A/N: hiya again. this is yet another chapter in my story. i dont feel the need to display a disclaimer again, as it would just waste space, and it is the same as was posted on the first page. please R&R. ta for now

Chapter 2

A few days later, after her blood transfusion, Sakura was released from the hospital. Maddison had been with her almost every hour, and they had grown very close over that time. They found out that they had a lot more in common than they had expected. It even turned out that they had the same blood type, AB positive, which was where Sakura had gotten her blood, for no one in her family cared enough to help her.

After Maddison's speech on inner beauty, however, Sakura's view on life had changed a bit. She no longer cared about what her family thought of her. She would now dedicate everything she did to her dead mother, because she had been the only one who had cared.

"What 'cha thinking about?" Maddison asked on their long walk back to the their senior students boarding school.

"Pretty much about how badly I hate my dad. He never comes through for me, you know."

"Happy thoughts you got there, Avalon." said Maddison sarcastically, "On the bright side though, you never have to go back to your hell hole of a house again…"

"What are you talking about!? I still have to go back on holidays!!"

"Hah… nope! My mom says that we're kinda adopting you! You can come to our house on holidays and stuff!"

"Really adopting me like?"

"Not really. Just so you don't have to go home kinda thing."

"Wow! Really? NO WAY!" a very excited Sakura said with a huge beaming smile.

"Yup! You can be, like, my sister!"

"I dunno 'bout that, but we will be able to see each other every day on holidays."

"Why cant we be like sisters?" Maddison sounded really sad at Sakura's last remark.

"Um… why?" a confused Sakura asked.

"Erm… well I'm an only child, and it kinda sucks not being able to have someone around all the time to talk to, tell my secrets to, tease, that kinda stuff. You have your brother, Tori, but I don't have anyone."

"Oh… well we see each other everyday any ways… I don't know why you're so upset. Roommates remember?"

"Heh heh… oh yeah." Maddison laughed sheepishly, "Um, I kinda forgot about that…"

"No, really?"

With this, Maddison hooked her arm through Sakura's and they walked the rest of the way back to the school, arm in arm.

Three days later, after a long weekend, Sakura woke to the annoying ring of her alarm clock.

"Shit!" she shrieked as she rushed to get ready for her classes. She had slept through her alarm and was now going to be late for her first class… again! Maddison always got up at 6 am, and knew that Sakura hated to be woken that early. She was not a morning person.

Getting ready in a record five minutes, Sakura was ready and eating her breakfast on her way out the door.

Despite this new record, however, she was still ten minutes late for her class.

"Miss Avalon, I thought we had had this talk before. You were not to be late for my class again or it would be necessary to kick you out." Ms. Ruley said in her snotty English accent.

Sakura flinched and stopped dead in her tracks. "Wh-What? You cant do that to me, Ms. Ruley!"

"I can, and I will. Besides. You should have thought about that before you came to class late." The teacher smirked at how much this was upsetting the girl standing in front of her.

Just then, a brown haired someone stood up in the back of the class. "Hey, Ms. Ruley! Leave her alone! What did she ever do to you to make her deserve that kind of treatment?"

It was Lee, brown eyes flaring with voiced anger.

"Do you wish to leave the class too, Mr. Shaoran?"

"Yeah, sure. Anything's gotta be better than spending another minute in this class with a crappy ass teacher that makes life shit for my best friend…" Lee stalked quickly down from his seat to stare down his nose at the teacher, who was a good foot shorter than him. "You have got to be the biggest bitch I have ever met."

With this, he stormed out of the classroom, slamming the door behind him.

Sakura stared blankly after Lee for a few seconds before regaining her wits, as she headed out the door after him, flipping off the teacher as she went.

"Did you really flip her off? I didn't think you had the guts to do that…" He stated as he entered a fit of laughter.

Sakura joined in seconds later, giggling madly. "I didn't think I did either! That was the best thing I've done in a long time."

At this, she surprised Lee with a hug of appreciation.

Grinning at his long awaited success, Lee pulled her closer into him.

"Lee Shaoran, you are the best!" Sakura's voice was full of passion as she said this.

Lee blushed profusely and the look of shock on his face heightened. Could she possibly like me in that way? he thought. They had been friends since grade one, but these feelings were brand new. They had started only last Christmas, when he had seen a whole different side of her; a stunning inner beauty, which matched equally to her outer looks.

Sakura blinked when she saw Lee's eyes flaming with a different emotion that she couldn't quite place. She knew that she should be able to recognize it, as she had seen it in Maddison's eyes only days before.

Lee could tell that Sakura was deep in thought, so he waved his hand in front of her eyes, trying to bring her back from space, and tilting his head ever so slightly to the left so that his longish hair fell over part of his eye.

Her breath caught slightly, as she realized how attractive her childhood friend had become. His hair, now about jaw length, although still the same rich shade of brown, now suddenly caught her attention in a different way. The way he was currently looking at her, with those chocolate brown eyes, sent tingles all through her body.

His attention was now drawn to her lips, full and slightly parted. Oh, how he wanted to kiss those lips, but he knew how inappropriate that would seem at this time.

The bell interrupted their staring fest, signalling that they should start heading to their next class.

"Um… I should go, I guess. I don't want to be late again…" Sakura gave Lee another quick hug, before turning to head down the hall, blushing at the fact that she and Lee had been staring at each other for close to an hour.

Sakura ran off down the hall, leaving a very confused Lee in her wake.