Author's Note: I would like all who read this to check out my profile and vote in a poll that I have recently begun. There is a time limit, June 30, so please, I would love to know what y'all think. By the way, this fic has really been sapping all my creative juices and I feel like I need a bit of a break. This does not mean I will not be updating, just expect them less frequent and about once a week, guaranteed or your money back. To those that know me, I am literally chapters ahead so if writer's block pops up, there will still be updates. Without further ado, enjoy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing

Warning: language, shounen ai

Saved by the Patriarch

Despite the excited fervor of the day, school passed uneventfully. Not even the rally held at the end of the day had been particularly exciting, at least it wasn't in Duo's opinion.

Having his fill of over-pumped jocks, geeky band kids, and chirpy cheerleaders who just didn't know when to shut up, Duo was more than glad when he entered the Winner mansion that afternoon. Tiredly, he let himself slumped down on the nearest couch, his head flopped lifelessly on the furniture's support. He didn't know what made him feel so exhausted but he suspected it had to do with the fact that an innumerable amount of girls had approached and asked/begged/pleaded with Solo to go with them to the Homecoming Dance. In his typical fashion, Solo refused every one of them.

When asked if he was even going, he had answered that yes, he was. When demanded to explain why he wouldn't say yes to any of them, he answered dangerously that he already had a date. After that, Duo had been real tense since almost the entire female population was on the lookout for Solo's date, all foaming at the mouth and ready to tear the unlucky girl to shreds.

If they only knew…

At least Duo managed to score a small victory of sorts. No football games tonight. He wouldn't be welcomed there anyway. So that meant a nice dinner at the mansion tonight then straight to the dance. Now he was actually dreading it. He was going to look ridiculous with that bowtie! What was going through Solo's head at that time anyway?

Quatre seemed pretty hyped about tonight though. It was probably because that meant that Trowa would be staying over and if last weekend was a sign of anything, a repeat performance could be expected. Of course, that all depended whether or not Trowa got injured during the game, something that Quatre was going to attend. That meant nothing to Duo except that dinner would be served early since Mr. Winner wanted to have one last meal with his son before he closeted himself for the weekend.

Speaking of the weekend, what was he going to do? He knew that he would be stuck with Solo during that time so the question became, what was Solo planning to do over the weekend? From the looks he had been getting from the guy all day, Duo was very wary of what lay in his near future.

Speaking of the devil, he felt the couch cushion next to him shift as a weight sat down on it. Immediately after, he felt an arm pull him up against an all-too-familiar body that had an exorbitant amount of heat radiating from it.

"What's on your mind, Short Stuff?" Solo greeted. "Excited about the Big Night?"

"I'm a little nervous, yeah," he answered truthfully, not seeing a reason why not to converse. "I've never been to one of these things before."

"All you got to do is stay close to me and I won't let anything happen to you," Solo told him.

"That's very nice of you," Duo remarked.

"Hey, I have to look out for my significant other," Solo spouted. "What kind of guy would I be if I didn't look out for ya?"

"I'm just not used to all this," Duo explained.

"I thought you had other relationships," Solo pointed out.

"Yeah, but none of them were like you," Duo replied. "I honestly don't know what to expect anymore."

"Then don't expect anything," Solo quipped. "That way, you'll never be disappointed."

"Point," Duo acknowledged. "But just because you're gonna be there doesn't mean I'm going to be wearing that ridiculous bowtie, alright?"

"I thought we already discussed this," Solo said.

"Hey, you can't blame a guy for trying," Duo defended.

Squeezing him good-naturedly, Solo chuckled, "I will give you that."

"So what are we going to do afterwards?" Duo asked, curiosity finally driving him to enter into this field.

Solo's smile became an ominous grin. "You'll find out, Short Stuff. Later, but not now. Trust me, you're gonna love it."

"That's the one thing I hate about surprises," Duo sighed. "You have to wait for them. Why can't I know now?"

"Then it wouldn't be a surprise," Solo replied, his hand sneaking into his chestnut hair and ruffling it.

"Can't you just give me a hint?" Duo whined.

"Nope," Solo said cheerfully. "Like everybody else, you're going to have to wait for it but trust me, it'll be worth it."

"You are so mean," Duo grumbled but nonetheless let himself melt into the human furnace.

--

Since it was still early and all, dinner wasn't a grand affair when it was expected of them to snack around for the rest of the night. Still, as always, the food was good so Duo had no complaint whatsoever about it.

It was soon after that Quatre disappeared but Duo wasn't worried. He had a good idea where his friend was and the only regret he had was that he didn't time how long it took for Quatre to leave after dinner.

He would've bet anything that the blond was out there in less than five minutes.

Taking a glance at the nearest clock, Duo sighed. That game ought to have begun by now and be going on strong. So what…they had an hour or two before they headed out or something like that? He was getting really nervous now.

In order to pass the time somewhat, he began to fiddle with the end of his braid while staring off into space, doing anything to keep his mind off of the impending evening.

"Are you going to just lie there or are you going to get ready?" a voice from above demanded.

Glancing up, Duo froze at the half naked Solo who only wore a towel around his waist and was using another to dry his hair. Wait…when did Solo get into the shower anyway? Probably when he wasn't looking no doubt. Still, he wasn't going to argue with the guy and he thought that maybe taking a shower himself would calm him down and take his mind off of the dance.

A few minutes later found him under that fantastic shower head and placed under its pleasurable spell. If it wasn't for the age-old problem of wasting away all the hot water in the house, Duo knew he could've stayed in that shower for the rest of the day and night. If he only could…still, he would have to contend wit himself as he massaged his scalp with shampoo and conditioner.

After soaping up and washing all the grime from the day away, he dried himself off with a towel, squeezing the excess water from his hair before leaving the shower itself, and returned to his bedroom. Sitting on his bed, in nothing but the towel he had last seen him in, was Solo, a hair brush in hand.

Solo patted the spot next to him, saying, "Come on over here and let me do that for ya."

Eyeing the hair brush contemplatively, Duo gave no argument as he did as Solo instructed him and had that brush combing his hair once more and feeling the light pleasurable sensations from it once again. He was pulled out of that euphoria, however, at the sudden sound of a hairdryer blowing hot air and the feeling of it on the top of his head.

"What are you…?" Duo trailed off, turning his head slightly to try and get a look at the blond.

"Gotta get your hair dry," Solo answered immediately. "Can't have you walking around with wet hair; you'd catch a cold."

"And when did you suddenly start caring for my health?" Duo inquired, more out of curiosity than anything.

"The moment I found you in that restroom," Solo replied. "Now that we're an item, why shouldn't I be more worried about you?"

"Makes sense," Duo commented. "But…could you do a bit more brushing and a little less blow-drying?"

"I can try," Solo drawled as he turned the appliance off and resumed brushing. "I'm going to have to use it again, you know."

"Yeah, yeah," Duo waved off. "We don't have to be going anywhere anytime soon, right?"

Shooting a glance at the nearest clock, Solo nonverbally agreed. They still had plenty of time to get ready. But still, he'd give them an hour until they left. Hey, they had to leave sometime, didn't they? However, Duo's hair was quite soft and very inviting. From what he could see from Duo's body, it just screamed "Take me damn it!" to his perverted view of the world.

Don't think he didn't consider it either.

Still, he barely managed to reign in his hormones and focus his attention on only combing the long chestnut hair, even though most resistance had already been dealt with already. Besides, even though they still had time, there wasn't enough to actually get some fun out of it. So periodically, he would take the hairdryer back up and blow dry the damp hair some more, put it away and continue to brush.

Before he knew it, twenty minutes had passed and, even though he didn't want to do so, he had to stop and tell the smaller teen to get dressed. Duo grumbled his irritation at that but did nothing to resist as he spotted his attire for that evening already set up the bed, just waiting for him to come over and wear them. Much more to his annoyance, that bowtie was among the apparel.

It went without saying that Duo got dressed but he avoided that Godforsaken bowtie until it was the last thing he had to put on. He had even put his shoes on and braided his hair too. It was a little bit later that Solo reappeared in his room, dressed up as well and amused at seeing Duo debate over the bowtie once more. Shaking his head, knowing that the only way to get somewhere was to take charge, he scooped the bowtie up and neatly put it on the disgruntled braided one.

Leading Duo by the hand, the blond blocked out the teen's grumblings as he headed down towards the first floor, their ride just waiting beyond the front doors. It was getting about that time but they could still wait just a little bit more.

And then, of all the times, his uncle decided to make an appearance, observing their attire for the evening. Feeling his uncle's eyes pass over him in approval, he waited for the consent of Duo's before making any move to leave.

However, Mr. Winner's eyes frowned upon catching sight of the bowtie.

Much to Duo's surprise, Mr. Winner declared, "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen. Take that thing off lad; I'll lend you one of my ties for the night."

Having not anticipated this, Solo's eyes bulged out in shock, his mind still reeling as his brain sought to process what had just happened.

Also surprised by this unexpected ally, Duo caught a wink shot towards him and he returned it with a grateful smile. Since Solo still seemed caught in his stupor, Duo managed to pry his hand out of the blond's grip and followed after Mr. Winner. Thank God he wouldn't have to wear this God-awful bowtie anymore. Somebody up there must really like him or something.

Receiving the promised necktie, he heard Mr. Winner comment, "I could tell that you weren't comfortable with that thing on. I honestly have no idea what was running through my nephew's head when he bought it."

"I can't tell you how much I appreciate this," Duo told him. "I thought I was going to have to actually go with that thing on. I owe you one man."

"Think nothing of it," Mr. Winner replied. "Just give it to me just in case Solomon tries to make you put it back on once you leave."

"Smart idea," Duo said as he handed the article of clothing to the older man.

Returning back to Solo, who hadn't moved an inch from where he stood, the blond scowl slightly when his eyes caught sight of his beloved bowtie in the hands of his uncle. Damn it, there went his plans!

"Ready to go?" Duo chirped.

Solo stared down at the braided one and raised an eyebrow. "Where'd that come from?" he asked. "Just a little while ago, you didn't want to leave the house."

"Yeah, well, things change," Duo quipped, his smaller hand resuming its former position in the blond's larger hand. "So, are you ready or not?"

Casting one last sorrowful glance at the bowtie, Solo said, "Yeah, yeah, let's go Short Stuff."

Chuckling from Mr. Winner caught them both off guard as they turned to look at the Winner patriarch. Getting a hold of himself, he said, "You two have fun, you hear? Also, ask Quatre what his plans are for the night, okay? I'd like to know if we should cook for him or not."

Shrugging, Solo replied, "Sure thing. See ya later."

Pulling Duo out behind him, he led the braided one over to his car, determined not to let this little setback spoil his evening. He may have lost this battle but he hadn't lost the war yet.

--

Seeing the school with a different perspective, along with seeing it at a different time of the day, was something Duo hadn't experienced before and to be honest, he didn't think he could handle it. This was a school dance for crying out loud! The first one he had ever attended to be precise. To say he was nervous was an understatement.

As if sensing his distress, Solo spoke up, "Everything's going to be all right. I'll take care of ya, no problem, okay?"

"Okay," Duo answered though it didn't quell his anxiety as much as he had hoped. All he had to do was stick next to Solo and everything would be fine, right? Yeah, that's right. He could do this.

As Solo pulled up into the school parking lot and parked, Duo took a look and, immediately, he knew this: Like hell I can do this!

"We're here!" Solo chirped as he pulled the key out of the ignition.

At least one of them was in a good mood. Hopefully it would be enough for the both of them.

"Hey, Short Stuff, you coming out?" Solo called to him, already out of the car but peering though the open door at the braided one.

Jerking out of his reverie, Duo stuttered, "Y-yeah, I-I'll be right o-o-out."

Without resisting, Solo chuckled as he shut his car door and walked around to the passenger's side. Opening it, he reached in and unbuckled Duo's seatbelt and pulled his date out. If anything, Duo seemed to shrink a bit more at the enormity of what was about to happen and he pressed himself up against the blond's side.

Slamming the car door shut and locking it, Solo took Duo's hand, which the braided one clung to like a lifeline, and led him towards the gymnasium.