Alright! Here's the new chapter! And thank you, MythGaiden! ^^
Am I a bit too fast now? Haha. Anyways, I was having too many ideas for this chapter since last night during my sleep and I had to type it out today. I'm glad that it was completed so fast, but now that my idea had gone, it would take a while till I get another to continue it. So, don't be angry okay? I'll still update, so don't worry about this work being half done.
Now, off you go! Read this chapter and do review. ^^
Disclaimer: I don't own Code Geass and its characters but the plot.
Chapter 10
Suzaku was frustrated. Not his breakfast meal that disgust him, but Milly who still had her hands on Lelouch's gift and he had forgotten to ask it back from her yesterday. Though last night Gino had called her to meet in the palace today for the gift, Suzaku still was not satisfied. He had a feeling that something might just happen.
"Suzaku, you don't seem to have an appetite. Did something happen at the meeting yesterday?" Lelouch asked when the dessert was placed in front of him.
Suzaku jolted slightly when Lelouch reminded him about the fake meeting. Looking up, he smiled awkwardly, "Everything's fine, and I'm finishing the food, aren't I?"
"Oh, okay," Lelouch replied and Suzaku continued eating the fruits that were presented to him.
Suzaku noticed that Lelouch was staring at him suspiciously and still with a bit of worried. Praying that it was not what he thought it was, he swallowed down the fruit and asked, "What is it? You have something to ask?"
Lelouch blushed. It seemed that Suzaku had got it right.
"Erm…about the event you went yesterday morning, did…did anyone still talk about it?"
Suzaku remembered that Lelouch was talking about the gossips. He had to answer him that there were none, but the truth was a few of them still did. He did not want to lie but he wanted Lelouch to relax and not worry so much.
"No, they're not talking about it anymore. It disappears after that day," Suzaku replied.
"I see," Lelouch's tight posture had finally relaxed. At least he could still survive for a while more.
"Your highness," Jeremiah came all of a sudden and bowed. Then, he went to Suzaku and whispered into his ears. "The Queen demands to see you now."
"What?" Suzaku stared at Jeremiah. The worse fear he had right now, was that his mother had found out something, and he hoped it was not from the newspaper.
"It's something to do with last night. It was part of my fault too," Jeremiah replied, but Suzaku was not about to move from his seat.
Suzaku was very frustrated right now. This is bad, this is really bad, he thought.
"Pardon us, Princess. The queen wants to see Prince Suzaku for some important matter," Jeremiah spoke out to Lelouch.
"Oh, it's okay. But, do you know what for?" Lelouch asked back. He was worried if it was about the meeting Suzaku had last night, or maybe the gossips that finally reached the Queen's ears.
"It's nothing to worry about, your highness. It'll only be a short meeting," Jeremiah assured her, though it was a lie, he had to as it was an order from the Queen herself.
"Your highness, we have to get going," Jeremiah told Suzaku. Still a bit of unwillingness, Suzaku forced himself to get up and walked away from the table.
"Suzaku…" Lelouch called and Suzaku stopped to look at him. "When you're back, can we talk?"
It was weird for Lelouch to suddenly want to have a talk with him, but it was a good sign as he remembered that Milly did say it was better to talk than just giving things. Putting up a smile, he told Lelouch, "Sure. Come to my study room and I'll meet you there later."
"Okay…" Lelouch nodded. Suzaku then walked out of the dining room with Jeremiah behind him.
Gino was waiting at the entrance when Suzaku and Jeremiah came out. He followed behind Suzaku towards the main mansion. Softly, Gino warned, "It seems we were being followed yesterday and the news came out in this morning's newspaper. Be careful of what the queen might do to you."
Suzaku finally sighed; he was right about the newspaper. Although he had been very careful, still he was exposed.
"I don't care what she's going to do to me, just as long as Lelouch didn't know about it, I'm fine with any punishment," Suzaku spoke out. Both Gino and Jeremiah stared at him before they sighed too.
"It's our fault, your highness. We didn't carry out our job properly," Jeremiah said, trying to console him.
"Yeah, and besides, I don't think Lelouch would be mad at you as long as you explain to her later. That Milly is her best friend after all. There's no way would she ever doubt her best friend as a third person in this relationship," Gino cut in.
"But how am I supposed to explain about the gift? It's with Milly in the end. Damn that woman!" Suzaku cursed.
"Your highness, please refrained yourself from using such vulgar words," Jeremiah reminded him, which was the least useful one he needed right now.
"She'll be coming a bit later, so don't worry about it. She can help you explain the situation anyways," Gino told him.
"That will have to wait. For now, I have a fierce tiger to confront," Suzaku sighed once again. Both Gino and Jeremiah stayed quiet as they were reaching the mansion. "Anyway, the both of you can't run either. Bismarck will get you, so be careful."
Gino and Jeremiah shuddered at that name, but there was no way would they be able to escape. It was their fate to meet him. They both sighed too.
Lelouch was in Suzaku's study room. He was told to wait here till Suzaku was back and so they could talk. It was his first time being inside of Suzaku's room but there was not much difference from this room and his room. The furniture were placed at the same position like those in his own, just that there were a few different pictures on the wall. Looking around the room, he walked towards the sofa and sat down on it.
He did not know when Suzaku would be back, but it would be boring just waiting and doing nothing. So, looking around again, he thought of taking one of the books from the shelf. He was about to get up when he saw a newspaper on the table. It had been a few days since he had read any newspapers and he had been wondering why he did not receive them. Now that he knew the prince would have one, he would definitely come here to read them often. Well, a chance to be near Suzaku? Lelouch smiled at that.
"Whoa!" Lelouch suddenly exclaimed and blushed. How in the whole world did he have that thought? Quickly brushing it away, he picked up the newspaper and started reading. It was today's newspaper. Reading the date and down at the huge title, Lelouch's eyes went wide.
"What is the meaning of this, Suzaku?" the Queen scolded as she slammed the newspaper on her work table. Suzaku only kept quiet.
"Why is it that you're stalking a woman? Why's it that you've bought something for her? Who is she? Why do you have to bring embarrassment to the royalty? Why you did even thought of betraying the princess? And here I thought that you've liked her ever since the beginning, but everything was a show? Prince! Answer me!"
Suzaku was looking down at the newspaper with the huge title saying "Prince's Secret Mate". The title itself was totally wrong, and he doubt everything in the news were right. He was seriously in a bad mood and he would definitely kill this paparazzo if he knew who this person might be.
Taking in a small breath, he answered, "That woman is Lelouch's best friend. I had her to help me get something for Lelouch. I kept a distance from her to avoid being suspicious. I had never thought of disgracing the royal family or betraying Lelouch. And, I really was not acting a show."
"Look at me and repeat what you've just said," Cornelia ordered and Suzaku did as told. From the look in Suzaku's eyes, she could tell that none were lies. Still, the problem in hand was big and if it was not solved, the King himself would have to show up, and that was the last thing Cornelia wanted.
Closing her eyes and take in a deep breath, she said, "You are to organize a press conference and tell everyone the truth. Have this woman and Lelouch joined the conference too as your witnesses. You shall do it immediately or at least tomorrow morning, before the King decided he should do something, and you know when he's in this, none of you will have a good time. Understand?"
"Yes, your highness. I apologized for making a mistake, I'll amend it," Suzaku replied.
"Good, you may leave, and make sure that the Princess understands whatever that happened. If I find out that the both of you did not solve the problem, I would have to take action and you won't like it," Cornelia warned.
"Yes, your highness," Suzaku replied as he stood up and went out of the room. Cornelia sighed and slumped back into her chair.
Suzaku quickly hurried back to his mansion and went to find Lelouch. To his bewilderment, he found Lelouch reading the newspaper in his study room. It was not only the first page which contained the news, but another two more pages continued from the first. He was in a big trouble, but he assured himself that everything would be fine as long as he explained properly.
Calming down his heart beat, he took in a breath and spoke, "Lelouch, the news is wrong. That girl is Milly and I was just asking for her help, nothing more than that."
Lelouch did not look up, instead he just replied while reading, "That's Milly alright, and it's totally impossible that Milly would be interested in you. This author definitely didn't know how to write a story."
Suzaku relaxed. He knew Lelouch would never doubt him, especially Milly since she was her best friend. He went towards sofa and sat beside him.
"Great! I knew you'd understand. So, you see, to clear this misunderstanding, I will hold a press conference and you and Milly will have to be there to be my witness, so that everything would be clear…" Suzaku told him but was cut in before he could finish.
"You think I'll go?" Lelouch asked. Suzaku was dumbstruck.
"Of course you have to go. You're Milly's best friend and you have to be there as a witness, so everyone would believe us," Suzaku replied.
"More like believing you, not us," Lelouch shot back as he finally looked up. Suzaku finally caught the look in Lelouch's eyes. Lelouch was definitely not in a good mood either, and it seemed whatever he was about to say would not reach him. Suzaku sighed and tried once again to convince him.
"Lelouch, I am telling the truth. There's nothing between Milly and me. I only told her to meet me at the shopping complex to get something for you since she knows you best. Don't tell me you actually doubt your own friend?"
"You think I'd doubt my own friend? I know there's nothing between the both of you because she's not interested in you. Besides, that's pretty obvious in this photo," Lelouch replied and pointed onto the photo where Milly was holding a box and stared furiously at Suzaku. "And I bet that gift was for me."
Suzaku looked at it and then turned back to Lelouch, "Yes, that box there is your gift but it was with Milly since she accidentally took it back with her. But, she'll be coming soon later to pass it to you. Since everything's so clear in the photo, what's it that you don't believe? Me?"
"Yes," Lelouch answered sternly, which made Suzaku feared of him.
"But I am telling you the truth…"
"No, you weren't!" Lelouch's words suddenly exploded as he stood up, fists clenched beside him. He had finally reached his limit.
Suzaku was definitely shocked by the sudden temper Lelouch had. He was so shocked that he could not defend himself as Lelouch continued to bombard him with words and words.
"You told me you were rushing to an important meeting, but instead you're here, in the shopping complex. You told me that you had a gift for me, but where is it? You told me that there were nothing in the event and the gossips were all gone but this news just said 'the nobility of the Princess was still in doubt'. You think I can still trust you when everything's out in the public? The whole world knew that you were cheating on your own spouse and yet you still denied that you lied to me in front of me! How the hell do you think I'm going to survive? What do you think I come here for in the first place? If I knew being a noble was such a torture, I would rather tell everyone about my true identity and be gone from here!"
Lelouch had definitely exploded. It was difficult for him to calm in an instant. Suzaku knew just from the look Lelouch had, but Lelouch was so strong. The tears he had been holding back after so long was actually at the side of his eyes, waiting to fall soon but Lelouch just kept holding it in. Even during the time when Lelouch was at the first event he went, he was so scared and in pain but he had never allowed his tears to fall. Suzaku was glad that Lelouch was not as weak as most girls, but he was disappointed as Lelouch never gave him a chance to pamper him, it was as if Lelouch was running away all the time. Even though they were beside each other, it felt so far that he could hardly reach. And now, it seemed the distance just increased so much more and he could not figure out what he should do.
Bringing up his confidence, Suzaku stood up and held onto Lelouch's hands.
"I'm sorry that I lied to you but I was only trying to help you to reduce your worries. I never thought of hurting you with those at all. I promise those would be the last time I lie to you," Suzaku was hoping Lelouch would understand, but it did not seem so.
Lelouch pulled back his hands to his side and said, "You really think those were the only lies?"
Suzaku was dumbstruck again. What other lies had he told Lelouch? He could not figure out at all.
"Weren't those…the only ones?" Suzaku was definitely afraid but he could not remember any other lies he had told him.
Suddenly, Lelouch smiled, "You really treat me as a fool, do you? Every day, even the day before the forced marriage, you came to me as if you were so interested in me. For a moment, I thought I had become a fool, to think that you actually like me. For a moment my hopes had went high, but apparently those weren't the case."
"W-what do you mean, Lelouch? Of course I like you…"
"Stop lying! You're much more interested in Milly than me! You said it yourself that the photo tells everything, and that blush on your face was definitely real! If you really liked her in the first place, you should have just gone to her and pester her. Then, I'll get a hint and I'll disappear, or maybe help you out to get her if you'd just ask."
Suzaku looked at the photo again. He picked it up and looked at it clearly. His blush was definitely there. What a perfect moment to get a photo. When he looked away from it, Lelouch was already walking out of the room. Suzaku quickly let go of it and chased after him, pushing him against the wall and trapped both his hands beside his head.
"Let go!"
"No! Not till you listen to me!"
"There's nothing…"
"I was blushing, yes. It happened because I was furious at her. She thought I had hurt you, treating me as if I'm a slave torturer, and that I have to get you a gift because I had bullied you and needed it to cheer you up. But you know I'm not that kind of person, you know I never did anything bad to you, you know how much I'm interested in you. You should even know that I really like you! I would never lie about my feelings!"
"I'm not going to believe you. Never!" Lelouch struggled but he was not able to move at all. Suzaku's grips were too strong and they were hurting his wrists.
"Fine! Words are not going to reach you, but this definitely will," Suzaku replied fiercely before he brought himself down and kissed Lelouch.
The sudden kiss was painful as Suzaku was doing it forcefully. All the pain, physical and mental pain, came to his nerves all at once and it hurt a lot. Lelouch needed Suzaku to release him immediately. Involuntarily, he had bit Suzaku's lower lip and Suzaku quickly tore away. Suzaku touched his injury and there was little blood oozing out from the bite. He looked up at Lelouch but was even more surprised than the sudden bite. Lines of tears had lined down Lelouch's cheeks, his right hand was closing his mouth, his face, ears and eyes were ruby red. This time, he had definitely hurt Lelouch to the ultimate limit.
Suzaku suddenly panicked. He did not mean to hurt him so terribly. He thought that would make Lelouch realized his true feelings, but apparently it did not work. Without thinking, Suzaku brought up his hands and wanted to hold Lelouch, but was instantly rejected with a slap on his face.
"Don't you dare touch me ever again," Lelouch warned him with his shaky voice before he marched away from Suzaku.
Suzaku was stunned. The slap did not hurt, not as much as his heart did. Still, he brought his hand to his cheek and touched it. It was warm and there would be a hand mark if he was looking in the mirror, but that was not important. Now, he had totally no idea what would be his next step. He knew he should chase after her, apologized to her a million times, but he knew he would not be forgiven, not now. Suzaku only stood there, staring blankly at the empty space where Lelouch was just now.
Everything was messed up, but he would never give up. Suzaku looked back up into the direction Lelouch had gone to. He would apologize to her no matter how many times; he would wait for forgiveness no matter how long, because he knew he would not be able to live like before if Lelouch was to be gone. Suzaku ran, out of the building and towards any garden he could think of, since Lelouch had always loved nature and would definitely be there.
Lelouch did not know where he had run to, or the reason why he was furious. He should be the one to be punished, as he was the biggest liar. But, it was painful to realize that Suzaku had lied to him. He had figured out why did those hurt, but he just did not want to admit. He knew he had fallen in love, or he would not even care about those lies. He had tried to keep his distance so that he would be able to leave him without regrets. Yet, he had realized it all too late, he was too close to him and he did not want to let Suzaku go anymore. He cried and felt desperate as he realized everything at once. It would be difficult for him to escape now and the both of them would have to suffer for eternity.
Unknowingly, Lelouch had come to the autumn garden, the garden where all the trees are having orange leaves. He went to sit under one of them as he hugged his knees and cried. His crying and thoughts were so loud in his mind that he did not noticed that someone had came near to him, not till he heard his name being called.
"Lelouch…"
He looked up and saw a familiar face sharing the same painful expression as him.
"Rolo…" Lelouch called out in his choke voice. He was about to speak but Rolo had immediately held Lelouch in his arms.
"It's okay, everything's fine. Everything's fine, Lelouch," Rolo consoled him as he hugged Lelouch tightly. Since Lelouch's mind was in a messy state, all he really needed was a warm hug. Lelouch had got it, and so did Rolo. With this chance he had, things would definitely go his way.
Lelouch had his arms wrapped around Rolo as he cried onto his shoulder blade. He knew it was wrong to do so, but he needed it. He knew he would be scolded if the Queen finds out, but he would not care, at least not now when he was feeling so down.
Suzaku had been running from garden to garden. Each and everyone he went Lelouch was not there. It was this last garden where he thought Lelouch would not be, as it was very far away from his mansion, but too close to somebody else's. Yet, there was where he found her, in the arms of another man, sitting under the autumn tree. Suzaku almost crumpled as he witnessed the scene. He was not angry that Rolo had attracted Lelouch's attention, but he was furious at himself for being useless. Not only did he receive a slap from her, but also jabs in his heart. He left that place silently, leaving the both of them consoling each other under that romantic tree.
Everything was finally over, everything was finally gone, and so was his love.
Suzaku was back in his mansion with an extremely gloomy face. He was so sad that he did not realize that someone was sitting on the sofa in the living room.
"Suzaku! Where is Lelouch? I need to see hi- her now!" Milly shouted and almost made a mistake, but luckily Suzaku was too sad to notice anything. But, why was he sad?
"She's in the garden," Suzaku replied and slumped onto the sofa beside her.
"Which garden?" Milly asked, though she was curious about Suzaku's condition.
"The autumn garden," Suzaku replied monotonously.
"And…where would that be?" Milly asked again.
"The servants will bring you there," Suzaku replied as he closed his eyes.
Milly was quiet. Seeing Suzaku so depressed was the first time ever. Still, she had to get to Lelouch to explain everything. She had no time for a depress man. She stood up and was about to leave when she noticed a red mark on one side of his cheek. She thought, "A slap? From Lelouch?" Milly blinked. It would definitely be great if she could just see the scene where Lelouch slapped him again, but not now. She had to get to Lelouch quick.
She went out of the mansion and asked one of the servants to lead her to the autumn garden. The servant obediently bowed and led the way.
"Are you feeling better?" Rolo asked while sitting beside Lelouch. Lelouch was still sobbing as he nodded. Rolo sighed as he knew part of the happenings was his fault. Since explaining to Lelouch about what really happen would not really hurt his plan, he decided to use this technique to get more of Lelouch's attention.
"I'm sorry. I was the one who told Suzaku to get you a gift to cheer you up. I never knew things would turn out this way."
Lelouch shook his head, "It's not your fault, nor was it totally Suzaku's."
Rolo was surprised by that statement; still he had to act as if it really was not Suzaku's fault.
"Yeah…those paparazzi are such busy bodies."
"Well, that's part of it," Lelouch replied, which shocked Rolo even more.
"They're the real one to blame. If not, who else?" Rolo asked. He could not understand what Lelouch was thinking at all.
"I'm to blame for most of it," Lelouch answered frankly, which made Rolo even confused.
"Why?"
"I'm the one who causes problem. If I had not fallen in love with him, I wouldn't care about the lies he said. It was supposed to be a one-sided love, but I ended up ascending deeper into it. Ever since Suzaku had been around, he had tried to make me laugh and smile. He's a dunce once in a while, but I couldn't help myself for not falling for his stupidity. I know I shouldn't feel this way, but I can't stop myself anymore. I can't imagine the days where he and I would be separated, I can't even imagine his expression when I tell him the truth about me. I thought I was afraid of the rumors, but it turns out that I'm afraid of not being able to be with him. I'm afraid of the days where I'll wake up and find myself in a dark place, not knowing who Suzaku is anymore. I…I'm afraid of losing him, Rolo," Lelouch sighed, his tears were about to flow again as he was not totally calm yet.
Rolo, on the other hand, could not believe what Lelouch had just said. Did it mean his plans are ruin? Would Lelouch give up the idea of leaving the palace? What should he do to convince Lelouch to leave this place?
"But, you wanted to leave this palace, right? You said you don't feel safe here," Rolo asked, hoping Lelouch would agree with him.
"Yes, I did thought so before, but now I don't feel like leaving anymore," Lelouch replied.
"But sooner or later your identity would be found out. What are you going to do then?"
"I'll just…" Lelouch stopped and Rolo thought Lelouch would agree to him after all, but he was wrong.
"I'll just receive anything coming towards me, be it Suzaku's hatred or the whole world going against me. At least my burden will be gone and Suzaku could finally know the truth," Lelouch replied as he stared at the leaf in his hand.
Rolo was in an utter shock. Lelouch had suddenly changed his mind all of a sudden. It was not long ago that he decided to leave the palace without anyone knowing anything about him, but now he could not even care less about his secret anymore. He would be even happier that the whole world knows about his secret. Lelouch was so unpredictable and this made Rolo's plan so much more difficult.
Rolo was about to convinced Lelouch to have back his previous thoughts but then Milly came.
"Lelouch!" Milly shouted as she ran towards Lelouch.
"M-Milly?" Lelouch could not believe his eyes, but when Milly was just in front of her and fell into his arms instantly, Lelouch was in tears again. It definitely was Milly that hugged her. He missed her so much.
"Oh, Lelouch! I miss you so much! I finally had a reason to come see you!" Milly shouted as she hugged Lelouch and cried out in joy.
Lelouch only nodded into her embrace and hugged her tightly, so much more closely than he did with Rolo. Rolo took the hint and walked away silently. He decided he should plan everything again before Lelouch changed his mind.
It was a few minutes later did Milly finally loosened her embrace and looked dearly into Lelouch's eyes. Lelouch looked tired from the crying and that made Milly's heart cringed. She brought up her hands and caressed Lelouch's face while wiping away the tears.
"Oh Lelouch, your face is much smaller than before. Have you not been eating anything?" Milly asked, concerned.
"Not much actually. I didn't have much of the appetite to," Lelouch replied as he sobbed. Milly took out her handkerchief and wiped away Lelouch's tears and nose.
"Thank you, I'll have the servant to wash it for you first before handing it back to you," Lelouch replied.
Milly suddenly laughed, which Lelouch felt weird. She said, "You sound so much like a princess, Lelouch. I guess you're used to calling the servants to do everything already now, right?"
Lelouch smiled, "Well, I was not allowed to do any house chores here and whatever I need, it would be the servants to bring it to me. Guess I'm pretty used to it already."
Milly laughter died down into a smile, "Yeah, you are."
The both of them were quiet for a moment before Milly suddenly jolted and sat down in front of Lelouch, rustling her bag.
"What are you finding, Milly?" Lelouch asked as he was curious of Milly's sudden excitement.
"Your gift, Lelouch, the one that I chose but Suzaku bought it for you. He said he wanted to cheer you up with it but I accidentally took it back with me," Milly told him as she took out the box containing the phone Suzaku bought. "Here," she said as she passed it to him.
Lelouch accepted it. He suddenly felt guilty as he really did mistaken Suzaku's words as lies.
"Open it, it was the latest model for the moment," Milly told Lelouch. Lelouch opened it and was surprised to find a white iPhone 4S inside of it. He never had a phone and never thought he would have one. Even the royal members did not know he did not have one with him.
"Thank you, Milly," said Lelouch as he smiled and looked at it. "It's beautiful. You've the best taste always."
Milly chuckled, "That was the only color back then, but still the one you should really thank isn't me, and apparently that person was in a totally devastated state."
Lelouch smiled disappeared immediately. It was his fault that Suzaku had to suffer all the scolding, a slap and a bite from him. He had also forgotten that Suzaku was lectured by the Queen too. Lelouch was in a very guilty state.
Milly saw the sudden change in Lelouch's expression and quickly explain the whole situation that happened yesterday.
"Lelouch, whatever written on the newspaper was totally wrong," Milly started but was cut in.
"I know. There's no need to explain. Suzaku had told me everything, just that I didn't believe him at first. But, now that I've calmed down a little, everything was clear. And besides, you've given me the gift and it's the best prove," said Lelouch as he tried to smile.
"Then about Suzaku…"
"I'll apologize to him once I get back. But Milly, this case won't rest if we don't do anything. Suzaku said he will hold a press conference tomorrow morning and the three of us have to be there. You'll go right? To explain everything?" Lelouch asked, sort of pleading.
Milly smiled, "Of course I would. I want some peace of mind too."
Lelouch smiled widely, "Thank you! I'll tell Suzaku and we'll call you again to confirm the place and time. Thank you, Milly! Thank you so much!" Lelouch ended with a hug with Milly.
"You're most welcome, Lelouch. Now that you have a phone, anytime if anything happens to you, call me. All the important contacts are already in your phone and I managed to customize it when it was with me. Use it often, okay?"
"Sure."
The both of them sat there a little longer chatting about anything before Milly had to leave for an appointment and Lelouch had to return back to Suzaku, hoping everything would be fine.
Lelouch was in doubt. He did not know if he should open the door or just wait till Suzaku comes out. However, according to Gino, Suzaku had been in his bedroom ever since Milly left to find him. The door was lock and he did not even come out for lunch, though Lelouch himself skipped it too. He was worried that Suzaku might do something reckless, but Gino just laughed away and told him that nothing in the room would be able to kill Suzaku. At least that assured Lelouch Suzaku was fine.
He had been waiting outside the room for 15 minutes, still wondering if he should go in or not. It was his own fault that he could not bring himself to go in, but he had to solve this problem today or it would get worse. He never wanted to bring disaster to the royal family, nor his own. Having in his mind that he should do something quick, he took a deep breath and brought up his hand, and knocked the door thrice.
"Suzaku, it's me. Can we talk?" Lelouch asked but there were no response. Lelouch sighed, he doubt it would be that easy after what he had done to him. So, he decided to just stand behind the door and talk.
"I-It's okay if you don't want to see me, but at least listen to me," Lelouch stopped for a while to listen but there were no sound movements coming from behind the door. So, he continued, "I'm…sorry for doubting you. I know I was in a wrong to not try to believe you. My mind just then was too messy with everything that had happened recently and I…" Lelouch stopped again. He knew his excuses would not work. He gave up explaining and decided to jump to the main point.
"I saw Milly just now and she gave me back the gift you bought. It's very pretty. Thank you for getting one for me. I'm glad that you actually did think and care about me. I'm really sorry for accusing you. I've also told Milly to come for the press conference to clear the misunderstanding. We just have to call her and tell her the time and place later. If you don't feel like calling her, I can call, so just…tell me when and where later."
Lelouch stopped and sadly it seemed Suzaku would not be coming out at all. Lelouch sighed and said, "I'll…see you later, maybe…" He waited for a few seconds before he turned his heels and leave.
That was when the door opened to review a tired Suzaku standing just at the doorway. Lelouch looked at him and quickly looked away from his eyes. He suddenly felt scared and wanted to leave immediately.
"I-I'm sorry to bother your sleep. I'll leave now," said Lelouch and was about to run when Suzaku held his wrist and he stopped.
"Come in," Suzaku told him. Lelouch turned around and saw Suzaku's eyes were pleading him, but he was not sure if he should really go in. What if Suzaku was still mad at him and did something unpredictable towards him?
Lelouch's fear was seen through and Suzaku let go of his wrist immediately. He said, "It's okay if you don't come in, just don't stand and talk. You'll feel tired standing for too long."
Lelouch was surprised that Suzaku actually thought of him and he really did not mean any harm, but Lelouch was curious that Suzaku did not try to persuade him that he would definitely not do anything to him. Lelouch wondered if it was because Suzaku thought he was still in doubt of him.
Suzaku was still standing there, waiting for Lelouch to make a move, but Lelouch too was not moving. He knew he should not run and avoid him as those would never be able to solve anything. Finally, he took a small gulp and accepted Suzaku's offer. He walked pass Suzaku and went into his room.
Suzaku was surprised that Lelouch did not run. He was very happy, of course, but he had to control himself to not get excited. He might just ruin everything again.
After Lelouch got in, he went to the edge of the big comfy bed, checked his skirt and made sure it was not covered with dirt, he sat on the bed. He was lucky that the ground was full of leaves and that no mud would be trapped on it. Suzaku shut the door but did not lock it, so that Lelouch could just run away whenever he did not feel safe, and went to sit on the edge of the bed too, a little further away from Lelouch.
The both of them were awkward. Lelouch had thought he would be able to explain the whole situation easier now that he knew Suzaku would be listening. But, the fact that Suzaku was listening made him nervous. He could not bring himself to speak at all. Instead, he was hoping that Suzaku would start any topic to get them both talking, though it never happened after a whole 10 minutes had passed. Deciding he should be the one to break the silence, Lelouch finally brought up his courage to talk.
"I'm sorry…"
Lelouch was shocked. Apparently, it was not only him that decided to speak. Suzaku had opened his mouth to talk at the same time. Both Suzaku and Lelouch looked at each other before Suzaku chuckled and scratched the back of his head while Lelouch smiled and blushed as he looked away.
"Should I start first?" Suzaku asked.
Lelouch nodded, "Sure."
"Right…So…" Suzaku hesitated. He cleared his throat before continuing. "I know I shouldn't have lied to you about all those, but I didn't want you to worry about it. Since the day at the jewelry store, you had been worrying all the time and you didn't even put on a real smile a bit. I had asked Rolo for help but it seemed that you decided to leave this place instead. I know you don't feel safe because of your background, but I wanted to help you out, to at least let you have a peace of mind even for a moment. I thought that maybe getting a surprise gift to you would do the trick, but I never thought things would turn out this way. I never thought of hurting you with those lies at all. I was just…not very sure how to give you a surprise without you knowing it."
Lelouch replied while looking at his hand, he still did not feel like looking into his eyes just yet.
"Well, at least everything's clear now. The only thing left to do is to appear at the press conference tomorrow."
"Right, I've already had Jeremiah to organize everything. He would inform me the place and time later. Then you can inform Milly," Suzaku told him.
"Sure," Lelouch replied as he nodded.
"You can go ahead with yours now," said Suzaku.
"Oh…actually, I've nothing much to say. The main ones I've already told you just now. Just that, I wanted to apologize for accusing you of everything. I know you're not the type of person to lie without a reason, and besides, you're too naïve to lie for bad reasons," Lelouch chuckled and Suzaku quickly turned to look at him. Lelouch then continued, "I did guess that the blush was because Milly had said something that hit the truth you're trying to hide. You're most probably embarrassed because she was straight to the point, but that's who she is. So, accusing you to have a crush on Milly was just a chance I took to release my tension on you. Sorry…"
After Lelouch finished, Suzaku laughed, "I don't think that's nothing much to say."
Lelouch blushed and frowned. He smacked Suzaku on the shoulder and said, "Don't laugh. I was serious just now."
"Okay, okay," Suzaku replied as he soothed his shoulder's light pain. Suzaku was looking at Lelouch, admiring the blush that he had just made.
Lelouch noticed the stare and he blushed even more. Trying to look away, he accidentally took a glimpse of the red mark on Suzaku's cheek. He held out his hand and pushed Suzaku's face lightly towards the light and saw clearly a red patch was still there. It was his doing when Suzaku suddenly kissed him all of a sudden. Lelouch felt guilty again, though part of his doing was because of Suzaku's nonsensical act.
Suzaku saw the guilt and brought up his hand to hold onto Lelouch's. Lelouch was shocked of the sudden touch but he stayed still.
"It's nothing. I don't feel pain anymore. There's only some numbness and the red patch there. That's all," said Suzaku as he tried to console Lelouch.
"Sorry," said Lelouch but he had no intention of pulling his hand away. The fear he had after Suzaku had been rough towards him suddenly disappeared. He felt warm instead and yearned to have the touch a bit longer.
Suzaku shook his head, "It's okay. But, there's something I want to ask."
"What?" Lelouch asked back.
"Do you…have a thing for Rolo?" Suzaku suddenly felt scared that Lelouch would actually nod.
"No…why?" Lelouch asked.
Suzaku's eyes widened. "No? Really?"
Lelouch nodded, "I don't feel anything for him. It's just that he's friendly and easy to get along with."
"I see…that's a relief," Suzaku spoke out almost in a whisper. He had finally brought down Lelouch's hand and caressed it with his own.
Lelouch was staring at him curiously till he understood what Suzaku had just said. He smirked and asked, "Could it be that you saw us hugging each other and was jealous of it?"
Suzaku immediately turned bright red, even his ears were red. Being hit with the truth straight by Milly was already terrible enough, but Lelouch's power seemed to be much greater. He was totally embarrassed to the limit. Lelouch was shocked, but he started laughing instead.
"My goodness! You're so red! I'm sorry; I didn't mean to expose you directly."
Still, Lelouch kept on laughing and Suzaku did not know what he should do. Lelouch had laughed to the point that he collapsed on the bed, but still laughing. Between his laughter, he even said, "I'd better take a picture and show it to Milly. She'd definitely laugh like mad too."
Suzaku could not help thinking that Lelouch had gone mad, but he was happy. At least Lelouch had started to laugh again. He was so happy that he did not realize that he had gone nearer to Lelouch, bent over Lelouch as his laughter started to die off.
Lelouch had not realized that Suzaku had got near too, till Suzaku finally came near his face and landed a soft, tender kiss onto Lelouch's lips. Surprisingly, it felt good and he did not resist at all. It felt so much better than the kiss they had just now. This one had definitely attracted Lelouch till he even answered the kiss by kissing Suzaku back.
Their kiss was going on just fine till their kissing changed to lips biting, and that was when Suzaku stopped as he hissed because of pain. Lelouch immediately opened up his eyes. He had totally forgotten that he had closed them. He saw Suzaku licking his lips and only realized that he had accidentally bit on the injury.
"I'm sorry! I've forgotten that I bit you there," Lelouch replied, but Suzaku only smiled.
"It's okay. I'm just glad you accepted the kiss. Can we do it again?" Suzaku asked, feeling a bit shy too when he asked. Lelouch blushed, but he did not reject. He loved that feeling, and did not mind doing it again.
That afternoon, both Suzaku and Lelouch only kissed again and again, but it did not go more than just kissing, till it was time for tea.
Hmm~ this chapter is sort of my favorite for now, agree? ^.^
Well then, stay tuned for the next chapter! Yay!