18

The next day, since I have no longer to hide from Eriol, I wake up at my usual hour. Li will come pick me up so we can go to school together. I kinda forgot to tell him Misaki and I usually walk together. I kinda forgot to tell Misaki it won't be Eriol the one who will walk with us from now on.

I wonder how both of them will react to this news.

I'm placing Misaki's fruit in her lunch box, when I listen the doorbell ring.

"It's Eriol! Misaki yells. "Hurry up, Sakura!"

I walk out of the kitchen, with both lunch boxes in one hand, and my backpack in the other one, and I arrive at the door at the exact same moment Misaki opens it, and nope, it's not Eriol, it's Li, the one who's smiling at her.

Misaki looks at him, confused. She was just a baby when Li and I were part of the group, that I'm pretty sure she has no idea who he is.

"Hurry up, Misaki." I say just as she had told me before, and so, she was no other option but to take her lunch box and walk out of the house. "Good morning… Syaoran." I hope neither of them noticed how I hesitated when calling him by his first name.

"Good morning, Sakura."

"Who's him?" Misaki asks.

"I can ask the same thing about you." Li counter attacks, and thus, they both frown at each other.

An awkward silence. Li seems to notice Misaki won't give in, so he finally sighs, and answers:

"I'm your older sister's boyfriend, Li Syaoran." I look at him, visibly shocked. Lying to our families was not part of the plan!

"Kinomoto Misaki." She says, and since it seems she still doesn't like Li that much, she walks past him, ready to walk to school. But then, she stops.

I see how Li looks at her, and smiles. He then walks down our front steps, walks past Misaki, crosses our front yard, and presents us to a man with white long hair and black suit that's about to…

He opens the backdoor of a limo! For real? Misaki and I look at it, unable to say a word.

"Come on, get in." He hurries us. "Or we'll be late."

The three of us get inside the back seat of the limo. The chauffeur closes the door for us, gets behind the wheel, and begins driving us to school. Elementary school is about two blocks closer to home, compared to our High school, so Misaki will be the first one to step down. It's a five-minute trip, so I'm expecting it to occur in utter silence, but contrary to what I thought, as soon as we sit, Misaki asks:

"Since when is he your boyfriend?"

"Last week." I say. Maybe I should practice right now all this fake story, before someone asks me for real at school. But there's no chance to say anything else since Misaki doesn't make any more questions about the situation. On the other hand, her question dive into:

"Have you told it to Rika?" I say no, which makes Misaki smile proudly: knowing something before Rika does is such an achievement for her.

Besides that one, there are no more questions, so when we arrive at her school, and the chauffeur opens the door, she steps down and runs away.

And so, we continue our commute (just three more minutes) to High school, where the limo once again stops and we are free to step down.

"I had no idea you had a limo and a chauffeur." I say to Li, as he takes my hand and we walk towards our lockers.

"I didn't think it was necessary. Besides, the whole school knows about it, why don't you?"

I shrug my shoulders. To be honest, whatever it is the popular kids do, I really don't care.

"We don't have any classes together today, but we can see each other at lunch, okay?"

I nod. Li has already changed his shoes (I still need to put mine inside my locker), and since our first class are in different school areas, he gives me a kiss (just as the contract says), and walks away.

Just as he said, at lunch break, we're at the cafeteria. Li wants to sit with his friends, but Daidouji is there, and I'm actually scared.

"Give her the chance to be a little bit curious and jealous." I whisper, just as I slightly pull his arm. We end up sitting at a corner.

But we're talking about Li. Even when we're sitting out of the spotlight, everybody's watching us. Knowing everybody's judging every move I make, I feel sick in my stomach, and can't eat my lunch. Luckily, Li seems to like what I brought, and he ends up eating it, so there's no waste.

When the bell rings and we must go back to classes, Li hugs me by the waist, and (I'm sure he did it at the exact same moment Daidouji eyed us) he also gives me a note. I hold it tightly, and read it until I'm seated at the very last row of history class.

"My dear Sakura: you did an amazing job today. With all my love, Syaoran."

I love this Syaoran so much. I keep on feeling he's the best part of this adaptation.

Ribo~