JC: Thank you for the wonderful reviews. Here's chapter 3 everyone! I'm gonna introduce a new character here. Let me give you a hint. He's a guy and he has orange hair. Nope, he's not Heine or my OC, Kai. Just read to find out.

Disclaimer: Please don't sue me because I can't afford to get a lawyer. I've said it before a thousand times, I don't own this series!

Entwined Hearts

Phase 03: A Mysterious Encounter

Things were pretty busy at the ORB Military Headquarters because of the arrival of the new mobile suits and weapons. The soldiers, mainly the superiors and the chief engineers all went to the hangar to check up on the new suits. They also had to see it to that everything was in order. Of course, Kira was one of the superiors here.

He wasn't supposed to check up on the suits, as it was the job of his beloved twin sister. But Cagalli insisted him on giving her the day off to have a date with Athrun. He couldn't resist his sister's request, or should he rather say, demand. It was such a drag for him. It was supposed to be his day off too. He couldn't do anything about it now since he was already at the hangar.

"I'm gonna get back at her someday," he mumbled, catching the attention of the soldier standing beside him.

"I beg your pardon, sir," the soldier said since he didn't get to understand what Kira just said.

Kira quickly turned to the guard and shook his head. "I-It's nothing." He walked off ahead, thinking that he should get his job done as soon as possible.

Downtown

The music video of Nami Tamaki played in the huge flat-screen TV on a building. There was a cheery mood in the city, as the different people consciously and unconsciously listened to the music. The song was 'Realize' and it was one the best hits by the popular singer.

The blonde princess watched the screen, carefully admiring the graceful moves of the pop star as she danced and sang. Cagalli was wearing a sky-blue tank top with the word 'Energy' printed on it, white plain shorts, and blue-white skater shoes to complete her summer-look. She also wore a white cap and sunglasses on to hide her face from the public. She didn't want to get chased around by a mob of screaming fans. Speaking of fans, she wondered how Nami Tamaki handled her fans. Cagalli had to admit that being a pop star was great. She sighed deeply as she turned to the man beside her. She could see how focused he was on the screen as well. She didn't want to disturb him but she wanted to ask him a certain question.

"Um… Athrun, do you have a thing for pop stars?" she asked.

Athrun was wearing an ordinary white polo-shirt, denim pants, and black shoes. As usual, he was escorting Cagalli around the city as a bodyguard and a good fiancé. "Stars?" he repeated as he turned to her. "Well, no… I'm not a big fan of any star."

"We're basically the same. I'm not a fan of Nami Tamaki, but I just love her music."

"Cagalli, why don't you try singing?" suggested Athrun, throwing a smile at her, "I'm sure you have a lovely voice. Come on, sing for me."

Cagalli violently shook her head and said, "No way! I don't do singing."

"Please sing for me," pleaded Athrun, giving her a sincere look that was so tempting. "I want to hear your voice."

She averted her eyes away from him and crossed her arms. "NO!! NO!! NO!!" she uttered. She was being serious at this. She didn't want to sing. "I was raised as a soldier and not a singer! Got that?" She shot Athrun a dangerous glare.

The blue-haired knight felt a bit afraid of this. He knew how scary she can be when angry. But he desperately needed to hear her sing. After a moment of thinking, he had thought of a way to make the blonde sing. "Cagalli, if you're not going to sing, I'll reveal your identity to the people around." Athrun grinned mischievously.

"You wouldn't dare!" she boomed, clenching her fist at Athrun.

"I'm serious, Cagalli."

"Fine! I'll do it! I'll sing a song for you!" It wasn't her style to give in just like that. But if she didn't comply with Athrun, she would be crowded by fans right away. "Just let me sing in a place where there's no one around."

"Sure thing," the coordinator replied, taking Cagalli's hand. He dragged her away to the park and hid behind some trees. "Is this place okay?"

Cagalli looked around to see if there were any people around. Thankfully, they were the only ones there. She turned her head back at Athrun, worried that she might screw up in singing. Like she said before, she was raised as a soldier. But Athrun had this keen look in his eyes and Cagalli couldn't possibly disappoint him. She inhaled deeply and exhaled. She spun on her heels to face Athrun and adjusted her voice. When she was ready, she started singing her song.

haruka naru kaze no koe umare kuru chiisa na tane wa

mada aoi hane hiroge oozora e maiagari

niji wo koe kumo wo koe chizu naki tomoshibi no tabi

kaze wo shiri ame wo shiru

tsubasa ga yogoretemo koko kara tada tobitai

dakara subete no kodou yo

Athrun smiled widely, impressed at the singing of his fiancée. His hunch about her having a great voice was true. Sure, she may have a tough and unruly voice, he thought, but her singing voice was very feminine. It was soothing for his soul. He stayed silent and continued listening.

dakishimeta omoi wo toki hanatsu sekai e

maiorita kimi wa feel like a precious rose

suna no umi ni saku hana hitotsu

teritsukeru taiyou ni unadarenai sono hana wa

kore kara no michi wo yuku daiji na kimi no tomoshibi

ashiato wa tsumibukaku sajin no iro wo someteku

honmono no sono wa doko?

koe wo age nobashita te ni fureteita kiseki no me wa

omoigakenai katachi ni

He was about to clap his hands to cheer for her, but someone beaten him to it. He heard clapping sounds coming from behind him, which caused Cagalli to stop. The both of them directed their eyes on the unsuspecting person.

"And who might you be?" Cagalli asked, placing a fist on her hip.

The person was a guy with a messy orange hair. He was wearing a blue t-shirt with a lion logo on the left chest part. He had brown-loose pants and red-orange sneakers. He held a smile on his face as his eyes were focused on the blonde princess. He took a few steps forward and bowed his head slightly. "I'm Rusty Mackenzie," he stated. He lifted his head and approached Cagalli. "I was just passing by when I heard your beautiful voice. You sing quite well."

Cagalli couldn't help but blush at his compliment. It was the first time, other than her brother, to hear a guy compliment about her voice. Well, no one in ORB knew she could sing. She was even oblivious to the fact that she can sing. "Err… Thanks…" she muttered.

Rusty stared at her for a while as if he wanted something from her. He had a smile on his face, a genuine warm smile. He reached for her face with his right hand and caressed her cheek.

"What the—" Athrun felt like throwing an insult at the guy. However, he knew how to calm himself down and handle the guy properly. He wasn't the type to go on a rampage just because the guy was touching his fiancee's cheek.

On the other hand, Cagalli was shocked to have a guy, which she had just met, touch her. She would usually get all flustered and shout at the guy, but she didn't feel like doing anything. His touch was actually soothing her.

Not taking this sweetness for another second, Athrun grabbed the Rusty's wrist, went in front of Cagalli, and shot a glare at the guy. "You were too close for comfort," he said seriously, releasing his wrist.

Rusty laughed a bit. "Uh… Sorry about that, man," he said without any hints of nervousness. "It seems like I got carried away. You can't blame me, though, because this girl is hot." He glanced back at Cagalli, winking an eye, and turned back at Athrun who twitched his eyebrows a little.

"You can't just flirt with another guy's girl." Athrun was being protective and jealous at the same time.

"Oh, she's already yours? Too bad…" Rusty inserted his hands in his pockets and spun on his heels. "I thought you were only a mere bodyguard tagging along with her."

Cagalli's and Athrun's eyes widened after he said that.

Rusty turned his head slightly towards them and smirked. "You guys think I didn't know? From the very start, I know that she's Princess Cagalli Yula Athha. I'm actually a fan of the princess, which is why I was trying to get cozy with her." He giggled as he took a few steps forward. "I'll see you again soon, princess." With that, he ran off in a hurry and disappeared from sight.

"Weird guy," Cagalli muttered, removing her glasses. "Rusty Mackenzie was it?" She turned to Athrun who seemed to be pissed off. He was clenching his fists hard and he was gritting his teeth. Ah, jealousy can do much to a guy, she thought and smiled. She placed a hand on his shoulder and told him to relax.

"Oh, sorry about that…" said Athrun, taking a deep breathe. "He was so…"

"He was just an admirer, Athrun. Remember, you're my fiancé now."

Athrun smiled back at her and nodded. "Yeah, I know…"

Cagalli put on her sunglasses back and held Athrun's hand. "Come on, let's go! We have the whole day to ourselves." She giggled and pulled Athrun along with her.

As they walked out of the park, Rusty pried on them like a spy. He had a malicious grin on his face as his eyes were set on the blonde princess.

To be continued…

JC: That's it for now. The new character here is Rusty Mackenzie. He's really a character from the series. He died in Episode 1 of Gundam SEED and he was one of Athrun's companions. He's Athrun's rival in this story. Well, I would like to see some reviews and no flaming.