Author's Note: Wow, getting hit by that car sure slowed down my writing.. -Laughing nervously his shoulders then slump.- Okay okay, I wasn't hit by a car. I've been busy playing WoW and reading Evangelion stories lately and with the lack of KiraCagalli stories I didn't have the motivation to update. Anyway, here's the new chapter, I hope you enjoy and I'm sorry about the long wait. By the way, I revised Chapter 1 and 2 a bit, most of the changes are grammatical though I did change the ending of 2 a bit. You might wanna check it out.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed, but who knows, I've been a good boy and Santa Claus might be generous this year.

Wandering Hearts

Archangel

Cagalli mentally growled as another passing crew member spared a glance at Kira that lingered just a bit too long. Unfortunately, the former as well as the three before her were all female. If not for the before mentioned pilot's hand gently holding her own, she was convinced she might have gone into SEED mode long ago. It seemed that they couldn't even make it from the hangar to the cafeteria without some random girl staring at Kira, the blushes that numerous of them got didn't help Cagalli's temper at all. Since when did Kira get so popular? Cagalli thought as her right eye twitched. So preoccupied was she that she never bothered to wonder exactly why she was angry.

Turning to Kira before she could control herself she asked, "Did you know her?"

Looking back at her with a confused expression he replied, "Who?"

Releasing a sigh, she responded, "Never mind."

Kira merely nodded in reply as he instinctively scratched the side of his head with his free hand. Although he didn't know what was bothering her, he could tell asking any further on the matter wouldn't help so he decided to shift the conversation onto a lighter topic. "Do you know what Athrun and Lacus are up to?"

Returning her gaze to the corridor ahead of them, she was relieved to see a sign saying 'Cafeteria' a few dozen yards down. "They're still helping with the peace negotiations. They say ZAFT and the EA are handling it pretty well, everyone's still really shook up about the war." Reaching the entrance, the pair turned left into the cafeteria. The conversation died between the two as their hands separated to grab some preassembled meals before choosing a table for four by the window. As they started eating in silence, Cagalli couldn't help but notice that Kira was only taking a few bites and spent the rest of the time playing with his food while gazing out at the blackness of space.

Throughout their meal, the two were interrupted numerous times as people approached them and congratulated Kira on his achievements. Being the modest person that he was, Kira merely nodded and gave them a soft smile before thanking them. Although it was all good and well intentioned; Cagalli couldn't help but be annoyed as more than one girl eyed Kira as they spoke. The last one even hinted at going on a date! Fortunately, well unfortunately for the girl, Kira was as dense as he was modest and missed the proposal completely. With her head held down the girl walked away in disappointment.

Looking at her brother with an amused though mostly satisfied expression she said, "Why'd you turn her down?"

Scratching his head in complete confusion he replied, "What do you mean?"

Letting out a quiet laugh she grinned at his naivete and answered, "You're always so oblivious Kira. That girl was flirting with you. Heck, she was only a few steps short of outright asking you out."

Kira, startled out of his wits, blushed lightly as he quietly said, "I didn't notice... Even if did I don't think I would have agreed."

Resting her head in the palm of her hand she gazed at him curiously. "Why?" Against her will she admitted, "She seemed nice and she was sure pretty enough."

The blush on his cheeks subsided and his expression visibly saddened. Looking out the window forlornly, his eyes grew distant as his voice strained. "I-I can't. It's too soon...Fllay just...it's too soon."

Cagalli's heart broke at the mention of Kira's deceased love. For untold reasons, she felt a surge of regret and envy as she thought back on the redhead that had captured Kira's heart so undeniably. From what she had seen, the two got along well enough although Fllay's happiness always seemed to be fake. Well...maybe at first. As their relationship deepened, it quickly became apparent that Fllay was just using Kira. Unfortunately Kira never noticed but it seemed that his kindness won out in the end when Fllay reciprocated his love just before her tragic demise. Cagalli's eyes became moist as she recalled the destruction of Fllay's ship, Kira's agonized cry rang through all the communication lines. If there was one thing she that was grateful for however, it was the peaceful parting between the two. She doubted Kira's soft heart could endure the reality of what was happening through most of their relationship.

The feel of a hand on her shoulder and a gentle shake brought her out of her deep thought. Her eyes followed the hand back to the owner to see Kira grinning at her, all trace of his earlier depression had vanished. "What were you thinking about?"

Turning away, she blushed as the hand fell off her shoulder to come at a rest atop her own. "N-Nothing."

Not thinking twice about what he had just done, he looked over Cagalli's shoulder and smiled. "Hey look, there's Athrun and Lacus." Sure enough, as she turned around the pink haired Princess as well as the widely acclaimed 'Prince of ZAFT' approached their table. As they exchanged friendly greetings, Cagalli caught sight of Lacus frowning momentarily at Kira's hands before the frown melted into a bright smile.

Lacus quickly took the open seat next to Kira and then looking at him sternly she said, "Shouldn't you still be in the medical ward?"

Laughing nervously at her seriousness, to Cagalli's dismay he withdrew his hands to rest his head on the palm of one while scratching the side of his head with the other. "I was just released a bit ago. I stopped by the Mobile Suit hangar to check up on the Freedom and that's where I found Cagalli. We both hadn't had anything to eat so here we are now."

Lacus nodded her head in acknowledgement before she slowly turned to look away sadly. "You should have told me... I would have met up with you."

Frowning at Lacus' change of mood, Kira mentally cursed himself for inadvertently hurting the soft spoken girl. In an attempt to rectify the situation he smiled nervously as he said, "I would have but I thought you were busy and well, I-I didn't want to trouble you."

Unseen by Kira, Lacus' cheeks turned an abrupt shade of red in response to his explanation and in a weak attempt to hide it she brought her hands to her face. "Silly, you're never a trouble."

Kira didn't reply as his own cheeks started to light up. Athrun mentally laughed at the pair's obvious affections for each other. Those two are so innocent it's adorable he thought as he smiled to himself. Looking over to see Cagalli's reaction he was surprised to see her looking out into space with an almost angry expression in the window's reflection. What's wrong with her? Staring intently at the reflection's eyes, he was alarmed to find an emotion he couldn't believe, or rather didn't want to believe. She can't be jealous...

The four spent the next hour chatting and eating lunch before Athrun and Lacus had to leave to return to their duties. As the two pairs parted, to the surprise of Kira, Athrun, and Cagalli, Lacus leaned over to embrace Kira, and planted a kiss onto his cheek before wandering off quickly. Athrun and Cagalli merely stared at Kira for a few seconds as he blushed brightly from such an open display of affection. Soon afterwards, Athrun departed as well but not before sneaking a final glimpse at Cagalli and to his dismay he saw her eyes burning with what looked very much like jealousy. I can't believe it...she is. Please God, no... Murmuring a quiet goodbye, he took off quickly as well.

Kira rubbed his cooling cheeks as he glanced at his companion for the first time since Athrun and Lacus arrived. What he saw shocked him. Cagalli was almost shaking as she tightened her hands beneath the table. Her eyes were somewhat narrowed but what startled him were how moist her eyes looked. Confused and devoid of any explanation he softly said. "Cagalli?"

"What?" she answered, her voice laced with forced warmth.

"Is there something wrong?"

"No. I've got to go." With that, she quickly stood up and took up a runner's pace out through the entrance of the cafeteria.

Kira stood there for a few moments in complete confusion before he took off after her. It took a few minutes of running before she came into view again. Panting lightly from the exertion he yelled, "Cagalli wait!" She didn't wait though her pace slowed down until he was able to catch up with a mild walk. "Cagalli, what's wrong?"

She continued to walk and it seemed as if she was ignoring him until she stopped and muttered, "Nothing. I'm busy now so I'll see you later?"

Kira stopped in his tracks a few yards behind her and frowned at the unconvincing excuse. "Cagalli..."

"Listen Kira, I've already t-told you nothing's wrong." As she said this her voice broke towards the middle and she hoped he wouldn't notice. She wasn't so fortunate.

Unable to think of anything, Kira sighed sadly as he walked forward and wrapped his arms around her waist and over the arms that hung limply by her side. Hugging her from behind he rested his head against the back of her neck and quietly said, "Cagalli...I'm sorry if I did something wrong..." Although it was an innocent gesture, he was quickly surprised when Cagalli turned around in his arms and returned the embrace with much more force. Before he realized what was happening, she was quietly sobbing into his chest.

Author's Note: There we go! The plot thickens, prepare for WAFF and romance in the next chapter! -Prods fingers together.-