One in a Million
By JoocieFruit
Chapter 5 - What I Really Want
7-8-06
Hey guys! So yeah I know the last chapter was unexpected for a lot of you but I promise everything will make sense. As I said, love stories are nice especially when they have some twists and turns. Si? (lol I love my Spanglish). This chapter is completely S+S! Please read and review!
Its also come to my attention that my previous chapters contain errors like this : "hewas a boy" instead of "he was a boy". I'm not sure why this happens but I think it has something to do with like when I edit. Does anyone know a way to prevent this? If so please let me know. Also, please disregard all spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
A/N: Just to clarify, the Red Dragons are a terrorist group in China and basically they want Sakura's dad because of his ability to build these robots. By forcing Fuji to work under them, they can have control over Fuji and his robots therefore using the robots for themselves and their purposes. Hope that clears some things up.
I'll try to update as soon as I can but I'm getting open heart surgery on Wednesday and won't be back from the hospital until Sunday. But nothing aids a speedy recovery like many good positive, long, reviews! Lol. Just review okay?
The beginning of a new day brought with it an honest question.
"So anyways, I was wondering if you have something to wear for the ball." said Syaoran, leaning back comfortably in his chair. He reached for his white mug of coffee and glanced at Sakura expectantly. Sakura sat opposite of him, separated from the business man by a mere few feet. It was a bright and sunny morning and both were enjoying their morning coffee together in Syaoran's office. She raised an eyebrow at his question.
"I'm sure I'll find something." she said a little offended that he would dare to ask. Sakura took a quick sip of coffee. Syaoran saw that she was uncomfortable and smirked.
"If not you can just go naked." he said with a devilish grin. Sakura's jaw dropped and she gently slammed the mug onto the table.
"You're such a pervert!" Sakura cried although she knew he was kidding. He laughed.
"I'm sorry I'm a man." replied Syaoran playfully.
Sakura threw her hands up in the air and stormed out doing a great job of pretending to be mad. Secretly, however, that devilish grin on Syaoran's face made her knees weak. In fact, a lot of thing about him made her weak. Shaking this feeling off, Sakura knew that a bigger issue was at hand. The white lie she had told to save herself from embarrassment would come back and bite her in the ass unless she came up with a dress by Friday night.
"Sakura! What a surprise!" exclaimed the cheerful brunette who was clad in a white polo and tan colored pants. An apron hung from her shoulders and read "Coco's Café". A name tag labeled "Chiharu" was pinned to the left side of her chest.
"Hi Chiharu. I was wondering if you could do me a favor." said Sakura as she took a seat on the counter. Chiharu shrugged and nodded.
"Sure."
"Do you have a dress I can borrow?" Sakura asked bluntly.
Chiharu lips curled into a sly smile.
"Hmmm so you come in at six PM, all dressed in your fancy business outfit and ask to borrow a dress?"
"Yeah. I guess I am." Sakura said, hoping that Chiharu would stop questioning her.
"This wouldn't have to do with the Autumn Ball would it?" Chiharu said, her eyes flashing mischievously.
"It might..." replied Sakura slowly. She couldn't cover her ears fast enough. Chiharu squealed so loudly that Sakura was sure people on the other side of town could hear her.
"OH MY GOD! He asked you to go with him!" Chiharu exclaimed.
"Chiharu! Keep your voice down! Yes…he did." replied Sakura sinking a little lower on her stool. Chiharu continued to gush.
"Sakura! He's like the hottest guy in all of Japan. And he's loaded with cash!"
"As long as he pays me I'm cool with it." said Sakura who didn't care for by Chiharu's fascination. By now, Sakura was use to rants of woman who worshipped rich men like Syaoran as gods.
"Oh puhhh-leasse. You must have thought of him as more than just a boss. I know I would've. Are you two dating?" asked Chiharu.
"No!" exclaiumed Sakura defiantly, "I work at a business firm. We keep things professional. But yeah we've gone out to dinner and stuff... professionally."
"Have you guys done it?" Chiharu had a talent for being blunt at exactly the wrong moments.
"Excuse me…?" Sakura said, flabbergasted that her friend would think of such a thing.
"Have you or have you not had sex?" Chiharu asked,
"What? No! I could be fired!" cried Sakura.
"Not if he likes it." added Chiharu with a devilish glint in her eye.
"Can we please get back to the dress situation? I really need something decent to wear Friday night." Sakura said.
"Why don't you just have him buy you a couture gown or something?" suggested Chiharu.
"Chiharu, I'm not a golddigger. And plus, it's not like either of us has had time to do anything. We've been working our asses off." Sakura explained. Chiharu sighed.
"Yeah I think I have a couple of things that might look nice on you. But mark my words, you two will eventually hook up." she said.
"Whatever. Let's go to your place." said Sakura rolling her eyes. For some reason, she had a gut feeling that Chiharu might eventually be right. Or, perhaps, she hoped that one day, in the near near future, Chiharu would be right.
Sakura stumbled into her apartment with a peach colored dress tangled in her arms. She nearly tripped over the big box in the doorway.
"What the-…" Sakura cried but stopped herself from uttering a word that she had never been known to say. Reaching for the light switch, she flipped it on and looked down at what had nearly injured her. It was a white FedEx box addressed to her. Puzzled at its presence Sakura tried to think of an occasion. None came to mind. Using her keys, she cut the tape and opened up the box only to gasp at its contents. She sat in stunned silence for a few moments. Then, her trembling fingers pulled the item out of its current resting place.
It was a stunning knot-front matte jersey dress, dark green in color and was Dolce and Gabbana's most elegant evening wear to date. The dress was cut short at the middle of her thighs. She ran her hands over the fabric amazed that something like this had been sent to her. But there was more. She reached into the box and brandished a pair of black, alligator skin stilettos, a black velvet clutch and a card. Setting the clutch and shoes gently aside, Sakura opened the card.
Dear Sakura,
I'm sure you already have something to wear, although it never hurts to be prepared. This is a last resort in case the job at the office left you no time to shop for the Autumn Ball. I hope you find this suitable. Or else you can just go with my first suggestion. I'll see you tomorrow.
Syaoran.
Sakura felt her heart racing. The whole outfit was well over two grand. She couldn't remember a time when she had seen something as glamorous let alone own. Sadly, she knew that she couldn't live with the guilt. Well she probably could but Sakura knew the right thing to do was to return it. Reaching for her bag, she pulled out her cell and dialed Syaoran's number.
After a few rings, he picked up.
"Li speaking."
"Syaoran? Hi it's me." Sakura said. She could hear the typing stop.
"Oh good evening Sakura. Did you get the package?"
"Yes I did… but I don't think I can accept this."
"Why not?"
"I mean it's so…beautiful and like I don't think I've deserved it and like I'm not a great secretary and I just can't-" a plethora of words came from her mouth.
"Sakura. Do you like the dress?"
"No I don't like it. I frickin' love it." declared Sakura giving into the magical spell of Dolce & Gabbana. Each minute that passed lessened the guilt.
Syaoran laughed at her response.
"Then think of it as your Christmas gift that's three months early."
"But Syaoran-" began Sakura but he cut her off.
"Good night Sakura."
Sakura snapped the phone shut and stared back at the elegant gift she had just received. Smiling slyly, she imagined how great she'd look in the dress. Standing up, she held it against herself. Guilt was no longer in her heart.
"And to what do I owe this occasion?" asked Syaoran, setting his briefcase down on the desk. He gestured to the newly cleaned office and assortment of breakfast items that were displayed on his coffee table. Sakura was bustling about trying to organize his files.
"Well for starters, giving me that dress." Sakura said. Syaoran took off his coat.
"You won't be getting anything for Christmas." he joked. Sakura took him seriously however. He sat down and picked a glazed donut from the tray.
"That's fine. But really, thank you." She said quietly. She took a seat across from him.
"I mean- no one has ever done anything like that for me."
"I guess I'm not no one."
"No," she said laughing, "You're definitely not."
He smiled and Sakura had to look away. His face was so undeniably handsome that when he smiled, she had to muster every amount of strength she had to resist certain female urges.
"Uhm- I'm gonna go type up your speech." She said quickly. Sakura grabbed her coffee and left the room just as Al stepped in. He shut the door.
"Good morning Al. Donut?" offered Syaoran. Al shook his head.
"Thanks but no thank you sir. Mr. Li, I take it she enjoyed the gift?" he asked. Syaoran nodded his head.
"She 'frickin loved' it." replied Syaoran between bites.
"Ahh yes." said Al, a little curious about Syaoran's word choice.
"That's what she said at least. Tell your daughter I said thanks for the tips. I'll probably have to thank my sisters too."
"Will do sir….Might I inquire on how things are between the two of you?"
"There's nothing going on. We're just…" for some reason Syaoran couldn't find a word to describe them. He was her boss and she was his employee but their friendship had gone past the boss-employee point.
"Speaking from experience, I think you should tell her how you feel." said Al, sounding as though he had come straight from an advice column. Syaoran buried his head in his hands.
"I don't think so…what if she rejects me? Or what if she freaks out because I'm her boss?"
"Well I'm assuming she's your date tomorrow night and not your employee."
"Yes but- I don't know! It's just…I don't think she feels the same. I mean she hasn't hinted anything and whenever I glance at her she quickly looks a different way and like-"
"I understand sir." said Al, smiling. From his point of view, those two were so lovestruck they weren't even aware of it.
"So where are you taking me?" Sakura asked.
"Shhh we're almost there." replied Syaoran keeping his hands gently over her eyes. Both of them were ascending up a staircase to a mysterious destination. Sakura treaded carefully and her path was marked by the claks of her shoes against the wooden stairs.
Sakura heard a door open and Syaoran led her through it, his hands still over her eyes. The cool night air swept into her face and breezed through her hair.
"'kay can you tell me now?" she asked again. Syaoran shook his head.
"Not yet but I can tell you that I was getting sick of the fancy restaurants so I thought I'd treat you to something different tonight."
"Is that so?" she said obviously amused. Syaoran took his hands off of her eyes and she gasped at where they were.
They were atop the Li Corp. building and the view of Tokyo was breath taking. It seemed as though they were floating on a cloud overlooking the streets. The city was bustling at this night hour and the decorative lights made each building appear as though it was a precious gem. The Tokyo Tower loomed nearby and its lights made the setting ever more romantic. A small table covered by a white cloth had been set up with two chairs on opposite sides. A skinny vase with a single red rose sat in the middle of the table surrounded by a bottle of wine and two wineglasses. The only lighting on the roof was a single candle burning innocently next to the rose.
Reality slowly came back to Sakura. The view had indeed struck her with awe but she knew that the moment was now or never. She had been thinking about this for a while and now was the time to ask.
"Syaoran," she began slowly, "what are we?" He paused for a second, contemplating her statement.
"What do you mean?" he said buying himself more time to think of an answer. She found the courage to gaze at him and spoke again.
"I mean are we friends? Or …am I just your employee… or like…?" her voice trailed off. He was now standing right next to her and held her gaze with his brown eyes.
"What do you want us to be?" he asked her softly. Sakura tried as hard as she could but for some reason she couldn't break away from his stare.
"I…I don't know." She stammered in reply. She looked away and out at the city. "I don't know whether or not you see me as just your secretary or something more."
"You are definitely something more." He said glancing out at the city as well. Her eyes lighted with hope. It was her turn to ask the question.
"Then…Syaoran, what do you want us to be?"
She waited eagerly for a reply.
"I want you to come with me to the ball…" he paused trying to calm himself down, "- as my girlfriend." Syaoran swallowed and was shocked that the words came out correctly. He knew of his great ability to get women but Sakura being unlike any other made him extremely nervous.
Sakura grinned and stepped closer to him. She was confident that he was now in the palm of her hand.
"My, my Syaoran. You're quite a demanding man." she said in a voice just above a whisper. Two can play that game, Syaoran thought. He pushed his nerves to the back of his mind.
"And you, Sakura, are quite demanding yourself." he told her in the same tone. Their eyes were now locked in an intense gaze. Sakura felt her knees weakening as Syaoran's hands slowly found a way around her waist. However, being Sakura she found a way to control herself. She put on the same sly smile.
"Lucky for you," she said, slipping her arms around his neck and leaning closer to his face, "I want the same thing." Syaoran leaned in but Sakura pressed her fingers to his lips her eyes dancing and yet her legs, trembling with anxiety and fear.
"Not yet Romeo. You're gonna have to work for that" she whispered, her lips practically touching his. It hurt her to pull away but only made him want her more. She sultrily walked back to the table and took a seat, gesturing for him to join her. Syaoran swallowed. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest.
She gazed at him alluringly. "Be a man and pour me some wine will you?"
He chuckled slightly and walked over to join her.
"Gladly." He replied.
Okay I promise the next chapter is the ball. PROMISE!
But pleaseeee reviewww! The more reviews I get, the more motivated I'll be to update. I'm hoping to get around 20 reviews for this chapter! Can we make that happen? Pleaseeee review!
Love always, Joocie Fruit.