Hello everyone! Gomen nasai for the delay. I've been out of the country for months and I wasn't able to update my fics for quite some time. Thank you for understanding.
CHAPTER NINE
PLEASANT SURPRISES
"Kinomoto?"
Sakura feigned a smile. Somehow, it seems like she doesn't feel like smiling right now. She doesn't know why and she hated that fact even more. Was she actually affected by what she saw earlier?
A gorgeous girl just kissed Li Syaoran.
Does she really care about the whole thing?
Or was she just concern about losing their bet?
"Hi, Li. How nice to see you here."
Syaoran smirked. He actually never expected her to say those words. Sakura Kinomoto is the type of girl who wouldn't be too happy about seeing him.
"What a coincidence, eh?" He said meaningfully. "And we just happened to bump into each other at the right time."
"Coincidence, indeed." Sakura answered neutrally. She just couldn't bear the thought of Syaoran bragging how he is leading the bet now. And it seems that he is going to do that right now. He's going to tell it straight to her face how sickeningly charming he was and that he could get any girl he wants as easy as snapping his fingers. Snap! Just like that.
"What are you doing in the mall anyway?"
"Nothing. I was completely bored out of my mind back in my Oniichan's apartment so I decided to do some window-shopping. But I guess, I found nothing good enough to be bought." She sighed disappointedly. "How about you? Looks like you're on a date."
"Well…yeah. She's that girl I was supposed to meet last Wednesday."
"I see."
Silence. Awkward silence followed.
Funny, but Sakura found it awkward about talking to him once more. It seems like, that moment when they almost kissed back in the office happened such a long time ago. They almost kissed…they almost kissed…damn, what was she thinking?
She felt a hot surge of energy flowing through her cheeks.
"I've got to go now." She said at once, tearing her eyes from his. "See you at work, I guess. Ja."
"Wait-!"
Syaoran's voice came out strong and firm. He looked at Sakura's retreating back and wondered briefly if something happened to her. Her face looks preoccupied with so many things that he suddenly felt as if he wanted to talk to her.
Hearing those words made Sakura stop dead in her tracks. What does he want from her anyway?
"Yes?" She said softly. She turned around to face him and was even surprised to see that familiar twinkle in his eyes.
"Are you doing anything this afternoon?"
"Nothing special, I guess. Maybe I'll just sit around the apartment and watch some rented videos." She raised an eyebrow. "Why?"
His lips formed into a small smile and Sakura was slightly taken aback by that gesture. He stopped teasing her already for these past few days, not to mention talked to her even less and now, he's actually smiling at her?
"I thought it would be nice if we could hang out together and share a small cup of coffee."
"Is this some kind of a prank you're trying to pull?"
He looked at her as if she lost her mind.
"What are you talking about?"
Sakura glanced at him innocently. Deep inside of her, she just couldn't believe it. It seemed at that moment that they were actually good friends. Two friends sharing a typical conversation while drinking their coffee. It is funny and weird…but that scene has a nice ring to it.
"Can't you hear what you're saying?" She continued to taunt. "I mean, you and me, talking over a cup of coffee? That's…"
"…absurd, you mean." He finished off.
She snorted unconsciously. She really couldn't help it. The whole thing sounds too good to be true. They were never the type of persons who could stand the thought of being with each other. True, they might be almost always together because obviously they are working in the same company, but that's only due to unfortunate circumstances. Given the chance, they would certainly not spend their time with each other.
But is that how things will always be?
"No, I'm serious."
Sakura raised an apprehensive eyebrow, still in doubts whether to accept his invitation or not.
"What are we going to talk about anyway?"
"Oh, nothing." Syaoran grinned. "The political issues nowadays, the economy, the bet…"
"I should've known what you're going to say." She shook her head gently.
"Nah. I'm just kidding." He tilted his head slightly to one side, his eyes gleaming with, what seemed to Sakura, a mischievous idea. "So…what do you think?"
"Is it just me or does it seemed like you're practically begging me to accept your invitation?" She joked. "Gee…I'm really flattered, you know."
Syaoran chuckled softly when he heard her reply.
"Don't be too self-conceited, Kinomoto. It's just that, since we're already here, I thought it would be a great idea if we could hang out together. After all, we are sort of friends now, aren't we?"
Sakura couldn't help but notice how he slightly emphasized the word 'sort of'.
"Let me think about it…" She paused thoughtfully for a few seconds and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes, she couldn't help but giggle when she saw Syaoran's amazed face. "Well, since you insists and because I have no choice, I guess I should accept your invitation."
"Never in my whole life did I have I hard time asking a girl out on a date." He muttered while shaking his head softly.
Sakura felt an odd feeling when she heard him say that word. Do they really seem like they are out for a date? Does Syaoran actually see it that way?
She sighed inwardly. She doesn't know why she's even thinking about those things right now. She doesn't even know why she actually cared what this certain guy would think.
"Is Starbucks okay for you or you want to go to some coffee shop instead?"
Syaoran frowned a little when he didn't hear her reply. He glanced at her face, which obviously looked as if she didn't hear a single word that he said.
"Hey! Earth to Kinomoto!"
That did the trick. Sakura snapped out from her trance and mumbled a very intelligent response.
"W-what?"
"I said, is Starbucks okay for you?"
"No. I-I mean, it's fine." She looked at him sheepishly. He noticed a faint blush of embarrassment on her cheeks. "Anywhere is fine, in fact."
"Then I think it would be a great idea if we would head right now to that place, don't you think so?"
Sakura could only nod at him. She just kept silent the whole time as she follows his lead.
= Get a grip, Sakura. Stop making this a big deal. This date just meant nothing. =
"Are you sure you want to be seen with me?"
"What are you talking about?" She glanced at him in surprise.
Syaoran shrugged carelessly before flashing her a lopsided grin. Sakura could only hate herself even more when she realized how that smile affected her slightly. Must she be too foolish to fall under his charms?
"From the way I see your face, you certainly look like your mind is several miles away from here. It seems like you wanted to be someplace else." He pointed out. "Thinking about your boyfriend, perhaps?"
She knew he was just joking, but a slight edge in his voice when he said those words didn't escape her senses.
"I was just thinking about somebody else."
= Ooops. =
"Ah…then it must be your boyfriend."
If Syaoran could only knew that she was actually thinking about him, she's sure that she would never hear the end of it.
"It's none of your business, Li." She smiled sweetly at him. She glanced around and noticed the coffee shop a few distance away from them. Without another word, she walked towards the establishment and settled herself comfortably in one of the seats as soon as she arrived.
"So what will you be having?" Syaoran asked her later.
"Mocha Frappucino sounds nice."
"That's good. Maybe I should order one for myself too."
Sakura could only stare at his back when he turned around to give their orders at the counter. A flurry of emotions seems to overwhelm her at this present time. A few days ago, never did she imagined she would be out with Syaoran for a date. And never did she imagine that she would accept his invitation if he did asked her out. Her impression of him was, to say the least, never that good. Being friends with him is something that never crossed her mind. But that was before. As for now…. she doesn't know.
Syaoran came back a few minutes later with a tray filled with their orders. He sat casually infront of her before putting up a small smile to his face.
= Ugh. Why does he have to smile? =
Sakura doesn't know if she's irritated by it, or if she's just irritated at the fact that she's actually affected by it. At the back of her mind, she doesn't know why she suddenly starts being conscious of every little thing that he did.
"You know, we never really got the chance to know ourselves better. Don't you think so?"
"It's because, we never really talked decently to each other." She answered.
Syaoran nodded in agreement. Boy, is she right about that!
"I must admit I was rude to you at first. It's just that, I was actually in a pretty bad mood when we first met in the airport and you bumped me." He chuckled softly when he remembered that day.
"I bumped you?" Sakura raised an eyebrow. "I always thought you were the one who bumped me."
"Well, I guess it's both our fault."
"I guess so." A small smile crept to her lips when she heard him agree to her. He really must be serious about being friends with her that he didn't bother contradicting her statement. After all, their relationship already became synonymous with the word 'argument'.
Syaoran took a small sip of his drink before propping up his elbows on the table. Still not contented, he leaned in closer to her, his face a safe distance away from hers.
"Would you believe if I told you that I found you irritating at first?"
She mocked a surprise look in her face and rolled her eyes. Her gesture made Syaoran chuckle slightly for he found the funny look she just gave him definitely amusing.
"And I thought you'd say that you found me certainly beautiful." Sakura couldn't help joking, trying to make the statement sarcastic or else, he would think she's flirting with him…which of course, is not something she would ever do. (kotsch: I see a classic case of self-denial here…)
He couldn't help but smirked when he heard her statement but at the same time, he was glad that Sakura made a little joke like that for she never joked about anything when he's around.
"'Beautiful' is not the word to define you. 'Drop-dead gorgeous' is more appropriate, you know."
Sakura's mouth dropped open when she heard him say that and when she looked at him, she couldn't read his face whether he's really serious about it or not.
"You are crazy." She couldn't help remarking, still a bit surprise at the comment Syaoran just made.
Syaoran just responded with a mischievous smile.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sakura never thought that she would actually come to the office one day in a good mood. Apparently, that small chat that she and Syaoran shared over the weekend definitely helped a lot in putting her at ease. At least now, she wouldn't have to go to the office dreading every single day she has to be with him. Syaoran turned out to be a fairly nice person after all. And the fact that he made the first move to patch things up is something that she appreciated a lot.
As she made her way to her desk, she passed a couple of cubicle and even managed to greet a few employees along the way with a very well meant 'Good Morning'. Someone even said that she looked like she is such in a good mood today. And she wouldn't have it any other way.
When she reached their cubicle, she was surprised to see that Syaoran was not yet there. He never was late in all the previous workdays they had and usually he's already at the office fifteen minutes before the work. As she sat in her office chair, she noticed something posted on the small corkboard infront of her.
Kinomoto,
I'm doing some field work today. Mr. Cheung sent me an errand to do outside. I thought I should just let you know before you could think of throwing a thank-god-the-jerk is already-away party. Sorry to disappoint you but I'll be back in a while. See you later.
LiUpon reading his small note, Sakura couldn't help but laugh heartily, not caring if somebody heard her. Even though he is not here, that guy could still make him laugh and feel irritated at the same time. Li Syaoran just loves to tease the hell out of her and she never met a guy just like him in her entire life.
Instinctively, she glanced at the small clock on their table and decided to start their work right away. She turned on her pc and settled comfortably on her seat. As soon as the welcome screen popped up on the monitor, she then browsed through the documents that she needed to edit. After ten minutes of proofreading, she was even surprise when a small window popped up in her screen.
Hi. You don't really know me but I'm hoping I could have the chance to talk to you. I'm Ryusaki Eichiro by the way, and I'm also a trainee like you here in the same department. Sorry for bothering you but I'm really hoping to find someway to talk to you and I couldn't seem to approach you then.
Sakura was surprised when she realized that somebody in the office is sending her a private message. She didn't know if she should be glad or annoyed at that thought. The least that guy could do is try to be brave and find some way to talk to her personally instead of chatting with her in the office. And he even managed to do it during working hours!
She tried to ignore the message but instead, she found herself typing a reply to whoever that guy is.
Hi there, Ryusaki. Well, it seems like you already know a little about me but I might as well introduce myself, too. I'm Kinomoto Sakura and as you've said, I'm a trainee too. Well, I'm not really bothered at the fact that you want to know me better but I think it would be better if we meet after office instead of chatting through the pc, don't you think so? I'm pretty sure you also have lots of work to do at this time and besides, I think we could get to talk and get to know each other even better if we meet personally.
After a few seconds, a reply from Eichiro was sent immediately to her computer. She clicked on the small icon to open it and then proceeded to read it.
Gomen nasai, Kinomoto-san. Arigatou for being nice and I think meeting with each other later is a good idea. I would certainly appreciate it. I'd just pass by your cubicle after work…would that be fine with you?
Sakura shook her head slightly and smiled. She typed her short reply, which was a curt 'Yes', before returning to her work. Today would turn out different, after all. Imagine, a guy wanting to meet up with her?
The day passed by, what seemed to her, uneventful and a complete bore. She then realized that without Syaoran around to taunt her, office work seems like to drag her down.
"This is so boooring. Li sure is lucky to be out someplace else." She couldn't help muttering under her breath.
When somebody cleared his throat, she immediately whirled his seat around and almost jumped an inch when she saw who was standing there.
"I thought I heard you say my name." Syaoran smirked at her. He just came back outside and never expected that his work would take him so long. He already returned at the office ten minutes before the workday ends. "Missed me so soon, huh?"
Sakura decided to ignore his statement and frown instead.
"You know what, I actually had the time of my life here in the office when you're gone! I never felt such a feeling of inner peace for quite sometime now."
He couldn't help raising an eyebrow before pulling up a chair to sit beside her.
"Really now? It seems like you really missed me with the way I see your face right now."
"Stop dreaming, Li."
"Fine. Whatever you say."
He shrugged carelessly and leaned back casually in his chair. He stared at the frowning, yet beautiful face of Sakura and felt something that tugged his heart.
"How's it going?"
"What do you mean?" She replied before crossing her arms defensively. "We just had coffee yesterday."
"About your dating technique, I mean."
"Well, if I had one, then I shouldn't be divulging it to you right? We're on a bet, remember?"
"Aaawww…. you're so secretive." Syaoran shook his head exaggeratedly. "I just wanted to know how you are doing with our bet, cause I wasn't able to ask you about anything with regards to our agreement yesterday when we were at the coffee shop."
"You know, it's certainly none of your---"
Syaoran frowned when he saw Sakura paused in mid-sentence. He turned around curiously and look at the source of it all .
"Hm…? Kinomoto-san? I'm Eichiro…Ryusaki Eichiro."
Sakura's eyes grew large in amazement. That guy is Ryusaki? She's expecting some average looking guy all this time but standing infront of them is one of the most handsome guys she ever saw in her entire life. And this guy wants to know her better?
Syaoran on the other hand could only raised an eyebrow. Apparently, he's thinking about something else.
= Who the hell is he?!? =
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
kotsch
A/N: Sorry if this chap's quite short. I just did this one because I know I wasn't able to update for a while. I think it didn't turn out good ___. But anyway, arigatou for reading the fic.