Choices of the Heart - Part 1 by Keara
Standard disclaimers apply
Quatre felt himself being drawn to consciousness and fought it with
every fiber of his being. He just wasn’t ready to get up just
yet. The bed was too warm . . . too comfortable. He didn’t want
to get up. He rolled over, an attempt to keep awareness away, and
was rewarded by a harsh ray of sunlight in his face. He winced and
turned away from the offensive light, burying his face in the pillow
as he pulled the covers over his head to make it even darker.
“Quatre . . . come on! We have to leave in twenty minutes!”
A voice called out, seemingly from miles away. However, for all Quatre
knew, the person was standing right next to his bed.
Quatre made some unintelligible answer, something between a grunt
and a murmur in the hopes that the voice would go away and let him
sleep just a little longer.
“Quatre . . .” The voice persisted. “You won’t
have time for breakfast.”
He tried to answer, wanting to tell the intruder to go away. He just
wanted to sleep a bit longer. Ten minutes . . . five minutes . . .
anything. Quatre sighed happily, snuggling deeper into the warmth
of his blankets, as the voice went away . . . at the sound of footsteps
leaving his room.
However, that happiness was short lived and he heard the footsteps
return only moments later. “I didn’t want to have to do
this to you, little bro, but . . .”
Quatre flinched as the blankets were yanked from his body, keeping
his eyes shut and hoping he wouldn’t be forced out of bed. He
just wanted a little more sleep. Was that so wrong? Suddenly, he was
torn from sleep, when ice cold water drenched his body.
He bolted straight up in bed, icy cold water dripping from his hair,
soaking his body and the sheets underneath him. “GYAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!
HEERO!” He yelled at his stepbrother, who was now holding an
empty pitcher in his hands.
Heero smirked slightly, an expression that probably wouldn’t
be noticed by anyone other than Quatre. “Hn! Good thing I’m
not my dad . . . he wouldn’t have warned you. Get dressed. We
leave in ten minutes.” He said, then promptly left the room.
Quatre shivered, wondering for the hundredth time why his father
had married Heero’s mother. Surely it wasn’t because she
was pleasant company. She had been just as bad, if not worse than
Heero. He guessed that being a female soldier made a person tough,
but man, she had been so strict. No wonder Heero had turned out the
way he had.
Of course, she had been an attractive woman, and at times her kindness
toward others showed through her gruff exterior. Quatre had several
memories of when he was still mourning his own mother’s loss
and she had comforted him. She had been a friend to Quatre’s
mother, although Quatre still didn’t know how the two women
had become friends. It wasn’t until years after his mother’s
death, and his father’s marriage to Heero’s mother before
Quatre learned to like Setzu Yuy. And they truly hadn’t gotten
along very well, until she too became ill.
Quatre shook off the thoughts of his stepbrother, and stepmother,
not wanting to dwell in the bad memories. He hastily walked into the
bathroom. Then he grabbed a towel and quickly dried himself off before
returning to his room. Since they had to leave so quickly, there wasn’t
time for a shower. Who knew what Heero would do to him if they were
late for school.
*****
Duo groaned as he buried his face deeper into his pillow. It was way
too early to wake up, at least in his honest opinion. However, as
much as he wanted to go back to sleep, he knew he couldn’t.
Even if that alarm clock of his wasn’t blaring, he had to get
up, if only to make sure his roommate, and best friend, got out of
bed.
He reached out blindly, and slammed his hand down on the snooze button
of his alarm clock, ceasing that annoying sound. Slowly he rolled
over, deciding that it was time to face another day. He forced his
eyes open, wincing at the brightness of the sun as it hit his face.
Duo pushed the blankets from his body, muttering about how bright
it was, as he struggled to sit up. He swung his legs over the edge
of the bed and quickly stood, getting a head rush when he moved too
fast. But he didn’t let a little dizziness stop him, and he
walked into the bathroom, grabbing his little travel bag with him
as he moved.
He locked the bathroom door behind him. It was just something he
had to do. Lord knew that he couldn’t get caught doing what
he usually did in the bathroom. It would only get him in trouble,
maybe even thrown out of the house if his friends found out.
Carefully, he set his bag down on the edge of the sink and opened
it. Without looking inside, he pulled out a white, pill bottle. As
he popped the cap off, Duo glanced up, his eyes catching a glimpse
of his own reflection. Man, did he look awful. His hair was a mess,
most of it hanging knotted and unraveled from the braid it was usually
in. His skin was a grayish pallor, his eyes were puffy and surrounded
by dark bruise-colored circles. He looked so tired, and he felt even
more exhausted than he looked, feeling as if any minute he could collapse.
Duo shook his head and poured a couple pills out of the bottle and
into his hand. Quickly, not letting himself think about it, he popped
the pills into his mouth. Grabbing a small plastic cup from the cup
holder by the sink, he filled it with cool water, then lifted the
cup to his lips, swallowing the water and the pills. He didn’t
need the water to take the pills . . . it just made it easier first
thing in the morning, if he had something to wash them down with.
He was addicted to the little white pills, the uppers. But then again,
he needed them, so he couldn’t quit taking them. He had a job,
plus school to deal with, and no time for more than a couple hours
sleep each night if he was lucky. However, that was the way it had
to be. He had to pay his own way in school, had to help out his roommate
and the guy’s sister. Poor guy was sick, and Duo wouldn’t
sit by and watch his friend suffer. He just had to help. After all,
they were nice enough to take him in off the streets.
A poor orphan like Duo . . . no one else even gave him the time of
day. It had ben rare for any of the people passing on the streets
to even drop a couple cents his way. Not that he would take it anyway.
Duo never accepted charity, it just wasn’t something he did.
He had gotten enough of charity from those snobs that had shut down
the orphanage, forcing him into a foster home he had never wanted
to go to in the first place.
He would have been much happier with Sister Helen and Father Maxwell,
than in the hell-hole he had been sent to. Weren't there agencies
that checked prospective foster parents out to make sure they weren’t
abusive bastards? Obviously whoever it was had taken the day off when
it came to Duo’s turn to be placed in a home.
Duo shook his head again, knocking the unpleasant thoughts away.
He had gotten out of that place. They couldn't hurt him now. He sniffled,
remembering the one pleasant face in that place, the only one that
wasn’t there anymore. “Solo . . .” He whispered,
an errant tear escaping his eye as he remembered his friend.
Someone knocked on the bathroom door, startling Duo and causing him
to jump slightly. He almost spilled all the pills out of his bottle.
“Duo, you okay in there?” A pleasant voice called out.
It was his roommate’s sister.
“Yeah . . . I’m fine. I’ll be out in a minute.”
Duo replied, hastily putting the cap back onto the bottle and shoving
it back into the bag.
“That’s okay, don’t rush on my account. Breakfast
is ready and waiting for you. Make sure you wake my brother up so
he can take his meds. I have to get ready for work.”
“No prob.” Duo answered, placing his fake grin on his
face even though no one was there to see it.
Duo once again reached into his bag, this time pulling out his hairbrush.
He unraveled what was left of his braid, and brushed it as quickly
as he could. Then he re-braided it and looked at his reflection once
again. Well, at least his hair looked better.
He went about with the rest of his bathroom routine, although he
did skip the shower because he didn’t want to be late for school.
As quickly as he could, he returned to his room and got dressed, then
tossed his books into his backpack. At least he had gotten all his
homework done before he had fallen asleep, that was a good thing.
“Hey, Trowa . . . wake up!” Duo said cheerfully, as he
strolled into his roommate’s room. Those pills had finally kicked
in, and he felt more awake, hopefully looked a little better too.
He stopped short, his smile falling from his face as he saw his roommate.
His friend, as usual, was sleeping on several pillows, the head of
his bed propped up. Trowa was tossing and turning fitfully in his
sleep, obviously caught in some nightmare. Duo rushed to his side,
knowing this was not a good thing considering Trowa’s heart
condition.
“Trowa . . . Wake up, buddy!” Duo said, shaking his friend’s
sweat-soaked shoulder.
Trowa merely pushed at him weakly with his hands, not waking from
sleep. Duo held him down, not wanting to hurt his friend. But he was
becoming increasingly worried. Trowa was not well, and if this continued
there was a risk to his life. Duo was not ready to lose any more friends.
He held Trowa as gently as possible while keeping a firm grip on
him. “Please, wake up . . . please.” He whispered, trying
to sound soothing.
A weight, causing the bed to move, caught Duo’s attention for
a brief moment. He looked over, to see that Catherine, Trowa’s
older sister, was sitting on the other side of the bed, beside her
younger brother. She laid her hand against Trowa’s cheek. “Come
on, little bro. Wake up.” She said quietly, although Duo could
hear the panic in her voice.
Trowa’s eyes snapped open, and he opened his mouth to take
in a huge gulp of air. For several long seconds he was unable to breathe
properly, and Duo and Catherine remained by his side, fearing the
worst. Duo grabbed the glass of water, that was always present on
Trowa’s bedside table, and held it to his friend’s lips,
while Catherine held her little brother in a more upright position.
Trowa sipped at the water, then coughed, clutching his chest with
one hand. He winced, his body beginning to shiver, even though he
was covered in sweat. “Are you okay?” Catherine asked,
once Trowa’s breathing had returned to almost normal.
He nodded silently in reply.
Catherine leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her brother’s
temple. “You scared the shit out of me, Trowa.” She whispered,
pulling away from him and standing up. “You get yourself ready
for school if you’re up for it today, and breakfast is waiting
for you two on the table. I have got to go to work.”
“Ok, Cathy.” Trowa replied, breathlessly.
Catherine gave him a half-smile and turned to leave the room. She
stopped by the door, and glanced back. “You take care of him,
Duo.” She said, her voice laced with worry.
Duo nodded. He knew that if she could stay she would have. But she
really did have to go to work. It was bad enough that she had to drop
out of school after their parents had died, but now her younger brother
was in desperate need of an operation that they just couldn’t
afford. This was all wearing her down bit by bit, Duo was sure of
it. All she did was worry over Trowa, spending all of her free time,
if she had any, doting over her younger brother and fretting over
his failing health.
Trowa slowly sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed.
Duo stayed by his side, reaching over and grabbing his pill dispenser,
opening the appropriate section to get Trowa’s morning medication.
He handed the pills, and the glass of water over to Trowa, watching
as his friend took his pills. Then Duo checked Trowa’s blood
pressure, just like he did every morning.
“Need help getting to the bathroom today?” Duo asked,
trying to sound pleasant. He knew that some mornings his friend just
didn’t have enough energy to do much, and often Duo had to help
him along.
“Nah, I can make it on my own today.” Trowa replied.
“Just give me a second.”
Duo looked at Trowa, watching as he closed his eyes to take in a
few deep breaths. He was worried about his friend. It was obvious
that his health was bad, and only getting worse. Soon, even his medication
wouldn’t be able to help him. And then what would happen? Duo
shuddered at the only answer available, not wanting Trowa to die.
And he wasn’t going to let that happen. Slowly and surely he
was saving his money. Even if it killed him in the process, Duo would
work as many hours as he could to pay for that operation for Trowa.
He already had quite a bit saved up, hidden someplace safe. Only a
little more and he would be able to repay his friends for all the
kindness they had shown him.
*******
TBC
*******
Notes: Just in case you are wondering, Trowa has
Aortic Stenosis, a heart valve defect in which abnormal tissue obstructs
the blood flow through the valve. I researched the subject thoroughly,
but symptoms can appear different in each individual.
On to Part 2
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