Standard disclaimers apply.
Author's Notes: *holds up a rather large metal shield in front of her and peeking cautiously from behind it* Uhm, gomen? *cringes as her shield is pelted by unidentified flying matter* Hehe...*sweatdrop* would you guys believe me if I said I died for three months and only just recently got back to life? *more flying stuff, now accompanied by angry yells from the crowd* Shit. *shrug* Hell, I tried! *yelps as a headless chicken suddenly hits her smack on the face*
MuMu: Serves you right!
Dedications: To my good friend Shinrai, who is currently trying to master the violin, thank you for everything. To Zenin, from whom I borrowed (without permission) Meilin's surname, more power to you. And to my own koishii, Kai. Ai shiteru.
CHAPTER EIGHT: Complicated
==The Renaissance, 12:17 PM==
Eriol furrowed his brow at the receptionist hovering nervously in front of him, although his facial expression still remained carefully neutral as he peered intently at her. "Are you sure she's not anywhere within the hotel anymore?" He asked her for the second time during their entire conversation.
"Yes, I'm very sure." The petite, dark-haired woman confirmed timidly. "I knew she had stayed a bit late to do a favor for a guest and all that, but after giving Certrude-sama directions to a restaurant she left." She bit her lip after her last statement, her face suddenly paling visibly. Eriol's forehead creased as something in the receptionist's expression made his heart give a sudden, violent lurch.
'Something's wrong!' His internal instincts screamed at him from his mind, 'It isn't like Sakura not to call when something comes up. Something must have gone wrong after she left the hotel.'
"What do you mean?" The English agent asked her urgently, leaning one elbow heavily on top of the marbled counter and bringing his face closer to the receptionist, alleviating his worries for a while to concentrate on his companion's every reaction. "Do you know something that you're not telling me? Where did she go?"
She hesitated for a few seconds, obviously debating with herself whether or not to divulge the information she knew, but seeing the genuine concern clearly reflected on Eriol's otherwise calm expression, she finally gave in. "I was purposefully given the order not to tell anyone about this until it got on the news, but I can see that you care deeply for Sakura-chan. And, well--" She chewed on her lower lip once more, at the same time moving in closer and lowering her voice. "About twenty minutes after Sakura-chan gave Certrude-sama directions downtown, he was killed. Nikira-chan saw the panic and went running back to the hotel and told everyone. By that time, I was already on duty and Sakura had already gone to dress up. I don't know where she went. I'm not even sure if she met up with Nikira on her way out. All I know is that she left the desk shortly before Nikira-chan came bearing the news of his de-death." Her voice shook at the last word, and she trembled slightly, as though the air conditioning had blasted out a particularly icy spray of air in the room.
Warning bells were sounding loudly in the agent's head as he listened avidly to the receptionist's tale. Certrude. The name was completely unfamiliar to him. Obviously he had not been given any information about the man during his briefing. He might not even have anything to do with the case he was currently working on, but the possibility of the incident being connected even remotely to the Kinomoto excavation team was likely. He had learned long ago from Kaho that the world was nothing but a sphere where everything and everyone is interconnected in some ways. Ruling out this homicide as an individual case was out of the question. There exists no coincidence, not if you look closely at every miniscule detail in the situation. Somewhere, the link is always there.
He deviated from his train of thought when he noticed the woman staring at him silently. Forcing a pleasant smile at her, he reached forward and patted her arm comfortingly. "I understand." He assured her softly, bowing his head a little to avoid her eyes. "Thank you for help. And you have my word that I won't tell anybody else. Have a good day." With that, he turned his back and headed out the entranceway, trying with all his might not to go out running in search for Sakura. The possibilities were endless, he knew that. She could be anywhere, safe or unsafe. But he could not panic now. He had work to do.
As one of his hands blindly reached into his pocket for the keys to unlock his door, Eriol's gaze fell on the mobile phone lying innocently on top of his laptop. He suddenly swore.
Sakura had a mobile phone.
Finally unlocking his car and slamming the door shut behind him as he settled in the driver's seat, the English agent started to reach for the phone, but suddenly pulled back in hesitation. He had left his mobile phone connected to his laptop for the sole reason of not disrupting his hacking process. If he called Sakura, he'd have to disconnect his mobile phone from the computer, and this will probably result into another few sleepless nights trying to hack back into the Federation security mainframe. If he didn't, there was a chance that the search he was just about to initiate would be useless. Sakura could have already gone home.
What should he do?
'Complicated.'
The single word echoed in Eriol's mind as he deftly started the car, one hand flipping the laptop open and typing, while the other held the steering wheel firmly as he slowly backed out of the parking lot. His attraction to Sakura is making his already hard life much more complicated. In any other assignment he wouldn't have to hesitate like this.
Damn.
Pushing his worries for the auburn-haired woman at the back of his mind as he entered the freeway, Eriol quickly pushed the 'Enter' button on his keyboard and watched from the corner of his eye as every information available regarding this Certrude began flashing on the screen.
*****
Syaoran pulled to a stop in front of a tiny, hole-in-the-wall restaurant a few blocks away from Bonita's. There was but one other vehicle occupying the six-car parking space. Obviously Sweetheart's wasn't that popular a place. "This okay?" He softly asked his quiet companion, careful to avert his eyes away from the person sitting so closely beside him at the passenger seat.
Sakura eyed the small establishment with an appraising eye. The place obviously didn't pass her assessment, judging from the way her lip curled slightly in distaste, but she refrained from commenting. "It's fine." She replied in a resolute voice as one of her tapered hands reached back to unbuckle her seatbelt.
The assassin's right hand was immediately on the buckle and already had the belt off of the woman beside him before Sakura could even blink. At the questioning look the auburn-haired receptionist threw him, he merely shrugged and reached forward to push her door open for her. "Go on inside. I'll just park the car and follow you in."
Sakura tilted her head at him. "Okay." She finally said after a moment's hesitation before exiting the vehicle. Syaoran watched her gracefully walk towards the restaurant door and opening it, his heart thudding wildly in his chest. He was entering uncharted territory, he knew that, but he couldn't help himself. Being with the emerald-eyed woman seemed to chase all his training out of his system. All rational reasoning and logic seem to evade him. This was dangerous, not only to his career but to himself as well.
He had been in the same situation before, and the outcome had not been pretty.
Leaning back against the headrest of his seat, he closed his amber eyes and put a foot hard on the accelerator. His action caused the engine to rumble loudly, and for a moment he could just imagine the looks everyone outside the streets was giving him. Ch. Let them stare. Let them whisper among themselves what a freak of a man he was, wasting all that gas on child's play. Let them think he was a mindless idiot.
For at that time, even Syaoran had to admit that he was.
*****
Daidouji Tomoyo's eyes flew open at the sound of the telephone ringing. Muttering garbled curses under her breath, the raven-haired woman dragged her exhausted form out of the warm coziness of her bed and trudged towards her computer desk, her dark eyes promising death to the person who had chosen to disturb her from such a refreshing sleep.
"Hello?" Tomoyo all but snarled as she dropped her tired body on the wooden chair in front of the computer. "This better be good." She couldn't help but add with a touch of malicious venom in her voice.
Sakura's voice was almost indiscernible from the loud static interrupting the otherwise clear phone line. "To-yo? Were you asl-p?"
"Obviously." Was her dry reply as she tried to stifle a yawn. "Whatever it is you wanted could have waited until tonight, you know." She grumbled at her friend as she moodily picked on a loose thread on her pink nightie.
She could just barely make out Sakura's nervous giggle from the other end. "Yes. B-t I w-n-ted to tell y-someth-ng impor-t."
"Huh?" Tomoyo picked up her phone unit and banged it on her desk a couple of times, although she was completely aware that all the interference was from her best friend's end. Sakura was obviously out and using her mobile phone, and judging from all the static, the location was somewhat remote. "What was that? Where are you anyway?" She wanted to know as she strained her ears for her friend's reply.
"Sw-t-ear-'s. I'm with Li Syao--."
Her dark eyes flew open at those words. She was instantly alert and awake. "WHAT?!" She shrieked. "The infamous Li Syaoran? The man that you said was, and I quote, 'Mr. Ice-Cold-Bastard?"
Her friend let out another giggle. "He's n-t so bad. An-way, s-met-ng came up at t-e ho-el-" More static.
Tomoyo jiggled the cord connecting the receiver to the unit in vain. "Come again. I can't understand you!" She cried, clearly desperate that she had missed out on a lot of news ever since her shift ended.
But Sakura kept on talking like she hadn't heard her. "-hink it's g-na be on the n-ws. Cer-sama was kil-led a wh-le ag-" The line suddenly went dead.
"Sakura-chan!" The raven-haired woman quickly pressed the automatic dial for Sakura's mobile number and waited for the ring. An electronic voice answered.
"-you have dialed is curre-ly una-lable. Please t-"
"Damn." Tomoyo slammed the phone back down and flung herself on her unmade bed, her staticky conversation with her best friend echoing through her mind. What was she doing out with Li Syaoran?
'I'm with Li Syao--.'
She could hardly keep the silly smile that suddenly spread across her angelic face as Sakura's garbled voice echoed in her head. 'I knew she'd realize she liked him in due time.' She thought wickedly to herself as she reached for one of her mauve pillows and settled herself once more for another nap. 'I wonder what they're doing now.' She thought meditatively while nibbling her lower lip.
Her mind conjured an image of Sakura and Li Syaoran having lunch at some fancy restaurant (the fact that Sakura had told her that they were just at Sweetheart's, this really cheesy diner a couple of blocks away from the hotel district, didn't matter at all), gazing wildly in each other's eyes, so intently that they kept missing their mouths with their forks.
Tomoyo knew that her friend was trying to relay an important message to her, but the line was so garbled that she could barely make out her friend's voice from all the static. Besides, trying to decipher the broken news by her self was pretty boring. Imagining them, now.that was much more interesting.
She grinned cheesily as another mental image flashed in her head. She'll never be able to get back to sleep now.
*****
"-think it's gonna be on the news. Certrude-sama was killed a while ago, and Nikira-chan saw-"
Sakura frowned, then removed her mobile phone from her ear to stare at it. No, she wasn't imagining it. The line was dead.
"Stupid, useless thing!" The emerald-eyed receptionist muttered half- heartedly to herself, transferring her grip on the phone to her other hand and punching the redial button. She held it against her ear and almost growled in irritation as dead air answered her. Annoyed, Sakura banged the contraption hard a couple of times on the table.
"The signal is really poor down here, Miss Kinomoto, so I doubt abusing your phone would do you much good."
She jumped and dropped the offending gadget as the masculine voice suddenly spoke up behind her. "Y-you scared me." She said shakily, raising a hand to clutch her chest as she turned to face a very amused Li Syaoran.
The said person was currently bending down to retrieve her phone, which had landed by his feet. He didn't say anything, instead he gracefully straightened his back and held out the mobile phone to her. A pair of clear amber eyes bore into her own and held her gaze with the young man's.
Sakura wordlessly accepted the phone and slid it quickly inside her bag, watching with wonder as Syaoran smoothly slid into the seat opposite her. She swallowed nervously at the feral grace the mysterious man displayed in his every movement. 'Why am I feeling like this?' Sakura asked herself in panic, unable to tear her eyes away as Syaoran silently flipped through the menu handed to him by a waitress. 'Why am I so drawn to this man? I didn't even like him the first time I saw him!'
"-take the house salad. And apple juice."
The waitress finished scribbling his order and turned to Sakura. "And ya?" She asked as she snapped on her gum. Sakura jerked her head back in surprise but quickly recovered and stared down at the menu. "Uhm, I'll have the big burger basket and a milkshake."
As the gum-chewing waitress sashayed away with their orders, Sakura leaned across the table to catch the assassin's attention, suddenly insulted by the man's modest choice of food. "You know, Mr. Li Syaoran. I may not be the biggest yen earner in Tomoeda, but I do have enough money to pay for a decent meal for BOTH of us."
Her companion merely smiled at her snide remark. "Forgive me if my order has offended you, but I'm a vegetarian. The menu doesn't really offer a lot of choices for people like me." Was his calm reply.
Sakura flushed. "So-sorry." She stammered, cursing herself for having placed another foot in the mouth in the presence of Li Syaoran. She was quick to defend herself, however. "I just-I just thought that you had me pegged as stingy, so--."
But Syaoran merely dismissed the issue with a wave of his hand. "Think nothing of it. It's fine."
They fell silent, each content to just stare at the stained linen covering the table in front of them. Usually a cheerful talker, Sakura somehow found herself unable to think of a suitable topic for her and her companion to discuss. She stole a glance at the taciturn man, hoping that he would initiate the conversation for them, but he seemed content to just sit there with his arms crossed over his toned chest and brood.
Finally, Sakura couldn't take it anymore. The silence stretching out over their heads was suffocating, and immediately she cast her mind out for a suitable topic for them to discuss. Remembering their first encounter at the front desk the night before, and the irritation that had accompanied her during the said time, she started. "Why are you so snobbish, Li-san?"
He shrugged carelessly in response.
Sakura blew out a breath in frustration. She was beginning to think that squeezing out a suitable response from the man was next to impossible. "You are such a bastard, you know. "She muttered irritatingly at him before throwing him a dirty look.
Syaoran, for his part, seemed taken aback by the sudden remark. He eyed the questioning woman silently as his mind formulated a suitable response that wouldn't give his identity away too much. "I wouldn't really call myself a bastard, Kinomoto-san," He responded softly, carefully measuring his words as he spoke. "I just don't make it a point to be too friendly with people I barely know, as I am sure most of us are."(1)
Sakura cocked her head at him. "I do." She pointed out. "I mean, it's part of my job, being in a hotel and all, but I do try to be friendly with everyone, anyway. And I don't really find anything wrong with that."
Her companion shrugged. "So do I. I'm just not a people person as you obviously are."
"I see." Sakura fingered the edge of the tablecloth, again at a loss. "What do you do for a living?" She asked at last without looking at him.
"Business."
"Oh? What kind?"
"Computers."
The emerald-eyed receptionist sighed. His one-word answers were exasperating her. "You could at least try to speak more than one word, Li- san. It won't kill you. And it's not a crime to ask me questions in return."
One corner of the young assassin's mouth quirked up in amusement. "True. But I won't be living up to being a bastard if I suddenly transformed into Oprah, would I?"
Sakura's nostrils flared. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against her chair, scowling. The waitress suddenly appeared at Syaoran's elbow and set down his salad in front of him, bending so low that one of her breasts almost popped out of her skimpy uniform. She flashed Syaoran a flirtatious smile, but the man didn't even blink. Eyebrows raised, she set down Sakura's burger with a bang before stalking away haughtily.
Syaoran picked up his fork but didn't start eating right away. Instead, he focused his attention on Sakura. "I sell computers." He said in a monotone before picking up a piece of lettuce and popping it in his mouth. He nodded at Sakura's still untouched meal. "I just answered your question using more than one word. Now stop acting like a child and eat."
She threw him another baleful look, but settled down and started to eat silently, but inside she was mulling over the mystery-shrouded person dining in front of him. She won't deny that Li Syaoran was extremely good- looking. Wasn't it obvious? The guy was a god! Tall, with a mane of longish dark brown hair that seemed to fly in different directions, and a pair of eyes that were this unique, dark amber color.
'Too bad he's about as warm and cuddly as a statue.' She thought frostily to herself as she snuck another glance at the man eating quietly across her. 'I mean, he's handsome and all, but the only thing that has a warmer attitude than him is a snake. What a jerk.'
She returned her attention back to her meal, her heart suddenly fluttering in her chest as she thought of the kindness he had shown her back at the motel. 'Still, he did help me when I needed it.' She mused as she took a bite of a fry. 'That has to count as something, right? Wait a minute.What am I thinking? I'm not really attracted to Mr. Mean and Mighty, am I? Am I?'
She stole another glance at the man, who was currently taking a swig of his juice and staring out the window.
'What is wrong with me?!'
*****
From the corner of his eye, Syaoran watched as Sakura snuck another glance at his direction, her eyes wide and slightly fearful. At her expression, he suddenly felt his heart sink to his stomach like a stone dropped in water. He knew that look; had seen it on the eyes of another woman before.
'She's attracted to me.' He suddenly realized, and immediately cursed himself for helping her in the first place. He had not counted on this to happen. It was bad enough that he himself has been battling with his emotions ever since he saw her last night. And now that she seemed to be feeling the same thing for him, his work had only just become more complicated than it was supposed to be.
'I have to execute the mission as soon as possible,' he decided, still staring out at the passing cars outside, pretending to be oblivious to the fact that his female companion has been ogling at him for a while now. 'I can't drag her into this. Not after what happened with Meilin.'
What remained of his heart constricted painfully at the thought. Meilin. He had not permitted himself to dwell on the woman's memory for years. The memory of it was too painful, even for an unfeeling bastard such as himself. Rae Meilin's(2) death had been the result of a great mistake he had committed during a Confession.(3) He would be damned if he commits the same thing with Sakura.
Taking the professor's life, no matter how unjust, was one thing. Endangering Sakura's for his own selfish benefit was another.
Finally noticing that his companion seemed to have finished her meal, he shifted in his seat and turned to her, saying, rather curtly, "I should go. I have a client that I need to meet." She nodded wordlessly and reached for her purse. Syaoran held out his hand to stop her. "Don't bother. I'll pay."
Sakura stuck her chin out stubbornly at his declaration. "I said I'll pay for it." She insisted, drawing out her hand from her bag. "It's the least I can do for the person who didn't leave me lying unconscious in the middle of the street."
He shrugged at her. "Anyone could have done it." He responded stiffly. 'I wish I hadn't, but what else can I do but escape from it?'
Sakura sandwiched a stack of bills with her plate. "I know. And I would've offered the same thank you to them." She stood up and hitched her bag on her shoulder and glanced almost shyly at him. "Will you-will you drop me off?" Her voice was high.
'She's nervous,' A detached corner of Syaoran's mind supplied for him. For a fleeting second he considered saying yes, but stopped himself in time. Rae Meilin. I am not going to make the same mistake twice. "You'll be fine." He said tightly instead.
And with that, he spun on his heel and left.
*****
Fujitaka crept soundlessly down the stairs and peeked inside the living room. Eriol was nowhere to be seen, and so was his daughter. The professor assumed that the two had gone out for a while after Sakura's shift at work and headed down to the basement, one hand clutching the chain with a small key attached to it protectively to his chest. In his other hand were the documents that Hamaki had recently faxed him. Reaching the door to the stockroom, Fujitaka stole another sweeping glance at his surroundings before slipping inside the room.
Fumbling, the professor managed to locate the light switch and flicked it on, batting the dreary interior with buttery light. He immediately headed towards the shelves where he kept most of his tools. Reaching the area, he got down on his knees and reached under the toolbox, feeling around with his fingers until they brushed against something cold and hard. Leaning back, he pulled out a large, metal box resembling a safe. Slipping the key off his neck, he immediately slid the small, silver key into the hole and twisted it open.
The professor was so engrossed in what he was doing that he failed to notice a bespectacled figure watching him silently from the shadows of the basement.
*****
After several tense moments of driving, Eriol found himself back in his apartment with nothing but his boxers on, diligently poring through the information he managed to download concerning the late Francois Certrude. He hadn't found much, though. Aside from Certrude's personal records and occupational credentials (downloaded legally through his connection with the EIU), there was no vital link connecting the French man to the Kinomoto assignment. He had once given a statement that had to do with RAGE, but the man had only voiced out his country's concern that the Operation was nothing but Japan's perfectly legal plan for world domination. It wasn't enough of a lead to assume that the Federation had had a hand on Certrude's murder, but Eriol kept the information in mind. Somehow, he knew that even the smallest of details could very well turn out to be the biggest evidence in a cross-linked case such as this.
Sighing tiredly, the young English agent rubbed a hand on his forehead and leaned back against thee swivel chair, studying the profile still glaring at him on the computer screen. He knew he couldn't peg the Federation murder with the miniscule detail he had managed to uncover, but a feeling in his gut told him that there was more to the case than what he had uncovered. Several likely questions danced in his mind. Why was the French negotiator in the country? He has been keeping up with the latest news ever since he was assigned the Kinomoto project, but there have been no news about ongoing negotiations between Japan and France. The old man could have been in the country purely for personal reasons, a vacation. But if that was the case, why assassinate a seemingly innocent man?
Eriol pondered on the scene of the crime. From what he had gathered earlier on from eyewitnesses, Certrude had been on his way to meet somebody in the Blue Ale. Who was this 'somebody'? Was this person the target? Had the assassination been a failure? And to add to that, where was this person now?
The spectacled man blew a frustrated breath that ruffled his bangs. His investigation led him nowhere near to any answer. The best way he could think of was to regroup and start another investigation from a different angle. The answer might surface through that. Checking his watch, the agent perceived that he had at least four more hours until 4 o'clock, the time he was due at Sakura's for the night.
'Might as well use the time to get some rest,' Eriol thought to himself as he made his way to the apartment's small bedroom. He had told Sakura that he was supposed to be in an insurance discussion with a Hamajiki-san. Of course, no such client, nor such man, existed. His position as an insurance salesman is nothing but a cleverly conceived cover that has been successful in keeping his identity a secret. She didn't need to know what his true profession actually was.
He climbed under his covers and settled down, not even bothering to remove his glasses as exhaustion overwhelmed him. He'd take a little nap, and hopefully, clarity would come to him in his dreams.
*****
Sakura took a glass out of the cupboard and poured himself some juice from the fridge, her blood still boiling over hers and Li Syaoran's rude parting. She distinctively remembered the man telling her that he would drop her off after they had eaten, but something must have happened for him to suddenly 'forget' his little promise. It was unknown to her what the reason actually is, but Sakura had a feeling that Li-san was seriously sincere when he had told her that.
"Now there's another thing worth knowing about the bastard, Sakura," She snidely told herself as she sat on one of the spindly chairs surrounding their kitchen's Formica counter, "He's a fucking great actor at times. Geeze, it's not like it's too much of a bother to drop me off on his way to whatever meeting it was that he had to be. Why, he was---"
She suddenly stopped as realization dawned on her. "Why am I nursing these stereotypes for the bastard anyway?" Sakura asked herself angrily, almost spilling her glass of juice all over herself in her agitation, "It was just a stupid car ride that I missed. Why am I being such a baby? It's not like _ I _ needed him to drop me off. I am perfectly capable of caring for myself. I don't NEED him." She spat out furiously.
'But you could've used the time in the car to try to get to know him better.' A niggling little voice in her mind suddenly taunted her. 'Come on, Sakura. Admit it. He fascinates you.'
"He does NOT!"
'Oh, yes he does. Tomoyo was right, you know. You had been ogling at him since last night. He's had your fancy ever since he walked through the doors of the hotel.'
Her fingers were twitching convulsively around the glass of juice she still held in front of her, refusing to listen to her own thoughts, even as she struggled with the knowledge that, deep inside, he DID interest her.
'Ooooh.so NOW you admit it?'
"SHUT UP!"
*****
Syaoran soundlessly peered through the kitchen windows, watching with mild amusement as Sakura railed against herself in the empty room. Upon walking out of Sweetheart's, he hurriedly got to his car and parked it on the empty lot right next to the diner, knowing full well that the direction the auburn-haired woman would take was on the other side. He watched her hail a taxi with a huff from the confines of his own vehicle, and then trailed her from a safe distance all the way back to her own home. It was weak of him, and he knew it. Indeed, he had the sense not to aggravate his attraction to her by refusing to drop her off, but stalking her was low, especially for a hired killer such as him. But something about the woman clearly affects him, making him lose his entire mind of all important details. While driving after Sakura's cab Syaoran had reasoned to himself that he was merely following her home to see if he had the chance to break into the Kinomoto house, but as he watched Sakura go in a ew momets later, he had to admit that getting his hands on the documents was far from his mind that day. Fine. He would give in to his weakness, but only for that time.
Tomorrow, he will be back to business.
The Federation assassin was so lost in his own thoughts that he failed to notice a lithe figure emerge from the basement window of the Kinomoto house.
TBC
FOOTNOTES:
This is actually true for me. I mean, I talk a lot, and some people even say that I have no shame, but I'm actually pretty reserved when meeting other people for the first time. Once I get to know someone well, THAT'S when I make his or her life hell by talking incessantly. I'm weird that way.
To Zenin, one of the best ff.net authors I've ever encountered, please don't kill me for borrowing Meilin's surname from More Than What It Seems. I honestly can't come up with a good name for her, and since I love that dare fic you're currently working on to pieces, I decided to just use her surname in mine. I hope that's not a problem.(To my readers, check MTWIS out. It's still unfinished as of now, but the story is positively HILARIOUS, I'm telling you..)
Major Mario Puzo influence here, people. If anyone of you has read "The Last Don" written by the said author, you would know that a Confession is an assassination meant to look like an accident, while a Communion an assassination that leaves no evidence. The idea of using these two concepts from Puzo's book was introduced to me by Rai, and since the idea seemed fit, I decided to try it out.
Author's Notes: *holds up a rather large metal shield in front of her and peeking cautiously from behind it* Uhm, gomen? *cringes as her shield is pelted by unidentified flying matter* Hehe...*sweatdrop* would you guys believe me if I said I died for three months and only just recently got back to life? *more flying stuff, now accompanied by angry yells from the crowd* Shit. *shrug* Hell, I tried! *yelps as a headless chicken suddenly hits her smack on the face*
MuMu: Serves you right!
Dedications: To my good friend Shinrai, who is currently trying to master the violin, thank you for everything. To Zenin, from whom I borrowed (without permission) Meilin's surname, more power to you. And to my own koishii, Kai. Ai shiteru.
CHAPTER EIGHT: Complicated
==The Renaissance, 12:17 PM==
Eriol furrowed his brow at the receptionist hovering nervously in front of him, although his facial expression still remained carefully neutral as he peered intently at her. "Are you sure she's not anywhere within the hotel anymore?" He asked her for the second time during their entire conversation.
"Yes, I'm very sure." The petite, dark-haired woman confirmed timidly. "I knew she had stayed a bit late to do a favor for a guest and all that, but after giving Certrude-sama directions to a restaurant she left." She bit her lip after her last statement, her face suddenly paling visibly. Eriol's forehead creased as something in the receptionist's expression made his heart give a sudden, violent lurch.
'Something's wrong!' His internal instincts screamed at him from his mind, 'It isn't like Sakura not to call when something comes up. Something must have gone wrong after she left the hotel.'
"What do you mean?" The English agent asked her urgently, leaning one elbow heavily on top of the marbled counter and bringing his face closer to the receptionist, alleviating his worries for a while to concentrate on his companion's every reaction. "Do you know something that you're not telling me? Where did she go?"
She hesitated for a few seconds, obviously debating with herself whether or not to divulge the information she knew, but seeing the genuine concern clearly reflected on Eriol's otherwise calm expression, she finally gave in. "I was purposefully given the order not to tell anyone about this until it got on the news, but I can see that you care deeply for Sakura-chan. And, well--" She chewed on her lower lip once more, at the same time moving in closer and lowering her voice. "About twenty minutes after Sakura-chan gave Certrude-sama directions downtown, he was killed. Nikira-chan saw the panic and went running back to the hotel and told everyone. By that time, I was already on duty and Sakura had already gone to dress up. I don't know where she went. I'm not even sure if she met up with Nikira on her way out. All I know is that she left the desk shortly before Nikira-chan came bearing the news of his de-death." Her voice shook at the last word, and she trembled slightly, as though the air conditioning had blasted out a particularly icy spray of air in the room.
Warning bells were sounding loudly in the agent's head as he listened avidly to the receptionist's tale. Certrude. The name was completely unfamiliar to him. Obviously he had not been given any information about the man during his briefing. He might not even have anything to do with the case he was currently working on, but the possibility of the incident being connected even remotely to the Kinomoto excavation team was likely. He had learned long ago from Kaho that the world was nothing but a sphere where everything and everyone is interconnected in some ways. Ruling out this homicide as an individual case was out of the question. There exists no coincidence, not if you look closely at every miniscule detail in the situation. Somewhere, the link is always there.
He deviated from his train of thought when he noticed the woman staring at him silently. Forcing a pleasant smile at her, he reached forward and patted her arm comfortingly. "I understand." He assured her softly, bowing his head a little to avoid her eyes. "Thank you for help. And you have my word that I won't tell anybody else. Have a good day." With that, he turned his back and headed out the entranceway, trying with all his might not to go out running in search for Sakura. The possibilities were endless, he knew that. She could be anywhere, safe or unsafe. But he could not panic now. He had work to do.
As one of his hands blindly reached into his pocket for the keys to unlock his door, Eriol's gaze fell on the mobile phone lying innocently on top of his laptop. He suddenly swore.
Sakura had a mobile phone.
Finally unlocking his car and slamming the door shut behind him as he settled in the driver's seat, the English agent started to reach for the phone, but suddenly pulled back in hesitation. He had left his mobile phone connected to his laptop for the sole reason of not disrupting his hacking process. If he called Sakura, he'd have to disconnect his mobile phone from the computer, and this will probably result into another few sleepless nights trying to hack back into the Federation security mainframe. If he didn't, there was a chance that the search he was just about to initiate would be useless. Sakura could have already gone home.
What should he do?
'Complicated.'
The single word echoed in Eriol's mind as he deftly started the car, one hand flipping the laptop open and typing, while the other held the steering wheel firmly as he slowly backed out of the parking lot. His attraction to Sakura is making his already hard life much more complicated. In any other assignment he wouldn't have to hesitate like this.
Damn.
Pushing his worries for the auburn-haired woman at the back of his mind as he entered the freeway, Eriol quickly pushed the 'Enter' button on his keyboard and watched from the corner of his eye as every information available regarding this Certrude began flashing on the screen.
*****
Syaoran pulled to a stop in front of a tiny, hole-in-the-wall restaurant a few blocks away from Bonita's. There was but one other vehicle occupying the six-car parking space. Obviously Sweetheart's wasn't that popular a place. "This okay?" He softly asked his quiet companion, careful to avert his eyes away from the person sitting so closely beside him at the passenger seat.
Sakura eyed the small establishment with an appraising eye. The place obviously didn't pass her assessment, judging from the way her lip curled slightly in distaste, but she refrained from commenting. "It's fine." She replied in a resolute voice as one of her tapered hands reached back to unbuckle her seatbelt.
The assassin's right hand was immediately on the buckle and already had the belt off of the woman beside him before Sakura could even blink. At the questioning look the auburn-haired receptionist threw him, he merely shrugged and reached forward to push her door open for her. "Go on inside. I'll just park the car and follow you in."
Sakura tilted her head at him. "Okay." She finally said after a moment's hesitation before exiting the vehicle. Syaoran watched her gracefully walk towards the restaurant door and opening it, his heart thudding wildly in his chest. He was entering uncharted territory, he knew that, but he couldn't help himself. Being with the emerald-eyed woman seemed to chase all his training out of his system. All rational reasoning and logic seem to evade him. This was dangerous, not only to his career but to himself as well.
He had been in the same situation before, and the outcome had not been pretty.
Leaning back against the headrest of his seat, he closed his amber eyes and put a foot hard on the accelerator. His action caused the engine to rumble loudly, and for a moment he could just imagine the looks everyone outside the streets was giving him. Ch. Let them stare. Let them whisper among themselves what a freak of a man he was, wasting all that gas on child's play. Let them think he was a mindless idiot.
For at that time, even Syaoran had to admit that he was.
*****
Daidouji Tomoyo's eyes flew open at the sound of the telephone ringing. Muttering garbled curses under her breath, the raven-haired woman dragged her exhausted form out of the warm coziness of her bed and trudged towards her computer desk, her dark eyes promising death to the person who had chosen to disturb her from such a refreshing sleep.
"Hello?" Tomoyo all but snarled as she dropped her tired body on the wooden chair in front of the computer. "This better be good." She couldn't help but add with a touch of malicious venom in her voice.
Sakura's voice was almost indiscernible from the loud static interrupting the otherwise clear phone line. "To-yo? Were you asl-p?"
"Obviously." Was her dry reply as she tried to stifle a yawn. "Whatever it is you wanted could have waited until tonight, you know." She grumbled at her friend as she moodily picked on a loose thread on her pink nightie.
She could just barely make out Sakura's nervous giggle from the other end. "Yes. B-t I w-n-ted to tell y-someth-ng impor-t."
"Huh?" Tomoyo picked up her phone unit and banged it on her desk a couple of times, although she was completely aware that all the interference was from her best friend's end. Sakura was obviously out and using her mobile phone, and judging from all the static, the location was somewhat remote. "What was that? Where are you anyway?" She wanted to know as she strained her ears for her friend's reply.
"Sw-t-ear-'s. I'm with Li Syao--."
Her dark eyes flew open at those words. She was instantly alert and awake. "WHAT?!" She shrieked. "The infamous Li Syaoran? The man that you said was, and I quote, 'Mr. Ice-Cold-Bastard?"
Her friend let out another giggle. "He's n-t so bad. An-way, s-met-ng came up at t-e ho-el-" More static.
Tomoyo jiggled the cord connecting the receiver to the unit in vain. "Come again. I can't understand you!" She cried, clearly desperate that she had missed out on a lot of news ever since her shift ended.
But Sakura kept on talking like she hadn't heard her. "-hink it's g-na be on the n-ws. Cer-sama was kil-led a wh-le ag-" The line suddenly went dead.
"Sakura-chan!" The raven-haired woman quickly pressed the automatic dial for Sakura's mobile number and waited for the ring. An electronic voice answered.
"-you have dialed is curre-ly una-lable. Please t-"
"Damn." Tomoyo slammed the phone back down and flung herself on her unmade bed, her staticky conversation with her best friend echoing through her mind. What was she doing out with Li Syaoran?
'I'm with Li Syao--.'
She could hardly keep the silly smile that suddenly spread across her angelic face as Sakura's garbled voice echoed in her head. 'I knew she'd realize she liked him in due time.' She thought wickedly to herself as she reached for one of her mauve pillows and settled herself once more for another nap. 'I wonder what they're doing now.' She thought meditatively while nibbling her lower lip.
Her mind conjured an image of Sakura and Li Syaoran having lunch at some fancy restaurant (the fact that Sakura had told her that they were just at Sweetheart's, this really cheesy diner a couple of blocks away from the hotel district, didn't matter at all), gazing wildly in each other's eyes, so intently that they kept missing their mouths with their forks.
Tomoyo knew that her friend was trying to relay an important message to her, but the line was so garbled that she could barely make out her friend's voice from all the static. Besides, trying to decipher the broken news by her self was pretty boring. Imagining them, now.that was much more interesting.
She grinned cheesily as another mental image flashed in her head. She'll never be able to get back to sleep now.
*****
"-think it's gonna be on the news. Certrude-sama was killed a while ago, and Nikira-chan saw-"
Sakura frowned, then removed her mobile phone from her ear to stare at it. No, she wasn't imagining it. The line was dead.
"Stupid, useless thing!" The emerald-eyed receptionist muttered half- heartedly to herself, transferring her grip on the phone to her other hand and punching the redial button. She held it against her ear and almost growled in irritation as dead air answered her. Annoyed, Sakura banged the contraption hard a couple of times on the table.
"The signal is really poor down here, Miss Kinomoto, so I doubt abusing your phone would do you much good."
She jumped and dropped the offending gadget as the masculine voice suddenly spoke up behind her. "Y-you scared me." She said shakily, raising a hand to clutch her chest as she turned to face a very amused Li Syaoran.
The said person was currently bending down to retrieve her phone, which had landed by his feet. He didn't say anything, instead he gracefully straightened his back and held out the mobile phone to her. A pair of clear amber eyes bore into her own and held her gaze with the young man's.
Sakura wordlessly accepted the phone and slid it quickly inside her bag, watching with wonder as Syaoran smoothly slid into the seat opposite her. She swallowed nervously at the feral grace the mysterious man displayed in his every movement. 'Why am I feeling like this?' Sakura asked herself in panic, unable to tear her eyes away as Syaoran silently flipped through the menu handed to him by a waitress. 'Why am I so drawn to this man? I didn't even like him the first time I saw him!'
"-take the house salad. And apple juice."
The waitress finished scribbling his order and turned to Sakura. "And ya?" She asked as she snapped on her gum. Sakura jerked her head back in surprise but quickly recovered and stared down at the menu. "Uhm, I'll have the big burger basket and a milkshake."
As the gum-chewing waitress sashayed away with their orders, Sakura leaned across the table to catch the assassin's attention, suddenly insulted by the man's modest choice of food. "You know, Mr. Li Syaoran. I may not be the biggest yen earner in Tomoeda, but I do have enough money to pay for a decent meal for BOTH of us."
Her companion merely smiled at her snide remark. "Forgive me if my order has offended you, but I'm a vegetarian. The menu doesn't really offer a lot of choices for people like me." Was his calm reply.
Sakura flushed. "So-sorry." She stammered, cursing herself for having placed another foot in the mouth in the presence of Li Syaoran. She was quick to defend herself, however. "I just-I just thought that you had me pegged as stingy, so--."
But Syaoran merely dismissed the issue with a wave of his hand. "Think nothing of it. It's fine."
They fell silent, each content to just stare at the stained linen covering the table in front of them. Usually a cheerful talker, Sakura somehow found herself unable to think of a suitable topic for her and her companion to discuss. She stole a glance at the taciturn man, hoping that he would initiate the conversation for them, but he seemed content to just sit there with his arms crossed over his toned chest and brood.
Finally, Sakura couldn't take it anymore. The silence stretching out over their heads was suffocating, and immediately she cast her mind out for a suitable topic for them to discuss. Remembering their first encounter at the front desk the night before, and the irritation that had accompanied her during the said time, she started. "Why are you so snobbish, Li-san?"
He shrugged carelessly in response.
Sakura blew out a breath in frustration. She was beginning to think that squeezing out a suitable response from the man was next to impossible. "You are such a bastard, you know. "She muttered irritatingly at him before throwing him a dirty look.
Syaoran, for his part, seemed taken aback by the sudden remark. He eyed the questioning woman silently as his mind formulated a suitable response that wouldn't give his identity away too much. "I wouldn't really call myself a bastard, Kinomoto-san," He responded softly, carefully measuring his words as he spoke. "I just don't make it a point to be too friendly with people I barely know, as I am sure most of us are."(1)
Sakura cocked her head at him. "I do." She pointed out. "I mean, it's part of my job, being in a hotel and all, but I do try to be friendly with everyone, anyway. And I don't really find anything wrong with that."
Her companion shrugged. "So do I. I'm just not a people person as you obviously are."
"I see." Sakura fingered the edge of the tablecloth, again at a loss. "What do you do for a living?" She asked at last without looking at him.
"Business."
"Oh? What kind?"
"Computers."
The emerald-eyed receptionist sighed. His one-word answers were exasperating her. "You could at least try to speak more than one word, Li- san. It won't kill you. And it's not a crime to ask me questions in return."
One corner of the young assassin's mouth quirked up in amusement. "True. But I won't be living up to being a bastard if I suddenly transformed into Oprah, would I?"
Sakura's nostrils flared. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against her chair, scowling. The waitress suddenly appeared at Syaoran's elbow and set down his salad in front of him, bending so low that one of her breasts almost popped out of her skimpy uniform. She flashed Syaoran a flirtatious smile, but the man didn't even blink. Eyebrows raised, she set down Sakura's burger with a bang before stalking away haughtily.
Syaoran picked up his fork but didn't start eating right away. Instead, he focused his attention on Sakura. "I sell computers." He said in a monotone before picking up a piece of lettuce and popping it in his mouth. He nodded at Sakura's still untouched meal. "I just answered your question using more than one word. Now stop acting like a child and eat."
She threw him another baleful look, but settled down and started to eat silently, but inside she was mulling over the mystery-shrouded person dining in front of him. She won't deny that Li Syaoran was extremely good- looking. Wasn't it obvious? The guy was a god! Tall, with a mane of longish dark brown hair that seemed to fly in different directions, and a pair of eyes that were this unique, dark amber color.
'Too bad he's about as warm and cuddly as a statue.' She thought frostily to herself as she snuck another glance at the man eating quietly across her. 'I mean, he's handsome and all, but the only thing that has a warmer attitude than him is a snake. What a jerk.'
She returned her attention back to her meal, her heart suddenly fluttering in her chest as she thought of the kindness he had shown her back at the motel. 'Still, he did help me when I needed it.' She mused as she took a bite of a fry. 'That has to count as something, right? Wait a minute.What am I thinking? I'm not really attracted to Mr. Mean and Mighty, am I? Am I?'
She stole another glance at the man, who was currently taking a swig of his juice and staring out the window.
'What is wrong with me?!'
*****
From the corner of his eye, Syaoran watched as Sakura snuck another glance at his direction, her eyes wide and slightly fearful. At her expression, he suddenly felt his heart sink to his stomach like a stone dropped in water. He knew that look; had seen it on the eyes of another woman before.
'She's attracted to me.' He suddenly realized, and immediately cursed himself for helping her in the first place. He had not counted on this to happen. It was bad enough that he himself has been battling with his emotions ever since he saw her last night. And now that she seemed to be feeling the same thing for him, his work had only just become more complicated than it was supposed to be.
'I have to execute the mission as soon as possible,' he decided, still staring out at the passing cars outside, pretending to be oblivious to the fact that his female companion has been ogling at him for a while now. 'I can't drag her into this. Not after what happened with Meilin.'
What remained of his heart constricted painfully at the thought. Meilin. He had not permitted himself to dwell on the woman's memory for years. The memory of it was too painful, even for an unfeeling bastard such as himself. Rae Meilin's(2) death had been the result of a great mistake he had committed during a Confession.(3) He would be damned if he commits the same thing with Sakura.
Taking the professor's life, no matter how unjust, was one thing. Endangering Sakura's for his own selfish benefit was another.
Finally noticing that his companion seemed to have finished her meal, he shifted in his seat and turned to her, saying, rather curtly, "I should go. I have a client that I need to meet." She nodded wordlessly and reached for her purse. Syaoran held out his hand to stop her. "Don't bother. I'll pay."
Sakura stuck her chin out stubbornly at his declaration. "I said I'll pay for it." She insisted, drawing out her hand from her bag. "It's the least I can do for the person who didn't leave me lying unconscious in the middle of the street."
He shrugged at her. "Anyone could have done it." He responded stiffly. 'I wish I hadn't, but what else can I do but escape from it?'
Sakura sandwiched a stack of bills with her plate. "I know. And I would've offered the same thank you to them." She stood up and hitched her bag on her shoulder and glanced almost shyly at him. "Will you-will you drop me off?" Her voice was high.
'She's nervous,' A detached corner of Syaoran's mind supplied for him. For a fleeting second he considered saying yes, but stopped himself in time. Rae Meilin. I am not going to make the same mistake twice. "You'll be fine." He said tightly instead.
And with that, he spun on his heel and left.
*****
Fujitaka crept soundlessly down the stairs and peeked inside the living room. Eriol was nowhere to be seen, and so was his daughter. The professor assumed that the two had gone out for a while after Sakura's shift at work and headed down to the basement, one hand clutching the chain with a small key attached to it protectively to his chest. In his other hand were the documents that Hamaki had recently faxed him. Reaching the door to the stockroom, Fujitaka stole another sweeping glance at his surroundings before slipping inside the room.
Fumbling, the professor managed to locate the light switch and flicked it on, batting the dreary interior with buttery light. He immediately headed towards the shelves where he kept most of his tools. Reaching the area, he got down on his knees and reached under the toolbox, feeling around with his fingers until they brushed against something cold and hard. Leaning back, he pulled out a large, metal box resembling a safe. Slipping the key off his neck, he immediately slid the small, silver key into the hole and twisted it open.
The professor was so engrossed in what he was doing that he failed to notice a bespectacled figure watching him silently from the shadows of the basement.
*****
After several tense moments of driving, Eriol found himself back in his apartment with nothing but his boxers on, diligently poring through the information he managed to download concerning the late Francois Certrude. He hadn't found much, though. Aside from Certrude's personal records and occupational credentials (downloaded legally through his connection with the EIU), there was no vital link connecting the French man to the Kinomoto assignment. He had once given a statement that had to do with RAGE, but the man had only voiced out his country's concern that the Operation was nothing but Japan's perfectly legal plan for world domination. It wasn't enough of a lead to assume that the Federation had had a hand on Certrude's murder, but Eriol kept the information in mind. Somehow, he knew that even the smallest of details could very well turn out to be the biggest evidence in a cross-linked case such as this.
Sighing tiredly, the young English agent rubbed a hand on his forehead and leaned back against thee swivel chair, studying the profile still glaring at him on the computer screen. He knew he couldn't peg the Federation murder with the miniscule detail he had managed to uncover, but a feeling in his gut told him that there was more to the case than what he had uncovered. Several likely questions danced in his mind. Why was the French negotiator in the country? He has been keeping up with the latest news ever since he was assigned the Kinomoto project, but there have been no news about ongoing negotiations between Japan and France. The old man could have been in the country purely for personal reasons, a vacation. But if that was the case, why assassinate a seemingly innocent man?
Eriol pondered on the scene of the crime. From what he had gathered earlier on from eyewitnesses, Certrude had been on his way to meet somebody in the Blue Ale. Who was this 'somebody'? Was this person the target? Had the assassination been a failure? And to add to that, where was this person now?
The spectacled man blew a frustrated breath that ruffled his bangs. His investigation led him nowhere near to any answer. The best way he could think of was to regroup and start another investigation from a different angle. The answer might surface through that. Checking his watch, the agent perceived that he had at least four more hours until 4 o'clock, the time he was due at Sakura's for the night.
'Might as well use the time to get some rest,' Eriol thought to himself as he made his way to the apartment's small bedroom. He had told Sakura that he was supposed to be in an insurance discussion with a Hamajiki-san. Of course, no such client, nor such man, existed. His position as an insurance salesman is nothing but a cleverly conceived cover that has been successful in keeping his identity a secret. She didn't need to know what his true profession actually was.
He climbed under his covers and settled down, not even bothering to remove his glasses as exhaustion overwhelmed him. He'd take a little nap, and hopefully, clarity would come to him in his dreams.
*****
Sakura took a glass out of the cupboard and poured himself some juice from the fridge, her blood still boiling over hers and Li Syaoran's rude parting. She distinctively remembered the man telling her that he would drop her off after they had eaten, but something must have happened for him to suddenly 'forget' his little promise. It was unknown to her what the reason actually is, but Sakura had a feeling that Li-san was seriously sincere when he had told her that.
"Now there's another thing worth knowing about the bastard, Sakura," She snidely told herself as she sat on one of the spindly chairs surrounding their kitchen's Formica counter, "He's a fucking great actor at times. Geeze, it's not like it's too much of a bother to drop me off on his way to whatever meeting it was that he had to be. Why, he was---"
She suddenly stopped as realization dawned on her. "Why am I nursing these stereotypes for the bastard anyway?" Sakura asked herself angrily, almost spilling her glass of juice all over herself in her agitation, "It was just a stupid car ride that I missed. Why am I being such a baby? It's not like _ I _ needed him to drop me off. I am perfectly capable of caring for myself. I don't NEED him." She spat out furiously.
'But you could've used the time in the car to try to get to know him better.' A niggling little voice in her mind suddenly taunted her. 'Come on, Sakura. Admit it. He fascinates you.'
"He does NOT!"
'Oh, yes he does. Tomoyo was right, you know. You had been ogling at him since last night. He's had your fancy ever since he walked through the doors of the hotel.'
Her fingers were twitching convulsively around the glass of juice she still held in front of her, refusing to listen to her own thoughts, even as she struggled with the knowledge that, deep inside, he DID interest her.
'Ooooh.so NOW you admit it?'
"SHUT UP!"
*****
Syaoran soundlessly peered through the kitchen windows, watching with mild amusement as Sakura railed against herself in the empty room. Upon walking out of Sweetheart's, he hurriedly got to his car and parked it on the empty lot right next to the diner, knowing full well that the direction the auburn-haired woman would take was on the other side. He watched her hail a taxi with a huff from the confines of his own vehicle, and then trailed her from a safe distance all the way back to her own home. It was weak of him, and he knew it. Indeed, he had the sense not to aggravate his attraction to her by refusing to drop her off, but stalking her was low, especially for a hired killer such as him. But something about the woman clearly affects him, making him lose his entire mind of all important details. While driving after Sakura's cab Syaoran had reasoned to himself that he was merely following her home to see if he had the chance to break into the Kinomoto house, but as he watched Sakura go in a ew momets later, he had to admit that getting his hands on the documents was far from his mind that day. Fine. He would give in to his weakness, but only for that time.
Tomorrow, he will be back to business.
The Federation assassin was so lost in his own thoughts that he failed to notice a lithe figure emerge from the basement window of the Kinomoto house.
TBC
FOOTNOTES:
This is actually true for me. I mean, I talk a lot, and some people even say that I have no shame, but I'm actually pretty reserved when meeting other people for the first time. Once I get to know someone well, THAT'S when I make his or her life hell by talking incessantly. I'm weird that way.
To Zenin, one of the best ff.net authors I've ever encountered, please don't kill me for borrowing Meilin's surname from More Than What It Seems. I honestly can't come up with a good name for her, and since I love that dare fic you're currently working on to pieces, I decided to just use her surname in mine. I hope that's not a problem.(To my readers, check MTWIS out. It's still unfinished as of now, but the story is positively HILARIOUS, I'm telling you..)
Major Mario Puzo influence here, people. If anyone of you has read "The Last Don" written by the said author, you would know that a Confession is an assassination meant to look like an accident, while a Communion an assassination that leaves no evidence. The idea of using these two concepts from Puzo's book was introduced to me by Rai, and since the idea seemed fit, I decided to try it out.