Sands Of Time:

 

Duo switched off the computer and sat back on his chair with a satisfied grin. Stretching languidly, he rose to his feet and began to pack up the papers on the table before him. According to the large clock on the wall, it was fifteen minutes to midnight and once the clock struck twelve, Valentine’s Day would officially begin. He refused to admit that his heart was pounding so much faster at the thought of what his lover had in store for him once he got back home. He had seen Heero walk into Lady Une’s office earlier in the day and the stoic Japanese boy had left the office soon after with a purposeful stride in his step.

 

Being excited would have been a major understatement for Duo. The braided teen had spent the better part of the day daydreaming of all the possible scenarios Heero could have planned for them tonight. Perhaps the apartment would be accentuated with candles and fragrant flowers. Or perhaps a bubble bath would be running for both of them to spend a leisurely time in the soothing waters. Or perhaps Heero had prepared some exotic dish for tonight…they had had to deal with canned food for the past few weeks thanks to the extra workload. Heero had been too tired to prepare anything remotely close to being edible and poor Duo had been stuck with eating ramen or soup night after night.

 

But not to digress, Duo was more than ready for any of the aforementioned events. He had made sure that he had left hints for Heero throughout the week, announcing the special day. The Japanese boy had the knack of ‘forgetting’ such special occasions and Duo made sure that this time, the date would be firmly implanted in Heero’s mind. He had left post-it notes on the fridge with the words ‘Feb. 14^th VD!’ on them. (Now, Heero is no fool, but with the words ‘VD’ blaring straight at him each time he reached into the fridge, he couldn’t help thinking that the acronyms meant something - ominous - and he had fought the urge to ask Duo to write the words out completely.) Duo had also left heart-shaped candies in Heero’s favorite coffee mug and some on his pillow, always feigning innocence whenever he was accused of doing such a thing.

 

All in all, Duo felt pretty good about the situation. He was sure that after all of that, Heero would not have forgotten about Valentine’s Day.

 

He gave a quick wave to another Preventer that was also working late, and made his way out of the building and towards the bus stop. He would have taken the train, but he wanted to walk the few extra miles to his apartment, more to delay the surprise than anything.

 

~ Hmmm…I had better call Heero to let him know that I am on my way home. I don’t want to surprise him, by spoiling the… surprise. ~

 

As the bus came around and he hopped onto to it, Duo dialed the numbers quickly on his cell phone, staring out of the window as the bus began its slow drive down the darkened streets. The phone rang, once, twice, three times before the muffled voice was heard over the phone.

 

“Moshi moshi.”

 

Duo blinked. Heero couldn’t possibly have been sleeping, could he? It was five minutes to midnight and knowing Heero…

 

“Ah…hey, Hee-chan. It’s me.”

 

For a moment nothing was heard, that was until the sounds of ruffling sheets filled Duo’s ears. Heero was in bed?! Asleep?! Duo swallowed tightly and tried to downplay it, but he felt his hopes squash as Heero’s next words came.

 

“Hai, I know, Duo. Did you forget your keys again?”

 

Duo sighed softly and shook his head. “No…no, I have my keys with me.”

 

“Good.” A tense silence fell before Heero asked. “Where are you right now?”

 

Duo perked up a minute, hoping that Heero had been pretending all this time. “I am still on the bus. We are almost at the block right now. I should be home in about five minutes.”

 

Heero sighed. “Alright. Just make sure you don’t knock over Coco’s basket by the kitchen door like you did last time. See you when you get back.”

 

The soft click of the phone being hung up sounded like a door being slammed in Duo’s heart. He couldn’t believe it.

 

~ He’s just bluffing. I bet he is really awake and has the apartment all decked out waiting and ready for me… ~

 

But even as he tried to convince himself of this, Duo couldn’t stop the sinking feeling of disappointment that filled the pits of his stomach.

 

~ Heero… ~

~*~*~*~*~

 

He trudged up the stairs as if carrying lead weights on his feet. Getting to their floor, the sounds of light giggles and chuckles were heard as a couple came walking towards him. The young man and girl smiled and gave Duo a light wave, which he returned almost on automation. They both looked in love and ready for anything and this did more to make Duo feel even more miserable. With a heavy sigh, he wasn’t surprised to find his hands trembling as he tried to open up the door to the apartment. In his heart, he still prayed and hoped that Heero would have something to surprise him with. Even if it was a balloon and a basket of flowers on the kitchen table…that would have been more than enough.

 

Finally, the door gave way and a medium-sized furry ball of energy immediately assaulted Duo. He dropped his briefcase and managed to catch the purring cat in his arms, laughing lightly as it tried to rub itself all over his coat. “Hiya, Coco. Hungry, hmm?” He kicked the door shut behind him and walked towards the fridge to get something for the cat to feast on.

 

~ Perhaps a Valentine cake… ~

Nothing. The fridge was as empty as it had been this morning and Duo, unconsciously tightened his grip around the cat, only to yelp as he felt the sharp canines dig into the flesh of his palm. “Ah! Shit! Coco, what the hell did you do that for?” He dropped the cat and held his injured hand to his chest, wondering why it had suddenly turned on him. His only answer was a hiss and a look of mistrust before it walked away into the darkened living room. Duo snorted and sat down heavily on a kitchen chair. How much worse could his evening go? Luckily, the bite hadn’t been too deep and he massaged it gently to ease the pain.

 

~ Nothing, ne, Heero? Well, it’s just the beginning of the day, so I will give you the remaining twenty-four hours to whip up something. ~

 

And nodding at his decision, Duo got to his feet and walked as quietly into the bedroom as possible. Sure enough, Heero lay on the bed with only the tip of his brown locks peeking over the top of the blankets. Duo made a face and shook his head, as he began to strip out of his clothes. He didn’t bother arranging them neatly, knowing how much Heero was bound to bitch about it in the morning. A small black box fell out of his coat pocket and Duo bent down to pick it up, remembering what it was. He sighed softly as he slipped into the bed and leaning over Heero, he placed the box on his side of the bedside table, before placing a light kiss on the sleeping boy’s cheek.

 

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Heero,” he whispered softly. “I love you, even though you are still a big jerk.”

 

And turning his back on his companion, he closed his eyes and fell into restless sleep.

 

~*~*~*~*~

 

“He didn’t get you anything?” Quatre asked with widened eyes, although he tried hard to contain the excitement in his voice. He was currently holding on to a small teddy bear and from the boxes of chocolate that lay around him, it was clear that his Valentine’s day had gone quite well.

 

Duo groaned and reached for another heart-shaped éclair, popping it into his mouth as he eyed the exquisite vase of valentine-day themed flowers before him. There was a card with the words ‘For the one who holds the key to my heart’ written on it and it’s fragrance was so strong that Duo felt like gagging. “Yeah, he got nothing for me. He left pretty early this morning and I haven’t seen him since then…” He failed to mention that the box he had left on the bedside table was no longer there.

 

“So, maybe he went to get something for you,” Quatre enthused with a grin and a nod. “You never know…”

 

“Quatre.” Duo pinned wary eyes on the blonde. “ It is almost nightfall. An entire day has gone by and not one lousy phone call to tell me where he is. If my hunch is correct, I will bet he is at work or something and is so ashamed of not getting anything for me that he won’t show up at the apartment till midnight and then start bitching about the most useless things!”

 

Quatre, dutifully, remained silent as he listened to his friend vent out his frustrations. He felt a bit sorry for the braided boy, but he was sure that his pity was not needed at this point and showing all the things that Trowa had gotten for him…almost made Quatre feel ashamed.

 

Duo sighed and got to his feet. “I’m sorry, Q. I shouldn’t be here making you feel awful about today.” He smiled softly and ‘stole’ another chocolate as he got to his feet.

 

“You don’t have to go…”

 

“It’s okay, Q. Don’t feel too sorry for me, though. I mean…I don’t really need one day for Heero to show me how much he loves me, ne?”

 

Quatre could only nod in response as he escorted the American to the door. “Will you be alright, Duo?” He asked in concern.

 

The braided boy nodded and grinned. “I will be fine. I just need to go take a walk and clear my head for a while. You have a good evening…both of you.” And with a light wave, Duo stepped out of the house and began to make his way towards the piers.

 

~*~*~*~*~

 

The sunset was beautiful and from Duo’s vantage point, the golden rays cast shimmering hues of red and orange upon the cool waters. He licked the ice cream that had trickled down his hand and tossed the empty cup into a nearby trashcan as he crossed his legs and stuck his hands deeper into his coat pockets. It was already beginning to feel a bit chilly and after spending the better part of the afternoon strolling down the long seaside pier, Duo was more than ready to call it quits. But he had found himself unable to stop from looking at the dying sun one last time. He had walked down the stairs that had led to the beach and had walked the entire length of the seashore.

 

He wished he wasn’t alone.

 

Kicking at another stone, Duo stared morosely at the tiny grains of sand, hoping and wishing and praying fervently…

 

“You didn’t feed Coco before leaving today, did you?”

 

Duo groaned and refused to lift his head, although his heart rate had quickened in response to the familiar voice. “I thought I had…sorry,” he mumbled softly.

 

He heard the light snort and the sound of Heero sitting down next to him on the sand, but he still refused to stare at him. For several minutes, both boys sat quietly in companionable silence. Duo had begun to draw tiny circles on the ground, when the shape suddenly turned into a shakily drawn heart and the words ‘I love you, Heero’ soon followed afterwards. He didn’t bother wiping them away, and he held his breath, wondering if his partner had seen it.

 

Soon after, Heero leaned forward and began to doodle on the sand as well. Duo tried to lean over to see what was being written.

 

“Aww…come on, Heero. Let me see, you saw mine!”

 

“Be patient, Duo. You will see it, soon enough.”

 

Duo pouted and raised his knee to his chest. “Where were you all day, Heero?”

 

“Busy.”

 

“Busy doing what? I thought you would want to spend the day with me.” Duo knew that he sounded whiny, but he couldn’t help it. “Today is…”

 

“Valentine’s Day. I know that, Duo.”

 

“Then why didn’t you…?”

 

Heero turned to pin a piercing gaze on Duo’s flushed visage. “Does it matter, Duo?”

 

“Wha…?”

 

“Does it matter that much to you, that I didn’t buy lots of balloons and chocolates and toys or some expensive thing?”

 

“Heero…”

 

“Or perhaps you would prefer I spend money on material things than…” He stopped as something akin to pain flashed in his eyes before rising to his feet, leaving his bewildered companion staring after his disappearing figure. Duo turned to see what Heero had written and he felt his heart pound fiercely, causing him to place a hand upon his chest to try to still it in some way.

 

~ Heero… ~

“Heero! Wait!”

 

He jumped to his feet and raced after the striding boy, who made no attempts to stop even as Duo continued to scream out his name. Finally, Duo caught up to him and blocked his path by wrapping his arms tightly around his neck and refusing to budge. Heero remained unresponsive and stubbornly refused to return the embrace, but Duo didn’t care.

 

“You are right, Heero,” he muttered thickly against his neck. “I don’t need material things to prove your love to me…” He pulled back to stare into the beautiful blue eyes that he could never get enough of. “Your words…” He held a hand to his chest and was unable to stop the tear that slid out of his amethyst ones. “They are beautiful, Heero. And that means so much more to me than any thing you could ever buy.”

 

Heero looked uncertain for a second, before he raised his hands to unbutton the top few buttons of his shirt. Lying next to his bronzed skin was the silver pendant of a cross that Duo had left on his bedside table last night. Heero’s eyes softened and he muttered thickly. “Ai shiteru, koishii…zutto…”

 

Duo nodded slowly, as his hand joined Heero’s in a clasp against his beating heart. “More than you could ever know, Heero. Happy Valentine’s Day…” came the fervent whisper, as their lips met in slow and sweet union.

 

The waves licked and caressed the sand, washing away some of the words and pictures that both boys had drawn, but the last few words written by Heero could still be seen:

 

…as long as I have you by my side

My life is forever complete.

I will never let you go

For you belong in my heart…for all time

HY © DM

 

THE END...