Thanks to all reviewers.
Kill off Tomoyo? Hm...another excuse to write a bloody chapter xP. But even IF I decide to kill her off, it won't be happening anytime soon. Lol, and I thought I would get flammed for making Tomoyo like that. Flamers welcome though. Surprised I didn't get any xD.
In case anyone gets confused by this chapter, Syaoran is debeating whether to go through with his mission or become "soft". He keeps forgetting he's supposed to make Sakura fall for him when he gets too close to her.
Chapter Three
It had been two weeks since that night in the garden and Sakura had finally recovered.
She and Syaoran hadn't spoken a word to each other since she asked him to get out of her room.
Syaoran was in an extremely bad mood. Two weeks had passed and he still wasn't any closer to completing his mission.
The doorbell rang, a chorus of annoyingly melodic tunes ringing in the mansion. Syaoran looked out of the keyhole and saw the weekly deliveryman with groceries.
He opened the door and smirked when he saw it was the doctor who had treated Sakura. Looks like he was a doctor no longer, thanks to a few "complaints".
The man shoved the bags into Syaoran's hands and growled. Syaoran heard a mumbled "fuck you" before he closed the door.
He almost laughed out loud as he heard the man screaming in agony as the bulldogs ripped the flesh off the poor man's bones, but being the person Syaoran was, he never even cracked a smile.
He sighed.
'Now I have to hire someone to clean up that mess.'
He looked into the brown paper bags containing his meals for the next seven days and was glad to see several cases of beer in there.
He needed a way to relax and stop thinking about his hostage. Opening a can, he let the sour taste engulf him.
One beer turned to two, and two turned to three, until eight empty cans laid in front of him.
Syaoran was a great drinker, but even he could not handle that much alcohol in one sitting.
He staggered upstairs and paused outside Sakura's room. Pushing the door open, he saw Sakura staring blankly at the muted tv screen.
Sakura was jolted out of her daydream when Syaoran opened the door.
She could tell there was something different about him. His eyes were glassy and unseeing and his powerful stride was accompanied by a slight shakiness.
As he drew closer to her, the stench of booze wafted up her nose. She barely had time to register the smell before Syaoran pulled her up by her arms and pushed her against the wall.
The stank hit Sakura powerfully now. She tried to push Syaoran away, but she was no match against his strong arms. His body an inch away from hers and she could hear his hard breathing.
Sakura froze. What was he going to do to her? With the beer drugging his mind, there was no telling.
Syaoran stared at the trembling girl in front of him with a sudden hatred. It was all her fault. She caused all his problems.
Sakura saw Syaoran's fist rising and tried to get away, but his grip held tight. His knuckles hit her square in the eye and blinding pain shot through her. He was so strong.
Sakura felt every one of Syaoran's hits. She didn't know why they hurt. Physical torment never used to hurt her...
Before she knew it, tears were running down her face and they continued long after Syaoran collapsed on the floor.
Syaoran's head hurt. He noticed he was on the floor in Sakura's room. His hand was wet and sticky and he saw smears of dried red and a clear liquid on it. What happened?
He walked the bathroom and splashed cold water on his face. Suddenly, bits and pieces of his memory came rushing back.
The beers. Pinning Sakura to the wall. Her scared face and his fists connecting with it. Her tears and blood coating his hand.
Shit. What had he done? Where was Sakura?
He walked out of the bathroom and saw Sakura curled up into a ball in a corner of the room. What was he supposed to do?
As if sensing him looking at her, Sakura lifted her head a little bit, before a look Syaoran couldn't distingush crossed her features and her head dropped back into its fetal position.
Syaoran caught the cuts and bruises on her face and knew he had done it. A sudden weird feeling washed over him.
Seeing her like that...it made him feel...sorry? Hurt? But why would he care about her? He didn't care about anything...or anyone...and he couldn't...could he?
It was probably just an after-effect of the beer.
Sakura flinched as he lifted her head up and he cleaned up her face, just like that first night, and the feeling washed over him again. He didn't like it.
He knew it was a stupid question, but he asked it anyways. "You okay?"
He was about to go wet the washcloth again, until he saw the fresh tears running down Sakura's face. She looked beautiful even when her face was all cut up and she was crying...
Wait...what the fuck was he thinking? With a mental groan, he decided he was never going to drink that shit again.
Syaoran didn't know what to do. Should he just ignore her? Or comfort her? And how?
He decided he should just ignore her. He didn't care about her and didn't want her to get any wrong ideas.
He was just about to leave when Sakura's arms wrapped around him and she pulled him close to her, her head buried in his chest.
What the hell? He could feel the wetness on her face seeping into his shirt and he had a sudden urge to put his arms around her.
Just as he was lifting his hands, his mind started screaming again. 'What are you doing? Comforting this silly girl. You're as pathetic as she is.'
What was he doing? Was he out of his mind?
Syaoran roughly pushed Sakura away.
"Don't touch me."
The door slammed. Sakura felt the warmth leave her and more tears coursed down her face.
She had been so desperate for comfort that she had seeked it from the person who made her feel this way. She hated herself. Hated him. Hated the world.
She tried to block out how nice it felt with her head on his chest. The beer's smell still penetrated through the room and then another unwanted memory came back...
"Hurry Sakura, hide!' her mother shouted.
Sakura didn't understand what was going on. Maybe this was another fun game of hide and seek! Giggling, she laid underneath the bed, certain she wouldn't be found here.
"Remember, don't make a sound, no matter what." Her mother paused, then said, "I love you."
Sakura wanted to tell her that she loved her too, but then her mother could've pinpointed her location from the sound of her voice, so she remained silent, deciding she'd tell her after the game.
She never got a chance to.
Her father entered the room, a beer bottle clutched in his hand. He was drunk again. A gloom settled into the room, and Sakura knew something bad was going to happen…
"You bitch!" her father screamed at his wife. Sakura covered her ears and whimpered, but no one heard her.
No matter how hard her hands were pressed against her ears, Sakura could still hear her mother pleading and asking him not to hurt Sakura.
The beer bottle smashed and drops of blood dotted the wood floor.
A sickening crunch was heard, followed by a choking sound and then...
Someone's head was banging against the wall, making the thin wall and the bed against it shake.
Even though she was only five, Sakura knew something bad was happening and kept her sobs from surfacing.
From the bottom of the bed, Sakura could see her mother's slender body drop to the door. Her father left the room.
After what seemed like an eternity, Sakura decided she could come out from her hiding place.
"Mommy?" she whispered tentatively.
The woman lying on the floor didn't look like her mother. Her mother had flawless skin and was always smiling. The body on the floor was covered in red and the limbs were twisted at odd angles.
When her mother didn't reply, Sakura started to get worried. She held her mother's cold hand and screamed when she realized a finger was missing.
Looking around the room, she spotted it lying on the floor between the bookshelf and the desk. Sakura hurried out of the room in tears and ran…
'You once promised you would never leave me. You lied.'
Syaoran came rushing into the room and found it just as he had left it.
"What are you screaming about now?" he demanded.
Sakura didn't realize she had screamed aloud.
"Sorry."
Syaoran frowned when he heard her tone. This wasn't like the girl he had first met.
"What happened to you? You used to be so strong. Now you're just some little weakling who cries all the time."
"I'm not weak because I cry. You're weak because you don't." Her voice was barely audible, but he heard her like she had spoken loud and clear.
"No. Those who show emotion are weak. I thought maybe you were different. You're just like everyone else."
Sakura laughed. The bitter laugh again, the hollow sound that had no real meaning. "You have emotions. You're only human, no matter how much you don't seem like one. But you choose to hide it all beneath a mask. Does that make you strong?"
"There is no mask. It's you who has one. Acting all tough when deep inside, you're nothing but a scared little girl who knows nothing about the world."
"And what do you know about the world?" Sakura shot back. "You know…we're a lot alike."
"I'll never be like you." Syaoran did nothing to hide his disgust.
"That's right. You'll always be below me."
Syaoran didn't say anything because he had just realized he was just pushing her away even more. That wouldn't be good if he was going to succeed.
Sakura smirked slightly, taking his silence as victory.
"So are you going to tell me why you were screaming?" Syaoran inquired.
Sakura paused. What was the point in spilling out something so personal to him? "No. You wouldn't care."
"Try me."
Sakura shrugged. It really didn't matter. She told him. When she finished, all he said was, "You're too queasy."
She should've been angry, but it wasn't like she expected him to go all sappy on her. However, what he said next wasn't expected.
"I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't know what I was doing. I was drunk and…" he was cut off by Sakura's voice.
"It's okay. I'm used to it."
Before he could ask her what she meant, she asked, "You're apologizing? To me?"
"I don't see anyone else in the room."
"Why?"
Why what?" asked a confused Syaoran.
"Why are you saying sorry? It's not like you care."
Syaoran racked his brain for something "touching" to say. The only thing he could think of was, "I care more than you'll ever know."
Sakura was shocked and she was sure there was something wrong with her ears, but she knew she heard right.
He sounded so sincere, not like his usual cold tone. But what did it mean?
Syaoran laughed at the expression on Sakura's face.
Whoa. Syaoran laughed. That was almost as shocking as him apologizing.
"What did you mean by what you said?" asked Sakura.
"It means whatever you think it means."
Sakura faltered, then asked, "Can we go to the garden?"
Syaoran noticed she asked "we" and not "I". Maybe he was finally making progress…
Outside the cool breeze whipped through their hair and Syaoran watched as Sakura spin around in circles, laughing.
He liked her laugh. It wasn't high pitched and giggly like most girls.
Shit…his thoughts were spinning out of control again. Lately, he had a lot of weird thoughts about Sakura, and they were in a positive manner.
Sakura grabbed his hand, but stopped when she realized what she had done.
Remembering his words from earlier, she dropped his hand, hoping he wouldn't say anything.
She didn't think she could stand it if he said, "Don't touch me," in that voice of his.
His cold words mixed with that emotionless voice was like a stab to Sakura's paper heart, cutting it into pieces she could never tape back together. She wish she knew why he affected her so much...
Syaoran felt Sakura's hand dropping from his and a sad look passed over her face for a split second before she put on her cheery smile again.
Regret was etched on her face, though he knew she was trying hard to hide it.
Syaoran paused for a second, deep in thought. This was a golden opportunity and it could be his last one… he couldn't let it slip through his grasp like that. (Lol literally).
Sakura gasped as she felt Syaoran's warm hand slip back into her tiny one, his fingers intertwining with hers.
She looked down at their interlocked hands and smiled, her first real one in a long time.
Before you say "Aw...that's so kawaii," remember, he's only acting so he can get the money lols. Is it just me or is the story getting repetitve? I don't have many ideas, so sorry for the short chapter. Send suggestions in ;).
So how was this chapter?
