Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing

Warning: slight language, slight shounen ai, angst

Curiosity Killed the Blond

Duo grumbled to himself in annoyance, pissed off that he had to go to the main office because of something he hadn't, or at least sure he hadn't, done.

After being directed to one of the offices by the receptionist, he found out that the reason he was here was not because he had done anything.

The presence of the old man waiting for him was proof positive of that.

"Howard!" he greeted.

"How you holding up?" the old man greeted back as he wrapped the teen in a bear hug.

Duo only knew the man by that one name, Howard. He had been one of his mother's close friends. Out of all things, the guy was a lawyer and had been the person who had argued his mother's case when his father had contested her claims. It was through him and him alone that he had managed to get the current arrangement established by the courts.

"Eh, same old, same old," the braided one answered. "So what brings you here?"

"I wish I could say I was here just to check up on you," the old man answered, his voice growing more melancholy as he spoke. "I just got out of court. Your father's still at it and this time he managed to get the amount of child support he had to pay cut."

This really put a damper on his mood. This was just the icing on cake that was his day. First Wufei, now this? And it had started out better than most days…

"What can we do?" he asked anxiously.

"At this point, we can only wait," Howard answered glumly. "Your father's going to do whatever it takes to be rid of you. Best be careful. He might try and physically get rid of you."

"I understand," Duo sighed, "but it's not as if he could get away with it. He's the only guy who would be suspect in it. He'd be digging his own grave."

"That aside, we're going to have to find you another place to live," Howard stated. "The new amount of support will not be enough to let you stay at your current apartment unless you start buying less food. How about you move back with one of your mother's friends and start saving up all the money you can until you graduate? We both know the moment that happens, all payments stop."

"Yeah, I hear he's trying to move the date of graduation up so that it's sooner than later," Duo told him. "Most people don't know about that bit yet. The only reason why I know is that it's the fact that my father's involved. Why the hell is he doing this Howard? Why does he hate me so much?"

"I can't answer that for you kiddo," Howard said, patting the braided one on his shoulder. "I don't know how his mind works and the only comfort I can get out of this is that he will have to pay the piper, whether in this life or the next."

"That's a big comfort," he grumbled. Looking up at the elder man, he asked, "You think you can lend enough money for two months' rent? I think I'll be able to find a good place in that amount of time. I'll make sure I pay you back the money."

"Of course Duo," Howard told him. "But why not move in with me?"

"I don't want to be a bother or take advantage of your kindness," he answered. "You've done so much for me already and I don't know how I'll be able to pay you back, any of you back."

"You know that I don't want you to pay me back," Howard said kindly, "but if you feel that you absolutely have to do that, then make something of yourself and show your father up. That would be repayment enough."

"Even after all these years, I don't think I'll ever understand you Howie," Duo replied but gave the old man a smile.

"Well, I wouldn't be me if you did," Howard countered as he embraced the braided one in another bear hug. "You take care of yourself Duo. I'll try to see if there is something we can do about this."

---

When Quatre saw Duo in Noin's history class, he knew something was wrong. Duo seemed…down, not like his usual self. Whatever he had been called for back at the office must not have been good.

He made a mental note to himself to investigate the matter and not let Duo try and hide it away. His friend's life was hard enough as it was. He had to vent his frustration out in a way that didn't require him doing it physically.

At least it seemed Ms. Noin was back to her usual self. There was no menstrual period to worry about though she still happily gave out homework at the end of the class. After this, there was one last class to go to and he was already planning his ambush on his braided friend.

The tactic he would use was despicable but he needed to know what was on his friend's mind.

So, the moment the final bell rang, he was tracking down his best friend like a fiend possessed. Thanks to his cousin having the exact same schedule, he just needed to mind his cousin since Solo seemed to be stalking the braided one up close and personal. From what he had seen in History, Solo, despite trying to hide it, seemed a bit concerned about Duo. Perhaps they could double team and make Duo spill the beans.

Luck was with him today since Duo was waiting by the school gates, Solo only a few feet away, keeping a lookout for him. He didn't seem to be in the usual patient mood since he seemed a bit…annoyed by Solo's proximity. Well tough luck, he was going to have to endure it a little longer…

"Duo!" he called out and jogged the rest of the way to his friend. "Ya want to go get a snack or something?"

"I don't know," Duo answered warily, wondering if this was a trap.

"It's my treat!" he continued, hoping to hook the braided one.

That seemed to do the trick since Duo's eye twinkled. "Why pass up free food?" Duo commented as he bowed mockingly to him. "Lead on Great Blond One."

"Where's your boyfriend?" Solo asked, looking for the unibanged teen.

"Had a dentist appointment," he answered. "Left during the last period so it's just us, that is if you want to come Solo."

"Got nothing else better to do," Solo shrugged.

Some time later found the three teens at an ice cream parlor. If there was one thing that Duo worshipped, it was sundaes. Since he could afford it, Quatre let him get it while he treated himself to a vanilla cone and Solo ordered a chocolate one.

"Have I ever told you I love you Quat?" Duo always said that whenever he bought him a sundae. It was only proper for him to answer.

"All the time," he said, smiling indulgently as the braided one dived into his cold treat. That seemed to have cured Duo's odd mood but that still didn't mean he wasn't going to ask about it.

"So what did the office want?" he asked tactfully.

Instantly, Duo stopped eating. Now since this was a sundae he was eating, Quatre knew that it was something important. However, Duo's face hardened and he went back to eating, pretending to ignore the question.

Quatre met Solo eye for eye. Now, Solo had never seen Duo act this way before, but Quatre had. There was only one thing that caused Duo to act like this. It had something to do with his father. Duo had nothing nice to say about the man, not even when they first met. From what he had heard from Duo, he wanted nothing more than to cause the asshole as much pain as he could for putting his friend though so much. However, Duo never said anything about his mother, so he was kinda in a neutral area with her.

"You want to talk about it?" he pressed.

"No, I don't," Duo stated emotionlessly.

Quatre couldn't help but wince at that tone. "Are you sure you're okay?" he continued.

"Can't we talk about something else?" Duo snapped.

"We're just curious," Solo butted in. "I'm not gonna let it go until you tell me what's up."

"It doesn't involve you," Duo stated, his voice growing harsh.

"But aren't we amigos?" Solo asked teasingly.

"Don't press your luck," Duo said. "Remember what happened the last time you pissed me off? Just because we're here, surrounded by people, doesn't mean I won't kick your ass, Tree Trunk, so back off."

"We're just worried about you," Quatre pressed.

Without warning, Duo slammed his hands on the table and stood up. "Piss off," he snarled at both of them before shoving his way out of the ice cream parlor.

Quatre could only stare in shock at what had just happened. Never in all the time he had known Duo had the braided one ever erupt at him like that. He was stuck in a daze. However, the movement of Solo getting up broke him out of it.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Going after him," Solo answered. "Go back home. I'll take care of this."

With that, Quatre was left alone with two melting ice creams and an unfinished sundae.

---

Solo had to admit, for such a small guy, Duo could really move fast when he wanted to. In fact, the only part of Duo that he could follow was the long braid that slithered behind the teen.

However, chasing after Duo was not made easy due to the fact that it seemed the entire city was out and about on the sidewalks. Still, Solo used his height to his advantage as much as possible. He would wait until Duo became stationary before confronting him.

Besides, at least this way he would get to see where his braided acquaintance lived. Sure he hadn't known the teen long but from all that he had heard from him, it made him want to know more. He wanted to learn the answers to the mystery that was Duo Maxwell, his cousin's best friend. From what he knew, not even Quatre knew everything about him and they were close!

As he progressed, he noticed that they were leaving the more wealthy parts of the city, heading towards the more poorer parts. His eyes narrowed at that. Was Duo poor?

However, Duo didn't keep going into the heart of poverty. Instead, he turned a corner, sticking close to the middle class section of the city. He had to hurry before he lost sight of Duo and since there were less people about, he could move faster.

He had just turned the corner when he saw Duo on the other side of the street, heading into an apartment complex. Fortunately for Solo, the entrances to each apartment weren't internal. The doors to each one were on the outside and he was able to see which one Duo entered. Huh, up the stairs and the seventh door down… Kind of stuck out a bit since quite a few of the doors had some sort of decoration while Duo's had none.

Taking in a deep breath to compose himself, he made his way up the paint-peeling stairs and down the railed walkway to Duo's door. Letting himself fall into a casual posture that made it seem he had been there all along, he raised a hand and knocked on the door.

Lowering his hand, he waited patiently, knowing full well that the braided one had to have heard the knock. He was soon rewarded by the sound of a lock being slid open and the door being pulled back.

The expression of surprise on Duo's face was priceless. Solo would definitely remember that look.

"What the—how the Hell—how did you find this place!" Duo demanded, flabbergasted.

Taking advantage of the surprise, Solo pushed himself pass the shocked braided one and took a look around the abode. There wasn't much to say about it, really. There was only a couch and a chair in what could be called a "living room," a small table next to a small kitchen and a hallway that most likely led to a bedroom. However, he wasn't going to go on an expedition of this place; he could save that for another time. Instead, he plopped down onto the couch, noticing the lack of quality it had. Still, beggars couldn't be choosers so he stretched out and laid back onto the piece of furniture, making himself at home.

He had to admit, from this angle, Duo looked really cute with that pissed off expression.

"What do you think you're doing?" Duo growled.

"Thought I'd visit and hang out with one of my friends," Solo answered smoothly.

"Well, I don't like my friends visiting me here and if you wanted to hang out, we could have done that somewhere else," Duo snapped.

"But I wanted to see where you lived," Solo whined, knowing how it made him look.

Duo raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you're a teenager? Well, you've seen where I live; now get the hell out of here."

"Don't wanna, too comfy," Solo replied as he snuggled back into the couch. Hey, this thing was more comfortable than it looked!

"Don't make me have to get rid of you by force," Duo threatened as he towered over the blond teen.

That's when Solo shot his arm out and pulled the smaller teen so that he fell onto him, surprise evident on his face. Wrapping an arm around the braided teen, Solo said, "Join me then."

Duo blushed as he found himself sprawled on top on the larger teen, his head resting on the blond's strong chest. He could hear Solo's heartbeat from where his head rested and Solo's stronger arm was holding him close. He had to admit, it wasn't too bad being in this position. He felt he could relax and fall asleep right here and now…

"Want to tell me what set you off earlier?" Solo asked. The blond felt Duo tense at the question and he tightened his hold on the braided one to ensure that he wouldn't escape him.

"First of all, that's private and second, it's none of your business," Duo answered stiffly.

"It is my business when you tell my cousin to piss off," Solo replied dryly. "Also, you've saying a lot of things that don't make sense to me and I want to find out exactly what they are so spill."

"Curiosity killed the cat," Duo retorted. "Or in this case, the blonde."

"I ain't a girl; I have all the right equipment to prove it."

"Would you like to become one?"

"Not interested."

"Then let go of me and get out!" Duo growled.

"Ain't happening," Solo replied and tightened his hold.

It seemed that took all the fight out of Duo. The tenseness that had been in the smaller body just vanished, leaving a boneless body that just rested on the larger one.

"What's it going to take to get you to leave this alone and go?" Duo mumbled.

"Tell me what's happening," Solo answered firmly though concerned about the sudden change in attitude. Just a second ago, the guy was on fire, now it was as if he had nothing. He didn't know him that well and he didn't think that this was how it was usually with the smaller teen but he was determined to get to the bottom of it.

Duo buried his face into his chest though, a thing the blond hadn't expected and he began to wonder if he wasn't being too pushy about the subject.

"I'll tell you a little bit," Duo's muffled voice compromised. "Is that okay?"

Looking down at the braided one, Solo decided to let Duo off easy. It seemed this thing was taking a lot out of him and for some reason, he didn't want to push the guy over the edge.

This was something that was completely unlike him.

"It's okay," he agreed. "Start when you're ready."