It's Not Like It's Love, Chapter 2

[Crystaltear]

It's Not Like It's Love
Chapter 2
by Crystaltear
Warnings: Language
Notes: This is a long, boring chapter, but I felt I needed to throw in the background information so that the readers actually *see* the problem. I don't want it to look like I just totally bastardized the main characters of Gundam Wing--people made them this way, and this was how they coped. So, this chapter is dedicated to Heero and Duo's miserable childhood...and it will set up the scene for the next chapter, where something actually exciting will happen (like maybe, we finally meet Hilde?) ^_^


"Mr. Maxwell."

"Hu--?" Duo looked up at his Accounting teacher with half opened eyes. In the distance, he could hear some of his classmates snickering at him for being caught sleeping yet again in class.

"Rough night, Mr. Maxwell?" Mr Matay asked, intending the question to be rhetorical.

"You bet, Mr. Matay," Duo mumbled in response, making his classmates snicker once again.

The teacher sighed in a sign of defeat, and then went to his desk to write out a pass. In a few moments, he returned to Duo's desk with an orange slip of paper and held it out to him.

"Another trip to the office, huh?" Duo remarked as he pulled the paper from his teacher's fingers.

"No, I left the destination blank. I figured I would give Ms. Bedosky a break from you for a change. I don't care where you go, Duo, just as long as you're not in my class napping."

Duo walked out of the room and allowed the class to resume its usual work of balances and proprietorships. In the meantime, he was deciding on which room to visit for the rest of the period. The office would mean yet another detention on his record, and he had enough as it was, so that was out of the question. He could finish his nap in the nurse's office if the aid was there, but the regular nurse was there and too much of a bitch to let him hang around. That really left only option...smiling, he made his way up the steps to the second floor and toward the E wing.

The room was small and in the far corner of the hallway that was the E wing or better known as the library wing. It was used more often as the AV room than anything else, but whenever a student needed someone to talk to, they would head there knowing that their cheery school guidance counselor would be there with a helping hand, good advice, or to just lend an ear.

"Knock knock."

He entered the room and immediately made himself comfortable on the couch that was usually littered with camera equipment and scripts for the morning announcements. All along the walls were corny sayings like 'believe in yourself': things that the previous guidance counselor had left behind and that the current was required to keep up. A loud crash from the far corner of the room brought Duo's attention to his missing advisor.

"Yo, you need help back there, Mrs. Chang?" Duo asked, preparing to get up from his spot on the couch. He'd be sorely upset and pissed if something happened to one of the few people that he held respect for. Mrs. Chang was one of the few counselors (having gone to many in his life--his father insisted on it after his mother's death, though he was too young to care or remember) who hadn't given him that fake bullshit act. She showed she cared and she did, and that in turn made him care about her.

"Duo, what a pleasant surprise. I see you pissed off Mr. Matay yet again," Chang finally emerged, a stack of papers and a large ancient looking tape recorder in her hand. She tossed the instrument to Duo, who caught it with ease, and then sat in the seat across from his couch. "I was just going through some of this old junk the AV club has kept. It seems they've been waiting for me to clear it out."

"I can't help that guy has a permanent stick up his rear," he replied dryly, causing the older woman to chuckle. "So, you need help with that stuff?"

"No thanks, Duo, I'll have Wufei help me later."

Mrs. Chang was a pleasant woman, and one of the few administrators he honestly liked in his school. A petite woman with olive skin and dark features that showed her obvious Chinese ancestry, she always had a smile for him when he entered her office and never scolded him for visiting during class. Of course, she was only the school's guidance counselor, so she really couldn't scold him as the others could. An orphan due to a tragic accident herself, he felt that she could keep their secrets, and didn't worry about her turning him and Heero into foster care as he worried that others would. She had been very helpful all four years of both his and Heero's high school careers and had encouraged them to get through and graduate where the two of them probably would have just dropped out. Yes, he was very grateful to her, and he let her know so whenever possible.

"I don't know what I'm going to do with you, Duo. You're an intelligent young man with a good future ahead of you; your SAT scores prove that. It's important that you stop annoying your teachers and making them throw you out of class."

"I know, but hey, they should try to make this stuff interesting. Maybe then half of us wouldn't be falling asleep," he lectured on while fiddling with the device she had tossed to him. "Besides, I've been pretty good lately. Matay's the only one that's thrown me out in the past month."

"True, I haven't seen you in a few weeks now," she gave in. "Speaking of not seeing people in awhile, how has your brother been doing? Still clean, I hope?"

"Better. He's still struggling a bit, but he's been clean for three and a half months...I think he might actually pull it off. The drinking is still a problem, but I figure that we should take it one step at a time. Wufei's been a huge help too you know, keeping on top of Heero and making sure he stays clean."

"Well it's good to hear he's doing better. Tell him to stop in to see me when he gets a chance." Her smile didn't waver at all, and Duo knew she meant every word she said to him. He nodded, and it was a promise he would keep. Mrs. Chang then changed the subject to himself, asking how his job at the corner deli was fairing and how life at home was. He replied honestly but shortly, that work was just that, work, and that Heero's instability still kept him from the apartment as much as possible. She was silent as he spoke, and when he had finished, offered her home and services whenever necessary.

Before long, the bell had rung for the end of class and Duo made his leave, thanking the woman as he had dozens of times before for her patience and friendship.

"Stop by anytime, so long as it isn't after getting thrown out of class," she teased. Then she added as an afterthought. "Oh, and Duo?"

"Yeah?"

"Try to get more sleep at night. You look as though a good wind could blow you over."

Duo grinned, and nodded his understanding. His second excursion the night prior had taken a lot out of him. By the time he had found a pretty little blonde at the club on Second and Duff, it had been well past two in the morning. They ended up sneaking into her house since she preferred to be in her own dwelling when with a stranger. It had been well past four when he finally managed to sneak back out of the place, the girl satisfied and sound asleep in her soiled sheets. Some women were just so damn hard to please. Needless to say, he was feeling all the work he did the following day.

He hurried off to his next class, English, where he hoped that Mrs. Gardner was in her usual uppity mood. If luck was with him, she'd just let him read a page and a half of the story aloud and then let him drift off to sleep, so long as he promised to read the rest that night.



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Chang Wufei, Mrs. Chang's only son, was soon entering the multi-purpose AV room, ready to spend his study period helping his mother in whatever she may need assistance with at that time. Since he began attending the school four years earlier, he spent most of his free time in the AV room doing odd jobs such as moving the camera equipment around or preparing the daily announcement scripts for the following morning. On Fridays, him and his mother would simply kick back and discuss future projects for the peer mediators over a small snack that Mrs. Chang would have brought for them. They were a fabulous team both in and out of school--her as a guidance counselor, and him as the president of the peer mediators; together they had helped many students during their short time of being at the high school. The need to help others sprung from the many years of hardship that Mrs. Chang endured during her lonely childhood, and she made sure her son understood the need to help the less fortunate. Upon Mr. Chang's abandonment of his son and wife, the two became practically inseparable, and their loss only further fueled their mission to help with all that they could.

When Wufei entered the room, he expected to find his mother's usual cheerful persona; despite all the heartache that occurred in her thirty-six years of living, she was forever optimistic. This alone made him respect his mother for her strength that he felt no one else could match. Instead, he found his mother sitting at her small chair in front of the coffee table looking sullen and wringing her hands together in a nervous gesture. His books were placed down on the table immediately, and he was sitting down on the couch waiting intently for his mother to voice her dilemma. When she didn't seem to acknowledge his presence, he voiced his concern.

"What's troubling you?"

She looked up instantly, looking startled. As soon as she saw who it was in her room, her posture eased and she smiled at her son. "Wufei...I'm sorry, I must have missed you coming in."

Your mind seems elsewhere," he pointed out. "What happened to disturb you?"

"Duo Maxwell paid me a visit today," she explained somewhat hesitantly. "I'm afraid the present situation concerning him and his brother is really beginning to worry me." She looked back to see Wufei's reaction, and found confusion crossing his features.

"I don't see why...Yuy's been doing much better, I've been looking after him myself. True, he still consumes quite a bit of alcohol on his days off, but he's been clear of all drugs for months. His bills have been paid on time for the past two months without help from anyone, and as far as I know, he always makes sure that him and Duo have food. I don't think you have anything to worry about," Wufei replied in defense of his friend. He had watched Heero improve greatly over a short span of time, and he couldn't understand why his mother would be worried. Had Duo informed her of something that perhaps he had missed?

The Chinese woman merely shook her head. "Heero's not who I'm worried about. As awful as it sounds, his father's death was a good wake up call for him. No, I know he'll get his act together soon enough. It's Duo who worries me."

This surprised Wufei quite a bit. Sure, Duo was reckless, but besides flapping his jaw a bit too much, he didn't seem to have a problem. He abhorred drugs of all kinds, and Wufei hadn't seen Duo consume anymore alcohol than any normal teenage boy at a party. However, he also knew that his mother had a sixth sense when it came to that sort of thing--it was that sense that had singled out Heero a year and a half before. Heero had been practically unreachable then, and it was only after the tragic passing of his father that they were even able to get him to listen. For the longest time, Heero had been consumed with guilt over his father's death, and though it kept him out of further trouble with the authorities, it was only the past six months where he had begun to want to be able to take care of himself and his younger brother. But now that Heero was shaping up, it looked as though Duo would need some help as well.

"What do you think is the matter with him?"

"I don't know yet," she admitted, but she was focused somewhere beyond the room at the moment, and Wufei knew that she was thinking back on her own childhood to search for the answer. She continued to explain why she thought there was a problem while continuing to try and narrow down the choices. "He came in here cheerful enough, but he looks very tired. He admitted to me himself that he hasn't been spending all that much time at home. But where could he be going at night?"

"Where do you think he's going?" Mrs. Chang's features took on the saddest look that Wufei had ever seen, and he wished that he could retract the question.

"In most cases, kids want an escape from their reality because they find it unbearable. Many of them look to drugs or alcohol for the answer, while others join gangs to cause mischief or to merely be with others like themselves," she told him. Before he got a chance to question or make remark, she continued. "We know Duo isn't addicted to drugs, he's stressed his hate towards his brother's addiction several times. I don't believe I've ever seen him drunk on school grounds. Have you ever seen him drink?"

Wufei nodded an affirmative. "Yes, at some parties we have attended. But it was never to the point where he was falling over. So that pretty much knocks that out. Maybe a gang then?"

"Duo doesn't seem very aggressive...but we can't rule that out just yet. It could be that, or it could be something entirely different. But I know that he is spending his nights doing something away from home, and that worries me."

"Do you want me to try and see what he's up to?"

"No," she replied firmly, and Wufei understood that his mother would not want him anywhere involved in Duo's nightly excursions. He nodded in respect, and waited for her to speak again. "I want you to continue helping out Heero," She commanded. "He's so close, we don't want to lose him now. Matter of fact, I'd like for you to have him over sometime this week. I have a proposition for him, and I'm hopeful that he'll be interested in it. While we're at it, we may be able to get more information on what's going on with Duo."

The conversation of the Yuy/Maxwell boys dwindled down soon afterward, ending with Wufei's promise of asking Heero to the Chang residence before the week was up. He wasn't quite sure what type of 'proposition' his mother hand in mind for Heero, but he would support her in whatever it was. Heero and Duo had become the Changs' main subjects years ago, and Wufei, like his mother, felt a over-consuming amount of pride at being able to see the two boys improved from the angsty young men with no self-worth that they had been at their first meeting. As Wufei prepared to leave his mother for his last class of the day, he mentally hoped that the concern with Duo, if there indeed was one, would not be a major drawback.



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Two days passed without occurrence. Duo kept himself so busy between work at the Deli and school, that by the time he got off at eleven PM, the last thing on his mind was going near a club, much less a girl. So, he figured that spending a night at home wouldn't be the end of the world, and that he would be able to endure it without too much fuss. The first night he was surprised to see that the apartment had miraculously attained lighting since he had left that morning. He stood in awe for what had to be a couple of minutes at a simple lamp; it was just inconceivable that the dingy little apartment was actually being lit up by electricity. The second thing he noticed was that everything was neat and in order: the clothes that used to lay on the dressers and table, the tools that were usually strewn all over the floor, were now nowhere to be found. In their place was a small, but functioning television, an alarm clock, and a stereo.

"Surprised?" A voice entered the room. Duo looked over at his brother, who was nursing a cup of what looked like steaming coffee, and wasn't sure if he wanted to kill his brother for stealing so much stuff or cry out of happiness.

"Where the hell'd you get the money for all this shit?!" he asked, looking accusingly at Heero.

"You'd be surprised how much money you save up when your not spending it on an ounce of weed everyday," was Heero's quick reply. He sat down at the kitchen table as Duo remained standing in awe at the new additions to their home. Feeling the need for further explanation, he told Duo about what had processed during the day.

"We had this planned since the beginning of the week, but I didn't have off of work until today. Trowa's pretty good with bargains, since he has his own place to keep up on, so I gave him two hundred and told him to at least get a small television and a digital clock for the place. Meanwhile, I sent Wufei out to pick us up some lamps, one for each room. While I had them doing that, I pulled all the clothes we had lying around the apartment and brought them to the laundry mat down the street. I cleaned up the place as well as I could until the two of them returned, and then we finished up the place. So, you approve?"

"Hell yeah, the place looks great! But how much did it come to in total?"

"Not too much. Including getting the electricity turned on, I only spent approximately four-hundred and seventy-five dollars. It's going to be awhile before we can afford a fridge or a washer and dryer, but I figured that we can survive without the washer and dryer with the laundry mat down the street. Anyway, Wufei's asked me to dinner at his house, so do you think you'll be able to grab yourself some food? I won't be back until tomorrow night."

"You're pulling a double at work?"

"Yeah."

With that, Heero deposited his still steaming cup into the sink, and grabbed his denim jacket. With a quick wave, he left Duo alone in their newly cleaned and apartment for Wufei's and then for work.

"I think that's the most I've heard him say in my entire life," Duo muttered to himself, still amazed at all that had conspired in a single day.



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On the second day, Duo entered the house quietly, expecting Heero to be sound asleep because of all the extra hours he had pulled. Imagine his surprise when he found his brother sitting at the kitchen table with his nose in a book. Upon further inspection, he noticed that it was a college class book for basic math. What the hell was Heero doing with that? Curious, he moved in closer to his reading brother, and waited until Heero looked up at him.

"What the hell are you doing?" he inquired, pointing to the book for emphasis.

"I don't know. I went to Wufei's house for dinner yesterday, and his mom said she had this proposition for me. She wants me to try going to the local college to get a degree--she even had the papers all out and ready for me. Best of all, she pulled a few strings and will be able to get some more books for me once I choose my classes for the semester. I kinda blew it off at first, though I didn't tell her that, but when I woke up this morning, it didn't seem like a bad idea. You ever just get inspired to try something?"

"Yeah, but it always went away and got replaced by a nasty hangover."

Heero shook his head. "No, this is different. Anyway, I figured it's worth a shot. I owe the woman and Wufei that much."

Duo agreed with him on that point, they owed the Changs a great deal. However, this tactic was a new one. Sure, he'd heard his brother say some odd things while finishing off a high, but this was completely different. Noting the clear speech, he seemed clear of any substances as well. "You're really serious about this, huh?"

"Like I said to Mrs. Chang, I'm not making any promises. I'm willing to give it a try though. Besides, aren't you tired of us struggling?"

To that question, Duo gave no answer. He didn't need to; his brother knew that they both felt the exact same way. Tired of living the way they were, but not knowing a way for escape. Perhaps this new quest of Heero's would be the answer they had been looking for. But there were still a few pot holes to get over.

"How are you going to pay for the classes?" he asked immediately, knowing that the money issue was going to be the largest hurdle to get over. However, Heero seemed to have already planned it out.

Smiling, Heero closed up the math book and leaned over, giving Duo that look that meant he would regret having asked. "I'm glad that you asked, little brother. I have a favor. I need you to call Aunt Alexis and have her send you some money. Not a lot, since according to Mrs. Chang financial aid will pay for a good portion of my debt, just $300 or so to pay off the loose ends. The rest of the money I can worry about after I finish getting my degree."

Duo groaned. He hated asking for money, most of all from the few relatives they had. They always made him feel as though they were doing him a huge favor when in fact, they should have been taking care of himself and Heero from the get-go. "Why don't you do it?"

"Don't be an ass, Duo, they wouldn't send me the money. They don't even acknowledge my existence." The excitement that had been building within the room since Duo's arrival stilled as past problems resurfaced. Duo shut his mouth and mumbled an almost inaudible apology for the verbal slap in the face he knew he just dealt his sibling.

"I'm sorry, man, I didn't mean--"

"Just drop it." All traces of the smile that had just been on Heero's face vanished, and his face was set as stone. He pretended that the shunning of his own family didn't bother him, but Duo knew that it had to feel pretty awful not be accepted simply because of a fault that wasn't his. It was no wonder that his brother had been fucked up for so long.

His aunt and uncle, Alexis and Raymond Maxwell, the only living relatives that they two knew they had, were very proud and vicious people. Upon finding out that Heero's birth mother had been a simple street whore named Yuy Kaori that their brother had taken in out of sympathy, they completely ignored the boy and wouldn't acknowledge that he was of the same blood. Heero's father had persuaded to leave his son behind when she decided that she no longer wanted to stick around, and she had agreed and simply walked out the door without looking back. Soon after, Heero's father met who would become Duo's mother, and from what he knew of it, they married once they found out that she was with child. This apparently was enough to appease his aunt and uncle, because when Duo was born they welcomed the boy into the family with opened arms.

Even as the years passed by, the Maxwells still refused to acknowledge Heero as part of the family. However, they didn't have a problem keeping contact with Duo, and Heero planned to use that to his full advantage. All he needed was Duo's cooperation.

"Hey, don't worry, I'll do it. I'll call them tomorrow, okay?" Duo grinned, but Heero would not return it. Before anything else could be said, Heero nodded and then left the kitchen with his book in hand. The small moment between brothers had been ruined.

[PeRiDoTs13]

er...is this chapter posted twice?