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The Li Clan

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"Adopted?" Sakura echoed. "That's—that's impossible!"

Syaoran looked at Sakura in disbelief and happiness and longing. "Impossible?" He said. "It's perfect!"

Sakura stared at him with her jaw-dropped.

Syaoran continued, forgetting all about the present problem. "We can now show the world how much we love each other! Not as brother and sister but as a couple!" He blabbered. "Picture us, Sakura. Married without any guilt!"

Tasuki stared at them with his brows raised up, up and up in shock. "What?" He breathed incredulously. "You both love each other?" He said amusedly.

Sakura turned her head quickly towards Tasuki's direction and stammered. "Uh, y-yes… w-what?" She said confusedly, tears still falling from her eyes to her cheeks.

"Y-you're father told me about your strange antics once but didn't take any heed of it… I thought it was just…" Tasuki gasped. "You love each other!"

Syaoran chuckled weakly. "Yes, yes, Tasuki-kun. No need to make a fuss about it."

"Wait," Sakura stuttered. "Father knew?"

Tasuki sheepishly smiled at them and bobbed his head up and down. "Yep. Told me all about how he heard odd groans and moans coming from your room once," he gave Sakura a pointed look. She blushed. "And how he saw both of you getting it on in the kitchen when he decided one night to check on you both." He tsk-ed. "Such naughty children."

Syaoran coughed. "Why didn't father tell us?"

"He thought it was perfectly fine," Tasuki shrugged. "Considering that both of you weren't real siblings and that you were mature enough not to think on getting any further than a few kisses and touches."

Both teens blushed madly. Sakura cupped her cheeks and shook her head. "How embarrassing," she muttered.

"By the way, Tasuki-kun," Syaoran suddenly turned serious. "May I ask who is the one who got… adopted?"

Sakura waited for the answer.

"You, Syaoran…" Tasuki paused. "… got adopted."

Syaoran paled. Sakura felt tears welling up again in her eyes. "Who—who's my real parents then?" Syaoran asked dreadfully.

"I don't know." Tasuki said truthfully. "But… I'll give you a tip."

"Yes?" Syaoran tapped his fingers on the armrest. "What is it?"

"You came from the Li Clan."

&

A fortnight had already came and went and their father's burial was quite… depressing. Even though Fujitaka wasn't Syaoran's real father, he still treated him and known him as one.

Dawn crept silently through the night and gave way to a new beginning. The sky's nocturnal ambiance soothed calmly the living, being quickly replaced by the wakening of the light. It simmered down the hearth of the ground, glistening of liveliness.

Yet, as all of these happened outside, inside, Syaoran felt empty. He felt as if the world turned its back on him. He felt as if nobody wanted him—nobody loved him. He felt—

"Syaoran…" Sakura whispered as she hugged him from his back.

—he felt happy.

Now, that the truth was out, they can tell the world freely how much they wanted each other, needed each other, loved each other. Without any regrets, discrimination nor guilt of whom they would hurt.

But thoughts kept plaguing his head. They won't leave him alone. And suddenly he found himself wondering why his clan abandoned him. He sighed. If only life was as easy as one, two, three.

"We need to go to school, Syaoran." Sakura murmured from his backside. "We've been gone for so long."

Syaoran nodded his head and slung his bag across his shoulder with his right hand and taking Sakura's hand in the other. "Let's go."

Hand in hand, they went to school in silence. People stared, giggled, and pointed at them, not in teasing but in adoration. Sakura blushed with each compliment.

"Oh, they look so kawaii together!" Someone squeaked from the back.

And then a giggle. "No, they're perfect!"

Syaoran smirked and leaned down to Sakura's level and whispered, "Heard that, Sakura?" He pecked her on the cheek making the people at their back squeal in delight.

Sakura flushed and felt her cheeks burn in embarrassment. "Uhn."

Speechless.

Sakura was speechless.

Syaoran squeezed her hand in his tightly, pulled and led her towards a deserted corner of a street. He backed her up against the hard wall and nibbled on her bottom lip unexpectedly.

Sakura moaned and blinked.

"Syao—" She got cut off.

"—Shh." He breathed. "I've missed you."

His hand dipped below her neck, tracing buttons of her flimsy uniform and cupped her one of her breasts, rubbing the tip against the thin material. Sakura gasped and panted for breath.

"Uh, uh… Syao—" She closed her eyes and her hands went to Syaoran's hair, running it through his unruly locks. "—someone will see!"

Syaoran sighed, warming her lips and rested his forehead on hers but not stopping his rhythmic rubbing. "Now that I can do it freely, you still don't want me. Why, Sakura?" He once again nibbled on her lower lip, licking it.

"N-no," she panted.

"No?" Syaoran asked quizzically. "No what?"

"We… we just need to school, that's all." She said, pushing him off of her. "You can do whatever you want… later."

Syaoran's face brightened abruptly, as if awaiting that statement and chirped earnestly. "Anything I want?"

"Anything you want," she grumbled, gnawing on her bottom lip, unsure.

He wrapped his long fingers around her arm and led her towards the path to their school. Sakura was still biting her lip and Syaoran—he was busy talking to himself about gibberish. She rolled her eyes at him, laughing inwardly.

"Hey Sakura," started Syaoran. "Should we tell the school that we're not true… siblings?"

Sakura stared.

Um!

"Well, if we're going to tell them…" she trailed off. "I don't know."

He cocked an eyebrow.

"Okay, what do you want?" Sakura questioned.

Syaoran tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. An unfamiliar warmth started to pool in the pits of her stomach. "You." He said automatically.

Oh!

Sakura bristled. "I mean, would you want to tell them?"

"Yes."

Startled, Sakura was too curious not to ask. "Why would you want to?"

"Because of you," he said, voice oddly gruff. "I want them to know so we can be a couple freely."

Sakura's heart skipped a beat or two.

She squirmed, blustering. "But—but what if I don't want to?"

They reached the front of schoolyard, students bristling around the campus, some girls giggled and winked at Syaoran flirtatiously as they passed them. Sakura felt a foreboding stab in her chest. Anger, frustration, and… jealousy?

Er.

"Oh?" Syaoran stopped, arching an eyebrow skeptically.

Sakura flushed. "Yes."

He wrapped his fingers tightly around her wrist and pulled. She fell against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her. He ran his hand through her hair, ignoring the jealous protests and mortified screeches behind them. He tipped her head upwards and leaned forward, planting a chaste kiss on her lips.

Sakura melted.

He took a step back, scanned through the shocked, terrified faces of his schoolmates and smirked. "Now, you need to tell them."

He cackled all way inside the school, leaving Sakura in the middle of an aghast crowd that kept on asking her about utterly insane poppy-cocks. "Why me?" She whined.

"Sakura, Sakura," one random kid screeched. "Why such disgusting display in front of us? I mean, you're siblings for god's sakes!"

A wave of agreement passed the crowds lips.

Sakura groaned. "For Merlin's sakes, we're not siblings!" She screamed. "So will you all… SHUT UP!"

The crowd went silent.

Sakura inhaled a big intake of breath. "We're not siblings. We're not even related."

"So what you're saying is," another piped in. "You've been lying to all of us all along?"

The crowd once again became ballistic. Sakura rubbed her forehead in frustration. "Will you please… shut the fuck up!"

The restless crowd's chatters died down.

"My father died three weeks ago," Sakura started. Solemn and sorrowful whimpers reached her ears and some even had the decency to say, "sorry". "And we found out that Syaoran and I weren't real siblings. That's all you need to know."

The crowd went wild.

"What?"

"Omigosh! How the hell did that happen?"

"Can we just go now? This is too freaky for me."

Sakura rolled her eyes at them and shook her head. "Hopeless." She strutted inside the school, ignoring the stares she was getting. She trotted down the hallway in search of Syaoran and was ready to pummel him and—

"Hey," a soft voice came from her side and fingers grazed her hips, bringing her close. "You came back alive." A chuckle followed thereafter.

Sakura turned around and opened her mouth. Syaoran's lips crushed hers and he grasped her hair, pulling her head down to gain more access. His tongue licked her lips, seeking entrance but Sakura wouldn't give it to him. He groaned.

"Kill joy," he teased. "No matter, I shall make you do whatever I desire later on."

Sakura paled. Uh-oh!

Consequently, the knell rang.

Saved by the bell.

"Finally," she murmured under her breath, not noticing Syaoran's hunger-filled stare. She turned her head and saw students rustling by, giving them strange stares and well, a few thumbs up from the other open-minded students. She tilted her head and saw—

Syaoran looking smug, he grinned.

"Hey Eriol." He acknowledged. Sakura raised a brow.

"Li Xiao Lang," Eriol said amusedly. Both Sakura and Syaoran whipped their heads towards Eriol's direction with shocked faces. "Oh, slip of the tongue."

Sakura's eyes grew big. "Eriol-kun, you know?"

"You bastard!" Syaoran sneered, stomping towards Eriol's place and taking him by the collar. "Why didn't you bloody tell me from the very beginning? You fucking git!" He was ready to punch him but Sakura's screech held him still.

"Syaoran! Don't!"

Syaoran's arm loosened up and fell limp on his side. "He deserved to beaten up into a bloody pulp, Sakura."

Eriol swatted away Syaoran's hands on his collar and straightened himself up. "Your mother personally told me not to tell you… so I had to pretend."

Syaoran puffed.

"Of course, if I didn't do their wishes, I will be severely punished. The Li clan is one of the most powerful clans in China, after all."

"So that's why you kept on calling him 'Xiao Lang', Eriol-kun." Sakura said, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. "I'm now sensing the pattern."

Syaoran chuckled and ruffled Sakura's hair. She whined.

Eriol smiled knowingly. "But aren't you satisfied now, Xiao Lang?"

Syaoran looked at him, confused and angry. "Satisfied? Satisfied that the knowledge of my clan abandoned me? Oh, yes, yes. Of course." He drawled, voice dripping with sarcasm. "How dare you question me that!"

"Your clan was in impending danger when they left you in the care of the Kinomoto's." Eriol began. "Your mother, Yelan Li, wanted to protect you."

"By leaving me?" Syaoran spat.

"No," Eriol shook his head. "They didn't have any choice."

"They had a choice." Syaoran yelled. "And I already made mine."

"Xiao Lang—" Eriol got cut-off.

"—Why are you kids still outside?" Terada-sensei, one of their teachers, scolded. "I'll deduct grades from you for your tardiness if you kids don't go inside your classrooms now!"

Sakura blushed and hastily answered, "Hai, sensei."

Syaoran glared at Eriol's calm form. Eriol tranquilly stared back.

"You boys are so immature." Sakura giggled. "Let's just go to class, Syao-kun, Eriol-kun."

Discreetly, together they went to class.

Unluckily, gossip ran around the school like wildfire and as they opened the classroom door, students' vociferous yelling could be heard.

"The newest couple is here!"

Hoots of appreciation and admiration echoed through the classroom. Sakura blushed whilst Syaoran remained blank.

"Sakura!" Tomoyo shouted. Sakura smiled at her sheepishly and ran towards her, almost tripping over her own feet but was luckily saved by Syaoran who wrapped his arms around her waist.

She blushed. "Thanks, Syao."

Syaoran kissed the back of her neck in response and didn't say a word, letting go of her slowly. Sakura confusedly went to Tomoyo's seat and sat on the opposite of her place.

"Hello Tomoyo-chan," Sakura greeted happily.

"How are you?" Tomoyo asked concernedly. "Sorry I didn't find the time to go to uncle Fujitaka's funeral."

"Iie, it's okay, Tomoyo." Sakura smiled sadly. "I'm fine."

"Good, good," Tomoyo smiled back weakly. "Umm…"

"Hn," Sakura nodded. Silence.

"So…" Tomoyo said uneasily. "You and Syaoran aren't real siblings then?"

"Uh-huh," Sakura blushed.

Another silence followed.

Subsequently, the door suddenly opened and several people dressed in ancient Chinese costumes came inside, startling Terada-sensei.

"Excuse me," Terada-sensei said. "Who are you people? What do you want?"

A girl that seemed to be in the same age as Sakura stepped forward and skimmed the room. "Where's Li Xiao Lang?" Her red eyes glistened dangerously and her black hair flowed down her back gracefully.

Sakura gulped and looked at Syaoran's stoic expression.

"I am." He stood up, leaving the others in a terrified stupor. "What do you want?"

The girl smirked at him. "Aunt Yelan called for you."

Syaoran raised a brow and followed the Chinese people out the classroom but not before giving Sakura one last glance. He smiled at her and was gone.

"Syaoran…"

The classroom livened up with shocked, amused gossip.

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Next Chapter's Title: Memory Lane