A/N: Another one-shot to keep you guys occupied while I try and update my other story :D Enjoy!
Disclaimer: All rights to Card Captor Sakura belong to CLAMP.
Summary: Syaoran would take losing his championship game any time as long as he could remember that day.
Category: Card Captor Sakura
Genre/s: Romance/Drama
Rating: K/T (PG) just to be safe, even though there's really no need to be.
Pairings: S x S
Soccer Geeks and Trophies
Today is gone
I'm the only light that you see
You need someone
I know all you needed was me
-Sunshine, The All-American Rejects
One-Shot
When you are in love, you can't fall asleep because reality is better than your dreams.
-Dr. Seuss
The sun beat down on the open soccer field, the sky clear of all clouds, making everything an even ninety-four degrees out.
The bleachers were filled with over-heated fans, cheering on their team and trying to keep from having a stroke.
The soccer field was in use, players in sleeveless jerseys running around and chasing a ball, trying to ignore the beads of sweat dripping into their eyes making them sting.
Syaoran Li was one of these players.
His unkempt chocolate brown hair was constantly getting in his eyes, and the sun was definitely making it worse with all the sweat.
He could feel his heart pump at a fast pace from the adrenaline, his aching feet carry him across the field towards the opponent's goal post.
He aimed.
He kicked.
He scored.
The crowd went wild with enthusiasm, but all effort was lost because his eyes only sought out one person.
His eyes landed on a girl around the same age as him, her hands cupped around her mouth and she shouted and cheered along with her friends, her eyes only on him.
He grinned up at her, and her answering smile was dazzling.
He couldn't help but wink at her, causing a blush to be added to her already red cheeks, no thanks to the sun, and smile all the harder.
The referee blew the whistle, signaling the clock starting.
His attention was refocused on the game, his mind going through at least three different plans every ten seconds to try and gain back the lead.
Although they had just scored, the score was a miserable 2-3, Tomoeda High the losing side, with only four minutes and forty-eight seconds left in the second half.
It was the championship game; something that meant a lot to not only himself or the team, but the school as a whole.
Winning this game wasn't just something he had to try—it was something he had to do; no highway out.
So with much aggravation, he pushed himself further to the point where he thought he was going to combust from trying so hard.
He and his teammates were all worn out, the other team having the advantage of being in the shady part of the field.
Three minutes and seventeen seconds.
Syaoran stealthily stole the ball from the other team and made his way towards the goal.
He passed the ball to Eriol, one of the other better players on the team, who tried to make it past the opponent's defense.
His attempt was futile, and only tried to have the ball stolen from him.
One minute and twenty five seconds.
The noise.
The heat.
The aching.
Just the sense of closure.
These four things seemed to have been building up throughout the whole game, and now they were weighing down both teams quite noticeably.
With only thirty seconds to go, Syaoran couldn't believe his luck when someone from the other team tripped and the ball went skidding to Takashi's foot.
Takashi stood there stupidly, not believing what had just happened.
"RUN!" everyone yelled.
Jumping, he snapped out of his daze and dashed towards the other goal.
Takashi passed the ball to Eriol, who passed it to Hiro, who passed it back to Takashi, who had no choice but to send it flying towards Syaoran.
Syaoran held back his groan at having to score the last goal.
Most people would want the honor; Syaoran however had no confidence in himself.
Maybe that's why with ten seconds to the buzzer, Syaoran glanced up at the girl again for some moral support.
Her cheeks were flushed with excitement, her bangs sticking to her forehead with sweat, her eyebrow contracted together making her seem like she was concentrating very hard on something.
Her soft, pink lips were slightly parted, her well defined body looking over-heated even though she was only wearing shorts and a loose t-shirt.
Seeing him look at her, she smiled with a nod of encouragement telling him to go on.
Six seconds.
He smiled up at her.
Five.
She looked at him curiously, probably wondering why he was still looking at her.
Four.
Now if only he could figure that out himself.
Three.
Her mouth slackened for a second, worrying him, before it quickly formed into an expression of horror.
Two.
'What?'
BAM!
The colors mixed together as Syaoran fell to the ground, disabling him from seeing anything, his feet tangled together and his body lying on the burning grass.
One.
The score board buzzed, signaling the end of the match.
They had lost the championship.
Syaoran could see the other team cheering and hugging the trophy together, his teammates and the audience shaking their heads in disappointment.
On the ground beside him was a much beat up soccer ball—the cause of his fall.
It was then that he became aware of the stinging in his knees and elbows, concluding that he was going to have some big bruises and some scars later on.
He looked at his knees to see them slightly bleeding, and the skin on his elbow peeling a bit, but nothing serious.
He heard someone running closer and closer to him, so he looked up to see a blur of auburn hair before he was attacked.
"Oh my god, Syaoran are you ok?!"
The girl from before had her hands on his shoulders, her emerald eyes staring into his own amber orbs with what was undeniably concern.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said quietly.
He could feel his heart beating at an irregular pace, trying to jump out of his chest, and he smiled slightly at the comforting, familiar feeling.
She inspected his injuries, and deduced that they weren't serious, but she insisted on her taking him to the nurse.
As much as he wanted to, he didn't let him get his hopes up.
After all, best friends always do that for one another; he would know—she always seemed to be the one getting hurt anyways.
Her small, petite hand grabbed his and they made their way towards the nurse's office.
"Sakura, I'm fine," he tried to tell her but she wouldn't listen.
He sighed and knew that his effort at stopping her was futile, so he just walked along side her enjoying the peacefulness of it all, especially the part where they were holding hands.
The silence between them was suffocating them with an empty feeling, strangling them, so she tried to fill it in with meaningless words that they both knew meant absolutely nothing.
"You played really well today Syao, don't let loosing get you down," she said cheerfully.
He smiled at her, her happiness being contagious and all, and he nodded.
"Thanks Sakura, that means a lot to me."
They lapsed back into silence, but thankfully they had reached the nurse's office.
He held the door open for her and gestured for her to go in.
Once they were inside, they saw that the nurse wasn't even there.
With a grumble from him about the reliability of the school's medical care, he proceeded to get a few bandages and anti-bacterial ointment only to have his hand slapped away.
"I'll do it, you just sit on the bed," Sakura said to him.
The sound of a bed was highly appealing to him, and he didn't argue as he made his way towards the bed.
It only took her a few minutes to bandage him up, and those few minutes were like a glimpse of heaven for Syaoran.
Throwing away the wrappers, Sakura helped him up against his protests.
They both knew their friends were looking for them, but neither moved from their spots in the doorway—they were too captivated by one another.
Snapping out of his daze a bit, he smiled slightly.
"What is it?" she asked.
He looked up at the doorpost.
"It's too bad it's not Christmas right now; mistletoe would really come in handy."
She rolled her eyes at him and grabbed his shirt with her tiny fists.
"Who said you needed an excuse to kiss me?" she asked, a smile gracing her angelic features.
With that said, Syaoran wasted no time in swooping down and kissing her, his lips gently caressing her own.
Sakura grinned into the kiss, her arms coming to wrap around his neck.
It wasn't long before they both pulled away from each other, and stood there a bit breathless, both just staring into each other's eyes.
Finally finding what he was looking for, Syaoran tenderly pressed his lips to her forehead before wrapping one arm around her waist.
Her arms came around his waist and locked together, looking like she was hugging him from the side.
And just like that, the two walked out of the room.
Both knew nothing had to be said; everything had been said in that one kiss.
After all, everything else was known; they were best friends after all.
Walking out onto the field, they saw the once-cloudless sky was now covered in dark gray clouds, rain threatening to fall.
With a loud clap of thunder, the first drop fell, and soon everything and everyone was soaked to the core.
The victors were still jumping around with each other in the mud, cheering with each other about their victory.
The gold trophy was waving in the air, and Syaoran couldn't help but smile at the irony.
He lost the championship, gold trophy along with it, but he could help but realize that he had won something much more important; the one he loved.
So maybe losing wasn't so bad; heck, if losing meant he'd get a kiss from Sakura afterwards every time, he'd start throwing games on purpose.
Then again, he wouldn't have to anymore—he now had permission to kiss her all he wanted.
With one last glance at the field, they walked to his car slowly, not even realizing the rain soaking their clothes and hair.
All they noticed was each other.
They didn't even realize as they sat down in his car, wet clothes and all, on his leather seats.
So they lost the championship, but gained each other.
It didn't matter.
They had each other, and that was all that mattered.
A/N: The end was a bit rushed, but yeahh :3 I just wanted to finish it lol. Anyways,
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