Breaking the Ice

Part 3

            The alarm clock rang and jumped at its spot on the drawer. The lump on the bed reached out to turn it off. Yawning, the lump stretched. Picking up her left hand she covered her eyes and breathed, "It was only a dream."

            Pressing her hand closer to her face she felt something cold and firm, leaving an indent on her brow. She screamed at the top of her lungs. The ring! It was not a dream! She looked at the alarm clock indicating that the time was 9:00. The phone rang and she jumped out of bed. She scrambled over to the phone and shouted into it, "Hello?!"

"Sakura, Syaoran told me everything. The wedding, you're going to be my daughter in law!"

"Mrs. Li…"

"No, Sakura. Now that we are family I insist you call me Yelan… Or mom. You poor girl, Li told me about how you grew up without a mother…"

"He did?!"

"Yes, I'm so glad you have gotten so close to him in such a short amount of time."

"Please!" Sakura nearly screamed. "You have to give me his work place address! I have to speak with him in person!"

Yelan gave it to her and was about to say something else, when Sakura interrupted her. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Li! I can't talk right now. I have to see him before class starts. Bye!" Sakura slammed the phone down and cursed.

            She was dressed and out the door by 10:30. Because of traffic she reached Li Enterprise, a huge building, at 12:00. "Do you happen to know where Syaoran Li's office is?" Sakura asked a random man she was passing. "Tenth floor, room 1088."

            Nodding her thanks, Sakura took the closest elevator to the top floor. Once she reached his office she threw the door open. His secretary, an elderly woman with silver curls stared at her in disbelief. Sakura went up to her and spoke through clenched teeth, "I need to speak with Syaoran Li, now."

The woman's voice shook as she said, "Do you have an appointment?"

"Look, I left my house at 10:30, drove through traffic, and went out to dinner with him last night. The least he can do is let me see him!"

"I'm sorry, but if you don't have an appointment you can't see him. He's a busy man and if I just let anyone pass I'd be fired."

"Get your boss out here, now!"

"Kinomoto!" A deep male voice shouted through a partly opened door.

Sakura stomped forward and pushed the door the rest of the way open. Syaoran moved back and gave her room. She only stopped and gulped when she saw the dozen pairs of eyes staring right back at her. She blushed, mumbling an apology. Just as she was moving to leave, Syaoran pulled her back in. Closing the door shut, he moved her by the shoulders to stand in the middle of the room. The men who sat around the table stared at her with curiosity. Syaoran said something in her ear, but she couldn't hear. It was like she was frozen under all those gazes, her ears were impaired to any sound made in the room. Syaoran, grinning from ear to ear, walked over to the far end of the table to where an elderly man sat. This elderly man was grinning widely at Sakura, while Syaoran rested his hands on his grandfather's shoulders. Still grinning, he spoke calmly, "I would like you to meet my grandfather, President of Li Enterprise, and everyone." He waved his hand around, indicating the other men in the room. "Everyone, this is Sakura Kinomoto, my fiancé."

They all greeted her in unison, smiles reaching each face. Syaoran continued, "I think this meeting will end at this, men. Return to your work." One by one they left each bidding Sakura farewell. Sakura bowed her head to everyone, the light blush never leaving her face. After they all left, leaving the president and vice president staring at her in amusement, Sakura started to follow slowly.

"And where do you think you're going?" Syaoran asked, slipping an arm around her waist and pulling her toward his grandfather with him.

His grandfather clasped her hands with his and shook them gently. "It is an honor to meet you, Ms. Kinomoto…" Looking to his grandson he added, "Or should I be calling you Mrs. Li." He leaned forward and whispered something in Syaoran's ears causing the young man to blush.

            Chuckling softly to himself he left the two of them alone. Sakura turned to him and asked, "What did he say?"

Syaoran released her from around the waist and mumbled, "Nothing." He moved to the next room, which was his office, and Sakura followed him quickly.

            He took a seat behind his desk and told her to close the door, which she did at lightning speed. "So," Syaoran twined his fingers together and rested his chin on them, "how may I help you?"

"You said you weren't going to tell anyone!"

"I said I wouldn't tell everyone," he corrected her.

"But it's not real! You promised not to tell anybody!"

"What's the point of acting if nobody knows about it?"

            Sakura dropped her head. Syaoran looked at her before standing up to walk over to her. He gripped her shoulders and realized that they were shaking from the sobs she was releasing. He hated when women cried because there was always nothing he could do. It also felt awkward because he had no experience in soothing others…

            Rolling his eyes, he led her to a chair in front of his desk. He reached into his drawer and took out a box of Kleenex. He placed it in front of her and watched as she took one out with a trembling hand. Dabbing her eyes gently on the tissue paper she looked up at him.

"You are so cold, that's why nobody likes you," Sakura sniffed.

He was slightly taken aback at what she said. However, he recovered and retaliated, "Like I care who likes me or not."

"I don't like you," Sakura confessed. "In fact I was not the one who gave out my info to that online dating service! It was Tomoyo…"

Syaoran glowered at her, "Do you think I look desperate enough to meet people on the web? For your information, I have better things to do. It was my mother, and if it weren't for her, I wouldn't be in this predicament!"

Sakura looked at him in surprise. The puzzle pieces were finally coming together. And she suddenly smiled at him in realization. "I guess we are both in the same situation."

He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, "Damn right we are!" Sakura watched as he paced.

He continued, "If it will make you feel better I'll speak the truth. I don't like you and you don't like me. Let us leave it at that."

Sakura nodded.

"So do you have anything else to say?" He demanded.

She shook her head. Catching a glimpse at her watch she shouted, "Hoe!!! I'm going to be late for class. Bye Li! Gotta run!" She left, slamming the doors behind her.

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            Sakura wiped a hand across her brow, even though there was no perspiration there. She had forgotten that today was the last day of school before the long Holiday break. With nothing to do, Sakura visited the library near her home and sat there reading for hours. She was the last person to leave, since she had lost track of time. A little bit out of it, she dragged herself to her car which was parked in an empty parking lot, except for three cars. It was not until she was inside her car did she realize how tired she was. Her legs had lost feeling, and so she rested her head on the wheel for a moment and took a short nap.

            Syaoran looked at the clock on his wall and then back at the papers on his desk. Releasing a heavy sigh, he got up to peek through his office door. There wasn't a soul or a sound. Sighing again, he looked over to his desk. His eyes stopped when they focused on a white purse by the chair Sakura Kinomoto had occupied earlier in the afternoon. He shook his head and looked out his window with a dazed look on his face.

            The sky was complete pitch darkness. The stars did not show and the moon was on the other side of the building. Grumbling something to himself he closed the shades and reached for the phone on his desk. "If I don't return this, Kinomoto will definitely freak in the morning." He picked the phone up and glanced at the clock one more time. It was only 10:00; she should be home, and not asleep.

            He called her and waited for her to pick up. Something made him worry when the answering machine went off. "Kinomoto… Where are you? Woman, you shouldn't be out so late…" With that he hung up. Picking up his keys from a drawer, he locked up his office and proceeded to his car. "I have to get that girl a cell phone," he mumbled.

            Sakura was abruptly awoken by the sound of the horn. Her head had slipped and pressed against the horn, which was a pleasant sound compared to her alarm clock. The noise had caused a few dogs outside to bark. Awake, Sakura looked around her in confusion, before she remembered where she was. Slowly moving, she found the strength to start her car and drive home.

            Reaching her apartment, she did not notice that the door was unlocked. She opened it and walked right in. She placed her school bag on the couch and moved towards the kitchen at a lame pace. Once again her senses were lost, and the sound of footsteps moving out of her room went unheard. She heated a pot of water on the stove and moved into the living room again.

            She stretched and yawned, her senses still closed. Suddenly the sound of a vase crashing from behind her reached her ears making her spin around.

"Well, well, what do you know? After one full year my Sakura has finally found another boyfriend…"

The intruder caused Sakura to stumble backwards. "R-Ross?"

The man with the blond hair stared right back at her with his piercing blue eyes.

"You are more beautiful than the last time I saw you… Or maybe it's just me." The lust in his eyes and voice frightened her.

"What do you want?" Sakura quivered.

"I want you, or is it possible that you are already taken?"

"What?"

            Ross reached a finger over to her answering machine and pressed the play button. The sound of Syaoran's voice crashed into her ears and the fear immediately reached her eyes.

"I know I've made mistakes, but you… I can't imagine you going out with another man. You loved me so much you couldn't think about another man. But I thought wrong."

"It's over…" Sakura found the courage to say in a bold voice, "You left my mind the moment I saw you in bed with that prostitute!"

"Yeah, but I had hopes you would return to me. The first few weeks after our break up, you were in a state of a corpse." His eyes turned to a darker shade of blue, so dark it almost matched the night sky. "You were so gullible… You believed whatever I said. You treated me like a God. I knew you would never forget me or even get over me." He smiled slowly and said again, "But I thought wrong."

"So do you really have a boyfriend?" He questioned coldly, walking dangerously closer to Sakura's stiff figure.

"No!" She shouted as loud as she could.

            At that moment, in one swift movement he grabbed her collar with one hand and slammed her against the wall. The other hand went over her mouth as he rammed his knee against her stomach. The impact knocked the wind out of her.

And clearly she heard him say, "Liar…" His hot breath was on her face now, and she was locked in his grip. She could not move her legs or arms. She was literally gagging underneath his hand.

            As her senses were being stripped away from her again, he released her. Grabbing her by the arms, he swung her across the room. Sakura fell and hit her head over the sharp edge of the table right next to the door of her room. A streak of pain started at contact and found ways to spread through her brain. Her eyes could not see. She could only barely make out the blurry image of Ross, who stood over her.

"You bitch," he snarled as her grabbed her by both arms. His hands felt the ring on her finger and he grinned evilly in realization. "Oh, so you weren't completely lying. You don't have a boyfriend, but you do have a husband." The last word came out as more of a growl than a voice.

            She barely saw anything as he dragged her bodily to her bed in her room. Feeling his rough touch she blinked back tears as her vision cleared up. Sakura shook her head and covered her face with her hands, hoping that the pain in her arms, body, brain, and heart were all just a nightmare. Moving her hands slowly away from her eyes she watched in horror as Ross fiddled with the buckle of his belt. She prayed, waiting for the end to come, but it never came, because he was there.

            Syaoran was halfway down the hall when he noticed that Sakura's apartment door was slightly opened. At the sight of this he shook his head and urged himself forward. Reaching her door, he opened it slowly and witnessed something he had feared. There was shattered glass and fallen furniture everywhere. But he did not take the time to notice anything else because he pushed himself forward and kicked the door of her bedroom open. He caught a man with his pants half down, towering over her. In one swift move, Syaoran grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pulled him away from her.

            The man, startled by the interruption, didn't even have the time to recover when Syaoran threw a hard punch right at his nose. Stumbling backward, Ross hit the wall. His blood was all over his shirt and the knuckles of Syaoran Li. Ross picked himself up and lunged at the other man in anger, but Syaoran's knee came up and found the other man's stomach. "You son of a bitch!" Ross heard him shout before he collapsed onto the floor in defeat.

            Syaoran reached for the cell phone in his pocket and called 911. He made sure Ross was unconscious before he moved towards the small form of Sakura. Carelessly wiping the blood on his coat, Syaoran came down on his knees beside her bed, not sure what to say. Sakura looked down at him through her tears, before she threw her arms around him and wept in his shoulder. As he felt her wet tears on his neck he spoke gently, "Don't worry… I won't let him touch you anymore."

****************************

Sakura sat on the couch with a blanket draped over her. The cops came and tried to question her, but Syaoran drove them away along with the body of Ross. It was a long night, and she was afraid that it would never end. She unconsciously rocked back and forth and started only when Syaoran pressed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"It's alright now. Everything will be alright… I'll make sure that asshole will never come within one hundred miles near you. I promise." Syaoran sat beside her and handed her a cold glass of milk. She took it with two trembling hands, without looking at his eyes. Syaoran watched her closely and noticed still how much she shook. The milk spilt and trickled down her fingers. Treating her like a child, he took the cup away from her and gently wiped her hands. Finally she looked at him, seeing him for the first time since the pass four hours.

He smiled gently at her, "I don't know how long he'll be locked up, but I assure you he will never come near you again."

"I thought I knew him. He was my first love. I did not know he would do something like that," Sakura whispered.

"You have to be careful," Syaoran said in a tight voice.

"I'm scared," Sakura whispered. Then looking at him, she pleaded, "Please don't tell anyone about this. Please don't tell your Mother. Please don't tell anyone." Her hand gripped the material on his shoulder of his shirt. He cringed slightly at the sight of her fearful face.

"Of-Of course I won't. I swear it."

She sighed and leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes briefly.

"But, you have to learn self defense."

Sakura moved her head to look at him, "But how?"

"I will teach you, starting tomorrow."

"What time?"

"I don't know. We'll have to figure that out tomorrow. What I do know is that you need to learn how to fight back. If this ever happens again when I'm not there, I want you to protect yourself."

Sakura nodded against his shoulder and closed her eyes again.

"I will teach you the weak points of every person. I will make sure you learn to clear your senses and not let emotions get the better of you. You can learn I know it."

"Kinomoto, you are a beautiful woman, and by now you should realize that your looks don't go unnoticed by men. You are the illusion of innocence and beauty to men, but you will be a strong fighter by the time I'm through with you. You will be able to…"

            Her head seemed heavier. He turned to look at her and instead received some hair in his face. Moving carefully, he picked her up. She was extremely light for a woman, but that thought went away when he saw her face. He smiled and placed her softly on her bed and pulled the blanket over her. "Good night, Cherry Blossom."