A Glimpse Of What Could Have Been: Chapter 1

*Disclaimer* I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM WING OR ANY OF ITS CHARACTER!! I don't own the movie, The Family Man, either, which is where I got the idea for this fic.

*Warnings* ...Um...profanity? Not a lot, but some. There aren't really any warnings, I guess.

Oh man! 08th MS Team was awesome!! That show kicked ass! I was soooo mad that it was only like 11 episodes long! If you didn't see it the first time around, then you definitely need to watch it. It's on Toonami Midnight Run at 12. I'm pretty sure a bunch or Shiro/Aina fics are gonna be popping up now. Maybe even some Eledore/Karen ones too. Heck, I might even be guilty of some...but don't worry! I'll be stickin' w/ GW too! Oh, and by the way, there was SUPPOSED to be 12 episodes, but Cartoon Network didn't show that last one. Go here:

http://www.aami-aviation.com/fahq/animation/gundam/gundam.htm - to read about the 12th episode. It's under 08th MS Team (duh). Sorry, I just had to say this. On to the chapter!

Thirty-four year old Heero Yuy sat at his desk in the one of the most spacious offices in one of the biggest computer companies of the era. He was spouseless, childless, and had plans to stay that way for a while. Thus, he hardly ever went on dates. When he did, it was mainly for business. Heero Yuy was very dedicated to his job. So dedicated, that he had even dropped being a part time Preventor so he could devote his full time to STCA (Security Tight Computer Association), the company's name. Since he had gotten his job there, approximately fourteen years ago, the company's sales had skyrocketed, and they had surpassed all other companies' in security and safety from viruses and such. They were so big, that they almost had a monopoly over the Computer Market. Almost. For as long as he could remember, Heero Yuy had always been dedicated fully to whatever task he had to complete. However, he hadn't always been single. That's another story though.

Heero glanced up as a newspaper was slammed down on his desk. One glance at the front page caused him to flinch involuntarily, though it was unnoticeable to anyone who didn't know him well. That "other story" that was finished so long ago was being read again...for the third time, to be exact.

"Peacecraft's engaged," a blonde haired, green eyed man spoke. Heero tore his eyes away from the picture.

"Go ahead, say the rest, Brad." The man, now known as Brad, smiled.

"For the third time," he said. "Think it'll last this time?" Heero sighed. No one here knew that he knew the Vice Minister quite well. They would most likely never find out. Heero knew for a fact that the engagement wouldn't last now that it was out in public. They'd probably been engaged for the past couple months, but now that the press had found out, she would probably break it off again. She hated public attention. She...Relena. Heero quickly refocused his mind to the question that was asked.

"Probably not," he replied. "It never does." Brad nodded in agreement, and the conversation was over. They moved on to more important topics, like the new deal they had to make with another company. Heero's mind kept drifting to the call he knew he would be getting later that day. From Duo Maxwell, the only pilot he actually kept in contact with. Though it was not by choice. Duo insisted on calling him at least once a month, and Heero always joined the Maxwell's for Thanksgiving or Christmas, and more often than not, both. Quatre had tried to keep in contact with him, up until Heero got the announcement of he and Dorothy's engagement. That was years ago though, and he had never gotten an invitation for the wedding. That meant that either they really hadn't invited him, which he doubted, or they had never gotten married. Heero wasn't sure, and he hadn't really heard from Quatre since. Trowa wasn't the type to initiate a conversation, but then again, neither was Heero, so those two never bothered to call each other. All he knew was that Trowa had given up his job at the circus and was now working as a full time Preventor, alongside Wufei and Sally. Heero never heard from Wufei and Sally either. They had had a small, private wedding, so Heero hadn't attended. Last he'd heard, Sally was pregnant.

Heero wasn't surprised in the least when the vid phone beeped, though Brad jumped a little. Duo lived on L2, so it was later there than it was on L3, where Heero's company was located. That meant Duo had gotten a newspaper hours ago. Heero nodded as Brad said he'd leave so Heero could take the call, and turned the screen on. Sure enough, Duo's excited face showed up on screen immediately.

"Hey Heero!" Duo said in greeting. He quickly continued, "Your girlfriend's engaged again, buddy!" Heero had to fight back a growl.

"Duo, she's NOT my girlfriend. I haven't seen her in fifteen years," Heero said, making sure to glare at Duo, who didn't seem affected by it.

"Yeah yeah. So, are you gonna go crash the wedding? You know, fly in and sweep her off her feet and tell her you're sorry for ever leaving and that you love her with all your-"

"Duo!" another voice scolded, right before Hilde's face popped up behind Duo's. "Are you pestering Heero again?" A young boy, around the age of five or so, climbed up onto Duo's lap.

"Uncle Heero?" the boy questioned.

"Hey Dan," Heero said, giving the boy a small smile.

"Are you coming over tomorrow?" Dan asked with big, hope filled eyes. Heero blinked.

"Tomorrow?" he asked, looking towards Duo and Hilde for an answer. Duo rolled his eyes.

"Hellooooo? Thanksgiving is tomorrow. You're coming." It wasn't a question. Heero shrugged.

"If you don't mind putting up with me again this year."

"Heero, you know we love having you over!" Hilde exclaimed.

"Then I'll be there bright and early."

"Great! Danny, come help Mommy in the kitchen," Hilde said, leading Dan away by the hand.

"Bye Uncle Heero!" the small boy waved. Heero waved back, sort of.

"So," Duo spoke up. "What were we saying?"

"I wasn't saying anything. You were over there making up your own story tales." Duo smiled sheepishly.

"Oh yeah, right. But really, what're you going to do?" Heero sighed exasperatedly.

"Duo, when will you get it in your head that I have NO interest in Relena anymore? I haven't seen her in fifteen years, she's moved on, I've moved on, now YOU need to move on."

"No, she stayed put, YOU were the one that moved and left her," Duo said, narrowing his eyes a little. Heero threw up his hands slightly.

"For heaven's sake Duo! Why are you bringing this up now? There is no point to this conversation! Besides, she'll break off the engagement now that the media knows."

"How can you be so sure?" Duo asked skeptically.

"Just wait and see. It'll happen. Now if you'll excuse me, I have work to do. I'll see you tomorrow." Before Duo could reply, Heero cut the connection. He stared at the screen for a few seconds, then started working again.

Hours later, Heero finally left the office and headed for his apartment. Halfway there, he remembered that he had no food at home, so he took a detour to a Food Mart. Heero was walking down the isle picking up only the things that he needed most. As he turned the corner, he stopped abruptly to keep from running into the man who was also turning the corner. The man mumbled a quick apology and Heero nodded, before moving on. He'd only taken a couple steps when he heard the man call out his name. Heero froze. The man called out HIS name. He turned around sharply and narrowed his eyes. A quick glance over of the man was all he needed to determine that he did not know him.

"That is your name, right?" the man continued. Heero nodded his head slowly.

"How did you know?" The man smirked.

"You destroyed the base I was at during the war-" Heero stiffened. "-in Wing Zero."

"How can you be sure it was me?" Heero asked. The man shrugged.

"It was you." He waved a hand dismissively. "But that's not important. You were just doing your job, or mission, or whatever. I just recognized you and I found it kind of...amusing to see you grocery stopping. But it just shows that you do live a normal life, so I was going to ask how you were faring after the war. If that's alright, that is." Heero stared at the man warily, but then relaxed a little.

"Well, thank you for your concern. I'm doing fine. I got on with life. Yourself?" The man smiled.

"I'm doing great. Married with kids and grandkids even." He eyed Heero. "I have everything I could possibly want. What about you?" Heero blinked. He felt like the man was testing him or something.

"I-I have everything I want." Ok, why didn't he sound so sure about that? The man's smile turned into a smirk.

"Do you? You're sure?"

"...Yeah," Heero said after minute.

"Well then, we'll just see about that. I'll let you go on your way now, thank you for your time." He held out a hand. "My name's Cliff, by the way. Maybe I'll see you around." Heero looked at Cliff's hand before taking it with his own.

"Pleasure meeting you," he mumbled. Cliff started to walk away.

"I hope you realize what you want and need before too long. And remember, your actions decide your fate," the man called as he walked off. Heero stared after him. What the hell did that mean? He shook his head slightly before continuing his shopping.

At home, Heero cringed at one of the TV Dinners he had bought. They were unhealthy, he knew, but sometimes he didn't feel like cooking, and he always worked out, so... Heero tossed the package into the microwave. He walked into the living room, and picked up the remote control. Flipping to some random channel, he plopped down on the couch. His eyes started drooping after a minute, and before long he had fallen asleep. It would be a while before he'd wake up on that couch again.

A new story!! Yay!! Hope you all don't mind me taking time from my other works to type this. It just popped into my head one day. Anyhoo, be on the lookout for more soon! Please review and tell me what you think so far. Those of you who have seen the movie can probably guess what will happen next, but don't worry! The movie just gave me the idea, different things will happen in this story. Ja ne!

*~Maxine~*