A/N: This is a sequel to "Girl of Summer." But you can read it as a stand-alone fic.

This was supposed to be one-shot. As with many of my other fics, however, it grew longer and longer and ended up as a four-chapter fic. I upload one chapter every week.

…

English is not my first language. Please bear with grammatical errors.

Disclaimer: I don't own GS/GSD.

Boy of Winter

Chapter 1: The Confession

Hearing her name, Cagalli looked up from her phone and pushed herself off the wall. Her friend was walking down the corridor toward her. Walking fast, but not running like she would. Running inside the school buildings was against the rules and he was a stickler for rules.

"Sorry I made you wait," Athrun said even before he stopped in front of her.

"It's okay. I was checking Instagraph."

She held out her phone with a smile and showed him a picture a wildlife photographer she was following had posted: of an adventurous lion cub and its father seemingly preventing the cub from getting into danger.

Athrun nodded at the picture and shifted his eyes to her. "We were arguing what our next group project should be. Everyone wanted a different thing," he explained apologetically as they started walking.

They both had had a club meeting after school and he had asked her to wait after that because there was something he wanted to talk with her about alone. So they had decided to meet at this entrance nearest to the school's front gate as they often did.

"Did you guys come to an agreement?" she asked as he pushed the door open and they walked out.

She shivered a bit and tightened her scarf against the crisp, cold air. Then she discreetly slipped her left hand into her coat pocket. But not her right hand for he was on her right and would surely notice it.

Last winter, she had lost her balance while walking and almost fell face first to the ground for both her hands were inside her pockets and couldn't break her fall. Fortunately, Athrun had grabbed her and she had not gotten injured. Since then, though, he nagged her to keep her hands outside when he noticed them inside her pockets.

At the memories, she puckered her lips into a small pout. He was such a worrywart.

"No," he answered, oblivious to her thoughts. "I told them everyone should give a presentation about what we should make and why they think we should make it at the next meeting. Well, everyone who has an idea."

She gave him an agreeing nod. "That's a good idea."

She was the captain of the girls' volleyball club while he was the captain of the robotics club. Since they had taken the positions as the seniors retired from club activities in summer, they often exchanged opinions about how to manage club members or talked about the difficulty of being a captain.

"We watched some videos of Orb Girls again and discussed strategies for the next game," she told him, her eyes wandering around the schoolyard.

There were few students to be seen, which wasn't surprising since today was the last day of school before winter break. Everyone must have dashed out of the school as soon as they could in order to celebrate the end of the semester.

"The game is on the last Saturday before school starts, right?"

"Yeah. And we're going to win this time," she firmly announced.

The SEED High girls' volleyball team had lost when it had had a practice game with the Orb Girls' High team several months ago, and she couldn't wait to settle the score in the first match of Winter National Competition for Volleyball where the two teams were going to fight against each other.

He flashed her a smile. "You hate to lose so much, don't you."

"You're one to talk," she retorted, then stopped her feet to turn to him. "Hey, what was it that you wanted to talk about?" They were already at the school gate, where their paths parted if they were going home directly. "Do you want to go to Destiny or somewhere we can sit down and talk?"

Turning to fully face her, he slowly shook his head. "No. It's fine here."

He looked at her with a serious face. Her face imitated his expression.

"Cagalli, will you...go out with me?"

She gave him a blank face, but soon smiled. "Sure. When do you want to go?"

She wondered a little why he didn't get to the point and tell her about what was so important. But then, he was often reluctant to discuss his problems, so probably he was still preparing himself for the talk. Although she was hardly a patient person, she could give him some time.

Besides, it wasn't like she didn't want to talk about plans to go out. She had already made some with her family and other friends, but she welcomed more chances to have fun. She was determined to enjoy this winter break to its fullest since they would be too busy preparing for university entrance exams next year.

"Oh, do you have a place you want to go to? If not, how about skating? I haven't been to the rink this winter."

For some reason she didn't understand, Athrun stared at her with disbelief for a long moment before closing his eyes and heaving a sigh. He was still for a while. She was about to grab his shoulder and shake him to see whether he was all right when he finally opened his eyes, and then mouth.

"What I meant to say is..." He paused, slightly leaning his face forward to gaze into her eyes. "...I want to go on a date with you."

She blinked.

"A date?" she repeated the word, wondering whether she had heard it right.

"Yes."

"You mean, like, a date?" She still couldn't really comprehend what was happening.

"Yes," he answered patiently.

"But...why?"

He stared at her again, then narrowed his eyes. "Do you really not understand why someone wants to go on a date with you?"

She blushed, feeling stupid...and something else. "I was a bit confused. You caught me off guard," she said defensively and a little accusingly. "I understand what you mean. I'm not stupid."

"Good to hear," he said a little wryly. "So?"

"So?"

"Will you be my girlfriend?"

She dumbly stared at him. Her mind was blank. She didn't know how to answer. She just didn't.

He simply looked back. He appeared neither disappointed nor relieved that she had not given him the answer right away.

After a long moment of silence, he opened his mouth again. "You don't have to answer me right now. Think about it for a week. I'm going to my grandparents' house tomorrow."

"I...remember that," she managed to reply, feeling somewhat relieved at the change of subject.

"I'll be back on Thursday," he continued, "and the day after that—on twenty-eighth—I'll be waiting for you at Destiny." He pointed his finger at a cafe down the street. Since the school was located about midway between her home and his, they often hung out at the cafe. "That's the day when you are free during the day, right?"

She looked at him with mild surprise. "You remember my schedule?"

He was right. That day, she had a couple of lessons in cram school in the evening, but had no other plan.

She had probably mentioned that in front of him while discussing their plans during winter break with their mutual friends. The last practice of the girls' volleyball club in the year was on twenty-sixth, and she didn't yet have family duties on the twenty-eighth; she and Kira were going to spend time with her paternal grandparents who were going to stay with her family on twenty-ninth and thirtieth, and then, her family was going to visit her maternal grandfather for four days from thirty-first. However, it seemed all of her friends had already had some plans, mostly with their families, on her last free day in the year.

Thus, she had the day mostly free. She had not asked Athrun about the day or told him her specific schedule, though. She had just told him to let her know his schedule during winter break when he was sure about it, thinking to make a plan after that. He had never asked her about her free days before, either. She had not realized he had been paying attention to her schedule he overheard, let alone stored it in his memory.

He shrugged. "It's not hard to remember."

She pulled a face. "It isn't for you. You have such a smart brain."

"You just need to put more time and effort into studying. Then, your grades are surely going to improve," he said in a lecturing tone as he always did. Then he closed his mouth, gave his head a shake, and spoke again. "Anyway, I'll be there at noon and..."

He looked at her intensely, his green eyes looking deeper than usual, which caused her heart to flip. She felt as if his gaze literally seized her, squeezing her body—chest. As if it—he—was taking her to a completely different world. She swallowed nervously.

"...if you are okay with dating me, come to meet me." He slightly averted his eyes. "If you're not, then just don't show up. Don't bother to come to say no. ...I'd rather not see you for a while in that case."

She stared at him, then something came to her mind. "Wait. Is that why you didn't want to make plans for winter break?" She had tried to plan going out with him, but he had told her he wasn't sure about his schedule until he came back from his trip to his grandparents.

He exhaled and turned his eyes back to her. "I promise I'll try to keep things the way they have been after the break. I don't intend to ruin our friendship if you reject me. But it will take time. I'll need space, at least during the break."

Her heart sank at his words.

He put on a small smile. "Well, that's it for now. We'd better get going. We have buses to catch. See you...later, Cagalli."

He turned around to start walking toward his bus stop. She couldn't move. Her eyes were glued to his retreating back. She felt as if he was going far, far away.

A cry escaped her. "Athrun!"

He stopped, then, after a moment, turned back to her. She opened her mouth. But nothing came out. She just looked at him beseechingly. He simply stood there with an unreadable expression. She felt as if she saw him for the first time and swallowed her saliva. She still couldn't find a word to say.

After several minutes, he turned his back toward her to resume walking away. She stared at his back, feeling like crying. Awkwardly, she turned around and started to run.

In front of her house, Cagalli stopped her feet and took a long breath. After about ten minutes of walking, her heart rate that had increased due to running had mostly calmed down.

Wiping her forehead with the sleeve of her windbreaker, she started her cool-down routine. Mr. Kisaka—the coach for volleyball clubs and her P.E. teacher—was strict about stretching your muscles before and after exercise so that you were less likely to get injured; she always followed the teaching of the man she respected.

The routine was much shorter than what she did during P.E. or club practice and was over soon. Entering the house, she rubbed her face which was stiff due to the cold wind. As she kicked her shoes off, her brother poked his head out of the living room. Kira had come home just as she was going out for a run and seemed to have stayed in the living room since.

"Hey, I already prepared a bath. I thought you'd like it."

Unzipping her jacket, she turned around. "Thanks. That's great." She had just run for about an hour according to the clock on the shoe cabinet, and taking a bath sounded like a wonderful idea even though it was only a little past four, much earlier than their usual bath time.

"And Mom called. She'll be working late tonight, maybe stay at the hospital for the night," he informed her.

"Then I'll cook supper," she replied. "Is curry good?"

He thought a bit. "I'd like something less spicy."

She tried to remember what was in their refrigerator. "Fried rice? I think we have some shrimps." She could put some kimchi on hers.

"Sounds good. I want salmon flakes, too."

"Okay. Are you fine with having supper early? I'm already hungry."

"Sure. I think I can eat."

"Then, I'll get to it after my bath."

She started to walk down the corridor toward the kitchen to get some snacks before the bath. Kira was still hovering, looking like he had something else he wanted to say.

She stopped in front of him and slightly tilted her head, questioning him. He appeared conflicted. She waited, and after a long moment, he shook his head and retreated into the living room, back to the TV from the sound of it.

She wondered a little what that had been about, but soon shrugged it off and resumed walking. In the kitchen, she emptied a small bag of chips in a second, then headed for her room to grab her pajamas and underwear.

The bathroom air was moist and warm, but not enough to warm up her body which was starting to feel cold. She poured hot water over the cold floor and her body several times before reaching for her washcloth. Quickly finishing washing her body and hair, she slipped into the hot water and happily sighed. It felt like her body was melting, the heat seeping into her skin and warming her to the core. She rested her head on the edge of the bathtub, her eyes wandering around the bathroom.

After several minutes, though, her relaxed face turned a little gloomy as her mind went back to what had happened with Athrun. On her way back home from school and after reaching home, she had been trying to sort out her situation. But her head had just replayed what had happened over and over, going nowhere, like a hamster on a wheel. So she had decided to do some exercise, which helped clear her mind for a little while.

She shifted to sink the lower half of her face into the water. Bubbles floated up to the surface to burst and she gazed at them.

Why had he suddenly said something like that? How come he liked her that way to begin with? She had never realized that. Granted, he was rather secretive about his feelings, but she had thought she knew and understood him well. It seemed like she didn't actually, however. It seemed as if Athrun was almost a stranger to her.

Her heart tightened at the thought. Her eyes started to sting. Inhaling through her nose, she plunged her head into the water, her body completely underwater now. She gazed at the light on the ceiling, which was softened by water. Her hair was floating around her face like seaweeds. If there were yellow seaweeds. She couldn't quite remember whether there were. But since there were brightly colored fish and coral reefs, there must be yellow seaweeds as well, right? She might look it up when she got bored and had nothing better to do. Or she could ask someone.

At the face that came to her mind, her body froze. She unconsciously opened her mouth and then hurriedly emerged into the humid air, coughing up water.

She might send a text to Athrun and ask whether he knew anything about yellow seaweeds if their situation was different. Even though it was such a silly subject, he wouldn't be annoyed. They would probably keep exchanging texts for a while, talking about whatever came to their minds.

Now, however, she didn't feel like texting him. She wasn't even sure whether he would text back even if she did. She had never felt that way. But something had changed between them. He had changed it. He had shaken their relationship, what was between them, and it might never return to how it had been.

He had been her friend, a close and important friend. Someone she trusted wholeheartedly. She had believed he saw her in a similar way.

She felt like he had betrayed her.

She supposed it wasn't exactly what had happened. Perhaps. Maybe. Still, she couldn't get rid of that feeling of betrayal.

Pushing her hair from her face, she pursed her lips. "Stupid Athrun," she muttered and hit the water surface a few times.

Turning off the TV with a sigh, she stood up to go to her room. Kira had left for the bathroom after the supper and she had been surfing the channels for a while. But there was nothing that held her interest.

In her room, she picked up her phone and checked it. There were several new texts, but not from the person who had been occupying her mind in the past few hours.

Then again, he didn't often send a text or make a call. Especially not because he was bored or just wanted to talk with someone. Usually, she was the one to start their exchanges.

Besides, what did she expect him to say? That he had been just joking and so she should forget what he had said? Or that he was sorry about ambushing her like that, but really wanted to date her?

She didn't think she wanted to hear either.

She half-heartedly tapped his name, though she didn't mean to text him or call him. After staring at the small picture of him on the phone for a moment, she tapped a few more times. Now on the phone screen was the image she currently used for his caller ID.

It was from when he had been in middle school, before she had met him. Nicol, who had gone to the same middle school, had given her the picture. The brown-eyed boy himself was in it; his green hair was visible on the right edge of the screen and she could see his face if she dragged the picture sideways. Yzak and Dearka if she dragged it the other way.

With his plum red uniform crisp and some notebooks in his hands, Athrun looked exactly like a model student he was. His smile was soft, maybe because he had not been so close to whoever had taken this photograph.

As she gazed at the smile, her face turned into a frown. She had liked this picture because he looked somewhat different from the Athrun she knew, younger and shier. It had a sense of novelty. But now, she didn't find that appealing.

Her finger moved to change images. Swiping through the pictures she had on her phone, however, she couldn't find one she wanted to use instead. None of the photos of Athrun she had seemed like the one she was looking for. She didn't know what kind of picture she was looking for in the first place.

After several minutes of futile search, she gave up and started to text back to her other friends.

A/N: It's about twenty months after they met in "Girl of Summer." They are in their second year of high school; high school is three years.

The image of Athrun mentioned in the last part is the one I used for the cover.

Thank you for reading. See you next week!

*posted 12/07/18*

*edited 06/30/19*