Disclaimer: I don't own these people

Truth Revealed

Sakura sat at home Thursday night, trying to talk herself out of quiting the job, in vain. When it came down to it, she loved Syaoran too much to hinder his success by just being there, and she didn't think she could take the pain, or be more humiliated. She could accept, even understand, his reasons, but that didn't change the heart. The workload was too much for her too, she soothed herself.

She hadn't gone to a single bar since Monday. After work at The Tower, she'd had to rush back to Tomoyo's store to do the accounts there, too, and she often went home at nearly midnight. Thinking of Syaoran hadn't helped her work nor her speed much either, and it all had to stop. She would quit, and she and Syaoran could go back to their previous relationship, their not-so-platonic-friendship. Things would be alright again. She had to believe that.

Syaoran was struggling with overwhelming guilt. He'd stayed at the office until after Sakura had gone home, so he didn't have to go through the same thing as he had on Monday. He wondered if it was killing her as much as it was him. After work, he couldn't even get hold of her to make amends because she never seemed to be home. Now, being a man's man, he couldn't even admit it to himself, but he missed her so much he could barely breathe. He wanted to watch her eat, he wanted to touch her hair, he just wanted to be near her, if he couldn't have anything else. She'd avoided him almost studiously since Monday, and after work she seemed to disappear.

He decided to confront her and apologise outright tomorrow, on the last day of the week. He'd admit to the company that they were together, then they could spend the weekend making up. The whole weekend. His horrible mood began to improve.

Unknown to the both of them, Meilin and Mortimer, in another part of the city, were plotting another plan, one that would actually work, and would take place tomorrow, on Friday. Everything was going to come to a head. The end was edging closer.

Friday morning. Sakura had penned her resignation the night before, and had told her secretary what she intended to do come 11 o'clock, just so she couldn't back out at the last minute. She thought that three hours would definitely be enough to wrap up all her work, and if Syaoran required two weeks notice, well, she thought she could handle it.

The clock finally struck eleven, and Sakura wiped her clammy hands unprofessionally on her skirt and straightened her papers one final time, bolstering herself for the trip she was about to make upstairs.

If she had only been five minutes earlier.

Meilin strode through her unlocked door with Cindy, Sakura's secretary, wringing her hands behind her. Practically tottering on four-inch high heels, Meilin aimed an insincere smile at Sakura and waved her hands in dismissal at the hovering Cindy.

Sakura decided to play the diplomat and see what Meilin wanted this time. "Thanks, Cindy. I'll take it from here. How can I help you, Meilin?"

"Sakura darling," Meilin purred once the door closed. "I was just looking for Mortimer. Do you know where he is?"

Sakura cocked an eyebrow and very nearly rolled her eyes. "Mortimer doesn't work here anymore. He was fired on Monday. And even if he did, he would be in Marketing, which isn't on this floor, Meilin." she said with what she considered admirable patience. Here she was, about to change her life forever, and this insecure fruitcake on heels was trying to get under her skin! Her temper slowly started to rise.

"Whatever." Meilin brushed the news aside like she knew exactly what had happened, and Sakura narrowed her eyes. " I just wanted to tell you, you poor thing, something I found out about the night you and Syaoran met. As you probably know, I see you as a friend, being Mortimer's ex-girlfriend and all."

Sakura couldn't help it; her eyes rolled of their own accord.

"That night, before I met up with Syaoran and his work buddies at The Dewberry, where he picked you up, Mortimer made a bet with Syaoran.". She paused for dramatic effect, her glinting, triumphant eyes belying the concern on her face. She'd finally realised what would break the two up, and not a moment too soon.

Sakura stiffened imperceptibly, and her heart clenched in her chest.

Syaoran was already just outside Sakura's office door. Cindy had duly been given a coffee break, and had been respectfully ushered to the cafe on the other side of the street. Syaoran wanted no witnesses for the grovelling he was about to do.

He was practicing. "Sakura, I'm sorry, please forgive me, I never meant to hurt you- no no no. Too sappy." he cleared his throat. "Sakura, this thing between us, I'm ready to open it up to the company, so I'm sorry- no no. Too insincere!" he was getting desperate. Then he decided to just wing it. This was Sakura, after all. She'd take him back, no questions asked, wouldn't she?

Syaoran turned the knob, pushed the door open silently, and stood framed in the doorway, his heart grinding to a halt. He was pretty sure it had stopped beating altogether.

Meilin was just finishing her speech, and Sakura had turned the colour of chalk. "... to sleep with you in three weeks. One grand, Sakura! Mortimer-" she spotted Syaoran, and could barely contain her glee. She credited being able to suppress the grin she so wanted to set free to her hundreds of acting lessons she had forced her mother to pay for. The whole scene had turned out better that she could ever have imagined, having Syaoran there whle she broke Sakura's heart oh so innocently, and twisted it under her two-hundred-dollar heels.

"Oops! Oh dear. Syaoran darling, there you are! I have simply got to dash, Syaoran, Sakura. Things to do, places to go, people to see, you know! I'll just leave you two alone now, shall I?". Allowing herself a small smile, she carefully sidled past the frozen Syaoran and made her escape, only letting the fully-satisfied laugh come in the elevator on the way down.

Carefully, as if one wrong move would shatter her brittle bones, Sakura looked up at Syaoran, who had opened his mouth, trying to explain. She had wanted to trust him, but one look at the guilt showing plainly in his eyes, and she knew the truth. She told herself to block out the pain first, and she would only allow herself to cry later, when she was far away from this godforsaken office. And him.

With stone-cold, steady fingers, she tossed the resignation letter on top of the stack of papers she had so diligently straightened in her nervousness earlier, grabbed her purse and shoved past Syaoran, out the door.

"Sakura! Wait- it's not like that! I-" Syaoran finally had the presence of mind to go after her, but she was already in the elevator, jamming the close button with one trembling finger.

As the doors closed in his face, Syaoran thumped spiritedly on them and Sakura whispered, "Goodbye, Syaoran. I loved you."

Hugging herself tight as if to keep the overwhelming pain from engulfing her completely, she swayed to and fro and began to cry.

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