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" March 8, 2015: Happy Birthday"Written By: Clara Barton Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing. The following
is an intellectual exercise with no intention of profit. That said,
these characterizations, words, and situations are mine. Please ask
before reprinting. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: smut, language, fluff, angst, AU Pairings: 1x2xR Summary:
" March 8, 2015: Happy Birthday"
Birthdays, Relena couldn't help but think, were shit. As soon as you were old enough to care about things other than what flavor of birthday cake you got - chocolate cake, chocolate frosting always - then you were old enough to realize that getting older was as inevitable as it was awful. Relena had been fifteen when birthdays had been forever ruined for her - funny how seeing her father die in a terrorist attack had done that - and ever since, she has dreaded the change of the calendar from March to April. Of course, this year, not only was April 7th a reminder of her father's death, but it was that most dreaded of birthdays - her 30th. Relena woke up early that morning - earlier even than usual - and lay in bed staring at the ceiling, waiting for the unavoidable call from her mother. She had tried, in years previously, to not answer when her mother called to wish her happy birthday. But then she kept calling - if Relena didn't answer at eight, then her mother called at nine, then ten, then eleven, and every hour on the hour until Relena finally answered. One year, Relena had held off until nine at night, and had then had to spend two hours comforting her mother, assuring her that Relena loved her, that she was a wonderful mother, that everything was fine. Her mother, remarried for thirteen years now and happy to be the arm candy for some Hollywood producer, meant well. Relena knew that. But listening to her go on and on about the coterie of eligible young men in Los Angeles, the wrinkles she had seen around Relena's eyes in the most recent photo she had sent, the way Relena's clothes seemed too tight or too big and had she gained weight, the wonders and sheer joy of being married to a man who - in addition to not being dead - treated her like a queen. Relena loved her mother - she did. But it was very, very hard to like her on April 7th. After half an hour of glaring at her ceiling, Relena forced herself to get out of bed and get ready for the day - laying in bed all day and wishing it wasn't April 7th would not change the fact that it was April 7th after all. She showered, she took the time to curl her hair and, after applying her makeup, she pasted on a smile and took a photo of herself and posted it on Facebook - last year, when Relena had not done that, it had been the first thing her mother said when she called, had been the start of a fifteen-minute dissection of Relena's faults, and she absolutely did not want a repeat of that this year. Of course, her efforts to head off a lecture from her mother also, predictably, had the result of providing her ammunition for a new direction to critique Relena from. When her mother called at eight, Relena drew a deep breath, finished her coffee, and answered the phone. "Good morning, Mother." "Oh, happy birthday, my darling girl! I was so happy to see your face this morning - your hair just looks wonderful, and you're using that new Chanel blush, aren't you?" "Yes," Relena cautiously agreed, waiting for the other shoe to drop. "It looks so perfect on you - I knew that color would suit you. It's so nice to see you making an effort - you are so beautiful when you try, dearest." Relena knew her mother was waiting for a thank you, waiting for an acknowledgement of her compliment, but it was all Relena could do to keep silent, close her eyes and mentally count to ten. "Is there some special occasion today?" her mother continued after an awkward pause. Relena frowned and glared at her phone. "My birthday?" "No, no, of course there's that, but I just so rarely see you put effort into your appearance - honestly, how a daughter of mine thinks chapstick and brown eyeshadow are all she needs is-" "Mother, I-" "But what I meant, dearest, is do you have a date tonight? Or even for lunch? Someone special to celebrate the day with?" Relena sighed. "No, Mother, I don't." "Relena, darling, what happened to Quatre?" "We broke up three months ago, Mother, when he realized he would rather sleep with his personal trainer than with me." "Oh." Her mother was silent, and Relena could practically hear her revising her battle strategy. "Well, I bet she took the time to put on makeup and always look her best for-" "Mother, she is a he, and I don't think either Trowa or Quatre care whether or not a girl is wearing the Chanel blush that is just so perfect on her." Her mother was silent for a long, excruciating moment, and then Relena heard a sniffle. "Mother-" "No, no. I'm fine." Relena rolled her eyes. Of course her mother was fine - that didn't mean she wouldn't turn this into a huge guilt trip for Relena, though. "I just- I just want to see my baby girl happy, and it seems that I can never say or do the right thing for you, Relena. You are always ready to be sarcastic or-" "Mom, I love you. I do. And I am happy." Her mother huffed in disbelief. "Happy? You work awful hours, you live in an apartment the size of a closet, you are thirty and you still aren't even engaged, Relena. I'm terrified you're going to end up alone and miserable, and I do not want that for you, dearest. I know- I know what it feels like to be alone, Relena. I do not want that for you." Relena had to actually bite down on her own tongue to keep from snapping back at her mother. Her mother, who had been alone for all of seven months before she started dating Harold the producer. Her mother, who had had Relena there by her side, ready with tissues and valium and vodka. Her mother, who had never had a job in her life. Her mother, whose walk-in closet truly was the size of Relena's apartment. "I'm not alone, Mother," Relena said, and she already felt tired, already felt done with this day and it wasn't even eight-thirty yet. "I have friends and a career, and I'm not going to end up alone and miserable." "You say that now, Relena, but in ten years - in fifteen, in twenty, when you look back and you see how empty your life is - when you start asking yourself what if I had just given that nice doctor a chance..." "That- Mother, are you talking about Wufei? That misogynist gynecologist?" Her mother had set her up with Wufei last year, had invited them over for one of Harold's "intimate" parties of twenty guests, and Relena had been seated beside Wufei and it had been the most excruciating dinner of her life. "Honestly, he's not a misogynist, Relena. He's a woman's doctor, how can he hate-" "Mother, he listed, in very intricate detail, all of the ways that the human female body is inferior to that of a human male, and all of the ways that a male would be better at being pregnant and giving birth. I listened to him call all women - pregnant or otherwise - overly emotional, sycophantic and insipid. He's a misogynist, and I don't know why you use him as your doctor." "Perhaps he was simply responding to your prickly nature, Relena." Her mother sniffed again, and Relena rolled her eyes. Of course. Of course it was Relena's fault. She looked at the clock on her microwave and silently cheered at the time. "Mother, I'm sorry, but I really have to go or I'm going to be late for work." "You're going to work... on your birthday?" "Yes, Mother. They aren't going to let me take the day off just because I'm one day older than I was yesterday." "All I meant, Relena, is that you work very hard for them. You work long hours - you work weekends. You would think that asking for one day off would-" "No, I'm sorry," Relena sighed, and she rubbed at her forehead. "I know what you meant and I'm sorry. I just- I love you, Mother." "And I love you." Relena sighed again, and found herself biting her lip. "Will you- will you check Daddy's grave? I sent new flowers for today, and I just want to make sure they arrived." Relena felt the silence from her mother like a weight pressing on her chest. "Yes. I'll make sure." Her mother's voice was brittle, and Relena knew she was fighting back tears. Relena swallowed hard, swallowed an apology, swallowed her desire to say anything else on a topic that had driven them apart for the last fifteen years. "I have to go to work now," she whispered into the phone. "Yes, yes, of course you do. Have a lovely birthday, Relena." "Thank you, Mother." Relena hung up the phone and wiped at her eyes. Birthdays were shit. -o- Relena had shocked a lot of people, herself and her advisors included, when right out of grad school she landed a job with Dolby Laboratories in the marketing department. Now, six years later, she was one of the youngest marketing managers and damn proud of it. The pay was great, the work was challenging, the atmosphere exciting, and yes, her mother was right. She did work long hours, especially when big projects were on the line, but Relena liked that. She liked almost everything about her job. The one thing - the one person - that required her to use the 'almost' caveat was Dorothy Catalonia. The same age as Relena, same background, same prestigious undergrad and grad schools, same impossible-to-get internships. They had been hired at the same time, and their former supervisor - now long shipped off with an eye-rollingly generous benefits package - had confused Dorothy and Relena for months and months. He had resorted to just calling out Blondie, and dealt with whichever one of them responded first. Inevitably, Relena and Dorothy had been at odds with each other. It was disheartening for Relena, who wanted desperately to have the support of her female co-workers in the male-dominated company, but her desire to succeed and be recognized warred with her inclination towards supporting other women. In the years since they had been hired, Dorothy and Relena had competed for everything from assignments to promotions, and in the end, they were still competing, even though they now both had corner offices. The competition had changed, with their successes, and Relena and Dorothy had recently started going out of their way to be nice to each other after a VP made the casual, cutting remark that it was too bad 'these girls are so cutthroat.' So Relena wasn't at all surprised when she walked into work that morning and saw Dorothy, a stupid pastel hat on her head and a noisemaker in her fingers, standing at the front of a group of their coworkers beside a cake, ready to sing Happy Birthday to Relena. Relena pasted a smile on her face, just as fake as Dorothy's, just as fake as the one for her Facebook picture, and she thanked everyone and accepted the piece of cake - chocolate on chocolate because Dorothy did nothing halfway - from Dorothy as she mentally counted down the number of minutes she needed to linger before she could escape to her office and bury herself in work. It wasn't until after lunch that Dorothy came by her office to personally offer her best wishes. "How old are you now, anyway? Forty?" Dorothy didn't even say hello - didn't wait for Alex, Relena's secretary, to buzz her in - just waltzed into Relena's office as though she owned the place. Relena looked up from her computer and glared. Dorothy just smirked. In this, at least, Relena would always lose - Dorothy was nine months younger than her. Not enough to matter, all all, except for times like this. "Thirty, as I'm sure you know. Don't worry, you'll be here soon enough." "Mm. But I won't be miserable and alone like you, now will I?" Dorothy sat, uninvited, in a chair across from Relena's desk. Relena snorted. "I wouldn't be so sure of that." Dorothy reached out to tweak the photograph of Relena and her father that sat on her desk. Relena was about to snap, about to demand she never touch that, when she saw the sparkle of a diamond on Dorothy's finger. "Sylvia proposed?" "Yes. And it was just so romantic," Dorothy said with a contented sigh. "Of course, she'd been planning it for ages - though I'm not sure how since she is just so busy. You know, with her work at the San Francisco Safe House. She's such a saint." Relena knew. She had been subjected to hours and hours of Dorothy waxing poetic over her flawless fiancee. The first time they had met, at a department function, Relena had been fully prepared to hate her. But Dorothy was right - Sylvia really was a saint. Relena still couldn't wrap her head around the idea of them as a couple - still couldn't figure out how on earth they had even met. "Anyway, we're getting married at Christmas. Her favorite time of year." "Congratulations," Relena belatedly offered. "Oh, thank you so much. Of course, you'll be invited. You know, Sylvia's brother is-" "Dorothy, I appreciate it, but I don't need your help finding a date. Especially not after Quatre." Dorothy arched an eyebrow, and her lips curved upwards before settling back into a straight line. "Yes. Dear Quatre. I am sorry about that." Relena knew - and Dorothy knew she knew - that Dorothy wasn't sorry at all. Relena had only gone out with Quatre in the first place to get Dorothy to shut up about him, and then she had had to listen to months of Dorothy's 'I told you so's' when things went well - followed by weeks of 'oh, I am so sorry, who could have ever seen that coming'? Dorothy saw it coming, Relena was sure of it. "Yes, well. I'm over it. And I'm trying to work, so unless there was anything...?" Dorothy smirked and got to her feet. She glanced down at the photograph. "Oh, nothing. Just wanted to wish you a happy birthday, and of course, offer my condolences about your father's passing. I know this day is so difficult for you, to be so alone and miss him so very, very much." She left, and Relena stared after. That had been low, even for Dorothy. After a few minutes, Alex came in. "Are you okay, Relena?" he asked cautiously. Relena shook herself, realized she had just been staring into space, and she started to apologize. No. She stopped herself before she could even start. "Fine, Alex. I'm actually taking off for the day." "Going to make it a long weekend to celebrate?" "Something like that," Relena agreed, and started to save the documents on her computer. "Forward any important calls." "Of course! Happy Birthday!" "Thanks." -o- After more than an hour wandering the aisles of Sprouts Farmers Market, loading a basket with wine and popcorn and eventually a carton of her favorite Aden's ice cream, Relena had driven home, unloaded her groceries, and decided to take a very long bath while drinking a very large glass of red wine. The goal, of course, was to not think about anything. Not her birthday. Not Dorothy. Not Quatre. Not her empty apartment. Not her mother. Not her father. But of course, Relena failed. One sip of the Malbec had her sighing and tearing up. Her father had loved wine - had delighted in giving Relena a taste of whatever he was having, and loved the interest she had taken in it. Their last family vacation had been to Sonoma, and Relena could still remember her father's smirk as he offered her clandestine sips. The Malbec - this Malbec - had been his favorite. She probably shouldn't have chose it - not today, at least. But she had, because today, of all days, she wanted to remember him. It was nearly four by the time she got out of the bath - the water cold, and the bottle of wine she had brought into the bathroom with her to top off her glass half-empty - and she pulled on her falling-apart-at-the-seams Stanford t-shirt and a pair of boxers that she had commandeered from Quatre before lying down on the couch and risking her sanity by turning on the television and watching CNN. The first bottle of wine was empty, a second opened and a bowl of popcorn in her lap before she knew it. Funny how shouting at political pundits made the time fly. Just as Relena finished up the popcorn, just as she started to think about just how alone she really was, and yes, her mother was right, probably - she wasn't happy, and in fifteen years she would look back and realize she had made a horrible mistake and maybe she should just pick up the phone and call Wufei because even a ranting misogynistic was better than no one - better than a guy who left you when he realized he was gay and in love with his personal trainer, and maybe- The doorbell rang. Relena stared at the door. "Delivery!" a voice called out from the other side. Was she that drunk? Had she really ordered take-out and completely forgotten about it? Relena stared at the half-empty second bottle of wine. It was possible. A knock followed, and Relena reluctantly got up from the couch. She walked over to the door and looked through the peephole. And then she rubbed her eyes and looked again. It couldn't be. Relena unlocked her door and swung it open. She was immediately engulfed in the arms of Duo Maxwell as he hugged her and spun her around. Standing just behind him, amused smirk softening his strong features, was Heero Yuy. "What are you doing here?" Relena asked when Duo put her down and she stepped over to hug Heero, his embrace warm and tight but less exuberant. "Well, 'Ro and I were talking last week, and we knew that this birthday was pretty significant so we figured instead of calling you we'd just show up on your doorstep." Relena arched an eyebrow at him, even as she realized she was grinning like a fool. They had grown up together, had known each other for as long as she could remember, had gone through childhood and puberty and high school together as best friends before Relena went to Stanford, Heero to Columbia and Duo to Georgetown for college. After college and grad school, Duo found himself in Dallas, Heero Washington D.C. and Relena had stayed in California. They had kept in touch, though, and still took annual vacations together - the last, Duo's choice, had been to Aspen back in January for three days of skiing. "Thirty isn't that significant," she argued. Duo snorted, and traded a smirk with Heero. "Not that significant, she says. 'Ro, man, I think she's forgotten all about our proposal." Heero adopted a wounded expression and nodded. "She's moved on," he said, and gave a wistful sigh. "What are you two talking about?" Duo grinned. "Remember when we were seven and we all agreed that if we were thirty and unmarried, we'd get married?" Relena stared at him, the wine doing very little to help her piece together what he was talking about. And then she did remember the childhood promise, the way all three of them had exchanged kisses before a teacher had walked over and pulled Duo and Heero apart and admonished the three of them. She arched an eyebrow at Duo - or, at least she thought she did. "How much have you had to drink?" Heero asked, his deep voice clearly amused. "Too much," she confessed. "We should probably sober her up and wait until tomorrow to find a judge to marry us," Duo said to Heero. Heero nodded, and then, without warning, bent down and picked her up, lifting her over his shoulder effortlessly and carrying her into the apartment. "Let's see what we can do about saving you from a raging hangover," Duo said as he followed them in and closed the door behind him. Heero deposited her by one of the kitchen barstools while Duo set their bags down by the couch before surveying the wine and popcorn. He shook his head. "You sure do live a crazy life out here." She glared at him, but he just smirked and joined Heero in the kitchen. Relena sat on the barstool and pillowed her head against her hands on the counter and watched them. Heero, who had spent all of ten minutes in her kitchen during his last visit a year ago, moved about as though it was his own, pulling out a pan, cutting board and knife while Duo rooted around in her refrigerator and started to hand him ingredients. Eggs, spinach, cheese, butter. She had to smile. Heero's omelets were legendary - at least, according to Duo, who liked to tease Heero about them endlessly, and certainly from Relena's limited experience with them. While Heero started cooking, Duo passed her a glass of water and leaned against the counter beside her. "So, how's Mommy Dearest doing?" Relena made a face and thought, for all of thirty seconds, about defending her. Then she shrugged and took a gulp of water. "You got any bread?" Relena gestured to the top of the fridge, and Duo leaned up and pulled down a bag. He took the knife out of Heero's hands just as he was preparing to dice the spinach, offered him a smug grin when Heero glared, and slathered butter onto a piece of bread before handing it over to her. Relena reluctantly started to nibble on it. "I just... I want her to believe me when I say that I'm happy, and that I don't need to be married and stuck at home taking care of screaming babies to be happy." Heero arched an eyebrow, and his lips quirked upwards. "But you make it sound so appealing," he murmured. She gave him a look, and Duo snorted. "Are you happy?" Duo asked after a moment. "Her expectations aside?" Relena hesitated before nodding. "Not so much right now," she admitted, "but when it's not today? Yes, yes, I'm happy." Heero nodded. "Good. Don't let her take that away from you." Relena smiled at him, even though he was concentrating on the stovetop and didn't see her. "But what about you two? What's new in the lives of Dr. Maxwell and Professor Yuy?" Duo shrugged and snagged the neglected bottle of wine and poured glasses for both Heero and himself. "My grant just got approved, so we start phase two on the research next month," Duo said. Heero looked over at him. "I didn't realize. That's great." Duo smirked, but then he lifted his leg and gently shoved it against Heero's ass. "You're the one with the big news, Mr. HotShot," Duo said. Relena turned to Heero, whose cheeks had actually turned pink. "I heard back from Princeton." "And?" Relena prompted, though Duo's goofy grin told her all she needed to know. "They're offering me the position." Relena got off of her stool and ran around to hug him from behind. She pressed a kiss to the back of his neck. "I'm so proud of you!" "He also negotiated for an extra five thousand on his salary and four years counting towards tenure." Relena wasn't too familiar with the world of academia, but Duo lifted his eyebrows and nodded, letting her knew it was a big deal. She squeezed Heero's waist again, and he moved one arm to hold her hand. "Thanks," he said, his voice a little gruff. Relena leaned her face against his back and sighed. It was good, really, really good, to have them here tonight. To not be alone. Duo tilted his head to the side and gave her a questioning look. "I thought you guys had forgotten," she admitted. "Neither of you called and-" "Hey, we would never forget," Duo said, and pulled her away from Heero to hug her again. "I just wanted it to be a surprise and-" "I said we should call you first," Heero interrupted. "Yes, Mr. Plan Everything Perfectly, you wanted to call first. And I'm sorry we didn't." Relena shook her head. "No, it's fine. I just- I've had a lot of wine." "I'm just glad it's not tequila - you get very feisty after half a bottle of that." Relena had to laugh at the memory Duo was referencing, of their trip to Key West the summer they all turned twenty-one and the night she had challenged a six foot tall, two hundred pound marine to a fight after he had tried to dump water on her so that he could judge her potential to win a wet t-shirt contest that she had no desire to participate in. Only Heero and Duo holding her back, laughing their asses off, had prevented her from doing more than breaking his nose. "Ready to eat?" Heero asked, expertly folding the omelet over before sliding it out of the pan and onto a clean plate. He set it on the counter, and Duo nudged her back to her seat. Relena huffed, a little irritated at being pushed around in her own apartment, but she sat down and picked up the fork Heero handed to her. She watched as he started to make another. "I can't eat two of these," she said, her stomach already giving her doubts about one. Heero arched an eyebrow at her and the corner of his mouth lifted. "I thought Duo might like one - I know that I'm hungry." Relena flushed. "If that's okay with you?" Heero added. She nodded and forced herself to take a bite of her omelet. Of course, it tasted amazing. "Heero had big plans for us to go out on the town tonight," Duo confided as he sat down beside her. Relena looked up, ready to apologize, but Duo continued. "Of course, I'm not sure what kind of posh restaurant he had in mind, but I'm thinking boxers and a t-shirt are a little understated for casual chic." Heero snorted in amusement as he continued to cook. "So I figured we'd stay in tonight, watch some of your favorite movies, and go out tomorrow night." "How long are you two staying?" Relena asked, unexpectedly overwhelmed by the fact that they were here, that they would be here tomorrow, that they cared. "Our flights leave Sunday night," Heero said. He handed another plate to Duo, who accepted it and then rubbed his hands together in glee. "Man, I have been dying for one of these ever since your boyfriend just would not shut up about them." Heero rolled his eyes. "How is Ralph?" Relena asked. She had met him over Christmas, when he and Heero came home for the holiday, and the five of them - Duo, Heero, Ralph, Quatre and Relena had gone out for drinks. Heero shrugged one shoulder. "Fine, I'm sure." Relena arched an eyebrow at Duo, who lifted both in return. "What happened?" Heero sighed, and angrily cracked an egg into a bowl. "Nothing. Nothing happened, and apparently, that was the problem." Duo scowled. "He said that?" Heero nodded, and cracked another egg. Relena watched him methodically beat the eggs into a smooth batter and couldn't help but notice how tightly Heero was gripping the fork. "What an idiot," Duo muttered. Heero nodded again, and Relena looked up to see how tightly his jaw was clenched. They had been dating for almost two years, and Relena had found it sickeningly sweet, the way Heero talked about Ralph whenever they spoke on the phone. "When did-" "Yesterday." "Yesterday before or after we made plans to come out here?" "After. Apparently, taking a weekend to fly out for my best friend's birthday is a sign of just how little I care about Ralph, since I've never taken a weekend off out of the blue for him." Relena felt guilt settle into the pit of her stomach. "I'm so sorry, I-" "No," Heero cut her off with a wave of his hand. "This is not your fault. It's mine." "What? Because you didn't take off every weekend to take him to a bed and breakfast?" Duo shook his head. "No way, man. Ralph is a total-" "Don't blame this on him." Heero flipped his omelet onto a plate and remained standing while he ate it, one hip against the counter, his face in profile. "It was my fault. These last six months... I've been busy with interviews and my research." "Okay, but that's, like, normal. You-" "I forgot about him, Duo. Yesterday? I forgot to even tell him about this. I came home, I packed my bag, and I didn't even tell him. He saw it by the front door, and he waited all night for me to say something, and I didn't." "Okay, but that was one-" "No, it wasn't. I did the same thing when I went to Princeton for the interview. Whenever I work late- I always just forget about him. He's right. Nothing ever happens because I'm never around for it to, and when I am around - when I doremember, we just fight." "I'm sorry," Relena said again. Heero gave her a look. "I'm not saying it's my fault. I'm just saying that I'm sorry it happened. I know how much he meant to you." Heero nodded. "He- he's a great guy. I want him to be happy. I just... forgot how to do that." They ate in silence after that, until Duo finally threw down his fork. "Jesus, this is depressing as hell. First Relena's dream guy realizes he's gay, then Heero's dream guy realizes he's a needy brat - don't defend him. I'm sure he's great, but I'm your friend and I'm allowed to not like him in this moment, Heero - and the only people who even bother to ask me out are my research assistants." "What happened to Hilde?" "She's taking the job in Chicago, and she doesn't want to start anything because she thinks long-distance relationships are impossible." Relena had to shake her head. She raised her nearly empty glass of water. "Here's to being single forever." Duo snorted, but he lifted his wine glass and Heero tapped his own against theirs. "Somehow, I doubt we'll be single forever," Duo said after taking a sip of his wine. "We're just too damn pretty to die alone." "Hopefully, not too pretty to help me with the dishes?" Heero asked. Duo made a face and grumbled something under his breath, but he got off his stool. Relena followed him, but Duo took her plate away. "No, no, no. You need to get more water and some aspirin, and then go park your ass on the couch while Heero and I take care of this. Movies are in the front of my backpack - pick out what you want to watch first." Relena lingered in the kitchen long enough to watch Duo and Heero start washing the dishes, Duo bumping his shoulders and elbows against Heero, clearly trying to get a rise out of him by invading his personal space, until Heero rolled his eyes and hip-checked Duo out of his way. Relena smiled at the sound of Duo's chuckle and the sight of Heero's eyes crinkling. She refilled her glass, downed the prescribed aspirin, and then set about looking for the movies. She wasn't at all surprised to find them sandwiched between pages of what looked like Duo's research. She also wasn't at all surprised by the three DVDs he had chosen: Fever Pitch (Heero's favorite), Pride and Prejudice (Duo's favorite) and Sabrina (Relena's favorite). "What are we starting with?" Duo called out from the kitchen, raising his voice to be heard over the sound of the running water. It was a tough call. Relena loved Sabrina - especially the Audrey Hepburn version, which Duo had selected - but Heero... "Fever Pitch," she announced, and got up to put the DVD into the player. By the time the boys joined her on the couch, Relena had finished off the second glass of water, made a trip to the bathroom where she saw her hair was an utter wreck and decided she didn't care, and felt her drunkenness begin to recede very slightly as the water, food and aspirin started to work their magic. The boys sat down, one on either side of her, and Duo scooped her feet up into his lap while Heero shifted towards the corner of the couch and let Relena lean against his side while he rested his arm over the back of the couch. She felt an aching moment of nostalgia - how many nights had they done exactly this over the years? How many weekends in high school had they spent hiding out at Duo's house doing exactly this while Relena or Heero's parents threw party after party? "You know," Duo started to massage Relena's bare feet as the movie started, "for a guy who is both a rabid Yankees fan and super gay, you have an inordinate love of this movie." Heero shrugged. "It hurts to see the Sox win at the end, but it's still a good story. Besides, I'm not gay - just like you're not straight." "Fair point," Duo smirked. "You're gay except for Relena, and I'm straight except for you." She could feel Heero nod in agreement. "Plus, Drew Barrymore reminds me of Relena." While she didn't see it, she was still flattered by the compliment. "I didn't realize that." "And Duo reminds me of Jimmy Fallon. Just with acceptable hair." Duo snorted a laugh at that. "Acceptable, says the man who refuses to brush his hair. Ever." Relena couldn't help but smile and settle back as they continued to bicker. By the time they finished Fever Pitch, both Duo and Heero had had a few more glasses of wine and Relena a few more of water. It amused her that her slide back into sobriety was almost the opposite of Duo and Heero's slide into a buzzed state. Duo put in Sabrina next while Heero made another bowl of popcorn. "I can't believe him and Ralph broke up," Duo confided to her. "I think he was really serious about him - he talked about proposing." Relena nodded. Two months ago, Heero had mentioned that to her too, had asked her opinion on proposing on someone's birthday. "Do you think they'll get back together?" Duo snorted. "You know Heero - once his mind is made up, there's no changing it. He's convinced that Ralph is better off without him, and I swear to God, it would take Ralph sprinting across Yankee Stadium and getting arrested by security to convince him otherwise." As amusing as the mental image was, Relena had to admit it was true. "Talking about me?" Heero asked as he came back into the room, armed with Relena's last bottle of wine and the bowl of popcorn. "You know it," Duo grinned, and snagged the bottle of wine. They settled back to watch the movie in the same positions as before, and it was nearly midnight, and Linus had just confessed his plan to Sabrina when, behind her, Relena heard Heero start to softly snore. She looked over at Duo, who was looking back at her, a grin on his face. "Might be bedtime for 'Ro," Duo said with a wink. Relena nodded. "Me too. It was a long day." "Think you've had enough water or-?" "I think I'm good now. Thank you." "Hey, what are best friends for?" Relena eased out of Heero's arms and helped Duo tidy up and turn off everything before they returned to the couch and gently nudged Heero. He grumbled and shifted his head against the back cushion. "'Ro, dude, come on, let's get you to bed." Heero scowled as he slowly blinked his eyes open and stared at them. His expression softened and he smirked ever-so-slightly. Beside Relena, Duo chuckled. "Oh buddy, there's my favorite 'Ro. Buzzed 'Ro." Duo held out a hand and pulled Heero up to his feet, and together the three of them went into Relena's bedroom. "I'm not buzzed. Not really. Just tired." "Uh huh. You went all goofy grin and sappy eyes on us, buddy. You're either buzzed or you're horny. Or both." Relena looked over her shoulder and saw Heero regarding them speculatively. She rolled her eyes. "You just broke up with your boyfriend who you almost proposed to, Heero," she pointed out. He sighed and scrubbed at his face. "I know." Duo brought their bags into the room, setting them to one side and rooting around for his toiletries before disappearing into the bathroom. Heero sat down on the edge of the bed and Relena sat down beside him, resting her head on his shoulder. "You know you're a great guy who deserves to be happy too," she said. "Even if Ralph and you... Even if things didn't work out. It doesn't mean they won't ever." "And just because I'm mostly gay and Quatre is very gay doesn't mean that every guy you date is going to leave you for another man," Heero responded. Relena snorted. "You and I never dated, so I'm not including you. As it stands, only one of my eight boyfriends has left me for another man." "I'm hurt that I don't even make the list." She rolled her eyes and poked him in the side. "You want me to count one very sex-filled weekend the summer before we went to college as a relationship?" Heero shrugged under her head. "That might be the only time we've had sex, but you and Duo and I... our relationship matters." Relena sighed in agreement. "I know. I'm not saying it doesn't. But I-" "Okay, seriously. You two need to stop it with the sad faces and the sighing," Duo said, coming back into the room. He had taken off his clothes while in the bathroom, and stood in front of them in only his boxers. "Happy thoughts, friends. New rule for the weekend - no more sadness." Heero made a disbelieving sound. "What's the punishment for breaking these rules of yours?" "First infraction results in you both agreeing that we're going to Nice this summer instead of Alaska. And since you've both definitely already broken the rules, that's out of the way." Relena opened her mouth to protest, but Heero beat her to it. "You can't retroactively apply the rules." "Fine. Then when you two have sad thoughts again, that's the first consequence." "And the second? Are you going to plan out all of our vacations for the next ten years?" Relena hazarded. Duo smirked. "Is it really so bad when I'm in charge?" "Yes," Heero and Relena said at the same time. "Thanks, guys," Duo snorted. Relena rolled her eyes, and then got up and took her turn in the bathroom. She brushed her teeth, half-heartedly ran a brush through her mess of hair, used the bathroom yet again - she felt like she had surely voided all of the wine she had drunk earlier in the night by this point, and a fair amount of the water Duo had been drowning her in - then returned to the bedroom. In the handful of minutes she had been gone, something had happened. The mood had shifted and she could see it - could practically feel it. Heero had stripped down to his briefs and he was rummaging through his bag, back to Duo, who was staring at him with a perplexed look on his face, fingers against his lips. Relena arched an eyebrow and opened her mouth to ask what had happened when Heero brushed past her into the bathroom and firmly closed the door behind himself. "What happened?" she hissed at Duo. She had seen Heero's face when he walked by, had seen his scowl and the way he tilted his head down and away. He was upset. Very upset. "I don't fucking know," Duo replied, his voice low and angry. "We were just talking, and then he- then he kissed me and I..." "You freaked out?" Relena guessed. Of the three of them, Duo had always been the one most uneasy about the fact that they had all slept together before college, the one most defensive about his preference for women over men. "No! I kissed him back, and then he freaked out." Relena arched an eyebrow. She remembered, freshmen year of college, long hours spent talking on the phone to Heero - well, mostly her talking at Heero before he would finally contribute to the conversation. Whenever she asked about potential boyfriends, he always said that no one was like Duo. So she wasn't surprised that Heero had kissed Duo - they all knew that Heero had always had a crush on him. They all knew that Heero tended to get very affectionate when tipsy - Relena couldn't even begin to count the number of times she and Heero or Heero and Duo had kissed or made out over the years after a few drinks. So it wasn't unheard of for Heero to kiss Duo. But to then freak out about it afterwards? "It's gotta be a Ralph thing," Duo muttered. He ran a hand through his hair and grimaced. "I just- I wish he had just told me about this when we were on the plane or in the cab, or like any time before now." Relena sighed, and sat down on the bed and leaned back against the headboard. Of all the things she had woken up dreading this morning, she had not thought that having to comfort her best friend after his boyfriend dumped him would make the list. It was ironic - she was so used to spending her birthday upset about everything to do with her life. It was a strangely welcome change of pace to not even be thinking about herself. When Heero came out of the bathroom, he was scowling, and he dropped his toiletry bag onto his luggage with a careless thud. Duo sighed. "Heero-" "I'm sorry," Heero spoke over him. "What- You don't have anything to apologize for, 'Ro." Heero looked up at Duo then and frowned. "Don't I? I know both of you- I know you just sit back and let me kiss you when I'm like this." "Heero, I don't mind," Duo protested. "Seriously!" Heero's scowl deepened. "I don't want you to not mind." Relena arched an eyebrow. "You want us to mind?" "No, I want you to want me. Like I want you two." "Oh." Relena frowned. "I enjoy kissing you, Heero - you and Duo." "And I enjoy it too. Hell, 'Ro, do you think I'd spend so much money buying you drinks at the bar if I didn't want you to kiss me?" Heero shook his head. "But that's it - for both of you. I'm just... It's fine to kiss me when I'm drunk, but that's it." "I... I'm not really following this conversation," Duo said, and looked over at Relena, who could only shrug. "I don't know what you're trying to say." "I'm trying to say that-" Heero gave an angry sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm trying to say that I'm thirty and every relationship I've ever had is nothing compared to what we have." Duo's mouth opened in a silent, shocked O. "Huh." Duo turned to look at Relena, who hadn't realized she had even said anything. "What?" Duo asked. "I just realized the same thing," she said. "Every guy I've ever dated, I compare him to you two and he never measures up. You two are my best friends, and you're, well, I've had the best and worst sex of my life with you two." "The worst?" Duo asked, offended and wounded. She arched an eyebrow at him. "How would you characterize that first time? Heero came almost as soon as he had his dick in me, and you didn't even make it to-" "Okay, yeah, fine. That wasn't so great, but the rest of that weekend-" "Was perfect," Heero finished. He and Relena shared a look. They had talked about this. They had gotten drunk one night on the phone and relived their favorite moments from that weekend, and Relena wasn't sure it counted as phone sex, but if it did, it was her first and only attempt at it. "So, wait, wait, you two are saying- What the hell are you two saying? You want us all to just- Everyone abandon their lives and let's move into this shoebox of an apartment-" "It is not that small." "-and what? Live in polyamorous bliss?" Duo shook his head. "This is crazy, guys. This is-" "I'm not suggesting that," Heero said, and he sounded tired and defeated. "I know that's crazy. I'm just saying- I'm just saying I'd like more than to be the guy who kisses his best friends when he's not sober." Duo arched an eyebrow. "So you want to be the guy who ... has sex with his best friends when he's not sober?" "The sobriety isn't really the issue here, Duo," Relena said. Duo gave her a look. "I want to be the guy whose best friends want him as much as he wants them." That was certainly loaded. Duo's brows drew together as he seemed to genuinely consider Heero's words. For Relena, it didn't require much thinking. "Heero, I want you. Not just because it's fun to kiss you when you're buzzed and handsy and adorable. And not just because you're a really, really good kisser." Heero smirked slightly at that. "Though to be fair, he is, like, the best kisser ever," Duo interjected. Relena nodded in agreement. She could see Heero relaxing, could see him working himself away from whatever tension and anxiety had been running through him. "And he's got a great ass," Relena added. Duo nodded enthusiastically. "So true. And those abs - tell me how a psychology professor manages to get abs like that?" "And those calves. I mean, how many flights of stairs do you walk up every day to get those?" Heero rolled his eyes at their blatant appreciation of his body. "Look," Duo started, and then hesitated. "I honestly never considered the possibility that you wanted more than just, you know, drunk make-out sessions with me - or Relena. I thought we all said that that one time was great but it was one time and that was it, so I've spent the last twelve years telling myself it's not going to happen again, and I'm pretty sure I've turned it into some kind of legendary fantasy in my head because no sex I've had has ever compared." Both Relena and Heero stared at him. "Really?" Duo, unlike Heero, tended to not reminiscence with Relena about that weekend. Duo huffed. "Yeah, really." "We could always find out," Heero said. "Find out what?" "If you've turned it into some legendary fantasy or if we really are that good together." Duo smirked. "Smooth, 'Ro." Heero shrugged. "We don't have to." "I vote yes," Relena said, and held up her hand. "And since it's my birthday, I vote yes twice." She raised her other hand and Heero chuckled. Duo hesitated. "You don't think... I mean, you guys aren't worried about this being a really, really bad idea?" "It's just sex, Duo. Sex with my best friends." Duo drew in a breath and looked between them. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to," he admitted. "I just don't want this to ruin our friendship." Heero snorted. "The only way it would ruin our friendship is if you've lost stamina over the last twelve years. Relena and I don't want to do all the work ourselves here." Duo made a face and Relena laughed. "I've had zero complaints about it, thanks. Forgive me for being eighteen, stupidly horny, and incredibly aroused by you two." Relena grinned. " I don't think we can really blame you for being incredibly aroused by us," she said. Heero nodded in agreement. "But you aren't eighteen anymore. Are you still stupidly horny?" Duo chuckled. "Ah, not exactly that - but I'm definitely up for getting incredibly aroused again." He waggled his eyebrows, and Heero smirked before looking past him to Relena. "Do you have condoms and lube on hand?" he asked. "Um..." Relena got off the bed and went back into the bathroom. It had been a few months, but she didn't think they had gone through all of the condoms before Quatre left her... She found a few shoved towards the back of the medicine cabinet, as well as the half-used tube of KY warming gel. "I only have three," she said, coming back out of the bathroom and looking at the gel to see if it would be okay to use as an anal lubricant. "And will the KY warming gel work or-?" She looked up and saw that Heero and Duo were on the bed, Duo straddling Heero's hips while Heero was flat on his back, looking up at him and smirking as Duo leaned down to press a kiss against Heero's lips. Relena watched them, question forgotten as she watched them. Amazing how erotic it was to watch two men kiss. Two men who were her best friends. Her best friends, she had to admit, who had amazing bodies and who had had starring roles in her sexual fantasies for more than a decade. She could feel her heart race as Duo slanted his lips over Heero's and deepened the kiss. She knew what it felt like, to kiss Heero, to kiss Duo, and she knew it was amazing and overwhelming. Heero ran his hands over Duo's back, smoothing across his braid and his spine until he reached Duo's ass and he clutched it, squeezing lightly, and Relena heard Duo moan and saw him shift closer to Heero. Duo's own hands moved over Heero's chest, thumb teasing at a nipple until Heero arched upwards, and Duo, still kissing him, chuckled. Relena sighed, her arousal mixed with affection. They heard her and broke apart. Duo looked over his shoulder at her and then sat back on his heels. "You look lonely over there - come join us." Heero patted the bed beside him invitingly, and Relena laughed as she walked over. "Wait," Duo said before she sat down. He held up his index finger. "There's a boxers or briefs-only rule being enforced right now. You want to join us, you're going to have to lose that shirt." Relena rolled her eyes but decided to play along, and she put the condoms and lube on the nightstand before reaching for the hem of her shirt and pulling it over her head. When she could see again, she noticed both of them staring at her. "They're breasts. Surely you've seen more than just these?" Heero shook his head. "Yours are it - that I've wanted to see." There was a story there, and Relena made a mental note to pursue it at some other time. "I mean, yeah, but... yours are so perfect. They just- Come here." Duo gestured her closer, and Relena climbed up onto the bed and knelt beside him. "May I?" Duo asked, holding up his hand and wiggling his fingers. Relena arched an eyebrow. "Are you planning on doing a magic trick or touching my breasts?" "Both," Duo assured her, and reached out with his right hand. Despite the implication of his goofy gesture, Duo used his index and pointer fingers to trace from Relena's collarbone down to her left breast, circling the fullest part before spiraling in towards her nipple and rubbing his fingers back and forth over it until it peaked. She found herself arching into Duo's touch, felt electric currents of desire under his touch. He smirked at her. "See? Perfect. Am I right, 'Ro?" Heero reached up to fondle her other breast, using his entire palm to cup her breast before gently massaging the flesh between his fingers. "Yes," Heero agreed. Relena thought they were probably extremely biased, especially in that moment, but she wasn't about to complain - not when she had them sitting there trying to prove how perfect her breasts were by fondling them. It felt incredible, and Relena leaned into Duo to kiss him and show her appreciation. His lips were a little rough, and she shivered at the way they scraped over hers before he opened his mouth and she felt the teasing caress of his tongue. Below them, Heero shifted closer to Relena and clearly did something that made Duo moan in pleasure, the sound almost lost in Relena's mouth. She pulled back and saw that Heero had put his free hand to work inside Duo's boxers, and while Relena couldn't see what he was doing, the way Duo struggled against another moan gave her a good idea. She traded a grin with Heero and then leaned down to kiss him. His toothpaste was strong, much stronger than whatever Duo used, and the mint overwhelmed her for a moment before she adjusted to it, before she got caught up in the feel of his lips and his tongue and his teeth as they nipped at her lower lip. She moaned at that. She had always loved that sensation, had always shivered at the pull of teeth on her skin, and Heero knew it. "You two are so beautiful," Duo said beside them, his hands moving over Relena's breasts and across her back. "I see he still finds us incredibly arousing," Relena whispered into Heero's ear. Heero smirked. "That, or he really is still stupidly horny." Heero tugged at the waistband of Duo's boxers. "I think this should become a completely clothes-free zone," he said. Duo chuckled at that, and got off the bed to tug his boxers down. "Better?" he asked. "Much," Relena and Heero agreed. Duo arched an eyebrow and gestured at them. "Well?" With much less of a show, both Relena and Heero removed the last of their clothes. They looked at each other for a moment, and Relena felt a moment of hesitation, of self-consciousness, but then Duo laughed. "You actually got the tattoo?" Relena looked down at the small hummingbird just above her bikini line. ~ * ~ Fic 14 |
