Eyes closed, Duo stretches himself languidly on Heero's bed and informs Heero that now he's not ready, as he fell asleep waiting: "And I'm still sleeping, buddy." He shifts indolently to ensure that his shirt rides up, takes a deep slumberous breath and doesn't let out the sigh completely, holding himself taut.

The mattress dips but doesn't disturb Duo as Heero presses a knee into it, supporting his weight as he leans over -- and yes, there it is, the laugh as Heero's hand slaps down familiarly on Duo's waiting belly. His fingertips slide across Duo's exposed skin as he contracts his hand to take it back to himself.

And then they slide again. Splay and linger.

Duo's breath hitches, as if caught, as if Heero has reached through and caught him inside his skin.

He eases with Heero's caresses, gentle strokes soothing, tentative exploration growing bolder as Duo rises and falls with breath beneath him. Deeper dip of the mattress as it takes Heero's full weight, Heero lying beside him now and Heero's hand goes up under Duo's shirt, and Duo thinks he might arch into the touch -- not that he has to, just that he might like to...

Heero's hand slides back out, and he's smoothing down Duo's shirt, and Duo opens his eyes. Rolls onto his side to face Heero, propping up on his elbow to come eye-to-eye with him.

Heero has settled his hand on Duo's hip, so instead of draping his arm down his length, Duo lets his hand curl palm-up on the bed between them. Heero's smiling, and Duo curves his own lips into a smile as he formulates something to say.

A minute goes by before it occurs to Duo that not only has he not said anything yet, but he's not even trying to think of anything. He's just smiling at Heero smiling at him, and it's kind of nice, this quiet. Yeah, it's really kind of more than nice.

Then Heero takes his hand from Duo's hip, and Duo kicks into gear for something to say now --

And forgets whatever it was going to be as Heero touches him again, cradles the back of his neck.

"Do you miss it ever?" Heero asks, and for a moment Duo just looks at him because it seems impossible to answer such a thing; and then he's not sure what Heero's really asking; and then he feels the fingers at his nape -- he felt them before, but suddenly the universe tilts as it relocates its center where Heero's fingertips meet Duo's skin.

"Oh." Duo almost reaches back to touch the phantom braid, but he doesn't want to stop Heero. "No," he says, smiles with the easy truth of it. There was so much woven into that braid; so much, and so much of it unspeakable, and so he doesn't explain to Heero now, he just smiles and closes his eyes and lets his skin memorize Heero's fingerprints.

Heero traces the soft whorls, follows them up, forges paths of his own through Duo's hair. "I would have liked to touch it," he says, and Duo shivers a little warm; "I would have liked to undo it and touch you like this."

Coming undone, Duo keeps his eyes closed. "I could grow it again."

"You could," Heero agrees. "But I like you like this, too."

He smiles when Duo opens his eyes, and Duo smiles too and says Heero's name. And when Heero says yes, Duo tells him he wants to kiss Heero.

Only he doesn't, because when he opens his mouth, Heero kisses him.

"We're going to be late," Heero murmurs when they part.

Their hands, returning to themselves, pass each other; Duo catches Heero's and turns his wrist to read his watch. "We already are, man," he grins.

"Later, then," Heero amends. Smiles as he asks if Duo is ready to go now before they are, in fact, too late -- "or are you still sleeping?"

"Wide awake," Duo says. Smiles. Wide, wide awake.