|
"That Which Mends"Written By: SkyLark Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, or its characters. I just love playing with them. Pairings: 2x1x2, past 2xOC, 5xOC, 3x4 Warnings: Angst, Violence, Sap, Lemons/Limes, AU Archives: http://www.gundam-wing-diaries.150m.com/gw/SkyLark/gwSkyLark.htm
and http://www.mizunoamy.bravepages.com/skylark/skylarkfics.html Summary: Heero is a straight A student studying Psychology and finds his world turned upside down when he attends a Frat party.
"That Which Mends" [Oh darkness I feel like letting go Chapter 26
"Wow," was all Heero could breathe as he sat back in the folding chair that he had opened up. Peering up at the clear skies that were painted an array of colors that reflected off Lake Michigan's calm waters in the midst of the sunset that had begun, he murmured, "You were right. This is pretty amazing."
As he took to his own chair beside him, Duo smirked, "Yea. This is pretty much where I come to clear my head and get away from everything when I need it. This little corner of beach no one else comes to since it's a bit of a hike from the nearest residences at either end. I personally think it's worth the walk."
Nodding, Yuy concurred, "Agreed. Thanks for bringing me out here for this." He blinked widely at the distinct sound of fizzing at the opening of a bottle cap. Looking over to his host, he blinked at the beer that was being held out to him. The corner of his mouth lifting in that mischievous grin of his, Maxwell reassured, "Don't worry. It's the lowest alcohol count I can get my hands on, so it won't do anything more than give a light buzz even if you had three of these. Considering how this is our last night without responsibilities for the next few days, we could use this." Actually finding logic in that, the scholar grinned and accepted the drink with a quiet, "Thanks." Chuckling, he added, "You're a terrible influence on me."
Grabbing a beer for himself, Duo snickered, "Well, better to be a bad influence than no influence at all."
Yuy laughed, "Yea. Somehow I had a feeling you might say something like that."
At the end of their chuckles, the two fell into a comfortable silence for a little while as they drank and absorbed the scenery that the warm evening provided.
Heero nodded again and glanced over at his friend, commenting, "How you live your life is entirely up to you. With everything that I've gathered from conversations with you and the others, I get that you've had multiple sexual encounters and... well..." Frowning, he gulped in finding the right words as he stammered, "I know protection was used, but do I need to be at all concerned about... uh..."
Lowering his beer, Scythe faced the scholar as his wide violet eyes blinked. He fell at ease and grinned sadly.
"Fair question," he sighed as he reclined back in his chair. "No, you don't need to worry. I might play fast and loose, but one thing I'd never do is risk endangering myself or anyone else. No condom, no action. That's always been my creed when it comes to my night life. And I get tested every so many months just for added peace of mind. My last run was a couple weeks ago with a clean bill of health for the results."
Relived as he was, not only for himself but also for the agent, Yuy kept his physical reaction neutral to keep the discussion from becoming awkward. Though, he couldn't help but inquire, "So how do you define 'fast and loose?'"
Duo shrugged, "Oh, I average a couple different partners a week. And I haven't had the same partner twice." Choking on the mouthful of beer that he was in the process of swallowing, Heero coughed and sputtered, "Wow... that's... pretty fast and loose. More like foot on the accelerator and completely unhinged." He held up a hand and smiled sheepishly, "Not that I'm judging."
The braided young man put him back at ease by shrugging nonchalantly, "It's nothing I'm ashamed of. And I get that it might be too much as far as a lot of people are concerned, but then it's my life to live and so I'm the one who needs to be content with how I live it. Our time here's short, so I'm going to get every bit out of it that I can."
Heero recalled his meeting with Anna and her mentioning how Maxwell had delved deeper into his wild abandon ways after Meiran's death while the redhead put on the brakes to her own wild times. They were the two text book examples of the most common behavioral reactions to the loss of a loved one, falling on the complete opposite ends of the spectrum.
In addition to that, there was a somewhat disheartening aspect as to what that meant for the psych major. His frown returning, his shoulders sagged with a quiet sigh as he stared off ahead of himself. "Funny, here I always had the thought that my first experience might be a little more... meaningful to the other person," he said quietly.
Caught off guard by that, Duo stared in surprise at his roommate and his own mouth drooped. "Aw, 'Ro," he murmured before he could stop himself, "it meant a lot more to me than you think." While that was further than the Preventer was originally willing to share with anyone, he had no way of holding back when the unruly-haired team member met his gaze once more.
Taking a deep breath, he leaned forward in his seat and said, "Look, I was still in your bed when you woke up the next morning when my M.O. is to bail before the person I'm next to even remembers what happened the night before. There's only one other person I never ran out on and I know she didn't miss how big a deal it was when you were introduced."
'You know... you must have made one hell of an impact on him. He's not one to stick around after a night like the one you just had,' Anna's voice replayed in Yuy's mind.
It was a sentiment she had made upon their first meeting as he stood in Chang's office recovering from his hellacious hangover. She was well aware of how significant that was, even if Heero did not pick up on it until now.
"O-oh," Heero breathed, prussian eyes growing. Whatever it was that happened between them that evening was much more than a fleeting moment after all.
For the first time, there was no denying how happy and relieved he was to realize that someone actually had feelings for him... someone who was making him come around to noticing a lot of changes that were happening within himself.
At the warmth of a blush that filled his cheeks, Yuy turned his head away and threw back the bottle in his hand for something to do besides getting lost in those haunting, violet eyes.
Chewing on the inside of his cheek, Maxwell returned his focus back to the skies at the same time as an unfamiliar sensation of butterflies soared in his stomach.
'Okay, that's weird,' he acknowledged in the back of his mind. He couldn't remember the last time anyone had that kind of an effect on him... or if that had ever happened at all.
Not about to push that matter further and risk pushing his friend into running, Heero changed the subject all together. "What was Meiran like?" he inquired.
A small, wistful smile lit Maxwell's face at the thought of his fallen teammate.
"You would have liked her," he answered quietly. "Mer was the quietest of the bunch and could never turn that brilliant mind of hers off, so she was a lot like you in those ways. She was sweet and could adapt to just about any situation, making her ideal to serve as a Preventer. Even though she didn't say a whole lot, she laid low in waiting for the right time to make a witty comment that would have all of us laughing so hard we'd cry."
Lowering his braided head, Scythe sighed, "She really went out of her way to see that I settled into the team. If it hadn't been for her and Annie, I probably wouldn't have stuck around more than a couple of a days before my itch to bolt would have kicked in. Looking back on that, I think she knew me better than I knew myself back then."
Humming as he handed over his empty bottle, Wing replied. "That would be the mark of a talented profiler. I bet I would have gotten along with her." With a small nod as he took on the next beer that was offered to him, he stated, "What of her family? Did she have a boyfriend or significant other in her life?" Maxwell snorted bitterly, "She was one of five kids and both of her parents are still alive as well. As for someone in her life, that's the damndest thing of it all, to me. A few weeks after Anna and I started, she had gotten over her crush on Wufei and was dating a nice guy who made her really happy. He was going to propose the weekend after..."
His voice drifted and he had to clear his throat before
he shook his head, "Life just isn't fair sometimes."
The officer swallowed roughly and nodded, "Yea. Me, too. Mer was one of the good ones." He flicked off a stray tear that had begun to roll down his cheek and sniffled. "But she also wouldn't want any of us mourning over her forever. That's why I try to only think of the good times with her."
Yuy gave him a grin and stared back up to the heavens to gasp. "Wow..." was al he could breathe as his eyes widened.
During their discussion, the last rays of daylight had faded in the horizon to give way to the nearly full moon and the millions of stars that shone above them. Those brilliant specs reflected on the smooth surface of the lake to cause what appeared to be a sparkling blanket for as far as his eyes could see.
Arms folding behind his head, Duo reclined further back in his chair as he chuckled, "Yep. It gets me every time, too. There's only one other person I've ever shared this spot with and she has her own place along the same lake now."
The smile on his lips spreading further, the scholar peered from the corner of his eye to watch his host. For better or worse, he really did mean something to the agent to have been the only other person that he opened up to in such a way. "Thank you for bringing me out here," he murmured.
With that classic, lopsided smirk making another appearance, Maxwell locked their gazes and replied in kind, "You're welcome."
Craning their heads back up, they fell back into silence to marvel over the view.
* * * *
[Flashback]
'Don't worry, just... please get here.' she said.
Well, he was worried. There was no way around that. Duo pulled into the driveway of Anna's home in record time, surprising even himself when he checked the clock on his dashboard. More that a couple of speed limits on the way must have been broken, but that couldn't be helped since he needed to get to his best friend as fast as possible.
Running from his car to the residence as he slammed the driver's door behind him, Agent Scythe fished out the spare key from his shorts pocket. He fidgeted with the deadbolt lock in his haste to get inside. On his third attempt in steadying his hand, he was finally able to open the front door. All but falling inside, he scanned the empty entry way and shouted, "Anna!?"
"In here," her muted voice called back down the hall to the right. Fast to seal the house back up, the braided officer surged down the corridor as he peered into the rooms along his way. Coming to a staggering halt when he found Downs sprawled out across the her bedroom floor, he panted to catch his breath. "Oh, Anna," he whispered.
Dressed in her knee-length, lilac bathrobe, the redhead hooked the loose, damp hair that had fallen over her face behind her ear.
Pushing her upper half off the carpet, she smiled sheepishly and waved up at her teammate. What bit of a grin she had faded into a deep frown as she dropped her hand and sighed, "All I wanted was to wash my hair and damn my legs gave out."
Which meant she had to struggle to cover herself up again and drag herself all the way from her bathroom so she could get her cell phone to call for help. That must have been an agonizing process and it killed the braided Preventer to even think about it.
The effort it took to use her core muscles to stay upright was exhausting for Anna and sweat began to bead across her forehead.
Needing a second to catch her breath, her shoulder sagged along with her head that lowered so she could stare at the floor. "I know, but I really thought that I could manage," she stated. "And you know how I hate feeling like I'm putting people out just so I can do something I should be able to handle on my own." Gently lifting her head with a finger under her chin
so that their eyes could meet, Duo urged, "Anna, listen to me.
You were shot, baby. And you've only been home for five days with
a couple physical therapy sessions under your belt." Forcing down the thick lump in her throat, Downs sniffled and nodded. "Okay," she vowed in a broken whimper as her eyes stung with tears born out of appreciation, frustration and the pain that was creeping in.
Duo cupped her face in his hands and pressed their lips together in a quick kiss. Resting their foreheads together, he dried her cheeks with the pads of his thumbs and smiled sadly, "Thank you. Now, let's get that hair washed."
At that, he scooped his partner into his arms and stood up to carry her down the hall when the sound of the doorbell filled the air. A confused frown marring her face, the redhead loosened her arms around his neck and looked down the corridor towards the front door. "I wasn't expecting anyone else," she thought aloud.
Blinking widely at the sight of him, her voice failed her. His concerned eyes raking over the weapons expert, the team leader asked her worriedly, "Are you okay? Turning his focus onto Duo, he pressed, "What happened?" Suddenly nervous to have to explain herself to him, Fire gulped and Maxwell broke in to reassure, "A little mishap. Nothing to make a big deal out of. Since you're here, this is a perfect time to give you a crash course on how to properly wash long, curly hair since we'll be helping with that for a while."
Reading between the lines and picking up on his teammate's deflection, Chang instantly relaxed in realizing that the last thing Downs needed was to be fretted over as that was the reason why she needed a hand in the first place.
Glad to be of any support, he nodded firmly and grinned, "Sounds good. Lead the way."
Just like that, Anna puffed out the breath that she had been holding in and smiled in relief as she prepared herself to allow them to take care of her.
~ ~ ~ ~
For the next twenty minutes, Downs sat on the floor
of her bathroom with her head resting against the edge of her tub
while Duo and Wufei worked with her locks that were hanging inside
of the basin. Eyes closed, she had to admit that she was actually
enjoying the moment of being looked after for a change. Whistling through his teeth as he rinsed out the last of the conditioner from his half of the tresses that he was cleaning, Wolf smirked, "You have an impressive head of hair, Anna. I didn't realize how much there actually was before now."
A blue eye cracking open to peer up at him, Downs giggled, "Yea. I probably should get it cut, but I can never go through with more than a trim whenever I go in to have that much done." Her smile slipping and her eyes opening fully, she said, "Maybe I should just get it chopped off until I can get back on my feet."
Chang's head was shaking as he insisted, "Don't. I can't picture you with short hair. The long hair is more... you. If you want it cleaned every night, I'd make the trek out to make sure you keep it." He was rewarded with a wide, grateful smile.
There was no longer any denying that something was definitely budding between Wufei and Anna. They just needed a little nudge to close the gap. And they would get there thanks to these big steps in the right direction.
Once the last bit of soap and conditioner was gone, he turned off the tub faucet and finished wringing as much water out of her locks as he could and declared, "Finished. On to getting the knots out."
Every snare was carefully combed out, leaving the young men a hand off in drying the red strands with a diffuser. Following Downs' preferred methods, the right amount of gel and de-frizzer was applied and before she knew it, she was lifted up from the edge of the tub by Wufei so that she could inspect their work in the mirror.
"That's perfect," Anna beamed as she turned her head from side-to-side so she could get every angle of her curly mane. "Thank you, guys."
Wiping his hands after he finished cleaning up around the bathroom, Duo smirked, "Nothing to it."
It was a very poignant moment for Duo as he looked on.
In a way, it was the official end of an era of it being him and Anna
against the world as just the two of them. He had officially handed
over her care to another... someone more suitable for her in the way
she needed, someone who would love her the way she deserved. "Well, I was thinking about ordering pizza for dinner, if the two of you can stick around for a while longer," Anna offered, craning her head around between the two agents. "It's the least I can do after everything you both did for me." An amused grin tugging his lips, Wufei assured her,
"You don't owe us anything for that, Anna. But I don't have any
more plans for the night, so I'd like to stick around for dinner and
go in on paying for pizza." Not wasting the opportunity that was being presented to his friends, Maxwell looked to his watch and hissed through his teeth. "Sorry, doll. Normally I'd hang out and do the same, but I better get running."
Without elaborating on why he needed to go, he bent at the waist to kiss the weapons expert's temple, pull her into a fierce hug and leaned in to whisper by her ear, "Love you." "Love you, too," Anna responded just as softly,
her blue eyes blinking in surprise at the decline of her invitation
as she returned the embrace. That initial reaction was soon replaced
by an joy just below the surface when she was released and smiled
up at Wufei in knowing that he would be spending more time with her
for the evening. The handshake he exchanged with Wufei was a weighted
one with a great deal more meaning behind it than he was sure Chang
realized was there. Giving the redhead a wink and a wave, Agent Scythe headed out and stepped into the cooling early evening air. As he closed the front door behind himself, he fell back against it heavily with a sigh and a deep frown. He had been on his own for so long that it took him aback to have that twinge of emptiness at not having a partner of his own that he might be able to love beyond a strong friendship. But then, he never thought that there was a shot at such a thing for someone like him before... why he might have ever believed otherwise was beyond him.
Pulling the pieces back together, Maxwell righted himself and roughly flicked away the small tear that had broken past his defenses. He was going to be just fine on his own. Being open to love would only make him vulnerable in ways that he wasn't prepared to be. No, it was better this way. He was in control of who he was and what life had to throw at him this way.
[End Flashback]
* * * *
Stepping out of the elevator when it opened to the seventh floor to start their day, Wufei and Anna carried on a quiet conversation. After using Winner's concealer techniques, there would have been no way for anyone to tell that she was still sporting a deep bruise on her left cheek as she laughed at a comment her lover made.
When they rounded the column for a full view of the work station, they both froze and fell silent at the sight that greeted them.
On their feet and half-leaning back against the desks behind them, Duo, Trowa and Quatre were huddled together with squared shoulders and firm gazes that locked onto Wufei. Instantly tensing at the odd encounter, the team leader glared from one face to the next as he demanded, "What's going on?"
"This is an intervention, Fei," Maxwell replied as he took a step towards him. Folding his arms across his chest, he informed, "As soon as Heero gets in, you're going to be meeting with him in his office for a session... even if we have to drag you and lock you in his room."
TBC |
