Author's note: I do not own Gundam Wing or its characters. Both Zechs and Noin are twenty-eight years old. This is set after Endless Waltz. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story. A special thank you to karina001 who has reviewed every single chapter.

Where The Heart Is

His wife was asleep. Noin was curled up half on top of him with her head nestled against his shoulder. Zechs smiled at the sight. It was a familiar one now, but it still took his breath away sometimes. When he was four, he would have never imagined that the girl who was his best friend would become his refuge in the world. When he was thirteen, he hadn't realized that she was his anchor in more ways than one. And when he was eighteen, he couldn't envision a future for the two of them, just one for her.

But he had a future of his own now. One that included Noin and the precious little girl asleep down the hall. And he knows that there was never a time in his life after they'd first met when Noin didn't hold his heart, even if he hadn't known it then. Time after time she'd proved herself to be his constant, his hope, his salvation. Zechs knew that he would have never survived this long without her. If their paths had not crossed at Lake Victoria, he has no doubt that his revenge would have consumed him utterly.

Noin had given him a north star to follow throughout all of this. Even when he had been lost, he could at least find her, even when she wasn't with him. He wouldn't have had any sort of future without her, and there were still days that Zechs couldn't believe how happy he was with his life.

Beside him, Noin shifted in her sleep, cuddling closer to him. Zechs pressed a soft kiss to her temple, and a pair of sleepy violet eyes opened.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, carissima." He smiled at her. "Just thinking."

She chuckled, her voice husky from sleep. "Well, stop. You're keeping up, and if you insist on that, it had better be for something more interesting than watching you brood."

"I'm not brooding," he protested.

"No?" She studies his face, her eyes soft and searching. "Good. You're still keeping me up though."

Zechs rolled her beneath him. "I should do something about that then. Ti amo, cara."

She kissed him back, her mouth soft and sweet against his own, before pulling back.

"Ti amo, Zechs."

Here wrapped up in one another's arms and love was all the home he'll ever need. And hours later when Caryn crawled into bed with them because of nightmares, Zechs held them both close to his heart and slipped back asleep, utterly peaceful and content.

Italian Translation:

dearest

I love you, dear.