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Fragile Hearts
Part 5
The next morning, Heero awoke to the strangest sensation. Something was tickling his nose.
At first, he ignored it, thinking he was dreaming. The tickling continued. This time, Heero tossed his head, hoping to shake it off. When it came back for a third time, Heero snatched the offending object off his nose.
His hand encountered warm fingers.
Heero's eyes snapped open, only to see Duo smiling down at him, a wide grin on his face.
"Wakey wakey, Heero-kun," he said in a singsong voice. Heero couldn't help but return the cheerful boy's smile, before pulling Duo on top of him. Duo's fragrant hair spilled over his shoulder, and tickled Heero's skin. Heero pulled some of it to him, brushing it against his lips, before turning back to Duo. "What time is it?" he asked.
Duo looked over at the clock on Heero's desk. "Too early," he replied mischievously, before showering Heero with kisses.
They spent nearly an hour just lying in bed, playfully teasing one another, and Heero was amused by the fact that Duo was absolutely giddy. He chattered on and on until finally, Heero grabbed his face in both hands and yelled, "Duo! Shut. Up."
He followed the command with a sloppy, open mouth kiss, and when it was finished, Duo was flushed. He meekly responded "Okay," before cuddling up next to Heero. They enjoyed the silence for a while, before Heero decided to tell Duo something.
"You know that was my first time."
"What?!" Duo asked. "Why didn't you tell me??" he said, suddenly animated. "Was it that important?" Heero wondered.
"Well," Duo began, "I ... could have made it ... special, or something."
"It *was* special, Duo," Heero replied. He spotted the clock on his desk again and said, "We should get up soon. We have class."
"Aww, do we have to?" Duo asked. He gave Heero a cute pout, but at the same time, his hand was making a downward progress on Heero's stomach. Heero made a quick intake of breath, and pulled Duo's hand away. "Don't get me started," he said stonily, but his eyes were still smiling.
"Alright," Duo said, sitting up and stretching in a very catlike manner. "Maybe later," he smirked at Heero. Heero smirked right back, before hitting Duo squarely on the face with a pillow.
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The next few days were like a dream to Heero. To most, the days were the same as the last, but for Heero, the entire Earth had shifted. His days were spent at school, as they always were, but now, his nights belonged to Duo. He found himself becoming more and more attached to the boy. Duo would often pull him aside in the hall, or to a secluded spot of the campus for some privacy, and at first Heero was uncomfortable with all of it. He didn't want anyone to see them. But soon, Heero found himself hoping for Duo to pop out of every corner and pull him away.
To other students, they seemed completely platonic, but when it was just the two of them, their passions were completely uninhibited. Everything was perfect to Heero.
Almost.
He knew he had never told Duo that he had to break up with Relena, but the fact that Duo still hadn't bothered him. He found himself staring at the girl when he saw her in the halls of the school. He knew she was no threat to him; Duo was his now, completely. But he still disliked the girl. Deep down, he wondered what Relena could possibly have that someone like Duo would want.
One afternoon, Duo pulled Heero aside to a secluded spot on campus to speak with him. The second they were alone, Duo threw himself onto Heero, kissing him hungrily. Heero let Duo have his way, until the boy finally pulled away long enough to speak.
"I won't be able to stay over tonight," Duo said, sounding disappointed. "I have some things to take care of at the dorm. Is that alright?"
"Aa," Heero answered, though he was also disappointed at not having a Duo for himself tonight. "Duo ...," Heero began. Duo waited. "Yes, Heero?"
Heero seemed to think on it a moment. "Never mind," he shook his head. "No, what is it? Tell me what's wrong," Duo said, pulling Heero towards him again.
"It's about Relena," Heero said.
"Oh." Duo looked a little unsettled. Heero wasn't sure what that meant. "Are you, I mean ... going to ..." Heero started, but he couldn't seem to finish the sentence.
"Leave her, you mean?" Duo asked. "Well, yes ... but ..." Duo stopped, and pulled together what he was trying to say. "I mean, I haven't spoken to her since ... well, since you," Duo said, looking at Heero meaningfully. "I don't know how I'm going to bring this up to her ..."
Duo played with the end of his braid for a second, a habit Heero found adorable, but he was much too fixated to notice. Finally Duo said, "Would it be okay if I took this slowly ... I-"
Duo stopped mid-sentence again. He seemed confused. Heero shook his head slightly. "It's okay Duo ... don't ... don't force yourself to do anything." His words were gentle, but inside, he was a little dejected by Duo's answer. Duo sensed Heero's feelings, and wrapped his arms around him, burying his head against the other boy's chest. "I'm sorry Heero. I hope you don't think I'm lying to you," he said sadly. Heero hugged the boy closer, taking in the sweet scent of Duo's hair. "Don't worry. I don't think that of you."
The bell rang, and Duo regretfully pulled himself out of Heero's embrace. "I'd better go. Call me, okay?" he said. Heero nodded. "You promise?" Duo asked, the familiar playfulness returning to his eyes. "I promise," Heero said, smiling.
After Duo left, Heero took a moment for himself, breathing in the cool, fresh air before slowly walking back towards the school.
The campus was absolutely still for a moment, the only sound around being the quiet singing of the birds. Then, a figure slowly emerged from the shadow of a nearby tree. Trowa looked after where Heero had just left, and in his emerald eyes, was hidden one, pure emotion.
Pain.
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At the end of the day, Heero had nearly forgotten the exchange with Duo earlier that day. Was a little insecurity on his part really worth losing Duo over? Heero was more than sure with his answer. As he made his way to his school mailbox, the blissful cloud of contentness that had plagued him for the past few days seemed to settle over him again, and the only thought in his mind was that of seeing Duo again.
When he reached his mailbox and opened it, he was surprised to find a plain white envelope sitting inside. Puzzled, he pulled the letter out, looking over it. It was completely unmarked, which he found strange, and out of pure curiosity, he opened the letter right then and there. There was something wrapped inside the letter paper, and he took this out first.
His eyes widened in shock as they settled on the object. It was a picture. Heero's mind was spinning. "H-How?" he stammered out, disbelieving.
Him and Duo. Kissing.
He didn't need to read the letter to know what it said.
The letter slipped from his hands, dropping carelessly to the ground at Heero's feet.
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~*Tenken no Miko*~
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Fragile Hearts part 6