GIFT : PHANTASMA
1=2 drabble, lime
For lemon_advent and especially link_worshiper



Duo stared at the small, brightly-wrapped package that Heero had put in his hand. “What’s this?”

Heero tutted. He looked a little flushed. “A little something. For Christmas. You know.”

Duo looked at Heero’s face then back down at the package. His mouth opened then closed again. He looked dazed.

Heero rolled his eyes. “God’s sake. Nothing special.” He reached into the fridge to fetch out a couple of beers. It cooled his face. “No need to make a big Broadway production about the damned thing.”

“This box,” Duo began. He was obviously trying to talk to Heero, but his eyes kept returning to the package. “This size… this shape. It’s like… they use this box for… nothing else comes in this shape…”

Heero popped the lid of his bottle and put the other one down on the kitchen table in front of Duo. “You haven’t taken your coat off yet. Aren’t you staying for supper after all?”

Duo shrugged out of his jacket, letting it fall back haphazardly over the chair. His eyes never left the parcel. “But it’s not been released yet.”

Heero sat down in the chair opposite and sighed. “So much for secret santa’s surprise, right?”

Duo’s eyes snapped up. “So that’s what it is? Really?”

Heero shrugged. His face heated up again. “Yes. You wanted one, right?”

“Wanted one?” Duo’s voice seemed to have hitched up a notch or two. Heero wondered if it was because he always wore those sprayed-on jeans, not that Heero spent all of his time watching the effect of smooth, tight denim creasing up under Duo’s ass, but then that was because he had to grab a couple of hours’ sleep sometimes.

He watched the rapt look creep over Duo’s face and smiled for the first time. “Yes,” he said, gently. “I guessed so.”

“How did you get it?” Duo sounded shocked, like Heero must have sold a couple of first-borns.

Heero took a swig of the beer. His hand traced an aimless pattern on the table top. “It’s legitimate, don’t worry. I know a guy in their marketing department. It’s a promotional copy that they put out to all the magazines in advance. It’s the same spec,” he added, quickly.

Duo gaped. “But the cost. It was going to be retailing at something ludicrous.”

Heero raised an eyebrow. “I know. Gross national product of a small planet, you said, right? Or at the very least, your next six months’ beer money. But he… did me a deal.” When Duo peered at him, he grinned. “No, nothing that was illegal, immoral or made me fat, OK? The guy’s not my type – but I knew who was, and made a few introductions, that’s all.” He laughed at Duo’s furrowed brow and chinked his bottle against the untouched one on the table. “And I got beer out of it, too, see?”

“I don’t have time for it. I can’t play it.” Duo’s voice was a moan. “I’ve got the reports to do before Thursday. I’m due to fly over to the eastern office tomorrow.” He pushed the package a few inches towards Heero, though his hand never lifted from it. Then, almost slyly, he started to inch it back.

Heero laughed again. “It’s OK. I rang in for you. Said you were sick and couldn’t make it. Chang’s going for you – he’ll be better at that advanced programming anyway. They don’t expect you back until next Monday.”

“You…?” Duo gaped at him. “What the hell shit did you tell them I had?”

Heero smirked. “You don’t want to know. But it’s contagious and has a week’s recovery period even with the medication, and they hung up on me when I started to go into the details of the rash.”

Duo groaned. But his finger picked slowly at the edges of the wrapping and a slight smile teased at his lips. “Next Monday, eh?”

Heero watched Duo’s lips, smiling to himself. “Look, if you don’t want to open it… you could wait until it’s actually Christmas Day, I suppose. Or I could exchange it for socks and that new cologne that’s meant to make women slip out of their swimsuits and lie at your feet…? I mean, if you’re not really keen on it…”

Duo snatched it up, clutching it to his chest.

Heero laughed loudly. “You slut! You want to play it right now, admit it, you want to slip off to the screen and boot it up and get launched into the first platform and geek away for hours until your eyes turn square with bouncing red spots, and your head reels with visions of swirling capes and snarling beasts and the slicing of the most humungous, horny big swords -”

Duo gasped and frowned, ruefully. “That’s it, of course, I’m meant to rest my eyes. Had all that trouble last month when I got Super Mario Galaxy…”

Heero rummaged into the top pocket of his shirt and pulled out something. He leant over the table, unsnapped what he held and placed the smart new reading spectacles on Duo’s nose.

Duo raised his eyebrows this time. “You’ve thought of everything, huh?”

Heero nodded. He started to pull his hand back, but Duo grasped him around the wrist.

“You always say my gaming makes me anti social,” he said, softly. “You say I never listen to your conversation; my eyes get glazed; I lick my lips all the time; my fingers twitch.”

Heero shrugged and blushed again. “That’s not so bad. In other contexts, that is.”

Duo smiled. He lifted Heero’s hand nearer and pressed his lips against the inside of Heero’s wrist. Heero’s skin shivered under the touch. “And you said we weren’t giving Christmas gifts this year.”

Heero squirmed on his seat. He put his beer bottle down with exaggerated care. “I know. But what was I to do? You’ve been lusting after it since the promo art work was posted months ago.” He glanced up at Duo’s face then down again, as if nervous. “Are you really pissed at me?”

Duo bit at his lip. His fingers – probably unconsciously – started to stroke the package he still held against his chest. “Yeah. Very pissed.”

Heero sighed. “Well, that’s too bad. There are no strings. I don’t expect anything back. I just had the opportunity and I thought of you…”

Duo nodded. He slowly took off his spectacles and frowned.

Heero grunted. “Hell, don’t look at me like that. It’s just a damned game. So tell me I’m an idiot, feeding your obsession. I just thought…”

“You went to all that effort because you wanted to get it for me. Because you thought I’d like it.”

Heero nodded. He didn’t meet Duo’s eyes. He tugged at his hand, trying to wriggle out of Duo’s grasp but it didn’t work. Either Duo was stronger than that, or else Heero didn’t try hard enough.

“That’s the whole point,” Duo said. “That’s the best thing in the world for me. The thing I wanted most. The thing that makes me happiest.”

Heero shrugged. He was flushed again, and he wasn’t entirely sure whether that was from pleasure or a strange kind of disappointment that nagged in his gut. “Sure. Good. That’s very good, I’m glad, that was the point of getting it. I’ll let the elves know what to put on your list for future years…”

Duo stood up abruptly and let the package clatter back down on to the table top, unopened. He yanked at Heero’s arm and pulled him to his feet as well.

Startled, Heero opened his mouth to protest, then Duo leant over even further and kissed him. Hard. Heero closed his mouth on Duo’s tongue and sighed happily.

“You’re an idiot,” said Duo, fondly. “The very best kind. Now come into the bedroom with me.”

“But… the game -?”

Duo grimaced. “I haven’t been talking about the game since you worried about pissing me off. It’ll wait. Whereas watching you strip in that cute, half-embarrassed way you have, and running my tongue over the sweat drops on your rippling abs won’t…”

Heero pulled his hand free, turned sharply and dashed out of the kitchen.

Duo was seconds behind him.

The Christmas package sat on the kitchen table, one of its edges slightly damp from a trickle of condensation from the beer bottle.

It was more than happy to wait its turn.