AN: Bah stupid me, I just realized I made a mistake in all my chapters, but it's a minor one =P I keep on typing everyone's first name first, when it's suppose to be last name first bah!! I had it right the first time but then I thought I had it wrong so I retyped it and then ya...but whatever ^^;; I'm sticking to what I have right now just to be uh what's the word...starts with a c...uh, anyways hope you guys don't mind ^^ Arigatou for z reviews and R+R on your way out okai?
Disclaimer: CCS doesn't belong to me, it belongs to CLAMP =(
Chapter Five: Wading
As I sit here and daydream, the dance seems so far back in the past. That night's events were a nice blur to me, but I knew it was a pleasant night. A happy night, the night I kind of realized what I felt for Nishio-kun, I mean, Yori-kun. I wasn't completely sure then, but I was...near the edge of it. Turning over the last rock in my mind, I found feelings...strange feelings towards this boy who wasn't so new anymore.
And so weeks went by, everyday was just like any other day. Filled with happiness, joy, deepening friendships, Tomoyo's giggles, Naoko-chan's occasional ghost stories, and Nishio-kun's charming face. Summer holidays seem so close, yet so far, since final exams seem like a big barrier to the actual holiday. But sometimes I find myself imaging up a whole made-up summer holiday with Yori in it always...and that was when I knew I had something more than friendship feelings for him. Tomoyo was always supportive of me, always giggling and nodding knowingly.
But lately, she's been looking worried. Though I'm not really sure why...
But other than that, it's two weeks away from finals and just three weeks away from summer. So close, yet so far. And the biggest news yet? I bet you can guess; I'm in a relationship. With who? Isn't it obvious? Yep, Yori. Smart, athletic, mysterious, charming, Yori Nishio. My boyfriend? Hoeee it sounds so embarrassing to say that, but it's the truth.
Maybe Tomoyo's worried because I spend alot of my time with him. Maybe a little too much, but...but there's nothing wrong with that, right...? We've been going strong for nearly a month. He never falters in his sweetness, he never makes me feel too overprotected or unprotected. Just right. I wondered how a plain, normal girl like me would be able to get such a talented young man. But, like what Tomoyo always says, have confidence in yourself.
And so these thoughts swam in my head as I entered the last class of the day, History. Yori wasn't in my History class, but Tomoyo was and so was Rika-chan and Yamazaki-kun. Sitting down in my seat next to Tomoyo, I noticed she was staring blankly at her notebook. Worried, I quickly clapped my hands in front of her face, causing her to jump up, startled.
"Gomen nasai Tomoyo-chan, but you seemed to be kind of...dazed?" I hinted, hoping she would spill whatever she seemed to be hiding from me. Being friends with her ever since we were toddlers, it was hard to mistaken her behavior for something else. There had to be something going on; not one of Tomoyo's usual plans though.
"Daijoubu Sakura-chan," she plastered a meek smile on her face which I easily saw threw. "I'm just tired, didn't sleep much last night you know?"
"Tomoyo-chan, I can tell when you're lying, so give up," I laughed. "Well, I can sometimes tell...but that's not the point."
Tomoyo sighed and placed her chin in her palm, looking at me thoughtfully as if she was speculating whether to tell me or not. I stared back at her in disbelief. "Tomoyo! You'd tell me anything right?"
"Of course, Sakura-chan, but...nevermind, it's nothing," Tomoyo said with a wave of her hand just as the teacher came in. The class fell silent and I could only sneak glances at Tomoyo hopefully, but she never returned any of the glances. Frowning, I would have to ask Tomoyo afterwards.
History was never slower. Dates and events went in one ear and out the other as sensei drawled on and on about some guy who did...did what? Gah, my attention and focus was clearly not with me in class, for Tomoyo was being very perplexing and I couldn't rack my brain for anything that would bother her enough to be reluctant in telling me.
When I was pretty sure I was about to melt away in my seat, the bell rang and I immediately turned to Tomoyo who immediately turned to me.
"Um--" we both started in unison.
Sweatdropping, I smiled, "You can go first."
"Um, well," Tomoyo tossed her pen into her pencil case, closing it shut with its zipper. "You know...do you remember when--"
"Hey, Sakura-chan," A familiar voice caught my attention as I averted my gaze towards the door of the classroom. Familiar dark green eyes met my gaze and I instantly brightened up, forgetting what I had been talking about with Tomoyo. I think it had something to do with secrets, but that didn't matter because Yori was here. Smiling and standing up, I waved for him to come over. "How did your math quiz go?"
He grinned and did a thumbs up, "The usual stuff."
I beamed and quickly turned to Tomoyo. "You know what Tomoyo-chan?"
Tomoyo blinked so I naturally took that as a no. Excitedly, I declared, "I'm going to be eating dinner at Yori-kun's house tonight! Sugoi neh?" I spun back to face Yori who looked a bit...troubled? I wasn't too sure, but I wasn't exactly paying close attention to his facial expression. "Do you think I should bring something? For a good impression on your parents?"
He seemed not to hear as he looked away. "See you later Sakura-chan, 6:30 okay?" He didn't wait for my reply as he quickly strode out of the classroom and out of sight, much to my confusion.
"Hoe?" I shifted my gaze to Tomoyo who was biting her bottom lip as if in deep concentration. "Oh well, I think I'll bring a gift...Tomoyo-chan, can you help me think of one?"
I watched her face tentatively until I realized she probably hadn't heard me or she was purposely not replying. "Tomoyo-chan!"
She stood up abruptly, an apologetic look on her pretty face. "Gomen Sakura-chan, I have to hurry home to um, do something for my kaa-san. A gift for Nishio-kun's parents? How about a cake? You can make really good ones, and I'm sure they'll be touched! Well, I'll catch you later!" She said this all in a very fast breath and was out the door within a second.
I blinked, why was everyone in such a hurry today? Shrugging to myself, I packed my bag and stepped out of the classroom with a good-bye to sensei. Suddenly feeling lost, I stood in the hallway for a few minutes before realizing that I had to get home and bake a cake by 6:30. Panicking, I dashed down the hall and out the school building with only one task in mind.
Turning the corner with my roller-blades, I nearly crashed into a little six year old sitting in the middle of the sidewalk, clueless of the dangers that could befall on her. Stopping, I turned to warn the little girl.
"Um, hey, what are you doing sitting here?" I crouched down slowly to glance at the child's wide brown eyes. Those eyes were so...so similar to something. I couldn't really place a finger on it.
The little girl stuffed a small fist into her pocket and pulled it out a second later. She brought her hand out at me, opening her palm to show an assortment of different coloured paper stars, yet they were squashed. Confused, I tilted my head and was about to ask her once more when she said, "I forgot they were in my pocket...so I sat down and now they're all flat..."
Smiling, I took one flattened star from her grasp and pinched the corners, the star instantly turning puffy. "See, there you go. All you have to do is pinch the corners," I explained while handing the puffed up green star to the girl.
Squealing with delight, the little girl proceeded in pinching all the flattened stars and bringing them back to life. She looked up at me excitedly, a wide grin on her small round face. "Thankies! I like the green ones the best," she commented while poking at a puffed up green star. "You?"
I giggled, not really knowing why the little girl kept on saying things that rang bells in my head. "I like the pink one," I responded and glanced at my watch. "Well, I better get home, and you too little girl. You shouldn't be sitting in the middle of the sidewalk, especially behind a corner."
"I know...but I live right there," she pointed to the house across.
I glanced up at the white house and saw what seemed to be the girl's mother looking out the window. Relieved, I nodded and waved goodbye, hurrying home and hoping that I would be able to get everything done in time. But all the way home, my mind kept on repeating what the little girl said, and her eyes...very captivating and awfully familiar...
"Kaijuu, what are you doing?"
Snapping out of my revere, I met the gaze of my onii-chan who was holding the door open. He must've been holding it open for a while already for he was looking awfully annoyed, but a hint of concern was shown in his gaze. "Thinking, again," I admitted and stepped into the house. "Is otou-san home?"
"Nope, you know that squirt. He doesn't come home until 6 on work days," he rolled his eyes at me, ruffling my hair. "I'm cooking tonight."
"Oh! Did I forget to tell you? I'm uh, going over to a friend's for dinner tonight!" I didn't know why I didn't say 'boyfriend' but possibly it was because of onii-chan. If he heard he would probably go ballistic and run into a wall. Shaking my head, I ran into the kitchen, throwing my bag in the corner and putting on my apron. Opening cupboards and getting my supplies, Touya stuck his head in curiously.
"What are you doing now?"
"Baking a cake," I quipped cheerfully and cracked an egg.
Touya nodded dubiously, "Ok then...as long as you don't burn the house down."
I was in a much too cheerful mood to mind him, so I simply smiled back at him much to his amazement. Humming a tune I didn't know where I had got from, I dumped the flour into a bowl with the eggs. I was going to bake the best cake ever, and like my otou-san once taught me, I would use love to bake it so it would be extra delicious and good.
This was the only thing I had in mind, other than the little girl and her wide chocolate eyes.
Following the directions on the paper Yori had written on, I found myself skating farther and farther away from my neighbourhood. Passing the school and even Tomoyo's house, I finally entered a very rich looking area. Even the streetlamps were different and the roads were curved and newly paved. The houses around me were all mansions, like Tomoyo's, with quite a distance from the road to the house.
The sun was still up, but slowly setting, causing some of the streetlamps to flicker on yellow and warm. I passed by house 356, then 367...finally hitting 388 carved into the marble of the fence. I glanced up to see a beautiful white mansion and fountains spitting water out into the evening air. The gates were open, as if they were expecting a guess; which they were.
Skating through the gates slowly, I couldn't help but feel mesmerized at the pretty rose bushes and the small pond in the distance. Curious, I skated closer towards the pond and saw that there were goldfish swimming about, the lotuses floating oblivious to the life beneath them. Smiling in awe, I spent a few more minutes taking in the front of the mansion until a voice cut into the quiet air.
"Are you going to come in yet, Sakura-chan?"
Looking towards the mass double doors, I found the amused figure of Yori. Smiling to myself, I hurried over, stopping just in front of him. "Konbanwa! Gomen, but your house is just so beautiful, I just wanted to look at it more before I came in," I explained with a blush.
Yori returned a smile, moving away to let me in. I could not find a word to describe the entrance room of the Nishio mansion. The chandelier was massive and shimmering gold and white, casting specs of light on the ground and walls. The paintings were all framed with gold, a beautiful pot of orchids sitting ontop of a glass table. The rug was soft beneath my feet, intricate patterns weaving and snaking across the rug. Turning to Yori, I could only gasp in awe.
"Sugoi Yori-kun! Your house is magnificent! It's like a palace," I exclaimed truthfully and smiled. "I baked a cake for your parents," I handed over the pink box I had slipped it into, quite proud at how it had turned out. "Speaking of which...where are your parents?"
Yori grunted and nodded upwards, "They're upstairs. Don't know what they're doing."
"Oh," I replied dumbly.
"But that's ok, want to have dinner first before I show you around?" Yori suggested as we entered the living room and into the dining room.
I nodded in agreement, looking at the huge dining table in shock. Two people sitting here? That would actually look rather stupid. "Just us two?"
He smiled, "Is there a problem with that?"
"No! No of course not," I sweatdropped and sat down gingerly in one of the plush cream seats. "Hoeeee...it's so proper here."
"Don't worry, no table manners for tonight, ok?" He grinned while pulling back his own seat across from me. "Just relax and feel at home."
I managed to nod, just as a couple of servants came scurrying in with silver trays and platters. Shocked, I watched as they all placed their trays onto the table, taking the top off to reveal different items of food hidden beneath. When they were finally done, the table was filled and I could only swallow and stare at Yori. "For us?"
"Mmm hmm," Yori replied naturally as if it wasn't out of the ordinary to be having a feast between two people. He must have caught my awkward glance at him for he looked up from his soup to peer at me questioningly. "What is it Sakura-chan?"
"But isn't it not polite to start dinner without your parents?" I reminded.
He looked at me as if I were an alien or something, but quickly laughed it off. "What? You don't mean to say you have dinner with your dad everyday?"
I poked my fork at the steak sitting snug in its ness of vegetables and corn. "Well, no, since he has to stay late at work sometimes. Demo, when he has time he'll eat dinner with onii-chan and I."
A clatter rang through the air as Yori dropped his spoon, splashing a bit of the soup onto the cloth of the table. He was looking at me strangely, with this blank look in his eyes that sent a chill down my spine. Worried, I got up and asked with concern, "Daijoubu?"
He didn't reply, instead he kept on staring and muttered, "That's your family, not mine. Here, we do things differently."
His voice seemed strained and agitated for who knows what reason. I frowned, wondering why he was acting so strangely. Just as I was about to ask him if he really was ok, a tall man around Yori's height walked into the room. He had the darkest hair ever, and flashing deep green eyes. I assumed that this man was Yori's otou-san most likely...
"Yori, what do we do differently here?" His voice was deep and powerful, an air of superiority around him.
I sank back into my seat, wanting to greet this man yet frightened he might jump at me for some reason. I glanced at Yori who wasn't looking at his father, but instead at the table.
"Nothing father, nothing," came Yori's moderately soft voice. It almost seemed like he was scared...but that wouldn't make any sense, would it?
I nearly jumped out of my seat when his father's eyes landed on mine. He seemed to examine me, his eyes never leaving mine as he came closer to the dining table in his navy trousers. "And you are?"
"...Sakura, Sakura Kinomoto," I replied in a rather squeaky voice. I slapped myself mentally. Great, what type of first impression was I aiming for?
"Ah, a girl," Yori's otou-san stated. I sweatdropped. I wasn't trying to be rude or anything, but wasn't it quite obvious that I was a girl? "You must be Yori's...good friend."
I blinked, looking at Yori who seemed to be purposely hiding from my gaze. So he hadn't told his family about our relationship either. How strange of us. Maybe he was scared about his parent's reaction, just like me. I nodded to myself and smiled brightly at his father. "Hai, I was the one who showed him around when he first came--"
"Sakura!" Yori snapped quite suddenly, causing me to jump.
Yori's father was now casting an awfully stern look at Yori who kept on staring at me with strange eyes. I couldn't help but sink back deeper into my seat, wondering why there was so much tension in the air. Finally, Yori's father spoke.
"So, you need a girl to show you around the place? Meet new friends and all that shit?"
I gasped under my breath at the tone of voice his father used. It was so different from my own otou-san's gentle and understanding tone. Quickly, I averted my gaze to Yori who finally lifted his gaze from mine to look at his otou-san. "She was the person sitting in front of me, so she naturally volunteered to show me around," his tone was hard and unquavering.
Now his father looked at me straight in the eye. I once again felt intimidated, knowing I shouldn't be and I was just being silly...
"So you agreed to let her show you around, Yori?" He questioned while keeping his eyes on me.
Yori could only nod stiffly but spoke nonetheless. "This is my life father. I would be ever so thankful if you would leave this room right now."
"You dare to speak to me this way son?" I noticed the chandelier was jingling as Yori's father's voice grew heavier and louder. I wondered if they forgot I was in the room or something, but I could only remain silent. It didn't seem to be a good time to jump in.
Yori stood up from his seat, his eyes never leaving his father's face as he spoke once more, in that same steady tone. "I have a guest over," he stated simply.
His father's eyes narrowed dangerously, scowling before he spat, "So you think because you have a little friend over I'll listen to everything you say?! Oh no I won't son, don't think you're safe whenever you have a guest over. What do you think I am?" I wanted to nudge Yori and mutter "rhetorical question, don't answer it", but he was across the table from me.
Unfortunately, Yori didn't seem to get it and answered. "A beast."
I felt my own heart skip a beat, it didn't feel like I was in reality. In fact I felt like I was watching some soap opera on TV with a very huge life-size screen. Part of me wanted to yank Yori's arm and flee with him out the door. Another part of me simply wanted to dig a hole and disappear under the carpet. It felt so wrong to be invading what seemed to be a family thing.
That was when I thought time stopped and I could only watch in horror as Yori's dad raised his arm and brought it down onto Yori's face. My eyes clamped shut at impact, a loud smacking noise ringing through the elegant dining room. Chandeliers jingled, plates clattered. I didn't open my eyes, my heart beating painfully fast in my chest. Seconds went by, or minutes; I didn't know how long.
Until he spoke up.
"...Go home."
I opened one eye at a time, my eyes landing on Yori who was leaning against the table with both hands. His right cheek was slowly reddening, obviously swelling and would soon be a bruise. I noticed the absence of his father...but, I wasn't so sure if that man was a father. Who would...hit there own child like that? I shivered at the thought, and I couldn't stop shivering.
"Yori...are you o--"
"Go home," he repeated, his eyes never looking back at mine but at the white table cloth as if he wanted to bore a hole into it. I wasn't so sure if I should listen, or to check if he was ok.
I decided to check on him. Going around the table, I tentatively approached his slightly shaking figure. I had never seen a young man so frail. But he didn't look scared, in fact, I didn't know what danced in his eyes at that moment. Slowly, I reached a hand to touch his swollen cheek. But I never reached his cheek for his hand came to grab my wrist at lightning speed.
Gasping, I looked up at him in shock. "Yori?"
"Didn't I tell you to leave? Didn't I?!" His voice now quivered, not the same steady tone as before when his father had been in the room. Had it been all an act? To be all strong no matter what? I was confused, very confused.
"Yori...demo, I..I--"
"You what?!" He nearly screamed, shaking my wrist and tightening his grip. I winced, wanting to pull away yet his grip was awfully tight. "You want to apologize?! Hah, like that would work."
I blinked in utter confusion. "...Apologize?"
He sneered, never letting go of my wrist. He was literally cutting off my circulation. "If you had kept your mouth shut about you showing me around, leading me around like a dog, this wouldn't have happened!" He pushed me away, causing me to stumble back a few steps and nearly knocking into a chair.
I stabled myself in shock and fright, rubbing my swollen wrist painfully. "Yori, what's wrong?! Why are you acting this way?!" I nearly yelled as tears threatened to spring into my eyes.
He turned to me shakily, his eyes burning with fury or...hatred? To whom was all this directed to? I wasn't sure anymore...
"Go home," he said once more, sounding final.
I did not dare to stay a second longer. Grabbing my hand bag from my seat, I hurried through the living room and to the entrance, strapping on my roller-blades in record speed. Unlocking the door, I skated out, shutting it behind me and never looking back.
The whole way home I skated blindly, tears never rolling down my cheeks but watering in my eyes. It was when I reached my house that I realized I had not let out my breath. Exhaling, I felt my heart still beating rapidly, the night's air a chill to my bones. Unlocking the door, I quietly entered my familiar, cozy house, creeping upstairs in silence.
Flopping onto my bed, I let one tear drop escape. I didn't understand at all. What had just gone on? Had it been all a dream? I pinched myself.
Nope. My right wrist was still swollen as ever, the beating in my heart still quick and hard. I wanted to feel something, yet instead I only felt shock and fright. I wanted to feell mad, or anything. Mad at Yori for yelling at me for such a strange reason. I had simply stated the truth. I had shown him around...what was the big deal? And yet, I couldn't make myself mad at him. Or even annoyed.
I felt...sorry for him. Sorry for all the things he didn't have. Sorry for the family he had to face. I had seen his dad, and what he could do. Now, what was his mother like? I shuddered at the thought.
Hugging myself, I replayed the evening's events. I wondered what school would be like after this weekend. I worried about Yori's cheek and his safety. I worried about his well-being and how he was coping with the night's events. And yet I never once worried about myself. What a mistake.
But at that time, the only positive thing I felt was gratefulness. I was grateful for the family I had. For the father I had, and even the mother I didn't have but would always remain forever in my heart. I felt grateful for the brother I had, protecting me from almost anything to come. I felt grateful for the friends I had, to help and carry my pains whenever I needed them to. Basically, I was grateful for the life I had.
That was then, though.
I stared aimlessly out the window, until finally something made a noise from my computer. Turning slowly, I noticed a little message box had popped up, indicating I had new mail.
Wondering who had e-mailed, I walked towards my computer and sat down in the pink squishy seat. Hitting enter, another message box popped up and I could only stare at it in silence.
From : "- Li Syaoran-" little_green_wolf@lc.com
To : pink_cherri@genki.com
Subject : none
Hey Sakura, remember me? Well, if you don't, it's me, Li Syaoran. The guy from Hong Kong, and the guy that left like five years ago. Ring any bells? Lol, well if it doesn't, how about making paper stars during summer? Remember that? Anyways, if you remember me or not, Daidouji-san will probably fill you in. The thing is, I'm coming back to Tomoeda...by the time I've sent this to you, I've probably just left to the airport. I don't know if you remember this or not, but when I left that day I told you I would come back. Along with that, I wanted to tell you something when that day came. Now, it's that day and I'm freakin nervous about telling you. I won't say in the e-mail, because...well, it's just something not meant to be said through this. I hope you're doing well and I um, can't wait until I get back to Japan. Oh, and Meiling says hello and says that she wishes she could come back with me this time, but she might have to wait a few weeks until she gets to come. School's holding her back. Well, I'd better be off now and I'll see you soon.
Syaoran
Swallowing the lump in my throat, I felt another fresh set of tears spring back into my tired eyes. Li Syaoran. Stupid, silly Li Syaoran! Honestly! How could he even think I had forgotten him?! He didn't need to fill up so much space trying to refresh my memory, because during all those years he had always been in my mind somewhere. Big or small, his shadow was always hovering around.
Well...no, he had left my mind when Yori had come along. That was when it hit me. That little girl...her eyes, her obsession with green stars...so very Syaoran-like. Had it been some sign trying to tell me that Syaoran was coming back? Nah, I won't think silly. Let's continue on happy, normal things.
Syaoran is coming back...he really really was coming back. To Japan. To Tomoeda. Most importantly, to me. I thought about replying, but realized he was probably somewhere in the sky right now, and there would be no point. Yet, part of me was puzzled by the mail.
I thought I had remembered every moment that had occurred when Li Syaoran left my life that day. But, I guess I didn't because he claimed to have said something about coming back to tell me something. Yet, what was that "something"? I hoped it wasn't some horrid news because I didn't think I could take all the trauma after what had happened at Yori's.
But I wanted to forget Yori for a moment or two, and just let the excitement and joy run through me and wash away all the shock and pain I had felt just a while ago. Jumping out of my seat, I hurried to call Tomoyo about the great news.
Ring after ring, she didn't pick up until her answering machine did. It was Tomoyo's voice.
"Sorry, we're not available to take your call right now, but please leave a message after the tone! Also, if you happen to be Sakura-chan calling, I just wanted to say that my weird behavior had something to do with our little wolf coming back to Japan! Demo (but), I can tell you more later when I can call you back. Ja ne!"
I smiled to myself. So Tomoyo knew already! I hung up the phone, still smiling to myself like an idiot. I had so many questions to ask Syaoran when he came back. Why he didn't mail me until now, why he didn't show any signs of his existence all these years until now. Oooh he was going to get it when he came back. I giggled.
But I didn't think on the negative side of his return. I didn't know I might endanger his life, or anything as dramatic as that. Yet sometimes, life was full of surprises.
AN: Syaoran will be back in the next chapter =) Hmmm...so yes, a little bit more of Yori is shown in this chapter. He has a bad (or you could call abusive) family...hmmm how will this effect him? And what about Sakura...hmm...read on, things are getting niffy now ^^ R+R =)!
P.S- updates may be slower due to homework piling up at rapid speed -_- GAHH I miss summer.