A/N: Please don't pay any attention to the dot between the exclamation marks or question marks. ffnet had made it impossible to put double exclamation marks anymore. If anybody can help solve this problem, thanks in advance. Feel free to PM me for suggestions, questions or flames.
Thanks to ANONYMOUS for pointing out Haro's correct spelling.
Cagalli, Day 7
My earliest memory of my father was when he allowed me staying up late for the first time. I had been counting stars on his shoulders, and the highest number I've known was five.
"There are people living up there, Cagalli," He had told me.
"In the stars, daddy?"
"Yes, high up in the stars. They are people who have changed their bodies, and become smarter, stronger people than us. In fact, some of them live here in Orb."
"...So they cheated?"
My father chuckled with joy. "Would you mind if they cheated, princess?"
Tucking my chin to the top of my father's head, I held on the side of his face. "Nope."
It was years after thatI discovered that Coordinators were cheaters after all. Well...just one in particular. Athrun Zala was, believe it or not, almost perfect in every way possible. He's the perfect lover, either physically, mentally, or...coughsexuallycough. On my 17th birthday, he had given me the best gift a girl could ever have. On the other hand, I myself completely had forgotten about his birthday. I remembered after Kira and Lacus reminded me...three weeks later. He had smiled with ready forgiveness then, patting me on the head, saying that he completely understood my hectic life.
I felt so horrible after that, and the more horrible thing was, I already forgot about it the next day.
I was an awful, terrible girlfriend, and never knew what he saw in me. Kira had told me that if Athrun had stayed at PLANT, he would be one of the most eligible bachelors there. An Elite of ZAFT, father's a Chairman (genocidal, but still), The Order of the Nebula, Ace Pilot, etc, etc... He could have pick any other girl who would serve and appreciate him better, yet he stuck around, doing guard duty for selfish little me. True, we've been through life threatening situation before, though such matter wouldn't really help in real life. Promoting world peace on regular basis – such an infinite thing – made me feel like a contestant of a beauty pageant.
Maybe that's why I let him go, though with a heavy heart, for not every love needed to possess. It could also give happiness in other form. But never in my life had I imagined that my friends would have the nerve of dumping me in a deserted island for a chance of compromise with my ex.
We've settled on a promise to pretending as the happy couple in front of them. Athrun didn't seem to be so content upon hearing that after I broke the kiss. What could I do? If that's what I should do for the culprits, I'd make believe, even if it meant rubbing salt on old wounds. Why did I kiss him? Well, they've set those cameras everywhere, and I meant, everywhere... There was no free given thing in life – you have to give something of equal value to gain it.
-You okay there, Cagalli? You've been quiet for sometime now.-
Looking up to glare at the camera, I found myself flinching. "I'm fine, really. How's everything doing?"
The man in the other line was quiet. I pictured him monitoring my every movement from every angle possible – just how many cameras they actually set up out here?
-No need to worry about anything here.-
"Good then. Now, will you please pilot the Aka-"
-I won't pilot the Akatsuki to get you out from there. Or Strike, for that matter,- Major Fllaga announced, -And no, I can't call Kira here for you. That boy is terribly busy these last several days.-
"Tch."
At my back, Athrun was busy stifling a laugh.
-Kira doesn't need a heart attack at a time like this. Come on, sweet heart, you can talk to Mwu here. I will listen to every bit of your problem.-
"The only problem I'm having is how to get out of here," I snorted, fixing the camera my patented death glare, "And don't call me sweet heart."
-Oh my, how scary!- He said in a feigned fear. –Athrun, we're terribly sorry for throwing you there with this girl.-
The laughing coming from my back was a bit despicable, and Athrun immediately stopped when he realized I was fixing him a stare. "It's okay, Major. I'm already used to it."
-So, when's the wedding?-
I cocked an eyebrow, not really wanting to trust what I just heard. "...What?"
-I can hear wedding bells chiming from afar,- Fllaga sighed dramatically, -Your wedding bells.-
"M-major..." Though I was unable to see his face, I could imagine Athrun blushing and stammering over something like this. That's when Fllaga's laugh erupted from the other line.
-I was just joking, Athrun! - He paused to cackle again, -God, you should have seen the look on your face.-
Turning sideways to glance at the boy, I found that he was busy covering his flushing face with mixed success.
-Anyway, it's good to see you two up and about again, eh? Never thought this is possible.-
It was Athrun's turn to shot a curious glance at the camera. "What do you mean?"
-Ah. See, from the way you guys were talking four years ago, I always thought that you two hesitated over circumstances and positions too much. Turned out I was wrong."
We have forgotten how the walls of Archangel have ears. Or the promises we made to protect each other, for that matter.
-Or roles in the war. Now there's peace and never mind about those Blue Cosmos idiots, why don't you start thinking about yourselves more?-
I was itching to turn around and look at Athrun, but Mwu kept prattling in the background.
-Sure, Cagalli has, like, a suitor coming every week, but she doesn't like any of 'em...-
"Suitors?" Athrun said in the tone that indicated the faintest hint of jealousy. He leapt to his feet, trudged forward and I found myself standing next to him. "Weird...I never heard of them. So, even Jona isn't enough?"
I glanced at him from the corner of my eye. "The law stated that the Head Representative have to marry at twenty."
"Every week?"
"Those old coots are very stubborn," I glanced sideways to the camera, hoping it would come to my rescue.
-Don't fret about it, Athrun. You're not that innocent, either. Imagine how Cagalli would react if she knew you've seen Meyrin in her undies.-
It took me a moment for those words to seep in, and I found Athrun fighting for an awkward reaction, looked at me, and then glared at the camera. "Major!"
Mwu grinned –I thought- because he was too busy with this funny chuckling. -Oops, sorry. I thought she already knew.-
"I-I can explain that!" Athrun quickly said to me, holding both of my arms. I was too preoccupied with my own mind to shake them off.
Meyrin...in undies...stripping in front of Athrun...getting ready for a foreplay... "...You slept with her?" I said finally. It was more of a statement than a question.
The look on his face changed from appalled to upset. "I didn't!"
-Yeah. Sleeping would be with Meer, I mean, waking next to her on your bed would be--
Gasping, I felt my jaw drop, and Athrun shot a panicked look to the device. "Major, you're not helping me here!"
-Oh, well, I, uh, I, er, gotta go! See ya!-
Which left me and Athrun, standing in front of each other, and he was too panicked to talk. "Meer? Meer Campbell? That Lacus impersonator?" I started, keeping my eyes to his face.
He cocked his head to the side, then shook it. But he nodded eventually. "Believe me, I can explai-"
"Let go of me," I muttered, not looking at him.
Athrun stubbornly tried to keep my arms under his grip. "Caga-"
Raising my hands, I forcefully shook his hands off, and stormed away. He managed to catch my wrist on the way, and I shook it off. This time, he caught my shoulder and managed to turn me around to face him.
"Listen to me," He started slowly, "I didn't do it with any of them."
Shaking my head violently, I refused to look at him. "I don't really care."
"Cagalli..."
"How many girls did it with you, Athrun?"
"Argh!" He threw up his hands in frustration, and started massaging his temples. "Didn't you hear me? I said-"
"How many?"
"Oh. I thought you mean both at the same time," He said sardonically. "Or perhaps three."
Ignoring the sarcasm in his voice, I continued to stare. "Three?"
For the third time of the day, he gulped. "Well..."
"Ah. Lunamaria, was it? I knew she's always ogling at you on board Minerva even when I was around, with her pink miniskirt and elite uniform and red hair, and what's the matter with you and girls with red hair, Athrun?.!"
"I said I didn't! Why the hell can't you believe me?.!"
"I just can't get this image of you doing it with her out of my head."
He slapped his forehead. "Look-"
"What would you do if I did it with Jona?"
Athrun Zala stared at me, jaw half dropped, eyes darting back and forth between my face and somewhere on the ground, obviously at a loss of what to do.
"Can you imagine our naked, sweaty bodies," I uttered, emphasizing heavily on every word as I stepped closer, "bumping against each other as we-"
"STOP IT!" He hurriedly clamped his hands over his ears.
"And I thought you said that you'll never forgive me if I marry him."
"And to make it simple," He said, almost in a growl, " I. Did. NOT. Do. It."
"So what?.! I don't even care!"
Somehow, that didn't come out as convincing as it should.
He slowly turned up from the pebble he's been kicking, and gave me a look. "You're jealous."
It was my turn to stutter and blush. "I-I'm not!"
"You are, with those questions of how many and who I did it with," He sighed deeply, more or less thwarted by our argument, slumping down to the ground. "God, what an awful vacation this has turned out. And they said do not speak ill of the dead."
"I'd rather face a desk full of paper work than do this," I said, feeling my knees getting weaker.
"I'm hungry," we said in unison.
For a moment, we looked at each other, and eventually laughed.
"Truce?" He asked quietly.
"Truce," I replied.
"Let's go back," Athrun said, rising to his feet, and pulling me up.
"Wanna eat kebab? I learned how to make them at Desert Dawn. It tasted very good with chili sauce."
"Uh, no thanks... do we have yogurt sauce in the fridge?"
-
Orb Union, 12:55 PM
"You what?" Kira said in disbelief.
Mwu scratched his head and laugh awkwardly. "C'mon, you know that Athrun's a shagabond."
"Major Fllaga!" Kira stomped his fist on top of the desk, and Mwu flinched. "We didn't send them to start another Bloody Valentine war, we're sending them on vacation to bring them together! And now you're screwing it!"
"My, I wonder what's happening there?"
Both men turned around to look at Lacus, peering over the multiple monitors. It was the image of the bungalow in the deserted island, though the audio was perfectly clear.
"How come we didn't get to see what they're doing inside the house?" Mwu asked.
Kira shrugged. "It was for privacy. That is a honeymoon bungalow, Major. Besides, we can always guess."
"I bet after having the lovers' spat, they're just hungry...for more physical act of love."
"Major..."
-Athrun, why can't you put it in?-
-What? I just can't...it's kinda gross.-
-Are you saying that I'm gross?-
-You do know that this is gonna hurt you more than me?-
-C'mon, you gotta have more spice in life!-
-I don't want to...-
-Everybody got to do this thing at least once in their life. One last time, put it in! Now!-
-CAGALLI! You're a girl, have more boundaries, for God's sake!-
-What a wimp! I'm only gonna tell you one more time, Athrun, put that thing in!-
Lacus tried to hold the smile that's been ebbing on her lips, and it was Kira's turn to talk, a little bit louder than he usually did, as Mwu was busy containing his laughter on the floor. "That's my sweet, virgin, innocent twin sister, ladies and gentlemen."
Somewhere at Lacus' feet, Haro exclaimed, "Athrun! Athrun! Nonsense!"
