Love Thy Neighbor Part 11
Seven days until opening night.
Rehearsals had moved from the hall to the theater hosting the musical and practice hours had been extended until 6:30 p.m. The relocation further uptown added an extra hour roundtrip to Duo's daily bus commute so he seldom got home before 7:45 or 8:00 pm.
Aware of Duo's long hours and his tendency not to eat properly when he was tired, Heero insisted on fixing dinner. Sharing the evening meal with the often exhausted dancer was a relaxing way for both Heero and Duo to unwind from their busy schedules so Duo was under strict orders to come directly to Heero's apartment each night.
"Do you want to shower before we eat?" Heero wondered as Duo dropped his practice bag by the door and toed off his shoes.
Duo joined Heero in the kitchen. "Maybe we can share a shower later." he replied with a saucy wink.
Heero offered a warm smile and gladly accepted a kiss on the cheek. "Maybe we will if you eat all your vegetables." he teased.
*********
It had been over a month since Heero and Duo first bumped into each other in the apartment lobby and two weeks since watching Akira together had ended in kissing and fondling and mutual hand jobs.
In the following days and nights several showers had been shared as well each other's beds but the foreplay had never gone beyond heavy petting and the release of their pent-up sexual energy had been achieved by manual manipulation.
As much as Heero seemed to enjoy the passion sessions, Duo knew that the architect, who had become a very special friend, was not ready to take their relationship to the next level. But that was all right with Duo because Heero's happiness was more important than going all the way.
*********
The table was s et, the teapot was brewing and tempting aromas wafted from a large pot simmering on the stovetop. "Something smells good."Duo commented as he used a padded oven mitt to lift the lid.
"Its beef stew," Heero replied, "we both need a hardy meal. Also," he continued lowering the oven door, "biscuits."
Duo bent over to study a cookie sheet covered with a dozen lightly browned rounds of fluffy dough. "Don't tell me you made these."
"Yeah, my mother taught me how to bake when I was a teenager. She said one day I'd be on my own and she wanted to be sure I didn't starve."
"Wow you're not only smart but can cook, too." Duo declared shutting the oven door and sliding his arm around Heero's waist to pull him closer, "And you're one hell of a kisser." The last words were muffled by lips pressing together.
While Heero placed the biscuits in a napkin lined basket, Duo ladled out two bowls of stew consisting of cubed beef, chunks of potatoes and sliced carrots swimming in brown broth seasoned with just enough onion, salt and pepper to keep the dish from being bland.
A tub of reduced fat margarine and a jar of grape jelly were set beside the biscuit laden basket, Heero poured out the tea and he and Duo sat down to enjoy the homemade dinner.
Duo scooped up a generous spoonful of stew. "This is so good." he praised the cook, "but I'm goin' have to watch how I eat or I'll gain too much weight to fit in my costume."
Heero put a dollop of jelly on half a biscuit and spread it out with a knife. "I think you could stand a little more weight."
Duo took a moment to finish chewing then swallowed before answering. "I know but dancing works off all my extra calories. Do you think I'm too thin?"
"No but as long as you're dancing you need to eat right."
Fishing out another spoonful of potatoes and carrots Duo nodded in agreement. "If you keep feeding me like this I don't think that'll be a problem."
"I stopped by the theater box office during lunch and brought a ticket for opening night." Heero announced, pouring a second cup of tea.
"I sent my family tickets. Would you like to meet them after the show?" Duo invited.
"Yes I'd like that very much."
"I wished we were allowed to have free tickets but I guess the Producers need every extra cent."
Heero reached across the table and intercepted Duo's hand as he reached for another biscuit. "Don't worry, the price of a ticket won't ruin my budget."
Duo interlaced his fingers with Heero's fingers and squeezed. "I just wanted to do something special for you."
"When you're the principal performer in a blockbuster Broadway musical you can do something special for me."
"Like what?"
"How about a house in the Hamptons and a silver-gray BMW Z8."
"So you want to be like Bond, James Bond." Duo declared in one of the worse Sean Connery accents Heero had ever heard.
Duo leaned closer until his sparkling eyes focused on Heero's handsome face, "Tell me Mr.007 is your gun big enough to back up your desires?"
Heero moved nearer until their faces were inches apart. "I'm always cocked and ready." He whispered huskily then planted a playful kiss on the end of Duo's nose.
*********
Duo and Heero lingered at the table for nearly an hour after the meal. Although their conversation focused mainly on Duo's rehearsals, Heero eagerly told his dining partner about a new house in the Adirondack Mountains that Barnes & McKinley had been contacted to design.
"Have you ever been to the mountains?" Heero asked.
Duo grinned in that shy way that always melted Heero's heart. "This is as far away from home I've been except when I was ten and my Uncle Howard took Robert, Lily, Rose and I to see Niagara Falls. I bet you've been lots of places."
"Not really. The only trip my family has taken outside the New York, New Jersey area was when my father won a sales award and was given tickets to Hershey Park in Pennsylvania."
"Hershey," Duo repeated excitedly, "as in chocolate bars."
"And kisses." Heero confirmed.
"There you go talking about kisses again." Duo teased, "I swear Heero Yuy you're incorrigible."
"I hope I'm not too far beyond redemption." Heero declared coming to his own defense.
This time Duo's shy grin broke into a full smile. "If the truth be known my thoughts center on kisses all the time."
"Then maybe we shouldn't fight the feelings." Heero announced then rose from his seat, cupped Duo's face with his hands and gave the stunned dancer a kiss to remember.
*********
Duo and Heero fell into a comfortable routine...work during the day and shared supper each evening. After clearing the table and cleaning the kitchen they would snuggle on the sofa, listen to music or watch television.
Duo would usually drift off to sleep sometime during the ten o'clock news and Heero would take pleasure in watching him sleep. At the program's end Heero would wake Duo with gentle persuasion in the form of feathery kisses then they would retire to bed to engage in a few minutes of pillow talk and a few more kisses before drifting off to dreamland in each other's arms.
*********
The days and nights passed swiftly. Twenty-four hours before the premiere performance of "Dance into the Fire".
*********
Physically Duo was worn out and more than ready to sleep but his mind was preoccupied with perfecting each step. As phantom music, underscored by Jay Johnson calling out the cadence echoed inside his head, his arms and legs involuntarily twitched and his breathing quickened to keep up the pace.
Heero stirred from his own restlessly sleep. Although Duo had tried to hide his increasing nervousness about opening night, Heero could easily read each anxious expression, clearly see the tension in Duo's body. The dancer's normally mellow manner had frayed around the edges, his usually enthusiastic temperament had become sullen and his talkative nature silent.
The bedside clock's bright scarlet digital numbers glowed in contrast to the bedroom's predawn gloom---4:21 am. Heero eased up on one elbow and brushed back bangs tangled in Duo's long eyelashes. "Duo." He called softly.
Duo jumped as if startled and his violet eyes popped opened to search for the source of his sudden state of alertness. A heavy sigh betrayed his battle with his uncooperative brain and the resulting mental agitation.
Confusion mirrored in Duo's blurry sight. "What happened?" he wondered in slightly slurred speech.
"In think you were dreaming." Heero replied with his own brand of bewilderment.
Tilting his head to one side to stretch out a kink in his neck Duo tugged his ragged braid over his shoulder. He pressed the heels of his hands over his eyes and asked in muddled tones. "What time is it?"
"Almost four-thirty."
Duo squinted up at Heero trying to focus on his shadowy face. "Dammit." he whispered then added for clarification. "I can't shut off the music."
"Unfortunately we don't have much control over our mind when we sleep." Heero confirmed that he understood.
"I'll be glad when the first show is behind me; opening night is always tense. I love dancing but...." Another sigh accentuated Duo's frustration.
"I know but it's natural to be nervous."
Even with heavily lidded eyes, with wispy hair in disarray around his face, Duo was beautiful. Heero had never considered that a male could be beautiful but that was the only fitting description for the person curled up next to him.
Heero slipped his arm over Duo's waist and drew the drowsy dancer closer. "You don't have to do this alone. I can't be on the stage with you but you will always have my support."
"The stars smiled on me the day I met you." Duo affirmed his belief in celestial intervention, "Do you believe in fate?"
"I believe there is a force that guides our paths but whether it's fate or the stars..." he paused in thoughtful contemplation, "I don't think we should be concerned about why or how but be grateful for each day we have."
Duo buried his face in Heero bare chest to stifle a yawn. "Each day is a gift." he mumbled sleepily.
Heero tightened his hold around the man who had become his shining star. "Go to sleep, morning will come too soon."
"Heero." The name was murmured so softly Heero wasn't sure if his ears were playing tricks but the breathy warmth of words and tingling vibration against his skin told him it was not his imagination.
"What?"
"Thank you."
Heero started to answer but Duo's breathing had evened out into a relaxed rhythm telling him that his beautiful bedmate had finally settled to hopefully peaceful slumber. Tucking the coverlet snuggly over Duo's back Heero whispered, "You're welcome."
*********
The clock's digital number advanced silently counting off the hours until a new day.
Heero stood alone in a field carpeted with fragrant flowers but overhead the sky was murky as he stared into the moonless night. Slowly tiny pinpoints began to sparkle in the darkness like dazzling diamonds or multi-faceted prisms refracting sunlight into shimmer bands of rainbow colors.
Then the illuminated specks began to glitter and Heero realized that the ebony backdrop was studded with thousands of stars. *The stars smiled on me.* repeated in his mind and the true meaning of that declaration tugged at his heart.
As the twinkling "eyes of heaven" offered their promises of guidance and protection Heero began to comprehend what his emotions had been trying to tell him for some time
Heero hadn't consider himself gay, he'd always dated women but was love a question of gender or a matter of the heart? Heero knew how Duo felt, that he cared enough not to ask for everything beyond his comfort level.
Heero couldn't deny that the physical stimulation had been satisfying, in fact he had become a willing participant in his and Duo's sexual interactions. But was he brave enough to proclaim his feelings...to give verbal credence to a commitment with another man?
As Heero gazed skyward the stars merged into a single beam that sliced through the darkness and blinded him with its purity.
Heero woke up with a shudder that shook the bed so hard it stirred Duo from his sound sleep. Now it was Duo's turn to wonder. "Are you all right?" he asked, surprised at how quickly his mind had cleared away the Sandman's cobwebs.
Heero, too, was fully awake. Now his mind and heart no longer debated the depths of his feelings or their fairness to Duo. In the bedroom's dim light, Heero gazed once more at the influential stars and followed his heart.
Placing a chaste kiss on Duo's forehead Heero put the certainty of his emotions into words. "Duo, I love you." he proclaimed without hesitation.
Duo blinked as he also questioned his hearing but the sincerity in Heero's voice, the honesty in his eyes left no room for doubt. Strangely Heero's declaration of love was not a shocking revelation but seemed as natural as breathing.
One slender finger gracefully traced the ridge of Heero's cheek, down his jaw line and paused over his trembling lips. There was no need for a lengthy explanation when two hearts spoke with the same voice.
The light in Duo's eyes, like that slicing beam of starlight, reflected the joy in his heart. "I love you, too." then sealed the promise with a kiss.
When the kiss ended Heero drew back far enough to see Duo's face. "What happens now?"
Duo smiled at the question within the question. "We take one day at a time and don't do anything different until we're both ready."
"But..."
"Not until we're ready." Duo repeated, "Now let's just hold each other and let love lead the way."
Author's Note: The BMW Z8 was introduced in the James Bond movie "The World is Not Enough".
TBC...
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