Valkyrie85: Hello! Thanks for giving my story a try. I really put a lot of effort into this story and I hope you will enjoy it! For those who have read my other story "Complications," I would like to apologize for not uploading for such a long time. I've put it on hiatus for now. Gomen!

Chapter 1

"Welcome back to Ichicho!" said the 50 year-old queen of talk shows' Ichicho Aya to her sea of standing audience. The audience excitedly clapped and then took their seats for the show to resume from the commercial break.

"So just a little recap, before the show we asked Syaoran about how he handles all the crazy fans while staying on top of the world in his career. He told us, unsurprisingly, that it's quite simple, FOR HIM," Aya said and smiled, while her audience giggled at her emphasis.

"As a huge fan of his, just like the rest of you sitting here and the ones hogging the TV at home right now, I can clearly remember the day when he first debuted as a runway model and the day when he first announced, two years ago, that he was going to be a part of the film industry." Aya continued as the cameras circulated around the studio.

"No matter what he had in mind, he took the world by storm. His films received numerous awards, and his acting was recognized internationally as he took home the Best Male Actor of the Year award, for the past 2 years. In addition to these achievements, he has also held the number one spot on the Asia's 100 Most Beautiful chart for 4 years in a row. With an overwhelming record like that, handling his ballistic fans must be somewhat easier!" The audience erupted into cheers.

She waited for the crowd to calm down before she continued, "Now Syaoran, my next question is: What do you think of your nickname given to you by your fans? That is, the nickname 'playboy?'"

Sitting across from her comfortably was Li Syaoran, a handsome man with amber eyes and messy chocolate-coloured hair. He smiled genuinely and shook his head. "Honestly, Aya, I don't quite know myself. They call me a playboy and somehow I half agree and half disagree with them. I mean, I agree because I may not be too committed sometimes in my relationships due to my work load, so I tend to just give up on those who can't be considerate for me. But I don't agree because you know how it is here, the tabloid makes up 70% of the things they report on in magazines. The things they call me a playboy for are very untrue, though I am a playboy in some way..."

Aya nodded and asked, "Out of the numerous reports, how many were actually true?"

Syaoran paused for a second to think about it before he answered, "Six or seven?"

"You mean six or seven girlfriends, excluding hook-ups?" Aya's eyes widened.

"Yeah." Then he asked uncertainly, "Is this too much?"

Aya nodded. "That is quite many. Out of all your long and short relationships, which one you felt like it was different and special?"

Syaoran made the signature move he used when he felt stuck. He laced his fingers through his hair and pushed it backwards. To his fans, this was a haven to watch. It was so sexy.

"Well, there was this girl who I had a huge crush on in high school when I was still in New York."

"And how was it different?"

"The girl was just different. Her smile was beautiful. She was very friendly, even though we weren't friends. Actually, we never actually had a proper conversation."

"And have you seen that girl every since you moved to Japan?"

Syaoran shook his head. He grabbed the coffee mug in front of him and took a sip.

"Alright then, the show will resume shortly after the break. Stay tuned!" Aya said and the audience got up to cheer once again.

…

"Was it Sakura?"

"Hm…?"

"The 'high school crush,' was it Kinomoto Sakura?" a navy blue-haired and gray-eyed man, called Hiiragizawa Eriol, questioned Syaoran. He waited for his friend's reply while he wiped his mouth with a napkin.

Sitting across from him, Syaoran nodded without looking up from the knife and fork at work.

Eriol sighed. "I thought you gave up on searching for her? Why did you mention her again?" He pushed up his glasses and leaned closer to Syaoran.

This time, Syaoran looked up at his former-manager-then-got-promoted-to-become-an- executive at his company, as he chewed his food slowly.

"I did give up but you saw the interview too, didn't you? Aya asked me first."

"She did, but you don't have to answer everything truthfully. You should know that by now, Syaoran. A big celebrity like you who has been working in this industry for so long should know that the work is full of lies," Eriol retorted.

"Which is exactly why I said that. Because this industry is full of lies, it needs some truth. So I told one. Big deal," Syaoran said nonchalantly and took a sip of his wine. He spoke in his smart-ass tone which Eriol hated the most.

Eriol looked at him sceptically but didn't say anything. Somehow, he thought that maybe Syaoran still hadn't completely forgotten about Sakura, but Syaoran wasn't going to admit it. Or maybe, he didn't realize that himself.

"Come to the company tomorrow. We'll have to discuss your new project," Eriol said a few minutes after both men ate in silence.

Syaoran looked up and pouted. "Another one? But I just finished filming the other one!"

"Do you know why you have to do it?" Eriol asked as he took out his phone and tapped on it a few times before handing it over to Syaoran. "Read it."

Syaoran took the phone and read what it said:

"Syaoran's acting is flawless!"

"He can fight so well!"

Typical comments. Syaoran didn't know why Eriol told him to read something that he already knew without reading. Eriol knew what Syaoran was thinking. Before Syaoran said anything, he said, "Keep on reading."

So he did. He scrolled down the forum until he passed something that caught his eyes. He moved the scroll bar up a little.

"Syaoran's acting is great, however only physical wise. I couldn't feel anything from him when he was about to kill himself in 'Star Tears'."

Then, he read another that replied to the previous comment.

"I agree. His playboy attitude must have something to do with it. I couldn't feel anything either in that scene. It's like he killed himself just for the purpose of dying. He was actually supposed to kill himself because his loved one died and he wanted to join her in the other world."

Another said, "HE'S A PLAYBOY! THAT'S WHY HE CAN'T CONVEY THESE DEEP EMOTIONS!"

"You see now? You see why we have to get you to film movies one after another?" Eriol asked.

Syaoran looked at him but didn't say anything.

"Your acting may be great, but if people look deeper into it, all they see is emptiness. There's absolutely no…emotions beneath your physical features. Even though you do have expressions physically, deep inside is all empty. Do you get what I mean?"

Syaoran shook his head.

"It's like when I smile," Eriol said and demonstrated a smile, "I may have a smile on my face but inside, I'm not really smiling because I'm not happy. Now though," he demonstrated another smile, "I am actually smiling because I'm happy. You can even tell through my eyes."

Syaoran nodded slowly, trying to comprehend.

"But why should we worry about these comments? There are ones like these all the time!" Syaoran asked.

"That's right but this problem is actually very serious. As you act in more films, people will start to notice this problem more often. This problem is what differentiates an idol actor with only a pretty face but no talents from a true actor with great talents. We have noticed this problem a long time ago. So, what we want to do now is to help you improve, by giving you more practices."

Syaoran nodded in agreement, no longer wanted to protest.

Passengers boarding the 201 flight, flying to New Jersey, please enter from gate 89…

A 5 foot 7 woman, in a simple t-shirt, track pants, and a pair of running shoes walked among the other travellers in the airport. Her height, pretty tall for a Japanese woman, made her stand out, especially with a pretty face like hers that didn't scream "BITCH." Back in the states, she was pretty popular in her own league. She wasn't the most out-going type nor was she the super quiet type. She was in-between, which made her very likable.

Another reason that she stood out among the people in the airport was because of her short bob-cut auburn hair and beautiful emerald eyes. Typically in Japan, people had mostly black hair and black eyes.

"Sakura!" an old woman called the woman, now known as Sakura. When Sakura turned, the old woman waved. Her eyes were emerald, just like Sakura's. Her hair, due to age, was gray. Other than the difference in the hair colour and the height, the old woman was basically a replica of Sakura.

"Grandma!" Sakura exclaimed as she nearly ran towards the woman who was standing not far away with two other people. One was Sakura's grandpa, Miyazaki Yamamoto, and the other one was Sakura's best friend, Daidouji Tomoyo.

When Sakura approached the threesome, she was immediately pulled into a tight embrace by her grandma, Miyazaki Misaki.

"It's so good to see you again, my dear. I've been waiting for you to arrive for a very long time!"

Sakura wanted to reply, but due to the embrace she couldn't. Then, a big hand gently placed on Misaki's shoulder.

"Misaki, shall we get her inside the car first? She's been on a long flight," Yamamoto convinced his wife. When Misaki unwillingly took her arms away from Sakura, Yamamoto winked at Sakura, who returned a smile.

"Alright," Misaki said and pouted, "you're right. Let's get Misaki into the car first."

The four of them headed out the double doors of the airport and got into a limo that waited for them.

"You don't remember this place, do you?" Misaki asked after they arrived at her and Yamamoto's Yokohama home. It was the traditional kind of Japanese house, with wooden walls and floors. It was roomy with tatami mats beside every table there was. The house was traditional but all the facilities were very modern. For example, they had a flat-screen TV in the living room. Everything about the house was so new to Sakura.

Sakura shook her head as her eyes wandered around the room they were currently sitting in.

"It's okay, child. Memories are the past. What's important is now. We can build happy memories together," Yamamoto said. Misaki immediately nodded her head.

This was the first time Sakura visited Japan. She lost all her memory due to a car accident 7 years ago, in New York. Her mom, Miyazaki Nadeshiko died in the crash. After the accident, Tomoyo, her grandparents, and Tomoyo's mom Daidouji Sonomi all went to New York to see Sakura and attend Nadeshiko's funeral. That was the time when Sakura, as a new person after she lost her memory, first met those who loved her. Even though their visit was short, she got very close to them.

"It's too bad that you have to go back to Tokyo with Tomoyo today. Why can't you stay here with us? Go work at a Yokohama hospital instead!" Misaki whined like a child. Sometimes, she was more of a child than anyone else.

Sakura smiled apologetically and shook her head. "I'm sorry, grandma. I don't get to choose where I work. My professors back in New York do."

After Sakura and Tomoyo had dinner with Misaki and Yamamoto, they said bye to them and got into the limo to go back to Tokyo.

"Sakura?" Tomoyo peeked inside the room.

"Yeah?" Sakura got up from her bed and walked towards Tomoyo. "Come in!" She grabbed her hand and pulled her into her room.

Tomoyo smiled and sat on Sakura's bed. "How do you like this room? Is it big enough for you?"

Sakura nodded. "Of course! It's just like the room I have back in New York!"

She looked around the room and saw beautiful paintings of landscapes in Europe, which Sakura adored a lot. There was also an area where couches were placed around a coffee table. There also was a plasma screen TV attached to the wall.

"I'm glad." Tomoyo smiled. Sakura loved Tomoyo so much. From what she heard, they were childhood best friends and grew up together, just like their mothers. After Tomoyo visited Sakura in New York, she and Tomoyo became very good friends. In addition, they constantly chatted on msn even after Tomoyo returned to Japan. Sakura knew for sure that after her memory lost, the closest person she met was Tomoyo.

"I heard from Aunt Sonomi that you opened your own fashion company. How is it going?"

Tomoyo shrugged. "It's alright. I've already designed all the clothes and now I need models."

Tomoyo suddenly grinned at Sakura. "Me?" Sakura pointed at herself and Tomoyo nodded.

"I want you to be my female spokesperson. In a few days, I will have a dinner meeting with Li Syaoran to ask him to be my male model," Tomoyo explained.

"Who is Li Syaoran?"

Tomoyo's grin widened. "You'll see."

Valkyrie85: There you go! The first chapter was just some basic introduction to the characters in the story. I promise you that the story will get better! Thanks for reading and please review! Also, the next chapter will come out next Friday.