Reality's Dream
Chapter 8: Breaking Hope
Sakura sat down at the lunch table looking rather unenthusiastic about the meal situated before her. There had been a little mix up at home leaving her with out a lunch. To sate her growling stomach she had resorted to cafeteria grub. The meatballs were known as bouncy balls for their rubbery consistency. They were actually quite fun to pelt at unsuspecting people but were rather difficult to digest. The mashed potatoes were a liquidy pile of powder and water that looked like something a baby had once eaten and decided to give back. And the gravy? Let's not even go there for talking about it might make it angry. 'And they wonder why no one eats this stuff.' Sakura harrumphed. The safest option was the green beans that came straight from the can. Unfortunately a rumor had been going round how the school had had their canned food around for so long that some could even date back to the early fifties. Highly improbably yes, but with canned goods you can never be so sure. Sakura hesitantly lifted a spoonful of the supposedly edible material when a peanut butter and jelly sandwich popped into her view.
"A lady should never be forced to ingest such atrocities." A voice teased.
Sakura looked up to her blue eyed friend in gratitude, "Thanks Eriol. You're a lifesaver. Who knows how many kids have died from dreaded cafeteria food." She pretended to shiver at the thought as he sat down beside her.
"So 8 o'clock tonight right?" Eriol asked as Sakura chomped away at her treasured sustenance.
"Actually we are off the hook." Sakura replied her voice seemingly neutral. For the past few weeks Sakura had been strung along on a number of dates from miniature golfing to bowling to skating. 'I don't know how I would have survived without Eriol,' she absently thought. But finally today Syaoran was going out on his own, so to speak, considering Tomoyo would be with him. 'When it comes to feelings that boy has no backbone.' But she didn't blame him that much. She knew he had trouble letting people in or expressing what he felt and she knew it scared him shitless.
"What'll you be doing with your new found freedom," Eriol inquired.
"Dunno. Maybe read a book, watch a movie, take a bubble bath." Sakura shrugged indifference.
"Well a lady should never be alone on a Friday evening." Eriol stated sounding like some royal proclaiming the law of the land.
"Is that so?" Sakura played along.
"Why yes it is."
"Well do you then have a solution to this conundrum?" Sakura shot back.
"As a matter in fact I do." Eriol grinned. "How about we hang out for a while? Maybe watch movies at my house? Plus I have plenty of sugar stashed about to satisfy a sugar fiend like yourself."
"That sounds wonderful." Sakura exclaimed. 'Anything to keep me from moping around like a love sick puppy dog gets my vote.'
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"Eeeeeeeekkkkkkk!" A shrill squeak pierced the air followed by a hearty rumble of laughter.
"Sakura," Eriol teased the terrified girl. "She was only trying to get his attention." At the moment they were watching the Sixth Sense, not a really scary movie but the presence of ghosts sent Sakura into a tizzy. She and Eriol were sprawled a couch in Eriol's house with Sakura clinging on to him for dear life. Eriol placed his arm around her rubbing his hand up and down her back soothingly.
"Well excuse me," She bit back sassily. "I don't care what her intentions are. I would not want some ghost grabbing at my legs from under a bed."
"You wouldn't want a ghost to do anything." He chuckled again.
"Quite right." Sakura stated trying to act brave but her voice still sounded like that of a frightened five year old as she snuggled closer to Eriol.
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"Excellent choice sir," The waiter commented to Syaoran before flipping his notebook shut and heading to the kitchen.
Syaoran looked up at the beautiful girl across from him still in a slight daze that she would ever consider going out with the likes of him.
"You know I'm a bit surprised that Sakura and Eriol haven't magically popped up by now," Tomoyo murmured casually but there was a knowing twinkle in her eye.
Syaoran blushed a little giving a slight chuckle, "Heh, figured me out…"
"I actually found it rather sweet." Tomoyo said making Syaoran brighten. 'Hell yea! More points for me!' as she reached across the table placing her hand on his, slowly lacing their fingers.
Tomoyo swept her gaze around the restaurant for the millionth time since she got here. "This place is amazing Syaoran. Look at all those chandeliers and the candles." She gave a little sigh of contentment.
"Well if you like this you are going to love next week." Syaoran stated while Tomoyo gave him a bemused look. "My mother is funding another dig for Fujitaka Kinomoto so she is throwing a celebration for it as usual." It had always been a tradition that whenever the Lis and Kinomotos partnered up on a project, right before its beginning, they would celebrate by having a gala of sorts. "And," Syaoran paused for dramatic effect, "It's going to be a masquerade ball."
Tomoyo squealed with delight. She had been to a few of the celebrations here and there but this would be different, she was actually going with a Li. "Oh this is so exciting. I'll have to think up a costume soon so I have enough time to make it. Oh and one for Sakura too, though I'll have to check with whoever her date will be since it won't be you for once…" Tomoyo kept rambling on into eternity but Syaoran absorbed none of it his mind only focusing on one thing…He wouldn't be taking Sakura. That had been part of the tradition. Every celebration they went together, always. But back then he'd never had a girlfriend to take. Syaoran sighed. He couldn't very well just tell Tomoyo to go alone so he could take his best friend. He'd have to think of something. 'I'll call her tonight and we can figure it out.' And with that he tried to bring his focus back to his date.
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Eriol looked up to find a snowy TV screen, its surface flashing jagged lines of gray and white. 'Must have fallen asleep' Eriol thought his mind a little foggy over what had led him to be here. He made a move to get up when he realized there was a presence blocking him. Eriol saw he was laying across his couch with Sakura curled up alongside him, his arm wrapped securely about her waist. 'She looks so peaceful asleep, like a beautiful angel.' Eriol felt his cheeks warm at that. Recently his thoughts about Sakura had been bordering beyond friendship but he pushed them aside knowing Sakura had eyes only for one guy, and it wasn't him. Feeling sleep pull at him to return Eriol settled back in resting his head by Sakura's.
Doo Dee Doo Dii
'The hell?' Eriol was snapped from near slumber with any annoying electronic sound. He looked at the table nearby and saw it was Sakura's cell phone. "Sakura?" Eriol whispered shaking her gently but found no response. He tried once more only she rolled over facing him and wrapping her arms about his waist snuggled in closer causing his cheeks to flare up. Eriol wasn't quite sure what to do and the insistent ringing of her phone wasn't helping to clear his panicked thoughts. Stretching as far as he could Eriol managed to get a grasp on the cell phone and then worked on disentangling himself from the snoozing girl.
"Hello?" Eriol asked into the phone his voice a little shaky as Sakura still had a firm grasp on him. 'Damn she must work out or something.'
"Sa-Hello? Who is this? Where is Sakura?" The voice on the other end growled in a familiar way.
"Well hello there to you too, Syaoran. Can't even recognize your own buddy, I'm hurt." Eriol exaggerated.
"Eriol shut up." Syaoran snapped. He wasn't sure why but he all of a sudden was not in the mood for joking around. "Where's Sakura?"
"Oh she's a little detained at the moment. She's sleeping. I tried to wake her up but..." Eriol started.
"You'll never get her up. Once she's asleep not even a nuclear bomb will wake her." Syaoran chuckled slightly knowing how difficult his friend could be.
"Yeah she must have really worn herself out from all the screaming." Eriol said.
"Excuse me, screaming?" Syaoran demanded a meaning.
"Yeah we were watching movies at my house and she got just a little frightened. Does she work out cause she has a grip that could kill." Eriol laughed a little while Syaoran gritted his teeth.
"Well it's getting late. You better call her house or her brother will have a heart attack." Syaoran advised deciding to just talk to Sakura another time.
"Alright. Should I tell her you called?" Eriol asked.
"Nah. I'll just try again later." And with that Syaoran hung up.
As Eriol worked on getting in touch with the Kinomoto household Syaoran paced his room. His stomach was tensed as if anticipating a blow and he felt like he was on edge like preparing fro the storm to hit. 'What am I getting so worked up about? Two of my friends hanging out I, should be happy.' But something was nagging him. He growled slightly remembering Eriol's comments over the choice in movies. Syaoran was supposed to be the one Sakura watched scary movies with; he was the one to protect her. He shook his head and flung himself on his bed hoping sleep would remedy this aggravation.
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Sakura lay on her bed fighting with all her might not let the burning tears leave her eyes, but it was a losing battle. Her heart throbbed; each beat was like a dagger of ice being stabbed through her chest. Her body convulsed with a sob that she tried to muffle with a pillow. The anguish rose up inside her like a volcano exploding. Everything she had been hiding deep inside rushed to the surface. Her mind and heart crying out for a reason. A reason why this would happen. A reason why she loved him. A reason for the pain. And most of all a reason to keep holding on. 'I can't keep doing this,' she weakly thought. 'I can't take watching and hurting and wanting and crying…But what do I do?' The confusion and anger and hurt pulled at her trying to drag her asunder, to tear her apart
Sakura reached out for her phone dialing with heavy hands her friend's number.
"Hello." A calm male voice answered.
"Eriol?" Her slightly muffled voice came through, a bit broken by the sobs.
"Sakura?" Eriol asked seeming a bit surprised. "What's wrong?"
Sakura then revealed what had happened not long ago. Syaoran had told her he was taking Tomoyo to the masquerade. Years of friendship pushed aside for his girlfriend. Sakura felt replaced in his life, she no longer was needed and that squashed any remaining hope she carried inside her. But what could she possibly do? She was too lost in shock and pain, she needed someone to help her. So she turned to Eriol.
"What should I do?" Sakura asked her voice a little clearer now that most of the tears had ceased flowing.
Eriol was silent for a moment, thinking, before finally responding. "I can come up with three possible options for what you could do. The first is you could continue on as you have hoping for Syaoran to change. But as you are sounding currently that one seems rather fool hardy. The second is for you to try and make Syaoran see, to steal him away from Tomoyo." Sakura opened her mouth in protest but was cut off. "But I know you would never even consider doing that to Tomoyo so that option also seems out of the question."
"So what's the last option?"
"Well that one is the simplest and probably the hardest all at the same time. It's for you to move on." Eriol suggested gently.
Sakura was silent. Could she actually move on? Could she learn to get past her love for Syaoran, to accept that they only had a friendship? Could she just give up everything she had hoped for for so long?
The emptiness inside made up her decision for her. "I'll try." Her voice caught in her throat for a moment. "I'll try to get over Syaoran Li."
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a/n: Thank you to all who reviewed, it makes me smile. Q, I never once broke that twice stated rule. Every entry was a full chapter. And yes this is a democracy, a democracy of rules. And the wonderful thing about democracies is the ability to amend. Amendments for the rules. There is always room for improvement. It's clear either most of us are wrong using small a/n's at ends of chapters or people are getting wrongly deleted, either situation is a problem that I hope to bring to attention. No offense of course to your opinion. P.S. I think you should be a lawyer, you argue quite thoroughly if without empathy.