Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Eyes Cold As Stone ❯ Epilogue ( Epilogue )

Eyes Cold As Stone

Epilogue

"O wonder! How many goodly creatures there are here! How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world that hath such creatures in `t!" Mindy stopped in her reading and looked at the comatose man beside her. She had been by his side for the last three hours, reading Shakespeare to him. She had visited the lost man every week for the last four months, and each time she would read Shakespeare or Edgar Allen Poe, or a novel that she was reading in her own spare time. She had hoped that the young man would have woken up months ago, but he still slept. Four months! And the doctors were beginning to loose hope that he would wake up. She would never know his name. She studied his face-the pale complexion, the golden eyebrows, and the long eyelashes that rested gently on his cheeks. "O brave new world that hath such creatures in it." She whispered to the sleeping angel. "Please, wake up." She turned away as she heard the duty nurse begin to make her rounds.

"Visiting hours are up." Mindy quickly gathered her things and took her leave of the golden man. She paused at the door and looked back to the man that had intrigued her for the last four months.

"I think its time that I call my sister. Sally is a great doctor." She turned and left the hospital room. She rummaged through her purse and pulled out her cell phone. She hadn't talked to her sister in over three years, but they weren't that close. Mindy was a psychologist and a wife and a mother of one. Sally had been a military doctor and now worked as a doctor for some big company that currently escaped Mindy's mind. She shook her head as if to clear her memory as she activated the phone's address book and looked for Sally's name.

"Mindy Po! What a pleasant surprise seeing you here!" Mindy raised her head to look at the man calling her name.

"Robert Allen, you stinker. Where's Alice?" Mindy embraced her husband. When she had gotten married, she had already been a professional in her field, so she had kept her maiden name instead of taking her husband's.

"She's at her friend's house. I wanted to rescue you from the clutches of this hospital."

"Robert, the hospital isn't holding me hostage, you know."

"But the comatose patient in Room 147 is-whether he knows it or not." Mindy tried to level her sternest glare at her laughing husband.

"I feel sorry for him Robert." He stopped laughing and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"I know, sweetheart, but he isn't your responsibility. I admire what you've done for him, but…" Mindy absently waved her hand.

"I know. I'm spending too much time here. Well, I'll have you know I was just about to call Sally."

"Good. She's a better doctor than the majority of these doctors put together. We live in a small town-I'm surprised they haven't sent the young man to Svetlaine, yet. They have much more advanced doctors there." Mindy nodded her head in agreement-it was true, the town of Hartling was too small to carry the upscale doctors that most cities boasted of.

"Can you give me a moment? I'd like to call her now." Her husband smiled in understanding and moved silently down the hall. She dialed Sally's number and waited for either Sally or voice mail.

"Dr. Po." Mindy let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding.

"Sally, thank God. I was hoping I could get in touch with you."

"Mindy? What's wrong?"

"There's this man, he's in a coma and not waking up. We live in a small town, you know, and I was hoping that you could take a look at him-I don't think that the doctors are diagnosing him correctly."

"Mindy-whoa, hold up. I can't just leave. I have responsibilities here, and I'm involved in a very delicate situation here. I don't think that I can get away."

"But Sally! He collapsed on my lawn from a gunshot wound. He had bruises all over his exposed skin! They looked as if they had been acquired over a long period of time. The doctors aren't remembering this. I'm afraid that he's dying!" There was a long pause before Sally spoke again, and her voice had become ragged and unsure.

"Bruises, gunshot wound… When did you find him, Mindy?"

"About four months ago." She heard a sharp intake of air.

"Do you know his name?"

"No. He didn't have any identification on him. At first I thought that he was a beggar."

"Where…where do you live, now?"

"In Hartling. There used to be a base a few miles east of us, but it exploded or something just before I found him." Mindy thought that she heard a choked sob.

"I'll be there ASAP. Don't let anyone touch him until I get there." The line went dead. Mindy stared at her cell phone in amazement.

______________________________

Hurry! Sally silently screamed at the pilot to hurry. The plane finally came to a stop and it was a few antagonizingly slow moments before the walkway was extended and the flight attendants opened the door. Sally flung herself out of her seat and practically sprinted for the terminal. She raced through the airport as if her life depended on it. She impatiently hailed a cab and paid the driver an extra fifty to go fast. She arrived at Swedish Hospital and made another mad dash into the lobby, searching for her sister Mindy.

"Sally!" She spun around and bolted toward her sister.

"Where is he?" Mindy looked a little hurt, but led the way toward the hospital elevators. Sally tapped her foot.

"Calm down, Sal, he's not going anywhere." Sally turned toward her sister.

"This man might be one of my missing friends. I'm sorry if I seem rude, but I have been looking for him for a long time now." Mindy nodded and fell silent. The elevator doors couldn't open fast enough. Mindy stepped out of the elevator and gestured to the room across the hall.

"I'll let you go in alone." Sally barely heard her as she slowly began walking toward the pointed out room, her heart pounding wildly against her ribcage. Everything was moving in slow motion, including herself, but she finally crossed the threshold and stopped breathing. Sleeping soundly, tucked into hospital sheets was Quatre. Her heart threatened to burst from her ribcage as she slowly sank to the floor as her knees gave way. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed tense and worried tears. Relief welled up inside of her as she cried for all she was worth.

She finally composed herself enough to get up and sit on the side of Quatre's bed. She gently ran her fingers through his shaggy hair as she smiled warmly upon him.

"I found you. Now I can take you home." She stood up and left the room in search of an administrator. She had to get Quatre home-no matter what the cost.

______________________________

He was aware-but aware of what, he didn't know. He drifted slowly through a clearing fog. He focused on two objects close ahead, straining to see through the fog. The clouds suddenly parted-

"TROWA!" His shout echoed through the room, the reverberations still being felt in his chest. The image of clear green eyes slowly faded as he looked wildly around. Where was he?

Who was he?

Whose name did he just call out?

Who was he?

He sensed danger-why, he did not know. He could not pinpoint anything specific other than an immense desire to get away as fast as possible. He pounced out of the bed and bolted from the room, knocking some young man down in his wake. He vaguely heard a woman shout from behind him, and he ran faster.

______________________________

Sally was alerted to muted shouts and calls of alarm from outside the office. She pulled open the door to see several doctors rushing down the hall. She glanced back at the stingy man she had been talking to and stepped into the chaos in time to see a yellow streak go barreling outside the main hospital doors. Her stomach clenched.

"Quatre! QUATRE!" She raced after him, shoving through people in order to get to the outside. "QUATRE!" He paused frantically just outside the door and looked wildly around as if he were a frightened animal. She tried to move faster. Quatre darted off to the right as she approached the doors. She burst out into the sunlight after Quatre. "Quatre come back!" She shouted after the retreating figure. She made a vain attempt to catch up to him, quitting only when he was out of sight and she could stand up no longer. She withered to the ground, sobbing. "Quatre."

______________________________

"Duo, please, just eat this." Relena held a plate full of food in front of Duo. He reluctantly took it from her and began nibbling at the food. Relena sighed in relief. She had been bugging him about eating for two hours, now. She watched Duo pick at his food, confident that he was in fact eating, before starting up a conversation. "Are you still working at the church?" Duo nodded. "Do you enjoy it there?" Duo shook his head. "Are you going to talk to me?" Duo looked up, startled.

"I'm not talking?" Relena shook her head.

"No. You haven't said more than five words to me since I arrived." She reached forward and placed her hand on his. "I got here more than three hours ago." She leaned back and chuckled. "You're reminding me of Heero."

"You've been a great friend, `Lena, but, why are you here? The political conference you were attending ended two months ago."

"I'll tell you the same thing I've told you every time I see you. I am worried about you Duo." She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor across from Duo. "We're all worried about you." Duo squeezed his eyes shut.

"I'm not worth the worry." Relena took hold of Duo's chin, causing him to look at her.

"You are worth plenty of worry. You are worth every ounce of worry and love that we have. You are worth just as much to me as Dorothy, Zechs, Quatre, Heero and everyone else. Don't ever say that you aren't worthy again. Do you understand?" Duo nodded solemnly.

"I guess I just don't understand why."

"Because you are our friend, because we love you."

"But why?" Duo spoke in a small voice.

"Because you are funny," she settled back against the wall, "because you are kind, because you are intelligent, and wise. Because you are always smiling, and because you are a prankster and a fool. But most of all, because you are you." She gently wiped away Duo's tears. "Please come back with me, Duo. Everyone misses you. Please." Duo pulled away.

"I…I can't. I'm sorry, I just can't face everyone after…what happened."

"I understand Duo, but you've been tormenting yourself long enough." Duo shot to his feet, Relena followed.

"I killed him! I FUCKING KILLED HIM!!"

"No! You didn't," Relena shouted. "You didn't kill him."

"I left him to die!" Duo's face had turned red and he screamed the words to the sky. "I FUCKING LEFT HIM TO DIE!! Can't you see, Relena? Everyone will." Relena grabbed his arm and held on tight.

"NO ONE BLAMES YOU, DUO!" She matched his volume, trying desperately to get through to him. He looked down at her. "No one blames you, Duo. You did what you had to. Don't blame yourself because you tried to help. Don't blame yourself for doing what was right. Please…don't live in your past." He slumped to the floor, dragging Relena down.

"I don't want to see them…not until I know that he's alive." She nodded.

"You can stay with me, I won't tell anyone, but stop punishing yourself." She paused. "Heero wouldn't want that."

Duo burst into tears.

______________________________

Heero ran through the halls at Preventer HQ, desperately trying to reach Une. He rounded the corned to her office and plunged inside.

"Lady Une!" Une looked up from her desk and raised an eyebrow. "They're attacking. The city…they're attacking the city." Une shot to her feet, her chair toppling over behind her.

"Again?"

"Yes. It looks like they've sent three waves. The first will be here any moment, the second and third will be here in five minutes and eight minutes, respectively. Wufei, Noin and Zechs have already headed out for their mobile suits, and I'm on my way shortly."

"Go." Heero nodded and spun his way out of the office. "Deploy as may suits as possible." He could hear Une calling after him. He kept running, trusting that Lady Une would know that he heard.

The floor rumbled as the first of the damages was incurred.

______________________________

Trowa held Quatre in his arms. "I love you, Little One." He gently raised Quatre's face, brushing unruly hair out of Quatre's beautiful blue eyes.

Eyes that were cold as stone.

"QUATRE!"

Trowa sat up in bed, sweating and shaking, his love's name resounding off of the walls of his small trailer. He swung his feet off the bed and buried his face in his hands before breaking down into bitter tears.

______________________________

Sally drove around looking frantically for Quatre. She had been driving all afternoon, with no results. But she wouldn't give up. Quatre was alive-scared, yes-but alive nonetheless. She pulled up behind a line of cars waiting for a green light. Caught up in her thoughts, she looked around at the city around her. A flash of blonde hair caught her eye, and she focused her attention down the dark alleyway. A moment passed, then two and three. She began to turn to face forward, when she saw him.

"Quatre!" She bolted out of the car, barely remembering to unbuckle her seatbelt. She fled down the alley, searching for Quatre. She slowed as she saw him huddled in a doorway.

He was crying.

"Quatre." She slowly walked up to him and sank down to his level. She reached out a comforting hand. She could see him tense up, and she gasped as he looked up at her.

There were bruises everywhere-bruises that had not been there in the hospital. One of his eyes was barely open, and he had a long cut down his neck. Fortunately it wasn't deep, she couldn't see any pumping blood gushing out of the wound.

"Let me fix you up." Quatre backed away from her, eyes wide-but unseeing.

"No. I don't know you. Go away." Sally felt as if someone had just slapped her.

"Quatre, its me, Sally. Your friend."

"I don't have friends, I don't know Sally, and who is Quatre?" Sally could feel tears welling up in her eyes. He didn't remember.

"Your name is Quatre. Don't you remember?"

"I don't have a name." With that said, he slowly stood, favoring his right leg. "Leave me alone." He growled, eyes narrowing. Sally stood up in defeat.

"I remember you, Quatre, even if you don't. What happened in the last six hours since you left the hospital? Why are you so hostile?" Quatre's eyes widened, but not in recognition.

They were cold as death.

"Don't touch me! I don't know anything!" Quatre began to wail. Sally reached out to steady him. "I don't know! Please, I don't know!" He began to convulse, and Sally held him to her, trying to calm him. "NO!!" Quatre fought against her embrace, punching and kicking wildly. "GET AWAY!" Sally doubled over as his fist dove into her stomach.

"Quatre, come back!" Quatre sprinted out of the alley with Sally unable to follow. She held her aching stomach, willing the pain to end. She tried not to see Quatre as he was in the torture video, and as he was just then, but how he was before, when they were all happy.

But one vision stayed in her head-

He would never be coming home, not with eyes cold as death.