DISCLAIMER: 'Rebound'' is a story based on characters and situations from Kidou Senshi Gundam Seed which is a property of Sotsu Agency, Bandai Studios and TV Asashi. This work is non profited and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. Unless specified, all materials in the web is work done by HERMIT JUNCTION. Please do not use without permission any text or artwork.

WARNING: Text and all related materials are rated PG13/T and may mild strong language, violence and suggestive adult themes unless otherwise stated. Please do not read if you are underage or maybe offended by such material. Spoilers for Gundam Seed.

NOTE: This fanfiction disregards the plotline of the original series' sequel Gundam Seed Destiny. Please see author's page for the site hosting of this fanfiction.

Gseed Aftermath Trilogy I:
REBOUND
a hermit junction project

Chapter 5

He looked peaceful when asleep, fast asleep.

Pulling her knees to her chest, Miriallia stared at the naked man sleeping on her bed from her easy chair, his fairly tanned skin contrasting nicely with her light bed sheets. He didn't look out of place at all.

She remembered staring at him two years ago, lying beside him. He had fallen asleep with his arms around her. She had looked at him for at least three hours, watching him just breathing in and breathing out. Tears had streamed down her cheeks unconsciously then and she did everything to stop from crying out loud, she hadn't wanted to wake him up and face him in person.

She wanted so badly to touch his face then. She wanted to badly to apologize for screaming out Tolle's name when in fact it was him touching her. She had felt so guilty.

Now what? Is two years enough for the both of them to put everything behind their backs and move on? She was crazy to even think that it could ever happen.

'So now what?' Miriallia whispered into her knees, still staring at him.

She couldn't run away like she did two years ago. Even if she had the chance she wouldn't. The way he looked into her eyes last night was still screaming at her. The passion had intensified compared to their first night two years ago. If they were playing a game, then Dearka Elthman was putting everything into this game. The stakes were dangerously high.

Did she have that much to give?

Setting her feet down onto the cold wooden floor, Miriallia stood up and padded across her apartment quietly. The heavy curtains were drawn, blocking the morning sunlight that usually shone over the whole bed. Sitting herself on the stool of the kitchen counter, she looked at the photo of her and Tolle.

Could she really let go? If she could, why didn't she do so two years ago? Has all this time freed her from her relationship with Tolle? Could she actually accept Dearka?

'You certainly did last night.' Miriallia muttered sarcastically, frowning.

She could not resist Dearka, not two years ago, not now. She had this initial gut feeling that if things continued on from here, there's a chance that both of them might get hurt again. The last two years may not have succeeded in letting the pain and the past go away, but they certainly learned to live with it and things were fine until their lives crossed paths again at Carpentaria.

Exhaling loudly, Miriallia stood up and walked towards her wardrobe, opening the door quietly. Rummaging through her dull collection of clothes, she found a white robe and threw it on. She never really needed robes because she'd usually changed the minute she got up or after a shower and never woke up naked.

Walking towards the bathroom, she winced at the tiredness between her legs. Although last night was not her first night, she had never slept with anyone besides Dearka and it had been two years.

Blushing slightly, Miriallia shook her head and slipped into the bathroom. She needed to take a shower and clear her mind.

Dearka's eyebrows furrowed at the faint sound of the bathroom door clicking. His mind told him to stay asleep and he did so, but about ten minutes later, he couldn't help but open his eyes and waited for them to focus. He blinked at the unfamiliar color of the ceiling and wondered for a second where he was.

Miriallia! Dearka shot up, fully awake when his arm brushed an empty space beside him. Like two years ago, the space beside him was empty but this time, there was no blood.

'No.' Dearka groaned, slapping his forehead. He didn't come this far to let Miriallia get away again! How did she do it anyway? Has his soldier's instincts gone rusty so fast? He could still have blamed it on liquor two years ago but he was fully awake last night.

Looking around his eyes scanned the large studio and found that his clothes were scattered at the foot of the bed. His eyes narrowed at the elegant silk gown he had ripped off last night. She couldn't have gone far, this was, after all, her apartment.

Sitting up, he cursed at the tangled sheets while thinking of places he'd find her. She knew where her publisher was and also where her parents lived. She might have gone to Cagalli or Lucas' place. He prayed that she didn't go for another photo taking expedition. This time he was going to at least talk to her, even if there was no future.

'Morning.' The bathroom door opened quietly and Dearka gasped and turned around. Unfortunately, the tangled sheets got in his way and he tripped, falling flat on his bottom at the side of the bed.

Miriallia sighed. 'What's going on with you?' she walked towards him and helped him up, pulling at the sheets. She blushed, realizing that he was completely naked. 'Yo – you better take a shower first Dearka.'

'Huh?' Dearka stared at her, dumbfounded.

'A shower!' Miriallia rolled her eyes and took off her robe and held it out for him, looking away, embarrassed that they were now naked before each other. 'I only have one robe, it's free size, nicked it from a hotel earlier.'

'You want me to – ' Dearka stammered, staring at her.

Miriallia stuffed the robe into his arms and walked around his back, giving him a push. 'It's a little wet but that's all I've got. I'll find something to wear for you, now go!'

Dearka found himself pushed into a steamy bathroom and before he could turn around, the door was slammed shut. Staring into the steamy space, he tried to recover from the slight shock.

'She didn't go.' Dearka whispered to himself, giving out a relieved laugh. 'She didn't go.'

It was a good sign right? At least she was willing to face him after what they did last night.

Putting the moist robe on the counter, Dearka slid the shower door open and turned on the shower. Beside the stall was a square Jacuzzi tub and there were two basins on the counter. It was a pretty big bathroom if you asked him.

Showering quickly, he shook his head, trying the shake off the excess water from his soft locks. Grabbing the robe, he slipped it on and could smell the faint scent of perfume Miriallia wore last night. Wiping his face with the sleeve, he was about to leave the bathroom when something caught his sight. Stopping, he turned and frowned at the shaving gel and razor sitting on the counter.

Picking it up, he realized that it was for men. There was also an extra set of toothbrush and rinsing glass. Did Miriallia…

At the thought of that, Dearka narrowed his eyes and clutched the shaving gel bottle so tight he made a dent.

Opening the door, Dearka stared at the neatly made bed. The clothes that were discarded on the floor last night were gone and on the made bed was a pair of boxers, a pair of khakis, a black shirt and a leather belt. At the sight of these garments, his fears were nearly confirmed.

'You're finished?' Miriallia asked, her back to him. She was in the kitchen, taking out things from the refrigerator. 'I'm sorry, that's all the men's clothes I have, I hope you don't mind.'

Oh yeah, I would mind wearing clothes of another guy who fucked you. Dearka thought in fury. But he figured he either put them on or walk around naked. He wasn't that happy about wearing another guy's boxers though and wondered where Miriallia put his clothes.

When he was finished dressing, Miriallia turned around and gave him a small smile, then shook her head. 'My, Rafe's grown!'

She walked around the counter towards him.

Oh, and he even has a name. Dearka thought, clutching his fist tightly.

Miriallia pulled at the collar of his black shirt and soothed out the wrinkles. Seeing that he was unusually silent, Miriallia looked up at him. 'Is something wrong? They don't fit?'

'No.' Dearka said through clenched teeth. 'They totally fit.'

'Good.' Miriallia smiled. 'If you want to shave, you can use some of the shaving gel in the bathroom, I can get you a new razor.'

'What?' Dearka almost squeaked.

Miriallia looked at him weirdly. 'I said you can shave if you want.' She traced two fingers over his chin. 'You have a little stubble.'

'You – '

'Don't worry, Rafe won't mind.' Miriallia said, turning. 'Is orange juice alright?'

'Who the hell is Rafe?' Dearka blurted out, following her.

'Huh?' Miriallia turned and looked at him. 'I thought you knew, I mean, you know where I live.'

'No, I don't.' Dearka seethed.

'He's my brother.' Miriallia said, raising her eyebrows slightly.

'Your brother?' Dearka repeated dumbly.

Miriallia nodded. 'He comes over when he needs to "get away from home. "' Rolling her eyes, she shook her head. 'I'm away for at least half a year so he takes advantage of my apartment.'

'Oh.' Was all Dearka said as he sighed in relief.

Having no idea what Dearka was thinking about, Miriallia stared at him. 'You okay? Don't worry, the boxers are new, I just opened them.'

'Yeah, I'm fine.' Dearka said, running one hand through his hair. He paused at something burning. 'Are you cooking something?'

Miriallia gasped and rushed towards the stove in time to find her eggs all burnt into black mush. 'Oh man…'

Dearka fought the urge to laugh. 'You uh, you – '

'I don't know how to cook.' Miriallia said for him, putting her hands on her waist, glaring at him. 'You think that's funny?'

'No.' Dearka shook his head, coughing.

Miriallia made a face and dumped the burnt eggs into the trash. 'I guess we'll have to eat breakfast outside, I don't have anything left in the fridge.'

'Is there a grocery?' Dearka asked.

'Uh…' Miriallia thought for a while. 'I think there's one at the corner.'

'Great.' Dearka said, standing up from the stool. 'We can just stock up from there.'

'Really, I don't know how to cook.' Miriallia warned, shaking her head.

Dearka smirked. 'I can.'

Miriallia looked at him suspiciously. 'You sure?'

Dearka laughed. 'Come on.'

Grabbing the keys to her apartment, Miriallia followed Dearka out the door, slipping on her running shoes on the way. The grocery was actually pretty close and it took less than ten minutes. Miriallia came occasionally, but only for probably juice and some simple food like bread and cheese. Even if Rafe was living in her apartment, he'd never bother to stock up her fridge, so it was pretty much next to empty. She was surprised to find eggs that weren't rotten yet.

'What do you want to eat?' Dearka asked, taking a basket. 'It's almost eleven, so I guess we'll just have lunch as well.'

Miriallia frowned. 'I'm hungry.' They walked down the chilled food section and looked around. 'Is there anything you don't eat?'

Dearka shook his head. 'Except for durians.'

'You don't eat durians?' Miriallia looked at him. 'They're good!'

'They stink.' Dearka said flatly.

Miriallia shrugged. 'So what do you propose, I wouldn't want to eat Durins for lunch anyways.'

'Something simple I guess.' Dearka said absently, looking at the fridges. 'I mean, I wouldn't want to make steak or anything like that. Do you have an oven?'

Miriallia nodded. 'I never used it though.'

Dearka looked at her with raised eyebrows. 'What do you eat?'

'Well…' Miriallia looked up. 'I'm pretty much out of my apartment for half the year and when I come back I just eat at my Mom's. She just didn't trust me with knives and stoves.'

'And I understand why.' Dearka muttered, earning a playful punch from Miriallia in the shoulder.

'If I had the time to learn, I'd be good at it too.' Miriallia declared, crossing her arms.

'Okay, how about a Shepard's Pie. It's easy and we can test that poor oven of yours.' Dearka smirked. 'I hope it works.'

'What's in a Shepard's Pie?' Miriallia asked.

'Let me think.' Dearka reached for a pack of pork and beef. 'These two, plus potatoes. We also need some fresh tomatoes to do the sauce, do you have salt and pepper at home?'

'I got nothing.' Miriallia said sheepishly.

Dearka sighed and shook his head. Dropping the contents into the basket, he pulled Miriallia down another isle. 'You do know what salt and pepper is right?'

'Of course I do!' Miriallia said hotly. She grabbed too bottles and dropped them into the basket. 'What else?'

'Uh…corn, canned will be good enough.' Dearka replied.

'How do you know how to do all this?' Miriallia asked as they queued for the cashier.

Dearka shrugged. 'I live alone and besides, my Mother's a great cook.'

Miriallia frowned. 'My Mom's a great cook too, why can't I be like her.'

Smiling, Dearka paid for the grocery and the two of them headed back to the apartment with two heavy bags.

'Morning Miss Haww!' Ports greeted, then looked at Dearka. 'You're friend?'

Miriallia nodded. 'Yeah.'

Ports nodded and took off his hat. 'Have a nice day then you two lads.'

'He's nice.' Dearka commented as Miriallia pressed the elevator.

'He really is.' Miriallia said, reaching into her pocket for her keys. 'He takes special care of my place because I'm away most of the time.'

'I take you don't have to pay for your apartment rent right?' Dearka said as the elevator door opened.

Miriallia shook her head. 'The publisher pays. I really didn't think there was the need but they insisted since my Mom's place isn't really near the city at all. My editor likes to drop by now and then to check on stuff, I'm not really the 'on time' kind of author.'

Dearka snorted. 'Good luck to your editor then.'

Miriallia laughed and opened the door. 'Believe me, I say the exact same thing whenever she calls me.'

Dumping the contents of their grocery shopping onto the counter, Dearka took his shoes off. Seeing this, Miriallia reached into the shoe rack and took out a fresh pair of slippers.

'Do you expect guests all the time?' Dearka asked, opening them. 'Or did you nick them again?'

Miriallia gave him a small smile. 'nicked them.' She kicked her shoes off and padded across the floor barefoot. 'So what's first?' she asked, picking up the can of corn.

Dearka looked at the clock on the wall. 'Man, it's already eleven fifteen.'

'Quit talking and make us some food!' Miriallia joked, leaning over the counter.

'Fine.' Dearka rolled his sleeves up. 'I take your going to help right?'

Miriallia shrugged. 'If you want me too and don't mind me screwing things up.'

'I think you're already half way there with your abandoned oven.' Dearka said dryly, a playful smirk on his lips. 'The pork and beef are minced right?'

Miriallia nodded, unwrapping them.

'You got a pan?' Dearka asked, taking out the tomatoes to rinse.

'Uh, yeah.' Miriallia knelt down and rummaged through the cupboard. 'I think it's here somewhere… yeah.' She took out a stainless steel pan that was a bit dusty.

Reaching out one finger, he wiped it across the surface and shook his head. 'You really don't cook.'

Miriallia snorted. 'What do I have to do? Wash it?'

'That would be job one.' Dearka said, drying the tomatoes with a paper towel. He unhooked the chopping board from the wall and took out the mushrooms. Taking out the knife from the drawer, he gave it a rinse and chopped the mushrooms in one quick motion.

Miriallia stared. 'You really know what you're doing.'

Dearka smirked. 'That's just the basics. Done with the pan?' Miriallia nodded. Taking the pan, he set it on the stove and sprinkled some olive oil they bought form the grocery. He then threw in the mushrooms and handed Miriallia a wooden spoon. 'Here, just stir.'

'Like this?' Miriallia asked as Dearka turned the heat down to medium.

Dearka nodded. 'Yeah, just keep stirring, I'll tell you when to stop.'

Miriallia watched as Dearka started to cut up the tomatoes. Adding the minced pork and beef in, he told her to keep stirring until he told her to stop.

'Are you sure the oven's going to be okay?' Miriallia asked uncertainly, watching Dearka open the oven door.

Wipping it, Dearka closed the door and turned the knob. 'It should be okay. My Mother's oven's like twenty years old, she bought it when I was born and from time to time I had to fix it.' He stood up and started to peel the potatoes. 'You know how to make mashed potatoes?'

'Uh… you just mash them?' Miriallia tried.

'That' just one step.' Dearka said, pouring the steaming potatoes into the sink. 'You have to cut them first, then mash them. If you want them to smell better you can add some butter.'

Miriallia frowned. 'But we didn't buy any.'

'So we're not going to.' Dearka said simply. 'I think it's almost time to put the corn in, can you help me mash the potatoes, just give all you got.' Nodding, Miriallia switched places with Dearka. Dearka dumped the corn and chopped tomatoes into the pan and stirred for a while, making sure that everything was cooked before transferring them to a serving dish. 'You ready with the potatoes?'

'Almost.' Miriallia gritted her teeth, grinding the wooden spoon into the potatoes.

Looking down at her, Dearka couldn't help but reach out one index finger and wipe the smudge of potato that had got on her nose. Miriallia looked up at him with wide eyes and watched as he licked his finger. 'Hmm… it should do without butter.'

Taking the bowl from her, Dearka spread the mashed tomatoes evenly on the beef. 'Do you have oven mitts?'

'Uh…' Miriallia opened one of the lower drawers and took out a pair, handing them to Dearka.

'Thanks.' Putting them on, Dearka put the dish into the oven. 'It should take around thirty minutes, we got some cookies from the grocery right?'

Miriallia Opening the packet of cookies and dumped them into the cookie jar her Mother bought her. 'You want some?'

'Wait, let me just clear out some of the dirty dishes.' Dearka said, taking off the oven mitts.

Sitting down, Miriallia watched his back while munching on the chocolate covered cookie. Dearka Elthman was full of surprise, how much more will she find out? She wanted to know him more, wanted to see the Dearka beyond Archangel or ZAFT. She never had such a desire to want to know someone.

'Where are you staying?' Miriallia suddenly asked.

Dearka paused for a second before answering, not turning around. 'Govina.'

'How long will you be staying?' Miriallia continued casually, pouring herself a glass of water.

Dearka shrugged uncomfortably. 'I don't know, a week or two I suppose.'

'I thought you were busy.' Miriallia said.

'Well, you know, I needed a break.' Dearka replied, turning off the tap and putting the dish into the draining rack. He turned and leaned against the counter. 'Why the question?'

'Nothing.' Miriallia reached for the spare key that hung on the wall, unhooking it. 'I was wondering if you'd like to stay here.'

Dearka stared at her as if she had grown two heads.

Miriallia shrugged, biting her lower lip. 'I could show you around, you haven't really been to Orb before, right?'

Dearka looked away, fingering the counter. 'You know what you're saying don't you.'

'Yes.'

'What do I have to give in return?' Dearka asked, looking at her.

Miriallia leaned over the counter and dangled the keys with her index finger. 'Good food.'

They looked at each other. There was no teasing or joking in their tone, this was serious.

Giving her a small smile, Dearka wrapped one hand around Miriallia's fingers and held it for a while before taking the keys away. 'Sounds like a good bargain to me.'

Miriallia smiled and sat down again. 'Right. How long will the pie take?'

'Twenty something minutes.'

'This is a secure line right?' Dearka asked.

'Yeah.' Yzak said from the other line.

'What do you want? I said I needed a break.' Dearka muttered, looking over his shoulder before cutting a line, adjusting his hands-free.

'I wouldn't want to bother you and ruin that magnificent plan of yours if it wasn't urgent.' Yzak grunted. Dearka could hear him scribble on some pieces of paper and calling someone who seemed like his secretary.

'What time is over there?' Dearka asked, slowing down his car slightly for another car that had suddenly cut into his line.

'Six.' Yzak replied absently.

'You're up at six?' Dearka's eyebrows furrowed. 'And your secretary's here?'

'No.' Yzak said flatly.

'Oh, don't tell me, you dragged Hahnenfuss along.' Dearka guessed.

'Yes he did, kill him for me will you Elthman?' Shinho's voice rang from behind.

'Get to work Major.' Yzak barked. 'If you have to blame, blame Dearka for threatening me.'

'You never give me holidays!' Dearka heard Shinho complain. 'I should threaten you too.'

'Did she do her face?' Dearka asked, laughing, scanning the rear mirror.

'Enough of her.' Yzak said. 'I need to tell you something important and yes this is a secure line.'

'What is it?' Dearka asked, his smile fading. He knew this tone.

'It's about that assassination attempt at Orb two days ago.' Yzak said.

Dearka widened his eyes. 'What does it have to do with PLANT?'

'I've got intelligence saying that it's Nessar.' Yzak said.

'Nessar?' Dearka got off the highway. 'What do they have to do with Orb? Are you sure.'

'I don't know for sure yet. Do you have any idea who the target was?' Yzak asked. 'We're going to ask about the details formally but I just wanted to ask you in private first.' He paused. 'This could be bad.'

Dearka stopped his car at an alley and killed the engine. 'Look, all I know is this sniper is a professional, all caps with blinking lights, the professional. He missed, but I had a feeling he missed on purpose. His consecutive shots were like from a short range pistol. The guy had guts and knew what he was doing, from what I heard, he was covering for someone else, someone who really has a short range pistol and was prepared to fire.'

'Do you know who it is, who he wanted to kill?' Yzak asked.

'No idea.'

'Fine, I'll deal with the details, I just don't trust Orb giving us the real stuff.' Yzak muttered. 'This sniper, a real pro huh?'

Dearka sighed. 'You better be careful if it's really Nessar. You know how they are though they've been a little quiet these days.'

'This sniper, he reminds me of Rusty.' Yzak said quietly.

Dearka stared into the darkness before him. 'Rusty could have hit his target with one clean shot, he was the sniper.' He gave himself a bitter laugh. 'Should we be glad that he's dead?'

This time, Yzak let out a snort. 'How's it going with you lovey loverson? Are my approved holidays useful or should I just cancel them now and make my life better?'

'Oh, I'm having a blast.' Dearka said dryly, leaning back. 'Aside from the abrupt assassination that also got my head blown off, yeah, it's going pretty well.'

'How's it going with the lady?' Yzak asked smugly.

'Captain Jule! You don't just ask someone questions like that!' Dearka heard Shinho muttered beside Yzak.

'Shut up and get to work Major.' Yzak snapped.

'It's going well.' Dearka replied before the two on the other line decided to ignore his presence.

'Well as in she's talking to you or well as in you got into her pants?' Yzak asked flatly. 'Because you know, the latter makes all the difference. I'm worried about my future career you know.'

Dearka laughed. 'Okay, to be honest, the latter.'

Yzak hooted and Dearka heard him stand up. 'Okay, so seriously, you're going to come back any earlier, say this weekend? Dude, I've got some much on hand and Hahnenfuss will have to work her ass off if you don't come back.'

'Me again?' Shinho wailed in the back. 'You're going to kill me Captain Jule!'

'You see?' Yzak said.

'I'm sorry, but I got a legitimate, paid leave, so…' Dearka shrugged.

'Damn you.' Yzak grumbled. 'I mean, come on, you got the lady in bed, what more do you want? A marriage?'

'Woah!' Dearka cut him off. 'You're way off track man. Let's just say I deserve a break so with or without her, I'll still make my leave worthwhile.'

'Damn you.' Yzak repeated. 'Be careful with those suckers from Nessar, I have a really bad feeling their up to something, thanks to Captain Klueze.'

'Yeah, later.' Dearka said, then cut off the connection. Gunning the engine again, he reversed and hit the road. Five minutes later he parked his car in front of a noisy nightclub transformed from a warehouse and got off, locking the door with his remote.

He was to meet up with Murdock and the other technicians and crew members from Archangel including Kira and Athrun, though he found it hard picturing the two of them in a bar, especially Athrun.

'How's it going buddy?' Murdock greeted him, wrapping one arm around his neck. 'I can't believe you didn't tell us you were at Orb!'

'Yeah, wanted to give you guys a surprise.' Dearka said dryly, sitting down. There were eight of them including Kira and Athrun whom had just arrived before him.

'What's going on with you guys?' Dearka asked, ordering a beer. 'Still fixing gadgets for a living?'

'Murdock's got a job in the military.' Kira said.

'Yope, right under Captain Ramius.' Murdock winked. 'You know, the usual, fixing ships and stuff.'

'Archangel is still docked at Orb right?' Dearka asked.

Tonomura nodded. 'Like a display.'

Dearka paused. 'A display?'

'Maybe they should open a museum.' Romero Pal suggested. 'A museum of history, displaying all the weapons used during the war.'

'Yeah, a great way to promote the use of violence.' Arnold Neumann said dryly, nursing his cocktail.

Kira laughed. 'I can imagine Freedom rusting away in an old museum two hundred years from now.'

The old crew continued to exchange anecdotes for the next two hours and Dearka came to learn that Tonomura was getting married because he got his girlfriend pregnant while Chandora was going back to his father's company to work. Neumann had completely retired from the military and was working at an automobile company, testing cars, his second love. Pal had landed on a job as a university lecturer and was one of Ssigh's tutors.

Ssigh and Kuzzey had gone back to school and were living with their parents in Orb. Though Kira didn't live in the city, he wasn't far away from the rest who were concentrated in the city center so they'd meet once in a while.

It was nice to know how things were going on with the people he used to fight with and he regretted not keeping in touch with them for the past two years. It was hard to forget the war and the people involved, both the ones who you killed and the ones who helped you. During his time in Archangel, he realized that even former enemies could come together, it was unbelievable that he, a ZAFT elite who raided Heliopolis would come to terms with Archangel, the battleship he had been trying to destroy with his comrades for four months.

'You okay there?' Athrun asked, walking up to Dearka who was outside the clubhouse, leaning against the railing. He never realized how comfortable the onshore breeze felt, it was natural, unlike the artificial wind created by PLANT.

'What makes you think I'm not okay?' Dearka asked, turning around. Kira was there too.

'Nothing.' Kira said.

'What are they up to?' Dearka asked, raising his eyebrows.

'Murdock's going to throw up soon.' Kira smirked. 'He and Romero were betting.'

'It would be even worse if Fllaga was still here.' Dearka said, shaking his head.

'You really okay?' Athrun asked, his eyebrows furrowing.

'I am a little worried.' Dearka finally said, sighing. 'Anything about the assassination two nights ago?'

'You're worried about that?' Kira asked.

'It's hard not to worry, especially when it's a sniper. Snipers are probably the worse.' Dearka said.

'Sniper…' Athrun looked up at the dark sky.

Dearka turned and smirked. 'Rusty?'

Athrun looked at him for a moment before letting out a short laugh. 'How can I not think of him.'

'Who's Rusty?' Kira asked.

'Rusty MacKenzie.' Athrun said, leaning his elbows on the railing. 'He was one of the topguns responsible for the Heliopolis raid two years ago. He was supposed to extort Strike, but died, got shot in the head.'

'Oh.'

'On my way here, Yzak gave me a call.' Dearka said, closing his eyes. 'Says he's got a bad feeling.'

'What does this have to do with PLANT?' Kira asked.

'If it's terrorism, than we might have a clue.' Athrun said. 'If it's just an assassin doing the job for a paycheck, then it's bad news.'

'Really bad.' Dearka added. 'Even after the war, things like this are bound to happen. There's no way to avoid it. Sometimes I think open fire is better than this.'

'Maybe you are right.' Kira said, standing straight. 'At least you can control it. With terrorism, it's like there's a bomb and you don't know when it's going to explode. They like to play games with your mind.'

'Hey wusses, come back in here! We're not finished!' Murodock shouted from the inside of the noisy clubhouse.

An hour later, Dearka dropped off a hammered Murdock at his front door. 'He's going to be okay right?'

'Oh yeah, he's like that all the time, he really can't drink, but pretends he can.' Pal grunted, hauling him by the shoulders.

'You should be glad he didn't take off his pants and do the can can.' Tonomura said, shaking his head.

'You're kidding.' Dearka made a face.

'Oh he's not.' Chandora said, wrinkling his nose. 'Believe me, he's not.'

Raising his eyebrows, Dearka said good night to the three men and watched them close the door behind them before gunning the engine again.

Tonight was fun, he had to admit, better than his nights at Face Off back at PLANT where he had to cope with those idiotic soldiers in his team. He wouldn't want to be around a drunk Murdock though, not after that warning from Pal and Tonomura.

Feeling stuffy, Dearka rolled the windows down and turned off the air conditioner, trying to get some of the smell out as well as get some fresh air. It was a quiet night, so quiet that reflection was inevitable, especially for a veteran like him.

He was happy that Miriallia had asked him to stay at her apartment, but after that moment, reality kicked in again. So what if he did stay at Miriallia's apartment for the next two weeks or so, would it make a difference? A better difference? He wasn't so sure about that and could vaguely imagine the worst.

It was dangerous and he was sure Miriallia knew that too. Why did she ask him to stay? He had been wondering about that. Was she going to give him a chance? Or was he just a…

At that thought, Dearka added pressure to the gas, clenching his teeth. A rebound, again? No way.

'No way?' Dearka asked himself. How could he be so sure? She admitted herself that she couldn't put the past behind her. So what was he doing, wasn't the torture two years ago more than enough?

'Come on, you got the lady in bed, what more do you want? A marriage?'

'What if I did get her in bed?' Dearka said bitterly, killing the engine. He couldn't even get her to admit her feelings for him, let alone a relationship and to hell with marriage.

Maybe this was a bad idea. No, it was a bad idea. Maybe he should just leave and never see her again. It was probably for the best.

But do you want to? That annoying little voice asked inside Dearka's head as he stopped in front of Miriallia's door. Sure, he didn't want to. If he could, he'd gladly kidnap her and never let her step out of his house. But that wasn't how things happened; he didn't want her in his bed unwillingly. He couldn't think of a worse insult.

Taking a deep breath, he rang the bell. A few moments later, she answered it, yawning. 'I thought I gave you a key.'

'Uh, yeah.' Dearka said, stepping in. 'I forgot.' He looked around and found that the bed was still neatly made. The desk lamp was turned on and a lap top was running. The huge writing table was scattered with photos and scratches of paper. 'What have you been up to?'

'Me?' Miriallia went to the counter and poured herself a glass of water. 'I've been working on the draft of my collection. I don't really like working in the night, but I figured the guard downstairs might not let you in or something, so I decided to wait for you.' She gave herself a short laugh. 'My editor will cry if she found out I've been working in the night.'

Dearka stood there, watching as Miriallia sat down on the stool, sipping from her glass of water.

'So, how was the clubbing?' Miriallia asked, turning her head slightly in his direction. 'Did the guys give you a hard time? I heard from Ssigh and Kuzzey that Murdock can be an ass when he's drunk, not that he isn't when he's awake.'

'It was okay.' Dearka said, his throat tight as he shrugged off his coat, setting it on the coat hanger.

Miriallia's eyebrows furrowed. 'Is everything okay?' She hopped off the stool and walked towards him. 'You're not drunk are you? You shouldn't be driving if you're drunk you know.' She said sternly, putting one palm on his forehead.

'I'm not drunk.' Dearka assured, pulling her palm away from his forehead. 'I only had a beer. I'm pretty conscious when it comes to drinking and driving.'

'Well, that's good to hear.' Miriallia said, sighing in relief as she turned. 'You want to take a shower or something?'

'Miriallia.' Dearka called, then paused.

'Hmm?' Miriallia turned and looked at him with raised eyebrows.

Shaking his head, he loosened the collar of his shirt and held out one hand. 'Are you done with your work?'

Miriallia shot a glance at her table, then shrugged. 'What the hell, I've just started anyway and I still have three months to go before the deadline.' Running one hand through her shoulder length brown hair, she flipped her laptop and desk lamp off. She paused, staring at desk for a moment before turning. She gasped when Dearka swept her up and headed for the bed place at the center of the apartment. Neither of them said a word as they started to undress each other.

She didn't seem to have a problem with this, so why should he? He was willing to make a bet, even if the stakes were high, so high that he might fall and hit the ground bad, so bad that he may never have the courage to stand up again.

End of Chapter 5

Next update: 23/06/2005

A/N: I not a habit of mine to write stuff at the end of the chapter but I tend to write this long page of thanks when the whole story is over. I would, however, like to thank people who bothered to review this story. Some will be curious to why I lowered the rating from M to T. I talked about it with my beta and I came to a conclusion that the rating should be T because it really is for 95 of the whole story. Trilogy II and III however will almost definitely be M rated. There are M or even MA rated scenes in this story too so if you really want to read those, I'll be posting them at my site when the time comes. Thank you again to my reviewers, I hope you'll stick with this story and hopefully the whole trilogy to the very end. I promise to update on time, provided that lets me. --