A Reason to Change: Chapter 2
By Symee-Sama

Relena blinked groggily when the phone rang, unsure who would be calling her this late at night. She sighed, listening to the phone ring a couple more times before reaching over and poking her long time boyfriend. "Heero." She whispered, poking him again. "Get the phone."

"Why should I?" He asked grumpily. "It's probably for you anyway."

"The phone's on your side." Relena continued to poke him. "So you should get it."

Still grumbling, Heero reached for the phone, and picked it up. "Hello?" He listened for a minute, his expression becoming more and more confused. "Is something wrong?" He asked finally, and listened for another moment before passing the phone to Relena. "It's Hilde." He informed her in a worried tone. "I don't know what's going on, but something's definitely not right."

"Hilde?" Relena pressed the phone to her ear, motioning for Heero to leave the room. "What happened? Are you okay? Is Duo okay?"

"Whoa." Hilde laughed softly. "One question at a time. Duo and I are both fine, physically." Hilde sighed, all laughter gone from her voice now. "But we had a fight, and I need someone to talk to. I know I shouldn't have called you this late, but I...I don't know how to handle this."

"Why don't you start by telling me what happened." Relena suggested. "It might come easier if you start from the beginning."

"Duo and I went on a date." Hilde said after a moment. "A just between friends thing. He took me to see a movie, and after that, we went to the club. He came on to me, Lena." Hilde said through gritted teeth. "He tried to get me to sleep with him, and got angry when I refused to.

"Just like that." Hilde snapped her fingers. "He switches from being my friend to wanting to be my lover, and expects me to just follow wherever he leads me. I never thought that he could be so... so callous. Just casually offering to sleep with me, and then to go back to being just friends once he got tired of me."

"This doesn't sound like the Duo that I know," Relena commented. "This sounds more like your interpretations, Hilde. Tell me what he said, word for word."

"He said that he wanted to be with me, and that he wanted more than one night." As soon as the words left Hilde's mouth, she realised that she had handled the situation badly. She clenched her fists in frustration. "Oh God, I screwed up!"

"It wasn't just you. It was handled badly by both parties. You're not the only one to blame, Duo moved way too fast."

"Why wouldn't he?" Hilde asked, the question directed towards herself instead of Relena. "That's the only way he knows how to handle girls. One date becomes one night. Always." Hilde stressed. "I don't think that any girl rejected him before me."

"I don't think he would know how to deal with a long term relationship. He probably hasn't ever fallen in love before."

Hilde snorted. "He falls in love every single time a pretty girl walks past him."

"That's not the same thing, and you know it." Relena chided her. "He's probably confused by what he's feeling. If I was in his position, I would be unsure of what to do."

"Lena," Hilde laughed. "You would never be in his position and you know it." She said in the same tone that Relena had moments ago before her laughter faded. "You want me to go back, don't you?"

"I want you to do whatever you think is right," Relena corrected. "But I strongly suggest that you talk to him about what happened tonight. You shouldn't run from this, Hilde."

"I know," Hilde sighed. "But I don't want to face him. I... I didn't understand what he was trying to tell me. He was trying to offer me something that he had never offered anyone else, and I threw it back at him, insinuating that all he was interested was one night."

"Why would you think otherwise?" Relena asked sharply, refusing to let Hilde place the blame squarely on her own shoulders. "That has been all he was interested in for years, but I think that he's serious this time. He said that he wanted more than one night, and to my knowledge, he's never lied. Go back to your apartment. Work things out with him. If you ignore this, it will only get worse."

"Right." Hilde said softly. "Thanks, Lena. Sorry for calling so late."

"What are friends for?" Relena said, dismissing the apology. "Besides. I've called you before about things that Heero's done. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call again."

"I'd be afraid to wake Heero up again." Hilde laughed, amazed at how easily talking to Relena could ease the stress in her life. "I like living."

"You won't have to worry about Heero," Relena assured her friend. "I'll take care of him. Good night, Hilde."

"Night," Hilde replied before hanging up, and exiting the phone booth. She took a few deep breaths, staring at nothing as she ran through the conversation she'd just had. Then, her mind made up, she began to walk farther away from the apartment that she and Duo had shared.

. . . . .

It was early morning when Hilde found herself standing in front of her apartment, fumbling for her keys. She had put this off long enough, and she wasn't going to run any more. It had taken her a couple of hours of walking around the colony streets, but she had realised that Relena was right. She had to work this out, and she couldn't do that if she ran away.

She had just found her keys, and was reaching for the door, when she heard the distinct click of a lock. She drew her hand back just as the door opened and she found herself face to face with the tall, beautiful blonde from yesterday. "Who are you?" Hilde demanded, ignoring the sinking feeling in her stomach.

This isn't what it looks like, she told herself. Don't jump to conclusions. He just called her over to talk. But even to her, the excuses sounded hollow.

"I thought, I heard someone." The woman said simply, and stepped aside so Hilde could enter her apartment. "You're his room mate, right?" Hilde nodded, and the girl smiled. "I thought so. I saw you yesterday. I'm Megan." She held out her hand, and Hilde shook it with numb fingers.

"I'm Hilde," she said, eyeing the way that Megan was dressed. She was wearing, one of Duo's shirts, and little else. So that's what he meant by more than one night. Hilde thought bitterly, and even though she knew what the answer would be, she turned to Megan. "What are you doing here?"

"The same thing as before," Megan replied easily, walking over to the kitchen, and grabbing a pack of cigarettes from the counter. "Want one?" She offered, and when Hilde declined, she shrugged her shoulders, and lit one for herself.

"You know, I never expected him to call me again." She took a drag on her cigarette. "They almost always take your number, but usually, it's a courtesy thing. Not like I'm gonna refuse him, though." She jabbed a finger towards his room. "He's gotta be one of the sweetest guys I've ever met. So how come you haven't made a move?"

"What?"

"You live with him," Megan smiled at her. "But you haven't tried to be with him yet?"

"I'm looking for someone with commitment." Hilde said coolly, wondering why she was being so calm about this. She should've been angry, she should've been throwing things around the apartment by now, but instead, all she felt was cold. Like she was made of ice. "He refuses to commit. Are you staying here until he wakes up?"

Megan nodded. "He's the kind of guy that you don't want to leave until you have to."

"Since you're staying, would you give him something for me?" Megan nodded again. "Thanks." Hilde's smile sent shivers running down Megan's spine. It was so cold. "Just give me a moment."

Megan watched as Hilde walked into the room across from Duo's, and shut the door behind her. Hilde was back by the time that Megan's cigarette was done, carrying a duffel bag, and an envelope. "Give this to him when he wakes up." She said as she handed Megan the envelope.

"Did you two have a fight?" Megan asked, a little uneasy at how empty the other woman's eyes were and when Hilde nodded, her expression became sympathetic. "Is there anything that you want me to tell him?"

"No," Hilde shook her head. "He'll know what's going on. Just make sure that he gets that." She pointed at the envelope, swinging her duffel bag over her shoulder, and walking towards the door. "And lock the door behind me." She opened the door, pausing before she left to look back at the first woman to ever spend two nights with Duo. "It was nice meeting you." Hilde said sincerely, and before Megan could reply, she was gone, shutting the door behind her.

Megan stared at the closed door, and then at the envelope in her hand before walking over to the door and locking it like Hilde had asked her to. That idiot. She thought angrily, looking towards Duo's room. That stupid idiot. She stalked into his room, and slammed the door behind her.

"Get up." She practically snarled, and pulled the covers off of the bed, dragging Duo with them.

"Hey!" He yelled when he hit the floor. "What the fuck is your problem?"

"You hurt her." Megan shoved the envelope at him, wondering why she was getting so upset for someone she had just met. "And I hurt her. You called me, so you could hurt her, and I don't like being used that way."

Duo looked at her in surprise, and thinking back on what he had done, he realised that she was right. He had wanted to hurt her. To prove to himself that she was nothing, and to push her aside. With shaking fingers he opened the envelope, unsure of what to expect.

It was an invoice, an invoice for this month's rent, and enough credits to pay for Hilde's half of the rent. "No," he whispered, and jumped up, running out of his room, and into Hilde's.

It was empty. There were no clothes in her closet, and the pictures that had once decorated the walls were gone. Everything that had been hers was gone. He sat on the bed, burying his face in his hands. What had he done?

He didn't look up when Megan sat beside him, putting her hand on his shoulder. "If you like her that much, why did you call me?" She asked softly.

"That's not your business." Duo snapped, pushing her hand away. Didn't she understand? Hilde was gone, and it was all his fault. Why wouldn't she leave so he could get good and drunk, and start forgetting?

"It became my business when you called me, and used me to hurt her feelings." Megan shot back. "She seems like a nice person, and I don't like hurting nice people."

"You talked to her?" Duo looked up.

"No, I just pulled that envelope out of thin air." Megan rolled her eyes. "Of course I talked to her, and I could tell that she likes you. It's obvious that you like her. So what did you do to screw things up, and why did you call me?"

"I wanted to prove that she meant nothing," Duo said uncomfortably, unsure of what Megan's reaction would be.

"So you chose a girl who meant nothing to you, and slept with her." Megan said without any bitterness in her voice. "You're really lucky that I don't believe in holding grudges." She walked into Duo's room, emerging a couple minutes later, fully dressed.

"Go out and get her," she ordered him as she pulled on her coat, and when he didn't look up, she grabbed his face, and forced him to look at her. "I mean it, Duo. She obviously means a lot to you, so don't let her get away without you telling her how you feel.

"She told me that she was looking for commitment." She kissed him on the cheek. "Keep that in mind when you find her." She advised him as she slipped a piece of paper into his hand. "It's my phone number, but you only call me when you need someone to talk to. I'm never going to sleep with you again."

She smiled once more at him, and then walked out of his apartment, not noticing the astonished look on Duo's face.

He wasn't sure if he sat there for minutes or hours, staring at the door where Megan had been. She had understood him better than he had understood himself. He shook himself from his reverie, and smiled slightly. It was nice to know that he could call her for some advice. She seemed to understand this situation much better than he did.

The smile faded as he remembered why he was sitting in Hilde's room. She was gone. Grimacing slightly, Duo walked over to his room, and began to pull on his pants.

He had to find her.

Author's Note: Sorry it took so long to update this fic. Had a bit of trouble hammering out the plot. That's why this chapter is a bit shorter than the last one, and why it might be a little rough around the edges. If there's anyone out there who's willing to beta read my 2xH stuff for me, I'd appreciate it. My friends aren't really into this pairing.

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, and for your comments! There were some pretty good arguments for/against Duo being a complete womanizer... and some of you didn't like the idea of him as one... shrugs It's just something I can see him as. He would be absolutely gorgeous in real life, add witty, cute, and intelligent into that, and you'd have women practically throwing themselves at his feet.

Thanks again!

Symee