Chapter 7 it's a happy birthday after all…

It was April 1st and Sakura has just turned sixteen. Normally she would be happy to be just one year older. But this year she was rather gloomy because her family wasn't there to celebrate it with her. She opened her eyes that morning as she lay in bed. She sighed sadly as she sat up and moved her feet to the side of the bed. She looked at a picture of herself with her brother and father placed on her nightstand. She held onto it and looked in melancholy.

"Dad… Onii Chan…" she said as her eyes sparkled with tears. She let a few of them drop before she wiped her eyes clean and got up and got dressed. A short while later she went into the kitchen were Shaoran was making some breakfast.

"Morning", she said and tried to put on a happy face.

"Morning", Said Shaoran and smiled at her.

"Happy birthday", he said with a smile as he leaned forward to kiss her. She complied. It was then that he noticed her sadness.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Just thinking… what it would be like to celebrate my birthday is father and Onii Chan were still here…" she said sadly. Shaoran sighed sadly and sat down beside her silently. He grabbed her hand and rubbed it slightly.

"It's the first time I'm celebrating my birthday without my family. It's so hard…"

"I know Sakura. I know… I just want you to know you're not alone. Remember that…" he said and smiled lightly and gave her hand a soft squeeze.

"Yeah…" Sakura said sadly as he continued to rub her palm. The moment was interrupted when they heard Sakura's stomach growl. She sighed.

"Hoe…" she said and her boyfriend smiled. He handed her a plate filled with food.

"Pancakes?" he said

"Sure…" she said a little more cheerfully now. That day Sakura went to school a little less cheerful than usual. Not as depressed as she was when she woke up but less cheerful nonetheless. Her friends were the first to notice. They did their best to cheer them up. When the last class has ended her friends gave her a few birthday gifts. Cheerio Chan gave her a stuffed bear, Naoko Chan gave her a romance novel, Rika got her a silver pen with writing etched to it that read.

"To my good friend Sakura, stay as sweet as you are. Never stop smiling…",

Tomoyo gave her a photo album for her to store her photos of herself and her loved ones in. They all embraced and left the school together. Before Tomoyo left the room she glanced over at Shaoran. He gave her a small nod as if to single something and with that the girls were gone.

Tomoyo turned to Sakura.

"Listen Sakura Chan, the girls and I want to treat you to a fun evening in the amusement park. You wanna go?"

Feeling she could use something to clear her mind Sakura smiled weakly.

"Sure. Why not?"

"Great. Let's go then", said Tomoyo and grabbed Sakura's hand and they walked together towards Tomoeda amusement park. While standing in line Tomoyo drew out her cellphone when no one was looking and sent an instant message to Li Shaoran which contained the cryptic message of

"It's a go",

Meanwhile back in Shaoran's apartment…

Upon receiving her message Shaoran got to work. He put on an apron and started cutting some vegetables while some water boiled in the background. When it did he placed the vegetables in it along with some chicken slices and set the concoction on the flame. While the soon to be ready Ramen was cooking, Shaoran also prepared some steamed basmati rice and fried shrimps. Sakura's favorite food. Lastly he made some apple pie for desert. Once the ramen, rice and fried shrimps were ready, he just had to wait a while longer for the cake to be ready. To make his time more efficient he slipped out of the apartment for a few minutes to pick up some flowers. When he came back he put the flowers in a glass vase with water and placed it in the center of the table. Just then the oven timer dinged and he knew that everything was ready. He put on his oven mittens and took out the steaming pie. He placed it on the counter and covered it with some aluminum foil to keep it warm. He was almost done. He took out two candles and placed them on the table and lit them both with some matches. Now all he had to do was set the table. First he put on the plates, then the silverware. Just as he was putting the glasses on the table, he heard footsteps outside and the door swung open.

"I'm home!" Sakura called out. She entered the kitchen to find Shaoran place a hot bowl of ramen on her plate and then on his. He turned around and smiled at her.

"Happy birthday Sakura", he smiled at her.

Sakura blushed.

"For me?" she asked and pointed at her chest. He nodded. Her eyes sparkled with emotion. She walked up towards him and brought him into a hug.

"Thanks Shaoran. You're the best",

"You're welcome", he smiled at her. They separated to look at each other and kissed briefly.

"You hungry?" he asked.

"Starving", she said.

"Then let's eat", he said and they sat by the table to eat some delicious ramen. It was so good, Sakura went for seconds. Next came the main course. She was ecstatic when she saw the fired shrimps, it earned Shaoran a bear hug from her. Before long dinner was over and then came desert which was just as good. After cleaning up they sat on the couch and talked for a while. It was then that Shaoran reached for his pocket taking out a small plastic box and presented to her.

"Happy sixteenth", he smiled at her. She blushed.

"Oh Shaoran you didn't have to get me anything. You're company is good enough…"

"Hey", said Shaoran with a soft smile.

"It's your birthday isn't it? That means I should get you something right?" he said and she smiled too. She took the box and opened it. Inside was a pair of green ribbons for her hair. She smiled.

"They're beautiful", she said happily.

"I'm glad", he smiled. She tried them on and looked at him.

"How do I look?"

"Exceptionally beautiful", he smiled and she smiled too. She embraced him in a hug.

"Thanks Shaoran",

"You're welcome Sakura. Happy birthday",

"Thanks", she said again.

"It is. It is indeed…" she said happily as they rested in each other embrace as they slowly drifted to sleep…

To be continued…

Well there it is. Another cute chapter. Hope you liked it.

Reviews are most welcome…

Peace out…