Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ A Lovely Mess ❯ Don't worry ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Title: A Lovely Mess

Author: Supurrkitty

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam wing, nor it's characters. On the other hand, I do own Haruki, Akira, Umeko, and Hoshi.

A/N: Well, this actually started out as a Doujinshi I drew, hell knows how long ago, and now I've decided that it would be better just to write it out, instead. Being the lazy ass I am.

Description: A what if fiction that is actually an AU from my other sets of fiction.

Note: Haruki is not from earth, the war she spoke of was at her home planet.

Chapter three: Don't worry

Everyone sat on the waiting room couches silently chatting. Haruki read the note over and over again, until she analyzed every single word trying to find a deeper meaning to it all. Finally, she had handed it over to another so they could hold it under a magnifying glass and try to figure something out.

" He clearly states L2, but he says he's going to be with his family." Heero said

" I didn't know he knew where his family was buried." Quatre said.

Haruki sat next to him. Her eyes were closed in deep thought.

' None of you understand.' Haruki thought to herself. ' I can't believe he only told me…'

" We'll have to go to L2 anyway. We can't just give up without looking." Hilde said.

Heero nodded " I'll go." He volunteered.

" Me and Wufei will, too." Hilde said and Wufei nodded.

Haruki stood up.

" I'm going." She said and Quatre looked up at her.

" Haruki, he doesn't know you-…" Quatre started, but was cut off.

" I know Quatre, but they need help and I have to know about these last six years." Haruki half pleaded with him. " It's best to get this out of the way beforehand, Quatre."

" You're probably right." Quatre said and looked back down, giving in.

" Don't worry." Haruki sat back down beside him and smiled. " It's just something I have to do."

'just something I have to do…' Haruki thought as they moved their small amount of luggage into the hotel rooms they had gotten on L2.

She maneuvered her small bag through the door and around the furniture, setting it on a table.

" Ahh, I remember the good old days when I could just store all my belongings in an empty alter-dimensions…" Haruki mumbled and took out a hairbrush. " How modern…"

Haruki sighed and sat in a chair at the table, combing through her hair. She imagined every stroke being one in a painting and an idea came to her mind. She dug out a sketchbook and a pencil and started to draw a sketch of a painting that came to mind.

" I'll take the couch for the night, we'll start our search ASAP, but we only have until tomorrow to find where it is." Heero said, then stopped to look at what she was doing. " Do you do that all the time?"

" Ideas never pop into my head. It's really quite…unusual…" Haruki said, keeping her eyes on the page.

" Right. Well, Hilde and Wufei are gonna take off towards the junkyard and search for the graveyards there. And we'll search around the other side of the colony…"

" No." Haruki said, putting down her sketching materials.

" Excuse me?" Heero looked down at her.

" It'd be best if we split up. Hilde knows what she's doing. She used to live here. But I've only been here a few times before." Haruki looked at him. " we'll cover more ground."

Heero looked at her skeptically, and, after much thought, gave in and nodded. He figured she really wanted to find him so he'd be okay, but was also afraid of being the one to find him.

" What time is it?" Haruki asked as she put her stuff back up. Heero looked at his watch.

" It's about 5:30." Heero said. " Why?"

" You go ahead and start your search. I need to get a bus schedule. I'll meet you back here around 9:00." Haruki said and put her hair up.

" I'll just go talk to Hilde and Wufei and I'll get going." Heero said and walked to the next room, suspecting she wanted him out of there for some, unknown reason.

Haruki sighed as he left.

It was 5:30. Time…time, time, time. Did the note ever say anything about the time? Haruki dug it out of her pocket and spread it in front of her on the table.

My dear friends,

I regret to inform you that this will be…

'c'mon…' Haruki scrolled through it.

I will be joining my family at their gathering, but I fear this time there will be no resurrection…

" Resurrection…? Easter! It was Easter weekend! So, you're planning to be different, as usual. You're doing the exact opposite. Instead of dead and then resurrected. You plan to stay there, alive, then fallen on resurrection day." Haruki smirked to herself. " You try so hard, dear. Just what are you trying to prove?"

' He should be there right now, then. Until sunrise when… would he…?' Haruki folded the note then went to sit on the couch. 'God, it's been so long, but you make it feel like yesterday.'

" Well then, mister Maxwell, I'll give you my time, too. Sunset. The time I left your life forever, or so you thought." Haruki whispered to herself before she dozed off.

(A/N- If you haven't guessed, Haruki left quite suddenly around sunset when she left Duo.)

When she awoke, the light was setting up a nice glare, but was not quite sunset. Haruki thanked her internal clock and slipped on her coat. Her heart thumped hard and fluttered at the same time as she walked down the street, trying to remember the spot Duo had taken her years ago. It was as if someone painted a blurry map in front of her face.

What had happened in those last years? Where had Duo been? What did he do? Did he meet anyone? Did he forget her?

Haruki looked at her surroundings, sad thoughts clouding her mind, but she could see her destination in an isolated, grassy area down the empty road. She walked slowly toward it, feeling herself fall apart with each step. As she got closer, she could see a dark figure sitting under a tree. She crumbled inside, but kept her pace steady, studying it with each advance. She could make out another feature each time. He didn't turn his head upon hearing her footsteps, but just stared off at the colony around him.

Haruki could tell from the braid that it was definitely him. She walked to a few yards behind him, but then stopped. A small part of her was courageous enough to push forward and get his attention. But, a huge part of her wanted to turn on her heels and run full speed back to the hotel.

But, she swallowed her fear and slowly went forward she stopped on the other side of the tree. She looked to her left at the memorial to all those killed in the destruction of Maxwell church.

" So, you figured me out. I suspected someone would." He said, not turning around.

" No. You suspected I would figure it out. I'm the only one you ever told." Haruki leaned against the other side of the tree.

" So, you are alive." Duo said.

" No, I'm speaking from beyond the grave." Haruki smirked.

Duo stood up, then spun around, putting both hands on either side of Haruki. He looked down at her. She looked up at him.

" You're more beautiful than when you left me." Duo said, smiling down at her.

" Oh Duo, it's been so long!" Haruki hugged him tightly and started to cry " Where have you been?"

" That's not important right now, I'm here." Duo hugged her.

" So, you were at the party? You delivered the note?" Haruki asked. She could feel him nod.

" I stopped to look for you, but when you were dressed up like that I wasn't sure if it was you. So, I set up to find out." Duo said

" Would you really have killed yourself?" Haruki asked. Duo was silent for a bit.

" If you hadn't come… I don't know…" Duo let her go. " But…you came. So, everything's good."

Duo pushed her hair out of her face. " Why didn't they tell me?"

Haruki's eyes trailed to the side, then she looked up at him, almost pleadingly.

" Duo… it's been a really…really long time…" Haruki said.

" What do you mean?" Duo searched her eyes in confusion.

" Never mind," Haruki shook her head. " Like you said, that's not important now."

Haruki hugged him and Duo hugged back, but he kept thinking about what she said.

" Will you come back?" Haruki asked him.

" Yeah…I have nothing else to do. No reason not to." Duo said.

" Everyone will be happy to see you. You missed a lot these last years." Haruki said.

" How is everyone?" Duo asked, pulling away.

Haruki sighed and smiled.

" You might want to sit down if I'm gonna cover these last years." She motioned to the tree.

Duo sat down. leaning against the tree, as did Haruki.

" Well, where to start?" Haruki put her hands in her lap and looked up at the sky. " Heero. He and Akira got married."

" You're joking, right?" Haruki shook her head.

" They had a little girl named Hoshi. She's the cutest thing you'll ever see. You'll be able to see her if you go to Earth. But… they're having problems lately and they've filed for divorce… too bad you weren't able to see them together…Let's see…Trowa. Umeko, from the shrine. remember her? Well she came to check up on…"

" Yeah, I know. She told me all about them being together and him proposing. Then she left, because she was afraid. She was planning on returning, but something…quite unfortunate happened…"

" Trowa proposed?" Haruki looked at him.

" According to her, yes."

" She was with you?" Haruki asked.

" I found her in the hospital. She had been raped and was told she was pregnant. She was rather surprised to see me after the others said I was gone. I agreed to let her travel with me so no one would find her till she felt ready. We talked a lot and got to thinking about what we had done. We felt like cowards, the longer we'd wait the worse it would get. Then, I started to notice something was wrong with her and it kept getting worse. So, trying to do her a favor, I heard about the party and decided to put her in the hospital closest to all of you. I almost got distracted delivering the message when I saw you. So, I set up another plan and delivered another note. Oh yes, Haruki, don't run in heels." Duo smirked at her.

Haruki laughed, recalling that night.

" She woke up this morning, she was pretty close to death, but I think she'll be okay."

" That's good." Duo said.

" Now, where was I. Oh yes. Wufei. He and Hilde hooked up and they've been married for a few years. They're pretty happy."

" Wait, wait, Hilde? My Hilde?" Duo asked. Haruki nodded. " He better be taking good care of her. If their marriage ends up like Heero and Akira's…" Haruki giggled at him.

" Like I said, they're pretty happy. They're here on L2, looking for you. You can check up on them. Anyway, Relena's doing what she always does, work, not much change there. She doesn't seem that happy. Hmm, anyone else…?" Haruki thought.

" How's Quatre?" Duo asked.

"Oh…Quatre? He's…uh… doing fine…" Haruki said and looked around. " It's getting dark. Are you ready to make your big entrance back into the world?"

" You bet." Duo said.

" Oh my god, Duo! It's good to see you again." Relena hugged him.

Everyone had come over to greet Duo at Quatre's place as soon as he arrived on Earth.

Haruki hugged Quatre as soon as she walked in after Duo and the others.

" Quatre, I'm not ready to tell him. Please, don't say anything." Haruki whispered to him.

" Don't worry." He whispered back.

Haruki smiled at him and they joined the rest of the group in greeting Duo. Of course, he was already greeted back into the world by Hilde, Wufei and Heero.

Haruki tried to avoid Duo throughout the whole trip back, afraid of him finding out about her and Quatre and everything else that had happened. Even now, she stood off to the side as she watched everything happen.

" Hey Trowa! Long time no see! So, how's Umeko?" Duo smiled hopefully.

" It was rough at first, but the doctor says she can come home in about a week. Duo, she told me everything." Trowa smiled at first, but put on a serious face at the last part.

" Everything?" Duo asked and Trowa nodded.

Duo smiled then went to the next person closest to him.

" Hey Q-man, how's it going?" Duo said slapping his friend on the back.

" Oh, it's okay, I've got a lot of work, but, hey, I'm rich, I can't complain." Quatre smiled.

Duo laughed. Quatre looked over to Haruki, who then raised her eyebrows and nodded her head. Quatre sighed.

" Hey, while everyone's here. You guys wanna stay for dinner?" Quatre suggested.

" That's a good idea, Quatre" Akira said, walking up beside him and putting Hoshi down.

" Why, hello." Duo knelt down beside the girl, who hid behind her mother's legs. " You must be Hoshi. My name is Duo. I've heard a lot about you from your Daddy."

" Really, Mr. Duo?" The little girl came out from behind Akira's legs.

" Really. You know what he says?" Duo whispered in her ear.

" What?" Hoshi leaned in his direction to hear him.

" He says…you're…TICKLISH!" Duo suddenly grabbed her and tickled her. She started to scream with laughter.

Akira kneeled down beside the two. Hoshi ran to her mommy.

" Mommy, save me!" Hoshi said in between giggles. She wrapped her arms around her mommy.

" It's nice to see you again, Duo." Akira smiled at him.

" You too." Duo smiled back, knowing what she was going through right then.

Then, Hoshi noticed her father was back.

" Daddy!!" Hoshi ran to her Father.

" Hey Pumpkin." He said as he picked her up.

Duo smiled and stood up, as did Akira.

" You've escaped the tickle monster…for now!" Duo said, going to tickle her again.

" Nooooo!" Hoshi screamed, half laughing and buried her face in Heero's shirt.

Heero cocked an eyebrow at the little girl.

" You aren't afraid of him, are you?" The little girl looked up at him.

" No." The little girl stuck out her bottom lip and glared in Duo's direction.

" Woah… no question there, she's Heero's kid." Duo backed up a little.

Hoshi pulled out a toy gun and pointed it at Duo.

" Omae O Kurosu, Tickle monster…" Hoshi said, giving the 'death glare'.

Duo backed up until he bumped into Quatre, then he quickly placed the blonde in front of him.

" Talk about teaching your kids bad habits…" Duo muttered as he hid behind Quatre.

The little girl giggled as she put her fake gun away.

Haruki smirked from the corner she was hiding in. In many ways, Duo hadn't really changed. But, he had a different presence to him. He had grown up from the last she saw of him. Life was more serious to him.

" What happened when you were gone…?" Haruki whispered to herself, watching everyone interact.

Quatre looked over to the corner and caught Haruki's eye. She looked at him for a second, then moved her eyes to side, looking at the ground. Quatre gave a small frown.

Duo watched the whole interaction, then looked back at Haruki. She looked sorrowful and angry. Duo was a bit confused.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

" I think it would be best if I talked to him." Haruki said looking to the side.

" Are you sure?" Quatre asked.

" Yeah, It'd be best for both of us." Haruki smiled at Quatre.

" When are you gonna tell him?" Quatre asked.

" Not tonight. It's too much for one day. I'll tell him tomorrow." Haruki said. " Till then, we'll have to keep a low profile, okay?"

" Alright." Quatre nodded.

" But things will turn out alright, I'm sure they will." Haruki said, reassuring herself more than Quatre.

" They will." Quatre said, grabbing her in an embrace.

Haruki leaned up and closed in a kiss.

Haruki pulled away seconds later and gave him a small smile.

" I'll see you later, Quatre." Haruki said and went out the door into the hallway. She closed the door after her and let out a worried sigh as she leaned against the door. How was she going to tell Duo? She'd have to gather her strength. She rubbed her head as she walked to her room. She entered and emptied her pockets onto the table, seeing a small note. She picked it up and walked to her bed to read it.

Pardon another note, but I have to see you alone. There's so much I want to tell you that I never got to. Meet me at the fountain at midnight.

Your stalker

" You're not making this much easier, Duo…" Haruki plopped down on the bed.

She made her decision, she was going to go…