"A New Fire"
Sakura leaned against the railing of the boat, staring at the shimmering blue water as the sun caressed the beauty of nature.
It felt nice out today, not too hot or too cool; just right. Everything had been going perfect today, aside from Xing's little breakdown of a little misunderstanding. They had taken pictures that Sakura was sure that she would cherish forever.
When she felt a heated gaze caress her skin from the corner of her eyes, she could see Syaoran staring at her. Well, more like feel him staring at her. She turned to him with a smile gracing her face. "What is it?" she asked, wondering if there was something on her face.
As if he felt that he got caught, he looked away quickly. "I was just thinking..."
She looked at his face, seeing his cheeks turn a light pink color. She was surprised to see a blushing Syaoran. She wondered if he felt a bit under the weather. It was a bit breezy out today.
"Is it the breeze? It is a little ch—"
"No. It's not that," he said quickly. "You're just..." He sighed.
She frowned, wondering if she had done something wrong again. "What's wrong?"
"You're keeping something from me," he said.
The frown on her face deepened. "What do you mean?" she asked, feigning ignorance. She was not sure what he meant exactly. She was, in fact, keeping things from him, but there were too many to pinpoint which was he was referring to right now.
"Are you dating anyone right now?" he asked suddenly.
A blush embellished her cheeks at the forward question. "W-what?" she answered, wishing she could get more out of herself than that response.
She wanted to ask why he wanted to know. Or tell him that it was none of his business but found that her vocabulary was suddenly limited in his presence again. She had not felt like this in a while around him.
"Answer the question."
When she looked at him, she could see the serious, hard look in his eyes that said that he was playing no games right now.
"No..."
"Who is 'Name-nii-san' to Xing, then? Did I miss something?"
"Name-nii...san?" she said slowly, feigning innocence at his question.
"Sakura, I'm not kidding around," he said sternly.
She had to bite her tongue from asking when he had ever played around because she had certainly never seen it. Instead, she shook her head slowly. "I don't know...maybe it's someone...at school?" said Sakura, wishing she had sounded a lot more convincing than that.
Syaoran inhaled a deep breath before he released it silently.
From that response, Sakura knew he was starting to feel upset with her. She knew who he spoke of, but she did not want to ruin their weekend trip. They were having a good time; she had even seen Syaoran smile more than he had ever smiled around her since she met him. It was refreshing and... homey-feeling, as weird as it sounded. She felt welcomed in their family with the genuineness coming from him. She did not want that to end.
"Okay."
"Is there a problem if I decide to date someone? I mean...I am almost 18, so it's very likely that I'd..." she stopped mid-sentence, seeing the cold demeaning look in his eyes that showed his disapproval of her claim.
"Why waste your time with useless boys who only think with their cocks at that age?"
Her cheeks warmed at the vulgar language, which she almost did a double take at the entrance to make sure Xing had not been around to hear it. "Not...all of them are that way. There are some decent guys my age, I just have not put myself out there to explore yet. I'm sure there's some—"
"You should be focusing on school right now. Isn't that what you said? That you wanted to just focus on graduating to go to college? Why the sudden change of interest?"
Sakura could sense the judgement in his tone, making her feel a little stupid for even thinking about dating. She had, in fact, claimed that she wanted to just focus on graduating, but that did not entail avoiding dating anyone during the process.
Besides, she wanted to experience a little before getting out of high school. She wanted to have her foot in the door with some type of dating experience before she was thrown out in the world with men, she had no clue about. At least, boys at her school, she knew about and the type of person they were.
"Why do you want to waste your time with boys?" he asked again.
She bit her bottom lip nervously, suddenly not sure why she wanted to date anyone right now. She felt a little silly for entertaining the idea.
"Exactly. Focus on your schooling—then after college and finding a stable job, you can think about dating," he said in a dismissing tone as if he were done with the conversation.
Sakura frowned at that. "What's wrong with wanting to start dating now? Besides..." A blush tainted her cheeks, "…perhaps I could meet someone special now. You said that Yukito would never see me that way, so what's so wrong with finding someone who would?"
Syaoran looked at her, and instantly, she regretted saying it. "No dating."
Feeling quite daring now, Sakura turned her head up defiantly. "And if I do?" she questioned. "I don't remember the contract saying that I couldn't date."
He went completely silent, making her take a quick glance at him. She bit her lip nervously again, seeing the familiar glare on his face that made her want to run for the hills. "The contract doesn't have to say anything about dating not being the right time for you," he said.
Sakura looked down, unsure of what to say to him now.
"It's a silly idea. Don't dwell on it."
A silence passed between the two, giving Sakura time to process what he had said. She could not understand why he was so opposed to the idea of dating. Surely, she could date and do school at the same time. Syaoran had even dated while in high school if he had Xing at 18-19. If he could do it, so could she, she mentally declared.
"I'm going to date," she said confidently. "I'll keep my affairs out of my job, so you won't have to worry about me parading different guys around Xing."
When no response came again, Sakura looked in his direction hesitantly. She froze, seeing a look in his eyes that sent her body into fight-or-flight mode. He looked as if he could kill.
"Y-you dated while in high school and even had a kid, so why is there an issue with me being curious about it as well—"
"Because I had to. Otherwise, I would not have because I think it not to be a wise decision during these times. Besides, teenagers turn up pregnant all the time because they don't know how to do things correctly."
Sakura could feel her cheeks warm at the mention of having sex. She had not even thought that far ahead in the unknown relationship with the unknown person. What baffled her even more was why Syaoran seemed so upset about this.
"The girls are usually careless, just like the boys who care nothing about them and just want to get a nut, so why would you want to put yourself through that?"
"I—"
"Is it the idea of a date that you're thinking about?"
"Syaoran—"
"If it is, I'll take you out, let you experience your first date instead of it being with a boy who's only going to hurt you because he thinks with his dick," Syaoran said in a finalizing tone.
Sakura was at a loss for words, surprised to hear the man claiming he would take her on her first date. He was just telling her that she should not date in high school, but now he was saying she should go on a date with him to stray her away from getting "pregnant"? Confused was an understatement.
"A-are you asking me on a date?" she questioned hesitantly to get some form of affirmation.
Her question was met with silence.
"I-I mean...I know you think it to not be a smart idea to date in high school, but it's not like I'm trying to get married and just..." Her cheeks warmed at her thoughts of being intimate with someone. She shook her head, mentally chastising herself when she thought of being intimate with him. "I really would just like to experience the dating life. Not to sleep around and get pregnant or anything like that."
"I'll take you out then so you can experience it," he said in a tone that dismissed the rest of the conversation again.
Sakura's heart skipped a beat, realizing the man was asking her on a date. She wanted to question if he wanted to but thought better than to ruin it. She did not want to get her own feelings hurt with his rejection. She reasoned that he would not have done this if he did not want to.
"Okay..." she trailed off, not sure what else to say after that.
She would be going on her first date with a man not related to her. They had not even gone yet, but she felt excited for when they would. When would they? She wondered if she should ask but found that her voice had run off to some place unknown again.
Syaoran cleared his throat. "I've never..." He paused before continuing, "This is all new to me."
Sakura's brows scrunched together in confusion, unsure if he were referring to asking her on a date or something else. "What?"
"Bringing someone else here, other than Xing," he said.
She almost frowned at the idea that he had just shut the date conversation out without finalizing things. She wanted to slap herself for caring and actually wanting to go on a date with the man. She had already promised that she would not involve herself with him. And suddenly, he suggests a date and she start getting all excited. She needed to take a step back. "Oh...I didn't have to come here—"
"That's not what I'm saying. If I did not want you here, you wouldn't be here." He gave her a deadpanned look, making a blush appear on her face at being exposed for her negative thoughts.
"What are you trying to say then?" she asked quietly, holding on to the rail.
"It's...pleasant."
Sakura could feel the blush burn her cheeks even more. And not for the reason it had earlier. "I like being here with you guys too," she answered honestly.
He took a deep breath and then released it before stuffing his hands in his pockets, looking awkwardly at the sight before them. "Anyway, I was thinking about it," he said suddenly.
"Hoe?"
Syaoran motioned between them. "Me and you."
Her face almost felt like it could melt into a puddle of lava as her mind thought about him and her. She was not sure what he was referring to, but her mind drifted to the times they had kissed, and he touched her.
Not wanting to assume he was thinking the same, she asked, "What about us?"
"Just everything. We should stop whatever we have going on. Xing suspects you like me, and I have picked up that he is not fond of that."
"Oh..." was all Sakura could manage to form. She had not even been the one to initiate any of their moments. It had always been him, so she was not sure why he felt the need to tell her this. She wished she could say that she did not care about him wanting to stop, but a small part of her felt a tad bit hurt that he did not feel as attracted to her as she to him.
"But it won't stop. I don't want to stop whatever the hell we have going on," he said, turning towards her suddenly.
Sakura jumped a little, surprised by his sudden attention. She swallowed nervously, unsure of how to respond. Perhaps she had been wrong. The man was sending off mixed signals again.
"I've reasoned with myself enough about all of this, and I... I'm done trying to reason."
Sakura was not sure what the man was trying to get at. She wondered if they were playing charades unconsciously because it sure felt like a guessing game right now.
"I'm attracted to you immensely. You're beautiful, so it's only natural for me to be."
Sakura blushed, looking down at the ground shyly. It's not like that was the first time she had heard that before, but coming from Syaoran, she truly felt like she was. "Th-thanks..." she said timidly.
"So, I need you to tell me to stop and never kiss you again."
Taken aback by that, Sakura looked at him, all embarrassment washing off. "What?"
"That's the only way to maintain some boundaries between us, unless…do you like me?"
Sakura stared at him, wondering how she should answer that question. She thought about what it felt like to like a person.
She remembered her heart beating at the thought of Yukito. With Syaoran, her heart would beat at the thought of him and every time he touched her. There had never been a pull towards Yukito because she always felt comfortable with him. With Syaoran, there was always this strong pull that navigated her towards him. There were no sparks with Yukito, but with Syaoran, there were fireworks.
With Yukito, she felt safe and this warm feeling of home when she was with him though. He always treated her kindly and always stuck his neck out for her when he could.
Sakura realized that the way she felt about Syaoran was different from Yukito and that's why she knew she did not like him in that way.
Choosing her words correctly, Sakura looked at Syaoran. "I... don't know you enough to like you, but I do appreciate you and think you're very kind. I can admit that am attracted to you... but, I... know that nothing could happen between us," she said uncertainly, hoping she would not upset the man with her rejection. Quite frankly, she was not even sure if he wanted her to reject him or not.
"What?"
"You...I..."
A silence fell between the two, making them experience their first awkward moment of the day.
Sakura had thought her words over carefully instead of just rambling and saying stupid things. Somehow, she still screwed up with the man. She wished to be swallowed by a whale like Pinocchio himself.
"Well—"
"You're right," he interrupted, voice sounding distant again. As if he were done with the conversation. As if she reminded him of something she had no clue about.
She noticed him withdraw from her slowly, and that pained her more than it should have. "Don't do that..." Sakura said in a pleading tone. "We were just doing fine, and you were talking and... now, you're trying to crawl back into that hole. Please don't do that."
For a moment, a look of surprise passed across his face briefly before he masked it with his cold demeanor. It was almost as if she had imagined it.
She sighed, clamping her hands together in front of her. "You...always do that." She looked away, not sure how to hold his gaze. "When it comes to talking about feelings, you shut down as if nothing matters but your duties..."
"That is all that matters," he said blandly.
Sakura frowned.
"Being a dad is a duty, my career is a duty, and upholding standards of my character is too. There are specific guidelines set out for me to follow, so I don't need you thinking that you could come here and change any of that."
Sakura turned to him with a determined look on her face. "I'm not thinking I can change anything about you, Syaoran-kun," she said softly. "I know you have to be a father, a businessman, a son, a brother, and the list goes on."
Sakura had not meant to make him think she were trying to change him. She just wanted to understand and see more of the Syaoran that Kenta had told her about. She did see that he could be nice and warm at times when living in the moment, but other times, he would become the cold-hearted man she feared him to be. It seemed like Syaoran did not want her to know the real Syaoran behind the high-class, strict, and professional persona he always had.
She had been surprised when he opened up to her last night about Xing's mother and his part in the mistreatment of Xing. Seeing that side of him made her realize that she wanted to see more of that. She hated that she was trying to involve herself with the man more and more. She had already said she would focus on one thing. But it seemed like it was too hard to do.
"I do want to help you realize that there are other things that matter though. You can do what you—"
"I can do whatever the hell I want. I don't need you telling me how to live my life," he said, his voice sounding cold now.
"Syaoran—"
"Go inside," he interrupted.
Sakura frowned, surprised to hear him demanding her around again. "No," she said defiantly.
The way his eyes landed on her felt like a bullet had just pierced through her stomach. She almost feared that he might overthrow her or worst, lay her across his lap and give her a good spanking with the ruler that Chiharu and her friends stressed that he would.
She released the breath she held, feeling as though she were suffocated with the look. "You say you want me to trust you, yet you do things like this," she said, praying the fear could not be heard in her tone.
"What?"
"Bossing me around and ready to chastise me when I don't obey you," she said, feeling her heart beat erratically in her chest. She wondered how many times they had this conversation now.
"I—"
"Am I just here for you to boss me around and expect me to do what you want me to do? Control me? Aren't you tired of doing that to everyone in your life? Wouldn't it be nice for people to speak freely and do whatever they want around you? Wouldn't that be refreshing for a change?" she asked without thinking.
"Is that...do you feel like I'm controlling you?" he asked disbelievingly.
She swallowed, holding on to the rail tightly. "Sometimes," came her timid response.
He let out a sigh. "Shit..." He turned to her abruptly. "That's not my intentions—"
"Really?" she asked, giving a look that told him that she did not believe him one bit. "You may think that I'm some naive, stupid child who doesn't know any better, but I'm not as stupid as you think I am."
Syaoran shook his head, looking baffled by that response. "I never said you were," he said.
"You don't act like it, though."
"I don't think you're stupid," Syaoran said again with a bit more force to his tone.
She could not understand why he thought he could make a point by being more forceful. Her heart tightened in her chest in anticipation of what would happen next.
From the corner of her eyes, she could see him move closer to her. "Why would you think that I think that?" he asked.
She looked down, suddenly feeling shy at the proximity of his body. Sakura found that she liked how she felt when he was so close to her though. She liked the intimacy. It calmed and reassured her that he felt…something positive about her.
"I..." she swallowed, at a loss for words now.
"Can you look at me?" he asked gently.
Surprised to hear him ask for a change, Sakura looked up at him. He never asked her to do anything.
"Why would you think that?" he asked again, staring at her so intensely that her cheeks decided to warm on their own accord.
"Because... you always reprimand me or attack me when I don't do things your way. You..." Sakura remembered him telling her she had not been the smartest the other day, feeling herself shrink in size a little compared to him. He even made her feel silly a few minutes ago about thinking of dating now. "You've also...said it. I don't know if you think it because I'm younger than you and haven't had as much as experience as you, but..."
Sakura stopped, thinking her next words carefully.
"I know that I'm not experienced in a lot of things in life, but that doesn't mean I'm completely oblivious to the world. How else do you think I've lived alone? I'm not that stupid," she said the last part weakly, feeling that statement not to be true with the way he would talk to her.
"Sakura...I'm...I've never intended to make you feel that way. I know you aren't stupid and I'm not just looking at you as some helpless high schooler who needs my help. If I threw you out right now, I know you'd make a way or try to find something on your own without even asking for any help from anyone. That's how we met each other," he said.
Sakura frowned, unable to hold herself back from asking the next question. "How are you viewing me then?"
"Do you really think that I would have the desire to do the things we've done with other girls at your school?" he asked in a disgraceful tone. "It's hard enough being attracted to you when you're not even my age."
Sakura looked at the distraught expression on his face. "So..."
"You're different."
Hoe?
"Different...how?" she asked hesitantly.
Syaoran stared at her with this look in his eyes that nearly set her body on fire, shooting it straight between her legs. The sirens went off in her head, warning that they should stop this conversation before something spiraled from it.
She looked away, letting out an awkward laugh. "Are you going to answer the question or just make this unbearably awkward for us?" she asked teasingly to ease the tension between them.
"You—"
His phone went off, interrupting him.
Sakura let out a soft sigh, nodding her head slowly to tell him she did not mind him answering it before she turned back over to look out at the water.
To her surprise, from the corner of her eyes, she could see him ending the call instead of answering it.
"I promised this weekend to you guys, so I won't break it," he said.
"Well, if it's important and you have to take it, then I understand—"
"Nothing's more important than my time with y—" He stopped, piquing her interest. "With Xing."
Sakura tilted her head to the side. "But I'm not...Xing," she said slowly. "I'm sure he won't wake up right now."
"W-well... It's not like it was an important phone call—just my assistant, so we can..."
When Sakura looked at him, there was a tinge of red staining his cheeks.
"Y-you could wander around if you want to. I don't want to make you feel like you have to stay out here with me and talk, you know," he rushed out.
Sakura giggled, shaking her head. "Of course not. I want to be here," she said reassuringly.
"You do?" he asked.
"Yes. I want to be a friend of the man who's saved my life. I know it sounds cliché, but in a way, you are kind of like the Prince who saved the damsel in distress, and you said you've never really had a friend before out of the 23 years of your life, so... I was kind of hoping that I could change that out of gratitude for...'saving me.' I hope that doesn't sound weird or anything, because I don't mean it like that, but..." Sakura stopped, noticing herself ramble again like an idiot.
When Syaoran remained silent, it made matters worse for her.
"I—"
"You talk a lot," he said suddenly.
Sakura frowned, not sure if she should be offended by that.
"Quite excessively that it's a bit concerning."
Sakura pursed her lips.
"Well—"
"But...it makes me want to be around you because I enjoy your company," he said, turning away from her.
The frown slowly turned upside down and she turned towards him. "You don't always have to be mean when you're trying to say something nice..." she commented.
His cheeks colored even more, making her grin from ear to ear. "I'm...not being nice. I'm just being honest," he said in an annoyed tone.
Sakura giggled, shaking her head. "You're unbelievable sometimes."
"And what's that supposed to mean?" he asked with a frown.
"It just means..." Sakura sighed. "I can't trust your character sometimes because you say things you don't mean."
He made a slight grunting sound, showing displeasure with her response.
When he still did not say anything, she cleared her throat. "So... since you've never really had any friends, you haven't hung out with anyone before?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I go out to get drinks from time to time, but...it's just to get drinks," he said.
"Let's go out," Sakura said, coming up with an idea.
"W-what?" he stammered.
"Let's go out, so I can show you how much fun it is to go out with a friend," she said, smiling at him reassuringly.
"Like a date?" he asked.
"I-I didn't mean it like that, but...since you did say you'd take me out on a date, I guess it could be considered us hanging out too. I just..."
"Well, it's settled then."
"W-what?"
"I'll take you on your first date and you'll show me how fun it is to hang out with a friend," he said in a finalizing tone.
Sakura smiled and nodded. "That's fair."
"It's a date, then."
"Up, Sakura," Sakura heard a voice say distantly.
"Yeah, up, Sakura! Or we'll be late!"
Sakura felt a little body jump on her bed, waking her from her slumber. Moaning and letting out a sigh, she pulled the blankets closer to her body, hoping she could sink back into that peaceful place.
"Sakura."
At hearing that voice again, Sakura released her hold on the blanket, peeking her head from under the covers at the man. "Do we really have to get up so early?" she asked grouchily.
Syaoran sighed, shaking his head. "Unfortunately. We have to get back early today. I don't want to keep Xing out all day. You still have school tomorrow and I still have work. Get up."
She sighed, knowing she could not convince him to let her sleep a little longer. "What's the time?" She asked, attempting to try one more time.
Syaoran raised a brow. "Get up or you'll be left here alone on this resort."
Sakura groaned, burying her face in the pillow.
Xing laughed, climbing off the bed when Syaoran told him to come out of the room with him.
Once she heard the door close, Sakura sat up from her lying position and looked around the room. She sighed, not wanting to leave this place. It had been a lot of fun being here with the two men, away from everything else in the world.
Syaoran had started treating her better after she agreed to go on the date with him yesterday. Xing had woken up after an hour of them sitting on the balcony talking, and he had been neutral since. He was no longer acting distant and uncomfortable with her around them. He was not trying to protect Xing from her or anything.
It felt...
"No, no, no! You're getting in way over your head, Sakura!" Sakura exclaimed when feeling her heart beat faster in her chest.
She promised herself that she would not fall any deeper than she currently was.
A knock came on the door, making her jump.
Before she could even answer it, the person opened the door, revealing Syaoran. She stared at him like a deer caught in the head lights.
His eyes dropped down to her body, making her feel conscious of her appearance. The man did not understand privacy in the least bit. Did he not say that he had females as siblings? Surely, he could understand the importance of it.
"I-I..."
She looked at him stuttering before he turned away. "I was just..." He groaned. "Just get ready so we can go." He stormed out of the room before she could even respond and shut the door.
She wondered what had gotten into the man lately. He sure had been doing a lot blushing these days.
She giggled, shaking her head before heading to the shower. She took a quick shower and slipped on some shorts and a t-shirt. She pushed her short hair back into a ponytail, leaving her bangs out to frame her face.
She looked at her appearance in the mirror, wondering if Syaoran would think she looked plain. If she needed to do something different? Change her shirt? Her shorts? If they were too short? They reached a little past her mid-thigh, so they couldn't be too short, right?
Sakura stopped, wondering why she even cared what Syaoran would think of her. She walked away from the mirror and grabbed her bag from the corner of the room before heading to the living room where they were waiting for her.
"Finally, you made it after 10 years, slowpoke," Xing exaggerated.
"You know I'm not a morning person," Sakura said, pinching his cheeks teasingly.
Xing groaned, swatting her hand away. "Noo—"
"You look different."
Sakura paused at that voice. "I, uh, have all my hair pushed back," she said uncertainly, not looking in his direction. She had to bite her tongue from asking if she looked weird. Instead, she unconsciously touched her hair.
"It looks good," she heard him say quietly.
Her cheeks warmed before she stooped down in front of Xing, turning her attention to him after murmuring a soft 'thank you.' "How'd you sleep last night?" she asked, smiling at the little boy.
"Well, it was a little weird..." he said, looking down at his shoes.
"And why's that?" she asked, ruffling his hair to make him look at her.
"Because I didn't get to sleep with you!" he whined, swatting her hands away, but walking between her legs so he could wrap his arms around her neck tightly.
Sakura giggled, shaking her head as she stood, picking him up with her. He automatically wrapped his legs around her waist as she turned to Syaoran, who just seemed to watch the scene.
"Well, you could've just asked me, you know. Besides, I thought we only made that deal when daddy isn't home."
"Well..."
"You know it's not a good idea to let that become a habit, right?" Syaoran said beside her.
Sakura looked at him, seeing a brow raised in interest. She grinned. "I know. He's still a kid, though."
"Hey, I'm not a kid anymore. I'm a big boy!" Xing exclaimed, making Sakura giggle.
"Big boys don't sleep with their nannies," Syaoran said.
Xing frowned, looking at Sakura sadly now. "But...but...so..."
She kissed his nose lightly. "Big boys sleep with others to keep them protected. Daddy's just being mean right now," she said, looking at Syaoran with a grin on her face.
Syaoran just stared at her with a raised brow as she placed Xing down on his feet.
Xing giggled at her statement, nodding his head. "Daddy's always being a meanie," he said confidently.
"I know! Sometimes I wonder if there's a single inch of niceness in those bones of his," Sakura said teasingly.
When Xing laughed along with her, Sakura could feel Syaoran's intense gaze on her.
"Let's just go," he said, grabbing all their small bags and trudging out of the small house.
Sakura laughed, grabbing his wallet and keys he seemed to forget on the counter.
"Daddy's a very cranky old man, isn't he?" Xing asked as they followed behind Syaoran's retreating form.
"Well, I think he just has a hard time expressing what he feels."
"What does that even mean?"
Sakura giggled. "I don't know myself sometimes."
Once they reached the car, Sakura held up his wallet and keys as he seemed to be lost in thought.
When his eyes caught hers, his face turned a little red and he trudged over to her and snatched his wallet and keys from her.
He murmured a soft 'thank you' before opening the door for her and Xing to climb in the car.
The ride home was quite uneventful. Xing gave the two something to talk about that they had in common; himself.
When Syaoran pulled up into the driveway of the house, Xing suggested them swimming.
"We went swimming yesterday," Sakura said, unbuckling his seatbelt.
"But I want to swim today too..." Xing said sadly.
Syaoran turned around, looking at Xing who was sitting in the car seat. "No swimming, Xing. Sakura has homework to get done and I need to prepare for the week," Syaoran said gently.
Xing frowned, dropping his head. "Maybe, I could...go swimming by myself..." he said quietly.
"You know that's not an option. We can do something else later when everything's finished," Syaoran said, opening his door and stepping out to end the conversation.
Sakura looked at Xing, seeing the threatening tears in his eyes. "Daddy means well, Xing," she said quietly before Syaoran opened his door and helped Xing out the door.
Sakura stepped out the car and followed them inside the house quietly as Xing kept silent.
Syaoran turned something on the TV and told Xing to watch something until he finished preparing for the week.
"Uh..." Sakura stopped Syaoran before he could walk out of the living room.
Syaoran looked at her with a questioning look on his face.
"Uhh...is it okay for me to...sit with him for a bit?" she asked uncertainly, changing her mind about trying to make him stay a bit longer. She knew he was a busy man, so it would be unfair to push him spending time with them. Besides, she did not quite understand how things worked in his world.
He looked at her oddly, making her feel weird for asking. "Yeah? You don't have to ask for my permission, Sakura," he said.
"Okay."
"I'll be in my office," he said before disappearing down the hall.
As soon as she heard the door close to his office, Sakura walked over to Xing, who was sitting on the couch looking at his hands sadly. Sakura sat down beside him. "What's wrong, honey?" she asked softly, wrapping her arm around him.
He sighed, relaxing in her arms. "It's just...I didn't want yesterday to ever end with daddy being with us. Swimming is what normally makes him spend time with me since that's what we always do, but now..."
Sakura smiled sadly, suddenly understanding what he was getting at. "Daddy just has a lot of work to do. He'll spend time with you regardless if you guys are swimming or not. He wasn't being mean."
"I know, it's just..." He sighed, shaking his head with a sad smile on his face. "Can we do something together instead?"
Sakura smiled. "Of course. What do you have in mind?" Her homework could wait for a little bit. Besides, it was math, something she was not looking forward to doing.
"Well... I haven't played the piano in a while, so I was thinking maybe I could show you how awesome I am at it," he said, grinning at her.
Giggling, Sakura nodded. "Do you guys even have a piano?"
"Of course, but daddy keeps the door locked to the piano room," he said quietly.
Sakura quirked a brow, wondering if it were the same room she could not get into. In fact, there were two rooms that he had locked that she had never been in before.
"Well...I guess that would mean that we have to ask him, huh?"
"Well...you can ask him," he said quietly.
Sakura raised a brow again, wondering if there was something more to the room. Why else would he have it locked? If it was locked, that meant he had something to hide. She just wanted to know what that something was.
"I can, unless...you know where the key is," she said, deciding not to ask Syaoran after all. She wanted to know what it was he's hiding too. Xing seemed sketchy about it, so she could not help but feel the same.
"Daddy leaves all the keys in his office drawer," he said.
Sakura smiled, standing from the couch. "Wait here and watch tv while I get the key," she instructed.
Xing grinned, nodding his head before she headed down the hall to his office. Sakura was not sure how she would get it, but she could hope that something came up on the spot.
She knocked on the door softly, feeling her heart hammer against her chest. Calm down, Sakura!
"Come in," she heard him faintly say.
She opened the door slowly, walking inside.
Syaoran turned around, looking at her with a raised brow.
"U-umm...how's work going?" she asked casually.
He gave her a deadpanned look, telling her to get to the point.
She walked further in the room slowly towards him. "I was just wondering if…" She stopped, not sure what she could say.
Oh!
"I was wondering if you wanted to talk about what we would do on our date?"
"What?"
She frowned. "You've forgotten already?" she asked, feeling a slight sting at that knowledge. She felt a little silly for being excited about it now.
"No, I just wasn't aware that you would want to discuss that."
"Of course, I would. I'm kind of anxious about it..." she said shyly, almost feeling her heart explode in her chest.
He looked at the chair beside his drawer, motioning her to sit down. "Let's make this quick then," he said before opening the desk drawer to take out a notepad.
Sakura looked in the drawer, seeing a set of keys at the front part of the files before he closed it quickly and locked it.
"You sure keep a lot of things locked in this house," she said teasingly before sitting down in the chair.
Syaoran froze when he turned to her with a hard look in his eyes. "What are you trying to get at?" he asked skeptically.
The man was definitely hiding something.
Sakura swallowed, shaking her head with a tight smile on her face. "Nothing, I just...noticed."
He sat the notepad down on the desk and started writing things down to the already filled paper.
Curiosity getting the best of her, Sakura leaned over slightly to see what he was writing.
He pointed to the book. "These are the times when I'm free, but it all also depends on Ms. Hana's schedule," he said.
"Hana?"
"Yes, she will have to watch Xing, unless you thought we would take him along with us," he said.
Swallowing the huge lump in her throat, Sakura shook her head. "O-of course not. I just..." What had she been thinking? Of course, Xing would not come along with them!
Sakura looked at the paper again, noticing the time and date. "That's three months from now," she stated.
"That's when I'm free."
Sakura frowned, seeing that they would not even have much time on the date either. "This is insane," she said without thinking.
"What?"
"You're planning for our date to be three months from now?" she asked.
"That's the only time I have within the next three months," he said, giving her a disapproving look of her questioning.
"Planning your life three months in advance is a bit much, don't you think?" she asked.
"Not for me—"
"I mean, by the time three months are up, I could have already gone on my first date with someone else," she said.
It was true. She may have said no to a lot of boys in her years of school, but she had made a promise with herself to loosen up a little and have fun her last year of school.
"What? You're already liking someone else?" he asked, sounding offended.
"U-uhh...no?" she answered uncertainly. "I just thought that..."
"I said that I would take you out on your first date, didn't I?"
"Yeah, but—"
"So, why are you saying that someone else will?"
"Because—"
"I'll see what I can do and change around on my schedule this week with my assistant," he said quickly.
Sakura raised a brow, wondering if she had permission to speak now.
"Is that okay with you?" he asked.
Her heart nearly skipped a beat at the thought of him changing his schedule around for her. "If you're sure."
"Of course. Just...don't say stuff like that."
"Like what?"
"That you'll go out with someone else," he said, turning away from her.
"I..." Sakura was at a loss for words with that. Was he trying to tell her that she was not allowed to date other people? She frowned. "Is it a problem if I decided to go on a date with someone else?" she asked in a challenging tone.
He turned back to her with wide eyes. "Why would you go out with someone else when you're going out with me?"
"B-because you're not my boyfriend?" Sakura could not even understand why they were having this conversation.
When Syaoran did not say anything, she knew she had said the wrong thing.
"We'll go to dinner on Thursday evening," he said. He turned back to his laptop, scrolling through his emails.
When Sakura did not say anything, he turned to her again with a questioning look on his face. "Is there anything else you need?"
"U-Uh...I was wondering..." She trailed off, unsure of how she could get the keys now.
"You're on my time," he said, sounding impatient now.
"The piano," she blurted on mistake.
"What?"
"Xing wanted to play the piano, but..."
"The door's locked."
"Yeah. Is there a reason it's locked?" she asked.
"Because it's not a playroom."
"So, we can't..."
He looked at her with a blank expression on his face, making her feel like he was done with this conversation too.
He did not seem interested in talking to her anymore. Was it really so bad that she mentioned going on a date with another guy? Sakura could not understand his change of mood because of it. It was him who said that nothing would happen between them; that he basically did not want to be involved with her like that, but now he was acting upset that she wanted to with another?
"Okay. Never mind then," she said, standing from the chair abruptly.
Without it even being her intentions, she noticed herself towering over him.
His breath caught in his throat before he looked up at her with his cheeks scarlet red.
Sakura did not know what it was but seeing that look on his face sparked something in her that had never been sparked before. She felt…almost powerful. Unbeknownst to her motives, Sakura moved between his parted legs.
He almost scrambled back, but he was in the chair which stopped him from getting far. "W-What are you doing?" he stuttered.
"Are you sure we can't go in the piano room? Xing really wants to play..." She trailed off, moving closer to him until her legs bumped the front of the chair, trapping her from touching him between his legs directly. But she wanted to. She wanted to see how he would react, what control would slip if she did. She could feel the heat of his body from how close they were.
His Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed nervously with his mouth slightly parted.
Sakura was tempted to drop her hands down into his hair and straddle him as their lips met in a searing kiss but controlled herself.
"I'd also like to hear him play too..." she said innocently.
"I-I..." His hands remained glued to himself, not moving an inch.
Sakura wondered what happened to all that control he maintained. Especially when he would normally be the one to initiate physical contact with her. What was so different now that had him hesitating? Was it because she initiated things?
"So..." Wanting to test the waters, Sakura dropped her hands down to his chest and rest a knee between his parted legs on the chair, barely touching his crouch. Her eyes fell down where her knee rest, seeing an obvious bulge in his pants that let her know how he felt about all of this.
"O-okay," he said quickly, reaching around him to get the key.
With all her control, Sakura smiled, stepping back from him. She wanted to do so much more but felt too scared to explore this newfound desire she had for the man. "I also have a favor to ask you," she said, feeling glad that he had given in before making her do anything else. She was not sure how far she would let things go and Xing was just down the hall from them.
He unlocked the drawer and opened it, grabbing out the set of keys. "What is it?"
"There's this song my brother used to play. My mom wrote it and taught him how to play it when he was younger. I was wondering if you could...possibly play it for me? Touya used to play it all the time for me before we moved from the house in Tomoeda. I haven't heard it since and..."
"Do you have the music sheet?" he asked, standing from his chair, towering over her now.
"Yes. It's in..." Sakura stopped, seeing him move towards her, trapping her between the desk and his body tightly.
"Don't try anything like that again," he said darkly before leaning down to close the gap between their lips, but the door opened before he could, unexpectedly.
"Daddy, what are you doing to Sakura?"
A/N: Thank you guys so much for the support. I wish I responded to the reviews, but I did read them and really appreciate the support! I am still so sorry, though. I meant to get this chapter out earlier, but the semester got super hectic after midterms. Luckily, I passed all my classes and won't be starting my next ones until two more weeks.
Also, I hope the holidays have been treating you all well. And, I wish I got this out before, but Merry Late Christmas :P! And in case I don't get another update out before the end of this year(I'm definitely planning to though), Happy New Year! I'm going to get a chapter out for Doctor Satyromaniac tonight as well after I edit, so I'll be ending the note here. Don't forget to leave a review! :)
Ja ne!
