Relena, Stand By Me (1/?)

[Calla Lily]

Genre: Romance/Humor
Rating: PG to PG-13

Chapter One: Relena, Stand By Me

Summary: [1xR and others] Heero looked at the bouquet of daisies and thought, ?Is Mrs. Darlian allergic to flowers??



- - -


Heero Yuy rapped on the door a third time and waited for a reply. Nope, no answer yet. Glancing at his watch, he noticed that he had been standing at the door for at least ten minutes. Things looked bad for him.

?Relena? Are you in there??

The boy knocked on the door yet again and waited. For another five minutes. Getting impatient, he resisted the urge to just unhinge the thing and storm in uninvited. Well, he could always make an excuse that amateur guerilla fighters were hiding in the rose bushes, and that he followed them and took them all out single-handed?

But then Relena would ask him where he placed the bodies. Darn.

Maybe he could lie about work and say that the Preventers needed to meet with her urgently, for ESUN?s sake and for hers. That way, he could sweep her up into his arms without question and bring her to safety.

But then the Vice Foreign Minister would expect to be taken to Headquarters and inquire Une what this was all about. That would be bad, not only would he have to lie to Relena and his fellow colleagues, but he?d have to lie to Lady Une.

And that would be BAD.

No, he wasn?t afraid of that woman, WuFei even put up with her. But to face two angry females, no thank you. Not if he could help it.

?Relena, are you home??

Besides, Duo had experience in that field just recently, and not for the first time, either.

~ * ~

*RING RING*

?Hn??

?Heero? Buddy?? Duo?s nervousness could easily be heard through the phone.

?Yeah??

?Are you busy??

?What do you want, Maxwell?? The person on the other line cleared his throat anxiously.

?Could I crash with you for a couple of days??

?What for??

?Hilde threw me out.? The guy tried a feeble laugh and failed miserably.

?What did you do??

?? Nothing. Well, maybe something. Yeah, something? bad? I just don?t know
anymore.?

~ * ~

Heero didn?t bother to find out (specifically) just what Duo did to get his fianc?e, Hilde, so upset with him that she would take the initiative to throw him out of their condo. Oh no, he wasn?t going to end up that way, no lover?s tiff for him, thank you very much.

But first, there had to be a girl.

Darn, he almost forgot about that.

?RELENA! I?M LEAVING THE HOUSE!? He yelled at the door, feeling absolutely foolish that he should be exercising his tonsils at a panel of wood. Turning heel, he walked down the steps and down the sidewalk, but then he remembered what he held in his hand. He could always leave it at her doorstep with a note. Wait; no paper, no pen.

He?d have to give it to herself or throw it in the garbage.

No way was he going to throw away a bouquet of fresh daisies.

And so, in typical Heero Yuy style, the boy walked on the neatly manicured lawn, hoping Pagan wouldn?t catch him defacing his beautiful grass, and looked into multiple windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of Relena so she could show him in. That was Plan A.

Plan B was to break open a window with as much noise as possible and alarm someone in the mansion that he existed. Then, run like heck and track down Relena residing in one of those many rooms. Hundreds of rooms. Some of them locked. Some of them might be full of other people. Like maids, and cooks, and butlers, and gardeners, and dusters, and other Preventers, and bodyguards, and other unspeakable things. Like Pagan.

Heero treaded carefully on the grass.

Or maybe he?d open the door and see? Milliardo.

Heero made sure his gun was easily attainable. Just in case.

Or Noin, Milliardo?s wife.

He could always spare a daisy or two for her, he heard from Quatre that doing such an act would get you on a woman?s good side.

Mrs. Darlian?

She still didn?t live here, did she?

Heero start to count how many daisies there were in the bouquet?

~ * ~

A young woman with long locks of honey-golden hair jumped off her bed with phone in hand. She had just spoken with Catherine and now Hilde was on the line. The girl was quite distraught with her Gundam pilot.

?You know what he told me!? Shrieked Hilde, ?He said that Valentine?s is just an over-rated day for girls to be treated out by their guys. He said it wasn?t that big of a deal since we?re already getting hitched in five months?? the girl started to breathe heavily and Relena imagined her friend?s eyes growing wide with anger, ?He actually said that! It?s like he doesn?t want to marry me at all with the way he?s talking now? he doesn?t feel like going out anymore? talking about this and that other than the wedding? I mean, if he?s going to continue this way? is this what I?m going to have to live with the rest of my life??

?Uh-huh? of course Hilde? I understand?? was all Relena managed to squeeze into the conversation as her friend continued to rant breathlessly on the phone. Things had been pretty up-and-down with those two, and it was probably just because of the stress of their special day. Out of the gang, Duo and Hilde were the first ones to get together as an official couple. Several years after, they asked their friends to be part of their wedding party and were ecstatic with the support.

But as of now, Hilde was pretty stressed and like every other woman on this world, she got upset pretty easily, a drastic change to her usual, casual self. Unfortunately, Duo?s lighthearted manner had also taken a wrong turn, and one too many times a fellow pilot would get a call just like Heero did. That boy better get his act together, and soon.

?Relena? Are you even listening to me?? The VFM snapped out of her reverie, realizing that she had just been staring at her teddy bear for the past fifteen minutes. She patted its head affectionately.

?Don?t worry about it, everything will return to normal, you?ll see.? She heard a sigh.

?Yeah, you?re probably right. I?m just so worried, ?Lena. I just want it to be over.?

?I know.? There was a pause.

?So??

?Hmm??

?When are you tying the knot?? The woman asked slyly.

Did Relena forget to mention that Hilde liked to change topics often?

~ * ~

In the meanwhile, Heero, being the perfectly prepared (ex)-soldier, was almost done counting his flowers. He started to talk to no one in particular.

?Relena (there had to be more than just one daisy for her, though), Noin (would she just be satisfied with just one?), Mrs. Darlian (was she allergic to flowers?), Hilde (if she was visiting for female support, women did those kind of things, he was told), Catherine (who also visited the mansion with Trowa on occasion), Sally (but WuFei wouldn?t approve of him giving her flowers), Dorothy??

Heero made a face, making sure no one was looking.

Quatre could take care of that. That guy was an expert on making women fall for him, a surprising revelation for the rest of the boys, but it must have been his baby/sweetheart looks that made them melt into puddles. Blonde hair and blue eyes, soft-spoken voice, fruity (yet colourful) clothes? Heero even remembered a time when Relena had a ?thing?for Quatre and both she and Dorothy fought over him. That was a shocker to say the least, but most of all for the Perfect Soldier. Oh yes, Quatre could effortlessly be a sugar daddy. Divide the age, quadruple the wealth and you got Quatre, the Gigolo, but he was loyal to Dorothy. They were quite the something. Enough thinking about them because?

The object of his affections appeared at the upstairs balcony and gazed out into the yard, holding a phone away from her head. Heero pressed himself flat against the wall and listened to the conversation. Easily deducing that it was Hilde, he relaxed and fixed the array of flowers, smoothing out the creases in the silk pink ribbon and repositioning any petals that fell out of place.

?Hil, I?m not planning on anything right now, I?m too busy with my own career and your life to focus on anything else?? After taking a breath of crisp pre-spring air, Relena returned to the house.

Pilot 01 looked up at the balcony and smirked. He could scale the wall without too much problem; it was just a matter of the flowers not being harmed in the process. A thought crossed his mind about security but it quickly passed. He was the one who built the system so he knew all the loopholes. Besides, he had disabled it before infiltrating the garden shed to look for pruning shears and water. For the flowers. What else would he use it for, Trowa?s hair? The boy started to question his own sanity for that last thought.

Tying the flowers carefully to his neck with the pink ribbon, he pushed them behind his neck to make sure they didn?t get hurt. Heero retrieved the length of rope he had taken from the shed and hid in one of the bushes, and threw it up on the balcony. Using his training skills, he got the rope to hook upon the railing and come back down so he could tie one end to a secure base. Rolling up his sleeves to the elbows, he blinked once and started to haul himself up just by using his upper torso. Bit by bit he climbed up the rope and hardly broke out into a sweat when he crawled over the railing and onto the balcony. He untied the rope and looked for a place where he could store it.

He was in her bedroom.

?Oh.?

Out of all the years that he had known Relena, despite the many times he had saved her life on Earth and the Colonies, he had never seen her bedroom. Not speaking sexually, but in the way that she didn?t want him to see that vulnerable side of her. Heck, she even showed Trowa her collection of teddy bears that Heero had given her; a different one for each birthday, Christmas, Halloween, New Year, Summer Solstice, April Fool?s, Thanksgiving, St. Patrick?s Day?

He even gave her one to commemorate ?Happy Sandwich Day.? Oh, that was a special one; the little blue bear had even come complete with a flag honouring the great Earl of Sandwich. Relena had loved it.

But that was not his mission because he had to give Relena the flowers. He had to.

~ * ~

Finally able to put down the phone, the young lady rubbed her forehead and headed for the closest kitchen for a glass of water. Returning to the living room, she kneeled on the carpet and opened one of the cabinets. Getting up, she put a small disc in the entertainment system and cranked up the volume loud.

?What the hell was that noise?? Heero wondered as strange sounds came from downstairs. Maybe some guerilla army did try to break into the house while the system was down.


I'm so young and you're so old
This, my darling, I've been told.


Heero Yuy wasn?t sure what to make of it. Curious, he started to head out the door when he caught himself in the mirror. He removed the ribbon from his neck and tied it accordingly to the flowers. They still looked fresh from the store, unfortunately, his neck was another thing. He pulled up his collar with the bouquet in hand.


I don't care just what they say
'Cause forever I will pray
You and I will be as free
As the birds up in the trees.


?Relena?? He asked the air as he came down the stairs and to the room where the sound originated. As he approached, the music got louder until he had to shout to make his voice heard. ?Relena?? He was greeted with a sight.

The girl was standing on the couch, dressed in a creamy tan skirt that flowed liked a bell past her knees, a simple white blouse, and an elegant ribbon around the collar that matched the skirt. (1920-1930?s women?s style) However, that was not it. In one hand she held her high-heeled shoes while in the other she seemed to be singing to a drinking glass. Oh, she was pretending it was a microphone. Oblivious to everything, she was jumping up and down on the couch; eyes closed, and sang along with the words,


?Oooooooh, please stay by meeeeee, Diana!?


Then as the music started to wail into the saxophone solos, she opened her eyes and gasped.

?Heero!?

?Hn.?

She was mortified. No one had ever seen her like this, not even Noin or Milliardo. Well, Mum and Pagan was another thing, but Heero? She could have died on the spot.

?Hi?? Relena blushed furiously as she remained standing on the couch.

?I got these for you.? And he held out the bouquet.

?Daisies!? She temporarily forgot her predicament and jumped up like a little girl, she loved daisies. ?Oh, Heero, thank you ? thank you ? thank ? whoa!? Her foot sank through the cushions and she fell forward, tumbling off the couch. She would have fallen onto the glass coffee table and twisted her ankle if?

Heero had not caught her in his arms.

That was one way to get the girl.

?Are you alright, Relena?? he asked, still holding her when she refused to move.

?Mm-hmm.? Right then and there, she made up her mind that she quite liked this spot, burying her face into Heero?s chest and was thankful that he couldn?t see her smile mischievously.


Thrills I get when you hold me close
Oh, my darling, you're the most
I love you but do you love me
Oh, Diana, can't you see?


?What were you doing??

Darn, she actually had to get up to speak to him. Oh well, looking into his eyes was just as good, if not better.

?Singing, is there a problem with that??

?No.?

?Good.?

There came an awkward silence and Relena walked barefoot to the entertainment system to turn down the music a bit, but not by much. She put her glass and her shoes down on the table. He watched her every move.


I love you with all my heart
And I hope we will never part
Oh, please stay with me, Diana


?Why are you listening hits of the 1950?s?? She was surprised that he knew such things.

?Because I felt like it, that?s all.?

?You sing?? Heero picked up the disc cover and glared at it. Or maybe he was just reading.

?Only when no one knows.?

?You?re a good singer.? She blushed under his piercing gaze; he didn?t give comments like that often, especially when it had nothing to do with work.

?Want to dance??

Relena couldn?t get any happier when he didn?t wait for an answer and put down the bright flowers down on the table beside her personal effects. He stepped closer to her, wrapped one hand around her waist and held the other to his own.


Oh, my darlin', oh, my lover
Tell me that there is no other
I love you with my heart
Oh-oh, oh-oh, oh-oh


Out of the blue, he started to do the ?jive? with amazing accuracy. Heero Yuy knew how to dance. He knew how to dance. Just when he couldn?t surprise her any further, he did.

Heero mentally congratulated himself; he didn?t have to give her flowers he just had to show her a bit of himself. He held her hands and taught her where to put her feet. She caught on quickly.


Only you can take my heart
Only you can tear it apart


?Where did you learn to dance, Heero??

?Nowhere, I guess. Old documentaries of post-WWII.? Oh.


When you hold me in your loving arms
I can feel you giving all your charms
Hold me, darling, ho-ho-hold me tight
Squeeze me baby with-a-all your might


Heero grabbed Relena by the waist again and dipped her low, almost to the floor. She laughed, he gave a rare smile. It was perfect.


Oh, please stay with me, Diana?


?Relena??

?What??

?Nothing.?


Oh, please, Diana? (Relena ? Heero mentally corrected the song)
Oh, please, Diana? (RELENA ? he thought again)


?Heero??

?Hn??

?What are we going to do about your rash?? She pointed out to the red scratch marks of the silk on his skin. He shrugged and they continued to dance.


Oh, please, Relena.


Just then, the front doors opened and the sound echoed throughout the house as four figures entered the living room. Pagan, Mrs. Darlian, and Noin all stood at the door, staring at the pair. Heero and Relena locked in each other?s arms. Dancing. Barefoot. On the couch. Singing. Together. Pagan and Mrs. Darlian had amused looks on their faces. Noin looked astonished. Then a booming voice startled everyone that even Heero almost dropped Relena onto the floor.

?YUY!? he roared seeing them together, ?GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY SISTER? AND WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOUR NECK?!?

- - -

Notes on the song, Diana:
- words and music by Paul Anka (performed by him as well)
- written in 1056 at the age of 15 by Paul Anka about his 18-yr-old neighbour (in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada), Diane Ayoub, whom he had a crush on. ^^

[Chibi-sitter]

i like it! cant stop smiling!
more dancing please
this is what i needed. my AMVs are stubbornly freezing my screen today, but reading this cheered me up
i'll read the next chapters too.
i like it, keep it up.