Chapter Seventeen: Flashback, Take 2

I was acing all of my classes. I didn't understand why so many people hated school. Sure, it could be boring, and you had to do work, but I preferred schoolwork to fighting a war any day.

Ironically, though, my easiest class, Physical Education, was the class that gave me the most problems. I had the class with James and most of his lackeys, and so I got my share of grief during class. When we played soccer, I was kicked several times in the shins. Floor hockey brought my ankles or face into contact with the hockey sticks. While other guys got hit the same way, I knew the assaults against me were much more than just playing rough. James and his friends were playing dirty. It took all of my self-control for me to keep from pounding the guys. I was starting to really hate them, but I remembered Jericho's warning that I would be sent away if I fought, and so I kept my hands to myself.

One day, we came into the gym to find mats spread across the floor. The teacher, Coach Kingsly, told us that we were going to be learning some self-defense moves. He paired us up, and to my horror, I was matched up with James.

"Hey, Mr. Kingsly, this isn't fair! Bird-Brain here is like twice my size!" I protested.

"Okay, Duo, lemme see who I can get to switch with James…" Mr. Kingsly said, looking around the gym.

"Yeah, that's it, Maxwell," James sneered at me. "Run away like a scared little girl. You look enough like one."

I turned my head slowly and glared at him, my eyes narrow. "Hey, Mr. Kingsly, on second thought, I think I'll stick with James."

That first day we were learning what to do if someone attacked you from the front. Basically, one of us would act as the attacker and approach the victim from the front and the victim would flip the attacker. We would then switch parts and practice again. It was a pretty pointless class period since I already knew how to do it. I didn't have too much trouble flipping James even though he was so much bigger than me. And he had absolutely no problem flipping me. In fact, he seemed to thoroughly enjoy slamming me down against the mat with all his might.

"Hey, James, be gentle!" One of James' friends called over. "Remember, Maxwell is from the colonies. Their kind is weaker than us Earthlings. You might break him, and then you'd have to answer to Jericho!" The guys and James laughed.

When their laughter subsided, I grinned at them all. "Oh, don't worry. James wouldn't be able to break me if he tried. He wouldn't be able to break anyone. Not if he was relying on these skills in a real fight," I called back.

"What's that supposed to mean, Maxwell?" James demanded, taking a step closer to me.

I shrugged. "Well, you know, if an attacker is experienced, he wouldn't just run up from your front and try to grab you. No way! It'd be too easy for you to stop him."

"Sure Maxwell, whatever," James replied. "Now, it's my turn to flip you. So, com'n, attack me."

I grinned a huge grin at him. "You want me to attack you?" I asked him. He nodded. "Okay, if you're sure," I said with a grin.

I backed up a few steps and then made a running start at James. He got into the stance so that he could grab me and flip me. I noticed that his legs were too far apart to make him really steady, making them the perfect target. And so, when I reached James, before he could grab my arm and flip me, I ducked and kicked his feet out from under him. James fell hard and landed on his back with a loud thump. Several of the other guys in the class laughed, and James' face went red.

I stood up and brushed my clothes off. "See? That one skill didn't keep you safe from an attack on your lower body," I walked over and offered James my hand to help him up. "Just think about what you'd be feeling if I decided to go for a more…sensitive…area."

James narrowed his eyes at me in an expression of utmost anger and hit my hand away. He stood up as the bell rang. "Just you wait, Maxwell. You're gonna pay for that," he snarled at me as he turned and headed towards the varsity locker room.

I rolled my eyes and shook my head. James had no idea who he was dealing with. If he knew that I was the God of Death, he would think twice about threatening me.

I told Jericho about what happened in lunch. I expected her to laugh and congratulate me, but instead she got a look of horror on her face. "No, Duo, you didn't!" she cried. "James is gonna come after you now like he comes after me. Before, you just defied him so he ignored you for the most part. But now that you've embarrassed him and made him look like a fool, he is gonna make you pay."

"Don't worry about it, Jericho. I can handle him. I'm a Gundam pilot, remember?" I said, dropping my voice so that no one would over here.

"Yeah, well, you don't have Deathscythe anymore. I bet your skills aren't so great without it," she replied, sounding slightly annoyed.

I frowned at her. "You don't think I can handle myself in a fight?" I demanded.

"Not without your Gundam. Look at you Duo! You're taller than me, but you're on the small side for guys. And you're a lot weaker than you were when you were a pilot. Piloting mobile suits really gets people into shape. You haven't piloted a suit for almost eleven months. James plays sports and works out. He'll pummel you."

"Nah, he can't take me. I've got skills he could only dream of having," I said, leaning back and putting my hands behind my head. Jericho's lecturing was starting to irk me.

Jericho slammed the textbook she had been reading closed. "You're so cocky it makes me sick."

"It's better to be cocky than a pessimist," I shot back. I was officially irked.

"I'm not a pessimist, I'm a realist," she snapped. Her ears were getting red, meaning she was getting mad.

"You're not a realist, Jericho. You're a scared little girl who would rather hide in books than face the real world." As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I regretted them.

Jericho looked like I had slapped her. Tears welled up in her eyes as she stood and gathered all her books.

"Jericho, look, I didn't mean it. I'm sorry," I said, pleading. Oh God, don't let her storm out like Hilde…

She stopped in the middle of what she was doing and stared hard at me. "Yes, you did mean it, Duo. You're wearing your priest outfit. Remember what I told you about it? You're more honest when you wear it." The tears were running down her cheeks now. "If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go to the ladies room."

She practically ran from the lunchroom. I watched her go, my head spinning. She was leaving just like Hilde…just like Hilde…

Oh God, NO! I thought, grabbing my head. I could feel it coming, it was going to happen, but I couldn't stop it. I stood there in horror as the world around me dissolved and was replaced with…

The kitchen was a mess. I had thrown a little party the night before when Hilde was out of town on business. It hadn't been a big deal, just twenty or thirty people, some food, dancing, and goofing around. I hadn't told Hilde, but I figured that as long as there wasn't any alcohol at the party, she wouldn't mind so much.

Boy, was I wrong about that.

"DUO! What the hell happened here last night?" Hilde cried when she saw the mess the house had been left in. Soda cans were lying everywhere. There were food and drink spills on the carpet. The kitchen counters were covered in dirty dishes and garbage. Everywhere you looked there was mess.

"Oh, well, I had a little party while you were gone," I said sheepishly. Her yelling had woken me up, and I really just wanted to get back into bed and sleep for another couple of hours.

"A LITTLE party? Duo, it looks like Bachus (1) made an appearance here last night!" She was really mad.

"Nah," I said, walking over to her. "There wasn't any wine. He wouldn't have enjoyed it."

"Duo, this isn't a joke! Look at this mess! Who's gonna clean it up?" Hilde demanded.

"Don't worry, Hilde, I will," I reassured her. I bent to kiss her, but she pushed me away. I stared at her, hurt. "What the heck Hilde? Can't I even kiss my girlfriend?"

"Duo, I want this kitchen cleaned now! I wanna make some lunch, but I can't until it's clean."

"I told you Hilde, I'll clean it in a minute," I made a move to kiss her again, and she pushed me away again.

"I don't think you understand me. I want this kitchen cleaned now. I'm really pissed that you had a party while I was gone, and now you're gonna clean it up," Hilde ordered.

I was starting to get upset now too. "Oh, I understand you, Hilde. You care more about your damn kitchen than me."

She glared at me. "No, I don't care about the kitchen more than you, but I sure as heck wish you'd grow up sometime Duo."

"Earth to Hilde, I have grown up. I grew up along time ago. Remember? I wasn't like you with your privileged family life!"

Hilde's eyes narrowed. "I told you never to mention my family." She turned and stalked to the front door.

"Where are you going?" I demanded, following her.

"I'm going to Sally's. I'm sick of spending my time with an immature idiot."

I didn't want her to leave. I wanted her to stay. I wanted to apologize. But I found myself saying "FINE! GET OUT! AND DON'T COME BACK!"

Hilde looked at me, here eyes full of hurt. "FINE! I WON'T!" She opened the door and ran out.

I stood in the door way watching her, my heart breaking. Duo, you fool, go after her, I thought. I ran outside to the sidewalk following Hilde. She was already almost to the corner. I started after her, calling her name, but before I knew it, the unthinkable happened. A car ran the red light. The next thing I knew was the sound of screeching brakes, Hilde screaming, me shouting, and watching as Hilde's body was thrown through the air like a rag doll.

"HILDE!" I screamed as I fell to my knees.

"HILDE!"

I suddenly snapped back to reality. I was on my knees in the middle of the lunch room, screaming the name of my dead girlfriend. Other students were standing all around me, staring in horror. "What's wrong with him?" "Is he having a seizure?" "Someone get the nurse!" "Someone call 911!"

Tears were flowing from my eyes, and I was shaking like there was no tomorrow. I needed Heero. I needed to call Heero. I needed to talk to Heero.

"DUO? DUO!" Jericho was pushing through the crowd. She knelt down next to me. "Duo, what's wrong? What is it?"

"H…Heero…" I whispered through my tears.

"What'd he say?" someone asked. "I think he's calling Jericho his hero," another person replied.

"HEERO!" I shouted at them. Why didn't they understand? I needed to call Heero.

"Out of the way, everyone move! What is going on here?" Principal Quigley was pushing his way through the crowd. "What's the problem, Maxwell?" he demanded when he saw me.

"Heero…I need to call Heero," I said.

"What's all this?" Quigley demanded. "Maxwell, get up off that floor this instant! Why are you causing such a ruckus?"

I stood with Jericho's help. I was still shaking and crying, and I felt like I was going to be sick. "I need to call Heero Yuy," I told Principal Quigley.

"You're not calling anyone," he replied taking me by the arm. "You're going to the nurse."

"NO!" I shouted, pulling away from him. "I don't need a nurse! I need to call Heero!"

From somewhere behind me came James' voice. "He's gone crazy, Principal Quigley. He's having a nervous break down or something."

I made a move to turn to James, but Jericho grabbed me and kept me from moving. "Duo, let's go to the nurse's office. You can call Heero from there, okay?"

Jericho and Principal Quigley led me down the hall to the nurse's office. When we got there, the nurse started fussing over me like I was about to die. All she wanted to do was make me lie down and be quiet while she called Jon to come pick me up, but when I wouldn't stop asking for the phone to call Heero, she finally relented. She handed me the phone, and I dialed Heero's cell phone number. Jericho sat next to me, staring at the floor.

"Hello?"

"Hey Heero, it's Duo." I told him about the flashback, about having it in the middle of the lunch room, about what I was forced to relive. Jericho sat next to me, listening. The more she heard, the more horrified the look on her face became.

"Where are you now?" Heero asked.

"At school, in the nurse's office," I replied.

"Is anyone there with you?"

"Yeah," I said. "My friend Jericho."

"Give her the phone for a minute."

I handed Jericho the phone. She looked at me like I had grown a second head. "He wants to talk to you," I said with a shrug.

"Hello?" Jericho said into the phone. "Yes…Fine, how are you?...Yes…No, he hasn't told me anything…No I didn't know that...Yes…Okay…Yeah. Okay, thank you. Good bye." She hung up the phone.

"What'd he say to you?" I asked.

She looked at me for a moment, and then she threw her arms around my shoulders and pulled me into a hug.

"It'll be okay Duo. You're gonna be okay," she whispered. "I'm here, and I'm not gonna leave."


(1) Bachus was the Greek God of wine and partying.


PLEASE review and tell me what you think!