A/N: Thank you, as always, to Ro. If I'm writing for an audience of one, at least I know it's a generous and brilliant audience.

Reviews of all kinds help tremendously so please… if you are still hanging on to this or my other stuff, let me know. I really, really appreciate it.

Warnings: Language, angst, sex

Pairings: 1x2x3, 1x3, Hx4, 2x?

Unexpected Development

Chapter Five

"...changing my fee to thirty-five percent. I think that's only fair, don't you? I also booked you for a gig in Kazakhstan again - remember how you made me promise to never let you go back? Well, I'm making you go back. I bought a dog on the internet last night. In retrospect, it was probably a bad idea, but I've always wanted a St. Bernard and I'm frankly curious about how they plan to ship it. I'm also thinking about redecorating the office, adding in a fire-pit and maybe a water feature. After all, I'll have all of that money from the sixty-five percent fee I'll be charging you. Plus-"

"Wait, you bought a dog on the internet?"

Duo had to stare at Dorothy, a woman who he had never, ever pictured as being the kind of person who wanted a pet.

She smirked at him, and Duo realized, too slowly, that she had said other things as well. A lot of other things.

"I'm not giving you thirty-five percent - or sixty-five."

"Well, now that I've finally gotten your attention - by telling you I bought a filthy dog off the internet - mind telling me why you've sat here for the last five minutes staring off into space instead of actually listening to me tell you about all of the jobs coming your way after your gallery show?"

Duo sighed, folded his arms across his chest, and slumped down in his chair.

He and Dorothy were at the corner coffee shop near his studio, where he had agreed to finally meet her and stop avoiding the discussion of what comes next.

Of course, Duo wasn't all that interested in talking about his future at the best of times. Considering the fact that almost all of his mental energy was occupied with freaking out over his date that night with Trowa and Heero, Duo was even less engaged in Dorothy's discussion of his career than normal.

"I have a date tonight." He might as well tell her the truth - it was Dorothy, who specialized in discovering people's weaknesses and exploiting them. If Duo didn't just come out and say it, she would find out anyway and rub Duo's face in it after she did.

She arched an eyebrow.

"A date? Does this mean you've gotten over the hot and unavailable author?"

Duo snorted, and then had to rub his hands over his face. It was funny. Kind of.

"The date is with the hot and unavailable author."

Dorothy leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, setting down her iphone and giving Duo her undivided attention. They had never actually had the conversation she had threatened him with, about Heero and the way that Duo had looked at him during his show.

"We are talking about Heero Yuy - who just a few weeks ago went on national television and spoke about his meaningful relationship with his fiance, aren't we?" she asked.

Duo sighed and nodded.

He scraped his fingers over the table between them, and tried to avoid Dorothy's piercing blue gaze.

"Did he leave his fiance for you?"

"What? No. That's crazy. He would never leave Trowa. Those two are perfect for each other."

He could tell, from Dorothy's expression, that he had only confused her and concerned her.

"He's… cheating on his fiance, then? With you? When you say date, how public is this going to be? I don't want you to expose yourself to any-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Duo held up his hands and glared at Dorothy. "Are you- no. Heero wouldn't cheat on Trowa. That's-" Duo stopped and shook his head.

He thought about the way they looked at each other and talked about each other. It was perfectly clear that they were each other's biggest fans. He couldn't imagine Trowa or Heero cheating on each other.

"Then what, exactly-" Dorothy sighed and rubbed her forehead. "They're in some sort of open relationship? Duo, these things never work out, and you deserve more than to be someone's piece on the side."

"Piece on the side?" Duo's lips twitched at the words, at Dorothy's exasperated expression. "I'm not- well, it's not quite like that."

Dorothy arched an eyebrow and waited for Duo to finally clarify the situation.

Considering that, of all the scenarios she had suggested, the truth hadn't been one of them, Duo found himself hesitating.

Dorothy thought that it was more likely that Heero had left his fiance, was cheating on his fiance, or was seeing Duo on the side with his fiance's permission. How was she going to take the knowledge that Duo was going on a date with both of them?

Only one way to find out.

"I'm not Heero's piece on the side. This date, tonight - it's with both of them."

Dorothy stared at him for a solid minute, and while Duo could see that she was thinking, he couldn't tell what she was thinking.

"Interesting," was her eventual verdict.

"Interesting?" Duo echoed. "That's- that's all you have to say?"

Dorothy took a sip of her coffee and shrugged, her shoulders lifting in a minimal, elegant gesture that nevertheless conveyed she thought it was a lot more than just interesting.

"What?" Duo sighed.

"It's your life, Duo."

"Weird how I already knew that and yet it's never stopped you from expressing your opinions before. In fact, I'm pretty sure you've never not expressed your opinions about my life."

"This time is different."

Duo snorted and shook his head.

"No, no, no. You don't get to just sit there and tell me this is interesting and not elaborate. You know the way my mind works, and you saying that is going to make me start doubting all of this even more, and I-"

"You already have doubts?"

Duo sighed.

"Yeah, of course I do. They've been together for seven years, and they… I mean, a one-night stand isn't exactly the basis for a great relationship, and I… I don't know. I really, really like both of them, but…"

"You had a one-night stand?"

Duo nodded and offered her a slight smirk.

"Halloween - remember when I begged off going to that industry party?"

"Oh, I remember." Dorothy still sounded bitter. She hated when Duo blew off functions that had the potential to land him more gigs. "So instead of booking the new Valentino ad, you were in Brooklyn having sex with these two."

"Yeah, and it was good. It was- it was an amazing night. Not just the sex - which was crazy, Dorothy. I don't think I've ever had so many-"

"Spare me the details, Duo. I don't tell you about all of the women I sleep with."

"Fair point. Anyway… it was more than just sex. And we had dinner last night - well, they came over for Thanksgiving, too. And Trowa came over to watch Heero on TV, and Heero came to my show, obviously."

"Obviously," Dorothy agreed. She looked him over, a slight frown on her face. "You really do like them."

Duo nodded miserably.

"Yeah, I really do. Now tell me why you think this is so interesting."

It was Dorothy's turn to sigh.

"I want the absolute best for you, Duo. And I simply… have reservations about a threesome being the best for you. They are an established couple, and- are they polyamorous?"

"No. This is… a first for all of us."

Dorothy nodded, her lips compressed, and Duo didn't need to hear her say it - he already knew that she thought that spelled further disaster.

She was silent for a long, tense moment.

"In my experience," she said at last, her words carefully chosen, "a threesome - it can be fun for a while, but it can get very complicated and very, very messy."

"I… that's what I'm afraid of. I feel like everything I touch turns complicated and messy - and a relationship with two guys? I fuck up relationships with just one all the damn time."

Dorothy's lips turned down in a sneer.

"Yes, well, you have terrible taste in men. Of course your relationships end up complicated and messy."

"Thanks for the support."

Dorothy shrugged again.

"Of course I support you, but I'm not blind, and I'm not going to pamper you. You have Hilde for that. Sort of," she amended, no doubt thinking about the fact that Hilde's idea of pampering Duo was to tell him to get off your ass, please. "What does Hilde think of all this?"

Duo sighed, and fiddled with his now very cold coffee.

"She doesn't really know. I mean, she knows about the one-night stand and all of the rest of it, except for last night, and the date tonight thing. She's still away, and I don't want to bug her with my weird shit."

"Mm. I feel quite certain you will regret that when she does learn about all of your 'weird shit.'"

"That… is a good point." Duo sighed. "Okay. Yeah, I'll tell her. I'll call her tomorrow. After… you know, after tonight."

"Generally, that is when tomorrow occurs," Dorothy agreed.

Duo gave her a look, but, as usual, she was completely immune to his irritation.

"So, just what kind of date is this?" she asked.

Duo shrugged. "Just dinner. We're trying to take things slow… figure everything out, you know? We already know the sex is great, so we're just… taking a step back..."

"Mm." Dorothy was back to looking superior and judgemental, but Duo didn't want to ask. He really didn't need any more reasons to think this was a bad idea.

Not when he already had so many.

-o-

Taking things slow, as it turned out, meant a dinner filled with heated glances, casual touches that had Duo way too aware of how much he had had to drink and how incredibly sexy Heero and Trowa were, and, in the end, it had meant walking Heero and Trowa to their door at the end of the night and leaning in for a goodnight kiss.

Heero had one shoulder propped against the door to their apartment, smirking, eyes bright from the beer and his clear arousal, and when Duo brushed his lips over Heero's, the other man pulled him close and deepened the kiss immediately.

Duo, of course, had no complaints. He welcomed the curl of Heero's tongue against his own, Heero's hands cradling his face, Heero's lips seemingly intent on devouring him.

He also welcomed the unexpected feel of Trowa standing behind him and pressing his lips to the back of Duo's neck, trailing them up to his ear and sucking on the lobe until Duo gasped into Heero's mouth.

Trowa's arms slid around Duo's waist and he stepped closer, pressing the length of his body against Duo's back, and Duo relaxed into him, relishing the contact.

Heero shifted one hand, reaching past Duo to touch Trowa, fingers buried in his hair.

Duo wasn't quite sure what to do with his hands, so he settled on tangling his left hand with Trowa's, where it rested against his stomach, and wrapping the other around Heero, tugging him close, so that there was no space between the three of them.

Both men shifted against him, and Duo could feel their erections even through their clothes, and he knew that Heero could feel his, especially when Heero moved against him, rocking his hips forward so that their erections, trapped in their clothes and between their bodies, rubbed together.

Duo groaned, and finally broke off the kiss.

He sucked in a deep, unsteady breath.

"What happened to taking things slow?" he asked, even as he lowered his hand to Heero's ass, cupping one firm cheek and squeezing.

Heero sighed in pleasure, eyes drifting shut as he shifted against Duo again, not quite, but very nearly, humping against him.

"We can still do that," Trowa said, his breath warm against Duo's neck. His hand, still twined with Duo's, moved lower, until his fingers grazed Duo's cock and squeezed it through the fabric of his trousers. "If you want."

Duo arched into the touch, and just barely kept himself from moaning.

He was conflicted.

On the one hand, no, he did not want to still take things slow - he wanted them, wanted this. But he also wanted more than just sex. He wanted more dinners like tonight, more flirting and silly arguments about whether gouda or manchego was a better choice of cheese on a pizza.

Duo didn't want this to just become a string of hook-ups - even with dinner beforehand. He wanted to sleep in their bed and wake up with them, he wanted to sit on their couch and watch movies, he wanted to- he wanted to know what their lives were like, and he wanted to be a part of them.

Trowa's hand moved again, sliding under the waistband of Duo's trousers, and Duo leaned his head back on Trowa's shoulder, feeling anticipation and pleasure coil in his groin.

"Come inside with us," Trowa whispered into Duo's ear as his hand closed around the firm, smooth flesh of Duo's cock.

Duo groaned at the feeling, and couldn't help but jerk his hips against Trowa's hand, pushing against Heero as well, and Heero latched onto Duo's waist with his hands and pushed back. Now he was definitely humping against Duo.

Duo opened his mouth, ready to say fuck it to all of his doubts and just enjoy this thing because he was confident it was the best sex he had ever had - the best sex he would ever have. And maybe-

"Ahem."

The sound of someone clearing their throat extinguished all of Duo's thoughts about anything feeling amazing.

He stood up straight in the same moment that Trowa pulled his hand out of Duo's pants and Heero stepped back, and, almost as one, they turned to see who had made the sound.

Standing on the landing, either on his way up or down, was Wufei, leashed cat in hand, fearsome scowl on his face.

Wufei had glared at Duo before - plenty of times, including the very first day that Duo had moved into the apartment building and almost dropped one of his boxes on Nataku as Wufei walked past with her - but his glare had never looked quite so cold as it did in this moment.

He stood there for another moment, his dark gaze raking over the three men and his disapproval very, very evident.

And then he continued on, down the stairs, Nataku following at his heels.

"I, um. I think I'll just call it a night," Duo decided.

Heero nodded in understanding, and Trowa, moving from behind Duo, looked as shell-shocked as Duo felt.

"We just got caught making out in the hallway like randy high-schoolers," he muttered under his breath.

Heero gave a startled laugh, but Duo could only muster up a weak smile. He had a hard time finding the situation funny.

He sighed and took a step back.

"Yeah. I… sorry about all of that."

Trowa shrugged.

"You didn't do anything wrong."

Heero nodded in agreement, and made a gesture towards the stairwell.

"We probably shouldn't have been putting on that kind of a show out here, but none of us did something wrong."

Duo nodded. He knew that - he agreed with them, because despite the way that Wufei had looked at them as if they were drowning kittens, they were three consenting adults feeling each other up in public.

He sighed.

"So… I guess this is goodnight?"

"It was a good night," Heero said, his full lips curving into a smile that made Duo's heart skip a beat.

Trowa smirked, and Duo had to force himself to take another step back, and then another.

"Right. Well. Um, I'll call you? Or…" He didn't really know what to say or do next.

"Or we can call you," Trowa suggested with another smirk. "Maybe this weekend we can get together again."

Duo nodded again, feeling like he really should just pull together the shreds of his dignity and leave.

"Yeah. That sounds good."

Heero unlocked the door to their apartment, and Duo watched them go inside before finally forcing himself to turn around and walk away.

And, of course, as he approached the stairs, Wufei and Nataku were on their way back up.

Duo paused, intending to let Wufei go ahead of him up the stairs, but Wufei stopped, waiting for Duo to move.

"You go first," Duo gestured for Wufei to proceed him up the stairs.

Frowning, Wufei did so, and Duo waited for him to pass before falling into step behind him.

When they got to their floor, Duo maintained a safe distance behind Wufei, but then he saw the other man glance over his shoulder and scowl again.

Duo sighed.

"Look, I'm sorry you had to see that - we shouldn't be doing that in public or whatever, but I just… It's not like we were doing it around kids, and I was just saying good night, and things got carried away, and…"

Wufei arched an eyebrow as Duo continued to speak, feeling more and more like he was making a mess of this apology.

"I do think your choice of location was questionable, but not as questionable as your choice of partners."

Duo stared.

"What- Heero and Trowa are questionable? Or is it because of me?"

"Of course it's because of you."

Duo scoffed.

"You think I'm not good enough, or-"

"Don't be an idiot. Of course you are good enough. I have no trouble seeing why they are interested in you. I simply don't understand why you, who gave me a very clumsy speech about not being into casual sex, would then go and- oh. I see."

Wufei stopped talking abruptly, and snapped his mouth closed.

Duo had to stare, but when Wufei's cheeks flushed red, he lifted an eyebrow.

"You see what?"

"When you said all of that - when you told me you found me attractive but you weren't available - you were simply trying to let me down gently when you thought I was making advances at you. You do enjoy casual sex, just not with-"

"Whoa, no, no, no. That is not what is happening here. I mean, yeah, I was trying to let you down gently, but not because I don't- Look, Wufei, I really don't do casual sex. And I'm not- Hell, I just-"

"You are letting two men who have spent a quarter of their lives together seduce you. What could be more casual than that? Trowa was groping you in public."

"It's not casual. I mean, we're trying to figure it out. It's… it's complicated."

Wufei stared at him for a long, silent moment, and then he shook his head and muttered something under his breath.

"This is exactly why I said I had no interest in dating you," he said, and then turned and walked away.

Leaving Duo staring after him and wondering just what the hell was going on.