October 5, 2007

Part Four
Like Me?

Once again, she was raised and spinning to -- well, to oblivion it felt like. She'd forgotten why she loved this ride so much; it felt like she was flying, or as close to flying as she could get.

"Hey."

Her eyes snapped open and she almost fell out, head swinging wildly. That voice was -- she found him. He was to her right, and smiling hesitantly at her, the wind flattening his hair and making it stick up at the same time.

"A-Syaoran," was all she could manage. Her thoughts were all in disorder, but she inhaled deeply and told herself to stop acting like a fool. When she turned towards him again, she had somewhat composed herself, though the amused look in his dark eyes threw her off again. "You always seem to turn up when I least expect it."

He shrugged, eyes averted.

Sakura sat there awkwardly, air rushing past her and blowing wisps of hair into her face.

"Um, listen...Sakura. Your dancing is amazing; I haven't seen anybody that's co-ordinated their moves in a freestyle that well in a long time," he said honestly. Sakura bit her lip in an attempt not to grin, but no matter how long she tried to peer into his eyes, he didn't yield what he was thinking.

"Thanks," she murmured, looking down at the dizzying ground. Inside, her heart was plunging...she should've known that it would all be over once they returned to being themselves. He's still amazing, she sighed. "I really thought you were going to steal the show from me, so I wasn't too thrilled when you showed up," she smiled slightly back at him.

"Mm, really? It's more like the other way around,"

"Why were you there anyway?"

"Magic," he whispered secretively, cupping a hand around his mouth.

"That's so lame," she retorted dryly, but had to turn the other way to hide the smirk tugging at her mouth. "No, really, why were you there?"

"Well...that is to say..." he ruffled his hair sheepishly. "Alright, that was a total mistake. I thought it was my turn and when I went up I saw this beautiful girl flying towards me and --"

Both of them stopped and stared at each other, suspended on that ride, higher than the trees and soaring to the clouds.

Suddenly a smile burst over Sakura's face.

"I'm glad you think so, sir,"

Brown eyes containing the faint beginnings of gold sparks lit up and she knew that even if he wasn't actually smiling, his soul was.

His soul was? You are turning into a sap, Sakura. She scoffed to herself, but she was on a roll and couldn't seem to stop.

"And what about you, miss?"

"I beg your pardon, but I have no idea what you're talking about."

"I think you know exactly what I'm talking about. Were you dazzled by my glorious mane of hair, flashing eyes and—"

"Alright, alright. I get the point," she broke in, mostly because everything he said sounded positively ridiculous but was most embarassingly true. "I suppose you were decent, Syaoran."

"That wounds me like a bullet to the heart," the sparks were growing brighter now, but there was a content, almost soft, look in those eyes as well. "I wish I could touch you, Sakura," he murmured quietly and suddenly. Sakura blinked at the sudden turn of topic, laughing weakly in an automatic attempt to bring back the light atmosphere from before...but the look in his eyes didn't waver and her laughter quickly died.

"I..." she bit her lip, and his eyes dropped to them—what did one say to a statement like that? Oh, what the hell. "Me too," she blurted. A fire spread over her heart as his hand on the bar of his seat tightened, as if he were trying to compensate for not being able to embrace her.

"You know, I meant it when I said you were amazing. You should really consider taking up dancing in the future."

"I take lessons...but, well, I've never really thought about it," she winced at her own lie.

"Well if you ever want to come dancing with me, just call. I'll give you my phone number," he nodded. Still, she couldn't help but think she was missing something crucial, and she knew the ride was going to end soon – maybe it was the suddenness of the situation, or some desire to stop caring, but words began spewing out before she could think on it.

"Wait! I've always felt like dancing was something I could see myself doing too...but I know it's such a hard industry to make it in. I guess, well, I don't really think I have a chance. I haven't really, well, told anybody," her voice grew quieter and quieter. Meanwhile, a slow smirk was growing on Syaoran's face. As soon as she spotted it, she wanted to swallow all the words that had poured out of her. Figures, she thought sourly, and steeled herself for the condemning words to follow.

"I want to get to know you more, Sakura," he said, more confident now. She reeled—she didn't understand... "I know a way for us to do that. Will you give it a chance?" he gazed at her carefully.

"What?" she furrowed her eyebrows at him.

"My full name is Syaoran Li," he seemed to be waiting for something, but of what, she didn't know. Sakura stared at him blankly. "You really don't know?" he asked incredulously.

"Well, obviously not," she muttered dryly. Syaoran chuckled, pleasantly surprised.

"I design and teach choreography for various celebrities – I do contract work though, so I don't really stay with one particular group," he relayed the information.

Sakura gaped.

"Are you joking?"

"No, I'm not," he took a deep breath, and his eyes wouldn't quite meet hers.

"Wait..." she breathed, "What- what exactly are you asking me to do?"

There was a long pause where he almost seemed to be pleading with her.

"I would like for you to be one of the dancers in a tour I'm doing with Tea Moraine," he finished.

Sakura couldn't say anything. Shock numbed her, and unconsciously, she gripped the chains of her swing even tighter. This...this is what I've always wanted right? Then why do I feel...so...

"I-I don't know what to say," she sucked in a breath, and Syaoran raised a hand to ruffle his hair.

"Well, ah, I don't really need an answer right away..." he trailed. "But, Tea would really like you too, I'm sure. I would like you too,"

The sky was a dizzying blue above her, but she almost didn't hear anything, didn't see anything except for those amber eyes that finally met her own jade ones, seeking an answer – and then the ride jerked to a stop. It lowered them until they weren't above the trees anymore, until their feet almost grazed the ground. The chains of the swings rattled quietly, but it seemed like the world just closed down, except for her and him swaying slightly from side to side.

"Hey! You two! Are you going again or what?" the ride attendant's voice pierced through the silence like a bullet, shattering the moment. And finally, finally, an onslaught of emotion hit Sakura like a wave, and she found herself talking.

"Don't...don't make me out to be some sort of prodigy, something to put on a pedestal or to be taken care of. When you come down to it, we're just two people, and where you are in life, the labels and positions that you get, they're not really who you are," she said unwaveringly, without really knowing why, but harboring a strange feeling that time was running out like sand sifting through her fingers. Unbuckling herself and lifting the bar off, she slid out of her seat and took a step towards Syaoran, who remained immobile and looking back at her with an expression she could not decipher. She desperately wanted him to understand, because it was important to her, but she didn't even understand herself—not really. "Because you're a dancer, that doesn't define your personality—that doesn't really tell me anything. I can observe you and guess what you're like, but I can never be sure until I get to know you. I want to look back one day and be able to say that I made it on my own, with my own talent and not because I knew somebody from the industry. So please..."

She felt like she was asking for the world, and at the same time giving up what she'd always wanted. But deep down, she knew that this was the right thing to do. "I guess I just want respect," she finished, realizing that this was what she wanted. But it was so much more than that. Careful, warm fingers closed around the hand that was clutching the end of her shirt. Looking up she realized that Syaoran had gotten out of the swing and was standing right in front of her, a quiet smile playing on his lips. He slowly pried her fingers away from her shirt and then lifted their joined hands up between them.

"This," he began, "This is what I want. But, I would never even consider asking someone to come on tour with me just because I liked them. When I said you had talent, I meant it, and I still mean it. You're amazing, you know that?" he gave a small, wondering laugh.

Sakura had the strangest feeling that he wasn't speaking of dancing anymore. She gazed, transfixed, at their hands clasped together, and then smiled shakily.

"Yes," she murmured. Syaoran's breath caught, and he squeezed her hand tighter.

"What?" he breathed.

"Yes!" she laughed, stronger this time. "I'll go with you,"

"Really?"

"Well, I have to talk to my friends and family, and do something about my schooling, but I'm pretty sure I can pull it off. Well, that is, I've always wanted to be a neurologist—"

"Wait, a neurologist?" He looked astonished.

"Erm, yeah," Sakura shrugged sheepishly.

"You know, dancing and being a neurologist are not exactly related..."

She sniffed disdainfully, but slid a glance filled with mirth to him.

"I couldn't care less."

"Good," he nodded.

"But, I'll have you know this is really a big thing so it's going to take a long time,"

"Tea's tour is in four and a half months, and you need to learn the routine. Is...that ok?"

Sakura was speechless. This was like a dream, and she hoped she would never wake up from it; she read somewhere that only seven percent of the people in the world got to live out their dreams and live their life to the fullest. God, I love you. She almost laughed.

But thank you most of all for him.

Sakura wrapped her other hand around their linked hands and squeezed, leaning forward a bit more.

"Yes! That's-that's more than enough," the expression on his face was also more than worth it. "Your going onto the stage wasn't a mistake, was it?"

"...No," he admitted. "I didn't want to tell you the real reason, not yet anyway. One of our dancers had to leave for a family emergency, and we were having trouble finding another one that was good enough on short notice. Finally, we decided just to hold open auditions, and it was a disaster. So, I guess at that point this seemed like a viable option. As soon as you started dancing, I was sure you were the one, but I wanted to see what you would do if presented with an unexpected obstacle – so I went in."

"An unexpected obstacle?" Sakura raised her eyebrows incredulously.

"Well, yes, I had to test you somehow," he admitted. Upon seeing her expression, he hastily added, "Did I offend you? I'm s—" Sakura closed her gaping mouth and put a finger on his lips to silence him.

"Shut up," seeing his confused expression, she bit her lip out of habit. "Don't regret it, because I...really don't." Holding her breath, she wondered if he understood the full implications of her sentence.

He did.

Eyes widening, a faint flush rose to dust his cheeks. He moved closer and seemed to hover uncertainly for a moment, before lowering their locked hands and leaning his forehead on hers until all they could see was each other.

"Sakura," he breathed, "What are you saying?"

"I don't know. You tell me," she bit her lip, but this time his eyes didn't drop down, staying locked with hers as if he couldn't look away. "I've...I've never really done this before."

"Done what before?"

"Why are you asking me so many questions?" she muttered.

"What are you talking about?" he said innocently, and she pinched him. His eyes danced. "Just tell me, Sakura. Otherwise, you and I will never know what could've happened,"

She gave in.

"I thought that liking a complete stranger was like a myth. Only foolish lust-driven people believed in it and it was a definite recipe for disaster, because that kind of stuff just doesn't exist. I don't know, I still don't really believe it but," the warmth from Syaoran was seeping into her, and she smiled faintly, for something so small was giving her courage. She looked up and declared boldly, "When I was with you onstage today, I believed it. I really did."

She leaped off of that cliff, and waited for him to catch her.

"You—" Syaoran broke off. "Sakura..."

Her heart was pounding and she was terrified.

But in the next moment, she was being spun around and around, her feet off the ground and Syaoran's arms around her waist; he was whooping and she was going dizzy from being spun, happy, exulted, alive.

When both of them became faint from spinning, Syaoran finally set her down and gazed at her with a soft smile. She staggered slightly.

"Syaoran, do you...do you really like me?"

"Well-that is," he swallowed, "Yeah."

A slow grin spread over her face – he was looking away from her again. She couldn't believe this. Her, she'd gotten this amazing person. The brain, the dancer, the class president, the nice one, the reliable one, the loud one, the quiet one, the bookworm...that was what she had always been. But now she was just Sakura, and he liked her for that.

And maybe, she was worth it.

Overcome with emotion, Sakura launched forward and hugged him tightly. But Syaoran, still unsteady and dizzy, was unprepared for the extra weight – with an unceremonious thump, they tumbled onto the pavement.

"Ow," Sakura moaned, rubbing her elbow. Beside her, Syaoran hefted himself up into a sitting position and sighed.

"My male ego has just suffered a severe bruising."

"Er, well you were dizzy right?" she snickered, and he threw a baleful glare at her.

"You know, you're supposed to comfort me, not make fun of me,"

Raising an eyebrow, she glanced over at him at the same time he looked over at her. Suddenly it all seemed so pathetic, both of them sitting there in a heap at some carnival after what was supposed to be a momentous confession. She began giggling, trying vainly to muffle it with a hand. Eventually, she just gave up and laughed outright, elbow throbbing and stomach aching.

Syaoran tried to look indignant, but soon he joined her under that blue, blue sky.

"Both of you!"

Their laughter cut off abruptly, and both of them looked up to see the harassed-looking college student pointing a finger at them.

"I asked you of if you were going again or not. People are coming back to the carnival so take your love fest somewhere else or they're going to see you. Not to mention you're clogging up the ride," she planted her hands on her fists and glared at them.

Sakura smiled guiltily, and didn't dare look at Syaoran. Inside, she was just a little appalled – love fest? Since when was laughing even remotely close to a love fest?

"Sorry miss, we'll go now," Syaoran placated, standing up and offering a hand to her, which she took. He didn't let go. "Where should we go then?" he murmured to her as they walked through the gate and back into the carnival.

"Somewhere where I can't see them!" Sakura suddenly exclaimed, aghast as she spotted the 'hokey pokey' guys lined up at the balloon popping stall.

"What?"

"They creep me out – asked me to do the hokey pokey with them and teach them how to dance in this really...well, creepy way," she frowned as Syaoran began coughing in a conspicuous manner, steering her away from them and towards another stall.

"Come on, I'm going to win a stuffed animal for you. Besides, I'll protect you from those guys...you're taken now," Sakura felt warm as he grinned down at her.

"No way! I'm going to beat you at every stall, even if it's going to take all d—"

"What's wrong?"

"Oh no," Sakura breathed, "I forgot about Skye and Sherry."

"Well let's go find them then...you can introduce me. I'm going to have to take you to the industry people soon enough, so you might as well do the introducing for once,"

Swallowing, she held his hand tighter and scowled lightly.

"You know, I don't know if that was a good thing to say."

"You'll be fine," Syaoran suddenly let go of her hand and, taking her by the shoulders, spun her so that she was facing him. "You've got me now," his voice grew softer.

"Syaoran, what are you saying?" Unconsciously, she echoed his words from before, smiling up at him and sure that he could see right through her – her secrets, her desires, her heart. It wasn't love, not yet, but she knew that she really could love him someday. He slid his hands slowly down her shoulders and her arms, and then took her hands. With one quick yank, she was against him.

"I think I forgot to do something before," he murmured, and his eyes were a vibrant amber, hair tumbling down to partially cover the swirling colour.

"We're in public again," Sakura said, a lost reminder that neither paid attention to. "Your eyes are like a thunder storm,"

"Really?" he was close now. Biting back a smile, she let go of his hands and fisted them in his shirt...and in a swift, conscious realization, she knew that she wasn't afraid. Not anymore.

"What did you forget?"

"This."

And then his lips were over hers, his hands cradling her waist, and a fire was consuming her – but this one was a slow, gentle fire that roared in the way it burned at the same time it healed, until it settled deep into her bones...until she never wanted to leave. Hazily, she slid her arms around his neck, and blissfully thought of nothing at all except for the man holding her.

Because now she had her own romance book, and it was perfect for Syaoran and her.

-

A/N: I KNOW! You can kill me…honestly, I'm sorry it took so long to post this. But seriously, I had it done a long time ago but I just didn't really have the time—alright so a little laziness was also involved—to post it up. Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! Please R&R. But, there will be one more chapter! Well, a pseudo-chapter…it's going to be deleted scenes and little alternate scenes I've thought up for this story!

Please stay tuned, I really enjoyed writing this story, and I can only hope you enjoyed it as well, though I only really did because I was bored. Heh.