Rating: PG-13
Finished: 8-11-2006
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this story. If I did, I would be admiring all the hentai, not writing fanfics. ;)
Notes: Love, at its truest.
"Ohh, Quatre, I love you. Marry me and bear my children?"
Quatre sniggered, "Love you too, but I'm afraid I'm lacking in the bearing children department. Here." I watched as Quatre handed over the reason why Duo loved him. Black coffee in a large mug. At seven in the morning, coffee is everyone's savior.
"Hn. Duo, give me some of that," grunted Trowa as he entered the kitchen. Duo held his prize close and grunted back as he ducked under the taller man, "Hn. I don't think so. I've had a hard couple of lifetimes, I deserve a good cup of coffee."
"As long as it's not espresso," interjected Heero as he made a beeline for the stove. "Oh, good. There's still tea. It's not Lipton green tea is it Wufei?"
"No," I replied, taking a sip of my own tea, "Foojoy green."
"What's wrong with espresso?" Duo had to know the answer to this, apparently.
Heero simply replied, "Hn, baka."
A normal day in the home of the ex-Gundam Pilots, except these three men: Heero, Trowa and Duo—they weren't here last night when I went to sleep. I know they weren't. I checked. Bad habits die hard, you know.
Duo flounced into the seat next to me, propping his feet in my lap, "Heya, Wuffers. Whatcha reading?" It wasn't hard to tell what I was reading and Duo was the least stupid person I know. I sighed and fished around through my newspaper for the Sports section, which I obligingly handed over. He smiled at me, "Love you, Wufei."
"Hn, baka."
Duo laughed as he flipped through the pages, "One of these days, you and Heero are going to do a stereo thing, and it's gonna be so Children of the Corn." He used as hand gesture to elaborate on his words, and I looked at Heero who smirked and nodded. In tandem we said, "Hn, baka."
"Quatre," whined Duo, "They're picking on me."
"Too bad," replied Quatre from over by the stove, "Cause I'm gonna marry Trowa and bear his children."
"Ok, I want to hear this," snickered Heero as he sat down at the table across from me.
"Aww...why not mine," complained Duo.
Trowa was the one who answered, "Because I make pancakes."
Duo grumbled, "I don't love you no more, Trowa."
"Sure you do. You want pancakes, don't you?"
"Okay, okay," laughed Duo, "I still love you."
"What are you going to make this time, Duo?" Heero was inquiring about Duo's unusual pasttime of using newpaper to make origami.
"Hmm...Didn't I make a pagoda last time?"
"No." That was Trowa again, "That was the time before last. Last time you made a circus."
I couldn't help smiling to myself as I thought about what last time meant. Last time was the last time all five of us were here together in the home that had come to feel like mine and Quatre's.
"Maybe I'll make a thousand cranes this time." Duo turned away from his coffee to look at Heero, "Don't they say you can cure any illness by making a thousand cranes?"
Heero snorted into his tea, "Yeah, but it doesn't work when you make them yourself."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're sick in the head," I answered.
"You've said it yourself a million times," corroborated Quatre with a smile.
"So," finished Trowa, "If you make yourself a thousand cranes, then you won't be healed of your sick in the head, because it doesn't count if you make them for yourself and you'll stay out of our hair for a while."
When the Eve Wars ended, the five of us were suddenly lost. Set adrift without a purpose. We all moved into one of Quatre's home and stayed there for a while. I threw myself into the Preventers and was happy with the work I did there. Quatre worked as CEO for the Winner Corporation.
Duo snorted, "You just want me out of your hair so you can screw Quatre into the ground."
"I don't think so," retorted Trowa, affecting an overly prim tone of voice, "I want you out of my hair so I can screw Heero into the ground. Quatre prefers beds."
Duo leered at me, "And Wu here'll screw anywhere anytime." I primly looked down my nose at him, "I'm not the only one." Duo sniggered, "That's how I know." He winked before removing his feet from my lap to better peruse his portion of the newspaper.
Surprisingly, Heero was the first to become truly restless. To combat that, he decided to go back to school. He didn't do it for the knowledge, no. He did it to see how many degrees he could get. He's no longer famous for being an ex-Gundam Pilot or for knowing the former Queen of Sanc, Relena. He's now famous for being a scholar. This fact amuses me to this day.
"Stop worrying about your cranes and eat," ordered Trowa as he set a plate heaping with pancakes before Duo. I shook my head. Duo can eat a larger meal than what all the rest of us normally eat in one sitting. He proved it before, too. Then he spent the next five hours whining about how bad his stomach hurt.
"Trowa, I love you!"
"No you don't. You just want me for my pancake-making skills," sniggered Trowa as he went to make the rest of us some food.
Duo meandered off after Heero. We didn't hear from him until he returned, which he loyally does at least once a year. Sometimes more. We still don't know what it is he does when he goes away, but we're always happy to have him back. So we make sure to feed him, because heavens know he can't cook for himself. Well, he can...he's just not good at it.
"You do make good pancakes," agreed Heero with a smile. He reached across the table, snagging the parts of the newspaper I had set aside, either due to lack of interest, or to read later.
"I'm a man of many talents."
"Many talents," agreed Duo around a mouthful of pancakes. "So, what's everybody doing today?"
"Don't talk with your mouth full, Duo. You'll choke."
"Stop being a mother hen before we decide to have you for dinner, Quatre. I'm fine. See?" He took an exaggerated breath and huffed it out, "Fine."
"I've got work," I offered, "Old case that we have to wrap up."
"Can I walk you to work?"
"I take a car, Duo. I do have the ability to drive."
"Well, if you're gonna be fussy about it..Nyah!" Duo stuck a tongue covered in chewed-up pancake out at me. I shook my head and ignored him.
Trowa left last. He decided to return to the circus for a while. He comes back the most often. Usually he'll spend a few months touring with the circus, then come back with new stories to tell. Occaisionally he brings presents.
"Duo, you gonna go down to the gym today?" One of the advantages of knowing a billionare. He can afford to have a specially made gym in his basement.
"I dunno, Hee-chan. I might. Depends on how the day turns out." Duo glanced at his watch, then bounced to his feet, "Oop! I'm about to be late." He waved as he left, "Love you guys!"
I contemplated his words with a smile, thinking about the first time I confronted him. It would have been little more than a year after the Eve Wars.
***Flashback***
All the pilots were in Quatre's basement gym, except Duo, who came bouncing in. He strode over to Wufei, a towel thrown over his shoulder for later, "Love you, Wu-man, but you're on my machine! Need to build up my oh-so-girly chest."
Wufei let the arm supports for the chest press fall back as he let his arms drop to glare at Duo, "Why do you always say that all the time? Love is not a word to be used lightly and neither are the emotions attached to it."
Duo leaned on the machine, looking confused, "I don't use it lightly. There are only four people in this universe that I tell I love them. You're one of them." He looked around, where the others were now paying attention, "I love all you guys. You're my family, my friends, my only supports in the world. You never know what this world will bring." He shrugged, "Some Bugs Bunny thing could happen and a 20,000 ton weight might drop on your head. Or mine. So I want to make sure you guys all know that you're loved, because you all need to know it." His eyes had slowly returned to Wufei as he spoke, to emphasize his words. "I know that no matter what happens, or where I go, or you guys go, you'll always be there for me when I need you. If that's not love, what is?"
There was silence for a moment, then Quatre asked, "You said we all need to know we're loved. Why do I?"
Duo turned around and smiled gently at him, "You spend so much time looking after everyone. I'm just reminding you that someone's looking out for you."
"And me?" asked Trowa.
Duo smirked at him, "You spend all your time hiding and guess what? I see you."
Heero threw his towel at Duo, "I'm listening."
Duo tossed the towel back, "You try to get rid of all your weaknesses to the point where you're a machine, and it's my job to remind you that being weak is ok sometimes." Duo looked at Wufei, who simply nodded, "You always try to take the sins of the world onto your shoulders. I'm just giving you an extra pair to share the burden with."
"Duo." Heero had never spoken so softly before, "Living is the hardest thing in the universe to do. We're all willing to help you do it."
***End Flashback***
Yup, just a normal day.
"Love you, Duo."