On Christmas day, Syaoran glared at his gifts under the tree as he drank his green tea. There was nothing jolly about the holiday at all, especially with the memory of how Christmas Eve this year ended for him. Syaoran shuffled into his empty parlor and sat at the table. He had left Sakura's hat on the table the night before and looking at it made him plainly fuzzy. He couldn't get her out of his mind, which was the reason why he had trouble sleeping at night. Syaoran tried to take a short nap using his arm as a pillow, but the phone rang and he went to answer it. He was so down under, it took him a moment to figure out which phone was ringing. He soon realized it wasn't his house phone that was ringing. It was actually the cell phone, which Sakura had given him ages ago, that rang.
"Sakura!" He shouted frantically, "What's the matter?!"
"Nothing! Why are you so worried?!" She exclaimed, echoing his frantic tone.
"You haven't called me on this phone since we transformed the last card! I thought you were in trouble," he panted.
"I'm not in trouble. I thought I'd call you on this phone in case you went out… It's Christmas, so I thought maybe you went out with the girl who gave you your first kiss…"
"What?" Syaoran strode back into the parlor. To calm his rapidly beating heart he clutched at her hat on the table as if the connection to her was extended through touching something that belonged to her. "I think you've misunderstood something. I'm not seeing anyone."
"Oh! Then, can I come over?"
"Sure…" He said, knowing that she had hung up right afterwards.
His doorbell suddenly rang. Curiously frowning, he opened the door to Sakura holding a red velvet bag with a gold string stretched around its neck. Today she wore a red wool coat over her green elf costume from the day she was the Girl Scout with her band of merry elves. Syaoran noted that Tomoyo had made a few adjustments to the fitting outfit Sakura wore. When she had her back turned to him, his eyes roamed the small rises of her buttocks under her skirt and trailed the curves of her calves hidden in her snug green tights.
"Merry Christmas," she cheered, lugging the bag in behind her as she entered his house. After setting her bag to the floor, she half-turned to him with a gift of a small smirk playing at her lips. There was a tinkle from the bell at the tip of her green felt hat when she turned.
"Uh, Merry Christmas to you, too. I hope that's not Santa's bag of coal for me."
"You got scratched off the naughty list just in time for the holiday," she said. "I thought I'd bring you some cheer instead."
"More cheer, huh? Aren't you supposed to be home on Christmas morning, opening your presents with your family?"
"That was done hours ago, so I thought I could spend most of the Christmas day with Mr. Grinch instead! I got onii-chan a BB gun, but I think it was the wrong choice this year. He has the wrong idea about us and last night…" She trailed off, jerking her head to the side to show that she was uncertain about their predicament as well.
"No, I'm pretty sure he has the right idea," he murmured back, blushing too.
She spun around and pointed her index finger, with her thumb up, at him. "I wanted to call you and ask you if you wanted to come over for Christmas, but I came to a realization. If I invited you over to my house instead of just dropping by your place, I don't think there will be much cheer to go around. A BB gun point blank will kill you."
"He's got to face the facts someday."
Sakura pulled out her homemade Christmas pudding pie from her big red bag as she asked him, "What facts?"
"The fact that what's between us is more than our casual day-to-day chumminess. You don't go around bestowing kisses on your best friend in a romantic starlit setting, Sakura."
"But what about the girl who gave you your first kiss?" Sakura's voice grew thin and brittle.
Syaoran moved behind her and settled a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I was foretelling my first kiss."
"Oh…" She turned to him, springing up like a taut coil being released. "Oh!" She shouted again.
Syaoran reached around her and uncovered the pie. He let out a patient laugh. "Does your brother know you're around here?"
"I might be slow sometimes, but I'm not stupid!" She yelled.
"I doubt that. You go kissing anything that talks or breathes."
"You didn't let me finish last night! As I recall, I was telling you that I had kissed others under the mistletoe. Those others were my grandfather, Yukito, and my cousin!"
Syaoran gave her a dubious look. "Thank The Lord, your brother yanked all that mistletoe from over your head or else you'd be kissing people like Hiroki-san."
"I knew it! That onii-chan…"
Syaoran charged on, blowing aside her indirect frustration at full throttle, "That Hiroki-san would've wanted more than a simple peck on the cheek…"
"But I didn't want to kiss Hiroki-san, Syaoran!" She called, putting her hand in the bag and pulling out a box of gingerbread cookies.
"You were flirting nonstop with the guy; he was entitled to more."
She huffed, throwing a hand to her trim waist. "I was not flirting… At least not intentionally flirting."
"I know, Sakura…"
"Then, you're not really angry at me, are you?" She whispered the question.
Syaoran bit off the head of the gingerbread man, watching her watching him in earnest. "I don't know why I should be. You can't help being adorable and beautiful."
"You think I'm beautiful?" She inquired, stars shining in her eyes as she leaned closer to him.
Syaoran swallowed hard. "I said it last night." He took a bite of the arm, completely avoiding eye contact with her.
"Pretty and beautiful have two completely different meanings," she pouted. She read his mind before he could respond to her aloud. "A girl remembers what the guy says to her when she receives her first kiss from him. Pretty is not the same as beautiful."
"They are the same if I used them in the same context," he muttered, earning a quick fulsome stare from the girl. After a moment of pensive silence, Sakura shrugged and walked over to his lone stocking hanging over the fireplace. She dropped handfuls of chocolate into the sock and completed the stuffing with the placement of a shiny candy cane. As Syaoran watched her work he softly blurted out, "You're both."
"It's really hard for you to compliment people if it's not spontaneous," Sakura stated between her teeth. Changing the subject she addressed his gifts, "Syaoran, you really should open these presents! It's way pass that hour!"
"Will you open them with me?" He shyly asked.
"Of course! From this day forward, we should spend more holidays together," she announced seriously.
"I'd like that," he agreed, suddenly coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. She turned in his arms to return the hug. After a while in his embrace, Sakura shifted, so that she could get a view of his face. He dodged her immediately before his eyes could connect with hers. Instead, he turned to the pie she left on his table. "Let me get some plates and forks!" He announced, fleeing into the kitchen.
Sakura's shoulders sagged in disbelief. Her eyes rested on the archway connecting the foyer to the parlor. The mischievous twinkle reached her eyes as she returned to the red bag for her secret weapon.
Syaoran came back with the plates and forks. Directly upon his return with the plates, Sakura was dishing out the pie, giving him a large slice. Syaoran caught Sakura staring at him often as he stood there eating the pie she had served him. "Is there something you want to tell me, Sakura?"
"Actions speak louder than words, Syaoran," she grumbled. She hadn't eaten any of her pie. She only picked at it with her fork.
"Excuse me?" He squawked.
Sakura firmly set her plate down and stepped up to him. She took the pie from his hands and edged closer to him, so that they shared the same floor space and air.
"Um, Sakura… What's the matter?" He asked, holding her shoulders to fix her.
"Look up, Syaoran."
Syaoran looked up and saw the mistletoe hanging over their heads. "Sakura, I don't think we should-"
Sakura reached over to kiss him while Syaoran dropped his arms to his side. When her lips met his in a feverish lip lock it took about every fluid-ounce of fuel in Syaoran's body, not to take advantage of the situation. At first contact, his mind burst and he almost lost his footing. The girl remained dangling against him, desperately seeking some positive reaction from him.
When Syaoran didn't respond she pulled away instantly. Syaoran caught a glimpse of the tears lingering in her eyes just before she turned away from him.
"I thought you needed some prompting, so I brought out the mistletoe. I guess last night was really just a magical night for the both of us… I'm sorry, Syaoran-kun. I won't push myself at you anymore…" She said this, her voice trembling with her heartbroken emotions.
A carnal growl erupted from deep in Syaoran's belly to his throat, startling Sakura. Her tears were already dripping down her cheeks when he swiftly pulled her back into him and turned her face to the side, so he could kiss her. She was humming when he rubbed his lips to hers and whispered nonsensical gibberish between soft, tantalizing kisses.
He barely pulled away to coherently murmur in her hair, "I don't need mistletoe to prompt me. You're all the prompting I need. The moment you walked in, I had to restrain myself. I can't allow for one thing to lead to another. We're in my house-my comfort zone-and one thing will lead to another because you make it so hard to stay in control."
"Syaoran, I don't mind," she breathed, playing with the chestnut hair at the back of his head.
"I do mind, but you know," he whispered back, "If I love you this much to hold back from assaulting you, then I can contain myself while we make out."
Sakura grinned as Syaoran slid into the chair and pulled her into his lap. She could never imagine getting tired of his endearments in her ear or the heated kisses he marked on her skin.
She murmured against his kisses mainly for his benefit,
"Dear Mr. Grinch, I think I love you, too."
"You think?" He queried in his pitched low voice.
Sakura giggled as he dropped a trail of kisses down her exposed throat
Sakura modified her statement, "Dear Mr. Grinch, I know I love you."
He lifted his head to gaze at her. Why hadn't she ever noticed how he watched her so pensively; it would have given them more time together? The boy would give her the biggest grin before he bent his head to join his mouth to hers in a union that seemed as everlasting as the immortality of the holiday spirit. The simple kiss melted the cold heart of Mr. Grinch and opened the eyes for jolly in jolly merry Christmas.
Aw… After writing this short tale I was reminded of the first holiday fanfiction I wrote in honor of this pair here, Sakura & Syaoran. "Breaking the Ice" was one of my earlier works, but it was no match for this. I believe I put a lot more thought and heart into this piece than I did for the last holiday story. It has been a long time, which I find it hard to believe. It's almost a new year, too.
Behold the beauty of the holidays! I hope everyone has a cuddle bunny when the year changes. It doesn't have to be your partner in crime… It could be your best friend. I made a list of things I want to do this winter break. The list goes on and on in a mental page. The list includes making someone happy this winter at the expense of a little bit of my time. It's nice to give once in a while if you can afford it. Merry x-mas! Both questions and comments are welcomed in reviews. Leave a word or more and I'll give you a candy cane.
Warm wishes,
M. Wing