Author's notes:
So I just realized after I published the first chapter that I should have made them address each other by their last names if this was set in modern Japan. It completely slipped my mind and the more I think about it, it feels so unnatural if they call each other "Athha-san" or "Zala-san" so now let's just say this was set in an AU where calling each other by their first names was not unheard of.
Chapter 2: Valentines' Day Part 1
Athrun overdid it.
He might have "looked forward" to today a bit too much.
Last night, he got home late, clearing out all of his remaining tasks so that he didn't have to come to the office during the weekend. He was already exhausted after a long week, but instead of getting some rest, he decided to browse the internet and check out some information on Gundam SEED FREEDOM. They were meeting up at 1pm so he could afford to sleep in a bit.
He was wrong.
He spent most of the night watching trailers, interviews, reading forums and reviews of those who already watched the movie. He fell into the rabbithole. Getting to see all that he saw, the feeling of nostalgia returned to him. The excitement that he had when he was younger as he tuned in to each episode was the same feeling that he had when he saw the trailer and the same characters that he was attached to.
He kept thinking about the movie. Who were those other characters in the trailer and how are they relevant to the plot? Why did Soichiro have red eyes? Why was Nanako in the trailer and why did her voice actor change? Were the rumors of production issues true? Why were people saying that Nanako was a badass in the movie? He had so many questions but he scrolled past anything that would spoil him. All he knew now was that the movie was a big hit and that it was the highest grossing Gundam film of all time.
His mind went into overdrive and he barely got a wink of sleep.
Now he was on the train and on the way to Ikebukuro, where the bowling center was located. He yawned for the nth time as he neared his destination. Hopefully, he wouldn't suddenly doze off while they were bowling or when they were in the theatres?
The next stop is Ikebukuro. The doors on the right side will open.
Athrun got off the train and made his way out of the station to their meeting spot. There was a sea of people, mostly couples that were probably on their dates. This was expected, it was Valentine's Day after all.
He was out of the station by 12:15pm. He really planned on getting there earlier so he could check out the Animate Main Store. He read from the forums that there was an exhibition of Gundam SEED FREEDOM there. Life-size standees of the characters were there, as well as the scale model of the newer gundams and other goods. He wanted to check that out before meeting up with everyone, to see if there was anything that he'd like to purchase.
However, to his surprise, it was extremely crowded inside the establishment. There seems to be a pop-up event of some sort of another anime and the flow of people going in and out of the store overwhelmed him. He didn't want to be part of all that and just decided to wait in their meeting spot right next to Round1.
It was cold today but nothing that he couldn't handle. He was comfortable in his coat and scarf and was browsing on his phone. He once again got too absorbed in reading up on the latest news on SEED FREEDOM when there was a tap on his shoulder.
"Yo, you're early."
He looked up from his mobile to see Dearka grinning at him. He was too cheerful even on a cold day. Or perhaps it was because he has a girlfriend to spend Valentines' Day with. That would most likely explain why he is radiating with so much joy. He was always moping during this time of the year when he was single and had no one to share it with.
"Yo." He greeted back, but not with the same fervor.
"I received a message from Miriallia, they should be here soon, both of them." Dearka informed him and stood next to him so they weren't blocking the walkways.
"They know each other?" Athrun asked. He wasn't too curious about it, but it just seemed like the natural flow of their conversation.
"Miriallia is Cagalli's best friend." Dearka was delighted to find an excuse to talk about his girlfriend. "I met her thanks to Cagalli, actually. I ran into them one time in a cafe during our day off. Cagalli invited me to sit down and join them. I was just going to get coffee to go, but Miriallia was so cute and totally my type that I changed my mind."
"Is that so…" Athrun's gaze was on the busy streets as he listened to the story of how Dearka and his girlfriend met.
"Cagalli had somewhere to be and we both got left in each other's company. I was surprised that we hit it off immediately. I enjoyed talking with her so much and I asked for her LINE ID and then we chatted for days." Athrun then recalled how one time, Dearka was unusually taking photos of their food and was grinning from ear to ear when he glanced at his phone. He was doing it so much that it pissed Yzak off.
"We went out a few more times and I realized that I really liked her and wanted to date her officially. When I asked her, she agreed and here we are." Dearka smiled softly, his thoughts on his special someone. "Spending time with her makes me feel really happy."
"Good for you, truly." Athrun meant it when he told him that. Dearka had a happier disposition nowadays and he supposes that this is what love does to a person.
"I'm grateful to Cagalli too." Dearka then started again. "Apparently, Miriallia told her that I was her type and to introduce us together. She even went the extra mile and left us together, making up an excuse of needing to go somewhere. But in reality, she was setting us up."
"Oh…" So that was the kind of person Cagalli was like.
"That's why when she invited us to go on this bowling thing… Even though it's Valentines' Day, we agreed to go." Dearka was about to say more but they heard a voice calling out to them.
"Dearka, Athrun, hi!" Cagalli was also very lively in her greeting and it made Athrun impressed with how much energy extroverts have. She was with an auburn-haired girl which could only be Miriallia.
"Miriallia, Cagalli! You're here! Just in time!" Just when Athrun didn't think Dearka couldn't get more cheerful, here he went all out when he saw them. He must have been so eager that he could spend this day with his girlfriend. "You both look so cozy and fluffy in your coats."
"Dearka, good afternoon!" Miriallia smiled at him, the feeling was mutual and she was also glad to see him. She then turned to him and bowed her head. "You must be Athrun, their co-worker and Dearka's long-time friend. Thank you for taking care of him, he can be a handful sometimes."
"It's nice to meet you too, Miriallia… Yes, he really is… Unfortunately…" He made a playful remark to which he received a playful jab in the abdomen area.
"You two!" Dearka didn't have anything else to say, because it was true. There were countless times he counted on Athrun. Be it their homeworks, group projects, playing on his sports' team as a substitute, paying for him when he forgot his wallet or taking him home when he was drunk, he had depended on Athrun one too many times.
"It's true though." Miriallia gave a pointed glance at him. "You keep forgetting things or putting them at the last minute and it causes trouble."
Athrun nodded profusely. He surmised that there had been a couple of incidents like that with Miriallia too and wasn't surprised that he was correct. He had nothing but respect for her since she had the patience to put up with him.
Cagalli was amused with the situation and chuckled. Finally, when they were satisfied with ganging up on Dearka, she spoke up. "Shall we go then?"
They agreed and headed to the bowling center. There was a poster of the movie characters as they entered and Cagalli squealed in delight. The characters were all in casual photos, very different from their usual military uniforms and pilot suits. She already had her phone out and snapped a few photos. Athrun wanted to do the same but he felt slightly self-conscious and decided against it.
Their bowling lanes were no different from usual, aside from the SEED FREEDOM visuals on the scoreboard, which Cagalli also took pictures of. They were each given a gift which was still in a sealed envelope. She mentioned that these were clear visuals of the characters and were distributed at random, which is why, the more attendees, the more chances of winning the visual that she liked.
They had two lanes and once they were all done changing to their rented footwear, Dearka and Cagalli discussed the groupings. "Should we have a random draw? Or girls versus boys? Or you and Miri, then me and Athrun?"
They both looked at him and Miriallia, but both of them didn't care how they chose to do it.
"Can I pair up with Miriallia then?" Dearka suggested, wanting to spend as much time with his girlfriend today as he could.
"Oh okay!" Cagalli gave him a thumbs up. "As it is Valentines' Day, you two should be on the same team. Me and Athrun will then be another team. Are you okay with that, Athrun?"
"I'm fine with it." He shook his head to confirm. Cagalli and Dearka then proceeded to enter the names on the computer of each of the lanes.
"Alright! Athrun and I will thoroughly crush you two!" Cagalli removed her coat to reveal a red oversized sweater and denim pants. He wondered if she could play properly with the sleeves that were too long that only her petite fingers could be seen.
"Bring it on! You won't beat me today! It's going to be your defeat, just wait and see." Dearka fired back, which earned a laugh from Miriallia. She seemed used to these two going at each other like that.
"Before we start," Miriallia cut in and handed Cagalli the freebie that was given to them when they entered. "You can have this Cagalli."
"Oh yeah." Dearka also gave her the one he had. "You wanted to go here for these right? We're not really fans, so just take these."
"Really? Thank you!" Cagalli was delighted to have them. Athrun also did the same and was about to hand it to her but she shook her head profusely. "Ah, it's okay Athrun! You can keep yours!"
"I see…" Athrun didn't insist any further, but he didn't really collect these types of things.
Cagalli opened the sealed envelopes. At first, she was very keen to see what was inside but as soon as she took out the contents of the three envelopes, she became more and more disheartened.
Maaya and Kenichi. Maaya and Kenichi. Maaya and Kenichi.
"Aaahh, why these characters?" Cagalli frowned and put them back in the envelopes. "My luck is so bad when it comes to random pulls. I can't believe I got three of Maaya and Kenichi! And there's just four types of illustrations too…"
"Those aren't the characters that you wanted to get, right?" Miriallia asked, sympathizing with her, even though she was a bit unfamiliar with it.
"No… They're the ones that I wanted to get the least!" Cagalli sighed and was clearly let down by this but shrugged it off. "But anyway, I'll just try again next time with other friends. No big deal."
"You mean, you'll go bowling again just to get these random cards? Can't you just buy them? Or better yet, just print them. It's just paper anyway!" Dearka was not aware how these things worked and because he wasn't into anime, this didn't make sense to him. To be fair to him, it did sound silly from an outsider's perspective.
"The soft copy photos all have watermarks…" Cagalli sighed again but explained how the mechanics worked to a non-otaku. "You get these illustrations through participating in the campaigns, trading with others or buying them on second hand stores or Mercari."
Athrun understood the companies' strategies when coming out with these campaigns and while it was really smart of them, he found it very devious. Since random goods are based on luck, if you like it enough, you will keep spending to get the item that you want. Why not just produce the ones that are in demand and let the customers buy them instead of doing it like this? By doing it this way, it would yield them more profit. It was nothing illegal, but it just didn't feel right to him that they were milking customers like this.
The resale market was another insane way to take advantage of customers willing to buy an item, regardless if the price was reasonable or not. Depending on the rarity of the item, the sellers can price them however they want as there are no laws capping a price they can sell an item for.
It was such a lucrative business.
But he supposed that in this instance, since they were actually paying for entertainment, they get to go bowling, so it wasn't that bad to participate in the campaign, since the illustrations were just a freebie.
After her explanation, Dearka seemed to get it a little bit and shifted his attention to him. "Athrun what did you get? Maybe you can trade with her if you somehow got the one that she wants?" Cagalli and Miriallia immediately eyed the envelope in his possession, curious as to what he got.
"Oh, yeah sure, I'll open it." Athrun carefully unsealed it and was pleasantly surprised.
It was a visual of Akira and Nanako.
Akira was dressed in a purple polo shirt and holding a bowling ball, while Nanako was in a casual yellow shirt, denim shorts and a thick jacket. She was holding the microphone. Was she supposed to be doing karaoke?
He didn't know if this was what Cagalli wanted though… Maybe she wanted Sochiro and Rie? They were the poster couple of this franchise, even though in his humble opinion, it should have been Akira and Nanako.
"That's them!" Cagalli exclaimed when she saw what Athrun was holding. "They're what I wanted to get! You're so lucky!"
These two were Cagalli's favorite too? That made him think highly of her even more. Liking Gundam SEED was one thing for him, but liking Akira and Nanako? Cagalli was too cool. Now he wanted to know what her favorite gundam was. Did she like the songs too? Does she know of the spin-offs too?
"You can have it. You don't even need to trade for it." Athrun was willing to let it go. It wasn't a big deal to him.
There was hesitation on Cagalli's end as she took it. "Are you sure? Don't you at least want to trade it with any of these three? Actually, you can have all three if you want to..."
"Ah, don't worry about it." He reassured her. Postcards, acrylic stands, charms, bromides, clear files and the like… He wasn't much into collecting these kinds of things, even from his favorite anime. If it were Akira and Nanako he would at least keep it, but if it were, say, Kenichi and Maaya, he would chuck it in the bin.
Cagalli's expression was one of elation. Her whole face lit up as she held the illustration of Akira and Nanako carefully like it was a prized possession. She then turned to him and gave him the warmest smile.
"Thank you so much, Athrun." She tilted her head a bit when she said those words and Athrun found it very-
Cute.
He didn't say it out loud, but he thought of it. The way that her eyes were sparkling and how she was practically beaming like sunshine with that smile… It was really endearing. She was so sincere in what she liked and she was unapologetic about it. Her glee was so infectious that even he was feeling warm on the inside just being around her.
This was a first for him.
"Y-you're welcome." He managed to stutter a sheepish reply. What was he being shy for all of a sudden?
"Well then, let's start the game! Time to demolish this lovey-dovey couple! Right, Athrun?" Cagalli was more pumped up than ever before. The effect of getting the clear poster of her favorite pair was too powerful. She held out her hand for a fist pump, which Athrun obliged. He was surprised with her rambunctious choice of words and almost burst out laughing. It was so interesting to be around her.
"Yeah, let's do it!" Athrun was getting swept by her energy and it was something that he didn't expect. He didn't dislike it either.
Dearka was fairly secure in his skills and was trying to act cool in front of Miriallia so he shrugged it off, looking unbothered. "Please, I'd win against both of you combined."
"Should we make a bet, then?" Cagalli was brimming with confidence.
"What about a dinner treat? The losing team in this game treats the winning team for dinner." Miriallia suggested, to the horror of Dearka who thought they had no more Valentines' plans after this. She did notice her boyfriend was shell-shocked so she followed up quickly. "Of course not today, some other time…"
Dearka agreed and was relieved that his Valentines' Day dinner plans were still safe. "Don't worry Miri, I got this."
"Cagalli's pretty good at this too, so don't underestimate her." Miriallia cautioned him and winked at her best friend.
Athrun was the first to play his turn and he grabbed a ball that he was comfortable to use throughout the game, in this case a 15-pound one. All his companions were seated and were cheering him on, even the supposed opposing team.
"Go go Athrun!" Cagalli rooted for him some more as approached the foul line.
Unbeknownst to all his companions, he and his teammates go bowling often as a regular recreational activity and he became good at it, based on his self-evaluation. If Cagalli is good like her best friend claims, they might just win today.
He threw the ball and as he observed the ballpath, he knew it would lead to his desired result.
Strike!
"Wow!"
"Amazing…"
"What?"
All three of them had different reactions. While Cagalli and Miriallia were impressed by what they just saw, Dearka was baffled and in utter disbelief.
"What the heck?" Dearka was at it again when Athrun came back. He still couldn't believe what he just saw. "Are you a pro and somehow you just never told me?"
"No." He shook his head to deny the claims. "Me and my officemates occasionally go bowling…" It was the truth. At first it was just for fun and then it devolved into mini contests where the stakes of the games were higher. They were at the point where they were all racing to do a curveball. That's how Athrun learned how to do it.
"But that ball curved just now?" Dearka was still unable to get over the move that Athrun just casually pulled in front of them.
"Athrun, good job! That was really impressive!" Cagalli had nothing but praises for him. She held her right hand up, wanting to high-five him as congratulations. Athrun chose to give her his attention, completely ignoring his friend that was still having a violent reaction to him knocking all the pins down in one go. "I'm glad that we're the ones paired together!" She added, which made him feel good.
"Thank you, Cagalli." He was a bit giddy that she was complimenting him. He was a competitive person at heart, having a dislike for losing and failure for anything that he does.
And at this very moment, his desire to win was amplified to the maximum level.
"Well then, it's my turn!" Cagalli did some warm up and he found it so amusing that she didn't care how other people might find whatever she was doing silly. She was doing some stretches, arm circles and then some lunges. She then was swinging her legs back and forth and had her game face on.
Cute.
Why he found her antics cute, he didn't know.
"Do your best!" He gave her words of encouragement. It was only proper that he returned the favor after she did the same for him.
"Cagalli, fight-o!" Miriallia also cheered her on and was recording Cagalli on her phone like a supportive mother. Her best friend's vibe was pretty chill. She was here for fun, not caring about winning like the rest seem to be.
Cagalli picked up a ball lighter than his and made her way to the front of the lanes. Athrun observed that her form was actually good and her straight ball rolled fast without any issues. All of them were holding their breaths to see if it would also result in a strike given the trajectory of her ball.
She knocked down nine pins.
She turned to look back at them, and pouted in frustration at the one pin left standing. "Just one more! Why did it have to stay up? So persistent!"
"Not bad, not bad..." Dearka finally recovered from the shock and was back to teasing Cagalli. "Not a strike though!"
"Shut up!" Cagalli shouted at him, annoyed with the taunting. "I'll knock that last one down, just you wait!"
"Don't listen to him." Athrun gave her some reassurance, hoping that Dearka's comment didn't affect her concentration. "Just throw it like you did just now and you should be able to get a spare." He advised her. The pin that she didn't hit was the one at the very middle of the third row so it should be pretty easy.
"I understand." She was so focused and looked at the lone pin and then to him, like an athlete taking to heart the lecture of her coach. "I'll try that again."
"You can do it."
She went back to throw a second ball in the same way that she did for the first. The ball went rolling towards the last remaining pin, earning her a spare.
"Yay! A spare!" She was overjoyed and couldn't help but jump in excitement. "I did it, Athrun! You were right!" Her fingers formed into a peace sign and she was extremely proud of her achievement.
Cute.
He nodded in affirmation and felt happy for her. "You did well, Cagalli!"
"Wow, you really did the spare! I caught it on camera!" Miriallia was applauding for her best friend and then was the one teasing her boyfriend now. "What are we going to do, Dearka? It looks like these two will beat us."
"What did I tell you?" Cagalli smirked in Dearka's direction, satisfied with how she just performed. "Your team is really going to lose. I'm going to have to search for restaurants at this rate."
"That's a fluke!" Dearka was still fairly unaffected with the display of skills of the two people that went before him. "I'll show you who's the winning team here!"
Athrun frowned with Dearka's bragging, he was being too confident in himself again to impress a girl, and when he does this, it usually doesn't end well…
Dearka knocked down 6 pins on his first try, and a gutter on the second try.
As expected. He thought to himself.
"What?" He was furious to see that the ball went into the gutter, wasting the opportunity to score higher than Cagalli.
"All that trash talking and for what?" The tables have turned and it was Cagalli now who was so jeering at him, rightfully so.
"That's all right! We're just starting!" Miriallia didn't seem to mind that he was flopping and eating his own words. At least he was saving face in front of her?
When it was Miriallia's turn, she hit two consecutive gutter balls.
"Teehee. I don't go bowling… Sorry…" She stuck out her tongue playfully with how bad those throws were. But she didn't seem frustrated that she was probably bombing their pair's chance of winning.
"Don't mind Miri!" Cagalli had nothing bad to say to her. "You'll get the hang of it."
"We'll catch up, Miri! Don't worry about it!" Dearka's treatment of her versus Cagalli was too different. With Cagalli, he was an annoying friend but to Miriallia, he was a kind and caring boyfriend.
As he observed them, he noted that Miriallia was objectively cute. Athrun didn't deny that fact. But he wondered why he wasn't getting the same feeling as he had with Cagalli? Rather, her "cuteness" doesn't really make him feel anything, like any other "cute" girl.
He was sneakily switching between glancing at the two girls. There was nothing stirring inside him when he looked at Miriallia. But with Cagalli, he finds some kind of affinity towards her that he can't really explain. He'd even go as far as saying that his brain is releasing dopamine just by being around her. Why is that?
Was this an attraction to her?
"Athrun, your turn!" Cagalli's voice took him out of his musings.
He shook those thoughts out and went to the front. Why was he thinking about these kinds of things right now? It felt inappropriate and rude, especially since Cagalli is his co-worker. They may be in a casual setting right now, but it was unprofessional of him.
But, the thoughts distracted him enough that in his next turn, he knew the moment that the ball left his fingers that his angle was off. As a result, he only knocked down eight pins. The remaining ones were also on both ends of the lane, arguably one of the hardest things to hit. This was an error that he usually never made.
"Okay, that first shot was just beginner's luck, thank goodness." Dearka took the chance to call his earlier strike a fluke. If looks could kill then his friend would be on the floor right now with how he shot murderous glares in his direction. He was so annoyed that he made a mistake and his friend was rubbing salt into his wound.
"Don't mind, Athrun. That was still a better shot than Dearka's last one! Geez, he's always like this even with other co-workers…" Cagalli approached him brimming with positivity that his mood was instantly uplifted and he almost forgot that he wanted to clobber Dearka. She examined the situation at the lane and commented. "But admittedly, it is a bit difficult to hit both of them in one go..."
"Yeah, but it's not impossible. I'll try to hit it." It was something that he often managed to do so he hoped that today would be the same. Just being soothed by Cagalli made him feel a lot more level-headed.
"Alright then, go for it then!" She stepped back to give him some space.
Now the stakes were higher. He wanted to shut Dearka up but mostly because of Cagalli's encouragement.
He then focused on the task in front of him. He had to hit either one of them at the correct spot and with enough speed to have it slide to the other one.
I'll definitely hit it. He was hyping himself up and when he threw the bowling ball, it hit both of his targets.
"Yay! Athrun, you did it! You're so awesome!" Cagalli ran to him and shook him by the shoulders. Usually he didn't like being touched but this time he didn't mind it at all. She was too happy about this and he found himself smiling too. He was satisfied that he executed the killer shot successfully but more because of his team mate and cheering squad.
"It's thanks to you that I was able to hit it." Athrun had a confidence boost. All those intense sessions with his team were proving to be useful today.
The next few rounds went as all of them expected. Athrun dominated the game, getting strike after strike. Cagalli also managed to hit a few of her own as well. Both their good play managed to propel their team in the lead with a huge margin.
"Wow, the score gaps are so huge! I can't catch up with you anymore." Cagalli was looking at the scoreboard and shaking her head at the difference in their skill levels. "But at least my score is higher than Dearka!"
Athrun sheepishly laughed. When he gets serious, he really goes all out.
"Do you go bowling frequently?" Cagalli was now casually chatting with him since Miriallia and Dearka were flirting by the lane, with him trying to teach her how to bowl. At first, Miriallia went to Athrun, being the one with the highest score, for advice. But Dearka stepped in and took it upon himself to show her the ropes. Athrun left them alone Most men wouldn't like it if their girlfriend depended on and was impressed by another man.
He closed the bottle of water that he just sipped and nodded. "I do. My team from the Robotics Department goes often, more than you can imagine. They don't like to drink much and this is what we do in place of drinking, farewell or even year-end parties."
"Oh that's a smart way to release pent up stress because you get to exercise too. My team usually goes to izakaya after work and people get drunk most of the time." Cagalli shared her own experience, hers being what office workers usually do.
"We do that too, but very rarely. Maybe only when upper management invites us to go out. But we don't get too drunk because afterwards we still go bowling or karaoke."
"Your team seems to get along pretty well." Cagalli commented on their dynamics. "That's nice that you're all tight-knit."
"Yeah…" He agreed. He liked his team. They were all dependable and nice people. He didn't mind spending time with them, even outside of work.
"Oh by the way, since we have one more game after this. Can you teach me how to do the curve balls then?" Cagalli then changed the topic when she saw that Miriallia's throw was starting to get better.
"That's fine with me, but you might be hitting gutter balls in your first few tries…" He warned her as the same thing happened to him when he first tried it out but he also didn't want to completely discourage her. "Statistically though, curveballs improve chances of a strike instead of a straight throw. So it's not just a 'flashy throw', there's a strategic advantage to it."
"I really want to learn how to do it! Besides, the bet is only on this first game so it's okay to just do some practice on the next one." Cagalli's tone was a bit more casual. Learning how to throw a curveball seems to be more interesting to her than winning. He noticed that she was always observing him like a hawk whenever it was his turn.
"I understand." He felt his gaze soften just looking at her. "Let's do that later then."
"Yay!" She cheered in delight. "I'll be in your care!"
Athrun: 226 Cagalli: 157 AC Team Score: 383
Dearka: 124 Miriallia: 31 DM Team Score: 155
The first game ended and the scores were Dearka and Miriallia's utter loss.
"Free dinner! Free dinner!" Cagalli was too happy and celebrated their pair's win. She really loves food and now that it was free, that was an even better scenario for her. This was why she was so motivated to win the game. "It's all thanks to the MVP, Athrun!
"You did pretty great yourself, Cagalli." Athrun also gave her credit. She shot a few strikes and spares in the game and managed to place second, individually.
"Amazing…" Miriallia didn't even know what else to say, they were completely shown up by the two who were currently celebrating their win. Cagalli was dancing around in glee and Athrun was watching her in amusement. "We didn't even reach half their score, Dearka."
"I'm sorry Miri…" Dearka apologized and it was apparent that he was ashamed that he let her down. He probably wanted to impress her, especially during Valentines' Day.
"It's okay! You don't have to apologize!" Miriallia shook her head and reassured him. She was having enough fun as it is. Even though she was doing badly in the game, Dearka didn't even show any hint of frustration with her and was rooting for her in her every turn. He even tried to play well to make up for her scores, but it's just that, the skill level of those two were just too far out of their league.
"But these two… they're monsters… They really showed us no mercy!" He made the remark that may be offensive to anyone else that heard but she knew it was just in jest. She did agree that the two of them were like a power house, unbeatable when paired together.
They were on their second game now and it was more laid back, well for Cagalli and her anyways. On the other hand, the men are still on their A-game. Dearka was doing a lot better in this match, but so was Athrun. It feels like the last game was just a warm-up to them, while the two of them girls couldn't care less.
Now, Miriallia was scoring higher than her best friend, but Cagalli didn't seem to mind one bit. She mentioned to her before the second round started that Athrun was teaching her how to "hook" the ball, which was how he was currently doing it. Due to this, her ball was flying in weird places. It even rolled off to the other lane in her previous attempt as she tried to follow Athrun's directions. Thankfully, no one had been hurt… so far.
Cagalli was too focused on learning the technique, listening intently to Athrun's feedback. While he almost went pale and looked very stressed out when her ball flew all over the place, he was still so patient with her and didn't give up on her.
At one point, when Cagalli finally made her ball curve, she was so ecstatic that she threw herself at Athrun, which he was surprised with. She later realized that she went too far and quickly backed away and apologized. Athrun then congratulated her and even joked that at least now he didn't need to worry about the ball hitting him. Then they were laughing, clearly enjoying each other's company. They were getting along so much.
Now that Miriallia observed them more, it did seem like they were hitting it off well and she realized one thing.
Wow, they look really good together.
There was so much chemistry between them that they probably didn't even realize it themselves!
Dearka mentioned when they were texting to expect his friend to be more aloof and reserved towards girls, but that they shouldn't worry because he was kind. She couldn't reconcile that preconceived image in her head with the Athrun that she was seeing now. If he was as distant and took a longer time to warm up to other people as her boyfriend described, then there's a high possibility that he has already taken a liking to Cagalli.
Cagalli was really outgoing and had an easy time making friends, but her gut instincts were telling her that this might not be just the reason why. Athrun hadn't been paying attention to both of them either. With her, it was expected because they don't know each other. But he wasn't interacting with Dearka, his friend, much either. He was always talking with Cagalli.
But maybe it was because she was with him? But she really felt like it was more than that.
"Miri, I'm back." Miriallia's thoughts were cut off as Dearka finally came back, carrying drinks with him. He wiped the can with tissue and opened it before handing it to her. "Here you, go."
"Thank you." Miriallia appreciated how attentive he could be. She took a sip from her can and striked a conversation, hoping to fish for more information. "Athrun doesn't seem to be cold like you described him to be? He's chatting with Cagalli just fine."
"Ahh, you're right. Athrun seems to be really enjoying himself, even when he just met the both of you." He agreed with his eyes following the two who were now conversing about something that was unrelated to bowling. "Yesterday, I knew he was going to say no when I invited him, but after a bit of convincing, he finally decided to join. It was all thanks to Cagalli mentioning Gundam SEED. He likes that anime too. That's probably why they're already chummy with each other."
He likes the same anime?
To Miriallia this was like hitting a jackpot. These two looked good together, they were vibing well and had the same interests?
"Does he have a girlfriend? I'm curious that he joined us, even though it's Valentines' Day." This was a very important question and Miriallia needed to know before she even started anything. It was possible that he also had plans later on and just joined them today to fill out the extra person they needed.
"Him? No, he doesn't." Dearka was casually enjoying his drink. "Even though he's always been popular with girls, he never got interested in dating anyone. I lost count of the number of girls he's rejected and those that befriended me to get close to him. Why do you ask?"
"So he's single, handsome, smart and seems to be a kind person… He even has a nice physique." Miriallia noted when he reached out to grab a ball and saw that his arms were quite toned. "I see…"
"Hey, hey, Miri… Are you checking out Athrun? Hey…" Dearka was starting to panic that his girlfriend was starting to get interested in him instead.
"I'm sorry! It's a misunderstanding!" Miriallia immediately shut that down. She did admit, she should have kept all that to herself because it did sound like she was checking her boyfriend's friend out. Well… she was doing that…. but for Cagalli and not for herself! She liked Dearka and not him.
He had a puppy-like expression so she had to explain immediately to wipe away his doubts.
"Just look at the two of them!" Miriallia pointed to the direction of the two that were seemingly lost in their own world and enjoying themselves. "What do you think? With just how much they're hitting it off, won't they make a cute couple?"
Dearka paused, observed the two of them and then turned to her. "Ahhhh…. I see… I get it now…" He nodded his head, realizing that Athrun had already put his walls down around Cagalli. Now he had a playful smirk on his face, the idea of setting up his friend who had been indifferent to romance sounded really fun. "Okay, what should we do?"
"So I was thinking…" Miriallia leaned closer and whispered her idea to him. Dearka was nodding profusely and agreeing with everything that she said.
"Let's do that then." He gave her a knowing grin, happy to participate.
"Hey, aren't you going to throw?" Athrun called him out, both of them were headed back to take their seats.
"Ah, sorry! I just went to get some drinks. I got for you and Cagalli too so feel free…." Dearka stood up from his seat, pretending like they weren't just plotting something devious behind his back.
He looked back at Miri and winked. He loved the plan. It was hitting two birds with one stone. They can both spend more time today and maybe see if the spark between the two of their friends would lead to something more.
Besides, Cagalli doesn't have much experience with romance. While there have been boys before that showed interest in her, she was too oblivious and couldn't take the hint! They would really need to be straightforward with her if they wanted her to understand that they wanted to be more than friends with her.
Most times, all those confessions from middle school and high school end up with rejection, with her telling them that she only viewed them as friends. There was one time that she finally agreed to go out with a friend during their university years, which surprised Miriallia as she would have never thought she would do it. Cagalli didn't have any romantic feelings for him but she wanted to give it a chance since they were very good friends. She was also pressured by her university friends, telling her that she might never find a partner if she doesn't never gives it a shot.
But that didn't work out as Cagalli confided in her that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't view him as a romantic partner. He also wasn't very supportive of her hobbies and told her that she should quit it as he found it childish. To her, if they didn't accept her friend for who she was, then they don't deserve her.
Throughout the years, Miriallia had become overprotective of her and was looking out for any jerks that might want to hurt her.
That's why, seeing a romantic spark between Cagalli and this guy, she wanted to give them a little push, even just this once. She had a really good feeling about this. She wanted her to be happy.
What were friends for?
Athrun: 267 Cagalli: 44 AC Team Score: 311
Dearka: 153 Miriallia: 66 DM Team Score: 216
The second round ended and the Dearka and Miriallia pair still lost. Even if Cagalli chose to throw the game away by practicing the curveball, Athrun's skills were too far ahead of them all. He ended up making up for her, getting a strike each time she hit a gutter ball.
Dearka whistled, reviewing the score board. He had given up the trash talking and got serious but it still wasn't enough. Their team still won by a large margin. "Damn, you didn't even go easy on us even if you already won the first round." Knowing his office mate, Dearka would have wanted to look his best and impress Miriallia, but Athrun didn't let him.
"Of course not. Why would I?" Athrun took a sip from his drink, looking a bit smug that he still won against his friend. It was a friendly competition between them, but more "competition" than the "friendly" part. Perhaps this was how these two have always been since they were younger.
"Thank you for teaching me, Athrun!" She decided to step in to acknowledge his efforts. She was ecstatic that she learned a new and flashy skill, albeit it still needs a lot of work. Athrun was so patient with her even if she had been messing up most of the time. She was sure if it were another person teaching her, they would give up after seeing her ball becoming a hazard, as she couldn't control her strength properly.
He was spot on and strict, pointing out everything that was wrong in her form but always put it in a very nice way and she ended up getting the hang of it by the end as she was able to put a spin on her ball in the last innings. At one point she got so thrilled that she got it and gave him a hug, which was so embarrassing and she apologized for acting impulsive. He dismissed it and told her not to worry about it. She was grateful that he was tolerating her antics, even if she was being too forward at times.
"It's no problem, Cagalli." Athrun gave her a smile and that expression told her that he meant it. "If you practice a bit more, you'll be able to get strikes in no time. Just be patient."
She was excited to try it next time. Athrun looked pretty cool when he did those shots. He would throw them and turn around nonchalantly as if already expecting it to knock off all the pins, which he did. He looked like a character from a sports anime.
Athrun was such a cool and kind person. She was happy that he ran into them by chance and that he joined them today.
"I'll invite you again next time!" She blurted out the first thing that came to her mind. She enjoyed his company and if possible, wanted to go bowling with him again, even if the Gundam SEED collaboration had already ended by then. Heck, even if it wasn't bowling, she wanted to hang out with him again. "I mean, that is… if you want to go again. No pressure though."
"Sure. Just let me know when." He agreed almost immediately and that somehow made her relieved.
Dearka mentioned to her yesterday that Athrun mostly kept to himself and wasn't the type to go to social gatherings if he could help it. She was worried that she might have pushed her selfish wants onto him, but Dearka reassured her that he was also a big fan of Gundam SEED back in the day and must have been very interested in the collaboration and in watching the movie. Although it wasn't much, she hoped he had fun today, even if he gave away his own illustration card.
She wanted to talk to him more about Gundam SEED and she but she had to hold it in until they finished watching the movie since she might accidentally spoil him.
"Since we're already finished, shall we all go and head to watch the movie?" She suggested to all of them as they were packing up and returning the shoes that they rented.
"Ahh Cagalli, about that…" Miriallia called out to her and she looked somewhat apologetic, which alarmed her. "I have something important to tell you!"
"Eh? What's wrong?" She was immediately concerned that something must have happened for her best friend to look so distressed. Did some emergency happen? Somewhere that she needed to be at?
"So, Dearka mentioned this romantic film with my favorite actress and it screens starting today…" Miriallia showed her phone and it was a poster of the said movie. "I really want to watch it with Dearka… Is it fine if we took off on our own? I'm sorry, I know you wanted to watch Gundam SEED FREEDOM and we already talked about this…. but…" She clasped her hands in a prayer, feeling bad about changing plans all of a sudden.
"Oh, okay. I got it. Sure! We can just watch Gundam SEED next time." Cagalli wasn't even mad. Rather, she was relieved that it wasn't anything bad.
It seems that Miriallia just wanted to spend more time with her boyfriend but at the same time didn't want to let her down since they already arranged plans. If you'd ask her, Miriallia was already kind enough to go along with her whims on Valentines', a day that you would expect a person to spend with their significant other. Normally, other people would just outrightly say "no" but they obliged.
"Really?" Miriallia still wasn't convinced that she was fine and looked like she would immediately drop the idea if Cagalli even remotely said that it wasn't okay with her.
"Are you sure? You're not mad are you?" Dearka even asked her nervously, thinking that it might have upset her.
"I'm not mad. Don't worry, you two!" She grinned to persuade her to go and have some alone time together. She did make a blunder of setting the plans today, not realizing that it was actually Valentines' Day before booking the appointment. Yet, they still carved out a portion of the day for her. "You've already joined me today for bowling, so you two should enjoy the rest of your day together doing some couple things without us tagging along. Right Athrun?"
Athrun was just listening in so when she suddenly called to him he had nothing else to say but "Uh… yeah…".
That was enough of a confirmation to Cagalli and she told them. "We both think so, so you two go ahead! Don't feel bad!" She then turned to Athrun and said. "I'm sorry we had to cancel the movie today. Do you want to walk with me to the station? Or are you going to do something else?" If possible she wanted to chat with him more, now that they were suddenly free.
"Wait, wait, wait!" Dearka cut in with an incredulous tone. "You're going home?"
"Yeah!" She nodded and he had this expression that she couldn't make sense of. He seems frustrated? "Why?"
"Why don't you just watch SEED FREEDOM with Athrun?" He suggested it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Me and Miriallia are going to watch another movie, but it doesn't mean that you still can't go ahead, right?"
"Yeah, yeah!" Miriallia chimed in, cheerfully. "Since you're both here anyways, wouldn't it be a waste to postpone it to another time?"
She didn't actually consider that. In her head, she was set to watch it again but only if four of them were there. "Oh, actually…" They had a point. Dearka must have felt bad that they had Athrun go all the way here with the expectations of both bowling and the movie and here she was, cancelling the second part of the plans.
Since he was also a fan of Gundam SEED, he must have been looking forward to watching it. Why did she assume that he wouldn't watch it without Dearka and Miriallia with them?
"I'm sorry Athrun, that was rude of me and inconsiderate of me to just postpone it without even checking with you." She immediately apologized even though Athrun didn't look like he was disappointed one bit. He was just going along with whatever her plans may be. "Would you be okay if we still went ahead with just the two of us?"
This time, Athrun was a bit embarrassed. Maybe it was because she was apologizing to him so profusely that he found himself put in a very awkward situation. "Mn… Y-yeah… I'll watch it with you… If you're fine with me…"
But to her, it was the reverse. "Of course I am! If anything, I should be the one asking that–"
"Oh come on, you two!" Dearka was getting exasperated with the two of them. They were taking up their sweet time by suddenly being so self-conscious, which meant they were also delaying both him and Miriallia. "You're already here and you both want to watch it, so what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
"Ah you're right! Sorry sorry, you're so excited to get rid of us aren't you?" She joked but was relieved. Somehow it all worked out in the end and she was still going to watch the movie, which she was very happy about. "Let's go Athrun!"
He nodded and they all headed out from the game center and to the Grand Cinema Sunshine, which was a few blocks away from where they were currently situated.
She hoped that later after the movie ended, Athrun could still stay and chat with her a bit more. She just wanted someone to talk with because more or less, she had either been bombarding Kira with all her opinions while he had a hard time keeping up with her or she posted her thoughts online. But she was longing to talk about this to somebody who really gets her, a kindred spirit if you will.
For some reason, it felt like Athrun would humor her and would also have some things to say about it, being a fan himself.
Later, she'll ask him to grab dinner with her.
She looked forward to both the movie and getting to talk more with him very much.
"Nice acting!" Miriallia made a peace sign when Athrun and Cagalli bought their tickets and were finally out of sight. "I thought it wouldn't work! I really thought they would just not push through with watching the movie, just the two of them."
"But I hope they don't immediately go home after watching though…" Dearka then started to get worried. "Knowing Athrun, his social battery might be drained by the time the movie gets finished. He probably has enough for the set agenda in his head, which is bowling and the movie."
"Cagalli will be hungry by then, I know she'll want to grab dinner." Miriallia knew her best friend well and was predicting her actions. "But the question is, would Athrun stay with her or would he just head home?" She looked to Dearka for an answer.
"It's tricky." He was thinking about what he could do to make Athrun stay longer and then he remembered a poster that he saw on the way here.
Animate Cafe x SEED Freedom collaboration.
That's it!
"Don't worry Miri, I figured out something. He'll stay." He whipped his phone out and sent out a quick message to Athrun.
When he put it in his pocket, Miriallia was then keenly looking at him. "Shall we then start our date?" She even pulled out a box of chocolates from the paper bag she was carrying. "Here, for you." Even with the cold weather, he could see that she was a bit bashful and red in the face.
"Yes! Are these homemade chocolates? Thank you so much Miriallia!" He sounded too eager, but he couldn't help it. He was spending the day with his girlfriend after all.