Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Tears ❯ Goodbye ( Chapter 1 )

TITLE: Tears

CHAPTER: 1 - Goodbye

AUTHOR: Anastasia

PAIRINGS: 2x5/5x2, 1+2/2+1, 1x5/5x1, 3x4

WARNINGS: This might get a bit complicated (the fic, I mean), yaoi, language, perhaps angst later (but not to much), little bit of sap. Set after Endless Waltz.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Jack, Gundam Wing or anything else I happen to use in this fic.

NOTES: First proper chapter, YAY FOR ME!!!

DEDICATION: For Berenice, You can write beautifully, I am sure.

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"Do you have any idea why Duo organised this?" Quatre asked after hanging up his cellphone. He had cancelled 12 meetings and the lunch that he and Trowa had organised to come to the nature preserve on Earth where Duo had asked the pilots to meet.

Heero was sitting at one of the benches, nearest to the barbeque at which Wufei was cooking sausages for everyone. Both of the young men's faces were strangely stoic, devoid of any form of emotion, happy or otherwise. Wufei was treating the sausages as though they were mobile dolls, poking them every 5 seconds and glaring at them without any actual glare marring his masked face. Trowa was sitting at a laptop, muttering about shares and irresponsible performers.

Quatre and Trowa had joined their businesses after Trowa brought the circus he performed at during the war. Winner Enterprises was thriving, as was Trowa's little section. There had been issues just after the merge now, however, they both took time to get off work and `relax' quite frequently, and were still as close as they were after the Mariemaia incident.

Duo walked slowly up to the waiting pilots, his head bowed and face serious. He didn't even seem to notice them as he sat down on the bench at which Trowa was seated at. The waiting four stopped what they were doing immediately, Trowa pressing a few buttons in quick succession and shutting down his laptop, Quatre turning his mobile off.

Duo slowly lifted his head, as if realising exactly where he was. "Oh, hey guys!" He smiled at them, his face shifting as though a mask had been placed on his features. "Glad you could all make it."

The four pilots looked at him silently for a second, but decided against saying anything. They knew that if Duo wanted them to know that he would say it in his own time.

Quatre was the first to speak after the silence. "Of course we made it, Duo. Wouldn't miss it for the world . . . and, ah, why exactly are we here?"

Duo smiled at Quatre. "It's cause I miss you guys so damn much. It's been, what, 3 years since we have all seen each other, together. I figured it would be good to catch up and so on, ya know, before we go off again."

Trowa couldn't get his eyes of Duo since he had arrived. There was something that had changed about him. He had kept in contact with Duo, as he talked more frequently now, and Duo was almost always bored. He had spoken to the young man not even a month before and there had been a light about the Deathscythe pilot. He had confided that he had been seeing Wufei for some time and they were getting along amazingly.

Given the way that Wufei hadn't looked straight at Duo yet and his more agitated than normal nature, something had happened between the two. The only logical reason the two would break up he could come up with was Duo's crush on Heero.

Duo had never gotten rid of his feelings for the prefect soldier. And, from the looks of Heero right now, something had happened between him and Duo as well. Quatre, being Trowa's partner and consequently his confidant in everything, knew the situation or as much of it as Trowa, and neither of them could figure out exactly what had happened.

"Go off again?" Trowa asked cautiously.

"Heh, yeah. Bad choice of words." Duo scratched at the back of his head and looked awkward for a second before letting his eyes alight on the food.

"Oh, great, Wufei! Hm . . . are they Honey Satay sausages? God, I love them." Exclaimed Duo, sniffing at the cooking meat.

"I know." Wufei whispered, almost inaudibly.

Duo's smile faltered for an instant, the only sign that he had heard the comment.

"Done." Stated Wufei, suddenly, quickly placing the sausages on a plate and turning to the bench. He moved as far away from Duo as he could and settled to preparing his food without acknowledging the other pilots.

A hurt look crossed Duo's face for an instant before he covered it up. "Dig in!" He told the others, seating himself next to Trowa.

The rest of the get together passed with conversation between Duo, Quatre and Trowa. Heero sat, glaring at his food while Wufei pretended not to notice anything about the braided pilot and examining the inner workings of lettuce. Even with the sometimes awkward moments when the talking pilots tried to encourage the other two to talk the lunch passed quickly.

"I think I might go try one of these trails to try and walk some of this food off. Anyone want to come with?" Duo asked, standing and stretching.

Getting no immediate answer Duo sighed and was about to tell the others that he would be back soon when Wufei spoke up.

"I'll accompany you, Maxwell." Duo inwardly cringed at the reverting to `Maxwell' but grinned all the same.

"Alright! See you guys soon, then." Duo said as he walked off, Wufei following at a more dignified pace.

Once they reached the nearest trail and had walked along it for a bit, Wufei spoke up.

"Did you find what you were looking for in Heero?" He couldn't hide the hurt and contempt in his voice.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, you left me to be with Yuy, so did you find what you were looking for? Or, judging by his actions today, did you get his hopes up as well before dashing them?"

"Wuf . . ."

"I don't want to hear the excuses, Maxwell. Just tell me if you are happy and content now."

"No . . . but I would rather be unhappy for the rest of my life then ultimately cause you suffering." Duo intoned quietly, the grin bereft of his features.

Wufei snorted. "Oh, please. You are just indecisive. But, you know what, Maxwell? I don't regret the time I spent with you. You taught me what not to look for in a partner." Wufei's tone changed and the pain and hurt came back into his voice slightly. "That, and you were one hell of a good kisser."

By this time they had reached the end of the trail and were almost back at the barbeque at which the others were waiting. Wufei walked faster than Duo, whose steps had faltered at the parting comment. The others were waiting silently, all interested in how the missing members returned.

Heero gave a jealous and disdainful snort as Wufei returned and picked up his backpack.

"I apologise at the lack of time I could spend with you all, but I must leave. It was nice to see you Quatre, Trowa, Heero." He bowed to each in turn and walked off up to his motorbike.

Quatre turned to Duo. "Actually, Duo, I am really sorry but Trowa and I have to go now as well. It was really good speaking to you again, I'll try and call you, OK?"

"It's doesn't matter, Quatre. You don't have my number. But it was nice seeing you again. Make sure you try and keep in touch with the rest of the pilots." Duo called to Quatre's retreating form. Trowa waved at Duo and he hurried up to the waiting limo.

"Heh, looks like it is just you and me, ne Heero?" Duo said as he packed away the last of the sausages.

"Hn." A silence followed before, "Duo, why did you come to me after you broke up with Wufei?" Heero asked cautiously.

"I . . . I had to get my feelings out in the open, Heero. I couldn't keep hiding it from you. . . or Wufei."

"So Wufei dumped you because he found out you had a crush on me?" He couldn't keep the incredulousness out of his voice.

"Not quite. I came to you after I dumped Wufei because I needed to come clean with you, that's all." Duo's voice had gotten incredibly quiet, all of his normal charm and laughter completely gone from it.

"So why did you reject me when I said I had the same feelings?" Heero was trying to get his mind around the whole situation, but was having trouble comprehending Duo's thought process.

"I love Wufei as well . . ." the admission was almost inaudible, saturated in regret and remorse. "Anyway, I really must be off!" Duo's voice suddenly became his normal, carefree. "Maybe I'll catch ya `round. Heh, then again, don't count on it." Duo tried to leave before the conversation went places he didn't want it to.

Heero looked at him sternly. "You are jerking us both around, Duo. Are you some sort of heartbreaker who just drifts on whim of who they like and don't like? I really think you should come to your senses. Baka." The last word Heero spoke, as he brushed past Duo and made his way to his car, was said with a level of contempt that Duo had never heard the fellow pilot use. He sighed and rested his head against a tree, tears threatening to spill from his glassy eyes.

"Baka . . ."

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Anastasia

~*~ Proud member of SDDI ~*~

~*~ Proud member of SDQB ~*~

General of the Baka Brigade!!

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