13

If it was on me, I would've stay in bed during the rest of my life. I'm not hungry (my stomach feels sick from running from school to home, sometimes I even feel like puking), but tonight is my turn to make dinner, so I have to fulfill my obligations as the oldest sister now that Rika's not here.

Dad and Misaki are at the sofa, watching a NatGeo documental. I'm at the kitchen, washing tomatoes. I've decided to make lasagna, so I got all my vegetables waiting its turn to get washed.

From the long window that´s in front of the sink, I can see the street. The sun is setting, so everything looks a soft orange, kind of like a peach. There are not so many people walking around the neighborhood. Mostly are office workers that are back from a long day at work. Some others are housewives that come back from the conbini, where they bought the last ingredients they needed to make dinner.

Still, among all these adults, I see someone who walks out of his house, and heads towards here: with both his hands in his pockets, looking down to the floor, Eriol's headed to my house.

I want to yell, but I hold it in. The tomato I was holding slides through my fingers and drops in the water, with the other ones that were about to be washed. Still looking out of the window, I close the tap, pat dry my hands in a towel, jump off the footstool, and head towards the back of the house.

I'm going out by the door that heads towards our garage, when I hear the doorbell ring, my dad getting up from the couch, ready to open the door, and probably welcome Eriol in, since it's Eriol and there's no reason why not to let him in.

I run and reach the other side of the garage, as I crouch, always covering myself behind dad's car.

If I were to run now, I could be seen from the front of the house, so as my heart is trying to jump out of my chest, the only thing I can do is wait. Then, I hear how the front door closes (Eriol's now inside the house!) and I finally step out and run away.

I run as fast as I can, until I reach the corner. Right there's the old Ichihara house. The Ichiharas were an old couple that trusted everybody so much that they never locked their doors. They moved out a couple of months ago (they put the house on sale), but since it's still on the market, I pray they locks are still open.

I hit against the door that heads to the backyard, and holding my breath I try to open it, and it does open!

Despite I know I'm breaking and entering private property, I run inside.

Being here brings back so many memories. The Ichiharas never had children, but they liked kids so much that they placed a playground on their backyard, and even built a house tree, for anyone to use.

I run until I reach the tree, and climb the tiny steps (so tiny for an almost seventeen-year-old girl), but I finally manage to reach the top of the ladder, and get inside the tree house. Still with my heart pounding like crazy, I drop myself in the wooden floor, both arms extended, as if I wanted to hug the tree house, and take a time to catch my breath. After all, this has been my second run of the day. Third, if I count my laps at PE.

I must have stayed at the Ichihara's tree house for at least a couple of hours, since when I finally dare to come out, it's already dark. My legs are trembling, but I manage to go down the steps, and running once again (crouched, as if I expected Eriol to have his face plastered against his living room window), I go back home.

In order to avoid being seen from Eriol's house, I enter via the garage. I peek the kitchen (which is pristine clean, which makes me think dad and Misaki already had dinner), and since my stomach's still upset with me, I decide not to grab anything, and go upstairs to my room.

I don't turn on the light. Eriol's light is on, and I bet as soon as I turn on mine a pebble will hit my window, and he'll have a piece of paper with a note written already waiting for me to read.

But I can't do it, not like this, and certainly not tonight.

So that's my plan. I'll keep on running until I run out of breath, hiding in any viable spot, and I'll run away from Eriol until the rest of my days.

Or as long for him to forget about this letter-issue, and everything goes back to normal.

Next morning, I wake up earlier than usual. When dad and Misaki walk into the kitchen, breakfast is already served, lunches are already packed, and I'm more than ready to leave for school.

"Isn't it quite early?" Dad asks.

"I got the cleaning for the day." I lie.

Truth be told I'm not planning to risk it running into Eriol. Just in case, I even take a different route to school.

There's a possibility Eriol hadn't received his letter, that it was only Li's the one that got mailed (let me dream), but I can't risk my dreams just being dreams, so even when I promised Eriol to be there for him, after his breakup with Rika, right now that's a promise I can't keep.

In my head, the Ichiharas are Yuuko and Clow Read, who finally found a universe were they ended up together, happily ever after.

-Ribo~