x. pact with the devil

"So tell me," she said conspiratorially, moving forward closer to him, "why are we holding a secret meeting? And why, pray tell, does it have to be in the library? You know I hate this place."

"I knew this wasn't a good idea," he muttered to himself, eyeing the woman across.

Her ruby eyes narrowed at him. "What the hell is wrong with you today?"

"Forget i-"

"Did you kill somebody?" she joshed, her eyes sparkled in glee. "Do you need money? Because the probability of me lending anyone money is as small as the size of an ant. Cousins or not, I like to keep my money in my pocket. I am a fair person after all."

"And selfish too," he said dryly. "But no, it's not about money. I can take care of myself, thank you very much. It's about Tomoyo."

Meiling feigned indifference. "Oh? What about her?"

He scoffed at her then grumbled incoherently.

"What? I didn't quite catch that. Because you know, normal human beings communicate with words and god knows 'ghurlkfnk' will never become one."

"Cute," he deadpanned. "Okay, here it is. I think it isn't best that we're left alone in the apartment. I'm a guy and she's a girl-"

"I can tell, duh," she interrupted, rolling her eyes.

He gave her a withering glance. "Thank you for the rude interruption. As I was saying, the both of us living alone in that house don't look good especially to the neighbors. People might think that we're doing something we shouldn't be doing when we're by ourselves. And there's Touya. He thinks I'm taking advantage of his precious cousin and he would accost me in the hallways whenever he gets the chance. And I'm a guy, for crying out loud."

"Gosh," she started, clearly amused. "Are you afraid of raping Tomoyo in her sleep? Are you that deprived? And tell me, Eriol, when did you ever care about people's opinion about you?"

He was about to defend himself but she help up a finger to silence him.

"Unless you're starting to develop warm fuzzy feelings for our little Tomoyo-chan," she sang playfully.

"You're annoying."

She flashed him a wide grin. "It's my mission in life. So, is my inference correct, darling cousin?"

"No!"

"Methinks the man doth protest too much," she gibed.

He didn't even bother to cover his irritated sigh. "I knew this was going to happen the moment I asked for your help. What the hell was I thinking?"

She pulled a hurt look. "Eriol, you're breaking my heart."

"Well, you're clearly not helping."

"What am I supposed to do anyway? You never even told me my part in this."

He massaged his aching temple. Conversations with Meiling always give him headaches. "I'm asking you to move in with us. I need another person in the house so it wouldn't look like we're shacking up."

"Again, you care about their opinions because?"

"I don't," he told her tensely. "Are you going to do this or not? I still have other options if you can't make it."

She scrunched up her nose in distaste. "I'd give you points for steering it off the topic. I still have to think about it. I don't want to live with you."

He sat back, crossed his arms and smirked at her. "As if I want to live with you."

She imitated his position and sneered. "It's ironic how you were asking me to do just that."

"It's for Tomoyo's sake," he gritted.

"Yes," she sighed dramatically. "Anything for the woman you love."

Eriol looked like he wanted to tear at his clothes in frustration.

"Meiling, dear cousin of mine, I don't have certain feelings for Tomoyo other than pure, platonic friendship. She's my best friend and yours too. I will not commit a grave error by crossing that line."

She blinked at him. "It's either you're a huge chunk of denial or just a gigantic fool who doesn't know his own feelings."

"Neither. I am just sane."

She shook her head in disbelief. Then she raised her head to meet his eyes. "Eriol, you're half-blind for the girl. Even our darling Syaoran knows it."

He remained impassive. She sighed.

"Let me tell you about that line you mentioned awhile ago. There's no such thing. You're deluding yourself with an invisible line. Let's face it, a man and a woman can't just be friends especially when 

they're so close like you. You should know it goddamn well since you're ogling her when you think she's not looking."

"I… I'm not," he added lamely. "I never."

She gave him a challenging stare. He knew he was losing this fight.

"Fine," he grumbled sullenly. "I may have developed a little crush on her but that's it. I am not in love with her."

She chuckled in amusement. "Eriol, you should listen to yourself. You sound like a freaking girl."

He glared. She chose to ignore it.

"It's okay. At least you admitted you're attracted to her. So when do you want me to move in? It gets boring in the dorm anyway. And it could be interesting living with you."

He brightened at this. "You're really doing it?"

"Did I stutter?"

"Smartass," he retorted good-naturedly. "You can move in this weekend. We'll help you move your things."

She waved it off. "I don't have that much anyway. Everything can fit in the car. But still, thanks for the offer."

"I think you just earned the title Favorite-Cousin-of-the-Year," he chuckled at her.

She stuck out her tongue. "Whatever. But Xiaolang is still my favorite."

He slapped a hand on his chest and gave her a wounded look. "Meiling, that pierced through the heart."

"Drama queen." She rolled her eyes. "I'm going out now, if you don't have any more to say. This solemn atmosphere is damping on my cheery mood."

"Fine, you can go."

She put on her shoulder bag and got up from her seat. She gave him one last lingering look before dropping the bomb that could have put Hiroshima and Nagasaki to shame.

"She says fairy tales are crap and she doesn't need anybody to make her happy. She puts up a strong front but, in the end, all she wants is just to be loved. Maybe you can be that person for her, Eriol."