Part 7: Voyeurs and Angels
Head tilted back, Duo let the hot water from the shower roll down him. It was with a contented sight that he reached out and turned off the water.
There was nothing like a hot shower after a workout.
He ran a hand over his hair, then moved away from the shower and toward the dry side of the room where the towels hung on a rack.
Since no one could see him, he hadn't bothered to bring his clothes with him.
He grabbed one of the large towels, rubbing his hair for a moment before wrapping it around him. He was about to leave the room when a quick glance revealed a glint on the floor below the showerhead.
A hand went to his neck, then he was moving across the room quickly. Kneeling, he picked up the small silver cross from its place near the drain. For a moment he stared at the broken clasp, then he closed his fingers around it, swearing softly at how close he'd come to losing it.
It was as he stood and turned back toward the door that he saw the doorknob turn slowly and instinct kicked in. He disappeared, stepping to the side of the room so he could exit unnoticed right after the person entered.
Heero entered the room silently, cobalt eyes scanning it briefly, not pausing where Duo stood against the wall. Still near the door, he set a small pile of clothing on the bench beneath the towels.
Once more, his eyes moved over the room, and Duo held his breath, certain he knew he was there somehow. Heero abruptly looked down.
Not sure what to do, Duo stood frozen. Then Heero pulled off his tank-top.
.-.
A warm breeze ruffled Trowa's long, red-brown bangs as he stood looking out over the field.
Leave it to Quatre to find a safe-house near such a beautiful place.
Not moving his head, he let his eyes shift down to the boy lying on the grass beside him. Quatre had a small smile on his face as he lay on his back, arms folded beneath his head. He was watching clouds move across the blue sky. Then he saw Quatre's head turn a little and he snapped his eyes forward again.
"What are you thinking about?" Trowa asked softly.
When Quatre didn't answer, he turned to give him a questioning look. The boy was watching him, eyes wide with an expression Trowa didn't recognize.
"What?" asked Trowa.
Quatre's mouth twitched in a small grin. "You're very tall from down here," he said teasingly. "Why don't you sit down."
Trowa stared at him for a moment, then, with a sharp nod, sank to the grass beside him. Once seated, he turned to look at him again, doing his best not to drown in light blue-green pools.
"What are you thinking about?" he asked again.
Quatre smiled somewhat shyly, flicking his gaze back to the clouds. "I was thinking...that it's very beautiful here. So very peaceful."
He stopped, shooting a look at Trowa, who nodded for him to continue.
"It's as if the rest of the world doesn't exist. Like," he paused, looking for the right words, "like we're separated from all the bad things by more than just miles of land. I was thinking that this is what a sanctuary would be like."
A sanctuary...with an angel beside him.
Trowa's lips curved in a tiny smile for a moment before his expression became serious again.
But it was just miles of land. If he could take him someplace where the rest of the world could not follow...to a real sanctuary...
Watching him, he saw the pale blonde boy's cheeks suddenly grow pink. Blushing, Quatre sat up quickly, breaking eye contact.
"What's wrong?" asked Trowa. He frowned at the slender back that was now facing him. "What is it?"
"Nothing," Quatre said quickly. He kept his head down, not letting Trowa see his face. "I...I was just thinking something and I realized how insulting it was. I'm sorry."
"You're apologizing for an insult you haven't given yet?" Trowa asked.
His eyes widened, a small smile lighting on his face again. Before he even thought about it, he set a light hand on Quatre's shoulder, causing him to turn and look at him. Trowa removed his hand the moment their eyes met and both boys felt the loss as physical contact ended.
Quatre took a slow breath, waiting till his blush had receded.
"I was just thinking that you're very lucky," he explained. "You could fly away from here, go anywhere."
Trowa blinked in surprise and Quatre leaned towards him quickly, not wanting him to get the wrong idea.
"I wasn't trying to say that you'd run away," said Quatre, "only that you could if you chose to."
He frowned as he wondered how to say it, and whether he should.
"I should be quiet," he said after much internal debate. "I'm just envious, that's all. It must be wonderful to be able to fly."
Trowa looked down for a moment, then he caught Quatre's eyes.
"Would...would you like to fly with me?" asked Trowa.
.-.
Staring at the muscled chest that was slowly being revealed as if part of an intentional striptease, and feeling his face get hot with a growing blush, Duo fumed. He couldn't seem to blink or move, so fuming was his only outlet at the moment.
Get a grip! It was just Heero. Calm down, he told himself. Look at it this way, it made for an excellent prank and he hadn't even had to instigate it.
An unseen smile graced his lips and his eyes roamed over firmly muscled abs. Then his mouth went dry when Heero bent and pulled off his shorts. Now completely naked, Heero turned to the bench and folded the clothes.
Given such a view, Duo felt his cheeks heat up again, even as his eyes moved down Heero's back to latch on to the Japanese boy's endowments.
Oh, damn...
His mouth was a desert and he swallowed roughly, watching while Heero went to stand beneath the shower.
Tilting his head back much the way Duo had moments before, Heero turned on the shower and stood in the hot spray.
Duo forced his eyes away from the rivulets of water making their way down Heero's contours, and glanced at the door. If he was going go, now was the time to do it. He stared at the door for a moment before glancing back at Heero. His eyes abruptly widened and there was no longer any question of leaving.
Being utterly careful, Duo slowly sank to the floor, leaning against the wall so he could watch without having to think about the balance necessary to stand.
This was too much.
Heero had already finished with his hair, so he had soap in hand and was busy building up a lather. Duo watched the blatantly sexual yet completely innocent display with a dark blush. His eyes refused to be torn away.
Then Heero bent to wash his legs and Duo clamped his hands over his mouth, muffling the little sound that tried to build in his throat.
He'd never seen anyone so...sexy.
Despite his reaction to the sight, Duo felt his lips move in a slow smile as he watched Heero rinse beneath the pounding spray. Heero would kill him if he knew, but there was no way in hell he'd have missed this.
Grinning widely now, Duo followed Heero with his eyes, watching the boy cross the room and pull a towel off the rack before rubbing briskly to dry himself. He couldn't help but tilt his head to better view the scene. Then Heero pulled on his clean set of clothes and toweled his hair dry. It wasn't until he turned to the door that he finally paused.
Duo's eyes widened. Heero was standing motionless before the door, and he fully expected him to whip around and pinpoint him somehow.
Heero eventually snapped back into motion and left the room without so much as a backward glance. As he walked down the hall, the door to Wufei's room opened. The black-haired boy looked out at him, an eyebrow raised, eyes narrow.
"That's the second shower you've taken today," scowled Wufei. "Did you leave any hot water for the rest of us?"
Heero turned to throw a look over his shoulder at the door to the shower room, then he smirked and shook his head at Wufei. "No. Wait an hour or two."
Still smirking, Heero went down the hallway and into his room.
Wufei rolled his eyes before retreated to his own room, making an effort not to slam the door behind him.
No one noticed when the bathroom door opened a few minutes later.