Before the good-bye. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Li and Sakura will be going back to Hong Kong soon to live with Li's family but they still haven't told Eli or Madison. Now it's all a matter of how they take it and weather or not Sakura and Li will loose their two best friends.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sakura screwed her eyes shut trying to block the tears she knew she wasn't going to able to stop. Her body shook with the effort of containing her emotions. She refused to upset Madison or Eli but she knew she wasn't going to contain it much longer. She sat in her living room with Eli, Madison and Li her tea sitting on the table in the center of the room untouched. She knew if she stayed in the room any longer she would loose it completely but if she got up in a hurry she knew Madison would follow. She risked it and with as much dignity as possible she lifted her self off the couch and picked up the tea cup and began to slowly make her way out of the room. She swayed dangerously felling dizzy and only made it around the bench when the three heard a smash of porcelain and the sound of a falling body. The three of them rushed into the kitchen to find Sakura had fainted the broken cup laying in fragment around her limp body. Li knelt down beside her and picked her up slowly carrying her up the stairs towards the open door at the end of the hall, which was her room. He carefully placed her body on the pink bed covering. he stroked her pink cheek with the back of his scared hand. Sakura's long lashed begun to flutter and she opened her eyes slowly trying to adjust to the sudden change in light. " Sakura you don't have to do this you know that," said Li in a whisper. She shook her head " I want to, you know I do, I just need 's all" she gave a small smile and asked if he could ask Madison to come in for she wanted to talk with her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Minute's later Madison sat on the edge of Sakura's bed next to Sakura who's head hung lightly. Tears welled up in the liquid emerald eyes as she began to speak. It was going to be hard telling Madison she had to leave soon. Li and Sakura had been dating for 7 years now and he had proposed to her only a month ago. Madison had been ecstatic. The wedding was to be in a year and she had already begun the planning for the dresses. Madison thought the wedding would be in Reedington. She thought Sakura and Li would be living there. She was wrong. After the engagement Li had received an unexpected phone call from his mother one night while Sakura had been over. She had watched as his face had feel slowly. She knew it was going to be bad and she knew it had something to do with going back home. Li had told her as a storm raged outside that his mother wanted him back home and it looked doubtful that he would return. After and hour of crying into Li's shoulder Sakura had fallen asleep. When she awoke the next morning however she told Li that she would be coming with him and she didn't care if it meant living with him overseas as long as they were together. Li had tried convincing her other wise but he had lost and all was decided. Sakura's father was rather pleased. He didn't really want to loose his only daughter but she had promised him that she would be back every holiday's and she would always write.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

By the time Sakura had finished explaining the story Madison was in disbelief and tears poured down her pale face. Madison had never imagined Sakura and herself being apart. They had been best friends forever. They had shared everything, grown up together, become partners in crime and had become inseparable. Madison had been with Sakura through think an thin and had always been there when there was a clow card on the loose. But now it seemed that the friendship they had built was about to be knocked down and trampled on. Madison didn't hate Li nor did she hate Sakura. It had been her in fact which had pushed to two together. She had been ecstatic when kero had told all four of them that when two people in possession of magical powers came together in love would be together forever. And now that she was dating Eli Madison felt that life had reached its peak. But it came to her and she began to think of how much of an idiot she was not to remember that everything that goes up must come down and at the moment her life was plummeting threading to hit with such an impact that would kill her. Her heart began to ache as she thought of a life without Sakura. It was all she could do. She broke down and cried. Eli and Li who had been sitting outside the door in silence came in and Eli helped Madison up off the floor. Sakura looked at Madison scared and then at Li. He could see she was confused, scared, and upset and he gathered her shaking body in his arms. Eli looked over and motioned to Li that he was going to take Madison home. Li simply nodded and resumed rocking Sakura to settle her down.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After Eli had dropped Madison off her house he walked towards his own trying to place the pieces which were infront of him. It was almost surreal. He knew they would be leaving in a month but he couldn't accept it. When the left they would be on the other side of the world to him. He couldn't believe it, he refused to. He and Sakura as well as Li had been through so much. He had caused so many of Li's red face's and temper tantrums by simply speaking to Sakura and they had always looked back and laughed. He thought back to the times when Sakura had been in all her glory and back to when she had transformed all her cards and how he had felt how proud he had been. As he was walking he pulled out a small black wallet which contained a single photo. It was of the group as they had been in year 6. He looked at Sakura and Li who sat together, he looked at how happy the two of them looked. He knew this is what the two of them wanted and as long as they were happy he couldn't help but be also. He would miss them, of course, but he had to let fate run it's course. This was fate and they were happy. His memories were cut short as he stopped outside his door. He opened it slowly new memories dawning.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Sakura was still crying but they only came out as soft sobs now. She had stopped shaking but her heart was aching. If it was so painful to tell Madison she was leaving what would she be like the day she left, the day she had to say good-bye. She shuddered to think what it would be like and as Li felt this he held he tighter. He thought back to the first day the had met and how cold hearted he had been how a simple smile from her had slowly began to melt the block of ice which had replaced his heart for so long. Li skipped memories to the day he had asked her out, how she had accepted out how they had shared 7 wonderful years together. He was grateful he wasn't going to have to say goodbye to her the day he would leave but he knew it was going to be painful. He was regretting that day yet he was looking forward to it in so many ways. Memories of the days he had first come to reedington, memories of the three occasions he had had to leave reeding ton and memories of the days he had come back flooded into his head and he was too late stopping several tears run down his cheeks which he realized were already wet. Sakura looked up and silently wiped away his tears. The two sat in an embrace until Tori got home and found them. He offered to drive Li home but Sakura asked if he could stay the night. She needed someone to hold her, someone to cry to, someone who understood her. But her biggest worry wasn't when she was leaving.. it was weather of not she had just lost her two best friends.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Ok tell me what you think. I know it's not very good and it's a bit sappy and this is my first fic but I had this one stirring in my head for a while and I had to write it down. I will write more soon OK

LISTEN TO WHILE YOU READ THIS FAN FIC: not a girl not yet a woman : BRITNEY SPEARS ( number four third CD) before the good bye : BRITNEY SPEARS ( number 13 third CD) born to make you happy : BRITNEY SPEARS ( number 5 first CD) I'll be there : BRITNEY SPEARS ( number 7 first CD) Walk on by : BRITNEY SPEARS ( number three on the STRONGER single)