Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Under Pressure ❯ Who Needs You? ( Chapter 2 )

PART TWO: WHO NEEDS YOU?

Author's Note: Well, how was the first chapter? Please, tell me what you think in a nice little review or flame. I really don't care which of the two options you choose, since I'm not very picky in the form of my feedback.

Disclaimer: Gundam Wing was created in Japan, Queen originated in England. Both were created before I was born, and I live in the USA. If that doesn't tell you enough, then I don't know what will. (The pizza shop and the Le family are of my own creation)

Title: Under Pressure

Summary: Duo Maxwell is just a simple pizza worker, trying to survive life in NYC. But, what happens when a job assignment brings up old memories? Will he embrace the new chance fate has presented to him, or will he turn tail and run? 1x2x1

Rating: Let's just make it R, just to be on the safe side…

Chapter Rating: PG. 13

Pairings: 5xS, and some 5x13, if you pay close enough attention

Warnings: I couldn't think of a phone number on the spot, so please forgive my weak attempt at getting a laugh from my readers. (sighs) Oh, and Duo might be a little out of character, but I don't really know since I don't really remember the series… All that I know from the characters is from my great beta, researching all that I could find on Gundam Wing, and reading some really good fics. So, if you could tell me how I did, that would be great!



CHAPTER TWO: WHO NEEDS YOU?



// Oh I believed you,

Went on my knees to you

How I trusted you,

But you turned me down

But it's dog eat dog in this rat race

And it leaves you bleeding lying flat on

your face

Reaching out, reaching out for a

helping hand

Where is that helping hand? //



(Who Needs You, by Queen)



Blinking his eyes open, Duo asked, "What?" to the man's previous question. Glaring slightly, Chang repeated himself.

"Here's your money."

"Oh." Duo said, taking the offered bills and not bothering to check if it was the correct amount for the pizza. Handing the cardboard box over to the man, Duo asked, "Uh, you wouldn't by chance be Chang Wufei, would you?"

"How do you know my name?" Wufei asked, pausing in closing his front door. How did the pizza delivery guy know who he was? Maybe An had told him…?

"Uh, do you know a Heero Yuy?" Duo asked, determined to find out what their relationship was. Heero had never looked so happy with anyone before. Not before Duo had met him. If Heero was with this guy…

"Yuy?" Wufei asked, genuinely surprised. How did the pizza delivery guy know Yuy?!

"Yeah, I uh…" Duo started, before he sighed and stated softly to himself, "I'm just not good about beating around the bush, am I?" Looking into the gaze of the Chinese man before him (for Wufei was, indeed, Chinese), Duo asked bluntly, "Is Heero Yuy your lover?"

Coughing, Wufei nearly dropped the pizza, blinking rapidly over what this man had said. The injustice of it! He was not gay! That night with the cinnamon-haired man had been a total fluke!

"Honey? Are you okay?" A voice asked from behind the Chinese man. Peering around the man, a woman said, "Are you alright? You don't usually start having coughing fits. Oh? Who is this?"

"Uh… I am Duo. Uh, I brought your pizza from Under the Fire…"

"Oh, thank you Duo!" the woman said, coming to stand in front of the taller man. Flipping her honey colored hair over one shoulder, the woman introduced herself, "I'm Sally Chang, and this is my husband Wufei. Are you a friend of An?"

Blinking over this new information, Duo said a weak `Yes' before turning to face Wufei again. Looking the man over, he lowered his eyes and said, "Uh, sorry for my other question earlier…" before the braided boy ran towards the stairs, covering them two at a time. Starting his car, he peeled out from the parking lot and raced back to the pizzeria, leaving the husband and wife to stare after him with looks of confusion on their faces. Shrugging slightly, Wufei ushered Sally back into the apartment, closing the door after him.



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"You asked WHAT?!" An yelled, causing the older man to cower behind his chair. He had just returned to Under the Fire, and had hoped to get his dinner of leftovers, yet was bombarded by An with questions over why he had apologized to Wufei earlier. Apparently, Sally had called the younger girl after Duo had left, and An had demanded that Duo explain to her what had happened. The twenty-two year old had done so, only omitting the parts where he realized who Chang was. He didn't feel that An, or anybody for that matter, needed to know about that part of his past.

"I asked him if he was someone's lover…" Duo explained again, covering his head with his arms, in some weak attempt at protection from the explosion that was sure to come from the younger girl. Yet, no yelling came from neither her, nor any projectile objects. Looking warily at her, Duo noticed that she was staring at the wall, her eyes holding a far away look. Waiting for her to finish her thoughts, Duo began thinking back to when he had lived in Houston.

He had been happy back then, he remembered. Until his partner had needed to go to New York City for training. He was a CEO and had had to go to the large city for six weeks for on the job training. Duo had smiled and said that he would be waiting for him to return. But, after that picture, the man had felt so torn and crushed, that he had turned to writing his thoughts in a journal that he kept by his bedside. The worn blue notebook held many thoughts and feelings from the braided boy, and Duo had not brought it with him when he had moved to New York City. He couldn't bear to bring any of his old things with him, except for the clothes on his back and a few old clothes. Shaking his head, Duo returned to the present and found that An was still staring at the wall. Wondering if she was possibly trying to bore a hole through the wall, Duo leaned across the table where they were sitting and waved a hand in front of her face. Jumping, she faced him and asked, "What?"

"What were you thinking about?" Duo asked, wondering why she had zoned out on him. An was normally very good about giving you her full, undivided attention, so it was unusual for her to blank out on the boy.

"How you could repay Wufei. That was probably a huge blow to his pride, and hell knows that that man has a lot of it. So, invite him to a free pizza lunch tomorrow."

"Okay. So, you'll call him?" Duo asked, not worried about the lunch plan. Hey, he could handle it! It wouldn't be that hard to apologize as long as Chang didn't dwell on it for too long.

"No, you should be the one to call him. But, I need to get home, and you probably want to get some sleep, so you can call their house first thing tomorrow. I'll see you in the morning! It's Saturday yanno!" An said, waving as she checked to make sure that the front door to the pizza shop was locked before walking to where her mother's office was located. Nodding in her general direction, Duo agreed, "Yeah, I know." before he exited through the back door, driving slowly to his apartment.



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The next morning found the young man Duo taking the subway to work, since his precious car (who he, for some reason or another, had named Dave) had decided to not start for him that morning. Exiting onto the street from the underground, Duo maneuvered around several parked cars and approached the small restaurant. Pulling out his set of keys, he unlocked and opened the front doors before closing them and locking them behind him. Walking towards the rear of the kitchen, he blinked when he saw An sleeping on the chair that she had been sitting in last night. Pulling off his jacket, Duo covered the teenage girl with the light cloth wordlessly, allowing her to get as much sleep as she could. Shifting slightly, An groaned and mumbled as she felt something drop onto her body. Looking at the grinning Duo blearily, she asked in a thick voice, "What are you doing in my room…?"

"The kitchen is your room? Man, your decoration skills suck." Duo stated, leaning down to ruffle her short hair in a manner that an older brother would use. Grinning, An sat up and popped her back, saying, "That's right! Momma said that she would only be a few minutes longer, and then I guess I fell asleep here!" Lowering her face, she said, "She spends way to much time in her office doing work…"

"Hey, don't worry kiddo!" Duo said enthusiastically, pulling up the records from last nights pizza orders. Skimming through them, he assured the girl, "It's probably just a busy time for the place."

"Yeah, I guess." An agreed before standing to peer around Duo's shoulder. "Hey, what are you looking at?"

"I'm looking for the Chang's phone number. Ya got it?" Duo asked as he found that no phone numbers were kept on the computer. Nodding, An pulled out a scrap piece of paper and wrote the seven numbers down quickly.

"There ya go! But, you better hurry! He has to go to work on Saturdays yanno!"

"Yeah, yeah. Now, where did that phone get to…?" Duo asked himself, hunting around the kitchen and the space behind the cash register for the elusive cordless phone. Finally finding the electronic device, he punched in the numbers, waiting while the ring tone sounded. Sighing, he was about to hang up when a familiar voice asked, "Hello?"

"Hello. This is Duo, the pizza delivery guy from Under the Fire. Is Mr. Chang there?"

"Oh, Duo! This is Sally. No, Wufei isn't here at the moment; he had to go on into work early this morning. Something about an associate showing up or something… Would you like to call him at his office? I would call him to tell him whatever you called for, but I have to get to the office myself." Sally explained, in as few breaths as possible. Duo could tell that she was rushed for time, and nodded, then realized that she couldn't see his brisk nod and stated, "Yes, if you could tell me his work phone number, then I will get in contact with him as soon as I can."

"Okay, it is 434-2112. I have to go now Duo. Goodbye!" Sally said, hanging up the phone to rush to her work. Looking at the phone that was now in his hand, Duo blinked, then hung up himself. Punching in the number of Wufei's work, he waited while the phone rang. Finally, someone picked up and asked, "Hello?"

"Hello, this is the pizza delivery guy from last night. Is Mr. Chang there?" Duo asked, realizing correctly that this was not the uptight Wufei.

"Yes, just a moment." The person said, no evidence of shock or confusion in their voice. Actually, Duo thought, there was no emotion in their voice! Straining his ears, Duo could here voices talking in the background, but could not determine what they were saying.



>>>ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PHONE<<<



"Who is on the phone?" Wufei asked as he walked into his office. He had had to see to some work that a lackey had needed help with, and had walked back into the large space of his office to see the shorter man holding his phone, his long fingers covering the mouthpiece. His associate was there all the way from San Francisco, and the two were to talk personally over all the information concerning the previous year. But, he knew that CEO's didn't have to answer their own phones. Or the phones of other CEO's. That was what secretaries were for!

"Some pizza delivery guy." The other man explained, a dry look on his face. "You do have a wife. You shouldn't go sleeping with someone else behind her back. Plus, I didn't think that you swung that way."

"I don't!" Wufei growled, taking the phone from his associate's hand and pointing to his door. That made it two days in a row that he had been accused of being gay! He had only done it once, and that had been because of a misunderstanding, damnit! "Come back in a few minutes. He works for friends of my family."

"Fine." the other said, standing and placing his hands in his suit's pockets, striding out the door in quick, precise steps. Sighing, Wufei focused his attention on the phone in his hand and the person on the other end. "What do you want?" he snapped as he sat in his desk chair.

"Uh, to apologize better than I did last night?" Duo asked, wondering why this guy was so mad at him. He hadn't said anything to warrant this behavior yet!

"How so?" Wufei asked, leaning back in his chair.

"How about a free pizza lunch for today?" Duo asked, flicking his eyes around the restaurant quickly. Hmm, maybe he should mop the floor…?

"Fine. Oh, and what is your name?" Wufei asked as he placed his feet onto his desk.

"Oh, sorry! Duo. Duo Maxwell." Duo said, silently cursing himself for being so rude as to not tell Wufei his full name.

"Fine then Maxwell," Wufei said as his associate walked into the room once more. "I will come by the restaurant at around lunch time."

"Great! See you then!" Duo said enthusiastically, hitting the `end' button on his phone.

Looking to see the shorter man take a seat in the other leather chair, Wufei raised an eyebrow at the other's unusual expression. "Do you know someone named Maxwell?" Wufei asked after a few minutes of silence.

Blinking his cold blue eyes, the other explained softly, "I used to." before pushing a manila folder towards Wufei, ending their conversation over that topic and beginning the session of work for the day.



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Walking towards the small pizza shop, Wufei explained to his co-worker why he was receiving a free pizza from Under the Fire. Chuckling slightly, the shorter man examined the small restaurant that they were now standing before.

The door held an `Open' sign in it, and the place looked very well taken care of. Taking a deep breath, he could smell the enticing aroma from the kitchen, where the pizzas were being made. Allowing Wufei to lead the way into the place, the man took in the decor of the main room when a young girl approached them. Hadn't Wufei said that the one who was repaying him a man?

"Oh, hey Wufei!" the girl said, a smile breaking out on her face. Looking to see who the other person was, she asked, "Uh, business associate?"

"Yes, he works in San Francisco, for the west coast." Wufei explained. Looking from one to the other, the so-far silent man decided that they must know each other fairly well, for the girl just nodded her head in understanding and motioned to the seating area. Giving them a table that was located a considerable distance from the large windows at the front of the restaurant, she gave them each a menu and said, "You can order your drinks now, if you would like. And, if you know what you want, you can order your pizza now also."

"I'll have an iced tea." Wufei stated to the girl. Smiling, she nodded and faced the other customer. "And you sir?"

"I'll have a water." he said lowly, keeping his face hid by the glossy menu that he held in his hands. Blinking, the girl nodded and said, "Well, I'm An, and if you should need anything, then just holler!" Walking towards the swinging door, An entered the kitchen to make the men's drinks.

Looking at his business associate, the man asked, "Wufei, do you come here often? That girl seemed to know you well."

"Yeah, the owners of this place are old friends of the family. I grew up with An." Wufei explained while looking over the menu at the choices of pizzas. Had they added to the selections since the last time that he was here?

"But, wasn't it a man that offended you?" the other asked, eyes moving around the eating area. It was always a habit of his to take in all his surroundings with a meticulous care. He was a very paranoid person.

"Yeah…" Wufei said as he decided that he would get the Big Country pizza. Looking at the other man, he sighed and placed his menu down saying, "I guess that I should explain it from the beginning."

Shrugging, the shorter of the two set his menu on the table and waited for the other to begin his story.



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Peeking around the door, Duo asked, "Do I have to serve them?"

Glaring at the older man that was acting half his age, An stated firmly, "Yes, you do. You've already hid for long enough. You get to take their drinks out there and take their order! Go!" Pushing him through the door, she pointed a finger in the direction of the two seated men, who looked like they were in a deep conversation, telling Duo to hurry up and give them their drinks.

Sighing, Duo nodded dejectedly and started towards the table where the two sat. Wufei back was towards him, and another man was facing him, with his head bent down over the menu that he held, but Duo just knew that Wufei had ordered the tea. That left the water for the other man. Stopping at their table, Duo placed a smile on his face and said, "Wufei, you ordered tea, correct?"

"Yes." Wufei answered, turning his attention to the standing man beside him. Taking the offered glass, he took a sip and blinked at his associate's reaction.

It looked like the poor man had turned blue, and his eyes held a shock in them that Wufei was certain that he had never seen before. Taking in the man's strange appearance, Duo asked, "Are you alright? You don't look so good, if I may say so."

"Well, you can't." the man stated, taking his water from the braided waiter and taking a sip angrily. Blinking, Duo turned to face Wufei once more and asked, "Well, do you know what you want to eat?"

"Yes. I will have a small Big Country pizza." Wufei said, indicating that the man opposite him was to order his own meal. Looking at the man, Duo felt recognition jolt through his body. Struggling to keep from either jumping the man or strangling him, he heard that rough voice say, "I'll have a Paradise Pie. Small."

"Of course." Duo said, writing the orders down so that he wouldn't forget. Walking away from the table, he pushed open the swinging door and walked into the kitchen, leaning against the wall. Sinking to the floor, he placed his head in his hands and sobbed while the memories returned to attack him.