Author's Note: I was surprised by the amount of review from the last chapter. I'm really glad that you like them ^^ I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint much.

Disclaimer: Card Captor Sakura isn't mine. The story is.

Until You're Mine
Chapter 14: Now, we're even...

"No," Sakura replied. She couldn't help but to feel a bit anxious when he suddenly stared into her eyes like that. She took a few steps back and her small body bumped into the stainless steel table.

This is too weird.

Sakura bit her lip and grasped her hand on the table tightly when he started to lean towards her. Her eyes drifted to his slightly parted lips and back to his eyes. She swallowed and made a mental warn to herself to move and say something. But she didn't.

Then his lips touched hers. It was very soft and gentle. And it tasted like blueberry pancake.

Her stomach lurched. Her body tensed as he slipped an arm around her waist and the other arms around her neck, pulling her towards him. She wasn't sure what she should do or how she should act. Too many thoughts went through her mind at once as his soft, warm lips continued to kiss her decisively.

For instance, she hasn't cleaned up the table. She hasn't washed all those dirty dishes in the wash basin. Shiori-san could be back with their lunch in any minute now. And she was really sure that...

This is crazy!

Sakura couldn't tell how much time passed between the beginning and the end of the kiss. But when the kiss tenderly ended, she clapped her hand over her mouth and her wide eyes locked at him in confusion.

Syaoran licked his lips. His mind wasn't thinking straight. He couldn't understand why he had kissed her. His eyes went to her red lips and looked up to gaze into her eyes. It mesmerized him. They both shared a gaze for a moment before they both looked away with their cheeks flushed furiously.

The duo caught a clicking noise coming from the front. Then, there was a rustling sound followed by the cleaning ladies voices chattering. "Kinomoto-san?" Shiori called out. "We're back!"

"I," Sakura said. "Shiori-san is back. I should help her with the food," Sakura said, making an excuse to escape from him.

Syaoran took a few steps back and he turned to the small girl beside him. Aiko was staring at him with a timid smile on her face. His mouth gaped open. "Oh god," he finally said to the little girl. "What have I done?"

xxx

Syaoran winced. He couldn't help it. Meiling had been laughing at him non-stop for a full three minutes. It's like someone had drugged her with laughing gas and she just couldn't stop laughing. And he couldn't stand it anymore.

His cousin, Meiling, decided to surprise him with a visit to the hospital when he refused to have a conversation of his date through the phone. Then, she threatened to tell his mother his secret if he decided not to spill anything to her.

And he had to succumb.

"Meiling," he said, indignantly, "Stop it."

"I can't!" Meiling said between her laugh. "This whole damn thing is just too funny!"

"Keep your voice down. You're in the hospital," he said and pursed his lips into a firm thin line. "If you don't stop it now, I'm afraid that I'll have to haul your ass out of here," he threatened.

"Hold on! Give me a minute," Meiling said, before she took a deep breath and exhaled a few times, imitating a pregnant woman who was practicing her breathing exercise. "Okay, I'm good," Meiling said with an awkward smile on her face.

Syaoran sighed.

"You're an idiot," Meiling said with a smile. She adjusted her position and turned to her cousin, scanning his face to read his thought. "I still can't believe that you decided to kiss her instead of telling her how you feel."

"I wasn't thinking," Syaoran blurted.

Meiling rolled her eyes. "Well, that was clear wasn't it?"

Syaoran brushed his fingers through his hair. "I shouldn't have listened to you," he said exasperatedly after a moment of silence. His head shook curtly. "This is your fault, you know," he accused.

"How is it my fault?" Meiling said in disbelieve. "I did tell you to flirt with her a little bit. But, I never said anything about kissing!"

"Well, that's exactly what I did," Syaoran said. "I flirted, held her gaze, then the next thing I knew, I was kissing her."

"Hmm..." Meiling said and smiled. It was clear that she was having fun teasing her cousin. "Raging hormones... What are you, teenagers?"

"I can't face her after what I did," Syaoran sighed and shook his head. "I'm screwed!"

"You're not screwed," Meiling convinced him. Then, she frowned and pursed her lips. "Okay, maybe you're a little bit screwed—you kissed her. That means you've violated the agreement."

"You're not helping!" Syaoran said, raising his voice a little. He ruffled his hair and buried his head between his knees. "What am I going to do now?"

Meiling giggled. She had never seen her cousin this agitated before. She couldn't help but to think it was cute that he was behaving this way. "Relax. What you're going to do is tell her how you feel."

Syaoran turned to his cousin and stared at her as if she just said something alien.

"Listen to me..." Meiling said.

"I'm done listening to you," Syaoran muttered.

"If you really love her, you have to tell her," Meiling said as she put her arm around his shoulder. "You have to talk to her about what happen today. You can't just avoid this issue forever!"

xxx

Daidouji Tomoyo beamed. This was one of the happiest days of her life. Earlier today, she had a really amazing date with Eriol in Tomoeda Amusement Park. They had so much fun! They've been to most of the rides, including Ferris wheel, swings ride, house of mirrors and roller coasters before they decided to have some ice cream while strolling around the amusement park.

Then, she beat him a couple times when he challenged her to a Dance Dance Revolution duel in the arcade. Well, it wasn't really a surprise... Tomoyo was really good with video games as her mother is the president of Daidouji Toys Co. Eriol had reimbursed his loss by winning constantly with the shooting game in the arcade and won her a big teddy bear.

And now, here they are... Standing before her manor... Staring at each other with such intense.

"Well," Tomoyo said, breaking up the silence between them. "Thank you, Eriol. I never thought that an amusement park could be this is fun!"

Eriol looked at her and scanned her face. "You've never been to an amusement park before?"

"Of course I have." Tomoyo giggled. "I've been here for quite a few times with Sakura when we were a lot younger," she said. She looked at the teddy bear in her hand and smiled. "But it was a lot of fun with you."

Eriol grinned at her remark. He took a step towards her. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her lightly on her lips. It was warm and sweet. It lingered long enough to make Tomoyo swoon like a lovesick teenager.

"I," Tomoyo said shyly. "I should go," Tomoyo said. "My mother is probably waiting for me. It's not that I can see her every day, you know."

"Well then, I suppose I should be courteous and meet your mother," Eriol said.

Tomoyo chuckled. "You wanted to meet my mother?"

Eriol shrugged. "Why not?"

Tomoyo hesitated.

"I should at least tell her that I'm dating her daughter," Eriol said with a smile on his face. "At least she can feel a bit relieved; knowing who her daughter spends her time with."

Tomoyo stared at her boyfriend suspiciously. "Are you sure you wanted to meet my mother?"

Eriol nodded. "I'm positive."

Tomoyo bit her lips. "Alright then," she said and ushered him into the manor. "This is weird," Tomoyo commented as they walked into the house. She flicked a few switches and scanned the house. "There's nobody home. Not even the maids."

"Well, they're probably around here somewhere," Eriol said.

"Perhaps..."

"Maybe we should check the garden?" Eriol suggested. "They could possibly be there."

Tomoyo raised an eyebrow in suspicion.

"Come on," Eriol said as he wrapped his arm around Tomoyo's waist.

"Alright," Tomoyo nodded and led him to the garden. She pushed the door to the garden open and her eyes widened. She couldn't really believe what she saw. Everyone was there. Her mother, her grandfather, the maids, Sakura, her parents, Touya and Yukito, standing before her.

"Surprise!" They all yelled in unison.

"Wow!" Tomoyo said as she took a few steps forward. "What's all this for?"

"Congratulation for being nominated for the Rising Designer Award," Eriol whispered and landed a kiss on her forehead.

Tomoyo was dumbfounded when her mother pulled her for a hug and dragged her forwards. She looked up and saw two tiers cake designed after the outfit she submitted for the award. She gasped and turned around to her cousin. "Sakura, did you make this?"

Sakura nodded. "Yes!"

"It's beautiful!" She exclaimed as she cut the cake.

"I'm glad you like it," Sakura said and giggled.

Tomoyo served the cake and passed it around the guests. She took a slice and walked towards Sakura. "This one is for you," she said with a smile.

"Thank you," Sakura said and smile.

Tomoyo stared at her cousin and decided to sit next to her. "Is something wrong?" she asked. Her face showed concern. "It seems like there's something troubling you."

Sakura's smile disappeared. She took a deep breath and bit her lips.

Tomoyo placed her hand gently on Sakura's hand. "You know that you can tell me anything, don't you?"

"I know," Sakura finally said. "But this is your special day. You should go and help Eriol. I mean, he's being interrogated by your mother."

Tomoyo turned around and watched her mother having a little chat with her boyfriend. "He can handle it," she said and smiled. She turned her attention back to Sakura and raised an eyebrow. "Would you like to have the conversation somewhere else?"

Sakura shook her head and consulted her dress. She looked at Tomoyo and smiled awkwardly. "Well," she said nervously before she told her cousin everything—every little bit and every little detail of what happened in her bakery.

Tomoyo seemed a bit calm, in Sakura's opinion. Sakura expected her cousin would start bombarding her with questions. But, instead, Tomoyo sat next to her with her arms still crossed across her chest.

"Tomoyo," Sakura said softly. She frowned and peered at her cousin's expression. "You know," she paused and swallowed. "It would be good if you could say something now. I mean anything at all."

Tomoyo replied her with a sigh. She bit her lips and looked up to her cousin. "How did it feel?"

"What?"

"Kissing him."

Sakura's cheek turned scarlet. "Tomoyo!" she said exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Well." Tomoyo paused. She wasn't sure what she should say in this situation. She never thought that something like this would have happened. "Doesn't that mean that he breached the contract?"

Sakura shrugged. Her expression puzzled.

"So, I assume that this whole pretend-dating thing will be over?" Tomoyo asked as Sakura kept silence.

Sakura stared at Tomoyo and blinked. "I'm not sure. We haven't discussed anything about it."

Tomoyo frowned. "Why did he kiss you?"

"I don't know," Sakura said and shrugged. Her gaze fell on the sliced cake on her plate. "If I figured out why he kissed me, I wouldn't have to make myself crazy thinking about it."

"Perhaps you should give him a call?" Tomoyo suggested.

"And ask him why he kissed me through phone call?" Sakura continued her cousin's sentences and laughed nervously. "That would be a really awkward conversation to have over a phone, don't you think?"

"Let me ask you something, Sakura," Tomoyo said and sighed. "What do you feel about him?"

Sakura was dumbfounded. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Tomoyo sighed. She looked over at Eriol and saw he was still chatting with her mother. "Eriol told me not to interfere with this. But, I don't think that I can ignore it any longer."

"Interfere with what?" Sakura asked. Her eyebrow arched.

"Sakura." Tomoyo paused as she was trying to produce the best way to say what it is on her mind. She looked up and her gaze met with Sakura. "Does it ever occur to you that you might be in love with Li Syaoran?"

"W-what?" Sakura stuttered. Her eyes widened and her cheek flushed. She turned her attention to her shoes and swallowed. "Tomoyo, what makes you think that I might be in love with him?"

Tomoyo rolled her eyes. "You developed some new chocolate cupcake recipes for him," Tomoyo point out. "How do you explain that?"

"I did that out of generosity," Sakura said and looked away. "I just thought that I should make him something that he could actually enjoy since he doesn't really like sweet things. I wanted him to like my cupcakes."

"Well, surely it was more than that," Tomoyo said and pursed her lips. Trying to help Sakura to realize her feelings towards her pretend-boyfriend was not an easy task. "Why is that important to make him like your cupcakes?"

"Well," Sakura squirmed. She sighed exasperatedly and turned to Tomoyo. "This doesn't make any sense," she chuckled. "Why are we having a conversation about cupcakes?"

"You're avoiding the question."

"Look," Sakura said. "The point is, it's impossible for me to fall in love with him."

Tomoyo raised an eyebrow. "Because of the agreement?"

"Yes," Sakura affirmed. "And I think, it's impossible to fall in love within a short period of time." She laughed. "I thought we had this conversation before."

"Sakura," Tomoyo called softly. "It doesn't really work that way. You can't choose who you fell in love with, even more than you can choose when it happens. And there are times when you fall in love with someone who you never thought much of before," Tomoyo said. "Well, I never thought that I would fall in love with Eriol. But I did!"

"Tomoyo," Sakura whimpered.

"Now," Tomoyo said. "I want you to look deep inside your heat and tell me." She paused. She tucked her hair behind her ear and turned to Sakura. "What do you feel when you're around him? Did you have that butterflies in your stomach or anything like that?"

"Well," Sakura sighed. She closed her eyes to play along. "Maybe there are some butterflies." She paused and bit her lip. "I guess, every time we're together, I become anxious. Sometimes, my stomach curls for no apparent reason."

Tomoyo nodded. "And what do you feel when he's not around? Do you feel like you want to see him when he's not around, or keep looking at your cell phone for any messages from him or anything like that?"

Sakura consulted her feet and hesitated. She remembered that there are some times when she would sneak to look at his smiling picture on her phone. "I don't know," she replied. "I suppose, I've always felt like I wanted to see him again when we parted. Sometimes, I just can't get him out from my mind."

"Sakura," Tomoyo called. She shifted towards Sakura and smiled. "Let me ask this again. Are you in love with Li Syaoran?"

Sakura faced to her cousin and stared at her. "Oh god," she finally said after a momentarily silence. "Now that I keep thinking about it," she paused and inhaled. "Am I in love with him?"

Tomoyo's smile widened. "That is something that you will have to figure out yourself, Sakura." She shrugged. "I can't figure it out for you,"

xxx

Sakura was dressed in her sneakers, jeans and a t-shirt with a yellow-orange bear with big ears and small white wings printed on it. She pulled her baby pink apron over head and pulled her hair into a high ponytail. She walked into the kitchen and talked to a man in his early fifty, briefing him to clean up the oven. She paused and turned around to sneeze.

"Are you alright?" the man asked.

Sakura nodded. She reached for a napkin and blew her nose. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You don't look good," the man commented as he observed Sakura.

"Really," Sakura convinced him. "I'm fine. It's just that I didn't sleeping well last night," Sakura explained and smiled towards the man. "Don't worry about me."

"Alright, if you said so," the man said before he continued his conversation with Sakura regarding the oven. Then, he turned to a few of his workers and instructed them with their duties.

Sakura took her clip board on her office and went to the kitchen storage to start her inventory. She turned to check the flour from the storage and felt slightly dizzy. Last night she was unable to sleep. Well, since Tomoyo have been asking out what she felt for her pretend-boyfriend, she spent all night lying on her bed, trying to figure out what she really feels towards him.

And she was still undecided if she's in love with him.

It's true that she likes his company. But, is it really love?

Sakura blew a heavy sigh and walked into her office. She wasn't really in the mood for work anymore. She tossed her file on the table and sat on her chair. Then, she buried her face in her arms against the table.

"Miss," the man called. "I found this guy loitering outside. He introduced himself as Li Syaoran."

Sakura lifted up her face at the mention of his name: Li Syaoran.

"Do I let him in?" the man asked.

In an instant, Sakura could feel blood starting to rush to her head. She was sure that Syaoran was here to meet her and talk about what happen between them yesterday. The thought sent her a wave of panic. "Sure," Sakura said and nodded. "You can let him in." Sakura swallowed. She grabbed her file and stood up, pacing back and forth. Her heart thumped loudly. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Hi."

Sakura twirled around and faced Syaoran. He stood at her door with his hands in his pockets. "Hi," she replied nervously.

"I thought you'd be here," Syaoran said as he took a few steps towards her. "I tried to call you, but your number was out of reach."

"Yeah." Sakura nodded. "It probably ran out of battery," she lied. She had purposely turned off her cell phone to avoid everyone else. She thought that she just needed a few moments alone to think. "Have a seat," she said, pointing towards a chair.

Syaoran did as he was told and watched Sakura as she was sorting out some papers across him. "Sakura," he called her name.

Her heart quivered a bit when he called her. She glanced at him behind her shoulder and licked her lips. "Yeah... what is it? Do you need anything from me?"

"Why don't you sit down first?" he suggested.

Sakura bit her lower lip. "Just a moment," she said. "I need to sort out all these papers first."

"We need to talk," Syaoran said.

"Uh huh," Sakura replied. "Go on, I'm listening."

"Sakura..." he called her name softly.

Sakura froze for a few second. The way he softly pronounced her name sent shivers down to her spine. Her breath was caught in her chest. Slowly, she turned around to face him and noticed that there was a mix of gentleness and nervousness in his face.

"We should talk about what happen," Syaoran said.

Sakura leaned her body on the counter and looked down to her sneakers. She didn't dare to lift up her face and look at him straight to his eyes. "You violated the agreement," she finally said.

"I know," Syaoran replied and sighed. He scanned her face and took a deep breath. "But that doesn't mean that the agreement is over, right?"

Sakura lifted her face and her gaze met his. She frowned with confusion. She couldn't point out what he's trying to tell her.

"I mean." Syaoran paused and ran his fingers through her hair anxiously. "We don't want to deal with our parents questions on why we would suddenly decide to stop seeing each other."

Sakura bit her lip. "You're right," she said after a while.

"It would probably better for us to play along for another week."

"Eight days," Sakura corrected him.

"Right," Syaoran nodded. "It would save us from a lot of trouble from our family."

"Definitely," Sakura said. Her gaze followed Syaoran as he stood up and took a few steps towards her.

"But, I guess, I still owe you a million yen," Syaoran said. "For violating the contract."

Sakura chuckled. If he had violated the contract a few weeks earlier, she would have probably extorted that money from him. But now, she found herself not so interested in that million yen anymore. In fact, she didn't care if everyone found out about their agreement. "That's not necessary."

"Look," Syaoran said after a while. "I'm sorry for what I did." He paused and pursed his lips into a firm, thin line. "For, uh, kissing you all of a sudden."

Her cheek flushed.

"I acted impulsively. I guess I wasn't thinking straight," he admitted, "It should have never happened. It was a stupid mistake."

A mistake. A stupid mistake.

Her breathing was heavy. She looked away; her jaw clenched.

"I really should pay you that million yen."

"I said that's not necessary!" Sakura retorted. She bit her lip and looked up to face Syaoran. She was surprised with her sudden outburst. "I'm sorry," she said. She stood up abruptly and headed out. Then, her head started to feel dizzy again. The next thing she heard was his voice calling out her name before she passed out.

xxx

Sakura was jarred awake shortly after midnight. Her green eyes scanned through the familiar surroundings. It was dark. For a moment, she couldn't point out where she was until she saw that IV beside her. She adjusted her positioning and tried to sit down on the mattress.

"You should lie down for a bit," a voice whispered.

Sakura looked up and noticed that Chiharu was smiling at her. "What happened to me?"

"You passed out from sleep deprivation, fever and slight overwork," Chiharu explained. "But you should be alright after resting up a bit."

"How did I end up here?"

"You should thank him," Chiharu said, pointing towards a sleeping figure beside her. "He brought you here."

She squinted a bit and noticed that it was Syaoran. His head was buried on her bed between his arms. "Oh." Was all Sakura managed to say.

"He was really worried about you. Your mother offered to stay with you and he declined. He told her that he wanted to look out after you," Chiharu said and her smile widened. "Well, I have to tell you that he was worried about you as compared to the last time you were admitted in the hospital. I think, he really is in love with you."

Sakura smiled faintly.

Chiharu walked towards her and adjusted her pillow. "You should lie down and rest."

"Thank you," Sakura said as she obediently did as she was told. She closed her eyes and pretended to sleep until she was sure that Chiharu was out from her sight. She blinked her eyes open and turned to Syaoran. Her gaze fell on his sleeping face.

He had stayed with her. And that thought alone makes her happy.

Her fingers slowly found their way towards him and she touched his hair lightly. The sight of him made her feel like her heart was going to burst. She knew that she's in love with him. Sakura smiled and turned her body around a bit so that she could face him.

Syaoran jerked when he felt a sudden movement from her. He sat up on his chair and stretched his body. He looked up and noticed that Sakura was staring at him. "Hey," he said in a whisper and smiled. "You're awake."

Sakura nodded. "Yeah..."

He leaned forward and placed his hand on her forehead, measuring her temperature. "I was really worried," he said after a while.

"I know..."

"Why didn't you mention that you weren't feeling well back then?"

Sakura bit her lip and continue to stare at him. "Thank you," she finally said. "For looking after me."

Syaoran smiled at her. "It's my duty to look after my girlfriend."

Sakura averted his eyes. She could feel her face becoming hot with embarrassment. "And I'm sorry for snapping out to you earlier."

"Yes, that." Syaoran nodded. "Why were you mad at me when I told you that I would pay you that million?" He leaned forward to her and frowned. "I thought that was what we agreed on?"

Sakura sighed. It wasn't that she was mad at him when he told her that he was going to pay that million. She snapped at him because he told her that the kiss was a mistake. And she had certainly hoped that the kiss meant a lot more of that.

Sakura licked her lips. She crooked her fingers, motioning him to come closer to her.

And he did.

Sakura supported her body with her hand to help her get up a little. Then, she leaned forward and landed a soft kiss on his cheek. She inched away from him and looked at his astonished expression. "Now, we're even... Would you stop mentioning that million yen?" she said before she pulled her blanket over her head, hiding away from him. She closed her eyes and smiled as she heard him chuckled.

-End of Chapter 14: Now, we're even...-

Author's Note: I thought that this chapter is a bit... lame. But the next chapter is going to be interesting! (I hope!) Hmm... I guess, there's probably going to be another two or three chapter before the story end. I'm excited (though I still haven't got any idea for the next chapter and I need to motivate myself to write instead of rolling around lazily). Don't forget to review! xoxo