Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Will You Always Be My Baby? (Part One of the Family Sagas) ❯ Part Three ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters. "Nuff said. Don't own the song either.

Author's Note: The only reason I put the song in was because I was listening to it at the time I was writing this fic. I thought it would fit the tone of the story.

Will You Always Be My Baby? Part 3

November 20-21, A.C 199

Hilde paced the length of the room. She had felt restless ever since she woke up that morning. She couldn't go back to sleep even if she wanted to. She was so ready to have the baby. She waddled over to the sliding doors in her bedroom and looked out onto the terrace. Leaves swirled on the gray flagstones. She rested her hand on her expanded belly. The baby was late. "How much like the father," she mumbled as she rested her head against the cool glass. Just then she felt a strange sensation and felt something wet sliding down her legs. In an instant she knew what it was. "Shit! Eric! My water broke!" she yelled at the top of her lungs.

Eric, who had been dosing lightly on the couch, sprang up at Hilde's cry. He stumbled down the hall and pushed her door open. He could see her leaning against the glass doors with her eyes shut tight. "I'm here baby. Don't worry I'll get you there ok." He looked at her and was suddenly scared about her having the baby. She such a tiny little thing. He tamped down his fears. "Do have everything ready for the hospital?" he asked.

"Yes, I do. Hurry, I would rather not have the baby standing here," Hilde groaned.

Eric found her suitcase in her closet and picked her up. She still felt like nothing, even when pregnant. "All right, we're on our way," he said as he rushed out of the penthouse and into the elevator.

"Eric, please call Relena and the others. I want them to know," Hilde mumbled against his shirt. A contraction slammed into her, causing her to grip the front of his shirt tightly. "Hurry!"

Eric finally made it down to the foyer and ran out to the private parking lot. He opened the door of his BMW and put her in gently. "Don't worry babe, I'll get you to the hospital in good time."

"That's good to hear. Just don't drive like a madman. I always had to remind Duo that his SUV was not the Deathscythe," Hilde said slowly. She leaned her head back on the headrest. A few strands of hair had escaped her ponytail and were framing her face. She rested her hand on stomach. "It's all right little one. Wait a little longer, have some patience."

Eric drove through the streets and arrived at the hospital in record time. He ran to the other side of the car and picked her up again and carried her into the lobby. "I need a wheelchair here. I've got a pregnant woman here!" he yelled.

Hilde rolled her eyes. "If I didn't know you better I would say that you're getting more upset about this then I am."

Eric smiled as a nurse brought over a wheelchair for her. "I just want to make sure that you're treated ok and that you'll be ok. I don't want five former Gundam pilots on my ass if something goes wrong. Especially that Duo of yours."

"My OB is Dr. Andrews," Hilde said to the nurse before Eric began to wheel her towards the elevators.

"Yes and tell him that Miss Hilde Schiebacker has just gone into labor," Eric said over his shoulder. "My name is Eric Winner, I'll be paying for all the expenses."

"Yes, Mr. Winner. Maternity is on the sixth floor. I'll send notice upstairs right away and they will have a private room ready for Miss Schiebacker," said the nurse.

Hilde looked up at Eric, who shrugged and grinned at her. Luckily she hadn't had another contraction yet, so she was in a good humor when they put her in the private room. She had monitors hooked up to her and then she was left alone. Eric was taking care of some of the paperwork. She leaned back against the pillows and looked out of the window. She put her hand on her stomach and sighed. "No matter what, you'll be loved," she said. She closed her eyes as another contraction passed. She kept them closed. "Oh Duo, how I wish you were here with me. I'm so scared."

Eric filled out the papers as quickly as possible and then went to the phones. He called Relena's like Hilde had told him to.

"Eric! This is a surprise. How are things?" Relena asked as she looked at Eric's image.

"Good. Relena, Hilde just went into labor. She wanted to make sure that you guys knew," said Eric.

"Now! Oh my. Is she all right?" asked Relena. She felt her pulse quicken a little.

"She's fine so far. But I'm worried. She is such a tiny little thing like you. I think she might have some trouble," replied Eric.

Relena's eyes widened. "Eric don't say things like that! You're scaring me. This is what I'm going to do. I'm sending Heero, Quatre, Trowa, Wufei, and Sally over there. They should be there in four to five hours. Hilde will probably be there for a while. First babies always take awhile. Take care of her. They'll be there as soon as possible. Send her my love and support."

"You know I will. Bye," said Eric as he hung up the videophone. He ran back towards the room that Hilde was in. "I'm back babe. How are things?" he asked her as he sat down in the chair next to the bed.

"Just fine and dandy," Hilde replied sarcastically. "How the hell do you think I'm doing?" she hissed.

Eric rolled his eyes. This was going to be a long labor. "I called Relena like you told me to. She is sending Heero, Quatre, Wufei, Trowa, and Sally over. They'll be here in four to five hours."

"That's good to hear," Hilde replied as she smiled slightly. The smile turned to a grimace as a contraction assailed her. "Goddamn this hurts."

Eric put his hand on her arm until it passed. "Better?"

Hilde nodded her head. She leaned back against the pillows. "I hate men. I hate sex."

Eric sighed. This was going to be a really long labor.

Eight hours later…

"Goddamn all men," Hilde hissed as the waves of pain kept on coming.

"You've said that for the millionth time," said Eric as he wiped her sweaty forehead.

"You'll be hearing a lot of that," said Sally as she held Hilde's hand. She and the others had arrived an hour and a half ago. The others were outside sitting and pacing in the hall.

"Oh who the hell asked you," snapped Hilde as she glared at Eric.

Six hours later…

"This really hurts," Hilde whined as she clutched Eric's hand.

"You're doing fine Miss Schiebacker," said Dr. Andrews.

"Oh shut up you quack!" Hilde yelled.

Sally couldn't help but laugh.

Outside the delivery room, four pairs of brows raised at her voice. "Sounds like she isn't too happy," commented Trowa.

"To say the least," said Heero. "Women become emotional during the labor process." Quatre, Trowa, and Wufei looked at him. He flushed a little. "I read it just in case."

"Baka onna," muttered Wufei. "She should have Maxwell here to yell at since he was the one who got her in this predicament."

"Well we couldn't say anything to him about this. I'm just glad that he wasn't around when Eric called. Good thing he was in space for a meeting with some of his sweeper friends" said Heero.

"She's not having an easy time of it," murmured Quatre as he wrung his hands a little. "She is in a good deal of pain." He closed his eyes tight. Some days he really hated having empathic abilities.

The others noticed that Quatre had become a little pale. Trowa went over to him and knelt down in front of him. "Quatre take a few deep breaths and stop focusing on her. She'll be all right."

Quatre opened his eyes and looked at his best friend. "I'm trying to, but it isn't easy." He sighed. "I'm worried about what my cousin said about it too. Hilde is small and even though she won't admit it, delicate. Her body will only take so much. Even Duo would readily admit that he was afraid of hurting her when he made love to her," he said, flushing a little at his last statement.

"Don't worry about her. She's a tough little thing, she'll get through this," said Trowa as he stood again and gave Quatre a squeeze on the shoulder before going back to leaning against the wall.

Five and Half Hours Later…

"I want Duo!" Hilde whimpered as she came out of the last contraction. Tears seeped from under her lashes.

"Shh, it's all right Hilde," Sally soothed.

"If she doesn't deliver in the next half-hour, I'm going to have to do a caesarian section," said Dr. Andrews.

Eric's eyes widened. "I think I'll give the others an update." He turned and left the room. That had not what he wanted to hear. He walked out where the others were waiting.

Heero spotted him first. "What's going on? How is she?"

Eric sighed. "Not good. The doctor says if she doesn't deliver this baby in the next half-hour, he will have to do a caesarian section. I was afraid that this would happen."

Quatre stood and walked over to his cousin. He was still a little pale. "Is that all?"

"She's crying for Duo. She wants him. She has been whimpering that for the last twenty minutes," Eric said softly.

Back inside the delivery room, Hilde was whimpering again. The contractions were so close together now, but nothing was happening. She gripped the sheets in her hands as another one passed. She closed her eyes briefly. She would give heaven and earth to have Duo with her right now. "Duo," she whispered.

Twenty Minutes Later…

Wufei paced. Heero and Trowa leaned against the wall with their eyes closed. Quatre was dozing lightly in a chair. Just then there was an ear splitting scream. Wufei stopped in his tracks. Heero and Trowa opened their eyes and stood straight. Quatre's eyes popped open and he took in a great gulp of air. A shockwave of pain sliced through him. "Oh God," he gasped.

"Come on Hilde just a little more," Dr. Andrews coached.

The fire had come back into Hilde, but with it came a tremendous amount of pain. "Goddamn you! I'm trying to you idiot!" she shouted at the doctor. She felt like she was being split in two. She gripped onto Eric's hand as hard as she could. "Duo I hate you!" she yelled.

Several eyes blinked at the statement outside the delivery room. "Let's hope the onna can do this! I don't think we want to tell Maxwell that something happened to his onna when she was giving birth to his kid," Wufei said. "Even though she seems to hate him at the moment."

"Push Hilde," Eric said. You're almost there."

"Shut up! I'm pushing as hard as I can, but it hurts so badly and I am getting so tired. So just shut the hell up!" Hilde screamed at him.

Sally wiped Hilde's sweat drenched bangs away from her forehead. "Come on Hilde."

"I can see the head. Just a little more," said Dr. Andrews.

"If I hear just a little more one more time, I'm going to kill you," Hilde screamed again. She gathered up what strength she still had and pushed. She groaned under the pain that she was feeling. She pushed with all her might. And a scream that would rival its predecessors split the air.

Heero, Wufei, Trowa, and Quatre waited. They could hear Hilde's screaming and crying. And the last scream made them afraid. It was now ten p.m. They had been here for almost fifteen hours and she had been in labor for twenty.

"You have a beautiful baby boy Miss Schiebacker," Dr. Andrews said as he held up the squalling infant.

"That's good. Just as loud as his dad," Hilde whispered weakly as she smiled a little at the baby the doctor was holding.

"I told you, you could do it babe," said Eric as he kissed her forehead and pried his crushed hand from her grip.

"I'm so glad for you Hilde," Sally whispered as she kissed her forehead as well.

"This is one good sized baby! Nine and a half pounds, twenty-one inches long!" Dr. Andrews exclaimed as the baby was weighed, measured, and cleaned off. The nurse wrapped him in a warm baby blue blanket before going back over to the bed.

Hilde opened her eyes wide enough to focus on the bundle being placed into her arms. She looked at him with amazement. She couldn't believe it, she was a mom. The baby opened his eyes. She smiled. "He has Duo's eyes. They won't change," she whispered. "Hello there little one. I'm your mommy."

Sally and Eric exchanged smiles above her head. "Do you have a name for him Hilde?" Eric asked.

Hilde looked up at him and smiled. She looked back down at her son. "Yes. His name will be Christopher James Schiebacker Maxwell."

"A long name for a little boy," Sally chuckled.

"Don't worry, he'll live up to it," Hilde murmured.

"I'll go tell the others. They're probably wondering what happened," said Eric as he left the room again to spread the news. He found the others standing with wide eyes. It looked like they were expecting the worst. He held up his hands. "As of now, there is a new edition to your little family. Hilde just gave birth to a beautiful baby boy with the biggest cobalt blue eyes I have ever seen."

They all gave a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear," said Heero as a slight smile creased his lips. Then his expression turned a little more solemn. "And how is Hilde?"

"She is all right considering. She is extremely exhausted. But she'll be all right. Like I've said, she's a tough little cookie. She still had the strength to bitch me out," Eric grinned when he thought of her telling him to go to hell.

The others smiled. No matter what, Hilde was always a fighter. "So did she give the Maxwell incarnation a name?" asked Wufei.

"Yes. She named him Christopher James Schiebecker Maxwell," Eric said with a smile.

"That's quite a name. And she gave him Duo's last name too. She still loves him enough to do that," Quatre mused.

"And do we still not tell him? The onna is being stubborn about this. She should have just told him she was pregnant to begin with," Wufei pointed out. "Instead all of us have to sneak around him with an even bigger secret. I may think that he is a complete baka, but I wouldn't wish this predicament on him."

Heero raked his hands through his hair. "This is going to make it so much harder now. How do you not tell your best friend that his girlfriend had his kid without feeling guilty?"

The four of them looked at the white tiled floor for several minutes. They all knew what he meant. It was going to create strain between them, this secret that they had to keep. Quatre broke the silence. "Well you think we can go see her and the baby?"

Eric shrugged. "More then likely. I'll go check and see." He turned and went back to the room. Hilde was still holding the baby. The doctor had just finished cleaning up. Sally was there at Hilde's elbow. Hilde looked better then she had. Her hair had been fixed and she was in a clean nightgown. "The guys want to know if it is ok to come in?"

Hilde looked up and smiled. "They can come on in."

Eric nodded and went back out into the hall. "You guys can come in."

They followed him into the room. And they all couldn't help but smile at the scene before them.

Hilde looked up at them and smiled. They each gave her a kiss on the cheek, even Wufei. She looked back down at her son. "These are friends of your mommy's. "

Quatre smiled. "He looks like Duo with those eyes."

Hilde looked up at Quatre. "Yes, he does, doesn't he," she said softly. "He is also stubborn. Took him long enough for him to be born. He didn't want to leave. Just like his dad." She paused and looked back down at her son. He was part Duo and part her. "And how is Duo?"

"Duo is on L2 on business. So he doesn't know, not unless you want us to tell him where you are," Heero said quietly as he reached a finger out and touched Christopher's cheek.

Hilde didn't say anything. Part of her wanted to tell him and the other part of her was screaming at her not too. She shook her head. "No. Not now. I don't want him to know. I don't want him to marry me out of obligation."

"Hilde how could you think that he would do that? He is so smitten with you," said Quatre.

"Because I could. He said he wasn't ready for marriage. How could he possibly be ready to be a father? So I don't want him to know. I know you must think I'm being a real bitch about this, but try to understand. Even as much as he says he loves me, he is scared to death of commitment. I love him, but I want to have all of him or nothing at all," Hilde replied defiantly.

"Onna, you're being as stubborn as a mule. How long do you actually think that this can go on? If this isn't injustice, I don't know what is! What is the world coming to when a woman does not know her place," Wufei said as he threw up his hands in agitation.

Hilde rolled her eyes. "You would think that. But listen and listen good, I'll keep this up as long as I have too and I will tell him in my own good time! And if you breathe a word of this to him, as soon as I get out of this bed, I will royally kick your skinny ass! So keep your damn mouth shut Wufei!"

The others tried to cover up their laughter. Sally was holding her stomach; she was laughing so hard. Eric and Quatre were supporting each other as they laughed. And Heero and Trowa were snickering at the same time they were trying to keep a straight face. Wufei and Hilde glared at each other.

"Baka onna. She is just as bad as Maxwell," Wufei muttered as he turned his back on the occupants of the room.

Trowa wiped the tears that were seeping from the corners of his green eyes. "Well you know she's all right when she tells Wufei off. Now I think it would be a good idea for us to leave. Hilde needs her rest and so does little Christopher."

The others nodded in agreement. Heero, Trowa, Quatre, and Sally gave Hilde another kiss on the cheek and said their good byes. They promised to stop by again before they left tomorrow. Wufei scowled at Hilde, but mumbled a good bye as well.

Hilde watched them go. She sighed. She felt so drained. She looked up at Eric and smiled weakly. "I guess I should get some rest now. It has been a very long day."

Eric grinned. "It's been a very long twenty hours. You went into labor some time last night."

"I did. Hmm, it doesn't seem that long. Yesterday was only the…Eric, what is today's date?" she asked as she sat up a little.

"It's the twenty-first of November. Why?" Eric replied, puzzled.

"Today, is Duo's birthday. He turns twenty today," Hilde answered softly.

"Well what do you know. Father and son share the same birthday. That's a coincidence for sure," said Eric as he chuckled lightly.

Hilde closed her eyes and felt her eyes get hot. A few tears seeped from the corners of her eyes. "Can you take Chris for me and put him in the incubator," she said as she handed the sleeping baby over to him. She bit her lip to hold back the tears. "Could you leave me alone for a little while," she said softly.

"Sure. I'll be just outside if you need anything," Eric said as he left the room. He switched out the light as he went past. He understood that she would need this time alone.

Hilde let the tears run down her face. She felt so confused. She wanted Duo to be here and hold her, and tell her that everything was going to be all right. "Come on Hilde, pull yourself together," she whispered as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. "You've made your decision and now you have to live with it. You have to be strong for your son now." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She saw Duo's smiling face. "Oh Duo, I love you so much, but this was the right thing for me to do. Please understand," she whispered before she finally succumbed to sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~

Duo arrived back in New Port City later that evening. He slung his black leather jacket over his shoulder as he walked from the spaceport back to his SUV sitting in the parking lot. His visit to the scrap yard on L2 had gone well. Ever since the Great Eve War of `95 and the Marimaia Incident of '96, there had been a lot of metal floating around in space. And he and Hilde had capitalized on that. They made a lot of money picking it up and selling it for scrap. There was a demand for metals that had been used in the making of the various MS's and the ones that were still in one piece, they were dismantled and with Quatre's help, he had been able to start a mill for the making of sheet metal. It had become a very profitable business indeed. He frowned a little though. Hilde was no longer there to do the paperwork, which now fell to him. And he hated doing the paperwork. He drove over to the Peacecraft mansion where Relena and Heero lived with her brother and Noin. He switched the dials on the radio as he drove when a song that he used to compare Hilde to came on. It was Seal's "Kiss From a Rose."

There used to be a graying tower alone on the sea

You became the light on the dark side of me

Love remains a drug that's still high enough to kill

But did you know when it snows

My eyes become large

And the light that you shine

Can be seen

Baby I convey you to a kiss from a rose on the gray

Oh the more I get if you,

Stranger it feels, yeah

And now that your rose is in bloom

A light hits the gloom on the gray

There is so much a man can tell you,

So much he can say

You remain my power, my pleasure, my pain

Baby, to me you're like a grown addition I can't deny

Won't you tell me is it healthy baby

But did you know when it snows

My eyes become large

And the light that you shine can be seen

Baby I convey you to a kiss from a rose on the gray

Oh the more of you,

Stranger it feels, yeah

And now that your rose is in bloom

A light hits the gloom on the gray

I've been kissed by a rose on the gray

I've bee kissed by a rose on the gray

And if I should fall

I've been kissed by a rose on the gray

There is so much a man can tell you

So much he can say

You remain my power, my pleasure, my pain

Baby, you're like a groan addition that I can't deny

Won't you tell me is it healthy baby

But did you know

That when it snows

My eyes become large

And the light that you shine

Can be seen

Baby I convey you to a kiss from a rose on the gray

Oh the more I get of you

Stranger it feels, yeah

And now that your rose is in bloom

A light hits the gloom on the gray

Duo switched the radio off. Hilde had always been the light side of him. And in the way that Relena put it, Hilde was his Persephone, the Goddess of Life, to his Hades, the God of Death. Polar opposites. They always had been. And that song reminded him just how much he loved her. And she was most definitely an addiction that he could never deny even if his life depended on it. "Hell," he muttered as he pulled up in front of Relena's. He jumped out and knocked on the door. The butler, Pagan, greeted him and told him that Miss Relena was in her study. "Thanks," he said as he made his way to her study. He stopped outside when he heard other voices inside the room.

"You have to be kidding me! Twenty hours! The poor girl must be exhausted," Relena exclaimed as she looked at her husband, Heero over the videophone.

Duo tilted his head to one side. "Who is she talking to?" he asked softly. "And what about twenty hours?" He continued to listen to what was going on inside the room.

"I can't believe that! A caesarian section! That sounds horrible! I know they would suggest it because she's so small. It makes me worry about having kids now. I'm not much bigger then her!" Relena said as she twirled the phone cord around her fingers.

Duo was truly puzzled now. He was curious to whom she was talking to and whom she was talking about. The only girl that he knew that was as petite as her was Hilde. He knew that he shouldn't be eavesdropping, but he was truly curious about what she was talking about.

"She was crying for him. That doesn't sound like much of a surprise. I mean if she still loves him and all. And she gave him his last name," Relena said as she looked at Heero's face. "Oh don't you worry Heero, I will go through pregnancy just as easily as she has." She smiled when she listened to Heero voice his concern. She was touched. "Of course I might hate you and scream and yell at you the entire time because it will hurt." She saw Heero pale a little. "I think that's the first time I have ever seen you look that upset before."

Duo grinned. Relena was talking to Heero. But he wanted to know whom they were talking about and why they were talking about pregnancy.

"Of course I won't tell him. I know, it's killing me too, not to tell him. And if he ever finds out if we kept this from him too, he'll go nuts. I can imagine how angry he would be," said Relena softly. "You look tired love, why don't you get some sleep. And no pulling the "perfect soldier, I don't need that much sleep" crap on me." She smiled when he glared at her. "I love you too. Night Heero." She hung up the phone as the screen dimmed. She tapped her fingers on the shiny surface. "This whole thing just got a lot more complicated."

Duo decided it was time to make himself known. "Hey, good looking. How have you been?" he asked as he walked into the room with a lazy smile on his face.

"Duo!" Relena exclaimed as she sat up in her chair. She returned his smile and stood to give him a hug. "What are you doing here? I thought you would still be in space on business."

"I was, and it went very well. And besides it's my birthday. I'm twenty years old now," Duo said as he returned her hug. He looked around curiously. "Where is everyone?"

"My brother and Lu went to Preventers HQ for the day. They haven't come back yet. Cathy and Middi went back to Quatre's house about an hour ago," Relena explained as they left the study and walked towards the large family room.

"And where is Heero and the others?" Duo asked as he plopped down on the rather large couch. He watched as Relena took a seat across from him on the other couch.

Relena bit her lower lip. She had to lie. "Heero and the other's had a mission. Don't worry about it. It's just some surveillance operation, I think." She couldn't tell him that Heero and the others had gone to New York City to oversee the birth of his son. And according to Heero, a little boy with wide cobalt eyes, just like Duo's.

Duo tilted his head to one side as he listened to her answer. She had taken a little to long to answer that question. He didn't want her to know that he had been eavesdropping, but she was hiding something. He could feel it. "Relena, I know you were talking to Heero when I arrived. I heard you. I waited for you to be finished, but what stirred my interest was that you were talking about pregnancy and going into labor. Who were you talking about?" he asked smoothly as he leaned forward a little.

Relena's eyes widened. She mentally cursed herself as she stared back into Duo's eyes. "I was um…uh…dammit…" she muttered. She cursed herself again in French. She averted her eyes away from his. Keeping the lie was twisting her insides. She wished Heero were here. "We were talking about a friend of mine that's all," she said as she swallowed.

Duo eyed her speculatively. He could tell she was lying. She may be a politician, but she couldn't lie to her friends. Heero and her were keeping something from him. And he had a funny feeling that they were talking about Hilde. But what struck him as funny was, they were talking about someone just giving birth to a baby. Hilde hadn't been pregnant. She would have told him if she were. Then a thought struck him. There had always been something about Hilde that the others wouldn't tell him. It was more then just where she was living. "Would that friend be Hilde by any chance?" he asked.

Relena paled. She was stuck in a corner now. If she didn't tell him, she would have a very pissed off Duo on her hands and if she did, she would have a pissed off Hilde. She definitely knew which one was worse. She cleared her throat. "Actually yes. We were talking about Hilde," she said calmly. She saw his eyes widen. "But she isn't the one who was pregnant. One of the people that we both know, just gave birth." She prayed that he would believe her.

Duo sat back. Her reply had completely blown his theory out of the water. "And how is Hilde?"

"Hilde is fine Duo. I would tell you if it wasn't," Relena said as she came over and sat down next to him. "She just needs time Duo. She'll come back. She loves you too much not to." She breathed an inner sigh of relief.

Duo looked up at Relena. He smiled a little. "I hope you're right princess. And I would know that you would tell me the truth if something was really wrong."

Relena smiled reassuringly. "Don't worry, Hilde can take care of herself."

"I know she can. But she is headstrong and impulsive, just like you are sometimes. She can't seem to keep herself out of trouble. All I ever wanted to do was protect her. Ever since I met her, I have always had that feeling of wanting to protect her," Duo said as he closed his eyes.

"I know how that it. Heero, in his own way, has always protected me. And now more then ever since I'm a public figure. I can only imagine how it will be when we finally have kids," Relena said softly.

"What? Not pregnant yet?" Duo teased as he watched color flood Relena's features.

"That isn't any of your business," Relena huffed, but her face got even redder.

"I know princess," Duo chuckled as he chucked her under the chin playfully. "You even blush at the same things that Hilde would blush at. Any reference to sex and the two of you start blushing like mad."

"Ha, ha, very funny," Relena sniffed. But she couldn't stop the smile that curved her lips when she saw him trying to hold back his laughter. "You're bad, you know," she said as she tugged on his braid.

"That's what they all tell me," Duo said happily. "Well, do you want me to keep you company since you're all alone this evening?" he asked as he listened to the silent house.

Relena shook her head. "No, I'll be all right. Pagan is still awake somewhere in the house and my two nephews are asleep upstairs, thank the good Lord. I love them, but they can be absolute terrors when awake. But you don't have to stay for me."

Duo looked at her and grinned. "All right, if you say so," he said as he stood. "You're the boss," he teased lightly.

Relena laughed softly. "Go on, get going. I'll see you tomorrow at your party," she said as she stood. She linked her arm through his and walked with him to the door. She looked up at him. "Have a good night Duo, drive safely," she said as she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"All right, I'll be here tomorrow. I can't wait to see what I got," Duo said as he pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Good night princess." He walked out of the house and climbed back in to his SUV. He waved good bye to her as she stood in the doorway. He drove down the long winding driveway and out onto the road. He drove through the silent town and finally reached his house. He walked in through the darkened hall and trudged up the steps. It had been a long trip and the 'jet lag' was starting to get to him. He walked into the bedroom and flipped the lights on. He removed his leather jacket and tossed it on the chair. The rest of his clothes followed until he was down to his black striped boxers. He turned off the light and crawled under the covers, but didn't shut his eyes. He was thinking of her again. He couldn't help it. He wandered what she was doing right now. He wished he could be with her. "Hilde come back to me. If you want me to marry you I will. I would do anything now to keep you happy. I love you Hilde," he whispered as he finally dropped off to sleep.