Blood, Sweat and Tears Part 3
Quietly closing the bedroom door behind him, Heero felt around for the light switch. Once he found it and flipped it on, the quarterback was surprised to find his surroundings rather tidy. The twin-sized bed at the opposite end of the room was made neatly with a deep red comforter and several pillows draped in black cases. Just beside the bed was a small table with a plain lamp and a frame. A wooden dresser rested against the wall just beside the door with several small items on top.
Yet again, it came as a shock to Heero that Duo hadn't opted for a larger bed, or more elaborate furnishings with the money that he was making. For someone as complicated as he was, the running back seemed a young man of pretty simple needs. There was something to be respected in that.
Since the dresser was so close, the young quarterback scanned the items on top first. Nothing there was out of the ordinary- a bottle of cologne, a gold watch, a pair of sun glasses and a cell phone that was charging. Heero stepped further into the room and looked to some of the images handing on the wall that was free of any furnishings. Most of the images were framed memorabilia of football players teams long past.
One of the images was of Football Hall of Fame member Bret Farve, quarterback for the Green Bay Packers. This being the year AC 200, the infamous player was long gone- but his sportsmanship and influence were still respected amongst the new generation of athletes. Smiling at the picture of the legend preparing to throw the ball in his gold and green uniform, Heero chuckled deeply, "So we actually do have something in common." He shook his head in amusement and headed for the table beside the bed.
Carefully lifting the brown picture frame, Heero blinked in surprise to find the image of Duo with a young woman in his lap. The girl had short-cropped, dark hair and a bright smile as if she was captured in mid-laugh. With a wide smile of his own, the braided running back had his arms wrapped tightly around her waist in a tight hug. His violet eyes seemed to sparkle with mischief and a real happiness.
Lowering the picture back onto the small table, Heero looked up to the hanging picture just above the bed. In that image, Duo was standing in a large, green field. His right arm was draped around the shoulders of the young woman from the first photo. His left looped around the shoulders of another young man of the same height with short, blonde hair and brown eyes.
Quietly humming to himself in silent thought, the quarterback moved to the closet door just beyond the table. Opening it, Heero turned on the hanging light within. Hanging there was a wide variety of clothing. That, however, was not what caught the athlete's attention. It was the large, brown box on the floor. Bending at the waist, Heero removed the cardboard lid and peered inside.
Suddenly, the bedroom door opened as Duo stepped in while calling over his shoulder towards the noise, "I'll be right back. Just gotta change shirts if we're going to be making those kinds of dares!" When he turned fully, his violet eyes widened at the stiffened form of his team captain hunched over the box in his closet. His own eyes wide, Heero's mouth opened and closed but nothing would come out.
His hands clenching into fists at his sides, Duo's eyes narrowed heatedly as he shouted, "What the fuck are you doing!?"
Instantly on his feet again, Heero finally found his voice and replied quickly, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"
Closing the distance between them in a heartbeat, Duo closed the box and his closet before glaring at the other football player. "Trying to figure me out more about me, huh?" he hissed. "Maybe before you decided to look through my shit you should have considered just fucking asking me!?"
Heero's own eyes narrowed as he replied, "Look, I told you that I'm sorry. I made a mistake and it won't happen again."
Roughly jabbing a finger into the quarterback's chest, Duo snorted, "You know, of all the guys on the team, I never would have expected something like this from Mister Perfect." When his teammate's cobalt eyes narrowed further, he chuckled deeply, "Trust me, I know all about you. You were an A student in high school and you hardly touch a drink or does anything remotely out of line. You didn't want for anything with your rich Mommy and Daddy, so God forbid you might do something that upset them and write you from their wills."
Leaning in, the running back smirked, "I'll bet you still sucking your Mom's tit and letting your Dad change your underwear." The punch that immediately followed knocked Duo back into the dresser. As the items on top fell onto the floor, he collapsed along with them.
"Is that what you wanted, asshole!?" Heero shouted down at him through his heavy pants of rage as he stalked towards his teammate with clenched fists and a fiery glare.
Violet eyes wide from the initial shock, Duo reached up to wipe at the blood that ran down the right corner of his lip that he had bit down on. His cheek was already just beginning to swell as he looked up to the team captain with thinning eyes and growled deeply, "Yea. That's what I wanted." Jumping to his feet, he charged into the slightly taller young man and slammed his shoulder into his chest.
The wind knocked out of him, Heero fell back and hit his head on the edge of the table by the bed on the way down. Finally grasping a breath, he managed to get to his feet. "You son of a bitch!" he screamed and went after the running back just as Duo was about to land a swift punch to his face.
Punches and kicks landed in a blur as the two athletes wrestled and attacked with everything that they had. Knocking each other into the walls and anything else that they could manage, they finally tumbled into the hallway and continued their fight. They didn't stop when they reached the top of the stairs. Not paying attention, Heero lunged at Duo when the braided player's back was to the stairwell and they both went tumbling down in a balled heap of blows.
Several screams could be heard over the loud music, and strong arms wrapped around the struggling pair to pull them apart at a safe distance. Panting heavily, the bloodied and disheveled young men continued to glare at each other. The music stopped and all of the guests watched with wide, frightened eyes.
Running into the scene, Zechs and Quatre stood between the restrained players and glared warningly from one face to the other. "What the hell is going on here!?" the head coach snapped.
"I found your Golden Boy, here, snooping through my room!" Duo shouted while trying to break free from Wufei's iron grip. The struggle only made the Chinese receiver tighten his hold on the arms that he had folded behind the braided American. Trowa was having a bit of a time, himself, in hanging onto his team captain in the same fashion.
At the explanation of what happened, several gasps filled the air as the guests displayed varying degrees of shock and disbelief. His own eyes wide, Zechs quickly turned red and growled deeply at his star quarterback, "Is that true?"
With blood running down the left side of his face from a large cut on his forehead, Heero nodded firmly, "It was a mistake and I was in the middle of apologizing when that bastard crossed the line." From the corner of his cobalt eye, he could see Mueller smirking in pleasure at seeing that his team leader stood up to the cocky running back.
Still glaring at his friend, Quatre folded his arms and announced loudly, "All right, everyone. Party's over! Thank you for coming and drive home safely." Relena and Catherine shared a worried look, but knew better than to stick around. Quickly heading upstairs, they graciously took up the job of handing out the coats with the football team and the remainder of their squad filtering up behind them.
In moments, the last of the guests were out the door while casting glances over their shoulder to Heero and Duo. Taking a deep breath, Zechs sighed deeply, "Chang, Barton, you can stand down. I'll take it from here."
Not needing to hear another word, the center and receiver released their holds and accepted the coats that Relena and Catherine held out to them. Together, the four of them headed out silently. Shaking their freed arms a bit, Heero and Duo never broke their fierce gazes that had been locked on each other ever since they had been separated.
Quatre looked over to the head coach and stated, "I'll handle Duo, since I know how he works. Most likely, some words were said that shouldn't have been." The running back's mouth opened to protest, but the look that he was given by his Arabian manager kept him from pressing his luck. "I would appreciate it if you had a word with Yuy, since an invasion of another's personal space is not exactly something that is taken lightly in my culture."
"Of course," Zechs replied in a voice that he forced to keep calm. Gripping the quarterback from behind his neck, the tall blonde led him outside roughly. Heero winced the slightest bit, but made no sound or a move as he allowed himself to be taken away with a rough swallow. On the way outside, the head coach grabbed their coats that had been set up on the end cap of the stair railing with his free hand.
Stepping out into the cold air, Zechs carefully ushered his charge down the stairs, but held a tight grip onto the back of his neck. When they neared his own car, the tall man finally released the quarterback and growled deeply at him, "Mind telling me what the hell you were thinking when you went into that room?"
Heero straightened himself and held his bruised head high as he answered, "I was trying to find out exactly who I'm going to be working with. No one seems to know a goddamned thing about Maxwell's background before he became a professional football player. But he sure as hell can find out whatever the hell he wants about the rest of us."
Zechs shook his head and frowned deeply, "So you thought that going through someone else's personal belongings was the way to get your answers? Heero, you're my team captain. You're supposed to lead by example." Running a hand through his long bangs, he sighed deeply, "Yes, it does help to know as much about your teammates as you can so that you work well together, but you need to start using your head a bit more. Didn't anybody tell you that curiosity killed the cat?"
The realization of what he had done came in a rush and Heero's already chill-reddened cheeks brightened all the more. Lowering his head, he closed his cobalt eyes and said quietly, "I'm sorry, Zechs. I just... forgot myself back there. I wasn't thinking as clearly as I should have and I promise that something like this will never happen again."
A small, sad smile tugged the coach's lips as he replied softly, "Fair enough." Giving a firm slap to his player's back, Zechs told him, "Get on home and clean yourself up. The two of you are lucky that you didn't break your damn necks coming down the stairs like that."
Just as the events that he helped start flooded back, so did the aches and pains of Heero's injuries.
Despite the pain it caused his ribs, he chuckled deeply, "I guess that we did look like a couple of idiots back there." Zechs joined in his light laughter and nodded firmly. Slowly taking a deep breath, the Japanese young man smirked and turned towards his own vehicle with a sighed, "Good night, coach." The tall blonde responded with his own 'good night' before throwing his coat on and removing his keys as they parted ways.
Back inside the house, Duo was still seething as he stormed through the living and dining rooms to reach the kitchen. All but punching the door open, he treaded towards the refrigerator and opened the freezer, muttering several curses under his breath. Throwing a few ice cubes into a plastic bag that he removed from the counter, he hissed, "Should've killed that son of a bitch. What the fuck right did he think that he had?"
As his friend continued to rant to himself, Quatre stepped past the kitchen door and frowned deeply, "You know, you have had this coming for a while now."
Instantly pausing in his work, Duo snapped his head in his agent's direction with wide, violet eyes. "Wha!?" he cried in a slur, his right lip and cheek swelling pretty good by then. "T'll me I didn jus hear you right," he demanded as best he could with his speech somewhat impaired.
Shaking his head, Quatre closed the freezer door and leaned against the refrigerator with his arms crossed. "Don't get me wrong," he began in a sympathetic tone, "I'm not condoning what Heero did by any means, but I know you. I'm sure that you crossed a very thin line with him when you did find him. He doesn't seem the type to resort to blows without a reason."
Not bothering to meet his friend's gaze, Duo rested the cold pack against his cheek. "Mister Perfect needed ta get his cage rattled a bit," he grumbled finally. "He cn cry to Mommy 'n Daddy if he doesn' like it. I can't stand rich snots like 'im." Hissing against the throbbing, he gritted, "Bastr'd has some heat in dat throwing arm of his. Damn near broke my jaw."
Sighing deeply, Quatre moved towards the sink and removed a glass cup from the cabinet just above. "His parents died, Duo," he shared in a low tone while turning on the faucet. "They were in a car accident last summer. Since it happened over the off-season, it wasn't all over the papers and he wanted the news to be kept quiet so that he could deal with the loss privately. Trowa was telling me about it earlier."
The running back's violet eyes widened at that, his hand limply lowering the ice pack from his darkening cheek with a quiet, "Shit." His legs became unsteady and he settled down onto one of the stools at the bar.
Guilt was something that Duo rarely ever experienced. But... family meant a great deal to him. To know that he just insulted another person's dead parents was making his stomach churn uncomfortably.
"And judging by that reaction, I take it that you made a comment about his folks," Quatre's frown deepened as he handed over the full glass and a couple pain pills that he brought with him. His braided friend remained quiet, but set aside the ice pack to accept the offerings with his head lowered.
Silently willing away his dark thoughts of what transpired in that room, the Arab young man sat at a stool beside his client. "You really need to do something about this anger of yours, Duo" Quatre warned gently. "It's eating you alive and it's not healthy when dealing with other people. I know that you think it's you against the world, but that's not the case."
After downing the pills, Duo lowered the glass onto the bar and nodded, "All right, Quat. You've made your point." A sudden thought struck him and he looked up with a curious gaze. "Why would Trowa share somethin' like that wif you when you just met 'im?"
Smirking, the blonde Arab answered, "Because it seems the two of us have something in common when it comes to judging who has the best ass for those tight pants that you all wear. We exchanged numbers and have a date set for next weekend."
Nearly falling from his own stool, the braided running back laughed, the quickly dissolving pills already helping him form words with less pain. "You're kiddin'! I almost forgot that there was a big stint about his coming out two seasons ago." Nudging his friend with his elbow lightly, he chuckled deeply, "Smooth work scorin' a date during your first week here. You must have made quite the impression."
Quatre just shook his head in amusement and switched the gears on their conversation with a suggested, "Maybe you should get out of here for a while. Head back to our old stomping grounds in Chicago for a while and clear your head." Raising an eyebrow, he added, "I'm sure that Hilde would appreciate seeing you."
"Yea," Duo replied while setting the icepack against his cheek again. "I thought about that too. She hates when I'm away for more than a week, not that I blame her. Maybe I'll just stay out there for a couple weeks." Frowning deeply, he asked, "You sure you don't mind being here on your own for a while?"
Before the question was even finished, his agent was shaking his head. "You take care of what you need to take care of," Quatre insisted. "I think that I'm perfectly capable of holding my own out here for a few weeks. And I don't want to see you back here until you have a better attitude. Is that understood?"
Raising his free hand in a salute, the braided American chuckled deeply, "Understood." Together, Duo and Quatre got to their feet and headed out of the kitchen.
When they entered the dining room, they froze with wide eyes at the pile of food, soda cans and beer bottles that covered the table. In the living room, the scene was much the same, along with the dropped food that was covering the floor. "Would you be opposed to waiting until tomorrow to clean this up?" the running back inquired in a hope-filled voice.
Quatre just grinned in relief, "I was hoping you were going to ask that." With that, they headed upstairs to turn in after a very long night.
* * * * * *
Heero had just finished stepping into his large estate with a million thoughts swirling through his head when his cell phone rang. Not bothering to check the caller ID, he just opened the flip and pressed the receiver to his ear with a quiet, "Hello?"
"So were you able to find anything out when you were in the room?" Mueller's voice was quick to ask. The quarterback was not the least surprised to be hearing from him. The young guard had looked about ready to come out of his skin with anticipation when it was announced what the team captain had been caught doing.
The quarterback shrugged off his coat and hung it in his white, crystal-handled closet as he sighed deeply, "Only that he apparently has a girlfriend. I wasn't able to find out anything more before he came into the room."
His friend snorted, "I'm surprised that there's a girl out there that would give that creep the time of day. Must be the money he's making." Heero just rolled his eyes and refrained from making any comment. "Well, I guess that I better get going then. Whatever that prick said to make you snap, just brush it off, man."
With a deep breath, the Japanese athlete said simply, "Sure. Good night, Mueller." He didn't wait for the response before closing his cell phone and heading to the nearest of his five bathrooms. Once he threw back a couple pain pills, he slowly started heading upstairs.
Along the way, Heero stopped at the large picture hung at the top of the stairwell. The image was of his parents, Odin and Yumeko Lowe. Both smiling warmly, their hands were clasped together in one of the last pictures that had been taken of them.
Lightly running a hand over the gold frame, the young man whispered, "Good night, Mom and Dad." With a small nod to them, he headed down the hall towards his room to put the night behind him.
TBC...
IMPORTANT NOTE:
I realized too late after posting the last part that my dyslexia kicked in and the team responsibilities that I had written down were backwards!!!!
So... We will be focusing on the *offense* team and not the defense. Badmomma was good enough to email me a detailed description:
*Offense is the team that attempts to score. They 'go on the offensive' against their opponents to reach the goal and score points. It's made up of Heero (quarterback), Trowa (center), Duo (running back), Wufei (wide receiver) and Mueller's (guard) characters' positions. The remaining blockers and guards make up the remaining part of the offensive line.
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