Blood, Sweat and Tears Part 69
"You were his partner and you didn't do a damn thing to save him from himself."
Maxwell's words ran through Alex's mind as he stared at himself in the bathroom mirror. Ever since the braided running back had made that comment to him, it ran through his mind dozens of times through the day.
Growing more and more frustrated with himself, Alex couldn't fully understand why he was allowing such a remark to get under his skin. It certainly wasn't because it was true...
...was it?
The moment that question entered his thoughts, the blonde running back turned the cold water of the sink on. Bending at the waist, he cupped the stream into his hands and splashed his face vigorously. His breathing came in pants as he turned the faucet off and reached for a towel to dry himself.
"Bastard," Alex muttered to himself as he hung the hand towel back on the rack. Goddamn that Maxwell for putting lies into his head. Mueller meant the world to him. He would never have let him down that way.
...Then again, there had been some serious issues between them over the last few months. And those issues all seemed to stem from a certain blonde running back's drug use.
With a deep growl at that reminder, Alex ran a hand through his hair. Gazing on himself once more in the mirror, hands gripping either end of the sink for support, he took in the dark circles under his eyes and pale skin.
Sleep had come sparsely to him over the last week. The nights were the most difficult times when his doubts and fears started creeping through the haze of his rage and frustration. If only he could someone convince Treize or Professor O for another shot to help him through. But he knew that there was no chance of that happening since they were convinced he had enough in him to last for the holiday break.
A knock on the bathroom door made Alex jump, his heart racing as he placed his hand on his chest to let out a long sigh. "Sweetheart,are you going to join us for breakfast?" the voice of his mother called from outside.
"Yea, Ma," he replied. "I'll be out in a minute." Quickly, Alex splashed water on his face and dried it once more to collect himself. When he descended the stairs to find his family at the dining room table, he took his seat beside his father.
The running back's older, taller version of himself pat him on the shoulder and snickered, "I thought that you got yourself lost up there with how long you were taking. 'S been so long since you've been home that it wouldn't have surprised me if you did."
Alex just smirked and filled his plate. Taking her seat at the other head of the table, his mother took in the family of five gathered. "It's so nice to have the whole family home for Christmas." She gestured to her youngest and commented, "As busy as you're going to be with the playoffs coming, I was afraid that you wouldn't be able to join us."
Seated across from Alex, his older brother and sister nodded their agreement to the sentiment. With a shrug, he reassured, "Nah. You all know that I wouldn't miss being here for the holidays." Nearly as soon as the words left him, he regretted having spoken them in knowing what was coming.
Eyes narrowing a bit, his father turned to him and corrected, "You would have if you had a practice to attend. I'd better not find out that you've skipped out on any time preparing for the most important game of your life up to now."
Lowering his head a bit, the running back shook his head, "No, Dad. I'm not skipping out on anything. The whole team is off until next week." His mother and siblings kept their gazes low as they ate silently.
The 'old man' folded his arms and nodded firmly, "Well that's good. The last thing that you want is to give the upper hand to your opponents by not being ready." Leaning close, he smirked, "What's my motto that I've taught you since you were old enough to understand it?"
From memory, Alex recited, "If you can't be the best, there's no use trying."
"That's right," his father grinned. "Good lad." Cutting into his eggs, he stated, "It's about damned time your hard work started showing in your stats. Just keep pushing yourself a little harder and you'll finally beat Maxwell. Until then, you know you'll always be in his shadow. No one cares about second place."
And the automatic answer, "You're right, Dad."
Half finished with her meal, Alex's mother lowered her silverware and announced shortly, "I believe that I've had enough." When she rose and stormed from the room with her plate, everyone knew that she was not just referring to the food. She never did handle her husband's views of what he considered success well.
Back to his youngest years, this was what the running back knew as his family life. His father was the hard motivator and his mother was the patient one who loved her children no matter what. Since it took work to please their Dad, Alex and his siblings did whatever they could to win at whatever it was they did in life.
More and more, Alex could understand the 'old man's notion. All anyone gave a damn about in life was who was at the top. If he couldn't be the top running back, he might as well not even try to be one.
'But at what cost?' that voice of doubt asked. 'Wasn't Mueller enough?'
Shaking his head to clear those questions, Alex focused back on his meal. He never tasted a morsel of it.
* * * * * *
Everything was ready by the time Heero rejoined Duo and his family at the dining room table for breakfast. Lightly kissing the running back's cheek as he sat beside him, he winked when those bright violet eyes turned to him. The meal continued on with the children taking excitedly about the morning and their plans for the day.
As the table was later cleared when everyone had their fill, the quarterback leaned in towards his partner and whispered, "Your present will be ready later tonight, if you don't mind waiting a little longer."
Blinking in surprise, Duo replied quietly, "Heero, you didn't have to do anything." Any further protest ended when his lover suddenly kissed him. When they pulled apart, the braided athlete sighed in content, "Okay, I'll wait." Snickering, his teammate kissed his forehead before rising to assist in the clean up.
His head still spinning from the kiss, Duo just sat at his chair with a wide smile. Shaking his head to return to the world of the living, his thought drifted to the thoughts of what Heero might have planned for him. While he truly did not care if he never received a present from him, it was exciting to look forward to something.
In the kitchen, Heero smirked to the three teenagers sorting the dishes into the washer. The 'troublesome threesome', as Duo called them, just grinned widely back. To their credit, they had managed to refrain from hinting to their excitement in knowing what was being set into motion.
They were able, however, to share a private smile with the quarterback.
* * * * * *
There was a light knock on Alex's bedroom door before his mother's head peeked inside. Her long, red hair shining under the light, she asked softly, "May I come in, son?"
Lowering the book that he had been reading as he lay on his bed, the running back nodded, "Sure, Ma." He sat up when she took a seat on the mattress beside him. Their eyes meeting, he inquired, "What's on your mind?"
A small, loving smile lit her face. Gently running a hand through his hair, she replied, "I just wanted to tell you how proud of you I am. I know that you don't hear that enough." His mother's smile faded and her brown eyes narrowed as she added, "Your father certainly never said such a thing to you."
Sighing deeply, she shook her head of red hair and said, "Stubborn and bullheaded as that man is, I do love him so. But that does not mean that I always agree with the things that he believes. It's always been my faith that so long as a person does the best that they can in any situation, they've succeeded regardless of the actual outcome."
While a lovely thought, Alex knew that his father would scoff at such a notion. Still, it was a nice thing to hear that somebody was proud of him and his accomplishments. 'Influenced accomplishments,' that irritation voice snorted bitterly. 'But whatever gets the job done, right?' it chided.
Easily ignoring that little source of doubt more and more, the running back just smiled warmly, "Thanks, Ma." The young woman leaned in to kiss his forehead with that loving grin of hers. Winking, she rose to her feet and headed from the room.
Once the door was closed again, Alex lay back on the bed as he sighed quietly. There was nothing that was going to keep him from reaching the top. Not when he was so close. Not when he had given so much to getting there.
Little voices be damned, there was no turning back now.
* * * * * *
"Can I take the blindfold off now?" Duo asked.
At the wheel, Heero looked out the corner of his eye to his lover and grinned, "Not yet. And don't even try peeking. If you do, the knot that I made will only get tighter. I earned a badge in the Boy Scouts for how good I was with ropes."
Purring, the braided football player replied, "You'll have to show me put some of those rope tricks to more use with me some time." Cobalt eyes widening, Heero gripped the wheel when the car started drifting to the right a bit. Feeling the change in the ride, Duo snickered deeply in amusement.
With a smirk, the quarterback shook his head. "One of these times," he promised. It was the running back's turn to flush a bit. Still, there was a grin on his face.
The remainder of the short trip was made in silence. Duo never moved to try and remove the black cloth blindfold from his eyes. For his part, Heero was a bundle of nerves. His original plan had been to propose with his partner's family and friends around. When that did not happen, he decided to make the occasion something much more private. Something more personal.
Soon finding his destination, the team captain announced quietly as he pulled into the cleared and empty parking lot, "We're here." This day and age of AC201, any snow that fell on the roads and gravel was instantly melted thanks to the thermal sensors. It was nice to have the safe roads and dry lots to park in while also being able to appreciate the beautiful accumulation on the surrounding landscape.
Shutting down the car ignition, Heero stepped out and rounded the vehicle to open the passenger side. He took the running back's hand in his own and helped him to his feet. "It's a short walk from here. We won't have any ice or snow to worry about slipping on," he reassured. Nodding, Duo just tightened his grip on the hand he was holding and allowed his lover to take the lead with all of the trust in the world.
Carefully guiding the way to the glass building at the top of the hill they were climbing, Heero worked at calming his racing heart. As much as he looked forward to what he was about to do, there was still that worry over what the answer to his question would be.
But, as Quatre had told him earlier that morning, he could not start doubting what he had with Duo now. It was better to allow the braided athlete to know how devoted he was to their relationship.
Placing his hand against the palm reader beside the double doors, the quarterback smiled when the lock slid away. Thanks to a call to the owner for a favor, an easy patch in a computer system from his residence granted the access needed. Slowly, the doors parted and Heero led the way into the large observatory.
As they entered, Duo felt the warmth and smelled a variety of flowers and other foliage. "This seems like a nice place already," he commented while the doors slid closed once more behind them.
"My parents would always bring me here during the winter," Heero stated. "It was one of my mother's favorite places to visit this time of year."
The running back's braided head turned toward the sound of his partner's voice as he smiled, "Really?" Squeezing the hand in his own again, he whispered, "Cool." Fully understanding what it meant for Heero to bring him to a place that had so much meaning to him, he remained silent for the remainder of their walk.
As they headed deeper and deeper into the building, the team captain shed their coats and heavy sweaters as the temperature grew. Down to their jeans and short-sleeved T-shirts, they progressed on. It was a wonder to Duo how it felt just like a warm summer day. Every smell only added to the sensation.
Without pausing in their walk, Heero peered over his shoulder and said quietly, "I brought you here so that you can understand what you mean to me. Before we met, I closed myself off from the world. I forgot what it was like to be happy. Everything was cold and dead to me and nothing could get through the walls that I built up."
Swallowing roughly, Duo nodded in understanding. The depth of the emotions spilling through those words rendered him speechless. Finally, they came to a halt. He could feel the quarterback's hands untying the knot of the blindfold at the back of his head as he told him softly, "Then you came along and the world changed for me."
When the cloth fell from his violet eyes, the running back blinked them a couple of times to adjust to the light. With a sharp gasp when his gaze focused, those eyes widened as he looked all around him.
The couple were standing atop the peak of a white-paved bridge that bowed over a running stream. For as far as one could see at either side of the bridge, there was fresh grass and flowers in full bloom with fresh dew drops on them. There were trees of varying sizes with lush green leaves basking in the warm glow of the 'sun' overhead. Butterflies of different shades flew and danced together in the air.
In every sense, Duo felt like he was transported to a field where only he and his lover existed. The sheer beauty and wonder of it all left his breathless. To add to the surreal surroundings, just beyond the clear glass that sealed the little world away, the falling snow glowed in the moonlight like falling stars.
Just barely able to catch his breath, the running back breathed, "Heero." When he turned to look to his teammate, froze at seeing small tears shimmering in the cobalt eyes watching him.
Clearing his throat, the quarterback held an arm out to the field around them. "This is what you did for me," he spoke in a cracking voice. "No matter how cold and lonely the world may be, it does not touch me when I'm with you. You've brought a joy and warmth to my life that I've never thought I would ever experience."
Duo bit his lip as his on eyes shimmered. Unable to trust his voice, he just held onto his partner's hands and squeezed them tightly. Gently wiping away a droplet that rolled freely down the braided athlete's cheek, Heero smiled lovingly and slowly fell to a knee. With another sharp gasp, his lover fought a whimper that built in his throat at the sight.
Looking up into the violet eyes that he would gladly drown in, the quarterback reached into his pocket to remove the black velvet box hidden there. Opening it to reveal the ring inside, Heero said softly, "I do not ever want to go back to that world outside again, Duo. You and the children mean everything to me. And I don't care where you go-whether it's here, or Green Bay or anywhere else- I want to be with you for the rest of my life."
A lump forming in his throat, he cleared it away before managing, "Will you marry me?"
Crumpling to his own knees, Duo rested their foreheads together. Tears running down both their faces as they looked into each other's wet eyes, he whispered, "Yes. God, yes." Throwing his arms around his partner's neck, he sobbed quietly.
Heero returned the embrace with a light laugh in a release of all of the tension that had been building up. When they pulled back enough, they kissed deeply to seal their promise. Removing the ring from its box, the quarterback slid it easily onto the trembling left hand's ring finger.
Sniffling, the running back took a moment to admire the sparkling band with wide eyes. A brilliant smile lit his heart-shaped face as he gazed back to his life partner and breathed, "I love you, Heero Yuy."
"And I you, Duo Maxwell," the team captain answered just as softly before they leaned in for another deep kiss.
When their lips parted, Duo chuckled, "I can't wait to see the kids' faces when we tell them about this." Heero snickered and nodded to his own anticipation of that moment. Looking to the beautiful scene around them, the braided athlete requested, "Would it be all right if we stayed here a little longer?"
Easily sliding close to his fiancé and curling an arm around him, Heero grinned, "I'd like that." Nestling close together on the top of that bridge, they sat in silence as they contemplated their future together.
Together. It was a word that they knew they would easily get used to.
TBC...
Back to SkyLark's Fanfictions Page