Pretense

Part II

AN: I had this chapter finished for a few months now but yeah . . . things always seem to get in the way of my posting it and I haven't been on fanfiction for a while now so . . . forgive me.

disclaimer: Card Captor Sakura and characters do not belong to me (except Jet and Gary)

We attract hearts to the quality we display;

We retain them by the qualities we possess.

Scad

Sakura turned this way and that in front of the mirror, loving the way the light shimmered on the black lamour satin gown Tomoyo had made for her. Her black elbow gloves and lined black shawl draped around her shoulders gave her a soft aura to which Sakura was oblivious. What she loved the most was the green train that matched her eyes. Tomoyo had outdone herself with the gown and she couldn't have been more pleased. She had even made accessories for her: a beaded green star necklace and earrings set off the look perfectly. Her curled hair intricately twisted, gathered with an emerald clip, enhanced her sparkling green eyes.

She hadn't danced in over five years and she wondered if she still remembered all the moves. Would she get to dance with Syaoran? What if she steps on his foot? What if she spills something on her dress? That would be the ultimate faux pas. Everyone will think she's clumsy and doesn't know how to hold her own in an elite social gathering.

By the time a knock sounded, she was wringing her hands, her stomach fluttering uneasily. She opened the door and almost closed it again when she saw Syaoran's smiling face. He had his palm pressed against the door and studied her, his eyes filled with admiration. "You look absolutely stunning."

"Uh…um…thank you."

"Shall we go?" he asked and held out his arm.

Sakura stared at him as though horns had just sprouted out of his head. "Excuse me?"

"I thought I'd made it clear to you that I will escort you to the ball." He frowned as though disappointed that she could forget something so important – which she had.

"Oh! No. That is, it would be a pleasure to accompany you to the ball Mr. Li." She hooked her arm through his, very aware of his proximity. She still had feelings for him even though she wanted to hold him at an arm's length. 5 years had not diminished the closeness she felt to him.

"What are you thinking?" he asked.

She turned to find his face close to hers examining her face as though looking for a clue. "N-nothing." Her heart picked up just a little and the butterflies in her stomach started its flutter.

They entered the ball room and his attention shifted to his manager who was giving a speech but upon spotting him, invited Syaoran to the podium. Sakura glanced around as Syaoran welcomed the people, marvelling at the beautiful gowns the women wore and silently thanked Tomoyo for making her look just as glamorous. Though she had interviewed many rich people and had attended such social gatherings, she'd always felt that she didn't belong. One on one interviews she could handle but mingling with large groups was not her thing. Soft music began and she turned to find Syaoran stepping down the stairs and greeting everyone. What was she supposed to do now? Couples started moving toward the dance floor and she started backing toward the wall. She'd lost sight of Syaoran now. She was starting to feel sick. Syaoran's probably forgotten about her. No. She couldn't do this. She backed away and was about to turn to leave when strong arms encircled her. "And just where do you think you're going?"

Startled, she turned, her face colouring. "Umm, I was going to – to"

"To…?" Syaoran's brow arched as he considered her flushed face. "I was hoping to dance the night away with you. Shall we?" He held out his hand.

Her blush deepened and nodding slightly, she took his hand.

He led her to the dance floor. "I've really enjoyed having you here," he said as his arms encircled her again and she looked up in surprise. She kept her hands lightly against his shoulders She wasn't expecting him to say that but was glad that he did.

"Thank you. I've enjoyed being here too."

He smiled. "It's going to be really hard to let you go. I haven't had this much fun or felt this cared for since…well…since a special friend of mine left."

Her heart thudded dully. "Oh?"

"Yes. She was a woman I loved. I didn't realize just how much until she left." He gazed across the room, his eyes distant. Sakura thought of Meilin and assumed that he still loved her. Maybe he wished he had married her before Jet. She wondered at their story. They had been in love when she left so how did Meilin end up with Jet? "What about you? Is there someone special that holds your heart Shae?" She looked up to find him watching her closely. Panic gripped her and she didn't know what to say. The music changed and Syaoran's grip on her tightened. "Is there?"

"I – I don't know." She stammered and her eyes fixed just above his shoulder. She had to get away. He was too close. The lights abruptly went out, plunging the room into darkness. A few women screamed and everyone started shouting to everyone else to be calm. Sakura clutched at Syaoran in fright, wondering what was going on.

"It's OK Sakura. They'll get it fixed soon enough." He murmured soothingly into her ear. "Are you alright?" he asked and she nodded then suddenly stiffened. He had just called her Sakura. He knew who she was. She tried to shove away from him but he wasn't letting go. "Calm down."

The lights flickered back to life again. "Let go of me. Please." Her eyes pleaded with his. The humiliation of her deception came rushing back. "Please Syaoran." She stared at him in panic.

"I'm never letting you go, Sakura." He whispered with fierce determination. "I've waited for you to come back for so long and there's no way I'm letting you go now. Please don't ask that of me. I love you Sakura."

She stared at him dumbfounded. "What did you say?"

"I love you. I didn't think I'd ever see you again until Gary mentioned his favourite employee. 5 years of misery and suddenly there was hope."

"But what about Meilin?"

"Meilin?" His brow furrowed in confusion. Don't you understand yet, Sakura? Through those e-mails, I fell in love with you, not Meilin. When I came back, I didn't connect you to the e-mails which was pretty dumb of me but Jet loved Meilin in a way that I never would because you held my heart. Say you'll stay Sakura. Tell me my wait for you won't go to waste."

Sakura couldn't have been more astounded at his plea. This was her dream come true. "So you forgive me for…"

"It's all forgotten as long as you promise to stay."

Sakura's heart felt as though a burden had been removed. "I'll stay Syaoran. I'll stay with you and I'll never run away from you again." She said and he gathered her into his arms.

"I'll hold you to your word."

The End

An: hey ppls!!! That's it folks! That's the end of this story!!!! Yay! See! I promised I'd finish it and finish it, I did. Tell me what you think. Did you like it? Talk about mega mushy romance, eh? And I didn't even mean to write it like that! It just came out and I don't even like reading stuff like that…unless absolutely necessary because the rest of the story is unmushy. I think I better stop talking now.

THE DRESS: THANK YOU SKC for your suggestion on the dress!!! I hope you don't mind my altering it a little but without your suggestion I don't know what I could've done. I'm pretty hopeless when it comes to dress descriptions and I hope I've done a good job. Sooo…have I?

THANKYOU to all those who reviewed those wonderful reviews which kept me going.

I'll keep you posted about my next story which in still in the works…

I bid you Adieu for now

NiteAngel

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