Regretting Nothing - Part 7
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. I do own: Christopher Ryan, Angela Hart, Steve Bailey, and any upcoming character not from the series.
Author's Note: If you're still hanging in there, let me reassure you everything leads to the end. I have to say that out there for those of you have lost hope. The plot will become simple once again. Just bare with me. As it stands, Relena hasn't been seen by anyone in her former life for over three years now. Later, there will be a check up with Heero and the others. I call this an interlude. It's a glimpse of her life and how it changes before she graduates from Excelsior University of British Columbia in Canada. This part is meant to give further dimensions to Chris and Angie, as well as Relena who is Sidney Marquette. Also I would like to thank Vadim for providing me with a birthday, March 8th, I chose this one. If you notice, I took the reciprocal of it with the astrological sign. Relena was originally a Pisces, now Sidney Marquette is a Virgo. Pisces is the opposite sign of Virgo. And vice versa. Anyway, back to my story.
"Happy Birthday, Sidney!" yelled both Chris and Angie. The three of them always celebrated her birthday. It was always a happy occasion never a sad one. Her best friends would always try to top each other each year for getting her a birthday present. They were two of the warmest people in the entire universe. With them she felt comfortable and safe. They accepted everything about her. They loved her very much. Both, Chris and Angie knew that she had no parents and no family for that matter. So, they took it upon themselves to be a family for her. Both of them were only children, so they had an idea of what it meant to be lonely. The three best friends were very close. Despite problems in the beginning, Angie didn't like Chris much, but he had a sweet nature that grew on her.
Chris learned a lot from Sidney. He learned that he had to live life as fully as she did. The reason why she was so easygoing was that there was very little to get upset about, it was just little things. They still were neck and neck for the position of class valedictorian. Sidney unfortunately, during some of the quarters finally faltered because she had accidentally allowed for her schedule to get too crowded for studying and classes. That and she had a bad case of seniorities.
Angela was her main competitor in the medical school. However, their rivalry was still much more friendly than the one Sidney had with Chris. They could still laugh about it. While if things got bad between Chris and Sidney, one of them, namely Chris, would be sore at the other one for days. Angie and Chris shared a sort of psuedo brother-sister like relationship, which meant that they would argued over petty things. They would bicker. Angie was a fiercely loyal friend and could be relied on for almost anything. She could be trusted with secrets. Chris was a rational person who always looked at both sides of any argument, that is an argument not involving himself. He was empathetic to others.
Today, September 8, her birthday according to her birth certificate. They were all at Angela's parents' new home in Prince Rupert Island, they decided to retire a year early there. Her parents were always so friendly to Sidney and Chris. They took both of them into the fold as if both were their own. Mrs. Hart made the birthday cake for Sid's small birthday party. Sidney did a lot of modeling shoots, but she didn't see the point to keeping the pictures, so Chris and Angie took them instead. They were very proud of her, while Sidney treasured the candid shoots she took of Angie and Chris.
After their first year at Excelsior, Angie and Sid moved to an off-campus apartment. It was great to have a roommate who could afford to pay for half of the things; it seemed as if Sid didn't mind it so much. It also became very obvious that Sidney prefer making her life as simple as possible. She never let much get to her. Even though she could afford to have a car, she still used public transportation. Sidney was often heard saying, "The simpler things are the better."
It was about a week before graduation that Sidney had to go to Spain for a fashion shoot. So, Angela left with her so that they could get in some more fun before graduation. A week after graduation was to be the last job that Sidney had to do for her contract to be up. The Beaumont Agency tried everything to convince her to renew her contract, but she wasn't interested. Actually, Sidney didn't want to press her luck with each fashion shoot she was getting more and more paranoid about getting caught. In other words, she had to get going while the going was still good. Chris was invited to go with the girls to Spain, but he declined he said that he had to go see his parents in Manhattan before graduation. Even though, his parents were arriving for graduation the following week.
* * *
The day of graduation was a sunny one. When Angie and Sid came back, they found out that Chris was the class valedictorian. It made sense since he and Sid were so close in competition. He only beat her by 0.25, but that was good enough. As it stood, Sidney was class salutatorian and Angela had the third highest grades on the final standings. Sidney decided that she didn't want to make a speech. Angela supported her, despite the fact that Chris wanted her to. Angela and Chris thought that she didn't like talking in front of large crowds. The Chancellor allowed for Sidney not to make a speech. So, she wasn't forced to, after all she wasn't class valedictorian. Sid and Angie had to pick up their classes rings and their doctorates later at the ceremony. They were dressed in black mortarboards and robes for the ceremony. Chris delivered a beautiful speech partly because he got a lot of help from Sidney when he composed it.
At the end of the day, the three friends went out all night, and partied until dawn. They actually began to talk about future plans at breakfast at an outdoor café in the early morning hours.
"So, what are you going to do now, Angie?" asked Chris as he stirred his latte.
"I already got a job at a hospital at Washington, D.C. I am going to be researching for cancer with one of my idols," she answered with a smile, "What about you, Dr. Marquette?"
"I decided to hold out for a little while longer before I settle down, Dr. Hart," answered Sidney as she sipped her coffee.
"Wait. I thought that you weren't going to renew your contract with Beaumont," asked Chris with a mouth full of pastry.
"Don't talk with your mouth full, Mr. Ryan," said Angie. Chris smirked at this comment. And decided to so show the chewed up particles in his mouth. "Yuck. What's wrong with you? You've only been out of college for a several hours, and you're already acting stupid."
"Yes. My contract will be up after the shoot in Barbados. After that, I am free. You hear me! FREE!" Sidney said with a laugh. Both Chris and Angie had a look on their faces that showed that they were slightly embarrassed by her. She had yet another look for the last shoot that she used for the ceremony. Her hair was dyed black and had curls in it. It had grown out a little bit from the last haircut she had; it was now at her shoulders. Her eyes were wearing an amber color. A look that was inspired by Angie's exotic looks. She looked like a beautiful exotic tropical goddess.
"What are you going to do, Sid? What hospital are you going to work for? I think I can still put in a word for you, if you just wait awhile," said Angie.
"Signed up for the special physicians abroad program. They want a pilot and a doctor. As of yesterday, I happen to be both. So, I'll be leaving right after the Barbados shoot in Jamaica," informed Sidney. The true was she wasn't ready to settle in anyone place again for a little bit. If she had to wait for a little bit, after all college was only an interlude for most people. It wasn't something permanent. To pick some place to practice would have meant that she would have to be tied down. To pick a life already. She didn't feel emotional prepared for it.
"Well, have fun. I don't envy you, Sid. You'll be going through jungles and other unpleasant places. It would be like going to Chris and Steve's apartment everyday. Danger with things that shouldn't be moving. Even though, it's good noble work to help poor people who can't afford doctors," Angie remarked.
"Hey! What about my apartment?" cried Chris. Chris and Angie glared at each other. Sid couldn't help, but laugh.
"Oh, by the way, promise that you will drop us a line or an e-mail or something. Send us some postcards. Tell us about some of your adventures. Don't forget us, okay?" said Chris in a sincere voice.
"Don't be silly. Of course, I keep contact with you both. I wouldn't abandon you guys. I trust you both more than anyone," said Sidney who was alarmed at how emotional she was getting. She never told them about her past. Before it was out of necessity, now she couldn't tell them because she had lied to both of them for so long. She was afraid to lose them, if she told them the truth. "Enough of this mush. It's not like we'll ever see each other any more. Chris, you didn't say what you were going do with you degree in business and minor in electrical engineering," said Sid who was switching topics away from her.
"No. I didn't. How could I have forgotten? Steve and I have decide to make our own business together," said Chris.
"What kind of business?" asked Sidney.
"Well, it's sort of for corporate espionage. There is a market for companies that do that kind of work. It falls under security. So, we want to get in at the ground floor. I am going to ask for a loan from the bank, instead of my parents. I want to do it on my own. Without their help, even if they would offer to help. I mean look at you, Sid. You made it on your own," Chris said as he gestured at Sidney. She was starting to feel a little more uncomfortable. Angie decided that it was time to break for the day. Sidney had to pack and get ready to leave in the next few days. They already moved out of their apartment and were living with Steve and Chris for the time being. Chris gave up his cleaner room for the girls to stay in, and took the living roof pull out sofa bed. So, Angie lift up her coffee mug, and Sidney and Chris followed suit. They put their mugs together.
"Here's to the future. The world is ours now. It's what we make it. Good luck to all of us," toasted Angie. With that their mugs made a clunk sound. They decided to walk back to Chris' apartment.
A few days later, Sidney was off to the airport. After the shoot was over she took a flight to South Africa to began her new job as a doctor and as a pilot.
* * *
Back at the Preventers offices, Heero was in his office. It has been four years since Relena has left. There was never a trace of her. He still worked for the Preventers. He and Millardo kept up the search for much longer than anyone. However, with Relena's disappearance, Millardo had to take over some of Relena's duties. He now had occupied Relena's offices. His wife, Nion, had their first child two years after Relena disappeared. She allowed to let the child be named Lena a derivative of her aunt's name, when Millardo immediately said that she looked just like Relena when she was a baby.
The world didn't stop the day Relena left. The reason why they called it a disappearance instead of a runaway was because no one wanted to believe that she would leave without a good reason. Peace was still maintained. It didn't take any more people to take care of it more than when Relena was vice-minister. Needlessly to say, the world did not crumble in her absence. It still progressed like it always did.
Heero continued searching for Relena longer than anyone. He did it until Lena was born. He thought of her often. But, he didn't cease functioning. Something that did change in his behavior, was the fact that he reverted back to the way he was before he had ever meet the other Gundam pilots. And Relena. He worked covert operations to maintain peace. He didn't mind such missions. They were the things that Relena, if she had been there, would have approved of.
'I know that you're alive somewhere. I hope you have a happy life, Relena,' thought Heero. This was when he was still looking at the that old footage of the security tape. He still freezes it at the spot where it catches her side profile. But, he only did this in his office. Which, he was rarely in anyway.
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Wing. I do own: Christopher Ryan, Angela Hart, Steve Bailey, and any upcoming character not from the series.
Author's Note: If you're still hanging in there, let me reassure you everything leads to the end. I have to say that out there for those of you have lost hope. The plot will become simple once again. Just bare with me. As it stands, Relena hasn't been seen by anyone in her former life for over three years now. Later, there will be a check up with Heero and the others. I call this an interlude. It's a glimpse of her life and how it changes before she graduates from Excelsior University of British Columbia in Canada. This part is meant to give further dimensions to Chris and Angie, as well as Relena who is Sidney Marquette. Also I would like to thank Vadim for providing me with a birthday, March 8th, I chose this one. If you notice, I took the reciprocal of it with the astrological sign. Relena was originally a Pisces, now Sidney Marquette is a Virgo. Pisces is the opposite sign of Virgo. And vice versa. Anyway, back to my story.
"Happy Birthday, Sidney!" yelled both Chris and Angie. The three of them always celebrated her birthday. It was always a happy occasion never a sad one. Her best friends would always try to top each other each year for getting her a birthday present. They were two of the warmest people in the entire universe. With them she felt comfortable and safe. They accepted everything about her. They loved her very much. Both, Chris and Angie knew that she had no parents and no family for that matter. So, they took it upon themselves to be a family for her. Both of them were only children, so they had an idea of what it meant to be lonely. The three best friends were very close. Despite problems in the beginning, Angie didn't like Chris much, but he had a sweet nature that grew on her.
Chris learned a lot from Sidney. He learned that he had to live life as fully as she did. The reason why she was so easygoing was that there was very little to get upset about, it was just little things. They still were neck and neck for the position of class valedictorian. Sidney unfortunately, during some of the quarters finally faltered because she had accidentally allowed for her schedule to get too crowded for studying and classes. That and she had a bad case of seniorities.
Angela was her main competitor in the medical school. However, their rivalry was still much more friendly than the one Sidney had with Chris. They could still laugh about it. While if things got bad between Chris and Sidney, one of them, namely Chris, would be sore at the other one for days. Angie and Chris shared a sort of psuedo brother-sister like relationship, which meant that they would argued over petty things. They would bicker. Angie was a fiercely loyal friend and could be relied on for almost anything. She could be trusted with secrets. Chris was a rational person who always looked at both sides of any argument, that is an argument not involving himself. He was empathetic to others.
Today, September 8, her birthday according to her birth certificate. They were all at Angela's parents' new home in Prince Rupert Island, they decided to retire a year early there. Her parents were always so friendly to Sidney and Chris. They took both of them into the fold as if both were their own. Mrs. Hart made the birthday cake for Sid's small birthday party. Sidney did a lot of modeling shoots, but she didn't see the point to keeping the pictures, so Chris and Angie took them instead. They were very proud of her, while Sidney treasured the candid shoots she took of Angie and Chris.
After their first year at Excelsior, Angie and Sid moved to an off-campus apartment. It was great to have a roommate who could afford to pay for half of the things; it seemed as if Sid didn't mind it so much. It also became very obvious that Sidney prefer making her life as simple as possible. She never let much get to her. Even though she could afford to have a car, she still used public transportation. Sidney was often heard saying, "The simpler things are the better."
It was about a week before graduation that Sidney had to go to Spain for a fashion shoot. So, Angela left with her so that they could get in some more fun before graduation. A week after graduation was to be the last job that Sidney had to do for her contract to be up. The Beaumont Agency tried everything to convince her to renew her contract, but she wasn't interested. Actually, Sidney didn't want to press her luck with each fashion shoot she was getting more and more paranoid about getting caught. In other words, she had to get going while the going was still good. Chris was invited to go with the girls to Spain, but he declined he said that he had to go see his parents in Manhattan before graduation. Even though, his parents were arriving for graduation the following week.
* * *
The day of graduation was a sunny one. When Angie and Sid came back, they found out that Chris was the class valedictorian. It made sense since he and Sid were so close in competition. He only beat her by 0.25, but that was good enough. As it stood, Sidney was class salutatorian and Angela had the third highest grades on the final standings. Sidney decided that she didn't want to make a speech. Angela supported her, despite the fact that Chris wanted her to. Angela and Chris thought that she didn't like talking in front of large crowds. The Chancellor allowed for Sidney not to make a speech. So, she wasn't forced to, after all she wasn't class valedictorian. Sid and Angie had to pick up their classes rings and their doctorates later at the ceremony. They were dressed in black mortarboards and robes for the ceremony. Chris delivered a beautiful speech partly because he got a lot of help from Sidney when he composed it.
At the end of the day, the three friends went out all night, and partied until dawn. They actually began to talk about future plans at breakfast at an outdoor café in the early morning hours.
"So, what are you going to do now, Angie?" asked Chris as he stirred his latte.
"I already got a job at a hospital at Washington, D.C. I am going to be researching for cancer with one of my idols," she answered with a smile, "What about you, Dr. Marquette?"
"I decided to hold out for a little while longer before I settle down, Dr. Hart," answered Sidney as she sipped her coffee.
"Wait. I thought that you weren't going to renew your contract with Beaumont," asked Chris with a mouth full of pastry.
"Don't talk with your mouth full, Mr. Ryan," said Angie. Chris smirked at this comment. And decided to so show the chewed up particles in his mouth. "Yuck. What's wrong with you? You've only been out of college for a several hours, and you're already acting stupid."
"Yes. My contract will be up after the shoot in Barbados. After that, I am free. You hear me! FREE!" Sidney said with a laugh. Both Chris and Angie had a look on their faces that showed that they were slightly embarrassed by her. She had yet another look for the last shoot that she used for the ceremony. Her hair was dyed black and had curls in it. It had grown out a little bit from the last haircut she had; it was now at her shoulders. Her eyes were wearing an amber color. A look that was inspired by Angie's exotic looks. She looked like a beautiful exotic tropical goddess.
"What are you going to do, Sid? What hospital are you going to work for? I think I can still put in a word for you, if you just wait awhile," said Angie.
"Signed up for the special physicians abroad program. They want a pilot and a doctor. As of yesterday, I happen to be both. So, I'll be leaving right after the Barbados shoot in Jamaica," informed Sidney. The true was she wasn't ready to settle in anyone place again for a little bit. If she had to wait for a little bit, after all college was only an interlude for most people. It wasn't something permanent. To pick some place to practice would have meant that she would have to be tied down. To pick a life already. She didn't feel emotional prepared for it.
"Well, have fun. I don't envy you, Sid. You'll be going through jungles and other unpleasant places. It would be like going to Chris and Steve's apartment everyday. Danger with things that shouldn't be moving. Even though, it's good noble work to help poor people who can't afford doctors," Angie remarked.
"Hey! What about my apartment?" cried Chris. Chris and Angie glared at each other. Sid couldn't help, but laugh.
"Oh, by the way, promise that you will drop us a line or an e-mail or something. Send us some postcards. Tell us about some of your adventures. Don't forget us, okay?" said Chris in a sincere voice.
"Don't be silly. Of course, I keep contact with you both. I wouldn't abandon you guys. I trust you both more than anyone," said Sidney who was alarmed at how emotional she was getting. She never told them about her past. Before it was out of necessity, now she couldn't tell them because she had lied to both of them for so long. She was afraid to lose them, if she told them the truth. "Enough of this mush. It's not like we'll ever see each other any more. Chris, you didn't say what you were going do with you degree in business and minor in electrical engineering," said Sid who was switching topics away from her.
"No. I didn't. How could I have forgotten? Steve and I have decide to make our own business together," said Chris.
"What kind of business?" asked Sidney.
"Well, it's sort of for corporate espionage. There is a market for companies that do that kind of work. It falls under security. So, we want to get in at the ground floor. I am going to ask for a loan from the bank, instead of my parents. I want to do it on my own. Without their help, even if they would offer to help. I mean look at you, Sid. You made it on your own," Chris said as he gestured at Sidney. She was starting to feel a little more uncomfortable. Angie decided that it was time to break for the day. Sidney had to pack and get ready to leave in the next few days. They already moved out of their apartment and were living with Steve and Chris for the time being. Chris gave up his cleaner room for the girls to stay in, and took the living roof pull out sofa bed. So, Angie lift up her coffee mug, and Sidney and Chris followed suit. They put their mugs together.
"Here's to the future. The world is ours now. It's what we make it. Good luck to all of us," toasted Angie. With that their mugs made a clunk sound. They decided to walk back to Chris' apartment.
A few days later, Sidney was off to the airport. After the shoot was over she took a flight to South Africa to began her new job as a doctor and as a pilot.
* * *
Back at the Preventers offices, Heero was in his office. It has been four years since Relena has left. There was never a trace of her. He still worked for the Preventers. He and Millardo kept up the search for much longer than anyone. However, with Relena's disappearance, Millardo had to take over some of Relena's duties. He now had occupied Relena's offices. His wife, Nion, had their first child two years after Relena disappeared. She allowed to let the child be named Lena a derivative of her aunt's name, when Millardo immediately said that she looked just like Relena when she was a baby.
The world didn't stop the day Relena left. The reason why they called it a disappearance instead of a runaway was because no one wanted to believe that she would leave without a good reason. Peace was still maintained. It didn't take any more people to take care of it more than when Relena was vice-minister. Needlessly to say, the world did not crumble in her absence. It still progressed like it always did.
Heero continued searching for Relena longer than anyone. He did it until Lena was born. He thought of her often. But, he didn't cease functioning. Something that did change in his behavior, was the fact that he reverted back to the way he was before he had ever meet the other Gundam pilots. And Relena. He worked covert operations to maintain peace. He didn't mind such missions. They were the things that Relena, if she had been there, would have approved of.
'I know that you're alive somewhere. I hope you have a happy life, Relena,' thought Heero. This was when he was still looking at the that old footage of the security tape. He still freezes it at the spot where it catches her side profile. But, he only did this in his office. Which, he was rarely in anyway.