Chapter 2 – The Story of Us

Thank yous to:

Dark Pheo

chineigurl No, this isn't an AxL fic, it's KxL. (hehe, the smiley face wouldn't appear, so…)

A/n: Ok, third chapter! Hope you guys like this one. My friend read it, she told me it was really emotional…tell me what you guys think, k? Thank you!

Legend:

"words"

"Thoughts" or memories

Disclaimer: I forgot to include this earlier, so I'm posting it now. I do not own Gundam Seed or Destiny.

"Oh god, Lacus…" The look in his eyes was heartbreaking; and she could tell he was ready to jump up and scream.

Lacus' eyes never left Kira's as she started to explain. "You don't understand…it was all arranged. Athrun's father and mine agreed to it a long time ago. I tried to tell father I couldn't, wouldn't marry Athrun…that he is nothing more than a good friend to me…but father…died…before I could…"

Kira enveloped her in a hug again, inwardly chastising himself for doubting her. "I'm sorry…"

"You have nothing to be sorry for. It was my fault…I should have tried harder…"

"No…it was wrong of them to even think of making you marry someone you didn't love…but…what about Athrun? Is he okay with this? I mean, he and Cagalli are…"

Lacus shook her head, her eyes downcast. "Cagalli and Athrun…aren't…together anymore…"

Kira's eyes widened. "What do you mean? Why? Did Cagalli tell you?"

Lacus got a distant look in her eyes then. "No…I've wanted to ask Cagalli, but she just closes herself off as soon as I try to ask her about it…Athrun's pretty much the same; except he just smiles and changes the subject…and it's only gotten worse since our fathers arranged this stupid engagement and announced it to the world…"

Silence reigned.

Lacus turned to her boyfriend and quietly snuggled closer to him, her thoughts drifting to the state her father had unknowingly put her in… "I want no part of that hoax…father made that decision without even talking to me; I will not sacrifice my own happiness to fulfill this duty! Father wouldn't have wanted that for me…"

Kira pulled her even closer to him, his eyes focused on a crack in the paint. "Athrun…Cagalli…I never thought…when I came back…I never thought things would change this much…I want to fix it…I want to free Lacus of this burden…I'm sure that's what she wants, too… but how do I do that? How do we fight against the wishes of someone like Patrick Zala?"

Closing his eyes, Kira leaned back against the wall. He had returned, just as he'd wanted to do since his recovery…but everything was a mess. Everything.

Lying in that bed while he was recovering had been unbearable…he had wanted to jump out of that bed and run away…he'd tried it, in fact, but he hadn't recovered yet; so he failed miserably. Reverend Malchio, the man who'd saved him, was always there, though, and he was thankful for that…

He rested his cheek against Lacus' hair and sighed. It didn't matter. He was back now, and no matter what else had changed, he still had his most important person…Lacus.

SCENE CHANGE

Cagalli Yula Attha stood, clutching a cordless phone in one hand and her cell phone in the other as she listened to Lacus explain why she wasn't home yet. "Where are you? I've been worried sick! I thought something happened to you! Mana told me you'd gone out…where did you go? When are you planning to come back?"

She heard Lacus laugh at the other end of the line. "I'm sorry, Cagalli, but I can't tell you yet. I just called to assure you that I'm alright, and I'll be home soon. Ok? See you soon! Bye!" With that, the line went dead.

"Miss Cagalli? Was that Miss Lacus? Did she tell you where she is?" Kisaka asked from the other line.

Cagalli sighed. "Yes, that was Lacus. She called to tell me she's fine and she'll be home soon. She didn't tell me where she is, though, but I'll get it out of her as soon as she comes home."

She heard Kisaka muffle a laugh. "Certainly, Miss Cagalli. So I assume you want us to stop looking for her now?"

"Yes, thank you, Kisaka. I'm sorry for the trouble."

"Not at all. Good night."

"Good night. Then she pressed the end call button, ending the conversation. "Was it me…or did Lacus sound…happy?" she said out loud to no one in particular.

Turning to her right, she caught sight of something lying facedown on her nightstand. It was a picture frame made of crystal that Athrun had given her for their third-year anniversary, and in it was a picture of her nineteen year old self smiling carelessly at the camera…with an equally happy-looking Athrun by her side. It seemed so long ago, but it had barely even been a year…

Running a hand over the fragile picture frame, her amber eyes filled with tears as the memory of that day, as well as the events that unfolded after that, replayed themselves in her mind. First, Kira had gotten into an accident while on the way home from school and disappeared. Second, her father's plane malfunctioned in mid-air and crashed, killing everyone on board as well as killing any hope of a normal life for her…and then…that happened. She broke up with Athrun.

That had been hard. Possibly the hardest thing she would ever have to do in her life…she had never wanted to do it, but she'd been young and vulnerable…hell, she was still young and vulnerable… (she would never admit that in public,

though) but she knew better now; certainly more than she'd known then.

Pushing open the heavy glass doors that led to her balcony, she leaned against the stone wall and looked up at the star-filled night sky, her heart trembling with regret. She wrapped her arms around herself, as if she were trying to shield herself from the painful memory of that day…the day she'd lied to her only love and pushed him away…

Flashback

"I…I can't be with you anymore, Athrun. It's over."

Nineteen year old Athrun Zala stared, wide-eyed at his girlfriend, his usually calm expression replaced by one of sheer hurt and disbelief. "Wha – What do you mean? What are you trying to say, Cagalli?"

"I'm saying I don't love you anymore, Athrun."

His emerald green eyes clouded with unshed tears, and his fists were clenched so hard they hurt. "You – you c-can't mean that…"

She looked coldly at him, her honey-colored eyes glittering in the sunlight. "Oh but I do mean it."

His eyes searched hers, desperately trying to find some trace of the Cagalli he knew in them, but he found none. All he could see in those eyes were indifference and a small amount of what looked like pity.

He slowly backed away from her, the pain she'd just inflicted on his heart flickering in his eyes. "I…was it all a lie, Cagalli? Was what we had a lie? How could you just stand there like that after all we've been through and tell me you don't care! How, Cagalli?" He practically screamed those questions at her.

She didn't answer.

Taking a step toward her, Athrun yelled, "Answer me!"

Cagalli simply looked away, unwilling to give away the pain that mirrored his in her own eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Is that all you can say?" he asked quietly, the calm in his voice betrayed by the obvious resentment written clearly in his expression.

Again, the normally talkative Cagalli could only look away.

Frustrated by her continued silence, Athrun turned away, muttering a barely audible "Good-bye." to her, walked briskly to his car, then drove off, leaving his now former girlfriend to wallow in her already unbearable regret.

"I'm sorry, Athrun…for what it's worth, I'm sorry…Oh god, what have I done…?"

End of flashback

Cagalli's eyes filled with tears at the sad memory, and her heart felt like it was being torn up inside. She could've fought for what they had, but she didn't. She could've confided in him, but she hadn't. She'd been hurt and confused because she had just lost the man she'd known and loved as father at that time, and it hadn't been long after her only brother had disappeared, she reasoned, but still, deep inside, she knew that was no excuse. She should've trusted Athrun.

"I had a reason…a good one, but it was a mistake to push him away…"

Cagalli ran a hand through her already tousled blond hair and closed her eyes. That man may have threatened her and took advantage of her weakness, but she had been the one who decided to meekly do as she was told. She was the one who told Athrun she didn't love him anymore, and she had also been the one who stood by and let him slip away completely...She looked up at the sky one last time before slipping back through the double doors that led to her bedroom, and whispered quietly, "Goodnight, Athrun. Wherever you are."

SCENE CHANGE

After ending the call, Lacus lay back down on the bed and rested her head on Kira's chest. "What did she say?" he asked.

"The usual. Where are you-when are you coming home kind of thing." Lacus replied.

Kira laughed. "Cagalli's gotten to be quite the mother hen, hasn't she?"

Lacus grinned. "Yes. She means well, though."

He agreed. "Looks like my 'older' twin has done some growing up."

"Yes. She acts very like an older sister now," she replied as she stood up, walked over to the window and pressed a hand against the cool glass.

Kira followed, wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, and felt her wrap her own arms around his. "Kira…"

"Hmmm?"

"What…happened…to you?"

His eyes clouded at the memory her question brought up as he felt her turn in his arms and gently touched his cheek in a very familiar gesture. "Kira? I'm sorry if this is awkward, but…"

"It's okay. You have a right to know." He pulled away from her and stared out the window as he began to tell her about what happened, from the accident to his being rescued by Reverend Malchio and treated for his rather severe injuries, being unconscious for the good part of six months, as well as the rehabilitation process he'd had to endure.

But…why didn't you come back sooner?"

He looked away a bit guiltily. "I…forgot…about you. All of you…"

"Amnesia?"

He nodded.

She drew herself closer to him and took his hand in hers, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm sorry." she whispered softly.

He turned to her. "It's alright. I wanted to tell you…I just…I might be putting you in danger by telling you all this…"

She turned fully and faced him. "What do you mean? Am I in danger?"

He smiled sadly. "I don't know. All I thought when I got back was that I wanted to see you…but the possibility of you being put in danger because of me was scary, so I arranged to meet with you in secret."

She smiled at him. "It doesn't matter if I am in danger. You're here; that's all that matters."

"Lacus…"

"You're the most important person in the world to me. You know that, right?"

He smiled. "I know. You have the same distinction with me."

Then, "Kira…would it be possible for me to meet with Reverend Malchio?"

He shot her a questioning look. "Why?"

"I want to thank him…for saving you." "In saving you, he saved me, as well…"

He thought about it for a bit, then he answered, "…Alright, but it's going to be a long trip."

"I love long trips." Lacus replied, giving him a cute smile.

He smiled back. "Let's go see Cagalli first, though, okay?"

Lacus nodded.

A moment later, Kira pretended to yawn.

She gave him a look and laughed. "That is so obviously fake…"

He grinned mischievously. "Oh, it is, is it?"

"It is!" she laughed as he started to reach for her.

She sidestepped him and they ended up chasing each other around the room, laughing and joking around like five-year-olds…that is, until he caught up to her.

"Gotcha." he said, his lavender eyes still shining with laughter.

She turned to him, her melodious laughter still lingering in the air. "Ok! Ok! You got me!"

"Do I?" he asked softly, his breath warm on her ear.

Her laughter faded and her voice lowered to match his as she turned to him, her face now a mere inch from his. "You always have."

Slowly, almost tentatively, they inched closer to each other until their lips met halfway. It was a gentle, almost shy kiss at first, but passion quickly took over, and they deepened it.

When they finally broke apart for air, Lacus smiled. "That was nice."

Kira blushed. "Lacus…"

Next Morning

Lacus was awakened that morning by the sound of her mobile phone ringing. Opening her eyes, she looked around her and found, to her delight, that Kira was beside her, smiling. "Hey sleepyhead." he said.

She smiled back. "Hey yourself." she replied, leaning forward and planting a chaste kiss on his lips before turning to her side and answering the call.

"Hello?"

"Lacus! Where are you? When are you planning on coming home?" Cagalli asked from the other end, her voice loud enough for even Kira to hear.

"Eh….I…erm…"

"Lacus?" It was Kira.

Turning around to face him, she mouthed, "Cagalli is mad at me."

"Uh oh. That's not good…" he thought as he watched his girlfriend try to soothe his sister's temper.

"No…I didn't forget…I'll be home in an hour or two, alright?" Lacus said, her voice calm as always.

He heard Cagalli reluctantly agree followed by a soft click as the call ended. "Lacus? Is everything alright?" he asked, concerned.

She smiled. "Yes…but she isn't very happy because she's my manager and, I, well, forgot that I have an interview scheduled for today…to promote my new song and to invite people to see the concert next week…"

"Oh… I guess you…have to go then, huh?" he mumbled, disappointment written on his face. As selfish as it might be, he'd wanted to have her to himself today.

She tucked her face into the curve between his jaw and shoulder and said, "You could always come with me."

His face immediately lit up with childlike joy. "Really?"

She laughed softly. "Of course. You are my boyfriend, after all; and besides…I'd be much happier knowing you're there with me."

"Let's go then." he said, suddenly very energetic.

She nodded. "We have to stop by the house first, though. Cagalli will be there."

"Alright. It'd be like hitting two birds with one stone then."

Lacus agreed. Getting up, Lacus walked to the bathroom, took a quick shower and emerged looking fresh and pretty, not a sign of being slept in on her immaculate outfit.

Kira used the bathroom next, and after they were both done, Lacus asked, "Ready?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," Kira answered.

Attha Mansion

Cagalli looked at her watch for what felt like the millionth time and looked at the clock. It was half past twelve already. Just where was Lacus?

Moments later, she heard muffled voices and Lacus' clear, musical laughter echo through the hallway as she waited for her errant friend to show herself. As she watched, the door opened to reveal Lacus, and…a man who looked vaguely familiar… Her heart started beating faster as she realized who he was. "Could it be…?"

She approached him slowly, hesitantly, her hand unconsciously stretched out towards him. "K-Kira…?"

a/n: Ok…I'll finish with this chapter with a little cliffie... (if you can call it that, hehe) So, what do you guys think? Good, bad, boring…? R&R please?