Words Don't Come Easy

Chapter 12: The Grapevine

November 2016

The air was cool and crisp outside and the ever-present sound of Tokyo traffic hummed in the background. Autumn leaves were scattered along the pavement in front of Sakura and the sun hid behind the clouds for a little longer today. It was a sign that Autumn was coming to an end.

A new day meant another run for Sakura and for once, she was happy about that. Being in the fresh air, away from all her problems, was her escape. Even though it was hard on her knee, running was her sanctuary. She didn't need to answer to anyone and she didn't need to wait for anyone – it was only her. For a brief second, she did miss Syaoran's company and there was no point in denying it, but it was for the best that he wasn't there.

From the minute she woke up, thoughts of Syaoran raced through her mind. It was confusing, to say the least. He opened up to her, he touched her face, and he even called her Sakura. Was there something she was missing? Had he felt it too? Sakura quickly dismissed the thought. She hadn't seen Eriol in almost two months and the communication had been minimal. She was just starved for affection, that was all. Or so she thought.

Sakura shook her head as she walked along the footpath. These thoughts were silly. Any women with eyes would fall for Syaoran in an instant. The fact that he had been kind to her and opened up to her made her feel a little important to him – special, even. Of course, a little crush would come from it. But people in relationships had those all the time. The real test was resisting to act upon that and she had no doubt that she would be able to do that.

Then there was the other issue that was nagging at her brain. The fight she had with Tomoyo was one of the things she least expected to happen yesterday. Tomoyo had left before Sakura woke up this morning and she hadn't heard a peep from her since last night when Tomoyo slammed the bedroom door. They were both at fault and she knew that. But she couldn't help but feel that Tomoyo had gone one step too far with her accusations.

Rubbing her temples with the pads of her fingers, Sakura sighed. An apology was in order or else it would only get worse. She had a feeling that Tomoyo would be just as stubborn as she was when it came to apologising, so she would have to make the first move this time. It was the least she could do.

Just as her pace started to pick up into a steady jog, her phone vibrated in her pocket. It was one of those days where she wanted to be alone. She needed to sort her thoughts and feelings before she confronted any of the people in her life.

Grabbing the phone out of her pocket, she flicked the screen on and Eriol's name flashed across the screen. She let out a deep breath. She wouldn't be escaping any of them anytime soon.

"Good morning, Eriol-kun," she said as happily as she could manage. She knew it wasn't morning wherever he was. In fact, she hadn't known what country he was in for a long time now. He stopped telling her weeks ago.

"Who's with you at the moment?" he slurred the words.

He was drunk. There was no mistaking it. Eriol was usually articulate with his words and annunciation but there was none of that this time. Not even five seconds had passed before he opened his mouth again.

"Are you going to answer me or should I just call Syaoran's phone?" he drawled out the sentence with a slight bite to his tone.

Syaoran was right. Everything trickled down the grapevine right into Eriol's lap. To what extent did he know was up in the air and something told her that she was going to find out right now.

"Cat's got your tongue, huh?" he scoffed. He was breathing heavily – she could hear every inhalation and exhalation over the phone.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.