"Rip Current"

Written By: yaruna

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing isn't mine! I'm not pretending they are, I simply love messing around with the lovable characters. Any similarity to existing works is purely coincidental.

Rating: R

Genre: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Angst, Romance…? Alternate Universe

Warning:Probably some OOCness. Kind of bastard Heero in the first chapters. Some swearing. Won't pass the Bechdel test. Somewhat cliché, I think. Hmmz… what more… oh yeah, I'm a bit of a sadist, people will get hurt… sorry about that

Summary: Feelings are running high on the shorelines. Duo has arrived on the shores of Sanc Island and is making new friends, and enemies, among the locals as they surf their way towards the big competition. AU

A/N:I live for feedback

Sit back, and let the waves take you for a ride.

"Rip Current"

Chapter 27: Goofy

 

I was going home.

Home, it's always been a foreign concept to me, and yet it felt completely natural. It shouldn't have been. With less than two months of living together with Heero, and the rest of the guys, I felt more at home than I ever had before. Even though it pained me to think that I was feeling more at home here than I ever had with Solo. Maybe because I'd never quite stopped feeling like I was intruding on Solo when I'd moved in with him. Especially when Hilde came into the picture.

I had called Heero, from my brand new cell phone, as soon as the doctor had cleared me during the morning round, and he was coming to pick me up.

So of course I expected it to be Heero that knocked on the door. Of course I threw my covers off and was halfway to the door, fully prepared to give him the best kiss of his life, when the door was opened and a kid in wheelchair rolled into view.

I stopped, surprised, and wondered if they'd already given my room away to someone else.

'Sorry to bother you, Mr. Maxwell,' the kid said, and I frowned, but took the final steps to get to him and held out my hand.

'You seem to know me, but I'm afraid I have no idea who you are,' I said.

He blushed slightly, but held up his hand, allowing me to take it and shake it.

'I'm Kip.'

I immediately recognized the name. It was the kid that Wufei had pulled from the water, who ended up with a spinal injury. The kid whose father I'd signed a shirt for. I smiled when I noticed he was wearing that very same shirt.

'Ah, right. I should have realized. Come on in,' I said and backed away to allow him to roll further into the room.

I sat down in the chair, feeling oddly nervous. According to his father, this kid was a huge fan of mine. I'd read letter upon letter that were full of supportive words, but let's face it, the world doesn't change in one day. Quite a few of the letters had been complete flames. Some had gone so far as to wish me off the face of the earth, in more or less kind words. Mainly less. Either way, I could handle reading it, or having it read to me as it were. Heero and I had had more than one argument about whether or not he should really say what was in the letters. I won. Or thought I did, but he might have altered a word or two. I wasn't sure if I could handle a kid sitting in front of me, telling me I'd disappointed him. Taking the shirt with my autograph off and throwing it in my face.

'I just... wanted to thank you,' he said, and it was so not what I had been expecting that I was stunned.

'What?' I asked, before I caught myself. Howard had almost gotten me to stop that habit. I was pretty sure an explanation would have followed even without me asking.

'For coming here, like I asked you to, in my letter,' he said, and I blinked. There had been no letters asking me- Not this round of letters. Of course.

'I had to surf with the legends,' I answered. The wide grin on his face told me I'd gotten it right. He'd written the letter I'd wanted to show Hero and the rest of the guys.

'You did a lot more than surf with them,' he said, and I blushed, thinking about Heero. Then I blushed even more when I realized the kid wasn't even in his teens and his mind probably wasn't half as dirty as mine. 'It's awesome that they sponsored you! I saw the finals on the TV, you were so cool out there.'

I laughed at his enthusiasm. Besides, I loved being called cool.

'I do my best.'

'You did it while you were hurt?' he asked in a small voice. I looked at his downcast eyes, and wondered why he would ask that. Surely, it had to do with his disability, but I wasn't sure which answer would be the best.

'He continued to compete even after he got a bashing from the reef, yes. You may call him cool, but I'm leaning more towards calling him an idiot, myself,' Heero said with laughter in his voice from the door. I turned my head to look at him where he leaned against the doorframe. It looked like he'd been standing there for a while.

'And I won,' I said.

'Not against the reef, you didn't,' Heero said, and Kip laughed.

'Neither did I,' he said.

What the hell do you answer to that?

'No one ever wins against the ocean,' I said, slowly, trying to think of something good to say. I shrugged, realizing I was better off just going with what I thought. 'Everyone falls sometimes, it's how we get back up that matters.'

Kip sighed, and opened his mouth to speak, but I wasn't finished.

'You're pretty awesome, you know. I'm stoked you watched the finals of Gundams. And you're a brave kid to come here to visit me as well. You'll have ups and downs, I'm sure of it, but you'll do great.'

'Even in this?' he asked, with a smack of his hand against the wheelchair.

'Even,' I said.

'I won't be able to surf anymore.'

He pouted, and I bit the inside of my cheek, having no idea what to say. I wasn't good at this. I wasn't good with kids in general, and a kid who recently got placed in a wheelchair, I had no idea how to approach.

'I'll take you on the longboard when you're allowed back in the water, Kip,' Heero said, and the kid looked up at him with adoration in his eyes. Heero was surely the real legend according to Kip. He was right.

Obviously, I thought in amusement, he was more a fan of Heero's than a fan of mine.

'Really? Yes!' Kip said happily, before his face dropped. 'It might be a while though.'

'I'll be here,' Heero promised, and I thought I saw tears well up in Kip's eyes before he looked away.

'I better get back to my room. Thanks Heero. And Duo, I still think you rock. I'll definitely follow you next season as well.'

'Thank you,' I said, and he rolled out.

Heero raised an eyebrow as he looked at me, with the edge of his mouth turned upwards.

'I rock, you heard that, right?' I said with a wide grin as I went up to him and wrapped my arms around his neck, finally able to do so without him freaking out about me hurting myself. Finally able to do so without me caring so much about who's watching. His arms wrapped around my waist and drew me in closer in his embrace.

'I did,' he said and we brought our lips together.

Someone cleared their throat behind Heero and I leaned my head a bit to the side so I could see over his shoulder. It was a young nurse, who wore a wide grin on her face.

'I'll change your dressing, then you'll be free to go home,' she said, and cast an appreciative glance at Heero before she caught herself and blushed hotly as she turned her gaze away. I couldn't really blame her; he's a vision to behold. Above all, he's mine.

She was done quickly, with a speed that could only come from years of practice, despite her youth. She admonished me not to go back into the ocean until cleared by the doctors. It made me glance at Heero, and he got a somewhat smug look on his face when he saw me look. He was pretty much telling me he would make sure I didn't get into the ocean. He'd keep me out until I'd been cleared by a doctor, and a second and a third opinion.

Unfortunately for me, going home didn't mean that everything was fine. I felt a bit like a newborn foal that was trying to learn how to walk. The walk from the hospital to the car was slow. Heero had his hand under my elbow, ready to assist, but he didn't say a word about the pace. I was grateful. I really didn't need him to point out how slow we were going. I was rather proud of managing the walk without him needing to pick me up and carry me.

I didn't have much energy, and I fell asleep before we had made our way out of the parking lot.

'Duo, wake up,' Heero said, and I felt him brush my hair away from my forehead.

'Hey,' I muttered as I blinked my eyes open. Heero was standing outside of the car, having managed to open the door without waking me up. He had a small, loving smile on his lips.

'Hey, we're home.'

'Finally,' I said, trying to muster up a teasing grin. 'Why did it take so long?

He laughed.

'You -' His voice was drowned out by loud barking, and then Zero was trying to get past Heero so he could jump into the car. Heero whistled sharply, and Zero sat down, with his tail still wagging excitedly, letting me get out without being jumped on.

As soon as I was down and felt relatively steady, I bent down to pet Zero, who went straight for my face, licking excitedly. I laughed and pushed against his muzzle when Heero whistled again to make him stop. Zee looked up at his owner, gave a small whine, and inched back towards me.

'He's missed you,' Heero said.

'I notice. Is he the only one?'

'I met you every day,' Heero said with a shrug, and I was just about to explain when he took a hold of my arm and turned me to face him. 'I missed you a lot. More than Zero did, I think,' he said, and captured my lips with his.

'I missed you too. I missed holding you, and having you next to me in bed,' I said, and we held each other tightly.

'I told you I heard the car.'

'No one came in, so I assumed it was someone else.'

I turned around in Heero's embrace to see Quatre and Trowa on the deck, leaning on the railing.

'Hey! We were going to come in,' I said. 'Eventually.'

'The food is already cold,' Quatre said with an upturned nose before he laughed happily, and ducked down under the railing. He jogged up to us, and I soon had him in my arms.

'Duo... As much as I missed you...' Quatre mumbled and drew back from me, holding me at arm's length. 'You kind of smell.'

'Really?' I asked, and lifted my braid to my nose to check. He was right, and I scrounged my nose. 'The showers at the hospital just weren't up to my standards.'

'Cold water outdoors?' Trowa asked and I gave a shrug.

'It's the best after a hot day.'

'All right,' Quatre said with a smile. 'Come on back, we have food ready.'

'I thought you said it had gone cold?' Heero asked, and put his hand around my waist and supported me as we walked, allowing me to keep a slightly quicker pace than I could have completely on my own. I wasn't sure they knew exactly how off I still was, and I wasn't sure I wanted them to find out. So I strained myself to look as healthy as I possibly could.

'I think I said it's already cold. It was cold to begin with,' Quatre answered off-handedly and turned around to walk with us around the deck to where we could finally sit down by the table.

It was great, to have lunch with them again. Wufei was still at work, not being able to take a day off on such short notice, but Quatre had taken the day off when Heero had said I'd be getting out from the hospital. Trowa had simply closed shop early, and we sat around the table until Wufei found his way back from work, and I was almost falling asleep where I sat.

'Nice to see you back, Duo,' Wufei said, putting a hand on my shoulder, which was about as much physical interaction he'd ever initiate. Given that, it felt like a hug. I still wanted more.

I grabbed a hold of his hand and pulled. It surprised him enough to bring him out of balance, and I pulled again, making him crash onto my lap. Unfortunately, I hadn't calculated for how the chair would take the sudden extra weight. It held for a part of a second, before we fell onto the deck, chair crumbled beneath us. Zero was immediately by our side, trying to lick our faces and join in the fun.

I laughed, and after half a moment everyone else was laughing as well. Wufei scrambled to get off of me, but held a hand out for me to take. I grabbed it and was helped to my feet. I took an extra step and gave him a quick hug. Quick, because it was about as much as he would comfortably stand for.

'I missed you too,' I said when I let go.

'Apparently,' Wufei said, somewhat coldly, but I could see the edge of his mouth twitching, as though he was trying to contain a smile. 'I'm heading out to surf, anyone wants to join?'

Nothing could have stopped the laughter around quite as quickly as that. Everyone looked at me, and I think Wufei realized what he'd asked, but I shook my head and grinned. It's not like I could keep them from surfing until I was allowed to. They'd have to wait for weeks.

'Nah, I'll stay on dry ground a while. You guys go,' I said.

'Are you sure?' Quatre asked, and I nodded.

'Just go. I'll survive here, as long as no more chairs decide to drop out from under me.'

'All right,' Quatre said hesitantly.

Heero put his hand on my waist, and I leaned in against him.

'I'll stay,' Heero said.

I shook my head. 'Nah. I'll just go sleep, it won't be interesting.'

He chuckled softly and placed a kiss on my nose. I lifted my head a little so I could make sure his next kiss was placed on my lips.

'If you're sure?' he asked, and I nodded.

'Completely.'

He gave me another kiss before he too left for the water. I momentarily enjoyed the thought of going down to watch them, but I hadn't been lying. I was really tired.

Zero pushed his head against my hand and I let my fingers play in his fur as I watched Heero's back get farther and farther away from me. His board was clutched under his right arm, and the muscles in his back worked as he treaded across the beach.

He paused, and turned back around with a smile. I grinned and gave him a small wave, before indicating with my hand towards the ocean, telling him to go already. He waved and turned back towards the ocean.

When he was little more than a dot, I turned and slowly went back inside. I had every intention of lying down in Heero's bed and going straight to sleep, but then I remembered Quatre's earlier comment about my... less than satisfying odor. I still smelled of hospital, and I didn't want to put that smell in Heero's... in our bed. Above all, I didn't want to wake up to that smell and believe I was still in the hospital.

So instead of going to the bedroom, I went to the bathroom. I divested myself of my clothes quickly, gave a thought to the poor nurse that had changed the dressing in vain only hours previously, and went in to stand under the steady stream of water.

It felt like heaven, to feel the drops rush over my head, and down, tracking the lines of my body. I hadn't had a true shower in what was going on two weeks. In the beginning, the nurses had been partial to sponges. When I'd been well enough to stand without assistance for five minutes, I'd been allowed in the showers with assistance. My hair, however, had gotten little to no attention. If only I'd had the thought to ask Heero to help me.

'Duo?' Heero's voice. He knocked on the door, and I leaned out of the shower to unlock it.

'Come in,' I said, and he opened the door and stepped inside. He took one glance at me, and locked it again.

'Bad surf?' I asked, even though I knew it hadn't been. The waves had been rolling.

'Not at all,' he said. 'But I realized I'd rather be with you.' He stepped into the shower, making me laugh as he put his arms around me. 'Even if you would only be sleeping.'

'Your clothes, 'Ro,' I said. Grinning like an idiot, I'm sure.

'I have others,' he said and proceeded to kiss me.

As much as I loved kissing in the shower, the water did get into our mouths and rushed down our noses, doing its best to make us stop. We let up and took a deep breath, and I proceeded to help Heero out of his shirt, and then his surfing trunks. He was obviously excited, and I hesitated before I reached for him, but Heero grabbed my hand, pressing me against the wall as he proceeded to kiss me soundly.

'Leave it,' he said, breathlessly, looking at me with slightly lidded eyes. I swallowed tightly.

It's not like he was alone in being excited. We'd both gone two weeks, or close to, without being able to do more with each other than kissing. But I could already feel my legs shaking; I'd done more in a couple of hours than I had during the entire time at the hospital, and it was taking its toll. I didn't have the strength for any extra activities and we both knew it.

'Gods, 'Ro,' I said, and put my head on his shoulder, nuzzling against his wet neck. 'I love you so much.'

'I love you too,' he said, tilting his head to kiss my neck. It made me shiver.

'I thought you were going to sleep,' he said.

'Had to get rid of the smell first.'

'You smell fine to me.'

I chuckled against his neck.

'My hair's in tangles.'

He leaned around me, making me lift my head lest I wanted to drop to the floor, and grabbed the bottle of shampoo.

'Turn around, I'll help you.'

I turned, and he buried his fingers in my hair, rubbing the shampoo gently against my scalp.

'That feels so good,' I muttered, and he chuckled softly, but didn't say anything.

He worked his way down on my hair, and I gave a small groan when he stopped massaging my head. He rinsed it out, and I handed him the bottle of conditioner. I really needed it, or the hair would be impossible to detangle, but my legs were really starting to feel like Jell-O.

I think Heero noticed, because he was quick, and once he had me rinsed down he wrapped me in a towel and lifted me up. I took a sharp intake of breath in surprise, and only gave a token of objection before I buried my head against his neck.

''Ro...' I said, and grinned when he painstakingly got the door unlocked and opened. 'You're buck naked.'

'I know,' he said, but didn't let me go.

I laughed when he looked left, then right, before jogging through the hall to our room. I leaned a little to open the door for us, and Heero put me down gently on the bed before he hurried back to close the door.

Before long, I was dried off, and lying with my head in Heero's lap as he took up the gentle massage of my scalp again.

'Anything happen?' I asked, still wondering a bit what made him change his mind about surfing.

'I couldn't just miss you?'

'Not in five minutes you can't,' I answered, feeling how my senses were starting to fade away as my eyelids were dropping of their own accord.

'I always miss you when you're not around,' he said, and I forced myself awake.

I lifted my head to look at him, and he gazed at me with a loving smile. I put my head back in his lap and reached out for the hand that wasn't busy tending to my scalp. He put his hand on mine and I intertwined our fingers. I didn't answer. I'd always miss Heero too, when we weren't next to each other, and I wondered how I'd tell him of my decision to continue on the Pro circuit.

'The man that I lost, he'd had a brain aneurysm,' Heero said after a while, just as I was about to drift off to sleep.

'Great,' I muttered, before what he'd said registered in my mind. I lifted my head again, and he looked quite amused, but I still wanted to apologize for the rather insensitive thing to say. 'I mean -'

'I know,' he said, and I knew he did. He still hadn't lost anyone to the ocean since his cousin. 'Sleep, Duo.'

He pressed his lips softly against my forehead, making me lean against him again, and I closed my eyes. I started drifting again; the steady movement of his fingers against my scalp made me go quicker.

'I'm just scared now who'll be the first,' he said softly.

I tried to answer, I really did. I opened my mouth, I think, but I fell asleep before I could say anything.

There's always a first.

Sometimes it's better to just not think about it.

I would do my very best to make sure it wasn't me.

~ * ~

Chapter 28

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