Words Don't Come Easy

Chapter 11: Close for Comfort

November 2016

"Do you think he forgot about me again?"

Sakura's gaze drifted down to the boy sitting beside her on the park bench. His unruly brown hair was illuminated by the street lamp hanging above their heads. He looked up at her with his big, amber eyes with such conviction that she held all the answers in the universe – including the answer to the question he had just asked.

Lifting her hand from her lap, she stroked his hair back and shook her head. His question was innocent but the context behind it broke her heart into pieces. Ryuu had been forgotten before. She was there when it happened, and she didn't doubt that it had happened more than once. He was accustomed to this when he shouldn't be. A child should be loved and cherished. Not neglected and forgotten. To the world, he was a young child and that was shown through his face. But it was his eyes that told his story and for him, his story was that he was an old soul. Living a life beyond his years.

"No, I don't think so," Sakura murmured. "Your dad just has a lot on his plate at the moment."

His brows drew together in confusion. "What does that mean?"

"It means that he's very busy," Sakura explained. Moments like this reminded her that he was only eight years old. There was no doubt that he had been through a lot more than the average eight-year-old, there was still a realm of knowledge out there waiting for him.

"I know that," Ryuu mumbled. "He thinks I don't see but I know."

"What have you seen?" Sakura asked. Over the time she had known Ryuu, she learned that he wasn't the type of child to open up to you. He was very careful with his words and kept his cards close to his chest. Getting any information out of him was like trying to pull teeth. With that in mind, she jumped at the chance to learn more about what was going on with Ryuu and Syaoran.

"He doesn't eat or sleep when he comes home because he's in his office working," he replied.

Sakura frowned. She was aware of his job and how intense running a company could be but at the same time, she thought he would've had a whole team of staff helping him around the clock. If he didn't then it made sense, why he sounded so desperate on the phone earlier. He was exhausted and no matter how much money he had, he couldn't be in two places at once.

"Are you eating and sleeping, Ryuu?" Sakura asked.

He bobbed his head up and down. "But I'm scared something will happen to him." He paused for a moment, carefully selecting his next words. "Like what happened to mum"

Sakura blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall. He didn't need to spell out what his fear was because they were in the same vein as Sakura's had been. Losing her mother at such a young age made her cling onto her father even more. She could see that Ryuu was the same to a certain extent.

"That won't happen," she said, stroking his hair once more. "There's no need for you to worry about that."

His face was solemn. It was the face of someone who had done something wrong, said something wrong. Someone who should be promising to never do that again, say that again but won't. The air around them simmered and he let out a big yawn.

Glancing down at her watch, Sakura sighed. It was getting late. Syaoran was already two hours late and she hadn't heard a thing from him. People at the park were starting to leave and for a moment, she thought she'd be joining them pretty soon.

"If you want, you can sleep here," Sakura said while patting her lap. "I can wake you up once he gets here."

Ryuu rubbed his eyes with the palms of his hands. He was reluctant at first but as his eyes began to droop even further, he shifted his body and rested his head on her lap. Sakura silently hoped she wasn't crossing a line, but it was too late to worry about that now. In only a matter of seconds, he was fast asleep. Like his father, he was exhausted.