V

She couldn't help but become confused by hour he had requested to see her this time. Compared to the rest of their encounters, this hour it was just too early. Tomoyo couldn't help but think that, despite she actually wanted to see him, she would also appreciate to see him past ten p.m., since she was planning to get to work on those new costumes she had to do…

Still, when at eight sharp, the doorbell was heard all across her apartment, Tomoyo was completely ready and waiting. She had pulled her hair with a white bow in a half ponytail. That night, she was wearing a grey shirt and grey skinny jeans. Knowing how Touya seemed to be always ready to be part of a photoshoot for the cover of Vanity Fair, Elle, or Cosmopolitan, she decided to wear navy blue high heels, that perfectly matched her navy jacket, which had tons of silver zippers. It definitely looked way more sophisticated to what she usually wore, but still, looked as something she would definitely wear.

When she finally opened the door, she could see Touya as tall and polished as ever, with his usual expressionless aura. Once again, he definitely looked as he was ready to be part of a photoshoot: black pants and black shoes, a dark red long sleeved shirt with a round neck, and a grey jacket. With his hands in his pockets, he hurried to ask:

"Ready?"

Tomoyo nodded, hurried to walk out of her apartment, and close the door behind her. She took only a couple of seconds to be sure the door was properly locked, and after putting her keys in her bag, she and Touya walked down the street, where the usual black vehicle was already waiting for them, so to take them to his place. Still, this time there was no driver that hurried to open the door for her. It was Touya who took his hand out of his pocket, and walked first so to open the door for her. A little bit confused, Tomoyo slid herself inside the car, and waited in silence while Touya closed the door and walked the other way, so to get in too.

A few seconds later, with Touya sitting behind the wheel, inserting the key and starting the engine, they finally drove away. There, once again, as they wandered the perfectly lit streets of Tokyo, Tomoyo could feel something weird was happening. This time they didn't take the usual road that led to Touya's place. Instead of driving towards the west, the vehicle was heading towards south, and soon enough, they crossed the bay.

The only thing that seemed it wasn't going to change, was Touya not trying to make small talk between them both. Maybe it was the way he liked to drive, maybe he also didn't know the way and wanted to focus on the route so he didn't take a wrong exit, maybe it was just that he didn't have anything to say… either way, the atmosphere felt heavy, and Tomoyo thought the best to make it lighter was to turn on the radio, looking for a soft song that could help them both think about something and nothing at all, at the same time.

She lowered the volume so for the sound to reach them as it was nothing but a mere whisper (she also didn't want for Touya to suddenly turn it off and so they would be back at the starting point of awkward silence), so it took her a couple of seconds to figure out that she knew the voice that was singing to them. Tomoyo took her time and listened carefully to the sweet feminine voice, until she finally figured that the melody that was filling her heart and soul with peacefulness was no other but Sakura.

She looked at Touya by the corner of her eye, trying to see if he had also guessed it was her little sister's voice, but just as always, there was no expression in his face. He was still looking in front of him, eyes fixed on the road, slightly frowning, slightly pressing his lips shut.

The trip lasted no more than fifteen minutes. When the vehicle finally stopped and the engine was turned off (and wih it, so was the radio), Tomoyo found out they were now on top of a hill, in the southern outskirts of the city; an old parking lot with poor lightning, and with no presence of any other cars or any other people, it hinted her the place was kind of forgotten.

The hill was quite tall, and there were no trees blocking the view, so it wasn't even needed form them to step out of the car to see the beautiful city view of Tokyo. Either way, when Tomoyo saw Touya opening his door and stepping down, she decided to do the same. Her heels did a funny noise when they pressed against the gravel. She did as Touya and walked in front of the car, and after taking his hand (walking over gravel with heels was complicated and not the best of her ideas), he helped her to sit over the car hood.

Asking herself if it was right to (but not seeing Touya trying to stop her), she placed her heels over the car's bumper, and hugged her legs, while Touya leaned against the car, keeping one foot on the floor, and the other one in the car's bumper, with both of his hands inside his pants pockets.

They remained like so, looking at the scenery in silence, for about just five minutes, when Tomoyo couldn't help herself, and looking at him by the corner of her eye, she finally asked in a whisper:

"What are we doing here?"

Just as always, Touya didn't reply instantly. He took his time to look the horizon, and not turning to see her, he finally answered:

"I come here when I need time to think."

Tomoyo was tempted to ask what did Touya needed to think about that time. But before she could even end formulating that question in her mind, it evolved into another way more personal. Maybe Touya thought that this time, whom needed to think about something, was her? And if that was the case, what was that thing Tomoyo needed to think about?

Once again, it took longer to formulate the question in her head, than to discover the answer. Her mind had resolved that question in an automatic way, almost as if she already knew the answer: Tomoyo needed to think about her feelings for Touya. About what was happening between them both. Those encounters that nobody besides them knew about. Yes, those times when they had slept together, those times when they both had enjoyed their skins touching one another, the lust in their care, having sex instead of making love… Letting herself be used until when they both finished, everything that had happened under the blankets was lost forever, as if it had never happened, and both went back to their normal lives. How Tomoyo had no other way of just simply forget about it, go back to her day to day schedules, ignoring Touya Kinomoto whenever she saw him, until the moment when her phone rang again, announcing a new message: a new encounter.

Up to there, it sounded quite normal. An encounter without any type of compromise. Sex just for the idea of letting themselves be pleasured in their most intimate wishes; not any type of relationship, no drama, nothing about getting involved in each other's lives. That was more than anyone could ask, right? Lots of women would give anything to know the famous actor Touya Kinomoto had chosen them to use their bodies, not just once, but an undefined amount of times. There were even millions of women that would do anything for just a kiss, a hug, even just a glimpse of a gaze.

Tomoyo, whom had never worried about Touya's existence, the whole idea still sounded like a joke. Despite she knew that it only took one gaze of his to make her tremble, despite knowing the way he touched her always made her beg for more, how he always knew exactly how to make her reach her climax… Despite it all, she still knew that it was only sex, and was totally ok with it: she didn't want anymore. Her, who had always rejected long term relationships; her, who always had preferred to not have any connections that would tie her to just one person… Her, who could just keep on going with his game, for as long as he pleased…

All that had been thrown overboard when he had said:

Let's not fall in love.

She already knew it. She shouldn't fall in love with him. That was something that had not been allowed since the beginning, since their relationship wasn't planned that way. She wouldn't do it because she knew that whatever they had was surely to have an end, and there would not be any trace to remember that they had belonged to each other, even for just a second; just as it had happened with all of her ex boyfriends who now had no names, no faces… Yes, casual sex was just what she needed, what somehow she had actually looked for during all of her life. But then, why since he had said such words, she felt she wouldn't be able to commit to them? Was she now a spoiled girl who had been denied something, and now she desperately need it just because she couldn't have it? Such childish behavior!

Her mind kept on asking all those questions, while creating new scenarios that helped to self-answer all of them, during God knows how long. Tomoyo had her eyes fixed in the horizon, but wasn't looking at Tokyo at all. She could only see inside her mind, her past and present actions, and what seemed to be her future ones. And the more she kept on thinking, the more she felt out of herself…

"You're cold." Touya said, bringing her back from wherever her mind had taken her.

It wasn't a question. He had noticed, since now, besides hugging her own legs, Tomoyo was also rubbing them up and down, slowly, as if she wanted to warm herself. Tomoyo blinked slowly, and looked at herself, confused. He was right. She didn't know what time it was, but definitely the night was cold (it was mid-autumn after all), and the chillness was getting into her under her skinny jeans, and light jacket, giving her goosebumps.

"Yes." Was all she could say, as the last of her thoughts flew away.

"Want to go back home?"

Tomoyo wanted to ask whose house he referred to. If they went back to her apartment, that meant the date would end there, and she wasn't quite sure if she was ready to say goodbye, despite thinking that was the best outcome in their current situation. But, on the other hand, if he meant to go to his place, that meant they were going to end that night in his bed, under the blankets, and she also wasn't sure if she wanted him to touch her and possess her, since she wasn't sure she'll be able to shut her thoughts and simply walk away, not knowing when he would demand for her presence once again.

"Yes." Once again, that was all she could say; guess it would be the best to let him decide for both.

Touya stood up and offered his hand to help her get down. Once her heels hit the gravel, he didn't remove his hand, and helped her get back inside the vehicle. It wasn't as cold as outside, but when Touya also got in and turned on the heating, the temperature got way more cozy.

The way back happened in the same way, with both of them not saying a word. This time, Tomoyo lacked the courage to turn on the radio. Sher was willing to spend those fifteen minutes in utter silence, since she felt she still needed to think about some other stuff; but it was Touya who this time plucked in a USB, and almost instantly, a soft classical piece wrapped them in a whisper that felt like a hug.

"This helps me clear my mind." He said.

Tomoyo simply nodded. It was true the music was relaxing, but Touya's words had given her once more something to think about. First of all, he had taken her to that remote lookout, a place that seemed to be important for him. Then, he was sharing what seemed to be his personal playlist. Why was he doing that? When it was just sex everything was just fine. But now, everything was turning into something too personal. Too intimate. And that did nothing more than scare her. He still hadn't asked her about her personal life, her family, her friends, what she liked, her hobbies… And even so, he was somehow revealing some personal details about himself. What had changed? Why? And most importantly, when?

Her immediate thought was that last time she had seen him at work. Right after his sudden disappearance; that meeting when he had arrived late. Was that something normal for him? No, he was always punctual. So, what had happened that turned him into the last one to arrive to the meeting? What had driven him to stop taking over care of his sister during the movie filming? Why had he suddenly disappeared? Something must have happened before…

And so she remembered. He had chuckled, hiding himself behind that cardboard cup that held his coffee. He had heard how Eriol had asked her to call him by his name, and after waiting for the blue-haired man to walk away, he approached her, kinda mocking her. When she had asked him what happened, he simply walked away. And after that, he simply disappeared from set.

She placed all the parts together, and a new question formed inside her head. Was he… was Touya jealous?

Her thoughts were interrupted when the vehicle finally stopped. Just as the headlights and the car board, the engine turned off. She looked around and the surrounding darkness told her where they were. Once again, she asked herself if she could bear it.

Once more, Touya helped her step out of the car, and so the sound of her heels against the concrete floor echoed as they walked through the self-illuminated hallway that lead no to the wine cellar, but straight to the mansion foyer.

They didn't stop at all. They kept on going up the enormous staircase, and turned right, walking down that already familiar hallway. Once again, as they walked inside the bedroom, no light was turned on. Letting go of her hand, Touya closed the door behind him. Tomoyo took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself to get undressed, just as always. She had just touched her jacket with the tip of her fingers, when Touya's voice stopped her.

"Don't do it."

She turned around to see him. She was already in the middle of the bedroom, at the end of the bed, but he was still standing next to the door, his back lying against the wall. His silhouette was barely visible, dimly lit by the moonlight that had made its way into the bedroom, leaking in-between the curtains. What was the plan for that night? Taking her to his bedroom, but not letting her take off her clothes. Simply looking at her from afar…

"I'll do it myself." He finally added, and slowly, stepped away from the wall.

Firstly, he took off his own jacket, and after folding it, he placed it in a chair he had next to him. He then took his time to look back at Tomoyo, and slowly walked towards her.

He stopped when they were just inches apart. Once again, he took his time to admire her face. First, he fixed his brown eyes in her grey eyes, and slowly looked down to her pink cheeks, stopping in her red lips. Tomoyo felt as if a thunder had just struck her when she felt his index finger caressing her cheek, as his thumb did the same with her lower lip. With his other hand, Touya caressed her hair, placing one of her locks behind her ear.

The finger that was caressing her lip, slid down to her chin, and so he slowly but firmly made her look up. Tomoyo felt his heavy breathing and once again got goosebumps. A kiss landed in her earlobe, and from there, his thin lips slid to her cheek, finally stopping right next to her lips.

She knew what was going to happen next: Touya would end the teasing right there, and would undress her himself, or maybe he would ask her first to lay on the bed. Just as always, the touch of his lips had felt amazing, during the half a minute that it lasted.

Knowing what was just about to happen, she turned her head in order to get away, but then, the hand that was still holding her chin stopped her. Confused, she left her breathing touch her skin once more, and so, his lips rubbed against the corner of hers. She didn't even have a second to ask herself what was happening, when his lips touched her lower lip. And then, as if it was happening in slow motion, Touya pressed his lips against hers, and kissed her slowly.

An electric show ran through all of her body, every inch of her skin feeling electrified. During how long had she yearned for that touch, and how many times had it been denied? And now, it was him the one that was pressing against her, kissing her mouth, biting her lips, playing with her tongue… she left herself enjoy that contact, eyes shut down, with both of her hands laying awkwardly at both sides of her body, as he held her by the back of her head, tangling his fingers in her long black hair, not letting her go.

The kiss felt as if had lasted for an eternity, and at the same time, as if had only happened for half a second. She was still processing what was happening when Touya finally stopped biting her lower lip, and stepped away, just a couple of millimeters. She couldn't dare to open her eyes; simply stood there, still unable to believe what had just happened was actually real, but at the same time, unable to believe it was already over.

Just as the touch of his lips disappeared, so did the touch of his hands when he let go of her chin, and her hair. Sliding down at both sides of her neck, Touya's warm hands made their way down her collarbone, where he held her jacket, and slid it down her shoulders. He kept on going, sliding it down her arms, until she was finally off of it, and placed it at the end of the bed. Focusing once again in her neck, he caressed her collarbone, slowly, from the middle to her shoulders, where he also took his time to trace her arms, all the way down to her hands and fingers.

This touch lasted just a couple of seconds. Touya hurried to slide his fingers under Tomoyo's shirt, caressing her soft belly, and still not letting go of her shirt, he slid his fingers to her hips, and then up to her breasts, taking the shirt with him. Tomoyo understood immediately, and hurried to raise her arms, letting the fabric to slide until she was no longer wearing it. Just as the jacket, it got placed at the end of the bed.

Touya held her hand once more; with a single sign he told her to take off her shoes, and once her high heels hit the floor, he led Tomoyo to the bed. He helped her sit down, and then lay down, and almost immediately, he lay down too, pressing himself against her back, hugging her gently.

He buried his face in her hair, and breathed in her scent. He had the fragrance already memorized, but still loved to smell it, drowning in its intensity. He then rested his head in her shoulder, and with his finger, proceeded to drawn spirals in her back. First, in her arm, then her shoulder, her neck, her waist… When he reached her hip, he slid his long fingers down her belly, where he was stopped by her jeans' button. He got up, and turned her around, and proceeded to unbutton it, and unzip it too, while he leaned forward and went back to kiss her neck, continued with her breasts, then her stomach, and kept on going until he reached her waist.

He took his time to slid her jeans down her legs, and finally left it with the rest of her clothes, leaving Tomoyo with nothing more than her underwear.

It would've been so easy to finish undressing her, take his clothes off too, and take what he wanted, but it seemed like that night, Touya didn't have any hurry. He lay down once again, face to face, and once again, proceeded to keep on drawing spirals in her skin, as he placed his lips first on her forehead and then her cheeks.

He kissed her again. Tomoyo felt as if she was melting in his arms, pressing her body against his, hanging onto his shirt, clamming that contact that she had longed for so long. She left his lips wander on hers, and she let his tongue play with hers, hanging onto that sweet flavor, until it was once again time to let it go.

Touya sat up, and slowly started to undress himself. Just as the first time they had done this, Tomoyo couldn't stop staring at him. The way Touya was sitting at the bed end, taking off his shoes, his socks, the slowly and torturous way he took off his long sleeved shirt and his pants. When he came back to her side, just as her, he was only wearing his underwear.

He helped them both to get under the warm blankets, and so the temperature raised immediately.

He laid on top of her, careful not to press her down with his own weight and preclude her from breathing, but tight enough to press his body against her so she could feel every inch of his burning skin, as he proceeded once more to demand endless kisses from her. Tomoyo couldn't resist it, and hurried to hug his neck, caressing his dark brown hair, as she tried to prison his hips with her legs.

It seemed like that night, the teasing was going to be endless. Tomoyo was at the brick of despair, she desperately needed Touya to make her his; she wanted him to undress her and penetrate her, filling her up with him. She desperately need it, as all of this caressing, love and attention where only making her mind get to the wrong conclusions.

Completely ignorant of what was happening in Tomoyo's head and heart, Touya did not heed those unexpressed pleas. Just as always, he was in charge, and that night, he wanted to take it slowly. All of the caresses, all of the kisses; each and every one of his movements seemed that were only planned to remain imprinted not only on Tomoyo's porcelain skin, but in the deepen of her soul.

It was time, just this once, it came with chest pain. What had happened in those last hours was the best thing that had ever happened in her life, and Tomoyo didn't want it to be over already. She was scared of not knowing when would the situation occur once again, and if it was going to be just as intense as this one. But still, just as all the other times she had laid in Touya's bed, it was already time to get up, and in silence, still covered in darkness, it was time to get dress and walk away from that house.

But, once again, what was predicted to happen, did not occur.

She had just sat in the bed, when Touya's hand grabbed her by her wrist. It was a soft grab, but at the same time, firm enough to prevent her from getting up and walk away. Confused, Tomoyo turned around so to look at him. Since they were surrounded by almost a total darkness, she could only glimpse his silhouette, which hinted he was laying down and, by the way his eyes shinned, he was looking at her.

She contained the urge to ask a harsh "What?" and instead of that, she decided to just wait.

"Don't leave." Was all he could say.

Once again, silence. Tomoyo was asking herself if he meant he wanted to keep on enjoying her body, or if he actually meant he wanted her to wait for him to take her back home… Until Touya's mouth opened once again, and added in a whisper:

"Stay the night."

She couldn't help but frown, visibly confused. Just as her heart skipped a beat, she once again had to stop herself from asking a harsh "Why?". Breathing deeply so that oxygen made its way to her brain, she turned around, so that she could see his face.

"Are you sure?" was the only thing she dared to ask.

A side of her wanted him to say yes; to finally confess he needed her and wanted her to sleep right beside him, maybe even hugging her. That he would wake up the next morning and wake her up by giving her a kiss on the forehead, and then would even offer to make breakfast...

The other side of her was silently begging for him to regret saying those words, and that it was best for her to leave. Many things would be put at risk if she decided to stay the night: she would end up falling in love. Unless she was already in love with him.

Had the game rules just changed? Did that mean she was now allowed to have feelings for him? But despite knowing she was the only one that was at risk of ending with a broken heart, she decided to concede him his petition. After all, she still hadn't notice she was already unable to say no to anything he asked. She would do just as he said, and if that included to stay the night and sleep right beside him, she would do just that. The consequences where something that just existed for her. The heavy burden of knowing that would not have a happy ending was only hers. And still, for him, she'd endure it.

She then proceeded to lay once again, and so he finally let go of her wrist. Touya then place one of his arms over her shoulders, and the other one over her waist, and pulled her to him, hugging her tightly. Tomoyo couldn't help but close her eyes, and hug herself, as she caressed his chest and let herself be wrapped in his fragrance.

Touya made sure her head was comfortable, and after giving her a kiss in the top of her head, he proceeded to caress her black long hair. It didn't take them too long to fall asleep.

Just as she had imagined the first time she walked into that bedroom, the thin white silk curtains left the sunlight pass easily. By the way the bed was placed, it didn't take long for the sunrays to walk in and hit her in the face, waking her up and making her forget about the dream she was having.

Still, she took her time to breathe in before opening her eyes, as if that touch was part of her lost dream, and she were doing her best to hold onto that memory. Still, when she finally opened her eyes and saw that the skin touching her body was actually real, she couldn't help but smile. Feeling his arms hugging her, holding her against him tightly, made her feel protected, and somehow, as if she had never been more loved in her life…

And then her smile vanished.

She did the best she could to calm down the anxiety that was building up inside her, and seize that last moment of his warm embrace, before Touya wake up and she would be pushed back into reality: far away from him, far away from his bed. She just hadn't noticed that, since the very first moment they had met, their relationship had no future whatsoever. She didn't know how long would she manage to hold on what was building up inside her, pushing her chest and not allowing her to breathe, but she did know that as soon as those words were out of her lips, everything would be over. And so she held him closer, refusing to let him go…

Ten minutes later, the sunrays kept their way and finally hit him in the face too, waking him up. Touya blinked a couple of times, visibly confused, as if he didn't know where he was. He rubbed his eyes, and sat on the bed, and so he felt how something heavy slid away from his chest and laid now on the bed, resting at the other side of the mattress.

He looked at her and for a split second, asked himself what was she doing there. And then he remembered. He was the one that had asked her to stay. Wondered why.

Tomoyo was the first one to get up from bed; turning her back to him, with the sun hitting her face, she proceeded to get dressed. One thing was to spend the night, and another completely different was to stay the rest of the day there, pretending as if they lived together; to take a warm shower, go downstairs and have a delicious breakfast, say goodbye at the door with a kiss on the lips as they both went to work…

"I gotta go home." She said in a whisper, just as she put on her shirt. "I got work to do."

Touya did as her and got up too, just that he did not reply. Instead of getting dressed, he walked to the other side of the bedroom, and crossing another door, he got lost inside the other room. Tomoyo couldn't help but bluff. What a way to say goodbye. She then proceeded to ignore him, and continued getting dressed. Jeans, shoes, jacket… as soon as she took her purse, she hurried to walk out the room, not saying goodbye neither.

But, when she walked to the foyer and then downstairs to the garage, there were no driver nor car waiting for her. She stood there, in the dark concrete room, wondering if it was a good idea to keep on waiting, or walk back to the foyer so to walk out the main entrance and then go down the street to call a cab, or if she actually had to go back all the way up to the bedroom 'cause she had misinterpreted everything and Touya actually wanted her to stay but he didn't know how to say it…

She was still deciding what to do when she heard him walking down the spiral staircase. Just five seconds later there he was, walking the same steps she had taken five minutes ago.

Tomoyo couldn't help but frown, visibly annoyed. There she was, wearing the same clothes as yesterday, with her hair in a mess and her whole body smelling of sex, while Touya had taken his time to take a shower; he still had his hair wet, and was now wearing a dark red sweater, black pants and black shoes. In one of his hands he held a grey coat, and on the other hand, he held some keys. He raised this hand just a couple of inches, and as soon as he pressed a button, the car alarm of a black vehicle, parking just a couple of meters ahead, went off.

Touya told Tomoyo to get close, and not saying a word, he helped her get in. Just as last night, five seconds later he was sitting behind the wheel, and after turning on the engine, he drove out of the parking spot, out of the garage, and drove away by the sunny streets of Tokyo.

This time, there was no music. None of them touched the radio at all, and none of them tried to make small talk. They didn't even try to look at each other, and so the car kept on going forward. It didn't take long for Tomoyo to realize they were going back to her place. The ride took only ten minutes, but it had felt way much shorter, and finally ended when Touya parked right in front of the front gate of the building. He didn't turn off the engine, which helped Tomoyo to understand he was not planning on going inside with her, and much less to get down and open the door for her.

"Thanks for the ride." She said as she took off the seat belt, and grabbed her purse. Once again, Touya did not say a word, and simply removed the lock from Tomoyo's door. A little bit gloomy, Tomoyo opened the door and stepped out of the vehicle. She then turned around and looked at him. Touya looked at her back, expressionless.

Then, he looked front once again, holding the steering wheel with both hands. Feeling a dry mouth, Tomoyo slammed the door, and before she could even regret that decision, he had already driven away.

It's been a hectic weekend, so sorry for updating this late.

Hope you still like it tho. The story is almost at end, so please bear with me 2 more eps.

See ya next week~

Ribo.