~ Lying, Waiting, All Too Late ~
Chapter One: First Encounter (part two)

 

 

Bearit's Notes: Wai, I got the second part up quicker than I thought I would. Hehe. ^^ Anyway, here's the rest of the tale and how Geo and Eagle became good friends. Lantis is not in the picture yet, and neither is the shounen-ai. The second chapter might take a little longer in getting up, but it WILL get up, most likely before I finish "Lion Heart" since this fic is my current inspiration. ^^ Joyful for those who like this fic; not good for "Lion Heart" fans. Aieee...

Sugee: "Wow" -- this is a more informal version of "sugoi"
Yokatta: "Thank goodness"
Hai, hai: In this context, it means "Okay, okay"
Hai: "Yes"
Dozou yoroshiku: It has the same meaning of "Please be nice to me", but said only when you meet someone for the first time.
Yare, yare: In this context, it means "My, my"

 

* * *

 

Like breakfast had been, and lunch nearly had, dinner was unusually quiet. Zazu had taken into mind to not test the upperclassmen anymore and instead of playing around with electronics, he concentrated on eating his food and doing his homework, to which Eagle gladly helped him with. He couldn't help it if he knew more about the three branches of government than the young sophomore did, could he? As for the other two, while Eagle had only known them for less than two days, he knew that when Geo and Meson weren't bantering and laughing, something was amiss.

Just now Eagle learned that Meson was always on the receiving end of the conversations. Like the night before, he had his laptop open. Obviously, it was homework, but this time Meson was actually working on it. Eagle realized that the reason for that was because Geo was not speaking; he was silently and slowly eating his dinner.

"All right, so Eagle," said Zazu, still staring straight into his laptop. Eagle shook himself out of his contemplation and turned to his fellow Autozam Government classmate. "Who is the current head of the judicial branch again?"

"Subaru Forester."

"Got ya. Sugee, you sure know a lot."

Eagle smiled. "I can't argue with that. You tend to learn about these things in the schools in Eastern Integra... heavily. Especially with the after school tutor I had."

"You had an after school tutor, too?" asked Zazu, seeming relieved and elated at the same time. "Yokatta. I could have sworn I was the only one in this entire academy who had one. Was yours strict? Mean? Thought you were the stupidest person in the entire country although you were smarter than everyone else your age?"

Eagle laughed. Apparently, Zazu didn't have as good of an experience with tutors as he had. "Strict, yes," answered Eagle, "but she was really kind when it came to nonacademic matters."

"Lucky!" Zazu pouted and went back to his studying.

Geo finally looked up from his dinner tray and smiled faintly at Eagle. "Isn't Subaru Forester the commander of the security forces?" he asked.

Eagle nodded. "Yes, that's Judge Forester's son. Neither likes to be called the 'senior' or the 'junior', so it's hard to distinguish between them sometimes. I wonder how the commander's mother handled them sometimes."

Geo's eyes went back to his tray. "Probably like any other mother."

With that, Eagle's concern grew, and he decided to find out what was bugging Geo before things got out of hand. "Hey, Geo, do you want to go for a walk for a little bit?" asked Eagle with the most inviting smile he could put on. "I need to exercise my legs a little, and I think we need to talk about something."

Geo stole a peek at him, arched a brow, and sighed a little. "Hai, hai. If I don't see you before bedtime," he said to Meson and Zazu, "then I'll see you tomorrow morning. 'Night."

"G'night," Meson and Zazu echoed. Eagle gave Zazu an apologetic look for not being able to help him further with his homework, but Zazu shrugged it off and instead bombarded Meson with questions.

As Eagle and Geo walked towards the hall, Geo tossed his tray into a waste vacuum nearby and turned to Eagle. "All right, what do you want to talk about?"

"Not what you're probably thinking," Eagle replied. "After all, it's only been a day since we made that deal. Is there anything wrong, Geo? It was unusually quiet back there at the table."

Geo showed a half-grin. "Nothing you need to concern yourself with."

"We've only known each other for a short time, but I think that at the rate we're going, I'll be calling you friend within no time," said Eagle, returning the grin with a full smile. "I haven't had many friends while growing up, but I do know that when something is bothering someone I've come to like a great deal, it does concern me. Is Meson or Zazu somehow involved?"

"No," said Geo, shaking his head. They were reaching the corridor that led to the lounge. "It has nothing to do with them."

"I guess I can consider that a good thing," Eagle replied. "It must be bad when friends are angry with each other."

"Wait a minute, you said you didn't have many friends," said Geo. "I haven't had much friends either, but that's because it's Central Integra and there aren't many friendships to be made, at least when you live in a neighborhood full of people either way too old or way too young to befriend. What's your excuse? I would figure that in Eastern Integra, you would get an atmosphere that's just like the academy."

"You would," said Eagle, "but you'll understand once I tell you my last name next week." Geo groaned while Eagle laughed. Secrets were quite fun indeed, but Eagle did not want to ruin his last chance at friendship. "Enough about me, though," said Eagle, growing sober. "I'll ask again. Geo, is there anything at all wrong?"

"I'd be lying if I said 'no'," he replied, "but I get the feeling you won't be satisfied with the simple answer of 'yes'. You'd probably think less of me if I told you what it was."

"That depends," said Eagle. "I won't know unless you tell me."

They stopped just in front of the lounge. It was the only place for privacy for two cadets in two different grade levels, and yet, it was the only place where they can loiter without getting into trouble. Geo leaned against a nearby wall in the shadow of the open doorways, and Eagle stood to the side so that he, too, will not be seen by the other cadets. The results could be disastrous, since many freshmen had just finished eating and were spending the remainder of their free time in the lounge. Some seniors were in there as well, but the seniors were friendlier during social interactions than they were during line-ups and basic training. That was the half of the academy who knew what his title was.

"Holden might kill me if I told you," said Geo mournfully, "and I don't want to put this kind of sorrow on your shoulders, not if we only met yesterday. Of course, nobody saw this coming. Nobody sees anything coming, but I guess the inevitable has to happen sometime."

Eagle frowned, his face flooding with concern. Geo was speaking in riddles; that was NOT good. Well, it wasn't exactly riddles, but he surely wasn't making much sense as to what was bothering him so much.

"It's all right," said Eagle reassuringly. "I don't mind, and I can't leave you like this."

Geo offered a small smile. "All right. I'll do my best." He took a deep breath. "A couple of days ago... my..." He hesitated for what seemed like sixty slow seconds, and he exhaled with mild frustration. "I can't say it. I'm a moron, I didn't even cry, and now... I can't say it... and I still can't cry... the tears won't come." Geo laughed a little. "I'm an idiot."

"Cry?" asked a confused Eagle. This was a very fragile topic, so Eagle really couldn't say the first things that came to mind. Instead, he took a moment to reorganize his thoughts and attempted the questioning again. "What do you mean?"

"Lost," Geo murmured at a volume that Eagle could barely hear. He seemed to have been thinking quietly aloud. "That's a good way to go about it. Have you ever lost someone who changed your life? A family member?"

There was only a moment of perplexity in Eagle's thoughts before it dawned on him. "Oh," he said quietly. "I'm sorry. You must be going through a lot."

"Just by that you know?" asked an amused Geo.

"Hai. When I mentioned the word 'mother' you seemed depressed. Am I correct?" Geo nodded. "I know how you feel. My mother died only a couple of years ago. Would it help to talk about it?"

"Is that how you handled it?"

Eagle shook his head. "No. My father went about business as usual. He was really busy that time of year, but I think he... managed to be successful partly because of her death. That was when I first started going to school for the first time. After all, my mother was my tutor."

Geo chuckled. "'Strict yet kind', that's how you described your tutor," he said. "I think I should have realized it then. Most mothers are that way. If it wasn't for my mother, Holden and I would never have been in the academy. She forced us to study even when we offered to help around the house. She helped whenever she could, of course, but she made us do so much studying when we were little that by the time we reached our preteen years, we had surpassed her intelligence and so many others our age in Central Integra. Had we lived in Western Integra like Zazu or Matador County like Meson, I'm sure we'd have graduated by now. I--no, Holden and I owe my mother for that. We can't even go to her funeral. It's a pathetic situation."

Eagle was about to offer to pay for the trip, but knowing how Holden and Geo reacted to the loan deal, he decided against it for now, but an idea did pop into his head about that time that could help people like them. He stored the brainstorm to the back of his head to bring up to his father as soon as he went to bed.

"I see," murmured Eagle, concealing the smile his cheeks twitched to display.

"So, how did you handle your mother's death?" asked Geo. "If you don't want to tell me, fine, but maybe it will help me..."

"I cried at her funeral, but I didn't cry after that," said Eagle. "I can't remember if I had beforehand, but... I won't lie, Geo. I don't know how I handled it or if I even did. Like I said, my father was too busy with... other things, and all of his friends and, er, co-workers were just as busy. I had no friends, and I am an only child. I had no one to turn to for comfort. I'm afraid that I've forgotten how to cry."

"Don't say that," said Geo. "I don't think it's possible for anyone's eyes to dry up forever."

"We'll see, maybe."

Geo smiled forlornly and said, "Eagle, if I could afford going to the funeral, do you think I would have cried?"

"If you and your brother decide to go the your mother's funeral," said Eagle, "I'm sure you will. And I hope it won't be the last tears you shed for her."

 

 

 

Two days later, a day before the weekend, the lunch hour seemed to be going by normally. Geo seemed to have gotten over his sorrow, but Eagle found it peculiar that Geo's brother was nowhere to be seen. Eagle had no idea what the relationship was between Geo's older brother and his mother, but he figured that it somehow hit him the hardest. That's not saying that Eagle wanted Geo's older brother around, but considering that Geo still seemed absolutely oblivious about Eagle's last name, maybe the senior had not told his junior brother a thing. For that, Eagle was thankful and found another degree of respect for the Metro family.

The loud chatter didn't deter Geo and Zazu from getting into mini food battles, in which they snatched food from each other's trays to see who could eat the most before there was no more pieces left to eat. In fact, the noise seemed to encourage them as many cadets were ignorant to the happenings in their surroundings and paid more attention to events at their respective tables. Meson was busy typing up a report, and Eagle caught him mumbling and grumbling about how teachers shouldn't assign their students five pages worth of report on the first week of school.

Eagle smiled. It was only the first week of school, and he knew that he could count on his three companions to be true friends. They seemed like a very fun bunch, a very fine bunch, and despite the mock cruelty they displayed towards each other, there were signs of affectionate brotherly love cleverly disguised. It wasn't hard to spot them to an observer, but to the naked eye, one would never have guessed that it was there.

The plan seemed to be working. Geo, Zazu, and Meson all considered Eagle a friend--Zazu had even said so himself about four or five times. They didn't even know who he was related to... that is, Geo and Meson had no idea. Zazu shared a class with Eagle, so naturally, he knew, but he kept it a secret and didn't brag about it in front of everyone. That was the kind of person Eagle really wanted to befriend, and there were times when he thought about going back on his promise to Geo and just telling him to see how he would react.

The reaction Eagle wanted was a shrug and a reply of "Whatever". Anything else would dissuade any real forms of friendship Eagle assumed came from Geo, although he highly doubted that Geo's feelings were fake. After all, Geo came from the poverty-ridden Central Integra while Eagle came from the high-class Eastern Integra, and Geo had promptly turned down Eagle's offer to pay off the loan for him. Eagle wondered why he was even keeping the secret from Geo, but then he reminded himself that first the changes in the law had to made, and then he would be free to tell Geo everything.

Two nights ago, like he planned, he contacted his father with a full essay on changes he thought would be beneficial to the all citizens of the government, and he requested that they send full information about the Metro family to Lieutenant Colonel Isuzu Trooper, Geo's and Holden's supervisor. The work would have been done for him, since Eagle couldn't do it himself in the academy.

"Ha!" Zazu laughed as he snatched the last particle of food from Geo's tray. "I won!"

"You haven't won until all of your food is gone," Geo growled, using his fork to snatch away three pieces of asuna, manufactured meat, from Zazu's plate. Zazu looked shocked.

"Hey! You can't do that!"

"Yes, I can. After all, I just did," said Geo. By the tone of his voice, Eagle pictured a seven-year-old Geo sticking his tongue out at Zazu, and he cracked up. Meson looked up questioningly, then shrugged and went back to his report, still mumbling and grumbling about the injustices of the Air Force Academy.

"Vigor... own country... not part of Autozam... rights violated..." Meson grumbled.

The Air Force Academy was located in the county of Vigor.

Zazu pouted and grabbed, with his hands, all the asuna he could and stuffed into his mouth. He said something that sounded somewhere along the lines of "I'm not going to let you win", but Eagle couldn't tell. Geo looked like he was about to retort, but his eye caught something beyond Zazu's head. He scowled.

"What do you want, Holden?" he demanded. Eagle, Zazu, and Meson at once turned to face the direction Geo was facing and indeed saw the taller, scrawnier, and more handsome Metro brother standing right behind Zazu.

"Little brother," replied Holden sternly, "we have to talk."

"All right," said Geo, waving a hand. "Talk."

"I don't think I should say it here, but I suppose it's okay what with the company," said Holden, giving Eagle a glare of suspicion. "I was called into Trooper's office, and apparently, we have more money than our mother ever gave us credit for."

To that, Geo seemed confused. Eagle was surprised, but he suppressed a smile. So, his father had done what he had requested. He wondered how the rest of the wishes went.

"What do you mean?" asked Geo.

"Our father came from an aristocratic family," Holden explained. "He was disowned when he decided to marry Ma, but he had a lot of money in his bank account. In Ma's will, she said to give us the key to that cash. I'd say let's pay off your loans with that money, but it's your choice. Before you say anything, Trooper also told me to tell you that there has been a dramatic change of policy in loans."

Eagle brought his glass to his lips; he was smiling widely, and he knew it. He could not allow Geo or Holden to see it, however.

"A 'dramatic' change? Do go on, big brother," said Geo with a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Ten years after its full use, meaning ten years after you graduate from the academy, is the deadline to pay off the loans," said Holden. "If you do not, instead of taking away your personal belongings, the amount you owe is doubled, and continues to double every five years. Geo, we can use this money to go to Ma's funeral this weekend if you wish."

Eagle put down his cup but pretended to wipe his mouth. He cast his eyes to the table, not desiring to look at either Holden or Geo, for he wasn't sure how they'd appreciate his interference into their personal lives.

Geo gaped. "Wha- what? We can go back to Integra... and come back to the academy?"

"All during the weekend, though we might have to miss a couple of days of school," said Holden. "I'm sure we'll still have plenty left over; we'll see after we pay for the transportation home. I want to go to the funeral, but... they are your loans."

Eagle looked at Geo from the corner of his eyes and silently begged Geo to go back. Geo caught that look, but apparently he saw no triumph in Eagle's eyes, for all he did was smile and turned back to his older brother.

"I have ten years to pay back those loans, but Mom's funeral is this weekend," replied Geo. "Let's go home."

Something was tickling Eagle's hand underneath the table, and Eagle snatched it. It was a napkin. He looked to his other side and saw Zazu looking at him frantically; there was a pen right next to Zazu's tray of food. Eagle unfolded the paper towel and barely read, for the handwriting was very sloppy:

'You had something to do with this, didn't you? Geo is so going to kill you when he finds out.'

Eagle grinned at Zazu, and Zazu rolled his eyes. If the Metro brothers weren't around, Eagle was sure Zazu would have grunted with irritation.

Could Eagle really have helped that his heart demanded that he help his friend in any possible way he could find? Perhaps, but Eagle was not one to defy his true emotions.

 

 

 

The Metro brothers spent about four days in the capital, and when they returned, Eagle could see quite a difference in both of their attitudes and composure. It seemed as if they had an entire load of pressure taken off of their shoulders, and for that, Eagle was more than elated.

It was dinnertime, for Geo hadn't gotten back to the academy until after the lunch hour was over. During passing period, Eagle and Geo walked by each other and only managed a small wave of greeting so that they would not be late to their classes. That was when Eagle noticed the change in Geo's eyes, and it wasn't until the freshman line-up before basic training did Eagle see the same in Holden. After the two left for Integra, Zazu kept brainstorming in his head the pros and cons of Eagle's interference, but by the relief reflected from the brothers, even Zazu had to admit that this pro outweighed all of the cons combined.

Thanks to Meson, Eagle knew where Geo's last classroom of the day was and managed to sneak out of basic training early enough to wait only for a couple minutes outside of that room. After all, Eagle did still have a promise to uphold. It was a day past the deadline to which Eagle would tell Geo his secret, but it was something that just couldn't be helped.

The monotone bell rang. An entire herd of cadets stampeded out of the classroom. The halls were bustling with teenage men and women heading to the cafeteria and lounge, but the inside of the classroom was fairly quiet. Of course. Geo had make-up homework to collect.

"Thank you, sir," he heard Geo tell his instructor. From the corner of his eye, he saw his "friend" emerge from the classroom, but Eagle didn't need to say anything. "Hey, Eagle," said Geo.

Eagle smiled. "It's been a while."

Geo shrugged. "Only four days. Come on, let's head over to the cafeteria before someone steals our table."

The two walked down the corridors, which weren't as crowded as they had just been. They were able to travel side-by-side without either one of them having to move out of the way for anybody who didn't want to clear out of their way.

"I need to thank you," said Geo. "You were right; I did cry at the funeral. But my brother said something to me on the trip that made me feel a little better. It was so obvious that he was holding in the tears, and I told him that there was no shame in crying. He told me that there was no shame in not crying; it would come someday, either at the right time or the times when I don't expect it to happen. The tears at the funeral were not the last."

He smiled wistfully.

"Yokatta," said Eagle. "I'm glad you were able to go."

"We still have money left over," Geo continued. "More than three quarters of what had originally been in there. Most people in Central Integra don't find anyone's will until five years after they died, but... I'll have enough to pay off the loans. Holden is setting aside that amount, and the rest is there for when we need it. I wish we had known about that money before Mom... well... anyway, I still have to thank you. Thank you for helping me."

As the two neared the elevators, Eagle reminded himself that Geo was not thanking him for anything that Eagle had actually done; he was thanking him for the talk before Eagle asked his father to do the things he requested to help the Metro family out.

Geo sighed. "I wish I knew how I could repay you--"

"Don't worry about that," said Eagle with a wink. The elevator doors slid open, and the two stepped inside. Eagle would have sworn that it was by some fate that they were the only two inside if he actually believed in destiny. Now was the time to tell Geo. "We're friends, aren't we?"

Geo's mouth twitched upwards. "Yeah," he said warmly.

"Remember the promise I made to you only a little over than a week ago?" asked Eagle. "I'd tell you my last name."

"Don't worry about that," said Geo. "I don't think who you're related to would affect our friendship."

"I would like to think so, too, but that really depends on your reaction," replied Eagle. "Now, I think I can use a little reintroduction. My name is Eagle Vision of Eastern Integra. Dozou yoroshiku."

Geo looked at Eagle and frowned. "Vision? Vision, where have I... oh. Oh. Wait. Your father is President Chrysler Vision?" Eagle nodded with a hopeful smile. "Oh. I get it now! This makes perfect sense! That's why Holden doesn't like you as compared to Meson; you're from THE aristocratic family."

Eagle laughed. "There is only one Vision family on Autozam. Like I said a week ago, I'm surprised that you hadn't figured it out for yourself. Not many people on Autozam are named 'Eagle'."

Geo chuckled. "That's true. Yare, yare, this makes absolute perfect sense to me now. I just wish everyone wasn't hinting so much of it--does Meson and Zazu know?"

"Zazu knows," said Eagle, "and I think Meson may have his suspicions."

"So I'm the last," Geo said as he rested his head against the wall and stared at the elevator's ceiling. "I think I'll be befriending the most unique bunch out of anybody--the son of the general of the Air Force who wishes to become a mere ambassador, a child genius, and the son of the leader of this country. Who's next, I wonder?"

Eagle laughed. "We'll see."

Eagle decided against telling Geo that he was the one who proposed the change in loan policies and the one who ordered that effort be put into finding out more about the Metros. He had no clear reason to do so, but Geo didn't seem phased in the slightest about Eagle's family. All Geo seemed to be was relieved that there were "no more" secrets between the two of them. Eagle surely did hope that the secret he held now was the only secret he would ever have to keep from his new friend.

 

* * *

 

To be continued in Chapter Two: Feminine Approach