((And finally... !!!
Warning: Yaoi. Don't know what it is, don't read it. : )
Disclaimer: I haven't been asked to own them, though I dream of them often, does that count?))
Epilogue
"Ow."
"..."
"Ow, OW! Owowowowwwww ow ow. Umm... owie?"
"..."
"Okay, okay.. but just don't OUCH! Dammit, Heero!"
"Duo," a darker tone, strange how silence can be dark. Yet this single syllable is darker than the still reaction of a moment before.
"I know.." Duo's whimper rambles up the stairs, around the hall, bumping against the railings at the edge of the balcony. "It just hurts."
"I don't see why you can't sit still."
"Because, Oooooo please don't! Can't I just let it fester? I don't mind it festering. Because, oh Heero! Don't hold onto me so hard. That hurts!"
Quatre turns into the kitchen at the base of the stairs and watches the group. Friends, each of them. Behind, the sunlight pours into the window, breaking shards of reflection off of a steel sink and dancing on walls. A cool day, but sunny. It should prove to be perfect.
Why is it
that sunlight can make anything beautiful? If one is in the right mood,
that is. And that is the mood Quatre Winner discovers his psyche to
have occupied this morning. Entering a kitchen, fully clothed and
showered, he watches the trio at the table. Wufei over his morning tea,
his dark eyes dancing in muted delight, watches Duo and Heero wrangle
over Duo's arm.
Heero, as usual, is winning.
"Owwwww, oh Heero, you don't love me anymore!" Duo's violet gaze swims in crocodile tears and his friend says nothing. No, Heero is far too intent on getting that hand to hold still.
They continue to struggle as Quatre crosses past them and glances at Wufei, giving a nod and then sending out a chipper, "Morning!"
A blue cup, darker than his own eyes, but calming enough, is soon full to the brim from the hazel nut scented coffee in the swedish red pot near the stove. Quatre's fingers curl around it's lip where the ceramic won't burn and takes stock.
The struggle has finalized with Duo half bent over Heero's shoulder, contorted to the side as if he'd been trying to twist himself and use Heero's shoulder for a lever so that he could extricate his arm from the dark haired pilot's grasp. This was, in fact, just what he'd been trying to do, with much cursing and begging and so on. But in the end, it only managed to immobilize Duo. Heero's hands held strict control as the tenseness in his bare arms showed.
"You know, if Tro saw this, he might start to think something was up," Quat teases, tilting his head and staring at them. Heero, still in his boxers with a loose tank top, while Duo's chest is completely bare and his legs encased in long flannel pj's.
"Duo?" Quatre manages to ask after his coffee touched brain makes the connection. "Are those Heero's pajama bottoms?" He tries not to let his mind do the conclusion jumping exercise.
Duo resists squealing as his eyes train on the blonde who is not helping him in the least bit. "Oww... yes... why?" he huffs.
"Oh, nothing," Quatre shrugs and gives a look at Wufei and wonders if there is more than just the struggle which can account for the bemused light in the chinese man's eye. And as if in conspiracy with Wufei, Quatre slides in a chair by the other and reaches for a muffin.
"Oh please, Heero, I swear I'll have your babies if you don't do this. It just looks so damn, OW! That hurt!"
"If you would hold still," Heero interjects.
"If you would stop poking fucking holes in my hand!" Duo shoots back.
Wufei leans over and smirks, "Sliver."
Quatre's brow raises. "Really?"
"Babies?" comes the missing voice and Trowa, also dressed and ready for the day, enters, gives a cursory glance to the contortionists, and leans over to kiss Wufei's brow and then goes for the coffee. In passing them, he calmly adds, "How many times has he promised that, Heero?"
"At least five times," Heero grunts.
"Hmm... quintuplets, I've always wanted to be an uncle," Quatre interjects happily.
"Oh c'mon you guys! Lay off, hunh? Oh Heero! I swear I'm never going to say another bad word again!" Duo's wail dramatic as always.
"What do you wanna bet he hasn't even touched him yet?" Wufei asks and draws out a chair beside himself for Trowa who returns with a cup, then reaches for the creamer in the center of the table.
"Hmm.. I think you might have something there," Trowa chuckles, settling next to his lover.
Duo cries. "Dammit! I'm bleeding here you guys! He's gouging my entire hand! Looking for one fucking piece of wood! Who cares?"
"I haven't." Heero's calm face shows no sign of what he might be feeling right now, annoyance or humor at the buoyant squirming that his roommate is doing across his back. "He won't hold still long enough."
"Hold still? How the hell can I hold still? You've got me held as still as I'll ever be!" Duo complains in the midst of laughter. "You guys are so wrong for me. I'm going to disinherit you all. That's it, Quat! You'll never see my red kiss thong underwear!"
Quatre blinks and turns red. "I don't think..." then at the laugh of triumph from Duo shakes himself. "So how'd you get the sliver, Duo?" trying to change the topic, his Christmas gifts not completely forgotten.
Duo stills a moment, thinking to himself. "It was this morning. I got up and was getting out of bed when I fell. Your beds aren't big enough, Quat. And cause the floor is wood, I slipped on my hands as I tried to keep my legs from falling out, only that's the kind of thing that happens when you get kicked out of bed. You don't really stand a chance. Lucky I didn't get any slivers in my knees, really... "Duo stops, looking at the other three who are staring at him as if they don't get it. "Sliver. Slipped. My hand slipped on the floor... The floor is wood?"
When the three don't respond, Duo sighs. "What is so hard to understand about that? Heero, explain it to them." Then something which has occurred to the others, occurs to him as well.
Silence has no chance to overtake the room. For as unflappable as always, Heero comments, "Apparently I take up more room than Duo is used to. He rolled over in an attempt to get to the other side of the bed, not realizing he was already on the other side of the bed. And in falling, he kicked me. Waking up, I responded in the old fashion and kept him moving." They all knew how that was. Sometimes you weren't quite all the way out of the war. One foot always stuck back in the past and there were the odd moments where that "foot" made its presence known.
"Therefore," Heero continues, "when he fell, his hands apparently shot out along the grain of the wood and caught in one of the joinings and picked up a sliver."
Trowa was first to recover. "I see.." and then added, "I'm sure you two will figure the mornings out soon enough."
"Oh we're not doing mornings ye-et" Duo's voice dies off and his face turns bright red in recognition of how blatant he's making it. "Umm, we... we haven't gotten that f-far." He manages to put information in the statement, but since Heero is turned from the table and Duo is across his back, Duo alone can see the faces looking at him. Everything from the triumphant Trowa to the aghast Wufei and finally to the shock on Quatre's face.
"Heero?" Duo tries, "you done?" and his voice rises into a squeak at the end. Heero had been calmly trying to convince his arm to hold still, had been tracing long slow circles on his forearm and despite the tight grip, Duo was far from hurting. But whenever Heero had ceased the touch, Duo knew that the needle with the burned tip, was heading toward his sliver and had protested all the more.
"You.... and Heero?" Wufei asks. Beside him, Trowa runs an arm past to get sugar and Wufei spares him a glance, as if shocked at how his lover is taking this, more shocked at that then the actual fact even.
Duo gives them a weak grin, his face aflame as he ventures to free himself again. "Heero?"
Silence follows but the hand is released and Duo stares at his hand as he pulls himself away, finding it free of sliver. Getting away is a far different story however and in a moment after, he finds himself in a warm lap, the heat of a chest under thin cotton at his shoulder and a nude arm around his waist, the skin on skin sensation rather... hrm. New?
"Errr.." Duo struggles a moment and rubs his eyes in nervousness.
Quatre continues to stare. Truth be told, he should have known. He'd been certain of Heero's feelings of course. Most of them knew. All of them knew, really. Except Duo. And Quatre had known before Heero even, had thought long before, toward the end of the war, that it was strange how Heero chose to stand, how he kept his body often times open toward Duo in a way he could not do to anyone else. It was a higher friendship than Heero had with any of the others. And it was telling in its own subtle way.
So why hadn't he known? All the signs.
Heero smiles and the smile warms Duo's shoulder before it emerges, somewhat shy around Duo's upper arm. Duo in turn, looks behind him at Heero, his violet eyes large and surprised. "I thought we weren't going to tell anyone yet!" his hissed whisper traveling through the room.
"It's like a band aid. The sooner you get it done, the less it hurts," Heero answers matter-of-factly. He wasn't sure in saying it and he is surprised even now, that Duo can't hear his heart pounding. It was stupid, a stupid, ill-thought out move on his part. Something he'd been fighting doing from the beginning. He had a bad feeling that he may very well find himself doing stupid, unplanned things more and more often, now that his plans were being taken over by a braided ex-pilot.
"Oh yeah?" Duo grinds out, his embarrassment turning into a flush of anger. He turns in that glorious lap and stares down at the dark chocolate eyes gazing up at him.
They're making a scene. He can feel it, but Duo doesn't want to care. Because it will only prove to make him more angry.
"I'm sorry, Duo," Heero tries to stem the tide that is coming in, not wanting to have this first moment spoiled before everyone. It wasn't often he was compelled to apologize. But in this case, it might just be needful. In fact, if he keeps doing stupid, unplanned things more often, then he'd need to consider apologizing more often as well.
"Well!" Quatre's voice finally expels from his mouth in a half shout and a breath.
Duo is quick to look back at his blond friend. "I'm sorry! I am so sorry! I didn't mean to! I really didn't. It just happened.."
The others watch this new conversation with interest. Wufei quiet and Trowa intrigued.
"Just happened?" Quatre stares in apparent dismay. "You promised! Duo! You said you never would!"
Heero's heart skips a beat and he can't help but tighten his arms around his... his... his lover? Had he been wrong? Blue eyes meet his over Duo's shoulder and the recrimination in them makes him shrink.
"I know!" Duo sighs. "But it's not like I have much say in the matter. You knew before I did. You even told me you thought I should wonder about things, that I might have more than I thought invested in this!"
"Well, yeah. But Duo, I figured you would at least give me some warning."
Trowa's laugh is low. "The stories weren't enough warning, Quat?"
Heero, feeling lost, slowly starts to undo his hold on Duo, wondering how such a beautiful morning could turn so sour so quickly. "I don't understand," his voice low and in Duo's ear.
Duo turns and Heero can finally see the face of his love, the smile there and the laughter. And glossing over it all, a triumph. Duo is winning. Duo is getting his revenge. For whatever it is, this is pay back against Quatre. And Heero finds his heart rise once again out of the pit it had fallen into. Strange, that he should trust so completely. But he has known them all far too long. And even the uncertainty of new love is no match to the bonds that tie them all together.
"Quatre's upset. Because I'm with you." Duo smiles.
"But... why?" Wufei's query mocks Heero's.
"Because!" Quatre mock sobs. "I'm the token straight guy!"
Then seeing how the opening is there, Duo dives in with a mischievous grin. "Oh, don't worry, Quat! I'm sure we'll cure you soon enough."
Quatre, face bright red, falls back into his chair and laughs. And around him, the voices of those he loves rebound in the kitchen. And the sunshine sends extra light into the kitchen to do its best to entice them all out into the wide world awaiting them all.
::Owari::
((Well, I can't believe how MANY times I've written this epilogue. This is the fourth? I can't seem to get anything down that fits the rest of the story. So heck, maybe I shoulda ended at last chapter. Hee hee. But it needed something. Anyway, thank you ALL who chose to read this story. I can't believe I finally finished a story. I don't think I've ever done that on my lonesome ever before. Not without a deadline waiting on me somewhere. Thanks go most especially to Anissa for her steady support. I couldn't have done it without ya, actually. L And to all the rest of you! My goodness. I hope it was fun for all of ya. Feel free to give me feed back on how I could have made it better! I was not expecting such a positive response. I'm glad it worked out well. Until next time, eh?))