Disclaimer: I do not own CCS nor do I own the characters in the manga/ anime. The characters and events in this story are fictitious. Any similarities to real persons are coincidental and unintentional.
A/N: I hope you like it. I spent a lot of time writing this...
A Second Attempt at Love
-3-
Today was the day—the day of the Kunishiro's ball, to be precise. It would be held at 8 o'clock in the evening, a good six hours from now, but there was still plenty to take care of before the event began. Sakura didn't feel much like going after the surprise meeting with Ken Kunishiro yesterday, but it was expected of her. She sighed. Everything was always "expected" of her simply because she was born to an upper-class family.
Sakura didn't choose to be born into such a class, but as long as her family was happy, she promised that she would be, too. It had been her duty to take over as the dominant female in this family after her mother passed away from illness many years ago. She was only a mere child then, but small and innocent as she was; Sakura still had to learn about responsibility, courtesy and everything else society expected the daughter of a respected man to know. And, sometimes, society just goes a tad bit over the top, don't you think?
Still, as reluctant and confused as she was at the time, Sakura complied with the new set of rules of which she thought were silly and unnecessary. Lessons were given daily on everything from mathematics to making zabaglione, an Italian dessert. But in the case of many peculiar lessons, she didn't understand the reason for learning them at all, and deemed them pointless. However, she did enjoy learning academics, for the most part, and even managed to pass mathematics—her worst subject, yet.
Life was tough—and still is—without a mother for the girl, but when she looked on the bright side, she felt overwhelmingly happy and lucky to have such a loving and caring father and brother. They didn't substitute the presence of her mother, but these two men were her family. Having no sisters, Tomoyo also played a huge part in Sakura's life. They were close from the start and were always seen together; one was never without the other—or far away.
So, Sakura never did feel lonely because, in her heart, these people were all the family she needed…
"Sakura, sit up straight, please," the girl's best friend spoke up softly, welcoming her back to reality.
Tomoyo had come over just an hour ago to help Sakura with her hair and make-up. It took Tomoyo three hours to do Sakura's hair, as she was trying to keep down the all baby hairs that somehow managed to pop back up even with gel and hair spray. Chemicals and gels were kept to a minimum, though, as the look of the hairstyle was meant to be natural, not stiff and dry.
With her skillful and deft fingers, Tomoyo turned Sakura's waist-long locks into a mass of curls. It was a simple hairstyle now, but before long, Tomoyo turned the curls into a smooth chignon. A chignon, of course, could be done without curling hair, but Tomoyo wanted Sakura's hair to make a statement. She, then, pinned into place several custom-made hair ornaments. A group of pink and white gemstones were used for the flowers while peridot and emerald made up the leaves.
It was enough to catch people's attention, but not as bold as to have crowds of people surround her all evening. Still, something was missing. Looking carefully at Sakura from another angle, Tomoyo realized that she made Sakura look too mature. So, she decided to soften up the girl's features by setting some curls loose, allowing them to frame her face and add to her beautiful visage.
Seeing that the task of styling Sakura's hair was done, Tomoyo immediately switched to make-up. Not wanting to cover up the emerald-eyed girl's own beauty or challenge it with heavy make-up, she settled on a light foundation, eye shadow, mascara, a soft, pink blush and clear lip gloss.
When Tomoyo was finished with Sakura's hair and make-up, it was already 5 o'clock, so that only left three more hours until the ball.
Tomoyo happily presented Sakura with a hand mirror, both nervous and excited to see the girl's reaction to her handiwork. The emerald-eyed girl didn't disappoint her—in fact, she was pleasantly surprised with the results.
"Arigatou, Tomoyo-chan, it looks really great!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening in amazement as she examined her make-up. Compared to Sakura, Tomoyo was an expert when it came to creative hairstyling and designing.
With a twinkle in her eyes and a smile gracing her lips, Tomoyo quickly rushed to the table and dug into her bag. Before Sakura could refuse or complain, she took out her camera and snapped a picture then quickly stuffed the device back into its place. Sakura rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, but couldn't hide her pleasure. As the saying goes, 'old habits die hard'—and Tomoyo's was no exception.
Soon, they began work on Tomoyo—'they' referred to Sakura, Chidori and Tomoyo. Chidori and Sakura worked on Tomoyo's lengthy hair while the task of applying make-up belonged to the amethyst-eyed girl. The maid and her mistress took turns curling her hair, then swept back Tomoyo's forelocks and fastened them with a beautiful jeweled barrette. Tomoyo didn't bother putting on too much make-up. She applied some lip gloss onto her lips, a little blush and lavender eye shadow to bring out her eyes and to match with her plum-colored dress.
Sakura stepped back to admire her friend's beautiful visage. "You look lovely, Tomoyo-chan…"
The amethyst-eyed girl turned her head back to smile at Sakura. She reached for Sakura's hands and looking up at her, said, "I wouldn't look half as nice without your help, Sakura-chan—and Chidori-san," she added quickly when she heard a small cough.
Chidori grinned. "It was our pleasure, Tomoyo-san!"
The other two girls exchanged glances and burst into laughter, followed by Chidori. Then, they were suddenly interrupted by the loud chiming of the grandfather clock downstairs.
Sakura looked at the clock and groaned. It was already a quarter past seven. She didn't realize how quickly the time had passed until now and knew that they couldn't spare anymore minutes for a casual conversation.
So, as quickly as humanly possible, Sakura got into her evening gown and donned her accessories while Tomoyo and Chidori took their time putting away the make-up products.
At last they managed to finish the preparations for the ball—this time, no one was injured or suffering from horribly applied make-up. (What a nightmare that was…)
Then, Sakura and Tomoyo descended the stairs to wait patiently in the living room for their escorts and rides, which arrived ten minutes later.
Two men entered the room—one being Sakura's older brother and the other, her father—along with a middle-aged woman. Each of the adults were laughing, but calmed down when they spotted the two young ladies sitting quietly in armchairs. Tomoyo rose to greet the three new arrivals and hugged the woman.
"Okaa-san!" she cried, pleasantly surprised. "What are—I mean, I thought you were away on a business trip and weren't coming back until tomorrow!"
The middle-aged woman let go of her daughter, smiling fondly. "A mother can't come back a day early to see her dearly-missed daughter whom she hasn't seen for more than a month?"
Then she caught Sakura, who was done with her greetings, smiling at the scene in front of her. Sonomi, Tomoyo's mother, signaled for Sakura to come. The two of them hugged for a few minutes, already sniffling and tearing up.
It had been such a long time since Sakura had been embraced in this way. Her aunt's hug was the closest she had to a mother's. Her mother's… How she missed her mother's warm and loving embrace…
"Ahem!"
The two broke off their hug. Sakura looked up at her aunt and they began to laugh. As strange as it sounds, it was these slightly awkward moments that made her feel comfortable.
Sakura turned to her brother, wiping the corners of her eyes. "Are we ready to go?" she asked, smiling genuinely at her family members.
Touya mumbled something under his breath and nodded, moving towards the door. The rest followed in his lead without much hesitation and got into the open doors of the limousine waiting outside. For much of the ride, everyone was involved in some kind of conversation—either discussing business or just simple, random topics. Sakura was having so fun talking about old times that she nearly forgot where they were going. When she finally remembered, she began to feel a sense of dread creeping into the warm atmosphere around her.
---
When they arrived at the Iwazumi Grand Hall, at last, Sakura was already wishing she had never come in the first place. From the start, she had never felt complete comfort around Ken Kunishiro. There was just something... unnerving… about that guy. Whether it was his awful smirk or the glint in his eyes, or whatever, Sakura didn't care—she just wanted him to stay far away from her.
The auburn-haired woman stopped in front of the entrance to take a deep breath. It calmed her down considerably, but there the nagging feeling she felt just wouldn't go away. Pasting on a smile, she entered the open door arm-in-arm with her father as the others followed not far behind. The doorman greeted them, recognizing them as the prominent Kinomoto family, and then, he directed them to the host and hostess of the ball.
They proceeded to greet the Kunishiro's, who were at the other end of the ballroom mingling with some guests. Sakura noticed that Ken was nowhere to be seen and felt both relief and further dread. She felt relief because she wouldn't need face him—yet; and dread because he could already be planning something.
The elder Kunishiro and his wife instantly spotted the Kinomoto's and Daidouji's as they came towards them. The couple excused themselves from their two guests and met up with Sakura's family.
"Oh, hello, hello, Kinomoto-san," Korin Kunishiro chirped, giving Fujitaka a toothy smile. She quickly embraced him and smiled blindly at everyone else. "It's so good to see you again!"
Sonomi turned her head so no one could see the disgusted look she wore, but she scoffed loudly enough for Sakura and Tomoyo to hear. "That Korin has always been interested in Fujitaka since high school… Unfortunately for her, he fell in love with Nadeshiko. But now, she's shamelessly and publicly showing her affections for him? What little shame she has…" Tomoyo's mother scoffed again and folded her arms against her chest.
Sakura thought she saw Korin's husband, Kita Kunishiro, throw his wife a stony glare for a moment, but he seemed to recover quickly when he shook her father's hand. Unlike his wife, the elder Kunishiro actually took notice of everyone else around him, besides Fujitaka. Out of the whole Kunishiro family, the most likeable person was probably Kita because he was the opposite of his wife and son. He wasn't snobby, creepy, or condescending. The same couldn't be said for some people…
After everyone was formally introduced and greeted, the small group divided. Fujitaka stayed to discuss business with Kita, but Korin, uninterested, had disappeared to someplace else. Touya and Sonomi had split up to mingle with familiar and unfamiliar business owners in the west side of the room, leaving Tomoyo and Sakura on their own. They would all join up later for the evening meal.
Having gone to so many different formal events and balls, the two girls both knew well that the main purpose of these parties was to socialize and make new acquaintances. It wasn't the most entertaining thing in the world, but it was a great experience for those who wanted to meet new people or make new friends.
Tomoyo scanned the room for familiar faces and her eyes widened when she spotted a group of young girls their age. Ignoring the quiet protests of her best friend, she dragged Sakura towards the group.
As Sakura and Tomoyo neared the three young women, they could hear bits of their conversation and some light laughter as a familiar voice made a comment about her clueless boyfriend. The bespectacled woman of the group suddenly noticed the two newcomers and fixed her gaze on them. The two other women in the circle turned around to see what the bespectacled woman was looking at and gasped at what—or who, their eyes landed on.
In a flash, everyone was hugging and chattering in delight. At first, Sakura was confused because three strangers were taking turns embracing her. But, she began to join in the squealing and hugging after recognizing the women as her childhood friends from grade school. The bespectacled woman was Naoko Yanagisawa while the long, dark-haired woman was Chiharu Mihara and the woman with the fairly long, light brown hair was Rika Sasaki.
Then, realizing where they were and what they were doing, the five girls straightened up and stopped their screaming. They quietly shuffled to a corner of the Grand Hall and giggled, ignoring all the bewildered looks and stares random people were shooting at them.
Chiharu started first. "It's so great to see you both again! I was so surprised to see Naoko and Rika here, but now that we're all together again, it's like a dream!"
Naoko and Rika agreed. The five of them were the closest of friends, but after high school, they had somehow lost contact with each other. But, now, everyone was laughing and happy because they were reunited.
The small group continued their chat at a table, trying to catch up with each other's lives. It turned out that Naoko was following her dream to become a lawyer and was doing well in law school. Rika was still in school and on her way to earning a teaching credential. And as for Chiharu, she was still undecided on what career she wanted to focus on. But, she was still attending school and trying out various jobs now and then.
"Ok, enough about boring jobs and school," Chiharu said, grinning mischievously. "I'd like to hear about your love lives."
Then, as a quick afterthought, she added, "And don't say you don't know what I'm talking about!"
She looked from Tomoyo to Sakura, trying to pressure them into spilling the beans, but they each only gave her a raised brow.
"Oh, alright—I give up! I obviously can't force anything out of you two…" she mumbled in defeat, then a hopeful glint sparked in her eyes. "Ooh, who's that?"
Confused, the other girls turned their heads to look in the direction Chiharu was nodding at. Sakura mentally groaned. Who else but Ken Kunishiro? The Ken Kunishiro she had been lucky enough to avoid for only a little more than half an hour.
She didn't bother to slap on a fake smile as he came closer, looking awfully smug with that grin of his plastered proudly on his lips.
"Sakura, I'm glad to see that you came," he smiled, looking her up and down. "You look beautiful tonight."
Feeling sick already, Sakura suppressed it with a false smile of her own. "Why, thank you, Mr. Kunishiro. You look…well yourself."
Behind her, she heard Tomoyo stifle a small giggle, giving her strength to go on. Ken, on the other hand, looked self-conscious and grimaced for a moment before continuing.
"I'd like to see you alone for a moment, Sakura," he said, exhibiting his charming smile again. "Would you mind me stealing her for a minute, ladies?"
Sakura paled for a second, looking like she had seen a ghost. She shot Tomoyo an S.O.S. look.
Sensing her distress, Tomoyo reassured her with a smile. "Sure, but only if you bring her back in one perfect piece."
Then, in a voice only he could hear, she added. "We'll know where to find you if you do anything to her, Kunishiro."
The dark glint in Tomoyo's amethyst eyes obviously meant she was serious. For a moment, Ken's grin faltered. But, then he looked down at the petite figure and compared himself to her—who would be stronger? Small, fragile and feminine Tomoyo or tall, cocky and bulky Ken?
If only he weren't so stupid and ignorant, he'd realized that Tomoyo had a lot of…acquaintances.
But, with another sickening smile, Ken led Sakura away. He directed her outside and into the Iwazumi's large garden. She immediately shook her hand out of his, stepping back a few paces. The young girl crossed her arms and shot him a poisonous glare. Inside, she felt fear building up in her body, but the flame in her heart kept the cold away.
"What do you want?" she spat. Sakura was never like this with anyone else, but this guy always made her walls go up. She definitely didn't like him.
He chuckled, his head hung low, but his tone was dangerous. Suddenly, he lunged at her, attempting to wrap his arms about her. Sakura screamed, and leaned away. This was what she had feared—being alone with a psycho in a place where no one could hear or help her.
After a few failed attempts, he was left panting hard, but held a captive Sakura in his arms. She tried to pry his arms off of her, but they were too strong, so she did what came to her first—she bit him. That would leave her with a head start for the back entrance to the Grand Hall, right? Yes—and no. He managed to recover as fast as she had bit him and ran after her.
Half-way through the garden path, Sakura tripped over a loose rock and fell. Ken had already caught up with her and for the second time, he wrapped his arms around her securely, not letting her go. And this time, he made sure that her mouth was clamped shut.
"Now--" he rasped, still catching his breath. "Now, you can't get away, my little flower."
With his hand over her mouth, she could no longer scream or yell out. She was certain that no one would hear her anyway, even if she tried, because this part of the garden was so dense with all of its trees and shrubs. Sakura was on the brink of tears; she felt like giving up because she was so sure that there was no way out of this situation. Boy, was she surprised when someone lit the wick of Hope's candle again.
"Hey," a masculine voice called out.
Ken suddenly froze on the spot, horror flashed across his face as his eyes roamed the crowded trees in the surrounding. His prisoner, on the other hand, was feeling several emotions run through her. Relief flowed through Sakura's veins as she regained the hope of escaping again.
"Hey," the voice called out again, this time in a sterner tone. "I think you want to let her go now, if you know what's best for you."
A man walked out casually from behind a drizzling fountain, his silhouetted form a dark outline in the moonlight. Sakura squinted her eyes, trying to see his facial features clearly, but her tear-clouded eyes and the poor lighting didn't allow it. Shadowed by his bangs, his eyes were covered from view, but she could vaguely tell that he was a very good-looking man. The mysterious man was dressed well, wearing a formal suit and tie, but he must've snuck out at some point in order to appear here now. Sakura rephrased that last part mentally. She had worded that thought like the man had been guilty of doing something bad, when in reality; he had practically saved her from potential abuse and possibly—rape.
Ken backed up, making Sakura stumble along with him. "Nobody asked for your opinion," he shot at the man, who stared coldly at him.
Deciding that this had gone on long enough, the mysterious man walked directly toward the pair, stopping right in front of Ken.
"Let go of her, Kunishiro," he growled dangerously. The look in his eyes meant he was dead serious. "I suggest that you do as you're told if you want to keep your father's name clean."
The guilty son of Kita Kunishiro was taken aback. He knew too well that these words were true, but he wasn't about to let this unknown person humiliate and threaten him in front of Sakura or any other person, for that matter. Instead, he stupidly took a swipe at the stranger, only to find that this man had fast reflexes and was now holding his fist captive in a death grip. His face twisted in pain, and he began to dread the whimper threatening to come out of his throat. Finally, the stranger let go of Ken's fist, and gently pulled Sakura away from the sicko.
Ken was now on his knees, breathing in short rasps with his free hand grasping the painfully throbbing one. He bitterly spat out several profane curses as he tried to stand up, but failed miserably to the forces of weakness and fear rattling in his bones.
The stranger took one last look at the weak man cowering near the bushes and shot him a disgusted look. No one like him should ever deserve to be called a man.
---
"Hey, Tomoyo, do you know where Sakura has disappeared to?" Touya asked his younger cousin, looking slightly worried.
Tomoyo nodded, saying that Ken had taken her out to the gardens for a private conversation. The man knitted his brow in clear concern and confusion, but thanked her.
Then, he decided that his sister would be safe enough tonight. He didn't know why, but something told him that she was alright. Touya looked at his watch. It was only a quarter past nine, so he would wait for her to come back and join him later for the evening meal. In the mean time, he would attempt to keep an eye on the garden entrance and entertain his newly acquainted business partners as well.
---
When they were far enough from the crumpled, but still living body of Ken Kunishiro, Sakura and the mysterious man stopped to rest in the stone courtyard of the majestic garden. The huge, glowing orb in the midst of hundreds of twinkling lights in the sky gave the two a beautiful view of the night garden. After such a horrifying incident, it felt so great for Sakura to be in a semi-quiet atmosphere like this. Sure, she'd probably have preferred it to be a view shared with someone she knew and trusted, but the man who had rescued her was a fair substitute.
Gazing up at the moon, Sakura felt more and more comfortable. Her heartbeat had transformed from a racing horse to the rhythmic pounding of a drum in a matter of time. She was in such a state of tranquility that the man seated next to her was almost forgotten until she felt his gaze on her.
To him, she looked so pure and innocent; it was quite refreshing to meet someone like this after countless encounters with girls so different from her. He had sensed her innocence from the first moment he had laid his eyes on her. She was vulnerable and trapped and he knew she needed someone to lend a hand. Despite her dress's tattered hem, a few scratches and her tear-stained cheeks, she was quite a looker.
He shook those thoughts out his head immediately and mentally smacked himself for thinking like that. In this condition, she was extremely vulnerable and didn't need another sick pervert trying to take advantage of her. Besides, he barely knew her.
Feeling an intense gaze upon her, Sakura turned her head towards her savior. He gave her a small smile. It wasn't exactly warm, but it told her he was okay and that she needn't be afraid.
"Thank--" she stopped to clear throat, raspy from crying and whispered softly, "Thank you… for saving me from—from that unpleasant situation…"
He nodded wordlessly, and handed her a monogrammed handkerchief. Sakura took it and mumbled another word of thanks as she gently patted her cheeks dry.
"Um," she began shyly, looking down at her lap. "I don't know how to repay you for all of this… but, if there's anything—"
He stopped her with a shake of his head. "There's really no need for all of that, Miss, but if you insist, I'd like to start off fresh."
She looked up at him with a slightly comical yet questioning gaze. He chuckled, amazed at her density.
"An introduction is all I ask for…" he smiled and added, "For now, that is."
Sakura raised a brow, wondering what this mysterious man meant by that last quote. She sighed and complied anyway. It was the least she could do for someone who had just saved her from getting violated—literally.
"I'm Sakura," she began politely. "Please to meet you, Mr.—er, sir."
The man chuckled again. "You don't have to be that formal with me, Miss. It's very nice to meet you. I'm—"
A distant call had cut him off. It didn't sound familiar, so it probably wasn't Kunishiro. Sakura stood up, looking hopeful, and tried to pinpoint where the voice was calling from. Finally, a dark-haired man came out from behind a wall of finely trimmed shrubbery, looking flushed and relieved at the same time. He immediately rushed over to Sakura and frowned at her tattered dress and disheveled appearance.
"I waited for you inside for nearly half an hour. I knew something had happened when I stumbled across Kunishiro with his arm bitten and his hand all bruised up. What happened?" He then turned to the man across from him and looked at him accusingly. "Who are you?"
Sakura couldn't help but smile at her brother's overprotective-ness. "Long story short, you should thank this gentleman for what he did for me, Onii-chan, instead of looking at him like that," She chided at her brother and smiled at her savior.
Touya eyed Sakura's rescuer disapprovingly, but thanked him curtly. He then bid good night and turned to the garden's exit. Before being whisked back, though, Sakura spoke with Touya for a few seconds. After some grumbling, Touya agreed to let her say her good-byes and made a call to his father while the other two talked in semi-privacy.
Under the supervision of Sakura's brother, the two bid each other good night and good-bye.
"So, I guess this is it," she said, grasping her handbag tightly and rocking back and forth on her heels. Then, she looked up at him with a last smile and turned to walk away. As Sakura walked back towards her brother, she seemed to have remembered something and stopped in her tracks.
"I almost forgot to ask," she called out. "You never told me your name."
The man grinned at her and replied, "It's Syaoran. Have a good night, Miss."
Sakura brightened up and returned her charming smile. "It's Sakura and good night to you, too, Syaoran-kun."
Something about her smile and the way she said his name made him suddenly feel warm inside. It was strange, but a good kind of strange. And to think, he'd never felt like this before. Syaoran grinned. Somehow, this girl had that effect on him and he liked it. The full moon must have something to do with it… Who knows?
---
"Onii-chan?" Sakura asked softly, her eyes straying towards the main building's back entrance. The older man beside her grunted, signaling for her to go on. He could sense that she was feeling a little bit uncomfortable and knew she didn't want to go back to the party.
"I can't go back to the ball like this," she said, making a sweeping motion over her dress and disheveled appearance. "I guess what I'm trying to say is—can we just go back home?"
Sakura looked up at her brother with pleading eyes. He sighed and nodded, taking out his cell phone again and began to dial their father's number, but Sakura shook her head.
"I don't want to bother Otou-san with this and, you don't need to drive me home. I'll just call for Shojiro-san," she said and gave Touya a reassuring smile when he looked uncertain.
Finally, he nodded slowly in approval. She was tired and she had already suffered enough. Even though he didn't know what had happened tonight in the gardens, Touya would trust his sister. When she was ready, he would be willing to listen and get to the bottom of this. But, for now, he would just let Sakura go and regain her normal self at home.
Touya, then, walked Sakura out to the front through the side gate and waited for their driver to come escort her back home. When she got into the car safely, he re-entered the Hall and sat down at one of the dinner tables where his father was seated. He didn't go into detail about what had happened with Sakura, but simply told him she felt tired and was on her way back to the mansion.
For the rest of the night, Touya kept a lookout for Ken, but didn't see him anywhere in the room, although Tomoyo had reportedly seen him stalking back into the Grand Hall—grimacing—a while ago. Whatever the reason, he vowed to find out sooner or later (though preferably sooner) and would make sure that Sakura would never be alone with the creep from now on.
---
As Syaoran walked back to the Iwazumi Grand Hall, his eyes caught on something sparkly peeking out from under a fallen cherry blossom. He reached down to pick it up, blowing away loose dirt to examine the object better. It was an earring—and an expensive-looking one, at that. Perhaps someone had misplaced it? Then, suddenly, it came back to him. It was that girl's earring! No wonder the surroundings looked so familiar… She had probably lost it during her struggle to escape from Kunishiro's grasps and didn't notice.
He carefully wrapped the object in his handkerchief and tucked it into his blazer's breast pocket. The man ran a hand through his dark hair and sighed. How on Earth would he locate the girl and hand the object back to her?
Well, he thought, how hard can finding Sakura be? Then, he shook his head and sighed. Sakura was quite a popular name, so trying to find her would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. But, a smile suddenly spread on his lips. He loved a challenge!
A/N: Longest chapter I think?
Whyte Lilac