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"Defying Gravity"A Romance in Three PartsWritten By: Kaeru Shisho Disclaimer: I don't own any part of Gundam Wing
or its characters, nor do I make any monetary profit off this story. Rating: NC 17 Warnings: AU, yaoi, some language Summary: A multi part story of romance starting
with a turning point vacation, developing throughout a dangerous UC
mission, and moving ahead through the unexpected challenges of a summer
vacation. "Part Two: It's Back to Work"
Chapter 26
Duo's final POV "Hey!" I shouted. I stabbed at the paper to get Mill's attention. "I got a one word description for you—" A discordance of "Duo!" reverberated in the room. There was Quatre's "I know I can't stop you but I wish you'd not say that horrible thing you're about to say and regret it later." Heero's sounded more like "So help me... would you just shut up so we can get this over with and leave on our vacation." The others were variations on both themes. "--wrong!" I yelled. I didn't stop with that, no I did not. "I don't know what your problem is, but I'll bet it's hard to pronounce!" "Duo, if you'd give me a moment to explain—" "I see what you've put down there: 'Maxwell—threat to himself.' Well, at least I have a positive attitude about my destructive habits." "Man, come on now, Maxwell, you are starting to sound reasonable. Time to up my medication. What do you think, doc?" Trowa drawled. Mill shook his head trying to hide his smile behind a hand and answer me seriously, despite everyone else's attempts to derail him. "You know, I'm really easy to get along with once you people learn to worship me." Wufei snorted and started laughing, and Heero's head sank to the table top. His shoulders shook so I figured he was laughing silently. "Months ago I learned that any connection between your reality and mine was purely coincidental, Duo. We got along better after that, I think." Oh, there was mucho humor in his eyes, so I softened up. "I can see your point, Mill, but I still think you're full of crap." Heero directed a comment my way. "Graceful back down, Duo." "I do have a reasonable explanation," Mill began again. "These notes, as you referred to them, were from my observations back in January when we met for the planning of the last mission. And, as you pointed out, they were incorrect, to a point. I think there are those aspects to your personalities, but there is far, far more. I was aware that all of you were highly gifted young men, but gifts improperly nurtured and applied are often squandered, or can turn lethal. For instance, what if Agent Yuy had chosen to become a vigilante terrorist, or you a professional smuggler? I do not doubt that you both would be very successful today—" "Or incarcerated," Trowa said barely above a whisper. "But what a waste of talent, don't you agree? My point is that I didn't know you and I was about to depend on you to carry out my operation. Over time, I learned to appreciate all your complexities. Yes, I thought Trowa was seriously introverted, but, instead, I learned that he's cautious, patient, and thoughtful. He was able to gain the trust of those boys at Gunter's and keep them from panicking in the face of very real danger. He was the beacon of hope to them. He kept his cool, even after another man in his same position was gunned down before his eyes. He never shirked his duty or complained, and performed remarkably under dangerous conditions, even when he had to work independently. "Quatre, while never a truly believable street boy, dove into his role without a whimper. He never protested, nitpicked, or baulked. Whatever task was thrown at him he endeavored to perform, whether it be research, hacking, or keeping up our spirits. He deserves a commendation alone for the tons of laundry he did while at that house! Ah... just kidding... I was astounded how quickly he could come up with a plan. His strategies were brilliant and sound. It was his deductive reasoning skills that turned around our thinking countless times, like drawing the parallels between the army training base locations and the drug drop off points. I really had no idea how skilled with arms you were either, Quatre. "And...I am very sorry that you and Trowa had to work under those difficult conditions, considering your relationship. I know, had I had to watch men fondle or do worse to my wife without leave to retaliate that I would not have been able to just tolerate it and perform my job. "Wufei and Heero-- I had not expected to work with you, not until the extraction at the end, if at all. I was pleased to find you both the consummate professionals, having at the last minute to remove yourselves from one assignment and contort yourselves with excruciating pain into playing roles for which you had inadequate time to prepare. Those numbers... I saw the numbers collected from your range firing, Yuy, and you were indeed spectacular. "Yes, Wufei can be stuffy at times, but so can I. It comes with the upbringing, although I have no idea how Quatre had transcended that flaw to become so warm and caring a person. Just remarkable, as I said before. "Chang's hand-to-hand combat statistics were phenomenal in the trials. I was a most envied man, both by the other sellers and by the buyers. I most certainly was impressed by your detective work and your persuasive abilities. How you got Dorothy Catalonia to leave her vacation and complete the work her slovenly grunts could not is a mystery to me." "It is better left unrevealed," Wufei said. "Trade secret," Trowa said. "Like with magicians." "I see. Well, now I'm even more curious." "I, as well," said our beloved commander. "Yeah, well, me too," I cut in, "but about where you're going with this character analysis of yours--" "Duo, I'm not yet finished. You see, as another heterosexual male, I understood completely the discomfort Chang had to endure being placed in the situations he was—" "Oh, please... spare me," I groaned. "Clearly, his loyalty, endurance, skill, and perseverance had a great impact on me, impressed me, because I would choose him as partner and assistant in a heartbeat over again and again." "And just so no one makes the wrong assumption here, his choosing Wufei had nothing to do with Winner's leaving. I would have considered breaking up Heero and Trowa's partnership and regrouping them accordingly, had Milliardo's request for a partner been one of them. Chang was no convenient solution to two problems, as I might have overheard it being said." She looked my way, but I had uttered no such thing. I may have wondered loudly to myself something along those lines, though. "In many ways, it was a hard call," Mill said. "Heero Yuy is not a man to treat lightly. You are deadly, focused, tenacious, loyal, and very protective and possessive, as I found out the hard way of several occasions. The safety of your teammates seemed foremost in your mind, which was not at all how I imagined you worked; in fact, of all of you, you were nothing like I had expected. Demanding, yes, but more so of yourself. You were so sure you could make a difference, and then proceeded to do so as if the outcome was never in doubt. But to my surprise, you listened to what the others recommended, Quatre in particular, even when I know you and he had some differences to overcome. "The number of personal issues you all had to set aside was monumental, and yet you did without skipping a beat, to move on, face the next problem working shoulder to shoulder-- Well, it was a learning experience all around for me. Your example, Yuy, set a standard that I too had to reach for, or lose your respect. Your respect is a highly valuable commodity, Heero Yuy." "You earned it countless times," Heero said, pausing to smile, "even on this mission." I punched him for being an asshole and he yanked my braid for the same reason. I heard Quatre clear his throat and say something. "I wouldn't call Duo immature, ever, Milliardo. If you do, then, you just missed the point of Duo Maxwell." "Coming to his defense even now Quatre?" Milliardo laughed quietly. "Actually, it took me some time to reconcile Scythe, the Agent Maxwell on file, and Duo Maxwell the man; perhaps I still am. One of your greatest strengths, Duo, is your ability to improvise. You don't needed detailed instructions, you're self motivated, when the parameters change you flex accordingly, and when there is no plan you make one up on the spot. Your sense of humor is disarming, and I know you use it as a protection mechanism to distance others from your more sensitive side. "Aw, gosh, Mill. Ya figured me out." "Not completely, but that's not my problem." His eyes slid across to Heero's making the implied connection complete. "I have one more announcement before surrendering the rest of meeting to Commander Une. I would like to thank Trowa for passing along Duo's concerns following his last phone conversation with the little boy you saved, Jimmy Tulver. You were correct, Duo. Things were not right at his home. The boy's mother had been killed by his kidnappers to cover their mistake. We assumed the uncle's family would take him in. What Duo discovered was that the estranged father returned to reclaim his son, and Jimmy was terrified. After Trowa's concerned call to me, I put an agent on the house." "What I tell you next, even I have trouble believing happened. This last week, I've been staying in the rental Preventer's arranged for my family. I received a call on my cell. A man, who identified himself as a 'friend' and supplier for Gunter, said he'd had 'trouble' contacting him, but that he'd 'found' my number from the fake website-- that's not been taken down, by the way, Wufei, do that for me. Apparently Gunter had passed on that URL to many folks. I said I would call the man back and hung up. When I checked the number, I was stunned to find it was the same as you were using for Jimmy. I called the agent on site, initiated a sting operation, and, well... Jimmy's father was caught." "His father!" Quatre cried out. "Was he responsible for his son's first kidnapping?" "So it seems and the murder of Jimmy's mother. Jimmy had never known the man was his father or we wouldn't have put him in that situation. The good news is—" "What's going to happen to Jimmy?" I asked, forgoing the 'good news.' "That's my good news. My wife and I are adopting him. He is at our home now and will be joining us at the beach." "Oh, how wonderful!" Quatre said. "Isn't it, Duo?" "Yeah," I said, amazed by the man's generosity. "Lucky kid." "I think we should keep the website," Wufei said. "Put an agent on it and use it to attract and capture deviants." Both Une and Mill agreed. "In that case, I will alter the site's contact number immediately to a Preventers' case line," Wufei said, nose to his notebook. The rest of us pursued the Jimmy-adoption subject, congratulating and commending Mill for his act of remarkable thoughtfulness and compassion. Mill bowed, accepting it all with practiced grace. "Jimmy understands that he's part of my family now, but I think he's most excited about seeing Duo and Trowa again. I think he wondered why neither of you tried to foster him. I explained as best I could. In Sanc, adoptions aren't permitted for, ah, single young men." "Um, it's okay, Mill. You can say it out loud, now. I think the commander knows we're gay," I said. Heero straighten in his chair. "It took counseling for me to say that. All it took was a week of my gentle persuasion to get you to—" "Gentle!?" I squeaked. "I was kicking and screaming denial all the way!" "Wasn't all denial, from what could hear," Trowa muttered. "Trowa!" Quatre shushed him from intimating anything more scandalous. "If it is any consolation, Duo, I had no idea any of you were sexually attracted to one another. You were professionals at all times in the office. I received no complaints or heard any rumors or coffee-hour gossiping. Well, I did, but it was of a different nature. More of a 'why doesn't Duo ask you out, Hilde?' or 'I wish Trowa would smile more—at me.''' Une folded her hands as if ending the subject. "I feel we have dealt with the sensitive problem of working couples and see no problems arising in the future with the partner arrangements. Was there anything more you wanted to add, Milliardo, before we break for lunch?" "Only this, and I say this in all honesty, Commander, should you ever wish to start a revolution, we could with just these five men, and win it." (o) After a twenty minute break, during which sandwiches and drinks were served, Une returned to her agenda. "Before I review the mission, I would like to read these." Une shuffled her pile of notes, bringing one page to the top. "I have received many letters from people whose lives you've touched on this mission. I would like to pass on a few messages. Captain Jacques Brel, whose Brussels office conducted the probe with the Preventer's DEA, would like to thank Agent Wufei Chang for his excellent leadership and professionalism throughout their shared sting operation." Wufei bowed his head in a curt acknowledgment. "Interesting enough, I received two unintelligible memos from the New Germany field office one regaling and the other denouncing Wing-Scythe. I am recommending retraining of the field office personnel following complete mental and physical examinations." She smiled but did not look up to see our smug expressions of gratitude as she chose the next memo from her stack. "The 'Cipher Squad' sends their sincere thanks to Quatre Winner, Duo Maxwell, and Heero Yuy for providing them job security for many months to come. I presume that's because of the encoded data load you dumped on their department." "What am I? Flypaper for freaks!?" I uttered without thinking. Always attracting the nutcases! Someone kicked my foot under the table, but the universal concurrence was in a single shout, "Yes!" "Neeext-- Dr. Dorothy Catalonia would like to thank you for introducing her to Agent Blake Edwards. I don't know the particulars, Agent Chang, but I'd love to hear your side of the story, not now. Sometime when you're not busy. As a side note, Doctor Catalonia has had, of course, no ties to the organization of her grandfather, and was delighted to have played a role in the destruction, the final one this time, of the Romefeller Foundation. She has been estranged from the Dermail relations, and her uncle far-removed, Franz, in particular. There should be no doubts amongst us." There were none. We'd known of her familial association, but, hey, can't do a thing about who brought you into the world. "That was my elegant segue into the core of this meeting," Commander Une said. "Franz Dermail very nearly raised an army of terrorists and disrupted the world peace we fought so hard to establish. They were close, but we brought them down. We began with Milliardo's alarming numbers of young, male kidnapping victims on a world-wise scale. Alric Gunter's name appeared on many reports where police had been successful getting informants or the kidnappers to reveal their sources in exchange for lighter sentences. Based on that thin evidence, the house across the street from his 'on the record' residence was secured, and Milliardo mission was approved for staffing. "When we learned that Franz Dermail's step-brother was Alric Gunter, our Romefeller-Gunter link was established. We needed solid evidence of illegal activity to address the requirements of the justice system. "We uncovered Gunter's connection to drug transfers using surveillance and acquired corroboration when we secured the 'David' statue. Nine people were arrested in the Brussels sting operation, who were connected to the Royal Fine Art Trading Company, founded by Giacomo Medici, an Italian art dealer convicted in 2004 of dealing in stolen ancient artifacts. These artifacts were later replicated into hollow forms designed for transferring illegal drugs. Agents working under the supervision of Captain Brel discovered the false-copy operation in the basement under the flower store front. The inter-relationship among drug distribution, violence and the ancillary connection to rogue segments of the art-for-trade industry had been documented for many years, but now we had clear proof that Royal Fine Art was a front for an illegal drug distribution enterprise, the kind of proof to stop the operation once and for all. "A plan was devised and we infiltrated the drug running operation by purchasing our own drug-transfer art work and providing our own escort service. In this way we established a direct link from Gunter to Royal art. The data collected substantiated that the Royal Fine Art Trading Company was the fake art supplier and the destination was in New Germany near Gunter's drug production facility. We also learned that a large portion of the drugs were being diverted to Romefeller holdings, which were army training camps. The drugs were being used to control kidnapped boys in the training facilities. Samples of the drugs being tested revealed strong infusions with pheromones, hormones, and other agents aimed to alter the minds and bodies of young males, making them more conducive to suggestion, outwardly more aggressive, and in time dependent on the drugs for their mental well-being. "We learned more about the route the boys took from men in the boy-trade to these armies. In one sting, a prominent New Italy parliamentary representative was arrested, Count Franco Giopinno, while attempting to purchase favors for Jimmy Tulver at Gunter's estate. The count was more afraid of outing Gunter than doing time, but he has since confessed and turned over evidence damning Gunter and Royal, which was an unexpected score. Those pictures you discovered, the odd grouping of the count with the Medici family, assisted us greatly, pressuring him to reveal his close personal ties to the incarcerated art stealer/trader Giacomo Medici and affiliations to crime. "Which brings us to the mystery of Raul Frolich, son of New Germany master art dealer, Franz Frolich. Why Frolich would be snooping around in Gunter's office, when he was an employee and certainly aware that Gunter was capable of cold-blooded murder should he be caught? What was on the disc that was worth the risk of death? Why was he in Italy just when Duo and Quatre are there to purchase and move the illicit drug-transfer art? And later, why did he kidnap Duo? How could he be dead in a shuttle in Italy and very much alive at the Jade Pharmaceuticals dock to attack Duo, twice? These were a few of our questions, and they kept mounting. "We believe that Raul wanted a larger cut and possibly more or that he might be waiting his chance to cripple Gunter, reduce his arena to the drug production and replace him in the delivery market. Still the facts weren't there to resolve the problems. The tie to Raphael Medici, younger brother or step-brother of Giacomo, did not stand up to scrutiny. Agents eventually uncovered a cleverly disguised false-identity conspiracy. Here is what we learned, though: there were two men, one was Raul Frolich and the other was his brother, Raphael Medici." "Oh no, not the twins excuse!" I moaned. "Yes. His father hid this fact, leaving a false paper-trail immigration will be busy studying for weeks more. I'd say someone in the government is to blame, but I think they also suspect the Count's involvement. The father is still under investigation, but we believe he used the twins for underhanded uses in the past, as well. The two brothers knew of one another's activities; at least, Raul indicates that is so." "So do we know which was which?" Mill asked. "Raul was Gunter's henchman," I began the game. "Raphael stole the CD," Trowa said. "That must have been Raphael we ran into in Italy," Quatre said. "He would not have had any reason to kidnap Duo," Heero put in. "That must have been Raul." "What reason would Raul have had?" Mill asked. "Jealousy. Raul was in love with Gunter and had to tolerate Duo dominating the man. Jealousy can drive a man to stupid actions." "How did you come up with that?" Mill asked. "When Duo and I returned to the loading dock where he had escaped, Raul was waiting for him. The things he said to Duo...it was clear how he felt." "So, that was Raul. He's alive." "Yes," said Une. "We have the fingerprint evidence from Gunter's house which correlates with that of the man we are holding now. From the fingerprints on the recovered CD, we were able to match them with the body aboard the shuttle and Raphael's, pinpointing his activities just as you have said. After a great deal more effort than I should have thought necessary, the shuttle pilot was hunted down and interviewed." "Apparently, Gunter and Raul met the shuttle, which was carrying Duo and Raphael, in a mid-air plane-to-shuttle transfer. Gunter and Raul boarded the shuttle, Raul taking Duo and Gunter murdering and disposing of Raphael. We don't know why, yet, but we will. Had Gunter evacuated the body to space, this would have been far more difficult to piece together, however, the pilot would not chance a dangerous maneuver like that while in orbit. According to his statement, Gunter made him agree to leave orbit and ditch the body in space before returning to his station. He was not, however, in Gunter's employ beyond taxiing the men back and forth, so, when Gunter departed, the pilot returned to his station with the body. He actually filed an incident report. That it took as long as it did for authorities to communicate that to our operatives is unacceptable and several individuals and procedures are under investigation. eventually, as you know, we recovered the body and confirmed the ID." "That makes a long report," Mill said. "No shit," several of us agreed together. "Yes, and it is not over for those agents still engaged in finishing up the final details. We want all the charges to stick. We must repair the weak links in security and interdepartmental communications. The details associated with tracking down the Romefeller associates, the clients, the buyer, sellers, runner, and government official linked to this will take many more months." She rubbed the back of her neck, sighed, and finished her glass of water. "I'm passing out a press report Mr. Winner helped put together with the publicity department. FYI." Her announcement met the Great Wall of Ennui, crashed and burned. Wufei removed his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose as if preparing to say something. He didn't. He took up the paper squinted at the print for about five seconds then gave up pretending he cared, preferring to stare longingly at the door. Heero hadn't moved a muscle for the last minute, so I wondered if he wasn't just sleeping-sitting. Quatre adjusted himself in his chair. He was nearly as restless as I was, while Trowa appeared content not to have to appear interested or have to stir. He yawned as the press release was shoved under his nose. If he was as bored out of his skull as I was, I was betting he'd be asleep in two minutes if this kept up. I'd be a sure second. No, third. Yup, Heero was already napping, chin on his chest, hair hiding his eyes. I nudged him, very, very slightly and caught the barest sparkle of blue directed at me. "Report FYI," I said. "Hn." "Couldn't have said it better." I picked up the handout and scanned: "New Germany Federation Police in a cooperative effort with Preventers agents and customs officials, found 940,000 tablets of a powerful new Ecstasy-based compound worth about $4 billion inside a replica ancient Greek statue in a shipping container imported from New Italy on May 1st. The discovery came after an insider tip-off to Brussels police who alerted New Germany earlier in April to the activities of a never-before-heard-of New Germany-based syndicate suspected of shipping narcotics worldwide hidden in giant art pieces. The art work was traced to the Royal Fine Art clearing house in New Italy, and officials mounted a surveillance operation immediately thereafter. A representative from the Preventers Peacekeeping Agency, which masterminded the entire operation, said in a series of raids coordinated with the operation in New Italy, the New Germany Federation Police arrested 45 people and searched the premises of Alric Gunter's company, Jade Pharmaceuticals, were the drugs were believed to have been produced. These raids were said to have uncovered proof of substantial drug processing, illegal human experimentation on young men and boys captured, imprisoned, and abused for the purposes of testing the control applications of the drugs. Additionally, links to prostitution rings and the illegal selling and trading of imprisoned boys, and illegal international money transfers have been uncovered. The most serious revelations have been related to the exposure of army training camps built and run by the resurrected Romefeller Foundation. The army built out of the abducted boys, controlled and funded by the illegal drugs. Thousands of boys aged 12 to 25 were rescued and are being returned to their estranged families, where possible, or into Foster homes through their originating local child services organizations. Links to high level government officials world wide have been uncovered, which if left unstopped would have threatened our tenuous peace. The ramifications will be felt for years to come, but serves to strengthen—" My vision began to blur after that. I didn't even bother to run the numbers for a "lucky" match, and I didn't think Wufei had either. I'd become brain dead from too much meeting crap to remain focused any longer. I think the others were on the same page. So, when the commander's droning came to a close, I was ready to move on. Unfortunately, our commander was not yet done. "Gentlemen, I'd like to close this meeting with a short discussion period. Let's concentrate on where you will be in one month." I think even Mill joined us in a group groan. If this was going to end, it would be because Une had lost control. Time for Duo the Dodger to act! "Me in a month? Well, I gotta get started on my management lingo, like 'Casual Work Atmosphere' means we don't pay enough to expect anyone to dress up in anything but their basic uniforms; well, a couple of the real daring guys wear earrings." "Plus we get all excited when it is Saturday so we can wear sweats to work," Trowa put in. He got the idea. Hopefully the others would get on board and storm the meeting and own the day. "Some Overtime Required," Wufei intoned, eyes closed as if he were performing recitations. "Some time each night and some time each weekend." "And it's dark when you drive to and from work," Heero said. Quatre smiled and sat up alert like a nervous squirrel. "I was jotting a few suggestions for you, you know, a few exercises to put the newbies through." "You aren't serious—" Wufei barked. I was afraid he was going to pummel my bud into his chair to shut him up. "Beating around the bush, jumping to conclusions, climbing the walls," Quatre began. Okay! "Swallowing your pride, passing the buck," Mill tossed out. "Throwing your weight around, dragging your heels, pushing your luck," I added. "Making mountains out of molehills," Trowa put in. "Hitting the nail on the head." "Wading through paperwork." "Bending over backwards." "Running around in circles." "A-aaand wrapping it up at the day's end," Commander Une said. "Okay, gentlemen. I get the idea. You are all dismissed. Be back rested and ready to work, and, Quatre, good luck and stop in from time to time to say hello—to me, too." As we all made a dash for the doors, I couldn't help but notice Quatre's body language. A little sad and possibly disappointed? Trowa led him by the elbow, moving him along as he emitted sighs, lingered at desks to say good bye, and visited with nearly everyone along the path to his desk. His few trinkets were in a box already loaded in the limo waiting to take us all home. Wufei said he'd take care of the rest, the files, the papers, and turn over anything personal he found. Later. I wanted to tell my bud the secret, but I didn't. Little did he know, but the next day half of the office would be showing up at his beach complex for a surprise Farewell to Quatre Bash, a party planned by and paid for by Mill. It was the least the man could do to make up for all the grief Quatre went through on his mission-- which I think ultimately drove him to leave Preventers. Quatre would be so surprised and thrilled. It was just his kind of thing. He'd planned and put together Wufei and Sally's wedding in less than a week, after all. (o) That evening, Heero and I retired early. The next day we would be setting out on our vacation, but I was too keyed up to sleep. I wanted my time with Heero to be special, not muddied by the upcoming events. Seeing Jimmy again, Quatre's farewell party, Quatre and Sally's simply-sweet and short wedding—our important moment would be lost. "'Ro? I don't wanna wait." "No?" "No. Unpack the rings and let's do it now." "You're sure?" He knew I was. "Y—what's this?" His smile widened as he enclosed one of my hands in his, while reaching out with the other, fisted. "Open." I kissed the battle-roughened knuckles that no amount of lotion and pampering could heal, and his hand unwrapped. Two rings. One for each of us this time. "I was about to ask the same of you," he confessed. "I even had the rings in my pocket at the meeting in Une's office today, in case I had a chance to talk to you then." "So, you'll me my ah... husband... then, er... still...?" I asked. I still stumbled over calling him 'boyfriend,' too. "Yes," he said, kissing my face, my hands, my fingers, our matching rings. We slipped the rings over one another's fingers, exchanging few words that included the promise of a future together. As we kissed again, I undressed him. Then he undressed me. We stood under a shower of hot water, our skin barely touching until the water chilled. "I want you inside me," I told him, and he acquiesced without an argument. "Tomorrow we reverse," was all he said, and I agreed without a word. I must have devoured every inch of Heero before the night was through. His tingle permeated me. I marinated in him. He tenderized me from inside and out. By the end of the night I was so liquid he could have drunk me, soul and all, from a bottle. When he drilled faster, it was as if he were driven by some inner need I could not possibly understand. I felt him grow inside me from granite to tungsten, from large to impossibly large, from hot to searing. The thrusts became deeper, and more staccato. His breathing picked up, too. Again, though, what I was feeling was different than pain. It was a transcendent focus; it was a rapture of attention. Fire is transfixing. We can stare at its beauty until we are made night-blind by it. And, so, numb also to its feel, I learned. The fire below my skin grew, spread, singing flesh as it surfaced. I was stung by it and its breathtaking intensity. He held me so closely to his chest I could have become him. My moans were strangled by his theft of my breath. After making love with my husband, I was still tingly and excited to sleep. We talked. We talked about what had happened and what didn't. "I knew you'd come for me," I said. He searched my face a moment, probably trying to figure out what I meant. He chose one meaning and tried it out. "I'll always come for you, find you, and bring you home. My life would be desolate without you." "So, you'd ground me now, huh?" I asked, my feelings guarded, uncertain how to react to his need to possess me so entirely. "If you don't want to be here with me, you can leave any time. If there's ever someone else—" "There will never be a time when you have to worry about me wanting someone else," I assured him. "You need to hold that close to your heart and give me the space I need sometimes, okay?" "Yes. This means something important to me, everything to me, just like you do." He held my hand to lips and placed a kiss over my ring. "You always know the right things to say," I said, sighing sleepily and settling into the crook of his arm. "That's because I know you. But, you're the one that knows what to say to lighten my load." "Yeah, that's me... always defying gravity." "Funny, sexy, husband, mine," he muttered nonsensically. "Ditto." That
settled, sleep finally came - a most welcome, though shy visitor.
I was happy that night as I drifted off, my head resting comfortably
on Heero's deltoid as he enfolded me in his arms. No, not just happy,
serene. I felt free of everything earthbound and demanding of me,
everything not of the moment. It was a new sensation for me and I
reveled in it.
On toPart 3 : It's Another Vacation |
