CHAPTER FIVE
BEGIN AGAIN?
~SAKURA~
I felt so warm…I didn't want to wake up, I didn't want to do anything except lie here, sleeping forever.
But I started hearing snippets of conversation…
"Been…day…" Eriol?
"…hours?" Tomoyo…
"Sakura…okay…"Definitely Eriol again.
"I think that she will…" Syaoran…?
I opened my eyes, a huge headache suddenly assailing me, and swore violently. Three dark figures were bending over me, but the pain in my head was so great, I could barely see.
"Damn…" I groaned, "My head…"
"Here, sit up," said a voice. Syaoran again. A warm hand helped me sit up, and handed me a mug. I sipped it, then, thirstier, began to gulp it down. My vision cleared, and my headache dissolved. I felt the last of the warm liquid slide down my throat, and Syaoran, Tomoyo and Eriol came into view.
"Hey, guys…" I said hoarsely, and bit my lip.
Tomoyo's eyes were brimming with tears, and Syaoran helped me get out of bed. I realized I was still wearing my pajamas and blushed silently.
"We missed you," said Syaoran in a low voice, wrapping me in a hug. I turned bright red, as Tomoyo and Eriol exchanged an incredibly smug glance.
Syaoran let go of me, and I hugged Tomoyo, and Eriol.
"I missed you guys too." I said, forcing back the tears that sprang up into my eyes. "Um, can I wear something else? I'm kind of cold," I said, shivering. Thin cuts laced my legs and arms, and there was a neat slice on my cheek.
"I'll make you something!" chirped up Tomoyo happily. "I'll go home, and come back with something! Come on, Eriol!" She said, and dragged him out of the door.
The door closed with a slam, and there was silence in the apartment, save for the chattering of my teeth.
"Still cold?" Syaoran asked, concerned.
"Y-yeah…"
"Well, uh, I don't…um…have…much, but…well…your jacket and um well, what I'm trying to say is that I…"
I giggled. "I don't need to borrow any clothes, Syaoran. Tomoyo will be back soon."
He looked uncommonly relieved, and I smiled again.
Yawning, I sat down on the bed once more, leaning back and closing my eyes. Syaoran sat on the edge of my bed, and we were both silent for a moment before he spoke.
"Are you okay?" he quietly.
"Yes," I replied, equally as soft.
My eyes opened again, and I found him sitting on the bed next to me, his face barely twelve inches from mine, him peering intently into my face.
I didn't blush; I felt so confused for some reason, so mixed up.
"Do you want to talk about it?" he whispered.
"Yes," I said in a low voice.
I looked at him, melting in his amber gaze, and I felt a tug at my heartstrings.
"Sakura, I—" he said, cutting himself off.
"Yes?" I asked. The word was quickly becoming a litany.
"Um…I need to fix your cuts."
"Oh! But you don't have to!" I said sincerely, figuring out that if Syaoran was actually touching my skin, more over on my legs, arms and face, I would faint because of major blood-loss from the nasal cavities.
"I want to," he replied firmly. Then he blushed. "Um, because, they're still bleeding, and deep, so you know, if I helped you fix them then it would be okay because your magic is still low."
I blushed deeply and said, "O-okay…"
Some of the cuts were quite bad, and there were three gashes on my thighs, and thinner cuts all over my arms, legs and one on my face.
I was just watching his face, so I spat out a curse as I felt an extreme sting on those gashes.
"DAMN! Syaoran that—" I looked at my thigh. There was nothing. Just clean, unbroken skin, not blemished in the least. "Hurt," I finished.
He shrugged, somewhat embarrassed, and muttered, "Clan herbs."
"Oh."
The next two cuts were just as deep, so I gritted my teeth, and looked at Syaoran. That helped a lot. He looked very methodical and studious. He probably had years of practice.
The smaller scrapes weren't as bad, so they hurt less.
I was trembling, just because Syaoran's hands were on my skin, slathering ointment on my cuts.
I almost fainted as he healed the one on my cheek. His face was barely five inches from mine, eyebrows knitted in concentration, fingertips on my cheek.
"Done," he barely breathed, dropping the herbs. "It took barely…fifteen minutes…" the ointment was dropped onto the bed.
But he didn't move. Nor did his fingertips on my face.
I turned to fully face him. Our eyes were locked, and we started moving closer…and closer…four inches…three inches…two inches…one inch…OMIGODOMIGODOMIGODOMIGOD!!!!!
I started mentally freaking out…and we were about to kiss, when my vision started swimming, and my last conscious moment was my head hitting the pillow.
[Go ahead. Say it. I'm evil. XD don't worry, they'll have their moment…eventually, heheheheh…]
Tomoyo hovered in Eriol's arms outside the window, watching eagerly as Syaoran and Sakura were about to be lip-locked.
Suddenly, Sakura's eyes rolled, and she fainted on to her pillow. Syaoran clenched his fists and swore violently in Mandarin, and tugged at his hair. Sakura's eyes opened, again, and whispered something, making his oaths stop. He spoke back, and she closed her eyes again.
His brows knit together as he watched her sleep. He covered her with a blanket, and watched her silently. Sadly.
Tomoyo and Eriol exchanged pitying glances, and zoomed off to her house.
~SYAORAN~ (back when he just finished putting all the ointment on…XD)
I couldn't help it. I knew that I was letting my heart controlling my actions, pushing my brain away.
But at that precise moment, I knew I didn't give a damn.
Kami, I wanted to kiss her so bad…it was some driving impulse, her face was so soft, my hands were cupping her face, her emerald orbs staring into mine…
I started reaching towards Sakura…
When…
Her eyes rolled, and she fell backwards onto the pillow.
I said it once. And I'll say it again. I couldn't help it.
So I began my five second rant to the Gods, to the Clan, to the ceiling, and anyone that happened to be listening to me.
I swore in enough languages and enough phrases to make any sailor's ears burn, I'm sure of it. It really didn't help me at all. Well, maybe a little bit.
I noticed, then, that Sakura's eyes, opened, and any words that were on their way of being uttered were halted; she said something in soft, halting tones.
"Syaoran," she murmured sleepily, "I'm so sorry…would you mind if I slept?"
"Don't be, Sakura," I replied softly. "No, I wouldn't at all. I wouldn't at all."
Her eyelids fluttered closed, hiding her beautiful green eyes.
Sleep, Sakura, sleep while you can…I thought sadly, watching her. I covered her with a blanket and watched her some more.
I leaned forward, and kissed her on the forehead gently. Silently, I left the room to make lunch, quietly shutting the door behind me.
~AT TOMOYO'S HOUSE…~
"Tomoyo, dear, Sakura will look wonderful in _anything_ you give her!"
"No…" growled Tomoyo vehemently. "Sakura _has_ to have the best!"
"Yes, I know, but…"
"But _what_ Eriol-kun?" she asked, walking up dangerously close to him.
"Um…um…" It was odd how a powerless human girl could easily scare and overpower him by looking at him. Love does funny things.
She stared at him for a moment, then brushed his lips with a short kiss, and turned on her heel, raiding her closet for Sakura's outfit, with out another word.
Eriol turned a deep lobster red, and ran a hand through already unruly hair. "Hot damn," he said, grinning.
Fifteen minutes later, Tomoyo emerged from her closet with an outfit perfect for Sakura, and she dragged Eriol out of the house, a hand covering his wrist in a harsh grip. He, of course, was still blushing.
They flew to Syaoran's apartment thanks to Eriol's magic, and were coming back into the apartment with in two minutes.
Syaoran was in the kitchen, cooking, and a fragrant aroma hit Eriol and Tomoyo's noses.
"Is it lunch?" asked Eriol curiously, nose perking up.
"Yeah, it's just some soup…nothing special."
"It smells good," offered Tomoyo. "Thanks for being so hospitable, Syaoran. I mean, cooking us lunch, keeping Sakura here while she recuperates…"
"You guys owe me nothing. I owe you more," replied Syaoran gruffly, placing two steaming bowls of soup on the table. "You guys eat first, I'll eat with Sakura."
"Thanks, Li-kun," said Tomoyo again.
"Yes, descendent, you are being quite honorable."
"Cut the crap and just eat lunch," said Syaoran with a bite of impatience in his voice.
"Okay, okay…"
And Syaoran strode out of the kitchen, back to where Sakura was sleeping peacefully.
Watching her tranquil state for a moment, he blushed, and yawned. He didn't realize how tired he was, not until he felt his eyelids droop down…
He yawned widely, and stumbled blindly to the couch, ignoring the looks of Tomoyo and Eriol, and collapsed, asleep before his head hit the cushion.
~*~
~SAKURA~
I was in the state between sleeping and waking, wanting to do neither. It was delightfully warm, wherever I was, and I had no intention of moving to wake up, or going back to sleep.
I wanted to stay like that forever, and always.
Unfortunately, I couldn't. My eyelids felt lighter, and I slowly moved my hand, fingertips stroking a comforter. Where was I? I buried my face deeper into the pillow, when it hit me—this didn't smell like my pillow.
Go ahead and laugh—I know it sounds weird, but I use this Vanilla pillow spray stuff in my room—and what I was smelling was definitely not vanilla. It was…cinnamon, and evergreen…reminding me unmistakably of Christmas. Who smelled like this? And why was I here?
I smelled it again. Suddenly, things came back to me at an alarming pace. This smelled like Syaoran, and the handkerchief he gave me. At Tomoyo's party. Hishirito. I got depressed. A card. Alone. Cuts. Kiss. Almost a kiss, I reminded my self, blushing. Wait—we kissed at her party, but we almost kissed again…Fainted—I fainted. Syaoran mended my cuts. I woke up, then I fainted…no wait, that was messed up…I heard the faint clinking of forks or something coming from Syaoran's kitchen. I heard the low murmur of two voices in conversation. Eriol and Tomoyo, but…where was Syaoran? I didn't hear his voice. I rolled over, and opened my eyes, yawning and stumbling out of my bed. Wait—not my bed, but the bed I was sleeping in. Syaoran's bed. God—that sounded so twisted…as if…I blushed violently, rubbing my eyes. I stepped outside of the room, and a fragrant smell hit my nose.
"Sakura!!" cried Tomoyo, rising from the table and running at me. Just before I was hit and wrapped in a warm hug, I saw Syaoran dozing on the couch.
"A-are you okay?! Do you need anything? Aren't you tired? Are you gonna be okay? S-Sakura chan?!"
"Tomoyo, I'm okay—I'm okay!" I exclaimed, backing up into the wall. Eriol was watching with an amused expression on his face.
"As you can tell, we've been worried about you," he said dryly.
"What's the matter with Syaoran?" I asked
"Worried about him, are you?" Tomoyo replied with a smirk on her face.
"Yeah, I mean um, no, I mean, why shouldn't I?" I demanded. "We're friends, after all."
Eriol coughed, which sounded exactly like, "MORETHANFRIENDS!!!" I raked him with a glare worthy of Syaoran.
Eriol, however, looked unfazed and said, "How about we tell him—"
I clenched my fists and growled, "You do that, Eriol, and I will happilly pull out every blue hair from your head personally!"
"Now, now, Sakura-chan, no need for violence," said Eriol smiling.
"Um, Sakura, how about you change, now?" asked Tomoyo, pushing me into the small bathroom.
What was with Eriol all of a sudden? It's like he suddenly decided to become evil again. I vaguely noticed Tomoyo handing me some clothes, and I took them unconsciously and walked into the bathroom, and shut the door.
I pressed an ear to the door and heard Tomoyo.
"Do you have to be so…so…evil, right after she wakes up?!"
"I must do what I have to get my daughter and descendent together,"
"Well…don't bug Sakura-chan!"
"Bug her? I wouldn't dream of it!"
"Don't make me pound you into the ground, which would be utterly embarrassing for you because we're in Li-kun's house."
"You'd rather kiss me."
"Don't be so arrogant, Eriol-kun."
"KUN!?! Try 'sama'"
"Kun."
"Sama!"
"Look who's acting like the three year old who didn't get any ice cream!"
"Look who's acting like the three year old's girlfriend who didn't get any ice cream either,"
"What? You make no sense!!"
"I have enough sense to do this."
There was a silence, and I did not want to know why they suddenly stopped talking.
Then I heard one more thing.
"Eriol, remind me why I love you like I do."
I practically laughed aloud, and quickly changed. I looked in a mirror, and did a quick double take.
I was dressed in a warm pair of jeans, and a see through sweater with bell sleeves, and a black tank top underneath it. My hair, however was beyond serious repair, and I ran a frustrated hand through it. Oh well.
I opened the door and said, raising my voice a little, "Tomoyo, can you help me with my hair?"
There was another silence, and then: "Um, uh, sure, sure Sakura!" I heard a scrape of a chair against the floor and someone's disoriented footsteps to the bathroom. Tomoyo came around the corner, and was smiling like a cat who had eaten a very fat canary.
"Wars with Eriol," she stage-whispered. "I won."
"YOU DID NOT!" yelled a voice from the kitchen.
"Shut up, Eriol!" groaned a loud voice from the couch. It was Syaoran, and he sounded cranky. "Let me sleep!" I think, even though it has to be my imagination, that his voice softened just a bit, as he said, "Sakura must be tired too."
I practically heard that evil chuckle from Eriol that he was probably thinking. Instead:
"Sorry, descendent, my apologies. I know you and her must be very worn out from getting that card."
"I 'cept your apologies. Now just…try… to be a bit more quiet?" and Syaoran said no more.
Tomoyo smiled again, and said, "What's the matter with your hair? It looks fine to me,"
"Yeah," I retorted, "If you want the 'messed up just got out of bed look' ,"
"Actually," replied Tomoyo, "That's supposed to be very 'in' right now,"
"Well, not for me," I countered. "Fix."
Tomoyo sighed, and produced a comb from her pocket. "So," she said casually, but I was not decieved. "Have you guys kissed yet? I mean, besides the party, but…"
"NO," I said, a little too loudly, blushing. "We have not!"
"I mean, Sakura, you must have worn him out—look at him, he's knocked out!"
"TOMOYO!" I practically screeched, gripping the faucet on the sink.
She smiled evilly, and continued. This time, with a more thoughtful note in her voice. "I wonder why he didn't just climb in bed with you."
I could not say anything. She finished combing my hair and said, "All done!" and walked out of the bathroom, leaving me before I exploded from embarrassment.
I took a daring glance at the mirror, and was not at all surprised to find my cheeks twin strawberries. Maybe I could BS something about having a fever…
Nah, scratch that. Thinking about neutral things, like the weather, or couch material—wait, no couches, Syaoran is sleeping there…um, think about…cotton! Yes, cotton balls, that come in the little plastic bags that you can buy at the drug stores for cheap. Didn't Syaoran use a cotton swab to clean my cuts?
STOP THINKING ABOUT SYAORAN!!!!!!!!
I stalked out of the bathroom, and glared at Tomoyo. "You are so evil, do you know that?" I hissed, not daring to raise my voice.
"That's why she's my girlfriend," Eriol interrupted smoothly, seeing Tomoyo open her mouth to speak.
"Who said I was your girlfriend?" she countered evenly.
"Because when you kiss me, it makes me think that," he replied
"You shouldn't make assumptions, even if they are correct," she sniffed, putting her hands on her hips.
An evil grin touched his lips. "I knew it."
"Shut up, Eriol."
"Ok."
I smirked, and sighed. "I am famished. What's there to eat?"
"Soup?"
"Sounds good…" I trailed off, and plopped down in a chair. "Feed me," I commanded.
"My, my, my, no 'please'?" asked Eriol.
Syaoran growled from his position on the couch, and sat up, running a hand through his messy hair.
"I can't sleep," he said in a husky voice, standing up, yawning.
Tomoyo caught my eye, and I quickly looked away. He looked so adorable when he yawned.
"Well, since we already have consumed a delicious meal that my descendent has so graciously prepared for us, I think it is time for my dear Tomoyo-chan and I to depart."
I saw Tomoyo give Eriol a startled glance, but a smirk flitted across her lips thereafter.
"Right," she said.
"Why?" I questioned.
"Because we're going to go look up all the stuff we can on this Hishirito guy," Eriol replied. "I seem to remember that he wasn't…he didn't have that good of a reputation, and there seems to be a ledgend-type air around him."
"Oh."
"So, we'll be back to report we have found. Now get your nourishment!" chirped Tomoyo, saluting us.
The two left.
I blinked.
"Um, what just happened?" I asked confusedly, rubbing my eyes.
"I…don't know," Syaoran confessed, sitting down next to me at the table, two bowls of soup in his hand.
There was silence for a little while.
He cleared his throat the same time I coughed.
"So," we both said, laughing nervously. I stirred my soup, pretending to be absorbed in the way the noodles interacted with the carrots.
"Go first," I said, turning up my face to look at him.
"No, you," he said, eyes serious.
"I…just wanted to say…thanks, Syaoran-kun," I said, blushing slightly.
"Why?" he asked, tone surprised.
"Why?" I echoed. "Because, of all the stuff you've done! I mean, you mended my cuts, you helped me transform the Alone Card, you made us lunch, you let me stay here…"
"It's the least I could do," he replied, voice low. "You've done much more for me as a friend, Sakura."
I raised an eyebrow. "How?"
"You…helped me see people, you listened to me, you never gave up, and neither did Tomoyo, Rika, Yamazaki…none of your friends. And you made me feel how a real, normal kid felt, away from magic, away from China and the Clan…"
"Syaoran," I began gently, "You helped me see that not every one was perfect; every one has their flaws, every one has their blessings. I just…wanted you to belong, I wanted you to be happy."
~POV SWITCH, THIRD PERSON~
"Why would you want me to be happy?"
Sakura hesitated. "Does it matter? I want everybody to be happy—" she gave a short laugh, "I realize that's impossible, now."
"Sakura, you've touched so many people…" Syaoran trailed off, blushing.
Both realized that they were touching very delicate subjects, embracing them in the gentlest way they knew how.
"Would you be different if it weren't for me?" questioned Sakura finally.
"Yes," replied Syaoran honestly. "Sakura, you changed me…you taught me how to love."
~*~
"I wish I could have seen them talking," pouted Tomoyo, crossing her arms as the two walked to the library.
"As do I. But we still have to remember about this Hishirito. We need to teach Sakura how to use her magic, too."
"Her Magic?" Echoed Tomoyo, curious.
"Yes, her magic. She has magic, but she doesn't know how to use it. Of course, there are the cards, but I could teach her how to use the cards' powers with out the chants and all, and her other magics as well."
"Are you serious?" asked Tomoyo, halting.
"Yes, Tomoyo-chan, I am!" replied Eriol, grinning.
"AWESOME! OH MI GOSH! I CAN'T WAIT! NEW COSTUMES! AHHHHH!" shrieked Tomoyo, smiling insanely, eyes growing huge and sparkling like diamonds.
Eriol gave her a look. "After we research this guy."
Tomoyo's expression vanished. "Exactly," she said, a determined look in her eyes. "This Hishirito guy is going down."
"Now THAT'S what I like to hear!!" exclaimed Eriol.
"Syaoran-kun seemed to say the same thing about you, Eriol," laughed Tomoyo as they reached the Library. Eriol held the door open for her and she stepped through, taking his hand, and they jogged to the Legends section in the Library.
