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 9

3 months later

Dearka looked up from his desk at a file being tossed onto his desk. He frowned at it, looking up at the one who tossed it. 'What the hell is this Hahnenfuss?'

Shiho gave him a wicked smile and sat down on the seat across his desk. 'Make a guess Major.'

Dearka made a face and leaned back in his chair, loosening the collar of his ZAFT uniform. 'Don't tell me it's one of those god damn reports again, I've had enough for one day. I've been doing nothing but paperwork ever since my vacation for the god's sake!'

'That's Captain Jule's punishment for you.' Shiho said dryly. 'Serves you right.'

'Are you taking revenge?' Dearka asked with narrowed eyes, glaring at his comrade.

Shiho shrugged, crossing her legs. 'You can say that.'

'I'm a little old for guessing games.' Dearka said tiredly, rubbing the side of his head. 'Just tell me what it is.'

Shiho smiled and leaned forward. Reaching out one hand, she turned the file open. Looking down at it, Dearka paused, then stared at Shiho. 'What the hell is this?'

'You've been assigned with this mission.' Shiho replied.

'A civilian?' Dearka raised his eyebrows. 'Are you sure?'

'Very sure.' Shiho said. 'It's a bit sensitive and Orb has requested that ZAFT take all precaution necessary. Captain Jule has decided to assign this mission to you and your team, any questions.'

'I'm not doing it.' Dearka said bluntly. 'You can report that to Commander Jule directly.'

Shiho raised her eyebrows. 'You sure? You'd be perfect for the job.'

'I'm not.' Dearka said shortly. 'I can't do the job, tell him to assign another team.'

Shiho shrugged. 'Well then, I guess that ends this issue.'

'There's another issue?' Dearka asked weakly.

Shiho looked up. 'I don't know if this is classified as an issue to you, but your Mom has invited me and Commander Jule over for dinner on Thursday.'

Dearka frowned. 'Since when did you befriend my family Hahnenfuss?'

'Since your two week off.' Shiho smiled down at him, grabbing the file. 'Your fiancée kept asking me where you were and – '

'She's not my fiancée!' Dearka snapped. 'How many times do I have to clarify? It's getting old.'

Shiho shrugged. 'That's what Commander Jule said.'

'You spend too much time with him.' Dearka muttered, 'Yzak should just call you his work wife.'

Shiho laughed. 'Anyway, Eneta invited me over, that's why I'm coming, just wanted to give you a warning.'

'You're not going to ruin my house right?' Dearka asked carefully. 'I don't make much money you know.'

'No I'm not.' Shiho rolled her eyes. 'Anyway, Eneta's been complaining about you for some time, so you know what to do.'

'Being the friendly you again aren't you Hahenfuss?' Dearka commented, shaking his head. 'You got to get yourself a guy.'

Shiho snorted. 'I have my choices.'

'Like what?' Dearka smirked. 'Look at you, you look like a guy in that stupid elite uniform, it's not like they don't have the woman's uniform!'

Shiho put her hands on her hips. 'Hey, if I wore that stupid outfit, guys would be begging to go out with me.'

'Yeah, whatever.' Dearka muttered. 'Now get out, I have tones of stuff to do.'

'Good luck.' Shiho said. Before she closed the door behind her, she stuck her head back into his office. 'You sure you're bailing out on this mission.'

Dearka took a deep breath before he looked up again and gave him his most charming smile. 'I'm sure Major Hahnenfuss.'

Shiho shrugged. 'Fine by me.'

When the door closed, Dearka stared at it for almost a minute before he stood up and threw a stack of files at the wall, trying in desperate hope to relieve his frustration.

'Damn it!' Dearka cursed, slamming a hand on his desk. Knowing that he'd never get any work done, he decided to call it a day despite the fact that it was only four o'clock in the afternoon. Picking up the files he had thrown in frustration a few minutes ago, he dumped them on the sofa. Picking up his car keys, he flung open the door and slammed it shut.

'Elthman? I thought you had a meeting with Hahnenfuss!' Another major asked as they took the same lift. 'I heard it was big stuff.'

'I rejected it.' Dearka muttered, fixing his collar again.

The major frowned. 'You sure? You're a pro at security.'

'Believe me.' Dearka smirked. 'I'm not the man for this type of mission.'

'If you say so.'

Parting ways, Dearka headed down to the car park and located his car. Unlocking it with his remote, he climbed into and shut the door. He stared at the steering wheel for a minute before he stuck his key in and gunned the engine. As he steered out of the car park into the street, his cell phone rang.

'Elthman.' Dearka answered curtly.

'Yo major!'

'Iwen?'

'You bet it is, care to come out for a drink later on?' Iwen Cavicog asked. 'You've been back for like two months and we've only seen you during work, surely you've missed clubbing, or have you clubbed too much at Orb?'

'Thanks but no thanks.' Dearka said. 'I've got plans.'

'Plans?' Iwen repeated. 'What plans?'

'Get your butt out of other people's business.' Dearka said in a half joking tone. 'You guys go, I'm too old for clubbing.'

'You? Old? Give me a break!' Iwen shrieked. 'Dude, you're only nineteen, stop acting like a fifty year old.'

'Yeah, whatever.' Dearka muttered. Cutting the line, he drove in silence until he reached his quarters which was a twenty minute drive from where he was stationed if the traffic was okay.

'Major, you got a parcel.' The guard at the lobby said, greeting him.

'Thanks.' Dearka muttered, signing it. He stopped to check his mail before entering the elevator, staring down at the document bag that had his name and address typed on the cover. Wondering what it was, he stepped out of the lift and opened the door to his apartment. Tossing the parcel onto his sofa, he threw himself onto the bed.

He never realized how empty his studio was.

Rubbing his face, Dearka forced himself up and made his way to the bathroom. Turning the tap on, he splashed cold water over his face, trying to clear his mind which had been foggy for the past three months or so. Taking a deep breath, he looked up and stared at his own reflection, water dripping from the sides of his unruly blonde locks.

Cursing, he ripped the towel from the rack and rubbed his face violently. Wincing, he threw the towel into the basket. The communicator beeped outside.

'Who the hell is it?' Dearka muttered to himself. Throwing himself into his work chair, he turned on the communicator. 'What is it?'

Yzak glared at him from the screen. 'You let yourself off early, again?'

'Look, I've met all your stupid fucking deadlines so get off my case!' Dearka snapped.

'You know that discipline is what the military survives on.' Yzak said flatly. 'But that's not what I'm calling you for, at least not the major issue.'

'Then what?' Dearka muttered, racking his hand through his hair violently.

'Hahnenfuss told me you bailed out on the mission, you sure about it?' Yzak asked. 'Theoretically, I can force you to accept this mission but you know I won't, this is your last chance.'

'I'm going to tell you what I told Hahnenfuss.' Dearka said through gritted teeth. 'No.'

'What's with the temper?' Yzak smirked. 'Aren't you the cynical one?'

'Anything else?' Dearka asked shortly.

'Jeez.' Yzak shook his head. 'You sure you're not – '

Dearka cut the connection before Yzak could finish his sentence. Undoing his uniform, he shrugged his coat off and tossed it onto the bed. Flopping onto the sofa, he picked up the parcel he got from the lobby. Staring at it for a while, he turned it over and ripped open the bag.

It was Miliani Hermance's photo collection, the exclusive edition for subscribers.

A printed note was attached to it, or more like an invitation.

Grinding his teeth, he tossed the photo collection and the invitation on his desk. Before, it would be hard to resist not flipping through it, but now, he couldn't bring himself to do it. Shaking his head tiredly, he collapsed on his bed.

He needed sleep, a real, dreamless sleep that did not involve her.

'When we arrive, we're going to check into the hotel first. About an hour later, you're going to meet with security team of ZAFT and they'll go over the procedures. After that, you're going to have a dinner with the PR and they'll go over their own schedule of the press conference. The press conference is going to start at around two tomorrow at the hotel. After that, you're going to give a talk at one of their universities, I forgot which one I have to check the schedule, after that…'

Miriallia stared out the window of the shuttle as her agent drowned on with her schedule. She wasn't really paying attention since Suet would deal with all the details. All she had to do was be at the place on time and not dressed like a hippie.

'Are you listening?' Suet asked, glancing at her sideways.

'Yeah, go on.' Miriallia said absently, staring at PLANT. The colonies were lovely.

Suet sighed. 'Are you okay? You've been quiet ever since we got on the shuttle.'

'I'm fine.' Miriallia assured, turning her head and giving Suet a small smile. 'Just a little tired, that's all.'

Suet looked at her suspiciously. 'I hope you're okay because you've got tonnes to do during the book tour. This is your debut and I want it to be perfect, not that your collection isn't already near perfection.'

'There's still room for improvement.' Miriallia countered. 'A lot of room for improvement.'

Suet shrugged. 'Anyway, we're going to stay at Aprilius One for about three days then we'll head back to Earth.'

'Yeah.' Mirialia responded. 'You know I don't have any say in your schedules, I just follow them.'

Suet rolled her eyes and shook her shoulder.' Good God Miriallia, what's wrong with you, it's like something has sucked all the energy out form you!'

'I blame your deadlines!' Miriallia snorted.

'All passengers, please stay in your seats as we are about to approach the docking area. Please do not leave your seating area until the shuttle is completely docked, thank you for your kind attention.'

Suet stretched and closed her organizer. 'Finally! It's been like what? Six hours?'

'Piece of cake.' Miriallia muttered, resting her chin on her palm.

'That's because you spend three quarters of the year traveling.' Suet snapped.

'And you sit in your office twenty four seven.' Miriallia shot back, shooting her agent a glance.

'Whatever.' Suet yawned and closed her eyes. 'Tell me when we can leave.'

'There are announcements.' Miriallia said flatly.

'I know…' Suet's voice trailed.

Miriallia looked out the window again as the shuttle approached its assigned docking area. Though she was a war photographer and traveled a lot, her traveling area was only confined to Earth. She had long wanted to capture scenes of war in outer space which were one of the bloodiest. She also wanted to revisit the ruins of Junius 7, though the nightmares sometimes still plunged her.

The memory of Lieutenant Badgiruel opening the door, revealing a mother carrying her child floating in the air was still fresh in her mind. She had screamed and thrown herself into Tolle's arms. Death was appalling, and it was part of war's brutal reality.

They had to live off the ruins of Junis 7 though and all they could do was make paper flowers as a small tribute to the victims of Junis 7, the victims of the nuclear missiles of OMNI, the victims of war.

She wanted to revisit Junis 7 again, she really did.

Miriallia continued to stare into space as memories of the war after the fall of Helipolis flooded her. It was a part of her that would never disappear, ever.

'Yo, Miriallia.' Suet gave her a kick in the feet.

'Huh?' Miriallia looked up, a little dazed. 'What?'

'We're there.' Suet rolled her eyes.

Nodding, Miriallia took her huge shoulder bag from Suet and followed her. 'What's on the list first again?'

'We're going to settle down at the hotel first, the PRs are supposed to pick us up.' Suet said as they passed immigration.

'Right.' They met the PRs at the arrival lobby of the shuttle port. She usually kept silent and let Suet do all the talking since she wasn't really that good at socializing with complete strangers. The ride to the hotel was short since it was near the shuttle port. Once settled in her hotel room, Miriallia collapsed on the bed.

'I'll come in and check on you in an hour okay?' Suet said, scanning through her organizer again.

'Yeah.' Miriallia voice was muffled as she had her face buried in the pillow.

Smiling, Suet shook her head and retreated. Once the door clicked shut, Miriallia opened her eyes and sat up. An hour wasn't a lot of time and she didn't want to take a nap with the time difference and all. After washing her face in the bathroom, she came out a little refreshed and decided to check on her mail and give her family a call.

Stretching, she took out her laptop and turned it on. Flopping onto the bed, she grabbed her cell phone and dialed the familiar number. She waited for a while before Rafe answered the phone.

'Hey dude!' Miriallia greeted.

'Hey sis! What's going on?' Rafe asked.

'Nothing, just arrived, thought I'd give you a call.' Miriallia smiled, rolling onto her back.

'Well, it's a good thing you remembered.' Rafe muttered.

'What time is it over there?' Miriallia asked.

'Seven in the morning. I have fencing so I'm the only one up.' Rafe replied. Miriallia could hear him fiddling with his saber.

'Is the tournament coming soon?' Miriallia asked.

'Well, you could say that.' Rafe said. 'But I'm not in it. The varsity team has decided to send less experienced team members to fight in this friendship tournament.'

'And you're so experienced.' Miriallia said dryly.

'Better than those suckers.' Rafe laughed. 'Anyway, gotta go, I'll tell Mom and Dad you called. Anything else?'

'Oh, yeah, could you clean my apartment for me?' Miriallia asked jokily.

'In your dreams!'

Miriallia laughed as she cut the connection. Rolling onto her stomach again, she clicked into her mailbox to check on her mail. Nothing special, some advertisements, bills and information on the latest photography equipment... She needed a new tripod and was trying to find a good one since her old one had a rusting leg which according the salesman should never happen.

Standing up from the bed, Miriallia walked to the mini fridge and took out a bottle of juice. She knew how expensive stuff from the mini bars were and never touched them unless the publisher paid. She figured she'd take every advantage she could.

Taking a long gulp, she pushed aside the drapes and looked out the window at the city view. Though she lived on Heliopolis her whole life before it fell, she never visited PLANT before. She knew that PLANT did not welcome naturals before but now they have been willing to make a start. Visas for naturals to enter PLANT were still very strict and usually people on business were given the highest priority.

Looking down, Miriallia saw a ZAFT van drive into Divinora's open car park. Frowning, she watched as an elite ZAFT soldier stepped out, followed by a few regular ones. She still didn't understand why Cagalli insisted on alerting ZAFT itself. It really was no big deal, she was only a civilian. Athrun had explained that she might be in danger because of the last assassination attempt at Orb but she highly doubted that since she was no one of importance publicly. Knowing Cagalli, she couldn't reject her offer, especially when it came to issues that involved life and death.

Shaking her head, Miriallia decided to change into something clean. Just as she pulled her dirty T-shirt over her head, the hotel phone rang. Sitting on the side of the bed, she answered it.

'Is this Miss Haww?'

'Yes.' Miriallia responded.

'Representatives of ZAFT have arrived and are waiting at conference room three located at the fourth floor. You're agent has already been notified.'

'Thank you.' Miriallia said before hanging up.

Unzipping her duffle, she pulled out a fresh T-shirt. She was about to pull it on when something cold hit her chest. Looking at the mirror, she lowered her eyes at the dog tag hanging from her neck. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and pulled the T-shirt on. Grabbing her waist bag, she buckled it around her waist and took the hotel card out of the electric socket as she let the heavy door click shut behind her.

'I'm Major Hahnenfuss, head of the team in charge of the security of your press conference tomorrow.' Shiho stood up and shook hands with Miriallia and Suet.

Shiho turned and introduced the other three ZAFT soldiers.

'Why exactly are we having this meeting?' Miriallia asked weakly, sitting down.

'Well, to be honest,' Shiho sat down again, 'we've been getting reports of suspicious assassination attempts. The targets we're getting aren't clear, but since the Orb government has requested that we take special measures at your press conference, we decided to take things seriously, that's why my Commander formed a special team for tomorrow's security.'

Miriallia nodded, taking a deep breath. 'Is there anything I need to know then?'

Shiho motioned for one of his assistances to dim the lights and she clicked on the projector. 'This is the blueprint of the hotel and the outdoor area you'll be using is located at the back of the hotel.'

'I've got this blueprint before hand.' Suet said. She then turned to whisper something into the PR representative's ear.

'The normal agenda of your conference will not be affected.' Shiho explained. 'But you have a right to know that we will place guards at the periphery of the podium and we'll have a control van stationed.'

Mirialia stared at the screen uninterestingly as Shiho continued to explain the whole security plan to Suet who was taking down notes. She turned them out for most of the meeting and felt her mind wondering. She had caught sight of one of the ZAFT soldiers and an image of Dearka in the same uniform had flashed by her mind.

'Is everything clear Miss Haww?' Shiho asked as the lights were turned on again. 'Miss Haww?'

Miriallia looked up in a daze, blinking.

'Excuse her, she's not use to traveling.' Suet apologized.

Shiho raised her eyebrows. 'I thought you traveled for a huge portion of the year.'

'I'm sorry, I dazed out a little.' Miriallia ran her fingers through her light hair. 'Everything looks okay.'

'Great!' Shiho motioned for the two ZAFT soldiers to pack the equipment. Miriallia stared at them, wondering if she should ask.

'I've received your schedule already, so things should run smoothly tomorrow.' Shiho reassured, nodding her head at Suet.

'Thank you for the help.' Suet reached out one hand.

Shiho bowed her head. 'Well, I guess we'll be leaving then, see you tomorrow.'

'Wait!' Miriallia took a step forward.

'Yes?' Shiho turned, looking at Miriallia's confused face.

'I, uh, can I talk to you in private for a minute, it won't take much time.' Miriallia said, looking away.

Shiho pointed at herself. 'Me? Do I know you?'

'No, you don't, but I was wondering if I could ask you a favor.' Miriallia said softly, shooting a glance at Suet.

'If I can help.' Shiho said uncertainly. She told the other ZAFT soldiers to wait for her at the van while Suet and the other PR representative followed them out of the conference room. 'You were saying?'

'I uh,' Miriallia looked at her in embarrassment. 'I was wondering if you knew someone.'

Shiho cocked her head. 'You know someone here?'

'He's a ZAFT soldier.' Miriallia said quickly, 'that's why I thought you'd know him.'

Shinho smiled. 'I may or may not. ZAFT is pretty big.'

Miriallia put her hands behind her back. 'Do you know Dearka Ethlman?'

Shiho blinked at her, then smiled. 'Ethlman? Who is he?'

Miriallia sighed in disappointment. 'I guess you don't know him then.'

Shiho crossed her arms. 'He's your friend?'

'Well, you see…' Miriallia twirled some of her hair between her fingers.

'I know him.' Shiho said, giving her a small wave. 'I was just messing with you.'

Miriallia's head shot up. 'You know him?'

'I've actually heard of you too, from my Commander, Yzak Jule.' Shiho said, giving her a smirk.

'So, that means you're in Dearka's team?' Miriallia asked carefully.

'Technically, yes.' Shiho replied. 'We're the two big ones below Jule though I'm an elite. Dearka was actually assigned to this mission, but he bailed out so I had to take his place.'

'Really…' Miriallia looked down.

'So, you want to see Dearka? I thought you two were friends. I heard from Captain Jule that you guys had spent time during his paid leave at Orb. Don't you have his contact?' Shiho asked.

'I may have lost it.' Miriallia said timidly.

Shiho shrugged. 'You want me to give you his address or…'

'His address will be fine.' Miriallia said quickly. 'He left something with me by accident and it's pretty important. It's better than I give it back to him in person.'

'Really?' Shiho reached for the pen and note paper on the huge conference table. 'If you really have a packed schedule, I can give it to him. I'm actually seeing him tonight, his family invited me and Captain Jule over for dinner.'

'Oh.' Miriallia took the piece of paper from her. 'It's really okay, I guess I can squeeze in some time before I leave.'

Shiho smiled. 'Great.'

Miriallia bowed her head. 'Thank you, we'll see each other tomorrow then, I guess.'

Shiho nodded. 'Right.' Saying goodbye, she left the conference room.

Sitting down again, Miriallia stared at the piece of paper in her hands. Biting her lip, she reached into her shirt and took out the dog tag.

Should she?

'Are you serious?' Yzak hissed, leaning closer to Shiho.

'I'm serious!' Shiho hissed back, shifting closer towards him.

'She asked for Dearka? I thought she was the one who dumped him.' Yzak muttered.

'Are you sure?' Shiho murmured back. 'I mean, she seemed pretty desperate. Did Dearka actually tell you what happened?'

Yzak jerked. 'Well… not really.' He confessed.

Shiho eyed him. 'Then it may be that he dumped her.'

Yzak shrugged. 'Maybe he wants revenge.' He crossed his arms. 'What's she like anyway to make our major go head over heels?'

'She seems pretty… unlikely to catch his attention, especially when you compare her to the other girls he hooks up with.' Shiho said in a low voice.

'Right, the big knockers and fannies.' Yzak muttered.

Shiho shrugged. 'I don't know, she seems pretty plain to me, even timid if you ask me. She wouldn't even look at me in the eye, like I'd pull out a pistol and shoot her.'

Yzak muffled a laugh.

'What are you two whispering about?' Dearka asked in annoyance, stepping into the living room of his parents house with Eneta Toullon behind him.

'What's up?' Eneta asked, smiling warmly at them.

'Nothing!' Yzak said quickly. 'Does your Mom need any help?'

'She's good.' Dearka said, sitting down on the floor. 'Dinner will be ready in about fifteen minutes.'

'Great!' Shiho exclaimed as Eneta sat beside her.

'What were you guys talking about?' Eneta asked.

'Nothing, just this person I met today during a mission.' Shiho said. Yzak nudged her in the ribs gently, warning her not to let out too much. Shiho nudged back.

'What you guys do when you're alone is beyond me.' Dearka muttered, reaching for a cracker on the plate resting on the coffee table.

'Anyway.' Shiho cleared her throat. 'What are we having for dinner?'

'I don't know, Kebab?' Dearka smirked.

'Dude, don't toy me.' Yzak muttered. He had a fear of kebabs because he almost got one of those sticks stuck in his throat when he was little.

'Since when did the two of you get along so well?' Dearka wondered, looking at Eneta and Shiho.

'Since your two week vacation.' Shiho replied. 'I thought I told you earlier.'

'Right.' Dearka rolled his eyes.

'Have you guys been to that new amusement park?' Shiho asked.

Yzak looked at her weirdly. 'Amusement park? Aren't you a little old for that?'

'What?' Shiho cried. 'I'm only eighteen for Christ's sake! It's no fair that I don't get the chance to have fun just because I'm in the military!'

'Whatever.' Yzak rolled his eyes and put his hands behind his head. 'Amusement parks are stupid.'

'No they're not.' Eneta said softly, still smiling. 'I have some friends who went there a few weeks ago, they say it's fun! Maybe we should go some time.'

'I'd love to,' Yzak said sarcastically, 'provided that I have the time, and don't you dare think of taking a day off just to go to an amusement park Hahnenfuss!' he added before Shiho could open her mouth in protest.

Shiho pouted. 'No fair! Why does Dearka get holidays and I don't! I should threaten you too! Say something Dearka!'

'Dearka?' Eneta reached out one hand and touched his shoulder.

'Huh?' Dearka jerked his head up in a daze. 'What?'

'Were you even with us?' Yzak asked.

'Sure.' Dearka said, his mind in a fog. 'You said something about a park?'

'An amusement park!' Shiho said hotly. 'What's wrong with you tonight?'

'You're worried about a deadline?' Yzak jeered.

'No.' Dearka muttered.

'Kids! Dinner's ready!' Mrs. Ethlman called from the kitchen.

'Let's go.' Dearka stood up while Eneta followed him out of the living room.

'He sure has a problem.' Shiho muttered as she and Yzak hung back a little.

'Look, the girl dumped him two years ago on the bed, there's bound to be a story from his time at Orb.' Yzak bit his lip. 'If only I could make him spill his beans.'

'I don't think he's going to do that.' Shiho said dryly.

'You gave the girl his address?' Yzak murmured, grabbing her arm.

Shiho looked at him. 'Like I had a choice? You should have seen the look on her face.'

'Really, the two of you!' Dearka stuck his head out from the dining room. 'You guys should just marry each other!'

'Yeah, right.' The both of them said at the same time.

Smirking, Dearka took his seat and looked at the table of food. 'You're still the pro Ma.'

'Aww, that's sweet.' Mrs. Ethlman smiled brightly. She was a tall and thin woman in her mid forties. She looked young for her age and used to be a model before she retired early and married her husband, Ted Ethlman. It was hard to tell that she was actually the kind of Mom who likes to lock herself at home and do the chores and cooking.

'If you think your Ma's a pro then you should come back more often.' Mr. Ethlman muttered, reaching for the casserole.

'And pick a fight with you? No thank you.' Dearka muttered back.

Mr. Ethlman glared at him. 'Do you always have to talk back like that?'

Dearka thought for a while, then nodded. 'Yeah.'

'Here we go again.' Yzak murmured to Shiho, who blinked in confusion while Eneta tried to muffle a laugh.

'Come on dear, don't pick a fight now, Dearka hasn't been back for over a month.' Mrs. Ethlman said, use to handling the verbal conflicts between his son and husband.

'How's everything going on with your Mother?' Mrs. Ethlman asked Yzak.

'Uh, she's fine.' Yzak replied, giving Mrs. Ethlman a smile. 'She still complains sometimes, I hope the council will let her out soon.'

'That will depend.' Mr. Elthman sighed. 'It's getting hard for members to agree on things nowadays.'

Yzak nodded, looking down at his plate.

'How's it going with you?' Mrs. Elthman asked, turning to Shiho.

Shiho smiled. 'Well, I'm under Captain Jule so things are crazily busy. Dearka will give you the same answer if you ask him.'

Yzak nudged Shiho in the ribs. 'I'm not that bad am I?'

'Oh yeah, you are.' Dearka muttered, cutting his steak.

Yzak snorted. 'I'm ten times busier than the two of you.' He glared at Dearka. 'I wonder who got a two week off from me three months ago?'

'Speaking of that.' Mr. Ethlman turned to his son. 'How come we didn't know anything about your two week vacation?'

'I had something to do.' Dearka said briefly, hoping the subject would change.

'And it was…' Mr. and Mrs. Ethlman looked at their son.

'I, I went to Orb to meet up with some friends from Archangel.' Dearka said reluctantly.

'Archangel.' Mr. Ethlman spat.

'Dear…' Mrs. Ethlman looked at her husband sideways.

'See what you did?' Dearka hissed, glaring at Yzak, who shrugged and focused his attention on his chicken.

'Athrun Zala's at Orb now right?' Mr. Ethlman muttered.

Dearka nodded. 'Yeah, the princess' bodyguard.'

'I don't know why he didn't come back to ZAFT.' Mr. Ethlman continued. 'He's rare talent and he'll do great things even without his father.'

'You can't force people to do something they don't want to Dad.' Dearka said, eyeing his Father.

Mr. Ethlman just snorted.

'Is the food okay?' Mrs. Ethlman asked Shinho and Eneta.

Shiho gave her a big smile and almost choked on her food while Eneta nodded. 'It's delicious!'

'You should have at least told Eneta where you went for those two weeks.' Mr. Ethlman added.

'It was really okay!' Eneta said quickly, casting a glance at Dearka who was chewing on his steak.

'She was worried about you.' Mrs. Ethlman said, giving Dearka stern glance. 'I know you have your own life and all, but we'll worry about you. At least give us a call.'

'I do it.' Dearka muttered.

Dinner went on peacefully and at around ten, they left in Yzak's car.

'You really like eating.' Yzak murmured, eyeing Shiho in the rear mirror. Shiho had take away some of Mrs. Ethlman's cooking and was staring down at it with sparkling eyes.

'Yes I do.' Shiho admitted. 'Give me anything delicious and I'll eat it.'

'You're going to get fat.' Yzak smirked.

'After you.' Shiho retaliated, flashing her eyes at him in the rear mirror.

Yzak just laughed while Eneta giggled beside Shiho. 'You really are going to get fat if you continue to eat like this.'

Shiho pursed her lips. 'I'm just living in the moment.'

'You should just go out with that cake.' Yzak jeered.

'And get a room.' Dearka added.

'Go on and make fun of me.' Shiho raised her eyebrows challengingly. 'Go on! I'm not going to give a damn about it at long as I feel good about myself!'

They arrived Dearka's quarters half an hour later and Yzak was surprised that Eneta got off the car with him.

'I left something with Dearka.' Eneta explained before Yzak opened his mouth.

'Come on.' Dearka said.

'Hey!' Shiho reached out one leg before Dearka slammed it shut. 'I'm going to sit in the front!'

'Suit yourself.' Dearka said absently.

Jumping into the front seat beside Yzak, Shiho rolled the window open and said goodbye to Eneta. 'I'm going to see you tomorrow anyway!' She exclaimed when Dearka gave her a look.

'Later!' Yzak raised one hand.

'Yeah.'

The two watched Dearka and Eneta disappear into the lobby.

'You think they're going to doing it tonight?' Shiho asked, looking up.

'As a guy?' Yzak smirked, steering out of the car park. 'I'd say hell yeah.'

'Have I done something wrong?'

Dearka turned around and looked at Eneta with furrowed eyebrows, his keycard in the socket of his electronic lock. 'Excuse me?'

'You don't hate me…' Eneta's voice trailed, looking away. 'do you?'

Dearka racked his fingers through his hair. 'Of course I don't.'

Eneta bit her lower lip. 'Then why do you keep pushing me away?'

Dearka shot a glance at her. 'Look, it's getting cold out here, come in first – '

'You're going to give me an answer today!' Eneta cried, throwing her arms around Dearka's neck.

Dearka froze as the force caused him to back up against his door. He closed his eyes as Eneta sobbed against his chest. He really didn't want things to go like this between them. Eneta was a very nice girl, beautiful, charming. Lots of guys wanted to be her boyfriend but somehow she only wanted him. It wasn't that he didn't like her, just not in that way.

Should he just tell her?

Pulling away, Eneta stared into his eyes. Without hesitation, she leaned forward and kissed him. Dearka stared at her wide eye. Kicking himself mentally, he started kissing her back. Wrapping one arm behind her back, he felt for the door knob with the other hand and they almost tripped into the apartment. Squeezing his eyes shut, he pushed her away and leaned against the door, closing it shut with his back.

It felt wrong.

'I'm sorry Eneta.' Dearka said breathlessly, supporting himself with one hand on the knob.

'What have I done wrong?' Eneta whispered, falling onto the wooden floor.

'Nothing, you've done nothing wrong!' Dearka insisted. 'The problem's with me.'

'We've known each other so long! I always thought I was the one who knew you the most!' Eneta cried, looking up at him with welled eyes. 'What's happened between us? Ever since the war…'

'It's me, okay?' Dearka muttered. 'I – there's someone else.'

Eneta looked up sharply, then gulped. 'Is it someone from Archangel?'

Dearka looked away in silence.

'I knew it, something must have happened on that cursed battleship.' Eneta whispered, trying to hold back her tears. 'I've waited Dearka, I've waited for two whole years. I've told myself that you'll find your way back so I never bothered with your flings despite what your Dad says about them. I've waited for nothing, right?'

'I'm sorry Eneta, I just… it won't happen.' He couldn't push himself to accept her even though his parents really wanted her to be his wife.

'I don't want your apology!' Eneta cried, standing up. 'I just want you to accept me! You know I love you!'

'You know it's not going to change a thing, you can't force things like this to happen Eneta!' Dearka said firmly. 'You know perfectly well I never agreed to any marriage arrangement!'

'You really have no feelings of love towards me?' Eneta whispered, looking into his eyes.

He couldn't look away, he couldn't lie and never really did. He didn't want things to end up like Miriallia, it was painful enough. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he nodded. 'You knew the answer all along Eneta.'

Biting her lip, Eneta let her tears overflow. Taking a deep breath, Dearka walked towards her, wrapping his arms around her. 'I'll take you home.'

Eneta shook her head, burying her face into his chest. 'Let me stay here, just, in your arms for one night.'

Sighing, Dearka lifted her up and sat down on the sofa, letting her rest on his lap. 'You're a great girl, you deserve more than a bastard like me.' He whispered into her ear.

Eneta gave out a small laugh through her tears. 'You're not a bastard, you're a man I'll never have.' She looked up at him. 'Don't go, just for the night.'

Dearka shook his head. 'I won't, just… close your eyes.'

Nodding like a child, Eneta relaxed against his chest. They sat in silence and Dearka could sense that Eneta was drifting off to sleep. He froze when she suddenly whispered into his ear. 'Do you love her?'

Dearka looked down at her, then rested his cheek on top of her head. Making sure that she was indeed asleep, he picked her up and placed her on his bed. Loosening his tie, he sat down on the sofa again and stared at Eneta's sleeping form. He wished it was Miriallia.

He did love her, really loved her, but sometimes love wasn't the only thing that mattered.

Exhaling loudly, he leaned onto the couch and closed his eyes. He wasn't going to get much sleep tonight. Little did he know that outside, another person too would have a sleepless night out in the cold.

End of Chapter 9
Next update: 27/07/2005

A/N: Coming to the countdown, two more chapters left... REVIEW!