Choices of the Heart - 18 by Keara
Standard disclaimers apply
Duo could not believe that he was doing what he was
doing. Despite feeling like he’d been put in a blender on puree,
he was standing outside Quatre’s house in the middle of the
night. ‘Damn it! Quatre’s a friend! I can’t believe
I’m even contemplating this!’
Duo bit his lip under the black ski mask that he was wearing. His
braid was carefully tucked underneath his clothes in case someone
spotted him. He really didn’t care about what happened to HIM,
but he didn’t want anyone touching Cathy or Trowa because of
this. They’d been so good to him. Once he had the money for
Trowa’s operation, he vowed to turn himself in. It was the only
thing he could think of.
He stifled a groan as he moved a ladder underneath an open window.
He remembered using this tactic to visit Quatre that first night .
. . he shook his head, deciding not to think of that. If he thought
about it, he might not be able to go through with this.
‘Okay . . . at least they can’t say it was breaking and
entering. The window is open. GOD, I can’t believe I’m
trying to find a loophole in this. Well . . . I’m not armed,
so this isn’t armed robbery. It’s more cat-burglary. Maybe
I can pay them back, little by little. Sure, I’ll be in debt
to them for life, but it’ll be something.’ Duo sighed,
shaking off the thoughts that plagued him as he climbed the ladder.
He paused at the top, staring into the window that looked into a hallway.
‘I really can’t believe I’m doing this.’
Pulling together his courage, Duo climbed into the open window. It
looked as if everyone was asleep . . . he was relieved about that.
He didn’t really want to be caught right now. However, he was
even more relieved that Rasid was still at home with his family .
. . according to the large bodyguard, he was going to be coming back
in the morning.
Duo breathed as quietly as he could. He didn’t know how deeply
the inhabitants of his house slept, not for certain anyway, but he
gathered that Heero was a light sleeper. Duo sincerely hoped that
he wouldn’t step on a creaky floorboard, or knock something
over. The last thing he needed was Heero breathing down his neck.
With a sigh, Duo started looking for anything small that might not
be missed right away. He froze for a moment when he entered the kitchen
and almost ran right back out of the house. Memories had rushed to
the surface, reminding him of that first night . . . when he and Quatre
had made sandwiches and talked. Quatre was his friend and he had been
so NICE to Duo . . . it was almost too much to bear, but Duo had to
do this. ‘Think of Trowa . . . just think of Trowa.’ He
kept reminding himself. This was all for Trowa. His friend needed
his help, needed the money.
Duo then left the kitchen and glanced around. He spotted Mr. Winner’s
jacket and went over to it. It was possible that the man had left
a wallet with cash in the pocket. Duo searched through it and was
rewarded with a wallet stuffed with bills. ‘There’s at
LEAST a couple hundred dollars here. Not enough for an operation,
but enough for Trowa to get some more medicine if the worst case scenario
were to happen.’ He pocketed the money with a moment of regret
and continued looking for anything else he could grab.
After a few minutes, he had a few trinkets that he could take to
a pawn shop and claim to have found them at a garage sale. It was
a plausible story, though the thought of lying made him feel sick
to his stomach. He’d never liked lying. Besides, he was already
stealing . . . from a friend no less . . . and that was bad enough.
He was about to head out of the room he was in and back upstairs
to the window and make his escape, when the light flicked on. ‘SHIT,
someone’s awake!’ He froze like a deer caught in the headlights
when he saw Heero standing there in the doorway, glaring at him. The
only thing keeping Duo from babbling out apologies and blubbering
like an idiot, was the fact that he knew Heero could not have recognized
him. With the ski mask, and the fact that his hair was hidden, he
didn’t really have any identifiable features.
Duo swallowed and backed up toward a second doorway in the room as
Heero’s gaze flicked around the room as if to take note of just
WHAT Duo had taken.
“You son of a bitch!” Heero seethed.
That was all the warning Duo got before Heero was running at him.
Duo spun and ran for the nearest exit, only to be tackled to the ground.
The small pouch that held many of the trinkets he had taken went sliding
across the floor as he collided painfully with the ground. It was
all he could do not to cry out in pain as his injuries flared up .
. . and he braced himself for what he knew was coming. Heero was very
protective, Duo knew that, and he couldn’t blame Heero in the
least for what was about to happen. If Duo had found someone stealing
from Catherine, he would have reacted the same way. So Duo could only
bite his lip against the cries of pain as Heero started pummeling
him.
“Heero! Stop it!”
Duo bit back a gasp. That was Quatre’s voice. Although he could
feel new bruises popping up from Heero’s assault, the pain that
Duo felt came from deep inside. He had hoped not to see Quatre at
all tonight. It would have made the whole thing a little easier to
bear if he hadn’t had to face Quatre, to see that sweet face
of his and know that he was betraying his friend.
Heero growled and turned to Quatre. “He’s nothing but
a dirty thief!” He yelled, raising his fist with the intention
of delivering yet another blow to Duo’s battered body.
Quatre approached quickly and stopped Heero, wincing with pain as
he lashed out and grasped Heero’s hand. “Maybe so, but
if he’s stealing, then he must need it for some reason. He didn’t
come to any of our rooms to hurt us, so he probably just needs money.”
Heero sighed, shaking his head. “Quatre . . . you’re
too soft-hearted for your own good. Fine, I’ll stop . . . go
call the police.”
“Heero . . . couldn’t . . . couldn’t we just let
him go? I mean there’s been no real harm.”
“Quatre . . .” Heero growled. “He deserves to rot
in jail.”
“But I want to help him.” Quatre pouted a little.
Duo was taken aback. Was Quatre really this kind? True, he knew the
blonde to be good-hearted, a kind and decent person . . . but this
was a little much, wasn’t it?
Apparently, Heero agreed with Duo’s unspoken thoughts.
“Quatre . . . he’s a thief, not a stray kitten.”
Heero warned, his weight shifting just enough in his distraction.
Duo took his opportunity to throw Heero off of him. He forgot the
bag and just ran for the door. He was really glad that he’d
remembered to wear gloves. He didn’t want anyone to get his
fingerprints from the stuff he had tried to take.
As he reached the door, he could hear Quatre telling Heero not to
chase him . . . that ‘the thief’ hadn’t gotten much
since he had left his sack behind. Duo was down the street and around
the corner before the reality of what he had done finally set in,
tearing off his ski mask as he came to a stop. He had stolen . . .
from Quatre . . . had betrayed his friend.
He was thoroughly sickened with himself . . . so sickened that he
fell to his knees and threw up.
*****
Trowa groaned with discomfort as he opened his eyes. He felt so horrible
. . . so tired and nauseous, so cold and sweaty all at the same time.
He hated when his meds were changed, it always screwed up his body
for at least a couple days.
He struggled to push himself to a sitting position, grimacing as
he swallowed. He was parched, his tongue feeling as if it was made
of sandpaper. He reached over to the table beside his bed, picking
up the glass that had been left there, only to frown as he found it
was empty. That’s right, he had finished it the last time he
had awakened. With a shake of his head, Trowa decided that he would
just have to get another drink himself. He didn’t want to disturb
Catherine or Duo when they were sleeping . . . he’d done enough
of that already.
Carefully, he got to his feet, swaying unsteadily for a few long
moments. He was tired . . . dizzy . . . he could only hope that he
wouldn’t fall and crack his skull open on the way to the kitchen.
He slowly began to walk, leaving his bedroom, sliding one hand along
the wall of the hallway just in case.
Luckily, he managed to make it to the kitchen without harming himself.
He was just about to head back to his bedroom when he heard the front
door open and close. He hadn’t known that anyone had gone out
tonight. Of course, he had been in bed all day . . . so it was pretty
easy to miss the comings and goings of his roommates. He wondered
if it was Duo or Catherine . . . considering the way that Catherine
had hovered over him all day, in her typical mother hen manner, Trowa
didn’t think it had been her. Still . . . there was only one
way to be certain.
Trowa set his glass of water on the kitchen table and headed out
to the front room, freezing in place as he stood in the doorway. It
was Duo . . . and he looked terrible. He was standing with his back
to the front door, dressed all in black . . . Trowa had to wonder
why. His eyes were puffy and red, his cheeks flushed. He looked like
he’d been crying . . . but why would Duo have been crying?
Concerned, Trowa moved over to where Duo was standing. The long-haired
youth hadn’t seen him yet, his eyes cast down on the floor.
What had happened, Trowa wondered. Why was Duo so saddened? Had someone
harassed him?
“Duo?” Trowa asked, reaching out one hand, his own breath
coming harshly as he worried for his friend. He didn’t like
to see Duo upset . . . didn’t like the thought of Duo hurting.
Duo raised his head, his eyes swimming in tears. He shivered, taking
in a gulp of air as he attempted to keep his tears back. He was failing
miserably. Already, the wetness was seeping from the corners of his
eyes, running down along his bruised skin in tiny little rivers.
Trowa opened his mouth . . . and he would have asked what was wrong,
but Duo didn’t give him the opportunity.
In an instant, Trowa found his arms full. Duo all but threw himself
against Trowa’s body, although it was obvious that he had held
back his strength . . . or else Trowa would currently be on the floor.
He clung to the taller boy with a desperation, coughing out cries
that left Trowa’s heart aching in sympathy for his friend.
“Duo . . .” Trowa began, but was stopped from asking
that question by Duo’s quivering voice.
“Don't, Trowa . . . Please . . . Please don’t ask me.”
He whimpered, his fingers clutching at Trowa’s body. “I
did something horrible . . . but just . . . please don’t ask.”
If anything, that made Trowa want to ask him about it even more.
However, he respected Duo’s wishes. If Duo didn’t want
to talk about it, then they wouldn’t talk about it. As much
as he wanted to know what was troubling his friend, he wouldn’t
violate the trust they had with each other.
“All right, Duo.” Trowa said, wrapping shaky arms around
Duo’s body. “I won’t ask. But you know I am here
for you, right?”
“Yeah . . . I know.” Duo whispered against Trowa’s
chest, nodding his head. “T-Thanks. I . . . I just can’t
. . .”
Trowa set his cheek against the top of Duo’s head, letting
out a sigh. “Don’t worry about it, Duo.” He said,
rubbing his hands along Duo’s back. “If you ever are ready
to talk about it, I won’t turn you away.”
“Thanks.” Duo replied, pressing closer.
They stood there for a few moments, Trowa simply holding his friend
in the hope that he was offering some minuscule form of comfort. Then
Duo spoke again, breaking the silence that had fallen between them.
“Trowa . . . d-do you think I could sleep with you tonight?”
He asked timidly, burying his nose against Trowa’s body, muffling
his words. “I . . . I don’t want to be alone tonight.
I can go to Catherine’s room . . . if you’d rather . .
. I don’t want to trouble you.”
“Nonsense.” Trowa answered, a smile on his face. “Come
on.”
He wrapped his arm around Duo’s shoulders and urged the youth
to walk, easily guiding him back to his bedroom. Duo stripped down
to his boxers . . . a fact that left Trowa blushing . . . and the
two of them got into bed. Mere moments after laying down, Duo was
asleep, his head laying on Trowa’s chest, his body warm against
Trowa’s side.
Trowa sighed, brushing an errant hair from Duo’s face. He hoped
that his friend wouldn’t be burdened by this secret he was carrying.
All he could do was hope. Unless Duo talked, there was nothing left
for him to try. With another sigh, Trowa closed his own eyes, allowing
himself to fall asleep, his last conscious thought being that he hoped
Duo would be okay.
*******
TBC
*******
On to Part 19 (in progress)
Back to Part 17
Back to Keara's
Fan Fictions
Back to Fan Fiction Index