Syaoran slowly opened his eyes as he heard knocking coming from his front door. Groaning, he looked over at his clock. The time read 1:15AM. Who would be coming here this late? Dragging himself out of bed, Syaoran made his way to the front door. He could hear the wind blowing outside as the tree branches cast shadows on the wall.
Opening the front door, Syaoran was surprised to see Sakura for the second time that day, panting in his doorway. Syaoran lowered his head so his bangs covered his face. He didn't want Sakura seeing him like this, especially not after the day they had. He opened his door a little wider as she stepped inside.
X-x-x-x-X
Syaoran was cleaning up after his lunch. It was a typical Saturday afternoon, and he was planning on watching some TV after cleaning up. Before he could get that far, his door was knocked on frantically. Looking curiously over at the front door, he wiped his hands off and walked over. As he opened the door, he saw Sakura standing there. She was out of breath and shaking, tears pooling in her eyes.
"Syao-" she choked out before he pulled her in gently. Shutting the door, he walked her slowly into the kitchen. He pulled back, eying her. She didn't look up at him as she swayed slightly. His heart was breaking by the second. Carefully, he walked her over to his bathroom. He sat her down on the edge of the tub. Looking at her once more, he pulled his phone out and dialed the one person he knew could help.
"Hello?" chimed a sweet, but confused voice. Syaoran stood outside the bathroom door. "Tomoyo. Could you please come over to my place with a change of clothes? It's for Sakura. Something happened." he paused. There was a moment of silence before he heard shuffling on the line. "I'll be there in five." She said and hung up. Syaoran sighed as he looked back into the bathroom. Sakura was completely out of it, tears threatening to fall. Syaoran's heart ached. Clearing his throat, he gently placed a hand on hers.
"Tomoyo is on the way if you'd like to take a bath or shower." she just kept looking at the ground and Syaoran squeezed her hand and stood up. Quick knocks were suddenly heard at the door and Syaoran ran to get it. Tomoyo burst into the apartment, looking frantic. "Where is she?!" she demanded. He pointed to the bathroom and she rushed over. She gasped upon seeing her and slowly shut the door. Soon running water could be heard. Tomoyo helped fill the bath and get Sakura into it.
Syaoran paced in his living. What in the hell happened? Why couldn't she speak? Why had she come here? Looking over at the bathroom door, he could hear crying and soft shushing from both girls. The way she looked in his door frame stayed glued to his brain as he paced some more. The girl he was crazy about, the girl he loved most was hurting and he didn't know what to do. Gritting his teeth, he slowly crept over to the door to see if he could hear anything.
The bath was draining and Tomoyo helped Sakura put some clothes on. Besides the black eye and cut on her face, Sakura also had a giant, purple bruise forming on the left side of her ribs. Her cut had stopped bleeding, but her eye was still very swollen. Sitting on the edge of the bathtub, Tomoyo took a deep breath and held Sakura's hand.
"What happened, Sakura?" Tomoyo worriedly asked. A few tears slipped down Sakura's face and she sniffled a little. "Ryu." Was all she blurted out. Syaoran tensed. Ryu was Sakura's boyfriend of six months. They were acquaintances from class until they were paired together for an assignment. After that, they started talking more until he finally got the courage to ask her out. Sakura was overjoyed when he asked her and Syaoran swallowed his jealousy silently. His best friend was happy and that's what mattered. The boys were cordial for Sakura's sake, but they were not fond of each other. Hearing his name now, Syaoran clenched his fist.
Shocked, Tomoyo looked at Sakura. "Ryu did this? He hit you?" Fumbling with the bottom of her shirt, Sakura nodded. She sighed, dropping her shirt and looking over at Tomoyo. "He's been hitting me for the last 4 months." Tomoyo's eyes widened at this confession. Little did she know Syaoran was doing the same outside the bathroom door. He clenched his fist tighter.
"Everything started really well with him. I liked him so much. Then one day he got mad at me for being late to our date by accident. Then that same date, I spilled soda on his floor and he got really angry. He had pushed me hard into the wall. But he apologized later for it. After that though, it started to become more frequent. Pushing me over this, slapping me over that. He especially hated it when I would hang out with Syaoran." Sakura breathed out. Syaoran was shaking. He couldn't control his anger anymore. He swiftly turned around and threw his front door open.
Tomoyo looked up hearing the front door slam against the wall. Uh-oh. She thought. Standing up, she poked her head out of the bathroom. There she saw the front door wide open. Pulling her cell phone, she dialed a number quickly. "Tomoyo? What's up cuz?" Touya said through the phone, pleasantly surprised.
"You need to stop Syaoran before it's too late! He's headed to Ryu's place." Tomoyo panicked. Touya looked at his phone quizzically. He wasn't fond of the brat but knew he was important to Sakura, unfortunately. "The brat? Stop him from what?" Touya asked. "Please Touya. Go stop him NOW." Tomoyo stated urgently. Touya could hear the fear in her voice. He clicked off the phone and rushed out of the library he was currently studying in.
Going back into the bathroom, Tomoyo looked over at her. She didn't even notice the fear on her face or that she just called her brother. Tomoyo walked over and sat next to her, holding her hand. She gave it a squeeze, silently letting Sakura know she can continue her story. Sakura sighed and squeezed back. "Today was the worst. I went to his place determined to break up with him. I no longer felt good being with him and being hurt. I was finally able to get the courage and break things off with him. Then he asked me why I was breaking up with him. Like it was a complete surprise. I told him I couldn't be with him anymore and that I don't have feelings for him anymore. That's when he got really angry." Sakura started to sniffle again as tears built up. Tomoyo gave her hand another quick squeeze.
"That's when he asked me if I was leaving him for Syaoran. If I was in love with Syaoran." Sakura sniffled again, looking over at Tomoyo. "I don't know why I didn't lie. I should have. But I didn't. I told him the truth. Which is yes. I'm in love with Syaoran. And it took me being with an awful person to realize it." As Sakura sighed and looked down again, she felt Tomoyo's eyes on her. While she was ecstatic on the inside that her best friend finally confessed, now was not the time to fangirl and swoon for her. Now was the time to listen.
"Once he heard me say yes, he lost it. He immediately punched me and I flew to the wall. He then backhanded me on the cheek and I fell to the floor. That's when he kicked me a few times. I managed to grab a book and throw it at his junk so he'd be stunned. I ran out of there as fast as I could and came right to the first place I'd feel safe: here. With Syaoran." Tomoyo instantly pulled Sakura into a hug. She never would have thought Sakura was going through this, all alone. Pulling out of the hug, she gave Sakura a once over.
"Why didn't you say anything? Why'd you keep this to yourself?" Tomoyo questioned. Sakura put her head down, shaking it. "I was scared. And embarrassed. And I wanted to believe he would stop. He would realize what he was doing and stop hurting me. But he just kept doing it. I'm so ashamed." Sakura started to get teary again. Tomoyo stood up and pulled Sakura up with her. "Never feel ashamed about being abused. We're going to do something about this right now. Come on." Tomoyo pulled Sakura out the door and they headed down to the police station.
Touya ran down the street. He had no idea what he had just gotten himself into. This clearly involved Sakura though, or else Tomoyo wouldn't have called. Rounding the corner, Touya saw a small crowd outside of the apartment complex Ryu lived in. As he got closer, he could see that two men were fighting. One was on top of the other. As Touya finally made it to the crowd, he saw it was Syaoran on top of Ryu. Syaoran continued to punch, while Ryu lay limp. Touya lunged forward and ripped Syaoran from him. Ryu coughed up some blood. A fiery rage burned in Syaoran's eyes. Touya had never seen this side of him before.
Ryu slowly stood up, holding his side. Just then, two police cars pulled up. Two tall men stepped out of the vehicles, assessing the scene in front of them. "We got a call about a fight?" one of the officers says. He looked between the two men, one bloody and one bright red from anger. The other officer stepped in. "We are also looking for Ryu Saito?" Looking around, he sees the bloody man widen his eyes as he slowly approaches. "Y-yes officer?" Ryu stuttered weakly. The first officer then pulls out a set of handcuffs and gives him a hard look. "We have a warrant for your arrest, on the charges of domestic battery." Ryu looks over at him with shock in his eyes. Syaoran begins to smirk as Ryu is put into the police car. Touya lets go of Syaoran hearing the officer's words.
"We're also going to need to take you in, sir. For the fight." the other officer states. Syaoran nods his head and lets the officer handcuff him. He looks up at Touya from the cop car and they share a look. Both the cars drive away as Touya tries to wrap his head around the situation. "Shit." he says, pulling out his phone to call Tomoyo.
After a few hours, Syaoran was released on a warning. Turns out, Sakura and Tomoyo went down to the police station to file a report. Sakura told the officers everything Ryu had done to her over the past months and that she wanted to press charges. Unknown to Sakura, Syaoran was just down the hall in a holding cell. After they let him go, Syaoran stepped outside of the station to see Touya sitting on a bench. They made eye contact and Touya nodded his head for him to join him. Sighing, Syaoran walked over to him and sat down.
They sat in silence for a few moments before he turned and looked at him. "I know me and you don't always get along," Syaoran gave him a look and Touya laughed. "Okay. We never get along. But we've always had one thing in common: we care about Sakura. I know you're one of her best friends and as much as that bugs me, she clearly could do worse." He paused as that statement settled in. Touya was furious when he found out exactly why Syaoran was beating the crap out of Sakura's now kid was lucky Syaoran got to him first.
"I always had my suspicions about you, but today just cleared them up for me. But I need to hear it out of your mouth." Touya looked over at him and Syaoran kept his gaze locked on him. Taking a breath, Touya closed his eyes. "Are you in love with my sister?" he asked. Syaoran smiled, answering without hesitation. "Irrevocably." Touya smirked before opening his eyes. He looked back over to Syaran. If anyone was going to be with his sister, he guessed Syaoran was an alright choice. But he would never let him know that. Touya stood, pulling his phone out. "Hurt her and I kill you." he stated plainly and walked into the police station. Syaoran shook his head, smiling, before walking away.
Sakura was drained after the long day she'd had. From escaping Ryu to recalling all the abuse she'd endured. Also having to tell her father and Touya about it was hard as well. Her father held her and apologized for not noticing. Touya stated that Ryu was lucky Syaoran had gotten to him first and that made her ears perk up. Even though she had run to his place first for safety, Sakura hadn't seen or heard from him all day. She was shocked to hear what happened from Touya. How Syaoran ran over to Ryu's place to confront him about what he'd done. That Touya had to pull Syaoran off of Ryu. Sakura sat there shocked and worried. Touya saw the look on her face.
"Sakura… Are you in love with Syaoran?" Touya had asked her. She blushed deeply and looked down at her shoes. It was her brother and she knew she could be honest with him. "Yes." Sakura shyly replied. Then she looked over at Touya. "That's why Ryu got so mad at me." Touya clenched his fists at this, but then released his hands. "No one should ever treat you the way he did Sakura. There are plenty of people who love you and care about you a lot." He stood up and gave Sakura a hug. He smiled at her and ruffled her hair. "Now go to bed, monster." Sakura pushed him away before smiling at him again.
She couldn't get her mind off of Syaoran. She couldn't get her mind off of what her brother had told her. Syaoran went to defend her and ended up fighting him. Was he hurt? What did Ryu say to him? Sakura had been so caught up all day, she hadn't reached out to him. Now it was late and he was probably sleeping. After tossing and turning some more, she threw her covers back. Pulling on a pair of workout shorts and a pink hoodie, Sakura opened her door quietly. She crept downstairs and slipped through the door after putting her running shoes on. Taking a deep breath, she began to run the familiar course to Syaoran's.
X-x-x-x-X
"What are you doing here?" Syaoran asked. He led them to the kitchen and Syaoran's back was turned from her. He wanted to give her some space to deal with the day. He wanted her to rest. He wanted her to feel safe. What in the world was she doing here so late, despite all these things. She stood up straighter, looking at his back.
"Touya told me what happened. You got arrested?!" she asked, surprised. She never wanted any of this for him. Syaoran shook his head. "No. They let me off with a warning once they realized why I was fighting him." his muscles tightened as he clenched his fists on the counter. "You didn't need to fight him, Syaoran. He's not worth it." Sakura said. He could hear the emotion in her voice. "I was so worried about you." She said quietly. Syaoran quickly turned around and looked at her. "And I was worried about you! But I was more angry with Ryu. For ever thinking he could put a hand on you and get away with it. When I heard you telling Tomoyo what happened, I lost it. I wanted to kill him, Sakura. And I might have if your brother didn't come and stop me." Syaoran confessed.
Sakura's eyes widened at the black eye Syaoran was sporting. She immediately closed the space between them to examine his eye. Syaoran stopped her by putting his hands on her waist. Sakura instantly got an attack of butterflies in her stomach. "Stupid asshole sucker punched me. That was the only shot he got though." Syaoran smirked at her and she continued with her worried gaze. His eyes softened on hers. "I'm okay." She nodded slowly before giving him a small smile. "We have matching black eyes." Sakura stated. Syaoran gave her waist a light squeeze. They both stared into eachothers eyes. Both were willing their hearts to not explode. His amber eyes drowned in the sea of emerald green in her eyes.
Not being able to fight her feelings any longer, Sakura made her move. She leaned up on the tips of her toes and kissed Syaoran. He was surprised and shocked, but immediately kissed her back. Passion exploded between them. Syaoran pulled her closer just as she snaked her arms around his neck. Eventually they had to pull apart for air. Both of their eyes were lidded and heavy with lust. Finally catching her breath, she looked up at Syaoran.
"Syao-" she was interrupted by Syaoran. "I love you Sakura." he smiled at her. He pulled her hand up to his lips and kissed it, "I wanted to tell you first, if that's where you were going." Sakura laughed and shook her head. "I love you too, Syaoran." she giggled and pulled him down for another kiss. This time Syaoran flipped them around and hoisted her onto the counter. He pushed his way in between her legs and kissed her more passionately. A moan escaped Sakura's lips and Syaoran had to stop himself.
"Keep making noises like that and I just might lose control." he looked at her, breathing heavily. She pulled him forward to hug him and he returned the gesture. Holding her in his arms, knowing she was safe, was all Syaoran needed. He pulled away slightly to give her another kiss. She smiled at him, lovingly. Sakura didn't think she could ever love him more than she did right now. When she first realized he was the love of her life, she felt beyond guilty. Being in a relationship with someone and being in love with someone else was never her plan. But life doesn't go by plans sometimes. And she needed things to change. Even though that change came with some obstacles, she was glad to be right there in that moment with him.
"Call or text your brother that you're here. I'll take you home in the morning." Syaoran calmly stated as he brushed some hair behind her ear. She sighed in content as she pulled her phone out. Syaoran went into the other room. Sakura kicked her shoes off and walked over to his bedroom. On the bed, Syaoran has laid out one of his shirts for her. She saw his bathroom light on and assumed he was in there. Quickly changing, she crawled into his bed and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath, taking in the heavenly smell of Syaoran.
Sakura opened her eyes again when she felt an arm snake its way around her waist. She smiled, turning over to look at him. The moonlight coming through the window couldn't hide the smile on his face. She smiled back at him. Nothing felt more perfect or right in that moment. Sakura cuddled up to Syaoran, laying her head on his chest. Listening to his heartbeat, she slowly drifted into a peaceful sleep.