Chapter 35 - The Party Night

Two days later

August

Relena POV

.

"You vomited again?"

Sitting on the very edge of the hospital bed, Relena lowered her head, glaring at Sally. "This morning," she murmured. "I think it was something I ate..."

Sally frowned at her with a suspicious look, while Relena shrugged nonchalantly. "Do you still have those drops for a stomach ache? They've served me very well last time."

"Sure…" Sally muttered under her breath, then walked out of the room.

Relena leaned against the bed frame and looked out the window. Evergreen was buzzing again, everyone was preparing for the evening party. Garlands were hanged over the main square, tables were set up, even a space for the band was designated. Though some of the inhabitants rose some disagreement about whether such a party should be held when not everyone came back from the hunt, the truth was that Evergreen never had a 100-percent successful hunt. And at the same time, the fact was that there were relatively few death victims this time.

In the distance, at the far end of the square, Relena noticed Catherine hanging a garland with Trowa's and Sylvia's help. After a moment, she also saw Heero; he had just finished setting the tables together with Quatre, and they both stood in the shade, talking unhurriedly. Relena smiled at the sight of him, feeling a pleasant tingling in her heart.

"I'm happy for you that he's back," Relena suddenly heard Sally's voice as she came back to the room with a small bottle. "You were so worried about him."

Relena sighed, facing Sally with a relieved smile. "It doesn't matter now. He's safe now."

Sally smiled back, but there was something about that smile that made Relena anxious. "Sally, what's the matter?"

The woman didn't answer immediately, shaking the bottle gently in her hands and eyeing Relena. "Relena… When did you have your last period?"

Relena lifted her eyebrows in surprise and sighed, thinking about the question. "Oh... well..." she wondered aloud, counting the days in her mind.

In recurring everyday life, days and weeks almost seemed to merge into one. Her heart trembled at the memory of the night she had crept inside Heero's bed… The next day he had been gone to the hunting... from which he had returned after three weeks...

"It will be about... five weeks..." she eventually muttered, then lifted her eyes at Sally…

…and her heart skipped a beat as she realized what it meant.

"Relax. It's still very early," Sally interrupted her, "but unfortunately, I don't have any ways of diagnosing it. It may be nothing, but if it doesn't show up in another two weeks, it will definitely be a sign."

Relena pressed a hand to her chest, taking a deep breath, trying to absorb what Sally had just said and trying to understand what she was feeling right now. She felt surprised, excited, but also anxious… With every second, for unclear reasons, the tension in her grew stronger…

"I see…" she whispered absent-mindedly.

Pregnant… Unable to pacify her pounding heart, but trying to gather her galloping thoughts, Relena rose from the bed and walked up to the window, looking out. Her heart thumped again at the sight of Heero. He stood in the same place as before, this time talking to both Quatre and Trowa, but then he suddenly interrupted the conversation, looked around, and walked away, disappearing from her sight.

That moment, as if a flash of lightning hit her, Relena regained her mental clarity and whipped her head at Sally.

"Sally… nobody can find out about this," she whispered with a confident voice, giving her friend a wary look. "He can't find out about this."

Sally blinked, surprised, then sighed, as if realizing that she had touched a complicated matter. "Relena, calm down, it's still just my presumption…"

"No… I know… I feel that's it," Relena muttered silently, her eyes downcast, then she clutched Sally's hands tightly. "Sally, you're a doctor and my friend. I need you to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this."

Sally looked back at her with distinct suspicion, clearly unsure if she should do so.

"I won't," she eventually said with a gentle voice, caressing the top of Relena's hand with her thumb, "unless you plan to do something stupid…"

"No…" Relena shook her head, desperately thinking of a proper excuse, "I just… I want to tell him by myself… only when the proper moment comes."

After a moment, Sally smiled at her warmheartedly and nodded her head. "All right then."

Relieved, Relena let out a nervous breath and smiled back at her friend, squeezing her hands. "Thank you…" she said. "I guess… there's no use for your drops right now."

"That's even for the best. Now you go get some rest, you're having a party in the evening," Sally said, holding Relena. "If you're happy, I'm happy for you too, my friend."

Relena returned the hug and then walked out of the room, still with a desperately sustained, fake smile on her face, trying to mask her own unrest as much as possible.

Leaving the hospital building, although she knew it was impossible, she had a strange reflection as if two hearts were already beating inside her simultaneously.

She was sure she was pregnant. She allowed this possibility right from the beginning, and it wouldn't have been such a surprise. After all, no contraception longer existed, no one produced condoms nor hormones. Indeed, this news wouldn't have caused her such stress if she had received it over three weeks ago, but since the hunt... since Heero had thrown himself in danger so readily, without caring about his life, nothing was the same anymore.

Stopping in the doorway to the hospital, Relena leaned against the doorframe and gazed at the Evergreen inhabitants, this clamorous fuss, and the wall behind the main square. The afternoon sun was slowly hiding behind the trees, soon it would have disappeared behind the high wall. Looking at the tall wall, Relena realized that she hadn't seen the sun hiding behind the clean, unbroken horizon line for such a long time already...

Evergreen, though it was undeniably safe heaven, was also a prison. Another quarantine zone that was hidden behind the high, separating walls. But Relena had the key that could tear down all the walls built in this world and close all quarantine zones. The vaccine. A real rescue, just like Quatre had said.

Maybe Sylvia was right… that I was only sitting on my butt and doing nothing?

Still immersed in her thoughts, Relena suddenly noticed Heero as he was approaching her. She felt confused at the sight of him. She wanted to run to him, tell him about... Oh, how much she wanted to tell him... However, she already realized that this way, she would sign the death sentence… on him.

If she told him, or if he found out by himself… he would have left Evergreen in one night. He would have left her in a safe place and gone to Houston himself, taking the vaccine with him, putting everything on one card, again. Including his life. To be sure that she and his unborn child would be safe. And then… she wouldn't have been able to stop him.

Relena already decided that she would never let that happen. And that meant that their time in Evergreen was coming to an end. She already recovered, anyway. If she wanted to be with him, they needed to leave soon. To reach Houston… before it would start to show.

"How are you feeling? What did Sally say?" Heero asked with concern as he approached her.

She looked away from him, fearing that his piercing blue eyes would quickly read the truth in her look. She felt terrible about her secret; she realized that apart from the fact that she wanted him to know, he had a right to know... Her voice stuck in her throat almost at the last second.

However, that moment, Relena didn't realize yet how heavy that burden of hers would be. She looked up at him and smiled at her best as she could, with her heart painfully clenched inside her chest.

"She said that I should take my drops and get ready for the party."

It was as simple as that. He kept his promise and came back to her.

Now it was her turn to fulfill her promise.

x

Heero POV

.

The evening filled the air in Evergreen with a pleasant chill, bringing relief and refreshment after the all day long scorching heat. Right after the sun had set, the electric turbines were launched, and garlands of chains that once had hung on Christmas trees lit up over the main square. It was surprising that they still shone after so many years.

The sandy surface of the main square dried after a downpour from two days ago, and Evergreen residents were slowly gathering. Everyone was apparently more festively dressed, some of the girls and women were wearing dresses, boys and men changed everyday work shirts to fresher ones. The band was modest: two girls played the violin and the tambourine, while the boy played the guitar. The musicians haven't started playing yet, gathering in the corner of the square, tuning the instruments.

In the olden days, a sea of alcohol poured out during such events. Now, alcohol could save lives when used to decontaminate wounds and cuts. It was too valuable. So, the tables were set with water with various types of fruit syrup and very weak, almost gasless, home-made wheat beer. But nobody complained. Probably because only a small part of this gathering remembered drinking during "the old days" parties.

When the crowd in the square thickened and everyone had their own glass, the band spontaneously began to play. Initially, people were too ashamed to start dancing and found an excuse not to go to have fun. Eventually, however, the first few brave couples began dancing and were soon followed by the others.

The festive mood passed onto Heero only partly; he wore a borrowed black T-shirt and dark jeans, but, remaining true to his habits, he didn't even try to handle his messed hair. He took a seat at one of the furthest tables, squeezing a glass of beer in his hand and watched the dancing people.

He quickly noticed that there was something sublime and joyful about this night, something that distinguished it from many similar events that Heero had known so far and which inevitably had taken place in the Zone. After all, even in the post-apocalyptic world, people wanted to forget about the hopelessness surrounding them at least for a moment, indulge themselves in the vortex of dance, enjoy the closeness of others. Until now, Heero always kept himself away from such parties; he never intended to get involved. Partly because it was utterly extraneous to him, and somewhat because he just didn't feel the need to detach himself from reality.

From his point of view, this kind of party wouldn't bring any measurable profit; when they ended, the world was still an endless nightmare, and then, the return to this reality was as much harder as a more pleasant was the evening. The only tangible benefit he could think of was a chance of meeting women for a few, skipping moments of carnal pleasure, nothing more. Women who were looking for the same thing as him: a moment of relief, forgetfulness, regaining control over one's life. However, with none of them, he had felt as alive as he did when he was with her...

"Enjoying the party?"

Quatre took a seat at the same table, next to Heero, placing his glass on the table. He was wearing a white shirt and dark gray pants. "It came out great, right? Last year the turbines wouldn't have carried them. Now we replaced all the engineering. Maybe in a few years, such lights will shine in Evergreen every night..."

Heero glanced briefly at Quatre, but said nothing, raising a glass to his lips and drinking some of the liquid, watching the cheerful crowd in the square.

The band played something that resembled Irish folk music, with the guiding, screeching sound of a violin and a clearly outlined rhythm. Couples in the square danced much more vigorously and energetically.

"Where's Relena?" Quatre asked.

"Still dressing up."

Quatre smiled, then gazed at the crowd. "I'm grateful for what you did for Trowa during the hunt," he hung his voice for a moment, "he told me everything. He owes you his life."

Heero let his lips form a slight grimace at Quatre's words. "In some ways, I paid off my debt."

Quatre raised his eyebrows, and Heero looked back at him. "He brought water when Relena was almost dying of thirst," Heero explained.

Quatre made a surprised face, then laughed loudly. "Remind me, didn't you accidentally threaten to kill him a few moments later, did you?"

"He almost shot us himself," Heero noticed. "I don't take my words back."

"Sure, right. We can say that this is already history," Quatre chuckled. "Either way... I want to thank you, Heero. With all my heart. I don't know if I would be able to continue living if he..."

The blonde man hung his voice for a moment, and Heero measured him with a cautious gaze. "No problem," he muttered, taking a sip from his glass.

Quatre looked up to see someone in the crowd, and Heero followed his gaze. They both noticed Trowa approaching through the square, and the moment Catherine reached him. She was wearing a short denim skirt and a white blouse with thin straps; her fluffy hazelnut hair falling over her shoulders. Trowa went for a white T-shirt and black jeans. The couple started talking unhurriedly, Catherine held Trowa's hand and laughed merrily.

Heero watched them blankly, but after a moment, Quatre's loud and somewhat sad sigh ripped him out of his thoughts.

"She doesn't know anything," Quatre whispered. "Or, perhaps she's suspecting something but keeps it to herself. The whole Evergreen doesn't know... officially."

Heero looked at Quatre surreptitiously. Until that moment, he was convinced that Quatre and Trowa hadn't realized that they had been busted in the warehouse a few days ago, during the rain that accompanied the end of the hunt. He thought of several questions that he could ask, but remained silent, realizing that it was any of his business. But then Quatre continued as if he were reading his thoughts.

"As for now, we don't plan to reveal it. I doubt if it would be of any use now. And I'm anxious… about the other's reaction. There's a possibility that people wouldn't want their leader to be gay… and I don't want to ruin Evergreen's peace."

In the distance, somewhere between the couples on the dancefloor, Trowa was spontaneously dancing with Catherine. The girl gripped his hands firmly and pulled him into the dancing, amused crowd. Heero heard Quatre making another sad sigh.

"I can live with this. It only hurts in times like these. When I realize that we can't hold hands in clear daylight," Quatre said, his voice silent and shallow, "like you and Relena."

Heero snorted silently at the blonde man's words. "Quatre, if you're looking for comfort or advice, then I'm certainly your worst choice."

Quatre laughed and shrugged. "Sincerely, I don't want to pour out my heart tonight. Talking about it to someone other than Trowa is already a relief to me. You didn't even realize you were helping me just by listening to me."

Heero sent him an indifferent glance. "You're welcome."

"I mean it. Thank you, Heero Yuy," Quatre raised his glass, "for saving Trowa and coming back alive to Evergreen. Here's to you."

Heero hesitated for a moment, then let out a sigh. He raised his glass. "I can only give you one piece of advice that I got many years ago."

"And that advice is?"

Heero looked Quatre in the eyes and then tapped his glass on the blonde man's one. "Follow your emotions. That's the only way to live a good life."

Quatre thought for a moment, then grinned, still raising his glass up. "Amen to that. That said, you're good at cheering others up."

They both drank a handful of liquid, and soon they were joined by Trowa. The green-eyed man walked out of the merry, dancing crowd and approached their table with his own drink. He took a seat at the other side of the table, his back to the dancefloor.

"The hunt isn't needed at least for a year," Trowa said to Heero. "I guess the natural choice for you is to be our sniper at the walls."

Heero measured Trowa with an indifferent glance but with a mischievous smirk forming on his lips. "You're sure you want me to do this? I could accidentally mistake you for an intruder."

Trowa laughed out loud at those words, while Quatre looked somewhat concerned. "Cute," Trowa said, sipping his drink. "I began to like your sense of humor. Quatre, did you already decided what to do about him?"

But suddenly their voices faded out and Heero didn't hear them anymore, as he noticed the only person he had been waiting for this evening.

Relena's filigree silhouette flashed in the crowd for a short moment, then for longer. She stood with Catherine and talked about something lively, holding both hands, then began to dance together.

With her long, golden hair combed, wearing a loose, pale blue summer dress that ended above her knee, she looked... different.

During all these months, when they were on the trail, fighting for survival not only with hunters, infected, and Fireflies but also with heat and a chronic deficit of food or water, there was no time or opportunity for her to behave like the young woman she was. Such a dress would be a much bigger problem than pants - it was easier to run wearing pants, they provided warmth at night, one could move freely with them on. It was the very first time Heero saw her dressed so femininely. He realized that he couldn't take his eyes off her.

Meanwhile, Relena held Catherine's hands tightly and spun around, squeaking frightfully. Heero's attentive eyes followed every move of Relena's knees just below the line of her dress. He loved her slender legs, her hips, but this time, though they were obscured by the delicate fabric of the dress, she seemed to him as appealing as ever. And she laughed so cheerfully and loudly that he could hear her even despite the bustle and sound of the music.

She was relaxed and joyful. Beautiful. She looked like if she had been transferred here from another universe. This several weeks' long longing for her closeness began to weigh him inexpressibly at that very moment.

"Doesn't she look happy?" Heero suddenly heard Quatre's voice, close to his ear. "I'm so glad she loved Evergreen."

Heero didn't know how to answer the blonde man, but he realized it too. Since they had come here, Relena flourished. She regained strength, found passion, made new friends. Plus, she was still 'the famous Relena Peacecraft,' and as soon as the song changed, every boy in Evergreen wanted to dance with her. More and more appeared next to her, willing to offer a dance. Relena kept accepting them with a polite but subdued smile, agreeing to dance a couple of short, lively dances. Heero didn't interrupt, sipping his beer and ceaselessly keeping his gaze glued to her, but feeling a tide of annoyance at the sight of each subsequent admirer…

Then, at a certain point, as she whipped her head, looking around the square, she locked her eyes with him. Her look lit up immediately, and his heart skipped a beat as she stopped dancing and dashed to his table as if nothing else mattered in the world.

"And here is our star!" Quatre chuckled merrily, welcoming Relena by raising his glass up. "You look phenomenal, Relena!"

Relena laughed out loud, making a quick pirouette just in front of them. Her loose dress flared up in the air, revealing her slender thighs even more. She radiated of carefree and girlish happiness. Unable to stop gazing at her, Heero unconsciously pursed his lips, then took another sip of beer, forcing himself to cast his eyes down.

Relena stopped on the other side of the table and leaned forward, leaning her elbows on the tabletop.

"So here you have hidden," she chuckled, concentrating her gaze at Heero, "at the very far end. I almost didn't notice you."

"Here we have the best view," Trowa teased, tapping his glass to Heero's.

Relena looked at Heero, smiling broadly at him. "Now that I've found you, maybe I can convince you to dance?"

Heero looked up at her from behind his bangs. He didn't say anything, already realizing solely by the look in her eyes that he was unable to resist her.

He hesitantly rose on his feet, and immediately felt Relena's hand tugging his and pulling him into the dancing crowd. He let her drag him between the other people, but when they were crossing the somewhat empty part of the square, Heero stopped abruptly and pulled Relena to himself.

"Hey," she chuckled with surprise as she spun around and stopped right in front of him, her lengthy hair whipping him on his shoulder. Heero gazed into her bright, cerulean eyes.

"I've never done it before," he explained.

Relena smiled at him again; she radiated with laughter; even her eyes were laughing. "It doesn't matter," she whispered, shrugging, without any hesitation in her gaze, "just hold me close."

The band started playing another song. A girl who had been playing on the violin stopped and stood between the other two players. Soon the sound of guitar ringed out with a piece of atmospheric music, and people in the square started forming couples. That seemed the first slow song of the evening.

Heero looked down at Relena and encircled her waist, pulling her closer. Relena's knee brushed his, and she giggled, her look escaping down. "Sorry," she whispered.

Her fingers gently curled around his hand, securing her balance. Her eyes were glistening with hundreds of lights that hanged above them. Hearing the song, still only instrumental, Heero glanced at the people around them. He tried to mimic them, and he let his body sway gently to the soft rhythm. He felt super awkward. Relena's arm encircled his torso, and she rested her head on his collarbone.

"That's nice," she whispered encouragingly, nuzzling her face to him, "move as you wish and when you wish. It's fine with me. Just keep me close."

Heero bowed his head, sensing Relena's delicate floral scent. Out of the corner of his eye, he kept looking at the pairs surrounding them, but each of them moved a little differently. Unable to decide who to imitate precisely, he eventually decided to listen to Relena.

He rested his chin on the top of her head and held her closer, gently rocking them from foot to foot, when the girl on the stage started singing.

I wasn't looking for you.

You came, quietly

fortuitously.

You said you found me.

You said you'll stay

here.

"That's a nice song," Relena murmured, keeping her head rested on this perfect spot on his collarbone.

Heero hummed in reply. He found it difficult to compare this girl's song to anything he had heard in his life. Her gentle voice reminded him of his mother's, as she had sung lullabies to him, although it was a distant memory, almost faded in his mind.

But the words of this song made him feel strange. Listening to them, he felt an unusual excitement, as if they sounded familiar…

"How are you feeling now?"

"Heavenly."

"I'm serious," Heero muttered in a sober tone.

"Me too," Relena chuckled and squinted her eyes. "I've never felt so good."

Heero sighed heavily, then whispered softly in her ear: "…you're sure you're not pregnant?"

She didn't answer immediately. For a split second, Heero felt her fingers tremble slightly, but then she snuggled closer into him.

"No, Heero. I'm not pregnant."

"Yhm," he mumbled his short response. He wasn't sure how he actually felt about this news.

Was he relieved? Disappointed? The thought of pregnancy had been lingering on his mind ever since he first learned that Relena had been vomiting. But even then, he was confused about his feelings about the possible pregnancy. He had been chasing this thought away so far, but now, when she denied it, images swept through Heero's mind that he couldn't control nor understand. As if he experienced a feeling of yearning, a longing for somebody… who still didn't exist.

I have you

- it is enough for me.

Now I can be lost,

now the world doesn't matter to me.

"…Heero."

"Yeah?" he said, pulled out of his thoughts.

Relena tilted her head up and looked at him with her glistening eyes. "Back in the hospital… You said that I had saved you before. What did you mean?"

Heero shook his head, tossing his unruly bangs off his eyesight. "I meant exactly what I said. You really did."

"Tell me about it."

"No," Heero cut her short.

"Why not?" Relena pouted playfully, like a little girl. "Don't be afraid, I won't go and ruin your reputation by telling everyone that this invincible and brave Heero Yuy needed help once in a lifetime."

Her lips formed in one of her most beautiful, gentle smiles. Heero looked down at her. "Somehow… I don't trust you."

Relena laughed at his joke, so carelessly and merrily, that Heero couldn't help but smile back at her. His whole world concentrated on her in his arms, on a warm night, and the words of the song that he had an impression he knew…

Then he felt her right hand that was resting on his back slowly slide down to his waist.

"I never doubted that you would come back," she whispered, looking straight into his eyes. "I just felt it. You promised me this. You wouldn't have broken a promise."

Let this dark night never end.

Let it darken, let them take away the moon,

and hold back the morning.

Let this night never end.

Never end…

Promises.

He had lived from day to day, from second to second, from breath to breath. His life had mattered only as long as he still held it. Life was fleeting and doomed to end, like a woozy firefly that kept flying around the lightbulb until getting burned to death. That's why he would only struggle to survive in this world. Not to live.

Until she had appeared.

He suddenly wanted to live. Fight for every breath, for every day… not to delay death, but to cherish life, share moments with her.

She tangled his life with a chain of promises.

Heero brought her hand in his grasp to his mouth, pressing a soft kiss on top of it, his eyes never leaving hers.

"We could stay here, Relena," he whispered, his breath feathering the top of Relena's delicate hand, then rested it over his collarbone. "Just say that you want it."

You are here,

in my arms.

That's all I'm sure of,

that's all that matters.

Hearing his confession, Relena bowed her head. Heero noticed the hesitation in her eyes, the same he felt in his heart.

He had thought about it for a long time. Even before he had set off for the hunt, he had imagined her living in Evergreen. Alone - in case if he hadn't returned. However, even drawing that worst-case scenario, he had felt peace in his heart - because reason repeatedly had been telling him that he's leaving her in the best, safest place he had ever known.

Now that he had returned, Evergreen seemed closer to his heart as well. The place that he had seen for the second time still in an unchanged shape after a long absence... he clearly associated it with a safe haven. Home.

But then, the look in Relena's eyes sharpened.

"I can't say that, Heero," she shook her head. "Have you forgotten?"

Of course, he didn't. Let the earth under him apart and devour him if he forgot the promise she made to him in the morning after their first night together. That they'll live to see a world that had been taken away from them…

As she snuggled back into him, into the rigid form of his embrace, he felt his body temperature rise rapidly. She was too far away.

He wanted her closer. Brushing a golden strand of her hair away from her face, he brought his lips to her ear and whispered in a low voice:

"Please, follow me."

Keep me close,

till the last breath of air roars in my body,

and my last day on this earth still didn't come.

He pulled away, and Relena gave him a surprised look, but he said nothing more, sending her a meaningful look. He gave her hands a short squeeze, then released them and quickly began to thread his way through the calmly dancing couples.

When he left the lighted square, he looked back and, seeing Relena follow him about a dozen steps behind, turned into one of the dark streets of Evergreen, stepping out of the beam of light from the main square. As he passed the last people standing in the nearby streets, he quickened his pace, never losing sight of her and making sure nobody was following them. When the narrow streets around them were only lit by the moonlight, he heard Relena also speeding up, almost running after him.

As soon as Heero turned into the dark corner, enlightened only by the faint light of the moon, Relena reached him. There he stopped, hitting his back against the wooden wall, and there she jumped into his embrace again. Their lips found each other, meeting in a desperate, fierce dance. Heero let his hands glide over her slender body and sank his hands into her silky hair, cradling the back of her neck, while Relena roamed her hands down his torso and started fumbling with his belt.

She was still too far away.

Let this dark night never end.

Let it darken, let them take away the moon,

and hold back the morning.

Let this night never end.

Never end…

Snippets of the romantic song were still reaching their dark corner as he gathered her in his embrace up and turning them around pressed her against the wall. Relena let out a surprised gasp, then started unbuttoning his pants, while he bent his head and kissed the sensitive and smooth skin on her breasts, yanking down the cleavage of her dress.

She was still…

He slipped his hands under the hem of her dress and then grasped the backs of her thighs, quickly hoisting her up. Relena wound her legs around his waist and his arms around his neck, pulling him even closer and steadying herself against him. Her spine arched against the wall; her body felt so hot to touch, like red-hot iron.

The moment he joined their bodies into one, Relena let out the sweetest, the most sensual moan and buried her face to the side of his neck.

And please, never stop telling me,

that in this life of coincidences,

you're the only thing

planned

solely for me.

"Relena…" Heero mumbled semi-consciously, utterly intoxicated by her warmth, closeness, and smell, hiding his face in the crook of her neck, but holding her ever so steadily.

She answered him with a short gasp, and he felt her rapid heartbeat pounding against him. He started moving inside her, with each move releasing a breathless moan from her. Her nails dug into the skin of his back, and Heero buried his fingers in the soft flesh of her thighs, deliberately deeper, at the thought that anybody else could have touched her, even look at her while he was gone…

His own breath ragged, he nibbled with his teeth at the skin of her neck, and she tilted her head back in pleasure, raking her hands in his thick hair as he took her against the wall.

Keep me close,

if the morning can take you away from me,

then I don't want to wake up.

He missed her warmth for too long - soon, too soon, the flow of ecstasy through his body almost paralyzed him, while Relena bit into his shoulder and tightened around him, panting silently. Up to this point, he was utterly unaware of the yearning he had felt for her for the last over three weeks, and this realization made him feel almost embarrassed.

Feeling sweat dripping down his temples, he slowly and gently lowered her to the ground, sensing a slight tremor in her thighs under his hands, and stared at the ocean depth of her half-closed eyes. Relena stood on unsteady legs, catching her breath, and cupped his face lovingly. He noticed that her eyes were clouded, tiny drops of tears lingered on her eyelashes…

"Relena-" he gasped, feeling his heart sink, but she placed her finger over his lips, silencing him.

"Heero… I want to go back on the road," Relena whispered, her voice slightly trembling. "With you."

Let this dark night never end.

Let it darken, let them take away the moon,

and hold back the morning.

Let this night never end.

Never end…

Heero frowned at her, then nodded his head knowingly. He wasn't going to oppose her in any way; her eyes told him that she had already made up her mind, and the only thing he could do was to oblige.

When she nuzzled up to him, he returned the hug, clinging to her as if she could have evaporated from his embrace.

"I'll never leave you alone again," he whispered, pressing his cheek to the side of her neck.

"I know," she whispered back.

…

What he didn't know was what Relena actually meant by those words: that from this moment on, she was never alone. That she carried inside her a new life, a tiny being with a piece of Heero's heart.

.

TBC

Hello, my dear readers!

Thank you for all your reviews and comments!

I hope that the chapter brought you a lot of joy and emotions. Soon we will be back on the trail with Heero and Relena, full of dangers, but on which they will be together.

BTW, the lyrics of the song are by me. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, although I started composing the lyrics from the very beginning of writing this fanfic.

Today the note is short because I am in a hurry. Please write a review about how you enjoyed it!

Stay safe,

~enelle89