Here is quite possibly one of my absolute favorite scenes that I have ever written: the Sex and the City-esque conversation between Sakura and friends. And, I've been wanting to write the scene at the end of this chapter for a long time and I've finally done it. Enjoy!


Twelve

Expect the Unexpected

Looks, Sakura decided, were incredibly deceiving. Though she had figured this fact out long ago (as a lawyer she had had plenty of nasty surprises when the jurors she selected turned out to be more than she bargained for), it never ceased to stun her when it rang true.

Like right now. Whoever knew that Daidouji Tomoyo-yes, the sweet, angelic, divinely ethereal fairy-creature who was forever smiling gently and speaking softly-had a temper that rivaled a spoiled five year old child's when things didn't go her way?

"You are going to do what?" Miss Jekyll-and-Hyde hissed. Though Sakura had dealt with many menacing people in her career as a prosecutor, from six feet tall wife beaters to sick and twisted serial killers, no one frightened her more than her own best friend. She unconsciously took a step backwards at the livid expression on Tomoyo's usually exquisite face.

"Um…move out?"

"Move out." Tomoyo stated flatly.

"Yes," Sakura affirmed, furiously nodding her head.

"Where?"

"Syaoran's place, he asked me to move in with him."

"So you're leaving me?"

Sakura knew she was digging her own grave by satirizing the situation, however mildly, but the sarcastic side of her was just itching to be let out.

"I'd take you along with me," she began slowly, "but as liberal as I am in bed, I'm afraid threesomes just aren't my thing."

She ended up paying the repairman to fix the three-inch dent to the wall. Deciding that she was never going to get Tomoyo vases again, Sakura successfully relocated to Syaoran's place-albeit laboriously, considering that her best friend refused to help her ship a number of boxes a good couple of miles over.

And here I am, Sakura thought as she walked into the restaurant Ahill, making it up to her by buying her lunch.

"Alone, miss?" The waiter at the entrance asked.

She shook her head. "I'm meeting friends."

Not friend singular, but friends plural. Sakura had purposefully invited three of hers and Tomoyo's mutual acquaintances in case the latter decided that she didn't care to behave herself in public if it meant she could give Sakura a good slap to the cheek.

"Are you Kinomoto-san?"

"Yes."

"Follow me please."

She dutifully trailed after the waiter as he threaded through the numerous tables, all occupied, to the back of the restaurant where four women were grouped around a table by a window overlooking the busy streets of Tokyo's Ginza district. Dressed in either sharp business suits or haute couture with their hair carefully coiffed and their make-up applied flawlessly, they looked like a group of elitists who were out for a power luncheon. Only Sakura saw them as who they truly were: busy women taking rare time off to get together with childhood friends.

There was Yanagisawa Naoko, the bestselling author. With stylish black frames perched in front of light brown eyes and similarly colored hair cut in a trendy geometric bob, Naoko was incredibly imaginative…but also incredibly gullible. Always getting duped by the cunning, she had become one of Sakura's regular clients because of the number of legal spats she got herself into.

There was Sasaki Rika, the owner of a successful patisserie. With large doe eyes and short, wavy hair, both the color of a rich mahogany brown, Sasaki Rika had always been the warm, compassionate one of the group. Effortlessly elegant and mature beyond her years, it wasn't surprising that she was the only one of the five to have married.

And then there was Mihara Chiharu, the advertising executive. Bubbly and energetic, Chiharu had also been on the cheerleading squad with Sakura and Naoko. Though she was Sakura's opposite in personality, Chiharu shared two things in common with the former: an appreciation for the fine art of sarcasm and a false front of being a misandrist.

As Sakura tried to discreetly sit in the seat farthest away from Tomoyo, who was unnervingly silent, she was welcomed by a barrage of female voices coming at her from all directions.

"Late as always, Sakura," Naoko remarked.

"But you made it and that's what counts," Rika pointed out.

"Are you trying to avoid Tomoyo?" Chiharu said bluntly, seeing through Sakura's intentions. The latter sighed.

"I know you three have missed me but please, one at a time!"

"Am I part of the three?" Tomoyo asked waspishly, earning a look of disbelief from Sakura.

"I'm not a shrink, I wouldn't know what's going on in that vicious mind of yours."

"Oh Sakura," Chiharu scoffed, "Tomoyo's had two days to cool off."

"And," Rika added, her eyes twinkling, "she's been having a visitor for those past two days."

Sakura rounded on her best friend. "And you get mad when I spend time with my boyfriend?"

"He's been consoling me," Tomoyo snapped.

Chiharu snorted. "Physical consolation is the more exact term, I believe."

"You two finally made a homerun!?"

"I have more restraint than you do," Tomoyo sniffed.

"When you hold back from having sex with your significant other," Chiharu stated in a textbook-like manner, "that means he or she is lacking in the bedroom."

Tomoyo's face turned red with anger at the undisguised jab to Eriol's skill in bed as her friends laughed.

"No it doesn't!" She sputtered. "Eriol is quite-"

"Tell us this," Chiharu cut in. "If Sakura was still there, would she have been kept awake all night by you two, just like when she and Syaoran didn't allow you to sleep that one time?"

Sakura's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "Tomoyo told you that!?" She yelped.

"It's nothing to be ashamed about Sakura," Rika said good-naturedly. "Sex is the most natural thing in the world."

"It's not natural when your best friend abandons you for it," Tomoyo growled.

"I did not abandon you," Sakura snarled, "stop using extreme heavy adjectives. I really don't know why you're complaining anyway since you and Eriol finally hooked up."

"C'mon Tomoyo," Chiharu chided, "give Sakura a break. It's not everyday that a sex god comes your way."

"Eriol's good but I wouldn't have moved out if I was in Sakura's position!"

"Then Eriol's not as good as Syaoran."

Tomoyo slammed her cup of tea down, splashing the fragrant liquid everywhere. "Chiharu! That's enough about my boyfriend's talents in bed!"

"Why the defensiveness?"

Before Tomoyo could reach over and strangle Chiharu, Sakura intervened. "I moved out so we could avoid any further incidents like that night when you couldn't go to sleep!" She said loudly. "Besides, Syaoran's bedsprings are…sturdier."

Naoko's head whipped towards her. "What?"

"They broke the bed," Tomoyo said dryly. "I thought I told you, Naoko."

"Why have you been telling everyone everything!?" Sakura wailed.

"We shelled out a couple hundred to buy a new mattress," Tomoyo continued, ignoring her livid cousin. "What a waste-Sakura's not even here to sleep on it anymore."

"Save it for yourself!" Sakura spat. "If Eriol's as good as you're saying he is then you'll need that mattress soon."

"If you don't want it I'll take it."

The women ceased their talking to look at the speaker, a look of stunned disbelief on their faces.

"What?" Rika asked, her face a picture of innocence.

"Were you trying to imply anything when you said you'll take the mattress?" Chiharu choked out.

Rika shrugged. "We get passionate." Seeing several jaws drop and bulging eyes, she looked at her friends quizzically. "If we're so open about our sex lives, I'm sure there's nothing shocking about Yoshiyuki and me doing it."

"W-well," Naoko sputtered, "it's just that you and Terada-sensei are-"

"What?"

"Like the couples from those American Disney movies," Tomoyo finished for her. "You know, damsel-in-distress princess saved by a handsome knight-in-shining-armor prince followed by a long-awaited kiss and a ride off into the sunset? Very sweet and innocent?"

Rika blinked. "No."

Sakura was the first to get over the revelation. "You know what they say; it's the quietest ones you have to watch out for."

"Says the acid-tongued bitch who tied her man down to the bed and tried to leave him there."

Everybody's attention turned to Sakura, who had taken to looking up at the ceiling, a passive look on her face. The only sign that she was beyond fury was the way her left hand was gripping the tea cup so tightly that a crack had started to form.

"How kinky," Chiharu breathed.

"I'd have to say that's not as kinky as Tomoyo using whipped cream and cinnamon," Naoko said tritely, an uncharacteristically devious smirk on her face.

A collective gasp went around the table.

"Oh Tomoyo!"

"Ooh, what's it like Tomoyo?"

"And you say I'm into freaky shit," Sakura said tartly.

Seeing no way out of answering her friends' eager questions, Tomoyo relented. "Sweet and spicy," she offered.

Chiharu sighed. "I expected as much. So back to this tying Syaoran down business…"

Sakura groaned. "C'mon, I just tied him down to the bed, got him aroused, tried to leave, but failed. End of story!"

There was a cough from behind the five women. Sakura froze.

"Um, do you ladies need more time to decide?" The waiter asked, an uncomfortable look on his face.

Sakura could feel her face turn an alarming shade of red.

Shit.

"Oh no," Tomoyo said brightly, satisfied that her roommate finally got the punishment she deserved. "I'm ready to order. Let me have this mocha frappucino thing with lots of whipped cream and some cinnamon sprinkled on top please."


The notorious female lawyer seemed to have dropped out of the picture. Through her daily phone calls to Miyazaki Sasara, Yelan had found that the woman hadn't made another appearance at Entia Corp.

"You're fighting a losing battle there, Yelan," Sasara said.

She sighed. "You think?"

"You keep on pursuing a matter on nothing but gut instinct. Granted, your sixth sense for things is usually right, but let's look at the evidence, shall we? Female lawyer comes to Entia Corp and Syaoran behaves strangely about it yes, but female lawyer never comes back either and Eriol says that Syaoran is not dating anyone. Am I missing anything here?"

"He didn't come to dinner that one night."

"So? He was sick."

"I called his house and nobody picked up."

"He was sick."

"Or maybe he wasn't home at all because he was on a date!"

"Did you call his cell phone?"

Yelan blinked. "No, I didn't…totally forgot he had that."

Sasara made an exasperated noise. "Then you can't confirm that he was on a date."

"Kami, have I gotten so old that I can't keep up with the times anymore?" There was a mournful tone to Yelan's voice that made Sasara sigh.

"Yelan, I know you're eager to see Syaoran get married but just…let it go. He's a grown man, he can take care of himself. He'll know when the time's right."

"But he's gone through strings of women already and none of them were right!"

"Have you ever thought that maybe it's you who's the problem?"

"Excuse me?" Yelan said coldly.

"You're the ever-present mother who's forever sticking her nose into other people's business. Maybe you should just take it easy and back off."

"I'm a therapist, Sasara, it's my job to stick my nose into other people's business!"

"Not when they don't pay you to," Sasara pointed out.

"This is ridiculous. I'm just looking out for Syaoran's welfare, not meddling in his affairs."

Sasara took a heavy breath on the other line. "If you say so then…"

Yelan slammed the phone down with more force than necessary. She was not "sticking her nose" into Syaoran's business; she was just playing the part of a good mother and watching his back! What was wrong with making sure that his love life was on track? Yes, she was already a grandmother a couple times over thanks to her four daughters, but she had yet to have a grandchild who carried the last name of Li. She'd be damned if she died before it happened.

But Sasara's right, she thought. Maybe I am looking the wrong way and the lawyer's just a fluke.

So why were her instincts protesting?


The first thing Syaoran said when Sakura came through the door of his apartment was, "You look exhausted."

"I am," she said tiredly.

"You know how I know that?"

She rubbed her eyes wearily. "How?"

"Because if you weren't you'd snap at me in response," he chortled. When Sakura glared at him, he grinned back in response. "There's my girl."

She plopped onto the couch, not caring that she was wrinkling her meticulously ironed pantsuit. Several minutes later Syaoran emerged from the kitchen, two bowls of ice cream in his hands. Sitting down next to his girlfriend, he handed one over.

"How considerate of you," Sakura muttered, accepting it gratefully.

"The perks of living with me," he smiled. Sakura grunted.

"Got hell from Tomoyo for it."

"Did she not behave herself at lunch today?" Syaoran asked.

"If you mean no physical violence then yes, she behaved herself."

Syaoran nodded in understanding. "I see…she took a leaf out of your book and verbally assaulted you, didn't she?"

"Don't make me more irritated than I already am, sweetheart."

Syaoran backed off.

"I can't go out to lunch tomorrow."

"Why not?"

"I have an appointment with my therapist."

Syaoran looked at her incredulously. "You have a shrink?"

Sakura frowned. "Yeah, so? It's not like I'm invincible."

He snorted. "Could've fooled me."

"One of these days I'm going to sew your mouth shut," Sakura growled.

"You'd just be torturing yourself if you did so," Syaoran said lightly.

"Why would I be the one suffering?"

When Sakura saw the glittering of Syaoran's amber eyes, she instantly regretted her question.

"The strongest muscle in the human body is the tongue, didn't you know?"


It was half an hour before Sakura's lunch break and she was busy typing away at the computer when Syaoran unexpectedly dropped by her office.

"What're you doing here?" She asked, surprised.

"Have you eaten yet?" Syaoran asked, ignoring her.

"No, but-"

"Let's go."

Sakura looked at him disdainfully. "Excuse me?"

"You can't go through a shrink session on an empty stomach."

She laughed derisively. "You'd think that by dating me you'd know that I can do a lot of things most people can't do."

But Syaoran had already reached over, pressed a key on the keyboard, and effectively put her computer into hibernation mode. One hand grabbing her purse and coat, the other pulling her out of her chair, he dragged her bodily from the room.

"What the hell are you doing?" Sakura hissed, trying to free her hand from Syaoran's grasp without everyone noticing. When the people they passed in the hallway began to cast her strange looks, she ceased her futile struggling and smiled sweetly at her co-workers.

"We're going out to lunch," he replied, "have you not figured that out already?"

"I have, but-"

"No buts."

Recognizing that Syaoran was in one of his modes where nothing would be able to change his mind from doing what he wanted to do, Sakura sighed and resigned herself to getting in the car with him. Though she had mountains of paperwork to finish and there was much to do before her appointment with Yelan, even she couldn't deny how considerate it was of Syaoran to take her out to lunch.

"How far is the restaurant?" She asked, mentally calculating how much time she had to eat before rushing back.

"Not far…"

"Why are you heading towards the airport?"

"It's in the area," was Syaoran's flippant reply.

When he finally stopped the car, it was in the overnight parking garage of the airport. Sakura barely noticed, too busy thinking of her crammed schedule. But when Syaoran lead her into the airport and towards security, she began to get suspicious.

"Syaoran, most restaurants aren't located beyond the security checkpoints."

"This one is."

Because there were so few people and they had nothing on them, they whizzed past the guards and the electronic devices in less than five minutes. After putting his shoes back on, Syaoran continued his quick pace towards the airport terminals, Sakura trailing after him in confusion.

"Syaoran, what is going on-"

They ended up stopping at one of the gates. Through the large bay windows Sakura could see a parked plane, which, according to the overhead sign, was going to depart for Paris, France in less than ten minutes.

I wish I was there right now, she thought wistfully.

"Just in time, Li-san."

A foreign male voice snapped Sakura out of her thoughts. Seeing that they were in front of the open gate and an airline steward handing two ticket stubs back to Syaoran, comprehension finally dawned on Sakura.

"I thought…" she said slowly, "you were taking me out to lunch."

Syaoran turned around and grinned boyishly at her.

"I am. In Paris."


I may have missed a few things in the Yelan/Sasara conversation. I did go back and reread my stuff to make sure there aren't any plot holes but you never know...