Last Update: January 4, 2015

Alright, I don't know who all really reads the authors notes, but you should know that unless they're the first or most recently posted chapter, they aren't particularly important. Most don't still apply, and will be taken out when I go back and edit them. They can be important, though, so I encourage you guys to read them if you have time and you remember. If not, it's not the end of the world.

I will be putting important info about the chapters in my profile from now on, most likely.

Also, I don't know if I've already said this, but in the original, I didn't start using Syaoran's POV until the third or fourth chapter, so that's why there's not much from his POV in these first few chapters. I always favor Sakura, simply because I'm a girl, but you will hear a lot more from him in later chapters.

Sakura's POV

Since the talk with Mr. Terada took longer than I expected, I don't have much time to eat lunch and talk to Tomoyo. When I arrive at our usual meeting location on the roof, I find her already packing up her things. She looks up when I walk over.

"That took longer than expected. Did everything turn out okay?"

She grabs the end of her long, curly raven hair. Like Mr. Terada's habit of pinching the bridge of his nose, Tomoyo grabs the ends of her hair and twists them until they catch and she can't twist anymore.

I groan just remembering it. "Ugh. You won't even believe it, Tomoyo!" I allow myself to fall onto my knees next to her. "Mr. Terada wants Syaoran to tutor me," I tell her. She looks about as shocked as I was.

"He wants Syaoran to tutor you?" I nod. "As in Li Syaoran?" I nod again. "But you hate Li-kun!"

I think back to what he said in the classroom. Contrary to how I may make it seem, he never tries to hurt me by bringing up my mother. For that, even I can't bring myself to hate him.

"I don't hate him, Tomoyo; I just have a very strong dislike of him." I can't help adding, "And I want to slap him across his smug-ass face every time I see him." I drill my fist into my hand in front of me just thinking about it.

"Right," Tomoyo drags out the 'i' with a nervous look on her face. Then her face turns confused. "Hold on–I thought that you were staying after because Terada-sensei was mad at you for being late again. How'd you end up getting tutored by Li?"

I sigh and begrudgingly explain. "Mr. Terada seems to think that if the two of us spend more time together, we'll both get along better and become overall better people. Or something like that."

Of course, Tomoyo, being as perceptive as she is, has to go and ask, "So it doesn't have anything to do with the fact that you're failing almost all of your classes?"

Darn it, Tomoyo, why do you have to know me so well? I roll my eyes. "Well, maybe just a little. Anyways, let's talk about something else!" I try to get her to focus on something else. In attempt to distract myself, I pull out my bento and start eating.

"Alright–but wait–what about your job at the cafe?"

The job that Tomoyo is referring to is a waitressing gig I have everyday after school, in a little café at the edge of Tomoeda. I also perform there every so often, providing music and bringing in more customers. It's not exactly the ideal job for your everyday seventeen-year-old, but it pays well, which, with my family, is something that I need from a job.

"I thought the same thing, but apparently it's not a problem, because from now on I'll be meeting Syaoran out front every morning an hour before school starts. It's so unfair! An entire hour with him. Alone. As in just the two of us. It's inhumane!"

Tomoyo just rolls her eyes at my drama like I'm always this way, and, for the most part, I am. Still, there are some days that are harder to get through than most. With all that goes on in my life it's kind of hard not to have those kinds of days. Sometimes with everything that goes on I feel suffocated. Contrary to my demeanor, I'm not always energetic and feisty. Tomoyo know's that better than anyone.

"So what was it that you wanted to talk to me about? You mentioned Touya in the note."

Instantly, I feel tired. My shoulders slump froward, and I look down at my food with a sigh. With everything going on, I almost forgot. Unfortunately, I can only forget for so long before I get pulled back to reality.

"Right," I mumble, looking up at her again. "Do you remember how Touya works at that pizza place downtown?" Tomoyo simply nods. "Well, it's closing down apparently."

Tomoyo's mouth drops open, and she makes a small gasping sound. "What? But, why? What happened?"

"I don't know. Bankruptcy, maybe. What difference does it make? He's still going to lose his job. We're already cutting it way too close paying the bills as it is, but now-" I have to talk a deep breath. "I don't know how we're going to pull this off. I'm going to talk to the cafe's manager today, but I just don't-" my voice cracks, and my words are rushed, just like my breathing. "I don't think I can take much more of this."

I reach out and grab onto the one and only person in this world who I still call my friend. Tomoyo takes my food and sets it down next to us before returning the gesture. She rubs slow circles on my back and strokes my hair. For a brief moment, I wonder what I would ever do without Tomoyo by my side.

The bell rings a few minutes later, and Tomoyo helps me pack my things up. We walk back to class in silence. I'm too worn out to talk, and she knows this. When we get to class we sit down across from each other almost simultaneously. A steady flow of students make their way into the classroom. It's about a minute before class starts when Syaoran walks in. His eyes lock on mine for a moment, but he looks away without revealing any sort of emotion.

I can feel Tomoyo watching me as the bell rings, no doubt wondering about the brief eye contact between Syaoran and I. I make a silent prayer that the class will end soon.

When the bell finally rings, students bolt from the classroom like bats out of hell. If I weren't in such a hurry myself, I might find it rather amusing. As soon as I reach my shoe locker, I rapidly shove my rollerblades onto my feet and skate out of the building.

As luck would have it, just as I'm rounding the corner of the school gate, I nearly run right into someone. Alarmed, I manage a high-pitched squeak.

Fortunately, I have very fast reflexes. Unfortunately, even though I manage to narrowly avoid the person, I wind up basically throwing myself against the brick wall that surrounds the school.

I try to throw my weight onto the blade's brake, but my collision with the wall is inevitable. My right shoulder slams into it just before I go tumbling forward onto my forearms. When I hit the ground, the impact sends a jolt through my whole entire body. I hold my arms up to cover my face, and when I land, I can feel the concrete digging into my skin.

Thank you, Touya, for forcing me to wear padding, because had I not been wearing any, I probably would've broken something–or somethings.

"Whoa, hey, are you alright?" the person I almost ran into exclaims.

That voice–oh, please no.

There were running footsteps, and from next to me, the voice spoke again. "Are you okay?"

You've gotta be kidding me! Of all the people I could've almost run into, what are the odds? This must be some kind of cruel joke.

I set my palms on the ground and start to push myself up. "Wait–Kinomoto?"

I finish sitting up and lean against the wall, my legs being weighed down by the rollerblades. "The one and only," I say sarcastically.

For a moment, Syaoran doesn't move, but then he seems to snap out of it and kneels down in front of me. "What the hell just happened?" He looks away from me to examine where I'm hurt.

"I turned the corner too fast and didn't see you." I say, trying to sound nonchalant. Ridiculous, I know. There's absolutely nothing in this situation that isn't totally freaking me out.

"Right," Syaoran says, only half listening. He moves, and before I realize what he's doing, I find my right arm in his hands. With one hand on my elbow and the other wrapped gently around my wrist, I feel my entire body stiffen.

What the hell does he think he's doing? My mind screams at the physical contact. Every instinct tells me to push him away.

I involuntarily flinch, and he immediately lets go and meets my gaze. "Sorry, does it hurt?"

Whats with the sudden chivalry?

"N-no," I lie. Damn it, don't stutter! Great, now he's back to that annoying smirk. This guy has weird mood swings.

"Sure," he says, dragging out the 'u'. He leans away and comments, "You should probably go get that checked out."

I know that I neither have the time or insurance to go to the doctor and get it checked out, so I figure if it's really that bad, then I can stop by the school nurse's office when I have the time.

Still, to humor him, I lie and say, "Yeah, I'll get right to that."

Syaoran stands and offers me his hand. I stare at it. The gesture seems foreign to me. After a moment, I simply turn away and push myself up off the ground and onto my own two feet without help. I see him frown a little, but he just drops his hand to his side once more, ignoring my rudeness.

At that moment, I decide to throw a quick glance at my watch, only to see that I'm running late.

"Well, this was..." I trail off. Was what? A pain–literally? I decide not to finish the thought and switch to saying, "So, I'll meet you here tomorrow, then?"

I don't wait for a response.

"Great! Until then." I give him a single wave of my hand and skate off down the street at top speed.

By the time I reach the café, I'm already ten minutes late. When I open the back door leading to the employees lounge, I can hear voices from down the hall.

"Where the hell is she? We can't keep doing this with just the two of us."

"Calm down, Chiharu. I'm sure she'll be here any second now."

I pull off my skates and run into the room. Inside, I find two figures. The first is a girl my age with dark brown hair braided in low pigtails, and the second is a tall woman in her mid-thirties with long ash-brown hair.

"I'm so sorry that I'm late." I bow to the older woman who is my manager, Mrs. Matsumoto, and try to catch my breath at the same time.

"Well, you should be," an annoyed voice bellows. I straighten and glance at my coworker, Mihara Chiharu, who just spoke.

Contrary to her attitude towards me, much like Syaoran, Chiharu and I were once friends. However, unlike my falling out with Syaoran, the two of us didn't stop being friends until about two years after my mother's death.

The worst part is that I never even learned why she decided to stop being my friend. One day I had been venting to her about my father, and the next think I know, she turns to me, says she's had enough and walks away. She started avoiding me after that. At first, I thought that it was just a phase and that she would get over it, but as days dragged into weeks and weeks dragged into months, I slowly realized that she wasn't coming back.

It's kinda funny, though. I still remember the day she walked into the café trying to find a part time job, and the look of awe when she spotted me across the room in the cafe's standard maid outfit. She almost walked out right then and there, but claimed that she wasn't going to let her past relationship with me effect her ability to work at the café. I think that it was her determined attitude that swayed Mrs. Matsumoto to hire her. We were sixteen when that happened. Looking back on it now, I find it hard to believe it's been an entire year.

My thoughts are interrupted when Mrs. Matsumoto speaks. "That's enough, Chiharu. Get back to work." Chiharu huffs, but follows the manager's orders. When she's gone, Mrs. Matsumoto turns to me. "What happened, Sakura? You're almost never late."

I sigh. "I know; I'm really sorry. I was in a bit of an accident on my way out of school."

Her eyes widen. "What?" She crosses the room to me, takes my shoulders, and examines me. "Are you okay? Did you get hurt?" I wince as she applies pressure to my right shoulder.

"I'm fine," I choke out, removing her hands. "But I actually need to talk to you about something."

"Of course, Sakura, but once your shift is over. Chiharu is going to lose her head if you don't get out there soon."

I give her a half smile, nod reluctantly, and leave to change.

After four long hours of waiting on tables, my shift is finally over. Today is my turn to close up, so while everybody else leaves, Mrs. Matsumoto stays behind with me.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about, Sakura?"

I sit down across from her in the employees lounge.

The question stumps me a bit. I know that I need to talk to her about my job, but where do I even start? This played out a lot smoother in my head. I decide to begin by telling her about my brother's job. She sympathizes with me saying, "I'm so sorry, Sakura, but I'm sure everything will work out."

I give her the best smile I can manage, which I can feel isn't much. "Thank you. I actually wanted to talk to you about my work hours, though," I confess.

Mrs. Matsumoto just sighs. "I figured. Sakura, you already work too many hours as it is. I'm not sure I'm comfortable giving you even more. I know that you're in a difficult situation with your father, but if you keep overworking yourself..." She doesn't finish what she was saying.

Mrs. Matsumoto is one of the few people who knows about the situation with my family. She doesn't know everything, but she's aware of my father's unemployment, and that Touya and I have to work in order to pay the bills on our own.

I take her silence as a chance to intercept. "I know you're worried about me, Mrs. Matsumoto, and I really appreciate that, but I also really need you to understand how much I need this." I'm basically pleading now.

Her face is torn, and I can see she's deep in thought, staring down at the table. Finally, she sighs and looks back up to me. "First tell me what you have in mind."

I instantly relax.

"Well, for starters, I was thinking that since my live music shows bring in a lot of customers, we could start doing them regularly. Like maybe every Friday and Saturday night."

Mrs. Matsumoto thinks for a moment. "That sounds reasonable. It certainly would bring in a lot more customers. I'll have to work out the details, but I think that could work." I can't help but smile.

"Thank you," I say, sincerely. She nods.

"Is that all?" Now I frown.

"No. See, on the weekends when I usually work from noon to closing, I was hoping you would agree to let me come in when we open and work the full day." She frowns.

"Sakura, thats-" I cut her off.

"I know it's a lot, but I can handle it." I'm leaning into the table now.

Her voice is soft and controlled as she says, "Sakura, that's twelve hours. Only my full time employees work that long, and you're a part timer. It's a lot of hours for a high schooler to take on."

Gauging the look in her eyes, I can tell that its a long shot, but I stand up and step in front of her. Giving her a low bow, I plead in a desperate voice, "Please, Mrs. Matsumoto. I know I'm asking a lot, but please."

Silence follows.

After a minute, Mrs. Matsumoto finally speaks again. "Alright, Sakura. I'll allow this for now, but if I think you're pushing yourself too hard, or you give me any reason to think that you can't handle this, then it's back to your original hours. Are we clear?"

I look up at her, unable to suppress my relieved grin. "Thank you," I say, my voice hysterical. "Thank you so much! I won't let you down."