Author: SkyLark
Warnings: Sap, Romance
Rating: PG-13
Pairings: 1x2x1
Betaed by: ShenLong Deb *hugs*
Archive: Debs-Dragon - GW Diaries
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, or its characters. I just love playing with them.
First, a huge thank you to Sunhawk for allowing me this fic to follow up one of her favorite stories of mine, 'Buried Treasures'. *hugs Sunhawk tight* Hope you all find this a fitting follow up!
Lost and Found
It all started with a simple 'hello.'
That was when Duo's life began, as far as he was concerned. Of course, he had known of Heero long before that fateful day in the lot where the sandbox they once played in as children had once stood. However, nothing was like actually meeting his best friend in person.
After their initial introductions in that lot, the pair headed off for a nearby coffee shop where they sat and talked for hours. They talked about the keepsakes that they had given to one another by burying them in that sandbox they shared with different hours of their young lives.
Heero went on to say that the small silver star he left for his secret friend was a gift from his father- part of a medal he earned for his role in the military. He said it was a great honor to him to find that Duo had not only held onto the star but even worked it into a bracelet that he never took off.
For his own part, the braided young man was biting back a bit more emotion as he shared that the gold coin worn around his companion's neck was given to him by his late grandfather. The way that Heero's hand slowly raised to the charm so his fingers could wrap around the coin spoke of how even more precious it had become to him upon learning more of its origin.
It was easily his own most prized gift, somehow sensing its importance the moment he dug it up. And instead of adding it to his dubbed 'lost and found' box of Duo's presents that he still had to this day, he'd made the coin into a necklace that he always worn since.
After a couple of hours had passed talking about their childhoods, Duo was finally faced with the one question that he knew he could not avoid forever. Folding his arms on the edge of his half of the table, Heero leaned forward and asked, "Why was it that you were only able to be at the sandbox at night?"
It was a question that had clearly been on his mind for... a very long time. And despite how it must have bothered him, he was polite enough to not open their conversation with that.
Taking a deep breath, Duo went on to explain his condition. He went into every detail to make it as clear, and if possible, less grim than it seemed.
Lost in his finally having someone to talk to about his experiences, he spoke of the procedures that helped him at least get to spend some time outdoors with the aid of sun block and shades for his eyes.
With a wide grin, the braided youth went on to talk of how exciting it was to have his first hour out in the sunlight... to feel its warmth and see how different everything looked during the day. Even if he could not spend the whole day outside, even those brief moments were more than he could have hoped for prior to his decision to go on with those procedures.
Not used to having someone interested in what he had to say, Duo continued to cover his life at home with his mother and how worrisome she was... how sorry she felt for him and how he couldn't stand having anyone feel sorry for him.
Having anyone feel sorry meant that something was wrong with him. And while he knew he would never be the same as other people, he came to appreciate that difference as opposed to feeling like he was defective.
By the time he finished, Duo blinked when he noticed the sun outside had shifted quite a bit judging by the way the shadows fell. A quick glance to the clock behind the counter revealed that he had gone on for two hours. He could feel his cheeks warming from embarrassment as he turned back to see whatever expression was on his friend's face.
Much to his surprise and relief, Heero just sat there with a warm, genuine smile. In his cobalt eyes, there was no sign that he felt sorry for him or that he was even disgusted. There was only understanding and even... pride for him instead.
A companionable silence fell between them for a moment before the Japanese young man stated quietly, "You're even more of an incredible person than I had thought before today, Duo Maxwell." His own eyes blinking at that, the braided youth grinned back in appreciation.
So began a new chapter in both of their lives.
Over the course of the next couple of months, the two returned to their respective homes- Duo to his apartment and Heero to his house in Tokyo. They video phoned and exchanged emails every day for hours on end, spending much of their time out of work with each other in some fashion.
When even that did not seem like enough as their bond only grew, the possibility of their sharing a place came up since Heero's networking job allowed him to work from wherever he wanted. As far as he was concerned, he had been able to return to the place of his birth and he was ready to move on just as his best friend had.
That decided, he suggested a place near the beach. He had spent much of his own time on the beaches in Japan and he knew that Duo always appreciated the shores since he grew up on one. Of course, the braided youth quickly accepted the idea.
It took some time for Duo to convince his mother that he would be fine moving further away from her, however. But once she actually met Heero and had a few private words with her husband, she eventually came around.
For the pair, their move to the Eastern coast of the States was a smooth one. It did not take long for Duo's programming skills to land him another job that allowed him to work indoors during the day.
With the encouragement of his roommate, he even took some chances at socializing a bit with his coworkers. That led him to becoming friends with a young man who worked at the office named Quatre.
All but running back into their home at the end of his day, he went off on an exciting hour of recounting how he was actually connecting with other people. Grinning widely, Heero just leaned back on their sofa and folded his arms behind his head while listening to everything his best friend had to say.
More friends came into the picture once Duo realized how easy it actually was to meet new people. Quatre's partner, Trowa, was added into the picture along with their closest neighbors Wufei and Sally. Before long, the tight-knit group that they made went out to dinners and hung out quite regularly.
Really, Heero was the one who needed the most time adjusting to the move. The change in environment was not the challenge, but the shift in his waking hours.
Since Duo could not spend a long time out in the sunlight, they would frequent the beach after sunset. Which meant getting used to staying up and waking later than the Japanese technician was used to in the beginning.
In the end, he came to have even more of an appreciation for the evenings. There was a tranquility at night that could not be found in the busy hours of the day. And on the shoreline, the smell and sounds came through that much more without the distraction of seeing the vastness of the ocean.
And it was late one evening on that beach when Heero and Duo's relationship moved beyond the realm of close friendship.
Seated on a blanket as they talked for hours after dark by the light of a few covered candles they had brought along, a kiss was shared. Neither really knew who started it, nor did they care when they finally broke away for air, stretched out just as much on the blanket as they were the sand.
That exchange began a new stage in adjustments for the two of them. After weeks into their dating, they had their first argument and when they realized in the end how silly it was they laughed and made up quickly with a kiss.
Holding hands in public was a regular thing and encouraged by their closer acquaintances. Then, once a few attempts were made, they became lovers as their first year of living together was upon them.
Duo's mom and step-father would visit when they could, making their acceptance of Heero that much easier on the former when they started to spend some real time with him.
Eventually, Duo's mother came to love Heero as a second son in seeing how happy her own boy was. Regardless of the fact that Duo was beyond the legal adult age of twenty-one, he would always be her little boy.
Just as the couple had expected, it was Heero's parents that had a harder time accepting their relationship between their son and his roommate. Over the course of the time that they came to know the braided American, however, even they came around to the idea of having as unique and kind a person as he in their family.
Before either of them knew it, their second-year anniversary was approaching. Instead of making their date for the event a night on the town or at a fancy restaurant, they agreed to simply spend the evening on the beach on a blanket with covered candles as they had on that fateful night they shared their first kiss.
The morning of their anniversary, the weather was calling for a clear sky and pleasant temperatures in the mid-sixties for that late July evening.
Smiling widely when he heard that announcement over the morning news broadcast, Duo finished the cup of coffee that Heero had made up for him and kissed his lover's cheek before wiping on a layer of sun block to head out to work.
All day at his desk as he typed away, the braided young man was smiling and thinking of his evening plans. Sharing lunch with Quatre, his head remained in the clouds while his friend laughed and shook his head in amusement. Finally, it was the last hour of the day that seemed to drag on.
It was then, as he prepared to shut his computer down for the weekend, all of the plans he had began to fall apart.
His boss running up to his cubical, Duo was suddenly pulled into a last-minute assignment for a high-profile client that only he could assist. While he was honored for the chance to prove himself to his employer as well as for the overtime that would be added onto his paycheck, he was nervously glancing at the clock through his work.
When an extra hour passed and he looked to be stuck for at least another, he called Heero's cell phone to only get his voicemail. Quickly leaving a message that he would be later in returning home than expected, he focused himself on his task so that it would be wrapped up at a decent enough hour for their planned dinner.
Once the client was satisfied and expressing his sincere appreciation for the help, the computer was shut down and the office was locked up as quickly as possible just as the sun sank below the horizon.
Unfortunately, Duo's luck did not improve much when he reached the highway. An accident had brought traffic to a crawl for several miles of a stretch with no way of him being able to make an exit ramp to reroute himself until a couple of more hours passed by.
He was so disappointed over the situation that he never thought to call his partner until his cell phone rang while he was stopped in the middle of the gridlock.
Checking the caller id, he winced and opened the flip to place the receiver against his ear. "Heero?" he greeted almost cautiously. Sighing, he pinched his nose with his fingers and closed his eyes as he asked, "You've been making dinner this whole time, haven't you?"
"I don't care about dinner," the other youth responded. "I was worried about you since I just saw the news report of an accident on the highway. Are you alright?"
Duo checked the clock on his dashboard to see that it was already after eight o'clock, well after the time that they should have been on the beach. His heart sinking deeper, he frowned, "Yea. I'm okay."
From there, he went on to vent about his terrible run of circumstances that seemed determined to keep him from getting home in time for their date. Allowing those frustrations that had been building out, actually had helped by the time he was finished.
After a brief silence to make sure that his lover got everything off of his chest, the worry was out of Heero's voice as he smiled over the line, "We can still make the best of this, Duo. Just get home and I'll heat up dinner."
Stomach grumbling at the thought of food when he had been saving himself all day for their meal, the braided programmer grinned and replied with an affirmative and a 'love you' before disconnecting the call. Somehow, the traffic did not seem as frustrating as it had before that conversation.
By the time Duo returned home, it was nearly ten o'clock and he was famished. Greeting him in the entrance way with a tight hug and a gentle kiss, Heero led his partner back to the small dining room table that he had fixed with two tall, lit candles and new white linen.
Even good china- a gift from one particular worrisome mother who feared that the boys would not be able to find anything nice to eat with- was broken out.
Violet eyes widening and blinking in surprise at the extent that Heero had gone to, the braided programmer grinned and took up the closest seat while the meal was heated up.
Sitting across from each other, the couple enjoyed the entrees that highlighted their Japanese and American favorites. All prior headaches were forgotten while they conversed on topics other than work.
Really, it all just reminded Maxwell of how lucky he was to have a partner as attentive and caring as Heero. While they had met under unusual circumstances, he really wouldn't have wished for any of it to be different.
Having a friend that could be in the sunlight gave him the courage to look into the procedures that made his life easier. Those procedures then allowed him to go on and move out into the world on his own. Challenging as the transitions all were, they were more than worth what he was fortunate enough to have now.
At the end of their dinner, Duo quickly jumped to doing the clean up of the table, his energy renewed. Finishing up with the task, he dried his hands on a dish rag and changed into a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt.
Reunited with his partner in the living room, he asked hopefully, "Did you still want to hit the beach? It's a pretty warm night out there yet and we don't have to be in bed early since it's the weekend."
Smiling, Heero nodded, "Of course. I have the blanket already set up outside. I just need to grab the candles and I'll meet you out there." Not needing to be told twice, the American was on his way to their back patio to kick his shoes off.
With a contented sigh when his bare feet sank into the sand, Duo spotted the stretched out blanket and basket that were waiting a few yards ahead of their home on the empty beach. The sound of the waves along with the salty air breeze that he took in with a deep breath never ceased to put him at instant peace with everything in the world.
Padding his way to the blanket, he sat beside the wicker basket to peer inside. At the sight of the bottle of fine wine and two glasses, he chuckled deeply. That was certainly a welcome addition to their 'reliving' the night of their first kiss.
Slowly, he laid back against the soft material behind him, he propped himself up on his elbows and stared out to the moonlit waves rolling into the shoreline a half-mile up the stretch.
As he took another deep breath of the air blowing through his bangs, Duo slowly turned his head to take in his surroundings when he spotted something that had him freezing in place with a sharp gasp.
His eyes widening, he stared at a tall rod sticking out of the sand five feet to his right.
Instantly, he was flooded with memories of his childhood that were filled with excitement over seeing such a rod jutting out of a corner in a sandbox. When he remembered to breathe, he began to crawl over to the stick. Clear handprints could be made out in the sand left behind from the effort to smooth down the area.
Smiling to himself, Duo carefully set his own hand over a perfect handprint with fingers that were only slightly longer than his own with a thinner palm spread. They were the same differences as many years ago.
Before he even thought to make his hand move, he began digging into the sand. About a foot deep, he found a small black box wrapped with a simple violet ribbon. Brushing it off clean, he straightened his back and got to his feet.
Gingerly holding the box up towards his face for a close inspection, Duo untied the ribbon around it with his heart hammering in his chest. Swallowing, he opened the lid to reveal a gold band shimmering inside. Eyes widening and hand shaking, he removed the band for a closer inspection.
An engraving of the sun with its rays extending around the wrap of the front of the ring stood out in the moonlight. Biting his lip, Maxwell looked and found something written inside the band that was too small to make out in the dimness.
"To the light in my life that outshines the sun," Heero's voice said quietly out of the blue. Gasping, Duo spun to find his lover standing on the blanket behind him that was now lit by the candles he'd brought along.
Smiling warmly, the Japanese technician approached his partner and sank down to one knee before him. Gently taking the ring, he also took the freed hand into his own. Clearing his throat, Heero began to ask, "Duo, would you do me the honor of-"
"Yes," the other breathed as he fell to his knees, tears in his eyes. Grinning widely, he threw his arms around Heero's neck and whispered, "Yes." He pulled back just enough so that they could share a deep kiss to seal their promise to each other.
Once they finally broke away, the Heero slipped the ring onto his fiancé's finger. Meeting the watery violet eyes on him, he smirked, "You know your mom is going be a mess when she hears about this."
Duo snickered, "At least she'll finally be crying tears of happiness." That said, he moved in for another sound kiss to resume their own celebration.
By the next morning, the violet ribbon that had been buried was added to the 'treasure box' beside the 'lost and found box' that sat atop their living room mantel together.
And there was still plenty of room in for more additions that would be sealed away over the remainder of their owners' lives.
OWARI
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