Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

This fanfiction was originally made for Narutofan Forum's SasuSaku Fanclub's winter-themed contest, but it was finished too late to be handed in. Either way, I wanted to release it anyway...

So here, I present to you the second fanfiction dedicated to my best friend/almost-to-be boyfriend that passed away September 10th, taking my heart along with him, but leaving me three treasured things; one was his beloved PS2, another our memories, and the third my passion for snow and rain, because it snowed/rain every time we came across each other in the school grounds.

And it snowed the first day we talked for real instead of just ignoring each other out of shyness. And it snowed the day I realized I had a crush on you... (though it rained on the day I realized I loved you)

But sun melts snow. And it was bright sunlight the day that motorbike hit you when you were halfway across the street...

Anyway, I present to you my SasuSaku fanfic:

Snowflake

1: I

He had always despised the snow. When his mother had, chuckling, asked why, he had responded: 'It's so cold. When you touch it, you begin to freeze, and it feels like you're turning to ice.'

But still, his mother made him go out every time it snowed. 'Go play,' she told him with a smile. 'You'll see that the snow is not as bad as you think.'

One particular winter – the year before his life would turn upside-down – he asked his mother, 'Okaa-san, why do you love the snow so much?'

The question took her by surprise, but she merely smiled. 'I met my first love when it snowed.'

'Was it otou-san?'

'Yes, Sasuke-chan. Maybe you'll meet your first love too, in the snow.'

'No,' he scowled. 'Girls are stupid. They are annoying.'

The remark only made his mother laugh. 'Maybe you won't think so when you meet your first love.'

¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-¨.-¨

And that was how he first had met her.

In the snow.

Just as his mother had predicted…

His first love.

'Who're you?'

He had been walking around in the grounds by himself, only frowning at the sight of the white sheets of snow covering every single corner of every single place.

Then, he had heard her little, tiny voice emerge from her tiny lips.

'Who're you?'

Her large, emerald orbs had carried slight fear when they gazed into his obsidian ones. He had remained silent, before replying steadily.

'I am Uchiha Sasuke. And you?'

The little girl had brushed away some pastel pink strands from her face. 'I-I am Haruno S-Sakura.' Some more fright appeared in her gorgeous eyes as she backed away somewhat from the boy. 'Y-you… you won't h-h-hit me, right?'

He had inspected her up and down. Her body was fragile and tiny; she was wearing a red long-sleeved sweater, a red skirt, white stockings that were almost transparent, red shoes and a white scarf.

'No,' he had replied at last. 'No, I won't.'

The girl hesitated. 'You promise?'

'Aa.'

Relaxing, a smile found its way onto the girl's face, making her eyes sparkle in a fascinating way that captured Sasuke's interest. 'Do you like snow?'

'… No, I don't,' he had answered.

'I love snow,' she went on, beaming. 'Why don't you love the snow?'

'It's cold,' he scowled. 'I don't like it.'

'Are you afraid of the cold?' she wondered curiously. The innocent question angered him. I'm not afraid of anything!

'No,' he snapped.

'Then come play with me!' she giggled.

'Fine. What should we play?'

She grinned, and then sat down in the snow, apparently making something that she then threw at him. Taken aback by her sudden action, he hadn't been unable to dodge it perfectly, and received some of the icy snow on his throat with a shiver. 'Let's throw snowballs at each other!'

And she ran off. Promptly making a snowball too, he began running after her with a smirk.

¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-.¨-¨.-¨

They seemed to play for hours. But in Sasuke's opinion, he had never had that much fun. Though he still found girls annoying, he had to admit this one wasn't. As he chased her and occasionally threw snowballs and got hit, he laughed more than he had done in his entire life.

'Sasuke-kun!' Sakura gasped as the snowball made its way to the target's throat – since Sakura's scarf had long ago fallen off somewhere in the empty training grounds. 'That was mean!'

Sasuke smirked at her attempt to throw another snowball at him, which missed by several meters… until he noticed that she was charging at him. Before he knew it, he had been tackled to the ground, and they rolled around in the snow, laughing.

Suddenly, he found her on top of him, and both seemed silenced by the unexpected closeness. Sasuke could feel his cheeks turning somewhat warm, as Sakura looked around. 'It's already dark,' she stated. 'I've got to go home.'

'Me too,' he said, as she crawled off him and the two sat upright on the ground, when he noticed her scarf beside him, and handed it to her. 'Here. Your scarf.'

'Thanks,' she smiled and arose, and he could feel something stir in his heart.

And just as he thought with angst that they may not meet again, he felt something touch his cheek, and he was just able to see her lips detach from it in time before seeing her run off. 'Goodbye, Sasuke-kun!' she shouted. 'I love you!'

For a long time, he sat there and stared at her retreating back. Even when she was out of sight, he continued to look in the same direction. That was when he noticed that he was still sitting in the snow, and more snow was falling, too.

He reached out a hand to let one of the snowflakes fall onto the palm of it. Somehow, it didn't seem so cold anymore…