Ficlet for GW500

[calic0cat]

This isn't what I was planning to work on this afternoon, but... *shrug* I don't argue with the muse anymore. So, for your reading pleasure:



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Title: Expectations
Author: Calic0cat <calic0cat@fastmail.fm>
Pairing: 1+2 friendship, or maybe more
Rating: FRT
Warnings: Swearing
Notes: Written for the GW500 LJ community challenge #87- Academic.
Word Count: 941
Archives: At http://www.calic0cat.net (my site). Those with previous permission to host my fics, help themselves.
Disclaimer: Duo and Heero and the rest of the GW gang aren't mine. This story is. Nuff said.

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"You never call, you never write..."

The playfully chiding voice doesn't come as a surprise. I've been expecting it. Expecting him.

Despite the fact that I'm the one who dropped out of contact with everyone, despite the fact that no one else has bothered to find me, he has. Right on schedule.

He slides into the seat opposite me, and I can feel his expectant gaze resting on me. Meeting that gaze is - difficult. Impossible?

Head still bent over my books, I stare intently at the page in front of me, struggling to bring suddenly-incomprehensible diagrams back into focus.

Yes, I've been expecting him to show up. And, frankly, I've been looking forward to it. But now that he's here, I'm not entirely certain that I'm ready to face him. To face the inevitable changes that time has made.

"Hey." A foot nudges mine under the table.

I hadn't really intended to stay out of touch indefinitely. I'd just needed some time to myself; time to find my place in a world changed by peace. Time to find myself without anyone else's expectations to influence me.

But weeks had turned to months, and months to years. The thought of contacting anyone who was part of my old life became more and more difficult. Even during the war, most of us hadn't really spent much time together. I'd probably spent more time - well, time during which I was conscious and lucid, that is - with Duo than anyone else. Most of them only knew me as a soldier.

I'm not a soldier anymore.

"Ro, c'mon. Look at me." The teasing note is gone from his voice, replaced by concern. Long, sturdy fingers curl around mine, pale against my skin. They squeeze gently, and I force myself to raise my eyes. I meet a slightly hesitant smile that's only faintly reminiscent of the broad grin I remember. "Hey. It's good to see you again, Ro."

There's nothing judgmental or accusatory in his tone or expression. Just true pleasure in our meeting. "It's good to see you, too, Duo," I admit, turning my hand over in his grasp so that the light grip becomes mutual.

His smile widens, becomes genuine. "Good," he says simply, giving my hand another squeeze before releasing it. "You look kind of busy." He gestures towards the sprawl of books on the table. "This a good time, or would you rather meet later?"

He's offering me an out but, tempting as it may be, I'm not going to take it. "Now's fine," I assure him. "I was just putting in time anyway." Gathering up the books and journals, I place them on a cart to be returned to the shelves.

"Coffee?" I suggest.

"Sounds good."

We stroll out of the library and across the green to the small café run by the student co-operative. There's not many students left on campus, so we have no problem claiming a quiet corner table. He still takes his coffee black and strong; I take mine sweet.

"So. Architect, huh?"

I nod.

"Cool."

I shrug. "Not what anyone expected, I'm sure." It had been pretty clear what *had* been expected of me. Programmer, mechanical engineer, Preventer...

He grins. "All the better."

"You must have graduated by now, too. What did you end up doing? Chemistry?" That was the direction he'd been leaning before I left, and it was certainly what everyone seemed to expect him to do.

Grimacing, he shakes his head. "Uh, no. Tried that; didn't work out. Too many connections to the war."

"Oh?"

He shrugs and admits, "Had a flashback in the lab and damn near blew the place up. Came out of it just in time; nobody else ever even knew what almost happened.

"I took the rest of the semester off. Did a little travelling and a lot of thinking. Almost came looking for you, but then I figured maybe you'd had the right idea when you'd gone off on your own. We all had to find our own place, and that was easier without a lot of other people's expectations tyin' us down."

I nod in acknowledgement. "So, what did you decide?"

He snorts and shakes his head. "That I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do. So, I took a bunch of aptitude tests, then picked something that they recommended against."

I choke on my mouthful of coffee.

Snickering, he hands me a napkin. I snatch it from him and try to glare as I mop up the spilled liquid, but end up shaking my head and laughing along with him instead. "Only you..."

He just grins in response.

Checking my watch, I say regretfully, "Listen, I need to go." I pull the envelope that I've been carrying around for the past week from my pocket and offer it to him. Years ago, he'd promised to be at my graduation, and Duo Maxwell didn't lie - or break promises. I'd known he'd show up, so I'd ordered one ticket for the ceremony. His grin turns into a genuine smile as he takes it. "Stick around afterwards?" I ask.

"Sure."

I'm standing, capped and gowned, in the line of graduates waiting to be called forward before I realize that he never did tell me what he'd ended up taking. When my name is called and I stride forward, I look for him in the audience.

He's there, applauding and cheering. Our eyes meet and I raise an inquiring eyebrow. He shakes his head and rolls his eyes, but answers anyway, knowing that I can read his lips. "Interior design."

I laugh all the way back down the aisle.

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Comments

[theotherdigit.livejournal.com]

*grins* This was nice n_n. Liked both Heero's reluctance to face Duo at first, and their easy and comfortable interaction afterwards. As well as the hand holding and Heero choking on his coffee X3. *snuggles them* Still, it's pretty much impossible for me to read a Heero/Duo friendship fic without imagining something more >.>;.

[sunhawk16.livejournal.com]

On no... never argue with the muse. ^^; This is lovely, and is it just me or are Heero and Duo's chosen fields nicely complementary?
Heero's nervousness at the beginning was sweet, and I loved how Duo put him at ease. Very nicely done. ^____^ Wonderful bed-time story!

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Meeting somebody that you haven't seen in a long time tends to be kind of awkward at first, but if they're a really good friend, things tend to take on a comfortable familiarity in a hurry once that initial awkwardness is past.

As for imagining something more - *grins* - feel free! I really can't write a Heero/Duo friendship fic without having that future "more" at the back of my mind...

The length - well, ficlets are supposed to be short, and it was for gw500 too, so... *shrugs*

Don't worry, though, I've got several much, much longer stories in the works...

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Believe me, I've learned the "never argue with the muse" rule well. :P Better to write something other than what was planned than to end up writing nothing at all!

is it just me or are Heero and Duo's chosen fields nicely complementary?

*grins* Oh, believe me, it's not just you. Duo did say that he almost went looking for Heero, after all, and he did know what Heero had taken and when he was graduating...

Glad you liked it!

[merula31]

Very cute! I love the beginning... the never call, never write... and yet Duo still understands and he's not mad... and Heero has the ticket waiting! *smiles* And only Duo would take something they said not to do!

Lovely as always! Thanks for sharing!

[silverkiiri.livejournal.com]

That was so sweet. I loved it! Their interaction was so cute and natural, even after years apart. And the grad invitation... aww. I especially liked the interior design thing. Duo is great. ::grin::

[rude02.livejournal.com]

fun ficlet!!
And so cute, Heero gown & cap... it tickles!
the career choices are a funny and
Int. designers and Int. decorators, whats the difference?
because if they are one and the same, based ont the decorators rep... well... XD
Friendship story indeed!

[ravensilver.livejournal.com]

What a nice read for a Sunday morning breakfast. :) I liked the easy familiarity between the two, how Heero relaxed fairly quickly after the first awkward moments. And how you conveyed that both had matured, even in a few words. Of course the fact that both had complementary fields of study leaves the story wide open for lots of "happy ever after". :)

[kracken.livejournal.com]

That was nice. ^_^

[sharona1x2.livejournal.com]

That was adorable. Leave it to Duo to do what people tell him not to. I can really see this kind of scenario happening between the two of them. There's such a strong connection there. I can believe it would stand the test of time. ^_~

[dhnightshadow.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's so Heero, and Duo. He have the ticket, and he hadn't heard from Duo in years. Oh, so great. Can see them together in the future. So great, thanks.

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

never call, never write... and yet Duo still understands and he's not mad...

Yep, Duo did understand because Heero at least indicated his reasons before taking off on his own. And he knew all along that he'd see him again when graduation rolled around. *grin*

And of course, Heero would be prepared for when he did show up!

only Duo would take something they said not to do!

That really did seem like a very Duo-ish thing to do. *grin* Glad you liked it!

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! Interior design seemed like a good fit - I figured that there'd be a bunch of things that the aptitude tests recommended against, so he'd need a reason to pick one thing in particular. In which case, why not something that was complementary to Heero's field of study? *grin*

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Glad you enjoyed it!

Int. designers and Int. decorators, whats the difference?

Interior designers are professionally trained and often (depending on government regulations) licensed as well. Anybody can call themselves an interior decorator. Also, interior designers deal with space planning - efficient, safe, and comfortable use of living/working space - as well as the aesthetic aspect. They have to be familiar with ergonomic concerns, planning for special needs (wheelchairs, etc.), building codes, etc. Interior decorators deal with surface decoration (paint, fabric, furnishings, etc.). It's not unusual for an architect to design a building's shell and an interior designer to design the interior elements, especially when dealing with things like apartment buildings, shopping malls, etc.

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed it. I'm glad that their maturity came through, since that was an important aspect of the story. And yup, those complementary fields of study do leave a great many possibilities open for the future... *grin*

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Thanks! It wasn't at all what I was supposed to be working on, but it flowed quite nicely, so I wasn't about to say no to a nice little ficlet!

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'm glad you liked it! It just seemed like a very Duo-ish approach to the decision. *grin* They really do seem to have a strong connection on-screen, which lends itself well to the "comfortable reunion after a long separation" scenario.

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed it! Duo knew Heero well enough to give him the space he needed, and Heero knew Duo well enough to know that he'd show up when he said he would.

[yanagi-wa.livejournal.com]

Interior design? I can understand that. He'd be good. I like the way you made them both understand the other's need to 'find himself'

[calic0cat.livejournal.com]

It's a rather unusual career choice to give Duo, but it really did seem like something that he could be darn good at, if he wanted to. And, of course, it fit the story so perfectly that I just couldn't resist.

I like the way you made them both understand the other's need to 'find himself'

They really are terribly young at the end of Endless Waltz. While they've had a lot of "life experiences", they haven't had the opportunity to experience a very wide range of experiences. Since I generally tend to make them figure things out together, I thought it might be interesting to have them tackle that process of self-discovery separately for a change. (And I really think Duo would understand, as long as Heero gave some indication of why he wanted to take off on his own for a while. He might not like it, but I think he would understand. And Heero's a little too logical to get upset over Duo discovering the need to do the same.)

[rude02.livejournal.com]

oh, puh! pouts*
I was imagining Duo as the stereo typical Int decorator. All crazy, gaudy and noisy. (gay) nahhh.... wouldn't work, he is not the type and I am evil to sugest girlifying Duo.