Disclaimer: Do I look like I'm rich and am a genius? Nope. CCS strictly belongs to CLAMP.
THE ENTIRE STORY IS CHRISTIAN THEMED. IF THIS BOTHERS YOU, THEN PLEASE DO NOT READ. IF CHRISTIAN BELIEFS BOTHER YOU AND YOU READ THIS, DO NO FLAME ME BECAUSE YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
Hi! AnimeObsession260 again! This is just a sweet little fanfic I thought up (help from my pastor's sermon) and I think if you're Christian or if you will give Christianity a chance, you will really enjoy this.
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Breath of Life
You have got to be kidding me.
Li Syaoran, a twenty-year-old bachelor reporter stood dumbstruck as he stared at the packed elevator.
Letting out a tired, irritated sigh, he ran his hand through his messy, brown hair and picked up all his bags. After a few frustrated attempts, he managed to squeeze into the over-populated metal box that was supposed to bring him closer to home.
I can't believe that so many people haven't gone shopping yet… I mean… I just needed to pick up a few preordered presents for Mei ling…
He had already suffered through a human-squished elevator on the way up, had been followed by two extremely annoying toddlers who kept calling him mommy, had to listen to those two toddlers wail loudly, had to suffer through people looking at him and calling him a horrible father, had to convince a screaming woman that he was not kidnapping her brats, and finally had to get Mei ling's packages… only to find out that he had to walk two blocks away and back to get this slip from some merchandising company because his stupid cousin had forgotten to give him the receipt he was supposed to bring.
Christmas… It's supposed to be about happy people because of presents and a fat red guy in a suit. Yeah right. What eccentric writer made that up and fed it to some suckers who believed him?
It was hot in the tiny, crowded space and sweat was beginning to claw at his neck. An impossibly loud and horrible buzzing sound was exploding all throughout his head as people were shouting, babies were crying, and men were grumbling. He was miserable.
Unable to help himself, Syaoran groaned extremely loudly, "UGH! Whoever came up with this Christmas crap should be strung up and shot!"
The loud, obnoxious voices being yelled across the small elevator became more silent and everyone seemed a little nervous. A few murmurs seemed to break out randomly, and there even a few sounds of agreement, coupled with a few confused remarks. Just as Syaoran was beginning to feel very uneasy and out of place, a clear, calm voice echoed across the entire room so that everyone… and more importantly he… could hear.
"Oh. Don't worry then. We've already crucified him."
Deadly silence followed after that, and even the small whispers that had been passed around stopped.
Syaoran turned around to look at the person who had spoken… the girl standing right behind him.
She had a small frown on her face, but nonetheless relaxed and cool. The first thing he saw was her short auburn hair, which looked both cute and stylish but so simple that it couldn't have been cut at an expensive salon. What caught his eye, however, was not her hair but her stunning eyes. A pair of vivid, clear emerald eyes stared back at him.
The young reporter knew he was staring, but he could hardly help himself. The girl seemed so completely out of place… like she didn't belong in the picture of a packed elevator. Out of the other fifteen people who had squished and stuck into that small, sweaty space, only she looked remotely patient. Everyone else bore looks of completely irritation.
Over her pale, green shirt was a soft jean jacket, and her pants were faded blue jeans. There was a light trace of pink lip gloss on her lips, but the rest of her light skin was bare of makeup. She had a pink scarf wrapped around her neck and pink gloves covered her slender fingers. On her head were pink earmuffs and a pink, fluffy hat.
Her attire suited her immensely, and for some reason, he felt that he could see a bit of her personality in the way she dressed. Everything she had on was rather faded and slightly worn, though couldn't be considered old. To him, she looked better in that simple outfit than Mei ling did when she wore her most expensive dress.
This girl was shorter than Syaoran by about three to five inches yet he felt a bit small compared to her… the calm and composed expression on her face made his own frustrated grimace (which by this time had softened into a small downward curve of the lips) feel very, very ugly in comparison.
"W-What?" he asked. She had said something and he had missed it. With an exasperated sigh, she motioned towards the door, "We're at the ground floor, and can you move, please? Everyone needs to leave now."
Syaoran complied without a thought, not wanting to get trampled underfoot by a pack of men and women desperate to get out of a compressed elevator.
Without another word, her auburn hair brushed past him and he stared at her for a while as she was leaving, and his breath hitched in his throat as he caught her casting a casual glance back at him.
Back in the elevator… she had said something about someone being crucified… where had he heard that term used before…
"Oh shoot!" Syaoran spun around and began banging on the closed, metal door, realizing that he had not taken Mei ling's packages with him.
"YEAH! MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU TOO!"
Syaoran slammed the door to his Chinese cousin's house as he walked away angrily and got into his car. Roaring his engine to life, the impatient young man honked his horn at a bypassing car before pulling out onto the street and racing away.
Who the hell does she think she is? I shouldn't have agreed to get her stupid presents at all! First she orders me to get her stuff, and then yells at me because one of the stupid books or whatever was "bent." Seriously! It was just the corner, and I swear magnifying lenses are needed to see it!
He moaned as bird from overhead pooped onto the front of his car. Sharply pulling his black, executive Mercedes over into a nearby coffee shop, he gruffly got up and out, rubbing the small stain on the hood of the engine.
Though he may be a top-class newspaper reporter, and very well paid, a Mercedes is still expensive and he had to take good care of it. Come to think of it… there was another big chance for him to score big with his writing again - an article about the holidays every year… maybe he'd write about the incredibly idiotic Christmas everyone went through… and sympathize with their pains while bringing out a way for people to really enjoy the break like… going to bars for instance.
Working diligently, his amber eyes missed the car that was driving down the street a little too near him, and ended up being splashed by melted snow. To put it simply, Li Syaoran, the most celebrated young reporter of the decade, was standing out in the snow looking both pathetic and soaking wet.
What more, the icy wind was beginning to pick up once again, and his entire body began shaking with the cold. Syaoran looked himself over, trying to see how bad the condition his clothes were in was.
"Could this get any worse?" he groaned and rubbed his arms, hoping to get as much friction as he could to stay warm. "I just had to leave my coat at home." Realizing that his attempts at getting warm while standing out in the cold were futile, he looked around, trying to find a place…
Since there was no where else to go for the time being, he got back into the car, in an attempt to get out of the freezing air. Bad idea.
Squish. Now he needed a new cover for the driver's seat… his was made of cloth. It was covered in muddy water. So much for trying to keep his new Mercedes clean. Let's see… what else could possibly make him more miserable?
Syaoran moaned and hit his head hard on the steering wheel of the car. Bad idea.
Not only did he now have an awful headache, but the emergency air bag had sprung up, pushing him forcefully backwards against the seat.
Li Syaoran had had enough.
In one swift motion, he pushed the airbag back into the wheel and shut the top of it. Kicking his door open, he got out and stood there, cursing about stupid holidays.
What the hell is Christmas about anyway? I still think whoever came up with this should be strung up and shot. Why do we… ok…. I think I could go for some coffee right about now… and maybe dry myself off in the restroom.
Why in the world had he been to blind to see that wonderful, warm-looking building?
Trudging through the snow to the coffee shop, he waved one the waitresses over and told them to get a table and a coffee ready for him while he cleaned himself up.
The bathroom was small, but there were lots of tissue papers and those electric dryers that people were starting to use more and more.
Well, those tissue papers are from trees right? Might as well use those blow dryers stuck to the wall… for the sake of our forests. Che. Yup. Aren't I such a nice guy? A regular 'protect the trees' Samaritan. Even getting into the Christmas spirit. Give me a break.
With a snort, Syaoran managed to get himself dry enough to the point that he didn't appear as if he had been taking a dip in the pool while still in his clothes, and walked over to a table near the window just like the waitress had directed.
He sat down and quietly began silently sipping at his coffee, looking out at the window.
Oh great. Now it's snowing. I wonder if the manager will let me stay here even after I finish this… pretty tasty coffee… I think I'll order another one…
"Ladies and gentleman," a homely voice rang out, causing Syaoran to turn and stare at a stage in the middle of the room. Lights everywhere but in the center of the stage were dimming to create an illuminating effect on a grand piano. "Here are our girls again, and this time, with a song they wrote on their own!"
Apparently everyone who came to the coffee shop was quite a regular, so they were familiar with whoever was performing.
Probably the owner's daughters. And to think I was beginning to feel that this place was decent… I wonder how good Daddy's little girls are… hopefully not so bad as to irritate me… I'm in the middle of sipping this extremely delicious beverage.
Syaoran let out a semi displeased sigh, causing many people to turn and glare in his direction. But before he could start yelling at them to mind their own business, some very beautiful piano music cut him off. By the time he had realized exactly how enthralled he had become in it, the other customers were already smiling and staring at the two girls sitting on the piano.
Frowning slightly at how he had been wrong about 'Daddy's little girls,' he turned and observed the musicians and… composers? That sounded right. What had the owner said again…? Syaoran forced himself to ignore his thoughts and look again at the two sharing a single, black piano chair.
Wait… that's.
The auburn haired girl playing the piano shut her eyes and sang softly while her amethyst-eyed partner began gently swaying in time with the music.
Girl playing piano:
Oh, can you see the stars tonight
Radiant in wonder
Their joyous hymns sung silently aglow
And all the world is fast asleep,
The earth is clothed in splendor
Awaiting heaven's gift amidst the snow
Hallelujah, JesusHallelujah my Lord
Hallelujah, forever we'll sing of your
Precious breath of life to our world-------------------
She's the girl from the elevator! Then the crucified man she was speaking about must have been…
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Amethyst-eyed girl holding the microphone:
Oh, can you see the baby boy
Lying in a manger
With kings and shepherds kneeling by his side
How could it be that animals
Should see the Lord of angels
Blessing them through bright eyes of a child?
Hallelujah, JesusHallelujah my Lord
Hallelujah, forever we'll sing of your
Precious breath of life to our world
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There was a short piano interlude, yet Syaoran sat completely captivated by the emerald-eyed girl and her voice. The music seemed to tug at his heart and he yearned to have what the two of them seemed to have. It must… the music must have been getting to him. He always was a softie when it came to music.
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Both:
Fall to your knees and worship him
All people, every nation
The Lord of all, born in this manger throne
Oh, blessed are you, Bethlehem
The birthplace of a Savior,
The Son of God who's come to save your souls
Mysterious girl from elevator-------------------------Amethyst-eyed girlHallelujah, Jesus-------------------------------------------Hallelujah
Hallelujah my Lord----------------------------------------Praise the name of the Lord
Hallelujah, forever we'll sing of your-------------------Precious breath of life
Precious breath of life to our world…-------------------To our world…
-------------------
Who is this girl? What does she have…? So much… so much… of what? A good voice…? No, that's not it…
-------------------
Mysterious girl from elevator-------------------------Amethyst-eyed girl
Hallelujah, Jesus-------------------------------------------Hallelujah
Hallelujah my Lord----------------------------------------Praise the name of the Lord
Hallelujah, forever we'll sing of your-------------------Precious breath of life
Precious breath of life-------------------------------------pause
pause-------------------------------------------------------Precious breath of life
Your precious breath of life------------------------------Your precious breath of life
To our world------------------------------------------------To our world
As their voices began to drift off into gentle wonder, Syaoran sat there, staring at the two of them… the emerald-eyed angel playing the piano to be exact. The music of angels had just been sung to him… and he hadn't even realized it.
So the crucified man was… this Jesus I hear about. It's been so long since I've heard about this Jesus… I mean, he was just some really smart teacher… right? Besides, I know that he's actually a historical person but…
After hearing the glorious praise to the Lord, he was captivated by the girl from before. He had to meet her… he just had to.
Waiting for the lights to dim again before the two girls bowed and exited, Syaoran quickly stood and made his way to the mysterious woman with an angelic voice. Luckily for him, everyone was still sitting at their seats so he didn't have to push past anyone to get to his destination.
"H-Hold on! Excuse me," he managed to grasp her wrist, causing her to turn around and look into his amber eyes, surprised.
"Can I help you…?" her small, pink lips moved and words flowed forth from her mouth, and for at least the fifth time that day, he was mesmerized and unable to look away. "Do I know you? You seem sort of familiar…"
Finding his voice again, Syaoran manage to murmur, "Actually… I was wondering if I could have a… um a… cup of coffee with you?" A sudden look of recognition dawned upon her and she looked at him, as if pressing him for a certain answer, "You're the one from the elevator before, aren't you?"
Oh shoot. Maybe she's mad at me… think fast Syaoran… what would she like to hear? What would she like to hear?
"Erm… you said something about Jesus earlier… and I just heard you sing your wonderful song… um… I was just wondering if I could… talk to you a little…?" Oh. Great. Now he sounded like a stupid, love struck high school boy who couldn't ask his little crush out.
"Sakura?" Sakura. What a nice name. "Sakura? Are you coming?" It was the girl who had also been singing earlier. "Oh, who is this?"
"Oh, I'm just-" "He's just a friend… um… Tomoyo, why don't you go on ahead, I'll catch up later I have some… things to discuss with him." Sakura pulled him away quickly, flashing her friend a reassuring smile.
Looking rather bemused, Tomoyo merely nodded and linked arms with her attractive, sapphire-eyed boyfriend next to her and left.
Pulled back to face Sakura again, Syaoran was surprised when he noticed how strong her grip on his wrist was, "Ok, what do you want? Don't tell me you want to compliment on my singing… I get that too many times a day already."
Wow. Isn't she in a lovely mood?
"I was just wondering if you'd like to share a cup of coffee with me…" I need to talk to you … or at least spend a little time with you… I don't know why… but please.
Her expression softened slightly and she gave him a hesitant smile, "I don't drink coffee… but I guess I could drink some cocoa with you… it couldn't hurt… you wanted to ask about Jesus?"
"Great!" He hadn't meant to sound so enthusiastic, but he smiled when she had to stifle a giggle. "Well… I already have a table so…"
"Charlotte, can you grab me a cocoa… with some whipped cream?" she called over to one of the waitresses nonchalantly, as if she did it everyday. Noticing his strange look she turned back to him, "Let's go and sit down… sorry I'm being rude. My name is Kinomoto Sakura. My father's friend owns this shop and I come over a lot, so I'm familiar with everyone who works here."
They sat down, and Syaoran realized that he hadn't introduced himself yet, "No. You weren't being rude at all, I'm-"
"Li Syaoran, right?" Sakura gave a knowing look when he seemed confused. "You're an award winning reporter now for the Tomoeda Tribune. I saw your picture in the newspaper. Congratulations."
Scratching the back of his head, Syaoran was grateful as his second order of coffee came so that he could soothe his parched throat, "It was nothing really… the article I did was actually a pretty simple one to crack. Audiences love stories where they have say in what happens. Did you hear? I closed down some weird cult or sorority or something at a university. Everyone thinks that it's better off without it."
At this, Sakura seemed to draw back and be hurt in a sense, and on instinct, Syaoran reached forward and took her hand. After grasping what he had just done, he immediately pulled away as a blush stained her cheeks.
"I'm sorry you feel that way, but I suppose it's not much of a surprise."
What?
"I'm sorry, what did you say?"
She leaned forward and looked him straight in the eye, "I said, I'm sorry you feel that way about the intervarsity club I ran… I can assure you that it was not some strange cult that we practiced magic or something in though."
No way… she couldn't possibly have been…
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get going…" she rose from the soft, blue chair to leave.
"No!"
Sakura looked at him, slightly taken aback. "I-I mean, I'm sorry, please stay. I didn't mean anything by my article… please…"
He knew that he was begging, but he didn't care. There was just something he needed to ask her about. Syaoran let out a breath of relief as she sat back down.
"I ran the intervarsity club that you closed down," her voice was clear, and there was no malice in it, but he could tell that she was not happy. "Do you even know what an intervarsity club actually does?"
Syaoran looked away from her, a bit abashed, as, though he had done some research on it, he had not really understood anything… in all actuality, he had been surprised when his heartless article had won first prize. He knew he was a great writer who could win thousands by his fiery opinions and baring words, and that was most likely why he won.
Acknowledging his shake of head, she continued, "We help all the students on campus, who are willing, to help straighten their lives out with the belief of Christ. It is a good thing, I think, and we help many, many students find their way while they're in college… because it's such a transitional time for them."
"Oh…" He had not known that… exactly what had he researched for his articles? He had asked some of the science teachers and they had all told him about the same thing… that it was some weird club that taught non-factual evidence about life's origins and how it deceived all its member yet… why hadn't he bothered to speak to one of the intervarsity leaders?
He had sat through one of their 'lessons', but he had not understood a word of it. Not. One. Word.
"I was," Syaoran turned to look at her again as she spoke. "Quite disturbed with what you wrote in your… article. Many of the things you said there were biased… and many of the comments, untrue."
"I…"
"It's alright." Sakura sat up straight and leaned her chin on her hand, staring out the window. "Many of my friends say it's for the best… though I don't agree. They say I can finally get a job that pays… but… what can be more profitable than saving the lost souls of my brothers ands sisters in this world? That's the work that the Lord has pressed upon my heart."
Brothers and sisters? Work from God? Oh, don't give me that crap, I've heard from the pastor on Sundays enough… I've listened to it for years. Please, I don't need to be "Christian" robot who hugs his bible wherever he goes and butts into people's lives wit hypocritical audacity.
"You don't say… I really don't understand how brainwashing those poor college kids helps. I mean, hasn't Christianity already been proven false? Honestly, that Darwin guy who came up with evolution was way smarter than whoever came up with the bible. His discoveries puts the bible to shame," Syaoran immediately clamped a hand over his mouth. He had not meant to say that out loud.
Her eyes were cold and now, angry as she turned to glare at him while still talking to the waitress, "Thank you Charlotte… but I think I'll be drinking by cocoa elsewhere. Good day to you, Li-san. Oh, and by the way, there's no evidence for evolution. It's merely an idea concocted by the minds of men. No proof whatsoever."
Sakura thanked and took the coffee from the waitress and stood to leave.
"Wait! Please, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way… my mouth just seems to run off sometimes without my brain telling it to…"
Oh please. Oh please don't go… I need to know why I'm so interested in you… why am I so desperate? Since when have I become so… wimpy?
Sakura's POV
What an… idiot. Does he normally randomly pick girls up like this? Gosh. His flirting skills need a big improvement… and what he said… I don't even want to think about it… I might just punch him, and though the idea sounds extremely appealing…
"I'm sorry, I have someplace else to go and other appointments to keep, excuse me," Sakura began to walk away, but nearly spilled her drink as Syaoran frantically pulled her back. She gave him a long look before finally asking, "What is it that you want from me?"
You better answer wisely, for those words may be your last… you almost spilled my cocoa!
He fumbled wit his words, and for the first time, Sakura noticed exactly how… cute he was. His tousled brown hair, piercing amber eyes, the handsome curve of his mouth, "I… I don't know…"
"Huh?"
"I'm not sure why I… would you like to get a bite to eat with me… sometime?" He sounded so hopeless and confused that she couldn't say no to him. Curse her weak conviction when it came to those in… need. Well, he looked like he was in need anyway… just of what she wasn't sure.
Taking a deep breath, Sakura looked at her watch and sighed, "I'm not really free to go to any restaurant or anything… you see… I'm helping at this place where we send presents to kids in far places all over the world… they've never received a gift before for anything. Most of them don't really play… they've been through wars and abuse."
Well? Willing to come and do a little goodwill work? Up for a non-profitable project?
Syaoran seemed a bit pissed when she mentioned presents, so Sakura took the answer as a no, "Oh, ok then. If you don't want to come, then I've got to get going…"
"No! No, I'll come," Sakura resisted the urge to giggle as he stood shakily. It seemed like he was determined to speak with her about… something, no matter how awful his experience with presents had been.
"Hm? Ok, then. Suit yourself, come on," she took his hand and gulped down her drink, leading him out the door. "We'll take my car… yours can stay here, I'll drive you back when we're done."
Unbeknownst to Syaoran, Sakura sent him a few uneasy glances as they got buckled up in her small, white Acura. She had no idea why she was being so tolerant of him… well she was tolerant of people like him most of the time, though they annoyed her to no end… but she was having a hard time believing that she just invited the man who closed down her Intervarsity work to spend the day with her… and she didn't even know what he wanted!
Syaoran's POV
I don't get why she still lets me tag along… if I was her, I would have kicked me out of the coffee shop long ago… I mean, I stopped her source of income right?
"Um… I'm not sure if it's ok for me to ask…" he looked at the girl sitting next to him. "Was that… intervarsity club the only way you made money?"
She looked at him shocked for a moment, before flipping her head around to look at the road, jerking the steering wheel to the right to avoid collision with another car. In one fluid motion, she turned onto a vacant parking lot in front of some old shop and parked her car in one of the slots.
"You shut my… program down without even knowing what it is?" Sakura was furious and looked it too. "Who do you think you are? People are always calling Christians hypocrites and… and arrogant but this is…"
"I'm sorry! I just needed an award-winning article, and… your club had been disliked by many of the teachers and families so I thought it would be good if I-"
"Would be good if you what? Parents are upset because they think that a Christian fellowship on campus is intolerant of other religions. Newsflash! They don't seem to mind the cults and other 'religious' groups on campus, they just target mine because Christianity seems to poke at them the most."
Thinking that she had finished, Syaoran opened his mouth to defend himself, but she continued, "As for the teachers, they think that Christianity is baloney because of its 'lack of evidence.' Well let me tell you something, I've done quite a bit of research on your precious evolution theory has absolutely no evidence founding it! Christianity has finding of archeology, fulfilled prophecies, widespread beliefs, miracles, and Jesus on its side. What does evolution have? A few fossils that don't even actually tell us anything about humans forming from monkeys. So we have similar bone structure, well so do cats and dogs, but they're aren't all that alike, are they?"
As if realizing that she had been yelling, Sakura suddenly quieted down and whispered, "I'm sorry. I'm not normally this… fired up. I've had a bad day and… sorry."
Syaoran couldn't understand why she was apologizing, though he was very surprised when he realized that it was true, Darwin's theory had nothing to support it… it was just a theory…
"It's ok. It's not your fault… I shouldn't have been so ignorant as to close down your program at the college without first really understanding what it was… I'm not sure why I even got that award now."
"Because you're a great writer and no."
"No?"
Sakura managed a smiled and answered, "To your question. No. Intervarsity doesn't pay at all. It's completely volunteer work from its leaders. I get my money from God. He gives me funds to run my work with donations from others."
Oh great. Now I really feel bad. Not only did I close down a student-supporting, non-profit organization… but I probably ruined her life too. She seems so upset.
"We're here," she unlocked the door and got out.
Syaoran blinked.
Once.
Twice.
"Eh?"
"I said, we're here," she giggled at his confused face and them pointed her thumb at the small shop. "This is not really a shop, but a homeless shelter. Volunteer workers come to help them, and to wrap presents during Christmas for the people in need who come here, and we also ship presents off to those in need in rural areas around the world."
"Oh," Syaoran sighed, not really wanting to charity work. It's not like he ever got something back out of it. What was the point? He was only doing this so he could stay next to this Kinomoto Sakura girl, though he wasn't sure why he wanted to know more about her so badly.
Normally, he would already have been able to put her in a singular, classified category: A bible-hugging, crucifix-wearing, honk-if-you-love-God, Jesus-freak. But… for some reason… there was more to her than that… or may be he just hadn't taken enough time to actually speak with those so-called Jesus-freaks. She made him think being a religious person that was obsessed with God wasn't really obsessed in the sense that Christians roamed about streets preaching the gospel and condemning others like they were someone special.
"You know, I don't really understand why you decided to come with me… no offense, but you seem more like a business man than someone who works for other people," her voice shook him from his thoughts.
He gave her an odd look as they strolled over to the 'shop', "What do you mean? Isn't it better to order people around? I mean, it makes people listen to you if you're higher up, and working for other people is just like… being their servant almost."
Sakura gave him another long look before saying, "The Lord calls us to serve others. To serve our brothers and sisters. Besides… everything we have right now… isn't really ours. We're just caretakers, and God owns everything, including our lives. We really don't deserve his grace… being the sinners that we are."
She raised an eyebrow at him, "It's one thing to be a saint, it's one thing to be perfect, and it's one thing to be a hypocrite. Those glossy-eyed, I-have-a-perfect-life-because-I'm-a-Christian people who stand on the corner of the streets preaching loudly for everyone to hear… I doubt they really understand what's going on. I'd hate to see what would happen to them once something bad did happen to them."
"What do you mean?" this was new to him. He had always perceived Christians as being obsessed with God… and she just said that those people didn't know what was going on.
"Um… let's see…" she grabbed a key from her pocket and opened the door, switching the lights on. "I'm obsessed with Christ. I really am. He is my everything, and my most important… he's just most important. More important than my family, my friends… more important than all the world. But…"
Ok. Scratch the not-obsessed idea, "But…?"
Sakura sighed and began rearranging the tables and chares, beckoning Syaoran to follow suit, "The people that walk around, yelling out they're Christians and because of that have no pain in their life… they're just lying to themselves I guess. God has already specifically told us that Christians are going to be persecuted and that there is hurting in the world."
"Don't Christians believe that they are better than everyone else and that since they're 'sons and daughters' of God so they are excused from sin and have wonderful, flawless lives?" Syaoran was still in the dark about what she was trying to get at. How was it that she was beginning to change his entire view about those Jesus-freaks he had so easily labeled long ago?
"You know, for an atheist, you sure are interested in Christian beliefs. Maybe there's hope for you yet," she smiled at him, teasingly, but for some reason, he felt happy. No one had every told him that there was hope for him. He had been cast out of his family a few years ago for wanting to marry Mei ling. They lived together now, but still, they weren't in love anymore.
His family had immediately just given up on him and became disgusted; she was his cousin after all, and he couldn't exactly blame him. But here, a complete stranger was telling him that everything would be ok… because he could change? That sounded a bit… well… idealistic to him.
"That's a common misconception," Sakura grinned and began getting large boxes off of shelves. "Christians aren't supposed to lead lives without pain and suffering… our entire life is supposed to be about pain and suffering. As a natural reaction, because Christianity preaches living holy lives so people can't get drunk or do… I don't know, bad things that people normally do everyday, people persecute Christianity to no end. But it is a good thing… a honor to suffer for the Lord's sake because…"
She turned to look at him and gave him a brilliant smile, "Jesus suffered the cross… the most agonizing form of death and torture ever created by man. It is a privilege to suffer with him, because our works will not go unnoticed. We help the poor, the sickly, and the helpless, because in truth, even helping the least of them is serving the Lord. God created us all, and a Christian's job is to help save others because we've already been saved through our acceptance of Jesus Christ."
Detecting that she had made Syaoran extremely uneasy, Sakura stopped her rambling lesson and shrugged, "But that's too much for you to understand, I guess. Come on, give me a hand with these packages and this wrapping paper. We can get started before the others arrive."
It was silent in the small workshop, with only a handful of people, including Sakura and Syaoran, diligently wrapping the presents.
"Do," he found that he had to whisper or else everyone would hear what he was saying. "Only these people come every year?"
"Actually… every year, less and less people come," there was a sad note to Sakura's voice, and it pulled at Syaoran's heart, though he didn't know why… he didn't know why he was still there either. It had been at least an hour, and he had already helped wrapped at least a hundred presents.
Ignoring his sore shoulders, he concentrated on working as fast and as nimbly as Sakura who had wrapped a dozen times more gifts than he had, "Why?"
Sakura sighed and looked at her watch, calling out to everyone in there, "Times up everyone! Eiji should be around any minute now, we should probably get all the gifts together so they can be shipped off. Good job! We wrapped a lot of presents this year! This'll brighten the lives of children everywhere!"
Syaoran nearly yelled in surprise as everyone gave a loud cheer and began signing, clapping and dancing. Even he was pulled into their silly singing as people began to notice how silent he was as everyone else was happily singing, "Joy to the World."
They've worked all day, and still have energy to sing their hearts out. I've got to hand it to them; they seem to have an unending source of energy flowing into them… and an unending source of joy too.
He felt a light tug on his arm and Syaoran looked behind him, catching the smiling eyes of Sakura. She took his hand and led him out of the shop, "They can handle the rest. Eiji will be here to pick up the gifts soon, and I need to get you back to the coffee shop… thanks for helping out today."
She grinned at him and hopped into her car, which had a thin sheet of snow over it.
The two of them had driven the entire distance in complete, utter silence. Neither had said a word because… to be honest, neither of them knew what to say.
Sakura had been lecturing him about Christ, and now was at a loss for what to talk about without sounding completely out of place.
"Well… here we are… I promised Tomoyo I'd be home by eight so I better leave now," she reached for to flick the LOCK switch to UNLOCK, letting Syaoran out of the car.
He gave her a somewhat remorseful glance before getting out of the car.
I don't want to go… I don't really buy into all this 'Jesus' stuff but at least I want to see more of her… she's probably the most interesting person I've ever met… coffee shop and all.
"Um… did you want to… get that bite to eat sometime?" Syaoran lowered his head back into the car and looked questioningly at her. And, as if someone was pushing her towards his offer, Sakura let a small smile grace her lips before she nodded and reached into her purse to grab a slip of paper, "Hm… ok. But you have to call me."
Within a few seconds she had jotted down a phone number and patiently waited as he closed the door. Sakura gave him a wink and drove away.
Standing there in the cold again, Syaoran looked over to his car, and to his amazement, someone had come by and swept all the snow off his Mercedes. Grinning at his sudden luck, he got into his own car and sped off into the night, right hand clutching a small slip of paper in his pocket.
"Hm… maybe Christmas isn't quite so bad anymore."
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To be Continued
So… what do you think? I know it's a little late for Christmas XP but I thought it might still be ok if I posted it. Hm… maybe I should take it off and post it next year. I can make a second chapter if you like, but that's only if enough people seemed interested enough in it.
Well, happy extremely late holidays Please review!!!