AN: Hello my dear readers! I'm so happy that I've received EIGHT reviews for chapter 2! Hehe I guess I'm doing pretty good at this eh? :D THANK YOU TO: LoveGundam, akatsuki-justice, Tyler, xoxdork, nina, star, Million Voices, and Cagalli Haruka Zala for your wonderful reviews! ^-^
Here's another for you guys! Oh btw, if you are a big fan of Meyrin, you probably won't like this story. D: Sorry. DON'T FORGET TO R&R!
Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN GUNDAM SEED/DESTINY. BOOHOO.
Cliques and Colors
Chapter 3: Lunch and Pink Desperation
Just a few minutes after her second period started, pre-calculus, Cagalli found herself sitting at the last available desk which just so happens to be right next to Meyrin Hawk. She heaved a sigh and cursed her luck. To make matters worse, the teacher or Mr. Andrew Waltfeld had decided that today was a good day to just give the students two pages full of math problems to complete and turn in by the end of the class or, if the students are unable to finish, they have to complete it for homework and turn it in the next day. Being a new student obviously does not matter.
Cagalli has been staring at the worksheets on her desk for a good 7 minutes now and she hasn't even move her pen yet. In truth, Cagalli HATES math, and by hate, she also means she's horrible at it. 'There is no way that I'll be able to finish this by tonight.' She thought miserably.
She stole a glance at Athrun who sat on the other side of Meyrin and saw that he was trying to concentrate on his worksheet but Ms. Cherryhead kept insisting on talking to him and asking him questions. She herself was also trying to figure out at least question one but who can focus with this irritating loud mouth sitting right next to them?
The teacher didn't seem to care much and was more absorbed with his computer screen, one hand lazily browsing while the other held a mug of steaming coffee.
'This guy doesn't even look like a teacher.' Cagalli scoffed, taking in his rugged brown hair, tanned skin, and not to mention his five 'o clock shadow.
"Athrun! We should really go see the new movie 'Inception' tonight! I heard it was really good!" Meyrin's high pitched outburst suddenly broke her train of thoughts.
Cagalli rolled her eyes at the annoying voice and saw Meyrin shoot her a smug smile, obviously trying too hard to get under her skin for no apparent reason.
"Uh…Sure, I'll ask the group during lunch." Athrun replied after a moment of consideration.
"The group?" Cagalli saw the smug smile shatter on Meyrin's face and was replaced by confusion and surprise, 'Kodak moment.' She smirked.
"Yeah, our friends? They're coming too right?" Athrun cocked an eyebrow at her.
"Oh-umm…o-of course! I was just kidding!" Meyrin's ears burned with embarrassment.
Cagalli couldn't help but snicker at her lame cover up.
Athrun noticed this and tilted his head. "Cagalli you should come too, it'll be fun."
"Huh? Uh…" Cagalli was about to politely decline but caught the look on Meyrin's face and decided that it WOULD be fun to make a certain someone burn with rage. "Sure! I would love to go!" It was her turn to look smug.
"YEAH IT'S GOING TO BE SO FUN." Meyrin exclaimed with a phony smile, her insides seething with contempt.
"Great! We'll talk about the details during lunch." Athrun smiled boyishly before getting back to work.
"Oh Athrun, do you think you can explain some of these equations to me? I'm kind of lost here." Cagalli asked with wide puppy dog eyes.
"O-of course, no problem." Athrun stammered, feeling his cheeks getting hot. "You mind switching seats Mey?"
Meyrin eyes twitched, 'HELL FREAKING NO. NO WAY NO WAY NO WAY! I WILL NEVER LET THIS STUPID GIRL SIT NEXT TO YOU!'
…Sure."
30 minutes later...
"I can't believe I actually finished the worksheets! THANK YOU SO MUCH ATHRUN!" Cagalli hugged Athrun with excitement.
"Y-you're welcome..." Athrun felt as if his cheeks were about to explode. He wanted to hug her back but was disappointed that Cagalli had already let go.
"C'mon Athrun it's lunch time! Let's go!" Meyrin cut in, she was obviously unhappy about their hug.
"Alright, you coming Cagalli?" Athrun asked.
"Of course!"
Meyrin's left eye twitched.
LUNCH
"Are you saying that I have 1 HOUR for lunch?" Cagalli stared at Athrun with stars in her eyes as she walked with Athrun and Meyrin to the Cafeteria to meet up with the rest of the Navy Blue clique members.
Chuckling, Athrun replied. "Yes, ONE HOUR. It's actually normal lunch time in the PLANTS."
"Wow, you're so excited over nothing." Meyrin rolled her eyes.
Cagalli just pretended that she didn't hear. She looked ahead and saw quite a few people standing at the entrance of the Cafeteria, all wearing navy blue pants or skirts and ties or bows.
"Hey guys," Athrun began as they reached the group, "this is Cagalli, she's a new student."
A chorus of hi's, hellos, yo's, and nice to meet you's were exchanged as the group greeted the newcomer.
"Cagalli, you already know Kira and Lacus from English. Athrun then gestured to a girl next to Kira with red hair, "This is Fllay, Kira's girlfriend." The girl waved at Cagalli with a friendly smile.
"I'm Dearka! Nice to meet you gorgeous." A guy with tan skin and sleek blonde hair introduced and gave her a wink.
Cagalli raised an eyebrow at him. "Uh…okay? Nice to meet you too…I guess." She looked at him weirdly while he merely shrugged.
Athrun rolled his eyes at his womanizing friend, he felt a little irritated for some reason. Clearing his throat, he continued. "Thanks Dearka…Anyway this is Yzak, and that's Shiho," he pointed to a guy with super straight neck length platinum blonde/silver hair and a girl with long brown hair.
Cagalli's mouth twitched when her eyes landed on Yzak. 'What's with this guy's hair? It's so straight and shiny!'
"What's so funny?" Yzak asked angrily when he saw her stifling a giggle.
"Oh nothing at all…" Cagalli replied innocently while averting her eyes.
Yzak growled and was about to say something else when Shiho interrupted. "You don't have to hide it Cagalli, everyone's made fun of his hair at least once." The group couldn't help but laugh at how true it was.
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY WOMAN?" Yzak glared at Shiho.
"Stuff it Joule, denying it won't make you feel better." Shiho waved off his angry outburst as if it was nothing.
"WHY I OUGHT TO…"
"AHEM, I'M GETTING HUNGRY HERE SO CAN WE JUST FINISH WITH THE INTRODUCTIONS ALREADY?" A guy with messy black hair and crimson eyes shouted loudly obviously annoyed.
"HMPH!" Yzak and Shiho let out simultaneously before turning their heads to opposite directions.
Athrun sighed. "Okay, the loud kid is Shinn, his girlfriend Stella," he gestured to a cute blonde girl next to Shinn, "and that's Lunamaria, who is Meyrin's older sister." He pointed at a girl with short red hair.
Shinn gave a grunt, Lunamaria gave a friendly smile, and Stella waved excitingly at Cagalli.
"Nice to meet you guys." She beamed.
After meeting everyone, Cagalli can see why the group was so popular, everyone was good looking and cute!
"Hey where's Miriallia?" Dearka suddenly asked, looking around for the missing person.
"HEY GUYS! I'M SORRY I'M LATE!"
Cagalli turned around to see a very familiar girl with auburn hair running towards her direction, her eyes widening in recognition.
"There was a problem with one of the pictures and- CAGALLI YOU GO TO SCHOOL HERE?" Miriallia suddenly yelled out when she saw Cagalli.
"Ehehe, yeah I'm a new student. Hello!" Cagalli smiled and waved at her.
"You know her Milly?" Dearka voiced out everyone's thoughts.
"Yeah! She's the new waitress at Cloud Nine!" Miriallia explained.
"Cool! That's our hang out spot, in fact we always go there for our lunch period!" Stella pointed out excitingly.
"I guess I won't have to be Mr. Tour Guide for lunch period huh?" Athrun smirked teasingly at Cagalli.
"You don't like being my tour guide Athrun?" Cagalli pouted sadly.
"N-No! I was just teasing you!" Athrun coughed, trying to hide a slight blush.
"Haha, so was I." Cagalli winked.
Athrun spluttered, obviously a little embarrassed. "Let's just go already!" Athrun muttered, walking to the school exit.
"Okay! I'm hungryyyyy!" She half-whined as she followed him.
The group watched them with surprise and amusement.
"I think Athrun finally likes a girl." Dearka let out after a moment.
"About time that Zala. Everyone was starting to think he's gay." Shinn scoffed, watching as the two walked out of the school and making the majority of the students do double takes.
"I'm so happy for him! C'mon guys let's go catch up to them!" Flay clapped her hands and started skipping towards the school exit with Stella as everyone followed suit, minus the skipping.
But no one noticed how Meyrin boiled with fury except Luna. She was about to ask her about it but stopped when she saw Meyrin calmed down. She made a mental note to ask her about it later, even thought she already has a suspicion about the reason behind her sister's uncharacteristic behavior.
CLOUD NINE CAFÉ
The café was about five minutes walking distance from the school, once inside you can smell the wonderful aroma of freshly brewed coffee, delicious baked pastries, and smoky bacon. It's a weird combination but strangely satisfying for the nose and very alluring for a bunch of hungry teenagers. The quaint but modern decorations and large booths create a very comforting atmosphere. There was a lounging corner to the far right set up with six bean bag chairs, 2 large sofas, a coffee table stacked with magazines, and a 42 inch flat screen TV on the wall for entertainment. The lounge area is free for dine-in customers but charges a two dollar fee otherwise.
When the crew entered the café, they were greeted by a petite waitress who led them to a large booth in the corner before handing them their menus. The booth was big enough to fit 13 teenagers very comfortably. The seating order from left to right: Yzak, Shiho, Shinn, Stella, Lacus, Kira, Fllay, Cagalli, Athrun, Meyrin, Luna, Miriallia, and Dearka.
"Man Athrun you always get to sit in the middle of the booth!" Dearka whined, unhappy to be the one on the end of the booth.
"Walk faster next time buddy." Athrun smirked.
"I can't walk fast on an empty stomach." Dearka rubbed his tummy and sighed dramatically.
"Not my problem." Athrun grinned.
"Hello my dears, how are you doing today?" A kind voice came, it was Lana. "Here for your usual again?" She asked with a caring smile on her aging face.
"Hi Aunty Lana, we're doing great! And yes Ma'am, but we have a newbie today." Kira replied with a smile.
"Oh Cagalli honey! How are you doing settling in PLANTS so far?"
"Great! I've met a bunch of interesting people…" Cagalli winked at Lana.
"You sure are right sweetheart!" She laughed.
Would you like anything to drink? I already know what these guys are going to order."
"Oh okay I'll get water with lemon."
"No problem, okay I'll be back with your drinks in a moment." She kindly smiled before heading to the front.
"So when's your first day working here Cagalli?" Athrun asked curiously.
"TOMORROW!" She exclaimed excitingly.
"Good luck Cagalli!" Lacus smiled.
"She'll be fine, she has me!" Miriallia declared.
"Thank you Lacus, and I'll be counting on you Milly!" Cagalli winked.
"You're going to love working here; we hardly get any rude customers and the tips are really good!" Miriallia grinned.
"Thank God because I can't deal with rude customers! I don't think I have the patience." Cagalli smiled sheepishly.
Everyone chuckled and moved their elbows off the table when they see three waitresses coming their way each carrying a tray of drinks. They carefully placed each glass on the table and a chorus of thank you's were said around the table. Two waitresses left with the trays as the one remaining took out a notepad and pen from her waitress apron.
"Are you ladies and gentlemen, and Milly, ready to order?" The waitress smiled teasingly at Miriallia, the name tag on her shirt read "Reana".
Miriallia stuck her tongue out. "Nyehh."
"Yes we'll have the usual, with three orders of the fried calamari appetizers," Athrun smiled charmingly at the waitress, who turned scarlet. "Cagalli have you decided what you want to order yet?" He turned to his right.
"Umm…what do you recommend?" She peered at Athrun with curiosity.
"Hmm I usually get the baked turkey sandwich with some salad and fries." Athrun said thoughtfully.
"Okay sounds good, haha another one of that please!" Cagalli told the waitress.
"Yes Ma'am, I'll be back with your appetizer shortly." She collected everyone's menus and left with a smile as the group started chatting again.
"So you are all in Navy Clique?" Cagalli looked at everyone curiously.
"Yep, we have all the Members here." Athrun replied.
Cagalli then let out a grin. "I heard Navy is the most popular clique in school."
"No not really…"
"Oh don't lie! The principal told me!"
"Don't believe that old fart, he's crazy!"
"Right…"
"So Cagalli, did you create Emerald clique or joined, I don't think I've seen the color before." Kira inquired.
"I made it." Cagalli said with a wink.
"So why emerald?" Athrun was curious.
"Because I like green and the only greenish color they have left was emerald and pukey green." Cagalli made a face when she said the word 'pukey'.
"Wise choice." Dearka commented.
"Athrun, your eyes match perfectly with Cagalli's skirt." Kira teased.
Everyone was surprised to see a slight tinge of pink on Athrun's cheeks. Athrun hardly ever blushed and it shocked everyone that a small tease had invoked such a response. Fortunately for Cagalli, everyone was too busy staring at Athrun to notice that her cheeks had turned pink also.
Athrun coughed and cleared his throat, sipping on his sprite before muttering. "What are you getting at Kira?"
Kira feigned innocent. "Oh nothing, nothing at all buddy of mine." The girls let out giggles while the guys smirked, except Athrun, Cagalli, and of course Meyrin.
"Athrun, aren't you going to ask the guys about the movie?" Meyrin asked loudly and held on to his arm.
"Oh yea, hey guys you want to go see Inception tonight? Meyrin heard it was really good."
"Sure I think all of us are free." Shiho said.
"Alright let's all meet there after school alright?" Athrun suggested.
Everyone agreed to the idea and began chowing down on the appetizers that have just arrived. Athrun saw that Meyrin still has her hand around his arm and felt uncomfortable so he tried to ease it off. Meyrin notices this and unwillingly let go. Their orders arrived shortly after that and Cagalli was happy to find that what she ordered was really good. She thanked Athrun as she munched on her sandwich, making Athrun stutter at how cute she looked with her cheeks filled with bread and turkey. Their happy luncheon didn't last long when an unwanted person suddenly appeared. It was Meer Campbell, along with her posies, all wearing pink skirts and tiaras.
"OH ATHRUNN! You should sit with us!" Meer batted her eyelashes.
"Hn…no thanks." Athrun who looked annoyed, replied with a bored tone.
"Oh pleeease?" Meer and her posies pleaded, "Why would you sit with these losers?" Meer sneered, looking at the girls in the booth with distaste.
The group, specifically Yzak and Shiho glared at Meer while Cagalli just stared at the newcomers in bewilderment.
"They are not losers now go away dingbat." Athrun frowned.
"Athrun baby, you know you want to sit with us." Meer leaned forward and said with half lidded eyes. "Don't play hard to get."
Athrun cocked an eyebrow at her as the group chortled with laughter and coughs.
"Do you not understand English? He said go away." Cagalli suddenly spoke up with an annoyed voice.
Meer and her posies looked at Cagalli in shock while the group stared in awe.
"SHUT UP NEW GIRL! I wasn't talking to you." Meer screeched.
"I don't really care, just go away cuz you're annoying all of us." Cagalli rolled her eyes.
"I said shut up! Athrun wants me here." Meer looked at him dreamingly.
"No, I don't. Leave me alone." Athrun muttered in a cold voice.
"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! I WON'T GIVE UP ON YOU NO MATTER WHAT ATHRUN!" Meer shouted. "Oh and blondie, you better watch your back." Meer glared at Cagalli before walking out of the café.
"Ugh I swear that girl is the most annoying girl on the planet." Athrun sighed.
"Yeah, I can't believe she's your cousin Lacus." Kira said, shaking his head.
"She's your cousin? Wow how can she be related to you? You're so nice but she's so bitchy, but then again I guess that would explain the pink hair." Cagalli exclaimed.
"Yep." Lacus giggled.
"Okay guys I think it's time to go, we have about 10 minutes before lunch ends." Shinn checked his watch and everyone stood up except Cagalli.
"Wait, we didn't get our check yet!" Cagalli panicked as she started reaching for her wallet.
Everyone turned and chuckled. "Already paid Cagalli." Athrun grinned at her confused expression.
"WHAT? HOW? WHEN? WHO?" Cagalli shouted.
Athrun just put his forefinger to his lips and winked. "Don't worry about it."
"You paid? What! you can't do that Athrun!" Cagalli pouted.
"Think of it as payment for helping us get rid of Meer." Athrun smiled gratefully at her.
Cagalli blushed. "N-no problem, but I'm still paying you back Athrun!"
Athrun only chuckled. "C'mon let's go, we don't want to be late."
"HEY WAIT A MINUTE! DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT ATHRUN!" Cagalli shouted, chasing after Athrun who was already running towards the school.
^_^ You like? Please review if you do! :D
For some reason, I think my writing is kind of awkward, do you guys think so too? Please let me know D:
AND BTW: I drew a picture of Cagalli and Athrun in their uniforms for this story! If you're interested please check it out! ^.^ Link is on my profile.
I'm not very good but I hope you like it :D