Little bit of a twist in this one.

Wufei nearly ripped off his shirt, hurling it down to the porcelain sink, seething as the fibers of the polyester uniform stuck in the honey dripping down his back. This wasn't the first time Duo had snuck honey down the collar of his uniform, but it was the first time the top of the bottle had fallen off during the pour. A river of thick, yellow liquid was now plastered to his skin.

Grabbing a handful of paper towels from the dispenser, he stuck them under cold water before scrubbing at the offending substance. The only positive point of the situation was the bathroom being empty besides him.

Not to Wufei's surprise—or to his pleasure—Trowa soon entered the bathroom, locking the door behind him before he leaned next to him on the sink. "Would you like some help? You ran out of the lunchroom pretty fast."

"I don't need your help."

"You missed some spots."

"Get out."

Trowa gently removed the wet wad from the Chinese man's grip, taking a fresh paper towel and folding it in a square. Waiting for the tap to become hot, he ran it under the water before tenderly working at the sticky honey Wufei couldn't reach. "Those katas you do really work wonders." He lightly traced the well-defined muscles underneath his fingers. "You're making my aerobics seem weak."

Wufei flexed underneath the teasing touches, forgetting his irritation and the fact that Trowa could see his delighted smile in the mirror. "You approve?"

"Of your physique or in your choice in condiments?"

Remembering again the reason why he was spending the rest of his lunch hour in the men's bathroom, Wufei's smile disappeared. He picked up his shirt and started working on the stain setting in. "That damn Maxwell! Why does he insist in making me miserable? He doesn't single any one else out this way."

"Don't be so angry at him, Wufei. Duo only starting playing these jokes on you so you would feel more included in the group."

Wufei paused in his scrubbing. "Run that by me again?"

"I know most time it seems like Duo's only being annoying, but don't forget he was an international terrorist. He goofs around with you because you have a tendency to close yourself off in groups. Either that, or become incredibly haughty because you easily feel excluded."

"He's still a pain in my ass."

"Maybe if you spent more time with him, perhaps he'd be able to find less painful ways to make you join in."

"Forget it, Barton."

As Trowa opened his mouth to reply, his beeper went off. Frowning, he read the message quickly. "I have a mission."

Wufei was unprepared for the rush of fear those words brought. He never had reason to worry over Trowa's abilities before, not counting the time when he was amnesiac. "Alone?"

"Probably with Heero again."

"Be careful."

"Naturally."

Arriving home a day later, Trowa was disappointed to enter an empty house. He had enjoyed having Wufei there after the last mission, even if he was sleeping at the time. When he came downstairs from unpacking his duffle bag and calling to leave a message on Wufei's cell phone that he was home, he was surprised to find Quatre standing in the kitchen. "Well, hello."

"Good afternoon! I was in the Preventers office when Heero came in to turn in the records you two rescued. Hope you don't mind that I let myself in, but I came to tell you that Wufei took Duo to the local baseball game. Not a date, mind you, but he said he was acting on some advice you gave him."

"Oh, that's good. Thank-you."

"By the way, is that a new trashcan?"

"Yeah. Wufei was getting irritated with the other one, so I bought a bigger size. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anything with chickens on it."

Quatre grabbed an apple from a bowl in the kitchen before sitting in the living room, reclining in Wufei's armchair sideways, throwing his legs over one side. He took a bite out of the apple with a grin. "So, how's it going?"

"Haven't you learned better than to gossip?"

"It's not gossip if it's true. Does Wufei know yet?"

Trowa sat down in front of Quatre on the chair, leaning back against the blonde's waist. "How can I tell him? If he finds out, he'll reject me simply out of leading him on. I never should have tricked him."

"He still thinks you're in love with me?"

"Not hard to believe considering you did break my heart during the war."

Quatre winced at the memory, sitting up to rest his forehead against Trowa's brown hair. "Have I mentioned I'm sorry about that? And that if I were gay, you'd be the first man I'd run to?"

Trowa smiled, tilting his head against his best friend's. "Only thirty-five times. I forgave you at thirteen."

"Guess I'm lucky Wufei stole your affections."

"I still have trouble deciding if it was his gorgeous eyes or his perfect chest. Or his passion. Or maybe his genius."

Quatre laughed, not trying to hide his amusement. "Or his way with words? That flower speech he gave the other day was very dreamy."

Trowa fought down a blush, remembering the way Wufei reached for his hand before they had gotten out of the truck. "That too."

"So when are you going to tell him? You've loved him since the war, you're single, he's single, you're gay, he's bi, you're living together…"

"We're only living together because of the plan you created."

"I still can't believe you decided to follow through with it. My Preventer briefcase still has ranch sauce residue on it."

"I still can't believe you got me kicked out of my apartment."

"Your landlord has an overwhelming desire for money. He was easy to pay off."

"Why did you do it?"

"Because you wouldn't have pursued Wufei if I hadn't. I was tired of hearing you moan over him without doing anything about it. It's not your style."

"But duping him to pretend to date me?"

"Is it working?"

"I don't know, honestly." Trowa stiffened, looking towards the front door at the sound of Duo's convertible. "They're back. Don't give anything away."

"My lips are sealed."

Wufei burst through the door, a navy baseball cap askew on his head. His eyes quickly scanned the room, gaze sharpening into a glare when he saw Quatre sitting next to his housemate on his armchair. Duo followed soon behind, munching on the remains from a crackerjack bag. "Hey, guys! You two missed the best game. Tied until the bottom of the ninth."

Trowa stood, adjusting the hat on Wufei's head. "Is that why my boyfriend looks so grumpy?"

Duo whispered under his breath, "He was in a great mood before he saw Quatre's car in the drive." He cleared his throat, speaking in a normal tone. "So, I guess if Tro's back, that means my baby's home! I'll catch you all later."

Quatre swung his legs off the chair. "I'll follow you, Duo. I've got a conference this evening with my sisters and I need to freshen up beforehand." He patted Trowa's back with a wink, throwing his apple core into the new trash can with a graceful arc.

Wufei waited until they left before turning on his pretend boyfriend. "What were you doing with him?"

Trowa tapped the cap so it fell over Wufei's eyes. "You know, you're really handsome when you're ticked. You get all flushed."

Ripping the hat off, Wufei threw it onto the couch. "Answer the question."

"You're acting almost as if you're jealous."

A slow burn rose up into Wufei's throat, matching the red burn spreading across his cheeks. "I'm not jealous. I'm concerned about your well-being. Surely you cannot get over your infatuation with Winner if you continue to remain in close proximity to him. You were practically in his lap!"

"I still want Quatre to be my friend, even if feelings happen to resurface when he's near. What does it matter, anyway? Who said I wanted to get over him?"

"You did when you proposed this stupid plan!"

"No, I didn't. I said I wanted to fool him into believing I was in love with you. Never said I wanted to move on."

"You should be. Holding onto hollow dreams will only be hurtful in the long run."

Trowa shrugged, turning away to slice an apple on the counter. The sadness evident in his words was all too real, unable to escape from Wufei's perceptive hearing. "Holding onto dreams is better than facing an empty reality."

Wufei rested his warm hands on Trowa's shoulders, anger dissipated and replaced by confusion. "What empty reality are you facing? You are loved greatly by your family and your friends. You have a steady job you enjoy. You have a home."

Laying down the knife, Trowa studied the equal four slices of red-and-beige fruit resting against black marble. Pushing the edge of one with his fingers, it wobbled in a steady half-circle before bumping against another slice, a section of the same whole it used to be a part of. "I have everything I wanted as a soldier. I should be happy."

"But you're not, are you?"

"No." Trowa turned around, tears that surprised them both framing his emerald eyes. "I want the man I love to love me back, Wufei. I'd do anything, go through anything, if it would make him feel the same way…"

Wufei instinctively drew Trowa into an embrace, wrapping his arms around the narrow waist tightly. He didn't normally like being so close to another person, someone who had the capacity to hurt or betray him by dying. But holding the taller man felt right to him, a warmth forcing him to notice just how well their bodies fit against each other, just how quickly Trowa relaxed into his arms with a soft sigh. "You shouldn't limit yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"Perhaps there is someone else out there for you besides Quatre."

"I don't think I deserve anyone right now. I've been lying."

"But you deserve to be happy."

"So do you."

Wufei closed his eyes, inhaling deeply and catching the subtly masculine scent that was purely Trowa Barton. As he turned his head, he felt his lips brush the pale skin of Trowa's neck. Pulling back as if the touch was on accident, he wondered to himself how happy they could make each other, as a couple. For real.