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Something I Can Never Have Little did Duo know that the whole "reunion" trip was an excuse for two busybodies and an onna to play matchmaker. One day, Sally had been discussing the relationships and current situations of the former Gundam pilots, with her husband of a few months. Heero and Trowa’s relationship had come up in conversation, which had been followed by a query as to Duo’s whereabouts. Wufei had told Sally that Duo had left earth shortly after their wedding, and Heero and Trowa’s vacation, to go to the L2 branch of the Preventers. "Poor Duo." Sally had said. "What do you mean, ‘Poor Duo’?" Wufei had wanted to know. "Do you mean you haven’t realized it?" A pause. "Of course not, what am I saying? All you thickheaded males wouldn’t know anything if it bit you on the ass. And even *then* it’s a close call." Sally rolled her eyes in emphasis. Wufei growled. "What are you talking about, onna?" "Well, its obvious Duo left because he’s in love with Heero and Trowa, but they’re in a relationship with each other." "With… both of them?" Wufei could feel a nosebleed coming on. "Yes," she said exasperatedly. "And they are completely oblivious to it, just like you. So… that’s why I said ‘Poor Duo.’ Because they seem to be so wrapped up in each other. And now that he’s left for L2… there’s probably less of a chance for him than ever." Wufei agreed with his wife, silently thinking that Duo had never really had a chance. After all, Heero and Trowa had paired off as soon as the opportunity arose. But since there was nothing Wufei could do, he put it out of his mind. About a year later, during Quatre’s latest get-together, it had come up that Duo had yet to attend one of Quatre’s little reunions. Heero had mentioned that while all the others were on earth, Duo could hardly make the trip from L2 as easily or as quickly as the rest of them. But, surprisingly, Trowa spoke up. "We know he can’t make some of the more impromptu parties, but he knows we meet every six months in Tokyo. He could have gotten some vacation time to coincide with our meetings. But he hasn’t. I wonder if everything’s all right with him." Heero laid a concerned hand on Trowa’s shoulder. Even after all this time, it was rare for Trowa to speak up much. On the other hand, Heero had gotten much more talkative – always ready with his quick wit and a quip or two up his sleeve. Not quite like Duo, but all the more surprising for Heero’s usual reserve. So that’s when they’d all come up with the plan to take a trip to L2 to see Duo. If he wouldn’t come to them, they’d come to him. Heero had done the hacking, of course. Despite his "lighter" personality, he was still the best hacker on – and probably off – the planet. So he’d slipped his way into the L2 branch network and found out when Duo had scheduled his vacation for. In the process, he’d discovered a few things he hadn’t bargained on. Apparently, Duo had been keeping his job description a secret from them. He hadn’t told anyone that he’d voluntarily stopped going into the field. All he’d said was that he’d been "in on" mission planning more than usual. None of them had known that his mission planning desk job had begun almost immediately after he’d switched to the L2 branch. Neither had they known that before the switch, Duo had been recommended for mental evaluation, although since he’d chosen to "retire temporarily from active operative status" the mandatory evaluation for *field operatives* was waived for desk jockeys. Heero wasn’t sure whether or not Duo knew they’d been keeping tabs on him, but they still were. Unofficial surveillance records showed that his behavior at home was drastically different from both his at-work behavior and his previous at-home behavior. After giving his sole roommate – a housecat – away to fellow former Gundam pilots Heero Yuy and Trowa Barton, he’d become a bit reclusive in regards to his house. Where he used to invite others over, now he almost went out of his way to avoid having people over. This was completely at odds with his friendly "I’m an open book" manner at work. Of all the pilots, *Duo* was the one who had adjusted least to "normal" life. Heero wouldn’t have been concerned about Duo’s contrary behavior, but he’d never been reclusive, even when feeling down. He’d always seemed to need people around him, no matter what he felt like on the inside. Duo’s sudden reclusiveness worried him. He told Trowa about it and he was just as concerned. They hadn’t mentioned it to anyone else, though. Whatever was wrong with Duo, he’d gone to great lengths to keep it hidden and they decided to try to deal with it without anyone else’s interference. Meanwhile, after having specific dates to work with, Quatre arranged all the necessary transportation and lodgings they would need. He knew Duo would offer to put them up, but he didn’t want to make it seem as if they were attacking him or invading his personal space. Which is exactly what they were doing, but he didn’t want it to SEEM that way to Duo. Wufei and Sally had come to Quatre with their suspicions on the nature of Duo’s avoidance, figuring that if anyone would or could sympathize, it would be Quatre. With his empathic senses and kind heart, not to mention unlimited resources, he made the perfect ally. It helped that he was a romantic idealist and did not want to see three of his best friends, who cared so much for each other, stay apart. To that end, Quatre conveniently "discovered" that there were only two rooms left in the only motel near Duo’s apartment: one had a single bed and one had a double bed. And this was no luxury hotel like the ones that Quatre could afford, but a simple, basic Motor Inn. (They weren’t planning on staying there most of the day, anyway. They would be site-seeing, among other things.) So, even if they were willing, Trowa, Heero and Quatre could not comfortably share a room. And Wufei had made it quite clear that absolutely *no one* was sharing the room with him and Sally. As Quatre explained it to Heero and Trowa with a satisfied expression on his face – hidden from the perceptive pair by the use of the audio-only ‘phone – he couldn’t imagine Duo not being able to put them up in his guest bedroom, as small as his apartment was. Especially considering that Heero and Trowa would be *sharing* the bedroom, after all. Nope. It shouldn’t be a problem at all. ~~~~~~~~~~~~ "… so you don’t mind lending Heero and Trowa your guest bedroom, do you, Duo? I tried the motel, but they were still booked up, there haven’t been any cancellations. They promised to let me know as soon as they have a room free, though." Quatre’s explanation ran long enough for Duo to control his urge to scream "No!" But that was his first reaction. He sure as hell didn’t want to put up Heero and Trowa in his spare room. This surprise visit from his friends was bad enough, but to add on the *torture* of having the objects of his desire in the room across the hall from his – that was asking too much! And if he’d been able to admit the reason, Duo would have protested, but since he wasn’t about to let that particular cat out of the bag, he couldn’t say no. Especially not to Quatre. So instead, he just nodded and let a different cat out of its travel carrier. "Why’d you bring her?" Duo asked Trowa, indicating his former roommate, who was currently sitting contentedly in Duo's arms and licking her paws. Bath time. "She wanted to see you too," Trowa said seriously. Duo took his word for it. He couldn’t imagine that the cat wanted anything to do with him after the time he’d fed the cat popcorn and the poor thing had almost choked on a kernel. But if Trowa thought the cat had forgiven him, he wasn’t going to try to convince him otherwise. "Shi-chan misses you as much as we do, Duo." Heero added. Duo blinked and turned his head away, pretending to take in the surroundings. They were at the dock were Duo was picking them all up. He’d rented a van for the day because his usual transportation – a motorcycle – would hardly do to pick up a cat, five people, plus luggage. They’d picked up their luggage from the conveyor belts (yes, they STILL used those contraptions on the colonies) and had found a luggage cart. Then they walked over to where Duo had parked the van, Quatre explaining the situation on the way. Plastering a wide grin on his face, Duo looked back and said, "Of course you missed me! What’s not to miss, man?" He handed Shi-chan (who barely looked up during the transfer) to Trowa. Then he spread his arms wide and posed, indicating that he was the catch of the year, if not the decade. "But work’s keeping me busy and all." But either Duo hadn’t been practicing his grin enough lately or he thought they didn’t know him as well as they did, because they could all tell that it was a false grin, even if the words themselves were true. +end part two+ -------------------------
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