A/N 2007: I keep repeating myself here, aren't I? Minor changes, not crucial to the story etc. etc.

A/N: Okaaaaaaaaayyyyy... Who thinks I'm a slow updater? If you think so raise your hand everybody raises their hand Yeah...sweatdrops Really sorry 'bout that. I guess I won't make any promises anymore about updating faster and stuff. But anyway... I'm going to France! Yes I'm participating in an exchange program and I get to spend a week or so in France. cheers for herself I'm gonna go very soon and I can hardly wait Thanx again to the people who reviewed and are still reading this story! You like me you really like me! Enjoy chapter 9 and don't forget to review

Chapter 9

Eriol took his children fishing the next morning and when they came back, he took Syaoran's son to the jeep. They stayed away all afternoon so Sakura hadn't gotten a chance to talk to Hao alone. So she promised herself she would talk to Hao tonight.

Eriol planned the party for six P.M. Sakura was blowing up balloons in the kitchen at 5 o'clock. She heard the door being opened by Mei Lin as she grabbed another balloon. Mei Lin walked into the kitchen and stood there for a while before asking: "Sakura, did you tell Syaoran that we're going out to Cherry's Lodge for dinner?"

"Not really... I might have given him the impression though..."

"He thinks so! And Eriol told Tomoyo that we were going to Julian's Place for dinner! But he wanted to take a nap first and told us to go take a walk, so he could have his peace." She winked at Sakura and raised her voice saying: "Sakura, I'm going for a walk with Tomoyo and Syaoran!"

"Very smooth Mei Lin," Sakura grinned, "Do you think you can keep them away for an hour or so?" she asked whispering.

"Leave it to me!" Mei Lin said and hit herself on the chest.

Eriol was working on the barbeque and Sakura hung up the last of the decorations. Descending down the ladder she said to Eriol: "Nice work," and grinned, "You're really good."

He grinned back, satisfied. "I've had some practice," he said, "Say, I'm thirsty. You want something to drink too? We've got beer, wine and Sprite."

"I'll take a Sprite, thank you."

"Coming right up!"

Eriol disappeared into the house and Sakura walked to the veranda searching if the others were coming. She saw them. Syaoran and Hao were walking together. The Hiiragizawa children were playing in the water. Mei Lin and Tomoyo were the last ones, walking slowly. Good. They would be the last to arrive. That meant that Eriol would have time to tell the others about the surprise party. Eriol put the Sprite in front of her. "You deserve it," he said. "Cheers!"

"Cheers." Sakura said and raised her Sprite in the air before taking a big gulp. "That feels good." she said satisfied, "So what are you going to give her?"

"The kids bought a CD for her, one she doesn't own yet, from her favourite singers Kero and Yue and my present for her is her favourite perfume: Nakuru"

"Tomoyo loves the artist Ruby Moon so I bought a painting for her. A replica of course. I'm not that rich to buy the real thing."

They talked a bit more. Sakura laughed at a joke Eriol made when she spotted some movement. When Syaoran's head was visible, her heart skipped a beat.

Little beats of sweat were visible on his face, as if he had run very fast, and his expression... it looked like the whole world was doomed because of his rage. Had he noticed that she crept to the Hiiragizawa's? That she was alone with Eriol? Here they went again!

"Hey Syaoran. You here?" she said her voice a bit shaky.

Eriol didn't seem to notice Syaoran's mood. "Hey! Want something to drink too?" he asked still grinning like a fool.

Syaoran ignored him and walked with threatening passes towards Sakura. She put the can of soda on a table and unconsciously took a few steps back.

"Syaoran... Eriol and I were just..." She held her breath, startled as Syaoran roughly grabbed her by the shoulders and steered her to the stairs.

"Get the hell away from here before Tomoyo returns!" He bit out. "How is it possible? Where do you get you sick little courage? Mei Lin and Tomoyo are gone for a few minutes and suddenly you appear here!" He looked at Eriol, a gaze full of loathing directed to him. "Hiiragizawa, you just needed to take a nap didn't you?" he sneered.

Eriol had apparently understood what was going on. His eyes were shooting daggers. "You're sick, Syaoran! Good Lord this is Tomoyo's birthday for crying out loud. Sakura and I organized a surprise party for her. If you would just take a minute. " He pushed Syaoran. Syaoran didn't count on that and he let go of Sakura. Sakura lost her balance and fell against Syaoran's chest. Automatically he put his arms around her.

For a few seconds she savoured the feeling of his hands on her back and hearing his heartbeat... Her legs started to tremble. Even in this kind of situation he managed to affect her. The bitterness welled up in her and she pulled herself out of his embrace.

"Syaoran Li," she said looking at him furiously, "You are a rare fool. Do you always have to think the worst of other people? Look around you, then you can see what Eriol and I have been doing!"

He did just that and she heard a soft intake of breath when he saw the balloons and the other decorations, not to mention the barbeque and the table that had been set out. You could see by the blinking of his eyes that he understood his mistake. She almost felt sorry for him... Almost!

He cleared his throat. "Sorry Hiiragizawa," he said, "It seems I've jumped to conclusions this time."

"It doesn't just seems, it's what you did!" Eriol's voice was thick with anger. "Don't waste your time apologizing to me. Apologize to Sakura!"

"Never mind," Sakura mumbled. They heard approaching footsteps. "Can I go in and freshen myself up a bit, Eriol?"

"Sure."

A few minutes later she emerged out of the house and she saw that everyone was here except for Mei Lin and Tomoyo. Eriol had filled the kids in about the surprise-party by the looks of it; they were practically glowing with excitement, even Hao. Syaoran was standing by the door; his profile clearly visible against the sky. He had a wonderful profile...she had to swallow only by looking at him.

She reached out her hand to open the door, but he seemed to have been waiting for her and sprang into action. He opened the door for her and said in a soft voice: "Sakura, I-"

With her chin raised in the air, she walked passed him like he was air. He didn't need to apologize anymore, it was too late. The guy was simply possessed by the thought that something was going on between her and Eriol. And even if it was true, it wasn't any of his business. She glanced back; he was looking at her, with a smouldering look in his eyes. She turned her back on him, not wanting to see him in her eyesight.

"Yes a glass of Coke please." she heard Mei Lin say, who just walked up the stairs. She winked at Eriol and went to go stand next to Sakura.

A few seconds later Tomoyo appeared. When she saw the whole bunch together she stood there, caught by surprise. "What's going on? I-"

That was all that was heard because right after that seven voices cried out: "Surprise!" Tomoyo's surprised little scream was lost in the congratulations and cheering.

Sakura had no trouble in avoiding Syaoran, because he was carefully staying out of her way. After a while she began to relax as the tension seeped out of her body and she began enjoying herself.

The party was a big success and Tomoyo got a lot of gifts. Even Syaoran got her something. Tomoyo was overly happy with her presents and gave everyone a kiss on the cheek.

Around eight o'clock, after the dishes were done, when the older people where drinking coffee, Sakura noticed that Hao wasn't playing with the Hiiragizawa children. She went in search of him and found him on the beach behind Li's cottage.

"Hey Hao. Feeling up for a walk?" she asked casually.

"No thanks." he mumbled without looking up.

"Too bad, because I missed you this morning," she said, "I needed to help Mr. Hiiragizawa, you see. You sure you don't want to come?"

He shook his head. After a small hesitation Sakura sat beside him, but he still wasn't looking at her. He was looking at a speedboat on the lake.

"What a noise those things make," Sakura mumbled, "I like your daddy's boat better." He didn't answer. She let her hands dangle between her legs, thinking about how to get him to talk. "I was around your age when I came here for the first time. And. I just lost my mother..."

Hao didn't say a word; he kept staring at the lake. His profile was turned to her so she couldn't see the expression in his eyes. She took a large gulp of air before continuing to talk to the boy. "My mother was a teacher and my father an archeologist. One time they won a vacation to France. I believe it was a ski resort. Anyway, my parents rarely had any free time so this vacation was a blessing for them. I could stay at my cousin's house and my parents took a few weeks off. On the last day of their vacation, my mom fell ill to an unknown disease and died. It was quite a blow for my father and me. I don't think he ever recovered from it and a year later he died of a broken heart. Sonomi, Tomoyo's mom, was the first to take me here. I was a very sad little girl back then." Tears were threatening to spill out of her eyes as she told the young boy her story- she remembered how lonely she was back then. She looked at Hao.

He was still staring at the lake; by the looks of it he hadn't heard a thing. Oh well, what was she expecting? If his own father couldn't get through to him, well then she wouldn't either. With a sigh she reseated herself. At that moment Hao stood up and prepared to leave. She reached out to him and grabbed his hand. "Hao," she said hastily, "I'm sorry if I-"

Suddenly he turned around to face her. You could see his eyes behind his glasses, shining with unshed tears.

"C'mere." she pulled him down, so he was sitting next to her. "It'll get better in time." she said softly, "Really Hao. After a while it won't hurt so much anymore. You'll see..."

He cried in Sakura's arms. Finally he pulled off his glasses and dried his tears with his fists. "Your daddy died too?" he asked, his voice shaky.

Sakura nodded. "Yes, he did."

He put his glasses back on and looked at Sakura. "You're pretty," he whispered, "I've never seen such pretty eyes."

Sakura blushed and cleared her throat. "You're pretty too, you know." she said, "If you were 20 years older I'm sure I would've fallen head over heels in love with you." She got up. "So how about that walk?" she asked. When he nodded she added: "Tell it to your dad. I don't want him to worry about where you went."

She saw him nod again and then he dashed of to find his father. A few minutes later he returned alone; Sakura didn't expect it any other way. Syaoran apologized but apparently he found that enough. It was fine by her! Then why was she feeling a bit disappointed when Hao returned alone?

Hao looked up at her. "Daddy says it's going to get colder, so I have to get a shirt to wear first."

"That's okay," she answered, "and let's get you some shoes too." They both walked towards Li's cottage to get the stuff that Hao needed.

As they emerged from the cottage again, with Hao wearing a white shirt and sandals, he asked: "Can we go that way?" And he pointed in a direction. "Seiichi says that the squirrels play there at night."

"Sure." Together they walked in silence and the passed Syaoran's jeep. She saw that there was wood lying in the car. "Your father's going to work on the boathouse?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah, the walls are rotting away. He's going to make new ones and I can help him. He's going to teach me how to fish too." Hao told her, "We'll be going to Tomoeda on Wednesday and he says that I can stay at your house in the morning. What are we going to do?"

"Well what would you like to do? Maybe we could go to the zoo."

"Mommy doesn't like... didn't like that. She said that it's filthy and dirty there. Oh look! A squirrel!" and immediately he began to chase the little animal. Sakura's warning that he should watch out for tree roots came too late. He fell, face forward, on the moss. Sakura picked up his glasses and asked if he'd hurt himself.

"No, but the squirrel is gone." he said gloomily. Suddenly he gasped, startled. "My shirt's dirty! Look, green smudges everywhere!" his bottom lip trembled, "mommy said that I-"

Sakura knelt next to him and took him in her arms. "Hao, it doesn't matter if you get dirty. Why do you think they invented soap and washing machines? And how do you think we feel when we're having fun and getting dirty while you are as clean as can be? Look..." she rubbed her hand over the moss and then over the soil. Finally she lifted her now dirty hand. "Watch this." with her dirty hand she rubbed over her silk blouse and she heard him gasp again when dirty smudges began to appear on her blouse. She pushed his hand on the moss. "Now it's your turn."

He did as he was told, tentatively. Apparently he misunderstood, because he lifted his dirty hand to her blouse."

"No, on your own shirt, Hao."

His eyes widened slightly- suddenly the corners of his mouth curled up into a smile. "Look at me!" he said, while rubbing his hand over his shirt. He sounded proud.

Sakura swallowed. "Fun isn't it?" she asked laughing, "Now, you don't always have to get dirty on purpose, but if it's an accident it doesn't matter."

"Oh," he mumbled. "Can we keep a moss fight?"

"A moss fight?" Sakura repeated surprised.

"Yeah, we throw moss at each other. Miyuki said she does that a lot. It gets stuck in your hair and stuff..."

Sakura grabbed a chunk of moss and threw it to him. He yelled fiercely and began throwing moss too. At a certain point Sakura acted as if she was scared and ran away, making her collide into a broad chest of a man.

On instinct she grabbed the blue shirt the guy was wearing to steady herself and she looked up, straight into Syaoran's eyes.

"Syaoran..." her voice suddenly sounded weak. "What are you doing here? What do you want?"

"What do you think I want, Sakura?" his gaze was resting hungrily on her mouth. "I came to apologize."

Sakura looked into his amber eyes and it seemed as if she was drowning in a sea of pure desire. "Apology accepted." she said hoarsely.

She was leaning towards him and he towards her when Hao suddenly appeared and said: "Aunt Sakura?" She held her breath and stepped out of his embrace. Hao stood next to them and looked up cautiously. "Are you going to tell daddy about getting dirty?" he asked, "About that it doesn't matter? Right Aunt Sakura?"

Sakura noticed that Syaoran was breathing hard too, just like her, but otherwise he looked unaffected. He looked at Hao, raised an eyebrow and went over the smudges on Hao's shirt with his finger. "What's this?" he asked.

"Dirt." Sakura answered. "I found that it was time to introduce Hao to dirt and how to get dirty."

"We had a moss fight!" he exclaimed and giggled. "And I was winning!"

"A moss fight? Why didn't you tell me? I wanted to play too!" Syaoran pouted. "Just you wait, I'm going to get you and then I'm going to throw you into the water with shirt and all!"

"First you got to catch me!" Hao ran away screaming and laughing as he looked back over his shoulder.

"..." Syaoran looked at his son incredulously, "This is the first time I hear him laughing since Misha has died. How did you do it?"

Sakura shrugged and folded her arms in front of her chest. "Talked... I told him about my parents and after that everything just came out."

"Daddy! Come on!" Hao whined from far away.

Tears were stinging in Sakura's eyes. "Go." she urged him and gave him a little push. "Hao needs you." Syaoran hesitated for a moment; then he took Sakura's hand and dragged her with him.

"If I'm going to throw him into the water," he said running, "you're going to follow him, because you're a real troublemaker!"

"No, Syaoran!" she giggled. It wouldn't be the first time she would be thrown into the water, but back then she was a teen.

Hao was running on the shore, shouting and laughing. Syaoran grabbed him in a matter of seconds and threw him into the water. Hao laughed merrily and he laughed even harder when Sakura was thrown into the too. Spluttering her head emerged from the water and she mock-glared at the two who were standing on the shore, laughing at her. The father and son had finally found each other.

After a shower Sakura dressed herself in some dry jeans and a gray shirt and went back to the party. Hao and Syaoran weren't back yet, and she looked forward to...Syaoran.

Hao ran ahead to put dry clothes on. They followed him in a slower pace. They hardly talked to each other, but in one way or another, something clicked between them. Something old and new at the same time.

Sakura tried to define it. There was this kind of harmony, but that had always existed between them. So what was new? Something she couldn't name, something exciting.

She was talking to Eriol and Tomoyo when she heard his footsteps. She was standing with her back towards the stairs and she had to control herself from turning around immediately.

"Where's Hao?" she heard Miyuki ask.

Eriol and Tomoyo looked at Syaoran and Sakura turned around... Syaoran was smiling at Miyuki.

"Hao was taking a long time with washing and dressing," Syaoran told laughing, "When I went to check on him, he was lying in his bed, sleeping like a rock."

Mei Lin yawned. "I think I'm going to hit the sack too." she announced, standing up. "Tomoyo, thank you for the party."

"Don't thank me," Tomoyo said laughing, "Thank Eriol and Sakura. They did all the work."

Eriol draped his arm around Sakura's shoulders. "We make an excellent team don't we?" he asked grinning.

At that moment Sakura's gaze drifted to Syaoran. He was glaring at Eriol's arm. It was obvious he didn't like the arm that was draped over her shoulders. He was practically burning it with his gaze. And suddenly Sakura felt tired. Syaoran did apologize but he still thought that there was something going on between Eriol and her.

"Come, Mei Lin." she said. "We're going together." she smiled at Tomoyo. "It was a fun party."

"Are you leaving too?" Tomoyo asked surprised.

"Yeah, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Good night, Sakura." Sakura tensed when she hears Syaoran's voice so near.

"Good night." she whispered

"Good night Syaoran!" Mei Lin said happily. "It's nice to have you here, don't you think Sakura?"

Sakura ignored the question and walked down the stairs with Mei Lin in front of her. "He's suffering from a great deal of pain and sorrow." said Mei Lin as they walked to their cottage. "He's unhappy."

"Mei Lin, I think I've made progress with Hao." Sakura said. "They've had a lot of fun by the water. Syaoran said he hadn't heard Hao laugh like that ever since... since Misha died."

"I saw you playing. You were like a family..." she mumbled. "Like a family should be in my eyes."

Sakura swallowed. "Mei Lin, Syaoran doesn't like me," she pushed the door open, "You know that."

Mei Lin looked at her, her eyes unusually bright. "Oh he likes you alright! He has always liked you. To be honest I always thought-"

"What did you thought?" Sakura stood in the doorway.

"Mei Lin smiled melancholic smile, "Oh it was just a dream... If Misha never showed up, Syaoran could've fallen in love with you."

Sakura followed Mei Lin inside. What would she say if she dreamt exactly the same thing? What a foolish dream! 'I am a man who's meant for only one woman.' Syaoran told her. 'And Misha's the one for me.'

Misha's now dead and Syaoran would never love again. He wouldn't let himself love anyone else, he made that clear. He would rather look for a woman who would satisfy his sexual needs.

Mei Lin was right: Syaoran was a very unhappy person. Sakura could only hope that the road he chose would eventually make him happy again...

TBC...

Sorry if this chapter sucked. Did anyone notice that halfway in writing this chapter I got writer's block? calls out to her muse Oh muuuuuuuuse, where are you? pouts because her muse refuses to show up Anyway I'll write chapter 10 when I get back from France. I'm going this Sunday and I can hardly wait(Holland's time line)! Well don't forget to review!! Thank you for reading my rambling