I've been having these awful dreams." Why am I telling him this?
"About him?" the younger boy whispered after a long pause.
The question took him by surprise. Zechs cast a sidewards glance at him. Is he trying to hold back from crying? He must have some sort of connection to Treize. "Yes. About him."
Wufei turned around so the other man couldn't see the tears welling up in his eyes. "I'm sorry. It's none of my business and I shouldn't have asked. I'll leave now." He began walking back to his motorcycle.
Something about the tone in his voice concerned Zechs. He looks miserable. Perhaps he loved him as well. I need to talk with him more. There's something intriguing about this boy, and something tells me I can't let him leave. Maybe he's somehow tied into the dream.
"Wufei!" he called after him. "You don't have to leave. You didn't offend me."
He stopped walking but said nothing.
Zechs checked his watch. "Look, it's 6:00. I'd like to buy you dinner to thank you for your hospitality, if you'll accept my offer."
Wufei turned around, not bothering to wipe his tears, and looked directly into his sky blue eyes. "Zechs, I know you don't want to thank the one who killed your lover."
End Notes/Apology Time: Ooh, don't you just love a cliffhanger?
And now, for a formal apology for not posting Chapter Two for a whole week. I'm truly sorry, but you'll have to take that up with one, my teachers (who decided to pile on the homework before winter break) and two, my muse (who apparently took an early winter break, leaving me with a severe case of writers' block). Ah, who am I kidding. There's no one to blame but me. I majorly blow at beginning stories, but I got so eager to post Chapter One that I didn't think about the consequences of only having four paragraphs of Chapter Two done. I humbly ask thy forgiveness.
Anyway, next chapter, expect:
1. it posted sooner. ::sweatdrop::
2. more entertaining stuff in general.
3. a smiling Wufei! (yay!)
4. better and more interesting dialogue.
Kari