Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Snakes in the Grass ❯ Snakes in the Grass ( Chapter 1 )

Title: Snakes in the Grass

Author: Sintari

Pairings: 1x2, 4x?

Rating: G

Warnings: Angst. Duo's POV. Unbetaed.

Word Count: 599

The date? Late summer. The scene? Mine and Heero's backyard. Here I had thought I was doing pretty good running around balancing trays of hamburger patties on my head, supermodel-like, until Wufei pulled a scimitar out of Heero's sword collection and balanced the curved blade on his own cranium.

From my post by the grill, I wolf-whistle at my Chinese friend. "That's a start, baby. Now get those hips moving!"

He obligingly graces us all with two nearly imperceptible gyrations before sheathing the sword. Man, I still marvel at how much he has loosened up since the war.

Heero and Trowa are side by side, sipping beer and leaning against the brand new picnic table we have bought just for today. My man is talking in a low voice and Trowa is squinting and nodding. I breeze by to plant a kiss on the tip of my lover's nose and realize that he is explaining the intricacies of our top-of-the-line grill. I raise my eyebrows at him and he ignores me. I have spent all morning talking him out of doing the grilling himself. The last thing I wanted is for our friends to stand around all afternoon while Heero tinkers with the heating coils in order to achieve uniform brownness. He contented himself with mowing and re-mowing the grass instead and I have to admit I never imagined I would live in a house with a backyard that looks like this.

The grill comes roaring to life, and for a second the flame draws everyone's attention. Quatre steps through the gate of our privacy fence just then, and his eyes widen at the whoosh of the gas igniting. I see him glance toward Heero and Trowa and then he smiles at me.

Though I know he would prefer to drink champagne any day, he has a case of beer in his hands and I jerk my thumb toward the cooler.

"Do you need any help, Duo?" Yup, that's why he's my best friend. Do you see any of these other louts making that offer?

"Nope," I answer him brightly. "I'm cooking for you guys today." He comes up behind me to check out my progress and I warn him, "You probably want to stay back or you'll get boiled." My own bangs are sticking to my forehead and my hands are red where they've come too close to the open flame.

I feel him linger behind me for a few seconds more then he retreats to join Heero at the picnic table. Trowa has disappeared off into the house somewhere and Wufei is at the cooler helping himself to a drink.

From the picnic table, Quatre calls to me. "It smells great. You always did cook the best hamburgers, Duo."

I flipped over the last burger and opened my mouth to tell him, "Flattery will get you everywhere." I plan to follow this with a wink and a leer in his direction. Hey, what do you expect? It's me.

"Flat…" I begin.

But then I happen to glance over my shoulder, and from this angle I can see two of my lover's fingers come to rest lightly on the small of Quatre's back. My heart turns over as I watch the pads of those fingers gently trace the ridge of my best friend's spine. It's totally unconscious and all over in a second.

But now I know.

I let the lid to the grill fall loudly. Quatre stiffens and his eyes meet mine.

"Flattery…" I say to the barbecue fork in my hand. "Will get you absolutely nowhere."