Chapter 19 Silent Treatment
A/N: Oh good, at least I can update this chapter, I don't know when I'll get my internet connection set up for good, but rest assured I will update! Happy New Year and I hope you enjoy this chapter!
"Freaks, all of you are!" hissed Mia, pouting and storming back out of the medical unit, probably back to her bedroom, where she would mope about for the rest of the day.
"At least we've gotten rid of that pest! She's a nuisance really!" exclaimed Miriallia, silently cursing Mia with a long lost of profanities in her mind and folding her arms tightly across her chest.
"Well that's one thing we all know, she definitely is a nuisance alright." Said Dearka, shaking his gently, before wincing when the pain in his wound got worse when he furrowed his eyebrows.
"What's going on? Will somebody tell me? Lacus?" pleaded the blue-haired co-ordinator, Athrun, who was sitting up in bed and his mind a complete swirl of thoughts, emotions and expressions.
"It's a long story Athrun, and in the middle of the story, you're the baddie. Maybe you should wait till you're fully well before hearing us out, because you might get a heart attack after hearing it all." Advocated Dearka knowingly, before looking over at Yzak, who was sitting worriedly in a plastic chair.
Just then, Kira swerved tightly into the medical unit, a pissed looking Cagalli trailing along behind. The unit fell silent, as all eyes focused upon the blonde Orb Princess, all eager and waiting to see what her reaction would be.
"Cagalli! What's going on, no one will tell me!" said Athrun, looking up at the blonde girl, and having no clue that everything that had happened, was partially his fault.
Cagalli just stared annoyed at Athrun, refusing to speak a word in his presence or even answer his constant pleas for an explanation to what was going on, and to why she wasn't speaking to him.
"Athrun, before you start screaming your voice hoarse, there's something you should know, and even if Cagalli disapproves of it, you have a right to know." Said Miriallia, looking at Lacus and gesturing that they should tell Athrun about Aaron.
Cagalli looked sternly at Miriallia and Lacus, and widened her eyes ferociously, shaking her head slightly, indicating that she clearly disapproved of it.
"Cagalli, Athrun has a right to know. You can't hide it from his forever, he's bound to find out anyway!" said Kira defensively, moving up beside Cagalli and looking at her firmly.
Cagalli's expression softened slightly, before her eyebrows furrowed in deep thought. Finally, she hesitantly looked up at Miriallia and Lacus before nodding.
"Athrun, you're a father now, your son's name is Aaron, and he's up in his cot right now." Said Lacus, looking over at the blonde girl, before continuing, "Aaron's mother would also be none other than Cagalli, and though I wish to tell you the full story so you can connect and relate to everything, I can't say any more than this."
Athrun stared up at Cagalli before looking at everyone else before sighing. "I can tell that Cagalli's angry with me for some reason, and unless I hear you guys out, I can't mend my ways and make Cagalli happy. I don't want to displease her or any one of you,"
"Cagalli, he has a point there. Seriously, he deserves to know. To make him face the music is a fair punishment, but to keep him from the truth is just unjust." Said Miriallia wisely, sounding like Lacus for the first time.
"Dearka, I think your girlfriend has been spending too much time with Lacus, she's already starting to talk like her." Said Kira jokingly, smiling widely at Miriallia, who pursed her lips.
Lacus giggled at Kira's statement and clung on to his forearm, her head resting sideways on his shoulder.
"Cagalli, ca we bring Aaron down, that was your original plan wasn't it? To let Athrun see Aaron if he awakened." Said Lacus, looking over at Cagalli and hoping that the blonde Orb Princess wouldn't turn down her request.
Sure enough, Cagalli turned to Lacus and shook her head violently. Lacus found Cagalli rather unreasonable, as after all, nothing would change the fact that Athrun was Aaron's father.
"Cagalli, don't be so unreasonable! You're being too harsh on Athrun! It's not all his fault that everything happened, it was that cunning Mia!" exclaimed Kira fiercely, glaring at Cagalli heatedly.
Cagalli knew very well that Kira was becoming infuriated, and she certainly didn't want to annoy anyone but Athrun, that is. Yes, she was very evil, very evil indeed, making someone she loved so dearly suffer as a result of payback.
"WHAT'S GOING ON? CAGLLI'S ANGRY WITH ME AND NEXT I FIND OUT I HAVE A SON, WHAT'S NEXT? I KILLED SOMEONE?" hollered Athrun, falling back onto the support of his pillow and trying to catch his breath.
Certainly, the blue-haired charming co-ordinator had mustered all his energy and courage just to get everyone's attention, and Lacus certainly thought that her former fiancé deserved to know the truth.
"That does it, whether or not you guys approve of Athrun knowing the truth, I can't bear to see him being kept in the dark! Keeping the truth from him is a totally immature and childish action!" barked Lacus hotly, looking angrily from Cagalli to Dearka.
Lacus's sudden outburst had been so unexpected, that the pink-haired girl had even gotten the attention of a heavy-hearted Yzak, whom before that was busy pining silently for Kyo.
Everyone was silent, and even when Lacus begun explaining everything to Athrun, not even Cagalli lifted a finger to stop her. The pink-haired girl rambled on and on, explaining everything in full detail, not that she was rambling on about nonsensical things, but Kira and the others just felt that she was dragging her explanation a little too long.
By the time Lacus had finished, Dearka had cheekily fallen asleep in a nearby plastic chair and Cagalli and Kira looked rather dazed and bored. However, Athrun's facial features held a different expression.
The charming blue-haired young man was looking rather petrified, stoned and slightly horrified. Turning to Cagalli he said, "I am so sorry, Cagalli. I didn't mean to really, I had no idea."
For once, Cagalli spoke. "Yeah, of course you didn't know, you're just an insolent jerk!" she said, backstabbing him hard.
However, before Athrun could say anything to defend himself, Dr. Ishida swerved out of the operating theatre. A few nurses trailing along behind, pushing an unconscious Kyo out on a stretcher.
"Kyo, Dr. Ishida how is she?" asked Miriallia, beating Yzak in being the first one to question the doctor about Kyo's condition.
"Well, she's weak, very weak. Although she didn't lose a lot of blood, one of her internal organs seems to have ruptured, and although I've stitched her up nicely, I don't know how she'll fare from now on." Said Dr. Ishida, looking apprehensively at Yzak who looked horrorstruck.
"She'll be ok, right?" asked Yzak, not looking at Dr. Ishida, but instead, staring sideways at the floor.
"I'm not sure right now. I'm sorry, Yzak." Said Dr. Ishida, patting Yzak on the shoulder before proceeding on to Athrun, and leaving Yzak alone with Kyo.
The others' attention returned to Athrun, and Lacus was the first to ask about Athrun. I swear that if Cagalli wasn't so pissed with Athrun, she'd have been the first to ask.
"Basically, all of you should be thankful, as I think Athrun's recovery was a pure miracle. Apparently, when he knocked his head again, the knock seemed to have triggered the clot in his brain to disperse, so that the passage leading to the part of his brain which operates his memory system, became clear again." Explained Dr. Ishida smiling down at Athrun, who just grinned back.
"Yahoo!" exclaimed Dearka, who had woken up from his little snooze about a minute ago.
"Also, I want to congratulate you, Miss Cagalli, on having a baby boy." Said Dr. Ishida, reaching out to shake a hesitant Cagalli's hand. The blonde girl pulled back sharply as soon as the doctor released his grip on her hand.
Certainly, Cagalli found it very weird to find Dr. Ishida shaking her hand and congratulating her, because as far as she knew, Dr. Ishida never liked the idea of teenage pregnancies of teenage mothers, and Cagalli had been through all that.
The only reason Dr. Ishida was probably congratulating her was because he was doing it out of respect, as Cagalli was the Orb Princess.
"Athrun, no oily or spicy foods for the next two weeks, which means that you guys aren't allowed to be sneaking cafeteria food up to him here, is that clear?" questioned Dr. Ishida, and although the others agreed promptly, it didn't really matter.
Dr. Ishida was hardly ever around in the medical unit, and the nurses were too busy bustling around to notice that one of their patients was eating forbidden food.
With that, the senior doctor swerved out of sight, past a sliding door, which probably led to his office.
"I'll go and get Aaron," said Miriallia, offering to do the task of climbing two flights of stairs and bring the jovial little baby boy back down.
However, before Miriallia could proceed, Cagalli stopped her. Fearing Cagalli might stop anyone from bringing the baby down to see his father, Kira called out the blonde Orb Princess's name certainly and furrowed his eyebrows.
Cagalli glared back before hesitantly replying, "I'll get him,"
Athrun just sighed in his bed, feeling a little blue that Cagalli wasn't talking to him. No doubt he felt hurt, but he couldn't possibly take Cagalli on while he was still recovering, he'd be risking another limb or two. His main focus now was on getting well, and if by then, the blonde girl was still giving him the silent treatment, he'd take action and confront her.
"Athrun, don't worry, she'll cool off someday. She won't stay mad at you forever; she's just giving you the cold shoulder because she's pissed so don't fuss over it." Said Kira knowingly, patting Athrun gently on the shoulder.
I'm really lost right now, so I guess I'll need some peace and quiet later to think some things over." Said Athrun sighing, and scratching his forearm, before looking down at his bedcovers.
"Sure thing, mate. You'll have company here anyway, Kyo's here as well, apparently she had a little mishap with Mia Campbell. You remember who Kyo is, don't you?" asked Dearka, looking at the puzzled look on the blue-haired co-ordinator's face.
"Sure I do, I hope she's alright." Said Athrun, propping himself higher up onto his pillow, and folding his arms across his brawny chest.
"You know, you can't blame Cagalli for being mad at you, you should've seen yourself, brutal, violent, cold-hearted." Said Lacus shuddering at the thought, "Cagalli cried day and night, she was probably hurting to the brink of insanity."
Athrun sighed before shifting his gaze to his bedcovers and fiddling with his fingers. No doubt, he still felt confused, as he remembered his past and whatever that had happened with Mia, he remembered every single thing.
Of course, he had not told the others this yet, but at the moment, he was racking his brains out trying to piece it all together. The co-ordinator with midnight blue hair sat silently on the medical unit bed, knowing that he had to patch up with Cagalli no matter what, and that he had to figure everything out from head to toe.
Athrun remembered what Mia had told him about Cagalli and the others, all the lies and terrible things she had made and forced him to believe. His mind was so crammed that every single piece of information was flying around in his conscience, each wanting to get the better of him.
Of course, Athrun could still differentiate between Mia's lies and the others' true personalities, but from time to time, he would still get confused.
"Athrun, even though you can't blame my sister, we all want you to know that you can't blame yourself either. Mia swindled you into whatever you did, it's not entirely your fault." Said Kira, patting Athrun lightly on the back seeing the broody expression on the blue-haired co-ordinator's face.
"I know, I'm just so messed up right now. I wish all this had never happened, I wish I hadn't met any of you, except for Yzak and Dearka whom I met at PLANTs. By the way, where're morgue and Andy, they were here weren't they?" questioned Athrun, looking around for any sign of the coffee man and the brunette lady.
"Oh they're… hang on a sec! How come you remember Murrue and Andy? They didn't appear at all in your presence since you woke up!" exclaimed Dearka, looking stunned at Athrun, who merely sighed sadly.
"I didn't tell you guys, but I can still remember everything else about Mia, so of course I know Murrue and Andy are here." Said Athrun softly, still feeling rather blue and heartbroken.
Cagalli waked slowly into the medical unit, attracting the attention of everyone else, especially Athrun who stared curiously and eagerly at the bundle swaddled in her arms.
Cagalli glared hatefully at Athrun, which made him retract his gaze from both her and her baby. The blue-haired co-ordinator just looked away to the side, and shut his eyes, feeling the warm tears spread evenly under his eyelids.
"Cagalli stop doing this to him! You can't blame him entirely!" exclaimed Miriallia, going up to Cagalli and staring knowingly at the blonde girl, who simply snorted and furrowed her eyebrows in annoyance.
"Leave her be, I deserve it for my actions anyway." Athrun said, still not paying attention to anyone.
Cagalli recognized that tone and quaver in his voice, he was going to cry sooner or later. He had used that tone when she first took him in one of those nights when he told her about his mother dying on Junius 7.
Though Cagalli hated seeing Athrun in this pitiful state, she hated him just as much for whatever he had done to her before. No doubt she knew perfectly well that Athrun was not entirely to blame, but she still harbored anger for him.
"Cagalli go on, let Athrun see the baby." Said Lacus encouragingly, urging Cagalli to let Athrun hold his flesh and blood son for a moment.
Cagalli tightened her grip on Aaron, making the baby squirm slightly before reaching out with both arms to play with the necklace that Athrun gave her.
Athrun's eyes lit up at the sight, he had spend days carving the pendant out, and the chain was made out of pure white-gold. However, Cagalli caught his gaze and he quickly turned away.
"Cagalli Yula Athha, Princess of Orb and mother of Aaron Zala! Stop shunning Athrun!" hissed Kira, extending his sentence by stating out Cagalli's titles and statuses.
Cagalli never failed to become annoyed each time anyone did this to her, but this time she held her temper in. Kira was right; she shouldn't be shunning Athrun, especially when he needed her love most now.
"Can't you think of a less harsh way to punish him?" asked Miriallia, looking at Cagalli hopefully, as she felt the extreme hurt that Athrun was probably experiencing now.
"Cagalli, you know very well how it felt when Athrun was never there for you even if he could've been. It was terrible, we were all there with you; we knew how you felt as we all felt it too. Don't put Athrun through that as well," pleaded Lacus, wanting to get down on her knees, only to find that Cagalli stopped her.
The blonde Orb Princess sighed deeply, before looking up at Athrun, who was still looking away from her.
"Alright, fine! I'll lay off a bit, but he will still have to face the music! I'll talk to him as per normal, but in exchange, Athrun'll have to stay away from both Aaron and I." hissed Cagalli, glaring at Athrun.
The co-ordinator with midnight blue hair had lightened his expression slightly at the beginning of his little judgment; however, once the blonde ended her statement, his face had fallen at least a notch from what it was earlier on.
There was a pregnant silence lurking in all four corners of the unit, even Yzak, who was accompanying Kyo in the unit beside Athrun, didn't seem to be making anymore noise. As though he could understand the situation, even little Aaron had stopped his little gurgling noises.
"Cagalli, that's still a little harsh. After all, Aaron is Athrun's son, and he's so adorable I don't think anyone could've resisted giving him a squeeze." Contradicted Miriallia softly, knowing that even though she had voiced out her opinion, nothing would change the blonde Orb Princess's mind now.
"Take it or leave it," snapped Cagalli arrogantly, propping Aaron higher up in her arms. The little baby rested his head on his mother's neck, and focused his little emerald orbs on Athrun, and for some reason his eyes welled up with tears.
"Cagalli, Aaron looks like he's going to cry, you sure you're not wearing anything on your wrist that's poking him?" asked Lacus, looking at the solemn and teary-eyed look on the adorable baby's face.
"No, I'm not even wearing my watch. Maybe he's hungry again, but I did feed him before I came back down here." Said Cagalli, gently patting Aaron's small back in a rhythmic manner and rocked him slowly.
The little baby suddenly burst into a fit of tears, though he wasn't bawling or crying loudly, he was still fussing and rubbing his eyes with clenched little fists as pearly tears rolled down his rosy cheeks.
Aaron outstretched his arms toward Athrun, trying to wriggle out of Cagalli's arms and toward his father. Although Aaron was crying, it was kind of cute seeing him try to wriggle his way free of his mother's loving arms, not knowing that there was at least a metre's drop to the floor below him if he succeeded in wriggling free.
"I think he wants Athrun to hold him," said Kira, trying to interpret the young co-ordinator's little actions, which were quite unclear, as being a baby, he still had no proper control over his limbs.
"And I don't think you should stop Aaron," said Lacus unyieldingly, "Go on, pass him over. I'm sure you don't want Aaron to start bawling like some babies do."
Cagalli hesitated slightly, before reaching out to Athrun, as she held Aaron under his arms, letting his tiny feet, which were kept warm in his jumper, kick about.
As Athrun took Aaron from Cagalli, there was a slight brush against his and Cagalli's skin, and how he longed to hold the blonde in his arms again and love her like he used to. Of course, he still loved her just as much, or even more, but due to Cagalli's punishment, he'd have to stay away from both her and Aaron.
The only reason Athrun was holding Aaron now was because the baby wanted him to.
Athrun placed Aaron on his lap, cradling him gently and supporting his back and neck. The baby boy rested his head on his father's chest and snuggled in closer, making little baby sounds. The sounds babies made when they were comforted and contented.
Aaron's little hands had clasped onto Athrun's shirt, and he didn't seem keen on letting go, much less be wrenched away from his source of comfort, which his mother was thinking of doing just moments from now.
Just then, Uzumi Nara Athha came walking in briskly with great strides, his head held high, into the medical unit. He seemed serious, and the others could only assume he had urgent news to deliver.
The bunch greeted the Lion of Or politely, their tone full of warmth and respect. Even Yzak had come out of Kyo's unit to pay his respects to the Lion of Orb.
"Father, what's going on? You rarely ever come looking for us," said Cagalli, sounding slightly worried, seeing the serious and stern look on her father's face. The blonde girl knew very well, that if Lord Uzumi ever looked her up, his message was usually very important.
"Mia Campbell has fled from Orb. I was planning to punish her severely for her actions, but it seems one of my men saw her entering a space shuttle that was headed for PLANTs minutes ago." Informed Lord Uzumi, looking from Cagalli to Athrun, who was sitting on the medical unit bed with a little Aaron, who seemed to be dozing off again.
"Damn it, that little female rascal got away? What do we do now?" asked Dearka, punching his fist into the movable table beside Athrun's bed, which was usually used to put the patient's foodstuffs on.
"Simple, we don't do anything." Said Lacus, looking stern and wise at the same time. The others were shocked by her statement. Even Kira was staring at Lacus unbelievingly. "I know you're thinking that after everything she's done, how could we let her get away? But think of it this way, why would we want to put ourselves through all the trouble again, going to PLANTs to look for her?"
"But you know she's working for Chairman Zala, she'll deliver every single piece of information she's managed fork out from here, to him! Who knows how that pile of shit would react?" exclaimed Dearka, flinging his arms up in the air and panicking.
"Dearka, stop all of this nonsensical behaviour and zip it!" snapped Miriallia heatedly, making the copper-tone skinned blonde young man shut up the very instant she spoke.
"Miss Clyne is right. Don't go after that tattle-tale. Leave her be, we'll just have to be on the alert for anything that is to be coming our way," advocated Lord Uzumi wisely.
Meanwhile, Yzak was still sitting by Kyo's side, awaiting her revival. The platinum blonde young Jule could feel his stomach growling, though his anxiety covered it all.
"Kyo, you've got to wake up, I'll kill myself if you don't." whispered Yzak softly, stroking his girlfriend's cold but soft cheek.
The young Jule knew very well that even though he had never been very affectionate to Kyo, he still loved her deeply, and she was like his life, without her he'd be worse than dead.
Yzak clutched her hand within his own, and rested his forehead on it, and for some reason and to his delight, he felt Kyo flex her fingers…
A/N: Hurray! I finally am able to update! I have internet access now, though I may be updating slower than usual since I have just moved to New Zealand and I have to help with the house! Thanks to all my reviewers who have supported me all the way and have wished me good luck with my migration! Pls review!
In the next chapter: Athrun still has to remain in hospital, and has Cagalli, Kira and Lacus to accompany him. Though Cagalli said Athrun would have to stay away from her and Aaron, she still couldn't find the guts to move out of the medical unit. Athrun also has a frightening encounter with three trainee nurses. Dearka and Miriallia finally go out on a proper date for dinner, but find themselves thrown into a funny restaurant where funny things happen. Also Mia Campbell arrives back at PLANTs, and arranges a meeting with Chairman Patrick Zala.