rlm@2: First Date rlm@2: A Tomoyo and Sakura story rlm@2: by G. P. rlm@2: rlm@2: Comments can be sent to the author at: treeandleaf2002@yahoo.com rlm@2: rlm@2: Note: This story is s part of a series, but does not have to be read rlm@2: consecutively. The first story was, "Love is the Crooked Thing". rlm@2: rlm@2: rlm@2: That first night Sakura only just barely got to sleep before the sun rlm@2: rose. Thank goodness for Sundays with nothing to do! But sleep ended rlm@2: early with pounding at the door and a terrible voice bellowing, rlm@2: "Monster! Phone call!" rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ehhhhhh.....?" rlm@2: rlm@2: Sakura staggered out of bed, blinking blearily at the alarm clock. rlm@2: rlm@2: "Hoooeeeeee! I'm late!" In a mad dash, Sakura threw on her uniform rlm@2: and rushed down the stairs to breakfast. Except, instead of a hot, rlm@2: steaming meal, there was an empty table. There sat her dreadful rlm@2: brother, calmly sipping coffee. Sakura shot a glance at the schedule rlm@2: board, nervously thinking, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Was I supposed to make breakfast?" rlm@2: rlm@2: No, there was Oniichan's name, grrrrrrrr....in a furious windmill of rlm@2: arms and fists, Sakura roared towards her brother, who kept her at rlm@2: arm’s length while regarding her with amused detachment. rlm@2: rlm@2: "Where's my breakfast I'm late for school why didn't you wake me up rlm@2: if only I was bigger than you...." rlm@2: rlm@2: Touya interrupted her with practiced ease, "Fridge, Sunday, you're rlm@2: not, phone." Sakura froze in mid-flurry, staring at the phone. With a rlm@2: sheepish look, she picked it up, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura here". rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ohayo, Sakura-chan" The sweet, musical voice of her best friend. rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ohayo, Tomoyo-chan!" A pause, and then she remembered- remembered rlm@2: it all: The fortune telling, the maze, the song, Tomoyo....the kiss. rlm@2: Sakura felt a crimson blush on her neck and cheek, as she stood rlm@2: dumbstruck with her mouth open. rlm@2: rlm@2: "I thought we might go on a picnic to the park today? Would you like rlm@2: to go, or are you busy with schoolwork and chores?" Tomoyo's bright rlm@2: and sunny voice only made the blush deepen. rlm@2: rlm@2: "H-h-h-h-hai", Sakura managed to stutter out. rlm@2: rlm@2: "I'll make o-bento. Shall I be there in an hour?" rlm@2: rlm@2: "H-h-h-h-hai" rlm@2: rlm@2: "Bye-bye, I'll see you soon!" rlm@2: rlm@2: "H-h-h-h-hai", replied Sakura to the dial tone. Slowly she put down rlm@2: the phone, closed her mouth, and stared at the floor. Just what had rlm@2: happened the night before? Was it a dream, or had she really *sweat rlm@2: drop* confessed her love to Tomoyo-chan? She staggered back to the rlm@2: bedroom, her mind all awhirl… rlm@2: rlm@2: Mechanically Sakura changed out of her uniform and into a yellow rlm@2: blouse and a pleated, light brown skirt. Brushing her red-auburn rlm@2: hair, she struggled to remember. Finally, she plopped on the bed with rlm@2: a sigh and stared at the ceiling until she heard the knocking down rlm@2: below. She rushed down the stairs, beating her brother to the rlm@2: hallway. Nervously she reached for the handle, turned it, and opened rlm@2: the door. There, smiling as always, stood Tomoyo. Dressed in a rlm@2: beautiful, be-ribboned white dress with red trim, picnic basket in rlm@2: hand, Tomoyo bowed and sang out, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ohayo, Sakura-chan". rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ohayo, Tomoyo-chan. Oniichan, I'm going to the park with Tomoyo- rlm@2: chan". rlm@2: rlm@2: "Don't forget you're cooking dinner tonight- something better than rlm@2: last time, I hope", came the laconic reply. rlm@2: rlm@2: Tomoyo covered the giggle with a white glove as Sakura gritted her rlm@2: teeth in impotent rage. Remembering Tomoyo, she suddenly put her hand rlm@2: behind her neck and laughed, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Ha-ha-ha...um, should we go now?" rlm@2: rlm@2: Tomoyo nodded happily, and the two friends slipped out the door. rlm@2: rlm@2: Wordlessly the pair walked to the park, Tomoyo glancing up at the rlm@2: occasional cloud and twittering bird, Sakura staring at the sidewalk, rlm@2: deep in thought. The day was bright and alive, with a cool breeze rlm@2: that whispered of the end of summer. At last they entered the park, rlm@2: where Tomoyo broke the silence, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Would you like to eat by the lake? I know a quiet spot under the rlm@2: trees" rlm@2: rlm@2: "Yes", nodded Sakura, a little too vigorously. rlm@2: rlm@2: Tomoyo opened one of the picnic basket lids and took out a rlm@2: delicately folded orange and brown cloth, decorated with a maple leaf rlm@2: and pumpkin print. With easy grace she spread the cloth on the grass, rlm@2: placed the basket to one side, and sat, legs tucked demurely rlm@2: underneath her. Sakura dropped down quickly, looking at her hands in rlm@2: embarrassment, finally holding them tightly in her lap. She was aware rlm@2: of Tomoyo's lavender eyes regarding her with measured care. Never had rlm@2: Sakura felt so ill at ease with her best friend. Her mind continually rlm@2: wandered to the previous night, or rather, to what she thought she rlm@2: remembered of it. Tomoyo looked on in concern as she set the table rlm@2: with beautiful little white China plates, and delicately filigreed rlm@2: Western silverware. Finally, she smiled and whispered, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan, are you all right?" rlm@2: rlm@2: Sakura didn't know what to say, so she blushed instead. She had rlm@2: always liked Tomoyo as her best, most special friend. The dark-haired rlm@2: girl was always there for her, someone to talk to, to share rlm@2: adventures with, and to ask for help and advice. For the past month, rlm@2: since learning about Yue, Sakura had been battered by a storm of rlm@2: emotions. Finally, after reading the Clow Cards, she had followed the rlm@2: maze deep within her own heart and, to her surprise and joy, had rlm@2: found Tomoyo within. And last night, they had shared a kiss- a rlm@2: lover's kiss. Her heart burned and ached with the thought of it, her rlm@2: very first. rlm@2: rlm@2: But what if it was not the same for Tomoyo? Had Sakura presumed too rlm@2: much? Had she rushed in unbidden and unwelcome? Had she taken from rlm@2: her friend what Tomoyo had been too startled or kind to refuse? She rlm@2: knew now that her friend had professed love a year ago, though Sakura rlm@2: was too dense to have known it then. Only in the past day had she rlm@2: realized what Tomoyo had tried to tell her. And only now did she know rlm@2: her own heart, overflowing with a fierce, ecstatic love for her rlm@2: friend. rlm@2: rlm@2: But what if Tomoyo had changed? What if her love, unrequited for so rlm@2: long, had grown old and faded? What if she loved someone else, still rlm@2: treasuring Sakura as a friend, as someone she liked...but not like rlm@2: that. The auburn-haired girl felt her stomach knot at the very rlm@2: thought. Tomoyo, ever and always kind, would be loath to say that her rlm@2: love was no more. Had she realized Tomoyo's feelings, and her own, rlm@2: too late? Oh, what if she had missed her chance for Tomoyo's love, rlm@2: forever? Sakura clenched her fists tightly, and felt her body tremble rlm@2: with each halting sob. rlm@2: rlm@2: Tomoyo looked at her friend in silent agony. Sakura's pain tore at rlm@2: her heart. Nothing was worth this, nothing. She was certain now that rlm@2: Sakura had come to regret her words of last night, but did not know rlm@2: how to take them back gracefully. Gently, Tomoyo took her friend's rlm@2: hands in her own and spoke in an even voice, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan...Sakura-chan" rlm@2: rlm@2: The Mistress of the Cards turned her tear-stained face away, trying rlm@2: to yank her hands from Tomoyo. But the dark-haired girl had strong, rlm@2: nimble fingers from countless hours of sewing, and held on with a rlm@2: vise-like grip. rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan, please look at me". When the wet, shimmering green rlm@2: eyes turned to her, Tomoyo nearly stumbled. It had taken hours of rlm@2: torment to fashion the words, and now she hesitated. Had she lived a rlm@2: hundred lifetimes, she never, ever would have thought she could say rlm@2: this. How easy it would be to quietly live her life with Sakura's rlm@2: sweet words ever in her ear, even if she no longer meant them. But rlm@2: what she was going to say now was right, and Tomoyo knew it. rlm@2: Composing herself with the greatest difficulty, she smiled and spoke rlm@2: in a calm, even tone, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan, I wanted to speak with you today. I wanted to tell you rlm@2: something, about what you said to me last night". Sakura sat rlm@2: motionless, like a fragile crystal statue. Tomoyo took a deep breath, rlm@2: and continued, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan, if you did not...really mean what you said last night, rlm@2: it's all right. I will always like you as a friend, no matter what. I rlm@2: want you to know that". rlm@2: rlm@2: Inside her, a voice screamed, "Liar!" It's all right? If Sakura rlm@2: really did not mean what she had said, if she had said, "I love you" rlm@2: out of pity, or kindness, or confusion, it was not "all right"- it rlm@2: was a black agony that Tomoyo dared not face. But better that than rlm@2: her friend, no, her one, true love, should be bound by words she did rlm@2: not mean. Breathing deeply, unburdened by the words that were so hard rlm@2: to speak, Tomoyo looked with a start at Sakura's reaction. Like some rlm@2: terrified animal, Sakura was slowly shaking her head back and forth, rlm@2: a look of utter terror upon her. rlm@2: rlm@2: Sakura's ashen face reflected her worst fear: that Tomoyo was gently rlm@2: trying to untie the tangled knot that bound them. She was nearly rlm@2: certain that Tomoyo no longer loved her, but was too kind to hurt her rlm@2: by saying so. Never had she felt such a hopeless despair. She knew rlm@2: she should let it all go, and walk away for Tomoyo's sake. But she rlm@2: could not. Her overpowering love forced her to speak the words she rlm@2: knew were wrong. Choking back a sob, Sakura blurted out, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Don't you...Tomoyo-chan, don't you love me?" rlm@2: rlm@2: Stunned, Tomoyo stared into Sakura's frantic eyes, felt hands rlm@2: painfully gripping her own, nails digging into her palms. This was rlm@2: not at all what she expected. Now, dancing on the precipice, she felt rlm@2: a breathless, suspended hush, as though all the cosmos listened for rlm@2: her reply. For the first time she sensed the presence of the Clow rlm@2: Cards, watching her and waiting. Blinking back the tears, she gazed rlm@2: into Sakura's emerald eyes and drew a deep, steady breath. She knew rlm@2: she could never lie, even if it was the right thing, even if it was rlm@2: for her beloved's sake. Carefully taking her hand away, she gently rlm@2: brushed back the girl's auburn hair, and tenderly caressed the pale, rlm@2: teary cheeks. With a sweet, soothing voice, Tomoyo spoke, rlm@2: rlm@2: "Sakura-chan, I loved you when I first saw you, love you now more rlm@2: than words can tell, and will always love you, and only you, forever rlm@2: and ever. I was never so happy as when you said you loved me, and rlm@2: never so afraid as when I thought it might not be true. I was rlm@2: worried that you might have regretted what you said last night. I rlm@2: didn't want you to suffer for my sake, for the sake of my love for rlm@2: you". rlm@2: rlm@2: Crying again, Sakura buried her face in Tomoyo's chest and sobbed on rlm@2: the soft, white of her dress, rlm@2: rlm@2: “Tomoyo-chan, I love you! I..I didn’t think you loved me anymore…I rlm@2: didn’t think…” She broke down, weeping incoherently. rlm@2: rlm@2: With soft, loving strokes, Tomoyo smoothed the girl's beautiful rlm@2: hair, touched by fire from the afternoon sun. Nestled in Tomoyo's rlm@2: black-gray tresses, Sakura remembered crying like this before, rlm@2: remembered the comforting solace of her mother's bosom. She hugged rlm@2: her friend fiercely at the memory, rlm@2: rlm@2: Looking down at the trembling, vulnerable girl, Tomoyo felt a sweet, rlm@2: painful ache wash over her. She knew now that Sakura truly loved her, rlm@2: and that her love was freely given. Tomoyo felt a deep, glowing rlm@2: peace. Despite the terrible fear of losing Sakura's newly found love, rlm@2: she had been honest and fair. It seemed odd that as the Cards had rlm@2: tested their Mistress, so too was she tested by Sakura's love. Last rlm@2: night was like a fairy tale, where her dearest wish had magically rlm@2: come true. Today, like a story from long ago, she was tested by a rlm@2: dark, terrible riddle: to take Sakura in silence, or speak, and risk rlm@2: losing her forever. Tomoyo spoke, and now, in a miraculous, unlooked rlm@2: for happy ending, she cradled the beautiful princess in her arms. Her rlm@2: falling tears glistened in Sakura’s hair. rlm@2: rlm@2: Tomoyo softly sang her Mother's favorite lullaby, gently rocking her rlm@2: exhausted friend to sleep. Sakura dreamed of lavender-eyed angels in rlm@2: glowing robes, dark tresses swirling as they floated slowly to Earth. rlm@2: Tomoyo too grew drowsy in the afternoon sun as the song worked its rlm@2: maternal magic. Dark lashes fluttering, she closed her eyes and soon rlm@2: fell asleep in Sakura's arms. rlm@2: rlm@2: There Sonomi found them, bathed in the orange-purple of the setting rlm@2: sun. Hearing the song, her song, as she jogged through the park, she rlm@2: came upon them, like two angels fallen to Earth. She stood and rlm@2: stared, marveling at the fairy spirits entwinned in sleep. The rlm@2: evening wind seemed to whisper the voice of Nadesico, soft and sweet rlm@2: and approving. Finally she roused them from blissful slumber, rlm@2: giggling to herself as they stretched and smiled and blinked rlm@2: themselves awake. Laughing and singing, her loneliness forgotten, rlm@2: Sonomi led the two girls home.