Thanks for the reviews guys. You encouraged me to do better and that's why I've decided to update faster. To clear things out, Xiao Lang's father is still alive that's why his name is not yet out to the public. You'll find out more about this on the next chapters. And for those fans of the vampire knight, don't worry he doesn't look like the real Ichijou because the real one looks more like an angel. LOL. And by the way, sorry for my mistakes on the ratings, it's supposed to be T not M. But I might rate the next chapters M. Do you guys think I should change the ratings asap? I don't want my story to be deleted. XD
Broken_shadow23 – thank you very much for editing my story. Labyah!
Chapter 2: A Plan in Motion
To avoid suffering, one must not love; but then one suffers from not loving
"Love and Death"
Normal POV
The guy gave her a warm smile. "Hi. This is 3b right?"
Sakura was frozen. Her senses stopped working the moment she realized how handsome and hot he really was. She was hypnotized on his intense amber eyes that was locked on hers
On the other hand, Xiao Lang was also amazed with her dazzling ones. He never had seen that kind of shade before. It was pure emerald. The girl in front of him was familiar since he saw her before on a magazine. But he didn't realize that she was more beautiful in person.
The male flight attendant looked at one person to another. They were both speechless so he even has to tap Sakura on the shoulder before leaving.
"Umm… yeah." Sakura answered as she snapped out of her reverie.
Surprisingly, Xiao Lang took her hand and kissed her knuckles as he began to introduce himself. "Hi, I am Xi—" When he realized what he was about to say, he stopped and continued after a while. "I am Syaoran Li."
She blushed furiously. "I'm Sakura Kinomoto. It's so nice to finally meet you. Please, sit down."
"The pleasure's mine Miss Kinomoto." He smiled sweetly and sat down beside the window.
"Feel free to call me Sakura, please."
"Well then, Sakura if you insist."
She gulped down all the champagne on her glass, making her have the courage to speak again. "I'm glad you found it okay. The airport, I-I mean the plane."
He easily noticed that the girl beside him was nervous. She was shivering for a little so he tried to settle her down. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to meet you few days before this flight."
"It's alright, work must be crazy." She laughed sheepishly.
Syaoran smiled as he remembered that Sakura knew he was a male escort.
The female flight attendant he was talking to a while ago appeared with a small tray. Sakura noticed her cheeks flushed as she fumbled Syaoran's drink. He smiled thankfully, but deftly ended the moment. He's like a famous person who has learned to manage his adoring fans with casual grace.
They sat in silence as the plane started barreling down the runway. As they picked up speed, Syaoran took Sakura's trembling hand. She found comfort in his touch, her need to talk disappeared momentarily. She was safe.
She closed her eyes as the plane leveled off, then peeked over at Syaoran who calmly stared out the window. She closed her eyes again, this time for good.
…..
After claiming their baggage, Sakura and Syaoran went straightly to the limo, which was waiting for them. It went straightly to the Kinomoto's mansion where the gathering party was being held.
She tried to relax when she saw hundreds of cars already parked in front of the house.
Syaoran took her hand and pulled her closer. "You okay?"
She nodded, but he noted that it was just an act.
He smoothed a piece of hair behind her ear. There was a practiced intimacy to the way he touched her hair and Sakura was almost settled by it.
"I… I am not sure I can do this." She then confessed.
Syaoran moved towards her and held both of her arms. "You're never going to be sure of anything, but we still have to go inside."
Just then, Nadeshiko appeared and ran towards her. The two immediately pasted. "Sakura dear, I'm glad you're safe and sound." She exclaimed giving her a tight hug. "And who might this be?" she asked, amused that Sakura brought someone with an unfamiliar face.
"I'm Syaoran Li. I bet you are Mrs. Kinomoto." He took her hand and kissed her knuckles. Then he lifted up, smiling. "I could already see where Sakura had gotten her looks."
Nadeshiko giggled and threw Sakura an unsubtle, 'I'm impressed' look. After a moment and lead them up to Sakura's room.
"Well, here we are." Nadeshiko exclaimed as they stood in front of Sakura's door.
"Thanks again for having me." Syaoran smiled.
"Don't be silly, it's wonderful to finally meet you." Nadeshiko laughed.
Sakura had just been silent since she was a bit tired with the tried. But then she knew that she wouldn't have a rest until the party was over. Then in a second, a thought came into her mind. "So, where will Syaoran sleep?" she asked her mother then began to hiss on Syaoran. "My mother has a rule about men and women sleeping in the same room without a ring in the picture. She thinks it's…"
"Don't be silly." Her mother interrupted, hearing what she told him. "He will be sleeping with you. And Mr. Li, to tell you, I'm not as square as my daughter thinks."
Sakura's jaw dropped in shocked. Words were stuck on her throat so Nadeshiko took advantage. She left the two, getting back to the party.
When everything went back to silence, Sakura just shook her head. She sighed then twisted the doorknob open to reveal her spacious European style room. The two went it and when the door was closed, they instantly parted ways.
The girl went to the table, faced the mirror to do her make-up and hair. Syaoran silently took out his tux from his luggage and went straightly to the bathroom. When he walked out, he saw Sakura removing her cream trench coat revealing a sexy red tube dress that embraces the curves of her body. She blushed when he saw him looking.
"What do you think?" she smiled as she turned around.
"Mission accomplished."
"Okay," she said then proceeded to her plans. "Here's the story. You're a physician and you're crazy about me."
Syaoran shook his head forcing not to laugh with what she had told him. But then he offered his hand which she gladly took. As they went down to the main hall, they were greeted by the soon to be wedded couple.
"Onii-san, this is my boyfriend, Syaoran." Sakura started, staring at her older brother who was side by side with Kaho.
"What do you do?" Touya asked straight-forward. He seemed not so friendly, making the other guy uneasy.
"I'm a physician." He gulped, noting that Touya was actually glaring at him.
Seeing tension in the air, Sakura leaned to him and whispered. "Don't worry, he doesn't bite."
"Enjoy the party, alright?" Kaho smiled then immediately dragged Touya away from there. She didn't want her soon-to-be husband still tying her sister's neck until now.
The two sighed in relief. Then in a while, another man came on their way. Sakura immediately, moved her hand away from Syaoran and threw her arms around him. "Otou-san."
"So how have my daughter been?" Fujitaka asked, happy to see again his daughter.
"Good." She answered, smiling. "Oh dad, meet Syaoran Li."
Syaoran smiled and nodded in acknowledgement.
Fujitaka then noticed the young man before him. Unlike Touya, he greeted him warmly. "How do you do?"
"Fine sir, thank you." He replied, offering a hand. The older man took it and when they just looked at each other, Syaoran came to notice Fujitaka's empty glass. "Can I get you a refill sir?"
Fujitaka handed him his glass. "Times like this I find a good stiff drink hound don't you?"
"Certainly."
Knowing that it was start of a man's talk, Sakura decided to have an exit. She moved to Syaoran's side and asked for permission. "Is it okay to leave you for a while? I'll just go to the ladies' room."
"Sure. I could handle this." He grinned.
…..
After Sakura checked herself on the mirror, she stepped outside. Then to her surprise, a handsome familiar man came on her way.
"Long time no see…" He started. "…Sakura."
Realizing who he was, she threw him a sharp glare. "What do you want?"
"You look gorgeous…" He stepped forward, getting closer to her.
Just then two women came into the view. They wrapped themselves into Sakura for a hug, cutting Ichijou who glared at them.
"Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God!" Meilin said with excitement on her voice.
"Kura you look definitely hot." Tomoyo added.
"We've been waiting for you all day." Meilin snorted.
Then with that, they faced Ichijou. The two posted innocent looks, making the man irritated in some ways.
"Hey asshole," Meilin started with a sharp though. She threw a glare back as she continued. "Since you've dumped our best friend brutally and with that maniac cause of yours, you won't mind if we steal her away now right? After all, I think our dear Sakura would be more interested with our talking than to be with a beast like you. Thanks."
Without waiting for an answer, the three flew off, leaving Ichijou behind.
"You guys are so mean…" Sakura pointed our as she took a glass of martini from the bar counter.
"What?!" Meilin exclaimed, not believing what Sakura was doing. "We save you because we thought that you didn't want to see him. My God Sakura! Don't tell me you are still in love with that freaking guy."
"Baka…" Sakura told her. "I'm so over him you know."
Rolling her eyes, Meilin sighed. "Whatever."
With that, they spotted Syaoran conversing with Nadeshiko and the other wives of the present guest. He was calm. In fact, he was even charming the Dockers off them.
"By the way Meilin, did you bring a date?" Sakura asked.
"Darling, why waste ten more seconds on that horse's ass when Mr. Tie-me-up-tie-me-down is waiting for you over there?" Meilin responded as she angled on Syaoran who's laughing and listening patiently as his company blabber some stories and stuffs.
"Are you telling me that he's the guy you recommended?" Tomoyo gasped, still staring at Syaoran.
"Uh-huh." Meilin nodded.
Just then, Syaoran looked at them and winked at Sakura which made her melt to the ground.
"Oh God, I think I've just come." Sakura murmured making Meilin and Tomoyo look at her in shock.
…..
Escaping from the people he was talking with a while ago, Syaoran stepped on the balcony and bumped into Ichijou, who teeters on the railing.
"Hey."
"Oh, hello." Ichijou replied who looked upset. Syaoran tried to break the ice.
"A wedding is a sacrament…" he paused. "a joyous celebration of love and commitment…in utopia. In the real world, it's an excuse to drink excessively and say things you shouldn't say."
"Ah, a philosopher." Syaoran noticed that he's already drunk.
"You have a problem?"
"Na, it's nothing."
"No, tell me."
Ichijou leaned on the railing as he watched the party. Then, he saw Sakura, Meilin and Tomoyo at the bar then slowly turned to Syaoran. With difficulty, he began to unburden himself to his new therapist.
"It's just that, I have an ex-girlfriend whom I dumped two years ago because she's being so hard to get. Then I saw her today, looking more blazingly hot - and the bugger is, of course, she's here with someone else."
Syaoran hid his surprise as Ichijou raised his glass in a silent toast to his misery and regret. Syaoran was just clinking glasses with him when Sakura shocked him as she appeared and kissed him intensely. Both of them found it hard to stop themselves. When they were able to resist the temptation, they both gasped.
"Here you are." She said, smiling at the brown haired guy in front of her.
Ichijou was horrified as he stared at Syaoran, aghast."Hey, Sakura." Ichijou gasped.
"Hey yourself." She braced her arms around Syaoran who placed his hand on her waist. "I see you've met my ex. But, did I interrupt something?"
Ichijou looked desperately at Syaoran who hesitated, then covered.
"I was just telling him how we met." Syaoran answered.
"Ahh. Hmmm. Right." Sakura nodded.
Ichijou was desperate to get out of there. "Right. I should be going. It's nice to meet you. Perhaps I'll see you at the stag party."
"Sure, see you there." He smirked.
They watched him go until he was lost in their sight.
"Well, he looks miserable. What were you talking about?" Sakura asked, curious. Even though she hated Ichijou, she still has the guts to ask something concerning him.
"Love, I guess."
Sakura noticed that there's something wrong as they walked, holding each other's arm. But it didn't matter. Looking up, she met his serious face. "Is there a problem?"
Syaoran stopped and faced Sakura. He was quiet but intense. "He was pretty drunk, I think you should stay away from him as possible." He said worrying as he held her on the shoulders. "His eyes were full of lust."
Sakura became nervous and took a deep, calming breath. But then slowly, her face began to tense.
He noticed it and touched her cheek. "Don't worry; I'm here to protect you."
"Ahem." Meilin and Tomoyo coughed, watching the whole scene. "We're sorry to interrupt your romantic scene." Meilin snorted.
'Hohohoho, I got all of it on tape.' Tomoyo smiled hiding her camcorder.
Sakura then composed herself. "By the way Syaoran, this is Tomoyo and of course you knew Meilin already."
"Nice to meet you." He smiled at the raven haired girl.
"Same here." Tomoyo giggled. "And since you are Sakura's, uhmm… boyfried, I want you to meet someone. Just give me a second." she said as she dragged a blue haired guy with sapphire eyes and glasses from the bar. "Syaoran, this is my boyfriend, Eriol. Eriol, Syaoran." When Eriol looked at him, he was shocked and speechless.
Syaoran gulped and just glared at him signaling 'I'll explain it to you later'. "Hi, nice to meet you." He shook his hand.
"C'mon guys. Let's grab another drink." Meilin interrupted.
…..
After the party, Sakura and Syaoran found themselves back to her room. The girl handed him a brown envelope.
"What's this?" he said opening it then saw a pile of money.
"Your payment for the day." She said casually. "According to Meilin its six thousand dollars a day right?"
"Yeah." He sighed not wanting to accept it but he didn't have a choice. He has to pretend for his own good.
Sakura was sitting on her bed brushing her hair as she was already in her night gown that fell above her knee while Syaoran was already preparing for a shower.
"Have you ever done anything like this before?" she asked curiously.
"A weekend?" he raised his brow.
"A wedding."
Syaoran thought about what to answer. While Sakura wondered what was taking him so long.
"No. Though strangely, I've done quite a few funerals." He smiled with the thought while Sakura made a face. "Not the way you're thinking. The women wanted me there for support. You can understand that."
"I think that's disgusting." She immediately backpedaled. "Not you. You're not disgusting, you're lovely. Just the idea that they'd bring an escort, I mean, a stranger…I mean, c'mon someone's dead."
"That's right. Imagine facing it alone." He murmured but grinned at the same time.
Sakura blanched. "Sorry." She said sheepishly.
Syaoran laughed and shook his head at her and slowly unbuttoned his shirt. She instinctively looked away. "Go ahead, look. It's part of the package." He smirked.
Sakura laughed sheepishly. She can't tell if he's joking. Yet she sneaked a look as he disappeared into the bathroom. WOW.
When Syaoran went out of the bathroom, he was already in his boxers. He joined Sakura who was already tucked in the covers. When he was already on the other end of the bed, she faced him and began asking questions again.
"Meilin told me a lot of things about you and I'm just curious. The part where you were a sexual surrogate and then started to, uhhmm, freelance, is that really how it happened?"
"Hhmmm. The real story is that my mother was a hippie, and a stripper. She was insanely inappropriate with me. She used to wash her lingerie in my bathwater while I was still on it." 'Oh I'm definitely dead if mother finds out I'm saying these things about her.' He thought.
"Oh, no."
"Yeah. As an adult, I needed to find some way to experience intimacy and sex but with rules that couldn't be violated."
She was totally engrossed now. "Wow."
"Yeah." He faced her and saw that she felt bad and was heartbroken for him. "I'm just screwing you." He laughed his ass off.
"You shit." She threw a pillow at him.
"I have a different story for every woman who asks. I look at her and figures out what she needs to hear to feel okay about being with me."
"And you thought I'd respond to the hippie stripper with no boundaries?" she exclaimed.
"Admit it. You were disturbed, but ultimately moved."
Sakura gave him a dirty look. He laughed once more and decided to settle down. 'I'm really getting used to this escort thing.' He thought as he closed his eyes.
"Goodnight." She murmured.
"Goodnight."
The next day, Sakura woke up a little late as usual. As she opened her eyes, she saw a red rose on the pillow next to her. She smiled as she inhaled its smell then read the note next to it.
Cherry Blossom,
You looked so peaceful I couldn't wake you. Gone to get breakfast.
Syaoran
She flushed furiously. Moving out of the bed, she placed it on her desk and prepared for the day. When she got near to the dining area, she could already hear people laughing from it.
"Good morning sleepyhead." Nadeshiko greeted.
"Good morning." She smiled sheepishly as she kissed Fujitaka, Nadeshiko and Syaoran one by one.
"Morning." Syaoran said as he pulled the chair beside him for her to sit.
When she was settled, Nadeshiko started talking once again. "Oh and by the way Sakura, Meilin dropped by earlier and invited the both of you for baseball at the penguin park later."
"Hhmm. I haven't played for years." She looked at Syaoran who was taking a sip on his coffee. "Do you want to go?"
"As long as you're there." He smiled sweetly making her melt right on that very moment.
…..
"Run you fat pig, c'mon!" Yukito shouted to Touya who chased the ball as Kaho passed by his side for the homerun. Touya, Yukito, Ichijou and Eriol were on one team while Kaho, Meilin, Sakura and Syaoran were on the other. Tomoyo was on the side cheering with a camcorder.
"C'mon throw it. Throw it!" he screamed because Touya wasn't throwing it to him and letting his fiancé reach the base.
The other team cheered as they formed into a group hug.
"Good job sweetie." Touya cheered too and clapped his hands for her.
"Hey!" Yukito shouted on the other side.
"What?" Touya smiled sheepishly.
Then it was Sakura's turn to hit the ball while Ichijou was the pitcher. She was wearing a denim shorts, sneakers and black tank top that fit her body. She refreshed herself with a bottle of cold water unintentionally seducing Ichijou, Yukito and Syaoran who focused their eyes on her.
Due to intense thirst, some of the water escaped from her lips and slid directly to her cleavage which made her gasp in cold, almost choking. Ichijou laughed while Yukito turned around before he did. Sakura quickly covered her mouth and searched sheepishly if someone saw spotting Syaoran who suddenly looked the other way trying so hard not to laugh.
"Bat her up." Syaoran exclaimed. "Go Sakura."
She positioned herself, getting ready for the ball. "Be nice to me Ichijou." She said seductively which made him shiver.
Ichijou pitched the ball but Sakura wasn't able to hit it.
"Out! Yeah!" he shouted while Sakura growled in irritation.
Syaoran positioned himself in the home plate prepared to slam the ball.
"Beat them. Good luck." She whispered to his ear making him grin.
Ichijou pitched the ball which he hit with so much force, far enough for a homerun.
"No." Ichijou roared hopelessly as Syaoran ran for the second base.
The other girls cheered seeing him reach the third base.
"C'mon you sexy bomb shell. C'mon." Meilin exclaimed as he reached Sakura on the home plate, grabbing her waist as she gave him a tight hug.
She looked at Ichijou who was completely irritated and jealous then braced her legs on Syaoran's body and gave him a deep kiss on the lips.
Later that night, Sakura and Syaoran were already in bed, waiting to get asleep.
"That was a nice act a while ago." Sakura murmured to Syaoran whose eyes were already closed.
He smirked but didn't open his eyes. "Who said that's just an act?" he muttered.
"What did you say?" She asked, knowing that she really heard something. Unfortunately, it wasn't clear.
He looked at her and smiled sweetly. "Nothing, go get some rest."
That's it! Hope you guys enjoyed. Please tell me if something is wrong so I would know what to do next time. More reviews please! Till then! XD