'PC' – short form for
practical criticism; term used to examine a literary piece in terms of the
various literary techniques used
Sakura allowed herself to slop down on the couch. She stared at her hand phone, which rested comfortably on her lap. "I like you." Sakura sighed as she pushed herself into a proper sitting posture. "Should I?"
The silver gadget stared back at her, its cool, smooth texture urging her to pick it up. Sakura fingered the buttons as she keyed in the numbers. A ringing tone broke the silence of the living room and for a moment, Sakura nearly dropped her hand phone in surprise.
"Daidouji residence. Who's there?" A sweet, lyrical voice traveled through the silver gadget.
"Konnichiwa, Tomoyo-chan. This is Sakura."
"Konnichiwa, Sakura-chan. It's been a while."
"Yes, it has been a while."
"Sakura-chan, what's the matter? You don't sound right."
"Tomoyo-chan, do you still remember Li-kun?"
"Yes, what about him?"
"Today, at the park, Syaoran-kun…"
"Syaoran-kun?"
"Oh, he's Li-kun. Anyway, at the park, Syaoran-kun told me that he likes me."
There was a pause on the other side of the line as Tomoyo contemplated with the statement. "And what about you?"
"Hoe?"
"I mean, how about your feelings towards him?"
My feelings towards him… I never seem to answer this
question since the first time that Tomoyo-chan asked me to.
"Sakura-chan…"
"Oh, gomen nasai. I think I like him as a friend."
"You think? Then, it can be more than liking him as a friend."
"But… I can't stand in between his fiancée, Meiling-chan and Syaoran-kun."
"What if you can do that? Besides, have you spoken to Meiling-chan about this?"
* * *
Syaoran took his text out as he settled down on his seat in the tutorial room. He took a glance at the empty seat next to his and sighed. What can be her response?
A hand landed on his shoulder, giving him the assurance. "Don't worry. She just needs time to think things through."
"But Meiling, what if she doesn't like me? It will be extremely embarrassing when we see each other and then, in the end, we cannot even be friends."
"Don't worry. I'm sure that things will work out."
Just at the moment, the door swung open and a girl stood there panting for her breath. "Manage to get here on time." As she moved to her seat, her eyes caught sight of Syaoran.
"Ohayo, Syaoran-kun." The girl muttered softly as she took her seat next to him, with her face downcast.
"Are you alright, Sakura?"
Sakura nodded her head, slightly, her face turning crimson. She then pushed herself closer to her desk and buried her face in her books.
* * *
"Ok, please turn to page sixty of your text. We will start on a new poem. Ermmm… Li Syaoran, please read it." The tutor flipped open his own copy of the text and waited.
Syaoran stood up and started to read.
"I fear thy kisses, gentle maiden,
Thou needest not fear mine;
My spirit is too deeply laden
Ever to burthen thine.
I fear thy mien, thy tones, thy motion,
Thou needest not fear mine;"
He paused for a moment to glance at Sakura and then continued the rest of the poem with more emphasis.
"Innocence is the heart's devotion
With which I worship thine."
As he sat down, he looked at Sakura again. The auburn-haired girl turned red and plunged her face closer to the book.
"Thank you, Syaoran. Now, is there any volunteer to tell us what this poem is about or don't tell me that you have not prepared again for today's classes?"
"I will." Meiling stood up as she smiled at Sakura. "Basically, this poem that Shelley wrote is about his love for a woman and that his love for her is genuine shown through the fact that there is nothing to fear about his kisses, which signify his love. However, he fears that the gentle maiden would reject him as he had no ideas about her feelings towards him and he became greatly troubled. In the last two lines of the poem, he attributed the reasons for his affections to the qualities that she represented, that is innocence."
"Thank you, Meiling. That's a good summary. Now can another person PC the poem?" The tutor continued, his eyes shooting out for a potential victim.
Sakura looked at the poem as the words reached out to her, as if they were specially written for her. His love for me is genuine… He likes me for who I am… He is just as troubled as I am… She tried to sneak a peek at him but realizing that he was looking at her, she quickly reverted back to her text.
Meiling, in the meanwhile, watched with amusement.
* * *
The chime rang, once again signaling the end of the lesson. "Ok, I will see you all on the next week and just a reminder, International Understanding Night is on Monday night so there will be no class on that day. But if you want, I won't mind giving extra classes." The tutor chuckled and stood up to leave the tutorial room.
"I'm so excited. International Understanding Night is just two days from now." Zhen'er exclaimed. "Have you decided what you will wear on that night?"
"Yeah, I'm going to wear a kimono and it's specially made by Sakura." Meiling smiled as she crossed the distance to Sakura's desk. "Isn't it right, Sakura?"
"Yes."
"By the way, can I speak to you? You and me only." Meiling looked into Sakura's eyes, as if telling her that it was important through the mere communication of the windows to the human soul.
"Sure. Where?"