Chapter 4: A Debt to Pay
Summary: Sakura & Takara Kinomoto, twins with the same looks, but opposite personalities. They don't get along and they hate each other a lot. They become each other's archenemy when a certain chestnut-haired guy comes in the picture! Sometimes things don't go the way we think they do. That goes along with this story. These two sisters, biggest enemies ever imagined, might also have something growing between them: a friendship
Last scene: Sakura burst with happiness. Her sister was finally changing…and it was all thanks to---Sakura's eyes widened with absolute shock. It was all Syaoran Li's doing who made them be sisters again.
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The process of their friendship took a very long time to make, but they made it. Sakura and Takara were closer than before, but they didn't hang out in school or anything. At home they talked to each other more frequently and helped each other out whenever the other needed help.
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It was early Sunday morning. The sun was starting to shine over Japan, people were just getting up, and the light would gleam everywhere. Takara woke up at early 6am. "Ugh…" Her hair was scattered wherever. She looked out the window and saw the sun peeking through her curtains. "No…need more sleep."
"Come on. Wake up." Someone held Takara's waist tightly.
"Let go of me!" She slapped his arms away, but it held on.
"Get up! If you don't…guess what'll happen…" His voice was taunting.
Takara's eyes widened with fright. "I'm up!!"
Touya let go of his little sister and laughed with all his might. "That always worked!"
"TOUYA!!" Takara yelled.
Sakura heard this from the other room. Her eyes fearfully opened. 'Phew. He's not here. He got Takara first! Yay! Well I'm up, so…hehe…' Sakura rubbed her eyes slightly and made her bed. When Touya got in the room, his eyes widened in surprise. In his mind, a certain word appeared almost every 5 seconds, 'damn'.
"Glad to see me awake and well, brother?" Sakura asked playfully.
Touya walked over to her. "You girls are squirts. You know that??" He ruffled her hair.
Sakura rolled her eyes and laughed.
Takara ran to Sakura's room after she made her bed. "Good morning." She greeted.
"Morning!" Sakura grinned happily. "Let's go down and get some breakfast."
"Uh…" Touya scratched his head. "That's just it…uh…our breakfast…uh…"
"What. Happened?"
"Hehe, it's funny, really. If only you'd just listen." His face looked scared and nervous.
"We're listening, Touya." Takara's timid voice interrupted.
"Um, well, you see, dad? You know him?"
"Yeah, we know our dad."
"Yeah, dad, he's still sleeping. So…I was given…the…what's it called now? Oh yeah, job. To make…well…breakfast."
"What's your problem, Touya?" Sakura asked confusedly.
"R-remember that time…? In, uh, back when I was…13, and you guys were 12? And I had to cook dinner? Hehe, remember what happened??"
Takara and Sakura's faces turned scared. Their eyes enlarged as if pins stuck their eyelids up, their mouths turned into perfect O's, and their hair, messy as always, rose up. Touya took off running as fast as he could out the house.
"TOUYA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" The twins yelled as loud as they could. The place seemed to have shook like an earthquake had hit it.
The whole kitchen was black. Walls, usually painted white, turned pitch black. The stove was filled with huge stains unable to take off. The oven…well…let's not talk about the oven. Let's just say there's nothing left in it. The sink, the cleanest one out of all, was almost hidden by the blackness of the kitchen. Everything felt sticky and icky.
"What the hell did he do to our kitchen??" Takara screamed.
Sakura was just as furious. "What the hell was he trying to make anyway???"
Suddenly, something flickered in both their minds. When they were little kids, not only did Touya do all this, but also a certain someone helped him with it. And they were both the worst cooks in the world. Sakura figured it out before Takara.
She ran to the living room as fast as she could and found Tomoyo shaking, with frowning lips, and frightened eyes. "H-hi!" She greeted.
Sakura shut her eyes and got a pillow. "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" She yelled. Takara followed and saw Tomoyo.
"You helped him? YOU helped HIM?? YOU FREAKIN HELPED HIM?????????????????? DON'T YOU REMEMBER WHAT YOU DID 4 YEARS AGO??????????? OUR HOUSE ALMOST GOT BLOWN OFF BECAUSE OF YOU AND TOUYA'S 'SKILLS' IN COOKING!!!!!!" Tomoyo whimpered and ran out the balcony.
"A-and we have to clean this mess up!!" Sakura cried out. Takara felt a huge migraine coming. She clutched at her forehead.
"I cannot believe they did this. Never will I let them near the kitchen!! Ever again!!!"
The rest of that day, the twins cleaned up the kitchen. Their dad sat on the couch, reading a newspaper, scolding them. Touya mostly did the work and every 10 seconds; Takara would yell an insult at him. He didn't seem to mind. 'My sisters…such angels.' He thought sarcastically.
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The next morning before Block A, Sakura was fixing her things in her locker. "Hey." Someone called to her. She turned and saw Syaoran, leaning on the wall.
"Oh hi." She blushed lightly.
"Haven't talked to you in a while."
"Yeah." She nodded. He walked over to the bench by her locker and sat down.
"I'm just wondering how you and your sister are doing."
"Oh we're doing great." Sakura grinned. "It's actually working, Syaoran! I'm actually talking to my sister in a good way."
Syaoran showed a small smile. "That's good."
Sakura paused and walked over to him. She sat on the bench and stared at his amber eyes. "Syaoran…"
He looked surprised for a moment, but stared back into her green eyes. "Yeah?"
She turned pink, and so looked down at her hands. "Thank you."
"For what?"
"Well, y-you were the reason why my sister and I are doing so well." Sakura shyly admitted. "You gave me the confidence to stand up to her. You've helped me a whole lot. I-I really owe you."
He smiled back. "You don't owe me anything. I was just helping out. Besides, I've got 4 sisters of my own you know. I know how they can be…well you know…when they're fighting. It's crazy."
Sakura bobbed her head up and down. "I-I just have to do something for you. I won't feel better unless I give you or do something for you."
"No. It's fine."
"Syaoran…"
"If you really want to…" He answered mischievously.
"Mm-hmm." She raised her head to meet his eyes.
He showed a lop-sided smile. "Show up in the park. Tonight."
"T-tonight?"
"Problem with that?" He asked worriedly.
"No, no." She laughed. "I'll show up."
"7:30 all right?"
"Mm-hmm."
"I'll see you in Block B." He grinned. "Bye."
"B-bye." She shook in happiness. Sakura finally stood up and walked back to her locker. Her heart beat hard and fast.
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The whole day she couldn't wait to get out of school. She wanted so much to go home…and just…think about him. When she finally got home, Sakura quickly hurried to her room and prepared for the night. In the back of her mind, though, she had a feeling as if she shouldn't try to dress up. It was weird, but…she had doubts in her preparations.
"You know if you really want him to notice you, just be yourself." A similar voice like hers called from the door.
Sakura turned around and faced her sister. "Really?"
"That's probably what's going on in your mind. It's better being you than dressing up to be someone else. I mean, if you want to dress up, go ahead." Takara smiled. "I think you'll look better simple than fancy."
Sakura blushed lightly. "How come you look better fancy?"
"I told you. Just because we're sisters doesn't mean we have to 'look alike'. People see me as a girl full of make-up and blah. They've gotten used to it. They're used to seeing you as a plain girl. What you should do is just put a little bit of lip-gloss, wear natural clothes, and be yourself. Syaoran already likes you the way you are."
Sakura looked at the mirror and looked at herself. "You think so?"
"I know so."
"Takara…" Sakura clutched her hands. "You like Syaoran, right?"
"Well…yeah."
"T-then why are you helping me out? Shouldn't you be…making up stuff just so I can't go to this thing with him?"
Takara smirked. "Hey I don't force people to like me, Sakura. Besides, there are way too many guys in this world to just dwell on one!!"
She laughed. "I wish he does like me…" Sakura whispered. Takara didn't seem to hear.
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That night, Sakura walked to the park and found Syaoran waiting by a large oak tree. He wore casual clothes, with baggy jeans, jean-jacket, and black shirt inside. He looked really handsome. She wore casual clothes as well. (Sorry to bother, but I'm not a fashion person, so sorry if I can't describe her clothes well!) Sakura had on a midriff, with a combination of light blue and pink mixed together. She wore a tight pair of jeans that widened at the bottom (I really suck at this, so my apologies).
Syaoran was staring at her ever since he spotted her walking his way. 'Man, she's beautiful.' He was awe-struck. 'When I saw her, I already knew she was pretty, but god, she looks amazing.' His face seemed to be stuck like that; eyes wide and mouth slightly opened. Sakura kept blushing once she arrived at the destination.
"H-hi." She stammered. 'Oh my god, he's so hot…and handsome…and his face…'
"Hey." He smiled weakly. "Y-you l-look, uh…beau---pretty. You look pretty."
"Thanks. You look nice too."
"Heh. Thanks." He grinned, finally easing up. "So Kinomoto, where do you wanna go?"
"What??" She was surprised. "But I owe you! You choose where to go! "
He laughed. Her heart skipped. "That's true. I got something planned later at 9. We gotta go somewhere before it."
"Where are we going??" Sakura had stars in her eyes.
"I can't tell you. It won't be a secret anymore." He looked around. "You wanna just walk around?"
"Mm…" Sakura heard her stomach grumbling. "Heh, I'm kinda hungry."
"You should've just said so." He smirked at the grumble. "Let's go eat."
"I have money." She offered.
"No I'm paying. Think of this as a friendly date, all right?"
Sakura felt her cheeks turn pink. "O-ok."
The walk to the nearby restaurant (where you don't have to wait in line to get a table) was pretty awkward. Sakura couldn't help her heart from beating so loud. She almost had to cover it just to make sure Syaoran didn't hear. Then again, Syaoran felt the same way. Here was a beautiful girl walking right beside him and he didn't even have the courage to start up a conversation! Once in a while, he'd glance at her, just to see her face. Most of the time she kept her head down, but glanced at him back. Their eyes, when met, seemed to give each other a smile.
Syaoran opened the door before she could. "Thanks." Sakura smiled and went in the heated place. The tables were full of people, but there were some vacant ones by the far left window. "Let's go there." She pointed.
"Yeah ok." Syaoran followed her.
As soon as they sat, a waitress appeared. "Can I get your order?"
"Um…" Sakura felt her hands just stop moving. 'I haven't even read the first sentence yet!'
"We just got here. Give us a few minutes, will you?" Syaoran asked politely.
"Oh ok sir. Sorry." She ran back to the counter.
Sakura giggled. "Thanks Syaoran."
"No problem." He smiled. "What do you want to eat?"
"I guess I'll just have…mm…I'm not sure."
"Take your time. I gotta go to the bathroom. Be right back."
"Oh ok."
Sakura looked at her menu and decided to go for the food specials, which was Teriyaki and Sushi (thank you, Mini Sweety). As soon as Syaoran returned, so did the waitress. She was all ready for her order, but Syaoran, having returned from the washroom, was startled.
"I-I didn't get to pick yet." He stumbled out.
"Oh. Well, can I get your order, miss?" The waitress' eyes darted to Sakura.
"I'll have the special."
"All right." She wrote some things down.
Syaoran glanced up from the menu and looked at the waitress. "I'll get the grilled shrimp and crab with rice and vegetables." (I got that in this restaurant my friend & I went to on her birthday! It was SOO good!!)
"Ok. I'll be back in a while with your orders." She started to walk away, but turned. "What would you like to drink?"
"Water's fine." Sakura answered.
"Coke." Syaoran replied.
"Got it."
When they were finally left alone, the awkwardness came back. Both didn't want to look each other in the eye afraid of what they'd feel. After a little bit, Sakura started to talk.
"Syaoran, tell me about you." Sakura offered a smile. "I-I really don't know you all that well, except that you've got 4 sisters."
He grinned. "What do you want to know?"
"Basic things about you."
"You tell me about you after?"
"Uh-huh."
"All right. I'll start with the general stuff." (Ok practically everyone know Sakura & Syaoran, so I don't need to put a huge biography on them, all right?? But I'll put a few pieces of it.)
"I've lived in Hong Kong just about my whole life. The reason I came here was my mom thought I needed a break from HK. She kept telling me that I should travel and meet new people. At first I didn't want to, but I went with it. Sometimes I feel really homesick, but it's normal." Syaoran had that faraway look in his eyes.
"Do you wish you didn't come here?" Sakura asked.
He glanced at her. "Yeah. I mean I haven't had the best of time here. I met you though."
Sakura's cheeks turned bright red.
He turned pink at her cute face. "What about you, Sakura? You ever get out of Japan?"
She shook her head. "No." She smiled. "Japan is my home. I'll never leave it. I love it too much. You'll learn to love it too, Syaoran. If you stay a while…" She mumbled the ending.
Fortunately he heard it, but kept it himself. "I like Japan and all, but…it's just not as…important to me as Hong Kong. You know what I mean?"
"Yeah." She nodded briefly. "If I went to Hong Kong, I'd really be homesick of Japan. But I've always wanted to visit it."
He smiled. "If you ever do, look me up. I can show you around."
"I will." She smiled back.
The food finally came. The delicious smell left their mouths wide open. "MMM!!" Sakura squealed. Syaoran watched warmly as the waitress set the plates down. 'Cute…'
"Come on Syaoran! Eat your food!" Sakura motioned.
"All right, all right." He laughed and got his chopsticks.
They spoke words to each other, but mostly enjoyed the mouth-watering food. When they finished, it was already 8:30pm. Syaoran paid then they both walked over to the park. Under a white blossom tree, Syaoran explained what he had planned to Sakura.
"At 10, there's this thing I want to show you. It's by the lake, but we get to hang out on the rail. A lot of people are going to be there, so we have to get good seats. You wanna go now?" Syaoran's eyes were bright and excited.
Sakura just enjoyed watching his eyes. 'He's so handsome.' "Yeah."
"All right, let's go." He grabbed her hand impulsively and they walked to the lake.
Both their minds were alert, but let it go. The feeling of each other's hand was wonderful. She held onto his large hand tightly. She kept glancing at his strong build and wanting to hug him and just be held by his arms. Syaoran, too, felt that he wanted to hold Sakura and never let her go as if she belonged to him and no one else.
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They got to the rails of the lake and already people were crowding around. "Come on." He pulled her to a nearby spot on the rail.
"The sky looks nice, don't you think?" Sakura blurted out.
"Yeah." He answered, staring up at the dark sky with glimmering stars. "Beautiful." Though his eyes were staring at the sky, his words were directed somewhere else.
Sakura had worn a jacket, but she still got a little cold. She shivered a bit. Syaoran noticed this and looked at her. "Are you cold?"
"Little bit." She said shyly. "But it's ok. I'll warm up soon."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah." She smiled. "It's ok Syaoran."
He looked like he was thinking of something and then pulled Sakura close to him. "I'll put my arms around you. Maybe it'll help."
"S-Syaoran, y-you don't have to."
"I want to." He whispered in her ear softly.
What happened was Sakura and Syaoran both faced the lake leaning on the rail. Sakura was in front of Syaoran with her back facing his chest. His arms were around her shoulders, but went down to her waist after a while. She cuddled to him and relaxed her head on his shoulder. 'I wish he could hold me like this forever…yeah right, like that'll happen.' She sighed dreamily. 'If I keep wishing, it's bound to happen.' She smiled at her own thought.
Syaoran smelled Sakura's hair and held her possessively close to him. Sometimes he'd think of bending his head down a little and kiss her lightly on the neck and cheeks. 'My angel…' He thought.
Five minutes to nine, there were already many, many people. Some were eating cotton candies while some held glow sticks. Some were just cuddling with their loved ones like the two. Soon, a boat appeared in the middle of the lake holding a microphone. "May I have your attention, ladies and gentlemen?" He called through the mic. "The show is about to begin! It's approximately 10 minutes long, but it's a great performance! I hope you enjoy yourselves!!"
"What's going to happen, Syaoran?" Sakura whispered.
"You'll see." He answered quietly in her ear.
She tingled and stared out by the lake, clutching onto Syaoran's arms around her waist. His heart melted.
Suddenly, two fireworks burst from the boat. It exploded up in the air and thousands of colours erupted from them. "Oh my gosh…" Sakura shook from the happiness. Her hand trembled as it reached her mouth. Her eyes were shimmering with happiness. 'Syaoran…' More fireworks exploded up into the air. Some were mixed colours; some were designed as waterfall-like fireworks that burst and a bunch of yellow shades fell in a waterfall kind of way. The whole show was amazing.
Eight minutes into the whole show, Sakura turned around from Syaoran's hold and flung her arms around his neck tightly. Tears formed in her eyes and dropped on his shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asked silently, caressing her hair. "Y-you don't like it?" He asked again, worriedly.
"I love it!" She replied, muffled. "No one's ever done this for me, Syaoran."
"I just wanted you to have fun." He said warmly.
"This is the best day of my life…" She whispered, mostly to herself. 'What is he doing to me??' "Thank you so much…" She looked up into his caring brown eyes. "You didn't even know me well enough to bring me to this, but you did. Why??"
"Because I see in you something that nobody else sees." He answered truthfully. "I wanted to enjoy this with you."
"T-thank you." She smiled through her tears.
"Hey…" He raised his hands and wiped away her tears. "Don't cry."
"I'm just so happy!" She cried. "Thank you!"
"You're welcome." He smiled back at her.
Colours kept exploding right behind Sakura, but neither could enjoy the fireworks. Their attention was only focussed in each other. Syaoran had slowly leant down and almost reached her lips. She leaned up and finally met his lips. Sakura closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his warm and soft lips. The kiss was sweet and innocent, like a first kiss should be. It didn't take any longer than 10 seconds, but both loved it very much.
They moved away reluctantly and looked into each other's eyes. "What does this mean?" Sakura whispered.
"Will you go out with me?" He asked.
She gasped a little and tears formed in the corners of her eyes. Her voice clogged up in her throat. All she could do was nod quickly.
He grinned and laughed. "Don't cry now." He kissed the droplets away. "You're beautiful, you know that?" Sakura blushed heavily. "Inside and out, babe."
"You're handsome, Syaoran." She paused for a second. "You're my angel." She whispered in his ear after gathering all her courage. His eyes widened with surprise and gladness.
"Sakura…" She was all red and her eyes were focussing on their shoes. He took a hold on her chin lightly and pulled it up so he could face her emerald eyes. "And you're mine."
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Like it? Review! That's really…all I have to say. It's pretty lame but…I can't think of anything!!
To answer some reviews:
Mini Sweety – I have an idea on what will happen. It might be like your idea. It might not be! Just keep on reading, all right?
Silva Sun – in the first chapter, I explained that Takara got her 'spoiled' attitude from their mother, who passed away after giving birth. Since she was constantly ignored, their father couldn't really teach her to turn from those ways and get better.
To the rest of you, THAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANKS!!!