I do not own Gundam Wing.  This fan fiction has no commercial value and I am not making any kind of profit or income off of this.  

AN: Not to let you all think that death threats work. They don’t….generally speaking. But after receiving 60 of them in about 24 hours, plus being burned and hung in effigy on my own ML, as well as having my husband take everyone’s side against me, I quickly made the last revisions to this chapter so as to get it posted asap and put everyone out of their collective misery. Again, my apologies for a particularly hideous chapter break….Hopefully this will help ease any pain I have caused. ^__^ Thanks for reading! Love, Rose

Warnings: PG-13 may be a little bit liberal on the rating interpretation. Sexual innuendo and *cough* Adult situations. (and more lime)

Chapter 17

Moans of pleasure echoed down the hallway as blond hair thrashed from side to side on the black satin-encased pillow. Sweat trickled down Heero’s forehead with exertion as the dull ache in his lower abdominal region screamed for release. Dangerously close to losing the already tenuous grip he still had on his control, he finally closed his eyes to the agony and bit back the overwhelming urge to cry out.

“Oh no you don’t!” Duo yelled and pressed the pause button on the VCR remote control. “I want to hear you say it!”

Heero strained again against the rope he was bound with, wishing he could tear it apart with the bare hands that were tied behind his back. He would not give his braided friend the satisfaction of breaking him. “I don’t love her.” He growled in a low voice and shot Duo a glare that would turn Medusa herself into stone.

His friend merely responded by hitting the rewind button to the beginning of the most explicit sex scene on “Austin Prowler II: Shagging Anything that Moves ”. Heero stifled a groan as the video began to play again, and Duo continued his torture.

“I know you want what I’ve got baby,” the male ‘actor’ said woodenly onscreen to the buxom blond. Heero tried desperately to not picture Relena in..that..position…. He closed his eyes again and sucked in a breath.

“You could be doing the horizontal lambada with Relena right now, but NOOOOOO! You couldn’t say three little words…”

“I’m going to tell Hilde about your porn collection when I get out of these ropes. I won’t even have to kill you. She’ll do it for me,” Heero hissed at his supposed friend and then winced as the ropes cut the flesh of his wrists while he tried to work them free from their binds.

“You could have nailed her, humped her all night long…”

“Shut up!”

“Instead of being here, watching porn, you could be doing the wild thing, or making sweet love down by the fire…”

“I’m not going to wait for Hilde, I’m going to kill you myself!” Heero yelled and with great effort rose to a standing position. Of course, he was still tied up with his hands behind his back, ropes bound tightly around his shoulders and his legs. He tried to take a tiny step forward and almost lost his delicate balance. So he resorted to hopping.

Duo laughed at the sight of his friend trying to fight him with his arms literally tied behind his back. Doubled over with tears of mirth streaming down his face, he was completely caught off-guard when the hopping menace slammed into him with as much force as his bound self could muster. The two toppled to the ground in a large heap.

Hilde heard a loud noise coming from the direction of the living room and rolled over to find Duo’s side of the bed empty. She sighed heavily as the noises continued, and finally dragged herself out of bed to tell those two ‘men’, ‘Boys’ is more like it, she thought grumpily as she tugged on a robe, to be quiet.

She strode angrily into the room and gasped in surprise. Heero was lying face down on the floor, bound hand and foot, while Duo was tying a handkerchief into a gag to fit in his mouth. “There, that should shut you up.” He said and patted his friend gleefully on the back while the former Zero pilot continued to struggle on the floor.

“I’LL NEVER TALK!” An over-exuberant feminine voice squealed in ecstasy from the television screen, dragging Hilde’s attention away from the bizarre sight in reality. Her dark eyes narrowed sharply and she strode purposefully over to the TV and shut it off with disgust.

“DUO MAXWELL!” She yelled furiously. “Just what in the HELL is going on?”

Duo had turned around at the sound of the television being turned off and stood up quickly at the angry sound of his wife’s voice. “I can explain,” he began nervously.

“I don’t want an explanation. Untie him right now!”

The former Deathscythe pilot looked like a deer caught in headlights as he considered what his wife was demanding. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea….” He said as he glanced down at where Heero had rolled over to face right side up in order to cast a steely glare at his friend.

“Untie him and come to bed.”

Duo gulped and bent down to undo his friend’s bindings. He started to take the gag off first, but stopped. “Promise me you’re not going to kill me.”

“Mmm-hmm,” came the muffled voice

Still dubious, but with no other choice, Duo removed the gag and untied the ropes around Heero’s feet, then his shoulders. Finally, he loosened his wrists.

As soon as his arms were free, Heero swung around and landed a vicious blow to Duo’s jaw. His head snapped to the right with the force of it, and caught off-guard once more, Heero toppled him to the ground.

Hilde yawned and her eyes started to droop closed as she watched the two boys wrestle each other on the floor. She turned around to go back to bed, leaving Duo to face his punishment. “Heero, don’t kill him,” she called out over her shoulder before closing the door to the master bedroom.

“Hn,” Heero growled as Duo shoved his face to the side and kicked him in the gut.

* * * * * *

Relena held her hand up to the light and looked at the way the diamond sparkled on the precious band. It really had been a wonderful evening. She had felt so at ease with him that she had found herself unconsciously dropping her guard several times – the most notable being when she had unwittingly confessed her feelings for him.

“Do you ever regret being in politics instead of medicine?” He asked in a quiet voice.

“I think we always have second thoughts about any important decisions. Do you ever regret piloting your gundam or not killing me?”

“You’re avoiding the question. I asked if you regretted not becoming a pediatrician.”

Relena sighed heavily. Since when could he see right through her? She looked away from him, and stared out the darkened window of the limousine at the night sky. “Sometimes.”

“Then why don’t you do something about it?”

She turned to look at him then, longing etched on her delicate features as she fought the urge to reach out and sweep aside the bangs that hid his face. She turned away again. “You wouldn’t understand,” she said softly. Trying to change the subject once more, she asked quickly. “What was the moon like? I heard you went there during the war. I’ve never been…” Her sentence was cut short as he reached out to cup her chin in his hand, bringing it around to face him once more.

“What wouldn’t I understand?” He breathed huskily an instant before leaning down to caress her lips gently, almost shyly, with his own. She melted easily into his warm embrace…

Relena sighed, a look of torment in her eyes as she went over the events of the evening in her mind, coming finally to the part at the doorway where his response had both bewildered and injured her heart.

“If you can look me in the eye and tell me you love me, I’ll gladly spend the night with you.”

“Relena, I…I need you.”

What did that mean? Heero Yuy didn’t need anyone! He could have single-handedly defeated Oz and Dekim Barton’s army – in his own mind, anyway. She had expected him to say, “I can’t,” or “I want you,” or any number of things. “I need you,” ranked second on the list of least plausible responses.

“And I don’t think I’ll ever figure out how he slipped the ring back on my finger,” she thought with a wry smile. She really should take it off, she supposed, but a part of her didn’t want to. That illogical beating of her heart kept nagging her not to give up hope just yet. And though her more rational senses insisted that she not give in because he’d only hurt her in the long run, there was the part of her that wanted to believe he was sincere in his affection and desire.

She glanced down at the ring once again, and quashed the tender feelings that always surfaced when she thought of him. She couldn’t keep playing this game; she had to find a way to end it. She only hoped that when it was through, her heart would be right and all in one piece.

* * * * * *

“I need you.”

“I need you.”

“I need you.”

The words ran through his mind in time to the throbbing of his shoulder. That idiot Maxwell had dislocated it, and so he’d had to stop beating his friend mercilessly in order to put it back in its socket. But the pain was still acute as he moved his arm to turn the car and head toward the downtown area.

Why did I say that? He groaned inwardly. Stupid stupid stupid! Duo was right, I should have told her I loved her, what the hell is the matter with me? Why can’t I say it? Why can’t I just lie to accomplish the mission? Argh!

He took a deep breath and then winced again as he turned the wheel to change direction, still intent on his final destination. He looked up in the rearview mirror and grimaced. He was a mess. Not only were there bruises and cuts along the side of his face, but desperation and anxiety shone through his normally expressionless eyes, crackling around him and causing him to feel completely off-balance. It couldn’t be just the lack of sleep, he’d gone longer without adequate rest during the war, so what was it that was causing this proverbial crack in his armor? He had lost his temper several times today, allowed Duo to get the better of him on more than one occasion, and seemed to have lost all control over his emotions and hormonal reactions at being close to Relena.

Relena… He didn’t know when it was that she had gotten such a hold over him physically that it would cause him to break mentally and even attempt to say he loved her. But even after two cold showers, the desire to scale the wall to her room and proclaim undying love in the hopes she’d share her bed with him, was still all consuming. He had to do something, and Duo’s remark that Antarctica had much colder showers to offer his sexual frustration wasn’t what he deemed helpful.

For a moment, he seriously considered turning back and heading towards the Peacecraft mansion, but mentally forced himself to keep going. Trowa can help me, he reaffirmed in his mind. In the meantime, maybe I should practice saying the ‘l’ word for Relena. Yeah, that didn’t sound too hard.

“Relena, I lllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll…….” Damn it! I can say it. I can – it’s just one harmless little lie…

“Relena, I llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllost. Lost? Yeah I lost all right – my temper and my mind. Shit. I can say the word love, so why can’t I say I love you?” Yes, that’s it!

“I llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll….” Irritated and frazzled beyond belief, Heero beat his head against the steering wheel, and then had to swerve sharply to avoid hitting the curb. Pain tore through his shoulder with the movement, and he wished again for a self-detonation device. Dammit, Dr. J, why the hell wasn’t I trained for this? Piloting a gundam or a mobile suit is so much easier than dating! He groaned in exasperation. Women, especially Relena, were still that unknown element. He didn’t understand them - the need for ‘pretty’ things, and conversation, and petal-infested flowery gifts…and cologne. He made a face as he smelled again that faint scent that Dorothy had sprayed him with and that Relena seemed to like so much. Unwillingly, his mind went back to events earlier that evening.

“Mmmm, what kind of cologne are you wearing? It smells so good,” she whispered through the darkness of the movie theater and leaned in close to his neck. Her proximity was pleasing, and so he reached out to place an arm around her shoulder and draw her in closer. They raised the armrest that normally separated the two seats so she could rest her head on his shoulder. He didn’t even really mind the emotional drivel playing onscreen as he shifted to where her blond head was lying instead on his chest. Fingers with a mind of their own played with her honey tresses, feeling their silken texture tickle the sensitive flesh of his palm. He couldn’t remember a time when he felt so relaxed.

Suddenly he felt her tense, and pull away from him. Puzzled, he turned his attention back to the movie screen and his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He, too, straightened in his seat to watch the graphic but tasteful love scene play out. A stolen glance out of the side of his eye told him that Relena was blushing, and he smirked inwardly. He reached out again to put his arm around her and attempt to draw her back into such a comfortable embrace.

Heero sighed and came to a stop at the stoplight. It had been so relaxing to be close to her like that – the softness of her skin and the sweet smell of her hair made him want to prolong their evening together, and so that when the movie had ended – far too soon, of course, he suggested they go for a walk on the beach.

The beach had always been a place of solace for the former soldier. Moonlit walks along the shore of the dark violent sea brought about a sense of peace – but he had never told anyone of his passion for it, until tonight

“Why did you bring me here?” Relena asked, her eyes glittering in the light of the full moon.

“I’ve always been at peace here,” he said quietly, looking passed her out to sea.

“Oh,” she replied, following his glance and listening to the loud roar of the waves slapping against the shore.

“Why? Were you expecting something else?”

“No, it’s just that this is where we first met,” she said softly, her face and eyes unreadable to him.

“Maybe that’s why I like it so much.”

“Where on earth did I get that from?” He wondered vaguely, but didn’t have time to dwell on it as he pulled into the parking lot of his destination. Whatever his motivation was at the time for declaring it, it appeared to have been the right thing to say. She had dropped her guard entirely at that moment, and shown him a side of her he had never seen before – a side carefree and playful, teasing but serious, challenging but open. He remembered how she had laughed at him when she had pushed him out into the water and gotten his slacks wet. She had been so beautiful in the silvery moonlight, he hadn’t been able to keep himself from kissing her. And he almost hadn’t been able to keep himself from doing something else out there as well.

He laid her down on her shawl in the soft sand, continuing their passionate kiss as he settled his weight on top of her. She moaned softly as he caressed her neck with his lips and moved his right hand down to her thigh. He had to wrestle with the gauzy material of her skirt a little in order to gain access to the soft electrically-charged skin beneath it. His body was reacting violently to her touch and her silky voice whispering his name…

“Dammit!” He cursed himself as he got out of the car and locked it. “Stop thinking about that!” He gave himself a hard slap to the face, and then felt the pain course through his shoulder at the sudden movement. “Mental note, hit self with other hand,” he thought wryly and began to trudge towards his old friend’s circus trailer. “Trowa will be able to help me,” he told himself for the hundredth time. “He’d better be able to help me, I can’t take anymore cold showers,” he thought with disgust and looked down at his watch; it read two o’clock am. Deciding to forgo the front door, he went around to the window leading to Trowa’s bedroom, and climbed inside.

He landed silently on the carpeted floor, and made his way stealthily through the dark.

“I take it your date didn’t go well,” said a familiar voice from the corner of the room an instant before the light turned on overhead. Trowa stood next to the light switch clad only in a pair of sweat pants, and holding a gun at his former comrade. “You’re lucky I didn’t shoot.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Only one person moves so silently in the dark, besides me, that is. I knew it was you,” he explained and placed the gun back into the drawer of his nightstand. “Please, have a seat.”

“Hn,” Heero said and reached for the chair at the foot of Trowa’s bed. He flipped it around to straddle it, but stopped short, one eyebrow lifting in surprise. He crossed the room and picked up an item from the acrobat’s desk, then went back to the chair, bending over it for a moment. When he rose, he extended an arm, a pair of white silk panties dangling from the end of a pencil. “Am I interrupting something?”

Trowa smirked in amusement, and rose from the bed to claim the silken underwear. “Had you arrived a half hour ago, I would have shot you. But she’s gone now. So tell me, what brings you here?”

Heero settled down on the chair. “I need your help.”

“Does this have anything to do with the reason why you are here in my trailer at 2am instead of with Relena?”

Heero nodded.

“I’m heartily ashamed of you, my friend. Eight years she’s pined for you, and you can’t close the deal.”

Heero scowled. “Sorry I’m not the great Trowa Barton when it comes to dating. I don’t have women falling all over me, begging me to take them to bed.”

“Hn. And yet you would have to screw up big time to turn her away from you. So, why don’t you start from the beginning?”

“Of what, our date? Or at the beginning as in when I first proposed?”

Trowa coughed in disbelief. “Proposed? When I took myself out of the ‘loop’ with the Preventers, going on inactive status, I knew I’d miss out on a few things. But I didn’t realize I’d fallen off the face of the earth. When did you propose?”

“The first time was a week and a half ago,” Heero said flatly.

“Since you say it was the first time, I take it she said no.” A slight smile tugged at his lips, but he quickly resumed an impassive expression.

“Yeah, she threw the ring at me, and the rest of the items on her desk at Duo.”

Trowa smirked. Sounds like Relena when she gets angry enough. “Go on.”

“So I asked her on a date, but she already had a date for the evening.”

“Hn. Interesting, how did you handle it?”

“Got rid of him,” Heero replied with a smug smile.

“You didn’t…” Trowa started, a slight frown forming on his face.

“No, I didn’t kill him. Thought about it, but didn’t.” The former Zero pilot shrugged.

“Okay, so then what?”

“I asked her to marry me again, and she said no, again.”

Trowa could detect the slight hint of exasperation which colored that statement. “Hn. Doesn’t sound like you’re making much progress.” He leaned back against the wall and let out a languid breath as he prepared himself for the possibility of a long night.

“Actually, she’s wearing the ring, although she never said yes – it’s a long story, don’t ask. And we went on a date tonight.”

“Where did you go?”

“Chez Roberts, then a movie, then the beach. Then we went back to her house, but I didn’t make it passed the front door,” Heero replied, fighting to keep his voice and expression impassive.

The former Zero pilot’s white-knuckle grip on the back of the chair, however, did not escape Trowa’s attention. “Apparently. Why not?”

“She said I had to say,” a small frown formed on his face as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat, “the ‘L’ word.”

Trowa made a face. “So why didn’t you?”

“I don’t know. I just froze. I’ve had to take two cold showers already and I figure that by the time I reach home, I’ll probably need another one,” Heero bit out, the frustration evident in the scowl that formed on his features. And before he could stop himself, he heard the words slip off his tongue in horror; “I just can’t get her out of my mind.”

“Yeah, she has that effect on people,” Trowa said absently, not fully aware of what he had just said, as his thoughts had traveled elsewhere for the moment.

Heero narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean by that?”

Trowa looked up and held his gaze, something indefinable flashing in his emerald eyes. “I mean that you have no idea how lucky you are.”

“You’re a fine one to talk. I thought you had all the women you could handle,” the Preventer replied coldly.

“I do.” But I’d give it all up for the love of one good woman…

“Then do yourself a favor, and keep it that way. Or else I’ll be the one doing the shooting,” Heero said lowly, the meaning not lost on its intended recipient.

Their eyes clashed for a moment in mute conflict. Trowa was the first to look away. “So what did you come to me for?”

“Maxwell is no help, he and Quatre, though well intentioned, have been unable to get inside Relena’s head and determine what I need to do to get her to agree to my proposal. I need someone on the inside.”

“How will you arrange that?”

“I’ll have to get you back on active status with the Preventers, and then assigned to her as a bodyguard. It should be easy enough, a few random, manufactured threats suddenly appear, and they’ll agree to the increase in security.”

Trowa nodded. “Then I am to gain her confidence and find out what sort of proposal would get her to say yes?”

“Something like that. I leave that part up to you. In the meantime, some ah…inside information on women in general would be of interest to me…”

“Dating lessons, Heero?” Trowa asked with amusement.

“Something like that,” he muttered in reply, glancing downward as if suddenly finding something extremely interesting on the back of the chair where his hands rested.

Trowa laughed.

“I’m glad I can amuse you,” Heero grumbled in annoyance.

“Oh, it can’t be any worse than when Duo came to me asking for advice on how to ask Hilde out. If there’s hope for him, there’s hope for you.”

“Thanks,” the former Zero pilot said dryly.

“You’re welcome. I guess I’ll wait for my summons from Preventer headquarters?”

“Yeah, expect it Monday afternoon.”

“Will do. When do you want to start your lessons?” Trowa asked with a slight smile.

“I’ll be back tomorrow,” Heero replied matter-of-factly.

“I have a date tomorrow,” his friend countered, the smile disappearing from his lips.

“When don’t you have a date?”

“Next Thursday night.”

“That won’t work. I need help now,” Heero said, his brow knitting together in irritation.

Again, something indefinable flashed in those mysterious green eyes as the acrobat and Preventer agent stood up from his more relaxed pose and glared at his longtime friend and comrade. “You needed help seven years ago when you left the first time like a fool,” Trowa said in a low voice. “You’re lucky she’s still semi-willing to put up with your shit.”

“Thanks. I’m glad you’re on my side,” Heero growled sarcastically.

“I’ll cancel my date tomorrow. Just for you. But Candy will be most displeased,” his friend replied and settled back against the wall, his eyes cast down on the floor where his hair could obscure most of his face from Heero’s penetrating gaze.

“I’m sure she will,” Yuy agreed, and stood up from his chair. “See you then.”

“Hn,” Trowa grunted and looked up to watch Heero cross the room then climb out of the window through which he had entered.

I’m afraid you’re mistaken, my friend. I never said I was on your side…