Warning! I have NOT reread this nor edit it. I'm leaving for china late Tuesday night and I wanted to get everything sent in to be posted. So PLEASE, be understanding if you see a mistake or more (Trust me, there are probably a bunch). It would help out a lot if any of you spot something and could email me so I can fix it when I get back. Thank you sooo
much!

--I don't own Gundam Wing. I wish I did, yada yada yada, you get the picture--

Playing House

chapter four by shevey

There is only one word to describe Howard. Tainted. Outside, he's all smiles and laughs, but inside you can see the shallow pain that floods his veins. I watched him outside the window as his wife rambled on to Heero. I could see the underline of tiredness aching in his bones and the seeping sweat that refused to come out.

I side glanced to Heero who was intently watching the wall. Waiting for it to make move?
I smirked. Probably. My gaze found it's way back to the old man outside, the deep blue sky yet to awaken dawn above his brow.

I frowned and made my way to the door.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Help?" I offered, leaning over a bit. The old man looked up and wiped the imaginary sleep out of his eyes.

"Am me dead?" He asked with a slur of Irish, shocking me to the core.

"Dead...sir?" I choked out.

He nodded. " Aye...I'm dead." He stood up now and put both hands on his hip with a thoughtful expression. "And your an angel."

I graced him with a smile. "Well now, I wouldn't say that for sure. If anything a demon." I tilted my head to the side. "And why do you think your dead?"

"Deary, deary, deary." He shook his head. "Not every day at four or so in the morning the most beautiful vice minister foreign comes out to the middle of no where to help tie me a bundle of wheat." He tapped his chin once with his finger. "Perhaps I took a wee bit too much drugs I say."

Hold on a moment. He knew who I was but his wife didn't? I thought they say the women were smarter than their husbands. I wouldn't push my identity on him anymore.

"Can I ask you a question?"

I nodded.

"How did I go?"

What was he talking about now?

"I mean, did I fall over with a heart attack, did some aliens come down and swipe me life, or I know better, did my wife beckon to kiss me lips?"

Old men, you gotta love them.

"I'm sorry sir. Despite your strong will to die, your quite alive." I smirked at him.

"I ain't believing no angel who proclaims to be a demon. You trickin' me woman."

"I'm surly not." I was growing a bit flustered. He looked a little pale. Yes, that was it. pale indeed. Perhaps he was feeling a bit ill? Maybe I should really help him.

"Then pinch me arm."

"What?"

"Pinch me." He looked at me expectedly.

I sighed and looked over the field of wheat. Hm. This was a tough one. Wouldn't pinching someone be against my morals of pacifism?

Nah. I reached over to his upper arm and squeezed a small piece of flesh real hard. He yelped and pulled back. He rubbed the sore spot that was turning red with a small whimper before turning towards me with a big grin.

"Why, look at that? Me body still in perfect condition." -Right. Perfect. That's what I would call it.

"Now sir, I was just coming out here to finish so you could go rest. Besides, you only have a few hours before your buyers come. You need rest."

"Aye. Me body have no time for rest."

"Well you do now. Go sleep before I get your wife." He glared at me.

"Demon."

"I'm here to help," a new voice said behind us both. Spinning on my heel I came face to face with a certain messy bound of hair.  I took a step back as I watched him unfold to Howard. They interacted and I saw a human face so willing on Heero's facial lines. The words they said I wasn't sure but I felt something deep and dwelling in Heero's eyes. Howard mumbled something that surely sounded drunk and with a sloppy smile turned on his heel to head into dawn's embracing sleep.

A certain word echoed in my mind. Pretend.

He's pretending. "Well duh Relena. How long did it take you that long to figure out. You and Heero are pretending."

Heero stared at me. "Did you say something?"

I blinked once. I blinked twice. I blinked a third time to make sure the ground I was standing on wasn't planning on disappearing anytime soon.

This wasn't the Heero I knew as a young girl. His smile didn't play right, and even now, as he glanced my way before bundling a pile of wheat together, I knew his intentions were different than told.

I felt him beyond the edge. I felt that familiar distance that I loved and wanted to free as a young girl. I felt him, the real him, blocked by this face, this human face that I always wanted.

"What are you staring at? Am I that cute?"

 I glared mentally. Yup, I had been deceived damn right.

Drawing my eyes away from him I shrugged. "Cute? No. Sexy? Only on your good days."

"Is today a good day?" He asked throwing the bundle of wheat into the bin. I rubbed my arms with my fingers to generate some warmth as I heard the echo of a bird in the distance and a chill that I refused to express ran up
my spine.

"No. A great day." I gave him a smile and he laughed.

I felt cold.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Until I could call Hilde and figure this whole "mess" out, I would fight back. Oh hell yes, Heero had some debts to pay. Ripping up my invitation that took me all night to get the cursive just right, making me guilty for his poor wounds so I ripped a perfectly good dress, hell, even his suicidal mirth rubbed off on me and I accepted his gun to my forehead with a smile!

My eyes narrowed. He. Stepped. On. My. Toes. Dancing.

All in all, he ruined a whole day for me way back then and now he was toying with me. Did this man have a death wish? But of course I would play with meek and ignorant gestures.

How? may one ask. Certain things of course that I knew drew the perfectionist up the wall. His jaw dropped when he saw I was wearing his socks. His eyes twitched when I asked him to rub my feet. Oh that man has wonderful hands. They do magic.

But right now I could feel my own doubt with sleeping in the same bed as him tonight. He wouldn't make me sleep on the floor, would he?

"Relena?" Heero's voice carried through the bathroom door making me wince. "Are you almost done? I want to go to sleep."

"Do you know how to shut your eyes?"

There was a pause. "Uh, yes?"

"Then go to sleep." I heard the gentle smack of his forehead hitting the door. What I say? I went back to brushing my hair.

"Come on, open the door. I need to brush my teeth."

Oh, I've been enlighten. He wanted to brush his teeth? Hah, over my dead body.

I grabbed the minty tube and ran it over a white brittles and whopped it into my mouth before opening the door.

This ought to teach him.

"Thanks I was getting wor-" He stopped mid sentence.
I smiled.
He frown.
I smirked.
Tears formed in his eyes.
I won.

I battered my eyes and put a finger to my lip and tried to pronouance each word as best as I could with a toothbrush in my mouth. " 'Ur ooth'rush?"

He nodded dimly in defeat. "My toothbrush."

I turned around and spit into the sink before turning back and giving the biggest smile that could win any girl an award. "My bad."

I kissed him on the cheek before bounding to the bed -ignoring his sweet whimpers.

On to round two. Heero and I in the same bed? Twin bed fitted for one? Him boxers, me lacy pretty stuff that cost more than it covers? His breath on my neck? Most likely. His legs tangled with mine. Probably.

Oh please. Bring. It. On.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I woke up to a creamy olive skin blurring my vision. Heero. I blinked the sleep away and yawned with a heartily stretch. Heero.

This mere moment I saw the beautiful peace of his self. This mere moment he was open. Not alerted or guarded. He was vulnerable. My eyes soften. Heero.

Even through my dreamy state under the blue night before where I had stepped back and saw the depth of his acting and pretendisim I had let it overcome me into a small-time revenge. I mean come on, making a man go to sleep without the fresh minty breath?

Perhaps I really was pro-war.

But moments like this, when I saw him without that brick wall or fake smile leading me into the the unknown, I saw him. Just him. The man I loved. Loved. I grimaced. What I was I kidding myself.

This is the man I love. I felt my finger trace the lines war had carved into his face. "What about you Heero makes me follow you to the point where I know I will be broken again? What makes me love you?"

When would he stop pretending. When would I see my Heero? When would I understand this all?

At this moment I hated that cheap cafe I went to, I hated myself for not listening to Hilde on the phone and I hated Howard for having such a cute accent that I couldn't imitate.

But most of all I hated Heero. He snored...All. Night. Long.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, I'll be sad to see you two lovers go. You will  visit wont you sweeties?" I nodded absently, meanwhile intently watching Howard with his ever so serious face trying to get one cow to move a couple of feet. It was quite amusing how he was talking to the dear Betsey and all. He even used hand gestures.

"Are you ready to go?" Heero asked, the fresh morning drawn into his features. He gave me a small smile that I prayed for faithfully as a girl.

Somehow, when I knew it was fake, it didn't give me the kick of sparks I always had dream it would. It gave me both a nerve of laughing -Heero could act?- or to break down crying which would result to anger and me giving up pasfism just to get one good bloody shot at his stuck up nose.

I shudder. Surely I was going to burn for this. Oh lordy, save my soul and shine mercy upon my face.

I smirked. I really was weird at times.

"Howard, aren't you going to say goodbye?"

I shrugged. "He seems to be in a deep conversation."

"With a cow?" Heero asked. I narrowed my eyes.

"You have no imagination. I bet you killed Santa Clause." I said with a fading voice.

He smiled and made both me and the old women melt.
"Nope." When did he get so close to me? He ran his finger down my chin making me surpress a shudder and glare at him.
His lips barily brushed mine. Was he trying to get me back? "How can I kill Santa if he doesn't exist?"

-He hopped in the car and slammed the door.

"What did your mother put in the cookies and milk you laid out Christmas eve?" I said to no one. "Defiantly not prozac." -Ah, the happy pill. Wufie's special friend.

Turning on my heel I smiled sweetly. "Thank you so much. We might stop by on our way home, ne?"

She squealed. "Oh, I just love company! Me and Howard just love company! I'll make bacon and eggs and perhaps we can have a sing along! Oh I love to sing. Don't you?  I-"

I shut the car door. "Drive."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

author's notes...the OOC is for a reason! Please review!

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Make international calls for as low as $.04/minute with Yahoo! Messenger
http://phonecard.yahoo.com/