Disclaimer: If I owned it, everyone in CCS will probably be Britons. Or Mexican. Mexicans are sexy. So are Italians and Americans. And Spaniards, while I'm at it. Swedish people are gorgeous as well. Oh heck, people are sexy.

Especially sexy people:- VampireJazzy, kriztalstar91, a little someone , candy-chan-chan, Tella, Inkirietta, SakK, iloveanime8, LadyAkina, Isy, CherryFreakyFunk, Hope's Light, cherryxxblossom, animeroxmyworld, Kimura, Pinaygrrl, ChryBlsms, chenocat, lil Ji Ji, Cherry Blossom02, Emeralddestiny, midnite-goddess, unknown, Fall3n Angel, hopeluv-chan, Chloena, youkaigirl64, ¤4nim3 luv3r¤ , mokano, chikichiki, AfGhAnCuTiE, Kitty Meow Mix-23, SerenityMelody and cherrysakura5 for their awesome reviews.

Chapter 13:- Star gazing festival.

"Syaoran could you slow down..." Sakura said gritting her teeth as the cold wind blew on her face harshly.

Syaoran smiled and rode faster.

" You are such a dirty jerk ! "

"Are you saying it bothers you when I'm dirty? Not that it's ever a problem..." Syaoran trailed off, smirking.

"Oh yeah, drives me wild it does " Sakura retorted sarcastically.

" Does it now? I'll remember that "

Sakura scowled " You know I would hit you right about now, but I'm afraid I'll fall off the horse. "

" Lucky me. " Syaoran said in mock relief.

Sakura rolled her eyes and watched the snowy woodland area as they rode alongside it.

" I think it's wonderful to go horse riding in winter, despite what I had told you earlier. I really can't see anything more nicer than this " she stated smiling brightly.

Syaoran smirked " Riding on a horse with a sexy, charming, dashing, hands-"

"Arrogant, vain, sarcastic, cruel, egoistic " Sakura cut in smartly.

" -ome man is equally wondrous my dear Sakura " he finished giving her a slight glare at the interruption.

Sakura smiled wickedly " It must be, but I haven't really gone horse riding with such men till now "

"Awful woman you are, exactly know how to make a man feel good. " Syaoran said with a lazy grin.

" I'm sure other women have covered that job pretty well " Sakura remarked wryly.

It wasn't until a few seconds later that it took Syaoran to register that she was probably referring to a physical sense.

He was vaguely humored and didn't respond, but the question Sakura asked him next nearly made him fall off the horse.

" Will you marry? "

' How different that question would be if she added a ' me ' at the end ' a little voice in his mind told him slyly.

Syaoran quickly shoved that thought.

" Why? " He asked her flatly.

" That's the whole purpose of this show isn't it ? For you to chose The Right One among the girls and court her ? " Sakura asked with a frown creasing brow.

" Not everyone meets their right One " Syaoran said cynically.

Sakura looked thoughtful " I don't know, I think everyone gets a chance of meeting them once. But they just don't realise it "

"I suppose you're expecting some sort of burning bush to tell you who your right one is ? " Syaoran asked, raising his eye brow.

" I know that! I believe we need to light our own damn bush." Sakura answered hotly.

Syaoran smiled at her fiery attitude " Moses would have the shock of his lifetime if he heard you " he said wryly.

Sakura giggled " I bet he would "

" What will you do for not missing or overlooking this Right One ? " Syaoran asked a bit seriously.

Sakura shrugged " You can't really do anything but have your eyes opened on a look out. Sometimes, they're the last people you'd expect to fall for..."

..those last few phrases hung in the air, ominously, the irony not noticed by both.

Syaoran laughed a little " My, my, little Sakura just finished her first intelligent speech so far. "

Sakura scoffed at him.

" It's a miracle ! " he exclaimed with fake awe and playfully ruffled her hair.

He blinked at the soft strands beneath his fingers, suddenly realizing that he had never actually touched her hair before. At least not on purpose. It was like warm silk...

And unbidden to him memories he tried to shove into the back of his mind came crashing down again.

' Kiss me Syaoran. '

' I'm not joking, I'll prove it to you...'

' That wasn't so bad now was it ? You taste like chocolate by the way...'

The memory ended with a soft laugh that soon turned into deep breathing as the girl fell asleep on his chest.

" Syaoran? What's the matter ? Is there something on my hair? " Sakura asked in confusion.

Syaoran blinked, suddenly realizing that his hand was still resting against her head, his fingers caressing the soft locks absently.

' What the hell am I doing! ' he screamed at himself, hastily jerking his hand away.

Sakura was still waiting for an answer, looking up at him uncertainly.

" I, uh, " Syaoran stammered cheeks coloring rapidly. ' What can I say? '

" LEAF ! " he blurted out loudly making Sakura wince.

Syaoran cleared his throat " There was a leaf stuck in your hair, and I got it out "

Sakura seemed to buy it " Thanks".

He nodded back with a shaky smile and they trudged past the woodland and were now going on a snow covered ground.

Sakura rocked herself back in forth from the cold and was rubbing her arms.

" Are you trying to fall off the horse? I would gladly assist you if that's the case " Syaoran mocked.

" I'm trying to keep myself warm, baka (idiot)! " Sakura answered with a scowl.

Syaoran snapped his attention from the path and towards Sakura, and noticed her shivering a little more than he liked to see, even with her thick coat on.

He wordlessly pulled her into his chest elating a shocked gasp from the said girl.

The side of Sakura's leg was now pressed against his, and his arms were around her waist, enveloping her in warmth.

"Are you feeling better now ? "

His smooth deep voice made her heart skip a few beats for some unknown reason.

"Y-yes. "

"Good. I'm not interested to deal with the cops, incase you die freezing." he said with a smirk.

To anyone else this may have sounded rude.

They would probably think Syaoran as selfish, arrogant, sadistic, obnoxious, snobby, insufferable, vile, intolerable, detestable, abhorrent, despicable, horrible, repugnant, cruel, horrendous, unbearable...you get the point right ?

But to Sakura it was glaringly obvious that he was merely trying to cover up his concern.

" Thank you, Syaoran " she whispered softly, revealing to him the fact that she had seen through his words.

Syaoran's smirk faltered and was replaced by a look of puzzlement as he wondered on how Sakura caught onto him.

' I must be getting transparent ' he thought wryly.

Although he couldn't help but feel a strange sensation of satisfaction at her words.

OoOoOoOoO

They soon arrived at the village gates, and tied the horse in a stable.

" Crowded, isn't it? " Sakura commented wryly as they entered inside the gate.

" That may be the understatement of the year " Syaoran retorted eyeing the many banners in Chinese and the dresses of the people.

" This is the Star gazing festivals " he stated nodding his head a bit in confirmation.

Sakura looked at the surrounding in awe " Wow, a festival! What do they celebrate it for ? "

Syaoran shot her a dumb look " I don't know, to gaze at stars? "

" No baka, I meant what do they do in it "

" They have parades, food stalls, petting farms, fireworks and that's about it I guess " he said nonchalantly.

Sakura scowled "You even make a beautiful festivalsound so boring "

Syaoran gave her a tiny smile " It's a gift. "

Sakura rolled her eyes, she had witnessed his vainness too much to make a comeback on it.

" When can we eat? " She demanded.

" You are driven solely by your stomach." Syaoran stated dryly.

" Hey ! I resent that " Sakura said with a pout.

" Don't we all..."

Sakura huffed. " You know I think all these cruel comments, stems from some aggression that you hold against me for being cooler then you! "

" Oh yes that's so it " Syaoran said as he eyed Sakura in exasperation.

Sakura nodded wisely. " Yep. You know you really should see a counselor. But before that we should eat "

After Sakura's constant pestering, Syaoran dragged her to a food stall only to find out that they had to wait in lines for ordering.

" These lines take forever " Sakura complained. " It's been half an hour already ! "

" Try complaining a little louder. Maybe people will get sick of it and leave," Syaoran suggested snidely.

Sakura gave him a sour look. "Well, you're still here aren't you? So I doubt it'd work on anyone else," she shot back.

Syaoran grinned " I've built up a resistance to your whine " he countered. " I can take anything you dish out."

" Then why do you complain about my complaining!" Sakura snapped, shooting him a glare.

Syaoran smirked " Because I enjoy watching your face turn such a lovely shade of crimson when you get mad."

Sakura opened her mouth to retort, thought the better of it, and closed it again.

A few minutes later...

" This is so tasty ! It's definitely worth the wait " Sakura said, her mouth full of noodles.

Syaoran wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Chew " he advised.

Grinning, Sakura closed her mouth and obeyed with exaggerated slow movements.

"You look like a cow " Syaoran told her with a laugh.

" Moo" Sakura stated, and dipped her chopsticks back into her bowl.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "You're immature " he said seriously.

" You're a Satan. " Sakura retorted.

Syaoran gave a short laugh. "I suppose I am. They say I'm devilishly handsome "

Sakura gave him an exasperated look. Really how vain can a guy be ?

"And besides " he added slyly "Since I did warm you, maybe the fires of hell dwell in me after all " he said winking at her.

There was an instantaneous spray of a blush on her cheeks as she remembered the horse riding incident a while ago.

She averted her gaze, looking down at the suddenly, very interesting noodles.

It's quite fascinating you know, all that long, yellow gravy smothered noodles. Couldn't seem to take her eyes off it.

Syaoran gave a lazy grin as he observed her silently. " Anything interesting you find in there ? " he teased.

Sakura willed herself not to turn even more red.

' I might as well earn a Ph.D. in the art of embarrassment! They won't even have to test me! One look and they'll be handing the accursed diploma...' she thought darkly.

" Shut up you ass " Sakura retorted tying to keep the remains of her dignity intact.

" That's the second time you've mentioned my charming rear-end " Syaoran grinned mockingly.

Sakura gaped at him in disbelief. " I never said anything about your snooty ass. I merely said that you ARE ONE."

Syaoran couldn't contain his amusement "Well, you just did."

' Note to self : Self-preservation is not my strong point.' Sakura thought dryly.

OoOoOoOoO

Inside the mansion...

Naoko frowned " Kasumi what are you doing? "

"You know how it gets boring around here without Sakura, right ? "

"Yeah.."

"So I've decided to try an intellectual way to pass the time " Kasumi said ringing a paperboard.

" That's a first " Naoko stated dryly.

Kasumi ignored her comment " I'm going to start painting ! " she said happily.

She managed to wrestle up some painting supplies and sat at the end of the room working diligently on her masterpiece.

Naoko shook her head and continued reading a horror book.

" I'm done ! " Kasumi announced suddenly, setting the brush down beside her.

Naoko peered over her friends shoulder and frowned, the paper was completely blank.

" What in the world is this? " she asked in confusion.

" I call it, 'Cow Eating Grass ' " Kasumi stated proudly.

" Where's the grass? " Naoko questioned.

" The cow ate it. "

" Where's the cow? "

" He's not going to stick around if there's no more grass! "

Naoko groaned and resisted the urge to smack her companion in the head. Repeatedly. With a shovel.

OoOoOoOoO

" Oh, it's so cute !" Sakura squealed, petting a furry Siamese kitten.

( She is currently inside the petting farm. )

" I bet fluffy would love you! You look just like him! But your eyes are different. Hmmm, I wonder what he would say if I mentioned that " she muttered to herself, grinning.

" I wonder that, too, since nobody I know can understand cat talk " Syaoran said wryly from behind her, making her jump in surprise.

He leaned closer, so that his breath tickled her ear, " But I bet if it talks, it'll be screaming for help!"

Sakura stuck out her tongue at him. "jerk "

She stroked the kitten's soft head. It yawned and closed its eyes, cuddling into her as it settled in for a nap.

"See? " she said happily. " He likes me. You know you should get a cat, atleast pet this one ! "

Sakura held the kitten out to him, and Syaoran backed away when it hissed at him menacingly.

"No thanks. I'm not a cat person " he replied eyeing the cat with narrowed eyes.

" How surprising " she replied with false enthusiasm.

" I rarely reach home in time, with all the work in the company. It'd probably starve to death."

Sakura snorted. "Yeah, it'll starve for affection "

" What's that supposed to mean !" Syaoran demanded.

" Nothing, it's just that you're as charming as an alligator !" she shot back. "If you have one romantic bone in your body, the rivers will flow up the sky !"

Syaoran scowled " It's not like you're any better. From what I've heard you didn't have a decent romantic life yourself. " then a sly smile came to his face " If I didn't know better, I'd say you were a jinx "

If he expected a comeback, then he was in for a shock. Because Sakura deliberately refused to look at him. But from where he was standing Syaoran could clearly see that she was upset by what he said.

Syaoran cleared his throat, trying to shake off the sudden sense of guilt building inside him.

" Can we get going? We've been here for ten minutes !" he said irritated.

Sakura huffed. "Well, go on then! No one's stopping you! " she snapped and continued. "Go cuddle the pigs, they are more your type anyway. "

" I thought my type was the Stupidicus Dorkus " he joked trying to lighten her mood.

' I'm berating myself to make her feel better. What's gotten into me ? ' he wondered frowning.

" That's your class type! This is your personality, ill-mannered and pig headed ! " she said clearly not noticing Syaoran's attempts.

" Very funny " he said dryly.

OoOoOoOoO

Kasumi sighed " I'm bored "

" You've been saying that for the hundredth time ! " Naoko snapped clearly on the rim of her patience.

Kasumi pouted "And you still haven't entertained me "

" Go read some book with Kourin "

" But she only reads M-rated mangas and playboy magazines " Kasumi whined.

" And when has that stopped you? " Naoko retorted dryly.

"Never, I suppose. But I finished reading them yesterday ! " Kasumi sulked, then she brightened up "I'll ask you questions ! "

Naoko scowled " No, I'm reading a book. "

Kasumi gave her puppy eyes "Pleeeeeeeeease? "

Naoko sighed " Fine "

Kasumi smiled " Ok, here it goes. If you are trapped in a room with no windows and a locked door. How do you get out? "

Naoko stared at her strangely " Break down the door ?"

" Nope. Go through the holes where the windows used to be!"

Naoko's eyes twitched.

" Ok another one. Why is the sun so bright? "

" It's because of the conversion of Hydrogen present in the suns atmosphere to Helium, this is an exothermic reaction and gives out a lot of energy, thus t-" Naoko was interrupted by Kasumi's raised hands.

"Yeah whatever, but the real reason is because it listens to its elders "

Naoko had to bite her tongue to keep her temper on check.

Really, It's a miracle she didn't bleed to death, considering all the blood vessels she's been bursting for the past few minutes.

" How far can you walk into the woods ?"

"As far as I can to get away from you " Naoko mumbled snidely.

" What's that ? " Kasumi questioned.

" I meant to say, a very good distance "

Kasumi smiled " Half way, after that you're walking out of the woods !"

Naoko threw the book on the floor and stood up.

" I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE ! " she yelled and ran out of the door.

Kasumi giggled and signaled for Airo to come inside.

Airo's face was full of held back laughter " She was a hard one to crack. So who won the bet ? "

Kasumi timed her watch and pouted "Aww, I lost by five minutes ! Darn ! Ashley won "

"Yup, I told ya, it'll take you twenty minutes to drive her insane "Ashley said coming in with a sweet smile at the two crestfallen girls.

" I'm loosing my touch " Kasumi said clicking her tongue in disappointment.

OoOoOoOoO

Sakura strained to see over the crowds hoping for even the slightest glimpse of the parade.

Syaoran managed to get a good spot, but her pride prevented her in asking him to let her stand in the front.

"Watch it, loser !" she yelled as a boy her age pushed her again.

The Chinese boy shot her a confused look since he didn't understand the language Sakura spoke, then he sneered at her and moved away.

' Atleast he got the hint that I was yelling at him. Cussing must be an international lingo ' Sakura thought wryly.

Suddenly, she was shoved hard from behind, and fell forward with a startled gasp, scraping her hands painfully against the ground.

There were feets, legs all around her. Walking and stamping, someone stepped on her hand, and she yelped, pulling away as tears filled her eyes.

" Syaoran ! " she cried instantly, too confused to even think of getting up.

Then she felt someone gripping her arms and pull her to her feet, into a warm chest with arms wrapped securely around her waist.

Without a word, Syaoran moved her gently in front of him, keeping himself between her and the crowd.

"Are you ok ? " he asked worriedly.

She was startled by his outward display of concern.

" I-im fine " she lied, despite the fact that a tear persisted in escaping, and that her hands stung, especially the one that had been stepped on.

"No, You're not " Syaoran stated wryly, taking her injured hand to look at it.

It was bruised and and tiny droplets of blood were forming on them.

" They stepped on your hand ! " He exclaimed angrily.

" It was an accident really, I'm fine " Sakura said in a daze.

She was still getting used to this new side of Syaoran that, as you can see, shows up once in a blue moon. Syaoran sighed and shook his head.

Standing over her protectively he pushed the people out the way till they reached a river, which was surprisingly free of people.

Sakura merely watched as Syaoran dampened his handkerchief (no prize for guessing which color it is ), and then gently clean the scrapes on her hands.

Her breath caught in her throat as he gently wrapped her bruised hand in it, bending his messy brown head in concentration, with it's soft hair tickling her cheeks.

When Syaoran finished a satisfied smile graced his features.

He raised his amber orbs to meet her own. " There " he said softly " All better."

Sakura had to blinked twice to bring her back from a reverie.

" Thank you " she whispered for the second time that day, feeling trapped in the depths of his eye.

The loud banging of a drum startled both of them and they heard people yell something in Chinese.

" The parade started " Syaoran said looking over at the direction of the noise.

" Oh " Sakura eyed the cheerful crowd regretfully. " I'm very sorry... "

Syaoran turned to look at her with surprise " For what ? "

" You lost your spot because of me " she told him bowing her head in guilt.

She was startled when warm fingers settled under her chin, gently tilting her face up to meet a deep, enigmatic gaze.

His eyes were suddenly dancing with gentle humor " Instead of worrying over your injury, you're more concerned that I lost the spot ? "

Sakura nodded hesitantly against his fingers, which were yet to be removed from her chin.

Syaoran regarded her with an unreadable expression and traced his thumb over her lips briefly making her Emerald eyes widen in surprise.

" You're such an idiot " he stated softly.

And before Sakura could understand what was going on, the warmth of his thumb was replaced with the much headier warmth, as he pressed his lips softly to her own.

A/N:-

Review reply

candy-chan-chan:- I know the perfect place to kick your neighbors butt : Timbuktu! I have no idea where it is, so the chances of him knowing it are pretty much zero.He'll never find his way home. Or you can send him off to Bermuda triangle, if the freak tries to escape then A) He'll drown in the sea, B) get ship wrecked in the middle of nowhere, C) End up in a parallel dimension or D) get kidnapped by aliens. Weird stuff happens to people who go to this island. Pick your choice, all of them are good enough I guess. PS:- Kick him... HARD.Ja ne.

Tella:- It's alright, I know how tormenting exams can be. God knows Physics is meant to be burned along with Math. I don't mind writing exams, but i just don't want to see the marks I get in it ... Sorry for the late update, it's a lot too busy here, what with the college hunt and all that.