wonderland. 2 it's a date

---

His face was everywhere.

Signs were hung.

Posters were taped to windows.

WANTED they read.

There was a lovely fine printed in bold read beneath his smiling face.

Even in that picture that someone had managed to capture did he have that same cocky grin.

Even in that picture did his amber eyes laugh in sheer mockery.

Li Syaoran was printed beneath the WANTED notice.

She scowled as she tore one of the posters from the wall, eyeing it disdainfully before crumbling it up and tossing it over her shoulder. She carried on her way, strolling down the sidewalk, heading to a certain destination. Yet, she couldn't get the image of his taunting eyes out of her mind – especially after last night.

Her name was, and is Kinomoto Sakura, as could be concurred so far. But, officially, she's known as Lieutenant Kinomoto Sakura. She was put in charge by Captain Yamato Kaname to investigate the case of the Infamous Amber Eyed Thief who constantly left the Tokyo Police Department up in furry, for he always managed to slip through their grasp. Now, it was pretty much up to her to make sure Li Syaoran was put behind bars where he belonged.

…But this has been going on for how many years?

Two…Three years?

She started when she was only twenty-one. Even though she was young, she was still one of the best, and easily raised to some of the highest rankings that a policeman (or woman, in her case), could get. She was twenty-three now, going on twenty-four…

And she still hadn't caught him yet!

…Hence the familiarity act between them last night.

But that was the reason why the name Li Syaoran irritated her so much: because she couldn't capture him.

And she was supposed to be the best!

But he only proved that wrong!

One day though…

She scowled at nothing in particular before stopping in front of the police station.

She looked very hesitant to step into the building, for she knew what would greet her. She really wasn't ready for any of this first thing in the morning… But, she had to be a big girl about this. Sakura sighed and dragged her feet up the steps and right into the station. There was havoc the second she stepped inside. People were running about, phones ringing off the hook. No one seemed to have noticed her… yet.

Maybe if I keep quiet and tip-toe to my office…

"Sakura-chan!"

She froze, and turned around to face her co-worker. Miharu Chiharu. She had bouncy locks of brown hair and fierce eyes and a temper that would make anyone cower. She was carrying a stack of papers that she stuffed into Sakura's hands. "Can you post these around for me? Thanks!"

Sakura blinked, staring down at the top-most flier.

The heading made her cough.

KIDNAPPED:
Sakura Kinomoto

"Hoe… Chiharu-chan?" Sakura sweat dropped profusely.

The girl, having started to walk off, turned around, blinking. "Yes, Sakura-chan?"

She waved the top most flier around.

"…"

Chiharu blinked.

And blinked.

And then realization dawned on her.

"…Sakura-chan!"

And that's when the whole police station went still.

That's when Sakura held her breath and flashed them all a meek and sheepish grin.

"Heh… Hey…?"

"We were all worried about you…!" That set it off.

Everyone crowded around poor Sakura, leaving her no time to breathe or explain herself. They bombarded her with questions, asking what had happened, if the thief harmed her in any way, where she was, etc. You know, the usual interrogations. It was then Chiharu noticed Sakura's haggard look.

"Alright, alright! Give the girl some space!"

They listened to her and took a few steps back.

Sakura looked at Chiharu gratefully.

"…Oh! And wait'll the boss finds out you're back!" Chiharu started happily. "He was so worried!"

A red hue tinged Sakura's cheeks.

"…Really?" she asked, trying not to sound shy, but natural. It really didn't come out as either. It came out as a squeak – something she did not intend on letting it come out as.

Most definitely not.

Chiharu shot her an odd look, but ignored it. "Yeah! He's the one who ordered us to start making fliers and search the whole city! And we couldn't find you anywhere! Where were you…?"

"At home?"

She received blank stares.

"You see… He took me to King Penguin Park until he was sure he ditched you guys, and then he just left me there, and I went straight home…"

There were exasperated sighs and groans as the people scattered about to go back to doing their work. Sakura sweat dropped, and Chiharu shook her head.

"We searched everywhere, too…"

"But not my apartment?"

Silence, and then a sheepish grin. "Except there."

Sakura shook her head. "Really now…"

Chiharu then waved her hand dismissively. "Ah well. The boss would want to see you…" That tinge-of-red-on-cheeks returned to Sakura's face once more as she shooed the supposedly-missing-girl to their boss' office.

"I think it can wait…" Sakura protested. "Can I at least go to my desk first and –"

Chiharu pushed open the door. Sakura froze. Both girls froze, actually. It was just one of those freezing kind of moments necessary in stories.

Why they froze, you ask?

Why – in order to bask in all the manly and glorious beauty of their mentioned boss. He was standing up, slouched over his desk and analyzing a few papers. Black hair swayed. His bangs danced before his eyes and framed his perfectly shaped face. The darkness of his hair brought out the paleness of his complexion, and only made his hazel eyes stand out more.

Yes. His eyes were his most noticeable feature.

…Or maybe it was his hair?

No, it had to be the outline of his face!

OR! It could be how each expression he made, whether it be a scrutinizing one or a confused one, he made it look absolutely attracting and cute and… everything just looked good on him no matter what expression he was making…

Nono, instead maybe it was his body? Goodness gracious, any girl would agree that he had the best body amongst the male population there in that very building, and possibly the whole city. He was tall, not too skinny, but not too built either, yet whenever he wore a tight shirt – which was on Casual Fridays – all… wonderful… outlines of his masculine torso were visible for all eyes to take in and admire…

Well, those exact words were going through Sakura's mind – words that would make her gag.

Which she felt like doing.

But it was the only way to describe her boss.

Yamato Kaname…

She could have stood there and stared at him all day, but unfortunately – or fortunately – he lifted his gaze up when finally realizing there were people in his office. His hazel eyes landed on Sakura's emerald ones.

Sakura quickly bowed her head in order to hide her flaming cheeks.

"Yamato-san…" she addressed him, clearing her throat.

Kaname stared at her for a few seconds before rushing over to her with a surprised: "Sakura!"

She looked up, startled, and her eyes only widened when he suddenly embraced her.

Oh.

My.

God.

HE'S HUGGING ME!

ME! MEMEMEME!

ANDHE CALLED ME BY MY FIRST NAME!

Okay. Over exaggerating with the enthusiasm. So take in deep breaths Sakura. Come on, you can do this. Inhale… Exhale… Inhale…

He smells so good…

Yes, she, Kinomoto Sakura, has had the biggest crush on her boss for the longest of times. But – he was her boss. It was never good to have a relationship in work. It was always strictly professional relationships everyone kept, because for some reason it wasn't good to have anything more… something about being blamed for favorites – something like that.

…But she had the biggest crush on Kaname, it wasn't funny. He always seemed like the perfect guy. He was good-looking, handsome in every aspect, perfect in every aspect, and very gentlemanly, too. Any girl would just die to have a guy like him, and in all honest truth, every girl in her division was head over heels for Kaname. Even she was. Not because he was gorgeous, or handsome, or just… so… lovable… (that was a plus, mind you) but he had a great personality, too!

She never saw him as more than a friend before, but before that it was strictly one of those boss and co-worker relationships. Then… she didn't know what happened… Now here she was, crushing on her boss like some schoolgirl from the fifth grade.

"I was worried about you!"

His voice snapped her out of her reverie.

She managed to lift her face from the confinements of his chest (for he had buried her face in his shirt), before blinking up at him. "Er… You were?"

"Yes!" And his hazel eyes clearly showed it.

Those eyes that she had gotten lost into so many times…

She fought the urge to disappear into Lala land. Sakura smiled meekly. "I'm sorry…"

"He didn't hurt you?" Kaname fixed her with a worried look.

He really does look as if he's been concerned about me… Wow…

Sakura shook her head. "No. I'm unharmed."

"Where have you been at?"

"Eh…"

---

Sakura sighed to herself as she slumped on her chair, the wheels rolling her back a bit before she kicked up her feet and rested them on her desk. The past five minutes ago replayed in her head over and over again, causing her to blush for the Lord only knows what time that day.

Yamato-san asked me out to lunch…!

I mean Kaname!

And he proposed that I call him by his first name! A dreamy smile tugged across her face as she melted into her seat, bringing her feet down so they were settled on the floor. Yeah, you could basically describe her as a lovesick fifth grader, and you wouldn't be so far off as to how she was at the moment. It was obvious she was lost on Cloud Nine, or Lala Land – one of those places. Her emerald eyes held this far-off look, and that dreamy smile remained on her flushed face.

"…Kinomoto-chan?"

Sigh…

"Ano… Kinomoto-chan…?"

Her eyes were sparkling – still lost in thought.

"…KINOMOTO-CHAN!"

"…Hoe! Hai! Nani?" She sat up in attention, pulling herself back to reality.

"You are strange, Kinomoto-chan."

Sakura blinked. Standing before her was another of her co-workers: Yamazaki Takashi. She tilted her head at him and raised a skeptic eyebrow. Takashi's eyes were closed – as usual, and she could never quite figure out why he never had them opened…

And it made her wonder whether he could even see…

How does he get by with his eyes closed…?

And he called her strange?

"Oh, it's just you, Yamazaki-kun," she mumbled to herself.

"You sound disappointed."

Sakura made a slight face before shrugging dismissively. "Did you want something?"

He shook his head, and went on his way.

She watched after him.

She blinked.

She sighed.

Mmm… I can't wait until lunch tomorrow…

that night

The alarm went off.

The window shattered and glass spilled across the pavement.

He hopped out the opened window, dashing down the streets, cloaked in the darkness of the night.

He slipped through the shadows.

He took care to move quickly.

---

She already knew where he was going to strike. After all, he took care to send her roses earlier in the day, with a note attached to it – "Jared's" – one of the best and most known jewelry stores.

She checked to make sure her gun was loaded, clicking off the safety.

Her boots pounded on the sidewalk as she ran fast.

She rounded a corner.

---

Bam!

"Itai!"

"Hoe"

Both fell back in a flurry of ruffling clothes and muffled cries of pain. They rubbed their tail bones tenderly, wincing every so often, before emerald glared into just as angry amber eyes.

Sparks flew, and then a chorused outburst of:

"WATCH IT NEXT TIME, WILL YA?"

"What do you mean 'WATCH IT'! YOU weren't paying attention!"

"Excuse me! It's you who was too busy looking at HER gun to watch where she was going!"

"I'm not the one constantly looking over my shoulder!"

"As if!"

"It's your fault!"

"Not really!"

"Yes really!"

"Your fault!"

"YOURS! All yours!"

"Just admit it, Sakura!"

"Why should I admit something I'm not at fault for!" Sakura demanded, placing her hands on her hips. Both thief and lieutenant were locked in a death glare. A vein pulsed in Sakura's temple before dropping the topic all together. "Well, whatever! You're under arrest!"

Syaoran snorted, and rolled his eyes. "No I'm not."

"…Yes you are."

"No I'm not!"

"Yes you are!"

"No I'm not."

"Yes you a –" Sakura glared at him once more, pointing her gun. "Alright, stop it!"

"Stop what?" he asked, blinking innocently.

"You know damn well what!"

"No I don't!"

"Yes you do!"

"No!"

"Ye – See! You're doing it again!"

Syaoran flashed her a wide grin. "Ahh, indeed."

Her glare intensified.

Her gun started to look oddly intimidating now.

Syaoran's grin only widened. "You know, Sakura, you look hot with that gun."

"Oh shut up, Li."

"Aww, back to Li? Didn't you just call me Syaoran last night?"

She huffed. "I told you: slip of the tongue."

"Now, now. Nothing's ever accidentally said," the thief cooed, taking a step towards her. She only raised her gun ever so threateningly. But he had experience.

He had three years of experience.

He reached out and grabbed her wrist, twisting it around until the gun was pointed the other way. He twisted her hand until she released her hold on the gun, letting it drop to the ground. Syaoran spun her around, holding her arms behind her back, with his other arm wrapped around her neck.

His lips were right next to her ear.

"It's funny how we always end up like this…"

"Not all the time…" Sakura retorted.

"Oh? Name a time where we haven't been like this."

"…"

She went quiet.

Syaoran smiled smugly. "Exactly… And then it always ends up with me never getting arrested, and you handcuffed, tied, or bound somewhere and left all alone…"

Sakura twitched.

No matter how much she hated to admit it – he was right. It was their own "nightly routine," one could say, because it always resulted in the same thing in the end after a night of hunting and chasing and running about through Tokyo.

It went on like this for two to three years, too.

…But neither of them seemed tired of it.

"I kind of like the idea of you all tied up and helpless…" Syaoran continued, his husky voice ringing clearly in her ear. "It sounds kinkier than the handcuffs."

Sakura growled, raised her foot, and smashed it down on his.

He let out a howl of agony before stumbling back, releasing her and holding his throbbing foot whilst hopping around on the uninjured one.

"What the hell is your problem!" Syaoran seethed through gritted teeth.

She raised her chin haughtily. "It's what you deserve – but probably more than just a stomp on the foot. Maybe a kick in your family jewels might teach you a lesson…" Sakura trailed off.

Syaoran eyed her wearily.

"That's alright…" he grumbled.

Sakura crossed her arms.

"Well… If you're gonna run now, then run. I don't really have much time."

Syaoran raised a skeptical eyebrow. Well this is new…

"Eh?"

"I need to make sure I actually get up so I can get ready," was her calm response.

"…But what for?" he demanded.

She didn't respond at first, and Syaoran's eyes only narrowed when he noticed how her cheeks seemed to tinge an odd shade of red.

Was she blushing…?

"…For work, of course!"

"That's such a fat lie! You never care to get ready for work!"

"Yes I do!" Sakura said stiffly.

"No you don't! And you never rushed through a night like this before! …ARE YOU GOING ON A DATE TOMORROW KINOMOTO SAKURA?"

"Well so what!"

"…So you're ditching me for some other guy?" he asked, appalled – terribly appalled.

She stared at him, sweat dropping.

"…"

"I can go on dates!"

"I never said you couldn't! But… but –" Syaoran paused, before smirking. "I never knew you could get one."

Sakura blinked, stared, and then bristled.

"Oooh…! Whether you believe it or not, I am going out on a date tomorrow! A lunch-date, in fact! With a REALLY NICE AND GOOD LOOKING GUY WHO RESPECTS WOMEN."

He rolled his eyes. "Mmmhm. That's what they all say."

She glared at him, before picking up her gun, turning around, and stomping away. Syaoran watched after her in confusion.

"…Hey wait!"

He jogged after her. "Going already?"

"Well obviously," Sakura retorted.

"I'll walk you home!"

"No way!"

"Why not?"

"You're a thief! And I'm supposed to arrest you! Now doesn't it seem a bit odd that a thief would walk home a cop out to get him behind bars?"

He mused over that. "…Yes… a tad bit."

"A tad bit?" Her voice was skeptic.

Syaoran waved a dismissive hand, saying cheerily: "I'm sure this happens all the time!"

She shook her head and shrugged him off, increasing her walking pace so he was behind her and she was ahead. He pouted at this and hurried to keep up with her. "Why are you trying to ditch me?"

"…Why are you following me?"

"Because I'm walking you home!" he replied exasperatedly.

"I don't want you to!"

"Well I am whether you want me to or not! So deal with it!"

She glared. He grinned. She looked away. He simply continued to grin. Criminal and cop were like that for a while – walking, but not talking, neither looking at the other, one purposely grinning, the other purposely avoiding looking at him. Sakura eventually seemed to have calmed down as she stared up at the sky, taking in the vastness of space and the numerous amounts of twinkling stars.

Usually she was too much in a rush to notice such things.

It was nice to be able to just… finally notice…

"…You know I still don't understand how you got a date." Syaoran's thoughtful comment shattered whatever peace there was between them.

Sakura's eye twitched.

"I mean, you're not even all that pretty…"

She grit her teeth.

"Nor are you exactly the nicest girl on the block…"

She raised a fist.

"…And you're rather skinny…"

That fist came down and slammed against his thick skull.

A lovely bruise formed as a memoir.

---

"Well, here we are."

The thief-with-the-rather-large-bruise-on-his-head and the cop-who-had-given-him-that-rather-large-bruise stopped in front of a certain apartment complex.

Sakura sighed in relief.

"Finally."

She started to walk towards the nearest flight of stairs, but Syaoran reached out and grabbed her wrist, stopping her. Sakura turned around and raised an irritable eyebrow. "What?"

"Aren't you going to invite me in?" Syaoran asked, grinning.

She rolled her eyes. "In your dreams."

He laughed. "Figured as much." His smile turned mischievous. "I'll be seeing you tomorrow night then."

She sighed. "I suppose…"

He leaned in, whispering into her ear:

"It's a date then."

Before she could protest, he pulled away and disappeared into the night.

"…"

The moron.

I'm going to strangle him.

Date my ass…

to be continued

Fire Temptress: -cackles- There's chapter 2. Hope ya'll enjoyed. Sorry it took a while. School and all. Ya know how it is. Busy busy!

And thank you all so much for the reviews! I wasn't expecting that much, honestly. –bursts with joy-

-huggles everyone and leaves cookies-

They really… meant a lot. It was nice to see people enjoyed it so far. –beams-

…Well, but now it's time to press that little Go button at the bottom and leave another review

--FT

NOTE: Check out the penname "syaorandotcom." It's an account used by me, Jess (from Fluff Inc), and Summer Lover. We're working on a fic Bite Me. It's already posted, and I promise it's a good read! ...and I just love the penname... syaoran dot com. -giggle-