Disclaimer: Don't own anything, all for fun, no profit.
Notes: Sorry this one took so long guys, I wasn't sure what I wanted to happen in this chapter and I have rewritten in about 3 times. It gets a little angsty here with Heero but it shall be sorted out soon.
"Heero." Andrika said as she pulled away from Duo her face red with embarrassment.
"I take it the date went well?" Heero asked.
"Yeah it did…" Andrika began.
"How wonderful for the two of you," He said the sarcasm dipping in his voice, "I'm going to bed." He said as he turned down the hallway.
"Heero wait." Andrika called to him as she let go of Duo's hand and went after the Japanese man.
"I'm sorry I interrupted. Now if you wouldn't mind leaving me alone I've had a long night." He said turning away from her.
While he turned she grabbed his hand. The touch sent a shiver through his body.
"Heero, is there something wrong? Did I do something wrong?" She asked her eyes quivering with concern.
"No. Not everything is about you, you know?" He asked.
"Heero that was a little unnecessary don't you think?" She asked her eyes narrowing.
"No. I had a bad day and I am not in a good mood, that doesn't automatically mean that you did something wrong. I do things completely independent of you, my mood has nothing to do with you." He replied, the sarcasm gone from his voice; his tone was now just harsh.
"That's not what I'm saying. You have been in a bad mood since you left the park yesterday, since I was with you last I thought it might have something to do with me. And please find it in your heart to forgive me for caring about my friend." Her last sentence articulated the anger that was now swelling within her.
"Why does everyone want to be my friend tonight? I don't understand it," Heero said raising his voice just a bit, "We are coworkers Andrika, not friends."
"So that is how it's going to be then? I guess I was sadly mistaken in assuming that we were friends as well. Then fine, if you just want to be coworkers then that is how I will treat you." She said as she dropped his hand.
With that they turned their back on one another; neither of them sure if they were friend of foe; or even what to do next. Andrika felt a tear slide mercilessly down her cheek. She was not going to cry because of this, if she meant nothing to him then he meant nothing to her. She wiped her cheek and made her way back into the kitchen where a concerned Duo was eagerly awaiting her return. Heero in the meantime closed his eyes and silently cursed himself for the way he was acting. He couldn't help it; he didn't know why he was being so nasty to her. Now he was going to lose her completely to Duo. What was the matter with him? He decided to sleep on it and try to reconcile thing in the morning.
"Everything alright?" Duo asked wiping the wetness left from her tears off of her cheeks.
"Yeah. Everything's fine." She lied.
Duo pulled her in for a hug and she welcomed the embrace. She wasn't sure what she did but it had to have been something. But if this was really how he wanted things then she wasn't going to go against his wishes. This was the beginning of a new chapter in the house. Just like it had been when Andrika first showed up, changes were afoot. The relations between the residents were changing. Duo and Andrika were headed down the path of romance, (maybe) and Heero was just as stoic as ever. It seemed some things would never change.
That night Andrika joined Duo is his bed for the second time. This time he was aware of the company that she needed and did his best to be supportive. He laid on his back with her head on his chest and his arm around her, stroking her hair. She again fell into a troubled sleep.
The next morning Heero decided that he should apologize to Andrika for the way he had acted towards her. He went to her room and knocked lightly on the door. When no response came he opened the door and saw her bed vacant. It remained untouched from when she last occupied it 2 nights ago.
She must've slept with Duo again. With that he sighed and made his way to the Americans room. He opened the door opting to just rouse Andrika and let Duo sleep; in the massacre of blankets and sheets he saw Duo spread across the bed. He saw Andrika curled up on the edge of his bed with his hand tightly clasped in hers. He crept up to her and put his hand over her mouth. When her eyes fluttered open he put a finger to his lips for her to remain quiet. She nodded and he motioned for the door. She slid gently out of bed. Duo shuffled in bed before cuddling up with a pillow and mumbling something incoherent in his sleep. Heero led her into the kitchen and offered a cup of coffee as a sign of his goodwill. She accepted a bit confused, but was thankful nonetheless. He took her hand and led her to the veranda. Everything outside looked cheerful in the morning light. They sat at the table in the corner facing one another. They stared at each other for a moment waiting for the other to speak. Heero broke the silence first.
"Look, I am sorry for the way I acted last night. I was taking my frustrations out on you." He began, not daring to look at her.
"Ok." She said still unsure of his motives.
"I am happy for you and Duo but…" His words trailed off.
"But…?" She asked trying to get him to spit it out.
"But, I don't know. I don't know what has been going on lately but I am very confused, and I am not used to being confused." He said quickly. He hated being weak, but if he had to confess to anyone she was the best person to confess to. She wouldn't make fun of him like the others would.
"Because you think you are in love with me too and are afraid that you can't compete with Duo so you shut down completely when you see him and I together. Am I in the ballpark?" She asked looking at him.
His jaw dropped for a moment and he let the shock show on his face. He looked at her wondering how in the world she could have possibly known something that he wasn't even sure about.
"How did you…I mean…what? Me in love with you? You must've had more to drink last night than you thought Andrika." He said blushing.
"You are a very bad liar Heero Yuy," She said straightening in her chair, "And I didn't say that you were in love with me, I said you think you are in love with me."
"I'm not lying." He said concentrating on the blue coffee mug in his hands as if it would make her accusations go away.
"Yes you are. Heero, people are my specialty. It is my job to know when people are lying. And I hate to say it sweet cheeks but you are lying to me. You are afraid that while you are trying to sort things out I am going to fall for Duo and be forever out of reach." She said folding her arms over her chest.
"This is ridiculous, I'm sorry I even tried to apologize to you." He said as he completely changed his attitude.
"Look Heero, deny it all you want but when this comes back to bite you in the ass don't come running to me for help. The reason that you are so confused is because you don't know what love is. Fear is kind of new emotion for you too. No one has ever tried to help you before, they have all tried to change you and I haven't. That is why you think you are in love with me. It's not bad Heero but you need to decide what you are feeling here. If I am totally wrong about everything I have been picking up from you and wrong about this whole thing than I am sorry that I jumped to conclusions. But if I'm not and you really do think that, then you need to figure out what your next move is." She said reaching across the table to touch his hands.
He jumped out of her reach and stood up.
"Look Andrika, I don't appreciate you trying to get into my head like this. I try to apologize for taking my anger out on you last night and you start talking about love. I know you are a mastermind of manipulating people and I don't know what you are trying to get at here but I thought I made it clear last night that we aren't even friends, we are coworkers, my feelings for you do not exceed the fact that I need you alive so we can work together effectively." He said looking down at her.
She didn't look at him, she couldn't. The frustration that was building up in her was a bit more than she could handle.
It was her turn to stand as she slammed both palms on the table before slowly looking to him, her voice loud with anger, "Heero you wake me up to tell me that you are sorry for the way you have been acting and tell me that you are confused about something. Now, knowing what I do for a living and my areas of expertise and the way you have been acting lately what the hell did you think I was going to come up with? This is ridiculous," she said throwing her arms up in defeat, "If you want to talk to me when you get some sense knocked into the think fucking skull of yours talk to me. Until then, you're right we aren't friends we are coworkers."
With that she left him there. She left a very confused Heero Yuy in the cheerful morning light with two cups of coffee still steaming in front of him. He slammed his fist on the table in his own rage and walked her walk away.
What the hell is wrong with me? Why can't I just be honest with her? It was foolish to think that she wouldn't pick up on that. She has unparalleled human skills. She's right, I do need to figure out what is going on in my head and decide what my next move is.
With that in mind Heero prepared to leave the house again. He heard Andrika weeping softly as he passed Duo's bedroom door, he desperately wanted to rush in and put his arms around her and tell her it was all a lie and that she was right. But it was too soon, the wounds still too fresh. He still had his own issues to deal with. Shaking his head he went out with no destination in mind.
In Duo's room Andrika quietly cried for a moment on the corner of Duo's bed. She figured there was no reason to wake him, she would regain her composure and crawl back into bed with him when she was done crying. When she turned back to check on him she saw his inquisitive indigo eyes waiting for her.
"So are you going to tell me what happened now or later?" He asked sitting up with his arms folded on his chest.
"I'm sorry Duo I didn't know you were awake." She said softly. Smiling slightly at the look of his sleep tousled hair.
"Come on, you just had a screaming match with Heero, I guarantee you everyone in the house is awake." He said looking at her.
"I don't think that everyone…" She began but was cut off by Quatre knocking on the door.
"Is everything ok Andrika?" He asked with concern in his voice.
"Yeah we heard some yelling. What is going on?" Trowa asked.
"Yeah, everything is fine. Thanks for the concern guys. Go back to sleep." She called to the door.
"Ok. If you need anything at all let me know." Quatre added before she could hear footsteps leading away from the door.
She looked back to Duo who had an 'I told you so' look on his face.
"Don't even." She said as she pointed to him.
"Come here." He said as he held out his arms for her.
She curled up in his arms as he petted her hair.
"So what did the big bad Yuy monster do this time?" He asked.
Alright, this one is nowhere near as cute and light-hearted as the rest but the funny will be back. Next we will find out what Lady Une has planned for Andrika and Zechs on their "date." Hilarity ensues!!
Thanks for all of the support everyone. I really appreciate it. -Tessra