Disclaimer: don't own them, wish I did. Oh but I do own any mysterious characters that I made up.

AN: Okie dokie…well then, what can I say. I'm gonna apologize in advance for this one. Not my best work, but I was slightly stumped here. How do I follow up my last chapter? I just need something to get me through to the next part. I have a plan, worry not. There are just details to be accounted for first. A story is like a big heist, you know what the final goal is, and you know generally how you have to get there, but there is always the matter of details.

What She Need – The morning after

Tomoyo's body lay heavy on the bed; her breathing slow and shallow. Violet eyes stared widely at the phone on her dresser. All she had to do was pick it up, and that would be the end of it. The end to all the anger, the shame, the foolishness. An end to the pain.

It would all be forgotten with one call. She could return to the life she had once known to her stable, though promiscuous life. At least that life was familiar, At least it didn't hurt. It didn't hurt as much as this hurt.

As much as she willed herself to reach out for the phone, her limbs would not comply. She only lay there with her eyes wide open, denying herself. She would not call Touya tonight. He would not see her wrecked like so. She would not ask him to help her, not for Eriol she wouldn't.

Touya was there to help her cope with her love for Sakura. That was real pain; that was real heartache.

This, this was just Eriol. She would survive Eriol alone, because he was nothing to her. She didn't love him. It was only the pain and the shock of rejection that left her paralyzed, even hours after his scent left her bedroom. It was only shock, not lost love.

Tomoyo let out one heavy sigh. "He is nothing to me." Her voice managed to whisper in a heavy rasp. "I will forget him…tomorrow."

The sun streamed into the bedroom, shining light over her tired and worn face. She had not slept. She had not risen from the spot he had left her last night. Her cheeks were damp with tears she had allowed herself to shed over Hirigazawa Eriol that night. But a new sun had risen, and today was yesterday's tomorrow. She would forget him now.

Slowly, she pushed herself off from the bed. Once standing, she let the rest of her gown fall from her waist to the floor, abandoning with all other memories of the night before.

"Adventure over Tomoyo. Time to come back to the real world." She drew her silk rove about her and went to her dresser to take two aspirin. True, she hadn't been very drunk last night and was not hung over now, but it felt right to go back to her routine. Her body ached for routine again.

She popped the pills and retreated to her shower.

Afterwards, she caught her reflection in the steamy mirror. Her cheeks had been flustered and raw from the tears she had cried all night. Tomoyo shook her head with disappointment. How ridiculous she looked, crying over a man.

She opened her vanity drawer and pulled out an eye dropper. She flooded her worn eyes with their cooling effect until the fluid streamed down her cheeks like their predecessors. She wiped the away with her face towel and looked back at her reflection. "You have already decided to forget about last night. Why won't you face agree and look it?" She shook her head again and went to get dressed, hoping she would get through the day without anyone questioning her appearance.

Work somehow seemed less productive than ever, giving her too much time to reflect. Although she tired her best to banish him from her thoughts and keep mind to the meetings, she repeatedly found herself failing. 'It shouldn't be so hard Tomoyo. It shouldn't be so hard to forget him. That was part of the original plan. You would have had your night and forgotten him after. Pretend Tomoyo, pretend. At least pretend you have abandoned him. Its not as if you don't have practice and pretending and abandoning.'

"Is that okay Ms. Daidouji?" Her name drew her from her thoughts and back to the meeting. She stared at her board of directors with blank eyes. In response to her hesitation, the man repeated his question, "Should we have the branch in New York to donate their surplus toys to orphanages as well? We really think it will help to soften the big bad Japanese toy company image we have picked up there."

Tomoyo nodded, only vaguely hearing what he had asked. "That sounds fine."

All eyes seemed to be on her and locked in concern. It was not so much her answer that surprised them, because it was the right one, but rather her response. Her behavior had been odd in the last week. She was distancing herself from the company during the only time she was most actively involved. They would be making the final arrangements for their orphanage tour soon, and Tomoyo was usually knee deep in her plans. But recently, all her ideas were absent from the meetings and responses to their had been nods and 'sures.'

Daunted by her colleagues probing stares, she suggested that they break for lunch and excused herself from the conference room.

Soon enough her faithful secretary Kihone was at her heels, ready to take her lunch order. Tomoyo only shook her head, replying that she wasn't hungry. Kihone only nodded at this and proceeded to ask if she wanted anything else, perhaps something to drink. Tomoyo responded 'no' before retreating into her office and closing the door behind her. At her desk, she sat slumped and head resting on her fisted hand. Her fingers clenched tighter and tighter until her nails began to tear small holes in the flesh of her palms. She wanted desperately to reach for the phone, to dial a number, any number. She wanted so badly for someone to be on the other line, someone to talk to her and make her feel sane.

She lifted her head and watched the phone. Slowly she reached and touched its spine with her index finger. She fooled around with the idea a bit longer before coming back to her senses. Slowly she rose from her desk, more determined than ever to get him off her mind. She touched the call button for Kihone who was in her office faster than lightening.

"How feasible is it to move up the orphanage tour?"

"Move it up?" Kihone asked in a slight disbelief.

"Yes, perhaps even add a few more places. How fast can we manage that?" Tomoyo asked, her words fixed and her body stiff.

The assistant began furiously flipping through her planner. "I'm not sure ma'am. I would have to call the trucking service, and our inventory…"

"How fast?" Tomoyo repeated more sternly.

"Maybe two weeks, at the least a week."

"Two days." Tomoyo replied and began packing her things up. "I want to leave in two days. Make the calls, schedule the flights. I'll be at home making other arrangements." She grabbed her briefcase and began to leave her office. "Make it happen."

Tomoyo took a few deep breaths as she left her office. 'Occupied, just stay occupied.'

TBC – yeah….so