My stomach hurts.

"I told you not to eat so much," Tomoyo chided impassively from the bed across from mine. She was absorbed in Eriol, who was underestimating the width of a twin bed.

"It's not that," I glared. I barely ate anything today. The one thing I had eaten, an expired can of yellow corn at Tomoyo's request ("Well I can't exactly throw it out, can I?"), wasn't sitting well in my stomach.

"Then could you go talk to someone else please?" Tomoyo looked genuinely sorry as she stared into Eriol's eyes and smiled. "Bye. Feel better."

"I hope you get to feeling better, Sakura," Eriol called as I walked out of the room.

"Sure," I seethed under my breath, intentionally leaving the door open. Then realizing that probably wouldn't stop them, I closed it quickly.

Today was Saturday, according to the most-likely wrong calendar in the den. Nevertheless, everyone lazed around carelessly and no work whatsoever was being done. Nate was uncharacteristically downstairs, laying on a loveseat and looking impassive. I sat in the chair beside him silently.

After a few minutes of long, silent silence, he turned his head slowly toward me. "Good morning, Sakura."

"Hi Nate." He looked down and took a deep breath. I could relate to him, knowing just how awful it felt to lose someone. However, at that time I was in a basement by myself, and also a girl. Therefore, I was allowed to sit and cry for hours on end. But Nate just stared at the small silver band on his left hand that I somehow missed over the past few weeks.

"How are you?" he asked.

"Bored. Tomoyo kicked me out of her room." The den was still dark, with only two of the lamps turned on since barely anyone was awake. I cast a warm, sensual glow around the room. I felt a small ache for my own family.

"Why?"

"...She wanted to sleep in."

We sat in silence for a while. I couldn't imagine how Nate was staying so indifferent through the situation. But he just sat there and stared at the wall impassively.

I thought of what Touya would do if I had died. He would have probably torn something down, most likely punched a wall or something destructive. If he had been with me, he would blindly run after my killer and get himself into all sorts of trouble. My dad would have locked himself in a room for days, without eating or sleeping. He rarely ate when something bad happened. My mother wouldn't care who saw her, screaming and shouting and kicking and weeping as loud as she could. Never would any of them just... sit there.

I bowed my head and quickly wiped my face when I realized I had been crying. I felt like an idiot.

"Are you okay?" Nate asked with his head resting on his knees. I guess I wasn't as subtle as I thought I was.

"Sure."

"Do you want a hug?"

I looked at him skeptically. "What?"

"I thought women liked hugs when they were sad." He remained motionless.

"...Uh."

"Are you sure you don't want to sit over here or something?"

I looked back at him with aggravation, about to tell him to shove it, when he turned to look at me and I saw his desperate expression.

"Yeah. I'd really like to sit by you if you don't mind."

"Of course." He made room for me on the red-upholstered loveseat and cleared his throat. I curled into a ball beside him.

"What did you do when you lost your family?"

I was surprised at his sudden motivation to talk. "Well, when I found out about my parents I sat in my brother's lap and cried for a few days. When he died... I waited until the others were gone, then I went downstairs..." I sighed. If he needed to talk about my family dying to feel better, I would talk about my family dying. It just wasn't helping me too much.

"Sorry."

"It's fine." I wiped my face quickly. He wrapped a protective arm around me and sighed almost inaudibly.

"Hey guys!" Syaoran walked into the room happily. Nate inconspicuously moved his arm.

"Good morning Syaoran." I scooted away from Nate. Syaoran sent me a look as if to say I-know-what-you're-up-to. I glared at him. "Why are you up so early? And happy?"

He smiled. "It's my birthday."

I laughed. "Seriously?"

Sure enough, he was practically bouncing around the den like a five-year-old. "Yes. Seriously."

"Isn't this your 30th?" Nate muttered, raising his head to look at Syaoran innocently. Syaoran's face immediately fell and his bouncing stopped.

"No." He sunk into the chair I had been sitting in. "I'm 26."

Nate hid a smile and lowered his head again. "Sorry."

Despite the apology, Syaoran's high spirits had already been crushed. He sighed and leaned back in the chair. "It's fine."

I was tired of these men moping around like someone died. Okay, someone had, but Syaoran was just being ridiculous. I mustered up all my happiness and grinned.

"Syaoran, can I make you birthday breakfast?" I tried to sound sincerely excited as I said this, even though I had no cooking experience and wasn't ready to get any.

He perked up slightly. "You really want to?"

"Yeah, it sounds like fun. Plus, Tomoyo's busy." I got up and smiled. "Do you want to come?"

He nodded and stood up, following me like a puppy to the kitchen and sitting at the counter with childlike anticipation. Although he was aggravating, I had never seen a grown man so excited for me to cook.

"What do you want?" I called from the pantry. He shouted "pancakes" back instantaneously.

Of course, we had no pancake mix. I brought flour back to the counter and stared at him. "How do you make pancakes?"

He somehow knew the recipe and walked me through it. Half of the pancakes were burnt and the other half were pretty gross-looking once I was finished, but he looked eager enough to eat them.

Since it was his birthday, I pulled out some sprinkles to put on top. Syaoran grinned when I handed them to him and devoured them within a couple minutes.

While he wolfed down his birthday breakfast, I cleaned up the awful mess I made. I had covered the both of us in flour, along with the entire counter. If Tomoyo weren't so busy she would be murdering me.

"Thanks, Sakura," Syaoran said happily when he was finished. I fake-smiled and continued to scrub my pan. "Tomoyo's pancakes are way better, but I appreciate your effort."

"Wow. I'm surprised my first attempt at pancakes weren't the best in the world." I scrubbed the pan angrily. I hated being nice to people. And it was such a sexist thing to clean up after him. Why couldn't he just be manly and not care about what someone else said? Of course, men were rarely manly. It was always women fixing problems and not caring about what people said.

"Do you want some help cleaning up?"

"It's your birthday." I threw the pan into the cabinet and moved on to everything else. This was a mess.

"But you're a girl. And I feel bad." He hopped over the counter gracefully and took the scrubber from my hand.

"But it's your birthday." I took the scrubber back.

"Therefore I demand that you give me the scrubber." He took it from me.

"You can't do that." I grabbed it.

"Yes I can. It's my birthday." He yanked it out of my hand and grinned. "I get to do whatever I want."

"That's irrational. Give it to me." I reached for it, but he held it over his head.

"No."

After minutes of jumping to no avail, I sighed. "Fine. Don't expect pancakes next year."

"They weren't that good."

"Well... That's because I made them bad on purpose."

"Oh, I'm sure of that." He wiped the counter down dominantly. I glared at him.

He finished more quickly than I would have, probably because he was so happy he won the cleaning contest. Which wasn't fair, but whatever.

"Finished." He grinned smugly and stretched his arms. I took the scrubber from him and threw it in the sink angrily.

"Yeah, well, when it's my birthday I'm going to-"

"When is your birthday?" he asked. I looked at him and frowned in confusion.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because." His eyes were intense as he hopped the counter again. "When is it?"

"April 3rd. Happy?" I jumped over the counter after him and sighed. "Now I'm hungry."

"That's like, five years from now," he pouted childishly.

"Look, it's only ten months. And why do you care so much? I should be more excited than you are. Because it's my birthday."

He smiled. "Today is my birthday."

"Yeah."

Syaoran sighed and walked out of the kitchen. I followed him with nothing else to do. "Wait," I whispered before he walked out the door.

"Why are you whispering?" he whispered. I rolled my eyes and dragged him into the pantry. He looked around nervously.

"Why did you take me into the pantry?"

I bit my lip. "You know when... I told you that thing, that night..."

"You are extremely specific."

I stopped to glare at him.

He glared at my glare.

"Seriously."

"I really don't know what you're talking about."

I sighed. "Okay. When everyone got home... And... I told you about that... thing..."

He looked at me in confusion. "You know, I don't recall much from that night."

"Oh." Maybe my secret was safe. "Never mind then. Just... bye." I walked out of the pantry quickly, leaving Syaoran extremely confused.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I was wandering around boredly when I saw Tomoyo running toward me looking frantic. "Sakura," she whispered in a frenzy. "I have to talk to you."

We scurried into the cleaning closet and she shut the door quietly. "Sakura, I have a huge problem." She sunk to the floor, running her hands through her hair.

I sat down beside her. "Tomoyo, it can't be that bad."

She looked at me with anguished eyes. "Yeah, Sakura, it can. This is terrible."

I sensed this wasn't a normal Tomoyo this-is-the-end-of-the-world thing. This was an actual problem. "What did you do?"

Tomoyo laughed. Her tears dared to spill over her eyes. "Sakura, I think I'm pregnant."

My heart leaped. "What?"

She beat her head against the door slowly. "No, no, no, no-"

"Tomoyo, what?" I looked at her incredulously. "You're seventeen!"

"No I'm not," she said. "I'm 22."

"I can't- wow. That is so illegal."

She looked over at me. "That's what you're worried about? Sakura, we don't have a legal system anymore. Except 'don't get pregnant because we can't raise a freaking kid down here'. Oh, Syaoran's going to kill me." Tomoyo looked as fragile as I had ever seen her, ready to break into a million pieces.

"Wait, how are you even sure?" My eyes automatically went to her stomach.

She rolled her eyes. "How do you think?"

"Well, it's not like you can run to Walgreens and get a pregnancy test." I sighed. "Just asking."

"Sakura, do you think I'm a bad person?" Tomoyo looked over at me guiltily.

"No, of course not."

Neither of us talked for a few minutes.

"...I kissed Nate the other night."

Tomoyo looked up suddenly. "Are you serious?"

"Don't tell anyone, please! You're the only one that knows... or remembers, at least-"

She burst out laughing. "You..." She continued laughing.

"Shut up." I glared at her. "It's not funny."

"Yes it is," she laughed. "It's hilarious."

I was glad to see her laughing, even at my (and Nate's) expense. Even though it wasn't funny.

Tomoyo finally calmed down. "That's so funny."

"It was romantic."

"Was it really?" she asked, about to burst out laughing again.

"...No."

She smiled. "Well, you'll find someone some day. Even if you only have half a dozen to choose from and they're all a decade older than you are."

I looked at her. "Thank you for the security."

"No, maybe you have a shot with Nate. Just... wait a couple years. Until you're eighteen and he isn't mourning about his dead wife." She grinned.

"Shut up."

"I'm hungry." Her smile faded. "I bet it's because I'm pregnant."

"Tomoyo, I'm pretty sure that people get hungry when they're not pregnant. I'm hungry."

"I feel more hungry than you do."

I stood up and helped her. "Do you want something to eat?"

"Wait." She turned to the side. "Are you sure you can't see a baby bump?"

I stared at her stomach intensely. "...Yeah."

"Okay, good." She unlocked the door and opened it quickly. "AAH!"

Chiharu jumped away from the door. "I... spilled something... I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU'RE-"

"SHUT UP," Tomoyo screamed, dragging both of us into the cleaning closet again. "Shut up."

"Sorry," Chiharu said sheepishly. "But are you really?"

"Seriously, you both have to swear on your lives that you won't tell anyone. Anyone."

We both swore, making Tomoyo feel much better. "Now go do something. This looks conspicuous."

Sure enough, when Chiharu opened the door Rika stood outside nervously. "What are you guys talking about?"

"Well-" I began.

"Sakura and Nate hooked up the night his wife died," Tomoyo shouted. "That's what we're talking about. Oh Sakura, don't look so embarrassed. He's hot."

My face turned bright red. Chiharu and Rika stared wide-eyed at me. I felt like a prostitute.

"We- we didn't do anything... except, he-"

"What's going on over here?" Naoko asked, walking around the corner. "Is this like, a secret meeting?"

I sighed. So much for a secret.

"Nate and Sakura did it when his wife died," Chiharu whispered with a hand covering half her mouth.

Naoko assumed the same expression as Rika. "Really?"

"We didn't do... it. We just- this is insane. Nothing happened."

"Lies," Tomoyo seethed. "You brought all of us to the secret closet meeting to lie to us?"

"You're just jealous."

"Jealous of what?" Meiling asked. "Why is everyone over here but me?"

"We're having a secret meeting about Nate and Sakura's affair," Naoko said accusingly. I wanted to throw something.

"We're not-"

Tomoyo and Meiling shared a moment of laughter, leaving the rest of us in shock and disappointment.

"Shut up."

"You know he's like, forty, right?" Naoko looked displeased rather than anything.

"He's twenty eight," I whispered defensively.

Chiharu laughed. "I would've done it. He's hot."

"Who's hot?"

"You know, it's not even considered an affair if neither of us are married, and we didn't even do anything to consider it an affair." My face was on fire from either anger or embarrassment, or a little bit of both. "Oh, hi Nate."

Nate smiled and leaned on the doorframe. "What are we talking about?"

"Nothing," Rika said quickly, and the closet meeting dispersed as quickly as it appeared. Needless to say, I felt awful, confused, and very, very angry.

His eyes looked especially blue as he looked into mine. "Hi."

"Hi."

Tomoyo conspicuously coughed. "I'm going to go eat something. Not like I'm really hungry. Just a little bit."

"Bye Tomoyo." We watched her leave quietly.

"So," he said with a small smile. "I guess that's not much of a secret anymore."

My face fell. "I'm really sorry, I didn't think everyone would just-"

"Don't worry about it," he interrupted. "Really."

"Sorry," I whispered quietly. He closed his eyes and sighed.

"You don't have to apologize."

"What did you want to talk about?" I asked quietly.

He yawned. "Nothing. Just wondering why everyone was over here."

"Oh." I looked at my feet. "So you'll be at the party tonight?"

"No, I have other plans." He smiled. After a few seconds of me staring at him he sighed. "That was a joke. I'm coming."

"Oh." Then I just felt really stupid.

"Well, I'll see you there." He smiled and his brilliant blue eyes looked straight into mine.

"Okay," I swooned as he walked away.

Chiharu popped out from around the corner. "I can't believe you two are going out."

"Shut up," I fumed. She smiled.

"See you tonight. Or maybe I won't." She raised an eyebrow. "Like, if you guys are making out upstairs. Get it?"

"No" was the best comeback I had to that.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Tomoyo, I'm not wearing that. It's just degrading."

She rolled her eyes. "Please. It's so cute."

"No."

She set down the skimpy dress and sighed. "Just because I have to be conservative doesn't mean you have to be."

"Well, I'd like to be wearing something more than that."

"Please. It's not that bad."

"It's hot pink and made with less than a yard of fabric."

"Well, I think it's cute. Maybe I'll wear it." She held it up and smiled. "You can't see my child, can you?"

"Syaoran's going to find out at some point, you know," I reminded her. "Why put yourself through all of the secrecy when you could just get it over with?"

"Because I want the next couple months to be happy, unlike the rest of my life after I give birth." She sighed happily. "I'm wearing this dress. My body will never look this good again, I might as well just show it off while I can."

"Good. Maybe your child will fall out."

"I wonder if it's a boy or a girl," she sighed. "Sakura, I'm having a baby," she cooed happily. "A baby."

I frowned. "You're happy?"

"Well I will be," she laughed, fitting smugly into the dress. She didn't look awkward or adorable or any of the things I would have looked in it. "You know, after labor."

"I'll just wear this," I said, motioning to my sweatpants and t-shirt. Tomoyo growled.

"Don't even try, Sakura." She dug around in her closet for a few minutes. "Ooh! This is perfect. Sakura, please wear it. Pretty please."

"No- oh. It's cute." The dress was royal purple, strapless with gold embellishment wrapped around the top. Halfway down the thigh it opened into ruffles all the way to the floor. It was gorgeous.

"Well, you're wearing whether you like it or not."

"Good thing I like it, then." She smiled.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The den had been transformed by Tomoyo earlier that day at some point. All the furniture was gone, creating a large, open space. There were streamers all across the ceiling hung low. And how Tomoyo got a helium tank for the balloons, I didn't know. It was very well done for a post-apocalyptic party.

Everyone was already there, standing and talking. I was happy to see them dressed up nicely; they seemed completely different from the sweat-pants-wearing, do-it-yourself, what-is-a-shower kind of people I had grown to know them as.

"PARTY!" Tomyo shouted, running to the alcohol. She stopped in the middle of pouring a glass, cursed, and handed it to Chiharu. "I don't fell well," she mumbled, looking absolutely forlorn.

Syaoran looked as happy as he did at the beginning of the day standing in the middle of all his little buddies. Deciding not to bother him (or maybe just not wanting to talk to him because it would be awkward, but whatever), I moved over to Naoko and Stephen, one smiling and the other glaring.

"Hey, Sakura! Nice dress," Naoko said with a nostalgic smile. "It's one of my favorites of Tomoyo's."

My brow furrowed. "She's worn it before?"

Naoko laughed. "Yeah, she's worn it." Her eyes wandered into the distance, and if it were a movie I'd expect the screen to fade into another story. But in reality it was just kind of awkward. Stephen stirred his drink absentmindedly.

"So how's the arm?" I asked loudly. Tomoyo had turned up the music to an almost incomprehensible level. Apparently bleeding eardrums was her new drunk.

He sighed dramatically, sticking out the makeshift cast in my face. "It's... it's painful."

"...Aah." I nodded.

Meiling bumped into me and let out an insane cackle. "SAKURA!"

"Hi?"

She hugged me giddily. "I HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN FOREVER. WE NEED TO HANG OUT MORE."

"Okay." I pushed her off gently. She began dancing in circles with an invisible partner, but nevertheless cackling away. "So is this a party or just everyone getting drunk?" I asked Stephen.

"What else would you do at a party?" he asked, as if it were obvious. He took that as an opportunity to disappear into the mass of bodies.

"Okay, sorry for only getting invited to Scrabble parties as a kid," I muttered under my breath. I was about to find a chair to sit in when Nate came up behind me laughing.

"Hey Sakura," he shouted above the music. "You look remarkable."

I couldn't help but grin. "Really?"

"Yeah, I love that dress. It brings back memories." He handed me a glass of what I assumed to be Sprite. "How are you?"

I took a drink. "Loud. I'm very loud right now."

"I totally get that." He smiled. "Did you bring a present?"

My grin fell instantly. "What kind of present?" I nearly whispered.

He shook his head. "No, you wouldn't... don't worry about it, Sakura!" he begged, shaking my face with a smile. "There are so many things going on here, nobody expects you to keep up with everything."

I sighed and drank more. "What did you get him?"

"A week off dusting." He held up a piece of paper. "There's not... much to get people." He laughed.

I smiled.

"Do you want to dance?" he asked, taking my drink and setting it on a nearby table. Before I could say anything he swept me off my feet, literally, into the small tangle of bodies in the middle of the room.

I had always loved dancing. Although I hadn't done it in years, the second my feet landed back on the floor I felt the bass seep through my bones and my feet followed silently. I probably looked ridiculous, but it was fun and I wasn't looking to impress anybody. Being with Nate was fun too. It seemed like he would never stop smiling, and that was way better than him being sad. I could have easily danced all night and still have begged for more.

"PRESENTS!" Tomoyo shouted, turning the music down. I stilled, hands wrapped around Nate's muscly waist. He laughed nervously, detached himself, and walked over to the couch. I took a moment to bask in the awkwardness before walking to join him and everyone else.

"Guys, you didn't have to get me anything," Syaoran said happily.

"Well, I didn't! HAHAHAHAHA!" Eriol laughed.

"I can't believe that's the father of my child," Tomoyo whispered beside me. "Okay, open mine first!"

Syaoran took the over-decorated box and sighed. "I wonder what it is." After a quick shake, he unwrapped it. Clothes.

"Thanks," he mumbled with a smile. Tomoyo grinned.

Naoko pushed her way into the middle. "Me next."

Small but meaningful gifts went around slowly, reminding me how close of a bond these people shared. It almost felt like I was violating something precious just being around such a close family. I just sat in the back and took comfort in the fact they were having so much fun.

"It's a hug coupon." Meiling grinned behind her drink. Syaoran stared at her blankly. "Okay, fine. I found it while we were running errands." She handed him a small, crunchy bag. "Just don't eat all of them tonight.

"Doritos," he whispered.

"Yeah, she's the best. Can we get on with it?" Eriol hugged Tomoyo from behind, toying with her hair. "I wanna dance."

Tomoyo grimaced and untangled herself. "Ew. Fine. I just have one more present that I... couldn't fit into." She grabbed my arm and dragged me forward, smiling from ear to ear. "See? I fixed it."

Syaoran gaped at me. I felt extremely violated.

"What?" I whispered to Tomoyo. "What is with this dress and staring into the distance reminiscing?" She immediately shoosh-ed me.

"You..."

"Fixed it," She finished. "And you're welcome."

"How did I not notice?" Syaoran murmured, rising out of his seat and moving straight toward me. Eyes widening into frightened saucers, I backed up the few inches the room alloted me.

"This is weird," I stated.

He laughed happily, examining the dress all over. Therefore, examining me all over. Making me feel extremely awkward. "I thought this dress died three years ago."

"Don't underestimate me," she scolded with a cocky grin. "I have a gift."

"Okay," I groaned, pushing him away from me lightly. "Let's all just keep like, a three-feet radius away from me." I motioned around in a flailing motion.

"But," he protested, walking toward me again. "It's the-"

"Yeah, it's 'the dress.' I get it." People slowly rose from their seats, marveling at my dress for a minute before returning to the dance party. I stood with my arms limply at my sides, wondering why people cared so much about a simple piece of fabric.

"Sakura," he sighed, tugging me gently away from the crowd and into the corner of the room. I sat leaned against the back of one of the couches, feeling left out and frustrated. Syaoran looked down in concentration, placing words in his mind.

"I assume you've heard our story, right?" he began, leaning on the couch next to me. "How Tomoyo and I escaped that one night."

I nodded slowly.

"Well, she was wearing this dress." Syaoran trailed a nostalgic hand on the fabric gently. "We didn't have spare clothes, so she ended up wearing for about three weeks." He laughed softly, looking at the ground and sighing. "I think the essence of our survival kind of revolved around it. We were on the run, half-starved, and yet she was walking around in this... gaudy thing." He paused. "It was basically the only thing that kept me from giving up."

My brow furrowed.

"Eventually, we made our way to the warehouse and she changed into street clothes." Syaoran looked at the dress wistfully, toying with the top layer of fabric absently. "...I mean, I barely recognized her. I was happy for her, because to be honest the dress smelled like death. But..."

Our eyes met for a moment, mine confused and his longing. "I fell in love with the girl in this dress." He turned his head toward the ground again. "And then it's like she vanished."

My breath caught.

Before I could interject he continued. "So just indulge me, please?" A short smile played on his lips.

"I-" His hands dragged me into the middle of dancing, a slow song pulling us together into a gentle rhythm.

I thought about refusing, but it wasn't that big of a deal.

"Sakura," he smiled, hands hugging my hips gently. "You look better in that dress than Tomoyo did."

I was taken aback. "No, Tomoyo is-"

"I'm not saying that she didn't look good in it," he muttered, probably afraid that she was listening. "But she's too vivacious to wear something so..." His eyes wandered the dress, searching for words. "Delicate."

I stammered, at a loss for words. There was a very small gap between us, I noticed, as Syaoran's breath brushed against my face. He only smiled.

"I think it suits you."

A dark pink shade crept onto my cheeks. Why did I feel so different around him?

We swayed in silence for a while. My eyes wandered across him, examining him closely. Could he really be only nine years older than me? The more I thought about it, the less strange it seemed.

"I'm sorry I didn't get you a present," I said quietly, gazing at his chest absently. "I didn't know I was supposed to."

Syaoran laughed loudly and brushed a hand through my hair casually. "I wouldn't expect you to. I guess you can count this as a present if you want to." I looked up to see a playful smirk on his face. "It'll have to do."

I didn't know what to say to him. I never did. I just looked away from him and let out the breath I had been holding.

"Excuse me, Syaoran, but could I steal Sakura for a moment?" I turned to see Nate behind me, offering a hand in my direction. "I don't think it's fair that you get her for the whole evening."

Syaoran looked surprised. "But it's my birthday," he muttered as I untangled myself from him.

"Sorry," I whispered as Nate wrapped me into his arms, sticking his tongue out at Syaoran.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked. I shrugged, not really sure myself.

Nate admired my dress silently, rubbing his hands on the soft silk. "Well, you look amazing."

"Thank you." I sighed. A sudden wave of fatigue rolled over me, and I found myself leaning against his chest. My eyes closed without my permission.

"You tired?" he asked quietly. I nodded slowly, ready to fall asleep then and there.

"Here." Nate guided me down the hall and to my bedroom door. He opened it and peered in, then closed it quickly. "Occupied," he muttered before dragging me farther down the hall to a room I assumed to be his.

"You can rest in here if you want." He disappeared into the darkness and returned with a pair of sweatpants. "Hm?"

I gratefully took the clothes and stepped into his dimly lit room. "Thanks," I said quietly.

Nate grinned. "I'll be upstairs if you need me." With that he walked away, leaving me to change and collapse in his bed, unaware of what was coming.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"SAKURA!" someone shouted in the hall, waking me up immediately. It was frantic, running up and down screaming my name.

Quickly I fumbled out of the bed, hard concrete freezing against my bare feet. When I opened the door I saw Stephen running in my direction. "Come on!" Before I could protest we were running down the hall, down a path I had never explored.

"Where is she?" Tomoyo's voice screamed ahead of us.

"I found her," Stephen called down the dark hallway.

"Sakura?" Tomoyo shouted. When we rounded the corner I felt her arms wrap around me. "Oh Sakura," she sighed. "I was so worried about you."

"What's going on?" I said frantically. "Where is everyone else?"

"No time," Stephen muttered, opening a door and rushing us inside. Dark stairs ascended before us, which Tomoyo began to climb without hesitation. I followed her as Stephen trailed behind.

"Tomoyo, what's happening?" I asked when we reached the top. She shook her head and pushed another door open, this one leading outside into the crisp night air. I was immediately chilled to the bone, tugging my arms close to my chest.

"Come on," she urged, pulling my bare feet across a vast expanse of grass and into a small gathering of grass. "There's a car waiting on the other side of the forest. Just keep running straight and you'll find it."

"Wha-"

"Go now," she ordered. Our eyes locked for a moment before I followed her orders and began sprinting through the trees. Loose branches and rocks cut at my feet, but the adrenaline pumping through my body kept me from noticing.

When I finally crossed the forest, a covered Jeep was waiting in the shadows. I ran up to it and banged on the door gently. "Hello?"

Nate opened the passenger door and sighed in relief. "Oh, thank God."

"Get her in," Syaoran ordered from the other side of the car. Nate helped me inside carefully, and I curled up in the available space at his feet. The back of the car was loaded with boxes and supplies.

"Nate, what's going on?" I whispered as the car began speeding down the road. I couldn't see anything from where I sat, relying only on the loud thrum of the engine.

"They found us," he said simply. "I wasn't upstairs, so I didn't see them coming. But don't worry," he reassured when he saw my face. "Everyone's going to be fine."

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Now that I'm not so sure about," he said with a tight smile. "Syaoran?"

"Your guess is as good as mine." Syaoran stared at the road intensely, shifting gears every few turns.

"Well, that's not the point. The point is, we'll be fine." Nate reached down toward me and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder. I huddled against his legs and willed myself not to fall apart.

"Okay, I think this is the right way," Syaoran muttered partially to himself. "Do you have your phone?"

Nate handed it to him silently. After a few tense moments, he began talking. "Eriol? We found the road. Who's with you?"

I listened to him silently, hugging my knees to my chest. It felt like hours before the car stopped. Syaoran and Nate stepped out of the car, but a gentle hand kept me from getting up.

"Almost everyone's on their way. I can't get a hold of-" Syaoran looked at me and sighed. "Never mind. They'll be here."

My heart pounded in my chest. Who was lost? They could already be dead, for all I knew. I felt tears pour over my face and I didn't know how to stop them.

"Calm down, Sakura," Nate said quietly, opening the door of the car and grabbing my shoulders. "Everyone's fine."

I nodded, not really hearing what he was saying. A car drove past and he quickly shut the door, leaving me alone and scared.

Though the door was closed, I could still hear Nate and Syaoran's voices. "Tomoyo isn't answering. I don't know what happened to her and Stephen."

My breath caught in the back of my throat.

"Do you think she heard me?" Syaoran whispered. I tried to keep silent, but my body betrayed me as a soft whimper came out of my throat.

He cursed lowly. Nate opened the door again. "Sakura? They're fine. Don't worry."

I wanted to tell him to shut up, I wanted to do something. But all I could do was cry, curled up in a ball while everyone else was risking their lives. Nate kneeled down next to the car and sighed, reassuring me that everyone was fine to the point where I almost believed him.

"Tomoyo," Syaoran breathed. I looked up to see him on the phone, relaying information. A huge sigh of relief escaped me.

"Where are you though?" he asked quietly, then stilled. "No, why are you in town? Get out. Meet us over on-" His voice faded and his eyes widened. "Tomoyo?"

I pressed my lips together as hard as I could. Nate tried to distract me, but I pushed past him and walked toward Syaoran.

"I don't know the city. Just the back roads." Syaoran cursed again, running his free hand through his hair.

"Let me talk to her," I said quietly. He shooed me off impassively.

Anger welled up inside of me and I grabbed the phone from him. "Tomoyo? Where are you?"

"I don't know," her panicked voice answered. "There's a- some sort of toy store across the street. And a burger place right next to it."

"Okay, start going left. Do you see the bowling alley? Yeah, to the right. Now that second street next to it- Yeah, 41st. Go down that until it splits, and take the right fork." I slowly relayed the directions to my house, hoping the spare key was still under the flower pot.

I glanced over at Syaoran and Nate, who were talking in hushed tones. Syaoran looked at me and his brow furrowed, looking away.

"Under the flower pot. Okay, now in the back there's a door that leads to the basement... Yeah, that key is in the third kitchen cabinet from the right. Under the Christmas mug. Yeah. Okay, good." I sighed, happy to know that my best friend was safe. But what to do next was a mystery.

"They're at my old house," I told the two men quietly. "I figured they would be safe there. I mean, it's stocked for at least a few weeks."

Syaoran nodded silently. Nate grinned. "Nothing less from Sakura."

I took a deep breath and leaned against the hood of the car. "What now?"

Syaoran grabbed his phone from my hands with an eyebrow raised. "Eriol and Chiharu are on their way to our new site."

I frowned. "Just the two of them?"

"Well, Nate and I were-"

Nate cut him off sharply. "They're smart. Despite being a complete idiot, Eriol is actually very reliable."

"Yeah, but..." I eyed the Jeep, unconvinced. "It shouldn't just be the two of them. We should go help."

Syaoran laughed. "Do you know how much trouble I would get in if you got hurt? Tomoyo would turn me in herself."

Sudden realization hit me. "You two were going to go, weren't you?"

Nate shook his head. "No, we-"

"But I kept you from going." Guilt crept into my chest. "Everyone's in danger because of me."

"That's not true. You kept Tomoyo and Stephen out of danger. In a weird way you're keeping me and Syaoran out of danger." He smiled. "Don't beat yourself up."

"Stop babying her," Syaoran muttered under his breath, dialing a number on his phone and putting it up to his ear. Nate shot him a look.

"Chiharu? Yeah, it's Syaoran. How is it?"

Nate stared at the ground, lost in his own thoughts. Suddenly I felt extremely vulnerable and walked to his side. A protective arm slid around my shoulders.

"Should we be out in the open like this?" I asked him quietly. Though we were on an old one-lane highway with no other cars or buildings around, I felt as though we should be somewhere a little less public.

He shook his head. "Nah, it's fine. Nobody's going to use this road."

I stared up at the clear blue sky, something I hadn't seen in years, and smiled. "It's nice to be outside for a change."

I heard Syaoran sigh. "Well, tell them it's our property. They can't just take it."

I frowned. "What's going on?"

"I don't know." Nate looked at Syaoran apprehensively. "You know, he'll be in a better mood once we make sure everyone's okay."

"Just... ask them if we can stay. It's not like we're going to do any harm." Syaoran rubbed his face with his free hand in agitation. "I know, Chiharu."

After a few minutes, he hung up the phone and sighed. "This is bad."

Nate tensed beside me. "What's going on?"

"The place I had in mind- it's just an old abandoned warehouse about 10 miles away. Chiharu said there's already a bunch of people there. Around 30."

"Well, do we have anywhere else to go?" Nate asked quietly, as if I couldn't hear him.

Syaoran's face twisted into a wry smile. I felt dread creep into my chest.

"She's asking them if we can stay. It's just..." He looked at me and sighed, as if I were a little kid that he couldn't get rid of. "She said they're a little... uncouth."

I sunk against Nate. "Do you think they'll let us stay?"

"They should. If not, we'll have to-" He paused. "...Uh, ask again."

"I'm not four," I said angrily. "You can say stuff around me. I'm not as sheltered as you make me out to be."

"Sakura, we don't mean to treat you like a child, but honestly. Do you really want to hear about this?" Syaoran looked weary with exhaustion.

"You don't have to go out of your way when I'm around. Just say what needs to be said."

"Well, in that case," he said dramatically, "we'll get our guns and blow their heads off."

I rolled my eyes; Nate laughed. Before Syaoran could continue, the phone rang.

"Yeah?"

I leaned back against Nate and let out my breath. I wanted a roof under my head; being out in the open after so long was unnerving.

"Well, that's good news. We'll be there in about 15 minutes." He hung up and smiled. "They'll let us stay."

I smiled, a little bit of relief washing over me. I felt better as we got in the car, finally heading toward our safe haven.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yeah, updating really doesn't work for me.

I'm sorry it's been 20 years. But I mean, it's here now right? I would say I don't update because I have friends and a life, but the truth is I'm working on another story right now, just not publishing it. So you have that to look forward to in... a few months.

I've missed you terribly. The reason I'm not publishing it is because I can change things in earlier chapters if I want to as opposed to having to cope with my meager writing skills. The only bad thing is, you can't read it and tell me how terrible it is. I miss that.