Disclaimer: Gundam SEED and related characters belong to Bandai and Sunrise.
Stolen
A GSEED fanfic by Pluto-mint
Rating: T
Warning: Shounen ai. If this is not your thing, then do not proceed.
Pairing: AthrunKira
Summary: AU. Love, destiny, and friendship.
Stolen
Chapter One: A Day In The Park
---
I remembered you with my soul clenched
in that sadness of mine that you know
--taken from Clenched Soul by Pablo Neruda
---
He woke up to see the bright (almost too bright for his own liking) sunlight cascading down upon his pillow, duvet, and every other things in his small bed. Squinting his eyes from the evading sunlight, he moved to tangle himself deeper inside the welcoming pillow. The lazy ticking sounds of the clock were the only sounds that filled his room. And he drowned in it, feeling content with the quiet sense of solitude it brings.
The faint scent of summer breeze lingered inside his room, the window curtains billowed upon their arrival. Aside the scent it brought, the breeze had also carried a certain memory of an old summer back in his childhood days, of greens, and blue, and salt, and sea. In his hazy state of sleeping, he can remember the feeling of another fingers tangled inside his own. A smile, echoes of laughter, and that certain fondness it brings. Safe, safe, and blissfully protected. He blinked, the dream fade, and he found himself lost without the memory. But the feeling still lingers, as it always do. And he found himself smiling, and wondered if this is how it feels to be happy and loved.
---
The park was rather empty. There were only one or two people around, so it was an easy task for him to find an empty seat on a rather forlorn bench. The trees rustled inside the breeze. Their shadows danced under his feet, and he looked up to see the bright summer sunlight seeping through their thick branches. The summer heat was bearable under the shades of trees, and he found himself feeling quite content with his seat. A bottle of juice, it was slightly warm from heat and not cold as it used to be, sat silently beside him. His khaki pants were rather dusty due to the labor of his walk.
In his hand was a rather crumpled looking paper, and he was looking at it with a rather intent look in his handsome face. His brows furrowed a little, giving the impression of solemnity in his face. The boy was so intent with the paper in hands that he failed to notice the looks the passerby's gave him every time they took their gaze upon the beauty that was his. He was a tall sixteen years old boy with the most brilliant emerald eyes ever to be seen. The tall stature of his body was an inheritance of his father. And so does the handsome look. But the high chiseled cheekbones and the imminent beauty, they all came from his mother. A silent breeze ruffled his dark blue hair, and as it did so, it carried away the scents of vanilla and sandalwood from him.
The boy sighed along the breeze, his soft quiet voice hummed with relief. Stretching out his sore feet, he counted the hours he had spent looking for an unknown place, in an unknown suburban area that was pretty much foreign to him. Needless to say he was lost. A soft humming sound came from his pocket; finally someone managed to call him.
"Athrun's speaking."
Niicol shrieking voice can be heard from the other end, "Athrun? Thank God we finally manage to contact you. Where are you?"
"Uhh… I'm not sure. All I know is that I'm in a park right now."
"A park? Is it near a flea market?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Okay. Stay there. I'll pick you up in twenty minutes."
"Okay."
He closed the phone and folded the crumpled paper in hand. Now that the problem was solved, he finally has his moments to relieve his sore feet. And the park wasn't bad at all, it was filled with trees and all assorted kinds of flowers. It was quiet, and nice, and for the first time in weeks, he finally felt that tug of sleepiness in him—he had always known to be a light sleeper and a rather insomniac at that, not that anyone can blame him given to his condition. Closing his emerald eyes in a quiet contentment, he can feel the summer breeze lulled him to sleep, and Athrun Zala let the sleep claimed him in a quiet solitude.
---
The boy walked aimlessly in the park, his bright violet eyes sparkled with innocence that usually can only be found inside the children's eyes or inside the eyes of those with pure hearts. His rather oversized t-shirt exposed the slightly tanned skin beneath and making it glow under the summer sun.
One of the boy's arms was full of groceries bag, while the other hand clutching something that seemed to be a list. The handsome feature of his face now marred by a frown as he's trying his hardest to remember the things that he could possibly missed. Butter, milk, bread, ground beef…the boy continued to do the list with a rather serious look in his face.
But the serious look was gone when a bird, a robotic bird that is, affectionately pecking his shoulder as if it was trying to remind him to loosen up a little. "Torii, stop bugging me around. I'm rather busy right now," the boy answered the bird in an equal affectionate tone.
The bird, instead leaving its owner in his own quiet world, was started to peck on his shoulder again. "Ouch, Torii stop it!" But the bird didn't stop at all; it spread its wing and started to fly around the boy, "Torii… Torii…" And without warning the green bird dove from the height and in a flash the list was gone from the boy's hand.
"Hey! Torii, I need that!" Kira Yamato, despite his lack of height, wildly threw his hand up in the sky in a fruitless attempt to catch the bird. The said bird flew a little higher, and leaving the confused boy alone in the park in a dash. After a moment or so the bird was nowhere to be seen, leaving the chocolate haired boy worry. How could he not? The bird was special to him, it was the only remnants of the life he had before the accident. Not only that the accident nearly cost him his life, but the accident was also costing him his memory. He could barely remember anything aside his name and the bird's name after the car crash. He was lucky to have Natarle as his relative; the lady was kind enough to adopt him and to take him as a family.
The bird was the only thing he could hold on to, the only thing that showed him how much he was loved before. Perhaps it was a gift from his brother (he never asked Natarle whether he had a brother or not, Natarle seemed to be rather reluctant to talk about his family), for there was a childish scrabble under the bird's right wing, it was said 'For Kira, I will always remember you'. It was simple and clear to Kira, that someone somewhere knew him and remembered him always. Or at least that was what he had always hoped to be. But it's enough; the simple knowledge that he used to be loved is more than enough.
And now the bird's gone, well not quite gone anyway, Torii was never really left before. But still, it won't do any hurt to be careful right? So he turned his heels and dashed to find the robotic bird.
---
The trees swayed along the breeze. Their thick branches manage to hide the two figures that were watching the sleeping boy over the park bench perfectly. Hidden by the shadow and unknown to the seeing eyes, they sat at the thick branches of the trees and resumed their watch. The first figure, unable to hide his amazement, whispered in an almost audible tone, "That's him alright. No body else but him." The other figure leaned against the tree and looked less impressed than his partner, "Athrun Zala. The only son of Patrick Zala, the founder of Zala Corp. It's perfect for the said scenario, isn't it? The perfect heir, a perfect vessel for the weapon. The old guy sure knows how to create the perfect weapon."
"Hnn… True." The first figure grinned, though he felt a little sympathy to the sleeping boy, "Well, so much for his luck and so much for ours too. Didn't really expect them to meet right now."
"What?"
"That. Do you see that?" The first figure pointed at another figure aside the sleeping subject. The second looked amused when he saw the figure that was Kira Yamato slowly approaching the bench that held the sleeping boy's form. A green bird flew overhead before it finally land upon the sleeping figure.
"Kira Yamato. Never hope to see him in flesh. Well then, I guess it's settled, the second battle is really about to begin. Come, the lady must know about this in person." Thus with the words said upon his lips, the second figure dashed from the tree and soon he was followed by his taller companion.
---
"Torii! Torii! Where are you? Hey, Torii!"
Kira Yamato's confused face came into the view as his eyes wandered in searching for the said robotic bird. His face was slightly flushed due to the summer heat. The bright blue sky hung over the trees. The wind gusted along the trees, making the leaves fall in such grace. Craning his neck over the shades of the trees, Kira Yamato hoped to see a hidden Torii inside the shadow.
"Toriii…" Voice thickened by sadness, Kira looked as lost as a five years old boy on a street. Fortunately for him the bird decided to appear itself and flew to the other side of the park. He looked up and started to follow the bird.
After five minutes of flying, the bird decided to land on a shoulder of a sleeping boy on the park bench. The green bird clasped its wing and the list fell from its beak as the bird softly nuzzled to the sleeping boy's cheekbones. The boy stirred in his sleep.
Slowly, the soft footsteps that were Kira Yamato can be heard among the rustled sounds of the leaves. His sparkling violet eyes lit up as the robotic bird came into the view. But then as the view itself began to register in his head, he began to blush, struck in awe by the beauty of a sleeping boy on the park bench.
The chiseled face of the sleeping boy shyly peeked from the dark blue fringes of his hair; his porcelain skin glowed under the sunlight. A faint scent of vanilla and sandalwood lingered around the boy. And although the boy was undoubtedly beautiful, but the broad shoulders, the long fingers, and the slightly build muscles of his cannot conceal the boy's masculinity. Such a beautiful paradox, Kira thought to himself.
"Torii…" The mechanical bird chirped and pecked the sleeping boy's shoulder in an affectionate way. The blue haired boy stirred once again and Kira, alarmed by the possibility of waking up the boy, whispered to the green bird, "Shh… Torii, you're going to wake him up."
But instead of obeying its owner's words, Torii now began to pecking the boy's ear. Kira frantically started to stop the bird, he leaned in and reaching out his free hand to the bird. The bird, as if it was guide by an invisible thread, flew right away from the sleeping boy's shoulder, causing Kira to lose his balance and inevitably falling toward the sleeping boy's figure. With an undignified yelp, Kira found himself hugging the blue haired boy in order to stop himself crashing down the bench. The groceries scattered around the bench.
Kira felt the boy stirred and looked up to see a pair of sleepy emerald eyes before his very own violet eyes. Caught in a moment of surprise, he was unable to take off his eyes from those twin orbs. The time seemed to drown itself inside those deep emerald eyes. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over him.
For a moment the two boys just gazing at each other, unmoved, and confused.
That is until a soft quiet voice whispered in Kira's ear,
"You can let go now."
Kira blinked, "What?"
The blue haired boy smiled and said, "Your hands. You can let go now. I won't let you fall."
A blush quickly found its way to Kira's beautiful face. Abruptly he took off his hands from the blue haired boy and felt a pair of strong arm held him into his place. After regaining a sense of balance, Kira stood from the blue haired boy's lap with his face almost beating a tomato. "Uhn… I'm sorry. I didn't try to do anything. I just sort of… er…"
"Slipped?" The emerald eyed boy answered at length and smiled at him.
"Yeah," Kira answered weakly, "I'm trying to find my er… list, before I slipped that is." He was lying of course, it felt stupid for saying that he was looking for his mechanical pet bird when the said bird's not around. Upon seeing a deserted paper, Kira pointed his finger, snatched the paper, and smiled triumphantly, "Look, this is my list."
The blue haired youth laughed and his laugh felt like music to Kira's ear. "You don't have to convince me you know. I believe you." The boy raked his finger through his hair and bent down to pick up the scattered stuff before adding his answer in a soft spoken tone; "Besides I don't think you'd actually dropped your groceries just to grope a defenseless sleeping boy."
"Uhm… yeah. Sorry." Kira smiled shyly with his violet eyes peering behind the longer bangs of his hair. The blue haired boy smiled and then returns to the task at hand. Together the two boys worked in a comfortable silence.
It didn't take a long time until the whole scattered things were collected. "This is the last one. Is it complete?" the blue haired boy said to his smaller companion.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Good." The emerald eyed boy stood and dusting off his pants. He took a glance to his watch and frowned. Upon seeing the confused look on the stranger's face, Kira cannot helped but to ask, "Are you okay?"
"My friend should've picked me up an hour ago but he hasn't showed up."
"Oh. Is this your first time in Heliopolis?"
"Aa." The boy smiled in embarrassment, a light blush graced his cheek. Strangely enough the sight gave Kira a warm fuzzy feeling inside his heart. It felt familiar. The blush, the way he laughed, the way he smiled. But it's impossible. Kira had been living in Heliopolis since the day he was born.
"Well… um… I guess I should be leaving now. My friend is probably waiting for me. It's been a pleasure to meet you Kira Yamato-san." The blue haired boy bowed politely, unable to see the gasping look of Kira.
"Wait. How do you know my name?"
---
Athrun took a proper look upon the blushing face before him. The boy was at the same age as him but not quite as tall as he is. To say that the boy was a good looking person would be an understatement. The boy was beautiful with a pair of violet eyes that sparkled with innocence. His chocolate brown hair was slightly ruffled by the gusting wind. There's something about the boy that intrigued him.
"Wait. How do you know my name?" The boy asked in a hesitant tone.
Athrun just smiled and said, "It's written in your t-shirt Yamato-san. I take it that you are the ace of the robot club in your school?"
Instead of answering the question, the chocolate haired boy turned silent and he seemed to be quite disappointed. The blue haired boy was about to ask him whether he had said something wrong when the violet eyed boy lifted his gaze and stared at the taller boy.
And stare he did. A piercing gaze over the emerald eyed boy. An awkward silence hung between the two boys.
"Ano… Did I-"
But the boy's words were interrupted by the chirping voice of a bird, "Torii. Torii…"
"Torii!" Kira exclaimed loudly, hand reaching out to the flying bird. But the bird flipped its wing and gently land onto the arm of the taller youth. The blue haired boy stared at the green mechanical bird as it softly pecked his hand. This is …? Why does this feel so familiar? Though confused as he is, Athrun just smiled and held out his hand, "I take it that this bird is yours?"
"Aa," The smaller boy took the bird with a grateful look in his face, "This is… a gift, from someone so dear to me." The boy looked beautiful under the mist of the fallen leaves.
Athrun gasped unconsciously to the sight before him, he felt like he was seeing a scene of an old movie. There's something about the boy, something that made his heart all fluttery and warm. And yet… that something also saddened his heart. Such sadness, so deep and profound, that it constricted his heart a little. And it hurts.
This… How could this be…? How could a boy evoked so many… things inside his heart? Much less the boy was someone that was barely known to him
"Ah…"
Kira's concerned face came before his eyes as the boy's hand touched the taller boy's shoulder, "Are you alright?"
Gasped from the unexpected touch, the blue haired boy blushed, cursing inwardly. How could he let his defense to slip in front of a stranger's eyes? "Aa. I'm fine." He grinned almost sheepishly and was about to say something when Niicol's face appeared behind Kira's back.
"Athrun!"
---
Niicol fastened his steps toward the two boys. Athrun waved his hand in an amiable gesture. His friend seemed to be in the middle of a conversation with a chocolate haired boy before him when Niicol came.
"Athrun, I'm sorry. I got stuck in a traffic jam."
"No, it's okay. Don't worry about it," the tallest of the three smiled and took the neglected bottle of juice on the bench. He turned his gaze to the silent boy besides him, "Uhm… So I guess I really have to go now Yamato-san." Niicol could swear that he saw his usually calm and composed friend stuttered a little as he bid his good bye. And this had made him smiled in silence.
The chocolate haired boy blushed and bowed politely, "Thank you for the help." Athrun just waved his hand and walked pass the boy to a waiting Niicol, "Don't mention it."
Niicol still stood in watch as the violet eyed boy bit his lip and looked a little hesitant before shyly asked, "Wait. Can I know your name?"
Athrun seemed to be surprised to the unexpected boldness, "It's Athrun Zala. Just call me Athrun the next time we meet, Yamato-san."
The smaller boy blushed as Athrun smiled.
Niicol found the two youths rather interesting. He rarely saw his friend looked so unguarded and relax before. And somehow, seeing the two youth together made his heart warm a little.
Upon realizing that he was being watched, the chocolate haired boy caught his eyes and Niicol politely bowed to the youth. The boy returned the bow and watched in silence as he and Athrun walked to the waiting convertible parked under an old tree.
---
"So…"
Athrun eyed him curiously, his hair blown by the summer wind as the convertible made its way easily on a rather deserted highway. Niicol smiled, "What is it Athrun?"
"It's not about me but it's about you. You and your cryptic smile," Athrun retorted with something that suspiciously resembled a pout. Giggled in delight, the green haired youth answered to his slightly irritated companion, "It's nothing really. I just found something amusing today."
After a few glares from Athrun, somehow Niicol still managed to stay in his giggle fit. Athrun sighed and said to the younger boy in a flat tone, "Okay, forget it. I don't want to know anything about it. So how's the search going on?"
The question had made the boy frowned, "We still haven't found anything. The first winged guardian is supposed to be near but we can't even find its sign of existence." Niicol glanced to his friend, who seemed to be quite tensed, and said, "Relax, Athrun. It's only been three days you know."
Tapping his fingers patiently, the blue haired youth took his gaze to the glittering sea, "Father won't be happy to hear this." Niicol answered not without sympathy to his friend, "I know Athrun. I'm sure he'll understand."
"Hn. I hope so. The second battle is seconds away and I hate to see us lose."
"Ever the dutiful son, aren't you? Don't worry, we'll be alright." And Niicol smiled the same smile he gave to Athrun every time he feels Athrun's quiet distress. And then Athrun would be smiling back at him, just like now.
They spent the rest of their journey in silence.
Tsuzuku…
A/N: I'm sorry for the long delay, minna-san! I was rather busy with the school. I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint you. Uhh … I'm not really sure if anyone will read this fic (considering its long delay), but if you do then please write your review please…
So… Does anyone already have any idea about what this fic is all about? Do write your comment please, because I'm having such a good time when I was reading your prediction about who's dead and who's not J
By the way, if you are interested in reading a fanfic that features Athrun and Shin, you can read my fanfic that was titled 'Hitori." Just click on my profile page to find the fic. Come on, click it… I know you want to… --seductive voice mode--
Anyway, thank you for reading the fic and if you flame me then I pity you retard soul!
