January 2002 (narrative version April 2003)
Disclaimers: I don't own the characters from Gundam Wing; Bandai, Sunrise and Sotsu do. I don't own the rights to Wild Turkey bourbon, either. I don't own any cherries at the moment, but that could change. This is a work of non-profit fanfiction.
Duo sauntered into the kitchen of the current Winner safemansion, talking over his shoulder to the taller pilot following him. "No, really, Trowa, trust me on this one. If you're sure of your feelings for Quatre but you just need to tell him how you feel, a couple of drinks is a great idea. The alcohol will lower your guard and loosen your tongue."
Trowa frowned slightly and shoved his hands into the pockets of his tight white pants. "..."
Duo grinned. "That's the spirit!!" He pulled a bottle full of amber liquid out of a cupboard. "Actually, this is the spirit - Wild Turkey, to be precise. Try some..."
Quatre shifted the grocery bag under one arm and wrestled with the door to the safehouse. The wind was fierce today, but he managed to get door shut without banging it and disturbing any of his fellow pilots.
He was later than he had intended to be - sometimes it was difficult to get away from the Maguanacs without an honour guard.
He went into the kitchen, intending to put away the fresh fruit he had bought on the way home, but he stopped short at the sight of Duo and Trowa seated at the table, an open and mostly empty bottle of alcohol between them. He'd seen his fellow pilots drink the odd beer before, but this...
Duo looked up, his eyes slightly unfocussed and his movements loose. "Heyyyyyyy, Q-ball!! You're looking," he waved his arms around vaguely, "messy. Your hair is all rufuff... rufferld... messy, and your face is allllllll pink!"
Seeing Duo tipsy was a new experience, but it was Trowa that drew Quatre's gaze. Self-contained, reserved Trowa, the subject of so many of Quatre's wistful daydreams, was looking straight at him with a huge, silly smile plastered on his face - 'plastered' being the operative word.
"Uhhhh..." Quatre managed to get his brain back into gear. "It's windy out today." he replied finally, setting the grocery bag down on the table. Trowa was still smiling widely and fondly at him. He blinked, a little unnerved. "Uh, Trowa, are you all right?"
"..." Trowa 'said,' his big smile still intact.
Duo's eyes fell on the fruit in the grocery bag and his eyes lit up. "Hey!" he said happily, snatching a ripe cherry. "Do thish!" He popped the cherry into his mouth (making it on the first try, to Quatre's relief) and rolled it around for bit with a look of concentration on his face. Then, with a lewd grin, he pulled the cherry back out and held it up for inspection.
It looked exactly the same - well, a bit wetter, perhaps. Quatre looked from the cherry to Duo and back again, confused. What on earth...?
"Ratsh!!" Duo slurred, crestfallen. "It's s'pposed to have a knot in th' shtem..."
Quatre almost jumped when Trowa reached past him with a decidedly evil smirk and took a cherry as well. He stared, fascinated, as the taller pilot sucked the red fruit into his mouth with an audible pop, and wondered heatedly just what else that enticing mouth might suck in...
A moment later Trowa opened his lips just enough to show the tidbit trapped between his front teeth.
Quatre leaned forward, inspecting the cherry with disbelief - the stem was twisted into a little knot. He could feel a hot flush rising up his body to his face as he considered just how dextrous Trowa's tongue would have to be to do such a thing. As this thought matched some of his more racy fantasies, he couldn't help the little sighing moan that escaped him and the wishful, "I'd like to try some of tha-"
Then, catching himself and realizing that, even drunk, his friends might well remember this conversation tomorrow, he corrected hastily. "Er, that is, I'd like to try that, too!"
He forced himself to look away from Trowa's tongue, which was twirling the cherry around between those even white teeth. He glanced at Duo, who was frowning at his own knotless cherry stem and thankfully seemed to have completely missed Trowa's trick and Quatre's flustered reaction.
Duo muttered, "Shtupid cherry..." before his expression slid into a mischievous leer. "Bet Heeeeee-chan could do it!" He got up and lurched out of the room before Quatre could gather the wit to stop him.
Quatre looked back towards Trowa, intending to suggest that they follow and restrain the braided teen, when a cherry (complete with knotted stem) was shoved into his mouth, followed immediately by Trowa's tongue.
Quatre could feel his eyes stretching wide even as they started to go over backwards. Shocked but delighted, he wrapped his arms around Trowa and returned the kiss with enthusiasm before the hard floor met the back of his head and consciousness whirled away.
Trowa sighed happily. He had finally gotten up the courage to kiss his blond crush. He rolled off Quatre and lay on his back in the middle of the kitchen, the big smile back on his face despite the way the walls were spinning so distractingly. He shut his eyes so he could better savour the memory of Quatre's sweet response...
A moment later, he began to snore.
Heero crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Duo, who had interrupted his concentration to babble about cherries.
"...an' then you sorta swirl it aroun' and tie a knot in it, but, but, but i's tricky, see? And..." the American slowly sank down onto Heero's bed, still talking, his eyes glazed.
Realizing that Duo wasn't going to shut up and let him get back to work until he did this ridiculous thing, Heero reached out, snatched the cherry from Duo's lax fingers, and popped it in his mouth.
"...'cause ya gotta kinda turn it aroun' and aroun' and if ya can do tha' ya can do all kindsa kinky things..." Duo waved his hands around and shifted until he was lying comfortably across the mattress.
Heero pulled the cherry out of his mouth. It had been the work of a moment to form a tiny, perfect hangman's noose in the stem.
Duo didn't even seem to notice. "...and stuff... I bet you" he yawned widely, "never even heard of..." His mumbles petered off into blessed silence.
Heero looked at his comatose partner, shrugged, ate the cherry, and threw the stem tidily into the garbage can. At least he could get back to work now. He turned back to his laptop and resumed typing.
Quatre sat up in his bed, holding his aching head in his hands. "I don't remember a thing after I came inside the house yesterday..."
Rashid held out a cold compress. "I assume you were attempting to help Master Trowa to his bedroom - he had been drinking."
Quatre frowned slightly, trying not to blush at the wonderful idea of putting Trowa to bed. "Oh. I hope he's feeling better than I do."
Abdul smiled proudly. "I took him to sleep it off."
"Next time, Master Quatre, ask for some assistance!" Achmed said.
"We Maguanacs are always ready to help you, Master Quatre!" Auda reminded him. The dozen or so freedom fighters gathered in Quatre's bedroom all nodded emphatically.
Quatre stifled a sigh at their overprotective attitude, wondering how on earth he could ever get closer to Trowa with 40 well-meaning but personally inconvenient bodyguards around. "Yes, I will. Thank you..."
Duo winced at the pounding in his head and asked quietly, "So the evening's just a big blur?"
Trowa grimaced. "..."
"Nah," Duo replied. "I don't remember much either. And I have no idea how you bit your tongue..."
(:./wingnut/cherry)
