*sighs* It's depressing how our fandom sinks even deeper in the gutter every time, I only got about five reviews for the last chapter... maybe because of Flay, but still, this doesn't feel good... maybe I should go back to LIAFT...? Let me know what you guys think...^^

Happy Birthday, Dearka! (If you noticed, I'm updating occasionally, if you know what I mean...XD)

"The Non-Existent"

Chapter 4: Empty Seats And Vacancies.

Nicol stared out of his office window, it was the usual view of the hectic city life. Tall buildings were crowding up the urban scape, cars were stuck in traffic, people were almost running in the streets chasing time. Nobody takes a moment to look up anymore, everyone's busy in their own worlds, doing what they can to have a better life. Most not realizing that perhaps, changing a mere perspective could offer a better result.

But then, who was he to talk? He's been living the good life for as long as he knew. A well off family, friends to talk to, matters to take care of, things to look forward to. He nodded to himself, he was fine, too fine to be exact.

Walking out of his office, through the hallway, he suddenly took notice of door left wide open. It was one of the biggest offices in their floor, made for some higher-up, which he couldn't quite remember. He tried to shrug the feeling off and took another step to close the door. But as he reached the knob, he noticed the door didn't have a gold plate in it, unlike other offices of that same size and importance. He peeked inside and his hunch was right.

"Has this room been empty all this time?" Staring at the empty chair, he couldn't remember if their company had vacancies, and for an important position too. "I could swear someone was using this room until..."

He was broken out of his reverie when his phone suddenly vibrated. It was a message from Athrun, saying something about filling a sick leave and apologizing to him for having him take over his work. He got a bit surprised, something must've happened. He swiftly turned and exited the room, closing the door securely. He gave the door one last glance before quickening his pace to the elevator and after a while, he was out of the building. He needed to hail a taxi fast, but before he could even put his phone back in his pocket, it vibrated again. This time it was Lacus, telling him not to worry anymore because she'd be with Athrun.

Nicol sighed, if Lacus was with him then he'll surely turn up eventually. Then he heard a loud honk, it was Dearka, he was merrily waving while driving out in his convertible. If he's that happy then that must mean he'll be going out on a date again, he wondered when he'll introduce her to them. [1]

Walking along the sidewalk, deciding to take the bus instead, he kept thinking about the weird occurrences that started happening for the past few days. After Athrun's failed birthday party, he was the one who got left at the venue to take care of the mess. Dearka was the one who took Lacus home, Yzak walked out cursing, and the rest of the guests just started disappearing, leaving him to take the gifts and the untouched cake home.

Last night, he decided to just eat some of the cake since it probably wouldn't take long for it to go bad. When he took it out of the box, he realized that they must've picked up the wrong cake because this one doesn't even have Athrun's name on it, but someone else's. Then, he looked for the receipt and the stub for the order, his eyes then slowly widened when he saw that indeed, he ordered the cake with the name "Kira" on it. He doesn't know anyone by that name, who could that be? And no wonder Athrun got mad, he's gonna have to apologize to him later for that.

He stopped for a moment, feeling a cool gentle breeze caress his being as he breathed it in, and another day is done.

As they drove back to Athrun's place, he told Lacus the entire story about the blonde, that she broke into his room, how she tried to surprise him with a cake, and how the cake had Kira's name on it. Further explaining about his extreme bad luck that day, the receipts of the unit, the flashbacks, and that vacant bedroom.

The first thing they had to do was figure out how the blonde got inside, that day she thought of surprising her brother, and then, just who was she.

Lacus tailed him as he led the way to the manager's counter, they wanted to check if the blonde asked him for a spare key or a pass, or anything before proceeding to his room. Hopefully, they'd get a name at the very least.

When they got there, Athrun immediately asked for the log book, and asked about that day while flipping through the pages. "Did a blonde girl ask for a key to her brother's room on the day of May eighteenth?"

The lady at the counter had a confused look on her face, but was able to act fast enough in helping him find the log for that date, but when they got to the right page, there wasn't any records involving the room 803.

"Are you sure it's the right date, sir? Or the right room?" The clerk asked.

"Yes, of course I am!" Athrun was easily getting frustrated, this thing's been bugging him for a damn while now.

Lacus looked concerned, more for the lady than her companion, "what if she didn't break into your room? Is it possible for someone to get into a unit without having to log in here?" She turned to the clerk.

"Well... she must have a key, of course," the lady calmly replied.

That answer immediately gave Athrun an start, he slowly moved his eyes from the book to the clerk as he remembered that he didn't have the key to that vacant room, so was it possible for her to have it?

It definitely was.

But then, did they just lose their only lead? He sighed defeated, and turned to Lacus, "we're gonna have to find a new start."

Both of them went back into his unit and thought things as thorough as they possibly can, what else do they have?

Athrun turned to the vacant room, unmindfully inserting the key and turning the knob, he just wanted to see it again, to feel it again. Something was there—rather, someone used to be there, he was sure of it and to some extent he felt strong longing towards it.

It was the same as he first saw it, with a bed, a desk, empty dressers and bookshelves. All spotlessly clean and tidy, just the way it isn't supposed to be.

He was again saddened to think that he lost a dear friend, a person who made everything right, and when he didn't even know if he was even alive, or if he died, or whatever happened to him for that matter.

That blonde was the only hint they had into figuring out Kira's existence, if she didn't come that day would they have noticed the peculiar occurrences? If she wasn't there, what would've happened? Would he have celebrated someone else's birthday? Would he just continue to live on normally, not even being aware of some person's sudden disappearance? How could he have forgotten in the first place?

He sighed exasperatedly, all he could think of were questions and not even a single clue to a chance of getting an answer.

"I wonder..." Lacus suddenly muttered, also taking a peek inside the vacant room, not really aware of what she should expect so she didn't feel the need to react, "what led the rest of us into thinking that May eighteenth was your birthday?"

He stared at her as she walked to enter the room, he thought about the possibility of a retainment of some sort, things that couldn't be easily erased. Everyone remembered the date, the cake and the party, but they didn't remember the person. Some things just can't be erased, more particularly tangible things that were already there before that fateful day.

What the hell happened on his birthday?

When did he disappear anyway? Before that day, everything was normal, but exactly what was normal? He couldn't remember, "do you remember when that crazy blonde said that Kira introduced you to her? Where was that? And how did it happen?"

Lacus thought about it, she felt a little bit of nostalgia upon meeting the blonde but she was sure she didn't know her, if she did, she would never deny it. However, if you think about it, that blonde certainly acted as if they knew each other, did they really? There's no way she'd know for sure. "I don't know, I don't really remember..."

Athrun sighed, things certainly weren't in their favor, and it was getting hopeless. "Can you think of any other person that had somewhat a connection to Kira? Excluding our colleagues of course."

She looked thoughtful again, "I think I might know someone..." she trailed off, narrowing her eyes with a small frown.

"Really?" He raised an eyebrow, "who?"

Lacus was hesitant, but it was surely worth a try, "what about you're ex-girlfriend?" She said barely a whisper yet audible enough for him to hear.

"I don't have an ex-girlfriend," Athrun was too quick to react.

She was a bit startled, "oh, you're right. Maybe, you don't..." She realized most of the things she remembered about Athrun, probably weren't about him at all. She then cautiously raised her gaze to meet his, "but Kira does."

After stuffing the book inside her sling bag, Cagalli was finally done for the day, she needs to get home now since both her body and mind were practically begging for some rest, all of this was completely draining her. She sat herself on an empty waiting shed, she knew she should figure out where to look next. But where?

Where would Kira be if he existed?—wait! What was she thinking, questioning her own brother's existence? He was alive! She knew he was—wait, 'was'...?

Cagalli covered her face with both hands, she was certainly loosing it. And it just makes everything feel worse knowing that she was helpless, what the hell was she supposed to do?

She took a few deep breaths, tried to calm herself down and recollected her thoughts. Disregarding the part where she questioned her brother's life, where would he be? She looked up, as if asking the heavens for a sign, anything to get her back on her feet, anything to replenish her will to go on.

Then, it rained.

"Yeah, well, screw you!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, pointing accusingly at the clouded sky.

It was already too late when she realized that someone else had taken refuge in the waiting shed, and she can only bet in her mind that he heard everything she said, or yelled. She slowly lowered her arm and sat back down at the farthest side of the bench, looked away to the other direction, trying her best to hide her shame.

Thankfully he didn't say a thing, he merely smiled to her direction and sat himself on the empty seat.

After a little while, the rain still wasn't letting up and she fidgeted in her seat. Then she noticed the other person staring at her, as if in deep contemplation. She shrugged it off and turned her head around when she heard him speak. "Uhm, excuse me..."

She looked back at him, she noted his features, he sure looked harmless. "Yeah?"

"I was just wondering, since you looked familiar..." he paused, as if thinking of what to say. "Did you visit the main office of Zaft corp. this morning?"

Cagalli felt her eyebrows furrow slowly, she did visit that place earlier before she went to the library, of course she had to check where her brother worked, right? "Yeah, I did. Why?"

"I knew it was you," he chuckled slightly. "You see, I worked there and saw how you made a little scene back there in the lobby, what happened?"

She felt a sweat drop, "yeah, I wanted to look at some employee's records, but the lady at the counter said they didn't have any for the person I was looking for." She remembered that she almost threw a fit, almost. She couldn't help it, she was already too dejected then and no one could possibly blame her if they knew what she was going through, right?

"I see, so they weren't able to help you?" He asked, sounding too sincere even for himself. He didn't know why he was even intruding in her affairs, but getting stuck in this rain with nothing to do but wait, was a little boring. He wanted to talk to anyone at least.

"Unfortunately," she eased herself in the conversation, he seemed like a really well-mannered guy.

"Maybe, I could help you. I work on the Human Resources department." He then offered a hand, "my name's Nicol. You are...?"

She smiled at him as she took his hand, "I'm Cagalli, nice to meet you."

For some reason, he felt too at ease with her and suddenly felt nostalgia, it was as if he knew her before, or possibly she reminded him of someone he used to know. "Who're you looking for, by the way?"

"Oh, yeah... Well, I was looking for my brother, he kinda... sorta, used to work there." Cagalli felt unsure whether she should tell him the truth or not.

"Ohh... so, what's his name? Maybe, I know him," he honestly hoped to know him and to be of some help.

The blonde smiled sadly, she didn't know if he would believe her. Then again, this is another good place to start and maybe, he could help her look for that girl too. "His name's Kira, Kira Hibiki."

The smile on his face slowly dropped as he was suddenly reminded of the name on the cake. It was as if thunder struck him and felt something twisting from his gut, was that Kira the same person? "When's his birthday?" He didn't notice himself blurt it out, but still he waited in great apprehension, it can't possibly be on the same day, right?

"May eighteenth," She answered instantly, curious as to why he popped the question out of the blue. "Why?"

This time, Nicol visibly shivered, that was the day! He slowly inched away from her, not wanting to believe such a crazy coincidence. Then again, he was already here. "Would you please come with me over to my place? I think I have something I want to show you."

Cagalli didn't know what to make of the situation, was he picking her up? But then again, he didn't even look interested in her that way, also, the matter of the discussion was her brother. And she might just be desperate enough to go along with a guy she hasn't ever known, "sure, but tell me first what it is that you want to show me," maybe he just looked too nice that she couldn't possibly bring herself to misjudge him, but it certainly wouldn't hurt to be careful, she was still a girl after all.

Nicol chuckled sheepishly, of course she would have her doubts, they didn't really know each other. "It's a cake, with Kira's name on it." Saying her brother's name like that kinda left him a longing feeling, it was as if he was used to uttering it everyday.

Suddenly, she grabbed him by the end of his sleeves and almost yanked him up, "let's go now!"

He was a bit surprised, but then understood what she might have been feeling for someone who's in search of a beloved. The rain has also stopped, and he did ask her to go with him, he nodded.

They ended up hailing a taxi, they can't wait for the bus anymore. It was near a twenty-minute ride, and Cagalli was a bit apprehensive seeing that his home was on the way of her brother's supposed complex. She remembered the events that took place there with her brother's supposed best friend and girlfriend as she let out a frustrated sigh, this isn't about them, she doesn't have to bother. But if she is able to find her brother and get him back, how would they all deal with things?

Nicol then nudged her, "we're here."

They got off, paid and walked to a modern two-storey house that had a nice yard and front porch, it reminded her a lot of her mother's new home. She shook her head and quickly followed after the green-haired lad to the door. He led her to the living room as he made his way to the kitchen to fix her a drink and to get the box of cake.

There wasn't anything out of the ordinary in the room, but she couldn't help not noticing the grand white piano near the balcony, it was too beautiful for words. She didn't know how to play any instrument, so she'd always admire those who could and for one thing, she believes those kinds of people have something special in them, even more so for those who played the piano.

"Here," Nicol walked back into the room and placed two glasses of juice on the coffee table, along with a bowl of cookies and the box of cake that he wanted to show her, "please, feel free."

"Thanks," she smiled at him gratefully, he was just too kind and for a second there, she kinda thought he acted like a girl, now she didn't need to let him know that. She walked over to him and stared at the box, "is this it?"

He looked at her apprehensively before nodding and proceeding to take the lid off, "I ordered this for a surprise birthday party of a friend of mine, but we never got to eat it because he claimed that it wasn't his birthday, he even got mad before walking out on us."

"Aww, couldn't he just have pretended it was his birthday? I mean, you guys could've just had a laugh about it," she knew it was such an awkward situation, not just for the one who got surprised on the wrong date, but also for those who attempted on it.

"Well, it had been a bad day for him, and it really was our fault in the first place, we didn't only got the date wrong but the name on the cake as well." Nicol smiled sadly as he took the cake out, that was such a disaster.

Cagalli watched him carefully, he looked truly sincere, "how did you get the date and the name wrong in the first place?" She shifted her gaze from him to the cake in front of her, it reads, 'Happy Birthday, Kira!'

"To be honest, I have no idea," he was completely baffled at himself, "we've all been preparing for that day for weeks, but then, everything suddenly fell apart... we didn't even know where to pick things up afterwards."

"What do you mean? What happened?" The blonde inquired, she was starting to feel that certain twist in her gut again.

"Everything was going great, perfect in fact... then all of a sudden, everything turns out wrong," maybe he was just making excuses for himself, but still, "there was just no way, I'd make a mistake like that... I mean, I've know Athrun for God knows how long, I'm sure I know when his birthday is."

"—wait, did you say Athrun?" Cagalli interrupted him.

"Uhh, yeah...?" Nicol tilted his head.

"Guy with blue hair, green eyes, living in the Plants complex, room 803?" She listed down the things she knew of him.

The green-haired lad merely nodded, "that sounds like him."

"Ugh...!" She let out a growl, "you mean, that bastard shares the same birthday as my brother?"

Nicol raised an eyebrow after hearing her call him a bastard, but was still able to give her an answer, "no, like I said before, he said it wasn't his birthday."

It was now Cagalli's turn to raise an eyebrow, what the hell was going on? Didn't he just say he was sure that day was Athrun's birthday? "So, then it wasn't his birthday?"

"That's what he said, but I'm sure it was someone's birthday..." The lad looked down with a sigh, he knew he wasn't making any sense, and now she probably thinks he's crazy.

Cagalli slumped and turned to the couch to sit herself, "do you wanna know why I'm looking for my brother? It's because he suddenly went missing the day of his birthday, that day of May eighteenth." She looked up at the guy before continuing, "I wanted to surprise him but when I got to his unit, it was just his roommate who was there, and that was Athrun."

"But Athrun doesn't have a roommate," it was now Nicol's turn to consider if she's crazy, maybe they both were.

"Yeah, that's what he said... but there was just no way, I'd make that mistake... I'm sure that was Kira's unit." She used the exact same words that Nicol did to make him understand her, maybe they really were both crazy.

"I... don't know what to say," he felt helpless at their condition, but at the same time, felt glad that he wasn't the only one going through such an ordeal. "In any case, let's see if Kira has any record in our company's database, then we can call Athrun and talk to him."

Cagalli stared at him, was he believing her? She didn't even believe herself, and yet... well, she did believe him too. "Thanks, that'll be such a great help. But please, I'd rather not have anything to do with Athrun."

"Why? He might know something," Nicol walked over to his computer.

"We... when we met, we didn't exactly leave a good impression," she chose stop there, unsure if she was willing to share the embarrassment she caused herself.

"I see, that's fine," he would leave it be. Turning on the computer and accessing Zaft corp.'s main database, he quickly typed, 'Kira Hibiki,' and clicked search.

Cagalli watched in great apprehension at the monitor, mentally preparing herself for whatever's gonna come out of this.

"No search results found."

She tightly closed her eyes before turning her head away, and heaving the deepest breath she could ever muster if her life depended on it.

Nicol watched her, "maybe, we should call Athrun?"

No... She pleaded in her mind, she was not gonna go back to that guy, isn't there someone else? Then her eyes suddenly flew wide open, there was!

She turned back to Nicol, "do you mind searching another person for me?"

"No problem," he shrugged and erased Kira's name before preparing to type on her dictation.

"Flay Allster," Cagalli muttered as Nicol allowed his fingers to glide around the keyboard, and there she was, the redhead she met earlier.

"This is her profile, but there's nothing much in it... except for her school and city," Nicol made the best of what the redhead had in her profile, she was pretty and that was all he figured.

"She's attending the same school Kira did," the blonde whispered audibly, "I need to meet her."

Athrun and Lacus stood in front of big double doors, they made their way to the house of "Kira's ex-girlfriend", which happens to be an estate in the remotest part of the city. It was the bluenette who rang the door bell and after waiting for a while, the door opened to reveal the person they least expected.

"YOU!" Cagalli yelled, pointing directly at his face.

Author's Note:

1.) Yeah, Dearka 's cameo just had to be him going on a date, it's his birthday after all...XD

Anyway, sorry I had to build up so much before they met... but anyway, they've finally met again (even for just the cliffie) so stay tuned! *evil laugh!*

Again, let me remind you guys to tell me what you think, because I might end up going back to LIAFT for a bit...

(.^_^.)

~Lynx

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