WAITING

By: Mad NUTZ

Chapter Three

[AN: Please excuse the grammar!]

"What?" Li asked unsure he had heard correctly.

"Stay with me... the entire night. I don't want to be alone."

She repeated. Her grip around his thin lean body tightened. It only

made it harder for Li to resist her. Even though he knew he

shouldn't he couldn't control his emotions. After all, no matter how

nice and sweet a guy is he's still a guy. Li knew this all too well.

He loosened her grip around his body as he distance himself from

her. He turned around and looked into her eyes.

"I can't Sakura. It wouldn't be appropiate for a guy and a girl,

who aren't related, to share the same bed." Yet he wanted to so

badly. To be able to hold her in his arms, it was something he had

dreamed of. Before when she clung to him, and he wrapped his

arms around her small body... he remembered how hard it was to

let go of her.

"What are you talking about? We're friends! What's wrong with

friends sleeping in the same bed?" She looked at him, her eyes

begging him to keep her company. After all, that's all she wanted

was company. It never occurred to her that he might feel

something more for her than friendship.

"Even though you say we're just friends, I'm still a guy.

Sleeping next to a girl in my own bed... I can't promise anything."

They just stood there for a moment, silence overcoming them. Li

turned and headed towards Meilin's old room as he stopped

midway. "Go to bed Sakura, you need the rest." With that he

closed the door behind him and left Sakura standing in the hallway

by herself.

- - - - -

[SETTING: Lunch period in a class room.]

"Are you serious?!" Eriol asked in complete shock. "You're telling

me Sakura stayed over night at your apartment last weekend?" Li

nodded then leaned to one side, his hand supporting his face. "I

can't believe you've been keeping this to yourself for the past

week!"

"I didn't think not telling anyone would have this kind of effect

on me! Ever since that night, it's only gotten worse. Everything I

do, everything I see reminds me of her. Almost to the point where

I want to throw up." Li runs his hand through his hair, making it

even more messy. He groaned in frustration.

"You've got it bad Li."

"Got what?!" He asked looking up at Eriol.

"Love Jones, my friend. Sounds like you're in love!" Eriol began

to laugh and point at Li. "Who would've thought a player like you

falling for a nice girl like Sakura. I'm telling you the universe works

in completely messed ways."

"You know she wanted me to sleep in the same bed with her..."

Li said gazing into the distance.

"WHAT?!" Eriol said loudly.

"Shh, I don't want to ruin my reputation..."

"Well," Eriol began in a whisper, "what happened?"

"I... I refused." Li said admittedly. "For some reason I couldn't

bring myself to touch her like that."

"No wonder you guys have been acting so weird with each

other. Even thought you've had feelings for her, up until last week

you've been able to keep your cool around her. But now, it's like

you're hardly around each other. And when you are togther there's

this tension in the air that's liable to make anyone feel

uncomfortable."

"Tell me about it!" Li sunk into his seat feeling sorry for himself.

"There is an upside to the whole situation! At least she's

single..."

"Yeah but knowing her she's still pretty hung up on that

bastard Kiriya." Li said disappointedly.

The school bell began to sound.

"C'mon Li, I don't want to be late for P.E. again. Somehow

running an extra ten laps doesn't appeal me."

"All right. Shoot!"

"What happened?" Eriol asked.

"I just remembered I left my sneakers in my other locker. (AN:

As opposed to the gym locker.) Hey just go on without me."

"All right man, see you later!"

Li ran to his locker as quickly as he could. When he pulled out

his sneakers a small peice of paper fell out. He picked it up,

unfolded it, then read it.

MEET ME AFTER SCHOOL BY MY LOCKER.

SAKURA

He wondered about what she had wanted with him. All this

week he's been trying to talk to her but she's the one avoiding

him. After the first two days he gave up. He had decided to wait

for her to come to him, it would be better for her that way. He

began to run back towards the gymnasium.

- - - - -

"Hey... Li..." Sakura greeted in a small voice. She kept her

head low trying to avoid any kind of eye contact.

"Hey," he replied.

"I... uhh... I just wanted to..." She remained quiet trying to

collect her thoughts. "Why is this so hard?!" She finally said in

frustration.

"Hey," Li said giving her a light punch on the shoulder. "Don't

worry about it. The other night, was the other night. Nothing

happened... I really don't know why we made it into such a big to

begin with!" Li chuckled rubbing the back of his head.

"You said," Sakura began, still looking down to the ground. Her

hands played with the fabric of her uniform indicating how

nervouse she was. Li noticed this. "The other night you said you

couldn't promise anything. That even though we were friends you

were still a guy."

"Yeah, so what?" Li said calmly. Sakura finally looked up, their

eyes finally meeting. Suddenly she felt something, it was small and

minute, but she knew she felt it. "So what if I said that?"

"I don't understand why you would say that."

"Knowing my reputation, knowing my past, and you still have to

ask me that!" Li sighed and lowered his head in irritation. "Skaura,

why are you so torn up over this? You asked me to sleep next to

you and I told you why I couldn't, what don't you understand?"

"Knowing your reputation and past, what I don't understand is

why you didn't sleep with me?!" Tears began to roll down the side

of her face. But she didn't cry over sadness or anger, she began

to cry because she was overwhelmed with emotions. She was

confused, frustrated, and tired.

"Give me a break!" Li yelled. "Have you seriously been avoiding

me all this time because I didn't sleep with you?!"

"What if it is the reason why I've been avoiding you?" Li looked

at her in complete shock. Could she really have wanted me to

sleep with her that night?

AN: What do you think? Eh... R&R!!