The Stylist
Summary: In this chapter they discover a mutual, and disturbing, past connection—and a blizzard hits Sanc.
Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Gundam Wing or its characters, nor do I make any monetary profit off this story.
Warnings: AU, male/male pairings, language
Chapter Six
Day 3 continued
"That was nice of Duo to invite his old friend to stay with him," Sally said.
She sounded sincere, but Wufei caught the glint in her eyes. Hilde, who didn't live downtown and had no other place to go with the snowstorm blocking the roads, was invited to stay over on Duo and Trowa's couch.
"He wasn't being nice at all," he insisted. "We have to send them clothes and overnight supplies in trade."
"Oh, really? That doesn't seem too unrealistic a request. I still say it was a nice gesture."
"And I'm telling you, Duo didn't think of it at all. It was Winner who stepped in," he said. "He could have offered without exacting a price." Wufei stopped talking with second thoughts.
"He didn't make the offer then?" She surmised the rest, "you asked him to take Hilde so you didn't have to, and offered him a bribe."
Her smile brought a blush to his cheeks.
"So you could make your spare room available to me? How, sweet of you!" she gushed and daringly kissed his cheek.
"Yes, of course. It's the decent thing to do, considering," he blustered, embarrassed. What he didn't enlighten her about was the fact that his 'guest' room was a storage room. No bed. No futon. No comfy chair. Not even floor-space for a person to stretch out. I'll cross that bridge when we get to it.
"I'm going to the spa storage for the things they will need," he announced.
"And I shall assist," she said, loftily, and then laughed at the look he gave her.
Half an hour later, she was sending Quatre Winner a message, while Wufei carried the elevator boxes filled with towels, robes, casual and lounge-wear clothes, extra outerwear, blankets, pillow, razors, toothbrushes, shampoo, and other grooming aids.
"Check the elevator! We may be stuck inside for a couple days. Have fun :) - Sally and Wufei."
"Our servitude is over for now," Wufei said, dusting off his hands mostly for effect. "Would you like to … unwind; watch a movie? I have a complete food store, so when we are hungry, I can prepare us dinner."
"That sounds wonderful, Wufei," she said, taking his arm and wrapping hers around it. "You know, I've never seen your apartment in this building."
He courageously looked her in the eye. "It is about time you did."
(o)
"-Plan on snow to continue through the day and expect snow covered roads. This will develop blizzard conditions throughout Sanc proper, with outlying roads becoming impassable. Storm totals of 3 to 6 feet may be very common. This is the road and services closures report—"
"Look at it snow!" Hilde screamed after effusively pointing out the incredible size of the suite, the great furniture and big screen TV, and the view, which had her currently enthralled.
Heero turned on the news, volume up to cover the squeals. Snow plows were overwhelmed, unable to clear the highways or important routes to hospitals. Emergency patrols had their hands full assisting stranded motorists. It was soon to become the biggest snowstorm of the century. His smartphone and larger PDA were both open on his knee so he could monitor his security feeds.
Quatre and Trowa planted themselves in a corner of the sectional. Heero sat at the other end, watching, alternatively, the news, his devices, and Duo.
"Once Wufei sends up our stuff, whaddaya wanna do?" Duo asked. "And don't say 'play outside in the snow'. I for one have had enough of snow for a while. I'll be there tomorrow, is my guess. Plus my feet hurt from those skates."
Heero beckoned him over with a pat to the sofa pillow. "Sit. Listen to the news while we see what choices we have in streaming services."
"Okay." Duo sat as close to him as possible without touching, and whipping his braid around so as not to sit on it; it lay between them like a snake.
Hilde curled up in a huge overstuffed chair. "I could sleep in this like a cat. Hey, how about a fire in the fireplace? I don't see any wood, though."
Heero pointed a slender, black device at the dark rectangle and instantly a blazing fire appeared. "At your service."
"Where did you find that?" Duo asked, suddenly fascinated in the device.
Heero knew he'd impressed him with his tech-sense, and answered, "Resting on the mantle." Heero handed him the remote control and demonstrated the options. "Here. You can adjust the flame color and size and turn the heat blower up or down. The one in my apartment is similar."
"Lame-o," Hilde sighed.
"Burning real wood is illegal in Sanc," Quatre explained. "It's a big city, not the country. With so many people crowded together the air pollution would be terrible."
"I guess," she sighed. "Wood smoke smells so good, though."
"Try this," Duo said. He poked at the "scent" button and pine, then cedar, then fir, smells delicately perfumed the room.
"Stop it!" she cried out. "Blech! However, it does beat the empty oil barrels burning with trash we used in L2."
Heero noted Duo's shrug of indifference to the L2 reference and assumed he didn't want to speak about his life in the colony. He certainly didn't want to share his bleak and violent childhood past, and decided only a lucky few were blessed with good memories. What he really wanted to do was smooth his hand over that braid lying seductively in the narrow space between them.
The news continued on showing videos of great piles of windswept snow, lists of school closures for the next day, power outages, and some of children sledding through their neighborhoods and other older kids skiing suburban streets.
Winner popped off the couch. "All hands on deck! Our supplier has come through!"
"That sounds so wrong," Trowa commented, "and yet I am curious."
Away it swung-the braid out of reach. Heero followed it out the door.
As they unloaded the elevator, Quatre remarked, "Sally Po must have been invited to stay over at Wufei's suite. She sent me the message."
No one said anything; they each hefted a box and hauled it back to the suite. The braid switched back and forth, tantalizing him to reach out and grab it. His hands were full, though.
"Don't you think that's interesting? Heero, have you ever known Wufei to have anyone over? Date anyone?"
"I don't follow his activities. I have no idea who he sees." Or care.
Not satisfied with his answer Quatre tried Hilde. "How many stylists have you encountered?"
"A lot, maybe 10…15?"
"And how many of them were not gay, would you guess?"
Hilde didn't hesitate. "None."
"Wrong," Quatre said with a smile. "One. Chang Wufei is very taken with his assistant. It isn't so easy to tell these days, but I can."
"That's because you cheat," Trowa told the blond businessman.
"What?" Quatre cried out.
Heero arranged the incoming boxes against the entry wall, stacking the smaller ones on top. Trowa dropped his box inside the door, shoved it out of the walkway with his shoe, and laughed on his way to the front room. There, the lanky acrobat leaned back into the sectional, and put his arm across the back, coaxing the trim blond to tuck into his long, strong body.
"You cheat," Trowa repeated. He gave Duo, who'd been watching him, a wink.
"I do not-!" Quatre started to defend himself- all guileless blue-eyes and flaxen-haired innocence. He curled up close and kissed Trowa's bottom lip.
Heero smirked at his friend from across the sectional. "Trowa is not so totally captivated by your perceived kindness and charm that he is blind to your deviousness." He leaned over to tell him, "You have met your match with that one. There's no fooling a clown. No offense," he added looking at Trowa.
"None taken."
Trowa chuckled again and reached up to smooth Quatre's mussy hair. Normally, the blond wore his hair parted to one side, short in back, but now it was a tousled boyish cut with bangs reaching to his eyes. A much younger face with the identical eyes looking out from under identical messy bangs flashed in his mind and along with it a deep yearning that felt as if it had been with him forever.
"Trowa?" Quatre asked. His tone sounded worried. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, never better. Just spaced out for a second."
They just sat there and stared into one another's eyes, both faces revealing a look of spellbound devotion, until Hilde cleared her throat. "Chang may have no preferences or a multitude of them."
In order to bring the topic to a close, Heero said, "The point is that no one cares." He hoped Duo would come over and retake the spot on the couch beside him. He imagined reeling him in using that braid…
"Some might," Quatre countered. "He's in a business requiring sensitivity and a large amount of intimate knowledge. You are a part of the cadre or not, and that might mean a great deal to him and his business."
"You think he pretends to be… quasi-gay or whatever term you like, in order to be accepted by his peers? The designers? Clients?" Hilde asked.
Whether Heero thought Quatre could be extending this attitude to himself or not was unclear, but he was getting incensed by the possible implication. His acceptance of his proclivities was his problem to deal with. He wanted something from Duo, and not just that braid, but he wasn't comfortable with an audience around while he stumbled through the steps to get it. Or talk about it.
"The term is gay vagueness and it affects both straight and gay men, and involves more than grooming and clothes. In particular, it implies an indifferent attitude to having one's sexual orientation misread. I think there is a substantial pressure to conform; don't you think so, Hilde?"
"There is, but seeing as he's my new boss, I'm not getting into that argument," Hilde said, sliding off one of the small cartons and opening the largest box, "but I am getting into these spa clothes—yummy!" She looked around. "Where can I change?"
(o)
Duo had remained unusually subdued, listening to the exchange, wondering about Quatre and Heero's friendship. Wondering about Trowa's new close friendship with Quatre and what was happening to his friendship with Trowa. Mostly he was bursting with overwhelming feelings of his own—mostly in the form of attraction for Heero. For every step forward, their relationship tumbled backwards down a whole staircase. He had no answers, only more questions as dynamics between them changed.
"Duo! Wake up! I'm not changing in here!" Hilde called him to attention.
Duo skipped around the couch. "This way."
Heero's PDA signaled "urgent" and he stood to read the messages.
Misunderstanding his movement for wanting to swap out of his good clothes, Duo asked, "'Ro? You wanna get out of those nice clothes?"
Heero's face blanched, his body stiffened, astonished by what sounded at first like a openly stated wish to undress him.
Duo noticed the reaction, replayed his words, winced internally (not again!), and then adroitly added, "'Fei's got lots of comfy things for us all to put on."
"All right," Heero said in a small voice. He joined Trowa and Quatre, picking through the clothes box. He chose something identical to what the other two had.
"Bathroom." Duo directed Hilde to the hallway leading to his side of the suite.
Looking over his shoulder for Heero, he caught him reading his smartphone. Duo immediately felt jealous of the stupid device's hold over him. When he noticed the security tech was gloomier than before, he remembered that the guy had a stressful job that hadn't ended with the snowfall.
"I need to make some calls. In private," Heero told him.
"Okay, sure. Use my room. There's a lock on the door, too." Duo lowered his voice to add, "Hope everything's okay," before walking away.
(o)
Heero locked the door behind him and returned the priority call. "Prime Minister, are you in immediate peril?"
"Oh, Heero, I was so worried about you stuck in that terrible blizzard!"
He gritted his teeth. His grip on his PDA cracked the case before he contained his anger. "It is a good thing that you are out of the country and I'm no longer part of your personal security detail or I would strangle you."
"Heero! That's an awful thing to say!" Relena cried.
"Code "urgent" calls are for utmost crisis conditions. Do you understand me?"
"You can't talk to me this way," she burbled.
"I can and I am. Relena. I have a duty to follow the rules and so do you. I'm no longer at your beck and call. You have body guards—"
"But I was fine! I was worried about you. I sent you messages and you didn't answer! I thought you were in danger!"
"God damn it Relena, that is not your concern," he growled. "I am ending this call now. Do not contact me again until you return to the Sanc airport, and even then, let your bodyguards do that. Now, goodbye-"
"-Oh, Heero, don't hang up mad at me."
"…" He drew a deep breath and held it for a count of ten, and then exhaled. "I am fine. I am staying at Maxwell and Barton's place with Winner and an employee of Chang's until the roads are cleared."
"That's a lot of friends. Sounds like fun. I hope you have fun, Heero."
"Thank you."
"How are things coming along with that darling Duo Maxwell?"
"I don't know what you mean."
"Of course you do," she giggled. "Don't waste this opportunity to get to know him better."
What she said triggered his thinking processes, including what Duo had confessed to him earlier. Long ago, he and Relena had reached an understanding about his "assignment" to assassinate her and how he'd failed to do it. Now he wondered how much she remembered about Duo's actual mission.
"I'm going to ask you something and I want your promise not to ever talk about it with anyone else," he said.
"I trust you, so I'll say yes. I promise to keep this conversation just between us."
"All right. Back when we were attending Sanc Academy, you remember seeing Duo around, correct?"
"Yes, he was there to protect me, but he didn't know it was from you!"
"How did you put all this together? Why didn't you ever tell me?" he asked.
"Heero, you are very, very smart and you know I admire you greatly, but you are massively dense in some ways."
"So?" Not that he agreed with her assessment, but he didn't know to argue her point and ensure she would still answer his question.
"So. I just knew you wouldn't kill me. I thought that was a lot of bluster and malarkey. But… I was jealous of the way you looked at him and I wasn't able to pretend he didn't exist. If I didn't make a big deal about him, you'd get over him, too." She was so quiet he thought she'd hung up. "You were smitten then, are you still?"
"No," he lied, "I was just curious if the story he told me was true. I have to go now. Thank you for answering my question, but please, do not disabuse the code-use rules."
"I'm sorry. I'll try harder next time, but I'm glad to have talked to you. I'll sleep better tomorrow night… time zone differences are killers, too."
When the call ended, Heero marked the "urgent" message as "resolved" and proceeded to change clothes. He found free hangers in Duo's closet, along with a very nice wardrobe of clothes. "Nice job, Chang." Shoes put away, clothes hung; he took a moment to look around. The room held nothing personal of Duo's. He simply slept here. He touched the pillow and wondered if he'd ever have the courage to get into a bed with the man. The thought was extremely arousing. There was no use denying his feelings. He had certainly tried to for years and years. Winner saw through him, his empathic link with him just barely functional enough to give away his crush, and Duo certainly knew he was interested, and a coward. Not only did he not want to take back the kiss, he wanted more, but could he summon the courage to act again?
Not could, when.
(o)
While Heero was changing clothes, Duo padded into the kitchen. There were cans and jars in the cupboards. "Reassuring but I'm not much of a cook." Next he opened the freezer. There were packages of chicken and shrimp and dark meat- nothing to simply put in the oven and heat. "Maybe the refrigerator." There were fresh fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator, more flavored water, a chilled bottle of wine, and condiments. No bagged salads. No quick heat-and-eat food.
"Okay," he said, sighing. "You did get us stuff, 'Fei. Almost dinner stuff."
Remembering the dinner Heero had made for him, he decided to introduce him to the kitchen as soon as he reappeared. In the meantime, he should get comfortable. "What did Wu-dude send up to us?"
Duo looked over the boxes. One contained mostly towels and robes, nice soft ones like he'd used in the spa. "Nice for our guests."
Another box held bottles and things he had no interest in now, so he left it for later. The nearly empty box had what he was looking for. "Let's see what the jackals left for me to wear," Duo muttered to himself.
He dug out a set of leisurewear identical to the one Heero had been carrying into his room. "Oooh, matching jogging suits!"
He laughed and quickly switched out of his pants and into the exercise ones, and then took off his shirt and zipped into his t-shirt and hoodie. "Now we'll look like some blast-from-the-past boy band," Duo chortled.
"With a girl front-man…person—ME!" Hilde bounded down the short hallway to join Duo. "TA DA!"
Oof!
She collided with her old friend, wrapped her arms around his neck and jumped up.
Afraid that she'd break his neck, Duo grabbed her waist. "Geez, Hil, get off before you break something."
(o)
Because timing is everything, and bad timing is inevitable when it came to Heero sparking some kind of a relationship, when Heero left Duo's bedroom and entered the hallway, he got an eye-full of Hilde in Duo's arms. Automatically, he turned and stepped into the bathroom to compose himself.
Trowa and Quatre were sure taking a long time getting changed, he thought. When he considered why that must be, what they were probably doing, snatching a little private time for themselves, he felt the heat rise up his neck. He dashed it down with thoughts about Duo and Hilde. If Duo was really that fickle, then it was good to find out before anything more had happened. More. Happened. An image of Duo's neatly made bed came to mind—and then the two of them in it. Damnit, stop!
When he at last came out, Trowa had returned to the main room and was rummaging through the boxes, sorting amenities. Hilde was in her chair, eyes glued to the TV weather channel.
"I'll take these back to my room," the ex-clown told Duo, who was standing alone, arms folded around his outdoor clothes, a crease of annoyance between his eyes.
"Sure," Duo agreed. "You left us a ton of stuff! What's it with you and grooming tools… personal hygiene products…whatever? There's enough in there for an army."
"Don't want you to have an excuse to start growing that beard," Trowa answered.
"What? Oh that, heh heh… yeah. I wasn't serious 'bout that."
"The imagery was disturbing."
"The imagery? A man with a beard? How's that-?"
"Long hair… your hair was down at the time."
Duo thought hard and then his face lit.
"Bearded lady! You had an affair with the circus bearded lady!"
Trowa stopped him from saying more with a cold stare. "Not an affair. Some very…disturbing dreams." He broke the tension with a rare grin, and then disappeared down his hallway.
"Asshole," Duo laughed, dropping his clothes on top of the box of bathroom toiletries, hoisting it all up, and turning toward the hallway, struggling. Then he noticed Heero.
"Hey, you okay? No emergencies, I hope?"
Heero felt his chest swell with hope at the same time his stomach tied itself in a knot with uncertainty. "Everything is fine."
He put out his arms for the box. He didn't mean to show off how strong he was, but he couldn't help it. Heero asked, "Can I put this someplace?"
"Okay. Bathroom. Um… I was thinking you could help me check out the kitchen for something to make for dinner, if you want?"
Heero stared at him. That smile. That wonderful smile melted his insides. The knot relaxed. "I'd be happy to, Duo."
"Oh man," Hilde said. "Don't let his charm convince you to do what he wants."
"I like to cook," Heero told her flatly. "Duo's personality has nothing to do with that."
She sat up and twisted around to get a better look at Heero. "I got pretty good gaydar, honed on the job, you might say, and you aren't gay."
Heero shrugged, not agreeing or denying her assessment, curious what her point was. "Is this a continuation of what Quatre was saying earlier?"
"Just thinkin' about it. I could be wrong." She pointed at Duo and said, "You weren't gay the last time I saw you."
"I was a teenager, a hormonal guy. I'd have slept with your grandmother, if I'd had half a chance! Er… maybe. The point being that I grew up and figured out what I wanted and learned to accept that about myself." Duo shook his head. "It's a personal journey, Hil. Easy for some and hard for others. There of some who waver all over the place."
"A wide spectrum," Trowa said as he reentered and stood at the big window.
"An entire rainbow," rang in Quatre, fluffing his hair with a towel, confident and unconcerned where he was he fell on the continuum. "That shower felt wonderful." He nestled close to Trowa and kissed his cheek. "Is it still snowing?"
Quatre began to step back, but Trowa reached around and held him in place. Trowa's strong hands moved to splay across his back, urging Quatre's heart closer to his. He shut his eyes, inhaled the citrus aftershave of his freshly shaven cheek, the earthy aroma of his skin, that faint scent of mint toothpaste on his breath.
"Are you done working now?" he asked, his lips touching Quatre's ear.
"Well, yes. I did tell you that have to check in. There are people all over the world leaving me messages at all times … day and night." Quatre had thrown on sweatpants. His damp hair had a boyish cowlick, his nicely toned chest and arms were bare. Trowa smoothed the golden hair looking ready to make love to the man right there and then.
Heero's body's reaction to a half-naked Quatre was practically automatic. Duo ignored it (or tried to), but when Heero made a beeline for the kitchen, Duo followed.
"Oh, yuck! Look what you've gone and done!" Hilde cried out at the amorous pair.
(o)
The cool refrigerated air and a great deal of self-control withered his excitement by the time Duo came close enough to detect, not that he was looking.
"Did you notice if there was marinara sauce in the cupboard?" Heero asked him.
"Um, no, but I'll look." Duo opened the two pantry doors which he remembered contained food stuffs. Others hid away pots and pans and assorted serving and cooking utensils. "Tomato sauce… whole tomatoes, diced tomatoes… Any of those good?"
"Yes. Get me one of each. Did you find any seasonings? Spices? Herbs?" Heero asked, removing bags of parsley, onions, mushrooms, and zucchini from the vegetable compartment and then closing the door.
"Garlic? That's in a bowl over there and there're bottles of herbs up here by the stove."
"Good." Heero passed in front of him, touching as he selected a couple seasonings. "Now, if you'd look for pasta—"
"Spaghetti, right here," Duo said grandly waving a sealed container around. "And I know there's meat in the freezer, if you wanted some."
"And here are breadcrumbs… good. Yes, some ground beef and we can have meat balls." Heero smiled and received a grin worthy of a dental ad for his trouble.
"I wanna help," Duo told him.
"Good. How are your knife skills?" Heero asked. He placed the meat in the microwave and set it to defrost.
"Great! Oh, for cooking, I can't say, heh heh…"
Heero smiled at that. Somehow he knew Duo could handle himself in a knife fight.
"I'm more of an 'add contents of box to boiling water' kind of cook," Duo continued. "Pathetic, I know."
"We'll start with the basics," Heero said. "Now stand here."
He had a cutting board, a few knives, and was lining up the vegetables. It just suggested itself to him what a marvelous way it would be to contact Duo in a gradual manner. It never occurred to him how sexy cooking could be, yet, there he was, arms wrapped around Duo from his back, chin grazing his shoulder, hands on hands, guiding the knife strokes, demonstrating proper techniques.
Duo leaned into him and he could feel him shiver. "Jesus, 'Ro… If you keep that up, I'll probably cut off a finger or something." Duo's hands were trembling.
"We wouldn't want that," Heero chuckled, his breath warm on Duo's ear. He backed away and stood at his side. "Finish that onion and we'll make meat balls."
"Oh, God… you are k-killing me here," Duo laughed, and his voice shook.
Half an hour later, the sizzling meatballs baking in the oven, competed with the garlic, onions, and mushrooms sautéing in olive oil. Duo was chopping the squash, while Heero opened cans of tomato products and dropped oregano, salt and pepper into the large pan with the vegetables.
"That's enough, Duo. You can add what you've got to the pan and get a little brown on them."
"'Kay. Kinda fun once you get a rhythm going. What's left? What's this?"
"Parsley. Here's a trick to chopping that," Heero said, tearing off a handful.
The images racing through his mind based upon that single word "rhythm"… He needed to keep his hands busy and off Duo. Chop! Chop! Into the pot! The tomato slurry and more seasonings blended in with the vegetables.
Duo stirred and breathed deeply.
"That smells amazing. It wasn't so hard either, just time consuming… course we got nothin' but time," Duo said, and lowered the lid.
"That's true." Crouching to the floor, he peered back into the lower depths of the storage shelves.
"What'r'ya looking for?"
"Hopefully there's a big pot to boil the pasta—found it." Heero stood catching Duo in the act of looking at his ass. It both pleased and embarrassed the hell out of him, causing him to blush. He hid that by keeping busy filling the pot with water.
"Adding salt will flavor the pasta," he told Duo. "Turn the burner to medium. We just want to bring the water to a boil slowly. The sauce needs to simmer for an hour or so."
"Thanks for teaching me all that," Duo said.
They were standing, gazing into one another's eyes when Hilde bounced in. "It smells fantastic in here! Ooooh, tomato sauce! Did you put wine in it? I saw this cooking show and they used red wine. We got some… here we go—"
"Don't do that," Heero commanded her. "If you want, you can pour yourself a glass and offer it to others, but not in this."
"Oh. Sure, it's your sauce. When's dinner?" she asked as she opened the wine bottle.
"He'll let you know," Duo told her. "Not soon. Go ahead and start the movie."
Duo stepped closer and reached up. Heero's hair always looked unkempt, or like he was just out of bed, from Duo's point of view. Duo gently pushed a dark fall of bangs off his forehead. He wanted to pull that head close and kiss him so hard he wouldn't forget it, but chickened out. Heero's iron grip on his wrist stopped him.
They apologized, babbled some gibberish, and dove for the refrigerator for a cold drink, colliding head to head, like a bad comedy act.
Duo laughed and Heero shook his head, saying, "Let me," and selected two flavored waters. "Here."
Duo made as if the "click" bottles, but Heero halted that. "We are liable to break something."
"I don't hear a movie starting. I bet Trowa's busy and no one knows how to operate that crap TV but him," Duo said.
Heero let out a sigh. "Guess it's time for tech support to the rescue."
But when Heero and Duo joined the others, they were in conversation not movie watching.
"—but you have to admit yours is a privileged life, Mr. Winner," Hilde was saying. She was refilling her wineglass.
"My life," Quatre began, shook his head then started over.
Heero noted, with relief, that his friend had put on a t-shirt and matching hoodie. Like his… and Trowa's, Duo's, and except for color, even Hilde. There really was a boy-band vibe in the room, and something else. Something tense.
"Life had blessed me with many talents, chief among them was being able to offend and disappoint my father with every gesture and every step and every choice I made. My empathic ability reminded him of my mother, his beloved wife who died giving birth to me against his wishes and the doctor's recommendation. Seeing me fraternizing with undesirables—gay boys—didn't help. He wanted me to stay in the L4 colony, and here I am in Sanc. He wanted me dedicate myself to my studies, which I did, but I also learned violin and fencing—totally un-manly pursuits to his way of thinking. He wanted me to follow in his footsteps in the mining industry, and… now, I'm in the hospitality business. And he never, ever was proud of my accomplishments." His voiced cracked and dropped an octave. "And then he died before he knew about the success of the Winner Worldwide Hotels—a business I did all on my own."
"That's too bad," Duo said. "You had a lot to live up to with a father expecting to live his life again through you, and- imagine that—you had a mind of your own. Honestly, though, I'd say you had extreme challenges, but not hardships."
"Yeah, Duo's an orphan, too, with no one to help him. I mean, where did the money come from for you to get started in the hotel business?" she asked.
"My mother left it to me. I didn't say I scraped by or knew starvation, but I didn't have it easy."
"I don't know, Quatre," Hilde argued. "Every day you leave your home, isn't there a contingent of bodyguards that leave with you? And I'll bet that at your home you are provided cleaning, ironing, cooking, cosseting like the wealthy man you are. Your home is a nest that comforts you and shields you from the inconveniences of everyday life."
"Partially, it is—it must be- because I work night and day making my businesses successful." Quatre paused to weigh his next admission. "How I became my father's greatest disappointment occurred when I was just getting out of school, unsure what step to take next- I rebelled against my father's peaceful resistance stance and enlisted in the armed forces. I wanted a gun in my hand and to fight, but the recruiters had other plans for me. You see, I was a creature of good breeding and elite environment—making me perfect to infiltrate and bring down the powerful men ruining the colonies.
"I was a part of the colonial uprising. A war which made a few men, who were already powerful when they started it, even more powerful," Quatre said venomously.
"Yeah, I fought, too, not that it did anything for my colony," Hilde said.
Heero spoke up. "I was…sent from colony L1. Barton was part of it. You were fighting for the L3 colony, if I remember," he said to Trowa. "You saved my life after an accidental explosion. You and your sister hid me in the circus while I recovered." He met Trowa's glower with one of his own. "Don't pretend you don't remember me."
"I have some memory problems," Trowa said. "And I try and forget the rest of it." He turned to Quatre. "You played violin and I played flute, once—it just came back to me when you mentioned learning violin. I don't know what it means."
Quatre wrapped him in a hug. "I'm so glad! I hope you regain all the good memories. We need to talk about this. That we all were in in the war yet lost our memories of it, or mostly did."
Duo frowned, thinking hard, looking at no one in particular. "So what happened? Was it just a fucking big waste of lives and time that achieved nothing- from what I can tell— so someone just mind-wiped us so we didn't get demoralized."
"It was a waste, because it never resolved the colonies' issues." Heero folded his arms across his chest protectively.
"Well, if you'd like to see the worst offender brought to justice or at least brought down, let me know," Quatre said. "I have a plan. Think about it."
"Well, first there's dinner," Duo began.
"Let's take a break," Hilde announced.
Breaking the serious mood, a timer rang in the kitchen, drawing everyone in to watch the pasta drop into the boiling water. Heero put out a huge ceramic bowl and Trowa found individual bowls and forks and spoons. Duo grabbed a roll of paper towels and helped Quatre fill a basket with flavored water. "NO more wine."
"Yum!" Hilde complimented the cooks.
"Heero, this is the best spaghetti and meatballs ever!" Duo told him. "Better'n when we all went out."
And when everyone had agreed with his assessment and told Heero how much they loved dinner, Heero quietly replied with a gruff, "Thank you."
"You got me to thinkin'. Okay, so we don't remember much, which is really, really weird. I saw Duo one time after the recruitment," Hilde said. "The more we talk here, the more that's coming back to me. Like… Heero Yuy was famous for… I don't remember! Darn!"
"We were all famous, especially in our colonies," Quatre said. "So famous and well thought of that many children were given our names in honor of what we did. This may have been a plan to let us hide in the open, since adults also renamed themselves after us. We could have been the ones to get new names, but I think this other way worked better. Whether or not that was the intent, I don't know. There's a lot I haven't determined, but I have found twelve other Quatre Winners out there… you can't guess how many Duo Maxwells."
"Quat!" Duo blurted out. "It just came to me! I called you Quat. We were in the desert together. The big security dude of yours was there, and… that's all I got." He turned to Heero with hope in his eyes. "We had to have known each other beyond the school time. I just feel this…connection I can't get at, but I feel as if we've got history together." He pounded his head with his palm. "What's wrong?"
"Calm down, Duo," Winner begged him. "When my memories started coming back to me, I thought I was losing my mind. All these people with lives that had crossed mine at a time I hadn't even realized was a fog. First, I reached out to Wufei, but he was completely off-putting and wouldn't talk about his childhood or that period in time."
"Wufei? You mean, our Wufei Chang is … like… one of us?" Duo asked.
"Yes." Quatre replied. "Colony Liberation Organization—that's what we 5 were called, officially. There were many others who fought, like Hilde here. Heero was easy for me to find. His name hadn't changed and he was a bodyguard for Miss Relena at the time. She and I were often attending social events. I don't think she recognized me, but Heero did immediately and we started sharing stories, looking for links—"
"—and answers," Heero said. "We came up with a list of doctors and researchers that formed a collective. We identified a different one that each of the five of us had some past relationship with. Unfortunately they are all dead. Unable to tell us what happened."
"Except one, who was not officially one of the five scientists, but an engineer, Duo's previous employer—"
"Howard Sweeper?" Duo asked, surprised. "He never said a thing to me about … well… anything like that. Tro' and I have been friends for years. We met at his circus. I have no idea if we knew each other during the war."
"You did," Quatre told him. "Out in my desert camp with the Maguanacs, you and I talked about him- Wufei and Heero, too."
"Damn!" Duo said. "I mean, besides our run-ins at school, I get this feeling, like I told ya… I can't quite get a hold of. Does that make sense?"
Heero started talking in a soft, low voice, "It's like recognition, but then...?"
Quatre agreed and used that tack to describe the feelings. "Yes, very much. It's enough to make you believe in reincarnation, because you see this person and it's as if you've been waiting for years, maybe all your life, for him to come back. Somewhere in your heart you recognize him and you can't imagine why you didn't realize he wasn't around that you've been longing for him without knowing it, here he is at last." When he was done, his eyes landed on Trowa and stayed there.
Trowa didn't move not wanting to lose a moment of the night.
"Oh wow… that was so beautiful," Hilde said, wiping her eyes. "Man, I can't believe it. Here I am in a room full of the most gorgeous, sexy guys in all Sanc, and they're all gay!" She sniffled. "I'm so alone."
That broke the tension and they all laughed. Duo picked a movie and they filled a few hours watching that. One by one they brushed teeth, hauled in pillows and blankets, and snuggled on the plush rug. They took turns telling stories about inconsequential things until they all fell asleep snuggled together in blankets in front of the window gazing out at the snow covered city below.
(o) How to Feng Shui with Houseplants, Based on Your Astrological Sign
Sally tossed her salad and Wufei set the table for two, lighting candles. He was thankful that he'd stocked his pantry well when he bought Trowa and Duo's food. Smart to have bought that fresh pasta and frozen shrimp on sale that I vacillated over.
"Do you want your salad with dinner?" she asked.
"Yes, put it all out and we can serve ourselves," he answered.
"Good solution. Ummm… it smells divine."
He poured a white wine. "To a snowy night," he said, glass raised.
"And good company," she added, smiling, and they lightly touched glass-to-glass.
Gas flames licked the crystal stones in the fireplace, glimmering in the semi-darkness. The curtains closed, the movie lined up for later. It was all going remarkably well.
Sally eyes roved over the handsome man sharing dinner, a table, and his home with her this night. They shared taste in many things, food importantly. Both passed on dessert, preferring to talk.
"I would love to see your book collection. Seriously, Wufei. You have spoken highly of it many times."
He was delighted to steer her to the spare room, and proudly opened the door to shelves and shelves of books of all kinds. He pointed out favorites; she found one of her's. The cases held nothing of fashion, fabrics, style, or business; it was all poetry, history, and literature. Whether or not she noticed the absence of guest accommodations, the subject was not broached. Totally unnecessary, as it turned out, even though she explored the room quite thoroughly, possibly for hidden futons.
"What's this?" Sally asked in an uncertain voice, as if she was unsure she wanted to know the answer. "'How to Feng Shui with Houseplants, Based on Your Astrological Sign?'"
It elicited a rare chuckle from the stylist. "That book I bought on a whim. I doubted my rightful position as stylist and owner of this establishment, and was hunting for an alternate career."
"I must have been out of town," she murmured, turning pages, smiling. "I think I understand the ancient Chinese art of Feng shui. All of what I know, in fact, I learned from spending summers with my Aunt Li, who visited clients in order to 'fix' their businesses and homes."
"Really? You spent time in China?"
"Yes, I did several times as a child. As you can see, I'm only partially Chinese—my father is only half and my mother not at all. So as not to lose that portion of my cultural past, visits to my father's sister, Aunt Li, became annual. I just loved her. She was a real character. She was a believer in Chinese herbal remedies, too. Balance and harmony were her key beliefs. She repeated that over and over. I thought she was a crazy magician."
"Were you old enough to appreciate the results? Achieving harmony?"
"I have no idea. I think de-cluttering was her biggest accomplishment," she laughed, and he did too. "Let me see how well you've done."
"I haven't really devoted serious study—" he began defensively.
"—Me neither! Oh, this is fun… you have the fire in the living room… lots of yummy wood everyplace, beautiful floors—"
"Thank you. Fire… wood… metal… There's a brass lamp," he pointed out.
"Metal tables, too. That leaves earth and water elements." She looked around in case he hid them.
"I'm light on earthy. I was thinking of introducing more plants, like in the lobby, thus the book. I don't believe the astrology component has any merit-."
"—None whatsoever. Hmmm, you can be rather earthy," she said in a throaty voice and running her hand down his arm to his hand, which she continued to hold. "What about water?"
He cleared his throat, which had suddenly gone dry. His hand felt tingly where hers lingered. "I have a steam shower with all the amenities of a normal shower plus an overhead rainfall showerhead." It had been his greatest indulgence, when he had upgraded his suite. Decadent luxury.
"Oh… really? Will you… show me?" Sally asked meaningfully.
"Well, I… yes…" he blustered nervously, more because he'd been caught off-guard rather than undecided. He gathered himself then said, "Please be kind enough to follow me."
"We'll need extra towels," she added, urging him in the right direction before he could have second thoughts.
And once he got started, and let nature take over, he was fine. The trip down the hall to the bath took a little longer than normal, for him. Clothes fell along the wayside; lots of kissing and exploring of new territory; lips that lit a passion inside of him previously quiescent. Under a gentle waterfall he demonstrated how much he desired her, and where his preferences lay. With her.
Four gorgeous limbs, strong and athletic with soft curves. Wonderful hands. Why have I waited so long? Why didn't I open my eyes and appreciate Sally before? How could such a brilliant mind harbor such a foolish heart?
They had intended to watch a movie. Instead, they fell asleep sprawled across his king-size bed snuggled under a down duvet in front of the window gazing out at the snow covered city below.
TBC