In The End

"I'm sorry, Athrun, but I don't think this will work out."

Those words broke my heart.

They broke my wallet.

But they weren't enough to break my determination.

"So, you're leaving?"

"I guess so, Alex and I will be leaving for the PLANTS in a couple of hours."

It was ironic really, the man she left me for had my pseudonym. It made me wonder if beneath all that, she may still love me.

"Are you sure its really over?" I asked, still unwilling to believe.

"Yes it is, Athrun. Why don't you find yourself a job somewhere? There are jobs here for Coordinators which pay good salary."

"I guess I might," I said in defeat, "I'll be seeing you around, Cagalli."

"Hey, Athrun," she called out.

"Yeah?" I said as I turned around to look back at her.

She gave me a small kiss, maybe the last one.

"Bye."

"Goodbye, Cagalli."

That memory played over and over in my head for the past six months. It had been six months since she broke up with me and six months since I did nothing with my life but sulk in my dingy one-bedroom apartment.

I didn't know what was wrong with me, I still had my looks, any woman would fall for that. I could get myself a job with a good salary, just like Cagalli suggested. In fact, I could get up right now and go visit, Kira or Dearka or Yzak.

But I didn't.

Because I was thinking about her.

Again.

Who knew love could ruin someone to this extent?

Despite her being engaged to another man, Alex, I still love her. She may not know it, but I do. I might not have million-dollar businesses or bank accounts worth more than half of Orb but I love her and that's what's important, right?

I allowed another month of sulk and solitude to pass by, the only good thing was that I had the guts to get up and get myself a job. It wasn't that high paying but it was enough to get me a bigger apartment and to sustain myself comfortably.

When I was unpacking the last box of my things, Kira decided to pay a visit.

"Hey, Athrun," he said as his cheery face appeared in the doorway.

"Oh, hi Kira. What brings you here?"

"I heard Cagalli broke up with you."

"Oh," was all I could say. This issue again, just as I started to get my life straight, she comes up.

"Don't worry about it, Athrun, I'm sure you can find yourself another girl."

"Yeah, I might."

"Come on, listen, I know this girl, her name is Calista and she's really nice, why don't the two of you get together?"

"Calista, hm?" From the name, I knew that it wouldn't work out already. She reminded me too much about Cagalli and it would be likely that I would expect too much from this Calista.

"I'll see about it, I think I should just get myself settled down first." I said, not wanting to disappoint Kira.

"Great, you do that. And about my sister…" Kira started, going back to Cagalli.

"Listen, she likes to get her way most of the time and as you know, she's as stubborn as a blunt can opener so just move on."

"But is she happy?"

"With Alex?"

"Yup," I said, flinching at my namesake.

"She sure is," Kira said unsurely, not knowing if my reaction would be good or bad.

To his surprise, I said, "That's great. For as long as she's happy…."

Kira smiled. "Well, I'll be seeing you Athrun."

"Goodbye, Kira."

When I was sure that Kira was well on his way out, I sat down on one of the drab, economical sofas which I bought to fill up space. Something was wrong with me. She was happy but it was the monster, Jealousy, which told me that if I were there, she might have…she could have been happier.

Why do you still love her, Athrun? A little voice in my head questioned me.

She doesn't care about you and she's happy. Like Kira said, you should just move on.

Because I love her, I answered dumbly. I didn't even know if that phrase had any meaning.

The little voice went away as I busied myself with the cleaning up. It was when I decided to turn on the evening news that my life took a turn, for better or maybe even for worse, who knew?

"In one week's time, Orb's beloved Princess Cagalli will be coming back from the PLANTS, along with her fiancé, Alex…"

Somehow, the rest of the world was blocked out of my head. All that I could hear was "Cagalli will be coming back…" over and over again.

Who knew love could drive someone to this extent?

Who knew?

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam or In The End by Linkin Park.

Author's Note: Well, I hope you liked it, the exciting part's coming soon. Like my ShinnxStellar fic, It's A ShinnStellar Thing, this was originally supposed to be a oneshot but never took the form of one. If you're interested, read my Dearka humor story as well, Nicol's NotSoDirty Little Secret. Thanks and tell me how you liked the first chapter of In The End.