Chapter Four:

Classes went in a blur for me the rest of the day. I could hardly wait to get the chance to speak to my roommate and to make my intentions known to him. I had already planned out the way the conversation would go. There was no need to rush into things. Perhaps, I would get to know him better…or ease his mind a bit…to let him know that I wasn’t going to be a threat…and then get him to see reason and make him like the opposite sex again.

Smiling in satisfaction at my decision, I barely noticed the strange looks that I was beginning to receive. All that filled my mind at the moment were thoughts of the beautiful blonde and my eminent victory at the end of the day.

With lunch done, I found myself practically running towards my dormitory. I ran up the stairs double time and with hands that trembled, I opened up the door to my room and called out loudly.

“Quatre!”

Only the soft sounds of the wind blowing through the windows and into the room greeted my enthusiastic cry. The silence was deafening and I could feel my heart beat fill my ears, almost driving me insane. Where was he? This wasn’t part of the plan. He was supposed to be here…waiting for me to come by to talk him out of his sickness.

Unaware that I was beginning to grip the handle of the door tightly, I almost jumped out of my skin at the light cough that came behind me. With a small cry of fright, I spun around to come face to face with the assistant head boy, David. He was giving me a look of slight bewilderment that had me flushing with embarrassment.

How could I begin to explain myself?

“Aren’t you supposed to be horse riding with your classmates, Maxwell?” He asked dryly. “You were supposed to be at the fields after lunch, were you not?”

My blush deepened and I bowed in apology, before trying to close the door behind me, but David’s softly spoken words had me frozen in my tracks again.

“I bet he’s with Damien now. Damn him!”

I blinked and wondered what the sentence meant. It was obvious that David might have had some sort of affection for the head boy, for his tone had sounded bitter. Had Damien also fallen into the clutches of Quatre’s power? Was there no one immune to the blonde’s antics at all?

“Why are you still standing here, Maxwell?” David asked in an expressionless tone as his gaze remained fixed on the door that was still to be closed.

“I…I am sorry, sir,” I stuttered weakly. “I was just planning on closing up my door, but…but…”

“All you had to say was ‘excuse me’, Duo,” he replied with a light smirk. He, politely, stepped backwards and with hands that were still not steady, I closed up the door and began to make my way down the hall.

“You should help him…Duo,” came the soft words again that had me gulping and stopping in my tracks yet again.

I licked my lips and croaked out weakly. “But…but…what can I do…?”

David stood beside me and stared blankly at a picture of one of the founding members of the school. “Quatre is…different, as you might have figured out by now,” he began quietly. “I remember the first day he came to the school…everyone had thought he was a girl at first and the funny thing was that he didn’t mind anyone thinking that he was.” The dark-haired boy shrugged lightly and began to descend the stairs and I followed quickly, not wanting to miss a single word.

“We were all told to prepare ourselves for the arrival of the heir to the Winner fortune, but then again…no one had ever seen the famous son before. We had only heard rumors…”

“Rumors of what?” I asked, only to slap a hand over my mouth at my actions. “I am sorry!” I apologized quickly, my face heating up with embarrassment. But it seemed like my actions did not perturb the older boy for he kept on walking as if I had never said a word at all.

“There were rumors flying around that he was a homosexual, but we couldn’t be sure. We have had such people in this school before, so it came as no surprise to many of us in here. It’s just that….”

He didn’t finish the sentence, but I could fill in the blank spaces myself. It was just that no one else had the guts or courage to show their true sexual preferences to the public. They were always hidden away from the public eye to reduce the possibility of being suspended, expelled or worse... shunned by society.

So, why was Quatre so different? I didn’t…couldn’t understand it.

“Quatre’s wealth and power is enough to buy this school ten times over,” David explained as if he had read my innermost thoughts. “So no one dares question his activities. During the first year…he was uncontrollable. He would make passes at every boy that he met, openly flirting or asking them out for…sessions. Needless to say, many boys either left the school or were reduced to crumbling shells of themselves. It’s a reverse kind of psychology that he uses. It’s almost amazing to watch.”

By this time we had reached the grounds outside and he stopped, waiting for me to catch up to him. Panting for breath (since he had the tendency to walk extremely fast), I tried hard not to look as unhealthy as I felt at the moment.

“He was made fun of behind his back,” David continued in that same bland tone. “But if he knew about it…he made a good show of not caring. He still continued to flirt and tease all the first years to death, until he was forced to be kept in a room all to himself. But then…he began to sneak out of school and for long days or even weeks at a time, he would not be seen or heard from.”

Before I could control my mouth, I found myself blurting out again. “But where does he go to?” Heero had not told me anything, when I had asked earlier, so there had to be some secret lurking somewhere that no one wanted to tell me.

And it seemed I wasn’t going to get any answers now, either.

“The fields to your horses are on the left. I am sure you know your way there now,” came the cold command that signified that all discussions about the blonde were effectively over.

Trying hard not to show my disappointment, I bowed lightly again and began to make my way towards the riding grounds. Some of my classmates were already there and I could feel the merciless heat of the afternoon sun beat down on my clothed body like hot coals.

As I went through the rudiments of my training, all of David’s words kept ringing around in my head. So, Quatre had always been enamored with members of the same sex since he came to the school. And his nocturnal activities had only begun when he had been placed in a room all on his own. And all of this during his first year too.

So, why in God’s name was I, suddenly, feeling sorry for him?

Was it because of the jokes or fun that they must have made behind his back? Perhaps the blonde had only continued his actions as a way to hide the pain behind the insults. Yes! That had to be it! Quatre was really suffering and he was only covering it up with his wild and illicit behavior.

All the more of a reason to want to rescue him, I thought with a growing smile.

Little did I know that my naïve thoughts were about to go horribly wrong.

~*~*~*~*~*~

The fire was warm and toasty as I curled up my legs beneath me on the chair. I turned another page of the book I had brought with me, allowing the soothing tones of the other boys laughter and conversations to wash over me.

I was currently in the students lounge as most of us had the tendency to want to come here after the evening meal. I had purposely avoided making eye contact with Heero and the others as the second years were all huddled in a corner of the large room, refusing to mingle with the first years...which of course suited me fine, as I had no intentions of meeting them in the first place.

It wasn’t as if I was avoiding talking to anyone else, but it seemed like no one wanted to really talk to me either. I could have easily made friends with anyone, but with the way things had started out for me and my current position in the school...I doubted that anyone who was willing to make friends with me was doing it genuinely. Sighing softly, I turned another page of my book, wondering if Quatre had finally come back to school. I had waited all afternoon for him to show up, but I had been disappointed.

I told myself that it didn’t matter either way. He was going to show up sooner or later and I was determined to make my intentions clear to him.

“Hello...Duo?”

I raised my head sharply to blink at the smiling face before me. It was a first year student that was in my classroom and I was pleasantly surprised that he had even thought of seeking me out.

“He...hello,” I replied softly. “May I help you with something?”

The boy shook his head, brushing jet-black locks from his face as he sat down beside me.

“My name is Scott. I am one of your classmates. Do you remember me?” he asked with a warm smile that I found myself reluctantly responding to. It was an infectious action and I gradually began to relax in his presence.

“Yes, I do,” I replied with a smile of my own. I was still unsure of what he wanted from me but when he began to speak about his day and how boring the classes were, I couldn’t help joining him in conversation. Scott turned out to be a very interesting individual, whose interests ranged from reading to hunting for game. Apparently, he was good at what he did for he began to brag about all the awards that he had won for his prize kills over the years.

Just when I thought he would never stop talking about himself, I vaguely noticed that a strange hush had fallen around me. I turned my gaze away from Scott to glance around me in confusion, only to gasp in surprise and shock as I noticed what everyone’s attention was now focused on.

Standing by the doorway to the lounge was none other than my roommate…Quatre! He was dressed in the normal school uniform, although his top buttons were undone, revealing his smooth slender neck to our gaze. His silky blonde locks looked mussed and a dull flush was on his breathtaking features. Sparkling aquamarine depths shimmered with mischief and his full red lips were set in a small pout as his gaze drifted across the room, only to fall on me.

I could feel my face heat up with embarrassment and something else that I couldn’t define at the intense look and I found myself suddenly wishing that I were anywhere but here. I knew that everyone was beginning to stare at both of us now as I licked my parched lips with growing worry. Something was about to happen and I didn’t know what to expect or to even do if something did happen.

Scott finally stopped talking long enough to notice that I hadn’t been paying attention to him anymore. He spun around and gasped out softly. “What’s he doing here?”

I wasn’t sure of why the question had me frowning in irritation. Why should he ask such a question? Didn’t Quatre have a right to be in here as the others did? Why should he be treated so differently?

“I hope I didn’t crash the party,” came the lithe singsong voice that sent a strange shiver down my spine. He smiled warmly and stepped further into the room, ignoring the flinches, lowered gazes or those that stepped away as if he were a plague. I could feel my dislike for them growing with each passing second as I watched their reactions. Growling inwardly, I rose to my feet and decided to make my way towards him...to at least recognize him if nothing else.

But the blonde’s next actions sent me freezing in my tracks. I watched in dismay as he approached another second year student, who just happened to be Trowa. A collective gasp filled the room as he slid up to the taller boy and wrapped his arms around his neck. Quatre whispered a few words into Trowa’s ear and before anyone could even think, his lips sealed the other’s in a kiss that sent several boys (especially the first years) crying out in shock. I stood rooted to the spot in horror, consternation and...yes, I hated to admit it...a slight tinge of jealousy.

But it seemed as if someone else was not enjoying their antics either for Wufei bellowed out a curse in his native tongue and soon shoved the blonde away roughly to the ground in fury.

“Don’t you dare touch him, you bastard!”

I couldn’t move. My feet seemed as if they were stuck to the ground as I watched the events unfold. By this time some upper classmen had made their way into the lounge, but no one seemed to want to help the lying blonde.

~ Move...move...help him... ~

/You are the only that can help him, Duo./

~ How?! How can I help him?! What can I do?! ~

Light laughter filled my ears as I lifted my gaze to stare at Quatre, who had now sat upright. He got to his feet and ran fingers through his hair lazily, a small smirk of satisfaction on his features as he blew a kiss in Wufei’s direction.

“What’s the matter, Wufei? Angry that it wasn’t you in his place?”

“Kisama!! I will kill you!”

Trowa held him back with a curt ‘That’s enough, Wufei!’ This sharp reprimand seemed to draw everyone out of their dazed stupors, including myself. Taking a deep breath and damning the consequences, I walked up to the blonde and placed my hands gently upon his shoulders.

“Come...let’s go, Quatre,” I whispered softly into his ear. I had to get him out of here and from the heat that rushed to my face, I was not sure it was because of my close proximity to him or from the looks that I was beginning to receive. But not feeling the least bit deterred, I stood my ground and stared back at the look of surprise on his features. Perhaps he had not expected me to actually do anything for his eyes held a look of disbelief, which was soon replaced by one of amusement. I knew that he was going to make fun of me in some way and I did not know how to brace myself for the incoming assault.

However, all he did was to turn fully in my arms with a small almost shy smile on his features that made him look even more beautiful and innocent. He pouted his lips softly and, much to my chagrin, began to play with the tip of my braid.

“Oh...are you here to rescue me from the big bad guys, Duo?” He asked in a throaty purr that sent a sear of heat right down my body. I shivered as his fingers slid up my exposed neck towards my jaw. Feather light caresses brushed against my burning skin and it took all of my strength not to lose myself in the beauty of the aquamarine depths that blazed with an emotion that I could not define. For all I knew, we could have been the only ones in the room for all the attention we paid to anyone else.

I was mesmerized and I couldn’t look away.

Perhaps realizing that he had me safely in his clutches, he wrapped his arms around my neck and pressed his slender frame against mine. I just knew that he had plans to kiss me or worse and for several heart stopping seconds, I could only watch those full red lips come closer and closer to mine.

~ I can’t...I can’t do this...not here...not now... ~

And with a small cry, I pushed him away from me, so hard that I almost lost my own footing. I could vaguely hear his amused laughter and I felt even more embarrassed and humiliated than before.

Through my blurred vision, I could see the looks of shock or disdain on some of my classmates’ faces and I suddenly felt like crawling into the ground and never coming out again.

~ No!! Damn you, Quatre! Damn you for doing this to me! ~

“What’s going on here?” came the voice of an authoritative figure I had never heard before. I spun around to gape at the scowling visage of a tall and well-built upper classman. His long flowing blonde locks cascaded down his shoulders, sharp blue eyes narrowed with disapproval at the occupants of the room...especially on me. I noticed David standing behind him and he was doing a good job of pretending like he never knew me.

When no one gave an answer to his question, he gave a long-suffering sigh before barking out curtly. “Everyone to their rooms now. And as for you...” He pinned cold eyes on the still giggling blonde, although I noticed a faint look of anxiousness within the green depths. It was as if he were waiting for some kind of news from the upper classman. Eyeing the blonde for a good two minutes or more, he finally spun on his heels and muttered, “Go to the office now.”

As he left and the other students began to file out after him, I could only watch the blonde follow David, with a sinking feeling in my heart. A light of pleasure had lit up on Quatre’s face as those words had been told to him. I didn’t understand it. Being called to the office usually meant that you were trouble. So why did it look as if Quatre couldn’t wait to be there?

/ He’s a whore! He only sleeps with teachers to get better grades! /

Was that the reason why? Was Quatre going to please some other old man again? I wrapped my arms around me tightly, feeling a cold seep into my bones. I felt miserable...alone...and defeated.

My naive little idea to rescue the blond from his sin’s seemed to look dimmer and dimmer with each passing moment. I knew then that I would have to save myself first from the temptations ahead of me before making any plans to free the demons within him.