Disclaimer: I don't own them and that's that.

Author's notes: I was bored and I had just read good fic and I got inspired... So here it is! Hope you guys like it and don't forget to C&C okay? I'd really like to hear what you thought! ^-^

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Friends' Touch

The door opened with a snap, the corridor's artificial light flooding the tiny apartment with light it hadn't seen within the past twenty-four hours. A shadow crossed the distance from the door to the small bed resting in the one room apartment in less than ten seconds, closing the door with a soft thud; a small body collapsing in between the mess of sheets and blankets.

A loud sigh was heard followed by sounds suggesting the figure turned in the bed, trying to find a position comfortable for his exhausted body. Another sigh was heard followed by a sudden yelp and then a groan.

The click of the door opening was heard through the now quiet room and then the light flashed on, finally illuminating the tiny dorm for the first time in a while. A brown head popped from behind the door, a brown braid hanging down from the young man's shoulder. He scanned the room quietly, his eyes clearly indicating he did not expect to find what he was searching for… But his eyes stopped and rested at the figure lying in the bed.

He stepped into the room, shutting the door behind himself. He was about to shout out one of his cheerful hellos when something about the boy caught his eyes. He moved his gaze to the floor where he could see small patches of red covering the already dirty floor. His gaze followed the trail frantically, his eyes finally resting again on the boy… and on the wound clearly visible through his ripped shirt.

"Heero! What happened?!" Duo screamed as he rushed to his friend's side.

"An… accident… Duo… hurts…" a pained and raspy voice answered him in a whisper.

"Oh God… I'll be right back… Try not to move around," Duo stated, quickly getting up and running to the bathroom, grabbing the first aid kit and rushing back to Heero's side.

He immediately disinfected the wound and wrapped it as tight as possible, checking for internal bleeding or broken bones. He sighed in relief realizing those were his only wounds… Now all he needed to know was what the heck had happened to Heero! When he'd left a week before he was fine, and now he was awful! All he had gone to do was watch over Relena during her stay at their colony… So what had gone wrong?

Duo stopped his train of thought as he picked up on Heero's shallow breathing, his chest rising up and down quickly as sweat dripped down his face and covered his body. Duo worriedly touched his forehead and quickly pulled his hand away from his friend's skin. He was burning! Heero had never had a fever before! Could it be an infection?

"Heero…" Duo spoke out softly, moving the bangs away from his friend's closed eyes. "I need you to tell me where it's hurting."

"My… chest… burning…" Heero spoke between gasps, his voice hoarse and pained as shivers gripped his body.

Duo stared at his friend, concern gripping at his heart. He was going to need a good doctor to take care of him. Something serious had happened and Duo intended to find out what, but for that he needed Heero to stay alive.

He reached for the vidphone on Heero's night table and dialed a number, waiting impatiently for someone to pick up. Finally, a blond girl with an enormous smile plastered on her face appeared, her mouth forming a small 'oh' as she recognized the young man calling.

"Duo! It's so nice to see you! I'll call Quatre. Just a second," she spoke, not allowing him to utter a word in reply. He heard her calling a name and soon after, shoving was heard and Quatre's smiling face appeared on the screen.

"Duo! Long time no see! What can I do for you?" Quatre sweet face asked with sincerity and gentleness.

"Quatre, I need you to come down here with the best doctor you have as quick as you humanly can," Duo replied urgently, his gaze drifting to the suffering Heero lying on his bed.

"Why? What's wrong?" Quatre's voice asked concerned, his happy mood quickly replaced by his worried face.

"I don't know, but Heero came back today and he was bleeding and now he has a huge fever… He needs a doctor, but I don't want to bring him to a hospital. He'd kill me," he replied to the boy on the screen quickly. "Please," he finished his voice close to begging.

"All right. I'll be there thirty minutes max. Try to keep his temperature down. Bye," Quatre replied shutting the communication before Duo could thank him.

******

All too quickly, Quatre had come and gone with the doctor, assuring Duo that Heero would recover and that all he needed was time, patience and will. Duo sighed for God knew how many times already as he watched over his sick friend, still wondering what in hell's name had happened…

"Relena…" a soft murmur was given off by Heero as he dreamed in his feverish world. "Please… Don't go…" he continued, turning his head from side to side, a frown on his face.

Duo stared at his friend as the latter reached out a hand to grasp nothing but air. Had he shown himself to Relena? Had she rejected him? Duo knew from the start that Heero was madly in love with the girl, his theory had been tested as he'd often heard his friend's shouts at night directed towards the girl haunting him from his room next door. So what had happened? Why was he calling out to her again and how had he gotten injured?

"I'm sorry… Please…" his pleas continued softly, as his tossing became increasingly violent. "I love you… Why-why are you leaving me?"

Duo stared at his friend, shock quickly followed by anger etched on his face. He'd gone to her! He'd finally managed to go up to her and tell her he loved her? Had he finally admitted the emotion to himself and gotten the courage to talk to her? Apparently he had… However, it'd seemed like she pushed him away, refused him…

How could she? Could she actually be that insensitive? She'd been the one to torture him, making him feel things he'd never felt before, things he'd forgotten by the time he had reached age 6… She had been the one to penetrate so deep within his shell that she succeeded in making him feel insecure on his goals, his mission and his emotions… She had been the one to make him fall for her and how did she respond when he finally, after so much internal suffering, told her what she'd wanted to hear for so long? She pushed him away!!

A silent knock suddenly ripped Duo out of his thinking, his head wiping towards the door. Who the hell could it be? He shook his head and got up from where he had been seated and walked towards the close door from where the banging was slowly and effectively increasing, starting to irritate Duo. He grabbed the knob and swung the door open, ready the start cursing at the person when his breath caught in his throat.

In front of him, black circles underneath a pair of eyes and dirty blond hair falling messily around her face, stood Relena… The one person Duo could just about kill at that moment…

"What do you want?" he hissed out, every ounce of loathing intended in his tone.

Relena visibly winced at his voice, but she replied coolly, "I want to see Heero."

"No. I'm not letting you near him. Especially in his condition… You'd only manage to hurt him more than you already have. You aren't getting near him, especially not when I'm around…"

"Hurt him?!" Relena shouted, anger taking over her common sense of patience. "He's the one who nearly crushed my heart by walking away, by never keeping in touch and by never ever showing me one fifth of his feelings! What was I to do? Believe what he said and embrace him with open arms after three years? I've build a life without him and he isn't getting back in!" Relena continued shouting, her anger gripping every muscles of her body.

"Then what are you doing here?!" Duo yelled back, his body blocking any view or entrance into the dorm.

"He was cut by a knife when he saved me from a murder attempt. He didn't wait for the paramedics and just left bleeding. I was worried… So I followed him. But I lost myself and saw Quatre and asked him if he knew where he was…" she answered, her voice lower as she suddenly felt ashamed of where she was.

"Well he's fine, no thanks to you. So now you can leave and never come back," Duo hissed out again, his hatred for Relena slowly coming back from the long years back when the war still ragged.

"Don't talk to me like that! You have no idea what I've been through!" Relena shouted in anger, tears brimming her now closed eyes as she fought to control herself. She sure as hell was not going to crack in front of that… ass!

"Actually, I do! I know exactly what you have been though. As does Heero for that matter!" Duo finally yelled, begging forgiveness for betraying his friend's secret and knowing that his chances of Heero ever trusting him again with what he was doing were close to nil.

"What… What do you mean you know?" Relena choked out, fear slowly gripping at her throat.

"Didn't you ever think it weird no one ever tried to murder you while you slept during the first couple of years? Didn't you ever wonder why there never were bombs in your house or you work area for the past three years? Are you that blind?!" Duo continued shouting, his voice becoming more angered by the moment… He knew the answer and deep inside, he fought to control his temper that he knew would explode as soon as she uttered the words…

"No, you mean he was… All this time and I didn't even realize? All this time I thought no one had thought to do that and it was because…" Relena whispered back, closing her eyes as she waited for Duo's wrath to slap her in the face with words of anger and frustration… Now she knew why she was still alive and she shook with hatred for herself at rejecting Heero. She knew she should have trusted her heart… Stupid conscience!

"Goddamn it child! Are you that stupid?! Did you even read the goddamn card he gave you with the teddy bear before ripping it?! Did you ever try to consider what he had meant by them?!" Duo screamed in frustration, his hands raising to the air before clashing down on Relena's shoulders shaking her.

"I was afraid to believe… I thought he just didn't want to be forgotten… I, I was so stupid!" Relena shouted, finally releasing her control over her tears and buried her face in her hands, sobs racking her body and shivers running down her spine.

She fell to the floor, allowing it to support her exhausted body. After all those days crying over Heero, after all that suffering thinking he had forgotten her and he was right next to her all along… Protecting her from the shadows and the demons, but never close enough to protect her from her own demons. She jerked when she felt a pair of hands hugging her and pulling her to a chest. She didn't care who it was, even if it was Duo, she grabbed the fabric of the shirt in her shaking hands and wept for the days passed by…

"Hey, I'm sorry Relena," Duo's sweet voice filled her ears. "It's just that I got kind of angry, me being the one that had to comfort Heero whenever he came back home, depressed by your cries…"

"He what?" Relena asked softly, drying her tears and sniffing as Duo's last lines caught her attention.

"I guess you deserve to know…" Duo spoke out, sitting on the floor next to the girl. "Every night he came home, he was very upset with himself for making you cry so much and I was the one to assure him that one day he'd be able to be with you… Relena, he used to scream out your name in dreams. When he wasn't watching over you, he was making sure there were no assassination attempts at you…"

Relena placed her hands on her mouth as tears started to gather in her eyes and she gasped in horror. "My God… What have I done?" She looked up at Duo, eyes pleading, "Please let me see him… Please Duo. I have to apologize, I have to tell him the truth…"

Duo sighed and looked at the floor and then slowly turned towards the still wide open door. He couldn't hear Heero's soft cries, but he was sure he was still at it. Was it wise to let her near him again? To let her conquer his heart and risk the possibility of her breaking it again?

*Don't be stupid,* a little voice spoke to him. *You'd want Hilde to visit you if you were sick… And you know he still loves her,* the voice continued in a motherly tone, a tone that sounded much like Sister Helen's…

Duo grinned at the funny voice… He didn't know his conscience was a girl! Oh well, anything was possible. He sighed again and turned to face Relena. Her eyes were red and her cheeks puffy. Her hair, which usually fell straight and gracefully down her back, was in a ponytail with strands falling on her face. He smiled down at her and slowly nodded his head and snickered inside as a smile capable of illuminating the night appeared on her face. She lunged herself forward and hugged Duo fiercely, rushing to Heero's side right away.

Duo slowly got up and followed her in, watching as she comforted Heero in his feverish state. A pair of arms snaked around his waist and he started, pivoting around to come face to face with Hilde's smiling face. He followed her gaze to the couple and smiled, knowing that Relena would keep Heero's heart as well as his soul safe and cozy by her side.

He turned back to face Hilde and smiled softly, encircling his arms around her shoulders and leading her outside the apartment to leave the two youths alone. He closed the door behind him and immediately started chuckling.

"What's so funny?" the petite girl asked the braided baka standing next to her.

"Guess what," Duo asked controlling his laughter.

"What?" Hilde asked hesitantly, not sure if she really wanted to know the answer.

"My conscience is a girl…"

"Why am I not surprised?" Hilde questioned exasperated. "I think you were a girl in your past life… Especially since you love that braid so much…" She paused and ran a hand through his hair and took hold of his braid in her hands and eyed it evilly. "I wonder how you'd look with it chopped off…."

"NO!!!" Duo screamed, his voice becoming high-pitched.

"Calm down! I'm kidding! I love that braid of yours…" she reassured him.

"Really?" Duo asked, mischievous gleaming in his eyes as he leaned his face closer to hers.

"Really…" Hilde replied closing the distance between them and kissing him fully on his lips.

When they parted, they both looked in Heero's apartment to see Relena by his side, holding his hand in hers as he slept. Things were going to get more complicated from now on… Or maybe they'd just settle down to a close to normal state. Only time would tell.