May 1999
It was dark. Hazy orange and purple streaks coloured the twilight sky outside, but none of that light entered the renovated cargo hold. Harsh, fluorescent lighting washed over the room instead, bathing the soulless machinery in dead whites and yellows. Giving false life and igniting animation in darkly-cast shadows where there should be none.
Heero walked down the ramp, one hand reaching behind his neck to rub at the crick that had suddenly formed there. His leg throbbed, but the pain was tolerable. The bone would heal soon; the fracture just the most recent of many. Just another inconvenience. Unplanned but easily rectified. He looked upwards, cold gaze turning to the empty face of his Gundam. Wing looked ahead, heedless of his master's perusal.
Emotionless.
The Japanese pilot treaded softly across the metal floor, his heavy boots betraying not a sound. Wing had been damaged, but like his master, Wing would heal. Heero Yuy would heal him, by whatever means necessary. There were a few parts he had to replace, and he wondered where he would find them. The barge they were on seemed deserted, but Heero knew it wasn't so. But he had no desire to find out who else occupied the large ship, no desire at all. His main concern was the fulfilment of his orders, his mission. The one so rudely interrupted by that damnable mobile suit that intercepted him in Earth's airspace. The one he had to shelve as he sought the cover of what he had thought a safe haven. How dangerous could a boarding school be? But it was a bitter lesson learnt too late, albeit not totally useless. Heero Yuy would not make the same mistake twice.
A soft snick of metal upon metal.
He had forgotten. He wasn't alone. When had he become so complacent? Earth was not good for him. It was too close to humanity. It *was* the source, after all, right? Right.
*Click*
Again, the soft sound repeated itself, this time followed by a low exhalation. In the shadows cast by the other Gundam that occupied the hangar-like space, Heero could make out the other's outline. Another boy like him. So similar, yet so different. He suspected that they were after the same thing, although he had hardly said so in so many words. It did not pay to volunteer information, be they statements or questions.
The other boy had said his name was Duo. And he had tried to kill him. That, more than anything, had convinced Heero of where Duo's loyalty lay. It was something he understood. And condoned. Heero could not wholeheartedly approve of it, not when he was on the receiving end of the bullets, but he could accept Duo's actions. They were necessary. And where war was concerned, necessity did not go hand in hand with approval. But what happened after, *that* he could not accept. It was foolhardy. It was dangerous. It was totally against regulations!
Heero stood still, hidden in the awkward semi-darkness, unconsciously slowing his breathing to almost nil. No sound came from him; no movement betrayed his presence as he blended seamlessly into his surroundings. It wasn't difficult. There were too many scaffoldings and outcrops, too many cables and girders. Even with spotlights at strategic corners, hiding was easy. It was something Heero did well if he needed to. He didn't need to now, for Duo was no threat. But somehow, it felt right. It felt right to stand there under the veil of half-shadows as he watched the other boy shift, moving towards the light even as he himself sought the darkness.
Duo stood, stretching his arms over his head as a lazy grin crossed his face. Then, he pursed his lips and twitched them, his nose following the unconscious movement. It reminded Heero of a rabbit, and he smiled reluctantly. He watched silently as Duo picked his way through the litter of machine parts and various unnameables. The longhaired boy walked, almost loped, to the chest tucked away against a far wall. He crouched before it, opening the cover and holding it open with one arm. Heero watched as Duo suddenly stilled, his body in mid-crouch, stiffening as though he had caught the sound or scent of something out of place. Involuntarily, Heero felt himself likewise stiffen. Had he made a noise to distract Duo?
A soft sigh came from Duo, an exhalation that carried a sound of pure bliss. Heero relaxed, realising that he was still hidden. Still unnoticed. Duo slowly shook his head from side to side, lowering it as he braced open the cover to the large cooling chest with both arms now. Soft, white wisps of vapour curled from the cooler, moving upwards towards Duo's face before dissipating into the warmer air of the room.
Suddenly Heero realised that he felt hot, stifled. Large though the room was, ventilation was not one of its strongpoints. It was meant for reparation works, storage. Not comfort. And definitely not human comfort. As long as the machines it housed were catered for, the room served its purpose. The people who staffed it did not matter.
Duo had moved, reaching into the chest for something and then, with not a slight hesitation, had closed the chest. He stood once more, a brownish-green bottle in one hand. He twisted at the cap with another, and tossed the metal piece carelessly over one bared shoulder. It landed with a clunk, the sound of it rolling away loud in Heero's ears, before falling to silence. Duo tossed his head back and poured the golden liquid into his mouth.
What a strange way to drink. Duo's lips never touched the mouth of the bottle and for a brief moment, Heero wondered how that would look like, how those lips would look like, wrapped around the narrow neck of the bottle. The sound of liquid moving from vessel to vessel assailed his ears, and he was reminded of the waves. Duo's throat was bared, arched back as he gulped, his adam's apple bobbing with each swallow. Totally oblivious to the dark stare that traced his every action. But then, Duo shifted again and Heero forgot about how Duo drank.
Duo was wiping his mouth with the back of his free hand, all the while eyeing the bottle in his other. His eyebrows arched sharply, and his head cocked to one side. It seemed as though he were contemplating some pertinent question, some mind-boggling puzzle. Heero held his breath without realising, enthralled by the curious look on the other boy's face. Then, a beatific smile shone through, and Heero heard Duo chuckle softly. He almost chuckled himself when he saw what Duo did next.
It was so simple, so expected, so obvious. Yet he never guessed it. The breath Heero held was slowly let out as he watched Duo rub the cool, glass surface over the skin of his throat and face. The water droplets reflected the fluorescent lights that filtered from the ceiling, absorbing the white light and throwing it back into the world in little specks that dotted Duo's skin so that it seemed like he shone. A single droplet had gathered under a stray lock of hair that stuck to the side of Duo's face and Heero watched it advance downwards. Even from the distance, and in the less-than-adequate light, he could make out its passage down the one smooth cheek as it disappeared under the sharply-defined jawbone, only to peek once more as it gathered momentum, rolling down the pale neck like a fragile bead of molten glass. Heero watched, entranced by that one trail of moisture. He watched as the droplet was finally absorbed by the black cotton of Duo's tanktop. A tiny drop of water that spread across the fibres in an increasing blotch of moisture. Spreading like fingers across pale skin...
Heero shook his head, almost violently, the only movement he'd made since Duo had stopped his repair work to get a cool drink. What had he been thinking? Waxing lyrical in the middle of a dark hangar, nearly drowning in the oppressive humidity and lurking in the shadows of his Gundam as he watched a fellow pilot drink? Perhaps he had fractured more than his leg...
"Heero?" Duo's voice called out to him. Too late. Heero realised that he was no longer hidden. He looked towards the other boy, features stony and schooled to reflect nothing, absolutely nothing. So unlike the animated face that looked back at him, a quirky smile on lips that were still wet with whatever he had imbibed earlier.
"Why're you standing in the dark? Come and have a drink. It's damn hot tonight."
Yes. Yes it's damn hot. Why state the obvious?
"Oi! Are ya listening? Want a drink or not?" Duo peered towards him, still standing in that one spot by the chest, one hand around the bottle and another brushing back damp hair from his face. His tanktop was almost soaked with sweat and the thin material stuck to his torso almost obscenely. Duo wiped his hand on his camouflage-green fatigues before looking away and opening the chest once more. He reached in, rummaged and pulled out another bottle, holding it out so Heero could see. "We've got beer, coke, um...I think there's some fruit juice, mineral water..." He turned towards Heero, swivelling on his heels. "Quite a choice, actually. I'm sure there's something you'd like here."
Heero's eyes narrowed. Duo was looking at him with such an open face; too trusting and too accepting. How could he be that way? He'd hardly known him for a full day! And now he was almost solicitious!
"C'mon, Heero. Get out of the dark. What do you think you are?" Duo stood up, releasing the cover so that it closed with a loud thud. "Well, you're a big boy. You can help yourself, ne?" he sighed resignedly as Heero made no move forward. "I've got better things to do."
Heero watched Duo saunter back to where he had sat earlier, settling on the floor and setting the open bottle beside him. When Duo seemed more absorbed with his task, Heero finally moved. He walked quietly toward the chest, opening it and taking out a red can. He kept his gaze reserved, not turning once. But he knew the other boy's eyes were on him. Heero could feel Duo's gaze. It felt like a caress and a slight shiver went through him. But was it from the idea of Duo looking at him, or from the coolness of the ice in the chest? Heero hesitated as he closed the chest. Opening it once more, he reached in and grabbed a few pieces of the tubular ice, rubbing it against the back of his neck before throwing them to the floor where they would subsequently melt. The chest was equipped with a cooling system, but it was one of the vintage versions, and needed extra ice to cool its contents. He turned towards Duo, and smiled a little when the other boy hurriedly averted his gaze. How quickly the watcher became the watched.
Popping the tab of the can, Heero took a long swallow. The bite of the soda pinched at his gut as it travelled downwards, and the overt sweetness enveloped his tongue completely, biting and stinging pleasantly until he swallowed. He hadn't realised it, but somehow Heero was crouching before Duo, one arm balanced on his injured leg.
A look of concern flickered briefly across Duo's face and it amused Heero to see the violet eyes widen. "Why don't you sit?" Duo asked, gesturing with a slight nod. Heero took in Duo's relaxed sprawl, noticing the slight tenseness in the deliberate slouch. He'd noticed that aberration. Duo did not slouch. He never had. Why did he do so now? Heero brushed the questions aside as he took Duo's advice, sitting stiff-backed, his bound leg stretched out before him.
"Does it hurt much?" Duo asked tentatively. He reached for his drink and took another swallow.
Heero watched Duo's throat convulse as he shook his head, silently answering Duo's question.
Duo looked back at him, eyes sparkling. "You don't talk much, do you?" Heero's stony gaze and silence goaded the longhaired boy more. Duo leaned back, propping himself with his arms behind him as he drew his legs up. Cocking his head to one side, he grinned as he eyed Heero. "Can't be me, right? I've been told that I'm irresistable," he chuckled.
Unbidden, a smirk made its way to Heero's lips, bringing another throaty chuckle from Duo. Heero contemplated the other pilot curiously, although his stoic exterior belied none of that curiosity. The slouch had all but disappeared, replaced by the easy posture Duo now held. The longhaired boy peered at him from between his parted legs, the camouflage green framing his face. The contrast between what the color of his pants signified and that of the wide violet eyes was unsettling, and for a moment, Heero paused, unsure of what to do next. Duo stared back at him, his lips twitching as though he was holding back from...something. The boy's eyes laughed; Heero could almost hear them laughing, imagining that they'd have a deep, sultry voice much like Duo's...
Duo suddenly collapsed his thighs inwards, breaking the intangible frame and derailing Heero's thoughts, drawing him back into the here and now.
"Why did you do it?" Heero asked as Duo lifted his bottle again. The braided boy stilled, suddenly motionless. His eyes lifted to Heero's face, suddenly shuttered, no hint of the previous openess so appropriate for his age.
"Do what?" Duo's question was soft but the voice, though low, was laced with steel. Cold steel. He lowered the bottle and sat up, back stiff and straight, muscles tensed.
"Help me escape."
Duo smiled, his face suddenly cynical. "You needed help."
"No, I didn't." Heero heard his own voice above the silence. He sounded cold, callous. Uncaring. Angry.
Good.
"I'd have found a way out. I didn't need your help."
"Too bad. It's already done." Duo fought the urge to laugh. Heero was the last person he'd thought to have an inferiority complex.
"It was unnecessary-"
"Look! It's not like I had any choice, alright? You were just part of the mission," Duo burst out in exasperation. He'd learnt long ago never to expect gratitude, in any form. But it was hard to believe that he was being admonished for saving someone's life.
"The mission." Heero's statement was flat, and his voice had dropped to hardly a whisper.
Duo took in the bowed head, the slumped shoulders, the unconscious, nervous tic of Heero's fingers against the aluminium can. "Yes, the mission." His own voice lowered, sombre. "It was either kill you or help you live. Whatever, as long as Operation Meteor remains in operation."
"You could have killed me."
"I could have."
"But you didn't."
"No."
Heero looked up, angry blue eyes drilling into softer, violet ones. "Why not?"
"It wasn't necessary. I didn't need to. Always choose life, Heero. Never choose death if you don't have to. Choose to live. While you can." Duo turned his face away, and the last few words were barely heard.
"I would have killed you."
"I know. I almost did too, remember? It was my fault you were captured. It was the least I could do."
"So you helped me out of guilt?" Heero's eyes flashed. Finally! Duo's answer would determine the outcome of this little game.
The answer didn't come. Instead, Duo took another drink, tipping the bottle back to pour the last of its contents down his throat. A little bit of liquid dribbled down one corner of his mouth and Duo quickly licked at it. The darting tongue startled Heero, the sudden flash of pink breaking the monotony of Duo's strangely pale face.
"There weren't any orders for my rescue, Duo. I checked. You breached security. You risked the mission."
Duo seemed to pale even more. The large eyes suddenly seemed too large for his face, and yet he seemed to shrink away.
"You let your heart rule your head!" Heero snorted with thinly-veiled disgust. He stood up abruptly and stalked back to the cooler, retrieving two more bottles.
"Does it matter?" Duo finally ventured when Heero settled once more on the floor before him. "I couldn't leave you there. I got you out. No one's the wiser."
"You were too late, though. They managed to find out something about me. They know who I am, what I am. If only a little bit."
Duo smiled at that, but the smile was tired. Jaded. "And who are you, Heero Yuy? What are you?"
The Japanese boy looked up, skrying the suddenly old eyes in the too-young face. "Someone you should have left behind, Duo Maxwell." Heero threw a bottle towards Duo, who caught it deftly. "I wasn't worth the risk."
"Really?"
Heero shook his head and took a drink from the now-opened bottle. The taste of the beer was bitter, sharply contrasting the sweet soda before. "No."
Duo sighed. "Like I said, it's too late. I did it already. I don't think you'll walk back and get captured again just to keep the records straight, eh?"
"I said I wasn't worth the risk. I didn't say I was stupid."
Duo laughed at Heero's irritated retort.
"You, on the other hand," Heero continued.
"Me?"
"You."
Tiredly, Duo acceeded. This argument was getting nowhere. Heero wanted to win, needed to win. And Duo had nothing to lose. "Okay. Yeah, I was stupid. I saved a sonuvabitch who'd rather die than live. No, I didn't follow orders - Heck! There weren't any orders! - but that doesn't matter. I risked life and limb for an ungrateful wretch who sets his own bones and who'd rather blow himself up than escape. So shoot me," he grinned, spreading his arms.
Heero's dark eyebrows arched, his gaze sharpening. "I won't, but someone else might."
Duo clutched at his chest, swooning dramatically. "Argh! That hurt, Heero Yuy! Mercy!"
Heero continued to drink, watching Duo once more fold his legs under him after he'd finished his little show. He reached for the new bottle he'd given Duo earlier and twisted the cap off, handing it to the grinning boy. Duo drank.
"Do that again," Heero asked softly when Duo smacked his lips.
"What?"
"Drink."
Grinning, Duo obliged.
"Why do you do that?"
"What?"
"Tip the bottle like that."
"I dunno. How do you do it?"
Heero demonstrated, putting the bottle to his lips and tipping the liquid into his mouth.
"I could do that," Duo scoffed and proceeded to do just that.
Heero realised that it was one of the most erotic things he'd ever seen. The way the pale pink lips wrapped almost reverently around the narrow opening, enclosing the cold glass with warm flesh. The almost imperceptible slide of lips against glass as Duo tipped the bottle upwards, and the soft gurgle of swallowing. The soft 'snick' of white teeth against green glass, a meeting of hardness against hardness. And again, that pink tongue flicked at the rim of the bottle as the vessel left Duo's mouth. It was unconscious. It was instinctive. It was a damn turn-on.
"Did I do that right?" Duo asked, totally unaware of the effect his little demonstration had on the Japanese pilot.
Heero blinked, and hurriedly nodded. "Yeah," he almost moaned. It was ironic. He would have laughed if he had been alone. He was supposed to be in control of this game, this little psychological battle. Not Duo. And yet, here he was, nearly surrendering to the other. It wasn't meant to be this way. He wanted to show Duo the enormity of his actions, the consequences he would have had to face if he failed. He had accused Duo of following his heart.
And here he was- guilty of the same crime.
"How long were you with them?" Heero asked, instinctively knowing that Duo would understand who he was referring to.
"A few years. I was alone before that. Didn't know anything about anything," Duo replied drily. "You?"
Heero looked into the blackness of the void behind Duo, where the fuorescent lights did not reach. "For as long as I can remember."
Duo nodded in understanding, even though he knew he didn't. Heero's eyes hid something behind their coldness. Something hideous. Something sad. Something lost. He never noticed until he helped Heero up from his fall down the cliff a few days earlier, when they'd escaped the army hospital. His eyes were dead then, and Duo had despaired that he'd got to him too late. But a verbal kick in the ass had brought him back. Brought him back angry, but brought him back.
As they made their way towards the pickup in the hidden cove, Duo remembered that he'd felt glad. Heero could be angry with him forever for all he cared. But at least he was alive. And as far as he could help it, Duo never wanted to see another die because of him. He'd had enough of those.
Unless he really wanted to kill them, of course.
"You know them better than I do, then."
Heero looked at him blankly. "Do I? I wonder."
"Yeah. Maybe you know why we're doing this, fighting their war. Maybe you know what we're doing here."
"Don't you?"
Duo laughed, a bitter snort. "You're kidding, right? I'm just here to save my skin. It was either come down to Earth or die in space. And I always choose life."
"Really? Then why don't I believe you?"
"Hey-hey! This is Duo Maxwell you're talking to! I run, I hide, I never lie."
Heero gave Duo an 'u-huh-pull-the-other-one' look, which made the braided pilot sputter indignantly.
"It's true! We were being pursued and Dr. G gave me a choice - take the big boy here," he motioned proudly at Deathscythe, "and get my butt down here or get caught up there," Duo explained, pointing heavenward. "That Dr. G..." A faint smile of fondness. Quickly replaced by a sudden look of fear, and not slight embarrassment. "Oops. Let the cat outta the bag, didn't I?" Duo grinned sheepishly at Heero. "You won't tell?"
Heero smiled back slightly before assuring Duo that no, he wouldn't say a word. He wondered when Duo would realise that he'd let drop his mentor's code name. So easily. So trusting. Too trusting.
"You're dangerous, Duo."
Duo smiled brilliantly. "Oh yeah! Dangerous Duo, that's me." He puffed his chest proudly.
Heero clicked his tongue. "I meant, you're a danger to the mission."
Visibly, Duo was deflated. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"You trust too easily."
A dripping silence. "You think so?" Duo's voice was low, totally devoid of his earlier cheer and exuberance. "Perhaps because I know who I can trust, Yuy."
"You're a liability."
"And you're not?" Sarcasm became Duo. It dripped from him like the sweat that dripped from both their bodies.
"What do you mean?"
"Your holier-than-thou attitude. You can do no wrong, Heero Yuy. You're the perfect machine made human, aren't you? You're programmed. You don't think. You're conditioned. You don't feel. You function. Are you human, Heero?"
"What does that have to do with it?"
Barking laughter. Duo's shoulders shook with laughter. "My God! You're precious, Yuy! Utterly effing precious!" Calming down, Duo took another gulp of beer before looking Heero in the eye. "You need to be human to win a war, Heero. You need a heart to feel the pain, the futility, the hopelessness."
"I feel."
"But you don't acknowledge it, do you?"
Heero looked at Duo, puzzled. Duo gave him a tired smile, shaking his head in amazement.
"You're an innocent killer, Heero. You do what you do because you're told to. Not because it must be done. If they asked you to blow up an orphanage, would you do it, Heero?"
"Orders -"
"Are orders," Duo interrupted, completing Heero's answer. "I know. You'd do it without a thought as to who was inside, wouldn't you? Just because you were ordered to."
"I..."
"I can't do that, Heero. That's not the way I operate." Duo hazarded a look at Heero and was surprised by the flash of pain in the cobalt eyes. But that look was gone in an instant, like a fleeting memory. Once more, the icy blue stare asserted itself. "I can't kill someone without knowing why. I can't let someone die without justifying that death. That was why I couldn't give you up. I put you there. It wasn't part of the plan, but because of me, you ended up in enemy hands. I needed to get you out. Yeah, I lied," Duo chuckled bitterly. " A white lie, though. That's allowed, right?" he winked mischievously at Heero.
"It wasn't because of the mission, Heero. I saved you for me. Because I wouldn't have been able to live with myself if I'd gotten you killed." Duo sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "Maybe I'm selfish. But hey! Works for me!" he laughed.
"I was wrong then."
"Hmm?" Duo looked up at Heero's observation.
"I said you were stupid." Heero's eyes bored into Duo's. "I was wrong."
"I'm not stupid? Oh happy day."
"No. You're an idiot."
"What?"
"An idiot."
"I give up!" Duo threw up his arms and pushed himself towards a metal crate that stood against a nearby wall. Leaning against it, he crossed his arms and gave Heero his full attention. "Explain!"
"Only an idiot would care, Duo," Heero said simply. Then he stood up and walked back towards his Gundam.
"Oi! Hey!" Duo scrambled to his feet, feeling utterly ticked off. "You can't walk away just like that, you cold-hearted bastard!" He ran up to Heero, grabbing at one of the boy's arms. Heero whirled to face him before Duo had a chance to do that, however.
"I can't?" Heero growled, eyes furious. Duo almost flinched, but stood his ground. His eyes narrowed, temper almost frayed.
"What would you do, Duo, if someone kissed you like this?" Heero snarled as he grabbed Duo's tanktop straps and pulled him roughly towards him, grinding his lips against the braided pilot's. Heero kissed Duo hard, without any feeling other than hate. All the hate he could muster. All the anger. He bit at the other's lips, ignoring the muffled cries of pain, the violent pushing of Duo's hands against his chest. Until he tasted the salty tang of blood on his tongue. Then he pulled away, but he left the anger in his eyes. He let the fury stay. He needed it to stay.
"Shit!" Duo gasped, voice almost shrill with anger, panic. He wiped at his mouth violently, the blood of his split lip smearing across his chin and part of one cheek. "What was that about?!"
Heero's lips lifted in a sneer, his hands still wound around Duo's tanktop straps. "You're the one who always wanted answers. Why don't you find out? Don't you see, Duo? That was a kiss, damn it! But it wasn't pleasant, was it? There was no pleasure there, was there? Sometimes things aren't what they seem, Duo! Sometimes you *cannot* feel! Sometimes you *cannot* care! Because it hurts! Do you understand?" Heero growled at the silent boy, giving him a final shake before releasing him. Heero turned away, leaving Duo to stand in silent askance.
He hadn't taken more than five steps before Duo's shaky voice made him stop.
"Heero?" Heero turned at the other's call, noting the slight quaver in the voice. He didn't realise Duo had followed him until he turned, and found himself staring into sad, violet eyes.
"I was wrong too." Duo's admittance was like a bucket of cold water. It was so unexpected. A complete turnaround. Heero's brow puckered in a slight frown.
"I thought you weren't human." Duo reached up, cupping Heero's face between his hands. "You are," he sighed, pulling Heero into a soft, gentle kiss.
Heero started, surprised. Shocked. But Duo's lips on his his niggled insistingly, the tiny nips that started from one corner of his mouth towards the centre of his lower lip pulled him into a sultry warmth and he could not help but relax. Heero surrendered to the sensation of Duo giving him moist, open-mouthed mini-kisses and he replied in kind, trading those not-so-subtle nips with his own. He pushed against Duo's lips and wondered at the feeling of fullness. He'd thought Duo had thin lips, but now they felt lush and full as they opened under his insistence, giving his tongue welcome entry, greeting it with his own. It was soft, gentle and hard at the same time. It was torture. It was magic. Vaguely, Heero realised that once again, he was right. Duo *was* dangerous. But he didn't mind.
Finally, Duo pulled away, face flushed, breathing heavily. He grinned at the slightly annoyed look on Heero's face. "Now *that* was a kiss," he chuckled.
"You shouldn't have done that," Heero said flatly.
"You started it, so sue me."
"I might," Heero grinned, eyes actually twinkling.
"Oi! Oi! Is this Heero Yuy I'm talking to? Are you sure you aren't some imposter? Some human clone sent to -" Duo gasped as Heero pushed him to the floor, tumbling on top of him with a suddenness that left him breathless.
"You question my humanity once too often, Maxwell."
Duo looked calmly into the dark-blue eyes above him. Heero's pupils were dilated, and there was a certain hunger in them. He'd expected it, had planned it that way. It didn't take long, the planning. It had just popped into his mind after Heero's savage kiss. In the space of those brief few seconds, he knew what he had to do. And it seemed right then. It still didn't feel wrong now.
"You never gave me an acceptable answer, Yuy."
"An answer? Are you sure? Can you handle it?" Verbal questions bandied with non-verbal suggestions.
Duo shrugged, the movement sending a delicious wriggle through Heero's gut. "Try me," Duo challenged.
Heero stared quietly for a long moment, before finally nodding almost to himself. "Fine."
He started with Duo's neck, kissing and licking up and down that slender column of flesh and bone. It seemed so fragile when it arched under his oral assault but it was a solid base into which he ground his kisses, biting and sucking as he travelled down to the hollow of Duo's collarbone.
Duo's hands moved up and down his back, caressing him through the material of his tanktop, pressing, massaging, soothing. It felt good, so very good and Heero showed his appreciation as his mouth travelled lower, towards where his fingers toyed with the nubs of Duo's nipples.
"Ah shit, Heero. Get this off!" Duo groaned, tugging at Heero's tanktop.
Heero shifted, obliging. As he lifted his arms so that Duo could pull the tanktop off, he pressed his knee between Duo's legs, parting them. Duo moaned at the pressure, and Heero could feel the other's arousal through the material of their pants. But before he could do more, Duo's lips had found his and this time the kisses were not so gentle. They were insistent, almost needy. But they were just as sweet and just as pleasurable. Duo's fingers tangled themselves in Heero's hair and likewise, Heero found himself grabbing at Duo's thick hair to steady himself as their kissing became more urgent, their movements more frantic.
Duo surged against him, soft moan-like whimpers escaping kiss-swollen lips, rubbing against him like a cat in heat. And on his part, Heero ground himself into the fully-clothed, writhing body beneath him. Chest to chest, they pressed into each other, gasps and grunts punctuating a particular hard thrust to a sensitive point. It was a strange feeling, making love fully clothed. Distantly, Heero thought it felt pretty much like masturbating, but Duo's hands grabbing at him, Duo's lips sucking hungrily at his, Duo's hard cock rubbing against his, cautioned him otherwise.
Suddenly, it was too much, and Heero looked bemusedly at Duo as the latter tensed, groaning loudly against Heero's mouth, their lips still locked together. He sensed Duo under him, pumping his hips upwards. He felt the sudden jump of the sensitive flesh below his and the warm wetness that followed.
"Damn, Yuy," Duo gasped against his cheek a few moments later. " You just ruined a perfectly good pair of pants."
Heero laughed. He couldn't help it. "I don't believe it, Duo. I can't believe you did that."
Duo scowled at him, then tried to push Heero off him. Heero held fast. "Wait. It isn't over yet," Heero sighed into Duo's ear, tentatively licking at the edge of it.
Duo stilled under him, holding his breath. Then, resigned, he let it out and surrendered to Heero's hands tugging at his pants, his tanktop. The hard fingers roamed his flesh, digging into his sides, his hips as Heero lifted him, pulling off the fatigues until they lay around his ankles, prevented from escape by his boots.
"Damn," Heero cursed under his breath as he maneuvered himself between Duo's legs. Duo helped him pull down his shorts, releasing his painfully throbbing penis from the constraint of the restrictive material. He snarled when Duo gave a little chuckle.
"Someone seems happy to see me," Duo laughed, kissing Heero hungrily.
"Someone doesn't look too down either," Heero replied, taking Duo's shaft in his hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Duo's gasp only inflamed Heero's senses and he kneaded at the slowly hardening flesh, determined to make Duo respond. And Heero wasn't disappointed. Duo reached down between them, grabbing Heero's hand in his as he pumped into both their grips. The semen from his earlier ejaculation lent a smooth passage for the sensitive flesh, giving the friction heat without pain; the pressure of Heero's hand in his, wrapped around his cock, sending him into an ecstasy he never dreamed possible.
Until Heero pulled away.
Duo moaned his displeasure, grabbing at himself to finish what Heero had so callously abandoned. But before he'd even managed to touch himself, Heero's hand was on his wrist, pulling him away.
"No, Duo," Heero gasped, beads of sweat lending a bronzed sheen on his naked skin. "Not yet."
Duo just stared at him, seemingly uncomprehending and the violet eyes he'd so admired were glazed with need. Heero grabbed at Duo's hips, shifting the pliant body so that Duo's buttocks rested against his thighs. Then he pulled Duo up, embracing him in his arms as he hugged the longhaired boy closely to his chest.
Duo gasped as his penis pressed against Heero's hard, muscled stomach and he grabbed onto the shorthaired boy's shoulders to steady himself. This was something new, something he wanted badly but something he'd never done before. And he'd be lying if he said he wasn't afraid. "Heero...I.." he gasped, suddenly feeling Heero's hard flesh against his buttocks. He squeezed his eyes shut as Heero's hands spread him open, the blunt head of Heero's cock sliding between his cheeks, seeking entrance. He whimpered as he felt Heero find his mark, the hard flesh pushing against his anus.
"Heero..I don't...know about..this.." Duo gasped breathlessly. But Heero ignored him, instead pulling him apart even wider, pushing him down onto his turgid cock.
"Just relax, Duo," Heero whispered, pulling Duo's head away from his shoulder by the braid so that he could look into Duo's face. Heero was a little surprised by the fear in the large eyes, but the sensation of Duo's body against his, the slight sucking at the head of his penis drove his concern away and he pulled Duo's face towards his, kissing him as he pushed upwards into Duo's body.
Duo cried out as the first pain of entry hit. It felt like he was being sliced into two, three, four. Involuntarily, his muscles clenched, making Heero's entry harder as he tried to push Heero out. Heero grunted at the spasming and bucked upwards, driving into Duo in one hard thrust. Duo screamed into Heero's mouth, tearing his lips away with a curse as he struggled within Heero's embrace.
"Shit! SHIT! SHIT!" Duo sobbed, trying to hold back the sudden tears that bloomed with the tearing pain. He tried to disengage himself but Heero held him fast. And then Heero began to move. And suddenly Duo didn't feel much like escaping anymore.
Heero filled him, thrusting and driving into him with such strength that he felt himself physically lifted by each push Heero gave. And somewhere deep inside him, Heero was making him scream with pleasure. Only the screams never gave voice, too overwhelmed was he by the sensations filling him. The pain thinned, only edging the blossoming pleasure that radiated from where they were both joined, to where Heero caressed him roughly inside. It spread to his groin, where his cock rubbed against Heero's belly, pressed intimately, flesh to flesh. And they moved as one, gliding and sliding against each other, oblivious to the outside world, each enveloped in their own sensations even as they held each other close as they reached. And reached.
And reached.
Heero came first, the heat of Duo around him, the tightness gripping him finally winning and demanding a prize. And it was one he gave gladly as he spurted inside the warm receptacle of Duo's heat, filling him with more of himself. Duo felt Heero tense in his arms, and felt the hard flesh within him jerk, once, twice - he lost count for then, he was the one who tensed, his seed spilling against Heero's flat stomach.
It was an unexpected fulfilment and for long minutes, neither moved, preferring the silence and warmth of each other.
Finally, Heero shifted, pushing Duo gently off him. Duo took the hint and levered himself to the ground, lifting his legs so that Heero could move away. He grimaced at the mess they made, his flesh sticky with drying semen. And there was a vague sensation of liquid seeping down the back of his thighs. "Next time," Duo groaned, " we do this near a shower."
Heero grinned back at him. "What makes you think there'll be a next time?"
Duo grinned back, stumbling to his feet and pulling his clothes on. His insides still tingled and he was damn sore, and he wasn't sure he *wanted* a 'next time'. But...
"There will. You're human, remember?"
Heero shook his head as he dressed, chuckling. "Dangerous, Duo. Too dangerous."
Duo stood still, watching Heero who still sat on the floor. Deplete, replete but strangely complete. His gamble worked. For a while he had faltered, but he was glad for once, for Heero's tenaciousness. He was glad Heero held on. It had hurt, but it had worked.
"C'mon. We need a shower," Duo said softly, extending his hand to pull Heero up. One that Heero accepted with a barely perceptible nod. And they walked off towards the showers in knowing silence.
The next morning, Duo shook his head in disbelief. "The bastard! The bloody ^&^%$!!!"
Deathscythe was non-functional and Wing Gundam was gone. Heero was gone. Duo looked towards the horizon, searching for the white Gundam that he knew would not be found until Heero wanted it found. A smile crept to his face, and Duo laughed. He thought he'd won, but Heero had had the last laugh.
"Oh no, Heero Yuy," Duo whispered to himself. "You won't escape that easily. You're too human now. You care too much. We both do."
-Fin-
Shirin
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