"An invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break." – An Ancient Chinese Proverb

Chapter 23
"A Chinese Proverb"

"We won! We won!" One of his teammates screamed as he ran excitedly through the hallway.

"We're the champiooonnnsss!" Another one excitedly yelled after.

They could hear the crowd still yelling outside celebrating their historic victory. The entire team had been instructed by management to change into their champion's jersey and walk out to the parking lot where a bus would be waiting for them to take them around a couple of blocks to celebrate this night with the public. For the first time China had won a World Cup. It was indeed a night that would forever be remembered as they wrote their country's name in sports history books.

Syaoran walked through the hallways smiling and laughing at his teammates but enjoying the night as well. After so much hard work they finally did it. They had achieved what no other past China teams had been able to acquire. He felt a hand around his shoulders and looked to his right.

"Man! I'm framing this jersey!" Kyu eagerly said.

Syaoran smiled blissfully. "Eight years Kyu!"

Eriol joined them after with a gratifying smile. "We did it guys!"

A reporter took a picture of the three of them as they walked all the way back to their locker room but that didn't stop them from reaching their destination. As soon as they opened their locker room Eriol quickly reached into his bag and took his cell phone out. Speed dialing the number one, he called his girlfriend without thinking much about it. "Babe…"

Kyu watched his friend and laughed before turning towards Syaoran smirking, "Whipped."

Syaoran smirked as well before going to his locker. He looked through his bag and searched for his clothing so he could take a shower before going to the bus.

"You're not calling Sakura?" Kyu asked.

He smiled before smirking as well. "So that you can call me whipped too…? Nope." He easily said before making his way to the showers. This moment was his and he was going to enjoy it as he felt like.

Kyu frowned as his friend easily waved his question but didn't dwell much on it. The way Syaoran had played tonight was enough to know there was nothing to worry about. He looked through his bag as well and took his clothing out. Compared to Eriol, he would definitely call his girlfriend as well but after taking a shower. After the game they just had, he needed one badly and he was certain his girlfriend would agree as well. In fact, she would probably not allow him to go near her if he didn't take one.

~ o ~

The night sky was clear as they had patrolled the streets in their two story bus celebrating their victory. They jumped up and down as some of them grabbed the microphone and thank the fans for all their support throughout all these years they had spent preparing for this tournament. It was a given this team hadn't form in just a mere year but it had taken them several years to adapt and understand each other's way of playing and capabilities inside the field. It hadn't been easy but in the end they had finally been able to reach their goals.

Syaoran celebrated around his teammates laughing and enjoying the moment. A moment without a doubt he would forever cherish in his heart as one of his dreams came true. After been patrolling the city for several hours the bus finally stopped at their hotel where they would be having a celebration according to what their coach had told them. His father had already taken care of planning everything to finish the night celebrating in the hotel.

Their fans followed them all the way to the hotel but were stopped at the front door for security reasons. The hotel celebration would only include the players, the people that had been able to rent a room before the tournament started, and other specific important people. Knowing his father, the later ones he wouldn't mind skipping. Growing up the way he did, he had always hated to deal with his father's bureaucratic business people.

As he entered the hotel, he was greeted with a tight hug from his mother. "Aw, congratulations my son!"

He hugged her back and smiled. "Thanks mom."

His father chuckled as he gave a couple of steps to reach them. "She has been impatiently waiting for you." He waited till Yelan finished hugging him to hug him as well. "Congratulations son!"

"Thanks dad! Is Sakura here?" he asked.

"You just won the World Cup little brother and this is your question? Shouldn't you ask about your sisters before asking about the whereabouts of your girlfriend?" Xiefa smirked before congratulating him as well.

"Oh, let him be sister. You should know by now how it is…" Fanren smiled and chuckled as Syaoran rolled his eyes at them.

Yelan went from hugging her son to hug Eriol and Kyu who had walked right behind him. "Congratulations boys. You played really well. You deserved it!"

"Thanks auntie!" Eriol said while hugging her back.

Syaoran hugged his sisters one by one as well before wondering, where was his little sister? Out of all of them Feimei was the only one that wasn't there to congratulate him though he didn't thought about it too much. His mind was already in another place. He turned his face to look at Xiefa and asked, "You were able to give her the key then?"

Xiefa sighed surrendering. "She should be there by now."

He nodded before turning towards the elevator with his bag on hand.

"Where are you going son? Are you not staying to enjoy your celebration?" Yelan asked. "You should at least stay for a couple of minutes before you decide to disappear."

He turned towards them. Shaking his head in response, he smiled. "I've got to go."

Xiefa scoffed. "You know, I planned all of this thinking about you little brother…"

He smirked but nonetheless turned around and walked towards the elevator. There was no way he was going to keep Sakura waiting anymore. Unlike his other friends who had called their girlfriends before getting into the bus and parading the city, he hadn't talked to Sakura at all. He just wanted to see her. Reaching his car, he put his bag in the trunk before driving away.

~ o ~

They watched him leave knowing they probably wouldn't hear from him for the rest of the night. Eriol looked around to see his fiancé walking towards them. She excitedly hugged him squealing. "Congratulations baby!"

Closing his eyes, he tightened the embrace and sighed. "Thanks again love." He had anxiously waited for the moment he would feel her arms around him just like this. The one person who had been with him through it all…. Through the bad and the good times Tomoyo had always been there. Always understanding, always listening, even facing and fighting through the tough times they had gone through mainly because of his now missing cousin, Tomoyo had always stayed right next to him. He had been lucky in finding her at such an early age. Not many could say the same thing.

As he opened his eyes he chuckled at the sight of Meiling already on top of Kyu congratulating him. No shame, no caring whether her aunt and uncle were watching her at all, she had simply jumped into Kyu's arms without a care in the world and openly kissed him. Up to this day it was still a mystery for him how they ended up fighting the most as a couple. Between the three of them, Meiling and Kyu always fought the most and yet they never had any problems expressing their feelings in front of everyone.

He looked around and saw the rest of the players celebrating with their relatives. It was a nice sight to see. The title was finally theirs. He saw in the corner Mark introducing Suri to his parents. Apparently their relationship, although it had just started, was going better than expected. In the other corner he saw Xiun holding hands with Feimei and talking to a recruiter. He smirked. Things between Syaoran and Xiun regarding his little sister weren't exactly resolved but at least Syaoran had been able to leave differences outside of the field.

There were no words to describe what he was feeling right now. Everything was complete. He grabbed his girlfriend's hand and started walking to the celebrating room where they would probably party all night long. His aunt was right… they deserved it after all.

~ o ~

Not much farther from the Li's, a different conversation was taking place. Aside from receiving congratulations from most of the people that Xiun had encountered on his way to Feimei he stumbled upon a man who had insisted on talking to him about a business proposal.

"… in Paris you will be well received. We've been looking for middle fielders for a while and I dare say I have not seen anyone more qualified for that position besides you. I can assure you, you would definitely be a perfect fit in our team."

Xiun courteously smiled and respectfully answered, "I appreciate the offer but is best you talk to my agent about it."

"Well off course. Count on it. I just wanted to introduce myself to you and get a feel to see if you would be interested before I talk to your agent about it."

Xiun nodded. "I'll think about it and let you know soon." He said to one of Paris league recruiter before walking away with his girlfriend on hand.

"You'll think about it?" Feimei said not too loud so the conversation would stay between them.

"We're not talking about this now or in here." He simply said while approaching her family. Smiling, he greeted Xian and Yelan. "Hi Mr. Li, Mrs. Li." He said giving them a small bow out of respect.

"Oh! Xiun, congratulations boy! I'm so happy for all of you." Yelan filled with joy said before giving him a hug as well.

"Thanks!" he replied timidly hugging her back. Although he had met her parents before he didn't yet feel entirely part of her family.

Feimei hugged Kyu and Eriol congratulating them as well before frowning. "Where's my brother?"

"You missed him by a couple of minutes." Xiefa simply answered.

"Where did he go?" she asked a little surprised that his brother had chosen to leave after their parents had planned this entire event just for the team.

Xiefa rolled her eyes. "I'll give you three guesses although I'm pretty sure you will not need the other two."

Fiemie looked around and smirked. "Sister… you've outdone yourself with this one. I didn't know you could pull this kind of event so well in such short time."

Xiefa smirked. "It wasn't that hard. When you work for the right company and have the right connections nothing is out of reach to pull this kind of event in such short notice."

"If that's a dip for me to resign where I'm working at big sis to come and work for daddy you've completely miss your objective."

Xian chuckled while stepping in between both of his daughters. "Now girls, behave." He looked at Feimei and smiled. "No one will force you to work for the family even though it's one of our deepest desires and…" he turned his head to look at his first born, "Xiefa you did do a great job with this event."

"Thank you father." She replied.

"Yes, thank you father, I pretty much enjoy the liberty of choosing my own work." Feimei answered before adding, "In fact my very next one could be in Paris." She excitedly said before looking at her boyfriend, a hidden message dancing in her eyes as she stared at him smiling.

"You're going to Paris?" Kyu asked after deciphering Fiemie's look towards Xiun.

Xiun shyly smiled before answering, "Nothing's for certain yet."

"Is a good league." Eriol added.

"Yeah." Kyu nodded. "What team? We might even find ourselves facing each other in the Champions League tournament."

"Paris St Germain. Right babe? That's the correct name?" Feimei asked.

Scratching his head innocently Xiun nodded. "Yes. That's it."

Eriol smirked and jokingly commented, "Well, I know of someone who wouldn't mind facing Paris in the tournament."

Kyu chuckled knowing perfectly well what Eriol meant by that comment.

Feimei narrowed her eyes at Eriol. "My brother has mended all difference he had with my boyfriend Eriol."

Kyu chuckled. "Off course. Who's saying otherwise?" He sarcastically asked.

~ o ~

"I think we should break up." He sadly said to her.

She had seen his lips move but couldn't quite comprehend what he was saying. Perhaps she might have understood wrong because of the low voice he used to say the words. She stood paralyzed not processing them till she finally asked, "What?"

He finally turned to look at her face to face. "This is not working anymore Sakura. You know it isn't."

~ o ~

He shook his head once again. "Don't do this Sakura. Don't make this any harder than it is."

"Harder for who Syaoran?"

He couldn't take it anymore and draw her into a hug. "Please understand." He whispered softly on her ear. "You've become a distraction to me Sakura. Right now, I need to concentrate on my training and you need to concentrate on the class."

~ o ~

He watched with much fascination as she took another strawberry into her mouth. The way she put it into her lips, the way her mouth savor every last bit of the strawberry, the way her face used to soften up when she swallowed it… every little movement she made he found alluring.

She curiously looked at him, "What?"

"Are they that good?" He stood up and walked towards the bar.

She chuckled and nodded.

He grabbed a strawberry from the bowl and ate it. "You're right, these are good."

~ o ~

He moved a hair out of her face while caressing her cheek. The jolt she felt when his fingers graced her skin was unmistakable. She looked down and almost closed her eyes as her body betrayed her current situation. She quickly turned her face away from him and nervously smiled before asking, "Are you planning of making a dishonest woman out of me?"

"Aren't you already one?" he softly asked her.

~ o ~

He needed to know. "Did things ended up so badly between us that you wouldn't consider coming back to me?"

She looked at him. In the three years she had known Syaoran she had learned how to read his eyes without much effort. To this day she could still say she could do that after looking at his eyes and deciphering the meaning behind his words… he wasn't waiting anymore. He had made his decision. She sighed, "Why can't you just let things be the way they are?"

He stared at her, "Because I know I'm not the only one feeling this."
~ o ~

He cursed her stubbornness as he stared at her. "You want to know what's different… I didn't know what it was to live without you back then. I didn't know it would hurt that bad. I didn't know I would regret my stupid decision until I found you again. Now I do."

"It's too late now."

"You can't lie to me anymore Sakura. Your words lost credibility the moment I kissed you. I still love you and I know you still feel something for me."

~ o ~

He sighed. "I don't want her."

"She sure wants you." She quickly replied.

"And I want you. So, where do this leaves us?" he answered with the same quickness she did before.

She sighed and looked away. "Respect my decision Syaoran."

"Which one? The one that comes out of your lips or the one I felt when we kissed?"

~ o ~

Syaoran… thoughts of him invaded her mind as she waited for him inside the cabin watching the fire burn through the wood in the fireplace. She went back to the time where this roller coaster started for them. She had left him… after listening to him that night she had left him. In shed of finding new light to her life she had begun a relationship with another man hoping to fill the space Syaoran had left in her heart only to later on find out it had been in vain. Even after seven years apart she still felt something for him.

She sighed and looked at him. "Can't you just let it go? Can't knowing be enough for now?"

"Please stop this." He almost whispered as he touched his forehead against hers. "You're hurting us both. Do you truly need me to answer that? I want you back and you know this."

She shook her head. "Last time I wasn't enough"

He softly caressed her hand with his fingers. She closed her eyes. "Last time I wasn't ready for this." An electric shock traveled through her body as his hand softly caressed her from fingers through her skin all the way to her neck.

His persistence, his integrity, his determination, she loved so many things about him and at the same time she had feared them when she saw him again for the first time. His personality, the way he stealthily demanded her attention made her fall in love with him once more. The sweet way he cared for her without caring what others would think of him. Everything from the moment she saw him again through today made her fall for him all over.

He had been patient, he had given her space… the more she thought about it the more she started to understand. Syaoran had always been confident in everything he did… including her. He had patiently watched and learned how to understand her in his own way. While her insecurities had made her doubt many times his words, he had learned how to dance around her own game shattering her resolve of staying away from him.

She remembered the first time she found out she would see him again after seven years. Being the successful planner she was she came up with the most elaborated plan to stay away from him in this whole ordeal. She went through thousands of scenarios all well played in her mind and in all of them she came out victorious. The mere thought made her laugh herself.

~ o ~

He reached the cabin in early hours of the morning and parked his car. Sore muscles reminded him of the long drive as he got out and walked towards the trunk to get his bag. Three hours without getting lost and after celebrating last night's victory had its toll on him but this was the way he wanted it. He wanted to spend time with Sakura alone. He simply wanted a moment where they could enjoy each other's company without any obstacles in the way. No hotels, no games, no work, no family, just them. With this in mind, he walked towards the house. A small smoke coming out of the chimney made him frowned but didn't stop him from opening the door.

He looked around till he met her piercing gaze looking back at him from the sofa no doubt expecting his arrival. She quickly got up from it when he entered. Her smile was all he needed to drop his bag right next to the door and walk over to her before hugging her tightly. "I did it Sak!" he softly whispered against her ear.

She smiled hugging him back tightly. "Yes you did! Congratulations!"

"I thought you would be sleeping."

"I couldn't sleep." She truthfully said. I mean, after witnessing a game like the one last night who could even hope to sleep…

"It's a little chilly outside but it doesn't feel too cold as to light up a fire." he playfully said while nodding towards the fireplace.

She chuckled. "I hope you don't mind. I've never had one so I wanted to see how it looked."

He looked around and smirked as he saw two glasses of wine accompanied by two bottles of wine standing in the wooden coffee table. "I see you wasted no time in finding the wine."

"I didn't know which one you liked best to make a toast so I simply laid them out for you and you can choose."

"You haven't tried any yet?"

She shook her head and taking his hand she walked him towards the small table. "Nope. I was waiting for the guest of honor."

He took both bottles in hand and looked at them. They were both red wines which he noticed apparently she liked better since that day at the pool she had one as well. "Mmm… the Tempranillo Reserve will do for now." He opened the bottle with the wine opener and served both glasses before handing her hers. "To what are we toasting?"

"You mean, aside from the obvious?" she asked while taking hers from his hands.

He stared at her. "Let's toast to no more running away."

She softly smiled at him and nodded. "Okay."

"Aside from the obvious…" He added before softly touching his glass against hers and drinking from it.

She drank from her glass and smiled at him. "You look tired."

"I'm fine." He caressed her face. "Thank you. I wouldn't have been able to do this without you."

She smiled after hearing him. Absentmindedly she traced the lines embossed on his jersey from his stomach with her fingers softly as she had done so many times in the past. What she had started on the stadium yesterday still livid in her mind as she tenderly looked at him. Comprehension hit her as she took both of their glasses and set them down on the coffee table before smiling and taking his hand. "Come with me."

"I don't think-"

She quickly turned towards him and put her finger on his lips to silence the rest of his sentence. "Trust me."

He stared but nonetheless followed her towards the room. He didn't fail to notice she had actually picked his room this time instead of the one in front like she had done the last time they had come here.

"Take off your shirt and lie down on the bed."

"Babe-" He started saying in a warning tone but was stopped from doing so.

"Shhh…" she softly said once more. "Just do as I tell you."

Taking a deep breath, he followed her command and lay down as she had asked him to.

"On your stomach, please." She specify before disappearing from the room. Seconds later she came back with a small bottle on her hand and found him staring at her.

"What are you doing?" he curiously asked.

She smirked. "You'll have to trust me when I tell you you'll definitely like it." She simply said before sitting down right next to him on the bed. Carefully, she opened the bottle and placed a little of its content in her hand before putting the bottle down. Then she rubbed her hands together before touching his back softly to cover him in oil and started massaging his back. She felt him moan as she watched him close his eyes.

Her hands were the last thing he felt before deeply falling asleep.

~ o ~

A knock was heard on the door. Eriol untangled himself from his fiancé and rubbed his eyes. Who could possibly be knocking at his door early in the morning after last night's/early morning celebration? He got out of bed zigzagging his way to the door and opened it.

"Morning!" a smiling Choi entered the room wearing a blue polo shirt with white pants. He was definitely either coming from playing golf or on his way to. "I need to speak with both of you. Is Syaoran already awake? I know he's an early bird…"

Eriol scoffed still a little sleepy from being inconsiderately woken up. "Syaoran's not here."

Choi took his sunglasses off and looked at him. "Where is he? I thought since the celebrations ended in the hotel he would stay."

Eriol smirked. "Guess again…"

Choi sighed. He took out his phone and dialed his number but after several rings he hanged up. "He's not picking up his phone."

"I'd be surprised if he did." Eriol said. He rubbed his face once more before walking towards the fridge and taking out a bottle of water. "He left after arriving into the hotel."

"Did he say where he was going?"

"Yeah sure. He was going to run in the morning, then take a shower, then get a haircut, probably eat at some Chinese restaurant before getting back to the hotel." Eriol sarcastically said.

Choi narrowed his eyes. "Okay, I get your point."

Eriol laughed. "You know him. What is it that you came to say?"

"Manchester wants to inform the people you guys have signed with them. They want to make a full out press conference which requires the three of you to be present and they are expecting to do it before Syaoran leaves for Spain."

Eriol nodded. "Well, Kyu's in the hotel as well. I'm not sure when Syaoran will be back though."

Choi sighed as he rubbed his temples. Dealing with Kyu and Eriol had never been a problem for him. Syaoran on the other hand had been very challenging always doing whatever he pleased since the moment he signed his first Japanese contract. As an agent he had to learn to deal with his countless disappearing nights, numerous flying love escapades, his social media, and last but not least his lack of understanding that he wasn't a normal person anymore. Going to the mall for hours without a bodyguard was not an option. Wanting to get ice cream at the corner of the street without a bodyguard was not an option. How many times had he been advice about this? And yet, he still did whatever he wanted. "I'll talk to Manchester's owner. Please let me know as soon as he gets in."

Eriol nodded. "Sure."

Choi walked to the door and left.

"Babe, who was that?" A sleepy Tomoyo wrapped around bed sheets walked towards him.

"Choi." Eriol sweetly smiled before hugging her against his chest. He kissed his fiancé softly tightening his embrace.

She smiled against his lips. "I'm so glad your roommate is not in."

He chuckled. "So am I." He deepened the kiss before picking her up to return to the bed. Tomoyo had been the constant in his life. Always perfect to him, never changing. He loved everything about her even her defects.

~ o ~

He woke up to find her lying right next to him with her eyes closed and smiled… home. 'How nice would it be to wake up all mornings like this?' he thought. Turning softly to lay on his back, he softly got out of bed and walked towards the bathroom. He brushed his teeth and washed his face before going back to bed. Glad that he hadn't waked her up, he carefully sat against the bed headboard as he stared at her sleeping figure. He was indeed lucky. Not many men experience the chance of getting back together with their first love. After several minutes his thoughts were interrupted by her soft movement before he noticed her waking up.

She looked up from her side to find him staring at her before smiling. "Morning."

"Morning."

"Anything interesting while you stared at me?" she playfully asked.

He chuckled. "Would it be too much for your ears if I say all of you?"

"Mmm… yeah… too much cheesiness in that question."

He chuckled before kissing her forehead. "Did you sleep well?"

She nodded getting closer towards him. She put her arm around his stomach before reclining her head in his chest. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm still in a daze. There's a part of me that's really happy. Then there's another one that still can't believe it. It all seems surreal." He softly said.

"Well… believe it. You played amazing last night." She said smiling.

It was true. He had enjoyed every second he played of that game, he had celebrated with his teammates their collective achievement last night, and he probably once more made the headlines since last night as well… something that brought him back to the many thoughts he had in his mind on his way here. Everything had been bliss last night and yet something was missing. Something was still obstructing his complete happiness this morning. Looking at the ceiling he said, "I need to tell you something though to be honest I'm not quite sure how you'll react to it."

His words made her look at him. She could tell he was having an internal battle inside by the look in his eyes. "What is it?"

He hesitated before continuing, "After you left…" There was no easy way of saying this. He knew even using words to try to smooth things wouldn't work with something like this. The damage was done and there was nothing he could do at this point about it but be sincere with her. He closed his eyes before taking a deep breath and looking at her. "I slept with Sayuri."

She stared at him and waited for him to continue. He needed to get this out of his system that much she knew.

"I'm not going to make excuses for what happened. When I learned that you had left I sought many ways of hurting myself and to forget you. This was just one of them. I regretted it the moment it ended but it was already too late to take back. I ended up hurting your cousin because after that night I found out she felt something for me. I hurt you because I know it doesn't matter how much time has passed by it was something you feared while we were together. And I hurt myself because I know this will probably hurt you." He closed his eyes and shook his head before finishing. "It only happened once and I'm sorry it did."

She stared at him. He was right. Even after all this time it still pained her but she was surprised to feel a little more hurt after hearing it coming from his lips. It took her years to get over this incident and come to the realization that the moment she had decided to leave his side he was in every right to date whoever he pleased and that included her cousin. "Do you mind that you hurt her?"

He looked at her. Immediately he knew she was asking more than just that simple question. "Not because I felt or feel anything towards her but because I didn't expected to hurt her. I thought she just wanted to play just like me. I didn't like how I felt afterwards. I still don't like what I did."

"You've played with many women without feeling remorse after. I've even heard some of them you considered trophies. What makes her different from the others?"

"It is different Sakura. Not because of her but because of you, because I know how much this means to you. I should've never done it."

She took a deep breath before saying, "I've known you slept with her."

He stared at her as he remembered the first day he saw Sayuri back in the hotel. "Did she tell you?"

Sakura shook her head. "Xiefa got worried about you when you stopped answering your parent's phone calls. After talking with Eriol and Meiling she wasn't convinced at all that you were okay so she sent someone to check on you. When he came back, he brought pictures with him where it clearly showed both of you in front of her apartment. He told Xiefa you spent the night there that day and she out of spite and blaming me for your behavior showed me the pictures."

"Why didn't you say anything?" he asked. All this time he had been dragging this inside of him from the moment he saw her again wondering what her reaction to this news would be only to find out that she already knew of it because of his sister.

She kissed his chest before saying, "I needed to hear it from you. You could've easily hid this. We weren't together when it happened and I have no right to be mad at you for it." She stared at him before approaching his face and kindly kissing his lips.

He touched her face. "I'm really sorry Sak."

She shook her head and smiled while putting her hand on top of his. "Thank you for telling me."

Suddenly the knot he had been feeling since he started talking to her started to loosen up in his stomach but this wasn't over yet. He looked at her eyes, her cheeks, her lips as he traced them with his finger taking in every detail he could from this moment. "There is one more thing. I'm leaving from Spain to England."

Her heart stopped. She knew he was leaving. She had made sure he followed his dream even if she was back in his life but, even if she did, the thought of him leaving was still an unpleasant one to touch. "Are you leaving straight? You don't want to come back here before leaving?"

He was silent for a couple of seconds staring at her eyes thinking of the best way to do this once more. Having her in his arms only made this harder to do but he had already started the topic. As undesirable as it was, they needed to have this conversation. "The owner of Manchester will probably want us there as soon as possible so we can start looking at places to live. He also probably wants us to have a tour of the city and the stadium so we can get familiarized with the place and very much likely he also wants to do a press conference announcing our signing." He watched as many emotions appeared on her face and reading her thoughts he tightened his hold on her. "Don't. We can't keep running from this. We need to talk."

"I know. I just…" she tried to control her reaction to this. A week? That was all she had left with him? Suddenly the feeling of suffocation invaded her mind. She wasn't prepared to let him go in a week! Why couldn't he at least stay two or three weeks and then leave? That league wasn't supposed to start that soon, was it? "I didn't know you would be leaving so fast." She took his hand off from her and walked towards the bathroom. She brushed her teeth before washing her face as well as she meditated on his words.

He hated whenever she was hurting but it pained him more to know he was the reason for it once more. He loved her. He knew this much. But after winning the Cup he understood there were things he still needed to do. Soccer wasn't only his job it was part of his life and she understood this even when he tried to cover his eyes to this truth after finding her again. He walked towards the bathroom and reclining himself from the door frame said, "The way I see this you have two choices Sak."

She scoffed while drying her face with a small towel before setting it down. Looking at him through the mirror she slowly turned around to face him. "Two?"

"I've discarded the third one as I'm pretty sure what the answer is already."

She looked away and sarcastically shook her head before asking, "What's one?"

"We can try to have a long distance relationship like many other couples do even if you don't believe in it."

He was right. She hated the idea of it but more than that she didn't believe in it. For her there was no point in having a relationship where she couldn't be with the person she wanted to be with. A relationship where she couldn't share or build new memories with her partner was completely useless to her. Having to conform herself with speaking to him through the phone instead of looking at him face to face like they were doing right now wasn't exactly a relationship between lovers at all. That sounded more like a friendship than a love relationship to her. At least that's what she thought about it. "What's the second one?"

"I pay the bailout amount on my contract, quit, and stay here with you."

She stared at him. "Giving up your dream for me is not an option. This is what you've always wanted."

"Dreams change."

She narrowed her eyes at him. There was no way he didn't know she wouldn't accept this. "Dreams change only when you don't know what you want."

"Or when you've already being through the pain of losing who you love." He added.

She looked away. Choices… these weren't choices if someone would ask her. There was no doubt in her mind that this last one was his way of rebelling against her way of manipulating him into signing that contract a month ago. "What was the third one?"

"You leaving China and come live with me in England."

Yeah… that wasn't an option either for her. She liked her life the way it was here. "We could try to have an open relationship."

He scoffed before chuckling at her suggestion. "What's the point in that? I don't want anyone else and I am sure as heck I'm not willing to share you."

She hadn't made the suggestion thinking about herself but more thinking about him. Knowing how girls threw themselves at guys like him a lot of times she thought it would probably be hard to stay loyal especially with his reputation. "There's also the option of going our own separate ways at least till your contract is finished." She also suggested.

He stared at her and smiled a little before saying, "Option number two nulls that suggestion."

In a game of chess, a player forms a strategy before playing his pieces with the objective of winning a game. In this mind game with Syaoran this is exactly how she felt… playing a chess game not knowing if he was actually smiling knowing that he had already won or his smile could pass as a smirk after realizing he had actually backed her into choosing the one he wanted. "There are conditions for number one then."

"Name yours." he confidently said.

"You need to be honest with me. Even if it's something bad, I need to hear it from you before I find out through other sources. If you want to start going out with another girl just let me know before you actually do something."

His smile grew to an almost laugh at her suggestion. He even loved her insecurities. Another girl? Right… clearly she still didn't comprehend how complex it was for him to love her. How crazy she could drive him with just mere words or how her touch could light him on fire inside. "That's not happening Sak."

She closed her eyes. "Even so, it's part of my conditions." She looked at him as he approached her from the door and put his arms around her waist. "I can't help feel anxious about this Syaoran. It's not that I don't trust you but you know how apprehensive I feel about these relationships. That is something that still hasn't changed."

He took a deep breath and smile knowingly before softly pulling her closer to him. He looked at her before caressing her face once more. "Mine, I need to see you. Whether it is a week or two each month, you choose. But I need to see you at least each month."

She stared at him, "I'm impressed. How is it that I feel like you just beat me at a chess game?"

A smirked started appearing in his face as he confidently answered, "I am my father's son."

"Have you been holding back on me all this time?" Since meeting Syaoran, there had never been a time where he had been able to beat her at any table games. Not cards, not chess, Sakura always ended up with a better strategy to beat him. She watched as his smirked turned into a knowingly smile.

"Let's just say, I'm not willing to lose you a second time."

She turned her face to kiss his hand before resting her head in his chest. "This is going to be hard for both of us. Don't make me doubt you Syaoran."

"I will hate leaving you." He hugged her closely towards him before giving her a kiss in her forehead. He loved this woman. "I never asked before but how did your visit go in Japan?"

"I spoke with my father." She looked at him and smiled. "I asked him to give you another chance."

He stared at her before turning his head away. If she would've told him this was the reason why she wanted to visit her father perhaps he would've told her not to waste her time. Although to be perfectly honest he didn't minded their little reconciliation before the game. Fujitaka had never been someone who believed in second chances especially if his daughter's life was involved in them. But how could he say this to her now? After taking a deep breath he looked back at her. "Is this important to you?"

"He is my father Syaoran. I know in the past you never saw eye to eye with him but he's willing to give you another chance." She softly said.

He traced her lips before saying, "Fine. If this is that important to you then I'll go with it."

"Thank you." She tenderly said.

~ o ~

It was a nice sunny morning the day after winning their championship. Kyu had thought of the many things he wanted to do once the tournament was over… most of them revolving around his recent fiancé. He had it all well thought of in his mind. A day of walking in the park, ice cream in the middle of the day, a movie at night, maybe even having a small getaway before she had to do that fashion show which he agreed to and as the day grew nearer he regretted his decision more and more… He had planned many things and yet none of them involved having to sit down in a comfy bench while he watched his fiancé try on thousands of bridesmaid dresses next to Eriol.

"Isn't he leaving tomorrow morning?" Kyu asked while waiting for Meiling to try on her 16th dress of the day.

Eriol nodded while writing him a text. "I don't think there's a point in calling him. We both know he's with Sakura. There's no way he's answering his phone."

*Hey man! Choi is looking for you. Manchester wants to do a press conference before you leave for Spain.

Kyu chuckled. "We'd be lucky if he actually answered your text as well." Sighing, he waited for Meiling to come out of the dresser once more. "Remind me again why I need to be here for this fitting?"

Eriol smirked. "Because you're my friend…?"

Kyu narrowed his eyes at him. "Isn't your best man supposed to be here instead of me?"

"Aw come on Kyu… we both know that's just a title. There's no way Syaoran would've ever accepted coming in here with me unless Sakura was involved."

Kyu frowned as he stared at Eriol. "Remind me again why I'm here with you?"

Suddenly Meiling came out of the dresser. "Baby, what do you think of this one?"

Kyu quickly changed his frown into a loving smile as he watched her model the dress for him. "It looks wonderful babe. I love it."

Meiling narrowed her eyes at him. "You loved the other one too."

Kyu nodded as he got out of this one, "Well yes because I hadn't seen this one yet."

"So you like this one better than the other one?" she asked.

"Yes." Kyu confidently said.

Tomoyo, who was standing in a corner away from them and closer to the mirrors so she could see every detail of the dress in the spotlight, gave her a thoughtful look. "Mmm… I love the end of it. It flows freely giving you a much classy look but I'm not sure it looks anything more than just bare ordinary…"

Meiling nodded, turned around and walked once more to the dresser.

Kyu grunted in a low voice as he ran his hands through his face. A beep was heard and he quickly looked at Eriol. "He answered?"

Eriol nodded as he read his text out loud. "He's coming back tonight."

"What about this one babe?" Meiling asked coming out of the dresser room once more.

Kyu looked at his fiancé, "I liked the other one better."

She turned around to find her friend. "Tomoyo?"

Tomoyo discarded the dress with a wave of her hand. "I'm with Kyu on this one."

She nodded and walked back inside.

"Why don't you just tell her all of them look good on her? She's a model after all." Eriol suggested.

Kyu took a deep breath before answering in a low voice so that only he could hear, "Yeah… I already tried that. The outcome wasn't good. 'I didn't care enough for her' I believe were her words…"

Eriol chuckled at his friend's predicament. "Well, at least the husband-to-be doesn't have to be at the store when she goes wedding dress hunting."

Kyu smirked.

Eriol looked at his fiancé. "Babe, I need to find my shoes. Is it okay if I take Kyu with me and you finish with Meiling?"

Tomoyo simply smiled and nodded. "That's fine."

Eriol nudge Kyu and got up from the bench. "Come on."

Kyu walked behind his friend till they reached the outside of the store and stopped. "You mean to tell me you had a way of getting out of there and I had to watch Meiling go through eighteen dresses before you finally said something?"

Eriol turned and smirked. "You still haven't gotten my cousin a ring. Consider us even, there's a jewelry store right in the corner. Let's go."

~ o ~

After their so much needed talk they decided to have a small brunch by the waterfall. Sakura suggested packing breakfast into a picnic basket and have it near the waterfall to do something different. It was a beautiful day out not cold enough but the morning breeze announced winter was approaching. They both walked through the woods until they arrived at their destination. Syaoran put the basket down while Sakura arranged a blanket for the two of them to lie down.

"Do you like it here?" Syaoran asked.

Sakura nodded. "This is fine." She said sitting down. Bringing the picnic basket closer to her, she started taking out their breakfast. Syaoran sat down next to her and helped her out with a few things. She had packed some fruit, a couple of sandwiches, juice, and coffee in a small mug. Although she could have juice in the morning, she was used to having her coffee before drinking anything else.

Syaoran ate peacefully at her side loving each second he could spend with her. He offered her a strawberry knowing completely well she liked them. He gave her a quick kiss tasting the fruit from her lips before smirking. "I've waited a while to do that."

She looked at him and smiled. Putting her breakfast down, she reached out to him and gave him a peck on his cheek before putting her hands around his waist.

"I thought you wanted to have breakfast outside…" Syaoran said while still eating part of his sandwich.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm full. I don't want anymore."

Syaoran looked at her sandwich on the side where she had left it and frowned. "You didn't eat half of it Sak."

She softly traced his hand and touched the bracelet she had given him earlier before the game. "Do you know what it means?"

"It has a meaning?" He teasingly asked.

She gave him a playful angry face before smiling. "An ancient Chinese proverb says an invisible red thread connects those who are destined to meet, regardless of time, place, or circumstance. The thread may stretch or tangle, but it will never break."

He smiled as he lovingly stared at her. "An ancient Chinese proverb?" He asked before offering her a piece of pineapple.

She nodded smiling as she ate the piece before asking, "Are you happy?"

He softly smiled. "I'm feeling a lot of things right now."

"Mmm… more than happy?" she asked drawing circles absentmindedly on top of his chest.

He took a deep breath as he made sure to take everything in. He would surely miss this after next week. Her green orbs curiously waiting for his answer, the way her smile flirted with her words, the way her soft fingers caressed his chest while asking. "Wait here." He softly said as he untangled himself from her.

She chuckled. "Where are you going?" she asked while watching him go through the picnic basket once more.

As soon as he found what he was looking for, he walked back towards her and sat at her side but facing her. He gave her a small box but didn't say anything.

She looked at him before looking at the small black box. She had seen a similar one the day she broke up with Jun though it hadn't surprised her as much as this one did. Opening it, she looked back at him to get an answer from him. "Do you know why a man gives a ring to a woman?"

He stared at her. "I can't tell you about the rest of us but I can tell you why I'm giving you this one. When I saw you for the first time again at the elevator I was unsure of what I felt. Days passed, weeks passed and I still wasn't sure of how I felt towards you Sak. I knew I felt something but I wasn't sure if it was guilt or maybe because it still hurt. Maybe I was never able to close my wounds. Sometimes I blamed myself for you leaving then others I blamed you for leaving. I wasn't sure. But then you came back to me that day and I just knew why all my intents to forget you had been in vain. Despite the years and miles apart from each other you never gave up on me and I was never able to love anyone else. I was never able to let you go. Every second spent with you is like falling in love for the first time to me. I understood why seven years weren't enough to keep me apart from you. I love you Sak. I love everything about you."

She stared at him. Numbed by the shock that his words were having on her she looked away searching for air. His words were too deep. His feelings were too deep. And although she felt the same, she also blamed their lack of hesitation in many decisions taken in the past to be their main reason in breaking up before. "We haven't been together not even for two months Syaoran."

He kissed her shoulder and smiled knowingly thinking of what a nervous breakdown she must've been having inside her mind. Sakura had always over thought things. It was her way of always staying in control. He chuckled softly. "I've carried this ring for seven years not been able to throw it away or resell it."

This made her stared at him once more before looking down at the box. They had talked about it in the past but then again they had talked about many things that came crashing down the moment he decided to break up with her. And yet, she never knew he had bought this. "Was it before or after I left?"

"Before." He caressed her face softly before saying, "I don't need to hear your answer now, or even after a year or two years. But know this is how I feel."

"Then why are you giving me this now if you know I will not accept it?"

He smiled at her kissing her cheek before searching for her lips. He kissed her softly before replying, "Because there's no point in delaying this for me. I know my heart won't change. It doesn't matter where I'm at or where you are, my heart will not change. I know the idea of being in a long distance relationship frightens you but this is how I truly feel. I love you. I don't want anyone else. You don't need to answer me now. Just wear it when you're ready."

She stared at him. A small smile started appearing on her face before turning to a playful smirk. "Are you that confident that I'll ever be ready?"

His sexy overconfident smirk graced his face before replying, "It'd be crazy for you to let me go a second time love."

She laughed at his arrogant comment. "Are you sure it doesn't bother you that I'm not ready?"

He shook his head smiling.

"What if after five years I'm still not ready? Would you mind then?"

He shook his head again.

"You know… it could take me a while to answer. I'm not used to making rash decisions. You are certain you want to wait? There are a lot of women out there who would truly hate that."

He chuckled before kissing her again and picking her up bridal style from the ground and walking towards the water.

Sakura yelp. "What are you doing? Syaoran put me down! Don't you dare!" She loudly said throwing the small box in the picnic blanket when she guessed his intentions… the river.

He chuckled but never stopped. "There's going to be millions of them hating you after you start wearing it and I'll give the same shit I do about them now."

~ o ~

Feimei walked towards Aoki restaurant holding hands with her boyfriend. They had woken up late after last night's festivities and, although Xiun was perfectly fine with once again eating at the hotel, she had wanted to try something else. It wasn't just the World Cup they were celebrating, after last night he had been offered a contract to play on the French League and she was very excited for him.

"Where did you hear about this place again?" Xiun asked.

"Sakura told me. She said they have really good mimosas." Feimei happily answered.

A waiter came to the front of the restaurant. "Two?"

Feimei nodded. "Can we sit in the back outside?"

The waiter nodded. "Sure. Come this way."

They followed the waiter till they reached the tables on the back outside. Xiun out of courtesy pushed the seat back and waited for his girlfriend to sit down before taking the seat across from her. He took the menu offered by the waiter before saying, "Can we please have two mimosas to start? Thanks!"

The waiter nodded and left.

"Don't you find this place kind of refreshing? You see the sight of the mountains as you eat breakfast, you enjoy the soft natural chili breeze…" Feimei happily said.

He raised a brow at her. "What has you in such a relaxing mood?"

Feimei smiled. She waited for the waiter to set down the two mimosas before speaking once more. Taking her mimosa, she put it up and said, "I propose a toast."

Xiun smiled and picked up his glass as well. "To what? Should I ask?"

"To the Cup… To my brother finally accepting our relationship… To us living in Paris for the next year." She watched as Xiun smiled suddenly started disappearing. "Is everything okay love?" She asked him. Since last night, neither of them spoke about the subject of him leaving to France. One of France's recruiters had offered him a contract to start this year playing in their league and as she thought it to be a great opportunity she had assumed he had already talked to his agent about accepting it.

"Feimei…" he looked away before putting his glass down. "I'm not taking the offer."

She stared at him. "What?"

He looked once more at her to confirm his decision. "I'm not taking the offer."

Her mind went over his words but still couldn't comprehend what he was saying. "Why?" she asked. How could he not take an offer like this one?

"I've decided to retire from soccer."

"Retire?" Had he gone insane?

Staring at her eyes he said, "I'm not like your brother Feimei, I enjoyed playing soccer but that's not what I want to do for the rest of my life. When I was a kid, I dreamt of winning the World Cup tournament. Everything I did inside a field was training for when I finally had a chance of winning it. And it paid off. Last night, we won it. And I'm happy, and I feel great after accomplishing one of my dreams but this is not what I want to do for the rest of my life."

She nodded at his words and asked, "So what do you want to do?"

"I want to pursue my engineering degree. I want to start working and gaining experience as an engineer and see where that takes me. Will you be willing to wait?"

A smile started to form on her lips. She knew why he was asking. His perspective over her parents was that they were a bit intimidating for him. They had accomplished so much in their lives that he couldn't see himself together with her unless he had some sort of achievement that would make him feel proud enough to be dating her. "Is that even a question? If this is what you want then I fully support you with it." She took his hands on hers looked at him. "And no, I'm not willing to wait. You know me… I've never been a patient person but I'll tell you what… I'll walk this new road with you if this is what you truly want."

He smiled and kissed her hands. "Thanks for understanding."

~ o ~

After a perfect morning full of confessions and relaxing by the river afterwards, they had decided to head back into town. Sakura had convinced him of announcing his singing tonight and then head home to prepare their bags for their early flight to Spain tomorrow.

"Was it hard to watch me with another man?" she coyly asked.

Without taking his eyes off the road, he smiled. "I can assure you that won't happen again."

She chuckled. "Careful… What if you slip on your stay in England?"

He chuckled and smirked. "Then I guess I'll have to start learning how to work in a building doing projects and enjoying my nice view of the streets of Hong Kong."

She laughed at his answer. "Come on, we both know you suck at choosing your own tie. I can't imagine you having to do that every day." After talking this morning she felt more at ease with her emotions regarding this new challenge involving their relationship. She had decided to stop fighting her feelings and just let time decide.

He took her hand, intertwined his fingers with hers, and pressed it against his lips to kiss the back of it. "That's not going to happen Sak." Smiling, he kept driving back to the city.

"You know what I just thought of? Last night and even today may have been our last privacy days together." She thoughtfully said.

He curiously frowned. "Why?"

"We'll never be left alone after last night." She simply answered. "From now on reporters will probably be waiting once more in front of my apartment trying to get a glimpse of whether you'd be staying there with me or not. I'll probably have to deal with hidden cameras recording all my steps even when I walk into my own office. Perhaps I'll even have to start using that VIP room in the airports from now on while I wait for my flight to start boarding."

"We could try what Choi said. Try to go slow when it comes to showing publicly our relationship."

She smiled and looked at him. "What's the point? The moment I visit you for the first time they will know."

"Still," He insisted. "If you're not comfortable with it we can try to hide it as much as possible. I can always tell Choi to work his magic if that's what you want."

"There's no point in hiding our relationship any longer either."

He looked quickly at her before watching the road once more. "Sakura, if you don't feel comfortable-"

She interrupted, "I don't want to keep hiding our relationship from everyone."

He sighed before stopping the car in the emergency lane. He looked at her. "This is not something easy Sakura. I don't wish to alarm you but I do need you to be sure about what you want on this. Once it's done, it can't be taken back. I won't push you in any way regarding your decision towards this. I know you don't want to be in the center of attention with the social networks but with me winning the Cup privacy stopped been something possible. Even so, I can ask Choi to help as much as he can if you don't feel ready."

She took her seatbelt off and kissed his lips softly. "Can you honestly tell me you can hide this Syaoran?" She caressed his lips with her fingers before looking at his eyes. "I know I won't be able to."

He closed his eyes and nodded. "I'll take care of you. Don't worry about it."

She sadly smiled. "You'll be miles away."

"Still…" he softly kissed her lips once more before saying, "I'll take care of you. I promise."

She nodded before going back to her seat. Putting her seatbelt on, she spent the rest of the ride back in silence just enjoying his presence right next to her. She didn't need taking care of, she was pretty sure she could take care of everything herself. Her real challenge was not hurting him in the process. Her decisions, no matter how right she thought them to be, sometimes weren't the best for him. Her way of taking care of things and his way of doing it most of the times differ from one another which it's why communication was indeed the key of this long distance relationship working.

After two hours on the road they had finally reached the studio in which Syaoran would announce to the world he had signed with Manchester in England. He parked around the back of the studio where he could avoid all cameras at least until he was inside the studio. Getting out of the car, he walked around towards her side and opened the door for her.

"Are you ready?" she asked him while getting out of the car.

He took her hand in his and started walking towards the building back door after automatically locking his car. "I can still opt for option 2 and stay with you, you know..." He said.

She smirked. "I still can't believe you would consider that an option."

He knocked on the door and waited for one of the guards to open it. The guard looked at him and nodded. He turned towards Sakura and made her pause in front of him. "Do you have a pass to come in?"

"She's with me." Syaoran simply said.

"I'm sorry. If she doesn't have a pass she can't come in." the guard said.

"Excuse me?" Syaoran asked.

Sakura could see his temperament started to rise with that simple statement. She immediately smiled and casually said, "That's fine. I can simply wait for you in front."

Syaoran tighten his hand to hold her still in place and looked at her. "Out of the question. You're coming with me."

"Mr. Li-" the guard was about to say something before he was interrupted from behind.

"It's alright! I have her carnet in here." Choi came quickly to the door and offered her a carnet. "Got you covered." Sakura looked down at his hand before looking at him. He smiled at her while giving her the carnet that would allow her to walk in with Syaoran. "Now, please let them in. I'm sure the owner will finally be at ease knowing you have arrived. The ceremony will start in a couple of minutes."

Syaoran nodded and walked inside following Choi who was leading them towards where the stage was set up to announce the signing of perhaps the best trio players in the world. Just like he had dreamt of when he was younger, he had been able to sign along with his best friends in one of the best clubs in the world. He greeted Eriol and Kyu who were already waiting inside as well before looking in front. He could see the flashes of many reporter cameras already taking pictures of the stage.

"Syaoran!"

He looked towards his side from where the voice had come from. The owner of Manchester walked towards him and shook his hand. "I'm glad you're finally here." He looked around and motioned for a guy in the corner with a nod. "Please begin the ceremony."

The guy nodded and walked towards the middle of the stage where a microphone was standing. He took it with ease and said, "We want to thank you all for coming to this event. I know speculations have been made even before the tournament started but we can finally say with confidence that we will keep you and the fans no longer waiting for our news. First, we'd like to welcome the president of the club to sit with us."

Many cameras started taking pictures of this important event as the president walked in and sat down in one of the four chairs available in the middle of the stage.

"And now, we'd like to officially welcome our newest members of our club, Matsushi Kyu, Hirragizawa Eriol and Li Syaoran."

Then suddenly more flashes started coming out after the announcement.

"Well, I'm up." He said as he untangled his hand from Sakura's and started following his friends. One by one they started walking out of the backstage area and into the middle table where thousands of reporters where waiting for them to ask them their questions. On his way to the stage where he was about to confirm he had signed with his dream team he stopped and looked back at her. The reflection of her eyes gave him the strength he needed as he looked at the one person who understood him better than anyone else. A sudden calmness filled his body and he knew everything would be alright. It hadn't been easy but somehow both of them had made it. The painful process had been worth it as it taught him his true north. He wasn't lost inside a kid's dream anymore, she had always been his inspiration to dream bigger and for that he loved her.

~ The End ~

Author's Note: Ah! Finally! XD I can't believe it has been 2 years and eleven months already and this story has finally come to an end. It has been a great ride and pleasure writing it and posting it here. I wanted to thank everyone who read the story and gave me their input on it. You have been part of helping me gain experience and improve my writing in many ways. Know, that never goes to waste as I will take what I've learned from your input to hopefully improve my writing. Hope you guys loved it as much as I did writing it. It indeed has been a great experience. One that I never thought I could do and today I can proudly say I did! Until next time!