A big thank you to the following readers for your kind reviews! They really helped to motivate me: DheKyu, Sakura695, r0mantic at heart, Aizawa Li Syaoran Vessalius, redeyes143, vedha, xSapphirexRosesxFanx & lhaine07.

In the last chapter: Sakura finally listened to Syaoran and forgave him! He ended up staying over the night in Sakura's bed and he had to sneak off before Touya found out!

Be My Valentine

Chapter 25

By Sakura aka Michelle

Sakura grew extremely grumpy as the days went by. Not only was she forbidden to do household chores at home, she was also ordered not to go anywhere outside the house. Basically, she was a prisoner in her own house and it was driving her crazy. Well, not really crazy but she was a little annoyed at the over-protectiveness of her family even though she knew they meant her good.

She turned off the television in the living room and resisted the temptation to fling the remote control at it in frustration. After placing the said remote control gently on the TV console as if it was a fragile little thing, she stalked off into the room and jumped onto the bed. It was mid-afternoon and there was nothing that she could do. Tomoyo was still having lessons and she couldn't very well just give her a call in the middle of the class. Perhaps she could take a nap and make the time progress a little faster.

The past few days were a blur to her. She was either watching some silly television program or staring off into the space. She was sick of them. Luckily, there's Syaoran to tide her through. He always made it a point to call her every morning and it was the first thing that she heard everyday. Sakura had noticed that he sounded odd the day before but he just shrugged her off and changed the topic discreetly. The most important thing was that he didn't call this morning.

Sakura flipped onto her stomach and reached over to her side table for her cellphone. She checked the caller display and was disappointed to see that there was no missed call from anyone. With a sigh, she threw her cellphone back onto the side table, not caring if her action would leave some scratches on it. It was a few more hours before anyone came home. Now, a nap sounded like a good idea to her.

She frowned at the ceiling, her gaze boring a bore into the white concrete. Why didn't Syaoran call her? Something must be wrong and she was going to find out why. She reached for her phone again and quickly sent a message to him, afraid that he might still be having lessons in the afternoon.

Is something wrong? You didn't call me this morning.

A few minutes later, her cellphone vibrated in her hands and she hurriedly checked her messages.

Syaoran is sick.

Sakura blinked at the message in puzzlement, noting the weird wording. Normally, if another person asked, you'd have replied "I'm sick."

Who are you?

Sakura sent back and she received a reply almost instantly.

Come to the Li mansion. Syaoran is calling for you in his sleep.

A trip to Li mansion? Sakura checked the time again and estimated that she still had about three hours to go before her father or brother came back from work. With some luck, they would be delayed and she'd have more time with Syaoran. She gritted her teeth as she mentally fought with her hesitation and eventually she made her decision. She changed into jeans and a casual tee in record time and was out of the house within a few minutes, feeling a little bad for disobeying her family's instruction.

She hailed a cab and was at the Li mansion within minutes, standing by the door with her hand hovering over the doorbell. She had a likely candidate for the message's sender in her mind but was hoping she was wrong. The door swung open before she got a chance to press the doorbell and a smiling Wei stood at the door, showing her in.

"We are expecting you," he said and proceeded to show her the way to Syaoran's room even though she knew her way around the house, thanks to the week she'd stayed here. "Syaoran-sama is being impossible."

"Impossible?"

"Even Meiling-sama wasn't able to get him to take his medication."

"He's really sick?" Sakura's mind started ticking. Was it because he had stood in the rain for a chance to explain his engagement to her? It dawned on her that she was the cause of his sickness and it made her feel guilty to a large extent.

Wei nodded his head and paused outside Syaoran's room. "Meiling-sama has been trying to persuade Syaoran-sama to have his medicine for the past few days but he refused. We're hoping that you can try to talk to him and maybe get him to eat some food too."

Sakura's heart plunged at the mention of Meiling. "Was it you who messaged me earlier?"

"I'm afraid not. Meiling-sama is the one who messaged you."

"Using Syaoran's cellphone?"

"She's with him trying to talk him into taking care of himself," he said.

Sakura felt a stab of jealousy shoot within her body, knowing that Meiling was in Syaoran's private room. But they were cousins so it shouldn't have been a surprise to her. What's even more revolting was that the two of them were practically engaged to each other and hence they shouldn't be together in the same room with the door closed.

"Are they inside for a very long time?"

"Since this morning," Wei answered. "But Meiling-sama did come out of the room sometimes to sulk in the living room. Syaoran-sama must have said something rude to her."

Sakura smiled at this. At least they weren't being lovey-dovey inside the room. "Thank you, Wei. I'll be all right on my own. Wish me luck!"

Wei smiled in response and bowed respectfully at her. "Best of luck, Kinomoto-sama." Then, he left.

Sakura breathed in a huge breath to steady herself before knocking timidly at the door, unsure of what kind of expression she should put on her face when she saw Meiling. "The door's unlock," she heard a sweet voice from within the room. She pursed her lips in annoyance. What gave Meiling the right to treat Syaoran's room as her own—the room that she had occupied for a week?

The door creak softly as Sakura pushed it open. The room was dark—the drapes had been drawn, supposedly to allow Syaoran to have a comfortable rest. She remained frozen at the door, her eyes taking in the scene before her. The beautiful lady with long silky jet black hair stood from her seated position on the bed when she saw her and her ruby eyes lit up in recognition. "It's you!" she exclaimed. "Thank goodness you're here!"

"You know me?" Sakura asked in astonishment. She hadn't counted on Meiling knowing her identity.

Meiling scoffed. "How could I not know? The two of you were all over the news! And I'm here because of the two of you. Will you just take care of him while I head out for some errands? And do try to persuade him to eat something followed by his medication. He's the most stubborn man I've ever had the misfortune of meeting."

"You are not angry at me?"

"Why should I be angry at you? I hardly know you at all if not for my cousin," she said. "He seems to like you enough to brave the onslaught of paparazzi trying to pull more information out of him."

"Uh…"

Meiling giggled at the expression on Sakura's face—a mixture between shyness and horror. "You're cute! I like you."

"Huh? You… like me?" Sakura asked, a little confused by Meiling's sudden declaration.

Walking over to her, Meiling put her hands on Sakura's shoulders, holding her away at arm's length and peering into her eyes. "I entrust Syaoran to you. Don't treat him badly ok? He may be stubborn, arrogant and authoritative sometimes but there are many good points about him, most of which were brought out by you. So… Treasure him well."

Sakura blinked. "Um… I will… but aren't the two of you um… engaged to each other?"

Meiling laughed again, this time doubled over from the intensity of her laughter. "That's a sick joke—haha—our parents played on us," she said. "Believe me when I say the two of us mean to see it broken. Ah… I see what you are worried about! The answer is no! We're just cousin! And the thought of the two of us being engaged—yucks! It's disgusting enough to make me puke all over the place whenever I think about it."

Sakura couldn't help it. She burst into giggles at Meiling's words. Somehow, Meiling had the ability to tickle her sides with her words and actions.

"Ah… well… laugh all you want," Meiling said with a dismissive wave as she strolled to the door. "Take care of the sick boy ok? I'm off!"

Sakura wiped away a stray drop of tears from the corner of the eyes, brought about by her laughter. She smiled at the closed door before moving to sit the bed where the sleeping Syaoran lay, undisturbed by the little commotion made by the two ladies.

She smoothed a fallen lock of hair away from his forehead, which was matted with sweat. Poor Syaoran was practically swallowed by his heavy blanket, no wonder he was feeling warm and sweating like mad. "Hey," Sakura called even though she knew he was asleep. "Feeling all right?"

Syaoran grunted in response and rolled over to his side such that he was facing her. The shallow indent on the mattress behind him was wet and so were his pajamas. "Sakura?" he croaked, struggling to open his eyes. "Why are you here?"

"I received an S.O.S message," she replied with a wry smile. "How are you feeling?"

"Bad."

"Food?"

"No appetite," he replied. "The chef's food taste bland."

"How about I make you something to eat?"

"Don't want to trouble you," Syaoran murmured. "Will you just go home?"

"Do I want to know why you want to kick me out of the house?" Sakura asked. "Or maybe you want more personal time with Meiling?"

Syaoran shot out of the bed at that. "No!" he exclaimed, gripping Sakura's arm and shaking his head frantically. "Never! But then, you should know that by now…" He gave her a slight frown and then groaned as a wave of dizziness hit him and he dropped back onto the bed.

"Do you need a doctor? You don't look very good," Sakura asked, feeling his forehead for his temperature and it felt very hot to touch. "You're burning up."

"Doctor came. Don't like medicine," he whined. "Will you leave? I don't want to spread it to you."

"Oh!" So that's why he wanted her to leave the room! He didn't want to spread the germs to her! How sweet! And silly! "I know I'm the cause for this so at least let me help you a little."

"No. Go away," he said and turned so that his back was to her now. He was ignoring her.

"Childish!" Sakura left the room and slammed the door behind her. Wei hovered nearby and jumped when the door slammed. Sakura quickly schooled her facial expressions to mask her anger just to sooth the fatherly butler. "I need to use the kitchen."

"He wants to eat?"

"No," Sakura said and then suddenly grinned. "But I'll make him eat it."

"This way please, Kinomoto-sama," Wei said. "I'll lead the way to the kitchen. I need to tell you that the chef wouldn't be very pleased with the situation."

"Well, Syaoran did say that the chef's food tasted bland," she mused.

"And it's aggravating the chef's mood."

"I'll keep that in mind." Sakura mentally thought of what to make for Syaoran to boost his appetite. "I don't think I'll be in there for very long."

Wei waited for Sakura in the kitchen while she prepared Syaoran's meal under the grumpy chef's scrutiny. The chef's face scrunched up into a snarl when Wei had kindly informed that Sakura wanted to use his kitchen. Knowing that it was for Syaoran, the chef finally backed down but that didn't mean that he was willing to let Sakura use his own kitchen.

It took her about half an hour to whip out a simple meal of porridge, much to the chef's disapproval. He had tried to argue with Sakura about bringing the porridge to Syaoran. "The Royalties don't eat food meant for the poor," he had dared to comment. Sakura shoot him a glare, disliking him immediately for being such a snob.

"This is a family recipe which you'll never be able to learn or get a taste," she told the chef. She didn't even bother to learn the chef's name. "I've been told it's rather delicious." She had cooked this for Tomoyo when she was sick and apparently it boosted her appetite and had more than one helping! She was very sure it'd be the same for Syaoran too.

"It does smell nice," Wei agreed. "Shall we bring it to Syaoran-sama?"

"Sure!" Sakura chirped happily and followed Wei but not before turning back and sticking out a tongue at the chef, who was stunned by her action.

"I apologize to you on behalf of our chef," Wei said. "He's really protective of his kitchen."

"I won't take it to heart," Sakura assured. "It's nothing, really."

Wei nodded his head gratefully. He was put in charge of all the staff in the household by Yelan and hence, his staff's actions were his responsibilities. "Then I'll leave Syaoran-sama in your capable hands. His medications are on his table. The instructions are all written on the label."

"Thank you so much, Wei." Sakura smiled and waited for him to open the door so that she could enter Syaoran's room with the tray of porridge in her hands. Syaoran was still where she had left him on the bed. His eyes were closed and his breathing was erratic. She carefully placed the tray on his table before moving to the bed to wake him up.

"Syaoran?" she called. There was no response from him so she shook his shoulders. "I've brought something for you to eat." He frowned in his sleep and tried to swat her hands away from him. Sakura managed to escape his hands and shook him even harder. He finally gave in and opened his eyes groggily to look at her. She smiled sweetly at him. "I've cooked some porridge for you. Want some?"

"You cooked?" he asked as he pushed himself into a sitting position on his bed. "I'll eat."

Sakura was inwardly pleased that Syaoran had willingly wanted to eat what she prepared even though it was a simple fare. She scooped some porridge from the pot into a bowl and went back to him. She pushed his hands away when he reached out for the bowl. "I'll feed you."

"What? No!" Syaoran was beyond horrified. "I may be sick but I am still capable of feeding myself."

"A sick person should act like one," she told him flatly when he made a dove for the bowl, almost making her spill the contents on the bed. "Sit still and let me feed you."

"It's not fair! I didn't get a chance to feed you when you're sick," he whined.

"Not this time," Sakura agreed. She held the spoon in front of his lips and waited for him to open his mouth so that she could feed him. "Be a good boy and open your mouth. Say 'ah'."

Syaoran opened his mouth to protest and that was all the chance that Sakura needed. She pushed the spoon into his mouth immediately and watched in anticipation as he chewed a little and swallowed the porridge.

"How was it?"

"It's delicious! I want more."

He ate three bowls of porridge, much to Sakura's satisfaction, and lay back onto the bed contentedly with a blissful sigh. "I can get used to this… being taken care of by somebody."

Sakura thought back to his mother's absence in his life and she suddenly felt like throttling her for leaving her son abroad while she was busy with her company's business. "You totally should. Feel free to be like a child around me," she teased. Sakura poured him a glass of water and handed him the required pills for his fever and flu. She accepted the glass after the deed was done and placed it back on his table before throwing his cupboard open to dig for a clean shirt for him to change.

"Be careful with what you are saying."

"What? I don't mind!"

Syaoran chuckled slightly. "Strange girl."

"I'm not strange!" She threw the shirt at him and ordered him to change out of his sticky pajamas. "Get changed!"

Syaoran raised a brow at her and then smirked. "So… you are going to watch me change? Is this a way to get to see me naked?"

Sakura paled and she was gaping at him. She had never thought about this! "No way!"

"Your actions gave it all away," he added.

"Um… I'll leave the room while you… change?" Sakura said and quickly made a dash for the door but Syaoran's laughter stopped her. She turned to look at him.

"I'm joking! I'm joking!" he said, still laughing at her. "It's just a shirt."

Sakura pursed her lips. "You're mean!"

"Now, if you'd like to look, I'll gladly demonstrate it to you." He began unbuttoning his pajamas and Sakura hurriedly turned to face the door so she that she won't be able to witness the drool-worthy scene. There was a few seconds of shirt rustling and then Syaoran cleared his throat loudly to get her attention. "I'm done."

Sakura turned to peek at him to ensure that he was fully clothed before heaving a sigh of relief and went back to him. Syaoran had tossed the drenched pajamas to the other side of the bed. He had scooted to one side of the bed and was waiting for her. Seeing that she was looking at him now, he patted on the empty space next to him.

"Didn't you want me to go home?"

"I've changed my mind," he replied calmly with a grin.

"But I need to go off soon. My father and brother will be coming back."

Syaoran let out an impatient sigh. "It's just for a little while. Will you just come here and lie by me until I sleep?"

"Just until you sleep?"

"Yes, will you come over now?"

Sakura wasted no time in going over. She slid into the bed awkwardly and Syaoran put his arms around her and pulled her close to him, inhaling her scent. "Only until you sleep." She felt his smile against her forehead but he didn't reply. She had to remind herself not to fall asleep in his arms for it was very comfortable being held by him. His body warmth enveloped her and she snuggled deeper into his embrace and he pulled her even closer in response, their bodies melting together as one. Sakura stifled a yawn and reminded herself mentally again that she need to stay awake. But of course, she fell asleep in the end with a smile on her face.

Yay! This chapter is slightly longer than the last! How did you find BMV so far? I'm trying to pick up speed in the plot so next chapter may be a little explosive? Keep the reviews coming in; I'm excited to read them.

Have you joined me at facebook? If not, do check out my profile page for the link. There's a little something inside there. Hint: Check out the FB posts with the yellow giftboxes.

See you next week!

P.S. In case you missed it, I've also uploaded a one-shot titled A Dream Come True at FFNet. Be sure to read it!