Duo's Child
Chapter 18
Three days remained until Uno would be six-years-old. She and Theresa walked into class prepared to make fun of the people around them when Uno froze in spot, noticing the classroom was empty. She blinked and Theresa looked around.
"Maybe we're early?" Theresa asked, glancing out into the hallway.
"No…Duo got us here in the time he always gets me here." Uno walked to her desk and put her things on it. As soon as she dropped her backpack onto the ground, Doug stepped into the room. Uno sighed.
"Hey Uno," Brittany stepped in with everyone else, "What do you want for your birthday?"
"Um…I dunno. What is there?" Uno blinked and looked up at Brittany and Claryce.
"What?! You don't know what you want?!" Claryce exclaimed.
Uno blinked. "Um…no. I already get what I want."
"Well…would you want any dolls? There's a new doll out called 'Polly Molly.' She's so cool looking; I already have one. You want one?" Jessica asked.
"…" Uno stared at her and didn't make a move.
"Unlike you, we don't play with dolls." Theresa answered for Uno. Jessica glared over to Theresa.
"Was I talking to you?"
"Luckily not." Theresa ignored the facial glance of Jessica and wrote her heading on a piece of paper for the class.
"Do what you want, but I won't play with it." Uno said, doing the same as Theresa. Jessica glanced over at her.
"And why not? Any normal seven-year-old plays with dolls!" Brittany turned around and smirked at Uno.
Uno stopped writing and snapped her eyes up at Brittany's, glaring at the same time. She hadn't noticed Mr. Merky writing something on the board, paying attention to the conversation.
"I'm not seven-years-old; I'm six."
Theresa smirked and began numbering her paper. Uno did the same. Corey looked over at Uno, a loud as a mouth he has.
"You're what?! How are in first grade then?" Corey wondered. By now, Mr. Merky had turned around to pay more attention to this.
"Because I'm smarter than you. I skipped Kindergarten and I had the choice to go into second grade." Uno relaxed in her seat, looking around at the people watching.
Theresa looked up at Mr. Merky as he was watching Uno.
"Then why didn't you go into second?" Sarah questioned.
"Because I didn't want to!" Uno snapped at everyone, shouting and getting very annoyed. "Shut up, already!"
Theresa looked away, her eyes huge at Uno's outburst. Uno didn't want to invite anyone over except for her two friends, but Quatre insisted upon it. Uno sighed as Mr. Merky cleared his throat.
"That's enough class. Leave her alone."
"She said to 'shut up!' She should get in trouble for it!" Jessica yelled out.
"You all should be the ones in trouble; stop antagonizing her and she won't yell at you."
Mr. Merky had the class stumped.
"Mr. Merky?"
"Yes Brittany?"
"What's antagonizing mean?"
"It means to stop edging me to attack you with any form I chose." Uno replied for her teacher.
Mr. Merky nodded, "Uno. Calm it down some."
The class grinned and smirked at one another. Uno slouched in her chair; now she hated her teacher for making her feel like a fool.
When lunch time came around, Uno and Theresa were sitting besides each other, chatting away as usual. A shadow covered Uno and she looked up to see blue eyes and brown hair. She smiled.
"Hey Ricky!"
Ricky sat down and smiled at her.
"Thanks."
"Here." Theresa dropped a pickle onto his tray of school food.
Ricky blinked, "what's this for?"
"I don't like pickles. They're nasty and sour and too juicy." Theresa looked at him.
Ricky shrugged, "I eat whatever. I'm always hungry."
Uno giggled.
"So," Uno sighed, "what grade are you in?"
"Third."
Both Uno and Theresa nearly choked on their food. Uno was drinking milk and nearly spit that out as well. They shot glances to his direction. Ricky still ate as if he hasn't said anything shocking.
"Third grade! How old are you?!" Theresa shouted.
Still facing his food, Ricky replied calmly, "nine." He looked up to Uno and Theresa. "Why?"
"No…reason at…um…at all." Uno stuttered. "Say Ricky…would you want to come over for my birthday party, this Saturday?"
Ricky looked up.
"On Halloween?"
Uno nodded. "I'll be six-years-old."
He began drinking chocolate milk and choked the gulp down. "Six!"
Uno and Theresa giggled.
"I'm only in first grade."
Ricky blinked but then smiled.
"I'm sure my dad won't mind. Where do you live?"
"In a mansion outside of town. About a few minutes from Theresa's, actually."
"But…you mean you live in that big castle-mansion? Winner Mansion?" Uno nodded. "Wow, Uno! Your dad owns this school!"
"Well, Quatre owns the school. I don't have a dad."
"Who's that guy who picks you up then?" Theresa asked.
"Duo. He's my guardian. He adopted me."
"You look just like him. Are you sure he didn't re-adopt you? My mom said that her sister gave her son up for adoption and then re-claimed him a few months later." Theresa began eating her brownie.
Uno shrugged a reply, "Oh well."
"I'll ask my dad if I can go. He may not be happy because it's Halloween. But then again, he makes my brother take me out."
"How old is your brother?"
"Sixteen. He's kind of mean when he's around his friends. I don't like him anymore, but he lets me do whatever I want as long as I don't tell my dad certain things."
"Oh yeah? What kind of things?" Theresa asked.
"He's not allowed to have anyone over when Dad's not home, but he's had three girls come over almost every Friday when Dad has to work late. I don't know what they do; he lets me play on his PS2 while they go into his room." Ricky stood up. "Be right back."
Uno watched Ricky walk over and throw his food tray away then return to the chair. He looked a little like Heero, but without the death-pleading or cold-hearted eyes. He could manage to look like Heero exactly if he walked around without an expression on his face and glared everyone.
"You remind me of Heero." Uno said when Ricky sat back down.
"Who's he?" Ricky pondered.
"Heero? He lives with us, too. He's kind of rude if you meet him at most times…I actually was able to get him to smile at me once; but it was a very rare thing Quatre said." Uno finished up her milk then spotted her class forming the line at the doors. "Well, Ricky. Find out if you can; Theresa and I gotta' go to class now."
"Okay. Byebye."
"Duo, promise me you won't wreck the house this Saturday, please!" Quatre begged. He had both hands locked together at his chest.
"I promise you, Q'man! Come on, you can trust me!" Duo grinned. "Besides, Heero'll still be here! And Wufei, and Trowa!"
"I'm going with Quatre, Duo." Trowa stepped up to the two.
"And Wufei's going out of town with Sally for another meeting in another country." Quatre added in.
Duo sweat-dropped. "Well…Heero'll still be here! I mean, trust me for a change!"
Quatre eyed Duo for a very long time directly after that trust factor was made. Trowa stared at him. Duo worried.
"What?!" Duo shouted, arms flailing about.
Quatre sighed. "Very well, Duo. So be it, then. I do trust you, just as long as Heero is with you."
Dup grumbled. "As long as Heero's with me."
Quatre and Trowa returned to the living room. Duo flicked the two off, grumbling curses at each one. He turned around to see the tiny clony below him. He froze.
"Um…heh…hi Uno!" Duo panicked, hoping she didn't see him do that.
"…" Uno stared at him. She shook her head and went around to Quatre.
"Cat-wa?" Uno looked at him with puppy dog eyes and her cute child attitude. Heero—who was sitting on the chair in the corner with the laptop on his knees—froze in motion at her beginning. Duo slowly turned around to watch, shocked and amazed at what she was doing.
Quatre's heart sank. "Yes, Uno?"
Uno smiled up at him, hands locked together behind her back. She twisted her body from side to side, giggling.
"Can I ask my friend Ricky to come over Saturday?" Uno pouted up at Quatre.
Quatre smiled. "As long as his parents are alright with it. How old is he?"
"Nine. He's in the third grade. I met in at recess. People were picking on him and he said I was his first friend. He's new too. Just like me and Theresa." Uno flashed her big puppy dog eyes at Quatre and Quatre fell for the trick.
"Okay, Uno. He can spend the night with all your other friends, as well."
"Yay!" Uno smiled and reached to give Quatre a hug. She pecked his cheek while hugging him.
"Than-que!" Uno turned and ran off to the bedroom, passing a very silenced Duo on the way.
"I can't believe you fell for that, Quatre." Duo mumbled, staring into Quatre's eyes. "She totally tricked you into letting a boy stay the night with a bunch of girls. A boy who's near the age of puberty compared to everyone else here."
Heero blinked a few times before it actually registered completely in his mind. "You hit puberty at eleven?"
"Eight actually. Street gangs are more than just competition of survival; to win ya' gotta' cheat." Duo shrugged grinningly.
Heero shook his head and continued typing away. The last thing he needed was knowledge of Duo's sexual relationships at such the early age he was; especially when his first make was with another guy. Heero, however, was lucky; he didn't get involved with a girl until the annoyance from the word of peace stalked him. To think, somebody actually had guts to stalk an assassin, to stalk the stalker, to follow a spy; somebody who was made secretive and knew even how he—
Heero shook his head and cleared his thoughts once again. Returning to his work, he continued typing.
"Besides Duo, this boy may not be bad. And Heero will be with you." Trowa commented.
"Yeah but…ughn…" Duo groaned and turned to leave. He planned to spend half the night with Hildie alone, but now it looks like he'll be spending it alone with Heero and a bunch of kids—correction, Heero and Uno and a bunch of kids; Uno wasn't normal.
The following day, while Uno was away at school, Duo was in the party store searching for goods. He came into the isle of balloons and stopped. Uno would probably pop all the balloons. He went to the toy isle for party favors and shook his head. Uno would most likely throw them all away. He stepped into the costume isle and froze with a grin on his face. Her party will defiantly be a party even if he has to do it himself.
"Duo."
Duo jumped and screamed, spun on his heels, and glared at Heero.
"Don't scare me like that!"
Heero just stood there and stared at him.
"And stop that!" Duo exclaimed, hitting Heero on the shoulder.
Heero looked to his shoulder where Duo had struck him, then back to face Duo. Duo sighed.
"What?"
"Here." Heero handed Duo a big bag of black party favors.
"What's this?"
"'Over The Hill' party favors. I found one that doesn't have 'Over The Hill' written on it." Duo looked at it, thankful Heero knew what to find.
"Thanks." He looked back to the isle. "Say Heero?"
"Hn?"
"You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?" Duo grinned, looking straight down the isle to either side.
Heero followed his gaze to the items and slowly grinned as well.
"Duo, you're evil." Heero grinned.
"The Reaper's gotta' have his share of Hell-on-Earth, don't he?"
