Chapter 2

Tomoyo sipped her glass of champagne quietly. A cool breeze fluttered, blowing her hair gently. The view of the city was astounding. All those lights in the distance, so far away and yet so near. She placed her glass on the window sill. The noise and the revelry behind her seemed distant. So lost in her thoughts was she, that she failed to notice the shadow beside her, that is until it spoke.

'A penny for your thoughts?'

Startled, she turned to gaze at the dark shadow next to her. She smiled. Touya Kinomoto. Ever since she left high school, she had hardly seen him. They used to meet when she was younger and visited Sakura quite often. And she had always been slightly in awe of him. He had always seemed like such an enigma. And when Sakura got married to Syaoran and moved to China, they had lost touch altogether. They didn't even run into each other socially, for she was really not the partying type. She found herself wondering if he was. He hadn't really changed. He was as handsome as ever, infact if possible, maybe even a little more.

'If someone offered me a penny, for every thought, I would be a millionaire many times over.'

'Let's drink to that' and Touya raised his glass. She raised hers in acknowledgement.

She sipped at her champagne once more. As she felt the liquid run down her throat, she was left with a strange sensation. She attributed it to the fact that she hardly ever drank. She preferred soaking in the visual delights of the city in front of her.

'Your glass is almost untouched' commented Touya. His own, was half empty.

She shrugged. 'I'm not much of a drinker, social or otherwise.'

'So why the exception today?'

In response, she toyed with her glass. She was not sure if she really wanted to answer that. A part of her urged her to. But to be honest, she felt like she was a stranger, to herself if that was possible. Why was she even there? Because Meiling had insisted? But she could have always refused politely, like she did to numerous other invitations. So what had changed? She wasn't quite sure.

'If truth be told, everything about you, is an exception today.' Touya observed her critically. Setting his glass aside on the window sill, he leaned forward, resting his elbows against the window, drinking in the city delights himself. Staring at the setting sun, as the fiery orange dipped below the horizon.

'What do you mean?' she questioned a tad defensively.

He looked at her penetratively. She shivered slightly. At was as though he were peeking into her very soul. His answer was a slow drawl, one she had heard many times before, when he had been explaining something very patiently to Sakura. Only it was a little modified. But she still felt slightly irritated. She was not in any mood to be patronized.

'Well for starters, I don't think you're the party type. Infact I'm quite sure that this is the only one you've attended since high school. Am I right?'

She nodded her head slowly, but was swift to counteract him. 'How can you be so sure? Maybe we weren't invited to the same social gatherings, and even if we were, were you present at all of them?'

He shrugged. 'You're quite right in your assessment. My job as a researcher does not allow me the luxury of dancing the night away.'

Struck by curiosity, she questioned softly, 'What do you research?'

'New pharmaceutical advancements and their effects on the human immune system.'

'Interesting. Which only means that it's a case of the pot calling the kettle black', she said grinning.

'You're no kettle, black or otherwise.'

She looked at him quizzically.

'Tomoyo, I'm sure you're aware that you look simply fabulous tonight. I'm certain your boyfriend must be enduring stabs of jealousy, watching us together like this.'

She blushed slightly, taken aback by the unexpected compliment. It was true that she had taken a little effort that night. She had decided to wear a dark green dress, slightly low cut. She had put on a pair of matching earrings, and a lovely pendant nestled between her breasts. She had strapped on a pair of heels and had left her hair open, which made her look, somehow vulnerable.

She took in a deep breath of the cool night air. 'No not really. I'm still single.' She glanced sideways at him. He was very casually dressed, in a pair of black jeans, an olive green shirt, a jacket and loafers. She could not deny that he did make her pulse race, just a little bit. 'What about you? Are you sure your girlfriend isn't going to storm out of here in a fit, seeing us together like this?'

'I don't think so. For starters I don't have one.'

'Oh.' That was the only response that she could think of. 'What else seems to be an exception about me tonight?' She couldn't help asking. Unexplainably, she felt drawn to him.

He watched her silky hair rise and fall with the gusts of wind. If he leaned in, just a little bit closer, he would be able to smell her perfume. Abruptly he straightened. 'Let's just say everything.'

Lifting his glass, he drank the rest in one swift gulp. Setting the empty glass down, he turned to face her. 'I'm going to call it a night. I have to be in my office early tomorrow morning. Would you like to walk back with me? If my recollection is right you live just a block way from my apartment. That is if you want to, and if you haven't got your car.'

She looked at him reflectively. There was something different about that night. It was almost magical. And she was afraid that the bubble would burst any minute. She could not remember the last time she had enjoyed herself so much. And she did not want it to end. She found herself nodding in acceptance, leaving her still almost full glass behind.