30-Dec-2001
Title: Inferno's Touch ~ Chapter 22
Author: Ravynfyre (ravynfyre@hotmail.com)
Archive: GW Addiction, Darkflame
Category: Angst, Action, Yaoi, Lemon (in that order *gryn*)
Pairings: To date: 4x3, 6x5, and, at very long last. 1x2 (look! It only took 22 chapters! Heh)
Standard Disclaimer: All parts of Gundam Wing are Not Mine. It's all Theirs. *sigh* Too bad, but otherwise, I guess I'd never get anything done *happy hentai thought*. Anyway, not makin' any money offa this so dun sue me. You'd only get some college debt, a few dogs, and a pair of fuzzy bunny slippers anyway. Ya know. blood. Turnip. Do the math.
Rating: NC-17
Warning: If the thought of two grown men having their wicked way with each other makes your head spin ala the Exorcist (then what the heck are ya doing *here* of all places) then I highly recommend that you do *not* read the last half of this chapter. There's sex. Male/Male sex. If you choose to ignore this warning, I will not be held responsible for your mental anguish.
Spoiler: None.
Notes: All terms will be explained at the end of each chapter. If I miss something, please let me know and I'll be happy to explain.
Feedback: Yes, please. All comments welcome (although flames may be fed to my dogs, who, since they have notoriously gassy intestinal tracts, will be spending the night with the flamer afterwards)
Note: Put a rush on this one so I wouldn't leave y'all hangin like I had. Hope this chapter has been worth the 21 chapter build-up and year and a half long wait.
While Zechs sat at the table, calmly sipping a cup of coffee while perusing the paper, Quatre cast a worried eye at the clock. It was already 6:50 am, and neither Duo nor Heero had shown up for work yet. While Duo was known to cut it close every once in a great while, he'd never cut it this close before, and Heero had never been later than 6:35 before. Something was wrong. Unfortunately, when he'd tried calling both of them ten minutes ago, neither one had answered.
The familiar deep rumble of a highly tuned muscle car broke him from his fretting contemplation, and a small, relieved, smile came to his lips. A moment after the engine cut out, Duo burst through the door, looking unusually rumpled, with little tendrils flying out every which way from under his cap, and what Quatre could only describe as a panicked look on his face as he peered around the kitchen quickly.
"Duo? Are you all right?" Quatre asked in surprise.
"Has Heero come in yet? I didn't see his truck."
Blinking, Quatre shook his head negatively, eyes widening in alarm as Duo seemed to deflate before his very eyes. Before Quatre could repeat his earlier inquiry, Duo slipped past, mumbling an apology to Zechs for running late. The door to the bay drifted shut behind the braided driver, and through the window, he could be seen beginning his morning checks with his usual efficiency, although much more subdued than usual.
"That was odd," Zechs commented, one brow quirked up as he glanced towards the rig bay. Quatre could only nod mutely in agreement.
Before he could turn to follow Duo out into the bay and corner the other man to demand answers, the back door swung open again, admitting an even more amazing sight. Heero stood framed in the doorway, dressed in jeans, a rumpled t-shirt, with a backpack slung over his shoulder, and a wary, darting look in his eyes as he glanced around the kitchen. As quickly as Quatre noticed the furtiveness of that look, it vanished, replaced by a cool, reserved regard that was far more aloof than anything Quatre had ever seen upon the Japanese firefighter's face before.
"My apologies for my tardiness, Captain Merquise. I'll grab a shower and be dressed in just a few minutes," he said quietly, offering no explanation as he crossed the kitchen into the bunkroom, and then vanished into the bathroom beyond.
Zechs shot a look at Quatre, jaw hanging open slightly, with his coffee cup raised halfway to his lips as he shared a dumbfounded moment with the blond paramedic. Turning his attention firmly to his cup, he slowly lowered it to the table and took a deep breath before addressing Quatre once more.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, please, but I didn't just see Heero Yuy slip past, out of uniform, unshowered, after apparently walking to work, at five till seven in the morning, did I?"
"Um," Quatre said, biting his lower lip, "I think you did, actually."
"Then I stand corrected. *That* was odd."
"I could go find out what's go-" Quatre started to offer, already rising to head into the bay, only to be halted by Zechs' upraised hand.
"I wouldn't. Whatever is going on is between them. It's not our concern, and it's safer to stay out of the line of fire," Zechs warned ominously, before returning his attention to the newspaper.
A few minutes later, Trowa walked into the kitchen from the bay, followed closely by Duo who uncharacteristically hovered uncertainly near the office door before joining them all at the kitchen table.
"Coffee, Duo?" Quatre offered with a cheer he didn't totally feel, looking at the oddly apathetic firefighter.
"No. Thank you."
"Where's Heero?" Trowa wondered out loud, pouring himself a cup before sitting beside Quatre.
"In the shower. He just walked in a few minutes ago. Said he had to shower and toss on a uniform, and then he'd be right out," Zechs replied, to all outward appearances as unconcerned as if he'd just explained that the sky was blue because of the angle of the earth's curvature. He didn't, however, miss Duo's sudden start of surprise, and the braided man's newfound interest in the bunkroom door.
Duo stood, moving to the door to peer out into the parking lot. With a frown, he turned back to the table, though didn't return to his seat, opting to pace awkwardly to the coffeepot. "He must have walked in to work today," he observed far too casually as he poured a cup. The only thing preventing Duo from not marching into that bathroom and demanding that Heero actually talk to him, was the less than positive reception he was sure he'd receive by cornering the man in so vulnerable a position.
Plus, he wasn't honestly sure he trusted himself around a naked Heero.
In the bunkroom, the bathroom door swung open, and Heero slipped out, hair still slightly damp, but as neatly combed as it ever was, and a fresh, pressed uniform precisely in place. He turned and dropped his backpack and towel upon his usual bunk, before heading for the door into the kitchen - where he came face to face with Duo.
Prussian blue eyes swung negligently around the braided man, fixing on the others for a bare instant each before finally coming to a rest on Zechs.
"Sorry I was running late. I'll go check my gear."
He didn't even give Zechs a chance to respond to that before side-stepping Duo and vanishing out into the bay. As the door shut behind him with a soft 'whuf', Heero allowed himself a tiny frustrated sigh, but only because the sound of the traffic on the street beyond the open bay door would drown it out. Even fully clothed in a uniform that looked like it had been pulled from the bottom of a clothes pile, pulled on with great haste, and without the use of a mirror, with his braid all but half undone and shoved just as quickly under his cap, Duo could still make his blood heat in uncomfortable ways. Especially with that half terrified, half angry look flashing in those deep blue-violet eyes like fire on still water.
He retrieved his gear from its little niche along the wall, dropping it beside his door on the rig and sorting it out to be ready for their first call. As he was stepping up to reach in for the small bit of medical equipment they carried, to check it over, the door to the kitchen drifted shut again. He had to consciously force himself to not look behind him out of habit, knowing who would be there. God, but it was so hard.
"We need to talk."
"We do? I don't know what we'd 'need' to talk about, Maxwell," he replied, keeping his voice even and expressionless.
"Bullshit. You weren't that drunk," Duo growled, moving around to his other side in an effort to force Heero to look at him.
Heero simply pulled the aid bag down from the rig, turning to set it along one of the running boards to check, and not so incidentally, turning his back on Duo. "Neither were you." Behind him, he heard Duo sigh explosively in frustration. 'Go away, Duo. God, just go away. Can't you see how much this is killing me inside? There won't be anything left of me by the time I've made it safe enough for you,' he thought to himself desperately, clenching his jaw to keep from betraying his inner thoughts.
"Where the fuck were you yesterday? You never came home, not even last night."
Heero shot a surprised look at Duo over his shoulder, scowling as he returned his attention back to the bag. "You were waiting for me."
"All fucking day, and all fucking night. I only gave up to run home and grab a uniform to change into, and I was still almost late."
"I don't recall hiring a baby-sitter," Heero replied coolly, zipping the bag back up and climbing up into the rig to put it away.
Duo jerked as if slapped, stepping back a pace as Heero calmly began hooking his mask up to his SCBA tank and checking the air level in it.
"No, I guess you didn't," he replied quietly, all his bluster fleeing him. He opened his mouth to continue, but whatever he may have been about to say was swallowed up by the screaming tones of the speaker, as Dispatch announced a general alarm for their section. Instantly setting their discussion aside, Heero hopped down and started shrugging into his gear, even as Duo raced for the map to double check his route.
"...Caller states that her kitchen is on fire, and she is unable to escape her home because she only has one leg."
Heero swore creatively in Japanese as his fingers flew over the snaps and clasps of his coat. Confirmed victim trapped. Through the opposite open door, he saw his Captain shrugging into his own gear, and their eyes met. No playing around on this one. As Duo zipped past him, Heero hopped back into the rig, flipping his hood off to pull on his mask, even as he slammed his door shut with his free hand. By the time Engine 8 was rolling past the doors, Heero had already pulled his hood back up, donned his helmet, and was cinching down the chin strap. With a quick twist, he disengaged the regulator from his mask to breath outside air until they reached the scene. Using the momentum of one of Duo's trademarked quick turns, Heero jerked his tank out of its cradle in his seat and reached behind him to twist on the valve. A moment later, he'd pulled on his gloves and freed his favorite pick headed axe from its clamps just under his legs. With his radio neatly dropped into the front pocket of his coat after being turned on, Heero settled back a little into his seat and relaxed as best he could until they arrived on the scene, conserving his strength.
Smoke poured from the eves of the house that Engine 8 shuttered to a halt before, the front window bowing outward ominously even as Heero hopped out. Tucking the axe against his side, he reached up with his empty hand, catching a loop of the hose from the bed overhead and pulling it out to settle onto his shoulder. As Zechs came around to that side of the rig to grab the nozzle, Heero took off at a steady jog, laying out the length of hose in a looping diagonal towards the house. As soon as all the kinks and folds were laid out, he jogged back to Zechs' side, taking position beside the front door. With a nod from his captain, Heero brought the flat part of the axe head around in a sharp arch into the door just at the latch level, which popped inward with a satisfying crash. Even as the metal of tool met the wood of the door, Duo had opened up the lever on the engine pump, flooding their hose with water to douse the jet of flame and smoke that came rushing from the now opened doorway.
Dropping the axe beside the door, Heero took up the hose just behind Zechs and they crept into the hazy cherry gloom of the smoke filled house, pausing only briefly to douse the occasional spurt of flame that ventured too near. As they passed down a small hallway that ended in a brighter red glare, Heero noticed the arch of an open doorway to their left. Tapping Zechs on the shoulder, he indicated that he was going to duck in for a quick search for their victim before joining Zechs on the hose again. The platinum haired captain gave him a curt nod before pressing onward.
Pausing just a second to clip his search line around the hose itself, Heero reached out and grabbed the wall, using it as a guide into the other room. The smoke wasn't as thick here, only down to within a foot or two of the floor, and white rather than thick and black. The faint glow of the morning sun filtered in through a wide picture window, casting a soft white radiance throughout the room. Keeping his left hand on either the wall, or a sturdy piece of furniture against the wall, Heero steadily made his way around the room, reaching as far out into the center as he could without losing his reference point. Over the hiss of water and fire, he could hear the clamor on the radio that signaled the arrival of other companies, laying hose and preparing to join in the search.
His questing hand came across a soft bundle that flinched away at his touch and moaned weakly. With a start, Heero let go of the wall and reached out with both hands, confirming that he'd found a victim, lying in a heap beside what felt like a couch. He radioed out quickly that he'd found the victim, and what his location was, so that the RIT and medical teams would be ready and waiting for him when he dragged the body out. After waiting a moment to make sure he'd been heard, he got a firm grab on the dead weight of the obviously unconscious person, and began following his search line back out to the hose, and then the doorway beyond. Even as he backed out into sunlight, hands dove in from all sides to relieve him of his burden and begin working on her. Other hands started trying to pry his gear from him, but he batted them off quickly, shouting over his regulator that he had to rejoin his captain inside. The hands released him, and he dropped back to his knees, crawling back into the gloom and gathering his search line up again as he passed.
After a few disorienting moments of crawling through the smoke, Heero came to where he'd left Zechs' side, and unhooked his search line, stuffing it into his pocket before grabbing the hose to follow it further into the house. In his haste to find the victim before, he'd barely registered the discomfort of crawling over various materials and small obstacles, what felt like dozens, maybe hundreds of small knick knacks littering the hallway and every inch of floor he within his reach. Now, with the concern of the trapped victim off of his mind, he started noticing just how much junk seemed to clutter the tiny space of the home, as if he'd just crawled into a cramped little Chinese curio shop that had just experienced an earthquake.
Pottery and glass cracked and shattered under his gloved hands and padded knees, making him thankful for the thickness of his bunkers, while the larger items of wood and metal and other unidentifiable bits pressed in on him from all sides, occasionally catching on the hose of his SCBA tank, or the toe of his boot as he crawled. He regretted the damage he was probably doing to this woman's belongings, but from the feel of the pure press of everything, it seemed like she had plenty to spare.
After what seemed like an eternity, he finally made out the bulk of Zechs against the red glare of the kitchen. The older man was kneeling up, steadily working his way from left to right, extinguishing the blaze, oblivious to the oppressive pressure of heat and smoke banking down from above. Heero maneuvered into place behind him, taking up the hose and relieving him of some of the back pressure, giving Zechs more range and freedom of motion. Shuffling inch by inch further, they worked their way deeper into the kitchen, reflexively ducking now and then as bits of the drop ceiling showered down upon them, broken up by the heat of the fire and the weight of the water. Heero reached behind him, giving the hose a massive yank as it seemed to snag on something. He thought he heard a muffled curse ring down the hallway as the hose suddenly advanced a few more feet, and an unconscious smirk broke over his features at the thought that he may have just either dumped some poor schmuck on his ass, or scared their liver into their throat.
Ahead of him, Zechs shifted another few inches forward and to one side, putting Heero up against what seemed to be a wall, before opening up the hose again. Water cascaded over countertops and walls, bouncing off the ceiling and raining down over them both. A brief tingle flashed through his bunker coat and into his shoulder, his only warning before a brilliant blue white flash erupted from right behind him, tossing him into Zechs, and both of them into a tumble across the floor for a moment. Heero shook his head, sparing the arcing electric stove behind them a fierce scowl before rising back to his knees and pulling Zechs up with an apologetic shout. A moment later, the snap and scream of the arcing electricity suddenly died as someone outside finally found, and pulled off, the power meter, cutting the power to the house. Heero made a quick mental note to thank whoever was in charge of cutting power for not being quicker and almost getting he and his captain fried. There were a few gallons of nice, ice cold water in the cooler on Engine 8 with that person's name written all over it.
But that would have to wait until later. Now, they had a fire to concentrate on.
Zechs leaned tiredly against the side of the rig beside Heero, who was trying not to smirk as they watched the rookie from Truck 2 try to wring out the tail of his shirt, teeth chattering from the icy water still soaking into his clothes. Not far off, Hilde was laughing as she helped Duo uncouple hose.
"I told you that you had to be quicker, didn't I?" the female firefighter called, still giggling even as she tossed a wink towards Heero.
"Did you have to use the whole five gallons?" Zechs asked quietly, bending down towards Heero to be heard over the dull roar of all the powerful diesel engines running around them.
Heero simply turned a bland look up at his captain, absently rotating the shoulder that he'd taken the shock of the arcing stove through. Zechs chuckled.
"Point taken," Zechs finally murmured after draining the cup he'd been nursing in one long swallow.
Heero mirrored the action and then stood to join Hilde and Duo in reloading all their hose on top of Engine 8. With so many willing hands, the clean up was accomplished quickly, and with the home's owner already on her way to the hospital, courtesy of Trowa, Quatre and Medic 6, there wasn't anything left for Engine 8 and her crew to do once the last hose was replaced. With a final check in with their Battalion Chief, Zechs returned to Engine 8 with orders to head back to quarters.
The ride back was oddly quiet, with no conversation, nor even Duo's usual post-fire song. Heero hopped out to direct traffic as Duo backed the rig into the bay, and by the time he walked inside, the door to the kitchen was already shutting behind Duo. Zechs removed his bunkers, laying them out to dry a little so they'd be ready for their next run, before he followed the violet-eyed driver off towards the waiting showers and a clean uniform.
Heero busied himself with changing out the air bottle on his SCBA tank, making sure everything was put away, and making sure his gear was also laying out to dry for their next call, but having done much of that already before leaving the fire scene, it didn't take as long as the Japanese firefighter could have wished. With a defeated sigh, he finally headed off towards the bunkroom via the kitchen.
The scent of cooking bacon and eggs, and the heavier smell of waffles filled the air as he slipped through the door. Surprised, he paused in the doorway, watching Wufei and Noin as they bustled about the kitchen preparing a breakfast feast in something only slightly less graceful than Duo's normal orchestrated chaos.
"Did you forget that it's Sunday?" Wufei asked mildly as he tended the skillets on the stove, tossing Heero an amused look.
"Guess so," Heero mumbled, eyeing Noin warily.
"We heard you guys go out this morning and decided to surprise you. Hi, I'm Noin. I'm in Investigations with *him* now," she said cheerfully, motioning towards Wufei with a small wink and a feigned sour tone of voice before continuing sarcastically, "And here I thought they'd never be able to find anyone to replace the greatness that was Wufei."
"Did you say something, Inspector Noin? I couldn't hear you over the yapping of small dogs," Wufei shot back, nonplussed as he divided his attention between the pans.
Noin laughed good-naturedly, grinning at Zechs who had appeared in the doorway to the bunkroom, his damp hair hanging in tendrils around his face, and uniform shirt over his T-shirt untucked and unbuttoned.
"Are they at it again?" Zechs asked in a bored voice as he glanced at Heero.
Heero blinked, caught off guard by the sudden stab of longing that this easy, close-knit life could really be his. If only. He shook his head sharply, expression shuttering closed as he slipped past Zechs, murmuring that he needed a shower.
"Better get one fast, then. Before Duo uses all the hot water," Zechs replied, masking his own surprise at the swift progression of emotion and suppression across Heero's features.
Pausing at his locker, Heero withdrew the last clean uniform he'd stored there, fussing absently with the hanger before catching up his towel on his bed. He realized that all he was doing was delaying the inevitable so with a deep sigh, he cracked open the door to the bathroom and crept inside.
Condensation clung to the walls, and a thin haze of steam filled the air, fogging up the mirrors over the sinks. Heero set his clothing and towel on the counter, listening to the soft hiss of water striking the tiles from within the shower, surprised to not hear Duo humming as was his wont. Like the impulse to pick at a scab, he couldn't stop himself from leaning over to peek through the doorway into the shower, eyes raking over Duo painfully. The sight that greeted him, however, put a stranglehold on his heart within his chest, squeezing it tightly and choking the breath from him.
Duo stood under the spray, hands flat against the wall in front of him, arms braced as if that was the only thing keeping him upright under the water. His head hung down between his shoulders, hair a dark curtain of tepid straggles, looking much thinner when wet and unbound. The bottles of shampoo and conditioner lay forgotten, kicked over on the floor behind him at the edge of the cascading spray, while the crumpled wad of washcloth and soap lay discarded against the wall below Duo as if he'd dropped it and lacked even the ambition to lean down to pick it up again.
For several long moments, both men stood frozen, Duo by apathy, Heero by the sudden pain seizing his heart, each lost in their own thoughts. Heero bit his lower lip hard, caught between his nearly overwhelming urge to keep Duo safe by continuing to push him away, and the equally insistent urge to gather the long-haired man into his arms and...
The pain of his teeth against his lip sharpened suddenly as he slowly became aware of how erotic Duo looked standing under the torrent of water, how his protective instincts rose up and waged a losing battle against the flush of heat filling him from his groin up. He shut his eyes tightly and drew back, falling back against the wall behind him and panting quietly to get his breath back. The persistent pressure of his too-tight slacks didn't slacken, however, grew more pronounced, in fact, by the very effort he was expending to regain his fled composure. Swallowing hard against the lump lodged at the base of his throat, he pushed away from the wall and peeked around the doorway again.
Duo hadn't moved, and the thin suds that had been clinging to the ends of his hair before had long since washed away down the drain. The hot water wouldn't last forever; the slight lessening of steam from the spray attested to that. If Duo didn't manage to get his hair conditioned before he ran out of water, Heero knew he'd never be able to wrestle that unwieldy mane of his into any semblance of order.
A voice within him that sounded suspiciously like that of the Soldier's clamored about his plan to keep Duo safe, how Heero was supposed to be pushing the long-haired man *away*, not undressing to join him in the *shower*. His fingers paused in their task of unbuttoning his shirt, his eyes raking over Duo's naked form again, lingering here and there like a critic admiring a fine piece of art. 'But if I'm with him all the time, they'll never be able to get at him,' he reasoned silently. 'I can protect him better if I keep him near me. If he'll have me now.'
He didn't care how contrived it sounded. He was getting so tired of fighting his emotions on this, of letting every scrap of happiness slip through his fingers like sand. He didn't deserve it, by any stretch of his imagination, but that was the nature of humankind: to strive for what they did not have, could not attain. And, dammit, he wanted this!
Odin had been right. He loved Duo.
The water was getting cooler. Duo sighed quietly, not even caring as he concentrated on watching the water swirl past his toes, trying with everything within him to ignore the ache of emptiness in his chest.
God, what had he been *thinking*? That was the problem. He hadn't been thinking. He couldn't have been, otherwise, he'd have never kissed Heero two nights ago. It had seemed like such a good idea at the time. Of course, that was probably the beer talking.
It had just seemed like everything had led up to that moment, one event right after the other in a natural progression that almost seemed to force Duo to take the risk, to dare to brush his lips over Heero's. The way Heero had so carefully watched over him as he slept, the soothing dreamy lassitude that had overtaken them both as they simply enjoyed each other's company over 'breakfast', the easy banter they'd slipped into at the bar, and unconscious trust each showed to the other. He'd never seen Heero at such ease before, and it hadn't taken long for him to realize that that rare glimpse had only made the Japanese man that much more desirable.
He'd listened to that nagging little voice that dared him to risk it all. And he lost. He'd seen the fear in Heero's deep blue eyes an instant before the door crashed closed, dropping his world out from under him. Duo remembered standing there for more than ten minutes, totally at a loss for the first time in his life. He'd been expecting a lot of different things, but fear hadn't been one of them. Not from Heero. Not his superstar.
Most of the rest of that night was still a blur. He'd obviously gotten very drunk, although where, he wasn't sure, since both Camaro and Harley were safely stowed in the garage the next morning, though there were no empty bottles or cans to be found. Purest dumb luck, then.
At least he woke up alone. It's all he deserved after screwing up that bad. Besides, that's all his life would have needed, the complication of a one night pity stand.
Then again, it probably wouldn't have complicated anything. It didn't look like there was anything left between them to complicate. At least, if the cool, dismissive regard Heero had favored him with thus far was any indicator.
Stupid little voice. He'd never listen to it again. It had already cost him the most important friendship he'd ever had.
He should probably get around to finishing up in the shower before he ran out of lukewarm water. It just didn't seem worth the effort, though.
The sizzle hiss of water striking the tiles masked the silent slap of bare feet slipping up behind him, and he'd closed his eyes tightly as he'd wallowed in his self-recrimination, so he didn't even see the shadow that fell over him for a moment. All he knew was that one second he was alone, and in the next, gentle fingers were gathering up the heavy fall of his hair, working a handful of his favorite sweet smelling conditioner into it.
He didn't even think, spinning around and letting loose a purely reflexive punch into the intruder. Heero slowly turned back towards him, not backing up as he warily met his startled gaze and continued to absently comb his fingers through the tumble of hair held carefully in his hands.
"H-Heero?" Duo stammered, backing up a pace, the hand that he'd struck Heero with twisted behind him like an errant child. "W-what do you-"
"I'm sorry," Heero said quietly, dropping his gaze to study his toes intently, though not relinquishing the handful of Duo's hair he'd gathered up.
"What?" Duo replied weakly, falling back another half-step, pressing up against the wall behind him to keep his feet, even as surprise threatened to steal his footing.
Heero's prussian gaze darted back up to Duo's face, tracing the smooth planes and elfin curves avidly, drinking in the sight as if it would be his last chance. With a regretful sigh, Heero finally released Duo, dropping his hands to his sides and staring back down at the splash of water collecting around their feet. "I'm sorry," he repeated.
Duo blinked in confusion and shock, shaking his head to clear the water dripping into his eyes as if it was responsible for what he was assuming had to be a hallucination. Taking Duo's silence as a rejection, Heero half turned away to leave, then darted a look back up at Duo's face. The confusion he read there steeled him, and he pressed forward, just brushing his lips over Duo's.
Reflexively, Duo's hands came up, cupping around Heero's face and holding him in place when the Japanese man made to draw back. He returned the kiss, darting his tongue between parted lips to lick softly at Heero's lower lip, daring to taste him before this too vanished.
"Heero?" he murmured as he finally withdrew, but only far enough to take in all of Heero's slack features.
Prussian eyes blinked lazily open, fixing upon Duo as a wave of color rose in Heero's cheeks. One hand crept up tentatively, resting upon the flat plane of Duo's chest, fluttering at the contact, before finally settling in a feather soft caress. He swallowed, gathering his courage. "I made a mistake," he admitted slowly. "I was... scared."
"I'm sorry, Heero. I never should have-"
Heero silenced Duo with another kiss, parting his lips invitingly, an invitation that Duo quickly took advantage of. The Japanese man shifted forward, pressing Duo up against the wall and bringing their bodies close, one long line of fire between them as damp skin finally kissed damp skin. He could feel the heated flesh of Duo's arousal stirring against his thigh as the shock finally wore off, making him groan quietly into Duo's lips. When they finally broke apart, Heero rested his head against Duo's panting for breath. "Don't," he managed after a moment. "Don't apologize. Please. You were right. You've always been right."
"I still shouldn't have pushed you like that," Duo countered, wincing as his mouth took off without him again.
Heero's lips curved up in a small smile, his hands coming up to cup around Duo's face the same way Duo had his fingers curled around Heero's cheeks. He leaned in for a lingering taste, eyes fluttering open as he tilted his head back again. "Maybe that's exactly what you should have done. Maybe I'm just an idiot who needs to start listening to his emotions."
The deep purr of Heero's voice went straight to Duo's cock, hardening him further and making him whimper slightly. "Are you sure, Heero?" he asked weakly, terrified that this was nothing more than a horrifyingly realistic shower fantasy.
Heero took one of Duo's hands from his cheek, a wicked smirk crossing his lips as he brought the long-haired driver's hand down to wrap around his own straining arousal. "I don't know, Duo," he replied playfully, "Does it feel like I'm sure?" Without waiting for an answer, he released Duo's hand, pressing forward to pin the other man against him and seizing Duo's lips for another kiss.
The water had gone cold somewhere around the first tentative brush of lips, but neither firefighter could have told that with their own souls igniting into a firestorm within them, kindled by the press of body against body, flesh against flesh. Heero shuddered as Duo's hand started stroking him slowly, his grip tightening as he gained confidence and wrestled for control. Refusing to relinquish it just yet, Heero released Duo's lips, tilting his head to nibble along Duo's jawline until he reached the hollow of Duo's throat and began sucking gently. The hand around his cock trembled slightly, rhythm stuttering as Duo tilted his head back for Heero, offering himself.
With a wicked smirk, Heero doubled his assault, moving down past collarbone to the dusky nipples crowning rock hard muscles. He was rewarded with a strangled moan bursting from Duo's parted lips, violet eyes slipping closed as Heero licked and laved the firm nubbin. Taking it gently between his teeth, he worried it until he wrung a sharp gasp from Duo before turning his attention on the other side, worshipping it with the same intensity.
Duo's hands had long slipped from Heero, falling back against the slick tile as if to hold him up against Heero's onslaught. His chest heaved as he struggled to draw breath, even as his whole world threatened to shut down around him. After what seemed like an eternity, Heero finally took pity on him, turning his attention to painting a spiraling trail down Duo's chest and abdomen with his mouth until his tongue darted into Duo's navel, once, twice, a third time, teasing him. There was a slight pause as Heero gracefully sank to his knees before him, settling in to rest his cheek against Duo's thigh.
Peering up at the long-haired driver through the damp fringe of his bangs, Heero graced Duo with another of those deadly wicked smirks, the only warning he gave before leaning over to rasp his tongue against the underside of Duo's cock. Duo shuddered at the contact, little sparks of red and gold lightning bursting behind his clenched eyelids, one hand coming up to rest atop Heero's head, letting his fingers weave into that tangled mop of dark hair. Tongue darting out for another long taste, Heero reached up, cupping the heavy sac below with deft fingers and wresting another strangled groan from his lover.
Lover. He liked that word.
"Please... please Heero." Duo whimpered quietly, fingers tightening spasmodically against his scalp as his senses threatened to drown him.
Taking pity on the other man, Heero settled himself and leaned forward, engulfing Duo in a long, slow swallow. Only his hands, now pressed firmly into Duo's thighs, kept the driver upright as the sensation stole his strength and buckled his knees.
'Heero,' his mind kept repeating, a litany of wonderment, 'This is Heero. My Heero. He's... ohgod...'
Letting Duo slip from between his lips, Heero ran his tongue down the slit at the tip, gathering the musky moisture there, rolling the taste over in his mouth for a moment before returning for another taste.
Finding his strength again, slowly, Duo straightened a little in Heero's grasp, tilting his head until he could peer down at the Japanese man, see those lips wrapped so firmly around him. He whimpered, feeling a familiar wave of climax building within him. But it kept building, far beyond anything he'd ever felt before, like someone had tossed a small star into his soul, a place that had once only known the warmth of fire compared to this fusion reaction taking place now. When Heero released his hold upon Duo's thighs, slipping one hand around the base of his cock to anchor it as he sped up his pace, Duo thought he would be able to bear no more stimulation before he exploded. Heero proved him wrong a moment later when he reached below to cup his sac again, fingers just barely brushing against the puckered ring of flesh beyond, like the whisper of a promise.
With a softly strangled shout, Duo's universe imploded in a brilliant explosion of fire and sensation that left him floating for what seemed like a small eternity. Another moan clawed its way up from his gut as he felt Heero's throat working around him to swallow the entirety of his climax, tongue darting out as he slowly withdrew to gather the last drops.
Heero rested his head against the crease of Duo's thigh, collapsing against his lover's legs to catch his breath, even as the milky evidence of his own climax slid down the tiles to pool on the floor.
"Too much. God, Duo, you're too much," he murmured after a long moment.
Duo snorted, the staccato bark of his laughter echoing against the walls. "I'm too much he says," he replied weakly, sinking to his knees before Heero to gather him into his arms.
Heero took a deep breath, some unnamed fear within him finally abating, leaving him spent and boneless in Duo's grasp. The long-haired driver gathered him close, turning him to cradle against Duo's chest. They sat there at the edge of the cold shower spray for several long moments to gather their wits and catch their breath. It was the cold of the shower that convinced Heero that he was, indeed, alive, and not having a dream or delusion; he was fairly certain that in any daydream he managed, the water would always stay hot, just to spoil even the phantom of Duo.
"Do you regret it?" Duo asked hesitantly, breaking his train of though.
After several deep breaths of silent contemplation, Heero finally replied, "Yes."
"Y- yes?"
Heero tightened his arms about the arms wrapped around his shoulders, turning his head up to leave a lingering brush of lips against Duo's chin. "I wish I hadn't taken so long to wake up."
He could feel the tension drain out of Duo like water from a broken vessel, the thick curtain of water-dark hair surrounding them both as Duo bowed his head over Heero's with relief.
"So then next time, don't," Duo replied, tilting his head to nibble at the hollow of Heero's throat.
Heero could feel Duo's hand sliding along his abdomen, questing lower. With a regretful shake of his head, he caught that hand up in his own, holding it firmly. "No. Not yet. Not here. I want to do it right," he murmured, turning his head to catch Duo's lips with his own. Breaking away, he met Duo's gaze, smiling slightly. "At home. Your place. I want to make love to you against those black sheets on your bed."
Duo's eyes fluttered shut, his throat working to swallow back the small moan of anticipation rising from his chest. He could feel Heero's teeth close gently over the pounding pulse of his throat, nipping carefully to tease but not leave marks.
"Tomorrow," those lips promised. "Tomorrow morning, as soon as we get off work. I need a ride home, anyway."
Duo shook his head, caught between a snort of laughter and a frustrated growl. He settled for tightening his arms around Heero once more before slowly disentangling himself, using the wall to help him climb to his feet before offering Heero a hand up.
Heero's smirk widened a little, his eyes feasting upon every inch of Duo's body as he slowly rose from his crouch. The look wasn't lost on the violet-eyed driver, who turned away, bending at the waist to retrieve his conditioner, giving Heero a long view of his firmly muscled backside before straightening.
This time, the pained whimper came from Heero's throat, who was forced to retreat from the shower, as clean as he was likely to get with such a temptation so close at hand. "Tomorrow, Duo," he commented huskily from the doorway before he vanished.
Duo smiled, finishing up his shower as quickly as he could, the heat racing through his veins from the tone of Heero's voice making him forget just how very cold the water was after all this time. Never before had such an ominously dire threat sounded so wonderful.
Suddenly, "Tomorrow" felt like a million years away.
~TBC~
RavynFyre
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