Sort of a Fairytale

by iris dreamer

Men: They're Not Worth Crying Over is the article that makes Sakura famous as a writer. With fans comes flames. And this one guy means business. After hiring a bodyguard, things spin wildly out of control and the blame is on Sakura. SS

13. The Way

----- Sort of a Fairytale

----- Written by Iris (Rainbow) Dreamer

----- DISCLAIMER: Card Captor Sakura belongs solely to Clamp. However, the plot is mine and I would like to remain it that way. Thank you.

----- AUTHOR'S NOTE: Some good news. I will be officially attending University of Virginia at fall of 2004!! I have finally made my decision, and I'm damn proud of myself.

I'm at University of Virginia. I have some stories in mind, but I don't know when I'll be writing them. I'm going to be quite busy for a while, adjusting to college life, being alone, totally separated from my friends, and literally across the planet from my family. It's going to take a while for me to get used to everything, but stay assured that I'm not going to stop writing.

Enjoy this chapter. I hoped you've enjoyed reading this as much as I have enjoyed writing this story. Thank you for all the tremendous help you guys have given me.

Iris dreamer.

----- BACKGROUND: Okay! Some background here. Syaoran and Sakura have not met before. Hm. No magic in here either (as some of you might know, I'm horrible at describing magic.............). What else? Oh, the characters may seem a bit out of character in the beginning (especially Sakura), but you'll see why as the story proceeds. Hm. I think that's about it. The rest you'll have to discover yourself! And if you know me, I love twists and turns, although this chapter should have less than ADOHE if you've read that. No, wait, actually now that I think about it, there is a lot of twists in this! LoL.

Oh, and mild (depends on your own definition here) cursing in this chapter. I don't know how many it would be mild for you guys, but deepest apologies for the vulgar language.

Iris Dreamer.

----- DEDICATION: To everyone who has read my story. Thank you. This last chapter is for all of you who have stood by my side. Secondly, to those who have read my stories since my first one, like Fire Temptress, SweetBabyGurl, and Cherry Princess Sakura just to name a few, a huge thank you for you immense support. Third, to those souls who have added me on to their list of favorites and author alerts that touched me more than you have known. And finally, but definitely not last, to Avelyn Lauren who edited my whole story and sent me tons of emails of how I could make my story better.

----- SPECIAL THANKS: I know how you guys look forward to reading my special thanks to you, but these past few weeks have been a roller coaster ride for me. I've been totally emotional and I think writing out more thank you notes and such will break me into another wave of tears. You guys are such the best readers, and I couldn't ask for more.

----- CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Sort of a Fairytale

This one is going to be Syaoran's point of view. A gift to all those Syaoran fans and a challenge for myself.

"Syaoran."

Someone was calling me. I sighed blissfully as the person repeated my name over and over again. Her voice was so melodic and I felt as her voice was a smooth as honey. I could go on listening to the way my name rolled from her mouth, but the voice was getting more and more cross. I frowned at the way my name was sounding sharper and more insistent. I hope she wasn't angry with me. I wondered what the speaker looked like. I smiled dreamily again. She probably looked as beautiful as she sounded.

A sharp stingy pain shocked through my whole body and I groaned painfully. Opening my eyes, I stared into a sea of emerald and beauty, and I could only stare, gulping down big breaths of the dazzling light.

"Pervert!" She yelled, hitting me smartly on the head again. "Keep your lusting, roaming eyes off of me."

"Wha?" I answered confusedly. "I was, I mean, I wasn't staring at you! Honest." I immediately tried to look as guilty as possible; what I just said wasn't very convincing.

She immediately crossed her arms and glared at me. "Just how stupid do you think I am, Li Syaoran?" She raised her right eyebrow, challenging me to go against her. When she that I wisely chose not to reply, she rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Anyhow, can we go now?"

"Go where?" I asked stupidly.

"Baka." She scolded. "Where else? The movie ended a long time ago, Syaoran, if you didn't notice yet. I told the others to go on and head to dinner first when I saw how attached you were to the theater's seat." She drawled sarcastically.

I immediately dashed up to my feet, and as she had said, the whole theater was empty, except for a few people who were cleaning up the empty popcorn boxes and cups into large black trash bags.

"Let's go." She said her voice softer. She must have seen my bewildered expression. "Everyone's waiting, Syaoran."

I didn't move from my position. I just stood there as if my feet were glued to the ground. I stared straight ahead at the black screen.

Black. Unflickering. Motionless.

Had everything just been a dream?

"How, how long was I asleep?" I whispered, my gaze still not leaving the screen.

She raised her eyebrow again.

"Kinomoto, how long?" I repeated, looking at her now.

Sakura raised her eyebrow even higher. "Okay, let's go outside, and get you a cup of water. I think you need some fresh air." She said slowly and promptly propelled me outside the dark theater. The bright fluorescent light that greeted me blinded me for a while, but it seemingly had no effect for Sakura, who dragged me to a corner, forced me to sit, and shoved a cup of cold water into my hands.

"Okay, so what's wrong with you? You fell asleep in the movie you wanted to watch for ages, and when you wake up, you act like you're a zombie in shock and then you call me Kinomoto. So, what's up baka?" Sakura fired at me before I even had a chance to swallow the water in my mouth.

"I, uh,"

Her cell phone rang before I could continue. Sakura shot a glare at the ring, but picked retrieved her phone from her pocket.

"Moshi moshi?"

Sakura sighed out loud. "I know, I know." She paused. "No, nothing's wrong Tomoyo. Syao just fell asleep and he's a bit dizzy. I'll catch up with you guys once I get his brain to function again."

She laughed.

"Yeah, I'll just hit his head. Meanwhile, gomen about you guys waiting for me. Yes, I know I'm the birthday girl, but really, why don't you guys go ahead and order first? Haha, no I don't mind."

"Fine, if you want to wait, then don't blame me if you guys starve to death. Who knows, maybe I'll just grab some popcorn and eat that."

"No, I'm not planning to ditch you guys and running off with Syao for a date. Please, Tomoyo, that'd be something you and Eriol would do."

I watched her laugh again as she talked to Tomoyo, her face open and her emerald eyes dancing with happiness. She was wearing a dark green spaghetti strap shirt with small olive green beads decorating the straps. With that, she was wearing a pair of khaki pants and her black combat boots.

It was then I noticed that I was wearing the same colors as Sakura was: a green button down and khakis as well. I frowned slightly as I leaned back on my seat and looked at my surroundings: a basic theater, a theater that I knew.

It was Sakura's birthday today. April 1st. She was twenty today. He, Sakura, Tomoyo, Eriol, Meiling, Ryoko, Chiharu, Rika, Takashi, and Naoko had come out to celebrate her birthday. They went to go watch the movie. The movie was about.......

I couldn't remember. All that came to mind was Sakura Kinomoto, Yukio Fujin, and Wildcat. Bret Monoko. Haskin Fujin. Cil. The Tokyo Police department. The underground. Fights. Red threat envelopes. Drugs. Tokyo University.

Tokyo University.

Wasn't that where Sakura was attending now? And so was I. It would be our second year in university now.

So was everything a dream?

Yes.

Tomoyo's going to a music university and studying in the night while she pursued her dream as a singer. She recently had finished her first single, and was heading towards top ten internationally. Eriol was planning to go to England for a year as an overseas exchange student. Meiling was on her way to being a professional martial arts teacher and was taking courses in the summer over at China but studied in Japan. Chiharu and Takashi were heading off to another university together. Rika was going to study abroad, to achieve her dreams of becoming a doctor. Naoko was earning enough money from her works as a writer, but chose to still finish college first.

Everything was different.

It couldn't happen.

So everything was just a dream, but it had seemed awfully real at the same time. I could remember all the small details and I could clearly recall the feelings I had felt.

Miraki Hayushi. That was the name of Sakura's ex-boyfriend in my dream. Wasn't that the brief guy who had chased after Sakura, but nothing came out from it? I remembered that guy was some quiet, reserved, dorky guy who had admired from Sakura from afar.

Wait, so there were parts of truth in my dream? I must have mixed everything together. But Miraki Hayushi was the only character, other than me, Sakura, our friends and family that was real.

So Bret Monoko, Haskin Fujin, and Cil were just parts of the imaginary then.

I was becoming more and more confused by the second by the dream I had. Never before had I remembered my dreams to such detail. But it was just a dream, not reality.

Sakura walked back to me, done with her phone call with Tomoyo. "So, what's wrong with you, huh Syao?"

I shook my head lightly. "Nothing's wrong," I paused, studying her face that tried to be cross but I could see concern underlying the mask, "Saku."

Sakura let out her breath loudly as she plopped herself down next to me. "Whoa, for a while I thought you were going to call me Kinomoto again. I think if you had, I would have smashed you head in." She gave me a roguish grin. "Well, if you're feeling better now, let's go and head over to where Tomoyo and them are waiting. I told them they could order first, but they refused."

"Can't start a party without the birthday girl, now can we?" I replied, grinning.

She stared hard at me before laughing. "Nah. It's just an excuse. You guys can't do anything without me there to hype up the atmosphere. Now come on, baka! You're taking forever Syao."

"Just like to keep my distance away from scary kaijuus." I answered in reflex.

"Mou! You're just like Touya! I thought you promised that I would get this day free of you calling me kaijuu." Sakura retorted, sticking out her tongue.

"I did?"

Sakura laughed. "You'll never change. Come on, my stomach's growling and I want some dinner and later enjoy the cake Tomoyo and Meiling baked personally for me."

"Meiling made a cake? I don't think you'd want to eat it then. But, if you insist, I brought along some stomach ache pills." I said seriously. "Last time she tried to bake, she burned the cake along with scorching the kitchen into an attractive shade of black."

"I thought that was the time when she tried to cook spaghetti."

"No, that time she flooded the place and the ceiling was damp from the water evaporating."

Sakura grinned and I grinned back. Indeed, Meiling was one of the worst cooks imaginable, but exaggerating those stories had always been an inside joke between the two of us for some reason.

This was where I was supposed to be. What had happened were just a dream, and only a dream. Dreaming wasn't reality and it couldn't become reality. I most likely had probably watched part of the movie and dreamed on the rest.

There's something bout the way you look tonight,

There's something bout the way that I can't take my eyes off you.

But I couldn't help thinking about Sakura in that dream of mine. As I walked beside her, I kept sneaking glances at her. Her smiles seemed so much brighter and her eyes shown with life, yet at the same time, she had an aura that was strong and powerful. In so many ways, she was like that Sakura I dreamt of.

But dreams were to stay at dreams. They were just meaningless dreams. Nothing could come from them.

Yet, even though I was saying such, I was looking at Sakura much more often than I used to. I always had treated Sakura just a great friend of mine since the two of us grew up together and enjoying playing together since she was much of a tomboy. Today, I was looking at her from a different light. She seemed, just really, really pretty tonight. Funny how I never realized it before. When Tomoyo called and told me to wear my favorite green shirt with the khakis that Sakura had picked out for me for Christmas, I gave no thought as to question. And when Sakura came, wearing the same colors, I just thought it was pretty awesome, since we're buddies and all. Besides, we had spent the whole day before the movie playing games as teams, so I naturally thought nothing more about the clothes since Sakura and I were always a team. But now, that dream has got me thinking.

I risked my life for her in that dream. I even admitted that I loved her in that dream.

Some say dreams are just dreams. Some say dreams are hidden fantasies. Some say dreams are part of your hidden unconsciousness.

I don't know what dreams are, whether or not they're my fantasies or unconsciousness. I just know that I had a dream, and it's got me thinking.

I think I'm going crazy. When was the last time I was thinking so much about my best friend, my favorite buddy to go kick soccer, my pal to count on to also get second and third helpings of double fudge ice cream? No, I'm pretty sure that the last time I checked, Sakura was just all that and nothing more. And now? I actually thinking that I like her.

Now that's got to be the craziest thought I've had in ages.

"Syaoran, you're staring off to space again." Sakura butted into my thoughts. "So cough it up. What's wrong with you?"

I backed my head away from her face in reflex and blinked. Oh my God, when did those eyes become so damn alluring? I could stare into them for ages, but I didn't dare. Instead, I blinked a couple of times and gave her my innocent look.

"Nothing," I fibbed, giving her a small smile. "I was just thinking."

Sakura raised her eyebrow. "You're telling me that you're thinking." She repeated.

"Uh, yeah? Can't a guy think once in a while?" I retorted defensively.

"Well, sure they can. But you? I never thought I'd live to that day when you're actually thinking!" She gave me a wolfish grin playfully and I found myself grinning back, partly because her smile was so damn attractive that I had to smile back and also because the topic had shifted away from what I was thinking about.

"Please, I have to think. I must decide what I want for dinner. It takes skills my friend." I answered as seriously as possible.

My friend rolled her eyes. "Men and their stomachs: I'll never understand it."

"That, my dear woman is for you to find out and me to know."

She tried to look offended, but a laugh broke out from her. "You should hear yourself when you said that!" Sakura said between laughs. "You sound like one of those pompous jerks who try to act seductive in those chick flicks."

"That was beneath the belt." I said solemnly. "I'm deeply wounded."

"Wimp."

"Thanks for being ever so understanding, Saku," I answered sarcastically.

"No problem." She replied, giving me a sweet smile that just totally threw me off guard. Seriously, I swear to God, if she gives me another smile, I'm going to end up hugging her or something just as ridiculous. I get a hold of myself before I actually end up doing something silly and make a fool out of myself.

There's something bout the way your lips invite,

Maybe it's the way that I get nervous when you're around.

"Food," I blurted out loud once I saw Sakura observing me again; it must have been the weird look that crossed my face when my brain was wandering. She turned her head to look as well.

"Come on, Syao. I'm starving!" Without warning, she grabbed my hand and ran towards the restaurant with me trailing behind helplessly. My God, her auburn hair was let down today and when she ran, the air blew her hair back and with me being behind her and so close, I could smell the fragrance.

And I want you to be mine

And if you need a reason why,

There was seriously something wrong with me.

The loud chorus of "happy birthday" saved me once again from my own thoughts. Blinking, I now noticed I was now inside the restaurant and seated next to Eriol and across from Sakura. He gave me a secretive grin that never ceases to annoy the hell out of me, despite years of knowing him. Yet somehow, it seemed like he really knew something this time.

"Are you feeling better Syaoran? When we left the theater, you were still sleeping. Sakura later called and told us that you were feeling a bit dizzy." Eriol offered me another smile.

"I'm fine." I replied shortly, turning my attention away from him and stupidly caught myself facing the special birthday girl instead. Inwardly, I cursed at my mistake when Sakura caught my glance and gave me grin.

"So, Syao, enlighten me. What are you ordering?" She teased.

"What I always get."

"The classic roast beef with mozzarella sticks on the side." Sakura continued for me knowingly. She laughed. "Why did I even bother asking?" She turned to the waiter and ordered for me.

Yes, that was what I always ordered when I came to Kila's, my favorite restaurant in Japan. It was also what Sakura's always ordered in her favorite restaurant. It was really funny actually, once I thought about it, how similar we were.

It's in the way that you move me,

And the way that you tease me the way that I want you tonight,

She was my best buddy and I always counted on her to make anything fun. Since the day we met in fourth grade, we instantly clicked and became the best of friends. I found out that she loved sports as much as I did, and my idea that girls were weak, especially cheerleaders, was immediately erased. Not only was Sakura the team captain of the cheerleading team in high school, she was one of the best with me in martial arts, and was my buddy I knew I could count on to practice my soccer skills with. Now at Tokyo University, she had formed the university's best women soccer team, leading them into top twenty last season.

She was my best pal who I did everything with. We both found a little piece of heaven in double fudge ice cream. The color emerald became a shared favorite color, and the sparkling ocean was where we found part time summer jobs.

She was my best friend who I could count on anything. I didn't want to go with some air-headed girl to senior prom, so I asked her as a friend, and at the last moment. Sakura said yes immediately and a few days later, told me how it'd be interesting to go play pool instead of dancing. I never knew until weeks later that Sakura had turned down a few guys to go with me and had played pool with me for the whole night when Tomoyo said she was looking forward to dancing a month before prom. She was seriously the best friend one could ask.

And here I was, being a total selfish brat, asking Sakura to me more than all that: a buddy, a pal, and a best friend. Somewhere deep inside me, I wanted her more than that. But that would be selfish of me. Sakura had given me more than I could ever ask for, more than I could ever give in return, and now I wanted her more than friend. What kind of guy would even think of that? I swear to God, sometimes I just think I don't deserve someone as perfect as her.

It's in the way that you

Hold me, and the way that you know me,

"Roast steak with mozzarella sticks?" The waiter asked.

I woke from my thoughts to see my food being placed in front of me. The food was finally being served; my stomach rumbled in agreement. It was made to perfection. The roasted beef with generous helpings of barbeque sauce with mushroom and crisped garlic. To the side were five sticks of hot mozzarella sticks with attractive dips right next to this.

"Sakura, why don't you say a speech," Tomoyo suggested once she saw that everyone was served.

"Yeah, give me one of those heart wrenching ones like you gave for us at high school graduation!" Meiling added. "You captured all of our emotions and everyone, I swear everyone, was in tears."

Sakura laughed. "I can't believe you still remember that, Meiling! It's been two years already. I'm not much of a speaker."

"I'll talk!" Yamazaki offered. "I've been dying to tell you guys what I just learned about mozzarella sticks!" I looked over at the guy who was sitting next to me before looking back to my dinner. "You see, it all started out with a competition of who make their food stretch the longest. People from across all worlds came to compete. There were bubblegum experts, bread dough experts, and of course cheese experts. Finally, it came down to only bread and cheese. Since they couldn't decide who won, they put them together, and whala! Mozzarella sticks!"

He grinned again, and offered a slight nod to the birthday girl who laughed with appreciation. Then he turned to the brown haired beauty sitting next to him. "Thank you Chiharu for letting me finish my story." He smiled cheekily. "That was most kind of you." Yamazaki leaned over and gave his girlfriend a light peck on the cheek.

Chiharu blushed and looked down. "It was nothing," She whispered lightly, touched by his praise and embarrassed by his sudden act of public affection.

"Kawaii!" The rest of the girls chorused together with stars in their eyes, which only succeeded in making Chiharu blush a darker shade of red and hiding her face behind Yamazaki's back.

"Hey! That was my line!" Tomoyo argued, as she finished making sure she got a good picture of Chiharu and Yamazaki.

"No, it's only your line when you use it on Sakura." Rika pointed out.

"Now that we've settled this matter," Naoko cut in, "let's settle down and listen to Sakura's speech."

I blinked in silent amusement as everyone hushed down and stared at the birthday girl who looked bewildered that suddenly the attention had turned back to her.

When I can't find the right words to say,

You feel it in the way; you feel it in the way.

"Um, hi," Sakura smiled timidly at the faces that suddenly loomed closer to her. She looked at me pleadingly. I just sat back in my chair and smiled. She shot me a glare for ditching her; I knew just how much she hated making speeches. When she was chosen to make a speech for high school graduation, she had pulled me down with her and forced me to help write her speech and listen to her say her speech over and over again.

"We're waiting," Meiling sang. I could have sworn I saw her red eyes glint. Count on Meiling to love putting people into the spotlight.

"Uh, I just want to say thank you for coming, although its spring break right now, you guys came just for me. I'm really touched, really!" Sakura repeated once she saw me smirked amusedly as I sat comfortably in my chair. "Seriously I am. After all, you guys came from different parts of Japan, taking the train, the MRT, the bus, or whatever transportation you could find. That really means to me knowing that I have such awesome friends that would do anything to attend my birthday party, unlike someone here who lives right here. The effort you guys put will be something I'll treasure tonight." She sent me a smart glare.

I saw an evil glint in her eye and I knew that I was in for it.

"Before we eat the delicious meal set before us," Sakura started, "let me continue and say a few words." She grinned wolfishly at me.

Oh sweet Kami, she was going to make this speech longer. I looked forlornly at my dinner, knowing it would be a while before I could bring a big piece of steak into my mouth.

"I'm looking forward to the cake Tomoyo and Meiling baked especially for me, so I think it should be around time to start on our dinner before it gets cold." She grinned again. "Syao, everyone, dig in."

Dinner was good. In fact, it was better than good; it was wonderful. But somehow the food didn't seem to taste all that awesome tonight, as much as I enjoyed my food. I'm sure the quality was just as good as any other time, but I think it was I who was the one that was distracted.

I talked and laughed and was engaged to the conversation around me, and I enjoyed being all around my friends again. However, if anyone asked me what we talked about over dinner, I couldn't be able to remember anything. All that would come to mind would be her dazzling smile, her twinkling emerald eyes, and the aura of happiness and optimism she carried around her.

There's something bout how you stay on my mind,

There's something bout the way that I whisper your name when I'm asleep

Oh no.

The day finished before I knew it, and soon, everyone was leaving and Sakura was off saying goodbye in the mist of hugs and laughter. She was waving off the last few people: Eriol and Tomoyo. After Sakura made sure that Eriol was bringing Tomoyo home, she came back into the restaurant to get her bags.

"Playing matchmaker?" I teased as I helped her hold her bags that were full of gifts from her friends.

She turned to give me a grin. "Everyone knows that they're a match made in Heaven. They just need a little push into the right direction."

"Yeah, I think Eriol's been crazy about her since he heard her sing." I mused. "I caught him once listening to a song Tomoyo sang at our school performances a long way back."

"And Tomoyo has liked him since they became friends." Sakura added. "She has that glow around her whenever he's around."

"It would be pretty awesome if they could become a couple and admit their feelings," I choked out, considering their situation was kind of like ours, except the fact that most likely I wasn't good enough for Sakura and Sakura had tons of other friends and admirers.

"Hm, that's true." Sakura said as she rummaged through her bags to make sure she had everything. Thankfully, because of that, she didn't realize how awkward my voice sounded.

After making sure she did have everything, she turned her bright smile to me. "So, how was your day?"

"I should be asking that, birthday girl." I answered giving her a grin. "But, in answering your question, today was pretty awesome. Thanks for this whole party."

"Well, I should thank you for planning this up all up." She replied, giving me a sincere smile. When she saw my confused face, she added, "Tomoyo told me Syao, so stop pretending. I know that you were the one who called everyone, booked movie tickets, and reservations."

"It's nothing b-day girl." I replied softly.

Maybe it's the look you get in your eyes.

She just smiled back at me and we stayed like that for a while, just smiling softly at each other. My God, I felt that I had died and literally had gone to Heaven. Why didn't I notice earlier how just beautiful Sakura was? She was all I ever wanted.

Oh baby it's the way that makes me feel to see you smile.

"Hey Syao?" She said softly. I looked over at her as I walked her home. "Can we stop by Penguin Park? I just want to be quiet and relaxed right now."

I looked at her again and nodded. But I kept sneaking looks at her; Sakura usually didn't act like this. I knew her father and Touya would have planned a small sized family party at home. Sakura usually would be really excited, but now, she seemed in deep thought. I wonder what she was thinking about.

We walked to the park without saying a word. She sat down in a swing and I put down the bags to the side and walked behind her to push it gently. It just seemed like it was the right thing to do. I was compelled to. I don't even know why. I just did. I never pushed her before. But here I was, doing just that.

I pushed her gently and she sat, and let me push her. We did that for a while in silence, the few bugs that were twittering in their sleep and soft creaking of the metal chains were the only sounds.

"So, hey, what's my birthday gift? I don't remember you giving me anything but a card saying that you would give it to me later." Sakura said quietly. She looked back a little, so she could see my face.

"So impatient." I chided. "Good things come with a good wait."

She laughed.

I love that laugh.

"So, what is it?" Sakura repeated again, louder this time, giving me a perfect imitation of a cute puppy.

Have I said that I couldn't stand that puppy look of hers? I would do everything to just make her happy.

I blinked.

I could not believe I had just thought those words. I can't even believe they actually exist in me. My God, I'm becoming a love sick guy like Eriol was. And what scared me the most was not that I was become like him, but the idea that I actually was starting to like Sakura.

And the reasons they may change but what I'm feeling stays the same.

I caught the swing to a stop when it came back. I was just a hair's breath away from her. I felt the need to hug her, to mold myself against her body, to feel her every breath, and her warm body against mine.

It's in the way that you move me,

And the way that you tease me the way that I want you tonight,

Instead, I took a step back and reached into my pocket. I had forgotten it was there. It was actually Touya's suggestion as to what to buy. It was very weird, getting that call from Touya. I never knew why he told me the advice, but he did and it was actually good advice. It was the first time that we got together quite well.

Wait. I remember that in my dream, I had called Touya for advice when I was going to bring Sakura out for a date. Funny how ironic life can be.

"Hey, move your head from the clouds. What's wrong with you Syao?" Sakura cut in. "You've been weird since the moment you walked into that movie theater and just fell asleep. The moment you woke up, you have been walking around dazedly, and I've often caught you looking at me." She looked up into my eyes from her sitting position; her eyes fierce and determined, and at the same time concerned. "So cough it up, big guy, what's wrong?"

"What do you think dreams are?" I found myself asking before I even knew I asked the question itself.

My best friend titled her head, raised her eyebrow, but thought of the question. "Dreams are a mixture of our imagination, our hopes, our fantasies, our desires. They're a jumble of reality and fantasy. But I think dreams are based upon an idea that is true, whether it's an emotion or a situation." She shrugged. "What do you think?"

"I think that dreams are what make me think so much." I responded truthfully.

Sakura burst out laughing. "I guess dreams do do that. So what made you think of the question? The dream you had that you had in the movie theater?"

"Yeah, it's making me have these crazy thoughts that I never had before." I said.

"How crazy," She questioned, her eyes twinkling with amusement.

"You wouldn't want to know."

"Don't tell me what I want to know and what I don't want to know." She retorted stubbornly. "I do want to know."

"It's just made me see things from a different light." I said, half-thinking out loud as I looked through my best friend in a whole new dazzling light

"Sounds like a knock on reality if you ask me." Sakura said, shrugging her shoulders. "Might be your guardian angel giving you some good advice."

"Before it kills me," I snorted, thinking over the crazy thoughts that I had that night. It would kill me if I lost Sakura as a friend; that wasn't something I was going to place bets on.

It's in the way that you

Hold me, and the way that you know me,

Sakura grinned teasingly. "You say anything that requires thinking kills you."

I smiled sheepishly. There was no way getting past this stunning girl in front of me. She knew me almost as well as I knew myself. "Well, since you think you know me so well birthday girl, how about trying to guess what I got you?"

"Aw, come on. I can't believe you're doing this to me." Sakura whined. "Haven't I been patient enough?"

"I don't see why you're so excited. It's just a gift."

"From you, one of my best friends," She added. "I love receiving gifts from you Syao. It's always this awesome surprise. Tomoyo always gives some kind of clothing, not that I'm complaining or anything. I love the stuff she designs. But with you, you're always so unpredictable and everything you pick out for me is perfect." She confided. I blinked in surprise upon hearing this news.

"Well, then, wouldn't it be more fun to guess?" I said lamely, trying to cover up my surprise. I never knew she enjoyed my gifts to her so much. They were small nice things that I noticed that Sakura might get for herself, like that t-shirt I bought for her that she had her eyes on for ages, or the latest CD of her favorite band.

"Fine," She relented and thought for a while, her eyes cutely looking upwards as she thought. "A Mercedes Benz."

I laughed. "No, but if I one does happen to fall into my hands, I'll let you get behind the wheels."

"Hm, so I guess we're talking about something smaller in size then, because I don't see any big packages, unless it is actually a car and all you have is the car keys with you." She gave me a sly grin.

"Saku, keep on dreaming. I don't even have a car, so it's going to be a while before you can have one."

She laughed. "Well, a girl can dream, can't she?"

"Just remember that not all dreams come true."

Sakura wrinkled her nose. "Ugh, you sound so mathematical. That's like saying to a girl who says dreamily that the moon is so lovely and round tonight, and you replying that it isn't as round as what you could do with a compass."

"I am mathematical," I pointed out, a teasing grin on my face. She was most adorable when she pouted, thinking of something to go against my teasing. Come to think of it, there wasn't a time where she wasn't just simply....... Beautiful.

"You and math," She groaned. "Can we not talk about math? Before I know it, you'll dive right into differentials and integration and other calculus gibberish."

I chuckled and patted her on the head like she was a little girl. "It's not that bad. I mean,"

"Woah, you can just stop that train of thought right there big guy. I said I didn't want to hear the math talk now." She said, backing away from me as much as she could on the swing, and raised her hands up. Her emerald eyes had a soft light to them that danced.

"Fine," I sighed loudly as if I were disappointed. "So, you still have two guesses left as to what your gift is. And no, it's not a car." I continued when I saw her open her mouth.

Sakura frowned as she concentrated again. "I guess teddy bear."

"Didn't I give you one already?" I said. "For Christmas or something like that?"

"You know better than I do!" She laughed. "I think it was for me leading Tokyo University off to a victory in soccer. I forget. But I do remember the bear you gave me. It's that cute black bear with a blue bow that's on my bed."

"Stop wasting guesses," I scolded. "You're ruining all the fun."

"You're no fun." She retorted, but she quieted down and paused to think. I don't think she even knows herself, but she has this cute habit of titling her head slightly to her left and her eyes looking up as she thinks.

"What if it's something that you can't give me?" Sakura whispered.

When I can't find the right words to say,

You feel it in the way, you feel it in the way.

I blinked, focusing on her. Her voice was soft and quiet, and her eyes shown with a streak of seriousness that suddenly replaced the teasing glow. "What's wrong Saku?" I looked down at her.

"What if I want something you can't give?" She asked again, her voice so soft I barely heard her over the deafening silence.

"Saku, if I could give it to you, I'd try my best to." I answered honestly. She nodded at my answer, seemingly far away in her thoughts.

"Now what's this that you want? I asked. "It's not that Mercedes Benz now is it?" I teased.

Sakura gave me a small smile and shook her head. "I don't know if I should say. It seems so selfish for me when you already did so much for me already."

"Tell me."

She looked up at me, her green eyes exploring me eyes thoroughly. Her eyes probed mine, wondering if she should tell me. I looked back, unblinkingly, trustingly. When she looked away, she gave me a smile, a genuine one.

"May I have a dance?"

I blinked at her. "A what," I repeated my voice louder than expected.

"A, oh, never mind." Sakura said, shaking her head. "It was a crazy idea anyhow."

"Come on, birthday girl. Up to your feet. How are we supposed to have a dance if you're sitting?" I grinned at her, offering her my hand. Her eyes lit up and slowly a smiled dawned on her beautiful features as she accepted my hand.

Our hands knew each other; there was no question of it. The single touch contained all our past memories of friendship: her small hand stuck out to me as she introduced herself with a toothy grin in fourth grade, our high fives of encouragement, the hand that held the baton she passed to me in class relays, the hand that held mine when I had gotten the news of my favorite uncle's death, the hands that were so full of energy and determination in our spars, the hands I grew to love.

I put my arms around her waist and held her close, breathing in the scent of her hair that always soothed me. My thoughts traveled back to prom where we danced the last dance; the only dance we danced to that whole night. She knew that I wasn't one for dancing, but Gods, I did love the feeling of her being so close to me.

I can't put my fingers on just what it is that makes me love you, you baby.

So don't ask me to describe,

I get all choked up inside, just thinking bout the way.

"Syaoran?"

"Hm?" I asked lazily, not wanting to break the magical moment that I was having with her. I never wanted this moment to end.

I could feel her shake her head slightly on my shoulder. "It's nothing." She replied softly. "I just felt like saying your name."

I wrapped my arms around her tighter, pulling her deeper into my embrace. I felt her body stiffen at first before relaxing against mine. She was all I ever wanted.

Thank God for those crazy dreams. Thank God.

"I love you." I whispered into her ear. I pulled her away from my embrace, my hands on her shoulders. I fixed my eyes on hers and said it again, "I love you."

Sakura smiled at me, her emerald orbs shinning with such emotions. "I know." She answered, still smiling at me.

I shook my head. "No, I really mean it."

"I know." She answered again.

I shook my head emphatically. I was beginning to dislike how we used to say "I love you" to each other so frequently and carelessly before.

"You don't understand Sakura. I really do." I told her seriously. "I never noticed it before until now. I can't believe how lucky I am to have you as a friend. My God, I've never noticed it before but you're just simply gorgeous. I know I'm being selfish here and everything, but if you don't return my feelings, that's okay. I just hope we can continue being friends," I rambled, starting to worry when Sakura just looked at me with that same understanding smile.

"I know." Sakura repeated for the third time, this time more firmly. "I've known all that, Syaoran."

She smiled.

I love that smile.

It's in the way that you move me,

And the way that you tease me the way that I want you tonight,

It's in the way that you

Hold me, and the way that you know me,

"I love you too." And that's when she closed the distance between us with a soft kiss to my lips, lips that ached to caress hers. I wrapped my arms around her and deepened the kiss gently.

When we broke away, she was smiling and I'm sure I must have had a smile on my face as well. Sakura leaned over again and stole a quick kiss again, a sly grin on her face.

"So what's my birthday gift?"

I laughed and pulled her into my arms. She tilted her head up so she could peer into my eyes. I just couldn't continue without pulling in for another sweet, sweet kiss. I sighed blissfully.

One could get used to this. Heck, one could fall in love with those kisses.

I think I already am.

"Happy birthday Sakura," I reached into my pocket and handed a small jewelry box.

She reached for it, her eyes wide with surprise. Still in my arms, she opened the velvet black box, her eyes shinning with anticipation. A frown came over her face as she pulled out a piece of paper that seemed to have been torn from a notebook. Taking it out, Sakura looked through the box but found only that piece of paper.

I smiled, watching her puzzlement.

She unfolded the paper, a sound of sweet laughter escaping her beautiful lips as she read what was inside. Turning towards me, she captured my lips into a wonderful kiss again as she whispered, "yes."

-----

The first thing Sakura did when she got home after kissing me good night that is, was to run up to Touya and give him a big hug before dashing upstairs. She placed the note on her desk before running downstairs again to celebrate her birthday with her family and Yukito.

On the desk, bathed in the pearly moonlight was this note scrawled in Touya's distinct handwriting:

Kaijuu,

You have permission to date that stupid gaki since you're so in love with him; why, I'll never know. So stop gawking at this stupid paper and say yes. You're dating remember. There's no way I'm ever, ever going to let that gaki marry you, you here me?

Happy Birthday,

Touya

-----

When I can't find the right words to say,

You feel it in the way you feel it in the way.

I don't try explaining things anymore. I just embrace and be thankful. When people ask me what I love best about Sakura, there's no way to explain that because I just love here, everything there is to love her.

And the prince captured the stunningly beautiful princess into a deep, sensational kiss, and they lived happily ever after.

The end.

For now.

-----

That's it everyone. Sort of a Fairytale has finally come to an end, or is it? I'm not planning a sequel or anything, but I never consider my stories as done. The rest is for you to think what may happen and my stories are always up for revisions as they are far from being perfect.

How many people actually saw that ending coming? That everything was a dream? I wasn't going to end it like this actually. I had another whole ending written out when me and my friend was talking and he asked me the question of, "don't you ever wonder sometimes if this reality we know of is just merely a dream?" That got me thinking and that's how this ending came about. I hope you guys have enjoyed this as much as I have enjoyed writing this.

I'm sorry that I've taken forever to update, but please understand that this past month or so has been a huge time of adjustment to me. My family and friends are across the planet and I'm here alone at UVA and I don't have any relatives here in America either. Anyhow, I'm still going to continue writing since I really do enjoy it. I'm thinking of challenging myself with an Inuyasha fic, but who knows. I just know that I'll keep on writing. :)

Thanks for reading, every single one of you and I apologize deeply for not putting you all individually in the special thanks section. I'm just trying to avoid those that remind me of home currently because I hate tearing up since I've done enough of that recently as it is. Don't get me wrong though, I really love it here at UVA. Anyhow, THANKS FOR READING AND SUPPORTING ME ALONG THE WAY. It never would have been accomplished if without you guys. I can't say thank you enough.

Oh, and before I end this, I do not own Clay Aiken's "The Way."

I love you all,

Iris Dreamer.