A/N: This is a sequel to "Girl of Summer" and "Boy of Winter."

WARNING: a couple of sex scenes (though not very graphic), a lot of angst, and a kind of love square with Meyrin and Ahmed.

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

Disclaimer: I don't own GS/GSD.

Season of Farewell

Prologue

As he floated up to consciousness, his senses gradually came back: the feelings of the sheet and a cover against his bare skin, cool air touching his face and shoulder, something warm at his side, and a familiar scent he held dear. Feeling happy but not quite remembering why, Athrun opened his eyes and lazily blinked a few times until he finally regained his hold of the reality, of his situation.

He was in his bed, not alone. His girlfriend seemed to be still sleeping, using his left arm as a pillow. His nose was touching her hair and he could breathe in the scent of her shampoo. His face melted into a smile as he brushed her hair out of her cheek and shifted to have a good look at her face. The serene and adorable face and the way she plastered her body against his filled him with warmth.

After a long moment of gazing, he moved his eyes from her to the window behind him. It wasn't dark yet, but he could see the sun was going down through the curtains.

Careful not to wake her up, he lifted her head to pull his arm from under her head and sat up. Although he had been successful, she appeared to still feel the change. Asleep, she made some discontent sounds and wiggled toward him, which he avoided. He didn't exactly want to; it made him feel good that she seemed to be looking for him, wanting him, even in her dream. But he had something to do and couldn't stay. So, he gently caressed her hair instead. Whether because of it or not, she stopped searching and returned to sleeping peacefully.

With a soft pat on her head, he pulled the cover over her bare shoulder and got out of the bed. Reaching for his clothes scattered about on the floor, he massaged his left arm which felt numb. He briefly wondered whether he wouldn't feel that way after some time. Although this wasn't the first time, they had not been doing it for so long. Then he just shrugged the thought off. It wasn't a big deal; even if he would continue to bear the feeling afterward, he had no intention of stopping.

Fully clothed, he collected her clothes and folded them to put them on his chair, then left his room with a last glance at her. As he walked out to the corridor, he slummed into the heated air, which felt even more unpleasant after spending hours in the air-conditioned room, and his face wrinkled.

He hurried downstairs and turned on an air-conditioner in the dining room which was connected to the kitchen. It would still take time for the cool air to fill the room, so he also pressed the power switch of an electric fan he kept in a place which he had calculated was best for it to blow the cooled air toward the kitchen.

In this way, the kitchen would become cool faster than when he placed the fan near him as Cagalli regularly insisted. He had explained to her, but she argued that her way was more comfortable; they could feel some wind, which made the hot air more bearable, while waiting for the air-conditioner to cool the whole area. They had not reached an agreement on that matter, though he compromised and allowed her to move the fan near the cooking area when she joined him in cooking.

Opening the refrigerator, he took out some of the food he and Cagalli had bought at a grocery store on their way to his house: egg, bacon, cabbage, tomato, onion, green pepper, eggplant, and broccoli. They had decided for pasta with tomato sauce and yogurt egg salad; she had, as usual, insisted including many kinds of vegetables since he didn't eat much fresh vegetable when he cooked at home.

Since he more or less lived by himself, with his father rarely coming home, he didn't want to buy many vegetables he wasn't sure he could finish before they went bad. Nor did he like to go shopping often which required him to take a detour on his way home from the bus stop or the nearest subway station. As a result, he tended to rely on food not as perishable, like canned or frozen ones, and food that needed little time and effort to cook, like bread.

He also took out a bottle of red sauce, which had been hidden, and a smile curved up his lips. It was not tomato sauce she expected to eat for today's dinner. He had bought a bottle of chili sauce—sweet one—for her last week, but kept it secret to surprise her. And this was a perfect opportunity. He could prepare supper before she woke up and give her a good surprise. Plus, he could determine how hot the pasta would be this way, preventing it from becoming too hot for his taste.

He was still smiling as he started cutting bacon and vegetables. Although he had never disliked cooking, he had not liked it, either. It had been something he had to do. Nothing more. But thinking about what to feed Cagalli, about her face while eating it, made cooking enjoyable.

He deftly completed one task after another and was in the middle of draining the pasta in a colander when his ears caught lazy footsteps.

"You started without me?" Cagalli said with a hint of drowsiness.

"Hey." He put down the pot and discreetly moved things to hide the bottle of chili sauce. "It wasn't much of work. I'm mostly done with pasta. You can take a shower while I take care of the rest," he suggested. When they slept together, she took a quick shower at his house before going home.

"Nah. I'll take it after the meal."

Her arms snaked around his waist. She pressed her head against his back and moved it as if she was trying to drill a hole in his back or massage his back with her head. She liked to do it, and though it was a little ticklish, he liked it as well. He liked all the ways she showed affection toward him.

With a smile, he caressed her hand on his stomach. His hand was wet, but she wouldn't mind it. "Then, you can help me with salad," he said, but then changed his mind. "Actually, before that, you should go and pick our plates."

"Ah, right," she said happily. "My most important job." It was a task she had taken on herself since the first time they had cooked at his house together.

He let out a chuckle. "Exactly."

"I'm on it." She gave his body a squeeze before bouncing toward the cupboard in the dining room.

He put the pasta and some cooking water into a frying pan where he had cooked bacon and vegetables, except broccoli which was for salad, with chili sauce and other ingredients. He added more chili sauce before stirring for a while without turning on the heat again. Putting back the lid on the pan, he started boiling eggs.

Setting the timer, he looked into the dining room to see how Cagalli was doing while waiting for the water and then eggs to get boiled. In front of the cupboard, she was holding out two plates before her face and looking between them, obviously trying to decide which to use: one with small orange fruits and green leaves all over it; the other colored in green and red with the white middle part, imitating the Italian flag.

Her serious expression softened his face. His mother had collected those plates with various colors and patterns through years. He himself didn't care much about how utensils looked as long as they worked fine, but it was good to see someone enjoying his mother's collection like his mother used to.

After some more considering, Cagalli picked the Italian-looking plate. Noticing him, she pointed at the dining table. "This is yours." There were two salad plates, green ones in the shape of leaves, and a white, bigger plate with a thin red line on the edge and a small red bird flying in the middle. "How do you like it?"

He smiled fondly. "I like it." It was true. He liked the simplicity and the fact that she had remembered that about him made him like the plate better.

She smiled with satisfaction, and they brought the plates to the kitchen. Placing the plates on the counter, she sniffed. "It smells so good." Then her smile turned into a wondering face. She moved toward the oven, sniffing more. "Wait." She took the cover of the pan to get a better smell, then looked at him with wide eyes. "You used chili sauce?"

"Ah, yes." He felt a little disappointed that he had not been able to keep the secret longer, but then, it probably would have been impossible. Although the exhaust fan was whirring above the oven, it could do only so much. "I thought you'd like it better."

Her face melted with affection. Putting back the lid, she walked over to him to hug him. "Thanks. You're so sweet."

His face softening as well, his chest filled with satisfaction, he held her back and kissed her hair. "My pleasure."

After a little, she pulled away to kiss his cheek, then walked back to the oven. "I'll make salad then, so you put the pasta on the plates."

They quickly finished the rest of the cooking and sat at the dining table: he at the end of the table and she on his right. This way, it was easy for them to see the other's face and touch the other when they wanted to. Then they started eating.

"Ah, this is good." She smiled at him before taking the second mouthful of pasta.

He smiled back softly, appreciating the sight of her eating the food he had cooked in his house.

He was happy spending time with her anywhere, but liked it best at his house. Not just because of the privacy—and the level of intimacy as a result—the place offered. When he had her over, the house felt more like a home, like when his mother had still been alive. It was a different feeling from when his friends visited. She was different, special. She brought light and warmth to the house. The loneliness he sometimes felt in the empty house almost vanished, until the time she had to leave.

Someday, he dreamed, they could be a real family. He had never told the dream to anyone, even to Cagalli. It seemed premature, partly because of their age and partly because they had been dating for less than a year. But it had been such a happy time; their relationship had been going quite well, better than ever. He saw no reason why he couldn't expect this to continue, expect them to have a long future together.

Still, marriage was far from now. He knew better than to think differently. They were still in high school and going to college. Since he was planning to go to medical college and she college of veterinary medicine, it would take them six years to graduate. Then, they each would find a job, get used to their work, and finally could think about becoming a family. Although some people got married in college, he preferred to have a secure salary first, a proof of maturity and independence. It was probably a good thing that Cagalli wasn't the type of girl who put great importance on marriage, considering the years they had to wait.

Probably, however, they could find a place to live together after a few years, he hoped. Both of them were applying to colleges near their homes and didn't have to move out, but it didn't mean they couldn't. Their fathers would be likely to frown upon the idea. But if they had been in a serious, committed relationship for several years and promised living together wouldn't get in the way of their studies, the fathers would hopefully let them.

They couldn't afford a big room, but neither of them was into fancy stuff anyway. Though she surely wanted a pet-friendly place. Although he wasn't exactly eager to have a pet, he didn't mind it. He knew how much she loved animals and wanted a pet. Coming home to her after a long day of studying or working must be such a good feeling, as wonderful as waking up next to her perhaps.

"How's the salad?"

He blinked at Cagalli's voice, pulled out of his daydream. Swallowing the salad in his mouth, he gave her a reassuring smile. "It's good."

With a happy face, she took a swig of sparkling water from her bottle.

He drank tomato juice from his glass before saying, "By the way, you can take a shower while I wash the dishes. That way, we can have more time to study afterward."

She made a face. "Did you have to bring up homework now? I don't think it's an appropriate subject at the dinner table. We should talk about something fun so we can enjoy the meal."

With a shrug, he casually said, "We can still have a fun talk after we discuss what we must."

She heaved a dramatic sigh. "Now you reminded me of what awaits afterward, I'm not so eager to finish the dinner."

"If you want to finish your homework in time, you'd better not drag out the dinner," he warned. "We don't have much time to waste."

Today was the last Monday of August, a week before the summer break ended. Neither of them had classes in cram school this afternoon, and they had retired from club activities before summer break had begun along with their fellow seniors so that they could focus on preparing for college entrance exams held at the end of school year.

Therefore, he had invited her to his house so that he could help her with her homework; he himself had finished the homework for summer break weeks ago. They had been doing it often recently and Kira, who had not finished his homework as well, had joined most of their study sessions. But today, he had let Athrun and Cagalli have some alone time, of which they had taken advantage earlier.

Athrun glanced at a clock on the wall which told him it was a little past seven. She had to leave his house at twenty after nine at the latest so that she could catch the last bus. It would take her about an hour by bus to go home from here, changing buses near their high school.

He had heard that her mother was at home tonight. So her mother could come and get her if she missed the last bus. But he preferred not to trouble her mother like that. He didn't want her mother to think he was a bad influence to Cagalli. Her mother appreciated the help he gave Cagalli or her brother and seemed to like him as her daughter's boyfriend; he wanted to stay in her good books, partly because of his dream to live together with Cagalli in a not-so-far future.

Cagalli made a pout. "It's your fault we don't have much time. You distracted me from studying."

His cheeks warm, he retorted, "You didn't seem to mind being distracted." He paused for effect. "At all."

She looked away as if she was angry, but he could clearly see the gesture, and the red cheeks, weren't because of anger.

With a smile, he leaned toward her and stretched a hand to tuck a strand of her hair behind her pink ear, a little tempted to taste the sweet blush. "Although, you worked hard earlier. So we can probably get your homework done in time," he gently said.

She gave him a sidelong look, her face still half turned away. "Well, you helped me a lot."

He nodded. "Yes. As a team, we can do this, right?"

"Yeah." She smiled, turning her face to him. "We can beat anything. Math or Biology or Literature. It's a piece of cake," she said, her hand clenched into a fist, then her face turned wistful. "You know, saying this phrase makes me want to eat a cake a bit."

He gave a chuckle. "You have to settle for ice cream." They had bought two ice cream cups at the grocery store for dessert.

Her face brightened up. "That's right. My mint chip ice cream is waiting for me."

She eagerly resumed eating dinner. Amused, he followed suit.

Locking the front door to his house, Athrun let out a breath. It wasn't exactly a sigh, but close. He had just come back from the bus stop after making sure Cagalli got into the bus. As he walked through the silent and dark house, he felt a slight pinch at his heart. Spending time with her in his house felt great, but it also made being there on his own less bearable afterward, as if he had lost something dear even though he knew she would come again not before long.

His mind wandered to the first time they had slept together. She was actually the one who had proposed the idea. He had planned to wait longer before even mentioning it since he didn't want to pressure her and never ever wanted her to think he just wanted sex like some guys.

The surprise had come in the middle of June. In the beginning of June, her girls' volleyball club had lost in the Inter-High School Championship, the biggest championship for high school athletes, and she had retired from club activities. Therefore, she had had more free time, and his robotics club had not been a busy club to begin with. They had been trying to make most of the free time for they were going to be busy preparing for college entrance exams soon.

During a date, they had ended up in his house to have more privacy, which wasn't unusual. They had been feeling more need to touch each other after spending little quality time for months because of their busy schedule: preparing for the school festival in May and her practicing for the championship.

They had been in his living room, partly watching a movie, some action movie she had recommended to him, and partly making out. She had been giggling at teasing kisses he gave to one side of her face, but suddenly stopped.

"Cagalli?" He had craned his neck to see her expression, holding her from behind. They had been sitting on the floor, her in his arms and legs, him leaning against the sofa.

"I...um, I had a question for you." Her face had been hidden from him by her hair.

"Ask away."

She had been jittery. "Do you want to...well, do something more...?"

He had been confused. "You don't want to watch the movie anymore?"

"No. Ah..." She had turned to look at him though her eyes kept wandering away. "I meant...this." Her hand had flapped in the space between their bodies. "Like...you know, sleeping together?"

His eyes had widened to stare at her. Her face, which was already flushed, had turned even brighter red and she had looked away again.

He had swallowed hard, feeling as nervous as she looked. "You mean that kind of sleeping together...right?" His voice had sounded odd, but then, neither of them had been in the mood to care.

She had simply nodded, still looking somewhere else. Suddenly, he had become acutely aware of where their bodies were touching, of her soft and firm body. It had seemed the room temperature had skyrocketed.

"Do you want to?" he had slowly asked, ordering his body not to move at all, whether to pull away from her or to grab her. It had felt like his body would do both at the same time if he loosened the reins. "If you are...concerned about me, you don't have to be. I will wait until you are ready."

After nearly a dozen of heartbeats, she had looked up from her hand fiddling with a pleat of her uniform skirt, her face looking like a ripe peach—a very delicious-looking one.

"I think I do. I want to...touch you more and feel you more. And know more about you." Her eyes had been boring into his as if trying to look into his mind, even his soul.

A strong emotion had squeezed his heart and he had impulsively pulled her into a tight hug. She had called his name, sounding surprised.

"I do, too." He had voiced each word as if he had never spoken a truer word. "I want...you."

Her arms had held him back, her face buried into his shoulder.

After a few minutes, he had pulled back to tenderly kiss her. She had responded and he had quickly gotten lost in the heat.

"Athrun..." she had breathed out as he kissed down her neck.

"Hmm?" He had given a half-hearted response, busy tasting her skin and feeling her fast-beating pulse with his lips and tongue. His hand had sneaked into under her skirt, caressing her thigh. His head had been dizzy with the excitement of being allowed into the areas he had stayed away from.

"Are we..." She had shivered and tugged at his hair, her other hand caressing his neck and giving him goose bumps. "...going to do it here...?"

He had stopped still, embarrassed. "No...not here."

Reaching for the remote, he had turned off the TV, then stood up and taken a deep breath before finally looking at her. Her face had been the mixture of nervousness and anticipation—and desire. Unable to find his voice, he had simply held out a hand. Pressing her lips into a determined line, she had taken it. Warmth had spread inside him, filling every single cell of his body.

They had not gone all the way that day; neither of them had been prepared, both practically and psychologically. But revealing their bodies to each other and touching each other more intimately had been exciting enough. More than enough. They both had been rather overwhelmed by the new experience.

From what she told him while they were cuddling afterward, Fllay had suggested a little before her birthday that it was probably time for them to consider having sex, which got Cagalli thinking and then, led to her questioning him. Although he felt uncomfortable about the fact that someone else—someone he knew, no less—had been talking about his and her sexual situation, he had still thanked the redhead silently and acted somewhat more nicely toward her for a while after the day. He had also felt grateful for Cagalli's tendencies to jump into adventures and to step up to challenges since they seemed to have contributed to her decision to take another step in their relationship.

And they had had their first sex on a Sunday about a month after the day, the last day of school before summer break. School had been over in the morning and they had come to his house after lunch. It had not been exactly perfect; he believed he was much better at it now. But he had felt more amount of pleasure, both physical and emotional, than he ever had. He had thought he had never felt so close to someone, as if Cagalli was now a part of him, as if they were now a part of each other, inseparable.

Afterward, he had wanted her to never leave his arms, though of course she had to. She had been as reluctant to leave and they had kept touching and kissing at the entrance of his house for a long time. He had had to harden his heart to let go of her hand at the bus stop so that she could get into the bus.

It had become easier as they repeated the act, but still—

His phone buzzed in his chest pocket as he set a foot on the landing. The sides of his lips lifted along with his mood, knowing it was a text from Cagalli.

I got you this time, didn't I?

Entering his room, he quickly sent a reply: I was already on the second floor.

She always insisted sending him a text to see whether he had safely arrived home after seeing her off. He really didn't think it was necessary. He was a guy, a guy who practiced karate no less. But she kept doing it, trying to have the text arrive at the same time as he reached his house.

His phone buzzed again. Damn. Ask me.

Any preference?

Surprise me.

Seated into his chair, he glanced around and picked up the biology textbook. Aldosterone, also known as mineralocorticoid, is found in what endocrine gland?

After a little, she answered: Adrenal cortex. It was the right answer, so he sent another question.

They usually kept texting—a half of which was academic and the other half was just chatting—until she got home, except during the time she was walking from a bus stop to the next and from a bus stop to her house. Since she changed buses at a shopping mall near their high school, the way would be relatively safe even if she was distracted, but texting while walking would be still dangerous, especially for someone clumsy like her. And the way to her house was darker, though she was quite familiar with the neighborhood and it was a quiet and safe residential area to begin with.

After her text informing him about her safe arrival at home, they focused on what they were doing in their houses until she—who usually went to sleep earlier than he did—sent a good-night text.

These texts made it easier for him to go back to the daily routine, to the alone time. He wasn't sure whether she had meant it when she started texting him to ask whether he had reached home all right, and then, about random stuff on her way home. He had never asked, or told her about his sentiments on the matter. He was somewhat embarrassed since it sounded a little like a child who couldn't go anywhere without his mother, too afraid to be alone. Either way, he appreciated the texts.

Dropping his gaze to the newest text of hers, he let out a smile. She might have some kind of supernatural power, being able to cheer him up just by a text saying, Mesoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm.

He entertained the silly, but amusing idea—which had probably been inspired by the superhero movie she had lent him to watch—as his finger typed, Wrong.

Her reply came: Mesoderm, endoderm, and endoderm?

Wrong again, he sent, imagining her face which was probably a pout as she read it.

It took longer for her next text to come. I'm getting off.

He raised suspicious eyebrows. It was a little early for her to arrive at her first destination, the shopping mall where she changed buses. Although it was possible that the ride had gone more smoothly than usual for some reason, it seemed more likely that she wasn't sure what the right answer was and was trying to dodge the question, hoping that when they resumed texting, he would move on without her properly admitting defeat.

He shook his head. If she thought he would let her off the hook so easily, she was mistaken. Eagerly waiting for her next text, he paged through the textbook, a smile playing on his lips.

A/N: In the notes of my other fics, I mentioned the director's comment that Athrun is the type to wait to sleep together until marriage. However, the Athrun in this fic has a different background from the Athrun in the show. So his attitude toward sex is different.

Cagalli's background or the situation they are in is different as well. So there isn't much reason for them to hesitate to have sex.

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Below are replies to reviews for "Boy of Winter." I hope you are reading this fic as well.

To PegasusInCage:

Thank you for the review. Yes, this fic will be pretty angsty later. I hope it won't become too much for you.

Oh, and happy new year to you, too. Sorry it's a bit late :P

To Fuyu Aki:

Thank you for the review. I'm glad you've liked many of my fics. Sorry "Boy of Winter" wasn't as long as you'd expected, but this fic will be much longer.

And yes, I enjoy writing these fics, especially AC ones. I'm thrilled to hear I've inspired you. But I'm sorry. I can't read Bahasa Indonesia.

I'm happy and relieved you like Kitri and Touka since they are my original characters. I'll definitely write a couple more fics in which they make appearances. I'm not sure about their being teenagers, though. It sounds interesting, but I'm not sure I can write a fic like that. It really depends on my muse. We'll see.

You don't have to apologize for writing a long review, at least not to me. It's fun to read and I really enjoy what my readers think of my fics.

*posted 01/19/19*

*edited 06/30/19*