Chapter 3 Fast Pace
"Kinomoto-chan." Yoshiyuki said. Sakura stood. "Please show Hiiragizawa around school." Yoshiyuki said.
"Yes, Sir." Sakura replied and bowed.
He then turned to Eriol and said, "She is Kinomoto Sakura, vice president of the student council. She will show you around school. Why don't you occupy the empty seat next to her?"
Eriol nodded and bowed. He then headed to the vacant seat next to Sakura. He smiled at her when their eyes met, which she returned as they both sat. Yoshiyuki then proceeded with the class.
During lunch break, their other classmates when up to Eriol and introduced themselves. "Eriol, this is Sawada Megumi, our class president. If I'm not around and you have some questions, you can ask her." Sakura said as she introduced Megumi.
Eriol smiled and nodded. "Forgive us for saying this but you look a lot like Shinzo Mizuhara." Some said.
Eriol smiled again and said, "I get that a lot actually but I cannot compare to him."
Girls seemed to be really taken in with Eriol. He was like this perfect guy, handsome and a gentleman. Guys seemed a little apprehensive towards him but some seemed uninterested all together.
"I'm heading over to the cafeteria to buy some lunch. Do you have packed lunch?" Sakura said to Eriol as she took out her wallet from her bag.
"No. I'll have to head to the cafeteria too." Eriol replied. Sakura smiled at him and started to lead the way. Eriol excused himself from the others and followed Sakura.
"Well you'll get the hang of the layout of this school. Are you planning to join any organizations or clubs? I can take you there before I go to the student council meeting this afternoon." Sakura started.
As they were walking down the corridors towards the cafeteria, a lot of people were looking at them as they walked. Sakura tried to act as normal as she could and so did Eriol. "It's alright thanks. But I don't plan on joining anything just yet until I've adjusted to the schedule here and the curriculum. Besides, we both know that I have other extra curricular activities away from this school." Eriol replied.
Sakura laughed and replied, "Yeah, I know. I'm not even going to ask that straight out because you took the extra length to cover it up."
"But I'm sure you are wondering why I'm not telling, right?"
Sakura nodded. "But I'm not about to ask. I don't want to pry in other people's business." She quickly added. Eriol couldn't help but laugh.
"I trust you. I trust you enough to tell you about it last night." Eriol commented.
Sakura started to blush a little. "Please don't make me blush. We're both in trouble if people start talking." Sakura said.
Eriol grinned. "Why? Do you have a boyfriend? Or is Li-san your boyfriend?"
"Shaoran is not my boyfriend. He's just my best friend and he's involved with another girl. Me, I'm single and not complaining." Sakura answered.
"Really? Forgive me for saying this but, you two seemed really close and I assumed that you two were going out or something." Eriol said.
"People make that assumption all the time but it is totally not true." Sakura replied smiling at him.
Eriol smiled back. "It really surprises me." Eriol commented.
"Why do you say that?" Sakura asked, smiling and looking at him curiously.
"Well that's because it's hard to imagine that a pretty girl like you is single. Do you have suitors at least?" He said.
Sakura started blushing. Eriol couldn't help but grin. "Now you really are making me blush. Can we change the subject? I'm not really comfortable talking about something that is non-existent." Sakura replied nervously as she started walking on ahead to hide her blushing face.
Eriol laughed a little and caught up with her and said, "Hey I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. Ok, we can talk about other things."
"Let me just say this, you really are a sweet-talker if you choose to be, Hiiragizawa Eriol." Sakura commented as they were about to enter the cafeteria.
Eriol laughed as all eyes seemed to drift towards them as they entered and walked through the cafeteria. They knew it but decided to just act as if they hadn't noticed anything.
After they bought something to eat, they started to head for the entrance when some girls walked up to them and asked Eriol, "I'm sorry but are you Shinzo Mizuhara?" They were all excited and it seemed that everyone started talking about it and taking notice. Eriol smiled. Sakura wasn't sure what she was supposed to do but when she locked eyes with Eriol, she knew that he had everything under control.
"No. I'm sorry. My name is Hiiragizawa Eriol. People say I look a lot like him but I'm sorry to say that I'm not him. It would be cool to be him though." The people seemed a little disappointed but then walked away. Sakura suppressed her laugh.
Sakura led him to the fields. It was quieter there. "This is where I would go whenever I would like to have some peace, you know, to get away from all that buzz and stuff in campus. This is where I ate lunch with my brother and his best friend before they finished high school last year and went off to college." Sakura said to Eriol as they sat on the grass which over looked the empty playing fields.
"So your brother just graduated huh?" Eriol asked.
"Yeah. He's studying to be a doctor. I always tell him that he should have chose something else because he might just end up scaring people without any valid reason but…I never told him this but…I always believed that he suits that job. He can really be stuck up and down right obnoxious but he's my 'nii-chan. He cares a lot and always does things for the benefit of others. He always looks out for people he cares about, especially me. When I get into trouble, he's the one who helps me out without any questions asked." Sakura said.
She then looked at Eriol. He just smiled back at her. He was very amused with the way she told him stories and how she was. "Oh I'm sorry. I got a little carried away there." Sakura suddenly said.
"No, not at all. It's very interesting actually. It seems that you and your brother are really close." Eriol commented.
Sakura smiled and nodded. "I look up to him a lot even if he's such a pain sometimes." She said.
"How about you, Eriol? Got any siblings?" She asked.
"No. I'm an only child. I always wanted to have a brother or a sister." Sakura smiled. "But I've come to terms that that's never going to happen. I even think that it's a good thing because, you see, my mom was always very sickly. If she had more children, not just me, to be taken cared of, her body might now have been able to take it. She wouldn't have lived long enough to see my first concert." Eriol said.
"Oh I'm sorry, Eriol. I'm sure that she's in a better place now." Sakura said. Eriol smiled. "I lost my mom too. But unlike you, I never really got to know her. She died when I was about three years old. But you know, even if there are times where I miss her a lot, I'm really grateful and happy that I have my brother and dad because having them around seems like she's not really gone." Sakura said. Eriol smiled again. Sakura smiled at him too.
"So why didn't you tell me that you are the vice president of the student council?" Eriol asked as he finished off what was left of his sandwich.
"Probably the same reason why you didn't say that you were transferring to this school and that you don't tell people your alter ego." Sakura replied as she gathered their used materials and placed them into their respective bins.
Eriol smiled and said, "I chose to tell you the truth because quite frankly I sort of had this feeling last night that I would encounter you guys again. I wasn't wrong was I?" Sakura looked at him and nodded. "I chose to tell people my real name instead of sticking to my alter ego as you say because in school, I am just like any other student trying to get an education. I don't get off much from popularity because I want to make it on my own merit and not just because of the name I created for myself."
"It's very down-right noble of you, Eriol. I'm sure you're going to make it. But I can tell that it's going to be a colorful experience." Sakura replied as she started to lead him back inside the campus to finish off the campus tour.
"I won't put it that way, Sakura. Everyone wants to have this sense of normalcy in life, you know, the feeling like you are just everyone else." Eriol replied.
As they were walking down the corridor, they met up with Ryu Watanabe, the student council president.
"Watanabe-san!" Sakura called out.
He turned and upon seeing her smiled and walked towards them. "Sakura. I was wondering when I'd bump into you. I just passed by your classroom. They told me that you went to have lunch and toured the new student around campus." Ryu said. Sakura smiled and nodded.
"Watanabe-san, this is Hiiragizawa Eriol, our school's newest student. Eriol, this is Watanabe Ryu, the student council president." Sakura said.
Greetings were exchanged between the two guys. They shook hands. "So how do you find our school so far, Hiiragizawa-san?" Ryu asked.
Eriol smiled and replied, "It's great. I still have some adjustment to do but so far it's been great."
Ryu nodded and said, "If you have any problems, please don't hesitate to approach me or any of the student council officers, or any officer for that matter. Since you're in the same class as Sakura, I'm sure you'll be alright. She will look after you until you get on your feet." Eriol smiled and bowed in gratitude.
Ryu then addressed Sakura, "I know we have a student council meeting later but I just got word that the principal wants a word with us in about ten minutes. Since you are my vice, you need to come. I was looking for you."
"Is it about the college fair?" Sakura asked.
"No. That's the matter reserved for the meeting later. I don't know why the principal wants to talk to us." Ryu replied.
He then turned to Eriol and said, "We'll bring you back to the classroom first. Classes start in three minutes. Teachers here are a little strict with the attendance since the school is being evaluated now in an effort to get a higher accreditation this year. We're going to show you a short cut to class." Eriol nodded.
Ryu and Sakura then started to lead him, running a little to beat the bell. By the door to the classroom, Ryu and Sakura stopped and said, "We're sorry to cut the campus tour all of a sudden. Please feel free to ask us anything or approach us if you encounter some trouble."
Eriol smiled and thanked them. He watched them run towards the principal's office before entering the classroom. He couldn't help but smile. He was looking at Sakura and admired her more now that he knew that she was a very responsible person who was well received by her peers. There were still a lot of things that he didn't know about her but it didn't matter at that point. He just knew that she was different from other girls. He went inside and headed to his seat.
When he sat, Tomoyo asked him, "So how did it go?" He looked at her, not certain on what she was asking. Tomoyo just smiled and said, "I know Sakura. She gave you a campus tour, didn't she?"
Eriol smiled when he understood and nodded. "I guess I won't be getting lost any time soon. She introduced me to the student council president. It was ok." He said. Tomoyo smiled again.
"Well that's Sakura for you. By the way, where is she? Watanabe-san was looking for her and I assume that they had already met up since she introduced you to him. Where are they? Class is about to start again." Tomoyo asked.
"Well, Watanabe-san said that the principal has called for them. They are about to have a meeting. They don't know what it is about." Eriol replied.
Tomoyo shrugged her shoulders. "She really works hard. At this rate, she will become the next student council president." Tomoyo commented.
"I wouldn't be surprised by that, Tomoyo." Naoko said. Tomoyo smiled as the bell sounded.
"But I doubt that she really needs to be there. Usually it is only the president who is called. If you ask me, Watanabe-san has a crush on her and just wants to have some time with her before he graduates." Chiharu suddenly said.
"Chiharu!" Both Naoko and Tomoyo exclaimed.
"What?" Chiharu asked innocently.
"Really, Chiharu…you and your conspiracy theories." Tomoyo said.
Chiharu smiled. "We'll never really know." She replied. Naoko and Tomoyo shook their heads. Eriol couldn't help but laugh but suppressed it. The teacher then came in.
In the meantime, Sakura and Ryu made their way to the Principal's office. The secretary made them wait as the principal was still on the phone. They sat there at the receiving room as they heard the bell sound. Soon, the principal opened the door and ushered them inside. "Please take a seat, you two. I know you are wondering why I called you two in." The Principal said as he sat in front of them, behind his desk. Ryu and Sakura just exchanged glances but said nothing. The Principal smiled. He was already more than fifty years of age. His face showed that he was a pleasant person, wise and yet stern and strict. He had worked in the school for the past thirty years.
"I have just spoken with some people and have arranged that all officers of the school are going to have leadership training. I called you here to tell you that this weekend, the student council will have theirs and the weekend after, you will go again but this time, help facilitate the leadership training of the class and club officers." The Principal said.
He then handed them with the memorandum and itinerary of the leadership training to be conducted. Sakura and Ryu accepted the copies and started reading them. "Yamaguchi-sensei, this means that we will have to spends two weekends in school?" Sakura clarified.
"That is right. It will be conducted here, well that is with regards to the student council's leadership training. I am still working to have the next leadership training in the Miyagi prefecture. I am still working out some details and I will hand you the letters next week if all goes well. My friend there is an excellent trainer. It would be ideal to have him next week too. He will be in Tokyo this weekend so he has agreed to come and counsel you this weekend. He has to go back next week so I am arranging that you go to him there." The Principal answered.
"Now I know that the student council will be very busy because you are arranging for the seniors' college fair. But it is a must that you have leadership training." He added.
"We understand, Yamaguchi-sensei. I will bring it up during the student council meeting this afternoon." Ryu answered.
The Principal then handed them their respective excuse letters for being tardy to give to their teachers. He then accompanied them to the door. Outside the principal's office, Ryu said, "What do you think?"
Sakura let out an exasperated breath. She then answered, "If it must be done, we can't exactly do anything about it. We just have to figure out how to survive the following weeks."
"It's going to be tough."
"I know, especially for you since you too have to start thinking of college. Just tell me if there are some things that you need me to takeover." Sakura said as she smiled at him.
"I'm glad that you are my vice president. Do you need me to walk you to class?" Ryu offered.
Sakura smiled and answered, "No, thanks. You're also late. Between the two of us, you can't afford to lose more on your studies since you're graduating. See you later then." Ryu nodded as he watched Sakura run towards her class. He smirked and went on his way.
(to be continued…)
It seems that all things are just in away, pulling Shaoran and Sakura apart but in the same time well together…or so it seems. I hope you guys still stick around 'til the end of this story to find out what really happens to those two. Thanks so much for those who read and especially to those who sent in their reviews. I appreciate it very much. Please do still review. Thanks.
Michiko