Chapter 7

::: 10 years ago :::

"Morning," Eriol greeted the group a little breathlessly as he put his things down on his seat.

Eriol's face was red and his glasses were misty. "Morning. Did you just have track practice?" Tomoyo asked.

"Yeah." He wiped his glasses with the towel hanging over his neck. "Coach's been brutal all week. We had to run 20 laps around the field before class. I had to get up at 5am. First of many," he said, drinking from his water bottle.

"Tell me about it. We have practice everyday for the next two weeks," Hiro complained, letting out a big yawn. "But good thing it's after school."

"It's summer, what do you guys expect? At least you're out there getting your exercise. Getting your tan," Naoko added with a hint of jealousy. "My club's practically nonexistent. The members are dropping out like flies." She was in the photography club.

Rika laughed. "Only because you're the youngest and everyone else is going into their graduating year. Don't worry Nao-chan, you'll get more recruits after Clubs Day next month."

"Hopefully. How's English club going? Any activities coming up?"

"Yeah, we've got a debate to get ready for in September." Rika was the captain of the English club, which had a good fifteen people signed up.

Syaoran and Sakura walked into the class just then. "Morning," they greeted simultaneously.

"Sakuchin!" Tomoyo jumped up. "They changed the dates of the tryouts. It's starting today. Are we doing it or are we doing it?"

"What?! Yes! Of course we are!"

"Cheerleading team? Really?" Hiro asked doubtfully. "You're thinking of forming one?"

"There already is one, baka. That's why we're going to tryouts."

Hiro rolled his eyes then turned to Syaoran. "You brought your gear?"

Syaoran flashed his soccer duffel bag. "I can't wait. It's been months since we last stepped on that field."

"Yeah…" As much as he liked being in the same sports club as Syaoran, he wasn't practically great at soccer, and he spent his first year warming up the bench. "I seriously doubt I've improved. Coach's gonna sit me all year I know it."

"We'll work on it, don't worry."

"Thanks man."

"Where's Taka?" Rika asked absently.

"Over there," Naoko pointed to the front gate out the window. Takashi stood there talking to a girl wearing a different uniform. "New girl?"

"Yup," the boys all said in a chorus.

Seating beside each other, Syaoran turned to Sakura. "Tryouts start right after school, right? Where's it gonna be?"

"In the small gym I think. Why? Want to come and support?" She asked hopefully.

"I was thinking about it. Soccer practice doesn't start till 5. Maybe I can watch for half an hour," he offered.

A huge smile appeared on her face and she looped an arm over his shoulders. "Yay! Tomo, did you hear that? Sho's gonna come and watch our tryouts!"

Tomoyo gasped. "Really?! Syaoran, you're the best."

He laughed. "Want to join, Hiro? Eriol?"

"Sure."

"Yeah I'm there!"

:::

At the end of their routine, Sakura and Tomoyo, both still panting, looked up at the stands and saw the three boys waving and cheering. They looked at each other, laughed, and ran up the bleachers.

"That was awesome!" Hiro exclaimed.

"Yeah, didn't know you could do flips like that," Syaoran said with admiration. "You girls did great."

"Your uniform's cute," Eriol added, mainly looking at Tomoyo.

"Oh stop! Gross." Sakura said, slapping his arm violently. They were wearing the cheerleading uniforms, which weren't so modest and still a little uncomfortable for Sakura.

"Ow, what?" Eriol frowned back at her and moved far away from Sakura's reach. "It's not you I'm looking at," he muttered under his breath.

Ignoring him, Syaoran asked, "So what happens now?"

"We find out the results tomorrow. They want to recruit five girls so hopefully we get in!" Tomoyo fisted her hands in the air. "Right, Sakuchin?"

"Yes! We must be positive! We'll definitely get in," she said firmly.

"Nice. Anyway, we gotta go," Hiro said as the guys stood up. "Two hours of running and kicking drills until I can go home and do my homework. Oh high school life."

The girls walked with the guys as they went down the bleachers and out of the gym doors.

"Syaoran-kun!" A chorus of girls called.

The guys looked over their shoulders. One girl out of the group walked forward shyly, moving closer, a small white letter in her hands. Tomoyo and Sakura exchanged a look.

"Syaoran, can I give you this?" She asked.

Embarrassed that this was happening right now in front of his friends, Syaoran absently scratched the back of his head and walked towards her.

"Sure," he said and took it from her. "Thanks."

"Thank you. Have a great practice!" She said quickly before running back to the girls, who then, all together, ran out of sight.

"Aw man," he muttered, ignoring the teasing looks and remarks from Eriol and Hiro.

"Geez, Syaoran. It doesn't end does it! I've never seen that girl. She's probably a first year!" Hiro remarked, shaking his head in incredulity. "Is that an everyday thing with you?"

"Shut up. It's not."

"Guys, we're going to go change," Tomoyo announced, waving to them. "See you tomorrow."

The boys looked up and waved back. "See ya."

Noticing the dejected expression on Sakura's face, Syaoran called out, "Oi, Kinomoto! It was good, don't worry," he called out.

Sakura turned and looked at him. With a nod, she said, "Thanks!"

When the boys were out of sight, Sakura groaned loudly and dropped her head on Tomoyo's shoulder. "I hate this! Why did I have to like him of all people?"

Tomoyo wrapped an arm around her. All she could say was, "Syaoran's a good guy. I don't blame you."

She let out another annoyed sound as she walked into the changing room.

::: 8 years ago :::

"Good morning."

Sakura muffled a yawn as she walked down the stairs. "Morning."

Nadeshiko couldn't help but smile as she watched her seventeen-year-old daughter become more and more beautiful everyday. She still kept her hair above her shoulders, but it fit the shape of her face perfectly. Her eyes still carried the same brightness and cheerfulness that was always there in kindergarten.

"Did you sleep late last night?" She asked, putting an arm around Sakura's shoulders and kissing her forehead.

"Mm."

"Let's have breakfast."

"K. Where's Dad?"

"Still sleeping. He had to work overtime last night. I didn't want to wake him up on his day off."

Sakura sat across from her mother at the dining table. As usual, she prepared far more than anyone could eat in one sitting. Her tummy growling, Sakura said, "Itadakimasu," quickly and dove in. Her chopsticks in hand, she took a portion out of each dish and filled her plate.

"Slow down," Nadeshiko reminded lightly. "Tell me about school. How are preparations going?"

"Good. We have six more days to practice. All the costumes are done. Eriol and Tomoyo have been practicing their lines like crazy," Sakura said, then took a spoonful of food.

"That's good to hear. They're the prince and princess, right?"

"Yeah. Mom, I can't even begin to describe how cute they look together. I never saw it before, but when they started acting up on that stage, it's like there's no other person out there who matches Tomoyo better. And same for Eriol."

Nadeshiko laughed. "Aren't you all best friends? Wouldn't that be weird?"

"Yeah of course. And I doubt they like each other that way. Since I met Tomoyo, she's never shown any interest in anybody. Eriol…he doesn't seem interested in her that way either. But I mean, if they were interested in each other, they'd make a good couple."

"Well, you never know with these things," her mom replied with words of wisdom. "When I met your father, I thought he didn't care much about me. He didn't show any signs of interest or anything. It took him years to admit how shy he was and how he'd liked me for so long."

"Really? Huh." Now curious to hear what her mom had to say about other issues concerning love, she asked very innocently, "So…just curious, what do you think about two people who have known each other for a long time? I mean, do you think they could ever fall in love with each other? Does that ever happen or do they always just stay friends?"

Nadeshiko laughed at the random way she threw the question in there. "I think in that situation, it depends on the two people involved."

"What do you mean?"

"It depends if one or both are willing to risk their friendship to confess their feelings. It's a huge risk, especially if the other doesn't feel the same way. It changes the friendship completely. Sometimes it's never the same after. But," she added when Sakura's facial expression all but crumbled. "If they feel the same way and they risk telling each other their feelings, I imagine they'll have an amazing love."

Sakura scooted forward in her seat. "Why?"

"Well, as they say, 'Happiness is being married to your best friend.'" her eyes glinted ever so slightly.

"Hmm…"

"Are you thinking of marrying one of your best friends, honey?" Nadeshiko teased, unable to stop herself. Sakura was taking her words much too seriously.

"What?!" Sakura cried. She shook her head vigorously. "No, no, of course not! I'm only seventeen! Geez Mom. Just hypothetical questions. I'm just curious. Can't a girl be curious? That's all."

She laughed. Her daughter was in love with one of those boys and it was written all over her red face.

::::::

"Break!" The director of the play, the class' very own Naoko, announced. "Fifteen minutes! Then I want to practice from the top."

Sakura stood up and stretched her aching back. She'd been painting the set background for hours. In her group was Hiro, but he was useless. He spent most of his time fooling around and visiting other classrooms to avoid doing the work. She'd yelled at him several times already to get back to work and it worked the first few times. Then he decided to visit classes farther away so she couldn't hunt him down.

Sakura glanced around their homeroom. The costume designers had already finished their job, so they weren't around. The ones in the play were gathered in one corner of the room, rehearsing and memorizing lines together. Among them were Syaoran, Tomoyo and Eriol. Deciding not to bother them, she left the room and went to the soccer field alone to get a breather.

Though it wasn't much of a breather. About twenty boys were using it now, playing a soccer game during cultural festival preparations. She sat on the grass and watched them.

Meanwhile, back in the homeroom, the three best friends were sitting by the window, resting.

Eriol dropped his head on the desk. "My brain's fried. I can't memorize anymore."

"You have everything memorized," Tomoyo assured him gently. "You just have to practice on saying it with more emotion."

Beside him, Syaoran leaned back against his seat and glanced out the window. "I just want to play soccer," he lamented. "After the festival, there's only one more week of club activities then it's officially over for us."

"Yeah."

Tomoyo stood up from the windowsill and glanced around the room. "Where's Sakuchin?"

Eriol looked up, didn't spot her, and slumped back on top of the desk. "Beats me."

Just then, they heard someone cry out. The familiar high pitch made Syaoran jump up. He looked out the window and caught sight of Sakura covering her face. And the soccer ball was close by. Syaoran was out of the room before they could say anything.

Tomoyo stared after him, the expression on her face saying it all.

"He sees her like she's his little sister," Eriol spoke from behind her.

Tomoyo turned and met Eriol's gaze. "Then why does he go after her like that? Like she's the only person in his world."

Eriol had no answer for her.

Meanwhile, the boy who'd kicked the ball yelled, "Sorry!"

"You ok?" One who stood closer to Sakura asked.

She felt like there was a cut under her left eye where the ball hit. Her left cheekbone felt bruised. She kept her face behind her hands, not because she wanted to cry in pain, but because she felt her temper rising.

She had come out to relax and rest. Maybe it was her fault for sitting here, but heck, she was well beyond the sidelines. And it wasn't her fault that they sucked at soccer. They could kick, but kicking the ball at full force and hitting her? Well, if that wasn't an indication of their lack of skill, what was?

"Are you okay?" Someone else called out.

"You guys made her cry!"

"No, man! That's not your fault! She shouldn't have been sitting there."

"Why were you kicking that way?! The goal's over there."

"You…" She slowly stood up and uncovered her face. "You IDIO-" A hand fell over her mouth just then, a strong arm wrapping around her waist. Sakura's gaze flew up to Syaoran, who was hauling her off the soccer field.

"Let's get you to the nurse's office."

Sakura almost bit his hand. She pried his hand off her face. "Did you hear them!? Did they just blame me?!"

"I know," he began, still keeping a firm arm around her waist. "Just remember that you're a respected member of the cheerleading squad and you're a senpai…"

"They shouldn't even be allowed in the soccer field if they're going to play that bad! Imagine if that happened in a normal game. They'd knock out a parent or a kid watching in the sidelines!" She continued, ignoring him.

"The guy who hit you isn't in the soccer team," Syaoran interrupted.

"Argh! Still! Look!" She stopped walking suddenly and turned to him. "Look at my face!"

He stopped and faced her. When she kept moving, he grabbed her chin. "Stop." He moved closer to study the cut and the bruise.

Though still fuming, she immediately became aware of how close his face was to hers. If they weren't best friends, people would think more of it. Nevertheless, the pulse under her chin increased. She tried not to inch back. Instead, she swallowed and pushed him back slightly.

Not noticing anything, he said, "Doesn't look so bad, but you're bleeding. Come on." He dragged her with him towards the nurse's office.

Ten minutes later, the nurse finished placing the bandaid on Sakura's face and passing her an ice bag. With a look, the nurse scolded them. "Why do I see you two in here at least twice a month? Can you both just learn to be careful and stay away from trouble?"

Sakura opened her mouth to protest when Syaoran slapped a hand over her mouth for the second time that day. "Yeah, sorry Fukushima-sensei. We'll try and do that." He grabbed Sakura's arm and dragged her out of the nurse's office. "Thank you again."

Sakura bit back the angry words sitting at the base of her throat.

"You have to admit though. We do visit the nurse a lot. At least you do."

"Shut up, so do you," she remarked. Then her facial expression eased. She glanced over at him and said, "Thanks for coming to my rescue."

He showed her his lopsided smile. Since junior high, rarely did he smile like that, but only because girls tended to go crazy every time he did it. But it was one smile he also tended to reserve just for her, though he didn't realize it. "Anytime."

Sakura felt her heart skip a beat. She looked away from him. Then he ruffled the top of her head playfully.

A/N: Another glimpse into their past. The next chapter will go back to present time.