MELODY IN MY HEART
Chapter 1: The Famous Cherry
written by: Chette-chan
"Please Welcome... Our very own.. Cherry Blossom!"
The audience roared in anticipation as the lights went out, indicating her forthcoming entrance. Seconds later, they heard a soft and soothing voice flow through the stadium,
"Aitai na... Aenai na, setsunai na... kono kimochi..."
A miniscule spotlight suddenly focused on a beautiful girl slowly descending from the ceiling. Sitting on a golden swing, she wore a satin pink dress with wings placed on the backside. Cherry blossoms petals were lightly resting in her auburn hair. She leisurely smiled at the crowd and continued singing, slowly moving the microphone closer to her lips,
"Datte...Datte... tsubasa hiroge futari de..." she paused for a while, and resumes singing, "sora wa marazon yume wo.. yunizon shitai..."
"WE LOVE YOU CHERRY!" the audience cheered. The singer's smile grew at the audiences' cheer. As her tiptoes brushed the ground, her eyes twinkled and she continued her acapella in the measured tempo
"Hora... Catch you... Catch you... Catch me.. Catch me.. Matte!" she sang in a loud voice.
"Cherry!"
"Kotchi wo muite suki da to itte..."
"I Love you!"
"Sou, Nice to meet you.. Good to see you.. KITTOO!"
"CHERRY!"
"Atashi no omoi anata no Haato ni tonde tonde yuuke..."
The crowd held their breath, silence enveloped Tokyo dome for they knew the following word will be sang in the highest pitch that they love.
"MAYOWANAAIIIIII!"
As her voice climaxed, fireworks flew up into the sky and the audiences rose to their feet, backup dancers slowly appeared on stage around her and thunderous music played on cue. Sparks shot up from the opposite ends of the stage, in a combination of pink, yellow and white. The band switched to play a repetitive catchy beat and the dancers proceeded to dance with it. The singer beamed and sauntered towards the audience,
"Come on everyone sing with me!"
"Cherry!"
"Hit it!" the singer shouted in the microphone. The band members jammed on their instruments with gusto. The singer jumped off the swing and began to dance with the dancers, Sakura petals continued to rain down the stage onto the iridescent singer and the dancers.
And so the concert has begun.
After the successful concert, the singer sighed as she entered her dressing room. She tiredly pulled out some of her hair decorations as she plopped down on the chair. She was so tired and really wanted to go home. Home... where she can just drop everything and sleep her life away.
"Omedetou~" a familiar voice piped from behind her.
The singer wearily smiled as she turned around to face her best friend. Like always, this particular individual was standing there, filming the singer with her ever-present camcorder.
"Arigatou," the singer said into the camera lenses, while sighing softly.
"You did a wonderful job tonight! The concert was a huge success!"
The singer halfheartedly lifted one corner of her mouth in an attempt to smile in response. Looking down at her lap, she grew thoughtful and exhaled a puff of breath. Everything had changed - she is now the illustrious 'Cherry Blossom'. She was no longer the cheery Kinomoto Sakura of Tomoeda High School. At the age of sixteen, she was first discovered when she participated in her high school's talent show, against her will. It was her best friend, who pushed her to go on that show.
She won yes, and big crowds petrified her to death at the time. But from there, she made several connections with prestigious production companies and by the age of eighteen, she quickly became one of the most famous idols in Japan. Currently at the age of twenty, however she managed to achieve international stardom, Sakura is now singing all over the world and of course, and as always by her side is her best friend, manager, makeup artist, costume designer in the life of Tomoyo Daidouji.
Yes...
Everything had changed...
Except... her feelings for him...
She still loved and only loved the man who had left her to fulfill the rest of his training in China eight years ago. She regretted not expressing what she had felt for him on that day. She regretted the day he left her, never seizing the chance to answer him when he told her that he loved her. How hard was it to just simply say, "I Love you too?" Biting her lower lip in self-disgust, she hated herself for being such a coward. Why did he have to be so unselfish and not force an answer out of her? It would have made things so much easier if he just did.
How is he? She thought for the nth time, I wonder... does he still remember me? Does he still love me? She sighed, hah, yeah right.. it's been eight years.. but what if he...
"Earth to Sakura?" Tomoyo called out as she waved her hand in front of Sakura's face.
Broken out of her reverie, Sakura sighed and smiled questioningly, "What is it, Tomoyo-chan?" she asked.
"Daijoubu?" Tomoyo asked as her features of worry clearly written on her face. This was not the first time Sakura had done this.
"Of course I am, Tomoyo-chan." she paused and sighed, "But I am exhausted and I wish to go to sleep." She admitted tiredly sporting Tomoyo a sheepish grin.
"Hai! Hai! Mou... you are such a spoiled little girl!" Tomoyo said, teasingly.
"hey.. I'd like to say that it was your fault for spoiling me to begin with." Sakura playfully retorted as she giggled.
"Okay..." Tomoyo conceded as she smiled, "Go change and head home... I bet Kero-chan wanted to see you as much as your family does." She giggled.
Sakura smiled, she remembered Keroberos happy face when she announced that she will be home for a few days when he called her on the phone. "Yes, I missed Kero-chan too..."
"So what are you waiting for?"
Sakura stood up, "Yes Ma'am!"
From a few feet away, Wei silently observes the man who was currently in a deep concentration while steadily brandishing his sword. This man is Syaoran Li, whom Wei called his master, he had grown into a handsome persona, well built and perfect in almost everything that he did. His magic powers had also significantly increased as he completed all his training and was well on his way of earning the title of head leader of the Li clan. We smiled in admiration, realizing how much his young master had matured. His master's green aura flared up vibrantly and Wei looked on with satisfaction. His master's brow furrowed in concentration for it was an extremely meticulous process.
"Just a little more master." Wei informed, "and you'll be mastering a technique on how to transfer your aura into the sword... and then finally you can create a sword using your aura..."
"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"
A shriek suddenly echoed in the capacious mansion. It sounded very much like a cross between a dying dog and a broken siren. Losing his concentration, Syaoran opened his eyes abruptly and found himself at the mercy of an excruciatingly sharp pain. He discovered that his right thumb was bleeding profusely. Half of his energy was already transferred unto the sword which made it much heavier, much more difficult to wield, and way easier for it to slip and nearly chop off his thumb. These facts slowly sunk down into his brain as he deeply inhaled, "YEEEEEEEEOWWWCHHHH!"
Wei sighed, ah right.. I forgot... the master's girlfriend is currently in the mansion. As much as he was a person who was impeccable at almost everything that he did, he would somehow always be a victim of many mishaps whenever his girlfriend was present.
Hastily recovering from pain, Syaoran dropped his sword and sprinted in the direction of the screen. "What? What's wrong? Xu?" he shouted in alarm.
"Xiaolang! I want that CD! I want the latest Cherry Blossom CD!" Xu cried as she saw him approach her. She was holding onto the current newspaper with a picture of the idol, Cherry Blossom, printed on the front page.
Syaoran sighed in irritation as he slowed down his pace. He frowned, "What's so special about the cherry... Whatever- Xu? Is she honestly worth the obsession?"
"What?!" Xu shrieked as she waved her arms around, forcing Syaoran to cover his ears as he winced at her falsetto outburst, "Are you kidding me?! Honey! Cherry is the most popular Idol in Japan and in other countries!"
"Okay! Okay! Just calm down!" Syaoran protested. He slowly removed his hands from his ears and hung his head in exasperation. Raising his head again, he pulled the newspaper out of Xu's hands and examined the picture of Cherry Blossom. His eyes turned back to Xu and he sighed, "Alright I will get the CD for you.. on one condition."
"Anything for you dear!"
"Could you not scream when I'm in the middle of training?! Look what happened!" he chastised as he frowned and showed Xu his thumb.
"Oh my goodness! I am so sorry, honey!" Xu cried in apology. She then sighed, "I just can't help it! She's my favorite Idol! Even I do not understand what she's singing..." she stopped and looked at her boyfriend, "But you do!"
"What?"
"You do know Japanese! Can we hear her songs together and translate it to me?"
Syaoran frowned at her. Japan is like a taboo country or word for him. As much as possible, he is trying to avoid anything that involves Japan the country or anything Japan related at all. "I don't know-"
"Please?" she asked, looking at him. He knew that familiar looked, he sighed and conceded.
"Master.. why don't we take care of your wound first?" Wei asked, Syaoran nodded.
"Wake up!"
Sakura turned to the left side of her bed and groggily muttered, "Kero.. I need sleep.. It's been so long..."
"It's already 4:00pm and you haven't had lunch yet..." Kero blinked and frowned seeing her sleeping again. Kero grumbled to himself as he flew out of her room. "She ain't wakin' up." He informed the people near him in his heavy Kansai drawl. He arrived to the fluorescent-lit kitchen, descended down on the kitchen table and crossed his tiny arms in annoyance.
"She is still a squirt," Kinomoto Touya remarked while grinning, as he rested his back against the kitchen counter while looking at the yellow creature. They already knew who Keroberos is and now he is a part of the Kinomoto's family.
"It's alright," Kinomoto Fujitaka interceded, "Let her sleep. She's exhausted from all the recordings and concerts that she had to do for months on end." He then smiled at he wiped the table with a damp cloth on one hand and adjusted his glasses with the other, "But I am glad that she's home, I missed her so much... right Nadeshiko?" he asked, looking at his wife's picture.
"Yeah... I'd only say this once... but I did miss the monster." Touya smiled.
"Me too," Keroberos agreed.
Syaoran audibly sighed as he entered a music store. He groaned and felt that he had been doing a lot of sighing as of late. Looking around, he found the cashier's desk and made his way over there. Automatically, he smiled politely at the employees as he arrived there, all who happened to be female. At his attractive smile, their faces flushed and they stared at him with their mouths slightly agape. They all knew who he is.
One of the workers finally found her voice and asked, "Wh-What can I do for you ?"
"I was wondering where can I find the Japanese-" he paused and felt his heart ache for a while.
"Yes?"
"I mean albums of Japanese singers." He frowned.
"Well, are you looking for a particular singer?"
Syaoran smiled, "As a matter of fact, I am looking for the latest CD of Cherry Blossom?" Cherry Blossom... he shook his head and smiled.
"Oh the famous Cherry Blossom of Japan! We have one sir, wait for me." The employee chirped and she walked off to another part of the store. Moments later, she came back with a CD in her hand and held it up to Syaoran's face. "This would be it, sir!"
The CD was at Syaoran's eye level and he studied the cover that was facing directly at him, not bothering to take the CD in his hands. On it, there was an image of a beautiful girl with auburn hair. Auburn... he shakes his head. The smile on her face caught his eye and he secretly found it captivating. Peculiarly enough, however, she struck him as somewhat familiar as well. If it were not for all the makeup on her face and her eyes closed, he would have probably been able to recognize her. Slightly shaking his head, he put the thought out of his mind. "So how much is this?" he inquired.
The female employees sighed blissfully in response.
"Here."
Xu looked up at Syaoran as he dropped a plastic bag on her lap. Putting aside the magazine that she was reading, she beamed at him. "What is this?" as asked as she opened the bag.
"Something I had to get past unsettling female employees for," he murmured.
But Xu didn't hear him as she was really excited to open the plastic bag. Her eyes widened as she pulled out a brand new plastic-wrapped CD of Cherry Blossom's latest album. "Oeee! Xiaolang!" she cried in happiness as she jumped up and hugged him, tears falling down her face, "Thank you soo much!"
Syaoran laughed softly and returned her embrace. He loved it when Xu acts like this, she looks so much like... he suddenly frowned. Just like... her.
Xu pulled herself away from the hug and noticed his distant frowned, "Daijaibu?" she asked as she titled her head.
Syaoran blinked, "You mean Daijoubu?" he corrected. He shakes his head, "Xu.. don't speak Japanese if you can't." he sighed.
"But I want to speak Japanese! Cherry Blossom speaks Japanese!" she pouts.
"Because she is a Japanese person." Syaoran sighed.
"Well I am trying to be like her..." she muttered.
"Never mind.. Anyway now that you have the CD, I'm going to return to my train-"
"Ahhh Iie!" Xu giggled, "We are going to listen to the entire soundtrack together and you will be translating everything to me!"
"Wh-what?! But I need to get back to my training-"
Much to his annoyance, he was still forced into what Xu wanted to do. However, before they could start listening to the singer, Xu yawned and dozed off. Track 1 and 2 were instrumental which made her sleepy. As his finger nearly touched the stop button, the CD cover in Xu's hand caught his eyes. Changing his mind for a moment, he picked up the cover and examined through the titles of the songs. He assumed that track 3 will be the start of the songs with vocals. They were entirely written in Japanese characters but it was hardly a problem for him – unlike Xu who did not understand a word.
He turned around and switched the song to track 3, ending track 2 and pressed play button. He narrowed his eyes as the song and the voice was so familiar to him. Syaoran opened the CD booklet and at the ending there was a message from the singer. He read it out loud, having Japanese words escaping his mouth for the first time in a long time.
"Hi there! Thank you for buying my album. I am so thankful to everyone, for their support and love. Most especially to my father and brother, my best friend who is also my costume designer, makeup artist, and manager. To my friends and my school, Tomoeda High for pushing me to achieve my dreams, and lastly to all my Cherry Blossom fans! Everyone! Just remember that everything will be alright! Arigato! Arigato!"
"Everything will be alright..." As Syaoran finished reading the message, he thought he could feel her aura emitting from the words. But he shook his head and thought better of it as he tried to convince himself, "Sa-Sakura..." he gulped saying her name again for the first time in a long time, "Sh-She would never become a singer... She always disliked singing in front of others..." Suddenly feeling disgruntled, he turned around and pressed stop. Dangit, But that singer sounded a lot like her... now that he had thought about it.
Damn it Xiaolang! Could you just forget about her? You already have a flippin girlfriend! You choose not to go back to her so that you wont be troubling her anymore! You choose to move on! He sighed and looked at his girlfriend But why did I fall for Xu? Could it be because she looks so much like Sakura? But.. arghhhhh! He groaned in frustration, You and Sakura are not meant to be! So just.. forget about her and and..
"ARGHHH!" he groaned loudly in frustration his mind was hopelessly mish mashed.
Xu slowly awoke up to the noise as she rubbed her eyes and peered at him, "Hoeee?" she sleepily raising an eyebrow as she asked, "What's wrong Xiaolang?"
"N-Nothing..." he said quietly, avoiding her gaze. In his mind, however, he was loudly beating himself up for the unintentional vocal outburst.
"Oh okay, I will just go back to sleep and will hear the rest of the songs later..." she yawned tiredly and leaned back to Syaoran's arms. "Wo ai ni.. Xiaolang.."
Syaoran glanced up the ceiling and continued to hold her close to him, He gently whispered, "Wo Ai Ni..."
Xu giggled and clung onto him tightly. As soon as Xu fell asleep again, Syaoran finished his sentence with an aching heart.
"...Sakura."