A/N: Sappy chapter. [. Nevertheless, it's important to the story. Hope everyone had a Happy New Year.
Chapter 9: Rhythm Emotion
Relena was startled by the crashing and banging that was coming from downstairs as she went into the kitchen to get a snack. Could they all have possibly come back from their mission without her knowing? More and more she was getting irritated-she was always being left out of the loop, the Patriots being the biggest example of this, but many other smaller instances presented themselves since she had come there. Sighing at knowing that she was too nice to yell at them about it, she went downstairs to play her little Relena-needs-to-catch-up-on-what's-going-on routine.
The noise was not coming from the control room, rather the bunker's small infirmary. Oh no, was someone hurt? Relena knocked and walked inside, noticing Otacon, Quatre, and Lady Une frantically preparing equipment. No one else was there. They hadn't come back yet.
"What's going on?" Relena asked.
Quatre's eyes sombered as he nodded to Otacon and Lady Une, walking over to Relena.
"Relena, it's Heero..." Quatre said softly as he put a hand on her shoulder.
"Oh no! Quatre is he hurt is he..." Relena rambled frantically.
"No, he's alive but, he's been...tortured."
"Tortured?" Relena asked more to herself than Quatre in a whisper of fear.
"Snake and your brother got him out." Quatre reassured her. "They'll be back soon. Don't worry, he's Heero, he'll be ok."
Relena managed a small smile and waited nervously. Around 45 minutes later, she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She quickly got up and turned around, seeing Snake carrying a half-conscious Heero over his shoulders, followed by Sally racing on his heels. Not acknowledging her at all, they put Heero on the examining table and prepared to treat him.
"Do the debriefing without us." Snake motioned to Lady Une and Otacon. "The others are waiting back in the living room."
They nodded and walked out.
"Relena, you have to leave." Snake all-but ordered.
"No, I'm staying!"
"Relena..." Heero stammered from the table as Sally went to hook him up to an IV.
"Heero I'm here!" Relena ran past a somewhat startled Snake to his bedside. "Oh god Heero, what did they do to you?" She asked in concern, looking over his badly injured body, not even thinking that he only had his boxers on.
"I told the commandant he had a small penis." A still very much high Heero laughed hysterically.
Relena blushed. She had never heard anything of that nature from him. "What...?"
Sally turned toward Snake with a get-Relena-out-of-here look. Snake nodded and put a strong hand on her shoulder, turning her around.
"Relena, I'm sorry, you have to go." Snake said in a determined, Snake-like tone.
"But why? You know, I resent being ordered around like a child. I get that enough from Milliardo. I won't be ordered around, not even by you."
Snake smirked. Very few people had ever stood up to him. He liked it. But now was not the time.
"I need to stay with him." Relena said with determination. At this, Snake grabbed her waist with such force that she felt she was being hit by a tidal wave. She had never felt stronger hands in her life, not even Heero's. Snake gently put her down outside the infirmary.
"Sorry about that, it's gotta be done."
"But...Snake."
"Heero's been shocked by a cattle prod, but that's only the least of it. He's been dosed up on a truth serum, Sodium thiopental, it causes people to become more chatty, that's why he said that crap about the small penis. He could have very well OD'd if they had given him anymore."
"Oh no..." Relena stammered.
"But that isn't all. He's been bruised very badly on the ribs; fortunately none of them are broken."
Relena's sigh of relief was quickly interrupted.
"But he may have severe internal bleeding."
'Internal bleeding!' The words struck her like a hammer. She slumped to the floor. "Oh God no...please God no..."
Snake sighed and hefted her up, looking directly into her eyes. They both had similar hues to them, although Snake's were a little greener, and much, much harder. "I promise you'll be the first to know after we're done treating him."
Relena looked up at him with grateful eyes and mouthed a 'thank you.' Snake nodded and she walked away. 'He's Heero, he'll be fine. He's Heero, he'll be fine.' Relena kept telling herself as she made her way upstairs.
"Ugh...damn." Heero stated groggily some hours later when he woke up, finally having the Sodium thiopental out of his system.
Snake chuckled and Sally smiled.
"Thanks for saving my ass, Snake. Although I'm gonna hate it, I'll have to thank Zechs too."
Snake smirked and nodded.
"So docs, what's the diagnosis?" Heero asked as if he wasn't concerned.
"Nothing serious, we thought you may have had internal bleeding, but we were mistaken. Just get plenty of rest and make sure you eat and drink lots of water." Sally said as she unhooked all the machines from Heero.
"Diagnosis: you are one tough son of a bitch, Heero Yuy." Snake smiled warmly.
Heero smirked as he slowly got up and began to walk-albeit in pain. At least the Sodium thiopental had covered up the intense pain he felt all over his body.
"Woah there. I'll give you a hand, c'mon kid." Snake said as he leaned Heero against his shoulder.
Snake and Heero slowly made their way upstairs, their comrades (those who were still up) were smiling at Heero, and even Milliardo gave him a nod of respect, which Heero slowly returned.
"So, do we have what we need?" Heero groaned as he and Snake began walking up the stairs.
"Yeah. The specs to Arsenal's AI are in. Unfortunately this is no small shit and it could take weeks or even a month to decrypt."
"What?" Was all Heero managed to mutter.
"This was designed directly by the Patriots, what did you expect?" Snake asked matter-of-factly.
"Of course." Heero nodded. "Oh shit..." He muttered as he and Snake reached the top of the staircase. He stumbled away from Snake.
"What?" Snake asked.
"Relena came in there; did I say anything to her?"
"You said you told the commandant he had a small penis." Snake retorted.
"What...aw shit." Heero said, banging his head against the wall.
"Hey relax, she knows you were high." Snake said. "And best not to go doing that with your head, not now."
"Still. Damnit!"
Snake smirked and helped him walk back to his room. "Get some rest." He said, gently motioning for Heero to go toward his bed.
Getting in and pulling the covers over himself, he looked back at Snake, who smiled.
"Kid, you are one tough son of a bitch." He said again as he got out. Walking down the hallway, he intended to keep his word.
Relena sat upright, unable to fall asleep even though it was 2:30 and she had tried since 11. She sat in her room, almost tearing her covers in stress. Heero couldn't leave her...she was snapped out of her trance by three knocks on her door.
"Milliardo! I told you I don't want to talk and I'm not hungry! Ugh!" She snapped as she put a pillow over her head to muffle the sound.
"Relena, you have 5 seconds to open this door before I break it down."
Relena's eyes snapped open as she rushed to open her door. On the other side, a somewhat disgruntled Snake had his eyes closed and his arms folded across his chest.
"I uhh...I'm sorry Snake." She murmured.
Snake slowly opened his eyes and went inside as Relena closed the door behind him.
"So...?" Relena trailed as she sat down on her bed.
"Good news. No internal bleeding. He'll be absolutely fine; all he needs is food, water, and rest."
Relena breathed a huge sigh of relief and her eyes seemed to brighten up the room upon hearing the words.
"You really love him, don't you?"
"You have a wonderful talent for bluntly stating the obvious." Relena sighed and fell onto her pillow, hair fanning out in a halo and nightgown folding gently around her body.
"Want to talk about it?" Snake asked sitting down. "You look like you could use someone to talk to."
Relena slowly sat up beside him. "I don't think you'd understand." She sighed as she closed her eyes and titled her head toward the ground.
"Try me." He gently nudged her shoulder to coax her to look at him. "I'm more than just an extremely skilled killer with a cause, you know."
"Oh no, I don't think of you like that, Snake."
"Don't you? Too many people see only the legend, they never see me as a man, even everyone here fell victim to it at first and in many ways, they still do, except Otacon, of course."
"I completely get you." She sighed. "You know, a couple of months ago I was watching some stupid gossip show. In honor of the turn of the century, they were doing something about the '100 biggest newsmakers of the past hundred years.' I turned up at number two."
"And who was number one?" Snake asked.
"Isn't it obvious?"
Snake's eyes widened a bit, indicating it was not.
"You."
"Rhm." Snake grunted in annoyance.
"I know, I completely agree."
"I suppose it's all just a byproduct of the paths we've chosen."
"Did I really choose my path?" She asked, looking up at him in wonder. "Or did the Patriots choose it for me?" Her eyes saddened. "Heero told me that my being 'Queen of the World' was done because they wanted it to be, as was the formation of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation, my current position...the list goes on."
"Yes...all of that was done according to their plans. But, Relena, your thoughts, your mind, your beliefs are yours. What you do with them is entirely your choice, and quite frankly the Patriots are pissing in their pants over it. Why do you think they had Romefeller attack the Sanc Kingdom? They needed you in a position that they could control you from, that's why. They saw you might be useful."
Relena sighed again. "Heero left to protect me from them."
"I figured that out when he was putting his fingers through your hair." Snake retorted.
Relena blushed and looked at the floor. "You read people quite well don't you?"
"It keeps me alive." He replied matter-of-factly. "Now, why not tell me about you and Heero? It'll help ease the pain I see in your eyes. From the bits and pieces I've heard, it's quite...unusual, to say the least."
Relena laughed. "More than you can imagine."
"I can imagine quite a lot."
Relena began the story with their encounter on the beach. She then went on to their time at St. Gabriel's.
"You mean he actually threatened to kill you?" Snake asked, chuckling.
"Yes...he thought I was getting in his way. But when we danced, and he held me in his arms...I just felt such a feeling of warmth and security...especially after what happened to father..."
"Go on." Snake gently urged.
Relena continued, explaining how she had stopped his battle with her brother in Antarctica, his visit to the Sanc Kingdom, Libra, Mariemaia, everything up to the present point.
"That was quite a story. I'm not sure I believe it." Snake slightly smiled.
"I'm not sure I believe it myself." She laughed. "At first the whole thing with Heero was just the naive little crush of a schoolgirl, but by the end of the war on Libra...I realized I was hopelessly head over heels in love with him."
"In all the time he's been away from you, have you ever tried getting over him?"
"I couldn't. It just made everything worse. Ever since I turned 18 I've been drowned by suitors, but I feel no connection to any of them. Heero was the first honest man I've ever met, before him my life was all formality and politeness. He was the one who made me find my soul. All these other men who are jumping hurdles to date me remind me of the same life before I knew Heero."
"I see, and I understand." Snake nodded, closing his eyes. "You know..." He trailed. "No one really knows this story, well except Otacon, and I don't know why I'm about to tell you this but after that story I feel I must."
"Snake...?"
"There was this girl; I met her during Shadow Moses..."
"When you were actually fighting there?!" Relena asked in shocked disbelief.
"Yeah... Her name was Meryl Silverburgh, the niece of my old CO, Colonel Campbell."
"Wait! Colonel Roy Campbell...wasn't he your CO when you were in Alliance custody?"
"Yes...but he defected, and we became close friends."
"Yes, I know of that...oh my God I'm sorry Snake! I keep interrupting you..."
Snake laughed. "It's quite all right, my life is an endless web of questions, there's no escaping it."
Relena smiled lightly at him.
"I rescued her from imprisonment when she refused to join Liquid's rebellion. Eventually she and I escaped Shadow Moses, not before I was subjected to torture by Ocelot."
"Ocelot...tortured you? What did he do?"
"Let's just say that it makes what happened to Heero look like child's play."
Relena sighed. This man had been in her office, kissed her hand...even danced with her more than once since she met him. She could always tell he was bad news, right from the start.
"We escaped...and she lived with me for a while. I thought that my destiny was to live alone; I didn't think I would ever have the privilege to love anyone. She...well...she showed me different. She brought up feelings that I knew were somewhere, but didn't think they'd ever come out."
"That's great..." Relena smiled at him. "What happened to her?"
"She was living with me. But...as you know, I'm Solid Snake, and I've accumulated many enemies over the years. Some of Big Boss's old comrades came looking for me, wanting revenge for me having killed him. They attacked us, I managed to fight them off, but not before they got Meryl." One tear fell from Snake's eyes.
"Oh Snake..."
"Ironic isn't it?" He said, standing up. "The son of Big Boss, killing his own 'father,' though I did not know it at the time. In revenge, they took the one person who could bring light to the endless violent life that Big Boss' own son was destined to live."
"Snake, I...I'm so sorry. I'm honored that you would tell me this..."
Snake smiled. "It just shows how precious life is, and how easy and how wrong it is to take it, for whatever reason. The fact that I've taken so many and will probably have to take more is a fact that weighs heavily on me. Live and love. You and Heero will work out."
"Wh...you sound so sure."
"I am sure. What you've shared can't be held by anyone else- it is a bond that no one else in the universe can rival, that's why you feel no connection with any other man that wants to be involved with you."
"Like you and Meryl in Shadow Moses..."
"Exactly."
"Oh Snake, I hope so. I love Heero so much...sometimes I think he loves me back, but most of the time I think he just sees me as his charge...an obligation. I think he just sees the symbol of Relena Peacecraft and not a woman."
Snake laughed lightly. "Don't worry, he loves you."
"And how are you so sure? Did he actually say it to you?"
"Well...no."
Relena sighed.
"But, as you already said, I'm quite good at reading people. I could see it on his face as soon as we heard of Solidus' assassination plan. That and the constant pissing contests he had with your brother that quite frankly drove me insane, and besides he's willing to fight the Patriots for you. People don't fight the Patriots for just any reason! I fight them for ideas...he fights them for you."
Relena's heart fluttered out of her chest in hope.
"Wow, it is getting very late, and I haven't had any sleep for over 24 hours, not to mention I was just out on a mission." He said as he glanced at the 3:54 time on Relena's clock. "I'll see you in the morning Relena."
"Snake...do you have any regrets not fighting in the Eve Wars?" She asked as he walked out.
"Just one: not fighting for you."
"W...what?"
"You heard me. You're the one who can end the cycle of violence, whether you were set up by the Patriots or not. People like me merely prepare the way for people like you. I do regret not fighting for you, princess." He smirked.
Relena smiled. "Snake...thank you so much. You've taken a weight off of my shoulders that I've been carrying for so long..."
Snake nodded.
"Oh and Snake?"
He turned his head back.
"Is it true that you snuck around in a cardboad box when you were in Solidus' mansion, trying to get me out?"
"What?" He asked in a tone of disbelief.
"Well...Duo said you were hiding in one and sneaking around in it."
"I don't know anything about that." He said, somewhat annoyed.
"I thought he was joking." Relena smiled. "I mean, who would be dumb enough to sneak around in a cardboard box? It's completely idiotic!" She laughed.
"Oh...um...yeah..." Snake said as he walked out and closed the door.
"You told Relena about my box?!" Snake asked angrily at Duo late the next night, he hadn't seen him since he had been working with Otacon all through the previous day.
"Uhhh...yeah, c'mon it was just a joke, you can let me down." Duo motioned to the floor, as Snake was currently pinning Duo's shoulders to the wall as he was suspended in the air.
"Yeah, a joke to her!" Snake growled. "I try to keep my tactics a secret, you know, and if you keep blabbering, who knows if a real enemy will find out?" Snake growled again, this time through clenched teeth.
"Snake I'm...sorry, please don't strangle me!" Duo begged as his face began to turn red.
"About time someone put some sense into that annoying chatterbox." A familiar monotone sounded out.
Snake finally let Duo down and smirked. "From what I hear he's been haunting you for years."
Heero merely nodded with a small smirk.
"How was your rest, Heero?" Duo asked while still breathing heavily.
Heero slightly groaned. "Aside from the pain in my ribs and stomach when I woke up, and the occasional throbbing of my head, all right. So, Snake, how's it going working on figuring out Arsenal's AI?"
"Not well. This is going to take a long time...and it's going even slower without you being around to help."
"I can help." Heero immediately replied and began to walk toward the control room.
"Woah there, kid." Snake immediately stopped him.
"Chill, Heero." Duo tried to reason with him. "You're in no condition to be working for all those hours."
Heero eyed Duo menacingly.
"C'mon Heero, you don't need to look at me like that." Duo said in a huff.
"As much as I hate to say it now, he's right." Snake affirmed. "You just keep off of working for a while. Duo, tell Otacon that I'm taking the rest of the night off."
Duo nodded and began to walk back to the control room.
"Oh and Duo?"
"What is it, Snake?"
"Tell anyone about my secret box trick again and I will personally cut off that ridiculous looking braid of yours."
Duo froze. This wasn't a Heero Yuy half-threat that never came to fruition. This was a Solid Snake never-say-anything-you-don't-mean ultimatum.
"I wouldn't talk." Duo finally answered. "Mr. mullet." He then made a break for the control room, to the amusement of Snake.
Snake went into the kitchen followed by Heero trailing behind him. They saw Milliardo sitting at the table alone, drinking a beer. He nodded a greeting to Snake, who nodded back and stared at Heero with respect, yet coldness. Snake joined him at the table after getting a beer of his own and Heero just sat.
"Zechs..." Heero finally managed to squeak out. "Thanks for...getting me out."
Milliardo nodded in recognition.
Just then, Otacon came up to the table.
"I'm sorry Snake, but we really do need you down here, I promise this will be over in five minutes and then you really can have the night off."
Snake grunted and made way to follow Otacon down to the control room, but he turned back.
"Don't kill each other." He ordered and then went downstairs, causing both Heero and Milliardo to smile.
"Yuy, as much as I hate to say this, I feel an apology is in order of me."
Heero's eyes widened in response to those words.
Milliardo smirked at the surprise he showed. "I thought you had abandoned my sister. Now I know that you only left to protect her from the Patriots, although I do think you should at least have spoken with her from time to time, your motives at least were pure. I have always respected you Yuy, as an enemy, but I do now wish to bury the hatchet once and for all. I am not saying I want you to be my friend, we probably never will be, but we do have a mutual cause now, and we both do care for Relena. We may as well get along for her sake."
Heero was stunned into silence for a bit and then managed to choke out his acceptance. "Did Snake tell you about my leaving?"
Milliardo's eyebrows arched. "No, Relena did. You told Snake?" He asked in surprise.
"Not exactly...he figured it out. Don't ask how."
Milliardo managed a chuckle. "He's everything the legends say he is, but more than that, he's honestly the most intelligent man I've ever met."
"How did you know he was still alive?"
"After the Sanc Kingdom collapsed I found out from a former Oz soldier from an attack force that Romefeller had sent to eliminate him. This guy was the only survivor from that force. Apparently Dermail knew he was still alive and was terrified that Snake would join the war."
"Not surprising, he must have been working directly under the Patriots."
Milliardo nodded. "I was going to join up with Snake and see if he would fight Romefeller freelance with me, but then the White Fang came along and I made the worse choice. It doesn't really matter now; the Patriots were playing everyone for fools." He scowled.
Heero nodded. "The question is why..."
Snake came back to the room and sat down, grabbing his beer.
"I suppose you're ok with each other now."
"We went through the misunderstanding over Relena."
"Hn."
Snake smirked. A few minutes passed in silence. Noin then came up from the control room and whisked Milliardo away to their room.
"So you kissed and made up?" Snake chuckled as he made his way to the fridge to get a second beer, taking one for Heero as well.
"Made up I suppose. Kiss? Never." Heero smirked.
Snake laughed. "Yeah, there's only one person you would ever want to kiss." He smirked as he handed Heero the beer.
"Hn." He took a sip.
"Feel like talking about her?" Snake asked quietly.
"No."
"You've gotta stop doing this kid..."
"Doing what?"
"Denying your feelings for her. You're hurting yourself and you're really hurting her."
Heero looked at Snake in shock and worry. Snake was delving deep into a part of his psyche that he had no control over, and he looked prepared to rip it out. He gulped.
"She told me everything."
Heero's eyes widened in shock. Finally he stammered out. "Well...I uh...she could have picked a worse person to tell it all to."
Snake laughed. "Why do you continue to skirt around the issue kid? You obviously love her."
Heero hesitated then spoke. "I haven't had any sign of her returning my feelings..." Heero suddenly felt it- this was big. He had just admitted to Snake and himself that he loved Relena.
"I don't believe that." Snake said angrily. "And I know you don't believe that either. You know, at times, you really are a weak, simple-minded stubborn fool."
"I just...I'm a soldier, a killer. She's a pacifist princess."
"Ah." Snake said, arching his eyebrows. "So you think you don't deserve her."
"It would never work. I'm not supposed to be with her. The world would never accept it, she'd be endangering herself. I'd be endangering her. We're too different, we come from different walks of life, and we weren't supposed to mingle. This is the way it has to be..."
"That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard." Snake responded with his eyes closed.
Heero's eyes opened up in shock and he gasped. "But Snake...she's a princess, a diplomat, former Queen of the World. I'm just a pawn to be used and dispensed with."
"Those are all just empty words when you come to think of it."
Heero looked down at his now-empty beer bottle in silence.
"And really, she's a pawn too. Yeah, she might have been a queen, but a queen is still just a playing piece. You've both been used by the Patriots. Besides, your shared experiences together count for a hell of a lot more than any position or title ever could."
"...You're right."
"I am right." Snake said matter-of-factly. "The two of you need each other. I mean, you have been a complete asshole to her."
Heero looked up at Snake in shock-again.
"But she doesn't seem to mind." He continued. "Most people would call that weakness, but in reality, it takes monumental strength for her to put up with all the shit you've put her through and still insist on going forward."
"She's the strongest person I've ever known..."
Snake nodded. "Tell me what you'd think if she was with some other guy?"
Heero's eyes narrowed. "I'd rip the son of a bitch's throat out for starters, and then I would castrate him with a bronze dagger."
Snake laughed. "Well, there you go. Heero, you don't need to be afraid. She's the best thing that's ever happened to you. Don't lose her!"
Heero suddenly felt a wave of inspiration crash over him. He began to feel more powerful than he had ever felt in his life. Snake's words always made sense, and these words broke all of the walls he'd built around his view of Relena down. Deep down, he had wanted to reveal his feelings to Relena ever since he knew Snake would be bringing her back here, and the words of his idol gave him the newfound strength he needed.
"You really should go and see her-now."
"But Snake, it's 2:30. I don't want to wake her up. She really does need to get more sleep."
Snake laughed out loud. "I really don't think she'd mind, kid. Wake her up! If she gets mad and she won't, but if she does, blame me." He winked.
For one of the few times in his life, Heero actually laughed out loud. He got up. Feeling elated, he rushed quickly toward the staircase.
"You know Snake, I never knew you had the capacity to play matchmaker." Otacon teased from behind as he brought a beer to the table and sat beside his longtime friend.
"About damn time they start to be honest with each other." Sally smiled and joined the two, handing Snake another beer while opening one for herself. "I was beginning to think it'd never happen."
"A legend indeed!" Lady Une laughed and sat down at the table. "If anyone would have finally been able to get them together, it's no surprise to me that it was you."
Snake's eyes lightened. "So, did I miss anything important with the AI?" Snake asked, getting back to business.
Heero gently knocked on Relena's door.
"Who is it?" Her gentle voice asked.
"Me." Heero mentally smacked himself. He had just sounded like he issued a demand to her to open up.
Relena gently opened the door and peered through the slit before opening it fully. "Heero...uh...I...well this is a surprise."
"Hn." He made his way into her room as she shut the door. Suddenly, a voice sprang in his head that sounded a lot like Snake. 'Damnit kid, you're just being your old detached self, you know what you have to do, do it!' "That nightgown looks really nice on you." He motioned to the pink silk gown hugging her every curve.
Relena blushed and looked down at the floor. "Thank...you." She murmured questioningly. "Heero, are you feeling all right? You're still not high on that truth drug are you?" She giggled.
"What do you mean?" He asked curiously.
Relena went and lay on her bed, covering herself. "This is so unlike you. Coming here out of the blue and then complimenting me."
"I uh...I had a long talk with...Snake." He stammered as he pulled a chair beside her bed.
"Oh?" Relena closed her eyes and tried to look disinterested, but her heartbeat sped up upon hearing the legendary soldier's name. "Well, if it's about Metal Gears or combat or something, I really would have preferred if you hadn't woken me up."
"What?" Heero asked in disbelief.
"Well, it just seems that that's what the two of you would talk about." Relena looked at him for a second and then looked away.
"We talked about you." Heero responded in his monotone.
Now Relena's heart threatened to bust a hole in her chest. "Oh?" Great, just great. She was a renowned diplomat but could only say 'oh' when talking seriously to the man she loved.
"He told me the truth."
"He does that well." Relena answered, closing her eyes.
"Relena, look at me."
Relena slowly opened her eyes and looked at Heero. "Heero..."
"Snake told me the truth." He cut her off. "He said that I'm a weak simple-minded stubborn fool."
Relena's eyes threatened to pop out of her head. "Heero, you're not."
"No, Relena. I am. He also told me that I've been a complete asshole to you, which I have been, and I hope you can forgive me for that. He also said...that you're the best thing that's ever happened to me..."
Her eyes widened in shock. "Heero..."
"Let me finish." He cut her off. "Relena, I've never been good with my emotions...but tonight, I finally admitted it to myself. It took some pulling from Snake, but now that it's out I have to confront it. I want to confront it."
"Heero?"
"I love you, Relena."
Relena gasped as Heero got out of his chair and turned away from her.
"I always have. Ever since that night we danced. Do you know how I felt when you told me you were on my side? No one was ever on my side. It took a while...but you managed to salvage my humanity."
"Heero!" Relena ran in front of him. Tears were flowing from her eyes. "Heero, I love you too!" She put a hand on his still badly bruised cheek, causing him to wince in pain. But he did not mind, not at all.
"Relena..." He trailed as she wrapped her arms to embrace him, he responded in kind. "Relena, I know I've hurt you. I promise I'll never hurt you again. If you'll let me, I want to try my best at making you happy."
"Heero, I would love that."
Heero tilted his head downward and kissed her. At first it was gentle, but after a while Relena opened her mouth and Heero obliged her.
"You don't know how long I've been waiting for this." Relena beamed as she gasped for air when it was over.
"Oh but I do." Heero lightly smiled. "4 years, 10 months, soon to be 11 months."
Relena laughed. "Just like you isn't it? Always analyzing?"
"Hn."
She giggled. "Heero, I love you." She rested her head in his neck.
"I've always loved you, Relena." Heero rested his chin on her hair.
"I was going to tell I loved you before you left for Sardinia." She said sweetly. "But then you were like 'Relena, Snake is waiting.'" She did her best Heero impression, causing him to laugh out loud for the second time that night.
"Ow!" Heero sounded out when Relena put her hand on his stomach.
"Heero, you're still hurt. You really should rest now."
"Yeah…" He slowly unwound his arms from her and proceeded toward the door.
"Heero."
He looked back.
"Why not stay here with me?" She asked with a hint of a plea.
"Uh?"
"Stay with me, sleep with me."
"What?! On our first night together? You sure you're ready?"
Relena's face looked like it would explode. "No I mean…"
Heero laughed. "I was just teasing you. If you'll let me, I'll stay. But what if your brother cuts my throat in my sleep when he finds out?"
Relena laughed hysterically as she got into her bed. "He won't." She said, putting her head on her pillow, getting comfortable. "Not with Snake here." She beamed another smile.
"Oh, and, I think I buried the hatchet with your brother."
"What?!" She asked as Heero got into bed beside her.
"Yeah…he apologized to me. Said you told him why I left and he understood my intentions."
"Wow…" She sighed in content.
They both quickly fell asleep, Heero nuzzled against her backside with his arms wrapped around Relena's stomach, holding hands. An overwhelming feeling of bliss filled both their bodies.