Duo's POV
The Wedding Planner Part 26
Unavoidable Truths
So, I found myself once again waiting for Heero to show up at The Circus, and wondering what insanity had prompted me to invite him there, of all places. I should have asked him to meet me at Howard's...or somewhere completely neutral. Hell, I should have just had him pick a place to meet, where the odds would be greatly against anyone I knew showing up. And as I sat there at the bar, sipping club soda and watching for Quatre, I wondered if I had time to change our plans.
My phone rang, and I grabbed it quickly, turning and stepping far enough away that Trowa wouldn't overhear, either accidentally or on purpose.
"Duo here."
"Hey, it's me." Heero sounded a little out of breath.
"Yeah, I figured. You on your way?"
"In a few minutes. Wufei and I had a karate class tonight. I still have to change."
"Oh--hey, actually, that's great," I said quickly. "Why don't we go somewhere else? I mean, I hang out here a lot. I could use a change of scenery. I can meet you somewhere."
He gave a quiet laugh. "Are you embarrassed to hang out with me around your friends?"
"No!" Damn his perceptiveness! How could I explain that I'd feel like Quatre and Trowa were watching us like hawks, without letting him know how uncomfortable it made me, and why? "Is Wufei coming?" I asked quickly, hoping to change the subject.
"No!" He said it as hastily as I had, and I wondered why he was so adamant in his reply.
We both started laughing at the same time. "Why do I get the feeling we both took a lot of ribbing about going from enemies to friends the way we did?" I asked, feeling the tension slowly ease.
"Probably because we both did," he agreed. "So Quatre must've had something to say about last week?"
"Wufei too?"
"You could say that," came a rather wry response.
"So what do you want to do about it?" I asked, figuring I'd just leave it in his hands. Maybe he'd just want to call it quits. We could maintain the professional relationship without ever interacting socially, if he preferred it that way.
"D'you like Chinese food?"
"Aw, hell, Yuy. I grew up in the slums of L2. There's not much of anything I won't eat."
"But do you like it?" he asked.
I found myself grinning like an idiot at the thought that it mattered to him if I liked what he picked for dinner. "Yeah, I do."
"Then meet me at that ice cream stand by the beach in an hour. I'll bring dinner, and you can buy the sundaes."
"But I was supposed to buy you dinner this time," I reminded him.
"So you pick up the tab next time."
Next time? This was going to be a regular thing?
"Or am I assuming too much?" he asked more seriously, apparently having noticed my hesitation.
I had no idea what he was assuming, so I just went with my gut. "No, Heero. You said you wanted us to be friends, and I told you that means hanging out together and sharing stupid secrets. So I suppose that means I'll have a chance to pick up the tab a few times, right?"
"Of course."
"Sounds good. See ya at Howie's in an hour." I hung up the phone, and realized as I tucked it back in my pocket that I had butterflies in my stomach. Damn it, anyway. This wasn't a date. Not any more than our last outing had been. So why was I looking forward to seeing Heero so damned much?
"Whoa! Where are you going?" Trowa asked as I tossed a couple of bills on the counter to pay for my club soda and turned towards the door.
"Out," I said with a shrug.
"But Quatre hasn't even gotten here yet," he said with a frown.
"I got a better offer," I replied with a perfectly wicked grin and a coy wink.
"Oh." He blinked owlishly for a second, and then his gaze turned a little wary. "Anyone we know?"
I've never been a very smooth liar, and I knew I was already starting to blush, so I whirled around, tossing a cavalier "I never kiss and tell!" over my shoulder as I hurried out.
And goddamn if I didn't run straight into Quatre, who was just coming in the door.
"Hey, Duo! Are you leaving?" asked my blue-eyed business partner.
"Uh, yeah. Meeting a friend," I said vaguely.
Let me state here, for the record, I have never--ever--been able to put one over on Quatre.
His eyes narrowed suspiciously, and he got a look I've seen him use in business meetings to totally destroy his opponents. "Yuy?"
I crossed my arms stubbornly. "So? What's it to you?"
"Where are you meeting him?"
"At Howard's," I snapped defensively. "Is that public enough for you? For Christ's sake, Quatre, we're just gonna hang out for a couple of hours, and I didn't want you and your man over there hovering and reading things into whatever we say or do."
That made him back off a tad, knowing that his mothering attitude had made me shy about being seen with Yuy. "I didn't mean to make you feel like you had to hide your relationship with--" he began.
"Goddamnit! It's not a 'relationship!'" I stormed at him. "It's barely a friendship, and it won't even be that if you don't stop pressuring me!"
I've got to give the guy credit. He looked genuinely sorry. "Duo, I never meant to imply that being friends with him was wrong..."
"Well, you're making me feel like it is." I found my hands clenched into fists, and I forced myself to relax them. "You make me feel like I should sneak around and hide the fact that we're friends...and that's not fair."
"You're right. It's not," he admitted. "If I say I'll try to lighten up a bit, would you consider bringing Heero back here now and then?"
"If he wants to come," I shrugged. "I think he and Wufei had a good time last week."
"Well, we'd be happy to have them both come back," Quatre assured me. "And I'll try not to question your judgment again. I'm sure you know Heero better than I do, and you'd know if he was reading more than friendship into your get-togethers."
"Damn straight!" I said firmly. "I'm not an idiot, Quatre. But he and I finally managed to get past all the hostility, and to be honest with you, he's interesting to talk to."
Quatre nodded contritely. "Yes, he is. So, I promise Trowa and I will behave, and when you feel like it, invite him to come by here."
"Thanks," I said simply, a little relieved that Quatre was being understanding about this.
I made my escape before he thought of tagging along for ice cream, and within moments was driving the Jag up the familiar highway towards Howard's.
~*~
When I pulled in, Heero was sitting on the hood of his car, still wearing sweats and sneakers from the gym, and looking a little windblown. And yes, he did look damn fine no matter what he wore. Relena was a lucky girl.
I parked the Jag and walked over, only to have a brown paper bag stuffed into my arms. "Weren't there some picnic tables around here?" asked Heero, picking up a second bag and heading towards the beach.
"Yeah, just head for that grove of trees."
Within a few minutes we were settled at a table, and Heero was putting out little take-out containers. "You didn't say specifically what you like, so I got a few different things." He gave me a grin that made me want to sigh wistfully. God, I fucking hated Relena for a moment. "I'll just take the leftovers back to the penthouse. I don't cook much anyway."
"Wait a sec," I said, sitting on one end of the table and beginning to explore what was in the containers. "Didn't 'Lena forgive you yet?"
He actually chuckled at that. "In a manner of speaking. She wanted me to drive out last night for dinner, and generously said I could stay over."
"Weren't you exhausted last night?" I asked, picking up the sweet and sour chicken and grinning in delight. "Yesss!"
"I was more than exhausted," he said quietly, not looking at me, but past me towards the waves rolling up onto the shore.
"Then it's good that you didn't try driving that far," I commented sagely, scooping some of the chicken out onto one of the paper plates Heero had brought.
He nodded, filling his own plate with several different selections. Then, just before we settled in to eat, he brought out styrofoam cups with little plastic lids.
"What's that?"
"Green tea." He put one in front of me. "If you don't like it, I have soda in the car."
"No, I like tea." I stretched my feet out on one of the benches, picking up my drink. "Solo drank a lot of tea, especially after he got sick. It was the only thing that seemed to sit well. And I kind of acquired a taste for it with him."
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to--"
I turned sharply, fixing a stern look on Heero. "Don't you dare get all maudlin on me, Yuy. Serving me tea isn't gonna make me break down and cry about Solo. I only mentioned him because--well, 'cause he was the one who got me started on tea." The blue eyes held mine, but I could see the remorse in them. "I can talk about him without it hurting sometimes, y'know."
He nodded, taking a deep breath and slowly relaxing. "I was just afraid maybe it'd bring up bad memories."
"Only when I let it," I assured him. "Sometimes it brings up good memories, too."
He finally smiled a little. "Just tell me if I say the wrong thing, okay?"
"I will." I took a sip of tea, enjoying the familiar taste. "Why'd you want to meet here?" I asked, glancing over at Heero as I reached across to dip a piece of breaded chicken into some sauce.
"You seemed to like it here," he shrugged, looking out across the waves. "I did too." Then he actually gave me an almost mischievous look. "And there's no crowds."
I laughed at that. "I don't want you to think I don't want you around my friends," I told him frankly. "But Quatre teased a little, and I kind of got self-conscious. He says he won't do it again."
Heero gave a wry snort. "I'm sure Wufei will," he muttered with a shake of his head. He looked at me with a vague scowl, as if he was puzzled about something, and then went back to eating his pork fried rice.
We settled into a companionable silence while we ate, and then boxed up the leftovers. And after we stashed them in Heero's car, we wandered over to Howard's ice cream stand. One of his teenaged employees was manning the booth that night, so I didn't have to deal with any good-natured ribbing from my old friend, which was kind of a relief. Instead, we just got our sundaes and headed down the beach, talking about silly things like music and food, and what kind of movies were really worth watching. It was--nice.
We went about halfway to the beach house, and I toyed with the idea of showing it to Heero, but as close to dark as it was, I opted to turn around and head back to the cars instead. Not that I'd have minded being lost on a dark beach with Heero Yuy. Not at all.
We were nearly back to the parking lot when his cell phone rang.
"Yuy." He listened for a moment, and a faint scowl creased his forehead. "No, I never said I'd be over tonight," he sighed. "For Christ's sake you know what jet lag is like."
Yeah, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out it was Relena on the other end of the phone.
"I got take-out...no...Chinese." He scowled deeply. "I know you hate it...that's why I'm having it here." He rolled those gorgeous blue eyes. "I'm at the beach."
Oh, fuck. Don't say "with Duo," Yuy. Don't say it!
His glance flickered to me and then away. "I just felt like going someplace quiet, okay? Look, is there a point to this call, Relena?" A pause. "Yes, I know we have an appointment tomorrow. I'll be there." A longer pause. "Tonight? It's a long drive." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "All right...but I'll be late. I have to go back to the penthouse and get some things." His jaw tightened as if he were fighting the urge to say something rude. "Don't wait up." He closed the phone, and then apparently rethought that, and turned it off completely, giving me an apologetic smile.
"Hey, 'Ro, if you need to hit the road..."
"No," he said sharply. Then he fixed a searching look on me. "I need a straight answer from you, Duo."
Well that seemed...ominous.
"Was there anything you aren't telling me about the other night when Relena was drunk?"
Whoa! Talk about a sucker-punch! I must've gaped like a fish for a moment. And if that wasn't enough to make me look guilty, my blush would've been a dead giveaway. "Look, Heero..."
His blue eyes pinned me with an intense glare, and I found I could hardly draw breath. "Are we friends or not, Duo? I need you to be honest with me."
I nodded, turning away from that compelling gaze. "She was drunk out of her mind, Heero. You saw how bad she was."
"You're evading the question," he said curtly, with a hint of anger under the deep voice.
"I'd like to," I joked weakly. "But I'm pretty sure you won't let me." I looked out across the waves, debating whether to just blow him off and let the friendship die by refusing to rat on Relena.
Then I turned around and saw the look in his eyes, and I couldn't make myself not give a damn. He deserved to know. "She might've made a little pass at me," I shrugged, dropping my gaze to the sand. "It was nothing much, 'Ro, honest. And she was really, really wasted, okay?" I looked up through the fringe of my bangs, not quite able to face him straight-on. "I didn't mention it, 'cause it was just such a typically stupid thing for a drunk chick to do, y'know? And God knows, I've made my share of stupid mistakes under the influence." Yeah, that was a complete understatement. And then I forced a scowl. "I'd rather you not mention it to her, 'cause she was pretty embarrassed when she called me the next day to apologize, and she kind of begged me not to say anything to you."
"So why did you?"
Well, there was a million-dollar question. Why, indeed?
"Because...you made it pretty unavoidable."
"You could have lied."
I didn't have to force the next scowl. "I'm not big on lying, Yuy. Especially to my friends. Aside from a harmless little fib now and then, I don't make it a practice." Except to myself. I lie to myself all the time. Case in point, I'd been assuring myself I wasn't interested in Heero as more than a friend. But then, that was a pretty obvious lie, wasn't it? "Look, Heero. I have to go," I said hastily. "Relena's waiting for you, and I've got some brochures and things to organize." I turned away quickly, before he could talk me into staying there and I ended up doing something really stupid.
"Duo!" He didn't follow me, but his voice did. I turned and looked back. "Thanks for being honest with me."
Right. Honest. Honest would be if I admitted he was the first guy since Alex that made my heart race and my mouth go dry. But I was pretty sure he didn't want that much honesty from me. "Yeah, g'night," I said through a too-dry throat. "Thanks for dinner." I walked away quickly then, my heart pounding in my chest. Goddamnit! Quatre was right, and he knew me better than I knew myself. Being friends with Heero was just a bad, bad idea...if not an impossibility.
Well, I could still fix that, right? I could be all business the next day when we met for the wedding plans. And I could keep my distance, couldn't I? Well, couldn't I?
TBC...
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