Hi again! Thanks so much for the reviews! I'm glad you like the story so far! This chapter just sort of sets the stage a bit – I had to introduce a few important characters so bare with me. Anyway, please let me know what you think ok? This chapter is a bit long but… you won't mind ne? Better too long than too short.

As I mentioned, this story is a little AU (Seeing how many captains and such are going to be teachers ) – I needed characters lol. The politics are going to stay the same though… or at least I will try to leave them as such.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed, Gundam Seed Destiny or any references made to either.

Affronted Affections

Chapter #3: First Days

When Athrun woke up the next morning, he felt as if he hadn't slept at all. His head was pounding and he felt terribly stiff. His skin was clammy to the touch and he felt grubby as his damp clothes stuck to him like a second skin. He groaned, his eyes flutteringly open painfully as the sun's rays from the window rained down upon him, blinding him.

Athrun shied away from the light and with an exaggerated moan, he forced himself to sit up. His world shifted and he collapsed back down to the floor. Lank strands of hair fell in his eyes but he didn't bother to wipe them away. For a moment, he couldn't remember where he was. Closing his eyes, he felt the memories come back in a rush. The collision with the boy at the terminal, being overlooked in the residences, the girl at the registrars, spending the night with… what was her name?

He rolled over onto his side and used his arms to push himself up to his elbows. He could hear a soft whistling sound and when he looked over at the bed beside him, he realized that she was still asleep.

Cagalli…

Now he remembered. She was from Orb. Scratching the back of his head, he stood up and stretched. He felt grungy and silently cursed himself for not having enough sense of mind to change clothes before going to sleep. If only he hadn't been so tired. His stomach growled and his face flushed when he heard Cagalli shift beneath her covers. It had been at least 15 hours since he had last ate and he wished he knew the school campus better than he did. At least then he would know where to find something to satisfy his raging hunger.

His eyes spotted a clock hanging in the far corner of the room and he jolted in alarm, suddenly loosing his appetite. Breakfast would have to wait. The clock read 7:50 and his first class was scheduled for eight o'clock. He was going to be late.

"Oh great!" Athrun muttered as he kicked his sleeping bag away from his feet, staggering to the left as he did so. He didn't have the time to change, or time to shower, or even run a comb through his hair. Stumbling around the room, he found his backpack. He briefly checked to see if he had any notepaper in it before throwing it over his shoulder and charging for the door, all while attempting to tie up his running shoes.

"I'm never going to make it. I… wah!"

Hopping on one foot as he tied the laces of the shoe on the other, he stepped on the pile of clothes that Cagalli had left discarded in the middle of the room. His foot flew out from underneath him and he let out a surprised cry as he came crashing down to the floor. He landed on his rear and hissed as his tailbone struck the unforgiving floor.

The sound echoed loudly in the small, square-shaped room and Cagalli awoke with a start. She almost jumped out of bed as her head flew up in alarm, eyes wide. She relaxed when she saw Athrun scrambling to pick himself up from the floor and frowned. He looked awful. His hair was frayed and frayed and tangled and his clothes still looked damp as they clung to his slender frame. She felt her cheeks flush as she noted how the fabric accented his trim figure and toned muscles. That's when she realized that he was still wearing what he had had on the day before.

"Hey," She yawned and shook her head to clear the cobwebs. "Athrun? What are you…"

"I'm sorry, I have to go – going to be late," Athrun got the words out in a rush as he staggered towards the door. He had given up trying to tie his shoes. Throwing the door open, he rushed out, his voice echoing down the hall. "Thanks for your help!"

Cagalli opened her mouth to reply but closed it when she realized that he was already gone. She stretched her arms and shuddered, loosening her stiff muscles. She didn't have class until nine and smiled softly to herself. A nice, warm shower seemed appropriate. Slowly, she slid herself out from beneath her covers and stood up. Glancing out the window, an amused smile split her lips. She could see Athrun's mop of messy, blue hair as he sprinted frantically across the campus towards the lecture halls in the distance. It was a good 15 minute walk to get there and she knew that there was no way he would make it on time.

"Strange guy," She thought to herself and chuckled. Thinking little more of it, she floated across the room to grab her towel and the bottle of shampoo on her dresser. Her bare foot brushed up against something and she stopped short, dropping her gaze to see what she had bumped. Her room was messy, yes, but Cagalli liked to think of it as an organized mess. She knew where everything was this way and something, in her organized mess had been moved. She cocked her head, confused, before her head flew up and she turned back towards the window. It was Athrun's suitcase.

"He…" She couldn't believe it. "He left his stuff here…"

Meanwhile, Athrun blasted through the doors that lead to the main lecture hall and sped down the hall. His arms pumped wildly as he strained to read the room numbers. First he had to visit the principal and formally check and then he had to find his first class. It was advanced physics – perhaps his best subject. He'd always been fascinated by the movement of objects and the science behind it. At heart, he was an engineer though his parents would never allow him to pursue what they felt to be a lowly career path. They had his future already planned out. He was to follow the footsteps of his father and expected to indulge in the world of politics. For his parents, nothing was ever good enough. Most people would have been flattered to have a child with straight A's, an athletic scholarship to the Lunar Preparatory School and one who had never been seen as a troublemaker. Yet, all of this was almost expected of him and they would always raise the bar just a little higher, making it impossible for Athrun to reach it.

Lost in his thoughts, Athrun didn't notice that he was about to bump into someone until he actually did. His backpack fell to the ground and he looked up at the person he had just collided into. It was a boy about his age with short, brown hair and wide, amethyst eyes. Like him, he too had a backpack and also looked to be in a hurry. The boy wrinkled his nose at him as if disgusted and swiftly continued down the hall.

"Sorry." The teen mumbled quietly.

Athrun's heart soared with hope. Perhaps this boy could tell him how to get the to principal's office. "It's not your fault. I wasn't watching where I was going. My name is Athrun and I was wondering if…"

His voice died in his throat as he saw the boy walk around the corner and disappear into another corridor. "You could tell me where if it." He finished and signed. Reaching down, he snatched up his backpack and continued on his way. By now he had given up trying to get to class on time.

Eventually, he did manage to find the principal's office although he almost wished that he hadn't. He finished his meeting with her rather quickly and could tell that she didn't like him before he even opened his mouth. He knew she saw him like all the other teachers in his life had. With his last name being what it was and his father being who he was, many took an immediate dislike towards him. After reaching his school records, he was certain that she had already warned the school's staff about having Patrick Zala's boy on campus. Upon taking his leave, she smiled coldly at him and informed him that if he slipped up even once, either in grades or behavior, she would have him expelled without a second thought.

What a witch. She was worse than his last principal. At least that last one had at least made an attempt to hide his contempt for Athrun's father. This lady was blunt and up front about it. She didn't like Patrick Zala or his policies and she wouldn't like him either.

After the meeting, he was shown to his class. Walking into the middle of the lesson created quite a disturbance and gave the other students an excuse to start making noise as they stared and talked about him. The principal, who he had come to know as Ms.Badgiruel, quieted down the class and turned to him, demanding the he introduce himself.

Introduce himself? Athrun felt his mind go blank as all eyes fell on him and he swallowed. What was he supposed to say? Suddenly very self conscious and aware of his less than presentable appearance, he shifted uncomfortably. "Uh, I'm Athrun."

"This is Athrun Zala," The principal rolled her eyes at him and motioned for him to take a seat beside a boy with purple hair. Athrun's eyes widened in disbelief and for a second, he was frozen in place. It was the same boy from yesterday… Yuna! As Athrun moved reluctantly towards his seat, she continued. "He just arrived from the PLANTS and will be spending the semester with us… maybe even longer. Now, I will leave to your lesson."

Athrun shifted uncomfortably in his chair, pretending not to notice as Yuna leaned into him and whispered into his ear. "That seat is already spoken for, Zala. I suggest you move."

The request wouldn't have been a big deal if not for the fact that there were no other empty chairs in the hall. Athrun watched as the Ms. Badgiruel stalked towards him and tensed. She had her eye on him. He could feel it and it was almost as if she expected him to step out of line.

"There is no assigned seating." Athrun hissed back and fired Yuna a glare that silently spoke the words back off. He shifted his attention away from the other boy and reached into his backpack to pull out a blank sheet of paper and a pen. At the very same instant, Yuna twisted his left foot around one of the legs to Athrun's chair and pulled back as hard as he could. As intended, the other boy stumbled out of his chair and crashed to the floor half-in and half-out of the aisle way just as Ms. Badgiruel was walking past him.

The class erupted in laughter and Athrun felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment. Pushing himself up, he scrambled to get back up to his feet and pulled his chair back underneath him before sitting down. Fingers pointed and voices snickered as Athrun sunk further into his chair under the intense gaze of the principal. Damn this Yuna Saran. What had he done to deserve that?

"I see you are a bit of a class clown." The woman observed coldly. "That was to be expected though."

"What? No, I…"

Athrun started to protest but she waved him off. "Congratulations Mr. Zala. You have just earned yourself a week of lunch duty. I can't think of a better way to start off the semester can you? After class you will go the cafeteria and find Mr. La Flaga – he will instruct you from there. I will be checking with him after lunch to make sure you served your time." She leaned down and forced her face into his, causing Athrun to recoil slightly

"Yes Ma'am," He muttered under his breath and lowered his gaze, looking remorseful. In fact, he wasn't remorseful at all. He was angry. Once Ms. Badgered had moved past his row, he turned and shot Yuna a hard glare before settling down and focusing on the remainder of the class. Lunch duty? Why had he even bothered getting up at all?

Lunch duty, in fact, wasn't too bad. Actually, it was almost enjoyable. All it entailed was preparing the food for the students in the cafeteria for the lunch break. At first it hardly seemed like a punishment as far as Athrun was concerned. He took pleasure in cooking back home and his mother had done well to teach him how to prepare several dishes. None of course tasting as good as he own but it was the effort that counted.

That day, hamburgers just happened to be on the menu.

The only thing about lunch duty, he quickly learned, that could be seen as punishment was working with a hot-tempered, red-head named Flay. She road him hard and it was beginning to get on his nerves. It hadn't helped that he had accidentally mispronounced her name when Mr. La Flaga introduced them to one another. At least there was another boy that he could share his misery with. The same boy he had bumped into earlier – Kira Yamato.

"Single!"

"I need a double right away!"

"Come on you two hurry it up!"

Beads of sweat rolled down his moist forehead from the heat radiating off the grill to which he had been confined to as he hastily flipped the sizzling beef patties over. With a quick motion of the wrist, he expertly tossed one patty on top of another and pressed it against the side of the grill to drain any excess liquids before placing it on the awaiting burger bun. His actions were swift yet precise as he then sliced into another patty to ensure there was no pink before stepping over to his right and placing it on the second sandwich maker's bun.

While he did so, Kira busily laid more raw meat onto the grill to compensate for the ones that were disappearing to the hungry stomachs that came through the cafeteria line.

"I need another single and a triple!" Flay, who had just received two patties for her double burger barked sharply and threw the Athrun an impatient glare. "Hurry it up!"

Athrun turned his head slightly, his eyes narrowing as he fired a warning look at the girl who's nametag read "Flay Allster" before turning his attention back to his slowly burning meat patties. Sweat and perspiration from the heat dampened his tangled locks of blue hair as thin strands from his bangs fell into his eyes, slightly obstructing his vision. Flipping the meat quickly, Athrun piled four patties onto his flipper before trying to squeeze past Kira, who was preoccupied with laying more meat on the grill.

The line of hungry students was rapidly growing longer and he knew that if he didn't pick up the pace, Mr. La Flaga would become annoyed and that meant another angry lecture from the already irritated chef.

Flay, however, didn't seem to share Athrun's concern for as he was about to slide the patties onto her hamburger buns, she put her arm between him and the buns and tossed her head back knowingly. "Did you check to make sure that they were finished?"

"They are cooked," Athrun assured her through clinched teeth, his eyes watching as more students entered the lineup.

"You have to check anyway," Flay declared and motioned towards his grill with her head. "We can't have people getting sick. No pink – that is the rule."

Her voice picked up volume with each word and Athrun's expression darkened as he felt the attention of the other students working in the cafeteria turn to him. Aggravated by Flay's determination to embarrass him, Athrun let out some of his anger as he turned around sharply, almost pushing Kira's head into the grill and slammed the patties down onto the scorching surface and brought down the corner of his metal flipper into them. The force that he had put into the motion drove the corner of the flipper right through all four patties and checking briefly he then picked them up once more.

He wasn't new at this. He had cooked hamburgers on a grill before and he knew that the top of the grill cooked faster than the bottom. He had taken the patties at the bottom of the grill first and had checked them for any signs of pink before serving them and there had been none. Therefore, it was only logical that the ones at the top and hotter section of the rectangular grill, having been laid at the same time, would also be ready to serve. Yet these were the ones that Flay had openly demanded he check.

"Remember to check all the patties before you serve them," Flay continued as Athrun carefully set the patties onto her burgers so that they were perfectly square. His cheeks had turned a dark shade of red yet his anger was easily misread as a reaction to the heat from the grill.

As he stepped away, he heard Kira snicker softly.

"That's right, Athrun, we don't want anyone dying in the cafeteria."

"Uh huh," Athrun nodded calmly and glanced up so his eyes met those of the shorter girl. "Nothing worse than an uncooked burger on a stale bun with old lettuce."

Brutally wrapping her burgers in wax paper, Flay fired a look that could melt ice at the two boys. "My buns are fine and my lettuce is NOT old."

Athrun said nothing and for a moment their eyes remained locked, each trying to intimidate the other before Athrun simply shrugged and turned away. Pretending to be focused on his work, he glanced up longingly at the clock hanging on the wall. It was 11:55 am. In five minutes both Kira and himself would be finished their time in the cafeteria for the day. In five minutes they would be rid of Flay for at least 15 hours before it all started again.

"Five minutes," He muttered so only the shorter boy could hear. "Five minutes and we are out of here."

Kira's lips twitched as a small smile split his features and he nodded as Athrun returned a small grin of his own. "Hang in there, we've almost finished putting in our time here for the day."

Athrun acknowledged him grimly and wiped his brow on the sleeve of his shirt. It was always the same… those last five minutes seemed to last for an eternity.

"I gave you $20."

Athrun's head shot up as he heard the sound of an angry teacher. Throwing a glance to his left, his expression softened as he his eyes fell upon the young girl at the front cash register. She was short with blond hair and…

His eyes widened. It was Cagalli! Why hadn't he noticed this before?

"I…. I am sorry," Cagalli stuttered, her face paling as she faced the angered teacher. "But my screen says that your meal costs $7.18 and I gave you $12.62… You aren't being over-charged. Take a look at the screen."

"This is ridiculous" The man roared and slammed his fist on the counter. "You owe me 20 cents! Can't you count girl? That's the problem with your generation, so dependent on technology you can't even do simple math."

Had it been a fellow student, Cagalli would have told them to get lost. This, however, was a teacher. She nervously looked from left to right at the surprised faces of the other students waiting in line and Athrun's heart sympathized with her as many of them began whispering to one another while keeping their attention on her. Perhaps what disgusted him more was that none of the other students would step up and help her. Not Flay, who seemed so quick at finding and promoting the errors of others and not even Mr. La Flaga who put so much emphasis on team work and good service.

With a sigh he reached back with his free hand and dug into his back pocket. Quickly, he did some brief arithmetic in his head and stepped forward. "You are right," He told the man and held out his hand to him. Maintaining firm eye contact with the fuming man he opened up his palm, revealing two shinny dimes. "There's a glitch in the register, it isn't her fault… here is the rest of your change."

There was a pause and for a moment, the teacher seemed almost hesitant to take the money. His expression softened as he hastily snatched the two coins and jammed them into his coat pocket. He grabbed his order tray and stormed off, mumbling something about stupid teenagers.

Cagalli remained frozen, astonished by how quickly Athrun had defused the escalating situation. "Thank you," She managed to squeak and sighed. "Some people just should be allowed to teach. Did you see the way he blew up at me? Sheesh!"

Athrun blushed and as he returned to tend to his grill, he noticed that Flay was watching him again. With a low groan the slim, youth let out an exasperated sigh. "Now what's wrong?"

"You left your position." Flay retorted acrimoniously. "You are to stay at your grill until told otherwise by Mr. La Flaga… what if I needed a burger?"

"Then I would've got it for you," Kira piped up, immediately coming to his Athrun's defense. "That's why there are two people controlling the grill."

"You lay raw meat," Flay snapped. "Athrun is supposed to serve it… it's his job to provide the patties for my burgers."

"Well you can get your own meat now," Athrun set his spatula down. "My shift is done."

Not wasting another word, Athrun spun on his heels and darted off towards the backroom before Flay could protest or call upon Mr. La Flaga. Shaking his head, he ran his fingers through his moist, dark hair and flexed the muscles in his stiffening arms.

Behind him, he could hear Kira's footsteps right on his heels while Flay's voice echoed loudly in his eardrums.

"You can't leave before Mr. La Flaga says you can!"

Kira laughed lightly as the two boys made their way to the small lounge behind the cafeteria reserved for the workers, which consisted of a unisex washroom, a small table, two chairs and a bulletin board.

"I can not stand her," Athrun moaned under his breath as he entered the washroom, closing the door behind him. "And to think I have another four days of this?"

"She makes life interesting," Kira agreed as he grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair and pulled one arm through it. "She started here last semester and they gave her a part-time job in the cafeteria. Partly because she is a good worker, partly because she guarantees the students sent here for 'lunch duty' a miserable time. The lunch duty isn't the punishment – working with her is."

Athrun's bottom lip twitched. "What did you do to end up here?"

Kira shrugged and picked up his backpack. "I got caught talking in class. I was actually asking my friend Milly a question but… it didn't really matter. Anyway, I have to get to my next class – I'll see you tomorrow ok?"

The taller boy chuckled and waved goodbye as Kira exited through the door that lead to the main hall. Still flushed from the heat of the grill, Athrun sniffed the air and realized that he smelt of charred meat and his clothes were clammy with sweat. He was relieved though. At least he now had an excuse for his somewhat disheveled appearance. As he threw his backpack over his shoulder and made a move to leave, he straightened when he saw that Cagalli was also leaving.

She turned around when she heard him approaching and flashed him a bright smile. Again, Athrun's face grew red and suddenly he felt a little bashful. "Hi!" She grinned and cocked her head towards the tables on the other end of the cafeteria. "Thanks for your help earlier. Sometimes, my job isn't easy."

Athrun blinked. "Uh, you work here?"

She nodded. "Yeah, it's easy money. Flay and I are the only students actually paid to work in the cafeteria." She tossed him a teasing smirk before continuing. "You must have done something pretty awful to get put on café duty."

"Not really." Athrun replied shortly and followed her as the two started to leave the food preparation area. He made a note of getting put on lunch duty more often. His heart beat loudly against his chest as he wondered whether or not Cagalli had eaten lunch. He certainly hadn't anything since yesterday. He bit his lip, willing himself to ask her if she wanted to eat with him.

Come on stupid. He scolded himself. Open your mouth. Ask her. You've eaten lunch with lots of girls before. What is wrong with you?

Before he could ask Cagalli anything, his ears picked up on a familiar and annoying set of heels as they came towards Cagalli and himself. Straightening, Athrun spun around to face the person who seemed relentless in her pursuit to humiliate him.

"You shouldn't have left your position," Flay declared, stepping forward. "I spoke to Mr. La Flaga about it and he agrees that both of you should stay until you are dismissed."

Looking up, Cagalli watched with uncertainty as Athrun sighed and dug his hands into his jacket pockets. She noticed the shrewd look that was beginning to emerge from behind Athrun's polished emerald eyes.

"Really?" Athrun cocked his head to the left and raised a skeptical eyebrow. "What about you?"

"What about me?" Flay demanded hotly.

"Well," Athrun threw her a knowing smirk before he continued. "I am officially done for today, however, you are not and you aren't at your sandwich station. What if you had burgers you had to prepare?"

In unison, as if on cue, the three turned towards the empty aisle way that led to the cash register and Cagalli groaned. Flay and Athrun were engaged in a war of wills, one always trying to crush the other while the other resisted with vigor. For the entire lunch, Athrun had refused to endure the verbal abuse that Flay constantly threw at him and Flay was not prepared to be out-witted by the new, rich-man's son.

"There are no students to prepare burgers for," Flay pointed out bluntly and shook her head. "If there was someone then I would go back to my station but at the moment I am not required to do so."

She was right. Everyone who had wanted to food from the cafeteria had already been served.

Athrun nodded and turned his head slightly so he could see Cagalli out of the corner of his eye. She had remained silent throughout the entire ordeal and when he caught her gaze, Athrun motioned towards the menu board above. "I don't know about you Cagalli, but I'm hungry. I mean, after putting in a hard three hours of work… I think we deserve a bite before we leave hmmm?"

Cagalli smiled deviously and acknowledged Athrun with a slight nod. "Sounds good to me."

"There," Athrun stated bluntly, a small smile spitting his handsome features. "It looks like you have two guests now Flay so you better get back to your position before someone tells Mr. La Flaga."

As his words hit her, Athrun was almost positive that her face could not become more crimson, burning with anger. He had beat her at her own game and she knew it… they both knew it.

"You think you are so smart don't you?" She sputtered her body trembling with rage. "But you're not, Athrun Zala, and that showy attitude of yours is going to get you into trouble!"

Neither Cagalli nor Athrun heard her though as the two had already left the front line, laughing and snickering lightly. They staggered out into the cafeteria, fully aware of the flaming glare that was vaporizing them from behind the counter.

"Come on," Athrun pointed to a table in the far corner and pulled lightly on Cagalli's jacket to catch her attention. "Let's go."

"Go?" Cagalli frowned. "But I thought we were going to get something to eat?"

Athrun smiled and glanced over his shoulder at a fuming Flay. "Nah, I changed my mind."

Cagalli chuckled, as she followed her friend out towards the table to take a seat and eat the lunch that she had brought over from residence. Athrun was different from the other boys she knew. He fought fire with fire and beat people at their own game – just as he had demonstrated with Flay. Impressed, she could only imagine how Flay would be tomorrow and just hoped that Athrun would be on his toes.

TBC

I wrote this up quick so I am sorry if there are errors. Let me know if you find them and I will correct them right away.

Anyone who has worked in a fast food restaurant surely can sympathize with Athrun here – some people who work there are just so mean to the other employees! Anyway, in the next chapter it gets much more interesting. As I said, I just had to introduce Kira, establish the setting ext. Hope you liked it! I like writing this sort of thing. Dearka, Yzak, Lacus and others will be arriving soon.

Please review ok? I love hearing from you. Thanks for reading.

Until next time,

Krilyn