Relena took a few cautious steps forward, ignoring Wufei beside her.
"He-" she started, but Wufei's eyes shot out a warning. "Hello," she said instead, turning her eyes back to Heero. He looked up at her blankly as she addressed him. "You're-"
"Odin," Heero cut in, his eyes assessing her where she stood before sliding over to Wufei. "Or so I'm told."
Relena bobbed her head toward him. "Hello, Odin."
Her heart warmed at the thought of Wufei using Heero's birth name. She took another tentative step toward the exam table, gazing down at Heero in wonderment. How familiar, yet how different he seemed. His eyes were blue and luminous again, the eyes she knew and cherished, blinking up at her curiously as she drew closer. She came to a stop, mere inches away, close enough to reach out and touch him. But she held back, clasping her hands in front of her. Her heart ached as she looked at Heero, strapped to the table, staring up at her in bewilderment, like he didn't know how to interact with another soul. He looked less like the 27-year-old she knew he was, and more like the 15-year-old boy she had encountered with the wild eyes and deadly secret.
And, just like that, she forgot she was supposed to be Faye. She was awestruck, teenaged Relena Darlian all over again. And her heart, just as it did back then, went out to Heero.
"You must be so uncomfortable like that," Relena said softly, eyeing the restraints that bound him.
Heero's eyes swung back over to hers. "Why do you care?"
"I…" Relena glanced back at Wufei, knowing exactly what she wanted to say, but assuming he would interrupt as soon as she started. "Well-"
"You tried to kill her last night, during your little tirade," Wufei grumbled. Heero's brows lifted.
"I did?" Relena was taken aback by the innocent, almost childlike expression that crossed his face. He looked back up at her, his eyes lingering on the sling cradling her arms. "Are you here for revenge?" His voice was ernest, almost as if he welcomed the thought.
"No, I… just needed to see you," she said, fishing for a sensible reason. "For... closure." Heero's brows knit in confusion.
"Would you mind… telling me what I did?"
Relena's eyes widened. "You don't remember?"
Wufei frowned and pulled a tablet out from the inside of his lab coat, and started scrolling over the screen with his pointer finger. "To my knowledge the sedatives wouldn't have an amnesiac effect…"
"It's not the drugs," Heero quipped. "It's how you programmed me." He gazed steadily up at Relena. "Whatever it is, it's like an on-off switch. I have no recollection of these attacks. I merely hear about them afterward."
Wufei's words from the other night came back to her. A bastardized version of the Zero system. Relena's heart pounded. "But how-"
"How did you survive?" Heero interrupted, frowning up at her.
Relena skimmed over the details. "I... was rescued when you were tranquilized."
Heero shook his head to the side. "No, I mean before that."
"Before that?"
"I mean," Heero said slowly, "how did anyone get to you in time? I'm told when I attack, there are no survivors." His eyes narrowed but stayed on hers. "Are you special?"
"Am I special?" Relena echoed.
"Yeah, you know." He tipped his chin up at her. "Are you like me?"
"No, I'm not. I'm just…" She fumbled for the right word. "Normal, I guess." Heero frowned.
"Hm. I thought maybe they'd gone ahead and created a female counterpart for me, like they say they're going to. Then they can breed us or whatever."
Relena whirled to look at Wufei. "Is that true?" She knew about the potential plans to inject the nanotech into a female test subject, but this was the first she'd heard about any "breeding."
"Could be." Wufei shrugged. "You'd have to ask Director Backer about that." Relena gaped at him, clenching and unclenching her hand. She did not like the sound of that one bit.
"You told me I could start having conjugal visits," Heero said to Wufei. Relena's face flamed as Heero's gaze flicked over her. "I thought that's what this was."
"What?!" she sputtered.
"Well, you're dressed for it."
"W- Dr. Zan!" Relena gasped. Wufei rolled his eyes.
"Sorry, Odin, but your harem of superwomen is pending." The joke didn't seem to land with Heero.
"What's wrong with this one?" He tipped his chin toward Relena.
Wufei's brows shot up. "Pardon?"
Relena swung wild eyes back to Heero, who was smirking up at her.
"Come on, gorgeous. Why don't you help me out of these?" His eyes glittered. "We could get to know each other better. I promise I'll be gentle this time..." Relena's flush deepened.
"That's enough, Yu-" Wufei stopped himself just short of using Heero's last name. "You," he amended. "And she already told you why she's here."
"Allegedly," said Heero. "She didn't say who she was." He frowned up at Relena. "Who are you?"
Hearing those words from him hurt, a fresh reminder that he had no recollection of her whatsoever.
"You know me," she said softly, inching closer to the exam table. "You don't remember me, but you know me."
Heero's frown deepened. "How?"
Relena took in a hesitant breath, already seeing Wufei's shaking head out of the corner of her eye.
"We… were close," she said finally. Heero appeared to be taking that in, his brow furrowing.
"Close," he repeated. "Are we… family?"
Yes, Relena wanted to say. Even though they had never officially defined their relationship, after nine years with Heero, she thought of him as her husband. He was probably the closest she would come to having one, anyway.
Relena ignored the looks of warning from Wufei and rested her hand on top of one of Heero's.
"We were in love," she said, her voice hovering just above a whisper. She held back tears as Heero's eyes held her captive. He said nothing for a full moment, just laid there taking her in some more.
"I had a feeling," he said at last. Relena's heartbeat quickened.
"You did?"
"Yeah. Another reason I thought this visit might be conjugal." He shot a glare at Wufei. Relena's face flushed again. "Sorry about that," Heero added. "Guess I have a one-track mind. You must understand, I'm bored as hell in here. And none of the techs are pretty like you. There's not much eye candy."
Relena had to stop herself from laughing out loud. Her heart ached for Heero, but hearing his complaints over his confinement was actually endearing. She wanted to crawl up onto the exam table and hug him.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, stroking his hand with her thumb. "I wish I could have come to see you sooner, but-"
"So that's what happened?" Heero asked, his eyes curious. "You came to visit me, and I… attacked you?"
"Yes…" Relena said slowly, nodding. It was as plausible a reason as any. "That is what happened."
Heero's eyes narrowed, and he seemed lost in thought. She stood patiently awaiting his questions while Wufei continued to scowl off to the side.
"How long?" he asked after a while.
"How long… were we together?" Relena asked. Heero nodded. "Nine years," she answered, her voice hushed.
Relena watched as Heero processed this, his face taking on a host of expressions. Shock. Sadness. Anger. His eyes shot over to Wufei.
"You never mentioned this," he growled.
"I didn't know," Wufei lied easily, his face impassive. "It's not my business to know these things. I'm only your doctor."
Heero turned his attention back to Relena. "Then why now?" he asked, frowning. "Why are you here? Why… did any of this happen? Did you know?" Relena could see he was quickly becoming agitated. She squeezed his hand with both of hers.
"I know this is a lot to take in," she whispered. "I want to tell you everything… Odin. I do." Tears sprang into her eyes, and she fought to keep them from spilling. "Let me start over. Please."
"What's your name?" Heero asked quietly, his eyes storming over.
How badly she wanted to tell him the truth, but there were other eyes and ears all around them. "Faye," she said softly, hating the way it sounded then, foreign on her tongue. "Faye Oaks." It was as unsatisfactory as the first time they met, and Heero fled before she could introduce herself.
My name is Relena Darlian… What's yours?
"Faye," he said, his lips curving up slightly. Relena decided then that it didn't sound so bad, when he said it. But then, anything sounded heavenly in his distinct timbre. "Faye," he repeated. "It's a pleasure." His eyes drank her in and she stared back, letting herself drown.
"It's so good to see you." She squeezed his hand again, a smile finding its way to her eyes, despite the tears. "I've missed you." As he looked up at her, frustrated and helpless, it struck her just how much. Her voice hitched. "I've missed you so much…"
"Well, what took you so long?" he murmured. He glowered up at her, but his eyes held a familiar, teasing glint.
"I didn't know," she whispered. "I only just found out."
"How?" Heero asked her.
"I've been searching for you."
He frowned. "How did you find me?"
Relena wanted to tell him the truth, but knew Wufei would forbid it. Sure enough, he chose that moment to interrupt.
"Time's up," he said. Both Relena and Heero glared in his direction.
"Not yet," she said, desperate to stay. "There's so much more to say..."
"Yeah," Heero cut in, glaring at Wufei. "Let her finish."
"I'm afraid that's all we have time for," Wufei said sternly. "Miss Oaks isn't even supposed to be down here. I was doing her a favor."
"Why?" Heero asked testily. "What's in it for you?"
"Not getting sued," Wufei quipped. It was unnerving, how easily he could craft a lie on the spot. He placed a hand on Relena's shoulder and steered her away from the table. "Time to go."
"But…" Relena held fast to Heero's hand. "You can't just make me leave him like this. We've only just found each other again; I'm not ready to say goodbye." She forced away the tears that sprang back up and whirled on Wufei, summoning up her most commanding, regal tone. "I'm not leaving. You'll have to drag me out of here yourself."
Wufei regarded with her with a bored expression. "Very well, Miss Oaks. That can be arranged." He released her shoulder and walked over to his computer console, his hand hovering over a button. "Security will be here momentarily." Relena gaped at him.
"That won't be necessary," she said coolly. She would be having words with Wufei later. For now, she focused on Heero. "Don't worry," she said more gently, doing her best to smile for him. "I'll be back for you soon."
Heero's eyes sparked. "Yeah? Good." Relena's heart flipped. Ignoring Wufei's impatient grunt, she leaned over and brushed a kiss to Heero's forehead, savoring the feel of her lips against his skin. "Until next time, then. Get some rest, Odin."
Relena paused while her face was close to his, remembering their first kiss, how he had grabbed her and pulled her to him so suddenly, sending her entire world crashing down. Remarkably, as they looked at one another, Relena got the sense that he could read her thoughts.
"Do it," Heero murmured, his eyes glittering up at her.
"Do what?" she whispered, dazzled by their sudden closeness.
"Kiss me."
Relena gasped, and then his lips were on hers. He was craning his neck up as high as he could to reach her; she leaned down to end his struggle, kissing him fully. She couldn't believe it just happened like that, especially since he still didn't know who she really was. But then, in that moment, as his eyes shone up at her, she felt in her soul that Heero must know. Whatever had happened to his mind, exactly, the memories were still there. She knew it. They just had to be reawakened.
They kissed until Wufei's throat clearing became unbearable.
"I meant what I said about security," he threatened.
Relena sighed and broke away from Heero. Disappointment flashed over his face.
"No," he said forcefully, his jaw tightening. "Don't go."
Relena gazed down at him sadly. "I must, for now," she murmured. "But I'm coming back for you, Odin. I promise." Her heart broke all over again at the look on his face. He's lonely. And afraid. Relena wanted to kiss him again, but Wufei snatched her by the arm and dragged her toward the door. She watched Heero over her shoulder, his face a swirling storm, as Wufei completed the forceful exit.
He didn't speak to her as he pulled her out of the lab and back down the hallway toward the elevator. He waited until they were both inside the elevator before whirling on her.
"What the hell," he seethed, "was that."
Relena's eyes burned. "I had to," she whispered shakily. "You see him like that every day. Caged…" She whispered hotly, "...like an animal. What did you think that would do to me?!"
"I know!" Wufei spat. Relena could tell he was on the verge of yelling at her, but he seemed to be working to slow his breathing. He lowered his voice but his dark eyes simmered. "I know, goddamnit. Can't you see why I tried to keep you out of this?!"
She gripped his bicep and gave him a hard stare. "We need," she said as she dug her fingers into his arm, "to get him out of here."
Wufei scowled and wrenched his arm away as the elevator door opened. "We discussed this," he hissed.
He didn't elaborate as they exited the elevator, as Relena knew he wouldn't. He couldn't afford to compromise their situation; he had to appear to be the researcher escorting his investor out. He even plastered a phony smile to his face as he took her, more gently this time, by the elbow and led her toward the front doors.
"Thank you again for stopping by," he said, a little too cheerily. "Always a pleasure, Miss Oaks. We appreciate your continued support. Come back anytime."
Relena's eyes flashed at him. "Oh, I will."
But she nearly stopped in her tracks as they strode past security. There stood none other than Trowa, clad in a brown uniform. He stood waiting to the side of the metal detector while the security guard on duty ran a series of cardboard boxes through an x-ray machine. He glanced over and met Relena's eyes briefly before dropping his gaze, maintaining a disinterested expression. Relena also turned away as if she hadn't seen him. She knew Wufei had noticed, too, and could only guess what he might say to them both later.
A/N: Thank you to all the readers and reviewers... We hope you are still out there and still enjoying this! Sorry it's taken a while to get this going again, but we are back on track with regular updates and appreciate your patience! Of course there are a few more 3xR stories to read now (yippee!) but we just wanna say... we were on that ship before it was cool ;)
Anyway, if you are enjoying this please let us know!
- RGS
