Perfect Strangers

by Leiko Hikaru

Summary's too long to post here. P It's inside. :3

2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer : Gundam Seed and it's characters belong, in no way, to Leiko Hikaru. For, if they did, she wouldn't feel the need to write stories in the first place, as she'd be too busy playing with all of them.

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Chapter 2

"His brain activity is increasing very substantially."

"So, what's that mean?" I stood outside Kira's room, speaking to his doctor, my arms crossed, my long white hair tousled and messy from the little sleep I had gathered the night before.

"Well," The doctor said, smiling. "It's a very good sign. It could very well mean that he could be waking soon."

"Really?" I asked, eyebrows rising and my eyes widening with surprise.

"Of course, I can't sure. But I think that there's a good chance. I just don't want you to get your hopes up. There's still a still a chance he still won't wake up for long time."

Although this last bit of information cause my hope to fall a bit, I couldn't help but smile and nod my head happily. "Yes! Of course! Thank you!" I gave him a very quick hug, during which the doctor hugged me back awkwardly, and then I returned to the room, where Cagali sat in chair beside my own.

"Well?"

"Good news!" I said, smiling as she stood. "The doctor said he might be waking up soon."

"No way!" Cagali said, mimicking the expression that I had just performed out in hallway as she smiled, hugging me tightly.

"Mm hmm!" I nodded, and received her hug happily. "He said that Kira's brain is getting a bit more active. He said that he doesn't want us getting our hopes too high, but there's still a good chance."

"Oh, that's great!" Cagali beamed as we both seated ourselves once more. Instinctively, I let my hand cover Kira's, lying limply on the bed, as I continued to chat.

"We'll have to plan some sort of celebration. With everyone there! Oh, he'd love that."

"Yeah, but not too many people. We don't want to get him too active."

I laughed. "That makes me think of that time that he threw you a birthday party. You remember that?"

Cagali shook her head, sighing with a quiet laugh. "I have yet to forget it." She said with a small smile. "Remember how Sai knocked over that lamp and Athrun thought we were being attacked?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "That was probably the funniest things I have ever seen in my life."

"It's probably not quite as funny as seeing Kira doing Kareoke!"

I raised both of my eyebrows. "He's done karaoke?!"

Of course, such a statement had amazed me. I had never seen Kira as one who was able to get up and sing in front of a large crowd of people. In fact, I even found it hard to do. I watched with amusement as Cagali chuckled, nodding her head.

"Yeah. Only once, though, and we basically forced him. He hardly did it willingly, and it was so embarrassing that he absolutely refuses to do it anymore."

I laughed again. "What happened?"

"Well, somehow he found a way to fall off of the stage and knock over three of the tables. To say the least, the owner made sure to kick us out first thing."

There had been many moments between Cagali and I such as this. We would chat and laugh for hours, usually about the most embarrassing moments of Kira and Athrun that we hadn't already shared with each other. Next to Athrun, she was one of my closest friends. Always there for me to rely on, even in the most difficult of times.

After joining ZAFT and remaining with them for nearly three years, I had become nothing less than a well-known pilot, and, alongside Athrun, we were the leaders of our unit. However, during one invasion, we attacked the area that my parents had been staying in - having moved from our previous home without my knowledge -, and, unaware of that one fact, I killed them, destroying their town and others nearby. I wasn't able to live with myself, and came very close to attempting to retire from ZAFT. However, Athrun convinced me to stay, after I realized that I had nowhere left, as long as he promised to take me to Heliopolis.

---

"Who is it that we're supposed to be meeting here?"

I was pulled from my fascination of the wondrous city as Athrun spoke and looked over at him, eyebrows raised. "Huh? …Oh! My friend, Ayame."

"Yeah. Remind me to kill you later."

I spun around at the sound of a familiar female voice, not sounding all to enthusiastic, a grin spreading across my features as she stepped out of the crowd, wearing a long skirt and a sequined tank top. "Ayame! You look like a girl!" I said happily, my grin widening.

"Goddammit, I hate you." She growled, her scowl increasing by the second as she glared at me, arms crossed over her chest. Laughing, I lunged, tackling her in a tight hug, during which she gagged, claiming she had no air and forced me to release her.

"Just be happy I'm in a partially good mood today, you nimrod." She said, hitting me on the head with a clenched fist.

I rubbed my head, returning her glare with one of my own. "Fine, be that way. Me and my super-cute friend will just leave, then." I looked over at Athrun to see him staring at the two of us, eyebrow raised. Upon hearing the words "super" and "cute", a light pink tinge rose to his cheeks and he gave me a quizzical glance, upon which he realized I was being sarcastic. Grinning at him, I walked over, patting him on the shoulder. "Athrun, meet Ayame Rockwell. Ame, this is Athrun Zala."

He blinked, not moving as Ayame stared him in the eye. He seemed to have become frozen to his spot. She raised an eyebrow, smirking a bit before waving her hand in front of his face. "Hi." She said, giving him and overly enthusiastic smile, which obviously held a bit of sarcasm and was obviously forced.

He was instantly snapped out of his daze and looked her in the eye. "Uh.. Oh… Hi." He said, shaking himself out of his state and obviously attempting to return to normal as he held out his hand. I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing, giving Ayame an amused glance as she shook Athrun's hand.

"Aaaaaaaand, we're off!" Grinning, I grabbed my two friends by the arm and dragged them after me, pulling them down the street as I walked quickly along the sidewalk.

"Hey! Leiko, let go!" I could hear Ayame screaming at me from behind and I smiled at her over my shoulder before stopping and letting the two of them go, allowing myself to calm back down to my usual mannerism. I had been unusually upbeat and hyperactive that day, and suddenly I was beginning to feel back to myself. "So… Where to?"

Athrun sighed, straightening his now crooked shirt and looked at me out of the corner of his eye, eyebrow raised, signifying that he could really care less. I then shifted my gaze to Ayame, and her response was a simple shrug of her shoulders. I huffed, biting my lip. Now that I was actually here, never having had the chance to visit the large city before, it was hard for me to decide what to do. However, it wasn't long before Ayame and I stumbled upon all the good clothing stores, and poor Athrun was stuck with us until the end of the day.

After the third store, Ayame and I left, content with out purchases, and stepped back out onto the street again, but not holding any bags. I looked over my shoulder and frowned as I spotted Athrun stumbling out of the doorway, attempting to balance all the bags that were piled in his arms. I gave him a pitiful glance and then laughed, looking at Ayame and receiving a smirk.

"C'mon, Athrun. Hurry up!" I said, waving with a grin.

He grumbled, stumbling forward, swaying side to side as he did so. I sighed and reached up, grabbing a few of the bags and handing them to Ayame before taking a few more for myself, leaving Athrun with the rest. It lightened his load and made it possible for him to see while he walked.

"Honestly. Some man you are." I said, nudging him with the toe of my shoe and grinning. "Can't even carry our bags." Athrun blinked and then sighed, glaring at me before shaking his head.

"Hey! Let's go get some ice cream." I said, indicating to an ice cream parlor across the street, looking at them over my shoulder as I began to walk. However, I was forced to halt I ran into someone, causing me to stumble and drop my bags.

"Hey! What where you're go-"

"Oh, sorry."

I stopped in the middle of my sentence as I bent down to gather my bags when I bumped hands with the one I had run into and looked up to see Kira, holding one of my bags and looking at me with a shocked expression that could very well have matched mine.

"Ah… Kira. Hi." Normally, I would have snapped at him, but seeing as how I was in a particularly bad mood, I didn't feel it was appropriate.

"Hi." He said, blinking before looking down at the bag he held in his hand. "Oh, here." He handed me my bag and stood up, offering me his hand. "Sorry about that."

I took the bag and looked up at him as he stood, gathering the rest of my bags and taking his hand, allowing him to hoist me up. I shook my head at his apology and gave him a small smile.

"Kira." Athrun's voice came from behind me, and I turned to see him staring at Kira with a small smirk on his face. Kira smiled a bit, waving a hand.

"Hey there, Athrun. How's it going?"

I blinked as they talked giving Ayame a confused glance and receiving a shrug.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." I said, shaking my head. "You guys know each other?" Of course, I knew that they were at least aware of each other's presence, seeing as how Kira had mentioned Athrun that first day we had met each other. However, I had never even begun to think that they were on friendly terms. Athrun blinked and then gave me a small smile, nodding.

"Sure do."

I looked back a Kira and received a nod and then turned back to Athrun, smacking him on the arm. "I've known you for nearly twelve years and you don't bother telling me this?!"

[a/n: during this flashback, they're around 15

Athrun laughed and shook his head, and I sighed, turning to look back at Kira. He laughed as well, causing me to groan.

"You guys are typical men." I mumbled. I found it odd that the two were fighting on opposite sides and still found way to remain friends, but decided to ignore it.

"So… How've you been?" I was pulled from my thoughts as Kira spoke again, and I looked up at him, eyebrows raised.

"Oh… Good. Training and stuff… We're taking a bit of a break. How about you?"

Kira nodded. "The same. We're here to relax too."

I looked over his shoulder as he said this, and spotted four other teens walking down the street towards up, stopping to look in the store window. "Ah. Sounds fun." I said, nodding with a smile.

"Yeah…" He paused for a moment, until he spoke again. "So… Your ankle's okay then?"

I blinked, looking down at my foot for a moment before staring up at him again, my eyebrow raised. "Uh… Yeah…" I laughed quietly. "I mean, it's only been two years."

He chuckled a bit, rubbing the back the back of his head nervously. "Oh.. Yeah.. I guess so. Doesn't seem like it's been that long, does it?"

"No. It doesn't." I shook my head, staring up at the sky for a moment.

"Hey, Kira. Who you talking to?" I blinked, turning my attention to a boy peering over Kira's shoulder with curious eyes.

"Oh. Hey, Sai."

"Who's this?" The blonde haired boy raised an eyebrow curiously, looking at me from behind yellow shades as he signaled to me with a nod of his head.

"Ah. This is Leiko. Leiko, meet Sai."

"Hi." I said with an awkward smile and a wave.

"What's going on?" The others appeared behind Sai, staring over his shoulder with the same curious expression. I was feeling very much the center of attention, and not enjoying it too much.

I quickly discovered everyone's names, as Kira introduced them all as quickly as possible - he seemed to have somehow sensed my discomfort. There was Miriallia, or Miri, Kuzzy, and Fllay. They all introduced themselves to me, seeming kind enough… Aside from Fllay, that is. She introduced herself all the same, but continually shot glares my when she wasn't speaking. Especially when Kira and I exchanged words. I kept from allowing my tempter to get the better of me, but had a serious temptation to punch her… Or, at least, get Ayame to do it. After all, if my redheaded friend wanted to, she could break Fllay's pretty little nose if she wanted to…. Speaking of which…

"Oh. These are my friends. Ayame and Athr-" I stopped mid-sentence when I noticed that they were nowhere to be seen. "Huh?" I blinked staring around. They had disappeared in a matter of five minutes, nowhere to be seen. "Where'd they go?" I asked, looking back at Kira. He raised an eyebrow and then chuckled, pointing to the ice cream shop that the three of us had been heading to before our encounter with Kira.

Athrun and Ayame were sitting in a table beside the window, chatting it up and already eating their ice cream. After a moment or two, Ayame looked my way, laughed, said something to Athrun and pointed. He smiled and waved sarcastically, causing me to roll my eyes.

"They left about five minutes ago."

"Oh.." I laughed. "Well, I guess I better go, then. It was nice to meet you all." I said to the others, giving a small, and polite, bow. Still ignoring Fllay's angry stares. Then, I paused, smiling at Kira and nodding my head. "And it was good to see you again, Kira. Glad to see you're doing well."

"Uh.." He paused, blinking, before nodding in return. "Yeah. You too."

I crossed the street with a final wave to everyone and entered the ice cream parlor, taking a seat at the table with my two friends, flicking Ayame in the nose as I did so.

"You two ditched me."

"No, we didn't." Athrun said, offering a small smile, spoon in hand.

"Yeah. We just left without informing you."

I shook my head and stole a bite of Ayame's ice cream, watching as Kira, Sai, and Kuzzy waited outside the shop that the three of us had just emerged from. Moments later, Miri and Fllay exited the small store and they continued on their way. However, Kira paused and turned his head, looking my way. I blinked and them smiled - attempting to ignore the fact that my cheeks felt warm - giving him a small wave. He returned the gesture, a small smile gracing his own features, before turning and running after his friends as Sai called after him.

It had been awkward seeing him again after two years. Although, I would never admit it aloud, I realized how much I had actually thought about him during that time. We had spent nearly two weeks together on that island, stranded, running out of food, with no company but each other. Secretly, I had to admit that I had grown slightly fond of him. However, he was still my enemy. That didn't matter, though. Because, no matter how much of enemies we were, I wouldn't be able to prevent what was eventually to happen.

Hey, guys. I'm back again. I've gone through and done a bit of fine editing to the story. Mainly just fixing grammar mistakes and misspelled words. I haven't changed much.

This story has actually been finished for QUITE a long time. So, please don't hate me for taking so long to update. n.n;;

In any case… This story is only a measly six chapers. D8

One of the shortest stories I've ever written, but I did enjoy writing it. And I hope you all enjoy reading it as well! D

Disclaimer : Gundam Seed and it's characters belong, in no way, to Leiko Hikaru. For, if they did, she wouldn't feel the need to write stories in the first place, as she'd be too busy playing with all of them.

Chapter 3

The hours turned into days. The days turned into weeks. I continued to wait, never leaving Kira's side for more than a few hours, anxiously awaiting the time when I would see him open his eyes. Just as the doctor didn't want me to do, I had gotten my hopes up, but I began to feel as though hope was all that was going to bring him back.

After my little run in with Kira, I began wondering if ZAFT was really where I wanted to be. I thought about the possibility of there being something else out there for me. Something better that I should have been doing. I wondered if I truly was happy, and soon discovered I wasn't. I loved being able to be with Athrun, and to be able to do something with my life, but I felt I didn't belong, and, because of that, I left ZAFT, and returned to the small town that I used to live in with my parents. I made my living there by fixing broken machinery parts until I knew what a wanted to do with myself. After a year or so, I discovered my love for music, and began to pursue a possible career as a singer. I became one of the "lucky ones" in the words of my manager, and with his help, I landed a record deal and got signed.

"It's genius!! Completely brilliant, Leiko!!"

I blinked from within the recording booth, holding the headphones to my ears, spotting my manager dancing about the control room with the studio owner. I couldn't help but laugh. However, the last man, still seated at the control panel, didn't find it quite as amusing. He shook his head with a heavy sigh and signaled for me to leave the booth. Nodding, I set down the headphones and opened the door, walking back into the studio room and slipping on my jacket.

"BRILLIANT!"

"GENIUS!"

"Hey, Hoshi."

"AMAZING!"

"Hoshi!"

"FANTASTIC!"

"Hoshi!!" Smack.

Yes, that's right. I hit my manager. He immediately paused his movements in midair and looked at me over his shoulder with a goofy grin. "Haha. Sorry 'bout that, Leiko." He said, rubbing the back of his head and calming himself down. I smiled and shook my head with a quiet laugh as he turned to the controls manager. "How about you play that back to us!" He said, placing one hand on his hip and putting his free arm around my shoulder, pulling me into a one-armed hug. The man nodded, and turned himself back around in his chair. Moments later, the familiar tune of what was my song began to play over the speakers.

The water that speaks

Only I understand

Encrypted and secret

In the mirror of my soul

Fly with great wings

That outshine the world's pain

Illuminated by the warm sun

I am granted tame freedom

Piercing the white darkness

Go on creating a new era

With a heart that's been released

Fly away

Fly away

In this world, so unsafe

What should I protect?

On the long painful journey, so painful

I feel myself beginning to understand

The light being born

The darkness that dies

I make my way home

To the water that speaks

Out of the darkness

And into the light

To the water that speaks

I make my way home

"Well? How's it sound?" I asked, looking up at Hoshi. I wasn't sure how much I liked it. After all, as they say; 'You are your toughest critic.' However, my manager smiled immediately and clapped his hands in a rather dramatic fashion. "You just wait until the public sees you, Leiko! Once they get a taste, you'll leave them wanting so much more that they won't know what to do with themselves!"

I smiled, laughing as he continued to clap. Sure, he could be a bit dramatic and went a bit overboard when trying to make his point known, but Hoshi was probably the best manager anyone could ever ask for. It wasn't long before my CD was out on store shelves and I couldn't go anywhere without being noticed. However, that didn't keep me from going out once in a while.

"C'mon, Ayame. Hurry up, would you?!"

"For god's sake, Leiko. Chill out. You act like Athrun isn't going to wait if we're a few minutes late! He hasn't seen you in two years after all."

I rolled my eyes and huffed, poking my head in the room to see Ayame observing her appearance in the large mirror opposite her. "Ayame!"

"What?!? God, Lei! Don't do that!"

I crossed my arms, stepping into the room and looking at her with a smug smirk. She raised her eyebrow, although careful not to look me in the eye.

"What?" She snapped, smoothing out her shirt nervously. I could see her cheeks turning red, which only caused my smirk to grow in size.

"I can't believe this."

"WHAT?" She repeated. It was obvious that she was becoming annoyed, but I was enjoying myself. So, I kept my gaze trained on her, never allowing my expression to change, even as I spoke.

"How often have you and Athrun gotten together between when you guys met and now?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Once or twice…" She said, looking away as she mumbled, "We went out for dinner a few times…"

"Ayame Rockwell, you've got a thing for Athrun, haven't you?"

I watched with pleasure as she nearly fell over, trying to pretend as though she had no idea what I was talking about. However, I knew better than anyone when she was trying to hide something, and at that particular moment in time, she was doing a rather lousy job. Her cheeks turned bright red.

"What are you talking about? I mean, honestly! How stupid can one person get?" She asked harshly, becoming rather interested in the placement of her bangs in the mirror.

"That! That is exactly what I'm talking about!" I said, pointing. She immediately put her hand down, realizing her mistake. "You're fixing yourself up!"

"So? Isn't that was girls do before they go out?" She was cornered now, and was attempting to come up with some legitimate excuse. However, she didn't fool me.

"Since when do you care about your appearance when we go out?" I asked , crossing my arms once more and settling my weight to my left foot as I smirked. I had her now. She stared at me, obviously unsure of what to say - for once in her life - before huffing and grabbing her jacket.

"Just shut up. Let's go."

With that, she stormed past me and out of the room, and I followed joyfully on her heels, humming a happy tune as I skipped alongside her out to the car. I hummed on the car ride over, I hummed as we entered the restaurant, and I hummed as I sat down. Athrun smiled at the two of us, but his expression immediately changed when he noticed my unusually gleeful mood.

"What's go you so cheerful?" He asked, sounding as though he was unsure about wanting to know. I blinked, looked at him, and then grinned.

"Well… Before we came here, Ayame-" Just then, a rather forceful kick collided with my shin and I immediately bit my lip, tears forming at the corners of my eyes, as I glared at Ayame. She glared at me in return, offering the type of cold stare that said, 'speak, and you die'.

"You okay?"

I nodded my head reluctantly, although the fact that Ayame had kicked me made me want to tell him all that much more, and then smiled at him, forcing myself to remain calm. "Yeah! I'm fine!"

"What were you saying?"

I smiled, rubbing the back of my head with a laugh. "Oh, that? It's nothing. Don't worry about it. Ayame was just being stupid earlier, likealways." Once again, I received another painful kick, but forced myself to act as though nothing happened as our orders were taken. I then watched as Athrun and Ayame began to chat. They acted as though they had known each other for much longer than two years, and I even noticed that at points in their conversations, they would break into small arguments, of which Ayame almost always won. I smiled, shook my head, and leaned back in my chair, crossing my legs and putting my hands in my lap.

The past four years had flown by so quickly that I didn't know where they had gone. I was now seventeen, about to turn eighteen the next month - along with Ayame - a very well known singer, friends with one of the best Gundam pilots of ZAFT, and still, I felt as though I was missing something. Whenever I thought of myself happy, I saw everything I had then. My life as it was, my friends… But I also saw someone else…

"Hellooo?? Earth to Leiko."

I was pulled from my thoughts as Ayame waved her hand in front of my face. Blinking, I stared at her, then looked to Athrun, and back to my red-headed friend once more. "Y-yeah?"

She rolled her eyes. "We were just talking about that birthday ball thing that they're throwing for you and me next week. You still don't have an escort, do you?"

After a moment or two, I blinked, realizing that they two of them were up to something. I gave them both suspicious glances. "No.." I replied cautiously, watching as they looked at each other with pleased smirks. "Then again, neither do the two of you."

Well, that turned the tables, now didn't it? Two could play at that game. They looked at me, eyebrows raised, the truth dawning upon them, as though the thought hadn't occurred to them before, although I wouldn't have been surprised if it hadn't. They then looked at each other, faces both tinged with a slight shade of pink, and I smiled triumphantly.

"I don't." Athrun said, shaking his head.

"Me either…" Ayame blinked, staring at her food.

I smiled. "Well, then, you'll just have to go with each other, then. Won't you? Alright! Problem solved! Moving on!"

Ayame glared at me, but her expression changed after a moment, making her appear as though she had just had a stroke of brilliance. "I'll make you a deal." She said, leaning forward, a smirk on her face. I couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. It wasn't normal for her to strike deals with me, seeing as how she got what she wanted, or it wasn't happening. However, I suppose this case was different, because of the fact that she was obviously… interested in Athrun. I smiled and nodded.

"Okay. Whatcha got for me?"

"Athrun and I," She said, signaling to Athrun, who appeared had just caught on to her little plan. "Have got someone in mind that you might have fun with… But, seeing as how you're not too keen on blind dates and all."

I shook my head furiously. "No. No, no, no. No. Not going to happen…. No."

"Oh. Alright, then." She leaned back in her chair. "I guess I'll just be skipping your birthday this year."

"Wha-? Ame, you can't do that!" I said, huffing as I put on my signature pout. "It'll be no fun! And then Athrun'll have to come alone."

"You go with our choice of escort for you, and I'll attend the party."

I huffed again, glaring at her. I should have remembered sooner that even if she did make a deal, she was going to get her way. Blind dates definitely weren't exactly what I called fun. Having experienced quite a few horrible ones in the past, I chose to stay as far away as possible from them. However, if I said no, then Athrun would have to come alone. Ayame knew she had won, before I even agreed, and then returned to eating. Athrun smiled at me, and laughed quietly as he received a punch on the arm.

"Ayame. You realize you've got to dress up for this thing, right?" I had just gotten myself new ammo. I immediately received a cold glare, but seeing as how I had gotten used to them over the years, I ignored it and grinned. "What do you say we fix it up a bit? I'll go with this mystery guy of yours, if you allow Athrun to escort you… In a dress."

"It ain't happening. I draw the line at dresses."

I noticed Athrun looking rather amused out of the corner of my eye as our little agreement progressed and smiled at Ayame. "I'm sure Athrun would love to see how womanlike you can be when you try…" Once again, Athrun's cheeks turned slightly pink, but he pretended not to hear and went back to eating.

"I could care less." Ayame said with a roll of her eyes. However, after a moment she seemed to realize what she had said and immediately looked at Athrun, raising an eyebrow. "I mean… It's not that I don't care about… What I mean is… I just…" She huffed, raking a hand through her hair. "Ugh. Fine."

I blinked. "That was easier than I thought it would be."

Disclaimer : Gundam Seed and it's characters belong, in no way, to Leiko Hikaru. For, if they did, she wouldn't feel the need to write stories in the first place, as she'd be too busy playing with all of them.

Chapter 4

He was coming back soon. I knew it.

One night, I sat beside his bed, telling him of all the past day's events, hoping that somehow he was hearing me. I laughed, filling him in on how Ayame had nearly fallen down the stairs when she had come to visit earlier. Apparently, she had attempted to step with the same foot she had already stepped with and tripped.

"Luckily, Athrun was there to keep her from breaking her neck." I laughed quietly once more, smiling sadly, looking down at my hands folded in my lap. "It'd probably be better if you could hear me though, wouldn't it?" I asked his sleeping form quietly. Looking up at his peaceful face, I felt a strong pang of sadness. "I don't know why I think you can hear me…" Sighing, I reached up, taking his hand in mind and closing my eyes. "You promised you wouldn't leave me… So you better come back.."

Then, my heart skipped a beat. I opened my eyes quickly, and stared down at my hand. I had been holding Kira's limp hand, but now his fingers had tightened themselves around mine. I looked up at him quickly, but saw no other movement. His eyes remained closed. However, I told no one about what had happened. I was probably one of the most superstitious people you would ever meet and, I suppose, I thought that if anyone else knew, then maybe I'd have to way even longer for him to wake up.

"You're kidding me right?"

"What? It looks perfectly fine? I love it, Ayame!" I said, standing beside my friend as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. She stood in a white evening gown, with light pink embroidery and trimming, complete with gloves. She glared at me, eyebrow raised.

"You're kidding me, right?" She repeated.

"Ayame, you were being too picky at the stores and made the mistake of giving me the responsibility of choosing your dress. I would have chosen something a bit darker, which I know you like, but it's a birthday party. A celebration. Not a funeral… So, you've got this choice of this one, or.." I reached into the nearby wardrobe and pulled out a dress that was close enough to a tutu and a horrific puke green color. I had chosen this one simply because I didn't want to give my dear friend the satisfaction of a choice in what she wore. I suppose it was my type of payback for the bruises on my shin, along with teasing me nonstop about the blind date she and Athrun and set me up with.

She glared once more before sighing. "Lose the gloves and we'll call it a deal." I smiled and shook hands with her before sending her off to get her hair done. The party was less than two hours away and I hadn't even dressed myself yet. I hurried off to my own bedroom, pulling my light blue dress from the wardrobe and slipping into it carefully. I then quickly went to join Ayame in the make-up and hair room, my heels in my hand.

I seated myself beside Ayame, watching as the stylist experimented with her long red hair, mumbling to himself with glee. He obviously didn't get anyone with hair as long as hers very often and was happy he had so much to work with. Finally, he decided that braiding it would be the best. However, not just any type of braid, mind you. As he worked, he added little while and pink gems to the weave, causing her hair to appear to sparkle whenever she moved. Surprisingly, at least to me, Ayame appeared rather pleased with how she looked after her make-up and hair were finished. I hadn't expected it, but she appeared like a completely different person. I smiled as she stood, grinning at me, while the stylist now began to play with my hair.

It was a great deal shorter thank Ayame's, but still rather thick, causing it to be quite a pain at times. However, I was sure he would find something to do with it. And, I was right. After a few moments, he picked up the curling iron, already heated up, and began to curl my naturally straight hair. Before long, my hair was styled in loose curls draped about my shoulders. A few moments later, he added in a jeweled barrette simply for looks and then doused me in hairspray, handing me off to the make-up artist.

As soon as I had finished, I found that Ayame was no where to be seen.

-Athrun's POV-

As I pulled up to the front of Leiko's house, I spotted a girl standing on the porch, looking rather annoyed. She appeared familiar, but I didn't know where from.

"Athrun, where are we?" I looked over, smiling at Kira, who was staring at the rather large house with an eyebrow raised.

"Just a party. I've got a close friend who needed an escort. I hope you don't mind."

He looked over at me, blinking before shaking his head. "Oh.. No. Not at all."

I got out of the car, and he did the same. As I grabbed the extra suit I had picked up for him from the back seat, an oddly familiar voice came from the stranger standing on the porch.

"It's about time." She huffed, and I stared at her, watching as she looked over her shoulder.

"A.. Ayame?"

"Yeah. Who else would it be?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I.. I just didn't recognize you.." I blinked, looking her over. She looked so different. Her hair was done, she was wearing make-up, and in a dress. To say the least… "You look amazing." I watched as her face turned bright red and she opened her mouth to say something, before closing it, and then opening it again.

"Oh.. Thanks…" She paused. "You look pretty good yourself."

I looked down at the suit I was wearing and then smiled at her. Ayame's attention was then drawn to Kira, who was leaning against the hood of my car, eyebrow raised. "He doesn't even have his suit on yet?? God, Leiko's gonna freak!" She said quickly, sighing heavily. "She's already this close to a meltdown.. Hurry up and take him to get changed. We've got about ten minutes before everyone starts to get here."

I nodded, handing Kira his suit and led him to the door watching as he walked inside. However, before I followed, I stopped, standing in front of Ayame. "You really do look amazing." I said, smiling. "Beautiful." I watched as her cheeks turned red and kissed her on the forehead before following quickly after Kira as he reminded me that he had no idea where he was going.

-Regular POV-

"Ayame?" I came around the corner of the house from the backyard, having been checking on the catering that was being brought it, to see my friend standing on the front porch, looking rather shocked, face bright red, and a hand on her forehead. "Ayame?" I repeated, walking up and waving a hand in front of her face. "Hello? Oh. When'd Athrun get here?" I asked, noticing my friend's car in the driveway for the first time. Just then, I heard someone talking down the hall and looked through the open doorway to see my blue-haired friend.

"Oh! Athrun!!" I hollered, seeing as how he was quite some ways away, and he turned around, staring at me with a surprised expression, before appearing to shove someone in a nearby room and waving at me nervously. I blinked. "What was that all about?"

"What was what all about?" I jumped, looking over to see Ayame, back to normal, staring at the now empty hallway that I had just seen Athrun standing in.

"He was… just… And then…" I blinked, pointing to where Athrun had been standing before shaking my head. "I think this party is getting to my head."

"That's probably it. You just need to relax a bit."

Just then, the doorway that Athrun had shoved the mystery someone in opened, and Athrun reemerged, followed by… "Kira?" I blinked, staring at the familiar brown-haired boy who stood beside Athrun in a suit. Ayame sighed from behind me.

"Shit."

"Ayame, no." I said, looking at her. "No, no, no. Not him. Of all people… No." I shook my head furiously, sending my curls into a bouncing frenzy, preparing to turn and walk away, when she grabbed me by the arm.

"Yo. I'm wearing this shit of a dress that you picked out. I kept up my end of the bargain. You keep yours."

I gave her a pleading glance, but learned that I wouldn't be getting out of it and sighed, staring at Kira and Athrun at the end of the hallway. "But why?" I whined.

"Just go." Ayame said gruffly, turning me forcefully to face Kira and Athrun and marching me inside. She pulled me to a stop in front of the two and I stared at my feet, hands folded in front of me.

"Leiko?"

I looked up at him and nodded, offering a small smile before adverting my gaze. Surely, this entire night was bound to be awkward. Right?

"Alright, you two." Athrun spoke, and I could just imagine the pleased smile on his face. "Kira, you're Leiko's escort for the evening. Be nice, or you'll have to come to me."

"Ah.. Yeah…"

I looked up at Kira through my eyelashes, seeing him nodding at Athrun with a red face. Just then, the doorbell rang. "Ah! They're getting here already!" I immediately forgot my quiet act and put my hands on my head in a panicked manner. "The ballroom isn't ready yet!! Oh, what am I gonna do?? What am I gonna do??"

"Leiko! Chill!" Ayame to the rescue. "You and Kira go to the ballroom and finish everything up in there. Athrun and I will start greeting everyone. Okay?"

I nodded and hurried off to the ballroom, grabbing Kira by the arm and dragging him behind me. I looked over my shoulder, watching as Ayame and Athrun walked to the front door before stepping inside the ballroom and sighing. I had to resist the urge to run my fingers through my hair and turned to Kira. "Okay, then." I smiled. "You don't mind helping out a bit, do you?" He shook his head and I nodded. "Good. Alright. Can you help get the rest of the food put on the table over there? I've got to help hang the rest of the decorations."

He nodded and then walked across the room, as I went to hang the remaining streamers. Much to the protests of the decorators, I climbed one of the ladders and began to work. However, moments later, when I realized that we were nearly finished and that the only people that remained in the room were Kira and I, I attempted to reach the streamers on a nearby ladder without the help of someone handing them to me. Seeing as how much of a klutz I was, I should have known better. The ladder wasn't too tall, but high enough up for me to break a bone if I fell. So what did I do?

I fell.

My heel slipped as I began to reach and I felt myself tumbling backwards, hearing a cry of surprise come from my mouth. I heard someone running and a pair of arms wrapped themselves around me as I continued to fall and landed with an 'oof' on top of someone else. I shouldn't have been surprised about who it was, but seeing as how I was already in a crazed enough mood, the shock was to be expected. I opened my eyes slowly, having clenched them shut as I was falling, and heard a heartbeat. My cheek rested against the chest of my… rescuer, I suppose, and I could feel their chest moving. Up and down. Up and down as they breathed. They sat up slowly, taking me with them, one arm still wrapped about me, as they used the other to support their weight.

"You okay?"

I blinked and pulled away quickly, realizing for the first time who it could have possibly been, and, sure enough, found myself staring at Kira, who was looking genuinely worried. I stared at him for a moment before shaking myself out of my daze and nodding quickly.

"Ah. Yeah. I'm fine…"

He stood, offering me his hand and helping me up. I smiled, pushing my bangs out of my eyes with a nervous laugh. "Thanks. I guess it would have been pretty bad If I broke an arm at my own party, huh?"

He laughed, nodding. "It wouldn't have been good."

I smiled again, before noticing bit of dust and crumbs, that I had assumed had fallen from the food when it was brought it, on the shoulder of his jacket. I reached up and brushed it away without thinking. "I'm really sorry about that." I said, doing the same with the other shoulder. "I'm such a klutz." Then, I put my hand down once more, smiling up at him. That's when I saw a look in his eye that I hadn't noticed before.

"Leiko. You ready?"

Raising an eyebrow, I looked up, spotting Athrun in the doorway and nodded. "Yeah. We've just got to get these ladders moved."

He nodded, coming into the room, and, along with Kira's help, got the ladders put back where they belonged. Kira and I then left the ball room the back way in order for us to come in as soon as everyone was gathered and Athrun went to get Ayame. As soon as we made it to the front doors, Ayame and Athrun allowed everyone into the ballroom, and then joined us.

"Ayame.."

"Hmm?"

Seated on the benches outside the house as we waited to be called in, it dawned on me. "We're turning 18..."

"How nice of you to notice." She said, looking at me with a raised eyebrow and a small smile. I nudged her with my shoulder before staring at my heeled shoes. "My feet hurt."

She held out one of her feet so it sat next to mine and nodded. "Yeah. Mine too… But you wear heels all the time, so…"

"Eh. You make a good point."

"Girls?" We looked up to see Hoshi standing in the doorway with a smile on his face. "We're ready for you."

Disclaimer : Gundam Seed and it's characters belong, in no way, to Leiko Hikaru. For, if they did, she wouldn't feel the need to write stories in the first place, as she'd be too busy playing with all of them.

Chapter 5

Upon entering the ballroom after we were called in, we received congratulations from everyone. However, it wasn't long before as soon as someone would congratulate me that I would hear them mumbling something about me as I walked by. I simply ignored it, and pretended not to hear. Let them say what they wanted. It didn't matter because I wasn't going to let it bug me. Especially not when Ayame had somehow talked Hoshi into smuggling alcohol into the party.

"Let's say we get the two girls out on the floor with their escorts to start the first dance!" The DJ's voice sounded over the sound system that had been set up and I blinked, looking at Ayame, her look of horror amusing me. I smiled as Athrun offered her his arm and she took it with a heavy sigh, allowing him to lead her to the dance floor. Kira then held out his hand, and I looked up at him, smiling before putting my hand in his and being led to the floor as well.

I looked over, smiling at Ayame. She rolled her eyes;, but I saw the beginnings of a smile on her face as well as she put her hand in Athrun's, blushing slightly as he took her waist. It was then that I realized my hand was still in Kira's and I looked back over at him, smiling again as I put my hand on his shoulder. For some reason, I felt my own cheeks turn warm as he looked me in the eye and put his other hand on my waist. Ayame had done the same with Athrun, and it was obvious how she felt about him. Was it somehow possible that I felt the same way about Kira as she did about my long time friend? …No. Of course not. That couldn't be it.

I pushed this thought to the back of my mind as the music began to play. Smiling at Kira as he began to step, I allowed him to lead, glancing over to see Ayame and Athrun talking, Ayame laughing quietly occasionally. It was then that I noticed other couples walking out to dance as well.

"Sorry. I'm not too good at dancing."

I looked up at Kira, blinking for a moment. "What are you talking about?" I asked, smiling, surprising myself at how kind I was being. "You're doing fine. I'm not that great of a dancer myself. At least not ballroom." I said, laughing as I remembered the first ballroom lesson I had ever attended. It hadn't been too pretty. Kira smiled and, for some reason, my heart skipped a beat. No way was I going to allow myself to believe that my suspicions were telling me.

"So…" I said, adverting my gaze. "What have you been up to? I mean.. Since I last saw you.. The years sure fly by fast, huh?"

"Yeah. They do." He said, and I could see him nod out of the corner of my eye. "I have been up to much, though. The same as always, I suppose… From what I hear, you've actually been doing quite a bit."

I laughed a bit, nodding my head. "Yeah. Quite a bit." I said, smiling. "It's a lot of work. I hardly ever get any time to rest during the day."

"I suppose it's understandable. Being a superstar can't be that easy."

"If you say so." I said, nodding with a smile. "Do you mind if we sit? My feet are killing me?"

-Ayame's POV-

As I danced with Athrun, and we talked, I couldn't help but notice how easily he made me laugh. However, at the same time, it was so easy for us to get into the silliest of arguments about the stupidest things. I shook my head mentally at these thoughts as I watched Leiko and Kira leave the dance floor, disappearing into the crowd. Typical. She was the type of girl who could get any type of guy if she tried, but when it came to actually getting it done? Pathetic. As usual, she was playing the shy and quiet act, only speaking when spoken to.

"You want to go outside?"

"Huh?" I looked back at Athrun, eyebrow raised as he signaled to the door. "It's getting a little crowded."

"Oh…" I stared around us, realizing that he was right. When had so many people joined us in dancing? I hadn't noticed. "Yeah. You make a good point." I gave him a small smile, allowing him to lead me outside, where I seated myself on a nearby bench, took off my heels and then stood once more.

"Wow. That feels so much better." I said, looking down at my swollen and sore feet. Athrun laughed, standing beside me, hands in his pockets.

"I honestly don't know how you girls can stand those things…"

I shrugged, setting my shoes down on the bench and stretching my arms behind my back. "Neither do I. I suppose you'll have to ask Leiko. She wears them more often than I do."

There was silence for a moment during which I stared up at the unusually clear night sky, the stars twinkling innocently at me. "It's really nice out…" I said, more to myself than Athrun, although he replied all the same with a 'Yeah. It is.' I turned my head to smile at him, but he was no longer looking at the star studded sky as I had expected, but, instead, was looking at me. There was no evidence of a smile on his face as he stared at me, and I noticed how I could see the light of the stars reflecting in the pools of aqua green that were his eyes.

"Athrun?" I spoke quietly, surprising myself slightly. "What's-"

His hand found it's way to my cheek and I instantly felt my face grow warm.

"Did I… Tell you how beautiful you look?" He said, reaching up and pushing my red bangs out of my eyes.

"Uh… Yeah… Earlier… You, uh.. Mentioned it…" I stammered. Way to go, Ayame. Real smooth. What the hell was wrong with me? My mouth wasn't working right. It was obviously on the fritz.

He smiled. "Well… I guess I'll just tell you again…" He paused for a minute, before lifting up my chin and lining in, brushing his lips gently against mine, mumbling quietly. "You're beautiful."

My stomach did somersaults, my legs turned to mush, and my face was on fire. Putting a hand on his chest as he pulled away to keep myself from falling over, I wrapped my other arm around his neck and stood on my tip-toes, locking our lips once more.

-Regular POV-

Having just left the ballroom, my heels in my hands, Kira beside me, we peered carefully out the window at Ayame and Athrun in the courtyard. I smiled, shaking my head and turning away from the scene. "A match made in heaven don' you think?" I asked Kira, who had also turned away and was now removing his tux jacket.

"Yeah."

"They're so cute together that it's almost not believable." I said, laughing quietly as I took a quick glance back out the window. "But I love it." Smiling at Kira, I pushed my bangs out of my eyes with a heavy sigh. "I'm worn." I said, yawning widely. "Worst part is, Ayame hasn't gotten her hands on the booze yet."

The look on Kira's face caused me to laugh. "You think she's got a bad attitude now? You just wait. She can be one mean drunk if she wants." I said, holding up a hand for effect. "Other than that, when she gets hammered, she just enjoys doing freestyle kareoke. Although, I'm not sure if that's much better."

Kira laughed nervously and I peered around the empty hall, the murmur of voices still radiating from within the ballroom. "Here. Let's go in here. I've gotta sit down."

I led him to the study, smiling to myself at the bookshelves full of books that I had never touched. I suppose they were just there for looks, and to make people think that I actually read, although I didn't. Sighing, I plopped down into one of the plush armchairs that were seated in front of the fireplace, signaling for Kira to do the same. He seated himself and was silent. During this time, I started up a fire, immediately warming the area before seating myself once more.

"I don't have anything that I can give you as a gift." He said after a while. I looked over at him, eyebrows raised. "I didn't even know that it was your birthday, or that I was your escort, for that matter, until earlier, when I was changing."

I nodded, laughing a bit. "Don't worry about it… I'm actually kind of surprising myself, to tell the truth. I mean, you're still here."

"What do you mean?"

I looked over at him, shrugged and then stared at the fire. What I mean is… Normally, I don't really agree to Ayame pairing me up with someone for some sort of event. Especially when I don't know who it is… But, I guess I know you, don't I? …Anyway. To tell the truth, earlier when I saw those two made you my escort, I told myself that I was going to allow you to bring me in, and then go off on my own." I paused, looking up at him to catch some sort of indication to how he was taking this. "But then I realized… Technically, I've known you for nearly four years, and all I really know about you is that you're a Gundam pilot, an your name is Kira. Kind of pathetic, don't you think?"

He chuckled at this, and I could see him nod his head out of the corner of my eye. "I have to admit, I was kind of feeling the same way. I mean… Not about the whole ditching thing, but how I don't really know anything about you…"

"Yeah… Well, I guess sometime between then and now, I decided that I wanted to get to know you better. Surprisingly, you're the first 'blind date'," I added in finger quotes for effect. "That I've actually given a chance…"

It was quiet for a moment until Kira broke the silence.

"I guess that makes me pretty special then, huh?" He asked, and I noticed that he was now standing, smiling down at me. I blinked, contemplating his question before smirking.

"Don't get your hopes up… But it certainly makes you different…" I stood, and closed the grate on the fireplace, planning on letting the flames extinguish themselves. Then, I turned to look at him for a moment, before standing up on my tip-toes and kissing him on the cheek. I then turned away from him with a smile, walking to the door.

"Hey, Ayame. How about you slow down with the wine? You don't want to get too drunk." I said, laughing as she took another large gulp from her wine glass.

"An'… An' who says I don'?" Hic. "Shtupid parties… With their shtupid people." Hic.

I bit my lip as her slurred sentences became worse with every word. It was getting hard for me not to laugh, although the thought of Ayame getting drunk and embarrassing herself at her own birthday party was a bit sad.

"Seriously. Just wait until everyone's outside or something." I said, reaching for the wine glass and setting it back on the table. However, when I turned back around, she was holding another full wine glass and was grinning at me, holding up a peace sign.

"Hehe." She smiled, taking another sip. I smacked my palm to my forehead and sighed as Athrun laughed and I heard Kira chuckled.

"Athrun, if she barfs, she's your responsibility." I said, pointing with a smile. Just as Athrun opened his mouth, Ayame broke into song. Sputtering something about pink pickles and purple dust bunnies, and the fight for humanity. I couldn't help myself anymore.

I starting laughing as hard as I had in years, setting my glass of soda down carefully on the table. Even over my laughter Ayame continued to sing, which caused me to laugh harder. Then, Athrun began to laugh as well, trying desperately to Ayame to quiet down as he did so. People were being to stare. However, as he tried to calm her down in between laughs, she sang louder. I laughed harder, and then Kira began to laugh. Tears were forming at the corners of my eyes and I was finding it hard to breath. We were all in a laughing fit, and soon Ayame joined in as well.

I signaled for everyone to follow me, and we made our way through the crowd, who parted as we came, out the ballroom doors, and into the courtyard, where Ayame sat herself rather clumsily on a nearby bench. Somehow, she had already found a way to calm herself, and before long we were all quieting down as well. "Hey… HEY!" She said, pointing at me with a goofy grin on her face. "Who wann's to play truth dare??"

"I dunno, Ame… I'm not sure I want to-"

"Well, you don't got a choice, do ya?!" She asked, laughing her drunken laugh. Athrun snorted from beside her, but resisted the urge to start laughing again, seeing as how his face was still red from our little outburst.

"But… Only if Athrun plays too." I said, pointing to my blue-haired friend, who's amused expression immediately turned to that of horror and he shook his head.

"I don't think…"

"Athrun's a chicken!!" I said, laughing as Ayame finished off my statement by making a rather loud and real sound of the poultry I had just called him. He glared at me, before his gaze wandered over to Kira, causing him to immediately smile. "I will if Kira does."

"Ah! Me? But-"

"BACAWK!!" Ayame screeched, waving her arms around, and I immediately stuck my fist in my mouth to keep from laughing again. Kira looked over at me, as if expecting me to answer for him, and I removed fist, shrugging with a smile. "I… But.." He looked at Athrun, who raised his eyebrows amusedly. "….Fine."

"AHA!! I GOT YOU NOW!!" Ayame hollered, pointing at the three of us one by one with a maniacal laugh. "You're doooooooomed!"

"Way to go, Kira. You've gotten us doomed." I said, punch him playfully on the arm.

"But I…" He obviously had obviously had never played truth or dare with Ayame before. Which was more than a smart move. It was even worse when she was drunk.

"Okay!! Since it was my idea, I getsto go firsss!!" Ayame said, grinning. "Alrighty. Athrun!! Truth or dare!!"

Athrun blinked as she stuck her finger in his face, causing him to go slightly cross-eyed as she did so, before shaking his head and shrugging. He looked at me, giving me a glance that asked what he should do, and I smiled evilly. A sign that no matter what he chose, he was sure to be embarrassed.

"Uh… Truth… I guess…" He said, rather reluctantly. Ayame grinned.

"Have you ever gone commando?? If not… do you wear boxers or briefs?!"

I bit my lip, snorting as I attempted to keep my laughter contained, Kira obviously doing the same. Athrun's face had gone from purple to pale to bright red in less that three seconds, and I was loving every moment of it.

"Uh… What would happen if I said dare?"

"Oh. Thass easy. You'd havta streak through da ballroom waving aroun' a pair of women's undies." Once again, Athrun's face went pale.

He glared at me, as thought it were my fault that Ayame's drunken self was such a lunatic, but I raised my hands up innocently before he turned away, leaning down and whispering something in Ayame's ear. She blinked, looking at him with her eyebrows raised, before pointing, laughing, and then turning to me. That was the thing about Ayame. If she was the first to go, she didn't allow anyone else turns. Instead she simply gave everyone truth or dares, leaving herself completely out of it.

"Leiko's turn! Truth or dare, Lei!"

Damn. I could either take the dare, and risk the possible public humiliation that would send me into exile for the rest of my life, or I could take the truth, and have to answer a question that Athrun would most likely never let me live down for the rest of my life. I sighed.

"Truth."

"If you had to choose between one of these two, and you were the only three left on earth, DOOMED TO SAVE THE FATE OF HUMANITY… Who'd you choose?"

"Are you kidding me?" I asked, looking at her, positive that my face was pale. "I…" I looked at Kira, and then to Athrun. No way I would answer that. Athrun was like my brother.. So, that was just.. Gross. And Kira? Sure, he was cute.. But I hardly knew him at all. "Okay. I'm switching to dare." I said, putting my hands on my hips triumphantly, as though that solved all my problems. I was wrong.

"Fine, then." Ayame said, grinning. "You gotta kiss Kira for thirty seconds…"

"Wh-what?" Kira and I both asked at the same We looked each other, face bright red.

"But wait! THAT'S NOT ALL!!!" She said, throwing her arms up dramatically in the air. "You must… Use tongue!! DUN DUN DUNNN!!"

I opened my mouth to speak, but then closed it, before opening it again, and closing it once more. I was at a loss for words. I was in probably the worse case scenario. The question suddenly didn't seem that bad, but if I chose it over the dare, I ran the risk of making Kira think that I didn't want to kiss him. I mean… I didn't exactly want to kiss him, and I definitely wasn't looking forward to the thought of having to French a guy I hadn't the chance to really get to know.

I bit my lip, glaring at Ayame and then looking at Athrun, who shrugged, an amused smile plastered on his face. Then, I looked at Kira, who was looking about as embarrassed as I surely did, although he wasn't looking at me. I glared at Ayame once more before stepping forward, boldly grabbing the front of Kira's shirt, turning him to face me, and putting my lips to his.

Everything seemed to silence immediately as we kissed, although I could hear Ayame chanting 'GO, GO, GO!' in the background. I was surprised at how comfortable it made me feel. I had clenched my eyes shut first thing, not able - or wanting - to see what Kira's expression was, but I suddenly felt his arms wrap themselves around me, pulling me to him as he kissed me back. I could feel myself relaxing, but I immediately tensed once more as Ayame reminded me, rather rudely, about the second part of the dare.

"DON'T FORGET THE TONGUE YOU BOZOS!!" She hollered in her drunken tone, and I could hear Athrun quieting her down, so as to not draw the attention of everyone in the ballroom. Surprisingly she listened.

I had kissed before. But I had never had someone else's tongue in my mouth. It was a bit of a disturbing thought, but knowing that Ayame, in her drunken stupor, would beat me over the head with the heaviest blunt object she could find, I clenched my eyes shut even tighter, prepared to do what I had to do. However, Kira beat me to it. After a few short moments, I felt his tongue run itself over my bottom lip, causing my breath to hitch quietly in my throat. I pushed that thought aside, though, and parted my lips slightly - and shyly - granting him entrance. It was definitely weird. But, just as it was before, it was surprisingly comfortable, and I allowed myself to relax, my grin of the front of his dress shirt loosening greatly as he held me closer. My heart was beginning to pound my chest, and, after what seemed like forever, I realized what I was doing.

I opened my eyes quickly, pulled away, staring at Kira, and then looked at Ayame and Athrun, seated on the bench. I was trying as hard as possible to keep my breathing calm, but my heart was thumping wildly in my chest. I gave Kira another quick glance, before walking up to Ayame and bopping her on the head with my fist.

"There. Happy?"

Disclaimer : Gundam Seed and it's characters belong, in no way, to Leiko Hikaru. For, if they did, she wouldn't feel the need to write stories in the first place, as she'd be too busy playing with all of them.

Chapter 6

After the party, Kira and I continually bumped into each other, and I soon discovered that Athrun and Ayame were to thank for this. Sadly, Ayame hadn't had so much to drink that when she woke up with a hangover the next morning she didn't remember anything. In fact, she remembered most of it. Including nearly every detail of our rather embarrassing game of truth or dare.

I wasn't long before she was suggesting double dates to the movies, to the park, out for ice cream or dinner. As much as I preened to hate it when she suggested such outings, I couldn't help but enjoy myself. Kira was a rather charming young man. Polite, easy to get along with, a good sense of humor. He took many of Ayame's crude comments rather well, and would occasionally retort with one of his own, and that slowly earned Ayame's respect. However, when the war started picking back up, Athrun and Kira both had to return to the battles. Before he left, I had to make sure that he knew that I cared. As more than a friend.

"You had better come back in one piece, Kira.." I said, putting my hands on his face as we stood beside the boarding dock of the Archangel, a ship that had been a main target of mine only three years previous. "Or else… I'm gonna have to kick your ass…"

He blinked, looking at me, his cheeks slightly pink. I glared in return, but my gaze immediately softened as I wrapped my arms around him, burying my face in his chest, fighting back tears. I bit my lip as he put his arms around me, kissing the top of my head.

"I'll miss you…" I heard him whisper in my ear and I sniffed, my eyes beginning to sting. I nodded, tightening my arms around him as a tear rolled down my cheek. I felt one of his hands leave my back and move to my chin, lifting my face to his so he could look me in the eye.

"Hey…" He said, wiping away the few stray tears that had escaped my eyes. "Don't worry, okay?" He smiled at me, and my heart melted. I buried my face in his chest again, obviously surprising him as I cried.

"Leiko… What's wrong?"

"You! You're wrong!" I said, hot tears spilling down my cheeks, dampening his shirt as they did so. "You tell me not to worry, but I can't help it!!" Sniff. "Damn it… Why'd it have to be you?" I paused, not moving as I listened to his heartbeat. "Why'd you have to be the one I worry about? Why do I have to care about you? …Why?"

Once again, his hands found my face, and I found myself staring up into his familiar violet orbs. He narrowed his eyes, the expression within them changing from that of worry to sympathy to sterness as he furrowed his eyebrows together. He pulled my face out, locking our lips, staring me in the eye as he did so. My breath caught in my throat, my tear filled eyes widening with shock. When he pulled away, I was left breathless, unable to speak.

"You listen to me." He said quietly, placing his forehead against mine, sounding as serious as I had ever heard him. "I'm sorry, okay? Sorry for making you worry, and for making you care. All I can do is give you my word, alright?" His words stabbed, but made sense, and I nodded slowly, showing that I understood. "I'm going to come back.. I promise.." He wiped my tears away with his thumbs, before he leaned down, kissing me gently on the lips and then pulling me back into a tight hug. "I swear. I won't leave you alone. Ever."

To say the least, he kept his promise.

Only three months after he left, after keeping up with the continuous e-mails, he came back for a visit at the first chance of a few vacation days. Although, he didn't bother telling me. The day he returned, I had decided to pay a visit to the nearby graveyard that my parents had been buried in. It had been so long since I had visited, and I felt guilty. They must have missed me after such a long time. I went later on, nearly sunset, so I could be alone, telling no one but Ayame and Athrun of my whereabouts. I liked to think while I was there. It was the perfect location to do so and there was so much on my mind. Pulling up to the grave markers that I recognized as my parents', I parked the car on the small pathway made for driving through the cemetery and got out, bouquets in hand. Walking forward, I set the flowers down on each grave before seating myself. For the first time in awhile, I was wearing casual clothes, so I wasn't worried about the dirt.

"Hey, Mom. Dad." I said, smiling to myself. "Sorry I haven't been able to visit… So much has been happening." I hated how I always felt as though I had to talk to them while I was there, but I still went on, informing them of everything in my life since I had last come. About how I had introduced Athrun and Ayame, and that they were now together. About the birthday party. And, of course, about Kira.

About how I worried nonstop about him. About how he looked so cute when he was confused, and how he was the greatest guy I had ever met. About how much I cared about hi, and about how much I wanted to punch him because of that. I laughed to myself, wiping away the tears that had, at some point, accumulated in my eyes and had begun to fall down my face.

"Pretty stupid, huh?"

Then, I heard a car door shut from behind me and looked quickly over my shoulder. It was dark and hard for me to tell who it was, but as he walked forward, hands in his pockets, he stepped into some of the remaining light, and his face was immediately illuminated. I put a hand over my mouth so as to suppress my gasp of surprise. Kira came to a stop in front of me, a smile on his face, and waved. He waved. As though he had just seen me the day before, and his greeting was so nonchalant that I almost felt idiotic for being near tears. "Hi," Was all he said before I launched myself into his arms and lost my grip on practicality.

"There's so much we should do before you've got to leave again. There's a few new movies out that we could see. And Ayame's going to want us to visit. What should we do first?"

"Wha-? Oh, I dunno… Whatever you wanna do, I guess." He looked down at me as we emerged from the ice cream shop the next day, spoon in his mouth, having just taken a bite.

"Okay then!" I said, grinning as I linked my arm through his, pointing with the hand that wasn't holding my ice cream cup. "Off to the amusement park!"

Then, we heard the sirens.

"Wha-? What's going on?? Hey! Kira, where're you going?!"

"Hurry up and get to the closest safe house!"

"Kira!! Get back here!!" I yelled, running after him, having dropped my ice cream moments before. I had to fight to get through the crowd that was running in the opposite direction. I saw Kira skid to a halt, turn around, and glare at me. He walked up to me quickly and grabbed both of my arms forcefully, although careful not to grip too hard.

"Listen to me. I'm going to do everything that I can to protect you, but it would be pointless if you won't listen to what I say!" He paused, pushing a strand of hair out of my face and it was then that I noticed the urgency in his eyes. "I won't be able to live with myself if something happens to you. I need you to do as I say. …Please."

"I.." I stared him in the eye, before nodding reluctantly. He kissed me on the forehead, hugged me quickly and pulled away.

"GO! Hurry!" I watched him run in the opposite direction just as there was an explosion nearby and screams erupted from the crowd. I turned - as much as it broke my heart to do so - and ran along with everyone else to the closest underground safe house.

The battle went on forever. Hours of worrying. Hours of wondering. Hours of listening to crying children and muttering adults. However, as the explosions and gunfire faded away, I began to think it was over. I rushed to the door, shoving my way past the guards, who informed it still wasn't safe. I emerged up on ground, that beautiful city that Kira and I both had been enjoying earlier now leveled and totally destroyed. However, there was still some sign of life.

I immediately recognized Strike, Kira's Gundam, standing in front of another Gundam that I didn't recognize. Strike had been damaged severely, from what I could see, but that was just the outside. I was more worried about the pilot. Was he alright? Was he hurt? They were at a temporary standstill, but it wasn't long before the gunfire began again. I shielded myself from everything I could, but became extremely worried as Kira ran out of firepower. I felt to helpless. The other Gundam was preparing to go in for the kill. I couldn't bear to watch any more.

"KIRA!!"

The Strike spun around, and I stared up at it from the long distance between us, tears in my eyes.

"Leiko! GET OUT OF HERE!"

I watched in horror as he was hit full blast from behind, bring the Gundam I knew Kira was within to one knee. After quite a few moments of silence, he stood once more, turning to face his opponent. They appeared to be having a conversation of some sort. Then, I heard Kira's voice once more.

"I'm sorry."

"What?" It took me a few moments before I realized what he was planning. "Kira!! NO!!"

Strike lunged forward, grabbing onto the enemy Gundam and only moments later… An explosion. I dived behind the largest bit of rubble nearby, covering my head, tears streaming down my face. "Dammit! Dammit, dammit, dammit!! YOU IDIOT!!"

Then, it was silent.

"Kira!! …. Kira?!"

I ran through the rubble, surrounded by scraps of metal that had obviously come from the Gundams.

"Kira?! Where are you?! ..Please! Answer me!"

How could he be such an idiot?! What the hell had he been thinking?

"Kira?! Oh, God!"

I spotted his body, lying on the ground, covered in blood, his clothes torn and mangled. I ran towards him as fast as I could, fighting back my tears and kneeling down beside him.

"Kira?" I spoke as calmly as possible, although my voice shook as I tried to keep from crying. "Kira? Can you hear me?" I whispered, putting my hand over his own bloody one. I didn't mind the blood, though. Just so long as I knew he was still alive.

"Y-yeah… I… I'm here…" He breathed, making it seem like he was fighting just to get the words out. A very small, sad smile found its way onto my face, mostly from relief of knowing that he hadn't left me.

"You're an idiot…" I shook my head, squeezing his hand as I screwed my eyes shut.

"I told you… I was going to do everything… That I could…"

"I'm not worth it, Kira…" I whispered, a tear falling from my cheek. "You're all I have left." I had Ayame and Athrun, of course, but there was no point if I had to watch him die, knowing it was because of me. His fingers grazed my cheek, and I choked back more tears.

"I'm…" He paused. "I'm… Sorry…"

I closed my hand over his, putting his palm to my cheek and I bit my lip. "You better not leave me here." I saw him shake his head, the corner of his lip pulling up into a small smile. How he found a way to smile at such a time, I would never know. He reached up, and ran his fingers through my hair, sending shivers up my spine. With his thumb, he wiped my spare tears away from my eyes and face before putting his hand on the back of my head and pulling me into his arms. I noted how weak he felt, and I was careful not to do anything that might have disturbed any of the wounds I was sure he had as I cried quietly into his chest.

I cried for what seemed like forever, quietly, feeling the rise and fall of his chest as he tried to keep his breathing steady. I listened to his heartbeat, as though, if I did so, he would be instantly cure. He took a deep breath and I lifted my head as I heard him whisper something to me, so quietly that I almost didn't understand.

"I love you…"

I woke with a start as I remembered that day, and found myself in Kira's hospital room, just like every other day. I was drenched in a cold sweat, my breathing heavy, tears in the corners of my eyes, and at some point I had climbed up on the bed, lying myself down beside the still form of Kira. Sitting up, I pushed my hair out of my eyes and tiredly wiped the sweat and tears off of my face. I looked at Kira, who was still lying beside me, eyes closed like always.

"Nice going, you asshole." I mumbled, carefully shifting my body from the bed and back into the chair beside it, clenching my eyes shut afterwards. "I'm having nightmares… All because you went and blew yourself up. You happy now?" I heaved a sigh, lying my head back down on the bed, resting it on my arms. "I don't know what to do with myself…"

"Maybe you should get off your ass and out of the hospital."

I jumped slightly at the sound of Ayame's voice. Sitting up quickly, I spotted her in the doorway, arms crossed over her chest, Athrun standing behind her. She walked over, grabbed me by the arm, hauled me up and out of the chair, shoved my make-up bag into my arms, and then walked me to the bathroom. "We're going out. You haven't relaxed in months."

"But-"

"Don't start with me, Leiko, or I'll have to use force!" She said sternly, grinning as she held up a fist. I wasn't exactly in the mood to argue - or to be beat over the head, for that matter - so, I reluctantly put on my make-up and reemerged, a pleased Ayame walking behind me. "Alright! Get your purse, we're going shopping!"

I smiled in return. It was obvious that they had planned this out, and they were right. I missed being able to relax. However, I still left the hospital room rather reluctantly, my only motivation being Ayame behind me, shoving me out the door and Athrun's encouraging words. Twenty minutes later, Ayame and I were shopping, laughing, and I was having the best time I had had in quite some time. Somehow, I had convinced Ayame to try on multiple long skirts, and even talked her into buying a few, although I knew that she would never wear them. It wasn't long before I had bought so many things that my hands were beginning to grow sore from carrying them all. We sat and chatted over ice cream as Ayame filled me in on the events of the past few months with her and Athrun. The two and been quite busy, and I hadn't gotten a chance to speak to either of them for awhile. As we were leaving the ice cream shop, Ayame jumped.

"What?"

"I'm vibrating."

I laughed as she reached in her pocket, pulling out her cell phone, and answering it with a raised eyebrow. "'Ello? …. Seriously? …. Yeah.. Yeah, we're on our way." She hung up, shoved her cell in her pocket and then stuffed the bags in the car. "Get in."

"What's wrong?" I asked, putting my bags in the back as well.

"Get in." She repeated. She wasted no time in getting in the driver's seat and starting the car. Raising an eyebrow, I got in as well, and quickly put on my seatbelt as Ayame peeled out of the parking lot.

"Good god, Ayame! Slow down!"

"Knock it off, Lei. You big sissy." She said, a grin spreading across her face as she sped up. Soon, I found that she had sped into the hospital parking lot.

"Ayame… What's going on? What happened?"

"Get out of the car. Come on."

Once again, I did as I was told, got out of the car, and followed her quickly into the hospital. We rushed to the elevator, waiting impatiently as it climbed two floors and then reemerged. Down the hall, I saw Athrun standing outside Kira's room. My heart sank and, fearing the worse, I ran over, Ayame at my heels before skidding to a halt in front of him. "What happened?" I asked quickly, although out of breath, staring at the closed door. He smiled at me as Ayame stood beside him and then opened the door, signaling for me to walk inside. I blinked, staring up at him and entered the room, Athrun closing door behind me. The curtain was drawn around Kira's bed and I found myself thinking, 'It couldn't be something bad… Athrun smiled.' Still, I couldn't help but worry…

With one shaky hand, I reached up and pulled back the curtain. Gasping, I put a hand to my mouth, already feeling the tears leaping to my eyes. There, on the bed, was Kira, sitting up and smiling at me. He waved a hand, just like he had day. "Hi."

"Oh… Oh, my god…" I walked forward slowly, reaching out with a hand. It was almost too hard for me to believe. Was he really here? Was he really awake, and smiling at me? I was too shocked to say anything else. I quickly threw myself at him, throwing my arms around his neck and crying into his chest. I sobbed as hard as I had in three months, crying even harder as he wrapped his arms around me, resting his head in the crook of my neck. I had missed that feeling. I had missed having him hold me. How had I lasted so long without him with me?

"I'm sorry."

I shook my head, pulling away and looking up at him. "Don't you dare apologize. Not now. It's a little late for that, anyway." I smiled, shaking my head before leaning up and kissing him, tears spilling down my cheeks. Then, I pulled away, still smiling up at him. "You do that ever again, and I'm going to kick your ass."

He laughed, shaking my head and pulling me into another hug, holding me tightly - almost protectively - and close. I wanted to kiss him again. Just to be sure he was real. I was relieved. He was back. He was awake and here with me again. He truly had kept his promise.

We didn't talk for what seemed like forever. All we did was hold each other, only separating ourselves as the doctors came in to check on him. After they left, I smiled at Kira, before staring out the window, watching as the sun began to set.

"You know… I was dreaming…"

"Huh?" I realize now how idiotic I must have sounded as I looked at him with some stupid expression on my face. However, at the time, this didn't occur to me.

"The whole time I was out? ..I was dreaming.." He paused, smiling at me. "It was really nice…"

I blinked, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, really now?" I laughed a bit. "You going to tell me about this dream of yours?"

However, he didn't answer my question and instead looked at me, replying with something that had nothing to do with what I had just asked. "I've got a question for you."

Once again, I raised an eyebrow before smiling with a nod of my head. "Okay. Let's hear it."

"Did you hear what I said… That day?"

I noticed that he had now suddenly become very interested in his hands, which sat folded in his lap. I paused, contemplating how I should answer, before standing from the chair and seating myself back on the bed, covering his hands with one of mine. "I love you too…" I said quietly, immediately catching his attention. I smiled. "How's that for an answer?"

He leaned over, pulling me into a gentle kiss. When he pulled away, he rested his forehead against my own, staring me in the eye. "Okay then… One more question…" He paused, putting one hand on my face. "Will you marry me?"

"I… What?" I hadn't expected that at all. Blinking I stared him in the eye, our foreheads still together. The expression in his eye didn't change, not even as he restated his question.

"Will you marry me?"

I continued to stare, wondering if perhaps I was still dreaming. I found myself thinking that maybe it was possible that I had never actually awoken. Ayame had never come to take me shopping. Athrun had never called. Kira had never woken up. However, when I realized how truly horrible those thoughts were, I pushed them to the deepest part if my mind. He never adverted his gaze as I pondered, his eyes remaining locked with mind. I realized then that this was real. That it was actually happening and that Kira had meant what he asked. My heart skipped a beat, and a smile spread across my face. "Yes! Yes, of course! I mean…" I laughed happily. "Yes!!" I threw my arms around him, catching him off-guard and causing him to fall backwards onto the bed with an 'oof'.

I sat up quickly, staring at him apologetically. "Sorry." I found myself giggling like a giddy school girl and he shook his head and laughed as well, making me realize how much I had missed the sound. I smiled as he sat up, pulling me into a one-armed hug and kissing me on the forehead. The door opened and there stood Ayame and Athrun.

"Nice to see you up, Kira." Ayame said, walking forward with a grin. "Took ya long enough. I began thinking that Leiko was stuck to that chair or somethin'!" Athrun smiled as I gave my red-headed friend a gentle slap on the arm. I was much to happy to be angry for any reason at the moment. She laughed, before putting her hands high on her hips, leaning down to stare at us both. "So! When's the wedding?"

A week later, Kira was allowed to leave the hospital, and was told to get plenty of rest. He did so gladly, but still made sure to pull his weight - despite my constant disapproval. Even though I asked him kindly to stay in bed many times, he absolutely refused, insisting on doing just the opposite. Never once was he found sleeping as I had asked, and was always off somewhere else in the house, helping someone or doing something. Ayame had taken the pleasure of setting the date of the wedding before he even proposed, and we had three months to get everything ready. Not exactly what I'd say is easy, if you ask me.

I was going to me a small celebration. Ayame and Cagali as bridesmaids, Athrun the Best Man, and then Sai, Kuzzy, and Miriallia. Along with the children from the orphanage. But, I suppose that when you included them, it turned from a small celebration into a large production.

During the time that Kira had been gone, I had taken it upon myself to find something interesting to do - although Ayame's constant nagging surely had something to do with it. I somehow had stumbled upon an orphanage on the shoreline, filled with children left parentless because of the war. I became a constant volunteer, staying over night many days. Cooking for the children and playing with them. Tucking them into bed and singing them lullabies when they had nightmares. I came to realize how much I loved children and soon asked by elderly woman who ran the orphanage if I would mind taking over.

Of course, I agreed. I would soon become my… No. Our home.

"Hey, Leiko. Have you seen my other shoe?"

I blinked, staring at Ayame, who was on her hands and knees, in her bridesmaid dress, a she peered underneath the bed. Cagalli laughed from the opposite side of the room as I shook my head. "You're kidding, right?"

She looked up at me, blinking. "No. Why?"

I sighed. "Because it's sitting right there." I said, pointing to the shoe that sat beside the chair that she had just been sitting. "Right where you left it…"

"Oh." She stood up, shooting a glare at Cagalli as she laughed again, before walking over and putting on the shoe she had been searching for. I shook my head, returning to the mirror to finish my make-up.

Five minutes later, our calm composure had been tossed out the window. Everyone was in a frenzy as the children ran about the house, screaming things like, 'Leiko! Ray took my tie!' and 'I can't find my sock!'. It was bad enough that Kira and Athrun weren't here to help. I had forced them to leave and go to the church ahead of us. As I explained before, I was highly superstitious and believed extremely that if a groom saw the bride before the wedding it was bad luck. To say the least, they had no other choice but to go.

"Hey now, Sana. Cut that out. Go put your dress on. Ray! Come here and give Koto back his tie." I hurried about the house with the children, attempting to get everyone settled, along with the help of Ayame and Cagalli. The boys were all ushered into one room, led by Ayame as she shouted, 'March! One, two! One, two! Left, left, left right left! Hup hup!' To say the least, the soldier routine was definitely working. After that, the girls were much more cooperative, following Cagalli into another room where she helped each of them into their dresses, styling their hair in matching braids.

When we were finally ready to go, we piled into three separate car, in order to fit everyone, and drove to the church, Ayame and Cagalli taking the children inside to seat them, as I went in the back way in order to dress myself. I had done my hair and make-up at home and brought my dress and shoes along with me. As I changed, the sudden realization of what I was about to do hit me full force. I stepped into my dress carefully - rather nervously as well - and as I looked myself in the mirror, I realized why someone was always warned about cold feet before their wedding. Up until that point, I couldn't have been any more excited. Looking forward to the date like a child did Christmas, or a birthday. However, now that it was here, my stomach was fluttering, my heart was beating, and I couldn't believe it.

"Leiko?" I looked in the mirror, seeing Ayame standing in the doorway behind me. I smiled as she raised an eyebrow.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine…" I said, nodding. She walked over, picking up my veil from the chair I had set it on.

"You sure?" I nodded again. "Okay. Well, I can tell you're nervous…. But you haven't seen Kira yet." She said, grinning ear to ear as she ran her hands over the material of my veil. "He's sweating bullets." I laughed and took the veil as she handed it to me, turning to face the mirror and putting it on. Ayame's face appeared over my shoulder and she smiled.

"You look great. You'll be lucky if Kira doesn't faint when you walk out there. We might just have to put him in the hospital again."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Don't even joke about that. That's not even funny."

"Who's jokin'??" She said, furrowing her brows together. "I'm serious. You're HOT. And, my dear friend, if it's not funny, then WHY are you LAUGHING?" She lifted a finger, pointing accusingly at me, and I laughed again. After a moment, she allowed her hand to fall as she reached up, putting the veil over my face and then putting her hands on my shoulders. "You're. Getting. Married." She said sternly, looking at me, grinning ear to ear.

"Shut up." I smiled as she jutted her head to the door.

"You ready to go?"

I took one deep breath, picked up the single white rose that I had substituted for my bouquet, and nodded. I left the room that I had changed in, and Ayame led me down the hall to the door that led to the chapel. She walked in, taking her position beside Cagalli and I took a deep breath, stepping into the doorway. The butterflies in my stomach were getting worse, but when I opened my eyes, seeing Kira standing at the altar, they faded away instantly. I walked down the aisle, smiling at a few of the children who waved as I passed, waving in return. At the end of the aisle, Kira walked forward, offering me his arm, and I smiled as wide as I had all day.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today, to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony." I smiled at Kira through my veil, and he smiled back, causing my heart to skip a beat. "If there is anyone present today who believes that these lovers should not be joined in marriage, speak now or forever hold your peace." It was silent in the small chapel, aside from a few hushed giggles, and whispers of the children. "Do you, Kira Yamato, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have, and to hold? To love, and to cherish? Through sickness and health, until death do you part?" As the priest spoke these words, and as Kira smiled at me, I felt tears beginning to fight to the surface.

"I do." My eyes began to sting, and I swallowed the lump in my throat as he slipped the amethyst ring on my finger. I was getting married.

"Do you, Leiko Hirada, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have, and to hold? To love, and to cherish? Through sickness and health, until death do you part?"

A single tear rolled down my cheek and I nodded, smiling up at Kira.

"I do." My smile widened as I held Kira's hand in mine, putting his ring on his finger, the white gold matching that of my own.

"Then, by the power invested in me by the West Port Church, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Kira reached up, lifted my veil and put his hands on my face, kissing my gently. I smiled against his lips as I heard a few of the boys whisper, 'Eww. Cooties.' and laughed quietly, causing Kira to laugh as well.

"I now present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Kira Yamato!"

Sai, Miri, and Kuzzy stood up, clapping with a smile and all the children followed suit. I laughed as Kira bent down and scooped me up in his arms, holding me bridal style, and I tossed my rose at Ayame, who caught it without thinking, giving me a confused glance. I winked and her face turned pink as she looked at Athrun, finally understanding what the flower meant. I grinned at her, pointing at Athrun.

"You're next."