I do not own Gundam Wing. This fan fiction has no commercial value and I am not making any kind of profit or income off of this.

Chapter 7

"All right, now, pretend I'm Relena, Heero, and ask me out on a date," Dorothy said; she smirked and squared her shoulders.

He glared like he wanted to incinerate her with a look.

"Ah, come on, from what Hilde told me, you need the practice," she clasped her hands together beneath her chin.

Heero crossed his arms. "I don't want to take Relena on a date."

"Well, let me explain something to you." She pointed a long, manicured finger at the stubborn idiot. "Women do not marry men without dating them first, unless it's an arranged marriage, which this is not. So, you're going to have to take her out on not one date, but several dates. And she's got to have a good time and see that you care for her before she'll even think about marrying you," Dorothy said with a huff.

"And that came directly from the horse's mouth, more or less."

"Can't we just get her drunk and send her off to Las Vegas with Captain Romance over here?" Duo piped up from his corner of the room. "It would save us all a lot of time and heartbreak, I think."

"That's why we don't pay you to think," Dorothy's voice dripped syrupy malice with every syllable.

Heero snarled at the former Deathscythe pilot, but Duo wasn't fazed in the slightest. He just waited for Heero to turn his attention to Dorothy and stuck his tongue out at his friend.

"That might not be a bad idea," Quatre agreed. He met his wife's gaze. Those blue eyes widened and his features paled.

Ice ran down her spine and she balled her hands into fists. "It may work, but I thought that Heero actually cared for her. Or am I missing something? Dear."

"He does!" Duo and Quatre answered in unison. Heero remained silent.

'Something isn't right, here.' Dorothy glared at the former Zero pilot. "Then why doesn't he say so?" She stared at the silent, disheveled creature in a Preventers uniform.

Quatre and Duo looked at their friend expectantly. Heero's expression didn't change.

"Of course I care for her," he hissed through clenched teeth.

'I suppose, that's a start.' Dorothy gave him a tight smile. "You're going to have to work on your delivery. Women like to hear those things, and they don't want it to sound like their man is being forced to walk on hot coals while he's saying it. So, let's try this again. Say, 'I love you, Relena'."

Quatre and Duo cowered in the corner as Dorothy pressed her luck with a caged animal. Heero clenched his jaw and pressed his lips into a thin line, then abruptly turned and walked toward the door.

"Heero, buddy, where ya goin?" Duo called out, running after his friend.

"A liquor store. We're going to try your idea, Duo."

He stopped and looked wide-eyed over at Quatre, "Oh, shit! That was supposed to be a joke!"

Dorothy flopped down on the couch. 'Dear God, those idiots.' She shook her head. 'I tried to set her up with a wealthy sheik. But, she didn't want to be part of a harem. Coincidentally, that was the same excuse she gave about dating that actor.'

The wealthy aristocrat sighed. 'I'll never understand her fixation on that man. But! At least this will be entertaining!'

Heero stood outside Quatre's mansion; he glanced at his watch. A few seconds later, Duo came barreling out of the house with an expression of pure panic on his face. "Heero, you! You…can't…" he panted.

Heero almost laughed. "I'm not really going to get her drunk and elope to Las Vegas, Duo. It was a joke."

Duo just blinked. And blinked again. "You should warn me when you do these kinds of things, Heero. One of these days I might die of heart failure from these little surprises of yours."

Heero shrugged and started walking to his car.

"So what is our plan?" Duo asked, falling in step with him.

"I'm going to ask her to dinner. Do you think she'll say yes?" Heero said with a shrug.

Duo blanched. "Um, I dunno, man. You got me."

"Hn."

A vocal humming sound slid from her room as Heero approached. He ran over his mission checklist: flowers - check, candy - check, ring just in case - check. He smirked and knocked on the door.

"Just a minute!" a feminine voice floated out into the hallway.

"Irritating," he thought, "how she always sounds so happy."

...

Relena opened the door and almost fell over from shock. There, in the hallway, was Heero - the very same Heero she had always known and loved - holding a bouquet of pink roses and a small box of chocolates.

"Here," he said unceremoniously shoving the gifts toward her. Speechless, she took them in her arms. The sweet scent of the roses filled the air; it made her feel like smiling.

"Thank you," she breathed, her heart pounding in her chest. He wouldn't meet her gaze, keeping the beautiful blue eyes that she could always read so well, focused on the floor. "Was there something else?"

"Yes. I thought you might like to go to dinner with me." He said brusquely.

Relena's stomach flipped over. She clutched the bouquet to her chest. "Tonight?"

"Yes."

"I can't, tonight."

"Why not?" He frowned.

Relena swallowed; she chose and formed each word, carefully. "I have plans already."

"With who?"

"With Duo and Hilde…" Relena retreated a few steps; she held the flowers up, trying to cover part of her face.

"Fine, they can come along," Heero said. He spun on his heel and started to leave.

"...and a friend of Hilde's," she practically whispered.

Heero stopped. "Who?"

"Just a friend of hers that I've never met."

"Gender of said friend?" He pulled at the bouquet, moving it away from her face.

"Male." Relena stared at the floor. The room spun in a slow circle; she swallowed and closed her eyes.

"You have a date," he said darkly.

"Yes," she answered, reluctantly meeting his gaze.

His eyes narrowed to dark blue slits. "You're not going."

"Excuse me?" Relena blinked, unable to believe what she just heard.

"You're not going."

"And since when do you get to make my decisions for me?" Her heart picked up to a gallop; it pounded in her ears.

"Since I became your bodyguard for the evenings. I have to scope out the restaurant beforehand and conduct a thorough background check complete with all necessary blood work before the man is even allowed in the same building with you."

"Do you have to check him for laser pointers, too?" She shouted at the stubborn man in front of her.

He glared at her. "You're not going, and that's final."

"We'll see about that!" She yelled and shoved the gifts, that she had been sure just moments before that she would cherish, back at him and slammed the door.

Heero cursed and threw the flowers on the floor outside her room; he hurled the box of chocolates against the opposite wall. "Dammit Yuy, why do you always have to screw this up!" he ran both hands through his unruly mane.

"Ah-ahem."

He whirled around - and found himself face to face with Noin.

"I think I can help you," she said with a kind smile. "I just happen to be an expert on stubborn members of the Peacecraft family."