momentary lapse of reason
part 15
"So where is he now?" Wufei asked.
"He is upstairs in his room, sleeping." Heero began, enjoying hearing those words as he pictured Duo asleep in his bed. "It was a rough morning for him physically....." Heero lowered his eyes. "and he's been a bit uncomfortable since I brought him home. I think he expected that something would be familiar to him when he got here..... nothing yet though." Heero finished, his tone soft as recalled Duo's anguish earlier in the day.
Wufei looked around the kitchen. "You cooked, Heero?" smiling at his cobalt-eyed friend as he nodded. "I hope Duo's going to join us for dinner. Shall I go wake him?" he asked.
"Yes. I'll finish up in here. Dinner should be ready in ten minutes." Heero replied. "At least I think it will be...."
"Smells wonderful. Need any help, Heero?" Quatre asked.
"Thank you. Everything is under control." Heero responded.
"I'm going to go get changed. Be back in a few minutes." the blonde told him.
Trowa followed Quatre out of the room. "Be right back."
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Wufei opened the door to Duo's bedroom slowly, his eyes meeting with Duo's, surprised to find his braided friend standing in the center of the room. "I came to wake you up for dinner." Wufei smiled. "Need some help?" he asked, watching Duo's unsteady gait as he crossed the room.
"No, I'm fine for now. Thanks, Wufei and dinner sounds great." Duo replied, smiling as he made his way toward the raven-haired young man. "I am going to need some help with the steps though."
"No problem, Duo." he replied, opening the door out into the hallway.
While Duo had yet to regain his memory, Wufei found the sight of walking behind his friend a comforting one. He made no attempt to suppress his wide smile watching the familiar chestnut braid sway from side to side as he made his way down the hallway of their home.
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Duo was unable to provide his standard chatter and cheer during the meal, but his presence evoked more than enough conversation. Much to Heero's disappointment, Wufei had taken the seat next to Duo and was providing him with all the assistance he required, continuing his earlier task of caring for Duo since he had returned home.
"This is really good, Heero." Trowa commented, looking up at him.
Heero nodded at smiled. "Thank you. It was easier than I thought." Heero returned.
"What made you decide to cook dinner, Heero?" Quatre asked, rarely having seen Heero do more than heat up frozen dinners in the past.
Heero looked up at Quatre. "Boredom." He smiled, his eyes meeting with Duo's. "You were sleeping." He replied in answer to the hurt he saw in his eyes. Duo smiled weakly in return, lowering his head as he continued eating his dinner.
Duo remained silent throughout the rest of the meal, accepting Wufei's help, wondering if Heero had already grown weary of caring for him.
The four seated at the table were his entire world right now. He had grown considerably close to Heero. :: perhaps too close :: Duo admitted that it was most likely because of the amount of time he had spent with him. He had no idea of how things were before. He had just assumed that there had always been something special between the two of them, despite Heero's denial.
But it wasn't Heero who sat beside him now, nor was it the cobalt-eyed young man who had come to wake him earlier. Duo recognized that he needed to relinquish any pre-conceived notions he had formed about his prior relationships with the four young men. He looked up at Wufei and smiled warmly, unaware of the glare sent in their direction from the other end of the table.
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Trowa and Quatre's offer to clean up after dinner was accepted with thanks, leaving the remaining three to ponder the balance of the evening.
"Anything in particular you want to do tonight, Duo?" Heero asked.
"A movie perhaps?" Wufei asked, helping Duo from his chair.
"Movie sounds fine." Duo replied, accepting Wufei's offer of assistance to make his way into the den.
Heero followed the two inside, seating himself next to Duo on the couch as Wufei made his way across the room to the huge collection of movies the wall unit held. "How about something light? A comedy?" he asked, holding up a tape.
Duo nodded. "That's fine." He replied, looking over at Heero. "You're awfully quiet tonight, Heero. Is something wrong?" Duo asked. Heero shook his head in response, his gaze still fixed on some unidentified object across the room. Duo lowered his head for a moment, sighing in frustration.
Wufei seated himself on the other side of Duo. "This used to be one of your favorite movies." He began. "'A Fish Called Wanda'." [3] Duo smiled as Wufei provided the insight and settled back to watch, curious to see another piece of the puzzle fall into place.
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"Did you see the look Heero gave Wufei and Duo during dinner?" Quatre asked.
Trowa paused, dish towel and plate in hand and looked over at Quatre. "It was a glare."
Quatre nodded. "Definitely a glare. Part of the whole protective thing I guess."
It was Trowa's turn to nod. "Let's go inside." He spoke, taking his lover by the hand as they crossed the room. "Did Heero tell you that Duo knows about the two of us? That we are a couple?"
Quatre paused, looking up at the green-eyed young man. "No. When did this happen? I thought we agreed not to tell him anything about it yet."
"Heero didn't tell him. Duo figured it out on his own." Trowa smiled, gently kissing the blonde.
"I guess it's kinda hard to hide it." Quatre smiled, squeezing Trowa's hand.
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Heero relaxed back into the cushioned sofa and closed his eyes. It had been a long day and while it was only 7:30, Heero was certain he could sleep through the night. He had planned on going out this evening as promised to get the walkie-talkies, but seeing as he was now spending the night in Duo's room; he pushed the task off until tomorrow.
Waking several minutes later, startled by the sound of hearty laughter, Heero rose and excused himself. "I think I'm going to bed. It's been a long day." he started. "I'll see you all in the morning. Goodnight."
Duo tried to focus on the movie and while he found himself enjoying it, Heero's departure unsettled him. It was the first time that Duo was alone with the others, suddenly finding himself staring at the doorway Heero had just exited through. Uncomfortable as he felt requesting assistance from them, Duo spoke. "I think I'm going to head up to bed myself. " Duo rose slowly from the couch, immediately finding Quatre and Trowa by his side. "Thanks." he offered, two sets of hands guiding him from the room. "Goodnight, Wufei." Duo called, smiling as Wufei waved toward him.
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"Is everything okay, Duo?" Quatre asked as the three made their way up the stairs. "You seem bothered by something."
Duo shook his head. "I think that I've done something to upset Heero." Duo answered softly, mounting a few more steps before continuing. "Maybe it's just that he's had enough of babysitting me."
Quatre looked over at Trowa, the glance behind Duo's back prompting a nod from the taller young man. "I'll talk with him about it tomorrow, Duo. We can get a nurse in to help if it's too much for him."
Duo smiled. "Thank you."
Trowa opened the door and Quatre helped Duo across the darkened room. "I can handle things from here." Duo replied. "See you in the morning and thanks again." Duo sighed. His pride was hurting. He found himself teary eyed as he recalled how many times he had uttered the words 'thank you' today... not just only today. He knew this wasn't part of who he had been nor a part of whoever he was at the moment, it was a temporary need, his dependency on his four friends frustrating him nonetheless. "I'd like you to call about that nurse in the morning, Quatre, if you wouldn't mind."
Heero's eyes shot open. "NO!"
Quatre and Trowa turned their heads sharply at hearing Heero's voice.
Heero sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the three poised in the center of the room.
Pale blue eyes narrowed as they faced him. "Heero. What are you doing in here?"
Author's Note:
[3] This is a FABULOUS movie with much of the cast of Monty Python. One of my personal favorites.
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