Sand Castles

"We're being watched," Duo suddenly said quietly. "Act casual while I get my gun."

Heero's eyes swept the beach, the sand dunes, and the small walkway of sand, lined with palm trees and sea oats, before his eyes went to Duo. "This is a public place," he assured Duo.

Duo was smiling slightly, everything about him giving a false impression of being relaxed and unaware. "Just down the path, behind that clump of tall oats..."

"Think about it," Heero insisted, not giving the spot another glance. "I have friends and neighbors. The beach is a public place. The chances of someone lying in wait to ambush us and torture us for what we know is slim to none."

Duo's eyes narrowed irritably. "They are in hiding-" he began to argue, but a small bark interrupted him.

A small ball of white fluff with two black eyes, came bounding towards the porch down the path. An exasperated voice said, "No, Nancy girl!" and then, shouting towards them as a tall thin man in white casual beach clothes, stepped into view, "Watch it, Heero! You know what happened last time!"

The little dog made the porch as if it had levitated over the stairs and was suddenly squirming and fawning at Heero's feet. Heero gingerly picked it up and carried it back off the porch at arms length.

"Got her, Frank!"

"Watch the tinkles!" the man warned as he reached them and clipped a light leash on the happy dog. He had some gray in his close cropped brown hair and a very lively pair of blue eyes. His face looked chiseled out of bone, with very strong lines, but he was handsome in a rugged way.

Heero put her down and she did, indeed, have to 'tinkle'.

"Sorry, Heero," the man said.

"You know I like your visits, Frank. It's just a hazard." Heero chuckled as the dog fawned for attention again.

"She simply is too excited to go before we get here," Frank sighed. He blinked at Duo, who had stepped off of the porch, now too, and was standing uncertainly. "Is this a new neighbor?"

"New room mate," Heero corrected. "Duo will be staying with me for as long as he likes."

"Duo?" Frank shook Duo's hand, with a small tightness about his face that might have been disappointment, or resignation. "Happy to meet you. Heero definitely needs some company. He's even broken down into making 'shell art'. That's one step from the lonely crazies, if you ask me."

Heero laughed outright. "I only wanted to put my compulsive shell collections to good use."

Frank shook his head. "Everything doesn't need to have a 'use'. If you insist, though, keep putting them in jars and start making walls, like Patterson does in his sand garden."

Heero shook his head. "I don't want any walls."

"Doorstops, then, or lamp bases," Frank amended. There was a pause and then he put a hand on his hip and wondered, "Well, don't we get to come in, Yuy?"

"Only if Nancy is done tinkling," Heero replied.

Frank grinned as he led Nancy back up the steps. "I can't guarantee anything."

Heero gave Duo an 'I told you so' look, before he followed Frank up the stairs and into the house.

Frank kept Nancy on a leash to keep a better eye on her, as he sat down. Heero didn't miss the unobtrusive look around the room. The man wanted to know just how intimate his relations with Duo was, Heero surmised. If Duo had changed anything, that would have spoken to a closer relationship than Heero was admitting.

Heero wasn't unaware of Frank's interest in him, but he had been honest from the beginning that nothing was going to happen between them. He supposed, though, that a person couldn't help hoping for a change of heart. Heero had waited, was still waiting, for Duo to declare whether they might be something more together.

"I've been away," Heero apologized. "I don't really have much besides coffee or tea."

"Don't worry, I'm good, " Frank assured him. "I saw your car up in the dune parking lot and decided to welcome you home. If you need to borrow something, before you manage to go shopping, drop by and help yourself. You know me, always stocked like a survivalist."

Heero chuckled, "Thank you. I might take you up on that. Duo might want to settle in before I show him around our little village."

"I'm not shell shocked, you know," Duo protested with a bit of irritation. "We can go shopping, Heero."

"All right," Heero soothed. "We'll go a bit later."

Duo nodded and Frank looked from one to the other of them with a raised eyebrow. "You're both tense. You need a day to lay on the beach and let the sun and surf put you in a better place." He stood up. "And, on that note, I'll leave you to it. In fact, I'll let everyone else know that you need a few days to relax. You know the Danielson's and their friends, their roving party doesn't need much of an excuse to end up at anyone's house."

"Thank you. I think you're right," Heero said with a wince, having been on the receiving end of the roving beach party a few times. They were fun, but a bit too much more than once a month, or several months, for that matter.

"Good to meet you, Duo," Frank said as he shook Duo's hand. "I'm sure we'll all be good friends."

"I'm sure," Duo replied shortly but his eyes were a bit hard.

Frank released his hand, looking a little nervous, gave Heero a brief squeeze on the upper arm, and saw himself to the door.

"See you in a few days, guys," Frank said. "Maybe we'll have a little beach cook out?"

"Sounds good," Heero replied and then Frank and Nancy were gone as he was left searching the floor and hoping that she hadn't tinkled.

"You're close?" Duo suddenly asked and Heero didn't miss the double meaning.

Heero left off his search and faced Duo. He took hold of Duo's hands in his and met him, eye to eye. "Not like you mean," he assured Duo. "Only one person gets to be close to me like that. I won't pressure him into it, though, so I'll keep it to myself, for now."

"Maybe he knows already, though, and, maybe, he doesn't feel pressured?" Duo replied softly.

"You're worried about Frank, or you wouldn't say anything, not yet," Heero countered. "I'm not going anywhere, Duo. I know that you need more time. The worst thing that we could do is to jump into things, now."

Duo was suddenly angry and stepping closer to Heero. He shook loose a hand, cupped the back of Heero's head with it, and brought him close. "I was totally crapped on, Heero," he said, "But if you think that I can't tell the difference between you and that asshole, then you don't know me at all."

"We have time," Heero whispered, struggling to stay strong despite every fiber of his being wanting to bring their lips together.

Duo made an exasperated sound and then jerked his other hand loose. He grabbed Heero hard and fast and brought them together. His lips devoured Heero's as his body, and obvious desire, plastered itself against Heero's body. He was strong, in command, and all male. Heero groaned into Duo's mouth.

Duo finally whispered against Heero's lips. "Can't I have someone who really wants me?"

"You have me," Heero promised, "But I won't ruin everything by moving too fast. Give it a few days. Come on, Frank was right, let's sit on the beach and watch the surf."

Duo's hands fell and he looked disappointed, sad, and at a loss. Heero took his hand again and gave him a gentle tug until he began to follow him. Once out in the sunshine and cutting between dunes to reach the beach, Duo said, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Heero replied. "Just.... Stop wanting because you think it isn't real and that you won't have another chance."

Duo was quiet as they finally stood inches from the surf, the ocean stretching out before them and seagulls dancing lazily over the waves. "You're right, that is what I was doing, but... I really do want you, too."

"It's mutual," Heero assured him and squeezed Duo's hand tightly.

TBC