This Is Where We All Come From

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Chapter One

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People turned their heads as a pink haired girl walked briskly past them and into the school with a paper coffee cup held firmly in her hand. Her face devoid of any emotion as she clutched her messenger bag strap to her shoulder. She ignored the stares as she walked past the glass entrance doors and towards her first class. She was used to it. Ever since she had dyed her hair people had taken on the habit of staring at her and whispering behind her back.

They said that she was unstable. She was far from it. They said it was because her family left her. She could care less about them. She only had a few more months of school left before she would be able to graduate half a year early and work full time at the café that she had grown to love. It was her second home. The smiles from her co-workers helping her live on with her life without fail.

By passing a few more staring classmates she walked into her first class of the day. Dropping her bag on the floor by her desk she sat her cup of coffee on the table with a small tap. Sliding into the seat, she reached into her bag and pulled out her drawing pad flipped through the covered pages until she got to a blank one, and started to sketch the many images that were starting to race through her mind.

Some would call her warped. Actually many called her warped, and perhaps, perhaps maybe she was. Just a smidgen.

The pictures she drew were always a little on the demented side, with a splash of whimsical. She loved the color and she loved surrealism. But not nearly as much as she loved way the red of blood and the strange position of broken limbs. Thus the demented side. She had numerous drawings with people having pikes shoved through their throats. Okay, so she was definitely warped. But hey, it wasn't like anyone was going to ever look through her book. The only people she ever even conversed with were her best friend Naruto and her boss Deidara.

But they weren't the only types of drawings she would create. She had numerous other ones, the ones that she actually let people view and critique. At a young age her mother had enrolled her in all sorts of classes. From art history all the way to photography. Her mother had made sure that she had knowledge of as many different types of art as possible. And because of all the classes that her mother had enrolled her in, she had pretty much grown up alone. And that didn't bother her, not even in the slightest. If anything she loved the feeling of not having people around her all day. It was probably the reason why she only had the two friends that she did have, and tolerated the rest.

She was proud that she didn't need someone to share a bed with. Cough like that girl Ino cough. She didn't need anyone, she liked her solitude. Besides to her she was too young to share a bed with anyone permanently. She had the rest of her life to look for her one and only. She had had her fair share of boyfriends, some more physical than others. But all of them she had eventually lost interest in and left behind. Not really ever feeling terrible about dumping them and moving on. Broken hearts shmoken hearts.

There were times though, when she felt as if she lacked emotions, and she was pretty sure there were quite a few people who would agree with that assumption – namely her ex's. Moving her pencil across the now slightly colored in paper she listened contently to the sound of the lead connect with the course paper.

Students were now filing into the classroom, some glancing over at her and then whispering to their friends. But as always she ignored their curious and frigid looks, instead focusing on the picture that was slowly being created by her talented hand. She would have thought that by now, they would have got used to seeing her with her bright hair. She had known that she would cause quite a stir when she first done it, but what she hadn't known was that it would still be causing a stir, 7 months later. But apparently her peers were a bunch of curious and judgmental fucks. Always debating the reason why the girl with the slightly large forehead and the gorgeous blonde hair had dyed her hair a color that was unnatural.

She really didn't have a good reason for her hair color. It was mostly a spur of the moment thing. She had woken up one morning and looked down at the hair dye that she had bought on a whim and had decided that she wanted to be different. Wanted to look different, wanted to be perceived differently. Well she definitely got that. And she had been so happy when her boss had just shrugged his shoulders at her new change and then fished out a blonde wig that he had used once for cosplay so that she could still work in the general public.

When the tragedy had happened it had been Sakura's choice to stay in Japan. Letting her father move back to the states, comforting him, telling him that she would be safe by staying with her Aunt Tsunade. Her father hadn't asked many questioned. He had only kissed her head and boarded the plane that would take him so many miles away from her. She had stayed with Naruto for a few weeks, trying to figure out what she was going to do. Because to be completely honest she wasn't about to bother her busy aunt. It was easier to bother Naruto and his perverted guardian than bother her aunt that was known for her short temper and her vicious swings.

It was just a normal day when she had walked into her favorite café after school with her favorite English novel in her hand. She had every intention of sitting at her favorite table by one of the large bay windows, sipping on her caramel and chocolate cappuccino as she read about Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett. She didn't know what had made her ask for an application. It was just a random feeling that sparked inside her. One of those slightly uplifting feelings that she would sometimes randomly get. Reminding her of the good old days when her family was happy and together, without any stress from any diseases or financial woes.

She had filled out the application with a swiftness that she didn't realize that she had. And it had only been a few days after that she had received a phone call from her what would then be her boss to come in for an interview. And it seemed from the moment that she had sat down in front of the blond haired man in her flannel shirt and ripped up, washed out jeans and combat boots. With her blonde hair at the time piled up on top of her head that everything was going to go in the right direction. To this day she still wasn't sure why he had hired her. He claimed it was because her of quirkiness and her no nonsense attitude. But either way she had never been more grateful. And it had only been a week after starting that job that her boss had offered to let her live in his old bachelor pad that was located above the café.

Her eyebrow slightly twitched as she heard a loud voice enter the room, not bothering to look up from her sketch book she ignored the noise and continued the shade in the character that she had thought up. Only bothering to glance up when she noticed the loud mouth plop down in the seat next to her.

"Naruto." She greeted with a soft voice and a slight nod. She didn't bother to avert her gaze away from her drawing as she felt him lean against her and look peer down at the image she was currently creating.

"Morbid." He said with an approving voice. His tone of voice and proximity caused her to finally look up from her progress she eyed her blonde haired friend and let a small smirk come to her un-glossed lips. He was grinning ear to ear with his hands folded behind his head.

"What is it that you want me to do?" She asked slowly as she set her pencil down and flexed her sore fingers. Smiling sheepishly he positioned himself into a more comfortable angle.

"You are coming over to teme's house with me after school." He said diligently. Sakura stared at him blankly before rolling her eyes and picking her pencil up and moving her attention back to her drawing.

"You have to Saki-chan!" He cried latching onto her arm. Stilling her pencil she stared down at her drawing in thought. Not bothering to look at her friend who was currently clinging to her arm, she knew that he would have a look of pleading etched onto his face.

"Why?" She asked, causing the blonde haired boy to smile broadly. He got an answer from her which was more than what he was used too. He was one step closer to getting her to agree with him. Out of all their years as friends, he knew that he was only one of the few that she really bothered with. Being an introvert, she didn't really go out. Usually when she did she would have more attention that what she really cared for.

"Because," Naruto began his broad smile still on his face. "His brother is in town. He needs our moral support."

Glancing at her friend she sat her pencil down once again and placed her chin in her hand, turning slightly so that she could give him her full attention.

"You want me to go to Sasuke-kun's house and give him moral support?" She asked, repeating what he had just said. Nodding vigorously at her statement her gave her another hopeful look. He knew that she didn't really care for the dark haired Uchiha. They had always clashed, him always insulting his fan girls and her always annoyed by his good looks. Naruto was almost convinced it was because she was attracted to him when she didn't want to be.

"Do I possibly get to see him get shit from his brother?" She asked with a slight quirk to her lips. Naruto couldn't help but let out a laugh at her sadistic nature and nodded his head in confirmation. She let a full smile come to her lips. "Pick me up from work at nine."

"Score!" He yelled as he removed his hand away from her arm and leaned back in his chair slouching a bit. He was just happy that he finally got the girl to agree to visit the Uchiha household with him, even though it was only because she wanted to see him get tortured by his older brother. But hey it was a step in the right direction. He didn't say anything for the rest of the period, letting the pink haired girl go back to her sketchbook.

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AN: I'm Baaaaaaaack. Did you miss me?