Hey guys. Sorry for the wait, but I'm so damn nervous about getting my report tomorrow it's been affecting my writing. Anywho, here's the next chappie and I hope you enjoy!
Something of Yours
Chapter 7
Heavy Discussion
This was awkward. Very awkward. And scary. Very scary.
Touya looked like he was about to explode any second. His eyes were closed, his jaw was clenched, his hands were balled up into fists, and there was a vein throbbing in his forehead. He took in a deep breath and glanced at Fujitaka. Their father seemed to get the message and left for the kitchen, excusing himself quietly.
"Who's the father?" Touya asked steadily; darkly. Sakura looked away.
"No one." She stumbled over her own words. "No one important."
"Sakura…" Touya said in a threatening tone. "Tell me who the bastard is now. Dad might be a big softie with you, but I wont be!" He was on his feet now. "Tell me who the goddamn father is!"
"No!" Sakura rocketed to her feet too. "Touya, he doesn't know about this baby and he wont! Ever! I'm eighteen! I can control my own life! I don't need you to go out and beat the crap outta some stupid guy that isn't worth it anyway! I just need my family right now! That's all I'm asking for!" She ran out of the room in tears.
Touya sank into the couch with his head in his hands. He let out a frustrated groan and sank backwards.
"Fuck."
OoOoOoOoOoOTomoyo was walking aimlessly around Tomoeda, completely bored out of her mind. She was trying to find something to take her mind off the latest fight with her Mom. There was nothing she hated more than to fight with her Mother, but sometimes it was necessary.
Not watching where she was going, she crashed into someone. She stumbled over backwards, landing on her ass and her things scattered everywhere. She winced and, after about two minutes of feeling her bottom for bruises, sat up and prepared to pick up all her things. However, looking up, she discovered her bag being held out to her with its contents replaced neatly. Tomoyo looked up into deep blue eyes.
"I'm sorry, Daidouji." Hirazagawa Eriol apologised with his deep English accent, nudging the bag towards her. "I wasn't watching where I was going."
"Uh…" Think, Tomoyo, think! "Thanks, Hirazagawa." She took her bag and accepted his offered hand. He pulled her to her feet, his strength surpassing her expectations. He was an inch taller than Tomoyo with a mop of midnight blue hair – dyed, of course, from the natural brown regrowth she could see – and the deepest blue eyes you could imagine behind round glasses. "Uh… do you wanna come get some ice cream with me?" She blurted out without thinking.
Her face was as red as a tomato. Where had that come from? He just stared at her, unblinkingly, for several seconds, before breaking out into a smile that sent Tomoyo's stomach aflutter.
"I'd love to, Daidouji." He grinned. "My treat." Tomoyo kept her head down, willing her blush to go away. They walked in silence through the streets towards the ice cream parlour a few blocks away.
Tomoyo quietly ordered her usual double vanilla scoop while Eriol ordered a caramel sundae. Despite her protests, he paid for both of their ice creams and practically verbally dragged her over to sit down. Tomoyo stared at her bowl the entire time, hating herself for blushing.
Little did she know, Eriol was having a similar experience. He was currently sitting across a table from the object of his affections for the last year and a half. The mere thought of it was enough to fluster him and make him forget everything he had lined up to say to her.
The two of them just sat there, prodding at their ice creams, not muttering a word to one another. Finally, Tomoyo got fed up with the silence.
"We don't talk much at school." She remarked. Eriol's head snapped up to look at her.
"I was under the impression you wanted nothing to do with me… so I never tried." He said sheepishly, looking down. Tomoyo's head snapped up to look at him, her blush replaced with a look of remorse.
"I'm sorry." She looked down and sullenly prodded her ice cream. "It's just that…well… my Mom doesn't really want me to associate with people outside the family or someone who isn't rich. She says I have to 'uphold the family image'. Sakura's my second cousin, so she's the only person I'm allowed to talk to around here." She scoffed.
"Hey, it's ok." Eriol waved it off with a chuckle. "I understand what it's like to have a prestigious family." Tomoyo's eyes lit up.
"Oooh, really?" Her eyes lit up with curiosity and glee. "Tell me about your family… if you want to, that is. You don't have to!" She added, mortified. Eriol chuckled.
"We're related to some very important people – sorry, I can't tell you who, though – so the media are quick to catch us out." He shrugged. "Tomoeda is the only place I've spent more than six months in since I was five."
"How come?" Tomoyo blinked. She'd spent her entire life in Tomoeda, and she couldn't imagine having to move so many times. Eriol gave her a funny look.
"Well, Tomoeda is a tightly-knit community. Everyone knows everyone else, and they protect those that live here. I guess it's cause no one has alerted the media yet – that's how they find us every time."
"Ouch. That had to suck." Tomoyo's watch beeped, starling her. "Oh, crap! I have to go! Thanks for the ice cream, Hirazagawa! I guess I'll see you at school! Bye!" She rushed out of the shop, forgetting about her ice cream.
Inside, Eriol was chuckling as he helped himself to he leftover ice cream.
OoOoOoOoOoO"You cannot possibly condone this!" Touya shouted at his father. "She's only a child! She's-"
"Eighteen." Fujitaka cut across sternly, putting the dishes away in the cupboard. "She's not a child anymore, Touya." He sighed. "I want to know just as much as you do, but I don't think you're going about it the right way."
"What other possible way is there?" Touya demanded. "Listen, Dad, she's not going to listen to reason. My friend Akane did the same thing and look where she ended up! She's a single mother on welfare whose father disowned her!"
"But we are not going to disown Sakura." Fujitaka sounded close to angry.
"Right." Touya muttered, leaning on the kitchen counter as his father took the glasses out of the dishwasher and started to put them away.
"Touya, listen to me." Fujitaka sighed, sitting down on a stool when he had finished. Touya looked at him. "Sakura isn't good at keeping things from people. We both know this. I don't know who she's kidding by trying to hide it. She won't be able to hide her pregnancy for much longer anyway. She'll be starting to show any time now."
"So what do we do then?" Touya grunted, not meeting his father's eyes.
"We support her, that's what we do." Fujitaka looked at his son over his glasses. "There's nothing else we can do. But I can tell you what we are not going to do: We're not going to criticise her, we're not going to question her, and we are certainly not going to try to force her to tell us something she doesn't want to. We have to let her decide for herself, Touya. That's the way life is."
"And if she makes the wrong decision?"
"She won't." Fujitaka stood up to leave. "That's not the way Sakura is and you know it. It will all be out in the open before the end of her term. I'm sure of it."
"How can you know?" Touya growled, still finding his feet increasingly interesting.
"I know my daughter." Fujitaka smiled. "I also think that Sakura cares deeply for this young man, no matter how hard she tries to deny it. To herself or others." He cut Touya off as he opened his mouth to speak. "There is no better way to ruin a young man's opportunities than to tell him that he's going to be a father. Oh, and there is also the fact that you would personally kill him if you were to discover his identity. I don't think she wants him dead and I certainly don't think she wants you in prison." He laughed. Touya had to at least grin in amusement. "No, Sakura is doing what she thinks is best… even though it may end up being for the worst. But I have faith in my little girl. She'll do the right thing in the end."
"You're right." Touya sighed. "But I can't help but go through all the 'what if's in my mind."
"It's worse when it's your own child, trust me." Fujitaka looked away and left the room, leaving a gaping void of silence in his wake.
OoOoOoOoOoOSakura laid on her side on the bed while all of that was going on. She could hear her brother's yelling and the indecipherable murmurings of her father, but she couldn't make out any of the words. After a few minutes, her brother had calmed down and the discussion was barely heard. After another ten minutes, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in." Sakura called, not moving from her position. The door creaked open and after about five seconds she felt the weight of someone very big lying down next to her. She rolled over to the face of her brother.
"Say the word and he's dead." He said seriously, but grinned. Sakura laughed and buried her face in his big chest, taking in the comforting scent of her big brother. Touya wrapped his arms securely around her and kissed the top of her head. "I'm sorry about the way I acted before." He murmured into her hair.
"It's ok." Sakura barely whispered. Touya's hold tightened.
"No it's not." He sighed into the top of her head. "I flew off the handle. I promise I'll try not to do it again. But God help me, if I find out who this bastard is I'll strangle him."
"Deal." Sakura laughed.
OoOoOoOoOoOSyaoran stared at the bottle in his hands.
His fifth beer.
"Syaoran, pour that filth down the drain!" His mother nagged from the other side of the kitchen. "You have finals tomorrow and a hangover wont help you any. Now get rid of it!"
He defiantly took another large swig.
"Syaoran, get rid of it now!"
He drained the bottle in one large gulp and opened a sixth.
"Syaoran get that filth out of my house this instant!" His mother screeched. Syaoran stood up and stumbled a bit, before finding his footing and stepping in front of his mother.
"This apartment is mine." He slurred dangerously. "I was quite ha-happy here alone until you sh-showed up you old hag!" He blinked a little as he suffered a massive head spin.
"Go to bed." His mother caught him as he stumbled over and almost completely lost his balance.
"No!" Syaoran roared, punching the wall. He ignored the pain coming from the wound that sent blood gushing over his hands and picked up the bottle, draining the whole thing in two large gulps.
He shook his head.
Something was wrong with him. Something throbbed.
Oh yeah… his fist.
His mother was clucking over his wrist, pleading with him to stop drinking for the night. He sat back down, his head in his hands as his mother rushed off to find the first aid kit. Why was he drinking in the first place? Who knows? Who cares?
The phone rang to his right. He picked it up with his good hand.
"Hello?" He slurred.
"Young Master Li?" A voice questioned from the other end. "I need to speak with your mother… its about your father." Syaoran' eyes grew wide as he hollered for his mother.
Raise your hand if you thought the chapter title meant Sakura was going to tell Syaoran about the pregnancy? Sorry, not today! XD Yeah, yeah, I know; getting too cocky for my own good.
(hides) I know there wasn't a lot of Sakura or Syaoran in this chapter, but there are other things happening as well! We see the beginning of a friendship between Eriol and Tomoyo, and the true perspective of Fujitaka and Touya… and the beginning of a downward spiral for one of our characters. No prizes for guessing who.
People keep asking when he's gonna find out about the baby. Trust me, I know exactly when, and how. I think it's kinda funny, all the suspense. XD Don't assume he will… but don't assume he wont, either.
Well, when one side goes up, the other goes down. Such is the nature of the scale when two different weights are placed at either end. And what's this 'Young Master' business? You may find out in the next chapter… if I feel nice enough.
Reviews fuel my desire to write!