Something to Talk About
By Wolf Girl

Disclaimer: I do not have any sort of ownership over the characters or the premise of Gundam Wing. I do not make any sort of profit off of this story.
Warnings: AU, Yaoi, minor Relena bastardization, OOC Heero (not stoic enough, please forgive me).
AN Warning: Unfortunately, my grammar and punctuation usage is a weird mix of American and British styles... Enough said.
Pairings: 1x2x1, 3x4, others...
Italics thought (unless obviously otherwise.)

Author's notes: Hey all! This took me way too long. A bit of advice, don't try to remove a disk when you're saving… It's not a smart idea. Anyway, on another note, I have the next two chapters pretty much written so it shouldn't be too long before they're up as well.
Thanks to Kawaii Tenshi for my 100th review! This isn't a fic-related present, but I liked it enough for a present. You can see your present at

http:www . geocities . com/ rep4sddbp/ shinigami . html

I'm not sure how many consecutive visits the site can support; so don't open it too many times in one day.
Anyway, here's the next chapter!

Thirteen: Evincing

Duo picked at his plate, shoving the French fries to one side, then another, as they flopped unappetizingly. "Stupid art show…" He looked up through his bangs at the other people at his table. Trowa and Quatre chatted happily. Well, Quatre talked and Trowa listened. Duo's eyes flicked to the left, and saw Treize munching on a carrot and leaning back in his chair. Treize glanced over and caught Duo's eye. He smiled broadly. Duo blushed and looked away.

At another table, Relena was talking to a very blank looking Heero. If Duo didn't know better he would think that Heero was actually asleep. Almost as if he knew Duo was observing him, Heero turned his head to stare at Duo. He kept eye contact for a moment before Relena grabbed his chin and turned his head back toward her.

Duo looked back at Treize. "There's this art show on Friday night. I have a piece in it. My parents were supposed to go with me, but they went out of town to visit my brother at his college. Would you, go with me?"

Quatre and Trowa had stopped talking and were looking at Duo as well. Duo looked back over at the other table. Heero was looking at him again. "As my date?" Duo turned to look at Treize.

"I would be delighted to accompany you to this art show. I will dress in my finest apparel and spend my evening gazing at your painting with awe," Treize embellished easily, waving his hand lazily in the air. Duo blushed then smiled shyly.

"Great."

Duo stood near his painting, fidgeting with his tie, the hem of his suit jacket, the end of his braid. Treize stood next to him, looking dashing in a black suit with a red shirt and white tie. "It's alright. Don't be nervous. Your painting is much better than the others here." Treize whispered, leaning down to be level with Duo's ear.

"I just wish they would get to me," Duo said. "I still can't believe my parents decided to go visit Zechs. It's not even anything special at the college right now. It's the middle of the term for god's sake."

"I'm sure they miss him. It's hard to have a child gone at college," Treize said placatingly. "Why don't I go find a show coordinator and get us some drinks?"

Duo nodded, his eyebrows furrowed. Treize smiled slightly and smacked Duo on the butt. Duo jumped. "Your shoelace is untied." Treize smirked at him and went off to find a coordinator.

As he looked up from fixing his shoelace, Duo saw Relena standing looking at him with a smug expression on her face. She was wearing a rose coloured dress complete with matching shoes, headband and handbag.

"Why are you here?" Duo asked. "I didn't invite you."

"Mother and father gave me their tickets once they knew they couldn't come. And after all, why shouldn't I see my brother's first art show?" Relena arranged her hair using the mirror in her compact. "I even brought a date. See you later." She wandered off, holding her head high.

Duo watched in disgust as she left. One of the art show coordinators came over to Duo and informed him that his painting was the next to be shown. Duo nodded absent-mindedly.

A few minutes later, Duo's painting was uncovered. The crowd that had wandered over was silent. Duo stood looking at the painting. He had forgotten how much he had loved painting it. Each brush stroke seemed to have a purpose.

Duo turned away from the painting finally, and faced the crowd. The people looked at him, and whispers of, "He's so young." were heard throughout the room.

"Five hundred!" A man with a Texan accent boomed. There was instantly a clamor of numbers being yelled in the room.

"Twelve-hundred!"

"Ladies and gentleman, this painting is not for sale. If you would like to look at some of my other works, my portfolio is over on the table near the entrance." Duo shifted weight from one foot to another, wishing his shoes were more comfortable.

The man with a Texan accent made a derisive noise. "Now there, boy, I will pay you two-thousand for that painting!"

"Two-thousand three-hundred," another man in a dark suit offered.

Duo shook his head. "No, I'm afraid I can't sell it. It has too much sentimental value." A few people made noises of disappointment.

"Three thousand." A deep voice resonated under the noise. People turned to look at the dark haired boy who had said it.

"The model… It's the model," they whispered, letting him make his way forward. They looked him up and down carefully. The man with the Texan accent once again was heard in the room. "It can't be the model. This one is too serious. The model is obviously in love, it can't be that fellow."

For Duo there was no one else in the room. "You don't have three thousand," he accused. Heero's eyes locked with his, searchingly. Duo fiddled with his tie. "I won't sell it for less."

"I've been working in the jazz bar for over three years. I have it." Heero took a few steps toward Duo. They were standing almost side-by-side now, not facing the painting, but not facing each other either.

"It's not for sale," Duo whispered, his voice sounding false even in his own ears. "You weren't supposed to ever see this." He averted his eyes from Heero's face.

"I'll pay you in cash tomorrow," Heero said finally.

"Alright." Duo nodded meekly. Heero stood looking at the painting. Duo sighed and went to find Treize. He suddenly didn't feel like being there anymore.

Endnotes: Evince means to show in a clear manner, bring to light. It is a verb, hence "evincing".

Hey now, that chapter wasn't too depressing. I bet you're curious about what that painting is of exactly. Well, you won't find out quite yet, so keep wondering. You can email me what you think it is if you want. If you can guess it I'll tell you. But I'm warning you; it's not what you think!

Well, until next time! If you have any comments or questions drop me a line! As always, r&r si vous plait!