Disclaimer: I do not own CCS.
A/N: Sorry for the very late update guys, I thought I can update more now that I'm in college, I guess I was wrong huhuhu… Besides the author's block, I also have a very strict schedule… Honto ni gomenasai!!! Anyway, hope you'll like this chapter. No flames please…
Summary: A kiss… nothing but a simple touch of one's lips to another for most people. But what happens when you find just the right one? And what would you do if it starts the very thing you feared most? To love? Would a kiss still be that same simple touch?
1 KíSs Fr0m Ụ
by: UreyEz13
Chapter VIII : Trouble All Over
Sari was grinning when she gave the envelope she had with her all morning to the red-haired girl she met with two days ago. The red-haired girl told the committee that she knew someone who is good at writing scripts, and that she just doesn't want to reveal herself so she writes the scripts but lets other people take credit for them. It sounded a little lame, but it worked nonetheless. The committee allowed 'the mysterious writer' to make the script they'll use for the play and agreed that the red-haired girl's name would appear in the credits.
"They'll never suspect a thing," Sari told Katie as they walked back to their room. "This is going to be a fool-proof plan that'll finally win me that stupid bet."
Katie simply grinned. "It's not fair that you didn't show me the script before you handed it to her. I was longing for a preview of the climax."
"You'll enjoy the performance more if you have no idea what's going to happen, Katie," Sari replied with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "I promise you a one-of-a-kind production."
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Sakura entered the room yawning after lunch break. Syaoran was tailing behind her with his hands on his pockets. They spent thirty minutes eating their bento and the other thirty arguing whether Pringles tastes better than Lays or vice versa. They ended up admitting that both were fine choices for snacks.
Everybody was gathered in the middle of the room, some were seating on their chairs while others were on the floor. They all turned to Sakura and Syaoran when they opened the door.
"W-What's wrong?" Sakura asked, surprised by their welcome.
Syaoran placed a hand over Sakura's shoulder when she stopped before entering the room. "Don't block the doorway Saku…ra," he trailed off when he saw the impish looks their classmates were giving them.
Tomoyo stepped forward and dragged both Sakura and Syaoran in front of the compressed class. "It was decided that you two get the lead roles in the play," she told them nonchalantly, although her eyes were undeniably sparkling with mischief.
"WHAT!" Syaoran and Sakura shouted.
"Don't we get a say in this?" Sakura demanded. Somehow, she knew the answer to her own question, but at desperate times like this, giving up would be the last thing on her mind. I must get out of this somehow… she told herself.
Syaoran groaned in annoyance. "If this happens to be another one of your stupid plans," he said menacingly, his eyes alternately glaring at Eriol and Tomoyo.
"Surprisingly, it's not," Eriol cut him off even before he could finish his threat. "It seems that the writer specifically asked that you two be given the roles," he explained, grabbing a bundle of paper from the teacher's desk and handing it to them. "Look," he pointed out the writer's note at the bottom of the page.
Sakura stared at her name written on the paper and sighed. "Who wrote the script anyway?" she asked. Tell me so I can beat the crap out of him!
"Let me see," Tomoyo started scanning the bundle. "It says 'Anonymous'," she said, pointing to the label 'Writer' printed on the first page.
"That's right," Eriol looked like he just realized something. "That red-haired girl in the committee… uh…Okino Maya… She volunteered to take care of the script," he explained as he tried to remember what were the girl's exact words. "She said she knows someone who's good at script writing but doesn't want to reveal herself."
"A writer who lets other people take credit for her work?" Syaoran rephrased with a skeptic look on his face. "Never heard of that one before."
Sakura raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Are you sure you're not making this up?"
Eriol and Tomoyo both shook their heads.
"I volunteered to write the script too," Eriol explained. "But Okino insisted on the 'mysterious writer'. I was out-voted in the end."
"That writer's one weird girl," Syaoran remarked.
Sakura let out another sigh. "Just promise you won't make me do anything stupid."
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Everybody was given the remaining half of the day in preparation for the grand play and of course for the booths that every club was obliged to have for the festival. They decided to hold the auditions for the other roles in the gym, so, those who wanted to be part of the play and those who the committee assigned to be its production crew were all excused from their club activities.
Sakura and Syaoran went straight to the rooftop and sat side by side after Eriol instructed them to go over the script together, since most of their scenes are with each other.
"'If only I could turn back time and not accept the offer to be your guardian, then maybe I wouldn't go through this dilemma of forcing myself to fall out of love with you'?" Sakura read one of the lines highlighted on her script. "Is this some kind of a joke? There is no way I'm going to say this in front of hundreds of people!"
Syaoran laughed. "This is a romantic play remember? There ought to be some mushy line in it somewhere."
Tomoyo handed out their scripts after they said yes – being that the only choice – and was proud enough to explain that she took the time to highlight all their lines and that all they have to do was memorize them and practice delivering them with the right intonation.
Easy for you to say. You're not the one who has to memorize hundreds of long lines and remember how to properly deliver each one, Sakura remembered thinking in annoyance.
Tomoyo also summarized to them what was the play all about. Naturally, it's genre was romance. The main characters are: an angel named Faith and a mortal named Cedric. Faith was assigned to be Cedric's guardian angel, but for some reason, Cedric was able to see her and so they eventually fell in love – yeah, typical. But angel-human relationships are forbidden, so, heaven decided to separate them – so much for heaven being considerate – and the lovers are forced to forget each other. In the end, the main characters have a romantic and depressing parting.
"You're actually okay with this?" Sakura exclaimed, putting her script down on her lap. "I thought you'd put up a little more fight than I would," she added with a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"I'm not," Syaoran replied casually. "It's just that, I don't see the point in arguing with Eriol and Tomoyo anymore," he added. "First, it's not like they ever listen. And second, the writer is the one who gave us the roles, not them."
"Hmp… Why are you suddenly thinking like a mature person?" Sakura retaliated, her lips pouting like a small child. "Did something happen to you? Are you sick?" she playfully placed a hand over Syaoran's forehead.
Syaoran chuckled and raised a finger, resting it at Sakura's forehead. "It's not that I think like a mature person. It's you who is thinking like a child," he said before pushing Sakura's forehead lightly.
"Because you're treating me like one," Sakura snapped back at him and gave him a playful glare before turning her head towards the other way.
Syaoran laughed to himself and shook his head in amusement before turning back to read the rest of the script. His face wrinkled when he read the line answering a question Faith asked Cedric. '(shake head) No. For even though you're already gone, you will always be in my heart.' Darn, this is too mushy for my taste, he thought grudgingly. Again, he closed the script, this time with an unnoticeable, grossed-out face, and stood up from his spot. He placed his free hand over Sakura's shoulder to get her attention. "I am going back to the gym," he told her.
Sakura smiled and nodded. "Go ahead, I'll stay here for a few more minutes."
"You sure?" Syaoran asked. "You'll get bored here alone."
"No I won't," Sakura replied, picking up her script and waving it slightly in the air. "I'll have this great script for me to read," the sarcasm was overflowing.
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"We're not even halfway done!" Tomoyo exclaimed, pressing her head into her crossed arms over the table. She twisted her head a little to the right where Eriol was seated and added in a whisper, "And so far, not even ten people are good enough to be a passer by."
Eriol sighed and rested his chin on his right hand. "Who would've thought many people wanna be involved with the play," he admitted disappointingly. "It's good that many are interested, but these many?" he motioned for the thickening crowd behind them before moaning.
The auditions had been going on for over an hour and yet the crowd was still growing behind them. They were too lazy to hold registration before the actual audition and decided that the students should just fall in line inside the gym and give their name and section before they act out what they'd be asked to. All supporting roles and extra roles are open, and no one is asked what part they want to play – since no one has ever read the script yet. All in all, it was an impromptu audition.
"I told you we should've held registration first before auditions," Tomoyo kept on whispering, now evidently irritated. "At this rate everybody in school can just come in and waste our time! Even the principal."
"I don't think the principal would come, though," Eriol was obviously trying to be funny. "Although he'd be a great Kami-sama (God)."
Tomoyo shot him a glare. "You know what I mean," she simply retaliated. "I mean, who knows how thick this crowd can still get?"
"Thicker."
Eriol and Tomoyo turned to face Syaoran who was standing behind them with his script in one hand.
"I saw the freshmen heading this way," Syaoran explained. "They were all talking about the audition."
Tomoyo threw her hands up and let out a moan. "I can't make it to school tomorrow if we keep doing this with only ten minutes break in between fifty students!"
Eriol sighed. "If only we could find – " he stopped dead, staring mischievously at Syaoran.
Syaoran took the hint and turned his back at them. "No way," he responded before Eriol asked the question. "I am not going to substitute for you. Besides, I still have to memorize my lines," he added, waving the script.
"C'mon Li," Tomoyo pleaded. "We're just gonna rest for a while. I promise we'll be back after thirty minutes. Please…" her eyes we're desperate.
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"I'll be home by Saturday." Sakura started replaying her conversation with her brother a few moments after Syaoran left her alone in the rooftop.
Touya Kinomoto is studying at Tokyo University and had been living in an apartment there since he was a freshman. He called two days ago, saying that he got the weekend off from his part-time job and he's coming for a visit. Sakura said it'd be better if he goes home for the summer instead of wasting his money by going on a two-day vacation but he simply blew the question off by saying that he just wanted to check how Sakura was doing.
There was something going on, Sakura knew, but she just can't seem to make Touya talk. Thus, she had been sleepless for two nights and mixed excitement and worry overwhelmed her. She was deciding on whether to talk to someone about it or not, and if ever, to whom. She was never really good at weighing two options.
She also thought of telling Tomoyo, since she's better at analyzing situations, and also of telling Syaoran, since he's more mature than he looks and can give her good advice too, but someone else is bound to notice something's wrong if she tells either since they're all together most of the times, especially in school, and two's already a crowd.
"It weighs more if you keep your problems to yourself," Sakura said to no one in particular, remembering what his father told her when her mother died and she confined herself to her room for almost a week. "You better tell someone soon Sakura, or your eye-bags will reach the floor in no time."
Letting out another sigh, she allowed her eyes to wander the floor until it reached the umbrella leaning on a corner. Staring at it for a few seconds, her right hand involuntarily started searching her pocket for something. Now feeling it clutched in her hand, she slowly pulled it out to take a closer look.
"Hirano Sasuke…" she whispered the name written on the piece of paper she was holding.
Remembering who it was, she stared at the number written below it. Sasuke gave it to her before he left the front porch. He had asked why the lights are all off and when she answered that she lives alone, he quickly searched his pockets for his pen and something to write on. He gave her his number and told her to call if anything happens.
It was a sweet thing to do, Sakura recalled thinking before she folded the paper and placed it inside the pocket of the skirt she's going to wear the next day.
Pulling out her cellular phone she started to dial the number but decided against it and pressed the glowing red phone instead. I shouldn't be bothering him by my problems, Sakura told herself. After all, I just met him.
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"Thirty minutes huh?" Syaoran said between gritted teeth, his hand clenching on the pen he was writing the names with.
Eriol and Tomoyo managed to convince him to substitute for the auditions, promising that they'd only be gone for a few minutes. Apparently, they took their time relaxing that one-and-a-half hour had now passed and still no sign of them.
"Need help?"
Syaoran turned to see who it was and let out a sigh of relief when he saw Sakura standing behind him with a smile plastered on her face. "My savior has come!" he exclaimed as he moved one seat to the left to give Sakura his previous one.
Sakura sat down and placed her script on the table. "Where's Eriol and Tomoyo?" she asked as she searched her bag for a pen.
"I dunno," Syaoran replied after signaling the freshman on stage to take a break first. "Those jerks took off and left me with their job. They said they'd only be gone for thirty minutes. It's already been one-and-a-half hour!"
Sakura laughed at Syaoran's tired-and-annoyed expression. "And you actually agreed to sub for them?" her tone was playfully mocking. "You know how sly those two are!"
Syaoran disheveled his hair and growled his irritation. "They're as good as dead if they don't make it here in fifteen minutes!" he shouted as if his future victims could hear him.
"Now, who's acting like a kid?" Sakura remarked pointing at Syaoran's face with the pen she was now holding.
"You two are," Eriol's voice interjected as he placed a plastic bag with two cans of soft drinks inside on the table.
Syaoran instantly shot him a death glare. "Are both your clocks broken or something?" he demanded.
"Of course not," it was Tomoyo who replied. "We just got carried away planning for the 'much-awaited play'." Her eyes were sparkling with naughtiness.
Sakura grabbed one of the carbonated drinks inside the plastic bag and opened it. "You assumed I was here?" she asked before taking a sip of the beverage. She supposed it was hers since both Eriol and Tomoyo are already holding the same can of soda.
Tomoyo nodded. "We knew Li would want someone to share the torture with."
"Actually," Syaoran started, picking up his own drink. "I was suffering for one-and-a-half hour alone. She just arrived a few minutes ago."
Eriol took a seat beside Syaoran and placed his cola on the table. "You didn't call her when we left you?" he interrogated curiously.
Tomoyo watched as Syaoran shook his head and was now leaning closer out of her natural nosiness. "Why?" she decided to press on it a little. "We thought you would. That's why we were so confident in leaving you that we took our time relaxing a bit."
Syaoran didn't know how to answer. Because I think Sakura has a problem she's not telling anyone about and I don't want to disturb her thinking time? he replied in thought. He was unintentionally silent for a few moments and at the corner of his eye he could see Sakura arching an eyebrow at him. It said it all: 'Why didn't you call me?'. It was another question he didn't want to answer. He was trying hard not to let Sakura know he sensed something was wrong. He respected other's privacy the most and he wanted her to deal with her dilemma at her own pace.
"Uhm… because – " he started but was cut off by Chiharu who they did not notice was now standing before them with her hands on her hips.
"What's with making everybody wait?" she sounded like the haughty person that she really is. "I thought you wanted to finish everyone today so we can start rehearsing tomorrow afternoon?"
Eriol and Tomoyo looked like they just snapped out of a daydream and instantly shooed Syaoran and Sakura out of their seats.
"Next please!" Tomoyo shouted while she still searched for her pen.
Syaoran and Sakura stood at the side with shocked looks on their faces and stared at Eriol who was now starting to rampage through his own belongings. They were suddenly teleported back to World War II – on the right, branded bags who innocently held on to two ball-point pens, not knowing that they'd soon be shredded into pieces by their enemies, and on the left, two desperate weirdoes with claws that will dig deep into your flesh until they find their precious ball pens.
After a few seconds of murdering her tote bag, Tomoyo suddenly halted and turned to where Syaoran and Sakura were standing, still stunned by the sudden change in atmosphere. She stood up, banging her hands on the table as a mischievous grin spread across her face. "Li! Sakura! On stage, now!" she shouted.
"E-Eh?" Syaoran stammered.
"Oh, that's right!" Eriol exclaimed, suddenly standing as well. "Syaoran, will you hurry up? You too Sakura."
Neither Sakura nor Syaoran wanted to argue with them after what they just saw the two did to their poor, innocent, bags and slowly walked towards the stage.
Once they got on center stage, Tomoyo started talking to the crowd.
"Um… Excuse me. May I have your attention please?" she started. "I wanted everybody to have a preview of the play."
Sakura turned to Syaoran with a nervous face. "This is not good," she whispered. "Tomoyo's got that look on her face that spells trouble all over."
Eriol, on the other hand, turned to face their victims on the stage. "You two memorized anything on the script yet?" he asked nonchalantly, making himself sound innocent and harmless.
Only the mushy part, Syaoran replied in thought but instead muttered a simple "Eh…"
Tomoyo flashed them a wide grin. She assumed Syaoran and Sakura would be able to memorize the part they'd be laughing about first (a.k.a. the mushy parts) and after seeing the nervous and slightly grossed-out look on Sakura's face when Eriol asked them if they knew any lines, she knew she was right. It's about time we see how good you two look together, she said to herself.
Sakura gulped after seeing Tomoyo's face and knew what was coming next. This is going to be a total humiliation.
"Well then," Eriol started. "Why don't you two give us a sneak-peek?"
By this time, both Sakura and Syaoran's eyes looked like they're about to pop out of their sockets.
"You'll thank me later for this Syaoran, " Eriol whispered as the crowd started to clap their hands and settle down.
We're in deep shit…
Okay, I know nothing really happened, I'll save it for the next chapter (heehee…) Hope you enjoyed this one, and again, I'm sorry for the VERY late update. I won't be promising anything from now on… P Oh, and, Katie's friend debuts in the next chapter (refer to chapter 6) Ja ne!
