The Reason I Won't Be Coming
a/n: I do not own Gundam Wing nor any of its characters.
Epilogue
-Christmas Morning, a year later-
Heero sat at the breakfast table in Quatre's kitchen, drinking a welcome cup of coffee. They had spent hours last night playing board games and cards, and he was exhausted. He still did not know how Quatre had managed to find energy to be poaching eggs right now.
Heero had intended to take things slowly with Duo. He wanted both of them to be sure every step of the way. But one day, after they had been dating again for about two months, he came home to find that Duo had moved in. Everything the braided boy owned was in his apartment.
"Well, we will obviously have to sell some stuff," Duo smiled as he stepped out from behind a stack of boxes. He gave Heero a kiss and threw an arm around one of his shoulders.
"Huh?"
"Heero, I stay almost every night here. It is even closer to my work than my own apartment. You are being silly. So, I decided not to wait for you to ask. I'm going to live with you now," Duo explained.
And that had been it. For ten months now, they had been living together in almost perfect domestic bliss.
Quatre and Trowa had insisted the couple stay Christmas Eve. They wanted to make a tradition out of it. But Heero and Duo would be slightly less drunk this time. They had agreed, liking their strange semblance of a family.
"Hey Heero, did you see that someone finally bought that townhouse next door? Pretty penny too. I think the asking price was around three million!" Quatre whisked the hollandaise sauce with one hand and popped english muffins into the toaster with the other.
"Yeah, I did see that. Do you want some help?" Heero asked. Quatre looked relieved.
"Could you make a fresh pot of coffee, and then come handle these muffins?"
Trowa came down moments later and gave Quatre a grumpy kiss before sitting down to wait for coffee. The smell of fresh coffee lured Duo out of the bedroom, wearing a t-shirt and flannel pajama bottoms. He gave Heero a kiss and ruffled Quatre's hair before clapping Trowa on the shoulder and sitting down next to him.
They laughed and talked over eggs benedict, and then they sat down in front of the tree, with Heero taking over gift distribution. Some gifts were silly, others were sincere. Quatre literally gasped at the painting Trowa had bought for him. And Heero was touched that Duo had gone out of his way to buy a personalized motorcycle helmet for him. After a while, there was only one gift left, and it was for Duo. Heero handed the box silently to his lover. It was a small box, easily mistaked for a jewelers box. Heero knew that was what Duo thought it was. Duo opened the gift greedily, and then he looked perplexed as he took out a golden key. All of them stared at Heero, and he smiled a truly wicked smile.
"What's this to?" Duo asked.
"For our new house," Heero shrugged nonchalantly. Quatre gasped, Trowa's eyebrows arched, and Duo threw himself at Heero. He covered him in kisses, and then let him up.
"Where is it?" Duo asked, excited as a little kid.
"Ask Quatre," Heero smirked as comprehension dawned on the blondes face.
"Oh! Heero!" Quatre covered his mouth and leapt to his feet. He ran for the door, and the other followed. Trowa was the last one out. Outside, Quatre and Duo were staring up at the townhouse next door to the townhouse they had just come out of.
"How did you afford this, Heero?" Quatre asked.
"I have made a lot of money and I have never spent any of it. It was all invested. Wisely invested. Open the door, Duo," Heero suggested. Duo walked up the steps and put the key into the lock. He swung open the door and walked in. The entire place was empty, save a little model of a ship in the middle of the floor.
"What is a toy boat doing here?" Duo asked.
"Ship," Heero corrected.
"Whatever," Duo picked up the boat and turned it upside down. Something shiny dropped to the floor. Duo and Heero knelt at the same time to pick it up. Heero reached it first, and he held the ring out to Duo.
" A year and a half ago I planned to give you this ring. I even had it planned so that if something happened to me before I had a chance to give it to you, that you would get it anyways. That is how important it was to me. You are the only person I have ever loved, and I could never think to spend the rest of my life with anyone else. Duo Maxwell, will you marry me?" Heero had worked long and hard on that speech, and it seemed to go okay.
Duo stared at the ring, with its platinum braiding and the dark amethyst chips, and then he started to cry, "I was raised an orphan. The only home I have ever known is with you," he launched himself at Heero and put his mouth to Heero's soft ear, "Yes"
Quatre was looking teary-eyed, and Trowa was holding him tight. Duo slipped the ring onto his left ring finger and stood up with Heero.
"I've got champagne at the other house?" Quatre suggested.
Four friends toasted life, love, friendship, and family that morning. And a few months later they found themselves toasting the same things as Heero and Duo said their vows in the living room of their new home.
Turns out, sometimes all you need is a little drunken push to make right what went so wrong.
-The End-
end notes: This story is done, but I am working on a prequel about Trowa and Quatre. Look for it soon. Thanks for sticking by me for the past week or so while I wrote this. I hope I gained some fans, and I hope to hear from you in the future.