Part II
Dedicated to SKC and Xander
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But God commendeth his love toward us, In that, while we were yet sinners,
Christ died for us.
-Romans 5:8-
5 years later. Australia.
Intro: Sakura Kinomoto also known as Shae Ying Fa Tou had finished her 3-year course and had worked two years for Tycoon Magazine. She is now 23 years old.
Sakura knocked on the door and waited for her boss, Gary to bid her in.
"Enter," said a voice on cue. He spoke as soon as she entered.
"Shae, we've got a new assignment for you." he told her without preamble. Sakura, who had been expecting something like this nodded calmly.
Gary continued. "The owner of Japan's top ranking Adventure Park has agreed to give one of my reporters a tour of his playground and home. You will interview him. Your accommodation is provided for. You'll have three months max to finish this project." After a pause, he continued sheepishly. "I've been pestering him for quite a while now to let one of our reporters to interview him. I've known him since primary school and we've kept in touch. He's just not the type who likes public exposure but he'll do almost anything for his toy land. You see . . .," he would've continued but Sakura interrupted.
"Why me?" she asked simply.
Gary's eyes softened. "Sakura, you work too hard. You've finished more articles than I care to count. This will be a break for you. I'm giving you three months because I know you'll finish the whole thing in less than that time. I want you to relax and enjoy yourself. However, I must warn you of one thing. He's a bit of a grouch and he's told me to make it clear to you that if you put one step outta line he'll send you packing."
Sakura's eyes widened at this. 'What kind of man is he sending her to?'
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Sakura looked around, trying to figure out whom she was supposed to meet, when a man with a shock of extremely dark hair, appeared in front of her.
"Shae Tou, I presume?"
"Yes and please call me Shae. You must be Mr. Li." Sakura surmised aloud as they shook hands. The man chuckled in response.
"Oh no. I'm Mr. Li's chauffeur, Dave."
"Oh I'm sorry. My boss pretty much left me in the dark concerning my client. Thanks for meeting me Dave." Sakura looked contrite and Dave smiled kindly and offered his arm.
"Shall we go ma-am?"
"We shall." Sakura looped her arm through his and they made their way out of the airport.
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10.45 am.
"A limousine . . . well duh Sakura. What exactly were you expecting? A hearse ?!?" . . . "Well, no but I definitely didn't think that they'd provide transport for me. He's my client and I'm supposed to be arriving there off my own accord with my own transport, not the other way around!" . . . "Uh! Now I'm talking to myself" Sakura mumbled aloud in self-disgust.
Sakura noticed that the houses were starting to look larger, sophisticated and elegant. She smirked to herself. 'We're entering the territory of the rich.'
Finally, the limo stopped in front of a mansion. Dave opened the door for her.
"Uh . . . this is the hotel?" Sakura asked somewhat disconcerted. 'Why had Gary not clued her in on what it was going to be like?'
However, Dave's eyes lit up with amusement. 'Well, actually Shae, this is Mr. Li's mansion.' Her eyes widened in remembrance. Gary had told her that she would be staying at Mr. Li's place. How could she have forgotten something like that? 'It must be jet-lag' Sakura reasoned within herself.
She gazed around tiredly but awe-struck at the beautiful and intricate structure of the building. She was welcomed warmly by the household staff but what she wanted the most was sleep.
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Sakura startled awake as someone knocked on the door. She quickly moved to the door and opened it to find the same gentlemen who had shown her to her room. Wei. That was his name.
"Miss Tou." His voice filtered through the door. Sakura hurriedly got up and opened the door the elderly looking man. Wei's eyes were crinkled in a smile, his face wreathed with warmth and friendliness.
"Good evening, Miss Tou. You slept through lunch so I thought it best to wake you for dinner."
"Thank you Wei. I'll be right down."
As Sakura closed her room softly she studied her spacious room that sported a computer, modem, fax, printer . . . all the necessities for a writer but the main feature that she loved the most was none of these. A window seat! Her very own window seat. Sakura sighed softly. She knew she was going to hate leaving this place. A grumble from her stomach jolted her to reality.
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Sakura hadn't realized just how hungry she was until she'd started eating and the beautiful aroma wafting through the air and the yumminess of the food had increased her appetite. It was almost comical to see the petite Sakura almost inhaling the food.
It was at this point that the owner of the Mansion entered the dining room. The man froze, taking in the apparently starving woman. He waited till she finished before clearing his throat.
Sakura turned with a look that told him that she had been caught unawares and her face was taking on a curious shade of red. Embarrassment flooded her features as she imagined what she must have looked like while eating. However, of all the emotions she was feeling, the most overwhelming was shock . . . and fear? The man standing in front of her was none other than Syaoran Li himself!
'Oh you baka girl! Why did it never occur to you that it would be Syaoran?! After all . . . how man Lis would there be in Japan? Sakura knew why. She had forced herself to not think about Syaoran and now it had cost her. Sakura studied him to see any sign of recognition, but apart from the slight flicker in his eyes that had disappeared so quickly that she'd probably imagined it, there was none. Instead he seemed to be watching her expectantly. Sakura frowned perplexed.
"I'm Syaoran." He started for her and held out his hand and Sakura's confusion cleared.
"Call me Shae. Mr. Li, I'm terribly sorry. I didn't expect you to be back till tomorrow morning . . ." she trailed off at a loss. What is she supposed to say. She was at his home. When was she supposed to interview him? What kind of questions should she ask? Then a thought struck her. She couldn't believe it! Of all the things that could've happened, she'd landed right in Syaoran's home. She was standing in front of Syaoran. Syaoran!!!
"It's all right." Syaoran's voice broke through her reverie. "Call me Syaoran and yes I informed Wei that I would be back tomorrow but my plans changed."
Sakura composed herself and nodded. She should be used to this. This kind of thing happened to her clients all the time. "I thank you for your, uh, gracious invitation. I'll try to stay out of your way as much as possible."
"Really? I thought most journalists always like to get in the way." Syaoran stated with a raised brow. His eyes held amusement as he watched Sakura's chin thrust forward with mock indignation.
"Well. For your information, I'm not most journalists."
This response drew out a soft chuckle from Syaoran and he shook his head. Sakura studied him again. Syaoran hadn't changed. His eyes and face held a new maturity and something else that she could not define. Yet, his messy locks of hair still fell into his amber eyes and he was still one of the best looking men she'd ever seen. Sakura thought that she must've changed a great deal for him to not recognize her or maybe he had . . . forgotten about her. Her eyes dropped, filling with sadness at the thought.
"Shae?" Sakura looked up to find Syaoran watching her intently. "Is there a problem?" She shook her head. Syaoran wasn't convinced but he wouldn't push her.
"Alright. I'm sorry I wasn't here to receive you earlier. I had to attend a meeting. Strictly business and dry as dust so it was a pleasant surprise to find that you've made yourself at home so quickly." Syaoran smiled warmly at her causing her face to heat up. "Do you have any plans tomorrow?" Syaoran asked changing the subject. "If not, I'll show you around my home." He paused. "Is that alright with you?"
"That's fine. Thank you." It was better if he didn't know who she was. Sakura supposed he was still dating Meilin. The only ones whom she had kept in touch with were Touya and Tomoyo. She wondered if -
"Earth to Shae." Syaoran interrupted her thought. "Have I lost you? What were you thinking about?"
"Well . . . you're not as bad as my boss made you out to be."
"Oh? And just how bad is that?"
"Hmmm . . . maybe I should keep that confidential. You never know. I might lose my job." She grinned up at him impishly as Syaoran threw his head back and laughed at the charming woman before him.
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Author's Note:
I know I've taken aaaaagggggggeeeees! But nevertheless I'm here again championing my way through this story! Hehe . . . anywayz! Yep I'm on hols now so hopefully I'll get to write more. I'll definitely update quicker. I think I updated 10 months ago and I also think I've lost my touch in writing. Let me know how you think I did plus I didn't leave any cliff-hangers sooo . . .
SKC and Xander: this chapter is dedicated to both of you for remembering that my story still exists after all that time. I almost forgot about it! And I REALLY appreciate the fact that you appreciate my story. So thank you sooo much!!!Sis: since you wanted me to thank you I shall. =Þ j/k thanx for reading through this thing first.
You've already read it so Review & Review.
NiteAngel
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