Warnings: Duo POV, OC, fluff, some sap, AU (Our world and time)
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: 2+1, Mariemeia+OC
Disclaimer: I tried sending a letter to Santa and ask him for Duo, but that letter bounced. Apparently, Santa is hooked on email nowadays, and has cut off his postal service. So no, I do not own GW. I do own this little piece of fiction though.
Thanx to Lily Kalanoa for beta-ing! ^^
Seventh Heaven Series Part 25a
Reminiscing Part 1
I poke at my salad, and the tomato slices slip deeper into the pile of vegetables. Almost resignedly, I pick up a cabbage leaf and stuff it into my mouth. Eww... I hate salad. The only redeeming point it has is the salad dressing, which I think, defeats the whole purpose of eating a salad. People just come up with strange inventions everyday.
I force myself to chew the thing lest I choke, and I swallow. The after taste is horrible. But looking at the expectant girl sitting across me, I guess I have no choice but to finish this whole damn bowl. But... Couldn't the manufacturers just make smaller bowls?
"How is it?"
All damn salads taste the same to me, and my taste buds revolt aggressively against such things. But who am I to put down a girl's enthusiasm for the first edible thing she's made? So I keep a straight face and say, "Fine, I guess."
"I knew it! I just knew you'd like it!" Marie exclaims in a happy squeak, clapping her hands. "I'll make potato salad for you tomorrow! Oh, you're gonna like that one, I assure ya!"
As she continues to blabber, I silently moan for help. Like I said, I hate salad. After a slimy slug slithered out from under a large cabbage leaf from my salad when I was just a kid, I've completely sworn it off. In fact, I avoided all forms of vegetables for weeks after the incident and it took me quite a while to even stab at a leaf with my fork.
'Why me? Why is it always me?'
My silent question is answered by Sylvia's look of pity, which I have a hunch means, 'If not you, then who?'
Couldn't it be the girls? Any girls? Don't they always claim that they want to lose weight? This is the perfect opportunity to start! I peer around. Aha! There's Wendy! I stare at her, willing for her to come over to gorge the salad for me. But she cringes, gives me an apologetic smile, and quickly scampers off. Well, I can't blame her. She got indigestion after sampling Marie's cookies the last time; she'd have to be a dud if she comes over voluntarily now.
"Duo, why are you peering around? Is someone here?" Marie asks quizzically.
I quickly shake my head. "No, just looking around. I thought I saw Ruby."
Fortunately, she accepts my explanation. "Hey, you want me to teach you how to make this salad? God knows how you can't cook. You could make one for Heero, and then he'll be like... Whoa! Over the clouds!" she laughs, and Sylvia giggles.
For all the things I could do, my cheeks warm up. I honestly don't know what came over me the other day when I leaned in to kiss him on his cheeks. Two kisses, in fact. Or maybe three, although that one was an accident. Either that, or Heero made it seem like one with good effort. I had been embarrassed to high heaven after that, but he just pulled me right back into his arms so I wouldn't get wet. It was so awkward I felt like digging a hole and poking my head inside it like an ostrich. But somehow, the feelings just dissipated in his arms. It actually felt safe with him holding me like that. Safe, and... very warm.
"Hellooo? Anybody in there?"
I jump at the sudden intrusion of a waving hand in front of my eyes. "What?"
Marie leers at me. "Just what did you and Heero do anyway? You were totally off for like... a whole minute!"
Sylvia stifles a laugh in my general direction, and adds, "What were you thinking of?"
I bite my lips. "I think... we're dating."
"Isn't that what you two have been doing lately?"
"Well... at first, I thought we were just hanging out like friends do. And we sorta were. I mean, we just went out together, had fun..." I say, my mind thinking about the first few times Heero took me out. It wasn't anything special. Just... two friends having a day out together.
"No hanky panky?" Marie asks curiously.
"Of course not!"
"So you mean there was some during your last date?"
Marie's giving me that expectant look now. How can I resist it? "Yeah. Just a little," I reply, lips curling at that thought. "It was raining, so the weather was kinda cold. He just pulled me close to keep me warm."
"And?"
"I kissed him goodnight," I answer, feeling strangely smug about it.
"Oh my god...!" Marie whispers disbelievingly, shaking her head. "And what was he like? Did he taste nice? And did he kiss you back?"
"On the cheeks, Marie. I kissed him on the cheeks! And no, he didn't kiss me back. But honestly, I think he was a little too shocked to react. After I kissed him, he just stared at me like... like he didn't believe it!" But there was something in his eyes that told me that he liked it, and that he wanted more. In fact, now that I think about it, it was in his eyes the whole time we were together that day. A little... hungry, and predatory. Like he had been thinking of how to steal a kiss from me, or how to get his arms around me. The shower that day just provided him with a wonderful opportunity, and I stayed in his arms for the whole trip to his apartment. He didn't let go during the movie too. But actually, I didn't mind; it was the first time I felt protected with someone.
Heero's a great guy. He must be the only person who hasn't tried to grope me on our first date. And I'm kinda amazed that it took him so long to pull a move on me. Even though it's just a hug.
"So he's your boyfriend now?" Sylvia's quiet inquiry breaks me out of my reverie.
"Well, I don't know. Maybe? Heero hasn't said anything about wanting to be my boyfriend."
Marie pouts cutely, and crosses her arms. "I think it's pretty obvious that he wants to be. Didn't you say that he came up to on you on the bus, the first time you two met? If he didn't want to befriend you, there's no reason why he would do that."
Hmm, it sounds perfectly plausible. Besides, I don't think anyone would be this nice to just anybody else. And the things he's done for me... some of them just screams that he likes me... that way. "I guess so."
"What're you going to do about it?" Sylvia gazes at me, head leaning towards one side.
"I don't know. I think I'll just let things take me along, wherever they're going. And besides, I don't think there's a lot I can do. If I really decide to, you know... Solo might notice. And then he'll be out for Heero's blood," I sigh. Sometimes that brother of mine is really too much.
The girls nod, cringing. Both of them have been Solo's victims, so they understand what I mean perfectly well.
"Talking about Solo... he's been trying to hook me up with one of his classmates lately. He won't take to me having a boyfriend now very well."
"Ah, that's too bad then," Marie shrugs. "Heero probably won't stand a chance against that guy your brother wants to pair you up with. If anyone can get under your brother's skin, he's got to be really, really, really good."
"I think so too," Sylvia chuckles, her face torn between looking completely amused and very nervous. "Then maybe you'll have two guys after you at the same time."
I flick her forehead. "Yeah right. There's no way I'm gonna let that unknown guy get me. Solo's standards are strange, I tell you."
Sylvia rubs her forehead, still sniggering. "He's your brother."
"And now, you're the only one who's still single, Sylvia! Want me to introduce someone to you?" Marie offers, her eyes taking on a twinkle that indicates only mischief. I swear that the girl just enjoys torturing Sylvia and I with tales of her dates. That, or she's the matchmaker from hell.
"Oh no, thank you. I don't want the guys you're having," she laughs. Then she turns sober a little, and laments, "But you're right. I'm the only one without any romantic encounters now."
I nudge her shoulders. "Yours will come soon enough, I'm sure."
"How do you know?"
"Just a feeling."
"You're overly optimistic, Duo," she teases.
"That's what everyone always tells me. It's a knack."
*****
I dash for my locker. I can just knock my head against the concrete wall for being so forgetful. It's time for Mr. Gray's class, and I'm rushing to get my books only now. He's going to kill me! And as I run, my head supplies me with this weird image of me sprinting in the Olympics. I could just hold out my arms like I'm reaching the finishing line when I see the rows of locker around the corner.
'The first runner is coming in! Yes! It's Duo Maxwell in lane 2!' The guy with the microphone announces, and I feel the push of the finishing tape on my chest. My fan club runs up to me, holding bouquets of flowers and boxes of chocolates, and the accolades and congrats come flying at me. Then the streamers start popping.
When I finally get to my locker, none of those happen of course. I'm just being weird again. Anyway, while I'm not expecting to find fans or whatnot there, I'm also not expecting to find someone loitering there. Crap. Of all the times he has to taunt me, he has to do it now? When I'm rushing for my classes? Jerk. Well, I hope Heero's threat is still holding up.
"Alex?" I try, keeping a good safe distance from the blonde bully.
At the call of his name, he turns around and sees me. Then, he starts panicking! Full-blown panicking, I say. And I mean it. He jumps, starts stammering, and turns tail to run away. It was like he was a deer in headlights! For a moment, I just look behind me. No, no one's there. So that means that /I/ scared him away. What the-? I didn't sprout horns or anything, did I?
However, the shrill call of the bell suddenly reminds me that I have a class to go to, and I quickly fling open my locker, grab my book, slam it so hard I think it's ringing, and continue my one hundred meters mad dash for class. I can't help but think that athletes have it better than I do.
***** "Hey, Sylvia?"
She blinks. "Yes, Duo?"
It's after the class (which I got to on time, thank goodness!), and we're both going to our next class, which is literature. Marie is... somewhere else. Probably sticking to Jason, that guy whom I quote from Marie, 'is such a stud!' Currently, she's in disbelief that she had never noticed him before, so she's trying to make up for that. I swear that she doesn't ever remember my advice about relationships.
"You know I was at my locker earlier to get my books?" I start, and continue when she nods, "I saw Alex hanging around your locker. But he ran away when I called him. I can't believe it. He actually ran away at the sight of me! Am I that ugly?"
"Really? He did that?" she exclaims, eyes widening. Raising a hand to her mouth just the way a lady would do, she frowns. "What's he doing there?"
I shrug, giving her a frown in return. Having Alex harassing you is one thing. Having that jerk loitering around your stuff is another. The latter has never happened to me, and I hope it never will. It's bad enough that he and Mueller take a liking to picking on me. I don't even want to know what they might do to my stuff. Might be gruesome.
"No idea. I was hoping you'd know."
She gives it a thought, looking away. Then she gasps, like realization just dawned on her. "Well... it might have something do with me helping him out with some of his subjects."
I pause in my steps, and nearly drop my book bag. "What? You're doing what?"
I'm suddenly aware that many of my classmates have stopped their conversations, and are staring at Sylvia and me funny. Sylvia flushes evidently, and quickly pushes me along.
"I didn't tell you? Mrs. Stiles assigned me to help Alex out with his subjects. It's our last year here, and the exams are coming, and apparently, his results aren't exactly up to par. So I'm supposed to help him," she explains, tugging at her books that were threatening to fall. "If it helps, Mrs. Stiles wanted to assign you to help Mueller. I talked her out of it though."
I feel like I've been punched in my head, and I haven't fully regained consciousness yet. "Are you kidding? You never told me about this!"
"It must have slipped my mind then," she murmurs thoughtfully, "But then again, you've been busy with Heero!"
"Hey!" I pout, hoping that my cheeks aren't warming up. Ever since I've told them about me kissing Heero this morning, the two of them have been teasing me about it all day long. Will they ever stop?
Sylvia giggles softly. "We started about a week ago, and everything's going well. Alex hasn't bullied me or anything, if that's what you're worried about. In fact, he's been quite the nice student."
"If it isn't for the fact that you're the one who's telling me this, I'll only believe it when pigs are in the air! Alex and nice don't quite go together, in my opinion," I reply haughtily. Excuse me, but I've never liked the guy ever since he tugged on my hair, claiming that it was a dog leash.
She furrows her brows in a laughing manner, and agrees wholeheartedly. As much as I can tell, that is.
"That's what I thought before too. But I guess we have to give him a second chance. He hasn't been bothering you either, has he?"
I consider that for a moment. Indeed, Alex hasn't harassed me in quite a while. In fact, I hadn't seen him within a ten-meter radius of me for at least a couple of weeks until this morning. "But that's because Heero scared him away. I've told you how Heero beat them up before, haven't I?" Of course I have. With that busybody Marie always yapping at my ear to juice me for my latest date with Heero, how can they not know what's been going on with us two?
Sylvia nods in understanding. "I know. But well... we'll see how it goes with Alex. It's not like I can back out of it now. I did promise Mrs. Stiles, you know?"
"Fine. If he tries to pull anything funny, just come to Marie and me. If we're lucky, Marie will yell his ears off before I need to step in." And I quickly dodge the punch coming my way from a certain redhead who has suddenly come into the hearing range of our conversation. She's fiery that way.
TBC...
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