Note: I am extremely tired and didn't do as thorough a read through for edits as I'd like this morning. If I spot anything grammatically wrong or misspelled later, I'll make the necessary changes.

Chapter 73: Just A Minute

Everything happened in a blur.

Duo was certain when they met up with Heero at the airfield he would be angry but instead he got right down to business, checking inventory and signing out the gear they took from the armory. He watched in a daze as his partner took charge without any judgment. He was certain there would be hurt feelings over just who he called for help. It appeared Heero was above that.

Trowa and Quatre arrived shortly after.

The way they all worked, stocking supplies and readying for their flight, made it appear like they knew what they were getting themselves into. But Duo had not explained a damn thing, and anyone paying attention would notice the former Gundam pilots were bringing a massive catch-all of supplies. He didn't want to interrupt them because he was certain he couldn't help. The freight container they were loading was packed like they were going to war.

He also wanted to avoid explaining himself until they were off planet because at that point no one could talk him out of what he needed to do. Unfortunately, it wouldn't work out that way because his friends grabbed all the gear they could need faster than the shuttle could taxi over. A crew was on standby to load it into the ship. But it wasn't just any ship.

Une was offering the fastest ship in their fleet. His original half-baked plan was to steal it for his transportation. She just… offered it up, no questions asked.

Everyone seemed on edge and Sally was the first to break the ice.

"So. Tell us what's got you rattled."

Duo's eyes cut to hers. He figured there was no time like the present to dive into it, and with all eyes on him he didn't really have a choice.

"You remember that orphanage I told you about?" She nodded. It didn't matter if the others understood, he was addressing her.

"I got a call from the nun who runs it. 'Cept she wasn't on the line." His eyes were ablaze and Sally felt dread overtake her as he continued. "Turns out someone on L2 figured out I've been funding them. They took the kids hostage and made a ransom demand."

"What ransom?"

He turned to Trowa. "Half a million." He paused. "And me."

"WHAT?"

"Heero..."

"What do you mean they want YOU?"

There was no mistaking his partner's rage.

"I dunno, they didn't really specify."

Heero was furious. "What do you mean they didn't specify? They demanded you trade yourself for some kids and never explained further?"

Duo flinched at the words some kids and it was not missed by the others. Quatre tried to change the subject. "I can make a call and have the half million ready in whatever format they want by the time we arrive." He wasn't expecting Duo's frown to deepen at those words. He thought he was being helpful. When Duo spoke there was an edge to his voice.

"Already got it, but thanks."

Quatre was stunned. "You what? How did you manage half a million already? Didn't they just call you right before you called us?"

Duo's eyes narrowed. "I only called Wufei." He saw Heero in his peripheral vision trying to contain anger, and knew it must pain him to be overlooked, even though it was the truth. Maybe Heero wasn't above being hurt after all. "But to answer your question, you're not the only person with resources."

The blonde shook his head. "But how? That's a lot of money, Duo."

Clenching his teeth and trying to remain calm, Duo wasn't sure how to respond. He was acutely aware that everyone was listening and waiting for an answer but he'd been avoiding giving them any information about his finances. Everyone had an expectation of him that pointed to irresponsibility. Of course they did.

Quatre made comments about how he mismanaged his money while insulting his small home, back when they went to the cabin together. Trowa warned him away from buying artwork that he decided was too expensive for him to afford. Heero subtly tried to pay for everything while they were together, and he wasn't sure if it was because the man thought he couldn't afford to contribute, or because he was trying overly hard to be doting. Either way it didn't sit well, but he'd been afraid to bring it up. Sally told him that he didn't need to bring anything to the potluck, when everyone else was clearly bringing food.

Okay, maybe Sally was a stretch.

And Wufei always respected him enough to trade off who paid for their lunch outings. He never got the feeling that Wufei picked places that cost more on purpose when it was his turn. He just didn't know all the spots Duo did, and sometimes on his day to cover costs he would ask Duo to bring them back to a spot he'd introduced on one of his days to pick, because the food was excellent. He kind of hated how Wufei made things easy, and made him relax.

But there were all kinds of microaggressions in general from more than half the group that added up to them not believing Duo had money because of his minimalist lifestyle.

He tried hard to ignore the possibility that they just didn't trust a street rat not to immediately consume everything he earned. Prejudice like that was something Relena got wrapped up in, and he wasn't sure he could handle it if his actual friends were the same.

Instead of answering he asked "Does it fucking matter? There are kids in danger right now. These assholes used the nun's phone so tracing the number doesn't do shit for tracking who is behind this. I didn't know the voice on the other end of the line. I've been trying to figure out if anyone on L2 has unfinished business with me but there's literally no one because everyone I knew from L2 is dead. The only person on the colony I can think of who could be behind this is Chevalier."

Everyone stilled, and Duo eyed them all. He still didn't know who the information leak was, but he was certain they were standing in front of him. None had any particular tell, and he didn't want to believe they'd go as far as to help someone endanger the lives of children. He studied them as he continued to explain what was happening.

"I've no idea why he'd do this, and it wasn't his voice on the phone, so I'm going in blind. I called Wufei because this time it's not just my life on the line. He says you're all supposed to trust me. So are you gonna back me up or not?"

When Duo finished he was quietly seething. The looks on his friends faces shifted away from anger and confusion into guilt. He knew it was cruel to tell them he wouldn't call them if not for the kids. It downplayed the value of his own life, but that was status quo for Duo. His life, as much as he wanted to live it, didn't matter. He regularly threw himself into danger if it helped someone else. He turned towards the shuttle, which had arrived and was being loaded, and started walking.

Wufei jogged up beside Duo.

"You're right! What matters right now are the kids." His voice was calm, and Duo felt a sense of deja va. It was a lot like when Wufei ushered everyone out of his home before he could get truly overwhelmed, way back when they'd all first found him. His best friend was set on keeping his role as his defender. It was kind of sweet. The Chinese man continued, "I;m aware we're going in blind, but do you know the layout of the orphanage? If yes, it'll be useful to know more about the location."

Duo looked into his eyes, grateful to have him, and grateful for the we in his statement.

"Yeah. I know the layout. I have copies of the blueprints. I know it pretty…" he trailed off, stopping and turning to check who followed. Trowa and Quatre made eye contact as they passed him. Heero did not. In the distance, back towards the hanger, was Sally. She was angrily talking on her phone.

He couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong. Every part of him was standing on edge since he got that phone call. He couldn't ignore the dread.

A half minute later she hung up, and turned to them. He knew what she was going to say before she even approached.

"I'm so sorry, they're short on doctors at the hospital. I tried to see who else could cover but—"

"It's okay, Sally." Duo shot her an encouraging smile. "Go do your job."

She closed their distance and hugged him, placing a kiss on his cheek.

"Kick ass, Duo."

"You got it, boss."

She gave Wufei a wink and turned to leave, lightly jogging away from the shuttle towards the exit and parking. Duo stayed frozen in place well after she disappeared. That bad feeling lingered.

A heavy hand fell onto his shoulder and Wufei invited him on board. He called up the blueprints from his files to occupy himself and the others until launch. There was just enough time to brief them and give them all a chance to back out of this mission before they headed into space.

Heero was hurt and angry, silently fuming to himself as he sat with Trowa and Quatre, strapped in and ready for launch.

Wufei was in the cockpit with Duo, who'd quietly asked him to be his copilot.

Wufei.

The man had the decency to shoot him an apologetic look before following Duo to run final systems checks. The others were unwilling to address his mood while they waited. Quatre briefly appeared to try to say something but when he made eye contact his friend withered.

He felt like he didn't even know Duo.

Apparently his partner was hiding more than a few things from him. From everyone. What else was he hiding?

That Duo was supporting a church on L2 which took in abandoned and homeless children was not entirely shocking. That he paid to have an entire addition built onto the original church in order to give the children proper rooms and common areas to study, play, and host community service events? That was mind bending.

Duo had the blueprints handy because he commissioned them.

He commissioned and paid for an entire facility on L2 and gathered funds for a half million ransom in under an hour, all while acting like he'd done nothing of merit.

Duo was hiding a lot from him.

The ship moved, and soon he felt familiar g-forces pressing his body into his seat. It also served to enhance his frown. He was kept in the dark about some very big things, but this wasn't what poisoned his mood. Duo having money, and by the looks of it more money than him, wasn't a problem. His charity wasn't a problem, either. While he would've felt better if Duo trusted him with that kind of information, he understood that they weren't exactly at the stage of their relationship where finances were discussed. They definitely weren't at the stage of their relationship where secret charitable organizations were discussed.

What actually hurt, what made him question their relationship in a way he thought he wouldn't have to again, was that Duo didn't call him when he needed help. He was heartbroken and angry. Just a day ago his selfish, asshole of a partner told him to advocate for himself against him and Heero was more than willing to comply.

Duo was in for a fight.

Once the ship made it through the atmosphere he planned to give that baka a piece of his mind, but before he could unbuckle his harness Duo was already walking out of the cockpit.

"Wufei's piloting until we can engage auto-pilot." He explained. "Heero. Join me in the cargo hold?"

Without waiting for an answer the braided man left, and it almost made Heero more angry. He knew Quatre and Trowa were giving each other one of their meaningful, silent looks. At the moment he wanted to punch them both for it, and wasted no time following his stupid, selfish, bastard of a baka through the ship.

Moments later they were alone, and as the doors to the cargo hold closed behind him Heero turned on Duo, disappointment and a lot of anger etched onto his face. Without preamble he dove directly into what was bothering him.

"You called Wufei instead of me."

"Yeah."

Heero raked a hand through his hair, stopping at the base of his neck and then dragging his hand back down to his side.

"How many times do I have to tell you I'll be there for you? Duo! Just yesterday—"

He was cut off when Duo advanced on him and pinned him against the door. The move was quick and unexpected, but he didn't resist. When Duo spoke his voice was angry.

"I called Wufei because he's my friend, and I was about to do something dangerous and illegal and that's exactly what best friends call each other for. It was the right fucking move and I stand by it, even though he went behind my back and called all of you!" Violet eyes were stormy in a way that caught his attention. "I didn't call you because I'm in love you and I refuse to put you in danger. I will not willingly put your life and career on the line, I refuse to drag you into criminality with me, and I'll be damned if you hold my fear of living in a world without you in it against me."

There was no way he heard Duo right.

"You mean everything to me, Heero. You are the best constant I've ever had in my life and I just don't know what I would do if something terrible happened to you. I can't even let myself think that it's a possibility. Years ago, when we were Preventers partners, I'd have called you first. Hands down, I'd call you first. I was used to being in danger with you, and we're a great team. I have extra confidence knowing you've got my back. But damnit, I don't want the last two days, those amazingly perfect two days, to be our last two days. And we haven't worked together in years. I don't know if either of us are capable of putting aside these big feelings we only recently expressed in order to get a job done, and I selfishly didn't want to test it when your life might be on the line."

Duo took a deep breath and let it out. Heero looked at him in silence, still trying to wrap his head around what he was hearing.

"I know it looks bad. I'm not saying I did everything right. But for real I did know, deep down, that I had to tell you what was going on. I really would've called. I was honestly planning to call you. I just..." Duo suddenly looked incredibly guilty. "I wanted a head start before doing it. So when you chased me, because this time I knew you would, I'd have time to finish whatever this is before you arrived."

The unsteadiness of Heero's voice when he finally responded was unusual.

"What did you say? That first thing?"

Heero watched as all fight drained out of his partner. He'd felt his own anger drain, too, much earlier in Duo's explanation. He could hardly remember why he was hurt. Duo, meanwhile, gave him a sweet half smile, his eyes softening.

"I said I'm in love with you." Heero was freed from his position when Duo stepped back. "And I didn't want you here because I was planning to commit multiple felonies. The only reason I haven't, yet, is that Wufei has more faith in others than I do. He called Une, which hadn't even crossed my mind as a viable option, and somehow this is all kind of above board now."

If he expected Duo to cut eye contact, or show signs he was nervous, uncomfortable, or ashamed, there were none. Duo spoke with determination. He was incredibly confident.

"I never meant to pass judgement on you, or hurt you. This isn't me thinking you won't be there when I need you. It's the opposite. I knew you'd show up, but everything else from here on out is an unknown. It could be easy, it could be devastating, I just don't know. But I do know I was planning to commit a career ending crime in stealing a Preventers ship, and I couldn't let you be an accomplice."

Duo smirked a little.

"At least one of us needs to be out of jail so we can break the other out. That's what we do, yeah?"

They stood there, in the cargo hold, eying each other. It was evident that Heero's lack of response made Duo feel the need to say more. His expression became serious again and he bit his lower lip, that incredibly guilty look taking over his features once more.

"But with all that said, it doesn't mean I'm not happy you're here. And it's not just about your skills. I told you, a while ago, that I always sleep better with you near. You have to know by now that I always feel better when you're near, too. And honestly? I'm an idiot who didn't realize just how important having you here in any capacity would be until everything was already happening."

Heero felt a torrent of emotions, and he knew Duo recognized it by the way the light in his eyes shifted and his expression further softened.

"Heero?"

"Yeah?"

"Say something."

He wasn't sure what to say. His brain was still catching up with what just happened. He'd waited so long to hear those words he wasn't sure it was real. If he thought their moment on the weekend when Duo had him read his lips was perfect, did he even know what perfect was? Because his heart was beating loudly in his ears and he'd never faced such a mix of happiness and shock. For months while he was worried about Duo going on dangerous missions he never considered Duo would be worried about him. They really were quite the pair. And Duo? Duo was waiting for him to reply.

"Two days ago you weren't ready to say that out loud."

"Yeah."

"You couldn't tell me you loved me with your voice."

"Yeah."

"What changed?"

Duo hesitated. "I… don't know. I didn't really think about it this time. The reason I've been holding back for months just doesn't apply anymore. There's no doubts. No pressure. I'm just stating facts, and the fact of the matter is that I'm in love you and I don't want to ruin your life along with mine if I can avoid it."

Something about that amused Heero to no end. He knew it might not be the most appropriate thing to focus on out of everything Duo said, but he had to ask a question that he couldn't hold back.

"But you're cool with ruining Wufei's life?"

He loved watching how Duo's face changed, embarrassed. "Well… I mean..." his eyes darted around. "Kind of?"

Slowly, Heero closed the distance between them and grabbed the front of Duo's shirt, gently pulling him near until their breath mingled. He knew that there were countless reasons to dive into Duo's initial reaction and break down just why he behaved as he did, but that could wait. Right now he just wanted to focus on the good parts. Duo was finally able to verbalize his love. He wanted him around, in any capacity. He called someone for help when he needed it, and that was better than no one. Though he still seemed to bristle at his friends' involvement, he accepted it. And perhaps most importantly, Duo didn't avoid him, knowing he was feeling hurt. He didn't hide in the cockpit with Wufei or busy himself with pretend work. He'd approached and asked to speak in private at the earliest possible time, faster than even Heero, in all his initial anger, could make a move.

It was a clumsy step forward, but it was still a step forward. He smiled, fighting the magnetic pull of their proximity and marveling at how much they'd changed as individuals and how much things changed between them, too.

"You're a real baka, you know that?"

Duo nodded slightly and whispered "yes, sir!"

"Tell me again."

When Duo purred at him he felt a rush of anticipation.

"I'm in love with you, Heero Yuy. Have been for a long time. Never fully stopped."

Heero leaned forward to steal a quick kiss, but Duo had other plans and held him closer to deepen it. He ran his hands through Heero's hair in that way he'd recently done, the one that sent shivers down Heero's spine. The kiss was gentle rather than hungry, but it was full of want. It spoke of love above all else, and when they quietly pulled back and Duo's hands remained to gently hold his neck Heero was left feeling warm and a little excited. If this was what the new phase of their relationship would be like, he was in for the time of his life.

"I'm glad we've cleared that up. I love you right back, Duo Maxwell. So why don't we rejoin the guys and figure out a plan of action to help the other people you care about?"

Eyes dropping to Heero's chest, his face a little flushed, Duo whispered in a low voice "Can we take a minute or two first? I know there's time before we arrive at L2, but I can't guarantee we'll have time alone again before all the shit hits the fan. I just…" He looked up to meet Heero's gaze, one hand slipping down from behind Heero's neck to rest over his heart. Little electric waves ignited along the path as Duo's hand lightly traced downward. "Since you're here with me, let's take a minute. I could really use a quiet minute, just us, to ground me." The light in his eyes shifted, and something flashed in them that Heero wasn't used to seeing. It was fear, and an undefined emotion.

"I'm really scared, Heero."

He finally realized that Duo was trembling. The unconscious movement was subtle, so subtle he'd missed it before, even as they held each other close. Heero couldn't believe what he was witnessing. His baka, his ray of light in an otherwise dark world, his strong and capable love with bravado enough to stop people in their tracks, was trembling in fear. It was unheard of. Duo Maxwell was not the type to tremble.

"And I need a minute." Duo whispered, "With you."

It hit Heero all at once, that look in Duo's eyes. It was fear and explicit trust. Nothing Duo said could've made him feel more valued than seeing so much trust placed in him.

Then Duo whispered, in as soft a voice as he ever heard from him, "Please, Heero?"

Heero wasn't sure why he suddenly felt tears threatening his eyes and his throat closing off. Maybe it was the way Duo asked, his voice barely audible but holding so much weight and hope. Had it been any louder he felt Duo's voice may have cracked, and he wasn't sure if he felt heartbroken or incredibly loved. He swallowed down that intense rush of emotion to respond.

"Okay."

In no time Duo was once again fully gathered into his arms, held tightly against him. It wasn't a crushing grip, but it was firm enough to loudly assert his presence. Slowly, he eased up the pressure of their embrace but still kept Duo close, with no intention of letting go. In a gentle tone, Heero whispered against his ear.

"You've got me however long you need."