"He doesn't like this part of the movie," Trowa says, hands clasped behind his neck as he gazes fixedly at the screen. Quatre just grins as he bends to nudge a cushion under Trowa's head, and while Trowa still doesn't take his eyes off the screen, he does reach for Quatre's arm, an easy touch of thanks.

Quatre motions for Duo to go back to watching the movie, but Duo gets up to help anyhow. "You don't have to," Quatre whispers to him.

"No talking during the film!" When they turn and apologize to him in unison, Wufei tears his eyes from the screen to glower at them briefly. Then focusing again: "Barton, please rewind that last part."

Duo holds his chuckle in until they're safely in the hall. But when he speaks, it isn't about Wufei: "You and Trowa seem to be doing really well."

"Yeah, we are." Quatre's grin is positively radiant. "I don't even mind the waiting anymore."

Duo nods as they enter the kitchen. Upon consideration, he shoots Quatre a raised brow: "Waiting?"

There's just a hint of blush in Quatre's grin now. "I probably would have fucked him on that first night, you know. Or let him fuck me." He pauses in thought as he drops the empty bottles into recycling. "I wish there were a better way of saying it, one without hierarchical overtones."

"Made love with?" Duo suggests helpfully, handing him another empty. "Had sex with?"

"I probably would have had sex with him that first night," Quatre resumes, smiling again. "But Trowa wanted to wait. He said he'd never waited before, but that he'd been waiting for me," the hint of blush is back, deepening, "and it was worth it. He wants it to mean something more than fast with us."

A soft door slam saves the silence. Out the window, Duo sees Heero walking into the yard.

"Heads up."

Duo turns in time to catch the new bottle Quatre has tossed in his direction. Quatre takes a second bottle from the six-pack and with a blush-free grin, tosses that one as well.

Heero turns when Duo lets the door slam gently behind him. He smiles, and as Duo holds up the bottles, caught at the neck between his fingers, he thinks how nice it is to see Heero smile like this.

Duo folds himself onto the ground when he reaches Heero and hands him one of the bottles. Heero thanks him but doesn't take a swig right away, doesn't even open it, just leans back on his hands again and looks up at the stars. Duo looks up too, but after a moment turns his attention to his beer. As he fingers the ridged edge of the cap, he realizes he forgot the bottle opener. Heero probably has one on his key chain, but he looks so peaceful that Duo doesn't want to disturb him. He doesn't want to leave the peaceful moment himself, so he brings the bottle up to his mouth, grasps with his teeth, and starts to twist.

A hand on the bottle stops him. "Don't do that," Heero says. "You'll break your teeth. Here, give it to me."

Duo lets the bottle slide through his fingers. Heero shifts to one hip, his other hand digging into his pocket and producing, among other attachments, a bottle opener. "Not me," Duo says as Heero applies the opener to the cap. "Strong as gundanium." He grins more widely, tapping one front tooth with a blunt fingernail.

Heero's eyes slide to him; a snort escapes the curve of his lips, but he makes no other reply. He hands back the open bottle wordlessly, and Duo forgoes a verbal thanks in favor of a nod and a deep swallow of ale.

When he tips the bottle back down again, Duo lets the quiet continue for awhile longer. Well, not quiet exactly, not with his fingers drumming against the bottle lightly like this. But wordless at least.

Then, since the silence is already broken anyhow, he goes ahead and speaks. "What were you doing out here?"

"Thinking," Heero replies, still apparently doing it, eyes focused on stars far distant.

"Uh huh." Duo takes another pull on the bottle, and this time sets it down, twisting it into the grass so it will stand on its own, his hands first resting in his lap, then moving to bury in the grass as he leans back, stretching his legs out. It isn't long before he finds himself lying flat on his back, stargazing too.

"I was thinking about the last time we were all together," Heero says.

Duo turns his head, shifting his arm out of the way so he can see Heero's profile. "Last year, right? Just after the war ended."

"Yes."

"Yeah," Duo stretches in memory, toes flexing. "That was a good night."

"Yes," Heero agrees, "it was. That was the night Trowa first kissed Quatre."

"Yep." Duo sits up and reaches for his beer again. "A good night," he repeats, the bottle's mouth at his own. And then their mouths meet, his and the bottle's; he opens his and the bottle, already open, pours its goodness into him.

Duo has just finished swallowing when Heero says, "I think I should have kissed you that night."

"Well," Duo sets down his beer, watching his hand twist it back into the grass, "you could always just kiss me now."

They look at each other, soft blinks unsynchronized.

"Okay," Heero says.

"Okay," Duo says.

Heero shifts onto his knees facing Duo, and Duo mirrors him. Heero takes a deep breath, and Duo finds that he is holding his. He lets it slip out slowly. Heero is still breathing, still looking at him intently; Duo has felt the intensity of Heero's stare before, but never quite like this. It makes him want to flinch and hold at the same time.

He holds. They're close, as close as they have ever been physically. Almost close enough to kiss. "It's okay," Duo says, his lips curving open a little, open enough for words, open enough to kiss. "It's just like kissing a girl. I mean, it'll be different -- but the basic principles are the same."

"Right," Heero says, and for the first time his eyes come off Duo. Not a flinch, just a flicker, and he's back looking at Duo.

He's looking at Duo, but Duo saw that flicker. "Oh," he says. "Oh, Heero," Duo says, looking at Heero looking at him, "you never did kiss that girl, did you."

Heero looks at him without flickering, without words, with the smallest of smiles.

"Okay," Duo says. "It's okay." He reaches for Heero, takes Heero's face in both his hands. He feels Heero's hands cradle his face in response. "Good," Duo breathes, his thumb lightly caressing Heero's skin, feeling a gentle stroking against his own cheek, "that's good." He moves closer, but only rests his forehead against Heero's, breathing and caressing and holding, both of them.

Duo moistens his lips, but it is Heero who speaks: "Do you think it was this hard for Trowa and Quatre?"

Duo shakes his head slightly, feeling Heero's bangs slide against his own, glimpses of skin-to-skin contact. "They'd been drinking," he says.

"So have we," Heero points out.

"Oh yeah," Duo says. Grins, his breath a thick little puff of amusement.

And that's when Heero kisses him. He tilts, his forehead coming off Duo's, his mouth finding Duo's at the corner. Duo shifts, his lips sliding over Heero's into a fuller fit. As Duo parts his lips, one of his hands slides around to cup Heero's nape; both of Heero's hands remain on Duo's face as he shifts fractionally, brushing his lips over Duo's and coming back to where Duo had put them, and Duo parts his lips to smile, maybe even to laugh a little more because he can feel it, something like laughter unfurling in his belly and stretching out -- he opens his mouth, and instead of laughter coming out, Heero's tongue comes in. A sound that isn't laughter, that is maybe the thing unfurled from his belly vibrates out of Duo, around Heero's tongue, into Heero; and then Duo's tongue curls around Heero's. His mouth moves with Heero's, his fingers move against Heero's skin and Heero is touching him too, gentle little strokes with his tongue and his hands, and it's just like he said before: it's like kissing a girl in principle, only not; it's like kissing a boy, only not that either: it's like kissing Heero. And Heero kissing him. Yes, it's exactly like that.