windandstorm | (no subject)

While the movie was on, it hadn't been so bad. It wasn't a silent experience, by any means (when Duo involved, it rarely was), but comments were directed toward the screen instead of each other, and any silence was easily filled by the film continuing on. Once it ended, it was harder to keep himself distracted from the fact that things were off-balance, and that made it harder to pretend that they weren't. It was a stupid cycle, but he wasn't going to let the fact that he'd asked about something he probably shouldn't have screw up their friendship. Especially since it hadn't. Not yet.

It wasn't the asking that was causing the problem, it was the fact that things seemed different, but they weren't different, not really, and that was seriously throwing Duo off. It would almost be easier if Heero had been angry, if only because then Duo's nervous energy could be used trying to fix things instead of trying to not mess things up by anticipating nonexistent issues. He was trying to ignore all of that, though, so he just leaned back in his seat and stretched. If he acted like there wasn't anything wrong, there wouldn't be anything wrong... right? "That one wasn't terrible. Told you I could find a good movie if you gave me another chance."

Threaded | Flat

"Really." Heero actually managed a challenging smirk at that. "How do you plan to back that up?"

"Hmmm." Duo crossed his arms and leaned back, dramatically considering Heero.

Heero rolled his eyes and leaned back as well, letting his head hit the back of the couch with a light thud. He couldn't even bring himself to be worried. Whatever Duo came up with, it would probably be easy enough to argue himself out of anyway.

After much thought, he nodded to himself, but didn't drop his pondering pose. "You owe me because I'm not going to make you go to the fake Asian place."

"Good," Heero answered with a shake of his head... but then he thought about it, and gave Duo a wary look. "Where do you think I taking you, then?"

"Who said anything about that?" Unfortunately for Duo, his innocent look could use some work.

"I don't believe you," Heero shot back before Duo even finished his question.

"Hey, if we're dating you're going to have to take me somewhere." His 'injured-and-innocent' act was a little more believable.

Dating. They were really dating. That reality... was going to take a little bit of getting used to. In fact, Heero actually looked a little stunned, for all of a fraction of a second. He shook his head slowly, smiling.

"So pick somewhere. It's almost dinner time anyway."

Duo's 'I win' smirk was pretty much obliterated by his grin. If that smile was the end result, he had way more incentive than he needed to tease Heero. "I can't save it for later?"

Heero rolled his eyes, but never dropped the smile. "Fine, whatever. Means I get to pick tonight."

Duo waved a hand negligently. "Do your worst, Yuy." After a moment, his expression suddenly went serious and a little guilty. "Oh, um. I should... call the old man."

Heero blinked at the sudden shift in mood, his own expression turning toward concerned. "Why? Everything okay?"

"Yeah, sure. I just... left in kind of a hurry." At the urgings of Howard, but that was a separate point. "I mean, it can wait, I just need to remember, or he's gonna kill me when I do get home."

"So call him now," Heero said with a shrug, "not like we're in the middle of anything."

And maybe, partially, he wanted to hear at least one half of this conversation. But he wouldn't bring that part up.

"If you're sure," Duo said, shrugging and pulling out his cell phone. He hit Howard's number and waited for an answer. "Hey ol— what? No, I didn't... I did!" Duo winced and pulled the phone away from his ear, giving it a bewildered look, before trying again. "He's right— Howard, he's right here." If Heero listened carefully (or even not-so-carefully, Howie wasn't really modulating his volume very well), he could probably hear Howard demanding, among other things, that Duo go talk to 'that Yuy boy' and 'get it over with already'.

Heero's eyes went a little wide at the sound of Howard apparently freaking out on Duo, but from what he could gather... he couldn't help but be amused. He shook his head slowly and smirked before looking the other way, as if trying to "hide" the fact that he was about to start laughing.

Duo waited a few seconds, seeing if silence would make a difference where speaking hadn't, before shouting, "Howie!" Both sides of the conversation stopped momentarily, allowing Duo to continue. "I'm here and I told him and he said it was okay, will you calm down?" Howard's response to that, at a much more normal volume, resulted in a shocked look from Duo. "What? No, you can not talk to him."

Heero was usually prepared for anything, and even if he wasn't, he could usually at least keep a straight face about it and suffer through, somehow still managing to come out on top. This, however, completely defied all of that.

He turned back to Duo, first with a wary look and rapid shaking of his head... but he followed it up with a warning glare of the "If that phone comes near me, I swear..." variety.

Duo rolled his eyes, and nodded fiercely — he was just as against it as Heero. "No, really you can't. He just went into the other room. In fact, we're supposed to be going to dinner. Right now. So I'll talk to you later, okay? And don't call me back because I'm not answering. Bye." He hung up, shaking his head. "He is insane."

Heero allowed himself a moment to breathe, relieved, with his eyes closed. He then shrugged and turned to Duo again. "At least you can tell he, uh... cares?" he offered in a somewhat joking tone.

Duo laughed. "Right. He cares. Just in a twisted kind of way."

Heero shook his head. "Not twisted. Just... loud."

He paused, looking thoughtful. "Wonder what Dr. J would have to say on the matter."

Perhaps it ran in the family. Duo gave Heero a confused look. "Do you really want to ask?"

He gave that a second of thought. ... Two seconds. ... And shook his head. "No. I'll send him an email." Beat. "Later. Much later." J preferred electronic communications anyway. That was totally the reason. Really.

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