Dear diary,

I drove past to see our new home in Orb Planes earlier today after work. It turned out that it wasn't some nasty old cottage in the middle of nowhere (thank Haumea). Our place actually has a deck and a lawn (we can have cute little tea parties there!). And the previous owner, whoever she was, loved flowers. The garden was filled with roses, lilies... you name it, it has it! I think Kira would like it. It has a nice homely feel to it. Not that my current penthouse didn't have that feeling. The new place just feels different. And one good thing about that place was that it has a large walk-in closet, meaning I didn't have to waste energy to get one built. We're moving in tomorrow. Oh and I forgot to tell you. I found a school for Kira (finally). It's near our new place. Well, I better start packing. I'll continue again next time.

Yours truly,

Cagalli

... ... ...

Chapter 3

"Hey, do you need some help?"

I turned around to find a gorgeous young man with midnight blue hair and emerald green eyes smiling at us, offering his aid.

Tell me, who could resist?

Wait, what did I just say? Gorgeous? Gosh, I wanted to slap myself. I've been here only two seconds and I was checking out the first guy I saw. Geez Cagalli! Where was your control?

"I'm Athrun, I live across the street," he said as he stretched his hand out for me to shake but he quickly pulled it back when he realised that my hands were full. His face had a little red stain.

Gosh, he looked even cuter when he blushed! And he was our neighbour! I was going to see him everyday! Wait, back track a bit. Grab a hold of yourself Cagalli. You're acting like a teenager, getting all worked up over some random hot guy. Oh wait, I think I was supposed to speak. Go on and introduce yourself Cagalli.

"I'm Cagalli," I gave my most charming smile. "And this is my brother Kira," I referred Athrun to the little boy who was hiding behind me.

"He's a shy one isn't he?" Athrun gave a small smile.

"Yea. And quiet too. You'd expect my pet goldfish to talk more than he does."

Athrun chuckled. "So how can I help?" he asked.

"Well you can help me bring these boxes inside," I suggested.

Athrun was the perfect gentleman. He purposely chose the heavier boxes to carry so that I and Kira wouldn't have to break our backs over them.

I placed Goldie's empty bowl on top of the side table in the living room before filling it with water. I then went back to the car to retrieve the plastic bag with my goldfish in it.

Just then, a familiar yellow Volkswagen Beetle stopped right in front of the house. It was Shiho's car. Both she and Meyrin had come.

"Shiho! You're back!"

"Yup. Came straight from the airport too."

"Aww, you shouldn't have!"

"Well, I figured you'll be needing help to unpack. So here we are!"

"I get first dips in Cagalli's wardrobe! I'm unpacking the clothes!" Meyrin quickly said.

"Ha! So you can steal some of her clothes later!" Shiho retorted.

"It's called borrowing! Besides, Cagalli doesn't mind," Meyrin pouted.

I laughed at my two friends. They always loved to bicker amongst themselves. I brought them inside.

"Cagalli, shall I bring these boxes upstairs?" Athrun asked.

"Umm, yea sure. Thanks!" I said.

I looked at Shiho's and Meyrin's faces.

"Cagalli! Who is he?" Shiho demanded when Athrun was out of sight.

"Oh he's just Athrun, he lives next door," I replied matter-of-factly.

"Just Athrun?" Shiho asked incredulous.

"You have one hell of a hot neighbour!" Meyrin practically shouted. I hoped Athrun didn't hear her.

"Hands off Mey," Shiho said. "He's out of bounds. He's Cagalli's."

"He is?" Meyrin looked at me.

"Hey, I never said that," I told them.

Meyrin had a wide grin plastered on her face. "Alright! I'm going upstairs now!" she squealed as she dashed up the stairs.

"You've just gotten yourself another permanent resident living in this house," Shiho said to me.

... ... ...

It was around six in the early evening. I was deciding whether to order Chinese or pizza delivery for dinner. I was alone with Kira in the house. Shiho and Meyrin left not too long ago. Athrun had left way earlier. I guessed Meyrin must have scared the daylights off him. Just then, the doorbell rang. I opened the front door only to be greeted by a pleasant surprise. What did I know? The whole neighbourhood came to welcome me.

There was an auburn coloured hair girl carrying a giant bowl of salad, a blonde girl who looked a lot like me carrying a large plate of pasta, a red head carrying a bottle of wine and finally, a younger girl with mahogany coloured hair carrying a pound of cheesecake. What did I know? I have a three course dinner being served at my doorstep. Which person in the right mind would refuse? I invited them all in and called Kira down.

"He's so cute!" Mayu, the youngest girl here who brought the cheesecake squealed. Kira looked absolutely intimidated as Mayu and the blonde girl named Stella hovered over him. I guessed I found my future babysitters.

Miriallia or Milly as she preferred it, the older brunette, was a photographer slash journalist. I actually recognised Flay, the red head. She was in the fashion/model industry like me. Her father was a senator of the Atlantic Federation. I would see her when I was younger during the parties politicians throw. I wondered what she was here doing in Orb.

Meyrin came back to my house again not long after my other guests left. She wanted to go clubbing. I was hesitant at first. I mean, I didn't know what to do with Kira. Should I take him with us?

"Come on Cagalli! My taxi meter is already sky rocketing high!" Meyrin said. "Just take Kira with us if you're worried. You're Cagalli Yula Athha! I'm sure you can get him in somehow!"

Meyrin was right. I knew the owner of Club Duel. Yzak raised his eye brows at me and I smiled innocently back at him.

"Alright! Fine!" Yzak practically growled at me. "Just make sure he behaves."

And with that, I got Kira in. Yzak went back to his secluded corner in the club and continued sulking. I brought Kira to him.

"Watch him for a while will you?" I shoved Kira into his arms and left before he could protest.

I hid nearby to watch the both of them for a while just to be safe. Yzak placed his hands across his chest as he stared at Kira. Kira also stared back. I wondered why Kira didn't whimper away. It was kinda interesting. Finally, Yzak sighed and ruffled Kira's hair.

"Knock yourself out," he said as he passed a packet of chips to Kira.

I walked back to Meyrin. There was someone sitting beside her at the booth. The person wore giant dark shades and a large brown trench coat. Underneath the floral scarf she wrapped around her head, I recognised the brown banks.

"Shiho!" I exclaimed. Before I knew it, I was pulled inside the booth.

"Shh!" she hushed me as she started looking around suspiciously.

"How the hell did you get in here with that hideous outfit?" I asked her.

"More importantly, why are you dressed like that? Have you lost it?" Meyrin said.

Shiho looked around again. Then she said in a low quiet voice. "He's here."

"Who's here?" I and Meyrin asked at the same time.

"Shh! Lower your volume!" Shiho hissed before glancing around again.

"Who's here?" we whispered this time.

"The guy I'm forced to marry!" Shiho whispered back.

"Where?" we shouted again.

"Shh! Quiet! Do you want me to get caught?"

"Oops sorry," we said softer. "Where is he?"

"I don't know."

"Ok, how does he look like then?"

"I don't know."

"How do you know he's here then?" Meyrin asked.

"Sources," Shiho whispered.

"Does he know how you look like?" I asked.

"I don't think so."

You've got to be kidding me. Shiho was paranoid. She went through such extremes just to hide from someone who didn't know how she looked like. She didn't even know how he looked like.

"Oh my gosh!" Shiho nearly choked on her drink. "A guy is on this way! We have to leave now!"

"How do you know it's him? I thought you don't know how he looks like," Meyrin asked.

"I don't! But that could be him! It's better to be safe than sorry!" she said.

Meyrin and I walked out of the club with Shiho crouching beside us, using us as a human shield.

I reached home at two am. I felt really funny. I had a lingering feeling that I forgot something. Or someone. I choked on the water I was drinking. I had forgotten Kira! I left him in the club! Yzak would kill me if he hadn't burst a vein yet from being so mad.

I checked my phone. I had twenty-two missed calls and nine messages. It was a wonder how my phone hadn't been drained out of battery yet.

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?" Yzak yelled at me.

I wondered when I would turn deaf. Yzak was screaming about me leaving Kira with him and how he nearly went mad when Kira started crying. Kira on the other hand was in hysterics. He was sobbing non-stop in my arms on how he thought I had abandoned him to a grouchy old man. And I thought both of them got along pretty well.

... ... ...

I got up pretty early on a normal Sunday. It was twelve noon, just in time for lunch. Kira was still sleeping. He had slept with me on my bed, refusing to sleep in his. He probably wanted to make sure I was beside him and never leaving him.

I went down to the kitchen and opened the fridge. It was empty. I forgot that we had just moved in yesterday. We haven't gone grocery shopping. I would need to stock up on my ice cream.

"Cagalli?" I heard Kira calling me.

"I'm in the kitchen!" I shouted back immediately. If I didn't respond, he might think I left him.

There was a sign of relief on his face when he saw me. "What's for breakfast?" he asked.

"You mean what's for lunch," I corrected him.

He blushed. "Err what's for lunch?" he stammered.

"Umm... We have nothing here. We'll have to go grocery shopping. Why don't you get dressed? We'll have our lunch outside too."

A little while later, he was dressed. He wore a polo tee and khaki pants. I wore my usual, blank tank top and skinny jeans, complete with a pair of heels. I decided to have lunch at Andy's. It was the best place for kebabs, though most people would go there for the coffee.

"Hey Cagalli," Andrew, the owner greeted me. Andrew was Aisha's husband. "Kebabs for two?" he asked.

"Yup, and don't you dare put yogurt sauce in my kebabs," I threatened.

"Yea yea. Chilli sauce. I got it," he chuckled.

We didn't have to wait long. Being his long time favourite customers, not to mention friends, we get priority.

"I thought I said no yogurt," I said when I saw the awful white sauce on my kebabs.

"This one is for the little guy," he winked as he passed the plate to Kira. "The kid here has to try the real thing." He then handed mine with chilli sauce.

"Kira, try the chilli sauce," I told Kira as I gave him a slice of my kebabs.

"Kid, tell this crazy woman here the truth," Andrew pretended to look serious. "Yogurt sauce is better."

Kira looked at me, and then back at Andrew. He swallowed his food before answering. "I like the chilli sauce better," he said in a small voice.

Yes! Score one for Cagalli! I looked at Andrew with a triumphant smile.

"He's just scared of you," Andrew ruffled Kira's head. "Aren't you kid?"

Kira looked back at me. I could tell he was uncomfortable.

"Alright Mr Waltfield, stop terrorising my brother," I scolded him.

"I thought you were the terrorist," he joked before leaving us.

We finished our food before heading to the grocery store. Shiho met us there, also having to do her own marketing.

We each took a trolley and went through the aisles one by one. Shiho was throwing everything she saw into my trolley.

"I don't need that, I don't bake," I told her pointing to the packet of flour she threw inside my cart. "And I don't need all these either," I pointed to all the other random stuff she placed inside.

"Didn't you get my email?" she snapped back at me.

I checked my blackberry and went online. Sure enough in my inbox, was a pdf file entitled 'Kitchen Guide for Beginners.' Below it said 'a step-by-step idiot-proof guide for kitchen retards'.

Oh, how nice of Shiho. I raised my eye brows at her.

"It tells you how to manage your kitchen," Shiho told me. "I've read it already and you need all these to have a complete kitchen. You need to feed Kira right. He's a growing boy and he can't possibly get all the nutrients from the junk you've been feeding him."

Just then, we heard a cry and we snapped our heads to the side. Kira was down on the floor with two other children his age beside him. It looked as if he had been pushed to the ground by them. Just as I was about to run to him and scream at the other two mean boys for bullying my little brother, a familar bluenette rushed to him. The two boys ran away, cowards as they were, when Athrun came over.

"Kira!" I ran to them. "Are you alright?" I asked.

Kira merely nodded his head and I turned to Athrun.

"Thanks for helping him Athrun," I said.

Athrun gave a small smile and just as he was about to say something, Shiho called me and rushed over with two trolleys.

"Hey Athrun," she greeted. "Doing grocery shopping?" she asked.

"Yea," he replied.

"Great!" Shiho exclaimed. "Then you can help Cagalli do hers! She's domestically challenged."

I glared at Shiho. She made me sound like an idiot infront of Athrun.

"I need to go now so I can't help her anymore," Shiho continued. "And I'll really appreciate it if you can drop in on her from time to time, since you're neighbours and all. You have to make sure she doesn't blow up the house..."

"Alright Shiho, he gets the point, no I mean I get the point," I cut her off as I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a tight squeeze. Knowing Shiho if I didn't stop her, she would reveal to Athrun all the embarrassing incidents in my life.

Athrun chuckled.

"Ok fine," Shiho said as she pushed my trolley to me. "I'll be leaving now."

After Shiho left, I turned to Athrun and said, "Just ignore Shiho. I can shop by myself, you don't have to worry."

He gave me a gentle smile. "No it's alright. We can do our groceries together."

And off we went, side by side with Kira in the middle. I revealed to Athrun about how I had gotten Kira less than a week ago. Athrun told me that he lived by himself, his parents were off traveling around the word.

"So Kira, what's your favourite food?" Athrun asked.

The boy was quiet for a while. He then looked up at Athrun. "I don't know," he said quietly.

Athrun decided to ask something else, "What do you eat for breakfast?"

At this, Kira smiled. "Ice cream."

Oh crap! I was caught! Athrun now knew what a lousy guardian I was.

Athrun raised a brow at me and I shrugged.

"You like ice cream a lot huh," he ruffled Kira's hair.

Kira meekly nodded.

"You don't get to eat a lot of it last time do you?"

"Once every few months, if we're good, Mrs McPhee will get some for us."

Sweet Haumea. This kid was deprived! I practically lived on ice cream. It cools my nerves down.

"Do you like waffles?" Athrun asked.

"I've never had any before."

"Ice cream's good with waffles. Brownies too," he said.

That did it for me. I've got to at least make sure he tried the good food in life.

We reached home just in time for people to start cooking dinner, which I didn't because I couldn't cook in the first place. Athrun drove back in his black Lamborghini. I wondered just how rich was he.

Before Athrun drove into his driveway, he stopped by and asked me what I was planning for dinner. I said pizza delivery. He laughed and then told me to come over to his place for dinner. He said he would cook.

I agreed of course and me and Kira made our way early to help him prepare dinner.

I brought salad- the kind placed in vacuum packs which could just be tossed into a bowl and eaten directly with some dressing. You didn't even have to wash it.

The aroma of roasted spring chicken baking in the oven was good. I had tried to help earlier by chopping up some garlic but I ended up nearly chopping my fingers off. In the end, I just sat by the kitchen stool and watched Athrun as he cooked. Kira stood beside Athrun and watched him too. Kira seemed fascinated. I thought about getting Kira to cook when he was older.

It wasn't that bad I guess. Life here in the suburbs I mean. I've been here two days and people had made dinner for me. The neighbours here are good people. And I'm not just talking about Athrun.

I learnt a lesson too after having to take care of Kira:

Never leave and forget your children in a club especially if you placed them under a grouchy Yzak's care.

To be continued.