athrun still could not believe his eyes. seated right in front of him was none other than lenore zala, exactly the way he had remembered her all those years ago.

he had come to the cafe in aprilius to wait for cagalli when he remembered an old myth surrounding the place his mother had once told him: that you could travel back in time in the cafe.

athrun had asked the staff there out of curiosity and she patiently explained to him that yes, one can travel back in time. but there are rules. and there are a lot of them. he looked around the cafe. aside from him, there were three other customers. it seemed cagalli would take awhile with her meeting and he had nothing else to do but wait. he leaned in and asked the staff what the rules are.

the rules aren't simple.

you can only meet people who have been to the cafe. (this isn't a problem for athrun. it had been his mother who told him about this.)

you are not allowed to move from your seat while travelling. if you do, you will be transported back to the present.

no matter what you do during your travel in time, you cannot change the present.

there is only one seat that can transport you in time and that seat is usually taken by a ghost who would get up once a day to go to the toilet. (this one made athrun's brows furrow a little. he decided that if cagalli was not at the cafe by the time the ghost stood up, then he'd take it as a sign to go back in time.)

you have to drink the coffee before it gets cold.

"what will it be, sir?" the staff asked him from behind the counter. athrun's gaze fell on the seat that would take him back to the time when his mother still lived.

"i'll take the chance."

the staff only nodded her head in reply.

it took athrun only an hour of waiting before the staff showed him the now empty seat. seeing as there was still no blonde chief representative in sight, athrun nodded and took his place on the chair.

the staff returned with a cup and a pot of steaming coffee.

"your travel will start from the time i start pouring the coffee up until it gets cold," she told him. "are you ready?"

athrun gave her a nod and the woman started pouring, giving him one last reminder to drink before the drink gets cold.

now he is seated in front of the mother he hasn't seen in years and athrun doesn't know how to react. lenore smiles kindly at him, unaware of her fate.

"it's nice of you to visit me like this, athrun." she tells him, her posture relaxed, happiness radiating off her. athrun could only nod in reply.

"what brings you here?" she queries, head doing a slight tilt. athrun reaches out for his cup of coffee (it's still warm. he still has time) and takes a sip as he wonders what it is he wants to tell his mother.

oh. that's right.

"i met someone," he tells her as he brings the cup down. lenore's eyes widen in surprise. she brings her hands together and gives him a wide smile.

"what is she like?"

"she's brash and hot-headed. stubborn and strong-willed. she's very adventurous, especially when it comes to food and she's not a morning person. she's very passionate, strong, kind. she made mistakes but she was able to grow from them. she won't go down without a fight."

as athrun continues to describe cagalli to his mother, lenore watches with a soft smile on her face. when he finishes, she only has this to say: "you must love her a lot."

athrun's face dusts pink at his mother's statement which causes her mother to chuckle. he looks away as he answers, though his equally emerald eyes softens as he does.

"yes. she is the reason i wake up every morning."

"i wish i could thank her then," the hint of sadness in his mother's voice causes athrun to look back at her and he realises that she must have realised that she is no longer with him in his present.

"mother, i-" lenore shakes her head to quiet him.

"i will not ask for specifics. but if you're visiting me in that seat, then that must mean i'm no longer around to meet cagalli, no?"

athrun hangs his head, rests his closed hands on his lap. lenore continues to look at him with a loving mother's gaze.

"she would have loved you," he finally says.

"and i'm sure i would have loved her too." lenore reaches out. athrun sees the movement and takes her hand in one of his trembling ones.

"how is your coffee?" with his free hand, athrun checks the temperature. warm. there's enough time, but only just. he gives his mother a nod. lenore smiles back.

"then i want to hear more about her."

so athrun tells her. in the most efficient way possible, he tells her of their first meeting, of words she spoke that shook his soul, of the way she saved his life.

she frowned upon hearing the way he broke her heart once, but vows to her mother he will never do it again.

cagalli yula athha came to him like dawn during the darkest part of his life. she is the one that keeps him living, the one that keeps him together. only death can part him from her.

when he is done, the coffee has significantly cooled down and he knows his time with lenore is up. he must return to cagalli.

lenore knows this and gives him one last motherly smile as she pats his hand.

"thank you, athrun," she tells him. "for not giving up and for growing up to be someone i'm proud of." a tear escapes her eye and she catches it with her free hand. "now you must go. don't keep her waiting."

athrun nods and gives his mother one last look, memorising her face in detail.

"thank you, mother."

he takes the cup of now lukewarm coffee and drinks it straight.

"and athrun," he hears his mother's voice just as he begins to turn into vapour. "please give my thanks to cagalli as well."

athrun doesn't need to ask lenore to elaborate. he understands his mother's words well.

athrun blinks as he readjusts to the present. the seat's usual occupant returns and asks for her seat and athrun stands up immediately. the old woman takes her seat and resumes reading like nothing out of the ordinary has happened.

but athrun still has a hard time convincing himself that what he had just experienced was real. he stands there as the staff takes away his cup and replaces it with fresh coffee for the ghost.

the cafe's door opens and the chief representative of orb enters, hair a little disheveled as she hurries to his side.

"athrun!" she calls out. "sorry! did i make you wait long? the meeting took longer than i expected."

when athrun doesn't respond, she frowns and looks up at him with worry.

"athrun?" she calls his name again. she touches his arm and gives him a light shake. "hey, are you okay?"

that seems to wake the coordinator up. in one swift movement, he wraps both arms around her tightly, making the chief representative squeak in surprise and look around. thankfully, all the other chairs are empty save for one. the cafe staff has disappeared into the kitchen.

slowly, she wraps her arms around him in response.

"what's gotten into you?" she asks, looking up at him.

"nothing. i just feel like hugging you. is that okay?"

hearing his response, cagalli relaxes in his hold and rests her cheek against his shoulder.

"it's okay."

"thank you."

"for what?"

athrun takes a couple of moments before he replies.

"for being in my life."

cagalli smiles.

"well, you're welcome."

athrun buries his face into her hair.

"i love you."

cagalli's face turns a few shades darker but she nevertheless responds the sentiment.

"i'm done for the rest of the day," cagalli informs him with a grin. "should we go visit your parents?"

athrun lets his dawn go and gives her a small nod.

he leaves some money on the counter before he and cagalli leave for the monument.

inside the cafe, the ghost sits reading her book, a small smile playing on her face.


a/n: hello i just got back from watching gundam seed freedom and. i. LOVED IT.

so anyway i finally got around to writing this short before the coffee gets cold au. if you haven't read it, pls do! i love before the coffee gets cold!

also, pls leave ur criticisms down below after u read thank u sm and enjoy teehee