Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Ugly ❯ Suprising discovery ( Chapter 11 )

The day had been a calm one.

After Quatre and Trowa had really realized, that they were in the middle of a full blown fight again, they'd gotten ashamed, and stopped. There had been a fleeting moment of a very weird nature, where Trowa had been laying on the floor, cheeks flushed, panting, staring up at Quatre, who was sitting on his midriff in his tight little jeans shorts, knees on each side of Trowa, who's hands were locked on Quatre's waist, obviously with the intention of lifting him off, and Quatre's own hands were on top of Trowa's, apparently meaning to stop him from succeeding in this...

Quatre's breathing had been harsh and ragged, his tousled hair like spunned gold, his eyes almost black, bright roses blooming on his cheeks...

And for a moment they had just been fozen like that, eyes locked, and then Quatre had scrambled up looking lost and embarrassed, and Trowa had squeesed his eyes shut for a moment, before sitting up himself.

 

Duo doubted Heero or Wufei had noticed anything.

They'd continued talking about Trowa's 'fanfic' in a slightly less passionate manner, and Trowa had even read out loud his new chapter, that was ready, but hadn't been posted yet.

This was a deed, that seemed to have caused almost happy tears to roll down on the others' cheeks.

Duo had had to blush many times, as Trowa was reading, but Quatre would just laugh his bright laughter, and tell Duo to 'get a grip' since it was 'only a lime' not 'a lemon', to which Duo had suggested, that for his peace of mind, it might be better, if Trowa would in the future only read him raisins...

 

It had been a pleasent day, yes.

 

Then the weekend had come, and Wufei's family wanted him home. Duo would't have wanted to give him, and tried his best to discreetly sabotage all attemps of his friend's packing, until Wufei had finally caught him, and he had been mortified.

”Look, Duo, to be honest, I don't want to go, myself. I've been having a great time. But mum and dad...” Duo had tried to wawe it off, but Wufei had kept talking about it, untill Duo understood, that he'd really had fun, and that he was working on getting to do this again, sometime soon.

”Or perhaps you could come to my house?” Wufei had suggested, smiling.

Duo felt fear that was like liquid ice streaming down to his belly and from there to all his limbs. He'd tried to look politely enthusiasted, but his face had betrayed him. Wufei had been slightly insulted, and there was no way, that Duo could've explained to him what thinking about leaving the safety of his home and going into Wufei's world was doing to him, without ending up sounding like a complete moron.

So, instead, he had just agreed that next time would be his turn to visit, and he wa dead set on keeping his promise if it killed him.

Which it probably would.

 

Then as the Saturday evening came, Duo was sitting by the phone, waiting for his call. He had tons and tons to tell Zechs, and even though Une teased him about his 'girly phone ways', he didn't even get angry...

After all, Zechs was away, and this was the only way he could talk to him, and Zechs sometimes understood from his tone of voice somethings, that he could't or would't put to words, which made talking to him a bit more easy than talking to someone else...

Besides, there were some things that you could tell your 'big brother', but just could't even think of telling to your mom...And that's just the way that it is, no matter how much some meddlesome parents might protest to it.

Though, knowing Une, she'd probably just be happy, that he did have someone to talk to.

Une had never been the type to stick her nose too deeply into Duo's business, of which he was eternally gratefull.

 

So, now sitting on the edge of his chair, drumming his fingers on his knee he was bursting with everything he wanted to tell Zechs, and the phone had only rang once, when Duo snatched the receiver and yelled ”Maxwell!!” to it about as loud as he could.

Zechs' familiar chuckle eased something inside Duo, and made him feel a little bit safer for a moment.

”You always answer the phone like that, or is this just specal treatment for a special person..?” Zechs' amused voice echoed a bit in the phone.

Duo was a tiny bit embarrased, but laughed anyway, and felt himself smiling even after that, as he was speaking. ”You know I don't. So, what's been up besides the obvious?” He could hear Zechs laugh again. ”Duo.” he scolded, but then, just as he was drawing breath to answer to him, the yelling begun.

Duo could hear it very clearly. His sister's angry shouts reached his ears making them ring, even trough phone, and he could almost feel Zechs grimace.

”Zechs!! Where the hell are you?? Why weren't you- Oh! There you are, I should have known. On the phone with the twitt, again. We haven't even been away for a full week, yet, and here you are! Can't bear to be away from him for more then ten seconds, honestly I'm beginning to wonder about you-” Duo heard Zechs put his palm on his cell, but he could still hear every word. ”Noin! Calm down.There's no reason to start yelling like that. There are other people existing in this world, too, you know...” and then Noin answered him, and she sounded furious and on the brink of crying. ”And where did you and Treize sneak of to last night? Where?! To some back alley for a quick blowjob and a screw? You had to do him, when you didn't have your fresh meat with you, I'm seriously gonna call the coppers soon, you're always, ALWAYS with Duo-”

”Noin! Just listen to yourself! Think a little before you start yelling! We went to a bar! A B-A-R! Why could't you and Sally do something together, too, sometime-” Noin interrupted him. ”Because I DON'T LIKE SALLY! She's just a wise-ass kid with an ego size of the European continent, and I .DON'T. LIKE.HER!! And you're not sleeping with me...” She broke down and started to cry.

”Honey, I do my best, but I'm just an ordinary man, and there's only so much my body can bear..” And only then did Zechs remember, that he was still on the phone.

Duo felt shocked. He should't have been, but he still was. They had seemed so happy on the day they were leaving...

And also the intimate info about his sister's libido was something he really could have done without, but it wasn't a big surprise, either.

He didn't even think of putting down the phone, though. Zechs'd handle this, and then they could continue their talk.

 

So, it was an even bigger surprise, when Zechs started talking again, sounding a bit hesitant. ”Listen, Duo... Perhaps it would be better, if we talked a bit later, okay..? I could call you tomorrow?” Duo was absolutely stunned and horrified. He had been waiting to talk to Zechs and now Noin had to get all scitzho again, and Zehcs was doing what she said.

”No way!!” now he was yelling. ”No way, Zechs! This is, like, completely unfair! I've only spoken to you for like two minutes!!” he could feel tears of disappointment burning behing his eyelids, and had to blink rapidly.

”Duo... I really have to go now.” Zechs' voice was gentle. Soothing. ”I'll call you back this evening or tomorrow, okay? I'll go to some place private.” Duo wanted to argue, but a little voice inside him was trying to tell him, that Zechs probably was doing the right thing, going to comfort his upset girlfriend.

So, instead of more arguing and possible pitious pleading he drew a shuddering breath, and resinged to his fate with an agressive: ”Well, you better!! And when you do call, you'll make sure, that no one will bug you, and you'll talk to me twice as long as you had intended to, this time...”

He could hear the warmth in Zechs' voice. ”I promise.I'll lock myself in the toilet, if need be... Talk to you later then.”

”Yeah, I will talk to you later.” and with that, Duo slammed the receiver down.

 

He was sitting on the sofa, staring at the opposite wall, and after a moment, an uncomfortable feeling that he had been really juvenile begun to creep up his spine, lifting him up from his seat, making him pace a little.

He found himself in the hall. Opposite of him was a row of four closets, and an a narrow opening of white wall, just in the corner, about a one meter wide, and suddenly so tempting.

”DAMMIT!” he roared in a sudden sudden wawe of adrenalin, and threw his fist forward, to meet that empty white surface.

He was expecting pain.

Instead, he found himself gaping stupidly at his hand, that was apparently wrist deep in the solid wall.

 

”Duo?” Une's voice carried from the kitchen, where she had been sitting, doing crossword puzzles. ”Duo why were you yelling on the phone? You were talking to Zechs, right? Is everything alright with him and Letty..? ”

 

Duo would have lauhged. Lucrezia hated to be called 'Letty' but that was what Une called her anyway... But right now, he had other, more pressing matters on his mind, than his sisters' nicknames.

 

He could hear his mothers steps approacing.

 

”Duo, what-” and then she fell silent, also.

”Sorry, mom...”

They were both straring at Duo's hand, or what was visible of it. Then Une cleared her throat.

”Unless I have given birth to a super hero, I think that we are looking at a covered closet space.”

Quite.

The space really was as big as the row of closets next to it, and it was little bit silly, there... Four closets, and then one empty space next to a corner.

 

Une didn't ask him, what his fist was doing in it, but opened the closet closest to this hidden one, and took out a white and yellow plastic bag. In it there there were nails and hammers and one saw and a lot of other things you might need when doing your home improvement.

She picked the biggest hammer, and said ”Please take your hand out, honey.” and as Duo did as she had told him, she put the hammer in, and started ripping at the 'wall'. It was surprisingly easy to break. Une's hair was open, and a couple of brown srands were glued to her forehead. The sleeves of her wide pink and gray flannel shirt were flying. Then, when the hole was big enough, she bent and put the hammer on the floor.

She gripped the ragged edges of the hole they had made, and pulled. A big chunk of the cardboard thin pretend-wall came off.

Duo shot his mother a look, and she smiled, nodding. Then he took a hold of his side of the wall and pulled and ripped a huge part of it off. With it came a cloud of dust, that made him drop the piece he was holding, and both he and Une were coughing. Une had covered her mouth with her sleeve.

”Well, Duo, we better get this off quickly, if we don't want to choke to death.”

And then mother and son were ripping with frenzy, while trying not to breathe.

They had to exit the hall for a moment when they were done, and Une ran to open all the windows, and then she sprinted back, smoothing her hair, and she and Duo went back staring at the exiting surprise closet.

”You think uncle Septem did this..?” Duo was running his fingers pensively on the ragged edge of the wide, rectangular space.

 

”What? Septem? ” Une gave a surprised laugh. ”No, I'm pretty sure it wasn't your uncle Septem...”

”But you never speak about him... You don't want to talk about him, and so... I thought...”

 

Now Une was gaping at her son instead of the closet. ”And you thought that since I never talk about him, there must be something secretive about him, right? No, Duo, no...No no no. I don't talk about uncle Septem, because he was the most horrible prick that there ever was.”

”What? But, mom...” Duo lifted his shimmering violet eyes up to his mother, who could't resist raising her hand to brush some hair of his face.

'So lovely'. She thought. 'My son has the face of an angel. Covered in all that acne... If only I knew how to help him...' But she didn't. She had heard of some light treatment sometime, but she wasn't sure, what that was intended for, and if it was good or bad for her son's infected skin.

She also knew, that the acne went on in Duo's arms, chest and back, and that would require some targeted treatment... They could't just dump him into a solarium or something..? She felt such pain for him. Just him looking like this would ensure, that while others would start getting girlfirends, her beloved son would be left alone, with no one to touch him... And as much as a mother would usually frett about that 'touching' part, the truth was, that knowing there was nothing to frett about was worse.

 

It's a part of motherhood, letting your child go. Seeing another woman take the biggest place in the heart of your little boy...

And this part not happening hurt her. Her throat was very tight, as Duo, who apparently hadn't noticed anything, drew her attention back to the closet and his uncle.

”But uncle Septem raised you, didn't he? ”

”Yes.” said Une, blinking, trying to get her voice back in controll. She succeeded fairly well. Duo hated all burts of emotion from her, she knew this.

 

”Septem was already fifteen, when I was born. Your grandparents died, when I was sixteen... Septem had left home long since then, and looking back, I can't blame him... Our parent were nice to me, but then, I was nice to them... Never did anything wrong. Septem took care of me untill I was eighteen... You know all this.Then I had Letty and then... Seven years later, I wanted to have another kid.” She smiled.

”You mean you wanted to have a human kid...” Duo muttered, and turned his attention back to the closet. Une reached across him, and flicked the lights on.

 

”Well, mom...” Duo whispered. Somehow, this closet felt very important to him. Before knowing what it all was, he asked: ”Can I keep all this junk, mom? I mean, if there's jewelry, then that's yours, but if there's just stuff...”

 

”I don't know, honey... If they were Septems, then they are ours, but if they werent, if there's something important there... Perhaps we should call a museum..?”

They were looking at the hole, both scowling, and then they both tossed their heads right, flicking some hair of their faces, and sighed. Neither of them noticed.

”Well!! Let's have a look!” and Duo dove in to the closet. There was three shelves there, and a bigger space near the floor. It lseemed like the closet was un-altered except that it's door had been taken off.

”Mom, do you remember when we moved here” Duo was grunting, kneeling down, trying not to breath in dust, ”There was a door in the cellar? We didn't know where it was from, and so...” ”We forgot about it. Yes, I remember, now.” Une bent to look over her son's shoulder. Duo stood up, almost hitting his mother on the chin. ”Sorry. Let's start from up here.” he said over his shoulder, and then he gingerly took the fisrt article from the upper shelf.

 

It was red velvet jacket, looked a little like something from the eighteenth century, and a little like a seventees wear. It was expensive, though, quality material and quality cut.

Duo was afraid to shake it. It was dusty and he was afraid it would fall apart if he did so.

He handed the jacket to Une, who held it up in front of her face and said ”Yes... Not too old...Some 25 years..? Could be Septems, except that he never would have worn this. He was always wearing gray and brown clothes... Though I hardly saw him before he took me in, and then when I was eighteen he half threw me out and I half run out of there, myself... And then he disappeared. And I don't like to talk about him, because there is really nothing to say. He was evil to me. He didn't want me. I didn't want him...”

Duo picked up another neatly folded piece of clothing. It was a shirt, this time. Black silk, and... Very sexy, what else to say? Again, material so smooth and soft it was bound to be worth something, and the cut tastefull and classic so, that this same shirt could still be worn by someone today.

He shoved it to his mom.

”More clothes..?” he reached up and pulled a pair of boots out. They were soft brown leather, but seriously out-dated. He shoved the boots to his mom too, who now had the jacket and the shirt hanging from one arm.

On the second shelf there was a huge, decorated box. Duo pulled it out and tried absent mindedly to give it to his mom. ”Out of arms, honey! See what's in it?” Duo looked over his shoulder. He had already forgotten his mom had the boots there, too... He let the box slam on the floor, and opened the lid a bit. He tried it with his hand.

”More clothes.”

 

”What's on the lowest shelf?” Une asked, while she was shifting under her burden. Duo crouched down and reached his hand in, brushing his fingers curiously over a flat, square object. His other hand went to his forehead, pushing the hair back. ”Looks to be a wooden box... A pretty wooden box...” he gently took it out and opened it. ”Knick knacks” he stated as Une was peaking over his shoulder again.

”There's something more, there. It's in the back, tucked there, like hiding...”Une was scrunching her eyes, and looking quite exited.

 

”Yeah, so there is...” and Duo bent to retrieve the other object. It was gleaming gray, and had a handle on top of it.

A safe.

Duo was amused. Une was really exited now, though she tried really hard to look casual.

”You know... You could probably open that box by removing the lock...” Duo said, pensively. He already knew, what his mother would say.

”Never!! We could't do such a thing! We have to find out who it belongs to...”

””Right.” said Duo, and tried to look bored. ”We have a chisel there in the plastic bag... Combine that with a hammer and that lock is soon ancient history... Who knows, what's in there... If it's something valuable, we should know about it before handing that box to someone else, who might not be as 'righteous' as we are...” He threw a sideways glance at his mother, who was chewing her lip. She had put the clothes down on the one big box, and her hands kinda fluttered toward Duo's left hand, where he held the safebox.

 

Duo offered it to his mother, smiling kindly. Now, that he had given her the means and the moral justification, it would't be long that the safe was open...

 

Duo tried hard not to snicker. Une had already turned around, no doubt on her way to kitchen, to make some tea and stare at the box, untill her resolve would break.

 

”So can I take this stuff up to my room..?” ”Yes. yes... Just make sure there are no bugs there... We'll retrieve the door and put that closet to use, again...” Une sounded really distracted making some vague motions with her hand as she went, the box tucked under her left arm.

 

Duo scraped the rest of the stuff from the secret closet. It was mainly old newspapers, neatly arranged, and an old shoe box, taped shut. That was it.

 

He put everything else on top of the decorated box full of clothes, and lifted it up, though it was a bit heavy.

 

Then he started towards his room, trying not to bump into anything, or get himself killed while climbing the stairs. Once his braid got caught in something, but it wa just a nail in the wall, and though he lost a few hairs, he didn't care much.

Kicking his door open he stumbled in, and threw the box on his bed, taking a couple of deep breaths.

The jaw didn't start to ache. His check up would be on monday, anyway...

 

Then he sat down on his bed, in a sort of a half lotus position, and dove into the decorated box.

 

Tbc

 

Bombayoni and GladAngel:

 

Thank you for always remembering me, and reviewing this...

But I just want you and everyone to remember, that as much as I love hearing opinnions, no one is compelled to review.

I'll still like you, if you skip a chapter. :)

Only review, if you want to. If you feel like there's something you want to say... Never feel that you must.

 

Many thank yous again to people, who have taken the time to write to me, trough the review section or email.

I appreciate it.I appreciate you. ^_~