okay so...it's been a little while since i've updated. i say this every time...but school really is using up most of my time...and i had to drop out of doing tech for a show because my mom wants me to focus on grades or whatever...and i know i need to, but tech is what i LIVE FOR!! cries haha.

so anyways, here you go my lovelies. and i hope you all review. this story hasn't been getting too much feedback. : (

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Card Captors in any way, but I own this plot.
DON'T STEAL IT OR I WILL SMACK YOU!!! (and your mother, rawr).

oh...and i ask you to keep an open mind with this chapter. some of you are probably going to hate me for doing something like this. but come on, it's a story...and a pretty good one at that if i do say so myself. and if you think i am being conceited, i am not. i really like this story. so yes...take a deeeeeep breath and keep an open mind while you read. : )

Chapter 3: Cherry Blossom is a Powerful Thing

Tomoyo took her to change back into what she had brought with her and then ushered her to her absolute favorite place in the park, King Penguin Slide, after Sakura had stopped crying. "You always seem to know what will make me feel better." Sakura gave her a watery smile.

"No, I only know what will remedy what you feel until Syaoran can come back." Tomoyo said sadly.

Sakura's chest got that heavy feeling again. "Tomoyo…can you…please, not mention Syaoran?" Sakura asked softly as she looked at the ground.

"What?!" Tomoyo asked very shocked.

"I don't mean I don't want to hear about him...it's just that…whenever someone just mentions him…I start remembering every single time I was with him for that last month and then I start to cry." Sakura tried the hardest she knew how not to cry again.

"I'm sorry Sakura. I promise I'll try not to." Tomoyo squeezed her arm. She thanked her silently as she went to sit on a swing.

Sakura spent most of the next hour focusing solely on the one star. Tomoyo crept off a few feet to film her. "Syaoran, you have to come back soon." Tomoyo thought to herself. "You don't know how badly Sakura is doing without you." Tomoyo thought as she slowly zoomed in on Sakura from the shoulders up.

Sakura wasn't even aware that Tomoyo had snuck off, or that she was filming her. She was just looking up at the star; however, craning her head up at the sky made her neck stiff. She looked over at the slide and decided it would be easier to look at the stars if she was lying down.

She stood up and walked slowly over to the slide. She sat down on the front and then lay back. The slide felt so cool against her skin. She sighed and then took in a very relaxing breath.

The wind blew softly and caressingly over her entire body. "I wish you were here with me Syaoran. Perhaps if you hadn't gone though...I would never have realized just how devoted and how in love I am with you." She smiled sadly.

"I wonder just how you are doing Syaoran. I haven't received a letter from you since you stopped writing to me after the first year you left. I don't blame you though. I bet they are keeping you from outside contact. At least, that's all I can afford to think right now at the expense of my love for you."

Little did she know she was being watched, and not just by her best friend with a camera. It was someone else who had fallen madly for her at their first glance.

This adolescent man was gazing upon her face. "She is so incredibly beautiful." He thought to himself. "Yet she looks so sad. Perhaps a friendly face will cheer her up." He thought as he readied himself to go and talk to her.

Tomoyo on the other hand had to go to the bathroom. She had raced off quietly in hopes that Sakura wouldn't notice she had gone.

The boy had noticed Tomoyo from the moment he had gotten there. "Excellent, no one to bother me." He thought as he walked out behind the bench he was standing behind and towards the object of his heart right now.

Sakura was aware enough to hear footsteps crunching the sand together and she sat up quickly from the slide.

"Who's there?" she called out to the darkened figure.

"Who's there calling as to who I am?" he said slyly as he walked out into the moonlight for her to see.

Sakura looked at him. She was stunned as to the features of this gorgeous man. He was about 6 inches taller than she, "I bet Syaoran would be about this tall." She thought as he approached. He had mussed up, dirty blonde hair with some brown hair underneath, and a pair of the most gorgeous blue eyes that looked like the sky in the afternoon. He was very muscular, or more so that you'd notice it through the shirt he was wearing.

"What's your name?" she called back, standing up.

"Moriyama." He said plainly as he stopped a few feet in front of her. He gazed at her. She was wearing a light pink kosode with blue jean capris and black flip flops. She was even more beautiful close up. "Might I have yours?" he asked politely.

"Was that your first name?" she asked for conformation.

"Yes, I believe it more appropriate to introduce yourself by your first name nowadays." He smiled.

"What a gorgeous smile." She almost physically slapped herself for thinking that. "Some would highly disregard you for doing so." She tried to mock him so he would go away.

"You don't want me here. I can tell, but what you're not thinking about is that I don't have to leave. However, you can leave if you don't want to continue talking to me." He said laughing inside. "She has attitude." He thought, smiling.

"I don't want to leave. I was here first." She said crossing her arms.

"Well, I don't really want to leave. And since, you don't seem to want to leave either, how about we talk?" he asked nonchalantly.

"You are determined, I'll give you that, but I am promised to someone." She said warningly.

"Whoa!! Slow down Miss!" he laughed. "I never said anything about wanting to date you!"

"Neither did I." she said smartly, "You just did."

"Hey, you don't have to get all cranky on me!" he put his hands in front of him.

She was about to yell at him when she heard someone else coming. "Tomoyo??" she suddenly remembered.

"Sakura?" she called back. Tomoyo saw Sakura standing by the slide, and a tall, young man standing in front of her. She ran up to Sakura and gave the boy a hard glare.

"What is with women these days? All I wanted to do was talk!" Moriyama said flabbergasted.

Sakura sighed and held up a hand to Tomoyo to signal her not to yell at him, "I'm sorry…Moriyama did you say it was? You didn't deserve that and I apologize. Please forgive my rudeness." Sakura bowed.

"You were forgiven from the moment I walked up here to talk to you." He smiled slyly.

Sakura blushed pink. Tomoyo didn't see it, only because she was still glaring at him, but he noticed it and he knew that perhaps he could still have a chance of at least talking to her.

"Sakura, it's almost 10, we really should be getting back to your house." Tomoyo said making up what time it was.

"It's only past 9!" Moriyama said astonished.

"Well, we really ought to be getting home. It is a bit chilly out." Tomoyo said angrily.

"Tomoyo, you go if you really want to. I think I need to talk to this gentleman and explain some things to him." Sakura said motioning for her to go.

"I'll go, but just you remember that you love Syaoran and that he loves you. Remember how much you told me you missed him." Tomoyo looked at her hard as she walked away down the concrete path.

Sakura was left standing there with an open mouth, but all other thoughts were driven out of her mind. There was no way she would even fathom the thoughts she had earlier of this boy.

"So, do you mind if I have your name?" Moriyama asked politely after a long pause.

Sakura turned around.

"Sakura." She said simply.

"Ah, 'cherry blossom'." He said saying what her name meant.

Her heart nearly stopped, "What did you just call me?" she asked horrified.

"I didn't call you anything! I was merely saying what your name meant!" he said rather confused.

"Sorry again Moriyama. I just…I'm having a hard time right now." She laughed sadly.

"Do you mind if I ask why?" he said walking over to the swings. She followed him over for some unbeknownst reason.

She started slowly, and finished at the same rate. She didn't give him many details, just the basic structure over what had happened over the past few years.

"That guy is crazy for leaving a girl like you here by yourself!" he said gazing hard at the ground. "I mean-" he said in an apologizing tone of voice, "I only meant to say that-…what I meant was-…" his mouth took the form of several different words, but none came out. "Look," he said sighing, "There's obviously no point in me trying to act like I don't think that you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life." He leaned forward and a bit over towards her to look at her.

She blushed hard but started swinging so he wouldn't be able to see. "Thank you Moriyama, but you really shouldn't say things like that." She said breathlessly as she swung higher and higher.

He began to swing as high as she was. It seemed to have turned into a competition between the two, "I'll make a bet with you, the one who jumps out of their swing farther wins. The loser buys the winner lunch tomorrow." He laughed. "You're on!" she laughed loudly, not hearing the last part. "I'll go on three!" She cried as she grabbed the front of the chains.

"ONE, TWO, THREE!!" She shouted as she flew through the air and landed a good 15 feet away from the farthest point where he swung out.

She turned around and taunted him playfully, "You can't beat me Moriyama! I'm-" she cut herself short as she heard him skid his feet on the ground below him and come to a halt. "Hah, you beat me! I guess I have to buy you lunch!" he said standing up and wiping his hands off on his jeans.

"What??" she said loudly.

"Yeah, I lost!" he said repeated more clearly.

She looked at him, very much confused.

"Loser buys winner lunch tomorrow?" he reminded her. "Didn't you hear what I said?" he laughed as he walked up and picked a cherry blossom petal out of her hair.

She looked into his eyes. They were a deep midnight blue at this time of night.

He made it to look like he was going to lean in to kiss her. She wasn't about to stop him, though her brain screamed at her to; however, she didn't need to. "How do you feel right at this very moment?" he whispered suddenly into her ear.

"Very light. I feel like I'm floating." She whispered as she closed her eyes. "I feel very warm and my heart feels like its pounding." She said opening her eyes to find herself quite alone.

She gasped as she spun around, "Moriiyama?" she called out. She turned around and looked for him everywhere, but he was gone. She suddenly felt something soft in her hand. She looked down and saw a cherry blossom pressed softly in it. She held it up in the light to look at it better. There was a small piece of paper inside of it. She took it out and unfolded it.

Meet me at the Café du Lyon at 12:30 tomorrow. Call me if you run into a problem.

On the reverse side, he had given her his cell phone number and home phone number. She looked at it and smiled. She tilted her head up with her eyes closed and took in a deep breath of cold, fresh air. She opened her eyes only to find herself looking at Syaoran's star.

"I love Syaoran." She realized as she slapped herself out of this stupid trance she had been somewhat willingly put in.

She sat back down on the slide and sat there thinking about Syaoran. "Oh Syaoran forgive me." She felt a single tear slide down her face."I just haven't realized how weak my soul is and how strong my desire has become since you've left."

if you didn't like it, im sorry. but don't tell me write something different because the next...very many chapters that i have previously written are not going to get deleted. haha.

i hope you DID like it and i hope you review it and tell me what you think of it. : )

now...REVIIEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWW!!!!! PLEEEEEASE. haha.

ShiningStarr