Hanami

Author's Note: Revised on April 15, 2013

This was written For 6wendybird91 in DeviantArt as a prize for being the Grand Prize Winner in the Fanart Group Collage activity that was held by the CCS-Sakura-x-Syaoran club. She asked for her prize fic to be of Sakura and Syaoran participating in Cherry Blossom Viewing, or on their first date. I decided to combine the two.

Disclaimer: Sakura and Syaoran belong to CLAMP!

Sakura marveled up at the branches of the cherry trees. The faint, delicate sent of cherry blossoms filled the air. They bloomed in an array of colors; from white to pink to almost red.

"Kirei!" Sakura breathed in awe. "They are so pretty!"

"Yes, they are," Syaoran agreed. He was besides her, enjoying the view, but not of the cherry blossoms. "The name suites you well," he added and quickly looked up at the trees when she moved her gaze to look at him. She blushed slightly at the compliment and took hold of his arm to hug it. Her smile was bashful, and she couldn't bring herself to look up at him, but she was happy; happier then she had been for over a year.

Syaoran looked down at her with adoration. He had just returned to Japan at the beginning of the week. He had previously been in Hong Kong for the remainder of his 5th and the entirety of his 6th grade year. Though they had been officially together for over a year, this was their first "real" date.

"Let's find a nice spot to have lunch," Sakura suggested. It was Sunday, and they had agreed to have lunch while cherry blossom viewing. She woke up especially early to make traditional home-made bentos for them to eat.

Sakura pulled Syaoran towards one of the few cherry trees that didn't already have anyone sitting beneath it. She let go of his arm and dug through the bag that she had brought, for the pink and white quilted throw and laid it out for them to sit on. Syaoran sat and watched as she nervously unpacked the bento boxes, also from her bag.

"You know, I'm not really that hungry right now," he hinted, being careful not to make eye contact while he stealthily moved his head behind her back.

"Oh?" Sakura sounded surprised and a bit disappointed. "Well, I suppose we could always eat la – TER!" She squealed out the ending of her sentence in surprise when he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to sit closer to him. "Syao... Syao… Syaoran?" she stammered and tried to push him away.

Syaoran wasn't looking at her. His own face glowed brightly and he continued to stare, as if in fascination, at the cherry blossoms. "It's such a beautiful day," he responded to her reaction, not seeming affected in the slightest as she tried to push out of his hold. "Why not just relax and enjoy the view?"

"Y…yes… b…but…" Sakura stuttered, finally successful in pulling away from his arm. She adjusted her position to kneel beside him, and kept an appropriate distance between them. "Ev… everyone is watching," she explained with her cheeks burning a dark crimson.

Syaoran looked around. Not far to one side of them, a family sat under a cherry tree having lunch. The two children, who looked around the ages of 6 and 8, fought over a piece of Tomago. The mother was busy serving lunch for her husband, and the husband was busy correcting the children.

To the other side, an older college age couple sat under another cherry tree. The guy was lying down with his head rested in his girlfriend's lap while she read out loud from a book.

Under the tree in front of them, a middle aged man appeared to be sleeping.

"No one is paying any attention to us," Syaoran replied to her protest about being too close to him for fear of what others might think. His voice carried the slightest hint of disappointment but he didn't push the issue. Instead, he lay back on the blanket and crossed his arms behind his head to stare up at the cherry blossoms.

Sakura looked around them to find that he was right. No one was paying any attention to them. Everyone was enjoying the season of Hanami, flower viewing. There were much more pretty things to watch. Feeling guilty for pushing him away, Sakura stared down at his peaceful face. His eyes were closed, as if he had decided to take a nap. Tentatively, she reached out to run her fingers through his hair. "I'm sorry," she said in a quiet whisper.

Syaoran opened one eye to peek at her. There was a beam of sunlight that found its way through the branches to shine in his other eye. With a smile he reached a hand up to gently stroke her cheek. Sakura closed her eyes and covered a hand over his to nuzzle against his palm.

"It really is a beautiful sight from down here," Syaoran mused. Sakura opened her eyes to find him staring at her, but when their eyes met he looked back up at the tree's canopy. "You should see it," he continued to say, after clearing his throat. Rotating his hand that still caressed her cheek; he gently took hold of the hand that she had covering over his and pulled her to lie down. Sakura was hesitant at first, but stretched out beside him and laid her head into the crook of his shoulder.

Sakura's breath caught in her throat as she stared up at the cherry blossoms. "It's like heaven," she spoke, when she remembered to breathe. Each year, their beauty never ceased to amaze her.

Syaoran nodded his head against hers in agreement. "That's how I felt when I first saw you again…" his voice trailed off in embarrassment. Sakura turned her head to look at him. A soft smile played over her lips and she moved closer to kiss his cheek before quickly sitting back up and covering her hands over her cheeks to hide her blush.

At the same moment, Syaoran sat up as well and was looking very alert. He relaxed and sighed deeply when he found what had caught his attention. He wasn't surprised, and had even expected it to happen, but decided that it was probably best not to inform Sakura that they were being watched.

Partly hidden behind a tree slightly off center and to the left in front of them, Tomoyo held her video camera in position, recording the moment.

Syaoran cleared his throat and moved to sit in front of Sakura, blocking her from Tomoyo's view. He knew that it wouldn't stop the girl from continuing to record them but hoped that it might annoy her. She would have to move to find a new position from which to record, without being seen. "Wow," he said, acting normally, "Did you hear that? I think my stomach just growled."

Sakura dropped her hands into her lap and looked up at him cheerfully. She moved quickly to gather the bentos that lay on the blanket beside them and presented one to him before she offered a pair of chopsticks. He accepted and eagerly delved into the elegantly made lunch. Sakura's cheeks radiated slightly, but it was evident that she couldn't contain her happiness.

~END~