A/N : HELLO~ I'm back. Okay, there is a reason as to why i updated so slow and that is because I encountered writer's block. OH God. I didn't know how to continue the story for a moment. But after a while, i solved it and here is the chapter you all been awaiting for. Thank you all for your patience. So enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 9
Syaoran POV
My head hurt like hell when I woke up first thing in the morning. Not that I could sleep at all after realizing she was the one who made my children change. I remembered her face frowning as she tried to explain herself but I just didn't let her…I was so angry at the lie and the fact she tried to keep this a secret for as long as she could. She didn't wanted to see me at all; she still despises me and for all I could have known she would never feel the same way like I did all these years.
I quickly went to take a shower hoping it would make the headaches die down. But deep down, I knew that it wouldn't. After that, I went to the dining room to join the children and…..her. I grimaced at the thought of her hiding in her room away from me after all that happened. But maybe it's for the best if she didn't see me at all. I wouldn't know what I'd do if I saw her right now.
From far down the hallway, I could already hear sobbing noises from the dining room and suddenly I got worried. Who was crying there? I quicken my steps to the dining room.
In the dining room, I saw something shocking. Maya was there sobbing while clutching her doll tightly. She was crying there and I noticed Wei was kneeling beside her trying to calm her down. But he failed. Shuurei was sitting opposite Maya with a scowl and I swear I spotted tears in his eyes threatening to fall.
And then I just stood there for who knows how long taking in the whole scene. I was shocked. It had been a long time since I saw the children like this. The last time was when….Sayuri and I divorced. Maya cried and cried begging her mother to stay while Shuurei stood coldly in a corner probably crying too. Sayurei didn't even bat an eyelash to her children's cries and she turned and left. I was left there to comfort them. Maya was just two and Shuurei was five. They were so young.
Finally deciding to make my appearance, I walked into the room causing them to look up at me. Wei had a big frown on his face.
"Otousan! Yumiko-san is gone!" Maya shouted to me. Her big doe eyes brimming with tears as I took in her words. I froze. Wait, she left?
Wei made his way towards me trying to explain the situation. But my mind zoned out while I thought back to last night.
"I..I…" she stuttered as she looked into my eyes. Tears were running down her cheeks. And I remembered that time she also cried like this. So sad and hurt. I restrained myself from reaching out to wipe her tears off her beautiful face. I was just so fueled with anger; I was angry at …something. Myself? For believing things could change? Her? For avoiding me at all costs? Or for the hope I had that we could mend our relationship? Become friends again? Thousands of questions ran through my mind as I glared her down.
"You know what? Just leave for now. I don't want to see you." I muttered and step back. I knew my gaze was as cold as ice on her. And she left running down the hallway probably bawling her eyes out. I did it again. I've hurt her again. I slammed my fist on the counter and growled. My fist clenched tight. I couldn't believe myself for hurting her and I simply can't believe the fact she hated me so much as to avoid me.
I grimaced at the flashback I just had and tried to focus entirely on Wei's words.
"Syaoran-sama, Maya-sama said she realized Yumiko-san has left when she went to look for her in her room. She also found a note on her bedside table. I heard her crying down the hallway and had tried to comfort her since. Shuurei-sama knew about this when he came to have his breakfast. I'm terribly sorry, Syaoran-sama but I could not contact Yumiko-san at all." He explained as best as he could towards the situation. I gestured him to calm down as I made my way over to my princess.
"Maya?" I knelt down at her side and she threw her arms around me and sobbed into my shoulder. I patted her back slowly. I knew Sakura had a big effect on the children; she was probably the other mother figure the children had in their life and it helped them to cope with their loneliness since I'm always away in Hong Kong.
After a few moments, I pulled away from my daughter's embrace and wiped her tears away. I gave her a big smile hoping to ease her worries. Because I'm going to get her back no matter what. The children didn't deserve to suffer just because of me.
"It's okay. I'm going to ask her to come back, okay?" I said to Maya with a soft smile. She nodded and tried to give me a lopsided smile. I then walked over to my son and gave him another strong pat on his back shocking him in the process. His head shot up and looked at me in disbelief. And to my wonder I could spot a few tear stains down his cheeks. He seemed to realize this and started to rub furiously at his eyes and cheeks. I chuckled.
"You don't need to worry too." I whispered to him and I gestured the maids to serve breakfast as I led Wei out of the room to tell him what really happened last night. We went to the living room instead; away from the staff and children. Wei looked at me liked he knew something big is coming.
"Wei, I knew about her already. And it was my fault that she left." I told him plainly and ready to take the blame. I was the reason things never worked out. And I was the one who caused so much pain to anybody.
Suddenly, I felt Wei's hand on my shoulder and I looked up at the old man. He shook his head with a soft smile. He seemed to know what I'm thinking. I tried to smile back. He led me to the couch and I told him everything that happened. And like always, he listened without interrupting.
"Syaoran-sama. It's not entirely your fault. I don't think Sakura-sama blames you for anything anymore. She just isn't ready to take a new step and probably you could help her with that. So try to talk to her once more time. I think she will understand." He said slowly as I eyed him. He was definitely a father figure to me.
"How do you know?" I whispered softly. He then chuckled in response. I looked at him surprised.
"Well, both of you have something in common." He said grinning that old man grin. I looked at him even more confused.
"Both of you love the children so much." He said like it was the most obvious thing in the whole world. But the words repeated over and over in my mind. After lunch, I planned my way on getting her back.
Sakura POV
I woke up with a massive headache due to the excessive crying last night. My eyes swollen and bloodshot. I was in fact a mess. I looked around and saw that familiar apartment I rented when I first moved out of Tomoeda. It might not have been as luxurious as the Li mansion but it was cozy than anything. Without bothering to take a shower, I searched around for ingredients to make some breakfast.
Vaguely remembering that I had cleaned out the kitchen when I was about to move to the mansion, I sighed deeply. There goes my day of staying in and refusing to meet anyone. Well I had to do some grocery shopping anyway since I guess the nanny business is over and done with. The children's faces flashed through my mind and I felt a lump in the back of throat. I would miss them dearly.
Quickly taking a well-deserved hot shower, I prepared myself to go out for groceries. Passing the usual scenery outside the apartment, I felt suddenly more at ease than the time living in the Li mansion but there was something missing. Something so much more important.
I had breakfast in a nearby family diner and I remembered the first time I took the children out for a movie. We had a meal in a family diner just like this. Touya was there and he bickered with Shuurei-kun the whole time. It was hilarious and fun that time. I felt so horrible all of the sudden leaving the children without a word.
I quickly finished the meal because it was becoming too hard to bear as I reminisced. Then, I went to buy the groceries hoping the memories wouldn't haunt me as I busied on with life.
Syaoran POV
The first place I went was the Daidouji company downtown. My nerves were a mess as I thought of a way to convince Sakura's bestest friend ever to help me in this. I had a feeling she would chop my head and skin me alive if she knew what happened between me and Sakura. But it was a surprise that Sakura was even working as a nanny in the first place. I remembered clearly that she used to be Tomoyo's secretary.
While I pondered on the question, I had arrived in front of the building. I frowned at the sight of the building. I stepped into the lobby grimly and headed towards the receptionist. It was a young lady and I swear her eyes dazzled when she caught sight of me. I guess I'm quite famous everywhere or I am the center of attention AGAIN. I sighed.
"Excuse me, can I talk to Miss Daidouji?" I asked politely hoping she would quickly let me meet the lady without me breaking a sweat. She stared at me for a moment too long before nodding and proceeded to make a call.
"Erm… your name, sir?" she asked timidly.
"Just tell her it's about Sakura." I spat impatiently. I don't think after hearing my name Tomoyo would actually let me talk to her. The receptionist quickly nodded, a bit terrified after being glared at by me.
Luck was by my side because the receptionist successfully gave me access to Tomoyo's office within two minutes. I smirked as I strode to the elevator. It suddenly felt like déjà vu in the elevator with its annoying tune during the ride up to the office. I walked pass a few familiar faces from my impromptu visit the day before till I finally arrived the big wooden carved door with the words president on it.
I knocked on it and heard a soft voice asking me to enter. I have a feeling she didn't realize it was me behind the door. I went in and the first thing I saw was a pair of amethyst eyes staring straight at me then those eyes gave me a cold glare. But I wasn't intimidated by it since I had to bring back Sakura no matter what. I gave my word to Maya and Shuurei.
She stood up slowly; her glare never breaking. She flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked towards me. I gave her the smuggest smirk I could give. I know she is pissed off as hell and is ready to kill me because of what I did.
"What are you doing here? I made myself clear about Sakura that day before." She bellowed at me. I shrugged unaffected by her tone.
"Well, I know that she is my children's nanny. And I wonder why is that?" I said, my head tilted to one side. Her clenched fists suddenly loosen upon hearing me talk about the nanny business. Her mouth went agape and her eyes wide. She quickly frowned. She didn't knew I knew? I was surprised by reaction and wondered now if she really knew where Sakura is.
"Wait. You found out? When?" she asked with a shocked expression. I nodded in response.
"Well, I found out yesterday." I answered truthfully. She shook her head while thinking about something. One thing I knew from Eriol about Tomoyo is that she always bites her lower lip when she thinks about something serious. And I could tell from her red swollen lower lip, she has done a lot of biting.
"Don't blame her. We did it because of a dare. And you happened to be her client by coincidence. Actually, she was just going to do that dare for a few months." Tomoyo quickly explained as she thought I was mad at Sakura for lying to me. But she clearly avoided me because she didn't want to meet me or talk to me with her real name. At least that part I got it right.
Then suddenly it hit me. I didn't even hear her explanation and I got angry and now she left. A big frown marred my face. I gulped and shook my head.
"She left. That is why I'm here now." I whispered softly realizing my mistake. I should have kept my cool instead of bursting out my anger and asking her to leave. Tomoyo stared at me like I said something unbelievable. Probably I did said something unbelievable.
"I want to know where she is so I could apologize and ask her to go back." I continued on seeing as Tomoyo didn't say anything at all. She turned her back towards me.
"I didn't know this had happened. She hadn't called me." She muttered softly. I could hear her in this threatening silence even though her voice is so soft.
"She hadn't called me at all. But if…" she continued on.
"If you're serious on apologizing, I could give you her apartment address." She said as she turned to her desk and scribbled on a piece of paper. This time I was thoroughly shocked at her response. I thought she would resent me for hurting her friend once again. I gulped as I observed her movements clearly fearing all of this to be a hoax.
"Why?" suddenly, I muttered out unconsciously. My mind was confused; terribly confused.
"Because she loves the children too. She would never be able to leave them behind." She explained as her hand stretched out to me holding the piece of paper. I took it and observed the address. It was a few miles away but close enough to get there by foot. I looked back up at the woman who in turn stared back at me; her eyes glossed with tears.
She quickly raised a hand to wipe away the tears and my gaze soften. Tomoyo probably worries more about Sakura than anyone in the world.
"I'll make sure she never gets hurt again." I assured her with a firm tone. She looked at me like I was an alien and nodded slowly. I smiled to her.
"Thank you. I guess what she needed to heal was this after all." She whispered softly and gestured me to leave. I bowed to her in response and left with the piece of paper in hand. Then I began my journey down to Sakura's apartment.
Sakura POV
Looking at my watch, it's already near evening and with all the shopping I did today, I'm damn tired. But I know this tiredness helped me cope with my loneliness after all this while; after leaving the mansion; after leaving the children. My mind wandered to the children; what were they doing now or have they completely hated me for leaving them so sudden although I promised I wouldn't.
I walked the way back to my apartment and riding up the elevator with a smile on my face. What I didn't know was the person waiting for me in front of the door.
I stopped dead in the hallway to stare at the person sitting in front of my door in his expensive Armani suit dozing off. I dropped my groceries in complete shock. My feet froze and no sound came out of my mouth. The first thing I thought of was to leave and come back later.
"Sakura." As I turned to leave, he called me and I froze in motion. I could hear him stand up and walk towards me. He paused to help me pick up the groceries I dropped just now. I slowly turned to him and stared at him. My mind completely clueless on why he was here. I remembered clearly he told me to leave.
"Why?" that's the only word I could mutter after this shock. His auburn eyes seem to soften on me and I was so curious as to why would he do that. He was standing so close to me that I could feel his warm breath upon my skin. I feel the tingles down my spine upon seeing him so…so intensely gazing at me. I felt a big lump on my throat that no matter how hard I swallow it would never go away.
"Hear me out, Sakura. Don't leave." He said after a while and I flinched. Then I realize I couldn't take this anymore. I turned my heel and began to run; run away from this confusion and this person and further heartbreak.
Then, I was pulled back by a strong force on my wrist and I halted. A light squeal escaped my lips. I tried to pry away his hand by the more I struggled the tighter it grew. And it had begun to hurt with his vice-like grip.
"Wait! Don't run away. Please listen to me." He pleaded with a tone I couldn't recognize from the arrogant Syaoran I knew. It's the tone he would have when he's desperate. I stop struggling almost immediately. I knew this Syaoran was a different Syaoran than the Syaoran who was angry yesterday.
"Okay. Let's talk inside." I whispered as I noticed he was not going to give up that easily and the sun was setting soon. I walked pass him to the door as he let go of my wrist. As I fumble for the keys, I could feel the warmth he left from the grip he had on my wrist. It was a burning sensation that etched into my mind. I sighed and opened the door.
He came in with the groceries and I gestured him to put them on the dining table. Then I led him to sit on the couch while I made us some drinks in the kitchen. After making myself a cup of tea and him a cup of coffee, I walked towards him with both cups in hand.
I placed down the cups grimly on the coffee table and chose to sit opposite him on the floor. The further away from him was better. I bit down my lower lip grimly.
"I hope you still like your coffee with two teaspoons of sugar." I said suddenly and he flinched at my voice. He eyed the coffee and then drank it. What I didn't expect was his smile after he placed the cup down again.
"You remembered." He muttered then and I took a deep breath. Of course I remembered he would always do that with his coffee back in the days. I frowned at the memory; I shouldn't be remembering these now.
"So why are you sitting in front of my door?" I asked with the coldest tone I could manage. He leaned back and set his on me. I refused to look back at him so I placed my gaze on my cup of tea.
"Come back, Sakura. The children miss you. Maya was crying and Shuurei too. I'm sorry." He said slowly. I immediately look up when he told me the children cried. Most importantly Shuurei cried. I saw the gaze he gave me with his eyes and knew instantly he wasn't lying.
"No, I can't. You told me to leave, didn't you?" I asked again and I noticed he had clenched his fists tight.
"I did but I regretted it. The children need you terribly. Just please…come back. I promised Maya to get you back." He continued but this time he ruffled his hair with his hand. Clearly frustrated.
"No, you hate me anyway. I lied to you." I then replied thinking back to the way he told me to leave the night before. He gritted his teeth and growled under his breath.
"No! I don't hate you, Sakura. I would never hate you." He burst out and it made me flinch. I observed his features and I could tell he was frustrated and was trying to hold his anger towards something. Me maybe?
"Just please come back to be the children's nanny. I will be going back to Hong Kong soon." He pleaded once again. I shook my head as I refused to give in. I do miss the children but to go back and act like a nanny with him knowing, it's insult to the injury.
"No. I don't want to. The dare is over anyway." I muttered back. He then stood up and walked to me. I quickly backed away to avoid him from getting any closer. His eyes showed sadness that I could never describe. He was feeling really sad. Suddenly it seemed like the Syaoran I knew again. But I refused to give in. My heart could no longer take it if anything happens again.
"Stay back. Just leave for now. Please or I will call security." I spat to him scared that he would do anything to me. He stopped in front of me and suddenly I felt arms around me. Tightly, so suffocating that I couldn't breathe. His warmth seeped through the layers I wore and it was surprisingly …. It felt so right all of the sudden. That moment I knew I was screwed.
"Please." He whispered into my ear. His breath warm against my skin.
A/N : Okay so how was it? Hoped i didn't disappoint you guys. And yes i did put a cliffhanger. Actually i could continue it but i'm lazy to. Sorry. Oh well i guess i could have it done within a week. The next chapter I mean. And again I thank all of you for giving me your support all this time. Love you guys. Now let's go to the review corner. Yay~!
First up...
Spring Wishes - Yes a lot of people would agree with you that Syaoran is a dick. But you know men, they all seem like dicks but SOME aren't. emphasize on the some here. LOL but Syaoran isn't really one, i guess. You have to stick with the story to find out then. And sorry for late updating.
Guest- Sakura is going to have a hard time. Oh well me like to abuse her. LOL but she will pull through soon. Since she loves the children so much. But she would be happy to know you're cheering for her.
sme1228- why thank you for loving the story3 And sorry for the late updating. Writer's block is a pain in the ass. Definitely. Hope you continue to support. :)
Liz - Lol. Yup another person here thinks Syaoran is a dick. Well both of our main characters aren't thinking through when they reacted. Though Sakura is a bit tad pitiful. Sorry i made her like this. It is quite unfair but in this chapter she will have the upper hand. I hope it looks like it. LOL. And although it is a bit late, but happy holidays to you too. And thanks for supporting me.
s.c - LOL. And here in this chapter there's a cliffhanger but yes i agree it's a bit cruel to leave one. But, i'll update it soon hopefully. About updating regularly, I'm not sure about that since I'm starting college soon. But i'll try as best as i can. And for your question, I guess it' safe to say ifshe didn't there wouldn't be a story. Thanks for your support though.
James Birdsong - Why thank you for thinking my chapters are cool. I like your name BTW it's cute. I hope i don't sound sarcastic. But i appreciate your review and support. And i'm not kidding about the name it's cool. :)
Kurakura - Sorry for a long update. But i assure you that i wont be ending the story so soon. there's so much more in store. But i appreciate your patience. Oh and no need to thank me it's my pleasure to have you read my story anyway. So thank you for the support. :)
AmeliaPond23 - Thank you for supporting me and for the compliment. I hope you continue to love the story. And sorry for the long update. I appreciate your patience. And I'm happy you like the chapter. hope i get to make you feel that way again. Hope so. LOL. I guess it's too late to reply Merry Christmas to you too. But I'll wish you this year.
allourpiecesfit - I'm Happy you like the story and i hope i can continue to keep you interested. And yes, i'm growing better on the writing and I'm glad you think the same as AmeliaPond23 about chapter 8. Thank you again for the support. And about the messing you up, I'm sure i did not do that on purpose. *wink*
jdcocoagirl - Oh i guess we have the Ismael instinct. i wanted to write the story just like you thought but i changed it along the way so it ended up like this. a pleasure to have surprised you. About Syaoran being mad well he is partly a dick like most people think. LOL. But i thank your support. Hope you can continue to support the story and hope i continue to make you interested. :)