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Equus	By : Deb Category: Gundam Wing/AC > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 2855 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Wing, it belongs to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I do own the equines though, please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Disclaimer: I don't own the G boys, I just borrow them from time to time and return them a whole lot happier. I do own the plot and any other characters, especially the equines, that you will find in this fic. Please do not take them without permission. Written for pleasure not profit.

Pairing: 2x1x2, 3x4, 13x6, H+C

Warnings: Yaoi, lemon, sap, angst, vet themes, AU

Rating: NC 17

Betaed by Sakura *snugs*

Summary: Having achieved his goal of riding at the Olympics, success has opened many new doors for Heero. Having left Treize's employ, Heero is now his own boss and with Duo's support Heero sets out to make his own mark in the equine business world.

Dedication: to all my lovely readers who have asked for a continuation of this 'Universe'.

Fic 4 in the Equine Intervention Arc.

Commenced December 2011 - ShenLong

“Equus”

Chapter 4

The drive home from the hospital was a true test of Heero's patience. Duo grumbled about his wrist and the problems it would now cause for him and his practice. Heero did his best to soothe the grumpy vet but nothing would pull Duo from his annoyed state. In the end, Heero decided it was probably best to simply shut up and let Duo get on with it. He would have to run out of steam at some stage – eventually – Heero hoped.

They called at the chemist on the way home and Heero dutifully went inside and had Duo's 'scripts filled, taking note of the pharmacist's instructions regarding the medication. Pill bottles in a paper bag, Heero returned to the car and his complaining partner.

Once they were home, Heero settled Duo in the lounge and went to make them both a coffee, Smokey busy entwining herself around Heero's ankles and looking hopeful. “Come on, I'll top up your biscuits,” Heero said to the cat after she'd almost tripped him up for the fifth time.

Watching intently as Heero filled her biscuit bowl, Smokey gave a contented meow as the bowl was placed back down for her. Humans were so easy to train.

Returning to the lounge with the coffees, Heero handed one over to Duo and took a seat next to the vet. “How is the wrist feeling?” he asked politely.

“Pain killer is working well, it's not throbbing much at all at the moment,” Duo replied honestly. “I'm more concerned about how I'm going to work with this all strapped up the way it is. I can't move my fingers much at all.”

“Duo, that's the whole reason for the tight bandage, so you can't move it. You heard what the doctor said, it needs to be rested so the tendon and bones can heal. If you don't it will take twice as long to heal up and you could even end up doing more damage,” Heero stated.

I know,” Duo sighed, “and I'm sorry to be such a pain, but I can't afford to have the time off work, Heero It's not fair to ask Hilde to do all the consults either. I know she wouldn't mind, but she did them all whilst we were in London and with the client base as large as it is and the practice consults pretty much booked solid, it's simply too much for one vet to handle on their own. The surgery side isn't so bad as I can still help out with that, monitoring the patients and such whilst Hilde does the actual operations, but it's the consults that really need the two vets, otherwise one on their own will get burnt out too quickly. I have to work, Heero.”

Heero could see Duo's point, but it still didn't solve the dilemma for them. “What about a locum? You know, like the time we had Zechs as a locum when you had that bad dose of the 'flu?”

“I suppose it's worth a thought, although...” Duo's voice trailed off as his mind took over.

Heero's eyes narrowed a touch as he took in his partner's expression. “Duo? What's going through that head of yours?”

“Heero? Getting a locum in isn't a bad idea, but when I think about it, the practice really could do with a third vet, more so a part time one I think. I'm not really sure though, it would need looking into, you know sort of a time and effort, income and expenditure...”

“Duo, slow down a little and explain a bit clearer what it is you're trying to say.” Heero had a rough idea, but wasn't too sure exactly where Duo was going with this.

“You remember ages ago when I was running the practice by myself?”

“Hai.” Heero could clearly recall that time. Duo had been working himself into the ground, trying to do consults, surgery and the reception all by himself with the practice growing steadily. Heero had suffered many a time the vet's short temper caused from overwork. He'd eventually persuaded Duo to take on a second vet, which hadn't been easy and he'd done a complete study of the practice and put it all into facts and figures for Duo to be able to see for himself that a second vet would be a viable option.

“I'm thinking that maybe it's time to expand again, take on another vet, maybe full time or part time, also another part time receptionist might help Cathy out too. Problem is, I don’t know if the practice could support any more employees.”

“Is this your way of saying you'd like me to do another study of time and motion, income and expense thing to see if it would be both viable and profitable?” Heero couldn't help the smirk on his face.

“Uh, yeah, if you don't mind.” Duo's face looked a little sheepish.

Heero put his mug down and wrapped Duo in his arms. He feathered kisses along the sweet neck and licked at Duo's ear. “Of course I don't mind. I'd be happy to do it for you. I can get started on it tomorrow if you like?”

Moaning softly, Duo closed his eyes and let Heero's mouth worship his skin. “Thanks, Heero.”

“We do still have a slight problem of consults for the moment though,” Heero murmured against Duo's neck, eliciting a shiver from the vet.

“I'll call Hilde in a minute and have a chat to her,” Duo groaned.

“Might be an idea,” Heero whispered, his breath ghosting across sensitive skin and causing further shivers. Heero's hand dropped from around Duo's shoulders to land on the vet's thigh where it began to stroke lightly up and down the denim clad flesh. Kissing Duo's neck again, Heero moved his hand upwards to cup at the swelling hardness appearing at Duo's groin.

“Ahh, lovely bedside manner you have there, Heero,” Duo groaned out as his rising need was gently squeezed.

Heero declined to reply, instead his fingers found Duo's zipper and eased it down, fingers worming inside and through the flap of Duo's boxers to release the stiff organ. Once Duo's cock was free, Heero eyed it hungrily. With a smirk, He completely released Duo's shoulders and slid down his lover's body to press a kiss to the swollen crown.

“Oh, god.” Duo's eyes slipped shut, his head falling back and body surrendering to Heero.

A light chuckle left Heero's lips before he put his mouth to better use. Sucking the organ in deep, Heero began to lave Duo's cock with the attention it deserved. His tongue swirled around the head, flicked across the tiny slit and then swallowed the entire length down his throat.

“Ah... Uhhh... Sweet Jesus...” Duo's head tossed from side to side, hips undulating softly as his body was set on fire. That knowing tongue and mouth drove him to distraction, the need burning fiercely inside.

Continuing to suck, Heero was encouraged by the soft moans and whimpers coming from his lover's mouth. He could feel the tension rising in Duo's body and knew the end was near for the vet. Taking Duo's cock as deep as he could, Heero began to hum softly, the vibrations of his vocal chords signaling the end for Duo.

“Oh, shit... Gonna...” Duo's hips thrust up, his eyes squeezed shut and he bit his lip in an effort to stop from screaming. A distorted cry escaped his lips as his body stiffened, balls drew close and his cock began to pump his seed forth into Heero's waiting mouth.

Every bit of Duo's offering was sucked down greedily. Heero's mouth working overtime to cope with the large amount of Duo's essence. Once the organ had spent itself and began to deflate, Heero's tongue licked carefully over and around the organ, cleaning his lover up completely. Once he was satisfied that Duo was as clean as he could be, Heero removed his mouth and tucked Duo back inside his boxers, zipping up those jeans a moment later. Sitting back, he gave his lover a satisfied smirk.

“If I wasn't so damn boneless right now, I'd kiss you senseless. Thanks, Heero, that was incredible.”

“Trust me, it was my pleasure.”

* * *

Catherine and Hilde were both contacted in regards to Duo's wrist. Catherine was relived to hear that no serious damage had been done, she'd been quite worried when she'd seen the depth of the holes the teeth had made. Hilde had similarly been relieved with the news. Catherine had informed her of the bite and ensuing aftermath, Hilde concerned for her boss and wanting to call the practice to see if Duo was okay. Catherine had explained that it wouldn't be a good idea as both men would be at the hospital so she wouldn't get any news until they returned.

Hilde had been on tenterhooks waiting for the call to come through and gave a sigh of relief when Duo finally did call and out her mind to rest. Being the kind hearted person that she was, Hilde had immediately offered to cover all the consults until Duo was fit again.

Whilst he was touched by the offer and let Hilde know that, he also explained that after some thinking he'd decided to continue on with the consults as best he could with the use of only his left hand. He would still manage to carry out most of his duties, it would be things like vaccinations, treatment that required needles and the like that would be the stumbling block for him. He hoped to have most of those consults transferred to Hilde or have Catherine assist when injections became necessary.

Whilst the women remained skeptical, they both agreed to at least let Duo try. Knowing how much Duo's pride meant to him, Heero also agreed and offered to help out as much as possible.

Duo also sounded the women out about taking on a third vet and possibly another receptionist come vet nurse. Hilde agreed the idea had merit and there was no doubt they could use the extra pair of hands, but it would depend on the facts and figures that Heero was yet to come up with. Catherine had objected to the need for a second receptionist. She felt she was more than capable of handling everything as it was and whilst she appreciated Duo's idea and concern that she not overwork herself, she was more than happy with the current arrangement. She did however agree to wait and see what happened with the study Heero would put together. Duo had also suggested that they could compromise; if the study showed the practice could comfortably support another receptionist they could look at getting someone in on either a part time or casual basis.

Catherine had been happy with that.

* * *

“The local vicar is set to burn people at the stake next week for practicing witchcraft. First bonfire will take place at noon on Saturday. I said we would be there to cheer the flames on.” Treize looked to his partner, his eyes twinkling with amusement.

“That sounds nice,” Zechs mumbled.

“I also volunteered us to dress up in short skirts and sell popcorn to the masses.”

“Mmmm... okay.” Zechs blinked and then frowned. “What did you just say?”

Treize laughed. “You haven't been listening to a word I've said, have you?”

“I'm sorry.” Zechs gave a wide yawn.

Treize pulled his lover closer and ran his hand down the long, blonde locks. “Zechs, you can tell me to shove off if you like, that it's none of my business, but you're working yourself too hard. You need to slow down before you collapse from a nervous breakdown or exhaustion.”

“I know and I'm sorry that I'm not getting to spend much time with you lately.” Zechs tried to stifle another yawn.

“Talk to me? I can't help if I don't know what's wrong,” Treize said softly and pressed a kiss to the crown of Zechs' head.

Zechs sighed and snuggled deeper into Treize's embrace. “I wish I could stay here like this forever,” he whispered.

“I'd be more than happy to have you here like this forever too,” Treize replied. “I don't get to spend much time with you lately.”

“I know and I'm sorry.” Zechs shifted slightly. “It's work,” he said softly.

“Oh?” Treize knew there was something wrong, Zechs had been working long hours lately and they had hardly spent any time together. Treize wasn't about to interfere in his lover's working life though, he had no right to do that, but he did have a right to see that Zechs took care of himself and right now Zechs was completely worn out. “Is there something wrong at work? I know you've been working hard, long hours and all that.”

“Yeah.” Zechs traced idle patterns with his finger on Treize's thigh. “We seem to be flat out all the time lately. Everyone is working long shifts trying to keep up with the demand. I don't mind that so much, but...”

“But what?” Treize coaxed.

“It seems I can't even enjoy my rostered day off lately.” Zechs gave another, deep sigh. “As you know, we get two days off a week, but recently I've been called in to work on those too.”

“Why don't they put another vet on if the work is getting too much?”

“I've asked the same question,” Zechs muttered. “I asked Doctor Anderson about it, about getting another vet employed to help with the work load, but he doesn't seem to think we need one. His answer was that we're coping just fine, we're all in the same boat so get used to it. They weren't his exact words, but close enough.”

“That doesn't sound very fair.” Treize frowned.

“It isn't, but I guess I can see where he's coming from. Doctor Alves is a specialist and as such he earns a higher wage. I've done a little of the figures in my own head and once Anderson has paid me, himself, the vet nurses, Alves and the expenses associated with the practice, it wouldn't leave a whole lot to employ another vet with.”

“I see.” Treize thought on Zechs' words. “But if you keep going in this way, you're going to end up getting sick and having time off too, then that's not going to be any better for the practice either.”

“Better hope I don't get sick then.”

“I still think Anderson is being selfish though.”

“It's not his fault, Treize. Oakford is an equine only practice, we specialize in the care of horses. Anderson has to employ vets that are also specializing in that field and when a vet specializes he expects to be paid more for his services, after all, it has cost that vet more to gain the knowledge, not just the practical, but also the mental experience too.”

“I can see what you mean.” It did make clearer sense to Treize when Zechs put it that way. “Then I guess we're stuck with the situation,” Treize stated. “Unless you decide on a career change.”

Shaking his head, Zechs snorted. “No chance of that happening. Look, I'm going to put in for a couple of weeks holiday, I could do with the break and I have three weeks annual leave owing to me. I could seriously use the time to recharge.”

“What about me?”

“What about you?” Zechs teased.

“If you're taking a vacation I thought you might like to spend some of it with me.”

Chuckling, Zechs pressed a kiss to Treize's lips. “I kinda hoped I could spend all of it with you.”

“I'd be more than happy to accommodate you,” Treize replied and deepened the kiss.

* * *

Duo returned to work the day after his 'accident', and whilst Heero wasn't all that happy about it, he could understand Duo's reasons for doing so. The practice was busy and getting busier with the extra equine work coming in and Duo couldn't really afford to have the time off. He vowed to start on working out if the practice could viably support a third vet as soon as he got home from work.

Catherine had also been a little annoyed that Duo was at morning consults, especially when Hilde had offered to cover them for him. Duo had patiently pointed out yet again that not only was it unfair to Hilde, the practice couldn't support itself with just one vet on duty. He did ask for Catherine to help him out though when and where it would be necessary.

The clients were all sympathetic to Duo's injury and held no objections to Catherine stepping in to assist the vet when he needed her. As for the more intricate and demanding cases, Hilde made sure she took all of them, ignoring any protest from Duo.

Trusting his lover to know his limits and the two females to keep an eye on him, Heero left for work at Treize's.

*

“Did you manage to speak with Michael and Zoe?” Treize asked as the pair of them rode side by side to the schooling paddock.

“I did call Michael and he's coming to lunch with Zoe on Sunday. He said he would be happy to help me out with advice and explain what it is that he does. I thought it would be better if they came to us then they can have a look at the facilities and take things from there.”

“Good idea.” Treize shortened his reins and pushed Dollar into a trot, Heero followed suit on Peacemaker.

Conversation stopped for a little while as the pair warmed the horses up on the flat. Once they were happy with the way the respective equines were traveling, Treize pulled back to a walk and allowed Dollar to stretch out and relax for a moment. He had noted a slightly distracted air about Heero when he'd arrived for work that morning and assumed it was to do with meeting up with Michael and Zoe, but the distraction seemed to still be there so Treize wasn't sure any more. Deciding to take a chance, he spoke again. “Is there something else bothering you, Heero? Anything I can help with?”

Heero ran his hand along the mare's sweating neck. “Not really. Duo had a bit of an accident during consults yesterday evening and I'm a bit worried about how he's coping.”

“Nothing serious I hope?” Treize was quick to reply, the concern evident in his tone.

“A dog decided it didn't want to be examined and bit him,” Heero said and then went on to explain about the bite, the trip to the hospital and resulting treatment and recommendation from the doctor.

Treize could well imagine how Duo would react, the vet was a determined man and considering the practice was his job, he would feel compelled to continue to work. “Ah, I see.”

Heero frowned and bit his lower lip. “I really wish he would take some time off and let the injury heal, but I can also understand that there's too much work on for Hilde to be able to cope by herself. It's a sort of vicious circle.”

“I know what you mean,” Treize stated with a sigh. “Zechs seems to be having a similar problem.”

“Oh?”

Treize gave Heero a brief outline of Zechs and the problems he was currently having at Oakford with the volume of work. “He really needs to have a break, slow down a bit otherwise he's going to end up getting sick.”

“Not easy is it?” Heero said softly.

“No, it isn't. We can see what's happening and so can they, but there's not a lot they can do to stop it. Zechs did say he was going to put in for a couple of weeks vacation. I hope he does as it will do him the world of good to have a break.”

“I wish Duo would hire a locum for a couple of weeks and take some time off too. Actually, I'm going to go through all the practice finances, work out if it would be viable to take on a third vet. Since word has got out that Duo was the team vet for the Olympic showjumping team, the equine side of the practice has increased by over thirty percent. If the client base is going to continue to grow like that, then I'm pretty sure the practice could expand to accommodate a third vet. It would also ease the load a lot on Duo and Hilde.”

“Sounds like a good idea to me. I said pretty much the same to Zechs, that Doctor Anderson should put on another vet at Oakford and ease the workload there, but Zechs seems to think that Anderson can't afford to do it yet.” Treize didn’t want to go into all the details, he figured Heero would have a pretty good idea of what he was referring to.

“A catch 22 situation for both our partners by the look of it,” Heero muttered.

“You could say that. Best we forget about that for now though and give these two some jumping practice. The Clarkson show is a week on Sunday and we want them both to at least clear a couple of the jumps in the ring.”

“Right with you, Treize.”

* * *

That evening, while Hilde was doing consults, Heero took charge of Nrobbuts, downloading all the financial files for the practice to a thumb drive. Once he had all the information he would need, he took the thumb drive back to the cottage and fired up his laptop.

Having already risked Heero's displeasure once that day by attending consults, Duo gave his partner a wide berth and left him to doing whatever it was Heero was doing. Besides, knowing how Nrobbuts reacted to his presence, Duo had no doubt if he were to pass within ten feet of Heero's laptop, the thing would go on the fritz. It was as if anything electronic could sense his presence and deliberately set out to make his life hell.

Heero still scoffed at Duo's insistence that computers or anything computerized seemed to have it in for him, but he did admit defeat when Duo had a major issue with the ATM at the bank in Salsbury.

~Flashback~

Duo had not bothered with using an ATM before, he usually went into the bank and dealt with a 'human' teller if he had any need for financial assistance. But this time, the bank had been closed and Duo was a little short on cash. Heero had persuaded his lover to try using the ATM outside the bank. Duo did possess both a credit card and debit card and when asked by Heero if he could remember his pin number, Duo had huffed and answered of course he did.

Duo was still doubtful that a machine could and would help him out but after Heero demonstrated how easy it was, he decided to give in and try it for himself. “I warn you, Heero. Anything electronic like this has a personal vendetta against me.”

“Just do as I tell you and it will all be fine, Duo.” Heero resisted the urge to shake his head.

Duo reluctantly pulled the card from his wallet and inserted it into the machine. He entered his pin number as prompted, then selected the account and transaction he wished to perform. He duly keyed in the amount of his withdrawal and things went downhill from there.

The machine buzzed, beeped and made a few noises, then politely told Duo it wasn't going to release any funds at all, despite him having more than enough in his account. “Look you fricken piece of shit, all I want is fifty dollars of my money. Now do whatever it is you have to do and give it to me!”

The machine changed screens and came back up with the select account message. Heero deducted that Duo may not have entered the correct account and passed on verbal prompts. Duo duly stabbed his finger at the button that said 'savings'.

“Now push the one that says withdrawal,” Heero prompted. Duo did. “Okay, now push the one that says fifty dollars.” Duo poked the correct button and the machine again began to whirr and click away.

“See, it's easy,” Heero started to say when the machine suddenly made a weird noise. Both men turned to look at it, Heero's mouth opening in shock. The ATM made several grinding noises, hissed a couple of times, beeped and then the screen went blank.

“See, I told you all things electronic have it in for me. Damn thing didn't give me my card back either,” he snapped. At that, the machine gave another hiss and Duo's card was ejected rather forcefully from the small slot, shooting through the air and bouncing off Duo's arm to the pavement. “I stand corrected,” Duo snickered and bent to pick up the card. “What the?”

The card was slightly damaged, actually, the entire magnetic strip on the back had been shredded. To make matters worse, the bank contacted Duo the next day to let him know his savings account had been 'attacked' and money disappeared to who knew where. The bank apologized to Duo and got down to the task of sorting out where his cash had gone to. It took a week, but finally Duo's bank account returned to normal, the missing funds having been tracked down, (they had somehow, mysteriously shown up in a completely new account, one Duo had never opened and the bank knew nothing about either!) and once located, deposited back where they should be.

Duo cut his card up that night.

Heero finally believed his lover and assisted him in the ritual.

~End Flashback~

Heero continued to work at the laptop, pulling up facts and figures, working diligently with the spread sheet and listing everything relevant. He didn't realize he'd been at it for three hours until he caught movement from the corner of his eye and looked up. He chuckled to himself at the sight. A white surgical glove sat on the end of a spatula and was being waved back and forth around the door jamb. “You can come in, Duo,” he said with a smile.

The vet's head and body followed the 'white flag' into the lounge room. “I hope you saved your work,” Duo said as he shuffled across the lounge room and sat beside his lover on the couch, tossing the white 'flag' to the coffee table.

“Duo, it's fine, the laptop won't crash on me just because you're in the room,” Heero replied and leaned over to pinch a kiss.

“Mmm, nice. Wha'cha doing?” Duo glanced at the screen to see a heap of figures there and scratched his head.

“I've been working out the financial side of the practice, doing a sort of study of it like you mentioned the other day. I want to see if it would be possible and profitable to take on another vet.”

“And?” Duo quirked an eyebrow.

“You can see for yourself,” Heero said and waved his hand at the screen. “All the figures are there in black and white. The practice can afford to put on another vet. Things will be a little tight for the first six months, by that I mean the profit margin of the practice will decrease, but after that, should the client base continue to increase at the current rate, the prediction is that the profit margin will return to what it was and after another six months it should increase by around twenty percent.”

“Wow. You were thorough,” Duo replied as he took a quick look at the screen. “Any chance you could print that off onto paper for me? I'd like to have a good look at it, study it for a day or two and settle things in my own mind before making a decision. I don't trust myself with your laptop, Heero. Given my track record I'm likely to fry its circuits just by breathing near it.”

Laughing, Heero shook his head. “You wouldn't, Duo, but yes, I'll print off a copy for you to study.”

The paperwork was printed and Duo spent a day looking it over, checking figures, looking at projected outcomes and such. He even fiddled around with it, adding in extreme case scenarios, but in the end it still came back that to take on a third vet was not only affordable for the practice, but would also be profitable in the long run. Knowing how he'd preached to Heero about being scared in regards to business the other day, he thought it best to take his own advice, give in and look for another vet to join the practice.

With the decision made, Duo agreed to work out an appropriate advert to put in the 'Situations Vacant' column of the Salsbury main paper and also the Veterinary News Magazine for the following week.

* * *

Opening the front door to admit Zechs into his home, Treize's smile soon turned to one of concern when he took in the sight of his lover's expression. “Zechs?” he questioned as the blonde vet stepped inside.

“I need a drink, then I'll explain,” Zechs growled.

Knowing better than to question his partner, Treize took Zechs' coat and led the man through to the lounge where he poured them both a glass of wine from the bottle he'd opened earlier in readiness for their evening together. Passing a glass of the red liquid to Zechs, Treize sat down next to his lover on the couch and waited.

Taking a long drink, Zechs let the alcohol burn along his esophagus and take the chill from his body. Another drink and he felt a little more comfortable. Draining the glass and setting it on the coffee table, Zechs felt ready to let his lover know the reason for his sour mood.

“What's wrong?” Treize asked. Aside from the look of thunder on his boyfriend's face, the way Zechs had downed the wine told him this was something serious.

“Damn Oakford and damn Anderson to hell,” Zechs growled.

“Ah. Trouble at work?”

Blazing blue eyes turned to locate Treize's. “Damn right there is. I've a good mind to hand in my notice. Fucking Anderson,” Zechs snarled.

Placing a soothing hand on his lover's shoulder, Treize tried to calm his partner down a touch. “What happened?”

“I put in for my two weeks vacation like I said I would and Anderson refused to let me take it! He said the practice is far too busy for me to be taking time off now. I asked him when I could take it off and he told me it wouldn't be for a while yet, if ever. He owes me my vacation time! I've worked myself into the ground for that practice and I deserve to have my time off. It's not like I'm asking for a fucking month! All I wanted was a couple of weeks; hell, I even said I'd settle for a week but that still wasn't good enough.”

“Ah.” Treize enveloped the angry form in his arms and pressed a kiss to Zechs' temple.

“I need that time off, Treize. I'm so damn tired and worn out.” Zechs knew he was whining, but he couldn't help it. “I've a good mind to do what I said and hand in my notice, effective immediately, but then I'd probably lose what benefits he owes me.”

“If you feel that strongly about it, then why don't you put your notice in, resign and at least you will be able to have a bit of a rest.”

“I wish it were that simple,” Zechs sighed. “I can't afford to be without a job, Treize. I have rent and bills to pay and only minimal savings left. I used most of my savings up when I went to London; not that I regret that in the least, I loved every minute of it,” he hastily added when he saw Treize's face cloud a touch. “No, I'm stuck working there until I can either have my vacation time or find another job.”

“You could always move in here with me,” Treize suggested.

“Thanks, not that I don't appreciate the offer, but could you imagine what the rumor mill would be saying? Before we know it, the entire town and probably the state too would be of the opinion that we're a couple and no doubt we would be ostracized. You'd find it hard to compete and I'd not have to worry about working at Oakford or anywhere else for that matter. Sorry for the defeatist attitude, but it's true. Not that I would mind living with you, but it would be easier for both of us if we didn't. I don't think I'm saying this quite right.”

Treize chuckled. “It's quite okay, Zechs. I do understand exactly what you're trying to say and I thank you for your concern regarding my reputation, and your own too. May I suggest something?”

“Feel free, I'm not having much luck by myself. Maybe I should chuck it all in and become a garbage collector or something like that. Less stress at any rate.”

“Somehow I can't envision you emptying the bins of the Salsbury district. Besides, you're far too talented a vet to be doing something like that.”

Zechs snorted. “I guess you're right, about the garbage bit, not the talented vet bit, although it is nice of you to say so.” He blushed a little with the unexpected compliment.

Letting that slide for the moment, Treize continued. “Why don't you continue to work at Oakford for now, but keep your ears and eyes open for another position. I'm sure there must be something going out there for a vet of your talents.”

“Easier said than done, Treize. Yes, there are jobs out there for a vet, but it all depends where the practice is located. I'm not going to take a job in a practice if it means I've got to commute miles to work, and there isn't a lot in the way of vet practices out here in the 'sticks'.”

“I suppose. Promise me you'll think about it though?”

“Okay. I'll think about it.”

“Thanks. Now, come here and let me help you to forget all about Anderson, Oakford and working yourself into the ground.”

“Ohhh, Treize, do that again.”

“It will be my pleasure.”

~ * ~

tbc...
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Equus