Accidents

Disclaimer: Card Captor Sakura and the characters in it are the property of CLAMP and related artists. I'm a poor, poor student (one who has no money even) and I couldn't own it if I tried! Please don't sue me… *cowers in fear*

A/N: Wow, I'm moving along in the world of anime fanfiction, huh? This is my firstest Card Captor Sakura fic! I hope you guys like it. It's an S+S, so if you don't like S+S I suggest you stay away… Syaoran and Sakura are both 16 in this fic, the Clow cards have been captured. Syaoran is in Hong Kong, Sakura is in Japan, however, they still keep in touch. Enjoy! *Hint* I like reviews, comments, etc…

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Chapter One: When Darkness Surrounds

Her keys jangled noisily in the now-quiet street. It was getting dark quickly. She glanced at her watch, an exasperated sigh escaping her lips. She was late. Several cars rushed by, causing her shoulder length brown hair to whip around her face. Nii-chan is going to worry… She bit her lip in frustration, her father was working late again tonight, and her over-protective brother was sure to freak out.

She juggled her mobile phone in one hand, debating the wisdom in calling him now and explaining why she was late. She decided against it, not wanting him to yell at her before she even got home.

The wind picked up, blowing her fine hair into a chaotic tangle. Absentmindedly, she ran a hand through it, separating the silky strands. She stepped out to cross the road, not really thinking to check if there were any cars coming. The street was unusually quiet tonight, and she was worrying about having to deal with her brother.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't even hear the car until it was too late. It hurtled around the corner at breakneck speed, too fast for her, even if she had been able to move. The headlights blinded her temporarily, and in a panic, she veered closer to the path of the oncoming vehicle.

Her scream was cut off as the car hit, her body slamming into the side of the road with a sickening thud. Her keys, now in her pocket, stabbed into the side of her leg as she landed on them. She coughed weakly, trying to reach her phone. It had escaped her grip, landing some meters away from her with a clatter. She couldn't seem to think properly, why did she want the phone again? Her fingers twitched slightly in one last futile attempt to reach it before everything went dark.

Several minutes later, the tinny ring of a mobile phone could be heard, sounding unnaturally loud on the quiet street. 

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Touya slammed down the phone in annoyance. Where was Sakura? He checked the clock again, nine-thirty, she said she'd be back over an hour ago. He cursed under his breath. She wasn't at Toyomo's house and she wasn't answering her phone. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. He dialled her phone again, Come on, Sakura, pick up! He wouldn't even yell at her, he promised himself, as long as she was okay. Of course, if she was okay, he might be obliged to yell a little, especially since she was causing him so much stress.

"Hello?"

He wondered if he'd dialled the wrong number, the voice at the other end definitely didn't belong to his sister, "Sakura?"

"I'm sorry sir. My name is Miyata Shinjiro, I work as an aide in the general hospital, the young lady who this phone belongs to is currently in ICU," the young man on the other side of the line sounded harried, "It's actually a relief that you've called, we've been trying to find-"

"She's where?" Touya didn't care that he was interrupting, "What happened?"

"Well, as far as we can tell, she was hit by a drunk driver. The man was pulled over by the police several kilometres away from where the accident happened. Are you related to the victim?"

"She's my sister!" Touya roared, wondering how it was possible that such an idiot had been left with the job of finding out who the 'victim's' family was. "What about- listen, this is ridiculous, I'm coming down to the hospital." He slammed the phone down on the startled man. He stared at it for a minute, before picking it up again and calling his father at work.

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"Toyomo, calm down," Li Syaoran twisted the phone cord around his fingers, wondering what had gotten his friend so agitated, "Tell me what happened." He had been surprised to hear from her, he and Toyomo weren't that close, especially since he'd moved back to Hong Kong.

"It's Sakura!" The distraught girl finally managed to wail, "Sakura's in the hospital…" she trailed off into hysterical sobs.

Li stared out the window blankly, her words beginning to register in his brain, "What happened?" he demanded harshly, "Toyomo! Tell me what happened?"

"S-she was on the way home from my place…" Toyomo paused for breath, trying to still her crying, "And she was late…you know how she is…" tears threatened in her eyes again, "She wasn't looking when she crossed the road…and there was a drunk driver…and, oh God, Li! She's in the ICU!" She broke down again.

He almost dropped the phone. Sakura, his Sakura, in the ICU of a hospital half a world away, in Japan. Why wasn't I there? He should have been there, looking out for her, protecting her, doing something… He was stuck in Hong Kong instead, learning about his duties as head of the Li Clan. Listening to Toyomo's sobs, he felt like crying too.

He struggled to think, he had to do something. He had to be there, the fog cleared from around his brain, "Toyomo, calm down. I'm going to try and get the first flight out, okay?"

There was a sniffle, then a sigh, "Yeah…you probably should. Sakura will want to see you when she wakes up. Call me when you get to Japan, I'll arrange for you to get picked up from the airport."

"Thanks Toyomo," he said softly, wondering if she knew how important this was to him.

"No problem, Li-kun," her voice was still shaky, but she sounded better. He hoped she would be okay. He replaced the phone in its cradle gently, a single tear made it's way slowly down his face. Hang in there, Sakura…

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She was swimming in darkness. Where am I? A bodiless mind, floating. What happened to me? She forced herself to remember, I was…worried about being home on time… Bright lights blinding her. Shuffling, stumbling footsteps drawing her closer to the oncoming vehicle. The car… Then she was floating, numb, flying through the air.

She closed her non-existent eyes, trying to ignore the memories, but now she had awoken them, it was too late, they re-played in the darkness. I screamed…didn't I? Yes, she had, screamed before the car hit, a last, ignored, cry for help. She remembered the excruciating pain as she hit the ground, everything had seemed to hurt at once. She was scared.

Can anyone hear me? Only her sobs surrounded her. I don't want to be alone anymore… a bodiless voice whispered eerily, Someone…anyone… The image of a brown haired boy floated in front of her, his warm eyes friendly, worried, a faint smile on his face. As quickly as the image appeared, it dissipated. Syaoran… her mental voice was choked, Syaoran…I need you…

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Touya looked over at the body lying silently on the bed again, "Dumb kaijuu," he muttered, burying his head in his hands. Why'd you have to do something so stupid, Sakura? He couldn't really blame her, he knew the only reason she'd been hurrying home was so he wouldn't worry. This was his fault.

Tears pooled behind his closed eyelids, Sakura, if you don't wake up I'll never forgive myself. His sister was all he had left of his mother. She was the little girl his mother had dreamed of. After her death, he had promised to take care of her, told himself he would be a good brother. Fat lot of good that did, he thought bitterly. Sakura was lying in a hospital bed, her condition uncertain.

"Touya?" A hand rested on his shoulder, "Are you okay?"

"Yukito," he muttered, roughly wiping the remains of tears from his eyes, "Why would I be okay?" he asked, harshly. He stared up at his friend, "How'd you know I was here anyway?"

Yukito smiled sadly, "Your father called me, asked me to come down here to check up on you," he sat down next to the taller man, "He's on his way," he informed him.

Touya's gaze wandered over to the hospital bed again, "Yeah, I know. He said he'd be here as soon as he could." He sighed softly, That doesn't change anything though. Sakura's still here, and it's still my fault.

Yukito was silent, not really sure of what to say in a situation like this. He could tell his friend was hurting, badly. But the words of comfort wouldn't seem to come. Perhaps, he mused quietly, There are no comforting words. He couldn't lie to Touya, he couldn't say that Sakura was going to be alright when he didn't know that to be a fact.

He hoped she would be okay, but hoping wasn't the same as knowing. Yukito didn't know what life would be like without Sakura in it, and he didn't want to know. She was so bright and bubbly, she was able to make you smile without trying. Yukito sighed softly, he still felt bad, telling her that he only cared for her as a sister… But then, he'd seen the way she looked at that Syaoran kid. His grey eyes were repulsed by the sterile white of the hospital room, the unmoving body under the starched white sheet. You have to get through this, Sakura. For all of us…

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A/N: This was meant to be a short fic. I say meant to be, but it's not. It has officially turned into a chapter fic. *sweatdrops* I can't believe I'm taking another chapter fic on, but I am. I don't actually know how long it will be, because I have a very vague idea of where the plot is going. There wasn't much S+S in this, but there will be, I promise! R&R, C&C and all those other alliterated abbreviations…

© Smabbi-chan

2001-11-19