Fire in the Hole Part 17
Trowa sat on the edge of the bed and touched Duo's forehead. The fever was down again. Duo opened his eyes to stare up at the ceiling.
Brocade draperies... gold leaf... tray ceiling... soft... pillows, lotta pillows... warm... Trowa's hand... warm fingers... Quatre knows those fingers... too cool for me... idiot... fool... make a choice... beauty or beast... which is which... tired... hurt... why... I'm bad... what I deserve... forever and forever and forever... just fuckin' die and be done with it all...
"Where am I?" he whispered.
Trowa leaned over to catch his eyes. "In a safe, quiet place."
Duo blinked. "I need... I... need..." He couldn't remember; it didn't matter. "What did I do..?"
Trowa frowned. "Do? You didn't do anything, Duo. You've been very sick for several days. Duo, Quatre told me what happened with Wufei and Heero. I'm sorry that they hurt you."
Duo lifted his shoulders slightly, coming more awake. "Doesn't matter... Um... Trowa..? Did I tell Heero to get stuffed..? I can't remember, exactly..."
Smiling faintly, Trowa said, "I believe you did. You would have to ask Quatre to be sure."
"Okay... Did he... did he tell me he loves me..?" He twisted his fingers into the lush fabric of the comforter. "My head feels like it's gonna explode," he whispered.
Trowa stroked his hand and brushed his bangs out of his eyes. "I'll get you some acetaminophen." He paused for a moment before continuing. "And yes, I believe Heero did profess his love for you at some point during that commotion."
Duo began to tear up. "Stupid, stupid, stupid Duo," he muttered. "Idiot boy strikes again..."
Trowa sighed. "Listen here, Duo. You are a good friend and it hurts me to see you in such misery, but honestly, you're just not a very convincing drama queen."
Duo sniffed and wiped at his eyes. "I'm not doin' it on purpose."
Trowa regarded him for a minute. "You probably aren't, but you have to know what you want."
"Heero," he muttered. "That's what I want. I want a guy who yells at me, ignores me, uses me and then tosses me aside when he's done. Aren't I a sick puppy, Trowa?" His eyes drifted around the unfamiliar room. "This is beautiful... Why don't you and Quatre use this room when we come here?"
Trowa sighed to himself. Of course, it would take more than a few words of encouragement to make a difference in a lifetime of longing for happiness, only to watch it vanish before he could grasp it.
"No one has used this room since my mother died," said Quatre softly, appearing at Trowa's side. "This is the bedroom my parents used whenever they came to this estate. When my mother died, my father ordered all of her rooms closed at all of the estates." Trowa took his hand tenderly.
Duo gazed at him from enormous eyes. "Your mother's room... You gave me... your mother's bedroom..." he breathed. "Oh, Goddess... Quatre..."
Quatre smiled hesitantly. "I don't think she would mind. And you've been through a lot lately."
"Oh..." Duo reached out to him and Quatre sat to take him in his arms. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry, Quatre..."
"Stop, now," murmured Quatre gently. "Please don't worry about anything. We need you to rest and eat and get your strength back. Don't worry about Heero or Wufei; we'll handle them. You don't have to deal with them at all until you feel up to it. They've both behaved very badly," he said firmly. "Pushing you around, fighting with each other. I won't have such behavior," he declared, and Duo managed to smile.
"I love you, Quatre; marry me?"
Trowa cleared his throat and raised one eyebrow. Duo giggled faintly.
"You too, Trowa. Marry me?"
"That's not necessary," Quatre smiled. "We'll always be here."
~*~
"It's a simple question, Heero. Do you love Duo?" Trowa waited while Heero fidgeted, hesitated, stammered, paced and raked his fingers through his hair. All normal human mannerisms, except that Heero wasn't a normal human.
"I... He... It's not... Dammit Trowa! I don't..."
"Yes or no, Heero. Choose one."
::Ah, fuck!:: "YES!!! I love him! YES!"
::Good boy! Feels better, doesn't it?::
::Get out of my head!::
::Gladly. See how easy it is when you stop lying to yourself?::
::....::
"Thank you, Heero. That's what I wanted to hear."
"Why? What business is it of yours, anyway?" Heero muttered angrily.
Trowa pulled out a chair and spun it around to sit, gazing impassively at the agitated youth. "Quatre and I have a mission. We'll be gone about 36 hours. We need you to see that Duo eats and rests." His eyes narrowed slightly. "And that is all you're to do. Don't upset him, don't push him, and don't fight with him. His illness and the emotional mess on top of it have sucked the life out of him." Heero glared at him. Trowa raised one eyebrow. "Heero, if you want to punch me, just do it. You don't scare me, remember?"
Heero looked away, then very slowly laid his head on the table. "I won't upset him," he said softly. "I... I... love... him... I want him well. And happy."
"Good. I've already given this speech to Wufei. He will also look in on Duo."
"That chikusho?!" The chair hit the floor with a bang as Heero leaped to his feet. "Are you crazy?!"
Trowa shrugged. "He doesn't trust you. You don't trust him. I don't trust either of you, where Duo is concerned. This way you'll watch each other. And Quatre won't worry." He looked at Heero. "You know how I feel about making Quatre worry."
Heero growled at him, fists clenched, shaking with fury. But there was nothing he could argue. He had hurt Duo, so had Wufei. Neither of them was worthy of the beautiful boy. Trowa was absolutely right; neither could be trusted now.
"Yes," he said sullenly, after a few long minutes. "I understand." He drew a deep breath and squared his shoulders. "He will not be upset by me."
Trowa nodded. "Thank you, Heero. Wufei has given me the same assurance." He stood and pushed the chair back under the table and walked out of the kitchen.
"Trowa."
He turned. "Yes, Heero?"
"Good luck; be safe. Both of you."
"Thank you; we will."
TBC...
Back to PlaidDragon's Fanfictions Page