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.  

 

Chapter 8

 

            Heero grabbed the waiter.  “Wrap this up to go,” he ordered, pointing to Relena’s untouched food.

            The man nodded and took the plate, disappearing into the kitchen for a moment.  Heero was watching her outside the front windows.  She was waiting at the curb, presumably for a taxi that the host had called at her request.  He ignored the glare he was getting from Duo. 

            “Man, remind me to never ask you for relationship advice,” Duo said, only half-jokingly.

            “Hn.”

            The waiter came back with a white bag.  Heero took it from the man, got up and walked out of the restaurant.  Duo shook his head.  “Stubborn s.o.b.” he muttered and ordered another beer.  “This is going worse than I could have possibly imagined,” he thought with a sigh.

 

            Heero emerged from Donnell’s, and walked over to Relena.  When he approached, she had looked calm enough, staring out into traffic, waiting for her cab, but as soon as she saw him, the façade broke.

            “Here,” he said gruffly, thrusting the bag into her hands.  “You forgot this.”

            She looked surprised for a moment before anger gripped her features again.  She glared at him icily.

            “I don’t want it.”

            “You should eat.”

            She started to say something, but the taxi she had been waiting for finally drove up, and pulled over to the curb.  In her haste to get away from him, she took the bag with her, and started to open the back door of the car.

            Thinking he had won, Heero mentally noted the point, and followed her.  She had just grasped the handle of the door, when his hand reached out to stop its movement.

            “Let me drive you,” he said quietly. 

            They were standing very close to one another, his face only a few inches from hers.  The proximity made his heart beat faster, and he wondered briefly when she had obtained such a hold on him.  Then suddenly, it hit him.  She had always had this effect on him, he just never allowed himself to acknowledge it before.  “Relena…”

            She turned to face him, her deep blue eyes clouded with the coming storm. 

            “Are you telling me, or offering?” She asked after a slight pause.

            That confused him.  He pondered for a moment, “Which one is the right answer?”  He could tell she was angry with him, he didn’t pretend to know why.  He stared at her, dumbstruck while she opened the door and started to climb in.  “Offering?” he guessed weakly.

            Without any change of expression, she said coldly, “Then I respectfully decline your offer, Mr. Yuy.”  The door clicked shut and she gave the address to the driver.  She was so preoccupied by the infuriating man she left behind, she didn’t notice familiar brown eyes staring at her in the rearview mirror from the front seat. 

            She closed her eyes and leaned back, resting her head on the headrest.  She tried to settle her nerves and forget about her encounter with ‘him.’

 

            *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

            A stunned Heero watched the taxi pull away from the curb, carrying away the girl that always wreaked such havoc on his emotions.  He felt emptiness where his heart had once been.  He turned and went back into Donnell’s.

            Duo watched his friend come back into the bar and sit down across from him. 

            “This was a set up,” Heero said flatly.

            Duo looked at his friend, and took another gulp of his beer.  “Yeah.”

            Heero muttered a curse under his breath.

            “I take it you blew it?”  Duo asked rhetorically.

            Heero just glared at him.  “Did she know?”

            Duo sighed.  “No.  She wouldn’t have come, if she had known. I could barely get her in here once she found out you’d be there.”

            “Thanks, I feel much better, now.”  Heero remarked dryly, lifting the beer bottle to his lips.

            “What’s it matter to you, anyway?  I thought you hated her.”

            Heero slammed the bottle down on the table, shattering it and cutting his hand.  People turned to stare at them.

            Duo smiled inwardly at his friend’s reaction.  “Oh, don’t worry, Relena never said a word about it; Zechs told us the whole story.”

            Heero ignored the pain shooting up his arm, as he seethed at Duo’s words.  “You knew I went to see her.”

            “I didn’t know you told her you hated her!  How could you say that to her?  Even if it were true, which I don’t believe for a minute, how could you hurt her like that?”

            Heero shrugged indifferently.  “What’s it matter to you?”

            Duo was becoming even more agitated.  “She’s my friend!  I don’t like to see her hurting!  That’s why I had hoped Quatre…” he stopped abruptly.

            Heero’s eyes narrowed to mere slits as he growled, “Quatre what?”

            Duo paled.  “Nothing,” he said weakly.

            “Does this have something to do with the Quatre being jealous remark earlier?”

            “He’s a fan….”

            Heero stood up and lunged at his friend in a swift cat-like movement.  He seized Duo roughly by his shirt collar, and shook him.  “You can’t lie to me Duo, you don’t have it in you.  What about Quatre and Relena?”

            Duo’s eyes went round.  “What do you want to know?  If they’re dating, sleeping together, what?”

            Heero felt the breath leave his body as if Duo had punched him.  He released Duo almost as quickly as he grabbed him, and turned away.  He ran a shaky hand through his wild mane, and choked out, “Just dating….That’s all I was asking.”

            “I don’t want to know about the other,” he added silently, trying to block out irrational thoughts that she could ever be what he would have considered unfaithful  (Even though he had no right to).

            Duo grinned.  “Gotcha!” He said to himself.  “No.  On both accounts.  Quatre cares for her a great deal, even loves her, but she doesn’t want to make things difficult for him.  They’re just friends.”

            Momentary relief washed over Heero, as he turned back towards Duo.  That idiot was grinning like a Cheshire cat.  He knew he had been played.  He glared at his friend.

            “What are you hoping to accomplish?  Do you want me to kill you?”

            “No, I wanted to know if you still love her.  I guess I got my answer,” Duo replied, his blue eyes twinkling mischievously.

            *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *          *

            The taxi continued its way to Relena’s motel on the outskirts of town.  She had to travel incognito everywhere she went, paying with cash and leaving false names.  She couldn’t check into expensive hotels anymore.  Relena Darlian-Peacecraft was a fugitive. 

If it hadn’t been for Quatre, Duo, Trowa, and Wu-fei, she didn’t know what she would have done.  They took care of her, taking turns accompanying her on these business trips for the people of Mars.  Quatre always made her travel arrangements, usually providing her with one of his private shuttles.  If anyone ever found out about his friendship with Relena, it could jeopardize his business and sphere of influence.  And he wasn’t the only one that had something to lose….

Wu-fei always kept them updated on the situation within the Preventers.  He would provide clearance for Quatre’s shuttle anytime Relena was traveling, and would accompany her whenever he had time off.  He was a silent companion, but Relena respected him greatly.  She had only heard him complain once – when he grumbled to Duo, “When’s Yuy gonna start taking care of his girl?”  It was a good thing Zeches wasn’t around at the time.

Heero Yuy.  The name always brought a tidal wave of emotion with it.  She loved him, and he hated her.  He had made a name for himself, a future as bright as hers once was.  Regardless of his feelings for her, she felt great consolation in just knowing he was happy.  She had traded her own destiny for his, and as painful as the last two years had been, she never regretted it.  Every time she turned on her TV at home and watched him play, she knew that what she had done was right.  Just like when Duo and Hilde announced their engagement….

She was so happy for them.  Nothing should be allowed to ruin their day.  That’s why it pained her so that Hilde had wanted her to be a bridesmaid.  Relena had become so close to the two; she couldn’t disappoint her friends, but being there, in the wedding party only spelled disaster.  What if someone recognized her? 

The smooth, comforting ride abruptly came to a halt in front of Relena’s motel.  She absently paid the driver and climbed out of the backseat. 

 

Relena made her way up the outdoor stairs to her room on the second floor of the motel.  She stopped in front of her door.  Still lost in her own thoughts, she didn’t hear someone calling her name.

Relena fumbled in her purse for the key, and thought she heard her name.  She slid the ridiculous-looking card with a series of punches into the magnetic lock, as she looked around for who could be calling her. 

The LED on the lock turned green, and the magnets released the door.  Relena didn’t notice; she walked back towards the stairs. 

The taxi driver, or rather, Wu-fei was calling her name, holding out that infernal white to-go bag.  She smiled in spite of herself, and started down the stairs.

Just before she reached the bottom, there was a strong gust of wind, blowing her hair into her face.  She saw Wu-fei sprinting towards her, as the air around her erupted into a fiery blaze.  She felt something push her violently from behind, and she fell forward… Relena put her hands out to break her fall, bracing herself for impact with the unyielding pavement that rushed to meet her. An explosion sounded in her ears, and suddenly, the world went black.

 

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