Disclaimer: I do not own any of the card captor Sakura characters... everything else comes from my imagination.
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Long 9 Months
Chapter 3 : Hours of Tranquility
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"You have to be kidding me," Takashi's mouth remained open as he tried to process what Eriol had just told him. He had known the guy for more than eight years, and he could still manage to surprise him.
"I kid you not," Eriol sipped through the straw of his chocolate milkshake. They were both sitting outside in one of the tables of their favorite weekend hangout as they waited for their girlfriends to join them.
"I cannot believe you told him that," Takashi shook his head in disbelief. "What's going to happen when he finds out."
"I don't know," Eriol waved as he saw Tomoyo and Chiharu looking for them through the crowds. "But it is going to be very interesting for the next couple of months around here."
Takashi moved his head in astonishment. "One of these days something is going to go terribly wrong with these web of lies you spin around Syaoran, Eriol. You're going to regret doing these things to your best friend." Eriol brushed the comment aside.
"Hey guys, Sakura decided to join Syaoran in the end. They're going to drive his family to the airport, so she's not going to join us."
"What are they going to do after?" Takashi asked confused. It wouldn't take the whole afternoon to drive someone to the airport to catch a flight.
Chiharu winked, settling down beside him and taking a sip of his drink. "I think they need some alone time." She giggled as she recalled how little time Sakura had spent with Syaoran in the past five days.
Eriol chuckled as he imagined the panic face that his cousin would be sporting at the moment. He'd pay a lot of money to be a fly on his wall this day.
"Anyway," Tomoyo placed her bags beside his chair as a waiter came forward to take their orders. "We're still on for a movie, right?" Everyone nodded.
“Sorry I’m late guys,” Chavela stopped in front of the group, gasping loudly as she tried to regain her breathing. Her cousin Ryo lazily walked toward them, settling beside his best friend Takashi. Everyone exchanged hello’s once again, the new pair ordering as well.
In the turn of the conversation, both Chavela and Ryo noted the smug expression that Eriol was sporting. It was usually reserved for one of his plans. Ryo asked Takashi confidentially, snickering when told the whole ordeal that had been laid in the works for Syaoran.
Chavela listened to bits of the conversation, recalling the idea that she had been toying with the past few days. If there was a plan in motion, then part of the job was done. What better way to catch the prankster in a web of lies, than just spoiling his carefully laid plans?
All she needed was patience. It wouldn’t take long to finally figure out what it all had to do with in the end. Maybe when it was all said and done in the end, Eriol would learn a bit about restraining that brilliant head of his and his proneness for forgetting the true troubles that he left in his wake.
Because well, if she didn’t do something to him now, she was going to find herself the brunt of one of his ideas in the end.
"This is a wonderful place," Sakura exclaimed as she walked the narrow path the Syaoran led her to. "How did you find out about this place?" She asked, her curiosity boundless as they neared a very wide and old oak tree. "I drove here a couple of years ago," he pointed to a walkway of wood, that entered part of the lake. "In one of those bouts of depression that I had when I met you."
"Silly," she chided him, as she set out to a run to the spot.
Sakura stood in the middle, her eyes closed as she took in the smell of nature and the bright sun warmed her body. Syaoran soon joined her, the picnic basket and blanket around his arms.
"So this is why you asked me to prepare a picnic yesterday," She wandered to the side of the walkway and sat at the rim. She took off her sandals and placed her naked feet over the edge. The tips of her toes brushed the water, a slight breeze caressing their features.
Syaoran placed his burden to the side as he joined her, his boots beside her sandals as their unclothed feet cooled inside the clear stream of the lake.
"These last few days have been stressful to you, haven't they?" Sakura took his hand in hers and rubbed her thumb against his own. She liked to have some type of physical contact with him. "I know having your mother and sisters with you for the past few days has taken its toll on you."
"You can say that again," Placing his hands under his neck as a cushion, he leaned backwards resting against the surface. He closed his eyes, letting his other senses take over. "There's only so much of my mother that anyone can take in one dose."
"You didn't fight about anything this time, did you?" Sakura tried to recall if any unpleasant silences had filled the house while she had been in their presence.
"No," Syaoran replied, cradling his left arm against her frame, bringing her closer to his body as they rested. The sun warmed the atmosphere, a whistling breeze brushing against the leaves that rustled in the branches of the surrounding trees. A few ducks could be heard in the background, the splashing water murmuring a low lullaby.
"Still, there's just a strain in our conversations that can't be overcome by anything else." Her nose was buried against his side. "what I love about this place is its tranquility." He let the comment hang, his breathing deepening as they lounged under the sunny sky.
"We should probably eat some of the food before it spoils," Sakura told him half an hour later, still enclosed in his embrace. Syaoran merely grunted in response, his arms relaxing his hold as he tried to bring his body in control to move once again.
Sakura placed her hands on his arms and helped him. He seemed to stumble a bit, trapping her in his arms as he moved from side to side, their feet in synch.
"Care for a dance princess?" He murmured into her ears as he lead her into a slow waltz. Sakura giggled against his chest as he whistled a low tune as the background noise of nature accompanied his tune.
This brought back memories of when they had stared in a production for their school's drama club. She had been the princess, he had been the prince. They had danced the night away in each other's arms, both glad to be in each other's arms as their budding feelings had started to sprout from beneath their friendship.
"You're my fairy princess," he said, dipping her as he rounded a step.
"And you're my growling prince," she responded, her hands snaking around his neck as they moved once again but with a less exuberant pace.
Their bodies moved from side to side, covering the entire pier. Sakura closed her eyes, letting Syaoran lead her as she relaxed once again against his frame. "You're a wonderful dancer."
"I know," he responded, suddenly dipping her and changing their beat to a Latin rhythm. "I also have a proficient partner."
"Proficient?" Sakura scoffed, her hands tightening against his and taking control of their movements. Recalling the Latin songs that they had previously danced to, she moved her body in a way that he had to follow. She turned in his arms, leading their complicated steps as their hands entwined and let go.
They grew breathless, their steps faltering, both recalling that their stomachs were empty and refueling was needed if any more of their antics were to be played.
"Let's spread the blanket under the big oak tree where the shade is," Syaoran placed a kiss on her forehead before picking their discarded items and slipping his feet into his shoes.
"Good idea," Sakura took the blanket as he took care of the basket and let him to the place where their picnic was to take place. She picked the spot, and with his help set the blanket as their anticipation for the food grew in bounds.
They sat beneath the shade, sandwiches in their hands as they let the scenery swarm their senses.
"It's been quite a while since we've been on a picnic," Sakura noted as she took a sip of the coke that Syaoran had just opened.
"I know," he grinned as a bit of a scuffle ensued as he tried to recover his drink. It had been the only can remotely cool of what they had brought. Every other one was warm to the touch. "We should probably return to that cliff without the others hanging around."
"Yeah," Sakura remembered the antics that had ensued the last time the whole group had spent an afternoon by the seaside in one of Tomoyo's cabins. "I'm pretty sure that Eriol planned the whole thing to jus screw up our weekend."
"It's his reason for living."
"You can say that again," Sakura rolled her eyes. "Here," she rummaged inside the basket deep into the bottom. She had packed a surprise for Syaoran in the late night. She brought out a wrapped container and placed it in his lap.
"What is it?" He asked, as his hands rummaged through the foil that covered it to open it. The aroma filtered through as he uncovered a corner, the sugary confection filling his nostrils and setting his senses on fire.
"You didn't," his eyes lit as he tore the covering off completely. Syaoran could feel himself salivating as his eyes feasted on the sweets. "How did you manage this?"
Sakura laughed at his expression. His hand was hovering over the square crumb, as if afraid that it would disintegrate when his fingers touched it. "Last night."
"But, there was no lingering smell in the kitchen," Syaoran had one of the sweets in his hand, letting it slowly travel toward his mouth, where his tongue was dancing excitedly in expectation.
"You did spend a long time with your sisters yesterday outside the house. Your mother helped me produce them while you guys were out." She'd spent the afternoon with Syaoran's mother making his favorite confection.
It had been a wonderful afternoon bonding with the otherwise unapproachable woman. There was something about the kitchen atmosphere that had loosened them up, making it easy to talk with one another and understand their different perspectives.
It had given Sakura a chance to see Syaoran’s woman different from what was portrayed from his eyes. In all, it was a very well spent day at the end, as they had parted in feelings of camaraderie that was needed to attain if she was to have any part of Syaoran’s family life in the next couple of years.
She watched closely as he opened his lips and took a bite. She watched enraptured as he closed his eyes and his expression took one of bliss. He moaned as the muscles in his throat and his jawbones worked. At last he swallowed, the slow movement prolonging the taste in his mouth. He licked his lips, as if catching any stray crumbs that may have fallen while he had bitten the sweet.
“I love you so much,” he said to her before wolfing down the rest of the piece and reaching for the others in quick succession.
“Hey!” Sakura protested as it all started disappearing at an alarming rate. “Leave something for me too. I didn’t slave a whole day in the kitchen with your mother just for you to take all of my hard work and devour it in one minute.”
Syaoran grinned sheepishly as his hand hovered over the small cakes that were left. His fingers twitched as his eyes wondered from Sakura’s serious face and the package. He debated his next step. He could just go ahead and eat the rest of the cakes and have Sakura enter a really bad mood in dun territory. Or, he could put the cakes down and away from his slipping hands and tried to restrain himself.
Preservation won in the end.
“Sorry,” his tongue continued to lick his lips and the inside of his mouth and his teeth. The titillating taste still present, but disappearing with each passing second.
“Your mother was right,” Sakura took the plate from his hand to remove the temptation and placed it inside of the basket. Out of sight, out of mind; or so she hoped. She kept one in her hands, taking a small bite.
She had tasted the confection while she had made it, but after smelling something for hours and having small bites as well truly wasn’t the best way to taste any food.
The sweet taste of guava fruit and sugar and eggs set an ambrosia. It truly was a potent combination. Swallowing, she felt the trickle down her throat, her mouth salivating for more.
She saw him reach out for the piece in her hand, but was too fast in a reaction for Syaoran to actually accomplish taking it. She saw him pout as she opened her mouth, her tongue slithering out and touching the base of the cake. She slowly placed the cake inside her mouth, making sure to enunciate every little detail to his hovering eyes.
“You’re a spoilsport,” he told her as she chewed carefully to extend the pleasure of the sweet to her tasting buds. His arms were crossed over his chest, the most wonderful and powerful quivering lip that she had ever seen present in his features. Taking a minute to look at her surroundings, making sure that they were still alone in the area, she waited before giving an appropriate response to his sulking.
“Really,” she said in between bites as she slurred in pleasure as the taste lingered in her mouth. Her tongue darted out, catching the crumbs that were left at the side of her lips. She leaned toward him, making sure that her hands came to either side of his body as she crawled over his body.
Syaoran was forced to lean backwards, his back pressed against the blanket as she continued advancing until her body completely covered his.
“Still want a taste?” She asked before letting their lips touch.
His only response was a moan as his hands slipped to her waist and hers settled around his head. Her fingers burying into his mass of tangled brown locks and tracing the outer contour of his ear.
Syaoran shivered under her. Every nerve ending in his body coming to life as she shifted over him, their bodies touching in every angle.
Her lips opened, accepting his intruding tongue. Their senses commingled, the taste of themselves mixed with the sweet aftertaste of the pastry. Their lips pushed and hungered for more.
Sakura’s legs parted as Syaoran slipped his knee in between, the juncture of the thighs settling at the base of his hip.
Her ears were ringing loudly, her heartbeat thundering and her blood flowing warming her skin. A flustering sensation filled her senses as her eyes closed as a lightheadedness filled her head. She shut all other thoughts to immerse herself on the feelings that Syaoran was awakening over her body.
It had been over six days since they’ve actually had any privacy for their selves. Her body had primed itself in thoughts and memories of the last time that they had been alone.
Her hands wandered to his shirt collar, slipping under it as it unbuttoned the top buttons for better access. They wandered over his pectorals, tracing the outline of his breasts and ribcage. Strong muscles quivered under her fingers, jumping and exalted over every touch.
His heartbeat thundered underneath the tips of her fingers, a spray of hair tangling with them as they created a path to his navel.
He pushed her still with his knee, further and further breaking and rubbing her clothes against his. A low thump beat inside her navel as her arousal grew. He moved her lightly back and forth against his powerful thigh, creating the friction needed to stimulate her without actually touching her.
“You’re killing me,” she murmured against his lips as she anchored herself over his uncovered shoulders as he shifted their position.
Something clattered as they moved over the blanket. Still, their attention was completely absorbed in each other and in their doings to notice anything else.
Sakura was pressed against the blanket, Syaoran pinning her down as his lower body weighted heavily against her own. She could feel his arousal growing against her own. He was growing harder by the second as their touching prolonged.
Their breaths heavy, they separated, gazing deeply into each other’s eyes. Sakura let her hands rest against his neck, her fingers toying with the baby hair that covered the base. Syaoran anchored himself with one elbow, leaving the other hand free to caress her cheek and neck.
“Do you want another pastry?” She muttered as his head slipped to her jaw and softly bit it inch by inch.
“What pastry?” He answered with his own query. His mind and body were currently concentrating on her as other thoughts and desires had been driven out with their kiss.
Sakura chuckled as she relaxed heavily, letting his mouth trace kisses over her neck and her shoulders. The straps of her blouse currently pressed against her arms as his fingers traced the material.
She could feel him winding down. His kisses stilled over the place were her neck and shoulders connected. He suckled softly, his tongue and lips playing over the very sensitive spot. He knew that it drove her nuts when he did it, and therefore devoted quite a long time to it whenever he had the chance. It was too bad that he wasn’t truly into exhibitionism, or she was sure that he would have taken her right there in full view of whomever could wander into their private scene.
She sometimes wished that he would be a bit more daring, but in the end, she loved him just the way he was. Shyness and all. The only time he actually loosened up a bit more was when drinking, but he still kept control over himself and how far he actually went with any of his actions.
“Thank you.” Syaoran let his head rest against her breasts, her breaths mingling with his own as she softly kissed his forehead.
“For what?” She asked after a few minutes of blessed silence that hovered naturally over the couple with the sounds of the surrounding nature. She opened her eyes as she felt him shift. He was once again leaning over her, his lips softly biting her own as if awaiting for her eyes to open and look to him again.
“For coming here with me,” he replied, moving his body away to give her more room to breathe. “For making me the food when I asked you for it.” He grinned mischievously before saying the last part. “For putting up with my sisters and my dragon of a mother for the past few days.”
He nuzzled her neck as he brought her up and slid her to the trunk of her tree so she could rest her back against it. The bark was surprisingly smooth, so he was sure that she would be comfortable.
“I wouldn’t have been surprised if you had run toward the hills after spending so much time while in the company of my family.”
“Stop messing around,” she nudged him with the tip of her elbow hard over his stomach. Syaoran groaned as if mortally wounded by her and falling over her legs, resting his head against them. “I love your sisters, and I’ve actually gotten to know better your mother. They’re wonderful to have around.”
“All the time?” he asked unbelievingly, scoffing at his own question.
“Well,” she stopped for a second as she reached for him so that his head fully rested against her thighs in a comfortable position for him and for her own leg muscles. “Let’s just say that they can be handled in small doses.”
She finished pensive as he burrowed into the side of her waist and blew lightly over her exposed skin, making her giggle. She shoved him off, a warning coming over her eyes as he settled his head in the same place once again.
“I don’t know how you’ve managed to stay sane while living with all five of them for the first years of your life,” her fingers threaded his hair as he placed her other hand over his chest while entwined with his own.
“They spoiled me senseless,” he replied to her query, his eyes drifting close as the serene environment enveloped them once again. “Plus, I had Eriol’s own parents to keep me from growing up with serious psychological problems that couldn’t be overridden later in life.”
“Who says you aren’t still deeply confused about human relations?” She kidded, sure that he would fire back a retort. Instead, she found herself alone in conversation as his breathing deepened and he slipped into unconsciousness. The strain lines that had appeared over the week were barely noted over his brow as his face relaxed into slumber.
“He must truly be tired,” she mumbled to herself as she caressed the locks that fell over his forehead and eyes. She brushed them away from tickling his skin every time the wind blew past them as to not disturb him. He looked peaceful, with not a care in the world that surrounded them.
It was these little moments that she cherished the most. He was so precious to her. The shadows created by the leaves danced over their own bodies as they shifted with the breeze.
He was the most beautiful person she had ever seen. She was sure that it was what she was supposed to think of him. It was what he told her every chance he had himself. In her eyes he was the most gorgeous guy that had ever graced the earth, his features engraved carefully and detailed into her memory.
“God,” she looked upwards, closing her eyes, a vision of her mother hovering over her closed eyelids. “How I love him mother,” she told the smiling figure in her mind. She didn’t know whether her mother could actually hear her, or could somehow be reached wherever she could be, but she felt close to her dead parent as she told her things that she could not readily tell her father or her brother.
“I’m sure that you would have loved him too,” bits of moisture formed in the outlines of her eyes. She didn’t know why she was so emotional this day. She felt silly for the burst and pang that clanged inside her heart. She untangled her hand from his and rubbed lightly over her left breast as if to somehow lessen the hurt that overpowered the thudding organ.
The heart had been associated with feelings of love and want since the start of time because of this reaction. And even though she knew that it actually had nothing to do with her feelings for the brown eyed Adonis that lay sleeping over her thigh, she knew that the pulling and wrangling emotion that made it ache was as real as him.
The sensation lessened as the minutes trickled by, her thoughts still full of her mother and the connection she still seemed to have to her father. She sometimes walked into the kitchen to hear him talk to someone who wasn’t there. He finished with dear, his mind full of thoughts over his dead wife, not noticing the audience that stands still over the threshold.
That was what she wanted. A man that loved her so, that even in death would seek her out to lay his troubles on her ears. She looked to Syaoran’s sleeping face once again. His lips had parted slightly, letting small gasps of breaths to be collected. He thankfully hadn’t developed any snoring patterns that she could decipher.
He shifted, moving his body to one side. He settled once again into her skin, his breath clouding the material of her pants. His parted shirt opened more, leaving the expanse of his chest and his navel uncovered to her gaze. The breeze that blew caressed his skin, a shiver raking over his body as he burrowed deeper once again.
Releasing a deep breath, Sakura settled to a long stay in that position. If nothing disturbed him, then Syaoran could sleep for hours without end, and she didn’t have the heart to wake him when she knew how wired he had been the past few weeks while his family had visited.
With one hand she reached to the basket that lay close to her feet, making sure not to juggle Syaoran’s head in the process and wake him. She dragged it to her side to reach for the other things she had packed inside the huge compartments it contained.
She took the book from the corner where it laid and placed it over her knees as she took one of the now readily warm drinks and took a sip. She moved her neck muscles in circles, settling her head against the bark of the tree.
She opened the book to the marker, supporting it with her knee and keeping it in place with her free hand as her other laced itself with Syaoran’s own. She only had a couple of hundred pages left before she finished it. If he hadn’t awakened by then, then she would rouse him from sleep when she read the last page.
The hours passed by. The sky darkened slightly as the afternoon hours progressed and the sun’s rays minimized with their illuminating assault. The breeze increased lightly, leaves rustling on the branches and dancing with the air as they fell toward the soil.
A sweet aroma permeated through Syaoran’s slumbering senses, bringing his eyes to open fully. Set right in front of them was the outline of one of the pastry’s that were left from earlier in the day. He felt his mouth salivating as Sakura moved it in front of his eyes and slowly set it over his parted lips.
He bit more than half, his teeth grazing the tips of her fingers, his lips coming in full contact with them. She took whatever he had left and ate it. It was the last pastry that had been left, as she had eaten the others while reading for the past two hours.
“Did I fall asleep?” Syaoran moved his head away from her thighs, stretching his muscles as he tried to rid it of cramps that were present from his position. Sakura rubbed the space that he had vacated, sure that the impression of his head would remain there for the coming days.
“Yeah,” she offered him the last unopened can as to wash down the sweet taste left by the pastry he had just eaten. “And left me hanging in mid-sentence as well.”
Syaoran stood and extended his hands to help her do the same. Sakura stumbled over her feet, as they tried to regain the strength needed to support the rest of her body while she was upright. Syaoran caught her in his arms, her head burying against his still opened shirt.
She settled her cheek against it, her arms encircling his waist for support. There she lingered as he rubbed her back. It was full of impressions from the bark of the tree, bits of dirt cradled against her blouse.
“You should have woken me,” he admonished her as his eyes raked the damage done to the skin on her back. “You didn’t have to torture yourself for my sake.” He placed a kiss on the nape of her neck as he continued to massage her back.
“I didn’t really feel uncomfortable until I moved just now,” she responded, her hands moving to the front to button up his shirt. “I guess I got used to the surface.”
“Probably,” he sighed deeply before releasing her. Sakura stood on her feet, still straightening his shirt as he brushed the pieces of bark that were placed over her hair. He looked around to the scenery and to his watch, realizing how much time they had actually spent in this outing of theirs.
“We should start the drive back,” they both picked up the things that they had brought with them, making sure not to leave any trash behind.
“Yeah,” Sakura picked the blanket while he took the basket and its contents. She laced her free arm through his, going back into the path that they had previously walked. “My father’s expecting us for dinner.”
“He’s back from his traveling lectures,” Syaoran recalled. Sakura’s father had been away for the past two weeks as he had visited different Universities and colleges around the country with his colleague.
“You’ll be staying for dinner of course,” Sakura announced as they reached the parking area where he had parked the car. “He’ll want to see you too.”
“Obviously,” Syaoran turned the engine, made sure that everything was in order and sped off back toward their town. His spirit was rested. His mind was clear. His life was perfect. These few hours of tranquility in Sakura’s company had done the trick.
Still, something nagged him in the back of his mind. He was sure that he was forgetting something important. There is something that he should be worried about, but he couldn’t truly recall it.
Syaoran awoke suddenly. His senses open and his muscles ready for the desired outcome. He was disoriented, his mind still reeling between sleep and being awake so suddenly. He looked around, adjusting his eyes while searching for whatever could have prompted such a drastic wake. There was nothing in the room that could explain his reaction. His fan was on, droning out other sounds of the night. A bit of light shone through the curtains placed over his closed windowsill, and there was no lingering scent of an intruder.
Syaoran tried to recall what could have brought him out of sleep, when his mind cinched on the problem. He finally recalled what he had obviously forgotten a few hours before.
Eriol’s words rang over his mind, repeating over a loop with the same thought. Syaoran groaned heavily as he covered his face with his hands. He let his body fall to the mattress, the loud thump filling the otherwise quiet atmosphere of his room and house.
“No making love,” those were the only words that could be wrangled from his otherwise closed throat. He felt as if he was choking. He coughed as his saliva stuck to his throat.
“Nine months,” he told himself again as he turned to the side, while his hands beat the pillow to submission. He buried his head in it, waiting for the last second of oxygen deprivation before lifting it again.
And then another thought popped into his mind. “How am I going to handle Sakura?”
XOXO -- end chapter
Chapter 4 : Hours of the Night
Syaoran is going to spend a lot of restless nights. Nearing the start of the school year Sakura decides to spend the night at his house, with only one thing on her mind. Will he be able to tell her that he can’t touch her until her birthday? Or will he chicken out in the end leaving a lot of problems in his wake?
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