Crazy Mixed Up Love Square

by

Sakura-chan Master of the Clow

Chapter 21: Confession Time

Summary: Syaoran and Sakura are happily together. But Tomoyo has always had a thing for Syaoran. Eriol comes back to confess to Tomoyo and asks for Sakura's help. She gladly agrees but has promised not to tell anyone. What if Syaoran gets the wrong idea? SS & ET

Disclaimer: I do not own any original characters from CardCaptor Sakura. All belongs to the wonderful members of CLAMP. The story line for this fanfiction, however, is all mine, so please no copyright.

Announcement: Unrelated to this story, my other on-going fanfic Middle of Nowhere is put on indefinite hiatus until I complete this one. I want to do my best and update more and it's been hard brainstorming for both stories that I often get confused which ideas are for what. I was originally going to split this chapter up into two and post them separately, but I figured I made you all wait long enough so here is the full chapter! Woo hoo! Thank you for understanding and sorry to keep you waiting so long for this chapter.

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Syaoran found himself looking up every now and then as he strapped himself into his skis, his eyes switching every time between his three friends as they did the same. He glanced at Tomoyo and frowned. She hadn't said a word to him during breakfast and it was obvious she was avoiding his gaze. The only clear connection would be whatever happened last night.

"Tomoyo-chan?" He called out to her from down the hall. Startled, she stood up immediately and blocked his view of the door. Her face held a flushed, guilty expression, like a child who had been caught doing something they know they shouldn't. "I thought you'd gone to bed by now. Why are you in front of Sakura-chan's room? Is something wrong?"

"N-n-no, of course not, Syaoran-kun. W-why would you even say that?" If her lack of composure hadn't already given her away, her nervous laugh that followed surely did. Syaoran cocked an eyebrow.

"Are you sure everything is okay?" he asked slowly, carefully examining her.

"Yup, never better! Nothing out of the ordinary here."

"And you're blocking Sakura-chan's door from me because. . . ?"

"I-I'm not blocking, I just got out from bidding her goodnight, that's all," she stammered.

Syaoran crossed his arms and smiled. It was a rare sight to see Tomoyo getting so flustered, he thought it best to humor her. "All right, well I hope you bid goodnight from the both of us."

"Eriol-kun too?"

Syaoran blinked. "What?"

"What?"

As if by instinct, Syaoran's face fell into a frown. "What about Hiiragizawa?"

"Huh? Oh uh, nothing. I just thought you . . . you wanted me to bid Eriol-kun goodnight for you as well—not that he's in there with Sakura-chan or anything."

Syaoran frowned.

"Ah," she said with a jolt, "I must be more tired than I thought, g-goodnight, Syaoran-kun."

And before he could say anything else, she disappeared into her own room. Only seconds after her door clicked shut, Sakura's door opened and out came Eriol Hiiragizawa.

Syaoran looked towards Eriol—whom had just gotten done fastening himself into his pair of skis—and scowled. Syaoran scowled as he stuffed his foot into his ski boot with more force than necessary. He heard a soft whimper followed by a low chuckle come from across the bench.

"Sakura-chan," Syaoran heard Eriol say, "here let me get that for you."

Syaoran looked up just in time to see Sakura's flushed face before she hid behind her thick scarf at Eriol's gesture to help her buckle into her skis. He heard her mutter a soft "Thank you."

Syaoran continued to stare at the two, recalling his encounter with Eriol last night.

"Hiiragizawa?" Syaoran said in surprise.

Eriol turned to look at him. "Oh, Syaoran-kun," he acknowledged. "Are you turning in for the night as well?"

Syaoran ignored his question. "What . . . are you doing coming out of Sakura-chan's room at this hour?" Syaoran asked, watching his tone of voice as to not sound aggressive. Unfortunately, Eriol caught a hint of it.

"Me? Sakura-chan said wanted to talk to me."

"What about?" Syaoran knew better than to ask, but he couldn't help it.

Eriol smiled. "Nothing much. Sakura-chan just confessed to me that she's in love with me, that's all."

Syaoran's jaw tightened. "You're lying."

"You think so?" Eriol said with a knowing smile. "Why don't you go in there and ask her yourself if it's true or not."

"I don't have to," Syaoran said his tone with a sense of finality. "There's no way Sakura-chan would do that."

"Maybe not the old Sakura-chan, no. But this Sakura-chan . . ." Eriol smiled at the spark of doubt form in Syaoran's eyes. Why not feed it a little, he mused to himself. "Sakura-chan doesn't remember you, you know. What with her best friend always spending time with the ex-boyfriend she doesn't even remember, and all our friends spread out across the country to be with their own families or lovers, I'm the only friend she has to be with during this winter break. Out of all of us, I'm the one she feels closest to since we can talk freely about anything, even her magical abilities which she still keeps a secret of from our friends."

Syaoran's eyes wavered slightly before locking eyes with Eriol's and frowned. Syaoran knew Eriol was just pushing his buttons, there's no way Sakura would fall in love with Eriol, even if she forgot Syaoran. He knew their bond was stronger than that . . . Right?

"Now that I think about it," Eriol spoke up, waking Syaoran back from his thoughts, "I probably shouldn't have taken Sakura out on Christmas Eve. But I felt so bad she would have to spend it alone this year knowing her father and brother wouldn't get back until actual Christmas Day. I wonder if she thought it as a date, though—if that's when she realized her feelings for me."

"Hiiragizawa, stop." Syaoran's eyes blazing with a fire he fought to control.

"My my," Eriol mused, "where was this absolute unwavering trust in her three months ago?"

"Please," Syaoran breathed through gritted teeth.

"Do you honestly think I would lie to you about something like this?" Eriol asked with a grin as he walked across the hall to his own room. "You have a good night, Li-kun."

"Wow, Eriol-kun, you really are amazing!" Sakura exclaimed, bringing Syaoran back from his thoughts.

Eriol chuckled. "It's not too loose is it?" he asked, referring to her skis he had just helped adjust for her. Sakura shook her head. "Too tight?"

"Nope, it's perfect, Eriol-kun," Sakura beamed. She turned to Tomoyo and Syaoran. "You two love birds ready to go?"

Syaoran saw Tomoyo flinch from the corner of his eye. "We're almost ready. We'll catch up with you two, okay?" Syaoran answered for the both of them.

Sakura nodded. "Okay. Come on, Eriol-kun, I need a little more practice before I can go on the intermediate slope with the rest of you."

"You just need to apply what you learned yesterday. I'm sure we can all try the intermediate slope by lunch."

"You think so?"

Syaoran couldn't hear the rest of their conversation as they had gotten out of earshot. He leaned closer to Tomoyo. "Do you need help with that?" he asked, nodding towards her skis that still needed one to be fastened. Syaoran didn't wait long for her answer since it was the one closest to him that needed to be fastened, he simply bent down to secure it for her. "You didn't tell her we broke up." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I didn't really get a chance to last night," Tomoyo answered quietly.

"Because he was with her?"

Tomoyo's head snapped to face Syaoran. "H-how did you know that?"

"I saw him go out from Sakura's room just as soon as you entered yours."

"O-oh," was all she could say. She didn't even have the courage to ask if Eriol told him anything—especially anything regarding Sakura.

"Are you gonna tell them or should I?"

Tomoyo bit down on her lower lip in thought. "I'll tell them," she announced. "I kind of started this whole mess, give me the chance to make it right."

"You did nothing wrong." His gloved hand stroked her shoulder in comfort. "We both agreed we let our feelings get the better of us." He paused and added as an afterthought, "You take one and I take the other?"

Tomoyo lips lifted with a smile. She thought back to what she heard the previous night and her smile dropped. If Sakura really does remember Syaoran, and he told her that they had broken up because of her new found feelings for Eriol, Sakura would still remain oblivious and keep up the pretense of her memories of him. If Sakura were to know about their break up and how it came to be, it had to be from someone who knew she had regained her memories—it had to be from her. Maybe she could even convince Sakura to get back with Syaoran. They were destined to be together, after all—Tomoyo knew that now. "It's all right," Tomoyo finally answered. "I'll tell them."

"That won't be fair to have you tell them both. We're both at fault, let's both try to make things right."

Tomoyo smiled. "All right. I'll tell Sakura-chan and you tell Eriol-kun."

Syaoran smiled. "Deal."

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"I think you've pretty much got it, Sakura-chan," said Eriol with an air of pride. "Are you ready to ride the chair lifts up to the intermediate slope?"

Sakura instantly felt nervous, they had only been riding the beginner's slope all day yesterday—she didn't share the same air of confidence Eriol had for her to try the intermediate slope. "I guess I could give it a try," Sakura said with a sigh, seeing the undeniable faith for her in Eriol's eyes.

"Great, let's join the others," Eriol said, gliding across the snow towards the chair lifts.

Sakura took a deep breath and pushed herself forward and followed after him. She wiped the snow from her goggles with the edge of her sleeve and looked up, noticing Tomoyo and Syaoran were getting back in line to ride the lift up, she had lost count how many times they have ridden it together as she kept Eriol behind as he taught her the basics. Suddenly she felt guilty for taking a day and a half from him that could have been time used to be with Tomoyo instead.

She felt something land on her thick jacket, indenting it. It was Eriol, his eyes full of worry. "Don't worry, we're going to ride together. I will make sure you get down safely." Eriol must have misunderstood her expression, Sakura thought, but smiled and gave a reassuring nod nonetheless.

"Hey, look who's finally leaving the bunny slope," said Syaoran lightheartedly. Sakura answered with a shy smile.

"It took a while," Eriol spoke up, "but I am confident in Sakura's ability to dominate this next slope." Sakura took hold of Eriol's arm and tugged down lightly, willing her eyes to send her thoughts to Eriol. He must have gotten the message because he burst out laughing, a real laugh, the kind that came from the back of the throat. "Don't worry your pretty little head, Sakura-chan," he said, his laughter dying down, stroking her hair with his free hand like one would a small kitten. "I won't let go of you until you're ready." He slipped his arm out of her touch and slung it around her shoulder, pulling her body close to his. "You trust me, don't you?"

Sakura blinked at him, awfully aware of how close their bodies were now and even more aware of how warm her face had become. Nonetheless, she gave him a warm smile. "Of course I do," she said.

"It's great you're finally joining us, Sakura-chan," Tomoyo intervened. "I've been waiting to ride the chairlift with you all morning."

Sakura turned her head to face Tomoyo, the sudden twist of guilt in her stomach coming back. Hoping her face didn't look as apologetic as she felt, she opened her mouth to say something but Eriol spoke up first, once again perfectly conveying the words she wanted to say. "You will have your chance to ride down with our sweet Sakura-chan, but I think it's best she ride with me the first couple of times, just until she gets used to the steepness of this slope." Sakura felt a reassuring squeeze on her shoulder and she smiled inwardly in gratitude.

"We'll ride together as much as you'd like once I get used to the slope, Tomoyo-chan," Sakura offered. "I promise." She held out her pinky finger to her best friend.

Tomoyo looked between Eriol and Sakura a couple of times before she smiled and hooked her own pinky with Sakura's. "As much as I want, right?"

Sakura laughed. "Of course! Anything for you, Tomoyo-chan." She thought she saw a mixture of surprise and hurt on Tomoyo's face, but it vanished just as quickly as it came, replaced the naturally poised smile Tomoyo was known for.

"Well," Eriol intervened, "it looks like our ride is here." He shot a smile at Tomoyo and Syaoran, his arm still around Sakura. "Would you like to go first or should we?"

"We'll go first," Syaoran answered for the both of them. Tomoyo looked like she wanted to say something but was already being guided towards the front of the line by Syaoran.

"We'll see you at the bottom!" Sakura called out after the two. The only confirmation she got was from Tomoyo who turned around and gave Sakura a peace sign before turning back and taking her seat next to Syaoran. Eriol and Sakura stood in peaceful silence as they waited for the next lift to come. "I did well?" Sakura finally spoke up.

"You did perfect," Eriol replied. He helped Sakura onto the bench before settling in himself, giving the operator the thumbs up to let him know they were good to go. "May I ask," he said rather hesitant, "why are you still pretending to not have your memories of Syaoran-kun?"

Sakura blew hot air into her gloved hands if only just to occupy herself a bit longer. She had a nagging feeling since he revealed to her that he figured out that her memories had returned that he would ask sooner or later. She had hoped it would have been later—much, much later. She caught her lower lip between her teeth. "I don't know," she answered lamely, though it didn't sound convincing—not even to herself.

Eriol raised a sarcastic brow. "Oh?"

"I don't know," she said again. "I guess . . . it's easier this way?" She gave a shrug as if to say, What else is there?

Eriol looked like he wasn't buying it, or satisfied with her answer, Sakura couldn't tell which.

Sakura heaved a sigh. "I guess it's easier since I don't see the hurt they felt before I forgot about Syaoran-kun." Eriol tilted his head. Sakura copied him and smiled. "You saw it too, didn't you?" She turned her head back to face the scenery before them, kicking her feet lightly like a little kid. "They could barely look me in the eye. Of course, I was hurt, but it hurt more when they let their guilt eat them up and ended up avoided me as a result. I was the only one making the effort to make it like how it used to be—no matter how difficult it was, I still wanted everyone to continue to be friends."

"That's why you protected Tomoyo-chan when the school wanted someone to blame for your break-up," Eriol voiced, he had only guessed until now but secretly he was glad his instincts were still up to par.

Sakura nodded. "I love Tomoyo-chan, and I love Syaoran-kun; I never want any harm to come to either of them. So seeing them hurt every time they looked at me," she said, hugging herself, "hurt me too." She could feel Eriol's sad eyes on her. "But when my memories of Syaoran-kun got erased, there was a peace of mind that wasn't there before, from both of them. Their guilt was still there, but it wasn't eating at them as much as before. Since I didn't remember Syaoran-kun, much less what he meant to me, they were able to let up and be happy with each other, even when around me. I don't want to take that away from them." She locked eyes with Eriol and smiled a knowing smile. "But I'm sure you already figured that much out, huh?"

She saw the corner of his lips twitch ever so slightly. "I could only guess, like everyone else." He smiled and added as an afterthought, "Even though it was so obvious." Sakura laughed lightly. "But you know," said Eriol, ''one of them is bound to figure it out sooner or later, my money is on Tomoyo-chan."

Sakura's smile faltered and nodded in agreement. She was well aware of Tomoyo's keen eyes; if anyone were to figure out her memories had come back, after Eriol of course, it would be Tomoyo. Syaoran, on the other hand, would need to have someone tell him straight up to his face that Sakura regained her memories of him.

"What would you say if one of them found out and wants you and Syaoran-kun to get back together?"

Sakura's hands slid down to grab the edge of the bench and looked up at the clear blue sky ahead, her teeth nibbling her lower lip. "I guess," she said with a sigh, "the same thing you would."

Eriol's eyes widened in surprise. He wondered when the cute naive Sakura suddenly became not so, well, naive. Though her cuteness remained, her instincts and ability to read the people around her had certainly become more potent since elementary school. That or—had he really opened himself out so much to the point where even she could read him so well? He couldn't tell which, yet the realization left him oddly enamored.

"I'm surprised, Sakura-chan," said Eriol, not able to hide his smile. "But I suppose your reasons are better than mine—seeing as how things ended between you two and all, my reasons seem a little childish, don't you think?"

Sakura's head tilted to the side and her eyes blinked. "Eriol-kun." She placed one hand over his. "Don't disregard your own feelings like that. Of course they matter, they're yours."

Eriol stared at her dumbfounded, and then a gentle smile formed his lips. With his free hand, he ruffled Sakura's head, causing her to squeak in protest and properly adjust her cap to fit snugly on her head again. "Honestly, Sakura-chan, I will never understand how Syaoran-kun could have let someone as wonderful as you go so easily."

Sakura merely blinked, obviously confused by the sudden confession. "Hoe?"

Eriol chuckled and pointed a finger up ahead, Sakura's eyes followed the line of his finger. "Look, we're approaching the slope." He turned back to look at her. "Ready?"

Eyes shut, Sakura nodded enthusiastically. "Yup!"

Eriol noticed her grip on her ski poles seemed a bit too tight and smiled to himself. He nudged her gently. "Hey," he said, "we'll go down, together, I promise. I won't go on without you." Her eyes slowly grew more and more gentle, his words having calmed whatever last minute nerves she had.

Sakura nodded again. "Thank you, Eriol-kun. It's going to be fun."

Sakura got herself ready as the descent approached. Eriol signaled her with a nod that it was time to get off and together they slid off their seats and onto the white snow. It was steeper than what Sakura was expecting—she held her balance for a good ten seconds before losing control and falling right on her butt. Still, those ten seconds really were fun. The fall . . . not so much; the snow wasn't a soft as she expected it to be.

Eriol chuckled as he gracefully stopped in front of her. "You were great for a good ten seconds there, Sakura-chan." He held his hand out to help her up and she gratefully took it. Instead of letting her go, however, he took her other hand in his, his poles hanging from the safety wire on his wrists. "How about we take it slow together. Just keep your skis in a V-shape like I showed you so you don't start going down too fast."

Sakura nodded and shifted her feet as told. Then she noticed he was still facing her. "But wait, Eriol-kun, you won't be able to see where you're going."

Eriol simply smiled down at her. "Then you can be my eyes," he said, his voice held an air of amusement at the sight of her blush.

He opened up his skis and slowly they started their descent once again. Sakura gave a surprised yelp and he immediately stopped their momentum. "Sorry," said Sakura with an embarrassed smile.

Eriol squeezed her hands in reassurance. "It's all right, we'll go at your pace. I'm gonna start again and you let me know at what speed you're comfortable in okay? I'll control it so you just keep your feet as they are now."

Sakura nodded, her eyes burning with determination to successfully go down the slope. They started down again, first slowly but steadily gained some speed. Eriol watched her closely, careful not to go down too fast and both of them to lose balance and gave her words of encouragement every so often. He felt her squeeze his left hand and he took a quick glance behind him; they were approaching another skier who was getting used to the slope as well. She had signaled him to turn left and he did so with ease. Sakura smiled at him as they passed the other guy. Feeling confident she opened her skis a bit to gain more momentum and Eriol easily adjusted, not once letting go of her hands and making sure to keep her balanced.

Per Sakura's request, his hands hovered under hers, ready to steady her if she was to lose balance as they neared the end of the slope. She did well on her own the rest of the way—only linking hands once more to help her stop completely. They were completely oblivious to the group of girls who were admiring their chemistry from afar, as they had the previous day, as they made their way toward where Syaoran and Tomoyo were waiting for them.

"I did it!" Sakura exclaimed happily. She threw her arms around Eriol's neck giving him the biggest hug she could muster. "Thank you so much, Eriol-kun. I was only able to get this far thanks to your guidance after all!"

Eriol caught the glare Syaoran threw at him and couldn't help but be amused by it. In response, his arms went around Sakura's waist, returning her hug. "It was my pleasure, Sakura-chan."

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"You've really improved so much, Sakura-chan."

Sakura laughed bashfully and rubbed the back of her head. "You really think so, Tomoyo-chan?"

"Of course! And you looked so cute when you put all your focus on something," Tomoyo exclaimed, stars had formed in her eyes. "I hope that you don't mind that I recorded your first time coming down the slope."

"You know I never mind you recording me," Sakura said with a smile. "It makes you happy after all, right?"

Tomoyo smiled back. She glanced to where the boys were. They were picking up lunch for all of them but it seemed they hadn't even made a dent in the line. Syaoran caught her eyes and gave her a curt nod. She nodded back. "You know, Sakura-chan," Tomoyo started, "I wanted to talk to you about something, now that the guys are gone."

Sakura turned her body to face Tomoyo, indicating she had her full attention. She smiled expectantly at her best friend, encouraging her to go on.

"It's, well . . . it's about Syaoran-kun and me . . ." Tomoyo searched for a reaction at the mention of Syaoran. Nothing. Sakura still smiled expectantly at her. "We, erm . . . We broke up."

Sakura blinked, her eyes widened in surprise. "You . . . Oh, Tomoyo-chan, I'm so sorry." She wrapped her arms around her best friend, giving her the biggest comforting hug she could muster. She pulled back after a minute and held Tomoyo's hands gently with hers. "Are you all right? If there's anything I can do to help you get through this just ask. I'd do anything for you, Tomoyo-chan."

Tomoyo felt a wave of guilt pass through her as she thought back to the little to no support she offered Sakura with her own breakup. "I'm all right," she assured her best friend. "Actually it wasn't a bad break up—we both understood each other's feelings to go after our true number one. It happened so naturally it almost didn't feel like a breakup."

Sakura tilted her head, obviously confused. "True number one?"

"Not too long ago, I realized my feelings for Eriol-kun." Tomoyo blushed. "Which is one of the reasons of why we broke up . . . I hope it's okay that I like him, Sakura-chan."

Sakura's face lit up. "Of course it's okay to like him, why wouldn't it be?"

"Well because . . ." Tomoyo looked away, ashamed. "I only realized my feelings for Eriol-kun just after you confessed to me your feelings for him. I don't want either of you to think I only like him because I found out how you felt—I don't want to seem like the type of friend who goes after the guys her best friend likes and steals them away from her."

"I could never think that way about you." Sakura squeezed Tomoyo's hands in reassurance. "You love Eriol-kun, don't you?"

Tomoyo's blush deepened and she nodded in response.

"Then you shouldn't feel guilty. You can't help who you fall in love with." Sakura smiled a kind warm smile that reminded Tomoyo of Fujitaka. "Have you told Eriol-kun how you feel yet?"

Tomoyo shook her head. "I can't."

"Why not? You already know how he feels about you. I'm sure he'll be elated to know you like him back."

Tomoyo smiled weakly. "Thank you, Sakura-chan, but, I don't think it'll be that simple. I somehow have this gut feeling that he'll reject me if I tell him."

Sakura put a comforting hand on Tomoyo's shoulder but didn't say anything. Tomoyo was sure she would tell her to not worry and give her some encouraging pep talk, instead Sakura seemed deep in thought.

"I think," Sakura said carefully, "if you sincerely tell him your feelings, he will accept them wholeheartedly." Tomoyo looked surprised. "Just be honest, Tomoyo-chan," Sakura continued. "Be honest with yourself to him and there's no way he could ever reject you. He already loves you so much."

"Thank you, Sakura-chan," said Tomoyo, smiling. Albeit hesitant, Tomoyo asked, "Would you do the same if it were Syaoran-kun?"

"Hoe?" Sakura looked taken aback. "What do you mean?"

"Would you accept Syaoran-kun back if he told you he still loves you?"

"Eh-heh-heh-heh-heh, 'back'?" Sakura said. Tomoyo could now clearly see how nervous she was at the mention of Syaoran and their past relationship, how could she have not noticed before? "That's silly, Tomoyo-chan, he's only ever been with you. We'd have had to be together in the first place for me to—"

"It's okay, Sakura-chan," Tomoyo said, cutting her off. "I know."

"Ho-eh? Know what?"

"I know your memories of him got erased. But I also know you regained them again." Seeing the questioning look on her best friend's face she added, "I overheard you and Eriol-kun last night."

Sakura mouthed an 'Oh'.

Tomoyo gave Sakura's hands a light squeeze. "Sakura-chan, why didn't you tell me? Or anyone for that matter. Why did you feel the need to keep it to yourself and pretend like you still lost your memories of him?"

"Because . . . I didn't want to see you look so sad again." Sakura smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I wasn't sure if you knew of your feeling for Eriol-kun yet, and until I was sure I thought it'd be best for me to continue like I didn't know what he means to me."

"But what does that have to do with me looking sad?"

Sakura took a deep breath. "Before I lost my memories of him, you would always look at me with such sad eyes. I could see how guilty you felt about jumping into a relationship so fast with him but I could also see how much you love him. Whenever I was around, you were always holding back for my sake, and your eyes were always so sad and apologetic every time you looked at me, even when it was just the two of us hanging out.

"But when I lost my memories of him, it was almost like a weight was lifted off of you, both of you. Since I had no recollection of him you two could have a normal relationship without the guilt eating you up. You were so happy and smiling brightly again, even around me. When my memories returned, I knew you had figured out my memories of him were erased on your own, but I thought it would be best to hide that fact until you realized your feelings for Eriol-kun—I didn't want to interfere with the happy relationship you two shared."

"But what if I never came to realize my feelings for Eriol-kun? Or what if I only felt Syaoran-kun was my number one? Would you have at least told me your memories of him returned?"

"No, I don't think I would have," Sakura said honestly. "I don't want to see you look so sad ever again knowing I'm the cause. So if I saw that you were still in love with Syaoran-kun when I regained my memories, I would have given him up completely and pretended like my memories of him and I were still gone so you two would be happy together."

"Then, when you regained your memories, you knew I was in love Eriol-kun?"

"Well, I wouldn't say in love right away but, I knew your feelings for him were growing—I mean it's not like my memories between when I forgot Syaoran-kun to when I got them back were erased." Sakura gave a warm smile. "Even while you were with Syaoran-kun, I noticed you started developing feelings for Eriol-kun along the way, but you hadn't realized it yourself yet."

"And that's why you told me you loved Eriol-kun? To push my feelings for him out?"

"Well . . . no." Sakura blushed. "I really thought I fell in love with him then."

"Thought?" Tomoyo blinked. "Then you don't . . ."

Sakura shook her head. "No. I mean, I do love Eriol-kun, but it's the same kind of love I have for my dad. It could be because they're so alike in many ways, but there's really nothing more than that." Sakura gently squeezed Tomoyo's hands. "So don't worry about hurting me by confessing your feelings to him, okay? You love him and he loves you back. He's been patiently waiting for you all this time, just like he said he would. You should tell him as soon as possible."

"Thank you, Sakura-chan." Tears were welling up and before they could fall, Tomoyo pulled Sakura into a hug. "Sakura-chan," Tomoyo said softly, "I think it's about time you told Syaoran-kun your memories of him returned. He has a right to know too."

Sakura hugged her back. "I know."

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"What do you think the girls are talking about?" Eriol asked, making some small talk. The boys finally were able to place their orders and we're now waiting for their number to be called.
"Who knows," Syaoran said with a shrug. He glanced over and saw the two girls hug. "Could be about Tomoyo-chan and I's break up."

"Woah, what? Back-track." Eriol placed a hand on Syaoran's shoulder. "You and Tomoyo-chan broke up?"

Syaoran nodded and flinched at the sudden increase in pressure on his shoulder.

"When?"

"Last night," Syaoran replied as calmly as possible.

"Did you hurt her? I swear if you made her cry I'll—"

"It was mutual," Syaoran cut off.

"What?"

"The break-up was mutual," said Syaoran. "After you two left we started talking and it just happened naturally. Actually, we both had questioned ourselves if we had really broken up and came to the agreement together."

"I see." Eriol's arm flopped back to his side and crossed his arms. "So what now? Are you going to go after Sakura-chan?" He didn't even try to hide the bitterness in his tone. He still hasn't forgiven Syaoran for how he had left Sakura heartbroken in a storm . . . twice.

"I love her," Syaoran said simply. "Even if she doesn't remember me, even if I have to start all over, I won't give up. I know her feelings for me are still there somewhere."

"Did you even love Tomoyo-chan?"

"Of course I did," Syaoran replied. "But my feelings for her could never match how you feel towards her. She and I, we both found out the hard way that in the end we weren't meant to be."

"I have to admit," said Eriol, "you two lasted longer than I thought you would."

"I'm not sure how I should take that," Syaoran admitted, a sweat mark forming above his head.

"Take it any way you'd like," Eriol replied with a smile and wave of the hand.

"What about you? Are you going after Tomoyo-chan now?"

Eriol shook his head. "She already knows how I feel about her, I have long made my move. Besides, she already gave me her answer. Even if by some miracle she returns my feelings I will wait until that day, I won't pressure her into something she's not ready for."

"Tomoyo-chan is no Meiling when it comes to showing you her affection, but when she says that she loves you, she means it. She's always careful with her choice of words and how she says them, so you know whatever she tells you is from the heart."

"Yes," said Eriol with a smile. "That's certainly true."

At that moment, the two heard their number being called out. They arrived at the counter and each took one tray that held two bowls of ramen each and made their way back to where the girls were reserving the table. The girls greeted them warmly as they passed the bowls to the respective person.

They ate as they settled in a comfortable, casual conversation. Even after having finished their meal they continued chatting comfortably. At some point, Syaoran excused himself from the table and Sakura went back in line to get a to-go order of ramen (for Kero who was waiting in her room), leaving Eriol and Tomoyo alone. There was a moment of awkward silence between the two, and then:

"So, um . . ." Tomoyo started, breaking the silence. "I . . . well," she hesitated. Taking a deep breath she continued. "Syaoran-kun and I broke up."

Eriol was taken aback. He knew she would confidence in him sooner or later, although he had expected it to be later rather than sooner. His head nodded as an automatic response. "Ah, yeah," he said flustered. "He mentioned it while we were waiting for the food to be ready."

Tomoyo smiled softly. She knew Syaoran had told him already, but she still had to tell Eriol herself if she were to confess her feelings to him. "Did he tell you why?"

Eriol thought back to his conversation with Syaoran. "He didn't go into too much detail, actually. He only said it was mutual between the both of you," Eriol responded and added, "Is that true?"

Tomoyo smiled and gave a small nod. "Yes, it was mutual." She felt her face grow hot as she forced herself to look at him as she added, "We thought it would be best for both of us to stop lying to ourselves and go after our true number ones."

"Both of you?"

Tomoyo bit her lower lip, second guessing herself if it was the right thing to do confessing her feelings for him. And then Sakura's words played in her head: Just be honest, Tomoyo-chan. Be honest with yourself to him and there's no way he could ever reject you. He already loves you so much.

"You may already know this but, Syaoran-kun still loves Sakura-chan."

Eriol chuckled. "It's hard not to notice," he admitted.

Tomoyo nodded, smiling as well. "That's one of the reasons we broke up. I was selfish in accepting to be his girlfriend. I loved him and deep down I knew he was only using me as a rebound—to make Sakura-chan jealous and feel what he had been feeling having misinterpreted you and Sakura-chan for months—I knew all that and still I chose to ignore it to be with the boy I loved. Yes, we were happy the short time we had together, but something was always felt off between us. I know that he is still in love with her and I didn't want to be an anchor keeping him back from the person he loves just so he wouldn't hurt me. And somewhere along the way I fell in love with someone else as well." Tomoyo's lips pulled into a soft smile. Her eyes sparkled a shade lighter as the orange setting sun hit them from the window across the room from them. "That someone is you, Eriol-kun."

To say Eriol was surprised would be an understatement. "How long have you known?"

"I only realized my feelings for you when Sakura-chan confessed to me she might be in love with you at Christmas."

"I see."

It was subtle but she noticed the disappointment in his tone and quickly added, "But it's been building up for a while, I swear it's not because Sakura-chan confessed to me she might love you. I can't exactly pinpoint a specific time or anything but slowly I've . . . fallen for you. And when Sakura-chan told me she might have feelings for you as well, I could almost feel my heart breaking."

Well how about that, Eriol thought to himself, amused. Sakura-chan was right.

"Even when we were together we both watched you two from afar. And you and Sakura-chan—you're so natural and comfortable with each other, I can now sympathize with Syaoran-kun for getting the wrong idea about the two of you in the first place. I think I've been subconsciously suppressing my feelings for you because I could see how much Syaoran-kun needed me. He had already lost Sakura-chan. I couldn't leave him to get through it on his own, he acts tough but even he needs someone to lean on for support. But eventually, even Syaoran-kun could see how much my feelings for you have grown."

"So by both of you, you mean . . . ?"

Tomoyo nodded. "Syaoran-kun still loves Sakura-chan. And he's not going to give up on her this time. And I've finally come to terms with how I feel about you." With a gentle smile, Tomoyo said, "The person I really like is you, Eriol-kun."

Now Eriol was completely speechless for the unexpected happened. He really hadn't expected Tomoyo to actually return his feelings. It couldn't be true, could it? This has to be a dream.

"I know this may seem a little sudden," Tomoyo continued. "I mean it hasn't been that long since Syaoran-kun and I broke up and I understand it may seem wrong to jump into a relationship so fast, so this time I will wait for you. I just want you to know that how I feel about you is real. I really do like you, Eriol-kun."

Tomoyo patiently waited for Eriol to respond. Her eyes searched for some kind of indication that her words got to him. But as always Eriol was hard to read, even with her keen observation skills. A sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach began to form. Perhaps Sakura was wrong. Perhaps she made him wait too long to the point of giving up on her. Perhaps he had begun developing feelings for Sakura instead. Perhaps her gut feeling was right, no matter how much she wished otherwise. Perhaps—

After what felt like forever he let out a sigh. "How could I ever say no to that?" Eriol said softly. And before she knew it, Tomoyo was gently enveloped in his arms. She wrapped her hands around the arm that was hugging her from the front and smiled.

Sakura-chan was right.

Eriol let go of her and grabbed a clean napkin from the table. "Hey now, there's no need to cry, is there?" He chuckled at her surprised expression. "What's the matter?"

Tomoyo took the napkin and dabbed her eyes dry. "I don't know," she said. "I guess I'm just . . . relieved?"

"You thought I wasn't going to accept your feelings?"

Tomoyo nodded. "I had a gut feeling you would reject me if I told you how I felt."

Eriol chuckled. "To be honest, I was." He smiled and took one of her hands in his. "But that was only if you wanted me out heartbreak. I wouldn't feel right taking advantage of you when you're at your most vulnerable. It was important for me to be sure that your judgment wasn't clouded by hurt and despair whenever it was you said you returned my feelings. I'm glad that wasn't the case here."

Tomoyo blushed as his lips grazed over her knuckles.

"But you were right, it would be wrong for us to jump into a relationship so suddenly. So," he said with a smirk, "let me take you out first. Let's go on a couple dates together and see how it goes from there. Would you like to visit the temple with me on New Years?"

Tomoyo smiled. "Yes. I'd like that."

XxXxXx§xXxXxX

Sakura, wrapped in a pink blanket she brought from home, walked aimlessly down the hall. She had laid in bed for a good hour but just couldn't fall asleep, even when her body was physically exhausted from the day's activities on the slopes. She would usually just let her head hit the pillow and within minutes be in dreamland, but for whatever reason, her eyes and mind remained awake. She glanced at her wristwatch that had been given to her by Eriol as a Christmas gift; it read as 22:45. She was craving some hot chocolate but doubted the cafe would be open at this hour.

She had somehow made it to the lounge area of the resort and suddenly remembered seeing a 24-hour self-service beverage stand near the cafe and made her way there. She caught the light of the fireplace across the room and noticed a lone figure on the couch to the side of it staring at the flickering fire.

Curiosity got the better of her as she made her way toward the person and was half surprised to find the person was Syaoran. She rested her arms on the back of the couch near the middle and took in his profile. He hadn't noticed her yet, too deep in his own thoughts as he watched the fire dance before him. His eyes had a tender, remorseful ambiance about them that Sakura couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking to cause such grievance.

"Sakura."

Her heart skipped a beat at hearing the flow of her name float effortlessly from his lips in it holding the love and regret he must have been thinking about.

"What is it?" she answered, subconsciously.

She tilted her head just as he turned his head to see who had answered him. There was a brief pause as soon as their eyes met.

"W-what is it?" he asked somewhat casually and stood up, albeit turning his face in the opposite direction.

"That's what I was asking," she said with a timid laugh. She stood up straight to match him. "I was just going to get myself some hot chocolate. Would you like a cup?"

"Ah, s-sure."

Sakura beamed. "Have a seat, I'll be right back."

Sakura turned and made her way to her original destination to make both of them some hot chocolate. Once finished, she handed him his cup and sat on the floor in front of the fire while he remained on the couch. They both sipped their drinks as they stared into the fire. Syaoran was watching her from the corner of his eye.

"I'm sorry to hear about your break-up with Tomoyo-chan," she said suddenly.

Syaoran nodded. "It's all right. It was mutual on both our parts."

She turned to look at him. "She couldn't say it earlier, but I'm sure she thanks you."

Syaoran looked surprised.

Sakura smiled. "You could tell she wanted to confess to Eriol-kun too, right? That's why you excused yourself from the table earlier, isn't it?"

Syaoran turned and looked back at the fire. "Right." His eyes found her again at the sound of her soft giggle.

"You're very kind, Syaoran-kun."

Syaoran blushed. Feeling and odd sense of deja-vu but he was thankful for this rare chance to spend time with her without Eriol or Kero to remind him to keep his distance and— Wait. Did she just call me Syaoran?

"Wah, snow!" she exclaimed, pointing at the large ceiling to floor window behind him. "Hey let's go outside for a bit, shall we?"

She quickly placed her cup on the table behind her and ran outside. Puffs of air escaped as she marveled in the gentle fall of the snow. Syaoran followed her outside. He found her laughing and twirling around in the deck with her arms out, albeit still holding the corners of her blanket. Syaoran couldn't help but smile seeing her look so happy. She stopped suddenly and ran to the railing. Her hands in front of her again wrapping the blanket around her frame. She was looking at the mountains before her, although it was past midnight by now, the sky was a blue-green mix, the stars shining proudly above them. Syaoran joined her at the railing.

"It's so beautiful isn't it?" she said softly.

Syaoran hadn't glanced at the view yet, he was still watching her. "Yeah," he said. "Beautiful."

"It's a weird sense of deja-vu, isn't it? We were out here in grade school, too," Sakura said softly. "Back then, you were trying to confess to me, weren't you, but I suddenly cut you off. I'm sorry for that."

Syaoran's eyes widened. "Sakura. You . . . you remember that? You remember me?"

Sakura smiled but it didn't reach her eyes, slowly turning to face him. "Yeah, I remember."

"H-how?"

"It's like you said you wanted. I admitted to being in love with Eriol-kun." She saw the hurt in his eyes and knew he still loved her. "But I could only think like that because I didn't know what you meant to me. When I confessed to Tomoyo-chan that I might be in love with Eriol-kun all that filled my head afterward was you and our memories together. I never stopped loving you, Syaoran-kun. Even when I forgot about you, I still felt that you were someone special to me."

"So," he said slowly. "You really don't love Hiiragizawa?"

"It's like how I've been telling you before: I love him, but it's more the kind of love I have for my dad," she answered.

"I'm sorry," Syaoran said. "I should have believed in you more before."

"Yeah," was all she could say, her eyes downcast in the floor.

He took a step closer to her as if testing to see if would be okay to approach her again. When she didn't make a move to step away he closed the gap between them and took her into his arms. "God, Sakura, I was stupid. So stupid. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I'm sorry I let my jealousy get the better of me. I'm sorry I made you forget me. I sorry I left you out in the cold. I'm sorry you got sick because of me. I'm sorry for abandoning you. I'm just—I'm so sorry."

Sakura felt her shoulder beginning to get wet and freed one of her hands to rub his arm in comfort.

"You don't know . . . how long I've wanted to hold you like this again. Sakura, I'm so sorry. I promise, now that I got you back, I won't ever let go of you again."

"I'm sorry, too," she said. And Syaoran lifted his head when he felt something wet on his cheek. She was silently crying too. "I'm sorry, Syaoran-kun but, I can't offer you forgiveness right now."

Sakura had to look away. She couldn't stand to see him look so heartbroken, it was like the color drained from his world at her words. He was speechless. What could he possibly say to that?

"Why?" Was all that could run through his mind. He had it realized he said it out loud until she opened her mouth to answer.

"Because you lied to me," she answered and forced herself to look at him again. "You said you wanted to break up with me because you didn't love me anymore. Because you might have feelings for Tomoyo-chan instead. If that were really the case then I would have let you go unconditionally. At first, I was acting out of a broken heart, trying to explain what was really going on between Eriol-kun and me, believing there was still a chance to fix everything if I told you the truth. But even when I did you chose not to believe me and left me out in a snow storm not once but twice. I had . . . no idea you could be so cold to me, Syaoran-kun."

Syaoran flinched.

"Even with my memories of you gone, I could sense your heart wasn't fully with Tomoyo-chan. And even before that, I sensed it as well, that's why I tried so hard to tell you the truth, but you wouldn't even listen to what I had to say. You used Tomoyo-chan's love for you as an excuse to get back at me. And she knew that too, but she had the hope that you would eventually love her back."

"What about Tomoyo-chan? You can't forgive her either?"

Sakura shook her head. "I already forgave her. She never once lied to me about her feelings for you. Even when I didn't know the person she loved was you, whenever she talked about her most important person I could tell she had loved him for a long time. That's why I protected and supported both of you when word got around you two became a couple. For Tomoyo-chan."

"Oh," was all he could say.

"Syaoran-kun," she said, taking one of his hands in both of hers. "I still love you. But, when I told you nothing was going on between Eriol-kun and I you didn't believe me. I would've believed you."

Listless, Syaoran nodded. "I'm sorry. I was just afraid I was going to lose you to him."

"And so you broke my heart to protect yours."

He could all but look at her with longing and anguish. He knew everything she said was true, there was no point in making excuses. "I didn't even think twice when I ran to you after I found out from Hiiragizawa I had made you forgot me and I thought I had lost you, really lost you. But now, because of my own selfishness, I really did lose you, didn't I."

"Syaoran-kun, after you broke up with me, you showed me a side of you I've never seen before and I don't like it . . . I think we need a break," she said gently. "Or guess it'd be better to say I need some more time since we're still technically broken up."

"Sakura."

"Please," she said softly, failing to hold back her tears. She hated seeing him look so hurt knowing she's the cause. "I just need some time to myself right now. You can give me that, can't you?"

There was a pause. And then, "Of course," he said. "I'd do anything for you."

"Thank you," she said softly, so softly he almost didn't hear it. She made her way back inside and his eyes followed her until she disappeared into the hall.

"I still love you, Sakura. And I'm sorry."

XxXxXx§xXxXxX

Anonymous Reviews from Chapter 20

Guest (1) Thank you! I know it's not finished yet, but it's almost complete! Thank you for reviewing!

Sakura1112 Aw, thank you so much. I'm glad I made you reminisce about your first OTP. I hope you are able to catch this chapter update as well! Of course, Syaoran and Sakura will get together, but if you have a suggestion how (since we're all pissed at him and he needs kinda needs something epic to win Sakura back) let me know! Thank you for following me for a long time. I hope you enjoy this chapter as well! I'm sorry for the long awaited update but at least it wasn't three years, right? XD

Nerdy Noddy Haha, I know, a lot of readers wanted Eriol and Sakura to get together to get back at Tomoyo and Syaoran, but like Eriol told Syaoran before, he wouldn't go out with Sakura even if she developed feelings for her because he already loves Tomoyo and didn't want to lead her on. Even though both Tomoyo and Syaoran now know Sakura's memories have returned doesn't mean I can't torture Syaoran for being a jerk any less. Tomoyo has the support of Sakura, that's why she was able to confess to Eriol, but he's a smart man, he knows it wouldn't be right to just jump into a relationship which is why I had them kind of start all over. As for Sakura and Syaoran, well as you read in the last scene, he got his just desserts. How long should we keep him in suspense? If you have a suggestion on how SxS can get back together please let me know. Thank you for reviewing!

Guest (2) I totally understand your frustration and confusion, but that's what made writing this crazy love square so fun. I hope this chapter explained a little more so you're not so confused. But no, Sakura doesn't love Eriol like that. She THOUGHT she did but that was because she forgot Syaoran and BFF's bf is out of the question. So even though she felt the connection with him with her memories gone, she didn't even try to question it because he was Tomoyo's boyfriend. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask. I loved hearing your input.

Elena Regina Auditore Aw thank you. Sorry for making you wait again ^^;

neko-chiidesu lol I look forward to your review! I love reading which parts were your favorite. I hope this chapter shed some light as well. There's more to come!

KaTaRiNaH Thank you so much for supporting me since the beginning. I always look forward to your reviews. I hope this chapter lived up to your expectations as well. ^^

Ambo19 I'm glad you liked it! I hope you continue to support it! ^^

newReader I UPDATED! I HOPE YOU ENJOY THIS CHAPTER AS WELL! SORRY IF YOU HAVE TO REREAD TO CATCH UP!

So yeah! That's about it for now! But don't worry, this isn't the end just yet but we're close! Probably a chapter or two left. I know a lot of you wanted Eriol and Sakura to get together to get back at Syaoran but Eriol said so himself, he wouldn't go out with her even if she developed feelings for him since he already loves Tomoyo. It would seem hypocritical of him to go back on his words. So this is the next best thing, right? But if you have any ideas on how SxS will get back together please leave it in a review and I will take it into consideration. Thank you for reading and again, so sorry for the wait. ^^;

Sakura-chan Master of the Clow