Living in A minor, part 3/?

[VioletFairychild]

It's been a VERY LONG TIME since I've updated this fic. (Like, over two years.) I would have written it off completely and let it sink into oblivion were it not for the determination of a few friends who were not going to let me off the hook so easily. Thanks, guys, and I hope this chapter is everything you've been waiting two years for (although I'm sure it's not.) Here are links to the two previous chapters, buried somewhere in the back of this forum:

Chapter One
Chapter Two

Warnings: High school cliches and silliness abound. ABANDON HOPE ALL YE WHO ENTER HERE.

Pairings: 1xR, 2xH, 5xSP, 4xCB. Probably more.

Disclaimer: Not mine. No money. Will fic for food.

Living in A minor, a fic by Vi

Relena had never been so happy to leave the choir room. In fact, she'd been poised by the door with her backpack on, ready to bolt as soon as the bell rang and thus avoid any more contact with the object of her frustration. Walking as fast as she could without breaking into a sprint, she beelined for the girl's bathroom and lunged into the first availiable stall.

"Relena? Relena, what are you doing?" Catherine's voice echoed off of sickly green tile with a hint of worry. Despite her cavalier attitude, the only thing stronger than Catherine's embarrassment at chasing Quatre was her love for her friends, and once she had decided you needed her help there was no shaking her. "You're not sick, are you? Did he say something mean to you?"

"No, Catherine, he didn't say anything mean to me." He didn't say anything at all. "I'm not sick, I'm just annoyed. Go ahead to class, I'll catch up."

"Except you won't catch up, you'll sit the whole period in here and I'll have to make up some lame story about you puking because you got food poisoning." Catherine rapped her knuckles on the laminated green wood door. "Now come out! This is so freshman year."

"I told you, I'll be out soon. Now please just give me a minute alone?" Relena studied the names and obscenities scratched into the stall door as though they were mystic runes that could answer all her questions. Why was Heero Yuy still under her skin? How could he upset her so much without any words at all?

"Okay, that's it. I'm coming in." There was a loud thunk as Catherine's backpack hit the floor, and then the space under the stall door darkened as she dropped to a crouch and tried to shimmy through without touching anything. Just before she cleared the bottom of the door, her feet slipped and she hit the grungy tiles with both elbows. "EWWW! Ugh, I bet there's flesh eating bacteria on this floor!" Catherine jumped to her feet and did an odd dance that involved trying to wipe her elbows off on her shirt and jeans, while managing to look so ridiculous that Relena cracked up laughing. "It's not funny! They'll probably have to amputate both my arms!"

"It's hysterical, and I really don't think there's necrotizing bacteria on the floor." Relena picked up her own backpack and twisted the lock to let them out of the tiny stall. "Several cold viruses and non-flesh eating staph, maybe, but nothing they'd have to amputate both your arms over."

"What's staph? Is that something I'd have to take antibiotics for?" Catherine hated pills. "My immune system is still compromised, you know."

"You're fine, trust me. Besides, you probably wouldn't have to take pills if you came down with anything." The set up was too good to let slide, after what Catherine had pulled at lunch. Her neck still hurt from its 180 degree swivel at the counter at Bo's. "Let's go, the bell already rang."

"You don't think they'd give me pills?" Catherine picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder, following Relena out into the hall.

"Nope, they'd give you a shot-" and Relena knew she hated needles even more than she hated pills, "with a really big needle."

It only took a second for Catherine to catch on that she was joking, but the momentary expression of sheer terror on her face was more than worth it.

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

English was not Heero's strongest subject, but with some prompting from his uncle and the encouragement of his teachers, he found himself enrolled in last period AP English his senior year. Fortunately, the first quarter of the semester involved a project that kept the class in the library a couple of days a week, where Heero could immerse himself in reading words and not deal so much with the speaking of them. Unfortunately, the grade-level English classes were also working on a project that kept them in the library, which is how Heero found himself cornered by his best friend and most enthusiastic heckler.

"So are you going to ask if you can switch? I'll switch with you, if it bothers you that much." Duo's voice reverberated through the poetry section, loud enough to catch the attention of his teacher and earn him a dirty look. Heero didn't flinch at the question, but he stopped thumbing through his copy of Shakespeare's Collected Sonnets.

"I'm not going to switch, Duo. We're both professional enough to work despite any personal problems we might be having." It wasn't a total lie. At least Heero felt a small measure of comfort being paired with someone he'd worked with before.

"I don't buy that for a minute. I think you miss her." Score irritated look #2-Duo's version of "quiet" was what most people called "normal speaking volume". "It's so obvious. You should ask her if she wants to go to Homecoming with you."

"I doubt I'll even go to Homecoming this year. I'll probably drive up with Wufei to see Sally." Heero conveniently left out any statement for or against his feelings about Relena, but Duo's eyes lit up anyway.

"Actually, I heard Wufei talking about Sally coming here that weekend instead. She wants to come home for a visit, and we were talking about going to the dance as a group and then going midnight bowling afterwards. You should come, it'll be fun!" The last sentence was loud enough to make Duo's teacher get out of his seat and storm towards the two of them, with murder in his eyes.

"Mr. Maxwell!" Mr. Collins hissed through his teeth, sounding eerily reptilian. "If you cannot keep your voice at an appropriate volume, I am going to send you back to the room."

"No problem, Mr. Collins. I was just going to ask if I could head to the bathroom." Without waiting for an answer, Duo got up and started towards the library exit with a wave and a smile. "Thanks, Mr. Collins! I'll pick you up an iced tea from the vending machines." Heero quickly dropped his book and took off after him, not wanting to be left in the line of fire.

"You realize that man has the power to flunk you, Duo." Heero dropped some change into the snack machine and stared at the rows of over-processed junk, before deciding that peanut butter crackers were probably the least harmful thing he could eat out of there.

"He wouldn't flunk me. My charm and charisma will win him over by the end of the second quarter. Besides, I kick ass at English." Duo's can of Mountain Dew rattled and thumped it's way out of the machine, joining the iced tea behind the machine's door. "It's all about the art of BS, my friend."

"That's certainly something you're full of." The insult wasn't lost on Duo, and his grin widened.

"That makes two of us then, doesn't it, Heero?" Duo turned back towards the library. "You miss her, and I'm going to help you get her back."

"I don't need your help. If we want to get back together, we will."

"It's not the getting back together, it's the realizing that you want to get back together. That's where you need my help." Duo paused at the library door, checking his watch. "And this is where we part, because while I have no reservations about sneaking a drink into the library, I know you're too responsible to take your food in there. I'll just meet up with you in the parking lot." Before Heero could respond, Duo disappeared through the door.

He was wrong on one count. I've wanted to get back together since last spring. It's not me who needs the help.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Did you want me to call you tonight so we can go over that study guide?" Relena asked as she and Catherine navigated through the packed hallways. "I have to work tonight, but I'm off at eight."

"That'd be great! I took a few notes, but I could use the help." Catherine dug through her bag as she walked, checking for all her books. "Oh, no! I left my music folder in the choir room!"

"I really have to run, because I have to shower and get started on this homework before work-do you have another ride home?" Relena's brow furrowed as she tried to come up with a new plan.

"Oh, yeah, Trowa's using the darkroom this afternoon. I'll just hang around the music hall until he's ready to leave." She gave her friend a quick hug and waved her off.

"You're sure?" Catherine nodded. "Okay-I'll talk to you later!" With a wave and a smile, the two friends parted ways amidst the sea of surging bodies.

Sweet strains of quiet violin music met Catherine's ears as she walked down the music hall, floating out of the band room. It was a beautiful piece, and she found herself passing the choir room to listen just outside the large metal double doors. The music stopped, then started again. Moving with stealth, so as not to disturb the person playing, she pushed the door open and slipped inside.

His back was to her, but she recognized him right away. The bow he held made swift movements over the instrument tucked under his chin, drawing a wistful melody from the strings. She moved along the wall until she was almost in front of him, but he didn't notice her-his eyes were closed, concentrating on the music that flowed from somewhere inside of him. Seeing the emotion on his face as he played made goosebumps rise on her arms, and she felt a little guilty for watching when it was obvious he wasn't playing for anyone but himself.

Quatre's eyes opened as the last note died on the strings, meeting her gaze with a look that was equal parts surprise and embarrassment, and his cheeks took on the familiar reddish tinge that he always seemed to have when she was nearby.

"I didn't know you were-" "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle-" Nervous laughter spilled out of both their mouths as the words crashed and halted, and again they were left to stare at each other.

"I didn't mean to startle you. That was just-it was amazing." Catherine drew a quick breath as though she wanted to continue, but instead she cleared her throat and smiled.

"Thanks. There's five measures towards the end that I'm really having trouble with, so I've been working on it obsessively." He busied himself with replacing the instrument in it's case, grateful for the excuse to break eye contact. "We're playing it in concert in a couple of weeks-maybe you could come with Trowa?"

"I'd love to!" There it was, the awkward silence. Catherine looked around the band room in desperation, trying to find anything to inspire a witty comment. "I haven't been in here in forever. Hasn't changed much." It wasn't brilliant, but it'd do.

"You used to play the flute, right?" I might as well write "stalker" across my forehead. "I mean, I remember you used to practice sometimes while I was over."

She nodded, impressed that he recalled something from that far back. "Piano, too, for a couple of years. I wasn't very good at it, though."

"Really? Why did you stop?" He fiddled with the clasps on the case and hoped she hadn't noticed that he'd already fastened and unfastened them twice.

"My mother made me start playing the flute when I was in grade school, and I quit as soon as I was old enough to drive myself to registration and opt out of band." She dropped her backpack by the piano bench and sat down, lifting the cover so she could rest her fingers on the keys. "I don't remember why I stopped taking piano lessons, though. Probably because of something else I wanted to take instead."

"You want to start again?" With her attention focused on the piano, it was safe to look at her again. Quietly he moved towards the empty spot on her right.

"Nah, I don't have the time."

He sat down next to her, playing a few chords. "I could teach you."

The offer stopped her cold. "You'd do that?" She turned her head to look at him, and realized that he was sitting very, very close to her.

"Well, you know. If you wanted me to." The atmosphere in the room had taken on a definite heaviness. Quatre wondered if she could hear how hard his heart was pounding in his chest. He didn't have much time to think about it, though, because Catherine leaned in even closer and kissed him.

He was shocked, but not so shocked that he forgot to kiss her back-which he did with enthusiasm, reaching up to cup her cheek with his hand. She turned towards him even more, sliding her hands around his waist. The world was filled with the smell of cherry chapstick and the feel of her lips against his mouth, and Quatre decided it was a place he could get used to.

The sound of the band room door jolted them out of their embrace, and sent Catherine leaping over the bench to grab her bag before her brother could see what was going on. "Trowa! How did you know I was in here?"

Trowa raised an eyebrow, but otherwise his expression remained the same. "I didn't. I came in here to ask Quatre if he wanted to go get something to eat. Why are you in here?"

"I don't know!" The eyebrow went a fraction of an inch higher. "I mean, I just came in to say hi to Quatre. But I really came down here to get my music folder. I'll go do that now. Get my folder. Or something. I'll be in the choir room." Then she was gone in a flash of red hair and jeans.

Her brother watched her go, then shifted his focus to the boy still sitting on the piano bench. "Something I should know about?"

"No! I didn't do her. I mean, to her. I didn't do anything TO her." Quatre cleared his throat with an uncomfortable grunt. "Or anything."

Trowa rolled his eyes, but let the matter drop. "Are we making a food stop?"

"No, I really should keep practicing. And then Iria's bringing her boyfriend home to meet the folks tonight, so I have to be there." A truthful statement that made Quatre's flaming cheeks fade a bit. "Tomorrow, though."

"Cool. See you tomorrow." With a half-wave, Trowa turned and exited the band room.

Retrieving the violin from it's case, Quatre lifted it to his chin and tried to play, but couldn't make it past the first few measures. His thoughts were with a blue eyed girl with soft lips, one that had just kissed him. Kissed HIM. She had come to see him of her own accord, had appreciated his playing, had KISSED HIM.

A blue eyed girl with soft lips who just happened to be the sister of his best friend.

"I'm in a lot of trouble," he said out loud to no one.

(Edited to fix the link for chapter 2)

[melodrama]

At last!! Another chapter! Oh happy day!

So cute.... poor lovelorn little Heero. Whatever will he do to win back the object of his affection?

You already know this is one of my fav ficcies. And it just looks to be getting better!

So just one question, Vi-sweetie...

Where's the rest?

Love Mel

[blackrose]

Yaaaay! It's back. You found the ficcy in your head and managed to wring another chapter out. HUZZAH! *throws confetti*

And huzzah for Heero knowing that he still wants to be with Rel. But a BOO HISS to Relena for having broken up with him. BAD RELENA. YOU'RE A VERY VERY BAD RELENA.

Heero: *sulks*
Relena: It's just not meant to be.
Catherine: *snorts* Then why are you still mooning over him?
Heero: *perks up*
Relena: I'm not. Really. It's...flesh-eating bacteria or something.
Catherine: It is not. You want him, he definitely wants you. Now, smooch.
Relena: *huffs* No.
Heero: *pouts*
Catherine: Oh geez. Even Quatre can at least kiss me back. You two are hopeless.
Trowa: HE WHAT?
Quatre: *gulp*

[perfectpeach]

oh...my...days! I love this fic! it is seriously lifelike...but, you know, this is coming from some kid from an all girls school with no experience in school dating. but im sure if i asked anyone else they'd say it is so real!

my compliments to the chef!

[sweet_me_beajai]

oh my god... i almost forgot about this fic!! finally!!!

i hope we won't have to wait for another...what...2 years(?) for the next chappie!!

i LOOOOVE this!!! their colourful highschool escapades are a definite change from my boring one. *grin*

ooooh, i forgot to ask... what did Heero mean when he thought that Relena's...moan... sounded very much like the... something that they did? lol!!! *fists of giggles*

maybe Trowa could get it on with Relena and make Heero even more jealous!! i love TROWA (second to Heero, that is).

and yeah, the kiss between Quatre and Catherine was soooo cute!!!

PS: i'm sorry if i sound so giddy. i think i had too much ice tea. cherios!!