Hi! I'm back! I also have a wonderful new beta, Dragen Eyes. Whatever mistakes may be left are still mine, however, and I'll apologize for all the ones I've had, and the ones I'll still have.
Beta Reader: HI!!! *goes back to work making corrections about ... nothing*
*Warning* - There is serious cursing, some angst, and practically nothing else, actually. Don't be so surprised! There'll be plenty to make up for it in later chapters, I promise! We're finally going to get into the action stuff! Oh, and there's some French. It means `one for you and one for you!' There you go!
Disclaimer - These people are not mine except for Miss Paisley, and she's actually owned by Ai, my sap muse. *sigh*
Only You
Chapter 10
Duo gulped. It was the Glare 2000, back and better than ever. He smiled weakly. "Uhh ... hi?"
Heero growled. "I said, what the fuck are you doing here?"
"Right now, I'm standing outside where everybody can see me, waiting for a guy with blue eyes and brown hair to let me the hell into the cabin before I get caught." Duo waggled his eyebrows. "Sooo ..."
Heero snorted in disgust and moved aside. Duo accepted the action as an invitation and stepped inside before he could change his mind.
A blonde head turned towards him and smiled warmly. "Duo!" It was Miss Paisley. "I was wondering if you'd be coming!"
Duo shot Heero a glance, but Heero was too busy looking pissed to realize he wanted to know why she still thought of him as an agent. He shrugged and smiled at her. "I was delayed." He waved his arm as a silent explanation, not explaining any more. He let her draw her own conclusions.
Her brow puckered in a frown, her lips following suit. "Are you alright? I'm not certain it's very safe ..."
He shrugged and laughed. "That never stopped me before!" He caught the deadly LOOK sent in his direction, but chose to ignore it. He looked around the tiny room. It looked cozy, if nothing else. There were two lounge chairs and a fireplace that was running as he watched, the flames licking at the wood as it burned brightly, lighting the dark room as the dawn crept inside.
"Homey," he remarked, plopping down in the closest chair, near to where Miss Paisley sat in the other one. He smirked at Heero. As long as Miss Paisley stayed in the room, he wouldn't have to hear the riot act. Maybe he should glue himself to her ... no, too awkward when they needed a bathroom break.
He heard footsteps coming and braced himself for the next explosion.
He wasn't disappointed. "Maxwell?! What in hell are you doing here?!"
He grinned defiantly at Wufei, who had come in juggling three cups of coffee. "You just couldn't keep me away, Wufie," he told his old ally. "I'm like a weed. You just can't get rid of me." He stood up and took two of the cups from his hands, knowing that Wufei could hardly juggle as good as him. Even with one hand, he could carry a couple. He turned to Heero and grinned broadly, seeing the glare still trapped on the man's face. "Un pour vous," he grinned, then turned to Miss Paisley, "et un pour vous!" She giggled, and he considered his job done. He leaned against the wall, letting Wufei take the chair.
"And how many times have I told you not to call me that, Maxwell," Wufei growled, glaring at him.
Duo sighed. He was getting reamed on both sides, even without them yelling at him. He couldn't win. "Many a time, Wufie my man, but that don't mean I'm gonna stop!" he drawled, choosing to let his street lingo slip through. It sometimes slipped out, especially after he took strolls down memory lane.
"Maxwell ..." It was a warning.
"Yup?"
Miss Paisley broke the growing tension easily. "I take it you aren't supposed to be here?"
And added more to it.
Shit. "Nope. I'm not supposed to go anywhere with this arm of mine." He looked at Heero then, trying to convey his need to be near. "But I couldn't just leave you here with these two. I've gone mad with that torture before." He grinned reassuringly at her, and she smiled at him gratefully. "They're always so ... silent and businesslike. It's disgusting."
"They are awful ... quiet." She looked at them apologetically.
"Quiet? Hah! They hardly speak! It's like they're robots!" He laughed sardonically.
"Maxwell ..."
"Duo ..."
He winced. Oh, shit. "See? One won't even say my first name ..."
"At least I speak it correctly!" Wufei fumed. Duo watched him in amazement. He hadn't said -
"Such injustice!"
Never mind.
Duo watched Heero instead. The Japanese Preventor was tense, ready to burst. "Hey, Wufei, why don't you take Miss Paisley upstairs or something? Heero and I need to ... talk. Could you do that for me?"
Wufei looked between them and nodded quickly. "Madam?"
"Oh! Of course!" The two placed down their cooling cups and stood, leaving the room quickly. It wouldn't do much if a scream fest came, but at least they weren't trapped in the middle of it. He watched them, knowing he'd just dug his own grave.
"What the fuck are you doing here? I will *not* ask again." Heero's voice was cold and low. He was pissed beyond reason.
"Heero, I made sure I wasn't followed. You know me better than that. I'd never bring the enemy in with me." He was babbling, but he couldn't quite make himself stop. "I just needed to be here. All I was doing was sitting at home staring at the phone and praying I'd get a phone call from you, saying that everything was okay. I couldn't take the waiting, the not knowing. It was horrible. I had to know you were okay. I-" He blushed. "I wanted to be here near you, to try to help, even if I couldn't help much. I'm not completely useless; I'll bet I've bonded with that woman in these few minutes more than you two did over this whole time you've been with her. And I could-"
"Were you even thinking about your *condition* when you rashly decided to come here?"
Duo ignored the warning growl that told him it'd be best to shut up. "Of course I did, Yuy, I'm not that fucking stupid. I know that I'm definitely not one-hundred percent, but I had to come here. I just had to."
"I could kill you for this."
"Yeah, but now it would be illegal. And I don't think that that's something poor Miss Paisley needs to see right now. Help me out, Heero. I know you aren't thrilled with the prospect of being cooped up with me like in the war, but I promise I'll stay out of your hair. I won't even leave my room if-"
"There are no more rooms."
Well. That posed a problem. "I'll bunk with Miss-"
"There are two rooms. Wufei is with Miss Paisley. I'm alone."
Well. That posed a huge fucking problem, didn't it? "So, I'll sleep down here."
"On the floor? In your condition? You'd fuck yourself up worse."
"I could sleep in the chair," he pointed out.
"Out of the option." Heero looked at him for a long moment, then his glare softened a bit. "What made you think I couldn't handle myself?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. But I just ..." He found himself digging his ass deeper and just shut the hell up. "I was ..." He had been worried. It seemed fairly stupid now, but he knew he'd be worrying himself sick if he were still cooped up at home. Because he was falling all over again. Hard and fast. And he just had to with him. For as long as he could. Before Heero could leave him like he'd tucked tail and run before.
"Finish your sentences, or you're leaving, and you can find someplace comfortable on the streets."
Duo perked up cheerfully. "I can do that, too!"
Heero looked at him in horror. "No!" He then caught what Duo'd tricked him into and glared at him again. "Fine. You can stay." His nostrils flared. "But if you do anything to-"
"I'm not gonna fuck up the mission, Yuy," Duo said in agitation. "Duh."
Heero studied him for long moments before walking off silently. Duo watched him, feeling upset that Heero believed him foolhardy enough to do such a thing, and that he hadn't been worried about HIM. But there was a good thing that came of it. He was allowed to stay.
Score!
*
A/N: A poor ending, but I've run out of time tonight. I need to get ready for school tomorrow. *sigh* Yes, I'm still in school. *sighs again* Review? Please?
*hugs Dragen Eyes* She's such a great beta! Every one bow before her! ^_^;; Anyway ... Yeah. *points to the last two sentences in above paragraph* Do as it says. You know you want to! ::sweatdrops::
Beta Reader: HI!!! *goes back to work making corrections about ... nothing*
*Warning* - There is serious cursing, some angst, and practically nothing else, actually. Don't be so surprised! There'll be plenty to make up for it in later chapters, I promise! We're finally going to get into the action stuff! Oh, and there's some French. It means `one for you and one for you!' There you go!
Disclaimer - These people are not mine except for Miss Paisley, and she's actually owned by Ai, my sap muse. *sigh*
Only You
Chapter 10
Duo gulped. It was the Glare 2000, back and better than ever. He smiled weakly. "Uhh ... hi?"
Heero growled. "I said, what the fuck are you doing here?"
"Right now, I'm standing outside where everybody can see me, waiting for a guy with blue eyes and brown hair to let me the hell into the cabin before I get caught." Duo waggled his eyebrows. "Sooo ..."
Heero snorted in disgust and moved aside. Duo accepted the action as an invitation and stepped inside before he could change his mind.
A blonde head turned towards him and smiled warmly. "Duo!" It was Miss Paisley. "I was wondering if you'd be coming!"
Duo shot Heero a glance, but Heero was too busy looking pissed to realize he wanted to know why she still thought of him as an agent. He shrugged and smiled at her. "I was delayed." He waved his arm as a silent explanation, not explaining any more. He let her draw her own conclusions.
Her brow puckered in a frown, her lips following suit. "Are you alright? I'm not certain it's very safe ..."
He shrugged and laughed. "That never stopped me before!" He caught the deadly LOOK sent in his direction, but chose to ignore it. He looked around the tiny room. It looked cozy, if nothing else. There were two lounge chairs and a fireplace that was running as he watched, the flames licking at the wood as it burned brightly, lighting the dark room as the dawn crept inside.
"Homey," he remarked, plopping down in the closest chair, near to where Miss Paisley sat in the other one. He smirked at Heero. As long as Miss Paisley stayed in the room, he wouldn't have to hear the riot act. Maybe he should glue himself to her ... no, too awkward when they needed a bathroom break.
He heard footsteps coming and braced himself for the next explosion.
He wasn't disappointed. "Maxwell?! What in hell are you doing here?!"
He grinned defiantly at Wufei, who had come in juggling three cups of coffee. "You just couldn't keep me away, Wufie," he told his old ally. "I'm like a weed. You just can't get rid of me." He stood up and took two of the cups from his hands, knowing that Wufei could hardly juggle as good as him. Even with one hand, he could carry a couple. He turned to Heero and grinned broadly, seeing the glare still trapped on the man's face. "Un pour vous," he grinned, then turned to Miss Paisley, "et un pour vous!" She giggled, and he considered his job done. He leaned against the wall, letting Wufei take the chair.
"And how many times have I told you not to call me that, Maxwell," Wufei growled, glaring at him.
Duo sighed. He was getting reamed on both sides, even without them yelling at him. He couldn't win. "Many a time, Wufie my man, but that don't mean I'm gonna stop!" he drawled, choosing to let his street lingo slip through. It sometimes slipped out, especially after he took strolls down memory lane.
"Maxwell ..." It was a warning.
"Yup?"
Miss Paisley broke the growing tension easily. "I take it you aren't supposed to be here?"
And added more to it.
Shit. "Nope. I'm not supposed to go anywhere with this arm of mine." He looked at Heero then, trying to convey his need to be near. "But I couldn't just leave you here with these two. I've gone mad with that torture before." He grinned reassuringly at her, and she smiled at him gratefully. "They're always so ... silent and businesslike. It's disgusting."
"They are awful ... quiet." She looked at them apologetically.
"Quiet? Hah! They hardly speak! It's like they're robots!" He laughed sardonically.
"Maxwell ..."
"Duo ..."
He winced. Oh, shit. "See? One won't even say my first name ..."
"At least I speak it correctly!" Wufei fumed. Duo watched him in amazement. He hadn't said -
"Such injustice!"
Never mind.
Duo watched Heero instead. The Japanese Preventor was tense, ready to burst. "Hey, Wufei, why don't you take Miss Paisley upstairs or something? Heero and I need to ... talk. Could you do that for me?"
Wufei looked between them and nodded quickly. "Madam?"
"Oh! Of course!" The two placed down their cooling cups and stood, leaving the room quickly. It wouldn't do much if a scream fest came, but at least they weren't trapped in the middle of it. He watched them, knowing he'd just dug his own grave.
"What the fuck are you doing here? I will *not* ask again." Heero's voice was cold and low. He was pissed beyond reason.
"Heero, I made sure I wasn't followed. You know me better than that. I'd never bring the enemy in with me." He was babbling, but he couldn't quite make himself stop. "I just needed to be here. All I was doing was sitting at home staring at the phone and praying I'd get a phone call from you, saying that everything was okay. I couldn't take the waiting, the not knowing. It was horrible. I had to know you were okay. I-" He blushed. "I wanted to be here near you, to try to help, even if I couldn't help much. I'm not completely useless; I'll bet I've bonded with that woman in these few minutes more than you two did over this whole time you've been with her. And I could-"
"Were you even thinking about your *condition* when you rashly decided to come here?"
Duo ignored the warning growl that told him it'd be best to shut up. "Of course I did, Yuy, I'm not that fucking stupid. I know that I'm definitely not one-hundred percent, but I had to come here. I just had to."
"I could kill you for this."
"Yeah, but now it would be illegal. And I don't think that that's something poor Miss Paisley needs to see right now. Help me out, Heero. I know you aren't thrilled with the prospect of being cooped up with me like in the war, but I promise I'll stay out of your hair. I won't even leave my room if-"
"There are no more rooms."
Well. That posed a problem. "I'll bunk with Miss-"
"There are two rooms. Wufei is with Miss Paisley. I'm alone."
Well. That posed a huge fucking problem, didn't it? "So, I'll sleep down here."
"On the floor? In your condition? You'd fuck yourself up worse."
"I could sleep in the chair," he pointed out.
"Out of the option." Heero looked at him for a long moment, then his glare softened a bit. "What made you think I couldn't handle myself?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. But I just ..." He found himself digging his ass deeper and just shut the hell up. "I was ..." He had been worried. It seemed fairly stupid now, but he knew he'd be worrying himself sick if he were still cooped up at home. Because he was falling all over again. Hard and fast. And he just had to with him. For as long as he could. Before Heero could leave him like he'd tucked tail and run before.
"Finish your sentences, or you're leaving, and you can find someplace comfortable on the streets."
Duo perked up cheerfully. "I can do that, too!"
Heero looked at him in horror. "No!" He then caught what Duo'd tricked him into and glared at him again. "Fine. You can stay." His nostrils flared. "But if you do anything to-"
"I'm not gonna fuck up the mission, Yuy," Duo said in agitation. "Duh."
Heero studied him for long moments before walking off silently. Duo watched him, feeling upset that Heero believed him foolhardy enough to do such a thing, and that he hadn't been worried about HIM. But there was a good thing that came of it. He was allowed to stay.
Score!
*
A/N: A poor ending, but I've run out of time tonight. I need to get ready for school tomorrow. *sigh* Yes, I'm still in school. *sighs again* Review? Please?
*hugs Dragen Eyes* She's such a great beta! Every one bow before her! ^_^;; Anyway ... Yeah. *points to the last two sentences in above paragraph* Do as it says. You know you want to! ::sweatdrops::