|Chapter Four|

Makoto lounged on the bed lazily with a pillow under her chest while she peered down at a magazine, reading over a few articles. Heero was up early, taking over their shower before she could even awaken. The week had gone by smoothly, leaving her with two guests that had still needed to appear and it also seemed that Duo had mistaken the date for the ball. Instead of two days, he meant two weeks from the day they arrived. So far, she had seen the Sanq Kingdom with beautiful foliage and blooming businesses. The park had been a welcoming site, where Quatre had a picnic set-up for their long outing. Makoto had gotten to know the two other men pretty well, laughing at a lot of Duo's jokes, and feeling so welcomed by Quatre's kindness but there was still something about them she couldn't put her finger on. Rei had gotten back to her, letting her know Ami was working with the other senshi to get a barrier going around Crystal Tokyo. Sure, the Silver Crystal's power was enough and helped slow the aging process a lot to the occupants on Earth but who knew if something could penetrate the shield of it. At least they were taking prior steps before something happened.

The thoughts left as soon as she heard the door open; a smirk graced her lips for a moment and then she concentrated at looking as if she was really reading. Heero had put her through hell answering the questions of his friends and avoiding talking to her about why she couldn't stay. Finally, she had given up but now, things were going to be played on her field. First, innocent seduction and then she would hit him with getting denied. A creamy purple silk slip moved over her curves and complimented her pink skin; black lace designed the hem, made the straps and accented her curvaceous bust line. Under it, she wore a simple sheer black laced cheeky pantie to match. Minako had helped her pick it out, along with a few other surprise ones Heero still had yet to see. This week, she had done it a few times making it scheduled for every other day; it caught his attention alright but this one showed more than before.

"Good morning darling," she sung, only to get a grumble in reply. Was it working? She turned the page and frowned at the strange fashion portrayed before quickly flipping the pages until she found something else to scan over. "What are our plans today?"

Heero mulled over the idea knowing what was next; a trip to the beach. Duo was excited, especially since he wanted to see Makoto in less clothing. It made Heero grin for a moment, seeing her long legs bent up swinging for a little while in the air as she read. If Duo was in here and got to see what he saw, then he was sure his friend would be content in not needing to go to the beach. Was there any other surprise up her sleeve? He was trying to keep his eyes from looking but he couldn't help it; she had appeared so…inviting. Did she want him? Makoto looked like the woman that would go for what she wanted, not shy away and leave hints. Heero pulled on his white and blue plaid shorts, finishing the button while looking for a shirt in the closet. Out of nowhere, a slender arm picked a shirt off the hanger as he felt the silky fabric touch his back. What was she doing? Her smell was starting to make her even more intoxicating.

"Another outing?" she asked, still holding the shirt and waiting for him to take it. Heero swallowed, and turned while taking the shirt. Makoto had moved to crouch next to the dresser, looking at the drawers as if unsure of what to grab. A knock on the door brought Heero out of his trance as he quickly pulled on the matching blue shirt with silvery designs covering it just as the door quickly opened.

"Let's go to the beach!" said Duo, with his arms held wide as he stood in black swimming trunks. Protectively, Heero stood in front of Makoto to keep Duo's prying eyes away. From the look of it, he gave a nervous laugh before shutting the door quickly.

"I guess that answers my question," replied Makoto as she started rummaging through her drawers. When the garments were tossed on top of dresser, Heero was unsure if he should stay or go, unsure if Duo was going to try to burst in again. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Makoto was already standing and starting to pull the slip up but stopped at her chest, giving him a smirk and raised brow. "Mr. Yuy, I never thought you would be a man to stare so intently."

Hearing her soft giggle, Heero took this time to flee quickly; walking down the stairs he looked to see the door open only for Wufei Chang to enter into the household. He looked worse than before, a cold expression gracing his face like the first time Heero had met him. Duo was already taking Wufei's luggage upstairs only for the Chinese man to crack a grin at Heero.

"I see this is still a bachelor pad like usual," commented Wufei, his ebony hair left down framing his face and deep grey eyes. Heero smirked, knowing it was going to burst his bubble. Had he been hurt that much in their time apart by other women? Quatre gave a half smile while leading Wufei away from the stairs, afraid that Makoto was soon to follow behind Heero. Wufei hadn't moved with him, but leaned against the banister looking up at Heero with a grin. "Wasn't there a promise made to you when you were twenty-five?"

Arms wrapped Heero's waist as Makoto's head popped out from the side, a questionable look written across her face as she peered up at him.

"What promise?" she asked only for Wufei's grin to suddenly leave. Who was she? What was she doing here? And most of all, why was she all over Heero? Heero touched her hand and grinned down at Wufei.

"Wufei, this is my wife Makoto," introduced Heero. When Duo entered the hall, he stopped at the shocked face Wufei held and then he watched the glare set in.

"How could a woman like that be your wife?" asked Wufei, only looking at Makoto's head next to Heero's shoulder. She looked short, and not at all the type of woman that he would have imagined Heero being with. Makoto took it as an insult and felt her fighting spirit rearing up as her emeralds darkened. Moving out from behind Heero, Makoto took her stand, standing taller than him by few inches. Duo gave out a laugh.

"Geeze, Wu-man, that's Heero's wife you're talking about. Don't under estimate her, she beat me at arm wrestling," said Duo, finishing his way down the stairs only to see Makoto and Wufei's eyes locked in some sort of silent battle. Wufei scoffed.

"A child could beat you," replied Wufei. Heero felt the tension and looked at Makoto; he'd never seen her like that before, the look in her eyes as if she were up to the challenge. It was very interesting to see this new aspect to her and a bit exciting for the outcome. Quatre wanted to calm the situation down quickly.

"Wufei, why don't you unpack and perhaps could join us for some fun at the beach?" asked Quatre quickly. Wufei nodded and started up the stairs only for Heero to pull Makoto in front of him, her eyes never backing down as they passed each other. "Anyone up for breakfast?"

The ride was soothing as Makoto rode behind Heero on his hayabusa; it had been a long time since she let herself jump on the back of a bike. This was a bit different, and for some reason it felt good pressing her body against his lean back.

What am I thinking? No matter how much fun I have here, it's only temporary. It's not like we really know each other. A deal's a deal. Makoto frowned while she loosened her grip around his waist as they pulled into the parking lot. She moved off first, pulling at the black helmet and letting her long wavy auburn tresses free. The salt water tickled her nose but made her more excited for the day ahead. Finding a spot, the couple set their things down as Quatre's car pulled up. Makoto had only pulled her eyelet smock white sundress off when she felt Heero's eyes looking at her. Giving a long stretch towards the welcomed sun, Makoto grinned.

"Like it?" she asked, referring to her new bow-tie triangle bikini with matching ruffle low rise skirted bottom, decorated in white with pink and brown dots covering it. It was a must-have when she saw it in the store, and she was glad to have brought it. This finally gave her the chance to show off her tamed muscles and flat stomach. Heero didn't reply and looked to Duo who had a volleyball in hands.

"Want to play a game before hitting some waves?" asked Duo.

"That sounds like fun," said Makoto with a grin, watching Wufei rise to the challenge. This was their time to get the aggression out, and she was going to win. They agreed Makoto and Heero against Duo and Wufei while Quatre would be the ref to catch cheating. Heero was the first to serve the ball, and watched as the game started to heat up. Wufei looked as if he was calculating when and where he was going to hit the ball, aiming it mostly at Makoto. Luckily, Makoto had blocked the hits but managed to keep her cool, or at least it looked like it to Heero. The game kept going, roughly as Makoto and Wufei took over the action to get shots past each other. Surprisingly, Makoto made the first point of the game which reeled Wufei into a grumble. Heero served the ball again and let Makoto get all the front court action, smiling to himself at how competitive she was. It was actually attractive to see a woman not afraid to show her tough side.

Think of something else…instead of how gorgeous she looks…thought Heero, directing his attention to Wufei. A smirk moved over Wufei's face as he spiked the ball downwards, Makoto missing it only for it to bash her in the nose. It looked as if she was going to bend down, making Heero start to move forward only for her to pick the ball up from her feet, emeralds glaring at Wufei still holding a smirk as she passed the ball for Duo to serve. Heero thought about moving Makoto to the back but by the body language she was giving off, this meant war. Wufei could be rude and mean at times, but Heero never took it personally. Hell, he blew most people off and ignored them. Keening his senses, Heero watched the game starting to get a little out of hand. Wufei pull another move as the ball spiked towards Makoto only for her to block this time.

"That's enough for today," said Quatre, trying to end the tension. Heero grabbed Makoto's wrist, feeling as if she was plotting something while he tried to catch her attention. Pulling her to one side, he could see her eyes ablaze like he felt during the heat of a battle in his gundam. Never before had he seen a woman with that same blood driven look he enjoyed so much. That's what Heero liked about his job, the high he got from it by how dangerous it was. He felt Makoto pull her wrist away aggressively as they met back at the beach towel set up, Wufei looking as if he was enjoying himself with his smug smirk.

"Who wants to playing another game?" asked Duo sheepishly, a bit embarrassed by Wufei in front of a pretty girl. The tension felt worse than before, and then Wufei scoffed a chuckle only for emeralds to shoot up at him, fuming. Immediately, Heero grabbed Makoto's arm. He couldn't believe how dangerous she looked.

"Wufei, please," said Quatre, trying to calm the Chinese man who was getting too cocky. Heero pulled Makoto along with him in another direction, feeling that she needed to get away. Tightly he wrapped his arm around her waist as they walked in silence to nowhere in particular. Heero stopped them near the shore, looking over his shoulder to see Quatre scolding Wufei. It felt like old times, Wufei seemed to still be brooding over his wife but who wouldn't? Even thought it had been years, sometimes you love someone so much you don't want to forget them so you hold on so tightly it affects you.

Heero smirked to himself, looking at Makoto's sour mood and her slightly red nose. Wufei did get a good hit, but he didn't think it was that bad. Touching her cheek gently, Makoto turned her attention to Heero only for him to look like he was going to lean in and kiss her. But instead, he lifted her over his shoulder suddenly and started running towards the water. Makoto couldn't help but let out a laugh and then they both went under. Pulling herself to the surface, she looked around to see Heero's head bobbing near hers, a smirk still there.

"Heero?" she asked, only for him to nod while his face relaxed. She didn't know why, but she blurted it out. "Thank you."

He smiled.

"I should be saying that," he replied, feeling shallow all of a sudden. It was a bad way he tricked her into all of this and she had managed to cooperate while looking incredible. If it wasn't for her, his ego would be gone as well as him having to fulfill a promise he didn't even want. So far, he had managed to avoid a meeting with Relena; he wasn't scared of it, but rather the disappointment he'd give her. But his feelings were starting to strand together. The more he stayed with Makoto, the fonder he grew of her. Already he could feel them bonding in a way he never felt before; his heart would quicken when he thought of her and he felt so relaxed near her. Wait? Was he going to fail his mission? Frowning inwardly, Heero set his mind into action. This was a mission, and he would not fail. He wasn't called a perfect soldier for nothing, and not even this woman was going to change that. She was a pawn in his game, things were by his rules, and played how he wanted them to be. Heero Yuy would not fail.

"Makoto, wanna learn how to surf?" yelled Duo from the beach, watching her head turn to him to give a nod. She looked at Heero for a moment but decided to leave him since he looked as if he was deep in thought and retreated back to the beach where Duo gave her a surf board and that was when she noticed Wufei was next to him. Duo clapped his hand on the man's back with a grin. "Wufei here is a great surfer, so it's best if you're taught by a pro."

Makoto cringed at the thought but decided to give a try. Most people she knew that were rude had something else going on inside to make them be that way. Perhaps something was bothering him and he lashed out at her? Listening to his directions about balance and how to find it on a board, Makoto soon found herself sharing a board with him out into the ocean to find a good 'learning wave' he called it. She sat on front, her legs dangling in the water while she felt the rolling of the ocean behind them. She had to admit, when he didn't look angry he was good looking.

"I'm sorry Makoto," came the voice behind her suddenly. She turned back to see Wufei still looking away as if looking for some waves. She gave a soft smile, he did sound sincere and she didn't need to hear any reason. Those words were perfect enough. "Get ready to paddle."

She followed his directions, feeling how exciting it was as they paddled down as the wave started to get bigger and bigger behind them. When he gave the queue, they both moved to their feet while Makoto felt how to balance and shift with the waters. It was hard but she was starting to get it but ended up leaning a bit too far, causing them to tumble off the board. Unprepared for the sudden fall, her lungs were burning and seeking air. Quickly, she swam up and managed to grab some air before another wave pulled her down and started to sweep her out to sea.

Heero watched from the shore in horror, quickly running into the water as Makoto kept trying to come up but be swept out. He was sure she was a strong swimmer but by the looks of it, she hadn't had much experience in the ocean and knows how the currents went. Wufei had tied the board to his ankle and quickly pushed towards where he thought she was going to come up before diving in. As luck had it, he found her and pulled her back up onto his board, bringing them in quickly to shore. Heero was the first out as he quickly lifted her and took her back to the shore, laying her on the sand. Was she breathing? He put his head to her chest to feel her heart beating faintly. Pushing down on her chest, he plugged her nose and opened her mouth to blow air in. After a few more pumps, she started choking up the salt water as it burned her nose and mouth. Trying to push up from the sand, Makoto felt the pain in her right shoulder and pulled her burning eyes open. Groaning, she looked at the damage to see it was popped out.

Oh gods no, no, no,..not here, thought Makoto while seeing the worried eyes. Quickly her eyes found Heero's grim, worried gaze as if he knew what she was thinking.

"Heero," she said, snapping his attention from her shoulder to her eyes. "Do it."

His eyes narrowed, only for Quatre to break the silence.

"We should take you to the hospital, there are nerves that could be damaged if we do something," said Quatre only for Makoto to sigh. How was she going to explain this to all of them? That she was like a super hero? That she had super powers? Due to serving Serenity, her body had a very hard time dying. It took less time than a normal human for her to heal. In a couple days, she would be fine. Would they look at her like a freak? Pushing it back to her mind, she didn't have that much time left. She needed it to be set now or else it would start healing and she would have to get it broken again in order for it to set right.

"Heero," she said rougher as his eyes landed on her. What was he doing? He wasn't sure what to do; should he listen to her or his friend? Why was she demanding it? Finally, he looked up at Wufei since Duo stayed on the side of Quatre in taking her to the hospital.

"Wufei, hold her steady," said Heero. Wufei crouched next to Makoto, pulling her onto her side and felt her arm slither around his leg for support for the pull. Heero saddled her side while he took her limp arm close to the shoulder while the other rest on her ribs. Inhaling sharply, Makoto felt him pull as she held onto Wufei's leg for support while her jaw clutched tightly. Heero felt a bit shaky as he pulled her up and wrapped a towel around her while she supported her arm with her other to keep the pressure off. Quatre now insisted that go to the hospital despite his disappointment from Wufei and Heero for performing that task. Makoto cursed silently…how was she going to explain this?