Tada! hehe. so here ya go. and yes, this is the end. i'm getting close to finishing a really angsty fic tho, so that one should be up this weekend. heehee that one's way better than this one too :D

-- Epilogue --

"Heero… Heero wake up…"

Dazed cobalt eyes opened, blinking away the blurriness left from yet another torturous nightmare. Someone was shaking his shoulder, bringing him back into the waking world.

"Duo…" Heero heard himself whisper, trying to see through the haze.

It took several moments for his vision to clear, but once it did, he saw that it was Trowa leaning over him. That meant that the two pilots had been rescued… but Duo…

"How do you feel?" asked Trowa, turning to adjust something that appeared to be an IV drip.

Ignoring the question, Heero tried to push himself up on the bed. "Is Duo… alright?" he ground out, wincing against the pain.

Trowa gently pushed the Wing pilot back down, "Look for yourself," he said simply, nodding to Heero's right.

Letting his head fall to the side, he saw Duo lying next to him on the other side of their bed. He had bandages wrapped around his forehead and more from his neck down. His right arm was in a sling over his chest. His breathing was very heavy, but he didn't appear to be in too much pain.

"Duo…" Heero whispered again, reaching out to put his hand on his violet-eyed lover's cheek. The other did not stir at the gentle touch.

"It's been a day and a half since we rescued you," said Trowa, not really sounding as if he was paying attention. The Heavyarms pilot walked around the foot of the bed to check on Duo. He checked the IV that led to Duo's arm and then took his pulse.

Heero couldn't look away from Duo's pale face. He wanted nothing more than to see those beautiful violet eyes open and stare back at him.

Another day passed as Heero drifted in and out of consciousness. He hardly moved, keeping his hand wrapped in Duo's still-dirty braid.

Not long after night had fallen, just as Heero was regaining consciousness after yet another few hours of fitful, restless sleep; Duo's dulled eyes slid open.

Those violet orbs stared up blankly, not really seeing for many moments. His mind was blank, still somewhat lost to unconsciousness. He didn't even register that he had been rescued, that he was no longer in OZ's evil clutches.

"Duo…?" Heero asked a moment later, seeing that his lover had finally awakened. He couldn't hide the soft smile that graced his lips.

Duo blinked, turning his head to gaze at his lover. "Heero…" and the memories flooded back into his mind.

"Heero…! Where—? Did you rescue me? Wha…?" Duo asked in a rush, adrenaline briefly letting him be oblivious to his current state.

Heero suppressed a laugh, knowing his body would protest against it. He simply grinned at Duo, eyes expressing love and relief. "Yeah. We're both in bad shape right now, though… but we're safe."

"Thank god…" Duo sighed, weakness and pain catching up to him again.

"…Did you… blow that base…?" Duo asked a few moments later.

Heero let his hand go to Duo's, grasping it gently, "You did… if putting the detonator in your hand still counts…"

They both smiled. "Thanks Heero… cuz I really wanted to blow… that place to hell."

Heero nodded, gently squeezing the other's hand. "I'm just glad we both made it out of there alive…"

"Heh," Duo chuckled painfully, still himself even after everything that had happened and how his body felt, "You must've been so worried…"

"Yeah… I was… Please be more careful next time, okay Duo?" Heero asked, voice having returned to a serious tone.

"I will… love you lots, Heero," smiled Duo, managing to lift the mood again.

"I love you too, Duo. Now get some rest… we're Gundam pilots, we can't afford to be down for long…" ordered Heero, still keeping his tone lighthearted.

"Yes, mom…" joked Duo, closing his eyes. Heero did the same, still smiling at his lover.

Owari.

the end! so what did you think? please review... if you feel so inclined XD oh, and thanks so much for all those story alerts, guys! i never get those on my fics... XD

well, i'm off. but i will be back... eventually... *slinks away into the darkness of her cave*