Safe House Rules

Author: K
Pairing: 2x5, 3x4
Rating: Uhm..PG-15?
Summary: Duo sets some rules for the Safe House, and the are to be obeyed.
Feedback: Puhleaaaase! kdelioncourt@h...
Disclaimer: The G-boys and the GW universe are not mine. They belong to
Sunrise, Sotsu, and a lot of other people that aren't me. I'm just a poor
student too much time on my hands.
Warnings: yaoi (like you need to be told that!) Slight OOCness.
Notes: *blah* = emphasis, //blah// - thoughts, ~blah~ = rule, #### =
temporal ellipsis (when not signified by a 'rule')
AN #01: First attempt at a proper fic, but second attempt at writing GW
fiction (the first being a very short ficlet I only put on my journals)
I know it's a bit slow at first, but it'll get better, I promise! This ended
up longer than I intended!
Based on something my Mum bought for the kitchen!
A/N #02: I've read tonnes of 2x5 fic and found it's damn difficult to come up
with something that hasn't been done, so I hope this hasn't (and if it has, I
haven't seen it).
If the rating is wrong, someone please advise me on the right one?

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Safe House Rules

Duo barged in through the back door, dumping the bag on the sideboard in the kitchen.

"Hey Wu-man!"

Wufei, who *had* been sitting at the kitchen table with a coffee, reading quietly, glared at him.

"Maxwell, firstly it's Wu*fei* and second, do you *have* to make such a racket? And what were you thinking going off like that, you know as well as I do that Oz could be in this very town!"

The American had slowly been grating on Wufei's nerves for the past week, though his gripes were more out of concern for the boy than anything else (but he would never admit that to anyone).

"Sorry Wufei, but we were out of food, so I just went to the store to restock, I mean, who knows how long we'll be here? Besides, I thought you'd like the place to yourself for a while, give you a bit of peace and quiet," Duo replied, a little hurt, as he began to pull the provisions out of the bag and put them away.

"Hmm."

Wufei returned to his book, and Duo went on with putting away the contents of the bag.

"Hey Wu! Look what I got at the store!" Duo grabbed the last item from the bag and practically bounced across to where Wufei sat, thrusting a small, thin plastic board under his nose.

The Chinese boy looked up, about to snap at the other boy for *still* not calling him by his proper name until he saw the triumphant sparkle in Duo's eyes, and glanced at the object the boy was still holding out to him.

It was a small sign; the top of it read "Rules for a Home Sweet Home."

"Why did you buy this?" asked Wufei, a little puzzled.

"It amused me," Duo replied. "Reminded me a bit of the orphanage..." he fell quiet, a sad expression in his eyes as old, unwanted memories invaded his mind.

Wufei felt a little uncomfortable. He could only guess what Duo was thinking and had no idea what to say to comfort the boy.

"Hmm," he took the sign from the American's unresisting hands, and read the first few 'rules'. "I could live by these."

Duo blinked, the unhappy expression being replaced by his usual carefree face.

"Yeah, I figured we both could," he replied.

The 'rules' sign was hung in the kitchen...

~ 1. You spill it...you clean it up ~

Duo stood at the sideboard, stirring up pancake mix. He hadn't told his housemate that he'd bought it, knowing he'd probably get moaned at for buying something so unhealthy. But he was determined to turn the boy to these 'unhealthy' foods if it killed him.

Picking up the bowl, he stirred it harder trying to mix up the last of the batter.

//Guess I'd better call Wu-man and see how many of these things he wants//

"Wufeiiii!!!" he yelled, spinning around to face the doorway.

"Ye-OOF!" Duo turned right into Wufei, who had been standing behind him.

The world went into slow motion as the pancake mix sloshed out of the bowl...right onto Wufei's tank top.

"Dammit!" Duo cursed realising what he'd done.

Wufei rubbed at the mixture on his top, saying nothing.

"I am *so* sorry Wu, I didn't realise you were right behind me," Duo babbled as he grabbed a damp cloth and started to pat at the mixture that marred the other boy's top.

"It doesn't matter," Wufei replied. "And I can do this," he said, raising a hand reaching to take the cloth from Duo.

"No, I spilt it after all," Duo replied, pushing Wufei back a little to lean against the table.

Wufei suddenly felt that they were standing a little *too* close. Not that he minded, but he could already feel the blush creeping into his cheeks at the feel of the boys hands, one resting upon his chest as he wiped away the pancake mix with the cloth in the other hand.

"Duo, really, I'd rather..." Wufei trailed off as his eyes met with Duo's. "Rule number one, Wufei," Duo said huskily. His expression had changed into something Wufei couldn't quite place. Something that made the Chinese boy's heart skip a beat. He averted his eyes, before he did something he regretted.

~ 2. You turn it on, you turn it off ~

Music blared out of the stereo, thumping through the wall dividing Wufei and Duo's bedrooms.

"Maxwellllllllllllll!!!!!!!!" Wufei shouted above the music, banging on Duo's door. "Turn it down! Better still, turn it off!"

Suddenly the music stopped, and the door swung open. Duo leaned against the doorframe, and grinned at Wufei.

"Rule number 2 I guess," he said, tilting his head to one side as he observed the Chinese boy. "I turned it on, so I should turn it off...but how could you turn off someone you turn on?" he asked as he brushed past Wufei into the hallway, his voice low.

Wufei watched him walk along the landing.

"I'm gonna go take a shower," Duo called back, before disappearing into the
bathroom.

Wufei had to restrain himself from following him.

~ 3. You hear it crying...you kiss it better ~

Wufei lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling, unable to sleep.

//Does Duo really *know* what he does to me? Would he care if he does?//

The Chinese boy as at a loss when it came to Duo. He couldn't deny his attraction to the braided boy, only...he didn't know exactly what Duo thought of him. Sometimes, the American was incredibly flirtatious, making all kinds of hints and suggestions, words filled with innuendo. Other times, it seemed he lived to irritate Wufei.

Sighing, the raven-haired boy closed his eyes again, trying to still the thoughts racing through his mind so he could sleep.

Suddenly there came a whimpering sound. Wufei say up and listened. There it was again. He closed his eyes, trying to gauge where it was coming from. Duo's room.

When he pinpointed the source of the strange, muffled whimpering, Wufei almost ran to the boy's room, so great was his concern.

"Duo?" he knocked on the door, only to be answered by a muffled sob. "Duo, are you ok?"
"Go away!" came the reply.
Ignoring this, Wufei opened the door and marched into the room.

"Duo?" he spoke softly, sitting down next to the trembling heap of blankets on the bed.

"I said go away," the blankets spoke.

"No, not until you tell me what's the matter," Wufei replied defiantly. The blankets were heaved back, and a dishevelled looking Duo appeared from underneath them, the redness of his eyes a stark contrast to the violet. "Don't wanna talk about it," he said, hoping that Wufei would give up and go away if he refused to say anything.

//God, why can't he leave me be?//

"Duo, please..." Wufei said gently, reaching out a hand to Duo's shoulder. "What's wrong?"

Duo sighed.

"Just bad memories, that's all," he said, trying to sound as if it didn't bother him. The concerned expression still on the Chinese boy's face told him he was failing miserably.

"Nothing to worry about..." he began, cut off as fresh tears started to flow down his cheeks.

Feeling it was the only thing he could do, Wufei gathered the boy up into his
arms.

"Shhh, Duo, it's all right," he said soothingly.

Duo gripped hold of Wufei, sobbing into the boy's t-shirt until he couldn't cry any longer. The bad memories wouldn't come anymore. Tired out, he allowed Wufei to tuck him back into bed, eyes closed before he'd even laid back on the pillows. He was almost too tired to notice the chaste kiss that the youth planted upon his forehead before leaving the room. Almost.

-------

~ 4. You hear it ringing...you answer it ~

It was early in the afternoon; Duo was in his room, music playing (quietly for once) and Wufei was in the living room, reading. Or he would have been if it weren't for the thoughts racing through his mind. He was almost *certain* that Duo had made a pass at him today.

//But why would he do that? He was probably trying to wind me up...but *why?*// Wufei resigned himself to the fact he would never fully understand the American.

Duo stared up at the ceiling in his room, barely hearing the music playing from the stereo. He'd been trying to figure out Wufei for over a week. To be exact, what Wufei thought of him. At first he reverted to the childish way of doing everything he could to annoy the Chinese boy. Then, feeling an idiot for not realising sooner that it was doing more harm than good, he tried to be more friendly. A *lot* more friendly. Duo had lost count of the number of passes he'd made at the other boy in the past few days only to be ignored or brushed off. Then there was that kiss.

//It was probably just a friendly, mother-hen goodnight type thing//

Duo giggled a little at the thought of Wufei being a 'mother-hen.'

//No, that can't have been it...Wufei was...very unlike himself last night.//

"But then I was kinda unlike myself too," Duo said aloud, wistfully.

//But how can I find out what he feels about me? He seems to *almost* react to me, then *nothing!*//

He sat up, a look of determination on his face. //There's only one thing for it...//

Downstairs, the phone began to ring.

"I'll get it!" Duo yelled, putting on his happy face and bounding out of the room. He got to the top of the stairs to see Wufei had answered it.

"Yes. Uhuh. Okay. Yes. See you later," Wufei finished the phone call and hung up the phone, turning to Duo who was coming down the stairs.

"That was Trowa," he explained. "He and Quatre have both completed their missions, and will be getting here tonight. He just called to let us know."

"Oh, 'k," Duo said, turning to go back upstairs. Trowa and Quatre's presence would really thwart his plans. //Oh well, I'll just have to bring them forward.// He grinned to himself, and continued up the stairs.

~ 5. You dirty it... you wash it ~

"Hey, Wu-man, did you know there was a coal bunker in this place?" Duo came in from outside, hands - and face - blackened with soot. He had, in fact, known about the coalbunker days before, just never bothered to mention it...but now it had a use.

"There is?" Wufei feigned interest. It was too warm to be thinking about lighting fires in the hearth yet. "And it's Wu*fei*."

"Yeah, but come and look!" Duo said persistently.

Reluctantly, Wufei stood up and followed the boy out into the back garden.

"Here!" Duo pointed at the gaping hole where the bunker's wooden doors once were...emphasis on the were. (Duo had earlier jumped on the doors in an attempt to open them, only to have them give way underneath him...which resulted in the rather sooty Duo that now stood beside the hole, pointing).

"Hmm...This could be a useful hideaway if Oz found where we are," Wufei thought aloud.

Cautiously, he trod on the first step down into the bunker. And the second. Duo was a little late in warning him that the third step was loose (namely because he'd taken a screwdriver to it earlier) and Wufei tumbled down the last three steps, landing amongst the soot.

"Wufei, you alright?" Duo called down the hatchway innocently before going into the bunker himself, careful to miss out the third step.

Wufei stood up and tried to dust himself off. Coal black stains blemished his white pants, causing him to curse in his native Chinese and glower at his sooty clothes.

"My fault, I should've warned you the steps weren't stable," Duo said cheerily. "Damn, you're covered in soot, Wu!"

"I noticed," youth replied through gritted teeth. He didn't bother telling Duo not to call him 'Wu.'

"We've got to sort you out," the braided boy said as he grabbed Wufei by the hand and dragged him out of the bunker, back into the house, and up the stairs.

"Maxwell...where are we going?"

"Bathroom."

Duo pushed Wufei through the door and began to fill the basin with warm water.

"C'mon 'Fei, gotta wash your hands first," the soot-covered youth explained as he pulled the rather bewildered Wufei to stand at the basin. Placing the soap in the Chinese youth's hands, he looked around.

"Back in a sec," he said, before darting out of the room.

//What on Earth has got into him?// Wufei stared at the boy's retreating form. He shrugged, mind wandering as he began to wash the soot from his hands.

Moments of scrubbing (and daydreaming) later, Wufei was suddenly brought back to reality by a pair of arms that had crept their way around him, the hands reaching down into the soapy water to join his.

"Scrubbing like that won't do any good," Duo said softly before the other youth could say anything.
"You just have to rub it off...like this," with that, Duo covered Wufei's hands with his own; gently rubbing at the sooty marks that covered the boy's beautiful bronze skin.

The arms around him caused Wufei to tense up momentarily, but after a few moments of Duo's rubbing - almost massaging - of his hands, he found himself relaxing, wanting to lean back against the boy who stood up behind him, enjoying the warmth of his body against his back and watching as the boy's motions actually *did* get rid of that blasted soot.

Duo rested his chin on Wufei's shoulder, watching the boy's expression in the mirror above the basin.

"Hey Wu..."

"Yeah?" the boy looked up to meet Duo's gaze in the mirror.

"Your clothes need washing too."

~ 6. You remove clothing...you put it in the laundry ~

Wufei found that, once again, he was being pulled along once again. This time, he found himself in the basement, standing beside a rather battered looking washing machine.

"And why are we here?"

"It's a laundry," Duo said simply. "We have dirty clothes. Dirty clothes need to be washed. The laundry is where you wash them." He grinned at the boy. "So come on, off with 'em!" Duo pulled open the door of the washing machine.

"No," Wufei said.

"Oh don't tell me that the tough Wufei is body-shy!" Duo teased.

"I'm not...just...you can't wash whites with blacks," Wufei said hurriedly. The truth of the matter was, he'd been trying to resist jumping on Duo ever since the boy had come in covered in soot earlier, and he wasn't sure if his resistance could hold out against the sight of the braided boy's bare skin.

"No worries 'Fei, they won't run...see, it says so on the box," Duo waved the box of washing powder in the other boys face, then raised an eyebrow.

"Unless you really *are* body-shy."

Realising he was beaten, Wufei reluctantly began to pull at his clothes, turning his back on Duo in an attempt not to see the boy's undoubtedly becoming body. Gathering his garments up in his arms, he kept his eyes to the floor as he bundled them into the machine, then stood next to it, still trying to resist taking a look at Duo.

The braided boy, unlike Wufei, had taken a good *long* look at the other youth's boxer-clad body, before stripping down to his boxers. Putting his clothes in on top of Wufei's, he closed the door of the machine, poured ample washing powder into the tray, and switched it on.

//Heh, 'Fei looks a little embarrassed...and he's trying not to look at me...maybe he *does* like me...well, time to find out.//

"You know 'Fei, you have no reason to be so body-shy...I think you've got a damn nice body," Duo said bluntly.

Wufei couldn't help but turn around to face him to see if he was kidding, his dark eyes wide in shock.

"What?"

"I *said* you have no reason to be body-shy," Duo repeated the first half of his sentence to the Chinese boy, watching as the shocked expression left his face.

"But," he continued, approaching the youth. "I *also* said that you have a very nice body."

Duo virtually *leered* at Wufei as he prowled towards him, eyes blazing with predatorial lust. Wufei stepped backwards, but soon found himself stuck between a wall, the tumble dryer, a laundry basket, and the braided youth whose body he had *really* been trying to avoid looking at...the same toned, milky skinned body he now couldn't take his eyes off.

Duo had Wufei cornered, and backed right up against the tumble dryer. "D-Duo...?" said the youth, uncertainly.

"Shhh," Duo placed a finger to Wufei's lips, gazing into his dark eyes. Suddenly Wufei found himself being lifted up, and sat upon the top of the tumble dryer.
Duo stood between his legs, hands still on the boy's waist where he had lifted him to sit on the machine.

"You've still got soot on you," Duo said softly, a smile spreading across his features.

Tentatively, he leaned in towards Wufei's face...and darted his tongue out, licking at the sooty streak that marred the youth's cheek.

"Uh, Duo..." Wufei said nervously.

Duo silenced him with his lips.

//Oh God. Duo is *kissing* me...//

Past the initial surprise, Wufei kissed the braided boy back, parting his lips as he felt the other youth's tongue slide across them, feeling it enter his mouth, roaming, searching, consuming... He wrapped his arms around the braided boy's neck, and felt the other's arms move around his waist, hands now resting on his back.

Slowly, Duo pulled away, and looked into Wufei's eyes. //Well, that's confirmed what I thought...what I'd hoped//

"Still not got rid of all that soot," he whispered, and ducked his head down to lick away an imaginary streak of it that ran across the Chinese boy's torso. Wufei shuddered as Duo licked his chest; eyes closed as the youth slowly trailed butterfly-like kisses down his body.

//Did I die and go to heaven when I fell down those steps? Or...//

"...maybe I just knocked myself out, and I'm having a dream..." the youth spoke aloud without realising it.

"No dream 'Fei," Duo muttered.

Duo trailed kisses down to Wufei's stomach before kissing back up the youth's body again until he reached his mouth, kissing him gently and passionately.

"Hey you guys? Tro' and I got here earlier than we-Oh my *God!*" Quatre's exclamation of surprise, followed by a thump as the boy fainted in shock, caused Duo and Wufei to break apart...and Trowa to run into the room, kneeling down beside his lover and patting his reddened cheeks to try to bring him round. He looked up at Wufei and Duo, who were still standing pretty close.

"I was wondering how long it'd take you two to get together," he commented, before turning his attention back to Quatre.

~ 7. You make it too loud...you turn it down ~

"Sorry about the bump, Quat," Duo said to the blonde apologetically.

The group were now sitting around the kitchen table; Duo and Wufei had both found clean clothes, and Quatre sat holding a bag of frozen carrots to the side of his head - which hurt like hell where he fainted.

"It's quite alright Duo, I was just a little tired from the last few days...not to mention surprised that you two had *finally* got it together," he grinned at the two, then looked at Trowa.

"Guess our little plan has gone out of the window," he said. "Plan?" Wufei asked suspiciously.

"We figured that if you two are alone here, you'd have separate rooms...*if*, on the other hand, we were to turn up, you'd have to share."

//Didn't realise Quatre was so...crafty.// Wufei and Duo shared the same thought as they realised his words were true - the safe house only had two bedrooms.

"That's fine by me," Duo said cheerily, turning to the Chinese youth beside him. "So 'Fei, which room would you prefer?"

####

Duo and Wufei lay side by side in the bed in what *was* just Duo's room, not saying anything to each other, just staring up at the ceiling, each waiting for the other to say - or do - something.

"So..." Duo said.

"...so..." Wufei echoed. They both turned their head to look at each other.

Suddenly, a moaning sound came through the walls. "Troowwaaa~!" Wufei turned red and Duo giggled.

"Guess they weren't *too* tired from their mission," he snickered. The moans got louder, and there was a sound of the headboard of the bed banging against the walls.

"Do they *have* to make so much noise?" Wufei frowned, his embarrassment still written upon his face.

"I'll admit, there are quieter ways of doing it," Duo smirked. "I'll show you...but first..."

He banged on the wall. "Hey you guys keep it down!"

"What?"

"House rule number seven!" Duo yelled back, still referring to the sign he'd bought days ago. "Keep it down!"

There was a giggle, then the noises in the next room became quieter, and Duo turned back to Wufei.

"Lets show them how it's done," he said, a seductive grin across his face.

~ 8. You sleep in it...you make it ~

Wufei awoke the next morning to find himself lying on the floor. Picking himself up from amongst last night's clothes, he found that Duo had already risen. Looking around, he realised that his regular clothes were still in the washing machine. Sighing, he pulled on a t-shirt and a pair of track pants, and made his way downstairs. He found Trowa and Duo sitting at the table drinking coffee, a pile of freshly laundered clothes folded up neatly at the other end of the table. Thankfully, the label on the washing powder was right, and Wufei's white pants were still white.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Duo greeted him with a smile. Not a regular, cheerful Duo-smile, but a smile just for him. Wufei gave him one back, and sat at the table with them.

"Quatre not up yet?" he asked Trowa, noticing his friend's absence.

"Yeah, he got up hours ago...he's been reading your rules," Trowa replied.

"Duo's rules," Wufei corrected, smiling slightly at the braided youth.

"*Our* rules," Duo said.

The corners of Trowa's mouth lifted in a half-smile at the pair's conversation. //About time those two were together.//

"He went to take a shower a while ago..." Trowa looked at the clock. "Quite a while ago actually...maybe I should go check on him..."

Wufei and Duo exchanged knowing glances.

"I'm worried about that bump on his head," the tall youth said hurriedly. "You didn't seem too worried last night," Duo said mischievously.

Before Trowa could respond, Quatre entered the room.

"Quat, I was getting worried," Trowa said as the boy joined them at the table.

"Oh, I just went for a look around after I showered," Quatre replied. He turned to Duo and Wufei "You know, you guys moaned at Trowa and I about the rules, but you've broken at least one yourselves," he said.

"And that would be?" Duo inquired.

"Number Eight, You sleep in it, you make it," Quatre quoted. "Your bed looks like a hurricane hit it."

Both Duo and Wufei looked across at the sign, then looked back at each other.

"No, we've not broken any rules," Duo smirked. "We didn't sleep in it."

/end

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