Family

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~CHAPTERTWO~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As they walked in the door to the small one roomed clubhouse, Relena helped Heero, who had been leaning on her for support, on to the bed. She then walked over to a small cabinet and pulled out bandages. She sat on the bed facing him.

"Heero take off your shirt so I can bandage those cuts," Relena said.

Heero obeyed and turned his back to her.

She began tentatively bandaging the back of his arms and his back. Secretly he enjoyed her warm touch and dainty fingers moving quickly over his skin. He could feel her breath on his back and he tensed every muscle in his body.

"You can relax you know. I don't bite," she said, "There. Now turn around and give me your legs."

He did as he was told and turned around giving her one leg at a time. She made a point to avoid his eyes. Her pulse had quickened considerably at seeing his bare chest, and she didn't dare to look up.

He gazed at her small hands working quickly and efficiently at bandaging his legs. He looked down at her leg and noticed that the once green cloth he had wrapped around it was now stained red, and blood was covering her foot. He became extremely worried.

She finished with his legs, and he turned his attention to her.

"Give me your leg," he said in a firm, but concerned tone.

"What?" she said.

"I want to take a look at your leg. Now give me your leg," he said.

She lifted her leg and set it on the bed. He gingerly removed the bandage and what he saw made even the perfect soldier wince.

Her leg was bloody and mangled. It had wide gashes in it and there were pieces of wood and cloth embedded in her skin. It was giving off an extremely potent stench that made Relena gag.

Heero got a bucket of warm water and a washrag and began to wash her leg. She winced and shut her eyes at the pain. When her leg was all clean Heero set about removing the pieces of wood and cloth. She tried desperately to keep the tears from falling down her cheeks. Though it was a lost effort. They soon began spilling down her face.

Heero felt a drop of moisture on his hand and looked up at her face. He saw that she was crying and realized how much pain her leg must be causing her. He lifted his hand and wiped her tears away. She opened her eyes in surprise. They locked gazes for a split second and Relena swore she saw concern in those deep Prussian blue eyes. He grabbed her hand.

"Squeeze my hand if the pain gets to be too much," he said, starting on her leg again.

When he was done with her leg Relena was asleep. Without knowing what he was doing he lie down next to her and held her to him. She snuggled closer to him and whispered, "I love you, Heero. Please don't leave me."

It hit Heero like a brick. She loved him? Had he heard correctly? It couldn't be. And yet… she had said it. And he knew she meant it. Suddenly he felt a very strong emotion, long lost in the sea of darkness that he had drowned in when he became a pilot. What was this feeling? Was this love?

Heero tried to shake the thought from his mind, but it remained. And even in sleep she haunted his thoughts.

*Where am I?* he thought.

He looked around and saw Relena beckoning him towards her. He began to walk towards her. Then he stopped when he saw a shadow behind her. He tried to yell at her but his voice wasn't working correctly. The figure emerged but his face was still in shadow. He stabbed Relena several times. She stretched her arm towards him.

He tried to run to her but the faster he ran the farther away she got, until she was removed from his range of vision. Then he heard her scream his name, and a familiar cackle. He wished he could do something, anything, to help, but nothing was working right.

Then she appeared in front of him. She was lying in a bloody heap. She wasn't breathing.

He leaned over her and picked her up. As he looked down at her lifeless body something seemed to break deep inside him. He pulled out a gun and put it to his chin and pulled the trigger. The last thing he heard was his own blood-curdling scream and he woke.

He tried to sit up, but he realized that Relena's head was resting on his arm. He didn't want to disturb her so he simply lies there, watching her.

The birds were chirping outside the window and there was a distinct smell of smoldering ash hanging in the air. His mouth had become remarkably dry but he didn't move. He reached out and touched her cheek and ran his fingers through her hair. She stirred and he withdrew his hand quickly.

Her eyelids fluttered and opened when she felt someone touching her face. At first he only smiled and gazed contentedly into her eyes. She returned his smile with just as much warmth. He seemed somehow different. His eyes weren't cold and baron, without feeling. There was a warmth there that hadn't been there before. There was a softness, even a twinkle in his eyes. His face had changed also. Instead of the cold hardened face of a man who always wore a mask to hide his emotions, his face was that of a boy. It was as though the boy that Heero once was, but had been concealed for so long, had suddenly resurfaced. He looked years younger, more his age.

She sat up only when she heard footsteps. Heero heard them, too. He got up, and picked his gun up off the table. He walked over to the door, waited until the footsteps stopped outside, and threw the door open, pointing the gun at the "intruder's" chest.

"Duo!?!" he yelled, lowering the gun.

"Hey, you guys I found them!!" Duo called over his shoulder.

The other 3 pilots ran up to them. They looked Heero up and down, then at Relena, with her sleep-rumpled outfit and hair, then at the only bed with it's wrinkled sheets, and they grinned ear-to-ear.

"What?" Heero said, then realizing what they were thinking, he exclaimed, "Not a word. Nothing happened."

"Oh right," Duo said, nudging Heero in the ribs, " 'Nothing happened' right guys? Nothing eh Heero?" Heero smacked Duo over the head, "Owwwww!" he whined. Wufei snickered, and Quatre giggled. "Let's go," Heero said, putting his shirt back on.

Author's note- So what do you think? Do you have any comments or suggestions? Please no flames! Unless you really hated it for some reason. But don't be too harsh. Review please! ^_~Thanks a bunch! ^__^