Chapter Nine
Duo was very troubled with his revelation. How could he not sense someone next to him? Five years of peace had dulled his senses. Not having to look over his shoulder at every turn had slowly sunk in and now when he needed those senses the most…they were gone. Part of him hated the person he had become; but the rest of him argued that it was better this way.
If things had continued on as before you never would have had the time to see Cathy. He sighed. It was true. He had only started to notice Cathy when the war was over. And even then it took him three years to admit it to himself (and another two before he had the courage to ask her out). He turned in the lounge chair he was sitting in and glanced over at Trowa, who was on the couch. He thought he saw Trowa's head jerk down to his lap, but when he rubbed his eyes he realized he must have been seeing things. He sighed and turned back to his own lap. He had to tell him…sooner rather than later.
Suddenly he became paranoid. Maybe I wasn't imagining it. Maybe Trowa really was staring at me! His eyes widened. Does he know something? Did I call her name out in my sleep? Surely not…I've never done that before…that I know of. But then…He glanced again, this time without turning his head. Sure enough, Trowa was staring at him. He looked back into his lap. He must know something. I said something in my sleep. I must have. Thinking about his dreams brought him back to the matter at hand. Who cleaned up after him? Maybe no one. If I can't remember calling her name out then maybe I don't remember cleaning up. It's possible isn't it? He frowned and slumped further into the chair.
Trowa watched Duo carefully. He didn't mean to stare, but he was concerned for Duo. He seemed nervous about something. Trowa wished he knew what it was. He wanted to help if he could. It was rare that Duo's true feelings were displayed so openly and ever since his outburst into the living room he had been acting very odd. Trowa was beginning to get worried.
Just then, Duo turned and Trowa immediately dropped his gaze back to the magazine in his lap. His brow was sweating when he felt Duo's eyes on him. Finally the feeling left him and he glanced back up. Duo was looking away again. He sighed. He hadn't realized he had been staring but when Duo moved he was suddenly reminded. He had to stop this. What if he scared Duo away? He watched Duo sink into his chair and noticed a small strand of hair fall from his braid and covered his left eye. That always happened when he was troubled. It wasn't that his hair fell because he was troubled; it was that he never bothered to move it when he was troubled.
Trowa chuckled to himself. Why did he know Duo's physical attributes so well and yet he was so afraid to speak to him? Dreamer…not a doer. His mind told him. This thought was humorous to him. During the war he had always been the doer. When the war ended he lost that trait. He knew that they all had trouble adjusting to "normal life" but he always felt like he didn't belong out of uniform. He remained in the circus only because Cathy was there. He considered joining the Preventors but he hated the idea of paperwork. He was afraid that he didn't belong anywhere but in war, so he turned to dreams. Dreaming helped him to escape and feel wanted – needed – and still remain in the "real world".
He smiled as his dreams returned to him. Most of them involved Duo. Like last night…His mind wandered to his visions of Duo lying panting beneath him. He could feel himself reacting at the thought and chuckled. Thinking of his dream, his mind found itself landing on the unusual occurrence of that night. He still wasn't sure what to think about his mysterious clean up. He had a hard time believing that it was foul play; it was just too ridicules. I must have fallen asleep and got up later in the night to wash up. It wasn't unusual for him to wake in the middle of the night and shower. It was like a ritual for him. He nodded to himself. That must have been what happened. He smiled and continued to read his magazine.
Wufei was less eager to believe that the events of the previous night were anything but suspicious. He wasn't sure what anyone would want with a man's semen, but he didn't like it. The idea sickened him, to be honest. The idea that someone who he didn't know had not only seen him nude, but had touched him and taken the object that belonged to only the one he was to be with for eternity. It angered him and although he couldn't explain it, he didn't trust it. The only problem was, he wasn't sure how to resolve the issue. He couldn't tell the others – A civilized person did not discuss sexual intimacy with anyone but a lover – but he could hardly keep it to himself.
Speak with Quatre. His inner voice told him. He had to admit the idea was intriguing. He shook his head quickly. He couldn't. The very idea was absurd. Quatre was the one person he couldn't tell; above all others, he couldn't mention anything to Quatre. He sighed and walked out of his bedroom to start making dinner. He decided that he would tell no one, but be sure and keep his eyes out for anything suspicious.
After the possible break in, Heero was constantly on the phone with Sally.
"What do you mean you don't know?" He shouted into the phone. Quatre and Trowa exchanged worried glances as they sat together on the couch.
Heero had a habit of wandering around the house when he was on the phone. The madder he got the quicker he walked. Quatre could just picture Sally cringing on the other side of the line. Not many people could stand up to an angry Heero.
"I don't care Sally. I want to know that she's alright." Heero argued as he wandered back into his bedroom.
Quatre sighed and lay his head back against the couch. "I hate just sitting here waiting. I wish there was something we could do to help."
Trowa nodded and sat his magazine down on the coffee table. "I know, Little One." He turned to Quatre. "I'm sure it will be resolved soon."
Quatre smiled at the comforting words but he didn't seem convinced. Duo smirked and stood. "Well, I'm feeling pretty much worthless in here." It was then that Wufei decided to reemerge from his bedroom and started into the kitchen. Duo bounded over to him excitedly.
"Hey Wufers! Need help with dinner?"
Wufei grumbled but didn't object so Duo cheered and followed him into the kitchen. Quatre smiled at the exchange and watched the figures disappear. Trowa smirked and watched Quatre's face. He crossed his arms over his chest and turned his eyes back to his lap.
"So, any progress?"
Quatre turned to Trowa with a puzzled expression. "Progress?"
Trowa closed his eyes. "Have you confessed?"
Quatre blushed a deep red. He turned his gaze to his knees and twiddled his fingers. "Well…I…sorta…"
Trowa smirked and turned to Quatre. His green eyes spoke words of comfort as he forced Quatre to look up at him. "You need to tell him, Little One."
Quatre looked pleadingly at Trowa. "How? How can I? What if he doesn't feel the same way? What if I scare him away?"
Trowa smiled warmly. "Sometimes that's a chance you have to take. If you're not willing to take the risk for love then what will you take it for?"
Quatre sighed and looked down. "I know…you're right, Trowa. I just…" He turned and listened to the bickering of Wufei and Duo.
"Maxwell, that is a skillet not a pot." "No, I need the other one. No watch out!" BAM "Maxwell, put the spaghetti down!"
The small blond smiled. He loved the sound of Wufei's voice. He turned back to Trowa. "I'll try. But it will have to wait till tonight, when we're alone. I…I can't…"
Trowa placed his hand over Quatre's. "I understand. It's okay. It's better if you're alone anyway. More intimate." He smiled.
Quatre returned the smile and suddenly lunged forward. He hugged Trowa tightly. "Oh thank you Trowa. You're such a wonderful friend." He exclaimed and got up, trotting happily into his bedroom.
Trowa watched him go and then sighed. Why can't I follow my own advice? He stood and left the room. He was beginning to go stir crazy and decided he would do a few stretches in his room to break up the monotony.
Dinner that night was chicken (which Duo burned) and cob salad (which Duo didn't wash properly so it tasted odd). Wufei spent most of the meal complaining about Duo's cooking ability.
"Hey, it's not my fault you don't give good instruction!" Duo complained.
Wufei sent a look across the table that made the others cringe. It was the first time any of them could remember Duo shutting his mouth and keeping closed for the rest of the meal. Satisfied that he won, Wufei ate with a slightly more enthusiastic mood (of course, enthusiastic for Wufei just meant he wore a half smile/half smirk during the conversation). The ex-pilots were still on edge about their enemy, but they all decided that the last thing they needed was a panic.
During a pause in the conversation, Heero's vid-phone rang. He stood quickly and clicked it on. Sally's face appeared on the screen and she did not seem to be in a good mood.
"Sally…" Heero said and sat in front of her. "What is it?"
"I have some news. I'll let you decide if it's good or bad." She started, her voice slightly distorted from the bad signal, "Reigo DeNadda has been spotted ten miles from you're location. We can't be sure if he's fleeing to you or away from you. Either way, he's close and you may be in danger."
"He's already broken in here, Sally. Of course we're in danger." Heero glared.
"Don't get smart, Heero. There's more." She glared back and sighed. "We believe that Reigo expects us to move you. Therefore, we're not going to. You're going to stay there and make sure to put the house in lockdown while you sleep. Only open it up to collect supplies for yourselves and never go anywhere alone. Is that understood?"
The men nodded and her expression lightened some. "We're working on the problem now, guys. I'm sorry it's taking so long." She said and the screen went black.
Heero sighed and turned to his friends. "Just like old times, eh?" He sneered and the others had no choice but to agree.
Dun dun DUN! Heh, okay that was chapter nine. I hope you all liked it. I hope to get the next chapter out soon. Sorry it's taking so long. Oh, and just another shout out to Demain Matin for you're review. Thanks a bunch! Well, happy reading!
