They finally let me out of the hospital today. I still have to have weekly check-ins at the infirmary, but now I'm free. I can now return to all my classes, except for combat training for a while. After being confined for so long, there's nothing that I wanted to do more than go outside, but there were two important things that I had to do first.

The first thing was definitely easier. I was shocked when I heard that Yzak and Dearka had not made the Le Creuset team along with Nicol, Miguel, Rusty and I. This was hugely unfair, as all they had done was bring justice, but they made a fool of Commander Le Creuset. I had told Dearka that I owed him a favour for saving my life, so it was up to me to right this injustice. Being Patrick Zala's son did give me certain benefits, after all. I might as well use them for good. I spoke to my father and told him that the soldier who had risked his life to rescue me and the soldier who had uncovered the Earth forces traitors were being punished by not being selected for the elite team. He was furious at this injustice, and being Patrick Zala gave him some influence in the matter, as he was of a higher rank than Le Creuset.

I approached Yzak and Dearka when I saw them in the corridor. "I'd just like to personally welcome you to the Le Creuset team," I said, unable to keep the smirk from my face.

Their confused faces were priceless. "But...We're not..." Yzak began, baffled as to what I meant. "Are you making fun of us, you bastard?"

I shook my head. "Nope, not making fun of you. As of now, you two are both members of the Le Creuset team. You'll receive the news officially soon. I managed to pulled some strings." I turned to Dearka. "Now we're even," I laughed. That was one of the things ticked off the list.

The second was going to be much harder, though. The guilt settled in my stomach like lead. I couldn't believe that I had screwed up the one good friendship that I had made here. I actually thought that Nicol was a traitor, and I had accused him along with everyone else. I should have had faith in him, and I really don't have an excuse for not having any. An apology was more than deserved.

I found Nicol where I expected him to be, playing the piano in the presentation hall. The same hall that his trial had taken place in. He was playing something that I didn't recognise, something that I had never heard him play before. It was a bittersweet piece of music, seeming both happy and sad. Nicol was so engrossed in playing that he didn't hear me approach, and I knew better than to interrupt him in the middle of a piece of music. The music swelled and then finished with a diminuendo. Nicol had taught me that word, it meant getting quieter and quieter. The final high note seemed to ring out for eternity.

"Hey, Athrun," said Nicol without turning from the piano.

"Hey," I replied. He began to speak, but I cut him off. "Please, before you say anything, just let me talk." I took a deep breath and began to say what I had been thinking ever since the trial. "Nicol, I'm so sorry. I should have believed you when you said you were innocent. You're my friend, and I should have trusted you over Commander Le Creuset. I should've had faith in you, but I just hurled accusations at you instead. And this isn't... I mean, I'm not asking you to forgive me or anything. I can understand if you hate me now, and if you just want me to go away. And I will. I just had to tell you that I'm sorry. You didn't betray me, I betrayed you, by not believing in you when I should have."

I started to leave then, thinking that Nicol wouldn't want me hanging around, the friend who had no faith in him. I was almost at the door when Nicol began to laugh. I looked back at him to see what was so funny.

"You're an idiot sometimes, Athrun." He laughed. "A real idiot." His face was not angry at all. There was no hatred or resentment in his eyes, or his laugh. He was smiling at me, and his smile was genuine. "I could never hate you, Athrun."

I stared at him in surprise. "But... but I..."

He cut me off with a wave of his hand. "Now it's my turn to talk," he said. "Athrun, when I heard about the explosion, I was so worried that I couldn't even think about anything but whether you were okay or not. And when you came to visit me, I was just relieved to see that you were okay. And yeah, it hurt that you didn't believe me, and I was angry, but then I thought, I can't really blame you for thinking that. I mean, those traitors had framed me pretty skilfully." Nicol chuckled quietly. "And to think, I would have received the death penalty if it wasn't for Yzak Joule. I owe my life to someone who hated my guts." He looked at me sincerely. "Athrun, I don't blame you for not believing in me, okay? You're my friend, I think I can forgive you this once."

I was too shocked to say anything. I would have expected him to shout at me, or just straight up tell me to leave him alone now, but I guess Nicol knows exactly how to defy my expectations.

I couldn't say anything other than, "Thank you, Nicol."

"That's what friends do, Athrun. They forgive each other." He grinned at me. "Besides, who else is going to teach me how to shoot properly? You did say that you would."

I nodded, smiling back at him. "And I will."

"Well, we don't have much time." said Nicol. "The Le Creuset team heads off in a few weeks, and I doubt Commander Le Creuset will give us much free time once we're out there." He turned to look out the window. "You know, I've never been outside of the PLANTs before. This is exciting. I can't wait until we leave. I heard that we might even be going down to Earth."

I can't believe that I actually thought he was a traitor. Looking at him now, full of excitement about our upcoming mission, I can't believe that I thought him capable of planting a bomb. I'm glad that it all worked itself out.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Yzak and Dearka made the Le Creuset team too." I told him.

"You know, if you'd told me that a few weeks ago, I would have been disappointed, but now? I'm glad that they're coming. They may not be my favourite people in the world, but they stuck up for me." Nicol said. "I'm happy to know that those guys have my back, and you too, Athrun." he added. I smiled at him as we walked out of the hall together.

"From now on, we'll always have your back, Nicol. No matter what."