By Kainen
Sometimes attraction and possibilities arise in the most unexpected of places.
Chapter 2
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When Relena arrived at the gym after school, there were already players in their coloured pennies on the court taking penalty shots at each other. There were just enough players to start a game. Jogging over to the side of the court, Relena grabbed a penny of her own and put in on. She'd be on the Red team today. As she idled by the sidelines, the braided boy appeared at her side. He was also wearing a red penny.
"Hey, there," he said to her. "Back again, huh?"
"You bet," Relena replied, realizing she hadn't seen him since their first encounter. She eyed his coloured penny. "So we're gonna win today, right?"
Violet eyes glanced down and then back at her. He gave a short breath of laughter and put his hands on his hips. "You bet."
She regarded the boy next to her and extended her hand and introduced herself. "I'm Relena."
He grasped her hand and gave it a solid shake. "Duo. Duo Maxwell."
"Nice to meet you."
Duo winked at her. "Likewise."
A sudden surge of laughter caught both of their attentions. As one they looked to their left to see a bunch of boys laughing and chuckling at another boy who was sprawled on the floor. He was in front of the goalie's net with the ball in his lap. Amongst the laughing group, one boy was standing in the middle looking triumphant.
He said to the boy in front of the net: "You have to be faster than that to stop my shot."
"Yeah, yeah," the other boy said as he brushed himself off and got his feet under him adding with a bit of mirth, "It was a lucky shot. I got this trick knee and all?"
"Yeah, sure," came the response.
Relena watched the exchange and noticed that the boy who scored was also wearing a red penny. He was dressed all in white from his sleeveless top, to his shorts, right down to his sneakers. As the group broke up, the boy turned and began to walk to the other side of the court. His arms swung confidently at his sides and she saw that they were very well sculpted. There was muscle and obvious strength coiled within those arms.
In contrast to his attire he had a head of midnight black hair that gleamed in the lights shining from above the gym. His hair was pulled back and tied in a short ponytail at the nape of his neck. When he looked over his shoulder, she saw dark almond shaped eyes against fair skin. His Oriental eyes shifted back and forth as they surveyed the rest of the gym as he took his place in an offence position and called for the game to start. Hearing his call Duo, Relena and the rest of the players began to take their positions on the court. Opting to start with defense Relena motioned for another boy to take the goalie's net.
By then, a couple more players had arrived and donned their own pennies, allowing for two full teams to play. One of the late players Relena noticed was Trowa, the boy she met earlier in the week in the locker bay. Since then they had run into each other a handful of times during the lunch hour but always after school playing soccer. She watched him snag a red penny and pull it over his head, smoothing the material over his chest. He said his greetings to some of the soccer players as he walked onto the court. When he saw her he headed in her direction and took up position beside her.
Trowa grinned at her and said his hellos. "Ready to play?"
Relena smiled back at him. "Are you?" she countered.
He gave her a quick glance up and down before responding. "Always." He drew the word out, pronouncing it precisely and slowly, as if to emphasize it. All Relena could do was smile at him.
When the opposing team scored yet another goal, Relena decided it was time for a change of positions. She went up to the current goalie and proposed switching positions with each other. He obliged without question and walked away from the net. During the times when Relena got the ball she would opt to throw the ball to her fellow players instead of kicking it across the court. Most of the time her team mates would shout for the ball while trying to run into an open area. More often than not, the Oriental boy would end up getting the ball either because she threw it to him or it was passed to him by the other players. Relena saw that he was an aggressive player. His tactic was to charge directly for the ball, either forcing his target to pass the ball or dodge him and run.
When Relena had the ball again, she looked around the court at her team mates. None of them were really in a good position to receive the ball as they were covered by the opposing team. But on the far side of the court, the Oriental boy was open and was calling to her.
"Hey! Hey, girl!" he shouted and waved at her. "Over here!"
Relena's lips pressed into a line and she threw the ball at him, making a mental note to speak to him later. She watched him stop the ball with his feet and run with it towards the goal. He was then forced to pass it to Duo as he ended up being cornered by two other players. Duo managed to evade the player covering him and headed toward the goal. At the last possible second, Duo took a shot as another player tried to run in front of him for a block. The ball flew past the player and through the goalie's hands for a score. A bark of triumph burst forth from Duo as his fist pumped the air. The Oriental boy came over to him and slapped his shoulder, smiling.
When the game was over for the day, Relena started for the drinking fountain. She had run hard during the game and needed water desperately. After gulping more than a few mouthfuls of water down, Relena spotted the Oriental boy near the edge of the court. He was wiping at his brow before taking a drink from his water bottle. He was alone and so Relena thought it the best time to approach him.
As she walked toward him he took notice and lowered the bottle from his lips. He raised one of his eyebrows as she came to stand in front of him. Standing so close to him, Relena saw that he too was taller than her by a few inches. He had stern features and a quiet disposition about him.
"You played hard," she commented. "Do you always play like that?"
He looked at her with his dark eyes. Those obsidian pools bore into hers with curiosity and intensity. "Not always," he replied "But I want to play my best ? so I play "hard.""
Relena nodded. "What's your name?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.
"Wufei," he said, but did not extend his hand.
Relena smiled up at him and extended hers instead. "Well, I'm Relena," she offered conversationally as the boy took her hand. "It's better than calling me "Hey, girl", right?"
Letting her continue to shake his hand, Wufei gazed at the girl in front of him. After a moment the corner of his mouth turned up and he gave her a genuine smile, which softened his features. "I'll remember that."
Relena simply smiled and let go of his hand. "I'll see you next time," she said over her shoulder as she turned to leave.
"You're coming back?" Wufei called to her.
Relena turned around and started to walk backwards as she looked at him. "Yes."
Wufei nodded his approval and gave her a small salute with his index and middle fingers.
"Until tomorrow then."
When Relena came out of the change room the hallway was, as before, deserted. Heading for the end of the hall she went up the stairs and outside the building. She had her books with her and didn't need to go to her locker. It was a bright and sunny afternoon and Relena relished the feel of the sun on her face. Fishing her earphones out of her pocket she fitted the buds in her ears before turning on the music. A loud, fast beat assaulted her eardrums as she turned up the volume. Bobbing her head to the beat, Relena began to walk to the parking lot. Spotting a short stairwell attached to the side of the building she ascended it and sat at the very top. The railing did not enclose the staircase and so allowed her legs to hang off the edge.
She had not taken her car today because her brother needed to run errands with her after school. He was going to pick her up in his car. Doubting that she absolutely had to accompany her brother on errands, she sighed and leaned back on her hands.
Glancing around the parking lot she spotted a lean boy not far from her standing beside a car talking to someone within the vehicle. The conversation must have been brief because the boy waved goodbye and started to walk away. He was headed for the school building at a leisurely pace, his long legs carrying him across the parking lot, when he saw her and looked over in her direction. Realizing that it was Trowa, she brought her arm up and waved at him.
Trowa smiled and waved back, changing his direction. He casually headed for her and Relena took the opportunity to admire the approaching boy. He had changed out of his sports clothes and was now wearing slim sandblasted jeans and a soft, light green button down shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. His legs looked absolutely splendid in his jeans and he seemed to carry himself like he knew it. When Trowa was within earshot, Relena pulled her earphones out and called to him.
"Hey there, what are you up to?"
Trowa was smiling at her again as he approached her. He motioned over his shoulder to a small vehicle in the distance. "I was just talking to a teacher over there."
Relena felt like she couldn't resist saying her next words: "Are you a teacher's pet?" she teased.
His smile seemed to grow as he came to a stop beside her. "Never," he replied with a boyish grin. Sliding his backpack from his shoulder, Trowa climbed the short staircase and took a seat beside her. Quite close beside her. He rested his backpack beside him and let his hands fall into his lap.
His legs hung off the edge of the staircase like hers as he faced her. He leaned his back against the railing and gave her an appraising look. "You played well today."
Relena inclined her head, appreciating his compliment. "Why, thank you," she said.
Tossing her head to clear her bangs from her eyes, Relena looked at the stretch of parking lot before them. There was a mild breeze whispering through the air and she closed her eyes briefly when she felt the wind caress her cheeks. Opening her eyes, Relena looked back at Trowa. "I enjoy playing soccer but I just wish they would pass me the ball more."
As an afterthought Relena said, "I know I'm not the best player but ? "
She was cut off when Trowa interrupted her. "If you want the ball, just go and take it," he told her. "If you keep thinking you're not good, you won't improve."
Relena looked at Trowa with surprise and sat up straight on the stairwell. She didn't expect him to say that to her; to be so forward. Her cheeks coloured with embarrassment and her shoulders tightened. How stupid of her to mention what she did. He probably thought she was whining.
"Yeah?" Relena began, trying to compose herself. She hoped he didn't notice how rosy her face was getting. Not wanting to look at him, she spoke to the parking lot instead. "I?I know that. But I'd still like them to pass to me."
Sensing her discomfort Trowa changed the subject. He hadn't meant to make her uncomfortable; he just wanted to encourage her. "Will you be coming to play soccer regularly?
The questioned seemed to ease Relena and she noticeably relaxed her shoulders. Looking at Trowa, she turned the question back at him. "Will you?"
"Yeah," he responded. "You'll see at the beginning that there's gonna be a lot of guys playing but as the semester goes on many will stop coming."
"Why?" Relena wondered out loud. "Is it because of school? They get into their studies?"
Trowa nodded and looked at the foliage bordering the parking lot. In the warm breeze he watched as the tops of the trees waved back and forth gently as if they were dancing to a tune only they could hear. "Yeah. Some also lose interest and other people have work too."
"So then will you be playing soccer all semester or will you drop out after a while?" she asked, hoping for a certain answer.
Trowa gazed back at Relena and gave her a wide smile. "Oh, I'll be playing all semester."
Relena smiled back at him, happy to hear his answer. "Me, too. I guess we'll be seeing a lot of each other then."
"I don't mind," Trowa added gently, regarding the girl beside him with warm eyes whose colour was intensified by the sunlight.
Relena looked away and smiled as something thumped inside her chest. She didn't know what to make of that comment. Not wanting to assume too much, she stopped herself from reading anything into it. She knew what she was feeling: her self-doubt was creeping up on her again. Relena never liked to assume anything beyond the platonic when in conversation with boys. She did not mind teasing and joking with them, and she did on occasion have brief flares of flirtatious behaviour. However, she wasn't the type to pursue the opposite sex as she regarded herself too timid to do so. Mostly, she would be far too embarrassed if it turned out that the boy did not share her feelings. So, she thought it best to simply ignore what Trowa said and move on, deducing that it was simply a innocent comment.
Relena brushed at her sleeve, dusting off something only she could see. She looked up at Trowa and asked, "So do you work?" She herself did not have a job thought she supposed she should get a one to keep herself busy.
Meeting her eyes, Trowa replied, "I work. I'm a server at a restaurant downtown."
Relena had always wanted to try her hand at being a waitress. She didn't want to do it for the money as she knew her pay would mostly come from the tips she made. She was more interested in the experience of it all: to meet all sorts of different people, carry those impressively large trays off food with apparent ease, amaze customers by not writing a single order down and relying simply on her memory, and to wear a sharp uniform with that little apron. She thought it would be kinda fun. Certainly not a career, but fun nonetheless.
Relena smiled. "That must be exciting. Where downtown?"
"My work's a short walk from here, actually."
"That's convenient,"
"Is it," Trowa agreed, gazing at her with a smile.
"How often do you work?" Relena asked. She knew of some restaurants in the area and wondered if he worked at any of the ones she frequented.
"Well, I work at 4 o'clock today."
Lifting her wrist, Relena angled her watch so she could see the time. She was mildly surprised as she remarked, "That's in twenty minutes."
That piece of information didn't seem to bother Trowa in the least. He shrugged nonchalantly. "That's OK. It's only ten minutes from here."
Relena opened her mouth to say something else when Trowa beat her to it and posed a question instead.
"So, what are you doing out here?" he queried.
Relena glanced about the parking lot once again, wondering exactly the same thing. She felt her shoulders sag a bit before replying, "I'm waiting for my ride to show up."
"From your boyfriend?"
That caught her attention.
She gave Trowa a sideways glance. He was looking directly at her with eyes that twinkled with something she couldn't put her finger on. Patiently waiting for her response, his lips parted as he smiled at her.
Bold.
Her brow furrowed for a split second at the question, a half-smile gracing her features. Relena hadn't expected that. She leaned back onto her hands again and gazed at the boy in front of her. He was either very direct or was being playful. She concluded he was the latter and decided to play along. She also concluded that she liked the question.
Relena arched her spine slightly and bent her head back, giving Trowa a mirthful look. "Maybe," she replied slowly. "What if it was my boyfriend?" Relena arched an eyebrow, half-expecting him to laugh off the question and half-wanting him to answer. She looked at him as he sat there regarding her with immense delight, obviously pleased at the direction their conversation was heading.
Trowa's smiled widened to a dazzling grin and he ran his slender fingers through his dark hair. The girl before him was luminous in the afternoon light. Her hair shone in the sun revealing every nuance of colour entwined in its strands. As her back arched, Trowa unapologetically drank in her figure. He definitely liked where their conversation was heading.
"Well," Trowa started smoothly, his voice like velvet. He shifted his weight and leaned forward conspiratorially. His eyed Relena and he shot her a purposeful gaze and a wicked smile. "If it is your boyfriend, then I'll call my girlfriend for a ride."
Relena's eyes widened with amusement. She burst into a small chuckle that displayed a row of straight, pearl coloured teeth. No one had ever spoken to her like this: so confident and daring. It was undeniably attractive. A feeling surged through Relena and it came to her that she was having one of her flares of flirtatious behaviour.
It couldn't hurt...
Thrilled at the prospect of giving as good as she got, Relena flashed Trowa a wide smile. Her body tingled with a sudden spell of courage. "So if I don't have a boyfriend does that mean you don't have a girlfriend?"
Trowa's smile turned into a sly grin and his eyes sparkled. He gave her the same answer as she had given him. "Maybe," he mimicked just as slowly.
At that Relena burst into a bout of laughter. What a conversation she was having! A good way to wind down the school day for sure. She felt good ? the school day had gone by quickly, the sun was warm and bright, she had played a good game of soccer, and she was chatting with someone she had taken an immediate liking to.
She looked over at Trowa and saw that he was chuckling along with her. His hands were resting on his thighs and his body was turned toward her. Amusement danced across his features. As she looked at him, the sunlight seemed to catch tiny specks of yellow in his irises and bring them out so that they shone against the lush green colour of his eyes.
Feeling relaxed, Relena asked, "So aside from school, soccer, work and a possible girlfriend what else do you do with your time?"
Trowa's eyes flicked to hers. "Flirt with girls."
Relena laughed again at his reply, not really surprised at the answer. "So your schedule is pretty much full," she stated.
"Full enough," he responded, a chuckle blossoming from his lips.
After Relena's laughter subsided, Trowa spoke to her. "So who is picking you up?" he persisted. "Boyfriend? Brother? Cousin?" he ventured lightly, easily.
Relena peered at him enjoying their exchange of words.
So tenacious.
Relena smiled at him evasively. "Mmm?it could be my boyfriend. Or it could be my father. Or it could even be my cousin." She wagged a finger at him and added playfully, "You'll have to stick around and find out."
Before she realized what he was doing, Trowa reached out and clasped her outstretched finger. Trowa's own fingers wrapped around her lone digit and tugged at it slightly before giving it a gentle shake. Trowa's lips curled into a smile as he took in her form silently, his eyes moving over her appreciatively. Relena's own eyes fluttered wider at the sudden contact. She hadn't expected him to reach for her.
Trowa was glad at the opportunity to touch her. Her skin was soft and delicate and she looked wonderful to him as she sat there, a surprised expression drawn across her features. He loosened his grasp on her finger as Relena withdrew her hand from him. She looked at the hand he had touched so spontaneously and glanced at him out of the corners of her eyes.
"Trowa?" Relena began.
She wasn't able to finish as a car slid silently up beside the two students. Relena glanced up and laid eyes on the sleek, black vehicle before her. The sports car was extremely low to the ground with a spoiler far larger and more extravagant than she thought necessary. The car came to a halt and Relena saw that the driver had on a pair of rimless sunglasses and wore a red shirt under a dark coloured blazer. Through the car window she could see the driver's platinum blond hair as his long, wispy bangs obscured most of his sunglasses from view. The rest fell behind him down his back.
Trowa saw what Relena saw and ventured a guess at the driver's identity.
"That's your brother," he stated as Relena hopped from the stairwell's ledge and gathered her things.
Grateful for the distraction caused by her brother's good-timing, Relena was able to collect herself enough to throw Trowa a quick smile. Her thumb and index finger of her right hand extended and the three remaining fingers curled toward her palm, forming a mock gun. She pointed her finger that doubled as a barrel of a gun at Trowa and pursed her lips as she pretended to shoot him.
"Bingo."
She said the word casually as she walked toward the waiting car. "I'll see you tomorrow, Trowa," she called over her shoulder at him.
Relena didn't look back as she got in the car or when her brother put the vehicle in gear and drove off. She was much too flushed over what had happened. Having never had a conversation like that before, she was elated and nervous at the same time.
Trowa had followed Relena with his eyes as she walked away from him. He didn't particularity want her to leave, but he didn't mind all that much watching her go. She was an attractive girl after all.
He waved goodbye at the retreating car and smiled to himself.
He was intrigued.
Trowa's long strides took him from the stairwell and in the direction of his workplace. The entire journey there he had only one thought in his mind.
Relena.
TBC
Author's Note: Whee! Another chapter out.
Hope all of you enjoyed the second part. Things are heating up as Trowa gets more forward with Relena. 
Any comments? What do you boys and girls think? Is Trowa being too forward or is he just being his sexy, sexy self? For those of you following "Tea" the next chapter is about half written, so it should be out in a couple of weeks. Hopefully.
Until next time!
Disclaimer: Gundam Wing is owned by Sunrise and Sotsu Agency.
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