Chapter 7

"He can continue playing house with that girl or get his ass back here and pilot the Gundam he should have never been given," Tieria spat with irritation.

Sumeragi sighed and took a swig out of the bottle she was holding.

"And you shouldn't be drinking!" Tieria added vehemently.

"Yikes," Mileina mumbled from her work station as she continued making preparations for their return to space.

"We need to leave and can't wait around for him," Tieria continued and paced back and forth.

Allelujah and Marie had returned a short time ago and stood together watching the awkward situation. Lyle was nowhere to be found and it was time for them to continue their work in space. The super soldier thought back to his phone ringing and Lyle breathlessly telling him he had found Feldt. He was clearly head over heels for that girl and had no intention of returning any time soon.

"Allelujah, you talked last with him, did he say anything?" Sumeragi asked.

Allelujah shrugged, "Not about when he'd be back."

"I need you to contact him," she spoke with serious eyes.

The super soldier nodded, "I can do that."

Marie frowned as she felt Allelujah tense next to her. She could tell he was torn between helping the crew and helping Lyle. Allelujah grabbed her hand and led her down the hall to his room where he sat down at his desk.

"Allelujah," Marie started and stopped as she saw the serious expression on his face.

"I don't like mixing work and private life," Allelujah mumbled as he typed on the keyboard in front of him, "But I don't have a choice here."

"What if he doesn't want to come back?" Marie asked.

"That's his decision to make," Allelujah stated as he sent a coded message with a tap of a key.

The pair waited in silence and Marie started to unpack their bags they had taken when they left the ship. She sorted the dirty clothes and put them together so they could be washed. She paused in mid-step when she heard a beeping indicating that someone was reaching out to them.

"Lockon."

"Allelujah, hey buddy," Lyle's voice came over the speaker of the phone in Allelujah's hand.

"Where are you?"

"Back home, you know that," Lyle replied shortly.

"Sumeragi wants you back here, it's past time for us to leave," Allelujah stated.

There was silence on the other end of the line and no one spoke. Marie's gut clenched uncomfortably.

"Lockon?"

"I don't know if I'm coming back," he said quietly.

Allelujah's eyebrows shot up and he met Marie's shocked gaze from across the room.

"What do you mean? You're a member of Celestial Being and a Gundam meister. You have obligations," the super soldier said.

"Yeah, you're right, but over the past few months I've realized I have an obligation to myself too. Maybe that's selfish, but I don't want to end up like my brother. Maybe it's time to quit fighting his battle."

The room was silent again and Marie and Allelujah stared at each other with stunned expressions.

"I told you I found Feldt," Lyle said carefully.

Allelujah waited for him to continue and shifted in his seat uncomfortably.

"I don't know if I want to come back," Lyle finally said.

"Don't do this Lockon," Allelujah sighed and shook his head, "You need to come back. You have a responsibility. This isn't the time to do something like this, don't be stupid."

Lyle chuckled on the other end of the line, "You're calling me stupid? Says the guy who chased his girlfriend everywhere obsessively and now you two share a room."

Marie's expression fell from across the room and a small blush developed on her cheeks. Allelujah's eyebrows shot up and he let out an uncomfortable cough as he cleared his throat.

"Uh huh," Lyle muttered.

"Is this what you really want?" Marie suddenly asked.

"See, you have me on speakerphone so your girlfriend can listen too, point made," Lyle retorted and then continued, "Feldt is who I really want. I lost Anew and I refuse to make the same mistake again."

Marie smiled and looked at Allelujah with a softened expression.

"Sumeragi isn't going to be happy with losing two team members in such a short period of time. Tieria will want your head… you two both know too much. What if someone tries to come after you both since you know about us?" Allelujah asked.

"I worked for Katharon long before I was with you guys. I had people target me then while I was here in Ireland. I can take care of myself and protect Feldt."

"You'll have to give up Cheridum."

Lyle sighed, "I know, there's some give and take here."

Allelujah shook his head in defeat and spoke, "You need to come back so we can at least discuss this with everyone."

"Why? I know what I want to do and my Gundam is in the Ptolemy. You don't need me to come back."

Feldt was in the kitchen as she heard Lyle's voice growing louder from the living room. Her stomach turned nervously. She paused from washing the dishes and took quiet steps toward the living room. She saw Lyle's back as he paced around the room. He looked incredibly tense and Feldt frowned. She wished he didn't have to go through this, but knew sooner or later Celestial Being would reach out to him. She knew they would eventually want him to come back. Lyle paused and glanced over his shoulder, making eye contact with Feldt. His eyebrows furrowed and she gave him a small smile with a nod of understanding.

"Give me a few hours."

Feldt could hear the other person on the line continuing to talk as Lyle hung up and stared at her from across the room with a frown.

"You're going back," Feldt stated quietly.

Lyle sighed and his fingers twitched to reach for the pack of cigarettes in his pocket. He restrained himself and plopped down in Feldt's comfy reading chair. He watched the girl in front of him carefully and motioned for her to come closer. She took a few tentative steps and paused right in front of him with a downcast expression.

"Don't look at me that way," Lyle frowned, "I'm going to come back, just a few loose ends to tie up."

Feldt sighed and nodded silently. She was emotionally preparing herself to be torn open again and didn't know if she was going to be able to take losing him. She had lost so many people in her life and she had come to realize that Lyle was the most important person in the world to her. Her heart ached and threatened to burst at the thought of him disappearing and being alone again. She didn't know if she would be able to take it. Part of her felt angry at him and at herself for allowing him back in her life.

Lyle stood up and kissed her softly on the forehead, "I'll be back," he whispered as he stared into her turquoise eyes.

Feldt willed the tears forming in the corners of her eyes to disappear and her bottom lip quivered. Lyle wrapped his arms around her tightly and she broke into a choked sob as he held her firmly.

"Have a drawer ready for me because when I come back I won't be leaving again," Lyle spoke with a crooked smile and patted the girl on the head.

She looked up at him with tears glistening in her eyes and stood on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his lips. He smiled against her and then the two separated slowly. Lyle walked to the front door and grabbed his long coat off of the coat rack and slipped it on.

"I'll see you soon?" Feldt said in a quiet voice with hopeful eyes as his gloved hand reached for the front door to leave.

"I love you," he replied and gave her a wink before opening and closing the door behind him.

Feldt stood frozen and stared at the front door. She heard the engine of his car start and the crunch of gravel as he pulled out and left. She was then overwhelmed by the silence that was left behind. She swallowed thickly and turned around to her empty house. She was alone again.

….

Space was endless and silent. Lyle stared out one of the windows of the Ptolemy and a frown was etched on his face. He blinked at the stars and a heavy sigh left his lips. It had been over a week since he had seen Feldt and after promising he would come back. He knew the decision would be difficult, but had not imagined it being this hard. When he was on earth and spending days with Feldt the decision was a no brainer. He wanted to give everything up to stay with her. He begrudgingly went back to Celestial Being with every intent to resign and found himself once again wrapped up in worldly conflicts that required intervention. In a twisted way he felt like staying with Celestial Being and intervening in conflicts around the world would protect Feldt. He shuddered at the thought of giving his Gundam up and becoming a regular civilian again. He couldn't imagine handing away his machine and becoming almost powerless in a war torn world.

He hadn't made an attempt to reach out to her and part of him wondered when or if he should. He was angry at himself because he knew he was causing her more pain. She left for a reason and he had interrupted her new life and pulled her back into the life she had tried to escape. He sighed again and reached for his pack of cigarettes. He popped one between his lips and lit it without hesitation. After a long drag he let out a shaky sigh. Nothing was ever easy.

…..

A month had passed and Feldt found herself walking into town to pick up groceries from one of her favorite stores. She walked through the narrow store and grabbed a few select items off of the shelf and placed them in her basket. She paused when a small television in the corner started talking about a bloody conflict occurring in the East. The broadcaster spoke quickly about Gundams being involved and the pink haired girl dropped the shampoo bottle in her hand as she saw a green Gundam being shot at and explosions rocking it violently before another machine came to its defense. The bottle clattered noisily on the floor and the shop owner came around from behind her desk to ask Feldt if she was alright. Feldt's face was pale and she nodded silently as she crouched down and picked up the bottle shakily.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," the older woman spoke as she helped Feldt to the desk and started to check her out.

Feldt nodded slowly and mumbled, "Something like that," as she kept her eyes on her feet.

She left the store quickly and walked back to her house with a pensive expression. Her fear and concern slowly changed to anger. She unlocked the door to her small house and walked inside where she was alone to be with her thoughts. She glanced at her television and debated turning it on to continue to watch the news. Feldt decided against that and started unpacking her bags and putting away the items she had purchased. She mindlessly opened and closed cabinets to place the items while she thought about the past month being alone. Her life had gone back to its baseline after Lyle left and it was like he had never been there.

Feldt squeezed her eyes shut tightly as tears began to well up and she braced herself on the kitchen counter as she began to cry. Everything was the same, except for the horrible hole he had left in her heart when he walked out and promised he would be back. This was exactly what she had feared would happen and wanted to protect herself against it. The pink haired girl's shoulders shook as small sobs escaped her and she squeezed her fists tightly. She was angry at him for leaving and not hearing back from him and angry at herself for letting him back into her life. She felt helpless as there was no way to reach out and contact him. Feldt sucked her breath in sharply and willed the tears to stop. She couldn't keep doing this and had left Celestial Being for a reason. She knew that by letting Lyle back into her new life he likely would reopen old wounds. She had to be strong, that's what her parents and Christina would have wanted. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and decided to brew a pot of tea and read one of her favorite books. The seagulls sang outside of her window as the sun set below the horizon on the ocean and Feldt found herself smiling despite her tear stained face.

…

"What the hell were you doing out there?!" Tiera exclaimed and took an aggressive step toward Lyle.

The Irishman sat on one of the cots in the medical room with a bandage wrapped around his shoulder and was currently having his ribs wrapped by Mileina. He refused to make eye contact and scowled under the eyes of his fellow meisters.

"Lockon…" Setsuna trailed off with a frown, "That was a mistake that no one with your experience would make. It doesn't make sense."

"Don't worry about it," Lyle said shortly as he winced from his wounds.

Sumeragi walked into the room and moved Allelujah and Tiera aside so she could see the Irishman up close.

"What the hell was that?" she asked furiously, "You could have gotten yourself or one of your fellow pilots killed!"

Lyle continued to stare at the floor and was lost in his own thoughts. He let them continue to shout things at him until most had given up and left the room. He stood up slowly and made his way to his room where he slumped down on his bed with a wince. His room was silent and empty except for the occasional creaking of the Ptolemy around him. He reached into the drawer next to his bed and pulled out an envelope with torn corners. The envelope had appeared a couple weeks after he had returned to Celestial Being while they were in China briefly visiting for a meeting. He slowly opened it and pulled out the numerous photos inside along with a typed message. Lyle's brow furrowed and his jaw clenched as the photos fell into his lap and a few fell on the floor. He stared at the one laying on his thigh and his eyes softened at first as she saw a picture of a beautiful girl with pink hair walking down the street in Dublin in the rain.

"Feldt…" he muttered and moved the photo to see the one beneath.

His brow furrowed and he clenched his jaw tightly as he saw both him and Feldt at dinner together in one of the local restaurants. Her smile lit up the photograph and he was completely enamored with her in the frozen image. So enamored, in fact, he hadn't noticed their photos being taken by someone following them and doing surveillance. There were photos of them getting out of the car in front of her house and photos of Feldt before he had found her when she was on the college campus for her job. Whoever had sent him this had been following Feldt long before he knew where she was and it infuriated him that he had failed to notice someone trailing them. He felt like he had failed in protecting the girl and now she was in unnecessary danger. He felt a discomfort in his chest as he thought about Feldt and how she was feeling currently. She probably felt used and abandoned by him. He wished he could contact her to tell her the truth.

Lyle opened the letter and started to scan its contents once again as he had for many nights. He felt anger well up inside him as it explicitly stated he was not to contact the girl or she would be killed. The photos confirmed that the writer knew exactly where she lived, worked and her daily routine. His error on the battlefield was also a result of a threat on Feldt's life. He was instructed to make such a mistake to ruin the battle or else Feldt would be killed. He couldn't tell his fellow meisters that or there was a chance that harm could come to her. Lyle was stuck because he couldn't go back to her and couldn't tell his comrades. He had to figure out who was making these threats and kill them. He couldn't risk harm coming to Feldt or to Celestial Being.

His door opened and his eyebrows shot up in surprise. He tried to get up quickly to grab the photos on the floor, but he winced from his injuries and was too slow. Allelujah knelt down and grabbed them off the ground, staring at them with a puzzled expression.

"Mind telling me what the hell has been going on with you?" the super soldier asked as his eyes went from the photos to the Irishman.

Lyle didn't speak and sighed, knowing that keeping it a secret from Allelujah was futile. He wordlessly handed the typed message to him and sat in silence as the super soldier read it. Allelujah's mismatched eyes trailed over the paper and he glanced up with concern in his eyes with his lips slightly parted.

"What the hell is this?" Allelujah hissed out.

Lyle put his head in his hands and ran his fingers through his shaggy chocolate hair in frustration.

"Who wrote this?" Allelujah asked as he walked forward and snatched the photos off of the Irish meister's lap.

"I don't know."

Allelujah scanned the photos with shock written all over his face, "How the hell have they been following her like this to take these photos?"

"Your guess is as good as mine."

"Well he clearly followed you both together too, did you notice who this was?" Allelujah asked as he continued to shuffle through the photos.

"No."

Allelujah frowned, "Why didn't you tell us about this?"

"Did you even read the message?" Lyle growled out.

Allelujah rolled his eyes, "Like a threat has ever stopped you from doing something before."

"This is a threat on Feldt's life," Lyle said seriously, "It's different, I won't lose someone I love again."

Allelujah sighed and handed the photos and letter back to Lyle, "Well it's not just yours to bear anymore. Let me help."

Lyle wordlessly glared at the super soldier with unsure blue eyes and then nodded hesitantly.

"I wish you would have told me earlier. I wondered what was going on. You came back and I expected you to immediately leave, but I've noticed something has been off. Also, your performance in battle has been really off. You're making worse mistakes than a rookie. Now it all makes sense," Allelujah said.

"You have to keep this from the others," Lyle said seriously.

"I don't know how long I'll be able to do that. They're suspicious of something going on too, but for now I'll keep it between us," Allelujah assured him.

"Thanks pal," Lyle finally let a small smile out.

"We'll figure out who sent this and who is following Feldt so you can get back to her. I'm sure she's furious with you," Allelujah chuckled.

"I'm sure… she probably won't even let me in the door after this," Lyle said, his expression softening as he thought about Feldt.

He had to figure all this out so he could get back to her. His heart ached to be back with her in his home country living in that simple house with her. He wanted to wake up every morning to the sound of the waves of the ocean and the salty breeze with Feldt in bed next to him. He would do anything to get back to her and part of him was happy that he now wasn't the only one to know this secret. Allelujah was probably his best friend and he knew that the two of them together would figure this out.