JC: Wah! Athrun's jealous! He completely misunderstood Rusty and Cagalli-sama! Thanks, by the way, for the lovely reviews. I know I haven't been updating fast, but I'm still doing my best.

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam Seed. It belongs to Sunrise, got that?!

Entwined Hearts

Phase 12: A Boyfriend? Not!

Kira was sitting in the living room, watching TV. He sighed, thinking about his kiss with Fllay yesterday. It was like heaven. Her lips were so soft and so addictive. It took him a few minutes to register what was really happening before he broke the kiss with Fllay. His whole face was as red a tomato and his heart felt like it wanted to jump out. And when he looked at Fllay, anxiety stressed him out. He couldn't look at her properly. He was too embarrassed. His kiss with Fllay was his first kiss. Last night, he couldn't eat dinner and he couldn't sleep. His mind was filled nothing but the images of him and Fllay. What was wrong with him? Was he actually falling for the red-haired girl? He shook his head in dismay. He was unsure of his feelings. He wanted to some advices and he knew where to get them. He flipped open his mobile phone and dialed the numbers.

"Hello, this is Miriallia," the voice of the honey-brown haired girl spoke at the other end of the line. She sounded like she just got out of bed.

"It's me," Kira replied solemnly. He was pretty nervous. Frankly, he didn't know what to say to Miriallia. He was sure that she would be shocked to hear about his first kiss. However, he needed someone to talk to. Miriallia, or Milly in shorter term, was his closest friend and she was a smart girl. "Can you come over right now?" He felt a big lump in throat as he said that.

Miriallia sensed something wrong with her brunette friend. She hopped off the bed and went to the balcony. As she inhaled the fresh morning breeze, she said, "All right… I'll be there in 1 hour." She switched off the phone and threw her gaze at the sky. I bet it has something to do with those girls, she silently thought.

"Good… She's coming…" Kira muttered under his breath. He shut the TV off and proceeded to the dining room where he saw his sister playing with her fork. As he approached his chair, he noticed the sad look on Cagalli's face. "Hey, what's the matter?" He took his seat beside her and looked at her with concerned eyes. Something was bothering his sister again. The first thing that came into his mind was Rusty.

"You know what?" Cagalli spoke as she dropped the fork on her plate. "Rusty and I are in good terms now. I went on a friendly date with him yesterday." She lowered her head and clenched her hands on the table.

"That's good but," Kira said, saddened, as he placed a hand on her shoulder, "what's with the sad look? Don't tell me he kissed you again?" He sounded a bit irritated when he said that.

Cagalli slowly shook her head. "No… Rusty's not my problem anymore…" She raised her head and turned to her brother. "Kira, Athrun... He…" She couldn't find the right words to say. She was struck by Athrun's words yesterday. Her fiancé actually thought that she and Rusty had a relationship. He was totally wrong. But before she could explain, the soldier left right away. She slapped her forehead, feeling so guilty and miserable. What if Athrun would leave her? She shut her eyes tight, cursing herself mentally.

"Athrun? Why? Did something happen to him?" Kira didn't know what was going on, but he could see that his sister was suffering. He held her shoulders with both hands and gently shook her. "Tell me…"

Cagalli, with slight hesitation in her heart, explained to Kira what happened last night. The image of Athrun's fuming eyes was crystal clear in her head. Somehow his words kept playing over and over in her head again. "Your new boyfriend?" Athrun told her that, which completely shocked her. Jealousy was indeed a terrible feeling. She was sad to say that Athrun was jealous of Rusty.

Zala Residence

Jean fixed a bowl of ice cream for dessert and went to talk to her brother in the living room. "Nii-san, you want some?" she asked, showing her big brother the bowl of chocolate ice cream.

Athrun glanced up from his book to frown at his little sister. "No," he said dryly, his face completely stoic. He was never like this before, much to Jean's surprise. He didn't want to be this way, but his heart was forcing him to. He was hurt. He was jealous. He never felt so miserable in his entire life. He couldn't believe that his fiancée would actually lie and betray him. Of all the girls in the world, why did it have to be his Cagalli? The Cagalli, the one he admired for so long, had another guy in her heart.

"Nii-san…" Jean's face grew weary as she looked at her brother's tired face. She knew the reason for his sadness and anger, but she can't quite grasp it. The princess she admired would never cheat on her brother, she said to herself. She hoped it was a misunderstanding. She didn't want her brother to break up with her. "Nii-san, are you so sure that the guy you saw was her new boyfriend?"

Athrun didn't reply. He just stared blankly in space as images of Cagalli and Rusty flashed in his mind. He couldn't help but feel more hate towards Rusty. He swore to punch the guy if he ever sees him. He was totally out of character.

Jean couldn't stand her brother's silence any longer. She scooped her ice cream with the spoon and flung it over at Athrun. The ice cream got scattered all over his face. Jean giggled at this. "Nii-san, lighten up!" she exclaimed happily.

Athrun wiped the sticky ice cream off his face, revealing a pair of angry emerald-green eyes. It seemed like he didn't like Jean's prank. He leaped off from the couch, threw his book to the coffee table, and hurriedly left the living room. He was in no mood for talking or playing with his younger sister. He wanted to be alone.

And all Jean wanted was to make her brother smile again. She failed. She thought playing with him will do the trick. She sighed deeply. "Nii-san's really upset… Maybe I should go talk to Cagalli-sama about this…"

She picked up the phone and dialed Cagalli's number. There was ringing and ringing, but there was no answer. She placed the phone back again. She wondered if Cagalli even brought her cell phone to work. She tried again and dialed the numbers in a much faster speed. She really hoped Cagalli would answer her, but the phone just kept on ringing.

"Cagalli-sama…" she muttered, putting the phone down. She slumped down on the couch and looked up at the ceiling, as if there was something interesting there. "Cagalli-sama would never betray my Nii-san." She leaped off the couch, dashed out the living room and went to her room. After a few minutes, she stepped out of the room dressed in her ORB military uniform. It was supposed to be her day off today, but given the circumstances with her brother, she needed to pay the blonde princess a visit for some answers. She was going to find out the truth no matter what. She was going to do it for her brother's sake.

ORB Military HQ

The daughter of the Vice Foreign Minister, Fllay Alster, was taking a stroll in the hallways, humming a sweet tune to herself. She was in a good mood, since there was no Lacus Clyne to bother her. Honestly, the pink-haired girl was sweet, but she was freaking annoying. Fllay couldn't stand her, but it doesn't mean she hated her. Fllay simply disliked Lacus for being so-darn-nice! She wasn't anything like Lacus for sure, which made her irritated. To get back at Lacus, she purposely kissed Kira, making it seem like an accident. She knew that Lacus witnessed her first kiss with Kira. It was rather unfortunate for Fllay, since she wasn't able to see the look on Lacus' face before she ran out.

She went into the control room and saluted two soldiers guarding the door. Of course, the soldiers were honored by her presence and greeted her with a proper salute. She gazed around the room as she noticed how hard-working the ORB soldiers were. The soldiers kind of reminded her of her home base, Josh-A. The Earth Alliance also had soldiers as hard-working as ORB. Not only that, the structure of the control room was very similar to the one back home. Somehow, the military atmosphere of ORB made her sad. She had missed her home and her father so much. She was only in ORB because of a stupid promise her father made.

As she left the control room, she spotted Lacus talking to a female soldier in the hallways. She felt her lips curling into a smile. She walked over to the pink-haired girl when Lacus noticed her presence there. Fllay noticed the fake smile on Lacus' face, but she didn't give a damn about it. She knew Lacus was still stinging over the kiss she had with Kira. "Clyne-san, good morning!" she greeted, pretending to be friendly.

"G-Good morning to you to, Fllay-san," Lacus replied in her kind voice before she turned to the soldier. "It was nice talking to you. Thank you so much for the information." She slightly bowed her head, which made the soldier uneasy.

"Oh, don't worry about it…" The soldier said politely as she bowed her head. "It's no problem, Lacus-sama." She saluted at Lacus and Fllay before she spun around and walked away.

"Where were you yesterday? I thought you went into the kitchen to get more cookies for me." Fllay planted her hands on her hips. "Kira and I went to the orphanage. The children there were a lot of fun. You should've been there!"

Lacus' heart sank, but her smile still remained. Clearly she was sad for not being able to spend time with Kira yesterday, but she didn't want Fllay to see a different side of her. She had to keep smiling, so that nobody will question her feelings. "That's too bad. I was kind of busy yesterday."

Fllay knew Lacus was lying. For a kind and sweet girl, Lacus wasn't much of a liar. Fllay could do a better job in lying and deceiving other people. She was not miss sunshine like the pink-haired girl. "I see…" she replied, narrowing her gaze. "Clyne-san, you know what?" Her voice sounded eerie.

"What?!" Lacus' crystal blue eyes were clear and curious.

"Kira and I had our first kiss together!" Fllay said excitedly. She clasped her hands together and stared dreamingly at a certain direction. She was putting up a good act as usual. "His lips were so tender. It was so enthralling." She closed her eyes and sighed.

Lacus' heart was tearing apart. Images of Kira and Fllay's kiss flashed through her mind like a slideshow. She tried so hard to forget about it, but Fllay had to remind her of it. She can't blame her, though, because she thought Fllay was only expressing her feelings about it. She was completely oblivious to the fact that Fllay was doing it all on purpose just to hurt her.

Downtown

At every stoplight Athrun considered turning the car around and going back home. But he found himself pulling into the parking lot of Central Park, almost numb to the fact that he was considerably upset. As he caught a glimpse of children playing in the playground, he remembered the times when he and Cagalli used to visit the orphanage. He wondered what it would be like to have children of your own. It must be wonderful, he thought.

As he hopped off his car, he was greeted by a certain orange-haired guy.

"Hey there!"

Athrun scanned the guy from head to toe. "You're that…" He clenched his fists tight and glared at him. He recognized the guy so well. It was the same guy who complimented on Cagalli's singing and the one who kissed Cagalli's hand. It was none other than Rusty Mackenzie.

"You're the princess's fiancé and bodyguard, right?" Rusty perched on the hood of the car and grinned widely at Athrun. "Do you still remember me? We first met at the park where I heard the princess singing. She's a great singer and I really admire her." He was talking like a true fan of Cagalli, unaware that every word coming out of his out was making the blue-haired coordinator mad.

If he was a hot-tempered guy, Athrun would have punched Rusty's face right away. "Mackenzie, what's your relationship with Cagalli?" he questioned him seriously. He could've asked Cagalli about Rusty, but he had no guts to face the princess anymore because of what he did last night.

Rusty scratched his head. "Relationship? Hmm… I guess I'm her boyfriend," he said, laughing lightly.

Athrun's eyes widened. His intuitions were correct after all. No wonder Cagalli doesn't want to be with him anymore, he thought bitterly as she shut his eyes in anger. His heart was raging. He didn't know what to do. Was he going to cry or just walk away from Rusty? No, he can't do that. He shot Rusty a murderous look. "Bastard!" he exclaimed, punching Rusty on the face.

Rusty crumpled to the ground, with a red swollen cheek. He looked up at Athrun, furious and offended. "What the hell was that for?!" he bellowed.

"It's your fault," Athrun muttered, his fists trembling in rage. He blamed Rusty for costing his relationship with Cagalli, for stealing the one he loved away from him. He swore to make Rusty pay for what he did. "Why did you do it? You knew she already had a fiancé and yet you…" He couldn't even stand talking to him. He had the urge to keep hitting Rusty until he's dead.

"Huh? My fault?" Rusty raised a brow. "What are you trying to say?" He stood up, holding his swollen cheek, as he stared confusingly at Athrun. Seriously, he had no idea what his fellow coordinator was talking about, let alone the reason why he punched him in the first place.

"Are you stupid?!" Athrun burst, anger evidently seen in his eyes. "You just said that you're Cagalli's boyfriend!"

Still not getting it, Rusty crossed his arms and sighed in frustration. "Yeah, so what?"

"I can't believe she chose you over me," Athrun said sadly in a low voice this time.

"Huh?"

"It's no use talking to you." Athrun was about to turn when he heard Rusty laughing out loud. He threw his gaze back at him, wondering what was so funny.

"You actually thought that the princess and I were having a relationship?" He bent down, holding his stomach, because it was starting to hurt from his laughing. "You're such an idiot, Zala."

Athrun would love to punch the guy again for insulting him, but he decided to take things peacefully with him. "What's up with you?"

"Zala, you got me all wrong!" Rusty approached Athrun, absolutely forgetting the fact that he got punched by Athrun a while ago. "The princess loves you and only you. I'm nothing but a boyfriend to her," he explained, stressing the word boyfriend.

Athrun's eyebrows twitched. "Boyfriend…"

"Not the boyfriend that's on your mind!" Rusty shouted. "What I meant was…" He let out a raw sound of frustration as he rubbed him temples. He never thought the great Athrun Zala, one of the best soldiers of ORB, would misunderstand such a simple word. Nevertheless, Rusty thought of him as one heck of a guy. Maybe, if it was possible, he could be friends with him. But first, he has to explain everything to Athrun about his true relationship with Cagalli.

"What is it, Mackenzie?" Athrun asked him, getting irritated by the second.

Rusty cleared his throat. "Look, I'm a boy and I'm a friend," he said, patting Athrun's shoulders. "Thus, making me a boyfriend, got that?"

Athrun was dumbfounded. "You mean, you're not Cagalli's—" He pointed a finger at him.

"I'm not her boyfriend! I'm just a boy and a friend!" Rusty quickly interrupted Athrun.

Athrun couldn't help but feel embarrassed. He had totally misunderstood Cagalli and Rusty. He should've asked Cagalli first before jumping to conclusions. He should've known that Cagalli would never betray him. He felt so stupid for ever doubting Cagalli.

Beach

Stellar Loussier was playing by the shore. Each time she splashed water around, she giggled merrily like the innocent girl that she was. She was clad in a white two-piece bathing suit with blue floral designs on it. The boys around the place couldn't help but to stare at her. Stellar was really hot and sexy, not to mention, beautiful. She was the apple of every guy's eye there, but Stellar was simply oblivious to the admiration she was getting. She was too busy having fun. She loved the sea more than anything else. It was her haven. She would always feel at peace whenever she was at the beach.

When her tummy grumbled, Stellar stopped her splashing and stared at her tummy. She rubbed it and slightly blushed. She got out of the water, went to her spot, sat down on the beach blanket, and took out a sandwich from the basket. She took a bite out of the sandwich as she glanced back at the sea. "It feels so good to be here," she said to herself.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, two hands covered her eyes, causing her to drop her sandwich. Whoever the person was, Stellar was ready to knock him out with a judo move. But before she could move, the person spoke.

"Guess who?"

Stellar recognized that voice. She quickly smiled and removed his hands from her eyes. "Shinn!" she yelled out as she peered over her shoulders. "You're here!" Her smile grew wider at the sight of Shinn Asuka's ruby eyes. How she missed those eyes!

The raven-haired coordinator was wearing a plain white t-shirt and blue shorts. He was carrying a black knapsack and basket of food. "I'm on vacation now." He placed his things down as he took a seat beside her. He then picked up her sandwich on the blanket and handed it back to her.

"Thanks…" She took another bite.

"I'll be here for a week, isn't that great?"

Stellar almost choked at what he said. She immediately pulled out a bottle of water from the basket, twisted it open, and drank the water. After that, she sighed in relief. "I didn't expect that. Why?"

"The chairman said I could take the week off," Shinn replied awkwardly. He was really happy about the vacation, since he can spend time with Stellar again. He had missed Stellar so much. Back at the PLANT, he would think of her everyday, day and night. He was like an obsessed fan. But he knew he was only like that because he has feelings for Stellar. Indeed, he was aware of his love for the girl.

"One week…" Her voice trailed off as she gave him a knowing look. Her lips curved into a bright smile. "Then we can hang out and do stuff!" she uttered cheerfully.

Shinn nodded. That was exactly what he wanted to do on his vacation. It has been a while since he had a vacation. "Umm… I was wondering if you would…" He stuttered as his cheeks turned red.

"What is it?" Stellar leaned forward until her face was only a few centimeters away from his.

"Ah… Umm… Err…" Shinn didn't know what to say anymore. Stellar was too close for comfort. His heart was pumping so fast. He was having a hard time breathing due to nervousness. He swallowed hard and averted his gaze away from her. "I was wondering… if you would go…out with me…"

Stellar squeezed his shoulder gently. "Of course!" she answered. She would always be obliged to go out with Shinn, because she has grown very fond of him.

Shinn's face brightened. "How about tomorrow?"

"Any day is fine with me!"

"Then it's a date," he said absentmindedly. It took him a few seconds to process what he just said to her. He blushed ten shades of red and shook his head rapidly. "What I mean was… Well, not a date… Just a…"

Stellar had no idea what he was trying to say, but she just smiled at him and held his hand. "A date it is," she said in a soft voice. She cuddled up to Shinn and leaned her head on his shoulder. "I can't wait for tomorrow." She giggled.

Shinn stiffened when Stellar's head touched his shoulder. His face had thoroughly turned red, making him look like a tomato fruit. However, his heart was jumping with joy, because Stellar was being sweet to him. He could probably die and go to heaven at this point. But being with the fragile angel beside him was already heavenly. He felt so lucky to be with Stellar.

To be continued…

JC: I thought I would never finish this. Lately, I've been down in the dumps. I don't get much idea unlike before. But I'm still willing to continue this story because I'm a loyal fan. The Stellar and Shinn moment here was cute. There will be more in the next chapter. It looks like Rusty has cleared up things for Athrun. There's also the issue with Lacus and Fllay. Who will Kira choose in the end?