'And all I can taste is this moment,

And all I can breath is your life,

And sooner or later it's over,

I just don't want to miss you tonight.'

Iris, Goo-Goo Dolls

Chapter Six:

Without Her?

Duo watched Cara dress. Pulling on undergarments first, a pair of short shorts next, and lastly a sung T-shirt. She slipped her feet into thong sandals. Her hair was still down, a glorious mass of messy, tousled curls. The dawn sun, peaking in through the slitted curtains, played on the highlights and colors of her pale gold hair, and cast shadows in her aqua eyes. She was beautiful. And for the moment, at least, she was his.

She smiled, looking over at him. He was still in bed, the sheets piled around his waist. He was propped up on one elbow, just staring at her.

"See something you like?" She asked. He narrowed his indigo-violet eyes at her.

"Only you," he replied truthfully. Ever since she'd came here, it was true. He was blinded by her light. She was all he could see. And he most definitely liked it- a lot.

Her smile brightened, and she came back over to the bed, leaning down to indulge him with one long, sweet kiss. He lifted his hand to her cheek, slipping it into her soft, luxurious hair. He moved, made to deepen the kiss, but she pulled back with a smile.

"No," she said. "It's too late in the morning for that. I'm meeting Dorothy for breakfast in a few minutes anyway."

"Aww," he pouted, sending her a wounded look.

She laughed, pulling away. She went to the door, but before she left, she looked over her shoulder at him. He knew the sight he must make.

His dark, indigo eyes glowing purple, his lips maybe just a little swollen from her kiss. His hair a disastrous mess from the night before. And that damn little hickey on his neck he'd noticed yesterday, now probably fading. What a sight he probably made! But whatever she saw, she must have liked because she smiled at him once more.

"Hold onto that thought, though," she said. "Breakfast shouldn't last too long."

He was still smiling when she left, closing the door behind her. Damn. How'd he fall so fast? And what did he do to deserve such a woman?

It was slow going, but over the last week, Quatre had slowly gotten used to the idea that his sister was sleeping with Duo Maxwell. There had been no apologies, or forgiving yet, but Quatre was... well, he wasn't warming to the fact, but rather grudgingly accepting it. His normal personality was showing back through, and tensions had eased quite a bit. Nothing he had said... or yelled... had forced Cara away from Duo, but had forced her away from Quatre. Duo was still amazed that Cara felt that way. She would have pushed her brother away instead of stepping away from Duo.

Any other woman, Duo would have said it was pride, revenge. Saying 'you cant make me leave him. You're not the boss of me.' But with Cara, it was much more simple. He thought that she thought her feelings for Duo were strong enough, important enough to risk her relationship with her younger brother.

Duo was quietly in awe. No one had ever felt like that about him before. That she did, well, it was new to him. Like a little miracle. He promised himself that he wouldn't botch this. He wouldn't mess this relationship up.

And when he woke up in the mornings, she was there beside him, snuggled close. In less than two weeks, she'd become like his best friend. He suddenly couldn't imagine what life would be like when she left. She'd given him meaning to his life again. All the others had something to do. Sure, only Heero- the least likely one- had stuck with the Preventers. Everyone else had given it up before even a year was up- Trowa had actually only made it four months.

Duo hadn't lasted four weeks. There seemed to be nothing he was good enough at to get by with in this new peaceful world. Death had been all he knew. But Cara made him feel worthwhile, even if he was just deadweight these days. Even if she wasn't going to be here forever. Duo closed his eyes, not wanting to get up until Cara returned, and drifted back to sleep with that one little thought nagging at the back of his mind.

What was he going to do when she left?