Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Serendipity ❯ Surprise? ( Chapter 2 )

***

The building the girl haunted was familiar with her presence. People knew her by name for two reasons: she was the only child there, and she was Heero Yuy's. It was Christmas vacation, she learned, and so there were few people hanging about. Heero was unwilling to leave her at home with a stranger, and she was just as happy to read or play in his office. Duo, just as tenacious a worker as Heero, still took time out of his day to chase her around the halls and let her hang out with him for a change of pace. Someone had waylaid her during the day and pinned a green cadet cap to her hair, which went smartly with her tan jumper and dark shoes. It had drawn several laughs about how young they were starting them now and she did nothing but smile which caused them to cluck over her a bit more. Adults, in that way, were entirely predictable.

Heero and Duo were about to take her to lunch when they had to stop and talk to a passing worker, which meant her curiosity in the area led her to trot off without them. She turned into an open doorway and stood quietly. Lauren stared at the doughnut in the familiar looking man's hand. It was "Wufei" she was sure from his ponytail. He didn't notice her until she was almost at his knee, and staring predatorily at his doughnut.

"Yes?" he queried.

She blinked up at him innocently. "What?"

"You're staring."

"It looks good." It was slightly wistful.

He cleared his throat. "It's mine."

"Didn't your mommy ever teach you to share?"

"Didn't your mommy ever teach you not to talk to strangers? Besides, I am sharing. With myself."

"You're rude." She furrowed her brows at him.

"And you aren't? Whose child are you?"

"Lauren," came the warning voice from the doorway. The girl put on her brightest face and turned to Heero as Wufei sighed. He should have known. Giving in Wufei pinched the end off of the doughnut and held it to her mouth, but just far enough back so she couldn't reach it.

"What do you say?"

"Thank you!" she chirped.

She happily chewed and moved her head into Heero's hand like a kitten.

"She got away," Heero said wryly.

"Apparently," Wufei observed.

"I'm gonna go get Duo," she said, dashing out before Heero could say yes or no. Heero paused, listening until Duo's laughter told him that she had arrived safely and he relaxed.

"She certainly has your will," the darker haired man said as he relaxed in his chair. "She's..."

"Precocious? Talkative? Insistent? Annoying?"

"A cute kid," Wufei finished.

Heero smiled, his eyes lighting with humor as he made a sound of agreement.. "She is that."

"You're the last of us anyone expected to pick up an urchin," Wufei said thoughtfully. "Most thought it'd be Duo, giving his penchant for collecting things."

"He and Hilde will undoubtedly have a crowd of their own before too long."

"You're right. He'll be good with them," the dark gaze narrowed on Heero. "I hear and see that you're very good with her. Both hers actually. Did you really take the minister shopping with you?"

"Duo talks too much," Heero said with little conviction.

"Occasionally. Certainly before you took a child in I would have dismissed it as his attempt to tease you, but I'm not so sure about this one."

"I needed a woman to help."

"There are lots of women out there."

This was pointed out almost airily by Wufei, in fact he looked as if he were approaching smug all confidant in his seat.

Heero scowled. "What's your point?"

"Don't throw it away. If you're good enough to raise a kid, you're qualified for everything else. Besides, she's lonely and so are you. Stop lying to yourself and get a clue."

"Isn't this a different tune?" Heero asked incredulously.

Quiet laughter from the door took both of their attention.

"Lauren is a precious child," Sally said as she entered, resting her hips against Wufei's desk. "Relena would make a great mother, even if it is a strange tune from an unlikely source."

Heero cleared his throat as the two agents looked at each other and the room almost caught on fire from the sparks.

"I should be going. Thanks for the... advice."

***

They were at Relena's door. Again. If she answered the door this time, if he had been her, he would have run for his life. The marathon trip had gone well, but still every person had their limits. Lauren had pulled some trump cards on him, and here they stood.

It was, as luck would have it, Relena herself who opened the door. She looked from the snugly clad Lauren to Heero who looked, if it were possible, even less comfortable than the time before. Lauren opened her mouth to speak, then looked back to Heero who was steadfastly staring at one of the windows off on another floor. There would be no help from him in this.

"Do you two want to come in?" Relena asked, hugging her elbows in the air.

"For a minute," Heero warned Lauren, who took it as the order that it was.

Lauren for sure would have liked to stay for a good deal longer than a minute. She had the urge to run down the shining, wooden entry and explore the many, she was sure, interesting rooms.

"How can I help you this time?" Relena asked with her now nearly trademark smile.

"Are you doing anything for Christmas?" the girl asked.

"Only a Christmas eve service. All my family is away, so it's going to be a quiet year."

This was music to a little girl's scheming ears.

"Would you spend it with us?"

Relena blinked.

"You could come today, because tomorrow's Christmas eve! You could stay in my room, and it'd be like a big slumber party. You could help us set up the tree, and decorate it! Heero cooks good, so you wouldn't have to do any work. Please, will you come?"

Heero had yet to look at her. The tiles under his feet must have been true works of art. Lauren noticed Relena's line of sight and added into the pile of reasons the largest one.

"Heero says it's ok, and he wants you to come too."

This brought Heero's eyes up at exactly the desired speed: immediate.

"You want a house guest for Christmas?" Relena asked.

His mouth quirked. "One could do worse." It was amended quickly. "Lauren begged me without ceasing... if you want to play to her wishes, you're more than welcome. I even qualify as security."

"I tell you what... I'll come right now if you both will come with me to the eve services I have to attend. It won't be too terribly long, and there will be free food afterwards."

"Can we wear our dresses?" Lauren asked, her eyes huge.

"If that's what you want."

"Heero! Can we, pleeeaasee?"

It was like saying no to the Nile. He didn't even have to say anything for her to know that he'd agreed.

"Yay!!"

"Do you really want me to come right now?" Relena asked, not being able to hide the odd note in her voice.

Lauren's violent nod answered from one party, but Heero's rather blank expression answered nothing. It wasn't until Relena frowned at him that he finally relented and nodded as well. Pushing open a door to her right that opened to a sunlit sitting parlor she looked back to them.

"It shouldn't take me very long to get ready," most of the comment was aimed at Heero. "If you want to wait..?"

"That's not a problem."

Lauren earned a smile as she stared up at Relena in something akin to hopefulness.

"Do you want to come help me pack?"

The girl would have lunged at Relena except for the hand holding her back. No words like "behave" came from Heero, but it was extremely apparently in his eyes, and was shown expressly in Lauren's demeanor as she bounced over: in a controlled manner.

Lauren was already chattering as Relena led her off, and as Heero entered the very stiff, very formal room, he wondered just who he had to thank that Relena actually accepted having her ear talked off. The walls were decorated with calm, flowery paintings accenting the little figurines spread around. The chair he sat on was stiff with disuse, only confirming his initial thought that Relena didn't use this room... ever.

*

Relena was holding her own in regards to the chatter Heero thought she merely accepted. Lauren reminded her a bit of herself when she was smaller. Perhaps she hadn't been quite so enthusiastic, but the urge to know things had been there, indulged by the father and mother she still missed. The absolute adoration that shown from Lauren when she was around Heero, or talked about him, was perhaps the most precious thing she had ever seen. If that glow in the child's eyes never faded it would be too soon.

Perched on Relena's bed Lauren was taking in every inch of her fairy princess' bedroom. From the light blue walls decorated with some boldly colored paintings, to the thick light cream carpet, it was like she had imagined it would be. The painting she liked best was of a beach with the blue water rushing in to shore. It made her wish she was there to hear the water.

Relena turned back to see Lauren studying the painting.

"That's my favorite beach," Relena said quietly. "I love just sitting there and watching the waves roll in. There's a kind of scraggly forest right by there, and the sand is cool with the water. It always reminded me of where I first met Heero on a beach. I had to have the picture when I saw it."

"I like it," Lauren said with a smile. "Maybe we can go there sometime?"

Relena laughed, zipping her small suitcase. "Maybe sometime when it isn't winter."

That was certainly agreeable to Lauren.

***

Relena wasn't quite sure how she was supposed to react when walking into Heero's place of inhabitance for the first time. It was awkward, first of all, a little awing in itself, and not a little thrilling to some deep part of her that was screaming in disbelief that she would be in the same house as Heero for almost three whole days.

Stepping over the threshold was like stepping into fantasy-land. She wondered for a brief second if the house had come with furniture when he had moved in, but dismissed it. It flowed right into the living space, glossy hardwood floors covered in the middle by a large, fluffy, rich brown rug. The three seat leather couch was tan, demure, and had a slightly crumpled fuzzy blue throw thrown over it. At an angle to it was a slightly darker easy chair, and her imagination could easily see him sitting in it and watching the mid sized tv. The two wing chairs that matched the couch sat on one side of the coffee table, both clumped together as if he hadn't been quite sure how to set them. It was a comfortable room, nothing bright or clashy, but one for relaxing. Her aesthetic eye could see moving the furniture slightly, but those were minor things. The most important thing about it was the blend of both Lauren and Heero that accented it. Both dolls and manilla folders warred for dominance of the coffee table, a child's shoe peeked out from one corner of the couch, and Heero's Preventer jacket lay draped over the back of one of the wing chairs.

"Come see my room," Lauren insisted, tugging Relena off to the left and down the hallway. Heero was glad for Lauren's sudden thought. He was so accustomed now to bringing home a briefcase to deposit in his room, that he had almost begun to carry Relena's suitcase that way. If Lauren had called him on his blunder, what could he have said? That his room was in that direction? He didn't want to give Relena any ideas like that, and certainly not when she'd been there only minutes. There would be speculation on her visit, but Lauren was his key. If someone called him on it, he would declare her sleeping in the same room as Relena, and if someone pushed it they would deal with him. The press had long since dropped the hounding of Relena, both through her own request, and subtle, unofficial threats going through certain channels, so the only medium they had to worry about was gossip. Even then there were only select few who knew she was with him, ones who needed to know in case of emergency and out of duty. There had been no attacks recently made on her, so there was little security risk, and he fancied the security system on the house was as top notch as the one on hers. It had not been a spur of the moment decision.

Lauren's room vaguely resembled a controlled bomb explosion. There were toys, books, and clothes hangers sitting in stacks along the walls. A half assembled bookshelf lazed against one wall, and there were still bags of clothes from their expedition that had never been emptied. About the only things not in disarray was the bed, which was freshly made, and her dresser. The middle of the room was blessedly empty, due to Heero's mad cleaning session earlier. Lauren had found it easiest just to sit back and let him work, otherwise he surely would have trampled over her in his haste.

"Hopefully you'll be comfortable in here," Heero said, setting her suitcase next to the dresser. Nerves that were hitting her belatedly made her throat so tight she could barely speak.

"I know I will be, thank you."

"Heero?" Lauren's face held visions of innocence. "When's dinner?"

"Hungry?" He knew the answer to that even before Lauren nodded. She was always hungry. "Relena?"

"I could eat," she admitted. "But I can help..."

He waved her off. "Mistress Lauren won't hear of it. She wants you all to herself. The kitchen servant will withdraw now."

With a mock bow that was met with Lauren's dignified wave, he left. Relena was dumbfounded.

"Does he... do that often?" she asked in shock.

"He plays with me when I ask him. He's less stiff about it all the time. Did he never get to play much?"

"I don't think so."

Lauren smiled. "It's good I'm here then, 'cause he can play with me all the time. He's really funny some times. He makes really good prince voices."

"Does he really?" There was no helping the amusement that colored her voice.

"Yep!"

Relena looked again at the piles. He would not be happy that she worked during her stay, but he was just going to have to live with it. "What do you say we start setting things right in here?" He had done so much for Lauren already, it was really the least that she could do.

***

Deep fits of giggles drew her to the kitchen. She had to smile at the sight of Heero, in an apron by the looks of things, held a squealing Lauren who was planting kissing over every expanse of his upturned face. He was laughing, almost hesitantly in a way, but it was obvious, so very obvious, the connection the two had formed. He seemed to sense her presence, and cleared his throat while shifting Lauren so she was more to his side.

"I didn't mean to interrupt," Relena said apologetically.

"You didn't," Heero assured quickly.

They seemed content to the let the whole thing go, Lauren on the other hand, wasn't letting two silly adults make bigger fools of themselves.

"Relena... didn't you see his apron? We bought it together!"

Relena had her first opportunity to see it. The bold letters of "Kiss the Cook" spread out for the eye to see and Heero looked a bit perturbed that he had been included in the mad plot to buy himself a silly apron.

"It's... cute." Relena floundered.

Cute was what it wasn't, Heero mourned.

"It's law in the kitchen," Lauren intoned seriously, imitating Heero more than she knew. "Whatever the apron says you gotta do."

"Lauren," Heero scolded lightly. "That's for us. I'm sure Relena doesn't want to participate in our games."

"Well, since I'm being treated to all the food, it seems only fair."

Heero stood like a deer in the headlights as Relena appeared almost magically beside his addle-brained body to kiss him lightly on the cheek. Again, the instigator of the whole plot was a step ahead of her slow friends. Lauren had a hold of Relena's collar before she had time to take her lips away from Heero's face. And much as the time that Relena first met Lauren, the child was not letting she and Heero part.

"Lauren." The warning in Heero's tone was a bit sharper this time.

"I just have a question," Lauren replied with a somewhat pouty face. "You're a girl, right Relena?"

"Yes," Relena answered, surprised.

"And Heero's a boy."

"So we hope," Heero said with no little amount of exasperation as he tried not to think of Relena's close proximity.

"Don't girls and boys kiss on the mouth?"

The silence that reigned in the next moments was of two, intelligent adults quietly considering the side effects of having a child that was simply too bright.

"Boys do kiss girls on the mouth," Relena said, knowing that getting Heero to enter into that question would be like exchanging oceans over night. "But generally they have a relationship."

"What's a relationship?"

"It's a connection... a bond."

"You and Heero have a connection."

"Yes, but..."

"So shouldn't you kiss him on the mouth? That means you have a relationship."

"Sometimes relationships are different," Relena was getting desperate now. Heero's aftershave was eating away at her senses and the heat from his body was far too warm for any semblance of ignoring the fact she was standing next to a virile male. "Some are like..." she almost choked "brother and sister."

The strangled noise from Heero's throat went unnoticed by the two females engaged in a discussion not generally had while attached to a man.

"But you're not his sister, and he's not your brother... Duo kisses Hilde on the mouth. I think you should kiss Heero."

"You're thinking too much today, I think," Heero said, finally cutting in. "You two can argue who should kiss me all you want... somewhere else. Lauren, let go of Relena. And Relena... run now, or she's going to argue with you till you're both blue in the face."

Relena peered up at him rather owlishly from her position, and he could feel Lauren's accusatory stare on the side of his face. Relena's lips were tempting, he'd give them that... certainly it wasn't the first time he'd thought so.

"It's just one kiss," he murmured.

Relena's eyes sank closed as he leaned into her. He paused oh so briefly a fraction of an inch away, and with Lauren still clutched on his hip, their lips met for the first time. It was a feather soft meeting, lips moving and shifting, straining for contact, for more heat. The kiss seemed to go on forever to her mind, her lips clinging to his as he pulled away.

"See, I told ya," Lauren said.

"Little imp," Heero said, putting her down. "Go play."

"Ok."

With a skip and wave she was out the door.

He sighed unperceptively and turned to Relena.

"I'm sorry."

Had it just been to get Lauren to be quiet? She searched his eyes finding no hint of an answer.

"Don't worry about it," she said, smiling to cover up the dash of pain. "I was just following the rules of the kitchen after all."

The kitchen felt very lonely as she walked out, and he felt the distinct urge to call her back, so she could follow the rules of the kitchen again.

***