Author's Note: Seems like I got a following with this. I've got big plans for this baby, big plans. In this chapter, there is a bit of humor that I'd like to accredit to one ShadowMajin since he has infected me with his own…unique brand of humor.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing

Warning: slight language, slight shounen ai, slight angst

He Doesn't Date Sluts

Quatre was up bright and early the next morning. However, he wasn't a morning person and needed a good long shower and some caffeine, or Trowa, before he could become remotely sociable. His body movements were sluggish this wonderful Tuesday morning as he got out of his comfortable king-sized bed and trudged into the hard tiled, private bathroom.

As he let the warm water trickle down all around him, something told him that there was something he needed to do today. Oh yeah, he needed to call Trowa and see if he was feeling better. If he was, then he would get to be with him during school!

That was enough to make him hurry up his morning ritual and return to his bedroom where he picked up his phone and dialed a number he was all too familiar with. He waited as he heard the phone ring a few times before somebody picked up.

"Hello?"

"Is that you Trowa?" Quatre asked enthusiastically.

"Yeah, Quatre. Nice to hear from you."

"I was wondering how you were doing today," Quatre continued. "Are you feeling better? Do you think you can come to school?"

He heard a light-hearted chuckle on the other end before he was answered. "Yeah, I'm doing much better. I think I may be able to come but don't get your hopes up yet."

"When have I ever gotten my hopes up?" Quatre asked in mock offense.

"Remember that guy you hooked Duo up with who turned out to be a girl? You said that they were the perfect couple and everything."

"I make mistakes, just like everyone else," Quatre defended. "And it was only that one time, too."

"Whatever you say, love," Trowa replied, amused. "If I'm well enough, I'll see you later today, okay?"

"Of course," Quatre answered. "I can't wait to see you again."

"Neither can I."

Hanging up, albeit reluctantly, Quatre immediately resumed his usual morning grumpiness as he got dressed and headed down to the kitchen to get his caffeine boost that he so desperately needed. Once taking in a sip of the hot coffee, he let out a sigh of contentment. Oh yeah, that was it.

"Morning."

He jumped and spun around at the sound of the unfamiliar voice. Sitting at the breakfast table as if he had been there all along was Solomon who was watching him with a bored expression. That's right, he had to introduce his cousin to his school today. How did that slip his mind?

"Good morning, Solomon," Quatre greeted as he took another sip of his precious cup of coffee. Solomon frowned at his name though.

"Don't call me that," he stated. "I only let the adults do that cause they have the money and can do whatever they want. To you, an everybody else, I am Solo. Got that?"

Quatre frowned at this. "I don't see what the problem is. I think Solomon's a good name—"

"And I don't give a crap about that," Solo interrupted. "It could be the name of Jesus for all I care. The name is Solo to you. Not Solomon. Just Solo. Okay?"

"Okay, I understand," Quatre muttered, not seeing what the big deal was. They had only been talking to each other for five minutes and already they were off to a bad start. Well, one could only make the most of things. "So, do you think you're ready for school?"

"Do I have to go?" Solo nearly whined and Quatre had to stifle a chuckle. From what he had seen of his cousin thus far, he had the impression that the blond had that "tough guy" mentality. This was certainly a turnabout.

"No choice," he replied, smirking inwardly as the other blond began to look like he was pouting. "That's not going to get you anywhere," he commented.

"Doesn't hurt to try," Solo muttered.

Quatre let out a laugh this time, shaking his head in amusement. Perhaps he shouldn't mention that they would be having to leave earlier than usual so that he could get set up with the school itself.

But then again, the sadist in him was just begging for some satisfaction and who was he to deny it?

---

Waking up from the dredges of sleep, Duo grumbled as yet another cheery morning greeted him when he was in no way cheerful. The silence that greeted him as he slowly emerged from his fortress of blankets and bedcovers was just another reminder of his lonely existence in this cruel world.

There wasn't a perky and bright mother in the kitchen whipping up a feast of a breakfast. There wasn't a strong and paternal father sitting at the breakfast table reading the morning paper. There was just him, Duo Maxwell, trudging down the hallway like the typical teenager that he was to a cold and empty dining room.

He had never known what it was to have parents, real, there-for-you parents. He had never known his mother but he had heard some things from those she had considered close friends. She hadn't been dealt the best of hands in the game of life but she made due with what she had. Not having the necessary skills to fit in into society, she had reluctantly entered the world of prostitution, pimps, and all that other jazz.

That's where his father came in. He was just another customer who came in to relieve himself and instead had left his mother with the growing seed that would later become him. His father was not in a similar situation as his mother, far from it. He had money, he worked in an enormous corporation as one of the executives. And he didn't want Duo in the first place.

Luckily for his mother, she had good friends in all the right places. Through some legal proceedings, along with a lot of evidence supporting her, his mother had managed to acquire a tiny bit of wealth along with a court order that his father had to send in child support checks until he graduated high school and paid for any and all college that he attended. However, his mother didn't live long after he was born. He may have been three when she died due to some health condition of hers that he never told about and he was being raised by the friends that had stayed by her side.

It was when he entered the seventh grade that he requested to live on his own, a decision that his mother's friends protested but ultimately allowed. He wasn't paying for anything; that was left up to his good-for-nothing father who continued to dispute with the court arranged situation. Slowly, over time, his father was slowly cutting down the amount of money he had to pay.

Fortunately, one of Duo's favorable traits was his thriftiness. He always knew that the money wouldn't last, always knew how much of a jack-off his father was despite the similarities between the two and the DNA testing that only confirmed it.

Everybody else was so lucky to have a family. He would give anything to have that.

After enjoying a small meal made of cold cereal, Duo readied himself for school and headed off, wondering what kind of tortures Wufei and Heero were plotting to make his life even more miserable than it already was. What was it that made Wufei hate him so? Perhaps that was a question that would never be answered, no matter how many times it was asked.

It didn't take long before he saw that forbidding sight of prison…eh, school. He was back. Whoopie. Maybe he could catch up with Quatre soon. Hopefully Trowa wouldn't be there so he ended up being the third wheel again. He didn't have anything against the unibanged teen but sometimes he just wanted some attention too.

Oh great, he was early today. Another round of applause. Okay, maybe he wouldn't be ambushed today. Still, why take chances? Making his way down the nearly empty hallways, he reached his locker without incident.

The sight waiting for him today was the last thing he expected. Quatre was already here, which was unusual, but Trowa was at his side, though it was noticeable that he had been sick. There was a third person who was silent and leaning against the lockers like he owned everything. It was obvious that he was not paying attention, ignoring, whatever, to the couple beside him.

Duo had never seen the blond before and he was admiring that long mane of blonde hair that the stranger had when a thought occurred to him.

Wait, was Quatre replacing him? Oh please God, let it not be so! Quatre was his only real friend in this world and to lose him would be disastrous.

So, sucking his worries up and hiding them away, he composed himself and walked over, despite the fact that he wanted to run away from the scene as much as possible. He was only a few feet away when Quatre surprisingly caught sight of him and welcomed him. That was odd. Whenever Quatre was with Trowa, his whole world revolved around him.

"Hey, Quat!" he greeted. "Hey Tro! You feeling better?"

Much to his surprise, Trowa answered him. "I'm doing much better. Thank you Duo."

Okay, what was up? Was this make a fool out of Duo day? Why hadn't he been notified about this?

"Duo, let me introduce you to my cousin," Quatre picked up. "This is Solo. Solo, this is Duo Maxwell, one of my best friends."

The tall blond opened his green eyes and looked down at him, literally. "He's small," was the only thing that the blond said.

Bristling, Duo retorted, "At least you don't hear me complaining about hitting the ceiling, Tree Trunk!"

This earned a snort of amusement from the blond who pushed himself away from the lockers to stand before the braided one, his height greater than it was a minute ago. Hell, Duo just barely faced the guy's chest for crying out loud! This was so unfair! Was he always doomed to be puny? And to add insult to injury, this Solo guy ruffled his hair up and chuckled.

"Ya got spunk Kid."

Duo growled. "Don't call me Kid, Bigfoot!"

"And don't you know what they say about people with big feet?" Solo shot back.

Oh, this guy was good, real good. He could see Quatre flushing a bright red and Trowa was stifling some laughter. No way. That does it. This guy is going down!

Quatre must have caught the gleam in eye because he began to cough quite loudly, getting the others' attention. "Um, what classes do you have Solo? I can show you around if you want."

Not bothering with a verbal answer, the blond held out the sheet of paper to Quatre that held the information. Quatre frowned as he read it, commenting with, "That's not good. We only share two classes!"

Duo, his curiosity unable to withstand being out of the loop, moved and took a look at the schedule. His eyes widening, he exclaimed, "That looks like my schedule!" Suspicious that Solo might have taken it off his person somehow without him knowing, it was dissuaded by the fact that Solo's name was printed on it in bold.

"Wait," Duo said. "Your name is Solomon?"

Solo growled. "Call me that again and I'll pound you into the ground."

Duo snorted. If this guy thought he could be beaten up easily, he had another thing coming.

"Now, now guys," Quatre intervened. "Since it seems that you share the same classes with Solo, why don't you show him around?"

Since Quatre was giving him those "eyes" of his, Duo couldn't find it in his heart to refuse. "Sure, okay, stop looking at me like that, I'll do it."

"Thanks Duo!" Quatre exclaimed, wrapping him in a bear hug and squeezing tightly.

"Yeah, no problem," Duo wheezed. "Now can ya let go? I need to breathe too!"

"Sorry," Quatre apologized, smiling sheepishly. "We got to run. Don't let Solo get into any trouble."

Before Duo could respond to that, the blond was off, his unibanged boyfriend in tow, leaving just him and the new blond on the block. Glancing up at the uninterested teen, Duo grumbled, "You coming or not? Don't have too much time to stand around, you know."

Solo gaze was still focused in the direction of the now nonexistent Quatre but that didn't stop him from saying, "Kinda pushy, aren't ya?"

"No, not most of the time," Duo replied. "I've just never been in the position of showing the new kid around."

"Huh."

As Duo began his trek down the hallway, his braid trailing after him, he heard the footsteps of his companion behind him though this new guy was a bit more sedate in his pace. Could someone really be this cool about being in a new school with new people? He shouldn't get use to this; it was only a matter of time. Once Wufei caught sight of the guy, he would do anything and everything in his power to become friendly and pull Solo away from him.

It wasn't as if it was the first time it had happened. He kinda liked being in the presence of another. It was addicting having somebody depend on you. No really, it was.

He didn't bother showing Solo everything, just pointed out the more important places, such as the cafeteria. Wherever he pointed, green eyes would follow before turning back to the braided one, the bored look still housed without.

Duo entered the classroom of his first period, earlier than usual, and sat down at his desk. English…why the hell was it a subject anyway? He could speak it just fine! It wasn't as if it was some foreign language or anything.

The tortures he had to put up with.

"So this is the first class?"

Oh, he almost forgot. Solo was still here. That was right. Damn, how could he have let that happen? Oh well, like it mattered. The hours (or were they minutes?) were numbered.

"Yeah, it is," he answered, glancing over at the blond. Frowning, he said, "You can't sit there."

"Why not?" Solo challenged.

"Somebody else already sits there."

"I can wait until they show up. I'm sure the teach wouldn't mind."

Looking over at the blond, whose eyes now contained amusement, Duo debated internally whether or not it was worth the effort to argue with this guy. The sound of the door opening distracted him but the people who came in held his attention completely.

Uh oh. Solo was a dead man. Here came the man killer herself.

Dorothy Catalonia.

It was nice knowing the guy. No really it was.

Dorothy was one of the most popular girls in the school. She was the type who got what she wanted, when she wanted it, and how she wanted it. Unlike other girls of her…caliber, she had an astonishing amount of patience and was willing to put it to use anytime. She was quite attractive, for a girl, but the one thing that kept Duo away from her like an anorexic from a buffet table were her eyebrows. They were just…weird, all forked and everything. He believed that they were fake but he was never willing to put that idea to the test.

And now she had spotted and set her sights on Solo. Damn, he felt sorry for the guy. And her current boyfriend…what's his face? Eh, she had so many of them that he lost count back in his freshman year. But at least she wouldn't dump the poor schmuck until after she hooked up with Solo. Always trying to upgrade…

"Hey, you're new, aren't you?" Dorothy greeted as she stopped in front of the blond, her personal entourage stopping behind her and waiting to observe their master in action. "My name is Dorothy Catalonia. Allow me to welcome you to our fine school."

Duo snorted at that. Dorothy heard.

"Don't pay this cynic any mind," she continued. "He's always in a bad mood. Anyway, would it be possible if you could give me your name?"

"Sorry, can't," Solo replied.

"Why not?" Dorothy asked, a bit down put.

"If I gave you my name, then who would I be?" Solo answered, producing a giggle from the female. (1)

Duo had to stare. This was the first time he had ever, ever, heard Dorothy Catalonia giggle. It was like seeing the Loch Ness Monster order a Big Mac from McDonald's.

"You have quite some wit," Dorothy commented. "Let me try this again. May I know your name?"

"Solo Winner," Solo answered, sitting back in his usurped desk.

Her eyes thoughtful, she asked, "You wouldn't happen to be related to Quatre Winner, would you?"

"Yep," Solo answered, looking bored.

"If I may be so bold," Dorothy continued, "would you grant me the honor of going out with you?"

Ah, there it was, and in no certain terms undiplomatic. Glancing at Solo, Duo awaited the answer that he knew was coming, the one that would begin the separation between him and Solo. It was nice while it lasted.

Solo examined the blond girl from where he sat. He seemed to ponder his decision before coming up with his answer.

"I don't date sluts."

It seemed everything stopped and all attention was on Solo right now, who looked like he could have cared less.

"Wh-what?" Dorothy stuttered, disbelief in her voice.

"Let me repeat that," Solo drawled. "I. Don't. Date. Sluts. Kapeesh?"

"What makes you think I'm something as lowly as that?" Dorothy demanded.

"Well, for one thing, I can see your make-up from right here," Solo answered. "You make yourself look pale but you look like the type of person that likes being outside and all your friends there have a tan. That jewelry you have on is fake, those nails are clip-ons, and while you talk and dress fancy, I saw the way you were walking. Moving your hips side to side like that. I've seen an old lady walk better and sexier than you. So please, go somewhere else 'cause I'm not interested."

"Oh? And what would you rather do?" Dorothy demanded. "Sit next to him?!" At this she pointed at Duo. Now, that would have stung but Duo could have cared less. No, he was curious as to what this stranger would do next.

"Actually, yeah," Solo countered. "He hasn't made a false promise to me yet. Now, leave me and him alone. I need to talk with the teacher about something so run along and do whatever it is that you do when you're not bugging me."

Dorothy hmphed and turned away, obeying Solo's request. Her entourage individually gave him the evil eye before following after their spurned mistress.

Duo could do nothing more than stare at Solo.

All he could think was: did that really just happened?

(1) Take a wild guess where I got this tidbit. I'll give you a hint: it's one of old ShadowMajin's fics, and the guy's only got two of them. Take this as a tribute, SM.