Dedication: Renalin (again!). This was originally dedicated to her, then I e-mailed it to her and she made it all better. Thanks a bunch babe!
Disclaimer: I'm not in the mood for spending the night in jail on St. Patricks Day, so yeah, I don't own Naruto.
Uchiha Sasuke was and is every girls dream. He was strong, smart, mysterious, and most obviously, gorgeous. So it was fitting that almost every girl in Konoha was obsessed with him. That boy unknowingly tore apart a true friendship, one that you could see with your own eyes. One that you could touch, feel, nurture.
Ino had been there to protect Sakura, since the little girl needed a boost of confidence. Her forehead was only slightly bigger than average, but the way some girls put it, it was proportional to the sky.
But then their bond had been sullied when Sakura found out about Uchiha Sasuke. And then, Ino got jealous, ripping apart their friendship. It didn't quite work though; Ino never stopped protecting Sakura and Sakura never stopped caring for Ino.
Though they didn't find this out until later, when Ino found Sakura huddled at the base of a tree, sobbing, because she had offered everything she had to give and Sasuke had spat it back in her face.
At that moment, Ino didn't think that she had loathed anyone so much in her entire life.
She still hated him when he returned, and although Sakura and Naruto forgave their friend, Ino never did. Even at Sasuke and Sakura's wedding, she grabbed the Uchiha by the shirt collar, dragged him off and threatened him. She doesn't exactly remember what she said, but she knew it included the words 'heartbreak' and 'dickless'.
When Ino thought back that far, she believed it was something about if Sasuke hurt Sakura, he would find himself unable to restore the Uchiha clan. If she ever found out that he had hurt Sakura in any way, she would personally ensure that procreation was forever imposible for him.
But still, there are days when Ino sits and thinks about their past. When Sasuke had been her God, the very thing she had strived for. He was perfect in every way, but the results of such beauty were disastrous. He was like fire; pretty to look at, but would burn if you got too close.
And now there is Shikamaru, walking towards her with that lazy slouch but the half smile that forms on his face upon seeing her. He walks up to her, and she kisses him. "Troublesome," he mutters, but kisses her back.
And suddenly, Ino is glad that she didn't get her Prince Charming, and that Sakura is Sasuke's Cinderella. She's got her own fairytale right here.