23-Apr-2005
edited: 07-May-2005
Title: The Nightmare Within - Part 8
Author: Ebonydove
Archived: GW Addiction
Pairings: 3+4, 1+2
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: OOC, language, sap, slight angst
Disclaimer: Just borrowing. I promise I will put them back where I found them and of course no profit is being made here.
Authors Notes: Feedback is always welcomed!
"Hey kid! Where you runnin' to?"
Duo instantly recognized the soft tenor and heaved out an irritated sigh. As if his night hadn't been long enough, now he'd have to spend time playing nice with someone he'd really rather blow off. He slowed his pace until he was at an easy jog before stopping all together and addressing the slowly approaching vehicle. "I wish you'd stop calling me that. I'm hardly a kid." He answered pleasantly and plastered a wide, sly smile on his face as he turned and saw Trowa lean out of the driver's side window and smirk back at him.
"Yeah, ok kid. If you say so."
Duo had to suppress rolling his eyes as he stepped around the car. Tucking the loose strands of hair that had come out of his braid while he'd been running behind his ears, he took a few deep breaths and started walking again.
"Hey I'm talking to you. Maxwell, right? Hey... " He pulled the car up along side him and slowly matched his pace as he walked. "You're Heero's friend."
Duo quickened his pace and hoped that the bus was already waiting for him at the stop up ahead so he could get right on and not have to deal with the guy, but luck as it seemed hadn't been with him for most of the night and had no intentions of showing up right then either. He wasn't going to hold his breath waiting for it. "We're not friends."
"Huh. I'm pretty sure that Heero feels differently about that."
There was no point in arguing with him about it. Trowa had made it abundantly clear at Heero's apartment what he thought of the whole situation between. He really didn't care to know why Trowa felt that way and was fully intent on ignoring him completely and any talk of Heero while he made his way towards the bus stop.
"So what the hell are you doing down here anyway? You know this isn't a good place to be right now." Trowa continued, plainly ignoring how Duo was ignoring him. "It's been dangerous down here and even though I know you're trying to help, you're really just going to wind up getting yourself into more trouble."
Duo stopped and gave him a hard glare, before deliberately crossing in front of the car and walked quickly across the street. He almost smiled when the sudden movement made Trowa press hard on the brakes to keep from hitting him.
"Hey you little punk, would you just stop for a second?" Trowa called out after him before pulling the car towards the other side of the street to catch up with him.
"You're driving on the wrong side of the road, Officer Barton." Duo drawled.
"Yeah well I work for the police department so I'm allowed. Would you please just stop?"
Duo huffed and stopped, facing the car with his arms crossed over his chest and stood there glaring. It was obvious that Trowa was part of the patrol the guy on the pier had told him about. The last thing he needed was to get hauled in for being down on the docks near the crime scene by Heero's partner.
"Come on Duo, let me give you a ride home. It'll be my way of apologizing for what happened at Heero's."
Duo just continued to look bored for a few moments before crossing the street again and headed for the nearby bench that marked the stop for the bus. He sat down on the bench and watched as Trowa once again pulled the car over and leaned out the driver's side window. He settled himself on the bench and hunched in on himself to keep warm, ignoring the piercing stare from Trowa's bright green eye. He could tell that Trowa was aggravated now despite that much of his face was blocked under a sweep of dark chestnut colored hair.
"Look, you can keep on ignoring me if you want to. You don't have to say one word while I drive you back to your place. I suppose I wouldn't blame you. But now that I've come across you down here this late at night you can't expect me to just leave you here in the cold."
Duo turned his face away and leaned forward a bit hoping that the bus was making its way towards him. He was concentrating hard on trying not to shiver, but the heat from his run was starting to wear off and the cold from the hard wooden bench was starting to creep into his backside and legs. He shifted slightly so he could get his hands into his pockets before leaning back against the hard wooden planks.
"This car's a lot warmer than that bench, my friend. And if you think I'm leaving just because you're sitting there ignoring me, you're sadly mistaken. You've already missed the 2 a.m. and there's no sense in us waiting here 'til 6am for the next bus."
Duo cursed softly under his breath. He was afraid that the time he spent in his trance and thrown off his schedule. He really had hoped he would have made it back to the bus stop by 2 a.m. He was going to have to decide where he was going from there pretty quickly and his choices were limited. He looked back to Trowa; still waiting unflinchingly in the car. It was obvious he wasn't going anywhere. He huffed out a sigh and zipped his coat up a little more. He wanted to like the guy. Hell he wanted to like Heero, but just didn't think he had it in him to face Heero so soon after he rushed out on him the way he had. He was tired, and cold, and the thought of returning to his dark, little apartment alone was starting to depress him. But running back to Heero wasn't the answer either. They really hardly knew each other after all. And how could Heero really want to be around him when the only side he'd seen so far was the needy, desperate, and slightly wackadoo side of him? "I'll figure something out."
"You little brat. You're going to make me get out of this car and haul you in, aren't you? Damn, you're stubborn. But I suppose that makes sense." Trowa turned off the car and made movements as if he was getting ready to get out. "Besides, Heero would be sick if he knew you were down here alone, in the cold, this late at night, and without an escort."
Duo turned around just enough to flip him off before jamming his cold hand back into his pocket.
Trowa smiled. "Maybe I should leave you here after all you little punk, but you'll freeze your ass off."
"I'm fine." Duo grumbled and with a renewed frown.
"Yeah, I can see that." Trowa paused and waited for any sign from Duo that he was going to give in and get inside the warm car, but all the boy did was shift his feet a little and remained quiet. "Despite what you may think about me right now I'm usually pretty damned perceptive and tend to be a very good judge of character."
"You've got to be friggin' kiddin' me! A good judge of character? Perceptive? You thought that I was some kind of perverted, delusional, wacko and had no problem telling Heero that either." Duo snapped back.
The next thing Duo knew the car door had flown open and then slam loudly, followed by Trowa's muffled curse. He stood outside the car for a few minutes, harshly tugging on a pair of black, leather gloves and finally crossed his arms over his chest. "Now just hang on. Heero nearly took my head off for what happened in his apartment the other night and for jumping to conclusions about you."
"Riiight." Duo drawled out and looked away from him and up into the black, empty sky. God he wished it would just snow and get it over with. The chill was starting to creep into his whole body, not just his feet and legs and hands anymore. If it just snowed, then he wouldn't have to think about it. He wouldn't have to worry about anything. Clean, white snow would keep him from thinking about Hilde, or Heero, or the night he'd shared with him. He wouldn't have to think about being alone anymore. He wouldn't have to beat himself up any more about the choices he and made in life and it would give him some relief from the hard lump in his throat he felt every time he thought of Heero. He finally sighed and closed his eyes. "It doesn't matter. Really. I wouldn't waste your time giving all that another thought. I've been called much worse, by much nicer people and you weren't all together wrong about me."
Trowa heaved a heavy sigh himself. "Look, I was concerned for my partner and that's really all there is to it. I'm not going to apologize for that. I just went by the information that I had available to me at the time."
"And that information you got led you to perverted, delusional, wacko?" Duo said coolly. "So then add in the bad report card that you dredged up from when I was just a fucking kid on top of the whole scene at his apartment, and now Heero believes all that shit about me too." Duo's voice was as cold as the falling temperature.
"And here I thought that you and he made a connection." Trowa shook his head sadly. "He's not like that. He doesn't just take everything people tell him at face value. He makes up his own mind. He's damned stubborn that way." He leaned against the car in a casual way and continued in a lighter tone. "If I was about to watch Heero go head to head against a T-Rex, my money'd be on him and not on the damn dinosaur. That's just Heero. He gives people... faith."
"Whatever, man. It doesn't really change anything now. Heero and I... it just... it just still doesn't matter." The damage had already been done. Heero would never trust him. Heero really didn't even know him enough to trust him.
Trowa could see that Duo's anger had quickly seeped away into a much more somber state and that he was trying hard to keep himself from shivering as he sat there sulking. He was trying to be so tough. But to him, Duo looked tired and half-starved and made him wonder when the last time Duo actually had a good, hot meal. "If it's any consolation we drove around looking for you for hours that night, but you were just... gone. Heero even sat outside your apartment the whole next day waiting for you to come home so he could talk to you, but you never showed up." When he didn't get any reaction from Duo he continued in a much softer voice. "He was worried about you, which is something I haven't seen him be about anyone or anything in a long time. So I'm sorry I suspected you for foul play and got everyone all riled up. I didn't meant to hurt your feelings, it's just my job to suspect people."
"Fine. I accept your apology." Duo said quietly. He took his hands out of his pockets and blew some warm air into them then rubbed them together trying his best not to let what Trowa was saying tear down the carefully erected wall he had built concerning his growing feelings for Heero. It was just too much to hope that it had all been a simple misunderstanding.
"And for the record, I never thought you were perverted. Delusional... yes. And you acting this way still makes me wonder about the wacko part." Trowa caught the tiniest quirk of a grin from Duo and pressed on. "Plus, I don't want to be the one to tell Heero I saw you down here and that you refused... "
The sudden pause in Trowa's soothing voice drew Duo's attention to him. He was curious to know what had distracted Trowa enough to stop his cheerful little monologue. When he looked back to Trowa, Heero's partner had a blank look on his face and his eyes were carefully scanning the dark street ahead of them. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but was suddenly feeling edgy himself as he watched Trowa's stance shift very so slightly into something that reminded him of a spring about to let loose.
"I don't see anything. Is everything all right?" He asked quietly as he too gave their surrounds a good scan.
Trowa quirked a sudden grin and seemed to relax. "I'd be better if you'd stop being difficult and get in the damn car. My shift has been over for twenty minutes now and I'd like to get home sometime tonight. And besides, it's damn cold out here." He pushed off from the car and stood waiting expectantly. "I think it's going to snow."
"Fine, if you giving me a ride home is going to get you to quit nagging at me." Duo grumbled.
"Punk." Trowa muttered back, smirking.
"Prick." Duo smirked back.
"Wack-job." Trowa raised an eyebrow.
Duo's face fell a little. "Whatever." He huffed; irritated before standing up.
Trowa chuckled again and made his way around the front of the car and opened the passenger side door for Duo. He gave a last fleeting look to the dark sedan still parked up the street he spotted earlier. It was running with no lights on, and he watched as a tiny red dot from the end of a lit cigarette went out and the curling wisp of thin, white smoke disappeared out the driver's side window. He didn't know why someone would be tailing the kid, but it was obvious someone was. He certainly didn't think it was him that anyone would be interested in at 2a.m. while he made his rounds.
Duo stamped his feet a few times after sliding off the bench and quickly made his way around to the side of the car and got in, glad for the warmth. Trowa smiled at the look on Duo's face as he scanned all the equipment, buttons, gadgets, and gizmos in the car. Most people don't sit in the front of a police car; the back... well, that was something all together different. He was glad that Duo seemed interested and less... depressed. It also meant that he'd never really been around the police or police vehicles all that much, which was a good thing in his mind. Once they were both settled, he asked the question that was nagging at him since the night at Heero's. "So where did you go that night? Not to brag, but Heero and I are damn good at tracking people down. We were a little amazed that you just seemed to fall off the face of the earth."
Duo smiled the first real smile that Trowa had seen all night from him. "Didn't feel like staying home alone."
Trowa frowned. "Yeah, I know that part. Where'd you go?"
Duo shrugged. "I have a friend that owns a club down here on the waterfront, so I wound up crashing there."
"Ah." Trowa he turned up the heat and pulled away from the curb. He had already memorized the year, make, and model of the sedan up the street and planned to get a good look at the person in it as they drove by, but as soon as he flicked on the headlights and pulled away from the curb, the other car pulled quickly drove off and turned down a side street. A piece of him wanted to give chase, but the other knew he'd be in hot water if he did that with Duo in the car. He went on the side of caution and would run the license plate number as soon as he got back to the station. That settled, he turned his attention back to Duo who was fiddling with one of the scanner's knobs. "So you crashed at a club, huh? Which one?"
"A gay one." Duo said hotly, pulling his hand away from the equipment and hunching down in his seat.
Trowa gave him an annoyed look. "I'm aware that you're gay Duo, and I really couldn't care less."
Duo looked away. He might as well get that right out in the open so there wasn't any confusion if it came up again. "Gabriel's Gate."
Trowa frowned at that. The place, although catering to the elite and trendy upper-class, did not have the best reputation. He only hoped that Duo wasn't mixed in with the wrong company there. Although a good portion of the business side was legit, rumors were that members there were involved with fraud, drugs, prostitution, gambling, strong-arm tactics, and other wonderful little things. Heero would have something to say about the company Duo was keeping when he found out about it and he hoped it wouldn't blow up in his face. "So who's the friend that you know there?"
"Why do you ask, Officer Barton?" Duo answered, not hiding the irritation in his voice as he crossed his arms over his chest and turned his face towards the window.
"Curiosity."
"Killed the cat ya know."
"Has anyone ever told you that you're damned difficult to talk to?"
"Has anyone ever told you that your interrogation tactics are about as transparent as a pane of glass? Why don't you just come right out and ask what you want to know instead of making chit-chat?"
"The place isn't known in legal circles as being on the up and up. You said you know the owner?"
"Yeah. He's as straight up as they come though. It's his partner who's the dirtbag."
"So... the name?"
Duo rolled his eyes and turned to look out the window. "His name is Wufei Chang. He's a good guy. He took over the responsibilities when his father and brother died. He tries really hard to keep the place from falling into the hands of his business partner, Treize. Formerly known as 'the commander'." Duo said sarcastically. "He and Wufei knew each other from the wars I guess. Wufei handles the security for the club and the general day to day operations for the restaurant. Treize takes care of everything else and 'cooks the books' if you know what I mean. But Wu's got it all under control though. And please don't make me ask you if this is off the record or not. Wu's one of my only few true friends in this shithole of a city and I don't want to give him any grief."
"I promise it's off the record, but shit Duo. Treize Kushranada is bad news. What are you or your friend doing mixed up with someone like that?"
"I'm not mixed up with anything!" Duo yelled as he sat upright and instantly becoming defensive. "I've never even met Treize!"
"Well I recommend you keep it that way." Trowa let the topic go, but was still frowning.
The next several minutes they both stayed silent as Trowa continued to wind his way through the city streets and Duo stared out the window at the passing scenery. "So where is he anyway?" Duo finally asked quietly as he traced his finger along the dash.
Trowa frowned even more. "Heero? He's working dispatch this week. It was either that or a suspension for the 'inappropriate conduct with a witness during a formal investigation'."
Duo's jaw dropped slightly and he sat staring at Trowa's neutral expression for a few moments before finding his voice again. The lump in his throat seemed to get worse and he had to take a breath as he thought through the unsaid portions of the information Trowa had just provided him with. "Suspended? Because of me?"
Trowa's smiled slightly. "Well, you are the only witness we have in our investigation currently. And although I think you're cute, I wasn't the one sleeping with you."
Duo blushed and bowed his head a little at that. It was a lot of information to take in. "But I thought you thought I was... involved with the murders. A suspect even." Duo looked up at him through his ruffled bangs. Trowa's small smile slipped away replaced with a grim expression that made the chill return to Duo's whole body.
"I did. At first. Then we were able to clear you as a suspect. We didn't know it at the time, but the night that you stayed at Heero's another murder was committed. He was your alibi, and came forward about the nature of your relationship when we found out. He took some pretty serious grilling from IAB and his commanding officer, but he's also one of the very best cops we've ever had. They took him for his word that there was no way you could be involved."
"We don't have a relationship." Duo whispered defensively.
"Duo, don't be a damned idiot." He scolded. "I think you're smart enough to figure out that most people wouldn't do something like that if it wasn't important to them."
Duo sighed deeply and said nothing as Trowa reached for the radio and punched in a few sequences before placing it back on the holder. They sat in silence for about two minutes before the radio buzzed back and Heero's distinct no-nonsense voice came over the channel. "Go ahead, unit three."
"Made my rounds and am taking a kid home that was down near the docks. Missed the bus, I guess." Trowa glanced over to Duo who, despite his wide eyes, was ignoring that it was Heero on the other end of the radio.
"Roger that. Prostitution?" The radio buzzed and chirped back.
"No, I don't think so. Just some dumb kid that must have gotten lost. I didn't run it." Trowa smirked at Duo who proceeded to flip him off again and turn away to stare out the window.
"Unit 3 please follow procedure 974, which states that all persons being escorted by a police officer after 24:00 must be run through the CS. Acknowledge."
Trowa cleared his throat and glanced again to Duo who looked completely miserable. He wasn't about to run Duo through the Central System and get Heero all worked up. He handed Duo the radio, ignoring Duo's obvious aversion to it and nodded to the radio unit on the dash. "Go ahead, Duo."
The radio crackled again and Heero's irritated voice came through a little louder than before. "03 – Acknowledge."
Trowa just raised an eyebrow as he turned onto another street and turned the heater down a little. "He's waiting for acknowledgement. If no one responds, he'll send back up. At least that's according to procedure and he won't deviate from that. He's about as hard-headed as you are about some things."
"I can't... I don't know what to say... " Duo whispered harshly and glared back at Trowa.
"No-one's there right now but him. He's been really worried about you." Trowa gave him a long look as he pulled onto a busy throurofare. "He's my best friend and my partner, and I don't want to see him so unhappy so if you don't say something to let him know you're okay, I'll dump your ass in the river. Then I'll tell him it was you that I picked up anyway."
Duo sighed and stared at the radio handset for so long that he almost forgot that Heero was still waiting for Trowa to say something else, so when it snapped back to life in his hand he nearly dropped it into his lap.
"Trowa? What's going on?" Heero's firm voice had taken on a hint of concern that was coming through crystal clear over the radio. "Acknowledge."
Duo finally pushed the call button in and answered in a very quiet voice and with his heart in his throat. "Trowa got stuck picking up a stray, Officer Yuy."
"Duo?"
"Yeah. It's me."
"Are you okay? Are you hurt? What the hell are you doing there? Damn it, we've been looking all over for you!"
Trowa grabbed the radio back before Duo could respond to the flurry of questions and chuckled. "Unit 01, I'm on route to you. Be there in five. Unit 03 - out." He switched off the frequency before Heero had time to respond and from the look of it Duo was still reeling from the situation he now found himself in.
"What are you doing?!" Duo squawked finally.
"I planned on taking you to see Heero the moment I saw you running down the street. You two need to kiss and make up and then the three of us need to settle down and get back to business. I can't have him this distracted while our murderer is still on the loose out there. If I have to, I will dress up in a damn cupid costume and shoot you both in your damn asses with arrows if it gets me my partner back and gets that lost look out of your eyes."
Duo really didn't know what to say. He was about to see Heero for the first time since the night he ran out on him. Since the night they spent together. Flashes of Heero's hot hands all over him, the way Heero had moaned his name as they fondled and stroked each other flooded his mind and he started to feel light-headed at the thought that there was a possibility that they could be together somehow. Despite the fact that he was tied to the murderer that Heero was after, somehow just maybe everything would be all right.
End Part 8
(:./ebony/within8)
