Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ Windows to the Soul ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

A/N: I wanted to get it out sooner since it was a cliffhanger…aren't I so nice? ( DON'T answer that…)

Disclaimer: Guess whaaaaaaat? I have a secret!! Psst…I don't own Gundam Wing **gasp**…shocker, isn't it?

"Chapter Four"

The man stared down at Sally, his jaw hanging slack.

"…Sally?" the man choked, as if unbelieving the chance of running into his ex-partner-for this man truly was Chang Wufei…or Wufei Chang, whichever you prefer.

Sally looked up, staring into the dark eyes of the man she hadn't seen in three whole years. He was definitely no loner the angry teen she had encountered. Instead of livid tension he radiated cool…well, it was a sort of elegance. Not only had he grown mentally, but he had grown physically, as well. The top of her head barely scraped the bottom of his nose, and his lithe form and filled in. His hair hadn't changed, it was still pulled back, but the ponytail hung lower on his back. Still unbelieving, the Chinese woman could only stand and stare while trying to come up with a coherent thought. So many times Sally wished she were given another chance to get to know Wufei, and now that she is being handed Opportunity Number 2, she had no idea what to do. Wufei was the first to recover from shock, and he attempted to ease the tension…somewhat.

"What's this," he said with a small chuckle, "Sally Po, speechless?"

Sally quirked an eyebrow, unable to hold back the sharpness in her voice, "I don't usually engage in conversations with strangers," she said pointedly.

Wufei kept himself from wincing at her feebly hidden bitterness. He hadn't been expecting a welcome return…actually he hadn't been expecting to return at all. He had only intended to check up on his…well, friends. This may seem strange to most people, but he really did consider the Gundam pilots-as well as Sally-his friends. Of course, he would only admit this under slow and painful torture, and even then it was doubtful. Wufei also missed the people he had used to be so accustomed to.

While living in solitary, which is what Wufei was doing when he left, he was able to reflect a lot about himself. At first he tried to steer his thoughts away from his far-away friends, but this proved to be a fruitless task, so eventually that became his main train of thought. Of course, it had taken three years for Wufei's subconscious to convince him that he should at least pay them an anonymous visit to at least make sure they were all right.

But of course-as his luck would have it, he had to run into the person who he had tried hardest to avoid.

"What are you doing here, Wufei?" Sally's voice broke him out of his thoughtful reverie. Her tone held none of the earlier contempt, but her voice was quiet to the point it was almost a whisper. This baffled the Chinese pilot to no end. He had expected a different reaction from her…and he would gladly have her screaming at him; anything was better than this soft sort of sadness she was radiating. How was he supposed to deal with that?

"I wanted to see how everyone was," he answered honestly, no sense in trying to lie to that woman, she'd probably see through him.

Sally ran a hand through her blonde hair, which was pulled down from its twists, which is how she wore it when they had been partners. The Chinese man noted her hand trembling slightly as she did so, and a small pang of guilt shot through him for making her so upset.

Curiosity got the better of the young woman and she blurted out, "Why did you go?" She had been speculating for three years and damn, if she wasn't going to take this opportunity to get some answers!

Wufei turned away, unable to look into her eyes any longer. How could he give her answers that even he himself wasn't quite sure of? He didn't expect to be faced with this situation, and Wufei hated being in an awkward position.

"I'd better go," he said, beginning to walk away, listening as Sally called back to him.

"I'll see you in another three years!" she said dryly, trying to keep her face impassive, and was actually quite thankful Wufei wasn't looking at her.

"You may see me tomorrow," he told her, stopping but not turning around.

Sally's eyes sky blue eyes bored into his back, trying to regain three years lost.

"Why should I believe you?" she asked him softly, turning and walking in the opposite direction of the man who caused her so much confusion. She didn't look back, so she missed Wufei's face as he turned and watched her retreating form. His normally stoic face was filled with sadness, an emotion rarely associated with the Chinese pilot. He stood rooted to the same spot long after his ex-partner was out of sight. He had royally screwed up three years ago, but he was determined to compensate his idiotic decision. He hoped he wasn't too late.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sally walked into her apartment slowly; her feelings jumbled around inside of her like a ball of yarn, or a plateful of spaghetti. She wasn't sure whether to be angry, happy, sad, disappointed, joyful…so many thoughts that she diagnosed her emotions as confusion. Wufei said he had come back to see how everyone was. Did that mean he cared?

A deep recess in Sally's heart hoped that he did. Obviously, he hadn't intended to encounter anyone on his visit either. But now that he had, did that mean he'd stay? Maybe he would even join up with the Preventers again. They really weren't short of agents, but Sally was sure Une would make an exception for a former Gundam pilot.

But then again, he may not even stay at all.

With a heart of emotions and a head of thoughts, Sally drifted off to sleep where her dreams were haunted by her memories of the last three years.

TBC….

A/N: Short, but so many people were upset about the last cliffhanger that I had to get it out quickly. Hope ya liked the NON-cliffhanger ending to this chapter. I hope you review! And I'll get the next chapter out ASAP! Hehe, I promise! ^_^

luvvies, KaT aka Mistress Shinigami