13The next morning, Sakura and Tomoyo were rudely awakened by an energetic Mei Ling.
"Sa-ku-ra! To-mo-yo! Time to get up!" she cried in a sing-song voice.
Sakura groaned, rubbed her eyes, and then got up.
"Nanii? What's the rush?" Tomoyo asked.
"We're going to go to the mall today! As your hostess, I must bring you to tours! Hong Kong has the cutest stuff ever! You'll love it. Rise and shine!" Mei Ling chattered happily.
Sakura headed into the bathroom to shower and change. Twenty minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom wearing a pale baby yellow t-shirt with a bear sewn in the center. She also wore a short pink miniskirt with a yellow border and a ruffle.
"You look great, Sakura! Now it's my turn to play dress-up," commented Tomoyo with a twinkle in her eyes.
Tomoyo disappeared into the bathroom and came out again. Her outfit consisted of a light green t-shirt with a jade green tank top with designs over it. She wore white designer jeans that only reached to about under the kneecaps.
"Nice, but you won't beat mine!" boasted Mei Ling with a determined look on her face. She left the room and came back a moment later.
"Wow, that's awesome! I love the clothes!" Tomoyo trilled.
"I'm telling you, you'll love the stuff in Hong Kong!" Mei Ling proclaimed.
The outfit was quite nice- A white button down t-shirt with a collar, light blue skinny leggings, a pink skirt which's color reminded Sakura of cotton candy, and a long curving necklace with a few silver music note charms scattered among the chains.
Sakura gazed at Mei Ling's outfit admiringly before running down the stairs to greet Syaoran. "Mornin', Syaoran," she said with a shy smile.
Syaoran turned from the kitchen stove and looked over his right shoulder. "Hey Sakura," he replied with a friendly tone in his voice. Then, he added more quietly, "You look very nice today."
Sakura blushed, red streaks covering her cheeks. "Thanks," she murmured.
Their "moment" was cut off by a rampaging Mei Ling tromping down the stairs. "What's for breakfast?"
Syaoran looked down at the pot of dim sum he was heating up. "Xiao Long Bao," he told her.
"Hm, what's that?" asked Tomoyo curiously.
"It means Small Dragon Bun, translated. It's a very thin layer of dough with soup and a filling inside. Sometimes beef, sometimes crab, and for dessert Xiao Long Bao there is chocolate, taro, and red beans. It's extremely hard to make, but Syaoran here can make anything! Right, Syaoran?" Mei Ling rambled.
"You're over-exaggerating, Mei Ling. It's not even that hard to make," Syaoran replied modestly.
"Not even that hard? How can you say that? I can't even make it! Making the thin layer of skin is too much for me," Mei Ling exclaimed, throwing her hands up into the air.
"You can't make it Mei Ling? Then it must be hard! Mei Ling's an incredible cook," Sakura gasped in admiration.
"Stop talking and hurry up! We need to eat and then hit the stores," Mei Ling ordered, being her normal bossy self.
The four enjoyed their nice breakfast of Xiao Long Bao (Which yes, by the way, is a real food). They all went to their bedrooms to get ready to leave and then gathered back downstairs.
Once at the mall, they split up. Tomoyo and Mei Ling went to the east side of the mall while Syaoran and Sakura headed to the west side.
"So, what do you want to see?" asked Syaoran casually.
"I don't know, what do you want to see?" countered Sakura.
"Hmm, if you really don't know where you would like to go, let me be your guide," offered Syaoran with a goofy bow.
Sakura laughed, amused and then nodded. "Sure, feel free."
First they went to a souvenir shop with several adorable souvenirs. Keychains hung from a rack with a variety of charms. T-shirts were folded up in one isle, stationary was arranged carefully in another, and a small rack held a pile of different postcards with beautiful pictures and views of Hong Kong.
"Let's buy some of these and send them to Chiharu-chan, Naoto-chan, and Rika-chan!" Sakura suggested brightly.
"Sure, whatever you want, Sakura."
They bought postcards, some keychains and t-shirts for souvenir, and some nice stationary that Sakura was positive everyone would adore once she was back in Japan.
"I'll pay," Syaoran volunteered almost immediately.
Sakura shook her head. "No, that wouldn't be fair to you."
"It's okay, please, allow me."
Sakura sighed and smiled. "Alright, if you insist."
They headed out of the store, happy with their first purchases.
"Where to next?" Syaoran asked.
"So many stores… so many things to choose from… I have no idea!" Sakura concluded, glancing at the stores that surrounded her with a nervous grin.
Nyaa~ Oh well. I hope you enjoyed, I know it's been such a long time since I posted! A really sucky cliffhanger, but it'll do. I'll try to update a lot more often now, so stay tuned! R&R! Disclaimer: I do not own. I hope you all have a nice week!