Ink and Pastels:
I. Meet.
The array of colors all fluttered around her. Fragments of his sketches peppered the ground beneath her feet. "Drawing something so beautiful is too agonizing."
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Sakura was cold.
The wind was howling around her, casting about a plethora of leaves and other pieces of debris.
The city of Konoha was bright tonight. The season of fall had slowly crept out and the days were growing colder. Leaves were trickling down from the trees. Flashes of reds, oranges, and browns surrounded her everywhere.
Lights seemed to twinkle in the illumination of the dark night sky. Stars were plastered across the black and dark blue canvas it offered. The moon was incandescent, beaming down on the citizens.
She hugged herself tighter, hoping that her embrace would block out the frigid breeze. She shoved her hands in the sleeves of her red fleece coat. A feeling of warmth was aided extremely by her knee-high light brown boots, where her feet were covered in fuzzy blue socks. Her boots clanked with each step she took on the cobblestone sidewalk.
Walking home alone. At night. Due to her prior engagement that evening being a complete fluke.
She had gone on a date.
That was awful. Terrible. Horrendous. Mortifying. She was sure she could spend the whole evening trek back to her apartment complex with a nasty list of adjectives for how her night had gone.
First of all, she hadn't even given her consent to this outing with Sai - a coworker of her roommate's who obviously had not seen that they were most definitely not compatible for one another.
Secondly, he had been late. And when he had the audacity to finally show up he didn't even apologize. He seemed to gaze upon her as though she was the one in the wrong.
Conversation was fleeting. Awkward and disinterested.
The dinner was bland. Too many small courses, she would have much rather settled down in the coffee shop - Buns and Beans that her friend Tenten owned - and eaten a cheese burger then to of repeated that meal.
Thirdly, he hadn't even payed. Not that she was rude enough not to offer but it was the first date, men were always supposed to pay.
Having been completely outraged, she simply smiled at him and left. Now here she was clad in a sparkly cream dress, stained with droplets of wine from having risen too quickly from her chair, and completely miserable.
Sakura sighed morosely, pushing up the strand of her black purse higher on her shoulder.
She wanted some coffee.
Maybe a nice long bubble bath and a thick novel to accompany her. And after that a thick glass of wine and she could snuggle in her covers while movies droned in the background noise of her room.
She didn't even know why her roommate bothered setting her up on these stupid dates.
They always ended in a disaster.
She was never interested in any of these men. She had high standards and none of them seemed to fit with her mental check list. Or wanted to.
And yet she continued to let her best friend draw her into these complicated situations. She just supposed maybe one of these times it could finally work out. The fiftieth time was the charm, right? Right.
She tucked a wispy strand of pastel pink hair behind her ear. She had even gotten all fancied up. Slightly short hair that just barely touched her shoulders rolled into curls at the bottom. A side braid on the right part of her head led to a silver flower clip.
She who never wore make up, at least not as much as Ino - her roommate - had applied a thin line of black eyeliner above her upper eyelashes, sparkling gold eye shadow, and a thick coating of black mascara on her light eyelashes.
And for what.
It had all been pointless.
She even ruined one of her favorite dresses. The stain would take forever to get out, if it even would cooperate.
Kami.
She really wanted some coffee.
And that cheeseburger.
What a night.
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Her knuckles raked on the glass front doors of Buns and Beans.
Sakura was standing outside the coffee shop and bakery with a pained expression on her face. One of her hands was clenched into a fist and was slammed up against the now finger-printed smudged surface.
"Come on Tenny, why couldn't you have stayed open fifteen extra minutes? All I wanted was some coffee. Well...that and a cheeseburger. Maybe some pie. Not really sure about that yet - " She continued to ramble to the door which was obviously going to stay locked. The interior was pitch black. Not a flicker of light could be seen, except the reflections of car headlights and street lamps.
She ignored the weird and possibly amused stares she knew she was being plastered with as people walked past her.
It was eleven at night.
She was cold. And tired. And simply hungry.
She couldn't fathom how her friend couldn't have possibly known that and kept her business open for an extended amount of time. Groaning and grumbling against the door, she halted in her melodramatic performance at the snide chuckle coming a few feet away from her.
Turning her head in the direction of the noise, she blinked.
A man was sitting on a park bench positioned beneath a kousa dogwood. The ankle of his left black pant clad leg was resting on his right kneecap. A thick book was sprawled across his lap.
He was utterly gorgeous but Sakura merely ignored that thought for the moment.
What kind of person sat on a bench at eleven o'clock at night in the bleak cold reading a novel?
This idiot.
His hair was dark. Upturned in all different angles, a messy blend of wayward strands and what she knew were probably small curls. He was wrapped up in a smooth black peacoat, a thick blue scarf tightly secured around his neck. The street lamp above him highlighted his tight jawline, the pretty cheekbones, the light trace of stubble on his chin, the thin lips that were pulled into quite an amused but slightly mocking smirk.
His hands were folded atop the book, his knuckles straining from the tension of his grip.
Had he been sitting there watching her the whole time?
Creep.
"Talking to inanimate objects might appear as signs of insanity." Sakura's eyebrow twitched as she tried to compose herself.
"Sitting on a bench at night watching strangers wither in agony might appear as signs of a pedophile." She quipped in response, taking small steps down the three mini step staircase, her hands tightly gripping both sides of the white iron railing.
One of his dark eyebrows quirked upward at her words interlaced with a slight hostility. "Bad night, princess?" He lowered his foot towards the ground. He gestured at the wide berth of space on the bench beside him.
"Bad isn't a colorful enough word to describe how my night was, handsome." She plopped herself beside him on the bench, completely disregarding all the warning bells firing off in her skull. He could be out here to kill her.
He could be out here to rape her.
Or.
He could just be a normal human man sitting on a bench and enjoying a good book while watching fall overtake Konoha.
A montage of possibilities fluctuated around in her head, her beryl green eyes peering off into the expanse of the street, slightly damp due to the earlier unanticipated onslaught of rain droplets.
She didn't notice the way the man beside her was trying to hold back the humor that was threatening to take over his face. His dark eyes were lit with this absolute fascination towards her reactions and possible tendencies to run off on tangents in her own mind.
"Well. What do you say to us in the morning at a reasonable hour when this establishment is open grabbing a cup of coffee and you can discuss it? Unless you have an appointment to be admitted for your condition." She blinked at the words that tumbled from his lips. Internally swooned at the deep voice that enveloped those words, the very faint unidentifiable accent that licked the undertones of his annunciation.
"Ignoring your jabs at my mentality, and all the possibilities that you are the crazy one and aren't going to follow me home and kill me - I say alright. I'll see you at nine o'clock."
"Hn." Was that even a word? She frowned at the ground. Her lips parted in confusion, ready to berate him and his vocabulary - when she noticed him halfway down the street, book tucked neatly under his arm.
She sighed to herself.
What a night, indeed.
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"What? I set you up with Sai - which I'm totally sorry about Forehead, I didn't know he was such an anti-socialist, really - and you end up on a breakfast date with a seemingly bang-able hunk?"
"You could phrase it that way." She listened to Ino babble for a few minutes about how this was incredible, and how she was so lucky and why didn't she have a boyfriend yet?
She had been living with Ino in their small two bedroom, one bathroom apartment for about four years. Ino owned a small flower shop in the middle of eighth street - Buns and Beans was on the corner of sixteenth - and teached at a dance studio owned by a woman named Anko (who was like a crazy aunt to the both of them, always inviting them over for dinner at her fiance Kakashi's house) on tenth. She seemed busier than herself who worked part time at the hospital, straining to obtain her medical degree to become a doctor.
It was often rough trying to get by but they made it work together. They both worked long hours on end every week, and occasionally found the time to enjoy themselves. Generally with their gang of friends that consisted of Tenten, whom owned Buns and Beans. Tenten was certainly someone you couldn't forget. She had sharp brown eyes, and signature buns on each side of her head that concealed the beautiful waves of caramel colored hair Sakura knew she had. She was exceptional at baking, and harbored a secret interest in weapons, the origins of how that came to be she was still puzzled over.
The one thing that made Tenten such a character was that she didn't date. Sakura could go on for hours about the many failed mistrials of her love life and Tenten would listen to her rants, always offering advice.
But.
She never talked about her own love life. Sakura had heard she had been engaged once, but that it had ended badly due to the death of her parents on the night of the engagement but she had never inquired any details. She knew Tenten would share her story when she was ready. That perhaps she was still in love with the man she had been engaged to and that was why she didn't date.
Then there was Hinata. She was the epitome of bashful. She was a shy kindergarten teacher, with long cobalt hair and shocking opaque white-violet eyes. Hinata was shy, and was like the mother of the group. She was the one who mended the fights, offered her house when everyone wanted to sleep over and discuss the latest hassles of work.
And finally, Karin. She was a spitfire. Bright crimson hair, fiery crimson eyes to match and a sharp tongue. Karin worked as a lawyer and was the busiest out of the whole group. She barely had any free time - especially on top of dealing with her off and on relationship with her boyfriend Suigetsu who had his own sharp wit. They were perfect for each other. They just fought too much and worked too hard to solve their problems. Suigetsu owned an auto shop with Ino's boy-toy Kiba and another man who supposedly was moving back after having lived in Oto for college.
Shaking off her reminiscing, she slipped her feet into her white lace flats. She had let her hair run down freely, the ends still tended to curl out creating this messy feel to her hair. She let it be, hooking dangling silver feather earrings into the pierced holes in her ear.
Ino was fluttering about, trying to find all the things she needed before she had to depart to the dance studio for an intense session teaching fifth graders how to pirouette. Sakura rearranged her light gray sweater, wiping her hands on her pale blue jeans.
"You'd better tell me all the details, Forehead. Better yet, call me on my lunch break. I'll hopefully see you for dinner later, ciao!" Sakura shook her head at the mass of long blonde hair that rushed out the front door.
Eight o'clock.
Just an hour until she went to meet this peculiar stranger on the bench.
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The strong aroma of coffee filled her nostrils as her shoes quietly headed their way from the cobblestone sidewalk into Buns and Beans, hesitating just briefly before realizing there were people inside and the sign indicated it was indeed open.
The bristling wind safely behind her, a pest vanquished for the moment as she was able to take solace in the confines of the shop - she made her way to her usual spot by the large bay window.
Plopping herself into the cushioned red leather chair, she tossed her black purse into the empty chair next to her. Beryl green eyes glanced outside the window, her chin resting in the palm of her hand, her fingers lightly tapping the side of her left cheek.
It was eight forty-five.
Her leg bounced against the floor.
Eyes constantly flickering towards the entrance of the door to see if someone had walked in, even though the bell above the door would jingle if someone had.
Giving up, she directed her attention around. There was still the same leather seats, cushioned just right but with slight tears from the overuse. The white brick walls were pristine, lined with bookshelves and assortments of posters and other memorabilia like trophies from Tenten's childhood and newspaper clippings of the success of the business since its opening.
The window she peered out of was slightly steamy from the warmth of the plethora of coffee machines grinding up the beans and hissing with the release of the intoxicating fluids.
Snippets of conversation filled her ears from the mouths of the mass hordes of people that were already in the vicinity, a few empty tables appearing that needed to be cleaned.
Tucking stray wisps of pastel pink hair behind her pierced ears she brushed away her bangs from her eyes. Her white teeth slowly chewed on the inside corner of her mouth - a bad habit she still couldn't rid herself from.
Her attention was grabbed from her mulling over the sheer indication that this was just a joke and she should head home by a large white cup of steaming coffee being placed in front of her, along with a bagel toasted and dotted with a hefty smudge of cream cheese.
"You know me so well." A large grin plastered itself on her face as she stared at Tenten.
"Of course I do, stupid. Plus you order sort of the same thing every morning. Mix it up sometimes. But yeah, enjoy. How'd your date go? With the idiot Sigh that Pig set you up with, right?"
"Sai. Ugh. I don't feel like talking about last night, Tenny. It was embarrassing. Come over later?"
"Tch. Sure, sure. See you later, Sak!"
She watched Tenten depart into the back confines of the shop, and froze when she noticed a familiar figure perched in the back corner booth. His head was perched over the table, his wind-blown hair more styled into a gelled back wave this morning.
She gawked when she noticed the black ink plastered all over his arms, indicated since he had his dark green long sleeves pushed up to his forearms. A few short stray black strands of hair lingered along his forehead and into his eyes which she noticed him irritably push back. He seemed to be drawing she assumed, noticing the black smears on the pads of his fingers.
Standing up - she stumbled a few seconds, having to grip the edge of the table to stable herself - she made her way over to where he was sitting. She slid into the booth seat across from him, her purse resting beside her. She gently held her coffee cup in her hands, having left her bagel at the table by accident.
Leaning forward slightly, she caught a glimpse of bright pink and a mass shading of different colored flowers before the sketchbook she had been suspiciously staring down at was yanked away from her view. Scowling, she fixated the culprit with a glare.
"Excuse you, I was looking at that. Mind putting it back on the table?"
"Hn."
"Hn isn't a word. I suggest you expand your vocabulary, buy a dictionary."
"Good morning to you too, Sakura. Right? I'm assuming Sak' is a shortened version."
Sakura rolled her eyes. Of course he had been eavesdropping. She disregarded the fact that it must have meant that he had noticed her walk in and he had been entirely fixated on her, instead focusing on how to pick on him.
"It's rude to listen to a conversation you aren't a part of, Picasso."
"It's rude to pry into someone else's drawings, princess."
"My name isn't princess. It's Sakura."
"Aa. Sasuke." She took a moment to digest the sound of his name, running it over in her mind. Sasuke. Sasuke. Sasuke. She hoped the whirling mass of moths attacking the pits of her stomach was because she needed to go to the bathroom.
She noticed he had folded his sketchbook closed, hiding it in the area of space beside him in the booth. He didn't seem to mind the smears of pastel littering his fingertips. Licks of color of pastel she could see were decked along his wrists, where his tattoos started. Intricate black lines, depicting what seemed like a garden of flowers. But she couldn't tell for sure as he had shoved his sleeves back down.
She sent a deadpan expression in his direction of which he just stared at her calmly. A steaming mug of coffee lay filled to the brim near the napkin holder. He must have been so engrossed in his drawing he hadn't noticed his coffee being dropped off.
Sakura took an elongated sip of her cup of coffee, relishing in the warmth it spread through her insides. The rich, strong taste that filled her mouth.
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"He didn't pay? Moron."
"Exactly. I mean I don't think the guy should have to pay all the time, but the first date? It's just courteous. Then yeah, that's how I came here. I didn't realize how late it was. What were you doing outside anyway? Stalking young women to get them to drink coffee with you?" He smirked and she sighed.
They had been sitting in the booth for about an hour and a half, just discussing how her night had gone.
Sasuke wasn't really a man of many words nor expressions but she found herself amused by the reactions he did give off. It made her want to find out more about him.
"Reading. I enjoy reading outside this time of year. Meeting you like this was pure luck," She felt her cheeks flush slightly, her teeth chewing lightly on the corner of her lip again. As she tried to gather her thoughts, he reached back to draw on his black peacoat. She tried not to watch the way his muscles tightened beneath his sweater. "Aa. Well as much as I'd enjoy continuing this debate with words, I have to get to work."
He rose from the seat, stuffing the sketchbook into a black messenger bag that must have been on the floor. He noticed Tenten nearing them and the corner of his lip turned upwards. When she reached the table he took that moment to leave, leaving Sakura a gaping mess.
"Well Sakura, I'd say this breakfast date was more of a success than last night, huh?"
"What?"
"He wanted me to give you this." Tenten handed her the receipt as well as a small piece of ripped white sketchbook paper that he had written on. She laughed as she watched the flush of crimson flood her friends' cheeks and left her to read the note Sasuke had left her.
Princess -
I'd say our first date was a success, wouldn't you?
I paid as courteous men do when on the first date.
I anticipate you enjoyed our time spent together, so I have included the address where I work if you would like to see me again sometime.
I'd give you my number so you could hear my lovely voice but aa, I don't know you that well enough yet.
Sasuke.
She shoved the receipt into the depths of her purse, shoving her hands into the palms of her hands as she tried to slow her rapidly beating heart. This man was simply infuriating. First date? That was nonsense. They knew nothing about each other. Except their names. And well he knew about things she liked to do on dates, and she knew that he liked to draw and read books and drink coffee. And okay. Well. Still. Flustered, she exhaled sharply and tried not to let a smile creep it's way onto her face as it so badly wanted to do.
I don't own Naruto.
This idea creeped up on me and I had to write it down.
I hope you enjoy (: