Smells Like Teen Spirit

by Link Worshiper

(x) X (x)

Game 56
We Are the Champions

(x) X (x)

In the locker rooms beneath the stands, Heero could hear the uproarious screams, stomps and chants of the fans who had come out to see the final game in the lacrosse season's championships. They thumped and cheered, and had Heero not known better, he might have thought the entire structure was going to come crashing down on his head. He leaned against his locker, nursing a water bottle and psyching himself up for the game. It was hard to believe that he was finally here-not because he didn't expect his team to ever arrive at the finals, but more because of the events that had transpired over the course of the season. Sometimes, when he thought about it, the whole thing seemed like a passing dream, too surreal to ever have been reality. And yet, there it was.

It had been two weeks since the incident at J's home. The police had taken into consideration the circumstances of inhumanity, kidnapping, fraud and manipulation, and they had ruled the death of J as a result of self-defense. Also, through Trowa's great-uncle, S, who turned out to be one of his former colleagues at the MRP, the research group had put out a warning against J, and there were several warrants out for his arrest, which also aided the case against the insane scientist. After the fact, though, Heero was having a little bit of trouble with coming to terms with the situation; J had been a ruling factor in his life for almost as long as he could remember, and now he had been eliminated. Now that he no longer had to keep running, Heero wondered where his feet would carry him next. He could go wherever he wanted.

“We will, we will rock you!” The crowd's rhythm was thrumming even in his veins; he could feel the noise pounding in his ears.

He lay back on the bench, covering his face with one hand as he tried to regulate his breathing. He'd never been so nervous for a game before, though he was pretty sure the unsettled feeling in his stomach had very little to do with lacrosse. This game marked the end. With every end came a new beginning, but as to what that new beginning was, Heero wasn't sure, and he was a little afraid of this new uncertain chapter of his life.

“How're you holding up?”

At the sound of Duo's voice, Heero sat up again, blinking at the team manager, who was leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest, his injured wrist done up in a wrist brace he'd filched out of the team's first aid kit. Heero smiled at the sight of his lover in his large Queen tee shirt and black Romefeller mesh shorts. “I'm doing alright,” Heero said, gripping the edges of the bench.

“Yeah, I'll bet you are,” said Duo as he strode into the room, taking a seat at the end of the bench. Heero couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. After a short period of silence, Duo commented, “It's a madhouse out there. You'd think all those people were gonna trample somebody.”

Heero hummed a little.

“You think you're ready?” Duo leaned back on his good hand, his eyes darting over towards Heero. “You know they're all out there to see you, after all-you're the star of the show!” Bending over towards Heero, he added conspiratorially, “I heard Treize mentioning that there's probably some scouts in the crowd. It's your big chance to go far, Heero!” Though he sounded excited for Heero, there was no denying that Duo was far from happy about the idea of Heero being whisked away for greatness, and leaving Duo alone, without him.

Heero shook his head. “No, it's not really that,” he said. He shrugged, a small, characteristic smile tracing his lips. It was only there for a moment, though, quickly replaced by a more pensive expression. “It's just that so much has happened so quickly, and even I have trouble thinking back on it all. So what about people like Quatre… and Relena? Are they going to do alright?”

Duo's lips stretched wide as he smiled at Heero. Many people, himself included at one point, assumed that Heero could have cared less about anything more than two feet away from him, but it never ceased to amaze Duo how much Heero actually did feel for those around him. He slid an arm around Heero's torso, saying, “They'll be fine. I know Quatre's pretty much his usual self-he even came out for the game today! With his father, no less!” He paused a little when it came to the other half of his answer, his smile becoming more cursory. “And Relena… well… she's a tough girl. She'll get over it. Eventually.” He leaned forward, so his forehead was touching Heero's, cushioned by their soft, thick bangs. “So stop worrying about it. You can't take the whole world on your shoulders all the time, man. It gets fucking heavy, you know?”

Eyes slipping closed, Heero breathed slowly, enjoying the way the air had becoming slightly heavier now that he was sharing it so intimately with Duo. “Yeah,” he said. “I know.”
Chuckling, Duo rejoined, “I know you know. But I'm just gently reminding you that I'm around to help you out, okay?” He nudged Heero with the tip of his elfish nose. “Don't be so dense all the time! Sometimes you're so stupid, Heero!”

“Same to you,” said Heero evenly, not even opening his eyes to make the comment, though his lips did twitch up into a smirk.

“So I hear,” Duo said drolly. “But they say it's part of my charm.”

“No comment,” replied Heero, that smug, calm expression still in place.

Duo let out a sharp whoop of laughter as he pulled back a little so he could better look at Heero's face. “Save it for the press, Yuy. For the press!” Poking Heero sharply on the thigh, he then said, “Now stop working yourself into a paranoid frenzy, get your cute butt out there, and win that championship!”

Heero stood up, gathering his helmet and lacrosse stick, but still lingered by the bench, as if he was reluctant to go. “I'll win it for you,” he said resolutely, looking down at Duo, who was still sitting.

With a roll of his eyes, Duo laughed again. “That has got to be the cheesiest, sappiest thing you've said to me yet!” he cried, suddenly reaching out, and, grabbing Heero around the waist, yanked the startled boy towards him. “Don't win it for me. You have to win it for you,” he said softly, resting his cheek against Heero's stomach, the red jersey folding over his nose. “You aimed high, came this far, and even if you lose, well, you still got somewhere, right?”

“I got someone,” said Heero, looking down at the top of Duo's head and smiling privately. He still sometimes couldn't believe that Duo had become so close to him; he wanted to hold him tight and never let him go.

“Very funny, 'Ro. I was trying to be serious,” turning his head so the bottom of his chin was pressed against Heero's stomach. He yanked Heero's jersey, and the Japanese athlete got down on his knees and rested his forearms on Duo's thighs, waiting. “If you run out there, hoping to play for everyone but yourself, whether it's me, your mom, or whoever, you're never going to get anything out of it. You could lose the game, but still come out way on top, you know?”

Heero smiled meaningfully at Duo, though it was unclear to him whether or not Duo realized he was also talking about himself.

“I guess that's not really the point, though,” Duo went on with a shrug, grinning cheekily down at Heero, who was watching him with rapt attention. They spent a quiet moment just watching each other, before Duo added slyly, “Though if my dear lacrosse star should happen to win the tournament, tonight, he may find himself a very lucky boy.”

“Is that so?” questioned Heero, raising his eyebrows with interest.

“Indeed,” Duo nodded.

Heero pressed down on Duo's thighs, lifting himself to Duo's eye level. In an almost comically serious tone, he asked, “Can I have a kiss for every goal I score?”

Placing two fingers beneath Heero's chin, he guided his lover's lips towards his, murmuring, “You can have a kiss anytime.”

(x) X (x)

There were six minutes left on the clock until half time, and though Romefeller was in the lead, there was still more than enough time for St. Gabriel's to catch up. Duo was sitting on the edge of the team's bench, a stopwatch clutched in one hand and the air horn in the other. Behind him, the crowd was going insane, screaming and chanting like there was no tomorrow, and beside him stood Wufei, who looked like a stone statue on the verge of crumbling, too tense to even yell obscenities at the players. The only person with a remote sense of calm about him was Treize, who was sitting on the other side of Duo, amiably waving a small red and black Romefeller pennant flag as he watched the game intently.
Dorothy, who had managed to keep her male guise up this far into the season, intercepted a pass from one of the St. Gabriel players, quickly feeding it to one of her teammates on offense. The player rushed down the field, but soon met opposition, and was forced to get rid of the ball. His pass fell short of his target, the little, red ball landing happily in a thick patch of grass, only to be quickly scooped up by Heero as he came flying past.

Even without his mutation, Heero made a fine lacrosse player. He was extremely dexterous in cradling the ball and still agilely sailing across the field, deftly dancing around his opponents like he was moving to a set, choreographed rhythm. Neatly ducking under the outstretched arm of one of St. Gabriel's defenders, he found the only remaining opposition was the goalie. He was swiftly approaching the goal on a sharp diagonal, but found it would be hard to get a good shot at such an angle, especially with the defenders closing in again. He feigned right, and then reversed directions, running around behind the goal and skillfully flicking the ball into the net before the goalie even had a chance to turn around. The crowd went insane.

“Yeah, what now!? What now?!” Duo shouted enthusiastically as he leapt to his feet with the rest of the cheering fans. He churned his arm around a few times and whooped in celebration of the goal as the teams reconvened to start play again. “That's my boy! Booyah!”

Not surprisingly, Heero won the face-off and possession of the ball when the ref blew the whistle again. But when a St. Gabriel player went out of his way to trip Heero with his stick, it became painfully clear that the other team was not willing to let themselves be dominated so easily anymore, even if it meant playing dirty. However, the referee spotted the illegal manoeuvre with his keen eyes and quickly stopped the game with another blow of his whistle as Heero's feet caught on the titanium shaft and sent him down. He dropped his stick, and the ball bounced out of the pocket as he hit the ground. Heero was to take the repossession of the ball, had he been able to stand up again, that is.

On the sidelines, Duo looked almost comical when he saw Heero go down, his eyes wide and his open mouth bent into the oddest of shapes as he yelped in horror. When he saw the referee stoop down by Heero's side and the nearby players gather around him to see what was going on, Duo was jogging onto the field before even Treize could get up and investigate the matter. He elbowed his way through the sea of red and white jerseys, sending a dark glare at the jerk that had caused Heero to fall. “Heero, Heero?” he said frantically as he fell to his knees beside the prone lacrosse player, reaching out to help remove his helmet. “You okay, man? You're not… dead… are you, man?”

Heero groaned as he propped himself up on his forearms, frowning down the length of his body, towards his feet, where the referee, Treize and the school physician were all carefully scrutinizing his right ankle. “No, not yet,” he said, forcing a small grin as he glanced back at Duo, who was still very worked up.

“I think we should get him off the field so someone can do a proper examination,” declared the medic after a while. “I don't want him to play on this ankle if it turns out to be sprained.” There was a despairing groan from Heero's teammates and a growl of frustration from Heero as he angrily smacked the ground. This was a most unfortunate event.

The players and the fans clapped respectfully as Duo and Treize helped Heero to his feet, the Japanese athlete draping an arm around their shoulders for support as he limped towards the sidelines between them. The noise was a dull din in the back of Heero's mind, however, the ache that seared in his ankle every time his foot touched the ground a painful distraction from all the commotion around him. He couldn't tell if he was more angry or disappointed by the whole scenario.

The trio reached the team bench on the sidelines as the referee went on starting the game again behind them. They helped Heero sit down on the bench, and Treize stooped down to carefully remove Heero's cleat and sock while they waited for the medic. Duo sat next to Heero on the bench, his hand discreetly resting on the edge behind the injured lacrosse player. “It'll be okay,” Duo muttered to Heero, who had been eerily silent. “They'll have you on your feet for the second half of the game for sure.”

Meanwhile, the medic had arrived and was in quiet conference with Treize nearby. He then knelt by Heero's foot and felt it carefully, pressing and turning it, all the while asking Heero when it hurt and how intensely. Duo could see Heero biting his lip as the medic toyed with the injured appendage, and Duo almost felt like there was pain in his own foot every time he saw Heero wince like that.

“Well?” Treize said, appearing beside Heero as the medic stood up.

“It's not sprained or anything, but it's probably not a good idea for him to risk straining it. The best thing for him is to wrap it up and ice it for a while,” answered the medic, gazing at Heero's foot with a downcast expression. Duo thought he sounded like he was contemplating amputating the damned thing, with such a morose demeanor.

Treize nodded and said to Duo, “Why don't you help Heero to the locker rooms and take care of that, okay?”

“Check,” replied Duo, already getting to his feet. “Come on, buddy,” he said to Heero, reaching down to grab Heero's discarded cleat. He wrapped his arms around Heero's body, pulling him to his feet and flinging one of his arms around his shoulder again. “Does it really hurt a ton?” Duo asked as they slowly made their way towards the locker rooms, feeling how much Heero was relying on him for support.

“Kind of,” Heero said through gritted teeth. Duo could tell that he was just putting up a front.

“Always gotta be the tough guy, huh?” Duo admonished with a shake of his head. They were just reaching the doors that led beneath the grandstand to the locker rooms; Duo reached out and pulled it open, holding it for Heero as he hobbled past. “You know, you don't always have to act like you never hurt any, Heero,” he said as he followed his lover inside and continued to help him on their journey to the locker rooms.

“Same to you,” responded Heero automatically as Duo helped him sit down on one of the benches in the empty locker room. He glanced down at the reddened skin that was puffing up around his ankle and frowned.

Humming to himself, Duo was busy rooting through one of the extra lockers, which was filled with medical supplies for just such an occasion. He procured a roll of ace bandaging, some metal hooks to fasten it, a roll of medical tape, and a few splints, carrying it over to where Heero sat and plumping himself down on the floor beside him. Gingerly, he took Heero's foot into his hands and set about carefully winding the stretchy bandaging around Heero's foot to hold the splints in place. “I hope this gives you enough support to at least walk on the dumb thing,” he muttered to himself as he worked.

“I'm sure it'll be okay,” said Heero as he watched Duo fuss over him. The pain in his foot almost seemed worth it to see Duo so worried, even though he doubted that the braided teenager even realized he was being so flagrant with his emotions. And still, Duo displayed his affections for Heero in the most subtle of ways, doing things he didn't even realize he was, like the delicate way he was handling Heero's injury.

“Aren't you worried the team won't do so well without you?” Duo asked, fixing the metal hooks onto the bandage to hold it tightly 'round Heero's ankle and foot. He rocked back on his haunches, blinking up at Heero from behind his long, wispy bangs.

“Wasn't it you who said it didn't matter if we win or lose?” Heero countered quickly, an amused smirk shaping his mouth.

“Well, yeah, but….” Duo ran a hand through his thick hair, collapsing on his ass as he did so. “I mean, come on,” he said with a shrug. “You can't not tell me you're just a little bit frustrated by this?” He stared pointedly at Heero's bandaged foot.

Heero's smirk wavered a little, and his eyelashes fluttered as he cast his gaze downwards. “Well, maybe just a little,” he admitted quietly. Truly, he had been looking forward to this game, especially to feeling like things were going back to being fairly normal; it seemed like he hadn't played lacrosse in forever, and he was surprised at how much he missed the game.

“Thought so,” Duo said with a smug grin. He clambered to his feet and settled himself beside the Japanese athlete, his hands curled around the edges of the bench. “Do you think you'll be able to get back out there?”

Heero just shrugged. “Maybe.”

A frustrated groan gargled in the back of Duo's throat as he leaned back, tilting his head up towards the ceiling. “Now how am I gonna collect kisses from that agreement of ours?” he wondered with a despondent sigh. “What a waste of time, just waiting like this.”

Heero watched Duo's antics in silent amusement for a few moments before he said, “I don't think it's a waste.”

Duo stiffened and turned his head to stare at the side of Heero's face in utter astonishment. There was no trace of sarcasm in the other teen's features, but Duo still couldn't believe that Heero was being serious. “What are you saying, man? This game is the chance of a lifetime, and if you don't play, all those years of mindless lax playing are gonna be for nothing!”

At this, Heero also turned his head, his fixed gaze boring straight into Duos' large, bluish-violet eyes. “You say it like I wasted all that time,” he said, his voice stern, though not condescending. “I like lacrosse, Duo. It's fun. It brought me you. What else do I need the game to give me?”

Heero's eyes remained intently focused on Duo even as he nervously stammered a reply. “Uh, yeah, Heero, but what about your future?” Duo tapped the tips of his index fingers together and then took to watching them battle each other in nervous fits. He knew he was being subversive, but the only way he could get the question off his chest was to ask it in a roundabout way. He desperately wanted to know what would become of them when the school year closed.

“What about it?” Heero responded smoothly, not wavering even a little bit.

Receiving a question as an answer, however, just made Duo's mind reel even more frantically. In his rush, he forgot all manner of tact and just blurted out thoughts as they came. “A lacrosse scholarship will get you into any school you want! You can have any future you choose!” His hands were now balled up tight in fists on his thighs.

“Not every future has to have lacrosse tied to it. Maybe there are other things I'd rather do,” Heero said frankly, taking note of Duo's nervous twitching. “Look,” he went on, reaching out to still Duo's jittery hands, “I always had hope, even at the most bleakest moments of my life, that I would find comfort somewhere, and I did. Do you think that after trudging down such a long road I'd go and throw that away so easily?” He held Duo's chin with two fingers, though it was his eyes that kept Duo focused on him. “Now that would be a waste, Duo.”

Duo jerked his chin out of Heero's grip. “Heero, I won't let you throw your life away because of me. That's just stupid.” He fidgeted with the tail of his braid, twirling it in circles over his palm.

“Duo, stop that!” Heero batted the braid out of Duo's hands and grabbed him by the shoulders, shaking him a little. Duo's head rattled as he allowed himself to be tossed about. “If I didn't know any better, I might think you were trying to get rid of me. I make my decisions based on what I want, and no one else can change that. I want to see what other paths there are for me. Ones that I can walk with you.” He grabbed Duo's cheeks in his hands and pulled him close to kiss his mouth, hoping that maybe if his words weren't getting through to Duo, his actions would.

Tense at first, Duo felt his body relax more the longer Heero kissed him. His fingers flexed out of their curled fists and his shoulders fell into a more comfortable position. He didn't know why he was so adamant that Heero play and get recognized. He supposed that he just wanted what was best for Heero, and after everything they'd been through, he was more than convinced that he was anything but the best.

When Heero felt that he had made his point clear, he slowly drew away from Duo, regarding him carefully.

Licking his lips, Duo said quietly, “I don't really have a lot to give you….”

Heero's sharp glare quickly ended that statement prematurely. “Neither do I, but what I do have, I'll give to you.” He leaned forward, his nose just centimeters from Duo's. “I don't really want much. I already have everything I need.”

(x) X (x)

“What the hell are we going to do now? Without Yuy, we're dead in the water!” Wufei panicked to Treize, just short of chewing on the clipboard he held tightly in his hands, peering over it to watch the lacrosse game. There had been a significant difference in points earlier, but ever since they had lost Heero on the field, St. Gabriel's was slowly closing the gap. There was only so much their defense could do without a strong offensive element to carry the ball to the other side of the field, and with most of the play now around Trowa and the goal, they were starting to wear a little thin.

“Whatever we can. So we don't have Heero; it's a fact we're going to have to accept and work around,” said Treize casually. His tone was so calm, he might have been commenting on the weather, and not the biggest game of the season. Then again, Wufei was worked up plenty for the both of them, and then some.

Growling, Wufei took his frustration out on the clipboard, whacking his thigh with it as he tried to curb his tenseness. He had always kind of hoped that something would happen to Heero as a sort of payback for the fatal injury he had incurred because of Heero, but did the timing have to work out like this? Irony was a cruel, sadistic bitch. He collapsed on the metal bench, leaning his elbows on his knees and trying hard to relax.

But just as Wufei was about to emotionally throw the towel in, he became of a presence standing just beside him. Glancing over, his onyx black eyes widened when he saw Heero's red 01 jersey and his unique Zero helmet. “Y-Yuy!?” he exclaimed, jumping back to his feet, not quite believing what he saw. “You can play? Is your foot okay?”

Heero nodded, holding his lacrosse in the standard position across his stomach, ready for action. To further demonstrate to Wufei that he was ready to go, he lifted his foot to rotate and flex it for the assistant coach.

“Hey, looking good! I knew you couldn't stay out of the game forever,” said Treize, appearing out of nowhere to join the conversation. “Sub Heero in for Walker as soon as possible,” the coach said to Wufei, a competitive grin lighting his features. He rubbed his hands together almost maniacally. “St. Gabe's has got it coming now that we're back in action.”

While Heero was waiting to be subbed in, he was surprised by a tap on his shoulder. Knowing it wasn't Wufei or Treize, he turned slowly, wondering who had snuck up on him. He supposed he shouldn't have been too surprised to see Relena standing there, her cheerleading pom-poms gathered into a large, red and black pouf behind her back. She smiled at him a little timidly, her eyes downcast as she fumbled for the right words. “Look, uh, Heero,” she started, still a little unsure of herself. “I just wanted to say that… that I'm sorry.” She squinted her eyes closed and dipped her head lower, her blondish hair hanging down towards the grass. “I wanted you to notice me so badly, to see how independent and free-thinking I was, that I was blinded; I turned away those I should have reached out to, and I hope you'll forgive me for my actions.”

Heero just cocked his head at her curiously, unsure of where she was going with this. He hadn't been expecting Relena to come up to him and say something like that, and to his knowledge, he hadn't even thought that she knew what she had been a part of.

At his extended silence, Relena glanced back up at her long-time crush, fearful that her apology hadn't been accepted. Words of explanation quickly tumbled from her lips. “I'm sorry for everything, Heero! I didn't mean for things to happen the way they did, and I know you're not happy with the way I acted, and for that, I can only say I'm sorry. I hope you'll accept my apology, but I guess I'll understand if you don't….”

She trailed off as Heero reached out and took her smaller hand in his clumsy, glove-covered one. He squeezed it gently and nodded reassuringly at her, which brought a pleased smile to Relena's lips. “Thank you! I always knew you'd understand!” she said, taking a few steps back so she could twirl her pom-poms about in excitement. “I'll be cheering for you!”
It wasn't long before Heero was back out on the field, assuming one of the attack wing positions. His movements were a bit more tentative than Wufei and Treize were used to seeing, but they assumed Heero was just playing it safe so that he wouldn't strain his foot, which was probably still in delicate condition. Under normal circumstances, Treize might have protested putting a player back into play so hastily, but Heero had seemed confident enough and he trusted his judgment. Normally Treize put the safety of his players before anything, but with the importance of this game, Treize was willing to allow Heero some leneance.

Wufei's fingers curled around the clipboard as Heero missed a pass, even though he was able to quickly recover the ball. “Why is he playing right-handed?” he hissed, taking note of the unusual way Heero was holding his stick. “Heero is a lefty!”

“He's on the right side; it makes sense to favour that outside half of his body for protection,” Treize replied with a shrug. “I don't know why you're worried; you're well aware that Heero is almost as good playing right-handed as he is left.”

“This is not the time for experiments!” Wufei practically roared. Had the Chinese teen been paying attention, he would have noticed that Treize was highly amused by his high-strung antics and was trying hard not to burst out laughing.

“I trust Heero to know what he's doing out there,” said Treize, standing with his arms akimbo as he watched the game. As he spoke, Heero whirled by one of St. Gabriel's defenders, tightly cradling the ball as he made a break for the goal. With a choppy, almost aggressive downward motion, he slammed the ball into the goal, and the crowd roared as the scoreboard changed the point tally for Romefeller. “See?” Treize said, grinning over at Wufei, who was still a bit tense. “I told you things would turn out alright.”

The score was now 9 to 10 in Romefeller's favour, but there was still about two minutes left on the clock, which was ample time for anything to happen. The fans were just short of rioting, and the cheerleading squads for both teams were dancing one routine right after another. St. Gabriel's had the ball after the face-off and made it a quarter of the way down the field before they lost it to Romefeller. Most of the game's play dominated the middle of the pitch for the next minute or so. It wasn't' until St. Gabriel's resumed control of the ball that the action began to move towards one of the goals, which, unfortunately, happened to be Romefeller's. Even with Heero charging as fast as he could towards Trowa and the goal to help, there was nothing to be done as St. Gabriel's scored the final goal of the game, tying the score just as the clock ran out.

Someone on the sideline sounded the air horn, and an odd lull befell the stands as the head referee walked towards Treize and St. Gabriel's coach on the edge of the field. The three held a whispered conference, which everyone watched intently, even though no one could hear what was being said. When they were through, each coach returned to his team's bench, and the referee walked to the middle of the field and shouted in a loud voice: “Because a winner is needed for this championship game, the teams will enter a sudden-death, five minute overtime. The first team to score a goal will be declared this year's lacrosse champion!”

A wild cheer rose up from the stands.

When they quieted again, the referee continued outlining the basic rules of the overtime. “If no one has scored at end of the time limit, then another five minute period will ensue after a quick break. There will be no time-outs and no substitutions.”
The crowd screamed again as the referee walked to the middle of the field to start the overtime.

Even Treize seemed tense as Heero and one of the St. Gabriel's players approached the middle of the field for the face-off. The referee blew his whistle, and like a bullet from a gun, the game was suddenly in motion once more. The ball flew up in the air from between the heads of the two lacrosse sticks and sailed in a perfect arc through the sky, landing in a patch of grass as players from all sides started racing towards it. Fortunately, a Romefeller player was there first, and he scooped it up and started running towards the St. Gabriel goal. Halfway there, he found that two St. Gabriel players were close on his tail, and he desperately flung the ball to the other side of the field, hoping that Heero would be there to receive it.

Though he stumbled a little, Heero was able to snag the ball as it fell back towards the ground. Then he started dashing towards the goal as fast as he could, his form almost a blur to the naked eye as he ran. A defender was there to meet him as he approached the crease, and he lashed out with his long stick to check Heero's, but the talented lacrosse star still managed to keep control of the ball. As he approached the goal, he reeled his hands back, preparing to fling the ball into the net, and at the last moment, flung it forward. The ball bounced once, but the St. Gabriel goalie wasn't about to let a shot just like the one that Heero had scored with get by, and his large-headed stick was there to prevent the ball from entering the goal.

Jogging backwards, Heero swore under his breath as the goalie fed the saved ball to one of his defenders. This was going to be more difficult than he'd initially thought, and the pressure was not helping any.

Play was slow to start up again; the St. Gabriel's defense spent the next minute or so passing the ball back and forth among themselves, as if they were trying to stall for time. Not that it really mattered, as the sudden-death challenge would just be repeated until one of the teams had scored. Heero didn't like the down time nonetheless; he felt that it was luring his teammates into a false sense of security and that they would loosen up all too easily.

Back on the sidelines, Wufei was thinking the same thing, and he was not at all pleased by it. He wished there was a way to scream this out to all the players, but he knew even yelling it from the sidelines wouldn't get through to many people. Hopefully, the first five minutes would run out and he would be able to give his players a bit of a talking-to in their quick moment of respite between periods.

No one was surprised when the first five-minute overtime ended without anyone scoring. The referee blew his whistle and both teams jogged to their respective benches. Treize refused to let Wufei scream at the team, and in his place, calmly told the team not to slack and not to allow any meaningless play to waste any time on the clock. He was much more controlled than Wufei would have been saying this.

As Treize was talking, Wufei stood off to the side, watching as Heero quietly walked off towards the locker rooms. Worried that the lacrosse star's foot might have started paining him again, he followed the Japanese player. They could not afford to lose Heero's skills on the field, even if he wasn't up to par with his injury.

“Heero, are you okay?” he asked tersely as he entered the locker room. He walked past the first row of lockers to find Heero sitting alone on one of the benches in just his shorts and under-armour, massaging his bandaged foot. “Are you really pushing yourself that hard out there?”

Heero looked up at the assistant coach, stilling his hands. “I'm fine,” he said with a shrug.

“Are you sure?” Wufei asked, narrowing his eyes. Then he realized something - or someone, for that matter - was missing. Glancing around the empty room, he queried, “Where's Duo?”

“Went to find a water bottle,” Heero replied with another casual roll of his shoulders. “We're both pretty dehydrated.”

“It is hot, today,” agreed Wufei with a nod. An odd silence befell them, and it was making Wufei feel a little uncomfortable. He nodded again and said as he started to leave, “Well, make sure you drink enough, and be back soon. The game is going to resume very soon.”

“Okay,” said Heero absently.

Wufei lingered a little bit, half looking over his shoulder as he added, “You know, even if we don't win, you'll still have a future in lacrosse. Those talent scouts are very interested in you, Heero; you have a real talent.”

“I know,” said Heero with a noncommittal grunt. To Wufei, it almost sounded like he didn't care.

“You have a gift,” Wufei emphasized before walking again. He stopped in the doorway long enough to say, “Just thought you might like to know.” Then he was gone.

Wufei walked back to the field not feeling very reassured. He was worried that Heero was taking a major risk playing on that foot of his, and much as he wanted to win, there was a fair chance that Heero would turn out to be more of a liability than help with such an injury. But on the other hand, he noted as he glanced around at the other players, who were mopping their sweaty brows and guzzling water, the other guys are starting to lag, and it could be anyone's game without Yuy's help.

Heero reappeared just as the referee was calling the teams back onto the field. He seemed rejuvenated, and the couple of minutes he had taken in the cool locker room to re-hydrate and rest his ankle seemed to have done him good.

The next five-minute installment of overtime got off to a rip-roaring beginning. Romefeller's left attack wing collected the ball right after the face-off and immediately went charging down towards the other team's goal. But when St. Gabriel's players started to overwhelm him, he had to quickly dispose of the ball, and he passed it back to one of the mid-fielders. The crowd screamed as the ball danced between the Romefeller mid-fielders; Heero jogged backwards, ever ready for the pass he knew would be coming his way any second.

The clock was running low on time when the ball finally came flying in Heero's direction. With a stumble, he snagged the ball out of the air and twirled around to start running in the proper direction, carrying the ball towards the St. Gabriel goal once more. However, St. Gabe's seemed to have really tightened up their defense, and before Heero realized it, four players were hounding him. An opposing mid-fielder jabbed his elbow into Heero's side in an effort to disrupt Heero's cradling, but Heero managed to fend him off with a quick, offensive shove. He was getting closer and closer to the crease, and any moment he would be able to try another shot….

A loud groan rose up from the fans as that same mid-fielder launched his entire body into Heero's side, throwing the Romefeller player off his feet and sending the ball flying out of his stick's netted pocket. Heero hit the ground, landing on his shoulder, and completely unable to do anything as St. Gabriel's recovered the ball and started back in the opposite direction. He got quickly to his feet and didn't even bother to dust himself off as he ran after the action; the fall hadn't done anything to injure him, and the shove had been completely legal, but it had been enough to deter his shot on goal, as well as setting him back.

The breeze rustled through his red jersey as he ran back towards Trowa and the Romefeller goal, hoping he would arrive in time to help his teammates. He was quickly encroaching on them, but the St. Gabriel's player with the ball was just breaking through the defense, a dangerous turn of events. Dimly, he could hear Wufei screaming nonsensical urges at the top of his lungs from the sidelines, his voice distinct amid the wild yells of the fans and the cheerleading squad. Treize's calls of, “Come on, Yuy! Come on!” served as a low rhythm to Wufei's harmonious cries.

He was almost there as the St. Gabriel's player was pulling his arms back to take that shot on goal. It was all up to Trowa and Fate, now; even the fastest running in the world couldn't make a difference anymore. Heero slowed to a quick jog, as time seemed to creep into a lethargic crawl. The St. Gabriel's player seemed to hover in the air as his hands snapped forward and the ball spun out of his stick's pocket. Trowa lunged, falling to one knee and twisting his arms to thrust the large head of his stick towards the ground in an effort to block the shot. The silence that rang in Heero's ears as he watched was almost unbearable.
Things suddenly snapped back into real-time when the referee blew his whistle, announcing, “Goal! We have a champion!”

The St. Gabriel's players all flung their sticks to the ground and whooped with glee, while their fans and cheerleading squad went crazy on the sidelines. Trowa fell to the ground, dropping his stick and sitting back on his calves, beating his helmet with the heels of his hands in frustration. A disappointed lull befell the Romefeller players as they slumped back to their bench, where their coach waited with a reassuring pep talk.

Relena flung her pom-poms to the ground and immediately abandoned her squad to run to Heero's side. It was hard to tell if he was dejected, but she felt like it was her place to make sure that he was doing alright. She wanted to be supportive, to let him know that it didn't matter that the team had lost, because he had given it his all, and watching that had been truly moving for her. She pushed through the thicket of people gathering on the sidelines and made her way towards Heero as he was starting to walk off the field. She startled him by suddenly appearing at his side and grabbing his gloved hands, pulling him into a tight hug. “It's okay, Heero!” she said in a tone she hoped was sympathetic. “You were still so impressive out there!”

Unused to and not quite ready for such a blatant display of affection from Relena, Heero carefully pried her arms from around his torso and put a foot or two of distance between them, glancing towards the crowds on the sideline as if he was distracted by something else. “Thank you for your support, anyway, Relena,” he said, his voice a bit more melodic and bell-like than she was used to hearing. “I hope this is the start of a real friendship.”
She cocked her head and watched dumbly as he nodded and silently excused himself, continuing to walk towards the sideline. Her eyes followed his path, trying to figure out what he was in such a rush to get to, and then had to do a double take when she realized where he was going. At first, when she saw the figure waiting for the lacrosse player on the fringe of the milling crowd, she was baffled. Her eyes danced between Heero's retreating form and the blue-eyed Japanese teenager waiting on the sidelines. She didn't understand how Heero could so clearly be in two places at the same time until the lacrosse player she had just embraced removed his helmet and started jogging faster towards the Heero on the sidelines, a rope of long braided hair tumbling down his back as he did so. “Duo…?” Her confused mouth had trouble forming the name, and it seemed alien on her lips as she said it. All she could do was watch in bewildered amazement.

Duo flung the helmet and stick to the ground as he approached Heero, who was standing silently amid the excited throngs of fans, his hands shoved in his pockets as he waited. The thick, protective gloves were not long to follow, and rolled across the grass as Duo grabbed Heero in a fierce bear hug, lifting the startled Japanese teenager off his feet and swinging him around, his nose buried in the stretchy black of Heero's under armor. He spun his lover around once and then set him back on his feet, smiling like a happy child. “Did you see?” he asked, Heero's approval far more important to him than the outcome of the game. “Did you see me play? Was I any good?”

Heero's lips quirked up into a faint grin. “You were awe-inspiring,” he said in that soft, nasal tone of his.

“Really!?” Duo cried, clearly excited that Heero had not only seen the game, but also thought he had done well. He grabbed Heero's cheeks and pulled his face close to lay a sloppy, happy kiss on his mouth.

“Of course,” replied Heero with a chuckle, wiping a bit of slobber of his chin with the back of his hand. “After all, I was the one to teach you how to play lacrosse. It would be an embarrassment if you didn't do well.”

“Oh, I see how it is,” Duo snorted playfully, putting a hand on each hip.

“And just how is it?” rejoined Heero, mimicking Duo's posture.

“I don't know!” Duo's shoulders slumped and he tossed his head with a shrug. He added with a soft laugh, “It's a mystery.”

“Most things are,” said Heero in that philosophically knowledgeable way of his. He timidly reached over to give Duo a playful punch on the shoulder. “But even you have to admit that things would be nowhere as interesting if they weren't.” He laughed again, a sight that Duo decided would forever remain one of the most beautiful things he'd ever seen. “I mean, who would have ever expected you, the most anti-everything punk on the West Coast, to be playing in the big championship lacrosse game! Even this morning, I would have never dreamed it could happen.”

Duo curled his fingers and placed them beneath Heero's chin, leaning close to his ear and murmuring, “But it did happen, Heero.”

Heero let his eyes flutter closed, shutting out the noise and hubbub around them as he just concentrated on Duo's presence. “Considering the ups and downs of this season, you'd think I would have learned my lesson by now….”

“That, you would think….” Duo's breath ghosted around Heero's face and warmed his lips.

“Real smooth, Duo!” came a shout from somewhere in the depths of reality. Both Heero and Duo's eyes snapped open, and they whipped around to see Trowa and Quatre emerging from the still-whirling crowd, Wufei and Dorothy not far behind. Quatre was holding Trowa's hand, and the green-eyed goalie seemed to be in better spirits than he had been when the game had just ended, something that had probably been Quatre's doing.

“What's up, Q?” Duo demanded to know, a little miffed that he hadn't gotten a chance to kiss Heero properly. “Whatever it is, it had better be good. Or food.” He glared at the blonde, his eyelid twitching a little.

“You're in luck, then,” said Quatre with a wide smile, “because we were just coming over to see if you were interested in coming with us for a celebratory meal.”

Duo's annoyed expression immediately melted away, replaced with an interested grin. “Oh yeah?” He grabbed Heero's hand and shook it like an excited puppy tugging on its owner's pant leg. “Hey, Heero, how does that sound? Wanna go?”

“Of course,” said Heero, who was trying hard to conceal a grin at Duo's antics.

“Great!” exclaimed Duo, bouncing with a whoop of joy. “Who's paying?”
“Well, my father was going to treat us - he wanted to congratulate you all on such a successful season, and for an exciting championship game…” said Quatre thoughtfully, tapping his finger against his bottom lip. “But now that you ask, I think I'll tell him to owe us one, as I'm pretty sure you owe me a meal.”

Duo blanched. “Excuse me?”

Quatre looked absolutely devilish as he waggled his eyebrows. “I believe that was the stakes for a certain bet we made at the beginning of the season?” He looked Duo up and down, taking in Duo's attire and Heero, who was standing beside the longhaired teen with an arm around his waist. “And,” he added with a light chuckle, “by the looks of things, I would have to say you lost that one.”

“What the…? Aw, man!” He glanced at Heero and held up a finger, excusing himself for a moment. He took a few steps away and then let loose, stomping on the ground in a circle, pulling his bangs and letting out a hideous yell of, “Crap-fuck!!!” Then he calmed himself and returned to his friends, his smile back in place. “Finished.”

“Uh huh,” said Quatre flatly, rolling his eyes. “If you say so.”

“I do!” protested Duo, nodding his head firmly.

“Well, in any case,” Trowa said, taking control of the situation, “we're all meeting up in the parking lot to decide where we want to go. Meet us there when you're ready, okay?” Having said his piece, he started to walk away, tugging Quatre by the hand, Wufei and Dorothy following after them.

When they were gone, Heero turned to Duo and quirked one eyebrow. “What was that about, if you don't mind my asking?”

“Oh, just some stupid bet that Quatre and I made when I first got landed as the team's manager,” Duo waved it off. “Something about me ending up liking lacrosse or some shit like that.”

“I see,” said Heero. He had one of the most ambiguous smirks that Duo had ever seen tactlessly plastered on his face.

“You do, do you?”

“I do,” nodded Heero, still smirking.
Throwing his arms up over his head in defeat, Duo relented. “Alright, so I lost! I admit it, okay!”

“You've won in other ways,” Heero pointed out. For someone who could be rather grimly blunt, Heero was actually quite the optimist.

With a roll of his eyes and a grin on his face, Duo said, “You know, I should just go and buy you a giant barrel of cheese-balls, Heero! Come on, man!” He whacked his lover heartily on the back, causing Heero to sputter a little.

“What?”

“Nevermind, man.”

“If you say so,” said Heero, shaking his head again. He bent to pick up his discarded lacrosse equipment, which still lay on the ground by Duo's feet, and then turned towards the parking lot, where the others were waiting. He took a few steps in that direction and then paused, turning and furring his eyebrow at Duo, who was staring at him with an odd, dazed expression on his face. “Well? You coming or not?”

“Yeah, I'm coming,” said Duo, quickly shaking himself out of his stupor. He had just come to a conclusion, and it had been a momentary, mind-crippling instance.
Heero could tell that Duo was thinking hard about something, and he couldn't resist asking as Duo fell in step with him. “What now?”

“I think I just figured something out,” said Duo thoughtfully, reaching over to relieve Heero of some of the equipment he was fumbling from hand to hand.

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” said Duo, bobbing his head up and down. He shifted the lacrosse stick and the helmet to his far hand and reached around Heero's torso, lacing the two of them together, their hips and shoulders bouncing against each other as they walked in sync.

“And what would that be?” Heero pressed, slipping his own arm around Duo.
Duo could do nothing but laugh out loud at the irony of the whole thing. But considering the philosophy he had so adamantly adhered to for most of his life, and the way things had played out over the lacrosse season, there was no other way to describe it. With a grin, he explained: “That at the end of the day, no matter what kind of shit I fling all over the place, I'm nothing but a goddamn, trendy-ass poseur, ya know?”

“I know, Duo.” Heero's hand tightened on Duo's hip as he tossed his head back and forth. “I know.”

(x) X (x)

Wouldn't it be nice if we were older?
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long.
And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kinda world where we belong?

You know it's gonna make it that much better,
When we can say goodnight and stay together.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up
In the morning, when the day is new.
And after having spent the day together
Hold each other close the whole night through.

What happy times together we've been spending.
I wish that every kiss was never ending.
Oh, wouldn't it be nice?

Maybe if we think and hope and wish it might come true.
Baby, then there wouldn't be a single thing we couldn't do?
We could be married,
And then we'd be happy.
Oh, wouldn't it be nice?

You know it seems the more we talk about it
It only makes it worse to live without it.
But let's talk about it.
Oh, wouldn't it be nice?

(x) X (x)

OWARI

(x) X (x)

a.n.: OMG, I can't believe it's finished! Smack me the next time I ever even think of getting that carried away!

Chapter title is a Queen song, and your little ending ditty is by the Beach Boys. Look, the last chapter is up, and we can wish Gundam Wing a happy 10th Anniversary along with it :)

Thank you to everyone who read and enjoyed the story, and I hope you all continue to read my stories, as well as love Heero and Duo! Until next time, Link Worshiper, out!