Sorry for the late update guys! Things came up (exams included . but luckily they're almost over, yes!) so I couldn't focus much on this story, sorry again. And to be honest, I was sort of having writer's block on this chapter...but now it's all done, and I'm really satisfied with the way it came out, so I hope you will enjoy it too! ^^

And special thanks to Devi and PlatinaBirds for your awesome reviews in the last chapter! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Code Geass.

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The reflection in the mirror put a satisfied smile on a certain raven-haired teen's face. He gave himself an over-all look and nodded; everything just seemed so fine. Neatly combed hair, cool clothes for a day-out—Lelouch decided that an ironed light-colored pink shirt, which was unbuttoned the first couple of buttons, accompanied by a white leather jacket was more than perfect, and of course, white jacket never went anywhere without white pants as its companion.

What troubled him was the question still lingering in his head: Should he be wearing tie too? A black loose tie? He had been pondering over it for a few moments and still couldn't come up with a final decision. Lelouch believed that it would be too formal to wear such thing when on a 'date', but it added a lot to his charming, cute looks. So to be formal or to be simple? Thought Lelouch as he stared at the tie in his hands with concentrated eyes.

Just before his mind screamed for him to make a decision, the doorbell rang.

The raven-haired teen swirled around quickly on his heels and a knowing smile plastered on his face as he rushed out of his room.

One of the servants was almost at the door when he jogged down the stairs as fast as he could to catch up with her. "I'll get it!" He called out, panting slightly.

The girl looked up with wide, puzzled eyes as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. Her master actually wanted to do something in the house? Were her ears deceiving her or something?

"Master Lam-" Was all she managed to get out before he cut her off sharply.

"Go heat up the food in the fridge that I bought yesterday and prepare some tea. Then just leave them in the kitchen and go back to your room. Also tell other servants not to bother us." His commands were on the same level as the King's.

"Yes sir!" Squeaked the girl as she hurried to the kitchen, not dared to throw one last look behind her.

Lelouch smoothed out his clothes before putting his hand on the doorknob, and opened it.

"Suza-" He smiled.

"Lelouch! What's wrong? Did something happen? Did Nunnally fall down the stairs? Did Marianne finally know about your night-gamblings? Did-"

"Suzaku!" Lelouch cut him off with full surprise. "What are you talking about?" He could only stare at the other teen with wide, questioning eyes.

Suzaku looked taken aback, then the staring contest began.

Finally, the brown-haired teen brought his hand up to scratch the back of his head. "Wait, what was I talking about?"

"That' what I'm asking you," said Lelouch with one high-raised eyebrow.

"Sorry, it's just that I've never been called to your house so early like this before," Suzaku explained as a small yawn escaped his lips. "I figured maybe something had happened, for none of you are supposed to be awake at this time."

"We're not vampires Suzaku." Lelouch's left eye twitched.

His friend could only smile. "That's how it works around here. You guys party out all night long and sleep during day time."

"There's always a first time for a change."

"I guess so." Another yawn was let out.

Lelouch studied his best friend, worry evident in his eyes. "Been lacking sleep?"

"Yeah, it's been pretty busy lately." Suzaku replied, wiping his eyes to clear the sleepiness. "So why did you call me here?"

"Can't a friend hang out with a friend?" Asked Lelouch as he let out a low chuckle.

Suzaku couldn't help but laugh. "I believe there's more to it than just that simple fact."

"You're sharp as always," Lelouch smiled. "Yes you guessed right, the real reason why I called you was because I wanted to return the favor."

"Favor?" The brown-haired teen said, confused.

"You helped me out at Kaguya's party, didn't you?"

"Oh right, but that's what friends do after all."

"Aah, but you said I'd owe you big time."

Suzaku tilted his head to one side slightly as he considered it. Then, a grin made its way onto his handsome face. "If that's what you wish. So what you do have for me?"

"Come on, let's just go inside first," Lelouch said as he ushered the brown-haired teen through the white-polished door.

Suzaku flopped down in the one of the most comfy chairs in the kitchen, his gaze glued to the big dish on the table—the dish that contained some sort of food that looked like flatbreads.

"What's this Lelouch?" He asked curiously.

The teen in question sat down in the chair opposite from his friend with a cup of tea in one hand as the other propped up his chin. "My thanks."

"By giving me food?" Suzaku asked surprisingly.

"It's not just any food Suzaku. I bet you haven't eaten this before."

Suzaku leaned forward to give it a better look. "Come to think of it, I have never even seen it before, so let alone eat it."

Lelouch smiled knowingly before giving out an offer. "Go ahead, it's all yours."

Reluctantly, the brown-haired teen reached out his hand to pick one slice of the flatbreads up. He stared at it with interest as the thick steamy yellow liquid on top made its way slowly downward.

"You'd better eat it before it drips down all over the plate," Lelouch suggested as he sip his own tea.

"Huh? Oh right, sorry." Suzaku quickly bit down into the newly strange food, and let his taste buds do their job.

"Wow! This is great!" He exclaimed after a few seconds with widened green eyes. "What isthis?"

Lelouch gave a small laugh. "Don't you remember the commercials that we often see on TV? The ones where people go into this shop and buy big square boxes?"

A moment passed as Suzaku tried to recall the memory. "Hm…Ah! Pizza Hut isn't it?" He asked eagerly, then looked down at the food in his hand. "So this is called pizza."

"Yes," His friend nodded.

"I bet Euphie would like this very much," Suzaku said with dreamy eyes as a gentle smile crept its way onto his face.

"Euphie?"

"Yes Euphie- Oh sorry, I forgot that's not how we're supposed to call her. It's actually Princess Euphemia, but she insists that I address her by Euphie. She said it's friendlier that way." If it were possible, the brown-haired teen's eyes got even dreamier as his smile widened a bit.

"Princess Euphemia… I see that you got accepted."

"Yes, it was hard trying to impress the Royalty at first; they're all really picky when it comes to personal knights you know. But it's all worth it."

"Suzaku, you just have to believe in your talents. If you think the negative, you will definitely fail even before you get the chance to try. If you think the positive, success is within the grasp. Thoughts have a great affect on us after all."

"Classic Lelouch's time," chuckled Suzaku.

Lelouch smiled slightly as he put his chin on one hand and sunk deeper into the chair. "I'm giving you advices; it's not easy being a Royal Knight."

"That's true, especially working near the King and Queen. But Euphie's really nice; she gives me hope and keeps encouraging me. I know I've got a long road ahead but this is my destiny Lelouch, I won't back out of it."

"You've been training so hard for the past few weeks. I also have faith in you Suzaku."

"Thanks, I think I can do this. More importantly, I wanted to turn my life in a different direction." Suzaku said, his voice suddenly was nothing more than a mere whisper.

Lelouch remained silent as he contemplated this. Finally he said, "What do you mean by that, may I ask?"

"It's just," Suzaku replied, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. "This lifestyle. It's starting to make me realize that I have no purpose in life except going out partying and meeting people who only befriend me because I'm rich."

"But isn't that who we are? We're born aristocrats, there's nothing we can do to change it."

"We may not be able to change our births, but we have full control over our destinies Lelouch. I believe we can shape our own lives if we truly wish."

"Shape our own lives. That sounds…distant." Whispered Lelouch as he stared at his tea cup.

Suzaku studied his best friend for several seconds. "You want to know what happened at Kaguya's party?"

Lelouch flinched slightly at the question, then nodded reluctantly. "Sure I guess."

"Your fangirls didn't leave me alone for a second ever since I stepped foot inside the restaurant. They kept throwing questions at me regarding your whereabouts nonstop; I didn't even have time to eat, no lies!"

Lelouch shuddered at the image unfolding in his head; hundreds of girls surrounded Suzaku, demanding for answers and throwing deadly glares at the poor boy. "I-I'm sorry," was all he could get out.

"But I'd rather get questions thrown at me than knives," muttered the brown-haired teen.

Lelouch choked on his tea immediately, "Wha-What? Knives!"

"Ah, your number-one fangirl was the one responsible for that."

"You mean Kaguya?" He asked in shock.

"She's really, really pissed that you're not there. So pissed to the point that she took hold of all the knives and forks on the table and sent them flying at me."

Lelouch couldn't suppress the urge to gulp, and he lost the ability to speak right after that.

"Fortunately enough, I was trained for those situations so I survived, as you can see," Suzaku continued, unaware of his best friend's pale expression. "Kaguya's so obsessed with you. Who could possibly believe that she was planning an attempted murder for her cousin?" He shook his head slightly.

"You dodged all those knives?" Asked Lelouch slowly as if his brain had trouble comprehending what his friend's saying.

"It didn't seem like I had another option here now did I? If I didn't wish to invite the God of Death," Suzaku said, smiling wryly.

"Why is your cousin so scary?"

"Tell me about it. Last time I've been in her room, it looked like she had some sort of a framed picture of you pinned on the wall. Very nice decoration around it and gold frame too."

"I bet she isn't the only one," mumbled Lelouch.

Suzaku let out a short laugh, "It's a natural thing that all of your fangirls must have at least one picture of you in possession."

"You shouldn't be the one to talk Suzaku. Same thing goes to you," Lelouch said, smirking knowingly.

And to his credit, Suzaku went pale immediately. He slightly looked away. "The more reason why I wanted to get out of this lifestyle."

A silence engulfed the kitchen, and the only sounds present in it were the ticking hands of the Grand Clock and the even breathings of the two teens.

Finally it was Lelouch to break it, "So what did you tell them about my absence?"

"At the party? Well you see," Suzaku cleared his throat. "I said that you er.. fell down the stairs and broke your leg?"

"Wha-?" The second time Lelouch choked on his own tea. "Suzaku! I thought you said you're going to be creative!"

"Hey, it's hard to concentrate with all the glarings I was receiving! And before I knew it, words already came out."

"I'm not that clumsy. Everyone knows it," deadpanned the raven-haired teen.

"There's always the first time for everything Lelouch. Besides tripping on your own slippers and falling down the stairs are what humans normally do on daily basis."

A sigh escaped his lips as Lelouch massaged his temples, "I can't believe they bought that."

"And to give me credits," continued the brown-haired teen proudly. "I stopped them from destroying your 'alone-night-out' plan."

"What do you mean?"

"They were going to rush to your house to see how you're doing. All of them Lelouch. But I blocked the doorway and said that you probably needed some alone time to get recovered, and you definitely wouldn't be pleased to see your fangirls frantic."

Fangirls….frantic…there's nothing worse than that…Lelouch shuddered slightly at the thought. "I congratulate you Suzaku. You still remained one piece after going against them, Kaguya especially."

"That's what muscles and an exercised body are for," grinned the brown-haired teen. He then leaned forward to grab another slice of the pizza and brought it up to proceed the eating process.

"So did any of them call you yet?" He asked curiously as he chewed the delicious food.

"I don't know. I haven't turned my cell phone on since I last talked to you, and to be honest, I want to keep it off like that; it's less bothersome that way."

"You know they would come to your house eventually."

"Then I shall think of an escape," chuckled Lelouch. "But right now everything seems fine."

"So what do you think after this?"

Lelouch looked taken aback. "What do I think? After this?" He repeated, confused.

"Yeah," Suzaku nodded and continued. "Don't you feel like we're living on a run here? It's not possible to please and satisfy all the girls, and when we can't fulfill our duties, we have to run for our lives."

"You're making it sound like they are little devils or something."

"But it's true. We can't attend every party that they host can we? And we definitely can't be there with all of them at once when they need us right?"

"I guess you're right." Lelouch muttered, then as a memory from the past stirred at the back of his mind, he let out a short laugh as he said. "Remember the blue-haired girl that you met two years ago Suzaku?"

"Blue-haired girl?" Suzaku repeated slowly as he titled his head to one side, trying to remember. "I remember her, but I forgot her name," he said at last, sounding slightly apologetic.

"It's all right, so did I. Well she had a huge crush on you, and was so jealous when you're with other girls that she wanted to poison your coffee, and then take her own life so that you guys could be together in the afterlife. Remember?"

"How-How could I forget that Lelouch?" The brown-haired teen asked. His voice trembling slightly, his green eyes widened as the flashbacks of the incident came flushing back in a violent wave. "It's a nightmare. No actually, she pretended that she lost her precious cat and wanted me to help her find it, but I didn't have time because of Kallen's birthday party. And she thought I was just making up excuses to spend time with different girl, so she…." He trailed off, unable to finish the sentence as a lump made its way up his throat.

"So she decided to kill you out of paranoia and jealousy," Lelouch finished for his friend. Even in this circumstance, the situation did seem humorous somehow. "I remember she bought you a can of coffee, saying that it'd help you rebuild your body after an exhausting event. Who knows that she already put toxic substances in?"

"But how could she do that without opening the can?"

"She did open it before giving it to you."

"How do you know?"

Lelouch couldn't help but rolled his eyes. "I was there Suzaku. How funny it was that she believed I sided with you when I said you really needed to go to Kallen's party, and the cat could be found later."

"Yeah. Luckily, I had no interest in caffeine drinks back then so I declined."

"But she didn't give up did she? She's forcing you to take it."

"Ah, but as I kept refusing, she became more aggressive and we started to notice her true motives."

Lelouch chuckled lowly. "Then you took the can and dumped it in the trash right in front of her eyes. Then you just left."

"That was kind of rude, but my life was on stake there," Now it was Suzaku's turn to chuckle. Back then, the situation was life-threatening, but now it all seemed so silly and humorously crazy.

"What happened after that? I forgot." Lelouch asked.

"Oh. Hm…I think we stopped seeing each other and I cut off all the connections with her. Then I guess she moved to different town and we haven't met again since then."

"That's also when you decided to spend just enough amount of time with each girl."

"Come to think of it, I haven't been to many parties either. Right after that incident."

"If I remember correctly, you later joined the Royal Knight Training Program and have been working 24/7."

"That's right," nodded Suzaku. He then sunk deeper into the comfortable kitchen chair and put his arms on the armrests. "Actually it's all thanks to her. Before she came into the picture, I sort of realized that there's something off about my life, but couldn't quite put my finger on it. And then her poisoning scheme pulled me out of my reveries and finally made me realize that my life really had no purpose; all I ever did was please the girls, and once I couldn't do it anymore, they decided to kill me and throw me away like a ragged doll."

"Is that why you decided to become a Royal Knight?" Lelouch asked, his voice was suddenly nothing more than mere whisper.

"Aah. At least becoming a Knight makes my youth more meaningful; I'm serving the country, protecting the people who are worth protecting."

Lelouch was silent for a while, his mind currently contemplating the meanings of his friend's words. At last, he spoke. "So you think we can all shape our destinies?"

"If you're set for it, then yes. Definitely." Said Suzaku firmly.

"But it will be a challenge."

"Not if you have a motivation."

"Motivation?"

"Yes. Like in my case, Princess Euphemia's the main reason as to why I'm trying to improve myself. Unlike the other royal members, she saw through me and said that I have potential; and that I can do anything if I was determined to do so."

"Potential," Repeated Lelouch. He slowly put his chin on his palm as he studied his best friend sitting across from him. "You've always had potential Suzaku. Ever since we were kids."

"True, but now it and the determination were fully triggered by her encouraging words."

"Aah I see. So you need a motivation to change your life."

Suzaku suddenly leaned forward and stared at the raven-haired teen's face with set green eyes. "Lelouch, you have potential too. Don't ask me how I know; I just do. If you truly want to shape your destiny, all you need is a goal. Motivation can come later."

Violet orbs tore away from emerald ones after that little speech was made, and they looked down.

But it lasted only for a few seconds before they were up again.

"Thanks Suzaku. I think I'm set."

"May I ask what your goal is?"

Lelouch let a mysterious smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he started to stand up. "Sorry can't tell."

"What? You're being secretive again Lelouch!"

"I thought you already knew it. I've always been secretive Suzaku."

The brown-haired teen couldn't help but chuckled. "If you found a true girlfriend, I wonder how she can endure that."

"Trust me," Lelouch said, putting the tea cup away. "She will prefer the mysterious me to the boring, plain me that I always put on for the aristocratic girls."

Unbeknownst to Lelouch, Suzaku's eyebrow rose up slightly. Did he just say 'aristocratic'? He never uses that word before….

His eyes then followed his best friend with curiosity as the raven-haired teen went up to the kitchen drawer to pull out a sticky note. He seemed to be scribble something on it real quick, because before Suzaku even stole a glance at what he's writing, he already put it on the table, in front of him.

"Here's the address to the Pizza Hut place. You said you wanted to take Princess Euphemia there correct?"

"Oh! Thanks Lelouch!" Said the brown-haired teen gratefully as he grabbed the piece of paper in his hand and studied it. "Wow, you actually remember the address by heart or something?"

"Aah I do." Lelouch answered as he proceeded walking out the kitchen.

"Hey where are you going?"

"Out. I'm meeting someone."

"You know you never give much details?" Chuckled Suzaku. "And I thought you just dressed up for fun like usual."

Dressing up, now this got Lelouch's attention as he stopped in his tracks and slowly turned around on his heels. "Since we're on the clothing topic, do you think I should wear tie? Black tie?"

Suzaku titled his head slightly to one side, then shrugged. "I think you look fine without it. Ties on a typical day-out are just too formal and uncomfortable."

The raven-haired teen smiled slightly; his best friend, like him, had an awesome fashion sense. There's no denial in that, and everyone knew it was the absolute truth. So if he said no, then no.

"Thanks Suzaku," he said, giving said teen a pat on the shoulder on the way out. "Enjoy your pizza and once you're done, make yourself at home."

"Ah. Have fun Lelouch."

A knowing smirk made its way onto his handsome face; Lelouch knew he would, by all means. "I will."

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A/N: I promised last time that Suzaku would make a big appearance in this chapter didn't I? Lol it actually was pretty fun writing up conversations for those two; their friendship is really interesting. And of course I was inspired by the Sound Drama/Episodes of Code Geass; just imagining up their voices really helped lol.

And to any of you who might be wondering, no the blue-haired girl was not Cecil. She's just some random girl that I thought of but was just too lazy to find her a proper name xD

I really hope you enjoyed this little piece and review please? It's a great motivation :)