Warnings: Shounen ai (1+2, 3+4), language (how repetitive...)
Broken Glass
by Seph Lorraine
Chapter Three
Life for me has been more than a soap opera. Life for me has been something of a box office bum. Didn't make the cut. The critics saw it, they hated it, they took it out of running for the big screen, and released it in a flmsy paper box. I didn't even get DVD release. "Too unrealistic!" They would say. "Too cliched!" That's my life for them.
I guess that's why I am the way I am. Such thoughts are natural to me, but I'm trying to learn to avoid them. If I think naturally, they might lose interest in me, or worse, they might see who I am. But then again, I haven't seen myself for quite a while. Last time we visited it ended in an attempt at suicide.
No, Shinigami won't be coming out to play anymore.
Duo Maxwell bit down on his lower lip as an excruciating pain drove itself up his left leg. The feeling of railroad spikes being driven into his bruised ankle by a large hammer was enough to draw a small scream from the American, as Quatre quickly began to dab at it gently with the ice.
"Sorry..." The blond muttered, as he sat on the edge of the table with Duo's leg laying across him. "Aa! Duo, you're going to need a doctor..." The blond's face was grey, as he looked up at his braided friend.
A small crimson stream dripped smoothly from Duo's chin, as the American pilot's teeth dug into his thin lower lip. His eyes were tightly closed in a look of grim agony, as he shuddered violently under Quatre's touch. The boy probably hadn't heard a word the blond had said.
"How did this happen, Duo?" Quatre's aquatic eyes frowned up at Duo from his position on the coffee table.
Duo released his breath, surprised to find that he had been holding it, and gasped for a moment, opening slightly bloodshot eyes. He quickly brushed a hand up to wipe the crimson liquid from his lower jaw. "It's that rug." He jerked his head in the direction of the long floral rug, set upon the hardwood floor, leaning into the doorframe. It was slightly rumpled at the edge, as small evidence to back up his case. "Heero was chasing me to get his... thing back, and I skid on that damn rug!"
The Arabian boy resisted the urge to laugh, "Duo, you've got to do something about your clumbsiness." His eyes smiled as he shook his head.
'OK, is it just me, or was that NOT funny? I'm not that clumbsy-' Duo pouted childishly, resisting the urge to growl.
"I told you putting that rug there was a bad idea." Trowa stepped in, quietly, a tray in his hands with some tea and lemon. "Looks like I have proven my point."
The tall boy's jade green eye seemed to peer almost happily at the two from his narrow oval face. Of course, his expression was hidden by the auburn strands concealing the other side of his face. He walked silently to set the tray beside Quatre, upon the smooth top of the coffee table, and turned to leave again.
"Well the room needed some sense of coziness. It looked so hard and cold." Quatre hardly looked up from examining Duo's ankle, with his responce. "Remind me to have carpet put in this summer, eh, Trowa?"
The heavyarms pilot nodded as he walked through the door and back to the kitchen.
"Well. Let's have the one responsible take you to get this checked." Quatre looked up to yell for-
"Aw, that's OK, Q-man. I can get someone else to take me. Thanks for the offer, though." Duo smiled broadly, "I'll be fine, anyway. I'm sure I don't need to go to a doctor." The American tried to conceal the nervous chuckle that arose in his throat.
Rolling his eyes and sighing, the Sandrock pilot looked to the doorway and called, "Heero! Will you drive Duo to get his ankle checked?"
There was mild laughter heard from the kitchen, and footsteps in the hallway. Finally, the Japanese boy entered the doorway, "...No way. Him? In a car? How am I supposed to drive? He'll be fine, just let him rest it off on the couch." The 01 pilot's voice showed a tinge of irritation as he watched duo's face turn into a wide smirk.
Yes, this would be the perfect revenge. Duo couldn't help but smile viciously as the Japanese pilot argued the matter over with Quatre. Of course, Heero ended up giving in, and it was decided he would take Duo to the doctor's office after breakfast. This was going to be fun.
Strangely, the American suddenly felt the need to keep a bit of peace in the house, at least until he got into the car with Heero. Then the wildness would begin. Though after a short hour, he seemed to be forming a headache of sorts. From being knocked out earlier, and the pain in his leg, he assumed. He couldn't bring himself to do anything but lay in an attempt and rest until Heero was ready to leave.
The pain in his head seemed to be throbbing by the time Heero entered the parlor. If he was confused at Duo's silence, he carefully concealed it as he stood by the couch and looked down at the man. The American's eyes were closed lightly, and his breathing was shallow. Maybe he was asleep?
The Japanese boy's gaze lingered for a moment at the American's peaceful form. Duo had lightly pale skin, smooth and soft on the eyes, long black lashes lined his rounded eyelids, closed softly over shimmering violet eyes. Lightly tented pink lips, not too thin, lined his slightly parted mouth as whispery breaths drew in and escaped once more. His braid lay over his neck, over his lightly moving chest, to curl at the tip on the surface of the couch he laid on. Before too much time had gone by, Heero stopped and mentally kicked himself for staring.
Leaning forward, he shook Duo's shoulder gently, but enough to awaken attention from the boy. The American's eyes snapped open and he glanced up at Heero for a second, meeting the Wing pilot's eyes for merely an instant before looking to his ankle and beginning to pull himself up. Almost in a sitting position, a violent storm began to rampage within his head, and he was down again before he could remember.
He let loose a small groan, and bit down upon his lip again, as the storm began to do it's damage within the confinements of his head. This couldn't be a good sign, no not at all.
Heero blinked, mildly, staring down at the braided pilot. "Problems?"
"Aye..." A hissing sound escaped Duo's clenching teeth.
Seeing this wasn't getting them anywhere, nay would it any time in the near future, Heero did the only thing he could do in such a situation. "Hold on." He leaned down, hesitating slightly, before slipping an arm under Duo's back, and behind his knees. The American's eyes fluttered open with a look of shock as he was lifted from the couch by Heero Yuy, to be carried out.
The Japanese pilot held Duo up, against his chest, and began to walk from the room. He managed it, all the way out to the car, eloquently, and left Duo to seat himself properly and belt himself in the passenger's side, while he walked around to climb in on the right driver's side. He ignored the waves of shock emitting from the braided pilot beside him in the automobile, and began to back out as Duo fastened his seat belt.
Leaning his head softly against the back of the seat, Duo shut his eyes again. Had he just been carried over the threshold by the stoic pilot Heero Yuy? This was turning out to be an unusual day. He shuddered as the air vents blasted against him, and leaned forward to quickly shut it off. "What are you trying to do, eh? Make me into an ice cube?" Duo muttered quietly, leaning his head lightly against the window, and propping his arm up on the door's handles.
Heero didn't seem to pay him any attention as he drove silently. He was so much like a robot, that it was, at times, frightening to ponder over. His emotionless face stayed in the same blank expression, as he handled the automobile controls mindlessly. What did he think about so often that kept him so quiet?
Feeling his headache lighten up the tiniest amount, he registered once more, their destination. "The doctor?" He blinked, suddenly forgetting all of his pains, and he glanced at Heero, who hadn't moved. "We're going to the doctor?"
"Hn." The Japanese boy grunted, still unmoving.
"But you said I would be fine if I didn't go, eh? Let's just go somewhere else and say we went, eh?" Duo knew his roughly devised plan was desperate, but he shuddered at the thought of doctors.
"We'll be there soon."
"No! I can't go to a doctor!" Duo turned in his seat, cringing at the twist it made on his ankle. He looked up at Heero, eyes large and tinged with fear, "You can't take me there, Heero!"
Glaring sidelength at the boy whining in the seat beside him. "You're going to the doctor."
"But-" Near the point of panic, the American began to beg, "Doctors don't know anything! It's a waste of money! Please don't make me-"
"We're here."
The blue-eyed boy had to carry his injured comrade into the hospital by the same way he had gotten him out of the house. It wasn't nearly as shocking to the braide pilot as it had been the first time, luckily. The braided boy had been about to faint of surprise... And that's not cool. Also occupying his mind this time, was the panic of seeing a doctor.
The waiting room was fairly quiet, a few coughs were supplied into the oxygen from waiting patients, but the room wasn't too full. Heero placed Duo in a seat right beneath one of the TV monitors supported high on the wall above him. He frowned, obviously not happy about being placed in an area unable to view the screen. Glaring, Heero lifted him again and set him down across the isle in the opposite chair. Front row seat. Duo seemed pleased and playfully patted the growling pilot's messy crop of hair.
Duo then turned his attention to the TV.
'But Sandra! I love you! Can't you see that I always have? I need you to help me break it to Ran when he gets back.'
'But... Rebecca... I need to confess that I...'
'Yes...?'
'I'm pregnant...'
Insert obnoxious gasping.
'And Ran's the father...'
'You bitch! He was mine before he ever laid eyes on you-'
'I know! I'm sorry! But I... I still love you!'
The pilot rolled his eyes, suddenly wishing he were back under the TV unable to view such idiocy. Though, Heero had already gone to sign him in.
Coming back from the window with a clip board, he thrust it into Duo's hands to fill out himself. "I probably wouldn't know any of this stuff."
Scanning over the sheet, Duo noticed most was filled out except for health questions, and questions about relative family, etc. etc., except he noticed one... Male or Female was left blank and he shot a glare at the pilot across from him, under the TV. "A very bad joke on your part."
He paused seeing a flicker of amusement cross Heero's face, but it was quickly gone, and he turned back to the sheet slightly puzzled. He calmly filled out what he could, careful to leave the relative fields blank, and held the board out to Japanese boy infront of him.
Without words, Heero stood and took the clipboard back to the nurse.
'Sandra... I... I didn't know you were in town.'
'Cut the act, Ran, it's yours.'
'What!?'
'I'm going to have your baby Ran... Just another 8 months.'
'Why didn't you tell me?!'
'Because I was afraid of what you would say... I don't love you! I love Rebecca.'
'No! Rebecca, I thought that you and I...'
'I still love you Ran, but I love Sandra too...'
'What? You still love him, too?'
'Yes...'
'Well, I have news for both of you... Elise and I are engaged.'
'Elise? But what about Philip... He was just murdered a week ago!'
'I murdered Philip. She told me that if I killed him we could be together forever...'
The Death Scythe pilot haden't noticed Heero sitting across the isle from him again, and was jerked out of his stupor on the TV, when he heard his name called. "Maxwell, Duo."
Heero stood and walked over to gather his fellow pilot and carry him to the door by which the woman stood, who had called his name. "It's time."
'It's time? Time for what, exactly? No need to sound so ominous about it...'
"Wait... I think Rebecca's going to figure out that Elise is also plotting the death of her lover, Susan, because Rebecca told Elise about Sandra's baby before she knew Elise had had Ran murder Philip..." Duo blinked, suddenly realizing what he had just said, "Er... Lift?"
Blinking in mild confusion, the Japanese pilot gently lifted Duo from the seat and carried him on to the doctor's room.
The walls were a dull white, bland and dented in some areas. Tools and objects were neatly hidden within the drawers of a large counter beside the odd clinical bed in which Duo sat at the edge of. The room smelled of rubber from the gloves doctors wore during examinations. A florescent light shown above, nearly blinding when the American glanced upwards towards the grey-tiled ceiling. Hospitals were such gloomy places.
When the doctor entered, she gave a friendly smile in Duo's direction, bowing properly towards Heero in a chair in the corner, and took a seat on the stool by the cabinets.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Maxwell, I'm Dr. Guice." Her smile was enhanced by a set of shimmering white teeth, that seemed to glow like the whites of her eyes. The shames of florescent lighting. She turned her smiling face to Heero, who sat stoically in the corner, and leaned forward, "And whom might you be?"
"Heero Yuy." His tone was flat as his voice remained monotonious.
"Aa, I see. Are you of any relation to Mr. Maxwell?" She glanced down at Duo's forms and back at Duo, who shook his head in Heero's reply.
She paused for a moment and glanced at the the Japanese boy, "Just friends?"
A blank stare, with a mix of confusion stared back at the doctor from both boys.
"Lovers?" Her brow twitched slightly at the boy in the corner.
A deep hugh spread across Duo's face and he lowered his head, hoping to hide his blush. Not knowing what to do, he forced himself to chuckle, and finally laugh out loud. He couldn't see it, but he felt the icy glare of Heero Yuy upon his slumping form.
"Roomates... Housemates... Whatever." Heero bit his tounge, realizing his struggle with the words, and blocked away any images the question of Duo being his lover had ungratefully given him.
Duo slowly gained back his calmness from the burst of laughter, forced or not, and bit his lower lip again, 'Wow... We're not even friends...' It was a thought he hadn't ever paid much attention to and it surprised him at the way the topic had so subtly approached and disappeared. 'We're just roomates...' He blocked away the frown that tempted to cross his lips, and looked up, smiling.
"Right... So, what seems to be the problem, Mr. Maxwell?" She tilted her head, and crossed her legs, waiting for an answer from the man before her.
"It's my ankle... I slipped on a rug and, now it kinda hurts..." He swung up his left leg, gently, pulling back his pants leg to reveal the purple, swollen ankle. He couldn't help but hearing a small gulp from Heero's direction. At a sidelength glance, he saw some sort of guilty look bury itself in Heero's face.
"Kind of?" The doctor raised an eyebrow and ran her fingers across the spot, softly. As Duo hissed in obvious pain, and clenched his fists around the clothe of his pants leg, she scrathed a thing or two onto the paper. "I think you may have a break, or atleast a fracture. We'll need to perform some x-rays." She stuck the pen behind the metal clamp of her board, and walked to the closet, where she pulled out a collapsible wheelchair. "We need to get you to the x-ray room. Get in."
The Death Scythe pilot didn't realize he was frowning at the sight of the chair, until he glanced at Heero, and the pilot made his best attempt to mask a look of confusion. "Do I have to?"
The doctor shook her head. "You have to ride in the wheelchair."
"Damnit." His violet eyes shot a glare at the device, and he hopped off of the clinical bed, catching himself on his right foot. He hopped on one leg to the chair where the doctor helped him lower into the seat, and prop up his leg.
"Off we go." The doctor smiled and began to wheel out of the room. She paused and glanced bay at trhe Japanese man in the corner, now standing. "And you may return to the waiting room until Mr. Maxwell is ready to leave."
In the chair, Duo swung his head around to see Heero nod, and begin towards the door. "Does he have to?"
The Wing pilot paused and shot a small glare at the American.
The doctor nodded, "No one but patients and personel are allowed any further on this floor. Mr. Yuy will need to return to the waiting room."
"But I don't want to go by myself." Suddenly, he was begging?
Heero hardened his glare, and turned, beginning his walk back to the waiting room, "I'll be waiting."
Dr. Guice slowly wheeled the American down the hall to the x-ray lab, parking him at the door, to enter and set things up, first.
Duo frowned at the chair he was sitting in. He had grown much more accustomed to having the Wing pilot carry him. Even if he had only done so about three times. Mentally kicking himself for that thought, he began to focus on more important things. Like a stain of red blood upon the wall beside him.
Heero took a seat in the waiting room, and looked up to the TV monitor. Some generic soap opera was running across the screen, and no one was really paying attention. Why did they even bother to have it on? Was Duo actually watching this trash?
'Marcus, Rebecca has told me about your sister.. What she did!'
'Elise is innocent! He... He... He made it up! Ran is a fraud! He's after Elise for our money and the family fortune, can't you see? Rebecca only knows what Ran has told her.'
'But poor Philip... I loved him! Even if he did always look away from me to Ran. I loved him... Now he's dead, and he'll never know! He'll never know how I felt! How I feel! Oh, Marcus...'
Insert obnoxious kissing.
'Marcus?'
'I love you, Anna.'
'But... You love..'
'I've always loved you. I always will. You think I didn't see all the times Philip looked away from you? Think of everytime you've ever been turned down by Philip! I've always been there for you! It's because I love you, Anna.'
'But, I... I don't feel the same... I loved Philip.'
'I can understand...'
'You can?'
'No!'
Insert obnoxious gun shot.
'AH!!!'
'I'm sorry, Anna. We could have been so happy together!'
The Japanese pilot blinked, standing from his seat and just turning the TV off. Around him, several patients blinked, not really caring, but they had nothing else to do. The boy sat down again, and set himself to wait until the doctors were done with Duo.
Duo was wheeled into the waiting room after two hours by a nurse, who was followed closely by Dr. Guice, who smiled upon entrance and called out to him, "Mr. Yuy."
Heero stood, stretching slightly, and quietly walked over to where the three waited in the hallway. Upon arrival he noticed Duo's downcast look. Litterally he was looking down to his cast. A black cast, rather small, was positioned tightly around the American's ankle and lower leg. From the look his "roomate" gave, Heero could only assume it was very displeasing to Duo.
"He's had a cast put on, as you can see. Luckily the break isn't too bad, but he will have to wear the cast for a while. I have had a call from Mr. Winner establishing that all other medical terms are to be handled by a Ms. Sally Po." She paused and waited for Heero to affrim that he knew the person in questioning, "He will have to return to us to have the cast removed and a quick checkup, but other than that, he's free to go."
From his seat in the wheel chair, Duo looked up, pouting playfully, "Doc? Am I ever gonna walk again?"
The doctor laughed softly, and nodded, excusing herself to her other patients.
"Heero..." Duo looked up, eyes large with a over-dramatic worry, "It was hell. You can never let me come back again."
"Baka." The Japanese pilot simply stood, staring at him in an emotionless glare.
"I'm hurt." Was the American pilot's joking responce.
"I'm glad." Heero's voice was flat, his bordem for the last two hours showing on his voice.
"I'm sorry."
"You should be."
"Heero... I don't have any crutches yet, and I refuse to sit in the wheel chair any longer." Duo's eyes drifted off as he wrapped a finger around a long strand of chestnut hair, free from his braid. "How am I getting to the car?"
The American didn't even need to glance at the boy beside him, he could already feel the arctic chill of the Yuy death glare� penetrating his skin. Next thing, though, he was up off of his feet, and against Heero's chest as the Japanese boy headed towards the car.
All was leisure for the braided baka throughout the next few weeks, in which the other residents of Quatre's safe house discovered the result of over-exposure to soap operas. Duo was confined to the large sofa in the den by the blond-haired Arabian, where he was stuck with nothing to do, but order others around, and watch daytime TV. Niether of which were very amusing after the first 10 days.
"Wufei! The Bold and the Beautiful comes on in three minutes! Come change the channel for me!" A lazy call echoed down the halls from the den.
"No! Use the remote!" An angry call from upstairs.
"Quatre, the idiot, put it on top of the TV again!"
"Why do you keep doing that, Quatre?! Where is the justice-"
"It looked tacky on the floor!"
"Who puts the remote on top of their TV?"
"Someone! The Bold and the Beautiful! Change the channel."
After many endless conversations of the like, being screamed throughout the house, he finally decided he would rather do things by himself, anyway. No one else wanted to spend time with him. Quatre only came in to make sure he was doing OK, but otherwise, the braided boy was completely neglected of attention. He took refuge in the lives of Rebecca, Marcus, Sandra, Ran, Philip (now dead), Elise, Ken, Diane, Carl, and Anna (now dead) of the legendary teen soap Abstinance Academy Home of the Trojans.
"Oh my Gods! Ken is actually the father! Not Ran! Yes... Er... No! This means Ran died in vain when Elise found out that he was baby Ashley's father! No! He was so cool!" 1
"We need to do something about Duo." Quatre looked a bit pissed on thursday afternoon, as Duo was raving about the latest happenings on TV.
The only member of the room, aside from the blond boy, simply "Hn"ed, and glanced at the door leading into the den.
"Don't you care that one of your friends is sitting in there all alone wasting his life on stupid soap operas with oxymoronic titles?" The Arabian slammed his cup of tea down, rather hardly, and fromed when the handle broke off.
"Why should I?" Heero turned, and began up the stairs, "He's old enough to do what he wants with his life."
Within the den, Duo frowned, at the conversation in the hallway.
It was late that evening when Quatre entered the den to find Duo alone on the couch in darkness. All of the lights had been turned out, the TV was off, and Duo simply laid back on the couch, staring into the shadow before his weary violet eyes.
"Duo?" The blond pilot stepped into the room, "What are you doing in here?"
The American made no responce, but instead stayed still.
Quatre walked in and took a seat on the couch by his fellow pilot, shaking him by the shoulder, incase he was asleep. The Death Scythe pilot was not asleep, though, as was apparent when he looked over, wide awake, at Quatre. "Is something wrong?"
Duo blinked, and sunk lower into the couch, making no responce.
"Are you feeling ok?" Brushing his small hand against the braided boy's forhead, he seemed to pick up a normal temperature. Whatever it was, it wasn't illness. "Duo? What's wrong?"
"Nothing..." The violet-eyed boy straightened himself on the couch, sitting up, and sighed lightly. "I was just thinking about..."
Seeing that the boy wasn't going to continue, Quatre prodded him further. "About..?"
Duo took a breath, quickly, "Q-man... Do you and Trowa... Do you guys... Well..." He took a glance around nervously, "Do you guys... love... each other?"
Puzzled by the origin of the question more than the meaning itself, the Arabian blinked in mild confusion, slightly taken aback that Duo would ask him such a thing. "Yes... Yes we do." He turned away from his fellow pilot, moving his gaze to a spot on the floor below him. "Why?"
Now it was Duo's turn to be taken aback. "Oh... I don't know. Ever since the doctor asked me something, I've just beem thinking..."
"I thought you were watching soap operas." Quatre quirked and eyebrow. "What did the doctor ask you?"
"Um... Nevermind. Oh... Nah... I can't stand daytime TV." Duo drifted back into his state of deep thought, staring blankly at the blackness. Silent.
"Oh... Well I'm going to bed. If you need anything, just call, OK?" The boy stood and left as soundly as he had come. Though, his mind ached with questions. Duo was acting strangely tonight. He claimed to hate daytime TV, yet it sounded as if he actually were watching the shows. What had Duo been thinking about, anyway?
To Be Continued...