Hey everyone! This is a first person POV excercise that got just a tad bit out of hand. I also want to thank Sith Mistress for letting me write most of this story to her over Myspace IM. Seriously, IM stories are the greatest thing ever.

Okay...you ought to be able to figure out who's this story is. I don't own any characters. Now that the obligatory disclaimer is written, please enjoy!

If you had asked me when I was thirteen, what I wanted for my future, I would have told you that I wanted to marry Naruto. Okay, I wouldn't have said it out loud. I probably wouldn't have said anything at all. But I would have thought it, and it was true, I wanted to get Naruto's attention. I wanted it bad. It's funny how destiny has a way of slapping us in the face though. I've grown a lot since then and have gotten much bolder, but I still don't think I could actually say any of this to you in person. This is why writing my own story was the perfect way for me to say all of this with no holds barred.

I grew up the Hyuuga heiress. I was my mother's daughter, quiet, withdrawn, and kind. I remember her well, a smiling figure vaguely etched in the back of my mind. I also remember the excitement I felt at the prospect of being a big sister. And when Hanabi was born, I was the typical older sister, holding her, changing her diaper, anything I could do to help my mother even though I was only 5. The whole time secretly dreaming about the day I'd have my own children and when I'd be grown up and get to wear pretty dresses and get married.

The joy of Hanabi's birth passed quickly. Mother fell ill very shortly after that. I can remember being very scared because I was confused. I didn't know why all those strange men and women were constantly surrounding my mother. Hanabi had a wet nurse, but that had been arranged even before Mother's health began to fail.

I remember the day I was called in to see her. My mother, lying on her bed, pale and weak. She looked up at me, smiling weakly. "I'm sorry I have to leave you Hinata," she told me. I was crying, asking her where she was going and why I couldn't come with her. "Mommy is very sick," she said, letting her head fall back against the pillow. "I'm going to a place where I'll never be sick again. You can't go there now. But someday, when you're older, you'll see me there." I could only nod mutely as my tears continued to fall and I buried my head into her chest. She stroked my hair. We stayed that way until I was taken away. That was the last time I saw my mother.

After that it became painfully obvious how much I was like her. I think this is why my father disliked me so much. Not because he truly thought I was weak (although I will agree that I was), but because I reminded him of her. The memory hurt him, so he pushed it away by pushing me away. He tried to train my mother out of me, I think, pushing me, putting me down in hopes that it would inspire me to work harder and become a suitable heir. I didn't respond well to this kind of treatment and shut down. He sent me to the academy then, so that they could make me a ninja.

I don't remember ever really thinking about being a ninja as a child. I knew that I was a princess and would run the family one day. In order to do that I had to do what my father told me. I didn't really have any dreams for my future. Well other than the ones I mentioned before, but those are in every little girl's dreams.

When I went to school, I found out how shy I really was. Everyone intimidated me so I didn't talk to anyone. I was so lonely. I'd go home and get ignored by my father, and I'd go to school and be just as miserable. I guess that was why I noticed Naruto. We were six. I was lonely, and he was lonely. My crush started forming then, and it maintained the same level of innocence the whole time it existed. A childish crush based on assumed mutual loneliness.

I guess another of the more memorable memories I have is when I realized that Sasuke, too, was lonely. I didn't really understand about what had happened to his clan. But I did know that they were all gone. He was the only one left. I wanted to help him then, I can remember that much. Offer him someplace to stay so he wouldn't be alone. And even back then, he had pride and an ego and when I tried to ask, flustered as I was, he brushed me off stoically. He was Sasuke the proud and only member of the prestigious Uchiha clan. Father always had mixed feeling towards them. In some ways they were far superior to the Hyuuga, but common belief was that the Sharingan was just a mutated version (or in most clan member's eyes, a "watered down" version) of our own eye jutsu.

Personally I never thought that it was watered down. The Sharingan scared me when I was younger. At thirteen, watching Sasuke battle had scared me. The brilliant red eyes stood out and seemed so much more malicious that even my own cousin's when he had tried to take my life. Don't think I'm forgetting Neji's part of this story. I'm not. He's a very important part of my life. And I was very glad when he was revealed the truth of his father's death and came to forgive me. His friendship is highly cherished. But I'll get to that in a minute.

Anyways, a lot happened when I was thirteen. Especially with said Uchiha. First, the second matches of the Chuunin exams. I of course was coughing blood at the moment, due to the hit Neji landed during our match. I thought Neji got what he deserved when Naruto beat him. And I'm very glad Naruto did beat Neji, because afterwards my father talked to him, and Neji overcame his hatred for the Main family. We became friends after that. He was my guardian, living up to his duties as a Branch family member. But I don't think either of us saw the relationship like that. He was my older brother, looking out for his little sister. Close enough considering that we're cousins who live together. Might as well be siblings.

After that, Konoha was attacked by Orochimaru and the Sound village. Everybody fought to protect the village in some way. Everyone helped in their own way. I was only told of Naruto's stunning victory of Sabaku no Gaara. But everything worked out okay, even though the village was left without a Hokage. He was eventually replaced with Tsunade, and things seemed to be going normally again. That was when Sasuke left.

I wasn't involved with tracking him down. A good thing considering the wounds those who'd gone came back with. Neji had a hole in his chest. I was certain he would die, but thankfully Tsunade was there and was able to heal him. Kiba got pretty badly injured as well, though he was more concerned for Akarmaru and insisted that his injuries had been self inflicted. I took care of both of them for a while after that, making sure he stayed healthy. I sort of forgot about Sasuke then, concentrating on learning a new style of fighting, one that was more effective for me. At one point, Naruto's sulking over Sasuke's leaving caused me to want to at least try to do something about it. Try as we might, nothing could be discovered. Sasuke was gone.

Not too long after that, Naruto left with Jiraiya to train. I was once again lonely. But it wasn't on the same level as before. I had friends around who cared for me. Neji, Kiba, Shino, Kurenai…they all looked out for me and tried to make me happy. I trained hard, gaining respect from many people, including me father who finally accepted me as the heir to the house. I was happy for those few years. Very happy. I almost completely forgot about Naruto, even though his memory was a driving force in the back of my mind.

I had several years of successful training, Naruto came back. I was shocked to see how much he'd grown. He looked so much more mature. I even went back to my blushing, stuttering self. Because being around Naruto made me flustered. I even fainted. It was very silly of me. Going back to the way I was after so many successful steps forward. It actually made me angry. Why was I unable to face Naruto?

He continued on his mission to get Sasuke back. I had my own missions and training to take care of. I saw him on and off, whenever he had a few days rest. He never stayed in Konoha long. Tsunade was moving him around so it would be harder for the Akatsuki to locate him. The death of Asuma was a hard on everyone. Especially us on team 8. Kurenai was devastated, and with her being two months pregnant with Asuma's child, it wasn't hard to see why. I comforted her as best as I could, as did Kiba and Shino. But then all of us went out on a mission to get Sasuke back.

I guess I've finally gotten to the part most of you were waiting for. How Sasuke and I ended up falling in love. It took awhile. He says it took him about six months to realize he cared for me. It took me a little longer than that. I was of course upset by the progress of Naruto's relationship with Sakura. I'd noticed how close the two were on our trip to get Sasuke back. I'd tried to ignore it, the feeling that twisted my guts and told me that I'd lost.

But I knew that if Naruto had Sakura, he would be happy. I was willing to give up my own happiness for him. It hurt me, cut me deep, but I kept a stoic mask on. This was very difficult, but the mission came before my emotions, and this was a very important one. One that relied on me to locate Sasuke with my Byakugan.

It took us a while to catch his scent, even longer to actually find him. Thanks to my Byakugan, we got to the Uchiha brothers in time to watch the bloody conclusion of their battle. As far as I know, Itachi is dead. Though that doesn't mean he is for certain. The man is nearly invincible, and he could have found a way to revive himself. Sasuke had gotten the truth out of him, and had been confused, questioning why he'd wasted his life thus far and sought after only revenge. He was just a pawn in a game, and he resented himself for it. When he saw us, he decided to leave with us. I'm not sure what made him give in so easily after that. I guess the reason for his life had just shattered, and he no longer cared. He had no reason to run away. So he came with us quietly. We were wary of a trap, especially when Sasuke asked if he could dismiss his team.

We allowed him to do so, only as long as we could be there with him to ensure he didn't run. It was rather interesting because as soon as we showed up without Itachi, the blue haired shark-like man took off in the direction we'd come from, presumably to take care of his partner. Sasuke told his team to leave, that everything was finished. They were reluctant to leave him. But at his insistence they did as asked. He was still their superior, even if he was leaving them.

I should probably make it clear that I did not have feelings for Sasuke then. I was still crushed from losing Naruto. Actually I stayed in that heartbroken state for a while, clinging to the hope that maybe he'd lose interest in Sakura. Hoping that maybe the door would open back up for me.

They put Sasuke under house arrest, making sure that he would escape. It was a special house. There was absolutely no way for him to escape, and even if he did there were Anbu waiting for him. He was trapped. Sasuke couldn't blame them, I guess. He deserved it after betraying the village. He was allowed visitors. I know Sakura and Naruto went to visit him all the time. They would talk about how he was doing after every visit. Apparently it wasn't very good. Sasuke was even more irritable now than they'd have thought he'd be.

Deep inside of me, I understood what he was feeling. He'd lost his purpose. I felt the same too, though not quite on the same level. Naruto had been my purpose. And now he was gone, out of my grasp. "Naruto," I can remember asking, "Why does he mean so much to you?"

I got a very generic Naruto answer back. "He's my best friend! And I made a promise to get him back!" He was all grins as he wrapped his arm around Sakura's waist.

I averted my gaze, quietly saying, "I see." But he had answered nothing. I already had known everything he'd told me.

I idly wondered if Sasuke would have the answer. Of course this thought wouldn't get out of my head. I had to know. I had to know what made him special to Naruto. It took me several weeks to final gather the courage to go talk to Sasuke. And I was intimidated the moment I walked into the house. I could almost feel his anguish, the loneliness that I had suspected so long ago. I really didn't know what I was going to say. I didn't know if I'd be able to say anything. When I saw him, he was sitting cross legged on the floor, blankly staring at the wall. He didn't even acknowledge my presence. So I turned and left.

I had been a chicken but the question still lingered in my thoughts. I wondered what made Sasuke special to Naruto. I wondered if maybe I found out I could learn it and attract Naruto's attention. It was my lifeline, the small bit of hope that I hung on to desperately. So obviously, it wasn't too long after that, I went back.

This time he was a little more alert, a little less oppressive. This time he spoke. "Why are you here?" his voice asked, ice cold and emotionless.

I squeaked, trying to find the words to say. And for some reason, the words didn't come out. Tears did. The tears I'd been bottling up for so long. I started crying, falling on my knees and putting my forehead on the floor. I cried, sobbing about how much it hurt, all of my past scars and losing Naruto. I don't think Sasuke caught any of what I said. I'd blurted it out too fast.

He hadn't moved during any of my crying, only staring at me with mild interest displayed in his cocked eyebrow. I finally got control of myself and stop crying. I looked into Uchiha Sasuke's ebony eyes and sucked in a breath to steady myself. "I was wondering...if you could tell me...why are you so important to him?"

Sasuke stared past me. "We...share...similar paths."

I was confused, but I nodded and stood up to leave. "Hinata?" he called after me. I turned. "That's your name, right?" he asked.

I nodded. "Hai. I'm Hyuuga Hinata."

He closed his eyes. "Is this the first time we've spoken?"

I thought back and couldn't recall talking to him directly before. "I...think so," I answered unsteadily.

His eyes opened once more and he looked at me, eyes burning with agony. "Come again. I'll tell you what you want to know." I turned around abruptly and left, entirely uncomfortable about the feeling his presence stirred in me but excited about getting my question answered.

It took me a week of battling with myself to finally decide to go back and talk to Sasuke. I was uncomfortable around him because his aura intimidated me, but I really wanted to know. Eventually the thirst for knowledge won out, and I went back.

He didn't look up at me when I entered. He was sitting at a table drinking tea. "I was expecting you," he said, setting the cup down. I nodded and gulped. He gestured for me to sit down opposite him, and I did as asked, sinking onto my knees at the table in the place across from him.

I poured myself a cup of tea. Both of us seemed reluctant to start the conversation or even look at each other. So, in an attempt to jumpstart the conversation, I looked up at him. He swallowed. "Why is knowing important to you?" he'd asked me.

I was confused. "What?"

"Why do you want to know what it is that makes me special to Naruto?"

"I…I…" I was stuttering again. He kept his eyes off of me, gazing off into the distance. That helped me relax a bit, not having to meet his gaze. This was sort of embarrassing, especially for me to be telling him of all people. "I want to uh...see if I can get his attention. And you seemed to have had it, so I was wondering how."

Sasuke had an amused expression on his face. "What?" I asked. He just shook his head.

"You won't win," he told me gently. I was confused. "He's not going to give Sakura up for you. I may not have been around much lately, but I know how he was before..." This of course only provoked me into tears. I buried my head into my hands, crying. I didn't exactly understand why I was willing to cry in front of Sasuke. He was probably the last person in the world who I should have felt comfortable crying in front of. But for some reason, whether it was his withdrawn demeanor or the disinterest he seemed to portray, I didn't care. So I cried.

Eventually my tears ran out. I looked up only to meet his onyx eyes, my tears drying on my face. "You're in pain," he remarked flatly. I clutched my chest, trying to will the feeling away. I stood up and ran out, leaving Sasuke just sitting there. My heart was in too much pain. I raced off to my house, running into my bedroom to bury my head into my pillow just so the tears could start again.

I guess I fell asleep because the next thing that I remember was Hanabi waking me up for dinner. I felt terrible, my head hurt and I knew that I had to look rough from crying myself to sleep. I sat down, eating the prepared meal glumly. Everyone noticed my bad mood, because everyone kept sneaking glances at me. No one said anything, and after I'd finished, I excused myself and went back to my room.

A little while later there was a knock on my door. The door opened a crack and I saw the worried face of my cousin. "Hinata?" he asked quietly. "Can I come in?"

I nodded. I was sitting at my desk. Neji sat down on my bed. "What's bothering you?" he asked.

"I...I'm upset about...Naruto."

Neji nodded in understanding. "It's okay, Hinata. The boy never noticed you. He only had eyes for one person and that was Sakura. You deserve better than that."

Of course, Neji hit the sensitive nerve as well. My throat started cracking, but I refused to cry again as I said, "I only had eyes for him, nii-san."

"Oh Hinata," he said, standing up shaking his head. "Broken hearts take a while to mend. With time you'll see how everything works out for the better."

He left me then, letting me wallow in my own self-pity. Neji was smart enough to know that there was nothing he could do to make anything better. After several hours of depressive thoughts, I decided to go to bed. Crying has a way of leaving you exhausted. I climbed in bed. I was surprised when Hanabi came in then and snuggled up against me. "It's okay, Nata-chan," she whispered using her nickname for me. "You'll be okay."

The next week passed with me feeling incredibly heart-broken. I had lost all of my hope thanks to Sasuke. That of course was making me angry at him. He was dragging me to the same place he was at emotionally, unintentionally of course. He probably had no idea that I had been hiding in my room for the last week.

I wasn't planning on going back to see him again. But I had been out eating with my team. I went my separate way so that I could go home. That's when I walked past the building. All the lights were off, and I was a little concerned. The sun had just set after all. It wasn't late. So I walked in, flicking on a light switch as I went. I searched around the house, coming to his little living area. I saw a form lying on the couch, just looking up at the ceiling. "Why are you here?" the form grumbled.

"I...noticed all the lights were off and wondered if something was wrong." He glanced over at me, and then sighed.

"I'm sorry," he said.

I was perplexed. Why was he sorry? "I didn't mean to make you cry last...time."

I bowed my head, looking at the floor. "Uh...it's okay. You were telling me the truth." I didn't know why I couldn't be angry with him, even though I had wanted to be earlier.

He sat up then. "Do I...never mind," he started asking before closing his mouth.

"What?" I prompted.

"Am I frightening to you?"

I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand. "Yes...when you ask questions like that," I replied, forcing my heart to beat at a regular rhythm. He just smirked. A smile wanted to spread across my face but I didn't let it. "It depends on how you act. You're not too bad right now."

He stood up and made his way into the little kitchen. He looked through his refrigerator, only to slam the door with disgust and said, "Nothing good."

I realized I had brought my extra food home with me. "Do you want this?" I asked, offering him my bag. He glanced over at me, eyed my bag and then looked at my face. He nodded, so I walked over to him and gave him the food. "I have to go," I said as he opened up the box. "It's getting late. I need to go home."

He nodded at me. "Come over again sometime," he told me. "It's so lonely in here whenever I don't have visitors." He looked down sadly.

"I'll come by next week," I said quietly. Sasuke nodded, and I walked out of the house.

The next week came. I went to see Sasuke in the afternoon and while I was there Sakura and Naruto came in together. This tore open the still fresh scab. I sat stoically, staring at Sasuke in an attempt to block them out completely. But I couldn't do it, and when they left, I pulled my knees to my chest and was sobbing again. Sasuke sat down beside me almost awkwardly, being a presence so that I knew I wasn't all by myself. Like usual, I gained my composure, sniffling. My eyes were red, and I knew that I couldn't have looked good. Sasuke stood up when I was feeling better and said, "You might want to wash up before you leave. It'll feel good to wash away the tears with fresh water."

I nodded and did as he'd suggested. The cool tap water really did sooth the burning feeling on my eyelids, and take away the gritty feeling the trails of tears had left on my face. I dried off my face and turned around to say goodbye to Sasuke. He was sitting on his couch reading a book. He glanced up at me when I walked in. "Did it help?" he asked, referring to washing my face.

"It did. How did you know it would help?"

"I have spent a lot of time...in tears," he said. "It was a long time ago, I don't cry anymore, but I remember how it felt."

Hinata nodded. "Well thank you for your advice," she said. "I'll see you next week then?" I didn't even realize that it had come out of my mouth. Meeting once a week was becoming a habit for us. He nodded his agreement and then I left.

We continued to meet once a week for the next four months. Most of the time we would simply just drink tea and chat about irrelevant things. He asked me a lot about the Hyuuga clan's politics, and I explained them as best as I could. I knew them all of course, put some of them are difficult to explain. We were comfortable with each other. I was still quiet and shy, and he was still aloof and removed. But we were okay with sitting quietly and drinking tea when conversation wasn't needed.

During the fifth month, I decided to take Sasuke lunch one time. This ended disastrously. Neji caught me sneaking the food out of the house. "Who's this for?" he asked me.

"I'm going on a...picnic," I answered hoping he wouldn't continue his questions.

"With who?"

I sighed in defeat. I had known that this was going to be bad. "Sasuke," I answered quietly.

I was right though. Neji got very agitated, telling me that I shouldn't be eating lunch with a criminal. I just told him to get over it and walked out. I guess I didn't realize I was starting to become more like Sasuke as time went on.

The lunch was unremarkable. It was the fact that Neji decided that he was going to make it his personal mission to keep my away from Sasuke after that. So the next week I didn't show up thanks to him. I missed seeing Sasuke actually. It was strange. I hadn't really thought I would feel that much for him. Still I figured we were just really good friends at that point. Sasuke had come to another conclusion though. And it would take about five more months for me to figure out what it was.

I snuck out of the house that night, to apologize to Sasuke for my Neji being a total jerk. I was surprised that when I entered Sasuke wrapped me up in a hug. "I'm glad you're okay. You didn't show up...I was worried." I shook my head, and told him all about my cousin kidnapping me. He smiled at that, a real genuine smile. I'd never actually seen it before so I was startled. "As long as you're okay," he said.

I was a little concerned about his change of behavior. Why was he suddenly worried about me? He'd never seemed that interested before. But I accepted it as he was finally starting to open up to me. So I figured that meant I could open up to him too.

After that night Sasuke wanted to see me more. He'd been in his "home" for about eight months, and it was making him antsy. We spent a day cleaning it. And I got to decorate. It was funny to watch his facial expression when he realized I'd put a pink shower curtain up. I also got to decorate the other rooms too and by the time I was done, it actually looked bright and happy and not so much like a prison.

Eventually he'd reached a year in his confine, and Tsunade decided he was allowed to go outside. I, of course, was overjoyed by this news because the little house I visited very frequently was starting to annoy me. And if it annoyed me that much when I spent so much less time there compared to Sasuke, it must have been killing him on the inside.

One of the things I liked about Sasuke during this time of our friendship was how he could totally take my mind off of Naruto. It was almost like he was the replacement. But not. Sasuke was too different to be considered a replacement. He was like something brand new.

I remember the first day of his freedom. I was with him because it was a big deal to me. Fortunately, Neji gave up on preventing me from visiting Sasuke when he learned I was sneaking out at night. He figured visiting in the daylight was safer than sneaking out so he just let me go.

I was surprised that Father didn't care about the amount of time I spent with Sasuke. It seemed like something he should have been opposed to. Considering that he thought that the Sharingan was just "a watered down version of the Byakugan." At the time, I thought it was because he could see that I was finally happy again. I was more outspoken and stronger after spending time with Sasuke, and he wasn't about to put a stop to that kind of behavior.

Of course, I know differently now. Father could see that I was falling in love with him, just as he could see that Sasuke was already in love with me. I have no idea how he knew this, but he did. He told me that he'd let me go because he'd always wondered what a Sharingan Byakugan cross would be like.

It's funny to contemplate on that, but I still haven't told you how I found out that Sasuke liked me. On the day he was released, he decided that he wanted to spar. And since I was the only immediate person available, we just decided to spar against each other. He took it easy on me obviously, even though he really hadn't done much training for a year.

I was using my soft fist style, trying to hit him in the arm. He was only using taijutsu, and he didn't even have the Sharingan activated. I wouldn't have wanted to deal with his many variations of Chidori either. Anyways, as I moved in for the hit, he side stepped and caught my wrist. I really don't remember exactly what happened, but I ended up on the ground…underneath of him.

Sasuke's face was very close to mine. I could feel his breath brush against my neck. My face flushed…that's an understatement, it felt like I was burning. His body pressed against mine, pinning me down. He lips moved closer to mine. My mouth hung open is shock. And then he kissed me.

It's hard to describe. I was surprised that he'd done it, but I realized that it was what I wanted. I had never admitted it to myself, but I had fallen for Sasuke. And now he was kissing me in such a magical and seductive way I hoped it would never stop.

It had to end though. Neither of us could breathe with how tightly we were clinging to each other. He pulled back and stared into my eyes. My heart fluttered as I gazed into his ebony eyes. What I saw in them was so much different from what I'd seen there the first time I'd visited him. He was content now. I realized that my eyes probably reflected the same thing. "Sasuke," I whispered as I reached up to brush his bangs out of his face.

"Hinata...I think I've fallen in love with you," Sasuke said, giving me a quick kiss before climbing off of me. I stared up at him, still too breathless to actually make my body do anything. He reached his hand down to pull me up.

I accepted, grabbing his hand and letting him haul me to my feet. I stumbled into his chest, and he caught me, wrapping his arms around my waist. I didn't know what was going on and was still in a daze. I should have seen it before now. This relationship had grown so gradually, the growth had been almost indiscernible. But I realized why it had happened. While he pulled me out of the darkness inside of me, I pulled him out of the darkness inside of him. We had grown close over time. And even though we learned on that day that we loved each other, we were not ones to rush into anything.

We started by walking hand-in-hand back to the center of the village. He was walking me home. It was probably the most awkward moment of my life. Everyone was watching us, and I knew the news would spread fast. The survivor of the Uchiha clan was romantically involved with the Hyuuga heiress. I sighed knowing that I'd have to tell father as soon as we got home.

I was very surprised when Sasuke did it for me. He walked into father's chambers and introduced himself formally. He asked my father if he could date me. I watched my father's eyes light up with amusement. I thought he was going to say no, but he stood up, clapped Sasuke on the shoulder, and told him, "She's yours as long as she stays as happy as she's been the last few months spending time with you." Sasuke nodded his thanks and flashed me a grin.

We just got closer and closer after that. We broke down our barriers even more. Sasuke told me about his brother, I told him about my mother. Our lives were laid bare to each other. There were no secrets. We started taking our relationship to a more physical level, seeing how far we were willing to take it. I eventually set my foot down and told him that we weren't going to seal the deal until we were married.

He agreed to it with a smirk on his face. What I didn't know was that he'd already asked my father for permission. So the moment I'd said, "Not until we're married," he pulled out a ring and asked me to be his wife. I was totally unprepared for it. But I of course said yes. We'd been together for a year and a half then. I knew that he was what I wanted.

So my wish from when I was a child was going to be coming true. I was getting married. It was a larger ceremony than I had wanted, but Father insisted that I invite the entire Hyuuga clan. I was the heiress after all, so the wedding was important in the clan. Other than that, I only invited people close to me and Sasuke. Hanabi was my maid of honor and Kurenai, Tenten, and Sakura were my bridesmaids. I'd forgiven Sakura a long time ago. Sasuke had roped Neji, Shikamaru, and Kakashi into being groomsmen. Naruto was the best man.

It was my dream wedding. I'll never forget holding onto my father's arm walking the aisle. Or the look on Sasuke's face as he watched me. Everything was perfect. We kissed passionately after our vows were exchanged. Everyone cheered and I couldn't help but let the tears of joy flow out of my eyes.

We had a reception afterwards. Everything had been held at the Hyuuga compound because it was big enough for everyone. Sasuke couldn't keep his hands off of me the whole time. I knew what he was waiting for, and I certainly understood the feeling. It's what I wanted more than anything else. But we had to stay until the party died down. That, of course, didn't prevent Sasuke from tracing every inch of my skin with his fingers.

Eventually the party ended, everyone giving us their blessing. Sasuke and I had decided to go to the Uchiha mansion, knowing that the Hyuuga compound would not offer us any privacy. Sasuke had made a jest about having to thank Itachi for giving him this kind of privacy. Our wedding night was...well...it was awkward and good. I'm blushing madly just thinking about it, so that's all you get to know.

We've been living together, as man and wife for a little over two years now. Not too much has changed. Sasuke works as an Anbu having been forgiven of his past sins. I teach at the academy. I love children, but as of yet haven't been able to conceive. We live in the Uchiha mansion, but I frequently get called to clan meetings. We've stayed with my father a good number of times too. He always likes to nag us about not producing any grandchildren. Sasuke always takes it as a blow to his ego. And yes, Sasuke still has an ego.

Every time I reflect on this, what Neji and Hanabi told me when I was going through my rough spot always seems to stand out. Hanabi had said that everything would be fine, that I would be okay. Neji told me, "With time you'll see how everything works out for the better." And I definitely can see that. I said that destiny slaps up in the face. That's true...to an extent. Destiny has a funny way of taking our dreams and making them more than what we ever hoped for. And in the process of changing the dreams, you have to struggle. I thought that I wanted Naruto. But that ended up hurting me. Hurting me in a way that would lead me to connect with Sasuke, and end up with the man of my dreams.

Next time you'll get to see Sasuke's side of this story. I'm very excited to see how he describes this! See you all and thanks so much for reading my story.