Yuugiri: Everyone, thank you for the reviews. I will not be commenting on the reviews, and once again let the story answer for itself. Please, I really do plan to take time with this story and not rush everything to a not so good ending, and so there will be a lot of time for them to grow into someone better, the whole lot of them. ,

Know that I shall be considering everything that you suggest.

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed. Also, I don't know if Yzak really likes pickle relish on his sandwiches, or coffee crumble cakes. This also goes with his mother liking angel figurines. I made all of that up.

July 16, AW :: 4:30 pm

July 16, Saturday

Dear Diary,

I'm alone in our dorm and Cathrun is sleeping soundly in my room. Lacus is out shopping with Milly. It's been two days since the incident in Notoro Misaki and it looks like things are finally going back to normal.

Mrs. Takano, however, was greatly disappointed with her son... Kari did everything she could and Kian's gang was sentenced to three months of community service, which makes me think what the heck will be happening to the community with fifty bullies running around to do jobs... Kian, that bastard, got off the hook, coz it turns out he really is mentally disturbed. He was taken to the rehabilitation clinic in Higashimokoto, a city an hour away from Abashiri. Good riddance. I wouldn't want to see him anytime soon. And I'm at least a bit happy because they let Yalin off completely, since we owe him that much. I just wish he'd stop hovering over Lacus...

I'm actually beginning to worry about that... my brother, the dolt, has been trying hard to catch Lacus' attention for the last couple of days, but it seems like she's not yet ready to face Kira. Which is perfectly all right with me. Kira deserves it, after how he's acted. I guess it's time he lived with his decisions in life and discover for himself the value of the people around him. He's been neglecting the importance of his friends... and Lacus. But this doesn't change the fact that I hate Yalin, and I think he should stop making the moves on Lacus. Just yesterday, I saw him giving her a box of what looked like chocolates right after Health Class. Kira had scowled at the boy, and tried to ask Lacus out for dinner, but she blandly declined, giving a feeble excuse of having to take care of Akira. And after that, she left. With Yalin's chocolates. Ugh!

And if you think things couldn't get any worse, it suddenly does. Yzak has made up his mind in leaving. I could not quite understand it myself, but I actually thought that he would change his mind, after he finally seemed to have made up with Kari. I definitely see a connection between them, however odd they looked together. In Notoro Misaki, when I saw Kari touch Yzak's cheek, I felt like I was staring at a lethargic bunny rabbit touching a fox's nose. But still... I don't know... It's like... they looked 'right' together...

But still Yzak persisted. So he's leaving this afternoon. Kazui and Sai don't know it yet. It appears that while we were looking for Kira two days ago, the director of Rainbow, that kiddie show they were working on, saw them and dragged them off to the studio, since they just took off without a say. We decided not to tell them anymore of the kidnappings, since we knew that once we did, they'll ask so many questions we wouldn't feel like answering anyway. And so as far as they're concerned, Lacus twisted her wrist because she slipped, and fell on Dearka, who in turn fell over and landed wrongly, hurting his ribs. At first, I thought that they wouldn't believe it because I knew that it was a lame excuse. Luckily, they ate it. So there. No one seemed to have bothered to inform them of Yzak's decision, and Yzak himself would not take the liberty to tell them himself.

What a terrible two days...

The only highlight of those two days was that it finally stopped raining yesterday, and Dearka and Miriallia had finally decided to define the line between them. It is actually pretty funny, watching them together. They look more awkward now than they used to, before their kiss. Sure, they'd hang out together, but Dearka seemed like he'd lose all communication skills, while Miriallia would just smile and cuddle him, which would cause him to lose all motor skills completely. Athrun told me that it's natural... since they're in love... I tried to tell him that –

"I didn't know you keep a diary."

Cagalli hurriedly slammed her notebook shut as she looked up from the couch she was lying in on her stomach, and ended up staring straight into those dark-blue eyes that belonged to none other than Athrun Zala, bent over trying to peek at what she was writing. "Hey. I was about to write about you."

The Justice pilot smiled at her and kissed her on the tip of her nose before placing a conspicuous-looking plastic bag on the floor, then straightening and looking out the open window of the living room. "It's a lovely day out and you're here, indoors? That's not nice. And to think you've been up all night yesterday because of Yzak's surprise party. Shouldn't you be relaxing?"

Cagalli sat up, tucking the pen and thin notebook she used as a diary under the cushions of the couch. "There's nothing much to do out there anyway. I'm just trying to enjoy the silence. After Kian, I deserve it."

Athrun sat down on one end of the couch and gathered her feet, knuckling her soles gently. Cagalli wriggled her toes in pleasure. "I ran into Lacus and Milly in the supermarket."

"Yeah, they're getting something for the party. Wait a minute. You were in the supermarket? What for?"

Athrun smiled at her and reached into the plastic bag he had placed at the foot of the couch. "Got you something."

Cagalli felt her heart jump as the Justice pilot pulled out a pint of chocolate chip ice cream. "Aw! You got me ice cream!" And without pausing, she snatched it away, ripped the top open and grinned crookedly. "Thank you."

Athrun pulled out a spoon from the plastic bag, handed it to her and continued to massage her feet. "You're welcome."

The blond-haired princess dipped her spoon in the pint and scooped up a huge chunk of that chocolaty goodness. "I forgive you."

Athrun was puzzled. "What did I do?"

"I don't know, but you're giving me something for no reason at all, and that must mean you did something wrong."

"But I never - "

Cagalli shushed him by shoving the spoon into his mouth, muffling his protest with the cold, yummy treat. "Whatever it is, Athrun, I forgive you." And she withdrew her spoon and continued to gobble huge amounts of ice cream.

Now in reality, Cagalli knew that Athrun didn't do anything, but she just couldn't resist making him squirm. She turned to him and smiled as he shook his head at her. The blue-black haired boy absentmindedly traced lazy circles on the soles of her feet. "Yzak has finally finished packing."

Cagalli frowned. "He took two days to pack? One would think he's stalling. What would he be bringing back to PLANT anyways?"

"Books. And a lot of angel figurines."

"Angel figurines?"

"Said his mother has an assorted collection of little cute stuff. He actually snarled at me when I tried to press the issue."

"He's really leaving... I wish he'd change his mind. I feel like he should stay..." She kind of has gotten used to having the Duel pilot around, laughing at his misfortunes. It was always easy to get him annoyed. She didn't even know if the party was going to please him... "Oh, well, how is Kira? Have you seen him around?"

Athrun shrugged. "He's been awfully bothered by that Yalin guy." He frowned deeply. "I don't like that guy hanging around Lacus."

"Who does? He's creepy. His teeth are too perfect. So," the princess started, speaking in between mouthfuls of chocolate chip. "What brings you here, Mr. Zala?"

"Well, now that you've asked, Ms. Attha, I wanted to check up on you because Kisaka called the dorm room."

And with that, Cagalli's ears prickled up. Wait a minute. Why was Kisaka calling Athrun and not her? She did not like that. She was the princess of Orb! Kisaka was supposed to call her!

As if reading her thoughts, Athrun jumped in with an explanation that seemed to anger her even more than calm her down. "He wanted me to tell you, because he said you listen to me more than you listen to him. Anyway, it's important. And I know that you're a bit pissed, but just hear it out."

Cagalli thought about it, pondering on the possibility on what could be that important that Kisaka did not tell her personally. She stuffed another spoonful of ice cream in her mouth, then nodded.

"He told me that the forums in Orb are not promising, and it seems like the people there have been restless. I could understand their feelings, but Kisaka does not think things are going well."

The princess of Orb blinked. The wheels in her head started to turn as she felt that her country was calling for her. Now what used to be a neutral country was torn by hatred for Coordinators. And now she knew that while she lingered there in Abashiri, trying to live a 'normal' life, her people were exhausting theirs by holding a grudge. She turned to the Justice pilot seriously. "And the reconstructions? How are they?"

"That department is pretty much done. In six months, you can expect a full recovery in the industry. So far the society is the only thing we have to worry about. Some of your people seem to have grown a hatred for us Coordinators... "

"What are the odds?"

"Five out of ten people do not agree that Coordinators could be trusted enough to hold true to a Peace Treaty. Three out of the remaining five do not know what to think. And since Orb is playing an important role in planned Peace Treaty, he thinks it's important that the country stays neutral."

Cagalli cursed. Suddenly, the ice cream didn't taste as good anymore. "What does Kisaka think?"

"He thinks you should go back to Orb. He believes that they'll listen to you, being who you are."

Cagalli swallowed hard, suddenly feeling faint. She pulled her feet away from him. She knew that this was inevitable. And now here it was... "I see..."

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Dearka sat there in the middle of Yzak's bed, shaking his head as he watched his friend try to stuff a very heavy-looking book into his already full rolling bag. It was a losing battle. The book was winning.

"You know, there's a rumor spreading that you can actually carry two bags instead of just one. I heard that it makes packing easier," the Buster pilot said, propping his elbow on his knee and resting his chin in his palm.

Yzak scowled at him, momentarily letting himself get distracted, then finally gave up. Falling down on his bum, he shoved the bag away in disgust. "Don't you have to be somewhere else? Like, I don't know, with Miriallia?"

That shut Dearka up. Yzak had learned that technique two days ago, when he and Miriallia had shared their very first kiss under the rain. And ever since then, the Duel pilot never let it die. Bringing up Miriallia always made his stomach turn inside out, simply because he knew that he was messing things up really bad. And not once had he actually thought that things were better off with him silently desiring her from afar... because every time he came close to her, every time she tried to hold his hand, his brain would turn into jelly and ooze out his ear. That was the time he'd lose all sense of being, and he would start acting like a fool.

Yep, one of the top soldiers of ZAFT is now eating out of the hands of a girl...

He smiled crookedly. I don't care.

Yzak shuddered. "Oh, God you're thinking about her and you're smiling eerily! Get out of here and let me pack in peace. I have to hurry. My flight bound for Sapporo EA Base from Memambetsu is in five hours, and I haven't even finished packing yet."

"So tell me again why you're taking a plane instead of taking a bus?"

"Because it's quicker that way, genius."

Dearka pretended to clutch his heart, acting like he was hurt. "I didn't know that you wanted to get away from us that badly."

Yzak grabbed the nearest, heaviest book he could get his hands into and chucked it the blonde boy. Dearka caught it swiftly, then put it down next to him. Yzak was not pleased. "Don't be a retard. I'd be expecting you to report when you are called, all right? I hope we aren't forgetting ourselves..."

Dearka nodded. He knew pretty well what he was talking about. In the war, he had abandoned his post and instead had fought against ZAFT in the latter battles alongside the Archangel and the Clyne Faction. And apparently, none was to be forgiven and forgotten. He had thought about that fact almost every waking hour at night, when he wasn't thinking of Miriallia. He had asked himself many times why he didn't leave the Archangel when they were obviously willing to let him go. He had always told himself that it was because of Miriallia that he wanted to stay because he had done something wrong to her that didn't even have anything to do with the war. Yet he knew, that although she was a big part of it, his values were what drove him to fight for what he did. Siding with neither the EA nor ZAFT, both sides driven by the overwhelming desire to survive and have the other perish, he fought for peace. Not victory, defined by the obliteration of either side.

And that made all the difference.

At least to him, it did.

And so, even with the fact of facing court martial looming over his head, he had no regrets.

"I know, Yzak," he said levelly, still not changing his expression.

The light-haired boy looked at him oddly, then turned away. "When I get to the PLANTs, I will see what I can do about your case. Perhaps I can pull some strings..." his voice faded as he tried to give the book another shot.

Dearka cocked his head to the right, then nodded. "I appreciate it."

Yzak turned to him again. "Then again, you can always stay here... or in Orb. With Milly."

The though made the Buster pilot's heart beat faster. He really had considered doing that. Life was simpler, out of the military. But he knew that he had nowhere else to go but back home. He shook his head then got up from the bed. "I will answer to your call when you reach PLANT, Yzak. I will report to you as soon as you call for me."

This made Yzak laugh. "You'd leave your girlfriend behind?"

Dearka blinked. It was no laughing matter. "I have to, right?"

His friend smirked, then completely gave up on the book. He stood up and stretched. "That's why I never want to fall in love. In our lifestyle, it's not worth it." He shoved the book in Dearka's hand. "Here. Bring this for me when you follow."

Dearka looked down at it, reading the cover page with much curiosity. "Extra-Sensory Perception? What kind of crap is this?"

Yzak's face reddened. "None of your damn business. Just bring it, all right?"

Dearka stared at the Duel pilot suspiciously. "You think Kari has ESP, don't you?"

Yzak sputtered. "Shut up, Dearka."

This was kind of enjoyable. "Kari can read your body language, fool! Not your mind!"

"I know that!"

"Then why are you reading this – "

Yzak snatched the book away and tried to stuff it in the bag again, grumbling. "I ask one favor from you, man. One friggin' favor and you completely diss me."

Dearka raised his hands in front of him as if in surrender. "I was just teasing, sorry. By the way, aren't you going to say goodbye to Kari? I think she's in school right now, what with the rescheduling of the Summer Festival."

Yzak paused for a moment, as if searching for something wise to say. Finding none, he wilted. "Leave me alone, all right?"

Kari. Dearka had talked to her in the last few days, asking about her brother and telling her of their plans. She was really nice, and the Buster pilot had even discovered that he liked her. She had the most solemn eyes... Somehow, he felt like she needed to smile more...

Or cry some...

Sighing, he made his way through the room. "All right. Anyway, I'll be seeing you in two hours, all right? Athrun and the rest say they want to drive you to the airport."

"Great. Just what I need. Long goodbyes."

Dearka smiled as he placed one hand on the doorknob. "I'll miss you, buddy," he said, then ducked as Yzak hurled the ESP book at him. It hit the door with a bang. The Buster pilot scuttled out of there as fast as his two feet could carry him while he snickered.

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Sometimes, there are some things that you have to reach really hard for. There are times that if you don't try hard enough, you won't be able to reach your goal, and in the end, you will be the one to suffer.

And Lacus was experiencing that right about now.

"Can't... reach... pickle relish...," the songstress grunted as she bent down even further into the shelf for what seemed to be the last bottle of pickle relish behind jars and jars of whole pickles. She could hear Miriallia calling to her, telling her to forget it, that their sandwiches can survive without it anyway. She brushed the suggestion aside. She had talked to Dearka about Yzak's favorites. The Buster pilot said Yzak loved pickle relish in his ham sandwiches...

She felt the tips of her fingers brush the side of the bottle teasingly. Come here, you...

And she almost had it, too, what with her fingers barely being able to knock it nearer, until she felt someone touch her elbow gingerly. She jumped in surprise, knocking her head on the shelf over her, making the bottles of other vegetables rattle dangerously and noisily. She recoiled in pain and shot out of the shelf in an instant, only to find herself staring into deep grey eyes looking down at her with concern.

Him again... "I'm sorry. Did I startle you?"

Yalin smiled down at her, once again impressing her with his beautiful smile. She wanted him to stop. He was starting to freak her out...

Lacus shook her head. "What are you doing here?"

Yalin plucked at the green and white apron hanging over his neck. City Supermarket was printed over it in block letters. "I work here."

Oh, no...

It was another surprising discovery, having found out that he worked for a supermarket. It was... too average for a guy like him to be doing. It was like having a magazine model pose for processed meat.

Lacus groaned inwardly, suddenly feeling weak. She rubbed the top of her head, trying to make the pain go away. "I was trying to get that bottle of pickle relish, but it's too far and I can't reach it."

"Why didn't you ask for assistance? I could have spared you the time and effort." He bent down and easily reached into the space where she had poked her head in, and came out holding the offending little jar in his hand. He casually placed it inside the half-full cart Milly was holding, smiling at the orange-haired girl in the process. Milly curled her lips in an attempt to smile back. It made her face look pretty grotesque. The girl gave no effort to disguise her apparent dislike of the boy.

Lacus was not blind. She knew that Yalin was trying to catch her attention, but since she really had not been that experienced when it came to the courting stage (as her first engagement had been pretty much arranged), she did not know how to turn a guy down without having to hurt his feelings. She really was not interested in him, however nice he was to her...

"Thank you," Lacus murmured as she hurried over to Miriallia's side. "We have to get going now."

Yalin smiled. "No problem," he said and started walking away.

Lacus was about to sigh in relief, when she heard Yalin call back to her. She jumped and stared after him, who was now walking away backwards. "Y-yes?" she asked hesitantly.

"Will I be hearing you sing in the Summer Festival? You do know that they're rescheduling it on Monday, right?"

Indeed, Lacus had been informed, but she had adamantly declined. Athrun, too, had refused the offer, for once being able to say no to somebody. He said that he wanted to spend a bit more time with Cagalli, whom he had been neglecting for the past couple of days. Not only that, but the return of their dolls for Health Education was fast approaching, and they were required to make a fifty-page paper about the experience. The icing on the cake, right...?

Again, thoughts of Kira flooded her mind. Yes, they had to work together for that project... And it seemed like there was nothing she could do about it. She had been trying hard to avoid him in the last few days. He was trying really hard to talk to her, asking her out, convincing her to talk to him.... She declined everything. Normally, her insides would have melted with the way he was showering her with attention, and her heart would have shattered at the sight of his sad face when she said no to every single thing he had asked of her. But she was human after all, and although she had tried to understand his feelings, she knew that she had to put into consideration her own feelings.

I don't want you running back to me because you're guilty, Kira.

Lacus turned to Yalin and shook her head. "I won't be singing anymore. Sorry."

The guy shrugged. "It doesn't matter. As long as I see you there. Will I?"

I don't want you to run back to me just because everyone tells you to.

She smiled at the guy. "I'll try."

That seemed to have satisfied him. He beamed at her, then disappeared down the aisle of canned fruit.

Miriallia turned to her after she watched Yalin leave. "Don't smile at him, Lacus. He might think you're interested."

Lacus turned to her. "I'm sorry. I was just being polite. I won't be showing up in the Festival anyway."

"Still, you shouldn't even pay attention to that smooth talker." Milly carefully took her hand, then examined the bandage wrapped around her wrist. "I told you not to reach in that far. You could have worsened your wrist with all that stretching."

Lacus shook her head. "I'm fine. Now come on. Let's get some ham."

The girl looked at her uncertainly, then finally nodded. "All right. But I still say you should stay away from him."

Lacus laughed out loud as she walked next to Milly while the girl rolled their cart off to the meat section. "Milly! What's wrong? I know that you're really careful about these kinds of things, but aren't you going a little too far? Yalin helped up escape. I don't think he's capable of hurting me."

Milly bit her lower lip, hesitating a bit before continuing. "I know that, Lacus... But... " she turned to the songstress, an unreadable expression in those deep blue eyes. "Lacus, I know that Kira did things to you that he shouldn't have done, and I know that you're trying to save yourself from the possible heartache that he might cause you... but it really does not sit well with me that I would see you with someone else... "

Now that made Lacus stare. She blinked. "You mean like... Yalin and me?"

"Yes."

"I'm not interested in him, Milly. Nor with any other guy out there."

That made Milly pause, grabbing a huge bag of chips from the junk food section, then she turned to Lacus again as they made their way down the long, deserted aisle. "Lacus?"

"Yes?"

"Don't you want to be with Kira anymore?"

Lacus missed a step, but recovered fast. She brushed away her bangs from her eyes and tried to think fast on what to say. But she could not conjure up a lie under that much pressure. She shook her head sadly. "Being with Kira will probably be the happiest moment of my life."

"Then why, Lacus? He's asked you to talk about everything many times now. Why won't you say yes?"

Why won't she say yes?

The answer was simple. It's because she found out that although Coordinators were engineered to have stronger immune systems and thus not that susceptible to sickness, it seemed that it gave them no advantage when it came to heartaches. Back in the beach, she thought that everything was all right, that Kira had finally snapped out of his depression and that they could finally get on with their lives. And so what happened in front of the gym had caught her off-guard. She did not know that it could possibly hurt that much. Even just thinking about it made her heart hurt... Kira had pushed her away, simply because of his hang-ups about a girl who she'd discovered didn't return Kira's feelings at all... feelings that she was willing to offer him...

And now you want to talk to me, Kira? Please, as much as my heart wishes to be with you, leave me at least an ounce of dignity. Don't run after me simply because you have nothing better to do anyway...

Lacus turned to Miriallia, then smiled, trying to change the subject. "So will we be buying potato or Caesar's?"

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Kira stealthily hid behind the stack of spam in aisle fourteen in the City Supermarket, the blue cap Lacus had given him pulled low over his face. He could feel his heart thundering in his chest when he saw Lacus smile back at Yalin as the boy walked backwards away from them.

The pain of seeing her acknowledge another with that smile of hers surprised him terribly. That smile used to be his alone. She used to reserve that smile for him, and now, everyone had the right to share it.

It was official; Lacus Clyne was no longer his.

And he had no one to blame but himself.

Not only once had he thought of actually forcing her to talk to him, to make her listen that he really was sorry, and that he will not do it again. But he knew that he was not worthy to even be near her, not after what he did. The times when he had actually tried to ask her out were times when he was sort of feeling lucky. But it turns out that Lacus would not hear of it.

And it's all my fault...

Kira stuffed his hands into his pant pockets and leaned on the nearest shelf, sighing sadly. It was actually the first time he's felt so lonely in his entire life. For the first time in a long time, he felt like he had nowhere else to go. It was only then did he realize that life felt empty without the pink-haired songstress. He knew that it sounded too overly dramatic, but God knew it was true. Now that Lacus wouldn't want to talk to him, he suddenly had too much free time. In the last two days, he had done nothing but wander aimlessly on campus or downtown, as everyone was busy with the Festivals all over again. Those times, they used to be allotted for reading Children's books with Lacus, but now that she seemed to have lost interest in him, those hours were whiled away watching Sai and Kazui finish the shooting of Rainbow.

Now it wasn't all bad, really. In fact, he'd actually found it quite entertaining. There were kids present in the set, and he had gotten quite close to them fast. Thoughts of that little girl that gave him the paper flower had threatened to engulf his mind, but he was surprised to discover that he did not feel that much grief over her death. Perhaps he has finally accepted that it really was not his fault, or perhaps it was because of being surrounded by so many kids that he felt like there were better things to do here while you were alive. Such as trying to help those kids. Seeing Kazui and Sai help out with the fundraiser made him feel happy and quite content, and having those kids around him made him feel relaxed.

At least I have something to do, he thought to himself as he pushed himself off the shelf. He didn't even know why he was there in the first place. He had to get out of there, before Lacus sees him and she starts treating him like he has tuberculosis or something really contagious. Of course, Lacus didn't exactly treat him like that, but to Kira, it was the same thing. Being avoided by Lacus made him feel that way. He felt unwanted.

He was about to make his way down the aisle when someone touched him on the shoulder. Kira looked up. "Dearka. Hello."

"Thought it was you. I should have recognized the cap." The Buster pilot nodded at him. "You look stoned."

"Huh?"

"Never mind. Look, Lacus and Milly are right on the other side. Come on."

Kira stiffened. He shook his head. "Lacus wouldn't want to talk to me anyway. I have to go."

Dearka glared at him. "Kira, just because Lacus doesn't want to talk to you doesn't mean you have to give up on her already. You have to show her you're really serious about this. And if you give up now, she'll think that you don't care anymore."

"But I do care."

"Exactly. Now go prove it. Talk to her. Ask her out to the Festival. She'll have to say yes."

"How can you be sure she'll say yes?"

"Because she turned down Yalin's invitation. I heard her. I was just a few aisles away from them."

That seemed to make Kira brighten a bit. He turned to Dearka for a moment, then nodded. If she turned Yalin down, then that must mean she's waiting for someone to ask her out, right? Could it be that she's waiting for him? "All right. I'll talk to her."

Dearka nodded. "Atta boy, Kira." He patted the Freedom pilot proudly. "Come on. If you talk to her real sweet, how could she say no?"

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

"She said no," Kira said flatly as he came over to him on the carbonated beverage section.

Dearka almost dropped the bottle of soda he was holding. "She did, huh?" The Buster pilot did not know what to say. Scratching his head, he placed three bottles of soda in the basket at his feet. "How did you tell her anyway?"

Kira withered. "Don't ask. I have to get going. This setting depresses me." And Dearka watched the Freedom pilot slink away, shoulders hunched, head down. He disappeared behind a stack of doggie food. In normal circumstances, the tan boy would have felt sorry for him. But now, he knew that Kira needed the wakeup call. It was better that he felt this depression over Lacus than depression over a dead girl.

That's it, Kira. Learn the hard way how important she is to you. Learn the hard way that no matter how you hurt, the world won't stop for your grief. Lacus can't wait forever, you know...

Well, I hope he shows up in the party for Yzak. Dearka sighed and was about to turn and grab the basket when Miriallia came. He felt her before he saw her. She poked him at the nape of his neck. Dearka turned and felt all the blood rush to his face at the sight of her. She was smiling up at him with her usual smile. Dearka could not get over the fact that she was finally his... But what he couldn't get over was that he was acting like a complete dork in front of her.

Quick! What do I say?

"Miriallia... he-hello. Erm... "

Miriallia giggled at him. "I didn't know you were shopping here. We could have gone together. You're assigned with the drinks, right?"

Dearka nodded dumbly. Ever since that kiss, everything was a disaster. He tried to focus. Clear your mind, Elthman. It's just Miriallia. Your Miriallia. "I was with Yzak, watching him pack."

She nodded up at him. "I see. Have you seen Kira? I left Lacus in the cashier. The line was long, so I thought I'd talk to him and maybe cheer him up."

"He left already."

She looked disappointed. She was frowning. She shouldn't frown. She should smile all the time. "Really? He asked Lacus out to the Festival, but Lacus said that she had other things to do. Kira didn't look too good..."

It was then did Dearka realize that as long as Miriallia didn't bring up anything romantic between them, and when she didn't try to cuddle him, he was fine. Look! His brain was functioning properly! "Yeah, he looked depressed."

"But you did tell him of the party, right?"

"He knows about it, but I wasn't able to remind him before he left."

"Oh. Well, maybe he'll show up since Lacus will be there." Miriallia reached out and took his hand. "Come on. Lacus is waiting. Let's all go together."

Dearka jumped at her touch. He was one big nerve. Grabbing the basket with his other hand, he let Miriallia lead him away. Swallowing hard, he nodded. "Uh... all right..." He started to concentrate in walking.

Right foot, left foot. Right foot, left foot. Right foot, left foot...

He missed a step, staggered and ended up bumping into Miriallia, making her think he was cuddling closer to her. She smiled up at him and slipped her arm though his.

And he could feel his brain turn into mush.

0 - 0 -- 0 -- 0

Yzak sighed in resignation as he tried to even out the bulks of his bag, which he had finally managed to close after an agonizing twenty minutes. It would have been easier if Dearka had helped him, but right after throwing the book about ESP on him, he doubted he'd be back anytime soon. But it was better that he had left. He was starting to ask questions he himself did not like to answer.

Did you say goodbye to Kari?

Kari. Why is it that her name needed to be brought up all the time?

Miriallia had told him everything, about Kari having been spied on by her own brother. It was easy enough to believe, that part where Kian had been snooping through her stuff to track down any potential Coordinator in the island. But there was one thing that Yzak could not believe.

"She doesn't want you to go, Yzak. She erased the message because she found out you're leaving if you knew," Milly had said to him only yesterday when he met her in the library to get more stuff for the Festival.

He sat down on the bed as the whole conversation with Miriallia rippled through his thoughts.

"I have duties to attend to. I can't stay here simply because some girl I barely know wants me to stay. A whole colony is demanding for my return. My mother is calling me back. Now you tell me what I should do."

"I'm not telling you to call your departure off, Yzak. I'm just saying that maybe you should go talk to her before you go."

"What for? It's not like she cares."

"That's the point. I think she does. She erased your message because she doesn't want you to go... Don't you think you owe her a goodbye at least?"

"I don't owe her nothing. She was partly responsible for the whole mess to begin with."

"Yzak!"

"Listen Milly. I'm not good with good-byes. Heck! My helloes aren't any better. I know that I'm probably going to say something really rude to her and she'll have to remember me forever as that rude Coordinator guy who had no manners. Let that talk in the rain be the last thing she'd remember of me. I want nothing to do with her."

Yzak buried his head in his hands and shivered involuntarily. Miriallia had let him win the argument then, simply because he was starting to raise his voice. He was never really good with those kinds of things. And for someone who's been used to holding in his emotions, he wasn't that good when it came to his temper. And so Milly had dropped the subject altogether.

Yzak, however, was left to ponder on the things she had said all day and all night. Kari... she doesn't want me to go... Could it be that she... cares...?

But he knew that whatever the answer to that was, it really wouldn't matter. He had to leave, and so perhaps it was better if neither of them tried to confuse the issue even more. He himself was boggled by the emotions he felt when she was near. He had seen her in school when he used the library to mail to his mother two days ago. She was wearing jeans and a loose pink shirt, her now-shoulder length reddish-blond hair swishing with every movement. She was making her way thought the soccer field to the gym, probably to make more adjustments to the MemS. (Those bloody machines...) He did not believe she saw him, but that was the last time his eyes had grazed her beauty. And it will have to remain the last.

He fell back on the bed and groaned as he stared at the ceiling. Now things will be less complicated. All he had to do now was run a whole space colony. Sweet. No more women that tend to complicate everything.

Things will be simpler by then. I should be happy.

He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling suddenly tired. He needed a nap. It was going to be quite a trip back to PLANT. He didn't even know if he was excited to leave. All he knew was that in a matter of hours, he'll be home, and a million miles away from the phantom that had been haunting his dreams for some time now.

In the whirlwind of thought, he did not even realize he had fallen asleep. Opening his eyes to discover it was already dark out, he quickly checked his watch. Six thirty. I've been sleeping for two hours...

Getting up to turn on the lights, he heard something bump against his bedroom door from the outside. He felt his muscles tighten as he knew that he was all alone in the dorm. What was that sound?

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Athrun bit his lip nervously as Dearka crouched on the floor, clutching his side. Although his ribs were healing faster than normal, touching it still hurt. And the Justice pilot could just imagine the pain that jolted through the boy's side when he accidentally bumped the plastic bag full of soda on Yzak's door, thus pressing it against his ribs. He wanted to help the guy out but navigating in the dark with a huge bowl of potato salad wasn't an easy feat, especially when you don't want to be discovered.

He heard Cagalli shuffle through the living area, rummaging through a big paper bag of crepe paper and party hats. Athrun had disapproved of those. He knew Yzak wouldn't want to wear any of those, but since Cagalli had insisted, he couldn't say no. Milly, Lacus and the princess started to deck the furniture with the crepe as he and Dearka set up the things on the table. There really wasn't much of it. Just some salad, sandwiches, cake and drinks. It was a good enough party, especially when planned in a hurry. The girls had thought of throwing the Duel pilot a farewell party, probably just for the heck of it. Or maybe they really did want to make Yzak remember his last day with them.

Athrun placed the bowl of salad in the middle of the dining table and watched as Dearka recovered from the blow. Half-crawling, half-walking, the tan boy managed to make his way through the furniture and to the table.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Dearka grunted. "I guess that's all. What else do we need?"

The Justice pilot looked around the dark dorm and sighed. "Kira's not here yet. Will he be showing up?"

Dearka didn't answer at once as he straightened up. He hesitated for a bit before answering. "We stumbled upon each other earlier in the supermarket, and he saw Yalin talking to Lacus. He tried to do the same thing, but she waved him away. He looked depressed after that."

"I see. Maybe he'll change his mind." Athrun looked over to Cagalli, who in turn nodded and signaled for him to call Yzak in his room. He nodded back and made his way to the room Dearka had defined as Yzak's. Preparing to knock, he raised his knuckles and was about to rap at the door when it suddenly flew open and something unseen tried to ram itself against his jaw. Luckily, Athrun was fast enough and he sidestepped before it hit him. One moment, the room was dark, and the next moment, light spilled from inside Yzak's room. Lacus, Miriallia and Cagalli all screamed, "SURPRISE!!!" gaily as they too flipped the switch of the living room lights.

Athrun ended up staring at a very bored-looking Yzak standing by the doorframe. He looked like he had just woken up.

"I thought you were a burglar or something, sorry." The Duel pilot looked around the room that Athrun also saw as already decorated, with a banner that said Bon Voyage Yzak!!! in block letters. He could see Yzak shiver involuntarily as Milly made her way to him and strapped a purple party hat on his head. Ignoring the look on the light-haired Coordinator's face, he wore the other party hat that Cagalli had forced him into wearing. It was pink... Not a very flattering color...

"We decided to throw a party for you before you leave. You know, so that you'll remember us," Lacus said as she handed Yzak a plate of a slice of chocolate cake. "We got you your favorites. See? Chocolate cake."

Yzak stared down at the triangular slice of brown cake with gobs and gobs of black icing. After that, he stared at everyone. "I hate chocolate cake."

Everyone fell silent.

Cagalli stared at him as if he just said that he'd like to meet Bozo the clown. "What?"

Yzak stared back. "I hate chocolate cake."

Silence.

After that, four heads turned to Dearka.

"But you said you liked chocolate," the Buster pilot pointed out as he put on the blue party hat.

Yzak shook his head. "I like chocolate. Chocolate cakes are a different story. I like Coffee Crumble better."

Dearka stared at him for a brief moment, then started to grumble. "You just have to ruin our fun, don't you?"

The Duel pilot blinked, then looked down at the cake again. "I didn't say I won't eat it. It just isn't my favorite cake."

Athrun sighed in relief. At least he wasn't being hostile. He had thought that he wouldn't appreciate it. But then again, Yzak had changed in his short stay in Hokkaido with them. Maybe it was just him, but in one way or another, he seemed a more sociable person than before... Maybe it was because the pressure was finally off him. Too bad, he was going back to his old life again. Too bad...

Athrun sighed as he helped himself with some soda as sat down on one of the chairs in the dining room. The knowledge that Yzak was finally going back to PLANT made him wonder once again about his future. With his parents dead, he knew that there really wasn't anywhere he could go to... So technically, he was homeless. He didn't know of any relatives who'd be taking him in, and going back to the military did not seem as appealing as it used to. Then again, it was not his choice to be in the military to begin with. It was just an expectation from his father that he had to fulfill, and now that he was gone, he found no reason to go back to that kind of life.

I have better things going for me now, he thought to himself as he watched Cagalli from the other side of the room, helping Milly with the salad. He waved at her when the princess saw he was staring. Whispering something to Milly, she put down the bowl she was holding, then started towards him.

"Why are you here, all alone?" she asked as she sat down next to him, knuckling his temple affectionately. "Trying to act cool by staying quiet?"

That made Athrun laugh. "Hardly. I was just thinking about... a lot of things."

Cagalli peered up at his face and blinked. "It seems like we're almost ready to part ways, huh?"

The Justice pilot looked down at her. "What do you mean?"

"Yzak is going back to PLANT, and I'm going back to Orb. I haven't told Milly yet, but I'm guessing she'd like to come with me. Her parents are there. I'm going to tell Kazui and Sai of my return to Orb, too. And maybe drag Kira with me if I have to. He is my brother, after all."

Athrun smiled. "Guess you have everything planned, huh?"

Cagalli leaned back and examined something on the ceiling. "These are my people, after all. I have a lot of living up to do. I want to bring back the Orb that my father used to rule. I want Orb to go back to its neutral state, and not get consumed by the hatred."

He nodded. Cagalli will be a good ruler. She was strong as she was gentle. She would know what to do, and he did not doubt it. But still, he could not stop but think about them. He turned to her. "I'll miss you."

Cagalli glared at him oddly. "Why?"

"Why? Of course I will miss you. With all the work that you have to do, I don't even see the possibility of seeing you anytime soon."

Cagalli laughed.

Athrun felt genuinely hurt. It was not funny. He really would miss Cagalli. He had gotten so used to having her around, ready to cheer him up when he felt really down, always so full of spirit that it was difficult not to want to be around her in every possible second. And tomorrow, Kisaka was going to take her away, and he had no choice but to let her go. "It's not funny."

Cagalli suddenly took his hand and laced her fingers with his. "Athrun! Do you really believe that I'd leave you here?"

With this, he paused. Wait a minute... does she mean... "You're taking me along?"

She nodded. "Of course! I wouldn't have it any other way."

That made Athrun smile shyly. Here he thought that Cagalli was too busy planning for her country, when in reality she was also thinking about him. "I'm glad."

The princess sneered. "Of course, you do know that I don't want you freeloading off of me."

Athrun swallowed hard. Whoa. This was something he didn't think about before. "But I have no place to go in Orb... "

"You'll be staying with me, of course. But you ain't gonna get board and lodging for free."

"What? You're going to make me work for you? I don't know anything but pilot a Gundam and invent a few nonsensical stuff... "

"You will be my personal bodyguard," she pointed out happily.

Athrun was speechless. "... bodyguard...?"

Cagalli narrowed her eyes at him. "You are assigned a very important task, Mr. Zala. The princess of Orb needs someone she could trust with her life. This person has to be vigilant and alert and highly skilled in combat." She winked. "You have to be always within arms reach, always ready to heed the call of the princess. Wherever she goes, you must follow. No matter what."

Thoughts swirled in Athrun's mind, making him dizzy. Always with Cagalli... that wasn't a job! That was a blessing! But he pretended like he did not like it. "Damn. It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it..."

"Yeah. Especially if you don't want to get thrown out into the streets of Orb, homeless and hungry," she teased.

The Justice pilot pulled her closer and leaned his forehead on hers. "I will offer you my life, Princess Cagalli Yula Attha. My blood spilled before yours."

Cagalli grimaced. "God, you don't have to sound so serious about this. It's not like there are people out there who'd want to kill me or anything."

"One could never be sure." What with the way things were going, nothing was sure. He never wanted Cagalli's life to be put to danger ever again. Not if he could help it. He was gone for only five hours then, and she was taken as a hostage without his knowledge. They had threatened her with a blade while he was away...! Thoughts of what could have possibly happened to her made his heart clench painfully.

I swear that you will never be in danger again, Cagalli. So long as I breathe...

Cagalli smiled at his serious expression, then pulled away. "If you're so intent on this, then fine. My life is in your hands, Mr. Zala."

At least she took him seriously with that.

The party pretty much carried on by itself, and at least Yzak loved the sandwiches and at some point, Athrun had even seen him sneak a few into his room. He was probably bringing some along for his trip.

After about an hour or so, the Justice pilot began to think where Kira could be. Maybe he really wasn't going to show up after all. Gazing across the room at Lacus, who was laughing with Dearka, Milly and Yzak about Tento Land, he wondered if the reason why he wasn't showing was because of the songstress.

It was eight in the evening when everyone had finally had their fill on food and drinks and had handed Yzak their farewell gifts. After that, the Duel pilot finally announced that he had to go.

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Kari tried to brush her hair over her shoulder out of habit, only to find out that she didn't need to do it anymore. Sitting on an uncomfortably hard wooden chair by the door of the gym, she looked at the huge digital clock on top of the scoreboard. It was already eight in the evening. She knew that he was probably on his way to Memambetsu airport. Dearka had told her of his plans, and of the party that they were holding. She did not go to the party, simply because she knew that Yzak probably wouldn't want her there anyway.

She looked out the gym and smiled at the millions and millions of stars dotting the dark sky. She loved stars... They were so lovely to look at... It reminded her of her father so much. They used to spend hours and hours just lying down on the grass and looking out into the night sky... The night before he left for Orb – the night before he died – they had been staring at the sky, deciphering constellations and watching out for falling stars. It was a good memory. He had been really dear to her.

She knew that her mother thought of her as cold, because she had never even shed one single tear for her father when she found out of his death. In all honesty, she wanted to cry a river. Her heart had been ripped into tiny shreds that night when she found out he was gone.... she had loved her father so much...

Which was why she never cried...

She was ten then, when her most beloved dog, Ai-chan had died. And she cried for days because of it. And on the fourth day when she was still crying, her father had called her to a corner, gripped her shoulders and said, "When we cry for our beloved dead, they will cry with us. Ai-chan will be sad if she knew you are crying because of her. She will think that she is the reason why you are sad... So stop crying and let Ai-chan be happy."

Kari hugged herself as a strong wind blew in from outside, making her hair flutter around her, tickling the nape of her neck. When she had learned of her father's death, she willed her tears not to fall. She wanted her father to be happy...

She readjusted her laptop on her lap and looked back at the four machines sitting in the dark in the middle of the gym. She had just finished doing some minor adjustments on them for the Festival on Monday, and was quite tired. She was supposed to visit her brother in Higashimokoto early tomorrow morning, but she was feeling really tired and was thinking of postponing the visit.

Kian. What a headache. She hadn't known that he was that bitter about their father's death. Maybe a few months in rehab will do him good. At least now she knew that she needed to be careful next time. They really were related. Both of them seemed to have a fetish for hacking files.

She suddenly caught herself smiling to herself. She had gotten the password for Yzak's account in one of the library computers, because it was the same old computer he was using every time. At first, she felt totally guilty for even thinking of prowling through it, but since Yzak never wanted to cooperate with her and her thesis, she had thought of doing it anyway.

And when she found out of the e-mail his mother sent, she could not explain the sadness she felt at the knowledge that he was leaving. She was not going to lie to herself. She did not want him to leave, for a reason she did not know...

Kari had never met anyone as easy to read as he. He was the type of person who would insist on leashing his emotions but in the end do the opposite of it. It was kind of cute, really. He was so set on hiding his feelings to everyone. She knew that this was the reason why he hated her. He did not want to be found out.

Two years had molded her into what she was now; being able to 'read' how other people behave. She was so used to doing it, that she did not even realize when she was already annoying someone with her apparent assumptions on what they were thinking, which majority of the time end up totally correct.

And Yzak hates me because of it.

Now to make a big deal out of it would definitely make her appear out of character. She usually did not care what other people think of her. What annoys her is that she cares what Yzak thinks. And now that he was leaving, he was going to remember her as that girl who tried to trick him, and the girl who hacked his account...

How sad...

Shaking her head, she opened her laptop and immediately went through the files she had collected about Yzak Jule. It really wasn't that long, since he really did not try to support her project. Smiling sadly, she pointed the cursor to the delete button and, feeling quite melancholic about it, she clicked on it. The files were then erased from her folder.

And hopefully, erased from my thoughts...

Her fingers danced through the keyboard as she surfed the net, trying to distract herself from the strong desire to run out of the gym and hail a taxi to Memambetsu airport. Pop-up ads flashed here and there, and after a while, she immediately lost it. She could not help it. Typing fast on the keyboard, she found herself staring at Yzak's mail moments later...

She gulped nervously as she saw the monitor scream out to her. Welcome Yzak Jule! You have 1 new message(s).

Fingers shaking, she navigated the cursor to the inbox link and clicked.

God, what am I doing? Why am I doing this? Why?

She tried to rationalize that since Yzak did not change his password, then it was his fault to begin with. Which was really lame. There was no excuse for what she was doing, but she couldn't help herself...

The message was once again from Yzak's mom.

Well, since I've gone this far, I might as well read it...

Click!

And Kari's eyes widened in shock. Reading the very straightforward message, she gasped at what she discovered.

The e-mail went like this:

Yzak,

I am sorry to inform you that there has been a sudden change of plans. As I had informed you in my first letter, I had gotten you a position in the High Council and it seemed that the remaining others have agreed, thinking that young blood would do the PLANTs a lot of good. But only yesterday, there has been a terrible incident. It appears that there are many Zala supporters running amok in the space colony, and do not agree with us. They had been causing great disturbances of late, and I do not think that they will be pleased to have you here now. The Council at present is trying to ease things as of now, but I suggest that you stay on Earth for the time being, until we settle this very disturbing predicament. Patrick Zala's supporters are pretty much as aggressive as Zala himself, and are doing rowdy acts to hinder the decision of the council regarding the Peace Treaty. I dare not go into detail... But please take my advice and stay on Earth. I fear that your life might be put into danger, as the position I am rooting for you is up for grabs. If you come to PLANT now, I cannot guarantee your safety. And if anything happened to you, it will bring me much grief...

I shall inform you of what will happen here. Know that I love you, Yzak.

Be safe always. And do not worry about your mother. I am all right.

Snapping her laptop shut, Kari bolted out of the gym in a dead run. She glimpsed over her shoulder at the scoreboard. Eight-twenty five... Yzak leaves for Memambetsu at eight-thirty. I'm not going to make it if I try to catch them in the dorm... But maybe... if I intercept them in Memambetsu...

She barreled her way thought the soccer field, her legs carrying her faster than she thought they could. Yzak didn't even bother to read his mother's reply, and now he was going home to a place that wasn't even settled if they wanted him!

She did not know who those Zala supporters were, but it was obviously not going to be good for Yzak. And if she wouldn't be able to stop him, he might be headed to apparent danger...

She had never felt this worried in her life. The serene demeanor she had always tried to maintain was shattered in an instant, but she didn't care.

You don't need to go home, Yzak!

She made he way to the empty streets and almost ended up crashing into someone as she made a left to the bus stop.

"Whoa. Where's the fire?"

Kari skidded to a stop and sucked in a deep breath when she realized who it was. "Kira! Where's Yzak?"

Suddenly, Kazui and Sai materialized behind him.

"What's going on?" Sai asked.

Kari shook her head. "No time to explain. Come with me."

She had to stop him... Hopefully, if she makes it in time, Yzak will forgive her for having hacked his account again.

Don't leave Yzak...

0 -- 0 -- 0 -- 0

Yuugiri: Oh, well. This is just an interlude, I guess. Nothing much happened. I was just introducing more of the story, and trying to develop the characters a bit more...

Please leave me a review. I would like to know what you think.

Suggestions are welcome. They will be put into consideration. And for the questions that you leave, it will be answered by the story itself. Thank you!