Never You Mind by Ryoko

Never You Mind by Ryoko Saotome
Disclaimers: I don’t own the G-boyz, nor do I own the song “Never You Mind”; their owners are Sunrise and Semisonic.
Warnings: Angst and abuse of the English language
Summary: Response to love/hate challenge; songfic of “Never You Mind” by Semisonic
Archive: Yes.
C&C: Yes.

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NEVER YOU MIND
~Songfic~
By Ryoko Saotome

“I hate you!”

“Fine!”

“Fine!”

“Good!”

“Great!” *SLAM*

The other three pilots barely looked up as Wufei stormed through the kitchen and into the hangar. It was a common occurrence anymore; Duo and Wufei *never* seemed to quit fighting. It was a damned miracle they even managed to live in the same house.

Once the door had closed behind him, the stoic Chinese pilot let his mask slip and slid to the floor, willing himself not to give into the angry tears that were threatening to spill from his eyes.

< Damn it, I will *not* cry! > he admonished himself. < A warrior does not cry! A man does not cry! >

One lone tear slid down his cheek as he added, < But a child *does* cry. And I’m still young enough to be considered a child. >

~Saturday morning alone and barely feeling
Sitting at home after rocking and areeling
All night in a cat fight
With the only one who can make me cry~

Up in his room, Duo fumed. He wasn’t really angry with Wufei anymore; hadn’t really been angry with him in the first place, or anytime he’d argued with the boy for that matter. He was angry at the way the Chinese boy made him feel.

< Damn him! > he thought angrily. < Damn him for coming into my life! Damn him for looking so good! >

He opened the blinds, blinking as the sunlight spilled into the room, and frowned. Catching sight of himself in the mirror, Duo abruptly closed his eyes and dropped his head into his hands.

< And damn myself for hurting him like I do. Why? I love him, and all I do is fight with him. >

~Open the blinds and the world is in rotation
Shaking my mind like an Etch-a-sketch erasing
Sunshine, you were bad, I’m
Still mad but I can’t remember why~

“Ohayo, Duo,” Quatre greeted as the braided American teen entered the kitchen. “If you’re looking for Wufei, he’s in the hangar.”

Duo snorted derisively and grabbed a box of cereal from the cupboard. “Why would I be looking for him?” he asked tensely, wondering how his friend even thought he could face the raven-haired youth after the way he’d acted earlier.

The blonde boy shrugged; “Just thought you might want to know.”

As if on cue, the door opened and Wufei walked in. His mask was firmly in place, and he carefully kept his eyes averted from Duo as he took his place at the table. Heero and Trowa exchanged a meaningful glance; things were getting out of hand, and the pilots all knew it.

Breakfast was relatively uneventful. The only real thing that happened was Wufei’s abrupt exit when Duo started rambling about the last battle the two pilots had been in. Quatre frowned solemnly and wondered what Duo was leaving out that had sent the Chinese teen running.

~I believe you know me well
I react like you’re ringing a bell
Are you sorry that you treat me unkind
Never you mind~

< Bastard! > Wufei thought, slamming his bedroom door behind him and leaning on it heavily. The off-white-and-brown cat lying on the bed jumped about a mile and blinked large brown eyes at her favorite human. He pushed himself away from the door and dropped onto the bed; the little cat immediately nuzzled him and mewed questioningly.

“Oh, Ryoko, I don’t know what the hell to do anymore,” he whispered tearfully to the feline; she tilted her head to one side and placed one tiny paw on his cheek. “He just makes me so angry...! But I can’t help but fall in love with him.”

“Mrrow,” Ryoko offered helpfully, nuzzling her human’s cheek again in a comforting gesture.

And outside the door, another teen leaned heavily against the wall and rubbed his own tearful eyes.

~Rolling along to the song that aggravates us
Beckoned on by the mirage of an oasis
Hurry, I’m getting blurry
And it’s no longer clear in my mind~

< I’m so sorry, Wufei, > Duo thought, standing up straight and heading for his own room. < I wish I could let you get close to me. It kills me to shove you away like I do, but I can’t lose you. Everyone I love dies, and I don’t want to lose you, too. >

He dropped onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling, a frown marring his features.

< I almost lost you in that battle yesterday. I shouldn’t have yelled at you; all I wanted to do was hold you and reassure myself that you were alive, but instead I yelled at you for being careless. Damn it, you’re the most careful pilot I know! I’m such a bastard, and I’m so, so sorry. But I can’t let you get close.

< I can’t let myself love you. >

~I believe you know me well
I react like you’re ringing a bell
Are you sorry that you treat me unkind
Never you mind~

Several hours later, he heard a scratching at the door. He frowned, then stood up and walked over to open it. Ryoko slipped around the door and gazed up at Duo with liquid brown eyes and mewed plaintively. Duo couldn’t help but grin as he knelt to pick up the feline.

“How can you possibly want to be around me?” he asked in amazement as the little cat began to purr contentedly and nuzzle his face. “I treat your favorite person in the world like he’s less than the dirt on the bottom of my shoe, and yet you stroll in here looking for attention.”

He moved back to the bed and sat down, letting the oddly colored cat settle into his lap, still purring away. “Or can you see through my act, R’o?” he asked the little bundle of fluff. “Do you know how I really feel about him?”

“Prrrrrrrrow,” Ryoko replied, standing to rub her face against the braided boy’s shoulder, then hopped down to the floor and over to the door. She looked back at Duo, as if to say ‘well, are you just going to sit there like an idiot, or are you going to come with me?’

~I believe I got you down
You react like anybody else around
Are you sorry that we wasted our time
Never you mind~

The cat pushed open the door with her head and slipped into the room; Duo had to push it open a bit further to admit himself. Why he’d followed the crazy neko to Wufei’s room was beyond him. Why he’d actually gone into the room was an even greater mystery.

Wufei was lying on his stomach, head buried in his arms. His slow, even breaths made it clear that the boy was asleep. Duo fought against the urge to shake the boy awake and instead sat down carefully on the edge of the bed; Ryoko hopped up in his lap and curled up, glancing from one boy to the other.

“Kawaii,” he mumbled, scratching the cat behind her ears as he watched the sleeping form on the bed. “You’re just too damned cute when you’re sleeping, you know that, Wufei?” He shook his head and reached out to the other boy, stooping just before actually touching him. “Of course you don’t,” he said sadly. “You don’t even know that I watch you sleep.”

Duo sighed and shook his head. “Idiot,” he hissed at himself, closing his eyes and clenching his fists tightly. “All I do is yell at you for stupid little things just to push you away. It kills me to do it, but I have to. I... I just have to. I know you couldn’t possibly understand.”

“Why don’t you try me?”

~Sometimes it takes all my time guessing why
I can’t figure it out
Sometimes it takes all my energy just to forget about
All the memories that I’d be better off without
I believe you know me well~

Duo’s eyes flew open and he stared at the other boy. Wufei was still lying on his stomach on the bed, but had turned his head slightly to regard the American teen. “I might understand more than you think, Maxwell,” he mumbled.

“I... I thought you were asleep...” Duo stammered.

“Was,” he replied, rolling onto his side. “Woke up at the part about you watching me sleep.” He frowned as he sat up, drawing his knees to his chest. “Are you going to talk, or just sit there with your mouth hanging open all night?” he finally demanded, but there was no adversity behind the words; the tone was more of a teasing one.

“... I’m sorry.”

Black eyes widened slightly. “Nani?”

The braided teen looked up and locked eyes with the other. “I said I’m sorry, Wufei. I’m sorry that I yell at you, I’m sorry that I always hurt you, I’m sorry that I’m such a bastard, and I’m sorry that I can’t tell you--” He stopped talking abruptly and tore his gaze away. He was starting to fall into those obsidian pools....

~Switch on the box Mr. Spock is on the table
Dr. McCoy is unable to connect his brain
Sweatin and strainin
Well it seemed so simple at the time~

“Can’t tell me what?” Wufei demanded, starting to get more than a little annoyed. “That you’re a jerk? That the only damned person in the world you ever even think about is yourself? That you hate me?” The Chinese boy shoved Duo hard, knocking him off the bed before turning his back. “Get out,” he hissed through clenched teeth, blinking back tears. < Damn it, I will not cry! >

“No way, Chang,” Duo growled in reply. He couldn’t believe that Wufei was starting another fight! “Why do you always pull this shit, anyway?! You wanted me to try to explain why I’m sorry, then you fucking yell at me--” He stopped as he heard a broken sound coming from the other teen. Violet eyes widened in shock, and he placed a gentle hand on Wufei’s arm. “You’re crying,” he said softly, amazed.

“Am not,” the velvet-eyed teen said, ignoring the fact that his voice was choked. “Leave me alone. Get out, you don’t care anyway.” He kept his back to Duo, finally giving up his battle to hold back his tears.

The American boy sat in stunned silence for a moment, then picked himself up off the floor and moved behind the other teen. He wrapped his arms around the boy, who stiffened in response and turned a tearful glare on him.

“Yes, I do,” he said quietly. “I care too much, Wufei.”

~I believe you know me well
I react like you’re ringing a bell
Are you sorry that you treat me unkind
Never you mind~

The Chinese boy blinked and ran the back of his hand across his face. “Why can’t I believe that?” he mumbled, turning his face away. “You’re always angry, Duo. But I don’t care about that. I tried to keep from falling in love with you, but I did anyway. And you don’t even realize it,” he finished in a whisper.

“You... love me?” Duo asked in a quiet voice. “Even though I act like such an asshole?”

Wufei nodded mutely, squeezing his eyes shut and shivering. “Pretty stupid, ne?” he asked. “Go ahead and yell at me. I know you will anyway.”

To his utter shock and amazement, the American boy gently tilted his face up and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. Wufei’s eyes went wide for a moment, then slipped closed and he leaned into the kiss. He didn’t know what game Maxwell was playing with his emotions now, but he would enjoy the moment while it lasted.

Breaking off the kiss, Duo ran his fingertips lightly across the Chinese teen’s face. “I’m tired of fighting, Wufei,” he said softly. “It hurts too much to know that you think I hate you, when all I really want to do is tell you I love you, too.”

“H-honto? You... but you--” Wufei’s eyes conveyed his utter confusion. Duo couldn’t help but smile; the other boy was just so cute at times without even realizing it!

“I didn’t want to let you get close,” he interrupted, pulling the Chinese boy back into his arms and resting his chin on his shoulder. “Everyone I love seems to suffer, and I didn’t want that to happen to you. I never realized that I was hurting you even more by pushing you away.” He turned his head to gaze into beautiful black eyes. “Forgive me for being an idiot?” he asked hopefully.

Wufei blinked, then slowly smiled and let his eyes slip shut. Leaning back into the embrace, he said. “Let’s not fight anymore, onegai?”

“No more fighting,” Duo agreed, dropping a butterfly kiss to the other boy’s cheek. “I promise.”

~I believe I got you down
You react like anybody else around
Are you sorry that we wasted our time
Never you mind~

~^~OWARI~^~

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Toldja you never know what to expect from me! ^_^ So, comments??