4. Please Stay

A/N: This chapter is about Syaoran's behaviour toward Sakura after he gets a job and asks Sakura to move in with him that very well makes her want to leave. Another mushy-mushy one, just to let ya know, so for those people who don't like mushy-mushy stuff, be warned! :P but DO read! :)

Rating: K+ (This one's not too bad, just mushy :P)

Genre: Romance/Hurt/Comfort

Syaoran stood outside the plain oak door of his house and jiggled the metal doorknob again and again, which for some reason, was locked. He checked his watch: 9:30 at night. Well, he was earlier than usual, much earlier in fact. The door was usually unlocked even if he came back at 3 in the morning. He dug his hand in the pocket of his black sports jacket and felt around, looking for a bunch of keys. His ring finger scratched against something and he felt a stab of pain. He grimaced – he found them.

Pushing the stubborn key into the lock, he found himself thinking, thanks goodness I got into the habit of bringing around a set of keys. But then again, the only reason I did was because Sakura kept pushing me to do it. Another thought struck him. Sakura usually opened the door for him. Where was she now? A stab of worry hit him; had something happened to her?

Finally he heard the click in the lock and he rushed into the house, nearly taking the door with him. He wrenched the key out, and looked around for his beloved. A small, curled up figure on their cream-coloured couch caught his eye and he breathed a sigh of relief; she was alright. But something was not right. She was shivering when it was a hot night, and she wore clothes fit for going out, not her usual loose, baggy home clothes.

He shrugged out of his jacket, took off his black tie and undid the top button of his white shirt. Walking slowly so he wouldn't wake her, he knelt beside her, and had to suppress a gasp. Her bright green eyes were closed and her auburn hair pushed back, but he could clearly see the red rim around her eyes and the tear-streaked face that told him she'd been crying uncontrollably.

"Sakura?" he said softly, stroking her cheek. Her eyes slowly fluttered open, and beautiful eyes stared at him.

"Syaoran?" she murmured. Her eyes suddenly snapped open. "Li-kun! You're…you're home early," she said, genuinely surprised.

"Well, yeah, I didn't have much to do today," he answered. Li-kun? he thought, confused. Since when has she called me that? "Baby, why are you crying?"

Sakura sat up and tucked her hair behind her ears. Suddenly, she didn't want to meet his eyes. "It's nothing…"

"No, tell me," he persisted, sincerely worried about his girlfriend.

Sakura shook her head and walked to the door. It was only then that Syaoran noticed the two fuchsia-coloured luggage bags by the entrance. Slowly he stood up. "Sakura…what's with the bags?" he asked carefully as she stuffed her purse and sunglasses into her slingbag.

"I…I'm leaving, Li-kun…" Sakura said softly, looking everywhere else but him. "I'm leaving this house…and I'm leaving you." Saying those words, it broke her heart, but she just couldn't take it anymore. Five months of this was enough.

For Syaoran, those few simple words shattered his world and crushed her heart. "W-what?" he managed to croak. She backed against the door and he stepped as close as she would allow him to.

Sakura willed herself not to cry. "I…I can't take this anymore, Syao…Li-kun. It's too much; five months of being ignored and avoided is enough. You're the one who convinced me to move in with you, saying that it would be great if we could live together, sweet heaven to wake up next to me each morning and paradise to be with me every second of the day, but no – ever since I moved here, it's been the complete opposite! It's like you've been taking advantage of me, because I'm right here. Every day, you go out early and come back late at night, and I never see you anymore. The few times I do are when you wake up late and I'm already awake; I have to watch you rush out of the house without even saying goodbye. I know you're busy, but it doesn't even take a minute to smile at me, or to ask if I'm okay. I'm tired of waiting for a sign that you still love me, but you can't even manage that, let alone 'I love you'."

Syaoran stared. He knew that lately he'd been a complete jerk and he hadn't been treating like she deserved but he never knew that she had been so affected by it. He always thought she was happy and content, but…he couldn't have been more wrong. Now that he was thinking about it, he realized he was being stupid; he knew how sensitive she was, after what had happened with the three previous guys before him.

Sakura placed her hands on either side of her arms. Her eyes were puffy and getting redder as she held back her tears. "I know I said I'd always wait for you, but as I waited I realized I was probably a bore to you – that's why you were never around. I'm leaving now because I know you'd be happier with someone else, someone who isn't so dedicated to you, someone who isn't as needy as I am." She looked up to gaze into his gorgeous amber eyes. "Someone who doesn't love you as much as I do." She looked down at the gold ring on her ring finger. He had given it to her for their 5th anniversary last year; the beautifully made ring had a circling waves etched onto it, creating and almost Celtic-like pattern.

Sniffing, she slowly pulled off the ring as Syaoran watched in horror. A tear rolled down from her cheek to splash onto the ring; she hurriedly wiped it off and looked up at him again, tears running down her beautiful face. She took a step closer to him, took his hand and placed the ring in the middle of his palm before curling his fingers back. She sniffed and reluctantly released his hand, well aware that this might be the last time she held it. "I hope you find that girl, Li-kun, and I hope you're happy with her. She'll…she'll be the one for you." She took a final step back and turned, her hand resting on the doorknob.

Before she turned it, she glanced over her shoulder, enough to look into his eyes. "I love you, Syaoran," she whispered, and blinked. Her tear fell onto her sleeve. She looked back at the door and turned the knob, swinging the door open.

Syaoran's mind was screaming at him to do something before she stepped out. Bad enough he'd been a jerk, but she had been crying night and day because of him. Seeing her cry now…it was more than he could bear. Two small steps brought him to her, and he enveloped her small frame into his arms.

Her entire body tensed up and she gasped. Syaoran wound his arms around her tightly. She truly believed he didn't love her, and it was his fault. He made her suffer, he broke her heart, he abandoned her and he made her cry…Dammit!

Holding onto her with one arm, he stroked her hair with another. "Sakura, I'm so sorry. I should've realized how much you were affected earlier than this. I never knew, I swear, but now, come to think of it, I should've known, because I know how sensitive you are. If you had told me earlier, I would've done something. Why didn't you say anything?" he wondered aloud, resting his cheek on her head. "You could've left a note…"

"The note would've taken long to read; you can't manage time to smile," Sakura sniffed.

"A call?" Syaoran suggested.

"Would you have picked up? Or called back?" Sakura asked quietly.

Syaoran blinked, then sighed. "You're right…I've been a real jerk recently, and I have been taking advantage of you, I know, but I love you. I know it's hard for you to believe, but I really do. You mean everything to me, and I know that without you, my life would never be the same again. Please don't go, please stay, give me a chance to prove how much I really care about you. There could never be anyone else, because you're the one true love of my life, and I just cannot let you go. Sweetheart…please stay…" he pleaded.

"Could you promise you'd be around?" she asked softly, turning to face him. She touched his lip tentatively with her finger. He caught her hand and nuzzled it. He fixed the ring in his palm back onto her ring finger.

"No…I can't," he said regretfully. Seeing her expression change, he pressed on quickly. "But I can promise I'll be there when you need me. I'll take the time to tell you how much I love you every day and make sure you're okay. I promise," he added gently, looking into her eyes.

They were swimming with tears, but with the small trace of a smile, she nodded. "Of course I'll stay…Syaoran," she added, the smile widening. She fixed the ring properly on her finger and smiled back at her fiancé, and closed the door.

Author's Note: Just to let you know, when I say 5th anniversary, I mean they've been together for five years; they're not married yet. See the word 'fiancé' at the end? :) Thanks to everyone who reviewed!
Last chapter: the wedding!

Disclaimer: I do not own Cardcaptor Sakura.