Dance With Me

Part 4

On Friday, the Seijyu High School campus was bursting with Valentine's Day spirit and excitement. Taped up four days before, the heart-plastered posters that trumpeted the coming of the dance were already beginning to peel off and flap in the wind. They wouldn't be needed anymore; the long-awaited night would be there in only a few hours.

Tomoyo smiled, breathing in the contagious thrill that rippled through the air. The bag she clutched held two small packages of Valentine chocolates, one for Sakura and one for... Dare she give it to him? Her stomach jumped. To take her mind off her own nervousness, she glanced at Syaoran. He was buried deep in his thoughts, seemingly oblivious to everything going on around him. Or perhaps he was trying to keep it out.

"Hey, Li, are you gonna give it to her this year?" she said.

Syaoran jumped. "G-give what?" he muttered, turning a bright shade of pink.

"Her Valentine, of course! And tell how you really feel! If you don't, I'm going to tell her myself! Honestly, I don't know why you're being such a chicken-"

"I am NOT a chicken!" he said loudly.

"Then tell Sakura!"

"Tell me what?"

It was Sakura. Smiling at Syaoran's horror, Tomoyo handed her friend the chocolates. "Happy Valentine's Day!" she said, giving her a hug. Give it to her, she mouthed to Syaoran over her shoulder.

"Thank you, Tomoyo! I have one for you too!" Sakura dug into her backpack and pulled out a milk chocolate heart decorated with white icing. "And you-" She turned to Syaoran with one hand still buried in the backpack, and he turned red under her suspicious stare. "What were you talking about before? Tell me what, Syaoran?"

"N-n-nothing!" he said, looking at the ground. Tomoyo covered her mouth to stifle a giggle. Puzzled, Sakura glanced from one face to the other. She's so dense, Tomoyo thought with a smile. Syaoran, you have to tell her.

Her gaze drifted to a couple standing near them. Chiharu and Yamazaki. "I can't believe we've been together for so long!" Chiharu exclaimed as she gave her boyfriend a wrapped box.

"Yeah," Yamazaki agreed, smiling. "Hey, did you know that Saint Valentine's Day was made when Saint Nicholas's younger sister got mad and decided she wanted her own holiday too? You see, she- Ow!"

Chiharu had given him a hard shove. "You big liar! That's a stupid story!"

"What?? But it's funny!"

"Oh, yeah? We'll see what's funny!" growled Chiharu, holding a large science textbook high over his head.

"Hey!! What did I do?" he protested. Before she could say another word, he had his hands over hers and had her disarmed at once with a quick kiss.

"Awww! Aren't those two adorable?" said Tomoyo, her eyes sparkling.

"Yep!" Sakura grinned. "They're just perfect for each other."

Tomoyo saw that Syaoran was blushing redder than usual. Was he picturing himself and Sakura as a couple? Envying Chiharu and Yamazaki? She wished Syaoran and Sakura would hurry up and realize their feelings for each other. Not only for her friend's happiness, but for her own as well. Maybe if Sakura had a boyfriend, Eriol would give up his pursuit of her. Then he would be free. And then maybe, just maybe, he would be able to see that someone else really wished for him and wanted to be with him...

Tomoyo shook herself for thinking such things. How could she? If the one she loved was happy, she was happy. Hadn't she told Sakura this years ago? Of course, it had a different meaning now. She would be alright, she would happy, as long as being with Sakura made him happy, right? Well then, why did she feel like crying?  

She suddenly found herself staring at a slender bouquet of roses surrounding a single lily magnolia. Her heart thudding wildly, she looked up into the smiling eyes of Eriol.

"Don't be sad," he whispered. Though his face was smiling, his deep eyes were filled with something she had never seen before. Sympathy, understanding, and a lonely sadness that pulled at her heart until it ached. It felt as though she was looking right into his soul, and it looked sore and wounded. She wanted to heal it, to make it better.

Barely able to breathe, Tomoyo took the bouquet. She could still feel a bit of warmth near the bottom stems where his hand had touched. Lily magnolia...how had he known that it was one of her favorite flowers?   

Then he spoke aloud in a normal voice, breaking the closeness. "Tomoyo, Happy Valentine's Day. Thank you for relaying my message yesterday."

She blushed. After the Flower incident, she had forgotten to do any such thing. But she was saved from him discovering this, for he immediately turned to Sakura. "So I'll pick you up at seven forty-five?"

"Yes! That's good," said Sakura. "The dance starts at eight, and fifteen minutes is plenty of time to walk to school."

"Walk?" Eriol frowned.

"Yeah! You guys, I was hoping we could all walk together from my house! Let's all meet there at seven forty-five, okay?" she bubbled excitedly.

Tomoyo stared down at the ground to keep from gazing at Eriol. She had been thinking of getting a ride in the limo. She wanted to see as little of Sakura and Eriol together as possible.

"Fine," muttered Syaoran. He was busy engaging in a heated glare battle with Eriol, who only smiled icily in return.

"Tomoyo?" asked Sakura. "Is that okay with you?"

She forced on a cheerful smile. "Sure! Why not?" The scent of flowers drifted into her nose, and she focused her eyes on the beautiful blossoms. Eriol... Should she give him the chocolate? What if he's disgusted and refuses them? What if he-? No. He couldn't. After all, he had given her the flowers. She started to reach into her bag.

"See you tonight then, Sakura," Tomoyo heard him say. Her eyes flew up. Eriol was handing Sakura a small bouquet of roses and cherry blossoms. She felt Syaoran tense up beside her. Cherry blossoms? Could it be...could it be that he was the one behind the cherry blossoms from the Flower card? No. Absolutely not. Just because he was giving Sakura cherry blossoms didn't mean anything. He had given Tomoyo her favorite flower. And cherry blossoms represented Sakura's name. But she caught the subtle look flitting from Syaoran to Sakura, and her mind whirled.

Could it really be Eriol? Tomoyo closed her eyes. What was that feeling she had touched when she looked into his eyes? Was that magic? 

"I knew it was him!" said Syaoran contemptuously.

"Syaoran, hush!" Sakura said. "He's not that far away, he could still hear you!"

Tomoyo watched him walk away and disappear around the corner of the building. Without a word, she raced after him, not listening to the cries of "Tomoyo! Wait!" from behind her. All thoughts of him and magic were wiped away. She was scared to death, but she just couldn't let him get away.

"Eriol!" she called. The boy turned around, his face a picture of surprise.

Flushed and panting, she pushed the bag of chocolates into his hands. "Happy Valentine's Day," she said and made a U-turn at once, not wanting to see his response.

"Tomoyo." The gentle voice made her knees weak, her heart tremble. Against her will, she stopped.

"Thank you, Tomoyo," he said.

*****

Hey, everyone! Thanks for reading! The dance is coming soon, I promise!! ^_^ So what did you think? Good or bad? Suggestions?

Thank you VERY much to all of you who reviewed before, and continue to do so! Your reviews help immensely and motivate me beyond measure. The story unfolds faster and better because of you. Thank you!! T_T ::tears of joy::

For those of you who read my story but didn't review, I thank you also. Maybe you're just speechless because it's soo amazingly good (^_^;) or because it's really, horribly bad?? (Aack...hopefully not...) Well, I won't know unless you tell me! So review! ::grin::