I do not own Gundam Wing.  This fan fiction has no commercial value and I am not making any kind of profit or income off of this.  

Chapter 6

March, A.C. 202 (2 years later) in a University Stadium on L1 colony.

The artificial light gleamed off the bleachers and concrete walls that held advertisements for everything from after-shave to batteries. Bright green Astroturf crunched under cleats as a man sprinted down the length of the soccer field. He was just a flash of blue and gold as he ran, then jumped into the air to head the ball over his opponent. He landed, and quickly gained possession of the black and white checkered sphere, leaving the challenger far behind. He quickly advanced toward his goal.

The crowd roared as number 01 beat his defender and buried the shot in the back of the net. The game announcer screamed, "GGGGOOOOOOOOAAAALLL!!!!"

Relena smiled widely and clapped. Duo shouted, "YES!" then cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, "Way to go, Heero!"

Heero jogged back to the half-line, slapping high fives as his teammates came over to congratulate him. They got back in position to wait for the other team's kickoff.

"And Bulldog Senior Heero Yuy proves once again that he's ready for the big leagues" the announcer continued as a shot of a young man with dark brown hair and blue eyes appeared on screen with statistics on height, weight, and goals scored this soccer season.

Relena sighed, and looked over at a grinning Duo sitting beside her in the front row. He had pestered Heero into giving him tickets for some of the best seats in the house, right behind the Bulldog home bench. "I told you this would be fun!" Duo shouted above the noise.

"Yes, I'm glad you talked me into this," she said and smiled back. Her smile still held that tinge of sadness. Duo felt something tug at his heart for the young woman.

"You want to wait around after the game and say hi?"

Relena looked down at the ground. "I don't think so, Duo." In her mind she heard Heero yelling at her "I hate you!"

"Aw, come on," he said, nudging her with his shoulder in a friendly gesture. "You know you want to," he gave her a sly grin.

Relena was no longer smiling. "I have work I should be doing, you know."

"Oh, you're already here. What's a few more minutes?"

Relena shook her head. "You're right, it's not about the time. I just can't."

Duo looked at her, the smile on his face fading at her serious expression. Then he got an idea. "You know he doesn't have a girlfriend..." he said with a mischievous look.

Relena blushed. "Duo!" The rest of what she was going to say was drowned out by the sound of the scoreboard running out of time, and the crowd cheering loudly. The Bulldogs had won again.

Heero and his teammates shook hands with the other players, and then jogged towards the bench. Duo jumped up on the railing and shouted at the top of his lungs, his right arm waving wildly from side to side. "Heero! Hey Heero, buddy!"

Heero looked up and caught sight of his best friend. He nodded and started to make his way over, but suddenly was attacked by a group of fans. Female fans.

Relena watched as they ruffled his hair, and asked for his autograph. She turned pale when one of them kissed his cheek. "I have to go," she told Duo, trying to move around him to get to the stairs. She never saw Heero push the girl away and shoot her a cold glare.

"Relena," Duo started to protest, but was caught by surprise when she shoved him up against the railing and broke into a sprint up the stairs.

"Ow," he said rubbing his ribs where he connected with the railing, and looked down at the field. Heero had stopped a few yards away and was looking at him oddly.

"What?" he yelled out.

"Who was that?" Heero asked, walking forward again.

"Who was who?"

"The blond girl - the one that shoved you."

"Uhhh...no one."

Heero had reached the railing by this time, and hoisted himself up. His little groupies were still lingering nearby.

Heero arched an eyebrow at his old friend.

"What's it matter to you, anyway - looks like you have plenty to keep you busy." Duo said sounding annoyed.

Heero looked over his shoulder at the groupies, and turned back to Duo. He shrugged indifferently.

"I hate them. So, what's with you?" he asked Duo, a small frown forming on his face.

"Nothing. Hey, good game, buddy!" Duo said a little too cheerfully. He was nervously trying to turn Heero's attention elsewhere and to another topic. He had just noticed Relena's purse under the bleacher seat.

"What are you trying to hide? What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing's wrong. I just said you played a good game - that's all. Sheesh, can't even congratulate..."

"Can it. What's going on? Who's the girl, Duo?"

"Okay, okay. But don't tell Hilde, all right? She's just some girl I invited to the game, that's all."

"You're a terrible liar," he said, and snatched the purse out from under the aluminum bench.

"Oh, wow! She forgot her purse. Here, I'll give it back to her," he said and grabbed for the leather satchel. Heero grabbed the front of Duo's shirt with his free hand as they grappled for the object.

"Actually, that won't be necessary," Relena said calmly striding down the steps toward the pair. Duo and Heero froze.

She looked beautiful in just a pair of white shorts and a light blue sweatshirt. Her golden hair was pulled up in a ponytail. Heero noticed how much more mature her face seemed now, with a sad wisdom warming her ice blue eyes. There was definitely something different about her.

She reached out and plucked the object from their hands, and settled the strap on her shoulder.

"Relena?" Heero asked, surprise registering on his face.

"Hello, Heero," she said with a slight smile. "You played a good game."

He blinked, but didn't have a chance to reply before she leaned over and kissed Duo's cheek. "Thanks, Duo. We should do this again, sometime." She turned around and walked back up the stairs.

Heero frowned at her retreating back, trying to get over the shock of seeing her here. He blinked and turned his attention back to his supposed friend. Duo noticed that in the four years he had spent 'loosening up' at college, Heero still hadn't lost his touch with the 'death glare'.

"What is this? What's going on? I still have my gun, you know."

"All right. I invited her to the game. Hilde couldn't make it. Relena was here on the colony for business, but I talked her into playing hooky to come see you play. We came, we saw, we had a good time. I had just talked her into staying to say hi, when your little fans showed up. She just left after that."

Heero frowned, "That's not like her."

That memory came back to punish him. Relena standing there in her nightgown, eyes flashing while her

hair shimmered in the incandescent light, "Go. Hate me all you want, Heero"

"Maybe you don't know her so well. It's been two years, you know."

Heero glared at him again. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that in two years, you've never contacted her. She cares about you, and the only reason she knew you were still alive is because she has ESPN (Entertainment Sports Public Network – the world’s largest cable news channel)."

"You've given me all necessary information over the last two years. Are you saying you were keeping something from me?"

"No, just that you could've talked to her."

"I've been busy."

Duo looked over Heero's shoulder at the groupies still staring at them. "I can see that," he said dryly.

He was rewarded with another glare. "I told you, I hate them. Everywhere I go, these people just hound me. They want to know which team I want to play for next year and can they have my autograph? It's irritating."

"I guess you know how Relena felt all those years," Duo laughed.

"Hn."

Duo's smile faded as he thought of Relena's expression when she saw those girls fawning over Heero. "Hilde wouldn't have gotten mad, she would have just gotten even," Duo thought with a laugh. Then suddenly, his eyes gleamed with mischief. "You know, she's not so set on pacifism anymore. I bet she could kick their scrawny little butts!" Duo grinned, and mentally pictured Relena punching the vacant looks off those girls' faces.

Heero shook his head in amusement. "I'd like to see that."

"Hey, you wanna grab something to eat?"

"Yeah, let me go shower first."

"Please do!"

Heero glared at him again, then hopped the railing and jogged over to collect his stuff from the bench. He ran right past his group of fans, ignoring the hopeful looks on their faces.

AN:  Yes, Relena still has a warrant out for her.  What she is doing there will all be explained in the next few chapters….  Thanks for your patience!  -Rose